Round Rock, Arizona

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Round Rock, also known as Tsé Nikani (Flat Plated Rocks) in the western part of the Navajo Reservation and Bis Dootl'izh Deez'ahi (Blue Pointed Mesa) in the eastern part, is located on the Navajo Reservation in Apache County, Arizona and is named after a nearby mesa. In 1892, Roundrock was the site of a clash between the Bureau of Indian Affairs and a Navajo leader called Black Horse. Indian Agent Henry Shipley attempted to forcefully remove Navajo children from their homes in Round Rock and relocate them to Native American boarding schools. Black Horse attempted to prevent the removal and re-education of the children, which he associated with cultural genocide, by barricading Agent Shipley and his men in the Chee Dodge trading post, rather than killing them, until troops from Fort Wingate arrived and were able to defray the situation. The Chee Dodge Trading Post remained in business until early 2013.

Photo Credit: 

 
"A view of Round Rock Mesa in the Painted Desert, near Chinle, Arizona, March 12, 2004" by Ken Lund is licensed under CC BY-SA.