NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.
Issue link: http://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/417216
I t was the year of the stealing of 100 horses, as the Lakota winter count keeper Horn Chips (Ptehé Wóptuh'a) would describe 1840-41, when Miniconju Lakota Rattling Blanket Woman (Tasina Hlahla Win) gave birth to a son near Rapid Creek in present-day South Dakota. Though the child received the name In The Wilderness (Cha-O-Ha) at birth, he would eventually take on the name of his Oglala Lakota father, His Horse Is Crazy (Tašúke Witkó), and would be better known as Crazy Horse. Though no known photo of him exists, even at an early age the appearance of the young Crazy Horse was said to be striking. He had fair skin to match his curly, light colored hair, for which he was given the nickname, Curly (Gigi) by relatives. In 1854, the young Crazy Horse witnessed the opening engagement of war between the U.S. Army and Lakota warriors near Fort Laramie in present-day Wyoming. It was the start of nearly a quarter-century of warfare that would forever change the nations who called the Great Plains home. The incident, known as the Grattan Fight, began when a detachment of soldiers was sent to arrest an indian who had killed a cow that had wandered into camp. When a soldier immediately opened fire on the peaceful people, killing Chief Conquering Bear (Mató Wayúhi), Lakota warriors fought back and killed the remaining combatants. A decade later, Crazy Horse grew to be revered as a leader following his brave acts in war. He led warriors at the Battle of Rosebud in 1876, when General George Crook's army was halted by Lakota and Northern Cheyenne forces. Crazy Horse was also a war leader in the Battle of Little Bighorn on June 25-26, 1876. Commonly referred to as "Custer's Last Stand," united tribes including Lakota, Arapahoe and Cheyenne warriors overwhelmingly defeated the U.S. 7th cavalry led by General George Armstrong Custer, who was killed in the battle. With victory came much celebration, but life on the open prairie would soon change dramatically for Plains tribes. After the harsh winter of 1877 weakened his band, Crazy Horse made the difficult decision to surrender to federal troops on May 6, in order to protect his people. They camped awaiting relocation to the reservation on the Powder River as promised to him by the U.S. government. However, amid rumors of an escape, he was brought to Fort Robinson to be arrested on September 5, 1877. Crazy Horse had been apprehensive to go, but did not fully resist soldiers until he was led to be confined at the Fort's guardhouse. Accounts of this historic moment vary. When the warrior realized he was entering a jail, he struggled for his freedom. A great commotion ensued, during which Crazy Horse was stabbed twice with a bayonet. His second cousin, Oglala Lakota holy man Nicholas Black Elk (Hehaka Sapa), described the death of Crazy Horse to Nebraskan writer John G. Neihardt, as translated in Black Elk Speaks: They took him to a little prison with iron bars on the windows, for they The death of Crazy Horse at Fort Robinson, depicted as ledger art by Amos Bad Heart Bull (Wanblí Wapháha), an Oglala Lakota witness to the event. DECEMBER 2014 • NEBRASKAland 41 NEBRASKA STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY, 11055-2241-18