1867
Battle of Infernal Caverns
The setting
Infernal Caverns, near Likely, Modoc County, northeastern California (near the Nevada-Oregon corner)
Volcanic lava-rock outcrop that the defenders turned into a natural fortress of stone rifle pits and caverns
Reveal the outcome
Recorded sideShoshone, Northern Paiute and Pit River warriors
Recorded resultabout 15 killed; survivors abandoned the caverns and slipped away on the third day
Costly U.S. tactical victory: Crook's troops scaled the rocks and took the stronghold, reportedly killing the leader Sieto, but suffered relatively heavy losses and the surviving defenders escaped.
How the atlas explains it
Crook pressed a determined infantry assault directly into a strong natural fortification on the second day rather than withdrawing; taking the high ground and killing the defenders' leader broke the position, though the defenders escaped and the wider war continued.
What followed
One of the few named, well-documented engagements of the otherwise diffuse Snake War, and an early example of George Crook's aggressive frontier campaigning. It illustrates the grinding, small-unit character of the western Great Basin fighting.