Photo found in Deadwood Thrift Store

[voice2]

A post on Facebook's "Historic Deadwood.When" is unidentified. I wonder if it was taken at Fort Randall in 1881 when the other photographs of Sitting Bull's family with Catherine Weldon were taken. There appears to be an African American man in background (behind indigenous woman with eyeglasses and next to white woman also with eyeglasses). White women's clothing is clearly of 1880s style which is consistent with use of travois. I compared it to another photo taken at Fort Randall but officers' wives in background are too obscure. Help appreciated. See close ups of sections of photo at www.facebook.com/groups/Deadwood.when/?post_id=1827453704077549&comment_id=1827534677402785&notif_id=1605231784576586&notif_t=group_comment_mention

Thanks. 

[grahamew]

I'm reckoning some kind of pageant from the early 1900s.

[voice2]

I thought about that but the Custer "Gold Discovery Days" pageant did not include indigenous people, only white people dressed up as "Indians." "The Days of '76" in Deadwood did include indigenous people in the 1940s so is a possibility. But would a pregnant woman have participated?

[grahamew]

I might even suggest the first part of the Paha Sapa Pageant which consisted largely of women - and I may be wrong, but I think there are a couple of non-Indians painted up to look like Indians - unless they're meant to represent the spirits of the Black Hills or whatever

[Californian]

Sitting Bull's photographs while at Ft. Randall date to 1882 and Caroline Weldon did not get to Dakota Territory until 1889 and there are no known photographs of her and indeed on that image are people that appear to have been dressed up as Indians, thus I would concur that this is likely from some type of pageant, maybe as recent as the 1940's or 1950's by the feel of it