Miniature Baskets by Jeanne Brink
description: Miniature Baskets, Ash splint and Sweetgrass, Abenaki Jeanne Brink's Famous Abenaki Baskets Abenaki basketmaker, Jeanne Brink keeps her culture and her grandmother's spirit alive by weaving baskets (like the ones shown below) with traditional materials, such as brown ash and sweet grass. Known for her miniature fancy baskets, Jeanne Brink often uses sweetgrass as it is easily maneuverable when doing minute details (Bruchac 63-68). A basket often shows a basket maker's personality and Brink uses various techniques in her basketmaking that mark the basket as specifically hers (63-68). For example, she is known for using a green candy-stripe pattern in her baskets by incorporating sweetgrass to create a subtle swirl around a basket's lid and sides (63-68). The baskets shown below are made with a combination of sweetgrass and both dyed and un-dyed ash splints ("We're Still Here"). Learning The Tradition of Basket Making Jeanne Brink first became interested in basketmaking when she was little while watching her grandmother make baskets ("Voices of Vermont Women: Jeanne Brink"). However, it was not until she grew into an adult that she realized that her grandmother represented a living history ("Voices of Vermont Women: Jeanne Brink."). Her grandmother, Elvine Obomsawin, told a story in Abenaki of the Abenaki version of "Rogers' Raid" ("Voices of Vermont Women: Jeanne Brink"). The story was recorded and then translated by Gordon Day and eventually became the basis of Malian's Song ("Voices of Vermont Women: Jeanne Brink"). Please click here for various audio links of Jeanne Brink speaking about her grandmother. But it was her grandmother's dexterous weaving that sparked Jeanne Brink to investigate the tradition of basketmaking ("Voices of Vermont Women: Jeanne Brink"). Brink attended one basketmaking class from a non-native, only to return frustrated with an unfinished basket ("Voices of Vermont Women: Jeanne Brink"). After a visit with her mother, Brink discovered the Ab…
creator: Brink, Jeanne
date: n.d.
format: jpeg
type: Still Image

Baskets by Judy Dow
description: Various Baskets, Plastic, Lumber, and Gourd, Abenaki A History of Adaptation Change through time. In nature, these three words define the process required of all living things for survival. For the Abenaki, they represent the survival of a culture. Without change, the people native to areas of northern New England and Southern Quebec would have no history and perhaps even more importantly, no future (Porter 6). Traditional Abenaki baskets were, and continue to be, woven from sweet grass and splints of ash (Dow, Personal Interview). Abenaki baskets, originally made using various techniques to serve a practical purpose, experienced a change in the late 1800s (Porter 6). Basketmakers adjusted to the changing times, ultimately creating "fancy baskets" (6). By the end of the last century, Abenaki fancy baskets were in such high demand that molds were created to increase production rates and to have a uniform product to sell, while the baskets themselves were sold through catalogs (6). Judy Dow By adapting to social, political, economic, and environmental changes, I am following in the footsteps of my ancestors. The creation of fancy baskets was an adaptation that filled a need for survival… using new and different materials is how I see Abenaki basketry meeting the needs of culture in this new century. - Judy Dow, We Are Still Here Abenaki basketmaker, Judy Dow, is an important personality in the current Abenaki revitalization movement (Dow, Personal Interview). Her baskets have been on exhibit in many museums, such as Strawberry Banke and the National Museum of the American Indian (Vermont Governor's Institute on the Arts). Dow provides a unique approach in preserving Abenaki cultural identity through basketmaking by using nontraditional materials (Dow, Personal Interview). Judy Dow's philosophies for "Saba" (Abenaki for tomorrow) bring awareness to how current mechanisms of revitalization do not honor change as a facet of Abenaki culture (Dow). By not continuing to ada…
creator: Dow, Judy
date: n.d.
contributor: Megan Gibbons, UNH
format: jpeg
type: Still Image

Ash Basket by Liz Charlebois
description: Basket with Cowwiss, Ash Splint and Sweetgrass, Abenaki What Is In A Basket? At first glance this basket might seem like a beautiful decoration or a cherished household item. While the basket is both of these things, there is a history and story behind it that is not immediately visible. Made by Abenaki Basketmaker, Liz Charlebois, out of sweet grass and ash splints, this basket represents generations of skilled Abenaki artisans that have perpetuated their culture through the traditional making of baskets (Charlebois). In fact, Abenaki women have been practicing the art of making baskets for hundreds of years (Calloway 37). Baskets became a necessary part of Abenaki culture because women had to travel long distances to pick and gather berries; baskets allowed the women to carry more supplies with less work. However, baskets became much more than carrying items, it became an important part of Abenaki economy and history (37). Although basket styles have changed throughout the years, their significance within Abenaki culture has not (Day). But What Does A Basket Have To Do With Culture? Baskets are important to Abenaki culture not just because of their practicality and their value as an art form, but because of the stories that they hold (Charlebois). Whether these stories are of a personal nature or of a historical one, the basket serves as a record of friendship or of the past. While a basketmaker's materials of choice are ash splints, a storyteller's materials of choice are words that are woven together to form stories, histories, and records of relationships that exemplify their culture. In this way, storytellers and basketmakers are very similar. Along with being an accomplished basketmaker, Liz Charlebois is a storyteller that understands the connection between baskets, stories, and culture (Charlebois). One of the many stories that she tells emphasizes the relationship between the Abenaki, baskets, and nature: In the old days life was very hard for the women wi…
creator: Liz Charlebois
date: n.d.
contributor: Jess Barrett, UNH Ryan MacKay, UNH
format: jpeg
type: Still Image

Pack Basket by Bill Gould
description: Pack Basket, Ash Splint, Abenaki The pack basket with a leather harness shown in the picture below is particularly striking and showcases Bill Gould's skill in basketmaking. Used for carrying supplies while out in the woods, the pack basket is 20 inches high and made out of brown ash. Bill Gould, Traditional Basket-maker Basketmakers Bill and Sherry Gould work to maintain and continue the traditional art of basketmaking (“Western Abenaki Baskets”). They are enrolled members of the Abenaki Nation at Nulhegan/ Memphremagog and are passionate about making beautiful baskets (Gould). They pass on their knowledge and skill by taking on apprentices through the NH Arts Council Traditional Arts Program (Gould). As one of the main materials of basketmaking, ash trees are very important to basketmakers such as Bill Gould. Unfortunately, increasing human population and the introduction of foreign invasive species has made it much harder to find healthy ash trees for basketmaking. The Emerald Ash Borer and Sustainability The emerald ash borer, for example, is a beetle-like insect that eats Ash trees (Remillard). The beetle has already done a large amount of destruction. In Michigan alone, tens of millions of Ash trees have been lost, costing municipalities, property owners, nursery operators, and forest product industries tens of millions of dollars ("Emerald Ash Borer"). Although currently not present in New Hampshire, it is prevalent in Vermont and Massachusetts and the risk for its spread into New Hampshire is high (“Emerald Ash Borer”). New Hampshire forest service and other environmental agencies are doing what they can to prevent its introduction into the state (McCullough). For example, one way to avert the spread of the beetle is through the restriction of the transportation of firewood across state lines. Additionally, various traps developed specifically for the ash borer are used to capture the beetles (McCullough). Research is also being conducted into ground nesting…
creator: Gould, Bill
date: n.d.
contributor: Josh Trott, UNH.
format: jpeg
type: Still Image

Sweetgrass and Fancy Work Baskets by Sherry Gould
description: Sweetgrass Fancy Work Basket, Ash Splint and Sweetgrass, Abenaki Before the colonists arrived in America, the Abenaki tribe of New England lived an environmentally efficient and culturally sustainable lifestyle (Porter). Unfortunately, with the arrival of white settlers came the need for adaptation. Engaging in capitalism became necessary for the survival of the tribe. Therefore, many Abenaki turned to their basketry as a way to generate a modest income, which allowed them to remain afloat in a capitalist system (Porter). In the 1800s, tourists attractions, such as the White Mountains, became a popular place to sell baskets (Porter). The Abenaki continued to use traditional materials such as sweetgrass and brown ash splints in these baskets but changed the styles in order to attract more customers. For example, Victorian women would purchase work baskets, like the one pictured below, as souvenirs and use them to hold things like knitting supplies or other small household items. These fancy baskets, decorated with colored dyes, “appealed to the Victorian fondness for embellishment and elaboration” (Lester 154). Often the Abenaki vendors—almost always men, as women would remain at home with the children while their husbands travelled to sell the baskets—would dress in what was perceived as ‘traditional’ Indian clothing, wearing extra furs and feathers to play up their ‘Indian-ness' and increase their sales (154). An 1890 Petition It is clear in an 1890 petition, written by the Abenaki of Quebec to the proprietors of hotels in the White Mountains, that the European presence was hindering the Abenaki ability to survive as an Indian nation (Phillips 52). The petition asks, “Not to let any but Indians or those married to Indian women” sell their baskets or other goods on the hotels’ properties (52). The petition emphasizes the need of the Abenaki to both maintain their culture and make a living. Selling baskets was the perfect way of fulfilling their need because baskets …
creator: Gould, Sherry
date: n.d.
contributor: Olivia Whitton, UNH
format: jpeg
type: Still Image

Ash Pack Basket by Jesse Larocque
description: Pictured: Pack Basket, Ash Splint, Abenaki Introduction The components of an Abenaki basket are not as simple as they appear to be. The amount of physical labor hiding behind even small baskets is immense, perhaps overwhelming for those not familiar with the process (Occaso). Among the multitude of patterns, shapes, and dyes, Brown Ash splints function as the backbone of many traditional Abenaki baskets (Bruchac). Because of the Ash tree’s vital role in the production of durable and beautiful baskets, the material must be treated as purely and sensibly as possible. Few remaining individuals are able to complete the total basket making process, from Ash pounding to basket weaving. One of these individuals, Vermont resident Jesse Larocque, has illuminated the process of traditional native basketmaking, especially for those who lack a background in the material production ever-present behind the decorative result (Larocque, Interview). He has made the process of his work accessible and understandable, revealing the high degree of physical labor that Ash pounding entails. His subtle knowledge of the Brown Ash and its characteristics makes Jesse’s remarks on Ash pounding and splitting extremely important– both to the process of basket making, and for the preservation of traditional technique (Larocque, Interview). Through examining the Ash pounding process and what the tree produces, one can make sense of the various bare components that end up in a specific basket. To understand the Ash tree is to understand the backbone of each basket. And to understand Jesse’s work is to understand the Brown Ash. The Ash Pounding and Harvesting The Brown Ash (or Black Ash) is extremely common and abundant throughout the Northeastern United States. Still, the species’ abundance does not ensure its preservation and protection. Keeping with perhaps the most sustainable practice possible, Jesse requests the harvest of individual trees from various landowners, as to maintain the original d…
creator: Lacroque, Jesse
date: n.d.
contributor: Parker Cavallaro, UNH
format: jpeg
type: Still Image

Basket by Newt Washburn
description: Basket, Ash Splint, Abenaki The Universal Container We do not think of baskets in a practical way anymore; they are mostly decorative art. If we need a durable container for large dry goods, we are likely to use a plastic bin. Starting in the 1930s, galvanized bushel baskets and pails, made by machine in vast numbers, were the universal carry-alls, ("Newton Washburn"). Before that, the universal container was the wooden basket. A sturdy, durable container, it was, pound for pound, much stronger than galvanized steel, and in some ways more durable. In fact, baskets retard spoilage by providing controlled ventilation and are still heavily used for harvesting and storing apples and other produce (Congdon). In upper Vermont, the Sweetser family made many, if not most, of the baskets sold commercially (Linzee 25). The family originated in the early 1800′s by the marriage of a German immigrant basket-maker to a basket-maker from Odanak, Canada ("Newton Washburn"). By the 1920′s, there were over a hundred family members making baskets in a small area between Stowe and Lamoille, Vermont (Eaton 51). They sold their products all over upper Vermont and their brown-ash baskets were unusually sturdy, with a hybrid vigor from the marriage of Abenaki and European designs. First Life Born into the Sweetser extended family in 1915, Newt Washburn grew up making baskets; it was his family’s winter occupation. They made “bushel baskets… egg baskets, apron baskets, laundry, feather, berry, bike, and pack baskets … baskets for every need, even baby cradles and fishing creels” (Linzee 25). It was a communal activity, with families often getting together for basketmaking parties. But their Abenaki heritage was a family secret: “It was frowned on. If anyone knew, I wouldn’t be able to play with the other kids and the neighbors wouldn’t let me in their houses to play” (Colquhoun). Secrecy about their heritage was not unusual. Arthur Sweetser, a basketmaker working in the late 1940’s, explain…
creator: Washburn, Newt
date: n.d.
contributor: Ed Staub, UNH '15 Alicia Gagne, UNH '15
format: jpeg
type: Still Image

"Mohegan-Pequot Diary" (1904) by Fidelia Fielding
description: Fidelia Fielding (1827 – 1908) was the last fluent speaker of the Mohegan language. She lived in Mohegan all of her life, and was known to keep to herself. She was very loyal to her Mohegan culture and traditions, and was also the last Mohegan known to live in the traditional style log dwelling. Fidelia became acquainted with the anthropologist Frank Speck when he visited Mohegan while doing research on "dying languages" as a student at Columbia. Fidelia appreciated the fact that he was interested in the Mohegan language, as many of the young people were not, and she provided him with some of her Mohegan diaries. Although many of these diaries were lost in a fire, after Fidelia’s death, the others were donated to Speck by John Fielding, her adopted son. Speck transcribed and translated the diaries, and later published this material in his "Native Tribes and dialects of Connecticut: a Mohegan-Pequot diary." (Forty-Third Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology). These diaries are now available online, and the originals are at the Kroch Library at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Stephanie Fielding, a descendent of Fidelia, is the Mohegan Tribal Linguist. She has spent years studying and analyzing these diaries, and has used them to reconstruct the Mohegan language. This reconstruction has resulted in the creation of a modern Mohegan dictionary, which is available online. Stephanie Fielding now offers Mohegan-Pequot language classes to Mohegans and other local Native tribes. Attached you will find a PDF image of Fidelia's diary entry dated May 30, 1904. This is a snapshot of one of her original diaries. In addition, I have attached Stephanie Fielding's transcription and translation, which includes Frank Speck's transcription and translation, and a translation into modern-day Mohegan. Fidelia Fielding was Christian, while also maintaining a Mohegan worldview. When reading her diary, these things become apparent. Fidelia loved nature, animals, and God (M…
creator: Fielding, Fidelia Fielding, Stephanie Speck, Frank
source: Cornell University Libraries, Smithsonian Institution Speck, Frank G. "Native Tribes and dialects of Connecticut: a Mohegan-Pequot diary." Forty-Third Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, 1925-1926. Smithsonian Institution, Washington: GPO, 1928. Ed. Blankenship, Roy. The Life and Times of Frank G. Speck 1881-1950. University of Pennsylvania Publications in Anthropology, No. 4. p. 1-6. The Fielding Diaries, Stephanie Fielding
date: 1904-05-30
contributor: Rachel Sayet (Mohegan)
rights: Transcription used with permission of Stephanie Fielding. Dairy excerpt in public domain. Rachel Sayet consulted with Mohegan tribal authorities in posting these images.
format: pdf
language: Mohegan-Pequot, English
type: Document

Red Fancy Basket (c. 1970) by Mary Adams
description: Fancy Basket, c. 1970, Ash Splint and Sweetgrass, Mohawk, Created by Mary Adams, Housed at the Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum One of our most modern baskets, this red fancy basket was created by Mohawk Basketmaker Mary Adams in c. 1970. With its green and red ash splints making a continuous spiral pattern, the basket illustrates the intricate art of basketry. A circle of sweetgrass on the top of the basket with splints shaped into a flower like pattern demonstrates the artist's skill. More than just a decorative or utilitarian object, this basket tells a story of survival and triumph. Mary Adams' baskets incorporate modern aesthetics and a comment on the Mohawk world-view into the art and process of basketmaking. Every basket illustrates her life story and the debt that basketry as an art form owes to her. This piece is housed at the Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum The Mohawk The Mohawk have been making baskets for a long time. Every step of the process underscores their dedication to traditional beliefs while also adapting to changing times: "Mohawk people of today have combined centuries-old ways of living into 20th century everyday life. The values of their historical culture still remain present in their daily life" (Mohawk Tribal Website). Despite much adversity, the Mohawk tribe has survived and preserved their culture. Because American Indians as a minority are not given as much attention as other minorities, tribes do their best to positively emphasize their modern culture. The St. Regis Mohawk tribal website, for example, delineates the continuance of their culture: "The Kanienkehaka, or Mohawks as they are known in English, have managed to preserve, maintain and foster a unique culture for thousands of years. This dynamic culture has survived, despite the oppressive odds brought about with the arrival of Europeans in what is now known as North America” (Mohawk Tribal Website). Baskets such as this one are proof of the continued presence of Mohawk people into the …
creator: Adams, Mary
date: circa 1970
format: jpeg
type: Still Image

Small Fancy Basket with Cowiss (c. 1900)
description: Fancy Basket, c. 1900, Ash Splint, Abenaki, Housed at the Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum This is a small, purely decorative, fancy basket. The main structure of the basket is tightly woven with light colored ash splints. The even sized and very smooth splints indicate the later date of the basket. Small decorative curls, known as cowiss, fashioned out of a darker splint cover most of the outside of the basket. These curls, called cowiss, are a common decoration on fancy baskets. The handles of the basket, two on the sides and one on top, are highly decorative. Due to its style, the basket would have been an item popular among tourists in New England. The Legacy of Basketmaking By continuing to make baskets, basketmakers today preserve a traditional way while also being involved members of their communities. Basketmaking creates a connection between ancestors, the older generation, and the younger generation that is important to the continuation of the art of basketry: "the work we create as artists connects us with our ancestors and leaves behind a connection for those yet to be born to remember who we are and were. The baskets, carvings, beadwork, tools, and items that made their way into museums still speak to us and teach us" (Mundell 26). Basket styles continue to change, which is a testament to the adaptability of the Abenaki people: "Each new ash splint basket crafted by Abenaki basket-makers… is a modern creation, designed to meet current 21st-century needs. Yet behind each basket lies a fascinating, time-honored history of native woodworking and basket-crafting here in the northeast” (Goff). Despite changing styles, the legacy is never lost and the tradition and process of making a basket remains much the same as it used to. Today various basketmakers such as Jesse Laroque, Jeanne Brink, Judy Dow, and Bill and Sherry Gould, keep the tradition alive by teaching apprentices and the younger generation, selling their wares, providing information, forming organizati…
creator: Unknown
date: circa 1900
contributor: Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum Ana Caguiat
rights: Image used with permission of Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum.
format: jpeg
type: Still image