In many Southwestern matrifocal cultures, Indigenous women’s lives are modeled after female heroes and sacred women who exemplify and express courage and kinship values. Among some tribal cultures, rites of passage celebrate female creativity and the transformative nature of women, hence there was not a need for the concept of feminism. Nevertheless, Indigenous women’s lives […]

Too often the claim is heard that there is very little ancient history or literature in the United States. Nothing could be further from the truth. Whether it is the Hopi epics of the wanderings of Long Sash and the exploits of the Koshare twins; the Navajo legends that connect the cultures of the Southwest […]

Professor Gratton examines the role of indigenous persons, Hispanic groups, migrants and immigrants in the region that became the American Southwest.  Maps, census data,  images, video and audio reveal a thinly populated region initially dominated by Indian nations and ravaged by war and slavery. He then surveys the rapid growth of population between 1850 and […]

Ghost towns dot Arizona’s landscape and provide unique insights into a diverse history. Some ghost towns tell a boom-to-bust story with few remaining traces of the people who once lived there, while others, like Jerome, have become thriving tourist destinations. Many are old mining locations that once bustled with life, while others tell more modern […]

In pioneer Arizona, among the best places to experience the performing arts were in the mining towns. Striking it rich meant having disposable income and miners, like the well-heeled of the Gilded Age, wanted to demonstrate their sophistication with culture. From the early popular music of ragtime and minstrelsy during the forming of these communities […]

In 1921 the Hopi were told that “church people” petitioned Congress to stop their “pagan” dancing. In 1927, a platform was erected on the U.S. Capital steps where both Houses of Congress assembled with their families to see the Hopi dancers. Following the performance, Congress passed a Resolution giving the Hopi permission to carry on […]