DOCUMENTING AND REINTERPRETING
"EARLY INDIAN LIFE IN KANSAS" WPA DIORAMAS

During the 1930s, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in Kansas produced six dioramas representing Native American nations with a presence in what is now the state of Kansas in the early nineteenth century – the Cheyenne, Kansa, Osage, Pawnee, Comanche, and Kiowa. These dioramas sought to interpret the history of these Native American peoples from a non-Native perspective. While aspects of these dioramas and their accompanying text presented, for the period, complex and nuanced views of Native American cultures, they also promulgated stereotypes and inaccuracies about these nations.

In this online exhibit, you can investigate images of these dioramas and their original accompanying texts as well as view updated interpretations of the dioramas that critically discuss the original text from a contemporary perspective. Additionally, you will learn about the history of the WPA program in Kansas that created the dioramas, the Museum Extension Project (MEP), which produced objects for schools and other educational purposes. You can also explore the process of how the dioramas were constructed, and the history of how this particular set of dioramas, originally owned by the Marysville Public Schools, made their way to the Pony Express Barn and Museum in Marysville, Kansas.