Parading through History provides a history of the Crow Indians that demonstrates the link between their nineteenth-century nomadic life and their modern existence.  The Crows not only weathered and withstood the dislocation and conquest that was visited upon them after 1805, but in the midst of these events they constructed a nation.  Their efforts sustained the pride and strength reflected in Chief Plenty Coups statement in 1925 that he did "not care at all what historians have to say about Crow Indians," as well as their community's faith in the beauty of both its traditions and its inventions.

Frederick Hoxie demonstrates that contact with outsiders drew the Crows together and tested their ability to adapt their traditions to new conditions.  He emphasizes political life, but also describes changes in social relations, religious beliefs and economic activities.  He profiles the skilled tribal leaders who bridged the worlds of the buffalo and the era of automobiles, and links Indians to the other ethnic groups in American history.  His concluding chapter discusses the significance of the Crow experience for American history in general.