Aaniin! I wish to express my gratitude to many wonderful colleagues, students, friends, and family members who live and work in Ojibwe Country. The fine people who make up the departments of American Studies, American Indian Studies, and History at the University of Minnesota have challenged me to think deeply and critically about issues of gender and American Indian history, and I appreciate their encouragement and fellowship. It is a privilege for me to work surrounded by scholars who have shaped conversations in my field, and to be part of the vibrant and remarkable Indian community of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
For their generous support while researching this book, I am deeply grateful to the staff of the Minnesota Historical Society. They have not only provided me with a fantastic hideaway—an office just steps from the library and archives for writing—but many librarians, curators, and other staff who work at this significant institution have been generous with their time and support for my projects, including this book. Erik Redix, Karissa White, and Kasey Keeler were essential research assistants, and I thank them for the long hours they logged on my behalf not only at the Minnesota Historical Society and University Libraries, but in Erik’s case also in the National Archives. Karissa was invaluable for oral histories conducted in Minneapolis and northern Minnesota. I must also thank Kevin Doughten, my thoughtful editor, and members of the advisory board for the Penguin Library of American Indian History who, along with Carolyn Carlson, suggested there be a book about the Ojibwe in this series.
I am deeply grateful for the intellectual fellowship and friendship of many Ojibwe writers and scholars, and have learned so much from Kim Blaeser, John Borrows, Louise Erdrich, Anton Treuer, Gerald Vizenor, Michael Witgen, and others in the strong circles who write about the Ojibwe people. I am also grateful to my colleague John Nichols, who advised me about Ojibwe words and spellings in the book, and gave me positive advice and encouragement. I have great admiration for the work and spirit of the Ojibwe women interviewed for the Ojibwe Women Oral History Project. Their ideas and words allowed me to write a chapter about the Minneapolis American Indian community.
My son, Frankie, likes to refer to the annual meetings of the American Society for Ethnohistory as “Ethnohistory Camp,” and I admit that members of this congenial group of scholars take unusual pleasure in our yearly get-togethers. For their endurance and commitment to getting it right while having fun I am thankful for David Edmunds, Rayna Green, John Troutman, Brian Klopotek, Jeffrey Ostler, Jenny Tone-Pa-Hote, Keith Richotte, Heidi Stark, Jill Doerfler, Chantal Norrgard, Kate Williams, Erik Redix, Jean O’Brien, Patrick McNamara, Pat Albers, Bruce White, Jacqueline Peterson, Susan Sleeper-Smith, Jacki Rand, Raymond Fogelson, Tsianina Lomawaima, Colin Calloway, Frederick Hoxie, and all the ethnohistorians I enjoy meeting up with in a new location every year, from Quebec City to Mexico City. Our wonderful colleague, Helen H. Tanner, would have enjoyed seeing this book in print.
This book about Ojibwe women, along with my earlier Boarding School Seasons, both found inspiration in the strength of Ojibwe family and community life. The extended families named Auginash, Child, and McNamara all inspire me in their own ways. To say they are merely supportive of my work is an underestimation of their gifts to me, but with Pat, Frankie, Benay, and Uncle Brian at the center of my life, I am reminded of my good fortune. Miigwech!