State Historical Society of Iowa

Portrait of Army Private Robert Young Bear, 1918

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Photography taken circa 1918 of Native American Private Robert Young Bear, a Meskwaki soldier who served with 50th Company of the Transportation Corps.
Courtesy of State Historical Society of Iowa, 1918

Description

This is a portrait of Army Private Robert Young Bear, a Meskwaki soldier who served with 50th Company of the Transportation Corps. The army private enlisted June 1, 1918, in Toledo, Iowa. 

 

Transcript from Portrait of Pvt. Robert Young Bear

Source-Dependent Questions

  • Describe this photograph. What do you notice in photo about this picture that is surprising or intriguing?
  • Comparing this photo to the other photos from this source set, (Pvt. Poweshiek, Education Secretaries, Ft. Des Moines Captains, Tuskegee Institute Graduates) how do you think these soldiers felt about serving in the U.S. military? Other than their race/ethnicity, do these soldiers appear any different than white soldiers? How might a Caucasian soldier from that time period respond to that question?