Mahlon Kriebel will give Steptoe campaign report

Mahlon Kriebel of Garfield will present a journey back in time to the Battle of Steptoe on May 17. The multimedia presentation will be on the 154th anniversary of the event and will explore why the Coeur d’Alene and Spokane Indians attacked Colonel Steptoe’s command along with why details of the Steptoe expedition and Col. Steptoe’s health were left out of Congressional records.

Kriebel’s presentation will feature his own research of the original field note maps in the National Archives. His interest in the Steptoe campaign led to a Whitman County Historical Society tour of the campaign sites in the county on the 150th anniversary of the ill-fated campaign.

The Battle of Steptoe resulted in the deaths of two officers, five enlisted men and three Nez Perce scouts employed by the Army. The Indians suffered at least twelve dead and many more wounded.

The defeat was an embarrassment to the U.S. Army, and Congress soon demanded an immediate and punitive expedition against the Indian tribes.

The presentation will take place at 6:30 p.m. in the Norma McGregor Room at the Colfax Library.