The collection consists of an artist's sketchbook, now disbound and laminated, including twenty-one (21) drawings by Making Medicine of scenes of hunting, life at Fort Marion, wagons, trains, and camp life. The drawings are lettered A-U, and individually captioned by George Fox. Inside the front cover the words "Drawn by" and "Cheyenne" are in handwriting of George Fox; the name "Making Medicine" was written by the artist himself. The collection also includes a note from Fox (undated) and letter of transmittal from the donor, Mrs. Burnside (October 1923).
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Biographical Note:
Making Medicine, also known as O-kuh-ha-tuh or "Sun Dancer" and David Pendleton Oakerhater (1844?-1931) was a Cheyenne warrior who became one of the most prolific of the Native American artists at Fort Marion and first sergeant of the company of guards there. When the Fort Marion prisoners were released in the spring of 1878, Making Medicine went to New York to be educated in the Christian ministry. He took the name David Pendleton Oakerhater after the family that sponsored him (the family of Senator George Pendleton), was ordained an Episcopal deacon on 7 June 1881, and worked as a missionary among the Plains tribes for many years. In 1985, he was the first Native American Anglican to be designated by the Episcopal Church as a saint.
George W. Fox (1853-1886) worked as a trader with John "Jack" S. Evans at Fort Sill, Indian Territory, and became an interpreter for Comanche. From 1875 to March 1877, Fox worked with Richard H. Pratt (1840-1924) and prisoners of war from the southern plains at Fort Marion in St., Florida.
Historical Note:
Fort Marion, also known as Castillo de San Marco, is a stone fortress in St. Augustine, Florida. Between 1875 and 1878, seventy-two prisoners from the southern plains were incarcerated in the fort under supervision of Lt. Richard H. Pratt. The prisoners consisted of 27 Kiowas, 33 Cheyennes, 9 Comanches, 2 Arapahos, and a single Caddo. With the exception of one Cheyenne woman, all the prisoners were men. They had been accused of participating in the recent Red River War, earlier hostilities, or both. With the exception of the wife and daughter of one of the Comanche men, the prisoners families were not allowed to accompany them to Fort Marion.
Local Numbers:
NAA MS 39B
OPPS NEG 55,047-55,068
Related Materials:
A similar book of drawings by Making Medicine containing some of the same scenes and dated July 1876 is in the collection of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, Oklahoma City.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Genre/Form:
Ledger drawings
Works of art
Drawings
Citation:
MS 39-b Making Medicine book of drawings, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
The collection consists of twenty-nine (29) loose drawings on various types of paper, some double-sided, with scenes of warfare, hunting, and camp life. They were probably produced at different times during the period 1879-1880. Four are inscribed with the name Etahdleuh Doanmoe and the majority of the remainder with the name Tichkematse, plus other descriptive elements in the artists' hand. Two pencil drawings, which lack any identifying name, are in a Western style and may not be by either artist. In two instances, the figures in the drawing have been cut out and pasted to a new backing [08519400; 08601400].
Most of the images adhere to Plains conventions of close up views of encounters, but in three drawings, Etahdleuh used a more distant perspective to show a Kiowa village along the Washita River (08601800), a buffalo hunt (08601900), and a battle against US troops (08517900). Also unusual are two drawings by Tichkematse showing details of tipi life, including women cooking and children playing (08601500-08601600).
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Arrangement:
The drawings are unarranged. They have been ordered in the same sequence as the original cataloging under MS 290844-290845 when possible.
Biographical Note:
Tichkematse, or Squint Eyes (Quchkeimus), 1857-1932 was a member of the Southern Cheyenne. Together with other Southern Plains warriors he was held prisoner at Fort Marion in St. Augustine, Florida from 1875-78, during which period he and others became well known as artists. 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 work at the Smithsonian Institution. During his time at the Smithsonian (1879-1880) he was trained to prepare bird and mammal specimens for study and display, participating in field expeditions to Florida and the American Southwest. He also served as a gallery guide, a source on Plains gesture language, and acquired cultural materials for the collections from Cheyenne friends and relatives, as well as producing drawings. Upon his return to Oklahoma (then Indian Territory), he served as an Army scout at Fort Supply.
Etahdleuh (1856-1888) was also known as Etahdleeuh, Etadeleuh, Etahdleuh Doanmoe, Boy, and Boy Hunting. He was imprisoned at Fort Marion in St. Augustine, Florida from 1875-1878. After his release from Fort Marion, he attended the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute in Virginia, arriving in April, 1878. In 1879, he traveled to the Indian Territory to recruit pupils to attend the Carlisle Institute in Pennsylvania, where he would study and work on and off from 1879 to 1887. He made two extended trips back to the reservation during this period. From February to May 1880, he worked at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. He was trained as a Presbyterian missionary and returned to the reservation in January 1888 to serve in this capacity.
Edwin Porter Upham (1845-1918) was a museum assistant who worked with the Smithsonian Institution's archeology collections for forty years. Born in Massachusetts, he received a public education there before joining the army during the American Civil War. In 1878, he was hired as an assistant to Dr. Charles Rau, an archeologist at the Smithsonian. After Rau's death, Upham worked with Dr. Thomas Wilson, with whom he cowrote a book entitled Prehistoric Art; Or, The Origin of Art as Manifested in the Works of Prehistoric Man (1898). In 1906, Upham was appointed aide in the division of prehistoric archeology, a position he held until his death.
Related Materials:
Other drawings by Tichkematse are held by the National Anthropological Archives (NAA) in MS 7500, MS 39D2, and in Photo Lot R79-24. For other drawings by Etahdleuh in the NAA, see MS 39C and MS 39D2. Two photographs of Tichkematse in Photo Lot 24 (00438200 and 00438300) are attributed to this accession.
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
Citation:
Tichkematse and Etahdleuh drawings (MS 290844), National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
The collection consists of three (3) drawings made by prisoners are Fort Marion and forwarded to the Smithsonian Institution by Richard Pratt.
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Historical Note:
Fort Marion, also known as Castillo de San Marco, is a stone fortress in St. Augustine, Florida. Between 1875 and 1878, seventy-two prisoners from the southern plains were incarcerated in the fort. Captain Richard Pratt supervised the prisoners during their incarceration at Fort Marion. The prisoners consisted of 27 Kiowas, 33 Cheyennes, 9 Comanches, 2 Arapahos, and a single Caddo. With the exception of one Cheyenne woman, all the prisoners were men. They had been accused of participating in the recent Red River War, earlier hostilities, or both. With the exception of the wife and daughter of one of the Comanche men, the prisoners families were not allowed to accompany them to Fort Marion.
Biographical Note:
White Buffalo Head's father, Minimic or Eagle Head, was a Cheyenne prisoner at Fort Marion, Florida.
Wohaw, also known as Wo-Haw, Beef, Gu hau de, and Wolf Robe, was a Kiowa born in 1855. He was accused of being a combatant in the Red River War of 1874 and 1875. On October 3, 1874, he surrendered at the Cheyenne-Arapaho Agency at Darlington, Indian Territory. He was transferred to Fort Sill, where he was held in the guard house. He was among the Kiowa warriors who were subsequently imprisoned at Fort Marion in San Augustine, Florida. Following his release in 1878, Wohaw returned to the Indian Territory, arriving in Anadarko on May 1, 1878. He served in the Indian Police between 1879 and 1880 and in Troop L of the 7th U.S. Cavalry from 1891 to 1895. He was a member of the Ohomah society and is believed to have been an adherant of the Ghost Dance and Peyote religions. Wohaw died in Oklahoma in 1924.
Richard Henry Pratt (1840-1924) was a United States Army officer and organizer of the Indian Division of the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute in Virginia. Pratt's theories about education of American Indians and their assimilation into American society led to the founding of the Carlisle School in 1879, where he served as superintendent until 1904.
Related Materials:
The National Museum of American History holds eight of the drawings donated by Pratt to the Smithsonian Institution (see 2008.0175.52-2008.0175.59).
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Genre/Form:
Ledger drawings
Pictographs
Works of art
Citation:
Fort Marion drawings collected by Richard Pratt (MS 30740), National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
