Bill Moose...Last of the Wyandots

[Matthew S. Schweitzer]

Old time Columbus residents might remember the story of Bill Moose, claimed to be the last Wyandot Indian living in Ohio. Moose , who late in life resided in a small shack on Morse Road, died in 1937 at the age of 100.

There is a small memorial to Bill Moose at the corner of Lane Rd. and Riverside Dr. (Rt. 33) along the Scioto River in Upper Arlington. Also, Bill Moose Run in Clintonville, just north of the Graceland shopping center, is named in his honor. Just a bit of local lore that I thought was interesting enough to pass on.

There is a good article describing his interesting life and the small stream that bears his name here:
www.olentangywatershed.org/infoFLOW2/infoFLOW2-BillMoose.html

[Matthew S. Schweitzer]

Here is some further info taken from an interview Indian Bill Moose gave with a local paper in 1912...thought it was interesting enough to quote here...

Bill Moose, known in the Columbus area as "Indian Bill," was the last surviving full-blooded Wyandot Indian. His cabin was located one and a half miles south of Worthington and he walked daily from his humble abode to the Bower Grocery Store for a handout and conversation.
Here is his story, told to Leonard Insley, Editor of the Worthington, Ohio News:

"I was born Sept. 9, 1837, eight miles north of Upper Sandusky, in Wyandot county, about 200 yards west of where Colonel Crawford was burned at the stake by the Delaware Indians and Simon Girty on June 11, 1782. I am a Wyandot Indian and the sole surviving full-blooded member of that tribe. My father died Sept. 9, 1871, aged 100 years. My mother died March 21, 1872, aged 106. Both are buried in the Indian cemetery at Upper Sandusky.

"During my father's lifetime at Upper Sandusky, the Wyandot camp of Indians, which was located on that place, numbered about 400. Leatherlips, a friend of the white man and a powerful and influential chief of the tribe, met his death June 1, 1810 at a point about 12 miles north of Columbus on the Scioto River Road. Chief Pancake who succeeded him was the next and last chief of the Wyandots in this territory.

"Our tribe were of a religious nature and had their worship trees under the branches of which they worshipped God whom they called 'The Great I Am.' They believed that good Indians would be rewarded in a future life and that bad ones would be punished. In 1816 our tribe was converted to Christianity by the Methodist missionary Stewart who was sent to preach the gospel to them.

"The Wyandot and Delaware Indians sold their reservations in 1836. They were transferred to Kansas , later to Oklahoma, where the tribe so inter-married that there are now no full-blood Wyandots to be found there. Twelve families, including our own, refused to move and remained at their old camping ground.

"For nine years I traveled with Sells Bros. circus and while with the show made a tour of the United States, Canada and Australia. I have never been married, am a Republican, and cast my first vote for Abraham Lincoln. I attribute my long life to living close to nature, and observe the custom of my tribe in sleeping out of doors in the summer, and one night of each month throughout the winter with only one blanket for cover. On my next birthday (1912) I will be 90 years old."

[Hal Sherman]

There seems to be a lot of interest in the Bill Moose story according to all the views on this subject. I think it would be neat if a picture could be posted of him. Jim Thompson of Columbus has a number of pictures of him.

[stephensli]

Here are some of the photos of the Bill Moose grave site.

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[stephensli]

This is a stone by the Bill Moose grave

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[stephensli]

Bill Moose grave in Columbus, Ohio.

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[stephensli]

Bill Moose's grave in Columbus along the Scioto River.

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[Matthew S. Schweitzer]

Thanks for those pictures!

I did manage to also track down this wonderful image of Bill Moose in full ceremonial regalia from the Ohio Historical Society website.