Mary "Ataloa" Stone McLendon (1896–1967) was a Native American musician, storyteller,

humanitarian Humanitarianism is an active belief in the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotional ...

, and educator, who was a member of the

Chickasaw Nation The Chickasaw Nation (Chickasaw language, Chickasaw: Chikashsha I̠yaakni) is a federally recognized tribes, federally recognized Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribe, with its headquarters located in Ada, Oklahoma in th ...

. McLendon was an important figure in

Native American art Visual arts by indigenous peoples of the Americas encompasses the visual artistic practices of the indigenous peoples of the Americas from ancient times to the present. These include works from South America and North America, which includes C ...

s education. She was a concert vocalist, known for her

contralto A contralto () is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range is the lowest female voice type. The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare; similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to that of a countertenor, typically b ...

voice. She was influential in the creation of the art department at Bacone College, serving as the first director.

Early life, education, and performance

Mary Kuth Stone was born in March 27, 1896 near

Duncan Duncan may refer to: People * Duncan (given name), various people * Duncan (surname), various people * Clan Duncan * Justice Duncan (disambiguation) Places * Duncan Creek (disambiguation) * Duncan River (disambiguation) * Duncan Lake (d ...

in Indian Territory. She one of four children born to William Stone and Josephine McLish Smith, her father was European-American and her mother was Chickasaw, with a quarter

blood quantum Blood quantum laws or Indian blood laws are laws in the United States that define Native American status by fractions of Native American ancestry. These laws were enacted by the federal government and state governments as a way to establ ...

. She attended Stone School, a small school named after her paternal family. Her maternal grandmother Nancy Love McLish Smith, named her "Ataloa", which in the Chickasaw language translates as "song", "little song", or "anthem". In 1917 she married Ralph McClendon at the age of 17, however he died a year later of the

Spanish flu The 1918–1920 influenza pandemic, commonly known by the misnomer Spanish flu or as the Great Influenza epidemic, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza A virus. The earliest documented case was ...

. She had been attending the Oklahoma College for Woman. After her husband died she moved to Redlands,

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, to be near her mother and brother. She graduated in 1925 from the

University of Redlands The University of Redlands is a private university headquartered in Redlands, California. The university's main, residential campus is situated on 160 acres (65 ha) near downtown Redlands. An additional eight regional locations throughout Califo ...

. Around 1925, she used the stage name "Ataloa" or "Princess Ataloa" and started to dress in identifiably Native American clothing. McLendon created this romanticized image of an "Indian Princess", in order to play to her mostly white audience. She gained popularity for her performances featuring Native American dance, and she was known for her

singing voice. She would tell Native American stories and oral history, as well as conclude the events by speaking about the issues facing the Native American communities in her public appearances. After graduation she moved to New York City to continue her studies at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, and by 1928 she shared an apartment with Chickasaw actress Te Ata. McLendon referred to Ata as her "cousin" however its unknown if they were related or if they knew each other prior to living in New York City. She earned her master's degree in Religious Education from Columbia University in 1927.

Teaching

In the summer of 1927, McLendon moved to

Muscogee The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language), are a group of related indigenous (Native American) peoples of the Southeastern WoodlandsBacone College Bacone College, formerly Bacone Indian University, is a private tribal college in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Founded in 1880 as the Indian University by missionary Almon C. Bacone, it was originally affiliated with the mission arm of what is now Americ ...

. Initially, she taught English at the school but McLendon raised money in order to build a new art building on campus. With the new building in place by 1932, fine art became part of the schools curriculum and McLendon served as the first director of the program. McLendon accrued Native American art, building an art collection for the school which was housed in the new building. When she left the school in 1935, artist

Acee Blue Eagle Acee Blue Eagle (17 August 1907 – 18 June 1959) was a Native American artist, educator, dancer, and Native American flute player,Wyckoff, 92 who directed the art program at Bacone College. His birth name was Alexander C. McIntosh, he also we ...

(

Humanitarian efforts

Prior to 1932, McLendon secured funds from

John D. Rockefeller John Davison Rockefeller Sr. (July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937) was an American business magnate and philanthropist. He has been widely considered the wealthiest American of all time and the richest person in modern history. Rockefeller was ...

in order to build a Native American orphans' home in Muskogee, Oklahoma, which became the Murrow Indian Children's Home, still in operation today. During the 1940s, Ataloa worked with the

War Relocation Authority The War Relocation Authority (WRA) was a United States government agency established to handle the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. It also operated the Fort Ontario Emergency Refugee Shelter in Oswego, New York, which was t ...

in order to assist with the relocation of Japanese people living in the United States during World War II in

internment camps Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...

. In the 1950s, she served on the Save the Children Foundation committee to help

Navajo Nation The Navajo Nation ( nv, Naabeehó Bináhásdzo), also known as Navajoland, is a Native American reservation in the United States. It occupies portions of northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, and southeastern Utah; at roughly , the ...

families fight against malnutrition complicated by a

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

outbreak. Also in 1950s, McLendon was a public relations chair for the

National Congress of American Indians The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) is an American Indian and Alaska Native rights organization. It was founded in 1944 to represent the tribes and resist federal government pressure for termination of tribal rights and assimilati ...

and a consultant for the

Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and A ...

Death and legacy

McLendon died on November 11, 1967 in

Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...

, California, after a long illness. On the

Bacone College Bacone College, formerly Bacone Indian University, is a private tribal college in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Founded in 1880 as the Indian University by missionary Almon C. Bacone, it was originally affiliated with the mission arm of what is now Americ ...

campus, the ''Ataloa Lodge Museum'' is a building dedicated to McLendon. This is the same building built in 1932 by McLendon as an "art lodge" and classroom, it was later renamed in her dedication and it now houses a collection of Native American art work and historical artifacts. At the Idyllwild Arts Academy, on campus there is a marker in her dedication, an art studio named the ''Ataloa Art Studio'' and a nearby group of Sequoia trees were named the ''Ataloa Grove.''

East Central University East Central University (ECU or East Central) is a public university in Ada, Oklahoma. It is part of Oklahoma's Regional University System. Beyond its flagship campus in Ada, the university has courses available in McAlester, Shawnee, and Duran ...

in Ada, Oklahoma opened the ''Hallie Brown Ford Arts Center's Ataloa Theatre'' in 2009.

Early life, education, and performance

Teaching

Humanitarian efforts

Death and legacy

References

Further reading