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BULL |
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 Tatanka-Iyotanka,
a.k.a. Sitting Bull, was a Native American chief of the Hunkpapa Lakota
Sioux. He was born in the Grand River region in present-day South Dakota
in 1831. The place where he was born was called "Many Caches" by
the Lakota because of the many food storage pits that had been dug there.
Led by Sitting Bull, the Sioux resisted the efforts of the United States
government to annex their lands and force them to settle on reservations.
In 1874, an expedition that was led by General George Armstrong Custer
confirmed that gold had been discovered in the Black Hills of Dakota
Territory, a sacred area to many tribes. The Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868
placed the Black Hills off-limits to white settlement. Despite this
treaty, prospectors began to rush to the Black Hills, forcing the Lakota
to defend their land.
Between June 25 and June 26, 1876, the Sioux, with the aid of Northern
Cheyenne warriors, annihilated a regiment of the 7th United States Cavalry
led by Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer in the Battle of the
Little Bighorn in what is now Montana. The battle is commonly known as
Custer's Last Stand. The New York Herald on September 5, 1876
erroneously reported that Sitting Bull had fallen in the Battle of Little
Big Horn.
Following the battle, Sitting Bull and his followers fled to Canada.
However, after receiving a promise of amnesty in 1881 and suffering
hardship and famine, Sitting Bull returned to U.S. territory. When Sitting
Bull returned, he was put in prison for two years. When released, he
settled on a reservation and continued to be hostile to the settlers.
In 1885, Sitting Bull was allowed to leave the reservation to tour with Buffalo
Bill's Wild West Show. There is speculation that permission was given
because the Native American police wanted Sitting Bull off the reservation
to prevent him from creating problems. Followers of the Native American
messiah Wovoka, who promised the downfall of the whites, further
aggravated the tense situation among the Sioux. Wovoka had introduced the
Ghost Dance, which was supposed to help the Native Americans regain their
lands and live in peace. Because of the Ghost Dance, the army feared an
uprising and believed that Sitting Bull was the leading instigator. They
had him arrested on December 15, 1890. While he was being led away over
the objections of his supporters, a gunfight broke out during which
Sitting Bull and 12 others were killed.
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