Chief Joseph was born in the Wallowa Valley what is today Oregon in the year of 1840.  Joseph was given the name Hin-mah-too-yah-lat-kekt, or Thunder Rolling Down the Mountain.  He was mostly known as Joseph , or Joseph the Younger named after his father.  The Nez Perce tribe was to big to be under one chief.  Josephs people lived in the Imaha or Grande Ronde Valley in Oregon.  Josephs tribe had 60 men and 130 women and children.  Joseph and his men crossed over the Salmon River, hoping they would be followed.  Joseph and Josephs people got between Howard and his supplies and they cut Howard off for three days.  Joseph attempted to get back with his wife and children, but one of General Miles soldiers had cut the Indian camp inn two.  Almost seventy men, Joseph among them, were cut off. 

  
    Lewis and Clarke were the first white men to enter the Indians country.  They were liked by all the Indians.  The Nez Perce let them pass through their country.  They also promised not to ever make war on the white men. The Indians liked the white people at first because they taught them new ways and traded with the Indian.  The white men were Frenchmen and they called the Indians "Nez Perce," because the Indians wore rings in their noses for ornaments. But then white people started moving into the Indians country and lived there.  Quickly the Indians found out that the whites were becoming very wealthy.  Joseph the Elder was the first Indian to see bad things were to come and he warned all his people.  He also told them not to get ripped off when they trade.  While the white people were living in the Mountains around the land of the Winding Water they stole many important things from the Indians.  At first the Indians didn't want to invade the Indians too much then they later started to take land away from the Indians.
     When gold and silver were found in Nevada it became bad for the Indians.  Whites were storming in to take the Indians land and also take away anything the Indians had that was worth anything. In 1855, Joseph the Elder helped Washington's territorial governor set up a reservation called the Nez Perce.  This reservation went from Oregon into Idaho.  This took away a lot of land from the Indians just so the white people could be happy. Even though the Indians moved out of the land they had surrendered.  They had nothing to do but go look for someplace they could live.  Finally land was set aside for the Indians.  The land the Indians got was the land that no body wanted.  It was no good for nothing they couldn't really grow crops on it because it had terrible soil.
    Next a white officer (Governor Stevens) came to invite the Nez Perce to a treaty council.  He told the Indians that there were many whites who would soon be living there.  He wanted the Indians and his people separated.  They wanted the Indians to live on a piece of land and stay on it.  Joseph the Elder refused, because he wanted to be free.  Joseph then told the whites, "I will not sign your paper.  You go where you please, So do I; you are not a child, I am no child either; I can think for myself.  No man can think for me.  I have no other home than this .  I will not give it up to any man.  My people would have no home.  Take away your paper.  I will not touch it with my hand."
     Chief Joseph only wanted the Government to treat everybody equally.  He asked for a good home where his people would not be harmed. He only wanted his people to have the same opportunities as everybody else.  He wanted to be a free man, free to travel, free to stop, free to work, free to trade, free to chose his own teachers, think and act for himself--and he would follow every law the whites had.  He wanted to go to the Bitter Root Valley.  This place would be perfect for his band.
     The Nez Perce of Oregon, put up a resistance under Chief Joseph.  He put up poles around the boundaries and said:  "Inside is the home of my people.  The white man may take the land outside.  Inside this boundary all our people were born.  It circles around the graves of our fathers, and we will never give it up the graves to any man."  They accepted a reservation the ended up selling some of it.  Under Chief Joseph they never wanted to make anybody mad.  Lawyer a Chief, was named this because he was a great talker.  He took over the council, and sold almost all the Nez Perce Country.  The United States said they bought all the Nez Perce country outside of Lapwai Reservation, but the Indians continued to live on the land in peace until a few years later.  The whites began to go inside the boundaries.  This made the Indians fight against the whites.  They always told the whites if there people came in the Indians boundaries then the Indians would fight for it.
    Chief Joseph said, "I could not bear to see my wounded men and women sick andy longer."  He then decided to go rushing off into Canada.  Joseph and his people traveled 1200 miles in four months.  Just 40 miles short of the Canadian border.  Joseph had seen enough.  He was tired of fighting.  General Miles promised the Indians that they would be able to go back to their country.  On day fifty Joseph went to Miles and gave up and said," From where the sun now stands I will fight no more forever."
     A while later General Howard told Joseph, that Joseph and his peopl had 30 days to get back home, and get all their stuff onto the reservation.  Howard said," If you are not there in that time, I consider that you want to fight, and will send my soldiers out to drive you on."  Joseph the told Howard, "War can be avoided, and it ought to be and we want no war.  I can not get ready to move in thirty days.  Our stock is scattered and Snake River is very high.  Lets wait until this fall, then the river will be low.  We want time to gather up our stock and supplies for winter."  But Howard didn't let Joseph move his people and their supplies when they wanted to.  Joseph and his people gathered as much stuff as they could and tried to move.  News came and said that the young men whose father was killed went out with seven other men and killed four white men.

     The Indians went to White Bird Creek, sixteen miles from where they were.  They were trying to get all their supplies together before leaving, but they were attacked by soldiers, and this was the first battle.  The Indians won the battle in jus a few minutes. Seven days after the big fight, General Howard came and brought many men with him.  A few days later Howard and his men attacked the Indians.  The battle lasted twenty-seven hours.  The Indians then realized they were outnumbered and retreated.  They made a treaty with some of the soldiers.  A while later soldiers surrounded the Indians camp.  The Indians lost many people from the attack.  This really hurt them because the didn't start out with very many Indians in the first place.  A few days after that tragedy General Miles brought an army and attacked the Indians. 
     Joseph the Elder was later in to bad of shape to speak for his people.  Joseph the Younger took his spot as chief.  Chief Joseph ran through the soldiers.  "My clothes were cut to pieces, my horse was wounded, but I was not hurt."  I saw he was dying.  I took his hand in mine."  He then said to his son, "My body is going to my mother earth, and my spirit is going very soon to see the Great Spirit Chiefs.  In 1871 Joseph  the Elder passed away.  Joseph the Younger was voted to take his fathers spot.  He didn't let the white men push his people onto a small reservation in Idaho.
         The United States of America asked for another treaty council.  Joseph made his first speech to the white man.  He told the agent who was in charge of the council:  "I did not want to come to this council, but I came hoping that we could save blood.  The white man has no right to some here and take our country.  We have never accepted any presents from the Government.  Neither Lawyer nor any other Chief had the authority to sell this land.  It has always belonged to my people.  It came unclouded to them from our fathers, and we will defend this land as long as a drop of Indian blood warms the heart of our men."    
     In 1877, General Oliver Otis Howard attacked Joseph and his people with his cavalry.  Joseph ended up having to head his band toward Idaho.  But they never made it there Josephs men attacked some white settlers and this brought the army out to pursue Josephs people.  General William Tecumseh Sherman was impressed by the Indians march and said," the Indians throughout displayed a courage and skill that elected universal praise.  (They) fought with almost scientific skill, using advance and rear guards, skirmish lines, and field fortifications." In October 5, 1877, Joseph and his men surrendered.  To the American Press he was known as "The Napoleon."  Even though he surrendered knowing that he would be allowed to go back home, his people and him were taken to  Eastern Kansas and then they were taken to a place called Indian Territory (Oklahoma).  Many of his people died due to epidemic diseases.  In 1885 Joseph and his band were brought back to the Pacific Northwest.  Then half of them were taken to a Non-Nez Perce reservation in Northern Washington, away from the rest of their people.  Joseph the Younger died in 1904, his doctor said this occurred from "a broken heart."

Cody Broughton

8th American History

Plains History Project

2004 

 

Bibliography

Revised: February 05, 2004 .