Arts
Ole Catfish and his family led quiet, unassuming lives in their home at Lac du Flambeau. They were not remarkable in any way and not the type of people whose names one would expect to find splashed across national newspapers. Yet that is exactly what happened in 1934 when Catfish’s life intersected with that of one of America’s most notorious gangsters. Historian Gary Entz has more: There are several possible birthdates for Ole Catfish, but he likely was born around 1867, which would have made him about 65 years old in 1934. He was a member of the Lac du Flambeau band of Lake Superior Chippewa and lived on a secluded allotment on the Reservation. Catfish made a living as a guide and by hunting, fishing, and trapping. He gained a small bit of local fame in 1898 when he successfully bagged a 254-pound albino stag, which he sold to the local Indian Agent. Catfish also found himself in a bit of difficulty in 1917-1918 when he got caught bringing liquor onto the Reservation. Catfish was not