Cree Dance Dress
odd: label: Local Numbers
content: OPPS NEG.837 K 7
label: Local Note
content: Black and white copy negative
topic: label: Topic
content: Language and languages -- Documentation
culture: label: Culture
content: Cree
label: Culture
content: Indians of North America -- Great Plains
label: Culture
content: Indians of North America -- Subarctic
setName: label: See more items in
content: Bureau of American Ethnology negatives
label: See more items in
content: Bureau of American Ethnology negatives / Additional Materials / ANONYMOUS
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 1 Photograph (8x10 in)
unitdate: label: Date
content: Jul 8 1897
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: National Anthropological Archives
objectType: label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Photographs
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Photographs
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: White persons wearing Cree costumes.

The Director Bureau of American Ethnology. My dear Sir: With this I send send three photographs. They represent white persons dressed in costumes of the Cree Indians; tho' these Indians belong to Canada they have been in Montana to some extent for nearly twelve years. A great many were taken back to Canada by military force last year but many are now found about here again. I therefore thought their dress might be an object of interest to your department. I am pastor of the little Presbyterian church here. Being interested in the study of anthropology, and also wishing to help the Indians, who are very poor, I have bought a number of articles from them. In the photographs, all the articles are genuine Cree work, except one or two that are not prominent, and the spear: though the latter is ornamented in careful imitation of other articles of their work. but not spears. I never saw one of their spears, tho' they tell me such were used. I have a few more articles than those represented. The group where the man has an eagle feather bonnet and the woman has no headdress shows the chief's costume; the woman is in holiday dress. The photo where each have buffalo horn headdresses shows the dance dress. The photo where the man is alone shows the war dress (tho' I suppose the buckskin shirt would not be worn in active fighting). The drums and other articles hung up mostly belong to the Medicine man. If these are of interest to the Department, please accept them with my good wishes. The actual goods are to be sent utimately to one of our colleges. If you desire I could give you a list of the articles, with - in almost every case- the name in Cree (I am a little acquainted with that language), also the use of the article.

This would entail quite a little work, but I would do it as I had time - if it would assist the work of the Department. In that case I would ask that the photos be returned so that I could put the numbers of the articles upon them. If you should ever desire any articles from this tribe I would be very glad to do what I could for you. I am acquainted with many Indians, and they come to me as a friend, so that I might secure many articles from them. Yours very truly, (Signed) J.W. Millar Pastor Presbn Chu.