Princess White Deer
Princess White Deer circa 1927. (Courtesy: Wikki Commons)
Story told by Mitch Deer
I got to meet Esther Deer with my mother. We had tea with her. I was about 20 years old.
She’s my mother’s first cousin, their fathers are brothers. She’s real small. She looks a lot like my mother. They look like sisters.
We went to visit her in Harlem. She’d been there for maybe 60-70 years. She hardly ever left that place. She had friends and they looked out for her to get her whatever she needed.
Her apartment was all full of old stuff. She had a whole wall full of National Geographic magazines from almost every year.
She married a Russian count in her 20s. This was when the Czars were ruling Russia. He was part of the original family, I guess. He fell in love with her, but they didn’t stay married for long.
She had a really big career. She was a model and she also sang opera. She was in the Ziegfeld Follies, which is a big Broadway show, with Fanny Brice and all these other big actresses. She was beautiful.
Esther travelled the world with her uncles. There were three of them, three brothers: James, John, and George. James was her father and John was my grandfather. George didn’t have any kids. They also had a sister.
The whole family travelled around the whole world. My mother was born later on, in 1915 so she had missed all this travelling that they had done. They were called the Folks. They travelled to Russia, China, England, and France.
Esther had met Geronimo. The real Geronimo. He was captured as an American prisoner of war and the United States government used to parade him around like they did with Sitting Bull.
The government made money by bringing him to Wild West shows because people wanted to see him. He was a gimmick. Sitting Bull and some other chiefs used to travel with them too, but they weren’t prisoners of the United States like Geronimo was.
They had two guys with guns, and he was in chains. He was on a horse and would go around the Wild West show. They would show the blood-thirsty savage Geronimo.
That’s when Esther saw him. She said that she never saw a guy sit so straight on a horse. He looked at my auntie and he winked at her. She told me, “He looked at me!” because she knew he was famous.
She would tell me these stories about seeing Geronimo when she was young.
KANIEN’KÉHA VERSION
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KANIEN’KÉHA VERSION ↓
Princess White Deer
Mitch Deer and his siblings John, Joe, Lily, George. (Courtesy: Mitch Deer)
Mitch Deer ROKÁ:RATON
Ake'nisténha tánon' ì:'i wa'tiakwatátken' ne Esther Deer. Onerahtákeri wa’tiakwahnekì:ra’. Ákta’ tewáhsen sha’tewakohseriià:kon. Akaónha ne ake’nisténha tiotierénhton ionara’sè:’a, iatate’kèn:’a ne ronwati’níha. Kwah ken’ niiakà:’a. É:so tsi testiatié:ren nake’nisténha. Á:ienhre’ tiatate’kèn:’a.
Harlem nonkwá:ti wa’akhinatahren’sè:ra’. Ákta ne ià:ia’k niwáhsen tóka' ni' tsá:ta niwáhsen niiohserá:ke eh shitiè:teron. Í:non teká:ron é:ren wà':enhte’ neh nón:we. Iakotenro’seraién:tahkwe’ tánon' wa’tehshakotirihwásnie’se' tánon' wahshakotíkwahse’ nothé:nen tsik nikahá:wi wa’tiakotonhóntsohse’. Kwah orihwakaion’shòn:’a tetkà:rahkwe’ ne tsi tiè:teron. Sewahsónhta teiakotahsonhtó:tahkwe’ néne aóskon National Geographic tekonrénie's iora’nentákhon néne thóha thia’teiohserá:ke aoná:wen.
Shaià:ta Rahsiahró:non ronontí:io wahotíniake’ tewahsénshon sha’teiakaohseriià:kon. Ken’ shikahá:wi Czar ohén:ton ronné:tahkwe’ ne Rahsiáhne. Kahwatsire’ón:we nithawé:non, ki’ ónhte’. Kwah wahshakonó:ronhkwe’ nek tsi iah karì:wes tehotiniakòn:ne’. Kwah í:ken tsi wa’ehsennowáhnha’ tsi wa’akoió’ten'. Ienonwaweiénhon wa’ón:ton' nok ó:ni’ wa’onterennó:ten' ioha’to’thí:ie’. Ziegfeld Follies tieià:tarahkwe’, kahsennowá:nen Broadway atieronniónhtshera’ thí:ken, Fanny Brice tánon' akwé:kon ne’ thí:ken oià:shon ratihsennowá:nen's tehontierónnions. Kwah í:ken tsi’ iakoia’tahskatstòn:ne’.
Akaónha tánon' ronwatinonha’okòn:’a’ wa’thontstikáhwha’ tsi niiohóntses. Áhsen nihatíhne’, rotisken’rhakéhte’, Sá:k, Shawátis, tánon' Swasén. Sá:k ne ronwa’níha tánon' Shawátis ne ronwahsótha’. Iah tehowiraién:tahkwe’ ne’ Swasén.
Tsakothonwí:sen ò:ni’ ronatate’ken’shén:tahkwe’.
Kahwatsirakwé:kon wa’thontstikáhwha’ tsi’ niionhóntses. Shiiotohseratíhen ne tióhton iawén:re tewen'niáwe wísk iawén:re shiiohserò:ten wa’akennákerate’ nake’nisténha, né: ki’ iah teiotòn:’on tahonatstikáhwhen. Folks ronwatí:iatskwe’. Rahsiáhne, Tsaináhne, Tiohrhen’shaka’onwè:ke, tánon' O’seronni’onwè:ke iehonenónhne’.
Esther wa'thiatátken' Geronimo. Né: otokèn:’en Geronimo. Wahonwaié:na’ tánon' Wastonhró:non ateriiohserá:kon wahonwanahskón:ni' tánon' ákte'k nón:we sahonwatia’tahténtia’te' ne Wastonhró:non Kakoráhsera’ sha’té:ioht tsi nahonwaié:ra’se’ ne Sitting Bull. Iawe’towá:nen ohwísta’ wa’thontèn:tsha’ ne kakoráhsera’ tsi Wild West atieronniónhtshera’shòn:’a’ nón:we iahonwaia’ténhawe’ ase'kén wa’thonatonhóntsohse’ nón:kwe ne ahonwá:ken'. Teierenhsarónhkhwa’ rotòn:'on. Sitting Bull tánon tohkára’ nihá:ti ronwatikowá:nen's skátne’ shos tenhontstikáhwha’ nek tsi iah tehonwatinahskón:ni ne Wastonhró:non tsi ní:ioht ne Geronimo.
Tehniiáhse rononkwe’taién:tahkwe’ nihonrenhá:wine’ tánon' teharonkwahsáneren' ne raonha’. Róhsehkwe’ tánon' tenhahkwatá:se’ shos nó:nen Wild West tenhontierónnion'. Enhshakotina’tón:hahse’ shos tsi nihanekwenhsanòn:wehkwe’, tsi niió:re’ tsi iah tehotewennarahkwèn:ne’ ne Geronimo.
Thò:ne ki’ Esther wahonwá:ken'. Wa’ì:ron' tsi iah nonwén:ton tehonwá:ken rón:kwe ne tho niioiánere’ ahentswà:rake’ nakohsá:tens karonhkwe’nà:ke. Wahshakotkáhtho’ ne aktén:t sok washakotkahrókerike’. Wa'onkhró:ri', “Wahakwatkáhtho’!” ase'kén iakoterièn:tarahkwe’ tsi rahsennowanénhne’.
Wa’onkkaratonnión:hahse’ tsi wahonwá:ken' Geronimo ken’ shitiakoién:ha.
Translation by Karonhí:io Delaronde