Rate This Article Typical Native American Tribal Bead Color Preferences By Crazy Crow Trading Post ~ June 20, 2012 Typical Native American Tribal Bead Color Preferences By Crazy Crow Trading Post ~ June 20, 2012 Sioux Women's Dress - Westphalian Museum of [read more]
Rate This Article Seed Beads & Pony Beads - Mix or Match? By Crazy Crow Trading Post ~ December 2006 Photo Credit: The Children's Museum of Indianapolis, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Blackfeet or Lakota storage bags ca 1875-1885 Seed Beads & Pony Beads - Mix or [read more]
Rate This Article Selecting the Right Needles & Thread for Your Craft Project By Crazy Crow Trading Post ~ July 20, 2011 Selecting the Right Needles & Thread for Your Craft Project By Crazy Crow Trading Post ~ July 20, 2011 Needles & Thread for BeadingNeedle sizes [read more]
Rate This Article American Indian Trade Blankets The Rise of Pendleton Woolen Mills as the Primary Trade Blanket of Contemporary Native Americans Credit Above Photo: Visitor7, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons American Indian Trade Blankets The Rise of Pendleton Woolen Mills as the Primary Trade [read more]
Throughout the period of the “Indian trade” in America, there were a number of both manufacturers and distributors of point blankets over the years. English made blankets were marketed by many different firms, including T. Eaton’s; Early’s of Witney; BCW; Globe; Gault’s; Mackay, Smith, Blair & Co. (Vancouver); Push, Tact & Principle; Simpsons; Hudson Bay Company as well as several others.
This article, A Visual History of Tradecloth, A Partial Record, is an enhancement of the original presentation at the Material Culture of the Plains, Prairie and Plateau Conference (MCPPP), National Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Museum, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, October 16-18, 2008. It is an attempt to show examples of the various types of trade cloth and their use by American Indian people over time.
Beads often reveal long-lost histories of countries, cultures, and people. For example, in November 2009, archaeologists with Atlanta’s Fernbank Museum of Natural History unearthed the first evidence of conquistador Hernando de Soto’s stay in Georgia, in the U.S., in 1540. The evidence used to make this determination is beads!
Rate This Article History of Clay Pipes from Fort Union National Historic Site © 2002-2009 J. Byron Sudbury Fort Union National Historic Site, North Dakota Photo Credit: Foto: R. Heyen, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons History of Clay Pipes from Fort Union National Historic Site © 2002-2009 [read more]
Rate This Article Lewis and Clark Compass Exhibition of "The American Presidency" features Lewis & Clark Compass Photo Credit: Samuel Lewis, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Lewis and Clark track map published 1814 (cropped). Lewis and Clark Compass Exhibition of "The American Presidency" features Lewis & Clark Compass [read more]
The emerging middle class of the 18th century wanted to enjoy things traditionally reserved for the upper classes. Upper class amenities emulated in tin reflected this new status. The new world was also a rough and tumble place. The durability (and light weight) of tin allowed for shipping over rough roads and great distances.
