| Show I From Now Glow On Y You'll Be See Seeing g A At t er On Your Nickels in Place of u c I If t f e ed Y I By Dy ELMO SCOTT WATSON C 0 Western Newspaper Union HE buffalo and the Indian are about to do another Vanishing American act They're going to disa disappear pear from our coinage By law the design of f a coin may not be changed oftener than once in 25 years and on February 21 of this year the familiar buffalo and Indian nickel which replaced the Liberty nickel In 1913 reached the retirement age So Henry A. A secretary secretary sec sec- of the treasury announced a contest for the design of its successor a new five-cent five coin to be known as the Jefferson nickel since it will have a portrait of Thomas Jefferson on one side and ands anda a replica of hid home Monticello on the other Whether or not the retirement retirement retirement retire retire- ment of the buffalo nickels 1 will mean a retirement of all the Jokes that have been t rr k kC T Q C t 1 b br r y CHIEF IRON TAIL made about it remains to be seen Its It's also a question whether certain legends that have clustered around this coin will be dispelled or become become become be be- come more firmly fixed in American folklore now that no more examples of this popular bit of money I will be coming from the mint Outstanding among these myths Is the one one that Chief Two Guns White Calf Call of the Blackfoot tribe was the original buffalo nickel Indian That legend was industriously propagated by frequent frequent frequent fre fre- fre- fre quent reproduction of his picture pic plc- t tore ture re in newspapers and magazines magazines magazines maga maga- under some such caption as Face You Recognize on the Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo falo Nickel or Youve Got His lIis Portrait in Your Pocket or You Carry Ills His Portrait Portrait Perhaps Perhaps 1 I or His Face Is Worth a Fortune in Nickels Look at the portrait of Two Guns White Calf Call shown with the buffalo at the head of this article and you will notice the re re- re- re semblance Innumerable tourists who visIted visited vis vie ired Glacier National park and saw the Blackfoot chieftain there helped spread the legend and during the many trips which betook he be took to various parts of the country country country coun coun- try he was invariably photo photo- photographed graphed Interviewed advertised and written up as the Indian whose likeness appears on every buffalo nickel All AB of which was interesting if true true true- true only only it didn't happen to be true As a matter of fact the Indian face on the buffalo nickel is a composite and somewhat ideal- ideal iY t.- t. por portrait rait not of just one red redman redman redman man but several No less a person person per per- son than the sculptor who designed designed designed de de- signed the coin is the authority for that assertion He is James Earl Fraser and andin andin andin in 1931 he issued a statement which should have set at rest for all aU time time but but didn't the the question question question ques ques- tion as to the identity of the original original inal Mr Fraser said he had used the profiles of three Indians for his design design Chief Chief Iron Tail Tall of the Sioux Chief Two Moons of the Northern and a third whose name he had forgotten Many who thought they had seen the buffalo nickel Indian original when they visited visited visited visit visit- ed Glacier park chose to believe that Two Guns White Calf might be the third Indian whose name Mr Fraser had forgotten despite the fact that the sculptor also said that he had never seen Two Guns Guns' White Calf So the legend persisted and when the Blackfoot died in 1934 the familiar story with pictures of course blossomed out in fuU full flower again thus proving that error as well as truth when crushed to earth will rise again How did the yarn ever get started anyway Its It's as difficult difficult dif dlf dif dif- to trace this legend down to its source as it is to arrive at atthe atthe atthe the beginning of any folk tale Perhaps as authentic a version as I perhaps any is is this one ol furnished furnished by Hoke Smith Western development development develop develop- ment agent of the Great Northern railroad to the author of this article ar- ar article article ar ar- several years ago He wrote You asked lor for it It I consulted the sages of ot th the tribe and here la U the real story of ol the tho Indian face ace upon the nickel as near nur as ai I t can translate It from Crom the th Blackfoot spoken and sip sign language Many Meny moons ago when he was wai In hit his early thirties the late Chief Chef Two Guns Cum White Calf Call chief of the Glacier National Park Blackfoot tribe got his Brit first nickel rockel from Crom one of the earlier spendthrift tourists tourist that came to his hla tepee kodak snap It was wai one of the buffalo series of DC eve five cent cent pieces piece Two Guns Gum was wal delighted with the picture pic pie ture lure of the Buffalo which tide aide happened to be tall up when the generous genero tourist tour lit tet put It In the palm of ot his hi hand band A moment later when he be turned the coin over and beheld his own likeness standing stand lag ing In bold relief before him It was wa wasai wasas ai e Into Ioto a mirror to Two GumMel Guns Gum Me Mel I he exclaimed Dig BI White Chief put warrior on OD penny But when II It come come to nickel nickel only only chief chief thid is to big enough It happened the tho liberal handed tourist Two Guns Gun was talking to was a news nes photographer grabbing crabbing some photo feature tea fea ture stuff while visiting the park t Straightaway he be went out and seized the buffalo nickel Indian feature and gave It ft wide wid circulation While Two Guns GURI White WhIt Calf GU lived for twenty years alter after he e was hailed by every school child chUd In n the United States as the Indian whose ho face appeared on the buffalo nickel And there was wa much controversy throughout the land I The Tho artist who Fraser Fraser who drew this that Indian In dlan dian head bead for Cor the buffalo burtalo nickel when put with his back to the th wall wail to ded decide le lethe the controversy replied When I drew the Indian face for the buffalo nickel I had bad no particular Indian In 10 mind The face Cace on the nickel is I. a composite of a mental photograph ol of all aU American Indians I Whew I That was w. right Into the e laps lapi of DC the defenders of the idea that Two Guns Gum White Calm Calfa face after ace all since be he was the most moat traveled Indian In 10 the United States Staten and consequently during his hi missionary Journeys in tn ex es plotting the marvelous beauties of oC the ot of Glacier National park he be must have left ten a greater Impression than any other Individual Indian of oC recent years yean Thus nus up to the urn Urn time he died a couple t 0 J mac A of years year ago ao Two Guns held the distinction dis- dis of oC being the most mOlt statuesque Indian In dian dlan figure in the tho country And even evento evento to o this day he is II still atm regarded as al the IndIan on the nickel notwithstanding the theartist's theartist's artists artist's disclaimer that no Individual Indian In dean dian ever posed for Cor his nickel DIckel design Out on the reservation all U they'll they'D say is 11 Well Weil Two Guns certainly was w. the counterpart of the Indian on the buffalo nickel So has come to pass PI a controversy controversy controversy contro contro- versy over over a nickel and an Indian which created much argument for nearly the thelast thelast last quarter of a century Even though Frasers Fraser's statement statement statement state state- ment robbed many Americans of their heir belief that they had seen the original in Glacier park the chances are that many of them did see one of the originals many times times that that is if they ever attended a Wild West show For Chief Iron Tail Tall who as a young warrior had fought with his Og Og- lala ala tribesmen in the Custer battle and other engagements in the Sioux war of 77 1876 was among the Indians who traveled with Buffalo Bill Codys Cody's Wild West Inthis in inthis inthis this country and abroad was later with the Combined Buffalo Bill and Pawnee Bill Wild West shows and still later with the Miller Brothers' Brothers Ranch show During this time the Oglala was was was' widely publicized as the true original of the Indian on the buffalo Palo talo nickel but most people dismissed dismissed dismissed dis dis- missed that claim as just another another another an an- other circus press agents agent's yarn there element element element ele ele- even though was some ment of truth in it it Iron Tail died In 1916 1918 while on a Chicago and Northwestern railroad train en route to CJ Chicago cago More notable in frontier history than Iron Tail was the other original Two original Two Moons of the As a youth he distinguished distinguished distinguished dis dis- by his feats feats' as a warrior against such tribal enemies as the Crows the Pawnees Pawnees Pawnees Paw Paw- nees the Shoshones and the Gros Ventres The opening of the war of 1876 found him the chief of a band of in the Powder river country and when the Chey Chey- ennes ernes joined their allies the Sioux Two Moons had a conspicuous conspicuous conspicuous con con- part in the Battle of the Rosebud wh where re Chief Crazy n t tr ri r CHIEF TWO MOONS 1 Horse defeated General Crook and in the Battle of the Little Big BigHorn Bighorn Horn where Custer was killed Two Moons was in th another fa famous famous fa fa- battle General battle General Mackenzie's Mackenzie's Macken Macken- zie's ales attack on the village of Chief Chic Dull Knife of the that tha bitter winter night in 1876 when the power O if f his tribe was broken for all aU time tune The nex next spring Two Moons led his people to Fort Keogh Mont where he surrendered to Gen Geo Nelson A A. A Miles Mlles After the close lose of the Indian Indian In In- dian wars Two Moons was looked upon as head chief of ot the Chey Chey- ennes and to the end of his days day he was zealous in hl leading his peo people peo- peo pIe in the white mans man road e ra The Indian on the buffalo nickel is I. a not the only symbolical figure on n our coins which had a prototype proto- proto prototype type ype in real life The earliest was wal in 1860 when the Indian head lead one-cent one piece was was was' de de- signed If you happen to have havene one ne of those style old-style pennies in your our pocket take a look at itou it You ou dont don't have to know much about bout the physiognomy of the red ed man to realize that the model mod mod- el 1 for the head on the coin wasn't an Indian The original was a year twelve girl named Sarah Sarah Sarah Sar Sar- ah Longacre whose father was the he chief engraver at the Philadelphia Philadelphia Phil Phil- adelphia mint When a competition competition compe- compe for the design of a it new coper copper cop cop- per er cent was announced Longacre Longacre Long Long- acre decided to enter it One day while his daughter was in his office a delegation of Indians from the West visited the mint The friendly manner of the he little girl pleased one of the Indian chiefs so much that he took ook off his war bonnet and placed laced it on her head The effect effect ef- ef was so striking that Longacre Longacre Longacre Long- Long acre Immediately made a sketch of f his daughter wearing the barbaric barbaric bar- bar baric headdress submitted it in inthe inthe inthe the competition and won the theaward award Silver Dollar Girl The next girl to be immortalIzed immortal- immortal zed in our coinage was Anna Williams of pf Philadelphia whose profile was used as the model for the Goddess of Liberty Liberty Lib- Lib erty Tty on the old silver dollars Back in 1876 George Morgan an expert designer and engraver was commissioned to prepare the he design for a new silver dolar dollar dol dol- mar lar ar that was to be minted at Phil Phil- adelphia When he asked Thomas Thom Thom- as Eakins a D Philadelphia artist to o suggest some one who would act as a model for the head on this coin Eakins recommended a young girl named Anna Williams Wiliams Wil Wil- hams iams whom he had known while she was an art student as havIng haying hav- hav Ing ng the most nearly perfect pro- pro hie lie Ie that could be found at that time lime Miss Williams was then principal principal principal prin prin- cipal of the the girls' girls school at the House of Refuge in Philadelphia and it was only after much persuasion persuasion persuasion per per- suasion and the promise that her identity would not be made known mown that she consented to pose For Morgan in Eakins' Eakins home She She Is said to have been a very beautiful beautiful beautiful beau beau- girl with fair complexion blue eyes and a Grecian nose But her crowning glory was an abundance of golden hair worn In a becoming soft coil This was the most striking feature of the first design which Morgan made but later it was p partially concealed concealed concealed con con- by the Liberty cap with its Its' sheath and stars For two VO years year's the identity of Miss Liberty on the new new silver sUver dollars was kept secret by the theartist theartist theartist artist and officials of the te mint Then a Philadelphia newspaper newspaperman man revealed the fact that Miss Williams was the silver dollar doUar girl Immediately she received many offers to go on the stage But she declined all aU of them theme preferring preferring preferring pre pre- ferring to continue teaching for 60 60 a month at the House of Refuge Refuge Refuge Ref Ref- uge until 1891 when she accepted the position of teacher of kindergarten kindergarten kindergarten kinder kinder- garten philosophy in the Girls' Girls Normal school in her native Am Among ng the romantic legends that became associated with the silver dollar doUar girl was one which declared that the designer of the new silver dollar fell feU in love with his beautiful model and later married her But the fact is that Miss Williams never married but devoted her life Ilfe to teaching until she retired in 1924 and died a year or so later at the age of sixty eight In later years she was often asked to tell teU the story of how she came to be the model for for Miss Liberty but she always always al al- ways smilingly referred to it as asan asan asan an incident of my youth and preferred to talk of h her r work in inthe inthe inthe the kindergarten schools of Phil Phil- adelphia American Coin Girl One other woman who gained fame because of a coin portrait was Miss Doris Doscher who became became became be be- beI I came known as the American Coin Girl after she had modeled mod modeled Bled for the figure on the quarter quarter- dollar which was designed by the famous sculptor Hermon A A. A Mac- Mac Neil She is the girl you see walking down the stairs on the silver cent 25 piece carrying an olive branch signifying peace in her right hand and grasping with her het left hand land the shield which symbolizes strength On the other side of the quarter quarter quarter ter is the figure of a flying eagle which incidentally caused considerable discussion when this new coin appeared MacNeil sho showed ed th the e eagle le with its' its legs trailing behind it as did Augustus Augus Augus- Saint Gaudens designer of the eagle on the new 20 gold pieces which appeared at the same time thue Immediately certaro certain certain tain taro na naturalists cried nature fake I l and declared that when an eagle is in flight its legs are tucked up neatly under its breast instead of trailing out behind like a storks stork's legs though not quite so far behind But the Philadel phia Academy of Natural Sciences Sciences and the National Art Jury which passes on the designs of all American coins said that Saint Gaudens and MacNeil were not only great artists but close students |
