Kit Carson's Last Fight: The Adobe Walls Campaign of 1864

Author

David A. Pafford, University of New MexicoFollow

Publication Date

Spring 4-12-2017

Abstract

In the fall of 1864, Brigadier General James H. Carleton sent Kit Carson and about four hundred men on a punitive campaign against the Kiowa and Comanche Indians of the high plains. The resulting battle was one of the largest in the history of North American Indian Wars. Yet this conflict has been relegated to historical obscurity.

In this paper, I examine why Kit Carson’s 1864 Adobe Walls Campaign remains obscure, I measure the success of the mission, and place it in the larger context of nineteenth century Indian Wars, particularly those prosecuted against Plains tribes.

Level of Degree

Doctoral

Degree Name

History

Department Name

History

First Committee Member (Chair)

Dr. Paul Andrew Hutton

Second Committee Member

Dr. L. Durwood Ball

Third Committee Member

Dr. Margaret Connell-Szasz

Fourth Committee Member

Dr. Jerry D. Thompson

Language

English

Keywords

Kit Carson, Kiowa Adobe Walls

Document Type

Dissertation

Recommended Citation

Pafford, David A.. "Kit Carson's Last Fight: The Adobe Walls Campaign of 1864." (2017). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/hist_etds/165