These Photos From The 1900s Capture How Native Americans Lived 100 Years Ago

By | January 13, 2017

In the 20th century, Native American Indians were fading away quickly. With this regard, Edward Sheriff Curtis dedicated years of his life to securing and recording the lifestyle of the remarkable indigenous tribes in North America. Considerably, his work comprises some of the most enthralling photos from that era.

Wealthy financier and banker J.P. Morgan equipped Curtis with $75,000 in 1906. He was to produce a Native Americans series; so together they created a 20-volume series. It's called The North American Indian, and you can purchase here: The North American Indian: The Complete Portfolios

A Klamath Chief Poses On A Hill Above Crater Lake, Oregon, 1923
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A Young Jicarrilla Girl, C. 1910
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On Horseback --- an Apsaroke Man, 1908
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A Group Of Navajo men In The Canyon De Chelly, Arizona, 1904
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An Apsaroke Mother with her Child, 1908
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the Sioux Chiefs, 1905
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A Tewa Girl, 1906
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A bare-skinned Nootka Man Aims A Bow And Arrow, 1910
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the Black Eagle, An Assiniboin Man, 1908
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Piegan Tepees, 1910
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the Hollow Horn Bear, A Brulé Man, 1907
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A Mohave Woman, 1903
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An Apache Girl with a Papoose, 1903
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A Kwakiutl Wedding Party Arrives In Intricately-designed Canoes, 1914
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Nakoaktok Dancers Don Hamatsa Masks In A Ritual, 1914
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Eskadi, Of The Apache Tribe, 1903
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The Kwakiutl Shaman Performs A Religious Ritual, 1914
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An Apache Woman, 1906
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A Smoky Day At The Sugar Bowl, 1923
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20 A Qagyuhl Man Portraying A Bear, 1914
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Some Walpi Maidens, 1906
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A young Qahatika Girl, 1907
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A Navajo Man, 1904
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Maricopa Child, 1907
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Crow Encampment With Tipis, Tents, Wagons, Horses And Men As Noticed From The Distant Shore Of The River, 1908
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the Navajos, 1905
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Piegan Girls Collect Goldenrod, 1910
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A Koskimo Man Dressed As Hami ("dangerous Thing") During A Numhlim Ceremony, 1914
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A Qagyuhl Woman Dressed Up With A Fringed Chilkat Blanket And A Mask Representing A Deceased Relative Who Had Been A Shaman, 1914
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A Hidatsa Man Carrying A Captured Eagle, 1908
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Medicine Crow Among The Apsaroke Tribe, 1908
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Hakalahl, A Nakoaktok Chief, 1914
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Indian Woman Carrying Rushes, 1908
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A Young Member Of The Apache Tribe, C. 1910
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The Primitive Artists-paviotso, 1924
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An Apsaroke Man Wearing Medicine Hawk Headdress, 1908
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A Kwakiutl Gatherer Hunting Abalones In Washington, 1910
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A Hupa Spear Fisherman Watches For Salmon, 1923
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A Wishran Girl, 1910
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A Kwakiutl Man Wearing A Mask Representing A Man Transforming Into A Loon, 1914
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**Curtis' mechanism in recording the vanishing way of life were later on condemned by some anthropologists. He seldom posed individuals from different tribes in the same clothing, separated them from their natural settings and utilized overly romantic ones, and the like. Nonetheless, his work is still considered one of he biggest Native American research and features great authenticity.

More works of Edward S. Curtis are also available on Amazon:

Edward S. Curtis: Visions of the First Americans

Edward S. Curtis: One Hundred Masterworks

The North American Indian: The Complete Portfolios

H/T EdwardCurtis.com | Mashable