Little Rock (Cheyenne chief)
Encyclopedia
Little Rock (ca. 1805-1868) was a council chief
of the Wutapiu band of Southern Cheyenne
s. He was the only council chief who remained with Black Kettle following the Sand Creek massacre
of 1864.
Little Rock was a signatory of the Medicine Lodge Treaty
of 1867. In August 1868, Little Rock was interviewed at Fort Lyon by Indian agent Edward W. Wynkoop
about raids by a large Cheyenne war party on white settlements along the Saline
and Solomon in Kansas
. Little Rock gave Wynkoop information about those responsible for the raids, which included members of several different Cheyenne bands including that of Black Kettle, and agreed to try to persuade the other Cheyenne chiefs and headmen to surrender the raids' leaders to U.S. authorities, in accordance with the terms of the Medicine Lodge Treaty. In case he was unable to persuade the chiefs and headmen to give up the responsible men, Little Rock asked if Wynkoop would take him and his family under Wynkoop's protection, which Wynkoop agreed to.
With Black Kettle
, Little Rock attended a conference at Fort Cobb
, Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma) with Maj. Gen. William B. Hazen on November 20, 1868, at which Black Kettle sought but was refused permission to come in to Fort Cobb in order to avoid war with the U.S. Army. A week later, in the Battle of Washita River
of November 27, 1868, Black Kettle's and Little Rock's camp on the Washita River
was attacked at dawn by the 7th U.S. Cavalry Regiment under the command of Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer
. Little Rock, whose lodge was at the eastern edge of the village, joined with the Cheyenne warrior She Wolf and a visiting Kiowa warrior Trails the Enemy to form a rear guard to protect women and children fleeing downriver from attacking cavalrymen, believed to have been a detachment under Maj. Joel H. Elliott. Little Rock was killed in the action. He was survived by his wife Skunk Woman, his daughter Mo-nah-se-tah
(or Me-o-tzi, Spring Grass), his mother, his sister White Buffalo Woman, and another sister. Of these, his mother and his daughter Mo-nah-se-tah were among the 53 women and children taken captive by the 7th Cavalry.
Council of Forty-four
The Council of Forty-four was one of the two central institutions of traditional Cheyenne Indian tribal governance, the other being the military societies such as the Dog Soldiers...
of the Wutapiu band of Southern Cheyenne
Cheyenne
Cheyenne are a Native American people of the Great Plains, who are of the Algonquian language family. The Cheyenne Nation is composed of two united tribes, the Só'taeo'o and the Tsétsêhéstâhese .The Cheyenne are thought to have branched off other tribes of Algonquian stock inhabiting lands...
s. He was the only council chief who remained with Black Kettle following the Sand Creek massacre
Sand Creek Massacre
As conflict between Indians and white settlers and soldiers in Colorado continued, many of the Cheyenne and Arapaho, including bands under Cheyenne chiefs Black Kettle and White Antelope, were resigned to negotiate peace. The chiefs had sought to maintain peace in spite of pressures from whites...
of 1864.
Little Rock was a signatory of the Medicine Lodge Treaty
Medicine Lodge Treaty
The Medicine Lodge Treaty is the overall name for three treaties signed between the United States government and southern Plains Indian tribes in October 1867, intended to bring peace to the area by relocating the Native Americans to reservations in Indian Territory and away from European-American...
of 1867. In August 1868, Little Rock was interviewed at Fort Lyon by Indian agent Edward W. Wynkoop
Edward W. Wynkoop
Edward Wanshear Wynkoop was a founder of the city of Denver, Colorado. Wynkoop Street in Denver is named after him.Wynkoop served as an officer in the First Colorado Volunteer Cavalry during the American Civil War, attaining the rank of major of volunteers, and was brevetted a lieutenant colonel...
about raids by a large Cheyenne war party on white settlements along the Saline
Saline River (Kansas)
The Saline River is a tributary of the Smoky Hill River in the central Great Plains of North America. The entire length of the river lies in the U.S. state of Kansas. The river takes its name from the French translation of its Native name Ne Miskua, referring to its salty content.-Geography:The...
and Solomon in Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
. Little Rock gave Wynkoop information about those responsible for the raids, which included members of several different Cheyenne bands including that of Black Kettle, and agreed to try to persuade the other Cheyenne chiefs and headmen to surrender the raids' leaders to U.S. authorities, in accordance with the terms of the Medicine Lodge Treaty. In case he was unable to persuade the chiefs and headmen to give up the responsible men, Little Rock asked if Wynkoop would take him and his family under Wynkoop's protection, which Wynkoop agreed to.
With Black Kettle
Black Kettle
Chief Black Kettle was a leader of the Southern Cheyenne after 1854, who led efforts to resist American settlement from Kansas and Colorado territories. He was a peacemaker who accepted treaties to protect his people. He survived the Third Colorado Cavalry's Sand Creek Massacre on the Cheyenne...
, Little Rock attended a conference at Fort Cobb
Fort Cobb
Fort Cobb was a United State Army post established in what is now Caddo County, Oklahoma in 1859 to protect relocated Native Americans from raids by the Comanche, Kiowa and Cheyenne....
, Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma) with Maj. Gen. William B. Hazen on November 20, 1868, at which Black Kettle sought but was refused permission to come in to Fort Cobb in order to avoid war with the U.S. Army. A week later, in the Battle of Washita River
Battle of Washita River
The Battle of Washita River occurred on November 27, 1868 when Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer’s 7th U.S...
of November 27, 1868, Black Kettle's and Little Rock's camp on the Washita River
Washita River
The Washita River is a river in Texas and Oklahoma, United States. The river is long and terminates into Lake Texoma in Johnston County , Oklahoma and the Red River.-Geography:...
was attacked at dawn by the 7th U.S. Cavalry Regiment under the command of Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...
. Little Rock, whose lodge was at the eastern edge of the village, joined with the Cheyenne warrior She Wolf and a visiting Kiowa warrior Trails the Enemy to form a rear guard to protect women and children fleeing downriver from attacking cavalrymen, believed to have been a detachment under Maj. Joel H. Elliott. Little Rock was killed in the action. He was survived by his wife Skunk Woman, his daughter Mo-nah-se-tah
Mo-nah-se-tah
Mo-nah-se-tah or Mo-nah-see-tah , aka Me-o-tzi, was the daughter of the Cheyenne chief Little Rock, who was killed on November 28, 1868 in the Battle of Washita River when the camp of Chief Black Kettle, of which Little Rock was a member, was attacked by the 7th U.S. Cavalry under the command of...
(or Me-o-tzi, Spring Grass), his mother, his sister White Buffalo Woman, and another sister. Of these, his mother and his daughter Mo-nah-se-tah were among the 53 women and children taken captive by the 7th Cavalry.