INFLUENTIAL NATIVE AMERICANS

Men and women who defended, inspired and led their people across the centuries

CHIEF JOSEPH NEZ PERCE, C. 1840–1904 

Having been forced out of their ancestral home, Chief Joseph faced misfortune head-on. Just as his people were set to relocate to Idaho from Oregon, three men from a fellow chief's group attacked and killed some white settlers. What followed was a three-month trek of nearly 300 people to try and reach Canada, fighting battles along the way, but endearing himself to local people. Chief Joseph ultimately surrendered, but continued to advocate for his people, including a personal meeting with President Theodore Roosevelt.

Tamanend III Lenape, c.1625-1701 

We have few official records or information about the background of Tamanend, known as 'the affable', but his legend has gone down in history. Meeting Quaker William Penn in 1682, Tamanend and Penn signed a landmark treaty of peace and friendship. The Treaty of Shackamaxon (named after the town in which Tamanend lived) established Penn's foothold in what is now Pennsylvania. Tamanend, often referred to as Tammany by the colonists, became a folk hero during the Revolutionary War and was called the Patron Saint of America. His reputation for wisdom, hospitality and virtue has lived on through the decades.

EDMONIA LEWIS OJIBWA, 1844–1907

Raised in the Ojibwa community of her mother, Lewis was of Native American and African American descent and became the first person of either lineage to gain international recognition as a sculptor. Having moved to Rome in 1865, she did her own stonework rather than hiring locals to adapt her plaster model (as was common) so there could be no question over her authorship of the works. Her depictions of Native American life in marble are particularly noteworthy.

Sacagawea Shoshone, 1788–1812