A Nez Percé chief whose name meant Thunder Rolling Down the Mountain, Chief Joseph did everything he could to keep peace as the U.S. government pushed the Nez Percé off their land in the Wallowa Valley. In 1877, to save his people from retaliation by the U.S. Army, he led a retreat toward Canada—with just 200 warriors, he took his people 1,400 miles while fighting fourteen battles. Nearing the Canadian border, his people ran out of food and warriors, and on October 5, 1877, he surrendered. The Nez Percé were forced onto reservations, and Chief Joseph spent the rest of his life fighting peacefully for his people’s rights, meeting with two U.S. presidents to state his case.