This bulletin is the third in a series of six, recounting the field work done among Wisconsin Indians to discover their present uses of native or introduced plants and, insofar as is possible, the history of these plant uses by their ancestors. As far back as 1888 Hoffman[85] reported that the medicinal lore of the Ojibwe would soon be gone. But thirty-two years later, it is still partially recalled and practised among the more primitive bands of these people. How long it will persist is problematical. The Ojibwe are the most numerous of any of our tribes and as long as they live in the northern forest and lake district of Wisconsin, so long will the older Indians continue to explain the natural history of their environment to the young men and women of the tribe.

The writer deplores the brevity of the time that could be devoted to each tribe, and applauds the similar study reported by Miss Frances Densmore[86] in her fifteen years of research among the Ojibwe. Necessarily the most valuable information comes from the oldest Indians, and many informants have died since this study was made.

Three trips were made, usually of six weeks duration. The first was made in June, 1923 to the Lac du Flambeau Reservation, in Vilas County, Wisconsin. The same region was visited again later in the fall. During the spring of 1924 one trip was made to Leech Lake, Minnesota, where the remnant of the Pillager Band of the Ojibwe live on Bear Island, (Plate 60, fig. 1), and the surrounding mainland. Since then, trips have been made to Redcliff, Bayfield County, to Odanah, Iron County, to Lac Court Oreilles, Clark County, and to scattered bands in various sections of northern Wisconsin. The principal work was done at Lac du Flambeau and Leech Lake. The Leech Lake trip checked results obtained at Lac du Flambeau.

The writer thanks those officials and private citizens who assisted by introductions to Indians and by making his stay among them comfortable. Mr. James W. Balmer, Indian Agent, then at Lac du Flambeau, now at Pipestone, Minnesota, and his chief clerk, Mr. Walter H. Shawnee, a Shawnee Indian, still in service at Lac du Flambeau, and Mr. John Allen, Ojibwe Indian and school disciplinarian all gave valued advice and quartered us at their Teacher’s Club. Mr. Edward Rogers, of Walker, Minnesota, a very successful Ojibwe attorney, and the Noble brothers, Mr. John W. Noble and Mr. E. W. (“Van”) Noble, proprietor of Forest View Lodge, directly across from Bear Island, rendered valuable assistance with the Pillager band of Ojibwe.

The writer collected every plant he could find in each region because he had been informed that the Ojibwe differ from other Wisconsin Indians in that they believe that every plant that grows is some kind of medicine or useful for something. The only plants discovered for which they had no name or use were adventive plants, and one could fairly well establish the date of their appearance in the state, because the Indians pay much more attention to our native flora than do the whites.

Most of our informants were men, because they found it easier to talk to the writer than the women. It was easy to get the women to talk of old time methods of preparing aboriginal foods. The Ojibwe had a large number of hunting medicines used as charms. These were accompanied by drawings on the ground designating what they hoped to accomplish in killing game for their larder. About sixty-five per cent of their medicinal plants were actually valuable medicinally, the remainder being employed in a shamanistic or superstitious manner. The writer concludes that their great knowledge of plants has been achieved through long periods of time by a process of trial and error, basing this belief upon their fear of mushrooms. Both men and women pointed out plants in their native habitat and were willing to explain their uses. They are the real ones to thank for the facts discovered and without their cooperation such a study would be impossible. A list of them follows.

In conformity with previous bulletins, the plants will be listed (1) under their various uses and (2) under each of these captions, alphabetically by their families. Where possible, the literal translation of the Indian name is given.[87]