The feats, the passions, and the distinctive speech of the Western Nebraska homesteader come alive in the writings of Mari Sandoz, daughter of Swiss immigrants Mary and Jules Sandoz. Mari was born on Mirage Flats, south of Hay Springs, Nebraska on May 11, 1896, the first of six children. As a child, she was a great storyteller with an intense desire to write, scribbling stories when she was not cooking, working in the garden, or caring for her brothers and sisters.

 

Published long before most Americans were ready to listen, two books about American Indians, "Cheyenne Autumn" and "Crazy Horse," give Sandoz's impassioned view of the persecution of the northern Cheyenne and Oglala Sioux and of the near destruction of their culture. Only her death kept Sandoz from writing the seventh and last work of the series; she had completed much of the research. This unfinished work was to emphasize the importance of oil to the world and the struggle of those in the plains states to provide oil, destroying more of the environment in the process. Once again, Mari Sandoz was ahead of her time.

 

Sandoz was aware of the importance of women to the West and of how few of their experiences had been told. "Old Jules" chronicles many stories of the brutal abuse of pioneer women by their husbands and fathers, telling of the death, insanity, or, in more fortunate cases, determined survival of these women, Sandoz also writes of the independence and endurance of single women homesteaders in "Old Jules." In her novels, Sandoz often places women in roles that traditionally have been primarily male. "Miss Morissa" is based in part on the careers of three women who were plains physicians; Dr. Mary W. Quick, Dr. Phoebe A. Oliver Briggs, and Dr. Georgia Arbuckle Fix. In "The Tom-Walker" one woman is a political writer and academician while another is a labor organizer. Gulla Slogum in "Slogum House" terrorizes the community as she gathers land and influence by any means she can in her attempt to control the county.

 

Nature, its danger and its beauty, is often celebrated by Sandoz in lyrical passages, passages that sometimes appear unexpectedly in the midst of her usual reportorial style. She knew her land and her people and in each book her sly humor satirizes society, urging awareness of human vices that threaten the environment and the welfare of people.

 

Sandoz was the recipient of many accolades and awards. Her honorary Doctorate of Literature from the University of Nebraska (1950) read: "Mari Sandoz, distinguished Nebraska historian, biographer, novelist, story writer, authority on Indians of the Nebraska territory and neighboring states...widely known teacher in creative writing at several state universities." In 1954 Sandoz received the Distinguished Achievement Award of the Native Sons and Daughters of Nebraska for her "sincere and realistic presentation of Nebraska as it was." Also in 1954, the Chicago Corral, the parent group of the Westerners, announced that she had four books on their list of one hundred best books about the West (Stauffer "Story Catcher" 181, 202, 209). A Mari Sandoz Award, to be given annually to "a person who has made specific, significant contributions to the Nebraska book world through writing (books, stories, poetry, plays, reviews), film production, or other related activity" was established by the Nebraska Library Association in 1969. A bust of Mari Sandoz stands in the State Rotunda, State Capital Building, Lincoln, Nebraska.

 

Mari Sandoz died of cancer March 10, 1966, and is buried on a hillside overlooking the Sandoz Sand Hills ranch, south of Gordon, Nebraska. She worked until the last month of her life finishing "The Battle of the Little Bighorn." She died as she had lived, with spunk and grit and a determination to leave behind a blunt, accurate, and caring record of the region she so loved.

From Nebraska Department of Research & Statistics

 

 

Mari Sandoz High Plains Heritage Center 

 

 

Some of the Mari Sandoz books available at the Sidney Public Library:

 

Non-Fiction:

 

Cheyenne Autumn

"This great story of the struggle of a small band of homesick, mistreated, half-starved Indians against the military might of a major nation takes on the stature of an American epic."-Chicago Sunday Tribune

 

Crazy Horse: The Strange Man of the Oglalas

Published in 1942, this biography remains the first true depiction of the military leader of the Oglala Sioux and a vivid portrait of the Plains Indian civilization. "...a glorious tale told with beauty & power."--The New York Times.

 

The Battle of the Little Bighorn

"Miss Sandoz has taken the theme of Custer's last stand and given it new dimension and understanding through knowledge gained in a lifetime of research."-Library Journal.

"Probably the best account of the battle ever written."-New York Times Book Review.

 

Fiction:

 

The Story Catcher

 A young Sioux warrior earns the right to be called historian for his tribe after numerous adventures and trials which test his ability to tell the story of his people with truth and courage.

 

The Horsecatcher

Unable to kill, a young Cheyenne is scorned by his tribe when he chooses to become a horse catcher rather than a warrior.

 

Winter Thunder

When a school bus overturns in a blinding blizzard, a young teacher and her pupils are stranded miles from anywhere for eight days.

 

 

Mari Sandoz