Ponca
The Ponca are a Plains Indigenous American tribe with historical roots tracing back to the Ohio River Valley, where they migrated to the Great Plains between 1200 and 1500. They traditionally inhabited areas along the Niobrara River in Nebraska, living in earth lodges and practicing agriculture, while also engaging in seasonal hunting of buffalo in tepees. Their societal structure was similar to other Plains tribes, with hereditary chiefs and a rich spiritual life that included sacred rituals and communal ceremonies such as the Sun Dance.
In the 19th century, despite initial friendly relations with European American explorers and traders, the Ponca faced significant adversity, including forced relocation to Indian Territory (now Oklahoma) in 1877, which resulted in the loss of many lives. Chief Standing Bear emerged as a significant figure, leading a legal battle for Indigenous rights that resulted in a landmark court ruling affirming personal liberties for Indigenous Americans. Today, two federally recognized groups exist: the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska and the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma, both of which focus on cultural preservation, community support, and economic development, reflecting the resilience and determination of the Ponca people throughout their history.
Ponca
- CATEGORY: Tribe
- CULTURE AREA: Plains
- LANGUAGE GROUP: Siouan
- PRIMARY LOCATION: Nebraska, Oklahoma
- POPULATION SIZE: 4,200 (Ponca Tribe of Nebraska) and 3,500 (Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma)
The Ponca are Plains Indigenous Americans who retained aspects of the culture of the woodlands from which they entered the Plains. Their closest relatives and associates are the Omaha; their relationships with the Sioux and Pawnee were historically stormy. They were generally friendly with European Americans. The Ponca chief Standing Bear (1839–1908) forced a court ruling in Standing Bear v. Crook extending the personal liberties guaranteed by the Constitution to Indigenous Americans.
Early History and Traditional Lifestyle
Sometime between 1200 and 1500, the Ponca entered the Plains from the Ohio River Valley. They eventually settled along the Niobrara River in northeast Nebraska, where they lived in earth lodges and farmed the river’s floodplain as they had in the eastern woodlands. In spring and early summer, and again in autumn, they moved into the Plains, where they lived in tepees and hunted buffalo (bison). The Ponca obtained horses in the mid-1700s and extended their hunting range beyond the Black Hills of South Dakota.
Ponca society and religion were much like those of other Plains Indigenous Americans. Men hunted and went to war; women cooked, gardened, and made clothes and tepee covers. The women also took down the tepee before moving and put it up after the move. Unlike many Plains nations, chief positions were hereditary. As with other Plains nations, however, the chief had to demonstrate bravery and generosity to maintain a following. Ponca spiritual life included a sacred pipe, tribal medicine bundle, individual medicine bundles, vision quests, warrior societies, and Sun Dances.
The Ponca were always a small nation and often united with the neighboring Omaha to defend themselves against the Sioux and Pawnee. Occasionally, they joined the Sioux in disputes with the Pawnee or Omaha. Most of their conflicts occurred with the Sioux, who attacked them on their hunting grounds and in their villages. They were never at war with the United States.
Transition and Contemporary Life
The Ponca position on the Missouri assured them early contact with White explorers and traders. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark spent time with them on their trip to explore the Louisiana Purchase, as did Prince Maximilian zu Wied-Neuwied and Karl Bodmer on their trip up the Missouri. They traded early and extensively with European Americans. The Ponca were hospitable to their visitors and were respected by the explorers and traders.
Despite their initially positive relations with the invading European Americans, the Ponca were treated no better than other Indigenous Americans. In 1858, they were assigned to a reservation within their traditional homeland, but in 1868, the same land was given to the Sioux. Responding to the conflict between the nations, the government decided to move the Ponca to Indian Territory (Oklahoma), a move the Ponca attempted to resist.
In 1877, the Ponca tribe was forcibly moved under Chief White Eagle. Many died on the trip, and more died in the first years in Oklahoma. In 1879, Chief Standing Bear, determined to bury his dead son in Nebraska, suggested that the nation return to the Niobrara. Most Ponca, including White Eagle, believed they would only be forced back to Oklahoma and chose to stay. Nevertheless, Standing Bear and several others moved north, reaching the Omaha reservation near Omaha, Nebraska, where the United States Army arrested them.
An editor of an Omaha newspaper, Thomas H. Tibbles, aroused public sentiment with his accounts of the situation. Two lawyers sued the government on behalf of Standing Bear’s right to go where he pleased. The government argued that Indigenous Americans had no right to leave their reservation without permission from the government. The judge ruled against the government, and government appeals (eventually to the Supreme Court) were dismissed. The ruling gave Indigenous Americans the same personal liberties as White Americans. Applying the law was not that simple, but Standing Bear had forced a first legal step toward Indigenous American equality.
The Northern Ponca were eventually given a small reservation, but the General Allotment Act (Dawes Act) of 1887 gave allotments of reservation property to individual Indigenous Americans and allowed the “extra” land to be sold, thereby fracturing the reservation into smaller and noncontiguous plots. The loss of their Indigenous land base was devastating to both Ponca subdivisions, but they survived because they were determined to do so. For example, when the government withdrew Indigenous recognition from the Northern Ponca in 1962, the Ponca returned to the courts of law. Indigenous nation status was restored after President George H. W. Bush signed the Ponca Restoration Act into law on October 31, 1990. The Ponca remain the only nation in Nebraska without the ability to establish a reservation, but their continued existence as a nation attests to their character and determination.
In the twenty-first century, two federally recognized nations of Ponca Indigenous Americans remained: the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska and the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma. Each remained active in preserving its culture and history, providing social services to its members, and participating in economic initiatives.
Bibliography
Buhler, Mike. "Ponca Tribe Strong 25 Years after Restoration." Norfolk Daily News, 22 Oct. 2015, norfolkdailynews.com/news/ponca-tribe-strong-25-years-after-restoration/article‗2c4ebf02-78c8-11e5-99bf-1bacbdb7f87c.html. Accessed 26 Oct. 2024.
"Chief Standing Bear." National Park Service, 1 Sept. 2021, www.nps.gov/mnrr/learn/historyculture/standingbear.htm. Accessed 26 Oct. 2024.
"History." Ponca Tribe of Nebraska, www.poncatribe-ne.gov/culture/history. Accessed 26 Oct. 2024.
Howard, James H. The Ponca Tribe. 2nd ed., U of Nebraska P, 2010.
"Ponca - The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture." Oklahoma Historical Society, www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=PO007. Accessed 26 Oct. 2024.
Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma, www.ponca-nsn.gov. Accessed 26 Oct. 2024.
"The Story of the Ponca." Nebraska Studies, www.nebraskastudies.org/en/1875-1899/the-trial-of-standing-bear/the-story-of-the-ponca/. Accessed 26 Oct. 2024.