Wau-Bun: The "Early Day" in the Northwest

by Juliette Augusta Magill Kinzie

Every work partaking of the nature of an autobiography is supposed to demand an apology to the public. To refuse such a tribute, would be to recognize the justice of the charge, so often brought against our countrymen—of a too great willingness to be made acquainted with the domestic history and private affairs of their neighbors.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, History

462 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1856

About the author

American historian, writer and pioneer of the American Midwest

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where I got the book: free on Kindle.

This is the real deal; a woman who lived on what was then the Western frontier telling it how it was. And making it all sound perfectly normal. Hostile tribes, swarms of mosquitos, dangerous journeys, injury and illness? No prob. Husband away for months? Near starvation? We can hack it.

Reading this short book really made me appreciate the spirit that built America. This was back when Chicago was a collection of huts (she describes, at one point, how they invited all five single men in Chicago to a party) and includes Mrs. Kinzie's transcription of an eyewitness account of the Fort Dearborn massacre.

I don't know whether to be surprised at how much sympathy Mrs. Kinzie has for the Native Americans. She understands precisely why they have reason not to love the white men, and sees that their land and traditions are being stolen away from them. At the same time, she has a paternalistic attitude toward them, seeing them as "our children" and thus evidently not capable of managing by themselves. I suspect this dual attitude was typical of the settlers of the time.

I would heartily recommend this book to anyone interested in the early history of America outside its original colonies. Fascinating.

[Crystal Foley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good narrative as to what life was like in the 1830's in the upper midwest or as it was called then, the northwest. The story itself is a bit disjointed, however, if you are reading it to get a feel for the era, then you can forgive the storytelling.

[Patrick\ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another good midwest history read. The Lakeside Classic version has the feel and look one wants in such a book, but this will do.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read for anyone interested in Wisconsin history.

[Vickie Oddino · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book. If you like history and appreciate primary, contemporary sources, this should not be missed.

Kenzie details life on the frontier in Wisconsin, where her husband served as an Indian Agent at Fort Winnebago during the early 1830s. What was particularly interesting to me is that she was from a well-to-do family on the east coast. Yet she recounts canoeing down rivers in freezing temperatures, sometimes falling into the frigid water, riding horseback for days, losing food supplies to the torrential rains, and all of the other incredible hardships that would come with a primitive water voyage through rivers and lakes in the 1800s. She narrates these with an unbelievable grace and good humor, never bitter or angry about what she has faced. And to give you an idea of how privileged her life in Connecticut was, she was followed by a boat carrying furniture, which included her piano!

Her life was fully intertwined with the Native Americans in the area, and she relates these relationships with them in very positive terms. But it is, of course, complicated because this is also the time during the Sauk War.

Kenzie writes with incredible detail and is a masterful storyteller. Oh, and it is a very easy read. Although the writing is very sophisticated, the language is quite modern, and the sentence structure is not archaic at all.

I highly recommend!

[Stephanie Eastwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Juliette Magill Kinzie's first-hand descriptions of people and land she knew and traveled by river and over southern prairies in Wisconsin in the 1830s made the past real for me. A highlight is her mother-in-law's account of an even earlier Chicago history (when it was a few farms and a fort surrounded by marshland). On their way to Chicago, she stayed at the home of a lead miner's family in Wiota (Fort Hamilton) in Lafayette County, where I live. I think everyone in Wisconsin should read this book, which is in the public domain and free online. The best versions include Juliette Kinzie's watercolor landscapes of scenes she saw journeying the Wisconsin River.

[Beth Doud · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting book written by an ancestor of Juliette Gordon Low, founder of Girl Scouts. Describes her adventures and trials of traveling through the wilds of Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois and the early settlement of those areas.

[April Helms · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another book that had been on my "must read" list for a long time. This is an interesting read for anyone liking history, particularly history in the Wisconsin/Michigan/Illinois area. It also may be of interest to those involved in Girl Scouting -- Juliette Kinzie was the grandmother of Juliette Gordon Low, founder of the Girl Scouts. Mrs. Kinzie moved with her husband to Wisconsin, into Fort Winnebago, where he served as a liason between the tribes there and the United States government. This book, memoirs and reflections of Mrs. Kinzie's life in the late 1820s and 1830s, offers an interesting and rare first-hand account of the area then. Kinzie was an accomplished artist, and pictures of the landscapes she saw are included in the book. Also helpful are the author's note and footnotes, explaining various people who would have been known then, but not necessarily today, along with the occassional note when Kinzie's memory was not quite accurate (the book was first published in 1856).

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this in college and was riveted for most of it. It helps that Kinzie's narrative describes the earliest known description of my hometown area (the Lake Geneva, Wis. area). But Juliette Kinzie also proved to be an admirable and likeable character from the early frontier and I very much enjoyed her voice. The first part of the book is a somewhat unnecessary, biased, second-hand account of the massacre at Fort Dearborn, and that is definitely the weakest part of the book. But as soon as she begins describing her own experiences in the Wisconsin Territory and their arduous early-spring journey through the state to what is now Chicago, the story becomes fascinating and entertaining. A must-read for anyone interested in the history of the Midwest.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! I read it with a map nearby, because I grew up in the areas she described and I wanted to follow her journeys. Though the author was clearly a well-educated version of the opinions of her time, her spirit when confronting hardship and discomfort were heartening, as was her very enlightened view of the history of the Indians and their relationships with the white settlers. I highly recommend this book.

[Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fascinating report of life in Portage, WI and the surrounding area in the early frontier days. The author married the Indian agent and came to Wisconsin with him as a young bride. She tells of many adventures. Her husband's parents had the first house in Chicago.

[Mardell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read for info on early days, 1830's, in Wisconsin - considered the wilderness at this time.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

An amazing look at going off into the wilderness and hoping you will make it to somewhere.