As I sit relaxing by the pool in Steamboat Springs, I have been reflecting on how our American Road Trip of 2015 has been closely linked to the Black Hills War of 1876 to 1877, between the American Government and the Lakota Sioux and Northern Cheyenne Native Americans. Of course conflict had been going on between Native Americans and European settlers since the earliest days of settlement and continued into the early years of the 20th century, but 1876 to 1877 was probably the last time that the Native Americans really hoped that they could be victorious and reclaim the lands that were being stolen from them.
This was a time of great change in America. After having a bitter civil war from 1861 to 1865, the USA was trying to rebuild itself and move forward, and for many settlers that meant moving west, claiming land, or even finding gold.
Deadwood was a prime example. The American Government had promised the Black Hills of South Dakota to the Lakota people in the Laramie treaty of 1868. However in 1874 George A. Custer led an expedition which discovered gold in the Black Hills, and this triggered a Gold Rush. The illegal and indeed lawless town of Deadwood soon had a population of 5000 inhabitants with more arriving all the time. It was during this wild time in 1876 that well known gambler and gunman Wild Bill Hickok was shot and killed while playing cards, by another gambler with a grudge. There was no way that the American Government could stop the influx of gold hunters and keep its promise to the Lakota people. Instead they offered to buy the land and move the Native Americans to reservations but most refused to go.
Many battles ensued, both large and small, and the best known was the Battle of the Little Bighorn, also known as Custer's Last Stand. Crazy Horse was there. It was a decisive victory for the Plains Indians but also their last big win, because the U.S.A. Had so many more resources and by 1877 the Native Americans were forced to surrender. It was in September 1877 that Crazy Horse was bayoneted to death at Fort Robinson in Nebraska while evading arrest.
Meanwhile the amazing Yellowstone with its geysers and wildlife and canyons had become the first American National Park in 1872, and tourists started to visit (just like us 140 years later!) But it too was affected by the conflict between the American Government and the Native Americans. In June 1877, several bands of the Nez Perce were resisting relocation from their native lands in Oregon, and attempted to escape to the east through Idaho, Montana and Wyoming and over the Rockies to the Great Plains. This route took them through Yellowstone National Park, hotly pursued by the U.S. army.
They entered Yellowstone near where the west entrance is now, in August 1877 and had several hostile encounters with tourists. There were about 35 tourists in the park at the time; several were wounded and two were killed. Needless to say the rebellion of the Nez Perce didn't last long and they were forced to surrender in the autumn of 1877.
It was strange to hear about this when we were in Yellowstone, it brought it home to me that the Cowboys, settlers, gold rushes, and wars with the Native Americans were not that long ago. After all, as my Dad used to tell me, when he was a young man working in 1930s Glasgow, he met an old man who, when he was a young man, had used to sell stoves in the U.S.A. and had met the gunfighter Wyatt Earp. And guess where Wyatt Earp (who was a restless soul) spent the winter of 1876-77? Yes, Deadwood, South Dakota.
We looked forward to finding out about the history of the Black Hills when we planned our holiday, and I feel that I have learned a lot about how the past is so closely entwined with the present in South Dakota, Montana and Wyoming.
This was a time of great change in America. After having a bitter civil war from 1861 to 1865, the USA was trying to rebuild itself and move forward, and for many settlers that meant moving west, claiming land, or even finding gold.
Deadwood was a prime example. The American Government had promised the Black Hills of South Dakota to the Lakota people in the Laramie treaty of 1868. However in 1874 George A. Custer led an expedition which discovered gold in the Black Hills, and this triggered a Gold Rush. The illegal and indeed lawless town of Deadwood soon had a population of 5000 inhabitants with more arriving all the time. It was during this wild time in 1876 that well known gambler and gunman Wild Bill Hickok was shot and killed while playing cards, by another gambler with a grudge. There was no way that the American Government could stop the influx of gold hunters and keep its promise to the Lakota people. Instead they offered to buy the land and move the Native Americans to reservations but most refused to go.
Many battles ensued, both large and small, and the best known was the Battle of the Little Bighorn, also known as Custer's Last Stand. Crazy Horse was there. It was a decisive victory for the Plains Indians but also their last big win, because the U.S.A. Had so many more resources and by 1877 the Native Americans were forced to surrender. It was in September 1877 that Crazy Horse was bayoneted to death at Fort Robinson in Nebraska while evading arrest.
Meanwhile the amazing Yellowstone with its geysers and wildlife and canyons had become the first American National Park in 1872, and tourists started to visit (just like us 140 years later!) But it too was affected by the conflict between the American Government and the Native Americans. In June 1877, several bands of the Nez Perce were resisting relocation from their native lands in Oregon, and attempted to escape to the east through Idaho, Montana and Wyoming and over the Rockies to the Great Plains. This route took them through Yellowstone National Park, hotly pursued by the U.S. army.
They entered Yellowstone near where the west entrance is now, in August 1877 and had several hostile encounters with tourists. There were about 35 tourists in the park at the time; several were wounded and two were killed. Needless to say the rebellion of the Nez Perce didn't last long and they were forced to surrender in the autumn of 1877.
It was strange to hear about this when we were in Yellowstone, it brought it home to me that the Cowboys, settlers, gold rushes, and wars with the Native Americans were not that long ago. After all, as my Dad used to tell me, when he was a young man working in 1930s Glasgow, he met an old man who, when he was a young man, had used to sell stoves in the U.S.A. and had met the gunfighter Wyatt Earp. And guess where Wyatt Earp (who was a restless soul) spent the winter of 1876-77? Yes, Deadwood, South Dakota.
We looked forward to finding out about the history of the Black Hills when we planned our holiday, and I feel that I have learned a lot about how the past is so closely entwined with the present in South Dakota, Montana and Wyoming.
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