Originally hailing from western Montana, the Kiowa migrated to the Black Hills region by the mid-17th century and lived alongside their allies, the Crow Indians. After the Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Lakota pressed into the region in the 18th century, the Kiowa moved further south. By the early 19th century, they had established a new homeland in southeastern Colorado, western Kansas, and Oklahoma, where they embraced an equestrian lifestyle, lived in conical hide lodges, and followed the seasonal migrations of the bison–their main food source.  They also forged alliances with the Comanche and the Plains Apache, which allowed these groups to dominate the southern Plains through much of the 19th century.

Ritualized singing and dancing were an important part of Indigenous culture on the Plains, as discussed in the original text. The Kiowa developed a complex ceremonial life that included numerous annual dances. Spiritually important, these dances also served a critical social purpose—they brought the various traveling bands of the tribe together, which allowed them to renew kinship bonds, find marriage partners, and discuss tribal business. Tribes also borrowed dancing traditions from one another. The Eagle Dance depicted in the diorama, for example, was not originally an aspect of Kiowa culture; rather, they adopted the dance from the Pueblo Indians and made it their own.

As suggested in the original text, many White Americans came to appreciate the artistry of Indigenous songs and dances by the 1930s; however, this was not always the case. Indeed, during the allotment era of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the federal government engaged in a sustained campaign to suppress these supposedly “savage” and “immoral” practices through passing various statutes outlawing the dances. Federal agents forced compliance by breaking up tribal gatherings and arresting offenders. 

The Kiowa experienced these cultural attacks after the government relocated them to a reservation in Indian Territory (now Oklahoma) beginning in the late 1860s. This removal came after nearly a decade of warfare against the Americans, who were determined to subdue and confine the Plains tribes. Although some Kiowa warriors continued to hold out until the mid-1870s, the tribe eventually accepted reservation life. On the reservation, White missionaries and educators endeavored to persuade the Kiowa—especially children—to abandon the customs of their ancestors and to embrace a “modern” life as self-sufficient farmers and ranchers. This was easier said than done due to drought conditions and inadequate federal financial support.

To further the assimilation process and prevent renewed conflict, the U.S. Army also sent some Kiowa warriors to Florida in the mid-1870s, where they remained imprisoned at Fort Marion in St. Augustine for several years. To pass the time, some of the prisoners drew scenes of their life on the Plains on ledger paper, which they sold to tourists. Following their release, the Kiowa warriors brought this new artistic tradition back to the tribe.  As discussed in the original text, the Kiowa’s colorful drawings contributed to a revival of Indigenous art in the 20th century. In 1928, Kiowa artists gained international recognition when they exhibited their work at the International Art Congress in Czechoslovakia.

Against the will of the tribe, the federal government began allotting their reservation in 1892. Kiowa Chief Lone Wolf the Younger protested this action, which went against previous treaty promises, and took the matter to court. The Supreme Court ruled against the Kiowa in Lone Wolf v. Hitchcock (1903), however, citing Congress’s so-called “plenary power” to violate treaties at will. This ruling paved the way for the forcible allotment of other reservations.

The Kiowa reestablished a tribal government in 1968. Today, the Kiowa Indian Tribe of Oklahoma includes around 12,500 tribal citizens.  The tribe earns income from various ventures, including their participation in the Oklahoma Indian Arts and Crafts Cooperative.