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Homestead Act of 1862
Act that gave 160 acres of free land to a settler that would pay a filing fee and lived on the land for 5 years.The act brought farmers and other settlers to the plains to homestead. -
Fetterman Massacre
Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arahapo Indians attacked the United States Army from 1865 to 1867.Troops were watching a fort along the Bozeman trail and Sioux military leader Crazy Horse lured the troops into a deadly trap. He had tricked the fort's commander into sending 80 armed troops on pursuit and hundreds of warriors were waiting and amushed the entire detachment. -
Treaty of Fort Laramie
A treaty with the Sioux that brought peace between whites who agreed to settle the Black Hills region of the Dakota Territory. The treaty had given the Black Hills region to the Indian reservation. The treaty was made in Fort Laramie in present day Wyoming. After the discovery of gold in the Black Hills, white settlers had been trespassing and demanding protection from the U.S. Army. -
Discovery of 1874
A rumor was being spread of a gold discovery in Montana. General Custer had lead a army expedition to check the rumors. Gold was confirmed. The government had tried to buy the hills instead of protecting the Sioux's rights. -
The Battle of Little Bighorn
The United States Army was ordered to round up Sioux warriors and move them to reservations. The 7th calvary unit was led by Lieutenant Colonel George Custer was ordered to scout the Native American Encampment.He wanted the fame for leading a major victory, so he split up his regiment and attacked the Sioux. He had underestimated he Sioux. With a total of about 250 soldiers, he had faced a force of thousands of Sioux and Cheyenne Indians. Custer and his whole command had been killed. -
Ghost Dance
The Sioux had had turned to Wovoka, te prophet. Wovoka had said the Sioux could regain their former greatness by performing a ritual called the Ghost Dance. It was a way for the Sioux to show that their culture was being destroyed. As the ritual spread,reservation officials decided to ban the dance and arrest Sitting Bull for leading the movement. During a scuffle, the police shot and killed Sitting Bull. -
Wounded Knee
As several hundred Lakota Sioux fled in fear after Sitting Bull's death, they gathered at a creek called Wounded Knee in suthwestern South Dakota. The army went there to collect the Sioux's weapons. Nobody knows how the fighting started, but as a pistol shot rang out, the army had responded with firing their weapons. Over 200 Sioux and 25 soldiers were killed. Wounded knee had marked the end of armed fighting between the white people and the Native Americans.
