This article in the August/September 2017 issue of "COWBOYS & INDIANS"
magazine made me pretty proud that our grandpa Dee and his daughter Aunt Estella who were
both a big part of this story.
I have shared this story from Estelle's point of view with many of you..some of you have paper copies, but I haven't put it on the blog..so I guess the time has come. Below is the story as told to me by Aunt Estelle in the 90's.
"This story was submitted by Estelle Billington Fontana in 1985 to the Adams Museum in Deadwood, S. D. along with an Indian purse, knife and peace pipe that had once been given to Dee Billington from Crow Dog or Yellowbird. Also submitted was Estelle's mothers autograph album that had been signed by Crow Dog. He drew a picture of a dog with a crow on his back. He also drew a picture of himself and Chief Spotted Tail on horse back."
"When the Dakotas became a territory, officials, anxious to.establish law and order (and give the new circuit courts something to do), rounded up all known criminals, including Chief Crow Dog, who had killed Chief Spotted Tail.
My father, D. S. Billington, was the jailer in Deadwood at that time. Some years prior and at the invitation of Chief Yellow Bird, my father had hunted with the Indians. Few white men had this privilege. He came to have a great respect and admiration for the Indians. He and Crow Dog became friends.
Crow Dog had an arrow wound in one lung. Dad, knowing also how painful it was for an Indian to be caged, told Crow Dog that he would let him out during the day if he would return at sunset every evening to be locked up for the night. My father had absolute faith that an Indian would keep his word to a friend, not necessarily to anyone else,, but defnitely to a friend. So, with one of my father's two English bulldogs, Crow Dog would go up to White Rocks every day and return at sunset every evening. This went on for nearly four years.
Most people expected the day would come when Crow Dog would not return, but Dad's faith in him never wavered. The wait Crow Dog endured was unusually long for a man accused of 'a crime which carried a sentence of death. Crow Dog was sure he would eventually be hanged according to white man's law. The reason for the long wait was that there was no one to defend him. No one wanted to take a losing case.
One day Dad and another man had to go down Spearfish valley to pick up the body of a man killed by the Indians (that's another good story.) Crow Dog overheard their plans. That evening Crow Dog and the dog did not return. People were sure their predictions had come true.
When Dad returned, he was soundly reprimanded, but he still believed that Crow Dog would eventually return. He probably went to the Reservation to tell his people good-bye. Not having Dad's faith in Indians, the Marshall sent a man named Billy to bring back Crow Dog. I don't remember how many days had passed before Crow Dog came hack to Deadwood alone. When asked where Billy was, Crow Dog answered,. "I don't know any Billy. I left by myself. I came back by myself."
Dad asked him about his dog. Crow Dog said, "Sorry, I ate it."
In the meantime a young lawyer in Boston named Plowman had heard about this "strange" case. Not knowing anything about the West other than tales he had heard, he thought that it would be quite a lark (and some publicity) to go West and take this case. He went to the Reservation and talked to many Indians. He learned that Crow Dog had been tried by the tribal council and that he had been exonerated by them. At Crow Dog's long awaited trial young Plowman proved that this was double jeopardy, and Crow Dog was freed.
Unlike the television rendition of this story, the people of Deadwood were glad that Crow Dog was set free. They had come to like this Indian who had been quite a fixture in Deadwood. Many had to admit that Crow Dog had taught them an unforgettable lesson in honor. '"
 |
| photo given to Estelle |
 |
| Dee about 1882 |
to see the various story lines and the official results of the trial see:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ex_parte_Crow_Dog or
https://www.oyez.org/cases/1850-1900/109us556 or
https://repository.law.umich.edu/articles/1503/
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0521467152/ref=rdr_ext_tmb
.BOOK ENTITLED: CROW DOG'S CASE by Sidney Harring...
you can view some of the book on line.
