NOVEMBER 27, 1868

SOUTHERN CHEYENNE CHIEF MOKE-TA-VE-TO (BLACK KETTLE) KILLED

Born in South Dakota circa 1803, by 1854, Black Kettle was a chief on the Council of Forty-four, the tribe’s central government. He fought the Pawnee & Osage and the 1^st U.S. Cavalry (1857 Battle of Solomon’s Fork). Despite its duties under the 1851 Treaty of Horse Creek, the U.S. failed to control white expansion and conflict ensued. Black Kettle, advocating peace, signed the treaties of Fort Wise (1861), Little Arkansas (1865), and Medicine Lodge (1867). When raiding continued, Col. John Chivington and his 3^rd Colorado Volunteer Cavalry attacked his village on November 29, 1864, killing over 200 Cheyenne, mostly women & children, in the “Sand Creek Massacre.” Black Kettle saved his wife who had been shot 9 times. After the Cheyenne were forcibly relocated to Indian Territory, his influence waned. Continued conflict led to Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer and his 7th Cavalry attacking Black Kettle’s village, killing over 100 Cheyenne. He and his wife were shot and killed trying to cross the Washita River.

Sources:
“Chief Black Kettle (Moke-ta-ve-to) (ca. 1803-1868),” National Park Service, Washita Battlefield.  Retrieved 1/16/2024, https://www.nps.gov/waba/learn/historyculture/black-kettle.htm
“Black Kettle (ca. 1812-1868), The Oklahoma Encyclopedia of History and Culture.  Retrieved 1/16/2024, https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=BL003
Wikipedia
Photo:  Author unknown, prior to 11/27/1868.  Public Domain.