Netadi Frank Hamilton's Buckskin Pants with Decorative Beadwork

Date

ca. 1893

Creator

Netadi Frank Hamilton: In 1893, Frank Hamilton wore this regalia to the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago (a world fair celebrating the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’s landing in the Americas). Hamilton accompanied Simon Pokagon, son of Potawatomi Chief Leopold Pokagon, to hand out Simon Pokagon’s book titled The Red Man’s Rebuke at the entrance to the fairgrounds. Printed on birch bark, the book called out the injustices committed against Indigenous peoples while reclaiming and reasserting Indigenous space and identity. Frank Hamilton’s regalia was passed down to his son, Paul Hamilton. Paul was a baseball player who played on the first Indigenous team to win the Michigan State Championship. He went on to play professional baseball for the St. Louis Browns as a pitcher in 1924. The headdress on display is constructed around a baseball cap with the brim cut off. This combination of customary and contemporary forms highlights the intersectionality of Indigenous artists. Kyle Malott-Great Great Grandson of Frank Hamilton: "Netadi Frank Hamilton (1876–1939) son of Joseph Hamilton and Angeline Pokagon and great-grandson of Chief Leopold Pokagon and Elizabeth Topinabee. Frank made this Mizhatthwen (regalia) in 1893 and wore it to the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair where he accompanied Simon Pokagon and Chief Andrew Rapp. Frank was the Ankéntagét (interpreter) for what is now known as the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians. Frank married Alice Cecilia Rapp in 1896; together they had 10 children. Both Frank and Alice are buried at Sacred Heart Cemetery in Dowagiac, as is Leopold Pokagon. This Mizhatthwen is actually a Iroquoian style that was popular at the time."