The Haskell Indian Nations University Cultural Center and Museum will be the first Kansas site to host a traveling Smithsonian exhibit, “Americans.”
The exhibit “uncovers the many ways American Indian images, names, and stories have been part of the nation’s identity since before the country began.”
The exhibit is based on an exhibition of the same name curated by Paul Chaat Smith (Comanche) and Cécile R. Ganteaume that is currently on display at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. Humanities Kansas announced the news that it’s coming to Kansas on Wednesday.
Travis Campbell, director of Haskell’s Cultural Center and Museum, said in a video announcement that “We’re excited to be the first stop on the Kansas tour for ‘Americans’ and look forward to celebrating and sharing our history and stories with you.”
The exhibit is slated to be on display at the Haskell Cultural Center and Museum, 2411 Barker Ave., from Aug. 23 through Oct. 25, 2025.
“Images of American Indians are everywhere, from the Land O’Lakes butter maiden to classic Westerns and cartoons,” according to a description of the exhibit from the Smithsonian. “American Indian names are everywhere, too, from states and cities to street names. Beyond these images and names are familiar historical events and stories — Thanksgiving, Pocahontas, the Trail of Tears and Battle of Little Bighorn — that continue to speak to the collective imagination.”
“Americans offers a new way of understanding familiar events and images,” the museum’s description continues. “Using historical photographs and objects from the Smithsonian’s collection, the exhibition offers an optimistic and provocative way to understand America’s past and present, reminding us that American Indians are an integral part of our nation’s history, culture, and identity.
Here are the other Kansas tour dates:
• Iowa and Sac & Fox Mission Museum, Highland: Oct. 11 – Nov. 16, 2025
• Mid-America All-Indian Museum, Wichita: Nov. 22, 2025 – Jan. 4, 2026
• Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation, Mayetta: Jan. 10 – Feb. 22, 2026
• Smoky Hill Museum, Salina: Feb. 28 – April 5, 2026
• Seward County Community College, Liberal: April 11 – May 24, 2026
• Wyandotte County Historical Museum, Bonner Springs: May 30 – July 5, 2026
Humanities Kansas is also working with 10 partners to host events across the state that create original local exhibitions and events exploring the same themes as “Americans.”
Learn more about the exhibition on the Smithsonian’s website at americanindian.si.edu/americans and on Humanities Kansas’ website at humanitieskansas.org/grants-programs/americans.
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