In 1861 there were two Confederate Cherokee regiments: the 1st Cherokee Mounted Rifles under Col. John Drew and the 2nd Cherokee Mounted Rifles commanded by Col. Stand Watie. Confederate authorities promised both regiments they would not have to fight outside Indian Territory, but in March 1862 Gen. Albert Pike led both regiments at the Battle of Pea Ridge in Arkansas. Following that Federal victory, the 1st Cherokee Mounted Rifles disbanded, with many of its men embracing the Union and joining the Indian Home Guard. After this, the 2nd Cherokee Mounted Rifles was redesignated as the 1st Cherokee Mounted Rifles under Col. Stand Watie. The men of the regiment fought at Cowskin Prairie, Locust Grove, Bayou Menard, Old Fort Wayne, Webbers Falls, Hudson's Ford, and Cabin Creek. The 1st Cherokee Partisan Rangers was organized in September 1862 and reorganized in 1863 under Col. William Penn Adair as the 2nd Cherokee Mounted Rifles. That regiment had several skirmishes before the Battle of Honey Springs, including Tahlequah, Park Hill, Spavinaw Creek, Locust Grove, and Cabin Creek.