Chief Mahaska
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Mahaska, or White Cloud, (1784 – 1834) was a chief of the Native American Iowa tribe.
Mahaska became chief at any early age after killing several enemy Dakota to avenge his father’s death. He was later imprisoned in St. Louis, Missouri for killing a French trader, escaped, and led a raid against the Osage. Afterward, he decided that his father’s death was finally avenged, so he laid down his arms and adopted the lifestyle of the white settlers, building a log home and farming. He refused to let his braves avenge the death of an Ioway chief named Crane at the hands of Omaha Indians in 1833, and when several Ioway killed six Omahas, Mahaska assisted in their arrest.
The next year one of the Ioway escaped from Fort Leavenworth and killed Mahaska.
Chief Mahaska became a symbol of the virtues of his native lifestyle and of the possibility of peace between natives and settlers.
