Notable Native American Tribes

Long before Christopher Columbus, there were Native American communities spread across the continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans. Hundreds of tribes and sub tribes lived close to the land and each had their unique social structures and traditions.

The Apaches, peacefully, lived on the rich plains of North America until the marauding and warlike Comanches displaced them. They were forced to take refuge in the mountains of the Sonoran desert and here Geronimo made a last stand against the relentless advance of the white man.

The Navajo made their home in the Four Corners area of Arizona and New Mexico. A peaceful people, they raised sheep and lived in round roofed dwelling called Hogans. In the mid 1800s, they were displaced by the American military under the command of Kit Carson. Today they live in their traditional home and are noted as great artisans of silver work and turquoise jewelry.

Among the plains Indians, the Sioux are the most notable as a nomadic tribe, following the great buffalo herds. History shows that two of their great Chiefs, Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse, unified the Sioux nations in their fight against the white man and at the battle of the Little Big Horn they struck a blow to the white establishment by defeating General Custer.

The Comanches, also of the plains, were warlike and one of the most feared of all the tribes. Over time they were at war with almost every other Native American tribe that they came in contact with. Their great Chief, Quanah Parker successfully negotiated treaties and today they are the most highly educated of all the tribes.

The Mohawks and Iroquois of the East Coast were known as people of the flint. These successful carnivores lived off the endless supply of deer much as the plains Indians depended on the bison. The Mohawks fought against the United States during the revolutionary war and again in the war of 1812.

Of the tribes of the Great Basin, the Nez Perce stand alone. These were nomadic people who followed the seasons and lived off nature’s bounty. The Lewis and Clark expedition were the first white make contact and in later years the Nez Perce fought a strategic war that culminated in the last battle fought between the whites and the Indians. After the battle the great Chief Joseph stated that “I will fight no more forever.

This halloween grab a native indian costume and celebrate your heritage.