It is a fragile chain, dependent on institutional decisions and archival accidents.

If any link had broken, her story would be far harder to recover.

The Gros Ventre and the Meaning of Her Death

The Gros Ventre — also known as the Atsina, and linguistically related to the Arapaho — were the people who had produced Woman Chief before losing her to a Crow raiding party.

They were also the people who killed her in 1854.

The Gros Ventre relationship to the Crow during this period was one of sustained enmity.