The Mississaugas  

  The Mississagas, are an Algonquin tribe from near Sault Ste. Marie, who trace their lineage back to the Shawnees of Kentucky. Early in the 18th century, hunting parties of the Mississagas started drifting down over central and western Ontario. Here they were set upon and massacred by the Iroquois.
   The outcome was a Mississauga council of war in 1740 and the launching of a great punitive expedition against the enemy. The conflict opened with the annihilation of a Mohawk force on the "Island of Skulls" in Georgian Bay.
   In Victoria County the Iroquois resistance stiffened, and eight swift, bloody battles had to be won before the Mississagas could slash their way through to the east. Near Coboconk, on Gull River Range, evidence still exists of the pits from which beleaguered Mohawks fought to the death.

   Another party was wiped out on a small island off Indian Point, Balsam Lake, and just west of the modern steamboat channel. A band of Iroquois were ambushed in the valley of Goose Lake, north of Cambray and slaughtered there.
   Other parties clashed at Sturgeon Point and Ball Point, and some, who retreated up the Scugog past Lindsay made their last stand at Caesarea, on the east shore of Scugog Lake, and at Washburn's Island. At the latter place, the warriors fought in the shallows up to their waists in water, and for long years afterwards the waves kept washing human bones up on the beach.
   The history of the Mississagas since contact with the white man has been a slow tragedy. Originally numbering several thousands, they were so debauched by the white man's whiskey and so ravaged by the white man's diseases that only a few hundred were left by the second quarter of last century. They presented a constant problem to the government, for their unprofitable occupation of good land roused much covetousness, while their frank and trustful natures made them an easy prey to a swarm of swindlers.
   Certain small reservations of land were at last bought or set aside for them by the Crown. Here they still live, but their old traditions and instincts die hard. By 1911, the Mississagas totaled 831, and were located in reserves on Rice Lake, Mud Lake, Scugog Lake and the Credit River.

Who Were The Mississsaugas?

  The Mississagas are described as a tall race, characterized by fine physique and a heavy, prominent nose. They probably equaled the Iroquois in bravery and strength but lacked their solidity of character, and capacity for organization.
   Their prowess in war needs no vindication, but they never established a strong, concentrated civilization after the manner of the Iroquois and the Hurons. They depended far more on hunting and fishing than on agriculture, and so, lived in small, scattered groups throughout their domain.
   Their homes were not the rectangular bar lodges of the Iroquois peoples, but round wigwams built by planting poles in a circle, tying their tops together, and fastening birch bark or grass matsaround the outside as walls.

The Mississaugas Of Scugog Island First Nation

  The Scugog Region was the summer home of the Mississaugas for more than 100 years prior to European settlement. They travelled here each spring from the shores of Lake Ontario to enjoy the plentiful supply of maple syrup, wild rice, cranberries, and game such as deer and bear. The wide marsh that existed then abounded with ducks, geese and many other waterfowl. ("Scugog" is a native word meaning "marshy waters".)

  By 1828, the Mississaugas had started growing crops along the fertile shore of the marsh, and there was a school operated by Methodist missionaries.
   A dam built on the Scugog River in 1834, at Lindsay, raised the water level in the wetland by 6 feet, and over 1000 acres of land were submerged--including the wild rice and cranberry bogs.
   As a result the marsh, and all its bounty to the Mississaugas, was destroyed; the new lake was a mass of noxious rotting vegetation. This combination of bad water and the annihilation of their natural and planted crops decimated them along with their assigned missionaries.

  The surviving Mississaugas were forced to move away and take refuge at Coldwater Reserve near Orillia from 1835-1837. When they returned they were forced to use their own resources to purchase their own land before they could re-settle on Scugog Island. This purchased land was declared by the Federal Government to be a reserve. It is important to note that they were not given an opportunity to purchase any waterfront. Thus, they are still faced with the economic challenge of being landlocked on an island.

  As a sub-group of the very large Anishnabek nation, the Mississauga Ojibwas were part of a strong culture with a wide-ranging knowledge of the Medewiwin. It is a teaching of the Midewiwin that every tree, bush and plant has a use.

   The Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation today occupy the Scugog Reserve which is located at the north end of Scugog Island in Lake Scugog. The reserve covers 321.4 hectares and is home to 22 aboriginal people with another 92 living off the reserve. The native language of these people is Ojibwas.

Illustrations courtesy Charles W. Jeffrey's Picture Gallery of Canadian History

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