Post by blackcrowheart on Feb 21, 2006 14:44:38 GMT -5
From the Wild West to the North-west: how Buffalo Bill's travelling
show left a Sioux legacy in Salford
From the Wild West to the North-west: how Buffalo Bill's travelling
show left a Sioux legacy in Salford
By Ian Herbert, North of England Correspondent
Published: 20 February 2006
news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/article346571.ece
Scenes from the Wild West have been a part of Saturday nights on the
streets of Salford for years, but only now can it claim they are an
important part of its heritage.
Investigations by a local historian and trade unionist have discovered
descendants of Sioux Native Americans living in Salford, 120 years after
they toured the area as part of Buffalo Bill Cody's famous travelling show.
The Lakota and Oglala Sioux formed part of a troupe of 97 Native
Americans, 180 broncos, 18 buffalo, 14 mules and donkeys, 10 elk and two
deer when they rolled into town in November 1887. They stayed for five
months, playing to packed houses from a site on the banks of the River
Irwell, now occupied by The Lowry gallery.
What is less well known is that some of the Sioux decided to settle in
Salford and Manchester, where their descendants remain.
The links were discovered by the historian Steve Coen, who was
fascinated by the city's Sioux links that include street names, such as
Cody Court, Sundance Court, Dakota Avenue, and Kansas Avenue.
He has established that when Cody's popularity in Salford led him back
there in 1903, a 26-year-old Lakota chief, Charging Thunder, could not
bring himself to leave. He married Josephine, one of the American horse
trainers in the show, and settled locally.
As Charging Thunder changed his name to the rather less distinctive
George Edward Williams and disappeared into anonymity within north-west
England, tracing his lineage has not been easy.
But appeals for locals with a Sioux history elicited a response from
Rita Parr, 66, a former wage clerk in whose living room hangs an image
of an Indian chief. It is Charging Thunder and Mrs Parr is his
granddaughter.
"We'd always known there was an Indian chief in the family but only now
are we beginning to learn about the piece of history he fitted into,"
said Mrs Parr, whose mother, Gladys, was the chief's daughter. "We don't
have any artefacts as all his outfits, bows and arrows disappeared when
he moved house from Lancashire to Gorton. They were either mislaid or
pinched. But I'm very proud of him. [It took a] very strong-willed man
to give up his life and settle here, raise a family and give me this
heritage."
The switch from the Wild West to the industrial north-west evidently
suited Charging Thunder. He juggled jobs as a handyman at an industrial
pump factory and a "drawer-outer" (doorman) at the picture house with
occasional turns at Manchester's Belle Vue circus where he road an
elephant called Nellie. He does not appear to have been offended by his
nickname, "Darkie".
Mr Coen's research has taken him to South Dakota where his hosts
included Mrs Parr's first cousin, Mike Hermanyhorses. "The links we are
finding do not surprise me," he said. "Cody's company included young men
in their prime. Fraternising with the locals was inevitable."
He also discovered records of a Lakota girl born in Salford during the
company's stay and baptised in February 1888. Church registers record
her name as Frances Victoria Alexander, the daughter of Little Chief and
Good Robe. The trail then goes cold.
So the search goes on for descendants from Cody's visits to Salford.
Other chiefs who lingered included Black Elk, a medicine man who was
interviewed in 1931 by John Neihardt for the book Black Elk Speaks,
which became a classic of Native American writing. He was among scores
of Lakota Sioux who were stranded after missing the train out of Salford
in 1888 and had to make their own way back to South Dakota.
Salford Council is delighted to have discovered its new Sioux
credentials and will hold a public meeting next month to invite ideas on
how to develop the links. "This is such a fantastic story, we are keen
to find the best way to bring it to life for today's Salford," said
Salford City Council leader, Councillor John Merry.
Far from home
* The company was led into Salford by Buffalo Bill Cody, who scouted for
Native Americans for the US army and killed buffalo to feed the soldiers
before establishing his circus-like Wild West show in 1883.
* Salford was a long way from the Old West, but all the better for some
of the Sioux, who found themselves on the run from the US cavalry
because they had been involved in the demise of General Custer in the
Battle of Little Big Horn.
* The company recreated gunslinging scenes from the Wild West in Salford
and neighbouring Manchester and raced their broncos against English
thoroughbreds over a 10-mile course. The broncos won with 300 yards to
spare.
* The British tour started in London in 1887 where Queen Victoria, in
her Jubilee Year, demanded several performances and adored the chief Red
Shirt. It stopped at Birmingham before reaching Salford
* The warriors were Lakota (northern) Indians from the Oglala tribe of
the Sioux Nation, who counted Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse among their
numbers. The Oglala Sioux were depicted in the 1990 film Dances With Wolves.
Scenes from the Wild West have been a part of Saturday nights on the
streets of Salford for years, but only now can it claim they are an
important part of its heritage.
Investigations by a local historian and trade unionist have discovered
descendants of Sioux Native Americans living in Salford, 120 years after
they toured the area as part of Buffalo Bill Cody's famous travelling show.
The Lakota and Oglala Sioux formed part of a troupe of 97 Native
Americans, 180 broncos, 18 buffalo, 14 mules and donkeys, 10 elk and two
deer when they rolled into town in November 1887. They stayed for five
months, playing to packed houses from a site on the banks of the River
Irwell, now occupied by The Lowry gallery.
What is less well known is that some of the Sioux decided to settle in
Salford and Manchester, where their descendants remain.
The links were discovered by the historian Steve Coen, who was
fascinated by the city's Sioux links that include street names, such as
Cody Court, Sundance Court, Dakota Avenue, and Kansas Avenue.
He has established that when Cody's popularity in Salford led him back
there in 1903, a 26-year-old Lakota chief, Charging Thunder, could not
bring himself to leave. He married Josephine, one of the American horse
trainers in the show, and settled locally.
As Charging Thunder changed his name to the rather less distinctive
George Edward Williams and disappeared into anonymity within north-west
England, tracing his lineage has not been easy.
But appeals for locals with a Sioux history elicited a response from
Rita Parr, 66, a former wage clerk in whose living room hangs an image
of an Indian chief. It is Charging Thunder and Mrs Parr is his
granddaughter.
"We'd always known there was an Indian chief in the family but only now
are we beginning to learn about the piece of history he fitted into,"
said Mrs Parr, whose mother, Gladys, was the chief's daughter. "We don't
have any artefacts as all his outfits, bows and arrows disappeared when
he moved house from Lancashire to Gorton. They were either mislaid or
pinched. But I'm very proud of him. [It took a] very strong-willed man
to give up his life and settle here, raise a family and give me this
heritage."
The switch from the Wild West to the industrial north-west evidently
suited Charging Thunder. He juggled jobs as a handyman at an industrial
pump factory and a "drawer-outer" (doorman) at the picture house with
occasional turns at Manchester's Belle Vue circus where he road an
elephant called Nellie. He does not appear to have been offended by his
nickname, "Darkie".
Mr Coen's research has taken him to South Dakota where his hosts
included Mrs Parr's first cousin, Mike Hermanyhorses. "The links we are
finding do not surprise me," he said. "Cody's company included young men
in their prime. Fraternising with the locals was inevitable."
He also discovered records of a Lakota girl born in Salford during the
company's stay and baptised in February 1888. Church registers record
her name as Frances Victoria Alexander, the daughter of Little Chief and
Good Robe. The trail then goes cold.
So the search goes on for descendants from Cody's visits to Salford.
Other chiefs who lingered included Black Elk, a medicine man who was
interviewed in 1931 by John Neihardt for the book Black Elk Speaks,
which became a classic of Native American writing. He was among scores
of Lakota Sioux who were stranded after missing the train out of Salford
in 1888 and had to make their own way back to South Dakota.
Salford Council is delighted to have discovered its new Sioux
credentials and will hold a public meeting next month to invite ideas on
how to develop the links. "This is such a fantastic story, we are keen
to find the best way to bring it to life for today's Salford," said
Salford City Council leader, Councillor John Merry.
Far from home
* The company was led into Salford by Buffalo Bill Cody, who scouted for
Native Americans for the US army and killed buffalo to feed the soldiers
before establishing his circus-like Wild West show in 1883.
* Salford was a long way from the Old West, but all the better for some
of the Sioux, who found themselves on the run from the US cavalry
because they had been involved in the demise of General Custer in the
Battle of Little Big Horn.
* The company recreated gunslinging scenes from the Wild West in Salford
and neighbouring Manchester and raced their broncos against English
thoroughbreds over a 10-mile course. The broncos won with 300 yards to
spare.
* The British tour started in London in 1887 where Queen Victoria, in
her Jubilee Year, demanded several performances and adored the chief Red
Shirt. It stopped at Birmingham before reaching Salford
* The warriors were Lakota (northern) Indians from the Oglala tribe of
the Sioux Nation, who counted Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse among their
numbers. The Oglala Sioux were depicted in the 1990 film Dances With Wolves.
*
Letters for publication in the print edition. *Note:* If you wish to
submit a letter for publication in the newspaper, it must include the
sender's name, postal address and daytime telephone number -
<mailto:letters@independent.co.uk>
letters@independent.co.uk <mailto:letters@independent.co.uk>
*
The material in this post is distributed without
profit to those who have expressed a prior interest
in receiving the included information for research
and educational purposes. For more information go to:
www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html
oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm
If you wish to use copyrighted material from this email
for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain
permission from the copyright owner.
show left a Sioux legacy in Salford
From the Wild West to the North-west: how Buffalo Bill's travelling
show left a Sioux legacy in Salford
By Ian Herbert, North of England Correspondent
Published: 20 February 2006
news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/article346571.ece
Scenes from the Wild West have been a part of Saturday nights on the
streets of Salford for years, but only now can it claim they are an
important part of its heritage.
Investigations by a local historian and trade unionist have discovered
descendants of Sioux Native Americans living in Salford, 120 years after
they toured the area as part of Buffalo Bill Cody's famous travelling show.
The Lakota and Oglala Sioux formed part of a troupe of 97 Native
Americans, 180 broncos, 18 buffalo, 14 mules and donkeys, 10 elk and two
deer when they rolled into town in November 1887. They stayed for five
months, playing to packed houses from a site on the banks of the River
Irwell, now occupied by The Lowry gallery.
What is less well known is that some of the Sioux decided to settle in
Salford and Manchester, where their descendants remain.
The links were discovered by the historian Steve Coen, who was
fascinated by the city's Sioux links that include street names, such as
Cody Court, Sundance Court, Dakota Avenue, and Kansas Avenue.
He has established that when Cody's popularity in Salford led him back
there in 1903, a 26-year-old Lakota chief, Charging Thunder, could not
bring himself to leave. He married Josephine, one of the American horse
trainers in the show, and settled locally.
As Charging Thunder changed his name to the rather less distinctive
George Edward Williams and disappeared into anonymity within north-west
England, tracing his lineage has not been easy.
But appeals for locals with a Sioux history elicited a response from
Rita Parr, 66, a former wage clerk in whose living room hangs an image
of an Indian chief. It is Charging Thunder and Mrs Parr is his
granddaughter.
"We'd always known there was an Indian chief in the family but only now
are we beginning to learn about the piece of history he fitted into,"
said Mrs Parr, whose mother, Gladys, was the chief's daughter. "We don't
have any artefacts as all his outfits, bows and arrows disappeared when
he moved house from Lancashire to Gorton. They were either mislaid or
pinched. But I'm very proud of him. [It took a] very strong-willed man
to give up his life and settle here, raise a family and give me this
heritage."
The switch from the Wild West to the industrial north-west evidently
suited Charging Thunder. He juggled jobs as a handyman at an industrial
pump factory and a "drawer-outer" (doorman) at the picture house with
occasional turns at Manchester's Belle Vue circus where he road an
elephant called Nellie. He does not appear to have been offended by his
nickname, "Darkie".
Mr Coen's research has taken him to South Dakota where his hosts
included Mrs Parr's first cousin, Mike Hermanyhorses. "The links we are
finding do not surprise me," he said. "Cody's company included young men
in their prime. Fraternising with the locals was inevitable."
He also discovered records of a Lakota girl born in Salford during the
company's stay and baptised in February 1888. Church registers record
her name as Frances Victoria Alexander, the daughter of Little Chief and
Good Robe. The trail then goes cold.
So the search goes on for descendants from Cody's visits to Salford.
Other chiefs who lingered included Black Elk, a medicine man who was
interviewed in 1931 by John Neihardt for the book Black Elk Speaks,
which became a classic of Native American writing. He was among scores
of Lakota Sioux who were stranded after missing the train out of Salford
in 1888 and had to make their own way back to South Dakota.
Salford Council is delighted to have discovered its new Sioux
credentials and will hold a public meeting next month to invite ideas on
how to develop the links. "This is such a fantastic story, we are keen
to find the best way to bring it to life for today's Salford," said
Salford City Council leader, Councillor John Merry.
Far from home
* The company was led into Salford by Buffalo Bill Cody, who scouted for
Native Americans for the US army and killed buffalo to feed the soldiers
before establishing his circus-like Wild West show in 1883.
* Salford was a long way from the Old West, but all the better for some
of the Sioux, who found themselves on the run from the US cavalry
because they had been involved in the demise of General Custer in the
Battle of Little Big Horn.
* The company recreated gunslinging scenes from the Wild West in Salford
and neighbouring Manchester and raced their broncos against English
thoroughbreds over a 10-mile course. The broncos won with 300 yards to
spare.
* The British tour started in London in 1887 where Queen Victoria, in
her Jubilee Year, demanded several performances and adored the chief Red
Shirt. It stopped at Birmingham before reaching Salford
* The warriors were Lakota (northern) Indians from the Oglala tribe of
the Sioux Nation, who counted Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse among their
numbers. The Oglala Sioux were depicted in the 1990 film Dances With Wolves.
Scenes from the Wild West have been a part of Saturday nights on the
streets of Salford for years, but only now can it claim they are an
important part of its heritage.
Investigations by a local historian and trade unionist have discovered
descendants of Sioux Native Americans living in Salford, 120 years after
they toured the area as part of Buffalo Bill Cody's famous travelling show.
The Lakota and Oglala Sioux formed part of a troupe of 97 Native
Americans, 180 broncos, 18 buffalo, 14 mules and donkeys, 10 elk and two
deer when they rolled into town in November 1887. They stayed for five
months, playing to packed houses from a site on the banks of the River
Irwell, now occupied by The Lowry gallery.
What is less well known is that some of the Sioux decided to settle in
Salford and Manchester, where their descendants remain.
The links were discovered by the historian Steve Coen, who was
fascinated by the city's Sioux links that include street names, such as
Cody Court, Sundance Court, Dakota Avenue, and Kansas Avenue.
He has established that when Cody's popularity in Salford led him back
there in 1903, a 26-year-old Lakota chief, Charging Thunder, could not
bring himself to leave. He married Josephine, one of the American horse
trainers in the show, and settled locally.
As Charging Thunder changed his name to the rather less distinctive
George Edward Williams and disappeared into anonymity within north-west
England, tracing his lineage has not been easy.
But appeals for locals with a Sioux history elicited a response from
Rita Parr, 66, a former wage clerk in whose living room hangs an image
of an Indian chief. It is Charging Thunder and Mrs Parr is his
granddaughter.
"We'd always known there was an Indian chief in the family but only now
are we beginning to learn about the piece of history he fitted into,"
said Mrs Parr, whose mother, Gladys, was the chief's daughter. "We don't
have any artefacts as all his outfits, bows and arrows disappeared when
he moved house from Lancashire to Gorton. They were either mislaid or
pinched. But I'm very proud of him. [It took a] very strong-willed man
to give up his life and settle here, raise a family and give me this
heritage."
The switch from the Wild West to the industrial north-west evidently
suited Charging Thunder. He juggled jobs as a handyman at an industrial
pump factory and a "drawer-outer" (doorman) at the picture house with
occasional turns at Manchester's Belle Vue circus where he road an
elephant called Nellie. He does not appear to have been offended by his
nickname, "Darkie".
Mr Coen's research has taken him to South Dakota where his hosts
included Mrs Parr's first cousin, Mike Hermanyhorses. "The links we are
finding do not surprise me," he said. "Cody's company included young men
in their prime. Fraternising with the locals was inevitable."
He also discovered records of a Lakota girl born in Salford during the
company's stay and baptised in February 1888. Church registers record
her name as Frances Victoria Alexander, the daughter of Little Chief and
Good Robe. The trail then goes cold.
So the search goes on for descendants from Cody's visits to Salford.
Other chiefs who lingered included Black Elk, a medicine man who was
interviewed in 1931 by John Neihardt for the book Black Elk Speaks,
which became a classic of Native American writing. He was among scores
of Lakota Sioux who were stranded after missing the train out of Salford
in 1888 and had to make their own way back to South Dakota.
Salford Council is delighted to have discovered its new Sioux
credentials and will hold a public meeting next month to invite ideas on
how to develop the links. "This is such a fantastic story, we are keen
to find the best way to bring it to life for today's Salford," said
Salford City Council leader, Councillor John Merry.
Far from home
* The company was led into Salford by Buffalo Bill Cody, who scouted for
Native Americans for the US army and killed buffalo to feed the soldiers
before establishing his circus-like Wild West show in 1883.
* Salford was a long way from the Old West, but all the better for some
of the Sioux, who found themselves on the run from the US cavalry
because they had been involved in the demise of General Custer in the
Battle of Little Big Horn.
* The company recreated gunslinging scenes from the Wild West in Salford
and neighbouring Manchester and raced their broncos against English
thoroughbreds over a 10-mile course. The broncos won with 300 yards to
spare.
* The British tour started in London in 1887 where Queen Victoria, in
her Jubilee Year, demanded several performances and adored the chief Red
Shirt. It stopped at Birmingham before reaching Salford
* The warriors were Lakota (northern) Indians from the Oglala tribe of
the Sioux Nation, who counted Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse among their
numbers. The Oglala Sioux were depicted in the 1990 film Dances With Wolves.
*
Letters for publication in the print edition. *Note:* If you wish to
submit a letter for publication in the newspaper, it must include the
sender's name, postal address and daytime telephone number -
<mailto:letters@independent.co.uk>
letters@independent.co.uk <mailto:letters@independent.co.uk>
*
The material in this post is distributed without
profit to those who have expressed a prior interest
in receiving the included information for research
and educational purposes. For more information go to:
www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html
oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm
If you wish to use copyrighted material from this email
for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain
permission from the copyright owner.