For hundreds of years, the Great Plains attracted small bands of nomadic hunters, while along the Missouri River were established agricultural villages. By the end of the 18th century, growing numbers of people called the Great Plains their home. The ever-increasing European encroachment from the East and the introduction of the horse and gun made the Plains and its abundance of buffalo an attractive area to live. The iconic Plains Indian that captured the imagination of the world, in colourful costume on horseback with his feathered headdress streaming in the wind, dates to this period of conflict and change.