Matthew K. Sniffen was an American activist. He worked for the Indian Rights Association and wrote about issues affecting Native Americans.
In 1908, Sniffen testified before the United States Congress about the Crow Reservation having poor conditions, and allegations of corruption and profiteering by its United States Government appointed Indian Agent. [1]
In 1911, he testified at the annual Lake Mohonk Conference. [2] In 1916, he reported on the conditions of the Seminole in Florida and their efforts to secure land from the state. [3]
Sniffen was photographed with George La Vatta in Talmaks, Idaho. [4]
Polk County is a county located in the central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. The county population was 725,046, as of the 2020 census, and estimated to be 818,330, as of July 1, 2023. Its county seat is Bartow, and its largest city is Lakeland. Polk County comprises the Lakeland–Winter Haven metropolitan statistical area (MSA). This MSA is the 77th-most populous one and the 89th-most populous primary statistical area of the United States as of July 1, 2012. The center of population of Florida is located in Polk County, near the city of Lake Wales. Polk County is home to one public university, one state college, and four private universities.
Sanford is a city and the county seat of Seminole County, Florida. It is located in Central Florida and its population was 61,051 as of the 2020 census. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, was a conflict initially fought by European colonial empires, the United States, and briefly the Confederate States of America and Republic of Texas against various American Indian tribes in North America. These conflicts occurred from the time of the earliest colonial settlements in the 17th century until the end of the 19th century. The various wars resulted from a wide variety of factors, the most common being the desire of settlers and governments for Indian tribes' lands. The European powers and their colonies enlisted allied Indian tribes to help them conduct warfare against each other's colonial settlements. After the American Revolution, many conflicts were local to specific states or regions and frequently involved disputes over land use; some entailed cycles of violent reprisal.
The Mohonk Preserve is a nature preserve in the Shawangunk Ridge, 90 miles (140 km) north of New York City in Ulster County, New York. The preserve has over 8,000 acres (32 km2) of cliffs, forests, fields, ponds and streams, with over 70 miles (110 km) of carriage roads and 40 miles (64 km) of trails for hiking, cycling, trail running, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and horseback riding. It is also a major destination for rock climbers, hosting 50,000 climbers each year who enjoy more than 1,000 climbing routes.
The Shawangunk Ridge, also known as the Shawangunk Mountains or The Gunks, is a ridge of bedrock in Ulster County, Sullivan County and Orange County in the state of New York, extending from the northernmost point of the border with New Jersey to the Catskills. The Shawangunk Ridge is a continuation of the long, easternmost section of the Appalachian Mountains; the ridge is known as Kittatinny Mountain in New Jersey, and as Blue Mountain as it continues through Pennsylvania. This ridge constitutes the western border of the Great Appalachian Valley.
The Mohonk Mountain House, also known as Lake Mohonk Mountain House, is a resort hotel located south of the Catskill Mountains on the crest of the Shawangunk Ridge, New York. The property lies at the junction of the towns of New Paltz, Marbletown, and Rochester.
Alice Cunningham Fletcher was an American ethnologist, anthropologist, and social scientist who studied and documented Native American culture.
The Indian Rights Association (IRA) was a social activist group dedicated to the well-being and acculturation of Native Americans in the United States. Founded by non-Indians in Philadelphia in 1882, the group was highly influential in American Indian policy through the 1930s and remained an organization until 1994. The organization's initial objective was to "bring about the complete civilization of the Indians and their admission to citizenship."
The Miccosukee Tribe of Indians is a federally recognized Native American tribe in the U.S. state of Florida. Together with the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma and the Seminole Tribe of Florida, it is one of three federally recognized Seminole entities. They are Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands.
Angelo Heilprin was an American geologist, paleontologist, naturalist, and explorer.
The Lake Mohonk Conference on International Arbitration was founded in 1895 to support the cause of international arbitration, arbitration treaties, and an international court, and to generate public support on behalf of the cause. These meetings, which took place between 1895 and 1916, were instrumental in the creation of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, Netherlands.
Mason Sereno Stone was a Vermont educator who served as state Superintendent of Education. From 1919 to 1921 he was the 52nd lieutenant governor of Vermont.
Fort Peyton was a stockaded fort built in August 1837 by the United States Army, one of a chain of military outposts created during the Second Seminole War for the protection of the St. Augustine area in Florida Territory. Established by Maj. Gen. Thomas Jesup, it was garrisoned by regular army troops.
C. C. Field Film Company, also known as Field's Feature Film Company, was a short-lived film studio company in Miami, Florida. Construction of a studio for the company at South Miami Avenue at 25th Street began in 1915. It was headed by Charles C. Field who also established the Prismatic Film Company, its predecessor. Field relocated to Hollywood before returning to Florida in 1916. His partner took over and soon after the company ceased operations having produced only a few films. The studio building was later used by Tilford's studio.
Elsie Eaton Newton was an American educator with the United States Indian Service, and the first Dean of Women at Marietta College in Ohio.
W. Stanley Hanson (1883–1945) was a photographer, ethnographer, and trusted friend of the Miccosukee and Seminole tribes in South Florida. He served as tax collector and commissioner in Lee County, Florida. The Smithsonian Institution has a collection of his photographs. He also wrote about them and collected artworks from the tribes. He served as Federal Inspector of Birds.
Ralph Kellard was an actor in the U.S. who appeared in theatrical productions and films. His film work included leading roles in several films such as The Shielding Shadow (1916), The Restless Sex (1920) and The Cost (film). His son Robert Kellard also became an actor. His other son, Thomas Kellard was also an actor and then became a Vice President at Lockheed Shipbuilding and Construction in Seattle, Washington. Ralph's grandson's from Thomas, Phil and Rick Kellard, are both television writers and producers. His great grandson, Matthew Kellard is a screenwriter.
Theodore Hartridge Willard was a sheriff, mayor, state legislator, and merchant in Florida. He lived in High Springs, Florida. He served as a Captain with a volunteer company of Confederates in Florida during the American Civil War. He was involved in a contested election in 1881 for a Florida Senate seat. He prevailed and served in the Florida Senate representing Madison County, Florida.
Gad Humphreys was an officer in the United States Army and an Indian agent in Florida. He was appointed to his post in 1822. He was supportive of the Indians and tried to help them and protect them from encroachments by White settlers. He was accused of abusing his post by preventing or delaying the return to their owners of fugitive slaves that had taken refuge with the Indians. An investigation was conducted, but none of his accusers were willing to testify. Even so, he was removed from his post in 1830.
Alfred E. Bates was a career officer in the United States Army. A veteran of the American Civil War, American Indian Wars, and Spanish–American War, he attained the rank of major general and was best known for his service as Paymaster-General of the United States Army from 1899 to 1904.