The Good Ole Days
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June 17th is the anniversary of the Battle of the Rosebud which occurred in 1876 during Great Sioux War of 1976-77. The battle happened when cavalry and infantry forces of General George Crook advancing north to support Generals Terry and Gibbon along the Yellowstone encountered a Sioux and Cheyenne encampment on the South Fork of the Rosebud as it emerged from the Wolf Mountains in Montana Territory. Led by Crazy Horse, the Sioux and Cheyenne gave a good fight. The battle was a draw, but both sides suffered significant causalities. Crook was shaken by the fight and decided to move south back into Wyoming to regroup and refresh his forces. He made camp with ~ 500 men on Goose Creek near present day Sheridan, Wyoming on the eastern flanks of the Big Horn Mountains. He stayed there five weeks, unaware for weeks of the Custer defeat just north of him which happened on June 25th.
Crook’s men needed to feed themselves and relied heavily on fish and wildlife available to them. The army as it was wont to do, kept records and one record keeper, Captain John Gregory Bourke, Crooks’ aide kept detailed diaries. Years later, when Bourke was writing about his years with Crook in the west he made this remarkable observation. “[paraphrased] During their five week encampment on Goose Creek the men enjoyed much fishing and hunting in the local area. Based on my daily records, I estimate that some 15,000 fish were caught and consumed by the troop along with 100s of bear, deer, elk and antelope.”
Today, Goose Creek and its tributaries is a viable trout stream with Browns, Rainbows and Cutthroats. Imagine what it must have been like in 1876 when 500 men could take 15,000 fish in five weeks. That’s about 450 fish per day. The majority of the fish were most certainly cutthroats. In reality, most of the men didn’t fish and the catches were made by a skillful minority of anglers. Those were the good ole days.
Strategy without Tactics is a Slow Route to Victory, Tactics without Strategy is the Noise Before Defeat - Sun Tzu
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