OSAGE NATION

Welcome to the official website of the
Osage Tribal Museum

Our Mission Statement: “To educate the public about the history, customs and traditions of the Osage people; Keep activities and exhibits current and make the museum experience a truly pleasant one for all ages.”

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The Osage Tribal Museum is open
Tuesday through Saturday, 8:30 - 5:00 p.m.

Closed Sundays, Mondays and Federal Holidays,

including Thursday - Saturday, November 26 - 28

(Thanksgiving and day-after-Thanksgiving holidays)

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Print one of our brochures! (.pdf)

* Visitors for November *

'Thank You' Letters

Osage Time Capsule - November

Dear Friends of the Osage Tribal Museum:

Hello, Everyone!

   Fall is upon us, and we cordially invite you to the museum, and to see everything that we have to offer at this wonderful time of the year.

   Many thanks to everyone who came to honor the late John Joseph Mathews with the Friends of the Libraries in Oklahoma (FOLIO), presenting a plaque that will be housed in the museum he was responsible for establishing back in 1938. This is the 8th Literary Landmark to be established by the Friends of the Libraries in Oklahoma. Among other Literary Landmark honorees were Angie Debo, Will Rogers, Sequoyah, John Berryman, Ralph Ellison and Woody Guthrie.

   Also, please mark your calendar for Saturday, December 12, as we present the 9th Annual Christmas Tree Auction and Home Tour, here in Pawhuska (see "NEWS" below, for further details).

   On September 16th, the Osage Tribal Museum welcomed Sherian Mead Yenna as the museum's 3,000th visitor by signing our daily register, and won the Pendleton blanket giveaway. She was accompanied by her husband, Steve, both from Houston, Texas. This year's blanket was a 100th anniversary Pendleton Serape in the teal color, sponsored by Lou & Rosalie Brock.

   We are moving forward with our new goal of reaching 4,000 visitors by the end of the year, and the Brocks will sponsor a second Pendleton blanket, should this happen.

For those who have visited us in the past, please tell your friends about the experience of being at the museum, and as always, we cordially invite you to visit Tuesday through Saturday, 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. We also will continue to let you know when the museum may be closed due to inclement weather or a federal holiday.

Mark the museum's web site to your favorites, and we'll always keep you updated!

If you haven't already noticed, we've added a new feature to the website, "Osage History Time Capsules", which highlight individual dates in history during the current month. Just click above on "Osage Time Capsule - November" above, and it will take you to a new page. Each month, we'll change it to reflect what happened during that particular month.

We're always glad to welcome everyone here at the museum, including all employees of the Osage Nation. Please stop by, especially if you are a new employee, and introduce yourself.

A very special 'thank you' goes out to, both, he Pawhuska Head Start group who visited the museum on Wednesday, October 14, and the US Army Corps of Engineers from both Tulsa and Kansas, who visited on Thursday, October 15.

"Muchas Gracias" to our one friend who came from Bolivia.

Many thanks to all of our out-of-state visitors who have visited the museum in October.

ARIZONA - Mesa, Sonoita
ARKANSAS - Russellville
CALIFORNIA - Ventura
COLORADO - Broomfield, Denver, Golden, Ovid
HAWAII - Kalaheo
IDAHO - Boise
ILLINOIS - Shelbyville
INDIANA - Indianapolis
IOWA - Marion, Nevada
KANSAS - Manhattan, Sedan, Topeka
LOUISIANA - Natchitoches
MASSACHUSETTS - Canton
MICHIGAN - Adrian, E. Lansing
MISSOURI - Carthage, Columbia, Kimberling City, O'Fallon, St. Louis, Wildwood
MONTANA - Browning
NEW MEXICO - Albuquerque, Wagon Mound
NORTH CAROLINA - Pittsboro
OHIO - Cleves, Harrison
SOUTH DAKOTA
TEXAS - Crockett, Crockett, Dallas, Laredo, Mineral Wells, Odessa, Temple, Tioga, Waco
UTAH
VIRGINIA - Woodbridge
WASHINGTON - Mead, Oakville, Olympia, Seattle, Spokane

Thanks, as always, to our Oklahoma friends who visit us as well, during this time period: Ada, Anadarko, Barnsdall, Bartlesville, Broken Arrow, Canute, Catoosa, Fairfax, Hominy, Medford, Miami, Mustang, Okesa, Oklahoma City, Pawhuska, Pawnee, Ralston, Stillwater, Tulsa, Wynona and Yukon.

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WELCOME TO THE

OSAGE TRIBAL MUSEUM!

The Osage Tribal Museum, known as the "oldest tribally-owned museum in the United States since 1938", is located on the Osage Nation Campus in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, USA, 819 Grandview Avenue, and open Tuesday through Saturday, 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. We are closed on major federal holidays.

There is no admissions charge -- not even for tour groups; however, we do keep a bowl, located at the east end of the museum, only if you so desire to make a contribution. The only request we have is no photo-taking in the museum with your cameras, cellphones, or other devices, please. We have photos available for family members to purchase copies.

The Osage Tribal Museum building was originally constructed in 1872 as a schoolhouse and dormintory. Osage Tribal Councilman, John Joseph Mathews, was instrumental in establishing the museum, with the approval of Principal Chief Fred Lookout and the 14th Osage Tribal Council (1934-38), and dedicated on May 2-3, 1938. Miss Lillian Mathews was the museum's first curator.

The museum's collection of over 6,000 objects began with the Tribal Council's purchase of the John L. Bird collection in 1923. Since then, many Osage families have donated objects and photographs to help the museum grow. The adaptive reuse of the building to a museum was funded as a Public Works Administration (WPA) project and carried out by the CCC. At the time of its opening in 1938, it was the only museum in the world owned by an American Indian tribe. After a year of expansion and remodeling funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the museum reopened on September 30, 1967. On October 15, 1987, it gained added recognition by being placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Once again, in 1994, the museum reopened after several months of additional renovations, and in Fall 2008, the museum had several repairs including foundation work and a new drainage system that would carry water away from the building.

The Building

The Osage Tribal Museum, originally constructed in 1872, is housed in a building finished with native Oklahoma sandstone. Originally used as a chapel, school and dormitory as a two-story structure with an auditorium, it was remodeled in 1937 as a one-story building and museum. Each stone was carefully removed and put back. The building's cupola was retained and is a distinguishing feature of the edifice. Today, the museum consists of two exhibition galleries and a collections/office area. Both galleries are also user-friendly for the physically handicapped.

Our Volunteers

The museum would not be the same, were it not for our wonderful volunteers who come in to help us. These volunteers are known to us as the "Sage of the Osage", and are very valuable with their talents and knowledge of our history and culture.

Our Website Photo Galleries

Click on to the "Photos" section, where, in the Second Million Dollar Elm (click here) shows the planting of the tree, almost in the exact spot of where the original "Million Dollar Elm" existed for many, many years. The planting took almost 35 minutes (10:30-11:05 am) on June 29, 2006. Harrison Shackelford, Maintenance Director, and his able-bodied crew took on the task, and with the help of over 200 gallons of water, and other nutrients, set the tree up in great shape, and looks terrific. The final two photos, taken by the museum staff's own James Elsberry is the tree, on its first and third anniversary, (June 29, 2007 and June 29, 2009).

Also, check out a set of photos where Sgt. Paul Jump, of Camp Bucca Chapel, in

Iraq

, raises and flies our Osage Nation flag proudly. The flag is now proudly displayed in the museum. God Bless and protect all of our service people!

"The Osage Timeline"

This is a project that has been in the works for over a year, now, and the large edition is currently located in the east wing of the museum. As this is a living timeline, it may be edited/corrected or added to. Therefore, we call upon our Osage members and scholars to help bridge the gap on several years that are missing, and bring as many references for verification.

The 2006 Osage Constitution

The 2006 Osage Constitution is on display in the center room of the museum, and we invite all Osage members, shareholders and non-shareholders alike, to be a witness and sign the Constitution. This opportunity is available Tuesday-Friday, 8:30 - 5:00 pm. This includes all family members of Osage descent, and of all ages.

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