Meeting Joe Medicine Crow

Even though it is midway through August, things are still busy as ever here in Garryowen. With all the kids heading back to school, I thought it would slow down as the tourist season came to a close, but I have been proven wrong. Right before Sami packed her bags to head back to Ohio, we had a very special visitor stop by the museum: Joe Medicine Crow.

Even before I was first notified that I had been accepted as an Intern, I had been hearing about Joe Medicine Crow. During my Western History class in college, my teacher told us about him and his trip to Washington, D.C. to meet with President Obama and receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009.

Not only did he receive the highest civilian honor from President Obama, Joe Medicine Crow has also received the French Legion of Honor Chevalier medal from te French President. This French award, created by Napoleon to recognize people who performed great deeds to France, was given to Joe Medicine Crow because of his actions in World War II against the Germans. In Crow tradition, in order to become a War Chief, a warrior has to complete four stages of counting coup. When he returned home with his war stories, the elders realized that he had completed all four of these steps and was made a Crow War Chief. The French Legion of Honor Chevalier medal was presented to Joe Medicine Crow here at the Custer Battlefield Museum at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier on June 25, 2008.

Joe Medicine Crow is the oldest Crow living; born in 1913, he has lived through a lot, both Crow history and general American history. He fought in World War II and has many educational achievements. As if that wasn’t enough to already make him an interesting person, he also serves as a Crow Tribal Historian and is a descendant of White-Man-Runs-Him, one of Custer’s Crow Scouts during the Battle of the Little Bighorn. We sell two of his books here at the museum and, after reading both, I can personally say that they are a great look into the Crow Tribe customs and history.

Sami and I had seen Joe Medicine Crow once before: he was present at the Battle of the Little Bighorn re-enactment that we attended in late June. He was brought out in front of the grandstands and introduced to the crowd. Both Sami and I had been hoping for our chance to actually meet him face to face.

It was a normal day here at Garryowen when he stopped by; there was no fanfare, just an adorable old man walking with a cane. Chris introduced the three of us to Joe Medicine Crow; he told him we were interns and the states we called home. We shook his hand and lined up for a picture. It was definitely a memorable moment. I’ve said many times before in this blog that seeing people dressed up as historical figures makes me excited because it’s the closest I’ll get to meeting or seeing the real person.

However, Joe Medicine Crow was not dressed up to represent someone else; he’s incredibly important just the way he is. Shaking his hand and standing next to him for a photo IS the closest I will get to any of the men or women who participated in the Battle of the Little Bighorn. He is a descendant of a White-Man-Runs-Him, a man who was here that day and participated in the complex battle that I’ve spent so much time reading and learning about. I know I can speak for Rob and Sami when I say that this is a memory I will cherish for the rest of my life.

-- Aimee.

Here's a picture of us 3 interns with Joe: Robert, Aimee, Joe Medicine Crow & Sami