The song of Hiawatha

About “The song of Hiawatha”

The Song of Hiawatha is an epic poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, based on the legends and stories of North American Indian tribes, particularly the Ojibway. The material was collected by Henry Rowe Schoolcraft, a historian, explorer, and geologist who served as superintendent of Indian affairs for Michigan from 1836 to 1841. Schoolcraft's work, including Algic Researches (1839) and a later revision titled The Myth of Hiawatha (1856), formed the foundation for Longfellow's poem. Jane Schoolcraft, Henry's wife, and her mother contributed to researching and compiling the material. Jane was the daughter of an Irish fur trader and a woman from the Ojibway tribe. The poem draws from the cultural and spiritual traditions of the Ojibway people.