Blessed Burdens | Dartmouth Libraries

October 31, 2023

Origin myths have the power to reinforce community, identity, and meaning.
But what happens when an origin myth makes historical truths invisible?

Peter Carini speaks in front of the Advancing Pathways Colloquium with a photo of Samson Occom's papers in the background

Peter Carini, College Archivist and Records Manager

Blessed Burdens

Origin myths have the power to reinforce community, identity, and meaning. But what happens when those myths make historical truths invisible? Who is responsible for making the invisible visible? And who’s responsible for adjusting those myths to be inclusive of the whole story?

The answer when it comes to Dartmouth's own origin myth seems simple: all of us. The work it will take to succeed in doing so isn’t as simple, but it starts here at home, at Dartmouth.

Dartmouth students, staff, and faculty have spent the last decades working to rectify and reconcile Dartmouth’s mythic origin narrative with the historical truths regarding its founding and early focus. As part of a return to a focus on providing educational opportunities to Native students, Dartmouth has also grappled with how best to steward the Native American artifacts in its care and reconcile the past that those artifacts signify – including their acquisition and attribution stories. Slow but meaningful strides have been made to demystify that past while nurturing a new narrative that encourages historical accountability and reconciliation.

We cannot undo centuries of harm and neglect. But we can, we must, and we have begun to make a better future for our regional relationships. - John Stomberg

photo depicts Advancing Pathways audience listening to a guest speaker

That sentiment was shared recently at the Advancing Pathways for Long-Term Collaboration at Dartmouth Colloquium, a two-day event celebrating and reflecting upon the Advancing Pathways three-year grant. Project partners and collaborators gathered from across the nation to recognize the project’s achievements while acknowledging the much-needed work yet to be done.

Richel Cuyler, Cultural Heritage Technical Developer to Advancing Pathways for Long-Term Collaboration grant and co-organizer of the Colloquium, reflected on the event’s importance. "The Colloquium was a meaningful convening where those of us who had been working together on the project could finally meet in person to break bread, share knowledge, and strengthen our connections."

Launched in 2020, Advancing Pathways is a partnership between the Hood Museum of Art and Dartmouth Libraries with funding from the Mellon Foundation. The goal was to advance significant cross-institutional and community-centered collaboration grounded in Dartmouth’s Native American and Indigenous Arctic collections.

Dean of Libraries, Susanne Mehrer

Against the background of a global pandemic and with the guidance of the Advancing Pathways Advisory Group and regional Native American community members, the Steering Committee shifted the grant to incorporate a clear decision to focus the work “closer to home,” said Dean of Libraries, Susanne Mehrer.

"We wanted to stay as true to the stated objectives as possible, so we revised our approach to work with fewer communities and deepen our relationships and collaboration, particularly with the Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut and the Abenaki First Nations Community of Odanak in Canada…Most importantly - we focused on bringing Native and Indigenous voices into the dialogue on how museums and libraries as institutions interface with collections."

At the Colloquium’s opening, Susanne and John jointly expressed that vital conversations had to happen concerning the Native American collections at Dartmouth.

We needed to create spaces for dialogue around the cultural items in our care. We invited community into our spaces to see where the conversations would take us. Only with renewed trust in our area could we build something meaningful.

John Stomberg, director of the Hood Museum of Art, speaks at the Advancing Pathways Colloquium

John R. Stomberg, the Virginia Rice Kelsey 1961s Director of the Hood Museum of Art

Both the Hood Museum of Art and Dartmouth Libraries accepted that the more work they did, the more work they realized they needed to do. “Our partners have, with grace and patience, led us to this point. [Their] frank advice has been a generous gift,” said John.

Ultimately, the grant supported the Hood and Dartmouth Libraries to develop long-term collaborations and deepen relationships between Dartmouth, the Mohegan Tribe, and the Abenaki community at Odenak to manage, describe, share, and teach in respectful and inclusive ways when working with cultural heritage materials.

“Throughout the project's duration, I witnessed a significant transformation in the institution and its staff's dedication to situating their work within the broader context of its relationships with Indigenous communities,” shared Zachary Miller, co-organizer of the Colloquium and Cultural Heritage and Indigenous Knowledges Fellow for the Advancing Pathways grant. He continued by saying, “This is especially important here at Dartmouth, where Indigenous cultural heritage is deeply intertwined with the history of the institution and the land it occupies."

Richel Cuyler presents on how the achievements of the Advancing Pathways grant

Richel Cuyler, Cultural Heritage Technical Developer

That transformation included the commitment to enhance collections-based teaching, developing new approaches for finding and working with cultural heritage materials stewarded by Dartmouth, and establishing ways to connect librarians and museum professionals with faculty, students, and members of Native American and Indigenous Arctic communities from campus and beyond.

Among the many achievements and successes made possible by the grant were the repatriation of Samson Occom’s papers, Dartmouth’s co-founder, in 2022; the return of a 19th-century headdress to the Gitxaała Nation at the 51^st Dartmouth Powwow; connecting Native American cultural artifacts from Dartmouth Libraries’ Rauner Special Collections with artifacts at the Hood Museum; and assisting the Musée des Abénakis with the digital archival infrastructure needed to steward their cultural heritage materials.

These achievements - from tangible projects to reciprocal relationships of trust - arose from listening deeply to Dartmouth’s regional Native American communities, a point made clear throughout the Colloquium.

from left: Jennifer O'Neal, Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, Veronica Pipestem, Osage/Otoe Missouria, and Jami Powell, Osage

Across the two days, Advancing Pathways project members, colleagues, guest speakers, Native American experts, and advisors shared their perspectives and experiences. Advancing Pathways Advisory Group Chair Veronica Pipestem, Osage Nation/Otoe Missouria, spoke about how responsible collection stewardship can result in items returning to their rightful homes - a complex process not without tension.

She said that the same pain and difficulty occurs in all organizations and that it runs parallel with institutional transformation - a continuously iterative process. "Institutional change that shifts and fundamentally corrects power imbalances isn't always easy and is sometimes painful - there's tension there. Something that has been held at the college for 100s of years is leaving. The bright side is that there's an inherent acknowledgment of the imbalance of power that occurs when something is returned or repatriated…it's okay to acknowledge and process that tension as it arises. We can ask questions to help [when it does arise.] What is this tension teaching us about our intuitions? What did we learn? What is it teaching us about ourselves and our roles at these institutions?"

Institutional change that shifts and fundamentally corrects power imbalances isn't always easy and is sometimes painful - there's tension there. - Veronica Pipestem

Assistant Professor of Native American and Indigenous Studies at the University of Oregon, Jennifer O’Neal, Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, brought her knowledge of libraries, museums, archives, and Indigenous rights and legal issues to present guiding principles for engagement. “Just because this work is hard and takes time, it matters to our communities and the people who want to connect to these collections.”

Madeleine Hutchins, Mohegan

Madeleine Hutchins, Mohegan, reminded us that "the few materials that exist may be the only few examples existing because of the process of colonization…the heightened importance of cultural objects is because they are often the only remaining pieces. For Mohegan, cultural materials contain the spirit of the person who made the object; so interacting with the object needs a different approach to preservation and conservation than colonial institutions traditionally use…that’s why it’s important to have Indigenous people at the center of the process.”

We all carry these legacies with us, no matter if we’re tribal or not…by acknowledging the disembodied rootedness for folks who call America home, who we are, and where we come from, we reinforce [that] we’re all part of a shared legacy. - Miranda Belarde-Lewis

Miranda Belarde-Lewis talks on stage with Jami Powell as part of the Advancing Pathways Colloquium

pictured left: Miranda Belarde-Lewis, Zuni/Tlingit

On day two of the Colloquium, University of Washington Assistant Professor, Inaugural Jill & Joe McKinstry Endowed Faculty Fellow of Native North American Indigenous Knowledge Miranda Belarde-Lewis, Zuni/Tlingit, opened her Keynote speech reminding attendees that, "We all carry these legacies with us, no matter if we’re tribal or not…by acknowledging the disembodied rootedness for folks who call America home, who we are and where we come from, we reinforce [that] we’re all part of a shared legacy."

That legacy includes caring for and stewarding Indigenous collections - what Miranda calls a “blessed burden.” She reinforced how “taking the time to do it right - caring for the community - means going to the community and showing up through physical acts of commitment” is the only way to deepen partnerships and sustain the work.

Miranda Belarde-Lewis and Jami Powell are in conversation on stage at the Advancing Pathways Colloquium

pictured from left: Miranda Belarde-Lewis, Zuni/Tlingit, and Jami Powell, Osage

What was made clear throughout the Colloquium was a deep desire and commitment to continue the delicate work of stewarding Indigenous heritage items and collections. What the Advancing Pathways project has achieved was to “show up” and spend time in community to build trusting relationships. Those relationships have created space for continued conversation and collaboration between Dartmouth and regional Native American communities.

Jami Powell, Osage Nation, Associate Director of Curatorial Affairs and Curator of Indigenous Art at the Hood Museum of Art, called for professionals to make ‘good trouble’ because “when we lead from a place of Indigenous ways of knowing and bake them in our practices, it benefits everyone.” Associate Dean of Libraries and member of the Advancing Pathways Steering Committee Daniel Chamberlain shared a sentiment felt by all - that it may be the end of the grant, but has only just begun.

When we lead from a place of Indigenous ways of knowing and bake them in our practices, it benefits everyone. - Jami Powell

Want to learn more? Browse the Advancing Pathways website. You'll also find resources for learning and teaching, including descriptions of relevant collections across Dartmouth Libraries and the Hood Museum related to this project.

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