Indians of the Midwest

Tribal Museums

Above: Forest County Potawatomi Library. Photo courtesy of Forest County Potawatomi Cultural Center, Library, and Museum

Several tribes in the Midwest operate tribal museums and cultural centers, sometimes in conjunction with tribal libraries. These are community-based and focused centers that are owned and managed by tribes. They have become an integral part of cultural renaissance in Native communities, as well as one of the ways Native communities try to correct misunderstandings about Indians. Until the 1970s, Native cultural objects were showcased in museums operated by non-Indians, largely for non-Indians. From a Native perspective, these exhibits reinforced harmful stereotypes because they focused on Indians of the past and often distorted Indian life. There are now over 150 tribal museums in the United States, including several in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.

Read Frank Ettawageshik’s assessment of the concept of authenticity as applied to Indians by museums and non-Indians in general

For many years a debate in the academic and museum world has centered on the question of whether artwork produced and sold in stores, such as my family’s business, is an authentic reflection of the culture of the people who produce it. Or, it is asked, is this artwork only “tourist art”—a “less authentic” degeneration of true Indian art? This discussion assumes that the only “real” or “authentic” Indians are those “uncorrupted” by European influence, and thus that the only “real” or “authentic” Indian art must be similarly uncorrupted. This “uncorrupted,” “pure,” or “authentic” work becomes the yardstick by which anything produced after contact with outsiders is measured. Any modification of old techniques or methods is considered less good, and any innovation is considered to be a symptom of the degeneration of the old culture. Once assimilation or adaptation has occurred, the old ways, the old culture, the old people are considered to be gone. . . . If scholars continue to assert that the art of the modern American Indian is not “authentic,” can it be long before federal bureaucrats conclude that today’s American Indians are also no longer authentic? . . . Art is a reflection of culture as well as one of the forms of interaction with other cultures. . . . If Indian art and culture have brought change to the art and culture of the non-Indian, has this resulted in the creation of “inauthentic” American art or culture? I would argue that both cultures have adapted to each other and that each remains equally authentic.
Frank Ettawageshik, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians (From Ruth B. Phillips and Christopher B. Steiner, eds., Unpacking Culture, 1999)

Listen to John Low discuss the significance of Potawatomi participation in an exhibit on Potawatomi culture

John Low on the significance of Potawatomi participation in an exhibit on Potwatomi culture. Production by Mike Media Group, 2009. View transcript | View at Internet Archive

Beginning in the 1970s, the development of tribal museums surged due to the availability of federal funding and concomitant emphasis on economic development. Local museums could help attract tourists—and the federal government was pushing tourism as a vehicle of economic development. Construction work and jobs staffing museums began to materialize. The government offered training in museum management. The sovereignty movement and associated federal legislation that attempted to protect Native-made cultural objects helped focus attention on the need to preserve tribal heritage. The introduction of gaming in Indian communities provided funding to further develop tribal museums and libraries and allow Indian communities to tell their own stories.

What is one important theme in tribal museum exhibits?

Exhibit Hall, Fond du Lac Cultural Center and Museum

In the foreground is a birch bark canoe made in a museum-sponsored workshop by community members. The participants learned a range of technological skills, as well as Ojibwe cultural and historical traditions. Photo courtesy of Fond du Lac Cultural Center and Museum.

Migration Exhibit, Bois Forte Heritage Center

This exhibit tells the story of the Ojibwa migration from the east to the Great Lakes region. The mural is by Bois Forte artist, Carl Gawboy. The Megis (sea shell) at the top of the mural represents a vision that directed the migration: the people followed the shell to the Great Lakes area. The birch bark canoe in the exhibit, representing the means of transport, was built by people from Bois Forte. Photo courtesy of Bois Forte Heritage Center.

Exhibit Hall, Eyaawing Museum and Cultural Center

The museum features both the past and present as it reflects the Anishinaabek (Ottawa-Chippewa) people's reliance on water through travel, trade, and fishing. A canoe is prominent in the exhibit. Anishinaabek arts, especially powwow regalia and black ash basket-making, also are highlighted. Photo courtesy of Eyaawing Museum and Cultural Center.

Gallery 29, Forest County Potawatomi Cultural Center, Library, and Museum

This gallery is one of several that both educate the public and help to pass on the cultural heritage of the Potawatomi to subsequent generations. Shown is a 19th century scene with life models in a temporary camp, with their canoe nearby. Photo courtesy of Forest County Potawatomi Cultural Center, Library, and Museum.

Tribal museums pursue two goals simultaneously. They try to correct the misrepresentations of Indian life by educating the general public, and they also are a very important cultural resource for the local Indian community itself. These museums are building and protecting collections of objects by purchasing, borrowing, and repatriating them. They also are producing contemporary representations of Native life in exhibits and demonstrations. Their exhibits offer an alternative perspective to what non-Indian owned museums have—especially in the inclusion of 20th and 21st century representations and in the emphasis on pride in heritage and homeland.

What did the Lac Vieux desert museum do to educate non-Indians?

Giiwe Martin demonstrating beadwork

In her work she draws on the teachings of her grandmother and passes them on to others. The demonstrations help to perpetuate Ojibwe cultural traditions, but they also contribute to better relations with the neighboring communities. Giiwe's demonstration was at the Northern Waters Museum in Land O Lakes, Wisconsin, at a joint museum project. The well received project was an effort on the part of both museums to promote better understanding and to share knowledge of Ojibwe customs and culture. Giiwe Martin is the Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the Lac Vieux Desert Nation, and she works with a Culture Committee of elders and other community members to protect and maintain the cultural and historical resources of the Ketegitigaaniag (Lac Vieux Desert) people. The tribe's collection consists of items donated by community members and others, as well as repatriated objects. The plan of the Historic Preservation Office/Museum, established in 2001, is to eventually build a larger museum and cultural center. Photo courtesy of Lac Vieux Desert Tribe.

Boycee Valliere handcrafts a birch bark canoe

Mr. Valliere also did a demonstration at the Northern Waters museum. He is one of the few craftsmen who continues to make birch bark canoes by hand, using materials from the forest. His son Henri appears in the photo. Boycee Valliere also provides instruction on basket making, as well as canoe building, and teaches the Ojibwe language. Photo courtesy of Lac Vieux Desert Tribe.

Women's traditional sewing and beading group

This group also gave a demonstration of making moccasins at the Northern Waters Museum. Left to right: Tracy Pete, Angie Pete, Jordan McGeshick, Shelly Allen. Photo courtesy of Lac Vieux Desert Tribe.

Priscilla Pete with the first pair of earrings she made

This little girl from the Lac Vieux Desert community learned how to make earrings at classes sponsored by the HPO/Museum. Photo courtesy of Lac Vieux Desert Tribe.

Listen to Sara Summers Luedtke explain the important themes developed in the Oneida Nation Museum: origins, symbolism, cultural continuity

Sara Summers Luedtke on the Oneida Nation Museum. Production by Mike Media Group, 2010. View transcript | View at Internet Archive

Listen to Josh Gerzetich’s tour of Oneida Nation Museum exhibits

Josh Gerzetich on the Oneida Nation Museum. Production by Mike Media Group, 2010. View transcript | View at Internet Archive

Tribal libraries and archives acquire and preserve for community use documents, photographs, oral histories, sound recordings, and other things important to the Indian community. And the libraries and museums are a source of jobs and job training for Native people. Today there are over 200 tribal libraries, some in the Midwest. There is funding available for tribal libraries to train staff and to obtain copies of documents and photos from other libraries and archives. Usually located away from tourist centers, tribal museums and libraries (including those in the Midwest) struggle to obtain funding, for they are largely dependent on tribal and federal support.

Tribal museums and cultural centers work to strengthen indigenous culture and identity by fostering the retention of Native language, undertaking oral history projects, and supporting the work of Native artists and the perpetuation of indigenous artistic traditions. The libraries provide Indian communities with access to research collections, including genealogical records, treaties, and books. These centers often serve as gathering places for educational and other programs. They also are an expression of tribal sovereignty in their focus on telling their own stories in their own ways.

Bois Forte Heritage Center, Tower, MN

The center opened in 2002 and features Bois Forte Ojibwe culture and history. Located near the tribe’s resort and casino, the Heritage Center attracts visitors from all over the world as well as schools in the region. The collection consists of articles and art work donated by tribal members, work purchased from Ojibwe artists, and objects repatriated from other museums. The Heritage Center has won awards for its exhibits, but it also focuses on offering classes to people in the community on language and artistic traditions, such as beading and weaving mats. Photo courtesy of Bois Forte Heritage Center.

Fond du Lac Cultural Center and Museum, Cloquet, MN

The center and museum opened in 2000. The museum has a collection of Ojibwe photographs and objects donated by community members and purchased by the tribe. There is an especially good collection of beadwork. The museum also has contemporary art pieces by Ojibwes. One of the most important goals of the center is to foster and revitalize Ojibwe culture by having workshops that are requested by community members. One recent workshop was devoted to flute-making. As a result, several Ojibwes now perform as musicians. Photo courtesy of Fond du Lac Cultural Center and Museum.

Forest County Potawatomi Cultural Center, Library, and Museum, Crandon, WI

The center opened in 2002. The strengths of the collections are historic and contemporary photographs, audio-visual books, manuscripts, and language material. The center offers the community language and culture classes, historic photo reproduction and repair, a public library, a museum, a gift shop, and research services (for example, family history and state and local records). Photo courtesy of Forest County Potawatomi Cultural Center, Library, and Museum.

George W. Brown Jr. Ojibwe Museum and Cultural Center, Lac du Flambeau, WI

The center opened in June of 1989. The museum exhibits are primarily focused on the survival of the Ojibwe. There is a four season diorama, which points out the seasonal activities. The museum houses over 5,000 historic photographs that pertain to Lac du Flambeau, the residents, and the changes over time. Photo courtesy of George W. Brown Jr. Ojibwe Museum and Cultural Center.

Eyaawing Museum and Cultural Center, Peshawbestown, MI

Eyaawing (“Who We Are”) is the museum of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians. It opened in May 2009. Giving expression to Ottawa and Chippewa religious belief about the universe, the building is structurally aligned with the cardinal directions and each corner is painted to represent the four sacred directions: yellow (east), red (south), black (west), white (north). To reflect the close ties the Ottawa-Chippewa have with water, the museum is built at water’s edge and the porch roof and interior walls echo the waves and curving shorelines of the Great Lakes. The museum store has the work of tribal artists and crafts people, educational materials, and a selection of health products scented with sweetgrass, sage, and cedar. Photo courtesy of Eyaawing Museum and Cultural Center.

Ziibiwing Center of Anishinabe Culture & Lifeways, Mt. Pleasant, MI, permanent exhibit

The center, established in 2004, is a distinctive treasure created to provide an enriched, diversified, and culturally relevant educational experience through its award-winning Diba Jimooyung (Telling Our Story) permanent exhibit, changing exhibits, gift shop, research center, and meeting rooms. The Ziibiwing Center is a non-profit cultural center and museum belonging to the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan. It is open to the public Monday through Saturday, 10 AM-6PM. Photo courtesy of Ziibiwing Center.

Gift Shop, Bois Forte Heritage Center

Most of the items for sale are made by people from the Bois Forte community or other Ojibwe communities in Minnesota. Beaded items, including moccasins and earrings, as well as birch bark baskets and boxes are available. The museum gift shop is an outlet for artisans in the community to sell their work. Photo courtesy of Bois Forte Heritage Center.

“Boarding School” Exhibit, Bois Forte Heritage Center

This exhibit reconstructs one of the classrooms of the Vermilion government boarding school. The exhibit tells the story of the efforts of the federal government to remove Bois Forte Ojibwe children from their homes and prevent them from learning their language and the Ojibwe way of life. The museum’s community programs, dedicated to preserving Ojibwe culture, provide opportunities for community members, wherever they went to school, to learn about Ojibwe language and culture. Photo courtesy of Bois Forte Heritage Center.

“Trail of Tears” Exhibit, Arvid E. Miller Library and Museum, Bowler, WI

This is one of the exhibits at the Stockbridge-Munsee museum, which opened in 1976. Betty Groh, an Elder guide, is leading a tour for school children, and this exhibit explains the Mohican tribe’s migration from New York to Wisconsin. The museum has a collection of about 2,200 objects and also has workshops where baskets and other things are made. The library has over 400 books about the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohicans, as well as 3,500 manuscripts, and almost 6,000 photos. Photo courtesy of Arvid E. Miller Library and Museum.

Forest County Potawatomi Library

The library is a tribally-owned public library. The 4,000-book collection emphasizes Native America, especially the Potawatomi Nation and the tribes of the Great Lakes. Also featured is a collection of newspapers of Wisconsin tribes and Potawatomi bands. Most of the library’s collection circulates, and DVDs can be rented. There is also a non-circulating research library, including rare books. Note the mural along the walls. The mural was the work of local youths and students at elementary schools and day care centers in 2007. The four scenes depict the history of the Potawatomi Nation: the division of the Original People into Potawatomi, Ojibwa, and Odawa; life during the period when Europeans settled in the Great Lakes area; modern leadership and ritual; contemporary religious life. Photo courtesy of Forest County Potawatomi Cultural Center, Library, and Museum.

Kelly Church, Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Ojibwe, at NMAI

Ms. Church participated in the National Museum of the American Indian’s artist leadership program. She researched basketry and fibers of the Northeast U. S. and plans to conduct a community arts symposium in Michigan for Native basket makers. The NMAI’s artist leadership program enables indigenous artists to research, document, and network to enhance their roles as artists. They visit the NMAI to conduct research and receive professional training in grant writing, web portfolio, marketing, and career strategies. Photo by Roger Whiteside, courtesy of NMAI.

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