Dave Walks-As-Bear - Photo Facts

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Above: A typical Cherokee Mounted Rifleman

During the American Civil War, there were whole regiments made up entirely of American Indians that fought for the Confederacy – upwards to 20,000 of them. With the exception of perhaps “Company K, the 1st Michigan Sharpshooters” (145 Midwest American Indians) the Union had no all-Indian army units that fought in the Civil War. As a piece of Civil War historical trivia, it was the Cherokee Mounted Rifles that were the last Confederate forces to surrender at the war’s end. Therefore, this unit fired the last army shot of the Civil War. Another past truism is thus: In the actual historical unit roster, there was indeed an Indian soldier named Private David (Davey) Davis who fought as a cavalryman with Company D, of the Cherokee Mounted Rifles. In the novel Old Money this man, Davey Davis, is Ely Stone’s great grandfather.


Above: The Confederate Naval Jack	Above: The Cherokee Mounted Rifles Battle Flag

The flag on the left is generally considered as the symbol of the Confederacy or the Old South. Many folks mistakenly call it – the “Stars & Bars”. But its true name is the “Southern Cross”. In actuality, it was the Confederate Navy Jack – not an army flag. It was flown by CSN warships whenever at anchor or coming into port. On the cover of Old Money, you see the ghostly old Shenandoah flying this flag as she approaches the Big Island of Hawaii to drop off her secret cargo in the story. So, a piece of historical trivia is thus: This flag’s design was liked so well by Confederate Army generals like Stonewall Jackson, Frederickson and others, that it was adopted as their main battle flag. And since land battles were noted far more than naval battles, this flag has become the generally recognized symbol of the South. But while used by many Confederate army units it was in reality the naval jack of the Confederate States Navy. As such, it was flown by the CSS Shenandoah.

The flag on the right is the regimental battle flag of the Cherokee Mounted Rifles. This flag, minus the red stars and wording ‘Cherokee Braves’ is the original flag of the Confederacy. It is the one called the “Stars & Bars”. When the Cherokee Mounted Rifles were formed in 1861, the Cluster of five red stars in the center of the blue was added to represent the five recognized or so-called, “Civilized Indian Nations” which were aligned with the Confederacy. There were many Indians that fought in the Confederate forces, both recognized and unrecognized. But it was these two flags that were carried into battle by American Indian Confederate Cavalrymen during the Civil war. And in Old Money, it’s these flags that Ely Stone seen in his ‘Visit with the Grandfathers’ in the novel’s prologue.

Above, a commissioning pennant flown at the top mast of a CSN warship.

Actual photo of the C.S.S. Shenandoah in dry dock at Williamstown, Australia, Feb, 1865

As depicted in Old Money, the C.S.S. Shenandoah was actually in Australia in February of 1865. In the novel, the captain and crew are all named and described as they actually were according to historical record. The Confederate military was the most innovative in history at this point. They pioneered everything from submarine warfare to better cannon to aviation with observation balloons and guerrilla warfare. The latter has been demeaned in our history in regard to the Confederates. But fighting alongside their Indian comrades, they learned this form of warfare very well. And now, it is an art, practiced daily by our modern-day US special forces. But what the Southern military was best at was… military intelligence. And in fact, just as portrayed in Old Money, there really was a “Charlie the Cook”. He did secretly board the CSS Shenandoah while she was in Williamstown, Australia and subsequently leave the ship and was captured before she sailed. Historically, his capture and his whole escapade with the Confederate raider is deeply shrouded in mystery hence, his play with the Old Money story. But one thing that was easily seen was the cordiality displayed to the Confederate warship and her crew by the Australians. Like Great Britain, France and other European countries, the people there were very sympathetic to the American Confederacy. And in Old Money, Ely Stone experiences this while… ‘Visiting with the Grandfathers’.

Actual photo of LCDR James I. Waddell, CSN,
Captain of the C.S.S. Shenandoah

Painting of the C.S.S Shenendoah sailing in the Artic Ocean after leaving the warm Pacific Waters. Here, she devastated the Northern Whalers.


	In Old Money and actual history, the Shenandoah leaves Australia and meets the Hawaiian fishing ketch, Pfeil at sea. As rendered in the novel, this meeting really happened. Afterward, the Shenandoah did indeed sail to Pohmpei or Ascension Island and sink the whaler Harvest along with three others there. *Then in Old Money, she drops off the Indian, Davey Davis, along with the Confederate Marine, the Hawaiian boy and… the secret cargo on the Big Island of Hawaii before sailing north.* Historically, sometime after meeting the Pfeil, the Shenandoah sailed into Sea of Alaska and then into the Artic Ocean. There she found the bulk of the Northern United States Whaling fleet. She sank them all and thus, this lone Confederate Raider changed the way that the entire world lit its night. In less than 18 months, the CSS Shenandoah sunk a total of 36 Union merchant and commerce ships. She cost her enemy millions of dollars in badly needed supplies and ships; dramatically drove up the sea-going insurance rates and tied up its navy looking for her. At one time, the CSS Shenandoah had every ship in United States Navy hunting her. But she dodged them all and after firing the last naval gunshot of the Civil War, she sailed into England and surrendered there, unscathed, long after the war was over. As a small piece of historical flag trivia, the ensign flying from the stern of the Shenandoah on the picture above, was the last national flag of the Confederate States of America. It had the CSN Navy Jack in the upper left on a field of solid white and was affectionately known as, “Old Stainless”.

	Whalebone Scrimshaw carved by whaling seamen.

A map showing where Pohnpei or Acension Island is located. Suzanne Finney led a team of underwater archeologists here to study the whaler wrecks. She also interviewed the captain of the Harvest's grandson, a resident of the island.

Photo of Suzanne Finney, President of the Maritime Archaeology & History of the Hawaiian Islands Foundation. She holds her underwater video of the Harvest which was sunk by the CSS Shenandoah at Pohnpei or Acension Island on April 1st, 1865.

The true mystery in the novel Old Money has to do with why the whaleship Harvest was sunk by the CSS Shenandoah. The Harvest was indeed, a newly registered Sandwich Islands or Hawaiian vessel – a neutral country in the American Civil War. But she had just previously been registered as a U.S. ship and when found in the harbor, she was carrying rifles, uniforms and supplies for the Union military. She also carried the United States flag in addition to that of the Sandwich Islands. So in a nutshell, she was probably a very “covert” Union vessel. Therefore, she was fair game for the CSS Shenandoah. And hence, for the plot of Old Money, too.

Mark Twain as he appeared in 1866 when he was in Hawaii. He was a reporter for the Sacremento Union newspaper.

The monkey pod tree that he planted while he stayed in Wai'ohinu. Behind the tree and the white fence, is "The Belt Road", running through the village.

Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) did indeed spend some time in Hawaii in 1866. He was a reporter for the Sacramento Union newspaper back in California. In his writings, he often alluded to a mysterious friend of his called simply, “Brown”. Twain sent back articles about life in the Sandwich Islands or what Hawaii was called when it was an independent nation. He also planted a monkey pod tree while in Wai’ohinu. It’s notable that Samuel Clemens was, for a brief time, a 2nd lieutenant in the Confederate Army with the Missouri Cavalry. It’s perhaps just as significant that before going to Hawaii, Sam Clemens had been in Nevada working as a journalist. During the last days of the Civil War, while he was there, a very covert Confederate military intelligence operation was afoot. So, it’s per chance also remarkable… that many of the Confederate conspirators involved there, were men known to Twain.

At one period during his stay in Hawaii, Mark Twain told all of his friends that he was going alone to the Island of Maui to check it out. This is historical record and he disappeared for several weeks. During this time nobody saw or heard from him. In the Old Money story, it’s here that he arrives in Wai’ohinu in the disguise of “Brown” to try to find what his cousin, Maj. Cameron Devaroux, had left there. In actual history and Old Money, he arrives back on the island of Oahu just in time to make the journey with his consorts to the Big Island. This time he goes there as himself – Mark Twain. And it is here, at South Point on the Big Island, that Ely Stone sees him while… ‘Visiting with the Grandfathers’.


The Manago Hotel in Captain Cook, Hawaii.	The Shirakawa Motel in Wai'ohinu, Hawaii

The Manago Hotel pictured above left, is where Stan Stevens had his ‘wired’ meeting with a Columbian. It’s also where he almost bumped into Secret Service Agent Ninya Follansbee as he exited the place. Pictured on the right, is the Shirakawa Motel in Wai’ohinu. This is where Stevens stayed while waiting to speak with Ely Stone at the Banana House.


The Safeway Grocery Store in Kailua Kona, HI.	The Wal-Mart store in Kailua Kona, HI.

Above left is the Safeway store at the Crossroads Shopping Center in Kona, just off Henry Street on the Big Island. In Old Money, this store is where Stone grocery shopped. It was in another place within this same Shopping Center that he met with the two female Secret Service agents; Geri Balter and Ninya Follansbee. Stevens’ rental house is not far from here and the Safeway lot is where yet another Columbian parked his truck. The photo of Wal-Mart on the right, is next door to the Crossroads Center and this is where Stone bought his bandages after his run-in at Stevens’ rental home.


The wind farm near the old radar station at South Point, HI.	A wind-blown tree at South Point or Ka Lae, HI.

On the left is the Kamaoa Wind Farm, located not far from the old military radar base on South Point Road. When running, it delivers 15,000-MWh of power to the island electrical grid. In Old Money, Ely Stone observed these big generators. When noticing the trees of South Point, like the one on the right, it was easy to understand the power of the wind here. All of the trees on this plateau are wind-blown and look just like it.

Above and below, the Banana house rental on South Point Road.

The Banana House - a place of several scenes in the novel, Old Money.

The Banana rental house pictured above is where Stone stayed in the Kau’ District of the Big Island of Hawaii. It’s actually located at 92-2044 South Point Road, a mile and one half off from Highway 11 or ‘The Belt Road’. It’s only about three miles from the old radar station property that Stone’s tribe had acquired. It’s a place of several scenes in the novel, Old Money.

Above and below: The old military radar station at South Point, Hawaii.

The old base's main gate on South Point Road.

The photos above are of the actual old military base at South Point. Stone’s tribe had acquired the land in the first novel, The Murmurings. It was originally an air base, and then a radar missile tracking station before it was closed by the US Air Force. It was eventually traded to the Black River Band of the Pukaskwa Nation. In Old Money the lava tube runs from here all the way to the west and the steep, straight-down cliffs of South Point. It’s also in this locale… where scenes of mystical Hawaiian legend, coupled with great mischief and mayhem evolves in the novel.


The cliffs on the west side of the South Point plateau.	The Green Sand Beach on the southern end of South Point.

In the photo on the left, you are looking north, past the steep cliffs of South Point. The land in the distant background is the island proper. This whole massive plateau is flat and grassy with sharp drops like this all around it. It is at a spot from where you sit viewing the photo… between you the land mass ahead… that Stone scaled these perilous rocks in Old Money. The photo on the right is of the Green Sands Beach. The picture is taken from afar and doesn’t show it well but the sand of this beach is the color of a rich, pea green soup. In the novel, Old Money, this is the place that Mark Twain wanted to see as he and his acquaintance Follansbee, traverse South Point on horseback.

A map showing how lava tubes are formed.

Photo of an actual lava tube. The big island of Hawaii is dotted with them - both big and small.

The largest and most vertically extensive lava tubes known are on the Big Island of Hawaii. Most tubes form when fluid lava flows down the sides of volcanoes. The upper layer begins to cool, and the lava beneath continues to flow in tubular conduits beneath the surface. Due to the insulating effects of the hardened lava above, molten lava is able to travel considerable distance underground with very little cooling. In Hawaii, lava tubes have carried fluid lavas over 50 miles from their source. When the lava hardens, these tubes become supernatural-like caves, with perfectly rounded walls and ceilings. It is in a lava tube like very much this where Old Money… pays out.

Above and below: the front and back of one of the first-ever issued U.S. paper currencies during the Civil War.

The actual photos above are on display at the US Federal Reserve Bank in San Francisco. In 1864 the SouthernConfederacy had been beating the Northern Union at every turn. Lincoln was unsure how much longer the Civil War would last or even… if he could win. Thus far, the only thing that had kept his side from being defeated soundly, had been his country’s human numbers, its industrial capacity and above all… its monetary resources. But by this time, his treasury was running out of gold, the commodity needed to finance the war. California was the only place he had access to any. So, the pictures above represent some very… Old Money… indeed.


Punalu'u Black Sands Beach as seen from the main entrance where the tour buses park.	Punalu'u Black Sands Beach from the same location at the water's edge.

The photos above and below are of the Black Sands Beach at Punalu’u, the Big Island of Hawaii. It’s only about a fifteen minute drive from the Banana House. This beach is made up of rich black volcanic sand, the individualgrains of which, appearing about like sparkling onyx. It’s never very busy and almost always tranquil. The turtles pictured below, are its most frequent visitors. They swim here from thousands of miles away just to lay their eggs on this beach, as their ancestors have done for centuries. There are two species that nest here. The ‘Honu’ are the turtles that a visitor will see during the day. The ‘Honu`ea’ turtles come out of the sea at night and nest. Folks often think that the big turtles are dead when they first see them as they aren’t moving and have their eyes closed. But they’re alive – just resting after the long swim to get here to the Punalu'u Black Sands Beach. But as Old Money’s Ely Stone could tell you… Punalu’u… is a very restful place to be.


A daytime 'Honu' sea turtle at Punalu'u.	The Punalu'u Black Sands 'Turtle Nursery' at dusk.	A night photo of the 'Honu 'ea' sea turtle.