An
Oglala man (above) photographed by Alexander Gardner at Ft.
"[Crazy Horse] was known as the greatest of the fighting
Oglalas, and his name, Crazy Horse, was one to frighten the children of the whites crowding into his country, and even the boldest warriors of his Indian enemies, the Snakes and Crows." Sandoz, at viii.
In fact, a portion of the
Oglala Sioux band resided in an Arikara village before 1780 and attempted to become a horticultural people.
"He" is Red Cloud, an
Oglala Chief and for now task force commander of the Tetons (Lower Bands) of the Dakotas (Sioux).
Critics from mainstream publications such as The New Yorker, The New York Times, Times Magazine, Writer Magazine, and America Magazine insisted that Frazier recreates an accurate and respectful account of the
Oglala Sioux living on the Pine Ridge Reservation.
Sandoz, Mari, Crazy Horse: The Strange Man of the
Oglalas. New York, 1942.
Such is the case of Crazy Horse, the Strange Man of the
Oglalas.
The Seven Council Fires that comprised the Lakotas (
Oglalas, Brules, Minneconjous, Hunkpapas, Two Kettles, Shiasapas, and Sans Arcs) migrated westward to avoid conflict with other tribes or to tap richer hunting grounds.
Each of these has added a layer of mystique to Crazy Horse's life, starting with Mari Sandoz's classic 1942 biography, Crazy Horse, the Strange Man of the
Oglalas, which this author maintains "helped shift the paradigm in Indian studies, away from the racist stereotyping of the previous century, toward a more empathetic reading of the Lakota world."
When traditional
Oglalas resisted his attempt to seize their land, Wilson created a goon squad, paid with Bureau of Indian Affairs funds and largely composed of off-duty Bureau cops.
There was no single "war chief" of the
Oglalas except, perhaps, in Hollywood films.
Because of the lack of places to shop on the reservation many
Oglalas were/ are forced to frequent businesses in the Nebraska border towns.
The group of
Oglalas was hired by Miller Brothers' 101 Ranch, established in 1905 on the extensive Miller family ranch on leased Indian land in Marland, Oklahoma.
Although many agency Indians shared his opposition, it became apparent as events unfolded that Red Cloud underestimated the response of
Oglalas loyal to Crazy Horse and other nonagency leaders.
