Music, Crafts and Culture: UA’s Moundville Native American Festival Returns

MOUNDVILLE, Ala. — Two Native American Music Award winners – Muscogee flutist Billy Whitefox and Cherokee guitarist and vocalist Michael Jacobs – highlight this year’s Moundville Native American Festival, from Wednesday, Oct. 6 to Saturday, Oct. 9, at The University of Alabama’s Moundville Archaeological Park.

Festival entertainment runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday .

Another set of performers featured at this year’s festival are the Warriors of AniKituwah, a dance group recognized as the official ambassadors of the Eastern Band of Cherokees. Sponsored by the Museum of the Cherokee Indian in Cherokee, N.C., the dancers bring to life the Cherokee War Dance and the Eagle Tail Dance described by Lt. Henry Timberlake, reportedly the first British officer to enter Cherokee county in 1762.

They have performed at Colonial Williamsburg, the National Museum of the American Indian, the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, Berlin, Montreal and throughout the Southeast.

Members of the Warriors of AniKituwah interact with visitors during the reopening celebration for the Jones Archaeological Museum in May.

The War Dance was used not only when men went to war but also when meeting with other nations for diplomacy and peace. Within the Cherokee nation, it also was also used to raise money for people in need. The dance conveys the strength of the Cherokee nation.

The Warriors of AniKituhwa also perform Cherokee social dances, including the Bear Dance, Beaver Hunting Dance and Friendship Dance. They talk about the significance of the dances, their clothing and Cherokee history and culture.

The Jones Archaeological Museum recently reopened after a $5 million renovation. Visitors will gain a better understanding of the Native Americans who once lived at here.

Ranked as one of the finest and most comprehensive events of its kind, the festival presents storytelling and a variety of arts and craft demonstrations, living history enactments and musical performances. Numerous school groups are scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday, and the general public is encouraged to attend Friday, Oct. 9, and Saturday, Oct 10.

Each year, the festival celebrates Southeastern culture. Shop for arts and crafts, play ancient games and climb Alabama’s tallest mound. Call 205/371-8732 or go to http://moundville.ua.edu/. The University of Alabama’s Moundville Archaeological Park is 13 miles south of campus off Alabama 69. The park is open daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Admission to the festival is $10 for adults; $8 students; free for children ages 5 and younger. Group discounts with reservations are available.

Described as the Big Apple of the 14th century, Moundville was America’s largest city north of Mexico 800 years ago. This National Historic Landmark, part of UA Museums, contains 320 acres with more than 20 preserved prehistoric Indian mounds, campgrounds, picnic areas, boardwalk nature trail, theater, Riverbend Lodge and a museum of some of the finest Mississippian-era artifacts in North America.

Discover the rich culture of the Cherokee, Creek, Chickasaw, Choctaw and Seminole natives whose regional descendants return to the Moundville site for an annual homecoming.

Contact

Betsy Irwin, 205/371-2234, birwin@bama.ua.edu; Richard LeComte, media relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782