The collection consists of a small notebook of ruled paper containing twenty-one (21) drawings by Tichkematse, one (1) cyanotype photograph, and one (1) note. The notebook has been disbound and the covers retained. The drawings document an 1887 hunting excursion taken by Colonel Bliss of Fort Supply (in Indian Territory) and Major John Dunlop, a visitor to the fort from Washington D.C. Included in the collection are a cyanotype picture featuring Colonel Bliss, end papers, and covers of the book as well as a typescript note pasted to the inside cover describing the drawings. Many drawings are inscribed with names identifying the figures, most of whom are Cheyenne men who were enlisted as Army scouts.
Biographical Note:
Tichkematse, also known as Squint Eyes, (1857-1932) was among the men held prisoner at Fort Marion in Saint Augustine, Florida, from 1875-1878. While imprisoned, he learned to speak English and to read and write. Upon release he attended school at the Hampton Institute in Virginia for about a year before coming to the Smithsonian. There he was trained in the preparation of bird and mammal specimens for study and display. During his time at the Smithsonian, he also produced drawings illustrating his old life on the Plains, full of buffalo hunts and battles as well as everyday camp life. In 1880 he returned to the Cheyenne and Arapaho Reservation in what is now Oklahoma, but he continued his affiliation with the Smithsonian. He was active in collecting bird and mammal specimens as well as craft items acquired from Cheyenne friends and relatives, which he shipped to the museum.
Major John Dunlop was a supply sergeant in San Antonio before the Civil War. He then went to Mexico, and later to Washington. While in Washington he met Col. Bliss and the maintained a friendship over time, resulting in his visiting Bliss in Indian Territory and participating in the hunt depicted.
Historical Note:
Fort Supply, established in 1868, was initially designated as a supply camp where U.S. Cavalry troops could restock and refresh themselves. It was from this post that Custer and the Seventh Cavalry marched to the Battle of Washita. Over the next twenty-five years, soldiers from Fort Supply performed duties that included peace-keeping and monitoring of the Cheyenne and Arapaho reservation and the Cherokee Outlet as well as monitoring the Land Run of 1893. From 1869 to early 1870, the post served as the temporary location for the Cheyenne and Arapaho Indian Agency.
Local Numbers:
NAA MS 7500
Related Materials:
The National Anthropological Archives holds a photographic copy of the complete book of drawings in PhotoLot R79-24.
The National Anthropological Archives holds additional drawings by Tichkematse in MS 39-d-2 Drawings by Tichkematse and others and Tichkematse and Etahdleuh drawings (MS 290844).
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Genre/Form:
Works of art
Ledger drawings
Photographs
Citation:
MS 7500 Tichkematse book of drawings, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
