The Northern Cheyenne Exodus (1878-1879) refers to the effort by the Northern Cheyenne, led by chiefs Morning Star (Dull Knife) and Little Wolf, to leave the Southern Cheyenne Reservation in what is now Oklahoma and make their way back to Montana.
After the Battle of the Little Bighorn in June 1876, where the Cheyenne, Sioux, and Arapaho took down Custer’s 7th Cavalry, Morning Star and Little Wolf rallied their people for another fight against the US government, hoping to stop westward expansion. Unfortunately, they faced defeat at the Battle on the Red Fork (or Dull Knife Fight) in November 1876.
In 1877, the Cheyenne surrendered at Fort Robinson in Nebraska, believing they would be allowed to live with the Sioux in their traditional lands, thanks to the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868. Instead, they were forcibly moved to Indian Territory, which was a tough situation for them. So, in September 1878, Morning Star and Little Wolf decided to lead their people out of the reservation and head north.
They were chased by US authorities until they split up in October 1878. Morning Star’s group aimed for the Red Cloud Agency to seek help from Chief Red Cloud, while Little Wolf headed towards the Powder River area. Morning Star’s band was caught and taken back to Fort Robinson, where officials tried to starve them into submission. Meanwhile, Little Wolf’s group made it to the Powder River successfully. Eventually, the Northern Cheyenne managed to negotiate for their own reservation in Montana, where many of their descendants still live today.
Background
In the mid-1800s, as the United States expanded westward, settlers started clashing with the Plains Indians who had lived on those lands for ages. To try to sort things out, the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851 aimed to clearly mark out territories for both the Native Americans and areas open for US settlers. But that treaty didn’t last long; it was broken in 1858 when gold was found on Native American land, sparking the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush.
Instead of sticking to the treaty, the US government sent in the military to protect the settlers who were illegally mining and taking over the land. This led to a series of conflicts like the First Sioux War (1854-1856), the Colorado War (1864-1865), and Red Cloud’s War (1866-1868), all of which were Native American reactions to the broken agreement and the ongoing expansion. The Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 aimed to wrap up Red Cloud’s War and prevent more fights by creating the Great Sioux Reservation, but the US government didn’t keep that promise either. They ditched it when Lt. Colonel George Armstrong Custer found gold in the Black Hills (which were part of the Sioux Reservation) in 1874, leading to the Black Hills Gold Rush in 1876. This triggered the Great Sioux War (1876-1877).
During the Battle of the Little Bighorn, Custer and five divisions of the 7th Cavalry were defeated by a coalition led by the Sioux holy man and chief Sitting Bull, along with the Cheyenne and some Arapaho. Notably, Morning Star/Dull Knife and Little Wolf were present but didn’t take part in the battle. After their victory, Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, and other leaders scattered, but inspired by their win, Morning Star/Dull Knife and Little Wolf rallied Northern Cheyenne warriors to keep fighting. Unfortunately, they faced defeat at the Battle on the Red Fork (Dull Knife Fight) on November 25, 1876.
Indian Territory & Exodus
Morning Star/Dull Knife and Little Wolf gave themselves up to General George R. Crook at the Red Cloud Agency in Nebraska. They were told they could hang out there for at least a year while plans were made for a permanent settlement. But then, Washington D.C. ordered Crook to send the Northern Cheyenne down to Indian Territory, where the Southern Cheyenne were already living on a reservation. Crook and Colonel Ranald S. Mackenzie assured the Cheyenne that if they didn’t like it after giving it a fair shot, they could come back.
Morning Star/Dull Knife and Little Wolf weren’t on board with that, but Chief Standing Elk, who had more pull, agreed and got his people ready to move south. A total of 972 Northern Cheyenne set off, but only 937 made it to their new home. Some broke away during the journey, and others died from exhaustion, sickness, or the harsh conditions. They finally arrived at the Southern Cheyenne reservation in early August 1877. Scholar Dee Brown notes:
After a day or so, the Southern Cheyenne welcomed their northern relatives with a traditional feast for newcomers. That’s when Little Wolf and Dull Knife realized something was off. The feast was just a pot of thin soup; that was all the southerners could offer. There wasn’t enough food in this barren land – no game to hunt, no clean water, and the agent didn’t have enough rations to feed everyone. To make things worse, the summer heat was brutal, and the air was filled with mosquitoes and dust.
The Indian agent, John D. Miles, pushed the Northern Cheyenne to start farming and promised more food would arrive while they planted their crops, but nothing came. Plus, the arrival of 937 more people put a strain on the already limited food and supplies, leading the Southern Cheyenne to resent them and hold back food. An outbreak of malaria was blamed on the newcomers, and the post surgeon quickly ran out of quinine to treat it, locked up his office, and left since he couldn’t help anyone without medical supplies, which never showed up despite being promised.Little Coyote (also known as Little Wolf) and Morning Star (or Dull Knife) were the chiefs of the Northern Cheyenne tribe.
So, Little Wolf had a chat with Miles, saying he wanted to take his people back up north since Crook and Mackenzie had promised him they could. But Miles shot that down, saying they couldn’t leave without some sort of approval from Washington, D.C. Little Wolf kept trying to negotiate a peaceful exit for his people, but Miles just kept giving him the same old response. Eventually, Little Wolf and Morning Star/Dull Knife decided they had to make a break for it, with or without permission. Little Wolf went to Miles one last time to let him know they were leaving, saying:
“I don’t want any bloodshed around this agency. If you’re planning to send your soldiers after us, please let me get a bit of distance first. Then, if you want to fight, I’m ready, and we can do it somewhere else.”
Miles didn’t think the Northern Cheyenne would actually try to leave, so he assigned some soldiers to keep an eye on them and prevent any escape. The soldiers, like Miles, figured there was no way the Northern Cheyenne would go anywhere, so they got lazy and started snoozing through their night shifts. One morning, they woke up to find the Northern Cheyenne had vanished! The warriors had been sneaking out to steal horses for weeks and hiding them outside the reservation. On September 9, 1878, the whole group, about 350 strong, quietly took off, mounted up, and headed back home to the north.
Battle of Turkey Springs & Kansas Raids
So, at 3:00 a.m. on September 10th, the alarm went off, and Captain Joseph Rendlebrock quickly led a group to chase after the Cheyenne. Little Wolf and Morning Star/Dull Knife were ready for this and set up an ambush at Turkey Springs. Both had experience from Red Cloud’s War and used a strategy similar to what Crazy Horse did during the Fetterman Fight back in December 1866—sending out small groups of warriors to act as bait to lure the soldiers into their trap.
Rendlebrock sent two Arapaho scouts to talk things over, and while Morning Star/Dull Knife and Little Wolf kept them busy, their warriors surrounded the troops in the canyon. Once the talks wrapped up and the Arapaho returned to Rendlebrock with news that the Cheyenne wouldn’t follow them back to the reservation, he ordered his men to open fire. The Cheyenne had limited ammo, so they picked their targets carefully, keeping the troops pinned down from September 13-14 in what became known as the Battle of Turkey Springs. Eventually, Rendlebrock had to retreat under fire from the Cheyenne, losing three soldiers and only managing to escape with three wounded.
Afterward, the Cheyenne continued into Kansas, where Little Wolf organized more raiding parties to collect food, supplies, weapons, and horses. He instructed the raiders to avoid killing anyone if they could, to not give the U.S. authorities any extra reasons to chase after them. Still, some people ended up getting killed, but the raiders came back with plenty of provisions, weapons, and horses. These raids made headlines in local newspapers, which got townspeople fired up to join the army in hunting down the Cheyenne.Lt.
Colonel William H. Lewis was in charge of his troops and some volunteers, along with Arapaho scouts, trying to track down a group that was now labeled as a dangerous gang of renegades. Little Wolf and Morning Star/Dull Knife were setting up another ambush at Punished Woman’s Fork, but things went south when a young warrior shot at the Arapaho scouts before they could fully get into the canyon. The Cheyenne then opened fire, fatally wounding Lewis. While the Cheyenne were busy fighting the cavalry in the canyon, some soldiers managed to sneak around and found their horses, taking them out. When the Cheyenne retreated, most of them had to make their way on foot.
After marching for about three days straight, the Cheyenne took a break, and Little Wolf sent out raiding parties again. Even though he and Morning Star/Dull Knife claimed they told everyone to avoid unnecessary violence, this time, more White settlers ended up dead, property got destroyed, and there were reports of women and girls being assaulted. The Cheyenne then moved into Nebraska, dodging the troops that were chasing after them as they headed north.
More Affairs
Separate Paths & Fort Robinson Breakout
In October, Little Wolf and Morning Star/Dull Knife decided to go their separate ways. Morning Star was over the constant running and wanted to head straight to the Red Cloud Agency, while Little Wolf preferred to hunker down for the winter in the Nebraska hills, away from the cavalry, and then continue their journey in the spring. Morning Star/Dull Knife didn’t realize that the Red Cloud Agency had moved to Dakota Territory and that its old location was now Fort Robinson.
On October 23, a group from Fort Robinson found Morning Star/Dull Knife’s band and forced them to surrender. Before they agreed to go with the soldiers to Fort Robinson, the Cheyenne took apart their guns and hid the pieces in their blankets or on their bodies, making them look like decorations on their clothes and shoes. Fort Robinson wasn’t really equipped to handle the extra 150 people, so they were crammed into the barracks.
Captain Henry W. Wessells, the fort’s commander, wanted the Cheyenne out of there as soon as possible but knew it wouldn’t be easy with winter approaching. He reached out to Washington, D.C. for help, and while waiting for a response, he treated the Cheyenne decently, making sure they had enough food and blankets. By January 3, 1879, Wessells got word that the Cheyenne were supposed to be sent back to Indian Territory. Red Cloud (1822-1909) was brought in to assist with negotiations, but Morning Star/Dull Knife refused to head south again. So, Wessells locked the Cheyenne in the barracks, barred the windows, and cut off all supplies, including water and firewood.
On January 9, the Cheyenne put their weapons back together and attempted to escape in what became known as the Fort Robinson Breakout/Fort Robinson Massacre. Morning Star/Dull Knife and a few others managed to flee east, but many were captured or killed. Captain Wessells found between 32 and 37 Cheyenne men, women, and children hiding in a small valley on Antelope Creek and ordered his men to shoot until they were all dead, although twelve survived, some later succumbing to their injuries. The deceased were buried in a mass grave that came to be called The Pit.
Eventually, Morning Star/Dull Knife and his small group made it to the Red Cloud Agency, where they were taken care of and hidden from the authorities. Meanwhile, Little Wolf spent the winter in the Sand Hills as planned and then started heading north when they were discovered by Lt. William P. Clark, who sympathized with the Cheyenne and persuaded them to surrender.
Conclusion
Morning Star/Dull Knife was super determined not to go back to Indian Territory. After the Fort Robinson Massacre made headlines, people started to rally behind the Northern Cheyenne. He managed to get the Tongue River Agency set up in Montana, which is now the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation. Sadly, he passed away from natural causes in 1883 and didn’t get to see it officially recognized in 1884.
Little Wolf, along with a bunch of his warriors, decided to scout for the US Army but ended up spending most of his time drinking. He also died of natural causes in 1904 and is buried close to Morning Star/Dull Knife at the Lame Deer Cemetery on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation.
The actions taken by the US government that led to the Northern Cheyenne Exodus and the Fort Robinson Massacre were pretty typical of how they treated Plains Indians back in the 19th century. There was really no good reason to send the Northern Cheyenne south in the first place, and once they agreed to go, there was no reason for the authorities not to keep their promise that they could head back home if they didn’t like Indian Territory.
All the Northern Cheyenne wanted was what had been promised to them in the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 and by those two army officers. Instead, they were treated like criminals when they tried to leave Oklahoma, chased over 700 miles (1125 km) as they sought to return to their homeland. Professor Joe Starita puts it well:
“It’s one of the deepest, most profound instincts that the human race has, to go home. That’s what they wanted to do.”
These days, the Northern Cheyenne Exodus is remembered and honored by the descendants of those who made the trek from Oklahoma to Montana. The whole story was even turned into a movie called Cheyenne Autumn in 1964, directed by John Ford and based on Mari Sandoz’s book. The history of this exodus reflects the experiences of many Native American tribes whose lands were taken by the US in its quest for Manifest Destiny and progress. But despite all the genocidal policies, the Cheyenne endured and still celebrate their cultural traditions today.
