Who Killed All the Bison?

Morning Bisons!

In the year 1800, there were like 60 MILLION bison in the USA covering this giant area:

But by 1889, there were just 1000 left, spread across a few small patches of land.

So what the heck happened?

Who killed all the bison??

It's a crazy story…

So it's around 1800, in this giant region of the US called the Great Plains.

This land is inhabited by a group of native Americans called the Plains Indians.

And together they live in harmony with the bison.

The bison eat the grass on the Great Plains and multiply…

Then the Plains Indians eat the bison to keep their population under control.

Everything is in perfect balance.

These bison have been central to the Plains Indians for hundreds, if not thousands, of years.

They gave these people everything!

And we're not just talking about food here.

We're talking EVERYTHING!!!

They made dwellings from bison hides.

They used bison blankets for warmth.

And bison bones for tools.

Then, of course, bison meat became their number 1 food source.

But there's a problem…

The United States at the time was kinda… super racist.

They HATE the native americans and want to push further west, through the Great Plains.

But the Plains Indians fight back.

In fact, they fight back SO hard it starts to piss off the US government.

So for the next 90-odd years, that's exactly what happens.

The US cavalry and private hunting parties go CRAZY, killing bison by the THOUSANDS.

I mean, just look at this photo:

That's a lot of bison skulls.

So, anyway, the result of this is exactly as the US government planned.

The Plains Indians are forced onto smaller and smaller tracks of land…

Bison numbers get lower and lower…

Eventually, there are only 541 individual bison in ALL of North America.

And almost all surviving Native Americans are forced onto reservations…

Yikes…

Not cool, America… not cool.

Stay Cute,
Henry & Dylan 🌈

P.S if you enjoyed this lesson, forward it to a friend.

If you’re that sexy friend, subscribe here.