The Kansas Methodist from Topeka, Kansas • 1

1 c-fr Eaisas llae lethot TOPEKA. MARCH 24, 1831. VOL. V. NO.

12 THE KANSAS 'IKTIDIST. PRICE, PER ANNUM. Rev. John D. Knox.

re Rev. O. Cowles, D. SLUSSER OAKLEY, Publishers. No.

'205 Kansas labors among the Kaws were for a time suspended. He remained among the Delawares until the next conference, when he was transferred to the Shawnee Mission, where he remained until the fall of 1S35. In May, 1S34, he was married to Miss Mary Jane Chjck, at her father's house, inlloward county, Missouri, by Rev, William Shores. After few days' visit; in. Missouri, he with his wife to labor at the Shawnee Mission.

At that time this mission events that happened in the everyday life at the Mission, but the materials for this are not at present available. Early in March, 1S42, Mr. Johnson and wife attended a quarterly meeting near Independence Missouri. While here became very sick, and remained at the nouse of Rev. Thomas Ruble tor about three weeks He recovered sufficiently to return with his family to his home at the Kaw Mission.

On the 6th day of April following, he made a business trip to the Shawnee Mission. The fatigues an'i exposure incident to a trip of this distance over sixty miles brought back the disease pneumonia in a more serious SPECIAL CONTRIBUTORS. Elder" J. A. Simpson, Manhattan, Kansas.

Elder T. Rhodes, Baldwin was located about six miles west of Rev. J. A. Swaney, D.

McKeesport, Pa. Rev. Wm. Jones, Lawrence, Kansas. Elder R.

Wake, Central ia, Kansas. Rev. W. H. Sweet, Baldwin City, Kansas.

Elder O. Lynch, Topeka, Kansas. Elder Noah Asher, Newton, Kansas. Rev. W.

B. Avery, Independence, Kansas. Rtv. Samuel Price, Humboldt, Kansas. Westport, Missouri, and within the present limits of Johnson county Kan sas.

In 1S39 tne mission was removed to within two and one-half miles of form. He became rapidly worse, and died shortly afterwards. An Indian Westport. It, was discontinued in The First Kaw Indian Mission. 1862.

messenger was dispatched to the Kaw BY WM. W. CONE. Mission, to inform Mrs. Johnson of In the spring of 1835, the United the dangerous illness of her husband.

States Government, desiring to remove In so high esteem was he held by the The following interesting bit of is from advance sheets of the report of the State Historical Indians, that aboi't twenty of thejmost prominent members of the tribe ac its farming operations for the Kaw Indians from its first location near the mouth of the Grasshopper river to a convenient locality in close proximity to the Indian villages, instructed Major Society, which were kindly furnished us companied Mrs. Johnson on her pain-, ful journey but getting impatient at by the author To the Methodist Church belongs Robert Cummings, Indian Agent, what seemed to them slow traveling, they pushed on ahead, and arrived at the credit of establishing the first Chris to make the selections for two farms. tian mission among the Kaw or Kansas he writes me, of establishing a manual labor school among the Kaws. They kept a few Indian children at the Mission, and taught them through the first year. Mr.

Peery was then 1846 appointed "Farmer for the and cultivated about 115 acres of in the Kaw and Mission creek valleys, adjoining the Missiou. 7 The school was discontinued that reason This year the Government made another treaty with the Kaws, they relinquishing their right to the lands on. the Kaw river for another location around Council Crovc. I The treaty: Mas perfected through the agency of Major Thomas H. Harvey, superintendent of of the northwestern tribesat the Kaw Misson Mr.

Peery attending every meeting. Mr. Chouteau relates the following anecdote in connection with Mr. Peery 's missionary life A Methodist General Conference was held at Baltimore in the year 18 and Peer was elected a delegate to the conference. He was accompanied on the trip by four or five prominent Indians.

-At the hotel in Baltimore the Indians were given feather beds to sleep upbn. The weather being very warm and sultry, and this being their first experience, they very naturally felt the awkwardness and extreme unpleasantness of their position. Just about daylight Mr. and Mrs. Peery were awakened from their slumbers by hearing a loud noise in the street.

Upon looking out of their window they saw the Indians walking up and down the street with nothing on but nature's covering, fanning themselves. Some early-risers, who had gathered around the Indians, were cheering them, and this was the noise tjiat had awakened Mr. Peery. A few months previous to the removal of the Indians to Council Grove, Mr. Peery was sent by the conference to labor among the Cherokees; and Mr.

Mitchell, the government blacksmith for the Kaws, moved into the Mission building, and resided here until the spring of 1847. He then removed to Council Grove, and his wife is said to have been the first white woman at the Grove. The blacksmith for the Pottawatomies, Isaac Mundy, then oc theShawnee Mission a short time before Major Cummings selected about 300 Indians On the 16th day of Septem 1 acres of land in the Kaw valley, on ber, 1830, the Methodist conference of the north side of the Kaw river, just east of the present site of Silver Lake, in Shawnee county, Kansas, and about the death of their beloved teacher. Mrs. Johnson did not arrive until an hour after his death.

Mr. Johnson is represented by those who knew him, to have, been above medium height, and well formed. He is said to have had more influence 300 acres one mile south of the river, in the valley of Mission creek, in the same county. Mr. Frederick Chouteau, of Westport, Missouri, assisted Major among the Kaw Indians than any other person, either before or since.

Their Cummings in the selection of these farms. The land' on the latter farm was plowed, under contract, by Major Daniel Boone, a grandson of the Kentucky pioneer. It was here, on the north part of this farm, on the northwest corner of section 33, township 11, range 14, that the first mission buildings among the Kaws veneration for him was marvelous. It wa through his influence that the Indians permitted their children to attend the Manual Labor School among the Shawnees, and after his death the children were taken from the schooh Mr. Chouteau, however, states that soon after the children returned to their homes many of them died.

The Indians then refused ro send any more children back to the school, because, as they termed it, "they got too much were established. They were erected in the summer of 1835 a hewn log Missouri, then in session at St. Louis, enlarged the limits of its jurisdiction, arid formed four new missionary stations among the Indians in the Indian Territory; one among each of the. following tribes, viz The Cherokees and Creeks in the southwest, and the Shaw-nets and Kaws in the northwest. Two brothers.

Thomas and William Johnson residing in Howard county, Missouri, were selected to take charge of the missions in the northwest Rev. Thomas Johnson being assigned to labor among the Shawnees, west of the Missouri state line, and Rev. William Johnson among the Kaws, on Kansas river. William Johnson was born in Nelson county, Virginia, February 2, 1805. He removed with his father to Missouri in 1825 The next season he was licensed to preach, and in the fall of the same year was received into the conference on trial.

In 1829, he was appointed to the New Madrid district, and the next year he was received into full connection, and appointed as above "Missionary among the Kaw Indians." From 1830 to 1832, Mr. Johnson resided among the Kaws, at their villages, about ten miles west of the present site of Topeka. But in September of the latter year, he was appointed, in connection with Thomas Markham, to of the mission mong the Delaware Indians, and hisi cabin, two stories high, 18 feet wide by 36 feet long. It" was divided into smell of big khife among the whites." four rooms, two above and two below, Their sickness was probably owing to and with a stone chimney at each end the great change from regular hours and strict habits of life, acquired at of the building on the outside, as was the custom in those days by people from the Southern States. This, to the Mission, to unrestrained liberty and irregularity in diet, etc.

gether with a smoke-house, kitchen, Rev. Geo. W. Love was sent, soon and other out-buildings, was all that constituted the Mission improvement. after the death of Mr.

Johnson, to the cupied it until the spring of 1S50. At Mission. He, however, remained here In September of the same year, Rev. William Johnson and family removed to the Mission, and for over seven but a short time, and nothing is known by the writer of the Mission while under his charge. years resided here.

He and his wife this time, Joseph Bourassa, a half-breed Pottawatomie, moved into it, and remained there until 1853, when he tore the building down and removed the logs about one mile north, and then erected another residence. I am indebted mainly for the mater- Concluded on Seventh Page. learned to speak the Indian language, In the year 1844, Mrs. Johnson was and this knowledge became very useful married to Rev. J.T.

Peery, and early in the following year Mr. Peery was to them in their missionary labors. It would be a pleasant task to record the sent to the Mission for the purpose, as 0.