Nations at War!: Field Sketches of a Pawnee Warrior by Eric D. Singleton, Ph.D. and David D'Andrea, Ph.D.

Brummett Echohawk (1922-2006) came from a long line of warriors. In the mid-1800s, the Pawnee worked for the U.S. Army as scouts, fought in the Spanish American War and World War I. For Echohawk being a warrior meant being Pawnee. He would carry out this tradition as a soldier and artist. In 1939, while still in high school, he joined the Oklahoma National Guard along with many young men seeking economic opportunity and to continue in the Native American warrior tradition.

The Oklahoma National Guard formed part of the 45th Infantry Division, comprised of National Guard units from Oklahoma, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona. In September 1940 the 45th Infantry Division was federalized in preparation for possible involvement in World War II. For three years, the 45th Division trained on bases across the U.S. before landing on the beaches of Italy in July 1943. After storming and capturing a building in Sicily, Echohawk found pencils and drawing paper on the floor. As he later recalled: “I drew pictures of the British, of the German soldiers, of the British Empire troops, and I wrote on the back of a mess kit, using a mess kit for my easel, stand or whatnot. And I made accounts of what we did.”

The contents of this exhibition pamphlet are examples of these works as well as quotes from his handwritten notes.