Final Blog Post:)

Owen Beaver

History 181

2 June 2024

https://fourviewshist181.jenniferandrella.com/items/show/12

Final Blog 

When I was exploring options for my four views project, as I was scouring for items to create a detailed project upon, I ultimately had one catch my eye. The object I finally decided upon was an equestrian saddle from the Naz Perce nation. According to nazperce.org, the official website of the tribe, “The Nimiipuu people have been connected to the lands and waters of modern-day Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and Montana long before the creation of the Nez Perce Reservation.” and “the Nez Perce Tribe upholds many traditional lifeways, including fishing, hunting, gathering, and traditional ceremonies and celebrations.” They hold tradition and their own culture near and dear. The interesting thing about the project however, was being able to take a look at what set them apart from many other cultures of different people. 

The most interesting part, which was fairly central to the explanation of the piece in my project in detail, was the fact that it was a womens saddle. When looking at these saddles, we do not see them very often, due to the fact that they were used for longer distances. Often times when we look at the utilization of horses and other mounts, they were ridden bareback and were mainly used to travel short distances for common tasks, like hunting, and fishing, and gathering that they continue to hold so prevalently within their own society. So the idea of using the saddle came to be because of the uniqueness of the piece. However, as I dove more and more into the history of their saddle-making, it quickly became apparent how unique this piece was. It caught my eye due to the intricacy and the beauty of the design. Typically, these saddles were not made to be an expressional form of art, but rather, a tool designed to help get the job done, but the piece was very flashy and out there. Another interesting piece of information, is that traditionally, the art of saddle-making was done by women, similar to weaving or other crafts due to their experience creating and utilizing the materials that it took to put together pieces of hide and cloth in such a way that provided both the structural integrity, and the functionality of these tools. This saddle however was different, and was meant to be a flashy, designer piece, like a fancy purse or a new shiny car. A little more research that I did allowed me to understand that not only did women make the saddles, but this saddle specifically was a woman’s piece, used for travel. That provides us with the idea that this piece was custom made to the exact specifications of the rider herself, and allows us the possibility of seeing her personality shine through in a piece like this. What people do and create allows for us to have a window into their thoughts, their own implications, and how they did some of the things that they did, such as saddle-making in this instance.

I think that this piece has an important place in history due to the absolute uniqueness of it, and how wonderfully created it actually is. While looking through the plateau peoples web portal for information on this item of the collection, one quote stood out to me more than anything else and resonated through my whole project.”This is a Cadillac. And I’ve always kind of found that funny is that some of the elder women like to have a big car. And my aunty had her big car. And they would go berry pick, her and her friend, and you’d see all their bags in the back. And off they would go.” My grandma personally drove a Cadillac, so I could understand this quote. It highlights not only the flashiness of the piece in which I have explained, but it also allows us to understand why it is a good choice for a long distance journey, in that it is comfortable. It is the SUV of the horseback riding world. A long journey could have been made much easier with a saddle such as this one. As well as that it makes the statement of who you are and what you are about, and to me, it means business. I highlight these things, because of how unique the female saddle-making job was. Many times, in other tribes, saddle making was a man’s task, but the opportunity of the Naz Perce nation allowing it to be a women’s endeavor allowed for the creation of this unique piece.

I believe that often, especially in Hollywood, we get the preconceived notion that saddles were a foreign object to Native American tribes, but that is not the case at all. Within the context of American history, not only do we see them utilizing saddles for their own purposes, we see them trading them as well. In an article from the University of New Mexico, “French traders who visited the Crees, learned as early as 1753 that horses and saddles could be obtained from that tribe.” 

I bring up this point because of one overarching theme about the Native people themselves. Misconception. I feel like the world is flooded with misconceptions and there are so many details that we do not learn about in a normal U.S. history class that have been eye-opening to hear in a course such as this one. The different perspectives of history bring with it many short-comings and we often do not get to see them all, and we learn one-sided information. Christopher Columbus was reveled when I was in first grade, but now, as I learn and hear more about Native history, no. Growing up in a place like the United States has given me many perspectives on many different histories, but I feel as though it has still been very one-sided. Being able to learn about Native american history, and not just U.S history, has allowed me to actually see and hear the little intricacies and details that make history exciting. Looking at this saddle was no different. Being able to find a new appreciation for the craftsmanship, and more importantly the craftsman(craftswoman?) has expanded not only my knowledge, but my perception of history as a whole. It allows me to take some steps back and think more individually, as opposed to just hearing the same stories that have been indoctrinated to me throughout the years.

Bibliography

“About – Nez Perce Tribe.” Nez Perce Tribe –, 29 Aug. 2022, nezperce.org/about/.

K’úusey’ne Sapoʔsaapóʔs (Woman’s Saddle) Nez Perce, plateauportal.libraries.wsu.edu/digital-heritage/k’úusey’ne-sapoʔsaapóʔs-womans-saddle-nez-perce. Accessed 2 June 2024.

The Use of Saddles by American Indians, digitalrepository.unm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1324&context=nmhr. Accessed 2 June 2024.