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Remembering the
Modoc War
MALIN — A man who won’t
be there hopes a new plaque in the Malin Community Park
will help others remember 14 forgotten victims of the
Modoc Indian War.
Daniel Woodhead of San
Francisco, whose fascination with the Modoc War has
resulted in his becoming an expert on the war and a
philanthropist for war related projects, won’t be in
Malin Monday for a plaque dedication.
A new plaque in the Malin
Community Park commemorates homesteaders
killed in the opening days of the Modoc War.
As part of Monday’s
Memorial Day celebration in Malin, members of Malin
American Legion Post No. 84 will dedicate the $1,400
bronze plaque financed by Woodhead and others. It lists
the names of 14 homesteaders who were killed by Modocs
in 1872.
Fourteen men and boys,
most living within five miles of present-day Malin, were
killed by a band of Modocs led by Hooker Jim. The
killings took place following the Lost River battle on
Nov. 29, 1872, the incident that ignited the war.
“It’s an addition to
honor people who have never been honored before,” said
Denny Kalina, a member of the Malin Historical Society,
said of the plaque.
Untold story
“I think it’s an untold
story that’s begging to be told,” Woodhead said in a
telephone interview, referring to the killings of the
homesteaders, who were unaware of the Lost
River battle earlier that day.
Woodhead, a retired banker and
self-described “western history buff,” is preparing
a book, “Modoc Vengeance,” a collection of newspaper
stories that appeared in Yreka, San Francisco and around
the world. The war was closely followed by newspaper
correspondents and drew international attention,
especially after the murder of Army Gen. E.R.S. Canby
during peace negotiations.
Modoc War map
Woodhead commissioned and supervised
preparation of a detailed 1873 Modoc War map that’s
located in an information kiosk at the small park in
Merrill.
The ambitious undertaking involved several years of
research. Copies of the 48-by-36-inch poster map will be
displayed at other locations, possibly including Lava
Beds National Monument, and small folder-sized maps will
be distributed to schools, groups and others.
A detailed map with a history
of the Modoc War and photos of many of those
involved is located in the kiosk by the
Merrill flag.
Woodhead also is working to have
California historical landmark plaques created and
placed at Land’s Ranch, where Modocs attacked Army
supply wagons, and Bloody Point, where Indians ambushed
travelers and pioneer wagons.
Both are listed as California
Historical Landmarks but, as Woodhead learned, the state
does not pay for the markers, which cost about $3,000
each.
“If Custer had
not been massacred at Little Big Horn in June 1876,
without a doubt, the Modoc War would be regarded as the
most significant Indian war in America’s western
history,” Woodhead believes. “I don’t think enough
people appreciate that.”
NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107,
any copyrighted
material herein is distributed without profit or
payment to those who have
expressed a prior interest in receiving this
information for non-profit
research and educational purposes only. For more
information go to:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml