"Old Indian" Bill Moose

           The mighty Scioto River runs through the heart of the state of Ohio. Along its banks, in the City of Dublin, walks an ancient relic of the past. He’s called Old Indian Bill Moose and he is the very last of his kind in these lands. Dressed in a dirty, worn suit and hat, he travels light. On his back, he carries his pack of “Indian Stuff” just in case he’s recognized by one of his cards and needs to dress for a picture. He carries a rifle too. Just in case. He’s got a blanket rolled up because he likes the openness of sleeping outside. He might travel home soon, though.

He’s got a nice little cabin near the Olentangy near Clintonville. It’s not much, just a collection of old timber and some tin sheets but it’s more than some folks have. Bill remembers when there wasn’t even that, back when he was a boy and his people first came to the unsettled lands. The White Father changed everything soon enough and he watched as his people were moved, mostly Kansas and Oklahoma. His family stayed, though, and so did he. This is his home. It’s the only reason he’s stuck it out this long.

Old Bill Moose is famous now, as most endangered things are, but he’s also old. He gave out his cards to the locals, little bits of cardboard that had his picture and address on it. Some folks came because they truly wanted to hear his stories, some just wanted to gawk. They’re nice enough people, but the river calls him and so he keeps walking.

When the sun sinks down low enough he calls it a night. He finds a nice spot alongside the water and lays out his blanket. He takes his “Indian Stuff” off his back and uses it as a pillow. It’s mostly clothes, anyway. He keeps his rifle by his side. Laying down for sleep, he lets out a deep sigh. It’s been a long, hard road, but it’s his road. It’s his home. He closes his eyes.

In a few years they’ll bury Bill Moose Crowfoot along this river. He’ll have on the “Indian Stuff” he was famous for and he’ll still have his beloved rifle at his side. Decades later they’ll even put up a memorial of stone over top of him. It’ll have a couple of pictures carved into it and it’ll say “Bill Moose, Last of the Wyandots, born 1837, And whose death in 1937 Marks the passing Of the Indians from this territory.”

He was the last of his kind, and this was his home.

     

(Sorry, again, for the depressing, but I like him :) )

Sources: 

“Memorial and Grave Site of Bill Moose.” Dublin Memories Digital Collection. 2003. Accessed through Ohio Memory, November 12, 2014.

“Bill Moose Crowfoot Photograph.” SC 265. Ohio History Connection. Accessed through Ohio Memory, November 12, 2014

“Old Indian Bill Moose.” Dublin Memories Digital Collection. Unknown Time Period. Accessed through Ohio Memory, November 12, 2014.

“Bill Moose Card.” Dublin Memories Digital Collection. Unknown Time Period. Accessed through Ohio Memory, November 12, 2014.

“Bill Moose.” Dublin Memories Digital Collection. Unknown Time Period. Accessed through Ohio Memory, November 12, 2014.

“Bill Moose and House Photograph.” William Roy Lawrence Collection, AV 55 Box 1 Folder 9. Ohio History Connection. Accessed through Ohio Memory, November 12, 2014.