Chippewa Cree Tribe (North Central Montana)

The Place

This circle represents ecoregions across the 128,000 acre Rocky Boy's Reservation.  This beautiful area in North-Central Montana is mostly bottomlands and prairies except for the majestic Bears Paw Mountains. Rocky Boy's is the youngest reservation, established September 7, 1916, and also the smallest of the reservations in Montana. 

The People

The Rocky Boy's reservation name comes from a translation of the name of Chippewa leader, Asiniiwin. The name translates to "Stone Child." Both the Chippewa and Cree tribes live on the Rocky Boy reservation.  Historically the Chippewa, also referred to as the Ojibwe, migrated westward from the Midwestern United States and arrived in Montana sometime between 1885 and 1892. The Cree tribe primarily called Canada home but considered Montana an important part of their homelands and frequently hunted along the borders of Montana and North Dakota.

The Plants

Wild Mint (Mentha arvensis): 

Wild Mint is used to relieve gas and prevent vomiting. It is also used to to strengthen heart muscles, stimulate vital organs, and to treat headaches, colds, coughs and fevers. It is usually brewed into a tea and consumed.

Small Camas (Camassia quamash):

This plant is used to aid women during child birth. A bread and cake can be made from Camas and the bulbs are usually boiled for soup, cooked with meat, and roasted to be eaten on their own.

Rocky Mountain Iris (Iris missouriensis):

The Chippewa Cree use the Rocky Mountain Iris as an external application for skin problems. The pulped root is placed in the tooth cavity or on the gum in order to bring relief from toothaches. The root is also used in ear drops to treat earaches. When the root is mashed, it is applied to rheumatic joints. Rocky Mountain Iris is thought to be poisonous.   

Hawthorn (Crataegus douglasii)

Hawthorn berries are eaten to strengthen the heart and to thin the blood. The bark is used as an anti-inflammatory and alleviates digestive ails. The wood is fashioned into diggings sticks and handles for tools. The Bark and shoots are burned and mixed with ashes and grease to create face paint.

The Other Plants In The Rocky Boy Circle