of his aunts, Martha Key and Rubyane Surritte. They knew Ernest,
and Key, who has sadly since died, had known Mollie as well. The
three women spoke candidly about the family’s history and shared
with me a video recording of Ernest that was taken shortly before
he died, in which he talked about Mollie and his past.
Several research institutions were critical to this project, and I
am indebted to them and their staffs. Particularly, I want to thank
David S. Ferriero, the archivist of the United States, as well as
Greg Bognich, Jake Ersland, Christina Jones, Amy Reytar, Rodney
Ross, Barbara Rust, and others at the National Archives; everyone
at the Osage Nation Museum, including Lou Brock, Paula Farid,
and the former director Kathryn Red Corn; Debbie Neece at the
Bartlesville Area History Museum; Mallory Covington, Jennifer
Day, Rachel Mosman, and Debra Osborne Spindle at the
Oklahoma Historical Society; Sara Keckeisen at the Kansas
Historical Society; Rebecca Kohl at the Montana Historical
Society; Jennifer Chavez at New Mexico State University Library;
Joyce Lyons, Shirley Roberts, and Mary K. Warren at the Osage
County Historical Society Museum; Carol Taylor at the Hunt
County Historical Commission; Carol Guilliams at the Oklahoma
State Archives; Amanda Crowley at the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame
and Museum; Kera Newby at the National Cowboy and Western
Heritage Museum; and Kristina Southwell and Jacquelyn D. Reese
at the University of Oklahoma’s Western History Collections.
Several talented researchers assisted me in locating documents
in distant corners of the country: Rachel Craig, Ralph Elder,
Jessica Loudis, and Amanda Waldroupe. I can never thank enough
Susan Lee, an extraordinarily gifted journalist who was
indispensable to this project, helping me to ferret out records and
devoting hours to fact-checking.
Aaron Tomlinson took exquisite photographs of Osage County