The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1897-05-20

mon POkagOn, who is now engaged IN
writing his fathers biography. There
IS nothing about the spot to indicate
that it was ever a place of human
habitatron. In a valley running
back from the st. Joseph river about
2 mile to the west, at the head Of a
rlppling, winding little brook, sur
rounded by hills and on two sides by
heavy oak forests, it lies, a peaceful,
picturesque little nook Of farm land
rarely ever cultivated, seldom visited
save by the farmers boy who goes to
bring home the cows grazing where
Inc wigwams stood a half century ago,
Or by the relic hunter who knows it's
history. It is hidden from the highway
and not a trace of the old town is left.
HOW old it was no one now living can
tell. The few log huts that Pokagon
and his followers with their little fam
lies occupied looked to the first white
settlers who saw them sixty-seven
years ago, as if they were about ready
TO tumble down and they might have,
3been built seventy-fve or 100 years
before that time. Probably an Indian
village had been there around the bub-
bling spring that formed the source
of the little brook for many genera
lions. The numerous relics of the
stone and copper variety found in the
vicinity would indicate this.
Pokagon was pious Indian. On one
OF the hills overlooking the village
was a log chapel where he and his
people worshiped according to the
rites Of the Catholic church, taught
them by their fathers How long the
chapel had been built is not known,
but it may have been one of the mis-
slons established more than 200 years
ago by Father Claude Allouez, the
pioneer missionary of the region,
whose ashes are reposing somewhere
along the st. Joseph river, the exact
spot of his burial place not being
known. In 1859 the English drove the
French from this region and took pos
session of the territory, dissolving all
these missions. They were not re-es-
tablished for nearly 100 years after
ward, and during that period, although
the Indians were deprived of the care
and instruction of the priests, they did
not forget the forms of the church.
|stsIn the latter part of the ,20s Polka
gon made pilgrimage to Detroit to
| implore the church authorities to send
| a "black robe,'' the Indian name for
| priest, among his people. His speech
to the vicar-general of the bishop OF
Cincinnati, Father Gabriel Richard, on
this occasion, is on record. It was an
earnest and effective plea. II implore
you,'' he said, to send us black robe
to teach us the word of God. If you
have no care for us old men, at least
have pity on our poor children, who
are growing up in ignorance and vice
| Eve still preserve the manner Of
prayer as taught our ancestors by the
black robe who formerly resided at st
Joseph. Morning and evening with
my wife and children we pray together
before the crucifix. Sunday we pray
together oftener. On Friday we fas
all evening, men, women and children
according to the traditions handed
down to us by our fathers and mothers
for we have never seen black robe
Listen to the prayers which he laugh
to them and see if I have not learne,
them correctly" Then the old chic
fell on his knees, made the signs an,
repeated the prayers of the church, tn
creed and the ten commandments il
the Pottawattomie tongue.
The result of the plea was the send
ing Of Father Stephen Theodore Ba
din, the first Catholic priest ordaine
in the United States, who came to In
diana in 1929 and for several year
had charge of all the missions i,
southern Michigan and northern Indi
ana. He established mission tw
miles north of South Bend that eyentu
ally developed into the great Notr
Dame university of today. He was tn
religious instructor of Pokagon's ban
as long as they stayed at the old vii
lage and there are a number of oil
residents of the vicinity that hear
Father Badin preach in the little 10
church on the hill. The church itse
has long since been taken away, bu
the foundation remains. Down th
valley on the bank Of the river was th
burying place of Pokagon town an
the old cedar cross with its hoizonts
arm gone is still standing. It wa
there when the first white settlers cam
into the region.
Pokagon is represented by some hi:
torical writer's as the leader of ban
!, of Pottawattomies in a battle with tt
Shawnees in the days before the white
at Three Rivers, but this can be classe
as fiction, as Pokagon was who'll
ayerse to fighting, and his whole all
was to keep his people from wa
Again, he is said to have been at tt
:. massacre Of Fort Dearborn in 1872
the capacity Of peacemaker and to ha,
been the one who brought Capt. Heal
and his wife away from the blood
ARRAY at Chicago and across the lal
to st. Joseph. This is not believed
be true by some of the older resident
who were acquainted with Pokago
He never made any such claim
them. though he had beer heard