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Crossing the Rockies
Native American communities living in the Rocky Mountain region had long acted as intermediaries between tribes living east and west of the imposing mountain range.
Particularly after they acquired horses, people living near the continental divide traveled regularly to the eastern “Buffalo Country” and to the western trade centers along the Columbia River.
In a story still told today, the Nez Perce hero, Coyote, travels eastward
to the plains and tries to bring buffalo home to his kinsmen. Earthy and irreverent,
Coyote breaks rules and frightens his buffalo friends, so they refuse to join him, and decide to remain east of the mountains.
Click here to read "Coyote's Trip East."
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The Indian Country, 1800: A Brilliant Plan for Living
