Fort Peck
Short History of Fort Peck
www.montana.edu/wwwfpcc/tribes/flight.jpgFlight of the Sioux to Fort Peck
----------------
Movement of Sioux 1862 as told by James Turning Bear.
Sioux began their flight towards west, southwest and Canada, after the Minnesota Massacre, or before the massacre due to the influx of settlers moving west and the ever present military. Treaties of 1851 Laramie Council was signed and broken by the U.S. Government. The 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie signed and broken by the U.S. Government. In 1879 the Sioux were forced west and other directions. They eventually settled near the Fort Peck Agency. The Fort Peck Agency was established.
Quotations from Various Authors
Glendolin Damon Wagner in her book, "Blankets and Moccasins", writes: "The shame is ours having possessed their land, prohibited their free, glad, wild life, and then, in recompense, having doled out to them so many acres of land, so many yards of calico, so many pounds of meat, we regard them with the amused interest we vouchsafe an animal in the zoo."
General Nelson Miles wrote: "The Indian in his wild life was very industrious. When they could move from one valley to another and cam? beside a spring with plenty of fresh grass and green foliage their life was much better than it has been since they have been compelled to live at one place or at an Agency"
Jack Schaefer, author of "Shane" in an article in the February 1956 issue of Holiday magazine wrote: "In the fundamentals of human decency, the simple amenities of daily life, and in the relationship between man and man, and between man and God, the Indians were easily as refined as the Europeans. From the conqueror's point of view, they were guilty of two sins: They were different and they were in the way. It did not occur to the Europeans that there could be peoples who might not want their type of civilization, so the native people were called savages. It is a story as old as life itself, of the stronger, more competitive, more efficient in physical terms, dominating the weaker."
One Idaho writer commented "The Indians, fighting to retain what they had owned for ages, were unmitigated rascals, but the whites, fighting to possess what did not belong to them were splendid soldiers of God. The Indians, often driven to actual starvation, and striking back desperately with arrow or tomahawk the only weapons they, knew were yelping and unvarnished assassins; but the whites, eager to lay the land under agriculture, were approved by all the centuries of plunder in which right has been on the stronger side." Act of August 1, 1914, amended by act of February 14, 1920, authorized allotments to children on reservation, entitled to allotments and who had received none (38 Stat.593,c.222, 9;41 Stat.422,c.72, & 10).
An act of May 18, 1916, provided that tribal funds covered into the Treasury in partial reimbursement of appropriations for constructing irrigation systems on this reservation were to be placed to the credit of the tribe and available for expenditure for the benefit of the tribe as Congress *** direct (39 Stat. 141,c.125, & 11).
Act of February 26, 1917, directed sale of certain lands to a railroad, purchase price to be paid to individual Indian if lands al-lotted, and to be subject to control of the ' Secretary as to funds of incompetent Indians (39 Stat. 9 c. 123, & -2-3).
Act of February 14, 1920, provided that Indians entitled to allotments might receive patents for coal lands, with reservation to Fort Peck Indians of coal deposits and mining rights (41 Stat.421,c. 75, & 10).
An act of September 20, 1922, authorizing mining leases of lands reserved for school or agency purposes, and any unallotted lands on this reservation (42 Stat. 857,c. 347).
Act of April 19, 1926 provided that tribal funds arising under the act of May 18, 1916, above, were to draw interest at 4 percent (44 Stat.303,c.166).
Act of March 3, 1927, amended act of May 30, 1908, above. It reserved oil and gas rights on tribal lands and authorized lease through tribal council: title to certain lands was reinvested in the Indians, payment to be deducted from proceeds from sale of said lands (44 Stat. 1401,c.376).
Acts of February 14, 1931, and June 7, 1935, provided for education of Indian chi ldren in certain public schools (46 Stat. 1106,c.173, 1108,c. 178; 49 Stat. 327-329,c. 189).
Act of April 23, 1946, authorized sale of lands for Fort Peck project, receipts to be deposited to credit of allottees for acquisition of other lands, etc.; lands no longer required for the project were to revert to the United States in trust for the Fort Peck Indian tribes (60 Stat. 118, c. 199).
Wednesday, August 6 - After they passed Porcupine River had to lie by until 4:00 P.M. because of wind; then continued and camped 5 miles below camp of May 1, 1805. 83 miles above mouth of Yellowstone.
Thursday, August 7 - Found the mouth of Martha's River moved a quarter mile lower than it was last year. Reached mouth of Yellowstone at 4:00 P.M. and found a note from Capt. Clark indicating he was going on down the river a few miles to wait for them. Left a note for their two hunters whom they now presumed must be behind them, and continued on down.
The Lewis and Clark Expedition has now passed out of the area of the Fort Peck Reservation. The expedition is the first recorded white contact with the area and the journals kept by members of the expedition give us a picture of the animal life they found as they travelled. They describe some abandoned Indian camps that were found but they did not come in contact with any Indian bands in this area, although there was evidence that Assiniboines were not too far distant in some instances.
FROM GENERAL MILES MEMOIRS
General Miles Campaigned in the Fall of 1876 against the bands who had been in the Battle of the Little Big Horn.
General Miles with 394 riflement and one artillery piece crossed the Yellowstone at the mouth of the Tongue River (Tongue River Cantonment-now Miles City) on October 17, 1876 and proceeded thence Northeast. On Oct. 21st, the command came in contact with the hostiles under Sitting bull, Gall, Low Neck and Pretty Bear. Gneral Miles agreed to a meeting between the lines with Sitting Bull (and 5 men). The Chief insisted on the condition that the white man vacate the entire area and leave it to the Indians - he said God made him an Indian but not an Agency Indian.
Sitting Bull felt that the Indians had won the battle and should dictate the terms. Nothing could be accomplished and the meeting broke up. Next morning the main camp of Indians was found 10 miles farther on and Sitting Bull came forward for another meeting - but his demands were the same. General Miles informed him he had come to bring the bands into the reservation sand under the jurisdiction of the Government. General Miles gave him 15 minutes to return to his camp under the flag of truce and then if they didn't surrender, they would open fire.
An engagement followed and the Indian camp was driven forward for 42 miles in the next two days. THen the Indians requested another truce and they agreed that 2,000 of their number would go to their Agencies and surrender. They gave up 5 of their principal chiefs as hostages who were sent down the Yellowstone and Missouri under Lt. Forbes, 5th U.S. Infantry, to their Agencies. But Sitting Bull, Pretty Bear and Gall broke away from the main camp with nearly 400 people and retreated North toward the Missouri. The command returned to the Cantonment, reorganized and with 434 men started out after Sitting Bull again and struck the trail on a tributary of the Big Dry.
The Command continued North to the Missouri, then West on the North side for nearly 100 miles toward the mouth of the Musselshell. They encountered very severe winter weather for November. During this march to more fully reconnoitre, the Command was divided into 3 columns, one under Capt. Baldwin and he struck Sitting Bull's camp at the head of the Red Water and attacked. He captured food supplies for a couple days and some horses and camp equipage. He had moved out of the Assiniboine Agency and crossed to the South side of the Missouri thence up the Red Water River. In this march the Command was enveloped in a blizzard. After this engagement, the Army returned to the Tongue River Cantonment.
SITTING BULL ENGAGEMENT - 1879
In the summer of 1879. Sitting Bull's camp was reported to be South.: of the Canadian border. General Miles was sent after the Sioux because Interpreter Lambert of the Fort Peck Agency had been killed. The Sioux were blamed but it was later established that he was killed by Crows. ''A command from Fort Keogh moved North, crossed the Missouri at Fort Peck and after crossing the Milk River encountered Sitting Bull's warriors in a sharp engagement on July 17, 1879. Lt. W. P. Clark or the Second Calvary in command of two companies of Indian Scouts attacked a band of warriors near Frenchmen's Creek (Northeast from Saco,, Montana) and drove them back twelve miles into the main camp. Some 250 warriors fought a rear guard action in earnest while their women and children moved away safely. Seven companies of. the Fifth Infantry mounted on captured ponies and seven troops of the Second Cavalry advanced to the support of Clark, and artillery under Lt. Rice moved into position. Sitting Bull's Sioux camp moved back across the border into Canada, abandoning over SO tons of buffalo meat, much equipment and a few horses.
METIS OR RED RIVER HALF BREEDS
Living in that country South of the boundary line was a body of people known as Metis or "Red River half-breeds" half Indian and half French. They lived most of the time on Canadian territory but were a disturbing element on both sides of the line. They lived in tents and their mode of transportation was the Red River Oxcart. The cart was built entirely of wood, bound together with rawhide, and rawhide was used for tires. These vehicles carried a. **. thousand to fifteen hundred pounds across the prairies, and the cart was built of so much wood that it was buoyant enough to ford a stream. They had large numbers of small, but hardy and strong horses. They were in contact with the dirt and bellowed deeply while the two fought to the death, forehead to forehead. If one gave up and turned to run, he was gored in the [lank. A lunge forward and a quick turn of the head made a long gash in the flank, and the intestines drained out. The victor paid no further attention to the victim after the fatal hook. When a rider approached, the circle fled but the fight went on and the Assiniboines were able to watch the outcome at close range. They noted that old bulls mated with young cows and young bulls with matured cows. Early in the mating season, perhaps to avoid fighting, a bull with one or more cows would stay in deep coulees away from the herds. In the late summer and early fall all buffalo were together in herds, large and small, and there was no fighting. They ate leisurely and grew fat on the ripe grass. They strolled leisurely from feeding ground to water and back, travelling in single file, wearing buffalo trails sometimes belly deep.
When the buffalo herd crossed a river, they swam across in small groups and the head groups moved on. It might take several hours for the herd to cross. As they swam they blew water through their nostrils making a strange noise that could be heard for a long distance downstream.
The hair on calves was a yellowish color and remained that way until after they were a year old. Robes for children were made from calf skins with the hair left on. During the hunt, the cows were in the lead of the running herd, followed closely by the bulls either protecting the cows or following because the cows were faster. At any rate the bulls remained right behind the cows and the calves were in the rear. After a big hunt motherless and deserted calves remained on the hunting ground.
Buffalo Rock along U. S. Highway Nc. 2 just rest of Lake Bowdoin,, East of Malta, looks like a reclining bull buffalo. Indians passing by left offerings to their diety for success in the hunt for the buffalo.
RATION DAYS
In the early days of the reservation, rations were issued on Wednesday - twice a month. On the day before, several beef cattle were slaughtered and the people were issued such items as fresh beef, saltpork or bacon, flour, sugar and coffee. Each preceeding Sunday the Indian people came in and camped in a circle near the Agency. In the center of the circle was a dance hall built of logs with an earthen roof. Dances were held until after ration day and by Friday everyone had dispersed and gone back to their villages and homes along the river. They sometimes camped out to kill game, gather turnips or pick berries but were on hand for ration day. This life continued until theAllotment Act in 1908.
WINTER OF STARVATION
In the Fall of 1883 supplies and annuities were late in being delivered to the Agency-and with an early Winter the Agency was short of stored supplies. The buffalo had been exterminated by white hide-hunters and this added to the critical food shortage. E. E. Snider, Agent at the Fort Peck jurisdiction at Poplar,, in his report to the Bureau of Indian Affairs on October 27, 1883, stated that there was drout and a total crop failure with scarcity of buffalo and he recommended an increase in the appropriation of annuities for the Assiniboines. He wrote, "I fear trouble is ahead of us." With the terrible winter of 1883-84 transportation of any kind was at a standstill and no additional food supplies were ever delivered to the Wolf Point Agency. Starvation was the imminent result and data from a case file states that over 300 members of the Assiniboined Tribe died during the winter, early 1884, in the vicinity of the Wolf Point Agency.
GRAFT IN ANNUITY ISSUE
Graft and corruption was rampant in this frontier country. A steamer load of annuity goods was intended for distribution to Indians at Fort Peck on the Missouri; instead a store was opened and the entire amount bartered to the Indians for furs and robes. The same steamer hauled a load of furs downstream - obtained by fraud.
ALEXANDER CULBERTSON
Alexander Culbertson assisted both Isaac I. Stevens (1853 - Railroad Survey - $40,000, appropriated by Congress for Northern route Railroad survey) and John James Audubon, 1843, famed naturalist, as guide, interpreter and general trouble-shooter. Culbertson's competence and personality probably kept, the Montana fur trade on an even keel longer than it would have otherwise. Culbertson, born in Pennsylvania in 1809, came to Fort Union on the steamer "Assiniboine" in 1833 as an Agent for the American Fur Company whose operations he managed almost singlehandedly after 1848. Culbertson's first wife . was an Indian girl and his second (married about 1840) was Natawista Iksana, the beautiful and intelligent daughter of a Canadian Blood Chieftain. They had 2 sons and 3 daughters. Natawista was a woman of rare judgment and tact and a great help to her husband in his negotiations with the Indians.
In 1861 Alexander Culbertson resigned from the Company and retired a wealthy man ($300,000) to Peoria, Illinois, where they built a fine home, furnished it lavishly and made some investments (poor ones). By 1868 the money was gone and they returned to Montana. At Fort Benton they got some trade goods and in 1869 headed North to the Belly River in Canada. The following spring they brought their furs in to Fort Benton and in the fall returned to Canada.
CATTLE
The first beef cattle in the area in appreciable numbers were trailed in from Texas. N-N brand of Neidringhaus Brothers of St. Louis was well known in this area. They moved their headquarters in 1895 to Oswego for two big ranches on the Missouri. One had been at Pearmond on the south side of the Missouri. They lost 20,000 head during the cold winter of 1886-87 but they still continued in business: shipped 23,000 head in the Fall of 1893 to Chicago.
GOVERNMENT SCHOOL AT POPLAR
The first Government school was established at Poplar in 1892. the old Military Post buildings were used to house the first 60 children. they were fed two meals a day. there were many runaways but as soon as they reached home they were picked up by the Indian Police and returned to school - they were punished by whipping and confined in rooms by themselves. At the peak of attendance in 1898 there were over 300 boys and girls, Assiniboines and Sioux. Discipline was along the military line and there was drill practice with uniforms, officers, etc. The students went to school half a day and worked half a day at a trade or domestic training.
STEAMBOATS
By 1867 steamboat traffic had been established between St. Louis and Fort Benton. By 1881 there were 25 to 30 steamers plying the Missouri River with headquarters at Bismarck and Fort Benton. In 1877 exports worth $1,270,600 were carried out and in 1881 imports of $5,214,000 were carried in. Steamers declined after the advent of the railroad in 1887. The "Amelia Poe", a sternwheeler, hit a snag south of Frazer and sunk on May 28, 1868. The "Big Horn" a like fate 4 miles west ' of Poplar on May 8, 1883. Indians found cutting wood for the steamers profit. The Steamer "Chippewa" burned and exploded on the south side of the Missouri River a few miles below Poplar River on June 22, 1861. On reaching Dauphin's Houses about 6 miles below Larpenteur's Fort at Poplar River by land
Compiled by Ralph M. Shane
1874
www.montana.edu/wwwfpcc/tribes/Short.html