We've Got The County Covered
We've Got The County Covered
Unity among tribal communities across the state is strong as members of Fort Belknap Reservation bring home their ancestors who have attended the Carlisle Indian Boarding School in Carlisle Pennsylvania.
The story of Native American students who were brought back to the Fort Belknap Reservation from the Carlisle Indian Industrial School is a tragic chapter in the broader history of Native American education and forced assimilation in the United States. The Carlisle Indian School, founded in 1879 by Richard Henry Pratt, was part of a government program designed to "civilize" Native American children by removing them from their homes, cultures, and languages, and immersing them in white American customs. While some students returned home, many were permanently changed by their experience at Carlisle.
The Carlisle Indian Industrial School, founded in 1879 in Pennsylvania, was the first federally funded off-reservation boarding school aimed at assimilating Native American children into white society. For the next several decades, thousands of Native children were taken from their homes and sent to schools like Carlisle. Many never returned, while others came back changed, their cultural ties fractured.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, children from the Fort Belknap Reservation in Montana were sent thousands of miles away to attend the Carlisle Indian School. These children, primarily from the Assiniboine and Gros Ventre tribes, were stripped of their Native names, clothing, and language, and forced to adopt English and practice Christianity.
While at Carlisle, students were forbidden from speaking their native Gros Ventre or Assiniboine languages and were often punished for attempting to maintain their cultural traditions. Haircuts, military uniforms, and regimented schedules were used to erase their identities, as the school's motto, 'Kill the Indian, Save the Man,' permeated every aspect of their daily lives.
When students from Fort Belknap returned home after years at Carlisle, they faced an unfamiliar environment. Many found themselves struggling to reconnect with their families, having forgotten much of their language and traditions.
Many students have faced a more devastating fate and did not return to their homes alive, but on September 19th three Aahniih students were returned to be honored with a traditional burial and ceremonies. The services took place in Hays at the High school and the students were buried in their respected families burial sites. Finally Heavy Hair on Side of Head
English name (Almeda Heavy Hair), Sleeps Above English name (Bishop L. Shield), and DwarfEnglish name (John Bull) can rest. A fourth student, **Solomon Brown**, also from Fort Belknap, was supposed to be repatriated, but his remains are among those buried under a headstone marked "Unknown." His return has been delayed until further identification efforts are completed.
Though Carlisle and schools like it sought to erase Native identity, the people of Fort Belknap have demonstrated incredible resilience. By reclaiming their languages, customs, and history, they are honoring the strength of their ancestors and ensuring that the future of Native identity remains strong.
