Oglala Sioux Tribe
Majestic Badlands, rolling grassland and hills, dryland prairie and pine-dotted areas await you at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. It's a place where you’ll learn of ancient legends, colorful history, and heritage as old and wondrous as the surrounding Badlands.
THE OGLALA PEOPLE
Oglala is a Lakota word meaning "to scatter one's own." The Oglala Lakota Nation is one of the seven bands of the Titowan (Lakota) division of the Great Sioux Nation. They are a proud people with a rich history and culture.
GEOGRAPHY
The Pine Ridge Reservation is the home of the Oglala. The reservation is the eighth-largest reservation in the country, covering 11,000 square miles (approximately 2.2 million acres) in southwestern South Dakota. There are three diverse geographic regions within the reservation. The southern and eastern sections consist of picturesque grassy plains. The west-central section merges with the small eastern spurs of the Black Hills. The result is an area of rolling pine-covered hills and ridges, providing the inspiration for the name Pine Ridge. To the north of the wooded area are approximately 160,000 acres of the Badlands National Park. The reservation borders the Nebraska state line to the south, Rosebud Indian Reservation to the east and Badlands National Park to the north. The tribal headquarters is in the town of Pine Ridge, but the reservation includes the communities of Kyle, Oglala, Manderson, Porcupine, Wanblee and Long Valley.
NOTABLE OGLALA SIOUX
Red Cloud (1822-1909), an Oglala chief, was a respected warrior and statesman. From 1866 to 1868, he successfully led the fight to close off the Bozeman Trail, which passed through prime buffalo hunting grounds. Once settled at Pine Ridge, Red Cloud worked to establish a Jesuit-run school for Native American children. He is buried on a hill overlooking the Red Cloud Indian School that was named in his honor.
Crazy Horse (c.1840-1877), a respected war leader of the Oglala Lakota, fought against the U.S. government in an effort to preserve the traditions and values of the Lakota way of life. He is most known for his participation in the Battle of Little Bighorn in June 1876 in Montana.