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Elder Stories
Bessie Standing Elk Harris 1891-1972:
A Courageous Northern Cheyenne Woman
by Renee Sansom Flood
Bessie Standing Elk Harris |
Soaring Eagle's Vice President, Calvin Wilson, tells us that one of his relatives, Bessie Standing Elk Harris, the daughter of Northern Cheyenne Chief Eugene Standing Elk, became a respected leader and roll model for generations of young Cheyenne women.
Bessie, a full blood Cheyenne, was born in 1901. She traveled east to school at Carlisle, Pennsylvania and was a classmate of Jim Thorpe, the Olympic gold medalist named the greatest athlete of the first half of the 20th century. At Carlisle, Bessie proved to be an intelligent girl, outspoken with a keen wit and the ability to understand and cross racial barriers. Bessie learned the ways of white society as well as the traditional, strict rules of conduct as the daughter of a chief. She returned from school and married Edward J. Harris, an enrolled Cheyenne and prosperous rancher.
Bessie and Edward raised their 6 children on one of the finest ranches on the reservation When her children were grown, Bessie became active in her community. She signed up as a registered tribal voter in 1935 and went into tribal politics, which at that time was unheard of because men had always dominated the politics of the tribe. In 1940, she campaigned for changes in tribal government and shocked reservation leaders when she was elected the first Northern Cheyenne Tribal Councilwoman in the history of her tribe. Bessie also made history when she accompanied her Northern Cheyenne Delegation to Washington, DC. Never before had a Cheyenne woman stood up in public to speak before Congressmen.
After her husband passed away, Bessie moved from her beloved ranch to Lame Deer to take care of her son. She wore braids and held her blanket around her in the traditional way. One thing was certain, she and her lady friends loved to tell jokes on one another and Bessie's home was full of laughter.
Years later, Bessie's granddaughter, Doreen Flatness Pond, followed in her footsteps as an elected Tribal Councilwoman. Sixty years after Bessie Harris made history, Geri Small became the first woman President of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe in 2000. Bessie Standing Elk Harris died in 1972. Today she is remembered for her courage and integrity, a true pathfinder who forever changed Indian country with a woman's special touch.
