Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Glory of the Morning: Oral history vs. written history
Glory of the Morning: Oral history vs. written history: "Since I began my studies about GOM, I have been redrawn to Native American or American Indian issues. One such issue resurfaced in the..."
Oral history vs. written history
Since I began my studies about GOM, I have been redrawn to Native American or American Indian issues. One such issue resurfaced in the city in which I currently reside, Rochester, MN. There is a park called Indian Heights Park that was once used as a burial site by the Dakota Nation in the 1860's. The park is located at the highest point of the City of Rochester. The local paper The Post Bulletin had printed stories about the Indians who visited the area (Indian Heights) "year after year" and "buried their dead there" around 1925.
As soon as I became aware of the park's identity in 2009, I began an inquiry about the people that were buried there. I contacted the Shakopee Medwakanton Sioux Community and the Prairie Island Sioux Community to see within their oral history if the elders ever knew of such a village and/or burial site. I didn't hear any back from anyone until this year, right in the middle of my studies of GOM. In fact, I heard back from Prairie Island on the day of a meeting that was to be convened by the Park Board Steering Committee wherein they would hear the "Native American perspective" from the Chairman of the Native American Center of SE MN. I went to the meeting as a "concerned citizen" and listened as the Chairman presented the case for "Native American people of the area". I was never consulted. After his presentation the members of the committee all caucasian thanked the token Indian member of the steering committee for the fine presentation.
At the meeting I learned that a grass roots organization was formed in 2010, Friend of Indian Heights to save the park from further development by the Rochester Area Sports Enthusiasts Group who wanted to expand the 37.5 Indian Heights Park to include timed mountain biking. I was astonished to say the least.
To date there have been two meetings per month and various perspectives have been shared. These perspectives have included the Friends of Indian Heights, the Sports group, a world renowned Indian Burial Mound Expert, Dr. Constance Arzigian and soon the group will hear from the State Archeologist. The Prairie Island History Preservation Officer was invited but she has yet to show. She is relatively new at her post and inexperienced per her own admission.
Today the meeting, in my view, took a turn for the worst. You see there is no official declaration that Indian Heights Parks is a sacred site. The State Archeologist needs to declare this and since he hasn't the park can be developed unless an entity, organization or individual suspects or finds human remains in the area. There is some discussion of "legalities" in the matter. Does the City of Rochester have to call for an archeological dig? What constitutes "development"? You see many of the white people on this committee feel the bodies were all blown away in the big tornado. Dr. Arzigian stated that there was no legal responsibility for the city to call for a dig, but if there have been NA ceremonies performed at the site (NAC has done this) then it would be in the City's interest to involved the NA tribes in the area a so called "best practices" effort to show forth a genuine concern for the area. Today the meeting than turned ugly and a discussion relative to ceremonies and burial sites ensued and went something like this:
Caucasian Man (CM): "You don't really know if there were ever any religious ceremonies performed by anyone there."
Token Indian Board member, President of the NAC of SE MN (NAC): "I do. People were buried up there. We have ceremonies that must be performed."
CM: "But you really can't say that a ceremony ever occurred up there. You can't say there, right here is where a ceremony occurred. There is no proof."
NAC: "You have your own documents to show that a burial site was up there. I am telling you that there are ceremonies that must be done to bury the dead. There are traditions that have been handed down from generation to generation that tell us what ceremonies we need to performed. There are some tribes who use the sweat lodge every day. The park is located near water, the site is the highest elevation in the city. There were ceremonies performed up there."
CM: "You have no proof, only oral history."
As I sat there silent (I have to since I am just a member of the community and not on the steering committee), my research of GOM was right before me. Oral history verses the written account of Europeans, immigrants to this land. Oral history was again being called into question. Even with a written account of an event, written by early white settlers of Rochester, the Indian Burial Site was being discounted because there was NO PROOF (actual bodies or artifacts) to show that something actually occurred up at Indian Heights Park.
This is all reminiscent of how the various Nation's had their land taken from them and then they were relegated to poor plots of land that could not possibly sustain them. The written accounts then were treaties. In time even the treaties that were made between various indigenous nations were tossed aside to make way for settlers, businesses, mining, money making ventures and the like.
In Rochester's case, a tiny plot of land (37.5 acres) that was once a burial site for a particular segment of the Dakota Nation, despite oral history and written historical accounts, may be developed for entertainment. A tiny plot of land that represents less than 1 % of all the parks in Rochester likely will be bull-dozed to make way for a particularly influential group in Rochester to conduct timed mountain biking.
Instead of recognizing a unique opportunity to synergistically build on the oral history accounts of the local NA peoples and the past written documentation of early white settlers and preserve a piece of historic land, lines are being drawn in the sand and Indian Heights Park will likely be further desecrated.
As soon as I became aware of the park's identity in 2009, I began an inquiry about the people that were buried there. I contacted the Shakopee Medwakanton Sioux Community and the Prairie Island Sioux Community to see within their oral history if the elders ever knew of such a village and/or burial site. I didn't hear any back from anyone until this year, right in the middle of my studies of GOM. In fact, I heard back from Prairie Island on the day of a meeting that was to be convened by the Park Board Steering Committee wherein they would hear the "Native American perspective" from the Chairman of the Native American Center of SE MN. I went to the meeting as a "concerned citizen" and listened as the Chairman presented the case for "Native American people of the area". I was never consulted. After his presentation the members of the committee all caucasian thanked the token Indian member of the steering committee for the fine presentation.
At the meeting I learned that a grass roots organization was formed in 2010, Friend of Indian Heights to save the park from further development by the Rochester Area Sports Enthusiasts Group who wanted to expand the 37.5 Indian Heights Park to include timed mountain biking. I was astonished to say the least.
To date there have been two meetings per month and various perspectives have been shared. These perspectives have included the Friends of Indian Heights, the Sports group, a world renowned Indian Burial Mound Expert, Dr. Constance Arzigian and soon the group will hear from the State Archeologist. The Prairie Island History Preservation Officer was invited but she has yet to show. She is relatively new at her post and inexperienced per her own admission.
Today the meeting, in my view, took a turn for the worst. You see there is no official declaration that Indian Heights Parks is a sacred site. The State Archeologist needs to declare this and since he hasn't the park can be developed unless an entity, organization or individual suspects or finds human remains in the area. There is some discussion of "legalities" in the matter. Does the City of Rochester have to call for an archeological dig? What constitutes "development"? You see many of the white people on this committee feel the bodies were all blown away in the big tornado. Dr. Arzigian stated that there was no legal responsibility for the city to call for a dig, but if there have been NA ceremonies performed at the site (NAC has done this) then it would be in the City's interest to involved the NA tribes in the area a so called "best practices" effort to show forth a genuine concern for the area. Today the meeting than turned ugly and a discussion relative to ceremonies and burial sites ensued and went something like this:
Caucasian Man (CM): "You don't really know if there were ever any religious ceremonies performed by anyone there."
Token Indian Board member, President of the NAC of SE MN (NAC): "I do. People were buried up there. We have ceremonies that must be performed."
CM: "But you really can't say that a ceremony ever occurred up there. You can't say there, right here is where a ceremony occurred. There is no proof."
NAC: "You have your own documents to show that a burial site was up there. I am telling you that there are ceremonies that must be done to bury the dead. There are traditions that have been handed down from generation to generation that tell us what ceremonies we need to performed. There are some tribes who use the sweat lodge every day. The park is located near water, the site is the highest elevation in the city. There were ceremonies performed up there."
CM: "You have no proof, only oral history."
As I sat there silent (I have to since I am just a member of the community and not on the steering committee), my research of GOM was right before me. Oral history verses the written account of Europeans, immigrants to this land. Oral history was again being called into question. Even with a written account of an event, written by early white settlers of Rochester, the Indian Burial Site was being discounted because there was NO PROOF (actual bodies or artifacts) to show that something actually occurred up at Indian Heights Park.
This is all reminiscent of how the various Nation's had their land taken from them and then they were relegated to poor plots of land that could not possibly sustain them. The written accounts then were treaties. In time even the treaties that were made between various indigenous nations were tossed aside to make way for settlers, businesses, mining, money making ventures and the like.
In Rochester's case, a tiny plot of land (37.5 acres) that was once a burial site for a particular segment of the Dakota Nation, despite oral history and written historical accounts, may be developed for entertainment. A tiny plot of land that represents less than 1 % of all the parks in Rochester likely will be bull-dozed to make way for a particularly influential group in Rochester to conduct timed mountain biking.
Instead of recognizing a unique opportunity to synergistically build on the oral history accounts of the local NA peoples and the past written documentation of early white settlers and preserve a piece of historic land, lines are being drawn in the sand and Indian Heights Park will likely be further desecrated.
Monday, April 11, 2011
Glory of the Morning: Glory of the Morning: Now includes the Bear Clan
Glory of the Morning: Glory of the Morning: Now includes the Bear Clan: "I went to UWL's powwow this weekend and I witnessed something that I hadn't seen before. A group of men from the Bear Clan protected t..."
Glory of the Morning: Now includes the Bear Clan
I went to UWL's powwow this weekend and I witnessed something that I hadn't seen before. A group of men from the Bear Clan protected the grounds of the powwow prior to the start of the festivities. It was a very old tradition dating back beyond GOM's time. The men sang, carried tobacco and blessed the grounds of the powwow. They covered the interior of the field house and also went outside of the field house to protect the grounds as well. The MC explained the tradition before and after they completed their task, unique to the Bear Clan. It seems that the Bear Clan is responsible for the protection of the tribe. I am not sure how men and women's role differ on this point, but it will certainly be a point of inquiry.
Nevertheless, it was reassuring to me to see men, 8 of them caring enough to protect the area where members of the tribes, other tribes and non-natives alike would be gathering. It was a beautiful tradition to behold.
Another point of interest for me is this, the tribal historian said that once GOM married Decaris, her clan and status changed such that the Bear Clan was now a part of her lineage and/or possibly left her posterity clanless. To this I say: good. Change, character, diversity and opposition are all good. They provide opportunities for further development and strengthening of an individual or family or in this case a nation.
Nevertheless, it was reassuring to me to see men, 8 of them caring enough to protect the area where members of the tribes, other tribes and non-natives alike would be gathering. It was a beautiful tradition to behold.
Another point of interest for me is this, the tribal historian said that once GOM married Decaris, her clan and status changed such that the Bear Clan was now a part of her lineage and/or possibly left her posterity clanless. To this I say: good. Change, character, diversity and opposition are all good. They provide opportunities for further development and strengthening of an individual or family or in this case a nation.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Glory of the Morning: Glory of the Morning: A picture of how she might ...
Glory of the Morning: Glory of the Morning: A picture of how she might ...: "This is a picture of my grandfather Henry T. Decorah (little boy on the right without the cradle board) with his mother, Susie (woman on the..."
Glory of the Morning: A picture of how she might have looked...
This is a picture of my grandfather Henry T. Decorah (little boy on the right without the cradle board) with his mother, Susie (woman on the right). My great-aunt Adelia found this picture in the archives at the Wisconsin Historical Society years ago. My grandfather was born in 1899 and so this picture was taken around 1900. Susie is with her sister and cousin. I love this picture!
Interesting enough, a book written by Patty Loew has this exact picture on its cover. Hmm, I wonder how she managed that?
As I look at Susie with her sister and cousin, I see Glory of the Morning. She is in there somewhere and I am honored to be able to research her contribution to Ho-Chunk history.
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