Existing comment:
Frank Mechau
Dangers of the Mail, 1937
Pony Express, 1937
In the 1860s, stagecoaches and the famed Pony Express brought mail to the American West at unprecedented speeds and navigated many perils, including the Indian Wars, which cost the lives of Native Americans and settlers, alike.
Frank Mechau's mural depict dramatic and violent incidents related to westward expansion and the Pony Express. In Dangers of the Mail, Mechau imagined a scene of Native Americans attacking and massacring a stagecoach party. Below the mural he inscribed the names of 21 Native American leaders, both spokesman for peace and education and warriors who led the resistance against white settlement of the West. Pony Express shows the changing of horses at a division point, and give small pedella scenes illustrate the indigenous response to westward expansion. Below are inscribed the names of 20 Pony Express riders, both heroes and gunslingers, and above both murals are listed the towns along the Pony Express route. For Native Americans, the Pony Express represented the loss of tribal land, food sources, and sovereignty, and its presence in the West led to clashes and armed conflict. While the murals garnered praise when unveiled for their theme, mood, and beauty, their acclaim has been overshadowed by controversy. In the 1930s, viewers criticized the historical inaccuracies and indecency of the female nudes in Dangers of the Mail. In the 1990s-2000s viewers objected to the portrayal of American Indians as excessively aggressive and women as passive victims. Regardless of changing historic perspectives and shifting sensitivities, Mechau's murals address the tragedies and tensions of the Indian Wars and depict the results of decades of land disputes, treaty violations, and cultural conflicts. |