Large mounted photograph depicting a formal portrait of Native American children gathered in front of a brick institutional building, likely part of an off-reservation Indian boarding school in the American West or Southwest. Roughly seventy-five boys and girls are arranged in neat rows, their expressions solemn and postures rigid, suggesting a formally organized school portrait.

Several white teachers or administrators flank the group, underscoring the assimilationist ethos behind such institutions. Boys in the front wear matching suits with oversized collars, while the girls behind them are dressed in modest patterned dresses, with some wearing hats or bows. The backdrop, a sturdy brick structure with trees and an open doorway, emphasizes the orderly, Western setting into which these children were placed.

Photographs such as this serve as stark visual evidence of the federal government’s Indian assimilation policies during the late 19th century, documenting the cultural erasure and rigid discipline imposed by the boarding school system. Despite the intent to suppress Native traditions, these portraits now stand as testaments to the resilience of the children who endured these institutions.