Lucullus Virgil McWhorter

Who was Lucullus Virgil McWhorter?

Lucullus Virgil McWhorter was an American farmer and frontiersman who documented the historical Native American tribes in West Virginia and the modern-day Plateau Indians in Washington state.

His studies were anthropological, documenting the culture and history of the tribes. He became politically active as he represented the Plateau Indians against mistreatment by the United States federal government and published accounts to make this mistreatment known to the public. He was considered an amateur in his day, but today his anthropology studies are deemed important enough to have a permanent home in Washington State University's special collections department. Current scholars consider his work as "significant" in his field, and helping to preserve the cultural heritage of the Native American tribes of the Columbia Basin. His papers are an "essential and valued resource", and the collection of his papers is "widely and intensively used." After more than 60 years, the work he did remains "extremely valuable for outreach and teaching purpose."

His work earned praise from Professor Alanna Kathleen Brown in her review of a new biography of him, Voice of the Old Wolf: Lucullus Virgil McWhorter and the Nez Perce Indians, in the Universe Magazine, Spring 1997. She called him an "amazingly interesting, courageous, dedicated, and insightful man." As to his accomplishments, she said: