Farming
Above: Guarding the Corn Field. Painting by Seth Eastman in Mary H. Eastman, The American Aboriginal Portfolio (Newberry Library, Ayer 250.45 .E2 1853). View catalog record
Native peoples grew domesticated plants long before the arrival of Europeans. Corn was introduced as a field crop into the Midwest about 1,200 years ago. Farming also was part of the seasonal round of subsistence activity in the 18th and early 19th centuries. This was largely the work of women, who farmed together as family groups, but men helped take down trees so that sun would reach the gardens. The women planted in the spring. Dakota women selected a place where wild artichokes were growing because the presence of artichokes indicated a rich soil. Everywhere, planting was associated with close observation of local flora, and religious ceremonies were held at the time of planting. Women used a hoe to dig small conical mounds or “hills” in rows. They soaked the seeds of corn until they sprouted and then planted the seeds by hand deep in the mounds. When the corn showed three or four leaves women loosened the earth around the mound with their fingers and, when it was large enough, hilled it up with their hoes. They grew several species of corn, beans and squash. Ho-Chunks had three kinds of corn, and two varieties of squash. Much of the crop was stored in bark barrels underground for use when other food was scarce. Many groups grew tobacco for use in rituals. After the harvest, the villages held ceremonies to give thanks. Gardening still is important today.
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Guarding the Corn Field
As the corn grew, the Dakota women built scaffolds with watch towers and hide awnings and took turns watching for the blackbirds that threatened the crop. Mothers brought their children, and old women told them the stories that provided instruction in the moral code of their society. They drove off the birds by making noise or waving things. Note the decayed stump left after the field was cleared. Seth Eastman (1808-1858) studied at West Point and was stationed at Fort Snelling in 1830, where he sketched Dakotas and Ojibwas in their villages. He was reassigned elsewhere but returned in 1841 with his wife Mary to command the post for seven years. In 1850 he accompanied Henry Schoolcraft as illustrator for a 6-volume study of Indian life, drawing on earlier sketches and new work. Painting by Seth Eastman in Mary H. Eastman, The American Aboriginal Portfolio (Newberry Library, Ayer 250.45 .E2 1853).
Pounding Hominy. Drawing by Frank B. Mayer
The corn was pounded in a mortar to make meal, which could be used in stew or other kinds of dishes. Mayer sketched Dakotas at the 1851 treaty council in Minnesota. Drawing by Frank Blackwell Mayer in Frank B. Mayer collection of sketchbooks, drawings, and oil paintings of Sioux Indians during the 1851 treaty negotiations at Traverse des Sioux and Mendota, Minn. (Newberry Library, oversize Ayer Art Mayer).
Ottawa Woman in Garden, ca. 1910
This woman is holding corn grown on a farm in Omena, Leelanau County, Michigan. The Ottawa continued to try to farm despite the huge influx of settlers that moved into their country. Photo courtesy of Public Museum of Grand Rapids
The White Earth Land Recovery Program Farm, Minnesota
A WELRP staff member works at the farm tending to the squash in the "three sisters (corn, beans, squash) garden." She wears the Native Harvest T-shirt that reads "Got land?" on the front and "Thank an Indian" on the back. The farm program seeks to restore traditional agricultural and nutrition systems. Indigenous agriculture declined after contact with Europeans, resulting in loss of local seed stocks. WELRP is committed to restoring native varieties of corn, beans, and squash and provides help to people growing food locally. Much of the food produced on the WELRP farm is for local consumption, intended to address health and poverty issues. Photo courtesy of White Earth Land Recovery Program.
Produce Grown by Gun Lake Community, 2005
Photo courtesy of Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi, Michigan.
Gun Lake Community Garden Float
Gun Lake Pottawatomi tribal members display some of their garden produce. Photo courtesy of Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi.
Field Pumpkin
This gourd (Cucurbita pepo L. var. pepo) was an important domesticated plant prior to the arrival of Europeans. It was grown throughout the Midwest for food. Commonly, women cut it in rings and sun-dried it for winter. It also was boiled. Photo by Robin R. Buckallew, courtesy of United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
