~~

COpy

NlJ3RASKA 81 ~ It;HSTOR1CAL SOClETY

Harrisburg, Nebr.April 29, 1934

Nebraska History SocietyDear Sirs:

I received your letter and also the magazine andwas very "much pLeased to get it and I wil'l enclose Fifty centsfor same.

, The place I had in mind was the one Mr. T. L.Green described in the Wild Cat range of hills.

My grandfather, Herman Meel;:,went to California·in 1849. He was with the wagon train that the Indians

stopped at 'aw-hide Butte, Wyoming and skinned the white manalive. He said that when they went through the North PlatteValley that the hills north and south were alive with Indians.He vi ent through the Ranbidoux Pass and at tbat time Raubidouxhad a post and a blacksmith shop in the pass. He said up tillthe white man killed the Indian woman at or near Grand Island,they never had any trouble, but from then on clear throughto California they had trouble often and all the way.

He rman Meek was the father to Seath Eugean Meekthat fished for the United States for seven years and was:II.tone time wi th the f&ni thsonian Institution at Washington,D. C. and at the time of his death in 1925 was with the FieldMuseum at Chicago, Ill. 'I'ha t is why I am interested in theparts along the old Oregon Trail.

I have a small coLle ction that I have gatheredin the last few years. At one time I had a large box fullof arrOV'ISbut have gave them all away. For 20 years agothey were very plentiful here and this winter has been arather bad and windy. It has blown out the farm ground tillwe have found 35 or 40 good ar-rows head, but they are adifferent tj~ than we found years ago.

I am sending a cap that I found over at theHelvas Canyon site. I have two or three and you may keepSfu~e if you chose.

I know Mr. T. L. Green and have had businessdealing with him when he was in the bank at Scottsbluff,Nebraska. I wonder why Mr. Green did not mention theBrackhead Hill, south of Harrisburg, Nebraska. You cansee the places there where they had their camp fires.There is a grave along the southwest face of the butte andthere has been a large number of arrows head and hidescrapers. If your man comes up in this part of the country

.Carl Meek

-2-I'-.J

I will show him around and tell him what little I know.

¥ours respectfully,

'-RFD #3'. )

,Harrisburg , J;J ebr •

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r.A.E. Sheldon, Secretary.Nebraska State Historical Society.

T. L. GreenSCOTTSBLUF~·. NEBR.

September l5th.1934.

Lincoln Nebraska.

Dear Mr.Sheldon;I have your kind invitation to present to the

Historical Society a report on the trading-post site atits meeting on October 6tp.

In reply will say that while I think possiblya report might' be better delayed in the hope of definatelyproving its origin and history from historical records whichdoubtless exist somewheres,I will try,if you vish it, topresent a report,giving the meagre hearsay record,the dataas to remains which exist including plans,maps,pictures andrelics,and then give my hypothesis as to its origin.This theory may be later disproved,but it may at least setin motion investigation which might definately prove whptits history was. I can merely present evidence and let futureinvestigation sift out the answer.

If I present this subject I believe a propertitle would be, " A Forgotten Trading-post in Scotts BluffCounty~

Since you wer e here I have obtained possession ofthe bronze little medal found at this site by Ir.}cClanahanthe owner,and·handed by him to Lr.1.i.J••Stafford of this city.kr.Stafford is Vice-Prest. of the Scottsbluff National Bank.He very kindly has given the medal to me.

I am enclosing a rubbing of this little medalwhich may interest you. The date on it is 1830,and theinscriutign i9 in French and not in Latin. That date seemstoo late/t8rha.te orio'inated f roia Cana.dian French mt ssi ona'rt ea,

nd it seen.s too early a date for it to have a St.Louis origi~.Father DeSmet the great Jesuit md sst onary among the Indians did

not commence his work on the upper Missouri until 1838 and "rentfirst across the Oregon Trail in l840~ aoreover,I hardly believethis beautiful little medal was the kind which would be veryapt to be bestowed on new converts.

I am more intrigued by the inscription being inFrench than I 'would be were it in Latin. Father DeSmet was aBelgian by birth, ~nd French is spoken in Belgium.He came to

;jle_'icainhis work ..DeSmet himhis return

182l,but made many trips to Europe to solicit fundsIs it possible this little medal belonged to Fatherself and was lost when he visited this tradin:; postfrom the Horse Creek r~aty in 1851 !

foron

I have written to the President of St.Louis University, ".rhichinsti tution ha s gr own out ~of the one with ,"hich Father DeSmetwas affiliated,and'have'sent him -a-rubbing of the medal withrequest for any information he mi ght be a.ble to q:ive as to theReligious OrCier1phich might have used such a medal, and probableorigin of the on e we have found. I certainly' hope he lVay be ab l.e ,to throw some light on the question, and I ,r.illlet you lr..now-ifsuch is the case. .\"!hileit is poas fb'l,esomething rright turn up to prevent my att endingthe rreeting October 6th.I "i11 do so if possi le,and ~ill in themean time get together what I have in form for presentation.

Very truly yours

Thos.L.Green .•Scott~bluff Nebr.P,.O.Box 473 •

.I

LIGHTe

nou

REVERSE ..Twelve starso Cross with M at its base.T ro ~e~,rts 1 a~~. r.entl y. t.r ans "'lxen hy£11°.6',) enh.:1.rc a oy (j.:. ann c5f lino1'nS crwJ.:e .•.. J:1<> .n. Il.OW 0 (OVER)

NEBRASKA STAT,dlSTORJCAl SOCj[-1

SCOTI'SBLUFF, NEBR,. ,• ..L. •• V .'1,;.

Tebras~~ St~~- Historical Socie~y.

Li icoLn Me'r.Attentio1,: i8S S<..nooz.

Dear 1.1ss S2'..ldoz;

I =cnd er if you have any record of afur trader or trapper 'lamed,"Papan".

I'c see. s to me I hav e in so. e of my r ead t 18: runacross t'_at ne: e,') :.t I c n not r ece.L'l . r-er e it as.

"" r eaaon f or t:.e Lriq lir: is this: On ?- co ~lical littletill about 400 j- -.:-~ds:ro t he Helvas Ca::~'or..tre,diT" .•osts Lt e t lier e is a cedar co s t s t i ck l.nr- out 0: t ...e roundab J.... ,... .•.• .J.. .•.. -L. 0 U \,; " I e e/.;.

One of 0'.1:>:' 0:.0 ae t t Ler s tells ..e ~ch~'~he had been toldthere . ~S once ~ bo rd n~iled to tiis ~ost . eBrin~ a1awe 'jut th:::-.t al ·,.~lic:. couLd be r ec..d ' er e the lette:rs,IIp P ~. Iso he say s tL:t many yea:rs r,' 0 t.he rave wasdug up, 'Jon s of a .hi t e 1,1~n being round - e;i:; least therewere no Lndian reli cs - and tt ::-.t tl- e i i~ e of the ownerof the Land at th~;'"ct Lrue .nad e them r ebury the bones.11 of this was bac: in the early 80s,

s aJ.l tbe letters on the boaru wer e not J.egible,and aslip Poi .• " would seem rather an Lnco.np Let e and at.r ang e·,,'ore. to put 011 3. L,rave .: ao s t of those earl- grc"ves arequi te compLet e as to name and date and p'l.ace of reSidence,I rond er ed if t.r.at was !.10t an L'!.co.lplete na.ne ,

s sa id be f or e , the I13.Ple"Paean" sounds f?mili.ar to mein conn ec t Lon "it '2 aome 0: tLe IU:': trader days

If you:":' \.. 0.:1" t~~L1S in tLi3 con.iec t t on , or h .ve anysu;;estio118,I o~ld ~e p:e~sed to hear ~ro 1 yOU.

resuect~

\

,

'Pierre Didier Papin,sixth son of Joseph M.Papin and Marie LouiseOhouteau Papin, was born in St.Louis Karch 7th.1798.As a boy he hadspent much time with the American lur Oompany.When old enough hewas sent to the mountains and there,after one or two years,he wasinvested with the charge of the important post of Fort Laramie,aconsiderable point for the distribution of Indian supplies and thegathering of furs,and later on a very busy wayside depot of suppliesto the white emigrants on the Oregon Trail.This employment was hislifetime business.l He died at Sootts Bluff,Wyoming,suddenly,whileon an excursion from his fort.'(Hyde,William and Howard L.Oonard,Enoyolopedia of the History ofSt.Louis,vol.3,p.1693)"Pierre Didier Papin married Catherine Louise,on1y daughter ofPasoal Leon Oerre,Aug.10th,1826. He died a•••••',x' in May,1853,atthe age of 55 years,and his widow in Apri1,1884,aged 77 years and 7months. They left four children,Leon J,.,who married Medora O.daughterof Capt.-John D.'Daggett;Alfred J.,who married Virginia MoCord,ofGeorgia;Palmy~e,who married Joseph P.Wilkinson;Armantine J.,whoma~ried Henry T.Noroum.(Bl110n,Frederio L.1Annals of St.'Louis,from 1804 to 1821,1'.185)Miss Drumm says that"ometimes the name was spelled Pappan."

SCO'ITSBLUFF, NEBR.

NEBRASKA STAT!~HSTORlCAL SOC1ET y

T. L. Green

~:-ovr 11th.l.j34.

1 r •. E.Sheldon,Supt.lebr. State Historical Society.

It wouLd see. that there is not.h inr Ln these r enor t sto refute a theory t hat this tradL:.~ post was establisned about1849. k1C. also, the evidence thr.t china Yar e 0:: suet B. qU2.1ity". s at Leas t to SOl. e extent 1:1 use mi grrt Lnd Lcat e its occupationby e. Lar e, pr osper oue out r t t, such as the A .er i can Fur Co.

Dear ,1r"Sheldon;Enclosed I ha~d for your inspection a re)ort m~de

by :4r.U-re_or ...!orman-\lilcoX,of the staff of the Los ncelesr.us eu, , on ti. e f r agmerrt s of glass .md china fro." the HelvasCanyon -:;r2.6L1:" post site anc rt.cl, I sent to 'them,

These f r azmerrt s were aamo.l ea of every type andp at t er n wm ch I had found u: to the,t· time.

You l'il2. see t nat the glass is from une r Lcan TI18,Q eFhiskei :i:'l:~s.,:s 0: the Deriod 1840-1865. ~1' the cru na is allof En,::.,lish n.anuf'e.ctiur e of periods 183.:5 to 1860 • .Jone ear Lt ernor I-tel' t~an those date

~nother report f'r om kr.Arthur Wood\rard of tha tmus eu...m on some adcr tioil·.l br as s trade goods f r om t ha t 8i t e~i ves a da t ing 0: t: e period be t veen 1830 and 1860.

I suppo s e chine. 0: any deacr :ipt ion 'ni 'ht have be ena cq :::red ')y any t.r ad rnr: po at f r om e:"r:igrants OYl t he Oregon Tr"'.il,but at t r t s site deco:re.ted,En.r'lish "are seens to be abou t a.L'Lthat v-as uaed , Since the enc Los ed r encr t ;")'::1,8 made I hav e foundf.;1. few fl' <;:'lents of wh i t e , undecorated Lr ons t one Cr.L1•...•

I t r >: : t JO~' -oul.c 'Je iJ.1'~er es t eenc Losed r epor-c , .md as'>. 'v,-at i -:be r etur ned

in seei nr: tref or :.y flit;s.

Very resoectful y

P. S. You ill no t i ce tha t t.he report covers a' o..•t 17plate types or xatterns.

NEBRASKA 51"~.:\ldlSTO leAL ,iFT

vom r 1.'1 f. 1934

r.. T. h". GreGn.Scot to Dluff', bPe" ke.

Deal" r. Green:

Itv tak~n saver d ;ys to think about youpque· concerning a fur tir or or tra: PQr n "tlnpnp It. ihe:ps 18 oonsiderable Infornmtlon orvagu'() nature on tho various Pappans and Papin ot thoFur ads in In1fmind but 1t not b.'"'G re~ros1'0 YGar__ Bo val". I hav~ f- dofini te notos fopyoujt b1eh m "9 or ma.7not 'be usoful as leal

SociQty Publleat1-= Sol speaksof .,.

p101'&.01 the American "Company # who~ on hi 1&:1 toSt. Lotdswitb Colonol SUPi' in 18&8,. took choler an'd1 t Ni bntlbotanny (ate).

'"00 ra R1storJ' ,az n~. Vol X,. o. 5, p. 1.m&nt1ons itOiils ~QPf .. , f'ntmwo.f Mrs., Henry Fontens11 ',.sister-' 1a of' Log Fonton11 •

Parkman~p. 65.SD.,'J. It spin as the bourgeol oiFor1lLaramie.

Jfe~p ka Bta stor1cnl :Soc1~ty Public tin .' 01XX, p., 169. ot&& the Idly 1saou.r1 &!eh11c!p-:' . JUJ.y'1, 1946•. P. Papin arrived t Pt. :Le.avonwo'Pm lUl-y 2,from ort St. J'obnA ffat th J. etlan of tho Lar· 4) and

g Platt nVQ •

Pub11cat!.,ons, Volume XX, P. 3.22" MaV" lMttttJ' P•• 1). Papine Iii .from' Fort L;It· . on thG 24th. \'11fih pa~ty ·f SU.e t Lnr .-0 onr1l. 20.

lGl'G aro prob, bly various othor Pnpins and other s 11.1ngs.

but just not I*munablo to pl'oduce any othep source ,. Xf'It comoa to, I'll wp1tey •

Your artlcle comes out in thellla,gazlne::bout Tuesd':9-0wep& llttle delayed through congestion t the printers'.I think 1t is VGT!1I1nt~ro ..••t1ng l'lIl.d shOuld tU'ouse a groatdoQ).of reminiscing mnongold timor •

1£yO\1 fInd a.nt1tblng furth0'l", ldll you let us kn()~We wish to keop OU? £1108 as complet& as.sslb~ on thismattor.

Nt~HA~KA ~T~,TFdlSTORlCAL SOC1L""l

T. L. GreenSCOITSBLUFF, NEBR.

Dec.l4th.1934.

Yr.A.E.Sheldon.Supt.Nebr.Sta.te Historica.l Society.Lincoln Nebr.

I am.enclosing copy of quotations sent me byMiss Stella Drumm,Librarian of Missouri Historical Society,which I thought might interest you. _

You will notice that Papin of the American FurCo. died in :May 1853 at Scotts Bluff,"Wyoming',"While on anexcursion from his fort~ .

Dear Mr.Sheldon;

As Ft.Laramie was sold in 1849 this must have'been the fort at Scotts Bluffs mentioned by Coutant. Also theword,"Excursion", might indicate a short trip rather than along expedition. Also,and excursion of many miles might havebeen made in this neighborhood and his death have occured atScotts Bluff as the term was then understood.

You will remember my telling you of the grave acouple hundred yards from the Helves Canyon trading post siteon which was formerly a cross with the name,"Papa",or,"PappaVThis inscription seemed so unusual,as these old graves usuallygave full names,and often dates,that I wondered if possiblythe inscription might not have been Papan or Pappan,and thefinal letter become obliterated.

My informants (2) now tell me the name was carvedon the cross piece of the wooded cross,which was about 5 feethigh. They say it was not impossible for theta to have been afinal letter N and the condition of the wood making it unread-able. I'm inclined to think that unless the N were quiteplain it would not have been noticed by these people.' Theword "Papan" or "Pappan" meant nothing to them,whereas Papaor Pappa was something they did understand,'and would remember.

This man was probably buried at his fort,and ifthat location was at the Ft.M1tchell site,they certainly didnot carry him to Helvas Canyon for burial.'If this grave should be the grave of Papin ,it would seem toindicate the Helvas Canyon trading post was the American Furpost.'

, At any rate,it 1s at least a peculiarcoinc1dencethat starting with a hunch that,",apa",might have really been"Pappan" ·or "Papan",which nameIremembered as somewhere beinga~sociated with the fur trade but not remembering how or when,I should now find that he actually was head man of the American

Co.

T. L. Green ,NEBRASKA STATtr11STORJCAL Soclr T

2.

SCOTTSBLUFF, NEBR.

December l4tb.'1934:

Mr.A.E.S.Lincoln.

Fur 00. in this territory; that he died a.t Scotts Bluff in l853,whichdate agrees with my theory as to time of occupation of the HelvasOanyonpost, and that this grave should be right at that post.Its all so ~ar nothing but circumstantial evidence,but I think itsinteresting.

Miss Drumm tells me she thinks the files of tbe~St.LouisRepublican~ of a couple of months after his death(it would take thatlong for the news to reach St.Louis) might giv,ethe particulars andthrow light on this matter of the fort's location, because of theprominenc~ of the family.' Sh~ says they have several people who ca.nbehired at ;40¢ per hour or $3.00 per day to go through the files of thepaper and report what they find.

I wonder if the paper was a dai~y or a weekly and howmuch time it would probably take to go through the files for say the3 months of June,«uly and August,l853.Have you any idea?If it wouldnt be too expensive I might hire this done. I would like toknow your opinion.

By the way, I would like 3 additional copies of t,helast History magazine,if you will advise as to cost I will remit.Suppose price is on the cover, but I gave my copy to McMcOlanahan ownerof the site.

P.S. Will you kindly call Miss Sandoz attention to the enclosed Papinaccounts. She was so kind as to furnish me with some references inthis connection.