2024-03-28T20:39:40Z
http://api.mainememory.net/oai
oai:mainememory.net:80714
2017-07-05T18:07:36Z
contributor:abbe
Mi'kmaq
This beaded purse was probably made by someone of the Mi'kmaq tribe in the late nineteenth century.
Beaded purses made on wool with silk ribbon and glass beads were made by many Native American artisans to sell to non-Native tourists as a souvenir of their visit to places like Bar Harbor and Niagara Falls.
Wool, silk, glass beads
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80714
91-21
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Indians of North America --Maine
Micmac Indians --Material culture
Indians of North America --Material culture --Atlantic Provinces
Micmac art
Indians of North America--Maine--Micmac Indians
Indian beadwork --North America
Beaded purse, ca. 1880
Physical Object
circa 1880
15.5 cm x 17 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80714.JPG
Abbe Museum
circa 1880
oai:mainememory.net:80735
2017-07-05T18:07:36Z
contributor:abbe
Passamaquoddy
This birch bark box was made to store men's detachable collars, keeping them clean and organized when not being worn. It is an example of Wabanaki artisans crafting items to meet the wishes of Victorian consumers.
Though Native American goods were often created or adapted to modern needs, the craft itself connected the different generations of the tribe through the transfer of skills and appreciation of tradition and also built community amongst the tribes and beyond.
Birch bark, spruce root, sweetgrass, linen
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80735
5065
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Boxes
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Abenaki Indians
Men's clothing -- history
Collar box and collars, Passamaquoddy, ca. 1880
Physical Object
circa 1880
7.5 cm x 14.5 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80735.JPG
Abbe Museum
circa 1880
oai:mainememory.net:80729
2017-07-13T08:52:27Z
contributor:abbe
Kilburn Brothers
This image shows Wabanaki guides with birch bark canoes and guns ready to guide sport hunters and sightseers at the Bar Harbor shore, 1881.
Many Wabanaki men at the Bar Harbor encampments made themselves available as guides to take summer people in canoes for sightseeing, fishing, or hunting. This was one of the many ways that the Wabenaki earned their annual income to support their families.
Stereograph
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80729
I-100.43
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Bar Harbor (Me.)--Views
Frenchman Bay (Me.)
Indian encampments--Maine--Bar Harbor
Indians of North America
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Passamaquoddy Indians
Penobscot Indians
Tourism--Maine--Bar Harbor
Canoes--Maine--Bar Harbor
Guides & scouts --Maine--Bar Harbor
Indians of North America --Employment --Maine --Bar Harbor
Wabanaki guides with canoes, Bar Harbor, 1881
Image
1881
10 cm x 17 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80729.JPG
Archives - Native Americans, Historic
Abbe Museum
Bar Harbor, Hancock County, ME, USA
1881
oai:mainememory.net:80705
2018-10-18T08:37:47Z
contributor:abbe
This postcard shows the Wabanaki sale tents at the southeast end of Ledgelawn Avenue in Bar Harbor during the 1890s.
Wabanaki Indians (especially the Passamaquoddies and Penobscots) came to Mount Desert Island seeking relief from the confines of reservation life, along with the economic opportunities presented by a popular resort. For them, the island was a familiar place long frequented by their ancestors for fishing, hunting, and gathering and the rusticators who vacationed there provided a new opportunity to earn a living while remaining true to their heritage.
Postcard
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80705
I-100.33
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Passamaquoddy Indians
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Indians of North America
Indian encampments--Maine--Bar Harbor
Penobscot Indians
Tourism--Maine--Bar Harbor
Postcards
Ledgelawn Avenue (Bar Harbor, Me.)
Wabanaki encampment, Bar Harbor, ca. 1890
Image
1904
8 cm x 14 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80705.JPG
Archives - Native Americans, Historic
Abbe Museum
Bar Harbor, Hancock County, ME, USA
circa 1890
oai:mainememory.net:80718
2018-10-18T08:37:47Z
contributor:abbe
This image shows Dr. Robert Abbe, a long-time Bar Harbor rusticator and founder of the Abbe Museum, in a birch bark canoe on Duck Brook, around 1920.
Dr. Abbe, a New York surgeon, began summering at Mount Desert Island in the early 1900s. His estate, Brook End, was located between the villages of Hulls Cove and Bar Harbor, and included a duck pond where he kept his two pet ducks, Pierre and Marie Curie.
Photographic print
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80718
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Canoes--Maine--Bar Harbor
Vacation houses--Maine--Harbor
Steams--Maine--Bar Harbor
Fishing--Maine--Bar Harbor
Abbe, Robert
Dr. Robert on Duck Brook, Bar Harbor, ca. 1920
Image
circa 1920
16.5 cm x 20.5 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80718.JPG
Archives - Robert Abbe
Abbe Museum
Bar Harbor, Hancock County, ME, USA
circa 1920
oai:mainememory.net:80727
2018-10-18T08:37:47Z
contributor:abbe
Frank “Big Thunder” Loring in performance mode, wearing a Plains-Indian-style headdress and traditional Wabanaki beaded chief’s collar, ca. 1900.
Theatrically mixing authentic Wabanaki cultural history with invented traditions, Loring was among the first American Indians to draw public attention to indigenous customs in costumed performances. Like Jay Leno or Jon Stewart who entertain today’s audiences with a clever mixture of farce and facts, he was an Indian showman for his time.
Postcard
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80727
I-100.41
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Indians of North America --Clothing & dress
Indians of North America
Indians in the performing arts --North America
Entertainers--Maine--Old Town
Loring, Frank
Frank “Big Thunder” Loring, ca. 1900
Image
circa 1900
13.5 cm x 9 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80727.JPG
Archives - Native Americans, Historic
Abbe Museum
Indian Island, Penobscot County, ME, USA
Old Town, Penobscot County, ME, USA
circa 1900
oai:mainememory.net:80750
2018-10-18T08:37:50Z
contributor:abbe
Wabanaki
Visitors to the Wabanaki encampments on Mount Desert Island could purchase baskets in a myriad of shapes, sizes and forms. Many visitors to the encampments went home with toys or miniatures, everything from dolls to snowshoes.
This little piece, it is a lovely example of Wabanaki artisans creating treasured souvenirs using traditional materials and techniques. It is also interesting because most miniature depictions of wigwams and canoes are made with birch bark, the same material used to make their full-sized equivalents.
Ash splints, sweetgrass, dye
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80750
2011-01
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Indian art--North America
Indians of North America--Maine
Indians of North America--Maine--Antiquities
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Miniature camp scene, Wabanaki, ca. 1910
Physical Object
circa 1910
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80750.JPG
Abbe Museum
ME, USA
circa 1910
oai:mainememory.net:14405
2018-10-31T08:37:14Z
contributor:abbe
This ash splint basket has a cover that is attached by running the handle through the rim. Alternating splints on this basket are dyed green, but the color has faded, and is visible only on the inside.
Look inside a basket decorated with color to estimate its age. Red, yellow, blue, black and green colors may decorate the old baskets. These were dyed with vegetable dyes swabbed onto the outer surface of the splints. Commercial aniline dyes replaced plant dyes in the late 19th century. The splints were soaked completely in the dyestuff, which was available in a variety of bright colors. The colors fade quickly when exposed to light.
Ash
http://www.mainememory.net/item/14405
AM091
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Basketmaking
Indigenous peoples--Arts & crafts
Baskets
Micmac Indians
Indians of North America--Maine
Micmac baskets
Molloy, Anne
Carrying Basket, Micmac, ca. 1870
Physical Object
circa 1870
23 cm x 20 cm x 12.5 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/14405.JPG
Anne Molloy Howells Collection
Abbe Museum
circa 1870
oai:mainememory.net:14417
2018-10-31T08:37:14Z
contributor:abbe
This cake basket is decorated with a decorative weave known as "porcupine curls." Fancy baskets became popular in the late 19th century, when demand increased and tools to cut and shape them were invented. Fancy baskets may be embellished with decorative materials and colors. The porcupine twist weave was first used around 1860. This ornamental weave and its variants of curly and wort weaves involves twisting the weaver as it is passed through the vertical standard to produce a bristling point or curly ornamentation.
Maple?
http://www.mainememory.net/item/14417
AM377
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Indians of North America--Maine
Baskets
Micmac baskets
Micmac indians
Basketmaking
Indigenous peoples--Arts & crafts
Micmac Indians
Molloy, Anne
Cake Basket, probably Micmac, ca. 1870
Physical Object
circa 1870
31 cm x 23 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/14417.JPG
Anne Molloy Howells Collection
Abbe Museum
ME, USA
circa 1870
oai:mainememory.net:14420
2018-10-31T08:37:14Z
contributor:abbe
This hatbox storage basket is made from ash and decorated with painted and stamped designs. It was made by Indians in southern New England. Similar baskets were made and sold in Maine.
The earliest recorded containers included birchbark baskets and twine woven bags. At some point, Native people began to weave sturdy work baskets of ash for their own use and for sale. By the early 1800s, basketmakers peddled hatboxes, trays, bowls, pack baskets and harvest baskets door-to-door in growing towns like Bangor. With the influx of settlers and industries such as logging, Native people lost control of their lands and self-determination. Basketmaking, woods work and guiding were means to make a living in an increasingly difficult world.
Ash, dye
http://www.mainememory.net/item/14420
AM373
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Indians of North America--New England
Indigenous peoples--Arts & crafts
Basketmaking
Baskets
Molloy, Anne
Hat Box Basket, ca. 1800-1850
Physical Object
circa 1825
25 cm x 33 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/14420.JPG
Anne Molloy Howells Collection
Abbe Museum
USA
circa 1825
oai:mainememory.net:14422
2018-10-31T08:37:14Z
contributor:abbe
After the Civil War, the Industrial Revolution brought newfound wealth to the nation. Summer resorts such as Bar Harbor boomed and Wabanaki basketmakers found an eager and concentrated market for their wares.
Fancy baskets were invented and Native weavers responded to market demand to create a wide variety of baskets for the tourist trade. These baskets were smaller, more portable and highly decorated. Recognizing the Victorian taste for elaborate decor, basketmakers created fancy baskets decorated with elegant handles, complex twisted weaves, sweetgrass and dyed splints.
Ash, sweetgrass
http://www.mainememory.net/item/14422
AM158
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Basketmaking
Baskets
Indians of North America--Maine
Indigenous peoples--Arts & crafts
Sweetgrass baskets
Molloy, Anne
Trophy Cup Fancy Basket, ca. 1900
Physical Object
circa 1900
16.5 cm x 14.5 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/14422.JPG
Anne Molloy Howells Collection
Abbe Museum
ME, USA
circa 1900
oai:mainememory.net:14429
2018-10-31T08:37:14Z
contributor:abbe
This elaborate basket is covered in curly or periwinkle curls, and was once brightly colored. Anne Molloy Howells described finding this basket in a letter to Gaby Pelletier in 1975:
"Paul wasn't able to do Christmas shopping this year. I solved his problem as far as I'm concerned by leading him to an antique show at the Portsmouth Armory. While he sat and chatted with dealers I whisked from booth to booth looking at baskets. Finally I narrowed it down to 2, quite dizzy by that time. The other [basket] is the most preposterous I ever saw and of course it caught my eye as I stepped in the door. It is round with a domed cover and all except for a small area at the covers top decorated with warts or shells.It once had purple and yellow coloring but now gives the impression of a great cone or a hedgehog and in its mass made me think of Olmec heads from Middle America."
Ash, dye
http://www.mainememory.net/item/14429
AM392
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/
Baskets
Indians of North America--Maine
Indigenous peoples--Arts & crafts
Molloy, Anne
Fancy basket, ca. 1900
Physical Object
circa 2000
40 cm x 35.5 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/14429.JPG
Anne Molloy Howells Collection
Abbe Museum
Portsmouth, NH, USA
circa 1900
oai:mainememory.net:14430
2018-10-31T08:37:14Z
contributor:abbe
Using ash splints and sweetgrass, Wabanaki basketmakers fashion baskets in a wide variety of shapes and styles. This basket is probably Maliseet, dating to around 1930. It is made with ash splints, sweetgrass and Hong Kong cord.
The kinds of baskets being made at any given time reflect both the choice of the individual basketmaker and the demands of the market. During the heyday of the tourist market in the late 1800s, basketmakers created many new basket types to appeal to the taste of the Victorian ladies who purchased them.
Today, basketmaking is widely recognized as an important traditional art form with deep cultural roots. At the same time, individual artists are exploring new forms and decorative styles and receiving national attention for their work.
Ash, sweetgrass, Hong Kong cord
http://www.mainememory.net/item/14430
AM160
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/
Indigenous peoples--Arts & crafts
Malecite Indians
Indians of North America--Maine
Basketmaking
Baskets
Sweetgrass baskets
Molloy, Anne
Pedestal Fruit Bowl Basket
Physical Object
circa 1930
24 cm x 23 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/14430.JPG
Anne Molloy Howells Collection
Abbe Museum
circa 1930
oai:mainememory.net:80713
2018-10-31T08:49:30Z
contributor:abbe
Penobscot
Snowshoes were essential for Wabanaki people traveling around Maine in the winter, and quickly became popular with Europeans and Euro-Americans following their arrival in Maine. These snowshoes are very similar to a pair owned by Henry David Thoreau, made for him by a Penobscot craftsman for use in his travels in the Maine wilderness.
Ash, hide, sinew
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80713
4001
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Indians of North America--Maine
Snowshoes
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Penobscot Indians
Abenaki Indians
Penobscot snowshoes, ca. 1850
Physical Object
circa 1850
107 cm x 37 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80713.JPG
Abbe Museum
Indian Island, Penobscot County, ME, USA
circa 1850
oai:mainememory.net:80732
2018-10-31T08:49:30Z
contributor:abbe
Wabanaki
This ash and sweet grass napkin ring is one of the wide variety of household and personal items crafted by Wabanaki artisans around the turn of the century to appeal to Victorian consumers.
There are several steps to harvesting and preparing ash and sweet grass for making into baskets and other items. The ash tree is first cut into sections and the bark is removed. The the end of the logs are pounded into split the wood along the tree rings. Each ring is then sliced into long, thin strips, or splints, of various thicknesses. Once the sprints are soaked and sanded they can be woven into whatever item the weaver desires.
Sweet grass is harvested, optimally before the fist frost and is left to dry in the sun until it is dry and brittle. Before use the weaver soaks the dried sweet grass in warm water until it becomes pliable and then is braided before it is woven into a basket or other item.
Ash splints, sweetgrass
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80732
2002-16-149
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Indians of North America--Maine
Table settings & decorations
Abenaki Indians
Napkin ring, Wabanaki, ca. 1900
Physical Object
circa 1900
5 cm x 6.6 cm x 5.7 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80732.JPG
Peter Smith Terry Collection, Gift of Unity College
Abbe Museum
circa 1900
oai:mainememory.net:80733
2018-10-31T08:49:30Z
contributor:abbe
Wabanaki
Also known as a melon basket, for its shape, this basket is both decorative and functional.
While the Wabanaki Tribes originally made specialized baskets to gather and prepare food and trap fish during the nineteenth century, when the Wabenaki were making goods to sell their baskets and other goods gained a decorative element. Decoration usually came in the form of fancy weaving patterns, colored splints or unconventional shapes that made the baskets and things nice to look at as well as useful.
Ash splints, sweetgrass, dye
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80733
2002-16-090
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Baskets
Indians of North America--Maine
Abenaki Indians
Egg Basket, Wabanaki, ca. 1900
Physical Object
circa 1900
20 cm x 28 cm x 20 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80733.JPG
Peter Smith Terry Collection, Gift of Unity College
Abbe Museum
circa 1900
oai:mainememory.net:80734
2018-10-31T08:49:30Z
contributor:abbe
Wabanaki
Visitors to the Wabanaki encampments on Mount Desert Island could purchase baskets in a myriad of shapes, sizes and forms.
Comb baskets or wall pockets would be hung on the wall to hold a Victorian lady's combs or other personal items.
Ash splints, sweetgrass, dye
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80734
2002-16-091
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Baskets
Indians of North America--Maine
Comb basket, Wabanaki, ca. 1900
Physical Object
circa 1900
23 cm x 25.5 cm x 9 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80734.JPG
Peter Smith Terry Collection, Gift of Unity College
Abbe Museum
USA
circa 1900
oai:mainememory.net:80738
2018-10-31T08:49:30Z
contributor:abbe
John Snow
John Snow lived most of his life, and raised his family, on Mount Desert Island. He would travel door to door selling both his own work and pieces made by other Wabanaki artisans. His work often features delicate trees and leaves.
The sale of baskets and other such items was often the primary source of income for Native American families. The entire family could work all winter to prepare for summer when tribes would set up encampments to sell their wares near resorts. When not camped near the resorts and during the non-summer months goods would be taken door-to-door for sale.
Birch bark, ash, sweetgrass
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80738
1922
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Passamaquoddy Indians
Indians of North America -- Mount Desert Island
Boxes
Snow, John
Letter box, Passamaquoddy, 1905
Physical Object
1905
18.5 cm x 14.6 cm x 5 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80738.JPG
Abbe Museum
1905
oai:mainememory.net:80748
2018-10-31T08:49:30Z
contributor:abbe
Passamaquoddy
Birch bark has been an essential material for the Wabanaki for generations. It was used to create everything from canoes to shelters.
With the growing market for Native crafts exemplified by the Bar Harbor encampments, Wabanaki birch bark artisans developed new forms and decorative styles to appeal to buyers.
Depictions of Wabanaki life and stories, along with scenes from the natural world, were popular at the turn of the century.
Birchbark, ash, sweetgrass
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80748
AMO 002
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Indian art--North America
Indians of North America--Maine--Antiquities
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Passamaquoddy Indians
Picture frame, Passamaquoddy, ca. 1900
Physical Object
circa 1900
23 cm x 20 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80748.JPG
Anne Molloy Howells Collection
Abbe Museum
circa 1900
oai:mainememory.net:80752
2018-10-31T08:49:30Z
contributor:abbe
Penobscot
Splint gauges, with the teeth set at a variety of widths, are used by Wabanaki basketmakers to cut ash splints into uniform widths. Like many gauges, this one also has an elaborately carved handle. The chip-carved geometric and floral patterns are found on many forms of Wabanaki wood carving.
Maple, copper/bronze, steel
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80752
82-09-001
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Abenaki Indians
Basket making--Equipiment and supplies
Implements, utensils, etc.--Maine
Indian art--North America
Indians of North America--Maine--Implements
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Penobscot Indians
Splint gauge, ca. 1850
Physical Object
circa 1850
14 cm x 3.5 cm x 2.2 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80752.JPG
Abbe Museum
ME, USA
circa 1850
oai:mainememory.net:80753
2018-10-31T08:49:30Z
contributor:abbe
Penobscot
Wabanaki basket makers often form their baskets around blocks, or molds. Blocks are often passed down in families, used by many generations of basket makers. The use of blocks also allowed basket makers to standardize certain forms of baskets, which helped meet the market demand for their work.
Among the Wananaki tribes, it is believed that, basket making is a skill that has been passed from generation to generation for thousands of years. Wabanaki baskets are made from brown ash tree, also known as the "basket tree."
Many tribal people used basket selling as a way to make a living outside of non-native towns and cities and, toward the turn of the century, when resorts and vacations began to appear in places where Wabanaki villages used to be.
Spruce
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80753
3032
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Abenaki Indians
Indians of North America--Maine--Implements
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Basket making--Equipment and supplies
Penobscot Indians
Implements, utensils, etc.--Maine
Basket block, ca. 1860
Physical Object
circa 1860
15.25 cm x 9 cm x 9 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80753.JPG
Abbe Museum
circa 1860
oai:mainememory.net:80754
2018-10-31T08:49:30Z
contributor:abbe
Penobscot
This wooden comb would have been used to comb the long strands of sweet grass, preparing the fragrant material for use in baskets.
Sweet grass was, and is, very widely used by North American Indians for a variety of purposes. It is sometimes used as a sacred plant peace and healing rituals but has many everyday uses as well. The leaves can be dried and made into braids and burned as vanilla-scented incense; used as stuffing for mattresses; or to make baskets and rugs.
Wood
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80754
3071
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Basket making--Equipiment and supplies
Indian art--North America
Indians of North America--Maine--Implements
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Implements, utensils, etc.--United States
Abenaki Indians
Penobscot Indians
Sweet grass comb, 19th century
Physical Object
circa 1800
16.5 cm x 8.3 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80754.JPG
Mary Cabot Wheelwright Collection
Abbe Museum
Indian Island, Penobscot County, ME, USA
circa 1800
oai:mainememory.net:80731
2019-05-30T08:36:03Z
contributor:abbe
Penobscot
Large covered baskets like this were used to pack hats and other clothing for travel and storage.
While during this time, traditional utility baskets made by Native Americans continued to be popular, "fancy baskets" or baskets with whimsical shapes, intricate weave patterns, or multiple colors became very popular and were made to fit every imaginable need.
Ash splints, indigo dye
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80731
1900
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Abenaki Indians
Baskets
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Penobscot Indians
Wabanaki Indians
Band box basket, Penobscot, ca. 1850
Physical Object
circa 1850
33 cm x 44.4 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80731.JPG
Abbe Museum
circa 1850
oai:mainememory.net:80751
2019-05-30T08:36:04Z
contributor:abbe
The crooked knife was, and for many still is, an essential basket making, canoe making, and carving tool. It functions like a single-handed draw knife, fitting ergonomically into the hand and is pulled toward the user. The handles of crooked knives are frequently beautifully carved, while the blades are usually re-worked files.
Hardwood, leather, metal
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80751
5041
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Abenaki Indians
Basket making--Equipment and supplies
Implements, utensils, etc.--Maine
Indians of North America--Maine--Abenaki Indians
Indians of North America--Maine--Implements
Knives
Wabanaki Indians
Crooked knife, Penobscot, ca. 1850
Physical Object
circa 1850
17 cm x 11 cm x 4.5 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80751.JPG
Penobscot
Abbe Museum
ME, USA
circa 1850
oai:mainememory.net:80722
2021-12-04T10:11:54Z
contributor:abbe
Kilburn Brothers
This stereo view shows a shoreside view of the Indian encampment at the foot of Bar/Bridge Street in Bar Harbor around 1881. Notice the canvas sale tent (upper left) and the boy (lower right) holding a bow and arrow. He may have been practicing his aim since Wabanaki youngsters often added to the family income by shooting arrows at pennies and other small objects tossed in the air.
With the influx of tourists from the many resorts that opened in the area where the Wabanaki made their home, at the turn of the century, the Wabanaki capitalized on the tourist trade by selling wares, and entertainments to tourists.
Stereograph
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80722
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Indian encampments--Maine--Bar Harbor
Indians of North America
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Passamaquoddy Indians
Penobscot Indians
Tourism--Maine--Bar Harbor
Canoes--Maine--Bar Harbor
Indian encampment, Bar Harbor, 1881
Image
1881
9 cm x 17 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80722.JPG
Private collection
Abbe Museum
Bar Harbor, Hancock County, ME, USA
1881
oai:mainememory.net:80728
2021-12-04T10:11:54Z
contributor:abbe
Bryant Bradley
Frank Loring is pictured here, with unidentified boy, sitting by boat shed just west of the Bar Harbor steamboat wharf, around 1890. Loring would rent out canoes to rusticators, or take them out on guided canoe trips around Frenchman's Bay.
While Loring was a many of many talents, entertainer, medicine man and hunter to name a few, he also spent many summers renting canoes to rusticators, often with himself or his son Mitchell as paddler and guide.
Stereograph
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80728
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Canoes--Maine--Bar Harbor
Penobscot Indians
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Indians of North America
Piers & wharves--Maine--Bar Harbor
Loring, Frank
Frank "Big Thunder" Loring, Bar Harbor, ca. 1890
Image
circa 1890
8.5 cm x 17 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80728.JPG
Private collection
Abbe Museum
Bar Harbor, Hancock County, ME, USA
circa 1890
oai:mainememory.net:14423
2022-06-29T05:23:04Z
contributor:abbe
Irene Newell Dana
This basket was made by Irene Newell Dana, Passamaquoddy, from Indian Township. It is decorated with braided sweetgrass and dyed ash splints.
The baskets in Anne Howells collection were made by Native Americans living in the Northeast. The majority are from Wabanaki communities in Maine and eastern Canada, including Maliseet, Micmac, Passamaquoddy and Penobscot. There are also a few baskets made by Abenaki people from Quebec and Native peoples from southern New England.
Ash, sweetgrass, dye
http://www.mainememory.net/item/14423
AM205
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/
Indigenous peoples--Arts & crafts
Passamaquoddy Indians
Indians of North America--Maine
Sweetgrass baskets
Baskets
Dana, Irene N
Molloy, Anne
Jewelry Box
Physical Object
circa 1970
10 cm x 18 cm x 13 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/14423.JPG
Anne Molloy Howells Collection
Abbe Museum
Indian Township, Washington County, ME, USA
circa 1970
oai:mainememory.net:14424
2022-06-29T05:23:04Z
contributor:abbe
Anne Capino Godin
The baskets in Anne Howells collection were made by Native Americans living in the Northeast. The majority are from Wabanaki communities in Maine and eastern Canada, including Maliseet, Micmac, Passamaquoddy and Penobscot. There are also a few baskets made by Abenaki people from Quebec and Native peoples from southern New England.
This basket is a style known as the "Abenaki Star." Although the Abenaki are not a federally recognized tribe in Maine, they have close historical and cultural ties to Maine's Native American communities. Many of the Abenaki who left the Kennebec River valley following the English raid on Norridgewock in 1724 settled in Odanak.
This basket was a gift to Anne Molloy Howells from Gaby Pelletier, a basket researcher and author of Abenaki Basketry (National Museums of Canada, 1982).
Ash, sweetgrass, dye
http://www.mainememory.net/item/14424
AM363
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/
Abenaki Indians
Basketmaking
Baskets
Indians of North America--Quebec (Province)
Indigenous peoples--Arts & crafts
Sweetgrass baskets
Godin, Anne C
Molloy, Anne
Pelletier, Gaby
Sewing Basket, ca. 1980
Physical Object
circa 1980
15 cm x 25.5 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/14424.JPG
Anne Molloy Howells Collection
Abbe Museum
Odanak, QC, Canada
circa 1980
oai:mainememory.net:80706
2022-06-29T05:44:38Z
contributor:abbe
Judith Cooper
This painting is an artist's reconstruction of what a Wabanaki encampment on the coast of Maine would have looked like about 3000 years ago.
The human history of Mount Desert Island began thousands of years ago when the ancestors of the Wabanaki people came to the place they later called Pemetic (pemotonet in Passamaquoddy), which translates to “Range of mountains.” Rising sea levels over the past 10,000 years have flooded older village sites, but a combination of archaeology on sites from the last 3,000 years, Wabanaki traditional knowledge, language, and other natural sciences create a picture of Wabanaki life here before the arrival of Europeans.
Acrylic on paper
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80706
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/
Indians of North America
Indians of North America --Maine --Mount Desert Island--Antiquities
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Passamaquoddy Indians
Penobscot Indians
Wabanaki encampment, ca. 1000 BCE
Image
1989
35 cm x 71 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80706.JPG
Abbe Museum
Hancock County, ME, USA
circa 1000
oai:mainememory.net:80710
2022-06-29T05:44:38Z
contributor:abbe
Joseph Orono
This powder horn is reported to have been owned by Penobscot Chief Joseph Orono (1688-1801). On close inspection of the horn two of the many images that it is possible to see are a man holding a musket and a square-rigged three-masted ship.
Chief Orono’s nickname, K’tolaqu, translates to “Big Ship.” He was given this nickname as a result of the many tales he told of the big ships he saw during a trip to Boston in 1780 to offer Penobscot aid to the Americans in the Revolutionary War.
Cow horn, wood
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80710
2044
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Abenaki Indians
Carving (Decorative arts)
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Orono, Joseph
Penobscot Indians
Powder flasks
Orono, Joseph
Chief Joseph Orono powder horn, ca. 1780
Physical Object
circa 1780
15.25 cm x 5 cm x 5 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80710.JPG
Fanny Hardy Eckstorm Collection
Abbe Museum
Indian Island, Penobscot County, ME, USA
circa 1780
oai:mainememory.net:80716
2022-06-29T05:44:38Z
contributor:abbe
A. F. Orr
This image is of N.M. Francis and his wife in a birchbark canoe. Birchbark canoes were the primary means of travel for the Wabanaki for thousands of years, and the traditional craft of making them has been revitalized in recent years.
According to William A. Haviland in <em>Down East Maine</em>, for the Wabanaki, the canoe was the equivalent of today's pickup truck. Because of this, birchbark canoes greatly ranged in both length and weight depending on where and what they were used for.
Postcard
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80716
I-100.40
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Penobscot Indians
Canoes--Maine--Old Town
Francis, N. M.
Orr, A. F.
N.M. Francis and his wife in a canoe, ca. 1912
Image
1912
8.5 cm x 14 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80716.JPG
Archives - Native Americans, Historic
Abbe Museum
Indian Island, Penobscot County, ME, USA
Old Town, Penobscot County, ME, USA
circa 1912
oai:mainememory.net:80723
2022-06-29T05:44:39Z
contributor:abbe
Milton J. Burns
This image, from Scribner's Magazine, depicts a man stirring a cauldron of blubber. Cooking pots at the Wabanaki encampment in Bar Harbor were also used for “trying” (extracting) porpoise oil by boiling the blubber.
Porpoise hunting was common among Wabanaki men, especially the Passamaquoddy. The oil was in great demand for fueling lighthouses and lubricating clockworks.
Printed material
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80723
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Indians of North America
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Passamaquoddy Indians
Tryworks
Trying out blubber, 1880
Text and Image
1880
8.5 cm x 6 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80723.JPG
Archives - Native Americans, Historic
Abbe Museum
1880
oai:mainememory.net:80725
2022-06-29T05:44:39Z
contributor:abbe
A. F. Orr
Frank “Big Thunder” Loring in his crowd-pleasing feather-skirt and spectacular ostrich- or rhea-feather headdress, ca. 1884.
Frank “Big Thunder” Loring, Penobscot, (1827-1906) was one of several Wabanakis who commercialized their public identities to make a living. On stage he entertained by mixing authentic Wabanaki cultural history with invented traditions.
Off stage, he was a hunter, guide, medicine man, and tribal leader. Clever in the marketplace, he boosted sales of Wabanaki relics and crafts by telling captivating stories about the objects and himself.
Postcard
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80725
I-100.40
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Indians of North America --Clothing & dress
Indians of North America
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Entertainers--Maine--Old Town
Penobscot Indians
Indians in the performing arts --North America
Loring, Frank
Frank “Big Thunder” Loring, ca. 1884
Image
circa 1884
13.5 cm x 8.5 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80725.JPG
Archives - Native Americans, Historic
Abbe Museum
Indian Island, Penobscot County, ME, USA
Old Town, Penobscot County, ME, USA
circa 1884
oai:mainememory.net:80726
2022-06-29T05:44:39Z
contributor:abbe
A. F. Orr
Even death did not dent the fame of Frank Loring, showman, storyteller, hunter, guide, medicine man, and tribal leader who collected and sold Wabanaki relics and crafts. This photo was published as a postcard in 1912, six years after he died.
Towering in height and personality, Frank “Big Thunder” Loring, Penobscot, (1827-1906) was a leader among Wabanakis who commercialized their public identities to make a living. Loring was a performer, producer, and promoter of “Indian entertainments,” and his name appeared in dozens of newspapers across New England, especially Maine.
Postcard
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80726
I-100.40
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Indians in the performing arts --North America
Entertainers--Maine--Old Town
Wabanaki Indians
Penobscot Indians
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Indians of North America
Indians of North America --Clothing & dress
Loring, Frank
Frank "Big Thunder" Loring, ca. 1890
Image
1912
13.5 cm x 8.5 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80726.JPG
Archives - Native Americans, Historic
Abbe Museum
Indian Island, Penobscot County, ME, USA
Old Town, Penobscot County, ME, USA
circa 1890
oai:mainememory.net:80730
2022-06-29T05:44:39Z
contributor:abbe
Charles S. Reinhart
Rusticators canoeing in Frenchman Bay. Original drawing by Charles S. Reinhart. Engraved for Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, Vol. 73, No. 435, August 1886, pg. 419.
Rusticators were vacationers who flocked to the island from cities, which sought relief from the noise and pollution of crowded urban life without forsaking any of the comforts of urban life.
Boasting as many as 300 members, the Mount Desert Island Canoe Club encouraged “cooing, wooing, and canoeing,” as well as serious training in the “fine art of paddling.” Most members of this rusticators’ club aspired to having their own Indian-made paddle and birchbark canoe, and many turned to proven experts from the Indian encampment for instruction. Rusticators also took great pleasure in seeing Wabanaki paddling skills displayed at the Club’s annual canoe races.
Printed material
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80730
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Canoes--Maine--Bar Harbor
People--Maine--Bar Harbor
Canoeing at Bar Harbor, 1886
Text and Image
1886
12 cm x 20 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80730.JPG
Archives - Other & Miscellaneous
Abbe Museum
Bar Harbor, Hancock County, ME, USA
1886
oai:mainememory.net:80736
2022-06-29T05:44:39Z
contributor:abbe
Tomah Joseph
This handkerchief box was created and carved by Tomah Joseph, of the Passamaquoddy tribe in the late 19th century.
Tomah Joseph (1837-1914) is perhaps the best-known Passamaquoddy birchbark artist from the late 19th and early 20th century. His beautifully decorated birchbark work can be found on everything from canoes to coat racks to letter boxes. He was also a friend of President Franklin D. Roosevelt throughout his life, spending time together at Campobello Island in easternmost Maine.
Birch bark, ash, pine, twine
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80736
2004-13
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Passamaquoddy Indians
Abenaki Indians
Boxes
Handkerchief box, Passamaquoddy, ca. 1880
Physical Object
circa 1880
3.8 cm x 15.25 cm x 12.7 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80736.JPG
Abbe Museum
circa 1880
oai:mainememory.net:80739
2022-06-29T05:44:39Z
contributor:abbe
Joseph Nicholas
Log carriers like this, often with finely etched designs, could have been found in many turn-of-the-century homes in Maine. Pieces created by Joseph Nicholas typically included detailed animals, plants and people, illustrating traditional Passamaquoddy life.
In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries Native Americans were pressured to reject their own cultures in favor of European culture. Instead many Native American communities found ways to incorporate their cultures into the changing world around them. One way in which this was done was to sell goods that were created using traditional Native American methods and with traditional Native American decorations or motifs.
Birch bark, cedar, nails
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80739
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Passamaquoddy Indians
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Log carrier, Passamaquoddy, 1902
Physical Object
1902
56 cm x 56 cm x 40.6 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80739.JPG
Abbe Museum
1902
oai:mainememory.net:14426
2023-03-12T08:28:12Z
contributor:abbe
Yvonne Robert
The baskets in Anne Howells collection were made by Native Americans living in the Northeast. The majority are from Wabanaki communities in Maine and eastern Canada, including Maliseet, Micmac, Passamaquoddy and Penobscot. There are also a few baskets made by Abenaki people from Quebec and Native peoples from southern New England.
This basket style was originally created by Yvonne Robert, Abenaki, of Odanak, Quebec. Although the Abenaki are not a federally recognized tribe in Maine, they have close historical and cultural ties to Maine's Native American communities. Many of the Abenaki who left the Kennebec River valley following the English raid on Norridgewock in 1724 settled in Odanak.
Ash, sweetgrass
http://www.mainememory.net/item/14426
AM390
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/
Indians of North America--Quebec (Province)
Sweetgrass baskets
Indigenous peoples--Arts & crafts
Basketmaking
Baskets
Abenaki Indians
Molloy, Anne
Robert, Yvonne
Bell-shaped Sewing Basket
Physical Object
circa 1981
20 cm x 23 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/14426.JPG
Anne Molloy Howells Collection
Abbe Museum
Odanak, QC, Canada
circa 1981
oai:mainememory.net:80715
2023-03-12T08:34:23Z
contributor:abbe
Molly Molasses
Though this porcupine-weave basket has been attributed to Molly Molasses (or Mary Pelagie, 1775-1867), it is not certain that she made it. But, it is known that Molly Molasses sold a variety of Penobscot-made wares around Bangor and Brewer through the first part of the 19th century.
A porcupine weave is made by folding and pinching the splints so that they created spikey points. Molasses was known to have done this to create a visual interest and make the basket appear more fancy.
Mary Pealgie Nicola, also known as Molly Molasses was a Penobscot woman who was born about 1775. Molasses lived until the age of 92 and had a reputation in the Bangor area for fine work. She was painted, photographed and written about in books and local newspapers. Her baskets were considered to be art rather than souvenirs.
Ash
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80715
1914
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Abenaki Indians
Baskets
Indians of North America--Maine
Indians of North America--Maine--Penobscot Indians
Indigenous peoples--Arts & crafts
Penobscot Indians
Wabanaki Indians
Molasses, Molly
Pelagie, Mary
Fancy porcupine-weave basket, Penobscot, 1862
Physical Object
1862
9 cm x 15.25 cm x 15.25 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80715.JPG
Mary Cabot Wheelwright Collection
Abbe Museum
Brewer, Penobscot County, ME, USA
1862
oai:mainememory.net:80720
2023-03-12T08:34:23Z
contributor:abbe
This image is of Henry Richards, standing in the stern, and his family in a Wabenaki birch bark canoe some time in the 1890s.
In the 1870s, Henry Richards, a young architect from Gardiner Maine, traveled by steamer to Bar Harbor to supervise the construction of a summer home for Mrs. Charles Dorr. On that same steamer, a Wabanaki canoe maker was carrying a fleet of bark canoes that he would rent to Bar Harbor's burgeoning tourist population. Richards, fascinated with these canoes, purchased this canoe before disembarking the steamer.
The canoe spent many years being used by the Richards family, first on Lake Cobbosseecontee in Kennebec County and later on Squam Lake in New Hampshire.
Photographic print
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80720
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Lakes--Maine
Cobbosseecontee Lake (Me.)
Canoes--Maine
Recreation--Maine
Recreation--Maine
Richards, Henry
Richards family, ca. 1895
Image
circa 1895
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80720.JPG
Abbe Museum
ME, USA
circa 1895
oai:mainememory.net:14411
2023-06-30T08:27:46Z
contributor:abbe
This sewing basket is decorated with braided sweetgrass and a paper twine known as "Hong Kong." In the 1930s, "Hong Kong" manufactured paper twine, became a popular replacement for sweetgrass, which required long hours to collect and braid. Hong Kong is infrequently used today.
Ash, sweetgrass, Hong Kong cord
http://www.mainememory.net/item/14411
AM127
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/
Basketmaking
Indians of North America--Maine
Indigenous peoples--Arts & crafts
Sewing baskets
Sweetgrass baskets
Molloy, Anne
Sewing Basket
Physical Object
circa 1930
8 cm x 18 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/14411.JPG
Anne Molloy Howells Collection
Abbe Museum
ME, USA
circa 1930
oai:mainememory.net:80749
2024-02-24T09:33:26Z
contributor:abbe
John Snow
This little basket is one of three made by Snow, in the early 20th century, for Dr. Henry Stebbins, of Seal Harbor Maine and his siblings when they were young children.
John Snow (1868-1937) lived most of his life, and raised his family, on Mount Desert Island. He would travel door to door selling both his own work and pieces made by other Wabanaki artisans. His work often features delicate trees and leaves.
Birch bark, ash, sweetgrass, pine
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80749
93-24-003
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Indians of North America -- Mount Desert Island
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Baskets
Miniature wood carvings--Maine--Mount Desert Island
Passamaquoddy Indians
Snow, John
Stebbins, Henry D.
Berry basket, ca. 1910
Physical Object
circa 1910
16.5 cm x 7.6 cm x 7.6 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80749.JPG
Abbe Museum
Seal Harbor, Mount Desert, Hancock County, ME, USA
circa 1910
oai:mainememory.net:80755
2024-02-24T09:33:26Z
contributor:abbe
Joseph Nicholas
While this, turn of the century, etched model canoe is not signed, the animals and plants depicted on it are virtually identical to those on log carriers made by Joe Nicholas that are in the Abbe Museum's collection.
Since the 19th century there have been several Joe Nicholas' in the Passamaquoddy community. It is unknown which Joe Nicholas may have done this work. However, often work that is most likely to be by Nicholas can be found attributed to, the more famous Passamaquoddy birchbark artist, Tomah Joseph.
Birchbark, ash, cedar
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80755
2009-01
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Indians of North America--Maine--Antiquities
Indian art--North America
Indians of North America--Maine--Passamaquoddy Indians
Canoes--Maine--Pleasant Point
Miniature wood carvings--Maine--Pleasant Point
Nicholas, Joseph
Miniature canoe, ca. 1893
Physical Object
circa 1893
11.5 cm x 63.5 cm x 13.3 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80755.JPG
Abbe Museum
Perry, Washington County, ME, USA
Sipayik, Pleasant Point, Washington County, ME, USA
circa 1893
oai:mainememory.net:80719
2024-02-24T09:33:27Z
contributor:abbe
Charles S. Reinhart
This illustration is part of an article about the various things to do on Mount Desert Island in the late 19th century.
Climbing the mountains in what is now Acadia National Park was a favorite activity for rusticators. Their choice of clothing for this activity, at least for the women, is quite different from what hikers wear today in 2013.
The original drawing was by Charles S. Reinhart and the Engraving was made for Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, Vol. 73, No. 435, August 1886, pg. 419.
Printed material
http://www.mainememory.net/item/80719
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-CR/1.0/
Mount Desert Island (Me.)
Mountains--Maine
Champlain Mountain (Me.)
Newport Mountain (Me.)
Women’s clothing --United States --History
Hiking--Maine--Mount Desert Island
Climbing Newport (Champlain) Mountain, 1886
Text and Image
1886
13.5 cm x 10 cm
http://media.mainememory.net/images/150/75/80719.JPG
Archives - Other & Miscellaneous
Abbe Museum
Seal Harbor, Mount Desert, Hancock County, ME, USA
1886