The Wisconsin Oneidas and the Episcopal Church

Description

This unique collaboration by academic historians, Oneida elders, and Episcopal clergy tells the fascinating story of how the oldest Protestant mission and house of worship in the upper Midwest took root in the Oneida community. Personal bonds that developed between the Episcopal clergy and the Wisconsin Oneidas proved more important than theology in allowing the community to accept the Christian message brought by outsiders. Episcopal bishops and missionaries in Wisconsin were at times defenders of the Oneidas against outside whites attempting to get at their lands and resources. At other times, these clergy initiated projects that the Oneidas saw as beneficial—a school, a hospital, or a lace-making program for Oneida women that provided a source of income and national recognition for their artistry. The clergy incorporated the Episcopal faith into an Iroquoian cultural and religious framework—the Condolence Council ritual—that had a longstanding history among the Six Nations. In turn, the Oneidas modified the very form of the Episcopal faith by using their own language in the Gloria in Excelsis and the Te Deum as well as by employing Oneida in their singing of Christian hymns.

Christianity continues to have real meaning for many American Indians. The Wisconsin Oneidas and the Episcopal Church testifies to the power and legacy of that relationship.

Introduction

Part I: Christianity Comes to Oneida Country

Editors' Introduction

Chapter 1: The Oneida World before Christianity (Laurence M. Hauptman)

Chapter 2: Oneidas and Missionaries, 1667–1816 (Karim Tiro)

Chapter 3: Flawed Shepherd: Eleazer Williams, John Henry Hobart, and the Episcopal Mission

to the Oneidas (Michael Oberg)

Part II: The Oneida Episcopal Mission: The First Century in Wisconsin

Editors' Introduction

Chapter 4: Another Leatherstocking Tale: Susan Fenimore Cooper, the Episcopal Church, and

the Oneidas (Laurence M. Hauptman, L. Gordon McLester III, and Judy Cornelius-Hawk)

Chapter 5: A Mission of Mutuality: The Relationship between the Oneidas and the Nashotah

House Theological Seminary (Very Rev. Steven A. Peay)

Chapter 6: Wearing Two Hats: Cornelius Hill and John Archiquette, Oneida Nation and

Episcopal Church Leaders (L. Gordon McLester III and Laurence M. Hauptman)

Chapter 7: The Episcopal Mission 1853–1909: Three Church Accounts

Ellen Saxton Goodnough: Christmas at the Oneida Episcopal Mission, 1869

Father Solomon S. Burleson describes providing medical care at Oneida

Father Frank Wesley Merrill on Missionary Sybil Carter and the Oneida

Women lace-makers, 1899

Part III: Oneida First-Person Accounts of the Episcopal Mission and Its Clergy

Editors' Introduction

Chapter 8: Six Oneidas Recount Eight WPA Oral Histories, 1938–1942, about the Episcopal

Mission (Sarah Cornelius, Guy Elm, Lena Silas, Oscar Archiquette, Pearl House, and David

Skenandore)

Chapter 9: Ten Contemporary Oneidas Reminisce in Nine Accounts about the Holy Apostles Episcopal Church and the Episcopal Mission

Kenneth Hoyan House: Reverend Christian puts me on the Straight Path

Blanche Powless: The Episcopal Mission School

Kathy Powless Hughes: My father Deacon Edmund Powless

Sister Theresa and Mother Superior Alicia: Oneidas in the Order of the

Teachers of the Children of God: Two Nuns reflect on their service to the

Episcopal Church

Pearl Schuyler McLester: Reminiscences of the Oneida Episcopal Mission

Deacon Deborah Heckel: Father R. Dewey Silas

Judy Cornelius: As I remember: The women of the Church of the Holy Apostles

Betty McLester and Judy Skenandore: Oneida lacemaking: then and now

L. Gordon McLester III: The Oneida Indian Hymn Singers

Part IV: Conclusion

Chapter 10: Putting Oneida Episcopal History in Perspective (Christopher Vecsey)

Chapter 11: The Wisconsin Oneidas and the Episcopal Church: Then and Now

Appendix: Episcopal Priests and Bishops Who Have Served the Oneidas in Wisconsin

Bibliography

Sujets

• Religion
• Christianisme
• Episcopalian
• Social Science
• HISTORY
• Sociologie, société et politique
• Iroqués
• Episcopal Church
• American Indian
• Six Nations
• Oneida people
• Nashotah, Wisconsin
• Missionary
• History of the Americas
• Episcopal
• Christianity
• Anthropology
• Oneida
• Christian
• Cinq-Nations
• Social
• Indian
• Iroquois
• Culture

Informations

• Publié par: Indiana University Press
• Date de parution: 02 mai 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780253041418
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

THE WISCONSIN ONEIDAS AND
THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH

This book is a publication of
Indiana University Press
Office of Scholarly Publishing
Herman B Wells Library 350
1320 East 10th Street
Bloomington, Indiana 47405 USA
iupress.indiana.edu
2019 by L. Gordon McLester III, Laurence M. Hauptman, Judy Cornelius-Hawk, and Kenneth Hoyan House
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Information Sciences-Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1992.
Manufactured in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: McLester, L. Gordon, editor. | Hauptman, Laurence M., editor. | Cornelius-Hawk, Judy, editor. | House, Kenneth Hoyan, editor
Title: The Wisconsin Oneidas and the Episcopal Church : a chain linking two traditions / edited by L. Gordon McLester III, Laurence M. Hauptman, Judy Cornelius-Hawk and Kenneth Hoyan House.
Description: First edition. | Bloomington : Indiana University Press, 2019. | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018025854 (print) | LCCN 2018029263 (ebook) | ISBN 9780253041401 (ebook) | ISBN 9780253041371 (hardback : alk. paper) | ISBN 9780253041388 (pbk. : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Oneida Indians-Missions-Wisconsin-History. | Episcopal Church-Missions-Wisconsin-History.
Classification: LCC E99.O45 (ebook) | LCC E99.O45 W73 2019 (print) | DDC 266/.309775-dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018025854
1 2 3 4 5 24 23 22 21 20 19
We thank the Creator for guiding us in
the telling of this important story.
Right Reverend Father:
We are now about to do what we could not do
when last you visited us.
A chain of friendship is to be formed,
which we trust will never be broken.
We now extend to you the hand of the nation.
We acknowledge you, and will hereafter hold on
to you as our loyal Bishop. Our eyes will turn to you, and
to you alone for counsel and advice in all our spiritual affairs.
May the chain now thrown around us, never become dim.
May it bind us together in peace and friendship,
as long as life shall last.
Father, your children will take care to keep it bright.
ADDRESS OF FOUR ONEIDA CHIEFS, INCLUDING DANIEL BREAD, TO BISHOP JACKSON KEMPER, CONSECRATION OF ONEIDA HOBART EPISCOPAL CHURCH, SEPTEMBER 29, 1839. QUOTED IN JULIA KEEN BLOOMFIELD , THE ONEIDAS ( NEW YORK: ALDEN , 1907), P . 221.
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations
Preface
Introduction
Part I Christianity Comes to Oneida Country
Editors Introduction to Part I
1 The Oneida World before Christianity / Laurence M. Hauptman
2 Oneidas and Missionaries, 1667-1816 / Karim M. Tiro
3 Flawed Shepherd: Eleazer Williams, John Henry Hobart, and the Episcopal Mission to the Oneidas / Michael Leroy Oberg
Part II The Oneida Episcopal Mission: The First Century in Wisconsin
Editors Introduction to Part II
4 Another Leatherstocking Tale: Susan Fenimore Cooper, the Episcopal Church, and the Oneidas / Laurence M. Hauptman, L. Gordon McLester III, and Judy Cornelius-Hawk
5 A Mission of Mutuality: The Relationship between the Oneidas and the Nashotah House Theological Seminary / Very Rev. Steven A. Peay
6 Wearing Two Hats: Cornelius Hill and John Archiquette, Oneida Nation and Episcopal Church Leaders / L. Gordon McLester III and Laurence M. Hauptman
7 The Episcopal Mission 1853-1909: Three Church Accounts
Ellen Saxton Goodnough, Christmastime at the Mission, 1869
Rev. Solomon S. Burleson Describes Providing Medical Care at Oneida
Rev. Frank Wesley Merrill on Missionary Sybil Carter and the Oneida Women Lace Makers, 1899
Part III Oneida First-Person Accounts of the Episcopal Church and Its Clergy
Editors Introduction to Part III
8 Six Oneidas Recount Eight WPA Oral Histories, 1938-1942, about the Episcopal Mission
Sarah Cornelius
Guy Elm
Lena Silas
Oscar Archiquette
Pearl House
David Skenandore
9 Ten Contemporary Oneidas Reminisce in Nine Accounts about the Holy Apostles Episcopal Church and the Episcopal Mission
Father Christian Puts Me on the Right Path / Kenneth Hoyan House
Reminiscences about the Oneida Mission School / Blanche Powless
Reflections on My Father, Deacon Edmund Powless / Kathy Powless Hughes
Reminiscences of Two Oneida Nuns / Sister Theresa Rose and Mother Superior Alicia Torres of the Order of the Teachers of the Children of God
Recollections about the Oneida Episcopal Mission / Pearl Schuyler McLester
Father R. Dewey Silas / Deacon Deborah Heckel
As I Remember the Women of the Oneida Mission / Judy Cornelius-Hawk
Oneida Lace-Making, Then and Now / Betty McLester and Judy Skenandore
The Oneida Hymn Singers / L. Gordon McLester III
Part IV Reflections on Wisconsin Oneida Episcopal Church Relations
10 Putting Oneida Episcopal History in Perspective: American Indian Encounters with Christianity / Christopher Vecsey
11 The Wisconsin Oneidas and the Episcopal Church: Then and Now / L. Gordon McLester III, Laurence M. Hauptman, Judy Cornelius-Hawk, and Kenneth Hoyan House
Contributors
Appendix A: Timeline
Appendix B: Episcopal Priests, Vicars, and Deacons Who Have Served the Oneidas in Wisconsin
Appendix C: Bishops Who Have Headed the Diocese
Bibliography
Index
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
T HE EDITORS WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE O NEIDA Nation of Indians of Wisconsin s Business Committee for its support of this project as well as its past sponsorship of history conferences. Over the years, its membership has supported various efforts to document Oneida history, including projects to videotape and digitize hundreds of interviews with tribal elders. Some of these interviews, along with stories collected by the WPA Oneida Language and Folklore Project from 1938 to 1942, provided valuable source material for this book.
Both the clergy and membership of the Oneidas Church of the Holy Apostles and the office of the diocese of Fond du Lac must be thanked for their major contributions to this project. Vicar Rodger Patience and Deacon Deborah Heckel, the Oneidas Church of the Holy Apostles vestry council, its altar guild, and numerous church members, especially Betty and John Dennison and Abby Jean Webster, need to be acknowledged for their assistance. The editors would also like to thank the Right Reverend Matthew Gunter, the bishop of the archdiocese of Fond du Lac, and diocesan archivist Matthew Payne for their encouragement of this project from its inception. The Historical Society of the Episcopal Church provided a small planning grant at the initial stages of this project.
Others must also be acknowledged. Dr. Gary Dunham, director of Indiana University Press, encouraged this unique undertaking of academics, Episcopal clergy, and Oneida local historians and elders from the first time it was proposed. The editors of New York History , especially Dr. Thomas Beal, graciously allowed the reprinting of an award-winning article on Susan Fenimore Cooper that appeared in their journal in 2013. Because of his special knowledge of the WPA Oneida and Language Project, Dr. Herbert Lewis, professor emeritus of anthropology at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, helped the editors choose interviews from this collection for inclusion in this book. Other scholars, especially Drs. Jack Campisi and Anthony Wonderley, have significantly added to the quality of this project with their insightful writings.
The technical support for this project came from several sources. The editors depended on the expertise of Bob Roszoff and Allen Condra, who videotaped parts of two conferences and numerous interviews with Oneida elders and then transferred these presentations into a digital format. Dan Hawk helped secure and transmit photographs for the project. Dana McLester, the treasurer of the Oneida Indian Historical Society, helped edit the PowerPoint presentations for showing at the same two conferences and advised the editors about images that are used in this book. Victoria Jicha helped the editors with her careful proofing of the manuscript. Our dear friend David Jaman of The Villages, Florida, provided the editors with good cheer, excellent wit, and expert computer skills as he has done before in all five previous books in this series.
The Editors
November 1, 2017
ABBREVIATIONS
APS
American Philosophical Society
ARCIA
Annual Reports of the [United States] Commissioner of Indian Affairs
BL
Beinecke Library
BIA
Bureau of Indian Affairs
CCF
Central Classified Files
COLL
Collection
EW
Eleazer Williams
GBAR
Green Bay Agency Records
HC
Hamilton College, Clinton, New York
ICC
Indian Claims Commission
JAJ
John Archiquette Journals
JAPR
John Archiquette Police Reports
JFC
James Fenimore Cooper
JR
Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents
M
Microcopy
MR
Microfilm Reel
MSS
Manuscript Collection
NA
National Archives
NYIA
New York Indian Agency
NYSA
New York State Archives
NYSL
New York State Library
OIA
Office of Indian Affairs
OLFP
Oneida Language and Folklore Project
ONIW
Oneida Nation of Indians of Wisconsin
REV
Reverend
RG
Record Group
Rt. Rev.
Right Reverend/Bishop
SK
Samuel Kirkland
SPG
Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts
Stat.
United States Statutes at Large
USGPO
United States Government Printing Office
UWGB
University of Wisconsin at Green Bay
Very Rev.
Very Reverend/Senior Priest
WHC
Wisconsin Historical Collections
WHS
Wisconsin Historical Society
WHSARC
Wisconsin Historical Society Area Research Center
WPA
Works Progress Administration
YU
Yale University
PREFACE
T HE W ISCONSIN O NEIDAS AND THE E PISCOPAL C HURCH : A Ch