Red Cloud's Folk: A History of the Oglala Sioux Indians

by George E. Hyde

The westward drive of the warlike Sioux Indians along a thousand miles of prairie and woodland, from the upper reaches of the Mississippi to the lower Powder River in Montana, is one of the epic migrations of history. From about 1660 to the first quarter of the nineteenth century, the Teton Sioux swept away all Arikaras, Ponkas, Crees, Crows, Cheyennes--all fell away and dispersed as the Sioux advanced, until the invaders ranged over a vast territory in the northwest, hunting buffalo and raiding their neighbors. During the ensuing years of heavy conflict, between 1865 and 1877, Red Cloud of the Oglalas stood out as one of the greatest of the Sioux leaders.

Genres: History, American History, Nonfiction, Native American

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1937

About the author

George E. Hyde (1882–1968)

Reviews

[J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought the book was exceptional. It provided exceptional insights into the history of the Sioux Tribes. I didn't like the author's portrait of Red Cloud - I thought it was too critical and the implication that he may have been involved in the murder of Crazy Horse - I just didn't like that idea. Admitted it may well be true but based upon other readings from other authors I already had a bias toward his positive qualities. Nevertheless, I love the book overall.

Moreover, other reputable and scholarly historians I have read credit Mr. Hyde as being extraordinarily credible source although he was not highly educated and was indeed basically an amateur historian. Nevertheless, his books are great and based upon wise reading in the area I find him creditable. In my view if you really want to know about the Sioux Tribes you must read Hyde - although this particular book is about basically, although not exclusively about, the Oglala Sioux now at Pine Ridge, SD - and a lot about how they got there.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good solid old school history of both the migrations and wars of the 19th century Sioux and the experience of the Oglala tribe in particular. This is one of those authors that wears their biases on their sleeve but does it very well so its a stylistic addition rather than a detriment.

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read parallel with Custer's My Life on the Plains: Or Personal Experiences With the Indians, Hyde's book gives needed prespective to Custer's meglomania. However, no one has a clear picture of how the Oglala Sioux lost their land and freedom. (We know who the guilty parties were, we just lack an unbroken trail of evidence.) As Hyde's analysis (first published in 1935) proved, even the "oral histories" of descendants of the principle actors were often faulty. And, sadly, Red Cloud and other Sioux leaders contributed to their own downfall.

Still, this work provides a necessary balance, not only to Coister's memoir, but more recent (and just as warped) works as Dee Brown's Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West or Ward Churchill's A Little Matter of Genocide: Holocaust & Denial in the Americas 1492 to the Present. The Black Hills gold may have played out, but there's rich ore in revising history.

Hyde's maps are sketchy and unhelpful.