US ResearchConflictsIndian Wars and Frontier ConflictsBattle of Cherry Creek (Cheyenne Raid 1865)
Indian Wars and Frontier Conflicts

Battle of Cherry Creek (Cheyenne Raid 1865)

1865
Colorado
Era
Indian Wars and Frontier Conflicts
Year
1865
Location
Colorado
Status
Verified engagement
The Combatants

Who Fought

Forces
Not recorded in historical accounts
Forces
United States Army
VS
Victor
Cheyenne/Arapaho
Forces
Apaches
Outcome
United States Army victory with capture of remaining three Apaches
The Battle

History & Significance

The Cherry Creek campaign occurred in March 1890 and was one of the final conflicts between hostile Apaches and the United States Army. It began after a small group of Apaches killed a freight wagon operator, near the San Carlos Reservation, and was part of the larger Apache campaign, beginning in 1889, to round up Apaches who had left the reservations. The American army fought a skirmish with the Apaches near Globe, Arizona, at the mouth of Cherry Creek, which resulted in the deaths of two hostiles and the capture of the remaining three.

Historical context

The Indian Wars encompass more than three centuries of armed conflict between the United States government, American settlers, and Indigenous nations — from the Powhatan Wars of the 1620s through the final Plains campaigns of the late 19th century. The eastern conflicts — King Philip's War (1675–1676), the Tuscarora War (1711–1715), and the Creek and Seminole Wars — largely ended organized Indigenous resistance east of the Mississippi by the 1840s. On the Great Plains, the Sioux Wars (1854–1890), Red River War (1874–1875), and Nez Perce War (1877) followed the displacement wrought by the transcontinental railroad and the near-extinction of the American bison — an estimated 30 to 60 million animals reduced to fewer than 1,000 by 1890. The Ghost Dance religious movement and the massacre at Wounded Knee (December 29, 1890), in which US cavalry killed approximately 250 Lakota men, women, and children, marked the effective end of armed resistance. The Dawes Act (1887) allotted reservation land to individual families, opening millions of acres to white settlement and reducing Indigenous landholdings by about two-thirds over the following decades.

Casualties & Losses

two hostiles killed

Questions & Answers

Frequently Asked Questions

When did Battle of Cherry Creek (Cheyenne Raid 1865) take place?
Battle of Cherry Creek (Cheyenne Raid 1865) took place in 1865.
Where was Battle of Cherry Creek (Cheyenne Raid 1865) fought?
Battle of Cherry Creek (Cheyenne Raid 1865) was fought in Colorado, United States.
What was the outcome of Battle of Cherry Creek (Cheyenne Raid 1865)?
United States Army victory with capture of remaining three Apaches
What was the significance of Battle of Cherry Creek (Cheyenne Raid 1865)?
The Cherry Creek campaign occurred in March 1890 and was one of the final conflicts between hostile Apaches and the United States Army. It began after a small group of Apaches killed a freight wagon operator, near the San Carlos Reservation, and was part of the larger Apache campaign, beginning in 1
Protected heritage nearby

Historic Sites near Battle of Cherry Creek (Cheyenne Raid 1865)

Denver Civic Center
Industrial · 0.1 mi
More from this era

Other Indian Wars and Frontier Conflicts Engagements

Battle of Fisher's Peak — Kit Carson Campaign (April 1854)
1854
Colorado
Battle of Sand Creek — Prelude Raids (August 1864)
1864
Colorado
Raids on Julesburg CO Aug 7 1864 and Jan 7 1865
1864
Colorado
Battle of Sand Creek CO
1864
Colorado
Plum Creek Massacre — Nebraska Approach from Colorado (August 1864)
1864
Colorado
Hungate Massacre — Colorado (June 11, 1864)
1864
Colorado
Battle of Rush Creek
1864
Colorado
Hungate Family Massacre Near Denver (June 11, 1864)
1864
Colorado
Valley Station Raid
1864
Colorado
All battles in Colorado
Source

Content adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Wikipedia source.

Aubrey Research

Explore the history around Colorado

Aubrey generates in-depth historical research for any location in the US, drawing on NRHP records, battlefield archives, census history and geological data to tell the full story of a place.

Research a location near ColoradoView a free sample report
All Indian Wars and Frontier Conflicts Battles