Who is that Indian?

pat chapman

Willits biographer
Hey Benson:
Was browsing through the Old Town catalog CD and was wondering if it is known who the Indian was that showed up in full regalia beginning in the 1930 catalog and last seen in the 1965 catalog. I didn't see anywhere that he was identified. Prior to 1930 there was a drawing of an Indian. Do you know anything about him - an employee? Local resident?
 

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Just answered my own question: On page 54 of Sue Audette and Dave Baker's "The Old Town Canoe Company: Our First Hundred Years" is the full photo from which the catalog photo is taken. He's identified as "John Susep, known as Basshorn and whose face became the icon used in many catalogs".
 
You may enjoy a book titled "Molly Spotted Elk, A Penobscot in Paris" by Bunny McBride if you want to learn more about the promotion of Indian imagery during this period. The caption on page 38 of this book states "Indian Island girls and women dressed for pagent, circa 1917 - before the diffusion of Plains-style pan Indian costumery and culture spanned by the motion picture industry. The peeked cap of the elderly woman in the front row is traditional among Wabanaki peoples dating back to the seventeenth century." John Susep's picture is a great one but his costume is not in the traditional Penobscot style.

Benson
 
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