The Life of Ten Bears

Comanche Historical Narratives

Thomas W. Kavanagh

• Publisher: University of Nebraska Press
• Year: 2016
• ISBN:
  9780803286726
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Native American Studies
• Index: Social Sciences

The Life of Ten Bears is a remarkable collection of nineteenth-century Comanche oral histories given by Francis Joseph "Joe A" Attocknie. Although various elements of Ten Bears's life (ca. 1790–1872) are widely known, including several versions of how the toddler Ten Bears survived the massacre of his family, other parts have not been as widely publicized, remaining instead in the collective memory of his descendants. Other narratives in this collection reference lesser-known family members. These narratives are about the historical episodes that Attocknie's family thought were worth remembering and add a unique perspective on Comanche society and tradition as experienced through several generations of his family. Kavanagh's introduction adds context to the personal narratives by discussing the process of transmission. These narratives serve multiple purposes for Comanche families and communities. Some autobiographical accounts, "recounting" brave deeds and war honors, function as validation of status claims, while others illustrate the giving of names; still others recall humorous situations, song-ridicules, slapstick, and tragedies. Such family oral histories quickly transcend specific people and events by restoring key voices to the larger historical narrative of the American West.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Introduction
• Ten Bears–Attocknie Genealogy
• Dedication
• Preface
• The Dated Narratives
• 1. The Life of Ten Bears
• 2. Peace with the Kiowas
• 3. Uhta Hookne
• 4. Nahwakatahnohpetuhupu
• 5. Piakoruko’s War against the Apaches
• 6. Where the Comanches’ Saddle Packs Were Captured
• 7. The Badger’s Mirror
• 8. Disaster in Coahuila
• 9. The Red-Striped Saddle Blanket
• 10. The Battle at Little Robe Creek
• 11. Wutsuki
• 12. Tuhtahyuheekuh Evens the Score against the Osages
• 13. Onawia Takes a New Wife and Goes to Mexico
• 14. Buckskin Charlie versus Kiowas and Comanches
• 15. The Battle of the Washita
• 16. The Battle of McClellan Creek
• 17. The Battle of Adobe Walls
• 18. The Last Sun Dance, the Last Raid
• The Undated Narratives
• 19. Esitoya’s Loyalty
• 20. Pukumahkuh’s Two Escapes
• 21. The Pukutsinuu
• 22. Mubsiihuhtuko
• 23. A Fight between Cavalry and a Comanche War Party
• 24. Attocknie Gets Half a Scalp
• 25. A Cripple and a Blind Man Form a Friendship
• 26. Violation of a Dance Ground
• 27. Pohocsucut and the Two Kiowas
• 28. The Mule
• 29. Querherbitty
• 30. Comanche Pictographs
• 31. Miscellaneous Religious Matters
• 32. Fragmentary and Incomplete Narratives
• Appendix
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index
• About Francis Joseph Attocknie
• About Thomas W. Kavanaugh