The Battle at Elderbush Gulch

1913 film

The Battle at Elderbush Gulch

Theatrical release poster

Directed by| D. W. Griffith
Written by| D. W. Griffith
Henry Albert Phillips
Starring| Mae Marsh
Lillian Gish
Cinematography| G. W. Bitzer
Distributed by| General Film Company

Release date

* November 1913 (1913-11)

Running time

| 29 minutes
Country| United States
Languages| Silent
English intertitles
Full film

The Battle at Elderbush Gulch (also known as The Battle of Elderbush Gulch) is a 1913 American silent Western film directed by D. W. Griffith[1] and featuring Mae Marsh, Lillian Gish, and Alfred Paget.

## Plot

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Orphans Sally (Mae Marsh) and her little sister are sent to live with their uncle in the west. Among other baggage, they bring their two puppies. Melissa (Lillian Gish) is in the same stagecoach with husband and newborn baby. The uncles find the little girls amusing but tell them that the dogs must stay outside. Meanwhile, a nearby tribe of Native Americans is having a tribal dance. The puppies, left outside in a basket, run off. Sally, worried about the dogs, goes outside and discovers they are gone. She follows their trail and runs into the tribal chief and his son who have captured them for food. There is a scuffle but her uncles arrive and intervene. Gunfire ensues and one of the Native Americans is left dead. The other returns to the tribe to inform them and aroused by "hatred to revenge" they go into a war dance.

Meanwhile, a tearful Sally has persuaded a friendly hand to build a secret door in the cabin so she can bring the puppies inside at night. The Native Americans attack the village and the frightened settlers run off toward the lonely cabin. In the melee, the baby is separated from its father. The Natives attack the cabin just after a scout rides off to alert the fort.

The Native Americans ride in circles around the cabin while the settlers try to fight them off. Melissa, in the cabin, is distraught worrying about the fate of her baby. Sally, seeing the baby through a peephole, sneaks out her secret door and finds the baby in the arms of a dead towns person. In a hectic battle scene, she brings the baby back through the secret door.

The settlers are running out of ammunition and the people in the cabin are in chaos. The Native Americans, crawling on their stomachs, almost reach the cabin, but then the cavalry arrives. The Native Americans are quickly dispatched and all is well but for Melissa's grief over her missing baby. Sally pops out of a chest holding baby and puppies. The uncle agrees to let Sally keep the puppies inside.

## Cast

[edit]

Scene from The Battle at Elderbush Gulch

* Mae Marsh – Sally
* Leslie Loveridge – The Waif
* Alfred Paget – Waifs' uncle
* Robert Harron – The father
* Lillian Gish – Mellisa Harlow
* Charles Hill Mailes – Ranch owner
* William A. Carroll – The Mexican
* Frank Opperman – Indian Chief
* Henry B. Walthall – Indian Chief's son
* Joseph McDermott – Waifs' guardian
* Jennie Lee – Waifs' guardian
* Lionel Barrymore
* Elmer Booth
* Kate Bruce – Settler
* Harry Carey
* Charles Gorman – Among the Indians
* Dell Henderson
* Elmo Lincoln – Cavalryman
* W. Chrystie Miller – Settler
* W. C. Robinson – Among the Indians
* Blanche Sweet

## Criticism

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The movie has been noted for its pitting of white settlers vs. indigenous people, in particular an overarching concern for the safety of the white women and a baby during the gun battle. Major focus remains, however, on the prolonged shootout. Far from a nuanced presentation, The Battle at Elderbush Gulch dramatizes the settlers and the indigenous in many stereotypical ways—simple, misunderstood, untrusting, quick-tempered, violent, vengeful—that fit the fanciful perceptions of the American West at the time the film was made.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11]

## See also

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* List of American films of 1913
* Harry Carey filmography
* D. W. Griffith filmography
* Lillian Gish filmography
* Blanche Sweet filmography
* Lionel Barrymore filmography

## References

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1. ^ "Progressive Silent Film List: The Battle at Elderbush Gulch". Silent Era. Retrieved June 13, 2008.
2. ^ Olson, Gerald Theodore (Spring 2013). The Evolution of an Image: An Analysis of Defining Depictions of Native Americans in Popular Cinema 1913-1970 (Thesis). doi:10.31979/etd.3u5z-kqjb.
3. ^ Jay, Gregory S. (2000). "'White Man's Book No Good': D. W. Griffith and the American Indian". Cinema Journal. 39 (4): 3–26. doi:10.1353/cj.2000.0016. JSTOR 1225883. S2CID 145361470.
4. ^ Melichar, Kenneth Edward (Spring 2009). The filmic Indian and cultural tourism: Indian representations during the period of allotment and forced assimilation (1987-1928) (Thesis).
5. ^ "The Battle at Elderbush Gulch". Rotten Tomatoes.
6. ^ "Reviews of The Battle at Elderbush Gulch". Letterboxd.[unreliable source?]
7. ^ McLemore, Mark (June 10, 2016). "Native American Portrayals in Film History - AZPM". Arizona Public Media.
8. ^ Nilan, Jack. "The Battle of Elderbush Gulch (1913)".[self-published source?]
9. ^ Robinson, Cedric J. (2012). Forgeries of Memory and Meaning: Blacks and the Regimes of Race in American Theater and Film before World War II. UNC Press Books. p. 122\. ISBN 978-1-4696-0675-0.
10. ^ Sprouse, Rachel (2021). Silence, Sound and Subtitles: Exploring Quechua, K'iche' and the History of Indigenous Languages in United States Film and Television (Thesis). pp. 12–14.
11. ^ Kennedy, Matthew (May 1, 2003). "Making History: D. W. Griffith on DVD". Bright Lights Film Journal.

## External links

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* The Battle at Elderbush Gulch at IMDb
* The Battle at Elderbush Gulch is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive
* The Battle of Elderbush Gulch – MOTOGRAPHY July 31, 1915
* The Battle at Elderbush Gulch Movie Poster
* MoMA | D. W. Griffith's The Battle at Elderbush Gulch and John Ford's Straight Shooting

* v
* t
* e

Films directed by D. W. Griffith

1908|

* The Adventures of Dollie
* The Fight for Freedom
* The Tavern Keeper's Daughter
* The Black Viper
* The Red Man and the Child
* Deceived Slumming Party
* The Bandit's Waterloo
* A Calamitous Elopement
* The Greaser's Gauntlet
* The Man and the Woman
* The Fatal Hour
* For Love of Gold
* Balked at the Altar
* For a Wife's Honor
* Betrayed by a Handprint
* Monday Morning in a Coney Island Police Court
* The Girl and the Outlaw
* Behind the Scenes
* The Red Girl
* The Heart of O'Yama
* Where the Breakers Roar
* A Smoked Husband
* The Stolen Jewels
* The Devil
* The Zulu's Heart
* Father Gets in the Game
* Ingomar, the Barbarian
* The Vaquero's Vow
* The Planter's Wife
* Romance of a Jewess
* The Call of the Wild
* Concealing a Burglar
* After Many Years
* The Pirate's Gold
* The Taming of the Shrew
* The Guerrilla
* The Song of the Shirt
* The Ingrate
* A Woman's Way
* The Clubman and the Tramp
* Money Mad
* The Valet's Wife
* The Feud and the Turkey
* The Reckoning
* The Test of Friendship
* An Awful Moment
* The Christmas Burglars
* Mr. Jones at the Ball
* The Helping Hand

1909|

* One Touch of Nature
* The Maniac Cook
* Mrs. Jones Entertains
* The Honor of Thieves
* Love Finds a Way
* The Sacrifice
* A Rural Elopement
* Those Boys!
* The Criminal Hypnotist
* The Fascinating Mrs. Francis
* Mr. Jones Has a Card Party
* Those Awful Hats
* The Welcome Burglar
* The Cord of Life
* The Girls and Daddy
* The Brahma Diamond
* Edgar Allen Poe
* A Wreath in Time
* Tragic Love
* The Curtain Pole
* His Ward's Love
* The Joneses Have Amateur Theatricals
* The Hindoo Dagger
* The Politician's Love Story
* The Golden Louis
* At the Altar
* The Prussian Spy
* His Wife's Mother
* A Fool's Revenge
* The Wooden Leg
* The Roue's Heart
* The Salvation Army Lass
* The Lure of the Gown
* I Did It
* The Voice of the Violin
* The Deception
* And a Little Child Shall Lead Them
* A Burglar's Mistake
* The Medicine Bottle
* Jones and His New Neighbors
* A Drunkard's Reformation
* Trying to Get Arrested
* The Road to the Heart
* A Rude Hostess
* Schneider's Anti-Noise Crusade
* A Sound Sleeper
* Lady Helen's Escapade
* Lucky Jim
* Jones and the Lady Book Agent
* Resurrection
* Two Memories
* Eloping with Auntie
* The Cricket on the Hearth
* The Violin Maker of Cremona
* A New Trick
* The Lonely Villa
* The Son's Return
* Her First Biscuits
* The Country Doctor
* The Cardinal's Conspiracy
* Tender Hearts
* The Friend of the Family
* The Renunciation
* The Mended Lute
* The Sealed Room
* The Little Darling
* The Hessian Renegades
* Comata, the Sioux
* Getting Even
* In Old Kentucky
* Leather Stocking
* Pippa Passes or The Song of Conscience
* Fools of Fate
* His Lost Love
* The Gibson Goddess
* Nursing a Viper
* The Death Disc: A Story of the Cromwellian Period
* Through the Breakers
* The Red Man's View
* A Corner in Wheat
* A Trap for Santa Claus
* In Little Italy
* To Save Her Soul
* The Day After
* Choosing a Husband
* Bill Sharkey's Last Game

1910|

* The Rocky Road
* The Woman from Mellon's
* The Englishman and the Girl
* In Old California
* Faithful
* The Two Brothers
* As It Is In Life
* A Romance of the Western Hills
* The Unchanging Sea
* Ramona
* In the Season of Buds
* A Child of the Ghetto
* In the Border States
* What the Daisy Said
* A Flash of Light
* An Arcadian Maid
* The House with Closed Shutters
* Wilful Peggy
* The Modern Prodigal
* A Mohawk's Way
* The Oath and the Man
* Rose O'Salem-Town
* The Fugitive
* Winning Back His Love

1911|

* The Two Paths
* The Italian Barber
* His Trust
* His Trust Fulfilled
* Fate's Turning
* Heart Beats of Long Ago
* What Shall We Do with Our Old?
* Fisher Folks
* His Daughter
* The Lily of the Tenements
* A Decree of Destiny
* Was He a Coward?
* The Lonedale Operator
* The Spanish Gypsy
* The Broken Cross
* How She Triumphed
* The New Dress
* The Crooked Road
* The White Rose of the Wilds
* The Smile of a Child
* Enoch Arden: Part I
* Enoch Arden: Part II
* The Primal Call
* Fighting Blood
* The Indian Brothers
* A Country Cupid
* The Last Drop of Water
* Out from the Shadow
* The Blind Princess and the Poet
* Swords and Hearts
* The Stuff Heroes Are Made Of
* Her Awakening
* The Making of a Man
* The Adventures of Billy
* The Long Road
* Love in the Hills
* The Battle
* Through Darkened Vales
* The Miser's Heart
* A Woman Scorned
* The Voice of the Child

1912|

* The Eternal Mother
* The Old Bookkeeper
* For His Son
* The Transformation of Mike
* A Sister's Love
* Under Burning Skies
* The Sunbeam
* A String of Pearls
* The Girl and Her Trust
* The Root of Evil
* The Goddess of Sagebrush Gulch
* The Punishment
* The Female of the Species
* Just Like a Woman
* One Is Business, the Other Crime
* The Lesser Evil
* A Beast at Bay
* An Outcast Among Outcasts
* Home Folks
* A Temporary Truce
* The Spirit Awakened
* Man's Lust for Gold
* Man's Genesis
* The Sands of Dee
* The Narrow Road
* The Inner Circle
* A Change of Spirit
* An Unseen Enemy
* Blind Love
* The Massacre
* Two Daughters of Eve
* Friends
* So Near, yet So Far
* A Feud in the Kentucky Hills
* The Chief's Blanket
* In the Aisles of the Wild
* The One She Loved
* The Painted Lady
* The Musketeers of Pig Alley
* Heredity
* Gold and Glitter
* My Baby
* The Informer
* Brutality
* The New York Hat
* My Hero
* The Burglar's Dilemma
* A Cry for Help
* The God Within

1913|

* Three Friends
* The Telephone Girl and the Lady
* An Adventure in the Autumn Woods
* The Tender Hearted Boy
* A Misappropriated Turkey
* Brothers
* Oil and Water
* A Chance Deception
* Love in an Apartment Hotel
* Broken Ways
* A Girl's Stratagem
* The Unwelcome Guest
* Near to Earth
* Fate
* A Welcome Intruder
* The Sheriff's Baby
* The Hero of Little Italy
* The Little Tease
* A Misunderstood Boy
* The Left-Handed Man
* The Lady and the Mouse
* If We Only Knew
* The Wanderer
* The Stolen Loaf
* The House of Darkness
* The Yaqui Cur
* Just Gold
* The Ranchero's Revenge
* A Timely Interception
* Death's Marathon
* The Mothering Heart
* The Sorrowful Shore
* The Enemy's Baby
* The Mistake
* Two Men of the Desert (lost)
* Madonna of the Storm
* The Battle at Elderbush Gulch
* The Conscience of Hassan Bey

1914–1931|

* Judith of Bethulia (1914)
* Battle of the Sexes (1914, lost)
* Brute Force (1914)
* Home, Sweet Home (1914)
* The Escape (1914, lost)
* The Avenging Conscience: or "Thou Shalt Not Kill" (1914)
* The Birth of a Nation (1915)
* Intolerance (1916)
* Hearts of the World (1918)
* The Great Love (1918, lost)
* Lillian Gish in a Liberty Loan Appeal (1918, lost)
* The Greatest Thing in Life (1918, lost)
* A Romance of Happy Valley (1919)
* The Girl Who Stayed at Home (1919)
* Broken Blossoms (1919)
* True Heart Susie (1919)
* Scarlet Days (1919)
* The Greatest Question (1919)
* The Idol Dancer (1920)
* Remodeling Her Husband (1920, lost)
* The Love Flower (1920)
* Way Down East (1920)
* Dream Street (1921)
* Orphans of the Storm (1921)
* One Exciting Night (1922)
* The White Rose (1923)
* America (1924)
* Isn't Life Wonderful (1924)
* Sally of the Sawdust (1925)
* That Royle Girl (1925, lost)
* The Sorrows of Satan (1926)
* Drums of Love (1928)
* The Battle of the Sexes (1928)
* Lady of the Pavements (1929)
* Abraham Lincoln (1930)
* The Struggle (1931)

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