Pueblo Culture and History

• Pueblos are Indigenous people of the U.S. Southwest.
• They are known for adobe villages, farming, and pottery.
• Chacoans were Ancestral Puebloans.
• They built massive stone cities in Chaco Canyon, NM.
• They were skilled in astronomy and trade.
• Chaco Canyon is an ancient Pueblo site in New Mexico with large stone buildings.
• Pueblo Bonito is the biggest building in Chaco Canyon.
• It was used for living and ceremonies.
• Mesa Verde is a site in Colorado.
• It features Pueblo homes built into cliffs.
• Buffalo was very important to Nomadic Native American tribes
• However, it was less central to Pueblo people (farmers).
• Nomadic means moving from place to place instead of settling.
• Pueblos built permanent villages, while Nomadic tribes did not.
• Assimilation refers to when a group is forced to adopt another culture.
• Spanish colonizers tried to change Pueblo traditions via assimilation.
• Acculturation means adopting parts of another culture while keeping one's own.
• Some Pueblos practiced acculturation after Spanish contact.
• Culture is a group's way of life (beliefs, traditions, customs).
• Pueblo culture included farming, pottery, and religious ceremonies.
• Battles are fights between groups.
• Massacres are the killing of many people.
• Spanish forces attacked Pueblo villages to enforce their rule.

Early Conflicts and Treaties

• 1861: The Treaty of Fort Wise was signed by some Cheyenne and Arapaho leaders.
• It reduced their land to a small reservation in Colorado.
• Many Native Americans, including the Dog Soldiers, rejected the treaty.
• They continued to fight against U.S. expansion.
• The Cheyenne and the Four Corners Treaty dealt with land in Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, and Nevada.
• Native Americans, including the Cheyenne, were forced to leave the Great Plains and move westward.
• Nebraska was already occupied by the Sioux, adding tension.

Escalating Violence and Military Response

• 1862: The Hungate Family Massacre occurred.
• A settler family in Colorado was brutally killed.
• The deaths fueled anti-Native American sentiment.
• Governor John Evans used the event to justify military action.
• July 1862: John Chivington led the First Colorado Volunteers to defeat Confederate Texans in New Mexico.
• This secured Colorado for the Union.
• It solidified Chivington’s reputation.

Arapaho War and Further Military Actions

• 1864: A campaign was launched against the Arapaho.
• The Second Colorado Volunteers were deployed to clear them out.
• This was part of a larger effort to remove Native Americans from the Great Plains.
• In 1864, the Third Colorado Volunteers were formed (the "Bloodless Third").
• John Chivington took command.

The Sand Creek Massacre (November 29, 1864)

• Black Kettle wanted peace and had been negotiating with U.S. authorities.
• Chivington led the Third Colorado Volunteers in a surprise attack on a peaceful Cheyenne and Arapaho village at Sand Creek.
• Hundreds of Native Americans, mostly women and children, were brutally killed.
• Lone Wolf resisted.
• The massacre led to national outrage and further conflicts.

Aftermath and Continued Resistance

• The massacre intensified Native American resistance, especially among groups like the Dog Soldiers.
• The U.S. military increased efforts to control and remove Native populations.
• The Cheyenne and Arapaho were attempting to survive on reservations in Colorado.

Key Figures in the Sand Creek Massacre

• Black Kettle had attempted to maintain peaceful relations with the U.S. government.
• Colonel John Chivington strongly supported the policy of violent repression against Native Americans.

Chronology of Events: Sand Creek Massacre

• November 28, 1864: A storm confined the villagers, making them vulnerable.
• November 29, 1864: The Sand Creek Massacre began.
• Chivington's forces attacked.
• Black Kettle raised American and white flags.
• Chivington ordered his men to show no mercy.
• Soldiers began attacking the villages.
• A toddler’s head was bashed against a rock, while an infant was grabbed by its leg and its head was smashed down.
• Black Kettle was shot nine times but survived; his wife was killed.
• Over 150 Native American women, children, and elderly people died.
• Bodies were mutilated.
• A key witness against Chivington was murdered.
• Chivington was not tried for war crimes.
• The Sand Creek site is one of the few officially recognized massacres.

George Armstrong Custer

• Born: December 5, 1839
• Died: June 25, 1876 (Battle of Little Bighorn)
• Occupation: U.S. Army Officer and Cavalry Commander

Civil War Hero

• Fought for the Union Army.
• Became a Brevet Major General by age 23.
• Known for fearless leadership but also recklessness.

Post-Civil War & the Indian Wars

• Demoted to Lieutenant Colonel and assigned to the 7th Cavalry.
• Played a key role in the Indian Wars.
• Involved in conflicts against the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Lakota Sioux, and Kiowa.

Battle of Washita River (1868)

• Led a surprise attack on a Cheyenne village.
• Many were killed, including women and children.
• Seen as a massacre by some.

Battle of Little Bighorn (June 25, 1876)

• Custer led about 600 soldiers against a larger force of Lakota Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho warriors.
• Native American forces were led by Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse.
• Custer underestimated the enemy.
• He divided his forces.
• Custer and over 200 of his men were killed.

Legacy

• Seen as a brave but reckless commander.
• Became a symbol of both heroism and failure.
• His defeat at Little Bighorn became legendary.
• Ulysses S. Grant met Custer but disliked him.
• Grant found Custer arrogant.
• Custer was demoted from Brevet Major General back to Lieutenant Colonel.
• The U.S. Army created the 7th Cavalry Regiment.
• Custer was assigned to lead it.
• Custer worked on integrating a semi-automatic weapon for soldiers.
• The Springfield Model 1873 replaced older rifles.
• The Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Kiowa opposed U.S. expansion.
• Roman Nose led raids, including attacking a Wells Fargo supply wagon.
• Custer wanted to regain his former rank.
• This led him to the Battle of Little Bighorn (1876).

Nez Perce & Chief Joseph

• Post-Civil War Military Shift
• After the Civil War, soldiers were reassigned to the West.
• The U.S. focused on controlling Native American resistance.
• President Ulysses S. Grant's sought a treaty with the Nez Perce.
• Aimed to relocate them to a reservation.
• Chief Joseph refused to leave their ancestral lands in Oregon’s Wallowa Valley.
• The U.S. government forced Chief Joseph and his people to move to Idaho.
• Violence erupted, sparking the Nez Perce War of 1877.
• The Nez Perce began a long retreat, covering over 1,200 miles.
• They traveled from Idaho through the Rocky Mountains, reaching Wyoming.
• They tricked the U.S. about their direction.
• They were intercepted just 40 miles from the border at Bear Paw, Montana.
• After a five-day battle, Chief Joseph surrendered in 1877
• Chief Joseph's surrender included the speech “I will fight no more forever.”
• The Nez Perce were relocated to Oklahoma.
• Chief Joseph spent his later years advocating for Native American rights.

Final Stand and Surrender

• General Nelson Miles attacked the Nez Perce, forcing them to surrender.
• Chief Joseph declared "From where the sun now stands, I will fight no more forever."
• He surrendered because his people were suffering.
• The U.S. sent the surviving Nez Perce to Oklahoma.
• Chief Joseph continued advocating for his people's rights.
• Chief Joseph died in 1904, of a broken heart.
• Chief Joseph’s legacy is a symbol of resistance and the struggle for Indigenous rights.
• Nelson A Miles became the face behind the Native American wars.
• William Tecumseh Sherman said ¨ only good Indians are the dead ones¨

Apache Resistance Against the Mexican Government

• The Apache raided settlements when resources were scarce.
• Constant conflict with the Mexican government occurred, mainly in the 1840s.
• Mexican government launched a surprise attack on an Apache village.
• Gayotla lost his wife, mother, and three young children.
• The Apache council decided to retaliate.
• They referred to Americans as "White Eyes."
• Gayotla received a vision that no bullet could kill him.
• During the battle, a Mexican commander ordered his men to target Gayotla.
• Gayotla suddenly rose from the river and shot the commander.
• Geronimo was feared due to his reputation as a fierce warrior.
• Theodore Roosevelt was pleased to meet Geronimo.
• Geronimo was an Apache leader.

The Comanche

• Texas Rangers were created to hunt down the tribe.
• Quanah Parker was the leader.
• Quanah Parker was not accepted because he was half-white.
• He went on the Red River War to prove himself.
• Adobe walls surrounded the Comanche.
• The elephant gun was released.

Red River War

• Started over a cow.

1854:

• The Sioux had allowed the Americans to move.
• A French interpreter came to interpret what the aggressive Lutinent was trying to tell the natives.
• The natives claimed they received the cow as a gift.
• Andrew Myrick: Trader on the Lower Sioux Agency.
• ¨If they are hungry let them eat grass or their dung¨
• Red Cloud was the Chief of the Sioux nations.
• The Western Cheyenne were under the Sioux's rule.
• Red Cloud did not want to kill more settlers.
• Settlers entered a house looking for supplies and discovered Native Americans inside.
• Agreement: If settlers won a shooting contest, they got livestock.
• If Native Americans won, they took settlers' guns.
• Settlers won the first contest.
• Native Americans won the second contest.
• They killed the settlers.
• The killing of settlers triggered a larger conflict.
• Increased violence occurred between settlers and Native American tribes.
• Prairie War: Red Cloud War and Dakota War occurred.
• Curly became Crazy Horse.
• They were trying to defend the Bozeman Trail.
• Bozeman Trail was between Wyoming and Montana.
• Kerington was in charge of the trail.
• Red Cloud was attacking the fort.
• Americans got a new weapon (revolving rifle), and Red Cloud lost the advantage.
• Red cloud would wound the Americans so they would leave the fort.
• Lutinent Federman had 80 troops with him for his rescue mission.
• He disobeyed his rule of not interacting with the Sioux and started chasing crazy horse.
• He had entered the ¨cereal bowl¨
• That allowed them to get ambushed.
• By the time the help got there, everyone that went with Federman was dead.
• Snow began to fall and cover the bodies (American).
• They could not find any Native American bodies.
• 80 people died in this battle.
• The Sioux came home very happy, and Crazy Horse's first mission was very successful.
• Black Elk was alive during the Federman massacre.
• He said they had few people who died but were picked up to have a proper burial.
• The US said no more Bozeman Trail.
• William Tecumseh Sherman writes: ¨ During an assault, a soldier can not pause to distingush between male or female, let alone age¨
• The 4 rs are created due to……
• Revenge, Retribution, Redemption, Reflect

The Conflict Between the U.S. and the Sioux (1860s–1890s)

• 1860s-1870s: Tensions rose over land and gold.
• Gold was discovered in the Black Hills.
• The U.S. expanded into Sioux territory.
• Red Cloud, a respected Sioux leader, grew weaker.
• The U.S. government invited Red Cloud to Washington, D.C.
• Red Cloud witnessed American advancements and shooting contest.
• He decided that negotiation might be the only way to preserve some of their land.
• Young warriors rejected Red Cloud and began following Crazy Horse instead.
• 6,000–8,000 warriors gathered under Crazy Horse.
• 10,000 joined Sitting Bull.
• Sitting Bull underwent intense self-torture rituals.
• He had a vision of Wakan Tanka.
• This vision inspired warriors, ultimately leading up to the Battle of Little Bighorn.

Battle of Little Bighorn (June 25–26, 1876)

• Previously called the Massacre of Little Bighorn.
• Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull, and Chief Gall led warriors against Custer’s 7th Cavalry.
• Crazy Horse was eager to face Custer in battle.
• Custer divided his men into smaller groups.
• Native forces surrounded Custer and 210–260 of his men on a hilltop.
• 180–200 U.S. soldiers died.

Aftermath and Surrender (1877–1881)

• Crazy Horse surrendered and was stabbed to death on September 5, 1877.
• The U.S. sent General Nelson A. Miles.
• Sitting Bull and his followers fled to Canada.

Sitting Bull and Nelson Miles (1881)

• Sitting Bull returned to the U.S. in exchange for amnesty and a reservation settlement.
• By 1881, most Native resistance was crushed.
• The Ghost Dance Movement (1890s) was influenced by Christianity.
• The prophecy required women to be modest and pure.
• The U.S. feared it leading to another rebellion.

Wounded Knee Massacre (1890)

• In 1890, where hundreds of Lakota Sioux were killed.
• December 29th of 1890
• By December 31st they started to bury everyone killed in the massacre in a shared trench
• This is the last epic massacre until the 1970s
• The native Americans have had continous fighting for about 400 years
• The Death of big foot: Dying of Pnemounia then shot
• Native Americans started to stay in their reservations.
• The Sioux get to keep some of the Black Hills.
• They are run out of their areas and confined in these regions.
• They believed they were going to kill the Indian to save the man
• These resident schools are harsh and now, people are finding mass grave sites at these schools.