San Antonio College Library

Historian David La Vere has gathered a wealth of vivid detail about life among the former Texas Indian peoples, including the Kiowas, Comanches, Wichitas, Caddos, Tonkawas, and Lipan Apaches. Culled from 112 volumes of the Indian-Pioneer Histories in the Indian Archives at the Oklahoma Historical Society, these oral histories also include interviews with non-Indian neighbors.

Established on Grand River in 1824, Fort Gibson was the first and perhaps the most important military outpost in the Indian Territory. The army's principal mission was to maintain order and expedite the policy of Indian Removal. Executing a policy many Indians bitterly opposed, the troops at Fort Gibson became the natural adversaries of tribes already residing in the territory. Conflict was anticipated, and war hysteria swept the region. Yet, during...