In the 1950s, television had Jewish actor, Leonard Nimoy show us how the American Indian really was. Really?
The noble red-man. That's what the American Indian has become known as. And I guess that is a correct title for them. However, not all of them have been noble. But what race of humans have? All races are made up of good people. However, there are bad eggs in every basket, without exception.
In the 1930s through the 1960s and into the early to mid 1970s, the film industry in Hollywood would have us believe that the Indians were nothing more than bloodthirsty savages. Actually, history tells us that the German Nazis were the same, only they wore nicer clothes.
Some of the first people, after the Indians to step foot onto America's shore were the Spanish. The Indians greeted them with friendship and for that, the Indians were murdered and many were taken as slaves.
Then the Europeans arrived. Anyone other than the Indians would have probably greeted them harshly remembering the Spanish. But the Indians, once again, greeted the newcomers with friendly welcome. The Europeans were different. They didn't try to kill the Indians right off. There were confrontations, but, in most cases, the two groups got along. The Indians found out that the white people wanted to settle in this new country. They wanted to live here, work here and be at peace here. They, no doubt, explained to the Indians why they had fled their homeland. Being Christians, they were forced to leave or face jail for their beliefs. The Indians probably understood some of that. Whatever the case, the two peoples managed to live side-by-side in relative peace...for awhile. Let's face it, the Indians had a big country and it was only three little ship loads of white people. So, what would be the problem?
The Indians helped to show their new neighbors what vegetables were good to plant in this new land. They helped the whites find good hunting areas. The Indians shared their land and their knowledge. And at times, they even shared their food when the white men's crops failed or the hunting was off for some reason. The Indians helped the whites find the good fishing spots. Their children intermingled and played together. And when a white man, woman or child got injured or sick, the Indians were on the spot to help get them well.
There were violent, rouge tribes but when they bothered the whites, the friendly tribes helped their new friends fight them off. The whites did the same for the Indians in all respects. The Indians knew this land. They knew the hunting and fishing areas. They knew how to plant crops and when and where. There is a report that when some the first whites set foot on land, as they adventured around the area, they needed food soon. They stumbled across a cache of vegetables buried under a stack of leaves and loose dirt. They knew that this food belonged to "someone" but they were so hungry that they simply began eating. They also stole a good amount of it to take back to their campsite. When the Indians discovered the food gone, they very easily could have waged a war on the whites right off. However, they had already known that the white had arrived. And they knew that these new people were probably starving if they were going to steal the Indians food. So they simply left them alone.
As the years went by, more white people arrived at the shores. Small villages were built. The Indians continued to help out in any way they were needed. Small communities of log homes, butcher shops, livery stables, etc. were being built. And more white people came. In a few years there were a few confrontations between the two peoples. But for the most part, peace prevailed. But more white people came. What the Indians didn't know was that a few hundred miles away, cities were being built. And something they had not had to deal with before...forts! The white people even selected a man to govern them. He was called their president. But, for a time, it did not concern the Indians. Why should it? All this was far, far away and had nothing to do with them.
The white mountain men had their fair share of problems with the Indian tribes. Again, the whites were trapping beavers to sell the pelts. Much of the rest of the beavers were left to rot. This was another food source for the Indians. But there were many instances where mountain men actually befriended the Indians and even married into the tribes. The smart whites knew it was better to have the Indians as friends than enemies. Trading posts were built where both Indians and whites were welcome and actually did business together. There were problems but, in most cases, the trading post was a good place to get your supplies and to spend a little time visiting with and meeting others...even Indians.
Trading Posts dotted the entire west.
The day did come when the whites grew in numbers and it wasn't long for them to want more land to settle on. They chose land that did not bother the Indians...at first. But, as the white population grew quickly, they began to move closer and closer. Because the whites numbered so many now, food began to become a problem. The Indians found out that the whites were beginning to invade their tribal hunting grounds. There was more violence now between the two groups. The whites would steal from the Indians and there were reports of Indians being murdered at the hands of the whites. Small battles began between the groups that would grow increasingly violent in a very short period of time.
Bands of Indians began to attack white settlers and white communities. Wagon trains were now moving west and bringing even more whites. Now, it seemed, everywhere the Indians looked, there were more and more white people. The game that the Indians had hunted for their entire lives were dwindling. The tribes now had to move their camps to where ever the buffalo were. Of course, when they returned, their land was gone. The whites had settled on it and simply took it.
Buffalo roamed free on the prairies.
Battles followed, A new threat to the Indians was something called the "U.S. Army". Indians now were considered outlaws. They were called savages and redskins. They were dehumanized. And why not? They lived in tepees, ran around half naked, ate weird food, danced around like savages and killed people for the fun of it. Plus, they stole everything they could get their hands on. In other words, the white people did not know the Indians and really didn't want to.
A big problem for the Indians was the railroads. To get their tracks across America, they needed Right-Of-Way. Everyone knows that a straight line is much shorter than a round about route. To get the land that the railroad companies needed, they bought up many farms and ranches and homesteads from the whites. If the whites would not sell, Settlements burned and people died. But with the Indians, they didn't actually hold "legal" title to the land so the railroads would simply claim it. As it was, the Indians thought more of the land than they did money anyhow. When the Indians resisted, the Army was called in and many Indians died with whole villages burned and destroyed.
The plains Indians butted heads with the railroad companies for years. The railroad has never payed the Indian for the use of their lands. The railroads figured that the Indians held no legal title to the land so it was all open territory.
Splinter groups of Apaches and other tribes broke off and began attacking the whites and killing them off. Renegades such as Geronimo and his band were hunted non-stop by the Army. But they always managed to slip by. Out west Indian wars took place often. Whites back in the east and north read newspaper accounts of these raids and were told how terrible the Indians were. The western Indian wars took place over a period of around 30-years and when it was all done, the Indian tribes were decimated and all but wiped out.
Today most of us look at the Indian with respect. We are fascinated by their way of life. We shutter now when we learn just what the U.S. Army and soldiers such as General George A. Custer did to these people. We look at the slavery of blacks in the 1700s and 1800s and how the black population had been treated and we feel bad. But what about the American Indians? What would it have been like had we continued to hold a friendship with these people from the start? How would our lives and theirs have been different? How would the country be different? It's an interesting thought.
Again, Hollywood told use stories of the savage Indians murdering and scalping the poor white settlers. They burned our homes, raped our women and stole our children. It really did make for a great Saturday afternoon at the movie theater. But the reality was, yes there were bands of renegade Indians that did those things. There were also plenty of whites that perpetrated terrible crimes against a people that once welcomed us to their land and helped how they could. But it had gotten to a point that we kept moving them farther and father away to get their land. There was plenty of Indian women raped as well. And many Indian children were taken and had their hair cut, they were put into white man's clothing and put into Christian schools to learn the white man's ways. We took the Indians weapons away from them and told them they would not need to hunt any longer. We would supply all their needs. But many crooked Indian agents and others hijacked the supplies to sell on a black market. Indians starved, froze to death and when that didn't do the trick, some whites even delivered blankets infested with small pox and anthrax and many Indians died. There were even groups of whites from the north that would travel out west on "hunting" trips, not to hunt animals. But to hunt down Indians to kill for sport. Whites put a bounty on Indians and would pay money for their scalps. $10.00 each for a child's, $15.00 for a squaw's and $25.00 to $35.00 for a man's. That's right, the Indians got the act of scalping from the white man.
This early stereo optic slide is titled, "The Lucker Buffalo Hunter" and shows the white man's sport of hunting the buffalo. I wonder how lucky the Indians felt when the animals began to dwindle.
In the 1870s, the new sport for the wealthy whites from the north and east was going west on buffalo hunting trips. The animal was nearly wiped out in under ten years and the Indians starved. The only part of the buffalo that would be salvaged in most cases was the head for a trophy. The rest was left to rot on the prairies. This was the Indians main food source.
Thousands of buffalo died at the hands of white hunters who, in many cases didn't even take the heads. The act of simply killing the beasts were enough of a sport for them.
Bison skulls pile to be used for fertilizer , 1870. This approx. 20-foot tall pile consisted of around 40,000 dead buffalo.
Buffalo skulls gathered on the Western Plains for use as animal charcoal in the purification of sugar. Photograph from an English newspaper of 1892.
More buffalo skulls and other bones.
By 1900, the Indian tribes were all but gone. Indians have lived on our welfare systems, had problems with alcohol and drugs and have lived in poverty for decades. Today, many are businessmen and women. They operate gambling casinos and other businesses. I, myself have only know one family of Indians personally. A family of five who came to Ohio from North Dakota every few months for treatment for their young son who had cancer. The Cleveland Clinic, at that time back in the early 2000s, was the best in the field. I met them through my job and liked the family instantly. I was given a beautiful handmade belt buckle as a friendship gift each time they came into town. Three in all over a one year period.
My three belt buckles. Two in black silver and one in gold. The top buckle is larger than the other two.
It can be truthfully stated that the American Indians got the bad end of the stick, to put it mildly. Was there bad Indians? Sure! Were some bloodthirsty? You bet! Have some Indians committed crimes over the last 100+ years? Of course! So, in other words, they are pretty much like everybody else. Maybe we should have shown them the respect that any human being deserves. And maybe things would have been a lot different.
This blog is dedicated to the Native American. The photos here are simply of the Indians living their lives through history. Some photos are rare and there are a few interesting pictures and facts along the way. I hope you enjoy them. And thanks for stopping by ~