Why are certain prominent and significant people written out of US History?

[JDPriestly]

102. On a different, local level, in LA, we have the fascinating

character, Charles Fletcher Lummis. Only in the area in which he lived is he known, but he was a real hero of the old West and of our city.

Charles Fletcher Lummis (1 March 1859, in Lynn, Massachusetts – 24 November 1928, in Los Angeles, California) was a United States journalist and Indian activist; he is also acclaimed as a historian, photographer, poet and librarian.

. . . .

In 1884, Lummis was working for a newspaper in Cincinnati when he was offered a job with the Los Angeles Times. At that time, Los Angeles had a population of only 12,000. Lummis decided to make the 2,200-mile journey from Cincinnati to Los Angeles on foot, taking 143 days, all the while sending weekly dispatches to the paper chronicling his trip. The trip began in September and lasted through the winter. He suffered a broken arm and the heavy snows of New Mexico, yet the trip left him enamored with the Southwest and its Spanish and Native American inhabitants. In 1892, his writings during the trip were published as a book, A Tramp Across the Continent.
Editor at the Los Angeles Times

Upon his arrival, Lummis was offered the job of the first City Editor. There was no lack of work as he covered a multitude of interesting stories from the new and growing community. Work was hard and demanding under the hard-driving pace set by publisher Harrison Otis. However, Lummis was happy until he suffered from a mild stroke that left his left side paralyzed.
New Mexico

In 1888, Lummis moved to San Mateo, New Mexico to recuperate from his paralysis. He rode about the plains holding a rifle in one good hand while shooting wild jack rabbits. Here he began a new career as a prolific freelance writer, writing on everything that was particularly special about the Southwest and Indian cultures. However, some of his remarks written about corrupt bosses committing murders in San Mateo drew threats on his life, so he moved to a new location in the Pueblo Indian village of Isleta, New Mexico on the Rio Grande.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Fletcher_Lummis

Pal of Teddy Roosevelt, bit of a womanizer but an amazing and eccentric personality. Just fascinating. He was considered to be a "booster" of early Los Angeles. Among other things, he lead the effort to build the Southwest Museum, chose the location which has an amazing view. His story is really exciting. Yet I bet you never heard of him. I wish they would make a movie about his life.

On edit, I add that Lummis was a great friend of the Indians and a good influence on Teddy Roosevelt with regard to one tribe. Lummis persuaded Teddy Roosevelt to at least give them land when he displaced them, if I remember correctly, upon the building of San Diego. (Not sure about those details.) The Southwest Museum is/was a museum dedicated to Indian history, artifacts, culture and also Southwest and South American artifacts and culture to a lesser extent.

The Southwest Museum is now being "managed" by the Autry Museum. Its future is uncertain. This is very, very unfortunate. I would like to see it remain a true museum of the American Indian on the West Coast. A real tribute to the American Indian.