The Enigma of Emery Francis (Leverett) Williams

Original Title Page. Full text available on the Internet Archive at Archive.org

 

The cemetery on the catholic church grounds in Fort Yates, ND is one of the few places still in existence from the early days of the Standing Rock reservation. It is a fenced rectangle whose shape is recognizable in the century old photographs of Frank Fiske. It is located on a piece of land that has been the catholic church and school location since the early days of the reservation. The old church and school are long gone, replaced by a 1960s brick school and 70's church. A few priests and several nuns make their home on the church grounds, a tradition which also dates back to the earliest days. Fort Yates is a patchwork of entities. In addition to the church land, there are Federal and tribal enclaves in the north, while the southern half of the island is an incorporated private town with lots. The only other place in town that is as old is the partially restored fort building that remains one of the oldest fort structures still in existence anywhere.

In John Taliaferro's excellent recent biography of the famous George Bird Grinnell, the famous publisher and conservationist, I came across a passage about Emery Leverett Williams. Emery, an artist and author, was the first husband of Grinnell's wife Elizabeth. The book mentions that William had fallen ill while he and his wife had spent the winter in a cabin at the Cannonball and Missouri confluence. The story made me remember a lidar image of the area showing the imprints of long gone rectangular structures. He died at the fort and was buried in Fort Yates in April 1900. Taliaffero later relates from Grinnell's journal that while he was visiting in 1902 at the behest of president Roosevelt to sort out a cattle and land controversy, he saw to the grave of her dead husband. 

At first, I worried that he might have been buried in the post cemetery and moved somewhere or left unmarked when the other soldiers were moved when the fort was dismantled in 1903. I thought a bohemian New York artist with no religious grounding might not be welcome in a Catholic cemetery. findagrave.com lists Emery Francis Williams's name as being buried in St Peters at Fort Yates. His date of death 1873-1900 matches what is known, yet with no photograph of a gravestone. It may be that there is no grave marker. I will have to wait until the next time I visit Standing Rock to see if the location is visible. Did Leverett somehow get changed to Francis in the records? A look at the original documents might show something as simple as a miss transcription of someone's messy handwriting since Leverett is a very uncommon name. His date of death coincides with the winter of 1899-90 that Emery and Elizabeth spent in the cabin beside the Cannonball.

 The story would stretch credulity if it weren't true. Grinnell's later wife and her first husband traveled out to Bismarck from New York to write a book on Indians. According to Taliaffero, many artists were traveling to Indian country at this time. As someone who has greeted and visited with countless non-indian "seekers", who found their way to the library at Standing Rock from all parts of the world, this is an interesting tidbit that deserves more research. Since the earliest days of the reservation, Standing Rock has attracted people searching for many things to its grassy shores.

 Unbelievably, as Taliaffero relates, almost out of money, they first walked from Bismarck to Fort Berthold, later doing the same to reach the northern border of Standing Rock and the Parkin's Cannonball Ranch near the Cannonball River. I know people who have done this out of need and not choice and it can be an arduous trek. Among the many hazards on the road between Mandan and Fort Yates are walkers that one must always be on the lookout for.

 As a major crossroads and entry point to the reservation during the waning years of the 19th century, the Cannonball Ranch is a fascinating story in itself deserving of its own research. How many juxtapositions of local Native luminaries and world historical figures happened at that spot on the map? A little over a century later, the general location where they overwintered would once again become a crossroads of Native luminaries and world historical figures during the pipeline protests of 2016-17. How many exciting characters from every corner of the earth have stood in that isolated spot?

 They put up in a cabin along the river and overwintered while Emery worked on his book. According to newspaper accounts, they made many friends among the people. The book he wrote and illustrated, called an Alphabet of Indians, is one of those mildly bizarre things that came out of this time period. How Williams thought he could write about 26 different tribes, by living near one is a mystery. He would have served history better by focusing on the people he was beginning to know and telling their story. The text is relatively romanticized and must be viewed as an artifact of its time. 

According to sources in the Bismarck Tribune and other places, he finished the book on the Cannonball and at Fort Yates after falling ill. After his death, his wife published the book. The book can be read or downloaded for free from the Internet Archive. Alphabet is the only book he seems to have published. However, a search of sources shows that he is credited with the illustrations in a multi-volume set of Victor Hugo's Les Miserables and appears to have been published drawings in several magazines.

When I get back to Standing Rock, I will stop at the cemetery to confirm some of these facts and maybe have a chat with the priests to see if any documents exist.