By AARON MUELLER
Niles Daily Star

Children can learn about Native American history this month and next at the Fort St. Joseph Museum in Niles.

An exhibit displaying Native American art, including quill work, bead work, moccasins, arm band and necklaces, will be at the museum through April. This Saturday the museum will hold a free craft day, allowing children to try their hands at fashioning quill work, bead work and applique. Girl Scouts will be on hand to assist children in the crafts.

The exhibit focuses on artwork from the Potowatomi Indians; the Pokagon band of Potowatomi still lives in the area. It also features a collection of Lakota tribe artifacts that were donated to the museum by a Niles family that acquired them in the 1930s. The Lakota lived in the western plains.

Museum Director Carol Bainbridge hopes children learn “a little about the Native Americans themselves and the importance of natural beauty.”

“The things they used symbolized something,” she said.

This is the third Changing History event this school year at the museum. The events are designed to make history fun for children. Bainbridge said the response to the events so far has been encouraging.

“We’ve been very pleased,” she said. “It’s a good opportunity to come out with the children or grandchildren and spend the morning at a free activity, and people have responded positively.”