Full-Court Quest: The Girls from Fort Shaw Indian School, Basketball Champions of the World »

"Most fans of women's basketball would be startled to learn that girls' teams were making their mark more than a century ago - and that none was more prominent than a team from an isolated Indian boarding school in Montana. Playing like "lambent flames" across the polished floors of dance halls, armories, and gymnasiums, the girls from Fort Shaw stormed the state to emerge as Montana's first basketball champions. Taking their game to the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair, these young women introduced an international audience to the fledgling game and returned home with a trophy declaring them champions." "World champions. And yet their triumphs were forgotten - until Linda Peavy and Ursula Smith chanced upon a team photo and embarked on a ten-year journey of discovery. Their in-depth research and extensive collaboration with the teammates' descendents and tribal kin have resulted in a narrative as entertaining as it is authentic." Full-Court Quest offers a rare glimpse into American Indian life and into the world of women's basketball before "girls' rules" temporarily shackled the sport. For anyone captivated by Sea Biscuit, A League of Their Own, and other accounts of unlikely champions, this book rates as nothing but net.

School Library Journal

Adult/High School

At the turn of the 20th century, an important aspect of the federal policy toward many American Indian tribes was assimilation through education. Boarding schools were established off reservation, as well as on, and government officials actively and aggressively recruited children to attend them. Among the students in the school established at Fort Shaw in Montana were a group of young women who would become famous in Montana, and a popular attraction at the 1904 World's Fair. Their story is told in this well-researched and well-documented book. Leaving their families and arriving at different ages for different reasons, they came together to play the new game of basketball and were quite successful. Peavy and Smith's book is a remarkably rosy picture of an Indian boarding school. While the authors mention that students ran away, that they were separated from their families for long periods of time, and that they were required to speak only English and leave behind traditional dress and culture, these factors seem not to have affected these talented athletes. It is not until the last few pages that the authors specifically, and briefly, address the cost of the success of the girls' team, and the federal Indian educational policy. Still, the book tells a story long forgotten about these "world champions."-Mary Ann Harlan, Arcata High School, CA

St. Louis World's Fair, Saturday, October 8, 1904 3

A Confluence of Cultures 5

End of an Era 12

Birth of a Game 15

Phoenix Rising, 1892 18

Routine and Ritual, 1892 26

Recruitment, Runaways, and Reinforcements, 1893 36

Foreshadowings, 1893 46

Future Prospects, 1893-1894 49

"Basket Ball for Women," 1894 59

Elusive Dreams, 1895-1896 62

A Wise Investment, 1896-1897 72

Widening the Circle, 1897 83

Transitions, 1897-1899 91

More to Be Learned, 1899-1900 100

Gateway to a World's Fair, 1900 107

School Spirit, 1900-1901 122

New Connections and Old, 1901 129

Staking Out the Fair, St. Louis, 1901 137

The Team Takes Shape, 1901-1902 140

"Basket Ball Is the Thing," Fall 1902 147

Testing Their Mettle, Thanksgiving 1902 157

Samuel McCowan's Indian Exhibit, December 1902 167

"Like Lambent Flames ... across the Polished Floor,"

Winter 1903 170

"Like a Wall of Fire through a Cane Break," Winter 1903 182

McCowan in St. Louis, April 1903 193

Montana's Champions, Spring 1903 198

Taking the Gospel Back Home, June 1903 204

"In All Ways Most Deserving," Summer 1903 212

Looking to the Future, Fall 1903 219

"A Great Thing for Girls' Sport," Fall 1903 230

Getting Ready, Winter 1903-1904 232

Showcase Season, February-April 1904 240

"Open, Ye Gates! Swing Wide, Ye Portals!" April 30, 1904 250

"Everybody Is Going," May 1904 253

"Something to Remember," June 1, 1904 269

The Adventure Begins, June 1904 274

"A Veritable Fairyland," St. Louis 281

"Eleven Aboriginal Maidens" 295

The Observers and the Observed 309

A Silver Trophy 320

Champions of the World's Fair 324

"Forget Me Not," 1904-1910 336

Epilogue 343

The Years Thereafter347

Acknowledgments 363

Notes 373

Bibliography 443

Index 461

Illustration Credits 480