City of Blackfoot, Bingham County, Idaho

City of Blackfoot Bingham County, Idaho

Mapped Location

City of Blackfoot: The mapped location is an approximation and should not be used for navigation or wayfinding.

Information

General information on City of Blackfoot

Feature Type: Incorporated

Official, historical, colloquial and alternative toponyms for City of Blackfoot

A brief list of names that this geographic feature has been named

Name	Description
City of Blackfoot	Official
Blackfoot	Official

Origin Notes and History of City of Blackfoot

References to City of Blackfoot that document the origin of its place name

BLACKFOOT, Bingham County.—This name is derived from a tribe of Indians that inhabited Montana and was first applied to Blackfoot Lake, or marshes, in 1819, by Donald Mackenzie while leading the Snake country expedition (q. v.), because he found some of that tribe wandering in the vicinity of the headwaters of the Blackfoot River. This tribe called themselves "Siksika," meaning "Siksi," "black," and "kah," a contraction of their word for "foot," or "Blackfoot People," alluding to their "black feet" made by continual roving thru the ashes of the countries which they had devastated by fire. They belonged to the Algonquian, the largest family of Indians in the United States, and are known under three divisions: Blackfeet. Piegans and Bloods. They were hostile to nearly all surrounding tribes, and belonging to the predatory class of Indians, their wanderings were very extensive, and as they constantly invaded the country of their neighbors, they lived in a state of perpetual warfare. The Marias River Valley, Montana, was their habitat, but they were considered the devils of both the mountains and prairies. Not alone the whites but the Indians also suffered from their hatred and bloodthirstiness. The religious Flathead or Salish (q.v.), the proud Nez Perce or Chopunnish (q.v.), the thieving Crow or Absaroka, the wandering Snake or Shoshoni (q.v.). and others, all were at feud with the Blackfeet because the latter persisted in being the copper-colored Ishmaelites among the tribes.— WHEELER. Trail of Lewis and Clark; CHITTENDEN, American Fur Trade: HANDBOOK of Amrriran Indians.

John E. Rees, B. Sc. in Idaho Chronology, Nomenclature, Bibliography

Rees, John E., Idaho Chronology, Nomenclature, Bibliography, 1918 W.B. Conkey Company, pp. 56 | Idaho Chronology, Nomenclature, Bibliography

Bingham County

Political Boundaries

Last updated: 2017-01-07