John Alvin Anderson
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John Alvin Anderson (March 25, 1869 – June 26, 1948) was a Swedish-American photographer who spent most of his life in the United States. He is known for photographing
Sioux Indians The Lakota (; or ) are a Native American people. Also known as the Teton Sioux (from ), they are one of the three prominent subcultures of the Sioux people, with the Eastern Dakota (Santee) and Western Dakota (). Their current lands are in ...
at the
Rosebud Indian Reservation The Rosebud Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation in South Dakota, United States. It is the home of the federally recognized Rosebud Sioux Tribe, who are Sicangu, a band of Lakota people. The Lakota name ''Sicangu Oyate'' translates as th ...
in
South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...
from 1885 until 1930. Many of his works are displayed at the Nebraska State Historical Society in
Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The city covers and had a population of 291,082 as of the 2020 census. It is the state's List of cities in Nebraska, second-most populous city a ...
.


Early life

Anderson was the sixth child born to Anders Salomon Gabrielsson and Anna-Beata Magnusdotter. The family farmed in present-day
Vinberg Vinberg () is a locality and a parish situated in Falkenberg Municipality, Halland County, Sweden, with 592 inhabitants in 2010. The parish is home to three villages: Vinberg, Vinbergs kyrkby and Tröingeberg, the latter being a suburb of Falke ...
-
Ljungby Ljungby () is the Urban areas in Sweden, central locality of Ljungby Municipality, Kronoberg County, Sweden, with 15,785 inhabitants in 2015. Ljungby was instituted in 1829 as a ''köping'', or ''market town'', and did not become a municipality o ...
, near
Falkenberg Falkenberg is a locality and the seat of Falkenberg Municipality, Halland County, Sweden, with 27,813 inhabitants in 2019 (out of a municipal total of about 45,000). It is located at the mouth of river Ätran. The name consists of the Swedish ...
, in Halland, Sweden. Gabrielsson spent time in the United States in 1869, earning money to send home, and in May of the following year, shortly after Anderson was born, the entire family emigrated to
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
. Magnusdotter died in 1876, and her widowed husband moved the family an area of
Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...
with a large Scandinavian immigrant population in 1883.


Life and work

Anderson worked as a carpenter and spent some of his income on a Premo View camera, a high-quality brand at the time. His earliest photographs date back to about 1880. He assisted established photographer William Richard Cross (1839–1907) in taking photographs of soldiers at Fort Niobrara. Anderson became close with members of the Sioux tribes during his time in Nebraska and nearby
South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...
, and so in 1889,
General George Crook George R. Crook (September 8, 1828 – March 21, 1890) was a career United States Army officer who served in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. He is best known for commanding U.S. forces in the 1886 campaign that led to the defeat ...
asked him to work as an official photographer during negotiations between the State and the Native Americans. These talks resulted in the creation of the
Rosebud Indian Reservation The Rosebud Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation in South Dakota, United States. It is the home of the federally recognized Rosebud Sioux Tribe, who are Sicangu, a band of Lakota people. The Lakota name ''Sicangu Oyate'' translates as th ...
. The following year, Anderson released his first book of photographs, ''Among the Sioux''. Outside of his role as a photographer, Anderson worked as a
mediator Mediation is a structured, voluntary process for resolving disputes, facilitated by a neutral third party known as the mediator. It is a structured, interactive process where an independent third party, the mediator, assists disputing parties ...
between the State and the Sioux. During his time, he amassed various Indian arts and crafts, including vases, weapons, and jewelry. During the 1890s, he became part owner and postalier of the trading station operated by Indian agent Charles Philander Jordan (1856–1924) at the Rosebud Reservation. Anderson documented and photographed the Sioux, including members of the most influential tribal families, over the 45-year period between 1885 and 1930. Anderson's photographs included images of
He Dog He Dog (Lakota: Šúŋka Bloká) (ca. 1840–1936), a member of the Oglala Lakota, was closely associated with Crazy Horse during the Great Sioux War of 1876-77. Biography Born in the spring of 1840 on the headwaters of the Cheyenne River ...
, Fool Bull, Iron Shell, and
Crow Dog Crow Dog (also Kȟaŋǧí Šúŋka, Jerome Crow Dog; – August 1912) was a Brulé Lakota subchief, born at Horse Stealing Creek, Montana Territory. Family He was the nephew of former principal chief Conquering Bear, who was killed in 1854 in a ...
. A 1928 fire partially destroyed Anderson's photographs, but that year also saw the release of his second book of photographs, ''Sioux Memory Gems'', on which he was helped by his wife, Myrtle. He and his wife moved to
Rapid City Rapid City is the county seat of Pennington County, South Dakota, United States. It is located on the eastern slope of the Black Hills in western South Dakota and was named after Rapid Creek, where the settlement developed. It is the second-mo ...
in 1937, for several years, he was a curator of the
Sioux Indian Museum The Journey Museum and Learning Center is a museum in Rapid City, South Dakota, United States with of gardens. It is set up as a journey through the history of the Black Hills, starting with the Native American creation stories, moving into the ...
. After Anderson's death, his wife sold his photographs to a private collector for one hundred dollars. They were eventually donated to the
Nebraska State Historical Society Nebraska State Historical Society, formerly History Nebraska, is a Nebraska state agency, founded in 1878 to "encourage historical research and inquiry, spread historical information ... and to embrace alike aboriginal and modern history." It w ...
. Some of Anderson's photographs are also on display at the
Sioux Indian Museum The Journey Museum and Learning Center is a museum in Rapid City, South Dakota, United States with of gardens. It is set up as a journey through the history of the Black Hills, starting with the Native American creation stories, moving into the ...
in Rapid City.


Personal life

He married Myrtle Miller (1870–1961) in 1895, and their son, Harold, was born in 1897.


Bibliography

*''Among the Sioux'' (1890) *''Sioux Memory Gems'' (1929)


Selected photographs

File:Sioux kvinna barn Rosebud 1900.jpg, Sioux-women and children, 1900 File:Fool Bull 1900a.jpg, Fool Bull (1844–1909) File:He Dog 1900a.jpg, He Dog, Brulé (1836–1927) File:Iron Shell 1900a.jpg, Iron Shell (1816–1896)


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, John Alvin 1869 births 1948 deaths People from Falkenberg Swedish emigrants to the United States American photographers American Lutherans