Taking notes on North Country

As you read each chapter of this book, your knowledge and comprehension will increase if you both underline key passages in the book AND take notes in a notebook or on a computer.  Below I have listed some of the main points of each chapter and important people, terms, and events that you should note, understand, and describe as you read.  It is very important that you understand each of these items, as they will be featured in discussion and/or appear on a quiz.  If you do not understand these items, e-mail Prof. Janke and/or raise a question in our discussion forum and ask your classmates for help with clarification.

PROLOGUE: [assigned pp. xi-xvii.]

1.  Why did Wingerd write this book?  What is the "usual" story of Minnesota history, and why does she feel this story needs to be revised?

2.  Important terms/concepts to understand:

Ojibwe
Dakota
Metis or mixed blood
borderland

CHAPTER ONE: [assigned p. 1-23]  Includes images and image essays.
*Important chapter that describes Minnesota before large-scale contact with Europeans

1.  Note where each major Native American groups lived and how they survived.  Also note the strengths each group possessed.

2.  Describe "kinship" and how it worked.  Also be sure to understand why Europeans often misunderstood how kinship functioned in Native American communities.

3.  Note these major European explorers/traders and where (and why) they went.  Note how these explorers later described their journeys and compare/contrast those accounts with how the Native Americans would have described these interactions.  Wingerd argues that European explorers often embellished their accounts to make themselves look better or perhaps more heroic.

    Radisson and Groseilliers
    Joliet and Marquette
    Daniel Greysolon (Sieur du Luth)
    Father Louis Hennepin

CHAPTER TWO: [assigned p. 40-41]

We are not reading the entirety of this chapter, as it is focused more on conflicts between France and England.  The "take away" point for the purposes of our Minnesota History course is that France lost the French and Indian war and therefore was required to vacate North America.  The British took over from there, so what is now Minnesota fell under British control.

However, on p. 40-41, Wingerd describes some terms that will be helpful for us to understand as we continue to read.  The terms to note are:

à la façon du pays
bourgeois
engagés
coureurs de bois

CHAPTER THREE: [assigned p. 52-74]

This chapter takes us from French control to British control to American control!  Quite a series of transitions.  In the section of the chapter that is not assigned, Wingerd argues that even though control of Minnesota had shifted, the everyday lives of traders and Indian had not yet substantially changed.  The rest of this chapter then documents how and why things did begin to change.

1. Beginning on page 52, Wingerd describes how trading became a "free-for-all."  Note why this happened and how it impacted Native people.

2.  Note the impact of both alcohol and smallpox on Native/white interactions and the fur trade.

3.  Terms to understand: Grand Portage, North West Fur Company.

CHAPTER FOUR: [assigned p. 75-100]  Includes images and image essays.

The first section discusses the impact of the War of 1812, which the United States fought against the British.  During the war, the Indians in Minnesota allied with the British, but after the Americans won the war, the Indians could see the writing on the wall and decided that since the Americans were here to stay, they should attempt to make friends and form trading relationships with the Americans.  Beginning on p. 82, Wingerd discusses the founding of Fort Snelling, the first permanent American post.  As you read the rest of the chapter, make note of the following items:

1.  Note why the Americans wanted to establish a permanent post, and how the Dakota and Ojibwe reacted to this development.

2.  Understand why the Dakota and Ojibwe were forced into conflicts with each other, and what these conflicts looked like.  Wingerd argues that these two tribes were NOT in an actual war with each other, as many accounts at the time would have led people to believe.

3.  Every-day life at Fort Snelling: who lived there and why.

4.  Henry Sibley and Lawrence Taliaferro: who were they, why were they in MN.

5.  Little Crow: who was he, and how did he react to white traders and potential settlers.
 

CHAPTER FIVE [skipped -- not assigned]
 

CHAPTER SIX: [assigned p. 128-150]  Includes images and image essays.
*Very key chapter that describes Indian land treaties and the road to Minnesota becoming a Territory*

We have skipped the first few pages of this chapter, in which Wingerd describes how some settlers in Northern MN eventually drifted south to meet up with the folks living at Fort Snelling.  She also writes that prejudice against the metis, or mixed-race people, increased as new arrivals to Minnesota had not been part of the "interdependent web of the fur trade." (126).

As you read the assigned pages, note the following:

1.  Logging became increasingly important and led to white settlers demanding treaties with Indians.  Be sure you understand why Indians felt like land cessions would be a "reasonable" solution to their problems.

2.  Wingerd argues that Native Americans were NOT "dupes or victims" of the treaty process in the beginning.  Note what (and why) Native Americans agreed to in treaty provisions and what they managed to acquire for themselves.  (They did NOT face removal.)  Wingerd argues, however, that in the end Indians were the victims of "fraud" -- be sure you understand how they were defrauded. 

3.  Understand each of the major treaties signed with Indians, being sure to note why debt repayment  to traders was included. [1837 Ojibwe, 1837 Mdewakantons, 1837 Winnebago, ]  Understand who benefitted from each of these treaties.

4.  Describe what happened as soon as the treaties were signed: timber speculators showed up, but provisions did not.  Describe the impact of Indian annuities on the region, as the economy shifted away from fur trading and towards development.

5.  Describe a plan to create a permanent reservation for Indians in Minnesota: why people thought this plan was a good idea, how it ended up in several actual treaties being signed in 1841, and how/why those treaties were never ratified.

6.  As more white settlers and eventually families came to the area, the "hybrid" or mix-race culture common in Minnesota began to further erode.  Understand why newcomers did not understand the previous ways.  Note also that Sibley himself had a mixed-race child.
 

CHAPTER SEVEN: [assigned pp. 160-162 ("Making St. Paul"), p. 176-184 ("Minnesota-- A Territory at Last.")]

The start of this chapter documents how settlers began to pour into Minnesota, including Henry Rice, who had his eye on logging and lumber.  As you read the assigned sections note the following:

1.  Some settlers who were kicked out of the Fort Snelling area congregated in what became known as Pig's Eye.  These settlers merely wanted to form a community while land speculators could see the value in the location as a trading center -- note these early changes in what would become St. Paul.

2.  In order to officially become a Territory (which is the step taken before statehood), a geographic area must have 5,000 (white) residents.  Wingerd argues that Minnesota did not have 5,000 residents.  Note how many people were counted, and how/why Minnesota's leaders inflated the population count so they could become a territory.

3.  Understand who were Minnesota's early white leaders (Sibley, Rice, Ramsey) and what each man did to advance the cause of the territory of Minnesota.   What were some "fictions" (or lies) that they (and politicians in Washington) overlooked in their zeal to make Minnesota a territory? Describe where Ramsey came from, how he was appointed as the first Governor, and what his vision was for the future of Minnesota.
 

CHAPTER EIGHT: [assigned p. 185-204, map on p. 221.  Includes images and image essays.]

1.  Ramsey and Sibley both believed they needed a treaty to acquire the remaining lands from the Dakota yet Congress had outlawed trader payments from treaties.  Understand how these two men "hatched a clever plan" to ensure payment to traders and why making payments to traders was important.

2.  Note the two groups of Dakota and why each group was in a different situation in terms of being ready to engage in treaty negotiations. 

3.  Explain what happened when the treaty party (including Ramsey and Luke Lea) arrived at Traverse des Sioux.  Note why it took a while to negotiate, and how Ramsey eventually ensured the Dakota would sign.  Also be sure to note what happened with the "traders' paper." (p. 192-193).

4.  Describe the second set of negotiations at Mendota and the treaty that resulted.

5.  Wingerd explains why politicians in Washington were concerned about Minnesota potentially becoming a state once the treaties made lands available for white settlement.  [At the time, the southern states had slavery and northern states did not.  Sectional conflict, meaning the conflict over slavery, was rising and tensions were high.  Everyone was concerned about whether newly formed states would be "slave" or "free."  Would slavery spread out west?  If more slaves states were created, the slave states would gain more power in Congress.  Similarly, if more free states were created, southerners worried that Congress would pass anti-slavery legislation.]  Note why and how southern senators changed the terms of the treaties, as Wingerd says, they "amended the treaties to death."

6.  In the end, Henry Rice managed to get the Indians to sign the treaty.  Note how this process unfolded, and whether an investigation ever found wrong-doing.

CHAPTER NINE: [assigned p. 247-254]

1.  These pages describe a number of political shenanigans as everyone jockeyed for power and influence in the process of making MN a state.  Be sure to note these shenanigans, including an understanding of how they ended up the comic drama of "dueling conventions."  Also note that, for a brief moment, different boundaries for Minnesota were under consideration.

CHAPTER 10: [assigned middle p. 276-280 in week 5, p. 280-287 is assigned in week 4, p. 293-300 in week 5]

The early pages in this chapter describe what led up to what is called the Spirit Lake Massacre, in which Inkpaduta and his men killed forty white settlers.  Such an occurrence was quite rare, since interactions until that time had been peaceful.  Whites threatened to withhold all annuity payments (after a very harsh winter) until the Indians helped track down the offenders.  Wingerd argues this infuriated the Indians as they believed the government had a legal obligation to make annuity payments without any conditions placed upon the payment.  Lingering tensions over this incident gave further momentum to those who believed that the best "solution" to the Indian "problem" would be to reduce the size of the reservations and turn Indians into farmers. 

1.  Note what  happened when the Dakota were summoned to Washington D.C. where they though they might be able to discuss their grievances; instead they were informed they would need to sign a treaty that took away "half of their remaining lands." (p. 276.) Take note of how much money the Dakota received in the end, and the process that resulted in reducing the amount.

2.  Note the tensions that grew within the tribes between "farmer Indians" (those who acculturated) and traditionalists.

3.  [The Call to War, assigned in week 4]: Explain the variety of reactions Minnesotans had to the outbreak of the Civil War, and how they responded to the call to arms.  Also note how things changed for the volunteers (and later draftees) as the war did not end within weeks, and instead dragged on for years.

4.  When President Lincoln and Republicans took power in the 1860 elections, they were able to make new political appointments (meaning: put their friends and political allies into government jobs) including jobs overseeing relations with Indians.  Take note of how these new appointees in Minnesota were unfamiliar with their new jobs and (i.e. Thomas Galbraith) were incompetent and/or weak and/or corrupt.

5.  Note how conditions continued to worsen during the Civil War.  Understand that Indians had reasonable grounds to think that the U.S. Army was not as powerful as they once feared.  Also note continued grounds for grievances from both Dakota and Ojibwes. (Indians denied citizenship, being "sold" as draft replacements, etc.)

 

CHAPTER 11: [assigned North Country, Chapter 11, pp. 338-345. "The Final Act," images and image essays]

1.  After the execution, US and Minnesota leaders decided what to do with the remaining Dakota, including voiding any treaties signed and moving them to reservations.   Note what happened to the Ojibwe during this same period.

2.  Note how Little Crow was hunted and shot accidentally by a farmer.  Note also what happened to his remains.

Images: the glossy pages of images in this chapter are particularly compelling, so be sure to read the accompanying essays and look at the images, many of which later shaped how Minnesotans "remembered" the events of 1862-3.  Especially take note the essay about Plate 129.