Indians of North America -- Southwest, New Search this
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Stereographs
Photographs
Date:
late 19th century-early 20th century
Scope and Contents note:
Stereographs documenting Native North Americans, including studio portraits, camps and dwellings, graves, infants in cradleboards, and pottery. Specific images portray Sitting Bull's camp at Fort Randall, Curly at the Custer monument, and a Southern Plains delegation at the White House Conservatory. Tribes represented include Winnebago, Tuscarora, Tesuque, Seneca, San Juan, Pecos, Ojibwa, Oglala, Ute, Kaibab, Sisseton, Arikara, Mandan, Hopi, Shoshoni, Isleta, and Laguna, as well as Native peoples of Alaska and Labrador.
The photographs were published by a variety of firms including E. & H. T. Anthony & Company, George Barker, H. H. Bennett, Bennett & Brown, W. Henry Brown, Caswell & Davy, Childs Art Gallery, B. B. Brubaker, Continent Stereo Company, W. R. Cross, H. A. Doerr, J. Gurney & Son, Haynes, H. T. Hiester, John K. Hillers, William H. Jackson, J. F. Jarvis, Keystone View Company, B. L. Singley, S. J. Morrow, H. T. Payne, H. N. Robinson, C. R. Savage, John P. Soule, Underwood & Underwood, Whitney's Gallery, Whitney & Zimmerman, and Ben Wittick.
Local Call Number(s):
NAA Photo Lot 140
Location of Other Archival Materials:
Additional photographs by these photographers can be found in the National Anthropological Archives in additional collections of stereographs relating to Native Americans (MS 4551 and Photo Lot 90-1)
Photo lot 140, Bureau of American Ethnology collection of stereographs relating to Native Americans, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
This collection includes 40 copy prints of David F. Barry photographs which had been held by David Barry's sister, Matie (Barry) Moore. These were later copied by her brother-in-law Herbert O. Peterson. The copy prints include many of Barry's most famous portraits of Lakota leaders from at the end of the 19th century such as Tatanka Iyotanka (Sitting Bull) [Hunkpapa Lakota (Hunkpapa Sioux)], Rain in the Face (Iromagaja/Ito-na-gaju/Ite-Mahazhu/I-Te-Amaghazhu/Exa-ma-gozua) [Hunkpapa Lakota (Hunkpapa Sioux)], and Chief Gall (Pizi) [Oglala Lakota (Oglala Sioux)], among others.
Scope and Contents:
This collection includes 40 copy prints of David F. Barry photographs which had been held by David Barry's sister, Matie Barry Moore. It is likely that some of the photographs were originally shot by Orlando Scott Goff and later attributed to Barry, who may have printed them at a later date. The studio portraits of Native leaders include—Tatanka Iyotanka (Sitting Bull) [Hunkpapa Lakota (Hunkpapa Sioux)], Rain in the Face (Iromagaja/Ito-na-gaju/Ite-Mahazhu/I-Te-Amaghazhu/Exa-ma-gozua) [Hunkpapa Lakota (Hunkpapa Sioux)], Chief Gall (Pizi) [Oglala Lakota (Oglala Sioux)], Chief John Grass (Charging Bear/Mato-Wata-Kpe/Pah-zhe/Matowatakpe/Pehzi/Pe-ji/Used As A Shield), [Sihasapa Lakota (Blackfoot Sioux)], Chief Joseph (Hinmuuttu-yalatlat [Thunder Rolling Down the Mountain]/In Mut Too Yah Lat Lat) [Niimíipuu (Nez Perce)], Chief Goose (Goos) [Ihanktonwan Nakota (Yankton Sioux)], Curley (Ashishishe) [Apsáalooke (Crow/Absaroke)], Red Cloud (Makhpiya-luta [Scarlet Cloud]/Mahpina Luta) [Oglala Lakota (Oglala Sioux)], Crow King (Kangi-yatapi/Ka-Ge-Tou-Cha) [Hunkpapa Lakota (Hunkpapa Sioux)], Chief Wild Horse [Oglala Lakota (Oglala Sioux)], and Good Horse with his wife [Hunkpapa Lakota (Hunkpapa Sioux)].
Additional non-Native portraits include—Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer, General F.W. Bentun, Captain Tom McDougal, Col. William F. Cody ("Buffalo Bill"), Matie Barry Moore, and Judge Kenshaw Landis. There are also a number of outdoor shots made in Dakota territory which include views of Sitting Bull's log cabin, Sitting Bull's camp, census taking on the Standing Rock reservation, Reno Crossing and Fort Lincoln in the snow. There is also an image of Barry's studio set up in Fort Buford. One image has been restricted due to cultural sensitivity.
Prints include catalog numbers P23561 - P23599.
Arrangement:
Arranged by catalog number.
Biographical / Historical:
David Frances Barry (1854-1934) was a photographer who is most noted for his photographs of famous Native American leaders at the end of the 19th century. Growing up in Columbus, Wisconsin, Barry was hired by photographer Orlando Scott Goff, with whom he eventually partnered. From 1878 to 1883, Barry traversed Dakota Territory and Montana making many of his most widely known photographs of Native American leaders, such as Sitting Bull, Rain in the Face, and Chief Gall, as well as photographing forts and battlefields, military officers, and other people in the region. In 1883, Barry opened a new studio in Bismarck, where he began photographing members of Cody's Wild West Show. In 1890, Barry returned to Wisconsin where he operated a successful gallery in the city of Superior until his death in 1934.
Barry's sister, Matie (Barry) Moore, retained a collection of photographs made by her brother which were eventually copied and donated to the National Museum of the American Indian.
Separated Materials:
A folder of newspaper clippings regarding the life and work of David F. Barry were donated by Herbert Peterson along with the photographic prints. These are in the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation records (NMAI.AC.001) in Box 289, Folder 1.
Provenance:
Donated by Herbert O. Peterson, brother-in-law to Matie Barry Moore, in 1991. Matie Barry Moore was sister to the photographer David F. Barry.
Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archives Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archives Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not modified in any way, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian. For more information please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use and NMAI Archive Center's Digital Image request website.
Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Matie Barry Moore collection of David F. Barry copy prints, image #, NMAI.AC.334; National Museum of the American Indian Archives Center, Smithsonian Institution.
The collection is largely composed of photographs depicting Plains Indians, many of whom took part in the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Depicted individuals include Young Man Afraid of His Horse, Low Dog, Good Horse, Clear Eyes, Rain in the Face, Crow Flies High, Trail Hunter, Sitting Bull, Crow King, Red Cloud, White Faces, Running Antelope, Red Girl, Curly, John Grass, Gall, Spotted Tail, and a group of Ghost Dancers. There are also images of Barry, General Custer, the horse Comanche, and Buffalo Bill.
Biographical/Historical note:
David Frances Barry (1854-1934) was a photographer based in Bismarck, Dakota Territory, who is most noted for his photographs of famous American Indians. In 1878, he was hired by itinerant photographer O. S. Goff, with whom he eventually partnered. From 1878 to 1883, Barry traversed the Dakota Territory, making many of his most widely known photographs of American Indians, forts and battlefields, military officers, and other people in the region. In 1883, Barry opened a new studio in Bismarck, where he began photographing members of Cody's Wild West Show.
Local Call Number(s):
NAA Photo Lot R81-71
Reproduction Note:
Copy prints made by Smithsonian Institution, 1981.
Location of Other Archival Materials:
Additional photographs by Barry, as well as originals of images in this collection, can be found in the National Anthropological Archives in Photo Lot 24, Photo Lot 80-18, Photo Lot 87-2P, Photo Lot 90-1, MS 4559, and the BAE historical negatives.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Rights:
This copy collection has been obtained for reference purposes only. Contact the repository for terms of use and access.
The William Wildschut photograph collection contains 183 photographic negatives, and 89 post cards. From 1917 to 1928 William Wildschut studied the Apsáalooke people through interviews, photography, and the collection of cultural objects. In 1921 Wildschut was hired as a field man by George Gustav Heye the director of the Museum of the American Indian, Wildschut officially collected and conducted field expeditions in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Canada, and North Dakota on behalf of the Museum until 1928. Wildschuts photographs include portrait style photos of Apsáalooke people, special events, daily reservation life, interments, and encampments. Tribes represented in this collection are primarily Apsáalooke, the postcard collection consists of other tribes including Lakota, Arapaho, and other unidentified tribes.
Scope and Contents:
The William Wildschut collection contains 183 photographic negatives, and 21 photographic prints. The photographic negatives were made by Wildschut between 1917 and 1928. The majority of the photographs in this collection are of Apsáalooke people and their reservation, however the postcard collection consists of over 14 instances of people from unidentified tribes. Wildschut photographed Apsáalooke chiefs, leaders and their families in portrait style poses and his subjects are usually dressed in their finest. He also photographed events such as Crow fair, veteran celebrations, parades, ceremonies, and interments.
The Apsáalooke are a people of the northern plains, their ancestral territory is in Yellowstone River valley, which extends from present-day Wyoming, through Montana and into North Dakota, where it joins the Missouri River. Today the Crow Indian Reservation in located in south-central Montana which covers roughly 2,300,000 acres of land and it is the fifth-largest Indian reservation in the United States. The Crow are known for their horsemanship, exquisite beadwork, clan system, historic war societies, 7th Calvary scouts, prolific chiefs, and beautiful homeland.
Series 1: Apsáalooke chiefs and leaders photographed in portrait style taken between 1917-1928. Wildschut captured images of many of the last Apsáalooke war chiefs who were, at the time, adjusting to a new life on the reservation. Many of the chiefs and leaders Wildschut photographed were dealing with new issues such as the Allotment Act, the Indian Citizenship Act, implementation of boarding schools, and government imposed regulations on traditional practices.
Series 2: Groups of Apsáalooke people in various situations. These photographs were taken at social events such as parades, dances, celebrations, and at the 45th annual Battle of the Little Big Horn.
Series 3: Apsáalooke people (individuals and families) in various situations. Some photographs are portrait style poses and others are casual instances. The Crow, who call themselves Apsáalooke or Biiluuke, are people of the Northern Plains. The Apsáalooke people continue to maintain their language and remain resilient in their cultural practices, they still identify themselves through a clan system, these clans are Ashshitchíte/the Big Lodge, Ashhilaalíoo/ Newly Made Lodge, Uuwatashe/ Greasy Mouth, Ashíiooshe/ Sore Lip, Xúhkaalaxche/ Ties the Bundle, Biliikóoshe/ Whistling Waters, Ashkápkawiia/ Bad War Deeds, and the Aashkamne/ Piegan clan.
Series 4: Photographs of the reenactment of the Battle of the Little Big Horn in Garryowen, MT in 1921. The Battle of the Little Bighorn was fought along the banks of the Little Bighorn River, in south central Montana on June 25-26, 1876. The 7th Regiment of the U.S. Cavalry engaged in armed combat with the Lakota, Sioux, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes. The site of the battlefield is located on the Crow Indian reservation which is where Wildschut photographed the re-enactment. This event involved actual survivors of the event and many other re-enactors.
Series 5: Casual photographs of non-ceremonial dances, parades, fairs, races and rodeos. The Apsáalooke enjoy a very social culture, they revel in coming together to sing, dance, and celebrate as often as possible. This is called baasaxpilúua (Celebration). Baasaxpilúua allows families and clans to reunite and solidify their bonds. One such occasion is the annual Crow Fair celebration that takes place on the Crow reservation, on the third week of August. The Crow parade is a stunning exhibition of beadwork adorning people, horses and various types of floats. The beadwork of the Crow people is among the most technically proficient and visually exquisite in the world.
Series 6: Encampments with tipis (ashtáale) and tents. Wildschuts photographs of encampments are on the Crow reservation, Fort Custer, and at the Billings fair (a fair that Crows would go to parade, dance, camp and watch races and rodeos). The Apsáalooke call the tipi ashtáale, which translates to real home. Wildschut was not allowed into the tipi to photograph, there is only one photographic instance where he took photographs of a family in a tipi [N31145] and [N31146].
Series 7: Restricted Photographs of interments, ceremonies, sacred spaces and objects). As an ethnographer William Wildschut spent time studying Crow culture. He interviewed Crow people and even witnessed ceremonial events. Wildschut developed relationships with certain Crows who allowed him the honor of being present when private sacred bundles where opened. In some cases Wildschut was allowed to photograph these sacred events. Not all Apsáalooke people agree with these permissions, however the Crow people understand that those who allowed Wildschuts presence did so for their own purposes. The Apsáalooke come from a living culture and still maintain their language, culture and beliefs. They have respectfully requested that these photographs not be made public.
Arrangement note:
This collection is arranged into eight series by people, events, locations and postcards.
Series 1: Apsáalooke Chiefs (Bacheeítche), Series 2: Apsáalooke Groupings, Series 3: Apsáalooke People, Series 4: 45th Annual Battle of the Little Big Horn, Series 5: Parades, Dances, and Events, Series 6: Encampments, Series 7: Restricted Content, Series 8: Postcards.
Biographical/Historical note:
William Wildschut was born Willem Wildschut on March 30, 1883, in Jisp, Holland. He married in 1909 in Leicester, England, and moved with his wife to Trier, Germany, where he was in charge of a cigarette factory. This began a long period during which Wildschut and his family moved frequently between Holland, Canada, and the western United States, usually while Wildschut was managing factories. In 1917 Wildschut moved his family to Billings, Montana where he worked in Farm Mortgages, this work took him to Hardin, Mt. (a small farming community 43 miles east of Billings), which borders the Crow Indian reservation and once served as an economic hub for the Apsáalooke people. William was fascinated with the Crow and began purchasing medicine bundles, war shirts, and various other items from the Crow which he found a market for with George Gustav Heye the founding Director of the Museum of the American Indian. In 1922, Heye purchased Wildschut's medicine bundle collection and hired him as a field man. From 1921 to 1928 Wildschut officially collected and conducted field expeditions in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Canada, and North Dakota on behalf of the Museum. Wildschut was also a collector of photographs. In the late 1920's he distributed a series of postcards that featured Native American people. These postcards featured his own photos as well as those of other photographers. During his employment with the Museum of the American Indian he was made a member of the Explorer's Club, and published several articles in the Museum's series "Indian Notes". On May 1, 1928, after the death of two of Heye's major benefactors, Wildschut was let go. In 1929 Wildschut and his family relocated to California where he worked for different mortgage companies. 1936 he was transferred to Oakland, California where he remained until his passing on January 7, 1955.
According to letters from him wife, William Wildschut was given a Crow name and was close friends with many Crow people. She also wrote that he believed it was his calling to do the work with Indians, however when he was released from employment with MAI he became distraught and never spoke of Indian people again. There are few stories about William Wildschut that remain in Crow Country, one is that his name was "Xaapaliiashilish" (Bundle Buyer) which is fitting considering he purchased and hundreds of sacred bundles from the Crow, which are now in Museums and Private Collections all over the world.
William Wildschut wrote several book manuscripts during his time with the Crow, three were later edited and published, these include: Crow Indian Beadwork (New York: Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation: 1959), Crow Indian Medicine Bundles (New York: Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation: 1960) and Two Leggings: The Making of a Crow Warrior which was published in 1967.
Related Materials:
Additional William Wildschut papers (WA MSS S-2386) are located at Yale University, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, and The Yale Collection of Western Americana, New Haven, Connecticut.
The National Museum of the American Indian holds additional William Wildschut material such as letters, notes, receipts, and objects descriptions in the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation records, 1890-1989. They can be found in Series 6: Collectors, Box 284, Folder 14 to Box 286, Folder 6.
Separated Materials:
Originally, a collection of Fred E. Miller photographs purchased by William Wildschut were marked as William Wildschut photographs and were included in this collection. They have since been identified by Dorothy Munson, curator of the Fred E. Miller Collection, in Housatonic, Massachusetts, and have been processed separately as the Fred E. Miller photograph collection.
Provenance:
The Wildschut photograph collection was purchased from William P. Wreden of Palo Alto, California, by Frederick Dockstader, director of the Museum of the American Indian, in 1964. Mrs. Wildschut had given the negative collection to Frederick Moore, a friend of the Wildschuts, for his personal collection. However, when Moore's bookselling business went bankrupt the Wildschut images ended up as part of the bankruptcy sale and were purchased by Wreden. Many of the postcards in this collection were taken years after Wildschuts death, these post cards were possibly added to the collection by Fredrick Moore or William P. Wreden.
Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Thursday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu). Certain photographs have been restricted due to cultural sensitivity.
Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Topic:
Crow Indians -- Social life and customs -- Photographs Search this
Crow Indians -- Montana -- Crow Indian Reservation -- Photographs Search this
Genre/Form:
Postcards
Negatives (photographic)
Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); William Wildschut photograph collection, Item Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
This collection contains photographs depicting Apsáalooke (Crow/Absaroke) people on the reservation in Montana. The photographs were shot by Fred E. Miller, a Bureau of Indian Affairs clerk circa 1898-1910.
Scope and Contents:
This collection contains 132 glass plate negatives and 65 prints (plus 145 acetate copy negatives and 148 contact prints) that were shot by Fred E. Miller circa 1898-1910 and depict Apsáalooke (Crow/Absaroke) people and their reservation in Montana. The bulk of the photographs depict outdoor portraits of individuals and families. Other photographs depict encampments and scenes of daily life and activities on the reservation. Most individuals in the photographs are identified, including Chief Plenty Coups, Chief Holds the Enemy, Chief Two Leggings, and Chief Medicine Crow. Other portraits depict Apsáalooke scouts from General George Armstrong Custer's 7th Cavalry including Curley, White Swan, and Harry Moccasin. A few photographs also depict portraits of Cheyenne and Lakota people.
Some images are restricted due to cultural sensitivity, such as scenes of burials and ceremonies.
Fred Miller's negatives were often misattributed to William Wildschut who worked as a field collector for the Museum of the American Indian and photographed Apsáalooke people from 1917-1928. Please see the Immediate Source of Acquisition and Related Materials notes for more information.
Arrangement note:
This collection is intellectually arranged into 3 series by subject and restrictions.
The collection is physically arranged according to photo type. The glass plate negatives are arranged in boxes according to size; the acetate film boxes are arranged in a separate set of boxes first by collection #, then by catalog #; and the prints and contact prints are organized first by collection #, then in folders by catalog #.
Biographical/Historical note:
Born in Chicago in 1868, Fred E. Miller learned photography in Iowa and went on to operate a photo studio in Nebraska and Iowa. In 1896 he moved to Helena, Montana and served as a civil service clerk for the Bureau of Indian Affairs on the Apsáalooke (Crow/Absaroke) Reservation and 1898 he became the land clerk for the Crow Agency. Miller lived among and photographed the Apsáalooke people, learned to speak the language, and was officially adopted into the nation in 1905. He also acted in other roles periodically including as superintendent, U.S. commissioner, and justice of the peace.
He married Emma Smith Miller (1883-1920, Shawnee) in 1905 and they had four children Hulda Mignon Miller (1906-1991), Edwin H. Miller (1908-1988), Robert A. Miller (1910-1966), and Ruth Miller (1912-1976). In 1910, Miller left his Bureau position, and tried his hand at cattle ranching in Hardin, Montana. He died in 1936 and his collection of 500 of his glass plate negatives were sold by court order at public auction.
Related Materials:
The NMAI also holds the William Wildschut photograph collection, NMAI.AC.001.033. This collection contains photographs that were were shot by Wildschut between 1917 and 1928 and depict depict Apsáalooke (Crow/Absaroke) people and the reservation.
The Montana Historical Society also holds a Fred E. Miller collection (collection number: MC 434)
Provenance:
Collected by William Wildschut for the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation in 1928. From 1921-1928, Wildschut was a field man for the MAI and collected material from Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Canada, and North Dakota on behalf of the Museum. Wildschut most likely collected these photographs directly from Fred Miller in Montana.
Restrictions:
Access is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment.
Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not modified in any way, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian. For more information please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use and NMAI Archive Center's Digital Image request website.
Some photographs in this collection are RESTRICTED due to Cultural Sensitivity.
Genre/Form:
Black-and-white negatives
Photographs
Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Fred E. Miller photograph collection, NMAI.AC.108, Catalog #. National Museum of the American Indian Archives, Smithsonian Institution.
