Fort Laramie

Fort Laramie was founded in June 1834 by William Sublette and Robert Campbell when buffalo robe trade with Native American tribes was fast replacing the beaver fur trade. Crafted of Cottonwood logs at the juncture of the Laramie and Platte Rivers and given the name Fort William, the small stockade played a key role in controlling supplies to the central Rocky Mountains and to the bison range in the Great Basin.

Fort William

Sublette and Campbell sold the fort in 1835 to fur trading company Fontenelle, Fitzpatrick & Co, who in turn sold the company to Pierre Chouteau and the American Fur Trading Company in 1836. The American Fur Trading Company and its trapping brigade, the Rocky Mountain Outfit, operated the original trading post until 1841 when Lancaster Lupton built Fort Platte just north of Fort William and also began trading with the Native Americans. At this time, Fort William was deteriorating and didn’t provide much in the way of protection. In competition with Lupton, The American Fur Company invested $10,000 in the construction of a new stockade. Crafted of adobe walls, with a central courtyard, the new stockade opened in 1841 and was given the name Fort John, after business partner John Sarpy.   

Fort John

Fort John was an impressive structure, and what the travelers along the Oregon/California Trail associated as Fort Laramie. By 1849, the flood of emigrants to the west was motivation for the government to step in and assure their safety. The American Fur Company sold the fort to the U.S. Army and in April of that year, the Regiment of Mounted Rifles moved into the adobe fort, as the government thought to secure the area with a string of army forts along the trail, thus beginning Fort Laramie’s history as a military outpost.              

Wyoming History.org

The army didn’t waste time building up the fort and adding to it with stables for horses, officer and soldier quarters, a bakery, guardhouse, and a powdered magazine house. As the flood of emigrants continued, Fort Laramie grew in size and importance. Several trail routes passed through the fort, including the Mormon Trail, the Bozeman Trail, the Pony Express Route, and the Transcontinental Telegraph. Fort Laramie became the main military fort in the Northern Plains and saw its first battle with Native tribes in 1854 in what is known as the Grattan fight; an incident near the fort involving a wagon train.   

Fort Laramie is also famous for hosting several Indian councils wanting to bring peace to the area. These campaigns failed, with the Army eventually subduing the several of the tribes.    

Fort Laramie ruins

Battles with the Plains tribes wasn’t the only thing the fort played a role in. The army also saw the development of the open range cattle industry and the settlement of the plains. With that settlement, the dangers of living on the plains ceased and the army abandoned the fort in 1890. Most of the buildings and the land were auctioned off, with some of the buildings either being relocated or demolished. The fort fell prey to time and weather until 1938 when it was inducted into the National Park System and preservation of the site was secured. Today folks can tour the fort year round and view 12 restored buildings.    

Counting Coup

keefer269.tripod.com

I'm currently writing another historical western novel, and belong to a critique group comprised of mostly 'historical regency' authors.  You can imagine we don't speak the same language. 

 In one of my chapters, I mentioned 'counting coup' and confused the heck out of everyone.  I consider it might be an interesting topic to share here since this is the fifth week and no one else is scheduled to blog.

The Plains Indians, about which I write, were a proud people, and even in warfare, there were honors and recognition to be earned.  In fact, the more risks one took, the more honor he brought to himself and his tribe.  

'Coup', I learned comes from a french word meaning, 'blow.'  Coup was counted when a warrior was able to touch an enemy...often with a long stick aptly named a 'coup stick', or even their lance or bow.  The warrior received more honor when an opponent was not killed.  Coup was counted on women and children as well, or touching the tepee of an enemy or his horse.  'Touching' in some form was required, as killing an enemy from a distance with an arrow or bullet did nothing to garner favor.

A warrior who claimed to have counted coup was expected to describe his deed in great detail before the tribal council, and MUST have someone who witnessed the act.  If the story was found to be truthful, then the warrior was awarded a tail feather from a golden eagle...a bird admired for it's own courage and swiftness.

An array of feathers was not a uncommon sight as young men vied to add to their reputation and the ability to recount their brave deeds at various ceremonies.

To give you an idea of the great lengths the Sioux went to to recognize accomplished 'coups,' consider these examples as shown above:

1. First coup - A feather to be worn upright with a horsehair tuft at the top.
2. Wearer wounded - Upright feather dyed red.
3.  Wearer wounded but killed foes - upright feather with quilled bands (one per foe.)
4.  Wearer killed foe - Red spot on feather.
5.  Wearer cut foe's throat and took scalp - notch in feather.
6.  Wearer wounded many times - Split feather.
7.  Wearer cut foe's throat - Top of feather clipped on diagonal.
8.  Wearer counted coup four times - Serrated ages on feather.
9.  Wearer counted coup five times - Side of feather partially removed.

So, you can see, there was a lot to remember in recognizing counting coup and equally as much work put into preparing the proper feather for each claim.  

I don't know about you, but I find this sort of information so interesting.  I value the day I discovered America's Fascinating Indian Heritage as a research resource, published by Reader's Digest.  It's from this book, I've gleaned so much history about the Lakota and their rites and rituals.  Love it, but hate that I've used it so much the binding is coming apart.  *picture me frowning.*

The When, Where and How of Tipi Building

The word "tipi" comes from the Lakota Sioux language. It consists of two parts: thí, meaning "to dwell," and pi, meaning "they dwell." Combined, thípi means house.
 

Tipis painted by George Catlin, who visited several tribes
 including the Kiowa in the 1830s

Ever wonder who invented the tipi, (also teepee, tepee)? Was it the Native American tribes of the Great Plains? They’re the people we most often associate with the conical shelter, but no, they were not the first to design and build a portable home that could easily be hauled from place to place.

According to the late James H. Creighton, a tipi lover and historian, “The conical home is as old as man and has multiple origins worldwide.” And, “Today, the nomadic Laplanders still use reindeer-hide lodges very similar to the Plains tipi, as do indigenous tribal groups across Siberia and into Mongolia. In ancient Europe, I am sure that the tipi-style lodge was also used both as temporary hunting lodges as well as permanent homes.”

Creighton’s reference to tipis used in Siberia suggests, to me at least, that the structure was likely brought to North America across the Bering Land Bridge millennia ago by Old Worlders migrating to the New World. It’s not hard to imagine how such ancient tipis could evolve into the classic ones used by the Great Plains tribes.

Lakota Sioux tipi 1891; notice little girl
 and puppy seated out front

 

 The tipi was remarkably durable and comfortable. It provided warmth in winter, when an inner liner was often added; it kept the dwellers dry during heavy rains, and cool during the heat of summer, when the bottom could be rolled up to allow ventilation. Adjustable flaps at the top let smoke escape, allowing a fire to be built in the center of the lodge. Best of all, the tipi was portable, a necessity for nomadic people. It could be broken down quickly and formed into a travois by lashing the poles to the sides of a horse and spreading the hide cover over the poles, providing a place to pile a family’s belongings. The whole process could be reversed just as quickly when they settled in a new area.
 

Crow lodge interior 1907; poles & outer skin at top,
inner lining and bedding below; clothing hanging
 on line strung between two tipi poles

Fine, but how on earth did a pair of women (it was women’s work) manage to erect pole supports that might be three times their height, lash them together at the top and spread the semi-circular hide or cloth cover around the poles – without a ladder? Sounds impossible, doesn’t it? But it wasn’t for people who used their brains as well as their strength to survive.

In an article titled “Tipi Technology” (at http://tinyurl/cq49bkd) I found a fascinating description of how a tipi was erected by the Blackfoot people:

“In demonstrating the Blackfoot solution, Long Standing Bear Chief used a rope about 40-50 feet long to tie the ends of the original four bundled poles together. He wound the excess rope into a coil. After "walking" the poles upright by hoisting the tied ends over his head and working his way down, he opened the bundle and spread the supports. He added more poles by propping them against the apex of the basic pyramidal structure. He then unwound the rope coil and walked around the tipi, whipping the rope up and tightening it to tie the outside poles into the rest of the tipi. The final touch was lifting the canvas, rolled onto one last pole, and unfurling it around the tipi to yield a round roomy living space.”

Pretty ingenious! Now I’d like to share a short excerpt from Dearest Druid. To set the scene, Jack and Rose are just arriving in his mother’s Kiowa village. Keep in mind this is after the tribe was confined on the Kiowa-Comanche-Apache Reservation in the Indian Territory. Adjusting to a new way of life was not easy for them.

By then they’d left the mountains behind and the sun hung low in the west, bathing the scene in the golden glow of late afternoon. Rose was surprised to see barely a half dozen tipis situated beside a meandering, tree-lined creek. A short way off, a large, rounded hill jutted from the surrounding plains. “I thought ’twould be bigger. The village, I mean.”

“The Army frowns on large camps. They’re afraid the warriors, what’s left of ’em, might plot trouble.” Jack pointed into the distance. “You can’t see ’em from here, but there are more camps farther along Rainy Mountain Creek.” He crooked his thumb toward the lone hill. “That’s Rainy Mountain. For the Kiowa, it’s kind of a signpost or a guardian, you might say.”

Rose thought the mountain and the peaceful setting quite lovely. Viewed up close, though, the village lost much of its charm. The hide tipis were patched and shabby looking, their painted designs faded. Several women, wearing a variety of animal skin and cloth costumes, worked at campfires, evidently preparing supper, while the men sat cross-legged outside their shelters, talking or simply staring at nothing. A few small children, both boys and girls, ran back and forth, kicking around a beat up cloth ball. Two older boys stood watching the game, while here and there an adolescent girl worked beside the women. All of them, except the youngest, had a dispirited air about them, Rose noted.

As she and Jack rode in, several mangy, underfed dogs set up a racket, barking and circling their horses. Everyone in the camp turned to stare. Jack raised his hand in greeting, drawing stilted nods from some of the men. One of the little boys who’d been playing ball shrieked, “Jack!” and came running as they dismounted. The child hurled himself at Jack’s legs, shrilling something in Kiowa.

“Whoa there,” Jack said. Chuckling, he scooped up the boy and returned his fervent hug. He rattled off what sounded like a question, and the boy gave a high-pitched reply, pointing toward the creek. Turning to Rose, Jack explained, “This is Tsoia’s son, Tsahle-ee. He says his pa is hunting for supper.”

Rose smiled brightly at the little boy. “Hello.” She didn’t try to pronounce his name, fearing she’d mangle it. He gave her a shy grin, revealing two missing baby teeth, and hid his face against Jack’s shoulder.

By now, the adults had gathered around. They began speaking and gesturing at Rose, no doubt asking who she was and what she was doing here, making her uncomfortable and causing her to clutch her cross.

Photos were obtained from Wikipedia Commons and are copyright free.

                                            Amazon                              Barnes & Noble