Archie Lawyer, in his sleep, peacefully passed into the spirit world at the family ranch located on Nine Pipe Ridge north of Grangeville early Sunday morning Sept. 30, 2012. Archie was a World War II U.S. Navy veteran. It is said that those who were of the World War II generation were the greatest generation. This was true of Archie and his wife, Christine, of 75 years. All the struggles throughout their long lives were always peacefully settled.
Archie was born Dec. 14, 1914, to Corbett and Lillian Allman Lawyer on the family ranch on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Archie's family moved when he was a young age to Lapwai, where he grew up receiving acclaim at sports, swimming and horsemanship. Following graduation from Lapwai High School, he then graduated from Lewiston Normal School, now Lewis-Clark State College. Archie proceeded on to obtain his bachelor degree in education from the University of Oregon.
In the Depression and pre-war years, Archie was a teacher, coach, referee, a professor at a community college, and worked in the timber industry of the Klamath Tribe. Archie's Navy years were spent at the Chicago Navy Pier, where he was an instructor and he was able to have the company of his wife, Christine; then at Columbus Navy Station; Iceland; and Exeter, England.
Following the war, he returned to work in the timber industry of the Klamath Tribe. Archie did this for five years, when he moved he and his family to Grangeville to farm and ranch on some family land. After several years of farming and ranching, Archie returned to the timber industry taking a job with the U.S. Forest Service where he retired after 30 years of civil service.
Archie was an avid reader, reading most of his free time and enjoying mystery, detective and adventure stories. His favorite was Erle Stanley Gardner. When he lost his sight he again listened most of his time to books on tape. When James went shopping, asking him if he wanted anything, Archie would reply "... if you can find Erle Stanley Gardner tapes, get them." Then when the blind library service changed over to flash disk from tape, the first books downloaded were all the Erle Stanley Gardner books. Archie enjoyed hunting and fishing, both in the Klamath Country in Oregon and the Nez Perce Country of Idaho.
Archie was a proud member of the Nez Perce Tribe. In retirement, Archie took up leathercraft. Archie's contribution to this American Indian Art is mentioned in the book, "A Song to the Creator." Archie was knowledgeable about the traditional life ways of the Nez Perce especially of traditional food. Archie's ancestry was in the top hierarchy of the fur trade, which included the ownership of trade forts. These trade forts were staffed by Mexican servants, especially cooks. The result is that Mexican food came down from that time as his family favorite, but back to the Nez Perce foods. Archie would write articles for local newspapers about these foods, such as his article in the Free Press on camas. Archie loved wild mushrooms. When he picked some, he would share the extras with friends in Grangeville. One said to me once that Archie seemingly was the only one who could find a certain kind and that would make people cry when they received a share.
Archie was preceded in death by his wife, Christine; four sons, Archie Jr., Corbett, William, and Robert; his sisters, Mylie Lawyer and Margaret Rogers; sister-in-law, Rachel Aripa; and three brothers-in-law, Eugene Wilson, Alec Wilson, and Angus Wilson; and a great-granddaughter, Nancy Johanek.
Archie is survived by his son, James, at the family ranch; his grandson, Scott Lawyer Johanek of Wallula, Wash.; his great-grandson, Archie, living in Texas; his daughter-in-law, Alice, and two granddaughters, Shawn and Christine; his great-grandson, Kyle, and a great-granddaughter, Sadie, all of Gold Beach, Ore.
Arrangements are by Trenary Funeral Home in Kooskia. Kooskia was renamed from Stuart, after James Stuart, but could not keep the name as a town already existed in Idaho with that name. One story Archie told from his youth was that when James Stuart came to Lapwai, he stayed with Archie's parents. Because there was some law that didn't allow private families to rent out rooms, James Stuart would slip 50 cents to my dad for his stay.
The memorial service for Archie will be conducted at 11 a.m. Friday at the First Indian Presbyterian Church in East Kamiah, officiated by Mary Jane Miles. Burial with military veterans honors will follow at the Second Church Lawyer family burial grounds in Kamiah. Dinner will then follow at the Nakissa Hall in East Kamiah.
Special thanks to Mary Ann Hicks for the several years as the caregiver to Archie and Christine.