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Great Plains Reservation
The federal government had passed an act that designated the entire Great Plains as one enormous reservation, or land set aside for Native American tribes. -
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Great Plains Reservation Policies change
The government changed their policy and created treaties that defined specific boundaries for each tribe. Most Native Americans spurned the government treaties and continued to hunt on their traditional lands, clashing with settlers and miners-with tragic results. -
Massacre at Sand Creek
Most of the Cheyenne, assuming they were under protection of the U.S. government, had peacefully returned to Colorado's Sand Creek Reserve for the winter. General S. R. Curtis, U.S. army commander in the West, sent a telegram to colonel John Chivington that said, "I want no peace till the Indians suffer more." Chivington and his troops then descended on the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes that were camped at Sand Creek. The attack at dawn killed ove 150 inhabitants, mostly women and children. -
Death on the Bozeman Trail
The Sioux chief, Red Clod, had unsuccessfully appeled to the government to end white settlement on a trail known as the Bozeman Trail. This trail ran directly trough Sioux hunting grounds in the Bighorn Mountains. The warrior crazy horse ambushed Captain William J. Fetteman and his company at Lodge Trail Ridge. Over 80 soldiers were killed. Native Americans called this fight the Battle of the Hundred Slain, and the whites called it the Fetterman Massacre. -
Treaty of Fort Laramie
Skirmishes continued until the government agreed to close the Bozeman Trail. Because of this, the Treaty of Fort Laramie was put into effect. The Sioux agreed to live on a reservation along the Missouri River, was forced on the leaders of the Sioux. Sitting Bull, leader of the Hunkpapa Sioux, didn't sign it. This treaty provided only a temporary halt to warfare. The conflict between the 2 cultures continued as settlers moved westward and Native Americans resisted restrictions imposed on them. -
Gold Rush
Within 4 years of the Treaty of Fort Laramie, miners began searching the Black Hills for gold. The Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho protested to no avail. Colonel George A. Custer reported that the Black Hills had gold "from the grass roots down." This caused a gold rush. Red Cloud and Spotted Tail vainly appealed again to government officials in Washington. -
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Red River War
War broke out yet again as the Kiowa and Comanche engaged in 6 years of raiding. The U.S. army responded by herding the people of friendly tribes onto reservations while opening fire on all others. General Philip Sheridan gave orders "to destroy their villages and ponies, to kill and hang all warriors, and to bring back all women and children." The army crushed resistance on the southern plains. -
Custer's Last Stand
The Sioux and Cheyenne held a sun dance, where Sitting Bull seen soldiers and Native Americans falling off their horses. When Custer and his troops reached the Little Bighorn River, they were ready for them. Led by Crazy Horse, Gall, and Sitting Bull, the warriors outflanked Custer's troops. Within an hour, Custer and all of his men of the Seventh Cavalry were dead. Eventually, the Sioux was beaten. They found refuge in Canada, but were eventually forced to surrender to prevent starvation. -
The Dawes Act
Congress passed the Dawes Act aiming to "Americanize" the Native Americans. This act broke up reservations and gave some of the reservation land to individual Native Americans-160 acres to head of house and 80 acres to unmarried adults. The government would sell the remainder of the reservations to settlers. The resulting income would be used by Native Americans to buy farm implements. Whites had taken 2/3 of the territory, and the Native Americans received no money from the sale of the lands. -
The Battle of Wounded Knee
The Seventh Cavalry rounded up 350 starving and freezing Sioux and took them to a camp at Wounded Knee, S.D. The soldiers demanded that the Native Americans give up all their weapons. A shot was fired, not known which side fired first, but the soldiers opened fire with deadly cannons. Within minutes, as many as 300 mostly unarmed Native Americans, including children, were slaughtered. The soldiers left the corpses to freeze on the ground.
