A Native American Timeline-- Part 8: Indian Citizenship Act, the Code Talkers, Indian Civil Rights Act

**  JUNE 2, 1924:  U.S. Congress passes Indian Citizenship Act, granting citizenship  to all Native Americans born in the territorial limits of the country.  Previously, citizenship had been limited depending upon what percentage of Indian ancestry the person had, whether they had served in the military, or, of they were women, were married to a U.S, citizen.

**  MARCH 4, 1929:  Charles Curtis serves as the first Native American U.S. vice president under  President Herbert Hoover.

**  MAY 1942:  Members of the Navajo Nation develop a code to transmit messages and radio messages to U.S.  armed forces during World War II.  Eventually, hundreds of  Code Talkers from multiple  Indian tribes serve with the U.S. Marines during he war.

**  APRIL 11, 1968:  The Indian Civil Rights Act is signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson, granting Indians many of the benefits guaranteed under the Bill of Rights.

**  MARCH 15, 2021:  Representative  Deb Haaland of New Mexico is confirmed as the Secretary of the Interior, making her the first Native American to lead a cabinet department.

"Growing up in my mother's Pueblo household made me fierce," she tweeted on her confirmation for the post.  "I'll be fierce for all of us, our planet, and all our protected land."

--Cooter

A Native American Timeline-- Part 7: Dawes Act, Wounded Knee and the Choctow Telephone Squad in WW I

**  FEBRUARY 8, 1887:  President Grover Cleveland  signs the Dawes Act, giving the U.S. president authority  to divide up land allotted to Indians in reservations to individuals.

**  DECEMBER 15, 1890:  Sitting Bull is killed  during a confrontation with Indian police in Grand River, South Dakota.

**  DECEMBER 29, 1890:    U.S. armed forces  surround Ghost Dancers Big Foot near Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota, demanding the surrender of their weapons.  An estimated 150 Indians are killed in what became known as the Wounded Knee Massacre. along with 25 men of the cavalry.

**  JANUARY 29, 1907:  Charles  Curtis becomes the first  Indian U.S. Senator.

**  SEPTEMBER 1918:  Choctow soldiers use their native language to transmit secret messages for U.S. troops during  World War I's Meuse-Argonne Offensive on the Western Front.  The Choctow Telephone Squad provide Allied forces with a critical edge over the Germans.

I had heard of the  Navajo Code Talkers, but not these men.  Interesting.

--Cooter

A Native American Timeline-- Part 6: George Armstrong Custer and the Little Bighorn

**  NOVEMBER 27, 1868:  Lt.Col. George Armstrong Custer leads an early morning attack on Cheyenne living with Chief Black Kettle destroying the village and killing more than 100 people, including Black Kettle.

**  1873:  Crazy Horse encounters George Custer for the first time.

**  1874:  Gold is discovered in South Dakota's Black Hills.  U.S. troops ignore a treaty and invade the territory which has been set aside for the Indians.

**  JUNE 25, 1876:  In the Battle of the Little Big Horn, also known as Custer's Last Stand, troops under Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer fight Lakota Sioux and Cheyenne warriors, led by Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, along the Little Bighorn River.

Custer and his soldiers are killed, increasing tensions between the Indians and white Americans.

**  OCTOBER 6, 1879:  The first students attend Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania.   This is the country's first off-reservation school, created by Civil War veteran Richard Henry Pratt.  It is designed to assimilate Indian students into American society.

--Cooter

A Native American Timeline-- Part 5: Indian Removal Act, Cherokees, Reservations, Cochise and the Sand Creek Massacre

**  1836:  The last of the Creek Indians leave their land for Oklahoma as part of the Indian Removal process.  Of the 15,00 who leave for Oklahoma, more than 3,500 don't survive.

**  1838:  With just 2,000 Cherokees having left their land in Georgia to cross the Mississippi River, President Martin Van Buren gets General Winfield Scott and 7,000 troops to speed up the process by holding them at gunpoint and marching them  1,200 miles.

More than 5,000 Cherokees die in this and this became known as the Trail of Tears.

**  1851:  Congress passes the Indian Appropriations Act, creating the Indian Reservation System.  Indians can not leave these reservations without permission.

**  OCTOBER 1860:  A group of Apache Indians attack and kidnap a white American, resulting in the U.S. military falsely accusing the leader  of the Chiricahua Apache tribe, Cochise.  Cochise and the Apaches increase raids on white Americans for a decade afterwards.

**  NOVERMBER 29, 1864:  A 650 Colorado volunteer force attacks Cheyenne and Arapaho encampments along Sand Creek in Colorado, killing and mutilating  more than 150 Indians in what has become known as the Sand Creek Massacre.

--Cooter

A Native American Timeline-- Part 4: Sacagawea, Lewis & Clark, War of 1812 and the Indian Removal Act

**  NOVEMBER 2, 1804:  Sacagawea, six months pregnant,  meets explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark during their exploration of the territory of the Louisiana Purchase.  The explorers realize her value as a translator.

**  APRIL 7, 1805:  Sacagawea, along with her baby and husband Toussaint Charbonneau, join Lewis and Clark on their expedition.

**  NOVEMBER 1811:    U.S. forces attack War Chief Tecumseh and his younger brother Lalawwethika.  Their community at the juncture of the Tippecanoe and Wabash rivers is destroyed.

**  JUNE 18, 1812:  President James Madison signs a declaration of war against the British, beginning the War of 1812.  The war was fought between the the United States and the British, Canadians and their Indian allies.  A huge issue for the Indians is American territorial expansion.

**  MARCH 27, 184:  Andrew Jackson and his American force and Indian allies attack Creek Indians opposing American expansion into their land at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend.  The Creeks lost and ceded more than twenty million acres of land to the United States.

**  MAY 28, 1830:  President Andrew Jackson signs the Indian Removal Act which gives them land west of the Mississippi River in exchange for land that is taken from them east of the river.

--DaCoot

A Native American Timeline-- Part 3: New Mexico, Seven Years' War, Treaties and Sacagawea

**  1680:  A revolt of Pueblo Indians in New Mexico threatens Spanish rule there.

**  1754:  The French and Indian War begins, pitting these two groups against the English settlements in North America.

**  MAY 15, 1756:  The Seven Years' War between the French and British begins, with the Indians siding with the French.

**  MAY 7, 1763:  Ottawa Chief Pontiac leads Indians into battle against the British at Detroit.  The British retaliate by attacking Pontiac's warriors in Detroit on July 31, in what is called the Battle of Bloody Run.  Pontiac and his forces  successfully fend them off, but there are several casualties on both sides.

**  1785:  The Treaty of Hopewell is signed in Georgia, protecting  Cherokee Indians in the United States and sectioning off their land.

**  1788/1789:  Sacagawea is born.

**  1791:  The Treaty of Holston is signed, in which the Cherokee give up all their land outside  of the borders previously established.

**  AUGUST 20, 1794:  The Battle of Timbers, the last major battle over Northwest Territory commences and results in an American victory.

--Cooter

A Native American Timeline-- Part 2: Ponce de Leon, De Soto and Jamestown

**  FEBRUARY 1521

Ponce de Leon departs on another voyage to Florida from San Juan to start a colony.    Months after landing, he is attacked  by local Native Americans and killed.

**  MAY 1539

Spanish explorer and conquistador Hernando de Soto lands in Florida to conquer the region.  He explores the South under the guidance of Indians who had been captured along the way.

**  OCTOBER 1540

De Soto and  the Spaniards plan to rendezvous with ships in Alabama where they are attacked.  Hundreds  of Indians are killed.

**  C. 1595

Pocahontas is born, daughter of Chief Powhatan.

**  1607

Pocahontas' brother kidnaps Captain John Smith from the Jamestown colony.    Smith later writes that after being threatened by Chief Powhatan, he was saved by Pocahontas.  This is debated by historians.

**  1613

Pocahontas is captured by Captain Samuel Argall in the first Anglo-Powhatan War.  While captive, she learns to speak English, converts to Christianity and is given the name "Rebecca."

**  1622

The Powhatan Confederacy nearly wipes out the Jamestown Colony.

--Cooter

A Native American Timeline-- Part 1: Speaking of Indigenous Peoples

From the History.com site.

Long before Christopher Columbus stepped foot on what was to become known as the Americas, the expansive territory was inhabited by  Native Americans.  Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, as more explorers sought to colonize their land,  Native Americans responded   in various ways, from cooperation to indignation to revolt.

After siding with the French in numerous battles during the French and Indian War and eventually being forcibly removed from their homes during Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal Act, Native American populations were diminished in size and territory by the end of the 19th century.

Here are some of the events that shaped  their history after the arrival of the Europeans:

**  1492: Christopher Columbus lands on a Caribbean Island after three months of traveling.  Believing at first that he has reached the East Indies, he called the natives Indians.  On his first day, he orders six natives  seized to become servants.

**  APRIL 1513:  Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon  lands on continental North America in Florida and makes contact with Native Americans.

--Cooter

WW I, the End-- Part 6: Armistice Signed, Fighting Continues in Africa

Armistice Day is now commemorated as Veterans Day.

NOVEMBER 11, 1918

At 5:10 a.m., in a railway car in Compiegne, France,  the Germans sign the Armistice which is in effect at 11 a.m. -- the eleventh hour of the eleventh month.

Fighting continues on the Western Front until precisely 11 a.m., with 2,000 casualties on both sides.

Artillery barrages  also erupt as 11 a.m. approaches as soldiers yearn to claim they fired the very last shot of the war.

NOVEMBER 12, 1918

A final action occurs as Germans in Africa under the command of the elusive General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck encounter British troops in Northern Rhodesia, where news of the Armistice had not yet reached.

It's Over.  --Cooter

WW I Ending-- Part 5: Austria-Hungary Signs Armistice, Kaiser's Government Collpases

NOVEMBER 3, 1918

Austria-Hungary, Germany's only remaining ally, signs armistice with Italy, leaving Germany alone.

NOVEMBER 8, 1918

At Compiegne, France, six representatives of the German government are presented with armistice terms by the Allied Supreme Commander, Marshal Ferdinand Foch.  The terms include the Germans leaving all occupied lands, the Allied occupation of Germany west of the Rhine River, surrender of weaponry, including all submarines and battleships and indefinite  continuation of the naval blockade.

NOVEMBER 9, 1918

The Kaiser's Imperial government collapses in ruin as the German Republic is proclaimed with Friedrich Ebert heading the new provisional government.  Kaiser Wilhelm seeks refuge in Holland.

It's About Over.  --Cooter

WW I Ending-- Part 4: Collapse of Austria Hungary, Armistice With Turkey and Mutiny in Germany

OCTOBER 24, 1918

In Italy, Allies crush the Austrian-Hungarian Army which has 30,000 killed and 400,000 captured.

OCTOBER 29, 1918

Czechs declare independence from Austria.  Two days later Slovakia does likewise.

OCTOBER 30, 1918

Turkey signs armistice with Allies, becoming the second Central Powers member to quit the war.

NOVEMBER 1, 1918

After pausing to regroup and resupply, Allied  armies continue the attack against the Germans.  U.S. armies advance on the Meuse River.

NOVEMBER 3, 1918

Mutiny strikes the German Navy at the ports of Kiel and Wilhelnshaven as sailors refuse to put to sea for one final battle with the British Navy.  Uprisings begin in German cities and there is a fear that this could turn into a Bolshevik uprising both with the German government and Allies.  This causes a real sense of urgency to the armistice negotiations.

--Cooter

WW I Ending-- Part 3: Allies Break Through Hindenburg Line and German Army Retreating

OCTOBER 5, 1918

The Allies break through the last remnants of the Hindenburg Line.

OCTOBER 6 AND 7, 1918

The state of Yugoslavia proclaimed signalling the beginning of the break up of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in central Europe which had existed for six centuries.

Poland proclaims itself independent from the Russian Empire.

OCTOBER 13, 1918

The German Army  involved in a general retreat from a 60-mile  portion of the Western Front. in France.

OCTOBER 23, 1918

Wilson informs Germany that any negotiations could not include current German military leaders.    Ludendorf disavows this and is forced to resign by the Kaiser.  Civilians are now to do most of the negotiating.  This was the basis of the military's "stab-in-the-back" defense after the war.  They had been sold out by the civilians.

--Cooter

WW I Ending-- Part 2: German Government Notified of Military Collapse and Wilson Asked

SEPTEMBER 29, 1918--

Bulgaria signs an armistice with the Allies, becoming the first  of the Central Power to quit the war.

OCTOBER 2, 1918--

Ludendorf  informs the German legislature in Berlin that the war is lost and that armistice negotiations should begin immediately.  The German politicians are shocked by the news, having been largely kept in the dark by the military and Kaiser until now.

OCTOBER 4, 1918

President Woodrow Wilson receives a request from the German government to start armistice negotiations.  The Germans figured he'd be more lenient than the British or French.  Wilson replies with a list of demands as prelude of discussion including  German withdrawal from all occupied territories and an immediate halt to U-boat attacks.

--DaCoot

World War I: The End Fast Approaching-- Part 1: Germans In Dire Straits by September 1918

From The History Place.com/world history/firstworld war/index.

The History Place:  World War 1

1918:  A Fateful Ending

SEPTEMBER 28, 1918

Confronted by the unstoppable strength of the Allies and faced with the possibility of military defeat, German General Ludendorf suffers a nervous collapse.  He informs his superior, Paul von Hindenburg, that the war must be ended.

The next day they meet with the Kaiser and urge him to end the war.

The German Army is becoming weaker by the day with huge troop losses, declining discipline and battle-readiness due to exhaustion, illness,  food shortages, desertions and drunkenness.

The Kaiser agrees with them.  An armistice must be reached.

--Cooter

WW I, October 18, 1918: Shoulder Patches for AEF

One hundred years ago today.

A "shoulder patch" is authorized for the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF).

Division also create patches.

I found a picture of every army and division insignia patch at the roadstothegreat war-ww1.blogspot site.

I wish I had known about this site earlier.  A good one and much better than my poor little effort.

--Cooter

WW I October 8, 1918: Sergeant York's Accomplishment

From the April 2017 VFW Magazine.

This date 100 years ago.

OCTOBER 8, 1918

Sergeant Alvin York, of G Company, 328th Infantry Regiment, 82nd Division, is responsible for the deaths of nine of the 25 Germans killed and captures 132 more single-handedly in the Argonne Forest.

He becomes a huge American hero.

--Cooter

WW I, October 2-9, 1918: Battle of Blanc Mont

OCTOBER 2-9

The 2nd Infantry Division attacks and takes the ridge and village of Etienne after a week's fighting.

The 4th Marine Brigade, part of the division suffers 2,538 casualties.

--Cooter

WW I October 2-7, 1918, "Lost Battalion"

All of these WW I chronologies are from the April 2017 VFW Magazine.

LOST BATTALION

600 Doughboys from the 308th and 307th Infantry Regiments and a platoon of the 306th Machine Gun Battalion of the 77th Infantry Division are decimated at Charlesvaux in the Argonne Forest.

Only 200 remained fit for duty.

--Cooter

WWI, September 30, 1918: USS Ticonderoga Sunk

SEPTEMBER 30, 1918

The USS Ticonderoga is sunk in the mid-Atlantic by the German submarine U-152, killing 214 men (113 sailors and 101 soldiers).

--Cooter

WW I: Sept. 29, 1918: Frank Luke Earns Medal of Honor

SEPTEMBER 29, 1918

Frank Luke, Jr. is first U.S. pilot to earn a Medal of Honor.

It was awarded posthumously for his 18 kills in 18 days.

--Cooter