156 Anniversary of the Sand Creek Massacre

Today was the 156th anniversary of the Sand Creek Massacre.  A few years ago my husband and I visited the Sand Creek Massacre Historic Site located in a remote area of  Kiowa County, near Eads, on the great high plains of Colorado. This site is sacred, controversial, symbolic, and a reminder of a national tragedy that happened on November 29, 1864.  

Please click on to enlarge tread.

Along the Big Sandy Creek, about 700 Cheyenne and Arapaho native people were living peacefully at a winter camp in what was then Colorado territory. They believed they were under the protection of the US Army by treaty. Many of the men were away hunting for food, so the camp consisted of mainly old people, women, and children. At dawn on November 29, 1864, approximately 675 U.S. volunteer soldiers, commanded by Colonel John M. Chivington, attacked the sleeping natives with guns and cannons. Black Kettle, one of the peace Chiefs, raised an American flag and white truce flag above his tipi, as he had been promised protection, but he also had to flee. While many managed to escape, about 200 women and children, and the elderly struggled to run in the sandy earth of the dry creek bed. Some women tried to dig trenches in the creek bed, or in the hollow logs of cottonwood trees to hide their children, but most were mercilessly slaughtered during the eight hours of fighting. During the afternoon, and the next day, the soldiers wandered over the field committing atrocities on the dead, taking native belongings as souvenirs, and burning down the encampment, before departing the scene on December 1, to resume campaigning.

More about the massacre and other photos can be seen on a prior blog post I wrote about the event --click here.   

The tragic story of the Sand Creek Massacre brings us forward to a present-day tragedy that occurred this summer that resulted in strong protests in Denver.  During those protests, the Civil War Union Soldier statue that you see above was torn down from its pedestal in front of the Colorado Capitol Building.  

Upon serious reflection after the protests, a decision was made in a 7-2 vote of the Capitol Building Advisory Committee, to permanently replace this pedestal and statue with a sculpture of a Native American woman mourning the atrocities of the Sand Creek Massacre.  Representatives from the tribes which suffered at Sand Creek 156 years ago spoke to the committee and helped them make this decision

“They were wiped out,” Otto Braided Hair, of the Northern Cheyenne and a descendant of Sand Creek survivors, told the committee. “Their voices are no longer heard. Their wishes and concerns were no longer heard. Those are the people we speak for.”

To see a prototype of the proposed replacement statue click here.  It will be designed by Havey Pratt a Cheyenne and Arapaho tribal member and a descendant of a Sand Creek survivor. He is recognized as an accomplished master Native American Indian artist. He said the idea of using a grieving Native American mother came to him in a dream.  When it is erected in the future I will take photos of it and update this post.

Meanwhile, the Union soldier statue, erected in 1909 to memorialize those who died defending Colorado from an attempted Confederate insurgence, was loaned to History Colorado Center for a one-year period. The museum approached the state with the offer to display the piece with commentary that explains the differences in how various groups have interpreted its meaning, including tribal anger that the same cavalry units memorialized by the statue for heroism in the Civil War also perpetrated the Sand Creek Massacre two years later.  After that, the statue will most likely be placed in Denver's Veterans Park, which seems like a better place for it to be.

I hope all who celebrated Thanksgiving had a wonderful day!  This year was very different for us, as it was only me and my husband at our celebration dinner, but I still prepared a turkey and all the trimmings, including apple pie for dessert. We didn't Zoom with our family, as everyone was on a different schedule, but we talked on the phone and texted.   It was good to give thanks for all our blessings.  I am also thankful for all of you who read my blog and comment--thank you so very much as you bring joy to my days throughout the year!

 Stay happy, safe, and healthy!

You can also find me on

Instagram Twitter Facebook 

Pinterest

 I'm linking this post to some of the following blog events:

 Mosaic Monday, All Seasons, Blue Monday, Through My Lens Monday, Little Cottage Link Party, Hearth, and Soul Link Party, You Are the Star Blog Hop, Inspire Me Monday, Home Matters Linky Party,  Good Random Fun, Nature Notes, Grand Social, Travel Photos, Happiness Is Homemade, Over the Moon, Create, Bake, Make,  Our World Tuesday, Ruby Tuesday, Tuesday Turn About. Tuesdays With A Twist, Let's Keep In Touch, Wordless Wednesday on a Tuesday,  Party in Your PJ's, Wordless Wednesday, Nanahood WW, Oh My Heartsie Girl's Wonderful Wednesday, Your Whims Wednesday, Wednesday My Corner of the World, Wonderful Wednesday,  Little Things Thursday, Thankful Thursday, Thursday Encouraging Hearts and Home,  Thursday Thinking Out Loud, Friendship Fridays, Friday Features Linky Party, Skywatch Friday, Pink Saturday, Sunday on Silverado