Native Americans called it Mateo Tepee,and different tribes developed stories to explain its origin. The Kiowa tell of seven little girls who,while playing,were chased by a huge bear, In an effort to escape,they scrambled onto a rock. As the bear came closer,they realized that the rock would not provide the protection they had hoped for.The prayed to a rock to save them. Within seconds,the rock began to grow in height. It carried the girls up and away from the bear.The girls were then turned into stars.We can see them today as the seven stars of the Pleiades.The Kiowa say that the vertical grooves on the sides of Devil's Tower are scratch marks from the bear's claws.