Image provided by: The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde; Grand Ronde, OR
About Weekly Chemawa American. (Chemawa, Or.) 189?-198? | View Entire Issue (Dec. 13, 1901)
6 CHEMAWA Thomas W Potter, Superintendent of the School at Chemawa, whose picture appears on the cover page, is the son of a Methodist minister and was born in Ontario, Canada, December 28, 1863. He graduated from the. Hamilton Collegiate Institute and Toronto Normal school when 18 years of1 age. He taught one year in Canada and then, longing for a Western life, went to Texas. He taught mathematics in a Ft. Worth university for one year. Tiring of books and school rooms, ne threw them aside for the free and wild life of a Texas cowboy. He worked on the cattle ranches on the Texas plains and the Indian territory, learning to lasso the wild est Texas steer and ride the meanest of bronchos. After two years of ranch life he went back to his educational work as teacher at the Cheyeune school, never re gretting the splendid experience he obtain ed with the wild and wooly cowboys. When Col. D. 13. Dyer was Indian agent of the Cheyennes and Arapahoes, he appoint ed Mr. Potter as a teacher in the Cheyenne school in 1884 and he has been in the ser vice since that time in various positions and places, towit: 1884 to 1885, teacher at Cheyenne school; 1885 to 1886, teacher in Arapahoe school; 1886 to 1887, teacher at Kiowa and Comanche agency; 1887 to 1889, sub-Indian agent at Cantonment, Okla; 1890 to 1891,' teacher at Carlisle " Indian school; 1892 to 1893, principal teacher at Fort Totten, N. D.; 1893 to 1895, superin tendent and acting Indian agent of the Eastern Cherokees, N. C; 1895 to present time, superintendent of Salem Indian school. In 1895 Salem Indian school had but 200 pupils because of the frequent change of employes and superintendents, as there, had been sevn changes in the position of superintendent from 1893 to 1895, when Mr. Potter took charge. Today the school has an enrollment of 675 pupils and ia in creasing annually. There ara 50 employes at the Chemawa school. Many good, sub stantial and valuable improvements have bsen made each vear. ' No rackets or in- AMERICAN. . ternal dissensions mar the peace of the school, hence it can't help but prosper. The school is doing excellent work in its shops and school rooms, as is evidenced by results. Scores of its pupils 'are woridng at white mechanics' wages in towns of California, Washington and Oregon, many - are in business for themselves, operating small shops and farms of their own. The Chemawa girls are filling positions of housekeepers, cooks and seamstresses all the way from Colorado to Alaska. Mr. Potter owns a large cattle ranch and farm in the Indian territory and ia es pecially fond of the stock business for the pleasure as well as the profit that is in it; and when he gives up the wearisome and worrying duties of the government service he will devote his whole time to superin tending his private business. Native American. The members of the Reliance Society spent a very profitable evening together last Thursday. President Gillis being absent Chas; Cutter called the society to order. Every member enjoyed the selec tion by the Reliance Quartette. Miss Rea son was a visitor the early partof the even ing. Willie Allen, Willie Brannan, and David Mike were visitors. The following program was rendered; Address, Richard Decker; Recitation, Simpn Ellis; . Reading, Simon Booth; Selection, Reliance Quartette; Debate Resolved: That wealth is more beneficial to mankind than an education. Affirmative. Negative. Yeppie Nelson. Simon Ellis. John Harris. Chas. Hilburn, The Girls' Band Of Mercy met on last Thursday evening in the Girls' Home, The meeting was called to order by the president Rosa McKay. The program consisted of songs and recitations by the little members of the society. Miss Miller read to them part of the story about Little Nell by Dickens after which they all join ed in singing a song, and then the meeting closed.
