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Pandemic Frenzy - April 2020 - link to the Hopi Prophecy!

Life is a mystery and right now we are experiencing global challenges and mysterious times. Truth be told, when we look back at our ancestors they too navigated some very interesting times. And then when we look at the Hopi Prophecy, it appears we have some learning to do and changes to make.

A century ago, 102 years to be exact, the Spanish flu pandemic disrupted the lives of everyone on this planet. Lasting from January 1918 through December 1920, it infected 500 million people—about a quarter of the world's population. The number of deaths was estimated to be at least 50 million worldwide with about 675,000 occurring in the United States. Do you know who or if your family members survived this pandemic?

How we navigate our lives may lie in the stories of how our ancestors navigated theirs. There are lessons to be learned from their successes and their failures. Our lives have been woven from the fabric of their lives, each of us inheriting a piece of their past. Our futures will also benefit by having a better understanding of who we are by understanding who they were and how they faced the challenges during their lifetime.

During times like these that the whole world seems to have fallen off the frenetic pace, it seems to give us all a cause… for pause. And while no one has a clue to what the future holds, one thing is for certain, it will be different and we will adapt.

As a forensic genealogist, it has always been suggested that pauses in our lives can be used to solve mysteries and bring us back to the old days by digging into those family heirlooms and photos and taking the time to digitize those memories and sharing with your loved ones.

This is the project we started a month ago when self-isolation then lockdown became new terms in our vocabulary. There were a few never seen before images that brought smiles, and there was one, in particular, the very last of thousands of slides that are a part of this story.

In 1955, as a 5-year-old, my parents took me on a trip out west, with a stop at the Grand Canyon. It is amazing how we can vividly remember some details and this story is one of them. We were staying at a cabin on the South Rim. I was a bit of a wanderer then and a wander now. My parents were late sleepers for most of my life and I am an early riser for most of my life. This left a few hours in the mornings where a little one could get into a little trouble now and again… or simply find themselves slightly misplaced! On this trip, my wandering in the early morning hours would lead me to the ledge of the South Rim. It was here a Hopi native would meet me every morning for a good part of 10 days or so. Thinking out loud it was most likely a need to provide protection until my parents would awake, realize I was not there and would come looking for me. But every morning that is where they would find me… in deep discussions with Hopi Sam. This is what I remembered and indeed this is the name he was known at the Hopi House and Gift Shop at the South Rim.

Believe it or not, this happens to be one of my most prized possessions. You will have to laugh along with me as just this morning I digitized the slide I have carried with me for the last 65 years. Once digitized and enlarged, you can easily see what it is like for a 5 year to dress hurriedly in the morning to meet up with this enigma who made such a deep impression on this little girl. Hopi Sam. Will never forget him!

Not sure what we talked about all those mornings but the impression was lasting and as the years progressed he took on the role of a spiritual leader of sorts. Two years ago, a quick trip back to that site brought back instant memories of our visits on the ledge of that rim. The gift shop had a very strange model of the man in this picture, someone had labeled it Creepy Sam. That is certainly not what I remembered. The plaque at the gift shop reads that he had a quick wit and apparently was just one of the many thousands whose pictures were taken with him. But for some reason, it is believed there were much deeper discussions those mornings at that ledge of the South Rim. As I got older there were concepts that would come to me that were not normally those that one would think would be part of a young Jewish girl’s normal upbringing. What I do remember most was the sadness after we left, and profound memories of those meetings with Hopi Sam that have lived on all these many years! May his memory has always been a blessing!

As genealogist fact-checking is part of what we do. The information indicates from the records Hopi Sam he was born in 1876. He was born Sam Pemahinye. Interestingly enough, there were only 4 records found for him on a quick search and of course, each reflects a different year of birth. The Social Security Death Index lists his birth as 06 Dec 1876. His death as May 1972. It also states he attended school in Santa Fe, New Mexico, worked 10 years for the Santa Fe Railroad before leaving for Grand Canyon, where he spent upwards of 50 years in the employ of the Hopi House Gift Shop.

The World War II Draft Cards (Fourth Registration circa 1942) shows his birth date as Dec 1890. His birthplace was listed as one of three the Hopi Villages on the Second Mesa called Songoopavi (or Shungopavi). The Hopi Cultural Center is on Second Mesa.

The first census found containing Hopi Sam is in the 1930 US Federal Census. It is likely that he may be in the Indian Census Rolls under his Indian name in earlier records. It is learned he was a widower, he was 50 years old (birth year 1880), he married at age 35 and he was full blooded, Hopi Tribe. He had a roomer by the name of Osborne Morse, age 22, single and born in New York.

In the 1940 US Federal Census Sam was living in a household of 9 persons in the Grand Canyon. He is listed as a Pardner, 58 years old (birth year 1882), a widower, has been living in the same house in 1935 and had an 8th grade education.

Ever since this 5 year olds encounter, the spirit of the Hopi Tribe and with Native Americans in general has been mesmerizing at best. It has been an area of study and increased interest as times became more and more complicated and life more and more mysterious. The Hopi Prophecy has been a big intrigue. The below video was produced by PBS and first aired 04/16/91.

And the two pictures above were two of the biggest surprises in the last few days. On the left the little tiny print, not 2 inches, portrayed for the first time that first pony ride was not a pony at all! The photo on the right is my dad, his first cousin and his younger brother who passed away a month ago in what appears to be a re-created prohibition-era bar.

NOTE ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Susan E King is a forensic genealogist and family historian. Like the Native Americans who celebrate and pass down their ancestral roots from generation to generation through ceremonial and cultural events, it is the spirit of knowing who you are that is so vitally important. It is time to get back to our roots and back to those things that are more natural. “We are just a seed in the wind until we know our roots”? Our practice and services follow suit with the precept that knowledge provides the strength of spirit and this strength is not only liberating but will guide us all through the period of the unknowns. We can all find strength in family, known or unknown. With the advent of DNA and tools it presents to genealogists, it is now possible to break down familial brick walls, provide adoptees, children born out of wedlock where the paternal lines are not known, children of sperm donors and cold case files with their birthright. Feel free to jump on our website, www.susaneking.com, join the mailing list or initiate a chat. For those who have a little background, feel free to ask for a copy of the Let’s Get Started Guide.

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