Apache Indian

Learn more about the Apache Indian and their culture...

The Apache Indians are perhaps one of the best-known tribes in America. The Apache Indians lived in Arizona and northern Mexico. They were thought of as a commanding tribe with fierce warriors who were constantly fighting against the white man. The Apache and the Navajo spoke a similar dialect from the language known as Athabaskan.

The Apache Indians were nomadic, meaning they moved frequently. They lived almost completely off the buffalo, including using buffalo skins for clothing and tent covers. They were among the first Indian tribe to learn to ride horses.

One of the best-known Apache Indians of all time was Geronimo. Geronimo was among the last Indians fighting against the federal government. The Apache Indians were known to have indomitable wills and Geronimo is a great example of that. He was seen as aggressive and courageous, something the Apaches took pride in. In 1875, all Apaches were ordered to a reservation. Geronimo escaped numerous times. He returned, but only because he surrendered, never because law was able to capture him. The last time Geronimo escaped, he eluded capture for over a decade by fleeing to Mexico. Reports say that it took over 5,000 United States troops, 500 scouts, and perhaps as many as 3,000 Mexicans to find him in his mountain hideout. Geronimo fled again, upon hearing rumors of Apache Indian imprisonment, trials, and hangings. In 1886 however, he surrendered to General Nelson Miles when he heard that his brother-in-law, Juh, was captured.

Another well-known Apache was Cochise. He was the leader of the Chokonen band of the Chiricahua Apaches. Cochise too was seen as fierce, leading resistance against both Mexicans and Americans in the 19th century. Like Geronimo, Cochise was able to escape from capture until finally winning the right to stay on a reservation in Arizona, rather than New Mexico, like the government wanted.

Today, there are between 5,000 and 6,000 Apache Indians living on reservations in Arizona, New Mexico and Oklahoma.