OUR STORY: OUR BLOOD REMEMBERS

HEALING THE HISTORY

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In 1854, President Franklin Pierce ordered General William Harney to "whip the Indians" in retaliation for the Grattan Massacre near Fort Laramie, Wyoming. Before his death, Conquering Bear, leader of the Sicangu Lakota, named Little Thunder as the new Chief of the village at Bluewater Creek.

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In September 1855, General Harney arrived at Ash Hollow near Bluewater Creek and requested a parley. Little Thunder approached with a white flag, hoping for peace. Harney, however, declared, "No peace, it will be war!" What followed was the first massacre by U.S. forces against Plains Indian people, where 86 Lakota, including many women and children, were killed.

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In 2001, the descendants of Little Thunder, along with extended families, returned to Blue Water Creek. We retraced the 200-mile journey from the massacre site back to the Rosebud Reservation, following in the footsteps of our ancestors who survived the atrocity. This pilgrimage was the beginning of a movement for healing and remembrance.

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After years of activism supporting various Native causes, Paul Harney Soderman, a Consultant to AHC, discovered that he was a 7th-generation descendant of Brigadier General William Selby Harney, the man responsible for the deaths of 86 Lakota. This revelation came through a long-lost family letter, an extensive Ancestry.com search, a dream and a vision that occurred in 1995, confirming Paul’s connection to General Harney.

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In 2012, Paul began communicating with Karen Little Thunder, a descendant of Chief Little Thunder, through social media. He later met with other descendants of Blue Water Creek Massacre survivors, including Karen, Phil, Harry, Keith, and Shawn Little Thunder, in Rapid City, South Dakota. Together, we began a journey of healing—visiting and praying at the massacre site, participating in prayer walks, and taking part in traditional ceremonies. In 2015, Karen Little Thunder and Paul collaborated with Lakota Elder Basil Brave Heart and others, along with the U.S. Department of the Interior, to complete Rosalie Little Thunder's wish, "Let's dream big, let's remove that name from that mountain top."  After many efforts overcoming political obstacles, Harney Peak in the sacred Black Hills of South Dakota was renamed Black Elk Peak.

 

During the fourth year of Prayer Walks to Fort Laramie, Wyoming, Paul Harney was adopted into the Little Thunder Family through the Lakota "Making of Relatives" ceremony. Though these sacred events have happened quietly, we share this story to inspire others and to show that profound historical healing is possible.​ A few years later, Brad Upton joined AHC. Brad's Great Grandfather, General Forsythe, was the commanding Officer at Wounded Knee. AHC has joined Brad's efforts towards restitution for the descendants of Wounded Knee. Together Brad and AHC continues the journey of healing history, forging new relationships one step at a time.