Native Americans

1. Native Americans In History By: Sarah Engdahl

2. Crazy Horse (Tashunkewitko) “All we wanted was peace and to be left alone” "A very great vision is needed and the man who has it must follow it as the eagle seeks the deepest blue of the sky. 1845-1877

3. Crazy Horse was born a warrior, but unlike some he was kind and gentle as well as brave. He was born into the Sioux tribe, where he learned all his tribal customs throughout his childhood. Crazy Horse’s mother always looked after her son and made sure of it that he was all that he could be, and his education was very important to her. From a very young age he has had a strong love for horses, and would always jump to the opportunity to help with them. From the start Crazy Horse was always defending his people when they were in trouble. For example when he went out with his young brother to gather the horses they encountered a bear, Crazy Horse bravely took on the bear while on his horse and the bear stepped down without a fight. At age 16 he joined his first war party against the Gros Ventres, after saving his friend Hump and almost being captured by the enemy he was named the “coming warrior of the Teton Sioux”, which is a great honor. Crazy Horse did not like to kill his enemy he simply just attacked and made sure to leave them alive in order to show them that he was not afraid of them and their weapons. His respect from the white people was earned during the battle against General Custer, who tried to sneak up on the Sioux tribe and the Cheyenne tribe, but Crazy Horse saw his plane and quickly brought his attack to a fatal end. A few years later he was accused of plotting to kill General Crook, which was not true. However when he left to take his wife to her parents since she had become ill, he was arrested and put into prison. He was killed at Fort Robinson at only 33 years of age, from then on his people looked towards him and remembered his name, and even after his death he was a well respected Sioux Indian.

4. Chief Joseph (Nez Perce) “It does not require many words to speak the truth” “I am tired of fighting….from where the sun now stands, I will fight no more” Died in 1905 (at age 60)

5. Chief Joseph was a member of the Nez Perce Indians, a tribe in which he was born and raised. At first this tribe was accepting to the fur traders, and settlers that were coming into their territory. This was all up until 1855 when they decided to try and sell the Native’s land by trading blankets and money with them. In 1871, Joseph became the chief of the Nez Perce Indians, and a few years later he decided that it was best for his tribe to move to the designated reservation that had been chosen for them since they would not be able to win a fight against the white men. When the tribe was leaving their village for the reservation a few of the warriors went and set some of the settlers homes on fire, killing a few of the people. This left Joseph with no choice but to go to war with the Bluecoats, a war in which they had won the first battle. Unable to win any of the fights after their first battler he decided to move his tribe to safety in Canada. On this journey the Bluecoats set up a counter attack that surprised the Indians, they were able to fight them off but many casualties were a result of this attack. The fighting went back and forth for many days, and it got to the point where Chief Joseph saw it best for his people that they stopped fighting and surrendered to the white people. Over the next few years his people were moved from place to place never reaching a place to call home, and as a result to this Chief Joseph became a spokesman for his people.

6. Red Cloud “The fire of hope almost went out, we have to rekindle it” “We do not want riches, we want peace and love” 1819-1909

7. Red Cloud was known as one of the most famous Lakota leaders of the 19th century due to his success during confrontations with the United States. Most of his childhood was spent at war with other tribes like the Crows and the Pawnees. In 1841 he killed one of his uncle’s primary rivals, which allowed him to gain much respect in the Lakota nation. He is known for orchestrating one of the most successful wars ever fought against the United States by Native Americans. Fear struck the white people when they saw how forceful these natives were and this pushed them to sign the Fort Laramie Treaty. This war allowed them to take control over the Western half of South Dakota, and most of Montana and Wyoming. Since the white people were still trying to make their mark in the United States, the piece that was won during this war did not last. In 1874 another war began on the Northern Plains, a war that would end the independent nations for the Indians. Even after the defeat of his tribe, he still fought for their rights and made sure that they were given what they needed to survive. His goal was to preserve the authority of chiefs like himself, and not allowing for his land to be leased to the whites. His long conquest was proof to us as to how the Natives fought for their land no matter what the cost.

8. Sitting Bull You think I am a fool, but you are a greater fool than I am. “Let us put our minds together and see what life we can make for our children” 1831-1890

9. Sitting Bull was a strong leader who lived up to all his promises and expectations. He was born into the Lakota tribe in 1831 and as a young man was a member of the Strong Heart warrior society, and even later in his life he became a member of the Silent Eaters. His first battler came to him at age fourteen and he quickly learned all the tasks that would be necessary to survive during battle. Sitting Bull was widely respected for his bravery and insight and was named chief of the Lakota tribe in the year 1868. Since gold had been discovered on the Dakota Territory the white men wanted it for their own, even though the Fort Laramie Treaty was still in place at that time. When the whites tried to seize the Black Hills they pushed the treaty aside and declared that any native that did not leave to go to a reservation would be considered hostile and would be killed. Sitting Bull and his people stayed and fought against the white people. He then had a vision that showed his people attacking the white and evidently it showed that they were winning the battle, this gave Crazy Horse the courage to take himself and 500 other Indians into battle. Years of fighting the Lakota tribes split and the white took them down one by one. Sitting Bull was able to take his tribe and escape to Canada where the white then tried to get him to peacefully move to a reservation. He gave them a proposition and they did not comply, and they only forced him to live on the Standing Rock Reservation, where he was not treated as a chief and was put to work right away. A vision then came to Sitting Bull that his people would kill him, and that was the way that he died. He was remembered by his people for many things, his courage and bravery and for being a loving father remembered him, and for being a good friend to others.

10. Joseph Brant “No person among us desires any other reward for performing a brave and worthwhile action, but the consciousness of having served his nation” “I bow to no man for I am considered a prince among my own people. But I will gladly shake your hand" 1742-1807

11. Joseph Brant is well known for being a spokesman for his people and also a member of the Anglican Church in which he did a lot of missionary work. He was also a soldier in the British Military in U.S. War for Independence. He was a strong leader form birth since he was appointed chief of his tribe from his father. He led the Indian Tribes of New York into many raids in order to allow for them to once move peacefully into the reservations that were laid out for them. He was ultimately on the British side in the sense that he wanted to work for the British, and also keep his people safe any way that he could. After Brant had made his mark on his people he was allowed to marry, he married Christine who he had known in school. She gave him a son and a daughter, and died in 1771 due to an illness. He later married her sister who died in 1774 of the same illness. He translated many of the English works into the Mohawk language for his people to read, and was greatly known for this as well. After leading a victory in the Cherry Valley Massacre, Brant was able to obtain a thriving reputation for his abilities. After the war was over he married his third wife, and made it known that he was no longer for Indian Warfare. He continued in his missionary work and supported his people by fighting for their rights to their land. All in all Joseph Brant was a very successful Mohawk Chief, and his teachings would be used for many years to come.

12. Black Elk "Sometimes dreams are wiser than waking." "If I thought that I was doing it myself, the hole would close up and no power could come through. 1863-1950

13. Black Elk was a very spiritual member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, and was also a member of the Lakota Tribe. He was also named the medicine man of his tribe, and became a well respected elder. He fought in the Battle of Little Big Horn at the age of twelve and was injured in the battle that occurred at Wounded Knee. He was known for leaving the reservation and touring with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show in Europe. After marrying a Catholic woman, they had three children that were also raised as Catholics. Soon after her death he took the title of Nicholas Black Elk, because he too became a Catholic. Even though he was now a Catholic he still was a very important spiritual leader to his tribal people, because he saw no contradictions between the Catholics and his tribe’s beliefs. Many books were written about Black Elk and his ways because he was very accepting to teaching other people everything they needed to know. Black Elk was the second cousin of Crazy Horse, which goes to show how close all these tribes were since most of the people can be connected to the other in one way or another. Black Elk was a very respected elder and was remembered for his open heart and acceptance to all that was good.

14. Sacagawea “Everything I do is for my people” Sacagawea and her son on the quarter dollar. 1787-1812

15. Sacagawea is well known for her assistance in the Lewis and Clark expedition. At a young age she was betrothed to a much older man, which she did not marry because she was kidnapped by the Hidatsa, and taken to their village in South Dakota. She married a French trapper at the age of 16, and in the Summer of 1804 she became pregnant with her first child. Lewis and Clark came along hoping to find someone who spoke many languages well and knew the land as well. They interviewed many men in the tribe, however Sacagawea was the only one to fit the bill. She gave birth to her son in 1805 and would evidently carry him with her throughout the whole expedition. There were some upsides and downsides to this because it was not common for a war party to be traveling with an Indian woman, let alone an Indian woman and her child. Her strength and courage were scene throughout the trip because she was the only one to remain calm whenever something seemed to go wrong. She died at only 25 years of age due to a very high fever. She is scene today on the quarter dollar coin and also on the 1994 postage stamps. Her bravery allowed for people today to look up to her and see that she was a very important figure in her time.

16. Black Hawk The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves. Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. 1767-1838

17. From the start Black Hawk did not take a liking to the white people, because he learned that they had made the Louisiana Purchase. He was all about saving his land and his people’s land from the white people and much of his life would be spent fighting for the land that was rightfully his peoples. Black Hawk was a leader of the Sauk Tribe and also was a very strong war leader. After another tribal leader of the Sauk tribe signed a treaty signing over 15 million acres of his people’s land to the whites, he was outraged and agreed to war in order to save his land. He sided with the British because he hated the United States with all he had. In June 1831. he and his people returned to their land on the Rock River, however soon after they moved upstream to the mouth of the river to try and avoid a fight from the United States. Soon after however they went across the river to try and fight for the rest of the land that had been taken through the treaty. In 1832 Black Hawk and many others were captured which allowed for the Black Hawk Purchase which gave even more of the Sauk land to the United States. All of this granted them the privilege to live out the rest of their lives on a reservation, he died a captive like many other people like him.

18. Pocahontas “What you mean is, ‘Not like you’.” “You can own the earth and still. All you'll own is earth until. You can paint with all the colors of the wind.” (Colors of the Wind from Movie) 1595-1617

19. Pocahontas was known as the Princess of the Algonquian Indians since her father was the great Powhatan. When they Englishmen landed in Jamestown searching for gold many problems had arisen for Pocahontas and her people. John Smith told the story about how him and Pocahontas had a romantic encounter, however previous events made many skeptical as to whether or not these encounters were factual or not. The story has it that Pocahontas save Smith from being beaten to death by her people by saying that they were now friends, which furthered her father into adopting him as his own son. She became a messenger back and forth between Jamestown and her people. For a while the Indians and English were able to get along, but with time and gold becoming less visible hostilities rose between the two groups. After being kidnapped by the English she met a man named John Rolfe, and married him soon after. He was a very religious man, and seemed hesitant to marry her from the beginning however he did so anyway because she showed that she really did love him by getting her fathers consent to marry him. On her second voyage home from England she became very ill and did not make it. She was treated very well by the people in England even though they saw her as a slave and a savage. He courage and bravery allows for many people to see that not all of the Indians were savages during this time. Even today her story is told to children because she was a very brave person indeed.

20. Geronimo “I was born on the prairies where the wind blew free and there was nothing to break the light of the sun” “I cannot think that we are useless or God would not have created us” 1829-1909 (P.O.W.)

21. Geronimo was a leader of the Apache Tribe, although he was not a hereditary leader he gained this position because he spoke for his brother in law, Juh. He became the most famous Apache of all other Apaches because of his great abilities at war. To the whites he was the perfect image of a savage because he was a ruthless killer who fought for what he believed in. He was placed on a reservation where him and Juh lived out most of their years in silence until the killing of the Apache Prophet, which is when they came out of their silence and went back to their old ways and lifestyles. Geronimo escaped three times from the reservation and surrendered when he was being caught. He fought many other times until his final surrender, which was the last Indian guerrilla action in the United States. When they surrendered they were sent to Fort Marion where he died a Prisoner of War. Like many Indians during his time he was unable to return to his homeland, or even be buried on his land.

22. Works Cited • Welker, Glenn. "Great Chiefs & Leaders." Indigenous People. N.p., 11/23/2009. Web. 2 Jun 2011. http://www.indigenouspeople.net/leaders.htm • Starr, Sandra. "Stamps Go Native." National Museum of the American Indian. 2011: 23. Print.