Native Americans

American history may not be long, but it still holds what seems like infinite information. Native Americans hold a very important place in American History. During the age of the Wild West there were plenty of interactions between Natives and the government. The Wild West was just a short period of time in American history, despite this, it consists of numerous interactions between the government and Native Americans. Native Americans called North America home for thousands of years and interacted with Europeans and other settlers for hundreds of years. This page will strictly be focusing on the interactions that took place in the Wild West. These interactions could be peaceful or violent, but each one left its mark on history.

This page will be discussing some of the many interactions the Native Americans had with the government during the Wild West. Some of these interactions are peaceful and some ended in violence. This will include a photograph of Sitting Bull, one of the most well known and famous Indian chiefs in American history. We will also take a look at the firsthand account of an American scout who participated in battles leading up to the Battle of Little Bighorn and General Custer's last stand. Finally this page will document some of the treaties and more political sides of Native American interactions with the government.

Sitting Bull
In this photograph we can see Sitting Bull. Sitting Bull is one of the most well known and popular Native chiefs in history. Sitting Bull saw a lot more in his life than most people will see in theirs. Taken in 1881 by photographer Orlando Scott Goff this photo has been seen many times in historical books and documents.

This photo is a nice way to get a grasp on what some Native Americans may have looked like in the late 19th century. Sitting Bull had gone through a lot before that picture was taken and he would go through more after it was taken. Being able to see a man who has seen everything connects a person to that point in history. The photo also depicts Sitting Bull holding what appears to be some sort of tool. Photos are important in the understanding of topics and this photo is no different. The life behind the man in the picture is historic in itself and being able to see what history actually looks like gives a new meaning to it. The photo is simple but it means a lot.

Sitting Bull was born in 1831 in what is now South Dakota. Sitting Bull was a Sioux Indian chief under whom the Sioux tribes united to protect themselves from the United States. In 1868 Sitting Bull accepted a treaty from the US government that would grant the Sioux a reservation in what is now southwest South Dakota. After gold was discovered nearby a rush of settlers invaded the land that was granted to the tribe. In 1875 the tribe was ordered to return their land to the US by the next year. This was an order that Sitting Bull was willing to comply with however it wasnt possible for him to move all his tribe out. Numerous battles between the Sioux and the US army ensued. These battles lead up to one of the most infamous battles in American history, The Battle of Little bighorn. Despite emerging as victors in many of their battles with US troops the tribe was forced to flee to Canada after the buffalo population they relied on so much began to drop. The Canadian government could not acknowledge responsibility for feeding the tribe however, and after just a few years Sitting Bull was forced to surrender. In 1885 he was allowed to join Buffalo Bill's Wild West show where he gained international fame. In 1889 the Ghost Dance began to spread. Ghost Dance was a religious movement, which said the advent of an Indian messiah who would sweep away the whites and restore the Indians’ former traditions. As a precaution Indian Police and soldiers arrested Sitting Bull. On December 15th, 1890, Ghost Dance was killed when some of his warriors attempted to rescue him. Sitting Bull died over a century ago but his story will remain a part of American History forever.

Battle of Little Bighorn
The Battle of Little Bighorn is one of the most infamous battles in American History. The Battle of Little Bighorn is well known for General Custer's last stand where hundreds of US soldiers including General Custer were killed in a battle with Native Americans. One American scout by the name of George Herendeen participated in the campaign leading up to the Battle of Little Bighorn. Just a month after the battle Herendeen gave an account of his experiences to a reporter from the Helena Herald. The story was published in the Helena Herald on July 8th 1876.

In 1876 George Herendeen was sent by General Terry with General Custer's column to carry dispatches from Custer to Terry. In Herendeen's story he says on the morning of the 24th (of June) he and General Terry's column met with six crow Indian scouts who had been sent by Custer the previous night to look for the Indian village.The scouts were again sent ahead and moved along at a fast walk. Around 1 PM while the officers were eating their lunch, the scouts came back and reported that they had found where the village had been quite recently. They moved again, with flankers well out to watch the trail and see that it did not divide. About 4 PM they came to the place where the village had been only a few days before. The scouts all again pushed out to look for the village, and at 11 PM Custer had everything packed up and followed the scouts up the right hand fork of the Rosebud. The next day Custer went out with more scouts to once again look for the village. In about an hour Custer returned and said he could not see the Indian village, but the scouts and a guide, said they could distinctly see it some fifteen miles off. Custer gave his orders and the command was put in fighting order. Herendeen and the scouts were ordered forward and the regiment moved at a walk. The scouts stumbled upon an old lodge where Herendeen said they observed multiple dead Indians. From that point they could see into the Little Horn valley, and observed heavy clouds of dust rising in the distance. At this point, assuming the Indians were moving Custer sent word to Colonel Reno who was a few companies ahead to push rapidly towards the dust. As Reno was pushing forward scouts came up and informed him the Sioux were coming in large numbers to meet him. Reno continued forward where fighting kicked off. After a few minutes of skirmished Reno fell back to the horses and ordered his men to mount up. As Reno and his men fled multiple Sioux people rode along side and fired at them, the US soldiers put up little resistance. Herendeen ended up falling from his horse which ran off. Herendeen said from there he saw multiple other soldiers who were dismounted. Herendeen and the soldiers stayed in some bush for about three hours. Herendeen said he could hear heavy firing a few miles away and while he did not know who it was at the time he later learned it was Custer's command. After the firing died off Herendeen convinced the soldiers with him to flee before more Sioux found them. After awhile Herendeen and the soldiers safely met back up with Colonel Reno where soon after more Sioux troops showed up and began firing on the US troops. Reno and the troops moved upwards and fighting continued into the night until they could not see. Herendeen continues by saying that at the peep of day the fighting resumed. At about 2 PM the Sioux began to draw off, but the fight continued into the evening. As night fell Reno fortified his position expecting another attack but as morning arose not an Indian could be found. Herendeen left Reno with some other scouts and returned to where they had hidden in the bush the previous day. While returning they were fired upon by Sioux and a few fellow scouts were killed. Herendeen does not go into too much detail after this. Herendeen was able to get to safety and to end his interview he reflects on the battle. He says "I think the Indian village must have contained about 6,000 people, fully 3,000 of whom were warriors. The Indians fought Reno first and then went to fight Custer, after which they came back to finish Reno. The same Indians were in all the attacks. I think the Indians were commanded by Sitting Bull in person. There were eight or nine other chiefs in the field." Herendeen's final statements are directed towards Custer and the men who had fallen with him in battle. Herendeen says "Custer's men made a good fight, and no doubt killed a great many Indians. I don't think a single man escaped from Custer's part of the field. They were completely surrounded on every side by at least 2,500 warriors."

The Battle of Little Bighorn was a disastrous loss for the US army. Despite winning the battle the Sioux troops did not live any better in the end. Many Sioux were killed while the rest were forced to flee for safety. The Battle of Little Bighorn will be remembered throughout history as one of the largest and deadliest battles between the US army and the Native Americans.

Treaties
Interactions between Native Americans and the American government were quite complicated. War was not always the the option that these two parties decided to go with. There were many treaties signed between the American government and Native American tribes, these treaties are not as simple as a negotiation. Lots of work and time went into making these treaties and often times they ended up one sided. The Wild West was a big time for treaties. As the United States expanded westward and settlers began to move, people and cities began to run into more and more tribes.

In 1860 a confluence of several events meant that treaties, and specifically treaties negotiated by the president, would cease to be made. In 1871 due to mounting pressure congress removed this. From then on ratified agreements became the go to technique for documenting the relationship between tribes and the government. It has been argued that the increasing military and industrial might of the United States over time made enforcing “harsher” deals easier as time went on. For the most part tribes that were fighting wars find themselves worse off in the postwar period relative to the way they began them. Treaties were worse for tribes who fought the US than for those who peacefully signed them. Treaties were not Native American friendly for any tribe but nonwar tribes saw that their treaties become harsher at a slower rate than those fighting wars in the same periods. Defeat in war is associated with more harmful treaty terms for the tribes. Even the peaceful tribes had to follow strict rules in their treaties. Many tribes were forced to move land, even then the US government held the right to to take that land back at any time. And exampled of this is when gold was discovered near Sioux reservation land and the tribe was given one year to move. Most treaties signed in this time period were subject to "sudden changes" in the terms of the contracts. These treaties that tribes often did not have a choice as to sign or not stripped them of most of their rights as people. The American Government had almost complete control over what the treaties entailed and Native American tribes had little say in what was included. As the US expanded, the age of the Native Americans came to an end, and there was not much that they could do about it.

Treaties were often very rough on the Native Americans and as we entered the 20th century these treaties would only get more numerous and more restricting. A new age was falling upon the United States and the Native Americans. To this day some tribes are still at odds with the US Government and often find themselves in court over it.

Written by Alec Tennessen