Narcissa Whitman
Encyclopedia
Narcissa Prentiss Whitman (March 14, 1808 – November 29, 1847) was an American
missionary in the Oregon Country
of what would become the state of Washington. Along with Eliza Hart Spalding (wife of Henry Spalding
), she was the first European-American woman to cross the Rocky Mountains
in 1836 on her way to found the Protestant Whitman Mission
with husband Dr. Marcus Whitman
near modern day Walla Walla, Washington
.
, in the Genesee Valley
on March 14, 1808. She was the third of nine children of Judge Stephen and Clarissa Prentiss. She was the oldest of the five girls, followed by Clarissa, Mary Ann, Jane, and Harriet. She also had four brothers. Like many young women of the era, Narcissa became caught up in the Second Great Awakening
. She decided that her true calling was to become a missionary, and was accepted for missionary service in March 1835. Narcissa was educated at the Female Academy at Troy, on the Hudson before her marriage to Dr. Marcus Whitman. The marriage was on February 18, 1836 in Angelica, New York
.
in March 1836 to begin their missionary activities amongst the natives. The journey was by sleigh, canal barge, wagon
, river sternwheeler, horseback, and foot. The founder of Ogden, Utah
, Miles Goodyear
, traveled with the Whitmans until Fort Hall
. On September 1, 1836, they arrived at Walla Walla Fort
, a Hudson's Bay Company
outpost near present day Walla Walla, Washington
. Marcus and Narcissa then traveled on to Fort Vancouver
where they were hosted by Dr. John McLoughlin
before returning to the Walla Walla area to build their mission. Narcissa was one of the first white women to cross the Rocky Mountains and live in the area. She was something of a novel addition to the community for the local Native Americans, the Cayuse.
. Methodist missionary Jason Lee
would stop off in 1838 at the mission on his way east to gather reinforcements in the United States
for his mission in the Willamette Valley
. Then, in 1840, mountain man Joseph Meek
, who the Whitmans met on their journey to the area, stopped off on his way to the Willamette Valley.
Built at Waiilatpu, the settlement was about six miles (10 km) from Fort Walla Walla and along the Walla Walla River. At the mission, Narcissa gave Bible classes to the native population, as well as teaching them Western domestic chores that were unknown to the Native Americans
. Besides the missionary goals of converting the natives, Narcissa also ran the household. Her daily activities included cooking, washing & ironing clothes, churning butter, making candles & soap, and baking.
On March 14, 1837, on her twenty-ninth birthday, Narcissa gave birth to the first white American
born in Oregon Country. Marcus and Narcissa named their daughter Alice Clarissa after her two grandmothers, and she would be their only natural child. Unfortunately, Alice drowned in the Walla Walla River on June 23, 1839. Unattended for only a few moments, she had gone down to the river bank to fill her cup with water and fell in. Though her body was found shortly after she had fallen in, all attempts to revive her failed. However, other children came to the mission, including the seven Sager orphans
, to whom Narcissa became a second mother.
Just before winter, in late 1842, Marcus traveled back east to recruit more missionaries
for the mission. During the time Marcus was away, Narcissa traveled west and visited other outposts in the territory including Fort Vancouver, Jason Lee’s Methodist Mission
near present day Salem, Oregon
, and another mission near Astoria, Oregon
. Dr. Whitman returned with his nephew Perrin from his trip East in 1843.
and the Nez Percé tribes were suspicious of the activities and the encouragement of the Americans. As early as 1841, Tiloukaikt
had tried to force the Whitmans to leave Waiilatpu and the ancestral homeland.
In 1847, a measles
epidemic broke out among the native population. Spread to the natives by contact with whites, the native population lacked immunity to the disease and it spread quickly. The American populations had some limited immunity to measles which meant a lower mortality rate than the natives. This discrepancy stirred discontent among the natives who felt Dr. Whitman was only curing the white people while letting Indian children die. The resentment concerning all the different issues boiled over on November 29, 1847 when Tiloukaikt
and others attacked the mission killing both Marcus and Narcissa. This event would be remembered as the Whitman Massacre
, in which many others were killed and many more taken hostage.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
missionary in the Oregon Country
Oregon Country
The Oregon Country was a predominantly American term referring to a disputed ownership region of the Pacific Northwest of North America. The region was occupied by British and French Canadian fur traders from before 1810, and American settlers from the mid-1830s, with its coastal areas north from...
of what would become the state of Washington. Along with Eliza Hart Spalding (wife of Henry Spalding
Henry H. Spalding
Henry Harmon Spalding , and his wife Eliza Hart Spalding were prominent Presbyterian missionaries and educators working primarily with the Nez Perce in the U.S. Pacific Northwest...
), she was the first European-American woman to cross the Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
in 1836 on her way to found the Protestant Whitman Mission
Whitman Mission National Historic Site
Whitman Mission National Historic Site is a United States National Historic Site located just west of Walla Walla, Washington, at the site of the former Whitman Mission at Waiilatpu. On November 29, 1847, the family of Dr. Marcus Whitman and others were massacred by Native Americans of the Cayuse...
with husband Dr. Marcus Whitman
Marcus Whitman
Marcus Whitman was an American physician and Oregon missionary in the Oregon Country. Along with his wife Narcissa Whitman he started a mission in what is now southeastern Washington state in 1836, which would later become a stop along the Oregon Trail...
near modern day Walla Walla, Washington
Walla Walla, Washington
Walla Walla is the largest city in and the county seat of Walla Walla County, Washington, United States. The population was 31,731 at the 2010 census...
.
Early life
Narcissa Prentiss was born in Prattsburgh, New YorkPrattsburgh, New York
Prattsburgh is a town in Steuben County, New York, United States. The population was 2,064 at the 2000 census.The Town of Prattsburgh is in the northeast part of the county, north of Bath, New York.- History :...
, in the Genesee Valley
Genesee River
The Genesee River is a North American river flowing northward through the Twin Tiers of Pennsylvania and New York. The river provided the original power for the Rochester area's 19th century mills and still provides hydroelectric power for downtown Rochester....
on March 14, 1808. She was the third of nine children of Judge Stephen and Clarissa Prentiss. She was the oldest of the five girls, followed by Clarissa, Mary Ann, Jane, and Harriet. She also had four brothers. Like many young women of the era, Narcissa became caught up in the Second Great Awakening
Second Great Awakening
The Second Great Awakening was a Christian revival movement during the early 19th century in the United States. The movement began around 1800, had begun to gain momentum by 1820, and was in decline by 1870. The Second Great Awakening expressed Arminian theology, by which every person could be...
. She decided that her true calling was to become a missionary, and was accepted for missionary service in March 1835. Narcissa was educated at the Female Academy at Troy, on the Hudson before her marriage to Dr. Marcus Whitman. The marriage was on February 18, 1836 in Angelica, New York
Angelica, New York
Angelica, New York may refer to:*Angelica , New York *Angelica , New York...
.
Journey west
Shortly after the wedding, Narcissa and Marcus, along with the also recently married Henry and Eliza Spalding, headed west for the Oregon CountryOregon Country
The Oregon Country was a predominantly American term referring to a disputed ownership region of the Pacific Northwest of North America. The region was occupied by British and French Canadian fur traders from before 1810, and American settlers from the mid-1830s, with its coastal areas north from...
in March 1836 to begin their missionary activities amongst the natives. The journey was by sleigh, canal barge, wagon
Wagon
A wagon is a heavy four-wheeled vehicle pulled by draught animals; it was formerly often called a wain, and if low and sideless may be called a dray, trolley or float....
, river sternwheeler, horseback, and foot. The founder of Ogden, Utah
Ogden, Utah
Ogden is a city in Weber County, Utah, United States. Ogden serves as the county seat of Weber County. The population was 82,825 according to the 2010 Census. The city served as a major railway hub through much of its history, and still handles a great deal of freight rail traffic which makes it a...
, Miles Goodyear
Miles Goodyear
Miles Morris Goodyear was an American fur trader and mountain man who built and occupied Fort Buenaventura in what is now the city of Ogden, Utah. The fort was located approximately two miles south of the confluence of the Weber and Ogden rivers and about one-quarter mile west of the end of...
, traveled with the Whitmans until Fort Hall
Fort Hall
Fort Hall, sitting athwart the end of the common stretch shared by the three far west emigrant trails was a 19th century outpost in the eastern Oregon Country, which eventually became part of the present-day United States, and is located in southeastern Idaho near Fort Hall, Idaho...
. On September 1, 1836, they arrived at Walla Walla Fort
Fort Nez Percés
Fort Nez Percés, sometimes also spelled Fort Nez Percé , named after the Nez Perce people and later known as Fort Walla Walla, was a fortified British fur trading post on the Columbia River on the territory of modern-day Wallula, Washington...
, a Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
outpost near present day Walla Walla, Washington
Walla Walla, Washington
Walla Walla is the largest city in and the county seat of Walla Walla County, Washington, United States. The population was 31,731 at the 2010 census...
. Marcus and Narcissa then traveled on to Fort Vancouver
Fort Vancouver
Fort Vancouver was a 19th century fur trading outpost along the Columbia River that served as the headquarters of the Hudson's Bay Company in the company's Columbia District...
where they were hosted by Dr. John McLoughlin
John McLoughlin
Dr. John McLoughlin, baptized Jean-Baptiste McLoughlin, was the Chief Factor of the Columbia Fur District of the Hudson's Bay Company at Fort Vancouver. He was later known as the "Father of Oregon" for his role in assisting the American cause in the Oregon Country in the Pacific Northwest...
before returning to the Walla Walla area to build their mission. Narcissa was one of the first white women to cross the Rocky Mountains and live in the area. She was something of a novel addition to the community for the local Native Americans, the Cayuse.
Whitman Mission
The Whitman Mission began to take shape in 1837, eventually growing into a major stopping point along the Oregon TrailOregon Trail
The Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
. Methodist missionary Jason Lee
Jason Lee (missionary)
Jason Lee , an American missionary and pioneer, was born on a farm near Stanstead, Quebec. He was the first of the Oregon missionaries and helped establish the early foundation of a provisional government in the Oregon Country....
would stop off in 1838 at the mission on his way east to gather reinforcements in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
for his mission in the Willamette Valley
Willamette Valley
The Willamette Valley is the most populated region in the state of Oregon of the United States. Located in the state's northwest, the region is surrounded by tall mountain ranges to the east, west and south and the valley's floor is broad, flat and fertile because of Ice Age conditions...
. Then, in 1840, mountain man Joseph Meek
Joseph Meek
Joseph Lafayette "Joe" Meek was a trapper, law enforcement official, and politician in the Oregon Country and later Oregon Territory of the United States. A pioneer involved in the fur trade before settling in the Tualatin Valley, Meek would play a prominent role at the Champoeg Meetings of 1843...
, who the Whitmans met on their journey to the area, stopped off on his way to the Willamette Valley.
Built at Waiilatpu, the settlement was about six miles (10 km) from Fort Walla Walla and along the Walla Walla River. At the mission, Narcissa gave Bible classes to the native population, as well as teaching them Western domestic chores that were unknown to the Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
. Besides the missionary goals of converting the natives, Narcissa also ran the household. Her daily activities included cooking, washing & ironing clothes, churning butter, making candles & soap, and baking.
On March 14, 1837, on her twenty-ninth birthday, Narcissa gave birth to the first white American
First white child
The birth of the first white child was a celebrated occasion across many parts of the New World. Such births are a matter of pride for many townships, and they are commemorated with plaques and monuments at the location of the event. The birth was seen as such an honor that it was at times...
born in Oregon Country. Marcus and Narcissa named their daughter Alice Clarissa after her two grandmothers, and she would be their only natural child. Unfortunately, Alice drowned in the Walla Walla River on June 23, 1839. Unattended for only a few moments, she had gone down to the river bank to fill her cup with water and fell in. Though her body was found shortly after she had fallen in, all attempts to revive her failed. However, other children came to the mission, including the seven Sager orphans
Sager orphans
The Sager orphans were the children of Naomi and Henry Sager. In April 1844 Henry Sager and his family took part in the great westward migration and started their journey along the Oregon Trail. During their journey both Naomi and Henry Sager lost their lives and left their seven children orphaned...
, to whom Narcissa became a second mother.
Just before winter, in late 1842, Marcus traveled back east to recruit more missionaries
Oregon missionaries
The Oregon missionaries were collectively the religious-minded pioneers who settled in the Oregon Country of North America starting in the 1830s with the intent of converting local Native Americans to Christianity...
for the mission. During the time Marcus was away, Narcissa traveled west and visited other outposts in the territory including Fort Vancouver, Jason Lee’s Methodist Mission
Oregon Mission
The Oregon Mission began as an effort by the Methodist Episcopal Church to convert the native Indians of the far west to Christianity. This mission, under the leadership of Jason Lee, largely failed in its initial goal, but played a significant role in the westward expansion of the United States...
near present day Salem, Oregon
Salem, Oregon
Salem is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood...
, and another mission near Astoria, Oregon
Astoria, Oregon
Astoria is the county seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Situated near the mouth of the Columbia River, the city was named after the American investor John Jacob Astor. His American Fur Company founded Fort Astoria at the site in 1811...
. Dr. Whitman returned with his nephew Perrin from his trip East in 1843.
Whitman Massacre
Throughout their time in Oregon Country, Narcissa and Marcus encountered trouble with the native tribes. The CayuseCayuse
The Cayuse are a Native American tribe in the state of Oregon in the United States. The Cayuse tribe shares a reservation in northeastern Oregon with the Umatilla and the Walla Walla tribes as part of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation...
and the Nez Percé tribes were suspicious of the activities and the encouragement of the Americans. As early as 1841, Tiloukaikt
Tiloukaikt
Tiloukaikt was a Native American leader of the Cayuse tribe in the northwestern United States. He was involved in the Whitman Massacre and was a primary leader during the subsequent Cayuse War....
had tried to force the Whitmans to leave Waiilatpu and the ancestral homeland.
In 1847, a measles
Measles
Measles, also known as rubeola or morbilli, is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses...
epidemic broke out among the native population. Spread to the natives by contact with whites, the native population lacked immunity to the disease and it spread quickly. The American populations had some limited immunity to measles which meant a lower mortality rate than the natives. This discrepancy stirred discontent among the natives who felt Dr. Whitman was only curing the white people while letting Indian children die. The resentment concerning all the different issues boiled over on November 29, 1847 when Tiloukaikt
Tiloukaikt
Tiloukaikt was a Native American leader of the Cayuse tribe in the northwestern United States. He was involved in the Whitman Massacre and was a primary leader during the subsequent Cayuse War....
and others attacked the mission killing both Marcus and Narcissa. This event would be remembered as the Whitman Massacre
Whitman massacre
The Whitman massacre was the murder in the Oregon Country on November 29, 1847 of U.S. missionaries Dr. Marcus Whitman and his wife Narcissa Whitman, along with eleven others. They were killed by Cayuse and Umatilla Indians. The incident began the Cayuse War...
, in which many others were killed and many more taken hostage.