Building Arapaho, Cheyenne and Niwot Relationships
As Niwot commemorated its 150th anniversary in March 2025, we invited Arapaho and Cheyenne Tribal Elders to our community with a focus on:
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Welcoming Mr. Fred Mosqueda (Southern Arapaho, Sand Creek Massacre Representative) and Mr. Chester Whiteman (Southern Cheyenne, Sand Creek Massacre Representative) to discuss how truthful historical storytelling—including Niwot’s connection to the Sand Creek Massacre—is a foundation for building relationships.
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Exploring how Niwot and the broader Boulder community can build relationships with the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes for the next 150 years.
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Honoring Southern Arapaho Chief Nowoo3 (Chief “Niwot,” or “Left Hand”)—our community’s namesake—who sought mutual understanding and respect.
We thank them for sharing their perspectives and guidance during this inaugural gathering on March 17, 2025. We look forward to our next community dialogue, tentatively scheduled for January 2026, alongside the Sundance Film Festival in Boulder.
Key Guidance from Building Arapaho, Cheyenne and Niwot Relationships
Together, Mr. Mosqueda and Mr. Whiteman offered Niwot a roadmap to help move beyond land acknowledgments. Their knowledge comes from years of consulting with federal agencies and local communities, including the City of Boulder and Boulder County. The pair were also instrumental in helping to rename Mt. Evans to Mount Blue Sky.
“First of all, we need to sit down at a table and talk… Not just talk about it, not just dream about it, but to actually make it happen.”
“We don't want to come and demand anything of you. We want to come and say, 'What can we do together?' And that's what we want.”
“We try to bring our Nation and the non-Native nation to an understanding where we can get along, work together, and move forward in this day and age.”
“Once they get to know who he [Nowoo3] was, then they will begin to know who the Arapaho People were and who we are today.”
“I was always told to get respect, you have to give it… There's still a lot of open wounds out there, so we need to show respect to one another and move forward, hand in hand.”
Mr. Mosqueda provides additional guidance and personal reflections on the Sand Creek Massacre in the City of Denver’s recently released, “We Are the Land” report.
Videos from Building Arapaho, Cheyenne and Niwot Relationships
Watch the recorded sessions from our March 17, 2025 gathering to hear directly from Mr. Mosqueda and Mr. Whiteman as they share vital reflections on historical truth-telling, and a collaborative path forward for Niwot, Boulder County, Colorado and beyond:
Before the Event: Walking the Land Together
Before taking the stage, Mr. Mosqueda—who previously spoke in Niwot—and Mr. Whiteman connected with the community by touring the Native murals and wood carvings in Cottonwood Square and by hiking Haystack Mountain, recently purchased by Boulder County Parks and Open Space. For those who participated, the hike offered profoundly special moments: it marked the first time an Arapaho Elder had returned to this important site in 166 years, a meaningful moment that was honored by the sight of an elk herd walking through the valley below.
A Powerful Visual Metaphor: Gratitude to Tom Myer
We express our deepest gratitude to Tom Myer for his multi-faceted role in making this inaugural gathering a success. In addition to providing invaluable support, guidance, and strategic vision throughout the extensive planning and organizing phases, Tom generously stepped forward to moderate the complex community dialogue during the live March 17, 2025 event.
Furthermore, the digital platform features Tom’s evocative artwork, Encroachment. This striking piece serves as a core visual metaphor for the page, beautifully reflecting the historical tensions of early white settlement across Colorado, the wider Boulder Valley ecosystem, and the systemic impact of the Sand Creek Massacre. His creative partnership bridges historic truth-telling with contemporary digital art design.
The Path to Building Arapaho, Cheyenne and Niwot Relationships
Initial efforts to foster relationships between Niwot and the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes originated from discussions between Fred Mosqueda, Chester Whiteman, and Phillip Yates during City of Boulder tribal consultations, which resumed in 2019. That year, the City of Boulder hosted its first formal tribal consultation in 14 years, following complex community conversations regarding Valmont Butte.
The focus of the 2019 consultation was on rebuilding partnerships with sovereign Tribal Nations, fulfilling community guidance in the city’s 2016 Indigenous Peoples Day resolution, and discussing a new name for Settlers’ Park—the historic site where Chief Nowoo3/Niwot/Left Hand told gold-seekers they could not stay in 1858. Phillip Yates was honored to work alongside Mr. Mosqueda, Mr. Whiteman, and representatives from 16 different Tribal Nations to build meaningful relationships together and support:
- 01Creating the recently released Tribal Ethnographic Education Report, which features in-depth perspectives from Arapaho and Cheyenne Tribal Representatives.
- 02Renaming Settlers’ Park to “The People’s Crossing”, marking the site where the Niwot (Nowoo3) told Nebraska gold-seekers to depart in 1858.
- 03Planning a community event with Tribal Elders to honor city-tribal relationships; although ultimately canceled, the planning process significantly deepened those partnerships.
Phillip Yates is grateful for the guidance provided by Mr. Mosqueda and Mr. Whiteman in communicating the history of Fort Chambers—the site where more than 100 Boulder County men trained before participating in the Sand Creek Massacre. You can read their perspectives in the official press releases issued in March and July of 2024.