Chase Rathgeb
Dr. Jamison
9-15-15
In the modern age of technology, we rarely look back to see what our ancestors used and what it means. One important invention in history is the Indian weaved basket. They were used for many purposes and represent a culture through designs and patterns. As the Rathgeb household lived, they walked by the same basket in their kitchen for three years without knowing the weight and impact these very objects played on our ancestors lives.
In the beginning of the 1830’s, nearly 125,000 Native Americans lived across the states now known as Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. Near the end of that decade very few still lived there. Because of white settlers, they were forced to relocate for a small reward of $10 in gold (worth $215 today). The Choctaws migrated through the Mississippi River, starting south of current day Memphis, and ending in Northwest Oklahoma. This was known as The Trail of Tears. The Choctaws, Cherokees, and many other tribes were promised that their land would “remain unmolested forever”, but as the white man pushed forward to new discoveries, their Indian territory shrank until it was no more. Forced to move to Oklahoma, the Native Americans settled down, coexisting with each other. This is where the basket was obtained. Her name was Apaha (ah-pay-ha) and was the great great grandmother of Chase Rathgeb. She gave birth to two children, and took care of her sister’s three children after she passed. As a mother in the choctaw tribe, she served has the highest of social order in the family, as the mother was most respected. She raised Edward Snead and he was half choctaw, half white. Because of this rare blood mix, he worked for a job that worked land deals with tribes and white settlers. Because deals could have been controversial, Edward Snead “held a gun in his sock.”Because of many land deals, the Indians stayed nearby each other as they didn’t have anywhere else to go. This made trade between the tribes easier and opened the opportunity of trading for the Indian basket that represents so much today.
To understand the art of basket weaving we must first understand what it represents. Basket-weaving is one the oldest known Native American crafts, some as old as 8000 years. Different tribes used different materials, techniques, basket shapes, and unique patterns. Most original basket weavings are made from whatever the local tree was as long as it was sturdy. They also used cedar bark, swamp grass, and tree roots. Indian basket weaving was so popular among the Natives because it also had many uses. People used it for food gathering, processing hides, drying meats. Other baskets can be used for cooking, sifting seeds, processing clay, holding water, fruit, shelter, and clothing. Based on location and ability, the weaving style varied. The most classic technique is plaiting. They are square shaped and made out of oak or ash splints, river cane or cedar. The Choctaw Indian basket owned by the Sneads is a thick coiled basket. The coiling is another basic method in which the material used is coiled beginning at the bottom until it wraps around to the top. Also, a small use of twining, to insert its unique pattern.
In the 1800’s baskets had many uses and purposes. But in the age of modern technology, they represent much more than they seem. Chase Rathgeb walked by the same Indian basket every day without noticing the cultural and historical significance, He didn’t realize what it truly represented. Sally Rathgeb stated, “For us it serves as a reminder of our family ties. Whereas our ancestors used it for the purpose it serves.” It reminds John Snead (grandson of Apaha) of his time in Oklahoma, where his family remained until the 1950’s until he moved to his current home in Kokomo, Indiana.
Now, once the basket was in Apaha’s possession, it made its way down to Edward Snead. He was a land dealer early on, but around the time John was born, he was a court reporter. The basket was still in the Snead’s possession. As John Snead grew up he had a desire for education which led to him leaving Oklahoma, seeking education and joining the Marines, taking the basket with him. He married Mary Louise Reed and moved to Mary Lou’s home city of Kokomo, Indiana. They raised three children: Sally, Jill, and Heather Snead. As they grew up, the basket was passed down to Sally Rathgeb because of her interest in Choctaw history. Which brings the family to today. Sally Rathgeb and her family currently live in Kennesaw, Georgia where the basket sits in the kitchen, to be admired.
So, as years pass and we are decades down the road, the Rathgebs hope to pass it to the right member to preserve its history, so that one day their family will too appreciate it for its beauty and portrayal of the Snead family. It is important to them not because of its uses but because it represents us. It is a symbol of family.
Reflection
Throughout this long essay, I took an Indian basket, which stood in my kitchen for years, not knowing what it was and realized the cultural and historical importance of it. I looked back into my mom’s side of the family (the Sneads) and saw how I was 1/16 Choctaw Indian, and the importance of that and how it came to be. I learned also about the making of Indian baskets, and I plan on putting a little bit of time every once in a while to work on one of my own.