Few places provided a more storied backdrop for key events related to the high plains Indian wars than had Fort Robinson, Nebraska. Established in 1874 just south of the Black Hills, Fort Robinson witnessed many of the most dramatic, most tragic encounters between whites and American Indians, including the Cheyenne Outbreak, the death of Crazy Horse, the Ghost Dance, the desperation and diplomacy of such famed Plains Indian leaders as Dull Knife and Red Cloud, and the tragic sequence of events surrounding Wounded Knee.

In Fort Robinson and the American West, 1874–1899, Thomas R. Buecker explores both the larger story of the Nebraska fort and the particulars of daily life and work at the fort. Buecker draws on historic reminiscences, government records, reports, correspondence, and other official accounts to render a thorough yet lively depiction.