While we know our northern friends may not feel it, in the South, Spring is
here. So we thought we'd share a few of our gardening sites appropriate
for this time of the year. Along with gardening, there's grilling, and getting
ready to diet so that you can fit back into that bathing suit this summer!
Arapaho. The Arapaho proper occupied, or camped in, parts of southeastern
Montana at various periods of their history. (See
Wyoming.)
Arikara. Some Arikara hunted in eastern Montana. In 1869 and
1880, together with the Hidatsa and Mandan, they relinquished
rights to land in the southeastern part of the State. (See
North
Dakota.)
Assiniboin. From a Chippewa term signifying "one who cooks by the use of
stones."
E-tans-ke-pa-se-qua, Hidatsa name, from a word signifying "long arrows"
(Long, 1823).
Guerriers de pierre, French name.
Hohe, Dakota name, signifying "rebels."
Sioux of the Rocks, English name.
Stonies, or Stone Indians, English name translated from the Indian.
Tlu'tlama'eka, Kutenai name, signifying "cutthroats," the usual term for
Dakota derived from the sign language.
Weepers, given by Henry (1809).
Connections. The Assiniboin belonged to the Siouan linguistic family, and
were a branch of the Dakota (see South Dakota), having sprung
traditionally from the Yanktonai whose dialect they spoke.
Location. The Assiniboin were most prominently associated historically
with the valleys of the Saskatchewan and Assiniboin Rivers, Canada. In the
United States they occupied the territory north of the Milk and Missouri
Rivers as far east as the White Earth. (See also
North Dakota.)
Subdivisions
The latest list is that given by Professor Lowie (1939). He states that,
anciently, there were three principal tribal divisions, viz:
Lowie obtained the names of the
following smaller bands:
Tcanxta'daa, Uaska'ha (Roamers),
Wazī'a wintca'cta,
(Northern People),
Watō'paxna-on wan or Wato'paxnatun,
Tcan'xe wintca'cta
(People of the Woods),
Tani°'ta'bin (Buffalo-Hip),
Hu'decā'bine
(Red-Butt),
Wacī'azI hyābin (Fat-Smokers),
Witcī'abin,
In'yanton'wanbin (Rock People),
Watō'pabin
(Paddlers),
Cuñtcē'bi (Canum Mentulae),
Cahī'a iye'skābin (Speakers of
Cree (Half-Crees) ),
Xe'natonwan (Mountain People),
Xē'bina (Mountain
People),
Icna'umbisa, (Those-who-stayalone), and
Ini'na u'mbi.
Hayden
(1862) mentions a band called Min'-i-shinak'-a-to, or Lake People, which
does not seem to be identifiable with any of the above. This last may be
the band called by Henry (1809) Those-who-have water-for-themselves-only.
The following bands cited by Henry are wholly unidentifiable: Red River,
Rabbit, Eagle Hills, Saskatchewan, Foot, and Swampy Ground Assiniboin.
History. According to tradition, this tribe separated from the Wazikute
band of Yanktonai. The separation evidently took place before contact
with the Whites, but there is evidence that when Europeans first heard of
the tribe they were south of their later habitat, probably in the vicinity
of the Lake of the Woods and Lake Nipigon. Thence they moved northwest
toward Lake Winnipeg and later to the banks of the Assiniboin and
Saskatchewan Rivers. In the mean-time they had allied themselves with the
Cree and had become enemies of their own southern relatives with whom they
were afterward almost constantly at war. This northward movement and
alliance with the Cree was due in large measure to the establishment of
British posts on Hudson Bay and the desire of the Assiniboin Indians to
have access to them and thus supply themselves with firearms and other
European articles. The Assiniboin in the United States were gathered under
the Fort Belknap and Fort Peck agencies; those in Canada under the
Battleford, Edmonton, and Assiniboin agencies, at Moose Mountain, and on
Stoney Reservation.
Population. Mooney (1928) estimated that there were 10,000 Assiniboin in
1780. In 1829 Porter gave 8,000, and Drake (in Church, 1825) thought that
there were 10,000 before the smallpox epidemic of 1836, when 4,000 died.
The United States Indian Office Report
of 1843 gave 7,000; in 1890 they numbered 3,008; and in 1904, 1,234
in the United States, and 1,371 in Canada, a total of 2,605. The
census of 1910 gave 1,235 in the United States, and the United States
Indian Office Report for 1923 gave 1,400, while there was an approximately
equal number in Canada. The United States Census of 1930 gave 1,581. In
1937, 2,232 were returned in the United States.
Connections in which they have become noted. The Assiniboin attained
prominence during the dealings of explorers and traders with the Indians
along the upper Missouri. As Assiniboin or Assiniboine, the name has been
adopted for an important affluent of the Red River of the North in
Manitoba and Saskatchewan Provinces. Mount Assiniboin is in the Rocky
Mountains near the boundary between British Columbia and Alberta, about 20
miles south of Banff.
Atsina. Probably from Blackfoot At-se'-na, supposed to mean "gut people."
Also called:
Acapatos, by Duflot de Mofras (1844).
A-re-tear-o-pan-ga, Hidatsa name.
Bahwetego-weninnewug, Chippewa name, signifying "fall people."
Bot-k'in'ago,
signifying "belly men."
Fall Indians, common early name.
Gros Ventres des Plaines, derived from an incorrect interpretation
of the tribal
sign and the qualifying phrase "des Plaines" to
distinguish them from the Hidatsa, the Gros Ventres de la Riviere.
Haaninin or Aa'ninena, own name, said
to signify "white-clay people," "lime-
men," or "chalk-men."
His-tu-i'-ta-ni-o, Cheyenne name.
Hitfinena, Arapaho name, signifying "beggars" or "spongers."
Minnetarees of the Plains, Minnetarees of the Prairies, so called to
avoid
confusion with the Hidatsa (q. v. under North
Dakota).
Connections. The Atsina were a part of the Arapaho, of which
tribe they are sometimes reckoned a division, and both belong to the
Algonquian linguistic family.
Location. On Milk River and adjacent parts of the Missouri,
in what is now Montana, ranging northward to the Saskatchewan. (See also
Canada.)
Subdivisions
Kroeber (1908 b) has recorded the following names of bands or clans, some
of which may, however, be duplications:
Names of clans whose position in the camp circle is known, beginning at
the south side of the opening at the east: Frozen or Plumes,
"Those-who-water-their-horses-once-a-day"; Tendons,
"Those-who-do-not-give-away," or "Buffalo-humps"; Opposite (or Middle)
Assiniboin, "Ugly-ones or Tent-poles worn smooth [from travel]"; Bloods,
"Fighting-alone."
Other clan names: Berry-eaters, Breech-cloths, Coffee, Dusty-ones,
Gray-ones or Ash-colored, Kanhutyi (the name of a chief), Night-hawks,
Poor-ones, Torn-trousers, Weasel-skin headdress.
History.—If the Arapaho once lived in the Red River country, the Atsina
were probably with them. At least, the languages of both point to the
region of the Algonquian tribes northeast of the Plains for their origin.
At the same time Kroeber (1900 b) thinks that they must have been
separated for at least 200 years. According to Hayden (1860), they were
south of the Saskatchewan about 1800. In 1818 they joined the Arapaho and
remained with them until 1823 when they returned to the location given
above in the neighborhood of Milk River. For a long time they maintained
an alliance with the Blackfeet but later joined the Crow against them and
in the course of the ensuing war, in 1867, suffered a severe defeat.
Later they were placed on Fort Belknap Reservation, Mont., with the
Assiniboin.
Population. Mooney (1928) estimates that the Atsina numbered 3,000 in
1780. In 1904 there were 535. The census of 1910 reported 510, and the
United States Office of Indian Affairs in 1923 reported 586; 631 were
reported by the census of 1930, and 809 in 1937.
Bannock. The Bannock ranged into the western part of the State. (See
Idaho.)
Cheyenne. The Cheyenne frequently entered the eastern part of Montana and
the Northern Cheyenne were ultimately assigned a reservation within the
State. (See South Dakota.)
Chippewa. The Chippewa had little contact with the region now
included in Montana until very recent times when a considerable
number came to live there, 486 according to the census of 1910.
(See Minnesota.)
Cree. The original homes of the Cree were north of the present United
States, though their war parties frequently came into the territory now
occupied by this country to fight the Dakota, Blackfoot, and other
tribes. In comparatively late times a number, given by the census of 1910
as 309, settled in Montana, and others were reported from Washington (91),
Michigan, Oregon, North Dakota, Idaho, Kansas, and Minnesota. (See also
Canada.)
Crow. A translation, through the French gens des corbeaux, of their own
name
Absároke, "crow-, sparrowhawk-, or bird-people." Also called:
Connections. The Crow belonged to the Siouan linguistic stock and were
most closely related to the Hidatsa, from whom they claim to have
separated.
Location. On the Yellowstone River and its branches, extending as
far north as the Musselshell and as far south as Laramie Fork on the
Platte, but centering particularly on three southern tributaries of
Yellowstone River, the Powder, Wind, and Big Horn Rivers. (See also
Wyoming and Canada.)
Subdivisions.
There were formerly three local divisions, known to the people themselves
as Minë'së̀pere, Dung-on-the-river-banks?, or Black Lodges; the A`c'arahō',
Many-Lodges; and the Erarapī'o, Kicked-in-their-bellies. The first of
these is called River Crow by some writers and the last two collectively
Mountain Crow. They were also divided into 12 clans arranged in pairs.
History. As stated above, the Crow tribe claims to have separated from the
Hidatsa, a tradition shared by the Hidatsa. It is at least certain that
the two are more closely related linguistically than is either to any
other Siouan group. Their separation into bands must have occurred in the
first quarter of the nineteenth century at latest. In 1804 they were found
in their historic seats and have been in approximately the same region
ever since, the reservation to which they were finally assigned being on
the Big Horn River.
Population. Mooney's (1928) estimate for the year 1780 is 4,000 Crow. In
1804 Lewis and Clark estimated 350 lodges and 3,500 souls. In 1833 there
were said to be 1,200 warriors and a population of from 3,250 to 3,560. In
1890 a total population of 2,287 was reported, and in 1904, 1,826. The
census of 1910 gave 1,799, and the United States Indian Office Report for
1923, 1,777. The census of 1930, reported 1,674, and the Indian Office
Report for 1937, 2,173.
Connections in which they have become noted. The Crow tribe was prominent
in the early history of the Northwest, though not to the extent of the
Dakota and Blackfeet. The Indian form of the name, Absarokee, is borne by
a post village of Stillwater County, Mont.; in the form Absaraka it
appears as the name of a place in Cass County, N. Dak.; and as Absaroka,
more prominently, as the name of a range of mountains and a National
Forest in the Yellowstone National Park.
Dakota. The Dakota entered Montana at times to hunt and fight the Crow but
were not permanent residents of the State. (See
South Dakota.)
Hidatsa. Together with the Arikara and Mandan, in 1869 and 1880 the
Hidatsa took part in treaties ceding territory in southeastern Montana to
the United States Government. (See North Dakota.)
Kalispel. This tribe probably visited the westernmost parts of Montana at
times and most of them finally settled upon the Flat-head Reservation in
that State. Some of them, together with the Salish and Kutenai, ceded
Montana lands in 1855. (See Idaho.)
Kiowa. According to tradition, the Kiowa at one time
lived in the southeastern part of this State. (See
Oklahoma.)
Kutenai. Said to be from a term applied to this tribe by the Blackfoot
Indians and believed by Turney-High (1937) to have come originally from
the name of a Kutenai tribe or division called Tunaha. Also called:
Flatbows, the name given often to the Lower Kutenai,
the origin of which is
unknown.
Kúspĕlu, their Nez Perce name, signifying "water people."
Sán'ka or asán'ka, own name, significance unknown.
Shalsā'ulk°, by the Sinkiuse and said to be from a place name, but see
below. Skelsá-ulk, Salish name, signifying "Water People."
Slender Bows, name sometimes given as an interpretation of their own
name,
but erroneously.
Connections. The Kutenai were placed by Powell in a distinct stock called Kitunahan, but some linguists regard them as remote relatives of the
Algonquians and Salishans.
Location. On Kootenay River, Kootenay Lake, Arrow Lake, and the upper
course of the Columbia River, except for the bend between Donald and
Revelstoke; in southeastern British Columbia; north-western Montana;
northeastern Washington; and the northern tip of Idaho. In modern times
they have settled as far southeast as Flat-head Lake. (See also Canada.)
Subdivisions
The Kutenai were separated into two general divisions, the line between
ex-tending roughly from north to south through Libby, Mont. The Upper
Kutenai lay to the east on upper Kootenay River and depended more upon
hunting, especially of the bison, while the Lower Kutenai were largely
fishermen. Turney-High (1937) gives the following bands:
(1) Tuna a, whose original home was on the Plains
and who have now been
destroyed and their descendants incorporated with
the other bands
(2) Tobacco Plains or
People-of-the-Place-of-the-Flying-Head, esteemed to
be the mother band of the tribe (on Kootenay River at the International Boundary Line—the Fernie
Band was a subdivision)
(3) Jennings Band (about Jennings,
Mont.)
(4) Libby Band (at Libby, Mont.)
(5) Bonner's Ferry Band (at Bonner's Ferry, Idaho)
(6) Fort Steele Band (at Steele, B. C.)
(7) Creston Band (at Creston, B. C.)
(8) Windermere Band (a very modern band at Windermere, B. C.). To
these
may be added the very modern Dayton-Elmo Band on
Flathead Lake drawn from the Jennings and Libby bands.
History. From information collected by Turney-High (1937), it would seem
that the Kutenai formerly lived east of the Rocky Mountains, extending at
least as far as MacLeod, Alberta. Their oldest settlement in their present
territories would seem to have been at Tobacco Plains whence they
gradually spread to the north, west, and south, and in recent times to the
southeast. Their country was traversed early in the nineteenth century by
David Thompson (1916)
in the interest of the Northwest Company, and Kootenai House was
established in 1807. With the running of the International Boundary, their
country was divided between the Dominion of Canada and the United States
to the considerable inconvenience of the tribe. Missionary work among
them, particularly work among the Upper Kutenai, has been very successful.
Population. Mooney (1928) estimated the Kutenai population to be 1,200 in
1780. In 1890 those in the United States were estimated at 400 to 500. In
1905 they numbered 554, and those in British territory the year preceding
were enumerated at 553. The census of 1910 gave 538 in the United States.
The Report of the Canadian Department of Indian Affairs for 1924 returned
about 450, and that of the United States Indian Office only 129 under that
name. The latter figure is evidently defective, as the Census of 1930
returned 287 of whom 185 were in Montana and 101 in Idaho. In 1937 there
were 118 in Idaho.
Connections in which they have become noted. The Kutenai are noted for
their peculiar language, which differs from the speech of all their
neighbors and has been given an independent position as the Kitunahan
stock. They have given their name to Kootenay or Kootenai River, also
called the Flat Bow or MacGillivray, which flows through British Columbia,
Montana, and Idaho; to Kootenay Lake in British Columbia; to Kootenai
Mountains, and Kootenai Falls, Mont.; Kootenai County, Idaho; and to a
post village, Kootenai, in Bonner County, Idaho.
Mandan. The Mandan were parties to treaties made in 1869 and 1880 ceding
their claims to land in southeastern Montana. (See
North Dakota.)
Nez Percé. Individuals belonging to this tribe sometimes entered the
southwestern part of Montana. (See Idaho.)
Piegan. The Piegan were the southernmost subtribe of the Siksika.
Tunahe (Tunā'xe). Given by Teit (1930) as the name of an extinct Salishan
tribe living in west central Montana, but identified by Turney-High (1937)
as a former eastern or plains band of the Kutenai Indians, that band, in
fact, from which the name Kutenai is derived.
Spokan. Some Spokan probably entered western Montana at times and, in
1910, 134 were reported as residents of the State. (See
Washington.)
