GENERAL TOPICS > Saddlebag Tales
My "autobiography"
Daniel Nighteyes:
I posted this in another thread, but at the urging of Willie Dixon I'm posting it here as well. I welcome comments, proposed additions, etc. Here it comes:
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I chose the handle "Daniel Nighteyes" to tell a story in itself. You see, it is HIS alias!
Daniel's real name is "Daniel Ferguson". He is the only child of Angus Ferguson, a Scotsman who emigrated to the New World just half-a-jump ahead of the hangman's noose, and Emily Tubbee, a young Choctaw woman whom Angus courted and married in 1832. They were Removed from Mississippi to the Indian Territory in 1833. During their journey along what later became known as the Trail of Tears, Angus died of pneumonia. Emily died shortly after giving birth to Daniel in early 1834. He was raised by Joseph and Martha Tubbee, his grandparents. Being a devout Christian, Martha named him after her favorite Bible story, Daniel and the Lion's Den.
Daniel served in the Trans-Mississippi Confederacy beginning in 1861, initially with the Choctaw Mounted Rifles. However, his facility with languages (he spoke seven) got him transferred to the Second Cherokee Artillery to serve as an interpreter. While serving guard duty late one night, Daniel spotted a group of Union soldiers trying to sneak up on a battery of field guns. His warning saved the battery. The Cherokee quickly named him "Nighteyes", for obvious reasons.
At war's end, and having lost his entire family to the Civil War within the Choctaw Nation (a long story in itself), Daniel drifted westward. He spent time among the Kiowa and Comanche, and later the Lipan and Jicarilla Apache.
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I have more, of course, but want your input, comments and criticisms.
Regards,
-- Nighteyes
Silent Joe:
A heavy story, Daniël. I've read about "The Trail of Tears" and it is very sad what is happend with this people. Moved from your homeland to a unknown country, it is terrible. I like to know the rest of your story. Greetings, S.J.
Daniel Nighteyes:
--- Quote from: Silent Joe on January 15, 2009, 10:51:51 AM ---I've read about "The Trail of Tears" and it is very sad what is happened with this people.S.J.
--- End quote ---
Here's a little something that many folks don't know. According to historical accounts and documents (reports, letters, etc.), "The Trail of Tears" was named, not by the Indians, but by whites along the way who witnessed what the Indians were forced to endure. The "Tears" belonged to those same whites. For further information, check out this book: http://www.amazon.com/Indian-Removal-Grant-Foreman/dp/0806100192
Here's another little something that many folks don't know. My Choctaw ancestors allied themselves with General Andrew Jackson against the British in the War of 1812. In fact, a contingent of Choctaw troops fought alongside his forces in the Battle of New Orleans. Later, as President Andrew Jackson, he was the prime mover behind the Indian Removal Act of 1830. The Choctaw were the first of the Five Civilized Tribes (Choctaw, Chickasaw, Cherokee, Creek, Seminole) to be Removed to Indian Territory.
Nice fellow, huh? >:( >:( >:(
By the way, the word Oklahoma is Choctaw. It means Red People or Red Nation. Interestingly, it can also be interpreted as Angry People/Nation.
Andy Jackson's little act of kindness played no small part in the decision by many Nations to support the Confederate States of America about 25 years later. Not all tribal members agreed, which resulted in a Civil War within the Nations complete with raids and bloodshed.
Here's more of Daniel's story:
It was one such internal raid that took the lives of Daniel's family -- mother, father, wife, both in-laws, and two children -- as the result of a tragic misunderstanding. When Daniel returned after the War, his grief and outrage over the loss of his family at the hands of other Choctaws made it impossible for him to remain. He cut all ties with his former life, including dropping the surname "Ferguson" in favor of "Nighteyes"' His experiences in the War strengthened his distrust of whites, so he drifted westward through the Nations. For a couple of years he was truly a man alone.
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Jamie:
I've read elsewhere that Old Hickory wasn't the sort of person you'd really want to trust with anything or anyone. I just got in here and read the opening of the story. I sure hope it's just an opening and there's more to come! I know a few stories about some of my ancestors, and telling them sort of puts the past into reality as opposed to seeing it as unrelated "history," if that makes any sense. My Irish comes from a couple who jumped aboard a ship in the early 1800's and were married the night they left. Interestingly enough, it was also the night before he was to take his final vows as a Roman Catholic priest. As I said, real people, not just history. Please keep up the narrative Daniel! Thanks,
Jamie
GunClick Rick:
I was just watchin the story last night about Jackson ,Marshall and the indian land in Goergia.Ya reckon if they just left things alone sooner or later they just work themselves out??? I don't think Lincoln would have wrote the amancipation act if he didn't think he needed too to win the war..Just leave other humans alone..You own the masses ya get the molasses,thing is molasses runs pretty damn thick.. >:(
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