Aamoons

Aamoons, or Little Bee, also rendered Ah-moose, Ah-mous, Aw-Mouse, Aw-monse, Bradford Ah-Moose, Ahmoons, or Wasp, (1795? – March 18, 1866) was a 19th century leader of the Ojibwe people of North America. He was the head chief of the Lac du Flambeau band (Waaswaaganiwininiwag) "whose hunting grounds are on the Wisconsin River."[1] Aamoons traveled to the national capital of Washington, D.C. at least three times in the 1860s for meetings with the federal government about the status and treaty rights of the Ojibwe, who were at that time called the Chippewa.

"Little Bee, Chippewa chief" hand-colored image by Whitney & Zimmerman (Denver Public Library Special Collections, Call Number X-32633)

Per William Whipple Warren's History of the Obijway (written in the early 1850s, published posthumously in 1885), Aamoons was the son of Waub-ish-gaug-aug-e (or White Crow, d. 1847), who was himself the son of Keesh-ke-mun.[2] According to Benjamin Armstrong, Ah-Moose was part of a delegation that met with President Abraham Lincoln in 1862.[3] The 1862 delegates were Ah-moose, or "Little Bee," from Lac Flambeau reservation; Kish-ke-taw-ug, or "Cut Ear," Bad River reservation; Ba-quas, or "He Sews," La Court O'Rielles reservation; Ah-do-ga-zik, or "Last Day," Bad River reservation; O-be-qnot, or "Firm," Fond du Lac reservation; Shing-quak-onse, or "Little Pine," La Pointe reservation; Ja-ge-gwa-yo, or "Can't Tell," La Pointe reservation; Na-gon-an, or "He Sits Ahead," Fond du Lac reservation; and O-ma-shin-a-way, or "Messenger," Bad River reservation.[3]

Aamoons was also one of eight Ojibwe chiefs who traveled to Washington as part of a delegation to meet with the U.S. government in February 1863.[4] He was said to be nearly 70 years old at the time of the 1863 trip, "yet hearty and strong in appearance.[4] He traveled to Washington via locomotive by way of Chicago with Antoine Buffalo, Naw-wah-gah (the Foremost Sitter), Ah-me-wen-see (the Old Man), A-daw-we-go-zhig (On both sides the Sky), Keesh-ke-taw-wag (The Cut Ear), O-be-gwod (The Side), and Me-zhe-naw-wag (The Messenger).[5][4] Aamoons was a monolingual Ojibwe-language speaker circa 1863.[4]

Ojibwe delegation to Washington 1861–1862; second from the left, top row, is likely "Ah-Moose"[6]

He died in Washington, D.C., in October 1866, of "black measles" (Rocky Mountain spotted fever) while on a trip to meet with U.S. federal government officials about the status of the tribe.[1] He was one of four members of the delegation who fell ill.[1] His body was buried at the Congressional Cemetery.[1]

References
  1. "Ah-Moose obituary". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 1866-03-20. p. 2. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  2. Warren, William W.; Neill, Edward D.; Williams, J. Fletcher; Minnesota Historical Society (1885). History of the Ojibway nation. St. Paul, Minn.: Minnesota Historical Society. pp. 47, 319 – via HathiTrust.
  3. Armstrong, Benj G.; Wentworth, Thos P. (1892). Early life among the Indians reminiscences from the life of Benj. G. Armstrong: treaties of 1835, 1837, 1842 and 1854: habits and customs of the Red Men of the forest: incidents, biographical sketches, battles, &c. CIHM/ICMH Microfiche series CIHM/ICMH collection de microfiches no. 02470. Ashland, Wis.: s.n. pp. 66–69. ISBN 978-0-665-02470-2.
  4. "A Delegation of Chippeway Chiefs en route for Washington". Cleveland Daily Leader. 1863-02-03. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  5. "Distinguished Visitors from Lake Superior: Arrival of the Chippewa Chiefs". Chicago Tribune. 1863-01-28. p. 4. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  6. "Error Correction: Photo Mystery Still Unsolved". Chequamegon History. 2014-04-27. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
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