Ledger Doodle: Tuscaloosa’s Parasol

Dustin Mater grew up in Ada, Oklahoma and is a citizen of the Chickasaw Nation. He studied art and design at Santa Monica College and the Multimedia Institute of Hollywood from 2000 to 2004. After working as an active illustrator and graphic designer in Los Angeles and Dallas, Dustin moved back to Ada in 2011 to work with the Chickasaw Nation as the Graphic Arts Coordinator for the Arts and Humanities Division.

In De Soto’s first contact with Minko Tuscaloosa, they described his elaborate parasol, and how it resembled the breast star of a Knight of Grace of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem. Not long after first contact with the Tribe, the conquistadores burned the Minko and his village to the ground.