Following the Footprints of a Stone Giant
The Life and Times of Iron Thunderhorse
by Ruth Mahweeyeuh Thunderhorse, May 2007
QTC Press and ACQTC are proud to announce the publication of the official biography of Iron Thunderhorse, Grand Sachem of the Thunder Clan of ACQTC. This soft bound book, entitled Following the Footprints of a Stone Giant: The Life and Times of Iron Thunderhorse, is published by Infinity Press. The book is 189 pages profusely illustrated with reprints and excerpts from
the art and writings of Iron Thunderhorse. Available as an 8½" x 11" trade paperback, this in-depth biography can be purchased for $20 (shipping and handling included) through the Trading Post, or the book may be purchased directly from the publisher at Buy Books on the Web. Volume discounts are available through the publisher only. All proceeds from the sale of this book go directly to ACQTC, Inc.
About the Book
Born with one foot in two different worlds, raised by families from the indigenous cultures of two different continents, Iron Thunderhorse resisted assimilation, enculturation, religious conversion, and ethnocide in order to absorb all the traditions of his American Indian tribal heritage. He spoke six languages by age 12 and now speaks almost a dozen languages and dialects. In schools he maintained a 12.4 EA, and in college he was magna cum laude. With an IQ of 186 and an eidetic memory, he mastered six-month 150-hour vocational courses in four different computer courses (for a total of 600 hours of hands-on training) and served as computer analyst-designer for numerous websites.
Iron Thunderhorse served two tours in Vietnam as a Special Forces-Green Beret. After returning to America, he has endured thirty years of torture as an American Indian P.O.W. Determined to make the world a better place, he has advocated for the rights of Indians, prisoners, animals, environment, veterans, handicapped, elders, children, women, and the downtrodden. He refused to compromise his integrity. He refused to give in to pressure designed to discourage him from reviving his ancient Quinnipiac language, religion, and traditions. Even at the cost of personal injury and loss of liberty, he stood tall. He stayed strong by following the footprints of Hobbomock, the Quinnipiac Stone Giant. He is a Hero to people throughout the world!
This is the official-authorized BIOGRAPHY written by his beloved wife.
ISBN: 0-7414-3977-8
Focus of the Book
Iron Thunderhorse is a Medicine Man, a Vietnam Vet, an Author, a Shaman, a Grand Sachem, a linguist, a teacher, an artist, a sculptor, a craftsman, a humanitarian, a defender of human and civil rights, and a Prisoner of War in America. The author approaches the multifaceted talents and responsibilities of Iron Thunderhorse with a desire to bring greater understanding both of the man and of his Native American heritage. As a History and Theology major, the author endeavors to shed light upon the traditional teachings of Native American religion and to dispel the fallacies which have been taught us through American and Church History books, movies and mass media.
By bringing truth to light, the author strives to bring harmony and unity to a troubled world and to bring justice for Iron Thunderhorse. As much as possible, the author permits Iron to tell his life’s story in his own words, through copiously collected quotations and illustrations from the volumes of his letters, manuscripts, and published works in her possession.
The author begins her book by acknowledging the enormity of her task by saying: “Iron Thunderhorse is a complex person of great power and ability. No single sentence can define the man, nor could thousands of pages even begin to provide a realistic portrayal of who he is and what he has accomplished…. Without visualizing the antiquity of his legacy and endeavoring to comprehend something of the basic concepts of the Algonquian ethos, it is impossible to even begin to understand the man.”
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations
Messages from the Elders
History: The Quinnipiac Ancestors and the ACQTC, Inc.
Foreword
Introduction by Iron Thunderhorse
The Seven Fires Prophecies
CHAPTERSChapter 1: Traditional Calling – “My destiny chose me”
Chapter 2: A Foot in Two Worlds – “Honing my skills”
Chapter 3: Ancestral Lineage – “Legacy of the Thunder Clan”
Chapter 4: The War Chief – “Stereotypes die hard”
Chapter 5: The Medicine Chief – “Men of the Dawn Sky”
Chapter 6: The Shaman – “Revitalizing ancient traditions”
Chapter 7: Artist and Craftsman – “Recreating traditional artifacts”
Chapter 8: Author and Journalist – “Setting the record straight”
Chapter 9: Linguist and Author – “Speaking with heart and soul”
Chapter 10: The Powwamantowe – “Dreams, visions, and prophecy”
Chapter 11: Advocate and Guardian – “Defending aboriginal identity”
Chapter 12: The Grand Sachem – “Following the footprints”
Glossary, References, Appendix
About Iron Thunderhorse and the ACQTC
About the Author
Testimonials
IT IS ONE THING to know that injustice is being done in the case of Iron Thunderhorse, and great injustice has been done, indeed! It is another thing to understand that this injustice will seep into the lives of his people, who may never recover their cultural identity without him. If you understand just how selfless and devoted a man it takes to hold on for the good of his people’s future, under conditions that average men would have died from long ago, if you understood, truly, the kind of genius it takes to absorb all of that knowledge and make it grow… until it lives as if it were a full nation there within him, then, you would know IRON THUNDERHORSE.
Kirouana Paddaquahum, former Quinnipiac Medicine Chief
IRON THUNDERHORSE has accomplished three things no other scholar of Native New England could. He took a dead dialect and made a living language out of it… he assembled a grammar of pictograms used throughout New England, including cultural, religious, and totemic (i.e. family, clan, band, nation signs and status symbols) motifs developed by the Algonquian people… and he did all this (and more) in the face of extreme adversity and under conditions of horrendous obstacles and disadvantage… and without funding. That’s commitment, AND THAT IS SCHOLARSHIP.
Jack “Wanakia” Dempsey, Ph.D.
(Professor of New England History, Author, Editor)
YOUR STRUGGLE and hard work to bring the right of the People’s Spirituality is the right work… you are deserving of all the Goodness and Recognition from the People… your life is a sacrifice for the Wellness of Being… The Creator put us here and gave us the [original] instructions… our mutual task and responsibilities empower us to focus on the true meaning of Life… you understand all of this, because [like me] you were raised that way… may you stand tall in Health and Spirit, may Ki’E’Tan fill your Spirit with great Love, Vision, and Wisdom; may you persevere through the TRIBULATIONS THAT BESET YOU….
gkisedtanamoogk, Powwamanitomp,
Wompanoag Nation, anikwom.org, miingignoti.nativeweb.org
[from a letter to Iron Thunderhorse from Thunderbird Alliance Elder Advisor]
I HAVE FOLLOWED YOUR SAGA for some time and want you to know that you are in our prayers at longhouse. We have faith that Creator will hear all prayers for an end to this. HAVE FAITH.
Kamiakin and Jade Blackeagle
nimiipu_NezPierce, Lapwai, ID (email to Iron Thunderhorse)
I, DARYL L. SQUETIMKIN, (a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Coleville Reservation, great grandson of ‘Sque-Tim-Kin’) am writing this letter… in hopes of justice appearing on your behalf… I want you to realize the courage you have illustrated… impacts the individual attitude I display… in my eyes your story’s article PROVIDES INSPIRATION AND GROWTH TO MILLIONS….
Daryl L. Squetimkin (letter to Iron Thunderhorse)
MY HUSBAND IS RETIRED MILITARY (Navy)… my family is from the Blackfeet tribe… my children are enrolled with the Kiowa Tribe… All I can imagine is how I would feel if this was happening to one of my family members, or close tribal members. We as Native Americans need to try to stick together and unite as one in today’s trying times. As I attend and dance at Pow wow’s with my children, we talk about standing together… I just want you to know that my family and I are sending our deepest prayers and thoughts to you and your family. We would also like to HELP OUT IN ANY WAY POSSIBLE….
Jacquelyn Senecal-Hoppes (letter to Iron Thunderhorse)
IRON Thunderhorse is a NATIONAL TREASURE….
political activist’s email
THUNDERHORSE IS AN ARTIST, illustrator, author, journalist, columnist, linguist, craftsman, and computer analyst. Because of his popular book, Return of the Thunderbeings, he was asked to contribute to the WILD WOLF CELEBRITY COOKBOOK, where his name and art appears with other famous names, such as Elizabeth Taylor, Brad Pitt, Buzz Aldrin, and Clint Eastwood… He is a veteran of the Vietnam conflict… he serves as medicine chief of the Red Heart Warrior Society, and as SENIOR MENTOR FOR SAGEWRITERS.
Polk County Enterprise - Livingston, TX newspaper, October 21, 2004
AFTER BEING RAILROADED by the FBI’s COINTELPRO program, along with many other dissidents and activists… in the early 70’s, Iron Thunderhorse went to court to assert his rights as a Native American spiritual practitioner. He got to prison armed with a court order requiring TDCJ to respect these rights… and was beaten [WITH AXE HANDLES AND BASEBALL BATS].
Tom Big-Warrior, Red Heart Warrior Society, First Chief, TUELN
THE [REPRINTED] ARTICLE EXPLAINS MUCH for me and humbles me to realize the wisdom of the eastern Algonquian tribes. Chief Thunderhorse’s explanation… makes sense to me. But, I realize there is so much more…. I am humbled to now know how much spiritual knowledge was practiced by the Quinnipiac ancestors –– I just didn’t know. But, [now] I AM ON A ROAD TO LEARN WHAT I CAN….
Robert Gray Wolf, Ph.D., ACQTC Confederate Member;
Chief of the California Clan, United Cherokee Nation
(from an email to Little Owl)
SEVERAL OTHER PEOPLE have considered writing my biography…, [but] I knew instinctively who truly was the only person alive today who knows me well enough to even begin to tackle such a task. This person is my beloved wife, Ruth Mahweeyeuh Thunderhorse, better known as Little Owl. She knows my heart, my mind, my deepest spiritual insights, and my history. She also keeps track of practically EVERYTHING I HAVE WRITTEN….”
Iron Thunderhorse (from his “Introduction” to Following The Footprints Of A Stone Giant)
RUTH LITTLE OWL THUNDERHORSE… is the Headwoman of the Quinnipiac tribe…. She’s using her title to let the public know more about the leader… and her husband, Iron Thunderhorse… Like her husband, Ruth is committed to Native American affairs… Her husband, Iron Thunderhorse, is Grand Sachem of the Algonquian Confederacy of the Quinnipiac Tribal Council [ACQTC, Inc.]… The service Iron Thunderhorse provides to society is invaluable… Iron Thunderhorse is the last speaker… he’s the last person who has been handed down the culture and tradition. He’s the culture bearer of the Quinnipiac Nation… Iron Thunderhorse is the last of his kind, it’s been a lifetime of study and discipline and responsibility… much of it done despite his blindness and… most of it HAS BEEN [ACHIEVED] BEHIND PRISON BARS.
C.C. Thomas, The Capitol News,
“Land of the Indians: An Interview with the Headwoman of the Quinnipiac Tribe”
