Biography

Ohiyesa, also known as Charles Alexander Eastman, was the first great American Indian author, publishing eleven books from 1902 until 1918. In his later adult life he was the foremost Indian spokesman of his day and his contribution to our understanding of the American Indian philosophy and religion are so significant that at the 1933 Chicago World's Fair, Ohiyesa was presented a special medal honoring the most distinguished achievements by an American Indian. Ohiyesa said of his work, "My chief object has been, not to entertain, but to present the American Indian in his true character before Americans. ... Really it was a campaign of education on the Indian and his true place in American history." A Santee Sioux, Ohiyesa was born in 1858 and lived the traditional nomadic life of the Sioux in Canada and Minnesota until the age of 15, including the complete training to be a hunter-warrior in the tradition of his forefathers. When his father, who Ohiyesa thought had been killed by whites, suddenly reappeared, the young boy was immersed into the dominant civilization of the white race. He eventually received his undergraduate degree from Dartmouth and obtained his medical degree at Boston College before returning to the Pine Ridge Sioux reservation in South Dakota as their government physician (including tending to casualties at the Wounded Knee massacre). He then spent the majority of the remainder of his life working in various ways to help his native people and to promote a better understanding of the American Indian culture and character. He became the first and arguably the only American Indian to be raised until he was a young man in a completely traditional nomadic life, later receive both undergraduate and graduate college degrees and then continue to dedicate his life to the well being of his native peoples.