Nicaagat | |
|---|---|
 Photographed by George W. Kirkland, 1873, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution | |
| Born | c. 1840 |
| Died | ca. April 29, 1882 |
| Other names | Ute Jack, Captain Jack, Chief Jack |
| Occupation | Ute chief |
Nicaagat (leaves becoming green,[1] c. 1840–1882), also known as Chief, Captain and Ute Jack[2] and Green Leaf.[3][a] A Ute warrior and subchief,[4] he led a Ute war party against the United States Army when it crossed Milk Creek onto the Ute reservation, which triggered the Battle of Milk Creek.[2] Prior to the conflict, he had traveled to meet up with Major Thomas Tipton Thornburgh to learn of his intentions and warn him that crossing the Milk Creek onto the White River Ute reservation would be seen as an invasion and an act of war. When the army entered the reservation, a shooter from Nicaagat's band shot and killed Thornburgh.
He went to Washington, D.C. to speak before Congress following the battle to defend his actions.[2]
As a boy, Nicaagat was orphaned and then sold to a Mormon family. He was educated at a school with white children and attended church with the family. He lived with the family a number of years and ran away after being threatened to be whipped. He traveled to Colorado and joined with the White River Utes when he married a young woman from the tribe. He became a leader to the younger men and was a scout for General George Crook during the Sioux Wars of 1876 and 1877.
- ^ a b Barbato, Joseph; Weinerman, Lisa (1994). Heart of the land : essays on last great places. New York : Pantheon Books. pp. 249–250. ISBN 978-0-679-43508-2.
- ^ a b c "Buffalo Soldiers". National Museum of African American History and Culture. Retrieved 2022-01-01.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Murphreewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Vagneur, Tony (May 4, 2018). "Tony Vagneur: Captain Jack's demise ugly lesson in horrors of Manifest Destiny". Retrieved 2022-01-01.
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