Medford mail tribune., April 27, 1952, Image 13

MEDFORD (OREGON) MAIL TRIBUNE THTnTCTrf
Mementos of Indian Wars, Peace Signing, How Shown at Museum
Sunday. April 27. 1932
Gun, Buckskin Suit
And Big Peace Pipe
Recall Treaty Time
History of Colonel
John Ross Related
A new exhibit, recently added
to the Jacksonville Museum, in
cludes mementos of one of the
most dramatic events in the his
tory of southern Oregon the
signing of the treaty of peace
between the U. S. Army and the
Rogue Indians.
The treaty was signed near
lower Table Rock, just south of
the Rogue river near Medford.
The mementos of the event now
being shown by the museum
include a buckskin suit, rifle,
pictures and part of the peace
pipe smoked at the historic
treaty conference. They were
the property of Col. John Ross,!
Interpreter during the sessions,
and an early-day valley resident
after whom Ross lane west of
Medford is named.
V The items were made avail-
able for display at the museum
bv Mrs. William Skyrman, Cen
tral Point, a granddaughter of
Colonel Ross.
"See" History
The exhibit la one more dis
play in a growing collection of
valuable historic objects which
Is making the Jacksonville Mu
seum one of the show places of
southern Oregon. Increasing use
is being made of the opportune
ities to "see" history, not only
by tourists but by school chil
dren.
The Museum is operated
through Jackson county tax
money and is open without
charge to the public seven days
a week.
School heads are recognizing
the benefits to students through
the study of these historical dis
plays and each new history class
In schools throughout the county
is taken through the Museum.
That the children are interested
la shown by their close attention
when the curator conducts them
through. Indian legends are told
and other stories of historical
nature are related.
From Other Counties
This spring has Bhown an. in
creased interest on the part of
schools, with many coming from
other counties, making an all-
day trip and picnicking during
their visit on the museum lawn.
.Recently students from O'Brien,
Selma, Myrtle Creek, Myrtle
Point, Riddle, Merlin and Kerby
have visited the museum.
Students from Hornbrook,
Calif., also have been there, and
the history classes at Southern
Oregon college call at the insti
tution. The museum was opened less
than two years ago, on July 2,
1950, and was dedicated in Aug
ust during the 1950 Jacksonville
Jubilee.
Since that time more than
84,200 persons have visited, an
Indication of its value both for
educational purposes and as a
tourist attraction. On the aver
age, some 300 more persons vis
ited there during each month
this year, than in the first year
it was opened.
Alio Society
The institution Is not only a
museum, but also a historical
society, and Is so recognized by
the American Association for
State and Local History in
Washington D. C. Because of
the manner in which exhibits
are placed and cared for, and
because of techniques of cata-
loging and keeping of reference
materials, the Institution has
been given the national Award
of Merit. .
Curators from the New York
state and New York City mu
seums, who examined this mu
i seum before making the award,
Vsaid that "the people of this
' area are fortunate in having
such a museum where every
display is carefully thought out
and the history of this vicinity
is told through the displays
themselves."
Requests for reference mater
ial, received from all parts of
the United States, are filled
through research of the Jackson
ville Museum files by the cura
tor, Mrs. Myrtle P. Lee.
In Its less than two years of
existence, the establishment has
been a rich source of pleasure
and accurate information. Be
yond this is the value of the
preservation of pioneer southern
Oregon and other western
Americana. Because exhibits
are well cared for and because
they are serving good purposes,
many persons are presenting or
loaning the Museum their family
heirlooms.
Ross' Lif
For those interested In Colo
nel Ross's life Mrs. Lee has
furnished the following infor
mation. He was born Feb. 15, 1818 in
Madison county, Ohio, later
moving to Indiana and Illinois.
V'hen he was 23, he was married
but the marriage was terminated
quickly by the death of his
S-oung wife, only eight months
,ter their wedding.
Since the great Oregon coun
try waa a topic on everyone I 1
'-4 S3 T
BIG DISPLAY ROOM Shown above Is
the main display room on the second floor of
the Jacksonville Museum, the former Jackson
county courthouse. The spacious, airy room has
been completely renovated for use as a muse
um, and is painted with cream colored walls,
and a light blue celling with gold trim. At
the far left is the circuit court bench used by
the late Judge H. K. Hanna of the Jackson
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STAIRWAY GRACES MUSEUM The unique double stair
way at the Jacksonville Museum is one of the attractions of the
old county courthouse. It winds gracefully from both sides of the
entrance to the courtroom on the second floor, now the main dis
play room of the museum. Shown above are the well-proportioned
curves of the north section of the staircase. The custodian's office
is at left, and the registration table is at the foot of the stairs.
Curved stairs of this type are rare today.
toneue. John Enaland Ross or
ganized i company to cross the
plains in 1847. He served as
captain of the outfit and at the
John Day river his train over
took another, the Warrens. This
group had been robbed of every
thing, and Ross traded his cloth
ing to the Indians for provisions
to give the destitute party and
combined the train with his.
When he arrived at The
Dalles, Ross was penniless and
there obtained a job at $1 a day
on a boat which took emigrants
downriver.
In November of that year,
1847, he went to Oregon City to
open a butcher shop, but the
Cayuse war broke out and he
enlisted in the first volunteer
company. He was made a second
lieutenant and went to the Mis
sion station at The Dalles. Later
he was promoted to captain.
Following the fighting he
heeded the call of gold in Cali
fornia and left for Feather river
where he mined until the fall of
1849 and then returned to Ore
gon. In 1850 he again went to
California and was one of the
first to discover gold on Scotts
river. From California he came
to Canyon creek in Josephine
county, Oregon, in 1851, and
also was one of the first to find
gold there.
Returns to Shop
Returning to his idea of oper
ating a butcher shop, he came
to Jacksonville in January, 1852,
but again he reentered service
because of an Indain uprising in
the Klamath country. He raised
a company of 30 men and went
to the rescue of emigrants who
were attacked at Bloody point
and Tule Lake, and later he
joined with Ben Wright's com
pany at Clear lake. On this trip
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Licensed by the State of Oregon.
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Registered Nurse In Charge
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1
14 emigrants were burled. Ross
and his men paid their own ex
penses on this trip and received
'only the thanks of the Oregon
territorial legislature in return.
In January, 1853, a Methodist
minister named Gilbert married
Miss Elizabeth Hopwood and
John England Ross at Jackson
ville the first marriage in this
pioneer town. The old Ross
house on Ross lane was their
permanent home.
Rogue War
The Rogue Indian war of 1853
broke out in August and Ross
was placed in command of two
battalions of mounted volun
teers. His battalion, with those
of Colonel Alden, took part in
several skirmishes and just be
fore the battle of Evans creek,
General Joseph Lane, governor
of the Oregon territory, arrived
to take command of the entire
Army forces. Colonel Alden
suffered, severe wounds during
the fighting and General Lane
was wounded by a rifle bullet.
When the Indains learned that
General Lane was directing the
fighting, they asked to talk with
him. The general went Into their
camp and found many wounded
Indians, and saw them burning
their dead. He was told they
were tired of fighting, and
wished peace.
He outlined to Chief Jo of the
Rogues and his brothers, Sam
and Jim, the plan of a treaty to
which they agreed. A meeting
was arranged for September
and the ground was chosen for
the council. It was on the south
side of Rogue river. The Indians
camped directly opposite The
cliffs of Table Rock. General
Lane'a camp was in the valley
a mile away on the spot where
county circuit court, and presented to the
museum by his son of the same name, the pres
ent presiding Judge of the circuit court. The
museum has become an Increasingly important
tourist attraction in the area, and has been
visited by ever-growing numbers of children,
both in family groups and as members of school
parties, some of them from considerable distances.
Ft. Lane later was established.
Ask for Ross
J. W. Nesmith was appointed
interpreter by General Lane but
the Indians would not deal with
him. They asked for Captain
Ross to work with the treaty
party.
On the fourth of September,
1853, the preliminary council
was held and General Lane ex
acted a .hostage, the son of
Chief Jo. This proved to be a
wise move. Old Limpy, of the
Applegate tribe of Rogue In
dians, tried to break up the
council but Chief Jo's son was
security enough against a re
bellion. The treaty was entered into
September 10, 1853. It was at
this treaty that Colonel Ross
wore the buckskin suit and re
ceived the redwood burl peace
pipe bowl for his Work as Inter
preter. Ross was elevated to the rank
of colonel in the 9th regiment
by Gov. John W. Davis, in 1854;
and appointed brigadier general
of the first brigade of the Ore
gon militia by Gov. L. F. Grover
in December, 1872.
Following the Modoc wars, he
came home to serve his state in
numerous ways. His home al
ways has been pointed out with
pride, for he. served his country
both long and well.
Excellent Condition
The Ross collection on dis
play at the Museum is in excel
lent condition. General Ross
killed the deer from which the
buckskin suit was made. He cut
the pattern, made the entire
suit and lined it with red flan
nel. With the exceptions of wear
and some moth-eaten parts, the
flannel is still intact. The buck
skin, with the good care it has
received through the years, Is
still pliable and soft.
In one of the trouser legs Is a
mend where an Indian arrow
pierced the colonel's thigh. At
the first meeting of the Southern
Oregon Pioneer society in 1877,
Colonel Ross fastened the pio
neer badge, also of buckskin,
on the collar of the suit and
there It remains.
His gun he carried with him
through all the Indian wars.
When the treaty with the
Rogue Indians was completed,
the peace pipe waa smoked by
the Indian chiefs and General
Lane. This pipe was made espec
ially for the occasion and the
bowl of the pipe was polished
to a high finish by a soldier at
Ft. Lane. As a token of appreci
ation for his services at the
treaty-making, Colonel Ross was
given the bowl of the peace
pipe, someone else receiving the
stem.
Capt. Jack's Gun
Also with Mrs. Skyrman's
Ross collection on exhibit at the
An Everlasting Tribute
Siskiyou Memorial Mausoleum
CREMATORY md URN SPACE
Cremation $45.00
Phone 2-2344, Siskiyou Memorial Park
NEWEST HISTORIC DISPLAY The most-
recently acquired historic display at the Jack
sonville Museum is shown above. It comprises
mementos of the signing of the peace treaty
which ended the Indian wars in this area. At.
right is the buckskin suit made and worn by
Col. John Ross (after whom Ross lane is named)
who was the interpreter at the peace confer
ence. In the foreground Is the rifle Colonel Ross
used throughout the wars. At left center is the
bowl of the big, redwood-burl peacepipe, made
especially for the peace signing, and which was
Dedication of Science Building
Highlights UO 75th Anniversary
Eugene (U.R) A new science
building is being dedicated this
weekend at the University of
Oregon in Eugene one of the
highlights of the university's
75th annual anniversary cele
bration. ' The dedication ceremonies be
gan Friday with an official In
spection tour by the State Board
of Higher Education. Gov.
Douglas McKay and Dr. Alan
Waterman, director of the
National Science Foundation,
participated in the afternoons
ceremonies, and Dr. Waterman
gave the main address Friday
night.
Outstanding Scientists Attend
Three of the nation's out
standing scientists were on Sat
urday's program. They are Dr.
G. W. Beadle, chairman of the
division of biology at the Cali
fornia Institute of Technology;
Dr. S. K. Allison, head of the
Institute of Nuclear Studies at
the University of Chicago, and
Dr. G. Ross Robertson, professor
of chemistry at the University of
California at Los Angeles.
Seminars by the visiting sci
entists and special demonstra
tions were held Saturday for
the public.
The new $1,600,000 science
building marks a new period In
Museum is a gun once owned by
Captain Jack, hot-headed young
Indian sub-chief of the Modoc
wars.
Colonel Ross served In every
principal engagement of the
Modoc Indian war in the Klam
ath country. Mary, sister of Cap
tain Jack, left the gun now on
display with Evan Reams Sr.,
who operated a store at Klamath
Falls, then Linkville, according
to historical Information passed
on to the Ross relatives.
The sister never returned for
the gun and because of his ser
vice in the Modoc wars, Reams
presented Captain Jack's gun to
the colonel. This gun was taken
by Captain Jack from a United
Statei Army officer.
On the butt of this gun In
metal inlays are designs of a cat
and a saucer of milk; a moon; a
star; and other objects.
1
mmmmmmmsmm
the university's science educa
tion era. Now, for the first time
in 20 years, pure sciences will
be taught tn completely modern
laboratories.
Leicester, Mass. (U.R) Na
than M. Southwlck and his sons
still are collecting sap for maple
sugar from trees planted by their
ancestors in 1831. Although most
of their trees are about 120 years
old, the Southwlck's produce 380
gallons of syrup last year.
at NO
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f.t rnnnti
. -a
-U- -I,
presented to Colonel Ross at a loVen of his serv
ices as interpreter. Colonel (later General of
militia) Ross and his wife are shown in the pic
tures at the rear of the display case, and in front
used throughout the wars. At lift center is the
and a highly-decorated rifle used by Captain
Jack, a notorious and hot-headed young sub
chief of the Modoc indians. The display is in one
of the downstairs showrooms of the museum,
and was made available to the museum through
the courtesy of Mrs. William Skyrman, Central
Point, Colonel Ross" granddaughter.
Washington County
Names Tatf Delegates
Ephrata (U.R) Grant coun.
ty Republicans chose five Taft
delegates Friday night at their
county convention here.
Officially, the five were to go
to the state convention at Spo
kane unlnstructed, but all un
officially expressed preference
for the Ohio senator as the Re
publican presidential nominee.
They also passed several reso
lutions, one opposing a Colum
bia Valley Authority.
IN SCHOOL CAFETERIAS
AT FINER RESTAURANTS
AT GROCERS EVERYWHERE
BY HOME DELIVERY
ONLY
LITTLE DAISY'S
HOMOGENIZED MILK
IS ENRICHED WITH
1U
VITAMINS
&
EXTRA CHARGE
Motorist! on German speed
days are quickly "paged" by dis
playing their names on ligm
along the routes and bringing
them to a telephone at the near
est rest station.
SUNDAY
HEALTH
CHATS
By ' Crank i. Hinit
Today I thought I'd say Just
a little bit about Gastric Ulcers.
Sunday, for most of us, is the
day that we rest and have our
biggest meal of the week. May.
be it Isn't always the biggest but
we enjoy it more, we're relaxed,
and It seems a little larger. But
to a person suffering with ul
cers It presents somewhat of a
problem. They know that If they
eat everything they want they'll
have to "pay for It." And so,
depending on how well they
feel, they either eat heartily or
resign themselves to foods that
agree with them.
The symptoms of Gastric Ul
cers ran;e from a mild stomach
upset after eating, to the vomit
ing of blood. In between these
two extremes there lies quite a
variety of symptoms: pain in the '
abdomen at a certain time after
eating, a burning sensation In
(he stomach, belching or vomit
ing sour food, headache, depres
sion, etc.
The cause of Gastrle Ulceri Is
well known; tha glandi In the
stomach secrete more acid than
is necessary for the digestion of
a meal. Tha consequent hyper
acidity eats Into the stomach
wall and produces the ulcer. But
why do the glandi secrete too
much acid? Well, the function
of these glanda are controlled
by their nerve supply. And If
this nerve supply Is Interfered
with or altered, the glands will
not function normally.
By re-establishing the normal
nerve supply, through Chtro
practice methods, and making
slight changes in the diet. Gas
tric Ulcers can be treated quit
effectively. Also, the patient
does not lose part of his stomach
through surgery or have to use
an animal s stomach as a sub
stitute. Today I'm going to use my
own, whole, ulcer free, stomach
to digest some of the best fried
chicken in Souhtern Oregon,
Dr. Frank J. Hantes,
Chiropractic Phyilclaiu
138 Oak Straat,
Central Point, Ore. Adr.
I