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THBCherokee Nation Autograph Album Owned by Miss Victoria Hicks, Niece of Chief John Ross
About Seller
6270 Este Ave.
Cincinnati , OH 45232
United States
With offices in Cincinnati, Cleveland and Denver, Cowan’s holds over 40 auctions each year, with annual sales exceeding $16M. We reach buyers around the globe, and take pride in our reputation for integrity, customer service and great results. A full-service house, Cowan’s Auctions specializes in Am...Read more
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About Auction
LiveJun 22, 2018
Cowan’s American History: Premier Auction, scheduled for June 22, 2018 is comprised of early photographs, documents, manuscripts, broadsides, flags, and more dating from the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, Late Indian Wars, World War I and II and beyond. Cowan's Auctions dawnie@cowans.com
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- Lot Description
Autograph album of Cherokee student Miss Victoria Susan Hicks, 7.5 x 9.25 in., 142 pp, red leather cover with embossed gold lettering which reads “The Casket of Mementos.” Contains more than 50+ unique autographs spanning 1855 – 1864. Signatures represent a “who’s who” of prominent Cherokee Nation families, and several inscriptions are recognized as significant contributions to American Indian Literature including original poems by John Gunter Lipe and Emma Lowrey Williams.
Victoria Hicks Lipe (1833-1867) was born in Indian Territory to a prominent Cherokee family. Her mother, Margaret Ross Hicks, was the sister of Principal Cherokee Chief John Ross. Her father, Elijah Hicks, served as an editor of the influential Cherokee newspaper the Cherokee Phoenix and Indians’ Advocate, as a Cherokee political leader, and was appointed by Chief John Ross as a conductor in the forced westward migration known as the “Trail of Tears.”
Upon arrival in Indian Territory in the 1830s, the Cherokees sought to reproduce the impressive cultural, political, and educational systems they had previously established in the East. Opened in 1851 near the new Cherokee capitol of Tahlequah, Indian Territory, the Cherokee Male and Female Seminaries were among the earliest institutions of higher learning West of the Mississippi River. Victoria attended the Cherokee Female Seminary along with a small group of children of the Cherokee elite, and was a member of its second graduating class in February 1856. This autograph album was given to Victoria by her father in 1855, during her final year at the Seminary. The flyleaf inscription reads, "Presented to Victoria Hicks by her Father, E. Hicks." Another inscription with poetic verse is dated April 13, 1855, signed in full "Elijah Hicks." The majority of autographs in the album date from 1855-1856 and seem to have been collected in conjunction with her impending graduation. The autographs typically include some type of poetic verse or reflection along with the author’s signature, location, and the date. The autographs also reflect the close-knit community and friendships that blossomed among the students at both the male and female seminaries.
Of particular interest in the album is an original poem written for Miss Hicks which would later go on to achieve a measure of literary acclaim. The original poem addressed “To Miss Vic” dated February 27, 1861, was written by John Gunter Lipe (1844-1862). Lipe fought in the Confederate Army under Cherokee General Stand Watie. He was killed on July 27, 1862, in a skirmish at Bayou Menard, located near Fort Gibson in Indian Territory, when his cavalry was attacked by the pro-Union 1st Kansas Indian Home Guard Regiment under the command of Major William A. Phillips. (Interestingly, it seems that the same William A. Phillips autographed this album in 1864 with a poem titled “Ketowa.”) Years later, Lipe’s poem would be recognized as important and documented in the book by Emmet Starr, History of the Cherokee Indians and Their Legends and Folklore. The poem is also documented in the book Changing Is Not Vanishing: A Collection of American Indian Poetry to 1930 by Robert Dale Parker.
Another original poem in the album also achieved a measure of acclaim. “Life” written by Emma Lowrey Williams Gunter (ca 1834-?), an 1856 graduate of the Cherokee Female Seminary, similarly appears in Changing Is Not Vanishing. Included among the dozens of additional autographs are the following: Chief Joel B. Mayes (1833-1891), Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, autograph appears with poem “The Future”; Lucinda M. Ross, cousin to Victoria; Daniel Ross Hicks, Victoria’s brother; and numerous other representatives of prominent Cherokee families including the Archers, Fryes, Bushyheads, Vanns, and Adairs.
In September 1861, Victoria Hicks married John Gunter Lipe’s older brother, DeWitt Clinton Lipe (1840-1916) who was a fellow classmate in the Cherokee Seminary School. Several entries in the album indicate that Victoria Lipe was active in her community following her marriage particularly providing aid to soldiers in need. A September 1862 note from William P. Worthington states that “Our troops received a kind welcome from your citizens. The inmates of our hospital will never be able to liquidate the debt of gratitude they owe to the people of Tahlequah….”
Victoria Hicks Lipe died of cholera in August 1867, an event noted by an unidentified hand in her autograph album: "Victoria S. Lipe died on Dog Creek Coo-me-Scoo-me District Cherokee Nation on Saturday [?]/4 oclock P.M. August 24th 1867."
Showcasing Cherokee authors and containing many original compositions, this autograph album represents an interesting and significant piece of American Indian and literary history.
Provenance: Came to consignor from an estate sale.Front cover and rear cover are fully separated from the album. Spine of the book is no longer extant. Binding is loose in sections and completely undone in others. Overall toning, some pages with soil, foxing, and brittle pages, several with later pencil scribblings typically indicating historical accomplishments or passings related to autograph. Notable poems, however, are easily legible, as are all other autographs.Condition
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