Associated Tribes

A map of northwest and north-central states with Yellowstone National Park and tribal reservations
Yellowstone National Park has 27 associated tribes. Note: Map shows Tribal reservations; it does not show historic territory.

NPS / Yellowstone Spatial Analysis Center

 

There are 27 current tribes that have historic connections to the lands and resources now found within Yellowstone National Park.

  • Assiniboine and Sioux
  • Blackfeet
  • Cheyenne River Sioux
  • Coeur d’Alene
  • Comanche
  • Colville Reservation
  • Crow
  • Crow Creek Sioux
  • Eastern Shoshone
  • Flandreau Santee Sioux
  • Gros Ventre and Assiniboine
  • Kiowa
  • Little Shell Chippewa
  • Lower Brule Sioux
  • Nez Perce
  • Northern Arapaho
  • Northern Cheyenne
  • Oglala Sioux
  • Rosebud Sioux
  • Salish and Kootenai
  • Shoshone–Bannock
  • Sisseton Wahpeton
  • Spirit Lake
  • Standing Rock Sioux
  • Turtle Mountain Band of the Chippewa
  • Umatilla Reservation
  • Yankton Sioux
 
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Park History

Learn about Yellowstone's story from the earliest humans to today.

Rifle and powder horn with a map etched on side resting on fur.

European Americans Arrive

In the late 1700s, fur traders traveled the Yellowstone River in search of Native Americans with whom to trade.

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Expeditions Explore Yellowstone

Formal expeditions mapped and explored the area, leading to the nation's understanding of the region.

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Birth of a National Park

Learn about Yellowstone's early days as a national park.

"For the benefit and enjoyment of the people" etched in concrete and surrounded in stone

Modern Management

Managing the national park has evolved over time and dealt with some complex issues.

Visitors standing on a boardwalk and taking pictures of the orange thermophiles of Grand Prismatic.

Today's National Park Service

The National Park Service manages over 80 million acres in all 50 states, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Guam, and American Samoa.

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Timeline of Human History in Yellowstone

The human history of the Yellowstone region goes back more than 11,000 years.

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The Earliest Humans in Yellowstone

Human occupation of this area seems to follow environmental changes of the last 15,000 years.

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Historic Tribes

Many tribes have a traditional connection to this region and its resources.

Last updated: March 12, 2021

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Contact Info

Mailing Address:

PO Box 168
Yellowstone National Park, WY 82190-0168

Phone:

307-344-7381

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