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Joan Tomah Dana
Ul" il ;:ffil;I #?'n: :?ii:'il:: fr:l! 16; County.ShewasbornatPeterDanaPointinl93T.Her and she was raised by her and woodcarver. Her mother died when she was six, frequently visited her mother,s mother, a talented basketmaker. As a child, she her to the decorative great-grand.mother at Pleasant Point, an artist who introduced beadworking techniques and designs of her ancestors. in childhood, she began Although Mrs. Dana's interest in beadwork was cultivated aunt' thirty years ago' The to study the art form seriously under the tutelage of an on a small beadworking elder woman taught her to make headbands and bracelets is best known for the elab- loom. While foai Dana is a prolific jewetry maker, she American motifs- She cre- orate cosnrmes which she sews and beads with Native designs' She also incorpo- ates her own pattems from traditional Passamaquoddy elements which have come to rates motifs from other tribal groups and decorative her in dreams. within her community, she has An active promoter and teacher of traditional arts and pow- *ua" ou", t*o hundred ceremonial costumes for weddings' graduations' Passamaquoddy wows. She has also demonstrated beadworking to countless practice of creating bead- schoorchildren. A number of years ago, Dana initiated a to use in graduation ed eagle feather holders for the children of her community ceremonles. of family and friends' Mrs. Dana pursues many interests within her close circle foods, and performing Native She enjoys hunting gafile, preparing traditional Active in the American dances t tUai"" and throughout the United States. stoles and vestments cathoric church, she sings in the choir and has made beaded and granddaughters for priests in Maine and in Canada. Several of her daughters proud to pass on a deeply-rooted share her love of beadworking, and Mrs. Dana is beadworking legacy to new generations of her people' attn^ t --tzr t e+ |
Joan Dana Photo:
Joan Dana teaching beadworking skills to her daughter, Brenda Dana Downing. Traditional arts are passed down from generation to generation.
"l started beadwork thirty years ago, and I used to watch my Aunt Etizabeth Tomnhfrom Pleasant Point. She used to bead headbands all the time, and rnake bracelets. So I started to do that myself." Artifacts:
1. Dance moccastns 1990 Peter Dana Point, Me. Joan Dana
Dana cut, sewed, and beaded these dance moccasions for her daughter to wear with her dance costume. The moccasins are made of ultra-suede-
"I'm really proud of atl the stuff thnt I do because of the past history of rny ancestors
2. Eagle feather graduation gift 1991 Peter Dana Point, Me. Joan Dana
Dana presents Passamaquoddy schoolchildren with beaded feathers at graduation time. The practice honors their achievements and teaches them ibout the sigificance of Eagle feathers in Passamaquoddy history.
"The eagle feather was given to the chiefs or anybody who had done good deeds. They woul.d present the eagle feather to them if they had accomplished something."
3. Dance costume 1982 Peter Dana Point Joan Dana
Dana made this costume for herself. She wears it when performing Passamaquoddy dances and at weddings, pow-wows, and other special tribal events. 7\ @ l'77 Uana P- 72 er lo
"l appreciate all the costumes that I've seen. It's iust so exciting. So I wanled to do it myself."
4- Child's dance costume 1989 Peter Dana Point, Me. Joan Dana
Dana made this costume for her granddaughter, Stacey, to wear on special occAfions. She has made over two hundred costumes for members of her tribg. Joan Dana Peter Dana Point Native American Beadvork/Ceremonial Costumes
Personal Eistory '[hc .lrlan'frluah Dzrna rvas l)r-rrrt iii i9 j7 a'" Pctt:L Dattit Pt-rini. sccOnd chitd of lija SucabaSilt ltrtcl ijr't:rlir:ir,'l'r-rrnail. trlr's Dana \\ra:i:i{l:rriidll zlS al}tntutt1. lrt:r father said she could fit into a shoe box She was baptised immediatell' because her parents fearecl her death. She has turo sisters and five broLhers. Fredick was a rnecticine man ancl wooclcArver. Her greai,-grandfather, Joseph Tomah, made birch bark canoc's. N{rs. Dana's mother died rvhen *che tt'as six, ancl she was sent to live nrith her granclmother. Alice Sot:abasin. Later her' i'ather rernarried. (i\4rs. Dana's mother diecl socrn after giving birth, bttt t\'1rs Dana doesn't credit her tleath to chitdbirth.i Alice Socabasin was a basketmalier. Mrs Dana compietecl rhe filtlt grade and did not return to schogl, but stayed at lrorne to help her granclmother attencl to the children. Mrs. Dana livecl with her grandmother until she married in 1955.
They rnade Joan and Sopiel Dana were marrierl at St. Anne's Catholic Church. their home at peLer l]ana Point where Mr. Dana worked as a ranger for the reservation. Together they hact ten chilclren--Andrew, Matthew, Martin, Nicky, Brenda. Regina, Louie anil Dale. Their other two daughters are deceased. Mrs. Dana has 3E grandchilclren and four great-grandchildren. Mosr of Mrs. Dana's lamily has remained in the area. Four of her sons paint ancl eiraw, and her twr:; tlaughters ancl son, lt{artin, are beadworkers- N{rs. She Dzrna work:crl for fivc ,v(-)arli ;1g 2 1:ook for thr.: sch0ril otl l.ilc- rL-sgr\,'ation. has also painted houses and has clone other orld jobs to help support her f a mily.
NIrs. Dana spencis a great cleal tlf trme pursing other interests. She hunts (as cloes the resr of her tamily). cooks traditional Native American foods and travels to demonstrale Narive American tlances arrcl beaclworking. Slie sitlgs lrrith the choir for church serl'ices and orher special communit-v* events. Last \.,eelr. Mrs Dtrna atiencleci rhe Native American conference in Oklahoma. She macle a beadecl clress an,-l the raffle procecles firranced her rrip. This year the meeting u;ill be helcl in Orono. Maine. Mrs. Datla is finishing a beacled croui.n whrch will be rafflect. Shc is planning to purchase a teepee for her familv 'f hose attending the me'eting will observe the tradition of the sac|ed 'l-iii.. Iir'rt. :ia(]i'(.:d Iir'(.) t'(::1.]t'{.::t(ttlt:1 tiir:: g,r-;,;rl \i.,'ithirl: it rfiiil tf itftf Lhc: rJLtt'itiiutt r-lf lhe conferefice. 3't t 1" 6!CDEzr ,rnfI- arntvo :t\rr, e+'l e I
Beadwort /Cere monial Costu me Construction
\4rs. Dana srarted beaclworking over thirtv ):ears aBo. Her aunt, Elizabeth Tonah lronr Pleaisanl. Pirirtt. taught her to beacl fulrs l-)arra first $ratchcd her auni macle heacibanrls ttnd braceiets on a smirll kiom. Elizabeth Tomah is nriw in her 70's ancl stilI resides at pleasant point. Due to failing heatth, she seittom cloes anv Lreadurork lvirs. Dana's mother and grandmolher did some beadwork. but she creiiits her aunt as her teacher. a.s a child. I'lrs. Dana learnecl ro malie ceremonial clothing lrorn leather lor her dolls. Her Iathei-'s girlfriend, [,ena Brooks iwho n;as half h,'lalecite/half Passarnaquodd'*'), iaught ht:r Ic mai:.e Lhe minai.urre c:lothing.
Mrs. Dana tlesigrrs her own patierns. She first clraws an outiine rif her tlesigrr crn a piece of paper, but tlien Joan finishes the beaded clesigrt [r'orn mernorv. Beacling c)n ceremoniaI costuniing is expensive. N'lrs. Dana wrlrl:s rin leather. clol.h and uli.rasuede. The lirst beaded costurnes she made were ck.r[h. Thev wore pr-rtirl.v and dicln't hold up well. She prelers leather or ultrsuede, ttut both materials are costly. The traclitional Passamaquoddy designs often ilisplayg{ floral motifs. iVlrs. Dana designs her own work. but has been influenced by the beadwork ol her ancestors. She does use a lot of Yellow, white, red. black--which represent north. south, east, wesi. fulrs. Dana c1oes make things to sel[. She setls more jewelrv than clothing because of the expense, but this exrra income helps to finance her beadwork and other pursuits. Mrs. Dana buys most o[ her leather from a Shop in Lebanon. and she either orclers her beacls from a mail order company or the nuns will bring her beads from their trips to Portland. She uses beading needles (size 5, 10, l?, 13 poundi and beading threarl.
Several times N{rs. Dana has had dreams which have influenced her beadwt-rrk. In one paricular dream, a man shows her exarnples of beadwurk and wooclcarvings. She often credits these experiences in inlluencing her work.
iluring the rvinter. lv{rs. Dana spends mosl ()l her time on her beadrvr.trk. L)uring Lhe summer mrrnths, her beadwork is limited tc the e\,'ening when the hr-xrsehold is quite. She predicted ihat she hacl made ot'er 200 c:ostLtme-c. Prior to tnciian [tav in Julv tafrer Juli, 4thi, Mrs. Dana, Regina and Brenrla speiicl nrimeroLls hourrs preparing costLrmes fur their lamily They t-:rttt olten be found sitting at rhe kitchen table tinishing costumes. Indian Darr is consiclered a reserrraLiun holiday. Foot races. tuB of war. hasliei mriking ctcnlesls, arm \\.rrestting, pie and watermelon eating crlntests, dancrng atid coslLtme competirions inrrolr;e man\,r members of the l)ana Iarnilv. l.asl \,ear, / ilu ffi
\,lrs. Dana's grandclaughter. Stac.V, (costume will be in the exhibiIlwott tlte lirsr place awarci lor best rrosturne. The Dana famil-v clances tr.rgethet'cttt lndian Day. iv1rs. Dana [eels a great source of pricle \r,'hen her lantil-u* pet'lut ins tu5ethcr
lv{rs. t)ana and other Passamarltroclclv \r./omen often \\rear i.heir cOsittmes ltlr music perlormances. while the nuns who perforrn s":ith thern wetlr betrdec{ vests. il{rs. Dana has made \restments and stols lor ser.'erul priests irt N4ainu arrd Canada
Regina anci brenciA nu\\,' ina[:e Lhe ceremonial ct;stttme-:;; [<;r their families Thev firsi slarfetl beading as chiklren when their mr'rther taught them to make rings. TotlaV thsv nr)t onl,rr xnnlie costumes, bttt thel'also make beatled moccasins. The beadwork is rlone prior 10 51i1q:hiilg the mOct:assin together Brenda uses her foot to trace the pattern for the shoe. As the chilclren tittt grow their costumes. thev are hanclecl clo$rn to t-rther chiidren irr the iamii'r:. illrs. Dana's oldest granddaughter. il'ladeline, is currently learnirrg to bead parents Joan raisecl her and her siblings when their die0-
Mrs. t)ana has an exarnple of beaclwqrk rvhich belonged to her paternal great-grantlrnother. It is enclosed in a glass case which she keeps in her bedr6om. The burtap which the beacls are on is extrernelv fraved. Mrs. Dana betieves that the piece was part of a treadband.
About seven years ago, It{rs. Dana made beaded eagle leather holders to present tti her grandchilclren who had conpleted the eighth grade. The next year lhe tribal office crrnLacl.ecl her Lt-r make the beaded eagle feather holders for the other eight grade graduates. At graduation each year, N'Ir*c. Dana reads a special poem that she has selected and presents the graduates with their feather. Soon ihis new "tr adition" grew to include high sc:hool and college graduates, also. S.{rs. Dana does not use true eagle feathers, but ones from other birds or syrrthetic feathers
Quotes
"l started beads;ork thirty years ago, and I use to rrratch m)t ,{ttnt Elizabetli Tr-rmah from Pleasant Priin{. She use to beaci the hearlbantls all the time. antl make bracelers. So I startec{ tri clo that rnyself. I apprecirrte ali the costumes rhat I've seen. ir's jusr so excitingl I wanted [u do ir mvsell.' ii,irs. Dana is summarizing her introcluction to antl appreciation lor beatlu;orii.i C\--t I e5 a W ^T-- 2ttu
giass "l use: to pictlt up heads from dreslres Oiri-iashiolt dres:;es u,ould hatre treads. I ilid rhat: I'cl ta!:e the beacts o[f.' i!\.1rs. Drrna explains the meihcii gy which she has obtainecl/rerycleci beads from other pieces of clothing in orcler to incorporate them intu her clesigns'i
'The etrgle featlter wtrs given to the chiefs r-rr an\rtruciri whtt hatl dgne gc'ricl cleecls. Thevwoulcl represent the eagle [eather to them, a:{ thev hac{ accornplished something. An e*gle leether represents lil:e a reiL:irlg leather When there's o ,;i1r:l€ .dnrl the heat-l one holcis the eaBle [ettther. arrtl then passes on to the ilther one, tr,'hen that s what the-v \.'llnt i{r express.' th{rs. Dana explaineci the imporianre the eagie feather i'epresent;c to hBt i'iati\'e ArneriCan c:Cmmunit\t, FOr the past lreveral \''ears. she has presentecl communily gracluates nrith a beaclecl eagie [eather i
"When y6u wake up,,vou just think about them tdesignsi, trncl yott tr!'- t(r u'here skerch them out. Sometimes errervthing is lusi so real. I had a dream I was in rhe circle or the s*cred tire, ancl all ihy ance$tilrs were clancinB. i l was r:alled, and l went arver. They handed me a potter-r"-iilie Ifrutty'l' and a dream and their out it all over mrr-beadworlr. body as cleansing." {h{rs. Dana exptains ielevance to her l
"l'm really prourl of the sturr that i do because o[ the past historv of mv work and that ancestors." iit{r*. Dana expressecl her feelings in regarc{ to her of her ancestors.) uorkrsqA Northeast Archives of Folklore and OraI History 2W Accession ; Cassette 21tb Interview with Peter Dana Point, Maine September 12, l99l fnterviewer: Teresa Hollingsworth H: Hollingsworth D: Dana N: Regina Nicholas ********************************************************************** lopening announcements, then recorder turned off for 49 seconds] IThroughout the interview, static and caIls from a police scanner interrupt, making parts of the conversation inaudible. AIso, there are constant rustling sounds and noise from children are in the background. These sounds will only be recorded if they are
s ignificant. l 0I3 H: First f wanted to ask you, how long have you lived in this area? Are you a native of Peter Dana Point? D: Yes, I am. I was born right here. H: Have you worked outside the home or have you stayed at home with your kids? D: I have worked in there-- and then, you know lmike noise] T have ten kids. H: That kept you busy llaughs]. D: Yes [laughs] . They're all grown up no\^t. And I have thirty-six grandchildren Ichildren talki.g]. And four great. H: Have most of them stayed in this arear or have people kind of spread out? D: Yes. Theyrre righ; around this area. But f have one daughter that stayed in New Hampshire, but shers back on the reserve, reservation. H: When did you first start doing your beadwork? D: About thirty years ago. H: How did that all get started? D: Irustling] WelIr ily aunt from Pleasant Point, she's just to do beadwork a lot. And f would go, you know, watch her do beadwork and then Iscanner] f got interested in it, so f started doing it myself. And needing new costumes Ichild talking]. But, f donr t do it for profit. But you know, just to get by. H: But you do sell some of your things? D: Yes, I do. H: And do you ever use them as gifts? (D: Yes.) Could you sort of explain to me the technique that you use' how you do it? D: I have some few stuff that I could show you-- (H: Oh, that would be wonderful.) That I made. H: Okay, that would be Iscanner] wonderful. Your aunt that taught you this, now whatrs her name? Is she still living? D: Yes, she is. She used to do a little beadwork of it. And r used to admire oh, George Dana. He rttas my in-law. My f ather-in-law's father. And he used to have a full dress of an fndian costume and headdress. Iscanner And he was very interested in it. But I couldnrt get the material, what I needed at the time because f stiIl have a hard time like that-- because itts so expensive. H: The material, you mean. D: Yes, yes. aa# W 2'l t co H: What kind of material. D: The seed-beads Iscanner I the leather. Sometimes the nuns would bring some stuff back from Portland. And they would give it to me. 047 II: Did that have to be ordered? D: Yes, you can order that stuff from Tandyrs or some other places. And then dh, they have leather place in Lebanon, Maine. A leather shop, where f get my leather. H: How did your aunt get you started doing this? D: Well, just a few things she would make in the headbands. And then the project started down here. And then we Iseannerl started with the working with the fndian education. And they would supply the material and teach the children in school. H: Oh, really. (D: Yes.) What kind of projects did you get them started on? I guess it was something pretty simple. 055 D: Yes. Simp1e things like headbands or wristbandsr ot earrings. And their dresses, the 8th graders. H: Their dresses. Do different designs mean different things? D: Our design is the floral, is ours. And then the Passamaquoddy designs-- but I don't have them with me right now. Irustling] You could get them in the museum. H: Oh, wherers that located? D: Thatrs in either Augusta or-- H: The big State Museum, (D: Yes.) f guess. You have something about that. Do different colors in the beads mean different things? D: Sometimes urrlr yeah. The four corners is the yellow, white, red and black. North, south, east and west. Or the ah, Ichild talking] the flowers, you know from nature and all that. [child talking] 4-t t vt t 4l-t gTo u jIl
D: No, you know. Ivli ne i s PI ain Iooking. Irustling] And ahr w€ usually wear them at the celebration on Indian Day on JuIy, usually on July 5th or 6th. But this year it was orlr f think it was on the l1th? H: And that's here at Peter Dana Point? D: Yeah. At TownshiP. H: Are there other people in this area that still do beadwork or is that something thatts still pretty specialized? 8'ga+ ,L-t 2-259 6 21 t0 D: Well, Hanna Benoit does the beadwork. She makes beautiful things. She makes headdress-- f mean, headbands. And wristbands. And then dh, my daughter Regina makes costumes, too. Because every year, I would have about ten people here. You know, just before fndian Day for us. Itd be teaching them to make their costumes or to make for their children's costumes. Irustlingl And like the other daughter Brenda. She makes costumes, too. She just started. 098 H: And you taught them how to-- (D: Yeah.) how to do the work? (D: Yes.) Do they do it and sell things too, or do they just make things for their family? D: No. For their family. H: When you sell things, do you have someone who takes the things out to sell them for you, or how do people hear about you? D: Mine is dh, you know, I take orders. But Irm not going to do that no more, [bang] because you know, I want to work and then have a display, and then sell stuff like that. H: So you can decide what your going to make yourself and then you don't have to do these things according to some special order, then. Wel1, that makes sense. D: And f taught them to make earrings. H: Oh, jewelry, using the beadwork. Do you sel1 the jewelry, too? D: They did. H: I guess summer's your big season for those kind of things. (D: Yes.) tchild talkingl And therers a lot of people through this area. WW D: The person from Searsport wanted me to make earrings and go sell them down there but I was so much into you know, like teaching people to do this. And then I didnrt have enough time to make things on the side. And of course seIl them down there. But ah, f think this year' I'm going to make stuff and then go sell. H: So you said it was about thirty years ago when you first got-- (D: yes. ) started. Iscannerl Your aunt that taught you how to do this. Do you remember as a tittle girl, her doing this kind of beadwork? D: Yes, and then I would have ulllr dreams of it' too. {H: Really? When you were a child or when you got older' as an adul t? {o: As I got older. H: Coutd you tell me a little bit about that? D: I had a dream about this man, that he was a good-- ahr carver' an artist. And then urrlr he came and showed me some of the things that lchild talkingl were really beautiful in the dream. H: That he had carved. He did carvings. D: yeah. And then urrlr some of the things that were beaded, too but
I scanner] you know, he just showed me the stuff. I28 H: So you took what you Saw in your dreams, and you would make things that were similar, that looked like what you saw in your dreams? (D: Yes.) With the beadwork. Did you just have that one dream or have you had several dreams? D: f had dh, several dreams of things that f made. H: Anything in particular come to mind? (D: No, no) Do all of your children have costumes with your beadwork on them? 61 5)Err.,1 ra EI-Rr.t oz-rffi D: Not all of them, but you know f try to do one every year. You know, for each one. So they have their costumes. H: A new one each year? D: Not a new one. But you know for them, when they need itr theyrll have it. H: What about your grandchildren, do they ever wear any of the costumes you made? D: Just one of-- no, two of them. f have-- the one that T had Stacy Dana, I made hers four years alreadyr a one every year. H: [creaking] Does she go to the dances? (D: Yes.) And to the
d emonst r at ions? D: yes. Her Irolling sound] picture was on the newspaper. I think it was last year. H: And you said that you have two daughters that are interested in doing this. And what is-- D: [creaking: sounds like a rocking chair] f have four sons that do art by painting and drawing. H: What an artistic family [laughs]. So you have six daughters and four sons? D: I had dh, six sons and four daughters. But two daughters died and I have two. H: So both of your daughters that are living then, are interested in doing the beadwork. (D: Yes.) Do they do it for their families also? (D: Yes. ) Do you know of people, anybody that is Penobscot or Micmac that does beadwork still? D: Yes. There's a girl here that lives on a back road here. Her name is Lisa Francis. Shets a Micmac. And she does beadwork, too. H: She does beadwork. How did she get started, or the people that you showed? D: No. She has her own. You know, she started-- I donrt know where she started but she does beautiful work. H: Do you know a woman by the name of Carol Dana? D: Yes, I know, she's a good friend of mine. H: Ilaughs] rrve been trying to find her Ilaughs]. D: She I ives in Old Tovtn. H: Yes, okay. She has a cousin named Barry. I donrt know if you know Barry or not? (D: Barry, yes.) And he teaches school. D: Yes. The survival. (H: Yes, yes.) That's where my daughter is going next month. Shers going on that survival thing in the
H: Well, f had heard that Carol made Barry-- when Barry got married, I donrt know how long he's been married. But anyway, when he got married-- Hi. H€, ah-- D: Thatts one of my daughterts, Regina. H: Hi Regina, it's nice to meet you [laughs]. N: Nice to meet you. L72 D: You ean show her that picture of Stacy when she was on the newspaper Irustling; Regina talkq from afar] H: When Barry got married, Carol made him-- Irm not for sure what, because I havenrt seen it-- but I think she made him a jacket to wear when he got married. And she did beadwork on it' so I know shers doing-- Is she sti1l doing this? rs she still doing beadwork? D: I think sor yes. 2ffiff -I zl tc {g: And does she do it to sell or does she just do it for her family' too? to: I donrt know. I donrt know. H: Do you know what her husbandts name is, by chance? D: No, I donrt. H: Are you all related? (D: Nope.) You just have the same last names. (D: Yes.) [laughs] When your daughters decided to do this, how did they get started? Did they just come to you on day and sdY, 'I want you to show me how to do this?" Or did they sort of just pick it up? 185 D: WelI, they did pick it up with me and then you know' I would telI them what to do. But thatrs-- I donrt do anything for them because what they do with their own costumes, with their own ah--
H: So did they make up their own designs or do you-- (D: Yes. ) Any of you use pretty traditional designs in your beadwork? D: No. But therers a lady here, ilY cousin, shers doing that this year. She's going to be doing the Passamaquoddy designs on her costumes. H: For the celebration in the summer? (D: Yes.) What's her name?
D: Her name is Linda Steves t scannerl. H: Linda Steves Iclarifies spelling]. (D: Yes.) And whatrs her
husband's name? (D: Archie. ) Archie. Iscanner] Okay, I may give them a call. [pauses for scanner] When your aunt first showed you how to do this, did you have sisters that were interested in doing anything like that? Or were you the only one? D: I was the only sister in the family. H: You were the only girl flqugbs]. D: f mean, f was the only girl. And later on in the years, my father's second marriage, then f Irol1ing sound] had two sisters Islam]. But this year, she just started on making jewelry.
I c reak ing] 205 H: Did your mother or grandmother ever do this kind of-- Icreaking] do any beadwork? D: Yes. But I have a piece that belonged to one of my grandmothers. But I couldnrt remember the year or anything of it because it was g ]-ven to me. Ttrs like a [clears throat] small armband. And itrs got
H: Is that something that your mother mader or your grandmother had made? (D: I{y grandmother.) And, where would she have worn that? For what kind of an event? D: My grandmother's mother. And itrs really old' H: That would have been your great-grandmother, then. D: Yes. I have to put it in the case because the thread is so fragile. {tt: What kind of thread do you use? Doe it matter? (D: I use dh, the beading thread. H: Oh, therers a special kind of-- (D: Yeah.) thread. And what kind of needle would you use? D: Needles, oh, they have all sizes. The beading needle is the size 13, 1-2, 10 pound. The 5's are the beads, too. H: Do you use the costumes any other time of year other than your celebrations in the summer? And then if you go and do performances?
10 t?ib ffi+ ffi D: Well, if we go and sing, I belong in a choir. And sometimes we get to wear our costumes because in singing the Indian hymns that we have. {tl: oh, for different, for church. The programs. {o: Yes. We get invited somehow (?). H: And does everyone then' wear a costume? D: [rustling] Oh, some of them have their costumes and then some' you know, like the nuns they have their vests. H: What kind of vests do the nuns wear? D: They have a-- you know, that habit they wear. And then they wear a vest over it. H: Over itr like that. What's maybe one of the favorite things that you've made? D: One of the favorite? H: Do you have anything Lhat sticks out in your mind that you might be particularly proud of? 24L D: Oh, gee. No, I don't have no favorites. But f love to work with beads and Iinaudible]. H: Do you use any particular colors, maybe more so than other ones? D: I have pictures of things that I have made. H: Wonderful. What got you started in all this? I mean, why did you decide Irustling] to pursue it, you think? D: I don't know. I was just interested and you know Itrails of f]. H: WelI, you mentioned that you had some things that f could look at? (D: Yes. ) Okay. Wer 11 go-- Irecorder turned off, then on again] 25L H: Last name, Regina? N: Nicholas.
11 ffi H: Regina Nicholas. And you have just the two little boys? (N: Yeah.) And could you tell me again-- you said that they were, I guess, babies when you started-- (N: Yes.) doing this? fs this a picture of one of them? N: No, thatrs StacY. H: Ilaughs] Stacy, again. So she started wearing the costumes when she was really young. Whatts she wearing on her head? Is there a certain name for that? N: Itrs a crown. H: Itrs called a crown. N: Yeah. I{y mother made that. H: Oh, these are absolutely beautiful. Stacyrs quite the model here Ilaughs].
D : [pause: 3 secondsl This is my other daughter. Down here. [H: rs she Stacy's mom? (D: Nope. ) Okay. [pause: 7 seconds] You always use a lot of blue. Is that just because you like blue? {tg: r do. {H: Okay, you like that color. What do [Iaughs]-- what do the men in your family think about this? Have they ever-- are there any of your sons that have they ever showed any interest in working on the costuming at all? D: My son Martin, he does his own beadwork. And the costume, he made an eagle along there. II: Did you do the sewing on the costume? Did you put the costume
togethe r ?
I2 aaa+
W 2,-t tG D: No. And then he done the beading. And then my other son Dale, I made he Irustling] vest here and he painted an eagle head on his costume. And my other son Louie, he's got a-- his picture is here somewhere. N: Which one? (D: Louie.) That's his son right there. {g: oh, okay. Whatrs this that he has on that covers-- is there a name for this with the feathers and the cover? [u: An eagle. H: An eagle. D: Eagle dancer (?). H: An eagle dancer. D: Thatrs him.
H : Oh , okay. [pause: six secondsl How many different costumes have you mader probably? N: Couldn't count, really. [N. and H. laugh] Made so muchr IIlEtde a I ot. H: When do you find yourself working on these things? Your mama was saying she works a lot of times in the wintertime when it I s-- N: ftr s co1d. H: Yeah [H. and N. laugh] . N: I do mine from what-- June? Once we have a-- you knowr w€ have the fndian Day and sometimes I help the others to get ready. H: What else goes on for Indian Day? What all kinds of activities do you have? D: We11, racing. Iscanner] N: Yeah. They have basket contests. D: Tug of war.
13 ffit ffi5 2r tcc 304 N: Arm wrestling. They have-- sometimes they have pie eating contests, watermelon contests. Then they have the dancing contest- H: Is that individuals or groups, that compete? N: Individuals. D: And this year they had the best costume. N: Yep, theY had the best costume. H: Who won that this Year? N: I donrt know who won that. D: I know StacY did. Iscanner; D. continues, but inaudiblel H: So it was one that you made llaughs]. Is this the one that you wore this year? (N: Yep.) The little blue one? (N: Yep.) You were talking about how-- me and Regina were outside and we were talking about how you passed on the tradition. Who started first, You or your sister, doing the beadwork? ]w: Me, actually, Yeah. D: Because she was awaY. H: Oh, she was the daughter that- N: yeah. She used to live up in New Hampshire. She was up there and she come down here once a year. I mean like, for the rndian Day or come down for the holidays. Now that she lives down there.
H: Shers gotten into it flaughs] - N: Yeah. Irustling] Too many I inaudiable] . H: I,ll just move that, too. You've got the cutest grandkids' f swear Ilaughs; Pause: 4 secondsl Now, when the kids outgrow their costumes, what haPPens to them? N: I save mine.
L4 H: And will nieces or nephews eventually wear them' younger kids in the famity? Is that what happens? (N: Yes.) They just get passed on? Did I ask you what your aunt's name $tas that got you started doing this? D: Elizabeth (?). H: Elizabeth palmer (?). And does she still do any kind of this kind of work? (D: No. ftrs hard to get around now.) And she lives at Suffolk point, Still? (D: Yes.) And did she ever have any children? D: Shers dances. H: She's still dances. (D: Yep.) Did she have children that was interested in this, in doing beadwork? Or were you the only' I €tuess' the fanily nember that she handed it down to? 344 D: I think Barbara, her daughter. Barbara, no? N: Yeah. D: [fnaudible] They both ah, do it in their costume and then the children Irustli.g]. And my son also made a drum. H: your mom was showing me some pictures that your brother had done the drawing on the costume and then she had filled in those-- (N: With the beadwork.) With the beadwork. It was just gorgeous. Did your brother decide that he was going to do certain things. f mean' did he use traditional designs t ot how did all that come about? N: He makes his own designs, yeah. Or sometimes if you ask him to draw something, and he will, draw that. H: And he did it all freehand? N: Yeah.
15 v+"ffit Z-l lt,ffi bang: sounds like a druml they really I1 : So i t' s r eally a-- [bang ' collaborate on it. Ibang; r ustl ingl N: Yeahr mY brothers, they draw- Except for me and I donrt know if my sister draws [laughs]. r wished I knew how to draw. H: Whatrs this drum made out of? D: Itrs a moosehide and cedar- H: cedar. Is this moosehide. also, the string thatrs attached it? Who hunts for moose? D: My whole familY. H: Everyone does. (D: Yep.) You were talking about a festival. rustlingl Is this the first time they had made a drum I bangi ng several times.l or have you all made lots of drums over the years? D: No. He made about fOur drums. Four or five drums. And itrd be nice to make a big one for the community. I guess herll be doing that. H: Which son? D: Martin. H: Martin, okay. I rrn going to interrupt us f or just a minute-- 380 lside A ends. Interview continued on Side B.l 058 D: It was all white with a beaded eagle on the back, and his headdress is also all white. I donrt even have a picture of him. N: I donrt either. H: Irustling] We talked about all your different children. Could you just name them for me in order, because frm getting confused Ilaughs]. 2116 ,g"fi ffi N: Iscanner] Therets my sister, but shers deceased. There I s Andrew, Matthew, I'Iartin, Nicky, Brendar [€, Louie and Dale. (H: Okay. ) Thatr s all my brothers and sister. Iscanner] H: Oh, herers so more. Ts this your other daughter or your daughter- in-1aw? D: [scanner] No, that was taken in Bar Harbor. There was this I ady that wanted a breast Plate there' but that's just exactlY like it but f never heard from her. I donrt know if she gave me the address. Because if I-- somebodY gives me the address and wants something' and then I always, lose that address (H: [Iaughs] ). r have to have book. H: To keep it all in. How did you get started making-- now what is this called that the priest would wear? 073 D: Thatrs a stol. H: Spell that for me. (D: s-t-o-I.) okay. And how did you get started doing the beadwork on those? How did that all come about? D: Ufl, there was these people from Old Town, dh, Penobscots who wanted me to make one for their priest. And so they bought the material and the stuff and so I made it. I made one for them and also the vestment, and that's how itrs done. And frve also made that for another priest, Fdther OrLeary. And then Father John came alongr so I made another one for him. And then a priest from Canada, I donrt know who he was but people from Canada wanted me to make one for him. H: And you did one for him, too. How long does it take for you to do one of those? 085 D: WelI' it took me about Irustling] five months. H: And this is the one where your son did the drawing? The eagle, yeah. H: The outlines on them. D: f done the rest though, You know- H: Irustling] The pictures that we took outside, f donrt know what we call it though. The gift that you gave to all the Bth graders that graduated, that had 1991 on it. Whatrs that called? Is there a name for that? D: Beaded Feather. H: A Beaded Feather. And how would that be worn? N: An Eag1e Feather. D: Ufil, they just hang it up in their room, like {g: Is that part of their graduation ceremony? (D: Yes.) When did you start doing that? f mean, thatrs such a wonderful gift. {o: Wel1, thatrs about dh, seven (?) years. H: And how did all that get started? 098 D: Oh, I started giving it to my family when they graduated. And it just-- everYbodY wanted it. H: [taughs] And this year you said you gave them to the high school graduates and the college graduates' too? D: Yes. the college graduates was the Indian Education, Eva. She asked me if f could make some feathers for the eigth grade, and like I said, "Gee, I don't know because thatts hard work." Because gth grade and then high school. So she asked Lisa, that Micmac girl upstairs? She made some for college graduates. And she made the medallion also. So that how I got started. H: How many of those did you probably have to make this year? D: This year was ah, let me see. Twenty-five, about thirty. ttv_:l-gffi _ ffiET H: You musttve had to have started pretty soon if they graduated in the spring. D: I started in February. H: Ilaughs] That's what you do when all that snow is on the ground Ilaughs]. (D: Yeah. ) So when you graduated from the 8th grade, did you get one? N: No. lalt laughl H: You weren't doing it then, okay. You weren't doing it then. N: But I have one [laughs]. H: You have one. N: She made one for me. H: That's a wonderful, wonderful gift. How long ago did you do your costume, the red costume? D: The red one? I think this year. Because my family got together and bought the material for ill€r so r made me one. N: Her favorite color, red. H: We would never would have guessed it by looking at this [a11 laughl But you use red a lot in a lot of the things that r notice. D: Yeah, but it's my favorite color. H: And Regina's is blue' so we see all her kids [Iaughs]. N: My costume, I have my costume. It has red, yellow, oranger black and white. Ichilcl talking] H: Your son and daughter-in-law, do they have costumes, too? D: No. Every year I get to, you know, make one. For somebody in the family, and then last year. H: I think itrs great though' that you can keep all the childrenrs ones and pass them onto the next-- z'ltg ffi- PP+{-S1 D: Thatr s rea]ly expensive. This stuff is um, forty-eight dollars a yard. H: And is that, that ultra suede? N: Yeah. D: And you can wash that in the washer and dryer, and it'11 dry all r ight. H: And that's what StacY wore' too? N: She has white ones-- H: Is ultra suede, also. D: And itts very light. You canrt wear leather in the summer. Itrs a killer. (H: Ilaughs] ) N: See this one he has on right here. (H: Is that leather?) yeah' thatrs leather and he sweats [H. and N. laugh] D: Thatts a matching set for her, choker and earrings lrustlitgl . N: And that black one you used Lo have. Do you still have that?
That black one? t scannerl That complete black costume? D: Costume. H: [bang] And these are the feathers, too. Are these some that you make for the students? lrustlingl And what was that ladyrs name again, that asked you to do all that? (D: Eva Iinaudiable].) And who was she-- I mean, is she a schoolteacher here? Or what does she-- N: Nope, she works at the tribal office. She works at the Education Depar tment. H: [rustling] you know, the littte moccasins that you showed me a while dgor you made thoser too? D: Yes. W ela+ 150 N: She did a lot of Brenda's moccasins, the ones she made z'lt b Brendar rny sister. D: Brenda, she made her own moccasins, beaded them. H: Did she have a pattern or did she just sort of-- (D: I donrt know.) design them herself. D: She used her own little feet. H: [taughs] Your aunt that used to do beadwork' that you said is quite elderly now. Did she do jewelry or did she just do beadwork on clothing or what kind of work did she do? D: From what f remembered she made jewelry and headbands. f donrt know about her costume. Her costume was beautiful. Itrs old, very' very old. H: Would she make things to sell or just things for her family
rnember s? D: No, just for her. H: Just for you all. So the other people in the community at Peter Dana Point. If they have costumes are they ones that you all have made and have sewed for them mostly? How can r ask you-- just an estimate, of what approximately it would cost these days if somebody wanted to buy one? D: Irustling] They're usualty plain. Itrs uIIlr Ibang] three-fifty. lbeeping, like a phone ringingl But if you have to bead it, that costs more. Five-hundred. {tt: Depending on how much beadwork was involved? In: yeah. But I never Iscanner] didn't bother to do the beadwork because it was too expensive to do. ffi H: Do people do their own beadwork sometimes when you make the 27tCt costume s? 173 D: Yes. T design themr YOU know bead themselves. H: you were talking about-- yourre going to go down to Bar Harbor in a few weeks. (D: Yeah, on the twenty-second Itm going to go cook native foods down there. H: What kind of food are you going to fix? D: [scanner] I'm going to fix a mooser Ufr, with vegetables, fried. And then ah, Indian fry bread. (H: I love fry bread.) Yeah. And deer ribs, and fiddleheads. And then rabbits. H: That's a lot of cooking llaughs]. How long will it take you-- you'I1 have to start preparing before you go' though-- (D: Yes.) to get everything a1l readY. D: yes. We make a few things here and then we take them down there. Because there,ll be people from other places that come and bring their
s tuff. H: Oh, okay. Is it the same group of people that come every yearr oE is this something sPecial? D: I think it's almost the same people. H: And who organizes this? D: I dontt know. I meanr my daughter has the address. Itrs at Abbey Museum. H: Oh, at the Abbey. Oh, I know, Diane. Kopec, does that sound-- D: f don't know. I think shers new. H: Oh, okay. Yeah, there's several ladies that work down there. D: They have a lbang] harvest fair, is it? ort they have And then foods from different Places. H: How do you fix deer ribs llaughs]? 198 D: Deer ribs? [rustling] You can either boil them, fry them or bake them. H: Do you bake them with anything-- season them with anything? D: WeIIr you have to put seasoning. And then you bake them small, to be tender. H: What kind of seasoning do you put on it, to make the meat tender? D: Oh, usually ulllr the salt you cut from it and a little bit of flour. And then you coat them. And then just cook them slow, make them tender. H: Do all the guys in the family hunt? [bang] A11 your sons? Ibanging continues] N: And me Ilaughs]. H: And you too, Regina! [H. and N. laugh] When you were a little girl, how did you get started? N: I donrt know flaughs]. H: You donrt know, you just always done it [Iaughs]? N: Yes. [banging sounds like a drum] H: You all must have some mighty big deep freezers to keep all that meat. (D: Yeah.) Herers a good question: how much of a moose can you actually use? D: Small amounts. H: Because those things are pretty, pretty big. N: Yeah, they are huge. lbangl rrve never shot a moose, though. r never will, either. Ibang] H: Just deer. AflE^ A o.tflr nta' v v Lita N: Right. tN. and H. laughl I wouldnrt want a moose coming after me Ilaughs]. D: A small moose, usually. And the meat is very tender. H: Real1y? What does it taste like? D: oh, I don't know how it tastes like but it's good Ilaughs; bang] So, it's the onlY waY to describe it. H: rt has its own flavor. N: Yes, it has its own flavor. 223 D: UITI, the big moose' it's just good for hamburgers and ulllr sausage. tlnaudible. I He makes sausages. H: He flavors it and everything. Seasons it and everything. (D: yeah.) And what was it you vrere going to make out of moose for the festivat down at Bar Harbor? D: You slice-- if you have steakr w€ used to slice them in strips-- H: Thanks Regina. It was nice to meet you. lRegina leavesl D: Stice them in strips and then fry them in salt pork, a couple of slices. And you just fry that slowly, adding a little bit of water at a time. (H: To keep it from stickittg.) And then ah, a little bit of cornstarch. IchiId talking] Just cook that slowly and oh, put some green pepper, celery, onions, broccoli and-- H: I guess you can use any kind of vegetable that you happen to have on hand. D: Carrots. H: It sounds good. So you'11 be down there for all day going on the twenty-thi r d? D: I'11 be there on the twenty-seventh. (H: The twenty-seventh, okay. ) In the evening. ffiffiF eatb H: In the evening. Okay, I have to try and get down there. Thatrs pretty close to where I am in Bangor. Irm going to ask you a couple more questions-- I love getting the subject on food because f like it so much [laughs]. But I wanted to ask you a couple more questions about your beadwork. This may be a silly question but, why do you do it? Is it just something that you enjoy? 250 D: Yes, I enjoy it very much. And the necklaces that I-- I don't know if you've seen the necklaces on the wall? [child talking] I made thern with ah, cantaloupe seeds. And, they usually call the friendship (?) with those seeds. And frve had visitors this past-- since rrve made them in Maine and if r had them around Iscanner], rrd give them necklace. And in the fall, I just had visitors from Germany, three of them. They wanted to see me, Indians from the northeast. And accidently we met on the road, and they came over and seen all the costumes. And the children jewelry. So, f've shared the necklaces with them. H: Cantaloupe seeds. How did you get started doing that? D: I usually throw away all the seeds. But then, I thought you know, to myself, [rustling] why don't I try them. And I made um-- back in llay, Linda I'leader graduated f rom college in Mexico. So, Irve made hers in Mexican colors. And there were about seven strands, five strands? There were seeds with the colors, like the Mexican colors. And then the earrings were also Mexican colors. And the seeds and beads. yep. A beautiful set. Thatrs only one kind that Irve seen. And everybody said you should make some more and sell them. But ah, I usually don't sell you know like-- werll have a display Irustling] somewhere and sell, f donrt-- but I'm going to try it out.
10 2 1l G H: See what happens with it. (D: Yes.) Sounds like a good idea. D: Yep. Because itrs pretty hard for me to get to buy the stuff' because itrs so expensive. So f thought frd try the seeds. H: f think you'11 be presently surprised. I have a feeling llaughs]. I have a feeling. Well, thank you so much for letting me ask you so many questions. I appreciate it. For the lovely things you showed, and for my earrings, theyrre just wonderful. So thank you so much. D: You're welcome. 296 [End of interview]
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