National Anthropological Archives

Guide to Fort Marion drawings collected by Richard Pratt, circa 1877

Summary

Collection ID:
NAA.MS30740
Creators:
Pratt, Richard Henry, 1840-1924
White Buffalo Head (Cheyenne)
Minimic (Cheyenne)
Wo-Haw, 1855-1924
Dates:
circa 1877
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
3 Drawings (visual works)
Repository:

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The collection consists of three (3) drawings made by prisoners are Fort Marion and forwarded to the Smithsonian Institution by Richard Pratt.
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.

Historical Note

Historical Note
Fort Marion, also known as Castillo de San Marco, is a stone fortress in St. Augustine, Florida. Between 1875 and 1878, seventy-two prisoners from the southern plains were incarcerated in the fort. Captain Richard Pratt supervised the prisoners during their incarceration at Fort Marion. The prisoners consisted of 27 Kiowas, 33 Cheyennes, 9 Comanches, 2 Arapahos, and a single Caddo. With the exception of one Cheyenne woman, all the prisoners were men. They had been accused of participating in the recent Red River War, earlier hostilities, or both. With the exception of the wife and daughter of one of the Comanche men, the prisoners families were not allowed to accompany them to Fort Marion.

Biographical Note

Biographical Note
White Buffalo Head's father, Minimic or Eagle Head, was a Cheyenne prisoner at Fort Marion, Florida.
Biographical Note
Wohaw, also known as Wo-Haw, Beef, Gu hau de, and Wolf Robe, was a Kiowa born in 1855. He was accused of being a combatant in the Red River War of 1874 and 1875. On October 3, 1874, he surrendered at the Cheyenne-Arapaho Agency at Darlington, Indian Territory. He was transferred to Fort Sill, where he was held in the guard house. He was among the Kiowa warriors who were subsequently imprisoned at Fort Marion in San Augustine, Florida. Following his release in 1878, Wohaw returned to the Indian Territory, arriving in Anadarko on May 1, 1878. He served in the Indian Police between 1879 and 1880 and in Troop L of the 7th U.S. Cavalry from 1891 to 1895. He was a member of the Ohomah society and is believed to have been an adherant of the Ghost Dance and Peyote religions. Wohaw died in Oklahoma in 1924.
Biographical Note
Richard Henry Pratt (1840-1924) was a United States Army officer and organizer of the Indian Division of the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute in Virginia. Pratt's theories about education of American Indians and their assimilation into American society led to the founding of the Carlisle School in 1879, where he served as superintendent until 1904.

Administration

Custodial History
Richard Pratt donated a set of eleven (11) drawings to the United States National Museum circa 1877 (Catalog Numbers 30740-30750; No Accession Number). Three of the drawings are now held by the National Anthropological Archives in this collection. Eight of the drawings are held by the National Museum of American History.
Processing Information
The collection was reprocessed in 2022. Three drawings donated by Pratt to the Smithsonian had been described as three separate collections (MS 30740, MS 30747, and MS 30750). The archivist incorporated all three drawings into a single collection under MS 30740.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Use
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Preferred Citation
Fort Marion drawings collected by Richard Pratt (MS 30740), National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution

Related Materials
The National Museum of American History holds eight of the drawings donated by Pratt to the Smithsonian Institution (see 2008.0175.52-2008.0175.59).

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Ledger drawings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Pictographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Works of art Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tsitsistas/Suhtai (Cheyenne) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Kiowa Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
North America Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

National Anthropological Archives
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