Topic:
Where the Bears Dance: An Introduction to Colorado Ute Indians -
Their Lifestyle, Art & Ceremonies
Jan Petit, author of "Utes: The Mountain People" will be our guest speaker.
Moving with the seasons, the Utes covered vast areas of Colorado and surrounding states. Summer would find the tribes in the high country of the Rockies. In the fall, attention turned to gathering food and supplies and preparing for the harsh season ahead. Winters were spent in the semi-arid country of northern New Mexico and Utah, trading with neighbors. Springtime would find the various groups heading back to the high country of the Rockies. The traditional Ute food gathering and hunting lifestyle brought the Utes into inevitable, tragic and absolute conflict with incoming settlers, soldiers, and miners, who wanted to divide up the Ute homeland into privately owned parcels.
Time: 7:00 PM, immediately following the General meeting
Local historian Jan Pettit is renowned for her expertise on the Ute Indian Tribes in Colorado and Utah. She is executive producer of the award-winning film, “Bear Dance,” which was filmed in 1989 at the Southern and Ute Mountain Reservations. Pettit is author of UTES: The Mountain People, and autographed copies of the newly revised edition will be available for sale after her presentation. She founded the Ute Pass Historical Society in 1976 and served as the Ute Pass Museum Director. Pettit’s training includes courses in archaeology, ethnology, and Colorado and Southwest Indian History at the University of Colorado. She has presented educational programs for over 5,000 students and educators throughout the West.