Crowe, Amanda, 1928-2004

Amanda Crowe was born in 1928 and raised within a 56,000-acre territory of North Carolina, known as the Qualla Boundary, which is held in trust by the U.S. government specifically for Crowe's tribe of woodcarvers.

A federally recognized Native American tribe, the Eastern Band Cherokee are descended from a small group of 800 individuals who remained in the eastern United States after the Indian Removal Act forced more than 125,000 to move west in the 19th century.

She studied with her uncle Goingback Chiltoskey, a well-known woodcarver in his own right, who helped her hone her skills. Crowe was known to carry her tools to school so she could work on her creative projects and even began selling her carvings at the age of 8.

After completing her master of fine arts degree, Crowe studied in Mexico with the renowned Spanish-born American artist José de Creeft before returning to her homeland in the Qualla Boundary.

There, she set up a studio in the Paint Town community and began leading art classes at Cherokee High School, where she would teach more than 2,000 students over the course of 40 years.