Stacy (Brooklyn, NY.)
n.d.
ndian Scout John Nelson
Cabinet card
Cowan's Auctions, IncAmerican History: Premier Auction, 26 June 2018, Lot: 497
John Nelson leaning against a tree trunk in a studio setting, dressed in show attire, casually smoking a cigar, and holding his lever-action Winchester, credited to Stacy, Brooklyn, NY.
Nelson had a long and fabled career on the Plains. Leaving his native West Virginia, Nelson traveled west by 1844, living for a time with Spotted Tail's band of Brule Sioux, before signing with Brigham Young for $40 a month acting as a guide in 1847. He was with the burial party at the Mountain Meadow Massacre, and spent a number of years working cattle in Colorado and Utah. He helped build the buildings at the Pine Ridge Reservation and served there for a time as chief of police. He claimed to have met Buffalo Bill in 1857, and became a fast friend. Cody referred to Nelson as "a good fellow though as a liar he had few equals and no superiors." He joined Cody's Wild West in 1884 and was with the outfit for many years (Tharp, 1988:1048-49).
LL/83478