Published: December 03, 2008 07:36 am      

Historic site marking anniversary

This week the Washita Battlefield National Historic Site will be commemorating the 140th anniversary of Lt. Col. George A. Custer’s 1868 attack on a slumbering Cheyenne village camped along the Washita River.

Since the actual anniversary of the attack was last Thursday, the Washita Battlefield has scheduled its commemoration events for this week instead, beginning with a special one-man play Thursday evening, said Dave Schafer, the site’s chief of interpretation and operations.

The historic site has teamed up with the nearby Cheyenne High School to present the play, which will be performed by noted historian and stage actor Louis Kraft, Schafer said.

In the play, he said Kraft will be portraying Edward Wynkoop who became an advocate for the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes during the Indian Wars and “protested against the Sand Creek massacre.”

It is the portrayal “of a man who was caught up in the cultural turmoil of the times,” Schafer said, noting that it promises to be “a really dramatic performance.”

In addition to the hour-and-twenty-minute play set for 7 p.m. Thursday in the Cheyenne High School auditorium, he said Kraft will also speak more about Wynkoop during a full day of anniversary activities at the historic site on Saturday.

Other speakers on Saturday will include an author and an artist who collaborated with others on a four-part book series about the Indian tribes for young readers, Schafer said.

Also speaking will be Dr. Henrietta Mann, president of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribal College in Weatherford, Schafer said, noting that Mann is not only both a well-known national and international speaker, but she is also the great-granddaughter of a survivor of the Washita attack.

“We’re very honored to have her,” he said.

Schafer went on to note that the topic of Mann’s speech, which is titled “Remembering the Past with Hope for the Future: Washita, Education and the Cheyenne Way of Life,” reflects the theme and purpose of all of the anniversary observation events.

“These activities are a good way to learn about the past as well as the cultures of the present,” he said, noting that many of the activities will not only show how the Cheyenne way of life used to be in 1868, but also show how many of the same customs continue to be followed and practiced today.

A lot of the cultural activities will be focused on children and families, Schafer said, noting that youngsters will be allowed to participate in various craft activities that show how both the Indians and the settlers created their own art 140 years ago.

There will also be a “History Hunt” for the children, where the will visit different stations depicting different aspects of life on the plains in 1968 as “a more focused activity to interact with our historians and experts,” he said.

All events on Saturday, which are scheduled from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., will be held at the new National Park Service visitor center, which is on Highway 47A one mile west of Cheyenne.

All events will be free and open to the public.

For more information or to schedule a scout group for Saturday’s craft events, contact the Washita Battlefield site at (580) 497-2742.

There is also more detailed information about the various events, including a full schedule of Saturday’s events at the Washita Battlefield website at www.nps.gov/waba.