Jump to Navigation

Indian Missions and Missionaries: a bibliography

Photograph of Potawatomie Indians at the St. Mary's Mission, Pottawatomie County, 1867.Information available on missionaries and associated missions in Kansas.

 

Jotham Meeker (1804-1855)

Grant, Joseph P. "Jotham Meeker: Orthograher, Pioneer Printer, and Missionary." Doc. diss., Baptist Theological Seminary, K.C., 1952.

"High Waters in Kansas." Kansas Historical Collections 8 (1903-1904): 472-481. Excerpts from Jotham Meeker's diary and letters, May-December, 1844.

Portrait of Jotham Meeker, a Baptist missionaryKing, Charles R. "Physician to Body and Soul: Jotham Meeker--Kansas Missionary." Kansas History 17 (Winter 1994-1995): 262-273. King finds that despite a lack of professional training Meeker was a successful medical practitioner, in the context of his times.

McMurtrie, Douglas C. "Pioneer Printing of Kansas." Kansas Historical Quarterly 1 (November 1931): 3-16. Beginning with Jotham Meeker, printer-missionary among Shawnees, Stockbridges, and Ottawas in 1830s and 1840s.

__________, and Albert H. Allen. Jotham Meeker: Pioneer Printer of Kansas. New York: Eyncourt Press, 1930.

Jotham Meeker Papers, 1825-1864 manuscript collection finding aid.

 

 

 

 

Isaac McCoy (1784-1846)

A portrait of missionary Reverend Isaac McCoy at age 47, 1831Barnes, Lela. "Isaac McCoy and the Treaty of 1821." Kansas Historical Quarterly 5 (May 1936): 122-141. Missionary's efforts for removal as way to save vanishing eastern tribes.

__________. "Journal of Isaac McCoy for the Exploring Expedition of 1828." Kansas Historical Quarterly 5 (August 1936): 227-277. Baptist missionary accompanied Potawatomi and Ottawa tribal representatives on expedition to facilitate removal; also commissioned to survey lands in eastern Kansas for Delaware reservation, July-November 1830 (see: 5:339-377).

Drury, Robert M. "The Life of Isaac McCoy: Minister, Missionary, Explorer, Surveyor, Lobbyist, Administrator and `Apostle to the Indians'." The Trail Guide 10 (June 1965): 1-16.

McDermott, John Francis, editor. "Isaac McCoy's Second Exploring Trip in 1828." Kansas Historical Quarterly (August 1945): 400-462. With delegations from Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Creek nations in area between Neosho River and Fort Gibson, October-December.

Miles, William. "`Enamoured With Colonization': Isaac McCoy's Plan of Indian Reform." Kansas Historical Quarterly 38 (Autumn 1972): 268-286. Suggests relationship between this antebellum movement and efforts of American Colonization Society.

"Rev. Isaac McCoy." Kansas Historical Collections 2 (1875-1880): 271-275. Missionary's work in Kansas from manuscripts in Society's collections.

Schultz, George A. An Indian Canaan, Isaac McCoy and the Vision of an Indian State. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1972. Wyeth, Walter N. Isaac McCoy: Early Indian Missions. Philadelphia: Wyeth, 1895.

Yeager, Randolph Orville. "Indian Enterprise of Isaac McCoy, 1817-1846." Doc. diss., University of Oklahoma, 1954.

Isaac McCoy, Papers, 1808-1874, manuscript collection, finding aid available upon request. In addition, microfilm copies of National Archives records of the various Indian agencies are available at the Center for Historical Research.

 

General

Alexander, Thomas J. "Baptist Indian Missions." The American Philatelist 95 (February 1981): 121-130; and, 95 (March 1981): 223-227. Isaac McCoy's work in Kansas during the 1830s and early 1840s.

Barnes, Lela, editor. "Letters of Allen T. Ward, 1842-1851: From the Shawnee and Kaw (Methodist) Missions." Kansas Historical Quarterly 33 (Autumn 1967): 321-376. Teacher at northeast Johnson County mission that offered courses in English, manual arts, and agriculture.

View of the Pottawatomie Baptist Mission in Shawnee county, between 1880 and 1900Barr, Thomas P. "The Pottawatomie Baptist Manual Labor Training School." Kansas Historical Quarterly 43 (Winter 1977): 377-431. History of this missionary effort near Topeka, 1840s-1860s.

Berkhofer, Robert F., Jr. Salvation and the Savage, An Analysis of Protestant Missions and American Indian Response, 1787-1862. Lexington: University of Kentucky Press, 1965. Reprinted, Westport, Conn., Greenwood Press, 1977.

Brewster, S. W. "Reverend Father Paul M. Ponziglione." Kansas Historical Collections 9 (1905-1906): 19-32. Jesuit missionary to Osages in Kansas.

Burke, Rev. James M., S.J., editor. "Early Years at St. Mary's Pottawatomie Mission: From the Diary of Father Maurice Gailland, S. J." Kansas Historical Quarterly 20 (August 1953): 501-529. Entries covering years 1848-1850, preceded by brief biographical sketch of this Swiss Jesuit.

Caldwell, Martha B., compiler. Annals of Shawnee Methodist Mission and Indian Manual Labor School. Topeka: Kansas State Historical Society, 1939. Entries cover the years 1825-1865.

Carman, J. Neale. "The Bishop East of the Rockies Views His Diocesans, 1851-1853." Kansas Historical Quarterly 21 (Summer 1954): 81-86. Passages from letters of Father Jean-Baptiste Miege who ministered at St. Mary's Pottawatomie Mission with comments on Osages.

Image of and link to Washashe (Osage) Indian language grammer created by Johnston Lykins and printed at the Shawnee Baptist Mission, 1837__________, and Karl S. Pond. "The Replacement of the Indian Languages of Kansas by English." Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 58 (1955): 131-150.

Cash, Joseph H., and Gerald W. Wolff. The Ottawa People. Phoenix, Ariz.: Indian Tribal Series, 1976.

Cone, William W. "The First Kaw Indian Mission." Kansas Historical Collections 2 (1875-1880): 276-301. Established by Methodist William Johnson in 1830; followed by account of "The Kansas Indians" extracted from report of Stephen H. Long, 1819.

Crum, Steven J. "Henry Roe Cloud, A Winnebago Indian Reformer: His Quest for American Indian Higher Education." Kansas History 11 (Autumn 1988): 171-184.

Dunbar, Rev. John. "The Presbyterian Mission Among the Pawnee Indians in Nebraska, 1834 to 1836." Kansas Historical Collections 11 (1909-1910): 323-332. Recalls his experiences among "these savage people" whose many "vices" included the practice "of polygamy."

"Early Military Posts, Missions and Camps." Kansas Historical Collections 2 (1875-1880): 263-270. Reprint of New York Tribune article of June 28, 1854, followed by additional information on Osage, Iowa, Sac, and Fox missions.

Ferris, Ida M. "The Sauks and Foxes in Franklin and Osage Counties, Kansas." Kansas Historical Collections 11 (1909-1910): 333-395. With photos of Keokuk, his family, and others.

Gowing, Clara. "Life Among the Delaware Indians." Kansas Historical Collections 12 (1911-1912): 183-193. Gowing worked at Baptist Mission school on Grinter crossing, 1859-1864.

Graves, W. W. Life and Letters of Fathers Ponsiglione, Schoenmakers, and Other Early Jesuits at Osage Mission. Saint Paul, Kans.: W. W. Graves, 1916. Schoenmakers (1807-1883) served the Osage Mission for many years.

Herring, Joseph B. "The Chippewa and Munsee Indians: Acculturation and Survival in Kansas, 1850s-1870." Kansas History 6 (Winter 1983/84): 212-220.

Hill, Esther Clark. "The Pratt Collection of Manuscripts." Kansas Historical Quarterly 1 (February 1932): 83-88. Papers of John G. Pratt, missionary-printer and Indian agent in Indian Kansas, 1837-1868; KSHS manuscript collection.

__________. "Some Background of Early Baptist Missions in Kansas: Based on Letters in the Pratt Collection of Manuscripts and Documents." Kansas Historical Quarterly 1 (February 1932): 89-103. From family and friends of John Gill and Oliva Evans Pratt, 1837-1847.

Hobbs, Wilson. "The Friends' Establishment in Kansas Territory." Kansas Historical Collections 8 (1903-04): 250-271. Reminiscences of medical doctor who lived and worked among Shawnees as mission school superintendent and teacher, 1850-1852.

Jennings, Warren A. "The First Mormon Mission to the Indians." Kansas Historical Quarterly 37 (Autumn 1971): 288-299. Contact with Delawares in 1830-1831.

Jorgenson, Danny L. "Building the Kingdom of God: Alpheus Cutler and the Second Mormon Mission to the Indians, 1846-1853." Kansas History 15 (Autumn 1992): 192-211. Alpheus Cutler's 1847 mission in present-day Jefferson County, its consequences, and his subsequent career.

Joy, Mark Stephen. "`Into the Wilderness': Protestant Missions Among the Emigrant Indians of Kansas, 1830-1854." Doc. diss., Kansas State University, 1992. Concentrates on Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian missions.

Kinsella, Rev. Thomas H. A Centenary of Catholicity in Kansas, 1822-1922. The History of Our Cradle Land (Miami and Linn County). Catholic Indian Missions and Missionaries of Kansas. The Pioneers on the Prairies. Kansas City: The Casey Printing Co., 1921.

"Letters Concerning the Presbyterian Mission in the Pawnee Country, Near Bellvue, Neb., 1831-1849." Kansas Historical Collections 14 (1915-1918): 570-784. Most by missionaries John Dunbar, Samuel Allis, George B. Gaston, and Timothy E. Ranney.

"Letters from the Indian Missions in Kansas." Kansas Historical Collections 16 (1923-1925): 227-271. Correspondence from Methodist missionaries William and Thomas Johnson, Jerome C. Berryman, and others (1831-1845).

Lindquist, Emory, editor. "The Letters of the Rev. Samuel Young Lum, Pioneer Kansas Missionary, 1854-1858." Kansas Historical Quarterly 25 (Spring 1959): 39-67; Part two, 25 (Summer 1959): 172-196. Congregational minister commissioned by American Home Missionary Society (recipient of these letters), Lum had close ties to New England Emigrant Aid Company and helped start Lawrence and Topeka churches.

Lutz, J. J. "The Methodist Missions Among the Indian Tribes in Kansas." Kansas Historical Collection 9 (1905-1906): 160-235. A wealth of information, much of it hidden in footnotes, on various tribes, treaties, missions, and missionaries, including Thomas Johnson, Rev. Jesse and Mary Greene, and Rev. John Thompson Peery; also contains yearly "List of Appointments" to missions, 1830-1855.

McCoy, Isaac. History of Baptist Indian Missions. Washington: William M. Morrison, 1840.

McMurtrie, Douglas C. "The Shawnee Sun: The First Indian-Language Periodical Published in the United States." Kansas Historical Quarterly 2 (November 1932): 339-342. Printed in Shawnee language by Jotham Meeker at Baptist mission in 1834.

Mechem, Kirke. "The Mystery of the Meeker Press." Kansas Historical Quarterly 4 (February 1935): 61-73. Unsuccessful efforts of KSHS staff to track original (Kansas' first) printing press.

Morrison, T. F. "Mission Neosho: The First Kansas Mission." Kansas Historical Quarterly 4 (August 1935): 227-234. Failed efforts of United Foreign Mission Society and Benton Pixley among Osage on Neosho River, 1820s.

Owens, Sister M. Lilliana., S.L. "The Early Work of the Lorettines in Southeastern Kansas." Kansas Historical Quarterly 15 (August 1947): 263-276. Work of Father John Schoenmakers and other Jesuits among Osages (1840s-1860s) and help they received from sisters of Loretto, Kentucky, including Sister Bridget Hayden.

Plank, Pryor. "The Iowa, Sac and Fox Indian Mission and Its Missionaries, Rev. Samuel M. Irvin and Wife." Kansas Historical Collections 10 (1907-1908): 312-325. First moved to area in 1837; includes excerpts from their correspondence.

Platt, Mrs. E. G. "Some Experiences as a Teacher Among the Pawnees." Kansas Historical Collections 14 (1915-1918): 784-794. Sister of Rev. G. B. Gaston, joined him as mission teacher in Platte country.

Rice, Cyrus R. "Experiences of a Pioneer Missionary." Kansas Historical Collections 13 (1913-1914): 298-318. Author recounts his work and acquaintances in Kansas Territory while serving as Methodist Episcopal missionary to Potawatomis, 1855-1860.

Rivers, Theodore John. "A Study of the Laws of the Ottawa Indians as Preserved in the Ottawa First Book (1850)." Kansas Historical Quarterly 42 (Autumn 1976): 225-236. Twenty-five laws first printed by Jotham Meeker, reprinted and analyzed.

Romig, Rev. Joseph. "The Chippewa and Munsee (or Christian) Indians of Franklin County, Kansas." Kansas Historical Collections 11 (1909-1910): 314-323. Brief history of these tribes including experience on Kansas reservation after 1839 by "their missionary."

Ross, Edith Connelley. "The Old Shawnee Mission." Kansas Historical Collections 17 (1926-1928): 417-435. Mission had been established near present Turner, Wyandotte County, in 1828 before move to Johnson County in 1838.

Ross, Edith Connelley. The Old Shawnee Mission: The Pioneer Institution of Christian Civilization in the West. Topeka, Kans.: State Printing Plant, 1928.

Shoup, Earl Leon. "Indian Missions in Kansas." Kansas Historical Collections 12 (1911-1912): 65-69. Pre-territorial missionary contributions to future state development; role of Isaac McCoy, Thomas Johnson, and others.

"Two Minute Books of Kansas Missions in the Forties." Kansas Historical Quarterly 2 (August 1933): 227-250. Reprinted from original records (held by KSHS) of Delaware and Stockbridge Baptist Mission, 1841-1848.

Warren, Stephen A. "The Baptists, the Methodists, and the Shawnees: Conflicting Cultures in Indian Territory, 1833-1834." Kansas History 17 (Autumn 1994): 149-161. Concentrates on the disputes that arose among and between the different missionaries and the various bands of Shawnees.

Warren, Stephen A. "Shawnee Political Culture in the Reservation Era." Master's thesis, Arizona State University, 1994. Looks at the relocation of the Shawnees from the 1830s to 1854 to a reservation in what would become Kansas.   Not held by KSHS.

Young, E. Harold, editor. "Some Contemporary References to St. Mary's Mission." Mid-America: An Historical Review 6 (April 1935): 84-103. Excerpts from Kansas newspapers (1854-1862) referring to this Potawatomi Indian mission.