Olive Oatman

The abduction of fourteen-year-old Olive Oatman by Yavapai Indians in 1851 became one of the most sensational stories of the American West. After killing six members of the Oatman family, the Yavapais enslaved Olive and her younger sister for a year before trading them to the Mohave Indians of California. Treated as members of that tribe, the Oatman girls were tattooed on their chins according to tribal custom. Following her sister’s death, Olive remained a captive until 1856, when military author- ities secured her release. A year later, the publication of a lurid account of her captivity catapulted Olive Oatman to fame.