The Myth Of Hiawatha And Other Oral Legends

Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (1793-1864) was an American geographer, geologist, and ethnologist, noted for his early studies of Native American cultures, as well as for his "discovery" in 1832 of the source of the Mississippi River. His wife's knowledge on Native American legends shared with Schoolcraft formed in part the source material for Longfellow's epic poem, The Song of Hiawatha. Schoolcraft began his ethnological research in 1822 during his appointment as Indian agent at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. He wedded Jane Johnston, who was the daughter of an Irish fur trader and an Ojibwe woman. From his wife, he learned the Ojibwe language and the lore of the tribe. In 1841 he lost his position as Indian agent and moved back to the East, where he continued to write about Native Americans.