The story of American treaty commitments to the Cheyenne begins formally with the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851, which attempted to establish territorial boundaries between the various nations of the plains and to create a framework for peaceful relations with the United States.

The 1851 treaty established a broad territory that was recognized as Cheyenne and Arapaho country, centered on the country between the Platte and the Arkansas rivers.

In exchange for acknowledging American sovereignty and agreeing to allow safe passage for emigrants on the Oregon Trail, the Cheyenne and Arapaho would receive annuity payments in goods for fifty years — a term that the Senate subsequently reduced to fifteen years without the knowledge or consent of the treaty parties.

The 1851 treaty was followed almost immediately by violations of its spirit, if not always its letter.