Looking Glass

 

NEPE-HI-0178 Looking Glass 388.jpg

Looking Glass (Ala' limya Takaniin, Cyclone Traveler)

"Young" Looking Glass was born sometimes around 1830, the son of "Old" Looking Glass or Apus weyheyqt. Looking Glass was the recognized leader of the Kam' nakka Band (Clear Creek) at the time of the Nez Perce War of 1877. Looking Glass and his band, like many of the upper-Nez Perce bands, spent much of their time in "Buffalo Country," where they contended for the right to hunt buffalo with the various Plains tribes.

Often times, Looking Glass associated with the Mountain Crow while on these excursions. In 1873, Looking Glass led a group of Nez Perce warriors to assist the Crows in defending themselves from an enormous contingent of Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapahoe at the famous battle at Arrow Creek, which is located just east of Billings, Montana.

During the Nez Perce War of 1877, Looking Glass was forced in armed conflict with the United Sates when Captain Whipple attacked his peaceful band at Clear Creek on July 1, 1877. Because of his previous experience in intertribal warfare on the Plains of Montana, Looking Glass stood out as one of the most prominent leaders during the Nez Perce War of 1877. Looking Glass was killed in his rifle pit at the final battle at Snake Creek, which is near the foothills of the Bear Paw Mountains on October 5, 1877.

Image: "Looking Glass" Photo courtesy the Nez Perce National Historical Park.  unknown date.

 

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