The Ghost Shirt is a shirt that is believed to have been worn by a
Sioux
The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...
warrior killed in the 1890
Wounded Knee Massacre. The shirt is plain cotton, has raven, owl, and eagle feathers hanging from the neck, and is pierced in several places with bullet holes. There are slight brown stains of blood, but it cannot be confirmed that the shirt originated from the massacre.
Ghost Dance
The Ghost Dance ( Caddo: Nanissáanah, also called the Ghost Dance of 1890) was a ceremony incorporated into numerous Native American belief systems. According to the teachings of the Northern Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka (renamed Jack Wilso ...
shirts are said to be objects of power to the wearer, and sacred to
American Indians. The Lakota Sioux were the only tribe to believe that the ghost shirt clothing would protect them from the bullets of the white man.
In 1891 the shirt was brought to
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
, and sold to
Kelvingrove Museum
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is a museum and art gallery in Glasgow, Scotland. It reopened in 2006 after a three-year refurbishment and since then has been one of Scotland's most popular visitor attractions. The museum has 22 galleries, h ...
by George C. Crager, a member of
Buffalo Bill
William Frederick Cody (February 26, 1846January 10, 1917), known as "Buffalo Bill", was an American soldier, Bison hunting, bison hunter, and showman. He was born in Le Claire, Iowa, Le Claire, Iowa Territory (now the U.S. state of Iowa), but ...
Cody's
Wild West Traveling Show.
The shirt was displayed at the museum from 1892 until 1999.
A four-year campaign led by
Marcella Le Beau, secretary of The Wounded Knee Association and great-granddaughter of one of the survivors of Wounded Knee, sought the shirt's return to the
Lakota people. In November 1998
Glasgow City Council
Glasgow City Council is the local government authority for the City of Glasgow, Scotland. It was created in 1996 under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, largely with the boundaries of the post-1975 City of Glasgow district of the S ...
voted to return it after the city residents supported the move. In a gesture of good will, the Ghost Dance Shirt was replaced by another made in 1998 by Marcella Le Beau herself. She said, "This will bring about a sense of closure to a sad and horrible event. Now healing can begin." The Lakota leaders said that the shirt will be displayed at one of the Reservations once a new museum is built.
After repatriation ceremonies, the shirt was stored at the
Museum of the South Dakota State Historical Society. A celebration was held at
Eagle Butte on August 1, 2009 to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the return of this Ghost Dance shirt. In 2018, Marcella Le Beau expressed her desire for the shirt to be moved to the Cultural Center of the
Cheyenne River Sioux
The Cheyenne River Indian Reservation was created by the United States in 1889 by breaking up the Great Sioux Reservation, following the attrition of the Lakota in a series of wars in the 1870s. The reservation covers almost all of Dewey ...
tribe at Eagle Butte.
See also
*
Repatriation (cultural heritage)
Repatriation is the return of the cultural property, often referring to ancient or looted art, to their country of origin or former owners (or their heirs). The disputed cultural property items are physical artifacts of a group or society taken b ...
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ghost Shirt
American Indian relics
Art and cultural repatriation
Native American clothing
Ghost Dance movement
Amulets
19th-century clothing
20th century in Glasgow
United Kingdom–United States relations