This photo shows five Arapaho men and women standing outside a tipi surrounded by a brush fence in 1904. Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

As Coloradans, many of us love the land we live on. It is a place and landscape that has been lived in and cherished for thousands of years. The Museum celebrates the Native peoples who have inhabited and continue to inhabit the land around us in Colorado and the nation at large. We acknowledge the land in Boulder County as the ancestral lands of the Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Ute nations, as well as that of many other Native American peoples. The Louisville Historical Museum also acknowledges the City of Louisville now occupies land that was only made available through the forced removal and exclusion of the Cheyenne and Arapaho people from their ancestral homelands. 

It is worth recounting the process by which the land Louisville now exists on became available for white settlement. The United States and the Colorado Territorial governments committed repeated acts of deception and violence against Indigenous people to make the creation of Colorado and Boulder County possible. Before the 1850s, the sovereignty of the Cheyenne and Arapaho prevailed in Colorado’s plains and Front Range, while the Ute predominated in the high country and the Western Slope. After the beginning of the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush in 1858, the rate at which white settlers trespassed and encroached on Indigenous land in Colorado rapidly increased. The United States government refused to act on behalf of Indigenous nations, despite having signed the Fort Laramie Treaty in 1851. The treaty acknowledged one-quarter of Colorado, one-sixth of Wyoming, and parts of western Kansas and Nebraska as belonging to the Cheyenne and Arapaho. 

Through the Fort Wise Treaty of 1861, the government attempted to force the Cheyenne and Arapaho onto reservation land and reduce tribes’ land holdings to less than one-tenth of what was granted to them at Fort Laramie. Arapaho Chief Niwot opposed the treaty and refused to sign it. He was able to persuade other chiefs to follow suit. Despite receiving signatures from only a minority of tribal representatives, the United States government founded Colorado Territory shortly after negotiations ended at Fort Wise. Most of the Cheyenne and Arapaho refused to live within the confines of the reservation that the treaty established. Violence between Indigenous people and white settlers ensued, which eventually forced many Cheyenne and Arapaho to retreat to Sand Creek years later.

As Union forces fought the Confederate States during the Civil War, the United States government also sought to consolidate its power in the West by subduing Indigenous sovereignty. Examples of this included the Dakota Wars in Minnesota and Dakota Territory and the Sand Creek Massacre here in Colorado. On November 28, 1864, Colonel John Chivington commanded the Third Colorado Cavalry to attack a peaceful encampment of Cheyenne and Arapaho at Sand Creek. Those in the encampment were mostly women, children, and elders. The Colorado Territorial government had told them they would be safe at Sand Creek and would receive the protection of US forces. Chivington and his troops murdered approximately 230 Cheyenne and Arapaho, making November 28, 1864 perhaps the most violent day in Colorado history. The massacre and subsequent violence forced the Cheyenne and Arapaho from their ancestral lands in Colorado.

Despite facing tremendous violence, injustice, and hostility towards their cultures and lifeways, Colorado’s original inhabitants have combatted erasure and extermination. The Southern Ute and Mountain Ute Reservations are the only Indigenous nations to remain within the borders of Colorado. The Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho nation is located in Oklahoma. The lands of the Northern Cheyenne are in Montana, while the lands of the Northern Arapaho are found on the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming. Outside of these reservations, the descendants of the original inhabitants of Colorado live in cities and towns across the country. 

Indigenous Peoples’ Day serves as a great time to reflect on and learn about the cultures, languages, places, and histories that have shaped Indigenous perspectives. The experiences and knowledge of Native peoples continue to enrich and inform our society at large. The Museum invites you to learn more about Indigenous history and culture by viewing our Louisville timeline, exploring this native land map, visiting our virtual exhibit, “Indigenous Roots,” or coming to the following programs this month:

Program: Arapaho Culture and Language

Thursday, October 9 | 6:30–8 p.m.

775 Baseline Road, Lafayette

Join Fred Mosqueda, the Arapaho Language and Culture Program Coordinator, Thursday (10/9) as he shares the history of the Southern Arapaho tribe in Boulder County and the work he is doing to preserve the traditions and language of his tribe for future generations. This event is co-sponsored by the Louisville Historical Museum and the Lafayette History Museum. This program begins at 6:30 p.m. and will be hosted at the Lafayette Public Library, 775 Baseline Rd. Registration is requested.

Film Screening: The Art of Home

Friday, October 24 | 6-8 p.m.

801 Grant Ave., Louisville

Join us Friday, 10/24 at the Louisville Arts Center (801 Grant Ave.) at 6 p.m. to meet Emmy-award winning producer/director Jordan Dresser at a screening of the documentary The Art of Home: A Wind River Story. The screening will be followed by a Q&A session. This enlightening documentary shares the story of two Indigenous artists creating new works reflecting on their tribal homelands, the Wind River Indian Reservation. Learn about Ken Williams (Arapaho), a Santa Fe art celebrity, and Sarah Ortegon (Shoshone), an up-and-coming actress in Denver. Registration is requested.