Official History
The citizens of Trinity County, informed Governor John Weller that the Indians inhabiting the county had assumed a hostile attitude toward the people, and had perpetrated numerous outrages. The Indians in that particular locality known as the Redwood Indians had in the past four or five years killed some twenty citizens, besides causing much loss of property, and greatly impeded the commerce which had grown up between that County and Humboldt Bay. These outrages called for immediate redress, and the citizens deemed it of the most vital importance to their coast trade and well being generally, that these Indians who had been a terror to them should be driven from their present hiding places, and if not exterminated, at least taken to some place where there were no such opportunities to do mischief. (1)
Governor Weller ordered Adjutant General W. C. Kibbe to proceed to the northern counties, and investigate the reported depredations, and if he found them to be of a serious nature, he was to organize several volunteer military companies to "round up" the hostile Indians and place them on the Federal Reservation.
In response to General Kibbe's plea for volunteer military companies, a petition signed by forty-six persons, all residents of Weaverville, Trinity County, was filed before County Judge R. J. Miller, requesting that he appoint some person to superintend the meeting to form a military company. Judge Miller selected H. N. Brown as the man to organize the company, and on September 27, 1858, the Kibbe Guard under the command of Henry Hart was duly organized and sworn into the State Service for the period of three months. Although there is no record to confirm the assumption, it is probable that the Kibbe Guard saw active service in the Indian War in which the Trinity Rangers engaged in Humboldt County. If this assumption be true, the Kibbe Guard received remuneration for their services under the Act which was passed by the Legislature, and approved by the Governor on April 16, 1859. (2) This Act provided for the payment of expenses which had been incurred in the past months, or which might occur in the near future for the suppression of Indian hostilities in Humboldt and Klamath Counties. As there is no evidence to show that the Kibbe Guard was retained in the regular militia ranks it is assumed that the company was mustered out of service on the expiration of their three months period.