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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Alice's Restaurant Massacree— “Alice didn’t live in a restaurant. She lived in the church nearby the restaurant. . .” #ArloGuthrie purchased the building in 1991, and founded the Guthrie Center. Thanksgiving Dinner is served for free there on Thanksgiving Day guthriecenter.org [Photo: 1968, Getty]

Black and white photo of Arlo Guthrie in 1968, holding a guitar (Getty Images)

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

The 1877 Flight of the Nez Perce route from the Wallowa Valley of NE Oregon to the final battlefield just south of the Canadian border.

Map of the 1877 Flight of the Nez Perce, showing their route from the Wallowa Valley in Oregon to the final battlefield just south of the Canadian border.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

OTD in 1877, Hinmatóowyalahtq̓it, or Hinmaton Yalaktit (“Thunder Rolling Down the Mountain"), also known as #ChiefJoseph, or Joseph the Younger, surrendered to General Nelson Miles on the windswept Northern Plains. #BearPawBattlefield — The Flight of the #NezPerce comes to an end.

Historical marker on the Bear Paw Battlefield outside of Chinook, Montana, indicating where Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce surrendered some of the surviving non-treaty people who had been relentlessly pursued and attacked by the United States Army.

Sign reads:

October 5, 1887 11:00 a.m.
With the fighting at a standoff, Hinmatóowyalahtq̓it (Chief Joseph) met with Colonel Miles near this site. Surrender was a survival strategy, to keep the Nez Perce people alive and together. One witness reported that Chief Joseph spoke these words:

Tell General Howard I know his heart. What he told me before I have in my heart. I an tired of fighting. Our chiefs are killed. Looking Glass is dead. Tukulxućúut is dead. The old men are all dead. It is the young men who say yes or no. He who leads the young men is dead. It is cold and we have no blankets. The little children are freezing to death.

My people some of them have run away to the hills and have no blankets, no food; no one knows where they are, perhaps freezing to death. I want to look for my children and see how many I can find. Maybe I shall find them among the dead. Hear me my chiefs, I am tired; my heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands, I will fight no more forever.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

[2027 tour] Modoc War in the Lava Beds 1872–1873 talks and guided battlefield tours Tour Dates: August 12–14, 2027 (Klamath Falls, Oregon) whtours.org/the-modoc-wa...

Announcement of 2027 tour, "Modoc War in the Lava Beds," showing a) a photo of Captain Jack, b) three books on the Modoc and the Modoc War, and c) map from the Lava Beds National Monument showing sites related to the Modoc War of 1873

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Four sphinxes stand guard over the tomb of Leland Stanford. During construction, this & another buxom statue flanked the mausoleum entrance, but Jane Stanford "found the artistic effect not pleasing." She had the 2 lady sphinxes move to the back, and installed less voluptuous sphinxes in the front.

A large-breasted Greek-style sphinx outside the mauseleum where Leland and Jane Stanford, and Leland Stanford, Jr., are entombed. On the campus of Stanford University.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Prayer to Corn People, 1975, Terrance Talaswaima (Honsvantewa), #Hopi. www.adobegallery.com/artist/terra...

CIrcular red and green painting depicting Hopi and cornstalks, offering "Prayer to Corn People."

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

2027 HISTORY ADVENTURE Plains, Deserts, & Mountains: THE DONNER-REED ODYSSEY on the CALIFORNIA TRAIL Sept 27–Oct 3, 2027 Fly into Salt Lake City; fly out of Sacramento [historian-guided motor coach tour; seating is limited to approx. 25] TOUR PAGE: whtours.org/plains-deser... #DonnerParty

illustration of rescuers in a snowy mountain landscape. "Arrival of a relief party, February 1847." Frontispiece for, The Expedition of the Donner Party, by Eliza P. Donner. Houghton, 1920

Dust jacket photos and descriptions of six books published on the Donner Party Tragedy and the California Trail

Photo of the Donner Memorial, at Donner Memorial State Park, California, showing an emigrant family walking and looking into the distance

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

In all my days, I've never even thought of marking a bacterial mat. There's no point in starting now [Yellowstone's Grand Prismatic Spring]

Photo of the steamy and colorful Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park, with a sign warning visitors: "D not mark bacterial mat."

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Bucket of Blood Saloon, Virginia City, Nevada. Truly, the Wild West was wild as hell. [Google Street View]

Photo of the sign for the Bucket of Blood saloon in Virginia City, Nevada, with an American flag flying by the front door.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Simon & Schuster (September 8, 2026). 448 pages #BookSky💙📚

Front cover of "The Ballad of the Fugitive William Parker: A True Tale of Love, Murder, Treason, and Ordinary Folks Who Saved America," by Cristin O'Keefe Aptowicz. Published Sept 2027

Author Photo (jpg): Cristin O'Keefe Aptowicz
Photograph by Chisum Pierce

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Adventures in History lineup for 2027

a new flyer for Woodbury Historical Tours offerings for the year 2027: War on the Powder River tour (April 2-4, 2027); 4th Central Coast Conference (April 30-May 2, 2027); The Wilderness & Spotsylvania tour (June 3-6, 2027); Captain Jack's Stronghold, the Modoc War of 1872-73 (August 12-14, 2027; and Plains, Deserts, & Mountains: The Donner Party Tragedy on the California Trail (September 27-October 2, 2027).

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

September 22, 1862 marked a major turning point in the Great Slaveholders' Rebellion. Preliminary Draft of #EmancipationProclamation. Abraham Lincoln, July 22, 1862. Series 1. General Correspondence. 1833-1916. Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress. Manuscript Division.

Photo of the hand-written Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation issued by President Abraham Lincoln (from the Library of Congress)

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

"All [constitutional amendments] are equal but some [constitutional amendments] are more equal than others" —(with apologies to George Orwell) Gun fetishists become apoplectic if someone hints at enhanced gun control (2nd Amendment), but are strangely quiet when 45 vetoes the 1st Amendment

Photo of a reproduction of the Bill of Rights from the U.S. Constitution

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Born OTD in 1944, the great Jesse Ed Davis. In his short life (died at age 43), he had an amazing career, and left his mark. An outstanding biography, "Washita Love Child," came out in 2024. wwnorton.com/books/978132... #BookSky💙📚#JesseEdDavis

A photograph of Jesse Ed Davis sitting on a wicker chair, playing the guitar, along with an image of the front cover of a recent (2024) biography, entitled "Washita Love Child, The Rise of Indigenous Rock Star Jesse Ed Davis, by Douglas K. Miller.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

wondering whether one can place a Kalshi wager on how long before Arlington is ordered to formally unveil the Donald J. Trump Eternal Flame at JFK's gravesite.

Photo of the eternal flame at the gravesite of John F. Kennedy, Arlington National Cemetery

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Battle of Antietam— On this date in 1862, 132,000 Americans — divided into opposing armies — engaged in a mighty battle outside the town of Sharpsburg, along western Maryland's #Antietam Creek. It remains the deadliest single-day battle in the nation's history.

Photo of the Dunker Church on the Antietam battlefield, one of the most recognizable battlefield landmarks. In the foreground are three artillery pieces, and an informational sign with a photo of the same view from 1862, showing the church, a cannon, and dead soldiers.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

this week I put a new t-shirt into the rotation

T-shirt showing a high school mascot for the Chinook (Montana) Sugarbeeters: an angry red sugar beet menacingly swinging its arms

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

"By the time the Sultana went down, they had endured seemingly everything the world can throw at you: violence, deprivation, sickness, humiliation, the loss of friends and brothers, betrayal by their own country and in some cases by fellow soldiers." #BookSky💙📚

Cover of Alan Huffman's book, SULTANA: Surviving the Civil War, Prison, and the Worst Maritime Disaster in American History (https://alanhuffman.com/books/sultana/)

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Big sky over Bear Paw Battlefield 48.37590° N, 109.21029° W #NezPerce

Photos of treeless landscape of Northern Montana, near Chinook, showing brown prairie grass, clouds, and a blue sky over the Bear Paw Battlefield. Our tour bus can just be seen in the distance. (Nez Perce War of 1877)

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Before audiobooks, you had to get someone to call you from one of these library stations, and read a book to you over the phone. Limited selection, and very inconvenient. #BookSky💙📚

Photo of an old free-standing pay telephone box that has been converted into a "Free Books" library.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

“Anything can happen, and anything does;” ― Annie Dillard, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek

Photo of Annie Dillard in Key West. She died at age 81 on September 15, 2026

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

“I felt betrayed, the way you do when you discover that your cat has a secret secondary life and is being fed by neighbors who call him something stupid like Calypso. Worse is that he loves them as much as he loves you, which is to say not at all, really." ― David Sedaris, Calypso #BookSky💙📚

Photo of author David Sedaris hunched over an old manual typewriter.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

Detail from "The Battle of Greasy Grass," by Allan Mardon, 1996, oil on linen; wooden frame with painted tin figures. Buffalo Bill Center of the West [centerofthewest.org] #LittleBigHorn

Detail from "The Battle of Greasy Grass," by Allan Mardon,
1996, oil on linen; wooden frame with painted tin figures. Buffalo Bill Center of the West [https://centerofthewest.org] — depiction of the fighting during the Battle of the Little Bighorn

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

Detail from "The Battle of Greasy Grass," by Allan Mardon, 1996, oil on linen; wooden frame with painted tin figures. Buffalo Bill Center of the West [centerofthewest.org] #LittleBigHorn

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

OTD in 1813: Battle of Lake Erie, a significant U.S. naval victory in the War of 1812. Battle of Lake Erie, depicting Master Commandant Oliver Hazard Perry transferring to the U.S. brig Niagara, painting by William H. Powell, 1865; in the U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. Library of Congress

Battle of Lake Erie, depicting Master Commandant Oliver Hazard Perry transferring to the U.S. brig Niagara, painting by William H. Powell, 1865; in the U.S. Capitol, Washington,

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

merry-go-round, if you dare [Bannack State Park]

Photo of an old merry-go-round, all wood slats and metal bars, and a warning sign, "Antique Merry-Go-Round, Use at Own Risk"

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

"Kin in the Cotton Fields" blackstudies.yale.edu/event/depart...

Description of September 17 lecture by Rashauna Johnson, Professor of History at the University of Chicago:

September 17, 2026
Kin in the Cotton Fields: A Blues History of Black Lijfe

This talk uses archival research and family memories to illuminate the lives and times of select figures who died and, critically, also lived in the long shadow of King Cotton. Drawing on select moments in the history of the author’s maternal grandmother’s birthplace, Louisiana’s Feliciana region, it meditates on the deeply contingent experiences of 19th-century “development” and “progress” and the ways those divergent experiences and the memories to which they gave rise haunt us all.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

two images from the Indian Memorial on Last Stand Hill, Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument

A portrait of the Cheyenne Wooden Leg, along with a quote by him, on a panel of the Indian Memorial at the Little Bighorn Battlefield. Quote reads, "We had killed soldiers who had come to kill us" (1906).

Photo of the lead rider at the Indian Memorial at Little Bighorn Battlefield — a sculpture that shows a warrior with bow and arrow on horseback, with a long flowing feather headdress. Cloth prayer offerings have been affixed to the sculpture by visitors

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Two countries separated by a common language. . . They say biscuit, and we say cookie. They say chips, and we say fries. They arrest child-rapists and we arrest children.

Mike Lukovich political cartoon showing "Justice" in the UK on the left (policeman arresting Prince Andrew), and "Just Ice" in the US on the right (ICE agent arresting a child).

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

The Chinese Hour . . . Recorded from the Golden Star Radio space between 1939 to 1979—it the first Cantonese language radio show in North America, and also served as a lifeline for scores of new San Francisco residents who had recently immigrated from China. Read: www.sfgate.com/local/articl...

May Chin Tong, shown in elegant dress, sitting with a KSAN microphone, was one of just a few women working in broadcast at that time, and known as the “voice of Chinatown.” Photo on SFGATE, courtesy of Ron Tong

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Change of Seasons by T.D. Kelsey (b. 1946) 1994, bronze, edition 6 of 10 Buffalo Bill Center of the West Cody, Wyoming

Bronze sculpture of two bison, one standing and one lying down.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Elk Bar and Good Food Chinook, Montana The neon lady is drinking a martini while sitting in a #martini, because that's how it's done way up in the North Country.

Photo of an old neon sign in Chinook, Montana, for the Elk Bar. It features a neon graphic of a woman drinking a martini while sitting in a martini glass.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

OTD 245 years ago —LOS ANGELES— "On September 4, 1781, the 11 men, 11 women, and 22 children recruited by Alta California Governor Felipe de Neve founded El Pueblo de la Reyna de Los Angeles (The Town of the Queen of the Angels)" [Library of Congress]

La Plaza, as seen from the Pico House, c. 1869. The "Old Plaza Church" is to the left, the brick reservoir on the right, and in the center of the plaza, was the original terminus of the Zanja Madre aqueduct.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Tonto's Dream by David Bradley (Minnesota Chippewa, b. 1954) 2013, acrylic on canvas Buffalo Bill Center of the West

[Museum description] Bradley uses humor, history, and pop culture symbols to highlight sociall and political issues Native peoples face today. Here, he portrays Tonto, the Lone Ranger's Native partner, sleeping in a desert landscape. Buffalo Gals, ghost riders, and the Lone Ranger himself - made famous in song, radio, and film - showcase the West's commercialization.

Bradley's hometown of Santa Fe serves as the backdrop, complete with its casinos, modern-day traffic, and adobe architecture.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

a sad and somber place Bear Paw Battlefield Chinook, Montana #NezPerce #ChiefJoseph

picture of D. Woodbury standing by a historical marker on the Bear Paw Battlefield, the final battle of the Nez Perce War of 1877. The marker discusses the speech attributed to Chief Joseph, saying that "from where the sun now stands, I will fight no more forever."

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Sunday at the Little Bighorn. (1) Indian Memorial, (2) the inimitable Neil Mangum at Reno-Benteen, and (3) our intrepid group discussing Reno's retreat as a storm closes in. #LittleBighorn

Part of the Indian Memorial atop Last Stand Hill, showing a woman handing a shield to a mounted warrior. Prayer offerings adorn the sculpture.

Former Little Bighorn historian and superintendent Neil Mangum, standing at the historical marker atop the Reno-Benteen defensive position.

our tour group walking the Reno-Benteen trail as forbidding storm clouds approach our position

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Buffalo Bill by Peter Vandenberge (b. 1935) n.d., wood, pigment, and earthenware #BuffaloBill Center of the West, Cody WY

A bust/sculpture of Buffalo Bill Cody, made of wood, pigment, and earthenware

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

HALF BREED Fritz Scholder, 1974 Luiseño Scholder explains the title & how he approaches the portrait: "I saw the numerous over romanticized paintings of the 'noble savage' looking in the sunset & decided that someone should paint the Indian from a different context." Buffalo Bill Center of the West

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

U.S. SOLDIER 7TH CAVALRY FELL HERE JUNE 25, 1876 #LittleBighorn

Marker for fallen 7th Cavalry trooper on the Little Bighorn Battlefield, reads: U.S. Soldier, 7th Cavalry, Fell Here, June 25, 1876"

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

PARLEY Earl Biss (1947-1998) Apsaalooke (Crow) 1977, Color Ithograph on paper Whitney Western Art Museum Purchase, Buffalo Bill Center of the West

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

Western Man with Beer and Dog Audrey Roll-Preissler 1984-1985, mixed media Buffalo Bill Center of the West, Cody, WY

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Neil Mangum tracking the route of the Nez Perce as they transited Yellowstone National Park. Many sites in Yellowstone are associated with the Flight of the Nez Perce, and several are well marked. #NezPerce #Yellowstone

Historian Neil Mangum, pointing at a park map, traces the route of the Nez Perce who crossed Yellowstone National Park in 1877

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Camas Meadows Battlefield 32 miles east of Dubois, Idaho During the 1877 Flight of the Nez Perce

photo of three Native American (Nez Perce) warrior sculptures on the Camas Meadows Battlefield in Idaho. The battle took place during the 1877 Nez Perce War.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Dead Indian Pass Elevation 8,071 ft Chief Joseph Scenic Byway

Sculpture of a native woman at Dead, Indian pass, Wyoming, with the mountains in the distance

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

In the Nez Perce village, Big Hole National Battlefield, Montana. #NezPerce #BigHole

Lodgepoles set up to form teepees, depicting the Nez Perce village at the Bighole Battlefield National Monument in Montana. Here, the U.S. army made a surprise attack on the village. Both sides suffered grievous casualties before the Nez Perce thwarted the attack, and departed.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Photo of Sarah Conner, a descendant of the brother of Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce (from an informational card at the Big Hole Battlefield National Monument) #NezPerce

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

First stop today: The Battle of Spokane Plains. Other stops included the Four Lakes battlefield, the sad and somber Qualchan Hanging Site, the Steptoe Battlefield, Nez Perce National Historic Site, Spalding Mission, and Fort Lapwai. #NezPerce #Spokan #Yakama #Palus #Coeurd'Alene

Painting depicting the Battle of Spokane Plains.

Portrait of a Nez Perce man with dark round glasses, on display at the Nez Perce National Historic Site

Paying respects at the Qualchan Hanging Site.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

DAY ONE of our Nez Perce Trail expedition. and so it begins . . . [map: in Elliott West, The Last Indian War] #NezPerce

A map of the Nez Perce War Outbreak, June-July 1877, showing the Nez Perce Reservation, and the early battles and skirmishes of their long flight toward freedom

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Where No Indian Has Gone Before, 2019 Johnnie Diacon (Mvskoke ) by Acrylic on stretched canvas 22" x 28" — Johnnie Diacon Art

Painting by Johnnie Diacon (Mvskoke) of two Native Americans in Star Trek uniforms, one of them carrying the very rarely seen phaser rifle.

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What's Past is Prologue @wpip.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

They say "Virginia is for Lovers." Well, NOW it is. But it wasn't until 1967 (!!!) that SCOTUS invalidated anti-miscegenation laws in this country. In Bowling Green, Virginia today, you can visit the courtroom, the jail where the Lovings were locked up, and a little museum nearby. #Lovings

Museum exhibit of figures made up to look like Mr. and Mrs. Loving

Plaque in the courtroom reads: "Caroline County, Virginia
LOVINGS v. VIRGINIA -- In 1958, Mildred Jeter and Richard Loving violated Virginia's felony law against interracial marriage. They were arrested and convicted in this courthouse. Their sentence was suspended, provided they not return to Virginia, or their Central Point home, as a couple for 25 years. Mrs. Loving then wrote to U.S. Atty.
Gen. Robert Kennedy, asking for help. Nine years later, the U.S.
Supreme Court overturned their conviction, ending all antimisogyny laws nationwide. In 1995, a feature film entitled, "Mr. & Mrs. Loving," told their story to the world. All related court records may be found in the Caroline Circuit Court Clerk's office.

"They fought not for the love of Civil Rights but for the Civil Right to love." Bernard Cohen, Atty., Lovings v. Virginia"

The red brick jailhouse where the Lovings were locked up.

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