Facts about Chief Joseph
Born: 1840
Died: September 21, 1904 (heart failure)
Birthplace: Wallowa Valley, Oregon Territory
Best known as: Chief of the Nez Perce tribe
Chief Joseph Biography
Native Name: In-mut-too-yah-lat-lat (‘Thunder coming up over the land from the water’)
Chief Joseph was the leader of the Nez Perce tribe, whose lands were in what is now Oregon and Washington in the western United States. In 1877 he led his tribe in a 1400-mile retreat from U.S. troops in 1877, which ended in the Battle of Bear Paw Mountains in Montana. Joseph is now especially remembered for the statement he made then: "From where the sun now stands I will fight no more forever."
Extra credit
Chief Joseph is often said to have died of a broken heart after spending the last two decades of his life on reservations.