1838 to 1867

By the late 1830s, Americans increasingly ventured across the Mississippi. Any barrier that had once existed between Native people and Americans began to break down. Indian Territory became increasingly crowded and chaotic. Kiowas responded by making new alliances with Indian nations, as well as adapting their practices for seeking sacred power. They sought to secure themselves against their enemies and protect their families from disease and hunger. As Americans poured into the West and confronted Native people defending their homelands, they argued for containing Indians on bounded reservations. Leading American Protestants, who saw these new spaces as ideal places for teaching civilization and Christianity, were key reservation promoters. Hoping to secure a measure of security and needed supplies, Kiowas signed an 1867 treaty that created a reservation for them and their Comanche and Apache allies.