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Show The White River Ute People 101 The Ute Commission met with Colorow and other leaders to convince them to move. The commanding officer at the White River military camp reported that the White Rivers: . . . with almost broken hearts, accept the situation. They feel that nothing else is left and will meet ... at Uintah, about the first of August, which cannot be well done before on account of high water in the rivers. They wish to preserve a friendly relation and, if they are fairly treated I do not anticipate any trouble with them in our military relations.17 By the end of July about twelve lodges of White River People had moved to Utah. Others were escorted by a small military guard and met in Utah by Uintah police recently organized by Agent Critchlow. However, the promised foods and supplies did not arrive. A majority of the White River People returned to Colorado with their families because of this failure of the government to provide them with provisions. "They also returned on account of their attachment to their old home."18 For the next several years, White River groups moved seasonally, as they had always done, between Utah and Colorado. Color ore One of the groups who refused to settle at the Uintah Reservation had long resisted government control. It was led by Too-p'-weets, or Colorow7, as he came to be called. He may have been born a Comanche, having been kidnapped and taken into the Yam-parika band about 1810. Colorow came to lead a group of White Rivers in opposition to efforts to enforce government control on the People. In the 1870s Colorow and Piah moved their followers just outside of Denver. The governor of Colorado Edward M. McCook started an Indian agency. But the agency was short lived, and the Ute People moved back to the White River Agency area. A new assignment was given to Colorow and Piah, which they pursued quite vigorously. They policed the reservation against non-Ute settlers. In fact, as far as the officials that appointed them were concerned, they were too effective. They had, however, the support of leaders Johnson and Nicaagat and many Ute People. In this role Colorow, with his unusually large size, struck fear into the settlers who were trying to homestead the reservation land. |