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Tobia
Social climber
Denial
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Topic Author's Original Post - Apr 4, 2016 - 04:46am PT
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Joe Medicine Crow's life ended after 102 years on April 3rd. He was the last surviving war chief of Montana's Crow tribe. He was an authority on pre-reservation life, having heard firsthand stories about the Battle of Little Big Horn as told by relatives who were there as well as other oral history that he retained and cataloged throughout his life.
He earned the title of war chief by completing the traditional four acts (touching an enemy without killing him, taking an enemies weapon, leading a successful war party and stealing an enemy's horse) required by tribal law during his heroic actions as a U.S. soldier in WW II. He also earned the Bronze Star Medal and Légion d'honneur as well for his actions in the war.
Joe Medicine Crow spent his post-war years writing books and lecturing as a tribal historian.
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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He was also the first member of the Crow tribe to earn a graduate degree, in 1928, from USC.
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Jan
Mountain climber
Colorado & Nepal
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Thanks Jim ! I'm amazed I'd never heard about Ira Hayes. All those years watching the Armed Forces network in the Pacific and he was never mentioned even during Native American history month ???
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L
climber
Just Livin' the Dream in Pacific Grove, CA
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The Ballad of Ira Hayes.
Still brings a tear to my eye, even after all these years...
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Tobia
Social climber
Denial
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 5, 2016 - 04:31am PT
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I learned about Joe Medicine Crow when watching Ken Burn's documentary, The War. After reading about his demise in the news yesterday, I ordered the book mentioned in the article, Counting Coup: Becoming a Crow Chief on the Reservation and Beyond.
After clicking on Jan's link, I learned that particular book is a National Geographic printing for young readers, so I cancelled that one and ordered another title. (Thank you Jan.)
Reading another "bio" on Joe Medicine Crow this morning I learned that he was working on his doctorate when he mustered to the call for WWII duty.
I still am amazed at the fact that he was able to meet the four requirements of becoming a war chief in the middle of the 20th Century, chiefly due to the horse stealing requirement. He stole not one, but 50 horses from a German SS battalion.
Johnny Cash's album, Bitter Tears: Ballads of the American Indian is in my collection of music.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Awesome story, Tobia. Thanks.
He was known as the Last Plains Indian War Chief because in Europe during World War II he’d completed all four tasks needed to become a Crow war chief. He led scouting parties deep behind enemy lines, stole German horses, disarmed an enemy and touched one without killing him (counted coup).
The last two deeds were accomplished simultaneously, as Medicine Crow recalled in Ken Burns’ 2007 documentary, “The War.” In a narrow alley he saw a protruding German rifle. Medicine Crow knocked it out of the German’s hands and beat him until he had his hands on the man’s throat. The German was able to gasp, “Mama,” before Medicine Crow felt sorry for him and let him live.
While World War II was known as a mechanized war, the Germans and Soviets still relied heavily on horses, deploying more than 6 million for transport during the war. While scouting, Medicine Crow spotted a small patrol of Germans with about 50 horses. As a man who loved horses, Medicine Crow knew the Americans had better take the horses before the area was to be bombarded at dawn.
Right before the explosions started, they had the group of horses, and Medicine Crow rode fast while singing a Crow victory song. “It was a beautiful horse,” he said of the mount, which happened to have a braid in its mane.
http://lastbestnews.com/site/2016/04/adrian-jawort-recollections-of-joe-medicine-crow/#sthash.yaNWM4Up.dpuf
From this same link~
A tribute poem by writer Craig Johnson, the creator of the Walt Longmire novels, was read aloud. At the time it perhaps best conveyed the sentiments to all those at Medicine Crow’s centennial birthday, and to those who never had the honor of seeing or meeting him.
Now the poem speaks dually as he walks on to another life:
“Stand, my friends, Joe Medicine Crow is walking past.
To see the things that those walnut eyes have seen.
To hear the things that those leathery ears have heard.
To feel the things that the still-beating heart has felt.
Stand, my friends, Joe Medicine Crow is walking past.
Stand, my friends, history is walking past.”
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survival
Big Wall climber
Terrapin Station
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Joe Medicine Crow WWII
Joe Medicine Crow
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Jim Clipper
climber
from: forests to tree farms
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Photo of an ancestor.
“Medicine Crow was a warrior from the time he first went on the warpath at the age of fifteen until his last battle in 1877. He attained chieftaincy about 1870 at the age of twenty-two, and from then on he set the pace for aspiring young warriors of his people.
Until his death in 1920, at the age of seventy-two, he was a “reservation chief,” concerned with helping the Crow tribe “learn to live in the ways of the white man” as soon and as efficiently as possible. He went to see the Great Father in Washington many times on behalf of his people.”
I heard that Joe Medicine Crow wore an eagle feather, painted yellow, under his helmet in WWII. Learn'ed man. No questions regarding his humanity either.
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d-know
Trad climber
electric lady land
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Props to
Joe the Crow!
Thanks Tobia.
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