— Script: My Presentation —

Today I present my project website: The Wichita Indians: Tracking Migration Over Time; the following is the script of what I will be saying verbatim. You may utilize this script to guide you through a tour /mini presentation of the site while you view the site at your leisure. Follow the instructions in red to go through the presentation in order.

Instructions for Dr. Dunn: Will appear in red and italicized.

Dr. Dunn: Begin on Home Page and remain on the image (header image).

Good afternoon everyone, my name is Maria and I am a senior at Midwestern State University, where I will be graduating with a major in political science and a minor in history. Today I will be sharing with you my semester’s research project, which has taught me the importance of diligent research and has strengthened my appreciation for the preservation of Native American history.

When selecting a research project in regards to cultural migration, I found the shift of Native American influences on the Northern Frontier of Texas known as the Red River, and how it was specifically documented and preserved in cities such as Wichita Falls, interesting.

While conducting my research, I discovered that there was little to no mention for the city of Wichita Falls available in any of our archives, libraries, or museums in regards to the Wichita Village that existed before Anglo American settlement.

For me, this became a key element of the project.

I wanted to help illustrate the importance, and identify the location of the Village that was located here in Wichita Falls as well as the rest of the Northern Frontier and further understand how cultural migration can include the concept of forced migration.

Dr. Dunn: Begin scrolling down to the text available on the bottom of the page.

This idea is explained here on the home page, and introduces the goal of the project.

The layout of the website provides next and previous page buttons to continue throughout the site in order.

Dr. Dunn: click on the next page button.

The next page titled, “The Wichita Indians” provides information about who the Wichita were. As many of the plains based natives, the Wichita shared the Caddoan Language, which culturally tied them together with other tribes such as the Caddo and Pawnee Indians.

Dr. Dunn: click on the first grass house picture. Then slowly pan through the three images.

The Wichita were known as the Grass house people because of the incredible structures that they created for homes; these images I have provided show what the grass houses look like, where we additionally see the Wichita constructing them.

Dr. Dunn: exit gallery and scroll down to show the image of the Chief.

The rest of the page continues to describe the lifestyle of the Wichita, as well as explaining their form of government. Although they did have Chief’s who presided over each Village, each Wichita Village was politically independent. Here I continue to explain how the Wichita had no set governmental structure, and how the concept of the matriarchal society influenced their lifestyle.

Dr. Dunn: scroll down and click the next page.

The next page titled, “Identification of the Wichita” features the official seal of the Wichita.

This page includes information about the Wichita’s ancestors.

My research led me to uncover that before the Wichita were identified by this name, they were known as the Quivira.

Dr. Dunn: scroll down and click on the first map and remain on the first image in gallery mode.

The Quivira were natives to the Plains that are know the state of Kansas; these next three images show the change in the Quivira’s territory. The first shows that before the introduction of the Spanish in 1541 through Coronado’s expedition, their territory incorporated most of the plains area which included parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Dr. Dunn: click on the second map in gallery mode.

The next map shows the loss of their territory; due to the fact that the Tribe dispersed to a multitude of locations after the introduction of several stronger settlers such as the Spanish and even the Comanche Indians, there was no centralized location.

Dr. Dunn: click on the third map in gallery mode.

The final map shows where the Wichita territory is established in the mid 19^th century in the state of Oklahoma.

Dr. Dunn: exit gallery, scroll to bottom of the page and select next page.

Dr. Dunn: Click on story map js and pan through the slides slowly as I talk.

The next page titled, “Identification of Forced Migration” provides an interactive map that illustrates the many locations the Wichita could be found in reference to the Northern Frontier of Texas after being displaced.

It should be noted that migration is defined as Forced Migration after the introduction of stronger settlers or Tribes with this map and each slide in this map explains why. For example, specifically in the city of Wichita Falls where my university is located, a Wichita village was located here in 1841; the village was specifically located in what is now known as the Wichita Gardens Neighborhood of today.

It should be noted, that the migration that occurred had an everlasting impact on each location they settled on migration even if it was poorly documented; such examples can be found with the naming of cities or terrain such as Wichita Falls and the Wichita Mountains.

Dr. Dunn: exit map and scroll down to the table provided.

The rest of the page provides a table where I illustrate the affects of forced migration on the Wichita’s identity further, and how displacement from their native land in Kansas affected identification of the Tribe overall. This is a key element of what not only made this project difficult, but exciting especially when one discovers that the Wichita have been names and identified differently by different groups of people they interacted with over time.

Dr. Dunn: scroll down and click on next page.

Dr. Dunn: scroll down and to the map in the middle of the page.

The next page titled, “Patterns of Forced Migration” provides the migration pattern I identified based upon the locations that were visited periodically after being displaced from Kansas.

Here I explain that regardless displacement, they continuously attempted to travel back to their native land over time.

Dr. Dunn: scroll down and click on next page.

The next page titled, “Significance of the Northern Frontier” defines the significance of the Northern Frontier and how the Wichita impacted the state of Texas along its northern. Here I explain what the Northern Frontier of Texas is, and define it as the Red River and its relation to Wichita Falls. I additionally explain that the Wichita County of Texas and the Cotton County of Oklahoma are divided by this frontier. It should be noted that the remaining influence the Wichita had on places such as the city of Wichita Falls could not be found culturally, but could be found in examples of names such as the name of the city itself, or the Wichita Mountains as well. Migration for the Wichita was clearly defined for them due to the relationships that had been established when new groups were introduced into the area.

Dr. Dunn: scroll down and click on next page.

On the next page titled, “States Significance to Migration” I illustrate the importance of the rivers and mountains that enabled the pattern of migration from Kansas, and led them to the southern state of Texas after displacement.

Dr. Dunn: scroll through the page until you reach the state of Texas map.

Each Wichita Village was located next to a river after displacement; take this Texas Map of the major rivers located within the state for example. Although my research project does not incorporate migration of the Wichita throughout the entire state of Texas, it should be noted that at some point in time throughout history, villages of the Wichita were located further south. If the project is continued, this is an avenue that could essentially be explored for the future.

Dr. Dunn: scroll down and click on next page.

Dr. Dunn: click on the first photograph.

This next page is dedicated to photographs that can be found throughout the site, as well as additional images. Most of these images show examples of their grass houses, or things that were important to their livelihood such as the squash the Wichita harvested, or rivers that were normally used by them.

Dr. Dunn: exit gallery and click on next page.

Dr. Dunn: click on first image on page, “member of the Wichita” and slowly pan through the images until you reach the 5^th image: Wichita mother and her child while I talk.

The next page is titled, “Portraits of the Wichita” Here I have compiled portraits ranging from members of the Tribe in their ceremonial attire as well as an image of a Wichita mother and her child.

Dr. Dunn: click through the gallery until you reach the 11^th image titled, “Chief Esodawa” and stop.

More images including Wichita elders, and even an image of a Chief can be found on this page as well.

Dr. Dunn: exit gallery mode and click next page.

The next page provides a glossary of terms that can be found throughout the site with their respective definition.

Dr. Dunn: scroll down and click the next page.

The next page features the bibliography, where the entire list of sources utilized to make this project possible can be found.

Dr. Dunn: scroll down slowly, and then click next page.

The next page is the about COPLAC page, where a link to the course’s site, as well to the COPLAC website can be found. Additionally, a link is provided for the course blog where documentation and progress of the project in its entirety can be found.

Dr. Dunn: click next page.

The next page is the about author page, that features myself.

Dr. Dunn: click next page.

The next page features the cultural crossroads contract.

Dr. Dunn: scroll down and click next page.

And the final page on this site is a Research Proposal I wrote to establish future progress of the project.

— End of presentation —