General Alfred Sully, commander of a United States military expedition to Dakota Territory to punish hostile Sioux, established a base camp on this site on July 26, 1864. Sully left his surplus supplies and equipment and an immigrant train which was traveling with him at this base camp. With his combat force he moved northwestward, passed Young Man’s Butte to the Killdeer Mountains where he inflicted a crushing defeat on the hostile Sioux on July 28. On July 31 he returned to this point, reassembled his column and followed the Heart River en route to Sentinel Butte and the Yellowstone.