New exhibits seek history of encounters

     (Feb. 20, 2009) – Three new permanent exhibits will open Sunday, March 1 at the Sioux City Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center on the Missouri Riverfront. Each was inspired by the Center’s permanent mission of “commemorating a history of encounters” before, during and after the Lewis & Clark Expedition explored this region.

     The new exhibits highlight the beauty of painted buffalo robes; the vitality of traditional Lakota games; and the persistence of the builders of the Floyd Monument.

     The exhibits were conceived and produced as a collaborative effort of the Center’s staff, its cultural and artistic consultants, and Split Rock Studios of St. Paul, Minn.

     “Dig into the Lewis & Clark journals and you find an almost limitless source of stories relevant to how we live today,” says Marcia Poole, director of the Center. “We’ve chosen three of those stories for the Center’s new permanent exhibits.”

 Traditional Native games

     Writing was a principal task of the explorers who met more than 50 Native tribes along the way. Their journals describe many details of those encounters, including observations and sometimes participation in traditional Native games.

     “Encountering Traditional Native Games” showcases the Center’s growing collection of games reproductions based on artifacts at the Buechel Memorial Lakota Museum at St. Francis, S.D. A reproduction of “Wands and Hoops,” one of a number of games images created by Yanktonai Dakota artist Oscar Howe, is part of the exhibit.

     On a “Cloudy cold and Snowey” December 15, 1804, Sergeant John Ordway described Mandan chiefs and warriors playing the hoop and pole game. Other tribes had their version of the game. The Center displays the webbed hoop game of the Lakota, along with games pieces for “winged bones,” hutanacute; “cactus buffalo,” unkcela pte, and the “whirling bone game,” hohuyuhmunpi.

      The Center’s collection now has 21 games and has inspired a games history activity component developed in cooperation with Creighton University’s Native American Studies Program.

     Journal entries describing games offer insight into the explorers’ interaction with Native peoples more than two centuries ago. Today, games of varied times and cultures continue as opportunities for encounters that promote dialogue and understanding.

Painted buffalo robe

     “Images that Connect Us” showcases a contemporary Lakota painted buffalo robe with deep historical connections to Native peoples who decorated animal hides with symbolic designs and pictographic art. The robe also connects to non-Natives, including Lewis & Clark, who encountered this art form. A painted buffalo robe is among the most prized artifacts of the expedition.

     The Center’s buffalo robe has a box-and-border design, a women’s motif used to decorate robes for their use. Men used pictographic art to proclaim prestige as warriors and hunters. These designs and picture stories were later painted or drawn on ledger paper and other materials as buffalo herds were destroyed.

     Lewis & Clark sometimes supplemented their written journal accounts with sketches and drawings. Many explorers who came after them traveled with accomplished artists or were themselves artists who visually documented Native cultures they encountered.

     Among the 19^th century artist-historians were George Catlin, an American painter, and Swiss artist Karl Bodmer. Both were captivated by the elaborately painted robes of people they encountered. They depicted these works of art which also served as clothing.

 Floyd Monument memories

     The Center’s new “Building a Memory” exhibit tells the story of the Floyd Monument from its cedar post beginnings in 1804 to its dedication in 1901 and its recognition as the first National Historic Landmark designated by the National Park Service and the U.S. Department of the Interior in 1960.

     In 1857, a group of pioneers rescued Sergeant Floyd’s remains from a crumbling bluff and reburied them about 200 yards from the original grave. Enthusiasm for building a monument swelled but then quickly subsided as Sioux City hit tough economic times and its population plummeted. 

    Community leaders tried to keep the project alive but it wasn’t until after1893 that planning began in earnest. A series of events converged that fueled fundraising and construction of the 100-foot obelisk on land originally owned by the reorganized Sioux City Stock Yards Company. Not even a national panic could stop citizens from accomplishing the goal of building a monument that remains one of the most prominent sites on the Lewis & Clark Trail.

     The Betty Strong Encounter Center is a private, non-profit cultural complex built and sustained by Missouri River Historical Development, Inc. (MRHD). The Center is located on the riverfront, exit 149 off I-29, open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; noon to 5 p.m. Sunday; closed Monday. Admission and all programs are free. For more information call 712-224-5242 or visit www.siouxcitylcic.com.

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