Joseph Montezuma Self

This is Joseph Montezuma Self, my great-great grandfather, and the father of Homer Self.

Family records say that he was a strict parent but that he loved to gather all his descendants and tell them stories about his grandparents.

In one story his grandfather, Job, made all the children learn a song. The song listed relatives, so if the children ever encountered a violent Native American that Native American would think twice about attacking someone with so many grown up family members.

The song also worked if the children got lost, that way people knew who to look for to return the lost child to.