The Battle of Palo Duro Canyon was a military confrontation and a significant United States victory during the Red River War.

[2][3] The battle occurred on September 28, 1874, when several U.S. Army companies under Ranald S. Mackenzie attacked a large encampment of Plains Indians in Palo Duro Canyon in the Texas Panhandle.

Late in the summer of 1874, Quahada Comanche, Southern Cheyenne, Arapaho and Kiowa warriors led by Lone Wolf left their assigned reservations and sought refuge in Palo Duro Canyon in the Texas Panhandle.

[1]: 485 and 487 Early in September, Tonkawa[3] and Black Seminole Scouts in advance of the 4th Cavalry were ambushed by Comanche near the Staked Plains and escaped with their lives.

[3] Chiefs Poor Buffalo and Lone Wolf and the Indians managed to get away, leaving behind their possessions and horses, climbing up both sides of the canyon.