Wooden Leg

Wooden Leg (Cheyenne Kâhamâxéveóhtáhe) (c. 1858–1940) was a Northern Cheyenne warrior who fought against Custer at the Battle of the Little Big Horn.

Early life

Wooden Leg was born, in about 1858, in the region of the Black Hills, near the Cheyenne River. He was son of Many Bullet Wounds (also called White Buffalo Shaking off the Dust) and Eagle Feather on the Forehead. He had three brothers (the two elder ones being Strong Wind Blowing and Yellow Hair, the younger one Twin) and two sisters (the elder one being Crooked Nose, the younger one Fingers Woman).

During his childhood, he was known as Eats from His Hand. Later, he inherited the name Wooden Leg from his uncle, a Crow adopted by the family of Eagle Feather on the Forehead. This young Crow proved to be a tireless walker, outlasting all the young Cheyenne and earning the name Wooden Leg, since his tireless legs seemed to be made of wood. Only his nephew was able to follow him during his endless walks, so the friends of Eats from His Hand began calling him by his uncle's name in sport. Eventually, Eats from His Hand took his uncle's name as his own.

In his childhood and youth, he lived among his tribe, wandering in the land between the Black Hills and the Little Bighorn River. During this period, he lived like any other Indian of the Plains, spending his time hunting game and fighting against the enemy tribes, in particular Crow and Shoshone. Wooden Leg was known for his gargantuan height and was measured 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) tall in his 70s.