The site of the 1873 Modoc War parley where, pressured by war factions, Modoc fighters attacked the U.S. peace commission, killing General Canby and Reverend Thomas and wounding Indian Agent Meacham.
Details
- Type
- Historic Site
- Accessibility
- Limited accessibility
What happened here
On April 12, 1873, U.S. and Modoc representatives met under a flag of truce on the lava flats between the Army camps and the stronghold. Captain Jack, the Modoc leader, shot General Edward Canby with a smuggled revolver. The Modoc also killed Reverend Eleazar Thomas, head of the church delegation, and Peace Commissioner Alfred Meacham was wounded and partly scalped but survived.
The aftermath
The killing of Canby, the only U.S. Army general to die in the Indian wars, hardened federal resolve and ended any negotiated settlement. Fighting resumed across the lava beds, and within months the Modoc were defeated. Captain Jack, Schonchin John, Black Jim, and Boston Charley were hanged on October 3, 1873, and 163 Modoc were sent as prisoners of war to the Quapaw Agency in Oklahoma.