Rich Bozzone of the Pro Fooball Researchers Association (PFRA), wrote to me and requested assistance. If any has any information pertaining to the information below, just email me and I will forward it.

Mr. Barrett

Hope you can help me. I do volunteer biographical research on professional football players. One of these players played for the famous Oorang Indians team with Jim Thorpe in the 1920's. In the 1930 Census we have him living on the Red Lake Reservation.

He played football under the name of 'Little Twig'. We believe his Anglicized name was Joe Johnson. We believe that he was born in 1886 on the White Earth Reservation in Minnesota. He attended the Carlisle school in Pennsylvania. We believe that he passed away in 1937 but have never been able to verify this.

We have found two listings from the Minnesota Death Index both in Beltrami County which we think may possibly be him. The first appears the most logical. It is for a Robert J. Johnson who died Jan. 29, 1937. The second is for a Julius Raymond Johnson passing away Feb. 5, 1937.

We would appreciate if you could check the tribe's records to see if you might have a listing for Joseph 'Joe' Johnson's (Little Twig's) passing. If you do confirm his death we would like to have an exact date of birth if your records show that.

Any information that you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance for your anticipated assistance.

Rich Bozzone, Pro Football Researchers Assn. (PFRA)