Howdy folks and greetings from the Great Plains of North Texas,
home of several native Indian tribes in times past, most notably the
great Caddo Nation which were located in our very area before the
federal government moved them into the Oklahoma Indian
Territory. I did a series on their rise and fall and rise again.
But today I wanted to talk a little more about Indian cowboys
because of the oxymoron in terminology which that causes! lol.
Many people didn't know there WERE such a thing and yet
Indian cowboys were a consistent percentage of the great Cattle
Drives heading North from Texas for some 20 years.. normally
each crew had at least one Indian drover among them and many
photos I see bear this out.
The transformation for Indians into cowboys is not a big stretch,
in fact it is a logical one given the circumstances of being forced
onto reservations and ending the nomadic lifestyle which many
tribes had, and of course, ending their necessity of being
warriors.
The Indians were, after all, the best horsemen in the world, they
knew animals and how to raise them, they were close to nature
and were the ultimate homesteaders in most regards.
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Cherokee Kid, rancher and actor source
So when they were forced onto the reservations many of them
started ranches and growing cattle and horses. As hard as the
federal government tried to squash any native traditions which
they had held for thousands of years, most of them kept many
intact while adapting clothing and other White ways of life.
Photos of Indian cowboys and ranchers are rare and there was alot
of scorn toward them in the White world and much discrimination
unfortunately, and for those reasons photos of genuine Indian
cowboys are rare.
What I wanted to share with you today are what I consider to be a
treasure trove of photos taken of authentic Indian cowboys who
owned and worked ranches on reservations. These were taken by
a Dutch lady by the name of Benedicte Wrensted who came to the
United States in the late 1800's and started a photography studio
in Idaho.
Unlike most photographers who had an agenda in photographing
Indians, many times showing them in a destitute and pitiful state,
she became friends with the Shoshone and Bannock tribes on the
Fort Hall reservation and let them choose how they wanted to be
photographed, in what poses and what clothing.
Here are some photos of her work which are from the U.S. National
Archives.
this Indian's name is Captain Willie, his beaded gauntlet gloves
are the type worn by both white and Indian cowboys in the 1800's
especially in rodeos.
this cowboy is not identified but the pattern on his chaps are of the
Sho-Ban tribe.
This is Jack Edmo with his wife Lizzie and their kids, they were
prominent ranchers of the Shoshone tribe and chose traditional garb
instead of their everyday ranch working clothes. It's interesting that
on Jack's moccasins is a beaded American flag as noted under the
photo by the Archive!
Here you have a family who is shunned by the outside world and
kept on the reservation and he honors his "captors" by wearing an
image of their flag!
This beautiful display of traditional and reservation culture shows
three cowboy Indians wearing their reservation hat and other
ranching gear such as vests, cloth shirts and pants and neckerchiefs,
but also shows their necklaces and moccasins. This is a picture that
truly reveals the interplay of culture evident at Fort Hall Reservation.
Look at how tall that guy's hat is!
This is a fascinating photo to me..this is chief of the Lemhi tribe
named Chief Tin Door and apparently he likes this white lady! lol.
I don't know what this is about but he must have wanted to
immortalize his affections for her!
This is a Shoshone named Billy George who chose to go all White
Dude for this photo, unusual to have short hair also. His wife's
name is Weetowsie. Taken in 1890.
Well that's all for today folks, I hope you've enjoyed this glimpse into
the past with some rare photos. Why did it take a woman from the
Netherlands to take classic photos like this? Our disgust with the
Indians, as a whole, was so great that we didn't care. That's sad.
Next post will be about Indian cowboys from the 1800's to the
present which I doubt(as smart as ya'll are)that few have any idea
about and I know you'll like it because it's a story of triumph of the
human spirit against prejudice and oppression.(human spirit wins)
thanks for reading guys, God bless you all!
-jonboy Texas
the gentleman redneck
ps- ya know...you might just be a redneck if:
You've spent more on your pickup truck than your education!