Father Nicolas Frémiot Letter to Superiors

From RSMIN Community Heritage Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search

__NOTITLE__

Father Nicolas Frémiot Letter to Superiors


Name of document:

Father Nicolas Frémiot Letter to Superiors

Type of document:

Letter

Summary of the data:

This letter, authored by Father Nicolas Marie-Joseph Frémiot of the Jesuit Fathers, to his superiors describes a meeting between Commissioners, T.G. Anderson, Alexander Vidal and the Ojibwa Chiefs in the Lake Superior and Lake Huron areas. Anderson and Vidal were tasked with obtaining information regarding the Ojibwa Bands expectations for compensation in exchange for the surrender of their land. As a result, this meeting can be seen as one of the preliminary negotiations for the upcoming treaty (i.e. the Robinson-Superior Treaty, 1850).

In his letter, Father Frémiot discusses the proceedings of the meeting, indicating that the Commissioners were not agreeable to compensation requested by the First Nations Bands. As a result, in the letter Father Frémiot notes that the First Nations will not receive “the fortune that will allow them to dispense with working…but [will receive] a small bit of assistance which, at least, will help to clothe them” (para. 35). Father Frémiot also describes the attendees of the meeting and notes that Métis were present at the meeting but were not allowed to speak or participate. He questions whether or not this is advisable and wonders, “do some people fear that they, better informed than the Indians themselves, might be in a better position to defend their rights?” (para. 25) This demonstrates Métis presence in the region, if not their participation in the negotiations, prior to European political and legal control of the Lake Superior territory.

Important dates mentioned in the document:

October 18, 1849: Date the letter was sent.

Important people discussed in the document:

Father Nicolas Frémiot (October 5, 1818 - July 4, 1854)
Alexander Vidal (1819-1906)
Captain T. G. Anderson (?)
Peter Bell (?)
Joseph Peau de Chat (?)

Specific location(s) mentioned in the document (if applicable):

Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
Fort Nipigon at Lake Nipigon, Ontario
Pic Post at Pic River, Ontario
Fort Michipicoten, Ontario

Non-specific location(s) mentioned in the document (if applicable):

N/A

Specific event(s) identified in the document (if applicable):

N/A

Relevant citations:

Cadieux, Lorenzo, S.J., ed. Lettres Des Nouvelles Missions Du Canada 1843-1852. 2 vols. Montréal: Les Éditions Bellarmin, 1973. Print.

Cadieux, Lorenzo, S.J., ed. Letters from the New Canada Mission 1843-1852. Trans. George Topp and William Lone. 2 vols. Toronto: The Canadian Institute of Jesuit Studies, 2001. Print.

Gale, Alison. "Robinson Treaty Métis: Historical Report." Claims Research and Assessment Directorate Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. (1998). Print.

Was the information found online (yes/no)?:

Yes.

Document links and URLs (if applicable):

Nicolas-Joseph Frémiot - Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online

Date of access:

Nicolas-Joseph Frémiot biography found online

Webmaster if identified (for online documents only):

Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online


If you would like to contribute to this page or have more information please see How to Submit Changes and New Stories.