Native American Heritage

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Ribbon Skirts

What is a Ribbon Skirt? Nearly all First Nations and Indigenous groups across Turtle Island (earth) have a strong tradition in this iconic piece of clothing, and all tribes have their own stories and protocol surrounding them.

The modern ribbon skirt is an evolution of First Nations and Indigenous people's artistic skills. Adapted from both the Buckskin dresses and ceremonial skirts of the Woodlands and Plains Native Americans, our ancestors modified that design when European materials became available in the early 1800's.

The modern ribbon skirt has changed over centuries, having a diverse ancestry in its materials and traditions. It is our way of expressing our creativity. Indigenous People have always expressed their art in decorating every day utilitarian items. A ribbon skirt often represents our connection to the earth.

It is difficult to follow the historical record of ribbon skirts accurately, due to rampant racism, stigma and persecution of Indigenous people over the centuries. When persecuted by the government and facing discrimination, American Indians and Alaskan Natives burned their sashes, capotes, and cultural artifacts, including their ribbon skirts, fearing for the safety and livelihoods of their families.

Today, Anishinaabe women proudly wear the ribbon skirts in everyday life and at ceremonies and at Powwows. It can be an expression of womanhood and strength, a symbol of defiance and a symbol of resilience, survival and identity. For Indigenous peoples, the ribbon skirt reminds us of our sacredness as women and the power in that.

1-2. Images courtesy of Tulalip News

The Legend of White Pigeon

In 2013, Dr. Jessica Rickert was interviewed by Juliet Farmer for the Student Doctor Network where she discussed her childhood education:

Dr. Rickert is a direct decedent of the Indian Chief Ogema Wahbememe (White Pigeon) for whom a village in Michigan is named. Her grandfather, Levi Whitepigeon is the young boy who is seated in the middle in the photo of the monument below.

According to legend, while he was at the gathering of the chiefs in Detroit, Wahbememe heard plans to attack the settlement which is now White Pigeon. The Ogema Wabememe was a friend to the white settlers and didn’t want to see harm come to them or to his own clan, so he set out on foot and ran almost 150 miles to the settlement to warn the people.

After running that long distance and giving his warning, he collapsed and soon died from exhaustion. His remains are buried in the town, and the site is now part of the National Register of Historic Places.

Native Heritage Project, White Pigeon

1. The Wahbememe Burial Site and Monument, also known as the Chief White Pigeon Monument (located near White Pigeon, MI) is the burial place of Potawatomi Chief White Pigeon.

2. Dr. Rickert’s grandfather, Levi Whitepigeon (in middle) seated in front of the Chief White Pigeon Monument.

Dream Catchers

Dreamcatchers are handmade willow hoops woven to a web or literally, a net. They can include feathers and beads, and they're traditionally suspended on cradles as a form of armor and protection.

Although the tradition began with the Ojibwes, dreamcatchers became widespread within the Native American communities in the 1960s and 1970s as a result of the Pan-Indian Movement.

They symbolize oneness and are indicative of Indigenous identity. Misuse and exploitation of the design is offensive to Indigenous people and dismissive of their value to them.

From the Indigenous Foundation website, learn more HERE.

Native Beadwork

Native American beadwork is an art form created by indigenous peoples that has been around for centuries. There are two forms. One involves the use of a loom. The other is called applique embroidery. There's a general misconception that they only began using these pieces when European settlers arrived, when in actuality they used them prior to their arrival. They based their entire trade system on these beads and what they symbolized for each tribe. Many of them were made out of materials that the tribe had on hand.

IN MODERN TIMES

For many beadwork artists, the act of crafting beadwork is sacred, like a prayer. “Every bead is special,” I was told at the age of fourteen when I first began beading. If even a small seed bead falls on the floor, you pick it up. When I craft designs, I tend to think of the small beads as being an integral part of a larger pattern, in the same way that our lives are interconnected to each other’s, each of immeasurable worth and value.

Beadwork can be work daily, in forms such as hair clips, medallions, watches, bracelets, necklaces, and any other imaginable jewelry form. But it is most glorious when seen on a Native American dancer representing his or her tribe, history, elders, and ancestors. Beading a full regalia set for a dancer can take up to a year, depending on the size of the beads and the intricacy of the design. That’s why regalia is difficult to purchase–it takes so much time and love that people often don’t prefer to make it for those who aren’t family members or close friends. It’s simply impossible to put a price on a year’s worth of work where countless hours are invested. Yet, it is more than worth the sacrifice to see a beloved family member shine in the powwow circle as they wear your designs.

From the We R Native organization website.

1. Woman with Daughter Working on Beadwork, courtesy of National Archives Catalog
2. Athabaskan beaded hide box, featuring moose hair tufting, from Fairbanks, Alaska, 2007

Potawatomi History

The Potawatomi were part of a confederacy with the Ojibwa (Chippewa) and Odawa (Ottawa) Indian tribes. This group was known as the Council of the Three Fires.

The Ojibwe were said to be the Keepers of Tradition. The Odawa were known as the Keepers of the Trade. The Potawatomi were known as the Keepers of the Fire. Later, the Potawatomi migrated from north of Lakes Huron and Superior to the shores of the mshigmé or Great Lake. This location—in what is now Wisconsin, southern Michigan, northern Indiana, and northern Illinois—is where European explorers in the early 17th century first came upon the Potawatomi; they called themselves Neshnabék, meaning the original or true people.

As the United States frontier border moved west, boundary arguments and land cessions became a way of life for Native Americans. In 1830, the U.S. Congress passed the Indian Removal Act and directed that all American Indians be relocated to lands west of the Mississippi River, leaving the Great Lakes region open to further non-Indian development.

The 1833 Treaty of Chicago established the conditions for the removal of the Potawatomi from the Great Lakes area. When Michigan became a state in 1837, more pressure was put on the Potawatomi to move west. The hazardous trip killed one out of every ten people of the approximately 500 Potawatomi involved. As news of the terrible trip spread, some bands, consisting of small groups of families, fled to northern Michigan and Canada. Some also tried to hide in the forests and swamps of southwestern Michigan. The U.S. government sent soldiers to round up the Potawatomi they could find and move them at gunpoint to reservations in the west. This forced removal is now called the Potawatomi Trail of Death, similar to the more familiar Cherokee Trail of Tears.

More information can be found from the Citizen Potawatomi Nation website. 

1. Chief Kack-Kack of the Prairie Band of Potawatomi, courtesy of National Archives Catalog
2. Ma-ah-go-quah, wife of John Big Fout, of the Potawatomi Tribe, courtesy of National Archives Catalog
3. Photographer Sharon Hoogstraten has spent a decade exploring Potawatomi history, regalia, and life at present.

Black Ash Basketry

Dr. Jessica Rickert recalls her memories with black ash basketry:

"They would find just the right black ash trees in the thick forest around them. They cut down the trees with hand tools, lugged them home and stacked them. After the black ash trees dried, [my family] would pound the logs, then peel off strips of wood along the trunk; these strips of wood were then cut into equal widths. Next, the strips were soaked in tubs of water. The water was dyed with natural materials: ragweed for yellow; choke cherries for red; strawberries for red; and huckleberries for blue. Sometimes they mixed the colors. The strips were woven into a beautiful basket, using the colors and twists of the wood for designs. When the baskets dried, they would hold their shape and be very sturdy.

They also made utilitarian Black Ash baskets, and sold them, going from door to door in downtown Grand Rapids and at Pow Wows.

Kelly Church of the Grand Traverse Odawa-Ojibwe, say that "in the coming decade, black ash split baskets, ash bark baskets, and hand-carved ash cradleboards will become some of the rarest, collectible pieces of Native art. Black ash (Nigra fraxinus), also known as brown ash, is a tree that only grows in the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada. The Native Nations in these areas have woven baskets from the black ash tree for thousands of years. First, they wove utilitarian baskets, and after contact, fancy baskets to provide for the needs of the communities and families."

In 2002, a group of researchers from Michigan State University discovered the emerald ash borer (EAB) in southeastern Michigan. This beetle, Agrilus planipennis, was introduced to Michigan through infected ash pallets from China. Thousands of ash trees were discovered to be dying and dead, and today Michigan has lost over 400 million of its 803 million ash trees due to EAB. 

A 2009 documentary captures the story of Gun Lake Potawatomi Tribal member, Steve Pigeon and his family as they preserve this important tradition. You can watch it HERE.

1. Objibwe Weaver April Stone pounding a black ash log into splints to use for basket weaving. Courtesy of Terasaface
2. Strawberry Basket, Courtesy of Kelly Church
3. Green and Blue Baskets, courtesy of Kelly Church