FDI - Comanche

The Comanche were a nomadic predatory tribe. They separated late from the Northern Shoshoni and are of the same linguistic descent. They were located in southeastern Wyoming prior to 1700 and soon migrated to northeastern Colorado and then Kansas. After two decades, they joined the Kiowa in Oklahoma before filtering together to north Texas.

The Comanche became closely allied with the Kiowa and their annex, the Kiowa Apache. They acquired horses about A.D. 1700 and guns soon thereafter. The confederacy ranged west into New Mexico, south into Mexico, and as far north as the Arkansas River to prey on sedentary peoples.

The tribes destroyed numerous Pueblo villages in New Mexico. The Texas Rangers were formed primarily to fight the Comanche. The tribes were, however, finally defeated by the US Army. They were forced to cede their Texas territories and were settled in Oklahoma.

Year	*History*
1650	Approximate arrival of the Arapaho and Blackfeet onto the Northern Plains, conflicts began
1700	Probably separated form the Northern Shoshoni in the area of western Wyoming, had obtained horses, removed to northeastern Colorado
1719	Placed in northwest Kansas, attacked by Apaches but defeated them, at war with Spanish and Americans
1720	Began participating in Pueblo trade fairs
1782	Raids caused the abandonment of Pecos Pueblos
1816	Smallpox epidemic
1823	Took up slaving, killed 20-25 Osage
1835	Texas Ranger formed to fight Comanche
1836	War party of 100 Comanche, Caddo, Kiowa, and Wichita attacked with Fort Parker, probably after having been swindled on a horse deal, killed 5 and captured 5 including 9 year old Cynthia Ann Parker, future mother of Quanah Parker
1838	Tricked by Texas Rangers, 35 Comanche killed
1849	Cholera epidemic
1854	Reservation established on Brazos River for Comanche and Kiowa
1858	Texas Rangers killed 76 including Chief Iron Jacket at Canadian River Valley; US Army with aid of Wichita killed 58 of tribe at Rush Springs
1859	Comanche and Kiowa relocated to Oklahoma
1860	Cynthia Ann Parker taken back by Whites against her will
1862	Smallpox epidemic
1864	Kit Carson attacked Kiowa and Comanche at Adobe Walls and destroyed winter stores
1865	Medicine Lodge Treaty set aside reservation fro Kiowa and Comanche including Oklahoma land and all of Texas panhandle, 39 million acres
1867	All of Texas land and part of Oklahoma land in second Medicine Lodge Treaty, retained 2.9 million acres
1871	Comanche and Kiowa attacked a n Army ambulance train killing 10
1872	4th Cavalry killed 30, captured 124 at McClellan Creek, MacKenzie attack at Palo Duro Canyon, killed 8, captured 1,500 horses
1874	Settled on land after the last outbreak of the Southern Plains tribes at Adobe Walls, Red River War
1875	Quanah Parker became chief of teh Comanche and Kiowa and became a federal judge
1892	Measles epidemic
1903	Quanah, Acme, and Pacific Railroad founded

*Ethnie:*	COMANCHE
*Language:*	Central Numic
*Family:*	Numic
*Stock:*	Uto-Aztecan
*Phylum:*	Aztec-Tanoan
*Macro-Culture:*	Great Basin

Year	Total Population	WY	KA	TX	OK	Source
1700	7,000	7,000				NAHDB calculation
1800	7,000		7,000			NAHDB calculation
1900	1,400			1.400		NAHDB calculation
1904	1,400					Census
1910	1,171					Census
1923	1,697					US Indian Office
1937	2,213					U. S. Indian Office
1981	3,597					BIA
1989	4,718					BIA estimate
2000	7,000				7,000	NAHDB calculation