An early engagement of the Owens Valley Indian War in which Paiute forces repulsed a militia attack along Bishop Creek, California.
Key Facts
- Date
- April 6, 1862
- Militia force size
- 60 men under Colonel William Mayfield
- Aurora contingent
- 18 men led by John J. Kellogg
- Known militia killed
- 3 (Pleasants, Morrison, Sheriff Scott)
- Horses abandoned
- 17–18 horses left behind at withdrawal
- Conflict
- Owens Valley Indian War
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Cattle drives through the Owens Valley to supply the Aurora mining boom, combined with the devastating Great Flood of 1862, encroached on Owens Valley Paiute food sources and threatened the tribe with starvation. The Paiute began taking cattle to survive, leading to a series of violent incidents with settlers that escalated into the broader Owens Valley Indian War.
On April 6, 1862, Colonel William Mayfield led approximately 60 combined militia and settler volunteers in an attack on Paiute forces near Bishop Creek. The assault failed; the militia was driven back and pinned down in an irrigation ditch for the remainder of the day. After nightfall the Paiute stopped firing, allowing the militia to withdraw with their dead and wounded, abandoning horses, ammunition, and provisions.
Following the defeat, most of Mayfield's force retreated toward Oak Creek, while Mayfield and roughly 40 men joined California Volunteer forces under George S. Evans the next day and continued northward. The battle demonstrated that settler militia forces were insufficient against the Paiute and contributed to the involvement of regular U.S. Army volunteers in suppressing the conflict.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
William Mayfield, John J. Kellogg.
Side B
1 belligerent