Art historian Moira F. Harris analyzes the known Fort Marion drawings
attributed to Wo-Haw, Kiowa warrior and artist (1855-1924), in
relationship to then contemporary events.. Her work shows how Kiowa
Indian painting developed from its traditional beginnings to the preset
day. This most unusual colony of artists developed at Fort Marion, St.
Augustine, Florida, where more than seventy men from five hostile tribes
of the Southern Plains were imprisoned from 1875 to 1878. Their
humanitarian jailer, Captain Richard H. Pratt, believed they could be
made into useful productive citizens if given direction and the
opportunity to develop their native abilities. He provided them with
paper, pencils, and colors, and offered them the opportunity to produce
art works for sale to whites. More than a third of these Florida boys
participated and hundreds of their works are preserved in widely
scattered public and private collections.