![Anishinaabe-Anishinini Distribution Map](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/Anishinaabe-Anishinini_Distribution_Map.svg)
The Mississauga are a subtribe of the
Anishinaabe
The Anishinaabeg (adjectival: Anishinaabe) are a group of culturally related Indigenous peoples present in the Great Lakes region of Canada and the United States. They include the Ojibwe (including Saulteaux and Oji-Cree), Odawa, Potawat ...
-speaking
First Nations
First Nations or first peoples may refer to:
* Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area.
Indigenous groups
*First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including:
**First Natio ...
peoples located in southern
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
, Canada. They are closely related to the
Ojibwe
The Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa, or Saulteaux are an Anishinaabe people in what is currently southern Canada, the northern Midwestern United States, and Northern Plains.
According to the U.S. census, in the United States Ojibwe people are one of ...
. The name "Mississauga" comes from the
Anishinaabe
The Anishinaabeg (adjectival: Anishinaabe) are a group of culturally related Indigenous peoples present in the Great Lakes region of Canada and the United States. They include the Ojibwe (including Saulteaux and Oji-Cree), Odawa, Potawat ...
word ''Misi-zaagiing'', meaning "
hose at theGreat River-mouth." It is closely related to the Ojibwe word ''Misswezahging'', which means ‘a river with many outlets.’
History
According to the oral histories of the Anishinaabe, after departing the "Second Stopping Place" near
Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Fall ...
, the core Anishinaabe peoples migrated along the shores of
Lake Erie
Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also h ...
to what is now southern
Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
. They became "lost" both physically and spiritually. The Mississauga migrated along a northern route by the
Credit River
The Credit River is a river in southern Ontario, which flows from headwaters above the Niagara Escarpment near Orangeville and Caledon East to empty into Lake Ontario at Port Credit, Mississauga. It drains an area of approximately . The total le ...
, to
Georgian Bay
Georgian Bay (french: Baie Georgienne) is a large bay of Lake Huron, in the Laurentia bioregion. It is located entirely within the borders of Ontario, Canada. The main body of the bay lies east of the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island. To ...
. These were considered their historic traditional lands on the shores of
Lake Superior
Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...
and northern
Lake Huron around the
Mississagi River
The Mississagi River is a river in Algoma and Sudbury Districts, Ontario, Canada, that originates in Sudbury District and flows to Lake Huron at Blind River, Algoma District.
Etymology
The river's name comes from the Ojibwe ''misi-zaagi'', ...
. The Mississauga called for the core Anishinaabe to ''
Midewiwin
The Midewiwin (in syllabics: , also spelled ''Midewin'' and ''Medewiwin'') or the Grand Medicine Society is a secretive religion of some of the indigenous peoples of the Maritimes, New England and Great Lakes regions in North America. Its prac ...
'', meaning 'return to the path of the good life'. The core Anishinaabe peoples formed the
Council of Three Fires
The Council of Three Fires (in oj, label=Anishinaabe, Niswi-mishkodewinan, also known as the People of the Three Fires; the Three Fires Confederacy; or the United Nations of Chippewa, Ottawa, and Potawatomi Indians) is a long-standing Anishina ...
and migrated from their "Third Stopping Place" near the present city of
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
to their "Fourth Stopping Place" on
Manitoulin Island
Manitoulin Island is an island in Lake Huron, located within the borders of the Canadian province of Ontario, in the bioregion known as Laurentia. With an area of , it is the largest lake island in the world, large enough that it has over 100 ...
, along the eastern shores of Georgian Bay.
The homelands of the Mississaugas were originally claimed by the
Huron/Wyandot, who were driven off by the
Haudenosaunee
The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...
in the
Beaver Wars in 1649/50.
The Ojibwe Anishinaabe then moved into the area around 1700, pushing out the Haudenosaunee.
The
French had previously called an Anishinaabe band near the
Mississagi River
The Mississagi River is a river in Algoma and Sudbury Districts, Ontario, Canada, that originates in Sudbury District and flows to Lake Huron at Blind River, Algoma District.
Etymology
The river's name comes from the Ojibwe ''misi-zaagi'', ...
''Oumisagai'' or ''Mississauga'' and for unknown reasons began to apply that name to the Ojibwe who took over the lands immediately north of
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border ...
.
On the 1675 ''Carte du Mississippi et des lacs Supérieur, Michigan et Huron'', the Mississauga were recorded as "Missisakingdachirinouek" (''Misi-zaaging dash ininweg'': "Regular-speakers of the Great River-mouth"). This was not how the Mississaugas originally knew themselves,
but they eventually adopted the name and use it today.
When
Conrad Weiser
Conrad Weiser (November 2, 1696 – July 13, 1760), born Johann Conrad Weiser, Jr., was a Pennsylvania Dutch (German) pioneer who served as an interpreter and diplomat between the Pennsylvania Colony and Native American nations. Primarily a f ...
conducted a census in
Logstown
"extensive flats"
, settlement_type = Historic Native American village
, image_skyline = Image:Logstown1.jpg
, imagesize = 220px
, image_alt =
, image_map1 = Pennsylvania in United States ...
in 1748, he identified the people as ''Tisagechroamis'', his attempt at conveying the sound of their
exonym
An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group, ...
name in
Wendat. Other variants of this spelling were ''Tisagechroamis'', ''Tisaghechroamis'', ''Tisagechroan'', ''Tisagechroanu'', and ''Zisaugeghroanu''. "The Tisagechroanu were the Mississagas from
Lake Huron, a large tribe of French Indians, or under French influences. The name Tisagechroanue here is probably a misprint, for it is most often found Zisaugeghroanu."
![Plan of the Tract of Land Purchased from the Mississauga Indians in 1806 CTASC](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Plan_of_the_Tract_of_Land_Purchased_from_the_Mississauga_Indians_in_1806_CTASC.jpg)
In the waning years of the
American Revolution
The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...
, starting in 1781, the
British Crown purchased land from the Mississauga in a series of transactions that encompassed much of present-day southern
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
. They purchased the land to fulfill promises made in the 'Haldimand Deed', land promised to the ''Haudenosaunne'' of the Six Nations' Iroquois Confederacy for their allied support in the war, and to compensate them for losses of former territory to American colonists. But Britain, and subsequently Canada, reneged on many of their promises, as Lord Simcoe sought instead make land grants to
United Empire Loyalists
United Empire Loyalists (or simply Loyalists) is an honorific title which was first given by the 1st Lord Dorchester, the Governor of Quebec, and Governor General of The Canadas, to American Loyalists who resettled in British North America dur ...
and other white settlers seeking farmland.
In 1848, the Haudenosaunee granted land to the Mississauga within the former's Six Nations Reserve on Grand River. The Mississauga became established on the New Credit.
Beginning in the 19th century, the Mississauga sought to gain compensation for the land granted to them but given to other settlers. In the 21st century, the Canadian government awarded the Mississauga of the New Credit First Nation nearly $145 million in settlement of this land claim.
Legacy
* The city of
Mississauga is named after them.
* The Western and Eastern
massasauga rattlesnake (Sistrurus catenatus) are named after them.
*
Fort Mississauga is named after them.
Today
All the Mississaugas are a subset of the
Ojibwe
The Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa, or Saulteaux are an Anishinaabe people in what is currently southern Canada, the northern Midwestern United States, and Northern Plains.
According to the U.S. census, in the United States Ojibwe people are one of ...
nation of 200,000 people.
Historically, there were five
First Nations
First Nations or first peoples may refer to:
* Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area.
Indigenous groups
*First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including:
**First Natio ...
that made up the Mississauga Nations. Today, there are six, listed here along with their historical counterparts, where applicable:
*
Mississauga First Nation
Mississauga First Nation is one of the six First Nations that make up the Mississauga Nations. It is located directly west of Blind River, Ontario, Canada, on the Mississagi River 8 Reserve. —
Mississagi River 8 Reserve
Mississauga First Nation is one of the six First Nations that make up the Mississauga Nations. It is located directly west of Blind River, Ontario, Canada, on the Mississagi River 8 Reserve.
** Mississaugas of Chibaouinani (historical)
*
Alderville First Nation (formerly: Mississaugas of Alnwick) —
Alderville First Nation Reserve,
Sugar Island 37A Reserve
* Mississaugas of the Credit (historical)
**Mississaugas of Beldom (historical)
**
Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation
Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation ( oj, Mazina'iga-ziibing Misi-zaagiwininiwag, ''meaning: "Mississauga people at the Credit River"'') is a Mississauga Ojibwa First Nation located near Brantford in south-central Ontario, Canada. In April ...
—
New Credit 40A Reserve
Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation ( oj, Mazina'iga-ziibing Misi-zaagiwininiwag, ''meaning: "Mississauga people at the Credit River"'') is a Mississauga Ojibwa First Nation located near Brantford in south-central Ontario, Canada. In April ...
. One of the largest communities; as of 2005, the Mississaugas of the Credit had a population of 1,375.
* Mississaugas of Matchedash (historical)
* Mississaugas of Rice Lake, Mud Lake and Scugog Lake (historical)
**
Curve Lake First Nation
Curve Lake First Nation ( oj, Oshkiigmong) is a Mississauga Ojibway First Nation located in Peterborough County of Ontario. Curve Lake First Nation occupies three reserves; Curve Lake First Nation 35, Curve Lake 35A, and Islands in the Trent ...
(formerly: Mississaugas of Mud Lake) —
Curve Lake First Nation 35 Reserve
Curve Lake First Nation 35 is an Ojibwe Native reserve 14 km north of Peterborough, Ontario. It serves as the landbase for the Curve Lake First Nation. The reserve occupies a peninsula located between Lake Chemong and Buckhorn Lake, surr ...
,
Curve Lake 35A Reserve
Curve Lake 35A is a First Nations reserve on Fox Island, as well as other adjacent islands including Boyd Island, Joe Island, Red Rock Island and Rottenstone Island, in Buckhorn Lake, Ontario, Canada. It is one of three reserves of the Curve Lak ...
and
Islands in the Trent Waters Indian Reserve 36A
**Mississaugas of Grape Island (historical)
**
Hiawatha First Nation
The Hiawatha First Nation (formerly Mississaugas of Rice Lake) is a Mississauga Ojibwe First Nations reserve located on the north shore of Rice Lake east of the Otonabee River in Ontario, Canada.
It is found in Otonabee Township less than 15& ...
(formerly: Mississaugas of Rice Lake) —
Hiawatha First Nation Indian Reserve
Hiawatha ( , also : ), also known as Ayenwathaaa or Aiionwatha, was a precolonial Native American leader and co-founder of the Iroquois Confederacy. He was a leader of the Onondaga people, the Mohawk people, or both. According to some account ...
,
Islands in the Trent Waters Indian Reserve 36A
**
Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation —
Mississaugas of Scugog Island Reserve,
Islands in the Trent Waters Indian Reserve 36A
Notable people
*
Peter Jones (1802–1856), Mississauga missionary and writer
*
Edmonia Lewis
Mary Edmonia Lewis, also known as "Wildfire" (c. July 4, 1844 – September 17, 1907), was an American sculptor, of mixed African-American and Native American ( Mississauga Ojibwe) heritage. Born free in Upstate New York, she worked for most of ...
(ca. 1844–1907), Mississauga Ojibwe/African-American sculptor
*
Quenippenon, Mississauga Chief
See also
*
Crawford Purchase
The Crawford Purchase was an agreement that surrendered lands that extended west along the north shore of the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario from the Mississaugas to the British crown to enable Loyalist settlement in what is now a part of ea ...
*
Toronto Purchase
The Toronto Purchase was the sale of lands in the Toronto area from the Mississaugas of New Credit to the British crown. An initial, disputed, agreement was made in 1787, in exchange for various items. The agreement was revisited in 1805, intend ...
References
External links
Mississaugas of the Credit First NationsMississaugas of Alderville First NationOgemawahj Tribal Council
{{Authority control
Algonquian ethnonyms