A Century of American Indian Exhibits in 
the Smithsonian Institution 
By Joun C. Ewers 
Assistant Director 
Museum of History and Technology 
Smithsonian Institution 
{With 8 plates] 
THE OPENING of a modernized hall of North American Indians on 
December 8, 1957, had a special significance in the history of the 
Smithsonian Institution. It marked the end of the first century of 
the Smithsonian’s experience in interpreting the historic American 
Indian tribes to the public through museum exhibits. During this 
century these exhibits evolved from a small cabinet of curiosities 
viewed by a few thousand persons to an interpretation of the ways 
of life of the Indians of the hemisphere seen by millions of museum 
visitors. Changing methods of presenting the subject over the years 
reflected the immense growth of the collections, the special skills and 
interests of staff members, and the increase of historical and scientific 
knowledge of the Indians. Furthermore, the experience gained in 
planning Indian exhibits at the Smithsonian Institution and for the 
Smithsonian at great international expositions contributed signifi- 
cantly to the development of ethnology as a science. 
INDIAN CURIOSITIES IN THE SMITHSONIAN BUILDING 
In the year 1857 the National Cabinet of Curiosities, which for 16 
years had been housed in the Patent Office, was transferred to the 
Smithsonian Institution. In his first report of progress made in in- 
stalling these national collections in the then new Smithsonian Build- 
ing, Secretary Joseph Henry wrote: “This has already been done by 
Mr. Varden for the ethnological collections at the west end of the 
hall.” (Ann. Rep. Smithsonian Inst., 1858, p. 56.) It is certain, 
therefore, that American Indian materials were included among the 
Smithsonian’s first museum exhibits. 
Sixty-six-year-old John Varden (pl. 1, fig. 1), who installed these 
exhibits, was not an ethnologist. At that time there was no trained 
ethnologist in this country. But Varden was no novice at displaying 
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