By Mick Woodcock

On the last day of the year 1906, Frank G. Ellis, M. D. of Annapolis, Missouri, was the subject of a letter that would forever change his life. It was a form letter, much as any U. S. government form letter sent from the Office of Indian Affairs. The printing in the body of the letter was in an attractive script. The substance of the message was typed in the blank spaces at the ends of sentences. It would send the good doctor on a rail and wagon trip to one of the more remote areas of the Arizona Territory: the Colorado River Agency.

One can only guess why Frank Ellis had applied to the Department of the Interior, Office of Indian Affairs for employment. Little is known of his life other than his appointment letter. "Sir: You are hereby appointed, under the conditions printed hereon, to the position of physician at the Colorado River Agency, Arizona, at a salary of $1000 per annum." There is a photograph in his collection of several men standing around a cadaver on a table, but there is no indication of the school of medicine or which man is Frank, if indeed any are. 

One thousand dollars per year amounts to eighty-three dollars per month and some change. One might suspect that he could have earned more money staying in Missouri and practicing medicine on the general populace. He did get on the payroll as soon as he accepted the job. "Your salary will begin when you subscribe the oath of office and enter on duty. A blank form of oath is inclosed [sic] herewith, which you may subscribe before a notary public or other officer qualified to administer oaths, and forward to this Office." 

It further stated, "Please telegraph the Commissioner of Indian Affairs at once whether or not you accept this appointment." Since this was the days when telephone service was in its infancy, the telegraph was the common means of contacting a person in another city if you were in a hurry. It went on, "Should you accept, you are directed to notify the Superintendent of the Colorado River Indian School at Parker, Ariz., when you will report for duty." Apparently this could be done by letter instead of telegram. 

As with any government job, it had a probationary period. "This appointment, by virtue of the civil service law, is probationary until the expiration of six months from the date of your entrance on duty. If your services are satisfactory you will then receive a permanent appointment." His service must have been satisfactory since there are photographs in his collection that feature Native Americans from tribes on the Great Plains. 

Directions were given as to the three ways Dr. Ellis could get to the Agency. "The route is as follows: Railroad station, Toprock, Ariz., on the Santa Fe Pacific Railway; thence by rowboat down the Colorado River; distance, 86 miles. Also, railroad station, Needles, Cal., 60 miles by wagon over good mountain road. Also, Salome, Ariz., on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, 55 miles by wagon over good road. All routes necessitate sleeping out one night en route." One has to wonder if the person typing the letter had even a vague notion of geography since the railroad station on the Colorado River was at Topock, not the misspelled, Toprock. 

General directions on how to find Parker, Arizona was about all the Office of Indian Affairs gave. On the back of the letter, under the heading, "READ THESE CONDITIONS CAREFULLY BEFORE ACCEPTING THIS APPOINTMENT", were two paragraphs that perhaps gave the good doctor pause. "Employees are required to bear their own expenses in reaching the agency; also to provide their own furniture, fuel, and subsistence. The Indian Office has no means of securing reduced rates of transportation for employees." 

If that were not enough to give one pause, other conditions were listed. "Employees at Indian agencies must understand when they accept appointment that the work will be confining, with little opportunity for recreation or social pleasure, and must be willing to work night or day if an emergency arises. No person should offer himself for appointment in the Indian Service who is encumbered with the care of children or invalids, or who is in any way hampered in giving to the Government his full time and best service." While is does not come right out and state that married people should not apply, it gives the idea that being single would be a positive thing. It also hints that you would remain in that state since "...little opportunity for recreation or social pleasure..." existed. 

This was probably just as well. Looking at the attitude of the government for housing indicates a patronizing state of mind. "The Government expects to provide quarters for its employees at Indian agencies, but their assignment must be considered a courtesy rather than a privilege." What these quarters were like can only be left to speculation. 

What we do know is the following, taken from the Colorado River Indian Tribe's web site. "The Colorado River Indian Tribe's (CRIT) Reservation is located in western Arizona at Parker, 189 miles from Phoenix. The Reservation spans the Colorado River and has land in Arizona (La Paz County) and California (San Bernardino County). The Colorado River Indian Reservation was established March 3, 1865 for the 'Indians of said river and its tributaries'. The Indigenous people were the agricultural Mohaves and the Chemehuevis. In 1945, a portion of the Reservation was reserved for colonization by Indians of other tribes, specifically the Hopis and Navajos." 

Today, Parker, Arizona is just a few miles off of Interstate 10 and the Colorado River. Dr. Ellis could fly into Phoenix, rent a car, and drive to Parker in just a few hours. However, in 1907, his train travel to his choice of jumping off points would have taken several days. Did he choose the rowboat or the wagon ride? We will never know, but which ever it was, it was a two-day trip to Parker with a night out on the desert. Good thing he was not traveling in the summer. 

(Mick Woodcock is the Curator of History at Sharlot Hall Museum.) 

Sharlot Hall Museum Photograph Call Number:(pb164f56i1). Reuse only by permission.
Dr. Frank Ellis, Colorado River Agency.