Fort Marion

The most celebrated ledger artists were prisoners of war at Fort Marion in St. Augustine, Florida. In 1874, in what became known as the Red River War or Buffalo War, a group of Cheyenne, Kiowa, Comanche, Arapaho, and Caddo warriors fought the US Army to protect the last free herd of buffalo and to assert their autonomy. In the harsh winter of 1874–1875, many tribal camps were forced to surrender to various Indian agencies, and the supposed leaders of the Red River War were rounded up and sent to Fort Marion. From 1875 to 1878, the 71 men and one woman were under the command of Richard Henry Pratt, who used the opportunity to expose the Indians to Western education. He provided the prisoners with basic art supplies such as pencils, ink, crayons, watercolor paint, and paper.
26 of the Fort Marion prisoner actively engaged in drawing. They were younger Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Kiowa men. Some of the most prolific and well-known artists include Paul Caryl Zotom (Kiowa), David Pendleton Oakerhater or Making Medicine (Cheyenne), Tichtematse or Squint Eyes (Cheyenne), Wohaw (Kiowa), Howling Wolf (Cheyenne), Etahdleuh Doanmoe (Kiowa), White Bear (Arapaho), Koba (Kiowa), and Bear’s Heart (Cheyenne). Tichtematse, Howling Wolf, White Bear, and Koba all continued drawing after their release from prison.

Subject matter

Battle exploits dominated ledger art. Other traditional themes such as hunting, courtship, and religious practices were common subjects. Ledger artists also documented their rapidly changing environment – portraying encroaching European-Americans and new technologies such as trains and cameras. Many ledger artists worked with ethnologists, by documenting shield and tipi designs, ethnobotanical information, winter counts, dance customs and regalia, and other cultural information. Dreams and visions inspired ledger art just as they had inspired earlier hide paintings. Ledger art today often references pre-reservation lifeways, historical transitions, social commentary, and to illustrate cultural continuity being historical and contemporary Native life.

Ledger art

Ledger Art is a term for Plains Indian narrative drawing or painting on paper or cloth. Ledger art was primarily from the 1860s to about 1900, although some of the old style drawing continues to the 1930s. There is also a contemporary group of accomplished Native American artists who work in the medium of ledger art. The term comes from the accounting ledger books that were a common source for paper for Plains Indians during the late 19th century.

Historical precedents

Ledger art evolved from Plains hide painting. Among Plains tribes, women traditionally paint abstract, geometrical designs; whereas, men paint representational designs. The men's designs were often heraldic devises or visions painted on shields, tipis, shirts, leggings, or robes. Before the Plains tribes were forced to live on reservations in the 1870s, men generally painted personal feats in battle or hunting. Plains ledger art depicted communally acknowledged events of valor and tribal importance in order to gain status for the individuals who participated in them, and their band and kin. Plains pictorial art emphasizes narrative action and eliminates unnecessary detail or backgrounds. Figures tended to be drawn in hard outlines and filled with solid fields of color.
These were all traditionally painted on animal hides – particularly buffalo hides. When buffalo became scarce after eradication programs encouraged by the US Federal government, Plains artists began painting and drawing on paper, canvas, and muslin.