How Omaha’s 1898 world’s fair became the largest gathering of Native tribes in history

The 1898 Omaha Indian Congress’s Contradictory Legacy

In 1898, just eight years after Wounded Knee, over 500 Native Americans from 35 tribes came to Omaha.

Congress had put up $40,000 for this “Indian Congress” at the Trans-Mississippi Exposition. Even Apache leader Geronimo, then 69 and a prisoner of war, showed up under armed guard.

Through it all, photographer Frank Rinehart and his assistant Adolph Muhr shot nearly 500 portraits that now stand as some of the most vital records of Native leaders.

The Sage Museum in Brownville, Nebraska holds these stunning images now.

Spanish-American War Held Up the Big Gathering Until July 1898

Congress wanted to spend $100,000 on the Indian Congress when Edward Rosewater first pitched it in December 1897.

Rosewater, a Republican newspaper owner who knew President McKinley personally, got the Senate to say yes.

But the Spanish-American War got in the way. The House spent all their time on war plans in early 1898 and never voted on it.

Money finally came through in July 1898, but only $40,000. This created problems since the fair had already opened a month earlier.

Letters Went Out to Tribes Across America

W.A. Jones, who ran Indian Affairs, sent letters to Indian Agencies asking for families to join the Congress.

His letters said they wanted to show how Native Americans lived, worked, and kept their traditions. Jones told the agencies that families would live in tepees and wigwams.

The families could live their daily lives like at home and make money selling handmade items to visitors on the fair grounds.

Hundreds of Native Americans Traveled to Omaha

More than 500 Native Americans from 35 different tribes came to Omaha between August 4 and October 31, 1898.

Tribes included Apache, Arapaho, Blackfoot, Cheyenne, Chippewa, Crow, Flathead, Kiowa, Omaha, Ponca, Lakota, and Santa Clara Pueblo. This huge gathering happened less than eight years after the Wounded Knee Massacre.

Families built traditional homes across the grounds, creating small villages for visitors to see. Many joined to earn money by selling crafts and showing traditional skills.

Famous Apache Leader Came Under Armed Guard

Geronimo showed up at age 69, but not as a free man. The Apache leader came from Fort Sill, Oklahoma, where the government kept him as a prisoner.

Soldiers guarded him the whole time even though he posed no danger to anyone at the fair. The government had held Geronimo since his surrender in 1886 and never let him return to Arizona.

Visitors rushed to see the famous warrior. Geronimo quickly learned to profit by charging for his signature and photos.

Photographers Set Up Shop on the Fairgrounds

Frank Rinehart and his helper Adolph Muhr brought their camera gear to a small building at the corner of the Grand Court.

They used an 8-by-10 glass-negative camera with a German-made lens to take formal portraits. Muhr, who was older than Rinehart, took most of the nearly 500 portraits.

They made platinum prints that showed rich details. The photographers worked to capture the delegates in their ceremonial clothes with respect.

The Original Plan Focused on Education

James Mooney, from the Bureau of Ethnology, teamed up with Army Captain William Mercer to run the Indian Congress.

Both wanted a living exhibit where visitors could learn about real tribal customs. Commissioner Jones and Mooney hoped to show the traditional ways of as many tribes as possible.

The organizers first saw the Congress as a way to teach fairgoers about Native American life before settlers arrived.

Crowds Wanted Shows Instead of Real Life

The fair opened and organizers quickly learned that visitors wanted excitement, not education.

People came looking for dances, games, races, and mock battles instead of watching families go about their day.

This shift from education to entertainment caused fights between Mooney and Captain Mercer. Mercer pushed for crowd-pleasing performances.

The promoters built a 5,000-seat grandstand for crowds who wanted to watch shows, similar to Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show.

The Ghost Dance Returned Just Eight Years After Wounded Knee

Organizers set up performances of the Ghost Dance, a religious movement that had spread through Native tribes in the late 1880s.

The government had banned it after the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre, where soldiers killed over 250 Lakota just eight years before the fair.

Fairgoers who remembered newspaper stories about the “dangerous” Ghost Dance now watched it as entertainment.

Cheyenne and Arapaho delegates performed the ceremonial dance in circles with rhythmic songs.

Terrible Weather Made Life Hard for Native Families

Captain Mercer wrote in his report that the weather during the Congress was “trying in the extreme” for everyone.

The location on the grounds made the tough conditions even worse for families in tepees and traditional homes.

After the hot spell ended, a week of cold heavy rains turned the camp into mud. Despite these awful conditions, families kept doing demonstrations and selling handmade goods.

The Photos Became a National Treasure

Rinehart and Muhr completed nearly 500 portraits of delegates during the Congress.

Their work captured chiefs and tribal members in one of the most complete photo collections of Native American leaders from that era.

The Smithsonian’s director of photography later called Rinehart’s work “extraordinary” and better than most photographers of the time.

The portraits showed subjects with dignity rather than the typical “savage” style common in earlier Native American photography.

Visiting Brownville Holiday Village, Nebraska

You can see Frank Rinehart’s historic photographs of Native American leaders from the 1898 Trans-Mississippi Exposition at the Sage Museum in Brownville Holiday Village.

The museum at 213 Main Street offers free admission and displays Half Breed Tract Reservation survey maps, the 1854 Didier-Pineau cabin, and Iowa and Sac & Fox tribe exhibits.

It’s open Friday through Sunday from 1-4pm, early April through October. Contact Steve Woerth at scwoert@gmail.com for group tours.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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