Native American Heritage Month
We honor Native American Heritage Month by highlighting our vast holdings that document the history and recognize the many achievements and contributions of Native Americans from as early as 1774. These include every treaty signed with Native Americans, available online through the National Archives Catalog, records from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Indian Schools, and Indian Census Rolls.
Path Lit by Lightning: The Life of Jim Thorpe
Join us in person or online on December 1, 2022, at 7 PM ET.
National Archives Museum in Washington, DC.
Register online; View on YouTube
Jim Thorpe, a member of the Sac and Fox Nation, rose to world fame as a mythic talent who excelled at every sport. He won gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, was an All American football player at the Carlisle Indian School, the star of the first class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and played in the MLB for the New York Giants. David Maraniss’s book, Path Lit by Lightning, tells Thorpe’s story. Anita Thorpe, Jim Thorpe's granddaughter, will attend the program.
Related NARA exhibit: All American: The Power of Sports
National Archives Museum, Washington DC, through January 7, 2024.
Anita Thorpe, left, granddaughter of 1912 Olympic champion Jim Thorpe, poses with National Archives curator Alice Kamps in front of a display honoring Thorpe’s grandfather in the “All American: The Power of Sports," 9/12/2022. Photo for the National Archives by John Valceanu.
Related Smithsonian exhibit:
Why We Serve: Native Americans in the U.S. Armed ForcesThe National Museum of the American Indian through November 30, 2023
Why We Serve honors the generations of Native Americans who have served in the armed forces of the United States—often in extraordinary numbers—since the American Revolution.
Online Resources:
Native American History special topics page of NARA’s related online resources.
Bureau of Indian Affairs Photos (more than 18,000) Now Online.
The Story of the 1950 Census P8 Indian Reservation Schedule - learn about Native Americans in the 1950 Census.