Commissioner Bogy reading treaty to Sac and Fox delegation [from left: No-quah-ho-ko, Man-ah-to-wah, Muttut-tah, Che-ko-skuk, and Keokuk] with Charles E. Mix and Kaw delegation [from left Al-le-ga-wa-ho, Kah-he-gawa-ti-ah-gah, and Wah-ti-ah-goh]

Alexander Gardner (1821-1882)

Date

February 23, 1867
Object Type

Photographs
Medium

Albumen silver print
Dimensions

Image: 12 3/4 x 18 13/16 in.
Sheet: 19 x 24 in.
Credit Line

Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Texas
Accession Number

P2018.44
Copyright

Public domain

On January 24, 1865, a fire at the Smithsonian Institution destroyed nearly 150 portraits of Native Americans that had been painted by Charles Bird King and subsequently copied by Henry Inman. The loss spurred a federal project to photograph Native diplomats when they came to Washington, DC.

This rare and unusually large image marks the occasion of a treaty between the United States, represented by two officials from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Sac and Fox Nation, represented from left by No-quah-ho-ko, Man-ahto- wah, Mut-tut-tah, Che-ko-skuk, and Keokuk. At right, Kanza representatives Al-le-ga-wa-ho, Kah-he-ga-wa-ti-ah-gah, and Wah-ti-ah-goh look on. In the agreement the Sac (Sauk) and Fox (Meskwaki) people, who had already been pushed out of their ancestral lands, gave up an additional 150,000 acres in Kansas. Alongside the Kanza, they were eventually relegated to a reservation in Indian Territory. Yet others remained hidden in their homeland, where they negotiated with local governments and purchased land, establishing the Meskwaki Nation in Iowa that is still growing today.

—Text taken from the Carter Handbook (2023).

Speaking with Light: Contemporary Indigenous Photography

October 30, 2022–January 22, 2023

Speaking with Light, organized by the Carter, is one of the first major museum surveys to explore how Indigenous artists have leveraged their lenses to reclaim representation and affirm their existence, perspectives, and trauma. The exhibition features more than 30 artists, 75 photographs, videos, three-dimensional works, and digital activations that forge an investigation into identity, resistance, and belonging.

Location: Off view

See more by Alexander Gardner

This information is published from the Carter's collection database. Updates and additions based on research and imaging activities are ongoing. The images, titles, and inscriptions are products of their time and are presented here as documentation, not as a reflection of the Carter’s values. If you have corrections or additional information about this object please email us to help us improve our records.

Every effort has been made to accurately determine the rights status of works and their images. Please email us if you have further information on the rights status of a work contrary or in addition to the information in our records.