 
The story of the American Indians is a long, sad and complicated one. I myself do not know what was the solution to the many problems that emerged when the settlers sailed here from England to begin a new life of their own. Of course, the new country to which the new Americans moved was not uninhabited, and therein lay the problem.
They were a nomadic people, moving with the buffalo and the seasons. We were settlers who built towns and cities, permanent residences for ourselves and our children. What could one say? They considered it their home and we considered it ours.
What were we to do, and worse, what were they to do? Soon treaties were made and broken, and broken again; both sides reaching agreements that later were turned back on by the whites and Indians alike. Bitter struggles ensued until, one by one, the tribes either fought to the death, adapted to the English way of life, or were placed on reservations as the inevitable happened: the frontier was pushed further and further Westward.
After early contact with the Indians, many thought them to be "savages", and spoke and treated them as such. Racism was indeed shown towards them. Now, in more recent years, the politically correct view is that we were all wrong and they were all right - similar to how minorities, such as blacks, were previously discriminated against and are now catered to.
I am not here to debate the rightness or wrongness of what took place. All I know is that what eventually happened was the end of an era; the death of a people; the extinction of a species. Oh, they are physically alive, but they are not the same. Like the extinction of the buffalo or the end of the Samurai warrior, it was a beautiful thing that was lost.
This page is dedicated to the original inhabitants of this country and to their way of life. Though they had their problems and faults like any other race of people, they had many redeeming principles and qualities. We can learn from them and remember who they were.
Quotes
"It is better to kill an eagle than to put it in a cage."
-Cochise (meaning "Hardwood" in the Chiricahua language), Apache chief
"You think I am a fool, but you are a greater fool than I am."
-Sitting Bull
Tribes
Indian tribes are a complex network of large, main tribes with many "sub-tribes", you could call them. For example, the Lakotas have seven "sub-tribes" - the Brule, Oglala, Sans Arcs, Hunkpapa, Minneconjou, Blackfeet and Two Kettles. However, the Lakotas themselves were part of the Sioux tribe. Below I will list a few tribes that I know of (several of which are from Wisconsin and are therefore of special interest to me), with links to other subjects that you might want to learn about.
Ho-Chunk
The Ho-Chunk or Winnebago (as they are commonly called) are a tribe of Native Americans, native to what are now Wisconsin and Illinois. The term "Winnebago" originally came from a name given to them by rival tribes, which meant something like "people of the stinking water", though the exact translation is disputed. The French called them the Puans, translated into English as "Stinkards", based on the information given by rival groups of natives. The more correct, but less common English name for the tribe is "Ho-Chunk". They call themselves Hotcâgara. The tribe changed its official name in 1994 to the Ho-Chunk Sovereign Nation (meaning People of the Big Voice).
The Winnebago/Ho-Chunk occupied the area around Green Bay in Wisconsin, reaching beyond Lake Winnebago to the Wisconsin River and to the Rock River in Illinois. The influx of Native Americans fleeing eastern intertribal wars reduced their lands and brought European diseases which severely reduced the tribal population. The tribe traditionally practiced corn agriculture in addition to hunting.
Through a series of moves imposed by the U.S. government in the 19th century, the tribe was moved to reservations in Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota and finally in Nebraska. Through these moves, many tribe members returned to previous homes, especially to Wisconsin despite repeated roundups and removals. The U.S. government finally allowed the Wisconsin Winnebago to homestead land there. The Nebraska tribe members are today the separate Winnebago tribe.
There are 6,159 tribe members as of 2001. The tribe does not have a reservation; however the tribe owns about 2000 acres and operates several casinos in Wisconsin: the Ho-Chunk Casino in Baraboo, Majestic Pines Casino in Black River Falls and the Rainbow Casino in Nekoosa. Additionally, the tribe owns and operates DeJope Bingo in Madison.
The Ho-Chunk language is part of the Siouan language family, and is closely related to the languages of the Iowa, Missouri, and Oto. The tribe at one point asked to be moved near to the Oto tribe but were not accommodated. The Ho-Chunk were the first people to welcome French explorer Jean Nicolet when he arrived at what is now Green Bay, Wisconsin in 1634.
Menominee
The Menominee are a nation of Native Americans living in Wisconsin. The name Menominee means "wild rice" (literally "good seed"), wild rice being one of their most important traditional staple foods. They operate a number of gambling facilities in the present day and speak the Menominee language.
The tribe has a reservation which is conterminous with Menominee County, Wisconsin and the town of Menominee, Wisconsin.
There is also the Menominee River in the region, which flows into the Bay of Green Bay. The city of Menominee, Michigan is located at the mouth of the river.
An eastern woodlands tribe the Menominee belong to the Algonquian language branch of North America. They were known as "folles avoines" by the early French. The Menominees subsisted on a wide variety of plants and animals, with wild rice and sturgeon being two of the most principal foods and feasts are still held annually for each of these. The five principal clans are the Bear, the Eagle, the Wolf, the Crane, and the Moose.
Apache
Apache is the collective name for several culturally related tribes of Native Americans, original inhabitants of North America, who speak a Southern Athabaskan language. The modern term excludes the related Navajo people.
Apache is a Zuñi language word that means "enemies" and was used by the Zuni to refer to the tribes that called themselves the Diné. It was adopted by Western settlers as the actual name of the Diné, although it was meant as an insult by the Zuni. The Apache peoples migrated from the Northern Plains into the Southwest relatively recently. Noted leaders haveincluded Cochise, Mangas Coloradas, and Geronimo.
The Apaches formerly ranged over southeastern Arizona and north-western Mexico. The chief divisions of the Apaches were the Arivaipa, Chiricahua, Coyotero, Faraone Gileno, Llanero, Mescalero, Mimbreno, Mogollon, Naisha, Tchikun and Tchishi. They were a powerful and warlike tribe, constantly at enmity with the whites. The final surrender of the tribe took place in 1886, when the Chiricahuas, the division involved, were deported to Florida and Alabama, where they underwent military imprisonment. The U.S. Army, in their various confrontations, found them to be fierce warriors and skillful strategists. The Apaches are now in reservations in Arizona, New Mexico and Oklahoma, and number between 5000 and 6000.
Good Movies
 Dances With Wolves
 The Last of the Mohicans
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