The Impact of Horses on the Comanche

The import of Old World agriculture and livestock items during the Columbian Exchange led to huge impacts on both sides of the world. For the Comanche Indians, however, one import was by far the most important, the horse. For them, the horse meant freedom and a way to make a living. The Comanche took care of their horses, and in return they paid back in more ways than one. This paper takes a look at the horses influence, from before they arrived to when the Comanche were over taken by the US and Texas forces.

Primary Sources

Dobie, Frank. Quoted in Spanish Colonial Horse and the Plains Indian Culture, Accessed April 19, 2014. http://paulrittman.com/Indian%20Culture%20and%20the%20Horse.pdf

A good article that summarizes the culture surrounding horses. DobieÕs quote presents a good classification of the Comanche.

Catlin, George. Red ManÕs America, 153. Quoted in Alfred W. Crosby, The Columbian Exchange (Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers, 2003), 103.

This is where the research first rooted. The quote taken from the book represents the entirety of how the horse had an impact.

Dodge, Theodore Ayrault. Quoted in Oekka Hamalainen, The Comanche Empire (New Haven and London, CT; Yale University Press, 2008). Found in T. Jensen Lacey, The Comanche (New York, NY: Chelsea House Publishers, 2011).

An interesting quote that shows the love Comanche had towards the animal.

Secondary Sources

Fehrenbach, T. R. "Lords of the Plains." PBS. PBS, 2006. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/ranchhouse/1867_essay2.html

PBS is a great source. This article provides a great history of the Comanche in the 1800s in Texas.

Haines, Francis. The Northward Spread of Horses Among the Plains Indians. 3rd ed. Vol. 40. N.p.: Wiley, n.d. 429-437. JSTOR. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. http://www.jstor.org.lsproxy.austincc.edu/stable/pdfplus/662040.pdf?acceptTC=true&jpdConfirm=true

The most thorough source, the JSTOR article follows the horse from arrival to its migration north from Mexico.

Lipscomb, Carol L. "COMANCHE INDIANS." Tshaonline.org. Texas State Historical Association, 12 June 2010. Web. 30 Apr. 2014. https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/bmc72

A really well written source that provided excellent information on the early introduction of the horse

ÒTHE COMANCHE AND HIS HORSEÓ. http://www.comanchelanguage.org/THE%20COMANCHE%20AND%20HIS%20HORSE.htm. Accessed April 22, 2014.

This is a really great source on this topic. Very condensed, but all the main points are there.