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American Indians in Silent FilmCompiled by Karen C. Lund
Jump to: Introduction | How to Use This Guide | Non-fiction Films | Fiction Films | Additional Suggested Reading | Guidelines for Viewing Film & Videotapes IntroductionThis is an annotated list of silent fiction and non-fiction films with substantial American Indian content that are in the collections of the Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division of the Library of Congress. For the purposes of this research guide, silent films are productions made from the beginning of motion pictures to approximately 1930. By 1930, most feature films were released with sound. However, many documentary and educational films were still silent through the early thirties, and some are included in this guide. The list contains primarily American productions, and all are silent and in black and white unless otherwise noted. The decision about which films to include on this list was not based on the positive or negative aspects of an Indian's depiction or on the veracity of the portrayal. To be included on the fiction list, a film must have American Indian characters who play a significant part in the story or in forwarding the action of a story. For the documentary list, the criteria were similar in that some segment of the film must focus on Native Americans. The terms "Indian," "Eskimo," and "Esquimaux" are used in this list to refer to the native peoples of the continental United States and Alaska. Because of the similarity in portrayal to American Indians, several films featuring Canadian Indians have also been included. Although every attempt has been made to locate films that belong in this guide, some films will inevitably have been overlooked because of the great size of the Library's collections. Therefore, this list should not be considered to be comprehensive, but rather a starting point for one's research. The Library also has many films relevant to this topic from the sound era in its collections. A finding aid describing about 150 recent documentaries has been compiled by Jennifer Brathovde entitled American Indians on Film and Video: Documentaries in the Library of Congress (May 1992), and it is hoped that more guides will be compiled in the future to supplement these two publications. The films and videotapes in the Library's collections are not available for loan but may be viewed at the Library by researchers by advance appointment. For further information, see Guidelines for Viewing Films and Videotapes on page 57, or write to: Reference Librarian; Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division; Library of Congress; Washington, DC 20540; Telephone: (202) 707-1000. How to Use this Guide: List of Abbreviations and Bibliographic Sources Entries are arranged alphabetically by film title. The title and the shelf location number appear in boldface type. Other information given includes the collection to which the film belongs, the production company, the year of release, key production credits and cast when available, a physical description of the film, and a brief summary. A complete summary is given wherever possible even if the Library's copy of the film is incomplete. Information appearing in brackets ([...]) denotes information that cannot be confirmed, but has been assigned to the film by the Library. "Inc." is used for the word "incomplete;" "sd." refers to "sound;" "ref. print" refers to "reference print;" "ft." to "feet;" "min." to "minutes;" and "AM&B" to "American Mutoscope & Biograph Company." As a result of the research for this guide, the Library is currently making viewing prints of a number of films that were previously inaccessible. These are noted in the guide by the phrase "ref. print in progress." Consult the reference librarian as to the current availibility and shelf locations of these films. Since every film on this list could not be viewed in order to assess its content, an indication has been given wherever possible in parentheses following the entry as to the source of the synopsis. In most cases, the synopsis has not been quoted directly from the source, but has been adapted to suit the purposes of this finding aid. Since information on early films is often difficult to find, it is hoped that these references to sources will prove valuable for researchers. Where sources are not listed in parentheses, the synopsis has been taken from library records or from actual viewing. How to Use This Guide: List of Abbreviations and Bibliographic Sources
(AFI) Hanson, Patricia King, executive ed., and Gevinson, Alan,
assistant ed. The American Film Institute Catalog: Feature
Films, 1911-1920. Berkeley: University of California Press,
1988.
Munden, Kenneth W., executive ed. The American Film Institute
Catalog: Feature Films, 1921-1930. New York & London: R. R.
Bowker Company, 1971.
(Brownlow) Brownlow, Kevin. The War, the West, and the Wilderness. New
York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1978.
(EHW) Exhibitors Herald World, a film trade journal from 1928+, also
under titles Exhibitors Herald and Moving Picture World and
Motion Picture Herald (citations are noted with volume number
followed by page numbers)
(GK) Horwitz, Rita, and Harrison, Harriet, comp.; White, Wendy,
assist. The George Kleine Collection of Early Motion Pictures
in the Library of Congress: A Catalog. Washington, D. C.:
Library of Congress, 1980.
(KN) Niver, Kemp R. Early Motion Pictures: The Paper Print
Collection in the Library of Congress. Washington, D. C.:
Library of Congress, 1985.
(L & L) Lauritzen, Einar, and Lundquist, Gunnar. American Film-Index
1908-1915. Stockholm, Sweden: Akademibokhandeln, University
of Stockholm, 1976.
Lauritzen, Einar, and Lundquist, Gunnar. American Film-Index
1916-1920. Huddinge, Sweden: Tonnheims, 1984.
(MH) Hilger, Michael. The American Indian in Film. Metuchen, N. J.
& London: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 1986.
(MOMA) The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Circulating Film Library
Catalog. Ann Arbor, Michigan: Edward Brothers, 1984.
(MPW) The Moving Picture World, a film trade journal from 1907 to
1927 (citations are noted with volume number followed by page
numbers)
(TR) White-Hensen, Wendy, and Gillespie, Veronica M., comp.;
Harrison, Harriet, assist. The Theodore Roosevelt Association
Film Collection: A Catalog. Washington, D. C.: Library of
Congress, 1986.
Also used as source material for film titles concerning Native Americans in silent
film were:
Museum of the American Indian. Native Americans on Film and Video. Edited
by Elizabeth Weatherford
with Emelia Seubert. Montpelier, Vermont: Capital City Press,
1981.
Friar, Ralph E., and Friar, Natasha A. The Only Good Indian...the
Hollywood Gospel. New York:
Drama Book Specialists, 1972.
Non-fiction Films
ALASKA
Eastman Teaching Films Collection
Eastman Teaching Films, 1930
1 reel, 295 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAA 4970
Views of Alaska, featuring glaciers, gold mining, salmon, seals, and whales.
Shows scenes of the daily activities of the Eskimos. Describes the farming,
industry, natural resources, and scenic beauty of the country.
THE ALASKA-SIBERIAN EXPEDITION
[See The Carnegie Museum Expedition, 1911: Alaska]
THE AMERICAN INDIAN: ARTS AND CRAFTS
Harmon Foundation
Harmon Foundation, [1933]
1 reel, 15 min., 16mm, ref. print FAA 5952
Shows weaving, basket-making, pottery, beadwork, hammering of silver,
embroidery, woodcarving, and other types of Indian crafts.
THE AMERICAN INDIAN: CHILD LIFE
Harmon Foundation
Harmon Foundation, [1933]
1 reel, 15 min., 16mm, ref. print FAA 5956
Shows Indian children at play, working on native crafts, and at study.
THE AMERICAN INDIAN: GOVERNMENT EDUCATION
Harmon Foundation
Harmon Foundation, [1933]
1 reel, 15 min., 16mm, ref. print FAA 5999
Surveys provisions made by the government for citizenship training of
American Indians.
THE AMERICAN INDIAN: GOVERNMENT SERVICE AND ITS PROBLEMS
Harmon Foundation
Harmon Foundation, [1933]
1 reel, 15 min., 16mm, ref. print FAA 6000
Describes efforts made by the government for better education, higher living
standards, and the economic independence of Indians.
THE AMERICAN INDIAN: HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO MODERN CIVILIZATION
Harmon Foundation
Harmon Foundation, [1933]
1 reel, 15 min., 16mm, ref. print FAA 6004
Discusses the imprint of Indian culture on American life, legends, woodlore,
art, dance, and architecture.
THE AMERICAN INDIAN: HOW HE EARNS A LIVING
Harmon Foundation
Harmon Foundation, [1933]
1 reel, 15 min., 16mm, ref. print FAA 6010
Discusses the Indian's adaptation of ancient crafts to modern farming,
fishing, cattle ranching, carving, and jewelry-making; and points out that
Indians are also working in the learned professions.
THE AMERICAN INDIAN: LOOKING FORWARD
Harmon Foundation
Harmon Foundation, [1933]
1 reel, 15 min., 16mm, ref. print FAA 6031
Discusses the role of the Indian at the time the film was made, and his
possible future.
THE AMERICAN INDIAN: SURVIVALS OF PRIMITIVE LIFE
Harmon Foundation
Harmon Foundation, [1933]
1 reel, 15 min., 16mm, ref. print VBL 2256
Shows the building of tepees, preparation of food, outdoor life, and
ceremonial dances of the American Indian.
THE AMERICAN INDIAN: WHEN THE WHITE MAN CAME, AND AFTER
Harmon Foundation
Harmon Foundation, [1933]
1 reel, 15 min., 16mm, ref. print FAA 6076
Traces the migrations of the Indians from Asia by the Bering Strait to North
America. Points out the effects of the coming of the white man on tribal
life in the Southwest, Midwest, and East.
BUCK DANCE
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1898
1 reel, 32 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3385
Shows American Indian tents and Indians seated in a circle around male
dancers. (KN)
BUFFALO BILL'S WILD WEST AND PAWNEE BILL'S FAR EAST
Ernst Collection
Buffalo Bill and Pawnee Bill Film Co., 1910
1 reel (inc.), 436 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 1402
In this wild west show, Indians and cowboys are shown parading by on horses,
and wild horse riding and trick riding are exhibited among other acts. This
copy is missing reels 2 and 3.
BUFFALO BILL'S WILD WEST PARADE
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1902
Cameraman: F. S. Armitage
1 reel, 41 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4520
Shows a parade, with Indians as some of the participants, on Fifth Avenue,
New York City. (KN)
BUFFALO BILL'S WILD WEST SHOW
Blackhawk Film Collection
Blackhawk Films, 1960
1 reel, 17 min., 16mm, ref. print FBA 149
A compilation of old documentary motion pictures: Parade of Buffalo Bill's
Wild West Show, no. 1-2, made by Thomas A. Edison, 1898; Buffalo Bill's Wild
West Parade, made by American Mutoscope and Biograph Co., 1902; Buffalo
Bill's Wild West and Pawnee Bill's Far East, part 1, made by Buffalo Bill &
Pawnee Bill Film Co., 1910.
CARNEGIE MUSEUM EXPEDITION, 1911: ALASKA
Ernst Collection
Kleinschmidt & Lane, Siberian Motion Pictures, 1912
1 reel, 1,295 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 1994
Shows the Carnegie Museum expedition to the Artic regions of Alaska and
Siberia which was led by Captain Frank E. Kleinschmidt. Contents include the
environment and habits of Eskimos, polar bears, walruses, sheep, moose,
reindeer and caribou. Also known as The Alaska-Siberian Expedition. (AFI)
CARRYING OUT THE SNAKES
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1901
Cameraman: James H. White (?)
1 reel, 31 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4120
Indians of the Walpapi tribe perform a tribal ceremony in which they carry
snakes. One of a series of five short films. [See also: Line-up and
Teasing the Snakes, The March of Prayer and Entrance of the Dancers,
Panoramic View of Moki-land, and Parade of Snake Dancers Before the Dance.]
(KN)
A CENTURY OF PROGRESS EXPOSITION: AROUND THE FAIR WITH BURTON
HOLMES [NO.
2]
Herford T. Cowling Film Collection
Burton Holmes Films, 1933
Photographer: Herford Tynes Cowling
1 reel, 390 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 226
A tour of the Century of Progress International Exposition in Chicago in
1933-1934. Includes scenes of the various modes of transportation at the
fair, various halls, activities, and villages, including Indian villages.
A CENTURY OF PROGRESS EXPOSITION: INDIAN VILLAGE
Herford T. Cowling Film Collection
Burton Holmes Films, 1933
1 reel, 114 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 236
Shows scenes at Chicago's Century of Progress International Exposition of
Navajo Indians from New Mexico, Hopi Indians from Arizona, Sioux Indians from
North Dakota, and Winnebago Indians from Wisconsin in replicas of their
native surroundings, dressed in traditional costumes, performing dances
unique to their tribes, and working with tribal crafts.
CIRCLE DANCE
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1898
1 reel, 20 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3378
A ritual dance is performed by American Indians. Approximately fifty male
Indians can be seen shoulder-to-shoulder in a circle revolving slowly in a
dance. Two tepees are also visible. (KN)
LA CIRQUE BUFFALO BILL: PEAUX ROUGES
Cinematheque Francaise Film Collection
La Societe Lumiere, Paris, 1896 or 1897
1 reel, 20 ft., 16mm, ref. print FCA 5142
Includes scenes of Indians in costume, on horseback, and dancing during
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. On the same reel with 58 other Lumiere
pieces.
CLIFF-DWELLERS OF AMERICA
AFI/Tayler Collection
Fox, 1926
1 reel, 779 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 7000
Adobe cities of cliff dwellers in Mesa Verde National Park are shown, and a
group of people reenact how the original inhabitants may have lived.
CLUB SWINGING, CARLISLE INDIAN SCHOOL
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1902
Cameraman: Arthur Marvin
1 reel, 34 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3791
Two hundred boys and girls in their early teens swing Indian clubs in unison
in Carlisle, Pa. (KN)
CONVENTION OF RED MEN, LANCASTER, PA.
The George Kleine Collection
Edison, 1904
1 reel, 197 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 1442
A parade on the streets of Lancaster, Pa., of the Improved Order of Red Men,
a fraternal society of white American citizens. Members, many dressed in
pseudo-Indian costumes, march with bands and ride on horseback or in covered
wagons and carriages. (GK)
COWBOYS AND INDIANS FORDING RIVER IN A WAGON
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1904
Cameraman: A. C. Abadie
1 reel, 30 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3678
A wagon pulled by four mules fords a river in Bliss, Oklahoma Territory. The
passengers' attire indicates they are Indians. (KN)
A DAY WITH THE WILD WEST SHOW
[See Ford Animated Weekly: A Day With the Wild West Show]
EAGLE DANCE, PUEBLO INDIANS
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1898
Cameraman: James H. White
1 reel, 27 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3377
An Indian chief with a full-feathered war bonnet executes a dance while
approximately twenty other Indians watch him. (KN)
ESQUIMAUX GAME OF SNAP-THE-WHIP
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1901
Cameramen: Edwin S. Porter, Arthur White
1 reel, 17 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3759
In front of a large tent of animal skins, two spectators watch two
participants perform a game of skill. Each participant holds a long whip
with which he attempts to snare his opponent's whip. Filmed at the Pan-
American Exposition in Buffalo, N.Y. (KN)
ESQUIMAUX LEAP-FROG
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1901
Cameramen: Edwin S. Porter, Arthur White
1 reel, 23 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3760
In front of buildings resembling igloos on ice floes, persons clothed as
Eskimoes play a game of leapfrog. Filmed at the Pan-American Exposition in
Buffalo, N.Y. (KN)
ESQUIMAUX VILLAGE
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1901
Cameramen: Edwin S. Porter, Arthur White
1 reel, 27 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3761
Dark-complexioned people dressed as Eskimos run up and down alongside a small
pool next to an igloo-type building. Dogs are shown pulling sleds and
running into a tent made from animal skins. Filmed at the Pan-American
Exposition in Buffalo, N.Y. (KN)
FLASHES OF THE WEST [NO. 3?]
John E. Allen Collection
Northern Pacific Railway, 192-?
1 reel, 14 min., 16mm, ref. print FLA 163
One of a series of travelogues about the country along the routes of the
Northern Pacific Railway. Includes views of Montana, northern Minnesota,
Wisconsin, and the Yukon River in Alaska, as well as a Crow Indian tribal
dance.
FLASHES OF THE WEST, NO. 4
John E. Allen Collection
Northern Pacific Railway, 192-?
1 reel, 13 min., 16mm, ref. print FLA 684
One of a series of travelogues about the country along the route of the
Northern Pacific Railway. Includes views of Indian reservations in the
Northwest, as well as views of Yellowstone National Park, Montana, Washington
and North Dakota.
FLASHES OF THE WEST, NO. 6
John E. Allen Collection
Northern Pacific Railway, 192-?
1 reel, 10 min., 16mm, ref. print FLA 165
One of a series of travelogues of the country along the route of the Northern
Pacific Railway. Includes Indians in North Dakota and Montana, a buffalo
stampede in Yellowstone National Park, fishing in Montana, birds in
Washington, and a wheat farm.
FLASHES OF THE WEST, NO. 14
John E. Allen Collection
Northern Pacific Railway, 192-?
1 reel, 15 min., 16mm, ref. print FLA 688
One of a series of travelogues about the country along the route of the
Northern Pacific Railway. Includes Crow Indians near Billings, Montana, the
Columbia Glacier in Alaska, and scenes in Montana and Minnesota.
[FORD ANIMATED WEEKLY: A DAY WITH THE WILD WEST SHOW]
AFI/Nichol Collection
Ford, 1917
1 reel, 347 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAA 2030
Shows Sioux Indian Chief Iron Tail, Buffalo Bill at 71, auto parade in
Oklahoma City, logging in the North, motor boat racing, foreign-born
employees of Ford Motor Co., school children entertaining Knights Templars,
and President and Mrs. Wilson attending funeral service for the President of
China.
FORD EDUCATIONAL WEEKLY, NO. 232: THE WARDS OF A NATION
AFI/Nichol Collection
Ford Motion Picture Laboratories, 1920
1 reel, 675 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 3995
Newsreel footage of American Indian delegates from more than 100 churches
attending 50th annual Christian conference, site unknown. Includes scenes
of Indians attending church, tent life, and a confirmation service.
[GAUMONT NEWSREEL]
AFI/Harold Neumann Collection
[Gaumont], [192-?]
1 reel, approx. 300 ft., 16mm, ref. print in progress
Shows the American Indian War Council in Utica, NY; the wedding of Delphine
Dodge and James Cromwell in Detroit, attended by Mr. and Mrs. Henry Ford;
President Liguia of Peru; International Women's Tennis Players; and the
opening of the Mogul Leaf Railroad Bridge in Chicago.
GAUMONT GRAPHIC: [MULE AUCTION & RODEO SCENES]
AFI/Nichol Collection
Gaumont Co., 1920?
1 reel, 369 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 3995
Shows an auction of army animals, mounted sports, cowboys at a rodeo, and
"Indian rites of Old."
HOPI INDIANS DANCE FOR TR AT [WALPI, ARIZ.] 1913
The Theodore Roosevelt Association Film Collection
Producer unknown, Aug. 1913
1 reel, 103 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAB 1134
On Aug. 20, 1913, Theodore Roosevelt, numerous visitors, and Hopi Indians
observed the performance of the ritual Hopi snake dance at Walpi, Arizona,
on the Hopi Reservation. (TR)
[ICKES, HAROLD, L. HOME MOVIES: EAGLE DANCE IN NEW MEXICO]
Ickes Collection
[192-?]
1 reel, 99 ft., 16mm FAB 69
Shrunken print not viewable; video transfer in progress
Shows two Indian dances, the first performed by six men in front of
grandstands filled with people, and the second performed by two men who come
out of a kiva and return to it.
[ICKES, HAROLD L. HOME MOVIES: FLOOD, INDIAN PARADE IN GALLUP, CARS IN
MUD]
Ickes Collection
[193-?]
1 reel, 390 ft., 16mm FAB 61
Shrunken print not viewable; video transfer in progress
Contents include a flooded town; Indian ruins; Indian groupings; cars being
pulled out of mud; Harold Ickes in Indian dress with a group of Navajos; an
Indian parade in Gallup, New Mexico; an Indian woman combing a little girl's
hair; and an Indian man hammering metal.
[ICKES, HAROLD L. HOME MOVIES: INDIAN ADOBE HOUSES AND RUINS: A
FLOODED
CITY]
Ickes Collection
[193-?]
1 reel, 265 ft., 16mm FAB 65
Shrunken print not viewable; video transfer in progress
Contents include Indian girls carding and spinning wool; Indian women baking
bread and mending the walls of an adobe house; groups of Indians and adobe
villages; views of a flooded city after flood waters have receded; an Indian
woman flipping dough in a basket; an Indian man riding a donkey; and the
Ickes family visiting ancient Indian cliff dwellings.
[ICKES, HAROLD L. HOME MOVIES: INDIAN LIFE AND WORK]
Ickes Collection
[193-?]
1 reel, 273 ft., 16mm FAB 63
Shrunken print not viewable; video transfer in progress
Contents include views of pueblos; groups of Indians posing; a lone Indian
on horseback in the desert; women washing, carding, spinning, and weaving
wool; and Indians shearing sheep.
[ICKES, HAROLD L. HOME MOVIES: INDIAN FAMILY AND COMMUNITY LIFE]
Ickes Collection
[193-?]
1 reel, 477 ft., 16mm FAB 64
Shrunken print not viewable; video transfer in progress
Contents include Indians rolling dough; baking bread; cooking; shearing
sheep; washing, carding, spinning and weaving wool; working metal; views of
pueblos; Indian ruins; Indian children playing; and people posing for the
camera.
[ICKES, HAROLD L. HOME MOVIES: INDIAN LIFE IN THE SOUTH WEST; INDIAN
RUINS]
Ickes Collection
[193-?]
1 reel, 291 ft., 16mm FAB 62
Shrunken print not viewable; video transfer in progress
Contents include Indians using horses to thresh grain on a circular floor;
views of Indian pueblos; women balancing pottery on their heads; a woman
stoking an outdoor oven; archaeologists at work at an ancient Indian site;
and Indians painting the pueblo church.
[ICKES, HAROLD L. HOME MOVIES: NAVAJO INDIANS, NEW MEXICO, NAVAJO
INDIAN
PARADE]
Ickes Collection
[ca. 1935]
1 reel, 100 ft., color, 16mm FAB 73
Shrunken print not viewable; video transfer in progress
Contents include Navajo men in dress costume and a parade on a city street
which contains a Navajo marching band, covered wagons, and men, women and
children in dress costume.
[ICKES, HAROLD L. HOME MOVIES: NEW MEXICO]
Ickes Collection
[193-?]
1 reel, 91 ft., 16mm FAB 72
Shrunken print not viewable; video transfer in progress
Contents include Indians and covered wagons in an open field, Indian women
at a pueblo, a mission, and crowds at a carnival.
[ICKES, HAROLD L. HOME MOVIES: ZUNIS]
Ickes Collection
[192-?]
1 reel, 488 ft., 16mm FAB 58
Shrunken print not viewable; video transfer in progress
Contents include Indians parading and dancing at a festival (in Gallup?) and
some dancing in a village.
IN THE LAND OF THE WAR CANOES: KWAKIUTL INDIAN LIFE ON THE
NORTHWEST COAST
Copyright Collection
Burke Museum, University of Washington, 1973
1 reel, 44 min., 16mm, ref. print FDA 2741
Bill Holm and George I. Quimby's re-edited version of the Edward S. Curtis
1914 film originally entitled In the Land of the Headhunters, a saga of
romantic love among the Kwakiutl Indians on Vancouver Island. The added
soundtrack includes authentic tribal singing, chants, spoken parts, and
instrumental music. Since the film has actuality footage of the Indians as
well as a narrative story, it is included in both the fiction and non-fiction
sections of this guide.
[INDIAN CAMP]
The George Kleine Collection
Producer unkown, 191-?
1 reel, 108 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 1566
Shows an Indian (perhaps Blackfeet) camp, probably in the Northern Rockies.
(GK)
INDIAN DAY SCHOOL
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1898
1 reel, 30 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4248
The doorway of a building is shown with a sign in front indicating it is the
Isleta Indian School in Isleta, New Mexico. Young children come out of the
door of the school and pass in front of the camera. (KN)
THE INDIAN DETOUR
AFI/George Post Collection
Producer unknown, 1924
2 reels, 1,700 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 5814-15
A motor tour is taken through part of New Mexico, showing ancient pueblos and
cliff dwellings, as well as local Indians and their lives and customs.
LINE-UP AND TEASING THE SNAKES
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1901
Cameraman: James H. White
1 reel, 38 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3087
This film is one of a series showing tribal rituals involving snakes.
Indians are in costume, harassing snakes with sticks and pieces of brush.
[See also: Carrying Out of the Snakes, The March of Prayer and Entrance of
the Dancers, Panoramic View of Moki-Land, and Parade of Snake Dancers Before
the Dance.] (KN)
THE MARCH OF PRAYER AND ENTRANCE OF THE DANCERS
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1901
Camera: James H. White (?)
1 reel, 44 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4716
American Indians in Arizona are shown wearing ceremonial tribal dress, the
preliminary to an ancient dance of appeal to some force of nature. [See
also: Carrying Out the Snakes, Line-Up and Teasing the Snakes, Panoramic
View of Moki-Land, and Parade of Snake Dancers Before Dance.] (KN)
MOKI SNAKE DANCE BY WOLPI [WALPAPI] INDIANS
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1901
Camera: James H. White (?)
1 reel, 24 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3388
A snake dance in Arizona is photographed from a single-camera position. The
condition of the film is very poor. (KN)
NANOOK OF THE NORTH
The Copyright Collection
U. S. Pathe, 1922
Direction, scenario, photography, and editing: Robert Flaherty
2 reels, 64 min., sd., 16mm, ref. print FCA 9828-29
Flaherty seeks to show man's struggle to live against the forces of nature
by portraying scenes from the life of Nanook and his family, Eskimos in the
Hudson Bay area. Restored version by David H. Shepard with music by Stanley
Silverman.
[1906 PARADE--WILKES-BARRE, PENNSYLVANIA]
AFI/Nelson Collection
[Lyman Howe], 1906
1 reel of ?, 550 ft., 16mm, ref. print FBC 4161
Amateur footage of a parade. Includes shots of people gathered around the
city center, horse-drawn floats sponsored by local businesses, marching
bands, and representatives of local Indian tribes on horseback. It is
thought that Lyman Howe shot this footage of the Wilkes Barre Centennial
Parade in May of 1906.
1916 SAN DIEGO EXPOSITION NEWS WEEKLY
AFI/McPherson Collection
Great Western Feature Film, 1916
1 reel, 1362 ft., 16mm, ref. print FCA 3334
Scenes from the San Diego exposition and activities of various people
including: Mr. and Mrs. Chas. C. Moore; Mr. and Mrs. G. A. Davidson;
Theodore Roosevelt; and Hopi Indians.
PANORAMIC VIEW OF MOKI-LAND
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1901
1 reel, 24 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3165
The camera pans to show the dry, arid butte land that is the home of the Moki
Indians in Arizona. [See also: Carrying Out of the Snakes, Line-Up and
Teasing the Snakes, The March of Prayer and Entrance of the Dancers, and
Parade of Snake Dancers Before Dance.] (KN)
PARADE OF BUFFALO BILL'S WILD WEST SHOW, NO. 1
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1898
1 reel, 18 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4349
Part of a parade can be seen including covered wagons, men dressed as
cavalrymen, and Indians in full-feathered war bonnets. (KN)
PARADE OF SNAKE DANCERS BEFORE THE DANCE
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1901
1 reel, 25 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3088
Indians in ceremonial tribal dress prepare themselves for a ritual dance
involving snakes and water in Arizona. [See also: Carrying Out the Snakes,
Line-Up and Teasing the Snakes, March of Prayer and Entrance of Dancers, and
Panoramic View of Moki-Land.] (KN)
PATHE NEWS [EXCERPTS, NO. 2]
AFI/Britain Collection
Pathe Exchange, Inc., 1927
1 reel, 780 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 9419
Several different news items are shown, including one entitled, "Squaws and
Braves see Heap Big Town."
PROCESSION OF MOUNTED INDIANS AND COWBOYS
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1898
1 reel, 63 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4837
The film shows a parade similar to a wild west show. Specially constructed
floats and decorated wagons, etc., are shown. (KN)
THE RED MAN IN CANADA
The George Kleine Collection
Edison, 1918
1 reel, 116 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 1764
A social documentary of the Stoney Indians who live on a government
reservation in the Canadian Rockies. (GK)
THE ROOSEVELT DAM [1]
The Theodore Roosevelt Association Film Collection
Roosevelt Memorial Association Film Library, 1928?
1 reel, 949 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 8949
Depicts Roosevelt's commitment to the reclamation of desert land and his
belief that natural resources exist for the public benefit by showing views
of desert area, construction of the Roosevelt Dam on the Salt River in
Arizona, and the resulting agricultural benefits to the area from the dam.
At the formal dedication of the dam on March 18, 1911, Roosevelt speaks and
shakes hands with Indian workers. (TR)
THE ROOSEVELT DAM [2]
The Theodore Roosevelt Association Film Collection
Roosevelt Memorial Association Film Library, 1928?
1 reel, 986 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 9947
Roosevelt's involvement in the reclamation of desert land from the beginning
of his presidency to the formal dedication of the Roosevelt Dam on the Salt
River in Arizona on March 18, 1911, is shown. At the dedication ceremony,
Roosevelt speaks and shakes hands with Indian workers. (TR)
THE SELIG-TRIBUNE NO. 6
Public Archives of Canada/Dawson City Collection
Selig-Polyscope, General Film Company, 1916
1 reel, 817 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 8962
Newsreel showing the funeral ceremony of Indian Chief Ogallala Fire; the
preparation of supplies for French and Belgian hospitals; recruitment for
the Continental army in Texas; moving picture manufacturers in Washington;
and other subjects.
SERVING RATIONS TO THE INDIANS, NO. 1
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1898
1 reel, 27 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4382
Indians come out of a door of a log cabin carrying flour or grain sacks in
their arms. The location is possibly New Mexico or Colorado. (KN)
SERVING RATIONS TO THE INDIANS, NO. 2
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1898
1 reel, 19 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4382
Several Indians laden with supplies exit through the doors of a log house and
walk desultorily toward the camera. The location is possibly New Mexico or
Colorado. (KN)
SHAM BATTLE AT THE PAN-AMERICAN EXPOSITION
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1901
1 reel, 128 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5203
Some American Indians on horseback wearing feathers, warpaint, and carrying
frontier rifles ride across a field. Men dressed as U.S. Army troops in
battle regalia are lined up in the position of skirmishers. They fire at the
Indians, who gallop by and then circle them. The location is Buffalo, N.Y.
(KN)
TRAPPERS CROSSING BALD MOUNTAIN
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1903
Cameraman: Wallace McCutcheon
1 reel, 48 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4908
Indians of various ages and both sexes approach the camera while walking on
a ridge clearing in the Adirondack Mountains, N.Y. (KN)
[UNIDENTIFIED POCIASK: GRAND CANYON TRAVELOGUE]
AFI/Pociask Collection
Producer unknown, Central Camera Company Associated Films, [192-?]
1 reel (inc.; 1 reel of ?), 300 ft., 16mm, ref. print FDA 8544
Shows Navajo Indians dancing, making crafts, etc., and then shows people on
an Indian farm. On the same reel with other short films with no Indian
content.
[UNIDENTIFIED TAYLER NO. 17: THE OH SO LONELY ESKIMOS]
AFI/Tayler Collection
[Pathe?], 192-?
1 reel (inc., reel 6 only), 738 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 8356
This documentary shows eskimos capturing walrus and narwhals, covering a
narwhal with plaster to make a cast for the American Museum of Natural
History, and eating some of their catch.
[THE VANISHING INDIAN: EXCERPTS]
Miscellaneous Collection
[Sioux Super Films], [192-?]
1 reel, 316 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 2913
Scenes from Indian life are shown including pottery-making and sewing in
Pueblo, New Mexico, a bow and arrow game, grinding roots into meal for bread,
dancing, and making tepees. The Hopi Indians are shown making pottery,
weaving baskets, and holding bow and arrow shooting contests.
[THE VANISHING INDIAN (TRAILER)]
Miscellaneous Collection
[Sioux Super Films], [192-?]
1 reel, 127 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 2912
A trailer for "coming attractions" announces that this is the "greatest
collection of character pictures of Indian life ever taken of the Seminoles,
Hopi, Apache, Navajo, Ute, Blackfoot, Crows, Flathead, Sioux, all the
Southwest Pueblo Indians and many other famous tribes." Scenes of the Great
Ogallala Sioux Tribes, the Hopi Indians, the Navajo tribe, and the Flatheads
are shown.
[THE VANISHING INDIAN: WAR BATTLE DANCES]
Miscellaneous Collection
[Sioux Super Films], [192-?]
1 reel, 105 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 2910
Indians perform war dances, and a medicine man performs a ceremony over
braves before they go into battle. Part of an Indian battle of "the days of
'49" is reenacted. There is discrepancy over the origins of this reel; in
actuality, it may not be part of The Vanishing Indian.
[THE VANISHING INDIAN: WHITE RIVER]
Miscellaneous Collection
[Sioux Super Films], [192-?]
1 reel, 35 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 2908
An Indian camp with tents is shown along with the adjoining countryside.
[THE VANISHING INDIAN: WINNEBAGO INDIANS]
Miscellaneous Collection
[Sioux Super Films], [192-?]
1 reel, 35 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 2909
The residents of an Indian camp are shown along with a white man whose
identity is not specified. There is discrepancy over the origins of this
reel; in actuality, it may not be part of The Vanishing Indian.
[THE VANISHING INDIAN: YUROK INDIANS]
Miscellaneous Collection
[Sioux Super Films], [192-?]
1 reel, 98 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 2911
Yurok Indians are identified as living in the northern part of California and
having "very little to do with the white man." Scenes of camp life are shown
along with dancing by the inhabitants. There is discrepancy over the origins
of this reel; in actuality, it may not be part of The Vanishing Indian.
Questions have also been raised about whether the people portrayed in the
film are really Yurok Indians.
A VANISHING RACE
The George Kleine Collection
Edison, 1917
1 reel, 168 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 1897
Scenes of daily life of the Blackfeet Indians on a reservation in
northwestern Montana. Shows maps which indicate the empire of the Blackfeet
in the early part of the nineteenth century, and shows the Indians
demonstrating sign language, taking down a tepee when they break camp, and
fording a river. (GK)
VIEWING SHERMAN INSTITUTE FOR INDIANS AT RIVERSIDE, CAL.
Paper Print Collection
Keystone, 1915
Author: Mack Sennett.
1 reel, 115 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 6147
A recording of the happenings in a day at the Sherman Institute. (KN)
WAND DANCE, PUEBLO INDIANS
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1898
1 reel, 27 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3254
A group of Pueblo Indians, some with full feathers, some with no headdress
at all, dances in a circle around a man beating a drum with each one
brandishing a stick or wand. The location is possibly Arizona. (KN)
THE WARDS OF A NATION
[See Ford Educational Weekly, No. 232: The Wards of a Nation]
THE ZUNI KICKING RACE
Ickes Collection
Outing-Chester Pictures, 1918
Producer: C. L. Chester
1 reel, 400 ft., 16mm, archival master, ref. print in progress FAB 538
The Zuni are shown making pottery and participating in the kicking race, an
Indian sport where players kick a stick for 25 miles with their bare feet
across the desert.
Fiction Films
THE ABORIGINE'S DEVOTION
AFI/Post Collection
World Film Mfg. Co., 1909
1 reel, 429 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 9790
A trapper is shown with a small child and his friend, an Indian man. When
the trapper dies in a fall, he leaves his child in the Indian's care. When
the Indian goes to fetch water, a trader comes and assaults the child and
steals from their belongings. The Indian tracks down the trader and kills
him, carrying the body back to the trapper's grave where, in a vision, he
appears to bless the Indian and child.
ADMIRAL CIGARETTE
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1897
1 reel, 25 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4367
Sitting in front of a sign reading "Admiral Cigarettes" are people dressed
as Uncle Sam, a clergyman, an Indian, and a businessman. A girl breaks out
of a box, hands the men cigarettes, and unfolds a banner which says, "We All
Smoke." (KN)
AMERICA
Copyright Collection
United Artists, 1924
Producer/Director: D. W. Griffith; Scenery: John L. E. Pell; Story:
Robert W. Chambers; Photography: G. W. Bitzer, Marcel Le Picard,
Hendrik Sartov, Hal Sintzenich; Art Director: Charles M. Kirk; Film
Editor: Rose Smith, James Smith
Cast: Neil Hamilton, Erville Alderson, Carol Dempster, Charles Emmett
Mack, Lee Beggs, John Dunton, Arthur Donaldson, Charles Bennett, Frank
McGlynn, Jr., Frank Walsh, Lionel Barrymore
2 reels, 3,420 ft., sd., 16mm, ref. print FDA 8406-07
The romance of a Boston patriot and the daughter of a Virginia Tory is set
against the background of the Revolutionary War, showing many of the events
and battles from Virginia to New England and also the Mohawk Valley campaign.
Mohawk and Seneca Indians attack colonists in the film. Restored version
with soundtrack music arranged and played by Charles Hofmann. (MOMA)
AT THE END OF THE ROPE
[See The End of the Rope]
ATTACK ON FORT BOONESBORO
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1906
Camera: G. W. Bitzer
1 reel, 152 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4964
In a reconstruction of an historic event in Kentucky, approximately one
hundred people dressed as American frontiersmen and Indians participate in
a sham battle between those inside the fort and the Indians outside. Filmed
in Louisville, Kentucky. (KN)
THE BATTLE AT ELDERBUSH GULCH
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1913
Director/Author: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: Mae Marsh, Lillian Gish, Robert Harron, Charles Hill Mailes,
Kate Bruce, W. Chrystie Miller, Alfred Paget, Vergie Clarke, Henry B.
Walthall
1 reel, 874 ft., 16mm, ref. print FBB 2271
When a white man kills the son of a chief, a terrifying battle between
settlers and Indians ensues. (MH & KN)
THE BATTLE OF THE RED MEN
AFI/Chesko Collection
Bison, 1912
Director: Thomas H. Ince
1 reel (inc.), 886 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 0836
In a battle between the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians, Silver Moon's husband is
killed. While looking for his body, she is captured by the Cheyennes and
made a slave to the chief who is fascinated by her beauty. She lures the
chief away from the camp so that her Sioux tribe can attack the leaderless
village, and she pushes the Cheyenne chief over a cliff. Approximately half
the picture is missing. (MPW11:902)
BIG CHIEF KOKO
AFI/Horton Collection
Inkwell Films, Inc., 1925
1 reel (inc.?), 739 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 0245
Cartoonist Max Fleischer is shown in his office sketching a clown in a
cartoon. A real Indian enters the door, and the cartoonist proceeds to
transfer him to paper. As a pen creature he is teased by the circus
performer, until he is forced from the sheet back into real life. Even then,
the clown continues shooting paper arrows at the Indian. (MPW74:67)
BLADE O' GRASS
The George Kleine Collection
Edison, 1915
3 reels, 1,202 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 1389-91
A man is deserted by his wife and takes refuge from civilization by going
with his daughter to the Maine woods. The girl grows up and falls in love
with a hunter; the father drives off the hunter and sends the girl to live
with his wealthy sister. The girl soon tires of high society and returns to
the woods, where she is abducted by an Indian. The hunter rescues the girl
and wins her father's consent to marry her. (GK)
THE BROKEN DOLL
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1910
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: Gladys Egan, Kate Bruce, Alfred Paget, Linda Arvidson, Owen
Moore, Mack Sennett, Dell Henderson, W. Chrystie Miller.
1 reel, 406 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5265
After an Indian is cruelly killed, the Indians plan revenge by attacking the
white settlement. A little Indian girl, who had been given a doll by a white
girl, warns her friend of the uprising. Able to prepare themselves, the
settlers beat off the Indians, but the Indian girl is killed during the
attack. (KN)
THE BROKEN LAW
AFI/Bernard Uhl Collection
Ermine Productions, Inc., 1926
Director: Paul Hurst; Writer: Dan F. Whitcomb; Photographer: Frank
Cotner; Editor: Fred Burnworth
Cast: Jack Meehan, Alma Rayford, Frank Abbott, Vester Pegg, Karl
Silvera, Robert Burns
1 reel (inc.), 830 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 8592
A cowboy falls off his horse when it bolts, and his dog barks to call for
help. Cheeko, an old Indian who lives alone, shoots the dog in the leg
thinking that it belongs to evil men who want to wrest from him the secret
source of hidden gold, an inheritance from his forefathers. When he sees the
cowboy, he realizes his mistake and offers to care for the dog, giving the
cowboy gold nuggets in exchange. Meanwhile, the Bar B foreman and his
hireling plot to learn Cheeko's secret.
BRUSH BETWEEN COWBOYS AND INDIANS
Paper Print Collection
Edison, 1904
Camera: A. C. Abadie
1 reel, 39 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4517
Near a river, mounted men shoot rifles at some other men, supposed to be
Indians, who are also on horseback at a distance. The location is Bliss,
Oklahoma Territory. (KN)
BUCK'S ROMANCE
AFI/Marshall Collection
Selig Polyscope Co., 1912
Director: William Duncan
Cast: Myrtle Stedman, Lester Cuneo, Rex De Rosselli, William Duncan,
Florence Dye
1 reel, 961 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 4146
Cowboy Buck Madden wins White Fawn from Chief Swiftwind in a horse race, but
he will not accept her because his wife is arriving that day. Much to his
embarrassment, White Fawn follows Buck everywhere until his wife explains to
her that she is released from the bargain. (MPW14:1110)
BUFFALO BILL ON THE U.P. TRAIL
[See With Buffalo Bill on the U.P. Trail]
THE CALL OF THE WILD
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1908
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: Arthur Marvin, G. W. Bitzer
Cast: Florence Lawrence, Charles Inslee, Mack Sennett
1 reel, 376 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5273
An Indian proposes to a white woman. She declines, and the Indian angrily
returns to his tribe. Later, the heroine is captured by Indians while in the
woods, but is saved by the intervention of her rejected suitor. She returns
home, while the Indian rides off sadly. (MH & KN)
CAPTAIN BRAND'S WIFE
AFI/New Zealand Film Archive Collection
Selig Polyscope, 1911
Cast: Sidney Ayres
1 reel, 1,010 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 8619
Captain Brand is stationed in Arizona just one week after his marriage to
Ada. Lieutenant Moore, a former suitor of Ada's, is also stationed there.
A year later, Ada and her baby travel to Arizona by stagecoach and are met
by Brand. Indians overtake the coach, kill Brand, and attempt to throw the
baby over the cliff. Moore, who is on scouting duty, hears shots and comes
to the rescue, saving the baby. Four years later, he wins Ada's love.
(MPW15:916)
THE CHIEF'S DAUGHTER
MOMA Collection
Biograph, 1911
Director: D. W. Griffith Camera: Billy Bitzer
Cast: Frank Grandon, Stephanie Longfellow, Jack Dillon
1 reel, 408 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAB 2670
A prospector wins the love of the Indian chief's daughter and cruelly casts
her aside when his Eastern fiancee arrives unexpectedly. The Indian girl has
the opportunity to show his unfaithfulness, and he loses both his fiancee and
the Indian girl.
(MPW8:846)
COMATA, THE SIOUX
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1909
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: James Kirkwood, Marion Leonard, Arthur Johnson, Florence
Lawrence, Linda Arvidson, Verner Clarges
1 reel, 360 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5228
An Indian maiden leaves her village to live with a white man, and they have
a child. After the man abandons her for a white woman, she goes off toward
the Black Hills with an Indian man who has loved and guarded her from the
beginning. (MH)
THE CORPORAL'S DAUGHTER
The George Kleine Collection
Edison, 1915
Director: Langdon West; Author: Jack Crawford
Cast: Gladys Hulette, Arthur Housman, Yale Benner, Ben Turbett; George
Melville, William West, William Burgess
1 reel, 361 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 1444
Snubbed by her lieutenant fiance, a corporal's daughter travels with her
father to the frontier where she marries a government scout after he rescues
her from Indians. When the troops and her husband are trapped next to a
mountain during a fight with Indians, she disguises herself as an Indian in
order to show them a tunnel through which they may escape. Support troops
arrive along with the news that the lieutenant is dead. (MPW24:1834)
THE CURSE OF THE RED MAN
The British Film Institute Collection
Selig, 1911
1 reel, 836 ft., 35mm, ref. print in progress
An educated Indian struggles with alcoholism after he returns from college
to live with his tribe. (MH)
CUSTER'S LAST FIGHT
AFI/Barkett Collection
New York Motion Picture Co., 1912
Producer: Thomas H. Ince; Story: Richard V. Spencer
Cast: Francis Ford, Anna Little, Grace Cunard, Wm. Eagleshirt, J.
Barney Sherry, Charles K. French, Lillian Christie, "Snowball," Art
Acord
2 reels (inc.), 632 ft., 16mm, ref. print FBA 9052
Shows the events leading up to Custer's battle with the Sioux at Little Big
Horn. The 1925 version (below) has more scenes of plot development and
different intertitles, but the two films are the same. The print of this
version is incomplete; it ends in the middle of the great battle.
CUSTER'S LAST FIGHT
AFI/South Dakota Historical Society
Quality Amusement Corp., 1925
Producer: Thomas H. Ince; Story: Richard V. Spencer;
Editor/Titles: Inez A. Ridgway
Cast: Francis Ford, Anna Little, Grace Cunard, Wm. Eagleshirt, J.
Barney Sherry, Charles K. French, Lillian Christie, "Snowball," Art
Acord
2 reels, 1,562 ft., 16mm, ref. print FBA 9117-18
Reissued version of the 1912 film Custer's Last Fight which depicts Custer's
battle with the Sioux at Little Big Horn. The killing of two white
naturalists is shown, followed by the arrest of Rain-in-the-Face for their
murders. Rain-in-the-Face escapes, and Custer is given orders to drive
Sitting Bull and his "hostiles" back to the reservation. In that effort,
Custer and every one of his men are killed. The film ends showing the Custer
monument on the battlefield. (MPW12:1116-1118 & Lauritzen)
THE DALTON BOYS
AFI/Sheldon Collection
Producer unknown, 1914?
1 reel, 877 ft., 16mm, ref. print FBB 1573
Frank Dalton becomes a deputy U.S. marshal and goes after bootleggers. An
Indian is shown getting alcohol from the bootleggers and then abusing his
wife when drunk. Frank arrests the Indian and has him lead the way to the
bootleggers where shooting ensues and Frank is killed. His brothers become
deputies to avenge his death, but soon turn to a life of crime. All are
killed in Coffeyville, Kansas, during a bank robbery, except for Emmett who
is imprisoned and later pardoned. This film is a fake version of The Last
Stand of the Dalton Boys (1912). There is deterioration throughout the film.
(Brownlow, p. 287-289)
DANIEL BOONE
AFI/Alderman Collection
Chronicles of America Picture Corp., 1923
Director: Claude H. Mitchell; Adapted from "Pioneers of the Old
Southwest" by Constance Lindsay Skinner
Cast: Elmer Grandin, Virginia Powell
3 reels, 2,694 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 6712-14
In 1776, Boone is sent by Kentucky land owners as the forerunner of a new
settlement. He establishes Boonesboro, but the colony faces extinction
through sickness and Indian depradations. Boone is captured by the Shawnees.
In 1778 a French officer in the British service directs an Indian offensive
against Boonesboro. Boone escapes, races back to his settlement and
successfully defends it against a bitter nine day attack. Part of The
Chronicles of America series released by Yale University. (Yale U. Press
Film Service)
THE DEAD MAN'S CLAIM
Public Archives of Canada/Dawson City Collection
Essanay Film Mfg. Co., 1912
Cast: Broncho Billy Anderson, Arthur Mackley
1 reel (inc.?), 925 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 7960
Before he dies, an old prospector tells Durkin and Black about a gold mine
he has found. Durkin and Black go off across the desert in search of the
mine, but Black deserts Durkin, taking the water and the pack train with him.
An Indian steals Black's water, and Durkin later steals the water from the
Indian. The Indian follows him to extract revenge, but dies from thirst.
Black also dies from thirst. When Durkin runs out of water, he shoots
himself with his revolver. Film has significant deterioration throughout.
(MPW12:446)
THE DEATH MASK
AFI/Wheeler Collection
Kay Bee Columbia Films, 1914
Producer: Thomas H. Ince
2 reels, inc., 1,433 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 8701-02
Running Wolf, the son of the High Chief of a Southland tribe, is fascinated
by the vision of an Indian maiden which appears to him at intervals. He
resists gently the advances of Nona, a maiden of his own tribe, to the sorrow
of his father. One Bear staggers into the camp and tells them of a tribe of
fierce Indians to the north called the Tribe of Three Brothers and also
describes a beautiful Indian girl whom Running Wolf takes to be the girl of
his dreams. He journeys north to win the maiden and battles two of the
brothers. The third brother, who always wears a grotesque mask, appears, and
Running Wolf chases him into the forest. Running Wolf unmasks the mysterious
person, revealing Nona. They make their escape back to their own village.
This is the reissue version, also known as The Redskin Duel. (MPW21:1824)
DISCOVERY OF BODIES
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1903
Camera: Wallace McCutcheon
1 reel, 64 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4580
Frontiersmen find a burning cabin and bodies. No Indians appear, but this
may be part of a series released by AM&B under the title The Pioneers which
does feature Indians. [See also: Firing the Cabin, Rescue of Child from
Indians, and Settler's Home Life.] (KN)
THE END OF THE ROPE
AFI/Douglas Collection
Kalem, 1914
Cast: Mona Darkfeather
1 reel, 1,000 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 7528
Manning, his infant daughter, and Pete are the sole survivors of an Indian
attack. Pete is sealed to die in a lost mine, and Indians take the little
girl with them, believing her father to be dead. The girl is adopted by
Chief Brown Bear. Twenty years later, Spring Breeze, the chief's daughter,
finds an insane old man in the hills and takes him to the Indian camp. He
is enticed away from the camp by Mexican prospectors who want the gold
nuggets the old man carries. The Indians go to rescue the old man and in the
ensuing fight, the old man is hit on the head. The blow restores his memory
and he realizes that Spring Breeze is his daughter. The chief chases a
Mexican who attempts to climb down a rope to a ledge below. He is about to
jump down to the ledge when he sees the chief waiting for him with a knife.
Original title is At the End of the Rope. (MPW21:857-58)
THE FALL OF BLACK HAWK
Paper Print Collection
American Film Manufacturing Co., 1912
Director: William Lee
Cast: Harry Launsdale
1 reel, 23 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5370
A depiction of the conflict between the whites and the Sauk and Fox tribes
led by Black Hawk.
FELIX GOES WEST
AFI/Elmer Quinn Collection
M. J. Winkler Presents, 1924
1 reel, 262 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAA 1915
Felix the cat travels west in this animated cartoon and gets into trouble
with an airplane pilot, a bear, and a cowboy. He shoots an Indian who
captures him and brings him before the big chief. They shoot him like an
arrow off into the town where, to his dismay, he lands in front of another
Indian--a cigar store one.
FIRING THE CABIN (THE PIONEERS)
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1903
Camera: Wallace McCutcheon
1 reel, 76 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 4624
A pair of Indians attack a cabin, killing the adults and setting the cabin
on fire. The Indians lead away the young girl. May be part of a series
released by AM&B in 1904 under the title The Pioneers. [See also: Discovery
of Bodies, Rescue of Child from Indians, and Settler's Home Life.] (KN)
FIRST AMERICANS
AFI/Milton Menell Collection
Pathe Exchange, Inc., [1927]
1 reel, 700 ft., 35mm, ref. print in progress
Educational film about the history of American Indian tribes.
FOR THE PAPOOSE
Public Archives of Canada/Dawson City Collection
Pathe Freres Films, 1912
1 reel, 665 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 7246
A white man is tired of his Indian bride and falls in love with the daughter
of a white settler. He persuades the Indians with whom he lives to attack
the settlers' camp and kill all but the white girl, with whom he later
escapes, taking his Indian child with him. He is pursued by his wife's
brother, who kills him. (MPW12:262)
A FRONTIER SOLDIER OF FORTUNE
AFI/Merrill Collection
Comet, 1912
1 reel (inc.), 763 ft., 35mm ref. print FEA 7018
A young man goes West after his sweetheart's uncle sends her away. In his
travels, the young man meets a widow and saves her farm by paying off her
mortgage. He also saves a covered wagon from an Indian attack and then finds
that his sweetheart is travelling in the wagon. After being reunited, the
young couple marries.
FROZEN JUSTICE
AFI/John Jones Collection
Fox Film Corp., 1929
Director: Allan Dwan; Staged by Elliott Lester; Scenario: Sonya
Levien; Photographer: Harold Rosson; Film Editor: Harold Schuster
Cast: Lenore Ulric, Robert Frazer, Louis Wolheim, Ullrich Haupt, Laska
Winter, El Brendel, Tom Patricola, Alice Lake, Gertrude Astor, Adele
Windsor, Neyneen Farrell, Warren Hymer, Lou Morrison, Charles Judels,
Joe Rochay, Landers Stevens, Meyers Sisters, George MacFarlane, James
Spencer, Arthur Stone, Jack Ackroyd, Gertrude Chorre
1 reel (inc., 1 reel of ?), 850 ft., 35mm, ref. print in progress
Based on Ejnar Mikkelsen's Norden for lov og ret; en Alaska-Historie
(Copenhagen, 1920), Talu, a halfcaste whose father was American and whose
mother was Eskimo, is torn between life with her Eskimo husband, Lanak, a
chief, and the excitement that she imagines exists in Nome, the nearest town.
Captain Jones, a ruthless trader, takes Talu to Nome when his ship crashes
into the ice near the Eskimo settlement, in spite of his first mate's
objections: Duke fears retaliation from Lanak. In Nome, Jones mistreats
Talu, who sings in a saloon and wishes she were back in the settlement. Duke
attempts to help Talu return to her husband, but Jones shoots him, forces
Talu into a sled, and makes a break for it with Lanak in hot pursuit. They
encounter a chasm and are thrown into a deep canyon. Jones is killed
immediately; and Talu, fatally injured, dies in her husband's arms. This was
released as a sound film, also, but this version is silent. Also listed in
some Library records as [Unidentified John Jones No95]. (AFI)
THE FUGITIVE
Copyright Collection
New York Motion Picture Co., Kay-Bee, 1915
(c) Video Yesteryear, 1984
Director: William S. Hart; Story/Screenplay: Richard V. Spencer and
Thomas H. Ince
Cast: William S. Hart, Enid Markey, Clifford S. Smith, S. C. Smith,
Ernest Swallow
29 min., sd., 1/2" videocassette, ref. copy VAA 6624
Luke McVane escapes to the desert after killing a man. The deputy pursues
him with a posse, but Luke lures the deputy away and shoots him. Not wanting
to let the deputy die, Luke takes the wounded man with him, nurses him back
to health, and later explains to him that he killed in self-defense. The
deputy promises to try to dismiss the charges against Luke. The two start
back to town so that Luke may surrender, but they are attacked by Apaches who
kill both. Original title of film is The Taking of Luke McVane. The re-
release contains a musical soundtrack. (MPW24:464)
THE GAMBLER OF THE WEST
Paper Print Collection
Klaw & Erlanger, 1914
Cast: Linda Arvidson, Charles West, Alfred Paget, Charles Perley, Jack
Brammall, Robert Drouet
3 reels, 1,213 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5400-5402
The film chronicles the search for a young man, separated from his family
following an Indian massacre, who was adopted by Indians and reared as one.
His sister succeeds in locating him. (KN)
GEN. CUSTER AT LITTLE BIG HORN
The Douglas Fleming-Lynn Moore Collection
Sunset, 1926
Director: Harry L. Fraser; Producer: Anthony J. Xydias
Cast: Roy Stewart, John Beck, Helen Lynch, Edmund Cobb
5 reels, 76 min., 16mm, ref. print FLA 459-463
A civilian scout attached to General Custer's command manages to escape the
massacre at the Little Big Horn and returns to his girlfriend.
THE GIRL AND THE OUTLAW
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1908
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: Arthur Marvin
Cast: Florence Lawrence, Charles Inslee
1 reel, 316 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5407
The chief of a band of renegade Indians leaves his girlfriend beside the road
after severely beating her. She is found and revived by the daughter of a
local settler. The two start out for the settlement, but they are captured
by the outlaw band. The Indian girl dies after helping her rescuer to
escape. (KN)
A GIRL OF THE PLAINS
AFI/St. Scholastica Collection
[Bison, New York Motion Picture Co., 1910?]
1 reel, 805 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 3423
After a fight in which a cowhand is fired, the cowhand takes revenge by
convincing a group of Indians to join him in attacking his enemy when the man
is out riding with his sweetheart. The girl runs off for help, while the
young man holds his attackers at bay from a cabin. Help arrives, and the
lovers are reunited.
THE HALF-BREED
Copyright Collection
Triangle, 1916
Director: Allan Dwan; Producer: D. W. Griffith;
Adaptation: Anita Loos; From Bret Harte's "In the Carquinez Woods"
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks, Alma Reuben, Jewel Carmen, Sam DeGrasse,
Frank Brownlee, Tom Wilkinson, George Beranger
1 reel, 1,728 ft., 16mm, ref. print FDA 2939
Leaping Brook, a half-breed, lives as an outcast in the forest where he meets
Teresa who is running away from authorities after stabbing her unfaithful
lover. Mistakenly believing that the half-breed is involved with his
sweetheart, Nellie, the sheriff decides to kill Leaping Brook, but Teresa
discovers that Leaping Brook is really the sheriff's son and tries to tell
the sheriff this. When a forest fire breaks out, Leaping Brook cannot save
both Teresa and the sheriff, so he chooses Teresa. (AFI)
THE HEART OF WETONA
Raymond Rohauer Collection
Norma Talmadge Film Corp., Select Pictures Corp., 1919
Producer: Joseph M. Schenck; Director: Sidney A. Franklin;
Scenario: Mary Murillo; Story: George Scarborough; Camera: David
Abel
Cast: Norma Talmadge, Fred Huntley, Thomas Meighan, Gladden James,
Fred Turner, Princess Uwane Yea, Charles Edler, White Eagle, Black
Wolf, Black Lizard
6 reels, 5,900 ft., 35mm, ref. print in progress
When Wetona, the half white, half Indian daughter of Chief Quannah of the
Blackfeet tribe, tells her father that she would be an inappropriate choice
to be the tribe's Vestal Virgin at the Corn Dance, the furious chief vows to
kill her white lover. She goes to Government agent John Hardin for help, but
her father sees them together and, speculating that Hardin has wronged her,
demands that he marry her. Hardin agrees to the marriage to save her lover,
whom he does not know is his friend and assistant Tony Wells. After Wetona
learns that Tony was never sincere, she sees his cowardice during the Indian
raid on Hardin's house. When the chief learns the truth, he stops the raid,
apologizes to Hardin, and shoots Tony as he flees. Quannah tells Wetona he
will take her back, but since she and Hardin are now in love, they remain
together. Listed in some Library records as Heart of Wetonia. (AFI)
HEARTS AND SADDLES
AFI/Sherman Collection
Fox Film Corp., 1917
Cast: Tom Mix, Bob Eddy
1 reel (inc.), 1,160 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 7538
In their vying for the affections of Victoria, a rancher's daughter, Tom and
Sid are fired by her father. Tom gets a job bartending, but he is fired
there, too. The two are given jobs driving stagecoaches, and Victoria
promises to marry whoever drives the fastest. Potel, another suitor, incites
the Indians to attack the stagecoaches in order to get rid of Tom and Sid,
telling the Indians that there is fire-water on board. Meanwhile, the mine
safe is robbed, and the bandits hide out in the stagecoach, unknown to Tom
and Sid. The stagecoach falls down a mountain, a posse goes after the
bandits, and Tom rescues Victoria from the Indians. Film is out of sequence
and incomplete, so plot continuity is poor.
HER INDIAN MOTHER
AFI/New Zealand Film Archive Collection
Kalem, 1910
Cast: Alice Joyce, Jane Wolfe
1 reel, 995 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 8630
A man in the Hudson Bay country takes an Indian wife, and they have a
daughter. He is unexpectedly called back to Montreal, and he soon forgets
his wilderness home. An inspection trip brings him back sixteen years later,
and by chance he sees his daughter whose mother has died. Impressed with
her, he takes her back to Montreal and educates her as a white girl. After
a while she misses her tribe, so she puts on her buckskin dress and returns
to them. Her heartbroken father finds her in the tepee of a young brave
whose wife she has become, and the white man then realizes his loss. Listed
under the title The White Man Takes a Red Wife in some Library of Congress
records. (MPW7:1427)
HIAWATHA
AFI/Ohio Historical Society Collection
Fort Defiance Film Co., Gaumont, 1913
Producer: Frank E. Moore; Camera: Victor Milner; Based on the poem
"The Song of Hiawatha" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Cast: Soon-goot
1 reel, 16mm, ref. print in progress
Years after Gitche Manito proclaims that a prophet will come to unite the
Indian warriors, Hiawatha is born to Wenonah and Mudjekeewis. After
Wenonah's death, her mother Nakomis adopts the child, announcing that he is
the long-awaited prophet. Iagoo teaches Hiawatha to master the bow and
arrow, and after he has slain his first deer, Hiawatha visits the arrow-maker
across the lake. Smitten by the old man's daughter Minnehaha, Hiawatha soon
marries her, and they live together happily until famine strikes the village.
Following Minnehaha's death, Iagoo announces the arrival of white men and
tall ships. Hiawatha then greets the pale-faced Black Robe and proclaims
that the real prophet has finally arrived. As the priest begins to preach,
Hiawatha disappears into the sunset. The film features a cast of 150 Indians
from New York, Canada and the Dakotas, and it was filmed in New York State
and near Lake Superior. (AFI)
HIS LAST GAME
AFI/Miller Collection
Imp, 1909
1 reel (incomplete?), 354 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAB 0434
Two teams are matched for the big game of the series in Arizona. Two
gamblers decide to bribe the Indian pitcher, so that they can fix the game
in their favor. He turns them down, and they try to poison him. He kills
one of the gamblers. The Indian is about to be shot for the crime, when the
sherriff grants him a respite to pitch in the game, which he wins. The
Indian is shot a moment before a reprieve for him reaches the sheriff.
HOGAN OUT WEST
Paper Print Collection
Keystone, 1915
Producer/Author: Mack Sennett
Cast: Charles Murray, Billie Brockwell, Bobby Dunn, Frank Hayes
1 reel, 400 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5450
Hogan ventures to the Wild West where he is attacked by Indians and meets the
Cactus Queen who becomes enamored of him. He is mistaken for a bandit, but
escapes with the help of the Cactus Queen. (KN)
IN THE DAYS OF THE THUNDERING HERD
AFI/Blackhawk Collection
Selig Polyscope Co., 1914
Director: Colin Campbell; Story: Gilson Willets
Cast: Tom Mix, Bessie Eyton, Wheeler Oakman, Red Wing
3 reels (inc., 3 reels of 5 only), 2,253 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 6712-14
In 1849, a pony express rider, Tom, accompanies his sweetheart, Sally,
through Indian territory to California to visit her ailing mother. The wagon
train is attacked by Indians and only Tom and Sally survive. They are taken
as prisoners to the the Indians' village where Chief Swift Wind falls in love
with Sally, and Starlight, Swift Wind's sister, becomes infatuated with Tom.
Sally and Tom are able to escape to a buffalo hunter's encampment after which
Sally slips away and summons help. Finally, in California, Sally is reunited
with her parents and promises to marry Tom. (AFI)
IN THE LAND OF THE WAR CANOES: KWAKIUTL INDIAN LIFE ON THE
NORTHWEST COAST
Copyright Collection
Burke Museum, University of Washington, 1973
1 reel, 44 min., 16mm, ref. print FDA 2741
Bill Holm and George I. Quimby's re-edited version of the Edward S. Curtis
1914 film originally entitled In the Land of the Headhunters, a saga of
romantic love among the Kwakiutl Indians on Vancouver Island. The added
soundtrack includes authentic tribal singing, chants, spoken parts, and
instrumental music. Since the film has actuality footage of the Indians as
well as a narrative story, it is included in both the fiction and non-fiction
sections of this guide.
THE INDIAN
Paper Print Collection
Klaw & Erlanger, 1914
Cast: Linda Arvidson, Charles Perley, Alfred Paget, Bert Williams,
Lewis Wells, Violet Reid
3 reels, 1,200 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5482-84
The twin sons of an Indian chief become separated after a battle between the
Indians and the cavalry. One of the sons is raised as a white man, while the
other grows up with his father. The daughter of the American general who
raised one of the twins is kidnapped by a dishonest Indian agent. She is
rescued by troops and by Indian supporters led by the Americanized twin,
while the other twin is killed during the skirmish. (KN)
THE INDIAN MASSACRE
AFI/Killiam Collection
Bison, 1912
Director: Thomas H. Ince
Cast: J. Barney Sherry, Francis Ford, Arthur Acord
2 reels, 1,716 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 6371-72
When Indians attack a white settlement, a brave kidnaps a white baby to give
to his wife as a replacement for their dead baby. The white mother goes to
the Indian camp to look for her child and is captured by the Indians who plan
to torture her. The settlers attack the Indian camp, destroying it
completely and killing the braves, while the Indian wife returns the baby to
the white woman and allows her to escape. The Indian wife mourns her baby
at its grave, unaware of the destruction of the Indian camp. (MPW11:854)
THE INDIAN RUNNER'S ROMANCE
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1909
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: James Kirkwood, Owen Moore, Marion Leonard, Arthur Johnson, Mary
Pickford
1 reel, 379 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5557
An Indian brave and the daughter of a chief are married, but the bride is
abducted by white men shortly thereafter. The Indian brave searches for her,
eventually locating her. He kills the white man and brings his wife home.
(KN)
INDIAN WESTERN
AFI/Lake County Museum Collection
Selig, 1910
1 reel (inc.?), 795 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 5853
At an U. S. Army post, a colonel's daughter aids a young Indian woman and is
rewarded by the woman's devotion. Trapper Joe attempts to take the colonel's
daughter to Fremont, but they are attacked by Indians, led by Black Bear who
seeks revenge. The Indian woman helps Joe and the white woman to escape.
They travel across the desert where the Indian woman apparently dies of
thirst before Joe and the colonel's daughter arrive at Fremont. Film appears
to be incomplete.
INDIANS AND COW-BOYS
AFI/Tayler Collection
Pathe, 1904
1 reel, 558 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 6519
An Indian marauder is punished by cowboys. The Indian takes revenge by
attacking a stagecoach with other members of his tribe and abducting a white
woman and child from it. The cowboys pursue the Indians and rescue the woman
and child from the Indian camp.
INJUNS
AFI/Nichol Collection
Powers Picture Plays, Universal, 1913
Cast: Early and Matty
1 reel, 240 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 8315
While playing Indians, a boy and a girl tie a man to a tree and set him on
fire. On the same reel as Eph's Dream which contains no Indians.
THE INVADERS
The Blackhawk Collection
Kay-Bee, 1912
Director: Thomas H. Ince and Francis Ford; Script: C. Gardner
Sullivan
Cast: Francis Ford, Ethel Grandin, Ray Myers, Anna Little
3 reels, 2,741 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 897-99
Chief Eagleshirt and his Sioux attack and kill some surveyors who have
entered their land. Sky Star, who loved one of the surveyors, dies, and
reinforcements arrive to drive off the Indians who are attacking the fort.
(MH)
IOLA'S PROMISE
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1912
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: Mary Pickford, Alfred Paget, Joe Swickard, George Nicholls,
William J. Butler, Dorothy Bernard
1 reel, 400 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5870
An Indian maiden is rescued from cruel captors by a kind prospector. Her
tribe attacks a covered wagon and captures the prospector's fiancee whom they
intend to burn at the stake. In the rescue, Iola is fired on by her own
people and dies in the arms of the prospector, but not before she shows him
where she has found some gold-bearing rock. (KN)
THE IRON HORSE
Copyright Collection
Fox, 1924
Director: John Ford; Titles: Charles Darnton; Story: Charles
Kenyon, John Russell; Photography: George Schneiderman; Additional
Photography: Burnett Guffey; Assistant Director: Edward O'Fearna
Cast: George O'Brien, Madge Bellamy, Cyril Chadwick, Fred Kohler,
Gladys Hulette, James Marcus, J. Farrell MacDonald, James Welch, Walter
Rogers, George Wagner, Jack Padjan, Charles O'Malley, Charles Newton,
Charles Edward Bull, Colin Chase, Delbert Mann, Chief Big Tree, Chief
White Spear
3 reels, approx. 4,244 ft., sd., 16mm, ref. print FDA 7812-14
President Lincoln signs a bill (Pacific Railroad Act of 1 July 1862) that
authorizes the construction of a transcontinental railroad. When the war
ends, Davy Brandon joins the Union Pacific as a surveyor and meets Miriam,
his childhood sweetheart, whose father is in charge of construction. Davy
kills Jesson, Miriam's fiance, in a fight after Jesson tries to kill him, so
Miriam and Davy become estranged. Indians, led by Deroux, attack a
construction train, and in the fight, Davy kills Deroux when he realizes that
Deroux is the man who murdered his father. Davy goes west to join the
Central Pacific which is racing the Union Pacific to the center of the
continent. The joining of the two railroads is accompanied by the union of
Davy and Miriam. Restored version by Karl Malkames with an original piano
score by William Perry. (AFI)
JAMESTOWN
Gift Collection
Pathe, Yale U. Press Film Service, 1923
Director: Edwin L. Hollywood; Adaptation: Roswell Dague; Based on
Mary Johnston's book Pioneers of the Old South
Cast: Dolores Cassinelli, Robert Gaillard, Harry Kendall, Leslie
Stowe, Paul McAllister, Leslie Austin
4 reels, 1,152 ft., 48 min., 16mm, ref. print FAA 6264-67
The daily life of the colonists under Sir Thomas Dale in the Jamestown
settlement in 1612 is shown, emphasizing the threat of attack by the Indians
and the Spanish. The capture of Pocahontas, her marriage to John Rolfe, and
the end of Powhatan's war are also included. Part of The Chronicles of
America series released by Yale University.
JUST SQUAW
Public Archives of Canada/Dawson City Collection
Superior Pictures, 1919
Director/Producer: George E. Middleton; Writer: Earle Snell
Cast: Beatriz Michelena, William Pike, Andrew Robson, Albert Morrison,
D. Mitsoras, Jeff Williams, Katherine Angus
4 reels (inc.; reels 1-3 and 5 of 5 only), 2,127 ft., 35mm, ref.
print FEB 8387-90
Before she dies, an Indian woman asks her half-breed son never to tell his
sister Fawn that she is white. Years later, Fawn falls in love with a
stranger who loves her even though he thinks she is a half-breed. Her
brother, now a fugitive known as the Phantom, is accused of killing a man,
but the real killer comes forward and confesses. Phantom saves Fawn from the
man who stole her from her white father, and her father later kills the
kidnapper who confesses that Fawn is white. Fawn and the stranger can now
marry. (AFI)
KENTUCKIAN
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1908
Director: Wallace McCutcheon; Scenario: Stanner E. V. Taylor from
the play by Augustus Thomas; Camera: G. W. Bitzer, Arthur Marvin
Cast: Eddie Dillon, Robert Vignola, John Adolfi, Florence Auer,
Wallace McCutcheon, Jr., D. W. Griffith
1 reel, 311 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5513
An Indian woman saves the life of a card player robbed by Indians and left
for dead. They marry and have a child. As he is struggling whether to
return East for his inheritance, his Indian wife commits suicide. (KN & MH)
KIT CARSON
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1903
Camera: Wallace McCutcheon
10 reels, 527 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5077-86
Kit Carson is captured by Indians and manages to escape only to be ambushed
by them again. In the Indian village, Kit is tied to a tree and is harassed
by the Indians, but is set free by an Indian maiden. (KN)
THE LAST DROP OF WATER
AFI/Tayler Collection
Biograph, 1911
Director: D. W. Griffith
Cast: Blanche Sweet, Joseph Graybill, Charles West
1 reel, 922 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 8202
A group of pioneers head west across the desert, including Mary; her
alcoholic husband, John; and Jim, the suitor she rejected in favor of John.
They are attacked by Indians, but ward them off. Jim and John go in search
of water, and John gives his last water to Jim, since he considers Jim to be
a better man. Jim returns to camp after he discovers a pool of water.
Soldiers arrive and drive away the Indians. (MPW9:193)
LEATHER STOCKING
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1909
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer, Arthur Marvin
Cast: James Kirkwood, Linda Arvidson, Mack Sennett, Billy Quirk,
George Nicholls, Owen Moore, Henry B. Walthall
1 reel, 372 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5524
Based on James Fenimore Cooper's story, a party of settlers led by a friendly
Indian and escorted by a British soldier set out out on a journey. En route
they are stalked and attacked by Indians. At the crucial moment, soldiers
from the fort arrive and beat off the unfriendly Indian tribe. (KN)
THE LEGEND OF THE CORN
Chazy School Collection
Rothacker, 1920
1 reel, 403 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAB 6098
Dramatizes Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's version of the origin of maize
("Indian corn") as told in his poem "Song of Hiawatha" and shows the
processing of corn into Post Toasties by the Postum Cereal Co.
THE LIFE OF BUFFALO BILL
Ernst Collection
Buffalo Bill and Pawnee Bill Film Co., 1912
1 reel, 940 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 1982
Three experiences from Buffalo Bill's past are reenacted. In the first, he
foils an attack by Cheyenne Indian scouts on a group of settlers. This is
followed by an Indian attack, which the settlers win. In the next story,
Buffalo Bill foils a stagecoach robbery. The last story shows the Cheyennes
leaving to join the Sioux. Buffalo Bill alerts the calvary to this, and a
battle follows during which the "famous duel between Chief Yellow Hand and
Buffalo Bill" takes place. Buffalo Bill scalps an Indian as revenge for
Custer's death. Film features appearances by the real Buffalo Bill at the
beginning and the end.
LITTLE DOVE'S ROMANCE
AFI/Maskell Collection
Bison, 1911
Director: Thomas H. Ince
Cast: Red Wing, Charles Inslee, J. Barney Sherry, Young Deer
1 reel, 388 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAB 3957
When a hunter fires a gun, Little Dove's horse throws her to the ground,
spraining her ankle. The hunter takes her to his camp where he mends her
ankle. Noting her absence, her tribe trails her to the camp, but Little Dove
prevents them from attacking the camp. She falls in love with the hunter,
but when he does not reciprocate, she goes off sadly with a brave.
(MPW9:730)
THE LITTLE INDIAN WEAVER
AFI/Casselton-Larson Collection
Madeline Brandeis Productions, Pathe, 1929
1 reel, 1,015 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 8579
Based on the book of the same title by Madeline Brandeis, a Navajo Indian
girl wants the doll of a white child, so she weaves a blanket to exchange for
one at the trading post. The trader refuses to take the blanket, but the
trader's son buys the girl a doll with his savings. Because of this act of
kindness, the Navajos accept the white boy as their friend. (Educational
Film Catalog)
THE LUCK OF ROARING CAMP
The George Kleine Collection
Edison, 1917
Director: Floyd France; Author: Bret Harte; Adapter: Edward H.
Griffith
Cast: Ivan Christie, Robert Chandler, William Wadsworth, J. C.
O'Loughlin, Betty Young, Eugene Field, Thomas Trenor, A. Newson, Al
Stewart, Florence Adams
1 reel, 566 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 1985
The men of a rough western mining camp adopt a baby whose mother, a half-
breed Indian, dies. Three years later the luck of the camp runs out. A
half-breed Indian seeking revenge for having been chased away, tries to
kidnap the child, but is stopped by the camp gambler. In the ensuing fight,
the half-breed is killed, and the child finds a gold nugget, thus discovering
a new vein of gold ore. (GK)
THE LURE OF WOMAN
Public Archives of Canada/Dawson City Collection
World Film Corp., 1915
Director: Travers Vale; Screenplay: Louise Vale; Based on the play
The Renegade by Paul Armstrong
Cast: Alice Brady, Claude Fleming, June Elvidge, George Relph, Mrs.
Cecil Raleigh, Fred Heck
4 reels (inc.; reels 1-4 of 5 only), 2,410 ft., 35mm., ref. print
FEB 9087-90
Officer John Lane loves Katie, but is pursued by the widowed Mrs. Van Allen
who spreads a rumor that Lane is married to an insane asylum resident. Lane
spurns her, and she turns her attentions to Found, an Indian interpreter, who
proposes to the widow, but is rejected. Humiliated, he incites the local
Indians into attacking and drags the widow by her hair, causing her to die
of fright. Entreated by his Indian lover to flee, Found escapes unharmed,
and the army troops defeat the remaining Indians. Lane convinces Katie of
his bachelorhood, and they happily reunite. Parts of the picture are
missing, and there is nitrate deterioration. (AFI)
THE MASSACRE
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1912
Director/Author: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: Wilfred Lucas, Charles West, Blanche Sweet, Eddie Paget, Dell
Henderson, W. Chrystie Miller, Charles Craig, Robert Harron
1 reel, 834 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5883
A wagon train is attacked by Indians who are later run off by the cavalry.
The hero searches the battlefield for his wife and baby and finds them alive
under a pile of bodies of plainsmen who had stood back to protect the woman
and her child. (KN)
MAYA, JUST AN INDIAN
AFI/Post Collection
Frontier, 1913
1 reel, 963 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 8308
Educated at the Carlisle School, Maya returns to her tribe, and falls in love
with a white prospector whom she marries and reveals the secret hiding place
of gold. He leaves her, but returns 2 years later with a white wife. Maya
plans to kill his wife and win him back by bringing him gold, but reconsiders
when she sees his child and ill wife, and leaves the gold and a knife on the
table. When he returns, he realizes Maya has been there and what she has
done for him. (MPW17:878)
THE MENDED LUTE
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1909
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: James Kirkwood, Florence Lawrence, Owen Moore, Mack Sennett,
Arthur Johnson, James Young Deer, Princess Red Wing
1 reel, 375 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5568
Little Bear and Standing Rock are vying for the Sioux chief's daughter, and
the chief gives her to the highest bidder, Standing Rock, the man she doesn't
love. After she leaves her new husband for Little Bear whom she loves, the
two are captured by Standing Rock and his tribe and are about to be burned
at the stake when, impressed by his rival's bravery, he sets them both free.
(MH)
A MIDNIGHT PHANTASY
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1903
Camera: F. S. Armitage
1 reel, 15 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 3256
A cigar-store Indian is standing in front of a picket fence and next to it
is a poster of a ballerina. A man appears, steals the cigar from the Indian
and escorts away the ballerina who steps out of the poster. The Indian
scalps him and hands the scalp to the astonished ballerina. (KN)
A MOHAWK'S WAY
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1910
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: Dorothy Davenport, George Nicholls, Alfred Paget, Mack Sennett,
Claire McDowell, W. J. Butler
1 reel, 398 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5584
A white doctor refuses to treat a sick Indian child, so his wife ministers
in his stead. Later, the Indians take to the warpath and kill the settlers
except for the wife who is spared because of her earlier kindness to the
ailing Indian child. (KN)
NORTH OF 36
AFI/Paramount Collection
Paramount, 1924
Director: Irvin Willat; Screenplay: James Shelly Hamilton; From the
novel by Emerson Hough
Cast: Jack Holt, Lois Wilson, Noah Beery, Ernest Torrence,
David Dunbar, Stephen Carr
8 reels, 7,566 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 7686-93
In order to find a market for her cattle, Taisie Lockheart, owner of a large
Texas ranch, decides to drive a herd across Indian territory between Texas
and the new railhead at Abilene. Rudabaugh attempts to steal Lockheart's
land scrip, but is foiled by Dan McMasters, who is in love with Lockheart.
Rudabaugh kills two Comanche women, and the Indians go on the warpath, but
are fought off by Lockheart men. Upon arrival in Abilene, Lockheart sells
her cattle, and McMasters fights Rudabaugh and hands him over to the Comanche
chief. (AFI)
ON THE WAR PATH
AFI/Rippen Collection
Kalem, 1911
Cast: William West, Jane Wolfe, Judson Melford, Alice Joyce, Carlyle
Blackwell, Robert Chandos, Frank Lanning, George Melford
1 reel, 909 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 5832
Two old settlers discussing their past battles with Indians inspire a little
boy to defend the cabin himself when Indians come to attack again. The other
settlers have gone to a military outpost for safety, but the little boy stays
behind to fight until he is rescued by a half-breed trapper. (MPW9:575)
THE PALEFACE
Copyright Collection
Comique Film Co., First National, 1921
Director/Writer: Buster Keaton, Eddie Cline
Cast: Buster Keaton, Joe Roberts
1 reel, 800 ft., 16mm, ref. print FBA 3635
Indians capture Buster Keaton, and his asbestos clothing saves him from
burning. They think he is a god and take him into the tribe under the name
of Little Chief Paleface. Then he saves the tribe from being cheated by
crooked oilmen. (MH)
PETER PAN
AFI/Walt Disney Films Collection
Paramount, 1924
Presenters: Adolph Zukor and Jesse L. Lasky; Director: Herbert
Brenon; Screenplay: Willis Goldbeck; Photographer: James Howe
Cast: George Ali, Esther Ralston, Cyril Chadwick, Mary Brian, Betty
Bronson, Ernest Torrence
3/4" videocassette, ref. print VBE 8578-79
Based on James Matthew Barrie's story Peter Pan, or the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow
Up, Peter Pan is looking for his shadow in the Darling nursery when he
awakens the Darling children. He tells them of never-never land, teaches
them to fly, and guides them to his forest home. Captain Hook, a notorious
pirate, kidnaps the children after a fierce fight with Indians who are the
children's friends. Peter rescues the children and returns them to their
nursery, while he returns to his home in the woods. (AFI)
THE PILGRIMS
AFI/Alderman Collection
The Chronicles of Amrica Picture Corp., 1924
Director: Edwin L. Hollywood
Cast: Robert Gaillard, Harry Simpson, John Hopkins
3 reels, 2,751 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 6681-83
Beginning with the Separatist Movement at Scrooby, England, the film traces
their escape to Holland in 1607-8 and, after a rest of twelve years, the
departure of the band for America. The voyage of the Mayflower, the landing
on Plymouth Rock, and the hardships and suffering of the settlers are shown
as well as scenes with Indians. Part of The Chronicles of America series
released by Yale University. (Yale U. Press Film Service)
THE PIONEERS
[See Discovery of Bodies, Firing the Cabin, Rescue of Child from
Indians, and Settler's Home Life.]
A PUEBLO LEGEND
The Mary Pickford Collection
Biograph, 1912
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: Mary Pickford, Robert Harron, Wilfred Lucas
1 reel, 33 min., 16mm, ref. print FLA 92
A young Indian maiden assists the hero of the tribe in finding a sacred
turquoise stone, the recovery of which would mean happiness and prosperity
to the tribe. Filmed on location in the old Pueblo of Isleta, New Mexico.
RAMONA
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1910
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: Mary Pickford, Henry B. Walthall, Frank Grandon, Kate Bruce
1 reel, 432 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5651
Based on the novel by Helen Hunt Jackson, an orphan from a great Spanish
household falls in love with an Indian, Alessandro, but her foster mother
tries to thwart the romance. Upon hearing that she has Indian blood, Ramona
renounces the white world to be with Alessandro, but they are driven away
from Alessandro's home by white men until he finally dies. (MPW6:897)
RAMONA
AFI/Nichol Collection
Clune, 1916
Director: Donald Crisp
Cast: Adda Gleason, Monroe Salisbury, Mabel Van Buren, Richard
Sterling
1 reel (inc.; reel 5 of 12 only), 992 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 9679
The second film version of Helen Hunt Jackson's novel about the tragic love
between the orphan Ramona and the Indian Alessandro.
THE RED GIRL
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1908
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: Arthur Marvin
Cast: Charles Inslee, Harry Salter, Marion Sunshine, Tony O'Sullivan,
Florence Lawrence
1 reel, 392 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5656
A Mexican woman steals gold nuggets from a female miner, and is aided in her
escape by an Indian woman, but the Mexican woman then seduces the Indian's
half-breed husband into going with her. They try to kill the Indian by tying
her up and suspending her over a river, but she manages to free herself and
helps the miner track down the Mexican woman and her unfaithful husband whom
she refuses to take back. (MPW3:221)
RED LOVE
AFI/Harry Mamas Collection
Lowell Film Productions, 1925
Director: Edgar Lewis; Story: L. Case Russell
Cast: John Lowell, Evangeline Russell, F. Serrano Keating, William
Calhoun, Ann Brody, William Cavanaugh, Wallace Jones, Charles W.
Kinney, Frank Montgomery, Dexter McReynolds, "Chick" Chandler
4 reels (inc.; reels 1,3,4 & 5 of 5 only; ref. print for reel 2 in
progress), 4,250 ft., 35mm, ref. print
FEB 5173-75, FEB 6505
Thunder Cloud, a Sioux and a graduate of Carlisle, becomes an outlaw when he
believes he has slain the villainuos Bill Mosher, a white man. He falls in
love with Starlight, the halfbreed daughter of Sheriff La Verne, and
eventually abducts her during the Indian Fair and takes her to his hideout.
They are followed by Little Antelope, a member of the Indian police, who is
also in love with Starlight. Thunder Cloud recognizes Little Antelope as his
younger brother and turns himself in. At the trial, it is revealed that
Mosher was not slain and that the allegation was only a plot against Thunder
Cloud. Starlight agrees to marry Thunder Cloud. (AFI)
THE RED RAIDERS
United Artists Collection
First National, 1927
Director: Albert Rogell; Producer: Charles R. Rogers; Photography:
Ross Fisher; Titles: Don Ryan; Editor: Fred Allen; Akeley camera:
William Sickner; Business Manager: Sidney Rogell; Supervised by
Harry J. Brown; Based on a story by Marion Jackson
Cast: Ken Maynard, Ann Drew, Paul Hurst, J. P. McGowan, Chief
Yowlache, Harry Shutan, Tom Day, Hal Salter
7 reels, 2175 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAB 4812-18
A young Army officer is assigned to a frontier military post in Sioux
territory. After an Indian spy at the post named Scar Face Charlie incites
the Sioux to war and induces the troops to leave the fort, the officer brings
the men back to the fort and the Sioux attack is crushed. (AFI)
THE REDMAN AND THE CHILD
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1908
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: Arthur Marvin
Cast: Charles Inslee, John Tansy, Harry Salter, Linda Arvidson
1 reel, 328 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5657
Outlaws kill an old miner and kidnap his grandchild while their Indian friend
is away. Upon his return, the Indian rescues the child and avenges the death
of his old friend by killing the outlaws. (MH)
THE REDMAN'S VIEW
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1909
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: James Kirkwood, Arthur Johnson, Owen Moore, Lottie Pickford,
Alfred Paget, W. Chrystie Miller
1 reel, 389 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5658
Armed and unfeeling whites force reluctant Kiowas to move from their land.
The Chief's daughter is left behind as part of a trade with the white men to
prevent a massacre, but in the end she is allowed to go with the young Indian
she loves to visit the burial site of her father. (MH & KN)
REDSKIN
AFI/Paramount Collection
Paramount, 1929
Director: Victor Schertzinger; Story & Screenplay: Elizabeth Pickett;
Photography: Edward Cronjager; Color Photography: Ray Rennahan and
Edward Estabrook; Musical Score: J. S. Zamecnik
Cast: Richard Dix, Gladys Belmont, Tully Marshall, George Rigas, Noble
Johnson, Jane Novak, Larry Steers, Augustina Lopez
2 reels, 2,927 ft., 16mm, color, ref. print FCA 6983-84
The son of a Navajo chief returns from college and finds it difficult to
assimilate into his tribe. When his father dies, he refuses to take his
place and is exiled. He goes to a fellow student he loves, Corn Blossom, a
member of an enemy tribe, the Pueblos, but is discovered in her camp and
escapes into the desert where he discovers oil. He returns to his people,
informing them they are rich now and marries Corn Blossom, who had been
hiding from her people in his village. (EHW94:no.7,p.64)
THE REDSKIN DUEL
[See The Death Mask]
A REDSKIN'S BRAVERY
AFI/Miller Collection
Bison, 1911
1 reel, 645 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 5399
A woman gives food to an Indian man. She then spurns the advances of a
cowboy and rides off with her sweetheart. The rejected suitor plots revenge
with a friend, and the two attack the lovers. The girl escapes to the river,
but is apprehended by them in a canoe. The Indian comes to her rescue and
delivers her to her sweetheart.
RESCUE OF CHILD FROM INDIANS
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1903
Camera: Wallace McCutcheon
1 reel, 86 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5185
Frontiersmen free a young girl held captive by Indians. This may be the last
part of a series of released under the title The Pioneers. [See also:
Firing the Cabin, Discovery of Bodies, and Settler's Home Life.] (KN)
A ROMANCE OF THE CLIFF DWELLERS
AFI/Nederlands Filmmuseum Collection
Edison, 1911
Director: Edwin S. Porter
Cast: Laura Sawyer, James Gordon, Herbert Prior
1 reel (inc.), 372 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAB 2492
A chief and a brave fight over an Indian girl. The girl kills the chief with
an arrow so she can be with the brave, whom she loves. The brave is tried
by the tribal council for murder and is tortured. The girl confesses when
she hears his cries, and she is sent to her death after the lovers are
permitted to watch the sunrise together. Titles are in Dutch. (MPW10:1006)
A ROMANCE OF THE WESTERN HILLS
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1910
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: Mary Pickford, Charles West, Arthur Johnson, Alfred Paget, Kate
Bruce, Blanche Sweet
1 reel, 387 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5672
A young Indian woman, adopted by a white family, falls in love with a white
man who cruelly rejects her after leading her to believe that he loves her.
Her Indian lover seeks to avenge her treatment by attacking the white man,
but the Indian woman stops him from killing the white man. When the white
man's fiancee learns what he has done to the Indian woman, she breaks up with
him. (MH & MPW6:611)
A ROUND-UP IN OKLAHOMA
Paper Print Collection
Oklahoma Natural Mutoscene Co., 1908
Camera: J. B. Kent
1 reel, 321 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5676
During the course of a cattle drive, a group of Indians sneak up on a chuck
wagon and kill the cook before they are driven away by cowboys. Filmed in
Oklahoma. (KN)
SAVED BY HER HORSE
AFI/Bosso Collection
Selig Polyscope Co., 1915
Producer/Director: Tom Mix
Cast: Tom Mix, Louella Maxam, Sid Jordan, Pat Chrisman
1 reel, 161 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 9884
Tom Golden leaves a party of settlers to look for hostile Indians. He
discovers some, and his girlfriend, Nell, offers to go for help. She is
captured by Indians, but her horse escapes and carries her hat back to the
settlers' camp. With her horse leading the way, Tom finds Nell at the Indian
camp. Nell hears her horse neigh, so she whistles and mounts him when he
answers her call, and she leaves to get help. Parts of the picture are
missing. (MPW24:1866)
THE SCARLET WEST [TRAILER]
AFI/Post Collection
First National, 1925
Director: John G. Adolfi
Cast: Robert Frazer, Clara Bow
1 reel, 185 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 7744
The son of an Indian chief is educated in the East and is rejected by his
people. After saving a detachment of cavalry from Indians, he becomes a
captain in the army and falls in love with a white woman. When he hears
about Custer's defeat, he decides to rejoin his people. Theatrical trailer
promoting the film. (AFI & MH)
SETTLER'S HOME LIFE
Paper Print Collection
AM&B, 1903
Camera: Wallace McCutcheon
1 reel, 78 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5202
Scenes from a frontier family's domestic life, such as cooking and chopping
wood, are shown. No Indians appear, but this may be part of a series
released by AM&B under the title The Pioneers which does feature Indians.
[See also: Firing the Cabin, Discovery of Bodies, and Rescue of Child from
Indians.]
THE SILENT ENEMY
AFI/Paramount Collection
Paramount, 1930
Director: H. P. Carver
Cast: Chief Yellow Robe, Chief Long Lance, Chief Akawanush, Spotted
Elk, Cheeka
8 reels, 7,548 ft., 35mm ref. print FEA 8085-92
With winter approaching and food scarce for the Ojibwa tribe, Baluk takes the
hunters south, but they return emptyhanded. Baluk decides to move the tribe
northward into the path of the migrating caribou, though Dagwan, who is a
rival for the chief's daughter, taunts him with cowardice. The chief dies,
leaving Baluk chief of the tribe. After weeks of fruitless travel, Dagwan
calls a meeting where he announces that the Great Spirit requires the
sacrifice of Baluk. As Baluk is about to be killed, word reaches the camp
of a caribou stampede. Baluk is reinstated as chief and, as a result of his
treachery, Dagwan is condemned to fare forth without food, water, or weapons.
Film originally contained a talking sequence in the prologue, but the Library
version is silent. (AFI)
SITTING BULL AT THE SPIRIT LAKE MASSACRE
AFI/Atkinson Collection
Sunset, 1927
Director: Robert North Bradbury; Adapted for the screen by Ben Allah;
Photographer: James F. Brown, Jr.; Editor: Della M. King
Cast: Bryant Washburn, Chief Yowlache, Anne Schaefer, Jay Morely,
Shirley Palmer, Thomas Lingham, Lucille Ballart, James O'Neil, Bob
Bradbury, Jr., Leon Kent
5 reels (inc.; 5 reels of 6 only), 3,919 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 8658-62
Shows the story of the famous Sioux leader and medicine man, Sitting Bull,
including his dream of power. There is also a romance between a scout and
a minister's daughter. (AFI)
THE SONG OF THE WILDWOOD FLUTE
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1910
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: Mary Pickford, Dark Cloud, Dell Henderson
1 reel, 346 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5709
After hearing him play the flute, Dove Eyes chooses to marry Gray Cloud
rather than another Indian suitor. When Gray Cloud falls into a bear pit,
his rival leaves him there until he sees the maiden's suffering and rescues
him. (MH)
THE SPIRIT OF CABIN MINE
AFI/S. E. Peters Collection
Frohman Amusement Corp., 1920
Cast: Texas Guinan
1 reel (inc.; reel 2 of 2 only), 850 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 5469
Reel begins with part two of the story. Donovan tells Red Bird, an Indian
woman, that he loves her and wants to marry her, but she refuses him since
she does not want him to become a "squaw man." She later realizes that her
father, Nashoba, killed the family of the miner, Briggs, at Spirit Cabin long
ago. The villainous Ridgon wants Briggs' gold, so he convinces Nashoba to
go and kill Briggs. Nashoba shoots Briggs, and Rigdon shoots Nashoba and
steals the gold. Red Bird, who had been tied up by Rigdon, frees herself,
borrows Donovan's horse and gun, and goes after Rigdon. She shoots him and
returns the gold to the cabin. Nashoba admits that Briggs is Red Bird's true
father. Listed in Library records as [Spirit Cabin Mine].
THE SQUAW MAN
AFI/Paramount Collection
Paramount, 1914
Director: Oscar C. Apfel and Cecil B. DeMille
Cast: Dustin Farnum, Monroe Salisbury, Winifred Kingston, Princess Red
Wing
6 reels, 2,147 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAA 7783-88
James Wynnegate takes the blame for his cousin embezzling funds, since he is
in love with his cousin's wife, Diana. He goes to Wyoming where he is
rescued by an Indian maiden, Nat-U-Ritch, from an attack by Cash Hawkins.
He marries her when he learns that she is pregnant. Some time later, Diana
comes with news that her husband has died, admitting his guilt. Knowing that
her husband will send their son away, and hearing that she will be arrested
for killing Hawkins, Nat-U-Ritch commits suicide. Diana embraces Wynnegate's
son. (AFI)
STOLEN BY INDIANS
AFI/Raes Collection
Champion, 1910
1 reel (inc.), 185 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 7707
Indians attack a settler family, but cowboys go after them.
STRONGHEART
Paper Print Collection
Klaw & Erlanger, 1914
Supervisor: D. W. Griffith; Director: James Kirkwood
Cast: Henry B. Walthall, Lionel Barrymore, Alan Hale, Antonio Moreno,
Blanche Sweet, Gertrude Robinson
1 reel, 1,144 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5902
Based on the play by William C. DeMille, Strongheart leaves his tribe, goes
to college in the East, becomes a football star, gets in trouble for lying
to help a white friend who has cheated, and falls in love with a white woman.
When he finds out that his tribe needs him because of the death of his
father, he respects his duty and, leaving his sweetheart behind, sadly
returns to his people. (MH)
THE TAKING OF LUKE MCVANE
[See The Fugitive]
TANGLED LIVES
AFI/Marshall Collection
Kalem, 1911
1 reel, 947 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 7903
Seminole Indians kill a pioneer family and kidnap their son. The grandmother
and baby Liza escape by hiding in the well, and are later rescued by James
Ward. Twenty-three years later, Liza is married to James Ward, but becomes
attracted to a wounded Indian trader who has found shelter in her house.
When James returns from a trip he finds Liza and the stranger in the woods
and decides to go and live in the swamps so his wife can be with the one she
loves. When the stranger pulls out a bead necklace he has had since
childhood, Liza realizes that he is actually her brother. The stranger
leaves so he can sort out his feelings, and Liza finds James in the swamp and
declares her love for him.
A TEMPORARY TRUCE
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1912
Director: D. W. Griffith; Camera: G. W. Bitzer
Cast: Blanche Sweet, Claire McDowell, Charles West, W. Chrystie
Miller, Alfred Paget, Walter Chrystie Cabanne, Robert Harron, Charles
Gorman, Charles Hill Mailes
1 reel, 570 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5903
A prospector's wife is kidnapped by a Mexican villain, but her husband
declares a temporary truce with him so they can fight their common enemy, the
Indians. (KN)
THE TEST OF DONALD NORTON
AFI/Jonathan Sonneborn Collection
Chadwick Pictures, 1926
Director: B. Reeves Eason; Story: Adele Buffington; Photographer:
Art Reeves
Cast: George Walsh, Tyrone Power, Robert Graves, Eugenie Gilbert,
Evelyn Selbie, Mickey Moore, Virginia True Boardman, Jack Dillon,
Virginia Marshall
approx. 70 min., 3/4" videocassette, ref. print VBD 8477-78
Based on The Test of Donald Norton by Robert E. Pinkerton, Wen-dah-ben,
halfbreed son of Nee-tah-wee-gan, becomes a protege of the Layards, who
rename him Donald Norton. He and their daughter, Janet, fall in love when
they grow up. He becomes a manger of a fur-trading post for the Hudson's Bay
Company, but is fired by Corrigal, the district manager, after an illness.
He becomes district manager of a rival concern. Hearing that his mother has
nearly been choked to death, he and Corrigal rush to her side, but she dies
before she can clear up the mystery of Donald's paternity. Knowing that
Millington, a rival for Janet's affection, killed his mother, Donald goes
after him and arrives in time to rescue Janet from Millington's unwanted
advances. Millington surrenders the ring he stole from Nee-tah-wee-gan which
proves to Corrigal that Donald is his son. Spurned by Corrigal, Nee-tah-wee-
gan had set fire to his house, killing his wife, and she took his son for her
own. (AFI)
THREE WORD BRAND
Copyright Collection
William S. Hart Co., Paramount, 1921
(c) Video Yesteryear
Director/Adaptor: Lambert Hillyer; Story: Will Reynolds;
Photographer: Joe August
Cast: William S. Hart, Jane Novak, S. J. Bingham, Gordon Russell,
George Pierce, Colette Forbes
75 min., 1/2" videocassette, ref. print VAA 6521
Hart plays the dual role of motherless twin brothers who are separated when
their father is killed by Indians--one becoming the governor of Utah, the
other a cattle rancher who poses as his brother in order to veto a water
rights bill and pardon his partner falsely accused of a crime.
TONIO, SON OF THE SIERRAS
AFI/Atkinson Collection
Davis Distributing Division, 1925
Director: Ben Wilson; Photographer: Alfred Gosden
Cast: Ben Wilson, Neva Gerber, Chief Yowlache, Jim Welch, Bob Walker,
Ruth Royce, Fay Adams
3 reels (inc.; reels 3-5 of 5 only), 2,418 ft., 35mm, ref. printFGE 3440-41
Tonio, U.S. Indian scout at Fort Almy, disappears when Tontos go on the
warpath. Lieutenant Willett accuses Tonio of treachery, but Lieutenant
Harris defends the missing man. Willett is shot, and Harris is arrested, but
Harris later leads his men in defeating the enemy, while Tonio returns
wounded. Harris and his sweetheart, Evelyn, are united. Listed in Library
records as Tonia of the Sierra. (AFI)
THE TOURISTS
Paper Print Collection
Biograph, 1912
Director: Mack Sennett
Cast: Mabel Normand, Charles West, Tony O'Sullivan, Frank Evans, Grace
Henderson, Mack Sennett
1 reel, 143 ft., 16mm, ref. print FLA 5754
Tourists stop between trains at the Albuquerque, New Mexico, railroad depot
and examine the wares for sale by Indians. One tourist goes sightseeing on
her own and becomes very interested in an Indian chief who returns her
interest. His wife leads a group of irate Indian women in chasing the
tourists back to the train. (KN)
[UNIDENTIFIED JOHN JONES NO. 95]
[See Frozen Justice]
[UNIDENTIFIED KILLIAM NO. 02: OUTLAWS REMORSE]
AFI/Killiam Collection
Producer unknown, 191-?
1 reel (inc.), 395 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAB 1662
An older man appears to be plotting a robbery. A young woman arrives in
town. As the outlaws are holding up a saloon, the older man escapes out of
an upstairs window and flees into the wilderness. Meanwhile, the young woman
has been kidnapped by outlaws, but is rescued by a group of Indians. The
older man dies in the wilderness. Scenes in the print may be out of order.
UNIDENTIFIED NFSA NO. 044738: U. S. WESTERN CA. 1915
AFI/NFSA--Australia Collection
[Selig], 1911
1 reel, 490 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEC 1123
An Indian boy worships his friend Steve who faces hanging by vigilantes.
UNIDENTIFIED NFSA NO. 044753: A CHILDISH PRANK
AFI/NFSA--Australia Collection
Selig, 191-?
1 reel (inc.?), 200 ft., 35mm, ref. print in progress
In a rustic cabin setting, a little girl and her mother are playing. The
child barricades her mother inside the cabin as a prank. Meanwhile, a bear
is sniffing around outside, and Indians are approaching.
UNIDENTIFIED PAC/HOUSE NO. 05: THE FRIENDLY INDIAN
Public Archives of Canada: Jerome House Collection
Gaston Melies, Siegmund Lubin, 1909
1 reel, 600 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 6848
Young Deer rescues Felice when she falls down a hill after being chased by
Jim, the outlaw. The two become sweethearts, and she visits the Indian camp.
Young Deer asks Felice's father for her hand in marriage, but her father
throws him out. Jim kidnaps Felice, but Felice shoots an arrow carrying a
note asking Young Deer to rescue her. Young Deer and Jim fight, and Young
Deer takes Felice away on a horse.
UNIDENTIFIED THEISEN: INDIAN SUBJECTS
W. E. Theisen Collection
Producer unknown, 19--?
1 reel, 850 ft., 35mm, ref. print in progress
An Indian girl is kidnapped by white people. Her tribe attacks the white
people and get her back. Years later, the daughter of the Indian girl is to
marry a brave of the tribe.
UNIDENTIFIED THUNDERBIRD NO. 05
AFI/Thunderbird Collection
Selig Polyscope, [1909-1911]
1 reel (inc.?), 993 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 6840
Cyrus Ford, New England blacksmith, heads west with his family. The wagon
train is attacked and Ford ends up adopting Mary, whose parents were killed.
The Fords make their new home on the prairie, and Mary becomes engaged to
Jack, a young man from the wagon train. Indians attack the Fords, and Cyrus
is killed. Jennie Ford manages to escape and get help, and the Fords are
saved. At the end, Cyrus' widow is seen reading her Bible and being visited
by her children and grandchildren.
AN UP-TO-DATE SQUAW
AFI/Tayler Collection
Pathe Freres, 1911
1 reel, 510 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 9039
An Indian woman dresses in fine clothing after seeing tourists at her
reservation wearing similar apparel. She walks through the streets of town
and attracts the attention of an English dandy who thinks that she is a white
woman. Her husband follows her and scalps the Englishman, but it is painless
since he is wearing a wig. Some footage is lacking due to nitrate
deterioration. (MPW9:818)
THE VANISHING AMERICAN
AFI/Paramount Film Collection
Paramount, 1925
Director: George B. Seitz; Screenplay: Ethel Doherty; Adaptation:
Lucien Hubbard; Photographers: Edgar Schoenbaum, Harry Perry
Cast: Richard Dix, Lois Wilson, Noah Beery, Malcolm MacGregor
10 reels, 9,816 ft., 110 min., 35mm, ref. print FGC 1728-32
Based on the serial story by Zane Grey which was later novelized, the
injustices suffered by reservation Indians are dramatized with the Darwinian
theme of survival of the fittest. Nophaie, a southwest Indian, falls in love
with a white school teacher on the reservation who teaches him about
Christianity. He and other Indians go to fight in World War I, but return
to find their lands taken by crooked Indian agents and their people starving.
When the Indians decide to revolt, Nophaie tries to prevent the fight, but
dies in the attempt.
VINCENNES
AFI/Bradley Collection
Pathe, 1923
Adapted from "The Old Northwest" by Frederic Austin Ogg; Author:
William Basil Courtney
1 reel, 1,032 ft., 16mm, ref. print FBA 6732
Story of the struggle for supremacy along the frontier when the American
Colonies were fighting for independence in the East. Hamilton, British
Governor Genral of the Northwest, occupies Vincennes. To rid the country of
Hamilton and his Indian allies, George Rogers Clark captures Vincennes,
breaking the influence of the British over the Indians and winning for the
Republic the vast territory from which later were formed the states of Ohio,
Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Part of The Chronicles of
America series released by Yale University. (Yale U. Press Film Service)
THE VIRGINIAN
AFI/Paramount Collection
Lasky, 1914
Director: Cecil B. DeMille; From the novel The Virginian by Owen
Wister
Cast: Dustin Farnum, J. W. Johnston, Sidney Deane
5 reels, 3,719 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 4622 (r1), FEA 6440-43 (r2-5)
The Virginian plays many practical jokes with his friend Steve, one of which
angers Trampas. Steve later decides to join Trampas and his gang of cattle
thieves, and the Virginian is sent to hang them. The Virginian is wounded,
but nursed back to health by the schoolteacher he loves, Molly, and he later
kills Trampas. There are several Indian attacks in the film. (AFI)
WAGON TRACKS
AFI/Academy Collection
Artcraft, 1919
Director: Lambert Hillyer; Story: C. Gardiner Sullivan; Photography:
Joe August
Cast: William S. Hart, Jane Novak, Robert McKim, Lloyd Bacon, Leo
Pierson, Bert Sprotte
5 reels, 5,153 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 8684-88
A desert guide leads a long wagon train, and a woman on it falls in love with
him. When an Indian is killed by an emigrant, the Indians demand a life for
a life, so the guide gives them the person he believes is responsible for his
brother's death. The woman wants the guide to end his traveling, but he
determines to carry out his duties with the possibility that he may return.
(AFI)
WAS HE A COWARD?
MOMA Collection
Biograph, 1911
Director: D. W. Griffith; Scenario: Emmett Campbell Hall
Cast: Blanche Sweet, Wilfred Lucas, Frank Grandin
1 reel, 396 ft., 16mm, ref. print FAB 2618
Norris Hilton, a novelist recovering from a breakdown, goes west and takes
a job as a ranch hand. He falls in love with the ranch owner's daughter,
Kate, but when he refuses to fight with the foreman, she views him as a
coward. When an Indian is struck with smallpox, Norris picks him up, takes
him to a quarantined barn, and cares for him and later for the rancher who
also becomes ill. Later, they emerge healthy, and Hilton is regarded as a
hero, but he bears pock marks on his face as a result of also catching the
illness. Kate does not care about this, and kisses him.
WHITE DOVE'S SACRIFICE
Public Archives of Canada/Dawson City Collection
Sawyer, 1914
2 reels (inc.; reels 2-3 of 3? only), 1,599 ft., 35mm, ref. print
FEB 9125-26
Indians attack a group of whites killing all but a cowboy and two children,
Emma and Billy, the latter of whom is kidnapped by the tribe and raised as
their own. Ten years later in a chance encounter, Billy, dressed as an
Indian, saves Emma from a bear. When informed by the tribe that he must
marry the chief's daughter, White Dove, he refuses because he is in love with
Emma. He is imprisoned and sentenced to die at dawn if he does not marry
White Dove, but because of her love for him, White Dove helps him to escape
so that he can join Emma. Parts of the picture are missing, and there is
nitrate deterioration. (MPW21:754)
WHITE FAWN'S DEVOTION
AFI/New Zealand Film Archive Collection
Pathe Freres, 1910
1 reel, 800 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEB 8529
Combs is married to an Indian woman in Dakota, and they have a daughter. He
receives a letter telling him that he has an inheritance back east, and he
proceeds to pack. Thinking that he will never return to her, his wife stabs
herself. Combs picks up the knife, and when their daughter sees him with the
knife, she assumes he has murdered her mother. She runs to tell the tribe
who capture him and plan to kill him until his wife rushes up explaining that
she is not dead--the knife did not penetrate deeply. Combs decides to stay
with his Indian wife and daughter. (MPW6:1061)
THE WHITE MAN TAKES A RED WIFE
[See Her Indian Mother.]
WHITE OAK
The Niver Collection
Paramount, 1921
Director: Lambert Hillyer
Cast: William S. Hart, Vola Vale, Alexander Gaden, Robert Walker, Bert
Sprotte, Helen Holly
6 reels, 4,837 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 8005-10
Oak Miller, a card dealer, is obsessed with punishing the man who betrayed
his sister. That man, Granger, plots with Chief Long Knife to attack a
train which is carrying Miller's sweetheart. Miller comes to the rescue, the
Indians are dispersed, and the chief kills Granger for betraying his
daughter. (AFI)
WILD AND WOOLLY
AFI/Bassett Collection
Artcraft, 1917
Director: John Emerson; Assistant Director: Billy Shay; Scenario:
Anita Loos; Story: Horace P. Carpenter; Camera: Victor Fleming and
Harry Thorpe; Assistant Camera: Glen MacWilliams; Film editor:
Billy Shay; Technical Director: Eric von Stroheim and Wilfred
Buckland
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks, Eileen Percy, Walter Bytell, Joseph
Singleton, Calvin Carter, Forest Seabury, J. W. Jones, Charles Stevens,
Sam DeGrasse, Tom Wilson, Ruth Allen, Ed Burns, James Wharton James
1 reel, 850 ft., 35mm, ref. print in progress
Jeff, a fan of Western lore, goes to modern Bitter Creek, Arizona, to
investigate whether his father should run a railroad line through the town.
Nell suggests that the town disguise itself to be like the old West so that
Jeff will have a good time and report favorably to his father, so they plan
a fake train holdup and Indian raid. A crooked Indian agent leads a real
Indian raid and abducts Nell, but Jeff rescues her and leads a victory over
the Indians. Jeff and Nell marry. (AFI)
WILD HORSE MESA
AFI/Paramount Collection
Paramount, 1925
Director: George B. Seitz
Cast: Jack Holt, Billie Dove, Noah Beery, Edith Yorke, Douglas
Fairbanks, Jr., George Irving, Bernard Siegel
8 reels, 7,089 ft., 35mm, ref. print FEA 5630-37
Based on the Zane Grey novel of the same name, Melberne schemes to capture
a herd of wild horses by running them into a barbwire corral, a procedure
that will injure most. Chane rides out in front of the horses, leading them
away from the corral. A member of the gang is killed by an Indian seeking
revenge for the death of his daughter. (AFI)
WITH BUFFALO BILL ON THE U.P. TRAIL
AFI/Movieland Films
Sunset, 1925
Director: Frank S. Mattison; Photography: Bert Longnecker
Cast: Roy Stewart, Cullen Landis, Sheldon Lewis, Kathryn McGuire, Earl
Metcalfe, Milburn Moranti, Fred De Silva
2 reels, 1,958 ft., 16mm, ref. print FBB 2459-60
Buffalo Bill seeks to build a town on the railroad line, but is thwarted by
a dishonest train town locator. A fight breaks out between Buffalo Bill and
the surveyors, and the chief's son, White Spear, starts a buffalo stampede
to cover his attack on the whites. Buffalo Bill diverts the stampede, and
the locator agrees to purchase the property rights. (AFI)
WOLF SONG
AFI/Paramount Collection
Paramount Famous Lasky, 1929
Director/Producer: Victor Fleming
Cast: Gary Cooper, Lupe Velez, Louis Wolheim
4 reels, 2,351 ft., 16mm, ref. print FBA 9216-19
The daughter of a California don elopes with an unkempt Kentucky trapper.
They live together in a settlement in the mountains until he decides to go
to the Canadian wilderness, while she returns to her family. Missing her,
he heads home, but is shot by Indian braves. He manages to drag himself to
her house, and they are reunited. Originally released with soundtrack
containing singing sequences, sound effects, and musical score, but the
Library copy is silent. (AFI)
Additional Suggested Reading
Bataille, Gretchen, and Hicks, Bob. "American Indians in Popular Films,"
Beyond the Stars: Stock Characters in American Popular Film. Edited by Paul
Loukides and Linda K. Fuller. Bowling Green, Ohio: Bowling Green State
University Popular Press, 1990.
Bataille, Gretchen M., and Silet, Charles L. P. Images of American Indians
on Film: An Annotated Bibliography. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc.,
1985.
Bataille, Gretchen M., and Silet, Charles L. P., eds. The Pretend Indians:
Images of Native Americans in the Movies. Ames, Iowa: The Iowa State
University Press, 1980.
Laprevotte, Gilles, ed. Les Indiens et le Cinema: des Indiens d'Hollywood
au Cinema des Indiens. Amiens, France: Trois Cailloux, Maison de la culture
d'Amiens: Festival international du film d'Amiens, 1989. [in French]
The Museum of the American Indian/Heye Foundation. Native Americans on Film
and Video, volume II, Elizabeth Weatherford and Emelia Seubert, eds.
Montpelier, Vermont: Capital City Press, 1988.
Morin, Georges-Henri. Le Cercle Brise: l'image de l'Indien dans le Western.
Paris: Payot, 1977. [in French]
O'Connor, John E. The Hollywood Indian: Stereotypes of Native Americans in
Films. Trenton, NJ: The New Jersey State Museum, 1980.
Stedman, Raymond William. Shadows of the Indian: Stereotypes in American
Culture. Norman: University
of Oklahoma Press, 1982.
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