The woman who married a beaver: Trade patterns and gender roles in the Ojibwa fur trade

Ethnohistory

Volumn 46, Issue 1, 1999, Pages 109-147

  White, Bruce M ^a  

^a NONE

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 0033248043     PISSN: 00141801     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: None     Document Type: Article

References (172)

1. William Jones, Ojibwa Texts, Truman Michelson, ed., Publications of the American Ethnological Society, vol. 7, part 2. (New York, 1919), 251-57. For further information on Kagige Pinasi (Forever-Bird) or John Pinesi, see Jones, Ojibwa Texts, vol. 7, part 1 (Leiden, 1917), xvii; and Henry M. Rideout, William Jones: Indian, Cowboy, American Scholar, and Anthropologist in the Field (New York, 1912), 98, 110-11. The story of the woman who married a beaver is reprinted in Thomas W. Overholt and J. Baird Callicott, Clothed-in-Fur and Other Tales: An Introduction to an Ojibwa World View (Washington, DC, 1982), 74-75.
2. William Jones, Ojibwa Texts, Truman Michelson, ed., Publications of the American Ethnological Society, vol. 7, part 2. (New York, 1919), 251-57. For further information on Kagige Pinasi (Forever-Bird) or John Pinesi, see Jones, Ojibwa Texts, vol. 7, part 1 (Leiden, 1917), xvii; and Henry M. Rideout, William Jones: Indian, Cowboy, American Scholar, and Anthropologist in the Field (New York, 1912), 98, 110-11. The story of the woman who married a beaver is reprinted in Thomas W. Overholt and J. Baird Callicott, Clothed-in-Fur and Other Tales: An Introduction to an Ojibwa World View (Washington, DC, 1982), 74-75.
3. William Jones, Ojibwa Texts, Truman Michelson, ed., Publications of the American Ethnological Society, vol. 7, part 2. (New York, 1919), 251-57. For further information on Kagige Pinasi (Forever-Bird) or John Pinesi, see Jones, Ojibwa Texts, vol. 7, part 1 (Leiden, 1917), xvii; and Henry M. Rideout, William Jones: Indian, Cowboy, American Scholar, and Anthropologist in the Field (New York, 1912), 98, 110-11. The story of the woman who married a beaver is reprinted in Thomas W. Overholt and J. Baird Callicott, Clothed-in-Fur and Other Tales: An Introduction to an Ojibwa World View (Washington, DC, 1982), 74-75.
4. William Jones, Ojibwa Texts, Truman Michelson, ed., Publications of the American Ethnological Society, vol. 7, part 2. (New York, 1919), 251-57. For further information on Kagige Pinasi (Forever-Bird) or John Pinesi, see Jones, Ojibwa Texts, vol. 7, part 1 (Leiden, 1917), xvii; and Henry M. Rideout, William Jones: Indian, Cowboy, American Scholar, and Anthropologist in the Field (New York, 1912), 98, 110-11. The story of the woman who married a beaver is reprinted in Thomas W. Overholt and J. Baird Callicott, Clothed-in-Fur and Other Tales: An Introduction to an Ojibwa World View (Washington, DC, 1982), 74-75.
5. Jean-François Lyotard wrote of what he called "popular stories." Lyotard, The Postmodern Condition: A Report on Knowledge (Minneapolis, MN, 1984), 20, 21.
6. Overholt and Callicott, Clothed-in-Fur, 26.
7. Overholt and Callicott use the stories to help explain Ojibwa worldview in ibid., 24-29.
8. Rideout, William Jones, 98, 109-11. Notes entitled "Penessi goes hunting" are found in the William Jones Papers, American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia.
9. For a discussion of these beliefs and their bearing on the fur trade, see Bruce M. White, "'Give Us a Little Milk': The Social and Cultural Meaning of Gift Giving in the Lake Superior Fur Trade," in Rendezvous: Selected Papers of the Fourth North American Fur Trade Conference, 1981, Thomas C. Buckley, ed. (St. Paul, MN, 1984), 187-88.
10. Bruce M. White, "Encounters with Spirits: Ojibwa and Dakota Theories about the French and Their Merchandise," Ethnohistory 41 (summer 1994): 376-81; B. White, " 'Give Us a Little Milk,' " 189-92.; Richard White, The Middle Ground: Indians, Empires, and Republics in the Great Lakes Region, 1650-1815 (Cambridge, 1991), 95, 112-14.
11. Bruce M. White, "Encounters with Spirits: Ojibwa and Dakota Theories about the French and Their Merchandise," Ethnohistory 41 (summer 1994): 376-81; B. White, " 'Give Us a Little Milk,' " 189-92.; Richard White, The Middle Ground: Indians, Empires, and Republics in the Great Lakes Region, 1650-1815 (Cambridge, 1991), 95, 112-14.
12. Bruce M. White, "Encounters with Spirits: Ojibwa and Dakota Theories about the French and Their Merchandise," Ethnohistory 41 (summer 1994): 376-81; B. White, " 'Give Us a Little Milk,' " 189-92.; Richard White, The Middle Ground: Indians, Empires, and Republics in the Great Lakes Region, 1650-1815 (Cambridge, 1991), 95, 112-14.
13. On Native American origin tales, see Stith Thompson, The Folktale (1946; reprint, Berkeley, CA, and Los Angeles, 1977), 303.
14. Harold A. Innis, The Fur Trade in Canada: An Introduction to Canadian Economic History (1930; revised ed., Toronto, 1956), 40.
15. Arthur J. Ray and Donald B. Freeman, "Give Us Good Measure": An Economic Analysis of Relations Between the Indians and the Hudson's Bay Company (Toronto, 1978), xv. See also Arthur J. Ray, The Indians in the Fur Trade: Their Role as Hunters, Trappers, and Middlemen in the Lands Southwest of Hudson Bay, 1660-1870 (Toronto, 1974), which also lacks a detailed discussion of the role of gender.
16. Arthur J. Ray and Donald B. Freeman, "Give Us Good Measure": An Economic Analysis of Relations Between the Indians and the Hudson's Bay Company (Toronto, 1978), xv. See also Arthur J. Ray, The Indians in the Fur Trade: Their Role as Hunters, Trappers, and Middlemen in the Lands Southwest of Hudson Bay, 1660-1870 (Toronto, 1974), which also lacks a detailed discussion of the role of gender.
17. R. White, Middle Ground, 94, 105.
18. Ibid., 74, 130. R. White's primary discussion of women in the book concerns sexual and marriage relations between Frenchmen and Indian women, 60-75.
19. Jennifer Brown, Strangers in Blood: Fur Trade Company Families in Indian Country (Vancouver, BC, 1980).
20. Sylvia Van Kirk, "Many Tender Ties": Women in Fur-Trade Society, 1670-1870 (1980; first American edition, Norman, OK, 1983), 5.
21. Ibid., 75-77, 80. See also Sylvia Van Kirk, "Toward a Feminist Perspective in Native History," in Papers of the Eighteenth Algonquian Conference, William Cowan, ed. (Ottawa, ON, 1987), 377-89.
22. Ibid., 75-77, 80. See also Sylvia Van Kirk, "Toward a Feminist Perspective in Native History," in Papers of the Eighteenth Algonquian Conference, William Cowan, ed. (Ottawa, ON, 1987), 377-89.
23. Jacqueline Peterson, "The People in Between: Indian-White Marriage and the Genesis of a Métis Society and Culture in the Great Lakes Region, 1680-1830" (Ph.d. diss., University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, 1981), 2. An important chapter of Peterson's dissertation, from the point of view of trade patterns, was published as "Women Dreaming: The Religiopsychology of Indian-White Marriages and the Rise of a Mètis Culture," in Western Women: Their Land, Their Lives, Lillian Schlissel, Vicki L. Ruiz, and Janice Monk, eds. (Albuquerque, NM, 1988), 49-68.
24. Jacqueline Peterson, "The People in Between: Indian-White Marriage and the Genesis of a Métis Society and Culture in the Great Lakes Region, 1680-1830" (Ph.d. diss., University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, 1981), 2. An important chapter of Peterson's dissertation, from the point of view of trade patterns, was published as "Women Dreaming: The Religiopsychology of Indian-White Marriages and the Rise of a Mètis Culture," in Western Women: Their Land, Their Lives, Lillian Schlissel, Vicki L. Ruiz, and Janice Monk, eds. (Albuquerque, NM, 1988), 49-68.
25. For a discussion of the varying themes covered in the study of gender among Native American groups, see Patricia Albers, "From Illusion to Illumination: Anthropological Studies of American Indian Women," in Gender and Anthropology: Critical Reviews for Research and Teaching, Sandra Morgen, ed. (Washington, DC, 1989), 132-48.
26. The stories in Ruth Landes's book refer to Ojibwa people going to war against the Sioux or Dakota, suggesting this was a part of people's lives at the time, though Landes acknowledged that war between the two groups had not existed in at least fifty years. Landes, The Ojibwa Woman (1938; reprint ed., New York, 1971), 4, 17, 132, 133, 141, 143, 149, 162, 163, 171. Maggie Wilson (see vii) was of Crée descent but spoke Ojibwa, had married an Ojibwa man, and had lived all her life among the Ojibwa.
27. Ibid., 131, 137. On the range of roles available to women, see 135-71.
28. Ibid., 134. Landes noted, however, that "today when rice and berries and maple sugar are commanding some white attention, the women also are learning to function as dealers."
29. Eleanor Leacock, "Women's Status in Egalitarian Society: Implications for Social Evolution," Current Anthropology 19 (June 1978): 249-52, 254, 255. Another useful critique of Landes's work appears in Sally Cole, "Women's Stories and Boasian Texts: The Ojibwa Ethnography of Ruth Landes and Maggie Wilson," Anthropologica 37 (1995): 3-25, especially 13, 17, 21. Harold Hickerson, who largely ignored gender in his influential work on the Ojibwa, appears to have agreed with the theory that the fur trade devalued women's roles. In one of his last published works, a study of "fur trade colonialism," he argued that among the Huron, the fur trade inevitably led to a decline in women's roles and importance. He suggested that men naturally assumed the major role in dealing with traders. Hickerson, "Fur Trade Colonialism and the North American Indians," Journal of Ethnic Studies 1 (summer 1973): 15-44.
30. Eleanor Leacock, "Women's Status in Egalitarian Society: Implications for Social Evolution," Current Anthropology 19 (June 1978): 249-52, 254, 255. Another useful critique of Landes's work appears in Sally Cole, "Women's Stories and Boasian Texts: The Ojibwa Ethnography of Ruth Landes and Maggie Wilson," Anthropologica 37 (1995): 3-25, especially 13, 17, 21. Harold Hickerson, who largely ignored gender in his influential work on the Ojibwa, appears to have agreed with the theory that the fur trade devalued women's roles. In one of his last published works, a study of "fur trade colonialism," he argued that among the Huron, the fur trade inevitably led to a decline in women's roles and importance. He suggested that men naturally assumed the major role in dealing with traders. Hickerson, "Fur Trade Colonialism and the North American Indians," Journal of Ethnic Studies 1 (summer 1973): 15-44.
31. Eleanor Leacock, "Women's Status in Egalitarian Society: Implications for Social Evolution," Current Anthropology 19 (June 1978): 249-52, 254, 255. Another useful critique of Landes's work appears in Sally Cole, "Women's Stories and Boasian Texts: The Ojibwa Ethnography of Ruth Landes and Maggie Wilson," Anthropologica 37 (1995): 3-25, especially 13, 17, 21. Harold Hickerson, who largely ignored gender in his influential work on the Ojibwa, appears to have agreed with the theory that the fur trade devalued women's roles. In one of his last published works, a study of "fur trade colonialism," he argued that among the Huron, the fur trade inevitably led to a decline in women's roles and importance. He suggested that men naturally assumed the major role in dealing with traders. Hickerson, "Fur Trade Colonialism and the North American Indians," Journal of Ethnic Studies 1 (summer 1973): 15-44.
32. Carol Devens, Countering Colonization: Native American Women and Great Lakes Missions, 1630-1900 (Berkeley, CA, 1992), 13, 14, 15-16, 17, 18.
33. Priscilla K. Buffalohead, "Farmers, Warriors, Traders: A Fresh Look at Ojibway Women," Minnesota History 48 (summer 1983): 237. One nineteenth-century example is Peter Grant, "The Sauteux Indians about 1904," in Les Bourgeois de la Compagnie du Nord Ouest, Louis F. R. Masson, ed. (1890; reprint ed., New York, 1960), 2: 321. Grant stated that Ojibwa women, "for all their work and devotion, are regarded by the men little better than slaves to their will, or mere beasts of burden for their conveniency."
34. Priscilla K. Buffalohead, "Farmers, Warriors, Traders: A Fresh Look at Ojibway Women," Minnesota History 48 (summer 1983): 237. One nineteenth-century example is Peter Grant, "The Sauteux Indians about 1904," in Les Bourgeois de la Compagnie du Nord Ouest, Louis F. R. Masson, ed. (1890; reprint ed., New York, 1960), 2: 321. Grant stated that Ojibwa women, "for all their work and devotion, are regarded by the men little better than slaves to their will, or mere beasts of burden for their conveniency."
35. Thomas Vennum Jr., Wild Rice and the Ojibway People (St. Paul, MN, 1988), 108, 109. The translation is from R. G. Thwaites, ed., "A Wisconsin Fur-Trader's Journal, 1804-5," Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin 19 (1910): 197.
36. Thomas Vennum Jr., Wild Rice and the Ojibway People (St. Paul, MN, 1988), 108, 109. The translation is from R. G. Thwaites, ed., "A Wisconsin Fur-Trader's Journal, 1804-5," Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin 19 (1910): 197.
37. Vennum, Wild Rice, 108, 109. It should also be noted, in addition, that François Victoire Malhiot in his original journal used the term "gens" to refer to L'Outarde's followers, a word that could be translated as "people" or even "band." Even this translation, however, may imply a more important role for men in ricing than is warranted. See Malhiot journal, 15 (10 September 1804), McGill University Libraries, Rare Books and Special Collections.
38. Vennum, Wild Rice, 108, 109. It should also be noted, in addition, that François Victoire Malhiot in his original journal used the term "gens" to refer to L'Outarde's followers, a word that could be translated as "people" or even "band." Even this translation, however, may imply a more important role for men in ricing than is warranted. See Malhiot journal, 15 (10 September 1804), McGill University Libraries, Rare Books and Special Collections.
39. William Fenton, "The Training of Historical Ethnologists in America," American Anthropologist 54 (3): 333, 335.
40. Ibid., 333. R. White, at the beginning of The Middle Ground, wrote that "the technique of using ethnologies of present-day or nineteenth-century Indian groups to interpret Indian societies of the past" had a "bias toward continuity" that he tried to avoid. R. White, Middle Ground, xiv. Skepticism toward continuity in the analysis of Native American history is sometimes allied with the application of globalizing theories, as in Carol I. Mason, "Indians, Maple Sugaring, and the Spread of Market Economies," in The Woodland Tradition in the Western Great Lakes: Papers Presented to El0den Johnson (Minneapolis, MN, 1990), 37-43.
41. Ibid., 333. R. White, at the beginning of The Middle Ground, wrote that "the technique of using ethnologies of present-day or nineteenth-century Indian groups to interpret Indian societies of the past" had a "bias toward continuity" that he tried to avoid. R. White, Middle Ground, xiv. Skepticism toward continuity in the analysis of Native American history is sometimes allied with the application of globalizing theories, as in Carol I. Mason, "Indians, Maple Sugaring, and the Spread of Market Economies," in The Woodland Tradition in the Western Great Lakes: Papers Presented to El0den Johnson (Minneapolis, MN, 1990), 37-43.
42. Ibid., 333. R. White, at the beginning of The Middle Ground, wrote that "the technique of using ethnologies of present-day or nineteenth-century Indian groups to interpret Indian societies of the past" had a "bias toward continuity" that he tried to avoid. R. White, Middle Ground, xiv. Skepticism toward continuity in the analysis of Native American history is sometimes allied with the application of globalizing theories, as in Carol I. Mason, "Indians, Maple Sugaring, and the Spread of Market Economies," in The Woodland Tradition in the Western Great Lakes: Papers Presented to El0den Johnson (Minneapolis, MN, 1990), 37-43.
43. Even scholars who argue for radical change in Native American cultures due to contact with Europeans often make use of later ethnographic works as evidence for their understanding of aboriginal culture. See, for example, Calvin Martin, Keepers of the Game: Indian-Animal Relationships and the fur Trade (Berkeley, CA 1978), 72, a work that relies heavily on the twentieth-century ethnography of A. Irving Hallowell.
44. Quotations, with modernized orthography and paragraph breaks added, are from Pierre Radisson, Voyages of Pierre Esprit Radisson (Boston, 1885), 199-200. Grace Lee Nute convincingly dates these events to 1659-60. See Nute, Caesars of the Wilderness: Médard Chouart, Sieur des Groseilliers and Pierre Esprit Radisson, 1618-1710 (1943; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1978), 58, 62. The term destinated is a borrowing by Radisson of the French verb destiner, meaning "to intend something for someone or for some use," though in this context, "present" may be a better translation. Such borrowings from French were typical of Radisson's narrative.
45. Quotations, with modernized orthography and paragraph breaks added, are from Pierre Radisson, Voyages of Pierre Esprit Radisson (Boston, 1885), 199-200. Grace Lee Nute convincingly dates these events to 1659-60. See Nute, Caesars of the Wilderness: Médard Chouart, Sieur des Groseilliers and Pierre Esprit Radisson, 1618-1710 (1943; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1978), 58, 62. The term destinated is a borrowing by Radisson of the French verb destiner, meaning "to intend something for someone or for some use," though in this context, "present" may be a better translation. Such borrowings from French were typical of Radisson's narrative.
46. On Ojibwa facial adornment in the nineteenth century, see Kohl, KitchiGami: Life Among the Lake Superior Ojibwa (1860; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1985), 18.
47. Among Eastern groups, kettles clearly had an important symbolism in the feast of the dead, which may explain Radisson's reference here. See Laurier Turgeon, "The Tale of the Kettle: Odyssey of an Intercultural Object," Ethnohistory 44 (winter): 11. Harold Hickerson gives an analysis of the Algonquian feast of the dead, with occasional reference to the roles of men and women, in Hickerson, "The Feast of the Dead among the Seventeenth-Century Algonkians of the Upper Great Lakes," American Anthropologist 62. (1960): 90. The uses of kettles in various activities among the Ojibwa are described in Vennum, Wild Rice, 118-19; Alexander Henry, the elder, Travels and Adventures in Canada and the Indian Territories (1809; reprint ed., New York, 1976), 149.
48. Among Eastern groups, kettles clearly had an important symbolism in the feast of the dead, which may explain Radisson's reference here. See Laurier Turgeon, "The Tale of the Kettle: Odyssey of an Intercultural Object," Ethnohistory 44 (winter): 11. Harold Hickerson gives an analysis of the Algonquian feast of the dead, with occasional reference to the roles of men and women, in Hickerson, "The Feast of the Dead among the Seventeenth-Century Algonkians of the Upper Great Lakes," American Anthropologist 62. (1960): 90. The uses of kettles in various activities among the Ojibwa are described in Vennum, Wild Rice, 118-19; Alexander Henry, the elder, Travels and Adventures in Canada and the Indian Territories (1809; reprint ed., New York, 1976), 149.
49. Among Eastern groups, kettles clearly had an important symbolism in the feast of the dead, which may explain Radisson's reference here. See Laurier Turgeon, "The Tale of the Kettle: Odyssey of an Intercultural Object," Ethnohistory 44 (winter): 11. Harold Hickerson gives an analysis of the Algonquian feast of the dead, with occasional reference to the roles of men and women, in Hickerson, "The Feast of the Dead among the Seventeenth-Century Algonkians of the Upper Great Lakes," American Anthropologist 62. (1960): 90. The uses of kettles in various activities among the Ojibwa are described in Vennum, Wild Rice, 118-19; Alexander Henry, the elder, Travels and Adventures in Canada and the Indian Territories (1809; reprint ed., New York, 1976), 149.
50. Among Eastern groups, kettles clearly had an important symbolism in the feast of the dead, which may explain Radisson's reference here. See Laurier Turgeon, "The Tale of the Kettle: Odyssey of an Intercultural Object," Ethnohistory 44 (winter): 11. Harold Hickerson gives an analysis of the Algonquian feast of the dead, with occasional reference to the roles of men and women, in Hickerson, "The Feast of the Dead among the Seventeenth-Century Algonkians of the Upper Great Lakes," American Anthropologist 62. (1960): 90. The uses of kettles in various activities among the Ojibwa are described in Vennum, Wild Rice, 118-19; Alexander Henry, the elder, Travels and Adventures in Canada and the Indian Territories (1809; reprint ed., New York, 1976), 149.
51. Buffalohead, "Farmers, Warriors, Traders," 238. Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 125, noted that there was a similar division of labor in the manufacture of cradleboards.
52. Buffalohead, "Farmers, Warriors, Traders," 238. Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 125, noted that there was a similar division of labor in the manufacture of cradleboards.
53. Ivan Illich, in an illuminating definition, wrote in Gender (New York and Toronto, 1982), 99, that "gender not only tells who is who, but it also defines who is when, where, and with which tools and words; it divides space, time, and technique." The gendered nature of material culture is of special interest to some archaeologists. For a discussion that focuses in particular on Dakota women's use of awls and other tools of native and European manufacture, see Janet D. Spector, What This Awl Means: feminist Archaeology at a Wahpeton Dakota Village (St. Paul, MN, 1993), including 30-39. See also Spector, "Male/Female Task Differentiation among the Hidatsa: Toward the Development of an Archeological Approach to the Study of Gender," in The Hidden Half: Studies of Plains Indian Women, Patricia Albers and Beatrice Medicine, eds. (Lanham, MD, and London, 1983), 77-99.
54. Ivan Illich, in an illuminating definition, wrote in Gender (New York and Toronto, 1982), 99, that "gender not only tells who is who, but it also defines who is when, where, and with which tools and words; it divides space, time, and technique." The gendered nature of material culture is of special interest to some archaeologists. For a discussion that focuses in particular on Dakota women's use of awls and other tools of native and European manufacture, see Janet D. Spector, What This Awl Means: feminist Archaeology at a Wahpeton Dakota Village (St. Paul, MN, 1993), including 30-39. See also Spector, "Male/Female Task Differentiation among the Hidatsa: Toward the Development of an Archeological Approach to the Study of Gender," in The Hidden Half: Studies of Plains Indian Women, Patricia Albers and Beatrice Medicine, eds. (Lanham, MD, and London, 1983), 77-99.
55. Ivan Illich, in an illuminating definition, wrote in Gender (New York and Toronto, 1982), 99, that "gender not only tells who is who, but it also defines who is when, where, and with which tools and words; it divides space, time, and technique." The gendered nature of material culture is of special interest to some archaeologists. For a discussion that focuses in particular on Dakota women's use of awls and other tools of native and European manufacture, see Janet D. Spector, What This Awl Means: feminist Archaeology at a Wahpeton Dakota Village (St. Paul, MN, 1993), including 30-39. See also Spector, "Male/Female Task Differentiation among the Hidatsa: Toward the Development of an Archeological Approach to the Study of Gender," in The Hidden Half: Studies of Plains Indian Women, Patricia Albers and Beatrice Medicine, eds. (Lanham, MD, and London, 1983), 77-99.
56. Frances Densmore, Chippewa Customs (192.9; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1979), 74.
57. Joseph N. Nicollet, The Journals of Joseph N. Nicollet: A Scientist on the Mississippi Headwaters, Martha Coleman Bray, ed. (St. Paul, MN, 1970), 181-82.
58. It should be noted, however, that each item on the list would clearly be useful for other activities aside from preparing furs for trade. In fact, preparation of furs for use as clothing probably involved more scraping than preparing furs for trade, especially once traders no longer put a premium on beaver pelts that had been worn as beaver robes. See M. Inez Hilger, Chippewa Child Life (1951; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1992), 129-33; Densmore, Chippewa Customs, 31, 163-65; Clayton, "The American Fur Company: The Final Years" (Ph.D. diss., Cornell University, 1964), 96, 101, 108, 109; Ray, Give Us Good Measure, 159.
59. It should be noted, however, that each item on the list would clearly be useful for other activities aside from preparing furs for trade. In fact, preparation of furs for use as clothing probably involved more scraping than preparing furs for trade, especially once traders no longer put a premium on beaver pelts that had been worn as beaver robes. See M. Inez Hilger, Chippewa Child Life (1951; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1992), 129-33; Densmore, Chippewa Customs, 31, 163-65; Clayton, "The American Fur Company: The Final Years" (Ph.D. diss., Cornell University, 1964), 96, 101, 108, 109; Ray, Give Us Good Measure, 159.
60. It should be noted, however, that each item on the list would clearly be useful for other activities aside from preparing furs for trade. In fact, preparation of furs for use as clothing probably involved more scraping than preparing furs for trade, especially once traders no longer put a premium on beaver pelts that had been worn as beaver robes. See M. Inez Hilger, Chippewa Child Life (1951; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1992), 129-33; Densmore, Chippewa Customs, 31, 163-65; Clayton, "The American Fur Company: The Final Years" (Ph.D. diss., Cornell University, 1964), 96, 101, 108, 109; Ray, Give Us Good Measure, 159.
61. It should be noted, however, that each item on the list would clearly be useful for other activities aside from preparing furs for trade. In fact, preparation of furs for use as clothing probably involved more scraping than preparing furs for trade, especially once traders no longer put a premium on beaver pelts that had been worn as beaver robes. See M. Inez Hilger, Chippewa Child Life (1951; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1992), 129-33; Densmore, Chippewa Customs, 31, 163-65; Clayton, "The American Fur Company: The Final Years" (Ph.D. diss., Cornell University, 1964), 96, 101, 108, 109; Ray, Give Us Good Measure, 159.
62. The argument here is in favor of a desire for and an interest in European merchandise, not necessarily a complete dependence upon it. For a longer discussion of the multiple nature of this interest in merchandise, see B. White, "Encounters with Spirits," 376-81. For one trader's account of Ojibwa interest in merchandise, see Henry, Travels and Adventures, 196. For a discussion of "dependency" in relation to Great Lakes Indian groups, see R. White, Middle Ground, 482-86.
63. The argument here is in favor of a desire for and an interest in European merchandise, not necessarily a complete dependence upon it. For a longer discussion of the multiple nature of this interest in merchandise, see B. White, "Encounters with Spirits," 376-81. For one trader's account of Ojibwa interest in merchandise, see Henry, Travels and Adventures, 196. For a discussion of "dependency" in relation to Great Lakes Indian groups, see R. White, Middle Ground, 482-86.
64. The argument here is in favor of a desire for and an interest in European merchandise, not necessarily a complete dependence upon it. For a longer discussion of the multiple nature of this interest in merchandise, see B. White, "Encounters with Spirits," 376-81. For one trader's account of Ojibwa interest in merchandise, see Henry, Travels and Adventures, 196. For a discussion of "dependency" in relation to Great Lakes Indian groups, see R. White, Middle Ground, 482-86.
65. For accounts of expeditions to Montreal, see Nicolas Perrot's account in Indian Tribes of the Upper Mississippi Valley and Region of the Great Lakes, Emma H. Blair, ed. (Cleveland, OH, 1911), 1: 175, 210-20. In an earlier period, around 1609, Algonquin men and women from the upper Ottawa River, perhaps related to Great Lakes Algonquin peoples, did travel together to trade with the French in Montreal. See Bruce G. Trigger, The Children of Aetaentsic: A History of the Huron People to 1660 (1976; reprint ed., Montreal, 1987), 249. See also a nineteenth-century account of a seventeenth-century Ojibwa husband and wife traveling east to discover the French, cited in B. White "Encounters with Spirits," 373.
66. For accounts of expeditions to Montreal, see Nicolas Perrot's account in Indian Tribes of the Upper Mississippi Valley and Region of the Great Lakes, Emma H. Blair, ed. (Cleveland, OH, 1911), 1: 175, 210-20. In an earlier period, around 1609, Algonquin men and women from the upper Ottawa River, perhaps related to Great Lakes Algonquin peoples, did travel together to trade with the French in Montreal. See Bruce G. Trigger, The Children of Aetaentsic: A History of the Huron People to 1660 (1976; reprint ed., Montreal, 1987), 249. See also a nineteenth-century account of a seventeenth-century Ojibwa husband and wife traveling east to discover the French, cited in B. White "Encounters with Spirits," 373.
67. For accounts of expeditions to Montreal, see Nicolas Perrot's account in Indian Tribes of the Upper Mississippi Valley and Region of the Great Lakes, Emma H. Blair, ed. (Cleveland, OH, 1911), 1: 175, 210-20. In an earlier period, around 1609, Algonquin men and women from the upper Ottawa River, perhaps related to Great Lakes Algonquin peoples, did travel together to trade with the French in Montreal. See Bruce G. Trigger, The Children of Aetaentsic: A History of the Huron People to 1660 (1976; reprint ed., Montreal, 1987), 249. See also a nineteenth-century account of a seventeenth-century Ojibwa husband and wife traveling east to discover the French, cited in B. White "Encounters with Spirits," 373.
68. Bruce M. White, "A Skilled Game of Exchange: Ojibway Fur Trade Protocol," Minnesota History 50: 229-40.
69. Ibid., 231-34.
70. On the concept of spheres of exchange, see Frederick Barth, The Role of the Entrepreneur in Social Change in Northern Norway (Bergen, Norway, 1963), 10; Paul Bohannan and George Dalton, eds., Markets in Africa ([Evanston IL], 1962), 3.
71. On the concept of spheres of exchange, see Frederick Barth, The Role of the Entrepreneur in Social Change in Northern Norway (Bergen, Norway, 1963), 10; Paul Bohannan and George Dalton, eds., Markets in Africa ([Evanston IL], 1962), 3.
72. B. White, " 'Give Us a Little Milk,' " 191-92.
73. B. White, "A Skilled Game of Exchange," 235.
74. Ojibwa women's names often, though not always, have the suffix -ikwe at the end, which is the Ojibwa word for woman. See John D. Nichols and Earl Nyholm, A Concise Dictionary of Minnesota Ojibwe (Minneapolis, MN, and London, 1995), 64. English or French translations of such names may not always have included this portion of the name. On Ojibwa naming practices, see Hilger, Chippewa Child Life, 35-39.
75. Ojibwa women's names often, though not always, have the suffix -ikwe at the end, which is the Ojibwa word for woman. See John D. Nichols and Earl Nyholm, A Concise Dictionary of Minnesota Ojibwe (Minneapolis, MN, and London, 1995), 64. English or French translations of such names may not always have included this portion of the name. On Ojibwa naming practices, see Hilger, Chippewa Child Life, 35-39.
76. On the generosity of Ojibwa leaders, see Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 66.
77. The Journal of Alexander Henry the Younger, 1799-1814, Barry M. Gough, ed., (Toronto, 1988), 1: 26, 53. These entries correspond to 48, 111, in the original journal transcript in Public Archives of Canada, Ottawa, ON.
78. Traders mentioned credit books or ledgers in their narrative journals, but none have been found for this period. Even credit books, however, do not make clear the role of the hunter's family in choosing the goods received on credit. For an analysis of a credit book from a later period, one kept using pictographic symbols, see George Fulford, "The Pictographic Account Book of an Ojibwa Fur Trader," Papers of the Twenty-third Algonquian Conference, (Ottawa, ON, 1992), 190-117.
79. Illich, Gender, 9-11; Lionel Robbins, An Essay on the Nature and Significance of Economic Science (1931; reprint ed., London, 1952), 94-99.
80. Illich, Gender, 9-11; Lionel Robbins, An Essay on the Nature and Significance of Economic Science (1931; reprint ed., London, 1952), 94-99.
81. On Ojibwa attitudes toward generosity, see Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 66.
82. For examples of women notifying the trader of available furs and other items, see Michel Curot's journal, 8 (22 September 1803), 19 (13 November 1803).
83. Curot journal, 10 (13 October 1803), (14 October 1803), 13 (24 October 1803), original in Masson Collection, Public Archives of Canada. A garbled translation of this narrative was published as "A Wisconsin Fur-Trader's Journal, 1803-4," Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin 20 (1911): 396-471.
84. Curot journal, 10 (13 October 1803), (14 October 1803), 13 (24 October 1803), original in Masson Collection, Public Archives of Canada. A garbled translation of this narrative was published as "A Wisconsin Fur-Trader's Journal, 1803-4," Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin 20 (1911): 396-471.
85. Some examples of direct trade of furs by women in Curot's journal include 23 (2 December 1803), 32 (9 February 1804).
86. Ibid., 3 (17 and 18 August 1803), 6 (12 September 1803), 9 (4 and 5 October 1803), 13 (24 October 1803), 18 (10 November 1803), 21 (22, and 23 November 1803), 23 (2 December 1803), 28 (17 December 1803), 29 (December 23 1803), 32 (9 February 1804), 33 (20 February 1804), 41 (18 March 1804), 47 (15 and 16 April 1804).
87. Henry, Travels and Adventures, 243-44.
88. There are many examples in trade literature of food gifts to initiate the trading year. See B. White, " 'Give Us a Little Milk,' " 187, 193.
89. As quoted earlier, Landes did acknowledge that women learned how to trade when their food was in demand outside their communities. Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 134.
90. Curot journal, 3 (17 August 1803). The estimate of the value of these goods is based on values found in accounts kept by Malhiot, originals in Rare Books and Special Collections, McGill University Libraries.
91. Curot did some trading and collecting furs during the period when he was camped on the St. Croix River. Curot journal, 46 (7 April 1804), 47 (15 April 1804), 50 (8-10 May 1804). See also 5 (5 September 1803), in which it is noted that David can go nowhere because of a lack of gum for his canoe. On wadab, see Nichols and Nyholm, Concise Dictionary, 113; Densmore, Chippewa Customs, 150.
92. Curot did some trading and collecting furs during the period when he was camped on the St. Croix River. Curot journal, 46 (7 April 1804), 47 (15 April 1804), 50 (8-10 May 1804). See also 5 (5 September 1803), in which it is noted that David can go nowhere because of a lack of gum for his canoe. On wadab, see Nichols and Nyholm, Concise Dictionary, 113; Densmore, Chippewa Customs, 150.
93. Curot did some trading and collecting furs during the period when he was camped on the St. Croix River. Curot journal, 46 (7 April 1804), 47 (15 April 1804), 50 (8-10 May 1804). See also 5 (5 September 1803), in which it is noted that David can go nowhere because of a lack of gum for his canoe. On wadab, see Nichols and Nyholm, Concise Dictionary, 113; Densmore, Chippewa Customs, 150.
94. Curot journal, 47 (15 April 1804).
95. Figures on trade transactions were compiled from the Curot journal by the author.
96. John Tanner, A Narrative of the Captivity and Adventures of John Tanner (1830, reprint ed., New York, 1975), 64, 69, 70, 75, 78, 101-2.
97. Harold Hickerson, ed., "Journal of Charles Jean Baptiste Chaboillez," Ethnohistory 6 (1959): 275, 299, 374.
98. Laura Peers, The Ojibwa of Western Canada (St. Paul, MN, 1994), 56-57. For other examples of powerful Ottawa woman involved in trading, see David Lavendar, The Fist in the Wilderness (1964; reprint ed., Albuquerque, NM, 1979), 264-65.
99. Laura Peers, The Ojibwa of Western Canada (St. Paul, MN, 1994), 56-57. For other examples of powerful Ottawa woman involved in trading, see David Lavendar, The Fist in the Wilderness (1964; reprint ed., Albuquerque, NM, 1979), 264-65.
100. Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 162-63, 169, 173, 176, 177. Men also may have occasionally performed duties assigned to women, in the absence of their wives. See Tanner, Narrative, 56.
101. Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 162-63, 169, 173, 176, 177. Men also may have occasionally performed duties assigned to women, in the absence of their wives. See Tanner, Narrative, 56.
102. Tanner, Narrative, 36, 37, 39, 40. Tanner demonstrates Netnokwa's ability as a trader in the transaction through which she obtained him from his original captors. On her dreams used to help her sons in hunting, see 52, 72.
103. Gwen Morris, "Gifted Woman Light Around You: Ojibwa Women and Their Stories" (Ph.d. diss., University of Minnesota, 1992), 50-58.
104. Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 20; Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 126-28.
105. Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 20; Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 126-28.
106. Such visions or dreams were not usually discussed casually. See Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 203.
107. Landes Ojibwa Woman, 156-62, 165; Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 125, 126, 128.
108. Landes Ojibwa Woman, 156-62, 165; Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 125, 126, 128.
109. Blair, Indian Tribes 1: 277. On Ojibwa-Dakota intermarriage in the region of the St. Croix River, see William Warren, History of the Ojibway People (1885; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1984), 164.
110. Blair, Indian Tribes 1: 277. On Ojibwa-Dakota intermarriage in the region of the St. Croix River, see William Warren, History of the Ojibway People (1885; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1984), 164.
111. Author's translation from Pierre Margry, Découvertes et etablissements des français dans l'ouest et dans le sud de l'Amerique septentrionale (1879-88; reprint ed., New York, 1974), 6: 32.
112. For descriptions of marriage customs, see Densmore, Chippewa Customs, 72-73; Hilger, Chippewa Child Life, 158-60; Grant, "The Sauteux Indians," 320.
113. For descriptions of marriage customs, see Densmore, Chippewa Customs, 72-73; Hilger, Chippewa Child Life, 158-60; Grant, "The Sauteux Indians," 320.
114. For descriptions of marriage customs, see Densmore, Chippewa Customs, 72-73; Hilger, Chippewa Child Life, 158-60; Grant, "The Sauteux Indians," 320.
115. Peterson, "The People in Between," 71, 88.
116. Radisson, Voyages, 199.
117. Marriage as a means of preserving or gaining power was, of course, a long tradition among European nobility.
118. Benjamin G. Armstrong, Early Life among the Indians: Reminiscences from the Life of Benjamin G. Armstrong (Ashland, OR, 1892), 101-2; Peterson, "The People in Between," 89.
119. Benjamin G. Armstrong, Early Life among the Indians: Reminiscences from the Life of Benjamin G. Armstrong (Ashland, OR, 1892), 101-2; Peterson, "The People in Between," 89.
120. It is sometimes unclear whether the extensive influence of the Ojibwa leader made the trader successful, or whether traders backed with large capital helped increase the renown of Ojibwa leaders. This is an area that needs further research.
121. For a discussion of oratory and other leadership qualities, see James G. E. Smith, Leadership among the Southwestern Ojibwa (Ottawa, ON, 1973), 17.
122. Malhiot journal, 6 (5 August 1804), 27 (4 February 1805); 27 (4 February 1805); George Nelson journal, 16 (7, 8, and 14 November 1803-4), original in Metropolitan Toronto Public Library; Warren, History of the Ojibway People, 48, 192, 318, 325, 372-77; Bruce M. White, The Fur Trade in Minnesota: An Introductory Guide to Manuscript Sources (St. Paul, MN, 1977), 38, 45, 375. Even more distant Indian-trader kinship was still useful. According to Warren, 302., trader Michel Cadot, at Lac du Flambeau in the 1780s, derived benefits from the intercession of his wife's uncle. Warren does not give the name of this man, but it may be Keeshkemun.
123. Malhiot journal, 6 (5 August 1804), 27 (4 February 1805); 27 (4 February 1805); George Nelson journal, 16 (7, 8, and 14 November 1803-4), original in Metropolitan Toronto Public Library; Warren, History of the Ojibway People, 48, 192, 318, 325, 372-77; Bruce M. White, The Fur Trade in Minnesota: An Introductory Guide to Manuscript Sources (St. Paul, MN, 1977), 38, 45, 375. Even more distant Indian-trader kinship was still useful. According to Warren, 302., trader Michel Cadot, at Lac du Flambeau in the 1780s, derived benefits from the intercession of his wife's uncle. Warren does not give the name of this man, but it may be Keeshkemun.
124. Malhiot journal, 6 (5 August 1804), 27 (4 February 1805); 27 (4 February 1805); George Nelson journal, 16 (7, 8, and 14 November 1803-4), original in Metropolitan Toronto Public Library; Warren, History of the Ojibway People, 48, 192, 318, 325, 372-77; Bruce M. White, The Fur Trade in Minnesota: An Introductory Guide to Manuscript Sources (St. Paul, MN, 1977), 38, 45, 375. Even more distant Indian-trader kinship was still useful. According to Warren, 302., trader Michel Cadot, at Lac du Flambeau in the 1780s, derived benefits from the intercession of his wife's uncle. Warren does not give the name of this man, but it may be Keeshkemun.
125. Malhiot journal, 6 (5 August 1804), 27 (4 February 1805); 27 (4 February 1805); George Nelson journal, 16 (7, 8, and 14 November 1803-4), original in Metropolitan Toronto Public Library; Warren, History of the Ojibway People, 48, 192, 318, 325, 372-77; Bruce M. White, The Fur Trade in Minnesota: An Introductory Guide to Manuscript Sources (St. Paul, MN, 1977), 38, 45, 375. Even more distant Indian-trader kinship was still useful. According to Warren, 302., trader Michel Cadot, at Lac du Flambeau in the 1780s, derived benefits from the intercession of his wife's uncle. Warren does not give the name of this man, but it may be Keeshkemun.
126. B. White, Fur Trade in Minnesota, 41; Lawrence Taliaferro journal, 8 (9 October 1817): 92, Minnesota Historical Society; Thomas L. McKenney and James Hall, The Indian Tribes of North America, Frederick Webb Hodge and David I. Bushnell Jr., 2: 316-19 (Edinburgh, 1934); Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 147-48; Henry R. Schoolcraft, Personal Memoirs of a Residence of Thirty Years with the Indian Tribes on the American Frontiers (Philadelphia: 1851), 293. Information on Charlotte, sometimes listed as Charlotte Kattawabide, after her father, is found in Montreal Protestant church registers, compiled in MG19, A2, series 4, Public Archives of Canada, Ottawa, ON. Charlotte died on 9 July 1850 at the age of 75. See also the Ermatinger family history in MG25, G38, Public Archives of Canada.
127. B. White, Fur Trade in Minnesota, 41; Lawrence Taliaferro journal, 8 (9 October 1817): 92, Minnesota Historical Society; Thomas L. McKenney and James Hall, The Indian Tribes of North America, Frederick Webb Hodge and David I. Bushnell Jr., 2: 316-19 (Edinburgh, 1934); Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 147-48; Henry R. Schoolcraft, Personal Memoirs of a Residence of Thirty Years with the Indian Tribes on the American Frontiers (Philadelphia: 1851), 293. Information on Charlotte, sometimes listed as Charlotte Kattawabide, after her father, is found in Montreal Protestant church registers, compiled in MG19, A2, series 4, Public Archives of Canada, Ottawa, ON. Charlotte died on 9 July 1850 at the age of 75. See also the Ermatinger family history in MG25, G38, Public Archives of Canada.
128. B. White, Fur Trade in Minnesota, 41; Lawrence Taliaferro journal, 8 (9 October 1817): 92, Minnesota Historical Society; Thomas L. McKenney and James Hall, The Indian Tribes of North America, Frederick Webb Hodge and David I. Bushnell Jr., 2: 316-19 (Edinburgh, 1934); Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 147-48; Henry R. Schoolcraft, Personal Memoirs of a Residence of Thirty Years with the Indian Tribes on the American Frontiers (Philadelphia: 1851), 293. Information on Charlotte, sometimes listed as Charlotte Kattawabide, after her father, is found in Montreal Protestant church registers, compiled in MG19, A2, series 4, Public Archives of Canada, Ottawa, ON. Charlotte died on 9 July 1850 at the age of 75. See also the Ermatinger family history in MG25, G38, Public Archives of Canada.
129. B. White, Fur Trade in Minnesota, 41; Lawrence Taliaferro journal, 8 (9 October 1817): 92, Minnesota Historical Society; Thomas L. McKenney and James Hall, The Indian Tribes of North America, Frederick Webb Hodge and David I. Bushnell Jr., 2: 316-19 (Edinburgh, 1934); Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 147-48; Henry R. Schoolcraft, Personal Memoirs of a Residence of Thirty Years with the Indian Tribes on the American Frontiers (Philadelphia: 1851), 293. Information on Charlotte, sometimes listed as Charlotte Kattawabide, after her father, is found in Montreal Protestant church registers, compiled in MG19, A2, series 4, Public Archives of Canada, Ottawa, ON. Charlotte died on 9 July 1850 at the age of 75. See also the Ermatinger family history in MG25, G38, Public Archives of Canada.
130. B. White, Fur Trade in Minnesota, 41; Lawrence Taliaferro journal, 8 (9 October 1817): 92, Minnesota Historical Society; Thomas L. McKenney and James Hall, The Indian Tribes of North America, Frederick Webb Hodge and David I. Bushnell Jr., 2: 316-19 (Edinburgh, 1934); Kohl, Kitchi-Gami, 147-48; Henry R. Schoolcraft, Personal Memoirs of a Residence of Thirty Years with the Indian Tribes on the American Frontiers (Philadelphia: 1851), 293. Information on Charlotte, sometimes listed as Charlotte Kattawabide, after her father, is found in Montreal Protestant church registers, compiled in MG19, A2, series 4, Public Archives of Canada, Ottawa, ON. Charlotte died on 9 July 1850 at the age of 75. See also the Ermatinger family history in MG25, G38, Public Archives of Canada.
131. For examples, see Malhiot journal, 32 (12 April 1805), 33 (26 April 1805), 34 (18 May 1805); Curot journal, 2 (14 August 1804), 16 (4 November 1804), 17 (6 November 1804); Nelson journal, 25 (13 March 1804).
132. For examples, see Malhiot journal, 32 (12 April 1805), 33 (26 April 1805), 34 (18 May 1805); Curot journal, 2 (14 August 1804), 16 (4 November 1804), 17 (6 November 1804); Nelson journal, 25 (13 March 1804).
133. For examples, see Malhiot journal, 32 (12 April 1805), 33 (26 April 1805), 34 (18 May 1805); Curot journal, 2 (14 August 1804), 16 (4 November 1804), 17 (6 November 1804); Nelson journal, 25 (13 March 1804).
134. Brown, Strangers in Blood, 81.
135. On Sayer's wife making sugar, see Curot journal, 39 (8 March 1804); John Sayer journal, erroneously printed as that of Thomas Connor in Charles M. Gates, ed., Five Fur Traders of the Northwest (1933; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1965), 270 (1 March 1805); Nelson journal, 25. See also Douglas A. Birk, ed., John Sayer's Journal, 1804-5 (Minneapolis, MN, 1989), 49.
136. On Sayer's wife making sugar, see Curot journal, 39 (8 March 1804); John Sayer journal, erroneously printed as that of Thomas Connor in Charles M. Gates, ed., Five Fur Traders of the Northwest (1933; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1965), 270 (1 March 1805); Nelson journal, 25. See also Douglas A. Birk, ed., John Sayer's Journal, 1804-5 (Minneapolis, MN, 1989), 49.
137. On Sayer's wife making sugar, see Curot journal, 39 (8 March 1804); John Sayer journal, erroneously printed as that of Thomas Connor in Charles M. Gates, ed., Five Fur Traders of the Northwest (1933; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1965), 270 (1 March 1805); Nelson journal, 25. See also Douglas A. Birk, ed., John Sayer's Journal, 1804-5 (Minneapolis, MN, 1989), 49.
138. On Sayer's wife making sugar, see Curot journal, 39 (8 March 1804); John Sayer journal, erroneously printed as that of Thomas Connor in Charles M. Gates, ed., Five Fur Traders of the Northwest (1933; reprint ed., St. Paul, MN, 1965), 270 (1 March 1805); Nelson journal, 25. See also Douglas A. Birk, ed., John Sayer's Journal, 1804-5 (Minneapolis, MN, 1989), 49.
139. Nelson journal, 25.
140. Curot journal, 51 (15 May 1804).
141. W. Kaye Lamb, ed., The Journals and Letters of Sir Alexander Mackenzie (Cambridge, 1970), 495.
142. Nelson journal, 3.
143. Ibid., 1.
144. Ibid., 7, 8; George Nelson reminiscences, 36, also in the Metropolitan Toronto Public Library.
145. Ibid., 7, 8; George Nelson reminiscences, 36, also in the Metropolitan Toronto Public Library.
146. Nelson journal, 33-34; Nelson reminiscences, 36.
147. Nelson journal, 33-34; Nelson reminiscences, 36.
148. Curot journal, 2 (14 August 1804), 21 (22 November 1803).
149. W. Stewart Wallace, Documents Relating to the North West Company (Toronto, 1934), 210-11.
150. The Ojibwa name Oshahgushkodanaqua, spelled in various ways, was translated by the woman's son-in-law, Henry R. Schoolcraft, as "Woman of the Green Valley." See Schoolcraft, Personal Memoirs of a Residence of Thirty Years with the Indian Tribes on the American Frontiers (Philadelphia, 1851), 431, 662, 676. It may be that the name is a garbled misspelling of some combination of the Ojibwe words for green (ozhawaawashko-, the lexical prefix for green or blue, occurring on verbs and on some nouns and participles), prairie or plain (mashkode) and woman (ikwe). See Nichols and Nyholm, Concise Dictionary, xii, 64, 78, 111.
151. The Ojibwa name Oshahgushkodanaqua, spelled in various ways, was translated by the woman's son-in-law, Henry R. Schoolcraft, as "Woman of the Green Valley." See Schoolcraft, Personal Memoirs of a Residence of Thirty Years with the Indian Tribes on the American Frontiers (Philadelphia, 1851), 431, 662, 676. It may be that the name is a garbled misspelling of some combination of the Ojibwe words for green (ozhawaawashko-, the lexical prefix for green or blue, occurring on verbs and on some nouns and participles), prairie or plain (mashkode) and woman (ikwe). See Nichols and Nyholm, Concise Dictionary, xii, 64, 78, 111.
152. Charles H. Chapman, "The Historic Johnston Family of the 'Soo'," Michigan Pioneer and Historical Collections 32: (1903) 305-43. On 341, in letter six of a series of autobiographical letters written by John Johnston, there is reference to Mamongeseda's daughter as being "a Mrs. Jayer." However, an examination of the original letter (filed with the first letter of the series, 14 January 1828) in the Henry R. Schoolcraft Papers, Library of Congress, Washington, DC, suggests that the name should really be read as Sayer. On John Sayer, see Douglas A. Birk, "John Sayer and the Fond du Lac Trade: The North West Company in Minnesota and Wisconsin," Buckley, ed., "Rendezvous," 51-61. For the name of Sayer's wife, see Thomas L. McKenney, Sketches of a Tour to the Lakes (1827; reprint ed., Minneapolis, MN, 1959), 485.
153. Charles H. Chapman, "The Historic Johnston Family of the 'Soo'," Michigan Pioneer and Historical Collections 32: (1903) 305-43. On 341, in letter six of a series of autobiographical letters written by John Johnston, there is reference to Mamongeseda's daughter as being "a Mrs. Jayer." However, an examination of the original letter (filed with the first letter of the series, 14 January 1828) in the Henry R. Schoolcraft Papers, Library of Congress, Washington, DC, suggests that the name should really be read as Sayer. On John Sayer, see Douglas A. Birk, "John Sayer and the Fond du Lac Trade: The North West Company in Minnesota and Wisconsin," Buckley, ed., "Rendezvous," 51-61. For the name of Sayer's wife, see Thomas L. McKenney, Sketches of a Tour to the Lakes (1827; reprint ed., Minneapolis, MN, 1959), 485.
154. Charles H. Chapman, "The Historic Johnston Family of the 'Soo'," Michigan Pioneer and Historical Collections 32: (1903) 305-43. On 341, in letter six of a series of autobiographical letters written by John Johnston, there is reference to Mamongeseda's daughter as being "a Mrs. Jayer." However, an examination of the original letter (filed with the first letter of the series, 14 January 1828) in the Henry R. Schoolcraft Papers, Library of Congress, Washington, DC, suggests that the name should really be read as Sayer. On John Sayer, see Douglas A. Birk, "John Sayer and the Fond du Lac Trade: The North West Company in Minnesota and Wisconsin," Buckley, ed., "Rendezvous," 51-61. For the name of Sayer's wife, see Thomas L. McKenney, Sketches of a Tour to the Lakes (1827; reprint ed., Minneapolis, MN, 1959), 485.
155. Anna Jameson, Winter Studies and Summer Rambles in Canada (London, 1838), 3: 211-14.
156. Jameson, Winter Studies, 210-11; Chapman, "The Historic Johnston Family," 308, 313.
157. Jameson, Winter Studies, 210-11; Chapman, "The Historic Johnston Family," 308, 313.
158. Jameson, Winter Studies, 217.
159. Chapman, "The Historic Johnston Family," 308, 313; Philip Mason, ed., The Literary Voyager or Muzzeniegun ([Lansing, MI], 1963), xxv, xxiii.
160. Chapman, "The Historic Johnston Family," 308, 313; Philip Mason, ed., The Literary Voyager or Muzzeniegun ([Lansing, MI], 1963), xxv, xxiii.
161. On the cultural nature of dreams experienced during vision quests, see Radin, "Some Aspects of Puberty Fasting Among the Ojibwa," Museum Bulletin 2: 69-78; "Ojibwa and Ottawa Puberty Dreams," Essays in Anthropology Presented to Alfred Kroeber (Berkeley, CA, 1936), 233-64. Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 9-10.
162. On the cultural nature of dreams experienced during vision quests, see Radin, "Some Aspects of Puberty Fasting Among the Ojibwa," Museum Bulletin 2: 69-78; "Ojibwa and Ottawa Puberty Dreams," Essays in Anthropology Presented to Alfred Kroeber (Berkeley, CA, 1936), 233-64. Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 9-10.
163. On the cultural nature of dreams experienced during vision quests, see Radin, "Some Aspects of Puberty Fasting Among the Ojibwa," Museum Bulletin 2: 69-78; "Ojibwa and Ottawa Puberty Dreams," Essays in Anthropology Presented to Alfred Kroeber (Berkeley, CA, 1936), 233-64. Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 9-10.
164. Jones, Ojibwa Texts, vol. 7, part 2, 207-41; Henry R. Schoolcraft, Schoolcraft's Indian Legends (1956; reprint ed., Westport, CT, 1974), 87-91.
165. Jones, Ojibwa Texts, vol. 7, part 2, 207-41; Henry R. Schoolcraft, Schoolcraft's Indian Legends (1956; reprint ed., Westport, CT, 1974), 87-91.
166. Jones, Ojibwa Texts, vol. 7, part 2, 256.
167. The word used by Kigage Pinasi for "mystic cloth" was manidowagin, sometimes translated as "spirit skin," a term sometimes used to refer to the woolen cloth brought initially by French traders. Similarly, his word for beads was manidōminasa or "spirit seeds." See Jones, Ojibwa Texts, vol. 7, part 2, 256. Both terms reflect the early wonder of the Ojibwa at European technology. For a discussion of these words and the beliefs behind them, see B. White, "Encounters with Spirits," 397 fn. 11, 398 fn. 12. Landes's informant described a woman with strong ability as a "sucking doctor" in similar fashion: "She dressed in red, green, blue, yellow, black, and wore beads of all colors and different kind of ribbons in her hair, and a feather sticking on her head, and earrings, and beaded moccasins, and her face was painted." See Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 158.
168. The word used by Kigage Pinasi for "mystic cloth" was manidowagin, sometimes translated as "spirit skin," a term sometimes used to refer to the woolen cloth brought initially by French traders. Similarly, his word for beads was manidōminasa or "spirit seeds." See Jones, Ojibwa Texts, vol. 7, part 2, 256. Both terms reflect the early wonder of the Ojibwa at European technology. For a discussion of these words and the beliefs behind them, see B. White, "Encounters with Spirits," 397 fn. 11, 398 fn. 12. Landes's informant described a woman with strong ability as a "sucking doctor" in similar fashion: "She dressed in red, green, blue, yellow, black, and wore beads of all colors and different kind of ribbons in her hair, and a feather sticking on her head, and earrings, and beaded moccasins, and her face was painted." See Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 158.
169. The word used by Kigage Pinasi for "mystic cloth" was manidowagin, sometimes translated as "spirit skin," a term sometimes used to refer to the woolen cloth brought initially by French traders. Similarly, his word for beads was manidōminasa or "spirit seeds." See Jones, Ojibwa Texts, vol. 7, part 2, 256. Both terms reflect the early wonder of the Ojibwa at European technology. For a discussion of these words and the beliefs behind them, see B. White, "Encounters with Spirits," 397 fn. 11, 398 fn. 12. Landes's informant described a woman with strong ability as a "sucking doctor" in similar fashion: "She dressed in red, green, blue, yellow, black, and wore beads of all colors and different kind of ribbons in her hair, and a feather sticking on her head, and earrings, and beaded moccasins, and her face was painted." See Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 158.
170. As Ruth Landes noted in writing of women who tested the flexible boundaries of Ojibwa gender roles: "It cannot be assumed that one woman's motivations are similar to those of other women," Landes, Ojibwa Woman, 148. On 140, Landes also noted, "The important factor is that a girl grows up seeing these unconventional possibilities about her, and sees them easily accepted."
171. Maude Kegg, growing up around 1900 near Mille Lacs Lake, Minnesota, stated: "That's the way they made their living, selling berries and buying lard, flour, sugar, whatever they needed." See Kegg, Portage Lake: Memories of an Ojibwa Childhood (Edmonton, AB, 1991), 47. Early examples of Indian people selling game, wild rice, and maple sugar in early Minnesota communities are described in Marjorie Kreidberg, Food on the Frontier: Minnesota Cooking from 1850-1900 (St. Paul, MN, 1975), 15-16, 18, 199.
172. Maude Kegg, growing up around 1900 near Mille Lacs Lake, Minnesota, stated: "That's the way they made their living, selling berries and buying lard, flour, sugar, whatever they needed." See Kegg, Portage Lake: Memories of an Ojibwa Childhood (Edmonton, AB, 1991), 47. Early examples of Indian people selling game, wild rice, and maple sugar in early Minnesota communities are described in Marjorie Kreidberg, Food on the Frontier: Minnesota Cooking from 1850-1900 (St. Paul, MN, 1975), 15-16, 18, 199.