Quapaws aid Civil War documentary

Tribe, casino makes donation for documentary

By Todd G. HigdonA new documentary depicting the first Civil War Battle of Newtonia is now under way.

The Quapaw Nation and Downstream Casino presented a $40,000 check to the Newton County Tourism Council on Wednesday at the casino, just west of Joplin for the documentary.

“This is a day that we (NCTC) have been looking forward to for months now,” said NCTC president Steve Roark. “We have received a pledge for $40,000 from the Quapaw tribe and Downstream Casino to produce our next public television documentary, which will focus on the battle that took place in Newtonia Sept. 30, 1862, where organized regiments of Native Americans fought against each other. It is an undiscovered gem that we have here in Newton County and this documentary we hope will be enjoyed by people all across the nation once it is produced in the next 12 months’ time.”

Background

During the Civil War, Newtonia was the site of two battles. The first battle at was Sept. 30, 1862, and saw an unprecedented number of Native American units fight on both sides. The second battle, Oct. 28, 1864, was the last one fought in Missouri, a state that had more Civil War clashes than any other beside Virginia and Tennessee. Approximately 350 soldiers were either killed or wounded in the 1862 battle, and 650 casualties were reported in the 1864 battle.Comment:  We're always talk about how gaming tribes aren't funding creative projects such as movies. Here's one example of a tribe's doing exactly that.

For more on tribes funding movies, see Jet's Film Financing Story and Tribes Should Make Movies. For more on the subject in general, see Native Documentaries and News.

Below:  "John Berrey, (second from right), of the Quapaw Nation, presented a $40,000 check to the Newton County Tourism Council on Wednesday for an upcoming documentary on the first battle of Newtonia." (Todd G. Higdon)