Bibliograph

On our own ground, the complete writings of William Apess, a Pequot, edited and with an introduction by Barry O'Connell

Type

Label

On our own ground, the complete writings of William Apess, a Pequot, edited and with an introduction by Barry O'Connell

Language

eng

Bibliography note

Includes bibliographical references and index

Illustrations

illustrations

Index

index present

Literary Form

non fiction

Main title

On our own ground

Nature of contents

bibliography

Oclc number

24172996

Responsibility statement

edited and with an introduction by Barry O'Connell

Series statement

Native Americans of the Northeast

Sub title

the complete writings of William Apess, a Pequot

Summary

This book brings together all of the known writings of William Apess, a Native American of mixed Pequot and white parentage who fought for the United States in the War of 1812, became a Methodist minister in 1829, and championed the rights of the Mashpee tribe on Cape Cod in the 1830s. Apess's A Son of the Forest, originally published in 1829, was the first extended autobiography by an American Indian. Readable and engaging, it is not only a rare statement by a Native American, but also an unusually full document in the history of New England native peoples. Another piece in the collection, The Experiences of Five Christian Indians of the Pequo[d] Tribe (1833), concludes with an eloquent and unprecedented attack on Euro-American racism entitled "An Indian's Looking-Glass for the White Man." Also included are Apess's account of the "Mashpee Revolt" of 1833-34, when the Native Americans of Mashpee petitioned the government of Massachusetts for the right to elect their own representatives, and his Eulogy on King Philip, an address delivered in Boston in 1836 to mark the 160th anniversary of King Philip's War. In his extensive introduction to the volume, Barry O'Connell reconstructs the story of Apess's life, situates him in the context of early nineteenth-century Pequot society, and interprets his writings both as a literary act and as an expression of emerging Native American politics

Table Of Contents

A son of the forest -- The increase of the Kingdom of Christ: a sermon and The Indians: the ten lost tribes -- The experiences of five Christian Indians of the Pequot tribe -- Indian nullification of the unconstitutional laws of Massachusetts relative to the Marshpee tribe; or, The pretended riot explained -- Eulogy on King Philip, as pronounced at the Odeon, in Federal Street, Boston

Classification

Contributor