Category: Munsee

Ephraim Williams’ house in Stockbridge, built 1750-1760. Photo courtesy of Carole Owens.

Dateline Stockbridge: I came to the village 50 years ago. In a half-century I learned its old ways and watched them change. Norman Rockwell images made Stockbridge America’s hometown. The intervening 50 years made Stockbridge a microcosm of America—an echo of old America coping with change.

Sheffield was founded in 1733. Shortly thereafter, the notion of a mission in the westernmost part of Hampshire County was discussed. (Before 1761, Berkshire County was part of Hampshire County).

From 1734, there were negotiations with the Stockbridge-Munsee band of the Mohican Nation about land ownership and embracing Christianity. In March 1736, the General Court in Boston delineated six square miles (23,040 acres) and identified it as “Indian Town.” The land was north of Sheffield along the Housatonic River. A charter was drawn up in 1737. Finally, in 1739, the village was incorporated and named Stockbridge.

That year, John Stoddard surveyed the township. The population was six “English” families and fewer than 50 members of the Stockbridge-Munsee band. Stoddard laid out 32 meadow lots along the river for the Stockbridge-Munsee band. The lots were between two and ten acres each.

The six white families, called “the English,” were John Sergeant, Timothy Woodbridge, his brother Joseph, Ephraim Williams, Ephraim Brown, and Josiah Jones. Each was granted 400 acres totaling 2,400 acres, or 10 percent of the 23,040 acres. The Stocbridge-Munsee retained 90 percent.

Stockbridge was divided between The Hill and The Plain. (Today they are called Prospect Hill Road and Main Street). Generally, the English lived on The Hill; they believed the air was better the higher one lived and good air was the secret to good health.

Generally, the Stockbridge-Munsee band lived on the…

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The parts of an ongoing effort to renovate Corry Area Middle-High School are well-oiled and moving swiftly.

Mike Munsee, director of buildings and grounds, took some school board members and staff on a tour of the renovation areas on Monday.

Redoing a couple of the bathrooms at Corry Area Middle-High School is part of a larger renovation plan. Above is a boy’s bathroom has gotten new tiling and lights.

Chloe Forbes/The Corry Journal

The over $20 million renovation is scheduled to be completed in June of 2024. Munsee explained that the renovation has been broken up into phases as part of a strategy to minimize disruption to the school’s traffic flow and everyday operations.

Phase three is about 80% complete, according to Munsee, who estimates the crew will move into the next phase at the beginning of April.

Up to this point, a section of the school has had HVAC duct work and hot water piping installed, along with new ceiling grid and tiles, LED lighting and ceilings lowered to fit the new overhead created by the systems.

Two of the bathrooms are also being renovated as part of this phase.

The same scope of work is completed in each phase, just in different sectioned-off areas of the school. 

Munsee said this upcoming phase may prove to be the most challenging as it will cut off traffic flow through the library.

Board members Jason Halfast, left, Justin Amy and Jon Maker look up at the duct work being completed during the renovation at the middle-high school.

Chloe Forbes/The Corry Journal

Board member Bill Nichols asked why this work couldn’t be completed in the summer when it would be less disruptive to the flow of traffic. Munsee said…

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The Wendigo is a horrifying creature of Algonquian Native American legends said to devour human flesh to survive a harsh winter. But are they only part of Native American mythology or are there really cannibalistic humanoids waiting in forests for their next victim?

The Algonquians are some of the most extensive and numerous of the Native American groups in North America , and they once lived all along the Atlantic Coast and the Great Lakes Region. However, Wendigo-like creatures are also found in the legends of other Native American tribes, including the neighbors of the Algonquians, the Iroquois. Amongst these peoples, a creature known as the Stonecoat bears some similarities to the Wendigo. But, what is a Wendigo?

Have you ever asked yourself “what is a Wendigo,” this is a depiction of one. ( creepypasta.wikia.com)

A Wendigo’s Insatiable Hunger

Roughly translated, the word Wendigo (also spelt Windigo and Windego) means “the evil spirit that devours mankind.” Another translation, said to be made by a German explorer around 1860, equates the word Wendigo with “ cannibal.” Wendigoag are said to have an insatiable hunger for human flesh – no matter how much flesh they eat, they remain hungry.

This hunger is reflected in their appearance, and accordingly the Wendigo are described as being extremely thin. Despite their gaunt physiques, Wendigo are described by some as giants, measuring at about 4.5 m (14.8 ft) in height.

Whilst there are slight variations as to the physical description of this creature amongst the different Algonquian peoples, it is generally agreed that Wendigo have glowing eyes, long yellowed fangs and long tongues. Most Wendigo are also said to have sallow and yellowish skin, though others…

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Other News

Sep 26, 2022 – 3:08pm

Austin Hornbostel

ahornbostel@ljworld.com

photo by: University of Kansas

Andi Weber

The Haskell Foundation, a nonprofit with the mission of supporting Haskell Indian Nations University, has hired Haskell alum Andi Weber as its new executive director.

Weber, a member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians of Wisconsin and a descendant of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin, joins the foundation from the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes in Fort Hall, Idaho, where she managed more than 20 community and economic development projects as a senior planner. She’ll replace outgoing executive director Aaron Hove, who has guided the foundation since September of 2018.

“For the past almost four years, it has been a privilege to work with the foundation’s Board of Trustees in fulfilling the foundation’s mission of supporting Haskell and its students,” Hove said in a news release from the foundation. “I am very pleased that Andi will be taking the reins for the foundation. With her experience, commitment and energy, I am confident that the foundation will move forward in a very positive and meaningful direction.”

Weber will oversee a $20 million National Science Foundation grant to fund an Indigenous science hub project at Haskell, the largest National Science Foundation award ever granted to a tribal college or university. She’ll also guide the Haskell Foundation’s strategic plans, which include fundraising, alumni relations and capital campaigns.

Money raised by the Haskell Foundation goes toward assisting with the university’s unmet needs beyond the funding appropriated by the Bureau of Indian Education.

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President Shannon Holsey delivers the State of the Tribes Address, February 22, 2022.

Shannon Holsey, president of the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians, will deliver the opening address at the Wisconsin Leadership Summit presented by UW Credit Union, which falls on October 10, Indigenous Peoples Day.

“Opening our family reunion Summit on Indigenous Peoples Day and on Indigenous land, it’s important that an Indigenous voice welcome our guests and set the tone. I can’t think of a more important  voice than President Holsey’s,” said Henry Sanders, CEO of 365 Media Foundation, which hosts the Wisconsin Leadership Summit. “It’s going to be two incredible days of sharing wisdom and building community and I’m grateful to President Holsey for helping us kick it off.”

Shannon Holsey. Photo supplied.

The Wisconsin Leadership Summit returns in-person October 10-11 at the Wisconsin Concourse Hotel and Governor’s Club for the first time since 2019. The event will feature more than 20 panel discussions on topics ranging from education to executive leadership to health care, along with the Wisconsin Leadership Community Choice Awards, a youth summit, entertainment by Kinfolk and more.

Holsey delivered the State of the Tribes Address to the Wisconsin Legislature in 2017 and 2022.

Holsey was elected as president in October 2015, following eight years as a member of the Tribal Council. She is the youngest to ever lead the Stockbridge-Munsee, which has about 1,470 enrolled members and is the largest employer in Shawano County. She grew up on the Stockbridge-Munsee reservation in Bowler, Wisconsin. Holsey also serves as vice president of the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council (GLITC), which represents 11 member tribes with a land base of about one million acres spanning 45 counties. She is appointed as the Wisconsin…

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Michael L. “Mike” Mohawk, Sr., Age 75 of the Stockbridge Munsee Tribe, passed away on Wednesday, August 24, 2022, in Wausau, surrounded by his loving family.

Michael was welcomed to this earth on September 16, 1946, in Red Springs, a son of the late Milford “Riley” Mohawk and Elizabeth “Liza” Welch. On November 6, 1965, he was united in marriage to the former Judy Colbert in Red Springs. Mike was an avid builder as well as a lover of both softball and bowling. He passed down his love for fishing and hunting to his beloved family. Mike was employed in the construction field for over 35 years, thirty of which he spent at Boldt Construction. Following his retirement from Boldt, he worked for the Stockbridge-Munsee Tribe for ten years at the P & E. Mike was a strong, stoic man who cared deeply for his family. He spent most of his time outdoors and generally had his family along.

Mike is survived by his loving wife, Judy, of Bowler; his children, Doreen Mohawk of Green Bay, Michael Mohawk Jr of Bowler, Marlene (Jerry) Poquette of Green Bay, Matthew (Jacquie) Mohawk of Shawano, Sharlene (Bob) White of Bowler, and Joleen “Tully” Kroening of Bowler; his grandchildren, Alyssa Martin, Andrew Mohawk, Shalee, Ashton, and Robert Guesnon, Travis, Jaz, and Minocqwae Mohawk, Hunter and Willow White, Kyla, Tia, and Tully Kroening, Christopher, Nicholas, Trevor, MaKayla, and Brooklyn Pocquette, and Mishan Dickenson; and his great-grandchildren, Brooks, Omar, Niasia, Myra, and Jaxton. He is further survived by his sisters, Ellen Schreiber, and Mabel Miller, both of Bowler, and Donna (Mike) Bucholtz of Gresham, his brothers, George Mohawk Sr. of Gresham, and Milford (Louann) Mohawk Jr. of Bowler; his faithful companion Mingo; and numerous nieces, nephews, relatives, and…

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The Miami language belongs to the Central Algonquian group of the large Algonquian language family. It is most closely related to Illinois, Shawnee, Sauk, Fox, Kickapoo, Menominee, Potawatomi, Ojibwa, Cree, Montegnais, and Naskapi.

The Miami war chief Little Turtle (1742-1812) was born along the Eel River northeast of Fort Wayne, Indiana. His father was Acquenacke, a Miami chief, and his mother was Mahican.

There is little specific information about Little Turtle’s early years, and he emerges in the English language histories as one of the figures in the Revolutionary War. While Little Turtle was often an advocate for peace with the invading Europeans, during the Revolutionary War he fought on the side of the British. In his book Encyclopedia of American Indian Wars, 1492-1890, Jerry Keenan writes:

“Like many Indian leaders, Little Turtle believed there was more to be feared from the American colonists than the British and, accordingly threw his support behind the latter during the Revolution.”

In his biographical sketch of Little Turtle in the Encyclopedia of North American Indians, Stewart Rafert writes:

“Regarded as perhaps the greatest Algonquian war leader of his time, Little Turtle grew to adulthood during the American Revolution and led Native American armed resistance to the American invasion of the Old Northwest in the late eighteenth century.”

In his book Who Was Who in Native American History: Indians and Non-Indians From Early Contacts Through 1900, Carl Waldman writes:

“Little Turtle was one of the great military geniuses of all time.”

He developed many methods of guerilla warfare, most notable the use of decoys. Carl Waldman writes:

“Little Turtle instructed his warriors from the allied tribes to pick off the invading army wherever possible. The warriors hid and used swift, small strikes to confuse the enemy.”

From 1790 to…

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“Our Grandmother,” Kokomthema, is the Shawnee female Creator. In their book The Encyclopedia of Native American Religions, Arlene Hirschfelder and Paulette Molin report that Kokomthema is:

“The female deity of the Shawnee people who gave them a code of laws and most of their principal religious ceremonies.”

Arlene Hirschfelder and Paulette Molin also report:

“It is believed that Kokomthema sometimes appears on earth to observe the performance of Shawnee religious ceremonies.”

Hunting was a vital part of Shawnee subsistence, and religious rituals were an important part of hunting. In his book The Shawnees and the War for America, Colin Calloway writes:

“In the Shawnee world, humans and animals communicated, hunters dreamed the whereabouts of their prey and offered prayers to the spirits of the animals that gave their bodies so that the people might live.”

In order to maintain the harmony between humans and the animal people, and between humans and the plant people, it was necessary to conduct certain rituals to keep the world in balance.

Among the Shawnee, boys would go out into the woods to fast and to seek a spirit helper at the age of 12-13. According to James Howard, in his book Shawnee! The Ceremonialism of a Native American Tribe and its Cultural Background:

“The spirit helper would give the faster instruction in some area, which was usually healing, and also would promise aid in future years if the faster would call upon it in the proper manner.”

The Shawnee were originally given their bundles by Our Grandmother at the time of creation. Since that time, items have been added to the bundles. According to James Howard:

“Each of the sacred bundles is assigned to the care of a designated custodian, who is always a man,…

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