1905 Presidential Parade & The Great Tribal Chiefs

Without question, the history of European settlement in what is now the USA, and how it impacted our Native peoples over centuries and to this day, is troublesome. Yet there have been brighter times of hope, respect, and recognition of our Native American brothers and sisters. Countless non-Native people in the USA and globally regret the injustices of the past and hold Native Americans and what their diverse cultures represent in the deepest admiration and esteem.

The Inauguration Parade of President Theodore Roosevelt in 1905 was one of these occasions for its acknowledgment of the first Americans and the courage and leadership of the Great Chiefs.

The second inauguration of President Theodore Roosevelt took place on March 4, 1905. The Inaugural Parade that followed was the largest and most diverse of any presidential parade up to that time.

The 35,000 parade participants included everyone from soldiers to marines, Harvard University students to coal miners, brass bands to cowboys, and, to the awe of the crowd, six of the Great Tribal Chiefs of the last century (i.e. 1800s).

At the personal invitation of President Theodore Roosevelt, Chiefs Quanah Parker, Geronimo, American Horse, Hollow Horn Bear, Buckskin Charlie, and Little Plume enthusiastically rode in the Inaugural Parade as representatives of their tribes: Comanche, Chiricahua Apache, Oglala Sioux, Brule Sioux, Ute, and Blackfeet (Piegan). Marching on foot behind the Great Chiefs were Carlisle Indian School cadets.

Despite criticism at the time from many politicians and some of the press, but to the delight of the incoming President and the public who crowded the parade route down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC, these six valiant and famous men donned the full ceremonial dress of their respective tribes and proceeded on horseback with immense pride and dignity.

The crowd and the President himself enthusiastically applauded them. As reported at the time in the Baltimore Sun, “Old Quanah Parker … rose in his stirrups and shot his glance at the President in salutation;” the President returned the acknowledgment by waving his hat and applauding enthusiastically. According to the Washington Post, “Stretched across the broad boulevard, in war bonnets and feathers, were six of the most famous Indian chiefs, warriors all, who played no small part in the border battles of the nation’s progress toward the setting sun. In the center rode Geronimo, the most famous of a long line of famous Apaches. Now an old man bent yet rugged, sturdy despite his age and scars, the noted chieftain was greeted by whoops of delight.”

Despite signifying Roosevelt’s stated intentions and hope for better relations between American Indians and those of European descent in the future, this was a bittersweet moment for many Indians. The majority were now living a reservation life — but for many the old ways of life were a strong, tangible memory. 1905 was just 15 years after the Wounded Knee Massacre, 20 years since Geronimo’s surrender, and 30 years since Quanah Parker surrendered after the Red River War.

Yet these fearless warrior chiefs, who had themselves previously fought for their people against the United States government, now took their rightful place, finally being publicly recognized as Americans and proud sovereign leaders of their people.

Almost 120 years later, the 1905 Inaugural Parade remains a shining symbol of the majesty of American Indians, the richness of their culture, and the esteem with which Native Americans are held by so many in the USA and around the world.

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