Rock House Chapter DAR recognizes National American Indian Heritage Month

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On Nov. 15, 2021, at the Mt. Pisgah Cemetery, Rock House DAR Chapter members held a small wreath laying ceremony at the gravesite of Chief Lone Wolf (also known as Ernest Grant) in honor of National American Indian Heritage Month.

National American Indian Heritage Month celebrates and recognizes the accomplishments of the people who were the original inhabitants, explorers, and settlers of the United States.  As the indigenous people of our country, it is only fitting the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution respect and value the American Indian.  These first Americans are worthy of our understanding and appreciation.  Since 1995, presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump have issued annual proclamations which designate November as National American Indian Heritage Month. These proclamations celebrate the contributions of the American Indians and urge the people of the United States to learn more about the American Indian cultures.

 Chief Lone Wolf

Also known as Ernest Grant, Chief Lone Wolf was a Sioux Indian born, Aug. 16, 1898, on the Rose Bud Indian Reservation, in South Dakota.  His parents were Jim Fletcher Grant and Patsy Young Grant.  At some point, the family left the reservation and moved east.  Ernest married Rebecca Catolster, who was born Jan. 12, 1917 to James Carson Catolster and Josephine Saunooke, Eastern Cherokees from the Eastern Cherokee Tribe, in North Carolina.  In 1941, Ernest was married and living on the Cherokee Reservation, in North Carolina.  At that time, he was 43 years old and registered for the World War II draft.  Sometime in the mid 1940s, Chief Lone Wolf moved his family to White County, Tennessee, and purchased a farm in the Doyle community.  It is said Chief Lone Wolf staged small shows of an Indian War Dance for school children and community gatherings while living in White County. 

On Dec. 28, 1951, Chief Lone Wolf suffered a massive stroke.  He died four days later at Cumberland Medical Center, in Crossville.  The Mt. Pisgah Cemetery, in White County, is Chief Lone Wolf’s final resting place.  At the time of his death, he was survived by his wife Rebecca, five sons and two daughters, along with eight brothers and three sisters.   Later, Rebecca left White County and moved back to the Cherokee Reservation, in North Carolina.  She died Feb. 29, 1988 and is buried in North Carolina.

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