These Ladies Know Apsalooke Fashion

Story by Janice Hudetz and Emily Haas
Photos by Janice Hudetz and Casey Kills Pretty Enemy
CrowNews.Net

There are only about five remaining Crow women who prefer to dress in the style of a period that expressed strong Apsalooke identity and pride. These Crow ladies who wear the traditional fashion are meticulous about their styles and colors. Neatness and tidiness are paramount.

The women’s dress of silk muffler, high-top moccasins, and fancy shawl, with a calico dress and wide leather belt are not readily accessible, as they were in the 1940s to 1960s, when a larger number of women wore these fashions.

Elizabeth “Myrtle” Smart Enemy has lived a fascinating life and has remained strong and healthy throughout the 99 years since she was born in Pryor in 1909. Born into the Big Lodge Clan, she has seen the changes in the cultural life of the Apsalooke people, and carries on the traditions passed on to her from the ways of our people a century earlier.

Myrtle, as most people call her, carries the name she inherited from her family - “Hears Everywhere” - and she applies that very well. “When I talked to her on the phone the other day, she heard me clearly, which is remarkable for a person of her generation, because there are many people who are hard of hearing and communicate in sign language and or use hearing aids,” said Fred “Stuffy,” her son.
She communicates best in the Apsalooke (Crow) language, he said.

Fred and his wife Eleanor live with her in Pryor and travel with her to many events near and far where tribal and activities are happening. Just last month she sat in the front row directly beneath the hoop at a recent basketball tournament in Billings’ Shrine Auditorium where her great grandson was playing for the championship Plenty Coups High School team.

Clara Big Lake, her daughter, also lives in the same area and she and Mrs. Smart Enemy go to many dances, ceremonies and special occasions where they both have important roles.

Winona Yellowtail, who turns 91 on May 12th, also can be seen wearing traditional dress every Sunday at church and at social events. Winona learned how to make her own clothing by watching her mother and grandmother, and now is proud of the couple hundred dresses and hand-beaded belts in her closet, “And she still wants a new dress,” said her daughter, Merle Jean Harris.

Winona comes from a history of longevity; her grandmother lived to be 106 and her grandfather lived to be 101. She has several aunts and uncles that lived into their late 90s. She has taught her children that living off the land, eating wild game and avoiding tobacco and alcohol contribute to a long and healthy life.

Harris describes her mother as “a master of everything a Crow woman could do.” It was even announced at a tribal gathering that Winona’s fry bread was the best they had tasted, she said. Harris fondly recalls her mother being and avid berry picker. “My goodness every time I turned around it was time to pick more berries,” she said. Harris explained that Winona would can some of the berries immediately, and with the rest she would make patties and put them on the roof to dry. She would pack them in cotton flour sacks in galvanized cans so she could make pudding later in the year, a special dessert treat. Harris also praises her mother’s hide tanning abilities. “Commercial hides are tough and hard to get a needle through,” she said. “She can make the best hides. They are so soft and easy to cut and bead.” Harris says this is because her mother discovered that using the rotten insides of a pine tree produced more pliable hides.

Winona Yellowtail, Myrtle Smart Enemy and a handful of other women can still be seen wearing traditional clothing, but that sight is becoming increasingly rare. The loss of tradition has been attributed to a move toward more English culture, or that the old fashions are just simply out of style and are hard to find. There is much less emphasis on appearance and details of an outfit.

For example, the high top moccasin, which are generally produced with smoked hides, have many different styles that are appropriate for certain events and not for others. Very often, parts of the outfit are imported from other countries and are not as easy to obtain as they once were. Silk mufflers from England are no longer manufactured. Canadian tribes usually make the hides for moccasins; the wide leather belt is made locally, but craftspeople are becoming fewer and fewer. The jewelry is either shell from the sea or elk products from mountain areas.  This year the shells have been displaced by the hurricanes, and the elk teeth are always difficult to obtain and are very prized items.

Though some traditions may be losing their popularity, many people still recognize the importance of educating their children about tribal identity. Merle Jean Harris says that her nephew is learning how to tan hides and make dresses, moccasins and beaded ceremonial blankets. She hopes he, among others, will teach those skills to his children and the traditional Crow style of dress will remain a prideful statement of Apsalooke identity.

If you know of a Crow who still dresses traditionally and would like to write a profile on them to be posted on CrowNews.Net, please send an email to editor@crownews.net.

Comments

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What a great article. These beautiful Crow women added dignity and forbearance to the Crow people. It wasn't always easy to be different but these ladies stood out and dared to be what they believed in. They've all grown old with dignity and pride. I appreciate how they preserved a bit of the past for all of us. They are all beautiful and are to be commented. I would like to say thank you to all of the ladies, those that have left us and to all of the remaining courageous ones. This was a wonderful article and really honors these precious women.

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