In 1834, the Oglala Sioux began to move southward from their traditional home on the Missouri River into the Laramie Plain, historically a shared hunting ground for many tribes. The Sioux’s migration caused tumult among the many Indian cultures who communally used the area, many of whom were longstanding enemies. According to Bernard DeVoto, this painting is “the only portrait of a very famous Indian, really named Bull Bear, the chief of the Oglala Sioux.” (DeVoto, Plate LXIX)
On their westward journey, Miller’s caravan met Bull Bear and his men east of Fort Laramie and rode with them to the fort’s gate. (DeVoto, 316) In the notes that accompany this portrait, Miller recounts the murder of Bull Bear, which occurred in 1841, years after the artist met the Sioux leader. (Ross, 45) Miller likely learned about Bull Bear’s death from Francis Parkman’s account of the event in The Oregon Trail: Sketches of Prairie and Rocky-Mountain Life (1847 – 1849). (DeVoto, 445)
