Arnold Short Bull (c1845-1923), a member of the Sičháŋǧu (Brulé

Brulé

The Brulé are one of the seven branches or bands of the Teton Lakota Sioux American Indian nation. They are known as Sičháŋǧu Oyáte , or "Burnt Thighs Nation," and so, were called Brulé by the French...

) Lakota tribe of Native Americans, instrumental in bringing the Ghost Dance movement to the reservations.

Ghost Dance, 1890-91

He was active in the Ghost Dance

Ghost Dance

The Ghost Dance was a new religious movement which was incorporated into numerous Native American belief systems. The traditional ritual used in the Ghost Dance, the circle dance, has been used by many Native Americans since prehistoric times...

 religious movement of 1890, and had traveled with fellow Lakota Kicking Bear

Kicking Bear

Kicking Bear , also called Matȟó Wanáȟtake, was an Oglala Lakota who became a band chief of the Minneconjou Lakota Sioux. He fought in several battles during the War for the Black Hills, including the Battle of Little Big Horn...

 to Nevada

Nevada

Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...

 to visit the movement's leader, Wovoka

Wovoka

Wovoka , also known as Jack Wilson, was the Northern Paiute religious leader who founded the Ghost Dance movement. Wovoka means "cutter" or "wood cutter" in the Northern Paiute language.-Biography:...

. The two were instrumental in bringing the movement to the Lakota living on reservations in South Dakota. Following the fatal shooting of Sitting Bull

Sitting Bull

Sitting Bull Sitting Bull Sitting Bull (Lakota: Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake (in Standard Lakota Orthography), also nicknamed Slon-he or "Slow"; (c. 1831 – December 15, 1890) was a Hunkpapa Lakota Sioux holy man who led his people as a tribal chief during years of resistance to United States government policies...

, Short Bull was imprisoned at Fort Sheridan, Illinois

Fort Sheridan, Illinois

Fort Sheridan is a residential neighborhood spread among Lake Forest, Highwood, and Highland Park in Lake County, Illinois, United States. It was originally established as a United States Army Post named after Civil War Cavalry General Philip Sheridan, to honor his services to Chicago...

.

Later life

On his release in 1891, Short Bull joined Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show, and made several trips to Europe with the show. Short Bull died on July 6, 1923 on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota.

Portraits of Short Bull

• By David F. Barry, Denver Public Library or by George Spencer, Minnesota Historical Society.
• Possibly Short Bull, photographer unknown. Denver Public Library.
• By George Heyn, Minnesota Historical Society.