History of Mercer County, North Dakota, 1882 to 1960

• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: North Dakota State Library 2014
• Subjects: Canada; Hudson; Hudson Bay; Indian; Mercer
• Online Access: http://cdm16921.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/ndsl-books/id/16095

and harvesting of corn. The women did all this work, and the different .,.<?. fflf Phases of their work were conducted with much ceremony. Some writers claim that the Rees knew the value of seed selection, which was supervised byL the Medicinemen. The Sioux called the Rees, "The Corn Planters." The Grosventies (Grovans) Known also by the name of Minnetarees and Hidatsa, the Gros- ventres were friendly to the whites and lived at peace with the other nations. Because of their long residence with the Mandans they adopted many of the latter's customs and mode of living, and also became corn growers. The Crows On the plains west of the Little Missouri and Yellowstone rivers, lived the Crows, also known as the Grosventres of the Prairies. They were of a roving nature and did not raise corn, though related to the first mentioned Grosventres, who were known as the Grosventres of the Missouri. The Assinoboines In the earlier part of our history these Indians lived in the northern portion of what is now North Dakota and Montana, but are now located in Canada, and originally belonged to the confederation of Sioux tribes from which they seceded prior to the year 1656. They were friendly to the Mandans, who would trade them corn for knives, beads and other articles of merchandise which appealed to the redman, and which the Assinoboines procured at the Hudson Bay company posts. There is nothing of record that the Assinoboines were an agricultural people or that they raised corn. The Cheyennes This nation lived in the southwestern portion of Dakota, subsisting mainly by hunting and trapping. Some of the bands also carried on a lively trade in horses, and while history does not credit them with having raised corn, some authorities insist that they did. The Sioux The Sioux, called by many of the early writers Naduwessi, were a confederation of tribes. According to their traditions they originally came from north of the Mississippi river, up in the lake country of northern Minnesota. Their main reason for leaving the northern woods was because their numbers were becoming too great, and because the Chippewas to the north were continually at war with them. Their chief occupation was hunting, and they were also fond of making war excursions on the neighboring tribes. None of the travelers ever referred to them as being corn-growers, though some state that they had corn in their possession. They roamed over a territory now comprising part of Minnesota, southern North Dakota, all of South Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana. They were never friendly to the white man. Most of Indian troubles in the northwest were instigated by one or more of the tribes of the Sioux nation. The Country of the Mandans To most of us, the vast territory lying west and south of the great Scanned with a Zeutschel Zeta book scanner at 300 dpi. Edited with Multi-Page TIFF Editor.