Dedicated by former Governor Mike
Sullivan and the Northern Cheyenne Color Guard in the summer of 1989.
Heroic
men and women
have stood where you now stand:
by CharlesW. Margolf, Boulder, Colorado
...Bravery and courage were their hallmarks
Bravery and courage are not the possession of men
alone for women served here also; both inside the stockade and in the Indian villages.
They too shouldered the isolation, grief, loneliness, cold and hardships.
Neither are bravery and courage the possession of white men alone,
for red men also fought here with bravery and courage. Bravery and courage have no
relationship to whether the cause they serve is "right" or "wrong!"
Whatever, and by whom, bravery and courage are manifested, and in whatever cause they
serve, these qualities merit respect and are worthy of honor for themselves alone.
We will do an unforgivable disservice to those, both red and white,
who here did their duty if their bravery and courage are not remembered and honored. We
will also have failed those who come after us if we do not protect and preserve this
ground and provide, as best we can, a means of enabling posterity to KNOW, to APPRECIATE
and to FEEL the great events which took place here in the shadow of the Big Horns.
In Prayer: Vision of hope:
by Ruby Sooktis and William Tall Bull, Lame Deer, Montana
The distant words of memory return to touch upon the
battle that was fought here. The memories stir with the thought of that long ago past with
the battle cries and the sound of guns of two nations at war.
But the sound of wars have long been silent. The important
lessons of learning to accept the fact of existing side by side as two nations has become
a way of life.
But today, I choose not to return to the wars of the past. In
prayer, I search for the better way in which my people, the Northern Cheyenne, and all
Native Americans can accept the life today without losing the spirit of their Indian
heritage. I humble myself before our Creator, the Power of all Creation, and ask a
blessing for the good of life to be present today and in the future.
In prayer, I look to the future with hope that the children
who have yet to walk upon this land of freedom might also experience the touching of the
earth with the same understanding and knowledge we share today.
Finally I gather all the spoken and the many
unspoken concerns of the heart. I beg the Sacred Grandfathers to give us their special
blessings so that our Creator will give us a new dawn of hope and that the goodness of
life will be our constant companion in our pursuit of justice, happiness and freedom for
all Americans.
The memorial was sponsored by the Fort Phil Kearny/Bozeman Trail Association, in
cooperation with the Wyoming State Archives, Museums and Historical Department, and the
Wyoming State Historical Preservation Office. |
