Native American History

I've been interested in Native American history for quite awhile now.  Maybe it stems back to my interest in the Book of Mormon and the history of the Lamanite people.  Maybe it has something to do with my love of the the movie Dances with Wolves.  More than likely it has to do with living in the western US my whole life and driving through many Native American reservations and seeing the inhabitants and how they live.  Whatever the reason, I've been intrigued with their culture and their history for some time now.  Where did they come from?  What kind of lives did they lead?  Why were they put on reservations? What are they doing now?
Many years ago, my family gave me a large picture book with beautiful pictures of Native American leaders and a overview of their lands and the areas their tribes controlled for centuries before the arrival of the white man.  Growing up in Idaho, I remember my dad and others finding Indian arrowheads when they plowed the ground of the fertile Snake River valley.  When we travel/traveled, I like to stop and look at the historical markers along the way and learn more about the incidents that happened on those sites many years ago.  When I was a kid, we would often pass by a place called Massacre Rocks in Idaho on our way to swim at Indian Springs.  I always wondered what happened there and why it was called massacre rocks and why there was a natural hot water swimming hole called Indian Springs nearby.  I came to find out that the Shoshone Indians once inhabited that area and they would sometimes lie in wait as wagon trains traveling the Oregon trail would pass through the narrow passage of rocks in that area of present day American Falls, ID. On several occasions, the Shoshoni would ambush the travelers passing through the rocks and massacre them. 
Shoshone falls (near present day Twin Falls) bears the name of the Northern Shoshoni Indians who once lived along the shores of the Snake River.  The plentiful water and fertile ground made it a perfect place for them to farm, fish and graze their animals.  Eventually the area Shoshoni were rounded up and put on the Fort Hall Indian reservation near Pocatello, ID. We would often travel through and near the reservation every year on our way to Yellowstone Park. It seems that most of the reservations I've seen through the years are barren wastelands with little chance for agriculture.
These familiar places and names interested me at an early age and I've continued to read and learn more about Native Americans and their cultures.  That tradition continued last week as we traveled to New Mexico and Arizona and learned more about the Jicarilla Apache, the Pueblo Indians, including the Acoma Pueblo, the Zuni Pueblo, and the Hopi reservation that is located in the middle of the mighty Navajo Nation. I'm in awe of their craftsmanship and the general resiliency of the people.  So many live in poverty and have little hope, but others are thriving.  It's an interesting study of history and I have a lot of respect for the early inhabitants of our country.  They are truly Native to America.