A comparison is made of Miami Indian death customs of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as described by French explorers ca. 1702 and by C. C. Trowbridge to Michigan Territorial Governer Lewis Cass in 1825. Changes in customs reflect the influence of time, invasion, and tribal identity on a universal observance. Distinguishing features of nineteenth century customs are the ceremonial provision of a surrogate to replace the deceased and protection of the corpse from an inimical medicine man. Similarities and differences between the death customs of the Miamis and other Great Lakes tribes are also noted.
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