American Indian Heritage Month

  • Published
  • 355th Equal Opportunities office
DAVIS-MONTHAN AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. --  On August 3, 1990, President George W. Bush declared the month of November National American Indian Heritage Month. The purpose of National American Indian Heritage Month is to honor and recognize the original people of this land. Similar proclamations have been made since 1994. 

The Davis-Monthan community celebrates by recognizing their unique traditions and military contributions. The Equal Opportunities office believes active participation is the best way to learn. 

Test your knowledge on the accomplishments of some great Americans. The correct answers can be found at the bottom of the page.

1. Born in 1887 and considered one of the greatest athletes of all time, he excelled in track and field, football, and baseball. A Sauk Indian and the great grandson of the famous chief Black Hawk, he was the first athlete to win both the Olympic decathlon and pentathlon. Who was he?

2. The daughter of an Osage father, she made her reputation as a ballerina with the New York City Ballet. In 1980, she founded the Chicago City Ballet and served as its director until 1987. Who is she?

3. Under the Removal Act of 1829, an official Indian Territory was created to accommodate the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole Tribes who were forced to leave their lands during a journey called the "Trail of Tears." What future state was this Indian Territory located in?

4. Playwright and poet of Cherokee ancestry, Rollie Riggs' greatest success was the play "Green Grow the Lilacs". This play later became the basis for what hit musical?

5. Native Americans have fought in all wars from the Civil War to the Persian Gulf War. In 1969 a medal, depicting Ira Hayes (Pima) and the raising of the flag on Iwo Jima, was unveiled to honor a special unit whose achievements during WWII had remained "top secret" for 24 years. Who were these warriors?

6. A well-traveled route, the Iroquois Trail, existed between Albany and Buffalo. What later man-made transportation route followed the trail?

7. She is forever linked with the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804 where she served as an interpreter and guide. She is also featured on the American dollar. Who is she?

8. This Seneca chief was a scholar, soldier, lawyer and engineer. A commissioned officer in the Union Army, he rose to the rank of brigadier general and was appointed by Ulysses S. Grant the first Indian Commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Who was he?

9. The 14th Amendment specified in 1868 that Native Americans did not have the right to vote. When was this right restored for all Native Americans?

10. French explorer Jacques Cartier noted in 1535 that northeastern tribes boiled the bark and needles of evergreen trees to make a potion that cured a disease that afflicted Native Americans and Europeans alike in winter months. What was the disease?




ANSWER KEY


1. Jim Thorpe (1887 - 1953)

2. Maria Tallchief, born 1925

3. Oklahoma

4. Oklahoma

5. It honored the Navajo "Code Talkers" whose ancient language served as a code never broken by the Japanese.

6. The Erie Canal

7. Sacajawea (1787? - 1812?)

8. Ely Samuel Parker (1828 -1895)

9. 1965, as a result of the Voting Rights Act

10. The disease was scurvy. It was caused by lack of vitamin C. (Two hundred years later a Scottish physician introduced limes as a part of the standard diet on British ships. As a result of this, British sailors came to be called "limeys")