Almost to Our Winter Nest

A cold spell has brought some ominous weather to the area.

This was the weather the morning we left Bernalillo, on our way to Gallup, NM. If you remember in the last post I spoke of possible snow in the Albuquerque/Bernalillo area... let me show you what we missed from the night before.

This dusting of snow, about 1/2 to 1 inch, was our view on the drive to Gallup. Apparently it was a troublesome night for drivers on the road, I'm imagining visibility was poor, and the roads were icy. What makes me come to this conclusion... semi-tractor trailers rolled over on both sides of the road, in multiple locations. Our biggest concern was the wind... again.

What was spectacular on this drive were the mesas.

Its kind of tough to see, but there was one mesa after another, like they were stacked next to each other, with their beautiful colors of sand and rock. That light spot to the left in the photo is where the sun punched through the clouds.

After checking in, we began our oh so long drive to our site. The campground was fairly empty, with exception of the "livers", or better known as full time residents. We talked with one gentleman whose has been here for seven weeks, his diesel fuel pump went out on him, and is waiting repair parts.

As you might be able to see, the campground is pretty open, with a few trees. Our arrival did not warm up the weather, we were setting up in temperatures in the mid-thirties, and it didn't warm up much more.

This is how you ensure you have water on cold nights.

I learned this trick from a wise full time RV sage. The water hose is heated, meaning there is a wire running through the jacketing and plugged into electricity. To protect the faucet and other brass fittings a five gallon bucket and a shop utility light augment the warming process. Our nights were in the mid to upper 20s. The warmest night was our last night, we're talking shorts temperature... 35 degrees. It was a good thing we left when we did, the nighttime temperatures dropped into the teens.

So, what did we do while we were in Gallup, we drove the four miles into downtown Gallup, and visited the Cultural center.

The town is soooo large (ha ha) that the cultural center is located in the Amtrak station, along with a café, newly opened bakery, gift shop, and of course the passenger waiting area. 

The Cultural Center is the entire second floor of the building. The main reason we wanted to visit the center was its tribute to the Navajo Code Talkers of WWII, and this is where I will start.

It all started in February, 1942, when Phillip Johnston approached Lt. Col. James Jones, Signal Officer at Camp Elliot, in Los Angeles, about the utilization of the Navajo Indian language as a basis for military code.

March saw the recommendation for enlisting 200 Navajos as Communication Specialists. In April, the USMC authorized a "pilot project" of one platoon, which consisted of 29 Navajos.

After graduating in June, the Communication Specialists created the first code, consisting of 211 words, and 26 words for each alphabet letter (a word for each letter). By August, most of the Navajos were sent to Guadalcanal, and were only used in limited situations.

The man that suggested using the Navajo, and the language, now enlists as a Staff Sargent in the USMC in October, and is placed in charge of the Code Talker recruitment and training program.

Dec. 7, 1942, SSgt. Johnston receives his first class of trainees from boot camp. During this time more than 200 new words or terms were added to the code.

Nov. 1943 the 3rd Division Navajo Code Talkers saw action on the frontline in the battle of Bougsinville; 2nd Division saw action for the battle of Tarawa.

1944 was a busy time for the Code Talkers. The newly-formed 4th Division with there compliment of Code Talkers, invaded the Marshall Islands and captured Kwajalein Atoll. Later the 2nd and 4th Divisions captured Saipan. The 3rd Division was busy fighting a bloody battle on Guam; 1st Division landed on Peleieu, where the Code Talkers saw plenty of action. In September of 1944 saw the discharge of  Sgt. Phillip Johnston, after training over 400 Code Talkers.

The war got more intense in 1945 with the month long battle for Iwo Jima, the last amphibious assault, which took place on Okinawa. The Code Talkers served with great distinction, and after the Japanese surrendered, many of the Code Talkers served with the Occupation Forces in Japan and China.

The word displayed next to the animal is the word for that particular animal. The picture under each is what the Navajo word pertained to. (i.e. LO TSO, pronounced Lo So) is the word for whale, which referred to a ship.)

The young man who escorted us up to the museum, is the grandson of one the original Code Talkers.

The rest of the museum is dedicated to the region, town, and indigenous natives.

History lesson: The town is named after Davis L. Gallup, a paymaster for the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad, which later became part of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad. The town has also been called "The Gateway to native America" because it is the threshold to multiple indigenous cultures.

Here is an example of one the men that came from Gallup. This young man's name was Hiroshi "Hershey" Miyamura, a Japanese-American that lived in Gallup. In early 1944 he was drafted, and assigned to the Nisei 442nd Regimental Combat Team (became the most decorated American unit in WWII). He did not see overseas action due to age restriction for overseas duty... he was only 18 at the time.

After the war ended he enlisted in the Army Reserve, and in 1951 was called to serve in the Korean War. He arrived in Korea as a Corporal, in charge of a machine gun unit. This is where history was made. His unit was directed to defend a portion of a river, which was eventually overrun by the enemy. Cpl. Miyamura didn't let the enemy have the area without a fight. Ordering his men to retreat to a new position, he continued to provide fire support for his men, doing this twice. On his way to the American fallback position he sustained injuries from an enemy grenade, which flew shrapnel into his legs. While he thought he was heading to the fallback position, he fell into a ditch, became unconscious, then waking to a Chinese officer standing over him. He ended up in a prisoner-of-war camp for two years. You say, ya, so what made him special, go to the following:

https://www.cmohs.org/recipients/hiroshi-miyamura. 

He did not receive his Medal of Honor until 1953, the Army did not want the Chinese to know he was a Medal of Honor recipient, they would have killed him while a prisoner.

What are we lookin at now... the reason Atlantic and Pacific Railroad came to town... coal.

In 1850 Army Surveyors discovered coal in the area, and it was the reason why the railroad chose a route here. By 1880 there was coal production to support the railroad; by 1900 there were several mines in operation,  bringing European immigrants. The smoke stack in the background was built in 1920, beginning the era of electricity for the town of Gallup. By 1926 there were 21 working mines; the display is circ 1928.

Here is a look at some Native American artwork.

What you are looking at are kachina dolls. These are the work of a Zuni artist. This is a unique set of dolls, as there was an attempt to represent all known Zuni kachina dolls. The artist created them with the assistance of his grandfather, who was a ceremonialist, and from his own knowledge of the Kachina Cult. 

This collection consists of kachina dolls from the Navajo, Comanche, Kianakwe, Hopi, Sioux, and White Mountain Apache nations.

Because Carol is into beading, we have a tendency to admire other artists bead work, and here you go.

These are examples of evolution after the arrival of Europeans. In the ages before Europeans, beadwork was done primarily using shells, stones, quills, and bone, all patiently carved using non-metal tools. Only with evolution did the artwork become so ornate.

In other areas there examples of their weaving and sand painting. We will start with the art of sand painting. It wasn't, and still isn't like hopping into the truck and driving to an art supply store or Walmart. To get the colors the desired required some traveling, or trading with other Indian nations.

Most of their rock come from New Mexico, but can range all the way to Colorado and Idaho.

Please pardon the lights and glare, it was a sunny day the day we visited. Here is the result of multiple people making this creation.

 

The couple in the last sand painting is Father Sky and Mother Earth. 

Before we exited this side of the museum, we enjoyed some of their weaving work. Like the sand painting, their color sources come

from the earth. What you see is an ancient loom used to  make rugs, but there is little change in the looms used today. I am going to provide a photo of the exhibit displaying the natural materials used for their colors, hopefully you will be able to zoom in, and be amazed yourself.

Unfortunately I had to take the picture at an angle to remove most of the glaring reflection that would prevent seeing it, period.

This next rug began its life in 1930, as a wedding gift.

The rug was used in the home until 1938 when the family moved to California, and it was packed away. The husband passed in WWII, and his wife moved several times, but never unpacked the rug. Once the wife died, their daughter donated the rug to the Cultural Center.

Off we go to the other side of the museum where the exhibits are on temporary display, 'cause they rotate the artists, along with other items.

This is a Zuni storage jar that is dated somewhere between 1880 and 1920. The designs on the pottery are hand painted, with a very steady hand I might add.

This piece of art was obtained in 2000, through the Trail of Painted Ponies program. This pony is called Chase and Michaela (Children Casing Their Dreams). Michaela is leading Chase and all those dreams into the future. This work of represents the efforts of 28 artists.

This next piece of art is a functional piece.

Image finding the perfect cottonwood tree truck for the drum body, then stretching a piece of hide over it , letting it dry, then adding the design... you now have a piece of functioning artwork. In the day it all would have been accomplished without power tools.

The Native American talents did not just lie with making tools, weapons, and instruments, it also lends a big hand in making their ceremonial garments. Take a look.

Keep in mind that the colors and feathers came from Mother Earth. These dancers come from various Indian cultures.

One last pony before we leave the museum.

This painted pony is entitled, As Long As There is One. The artist tells stories through his painted ponies that are about a people rich in heritage and traditions. They are sometimes poignant, often angry, but are powerful and demand to be told. This artist's work can be seen throughout the United States.

We will be crossing the line in our next post... but you will have to wait and see why I say that.