John Johnston (fur trader)
Encyclopedia
John Johnston was a wealthy and successful British
fur trader for the North West Company
at Sault Ste. Marie
before the War of 1812
, and a leader in the Michigan Territory
. He never became a US citizen. He married Ozhaguscodaywayquay
(Woman of the Green Glade), daughter of Waubojeeg
(White Fisher), prominent Ojibwe
war chief and civil leader from what is now northern Wisconsin
. The Johnstons were leaders in both the Euro-American and Ojibwa communities. His life was markedly disrupted by the War of 1812, and demonstrated the changes of the period.
to an upper-class Scots-Irish family. John Johnston held in his own right the estate of Craige, near Coleraine
in County Londonderry
. His father was a civil engineer who planned and built the Belfast Water Works. During John Johnston's youth, his mother's brother was Attorney General of Ireland.
As a young man, Johnston emigrated in 1792 to Canada
for its opportunities. He had letters of introduction to Lord Dorchester, Governor of the colony. Through him he met leaders in society, including the magnates of the recently formed North West Company
in Montreal
. The fur trade looked like a good opportunity to make a profit. Johnston planned to be a "wintering partner", one who traded with Native Americans at the post on the frontier. He purchased trade goods in Montreal to take with him.
(Woman of the Green Glade), daughter of Waubojeeg
(White Fisher), a prominent Ojibwe war chief and civil leader from what is now northern Wisconsin
. Johnston fell in love with the Chief Waubojeeg's daughter, but the Chief was skeptical of white men and initially refused when Johnston asked for his daughter in marriage, saying: "White Man, I have noticed your behaviour, it has been correct; but, White Man, your colour is deceitful. Of you, may I expect better things? You say you are going to Montreal; go, and if you return I shall be satisfied of your sincerity and will give you my daughter." The couple married, after which Ozhaguscodaywayquay was also called Susan Johnston. Like Johnston, most fur traders were Europeans of social standing and together with the upper-class Ojibwa women they married, they formed the upper tier of a two-class frontier society. "Kinship and ties of affinity proved more than merely useful to the traders. They were both a source of power and a necessity if one was to achieve success in the trade." Johnston was considered the first permanent European-American settler there.
The Johnstons' cedar log house on Water Street in Sault Ste. Marie was built in 1796 in a French colonial style. When their eldest daughter Jane married Henry Schoolcraft, the Johnstons built an addition for them to live in. Some years later, the Schoolcrafts built their own house in the village. The addition is the only remaining part of the Johnston house, one of the featured historic houses in the city.
Although the south side of the river became United States territory in 1797, Johnston never bothered to become a citizen. The border was a fluid area. In those years, Native Americans had separate status and were not considered United States citizens. For the people at Sault Ste. Marie after 1797, there was little change in their daily lives or relations with the Ojibwa, except as they received more American explorers.
Over the years Johnston became successful himself, with fur trading and relations with the Ojibwa enhanced by Susan's family ties to the Ojibwa community. The Johnstons were known as a refined and cultured family, leaders in both the Ojibwa and Euro-American communities who maintained a wide range of relations.
As part of their culture of building relationships, the Johnstons welcomed to their home an array of significant players in the region, including surveyors, explorers, traders, governmental officials, trappers and political leaders. With his wife and her family's help, Johnston developed a broad knowledge of both the Ojibwa ways and the Great Lakes region. He played an integral role in developing the Michigan frontier and was appointed a Justice of the Peace.
Sault Ste. Marie was a community with a mix of fur traders, most of whom had Native American
wives; Ojibwa natives, some of high status; and workers who were Métis, European, and Native American. Structures were both permanent and temporary, featuring warehouses for furs, scattered housing and Indian wigwams, and sheds for boats. Many of the Ojibwa stayed in the area for the fishing more than for the settlement.
Increasing economic tensions between Great Britain and the US affected the fur trade. In 1806 US changes to the Jay Treaty
of 1794 restricted British fur traders to operating in Canada. Both they and the Ojibwa wished to return to the previous arrangement, which allowed free passage across the border for trade by nationals of both countries and by the Indians.
During the War of 1812, Johnston's longstanding British affiliations led him to assist the British. After a direct appeal from the garrison at Michilimackinac
, Johnston supplied about 100 of his men and took two batteaux for their relief in 1814. When an American force failed to intercept him, it went on to Sault Ste. Marie. There the US raiders burned the North West Company warehouses on both sides of the St. Mary's River, causing substantial losses to Johnston and the Company. The troops also raided his house, called Johnson Hall. They looted the library and furnishings, and burning the house down. (Johnston's wife and children fled into the woods when the soldiers arrived.) Johnston never became a U.S. citizen.
The Johnstons' oldest son Louis (also appears as Lewis) was a lieutenant in the British Navy and served on the Queen Charlotte during the War of 1812. He was captured by Commodore Oliver Perry during the battle on Lake Erie
. His treatment by the Americans while he was held prisoner at Cincinnati, Ohio
turned him against living under their rule.
After the war, Johnston made a direct appeal to Governor Lewis Cass
of Michigan to have the restriction against his trading in the interior lifted because of his other services to the region, but to no avail. He suffered financially from his losses and reduced trading, and was never able to rebuild his former wealth. Although he applied to the British government for compensation for his losses, no payment was made. Believing he was too old to remove to Canada, he stayed in Sault Ste. Marie. In 1821 Johnston served as a Commissioner during negotiations to end the rivalry between the North West and Hudson's Bay companies
and helped achieve their merger.
Still worried about potential British agitation of Native Americans along the border, in 1822 the US government built and staffed Fort Brady
at Sault Ste. Marie. With the fort and troops, other American settlers started to come into the area in greater number. The culture of Sault Ste. Marie changed markedly. Johnston and others who had earlier formed and dominated the community were passed by as the newcomers banded together. The presence of military troops formalized the role of government. The new American residents were reluctant to become involved with the French, Ojibwe or Métis, and disdained most of the existing society.
, Ojibwe and French
. Johnston had a large library filled with English classical authors, including poets, which his children used for their literary education. The parents took care to educate their children in both cultures, and expected them to have opportunities in society equivalent to their standing. Many fur traders sent their children to Montreal for school.
The Johnstons' eldest daughter Jane
married Henry Rowe Schoolcraft, who arrived in Sault Ste. Marie in 1822 as Indian agent for the US government. He was to establish formal relationships with the Native Americans. He became noted as an ethnographer and writer about Native American life. Despite his marriage and interests, he remained more outside Native American life than the fur trader John Johnston.
Jane Johnston Schoolcraft
was inducted in 2008 into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame
for her own contributions to literature and history. She is recognized as the first Native American
literary writer and poet. A major collection of her work was published in 2007.
The second daughter Eliza never married. The next two married well. The third daughter married Archdeacon
MacMurray, of Niagara, who worked as a missionary
with tribes along Lake Superior
. Maria, the youngest daughter, married James Laurence Schoolcraft, a younger brother of Henry Rowe Schoolcraft.
The Anglo-American settlement and rule over Sault Ste. Marie and Michigan after the War of 1812 changed the culture markedly within a generation. It particularly disadvantaged the mixed-race men, even those of upperclass families such as the Johnstons. The Americans disdained the children of mixed marriages; in addition, they were suspicious of Roman Catholics and French
speakers. They often did not take the time to discern the layers of northern Michigan society, but lumped all those together who had preceded them in Sault Ste. Marie and other communities.
As noted above, the oldest son Lewis stayed in Canada after the War of 1812.
Because of Johnston's resistance to becoming a citizen of the US, his second son George was shut out of the fur trade as the Americans exerted more control. George Johnston worked for Henry Schoolcraft in various roles for the US Indian Agency during the 1820s.
After Johnston's death, Susan Johnston and their son William managed the sugaring
and fishing business. The youngest son John McDougall Johnston settled on Sugar Island (an island along the St. Mary's River) across from Canada. He was later the last official US Indian Agent in the area.
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
fur trader for the North West Company
North West Company
The North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what was to become Western Canada...
at Sault Ste. Marie
Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan
Sault Ste. Marie is a city in and the county seat of Chippewa County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is in the north-eastern end of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, on the Canadian border, separated from its twin city of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, by the St. Marys River...
before the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, and a leader in the Michigan Territory
Michigan Territory
The Territory of Michigan was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 30, 1805, until January 26, 1837, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Michigan...
. He never became a US citizen. He married Ozhaguscodaywayquay
Ozhaguscodaywayquay
Ozhaguscodaywayquay , also called Neengay or Susan Johnston , was an important figure in the later Great Lakes fur trade. She was born into an Ojibwe family near La Pointe, Wisconsin...
(Woman of the Green Glade), daughter of Waubojeeg
Waubojeeg
Waub-o-jeeg, also written Wa-bo-jeeg or other variants of Ojibwe Waabojiig was a famous warrior and chief of the Ojibwa. He was born into the Adik doodem some time in the mid-18th century near Shagawamikong on the western end of Lake Superior...
(White Fisher), prominent Ojibwe
Ojibwa
The Ojibwe or Chippewa are among the largest groups of Native Americans–First Nations north of Mexico. They are divided between Canada and the United States. In Canada, they are the third-largest population among First Nations, surpassed only by Cree and Inuit...
war chief and civil leader from what is now northern Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. The Johnstons were leaders in both the Euro-American and Ojibwa communities. His life was markedly disrupted by the War of 1812, and demonstrated the changes of the period.
Early life fur trade
John Johnston (1762-1828), was born in Belfast, IrelandBelfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
to an upper-class Scots-Irish family. John Johnston held in his own right the estate of Craige, near Coleraine
Coleraine
Coleraine is a large town near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is northwest of Belfast and east of Derry, both of which are linked by major roads and railway connections...
in County Londonderry
County Londonderry
The place name Derry is an anglicisation of the old Irish Daire meaning oak-grove or oak-wood. As with the city, its name is subject to the Derry/Londonderry name dispute, with the form Derry preferred by nationalists and Londonderry preferred by unionists...
. His father was a civil engineer who planned and built the Belfast Water Works. During John Johnston's youth, his mother's brother was Attorney General of Ireland.
As a young man, Johnston emigrated in 1792 to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
for its opportunities. He had letters of introduction to Lord Dorchester, Governor of the colony. Through him he met leaders in society, including the magnates of the recently formed North West Company
North West Company
The North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what was to become Western Canada...
in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. The fur trade looked like a good opportunity to make a profit. Johnston planned to be a "wintering partner", one who traded with Native Americans at the post on the frontier. He purchased trade goods in Montreal to take with him.
Marriage
Johnston went to Sault Ste. Marie, a journey which then took several weeks, where he settled on the south side of the river. There Johnston met OzhaguscodaywayquayOzhaguscodaywayquay
Ozhaguscodaywayquay , also called Neengay or Susan Johnston , was an important figure in the later Great Lakes fur trade. She was born into an Ojibwe family near La Pointe, Wisconsin...
(Woman of the Green Glade), daughter of Waubojeeg
Waubojeeg
Waub-o-jeeg, also written Wa-bo-jeeg or other variants of Ojibwe Waabojiig was a famous warrior and chief of the Ojibwa. He was born into the Adik doodem some time in the mid-18th century near Shagawamikong on the western end of Lake Superior...
(White Fisher), a prominent Ojibwe war chief and civil leader from what is now northern Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. Johnston fell in love with the Chief Waubojeeg's daughter, but the Chief was skeptical of white men and initially refused when Johnston asked for his daughter in marriage, saying: "White Man, I have noticed your behaviour, it has been correct; but, White Man, your colour is deceitful. Of you, may I expect better things? You say you are going to Montreal; go, and if you return I shall be satisfied of your sincerity and will give you my daughter." The couple married, after which Ozhaguscodaywayquay was also called Susan Johnston. Like Johnston, most fur traders were Europeans of social standing and together with the upper-class Ojibwa women they married, they formed the upper tier of a two-class frontier society. "Kinship and ties of affinity proved more than merely useful to the traders. They were both a source of power and a necessity if one was to achieve success in the trade." Johnston was considered the first permanent European-American settler there.
The Johnstons' cedar log house on Water Street in Sault Ste. Marie was built in 1796 in a French colonial style. When their eldest daughter Jane married Henry Schoolcraft, the Johnstons built an addition for them to live in. Some years later, the Schoolcrafts built their own house in the village. The addition is the only remaining part of the Johnston house, one of the featured historic houses in the city.
Although the south side of the river became United States territory in 1797, Johnston never bothered to become a citizen. The border was a fluid area. In those years, Native Americans had separate status and were not considered United States citizens. For the people at Sault Ste. Marie after 1797, there was little change in their daily lives or relations with the Ojibwa, except as they received more American explorers.
Career
As a young man, Johnston was thrilled at the opportunity he saw with the North West Company. He was impressed by the partners he met and their refined lives. When formed in 1787, the company had 23 partners and 2000 employees: "Agents, factors, clerks, guides, interpreters, and voyageurs."Over the years Johnston became successful himself, with fur trading and relations with the Ojibwa enhanced by Susan's family ties to the Ojibwa community. The Johnstons were known as a refined and cultured family, leaders in both the Ojibwa and Euro-American communities who maintained a wide range of relations.
As part of their culture of building relationships, the Johnstons welcomed to their home an array of significant players in the region, including surveyors, explorers, traders, governmental officials, trappers and political leaders. With his wife and her family's help, Johnston developed a broad knowledge of both the Ojibwa ways and the Great Lakes region. He played an integral role in developing the Michigan frontier and was appointed a Justice of the Peace.
Sault Ste. Marie was a community with a mix of fur traders, most of whom had Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
wives; Ojibwa natives, some of high status; and workers who were Métis, European, and Native American. Structures were both permanent and temporary, featuring warehouses for furs, scattered housing and Indian wigwams, and sheds for boats. Many of the Ojibwa stayed in the area for the fishing more than for the settlement.
Increasing economic tensions between Great Britain and the US affected the fur trade. In 1806 US changes to the Jay Treaty
Jay Treaty
Jay's Treaty, , also known as Jay's Treaty, The British Treaty, and the Treaty of London of 1794, was a treaty between the United States and Great Britain that is credited with averting war,, resolving issues remaining since the Treaty of Paris of 1783, which ended the American Revolution,, and...
of 1794 restricted British fur traders to operating in Canada. Both they and the Ojibwa wished to return to the previous arrangement, which allowed free passage across the border for trade by nationals of both countries and by the Indians.
During the War of 1812, Johnston's longstanding British affiliations led him to assist the British. After a direct appeal from the garrison at Michilimackinac
Michilimackinac
Michilimackinac is a name for the region around the Straits of Mackinac between Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. Early settlers of North America applied the term to the entire region along Lakes Huron, Michigan, and Superior. Today it is mostly within the boundaries of Michigan, in the United States...
, Johnston supplied about 100 of his men and took two batteaux for their relief in 1814. When an American force failed to intercept him, it went on to Sault Ste. Marie. There the US raiders burned the North West Company warehouses on both sides of the St. Mary's River, causing substantial losses to Johnston and the Company. The troops also raided his house, called Johnson Hall. They looted the library and furnishings, and burning the house down. (Johnston's wife and children fled into the woods when the soldiers arrived.) Johnston never became a U.S. citizen.
The Johnstons' oldest son Louis (also appears as Lewis) was a lieutenant in the British Navy and served on the Queen Charlotte during the War of 1812. He was captured by Commodore Oliver Perry during the battle on Lake Erie
Lake Erie
Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...
. His treatment by the Americans while he was held prisoner at Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
turned him against living under their rule.
After the war, Johnston made a direct appeal to Governor Lewis Cass
Lewis Cass
Lewis Cass was an American military officer and politician. During his long political career, Cass served as a governor of the Michigan Territory, an American ambassador, a U.S. Senator representing Michigan, and co-founder as well as first Masonic Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Michigan...
of Michigan to have the restriction against his trading in the interior lifted because of his other services to the region, but to no avail. He suffered financially from his losses and reduced trading, and was never able to rebuild his former wealth. Although he applied to the British government for compensation for his losses, no payment was made. Believing he was too old to remove to Canada, he stayed in Sault Ste. Marie. In 1821 Johnston served as a Commissioner during negotiations to end the rivalry between the North West and Hudson's Bay companies
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
and helped achieve their merger.
Still worried about potential British agitation of Native Americans along the border, in 1822 the US government built and staffed Fort Brady
Fort Brady
Colonel Hugh Brady established Fort Brady at Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan Territory in 1822 to guard against British incursions from Canada.The garrison at the fort protected exclusive American sovereignty over the northern frontier...
at Sault Ste. Marie. With the fort and troops, other American settlers started to come into the area in greater number. The culture of Sault Ste. Marie changed markedly. Johnston and others who had earlier formed and dominated the community were passed by as the newcomers banded together. The presence of military troops formalized the role of government. The new American residents were reluctant to become involved with the French, Ojibwe or Métis, and disdained most of the existing society.
Family
The Johnstons had eight children, most of whom were American by birth. They educated them in EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Ojibwe and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
. Johnston had a large library filled with English classical authors, including poets, which his children used for their literary education. The parents took care to educate their children in both cultures, and expected them to have opportunities in society equivalent to their standing. Many fur traders sent their children to Montreal for school.
The Johnstons' eldest daughter Jane
Jane Johnston Schoolcraft
Jane Johnston Schoolcraft, also known as Bamewawagezhikaquay is the first known American Indian literary writer. She was of Ojibwa and Scots-Irish ancestry...
married Henry Rowe Schoolcraft, who arrived in Sault Ste. Marie in 1822 as Indian agent for the US government. He was to establish formal relationships with the Native Americans. He became noted as an ethnographer and writer about Native American life. Despite his marriage and interests, he remained more outside Native American life than the fur trader John Johnston.
Jane Johnston Schoolcraft
Jane Johnston Schoolcraft
Jane Johnston Schoolcraft, also known as Bamewawagezhikaquay is the first known American Indian literary writer. She was of Ojibwa and Scots-Irish ancestry...
was inducted in 2008 into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame
Michigan Women's Hall of Fame
The Michigan Women's Hall of Fame honors distinguished women, both historical and contemporary, who have been associated with the U.S. state of Michigan. It is housed in the Michigan Women's Historical Center and Hall of Fame building, located at 213 W. Malcolm X St. in downtown Lansing, Michigan...
for her own contributions to literature and history. She is recognized as the first Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
literary writer and poet. A major collection of her work was published in 2007.
The second daughter Eliza never married. The next two married well. The third daughter married Archdeacon
Archdeacon
An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in Anglicanism, Syrian Malabar Nasrani, Chaldean Catholic, and some other Christian denominations, above that of most clergy and below a bishop. In the High Middle Ages it was the most senior diocesan position below a bishop in the Roman Catholic Church...
MacMurray, of Niagara, who worked as a missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
with tribes along Lake Superior
Lake Superior
Lake Superior is the largest of the five traditionally-demarcated Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded to the north by the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of Minnesota, and to the south by the U.S. states of Wisconsin and Michigan. It is the largest freshwater lake in the...
. Maria, the youngest daughter, married James Laurence Schoolcraft, a younger brother of Henry Rowe Schoolcraft.
The Anglo-American settlement and rule over Sault Ste. Marie and Michigan after the War of 1812 changed the culture markedly within a generation. It particularly disadvantaged the mixed-race men, even those of upperclass families such as the Johnstons. The Americans disdained the children of mixed marriages; in addition, they were suspicious of Roman Catholics and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
speakers. They often did not take the time to discern the layers of northern Michigan society, but lumped all those together who had preceded them in Sault Ste. Marie and other communities.
As noted above, the oldest son Lewis stayed in Canada after the War of 1812.
Because of Johnston's resistance to becoming a citizen of the US, his second son George was shut out of the fur trade as the Americans exerted more control. George Johnston worked for Henry Schoolcraft in various roles for the US Indian Agency during the 1820s.
After Johnston's death, Susan Johnston and their son William managed the sugaring
Sugaring
Sugaring is a food preservation method similar to pickling. Sugaring is the process of desiccating a food by first dehydrating it, then packing it with pure sugar...
and fishing business. The youngest son John McDougall Johnston settled on Sugar Island (an island along the St. Mary's River) across from Canada. He was later the last official US Indian Agent in the area.
External links
- Robert Dale Parker, Jane Johnston Schoolcraft, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Dave Stanaway and Susan Askwith, CD: John Johnston: His Life and Times in the Fur Trade Era, Borderland Records.
- Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online