Arapaho horses in 1870 - Fitz Hugh Ludlow

 Salvete Omnes,

travois in this print from Fitz' book

a quick lope into the Kansas and Colorado Great Plains of the post-1868 war ( battles of Washita and Summit Springs),  our witness to the life of the Plains people, the Arapahoes and their horses, was Fitz Hugh Ludlow .

 

Fitz of New York, was a writer and traveler who made a long trip across the Plains & the Rockies to California* and Oregon -his recollections of this journey - titled The Heart of the Continent - was published in New York in 1870, the year he died.

While his observation on the American Indian women and men, especially the Arapahoes in this chapter taking place near South Platter River, are far from flattering, his short description of the horses can be of interest.

This period, post 1868 on the Plains was the waning of the free roaming tribes and their pursuit of bison, as they have been ravaged by diseases and loss of good hunting and really the way of life.  Fitz pointed to one aspect of the Plains Indians' approach to horses, namely, that the horses and their riders seemed to communicate by touch and understanding. 

Photos by William S. Soule, circa 1870s

*Fitz will be back with his depiction of antelopes, bison and horses and horsetack in California

Valete

William de la Montagne Cary - early American West painter - art from Gilcrease Museum

 Salvete Omnes,

Boy feeding a pet crow

Gilcrerase museum of Oklahoma City has a great collection of the American Western art, including the art of William de la Montagne Cary. William de la Montagne Cary and his art belong  to the category of the early American painters of the American Trans-Mississippi frontier.

We should note that W.M Cary, born June 30, 1840, made his first excursion into the Trans-Mississippi West in 1861, way ahead of the likes of Russell, Paxson, Remington etc. During this trip on the Missouri River he visited and met  the Yankton Sioux, Crow, Assinaboines, Red River Metis, Blackfeet etc.

Fording the Missouri

Well, let us see some digitized images of his art from the Gilcrease Museum -

a rare image of dog travois

all Gilcrease museum images are  in copyright -  I am presenting them here for educational purposes only

as per learning a little more about maestro William we can search the net - eg Amon Carter Museum, gallery sites like Artnet,  Christies or Sothebys  , Betty Krulik etc, but  there is a readily available  book, titled  William  de la Montagne Cary: artist on the Missouri River by Mildred Ladner,  that can be borrowed  from Archive world library.

Valete

Blackfeet tales of Glacier National Park - audio of James W. Schultz' book

 Salvete Omnes,

I am going to start with this prayer - may peace return to the People of Ukraine - winter ahead of them. 

ad rem,
I would like to point your horse towards Archive world library - where you can read or listen (here the audio version) to a delightful and engaging immortal storytelling by James W. Schultz or Apikuni - Blackfeet tales of Glacier National Park. The collection includes the Blackfeet tale of Long Arrow who brought the first horses or the 'elk-dogs,' as the Algonquian Blackfeet called horses, to the Siksika aka Blackfeer.

and I corralled most of the illustrations from the 1916 Riverside Press version of the Blackfeet tales -

nota bene, some of these photos bring to mind the beautiful watercolors by Bev Doolittle - I daresay she was inspired by some of  them.

Valete

Indians at the Winnipeg Stampede 1913

Salvete Omnes,

 

keeping on the rodeo 'stampede' spirit - this post has corralled some photos from the other famous Stampede, at Winnipeg (Manitoba, Canada)  organized and held there in 1913.(all photos from Archive. org world library)

enjoy

Valete