Native Americans demostrated extraordinary service, honor, and heroism during World War I. Anglo officers revered them for their abilities, but no one early on thought their language would help confound the Germans.

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Choctaw Code Talkers in World War I

By Richard L. Hayes

The affection that Europeans have for the Great American West is well known, so it shouldn’t be surprising that several traveling Wild West Shows happened to be in enemy territory when World War I broke out. Read more

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The Gatling Gun: A Civil War Innovation

By A.B. Feuer

Richard Gatling was born in Hertford County, NC, on December 12, 1818. His father was a prosperous farmer and inventor, and the son was destined to inherit the “invention bug.” Read more

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Massacre on the Washita

By Arnold Blumberg

The conclusion of the Civil War saw the painfully reunited nation resume its westward surge. Complicating that surge was the Indian question: how best to remove the Native American peoples from the paths of white expansion. Read more

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Rosebud Creek

By Eric Niderost

Around 8 o’clock on the morning of June 17, 1876, Brig. Gen. George Crook ordered his troops to halt along the banks of Rosebud Creek. Read more

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The Unfortunate End to Ranald Mackenzie’s Career

By Roy Morris Jr.

The young captain of engineers who discovered the dangerous bulge in the “Mule Shoe” salient at Spotsylvania, Ranald Slidell Mackenzie, would go on to make a name for himself during the Civil War and the subsequent Indian campaigns out West. Read more

For his part in the Sand Creek Massacre and his lust for power, John Chivington is often regarded as one of America's worst leaders in history.

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The Worst Leaders in History: John Chivington

By Brad Reynolds

John M. Chivington was a prominent military commander during the American Civil War in the West. Initially an ordained Methodist Minister, Chivington would abuse his position as a military commander, leading the federal government to condemn his actions as an officer of the United States Military. Read more