American Horse 'Wasechum Taschunka' (1840-1908). 'Wasechum Taschunka' took on the name American Horse following the death of his uncle ate the Battle of Slim Buttes. During the reservation days, he was considered a notable progressive and became a head Oglala spokesman. As an orator and diplomat, he represented his people in numerous negotiations with the federal government. Following the tragedy of Wounded Knee he became the leader of a unified Sioux delegation which traveled to Washington seeking a more equitable treatment for the Sioux. In his later years he traveled with Buffalo Bill and the Wild West Show. (Harbaugh, P., 1982)
Heavy accretion of dirt and smudges all over surface. Several water stains in areas BL, BR, TR, and just to the TR of center. Frame and canvas are skewed so that they are no longer square.
Only weeks after they had been ordered by Agent McLaughlin (center) to arrest Sitting Bull as an attempt to calm the growing unrest from the Messiah Craze (Ghost Dance), the Sioux police pose victoriously for Barry's camera. The arrest attempt was disastrous, resulting in the deaths of six Indian police, Sitting Bull, his son Crow Foot and eight of Crow's followers. The panic which followed culminated in the infamous Wounded Knee affair two weeks later. Red Tomahawk (front center) killed Sitting Bull. (Harbaugh, P., 1982)
Red Horse 'Xunktanka Stanewe'. During the spring of 1876, Red Horse moved his band from the region of the Cheyenne River traveling through the Rosebud Valley and met with a large contingent of Sioux assembling on the west bank of the Little Bighorn river. As a head chief within the council lodge of the largest recorded Sioux camp, Red Horse fought both Custer and Reno. In 1881 at the Cheyenne River Agency, S.D., Red Horse created 41 ledger drawings illustrating his part in the famed battle. His story was published by the Bureau of American Ethnology in their Tenth Annual Report. (Harbaugh, P., 1982)
Bertha Cunningham is a Western Manitoban artist who has studied at the Banff School of Fine Arts several summers and has painted in Winnipeg for periods under the guidance of members of the School of Fine Art. She paints mainly landscapes. (1969 inventory)
Dimensions
49.5 X 60.5 cm
Size Overall
63 X 73 cm
Medium
oil
Condition
Brown accretion marks on left frame arm, as well as mild brown accretion mark in TL corner of frame.
Wild Horse 'Xunktanka Wohitika'. An Oglala chief, Wild Horse was said to have been the brother of cousin of the great chief and leader, Crazy Horse, of whom no documented photograph is known. (Harbaugh, P., 1982)
Dimensions
23 X 19 cm
Size Overall
51 X 41 cm
Medium
Black and white photograph
Condition
Severe bowing back of both vertical edges away from mat.
Young-Man-Afraid-of-his-Horses 'Tasunka Kokipapi' (c.. 1830-1900). Although the hereditary Oglalachief, Man-Afraid yielded his tribal authority to Red Cloud amid the turbulent years when the Sioux and Cheyenne openly opposed the Boreman Trail and succeeded in their struggle to drive the army from Sioux hunting grounds within the Powder River country. He led his people on the warpath throughout the Red Cloud War and during his later years was president of the Pine Ridge Council and represented the Oglala in Washington on several occasions. (Harbaugh, P., 1982)
