Frederic Baraga

Bishop Frederic Baraga was Chief among the Lake Superior area missionaries 1797-1868). Baraga, beginning in 1830, devoted thirty- six years of his life to the Ojibwa and Ottawa, chiefly at L'Anse ...

Graham A. MacDonald

Graham A. MacDonald has worked as a historian, teacher, librarian, and park planner. He is the author of A Good Solid Comfortable Establishment: An Illustrated History of Lower Fort Garry and Where the Mountains Meet the Prairies: A H...

Short History of the North American Indians, A
Translated from the French and edited by Graham A. MacDonald

Frederic Baraga

 Edited by

Graham A. MacDonald

Originally published in 1837 in Europe in German, French, and Slovenian editions, Baraga’s Short History of the North American Indians is the personal, first-hand account of a Catholic missionary in the Great Lakes area of North America. Baraga served as a missionary and as bishop of Sault Ste. Marie and Marquette, from 1830 until his death in 1868. His significant contribution to Native American history is associated with this publication and provides invaluable insight into the nature of mid-nineteenth century central European mission initiatives to the New World. The text also includes a substantial amount of original observation about the Lake Superior frontier in the early nineteenth century, particularly the exterior side of life such as dress and customs, hunting techniques, tools, and art. This translation includes an introduction to the text that discusses Baraga’s work and places it into a historical context.

Contents:
-Editor’s Introduction: Piety, Perception, and Justice: Frederic Baraga in the New World
- Introduction
- 1.Manners and Customs of the North American Indians
- 2.Dress of the Indians
- 3.Habitation and Food of the North American Indians
- 4.Arts of the North American Indians
- 5.Hunting Practices of the North American Indians
- 6.On Hunting—Conclusion
- 7.Fisheries on the North American Indians
- 8.Marriage and Education of the Young among the North American Indians
- 9. Religion of the North American Indians
-10.On Religion—Conclusion
-11.Warfare of the North American Indians
-12.Form of Government among the North American Indians
-13.Diseases and Cures of the North American Indians
-14.Mortuary Customs of the North American Indians

Michigan and the Great Lakes