EPISODE · Jun 11, 2026 · 7 MIN
Why was the US government so fascinated with this animal? - Andrew C. Isenberg
from TED-Ed · host TED-Ed
Explore how the US government hunted bison to near-extinction in the 1800s to force Native Americans onto reservations.--By the mid-1700s, many Plains nations survived on North America’s largest land mammals: bison. They ate its meat, made the hides into winter coats and blankets, and used the bones and horns for tools. But in the following decades, millions of bison would be deliberately slaughtered, threatening the survival of Plains societies. Andrew C. Isenberg shares what led to the animal's near-extinction.Lesson by Andrew C. Isenberg, directed by Rémi Cans, Atypicalist.Support Our Non-Profit Mission----------------------------------------------Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreonCheck out our merch: http://bit.ly/TEDEDShop----------------------------------------------Connect With Us----------------------------------------------Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletterFollow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebookFind us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitterPeep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram----------------------------------------------Keep Learning----------------------------------------------View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-did-the-us-try-to-kill-all-the-bison-andrew-c-isenbergDig deeper with additional resources: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-did-the-us-try-to-kill-all-the-bison-andrew-c-isenberg/digdeeperAnimator's website: https://www.atypicalist.com----------------------------------------------Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Angel Alberici, Minh Quan Dinh, Sylvain, Terran Gimpel, Talia Sari, Katie McDowell, Allen, Mahina Knuckles, Charmaine Hanson, Thawsitt, Jezabel, Abdullah Abdulaziz, Xiao Yu, Melissa Suarez, Brian A. Dunn, Francisco Amaya, Daisuke Goto, Matt Switzler, Peng, Tzu-Hsiang, Bethany Connor, Jeremy Shimanek, Mark Byers, Avinash Amarnath, Xuebicoco, Rayo, Po Foon Kwong, Boffin, Jesse Jurman, Scott Markley, Elija Peterson, Ovidiu Mrd, paul g mohney, Steven Razey, Nathan Giusti, Helen Lee, Anthony Benedict, Karthik Balsubramanian, Annastasshia Ames, Amy Lopez, Vinh-Thuy Nguyen, Liz Candee, Ugur Doga Sezgin, Karmi Nguyen, John C. Vesey, Yelena Baykova, Nick Johnson, Carlos H. Costa, Jennifer Kurkoski, Ryan B Harvey and Akinola Emmanuel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
What this episode covers
Explore how the US government hunted bison to near-extinction in the 1800s to force Native Americans onto reservations.--By the mid-1700s, many Plains nations survived on North America’s largest land mammals: bison. They ate its meat, made the hides into winter coats and blankets, and used the bones and horns for tools. But in the following decades, millions of bison would be deliberately slaughtered, threatening the survival of Plains societies. Andrew C. Isenberg shares what led to the animal's near-extinction.Lesson by Andrew C. Isenberg, directed by Rémi Cans, Atypicalist.Support Our Non-Profit Mission----------------------------------------------Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreonCheck out our merch: http://bit.ly/TEDEDShop----------------------------------------------Connect With Us----------------------------------------------Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletterFollow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebookFind us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitterPeep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram----------------------------------------------Keep Learning----------------------------------------------View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-did-the-us-try-to-kill-all-the-bison-andrew-c-isenbergDig deeper with additional resources: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-did-the-us-try-to-kill-all-the-bison-andrew-c-isenberg/digdeeperAnimator's website: https://www.atypicalist.com----------------------------------------------Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Angel Alberici, Minh Quan Dinh, Sylvain, Terran Gimpel, Talia Sari, Katie McDowell, Allen, Mahina Knuckles, Charmaine Hanson, Thawsitt, Jezabel, Abdullah Abdulaziz, Xiao Yu, Melissa Suarez, Brian A. Dunn, Francisco Amaya, Daisuke Goto, Matt Switzler, Peng, Tzu-Hsiang, Bethany Connor, Jeremy Shimanek, Mark Byers, Avinash Amarnath, Xuebicoco, Rayo, Po Foon Kwong, Boffin, Jesse Jurman, Scott Markley, Elija Peterson, Ovidiu Mrd, paul g mohney, Steven Razey, Nathan Giusti, Helen Lee, Anthony Benedict, Karthik Balsubramanian, Annastasshia Ames, Amy Lopez, Vinh-Thuy Nguyen, Liz Candee, Ugur Doga Sezgin, Karmi Nguyen, John C. Vesey, Yelena Baykova, Nick Johnson, Carlos H. Costa, Jennifer Kurkoski, Ryan B Harvey and Akinola Emmanuel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Why was the US government so fascinated with this animal? - Andrew C. Isenberg
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