24 Facts About Luther Kelly

Luther Sage "Yellowstone" Kelly was an American soldier, hunter, scout, adventurer and administrator.

Luther Kelly served briefly in the American Civil War and then in an 1898 expedition to Alaska.

Luther Kelly commanded a US Army company in the Philippine–American War and later served in the civilian administration of the Philippines.

On June 26,1929, Yellowstone Kelly was laid to rest with full military honors overlooking the Yellowstone Valley in Billings, Montana, after an impressive funeral procession.

Luther Sage Kelly was born July 27,1849, in Geneva, New York.

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Luther Kelly's father, named Luther Kelly, owned a drug and grocery store in Geneva.

Luther Kelly's father died on February 14,1857, leaving him the man of the family, but the family had enough money saved to live comfortably.

In either late 1864 or early 1865, Luther Kelly entered the Geneva Wesleyan Seminary, but his real interest was in joining the army and fighting in the Civil War; he would later write that he "deplored the fact" that his youth rendered him unfit for military service at that time.

Luther Kelly traveled to Rochester, New York, where he attempted to join the Fourth New York Cavalry but was turned down due his young age.

Luther Kelly was unaware that the 10th Infantry was not a volunteer corps and that he would be obliged to continue serving after the war.

Luther Kelly first traveled to Fort Garry, now Winnipeg in Canada, where he joined a group of miners, traveling with them to the Red River, where he spent the winter.

Luther Kelly left the miners to cross the Assiniboine River, falling in with a group headed toward the Mouse River.

Not long after his arrival at Fort Buford, Luther Kelly volunteered to carry dispatches to Fort Stevenson, approximately fifty miles down the Missouri River.

Luther Kelly arrived safely at Fort Stevenson then set out on his return journey, spending the night at the camp of Bloody Knife, an Arickaree chieftain.

Luther Kelly managed to shoot and kill the first attacker quickly, but the second took cover behind a tree.

Luther Kelly eventually shot and killed his second assailant, then returned to Bloody Knife's camp to tell the story.

Luther Kelly spent a few days at Bloody Knife's camp recovering from his wound, then rode back to Fort Buford, becoming "something of a hero and a local celebrity" for defeating his two assailants.

Luther Kelly was assigned to Glenn's unit as an interpreter and guide.

Luther Kelly's company was under the command of Brigadier General James Bell, who had served with Luther Kelly during the Nez Perce campaigns of the Indian Wars.

Luther Kelly's company met heavy resistance on the outskirts of the town of LaLud.

Insurgents under the command of a Colonel Legaspi opened fire on Luther Kelly's advancing infantrymen with two field guns, but Luther Kelly's men managed to kill the enemy artillerymen and silence the guns.

Luther Kelly later served in the administration of the new civilian governor of the Philippines, future President William Howard Taft.

In 1915, after a few years gold mining in Nevada, Luther Kelly settled permanently in Paradise, California, where he died on December 17,1928.

Luther Kelly was buried on a high bluff along the Yellowstone River just north of Billings, Montana, with the sword he captured from Legaspi at LaLud.