When Oren Arms Curtis passed away on March 28, 1898, the editor of the Topeka State Journal described him as “a born rover.” The notice of his passing on a farm six miles from Newkirk, Okla., noted that although nearing 69 years of age, he had been planning a wagon trip through Arkansas for the coming summer. Nevertheless, in his almost 69 years, Curtis led a uniquely interesting life.

Being raised near Ohio’s Wabash River instilled in Curtis the characteristics of a natural “river man.” In Kansas, he was drawn to Pappan’s Ferry. With the Kansas River between them, the ferry connected the towns of Topeka and Indianola. He was also drawn to Pappan’s daughter, Ellen. After their marriage, he took over the operation of the ferry and fathered a son, Charles, and a daughter, Elizabeth.

The lucrative ferry business thrust Curtis to the fore as a leader in both the frontier communities of Indianola and Topeka. For a few short years, life on the banks of the Kansas River was idyllic.

Tragically, Ellen died of black fever, which is thought to have been cholera, in April 1863. With two children in need of a mother, Curtis married Rachel Funk three months later on July 27, 1863.

Quantrill’s August 21, 1863, raid on Lawrence, Kan., inspired Curtis to raise a company of cavalry. Fortunately, Rachel was there to look after the children. Curtis’ company enrolled in the 15th Kansas Cavalry and participated in many harrowing skirmishes with Confederates on the eastern Kansas border and in western Missouri. He was dubbed Capt. Jack, and for the rest of his life that was the name that most folks recognized.

In December 1864, while on leave, Capt. Jack divorced Rachel and married Lucy Ann “Lou” Jay within the span of a few days. Their daughter, Permelia Theressa “Dolly” Curtis, was born March 24, 1865.

Capt. Jack endured a court martial over the death of a man in the custody of his troops. In spite of a conviction and a dishonorable discharge on April 27, 1865, he was released from prison after serving but one month.

References to Owen “Capt. Jack” Curtis can be gleaned here and there, but his record has been eclipsed by that of his son, Charles Curtis, Vice President of the United States in Herbert Hoover’s administration. We are left with the impression that Capt. Jack Curtis was a contemptable scoundrel who abandoned his children to follow his own ambitions. Capt. Jack’s story is anything but inglorious.

October 16, 1868, Capt. Jack returned to military service when he and his younger brother Noah responded to Kansas Governor Samuel Crawford’s call for volunteers to fill the ranks of a new state cavalry. Capt. Jack served as Quartermaster Sergeant of Company A, 19th Kansas Cavalry. The 19th participated in General Philip Sheridan’s Campaign against the southern Plains tribe during the brutal winter of 1869-69.

The 19th endured a march in snow a foot to 18 inches deep across a labyrinth of canyons with deep gulches that were nearly impassable. On a march from Camp Supply to Fort Cobb with the 7th Cavalry, the command lost 114 horses from starvation and extreme cold. Company A was the exception, making the march without losing a single horse.

The 19th was with Custer when the captives Mrs. Anna Morgan and Miss Sarah White were rescued and returned to Kansas. The campaign closed out April 18, 1869, at Fort Hays, Kan. Captain Jack and the rest of the 19th Kansas Cavalry mustered out of service to return to civilian life.

Capt. Jack was certainly one who craved adventure. The marriage to Lou ended in divorce. When his parents moved to North Topeka, Capt. Jack was able to keep his feet in two worlds. His parents were always there for him and his children. Curtis could feel confident that his children were in the best of hands when he was away.

Like many of this time, Capt. Jack found refuge in the saloons and whiskey shops, but in June 1882, he joined a temperance movement and fervently spoke of forsaking whiskey and beer, but he was not about to forsake roving. He wandered the west, hunting buffalo. He floated down the Kansas River, along the Missouri and into the Mississippi, fishing and enjoying the life of a river man.

At the age of 65, in spite of concern from his son, Congressman Charles Curtis, Capt. Jack started down the Kansas River. It was his fourth trip in a flatboat destined for New Orleans. According to the April 24, 1894, Topeka State Journal, Capt. Jack had to give it up at Kansas City and returned home to North Topeka.

Capt. Jack then moved to a farm near Newkirk, Okla. In September 1897, Capt. Jack met his son, Congressman Curtis, at the Arkansas City, Kan., depot. The congressman was on an official visit to the Kaw and Osage nations. With an affectionate reference, “Uncle” Jack said to a reporter, “I am proud of Charlie.” It was the last time he would see his son.

At noon, March 28, 1898, Capt. Jack returned to the house from a morning of cutting brush. He and his brother John were talking and laughing heartily when he suddenly grew silent and, “walking to the lounge, laid down and was dead in a moment.” He had traveled through 29 different states and nine territories throughout his time, and was proud of the fact that Capt. Jack Curtis had never been confined to a sick bed a day in his life. It was a fitting end for one who ventured through life as a “born rover” on The Way West.