Wind River Indian Reservation
Encyclopedia
Indian reservation
An American Indian reservation is an area of land managed by a Native American tribe under the United States Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs...
shared by the Eastern Shoshone
Shoshone
The Shoshone or Shoshoni are a Native American tribe in the United States with three large divisions: the Northern, the Western and the Eastern....
and Northern Arapaho
Arapaho
The Arapaho are a tribe of Native Americans historically living on the eastern plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Sioux. Arapaho is an Algonquian language closely related to Gros Ventre, whose people are seen as an early...
tribes of Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
in the central western portion of the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
. It is the seventh-largest Indian reservation by area in the United States, encompassing a land area of 3,473.272 sq mi (8,995.733 km²), or land and water area of 3,532.010 sq mi (9,147.864 km²), encompassing just over one-third of Fremont County and over one-fifth of Hot Springs County. The reservation is located in the Wind River Basin
Wind River Basin
The Wind River Basin or Shoshone Basin is a semi-arid intermontane structural basin in central Wyoming, USA. It is bounded by Laramide uplifts on all sides. On the west is the Wind River Range and on the North are the Absaroka Range and the Owl Creek Mountains...
, and is surrounded by the Wind River Mountain Range
Wind River Range
The Wind River Range , is a mountain range of the Rocky Mountains in western Wyoming in the United States. The range runs roughly NW-SE for approximately 100 miles . The Continental Divide follows the crest of the range and includes Gannett Peak, which at 13,804 feet , is the highest peak...
, Owl Creek Mountains
Owl Creek Mountains
The Owl Creek Mountains are a subrange of the Rocky Mountains in central Wyoming in the United States, running east to west to form a bridge between the Absaroka Range to the northwest and the Bridger Mountains to the east. The range forms the boundary between the Bighorn Basin to the north and the...
, and the Absaroka Mountains. The 2000 census
United States Census, 2000
The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...
reported a population of 23,237 inhabitants. The largest town is Riverton
Riverton, Wyoming
Riverton is a city in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. It is both the largest city in the county and the largest within the historical boundaries of the Wind River Indian Reservation. The city's population was 9,310 at the 2000 census...
. Headquarters are at Fort Washakie
Fort Washakie, Wyoming
Fort Washakie is a census-designated place in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States, within the Wind River Indian Reservation and along U.S. Route 287...
. Also home to the Wind River Casino, Little Wind Casino, 789 Smoke Shop & Casino (all Northern Arapaho) and the Shoshone Rose Casino (Eastern Shoshone), which are the only casinos in Wyoming.
The Wind River Indian Reservation was established for the Eastern Shoshone Indians in 1868. Camp Auger, a military post with troops, was established at the present site of Lander
Lander, Wyoming
Lander is a city in, and the county seat of, Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. Named for transcontinental explorer Frederick W. Lander, Lander is located in central Wyoming, along the Middle Fork of the Popo Agie River. A tourism center with several dude ranches nearby, Lander is located just...
on June 28, 1869. In 1870 the name was changed to Camp Brown and in 1871 the post was moved to the current site of Fort Washakie
Fort Washakie
Fort Washakie was a U.S Army fort in what is now the U.S. state of Wyoming. The fort was established in 1869 and named Camp Augur afterGeneral Christopher C. Augur, commander of the Department of the Platte. In 1870 the camp was renamed Camp Brown in honor of Captain Frederick H. Brown who was...
. The nickname was changed to honor the Shoshone Chief Washakie in 1878 and continued to serve as a military post until its abandonment in 1909. A government school and hospital functioned for many years east of Fort Washakie
Fort Washakie
Fort Washakie was a U.S Army fort in what is now the U.S. state of Wyoming. The fort was established in 1869 and named Camp Augur afterGeneral Christopher C. Augur, commander of the Department of the Platte. In 1870 the camp was renamed Camp Brown in honor of Captain Frederick H. Brown who was...
and children were sent here to board during the school year. St. Michael's at Ethete was constructed in 1917-20. The village of Arapahoe
Arapahoe, Wyoming
Arapahoe is a census-designated place in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 1,766 at the 2000 census. A Catholic mission was founded here in 1884...
was originally established as a sub-agency to distribute rations to the Arapaho
Arapaho
The Arapaho are a tribe of Native Americans historically living on the eastern plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Sioux. Arapaho is an Algonquian language closely related to Gros Ventre, whose people are seen as an early...
and at one time had a large trading post. In 1906 a portion of the reservation was ceded to white settlement and Riverton
Riverton, Wyoming
Riverton is a city in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. It is both the largest city in the county and the largest within the historical boundaries of the Wind River Indian Reservation. The city's population was 9,310 at the 2000 census...
evolved on some of this land. Lands were allotted in the 19th century to the various families and names were anglicized
Anglicisation
Anglicisation, or anglicization , is the process of converting verbal or written elements of any other language into a form that is more comprehensible to an English speaker, or, more generally, of altering something such that it becomes English in form or character.The term most often refers to...
. Irrigation
Irrigation
Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
was brought in to develop farming and ranching and a flour mill constructed near Fort Washakie.
Of the population in 2000, 6,728 (28.9%) were Native Americans (full or part) and of them 54% were Arapaho and 30% Shoshone. Of the Native American population, 22% spoke a language other than English at home. Sacagawea
Sacagawea
Sacagawea ; was a Lemhi Shoshone woman, who accompanied the Lewis and Clark Expedition, acting as an interpreter and guide, in their exploration of the Western United States...
's burial was located here. Her son Jean Baptiste Charbonneau
Jean Baptiste Charbonneau
Jean Baptiste Charbonneau was an American explorer and guide, fur trapper and trader, military scout during the Mexican-American War, alcalde of Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, and a gold prospector and hotel operator in California. He spoke French and English, and learned German and Spanish...
is buried in Jordan Valley, Oregon
Jordan Valley, Oregon
Jordan Valley is a city in Malheur County, Oregon, United States. It is part of the Ontario, OR–ID Micropolitan Statistical Area. The city was named after Jordan Creek, a tributary of Owyhee River, which runs through the city; the creek is named for a 19th century prospector, Michael M. Jordan...
.
Communities
- ArapahoeArapahoe, WyomingArapahoe is a census-designated place in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 1,766 at the 2000 census. A Catholic mission was founded here in 1884...
- Boulder FlatsBoulder Flats, WyomingBoulder Flats is a census-designated place in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 381 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Boulder Flats is located at ....
- CrowheartCrowheart, WyomingCrowheart is a census-designated place in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 163 at the 2000 census. Nearby Crowheart Butte was the site of a battle between the Crow and Shoshone American Indian tribes in 1866...
- EtheteEthete, WyomingEthete is a census-designated place in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 1,455 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Ethete is located at ....
- Fort WashakieFort Washakie, WyomingFort Washakie is a census-designated place in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States, within the Wind River Indian Reservation and along U.S. Route 287...
- HudsonHudson, WyomingHudson is a town in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 407 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Hudson is located at ....
(part, population 72) - JohnstownJohnstown, WyomingJohnstown is a census-designated place in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 236 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Johnstown is located at ....
- PavillionPavillion, WyomingPavillion is a town in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 165 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Pavillion is located at ....
- RivertonRiverton, WyomingRiverton is a city in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. It is both the largest city in the county and the largest within the historical boundaries of the Wind River Indian Reservation. The city's population was 9,310 at the 2000 census...