Ute Topics – Access Genealogy

Ouray, Chief of the Ute

The Ute seldom visited Colorado City and the region round about in the early days, except in the winter, which was the only time they could do so with a fair degree of safety. A majority of the tribe had been on friendly terms with the English-speaking people from the time of their earliest contact with that race. It is true that straggling bands of Ute occasionally committed acts of depredation, and such bands on one or two occasions killed white people, but these acts were not approved by the majority of the tribe. One of these exceptions occurred on Christmas … Read more

Old Indian Trails of Pike’s Peak

The principal Indian trail into the mountains from the plains to the northeast of Pike’s Peak came in by way of the Garden Ranch, through what used to be known as Templeton’s Gap. It crossed Monument Creek about a mile above Colorado Springs, then followed up a ridge to the Mesa; then it went southwest over the Mesa and across Camp Creek, passing just south of the Garden of the Gods; from there it came down to the Fountain, about a mile west of Colorado City, and there joined another trail that came from the southeast up the east side … Read more

Ute Indians Use of Fire as a Defensive Weapon

After Ruxton had been camped near Manitou Springs for two or three weeks, while out hunting one day, he ran across an Indian camp, which startled him very much. No Indians were in sight at the time, but later he got a glimpse of two carrying in a deer which they had killed. The next morning Ruxton concluded that as a matter of safety, he had better remove his camp to some more secluded spot. The following day a fire was started on the side of the mountain to the south of the springs, which rapidly spread in every direction. He … Read more

Legend of the Separation of the Comanche and Ute Tribes

The large spring referred to by Dr. James, Sage, Fremont, Ruxton, and the other writers whom I have quoted, is the one now enclosed and used by the bottling works at Manitou. Ruxton says the two springs were intimately connected with the separation of the Comanche and the Snake, or Ute tribes, and he gives the following legend concerning the beginning of the trouble: Many hundreds of winters ago, when the cottonwoods on the Big River were no higher than an arrow, and the red men, who hunted the buffalo on the plains, all spoke the same language, and the … Read more

Tribes of the Pike’s Peak Region

It would be interesting to know who were the occupants of the Pike’s Peak region during prehistoric times. Were its inhabitants always nomadic Indians? We know that semi-civilized peoples inhabited southwestern Colorado and New Mexico in prehistoric times, who undoubtedly had lived there ages before they were driven into cliff dwellings and communal houses by savage invaders. Did their frontier settlements of that period ever extend into the Pike’s Peak region? The facts concerning these matters, we may never know. As it is, the earliest definite information we have concerning the occupants of this region dates from the Spanish exploring … Read more

Treaty of March 2, 1868

Articles of a treaty and agreement made and entered into at Washington City, D. C., on the second day of March, one thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, by and between Nathaniel G. Taylor, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Alexander C. Hunt, governor of Colorado Territory and ex-officio superintendent of Indian affairs, and Kit Carson, duly authorized to represent the United States, of the one part, and the representatives of the Tabaquache, Muache, Capote, Weeminuche, Yampa, Grand River, and Uintah bands of Ute Indians, (whose names are hereto subscribed,) duly authorized and empowered to act for the body of the people of … Read more

Treaty of October 7, 1863

Whereas the Tabeguache band of Utah Indians claim as against all other Indian tribes an exclusive right to the following-described country as their lands and hunting grounds within the territory of the United States of America, being bounded and described as follows, to wit: “Beginning on the 37th degree of north latitude, at the eastern base of the Sierra Madre Mountain; running thence northerly with the base of the Rocky Mountains to the forty-first parallel of north latitude; thence west with the line of said forty-first parallel of north latitude to its intersection with the summit of the Snowy range … Read more

Ute Indians

Ute Indians. In central and western Colorado and all of eastern Utah, including the eastern part of Salt Lake Valley and Utah Valley and extending into the upper drainage area of the San Juan River in New Mexico.

Ute Tribe

Ute Indians. An important Shoshonean division, related linguistically to the Paiute, Chemehuevi, Kawaiisu, and Bannock. They formerly occupied the entire central and west portions of Colorado and the east portion of Utah, including the east part of Salt Lake valley and Utah valley. On the south they extended into New Mexico, occupying much of the upper drainage area of the San Juan. They appear to have always been a warlike people, and early came into possession of horses, which intensified their aggressive character. None of the tribes practiced agriculture. Very little is known of their social and political organization, although … Read more

Southern Ute Reservation

Report of Special Agent George D. Meston on the Indians of Southern Ute, reservation, Southern Ute agency, Archuleta, La Plata, and Montezuma counties, Colorado, September and October 1890. Names of Indian tribes or parts of tribes occupying said reservation: (a) Kapoti, Muachi, and Wiminuchi Ute. The unallotted area of this reservation is 1,094,400 acres, or 1,710 square miles. It has been partially surveyed and subdivided. It was established, altered, or changed by treaties of October 7, 1883 (13 U. S. Stats., p. 673), and March 2, 1868 (15 U. S. Stats., p. 610) ; act of Congress approved April 29, … Read more

Condition of the Idaho Indians in 1890

U.S. Indian Agent and Party on Fort Hall Reservation

Early the summer of 1877 troubles arose in regard to the occupancy of the Wallowa valley by white settlers, it having been withdrawn in 1875 as a reservation under treaty of 1873, because of the failure, of the Indians to permanently occupy it. An Indian belonging to a band of non-treaty Indians under Chief Joseph was killed by some settlers; then the Indians insisted upon the removal of the settlers and the restitution of the valley to them. Upon the refusal of the government to do this, and after further efforts to compel all the non-treaty Indians to come into … Read more

Plains Indians Use of Rawhide

The Use of Rawhide. In the use of rawhide for binding and hafting (handle or strap), the Plains tribes seem almost unique. When making mauls and stone-headed clubs a piece of green or wet hide is firmly sewed on and as this dries its natural shrinkage sets the parts firmly. This is nicely illustrated in saddles. Thus, rawhide here takes the place of nails, twine, cement, etc., in other cultures. The Partleche A number of characteristic bags were made of rawhide, the most conspicuous being the parfleche. Its simplicity of construction is inspiring and its usefulness scarcely to be over-estimated. … Read more

Physical Type of Plains Tribes

Physical Type of Plains Indians

1954 Proposed Ute Rolls

The 1954 Proposed Ute Rolls refer to the list of individuals identified as members of the Ute Tribe, specifically in the context of the Ute Partition Act of 1954. This legislation aimed to divide the assets of the Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation in Utah among its members. Here’s an overview of the context and implications of the proposed rolls:

Ute Indian Bands, Gens and Clans

Many tribes have sub-tribes, bands, gens, clans and phratry. Often very little information is known or they no longer exist. We have included them here to provide more information about the tribes. Akanaquint (green river). A Ute division formerly living on Green r., Utah, belonging probably to the Yampa. Capote (mountain people. Hrdlicka). A division of the Ute, formerly living in the Tierra Amarilla and Rio Chama country, N. w. N. Mex. They are now under the jurisdiction of the Southern Ute school in s. w. Colo., and numbered 180 in 1904. Cobardes. Given by Dominguez and Escalante (Doc. Hist. … Read more