Along Navajo Trails: Recollections of a Trader 1898-1948

Along Navajo Trails: Recollections of a Trader 1898-1948

Will Evans's writings should find a special niche in the small but significant body of literature from and about traders to the Navajos. Evans was the proprietor of the Shiprock Trading Company. Probably more than most of his fellow traders, he had a strong interest in Navajo culture. The effort he made to record and share what he learned certainly was unusual. He published in the Farmington and New Mexico newspapers and other periodicals, compiling many of his pieces into a book manuscript. His subjects were Navajos he knew and traded with, their stories of historic events such as the Long Walk, and descriptions of their culture as he, an outsider without academic training, understood it. Evans's writings were colored by his fondness for, uncommon access to, and friendships with Navajos, and by who he was: a trader, folk artist, and Mormon. He accurately portrayed the operations of a trading post and knew both the material and artistic value of Navajo crafts. His art was mainly inspired by Navajo sandpainting. He appropriated and, no doubt, sometimes misappropriated that sacred art to paint surfaces and objects of all kinds. As a Mormon, he had particular views of who the Navajos were and what they believed and was representative of a large class of often-overlooked traders. Much of the Navajo trade in the Four Corners region and farther west was operated by Mormons. They had a significant historical role as intermediaries, or brokers, between Native and European American peoples in this part of the West. Well connected at the center of that world, Evans was a good spokesperson. Will Evans did not publish his book in his lifetime, but his granddaughter Susan Evans Woods reached that goal with the assistance of historian Robert McPherson, who has authored numerous books on Navajo and Four Corners history. Their edition is illustrated with an equally significant, rare selection of photos from the collections of Evans and his colleagues. Along Navajo Trails Recollections of a Trader, 1898–1948 By Will Evans, Susan E. Woods, Robert S. McPherson University Press of Colorado Copyright © 2005 Utah State University Press All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-0-87421-606-6 Contents Foreword, Acknowledgments, Introduction, Will Evans, Trader to the Navajos, Starting Along the Trail, Events, Views of History around the Four Corners, Agapito Remembers the Old Days, Yellow Horse and the Long Walk, The Establishment of Trading Posts, Harry Baldwin and the Hogback Post, Redrock Trading Post, Little Singer and the Beautiful Mountain Uprising, Prosperity in Reverse, Oil and Gas on Navajo Land, A Christmas Eve in Navajo Land, People, Navajos I Have Known, Costiano, Black Horse, Bizhóshí, Ugly Man, Fat One and Son of Fat One, Faith, an Episode, Tragedies in Navajo Land, Sandoval, Slim Policeman, A Dedicated Medicine Man, Dan Pete, Culture, Daily Life and Customs of the Navajo People, Daily Life in a Hogan, Navajo Hospitality, Trading with the Navajos, Navajo Blankets, Silversmithing, Cleanliness, Clothes, and Manners, Hairstyles, Tobacco, Alcohol, and Morality, Navajo Marriage Customs and Family Life, Divorce, Tribal Traditions and Lore, Sandpaintings, My First Fire Dance, Squaw Dance (Enemyway), Death, Witchcraft, and Skinwalkers, Navajos and Animals, Postscript: The Death of a Man, the End of an Era, Appendix: Publications by Will Evans, Notes, Index, CHAPTER 1 Events Views of History around the Four Corners Will Evans's life as a trader spanned some of the monumental events in Navajo history. For more than fifty years, he shared an insider's perspective with the Navajo people as these events unfolded. He also recorded the reminiscences of elders whose experience hearkened back to the early to mid-1800s. Up-front and personal, these stories, even though filtered through Evans's eyes, are an invaluable source to the Navajo past. Take, for instance, the events leading to, comprising, and following the Long Walk period. This episode is one of the most traumatic and important mileposts for the People. It has been heavily studied by scholars and almost mythologized by the Navajos. The further one is removed from the time and events, the easier it is to generalize and offer facile explanations. Evans provides eyewitness accounts by men who were there. They point out that raiding by the Navajos was, at least in part, a reason for the devastating "Fearing Time," when surrounding tribes and the United States military wreaked havoc on them. The mistreatment of those who went to Fort Sumner is also addressed. For those who want to believe in the ease of life before the white man became prevalent, there are some points to consider. Food was scarce; danger from competing tribes and the constant pressure to survive provided challenges. Agapito and Yellow Horse testify that perhaps "the good old days" may not have been that good. Evans also provides a wealth of in