The Indian Wars

1st Treaty of Fort Laramie 1851 8 Native American groups agreed to specific limited geographic boundaries in return for the US government promising to honor those boundaries forever

Settlers Move Into the Great Plains Deprived natives of their hunting grounds Ignored treaties signed by US government Forced the Indians to move further west Occasionally, Indian groups would resist or retaliate

The Buffalo Plains Indians relied on the buffalo as their primary source of food, clothing, & shelter As more settlers entered the plains, the buffalo hunting grounds were disturbed

The Buffalo Start to Disappear Settlers killed animals to protect their crops Professional hunters killed many for their hides which were popular in the east Sport hunters killed many just for fun Railroad companies hired sharpshooters to kill buffalo to keep them from blocking the tracks The US Army killed many to deprive the Indians of food and force them onto the reservations

Dakota Sioux Uprising Dakota Sioux had agreed to stay on a reservation in Minnesota US government had agreed to pay annuities to Indians on the reservation Corrupt traders and officials often cheated Indians out of their annuities In 1862, Congress delayed paying the annuities due to the Civil War, resulting in widespread hunger among the Sioux

Chief Little Crow Asked traders to sell the Sioux food on credit until the annuities were paid Traders refused; one replied “let them eat grass or their own dung” In desperation, the Sioux took up arms Little Crow tried to limit the violence, but angry Indians killed hundreds of white settlers before federal troops arrived

Sioux Uprising Ends Military courts sentenced 307 Dakota Sioux to death, but President Lincoln reduced the number to 38 Many of the Sioux left Minnesota and took refuge in the Dakota Territory

Sand Creek Massacre (1864) US forced Cheyenne to give up lands promised to them by treaty Cheyenne retaliated by attacking settlements in Colorado Colorado governor ordered the Cheyenne to surrender at Ft. Lyon or face the consequences Cheyenne under Chief Black Kettle arrived at Ft. Lyon to negotiate a peace treaty and made camp at Sand Creek US forces attacked the unsuspecting Cheyenne, killing about 270, including women and children in retaliation for the Cheyenne’s earlier attacks on settlers

Lakota Sioux Vow to Defend Their Territory After the trouble with the Dakota Sioux, US Army began to patrol into the Great Plains to prevent other Sioux from organizing The nomadic Lakota Sioux were determined to defend their territory against incursion by both white settlers and the Army Several conflicts ensued

Red Cloud 1822 – 1909 Lakota Sioux Led Sioux in Red Cloud’s War (1866-68) Later traveled to Washington and met with Pres. Grant Did not take part in later Sioux uprisings, instead pursuing more peaceful efforts

Fetterman Massacre (1866) Capt. William Fetterman and 80 soldiers were lured out of their fort along the Bozeman Trail in Wyoming by Lakota Chief Red Cloud They walked into an ambush and were wiped out by the Lakota

Indian Peace Commission Formed by Congress in 1867, toured the Great Plains Concluded problems were due to incursions by whites into Indian territory Proposed creating 2 large reservations on the plains which would be managed by agents of the Bureau of Indian Affairs US Army would be given full authority to deal with Indians who did not move to the reservations Plan didn’t work due to resistance from the Indians

2nd Treaty of Ft. Laramie (1868) Also called the Sioux Treaty of 1868 Guaranteed the Lakota ownership of the Black Hills in the Dakotas, as well as hunting rights elsewhere Gold miners would violate the treaty, triggering later uprisings The Lakota sued the US government in 1980 for violation of this treaty, winning $120 million in damages; Lakota refused the money and continue to press for return of their lands

Crazy Horse 1840 – 1877 Lakota Sioux Took part in the Fetterman Massacre Later led the Sioux in the Battle of Little Big Horn in 1876 After surrendering to US troops in 1877, he was shot while “resisting” his guards

George Armstrong Custer 1839 – 1876 Civil War veteran Graduated last in his class at West Point Flamboyant officer whose career was marked by scandals and a failed effort to accept command of the Mexican Army under Benito Juarez Sent to fight Indians to get him away from Washington

Battle of Little Big Horn Custer’s Last Stand June 25, 1876 Custer launched a cavalry attack on a group of 2500 Sioux & Cheyenne warriors The Indians repulsed the attack, then surrounded Custer’s detachment and killed him and all 210 of his men Last major Indian victory

The Ghost Dance Lakota had finally relented in 1877 and settled on a reservation under Chief Sitting Bull Lakota had begun performing a ritual known as the Ghost Dance, a celebration of a hoped-for day when the white settlers would disappear, the buffalo would return, and all of the Indian’s dead ancestors would come back In 1890, federal agents ordered an end to the Ghost Dance, but the Lakota ignored the order

Sitting Bull 1831 – 1890 Holy man, and one of the Sioux leaders at Little Big Horn Sitting Bull was blamed for the Lakota’s defiance over the Ghost Dance and ordered arrested Police were sent to arrest Sitting Bull, but his supporters resisted his arrest; a gun battle broke out and Sitting Bull and 13 others were killed

Wounded Knee Angered over Sitting Bull’s death, the Ghost Dancers left the reservation, breaking their treaty agreement US troops pursued Dec. 29, 1890: the two groups met at Wounded Knee Creek, resulting in a battle 25 US soldiers and about 200 Lakota (mostly women, children, and the elderly) died

Chief Joseph & the Nez Perce Nez Perce refused to give up their assigned reservation in Idaho in 1877 US Army threatened to forcibly relocate them; violence broke out and the Nez Perce fled, trying to reach Canada Retreated 1300 miles and got within 30 miles of Canadian border before being cut off by the Army and surrendering Forced to relocate to the Indian Territory (Oklahoma)

Helen Hunt Jackson 1830 – 1885 Wrote A Century of Dishonor (1881) Exposed the shameful way the US government and Army had treated the Indians, chastised Congress to make amends Created concern for the plight, led Congress to try to find a new approach to Indian relations

The Dawes Act of 1887 Sponsored by Sen. Henry Dawes of Massachusetts Abolished tribal organizations Broke up communally held reservation land by allotting each Indian head of household 160 acres for farming; single adults received 80 acres, children each received 40 acres Remaining reservation land was sold to white settlers with the money going into a trust set aside for Native Americans

Assimilation Dawes Act was a failure Land allotted was of poor quality Indians had little interest or experience in farming, didn’t want to be assimilated into “American-style” of life Many sold their allotments Didn’t like loss of reservation land to white settlers Agents put in charge were often corrupt or biased Indian problem was solved by the decrease in Indian population due to hunger and disease

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