Showing results by author "Clarence Fitz" in All Categories

A fascinating life story intertwined with the history of the Navajo tribe. This is the story of a woman born in an earthen floored hogan on the Navajo Reservation in northern Arizona, educated in government-run boarding schools, denied marriage to the man she loved in favor of tradition and denied her birthright by family. Despite these roadblocks, she continued her education in the medical field. At times, she was sought out by the rich and famous people to provide care for their loved ones.

Ralph was a self-made man who took the good examples set by his parents and grandparents, started with very little, cut his losses when necessary, endured the Great Depression without folding and turned a half section of Iowa farm land into a prosperous operation. In so doing he passed on his work ethic and sound judgement to his family and provided a good life for himself and his family. Serving his country when asked to do so may have saved him from getting mired in the Montana homesteading disaster.

This narrative starts with Andrew Jackson before the original colonies had declared independence from Great Britain, continues through Jackson’s brilliant military career and through his becoming the 7th president of the United States. It continues through his promotion of the Indian Removal Act and the resulting tumultuous Trail of Tears.

The book chronologically explains the bungling of the federal government as they attempted to be fair to the Indians while at the same time moving them out of the way of settlement. It also delves into the interaction between the Sioux and the Chippewa, including the joint attempt in 1862 to kill all the white people in Minnesota, and how the results of that interaction affected Mille Lacs County, Minnesota and still does today.