It is due to the courage and determination of Morning Star and other leaders that the Northern Cheyenne still possess a homeland in their traditional country in present-day Montana.

A Cheyenne warrior in every sense of the word, Morning Star was described by many writers of the era as "an admirable outlaw" comparable to the likes of Rob Roy and William Wallace.

However, after a destructive raid by American soldiers under Colonel Ranald S. Mackenzie in which 200 lodges were destroyed and 700 livestock captured, most of the Cheyenne were eventually forced to surrender.

Fighting through, the Cheyenne were able to outmaneuver federal troops across the plains and in the Nebraska Sand Hills until they were captured near Fort Robinson.

However, a few of the tribe managed to escape, including Morning Star, who eventually reached the Pine Ridge Agency and was held as a prisoner until he and the survivors were allowed to settle on a reservation near Fort Keogh in the Montana Territory.