Story
Blackfoot Confederacy Visits New York City
Louis W. Hill was a railroad tycoon, entrepreneur, and the son of James J. Hill, the founder of the Great Northern Railway. Seeking the business opportunity to bring more tourists aboard his line, he lobbied for the establishment of Glacier National Park. His rail line would bring tourists directly to the park in Montana. This portion of the line also went through the Blackfoot Confederacy's Reservation, which Hill understood as a unique business opportunity. At the opening of the Travel and Vacation Show in 1913, Hill organized for ten members of the Blackfoot Confederacy to travel to New York to be part of the Glacier National Park Exhibit.
Hotel McAlpin
Members of the Blackfoot Confederation from this part of Montana refer to themselves as part of the Siksika Nation, which translates to "Blackfoot" in the Algonquin language. This references the black dye they used at the bottom of their moccasins.
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Hotel McAlpin
Though the New York Times publicized that the American Indians had refused rooms in the brand-new Hotel McAlpin in favor of pitching traditional Teepees, this was not the case.
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Hotel McAlpin
The tents, which were set up on 25 floors up on the roof of the building, were part of a publicity stunt. Tourists and hotel guests flocked to the top of the hotel and were warmly greeted by the Siksika Nation members.
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Hotel McAlpin
Stereotypical traits of American Indians which the government had previously tried to stamp out were now understood as highly valuable assets for tourism.
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Hotel McAlpin
Multiple accounts of Chief Three Bears blur the lines between fact and fiction. One source said the Chief offered prayers to the skyscrapers. Another said he compared them to Montana's mountains. A third account claimed that he asked if they were monuments to fallen warriors.
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Hotel McAlpin
Another of the visiting group was White Calf and his son, Two Guns. They had been part of the group who signed a treaty which gave their land to Glacier National Park.
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Hotel McAlpin
Back in Montana, members of the Blackfoot Confederation were thought of as "guides for visitors to the park...pilot\[ing] inquisitive tourists through its rocky yet beautiful fastness," according to an outdoor magazine, Forest and Stream. The Great Northern Railway produced a movie two years after their visit to New York titled, "A Day in the Life of a Glacier Park Indian," as promotional material for the national park.
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