The Ghost of Steptoe’s Defeat
A look back at the 1858 battle that defined a landmark and a conflict in the Palouse country.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
In the northern part of Whitman county there is one towering peak which dominates the northern rolling plain of what is called the Palouse country. This is Steptoe Butte, named for Col. E. J. Steptoe, who was commander of Fort Walla Walla during the Indian wars. On May 6, 1858, Steptoe started from Fort Walla Walla for an expedition to Fort Colville, poorly equipped with musketoons and limited ammunition. On May 16, his command was surrounded by a vastly larger force of Indians. Following a day of skirmishing, Steptoe retreated toward the Snake River, eventually burying his howitzers in the mud and making a forced march to safety. Seven men were killed and 13 wounded. While the conflict is often cited as a military disaster for the U.S. Army, it serves as a central piece of local history regarding the settlement period of the Northwest.
“History has proven that the Custer massacre would undoubtedly have been repeated had Steptoe decided upon a stand.”
Steptoe Butte remains a prominent Washington landmark today, though the historical interpretation of the 1858 conflict has evolved significantly. Modern historians look at these events with a critical eye, moving past the one-sided 'Indian war' narratives of the 1920s to understand the complex territorial pressures on Indigenous nations like the Palouse and Spokane.
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