I have grown up around the Seneca
nation and have a lot of different interactions with them. Also because of
being so close tribal information is always around. I though never read or
learned about “Big Foot”, and I don’t mean the simian like creature of folklore.
The Big foot I am talking about was the leader of the Miniconjou.
Big foot and his people where very
enthusiastic believers in the ghost dance. The ghost dance was a ritual
performed and was hoped that it would bring an end to the westward expansion of
the whites and a return of the land to Native Americans.
Big foot and his people lived in
the Cheyenne River reservation but later had to move his people south toward
the reservation and pine ridge. They had to move due to confrontations over the
ghost dance. During the Move Big Foot and his people set up camp and were
eventually surrounded by soldiers. The soldiers while disarming Big Foots
people had a gun accidentally go off and then the soldiers just opened fire on
everyone it was said that deaths were found to happen as far as 2 miles away
from the original confrontation. It states that some 370 Lakota lay dead in a
matter of minutes and that Big Foot was one of the 1st to be killed.
Big Foot Lived from 1825 to 1890.
I found this story to be very interesting
to me. I like to learn about new people in history that I have never heard of.
Great post about Big Foot and the Cheyenne, I also like to learn about other tribes and especially the Plains tribes. The theme of a weapon being accidentally discharged is one that I have heard before. It just gave the troops a reason for the violence that ensued while being 'disarmed' or someone was being confrontational wit the troops. Thanks for the link from PBS.
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