Woman Walking Ahead: In Search of Catherine Weldon and Sitting Bull

by Eileen Pollack Narrated by Emily Beresford

Overview

This book restores a little-known advocate of Indian rights to her place in history. In June 1889, a widowed Brooklyn artist named Catherine Weldon traveled to the Standing Rock Reservation in Dakota Territory to help Sitting Bull hold onto land that the government was trying to wrest from his people. Her efforts were counterproductive; she was ordered to leave the reservation, and the Standing Rock Sioux were bullied into signing away their land. But she returned with her teenage son, settling at Sitting Bull's camp on the Grand River. In recognition of her unusual qualities, Sitting Bull's people called her Toka heya mani win, Woman Walking Ahead.



Predictably, the press vilified Weldon, calling her "Sitting Bull's white squaw" and accusing her of inciting Sitting Bull to join the Ghost Dance religion then sweeping the West. In fact, Weldon opposed the movement, arguing that the army would use the Ghost dance as an excuse to jail or kill Sitting Bull. Unfortunately, she was right.



Up to now, history has distorted and largely overlooked Weldon's story. In retracing Weldon's steps, Eileen Pollack recovers her life and compares her world to our own.

Editorial Reviews

Library Journal

Catherine Weldon was one of a small group of advocates in the late 19th century who believed that Native Americans should be free to live on their lands in the traditional manner. She traveled from her native Brooklyn to the Dakota Territory in an effort to help Sitting Bull retain his land. In this study, Pollack (English, Univ. of Michigan) isn't sure whether to tell Weldon's story or to recount her search for information on Weldon but finally opts for the latter. The result is not entirely successful. Specialists will be disappointed at the casual footnoting and the lack of analytical rigor. General readers will appreciate that Pollack tries to enliven her text by suggesting what her characters might have said or done (though without providing a sound basis for her suppositions), but they will weary of the details of microfilm read. This is unfortunate, for Pollack makes it clear that enough material exists for a solid history of an aspect of the Indian rights movement that has received scant attention. For large public and academic libraries that support detailed field research. Stephen H. Peters, Northern Michigan Univ. Lib., Marquette Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Booknews

Pollack (English, U. of Michigan), who has previously written fiction, has written a biography of a woman who attempted to assist Sitting Bull in his vain struggle against the US government and who later went and lived in his camp. Pollack provides a context for Weldon's story by describing the racist, derogatory attitudes towards Native Americans of her time as these were reflected in negative reactions to her and by describing the activists in the women's suffrage and abolition movements. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

From the Publisher

"Pollack shows us that in the Victorian era, Weldon did indeed walk ahead of her time." ---Gateway Heritage

From the Publisher - AUDIO COMMENTARY

"Pollack shows us that in the Victorian era, Weldon did indeed walk ahead of her time." —Gateway Heritage

Product Details

BN ID:	2940170462643
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Publication date:	02/07/2017
Edition description:	Unabridged

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