Captain Jack's Stronghold

California's native tribes sometimes have the reputation of being easy to subdue. I suspect that that in fact they were quickly overwhelmed by the Spanish conquest and later the Gold Rush. They were really the victims of a swift and certain genocide. (Read up on your early California history, folks.)

Not so in every case. In the Modoc War of 1872-1873, Kintpuash (aka Captain Jack) led 52 warriors in a months long defense of their "stronghold" in the lava beds against several thousand U.S. Army troops, although they were eventually defeated. The Modoc leaders were imprisoned or executed and the survivors dispersed to reservations in Oklahoma.

Roaming through the area, it's easy to see how defensible this place was. If I had been on the other side I would not have underestimated the Modoc. I would have left them alone.