Today Commemorates One of the Most Tragic Milestones in American History

Each year on October 5, I reflect on the immense suffering endured by the Nez Perce people and Chief Joseph during the final surrender at the Bear Paw battlefield in northern Montana.

My bestselling novel, BLOOD TO RUBIES, 2023 BOOK OF THE YEAR, honors the story of Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce War of 1877. Two main characters are a Nez Perce woman warrior (based on a true character) who fought along Chief Joseph to save their people and an Irish immigrant woman homesteader who tried to help her. The story is told through a young frontier photographer, who is entangled between two clashing worlds, one being born and one being wiped from the earth.

In 1877, Chief Joseph and his Nez Perce tribe faced the end of their tribe's civilization as a free people. Joseph--his Nez Perce name was "Thunder Rolling from the Mountains"--was the last chief to stand against white invasion in a major war with the U.S. The ultimate irony was that his tribe had saved Lewis and Clark from starvation and freezing to death 74 years before, then showed them the Northwest Passage to the Pacific. For decades, Chief Joseph had resisted treaties to give up the land and move to a reservation. But on May 15, 1877, U.S. General Howard told Joseph they must give up their land or fight. They could no longer roam the millions of magnificent acres of the Pacific Northwest near Yellowstone, their land for 15,000 years. 

Joseph knew the only way the Nez Perce would be free was to escape to the "Medicine Line," the Canadian border. He and several other chiefs gathered their people and their thousands of horses, including their prized Appaloosas.

For the next five months and 1,500 miles, the Nez Perce fought off several pursuing U.S. armies commanded by the several of the best Civil War Generals, including Sherman. Through the roughest terrain on the face of the earth, including the Rockies, the Bitterroots, the Continental Divide twice, and Hell's Canyon, the deepest gorge in the North American continent,

The nation watched in awe as they won against much greater numbers with heavy artillery, fresh horses and multiple armies. Newspapers called Joseph "The Red Napoleon." (Their tactics were so brilliant they came to be taught at West Point.) The nation found itself rooting for the underdog.

BLOOD TO RUBIES features 70 black and white archival photographs, including this picture captured in 1877 depicting Nez Perce warriors and Chief Joseph during the Nez Perce War.

One historic fact that has been written out of history nearly entirely is the existence of women warriors. They existed on all continents and they existed among many Native American tribes, including the Nez Perce. This was especially true in the Nez Perce War of 1877. One of the main characters in BLOOD TO RUBIES is a Nez Perce woman warrior based on a true historical character who fought along Chief Joseph.

Women warriors have consistently been written out of history, including Native warrior women. A main character in BLOOD TO RUBIES is a Nez Perce warrior woman based on a true character.

The Nez Perce almost made it. Only 30 miles from the Canadian border, many wounded and elderly were dying and the children freezing to death,  

Chief Joseph and a handful or warriors, including women, opted to stay behind with the elderly, wounded and sick children who could not ride the last 30 miles to Canada. Chief Joseph was giving his people time to escape to Canada while he held off the cavalry converging from three directions and commanded by three leading Civil War generals. Joseph surrendered at the Battle of the Bear Paw on October 5, 1877 and uttered the famous words: "From where the sun now stands, I will fight no more forever."

You may also enjoy these related posts:

• Chief Joseph's Terrible Dilemma

https://www.notesfromthefrontier.com/post/chief-joseph-s-terrible-dilemma

• A Modern-Day Tribute to Chief Joseph

https://www.notesfromthefrontier.com/post/a-modern-day-tribute-to-chief-joseph

• In the Steps of Chief Joseph

https://www.notesfromthefrontier.com/post/in-the-steps-of-chief-joseph-1

• The Chief Joseph Foundation: Honor Joseph's Legacy

 https://www.notesfromthefrontier.com/post/honor-chief-joseph-s-legacy-nov-9-22

• The Saga of Jackson Sundown

https://www.notesfromthefrontier.com/post/the-saga-of-jackson-sundown

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