The party's settlement of the area was illegal under the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie and the group was removed by the United States Army in April 1875, who subsequently began using the Gordon Stockade as a base.

[2] Although only trace amounts of gold had been discovered,[3] word quickly spread as newspapers sensationalized the reports, attracting civilians to the area in search of wealth.

Their intent was to locate more gold and encourage the U.S. government to break its 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie with local Native American tribes, which forbade white settlement of the Black Hills.

Upon one of these wagons was inscribed the name "O'Neill's Colony", meant to mask their true destination as a settlement in Nebraska, so as not to raise suspicion from the U.S. Army,[6] who were patrolling the hills and its environs to deter settlers from entering illegally.

Several men from the camp, including Gordon and Witcher, traveled to Cheyenne, Wyoming Territory; Sioux City; and Chicago, Illinois, in early 1875 and reported the successes and potential of their mining operations,[13] hoping to recruit more members[11] and entice more settlers to attempt entry into the Black Hills.

[10] Over time, some of the settlers left permanently for Sioux City or Fort Laramie, including Blackwell, McLaren, Dan McDonald, Thomas, Warren, and Williams.

[15][12] With the onset of milder spring weather, a cavalry unit under Charles Eli Mix was dispatched from Fort Laramie on March 23 to remove the settlers, with Williams Dan McDonald enlisted as their guides.

[13][16] About April 6, the army arrived and gave the settlers—at that time, only 16 men and Annie and Robert Tallent were present—a few days to pack up before beginning an escort to Fort Laramie around the 9th.

[3] The party did not resist removal; historian Watson Parker believed their willingness to leave peacefully was due to their lack of supplies.

[18] Annie Tallent later recounted of the troops' arrival at the stockade:[19] One evening..., four men, unheralded and unbidden, rode boldly right into our stronghold, causing no little consternation and excitement in our usually quiet little community.

At first sight they were thought to be the vanguard of our expected reinforcements, but upon a second look it was seen that two of our visitors were in military uniform, while, in the other two we recognized the familiar faces of our quondam comrades, J. J. Williams and Dan McDonald, who, as emissaries of Uncle Sam, had also donned soldier's clothes.

The blue coats and brass buttons betrayed their mission.The group arrived at Fort Laramie on April 18, covering a distance of 421 miles (678 km).

[1] Following the 1876 Battle of Slim Buttes, the cavalry led by George Crook began a starvation march that ended until they reached Gordon Stockade and were able to resupply.

[1] As the gold rush progressed and nearby Custer grew, the fort was used as a base of operations and to protect its new settlers from raids by Native Americans.