Cynthia (Crow) Brady

Cynthia (Crow) Brady

NPS/Public Domain

Quick Facts

Significance:

Pipestone carver who shared her art and knowledge with visitors from all over the world for years. She also taught her children to carve, ensuring the tradition lives on.

Cynthia (Crow) Brady
Sisseton/Wahpeton

Cynthia is a daughter of the late Moses and Estella Crow. The Crow family moved to Pipestone in 1927 from Granite Falls, Minnesota. Many generations of quarriers and crafters have come from this Crow family.

Cynthia first started working with the pipestone in 1975. Her sisters, Ethel (Crow) Derby and Aileen (Crow) Bird, taught her the art of carving the soft, red stone. She has crafted many items in her thirty plus years of carving. Many of these items included turtles, arrowheads, hearts, thunderbirds, bird effigies, and bears. She also has carved specialty items such as doves, large paperweights, and teddy bears.
 
 
Cynthia worked as a cultural demonstrator at Pipestone National Monument from 1992 to 2003. Over the years she has shared her knowledge and talent with countless visitors from all over the world as she displayed her skill in the art of carving.  
 
Cynthia passed on her knowledge of this art to her children, thereby ensuring the tradition continues. Three of her sons (Quentin, Steve, and Tim) continue to carry on the tradition of carving pipestone.