The Shoshone

The band led by Chief Pocatello were members of the Shoshone tribe, whose territory included most of Idaho, northern Utah, northern Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, central Nevada, and in California the Death Valley and Panamint areas. The Shoshone introduced the horse to the Intermountain West after trading with the Ute and Comanche for their first horses in the early 1700's, and shortly afterward the Nez Perce acquired horses, followed by the Crow and Blackfeet. Horses revolutionized tribal life by making travel easier and more efficient, greatly expanding hunting ranges, and giving tribes that possessed them a significant competitive advantage. In Shoshone culture, a man's wealth was measured by the number of horses he owned, and horses elevated prestige and were a significant trading asset. Upon his death, Chief Pocatello was buried with 18 of his best horses, and it is said that he was almost never seen on anything but white horses, a color with great spiritual significance to the Shoshone. Though formidable warriors when circumstances called for it, the Shoshone excelled as traders, using their position at the gateway of the Rocky Mountains to build an extensive trade network with Plains Indian tribes to the east and with the Ute and Comanche to the south, with documented trade into Spanish territory. Warriors, master horsemen, and astute traders, the Shoshone were a vital part of the complex tribal constellation in the Intermountain West.

Pocatello, Idaho · United States