At age 12 Elijah Nicholas Wilson ran away from his family. Fighting off the constraints of his Mormon upbringing he found a new home with a Shoshone Indian tribe. Under their guidance, particularly of the Great Chief Washakie, he learned how to live and survive in the wild lands of the far west. When Elijah turned fourteen, to prevent reprisals against his tribe for his 'abduction, ' he returned to his white family. He then worked as a Pony Express rider, stagecoach driver, trapper, translator, hostler, Indian agent, and whatever else was required to support himself and his family. Elijah Wilson was known as 'Yagaiki' when among the Shoshones, and in his later years as Uncle Nick when entertaining young children with his adventurous exploits. The White Indian Boy is his story.

This is the true story of a pioneer boy who crossed the Great Plains by ox-team with his parents to a settlement in the Great Salt Lake basin. Unhappy with his circumstances, 11-year-old Nick Wilson ran away from home with an Indian who had befriended him. Nick spent the next two years with the Shoshone learning their language and culture and developing the skills of a hunter. He participated in buffalo hunts, fought off grizzly bears, witnessed Indian wars, and even survived being shot in the head with an arrow and left to die. Later, he became a trapper, Pony Express rider, stagecoach driver, army scout, and interpreter. He was often called to track down and negotiate peace with renegade Indians who had fled the reservation and threatened war. He found himself in danger numerous times and participated in many skirmishes with both Indians and outlaws. Growing up among the Shoshones taught him the skills he needed to survive the rough and wild west.

At age 12 Elijah Nicholas Wilson ran away from his family. Fighting off the constraints of his Mormon upbringing he found a new home with a Shoshone Indian tribe. Under their guidance, particularly of the Great Chief Washakie, he learned how to live and survive in the wild lands of the far west. When Elijah turned fourteen, to prevent reprisals against his tribe for his 'abduction, ' he returned to his white family. He then worked as a Pony Express rider, stagecoach driver, trapper, translator, hostler, Indian agent, and whatever else was required to support himself and his family. Elijah Wilson was known as 'Yagaiki' when among the Shoshones, and in his later years as Uncle Nick when entertaining young children with his adventurous exploits. The White Indian Boy is his story.

This is a true story of a pioneer boy who crossed the plains by ox-team with his parents to a settlement south of the Great Salt Lake. Pioneer life in the 1850s was extremely difficult for the pioneers, food was scarce, work was hard, and marauding Indians keep everyone on constant alert. With the promise of great adventure and a better life 11-year-old Nick Wilson ran away from home with an Indian who had befriended him. The mother of Chief Washakie, a prominent Shoshone chief, had lost her youngest son in an avalanche. She readily adopted the white boy as her own. Nick spent the next two years with the Shoshone learning their language and culture and developing the skills of a hunter. He participated in buffalo hunts, fought off grizzly bears, witness large scale Indian wars, and even survived being shot in the head with an arrow and left to die. Later he became a trapper, was one of the original Pony Express riders, worked as an overland stagecoach driver, and served as an army scout and interpreter. He was often called to track down and negotiate peace with renegade Indians who had fled the reservation and threatened war. He found himself in danger numerous times and participated in many skirmishes with both Indians and outlaws. Growing up among the Shoshones taught him the skills he needed to survive the rough and wild west.