The Army's Camel Corps hires Ottoman drivers

The U.S. Army imports camels for the desert Southwest and hires Ottoman handlers to drive them. Lead driver Hadji Ali, his name marking his pilgrimage to Mecca, becomes the frontier folk hero 'Hi Jolly.'

Born Philip Tedro in Smyrna, he converted to Islam before joining the American experiment. He stayed on after the corps disbanded, mining and scouting in Arizona; a pyramid tomb topped with a copper camel, dedicated by Arizona's governor in 1935, marks his grave at Quartzsite.