The franchise was a novelty team put together by Walter Lingo to market his Oorang (Airedale Terrier) dog kennels.

With a population well under a thousand people, LaRue remains the smallest town ever to have been the home of an NFL franchise, or any professional team in any league in the United States.

[2] In 1919 Oorang Kennel owner, Walter Lingo, met and became friends with Jim Thorpe of the Canton Bulldogs, a future Pro Football Hall of Famer who was considered the greatest athlete of his time.

[3] LaRue, Ohio, was once the site of an old Wyandot village and Lingo believed that a supernatural bond existed between the Indians and the Airedales.

Thorpe came to Lingo's aid by testifying that he once knew an Oorang Airedale that had saved the life of a 6-year-old girl, named Mabel, from being trampled by a bull.

[4] Lingo saw the idea of a franchise as a way of touring the country's leading cities for the express purpose of advertising his Airedales.

[3] In June 1922, Lingo, who also served as the team's business manager, traveled to Canton, Ohio, and purchased an NFL franchise for $100 (equivalent to $1,820 in 2023).

Lingo originally wanted the team to play out of LaRue, but that was hard to justify since the small town was missing a football field.

The issue led to the club performing almost exclusively on the road as a traveling team, where it could draw the biggest crowds and best advertise the dogs.

The nearest town with a suitable football field was Marion, Ohio, which served as the location for the Indians' "home" games.

The Oorang Indians consisted of members who were Cherokee, Mohawk, Chippewa, Blackfeet, Winnebago, Mission, Caddo, Flathead, Sac and Fox, Seneca, and Penobscot.

The team roster included such colorful names as Long Time Sleep, Dick Deer Slayer, Woodchuck Welmas, Joe Little Twig, Big Bear, and War Eagle.

[2] Walter Lingo's son Bob later recalled that the team practiced every day, depending on the workload at the dog kennel.

Bob Lingo also stated that several of the team's plays were made up on the spot, similar to the play-calling in a sandlot football game.

Pete Calac, who won several "Ohio League" titles with Thorpe and the Canton Bulldogs, was still suffering from career-threatening wounds from fighting in France during World War I.

The Indians defeated the Belmonts, 33–0, taking home $2,000 (equivalent to $36,406 in 2023)[4] in profits along with a Cherokee tackle named Chief Johnson, whom Thorpe recruited at halftime.

The team then lost their next three games, all against league opponents: the Minneapolis Marines 13–6, the Chicago Bears 33–6, and the Milwaukee Badgers 13–0.

The team did rebound to win their next two games, which were against league opponents, an upset over the Buffalo All-Americans 19–7, and a rematch with Columbus 18–6.

In addition to the exhibitions with the dogs, the Indians, including Thorpe, participated in helping the Oorang Airedales perform tricks for the crowd.

[10] The Indians players knew that Lingo's only goal was to advertise his Airedales and that winning football games wasn't important to him.

[2][10] Another reason for the team's lack of success, according to Ed Healey, a Hall of Fame tackle for the Chicago Bears, was that Thorpe was not a good coach, especially where discipline was concerned.