Bloody Knife - Legacy

Legacy

Bloody Knife had wed an Arikara woman named Young Owl Woman, or She Owl, in 1866. He fathered at least three children, a daughter and two sons. The daughter died of an illness on December 28, 1870, and was buried at Fort Buford. One son was killed in a raid by Lakota on the Arikara village before the Black Hills Expedition of 1874. The other lived until 1904, when he was killed supposedly by his own wife. Young Owl Woman served as Bloody Knife's legal heir. On April 14, 1879, she appeared at Fort Berthold to claim outstanding pay for his services to the army. In 1881, she received his final $91.66 in wages from the US Government.

Bloody Knife's deeds were remembered in song composed by the Arikara scouts after his death at the Battle of Little Big Horn. His story spread wide, and he became one of the more famous scouts associated with the army. In the 1991 television mini-series Son of the Morning Star, Bloody Knife was portrayed by Sheldon Peters Wolfchild.