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Signature of Sitting Bull

Sitting Bull

A handwritten signature of Sitting Bull, who learned to write his name and sold autographs during his years of public fame.

Sitting Bull learned to sign his name and sold autographs during his Wild West tour, reflecting his adaptation to fame.

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Black ink cursive signature on white background reading 'Sitting Bull', with a long flourish above the words and a looping stroke descending below the 'g'.
Signature of Sitting Bull.

About this source

What it is

This image shows the signature of Sitting Bull, written in cursive ink. He learned to sign his name during the period when he was a public celebrity, including while touring with Buffalo Bill's Wild West show.

Why it matters

Sitting Bull sold autographs and photographs of himself for money during his years of fame, something unusual for a Lakota leader of his generation. The signature shows how he adapted to the demands of a new, commercial kind of public life while remaining a respected spiritual and political leader among his people.

Look closer

  • What does it mean that a leader known for resisting U.S. policy also sold autographs to the public?
  • How might learning to write his name have changed Sitting Bull's relationship to the wider world?
  • What does a signature alone tell us, and what doesn't it tell us, about a person?

This document is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Sitting Bull (Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake) on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Fort Laramie Treaty

29 April 1868

Colored reproduction card labeled 'Chief Sitting Bull Sioux' showing a man in profile with long braids, two feathers in his hair, a red neckerchief, and a beaded vest with geometric and floral designs.Photograph

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Sitting Bull Portrait by William Notman

William Notman · 1885

Sepia-toned studio portrait of a man with a long braided hair, wearing a light patterned shirt and a feather headdress, looking directly at the camera with a serious expression against a plain backdrop.Photograph

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Chief Sitting Bull

David F. Barry · 1884

Black and white studio photograph of two men standing in front of a painted forest backdrop. On the left, a older man in a long feathered war bonnet and fringed, beaded buckskin clothing holds a rifle. On the right, a man in a wide-brimmed hat, embroidered jacket, and tall boots rests a hand on his chest.Photograph

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Sitting Bull and Buffalo Bill

Wm. Notman & Son · 1885

Scanned page of the 1887 Act titled 'An Act to provide for the allotment of lands in severalty to Indians on the various reservations', headed 'Forty-Ninth Congress of the United States of America; At the Second Session', with handwritten marks and a 'Public No. 105' stamp.Document

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Dawes Act

Henry Dawes · 8 February 1887

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