1883 Fort Bennett, Dakota Territory INDIAN TRADER LETTER - Sitting Bull Content
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:10769592 | State: South Dakota |
Postal History/Letter
This AWESOME Dakota Territory letter was written by 26 year-old Albert Robert (“Bob”) Caton—born May 1857 in Plainfield, Illinois—was enumerated in the 1880 US Census in Precinct No. 3, Saguache county, Colorado. He was the son of William Penn Caton (1815-1886) and Elizabeth Steele (1819-1893). A biographical sketch of William claims he was one of the pioneers of Illinois, coming from Orange county, New York, and settling in Cook county about 1837. In 1...848, he moved to Chicago where he found employment in the mercantile business and as a canal boat inspector. He then moved to Plainfield in 1856, the year before Albert was born, where he farmed. By the time Albert wrote this letter in 1883, however, his parents had given up their farm, retired, and moved to Joliet.In this letter from Fort Bennett, Bob answers several of his father’s questions about trading with the Indians in Dakota Territory and end with a humorous account of Sitting Bull selling his autograph and other “personal” items to the “tenderfeet” in Pierre. Bob was married to Alice E. Scott in Cook county, Illinois, in September 1887, and he was working as an engineer in Illinois after that. He died in 1935 and is buried in Joliet, Illinois.The Manuscripts Division of the William L. Clements Library at the the University of Michigan houses a collection of letters attributed to Albert Robert Caton and his brother, William Edward (“Ed”) Caton. From this collection we learn that Bob Caton began his career as a general commission agent in Chicago before moving to Colorado for work in mining. Bob’s letters in the Clements Library collection cover the years 1876-1882 and tell of his time in the Dakota Territory and later in Colorado. His letters contain more details on living conditions and daily activities than his brother’s business-oriented correspondence does.NOTE - The CDV of Sitting Bull is not included with this letter.TRANSCRIPTIONFort Bennett, ¹ Dakota Territory
May 15, 1883Dear Father, Yours received all O. K. and will answer all of your questions the first thing.The first thing that I did when I got here was to get me a little book and when I heard a word, I spelt it as near like the sound as I could, then put down what it meant. In that way, I picked up a good many words, and then kept repeating them to myself so that when an Indian asked me for something that I had the name for it down, I could after a few days put my hand on it at once, and you see I apply myself to it that is the reason that I pick it up faster than some, as the most of the them just apply themselves for a few days and then get tired of it.The Indians I expect to trade with down on the Pierre Bottoms and Bad River all get their rations here, as do all the Indians on this reservation. As to the number that live down in that direction, I haven’t the least idea as yet.The reason that Ed did not let me know that my license was not here was that he had forgotten that they send all the papers of that kind to the Indian Agent, and as he did not come up to the agency, but went back to Yankton, he never though about it. Since he has been up here, he has looked all through his papers but couldn’t find those papers relating to Iowa land and he says they must be down at Yankton and started for St. Paul this morning to sell his robes and furs and from there to Yankton and you will soon know about it. But he didn’t intend to go to Chicago this trip if everything was all right in St. Paul. He got his bonds all O. K. and his license is continued as I was just informed by one of our Agent’s clerks.It isn’t settled yet about the Indians leaving the reservation and we can’t as yet find out what the [ ] is intending to do but Ed may find out something this trip. And as to my liking the looks of things, it is just this when the reservation is opened up and the railroad crosses the river it is a certain thing that we have a big thing and the Agent here is wanting that quarter section himself very bad, and there isn’t the least doubt in the world but it is a very valuable piece of land.Jim Pearman’s [agent at Fort Sully] arm is all right now although he doesn’t have the faith in it he had before, he says. It is too bad that True can’t get someone in his office that can help him more, and he must look out or he will overwork himself.And now this an imperative order to Mother to not overdo herself anymore or I don’t know what I shall do on the impulse of the moment, so you tell her that she had better look a little and you must not think that just because you feel well you can work too much, but you want to take it a little easy yourself. I am glad to hear the house is going up so nicely and is Puffer going into it as soon as it is done? Is the rolling mill still running and have they put on a full fover [?] yet? I forgot to ask True in my letter to him whether thy had got their castings done yet and so you ask him from me.A CDV of Sitting Bull with his SignatureI wrote in my letter to him about my trip to Pierre. The big storm we had here the other day almost washed the bridge that crosses the creek back of Ed’s store that goes up to the mission. By the way, Isaac Renville, the Indian minister here, was asking me if you was coming out this summer and said that he would like to see you again. He seems like a real good sort of a fellow, but as a general thing, I haven’t a very exalted opinion of the Indians in general.Old Sitting Bull and his outfit came up on the boat the other day and went on up to Standing Rock, ² and he took in lots of money writing his autograph, getting all the way from fifty cents to two dollars, and when they got to Pierre, they stopped over a day and he sold pipes to everybody claiming that were all his and as fast as he sold one, some of his people would hand him another and in that way he made money for the whole tribe, and the tenderfeet bit at everything. They even sold all their old knives for a good price.I can’t think of anything more at present, so goodbye and with much love to all, I am as ever your loving son, — A. Bob Carter¹ Fort Bennett was located on the Missouri river 7 miles above Fort Sully, Dakota, 302 miles from Sioux City, Iowa, by wagon road, and about 500 miles by river. Yankton, Dakota. 237 miles distant by land and 315 by river. The Indians at this agency were the Minneconjou, Sans Arc and Two Kettle tribes of Sioux.² After living in exile in Canada for a number of years, Sitting Bull and his family returned to the United States in 1881. They were settled near the Standing Rock Agency. It was living at Standing Rock in 1885 that Sitting Bull accepted an invitation to travel with Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show for four months.TERMS$3.00 postage in the United States. We accept Paypal.Postage combined for multiple purchases. Please wait for me to send the invoice, otherwise you will pay a higher rate.For International buyers, we utilize eBay’s Global ShippingProgram. We had too many packages sentvia the post office go missing. So webelieve this program will be safer for us and for you.We are members of the American Philatelic Society, the U.S.Philatelic Classics Society, the Confederate Stamp Alliance and the IllinoisPostal History Society.We only sell genuine, original letters (no copies orreproductions). Some of our letters havebeen transcribed and nicely presented for future genealogists and history buffson the Spared & Shared blog.We have been selling on eBay since 1998. BID WITH CONFIDENCE !
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This AWESOME Dakota Territory letter was written by 26 year-old Albert Robert (“Bob”) Caton—born May 1857 in Plainfield, Illinois—was enumerated in the 1880 US Census in Precinct No. 3, Saguache county, Colorado. He was the son of William Penn Caton (1815-1886) and Elizabeth Steele (1819-1893). A biographical sketch of William claims he was one of the pioneers of Illinois, coming from Orange county, New York, and settling in Cook county about 1837. In 1...848, he moved to Chicago where he found employment in the mercantile business and as a canal boat inspector. He then moved to Plainfield in 1856, the year before Albert was born, where he farmed. By the time Albert wrote this letter in 1883, however, his parents had given up their farm, retired, and moved to Joliet.In this letter from Fort Bennett, Bob answers several of his father’s questions about trading with the Indians in Dakota Territory and end with a humorous account of Sitting Bull selling his autograph and other “personal” items to the “tenderfeet” in Pierre. Bob was married to Alice E. Scott in Cook county, Illinois, in September 1887, and he was working as an engineer in Illinois after that. He died in 1935 and is buried in Joliet, Illinois.The Manuscripts Division of the William L. Clements Library at the the University of Michigan houses a collection of letters attributed to Albert Robert Caton and his brother, William Edward (“Ed”) Caton. From this collection we learn that Bob Caton began his career as a general commission agent in Chicago before moving to Colorado for work in mining. Bob’s letters in the Clements Library collection cover the years 1876-1882 and tell of his time in the Dakota Territory and later in Colorado. His letters contain more details on living conditions and daily activities than his brother’s business-oriented correspondence does.NOTE - The CDV of Sitting Bull is not included with this letter.TRANSCRIPTIONFort Bennett, ¹ Dakota Territory
May 15, 1883Dear Father, Yours received all O. K. and will answer all of your questions the first thing.The first thing that I did when I got here was to get me a little book and when I heard a word, I spelt it as near like the sound as I could, then put down what it meant. In that way, I picked up a good many words, and then kept repeating them to myself so that when an Indian asked me for something that I had the name for it down, I could after a few days put my hand on it at once, and you see I apply myself to it that is the reason that I pick it up faster than some, as the most of the them just apply themselves for a few days and then get tired of it.The Indians I expect to trade with down on the Pierre Bottoms and Bad River all get their rations here, as do all the Indians on this reservation. As to the number that live down in that direction, I haven’t the least idea as yet.The reason that Ed did not let me know that my license was not here was that he had forgotten that they send all the papers of that kind to the Indian Agent, and as he did not come up to the agency, but went back to Yankton, he never though about it. Since he has been up here, he has looked all through his papers but couldn’t find those papers relating to Iowa land and he says they must be down at Yankton and started for St. Paul this morning to sell his robes and furs and from there to Yankton and you will soon know about it. But he didn’t intend to go to Chicago this trip if everything was all right in St. Paul. He got his bonds all O. K. and his license is continued as I was just informed by one of our Agent’s clerks.It isn’t settled yet about the Indians leaving the reservation and we can’t as yet find out what the [ ] is intending to do but Ed may find out something this trip. And as to my liking the looks of things, it is just this when the reservation is opened up and the railroad crosses the river it is a certain thing that we have a big thing and the Agent here is wanting that quarter section himself very bad, and there isn’t the least doubt in the world but it is a very valuable piece of land.Jim Pearman’s [agent at Fort Sully] arm is all right now although he doesn’t have the faith in it he had before, he says. It is too bad that True can’t get someone in his office that can help him more, and he must look out or he will overwork himself.And now this an imperative order to Mother to not overdo herself anymore or I don’t know what I shall do on the impulse of the moment, so you tell her that she had better look a little and you must not think that just because you feel well you can work too much, but you want to take it a little easy yourself. I am glad to hear the house is going up so nicely and is Puffer going into it as soon as it is done? Is the rolling mill still running and have they put on a full fover [?] yet? I forgot to ask True in my letter to him whether thy had got their castings done yet and so you ask him from me.A CDV of Sitting Bull with his SignatureI wrote in my letter to him about my trip to Pierre. The big storm we had here the other day almost washed the bridge that crosses the creek back of Ed’s store that goes up to the mission. By the way, Isaac Renville, the Indian minister here, was asking me if you was coming out this summer and said that he would like to see you again. He seems like a real good sort of a fellow, but as a general thing, I haven’t a very exalted opinion of the Indians in general.Old Sitting Bull and his outfit came up on the boat the other day and went on up to Standing Rock, ² and he took in lots of money writing his autograph, getting all the way from fifty cents to two dollars, and when they got to Pierre, they stopped over a day and he sold pipes to everybody claiming that were all his and as fast as he sold one, some of his people would hand him another and in that way he made money for the whole tribe, and the tenderfeet bit at everything. They even sold all their old knives for a good price.I can’t think of anything more at present, so goodbye and with much love to all, I am as ever your loving son, — A. Bob Carter¹ Fort Bennett was located on the Missouri river 7 miles above Fort Sully, Dakota, 302 miles from Sioux City, Iowa, by wagon road, and about 500 miles by river. Yankton, Dakota. 237 miles distant by land and 315 by river. The Indians at this agency were the Minneconjou, Sans Arc and Two Kettle tribes of Sioux.² After living in exile in Canada for a number of years, Sitting Bull and his family returned to the United States in 1881. They were settled near the Standing Rock Agency. It was living at Standing Rock in 1885 that Sitting Bull accepted an invitation to travel with Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show for four months.TERMS$3.00 postage in the United States. We accept Paypal.Postage combined for multiple purchases. Please wait for me to send the invoice, otherwise you will pay a higher rate.For International buyers, we utilize eBay’s Global ShippingProgram. We had too many packages sentvia the post office go missing. So webelieve this program will be safer for us and for you.We are members of the American Philatelic Society, the U.S.Philatelic Classics Society, the Confederate Stamp Alliance and the IllinoisPostal History Society.We only sell genuine, original letters (no copies orreproductions). Some of our letters havebeen transcribed and nicely presented for future genealogists and history buffson the Spared & Shared blog.We have been selling on eBay since 1998. BID WITH CONFIDENCE !
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