Indian War Diary: A Fight with Chief Joseph (Expanded, Annotated)

To other scouts, he was the "Prince of Scouts." One even later called him "Super Scout." His name was S.G. Fisher and he spent the late summer and fall of 1877 chasing Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce across Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana. This is the journal in which he recorded that adventure.Considered by the soldiers he scouted for a "generous, warm-hearted gentleman," General O.O. Howard called him the best scout of the Indian Wars. Fearless, well-organized, with an intimate knowledge of the Yellowstone country, and fluent in the Bannock tongue, Stanton Fisher was as well-known in his day as he is forgotten in ours.In this detailed and well-written diary, he wrote of the skirmishes, the miserable weather, hunger, and his participation in the Battle of Canyon Creek. He also wrote of his frustration that "Uncle Sam's boys are too slow for this business."This diary is also a primary source for those who are still trying to determine the exact route the Nez Perce took through Yellowstone National Park.A must-read for anyone interested in the pioneer period in the American west and the Indian Wars.