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{{Short description|Métis fur trader and community leader}}
'''Agatha de LaVigne Biddle''' (1797-1873) was a woman of mixed [[Odawa]], [[Anishinaabe|Anishnaabe]], and French heritage, who primarily identified with her Odawa kin.<ref name=":1" /> She resided on [[Mackinac Island]] during the [[North American fur trade|fur trade]] era and after.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://newsmaven.io/indiancountrytoday/archive/mackinac-island-finally-telling-native-side-of-history-5UI0AK2BCEm4JEcvJu8ppA/|title=Mackinac Island Finally Telling Native Side of History - IndianCountryToday.com|work=IndianCountryToday.com|access-date=2018-10-09|language=en-US}}</ref> She acted as a partner with her husband in running their fur trade business and<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /> Biddle was known as a shrewd businesswoman and Her kinship connections aided the Biddle's in their business.<ref>Lavey, Kathleen. “Mackinac Island Restores Its Native American History.” Lansing State Journal, https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/travel/michigan/2017/03/07/restoring-mackinac-islands-native-american-history/98809484/. Accessed 9 Oct. 2018.
{{infobox person/Wikidata | fetchwikidata=ALL|dateformat=mdy}}
</ref> She was pivotal in the negotiations of the 1855 [[Treaty of Detroit]]. Biddle was also renowned for her charity, and the aid she provided to her community, including needy children.<ref name=":1" /> The home she shared with her husband, independent fur trader Edward Biddle, known as [[Biddle House (Mackinac Island)|Biddle House]], still stands on Mackinac Island and was the site of many local gatherings.<ref name=":0">“Agatha Biddle To Be Inducted Into Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame.” Mackinac Island Town Crier, http://www.mackinacislandnews.com/news/2018-10-06/News/Agatha_Biddle_To_Be_Inducted_Into_Michigan_Womens_.html. Accessed 9 Oct. 2018.
'''Agatha de LaVigne Biddle''' (c. 1797&ndash;1873) was a woman of [[Odawa]] and French heritage, who primarily identified with her Odawa kin.<ref name=":1" /> She resided on [[Mackinac Island]] during the [[North American fur trade|fur trade]] era and after.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Armitage |first=Lynn |date=March 30, 2017 |title=Mackinac Island Finally Telling Native Side of History |url=https://newsmaven.io/indiancountrytoday/archive/mackinac-island-finally-telling-native-side-of-history-5UI0AK2BCEm4JEcvJu8ppA/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009092655/https://newsmaven.io/indiancountrytoday/archive/mackinac-island-finally-telling-native-side-of-history-5UI0AK2BCEm4JEcvJu8ppA/ |archive-date=October 9, 2018 |access-date=October 9, 2018 |work=[[Indian Country Today]]}}</ref> She acted as a partner with her husband in running their fur trade business,<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /> and Biddle was known as a shrewd businesswoman and her kinship connections were an integral part of the Biddle business.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lavey |first=Kathleen |date=March 7, 2017 |title=Mackinac Island Restores Its Native American History |url=https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/travel/michigan/2017/03/07/restoring-mackinac-islands-native-american-history/98809484/ |archive-url= |archive-date= |access-date=October 9, 2018 |work=[[Lansing State Journal]]}}</ref> Following in the footsteps of another native woman, [[Maw-che-paw-go-quay]], Agatha Biddle was also a woman serving as chief for the Mackinac Island band of the [[Mackinac Bands of Chippewa and Ottawa Indians]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 22, 2016 |title=Métis Women of Mackinac |url=https://www.mackinacparks.com/metis-women-of-mackinac/#more-2969 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009092606/https://www.mackinacparks.com/metis-women-of-mackinac/#more-2969 |archive-date=October 9, 2018 |access-date=October 9, 2018 |website=[[Mackinac State Historic Parks]]}}</ref> She was pivotal in the negotiations of the 1855 [[Treaty of Detroit (1855)|Treaty of Detroit]] where she used her relationships with local Indigenous peoples and settlers to negotiate on behalf of the Ojibwe and Odawa peoples.<ref>{{Cite web |date=July 19, 2018 |title=Press release: Michigan Women Forward Names Five Inductees Into Women's Hall of Fame. |url=http://www.michiganwomen.org/PDFs/Hall%20of%20Fame%20Release%20FINAL%207.17.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181227144934/http://www.michiganwomen.org/PDFs/Hall%20of%20Fame%20Release%20FINAL%207.17.pdf |archive-date=December 27, 2018 |access-date=October 13, 2018 |website=[[Michigan Women Forward]]}}</ref> Biddle was also renowned for her charity, and the aid she provided to her community, including needy children.<ref name=":1" /> The home she shared with her husband, independent fur trader Edward Biddle, known as [[Biddle House (Mackinac Island)|Biddle House]], still stands on Mackinac Island and was the site of many local gatherings.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |title=Agatha Biddle To Be Inducted Into Michigan Women's Hall of Fame |url=http://www.mackinacislandnews.com/news/2018-10-06/News/Agatha_Biddle_To_Be_Inducted_Into_Michigan_Womens_.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009131945/http://www.mackinacislandnews.com/news/2018-10-06/News/Agatha_Biddle_To_Be_Inducted_Into_Michigan_Womens_.html |archive-date=October 9, 2018 |access-date=October 9, 2018 |work=[[Mackinac Island Town Crier]]}}</ref> Agatha Biddle was inducted into the [[Michigan Women's Hall of Fame]] on October 18, 2018.<ref name=":0" /><ref>"5 to Be Inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame." Detroit News, https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2018/10/08/inductees-michigan-womens-hall-fame/38086757/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190328142215/https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2018/10/08/inductees-michigan-womens-hall-fame/38086757/ |date=2019-03-28 }}. Accessed 9 Oct. 2018.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Agatha Biddle |url=https://miwf.org/timeline/agatha-biddle/ |access-date=January 26, 2024 |website=[[Michigan Women Forward]]}}</ref>
</ref> Agatha Biddle will be inducted into the [[Michigan Women's Hall of Fame|Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame]] in on October 18th, 2018.<ref name=":0" /><ref>“5 to Be Inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame.” Detroit News, https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2018/10/08/inductees-michigan-womens-hall-fame/38086757/. Accessed 9 Oct. 2018.
</ref>



== Early life ==
== Early life ==
Biddle was born Agatha de LaVigne. Her mother was Marie Lefevre de La Vigne and her father was Kougowma (or Kiogima), also called La Vigne of the Odawa people. After the death of Agatha's father, her mother married [[Joseph Bailly]], a fur trader of French descent originally from Nova Scotia who came to some prominence.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|url=http://www.worldcat.org/title/gender-race-and-religion-in-the-colonization-of-the-americas/oclc/717240201&referer=brief_results|title=Gender, race and religion in the colonization of the Americas|last=Jaffary|first=Nora E|date=2008|publisher=Ashgate|isbn=0754651894|location=Aldershot|language=English}}</ref> They lived in the Mackinac area and Agatha continued to have a close relationship with her mother after her marriage.<ref name=":3" />
Biddle was born Agatha de LaVigne. Her mother was Marie Lefevre de La Vigne and her father was Kougowma (or Kiogima), also called La Vigne of the Odawa people. After the death of Agatha's father, her mother married [[Joseph Bailly]], a fur trader of French descent originally from Nova Scotia who came to some prominence.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last=Fleming |first=Bethany |title=Gender, race and religion in the colonization of the Americas |date=2008 |publisher=Ashgate |isbn=978-0754651895 |editor-last=Jaffary |editor-first=Nora E. |location=Aldershot |pages=125–134 |chapter=Mediating Mackinac: Métis Women's Cultural Persistence in the Upper Great Lakes |oclc=717240201}}</ref> They lived in the Mackinac area and Agatha continued to have a close relationship with her mother after her marriage.<ref name=":3" />


==Marriage and family==
==Marriage and family==
[[File:Biddle House - Mackinaw Island.jpg|thumb|Biddle House, Mackinac Island]]
Edward Biddle arrived on Mackinac Island shortly after the conclusion of the War of 1812 and it is after this date that Agatha and Edward married.<ref name=":3" /> By marrying Agatha, Biddle made a connection to the prominent Bailly fur trading family. Details of their wedding were recorded, and guests included many prominent members of Mackinac society, including [[Magdelaine Laframboise|Madeline La Framboise]]. Agatha and her mother were recorded by contemporary Elisabeth Baird as wearing the traditional dress of the Métis women of the area at the wedding. This included layers of broadcloth, leggings, moccasins, ribbons and beads, all elaborately embroidered.<ref>Farrell Racette, Sherry. Sewing Ourselves Together : Clothing, Decorative Arts and the Expression of Metis and Half Breed Identity. Aug. 2004. mspace.lib.umanitoba.ca, https://mspace.lib.umanitoba.ca/xmlui/handle/1993/3304.
</ref> Biddle continued to wear traditional clothing through her life.<ref name=":3" /> Jaffary notes the marriage of Edward and Agatha was unusual for the time. While it was typical for Métis women to marry outside their home community, Edward Biddle was an English-speaking, Protestant American in a community that was primarily Indigenous and French Canadian.<ref name=":3" /> Together Agatha and Edward Biddle had seven children: Sophia, John, Sarah and Mary and together they built their business.<ref name=":2">Billock, Jennifer. Ghosts of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Arcadia Publishing, 2018.
Edward Biddle arrived on Mackinac Island shortly after the conclusion of the War of 1812 and it is after this date that Agatha and Edward married.<ref name=":3" /> By marrying Agatha, Biddle made a connection to the prominent Bailly fur trading family. Details of their wedding were recorded, and guests included many prominent members of Mackinac society, including [[Magdelaine Laframboise|Madeline La Framboise]]. Agatha and her mother were recorded by contemporary Elisabeth Baird as wearing the traditional dress of the Métis women of the area at the wedding. This included layers of broadcloth, leggings, moccasins, ribbons and beads, all elaborately embroidered.<ref>{{cite thesis |last= Farrell Racette|first= Sherry|date= 2004|title= Sewing ourselves together: clothing, decorative arts and the expression of Metis and Half Breed identity|url= http://hdl.handle.net/1993/3304|degree= PhD|chapter= Talking to Each Other: Courtship, Marriage, and Expressions of Love|publisher= University of Manitoba|hdl= 1993/3304|docket= |oclc= |access-date= 2024-01-24}}</ref> Biddle continued to wear traditional clothing through her life.<ref name=":3" /> Fleming notes the marriage of Edward and Agatha was not unusual for the time. However, while it was typical for Métis women to marry outside their home community, Edward Biddle was an English-speaking, Protestant American in a community that was primarily Indigenous and French Canadian.<ref name=":3" /> Together Agatha and Edward Biddle had seven children: Sophia, John, Sarah and Mary and together they built their business.<ref name=":2">Billock, Jennifer. ''Ghosts of Michigan's Upper Peninsula''. Arcadia Publishing, 2018.
</ref><ref name=":3" /> Their youngest daughter Mary died at the age of eight after falling through the ice while travelling between Mackinac Island and St. Ignace and her grave is the oldest in the St. Ann cemetery.<ref name=":2" />
</ref><ref name=":3" /> Their youngest daughter Mary died at the age of eight after falling through the ice while travelling between Mackinac Island and [[St. Ignace, Michigan|St. Ignace]] and her grave is the oldest in the St. Ann cemetery.<ref name=":2" />


==Fur trade and later life on Mackinac==
==Fur trade and later life on Mackinac==
During the early period of the fur trade the Mackinac and surrounded area were primarily inhabited by First Nations people, but by the middle of the nineteenth century their numbers were greatly reduced due to war, including the [[War of 1812]], and treaties which saw many of the local Odawa and [[Anishinaabe]] people relocated to tiny parcels of land. Biddle was made chief of the Mackinac band in the mid 1800s.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mackinacparks.com/metis-women-of-mackinac/#more-2969|title=Métis Women of Mackinac {{!}} Mackinac State Historic Parks|website=www.mackinacparks.com|language=en-US|access-date=2018-10-09}}</ref>
During the early period of the fur trade the Mackinac and surrounded area were primarily inhabited by First Nations people, but by the middle of the nineteenth century their numbers were greatly reduced due to war, including the [[War of 1812]], and treaties which saw many of the local Ojibwe and Odawa people relocated to tiny parcels of land.


Biddle took on a number of community roles, including taking in sick or orphaned Odawa and Anishnaabe children and offering food and other charity.<ref name=":3" /> She is recorded as serving as undertaker on the Island and supplied coffins and carrying out burial services.<ref name=":3" />
Biddle took on a number of community roles, including taking in sick or orphaned Anishnaabe children and offering food and other charity.<ref name=":3" /> She is recorded as serving as undertaker on the island. She supplied coffins and carried out burial services.<ref name=":3" />


Biddle is cited as an example of the way Metis women used their connections between local First Nations communities as well as settler communities to advantage in the fur trade society of the Great Lakes.<ref name=":3" /> Jaffary notes that there is archeological evidence to support the fact that Biddle worked with birch bark, as well as engaging in quill work and basketry.<ref name=":3" />
Biddle is cited as an example of the way [[Métis]] women used their connections between local First Nations communities as well as settler communities to advantage in the fur trade society of the Great Lakes.<ref name=":3" /> Fleming notes that there is archeological evidence to support the fact that Biddle worked with birch bark, as well as engaging in quill work and basketry.<ref name=":3" />


== References ==
== References ==
{{ref list}}
{{reflist}}
{{Michigan Women's Hall of Fame}}
{{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Biddle, Agatha}}
[[Category:1797 births]]
[[Category:1790s births]]
[[Category:1873 deaths]]
[[Category:1873 deaths]]
[[Category:Native American women]]
[[Category:American fur traders]]
[[Category:Métis people]]
[[Category:Métis fur traders]]
[[Category:Fur traders]]
[[Category:People from Michigan Territory]]
[[Category:People from Mackinac Island, Michigan]]
[[Category:People from Mackinac Island, Michigan]]
[[Category:American Métis people]]
[[Category:19th-century American businesswomen]]
[[Category:19th-century American businesspeople]]
[[Category:19th-century Native American women]]
[[Category:19th-century Native Americans]]
[[Category:Native American people from Michigan]]
[[Category:American Métis women]]

Latest revision as of 11:49, 28 October 2024

Agatha Biddle
Born1797 Edit this on Wikidata
Died1873 Edit this on Wikidata (aged 75–76)
Mackinac Island Edit this on Wikidata
OccupationFur trader, community organizer, philanthropist Edit this on Wikidata
Awards

Agatha de LaVigne Biddle (c. 1797–1873) was a woman of Odawa and French heritage, who primarily identified with her Odawa kin.[1] She resided on Mackinac Island during the fur trade era and after.[1] She acted as a partner with her husband in running their fur trade business,[1][2] and Biddle was known as a shrewd businesswoman and her kinship connections were an integral part of the Biddle business.[3] Following in the footsteps of another native woman, Maw-che-paw-go-quay, Agatha Biddle was also a woman serving as chief for the Mackinac Island band of the Mackinac Bands of Chippewa and Ottawa Indians.[4] She was pivotal in the negotiations of the 1855 Treaty of Detroit where she used her relationships with local Indigenous peoples and settlers to negotiate on behalf of the Ojibwe and Odawa peoples.[5] Biddle was also renowned for her charity, and the aid she provided to her community, including needy children.[1] The home she shared with her husband, independent fur trader Edward Biddle, known as Biddle House, still stands on Mackinac Island and was the site of many local gatherings.[2] Agatha Biddle was inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame on October 18, 2018.[2][6][7]

Early life

[edit]

Biddle was born Agatha de LaVigne. Her mother was Marie Lefevre de La Vigne and her father was Kougowma (or Kiogima), also called La Vigne of the Odawa people. After the death of Agatha's father, her mother married Joseph Bailly, a fur trader of French descent originally from Nova Scotia who came to some prominence.[8] They lived in the Mackinac area and Agatha continued to have a close relationship with her mother after her marriage.[8]

Marriage and family

[edit]
Biddle House, Mackinac Island

Edward Biddle arrived on Mackinac Island shortly after the conclusion of the War of 1812 and it is after this date that Agatha and Edward married.[8] By marrying Agatha, Biddle made a connection to the prominent Bailly fur trading family. Details of their wedding were recorded, and guests included many prominent members of Mackinac society, including Madeline La Framboise. Agatha and her mother were recorded by contemporary Elisabeth Baird as wearing the traditional dress of the Métis women of the area at the wedding. This included layers of broadcloth, leggings, moccasins, ribbons and beads, all elaborately embroidered.[9] Biddle continued to wear traditional clothing through her life.[8] Fleming notes the marriage of Edward and Agatha was not unusual for the time. However, while it was typical for Métis women to marry outside their home community, Edward Biddle was an English-speaking, Protestant American in a community that was primarily Indigenous and French Canadian.[8] Together Agatha and Edward Biddle had seven children: Sophia, John, Sarah and Mary and together they built their business.[10][8] Their youngest daughter Mary died at the age of eight after falling through the ice while travelling between Mackinac Island and St. Ignace and her grave is the oldest in the St. Ann cemetery.[10]

Fur trade and later life on Mackinac

[edit]

During the early period of the fur trade the Mackinac and surrounded area were primarily inhabited by First Nations people, but by the middle of the nineteenth century their numbers were greatly reduced due to war, including the War of 1812, and treaties which saw many of the local Ojibwe and Odawa people relocated to tiny parcels of land.

Biddle took on a number of community roles, including taking in sick or orphaned Anishnaabe children and offering food and other charity.[8] She is recorded as serving as undertaker on the island. She supplied coffins and carried out burial services.[8]

Biddle is cited as an example of the way Métis women used their connections between local First Nations communities as well as settler communities to advantage in the fur trade society of the Great Lakes.[8] Fleming notes that there is archeological evidence to support the fact that Biddle worked with birch bark, as well as engaging in quill work and basketry.[8]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d Armitage, Lynn (March 30, 2017). "Mackinac Island Finally Telling Native Side of History". Indian Country Today. Archived from the original on October 9, 2018. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "Agatha Biddle To Be Inducted Into Michigan Women's Hall of Fame". Mackinac Island Town Crier. Archived from the original on October 9, 2018. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  3. ^ Lavey, Kathleen (March 7, 2017). "Mackinac Island Restores Its Native American History". Lansing State Journal. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  4. ^ "Métis Women of Mackinac". Mackinac State Historic Parks. April 22, 2016. Archived from the original on October 9, 2018. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  5. ^ "Press release: Michigan Women Forward Names Five Inductees Into Women's Hall of Fame" (PDF). Michigan Women Forward. July 19, 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 27, 2018. Retrieved October 13, 2018.
  6. ^ "5 to Be Inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame." Detroit News, https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2018/10/08/inductees-michigan-womens-hall-fame/38086757/ Archived 2019-03-28 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed 9 Oct. 2018.
  7. ^ "Agatha Biddle". Michigan Women Forward. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Fleming, Bethany (2008). "Mediating Mackinac: Métis Women's Cultural Persistence in the Upper Great Lakes". In Jaffary, Nora E. (ed.). Gender, race and religion in the colonization of the Americas. Aldershot: Ashgate. pp. 125–134. ISBN 978-0754651895. OCLC 717240201.
  9. ^ Farrell Racette, Sherry (2004). "Talking to Each Other: Courtship, Marriage, and Expressions of Love". Sewing ourselves together: clothing, decorative arts and the expression of Metis and Half Breed identity (PhD thesis). University of Manitoba. hdl:1993/3304. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
  10. ^ a b Billock, Jennifer. Ghosts of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Arcadia Publishing, 2018.
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