Harvey A. Derby

Harvey Derby filing a piece of pipestone

Quick Facts

Significance:

Quarrier, Pipemaker, WWII Purple Heart recipient, and Pipestone National Monument worker. One of four carvers who kept pipestone quarrying alive during the 1940s.

Harvey A. Derby
"Running Elk"
Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate
of the Lake Traverse Reservation
April 26, 1916 - February 20, 1970

Harvey Derby was born and raised around Sisseton, South Dakota, on the Lake Traverse Reservation. In the mid-1930s, he joined the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and was assigned to the Pipestone area. He married Ethel Crow (daughter of Moses and Estella Crow) in 1938 and learned the art of pipemaking and quarrying techniques from his father-in-law. In 1942, Harvey entered the U.S. Army and served in the South Pacific during World War II, where he received the Purple Heart. After the war, he returned to Pipestone and was employed as a security night watchman and boilerman at the Pipestone Indian School.

He continued the art of pipemaking and was one of the four pipemakers that utilized the pipestone quarries in the 1940s. Harvey and his family followed the tradition of carving and working the quarry. From 1953-1969, he worked as a seasonal worker at Pipestone National Monument. Harvey’s favorite pipe to make was the hatchet pipe. He also made other pipes, along with items such as salt and pepper shakers and open books. Harvey passed his knowledge of quarrying and carving on to his seven children (Raymond “Chuck” Derby, Marge Parsons, Carol Derby, Jeff Derby, Alice Erickson, Betty Tellinghuisen, and Maddie Redwing), who would pass the tradition on to their own children. The quarry he and his family used was originally located south of the present trail, but in 1960 the Derby family moved to the north side of the trail (called the Spotted Quarry area). His daughter, Alice, continues to quarry at the family pit today.

Harvey is featured in the book "Pipes on the Plains" and the movie Calumet: Pipe of Peace. He also helped identify many of the park's plants and their traditional uses. He passed away at the age of 54 in 1970. Many of Harvey’s descendants continue to frequent Pipestone National Monument today, and several work for the Pipestone Indian Shrine Association shop that operates inside the park’s visitor center.