A Little History of My Forest Life

Book excerpt: Written in 1894 and recently recovered from the archives of the University of Minnesota, this autobiography tells the story of a Chippewa-Scots-French woman from Madeline Island in Lake Superior. The child and grandchild of fur traders, Eliza Morrison describes her family's starving time on their homestead, and her travels by boat, dog sled, and on foot. M'tis culture comes alive as Native American lore blends with homesteading stories, giving a nineteenth century woman's view of the Wisconsin Death march, the Dream Dance, Indian marriage and burial customs, making maple sugar, and the Chippewa-Dakota War. She relates two never-before-recorded Native stories, complete with songs. Includes glossaries of names, places, and Chippewa words.