The American West, c1835-c1895: Changes to the Plains Indians' Way of Life, c1862-1868
In the American West between 1862 and 1868, the expansion of settlement, the railroad and the reservation policy put increasing pressure on the Plains Indians' way of life, and this pressure produced open conflict in several places. In Minnesota, the Dakota Sioux under leaders including Little Crow rose up in 1862, in what is often called Little Crow's War, after years of broken promises and unpaid annuities left many of their people facing starvation. In Colorado in 1864, US militia led by Colonel John Chivington attacked a peaceful, largely undefended Cheyenne and Arapaho camp led by Black Kettle at Sand Creek, killing many people including women and children, in what became known as the Sand Creek Massacre. From 1866 to 1868, the Lakota Sioux leader Red Cloud led resistance, often called Red Cloud's War, against US forts built along the Bozeman Trail through Lakota hunting territory in the Powder River country; the conflict ended with the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868, in which the US government agreed to abandon the forts and recognise the Black Hills as part of a Great Sioux Reservation.
Before you start
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Method
- Learn the causes of conflict in this period as a group: broken treaty promises, unpaid or reduced annuities, the reservation policy, and settler and railroad expansion onto Plains Indian hunting land.
- Learn Little Crow's War (1862) as a case study: Dakota Sioux in Minnesota rose up after years of broken promises and unpaid annuities left their people facing hunger, showing conflict caused by the failure of US government commitments rather than by unprovoked aggression.
- Learn the Sand Creek Massacre (1864) as a case study of the treatment of Plains Indians who were not fighting: US militia under Colonel John Chivington attacked a largely undefended Cheyenne and Arapaho camp led by Black Kettle, killing many people including women and children.
- Learn Red Cloud's War (1866-1868) as a case study of successful Plains Indian resistance: Lakota Sioux leader Red Cloud led resistance against US forts built along the Bozeman Trail through Lakota hunting territory, and the war ended with a treaty favourable to the Lakota.
- Learn the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 precisely: it ended Red Cloud's War, committed the US government to abandon the Bozeman Trail forts, and recognised the Black Hills as part of a Great Sioux Reservation.
- For 'explain two consequences' questions, be ready to link a specific event (e.g. Sand Creek) to a specific consequence (e.g. deepened distrust of US promises, harder future negotiations) rather than a vague statement that 'relations got worse'.
- Present each conflict from more than one side: state what the Plains Indian bands involved were resisting or reacting to, as well as what the US forces or government did, rather than describing only one side's actions.
Worked example
Explain two consequences of the Sand Creek Massacre of 1864 for relations between Plains Indians and the US government.
- Identify two distinct consequences: (1) the immediate human cost and the anger it caused among Plains Indian bands, and (2) the longer-term damage to trust in US government promises and treaties.
- Develop consequence one with detail: the attack on Black Kettle's largely undefended Cheyenne and Arapaho camp, in which many people including women and children were killed, caused outrage and led some Cheyenne and Arapaho to join more active resistance against US forces on the Plains.
- Add a further linked detail: because Black Kettle's band had believed itself to be under US protection at the time of the attack, the massacre showed Plains Indian leaders that cooperating with the US government offered no guarantee of safety.
- Develop consequence two with detail: news of Sand Creek damaged the credibility of US promises more widely, making some Plains Indian leaders, such as Red Cloud in the Powder River country soon afterwards, less willing to trust negotiation over armed resistance to protect their land and people.
Practice questions
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Q1Which Plains Indian people rose up in Minnesota in 1862, in what is known as Little Crow's War?Show answer
Answer: The Dakota Sioux, led by Little Crow.
Q2Give one cause of Little Crow's War in 1862.Show answer
Answer: Years of broken US government promises and unpaid or reduced annuities, which left many Dakota Sioux facing hunger.
Q3Who led the militia responsible for the Sand Creek Massacre of 1864?Show answer
Answer: Colonel John Chivington.
Q4Which Cheyenne leader's camp was attacked at Sand Creek in 1864?Show answer
Answer: Black Kettle.
Q5Along which trail did the US government build forts that Red Cloud's War, 1866-1868, was fought against?Show answer
Answer: The Bozeman Trail, which ran through Lakota hunting territory in the Powder River country.
Q6What did the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 agree?Show answer
Answer: The US government agreed to abandon its forts along the Bozeman Trail and recognised the Black Hills as part of a Great Sioux Reservation.
Exam-style questions
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Explain two consequences of the Sand Creek Massacre of 1864.
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Write a narrative account analysing the causes and course of Red Cloud's War, 1866-1868. You may use the following in your account: the Bozeman Trail and the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868. You must also use information of your own.
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