Our museum’s traveling exhibit, Parading Through History: the Apsaalooke Nation, is a chronological journey that leads the visitor through the history and culture of the Crow tribe. This is one of the few exhibits ever researched, organized, and designed from an Apsaalooke perspective. As part of the WHC museum’s American Indian Tribal Histories Project, Crow Indian historians, artists, and tribal members created this exhibit in 2008. The American Indian Tribal Histories Project was directed by Northern Cheyenne tribal member, Francine D. Spang-Willis. The Apsaalooke exhibit was organized by Crow historian, Mardell Plainfeather.
Prominent and historical Crow people represent different time periods. The traveling exhibit explores the impact of outside forces on Crow culture. For example, with the onset of federally mandated Indian reservations, Crow leaders had the insight to merge the knowledge of recently educated young adults with the traditional wisdom and heritage of the elders, thereby successfully retaining their tribal structures and culture. This traveling exhibit allows new audiences to experience the culture and history of the Apsaalooke nation from the perspective of tribal members.
