The Mohican Board! [Bumppo's Redux!]
The Mohican Board! [Bumppo's Redux!]
4/23/2026 12:43:48 PM
On the Trail...Home | Old Mohican Board Archives | Purpose
Events | Polls | Photos | Classifieds | Downloads
Profile | Register | Members | Private Messages
Search | Posting Tips | FAQ | Web Links | Mohican Chat | Blogs
Forum Bookmarks | Unanswered Posts | Preview Topic Photos | Active Topics
Invite a Friend to the Mohican Board | Guestbook | Greeting Cards | Auction (0) | Colonial Recipe Book
Username:
Password:
Save Password
Forgot your Password?

 All Forums
 COLONIAL TIMES
 Colonial Consciousness
 Marriages in 1757?
 New Topic  New Poll New Poll
 Reply to Topic
 Printer Friendly
| More
Bookmark this Topic BookMark Topic

Author Previous Topic: Colonial era Michigan fort ... Topic Next Topic: U.S. Revolution actually Civil War?  

Myrrhee
Lost in the Wilderness

Alice
Colombia



Bumppo's Patron since [at least]:
April 07 2018

Status: offline

 

Posted - April 09 2018 :  1:04:00 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
What do you all know about marriage in these times between people living in remote areas? If two settlers decided they wanted to marry, would they have to travel to a more populated place to get married? Were there any legal proceedings involved, or were Christian/Catholic/Moravian marriage ceremonies legally binding?

What about marriages amongst the Lenape and Mohawks specifically? I've heard hearsay (only hearsay!) that unions didn't have formal ceremony to them. Did a man and a woman simply build a house together and leave their families, then? What if they insisted on formal ceremony? What would the Lenape or the Mohawk do for a ceremony?
report to moderator

richfed
Sachem


King 1
USA



Bumppo's Patron since [at least]:
May 13 2002

Status: offline

Administrator

Posted - April 14 2018 :  4:18:39 PM  Show Profile  Visit richfed's Homepage  Click to see richfed's MSN Messenger address  Reply with Quote  Copy this URL to Link to this Reply
It was complicated, for sure, but not all that uncommon. (that's how so many people today can claim "native American blood.") Tribes often took white women as slaves. Fur traders & mountain men often married Indian women. As far as Uncus & Alice, I don't think the Brits would look too kindly on that. Remember, though, most Indians scorned the colonists/settlers, as well.

"Expansion Was A Time Of radical change in America. The upheaval of moving west and beginning a new life from scratch was difficult for those who made the trip. "Except for love..." said Isabella Bird of Colorado in 1873, "this is a wretched existence." In spite of the rough conditions and frequent shortages of suitable partners in the West, the pioneers met, fell in love and married, but were forced to adapt their courting to a frontier life. The civilized comforts and proprieties of the East yielded to many new ways of finding a mate, from personal ads to rental brides. The West was not all wild, however: Religion still played a strong role in western life, whether lovers were Mormon, Catholic, Baptist or Buddhist; and the traditions of immigrants from Europe, Asia and the Americas all helped to form courtship and marriage rituals on the frontier." -- Inside flap of I Do: Courtship, Love & Marriage on the American Frontier by Cathy Luchetti.

Hope that helps you a little bit. I'm certainly no marriage expert - not even on present-day nupitals!

Rich
Mohican Press
report to moderator Go to Top of Page
  Previous Topic: Colonial era Michigan fort ... Topic Next Topic: U.S. Revolution actually Civil War?  
 New Topic  New Poll New Poll
 Reply to Topic
 Printer Friendly
| More
Bookmark this Topic BookMark Topic
Jump To:
 

Around The Site:
~ What's New? ~
Pathfinding | Mohican Gatherings | Mohican Musings | LOTM Script | History | Musical Musings | Storefronts on the Frontier
Off the Beaten Trail | Links
Of Special Interest:
The Eric Schweig Gallery | From the Ramparts | The Listening Room | Against All Odds | The Video Clips Index

DISCLAIMER
Tune, 40, used by permission - composed by Ron Clarke

Custom Search

The Mohican Board! [Bumppo's Redux!] © 1997-2025 - Mohican Press Go To Top Of Page
Current Mohicanland page raised in 0.19 seconds Powered By: Snitz Forums 2000 Version 3.4.07