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Paiute
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Closely related to the
Shoshone
and Ute
tribes, the two Paiute bands, the Walpapi and the Yahooskin,
were known as the Snake
Indians
. Their name means "the Water Ute." As a people the Paiute were
initially described as peaceable, moral, and industrious,
and were highly commended for their good qualities. However,
this changed during the 1848 gold rush, when large numbers of whites
crossed through their lands. In 1858,
they allied with the Coeur d'Alene in a two year war against
the whites. After two years they were defeated and Fort
Churchill was erected to guard the
California
Trail. During
the Civil War, they raided white outposts extensively. At the
end of the Snake War of 1866-1867, the Snakes were forced onto
a reservation in
Oregon.
In 1888, a prophet arose named Wavoka, who proclaimed the
Ghost Dance, would return their lands. The ghost dance ritual
quickly spread amoong other tribes and became so fervent that
it was outlawed by the federal government. It eventually died
out after culminating in the Wounded Knee Massacre of 1890. Once
scattered throughout the west, they now live mostly on
reservations in
California,
Nevada,
and
Idaho.
More ...
Papago - Originally located in the desert
regions of the northern Senoran Desert, the Papago are thought to be descendants of the prehistoric
Hohokan Culture. These peoples were a semi-nomadic tribe that
sometimes relied on farming but did not use irrigation systems. The
Papago are today primarily located in three
reservations in southern
Arizona
and continue to farm but have turned more to raising cattle as the
major source of income. Over the years, the Papago tribe has had
little involvement with with white settlers, a tradition that
continues today, allow them to preserve many of their aboriginal
traits.
 Passamaquoddy
- The Passamaquoddy nation
was a member of the Wabanaki Confederacy that controlled much of New
England and the Canadian Maritimes. The Passamaquoddys are original
natives of the area between Maine and New Brunswick. They lived on
both sides of the border before the two nations became countries.
Passamaquoddy
refers to a traditional way
of catching pollock (a kind of fish) by using a spear. Fishing is
still important to Passamaquoddy culture today. Now, most
Passamaquoddy people live on the US side of the border, in Maine;
however, one band lives in Canada.
 Pawnee
- The
Pawnee were a North
American Plains
Indian tribe who lived on the Platte
River,
Nebraska, from before the 16th
century to the latter part of the 19th century. In the
1800's, the Pawnee tribe was composed of relatively independent bands;
the Kitkehahki, Chaui, Pitahauerat, and the Skidi. Each of these were
divided into villages, the basic social unit of the
Pawnee
people. The name, "Pawnee” comes from the native word ‘pariki; meaning
‘a horn’; referring to their scalp-lock. The
Pawnee
lived in large, dome shaped, earth-covering lodges. Skin teepees were
used for
buffalo hunts. Generally allied with the whites, they were fierce
enemies with the
Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kiowa, and
Comanche. Often
holding positions as scouts for the U.S. Army, a battalion of Pawnee
were in active service from 1865 to 1885. This earned them the nickname of "Wolves" by the other tribes.
They gradually lost their
Nebraska lands, and were
resettled in
Oklahoma
in 1876.
The influx of white missionaries contributed to the
gradual abandonment of their ancient customs and religious ceremonies.
In 1970, the number of
Pawnee
was just under 2,000 with most of them located in
Pawnee
County,
Oklahoma.
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Penobscot - The
Penobscot nation was a member of the Wabanaki Confederacy that
controlled much of New England and the Canadian Maritimes. The
Penobscots themselves are original natives of Maine. They still live
there today, on a reservation at
Indian Island.
Peoria - An Algonquian people, whose ancestors came
from what is now Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, and Ohio, their history
goes back as far as once part of the Cahokia culture of Mound
builders. T he
name "Peoria" come from their name for themselves in the Illinois
language, Peewaareewa, meaning "Comes carrying a pack on his back.
Their ancestral lands were in Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Missouri, but
most began to migrate into Missouri Territory by the mid 1700's.
In 1818, the Treaty of Edwardsville forced them to
cede their lands in Illinois and the Treaty of Lewisville, in 1832, ceded their Missouri lands in exchange for
land in Kansas, near the Osage River.
Disease and war drastically reduced the
tribe's numbers, so the members of the Kaskaskia, Peoria, Piankeshaw, and
Wea tribes formed a confederacy under the Peoria name in 1854. After the Civil War, most of the
confederated tribe signed the 1867 Omnibus Treaty, which purchased land
from the Quapaw tribe and relocated the majority of the tribe from Kansas
to Indian Territory.
Today, the federally-recognized
tribe is based in Miami, Oklahoma and has more than 2800 tribal members.
Piankashaw -
Members of the Miami Indians who lived apart from the Miami Nation,
the Piankeshaw originally lived in an western Indiana and Ohio, and were
closely allied with the Wea tribe. They were generally regarded as being
"friendly" towards white settlers, often intermarrying with French traders
and were treated as equals by residents of New France.
The Piankeshaw generally sided with the Americans during the American
Revolution and took no part in the Northwest Indian Wars that followed.
However, they did suffer retaliation for attacks made by other native
tribes, even though George Washington had issued a proclamation forbidding
harm to the them.
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Paviotso
Paiute making petroglyphs, 1924, Edward S. Curtis.
This image available for
photographic prints and
downloads
HERE!
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During the late 18th century, the
Piankeshaw population began to decline with many leaving and joining other
Miami tribes and others joining tribes aligned with the British. Despite their overall good relations with
the United States, some Piankeshaw did not like the new settlers and
participated with tribes in attacks on Americans. This led to increasing
tension among many of the remaining tribe, who joined the Wea and Kaskaskia tribes. By
1818, Piankeshaw Chief Chekommia signed a treaty selling rights to much of
their land, because their numbers had been reduced to such an extent that
there were not enough of them to use the land.
Piegan - Today, the Piegan
Indians,
or Pikuni branch of the
Blackfoot
Indians,
numbering about 6,000, primarily reside on the
Blackfoot
Indian
Reservation in
Montana. Part of the
Blackfoot
Confederacy, the word "Piegan” or "Pikuni” means "people having badly
dressed robes.” When white settlers began to push westward, the
Piegan were the southernmost tribe of the
Blackfoot,
roaming through the Rocky Mountains on the south side of Marias River
of
Montana
and along both banks of the Missouri River. Despite their
name, they were known for their beautiful craftwork designs in their
tepees, clothing, weapons and riding equipment. Most exceptional were
their war bonnets. Their reservations was established in 1855 when
they were estimated to have numbered about 2,500. Like other tribes
who were moved to reservations, their population fell to just a little
more than 2,000 by the turn of the century.
Pima - First
called the Pima Indians by exploring Spaniards who encountered them in
the 1600s, these early Americans called themselves "O'Odham," the
River people. The Piman peoples, who live in the Senoran Desert
region are descendants of the prehistoric
Hohokan Culture. They were some of the first inhabitants to turn
the desert into profitable farming ground with their many miles of
irrigation canals for corn, beans, squash, kidney beans, tobacco, and cotton.
Unusual among the Indian tribes, men did the farming and
also wove cotton on looms, but the women made the clothing from it. They
lived in oval lodges covered in grass and mud over a superstructure of
poles. Each village had a chief who was responsible for overseeing
cultivation and defense, mainly against raids by the Apache. The tribal
chief was elected from their number. In the 17th century the Spanish began
to impose their rule on the Pima, including taxation, which resulted in a
revolt in 1695. However, they were quickly suppressed and many of them
fled to their northern Pima lands. A larger revolt in 1751 was also put
down. The United States acquired Pima territory in 1853 with the Gadsden
Purchase, which saw an influx of white farmers, causing most of the Pima
in the region to move to the Salt River area, where they were set up with
a reservation. Today they live along
the Gila and Salt Rivers near Phoenix,
Arizona.
Pit River - The Pit River Indian tribe
traditionally occupied lands
along the Pit River in the far northeastern part of California, which
included Mount Shasta and Lassen Peak to the Warner Range. The tribe is
made up of 11 bands including the Achomawi, Aporidge, Astariwawi, Atsuge,
Atwamsini, Hanhawi, Hewisedawi, Ilmawi, Itsatawi, Kosalextawi, and Madesi
and spoke the languages of Achumawi and Atsugewi, a branch of the greater
Hokan linguistic family. Like other northern California Indians, they
lived by hunting, gathering and fishing, with their main foods being fish,
acorns, grasshoppers, plants, and small animals. In the mid-19th century,
they numbered about 3,000. Today there are around 1,800 tribal members
living on a number of rancherias and on the Pit River, Round Valley and
X-L Ranch reservations.
Ponca - A Siouan tribe of
Nebraska, the Ponca were
closely related to the Omaha, Osage, Kansa, and Quapah. The Ponca built
their villages on both sides of the Niobrara River on the boundary between
South Dakota and
Nebraska. The Ponca sometimes lived with the Omaha, whose
language is essentially the same. Their name, Ponka, means "Sacred Head."
They practiced farming in permanent villages, but in other respects they
were plains Indians. In 1876 the Ponca were relocated to
Oklahoma. Many
Ponca returned to their native land on the Niobrara River. Today there are
Ponca reservations in both
Oklahoma and
Nebraska.
Poosepatuck
- Also called Uncachogee, they were one of the 13 tribes of Long
Island, New York, probably subordinate to the Montauk. They occupied the
south shore from Patchogue Island to the Shinnecock country. In 1666 a 50
acre reservation was ceded to their leader, Tobaccus, on Forge River, a
short distance above the town of Mastic.
Currently the Poosepatuck Reservation has
five core families and a population of approximately twohundred fifty.
Potawatomie
-
An
Algonquian tribe, their name is a translation of the Ojibwe "potawatomink" meaning "people of the place
of fire." The Potawatomis are original residents of what is now
Michigan state, but b efore they came to the Great Lakes region they had been
a branch of a single nation with the Anishinaabe and the Ottawa. As more
Indian
tribes were forced westward into the Michigan and Wisconsin area, many
Potawatomi people migrated into other parts of the Midwest, including
Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and
Ontario, Canada.
They now have a reservation in
Kansas and lands in
Oklahoma
, but communities still exist in Wisconsin and Michigan.
More ...
Powhatans
- The
Powhatans were original residents of what is now Virginia, where they
famously interacted with the Jamestown colony. British attacks drove them
northward, and most of the surviving descendants currently live in
Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The Powhatan
Indians
all speak English today as their original language has long been lost.
 Pueblo
- The Pueblo, which is Spanish for "town or village," are one of the
oldest cultures in the U.S. Archaeologists have traced back their
civilization 2000 years, but their ancestors, the
Anasazi
can be traced back 7000 years. The Pueblo peoples comprise a number of southwest
tribes who share a culture centered about the pueblo, a village composed
of mud and stone structures formed like irregular apartments. Many of these structures had no doors or windows and
could only be entered from above by ladders, making them particularly well
suited to military defense. The tribes that make up this cultural group
are diverse with respect to language. The pueblo tribes are the Hopi and
Zuni on the Colorado plateau, and by the Rio Grande, the Piro, Tewa, Tiwa,
Towa, and Keres. The Pueblo
Indians
are best known for their agricultural skills, having cultivated corn, or
maise, for thousands of years. The Spanish
encountered the Pueblo people as early as 1539. When the Spanish founded
Santa Fe In 1610 they put all the Pueblos under their authority. When the
Keres rebelled, they were brutally dealt with. However, when the Spanish
attempted to suppress the Pueblo peoples' religion, the
Indians fought
back enmasse in 1680 and were able to force the Spanish to withdraw from
Santa Fe. It would be another twelve years before the Spanish were able to
recapture Santa Fe. This time, the Spanish relaxed their demands. It
was during this period, the Pueblos became the first
Indians to acquire
horses, which soon spread across the plains, changing the native way of
life. Many Pueblo
Indians
still live at century old pueblos including Taos, Isleta, Jemez, San Juan,
San Ildefonso, and six others. More
...
Quapaw
- A Siouan tribe, closely related to the Kansa, Omaha, Osage, and
Ponca, their name translates to "Downstream People," so called from a
tradition that they went down the Missouri River while the rest of the
Sioux went upriver. The Quapaw people historically resided on the west
side of the Mississippi River in what is now the state of
Arkansas.
They are identical with the Arkansa Nation. When they were
encountered by the DeSoto expedition (1539-43), they were living in a
fortified, walled city. In the larger villages, well crafted lodges were
seen with most people living in long houses with domed roofs covered in
bark. They practiced extensive agriculture, and in art, they were
particularly noted for their pottery designs. Ironically, the Quapaw and French had an amicable
relationship, for the French were usually at war with most other native
tribes. In 1833, the Quapaw signed were forced out of
Arkansas ,
relocating to
Oklahoma where they remain today.
Quinault - One
of the few Indian tribes that continue to live upon their native lands,
the Quinault are located on the Pacific coast of
Washington ,
primarily in northwestern Grays Harbor County. Like many Northwest Coast
Indians ,
Quinault relied on fishing from local rivers and the Pacific Ocean, hunting,
and berry picking for food. The lived in long wooden houses situated up
and down the Quinault River and also used the forest trees for making
canoes and bark for clothing. The tribe remained isolated from white
settlers until they were first visited by a Spanish vessel in 1775.
Lewis and Clark
also came in contact with them during their famed expedition in 1803. By
the 1820s, more and more white trappers, traders and settlers began to
visit and make their homes in the area and before long, fishing and lumber
communities dotted the region. The the Quinault were initially friendly,
friction began to occur as the new settlers heavily utilized the area
resources. In January, 1856, a treaty was signed to create a 10,000 acre
reservation that included not only the Quinault but other area tribes
including the
Quileute, Queets, and Hoh. Wanting to
accommodate more coastal tribes, including the
Chehalis, Chinook, and Cowlitz, the government expanded the reservation
by some 200,000 acres in 1873.
Today, the Quinault Indian Nation accommodates
about 1,400 residents, operates a casino and seaside resort at Ocean
Shores and a high-quality seafood packing business at Taholah,
Washington.
Rappahannock
- In 1607, the Rappahannock were the dominant
tribe of the Rappahannock River valley, maintaining thirteen villages
along the north and south banks of the river that bears their name. The
Rappahannock People first met Captain John Smith at their capital town "Topahanocke"
on the banks of the river bearing their name, in December 1607.
In an effort to solidify their tribal government in order to fight the
state for their recognition, the Rappahannocks incorporated in 1921.In 1998, they elected the first woman chief to lead in Virginia since the
1700s, Chief G. Anne Richardson.
Currently, the tribe is working on acquiring Federal Recognition, with six
other Virginia Tribes.
Ree - See
Arikara
Rogue River - A Native American
group originally located in southern
Oregon. This was not a single tribe,
but rather group of tribes that French Canadian employees of the Hudson
Bay Company called "coquins," meaning "rogues." The principal tribes
commonly grouped under the generic name of Rogue River Indians were the
Takelma, Shasta and different subtribes of the Coquille. After the Rogue
River Wars in 1856, bands of the Rogue River were split between the
Confederated Tribes of Siletz and the Confederated Tribes of the Grand
Ronde Community of
Oregon, relocating to either the Siletz
Indian
Reservation north of the tribe's traditional lands or to the Grand Ronde
Indian Reservation.
Continued
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