Northern Plains — Cradleboards: Carriers of Culture Part III
Explore how cradleboards across Native nations reflect care, craftsmanship, and cultural traditions from tribe to tribe
[Native American Women and Horses by Teepee in Camp] (1880s–90s) by UnknownThe Metropolitan Museum of Art
Cradleboards of the Northern Plains
In this part of our series, we explore how Northern Plains tribes created powerful carriers filled with artistry and symbolism. This vast region stretches across present-day North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, and parts of Canada.
Cheyenne Village (1861/1869) by George CatlinNational Gallery of Art, Washington DC
On the sweeping plains, mobility shaped daily life
Cradleboards were made for travel, strong enough for buffalo hunts and tipi camps, yet light enough for horseback. Beads, bones, and bells decorated each cradle, sharing stories of protection, prayer, and family pride.
Sioux/Blackfoot CradleboardRed Earth
BLACKFOOT (NIITSITAPI)
Often referred to as Blackfoot, they call themselves Niitsitapi (pronounced nee-it-see-TAH-peh), meaning "The Original People" or "The Real People."
Cradle in Niitsitapi language: a-wa-pi-stan
Plains-style cradleboard
Blackfoot cradleboards are variations of plains cradles. The plains cradle style is known for an open bag of buckskin, topped with a U-shaped hood, often attached to a wooden frame.
The parts of the cradle include: the wooden frame, open bag, bed, foot rest and other rawhide supports, suspension devices, pillow, lashings or lacings to keep the baby in place, an awning or hood (to protect the baby and provide shade from the sun), along with trinkets and amulets for entertainment and protection.
Sioux/Blackfoot Cradleboard Sioux/Blackfoot Cradleboard (1900) by UnknownRed Earth
Beadwork and cradle design
The sides of the hood were usually covered with fine colorful beadwork, and the cradle could be rested on the lower ends of the vertical boards of the frame.
Vertical boards with purpose
The upper ends of the vertical boards extended beyond the top of the bag and were usually decorated with paint or with designs composed of brass studs. It was thought that the upper ends of the vertical boards would hit the ground first if the baby fell from a horse.
The Blackfoot were the classic Plains Indians. Bison provided for nearly all of their needs, from food and clothing, to leather for their tipis. When first encountered by Europeans, the Blackfoot were living on the plains of Montana and into Alberta, Canada, near the Rocky Mountains. Because of their dependence on bison, the Blackfoot were swift to adapt to the use of horses when they became prevalent in the 18th century.
CHEYENNE (TSISTSISTAS)
Cradle in Cheyenne language-Concho dialect: pâhoešestôtse
Cheyenne CradleboardRed Earth
The meaning behind “Cheyenne”
Cheyenne comes from the Dakota Sioux word "Shah'ela" or "Shahi'ena" (or "Saiyena"), "red speech," meaning speaking in a foreign tongue, although not an enemy.
Since the 1700s the Cheyenne have referred to themselves as Tsistsistas (pronounced Tse-TSES-tas), "Like-Hearted," "The Original People," or "The People."
Evolving Cheyenne cradle design
Traditional Cheyenne cradleboards were made from curved and cross-braced willow wands, which were later replaced by a board cut to this shape. The cradleboard is covered with buckskin and decorated with beadwork.
Northern Cheyenne Cradleboard Northern Cheyenne Cradleboard (1990) by UnknownRed Earth
Form and function
These cradles can be mounted to the characteristic V-shaped lattice frame boards. If not, the carrier usually has a tab attached to the top of the hood which stands erect from the weight of the child's head.
Indian Woman Making the War Dress (1858-1860) by Alfred Jacob Miller (American, 1810-1874)The Walters Art Museum
Carrying made simple
A strap around the mother's shoulders and chest was used to help carry the cradle. The strap also allowed the cradleboard to be hung from a saddle or tree.
Decorations that tell a story
Geometric beadwork is typical on Cheyenne cradles. Various materials including elk teeth and shells were used as decorations to show the parents' love of, and pride in, their children.
Cheyenne Cradleboard ToyRed Earth
Elk teeth: rare gifts of affection
Cheyenne cradleboards were often decorated with elk canine teeth, which are highly prized ornaments, symbolizing wealth, status, and love. Elk only have two upper canine teeth, so acquiring enough for decoration took great effort and was a sign of deep affection.
Cheyenne Cradleboard Cover by UnknownRed Earth
Made with care by family
In most cases, a female relative of the father (grandmother or aunt) made the cradle, although it could be made by a non-related female of the tribe.
When the cradle was brought to the lodge and presented, the father would give a horse or appropriate gift to each person who brought the cradle.
Cheyenne Cradleboard Cheyenne Cradleboard by UnknownRed Earth
Northern and Southern Cheyenne today
Eventually the bands split with the Northern Cheyenne living in southeast Montana and the Southern Cheyenne sharing western Oklahoma with the Southern Arapaho Tribe.
CROW (APSÁALOOKE)
Crow cradleboards reflect the design elements and construction associated with Great Basin/Plateau tribes. They are wider at the top than the bottom, and are made of boards covered with stretched leather that blouses to form a pouch in the front.
The Apsáalooke (pronounced ap-SAH-lo-kee), meaning “children of the large-beaked bird,” is the name the tribe uses for themselves. Early European traders, misunderstanding the translation, referred to them as the Crow. Despite the name being imposed by outsiders, the Apsáalooke have maintained a strong cultural identity rooted in their language, traditions, and connection to the land.
Style unique to the Crow
Tie straps that are attached to the sides of the cradle are a Crow invention. The straps at the top and bottom of the cradleboard's leather covering are beaded with designs ranging from geometric to floral.
Like other Plains people, the Crow utilized nearly every portion of the bison for their food, clothing and shelter. Throughout the first part of the 19th century, they traded with Europeans occasionally, but as the bison population began to decline, they relied more on the Europeans as trading partners. By the terms of the Fort Laramie Treaty in 1868, they were moved onto a smaller reservation in southeastern Montana in the central part of the lands they once inhabited.
Crow CradleboardRed Earth
Maternal ties and sacred songs
By tradition, the father's mother or sister made the cradleboard for the expectant family. While rocking their babies to sleep, Crow women would often sing lullabies that were said to have been originally heard in dreams.
Crow legends tell the story of how the tribe was once associated with the Hidatsa in the Knife River country of Montana but migrated west to the Yellowstone River region in Montana during the late 17th or early 18th century.
Crow CradleboardRed Earth
Cradle in Crow (Apsáalooke) language: ba-gat'et-cha
As we move from the Northern Plains into the heart of the Southern Plains, cradleboards reflect new shapes, roles, and meanings. Among the Kiowa, Comanche, and Osage, each cradle reveals a unique blend of practicality, artistry, and deep cultural ties.
Continue exploring: Part IV — Cradleboards of the Southern Plains
Red Earth Cradleboards
Special thanks to Dr. Harry "Doc" and Dorothy Swan Deupree for their contribution of the Deupree Cradleboard Collection to the Red Earth Museum.
Photography by
Danny Sands
John Jernigan
Research by
John Elder
Lori Gonzalez
Scott Tigert
Chelsey Curry
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