“The History and Trauma of Colorado’s Federal Indian Schools” will be presented by Dr. Holly Kathryn Norton, History Colorado’s state archaeologist, from 6-7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024, at the Global Village Museum of Arts and Cultures. The presentation will profile History Colorado’s report, entitled “Federal Indian Schools in Colorado, 1880-1920.”
Dr. Norton led the research project required by state House Bill 22-1327, which directed History Colorado to investigate the lived experiences of students at the one-time federal Native American boarding school in Hesperus, Colo., also referred to as the Fort Lewis Indian Boarding School. The nonprofit division of the Colorado Department of Higher Education was also tasked with identifying potential burial places of students who perished while attending the school.
“The report discusses the foundation of the Federal Indian Education system and its goal of erasing Indigenous cultures and assimilating Native Americans into Euro-American society,” Dr. Norton says. “The assimilationist practices of the federal government caused lasting intergenerational trauma.”
The report was delivered to the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs in June of 2023. The presentation is in conjunction with the museum’s main gallery exhibit, “One World, One Family,” which portrays the beauty and cultures of indigenous civilizations. The museum’s hall gallery displays photographs of Native American objects. Both exhibits run through Sept. 21.
Tickets to the presentation are $10 per person, and reservations are required at globalvillagemuseum.org. Refreshments will be served, and program registration includes free admission to the museum’s four galleries. The Global Village Museum is located at 200 W. Mountain Ave., and museum hours are 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Regular admission is $5 for adults, $3 for seniors and students, $1 for ages 4-15 and free for children 3 and under. Adult tours receive discounted admission of $3 per person. For more information and closure dates during the change of exhibits, visit globalvillagemuseum.org or call 970.221.4600.