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 ranged for a considerable period
over the western part of this State. (See Wyoming.) Arikara. This tribe
lived in the territory now included in Nebraska
with the Skidi Pawnee at some prehistoric period, and after 1823 they
returned to the same tribe for 2 years. (See
North Dakota.)
Cheyenne. Like the Arapaho, the Cheyenne ranged to some extent over the
western territories of the State. (See South Dakota.)
Comanche. At an
early day the Comanche must have lived in or
near the western part of Nebraska, before moving south. (See
Texas.)
Dakota. The Dakota had few settlements of any permanency in the territory
of Nebraska but they were constantly raiding into and across it from the
north. (See South Dakota.)
Foxes. The Foxes were parties to a land cession made in 1830. (See
Wisconsin.)
Iowa.
When the Omaha lived about the
Pipestone Quarry in Minnesota, they were accompanied by the Iowa, who
afterward went with them to South Dakota and thence to Nebraska. They,
however, continued southeast into the territory of the present State of
Iowa.
Kansas. They were parties to a cession of Nebraska land
made in 1825. (See Kansas.)
Kiowa. The Kiowa were at one time on the western margin of Nebraska and
later followed the Comanche south. (See Oklahoma.)
Missouri. After they had been driven from Missouri by the
Sauk and
Fox,
the remnant of this tribe lived for a while in villages south of Platte
River. (See Missouri.)
Omaha. Meaning "those going against the wind or current"; sometimes
shortened to Maha. Also called:
Ho'-măn'-hăn, Winnebago name.
Hu-úmiûi, Cheyenne Dame.
Onǐ'hä°, Cheyenne name, meaning "drum beaters" (?).
Pŭk-tǐs, Pawnee name.
U'-aha, Pawnee name.
Connections. The Omaha belonged to that section of the Siouan linguistic
stock which included also the Ponca,
Kansa,
Osage, and Quapaw, and which
was called by J. O. Dorsey (1897) Dhegiha.
Location. Their principal home in historic times was in northeastern
Nebraska, on the Missouri River. (See also Iowa,
Minnesota,
Missouri, and
South Dakota.)
History. According to strong and circumstantial traditions, the Omaha and
others belonging to the same group formerly lived on the Ohio and Wabash
Rivers. It is usually said that the Quapaw separated from the general body
first, going down the Mississippi, but it is more likely that they were
left behind by the others and later moved out upon the great river. The
Osage remained on Osage River, and the Kansa continued on up the Missouri,
but the Omaha, still including the Ponca, passed north inland as far as
the Pipestone Quarry in Minnesota, and were afterward forced west by the
Dakota, into what is now the State of South Dakota. There the Ponca
separated from them and the Omaha settled on Bow Creek, in the present
Nebraska. They continued from that time forward in the same general
region, the west side of the Missouri River between the Platte and the
Niobrara, but in 1855 made their last movement of consequence to the
present Dakota County. In 1854 they sold all of their lands except a
portion kept for a reserve, and they gave up the northern part of this in
1865 to the Winnebago. (See Wisconsin.) In 1882, through the efforts of
Miss Alice C. Fletcher, they were granted lands in severalty with
prospects of citizenship, and Miss Fletcher was given charge of the
ensuing allotment. Citizenship has now been granted them.
Population. Mooney (1928) estimates that there were about 2,800 Omaha in
1780. In 1802 they were reduced by smallpox to about 300. In 1804 the
estimated number was 600; in 1829, 1,900; in 1843, 1,600. Schoolcraft (1851-57) gives 1,349 in 1851; Burrows, 1,200
in 1857; and the same number appears in the census returns for 1880. In
1906 the United States Indian Office returned 1,228, and the census of
1910 gave 1,105. The Report of the United States Indian Office for 1923
showed an increase to 1,440. The census of 1930 gave 1,103, principally in
Nebraska. The United States Indian Office reported 1,684 in 1932.
Connection in which they have become noted. The Omaha will be remembered
particularly from the fact that its name has been adopted by the City of
Omaha, Nebr. It has also been given to small places in Boone County, Ark.;
Stewart County, Ga.; Gallatin County, Ill.; Morris County, Tex.; Knott
County, Ky.; and Dickenson County, Va.
It will be remembered furthermore as the scene of the humanitarian labors
of Miss Alice C. Fletcher and the ethnological studies of Miss Fletcher
and Dr. Francis La Flesche.
Oto. From Wat'ota, meaning "lechers." It often appears in a lengthened
form such as Hoctatas or Octoctatas. Also called:
Che-wae-rae, own name.
Matokatági, Shawnee name.
Motfitatak, Fox name.
Wacútada, Omaha and Ponca name.
Wadótata, Kansa name.
Watohtata, Dakota
name.
Watútata, Osage name.
Connections. The Oto formed, with the
Iowa and
Missouri, the Chiwere group
of the Siouan linguistic family and were closely connected with the
Winnebago.
Location. The Oto moved many times, but their usual location in the
historic period was on the lower course of the Platte or the neighboring
banks of the Missouri. (See also Iowa,
Kansas, Minnesota,
Missouri,
Oklahoma, and
Wisconsin.)
History. From the maps of the Marquette expedition it would seem that at
the time when they were drawn, 1673, the Oto were some distance up Des
Moines River. Their name was often coupled with that of the related Iowa
who lived north of them, but they always seem to have occupied a distinct
area. Shortly after this time they moved over to the Missouri and by 1804
had established their town on the south side of the Platte River not far
from its mouth. According to native traditions, this tribe, the Iowa, and
the Missouri were anciently one people with the Winnebago, but moved
southwest from them, and then separated from the Iowa at the mouth of Iowa
River and from the Missouri at the mouth of Grand River. Their language
proves that they were closely related to these tribes whether or not the separations occurred in the manner and at the places
indicated. Their split with the Missouri is said to have been brought
about by a quarrel between two chiefs arising from the seduction of the
daughter of one by the son of the other, and from this circumstance the
Oto are supposed to have derived their name. In 1700 they were, according
to Le Sueur, on Blue Earth River near the Iowa, and it is probable that
they moved into the neighborhood of the Iowa or Missouri at several
different times, but their usual position was clearly intermediate along a
north-south line. In 1680 two Oto chiefs came to visit La Salle in
Illinois and reported that they had traveled far enough west to fight with
people using horses, who were evidently the Spaniards, a fact which proves
their early westward range.
By treaties signed July 15, 1830, and October 15, 1836, they and the
Missouri ceded all claims to land in Missouri and Iowa, and by another
signed September 21, 1833, the two ceded all claims to land south of the
Little Nemaha River. By a treaty signed March 15, 1854, they gave up all
their lands except a strip 10 miles wide and 25 miles long on the waters
of Big Blue River, but when it was found that there was no timber on this
tract it was exchanged on December 9 for another tract taken from the
Kansas Indians. In a treaty signed August 15, 1876, and amended March 3,
1879, they agreed to sell 120,000 acres off the western end of their
reserve. And finally, a treaty signed on March 3, 1881, provided, the
consent of the tribe being obtained, for the sale of all of the remainder
of their land in Kansas and Nebraska, and the selection of a new
reservation. Consent to the treaty was recorded May 4 following, and the
tribe removed the following year to the new reservation which was in the
present Oklahoma southwest of Arkansas River on Red Rock and Black Bear
Creeks, west of the present Pawnee. The first removal to Oklahoma is said
to have been due to a fission in the tribe resulting in the formation of
two bands, a conservative band called Coyotes and the Quakers, who were
progressives. The Coyotes moved in 1880 and the Quakers joined them 2
years later.
Population.-Mooney (1928) estimated that in 1780 the Oto numbered about
900. In 1805 Lewis and Clark estimated 500 then living, but Catlin in 1833
raised this to 1,300, a figure which includes the Missouri. Burrows in
1849 gives 900, and the United States Indian Office in 1843, 931. This and
all later enumerations include both the Oto and the Missouri. In 1862 they
numbered 708; in 1867, 511; in 1877, 457; in 1886, 334; in 1906, 390; and
by the census of 1910, 332. The census of 1930, however, showed a marked
increase to a total of 627, all but 13 of whom were in Oklahoma, 376 in Noblo County, 170 in Pawnee, 34 in Kay, and 17 in Osage. There were 7
in California, 1 in Kansas, and 1 in Nebraska. In 1937, 756 were reported
in Oklahoma.
Connection in which they have become noted. The name Oto has been
applied to some small settlements in Woodbury County, Iowa, and in
Missouri, and in the form Otoe to a county and post village in Nebraska.
Pawnee. The name is derived by some from the native word pariki, "a horn,"
a term said to be used to designate their peculiar manner of dressing the
scalp lock; but Lesser and Weltfish (1932) consider it more likely that it
is from parisu, "hunter," as claimed by themselves. They were also called
Padani and Panana by various tribes. Also known as:
Ahihinin, Arapaho name, meaning "wolf people."
Awahi, Caddo and Wichita Dame.
Awahu, Arikara name.
Awó, Tonkawa name, originally used by the Wichita.
Chahiksichahiks, meaning "men of men," applied to themselves but also
to all other tribes whom they considered civilized.
Dárāzhazh, Kiowa Apache name.
Harahey, Coronado documents (somewhat uncertain).
Ho-ni'-i-tañi-o,
Cheyenne name, meaning "little wolf people."
Kuitare-i, Comanche name,
meaning "wolf people."
Paoneneheo, early Cheyenne name, meaning "the ones with projecting front
teeth."
Páyin, Kansa form of the name.
Pi-ta'-da, name given to southern tribes (Grinnell, 1923).
Tse-sa do hpa
ka, Hidatsa name meaning "wolf people."
Wóhesh, Wichita name.
Xaratenumanke, Mandan name.
Connections. The Pawnee were one of the principal tribes of the Caddoan
linguistic stock. The Arikara were an offshoot, and the Wichita
were more closely related to them than were the Caddo.
Location.-On the middle course of Platte River and the Republican fork of
Kansas River. (See also Kansas,
Oklahoma, and
Wyoming.)
Subdivisions.
The Pawnee consisted in reality of four tribes, or four known in historic
times, viz: The Chaui or Grand Pawnee, the Kitkehahki or Republican
Pawnee, the Pitahauerat or Tapage Pawnee, and the Skidi or Skiri Pawnee,
the first three speaking the same dialect and being otherwise more closely
connected with one another than with the last. The Kitkehahki embraced two
divisions, the Kitkehahki proper and the Little Kitkehahki. Murie gives
two others, the Black Heads and Karikisu, but Lesser and Weltfish (1932)
state that the first was a society and the second the name of the women's
dance or ceremony before corn planting. The Pitahauerat consisted of the
Pitahauerat proper and the Kawarakis, some
times said to he villages.
History. Some of the Pawnee trace their origin to the
southwest, some to the east, and some claim always to have lived in the
country with which later history associates them. The first White men to
meet any members of these tribes were the Spaniards under Coronado in
1541. French explorers heard of them again early in the eighteenth century
and French traders were established among them before the middle of it.
The Spaniards of New Mexico became acquainted with them at about the same
time on account of the raids which they conducted in search of horses.
They lay somewhat out of the track of the first explorers from the east,
and in consequence suffered less diminution in numbers through White
influences than did many of their neighbors, but they were considerably
reduced through wars with the surrounding tribes, particularly with the
Dakota. Although some of the early traders and trappers were treated
harshly by them, their relations with the United States Government were
friendly from the first, and they uniformly furnished scouts for the
frontier armies. By treaties negotiated in 1833, 1848, and 1857, they
ceded all of their lands in Nebraska except one reservation and in 1876
this tract was also surrendered and the entire tribe given new lands in
Oklahoma, where they still live. The land has been allotted to them in
severalty and they are now citizens of the United States.
Population. Mooney (1928) estimates 10,000 Pawnee in 1780. In 1702
Iberville estimated 2,000 families. In 1838 they numbered about 10,000
according to an estimate of Dunbar and Allis (1880-82), and one authority
places the figure as high as 12,500. In 1849, after the cholera epidemic,
they were reported at 4,500; in 1856, 4,686 were returned, but in 1861,
only 3,416. In 1879, after suffering severely in consequence of the
removal to Indian Territory, they had dropped to 1,440, and by 1906 they
had fallen to 649. The census of 1910 returned 633, but according to the
Report of the United States Indian Office for 1923, they had then
increased to 773. The census of 1930 gave 730. In 1937, 959 were reported.
Connection in which they have become noted.-The Pawnee tribe is distinguished
(1) for its peculiar language and culture;
(2) because of
its numbers and warlike prowess, its constant hostility to the Dakota, and
consistent assistance to the American forces operating upon the Plains;
and
(3) as having given its name to a city in Oklahoma; to counties in
Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska; to streams in Colorado and Kansas; and to
places in Morgan County, Colo.; Sangamon County, Ill.; Montgomery County,
Ind.; Pawnee City in Pawnee County, Nebr.; Pawnee Rock in Barton County,
Kans.; Pawnee Station in Bourbon County, Kans.; and a creek and buttes in
northeastern Colorado.
Ponca. Own name, meaning unknown. Also called:
Díhit, Li-hit' or Ríhit, Pawnee name.
Kan'kan, Winnebago name.
Tchiáχsokush, Caddo name.
Connections.-The Ponca spoke practically the same language as the
Omaha
and formed with them, the Osage,
Kansa, and Quapaw, the
Dhegiha group of
the Siouan linguistic family.
History. The early life of the Ponca seems to have run parallel with that
of the Omaha. They are said to have separated from the latter at
the mouth of White River, S. Dak., and to have moved west into the Black
Hills but to have rejoined the Omaha a little later. These two tribes and
the Iowa then descended the Missouri together as far as the mouth of the
Niobrara, where the Ponca remained while the Omaha established themselves
below on Bow Creek. They remained in approximately the same situation
until 1877 when the larger part of them were forcibly removed to Indian
Territory. This action was the occasion for a special investigation, as a
result of which about three-quarters continued in the Territory while the
remainder preferred to remain in their old country. Their lands have now
been allotted to them in severalty.
Population. Mooney (1928) gives 800, as the probable size of the Ponca
tribe in 1780. In 1804 Lewis and Clark estimate only 200 but they had been
greatly reduced just before by smallpox. In 1829 they had increased to 600
and in 1842 to about 800. In 1871 they numbered 747. In 1906 the Ponca in
Oklahoma numbered 570 and those in Nebraska 263; total, 833. The census of
1910 gave 875 in all, including 619 in Oklahoma and 193 in Kansas. The
Report of the United States Indian Office for 1923 was 1,381, evidently
including other tribes. The census of 1930 returned 939. In 1937 the
United States Indian Office gave 825 in Oklahoma and 397 in Nebraska.
Connection in which they have become noted. The name Ponca is preserved by
a river in South Dakota, Ponca City in Kay County, Okla., and places in
Newton County, Ark., and Dixon County, Nebr.
Sauk. Like the Foxes, they were parties to the land cession of 1830
involving territories in this State. (See Wisconsin.)
Winnebago. Part of the Winnebago settled close to the Omaha after they had
been driven from Minnesota following the Dakota outbreak of 1862. A
reservation was later assigned them there and in course of time they were
allotted land in severalty upon it. (See Wisconsin.)
