Younger Readers: 150 Years Ago Today, January 31, 1876

This Date in History, 150 Years Ago Today:

January 31, 1876, a Dead-of-Winter Deadline

Greetings!

From time to time my posts will mark milestone dates in the history of Montana as the Territory neared or passed America’s first centennial. I’ll start with January 31, 1876.

This date, like many, could be called the “beginning of the end.” That “end” might refer to the life and career of the infamous George Armstrong Custer, often referred to as “General” Custer. That “end” might also be the end of free-roaming lifestyles for non-treaty Sioux and Cheyenne tribes who would soon be forced onto reservations.

Again, many different dates or events in that conflict could be titled “the beginning of the end.” This leads to the question of when conflict actually began between those Sioux, Cheyenne (and other allies) and the white men who would be their adversaries. In future posts I’ll try to summarize events that led to the fateful clashes in Montana 150 years ago. For today I’ll discuss the significance of January 31, 1876, 150 years ago today:  

This date, the end of January 1876 had been given by the U.S. Army as a deadline for all non-treaty Sioux and Cheyenne Indians to move onto the “Great Sioux Reservation.” That large chunk of land allotted to the Sioux lay mostly in what is now eastern South Dakota. That deadline had many problems, though.

One issue has to do with treaties between the U.S. government and various Indian tribes across the West. The 1868 (1851) Fort Laramie Treaty tried to end conflicts between the Indian tribes and to allow white settlers to move safely across those tribes’ traditional homelands and hunting grounds. That treaty was signed by some tribal leaders but not all. It was then altered by the U.S. Congress before they ratified it. However, the tribes and their leaders were all scattered by then. They weren’t around to sign the altered treaty, so they believed the first version was what they had agreed to.

Another problem was that those who signed the treaty could not speak for all the tribes or bands, even within their own tribal nations. Some chiefs and leaders such as the Oglalla Sioux chief Crazy Horse and the Hunkpapa Sioux chief Sitting Bull refused to agree to that treaty. Those who did not agree to it were called “non-treaty” Indians. By early 1876 they would be called “hostiles.” Many were hostile.

The 1868 treaty also left lands known as “unceded lands” in which Indians could leave the reservations and hunt traditionally as needed. However, the treaty did not state that white men could not use those lands too. When the Northern Pacific Railroad started to survey a route across those lands, conflicts escalated.

Finally, the Panic of 1873 caused an economic depression that left many white men without jobs back East. Then gold was rumored to be found in the Black Hills. Hordes of miners rushed that way. Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapahos all held the Black Hills sacred, and the 1868 treaty gave those Black Hills to the Sioux. Lt. Colonel George Custer led a military expedition there. Commanders claimed it was to keep white men out and keep the Indians safe. However, even Custer’s expedition leaked rumors of “gold at the grass roots,” and the rush got worse. Given the economic depression, the U.S. government appears to have winked at it, or turned a blind eye altogether.

For years the U.S. government and its people had embraced a “Peace Policy” toward nomadic tribes. This included good intentions of educating Indian peoples and teaching them to remain in one place and farm. However, as conflicts with non-treaty Indians grew, the U.S. military decided to force all tribes onto reservations.

One more problem in all of this was dishonest Indian Agents. These men oversaw reservations, or “agencies.” “They were tasked with issuing supplies that had been promised to the tribes that lived there. Treaties had promised supplies of beef, flour, clothing etc. to those who went to live on reservations. All too often, though, sold those supplies to other whites or even charged the reservation residents for them. As a result, Indians often left the reservations to hunt just so they could survive.

One of the biggest issues with the deadline of January 31, 1876 was that it was not just unreasonable, it was completely unrealistic. By the time the order had gone down from the top generals through their various channels (remember, communications were slow 150 years ago, with the cumbersome telegraph being the fastest option) the Indian agents on their agencies did not receive it until December 22, 1875. That left barely more than a month for messengers to notify the tribes that huddled in their winter camps and for those tribes to pack up and move in the dead of winter.

It’s no surprise that few, if any, non-treaty tribes moved by that ridiculous deadline. Sadly, it’s hardly the last time a cruel deadline was dictated against bands of Indians (I’ll write again on that topic, perhaps as late as next year.)

What’s tragic about that ultimatum and deadline 150 years ago today is that it gave the U.S. Army an excuse to start a winter campaign against the “hostiles,” or non-treaty tribes. (Winter military campaigns will be a separate topic in future posts on this site.) Winters were hard for most tribes even without prospects of warfare. In this case it proved tough for the U.S. Army too, even with its many resources. For now, let’s just say that the unreasonable deadline set by General Phillip Sheridan triggered a tragic series of events. It was in many ways – and for many people – the beginning of the end.