Touch The Clouds 1836?-1905

Born sometime in 1836 in present day South Dakota, Touch the Clouds was son of chief Lone Horn, his mother Stands on the Ground, and brother to chief Big Foot. He stood at about 7-feet tall and was known for his strength.

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Touch the Clouds was the son of the prominent Minneconjou headman Lone Horn (who died shortly before the Sioux War of 1876-77). Touch the Cloud's uncle, Lame Deer, was one of the last Minneconjou to hold out.

Touch the Clouds was not at the Little Big Horn. Rather, he and his band were living at the Cheyenne River Agency on the Missouri River in June 1876, where documents show that he was counseling the Army: "Have compassion on us. Don't punish us all because some of us fought when we had to." (Touch the Clouds, in council at Cheyenne River Agency, July 29, 1876).

When the Army began preparing to surround the friendlies to confisgate their horses and arms in the fall of 1876, many of the Minneconjou fled the agency, including Touch the Clouds. They joined the hostiles about the first week of October 1876. The arrival of influential Minneconjou headmen like Touch the Clouds, Roman Nose, Bull Eagle and Spotted Elk introduced a more moderate element into the leadership within the northern village.

After the hostile camp scattered, Touch the Clouds' band settled on the Little Missouri River where Spotted Tail found them in February/March 1877 and persuaded them to come in. They accompanied the Brule chief to the Spotted Tail Agency where they surrendered their horses and guns in mid-April 1877. Touch the Clouds remained at this agency for the remainder of the year, serving as a sergeant in the Indian Scouts and accompanied Crazy Horse to Camp Robinson at the time of his death. When the Red Cloud and Spotted Tail Agencies were moved to the Missouri that fall, Touch the Clouds camp joined the Oglala at Red Cloud. He returned to his own agency at the Cheyenne River Agency in January/February 1878. Agent Irwin at Red Cloud wrote (Jan. 21, 1878): "I have the honor to state that the following named Indians (Minneconjous) have asked to be transferred to your Agency. Touch the Cloud, chief has been very obedient and orderly during his stay with me and with his band remained behind when all the others left here. Owing to his conduct I consider him as deserving of attention and respectfully request that the transfer meets with your approval." The list included Touch the Clouds and son, with 1 woman and 2 girls.

Touch the Clouds lived the remainder of his life as a prominent leader of his band at Cheyenne River.

He was photographed several times in 1877, including several photographs by Mathew Brady and one image attributed to Ulke which he later used as the basis for his painting of Touch the Clouds.

Q: Wasn't Touch The Clouds related to Crazy Horse?

Answer: Richard Hardorff, in his book The Oglala Lakota Crazy Horse: A Preliminary Genealogical Study (p. 27) wrote that Crazy Horse's mother was Rattle Blanket Woman. He identified her as a Minneconjou, related to the Lone Horn family though not certain how.

Touch the Clouds was the son of one of the later men named Lone Horn.

So yes, they were related, though the precise genealogy is not known.

Source: Little Big Horn Associates: http://lbha.proboards12.com (by member: Ephriam, Nov 30, 2004)