JULY 2021

BRITAIN TRANSFERS CONTROL OF INDIAN AFFAIRS TO CANADA Through this transfer, the Imperial Crown dispensed with the last of its responsibilities towards its former allies.  Initially administered under the Crown Lands … Continue reading “JULY 1, 1860”

HO-CHUNK SGT MITCHELL RED CLOUD JR. MEDAL OF HONOR WINNER BORN Born in Hatfield, Wisconsin, Mitchell, at age 16, enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps and joined Carlson’s Raiders.  He contracted … Continue reading “JULY 2, 1925”

HAWAIIAN ENGINEER/POLITICIAN JOHN H. “JOHNNY” WILSON DIED Born in Honolulu, Hawai’i, on December 15, 1871, Wilson was of Hawaiian royal lineage on his mother’s side.  His parents were friends of King … Continue reading “JULY 3, 1956”

CREE CHIEF PÎHTOKAHANAPIWIYIN (POUNDMAKER) DIED Born near Battleford, Saskatchewan, around 1842, Poundmaker was raised by Cree relatives.  As an adult, he was adopted by Blackfoot Chief Crowfoot.  The name “Poundmaker” came … Continue reading “JULY 4, 1886”

CANADIAN MOHAWK GUITARIST “ROBBIE” ROBERTSON BORN Born Jaime Royal Klegerman, Robbie’s Cayuga-Mohawk mother grew up on the Six Nations Reserve near Toronto.  Robertson is his step-father’s last name.  Robbie was lead … Continue reading “JULY 5, 1943”

HAWAIIAN KING DAVID KALĀKAUA SIGNS PRO-AMERICAN “BAYONET CONSTITUTION” The 1887 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawai’i was a document prepared by white anti-monarchists to strip the monarchy of much of its … Continue reading “JULY 6, 1887”

SAC-AND-FOX ATHLETE WA-HO-THUCK (JIM THORPE) WINS OLYMPIC PENTATHALON GOLD MEDAL Born May 28, 1887, in Prague, Oklahoma, Thorpe’s Sac-and-Fox name meant “Bright Path.  At Carlisle Indian School, he was on the … Continue reading “JULY 7, 1912”

MUSCOGEE-SEMINOLE PAINTER JERO8E RICHARD TIGER BORN Born in Oklahoma, Tiger dropped out of high school at age 16 and joined the U.S. Navy Reserve from 1958 to 1960.  His artistic style … Continue reading “JULY 8, 1941”

MOHAWK LEADER THEYANOGUIN (“KING HENDRICK”) PROPOSES THE “ALBANY PLAN” A man of distinction in both Native and English upper circles, Theyanoguin, known as “King Hendrick,” led a delegation of chiefs from … Continue reading “JULY 9, 1754”

INUIT ACTIVIST AUKTALIK (ABRAHAM “ABE” OKPIK) DIED Born January 12, 1928, in the Mackenzie Delta area, Northwest Territories (NWT), Okpik, whose name meant “Man With A Mole,” was raised traditionally.  An … Continue reading “JULY 10, 1997”

MOHAWK-CANADIAN OKA CRISIS BEGINS The 1990 Oka Crisis, Canada’s most serious aboriginal crisis in modern times, began in the town of Oka, near Montreal, as a dispute over a planned condominium … Continue reading “JULY 11, 1997”

CHEROKEE SGT ROY W. HARMON KILLED IN ACTION-EARNS MEDAL OF HONOR Born in Talala, Oklahoma, in 1915, Harmon served in the U.S. Army during World War II, assigned to  Company C, … Continue reading “JULY 12, 1944”

MEXICAN MESTIZA PAINTER FRIDA KAHLO DIED Magdalena Carmen Frieda Kahlo y Calderón, born July 6, 1907, in Coyoacán, Mexico, was a Mexican Mestizo (Spanish & Native American descent) surrealist painter.  While … Continue reading “JULY 13, 1954”

ALEUTS FOX ISLAND REVOLT KILL 300 RUSSIANS To guarantee peaceful relations and ensure native compliance, Europeans entering Alaska to hunt for furs traditionally took most or all of the women and … Continue reading “JULY 14, 1762”

MÉTIS LEADER CUTHBERT GRANT DIED Born circa 1793, near current Kamsack, Saskatchewan, Grant, of Cree descent through his mother, is largely responsible for the concept of a Métis nation.  His father … Continue reading “JULY 15, 1854”

COLVILLE ACTIVIST BERNIE WHITEBEAR DIED-FOUNDER, UNITED INDIANS OF ALL TRIBES FOUNDATION Born in Inchelium, Washington, September 27, 1937, Bernie was of the Sin-Aikst Tribe (now part of the Colville Confederated Tribe) … Continue reading “JULY 16, 2000”

OTTAWA-POTAWATOMIE CHIEF SHABBONA DIED Born circa 1775, grandnephew of Pontiac, Shabbona’s name meant “Built Like A Bear.”  Around 1800, he married the daughter of a Pottawatomi chief and, upon the chief’s … Continue reading “JULY 17, 1859”

PLAN DE SÁNCHEZ MASSACRE OF ACHI MAYA BY GUATEMALA PARAMILITARY In the village of Plan de Sánchez, armed forces and paramilitary allies killed over 250 people (mostly Achi Maya women and … Continue reading “JULY 18, 1982”

SITTING BULL SURRENDERS Born in the Grand River Valley in current South Dakota, Sitting Bull gained early recognition as a warrior and a man of vision within the Sioux nation.  He … Continue reading “JULY 19, 1881”

FIRST NATIONS ACTRESS TANTOO CARDINAL BORN Cardinal, born in Fort McMurray, Alberta, of Métis descent, has acted in many notable films and TV series, including Spirit Bay, Dances with Wolves, Black … Continue reading “JULY 20, 1950”

CHEYENNE PETER HAUSER DIED-1ST QUARTERBACK TO THROW FORWARD PASS Born June 10, 1887, at Fort Reno, Indian Territory, Hauser played football for Carlisle Indian Industrial School from 1906 to 1910 under … Continue reading “JULY 21, 1935”

CHEROKEE LAWMAN & GUNFIGHTER TOM THREEPERSONS BORN   Born in Vinita, Indian Territory, Tom attended Carlisle Indian Industrial School before riding the rodeo circuit.  In 1907, after cattle rustlers killed his father, Tom … Continue reading “JULY 22, 1889”

ONEIDA LEADER TEKAYA-TILU OR TEGA-WIR-TIRON (DANIEL BREAD) DIED Born March 27, 1800, in Oneida Castle, New York (NY), Bread, whose Oneida name meant “Learning Body,” was educated at the Presbyterian mission … Continue reading “JULY 23, 1873”

NATIVE HAWAIIAN SINGER COMPOSER ALICE ANGELINE JOHNSON BORN Alice Angeline Ku’uleilokenani Johnson, was a famed Hawaiian singer, composer, and member of the Royal Hawaiian Band.  Among her notable compositions are “Aloha … Continue reading “JULY 24, 1912”

PONTIAC’S WAR ENDS AT FT. ONTARIO Pontiac’s War had its origins in the changing relationships of natives and whites after the British conquest of New France.  The French had learned the … Continue reading “JULY 25, 1766”

QUITO INCA ATAHUALPA EXECUTED BY SPAIN—LAST SAPA INCA (INCA EMPEROR) Atahualpa was born March 20, 1502, in Cajamarca [in modern Peru].  When his father died, circa 1527, the kingdom was divided … Continue reading “JULY 26, 1533”

MEXICAN TARAHUMARA FORMER BOXING CHAMP DANIEL PONCE DE LEÓN BORN Raised in the Sierra Madre Occidental mountains of Mexico, Daniel was a Mexican National Amateur champion and a bronze medalist at … Continue reading “JULY 27, 1980”

ALEUT ELARY GROMOFF DIED-1ST NATIVE ALASKAN WEST POINT GRADUATE Elary was born on St. Paul Island, Alaska, on June 7, 1949.  He was his class valedictorian at Mt. Edgecumbe High School. … Continue reading “JULY 28, 2017”

TRIBAL LAW AND ORDER ACT GIVES TRIBES GREATER AUTHORITY TO PROSECUTE CRIMES Effective this date, the Act, signed into law by President Barack Obama, expanded the punitive abilities of tribal courts … Continue reading “JULY 29, 2010”

1ST WILCOX REBELLION-TO REPLACE BAYONET CONSTITUTION-FAILS Born in 1855, Robert W. Wilcox, whose mother was Native Hawaiian, was a student in Italy when the Bayonet Revolution of 1887 forced him to … Continue reading “JULY 30, 1889”

LA HO’IHO’I EA—HAWAIIAN SOVEREIGNTY RESTORATION DAY In 1842, Great Britain claimed the Hawaiian Islands through cession by Kamehameha I.  However, Britain’s political interests, as with those of France and the U.S., … Continue reading “JULY 31, 1843”