David Franklin Powell, also known as D. Frank Powell and White Beaver (May 25, 1847 – 1906) was a

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English, is a healthcare professional who is knowledgeable about preparation, mechanism of action, clinical usage and legislation of medications in ...

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

field surgeon A combat medic is responsible for providing emergency medical treatment at a point of wounding in a combat or training environment, as well as primary care and health protection and evacuation from a point of injury or illness. Additionally, me ...

, maker of

patent medicines A patent medicine (sometimes called a proprietary medicine) is a non-prescription medicine or medicinal preparation that is typically protected and advertised by a trademark and trade name, and claimed to be effective against minor disorders a ...

and sometime politician, associated with

Buffalo Bill William Frederick Cody (February 26, 1846January 10, 1917), better known as Buffalo Bill, was an American soldier, bison hunter, and showman. One of the most famous figures of the American Old West, Cody started his legend at the young age ...

Cody. He served three terms as

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

La Crosse La Crosse ( ) is a city in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. Positioned alongside the Mississippi River, La Crosse is the largest city on Wisconsin's western border. La Crosse's population was 52,680 as of the 20 ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

, and was twice a candidate for

Governor of Wisconsin The governor of Wisconsin is the head of government of Wisconsin and the commander-in-chief of the state's Wisconsin Army National Guard, army and Wisconsin Air National Guard, air forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the ...

. He both wrote and appeared as a character in

dime novels The dime novel is a form of late 19th-century and early 20th-century American popular fiction issued in series of inexpensive paperbound editions. The term ''dime novel'' has been used as a catchall term for several different but related form ...

Background

In the words of one 19th-century chronicler, ''"The life of White Beaver, as Dr. Powell is popularly known, bears all the lights and shades of a frontier romance,"'' and much of what was reported about his early life may be regarded with a certain degree of skepticism. He was born May 25, 1847, in Kentucky, son of Dr. C. H. Powell, a Kentuckian physician of Highland Scotch descent, and a mother whose first name is unknown. She was said to be the daughter of a medicine chief of the

Seneca people The Seneca ( ; ) are a group of Indigenous Iroquoian-speaking people who historically lived south of Lake Ontario, one of the five Great Lakes in North America. Their nation was the farthest to the west within the Six Nations or Iroquois Leag ...

(of the Beaver

clan A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, a clan may claim descent from a founding member or apical ancestor who serves as a symbol of the clan's unity. Many societie ...

) and a woman from the Tompkins family of

Tompkins County, New York Tompkins County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the United States Census 2020, 2020 census, the population was 105,740. The county seat is Ithaca, New York, Ithaca. The name is ...

. Her Seneca grandfather was a soldier in the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

, dying from war wounds in 1779. His parents met when his mother was with her father on a hunting excursion near Seneca Lake. The two settled in Kentucky on the

Kentucky River The Kentucky River is a tributary of the Ohio River in Kentucky, United States. The river and its tributaries drain much of eastern and central Kentucky, passing through the Eastern Coalfield, the Cumberland Mountains, and the Bluegrass re ...

. His father was a polyglot, and his mother a self-trained

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

with a deep expertise in the use of

medicinal plants Medicinal plants, also called medicinal herbs, have been discovered and used in traditional medicine practices since prehistoric times. Plants synthesize hundreds of chemical compounds for various functions, including Plant defense against h ...

. Young Powell was

homeschooled Homeschooling or home schooling (American English), also known as home education or elective home education (EHE) (British English), is the education of school-aged children at home or a variety of places other than a school. Usually conducted ...

in his parents' log cabin.

After the death of his father

Powell's father died in 1855, and his mother returned with her three children to

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, settling about thirty miles from

Ithaca Ithaca most commonly refers to: *Homer's Ithaca, an island featured in Homer's ''Odyssey'' *Ithaca (island), an island in Greece, possibly Homer's Ithaca *Ithaca, New York, a city, and home of Cornell University and Ithaca College Ithaca, Ithaka ...

, where attempts at farming were not successful. They then moved to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, where Powell worked for two years as a

clerk A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts record keeping as well as general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include Records managem ...

in a

drug store A pharmacy (also called drugstore in American English or community pharmacy or chemist in Commonwealth English) is a premises which provides pharmaceutical drugs, among other products. At the pharmacy, a pharmacist oversees the fulfillment of ...

, then on to

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

, where Powell became a clerk at the large drug store of Dr. James K. Ish, with whom he rose to become a partner. The firm of Ish & Powell developed a large business, supplying over-the-counter medicines throughout the Territories. Meanwhile, his mother and two brothers had acquired a large tract on the

Platte River The Platte River () is a major American river, in the state of Nebraska. It is about long; measured to its farthest source via its tributary, the North Platte River, it flows for over . The Platte River is a tributary of the Missouri River, w ...

, near Lone Tree, Nebraska, where they built a

ranch A ranch (from /Mexican Spanish) is an area of landscape, land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of farm. These terms are most often ap ...

. Powell usually spent two months a year on this ranch, and it was there that he made the acquaintance of "Buffalo Bill" Cody,

Wild Bill Hickok James Butler Hickok (May 27, 1837August 2, 1876), better known as "Wild Bill" Hickok, was a folk hero of the American Old West known for his life on the frontier as a soldier, reconnaissance, scout, lawman, cattle rustler, gunslinger, gambler, s ...

, California Joe Milner,

Texas Jack Omohundro John Baker Omohundro (July 27, 1846 – June 28, 1880), also known as "Texas Jack", was an American frontier scout, actor, and cowboy. Born in rural Virginia, he served the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. He late ...

and other colorful figures. All three Powell brothers spent some of this period as civilian scouts for the U. S. Army.

Medical school

In late 1869, Powell (who had never received classroom education at any level) took a

competitive examination An examination (exam or evaluation) or test is an educational assessment intended to measure a test-taker's knowledge, skill, aptitude, physical fitness, or classification in many other topics (e.g., beliefs). A test may be administered verba ...

for a

scholarship A scholarship is a form of Student financial aid, financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, Multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, athleti ...

for Nebraskans to attend the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public university, public research university in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. Chartered in 1798 as the Jefferson Seminary, it became in the 19t ...

, and defeated thirteen other candidates. He spent two years in the University of Louisville Medical Department, working as a

janitor A cleaner, cleanser or cleaning operative is a type of Industry (economics), industrial or domestic worker who is tasked with cleaning a space. A janitor (Scotland, United States and Canada), also known as a custodian, Facility Operator, porter ...

to pay his expenses, and received his

M.D. A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of physician. This ge ...

He served as class

valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the class rank, highest-performing student of a graduation, graduating class of an academic institution in the United States. The valedictorian is generally determined by an academic institution's grade poin ...

, despite having gotten into a non-fatal

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...

with one of his professors, and was offered a faculty post. He declined, and became a

post Post, POST, or posting may refer to: Postal services * Mail, the postal system, especially in Commonwealth of Nations countries **An Post, the Irish national postal service **Canada Post, Canadian postal service **Deutsche Post, German postal s ...

surgeon for the Army's

Department of the Platte The Department of the Platte was a military administrative district established by the U.S. Army on March 5, 1866, with boundaries encompassing Iowa, Nebraska, Dakota Territory, Utah Territory and a small portion of Idaho. With headquarters in Oma ...

Fort McPherson Fort McPherson was a U.S. Army military base located in Atlanta, Georgia, bordering the northern edge of the city of East Point, Georgia. It was the headquarters for the U.S. Army Installation Management Command, Southeast Region; the U.S. Ar ...

Dime novels and dime novelist

At least ten dime novels featuring Powell are known to have been published with Powell's name or nickname(s) in the title (he may have appeared in others as a secondary character), both full-length works and short stories. These include: *''Prairie Pards; or, Tales of Border Trails: White Beaver's Death-Trail'' (1881) *''White Beaver, the Exile of the Platte; or, A Wronged Man's Red Trail. A Romance founded upon Incidents in the Border Life of Frank Powell, the "Doctor Scout," Late Surgeon in the United States Army, and now the "Mighty Medicine Chief of the Winnebagoes."'' (1884) **''White Beaver's Home'' - biographical note about Powell in the same issue as the first part of the above (1884) *''White Beaver's One-Arm Pard; or, Red Retribution in Borderland. The Concluding Story of the White Beaver Series'' (1884) *''Fancy Frank's Drop; or, White Beaver, the Indian Medicine Chief. The Romantic and Adventurous Life of Dr. Frank Powell, known on the Border as "Fancy Frank," "Iron Face," etc., etc., etc.'' (1882) *''The Wizard Brothers; or, White Beaver's Red Trail'' (1884) - features not only Frank Powell (here nicknamed "Surgeon Scout"), but his brothers, dubbed "Night Hawk" and "Bronco Bill" *''The King of the Mines; or, The Invincible Two. A Companion Story to "Buffalo Bill's Bonanza," and a Romance in the Career of the Life Long Pards--Hon. W. F. Cody--"Buffalo Bill," and Dr. Frank Powell--"White Beaver"'' (1886) **''The Buffalo Bill's Swoop; or, The King of the Mines. A Companion Story to "Buffalo Bill's Bonanza," and a Romance in the Career of the Life Long Pards--Hon. W. F. Cody--"Buffalo Bill," and Dr. Frank Powell--"White Beaver"'' (1886) - same as above, different title *''Powell's Pard; or, The One-Armed Giant. A Story Founded on Incidents in the Romantic Life of Dr. Frank Powell (White Beaver), White Medicine Chief of the Winnebagos'' (1887) *''White Beaver's Romance'' (1888) *''Gentleman Jack, the Man of Many Masks; or, Buffalo Bill's Peerless Pard. A Romance of Tangled Trails followed by Buffalo Bill and his Buckskin Heroes, Surgeon Frank Powell, Wild Bill, Texas Jack, Captain Jack Crawford, Buckskin Sam, Colorado Carl and a Mysterious Unknown'' (1890) *''White Beaver's Still Hunt; or, The Miner Marauder's Death-Track. The Magic Medicine Man's Mission'' (1894) Between 1881 and 1887, Powell is known to have published at least three

of his own, often featuring his old friends like Buffalo Bill. Powell is himself described on the covers of these volumes: *''The Doomed Dozen; or, Dolores, the Danite's Daughter. A Romance of Border Trails and Mormon Mysteries'' (1881) "By Dr. Frank Powell, 'White Beaver', the Medicine Chief of the Winnebago Indians" *''Old Grizzly Adams, the Bear Tamer; or, "The Monarch of the Mountains." Thrilling Adventures in the Life of the Famous "Wild Hermit of the Rockies," and "Grizzly Bear Tamer," as he was known from Montana to Mexico, and Whose Deeds of Daring, as Indian Trailer, Savage Beast Conqueror, and Mountain Regulator, would Fill Volumes'' (1882; twice reprinted) "By Dr. Frank Powell, Known on the Border as 'White Beaver', 'Fancy Frank' and 'Medicine Chief of the Winnebagoes'" *''The Dragoon Detective; or, A Man of Destiny. A Romance of the Road Raiders of the Rockies'' (1887) "By Dr. Frank Powell. -- 'White Beaver'""Person - Powell, David Franklin, 1847-1906" ''The Edward T. LeBlanc Memorial Dime Novel Bibliography'' accessed November 12, 2021
/ref>

Background

After the death of his father

Medical school

Dime novels and dime novelist

References

Further reading