Once upon a time, the American buffalo roamed North America in large numbers, perhaps as many as 10-70 million. But by the mid-1880s, its once-vast numbers had been reduced to just a few hundred. Who killed the buffalo? And why?

The Rise of the Buffalo?

Interestingly enough, the rise of the American buffalo may have coincided with the fall of the Native American tribes. According to this theory, put forth by Charles Mann, the Native Americans originally created grasslands for the buffalo population and heavily regulated their activities.

“Hernando De Soto’s expedition staggered through the Southeast for four years in the early 16th century and saw hordes of people but apparently did not see a single bison.” ~ Charles Mann, 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus

When the Europeans first arrived in the New World, they inadvertently brought along diseases with them. Native Americans died off in massive numbers and buffalo herds found themselves free. They began to roam and quickly spread across the land, eventually becoming the most dominant large animal in what is now the United States.

Who Killed the Buffalo?

So, that helps explain the spread of the buffalo. But what about the fall? Well, it appears there are a few culprits here…the Native Americans themselves, commercial hunters, and the U.S. Army.

Native Americans, contrary to popular opinion, were not quite the “noble savages” they are often portrayed to be in modern culture. They hunted buffalo in large numbers, even going so far as to herd them into makeshift chutes and stampede them over cliffs (this took place at the well-named Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump in Alberta, Canada along with many others). The Comanche alone killed more than 280,000 buffalo a year.

“They were killing more than 280,000 bison a year – the maximum loss the herds could sustain without imploding – and at the very time the great drought of 1845-50 was exacerbating the situation.” ~ Frank McLynn, Review of The Comanche Empire by Pekka Hämäläinen

At the same time, commercial hunters sought the buffalo out with relentless ferocity. These hunters were primarily concerned with gathering skins and would often leave rotting carcasses behind. This was a classic example of the Tragedy of the Commons.

“Because buffalo hides could be sold for as much as $3.50 each, an individual hunter would kill more than a hundred a day for as many days as he cared to hunt on the open plain.” ~ Thomas J. DiLorenzo, The Culture of Violence in the American West: Myth versus Reality

And finally, we come to the last prominent killer of the buffalo…the U.S. Army. In 1865, General William Sherman, fresh out of the American Civil War, was put in charge of the Military Division of the Mississippi (later called the Military Division of the Missouri). He proceeded to launch a two and a half decade war against the Plains Indians, as a sort of under the table subsidy to the government-subsidized transcontinental railroad companies. Other generals, most prominently General Phillip Sheridan, received other commands with the same purpose.

The U.S. Army waged total war against the Native Americans, in search of what General Sherman referred to as the “final solution of the Indian problem.” Since the Native Americans depended on the buffalo for food, clothing, and other things, the U.S. Army targeted it for extinction.

“Let them kill, skin, and sell until the buffalo is exterminated, as it is the only way to bring lasting peace and allow civilization to advance.” ~ General Sherman, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West by Dee Brown

Guerrilla Explorer’s Analysis

By 1884, America’s buffalo population had been decimated. In fact, if it weren’t for the efforts of people like Pete Dupree and James “Scotty” Philip (aka The Man who Saved the Buffalo), it stands to reason they might’ve gone completely extinct.

Since then, the buffalo has undergone somewhat of a resurgence and its numbers have risen well above one hundred thousand. Most of these buffalo are privately owned with the notable exception of the Yellowstone Park bison herd. While its unlikely the buffalo will ever regain its former numbers, we can be thankful that it has recovered from near decimation at the hands of Native Americans, hunters, and the U.S. Army.

Guerrilla Explorer’s Man vs. Nature Coverage

8/18/11: The Yellowstone Conspiracy?
3/30/12: Who Killed off all the Buffalo?
4/20/12: The Mythical Balance of Nature
5/15/12: The Pleistocene Rewilding?
7/9/12: Breeding Ancient Animals?

Guerrilla Explorer’s Wild West Coverage

11/24/11: How Wild was the Wild West?
12/16/11: Did Jesse James Fake his Own Death? (by Sean McLachlan)
1/9/12: The Largest Mass Execution in American History?
3/30/12: Who Killed off all the Buffalo?
5/26/12: The Lost Treasure of General Custer?
7/12/12: What is the Dead Man’s Hand?
12/3/14: Custer’s Blood Treasure (America Unearthed)
12/9/14: Does the Lost Custer Treasure Really Exist?

The Dakota War?

The origins of the Dakota War can be traced back to 1851 when the U.S. government forced the Sioux Indians to sign the Treaty of Traverse des Sioux and the Treaty of Mendota. These agreements required the Sioux to give up large parcels of land and move onto an Indian reservation near the Minnesota River. In exchange, the Sioux were given $1.4 million of money and goods. This amounted to about $0.03 per acre and the U.S. government profited handsomely by selling the land to white settlers for $1.25 per acre. In fact, it profited even more than you might expect since most of the promised compensation was never paid, was stolen by the corrupt Bureau of Indian Affairs, or was otherwise “lost.”

As the 1850s rolled on, the U.S. government continuously violated the two treaties and failed to make payments to the Sioux. The Sioux fell into a state of permanent debt with local traders and thus, the few payments that were made often went directly to the traders. At the same time, crop failure made the Sioux increasingly dependent on the payments. Hungry and angry about the very real possibility that they were being cheated by the Bureau and the traders, the Sioux demanded that the payments be made directly to them. But the Bureau of Indian Affairs agent refused to provide food or supplies under that condition.

Two days later, a Sioux hunting party attacked and killed five white settlers while on a hunting expedition. That night, the Sioux council effectively declared the Dakota War on the settlers. A series of attacks followed. After a few setbacks to U.S. forces, President Lincoln sent General John Pope to lead the counterattack.

The Dakota War Ends…& Trials Begin

By December, the short-lived Dakota War was over. At least 500 U.S. soldiers and white settlers perished in the Dakota War. Sioux casualties are estimated about 70 to 100. In the aftermath, General Pope subjected hundreds of men, women, and children to five-minute military trials. 303 Indians were found guilty of rape and/or murder and sentenced to death. However, they were not given the opportunity to defend themselves and in any case, were condemned for participation in the Dakota War rather than for specific crimes.

President Lincoln Approves the Largest Mass Execution in History

General Pope and Minnesota’s representatives urged President Lincoln to approve the execution. However, Lincoln was still in the midst of the Civil War and was concerned that an execution of that size, based on no evidence and a heavily biased military tribunal, might anger European nations who would then throw their support to the Confederate States of America. So, he pared down the list to 39 names. In order to appease disgruntled settlers and Minnesota operatives, he promised to eventually kill or remove all Indians from Minnesota and offered $2 million in federal funds compensation.

On December 26, 1862, 38 Sioux Indians were hanged, marking the largest one-day execution in American history (one Sioux was granted a reprieve). Within the course of a year, Lincoln made good on his promise, driving the remaining Sioux out of Minnesota and into Nebraska and South Dakota.

Guerrilla Explorer’s Analysis

Thanks to the politically-motivated Emancipation Proclamation, Abraham Lincoln might just be the biggest sacred cow in all of U.S. history. Even this mass execution is viewed favorably by many Lincoln scholars, as they point out that he spared the lives of over 260 Sioux Indians. But the fact remains that he ordered the execution of 38 individuals, despite knowing that their individual guilt in the Dakota War could not be proved beyond a reasonable doubt.

Unfortunately, their deaths didn’t bring an end to the violence. After the Civil War ended, General Sherman waged war against the Plains Indians, designed to bring about “the final solution of the Indian problem.” By 1890, his dream had become a reality – all of the Plains Indians had either been killed or placed on a reservation.