After Wounded Knee: Correspondence of Major and Surgeon John Vance Lauderdale while Serving with the Army Occupying the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, 1890-1891 [Hardcover]

Jerry Green (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 30, 1996

The Wounded Knee Massacre of December 29, 1890, known to U.S. military historians as the last battle in "the Indian Wars," was in reality another tragic event in a larger pattern of conquest, destruction, killing, and broken promises that continue to this day.
     On a cold winter's morning more than a century ago, the U.S. Seventh Cavalry attacked and killed more than 260 Lakota men, women, and children at Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota. In the aftermath, the broken, twisted bodies of the Lakota people were soon covered by a blanket of snow, as a blizzard swept through the countryside. A few days later, veteran army surgeon John Vance Lauderdale arrived for duty at the nearby Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Shocked by what he encountered, he wrote numerous letters to his closest family members detailing the events, aftermath, and daily life on the Reservation under military occupation. He also treated the wounded, both Cavalry soldiers and Lakota civilians. What distinguishes After Wounded Knee from the large body of literature already available on the massacre is Lauderdale's frank appraisals of military life and a personal observation of the tragedy, untainted by self-serving reminiscence or embellished newspaper and political reports. His sense of frustration and outrage toward the military command, especially concerning the tactics used against the Lakota, is vividly apparent in this intimate view of Lauderdale's life. His correspondence provides new insight into a familiar subject and was written at the height of the cultural struggle between the U.S. and Lakota people. Jerry Green's careful editing of this substantial collection, part of the John Vance Lauderdale Papers in the Western Americana Collection in Yale University's Beinecke Library, clarifies Lauderdale's experiences at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The Wounded Knee Massacre of December 29, 1890, known to the U. S. military historians as the last battle in "the Indian Wars," was in reality another tragic event in a larger pattern of conquest, destruction, killing, and broken promises that continues to characterize U. S. policies toward Native Americans. Arriving to take up his duties at the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota only days after this encounter between the Seventh Cavalry and Lakota Civilians, in which more than 260 Lakota men, women, and children were killed, Army Surgeon John Vance Lauderdale wrote a series of extended letters to his wife describing what happened. This body of correspondence contains details of daily life on the Pine Ridge Reservation under military occupation. He also shares his views on the Wounded Knee massacre itself and on other tragic events, such as the cold-blooded murders of Few Tails and Lieutenant Casey. Lauderdale treated the wounded, both Seventh Cavalry soldiers and Lakota civilians. He had little sympathy for the military command and expressed outrage at the tactics used against the Lakota, who he saw as being goaded into a situation by white ranchers, land speculators, government agents, and the U. S. Army. After Wounded Knee contains letters that are part of the John Vance Lauderdale Papers in the Western American Collection Yale University's Beinecke Library. It is a "must read" title for anyone interested in what happened to a Lakota remnant on a cold winter's morning more than a century ago. -- Midwest Book Review

About the Author

Jerry Green is an independent scholar living in Fayetteville, Georgia. He has spent more than five years doing research on the events leading up to, and following, the massacre on Wounded Knee Creek.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 250 pages
• Publisher: Michigan State University Press (April 30, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0870134051
• ISBN-13: 978-0870134050
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,417,547 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting and detailed account of life in the 1890s midwest frontier, December 4, 2006

By 

Zana E. Holley (Gainesville, FL United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: After Wounded Knee: Correspondence of Major and Surgeon John Vance Lauderdale while Serving with the Army Occupying the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, 1890-1891 (Hardcover)

Major and Surgeon John Vance Lauderdale provides a detailed and interesting account of life in the 1890s in the Dakota territories. For anyone interested in the Laura Ingalls Wilder era of history, this book is a "must read."