Jean Baptiste Wilkie
Encyclopedia
Jean Baptiste Wilkie was a Métis
chief from the Pembina
area.
Wilkie's father, Alexander, was of Scottish
origin and his mother was a Chippewa named Mezhekamkijkok. He married Amable Elise Azure, the daughter of Pierre Azure and Margaret Assiniboine. Many of his descendents currently reside in present day North Dakota
, Saskatchewan
, Manitoba
, and Montana
.
hunt. A council was held to elect the leaders of the hunt, and ten captains were named. Wilkie was elected to be the most senior captain.
Many Native Americans stopped at his house in St. Joseph. In 1861, several Sioux
and Chippewa opened fire on each other. Red Bear, the brother of a Chippewa chief, was among those killed.
In the 1860s, Chief Wilkie made peace between the Métis and the Dakota
, who had been enemies for many generations. Wilkie and Peter Grant traveled to Washington
and met with U.S. President Abraham Lincoln
, who provided them with ammunition. Wilkie and several other men went into a Dakota village and asked to meet with the chief. The meeting started off tense, and the Dakota warriors were said to have been so angry that they slashed the cloth covering the lodge. After smoking the pipe of peace, an agreement was made. Later, the Métis and Dakota met at Grand Coteau in order to trade and get to know each other. It was said that out of the hundred that came, none left with the same horse they brought.
Métis people (Canada)
The Métis are one of the Aboriginal peoples in Canada who trace their descent to mixed First Nations parentage. The term was historically a catch-all describing the offspring of any such union, but within generations the culture syncretised into what is today a distinct aboriginal group, with...
chief from the Pembina
Pembina, North Dakota
Pembina is a city in Pembina County, North Dakota in the United States. The population was 592 at the 2010 census.The area of Pembina was long inhabited by various indigenous peoples...
area.
Wilkie's father, Alexander, was of Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
origin and his mother was a Chippewa named Mezhekamkijkok. He married Amable Elise Azure, the daughter of Pierre Azure and Margaret Assiniboine. Many of his descendents currently reside in present day North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
, Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, and Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
.
Family
Jean Baptiste Wilkie had several children:- Jean Baptiste Jr. (b. 1824)- first married Marie Laframboise and then Isabelle Patenude
- Judith (b. 1825)- She and her husband Pierre Berger led 25 Métis families into central Montana in 1879 to search for bison.
- Augustine (b. 1829)- was married to Marie Paquin
- Alexander (b. 1831)- was married to Louise Gariepy
- Marie Catherine (b. 1834)- was married to Michel Gladu
- Madeleine (1837–1885)- married to Gabriel DumontGabriel DumontGabriel Dumont was a leader of the Métis people of what is now western Canada. In 1873 Dumont was elected to the presidency of the short-lived republic of St. Laurent; afterward he continued to play a leading role among the Métis of the South Saskatchewan River...
, a leader of the 1885 Metis Uprising. She nursed the wounded during the resistance and later crossed into the United States from Canada. She died from consumption and injuries from a fall from a buggy in Lewistown, MontanaLewistown, MontanaLewistown is a city in and the county seat of Fergus County, Montana, United States. The population was 5,813 at the 2000 census. Lewistown is located in central Montana, the geographic center of the state, southeast of Great Falls...
in October 1885. - Elizabeth (b. 1839)- was married to Antoine "Henry" Fleury
- Cecilia (b. 1843)- was married to Joseph Gariepy
- Agathe (b. 1844)- married Patrice Fleury, a captain under Gabriel DumontGabriel DumontGabriel Dumont was a leader of the Métis people of what is now western Canada. In 1873 Dumont was elected to the presidency of the short-lived republic of St. Laurent; afterward he continued to play a leading role among the Métis of the South Saskatchewan River...
's command at the Battle of BatocheBattle of BatocheThe Battle of Batoche was the decisive battle of the North-West Rebellion. Fought from 9 May to 12 May 1885 at the ad hoc Provisional Government of Saskatchewan capital of Batoche, the greater numbers and superior firepower of Middleton's force could not be successfully countered by the Métis ,...
. - Marie Marguerite (b. 1845)- was married to Henry Bousquet
- Antoine (1848–1928)- was married to Esther Gladue
- Mary (b. 1849)
- David (1853–1854)
Accomplishments
On June 15, 1840, Chief Wilkie led 1,630 hunters in a buffaloBison
Members of the genus Bison are large, even-toed ungulates within the subfamily Bovinae. Two extant and four extinct species are recognized...
hunt. A council was held to elect the leaders of the hunt, and ten captains were named. Wilkie was elected to be the most senior captain.
Many Native Americans stopped at his house in St. Joseph. In 1861, several Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
and Chippewa opened fire on each other. Red Bear, the brother of a Chippewa chief, was among those killed.
In the 1860s, Chief Wilkie made peace between the Métis and the Dakota
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
, who had been enemies for many generations. Wilkie and Peter Grant traveled to Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and met with U.S. President Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, who provided them with ammunition. Wilkie and several other men went into a Dakota village and asked to meet with the chief. The meeting started off tense, and the Dakota warriors were said to have been so angry that they slashed the cloth covering the lodge. After smoking the pipe of peace, an agreement was made. Later, the Métis and Dakota met at Grand Coteau in order to trade and get to know each other. It was said that out of the hundred that came, none left with the same horse they brought.