The Enduring Seminoles: From Alligator Wrestling to Ecotourism (Florida History and Culture) [Hardcover]

Patsy West (Author)

Book Description

Series: Florida History and Culture | Publication Date: November 3, 1998

Early in this century, the Native Americans known as the Florida Seminoles struggled to survive in an environment altered by the drainage of the Everglades and a dwindling demand for hides. Patsy West describes how they turned to tourism and discovered another marketable commodity - their own culture. Though their exhibition economy originally was condemned by the government, it provided income for families as well as a lasting cultural identity for the people. Today, the Seminole Tribe of Florida and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida promote their tourist activities to world-wide markets as "cultural heritage and ecotourism." Illustrated with thirty evocative photographs, West's book supplies an original and colorful social and economic history of an unconquered people. Often told in the words of the many Seminoles whom West interviewed, this book is the only one available on the topic of the cultural tourism activities of an Indian tribe.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

West, the current director of the Seminole/Miccosukee Photographic Archive in Fort Lauderdale, FL, deals directly with the problems and possibilities imposed upon the Seminoles by the rise of Florida as a tourist mecca during the 20th century. She clearly illustrates the Seminoles' resiliency in adapting to significant changes while still maintaining traditional cultural and social values. West documents the post-Civil War shift from traditional ways to their current position as a major economic force in the Southeastern United States. Significant challenges to the traditional Seminole economy have included the draining and dredging of the Everglades and the growth of the tourist industry. This book represents a positive and enlightening contribution to contemporary Native American ethnographies and how traditional cultures can be maintained in the face of increasing technological and informational change. Recommended for public and academic libraries.?John Dockall, Bernice P. Bishop Museum, Honolulu
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Book Description

"This engaging short work of anthropology and Florida Indian history deserves a wide audience. . . . It is sophisticated enough for a university seminar but filled with appeal for anyone interested in Native Americans, Florida history or the interaction of tourists and native peoples."--Tampa Tribune Times

 

"Engrossing. . . . West has shown us just how vital tourism has been to the Seminoles and the Miccosukees."--Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel

 

"Packed full of stories and details about Florida tribes and tourism."--Orlando Sentinel

 

"A unique social and economic history of the Seminoles and an insightful view of their cultural adaptation and cultural continuity that previously has not been appreciated or understood."--Florida Heritage

 

"Everyone interested in Florida's Indian population will certainly want this book for their personal collection."--Polk County News Chief

 

"Provides significant contextual information from a Native perspective that undermines facile assumptions about Indians as passive victims of an exploitative tourism industry, contributing to ongoing postcolonial debates about similar phenomena worldwide."--Journal of American History

 

"What West makes most clear is that the Natives quickly perceived the degree to which the tourists valued dramatic displays and they adapted the process over the years to serve their own economic ends."--Florida Historical Quarterly

 

"Should make some scholars look again at what they thought were the effects of commercial enterprises on the lives of American Indian people in this hemisphere."--American Indian Quarterly

 

Patsy West, director of the Seminole/Miccosukee Photographic Archive in Fort Lauderdale, writes a regular history column for the Seminole Tribune, the Seminole tribal newspaper.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 184 pages
• Publisher: University Press of Florida (November 3, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813016339
• ISBN-13: 978-0813016337
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.7 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #856,278 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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