Within just ten years, the buffalo were on the verge of extinction, effectively ending the Comanche way of life as hunters.
The Comanches were ill-prepared for life in a modern economic system, and many of them were defrauded of whatever remained of their land and possessions.
The Comanche men wore nothing on the upper body except in the winter, when they wore warm, heavy robes made from buffalo hides (or occasionally, bear, wolf, or coyote skins) with knee-length buffalo-hide boots.
The Comanche speak an Uto-Aztecan language, sometimes classified as a Shoshone dialect.
The Comanches were originally part of the Eastern Shoshone, who lived about 3,000 B.C.E.
The Comanche people are a Native American group located primarily in Oklahoma, Texas, and California today.
Outbreaks of smallpox (1817, 1848) and cholera (1849) took a major toll on the Comanches, whose population dropped from an estimated 20,000 in mid-century to just a few thousand by the 1870s.
Comanche people generally had a light meal in the morning and a large evening meal.
Much of the area inhabited by the Comanches was flat and dry, with the exception of major rivers like the Cimarron River, the Pecos River, the Brazos River, and the Red River.
The Comanches maintained an ambiguous relationship with the Europeans and later Americans attempting to colonize their territory.
In 1875, the last free band of Comanches, led by Quahadi warrior Quanah Parker, surrendered and moved to the Fort Sill reservation in Oklahoma.
Comanche (Numu tekwapu) is a Uto-Aztecan language spoken by the Comanche people.
Many of these horses were stolen, and the Comanches earned a reputation as formidable horse and later cattle thieves.
The feather had no special meaning for the Comanche, but was worn solely for decoration.
The security system of the individual in Comanche is constructed on rather simple lines.
Nevertheless, the Comanches never formed a single cohesive tribal unit but were divided into almost a dozen autonomous groups.
The Comanche men did most of the hunting and always fought the wars.
The Comanche are a Native American ethnic group whose range (the Comancheria) consisted of present-day Eastern New Mexico, Southern Colorado, Southern Kansas, all of Oklahoma, and most of Northern and Southern Texas.
One Comanche might always paint himself in a particular way, while another might change the colors and designs when so inclined.
Quanah also campaigned for the Comanches' permission to practice the Native American Church religious rites, such as the usage of peyote which was condemned by whites.
Traditionally they used paints made from berry juice and the colored clays of the Comancheria.
The Comanche Nation College, where Comanche history, language, and culture is studied and preserved, was established in 2002.
The Comanche also acquired maize, dried pumpkin, and tobacco through trade and raids.
The Comanche have survived their struggles, adapting to a new lifestyle without the buffalo, yet maintaining a number of the traditions.
Today, the Comanche Nation consists of approximately 10,000 members, about half of whom live in Oklahoma (centered at Lawton), and the remainder are concentrated in Texas, California, and New Mexico.
The dreaded Comanche raids into Mexico, going as far south as Central America, traditionally took place during the full moon, when the Comanche could see to ride at night.
Comanche men also wore bands of leather and strips of metal on their arms.
Due to their frequent traveling, Comanche had to make sure that their household goods and other possessions were light and unbreakable.
Comanche children ate pemmican, but this was primarily a tasty, high-energy food reserved for war parties.
The second generation then grew up speaking English, because of the belief that it was better for them not to know Comanche.
Comanche men took pride in their hair, which was worn long and rarely cut.
Comanche raids into Mexico were a yearly event for many decades, with the warriors seeking weapons, cattle, horses, mules, women, goods and slaves.
On the plains, Comanche women carried out the demanding tasks of cooking, skinning animals, setting up camp, and transporting household goods.
Like other Plains Indians, the Comanche were very hospitable people.
The attack was a disaster for the Comanches and the army was called in to drive all the remaining Comanche in the area into the reservation.
The Comanches sometimes ate raw meat, especially raw liver flavored with gall.
The Comanche sheathed their tipis with a covering made of buffalo hides sewn together.
About half the Comanche population still lives in Oklahoma, centered around the town of Lawton.
During World War II, many Comanches left the traditional tribal lands in Oklahoma in search of financial opportunities in the cities of California and the Southwest.
Basketry, weaving, wood carving, and metal working were also unknown among the Comanches.
The Comanches may have been the first group of Plains natives to fully incorporate the horse into their culture, and to have introduced the animal to the other Plains peoples.
The Comanches emerged as a distinct group shortly before 1700, when they broke off from the Shoshone people living along the upper Platte River in Wyoming.
An entire Comanche band could be packed and chasing a buffalo herd within about fifteen minutes.
Comanche men rarely wore anything on their heads, and had no tradition of wearing the large feathered bonnets seen among the northern Plains peoples.
The Comanche by then dominated the area surrounding the Texas Panhandle, including western Oklahoma and northeastern New Mexico.
The Comanche did not fear death, but death worried them, and they often broke camp after a burial to get away from the place of death.
The Comanche mobility on horseback made these raids unstoppable until their final defeat by the United States.
In 2007, several cultural events were established including Comanche equine classes, golf tournament, film festival, and Cultural Center.
The loss of the buffalo which were essential to their nomadic lifestyle effectively ended the traditional way of life of the Comanche.
When they reached the age of eight or nine they began to wear the clothing of a Comanche adult.
After they came into contact with the Spanish, the Comanche traded for copper pots and iron kettles, which made cooking easier.
After the Comanche left the Shoshone people, there was little growth in spiritual concepts.
Traditionally they used paints made from berry juice and the colored clays of the Comancheria.