The Washakie Letters of Willie Ottogary: Northwestern Shoshone Journalist and Leader, 1906-1929

Writings by American Indians from the early twentieth century or earlier are rare. Willie Ottogary's letters have the distinction of being firsthand reports of an Indian community's ongoing social life by a community member and leader. The Northwestern Shoshone residing at the Washakie colony in northern Utah descended from survivors of the Bear River Massacre. For over 20 years, local newspapers in Utah and southern Idaho regularly published letters from Ottogary.