Elsie Allen
Encyclopedia
Elsie Allen was a Native American
Pomo basket weaver
from the Cloverdale Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California
in Northern California
, significant as for historically categorizing and teaching Californian Indian basket patterns and techniques and sustaining traditional Pomo basket
ry as an art form.
. She lived in several Pomo communities, including Cloverdale, Hopland, and Pinoleville Rancherias
. She came from a family of accomplished basketweavers, including her mother, Annie Ramon Gomachu Burke (1876–1962) and her maternal grandmother, Mary Arnold (1845–1925), both of Cloverdale Rancheria. Elsie's mother, Annie founded the Pomo Indian Women's Club, which promotes the tribe's basketry. She also convinced Elsie to break with tradition and not burn or bury her baskets – instead to keep them for future basketmakers.
Elsie married Arthur Allen, a northern Pomo, in 1919. Together the couple had four children, Genevieve, Leonard, Dorothy, and George.
to document the Southern Pomo language
.
Together with Mabel McKay
, Laura Somersal, Elsie Allen is regarded as one of the three best known California basketweavers of her generation. Allen is the subject of several books, including Dot Brovarney, Susan Billy, and Suzanne Abel-Vidor's 2005 Remember Your Relations: Elsie Allen Baskets, Family, And Friends and Sandra J. Metzler's 1996 A promise kept: Basketry of the Pomo and the Elsie Allen basket collection.
Elsie Allen High School
in Santa Rosa, California
is named for her.
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
Pomo basket weaver
Basket weaving
Basket weaving is the process of weaving unspun vegetable fibres into a basket or other similar form. People and artists who weave baskets are called basketmakers and basket weavers.Basketry is made from a variety of fibrous or pliable materials•anything that will bend and form a shape...
from the Cloverdale Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California
Cloverdale Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California
The Cloverdale Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California is a federally recognized tribe of Pomo Indians in California.The Tribe is currently considered "landless", as they do not have any land that is in Federal Trust for the Tribe. However, in 2008 the Tribe acquired approximately 80 acres of...
in Northern California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, significant as for historically categorizing and teaching Californian Indian basket patterns and techniques and sustaining traditional Pomo basket
Basket
A basket is a container which is traditionally constructed from stiff fibres, which can be made from a range of materials, including wood splints, runners, and cane. While most baskets are made from plant materials, other materials such as horsehair, baleen, or metal wire can be used. Baskets are...
ry as an art form.
Background
Elsie Comanche Allen was born in 22 September 1899 to George and Annie Comanche (Comanche is an Anglicized version of the Pomo name, Gomachu). Her first language was PomoPomoan languages
Pomoan is a family of endangered languages spoken in northern California by the Pomo people on the Pacific Coast. According to the 2000 census, there are 255 speakers of the languages...
. She lived in several Pomo communities, including Cloverdale, Hopland, and Pinoleville Rancherias
Pinoleville Pomo Nation
The Pinoleville Pomo Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Pomo people in Mendocino County, California. Leona Williams currently serves as Tribal Chairperson.-Reservation:...
. She came from a family of accomplished basketweavers, including her mother, Annie Ramon Gomachu Burke (1876–1962) and her maternal grandmother, Mary Arnold (1845–1925), both of Cloverdale Rancheria. Elsie's mother, Annie founded the Pomo Indian Women's Club, which promotes the tribe's basketry. She also convinced Elsie to break with tradition and not burn or bury her baskets – instead to keep them for future basketmakers.
Elsie married Arthur Allen, a northern Pomo, in 1919. Together the couple had four children, Genevieve, Leonard, Dorothy, and George.
Basketry
Although she learned to weave as a child, Allen was only able to weave full time at the age of 62, when her children were all grown. During the 1950s and 1960s, interest in basketry among Pomo had waned, so Allen began teaching anyone interested in learning her technique, which created controversy in her tribe. She taught at the Mendocino Art Center. Late in her career, Elsie Allen began using commercial materials in her baskets after receiving a vision. One of her last student was her own niece, Susan Billy.Southern Pomo language
Allen worked with linguist Abraham M. HalpernAbraham M. Halpern
Abraham "Abe" Meyer Halpern was a linguist and anthropologist who specialized in Native American Languages. In the wake of World War II he initiated a second career focusing on United States foreign policy, especially in regard to China...
to document the Southern Pomo language
Southern Pomo language
Southern Pomo is one of seven mutually unintelligible Pomoan languages which were formerly spoken by the Pomo people in Northern California along the Russian River and Clear Lake. The Pomo languages have been grouped together with other so-called Hokan languages...
.
Legacy
Allen died on the 31 December 1990.Together with Mabel McKay
Mabel McKay
Mabel McKay was a member of the Long Valley Cache Creek Pomo Indians. She was the last Dreamer of the Pomo people and a basket making prodigy....
, Laura Somersal, Elsie Allen is regarded as one of the three best known California basketweavers of her generation. Allen is the subject of several books, including Dot Brovarney, Susan Billy, and Suzanne Abel-Vidor's 2005 Remember Your Relations: Elsie Allen Baskets, Family, And Friends and Sandra J. Metzler's 1996 A promise kept: Basketry of the Pomo and the Elsie Allen basket collection.
Elsie Allen High School
Elsie Allen High School
Elsie Allen High School is a High School located in Santa Rosa, California at 599 Bellevue Ave. It is part of the Santa Rosa High School District, which is itself part of Santa Rosa City Schools...
in Santa Rosa, California
Santa Rosa, California
Santa Rosa is the county seat of Sonoma County, California, United States. The 2010 census reported a population of 167,815. Santa Rosa is the largest city in California's Wine Country and fifth largest city in the San Francisco Bay Area, after San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, and Fremont and 26th...
is named for her.
Published work
- Allen, Elsie. Pomo Basketmaking: A Supreme Art for the Weaver. Red. ed. Happy Camp, California: Naturegraph Publishers, Inc. 1972.
See also
- Native American basket weavers
- Native American artNative American artVisual arts by indigenous peoples of the Americas encompasses the visual artistic traditions of the indigenous peoples of the Americas from ancient times to the present...
External links
- Elsie Allen Exhibit at the Oakland Museum of California
- Elsie Allen. Native American Indian Art