Chasing them Down

When the US Army is given the task of rounding up all remaining free-roaming Indians, it takes its job seriously. Despite efforts to avoid capture, few Indians escape. Even those fleeing towards Canada are run down.

This is a sad period in American history, with heroic tales ending in tragedy for the Indians. The Indians score an initial success, wiping out Custer's pursuing cavalry in South Dakota, but elsewhere are hunted down.

Hundreds of Indians are killed in systematic massacres by the Army, such as at Wounded Knee. But many thousands more die in vigilante raids by white settlers in California, alone. Even larger numbers die of disease.

Between disease and vigilante raids, the number of Indians in California declines by 100,000 during just the first two years of the gold rush. In the end, almost all remaining Indians are confined to reservations shown here. 
Custer, Chief Joseph Indian Wars, 1870s map

  Rounding Up the Holdouts
Marauding Indians are a threat to settlers, ranchers and miners. The US Army is called in to halt sporadic Indian raids, but also to clear the country of the Indian threat, once and for all. After Nez Perce Indians kill 20 white settlers in a raid, the Army chases them more than a thousand miles (GREEN dotted line), before they finally surrender. Far to the south, a determined Indian named Geronimo leads a small band of Apache guerilla fighters, who are the last Indians to be captured. Areas highlighted in BROWN are Indian reservations, which remain to this day.

Prairie Sioux Indians, 1870s

  Mighty Sioux
Of all the Indians, the various tribes that form the Sioux Nation are the most numerous. Their homeland range includes most of Minnesota and the Dakotas. The so-called Indian Wars start with actions against the Sioux, who are gathered for a great celebration of 8,000 Indians. General Custer stumbles on the group at their encampment, which includes perhaps 2,000 warriors, and makes an ill-advised attack. His entire 700-man command is wiped out, causing a great national outcry and demands for revenge.


Nez Perce and mountain Indians, 1870s

  Chief Joseph
The year after Custer's disaster, the cavalry begins its relentless pursuit of the Nez Perce Indians, which lasts all summer (see map at top of this page). They are led by Chief Joseph (top center), who finally surrenders with a profound statement summarizing the Indian plight. 'I am tired of fighting. Our chiefs are killed ... The little children are freezing to death ... My people have no blankets, no food ... My heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands, I will fight no more, forever.'


Pacific Northwest Indians, 1910

  A Different World
The Indians of the Pacific Northwest cause little trouble for white settlers, and escape the worst of the Indian Wars. Their isolated coastal settlements center around fishing, with fantastic masks, totem poles and ceremonial feasts.


Southwest Indians, 1910

  Sun-Baked
The scattered Indians of the Desert Southwest pose little threat to white settlers, with the exception of the aggressive Apache Indians of southern Arizona. Nonetheless, they are all confined to reservations.


Alaskan Indians, 1910

  Salmon and Snow
Alaska has been a US possession since it was purchased from the Russians, just after the Civil War. With 30,000 native Eskimos, it is little noticed until gold is discovered in 1896, triggering the Klondike Gold Rush. White whalers, hunters and fishmen quickly brush the Eskimos aside, and their population continuously declines.