Conf lict on the Plains

Level 2

Who were the tribes of the Great Plains

The Major tribes were:

Arapaho

Blackfoot

Cheyenne

Comanche

Crow

Osage

Pawnee

Sioux

Wichita

The Comanche, Sioux, and the Cheyenne are the most influential tribes.

For hundreds of years, Native American tribes had lived on the great plains in villages along rivers and streams

They grew crops of corn, beans, and quash, while hunting deer, elk, and buffalo

Lifestyle changed in the 1500’s when the Spanish brought horses

They became nomadic, meaning they moved from place to place, mainly to follow the traveling herds of buffalo

Beliefs and Values

Strong connection to nature - using resources from Mother Earth in moderation

Respect for elders

Code of Ethics

Land is not property to be owned by one, but a resource to be shared with all.

Respect all things that are placed upon this Nature is not for us, it is a part of us. They are part of your worldly family.

Respect others religious beliefs. Do not force your belief on others.

Share your good fortune with others. Participate in charity.

Since the 1830’s and earlier, the American government constantly broke promises to Native American tribes

By the 1860’s, the Native Americans were no longer willing to quietly be mistreated

American governments cruelty towards them, however, became even worse

What will ensue is a series of battles and massacres that will become known as the “Indian Wars”

1851- Treaty of Fort LaramieThe treaty sets forth traditional territorial claims of the tribes as among themselves.

1858 – Gold is discovered in Pikes Peak, CO· Miners trespass on Native American land

1860’s – Native Americans are forced to sign a new treaty giving up land around Pikes Peak. Some Native Americans refused and began attacking and killing soldiers and miners.

• As the Cheyenne's went to an American fort to establish peace, they left many of their weaker members at Sand Creek with an American flag flying above the village to show they wanted peace with America

• Soldiers, knowing the warriors were gone massacred the people of the village. Killing 105 women and children and 28 men, as well as mutilating the dead and wounded.

• The attack was led by Col. John Chivington

Meeting with Colonel John M. Chivington at Camp Weld in September, Black Kettle and his tribe assumed a peace agreement had been reached, and they camped at Sand Creek, forty miles away.”

Battle of the Washita (1868)• Cheyenne warriors left the reservation to hunt• General George Custer attacks the Cheyenne village located on the Washita River

in western Oklahoma• The result was a massacre of 103 Cheyenne mostly women and children.

Battle of the Little Big Horn (1876)• Fought on June 25-26, 1876 in Montana between American soldiers led by

George A. Custer against Lakota Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho Indians led by Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse

• American army made several mistakes and underestimated the fighting force of the Indians

• Custer and most of his men were killed in the battle

US Army again increases hostility

Crazy Horse surrenders three years later, while Sitting Bull flees to Canada for several years

Other Indian tribes are moved further and further west; more lands are stolen from them in “treaties” set up by the government

Chief Joseph’s famous quote after surrendering: “I will fight no more forever.”

Some tribes continued to fight by attacking forts and settlements

Battle of Wounded Knee (1890)

The last armed conflict between US army and Native Americans in the west

US soldiers were worried that a prayer rally (The “Ghost Dance”) was actually a war ceremony, A shot was fired the army opened fire on Wounded Knee village, killing more than 200 men, women

This event brought the “Indian Wars”– and an entire era to a bitter end

“Bury my heart at Wounded Knee.”

Full quote: “I am tired of fighting, our chiefs are all killed, the old men are all dead, the little children are freezing to death. I want to have time to look for my children to see how many of them I can find, maybe I shall find them among the dead. Hear me my chiefs, I am tired, my heart is sick and sad from where the sun now stands, I will fight no more forever.”

“If the white man wants to live in peace with the Indian he can live in peace. There need be no trouble. Treat all men alike. Give them all the same law. Give them all an even chance to live and grow. All men were made by the same Great Spirit Chief. They are all brothers. The earth is the mother of all people, and all people should have equal rights upon it.”

“It does not require many words to speak the truth.”

“I am tired of talk that comes to nothing.”

American settlers contributed to near extinction of buffalo, which the Indians relied on for food Buffalo population:

Before the white man’s arrival: 60 million

By 1890: 750

White settlers were shooting 1 million buffalo a year, mostly for sport, in the 1870’s

Dawes Act (1887): Encouraged Indians to farm with settlers. Tribal lands were divided and given to each family

40,00 buffalo hides waiting for shipment from Dodge City, KS

Buffalo skulls that will be ground for fertilizer

Apache children on arrival at the

Carlisle Indian School

(Pennsylvania) wearing

traditional clothing.

The same Apache children four

months later.