Frank Joshua North (10 March 1840 – 15 March 1885) was an American military officer and interpreter for the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

, and also a politician. He is most well known for organizing and leading the Pawnee Scouts from 1865 to 1877 during the

American Indian Wars The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, was a conflict initially fought by European colonization of the Americas, European colonial empires, the United States, and briefly the Confederate States o ...

. His brother Luther H. North also led the Scouts.

Early life

Frank Joshua North was born in

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

, New York, on March 10, 1840. He had an older brother, James E. North, born in Ohio, where their parents Thomas J. and Jane E. North had moved from their native

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 ...

. His parents returned to Ohio, where his brother Luther H. North was born, followed by two younger sisters. In 1856, at the age of 16, Frank moved to

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

and worked as a transporter, moving goods between

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 ...

and

Fort Kearny Fort Kearny was a historic outpost of the United States Army founded in 1848 in the Western United States during the middle and late 19th century. The fort was named after Colonel and later General Stephen Watts Kearny. The outpost was located ...

. During this time, North made contact with the Pawnee Indians, befriending them and learning the

Pawnee language The Pawnee language is a Caddoan language traditionally spoken by Pawnee Native Americans, currently inhabiting north-central Oklahoma. Historically, the Pawnee lived along the Platte River in what is now Nebraska. Dialects Two important dial ...

. In 1860, North was working as a clerk and interpreter at the Pawnee Agency trading post in Genoa, Nebraska.

Military

In 1864, Major General Samuel R. Curtis approached North to have him organize a company of Pawnee scouts to serve in the Union Army. In 1865, he organized Company A of the Pawnee Scouts, and was appointed the rank of First Lieutenant and then Captain. While commanding the scouts, Captain North fought at Crazy Woman's Fork, participated in the Powder River Massacre, and fought in the Battle of the Tongue River, all of which took place in August 1865 in the

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of ...

. On July 11, 1869, he fought with his scouts at the Battle of Summit Springs in the Colorado Territory. After the battle, North claimed to have shot and killed the

Cheyenne The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. The Cheyenne comprise two Native American tribes, the Só'taeo'o or Só'taétaneo'o (more commonly spelled as Suhtai or Sutaio) and the (also spelled Tsitsistas, The term for th ...

chief

Tall Bull Tall Bull (c. 1830 - July 11, 1869) (''Hotóa'ôxháa'êstaestse'') was a chief of the Cheyenne Dog Soldiers. Of Cheyenne and Lakota parentage, like some of the other Dog Soldiers by that time, he identified as Cheyenne.Hyde 1968, p. 339. He was s ...

. He also participated in the Dull Knife Fight on November 25, 1876. North was promoted to the rank of major and mustered out of the Army in 1877.

Later life

Frank North served one term in the

Nebraska State Legislature The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators", the Nebraska Legislature is the sma ...

from 1871 to 1872. He then became a ranching partner with William F. Cody in a cattle ranch in western

on the Dismal River. He disposed of his interest in 1882, and then joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West show as manager of the American Indians. North sustained serious injuries (including seven broken ribs) in a horse accident in

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

in 1884. As a result of his injuries and the following illness, Frank Joshua North died on March 15, 1885, in Columbus,

Platte County, Nebraska Platte County is a county located in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 34,296. Its county seat is Columbus, Nebraska, Columbus. The county was created in 1855. Platte County comprises the Colum ...

. In 1958, he was inducted into the

Hall of Great Westerners The Hall of Great Westerners was established by the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in 1958. Located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., the Hall was created to celebrate the contributions of more than 200 men and women of the American W ...

of the

National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, with more than 28,000 Western and Native American art works and artifacts. The facility also has the world's most extensive collection of Amer ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:North, Frank Pawnee People from Nance County, Nebraska 1885 deaths 1840 births Ranchers from Nebraska