Progressive Era: 1890–1920s: Native Americans Fight for Land, Identity, & Education
Click image to zoom in.Or view larger version. Photograph of an Indian woman standing with a burden basket full of wood on her back and steadying herself with a walking stick. ca. 1900. A. W. Ericson, Photographer. Photograph. Collection of Oakland Museum of California. Gift of A. W. Ericson.
This is a photograph of a Hupa Indian woman carrying wood in a burden basket. Burden baskets are large cone-shaped baskets used for gathering and carrying a variety of material. The shape of the burden basket made collecting wood, acorns, and other material a manageable task. Many different Native American tribes used burden baskets to carry their loads, but the shape, size, color, design, and weave varied according to tribal group.