For basic background on Curtis' The North American Indian, read the biographical section above. The comments below refer to this monumental work.

FOREWORD
by President Theodore Roosevelt
to Curtis' multi-volume work The North American Indian

Theodore Roosevelt, October 1st, 1906

Introduction to a Spanish-language edition*
of The North American Indian

In 1896 Edward S. Curtis began a project to photographically record what he thought was a vanishing race, the American Indians. He believed that his photographs, together with an accompanying text, would provide a definitive publication of information about all the Native American tribes. He also thought that this ambitious project could be completed in 10 years. After 10 years of work, however, he had only just begun his efforts, and he had already spent all of his own financial resources on the project. J. Pierpont Morgan became the patron that Curtis needed to finish his dream, which finally took a total of 34 years, culminating when the final volume of The North American Indian was published in 1930.

The more than 40,000 photographs he shot were almost all recorded on glass negatives, either 11 x 14 inches or 14 x 17 inches in size. It was only toward the end of his project that he used a 6 x 8 inch reflex camera. The almost overwhelming difficulty of the photographic project and the stunning visual images earned Curtis a reputation as a great photographer. There is a tendency to overlook the difficulty of the process and the valuable insights Curtis gained into the Native American way of life over decades of living with them. He took great efforts to reach the inner meanings of the Indian life. He wrote,

"The task has not been an easy one…it often required days and weeks of patient endeavor before my assistants and I succeeded in overcoming the deep-rooted superstition, conservatism, and secretiveness so characteristic of primitive people, who are ever loath to afford a glimpse of their inner life to those who are not of their own ...

Curtis gained the trust of our First Peoples by living with them and demonstrating his respect for their ancestral traditions. This allowed him to speak with many tribal leaders about their sacred traditions. The importance of his writings on the history and culture of the diverse tribes should not be completely overshadowed by the brilliance of his photographs. Edward S. Curtis furnished a written record of great importance for both scholars and the general public, and a photographic record unequalled in all history.

Curtis was wrong when he wrote about the "vanishing race" of the American Indians, but it is undeniable that the way of life that Curtis recorded almost 100 years ago has all but vanished. The North American Indian therefore stands as a lasting chronicle of important insights into a traditional way of life that was still clinging to its sacred center and still focused on living in harmony with Nature. While each of the twenty volumes of The North American Indian focuses on different people and cultures, each one volume is still infused with the same basic relationship of man to Nature and thus his Creator. Curtis takes great efforts to explain the underlying relationship of each tribe to the sacred:

It is thus near to Nature that much of the life of the Indian still is; hence its story, rather than being replete with statistics of commercial conquests, is a record of the Indian's relations with and his dependence on the phenomena of' the universe - the trees and shrubs, the sun and stars, the lightning and rain - for these to him are animate creatures. Even more than that, they are deified, therefore are revered and propitiated, since upon them man must depend for his well-being.

At the same time Curtis conveyed the urgency of the situation of the Native Americans, because Curtis knew that the traditional ways, based on the sacred, were in the process of vanishing:

The passing of every old man or woman means the passing of some tradition, some knowledge of sacred rites possessed by no other; consequently the information that is to be gathered, for the benefit of future generations, respecting the mode of life of one of the great races of mankind, must be collected at once or the opportunity will be lost for all time.

Even more than his words, the Curtis photographs portray qualities that are almost impossible to find in today's world, both because of the settings and clothing that are now lost, but also in the character of the faces. Where can you find so many people who possess the inward strength and grandeur that can only be obtained through the life of a traditional civilization? Because of the great care that Curtis took to place his photographic subjects in traditional dress and circumstances, the results are all the more striking and stimulating. Curtis would first find the most appropriate setting, without modern influences such as fences or structures. He would then discuss the proposed idea with the person to be photographed and a mutual decision would result that would best represent the spirit of the tradition. The Indians would then wear their finest clothing to recreate the vision of past splendor. This process creates a window to view the primordial aspects of the Indian life before the contact with the white civilization.

Some today argue that these photographs present a romanticized vision of the pre-reservation period, but most will agree that these compositions, created in consultation with olden-day nomads, more accurately portray the reality of traditional Plains life than photographs of living conditions in the early reservation period. Joe Medicine Crow, the Crow tribal historian and the last traditional Crow chief, spoke about the arranged photographs taken by Edward S. Curtis, who photographed his famous grandfather, Chief Medicine Crow: “Today [Curtis] is best known for his beautiful photographs because they capture the spirit of the olden-days when the Indians roamed free…. The old-timers only saw the photographs many years later. Most of them did not remember Curtis because he only spoke through an interpreter, but they really enjoyed seeing the photographs.” 1

It should be added that modern day Indian leaders feel that many of the Curtis photographs are among the finest that were ever taken of the Indians. My own Indian father, Thomas Yellowtail, one the most beloved American Indian spiritual leaders of the last century, had several Curtis photographs in his home which serve as a reminder of the spiritual foundation of his ancestors. It is increasingly difficult in today's society to carry on the spiritual traditions of the "olden days", as Yellowtail calls them, now that the life in constant contact with virgin Nature has ended; but their spirit lives on.

Edward S. Curtis preserved a lost window into “The Indian world”, which Frithjof Schuon notes, “represents on this earth a value that is irreplaceable; it possesses something unique and enchanting. When one encounters it in its unspoilt forms, one is aware that it is something altogether different from chaotic savagery; that it is human greatness, and at the same time harbors within itself something mysterious and sacred, which it expresses with profound originality.” 2 As you read The North American Indian, may youcome to understand the profound truth of this insight.

Michael O. Fitzgerald
Bloomington, Indiana.

*Adapted from Fitzgerald’s “Introduction” to the twenty-volume Spanish-language edition of The North American Indian published by Olaneta, Los Beduinos De America: El Indio Norteamericano, 1993