Maj. A.C. Ellithorpe's journal says "surprised the enemy about two miles across the Grand upon the top of a high hill called Locust Grove Hill."
I am extremely skeptical of newspaper accounts, especially those written long after the war, but the following was reprinted from the Tulsa World (date unknown)
...William Weer, who commanded the new brigade, split his column into three for the retaliatory campaign.
One went down the west side of Grand River, one down the eastern border of the Cherokee Nation to meet Watie and get another demonstration of Indian cunning in retreat, and the main column under Weer headed for Grand Saline, the present Salina. There they destroyed the last remaining buildings of the old Chouteau trading post but spared the big brick home of Lewis Ross, Chief John Ross' brother.
This took all day July 2, and the refugee families of the Indian troopers began to show up. They had followed the column down from Kansas in the hope that their homes would be recaptured for them. Then about dusk Weer's scouts reported that Col. J.J. Clarkson was in camp along Saline Creek, just two miles to the south, and that he had several hundred white and Indian troops and about 70 wagons of supplies!
From "Civil War Sites in Oklahoma" by Wright & Fisher, page
Weer's first report is the ORs (Series 1, Vol 13, p.136) says:
Captain: On the night of the 2d, and after having marched one brigade under Colonel Judson some 20 miles southward from Cowskin Prairie to Cabin Creek, I started with 300 [men] to the Grand Saline, where I heard a force of the enemy was encamped. After travelling rapidly all night I came up with them on the east side of Grand River about sunrise.
Weer's second report:
Captain: As promised, I send you a more detailed account of the affair of the 3d instant. Its locality I find to be known as Locust Grove, that being the name of a post-office there. It is some 2 miles east of Grand River and about 30 north of Tahlequah.
In the Indian-Pioneer Papers, Bird Doublehead (b 1843) states:
Locust Grove started with a single store owned by John Pierce. Saline had to store for a long time but there was near the present town of Salina the old Cherokee Orphanage.
In the Indian-Pioneer Papers, Ewing Markham interview, is a comment about Pipe Springs being the site of the battle.
The Charley Lynch interview in the Indian-Pioneer Papers states that the Tan Yard Ford & Ferry was owned by George Landrum at the time of the war. "This road before the war was a main artery from the old military trail leading out of Fort Scott, Kansas, leaving the trail near the Old Sulphur Springs Stage Stand on Mustang Creek, into the Spavinaw Hills and on to Tahlequah." This crossing was near present Langley. The area between the Grand and Spavinaw Creek in this area is Lynch's Prairie and Joseph Lynch's mill was at what is now town of Spavinaw.
Col. Clarkson stated that "...the enemy came down the west side of the river, crossed about one mile above me..." (from Edward's "The Prairie was on Fire").
The Chouteau Trading Post was on the Grand on the south side of present highway 20 and the east side of Hudson Lake at Salina. Just south of this was the site of the Grand Saline saltworks, now under Lake Hudson. East on Hwy 20 at Ross St. is the old Salina High School gymnasium which was the site of Lewis Ross' home which became the Cherokee Orphanage. The Ross Springhouse stands just east of this in a park.
An 1890s map shows the Locust Grove post office south of Saline Creek and north-northeast of the present town of Locust Grove. Note that post offices were not 'public buildings' but instead located a the residence of the postmaster or some other structure, e.g. a store or roadhouse. Therefore, the site of the post office could change when the postmaster changed.
The site of Pipe Springs is about two miles southeast of the bend in the Grand -- now the southeast part of Hudson Lake. It is on Scenic 412 just east of Hwy 82. Saline Creek, around which the Adairs lived, is about 4 miles north of Pipe Springs and present Locust Grove.
Landrum's Tan Yard Ford and Ferry was about 10-12 miles north of Grand Saline. From the Grand Saline to Saline Creek is about a mile or so. From Saline Creek to Pipe Springs is 2-3 miles.
The scant accounts by participants rarely mention crossing the Grand immediately before the engagement which suggests to me that they were moving down the east side of the Grand as opposed to crossing near Clarkson's camp.
My best guess is that Weer sent scouts down the west side of the river that crossed the Grand one or two miles northwest of Pipe Springs. Weer's infantry in wagons and the mounted Indians of the IHG crossed somewhere to Lynch's Prairie (e.g. Tan Yard Ford) on via Grand Saline where they destroyed Chouteau's old trading post and saved Lewis Ross' home, then captured W.P Adair and others along Saline Creek, and attempted to surround Clarkson's camp on the high hill at the southwest of Pipe Springs. Watie was at his mill on Spavinaw (east end of present Lake Eucha) where he engaged Weer's eastern prong before retiring south. Clarkson's camp may have covered a large area being made up of three trains (Clarkson's, Drew's, and Watie's), Clarkson's Battalion and Drew's Regiment (and their horses). Weer may have been encountering and rolling up pickets and encampments from Saline Creek all the way to Pipe Springs where Clarkson and the trains were. Watie and Clarkson blamed each other though neither had disciplined, trained military units with adequate scouting, pickets, and communication to understand and prevent the surprise attack at Locust Grove. Watie and his men were often praised by superiors but their strength was raiding on the offensive and sorely lacking on the defensive (in my humble opinion).