It is likely that John S. Parke acquired the ledger while serving as Assistant Adjutant General of Command at Rosebud Agency during the winter of 1890-1891. A 1938 note, written on an envelope bearing the name Mrs. John S. Parke and given to the University along with the ledger, refers to "interesting set of coloured pictures (in crayon?) made by an Indian at Rosebud Indian Agency during Sioux Campaign in 1890." It is unclear who wrote the note or why.

In 1962, this ledger book of ‘original Indian sketches’ was presented by John S. Parke’s daughter, Mrs. Ferdinand [Genevieve] Prochnow, to the Montana State University Library (now the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library at The University of Montana-Missoula) through the Friends of the Library. Mrs. Prochnow was living in Missoula at the time.

Experts have identified these drawings as being the work of Walter Bone Shirt (aka Never Misses), a Lakota artist.

To insure that the content of the ledger was appropriate for access and display, library personnel consulted with individuals in UMs Native American Studies and Anthropology Departments, and with experts at the Smithsonian and at the Sicangu Cultural Heritage Center on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota.