Charlo (Native American leader)
Charlo (also Charlot; Sɫm̓xẹ Q̓woxq̣eys [Claw of the Little Grizzly or Small Grizzly-Bear Claw]) (c. 1830–1910) was head chief of the Bitterroot Salish from 1870 to 1910. Charlo followed a policy of peace with the American settlers in Southwestern Montana and with the soldiers at nearby Fort Missoula.
Charlo | |
|---|---|
| Sɫm̓xẹ Q̓woxq̣eys | |
Charlo, painted by E. S. Paxson | |
| Bitterroot Salish leader | |
| Preceded by | Victor or Xweɫxƛ̣ ̓cín (Many Horses or Plenty-of-Horses) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1830 |
| Died | January 10, 1910 |
| Spouse | Margaret |
| Children | Martin, Ann Felix, and Victor |
| Parent | Chief Victor (Many Horses or Plenty-of-Horses) |
| Nickname | (Claw of the Little Grizzly or Small Grizzly-Bear Claw) |
After the extermination of the buffalo herds, Charlo struggled for twenty years to maintain his people's economic independence in their homeland, the Bitterroot Valley. When Charlo's people were finally forced to remove to the Flathead Indian Reservation by the U.S. federal government, Charlo negotiated with retired general Henry B. Carrington to secure good farms and assistance for the Bitterroot Salish. Charlo spent the rest of his life attempting to hold the U.S. government accountable to fulfill its promises and defending his people's rights to reservation land against white efforts to open the reservation for homesteading.