Patriotic North Dakotans enlisted in large numbers when the United States declared war on Spain in 1898. The 1st North Dakota Volunteers were sent to the Philippines. But not all North Dakotans served in that unit and not all went to the Pacific.
The 3rd U.S. Volunteer Cavalry was made up of cowboys from North and South Dakota, Montana, and Nebraska. The unit was organized by Melvin Grigsby, South Dakota’s attorney general, and became known as Grigsby’s Cowboys.
On this date in 1898, North Dakota newspapers were filled with stories about “the boys.” Most of the coverage centered on troops who had arrived at Camp Merritt in California. But there was also buzz about a letter from Sergeant R.E. McHugh of Langdon. He’d gone in a different direction, waiting to ship out to Cuba with Grigsby’s Cowboys.
North Dakotans had given the unit a grand send-off in Fargo, with brass bands, fife and drum corps, and hundreds of citizens watching them march to the depot.
McHugh reported that the train trip was first-rate. The troops rode in tourist sleepers “not like the old emigrant cars where you have to sit on slats,” he wrote, “but leather-covered cushioned seats.” He noted the train did “some pretty fast railroading,” traveling at 45 to 60 miles per hour.
The camp was located on the Chickamauga battlefield in Georgia. McHugh wrote that the food was very good but the water was not. Troops were advised to drink beer instead of water but only in moderation. Fortunately, one of their officers had fought there in 1863 and remembered the location of a spring with fresh water.
At the time, North Dakota newspapers generally predicted the war would be over before the state’s troops saw any action. McHugh scoffed at that.
He wrote: “Tell those in Langdon who predicted we would never get further south than Fargo that our regiment is one of the favored ones in camp and our officers expect the boys to make short work of the Spaniards when we meet them.”
Still, those predictions proved true for the Cowboys at least. Spain surrendered in August.
Grigsby delivered a farewell message to his men, expressing disappointment that they didn’t see combat. Even so, he said, they had answered their country’s call and had nothing to be ashamed of.
Dakota Datebook written by Dr. Carole Butcher
Sources:
- Grigsby’s Cowboys. https://archive.org/details/grigsbyscowboys00suesgoog/page/n22/mode/2uphttps://archive.org/details/grigsbyscowboys00suesgoog/page/n22/mode/2up Accessed 5/4/2025.
- Courier Democrat. “An Interesting Letter.” Langdon MD. 6/9/1898. Page 1.
- Bismarck Weekly Tribune. “About the Soldiers.” Bismarck ND. 6/10/1898. Page 5.
- South Dakota Historical Foundation. “The Fighting Cowboys of Melvin Grigsby.” https://www.sdhsf.org/news_events/history_articles.html/title/november-2013-the-fighting-cowboys-of-melvin-grigsby Accessed 5/4/2025.
