American Indian Heritage Month

Home | Calendar of Events | Smithsonian Institution Events

In celebration of American Indian Heritage month, the Smithsonian Institution and places across the country honor the culture and diversity of American Indians with exhibits, lectures and other events. Interested in listing your cultural event in celebration of American Indian Heritage Month? Email us at EventRSVP@si.edu

 

  ARIZONA
 
Location: Pueblo Grande Museum & Archaeological Park
City: Phoenix
Date: October 27, 2007 – January 6, 2008
Description: Native Words Native Warriors exhibition, from the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service, explores the role that hundreds of Native American soldiers played in both world wars, serving the United States by using their Native languages to send and receive secret messages. These messages proved undecipherable to the enemy and helped the U.S. achieve victory. Native Words, Native Warriors tells the remarkable story of these American heroes and highlights the cultural backgrounds that made possible their unique and valuable contribution to the war effort.
 
  CALIFORNIA
 
Location: Agua Caliente Cultural Museum (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City: Palm Springs
Date: November 7 – 10, 2007
Description: The National Museum of the American Indian's Dr. Helen Scheirbeck will travel to Palm Springs to lecture at the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum's "Spirit Keepers" lecture series. Dr. Scheirbeck will lecture and do museum workshops based on her experiences in her career and discuss education in the Native American community.
 
 
  CONNECTICUT
 
Location: Mashantucket Pequot Museum (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City: Mashantucket
Date: November 16 - 18, 2007
Description: Buy unique gifts direct from Native artists at the Museum’s annual Winter Moon Holiday Market featuring hand-crafted art, exquisite jewelry, carvings, clothing and much more. Meet dozens of artists while you browse, listen to the stories behind their creations and learn about traditions of these indigenous people. Also on view, the exhibition Native Waters: Sharing the Source incorporates science, art, film and Native American cultural traditions to increase awareness and respect for water resources
 
 
  INDIANA
 
Location: Eiteljorg Museum
City:
Indianapolis
Date:
November 10, 2007
Description: This day-long event includes artists and scholars discussing issues related to contemporary Native art. Watch this space for more details. To find out more about the Diversity and Dialogue: The Eiteljorg Fellowship for Native American Fine Art exhibition click here.
   
  MASSACHUSETTS
 
Location: Plimoth Plantation (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City:
Plymouth
Date:
ongoing programs
Description: All month long, Plimoth Plantation offers 1627 Harvest Dinners, culminating, of course, in a variety of Thanksgiving dining events in this most authentic setting. Discover the foods and table manners that traveled across the Atlantic with the Pilgrims, and find out what really happened at the harvest celebration of 1621. Also, all month, Plimoth Plantation will be screening the History Channel’s film, Desperate Crossing: The Untold Story of the Mayflower. This film sheds new light on the shared, but popularly misunderstood, history of the Native Wampanoag and English colonists of 1620 Plymouth Colony.
   
  NORTH CAROLINA
 
Location: North Carolina Museum of History
City: Raleigh
Date: November 17, 2007 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Description: 12th Annual American Indian Heritage Celebration
Come to the museum and help commemorate American Indian Heritage month and the museum’s 12th annual American Indian Heritage Celebration! See artists demonstrate their skills at pottery, basketry, beadwork, stone carving, and other crafts. Watch dancers perform traditional dances to the rhythms of northern- and southern-style drum groups. Make crafts, plays games, and listen to stories and legends presented by Indian storytellers. Learn about members of the eight state-recognized tribes: Coharie, Eastern Band of Cherokee, Haliwa-Saponi, Lumbee, Meherrin, Occaneechi Band of Saponi, Sappony, and Waccamaw-Siouan. Visit the special exhibit Mysteries of the Lost Colony and A New World: England's First View of America from the British Museum.
 
  OKLAHOMA
 
Location: American Indian Cultural Center & Museum
City: Guthrie
Date: November 15 and 16, 2007
Description: Sunset Ceremony and Parade
 
  VIRGINIA
 
Location: Jamestown Settlement
City: Williamsburg
Date: November 3, 2007
Description: "Native America in the 21st Century: Out of the Mist and Beyond the Myth"
W. Richard West, Jr., member of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma and a Peace chief of the Southern Cheyenne, and founding director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian.
 
Location: Jamestown Settlement
City: Williamsburg
Date: November 3, 2007
Description: Virginia Indian Heritage Day
Virginia Indian cultures and their important legacy in America will be honored with intertribal dancing and drumming, themed-museum tours and hands-on children's activities. In two panel discussions, Virginia Indian tribal leaders will share memories associated wit the 1957 and 2007 Jamestown commemorations and will explore contemporary issues facing the Virginia Indian community
 
  WASHINGTON
 
Location: Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City: Spokane
Date: Ongoing programs
Description: The Museum seeks to actively engage the people of the Inland Northwest in life-long learning about regional history, visual arts, American Indian and other cultures, especially those specific to the region. The museum's collections bring to life over a century of Spokane history translating them into a three-dimensional tapestry of personal stories.
 
  WASHINGTON D.C.
 
Location: National Museum of Women in the Arts
City: Washington D.C.
Date: October 8 - February 17, 2008
Description: A Living Tradition: Pueblo Pottery from the Permanent Collection celebrates the achievements of several generations of female Pueblo potters from New Mexico. American Indian pottery is a living tradition that has evolved since the late nineteenth century and continues to inspire many potters working today. By reviving or renewing lost practices, these women give new strength and meaning to ancient traditions.
 

Advertisement

Travel with Smithsonian

Pueblo Indian Winter Dances

Pueblo Indian Winter Dances

Jan 21 - 26, 2008
Witness dramatic Pueblo ceremonies under the tutelage of Smithsonian scholar Bruce Bernstein

Battle of Little Bighorn

Battle of Little Bighorn

Aug 6 - 11, 2008
Explore the passion and controversy of the Battle of Little Bighorn