Dennison Wheelock: Carlisle’s Great Composer

Dennison Wheelock was one of the most famous students to pass through the Carlisle Indian Industrial School. Wheelock was a promising music student at the Carlisle Indian School, and after he graduated, he became a prominent composer. While Wheelock would come to be known worldwide, his formative education and musical career occurred in Carlisle. Wheelock’s lifelong relationship with his Alma Mater is a fascinating case study of the dynamics between the Indian School and its graduates.

Dennison Wheelock was a member of the Oneida Tribe, from Green Bay, Wisconsin. He was 14 years old when he came to the Carlisle Indian Industrial School on September 30, 1885.¹ According to his student file, he was trained as a printer, and graduated in 1890, then re-enrolled for another 5-year term in 1890. However, he was discharged as a student July 6, 1892, Wheelock had been hired as an employee of the School.² A new chapter of his life had begun.

In 1892, Wheelock took a position (it is unclear what his official title was) at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School. Superintendent Pratt personally nominated Wheelock to this job, demonstrating the close relationship between the two men.³ Wheelock and Pratt would continue to work closely with one another throughout their time at the Carlisle Indian School and beyond. In an 1898 request for leave of absence, Wheelock’s position is listed as assistant clerk.⁴ This document shows that Wheelock was not only involved with music at Carlisle, but also the administration of the school in general. By 1895, he was officially filling both the role of clerk and bandmaster.⁵

During his tenure as Bandmaster at Carlisle, he would lead the school’s marching band at several important events of the era. These included: the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago, a concert in the Lenox Lyceum in New York, and concerts for important politicians in Washington D.C. These performances helped make Dennison Wheelock a nationally respected figure.⁶

Wheelock would not stay at the Indian School forever. In 1907, he left his positions at the school, and began to study Law under John R. Miller, a professor at Dickinson College.⁷ He eventually moved back to his home state of Wisconsin, where he pursued a career in law. In Volume 4, No. 8 of The Red Man, students at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School were informed that Wheelock had been admitted to the bar in the Supreme Court of Wisconsin. The article also reported that Wheelock was in Washington to represent the Oneida’s to Congress, and to the Secretary of the Interior.⁸

Wheelock’s student file indicates that even after he left Carlisle for Wisconsin, he had extensive contact with the school and its administration. In 1914, he lobbied Superintendent Lipps to enroll his sister Martha, and his son Edmund to the Carlisle Indian Industrial School.⁹ Even toward the end of the school’s existence, Wheelock continued to recommend students to the school administration. He wrote in July, 1917 of his willingness to help gather Oneida students for the school.¹⁰ Wheelock was clearly a strong supporter of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School to its very end.

Dennison Wheelock’s experience at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School was extremely positive. His time at the school led to a successful career in music and law. Wheelock’s career was one defined by working within the system which had shaped him. His story is certainly an interesting contrast to the many cases of failure within the Indian school system.