Having done the research,
which is ongoing, regarding the Bowman's of Vermont and Saratoga County, New York, and in particular the descendant family of Bruchac, genealogical descendants of Lewis Henry Bowman Sr. through his son Jesse Elmer Bowman ... I have ask myself several questions.
Why was Joseph Edward Bruchac III perpetuating this concocted story of his, that his mother's father Jesse as an "Abenaki"?
Was it simply because he was infatuated with Indians"?
Clearly he was interactive with the Onondaga people who shared stories with him.
He began, first, to publish Iroquois stories, not Abenaki stories.
It was ONLY later, after meeting with Jules Louis Maurice Paul dit Dennis and his wife, Marie Juliette M'Sadoques, and learning that "Maurice" Den(n)is' mother was Marie Cléophée Robert Obomsawin, that Joseph Bruchac III began directing his writing towards Abenaki stories, and which involved his own family narrative, that Bowman derived from O'Bomsawin.
Mr. Joseph Bruchac III has a Ph.D., and is a learned man, of some intelligence.
He BELIEVED his leap of faith, his theory and his guess that his own grandfather's father Lewis Henry Bowman was an Abenaki (later conjectured but stated as fact that the man's father was from Odanak (formerly known as St. Francis), a mission community of Abenakis stretching back into the historical past to ca. 1675). Simply based on Jesse's dark complexion initially. Joe's estranged father, allegedly TOLD Joe III, that Marion's father was an Abenaki.
But again, this is based on what Joe III SAYS post-1975. The merit of this story? Probably none.
He did not attempt to be aware of anything further than what he could perpetuate in his stories, that fit into his narrative, throughout the years from 1975 to 2016. Anything questioning of that perpetuated narrative, and the resulting action of the Bruchac family was:
Simply "fishing" and implying that the Bowman's the Bruchac's descend from, MUST BE NATIVE.
And yet there are Bowman's in New England, from Germany, Scotland, England, and even Switzerland.
There most definitely are ethical considerations in claiming indigenous identity or relationships with particular indigenous peoples. To falsely claim such belonging is absolutely indigenous identity fraud. It is theft.
Jack Lynch (brother-in-law to Joe Bruchac)
There presently is a family group from this line that is circulating unfounded genealogical information for their personal economic benefit, so be careful.
In 2007, there was a Message Board conversation,
http://boards.ancestry.com/topics.ethnic.natam.nations.abenaki.abenakinat/240/mb.ashx in which some posted messages were for and against Bowman being from the Obomsawin Abenaki family. Within these posted messages, was one response received by a
Ibgen1 of Queensbury, NY (where some of the Bowman's descended of Lewis H. Bowman reside to this day) who had some interesting details shared, but never really clarified genealogically speaking.
We're working with what details were posted by this submitter, in our research now.
Also during this long thread of messages, Carollee Reynolds also attempted to claim that her Partlow ancestors were identified as Abenakis/Indians in the Civil War Era at the time of enlistment. This is also not true. Those four Indians of Alburg, were Akwesasne Mohawk men. Had they really done their research, they would have known this. But of course, they along with Professor Wiseman simply didn't show the original records because the truth didn't fit their manipulated narrative for the Colonizer State of Vermont of whom these fake Abenakis were proffering up unsubstantiated un-vetted "evidence" and "proof. Certainly the genealogical evidence of alleged "Abenaki" ancestor was NEVER evaluated transparently!
In the Ancestry.com Message Board Postings particularly on the date of May 06, 2009, migakawinno [Jesse Bowman Bruchac … Joseph Bruchac’s youngest son] wrote a response.
It was then that I began to smell BS. Joe Bruchac's son was stating that "his father took a leap?" etc.
June 13, 2012
Ancestry.com Message Board
From: jacklynch2833 [Jack Lynch]
Subject: Re: Mary and Alice Vanantwerp, Bowman, Saratoga Co. NY
Louis Bowman was born in East Farnham, Quebec to Charles and Sophie Bowman. At this level there is no sure connection with Abenaki lineage. If it exists, it is further back. After Charles death in the 1840s, Sophie married a man with the last name Senecal. This link has caused some native ancestry suggestions to be raised, but it does not go to the Bowman line.
June 24, 2015
From: "Irene" an Odanak Abenaki member
Always, and I appreciate your efforts, a style different then mine, but we are on the same page. I have been away, but not hidden, never hidden, following from a safe distance. After these long years I am finally able to pursue my Vocation and embracing both my heritage and talent for the first time ever. I was able to register at Odanak after my grandmother passed, my mother wanting to retire to Odanak, someday soon maybe. Then seeing what has become of Cecile Wawanolett's legacy and Elie Joubert, makes me cry, not sick, but just cry. I walk a fine line between both worlds, trying to make sense of how things can be fixed, if at all.
My only pain has always been with Jesse Bruchac and his aunt Marge for making my relative upset, and for stealing our stories, downright making them up. Others are also watching /fighting the battle on our turf. So I watch my actions, I have to, but I am not naive. But it is hard to be Abenaki anywhere; when the first question is …
Do you know that 'ole Joe'?
Defenseless in numbers of those who agree, all I can respond with is, "Who? Never heard of him"
I have recently come across one of Don Stevens Jr.'s posted comments on the internet regarding Saints and Strangers, a video that Mr. Jesse Bowman Bruchac was involved in.
November 01, 2015
http://www.channelguidemag.com/tv-news/2015/11/01/walking-the-talk-how-saints-strangers-native-american-cast-learned-to-speak-abenaki/
By Lori Acken
Walking the talk –
how Saints & Strangers’ native American cast learned to speak Abenaki
“I grew up in a
family where everybody was involved in our family history that dates back to
this period,” said Jesse Bowman Bruchac, 43, whose father, Joseph Edward
Bruchac III, penned the well-received “Squanto’s Journey: The Story of the
First Thanksgiving.”
“I saw the language being lost, and my father struggling
to gain fluency because his own
grandfather [Jesse Elmer Bowman] and mother [Marion Dunham Bowman – Bruchac] didn’t want to
speak it.
One does have to question whether or not Joseph Edward Bruchac III's grandfather, Jesse, and or Jesse's own daughter Marion EVER KNEW OR SPOKE THE ABENAKI LANGUAGE AT ALL.'
To imply that either of them had the ability to speak the Abenaki language, and just "didn't want to" ... is yet another concocted implied statement by Jesse Bowman Bruchac. I doubt that either Jesse Elmer Bowman or his daughter, knew of the Abenaki language, let alone could speak it.
November 02, 2015
Chief Donald Warren Stevens Jr. – Nulhegan Abenaki Tribe stated:
“I
want to thank Jesse, National Geographic, and everyone who has allowed the
Abenaki language to be used and heard. The Bruchac’s are a very important line
to the preservation of the language. I hope this movie will inspire other
companies to use the Abenaki Language. It is also nice to see that the native
perspective will also be shown in the film.
There is still a lot of ignorance
and hate out there toward Native people.
Thank you and keep up the great work!
So, according to the Phillips descendant of Antoine Philips Sr. (Haplogroup: M-181 ... and a Black man of African descent and NOT ABENAKI at all) continues to imply that the Native people are hated and that there is a lot of ignorance out there towards such ethnicity ... just like he and his bastardizing manipulative ilk have claimed that this blog is a "hate-blog")
Here's what I think, this blog is no more about HATE, than these people are really Abenaki Indians.
The ignorance is what these pretenders and "fakers" rely upon, just like the Bruchac's have relied on the narrative of their concocted ancestral stories about Jesse Bowman and his father Lewis Henry Bowman to perpetuate their appropriate of Abenaki stories, etc. and "circulating unfounded genealogical information for their personal economic benefit", as Jack Lynch stated in his March 2002 post on the genealogical Genforum.com ...
The Bruchac Ph.D, Margaret Marie Bruchac - Kennick (and or their ally 'John Peters', in or near Amsterdam intentionally or not on his part) went online, and attempted to 'attach' the Bowman ancestry to Francois Louis Obomsawin and Agnes-Anne Onlinass's family (from and of Odanak) ... IMPLYING that Lewis Henry Bowman Sr. was their son born in July of 1844.
Who does this sort of thing? Was it honest? Was it transparent? Was it backed up in genealogical merit?
It is NOT HATEFUL to do the necessary research to confirm or deny the merits of those that would and have perpetuated ETHNIC FRAUD within the State of Vermont, or surrounding states.
This also includes Donald Warren Stevens Jr. of the "Abenaki" fakers group, the Nulhegan Wannabiiak "Tribe" of Orleans County, Vermont.
These "fakers" and wannabiiak (wanabe's) rely on the public's IGNORANCE to perpetuate their "Abenaki" persona's and their blatant Ethnic Fraud ...
This Blog AIMS TO EXPOSE THEM to the Public with the FACTS.
Now will the Public HOLD the Bruchac's and Margaret Marie Bruchac-Kennick, Ph.D. to the SAME ACCOUNTABILITY as Rachel Dolezal, Ward Churchill, Andrea Smith, and Susan Taffe-Reed? How about Donna (nee: Carvalho) Charlebois - Moody? And the many other "fakers" out there here in the Northeast?
Do you stand up against Ethnic Fraud? Or do you ignore this dynamic happening to the Cherokee's, the Abenaki's, etc? Obviously, the Colonizer State of Vermont, and other states advocate and help perpetuate the Abenaki Ethnic and Culture Theft against the Abenaki People.
Colleges and Museums, and those associated with NAGPRA here in the N.E. right along with the VCNAA, and the Departments of Historical Preservation of VT, NH etc, as well as the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts (as well as in Vermont) ALLOWS the continued Ethnic Fraud to be perpetuated and condoned.
The Bruchac are no more Abenakis than Gérard (Jerry) “Tsonakwa” Rancourt (or his wife Marilyn Bernadet (nee: Sciolé) a.k.a. Yolai’kia Wapita’ska) were or are.
The perpetuated ancestral scam, scheme, "leap of faith" has been accepted as true, by many, as if were founded in fact. Mr. Joseph Edward Bruchac III and Margaret Marie Bruchac - Kennick sought to have the public BELIEVE their stories as to how they narrated the story.
Was it truthful? Was it founded on facts, historically - genealogically - genetically - socially?
Bowman: Predicted: M269 Confirmed: R-Z2109
Haplogroup R-M269 is the dominant lineage in all of Western Europe today. It is found in low frequencies in Turkey and the northern Fertile Crescent, while its highest frequencies are in Western Europe.
Obomsawin: Q1a3a1
Bowman:
12-23-15-10-11-17-12-12-13-14-13-30-15-9-10-11-11-24-15-18-28-14-17-17
Obomsawin:
13-23-13-10-15-17-12-12-12-14-14-31-14-9- 9-11-10-27-14-21-30-13-18-19
And yet, Louis Henry Bowman Sr. was the son of Francois Louis Obomsawin and his wife Agnes-Anne Onlinass?
Who tried to perpetuate the genealogical LIES about Lewis Henry Bowman Sr?
Sure as hell wasn't Jesse Elmer Bowman nor his siblings, or his wife, or their descendants, other than the Bruchac's themselves all these years.
It's not 'hate' that drives this blog forward. It's the researched FACTS.
Let's have a big round of applause for the continual perpetuation of Abenaki Identity and Culture Theft by the advocates, perpetrators, and their allies of the 1-Drop-Rule throughout N'dakinna.
Or the 'no-drop-at-all' pseudo-"Abenaki Tribes" here in Vermont.
