Product Description

"The Navajo Holocaust" is what Lawrence W. Cheek calls it in this volume of the Look West series. In Navajo history it is commonly known as the Long Walk. The disaster began in 1863 when Gen. James Henry Carleton decided to move the Navajo people forcibly from their traditional Arizona homeland to a reservation on the high plains of northern New Mexico. He assigned this job to a veteran soldier named Kit Carson, who broke Navajo resistance with a series of military raids. Then the remaining Navajo were herded in large groups across distances of 300 to 500 miles (routes varied) to a small camp at Fort Sumner, New Mexico. Winter was coming on.

"By the best estimate now possible 1,500 to 3,000 people—up to a fifth of the Navajo population at the time—died either en route or in what amounted to a concentration camp," writes Cheek. "It became known as the Long Walk—the Southwestern counterpart to the Cherokees' Trail of Tears."

More than 8,000 Navajos attempted to live at the 40 by 40-mile camp. By 1868 the experiment had clearly failed. Many Navajos had starved to death. Their chief Barboncito made a plea to Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman, who by now had inherited the problem: "I hope to God you will not ask me to go to any other country except my own." Sherman relented, and the survivors were finally allowed to go home.

And yet, as Cheek observes in a riveting, terrible, beautifully written account, this tragic episode "preserved Navajo identity instead of destroying it." 30 photos & illustrations.

About the series: Look West: What do you find? Wide, wild landscapes...extraordinary plants and animals...rugged people rich in history...ghost towns and working ranches...ancient pueblos and ultramodern urban areas. In the West, coyotes howl. Native Americans endure and flourish. Kokopelli, the mythical humpbacked flute player, prances across the cliff dwellings and into popular culture—and thousands of curio shops. Every small, handsome book in Rio Nuevo Publishers' new Look West series presents a unique aspect of the American West. Using words and pictures, each volume explores a special Western topic or phenomenon, and all have been written and illustrated by regional experts. Each of these attractive 6 x 6-inch hardcover books contains 64 pages of text, illustrations, and photographs. And each one allows the reader to capture the spirit of the West in the palm of a hand.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1497114 in Books
• Published on: 2005-01-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 64 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781887896658
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

About the Author
Lawrence W. Cheek is the author of nine previous books, including A.D. 1250: Ancient Peoples of the Southwest, and over 600 articles for national and regional publications including America West, American Heritage, Architecture, Sunset, Arizona Highways, and the Los Angeles Times Magazine. His work has twice been nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. A longtime resident of the Southwest, he now lives in Issaquah, Washington.

Customer Reviews

A gripping account of a cruel episode of American history
The latest in the Look West series, The Navajo Long Walk is a brief book that uses plain terms and full-color photographs throughout to tell the story of when, during the course of the Civil War, the U.S. military decided to force the Navajo people to move from their traditional homelands to a tiny reservation in New Mexico. For four harsh years the Navajo struggled to survive in their new home; starvation, dysentery, and dehydration was widespread. According to modern estimates, nearly a fifth of the Navajo population at the time perished either en route or at the camp. At last the survivors were permitted to return home, and in a twist of irony, the Long Walk ultimately cemented connections and helped preserve tribal identity rather than destroy it. A gripping and sober account of a cruel episode of American history.

Anti-history, pro-Navajo - facts twisted to fit the author's prejudice.
More lies about Kit Carson and the Navajo. What happened to historical research?
Mr. Cheek did very little RESEARCH, mostly talked to Navajo and skipped the definitive book on the subject: THE NAVAJO ROUNDUP by L. W. Kelly, pub in 1970.
A pretty little book, nice format, good photos, but about 30% buffalo dung, maybe more. >>>>Page 11 - Gen. Carleton did not even once contemplate the "annihilation" of Navajo culture. Page 11 - Navajo had no use for "grazing lands" until they stole sheep from the Spanish & Mexicans. Page 13 - Navajo were not "impediments to progress" but rather "impediments to peace" until c. 1865. Page 14 - What would have been "amazingly reckless" would be to ignore the increased raids by the Navajo when U. S. troops were moved East to fight in the Civil War. Page 16 - No one had any idea there were 15,000 Navajo Indians in 1862. Page 17 - Kit Carson did NOT enter Canyon de Chelly, and he did NOT "burn orchards". Page 26 - Author Cheek accepts all Navajo sources, but rejects or buries all white sources and completely omits the definitive book on the event by L. C. Kelly. Page 41 - Generalizing from the specific is not the way to truth. Page 46 - Navajos are still telling lies about Kit Carson, some from ignorance, some just being stupid; ref. the Navajo Times in Jan, Feb & March 2006 letter columns. The Navajo are indeed a superior tribe of Indians and have much to be proud of, but Kit Carson DID NOT EVER "herd" (or escort) Navajo Indians to Ft. Sumner -- a 100% lie! Proper and responsible RESEARCH will reveal facts that will permit any rational mind to conclude that it was very fortunate the Navajo had Kit Carson round them up as he had much experience with Indians and they knew he was NOT the genocidal maniac that some modern writers describe. [C. F. Trafzer's book on the Long Walk is equally anti-Carson.] For the facts (letters to and from Carson) of 1862-1865, you must go to Lawrence C. Kelly, NAVAJO ROUNDUP. Otherwise, you are mis-informed. -Caz