Monday, September 18, 2017

Mount Pleasant Boarding School

The Mount Pleasant Indian Industrial Boarding School opened 3 Jan 1893 with 17 students. The school closed 6 Jun 1934. In between those years many students attended.



Mt. Pleasant Indian School, Register of Pupils: (original records plus index by Larry Wykoff) -

Part 1 - 1894-1899

Part 2 - 1900-1904

Part 3 - 1905-1906

Part 4 - 1907-1908

Part 5 - 1910-1911

Part 6 - 1912-1914

Part 7 - 1914-1918

Part 8 - 1918-1922

Part 9 - 1922-1928

Part 10 - 1928-1932

A searchable transcription of the Register of Pupils 1893-1907.

List of names from the Mt. Pleasant Indian School and Agency Student Case Files 1893-1946 at the National Archives branch in Chicago.


Not everyone was happy to be at school.

Daily Telegram  (Adrian, Michigan) - 15 Jun 1899



Isabella County Enterprise 16 Jun 1899




From the Bay City Times - 3 Jul 1899.


Isabella County Enterprise - 7 Jul 1899





Grand Rapids Herald of 19 Aug 1899 tells of four girls who ran away.



Ranee and George Teeple c1900


In the 1900 Federal Census 184 students are named.






Charles Stafford, age 9 and Thomas Stafford, age 13 entered Mt. Pleasant school on 17 Apr 1900 for a term of three years. They were sent home 30 Jun 1903. The Muskegon Chronicle of 18 Jul 1903 mentions the children, who re-entered the Mt. Pleasant school in July of 1903.






Football team - 1906 (Simon Otto Collection)



The pictures below are from "Faces and Places Familiar Mt.Pleasant, Mich. 1906"
School



Farm


Boys' dorm

Cooking class

Sewing class



 Inside girls' dorm


Outside girls' dorm

Hospital

Inside laundry

Thirty-six piece band



Isabella County Enterprise 7 Jan 1907 tells of a girls chorus from the Mt. Pleasant school consisting of Agnes Dutton, Kate Cross, Minnie Clement, Ida Pashener and Sarah Sebastien.




Clarence Mishekey of Harbor Springs who attended school with his sister Hattie ran away at least twice. From the Evening News [Sault Ste. Marie] 30 Nov 1907.








Postcard from Ebay

The Durant Roll lists the following as students at Mt. Pleasant school # is Durant Roll number

Aken, Delia #318
Aken, Mary, #317
Allen, Rose #283
Andrews, Clara #831
Axen, John #36
Bemos, Amos #1068
Bird, Clara #831
Chingwaw, Louis Jr. #1407
Clement, Nellie #1178
Ettawegejig, Lacy #1930
Fish, Mary #1982
Gilbault, Clarence #2355
Gruett, Mrs. Sarah #2217
Johnson, Angeline #2855
Kaogoma, Annie age 13, #3078
Kewaykendo, David age 15 #3109
Kezhick, Joseph Jr age 11 #3178
Leeo, Sampson age 15 #3610
Louis, Sylvester age 28 #3696
Mashaqueto, Mary age 15 #4105
Mawby, Mitchell age 18 #4483
McClure, Jennie age 16 #4528
Meckety, Betsey age 19 #4444
Mendoka, Guy age 19 #4445
Mendowash, Delia age 16 # 4110
Menominee, Jonah age 15 #3831
Mitchell, Samuel age 12 #4183
Moses, Mabrose age 28 #3766
Moses, George age 17 #3769
Moses, Jacob age 19 #3767
Nahquam, Agnes age 23 #4657
Naskaw, Joe age 14 #4786
Neyome, Mary age 15 #4836
Neyome, Mike age 10 #4837
O’Connor, David age 18 #4945
Paul, Ed Jr. age 19 #5342
Pequongay, Pete age 16 #7042
Perault, Lizzie age 16 #5032
Petoskey, Howard age 17 #5258
Romer, Adolph age 20 #5719
Saboo, Eliza age 20 #5874
Saboo, John age 23 #5870
Sansway, Alice age 14 #6518
Shaggonaby, Nancy age 16 #6442
Shaw, Lizzie age 16 #6438
Shawkoo, Alice age 10 #6320
Shawkoo, Martha age 12 #6319
Shawwawnonquot, Levi age 21 #6217
Shomin, William age 21 #6171
Solomon, Agnes age 13 #6608
Theodore, Ellen age 11 #6796
Wahboose, Pete age 16 #7042
Waishkey, Cecelia age 18 #6907
Waukazoo, George age 10 #7095
Wawmegoose, Ray age 14 #7331
White, Joseph age 14 #7252
Williams, Marian age 13 #7207
Wongezhick, William age 20 #7210


Tailor class - 1909 (Simon Otto Collection)



The Evening News [Sault Ste Marie] 30 Oct 1909 names Joseph and Francis Bennett, Joseph and Leo Laramie, Mabel Hanes, Joseph and Stephen Belonger, Pauline and Esther Jandron and Lizzie Boucher as being admitted to the Mt. Pleasant School.


Real person postcard - mailed 1909






The 1910 Federal Census only names staff.

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1910 - no students named

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1911 - no students named

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1912 - no students named

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1913 - no students named

The Indian School Journal - Sep 1913 - page 201-203







The Indian School Journal Sep 1913 page 353 gives the following information about the school library. Number of books in library - text and reference 160, literature -143, fiction - 141, total 444; in circulation literature 15, fiction - 30, total - 45.


Pictures from The Indian School Journal - May 1914






Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1914 - no students named

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1915 - no students named

From the Isabella County Enterprise of 4 Jun 1915 - list of graduates: Nancy Battice, Mary Ann Cutler, Nellie Cutler, Edith Perry, Elizabeth Pego, Charlotte Smith, Lillian Williams, Stephen Animikwan, MMoses Bailey, John Coby, Cleveland Chingwash, Merns Herbert, Lewis Johnson, Grover Mandoka, William Tyosh, Alex Kagebitang.


Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1916 - no students named

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1917 - no students named

Annual Calendar - 1917-1918. Last page has names of former students who joined the Army and Navy.


Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1918 - no students named

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1919 - no students named

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1920 - names students

The 1920 federal census only names staff.

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1921 - names students

From the Muskegon Chronicle 16 Aug 1921, four unnamed girls jump a train trying to go home.


Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1922 - names students

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1923 - names students

The 1923 graduates from the Isabella County Enterprise, 8 Jun 1923.


Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1924 - no students named

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1925 - names students

Honor roll from the Isabella County Enterprise, 23 Apr 1926.



Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1926 - no students named

Honor Roll from Isabella County Enterprise 15 Jan 1926






Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1927 - no students named

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1929 - no students named.

School Band 1929



The 1930 Federal Census names 72 students.




Mount Plesant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1930 - no students named

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1931 - no students named

Football 1931



Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports - 1932 - no students named

Girls' Marching team - undated postcard [Leelanau Historical Museum]



Sports team - undated


Possibly Isabel Fisher and Esther - undated - Leelanau Historical Museum


Ella Fisher and unknown - undated - Leelanau Historical Museum


Moses Walter Smith



List of Leelanau County students at Mt. Pleasant 1915-1932

Find A Grave Virtual Cemetery

Thesis paper "To Run and Play: Resistance and Community at the Mt. Pleasant Indian Industrial School 1892-1933" by Andrew R. Balabuch.

A Short History of the Mt. Pleasant School - The Indian School Journal


FILES

Links to Student Files from National Archives in Chicago that I have purchased (files range in size from 1 page to over 250 pages)

Anawiski (children of William and Lilly)

Ance (Cecelia, Raphael, Julius)

Anderson (children of Edward and Theresa)

Bailey (Viola, step-daughter of William P. Wilson)

Henessy (Susan, William)

Kanaan (Mildred)

King (children of Lilly Anawiski)

Mark (Stephen, Peter and Grace)

Nanebos aka Marks (Leonard)

Schwanke (children of Arthur and Celia)

Shaw (children of Lucille Anderson Shaw)

Smith (children of William Keywis and Mary)

Wabsis/Waboose (George, Martha)

Wesley (Susan, Elizabeth, Hazel)

Wilson (Angeline, Jim)

Wilson (children of William P.)



LINKS:

Article at Second Wave Media

CREDITS:

Mount Pleasant Superintendent Annual Reports from the Indigenous Digital Archive.

Video  "Survivors of Native American Boarding Schools Discuss Dark History."







4 comments:

  1. Both my parents went to the Mt. Pleasant Boarding school, not seeing my mother Lucille Lewis's name on the Chicago census however. She married my father George Pego in her early twenties. I remember stories she told about her time at the school, it always surprised me that even though it was not a pleasant situation, she spoke fondly of the other children that attended.I am now Sally Russo from Irons , MI.

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  2. Thank you for this informative and detailed account of students at this boarding school. I'm going to link your blog to my post about the school which includes a bit about my aunt and uncle when they attended.
    https://artistnaturalist.com/mt-pleasant-indian-industrial-boarding-school/

    ReplyDelete
  3. What happened with girls who got pregnant

    ReplyDelete
  4. My paternal grandmother was Edith Isaac, I've seen other lists, the original lists with her name on here. Her, her sister and brother all went there in Mt. Pleasant. Since it didn't open until 1893, she was one of the first ones to go there. She was born in 1876. Funny how some of these original documents end up missing. Same goes for the Durant Rolls.

    ReplyDelete