After moving to Soda Springs, Idaho, I learned about the book: The White Indian Boy, an autobiography by Elijah Nicholas "Nick" Wilson. From the book's introduction and "Ancestral File," I learned that Wilson was born in 1842 near Nauvoo to faithful Latter-day Saint parents. He came to Utah with the Mormon Pioneers in 1849.

Nick's mother gave birth to 18 children; there were 14 at home in Grantsville, when Nick was fourteen. They were living in dire poverty, dealing with the ravages of crickets, war (Indian and U.S. Army, which had come to put down Mormon polygamy), and subsisting on green weeds and "lumpy-dick."

Living near Nick's family was a family of friendly Gosiute Indians, consisting of at least parents and a son, Pansuk, who was one year younger than Nick. He became Nick's best friend and taught Nick his native Indian language. He and Nick were sent out for days at a time to heard the sheep.

When Nick was fourteen years old, in 1856, while out with the sheep, some Shoshone Indians, who were "untamed" (not confined to reservations and were causing problems for the Mormons and the pioneers going to California and Oregon) approached and offered him a beautiful horse if he would go live with them. They promised him good food and warm clothing, something his parents could not provide, so afer thinking it over he went with the Indians and became one of them for at least two years. Here Nick learned from several tribes, including the Giosiutes, Shoshones, Humboldt (Pocatello's tribe), and Crow, developing attitudes, physical and mental skills that would serve him for the rest of his life.

"The White Indian Boy" finally returned to his natural family after being lied to by "bad Indians" (Chief Pocatello's band) that the Mormons were getting together an army to kill the Indians as punishment for "stealing" him. When he returned home he found that conditions were even worse than when he left and that his parents were fleeing to Spanish Fork, without even being able to harvest their crops, because of U.S. government harassment. By then Nick was a strong young man capable of defending himself and others.

Nick, who never attended a day of school in his life, broke horses for a living, was a Pony Express rider, worked as a scout for the government, fell in love with a young woman who was taken as a plural wife by an older Brother, and, at the age of 22, married Matilda Patton, and became the father of 15 children. He remained faithful to the LDS Church.

Nick moved his family frequently, but they lived at Soda Springs, Idaho for many years. This was a turning point on the Oregon Trail. Here Nick served as bishop of the ward. (Whether Nick was the first bishop of Soda Springs, I haven't learned. Brigham Young "sentenced" a band of apostate Mormons, known as the Morrisites, to Soda Springs, and there may have been a ward associated with that group. Brother Brigham also visited Soda Springs, where tradition says he liked to drink natural carbonated water from the springs.)

Between 1865 and 1871, Nick was called by Charles C. Rich (an Army General as well as an LDS Apostle), who settled at Paris, in neighboring Bear Lake County, to serve on a posse to capture outlaws who had raided Montpelier. Rich asked for two men from each settlement, "the best men to be had" to serve on this dangerous assignment. Nick's partner was Jonathan Hoopes, Jr., who was living with his wife Mary Ann Baldwin and their children, including young George Arthur, at Bennington, east of Soda Springs.

Nick had two more wives and additional children and eventually settled the Jackson Hole country of Wyoming, which is about 100 miles north of Soda Springs. Here he also served as bishop of that ward until some visiting authorities from Salt Lake City caught him smoking his pipe-by then the Brethren were enforcing the "Word of Wisdom."

Around 1906, as an old man and well known story teller, Nick typed up his life stories on an old French typewriter and had them published as The White Indian Boy: Uncle Nick Among the Shoshones in 1910 by the Skelton Book Company of Salt Lake. The book was later edited by Howard Driggs, and in that form became a textbook in schools all over America. Since expiration of the copyright, the book has been published by several publishers, including Bookcraft. (Many old editions are now collector's items, selling for hundreds of dollars.) The edition I found was published by Nick's son, Charles Alma Wilson, when he was 83, and includes a sequel, The Return of the White Indian, where Charles tells more stories about his father's colorful life. The final chapter of the original book, written by Nick himself, called "Frontier Troubles" tells the story of his experiences with Jonathan Hoopes, Jr.

Unfortunately, our Grandfather Jonathan Hoopes, Jr., did not write out his stories (at least that we know of), but he obviously did live a colorful life in the old west. Jonathan and Nick had a lot in common and may have known each other much better than from just from the posse incident included in Nick's book. Jonathan Hoopes is one of the few persons that Nick referred to by name in his book, and it is obvious that Nick admired Jonathan and his bravery.

Here are some facts about the two men:

Jonathan was born in 1835 in Ohio of Quaker converted to LDS parents.

Nick was born in 1842 around Nauvoo to active LDS parents.

Both lived in Nauvoo, although Nick was younger and probably didn't remember the incidents there as well as Jonathan. Nick's Father's brother, James, was a body guard to Joseph Smith, so there were probably lots of family stories told.

Both crossed the plains with their parents and settled in northern Utah and Southeastern Idaho. Jonathan's parents were in their early 60s when they crossed the plains; Nick's were younger and had more children. Jonathan's parents settled in Weston, Oneida County, Idaho, where they died (they were buried at Mendon, Cache County, Utah). Nicks parents settled in Grantsville, Utah, but his mother, to whom Nick was very close, ended up in Cache County, Utah.

Both families endured many hardships after they reached Utah. There were plagues of grasshoppers, failed crops, Indian killings, U.S. Army troubles, polygamy issues.

Both married after reaching Utah. Jonathan married Mary Ann Baldwin in Provo in 1852. Her parents were well known in the Church, as her grandfather was a close personal friend of Joseph Smith and was the only non-general authority imprisoned with him at Liberty Jail. Mary Ann was said to "have inherited her grandfather's strength, and was known to be a very beautiful, sophisticated, educated and stately woman."

Both Nick and Jonathan lived the law of polygamy and were persecuted by the U.S. government for it.

Both traveled extensively in Idaho, Utah, Wyoming and Montana to make a living for their families. Neither apparently enjoyed farming. Jonathan was a freighter and traded in horses. Nick tamed and traded horses for a living. Both men were excellent horsemen.

Nick eventually went north, settling the Jackson, Wyoming area. He died at Wilson, Wyoming in 1915. Jonathan, after an incident in Montana, went to Arizona. He served as a guide and body guard to LDS Apostles fleeing into Mexico, where his plural wife, Arthusia Elmer, gave birth to a daughter in Colonia Juarez, a Mormon colony in Mexico. Jonathan finally settled at Thatcher, Graham County, Arizona, where he died in 1919.