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| NARCISSA
WHITMAN, ONE OF THE FIRST TWO WHITE WOMEN TO CROSS THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS
into the Oregon territories, has been alternately praised and condemned
for her desire to convert the "Indians" of the west to Protestantism.
But the truth and importance of what she accomplished lies beyond that.
Her commitment to her beliefs gave her
the courage to do what no other woman except for Eliza Spalding would do.
Giving up her comfortable life in New York, she endured the hardships of
early 19th century travel to arrive in a wild and hostile environment to
help those she perceived as less fortunate than herself. She was
a trailblazer in a time when most women were expected to stay home and
serve tea.
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| Chronology of Narcissa's Life | |||||
| 1808 | NARCISSA
PRENTISS, AMERICAN PIONEER AND MISSIONARY, daughter of Stephen Prentiss
and Clarissa Ward, is born on March 14 in Prattsburg, New York. She
is the third of nine children.
Narcissa's father is a distiller, land-owner,
miller, and carpenter, her mother a devout Presbyterian.
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| 1819 | 
A revival similar to the one, Narcissa must have attended in 1819. |
INSPIRED AT A WINTER REVIVAL, Narcissa joins the church "on a confession of faith." | ||
| 1824 | NARCISSA decides her vocation is to be a missionary. | |||
| 1827 | FRANKLIN ACADEMY,
a Presbyterian secondary school, opens in Prattsburg and Narcissa is among
the first students.
Narcissa meets and is courted by Henry
Harmon Spalding whom she
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| 1831 | NARCISSA
may have attended the Emma Willard School in Troy, New York.
Back home in Prattsburg, Narcissa teaches
school.
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| 1834 | THE PRENTISS
FAMILY MOVES to Amity (Belmont) New York.
Narcissa's zeal to become a missionary
is ignited by a lecture by the Reverend
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| 1835 | NARCISSA REQUESTS A POSITION from the American board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) as a missionary. She is turned down because of her gender. | |||
| 1836 | NARCISSA MARRIES
MEDICAL MISSIONARY, Dr. Marcus Whitman, in February,
and they begin their journey across the continental United States together with Henry Harmon Spalding, a minister and Narcissa's former suitor, and his wife, Eliza Hart Spalding. Their destination: Oregon. |
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| The party departs
from Liberty,
Missouri, in two covered wagons in the company of trappers from the American Fur Company. In July, the Whitmans and the
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Common mode of transport along the Oregon Trail. |
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| Narcissa and Eliza are the
first white women to cross over the South Pass of the Rocky Mountains.
In September, the party arrives at Fort Walla Walla on the Columbia River. In December, Narcissa travels to Waiilatpu "the place of the rye grass" in what is now Washington State to join Marcus on the Walla Walla River to work among the Cayuse Indians. Eliza joins Henry 125 miles away (now Idaho) at Lapwai, the home of the Nez Perces. |
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Sketch of the Whitman Mission at Waiilatpu (Courtesy The Oregon Historical Society, #11167) |
While Marcus administers
to the physical needs of the Cayuse as well as instructing the men in the
construction of a mill and the worship of the Christian God, Narcissa begins
to work with the children on both religious and secular education.
"We never had greater encouragement about the Indians than at the present time," she writes in the early days of the mission. |
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| 1838 | TWO ADDITIONAL MISSIONS are set up in the territory by new emigrants to work with the Flatheads and the Nes Perces. | |||
| 1839 | THE WHITMANS
REALIZE THEY HAVE MADE LITTLE PROGRESS toward converting the Cayuse
to Christianity.
In June, Narcissa's daughter, Alice Clarissa, drowns and Narcissa suffers a nervous breakdown. Language difficulties and the drudgery of daily mission life begin to take a toll on Narcissa's commitment to the Native Americans. |
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| The Oregon Trail
fast becomes a busy and viable highway and many white emigrants begin to
settle in the Oregon territories.
The Cayuse show distress over the white influx. |
The Oregon Trail stretches across the continent. |
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| 1842 | THE ABCFM (SPONSOR
OF THE MISSION PROGRAM) THREATENS TO CLOSE both Waiilatpu and Lapwai
because of squabbles between Marcus and Henry. These difficulties
may be a result of Henry's continued resentment over Narcissa's rejection
of him in the past and his jealousy of Marcus' reputation as a frontiersman
as well as a physician.
Marcus travels East to argue his case against
closing his mission and wins, but Narcissa suffers from loneliness and
depression during his absence.
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| 1844 |
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NARCISSA AND MARCUS ADOPT the seven orphaned Sager children whose parents have died along the Oregon Trail. These children are in addition to four other children already adopted. | ||
| 1847 | THE WHITMANS ARE THE TARGETS OF THREATS by the Cayuse, but refuse to leave. Their mission has become a waystation for the incoming pioneers and Marcus' medical skill is needed. | |||
| "The poor Indians are amazed
at the overwhelming numbers of Americans coming into the country," Narcissa
writes in July 1847. "They seem not to know what to make of it."
A measles epidemic strikes both the Cayuse and the white population of the Oregon territories taking with it 50% of the Native American children. |
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| IN NOVEMBER, A SMALL BAND OF CAYUSE massacres Marcus and Narcissa Whitman as well as fourteen others at the mission and take 47 prisoners. |
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An overview of the mission grounds. Want to do more research? Check out the following links: Whitman
Mission National Historic Site
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Marcus Whitman |
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