The Plains Indians

The immediate predecessors of the tribes whose cultures remain to this day were the short-lived Proto-Historical People: the Dismal River (probably Plains Apache), the Oneota (Kansa or Kaw, Ponca, Omaha, and Osage), the Lower Loup (Pawnee), and the Great Bend (Wichita). Still untouched by the white man's diseases, alcohol, and more complex technology, these people divided their economic endeavors between gathering, small-scale horticulture (maize and vegetables), and the chase. With the penetration of the central plains by Coronado in 1541 the historic period began, as did the Indians mighty struggle for survival.

Sioux village: Late 1800's, near Pine Ridge, South Dakota.