Thomas Bailey Marquis papers
Object Details
- Creator
- Marquis, Thomas Bailey, 1869-1935
- Names
- Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument (Agency : U.S.)
- Topic
- Battle of the Little Big Horn
- Provenance
- Received from Anna Rose Heil, Marquis' daughter, in 1976.
- Creator
- Marquis, Thomas Bailey, 1869-1935
- Culture
- Inunaina (Arapaho)
- Tsitsistas/Suhtai (Cheyenne)
- Apsáalooke (Crow/Absaroke)
- See more items in
- Thomas Bailey Marquis papers
- Biographical Note
- Thomas Bailey Marquis (1869-1935) was a printer, physician, writer, and amateur historian who spent most of his working life in Montana. During WWI, he served with the U.S. Army Medical Corps. When he returned, he worked as a government physician on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation and, later, the Crow Reservation. His work with the Cheyenne fueled his personal interest in George Armstrong Custer and the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Marquis began collecting artifacts related to the battle and interviewing survivors, which led to the publication of numerous books and pamphlets. He displayed the artifacts, together with photographs and hand-drawn maps, in the Custer Battle Museum in Hardin, Montana, where he lived during the last years of his life. After his death, his museum's collection was donated to the National Parks Service and is now incorporated into displays at the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument. As the only individual who worked to record Cheyenne eyewitness accounts of that era, Marquis' writings are of great value to scholars interested in battles and life on the plains.
- Extent
- 2 Linear feet (3 boxes, 1 map folder)
- Date
- 1922-1971
- bulk 1922-1935
- Archival Repository
- National Anthropological Archives
- Identifier
- NAA.1976-105
- Type
- Collection descriptions
- Archival materials
- Citation
- Thomas Bailey Marquis papers, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
- Processing Information
- Processed by Alex Brown, July 2023
- Rights
- Contact the repository for terms of use.
- Scope and Contents
- The Thomas Bailey Marquis papers comprise material related to the Custer Battle Museum and the Native people with whom Marquis interacted. Included are museum visitors' registers, inventories of museum artifacts, photographic displays, certificates of artifact authenticity, and newspaper clippings. There are also contracts delineating the disposition of museum artifacts by Marquis' heirs and a 1917 census of the Northern Cheyenne with extensive annotations. Photographs include snapshots of many of the Cheyenne people inteviewed by Marquis, as well as some landscapes and structures at Lame Deer. Finally, Marquis' papers contain numerous drawings made by Wooden Leg and Limpy (Cheyenne), along with a collection of maps made by Marquis based on his interviews. Materials relating to Marquis' medical practice were turned over to the United States Army Medical Library and are now housed at the National Library of Medicine. Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
- Restrictions
- Access to the Thomas Bailey Marquis papers requires an appointment.
- Related Materials
- The National Library of Medicine holds the Thomas B. Marquis papers, 1906-1973, which includes documents related to his publications and his work as a physician, as well as his diary and correspondence.
- Record ID
- ebl-1661193600889-1661193601511-0
- Metadata Usage
- CC0
In the Collection
View Slideshow
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.