Dear Mike
Thorne and Jody Piotter;
Yes, Eckert's books make a good read. The flow and descriptions of Pioneer and Indian life are great.
In the following, forgive me if I make some mistakes, but being at the office and without my files, this is what I remember.
Some take exception to Eckert's treatment of the famous Indian chief, "Blue
Jacket". As you know, he was a contemporary and associate of Chief Tecumseh.
Eckert claims that the little white boy [was he a von- Swearingen?] was kidnapped by Indians near Chillicothe,
Ohio. So the story goes, he was wearing a, "blue jacket", when captured.
Presumably, he was then raised as Indian. Upon adulthood, he became a fiercesome Indian fighter against many pioneers. Eckert's account is the foundation of the outdoor melodrama, "BLUE
Jacket", as staged near Xenia,
Ohio.
Unfortunately for
Eckert and others, some family were surprised and looked into this claim of, "Blue
Jacket", being, "white".
After giving a speech on The Melungeons, in
Columbus,
Ohio last August 1999, a woman approached me. She suggested my contacting an Indian, Roger
Moore. Roger was giving presentations, saying that he was Melungeon.
In a phone call, Roger
Moore claimed to be the g-...g- grandson of Blue
Jacket. In a trip to Bellefontaine, I saw a book from the
Logan County Chapter of OGS. It's in their restricted vault. This rare and fragile book had several chapters relating to Blue
Jacket. One was written, if I remember correctly, by his grandaughter.
She relates her grandmother Moore's visit to their home. I can't remember if her name was
Virginia or Nancy. Her grandmother
Moore, as a 9 year old girl, was kidnapped either in
Virginia or
Pennsylvania. This white girl [possibly partially Melungeon, herself] was raised in Indian village(s).
Upon her maturity, Chief Blue
Jacket took her as his bride/squaw. They had two girls. Her two daughters developed small pox and had facial scarrs.
Blue
Jacket was given treaty land along the Maimi, west of Bellefontaine and south of Indian Lake and
Russells Pointe.
Eventually, she was allowed to return to her family in the East. Much later, she returned to the Miami River land between Lewistown to the north and Logansville to the south.
When Blue
Jacket died, his wife, [
Virginia or Nancy]
Moore inherited the land and lived there for quite a long while.
Somehow, but not clear to me, my new friend, Roger
Moore, is descended from Blue
Jacket. He and others have traced enough to know that Blue
Jacket was not white. The NGS printed a scholarly analysis of, "was he or was he not, white". {more scholarly than this posting, today being done without any notes or documents}
Roger
Moore is an Indian, "Reenactor". He appears at Gnadenhutten(sp), at
Zoar, Schoenbrunn Village and annually at Louis Broomfield's, "Malabar Fall
Harvest Festival".
He has advised screen writers and directors and acted in about 15 PBS, A&E and History
Channel documentaries.
He appears in television interviews and speaks to many school assemblies. He mentions his, "Melungeon", background as part of his presentations.
His, "day job", near
Mansfield,
Ohio is as a mechanic improving on off-highway equipment.
Roger once confronted Allan
Eckert. By then Mr. Eckert knew of the error. He appologized for the error in research leading the false conclusion.
Apparently, there was another, "blue jacket", boy that did exist, but at a different time and in a different place. However, that "blue jacket", never became a chief; and might have been white; and might have been ...
As arranged by phone, our family met Roger
Moore at the Fall 1999 Louis Broomfield's, "Malabar Farm Fall
Harvest", in
Richland County,
Ohio.
Among the tens of thousands of people milling around, he and his son were the only dressed Indians there. They walked the grounds and spent time in the camping and Civil War display.
Assuming him to be there again next Fall, I invite you to visit Malabar Farm and to approach them. He openly welcomes visitors and enjoys interacting and sharing the old Indian and Pioneer stories.
I hope to return to Xenia this summer to again see, "Blue
Jacket". Several people, including Roger, have mentioned that before the production begins, an announcer comments in a way that indicates that liberties with facts have been made, for the entertainment value. I want to hear the exact phrasing.
Personally, I wish that the play would be rewritten. The story of Indian and Pioneer life and the Treaty of
Greenville is exciting enough without causing 2 to 3 thousand patrons per night to, "mislearn history".
As Roger says, "I spend the rest of the year, correcting this error. That's a lot of people to approach."
My hope is that the new
Columbus, "BLUE JACKETS",
Hockey Team, playing in The Nationwide
Arena, will realize the facts in their publicity and promotions.
If I have made an error in recountlng the above, I am sure that someone will let me know.
Sincerely,
Phil
Beltz