"The Indian burial ground bears the names of Wyandot people who died in Kansas in the mid-1800s, names such as Lewis Greyeyes, Cora Zane, John Cornstalk, Daniel Peacock, Catherine Bearskin, Eliza Conley.

It took 65 years and three Native sisters to keep the Wyandot buried after the cemetery was illegally purchased by Kansas City, Kan., officials.

“I've long thought one of the untold stories of Indian Country is that so many of the extraordinary things we've done in tribal communities have been led by strong Native women who have been the source of perseverance, the source of strength, not only in the family, but in leadership and pushing a pro-Native agenda,” said Keith Harper, a Washington, D.C., lawyer and executive producer for a film about the three Wyandot sisters.

In 2009, the Wyandot National Cemetery provides a backdrop for the film “Whispers Like Thunder,” a story of how Lyda, Helena and Ida Conley used double-barrel shotguns, the law and perseverance to uphold treaty rights, ensuring the bones of their relatives remained buried in the cemetery and untouched by construction workers.

By 1907, upward of 600 Wyandot were buried in what was then known as the Huron Indian Cemetery in Kansas City, a burial site for the family and relatives of three sisters. When the city announced the burial ground would be moved, the Conley sisters immediately moved to protect the graves. They built a shack and wielded axes for nearly four years to protect the graves."

Get the Story:
Jodi Rave: Investors sought for film about Native sisters (The Missoulian 4/10)

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