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In 1858 and 1859 the discovery of gold at the foot of the Colorado Rockies
brought whites into the lands of the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Sioux, Kiowa, and
Comanches. The governement tried to keep the Indians away from the main routes
used by the emigrants. The Cheyenne and Arapahos had been granted a treaty in
1851, the govenment tried to break the treaty in 1861 and force them to a
reservation in southern Colorado but they refused to go. The peaceful Indians
headed by chief Black Kettle,and White Antelope went to reservations when
their treaty was broken. They thought they had made peace with the white leaders
, but were massacred in the Sand Creek Massacre November 29, 1864 by Colonel John Chivington.
Nearly four years to the day after Sand Creek, on November 27, 1868, in new
reservations in southwestern Kansas Col. George Armstong Custer's troops charged
,and this time Black Kettle did not escape.
After the end of the civil war, General Sheridan
See Photo ordered the southern tribe holdouts to the reservations or face
annihilation.
The armies of the civil war were also driving the plains
tribes from Minnesoto to North and South Dakota. The Ogala and Sicangu Sioux
heard of the Sand Creek massacre from their allies the Arapaho and Cheyenne,
and started raids to defend their land. The Cheyenne, and Arapahos followed
the Ogala chiefs Red Cloud and Man Afraid of His Horse.
The Army, under Col.Carrington, set out to the Powder River country to set up
a chain of forts to protect the Bozemand trail. Crazyhorse's warriors harrassed
the building of the forts on Sioux land. After Fort Phil Kearney was built,
Red Cloud joined the raids on the forts. Capt. William Fetterman sent out to
reinforce Carrington was ambushed and killed with his 80 men. In 1868 the army
said it would evacuate the forts and Gen. Sherman, invited Red Cloud and the
chiefs to sign a treaty. With the treaty signed by the chiefs, many of the
Sioux felt Red Cloud had sold out to the white man and went to join Sitting Bull
and Crazyhorse. The following year the whites went back on their promise to Red Cloud.
Ignoring the treay of 1868, Custer turned the invasion of the Sioux Black Hills
into a gold expedition. Thousands went into the Black Hills and started mining
towns. The government had plans of sending all the Sioux east of the Missouri River
to South Dakota on a reservation. The government's solution was to buy the Black Hills.
After Red Cloud refused an offer of six million dollars the meeting ended without
agreement, and Gen. Sherman set out a campaign to force the Indians into reservations.
In the spring of 1876 three expeditions headed toward the Powder River and Little Bighorn.
Brigadier General George Crook from Ft. Fetterman Wyoming moved northward. The Commander
of northern operations General Terry sent General John Gibbons from Fort Ellis Montana east
to the Yellowstone River. General Terry left Fort Abraham Lincoln in Dakota lands with two
companies of the Seventeenth Infantry, one of the sixth Infantry, and General Custer with the
seventh Cavalry. Meanwhile, on the Little Bighorn seven to ten thousand Indians gathered into
one of the largest assemblies of Plain Indians in History.
The chiefs in the battle were Sitting Bull, Crazyhorse, Chief Gall (who was raised by Sitting Bull),
and Chief Two Moons of the Cheyenne.
General Custer and the 7th Cavalry
advanced ahead of the main body. He divided his troops, some charging Sitting
Bulls camp, while Custer went north near the Cheyenne camp. Sitting Bulls
men went to protect the women and children. Chief Galls warriers went out to
fight the soldiers. They chased the troops then turned north to attack Custers
men. Two Moons heard the shooting and saw the smoke and headed to join the
battle. The fight with Custer lasted less than an hour and all the white men
were dead. The next day the Indians attacked the first troops who had attacked
Sitting Bulls camp. After a Scout sighted a second army approaching, the Indians
started a fire for cover, broke camp, and headed for the mountians. Major Reno,
See Photo Colonel F. W. Benteen, See Photo
and General Terry found the remains of Custer and the seventh cavalry. News of
the battle reached the outside world on Independenc Day July 4, 1876 where the
Indian victory was described as a massacre.
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