Crow Indian Historical and Cultural Collections
The Little Big Horn College Archives provide a cultural research center for the Crow people and other interested researchers.
The archives include:
- records, papers, scrapbooks, family and tribal histories of the Crow community
- copies of federal government records,
- external studies and reports,
- research materials from historians, anthropologists, missionaries, attorneys, and others on Crow culture, and
- special published material added at the discretion of the Archivist.
The archives continues to grow. Many collections are still in the process of arrangement and description. Collection areas will be added to the archives as necessary. The following are descriptions of the current collection areas. Please note that these topic areas may consist of several individual collections. This is not a comprehensive listing of all individual collections. Please consult with the Archivist for more detail regarding specific collections or to inquire about new additions to the archives’ holdings.
Catholic Collection
Crow Catholic Research Collections. Series include: religious education, Bureau of Catholic Indian missions, general missions, Crow Parish materials, conferences, child raising, newsletters, scrapbooks, calendars, cultural events, photo albums, slides, audio tapes (interviews and bible translations), Crow ministry lessons, Crow Clan system, livestock, legislation and government, handgame list of "best guessers," Oregon province archive, Great Falls diocesan archive. Date span is 1904-1980's. On loan from Catholic Church in Lodge Grass. The collection is open for use by the Crow people. Permission must be obtained from the Catholic Church in Lodge Grass for reproduction rights.
BIA - Soil and Range Resources Collection
Aerial photo maps and land descriptions (beginning and ending of properties).
Coal - Westmoreland
The collection contains 41 large (book) folders. Topics include: land use, compliance, documents, proposed mining, modification of mines, hydrology, geology and soil, meteorology and air quality, wildlife, vegetation, antiquities, and legal summary. 1999 acquisition.
Crow Bilingual Language Collection
Records from the Bilingual Program, Crow Agency. Dates span is 1988-1991. Correspondence, program administration records, Montana Teacher Training Program administration and program records, Crow stories of the Crow Tribe, translated by Henry Old Coyote and Barney Old Coyote; pedigree chart and misc. papers; University of Wyomning brochures, Richard Throssel (photographer); Peggy Albright (#7); pictures Little Big Horn College (#8); Crow celebration, memos, May Childs, Quanitta Big Shoulder, Curtis Burgess material (#11), "After the Buffalo Days" (book); Burgess papers II.
Crow Legal Collection
Papers of Tribal lawyers relating to general court cases of the Crow Tribe. Pending authorization of use to public, these papers are closed.
NARA Microfilm Collections
National Archives and Records Administration records on microfilm. They are all Crow related documents.
Oral Histories (audio)
These are primarily oral histories of Crow people as told to different interviewers by various informants. The collection includes histories of people, ceremonial histories, and cultural histories. They are in the Crow language and are available for research. A limited number of the oral histories have been transcribed in English. They are stored on cassette tapes.
Research Document Collection
This consists of several individual collections of researchers and scholars whose work has pertains to Crow history, culture, ceremonies and people. The materials are kept in the original organization of the Donor and include articles taken from various sources including magazine and article journals; original papers; manuscripts; and outlines. This collection includes Frederick Hoxie’s research papers for his book, Parading through History. This collection has been partially processed and will continue to be processed in the coming years. Full inventories are also available for the collections of Eloise Whitebear Pease, Joseph Medicine Crow, and Robert Summers Yellowtail. These collections are accessible for research.
Film and Video Collection
The archive has over 1,000 video tapes. The videos are about contemporary Crow life. The major collection areas are ceremonies (tobacco dance, warriors society, seasonal dances), handgame, Crow Fair, parades, Tribal inaugural speeches, classes at Little Big Horn College and taped interviews of elders. This collection is available for research and is being catalogued during 2000.
Photography Collection
The Photography Collection is comprised of both original photographs and duplicate photographs from major museums throughout the United States. It provides a photographic record of not only Crow people, but also of people from other tribes, and dates from the mid 1800's to the present. The collection also includes photographs documenting Little Big Horn College. The collection is not currently processed but is open for research.
Newspaper Collection
Microfilm of the Billings Gazette and the Hardin Herald.