Maȟpíya Lúta, also known as Red Cloud, was born around May 1821, near where the North and South Platte Rivers unite in what was considered Nebraska Territory. His father was a Brulé Lakota and his mother was an Oglala Lakota, and together they belonged to a subdivision of the Oglala known as the Bad Face band.
There are conflicting accounts about Lúta's early life. According to Red Cloud: Photographs of a Lakota Chief, Lúta's father died of alcoholism when Lúta was young, and as a result, he was brought up by his mother's brother Šóta, also known as Old Chief Smoke. But according to "Red Cloud, as Remembered by Ohiyesa," Lúta's father survived until Lúta was 28 and died during a disagreement with Bear Bull, an Oglala leader.
However, one of the earliest events in Lúta's life is relatively well-documented. According to the Autobiography of Red Cloud by Red Cloud, Charles Wesley Allen, and Sam Deon, when Lúta was 16 he joined a raid party against the Pawnee, who had recently slain his cousin. The raid was successful, and Lúta had soon made a name for himself after another successful ambush against the Crows. By 1850, Lúta had married Pretty Owl, also known as Mary Good Road, and they remained together until his death in 1909. She later died in 1940 at the assumed age of 104.
