Lipan Apache people facts for kids

The Lipan Apache are a group of Apache people. They are an Indigenous people who have lived in the Southwest and Southern Plains regions for hundreds of years. When Europeans and Africans first arrived, the Lipan Apache lived in what is now New Mexico, Colorado, Oklahoma, Texas, and northern Mexico. They were historically the easternmost group of Apache.

Today, many Lipan Apache descendants are members of the Mescalero Apache Tribe in New Mexico. Other descendants are part of the Tonkawa Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma and the Apache Tribe of Oklahoma. This group is also known as the Kiowa Apache or Plains Apache. Many other Lipan Apache descendants live in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arizona, and northern Mexico.

Understanding the Name Lipan Apache

Two Lipan Apache children, Kesetta Roosevelt (1880–1906) from New Mexico, and Jack Mather (d. 1888), at Carlisle Indian School, around 1885.

The name "Lipan" comes from the Spanish language. It is their version of the Lipan people's own name for themselves: Łipa-į́ Ndé or Lépai-Ndé. This means "Light Gray People." This name reflects their stories about how they moved around. The first time the Lipan Apache were written about, they were called Ypandes.

The word Lipan comes from the Lipan words lépai (meaning 'the color gray') and ndé (meaning 'the people'). So, Lipan means 'The Light Gray People'. The name Apache might come from the Zuni language word apachu, which means 'enemy'. It could also come from the Ute people, who called this group Awa'tehe.

The Apache people call themselves Inde or Nde, which means "the people." Sometimes, the Lipan Apache are also called Eastern Apache or Texas Apache.

Lipan Apache Language

The Lipan Apache language is a Southern Athabaskan language. It is thought to be very similar to the Jicarilla Apache language. Sadly, there are no fluent speakers of Lipan Apache today. In 1981, only two elders on the Mescalero Apache Reservation could speak it fluently. Efforts are now being made to bring the language back to life.

Lipan Apache History

The eastern Apache groups once lived in a large area. This land stretched from the Southern Great Plains to the Gulf of Mexico. They had a strong presence in what is now Texas. The Lipan Apache did not leave many archaeological signs behind. However, the pictographs (rock paintings) at Hueco Tanks are thought to be made by Mescalero Apache. These paintings were created between 1500 AD and 1879 AD.

Early Encounters: 16th and 17th Centuries

Map showing where the Lipan Apache lived in the 17th and 18th centuries

The ancestors of the Lipan Apache lived along the Canadian River. They first met Europeans during the expedition of Francisco Vásquez de Coronado in 1541. They were still in this area when Diego de Vargas arrived in 1694. Historians believe that the Teya Indians of the Texas Panhandle likely joined the Lipan.

By 1608, the Lipan Apache got horses from the Spanish. They then started a nomadic (traveling) way of life. They were excellent horse riders and often raided settlements. During the 17th century, Spaniards sometimes captured Apache people for forced labor. The Acho, a Lipan group, fought alongside the Taos Pueblo and Picuris Pueblo people against the Spanish in the 1680 Pueblo Revolt.

In 1684, Spanish colonists built the Mission San Francisco de los Julimes near Presidio, Texas. This mission was for the Jumano, Julime, and nearby tribes. These tribes taught the peyote ceremony to the Tonkawa and Lipan. The Lipan then shared it with the Comanches, Mescalero Apaches, and Plains Apaches. In the 1680s, Spanish writers noted that some Lipan Apache lived near the Gulf Coast. They adopted some ways of life from the nearby Karankawa people.

Life in the 18th Century

Historic marker for Mission San Lorenzo de la Santa Cruz. Franciscan missionaries founded it for the Lipan Apache in 1762. It was abandoned in 1769.

By 1700, the Lipan had settled across southern Texas and into Coahuila, Mexico. They still lived in farming villages. There, they grew native crops like pumpkins, corn, and beans. They also grew watermelons, which came from Africa. The French explorer Bénard de La Harpe met the Lipan Apache near what is now Latimer County, Oklahoma, in 1719.

The Lipan were first mentioned in Spanish records in 1718. This was when they raided Spanish settlements in San Antonio. They often attacked Spanish supply trains traveling from Coahuila to the new San Antonio settlement.

In 1749, two Lipan Apache chiefs and other Apache leaders signed an early peace treaty with Spain in San Antonio. Some Lipan Apache people settled northwest of San Antonio in the mid-1700s.

Spanish colonists built forts and missions near Lipan settlements. A mission on the San Sabá River was built in 1757. However, the Comanche and Wichita people destroyed it. That same year, the Lipan Apache fought the Hasinais, a group of Caddo people. The Lipan joined a Spanish expedition against the Wichita and Comanche in 1759. But they were defeated in the Battle of the Twin Villages. Missions built for the Lipan at Candelaria and San Lorenzo were destroyed by the Comanche in 1767.

By 1767, all Lipan had left the Spanish missions. In the same year, Marquis of Rubí began a plan to remove the Lipan. This happened after a smallpox disease in 1764 greatly reduced the tribe's numbers.

Changes in the 19th Century

An illustration of a Lipan Apache warrior from 1857.

In the early 1800s, the Lipan Apache mostly lived in south and west Texas. Their land stretched from south of the Colorado River to the Gulf of Mexico. It also went east to the Rio Grande. They became allies with the Tonkawa during this century. To fight their enemies, the Comanche and the Mexicans, the Lipan Apache allied with the Republic of Texas in the 1830s. They served as scouts for the Texas Militia during the Texas Revolution of 1835–36.

After Texas became a state, it had many war debts. It sold land to raise money, leaving almost no land for American Indians. Texas created the Brazos Reservation in 1854. About 2,000 members of the Caddo, Anadarko, Waco, and Tonkawa tribes lived there. But by 1859, these tribes had to move to Indian Territory.

In 1855, some Lipan Apache joined the Brazos Reservation. However, most did not. Some joined the Plains Apache in Oklahoma. Others joined the Mescalero in New Mexico. Many others went to Mexico.

In 1869, Mexican troops were sent to Zaragosa to deal with the Lipan Apache. The Lipan were accused of causing conflict. Chief Magoosh (Lipan, around 1830–1900) led his group from Texas. They joined the Mescalero Apache on the Mescalero Reservation in 1870. Troops attacked many Lipan camps. Survivors fled to the Mescaleros in New Mexico. From 1875 to 1876, United States Army troops worked with the Mexican Army. Their goal was to remove the Lipan from the state of Coahuila in northern Mexico. In 1879, a group of 17 Lipan settled near Fort Griffin, Texas. But in 1884, they were forced to move to Indian Territory, where they joined the Tonkawa.

In 1891, the Lipans talked with Mexican President Porfirio Diaz. They wanted to keep their tribal land in Zaragosa. This agreement lasted about 12 years. Then, they were forced to leave Zaragosa after they refused to join the Mexican Army.

The 20th Century

In October 1903, 19 Lipan Apaches who had fled Texas into Coahuila were taken to northwest Chihuahua. They were held as captives until 1905. After their release, they went to the Mescalero Reservation.

Lipan Apache Bands

The Lipan Apache formed from several Eastern Apache groups joining together. They shared a culture and history. As a united group, they defended themselves against the Comanche and their allies. By about 1720, the Comanche pushed the Lipan Apache out of the southern Great Plains. By the early 1700s, the Lipan were divided into different regional groups, called divisions. These divisions included several smaller bands. There were the Forest Lipan (Lower Lipan), the Plains Lipan (Upper Lipan), and bands living mainly in northern Mexico (Mexican Lipan).

Here are a few examples of these bands:

• Sun Otter band (Tcheshä’ⁿ): They lived from San Antonio, Texas, south to the Rio Grande.
• Fire or Camp Circle band (Ndáwe ɣóhäⁿ): They lived west to southwest of Fort Griffin, from the San Saba River to the Rio Grande River.
• Big Water band (Kú’ne tsá): In the mid-1700s, this band moved into northern Coahuila, Mexico. They lived along the Escondido and San Rodrigo Rivers.

Lipan Apache Population Over Time

Historians have estimated the Lipan Apache population at different times.

• In 1690, one expert, James Mooney, thought there were 500 Lipan Apache.
• A missionary priest, Friar Diego Ximenez, estimated the population to be 5,000 in 1762. He later estimated 3,000 in 1763 and 4,000 in 1764.
• In 1778, Spanish military leaders in Monclova, Coahuila, estimated 5,000 Lipan men.
• By 1820, a Mexican government official, Juan Padilla, estimated 700 Lipans in Texas.
• Between 1845 and 1855, two researchers, Opler and Ray, estimated the Lipan population was between 500 and 1000.
• The 1910 U.S. census listed 28 Lipan Apache people.

The Lipan Apache in the 21st Century

Today, descendants of the Lipan Apache are members of the Mescalero Apache Tribe in New Mexico. They are also part of the Tonkawa Tribe in Oklahoma and the Apache Tribe of Oklahoma.

Several groups in Texas identify as Lipan Apache descendants. These groups are not officially recognized by the U.S. federal government. Some of them include:

• Apache Council of Texas in Alice, Texas
• Cuelgahen Nde Lipan Apache of Texas in Three Rivers, Texas
• Lipan Apache Band of Texas in Brackettville, Texas
• Lipan Apache Nation of Texas in San Antonio, Texas
• Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas in McAllen, Texas

In 2019, the Texas Legislature passed resolutions (Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 61 and House Concurrent Resolution No. 171). These resolutions stated that the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas is "the modern-day form of a proud people." They also praised the tribe for their contributions to the state. The Lipan Apache Band of Texas has also been honored by the Texas state legislature.

The National Congress of American Indians recognizes the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas as a state-recognized tribe. However, Texas currently does not have any officially state-recognized tribes. Bills for formal state recognition of the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas were introduced in 2021 and 2022. Both bills did not pass.

Notable Lipan Apache Chiefs

Here are some important historical chiefs and when they were active:

• Bigotes (meaning 'Mustached One') (mid-1700s): In 1751, he moved his group from Texas into Coahuila.
• Poca Ropa (meaning 'few or scant clothes') (around 1750 – around 1790): He was Chief of the Little Breech-clout band along the lower Pecos River.
• Cavezon/el Gran Cavezon (meaning 'The Big Head') (around 1760 – around 1790): He was Chief of the Fire/Camp Circle band. They lived along the San Saba River towards the upper Nueces River.
• Yolcha/Yolcna Pocarropa (around 1822 – around 1828): He was Chief of several groups of the Little Breech-clout band in western Texas. He was the grandson of Poca Ropa.
• Cuelgas de Castro (around 1821 – around 1842): He was Chief of the Sun Otter band. They lived in the San Antonio area and across the Rio Grande in Tamaulipas. He was important in talks between the Republic of Texas and the Lipan Apache.
• Flacco (around 1821 – around 1843): He was Chief of the High-Beaked Moccasin band east of San Antonio. He often helped Texas Militia units and was a friend of Texas President Sam Houston.
• Magoosh (Ma’uish) (around 1850 – 1900): He was Chief of the Sun Otter band in southeastern Texas. Due to a serious disease, one part of his band went to Zaragosa in Coahuila. The other part of Magoosh's band found safety with the Mescalero and joined them on the Mescalero Reservation in 1870.

See also

In Spanish: Lipán para niños