Guide to the Jasper Parrish Papers,
1757-1954 (bulk 1757-1869)
Table of Contents
- Collection Summary
- Biographical Note
- Scope and Content Note
- Subject Headings
- Administrative Information
- Access and Use
- Encoding Information
- Container List
Collection Summary
| Repository: | Archives and Special Collections Library, Vassar College Libraries |
|---|---|
| Creator: | Parish, Jasper, 1767-1836 |
| Title: | Jasper Parrish Papers |
| Inclusive Dates: | 1757-1954 |
| Bulk Dates: | 1757-1869 |
| Quantity: | 1 cubic ft |
| Abstract: | Material relating to Jasper Parrish and his involvement with the Iroquois peoples, particularly in New York State. |
| Forms of Materials: | Correspondence, receipts, invoices, notes, military and government records, addresses, messages, and a census. |
Biographical Note
Jasper Parrish (1767-1836) was born in Windham, Connecticut, but as a child moved with his family to the head of the Delaware River in the Southern Tier of New York State, a region still owned by the Six Nations confederation (Iroquois League) of Indian tribes. In 1778, at the age of 11, Parrish and his father were captured by a group from the Munsee band of the Delaware tribe. The senior Parrish was separated from his son, turned over to the British, and later exchanged as a prisoner of war and returned to his family. His son, however, remained with the Indians for nearly seven years. The last five years were with the family of a Mohawk chief, David Hill. Hill welcomed Parrish into his family, even formally adopting him with a traditional ceremony.
In 1784, when Parrish was seventeen, he was surrendered along with other captives according to the terms of the Treaty of Ft. Stanwix. Although his adoptive family wanted him to stay, Parrish opted to leave what had become his home to find his birth parents and rejoin the culture in which he was born. Re-entering that world was difficult for Parrish, for although he was then fluent in the Delaware and Mohawk languages, he had lost most of his English. He spent several months in school relearning the language and continued his education on his own, catching up with the world he had become a stranger to.
In 1790 he was asked to serve as an interpreter for the United States government. He moved to Canandaigua and worked under General Israel Chapin, the U.S. Superintendent of the Six Nations. He spoke several Indian languages and interpreted for a number of important treaty negotiations, including the Pickering Treaty at Canadaigua in 1794, which established peace between the Six Nations and the United States and is still cited today in New York State Native American land claims. He remained in Canadaigua for the rest of his life, married and had six children, moved up in government ranks and became a important figure in local business and civic affairs.
Parrish died 12 July 1836 and is buried in Canandaigua.
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Chronology
| 1767 | Born in Windham, Connecticut |
| 5 July 1778 | Captured by the Munsee |
| 1780 | Sold to a Mohawk chief, David Hill |
| 29 Nov 1784 | Surrendered at Fort Stanwix (now Rome, NY) |
| 1790 | Asked to serve as an interpreter for the U.S. government |
| 1792 | Appointed standing interpreter and moved to Canandaigua |
| 1794 | Served as chief interpreter for the negotiations and signing of the Pickering Treaty |
| 1800 | Married the daughter of General Edward Paine |
| 1803 | Appointed sub-agent to the Six Nations |
| 1815 | Given the gift of Squaw Island by the Seneca for his good work on their behalf |
| 12 July 1836 | Died in Canandaigua at the age of 69 |
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Scope and Content Note
Correspondence of Parrish, 1790-1829, and others, 1757-1869, relating to the Painted Post treaty, payments to Indians, supplies to the Seneca mission, conduct of the St. Regis Indians, and work of the Quakers among the Indians; addresses and messages, 1803-1823, of Timothy Pickering, Thomas Jefferson, and John C. Calhoun; deeds, agreements, and other legal papers, 1791-1824; receipts, invoices, notes, and accounts, 1793-1837; military and government records relating to the War of 1812 and New York State Indians, including a census of the Six Nations, 1792-1828; and other miscellaneous items, 1799-1860. There is also a typescript copy of these letters and documents relating to Parrish's service among New York State Indians, 1790-1831, prepared by Dorothy May Fairbanks, 1940; and a typescript article and inventory of these papers, 1954.
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Access and Use
Access
This collection is open for research according to the regulations of the Vassar College Archives and Special Collections Library without any additional restrictions.
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Subject Headings
Names:
- Calhoun, John C. (John Caldwell), 1782-1850.
- Fairbanks, Dorothy May.
- Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826.
- Pickering, Timothy, 1745-1829.
Subjects:
- Indian agents.
- Indians of North America--New York (State)
- Iroquois Indians--Census.
- Iroquois Indians--Treaties.
- Quakers--New York (State)
- Seneca Indians--Missions.
- St. Regis Indians.
Places:
- New York (State)--Politics and government--18th century.
- New York (State)--Politics and government--19th century.
- United States--History--War of 1812.
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Encoding Information
Encoded by Elizabeth Clarke, April 2007.
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Administrative Information
Preferred Citation
Jasper Parrish Papers, Archives and Special Collections Library, Vassar College Libraries.
Processing Information
Original processing date unknown. Biographical note added March 2007.
Acquisition Information
Donated to the Lucy Maynard Salmon Collection of Historical Materials, Vassar College Library, in 1939 by Caroline Monks, Vassar Class of 1940 and direct descendant of Jasper Parrish.
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Container List
| Folders 1.1-1.5 | Correspondence — Jasper Parrish to others, 1828, n.d. |
| Folders 1.6-1.56 | Correspondence — Others to Jasper Parrish, 1790-1829 |
| Folders 2.57-2.67 | Correspondence — Others to Others, 1757-1869, n.d. |
| Folders 2.68-2.74 | Addresses and messages, 1803-1823 |
| Folders 2.75-2.84 | Legal documents (Deeds, agreements, etc.), 1791-1824, n.d. |
| Folders 2.85-2.98 | Financial documents, (Indian annuity receipts, invoices, and promises; Parrish receipts and expense accounts; miscellaneous financial notes), 1793-1837 |
| Folders 2.99-2.104 | Censuses of the Six Nation; muster rolls; warriors in the war of 1812; list of signatures of Americans signed at Canandaigua), 1792-1828, n.d. |
| Folders 2.105-2.108 | Parrish promotion and commission documents, 1796-1803 |
| Folder 2.109 | Personal items — Parrish portrait [photograph] |
| Folder 2.110 | Personal items — plan of house |
| Folder 2.111 | Personal items — indenture document, 1807 |
| Folders 2.112-2.117 | Miscellaneous items, 1799-1860, n.d. |
| Folder 2.118 | Biographical narratives of Jasper Parrish |
| Box 3 | Letters and documents relating to the government service of Jasper Parrish among the Indians of New York State, 1790 to 1831, edited by Dorothy May Fairbank, 1940 (typescript) |
| Box 3 | Jasper Parrish Papers in Vassar College Library..., 1954 (typescript) |