In the winter of 1889, a Cheyenne warrior named Porcupine made a journey that would change the spiritual life of the Plains tribes. He traveled hundreds of miles to Nevada to meet a prophet called Wovoka, a man believed by many to be the Messiah who would save the Native Americans and drive the white settlers from the continent. Porcupine, raised among the Sioux because of his Cheyenne mother and later a warrior in the Cheyenne Dog Soldier society, returned from that meeting convinced. He carried with him a new religion, the Ghost Dance, and he began baptizing his fellow tribesmen.

The dance spread rapidly across the plains, a desperate hope in a time of crushing loss. But the US Army, fearing an uprising, moved to suppress it. The Cheyenne never suffered a massacre like the one that would strike the Sioux at Wounded Knee, yet Porcupine was forced to conduct the ceremonies in secret from 1890 onward. In 1900, he was imprisoned for attempting to revive the religion.

The story of how photography came to preserve the faces of these people begins decades earlier, in the 1820s, when the United States government started collecting portrait paintings of Native Americans. The purpose was explicit and grim: to preserve a visual account of a race considered destined for extinction, swept away by westward expansion and presumed unable to adapt to modern American life. By the late 1850s, a technological shift transformed this project. The advancement of glass plate negatives and paper photographs made photography commercially viable and widely accessible.

No longer just private family mementos, photographs became a public record, a commentary on society and culture, recognized as both an artistic and a factual medium. Portraits of Native Americans in photographs became the primary method of documenting what was called the Vanishing Race, surpassing painted depictions entirely. These photographs offered the average American a non-threatening way to observe unfamiliar tribes without direct contact. Cartes de visite and tintypes brought the faces of distant peoples into the parlors of the nation.

The images that survive today come predominantly from photographers working on the Plains and in the Rocky Mountains. They show Arapaho, Cheyenne, Chippewa, Ottawa, Ponca, Sioux, and Ute men and women. Some portraits are objective, depicting subjects adorned in traditional Native attire. Others reveal the photographers’ own agenda, linking their Native subjects to the westward expansion of Manifest Destiny, often positioning them against American flags or in modern clothing.

Still other images subtly depict the interactions of various tribes with American expansionism, portraying them as both adversaries and allies. Among the most prominent figures captured in this era was Geronimo, a medicine man of the Bedonkohe group of the Chiricahua Apache. From 1850 to 1886, he led breakouts, striving to restore the free movement and traditional lifestyle of his people. In his final period of conflict, from 1876 to 1886, he surrendered three times and eventually agreed to settle on the Apache reservations.

Although Geronimo was a well-known figure, he was not a chief of the Bedonkohe band but rather a shaman, similar to Nochay-del-klinne among the Western Apache. Yet his exceptional leadership in raiding and warfare often drew groups of 30 to 50 Apache men to follow him. Alongside him fought Lozen, an Apache warrior and prophetess known for her bravery, wisdom, and leadership. She was the sister of the Chiricahua Apache Chief Victorio and fought beside him, and later with Geronimo.

Her name translates to dextrous horse thief. Lozen was not only a skilled fighter but also a revered medicine woman and prophet. She had the ability to sense the movements and plans of the enemy and was instrumental in devising strategies during battles. Another striking figure was Bear Bull, a venerable member of the Siksika tribe, part of the Blackfoot Confederacy in Northern Canada.

He held a position of significance as the guardian of a sacred bundle in the medicine pipe tradition, signifying his revered status within the community. One of the striking features associated with Bear Bull was his elaborately braided hair knot positioned above his forehead, an intricately arranged knot of symbolic importance representing his role as guardian of the sacred bundle. Red Cloud, whose Lakota name was Makhpiya Luta, emerged as a prominent leader of the Oglala Lakota Sioux during a crucial period in the mid-19th century. Born around 1822 in what is now Nebraska, he rose to significance during a time when the Lakota and other Plains Indian tribes were grappling with the encroachment of European settlers and the US government into their traditional lands.

Sarah Winnemucca, of the Numa tribe, was born during a time when American Indians held great distrust for white people who were trying to force tribal members to adopt a different culture, language, and religious beliefs. When her family and neighbors were forced onto a reservation, she became an advocate for her people and even became a language interpreter for the military in that area. She later fought for reform for the Paiute tribe, becoming a notable Native American activist, educator, and author from the Northern Paiute tribe. She was a leading figure in advocating for the rights of Native Americans, particularly in the Western United States during the late 19th century.

Sitting Bull, a revered leader among the Hunkpapa Lakota Sioux, is celebrated for his unwavering determination to protect Native American lands, culture, and traditions in the face of US encroachment. Born around 1831 in what is now South Dakota, his prominence grew during the conflicts between the Lakota people and the US government, particularly during the late 19th century. He played a pivotal role in resisting US influence and encroachment on Lakota territory, advocating for the preservation of their way of life. Shah-win-nesh, also known as Chief Bagone-giizhig or Chief Bemidji, was a significant figure among the Chippewa people in the 19th century, particularly in the region of present-day Minnesota.

He was a respected leader known for his diplomatic skills and efforts in negotiating with the US government to secure land rights and ensure the welfare of his people. His name means he who rattles, and he was given the name Chief Bemidji by European settlers, as he was associated with the area around the present-day city of Bemidji, Minnesota. Little Crow, also known as Taoyateduta, was a chief of the Mdewakanton Dakota Sioux. He played a significant role during a challenging period marked by tensions between the Dakota people and European settlers in the mid-19th century.

Chief Joseph, born in 1840 in the Wallowa Valley of Oregon, emerged as a respected leader of the Nez Perce tribe in the 1870s. Known for his diplomacy and efforts to maintain peace, he faced increasing pressure from the US government, leading to the Nez Perce War of 1877. The portraits of Native American girls from the 1870s to the 1890s offer a well-preserved glimpse into the past. These images afford a small view into their lives, allowing us to appreciate their distinctive style and honor their existence.

Despite differing roles, Native American women were highly esteemed and often held similar rights to men within their tribes, an extraordinary notion for that era. In some communities, women were proprietors of households and property, and while male chiefs were customary, certain tribes empowered women to partake in their selection. The photographs remain, a visual record of individuals caught between two worlds. They show warriors, prophets, diplomats, and families, each face a testament to a heritage spanning thousands of years on the land.

While their population today is diminishing, these images preserve the likenesses of those who came before, their stories woven into the history of the United States.