Back in time when Americans believed in their own manifest destiny, multiple obstructions slowed them down. One of which were the native Americans living on the eastern plains, or as known to settlers the Great American Desert. Among these Indians were the dreaded Sioux, known solely for their outstanding warriors and impressive warfare. There were many exceptional Sioux warriors at the time, “perhaps no Indian leader of the mid-nineteenth century was as well known in his time as the great Lakota Sioux” (Larson). “Although his fame was later eclipsed by that of the legendary hero’s such as Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse”(Larson), who fought until the death for their tribes, Red Cloud’s name will never be forgotten among Indians and white men alike. From his early, fatherless childhood, to his days as a fierce warrior and renowned statesman, up to the blindness he received as a result of old age, Red Cloud has shown how to live the Lakota way to its fullest.

Red Cloud was born in January of 1822 near Blue Water Creek, a tributary to the North Platte River in what is now NE. Researchers believe this was neutral Indian grounds. There are some arguments between scholars about when Red Cloud was born. Some scholars declare he was born in May of 1821. But, in his autobiography, Red Cloud states he was born in 1822. The lucky parents of this soon-to-be great Lakota chief were Lone Man and Walk-As-She-Thinks. Lone Man, the father of Red Cloud, was chief of a Brulé Sioux band called the Kuhees, “when which translated means “standoffish”; perhaps that band’s preference for isolation explains why it was camping in neutral grounds. Perhaps Walk-As-She-Thinks was an Ogallala Indian. Red cloud lived with his father’s tribe while he was a young boy. This is strange because normally a married couple lives in the wife’s village, not the husband’s. There is also some contradiction on how Red Cloud received his name. Some researchers, including George E. Hyde, believe a red meteor flew across the sky the day Red Cloud was born. This seems logical to Hyde, who told Robert Larson in his book Red Cloud: Warrior – Statesman of the Lakota Sioux that “after all, the ball of fire was red, and the Sioux often used the words sky and cloud interchangeably” (33). Although Hyde’s theory was accepted by many researchers, Red Cloud states in his biography that he received his name at the age of sixteen.