Old Toby
Encyclopedia
Old Toby whose name was Pikee Queenah (Swooping Eagle) was war chief of the Tuziyammo (Big Lodge) band of Western Shoshone
and a Shoshone
dog soldier
.
in 1805, as did Tetoharsky, and Twisted Hair. He guided Clark
's exploration of the Salmon River
and led the entire party from the Lemhi River
Valley at Salmon, Idaho
, over the Bitterroot Mountains
to the Bitterroot Valley
, and then over the Lolo Trail to the Clearwater River
country above Lewiston, Idaho
.
He left the expedition and returned home. Nez Perce Indians relayed that he stole horses and returned home. He died of typhoid in 1858.
' journal gives his name as Tobe, an abbreviation of Tosa-tive koo-be, meaning "furnished white white-man brains," referring to his work as their guide. He was simply called Toby, but the moniker "Old Toby" was added later in popular literature.
. A new monument was erected in his honor in North Fork, Idaho
, near Highway 93 and the Salmon River Road in 2009.
Western Shoshone
Western Shoshone comprises several Shoshone tribes that are indigenous to the Great Basin and have lands identified in the Treaty of Ruby Valley 1863. They resided in Idaho, Nevada, California, and Utah. The tribes are very closely related culturally to the Paiute, Goshute, Bannock, Ute, and...
and a Shoshone
Shoshone
The Shoshone or Shoshoni are a Native American tribe in the United States with three large divisions: the Northern, the Western and the Eastern....
dog soldier
Dog soldier
The Dog Soldiers or Dog Men was one of six military societies of the Cheyenne Indians. Beginning in the late 1830s, this society evolved into a separate, militaristic band that played a dominant role in Cheyenne resistance to American expansion in Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado and Wyoming...
.
Guide
He served as a guide for the later part of Lewis and Clark ExpeditionLewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, or ″Corps of Discovery Expedition" was the first transcontinental expedition to the Pacific Coast by the United States. Commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson and led by two Virginia-born veterans of Indian wars in the Ohio Valley, Meriwether Lewis and William...
in 1805, as did Tetoharsky, and Twisted Hair. He guided Clark
Clark
Clark is surname in the English language, ultimately derived from the Latin clericus meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educated. Clark evolved from "clerk". First records of the name are found in 12th century England...
's exploration of the Salmon River
Salmon River (Idaho)
The Salmon River is located in Idaho in the northwestern United States. The Salmon is also known as The River of No Return. It flows for through central Idaho, draining and dropping more than between its headwaters, near Galena Summit above the Sawtooth Valley in the Sawtooth National...
and led the entire party from the Lemhi River
Lemhi River
The Lemhi River is a river in Idaho in the United States. It is a tributary of the Salmon River, which in turn is tributary to the Snake River and Columbia River.-Course:...
Valley at Salmon, Idaho
Salmon, Idaho
Salmon is a city in Lemhi County, Idaho, United States. The population was 3,122 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Lemhi County...
, over the Bitterroot Mountains
Bitterroot Mountains
The Northern and Central Bitterroot Range, collectively the Bitterroot Mountains, is the largest portion of the Bitterroot Range, part of the Rocky Mountains, located in the panhandle of Idaho and westernmost Montana in the Western United States...
to the Bitterroot Valley
Bitterroot Valley
The Bitterroot Valley is located in southwestern Montana in the northwestern United States. It extends over 100 miles from remote Horse Creek Pass north to a point near the city of Missoula...
, and then over the Lolo Trail to the Clearwater River
Clearwater River (Idaho)
The Clearwater River is a river in north central Idaho, which flows westward from the Bitterroot Mountains along the Idaho-Montana border, and joins the Snake River at Lewiston. In October 1805, the Lewis and Clark Expedition descended the Clearwater River in dugout canoes, putting in at "Canoe...
country above Lewiston, Idaho
Lewiston, Idaho
Lewiston is a city in and also the county seat of Nez Perce County in the Pacific Northwest state of Idaho. It is the second-largest city in the northern Idaho region, behind Coeur d'Alene and ninth-largest in the state. Lewiston is the principal city of the Lewiston, ID - Clarkston, WA...
.
He left the expedition and returned home. Nez Perce Indians relayed that he stole horses and returned home. He died of typhoid in 1858.
Name
Thomas ReesThomas Rees
Thomas Rees may refer to:* Thomas Ifor Rees , Welsh diplomat and translator* Thomas M. Rees , a U.S. Representative from California* Thomas Rees , Welsh Congregationalist minister...
' journal gives his name as Tobe, an abbreviation of Tosa-tive koo-be, meaning "furnished white white-man brains," referring to his work as their guide. He was simply called Toby, but the moniker "Old Toby" was added later in popular literature.
Legacy
A monument was erected is his honor in the 1930s but demolished during construction of US Highway 93U.S. Route 93 in Idaho
U.S. Route 93 is a north–south U.S. Highway in the U.S. state of Idaho.-Route description:US 93 enters Idaho from a point immediately north of the border casino town of Jackpot, Nevada....
. A new monument was erected in his honor in North Fork, Idaho
North Fork, Idaho
North Fork is an unincorporated community in Lemhi County, Idaho.Its name is derived from confluence of the south-flowing North Fork of the Salmon River with the north-flowing main Salmon River, which makes a near-right angle turn here to flow westward across the state to Riggins...
, near Highway 93 and the Salmon River Road in 2009.