Mother Solomon

Margaret Grey Eyes Solomon
A portrait of an elderly woman with short hair worn back wearing a buttoned dress with a collaret.
BornNovember 1816 (1816-11)
Owl Creek, Ohio, U.S.
DiedAugust 18, 1890(1890-08-18) (aged 73)
Resting placeWyandot Mission Church, Upper Sandusky, Ohio, U.S.
Other namesMother Solomon
OccupationNanny
Spouses
David Young
(m. 1833; d. 1851)
John Solomon
(m. 1860; d. 1876)
Children8
Signature
"Margaret, S." printed in cursive.

Margaret Grey Eyes Solomon (November 1816 – August 18, 1890), better known as Mother Solomon, was a Wyandot nanny. She was born along Owl Creek, Ohio, and her father took her to Indigenous sites as a child. After moving to the Big Spring Reservation in 1822, she learned housekeeping and English at a mission school and began attending the Wyandot Mission Church. She remained at the school as a young woman and married a classmate in 1833. Two of their children were buried near the church. In 1842, her community succumbed to the Indian Removal Act and signed a treaty to move to Kansas. Many died of illness along the journey, and in Kansas, Solomon sought to protect the Huron Indian Cemetery, as by 1860, she had buried within it her husband and six remaining children. In Kansas, oxen, pigs, and horses were stolen from her.

Margaret became homesick after marrying the sheriff John Solomon. In 1865, alongside her nephew, they relocated to the Big Spring Reservation. When John died in 1876, Margaret began babysitting children. Throughout the village, she garnered the nickname "Mother Solomon", promoted Wyandot culture, and advocated for the restoration of the run-down mission church. During its rededication in 1889, she sang "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing". Many attendees admired her stage presence. Solomon became weaker in her final years and died in 1890. Her popularity has been analyzed, and the Wyandot County Museum has since displayed her belongings.