The Century Chest Collection

Story of Chief Journey Cake, last chief of the Delaware

(Transcribed from the original)

(1)
Oklahoma City. Apr 21st 1913
In the Delaware Settlement on the
upper Sandusky, lived an Indian
who married a white woman by the
name of Castleman. A daughter of this
union was born December 16, 1817
Charles Journeycake, the subject of this
memoir. Sally Journeycake the mother
was born about 1797, and died in
the Indian Territory February 6th, 1873.

In her history and that of her more famous son
farmers own and his descendants
we have such an illustration
of the methods and power of the
gospel in regenerating and elevating
the Indian races as is worth of
attention.

In the first quarter of the Eighteenth
Century there was not a Christian Delaware
in the settlement. Sally Journeycake
was the first Indian to become converted
to the Christian faith, in that century.

(2)
Charles Journeycake was converted
in 1833 and was baptized by a
missionary named Likins. He was
the first Delaware baptized in the
eighteenth century. In 1835 his father
and mother were baptized. This
was the beginning and nucleus
of a Baptist Church among
the Delaware Indians. Twenty one
years before Kansas was organized
into a Territory of the United States
and admitted for settlement as such,
by an act of Congress in May 1854.
Charles Journey cake came west with
the Delawares and settled near
Leavenworth Kansas. It is highly
probably that he was the first person
baptized in what is now the
state of Kansas. He began preaching
when a young man, and up until
a few years of his death, preached
in Delaware, Shawnee, Wyandotte,
Seneca, and Ottawa dialects. In 1837

(3)
at the age of twenty Mr. Journeycake
married Jane Sosha, a Delaware maid
sixteen years of age. There were eight
daughters of this union who grew
to womanhood. Five are still living,
viz, Mrs. J.E. Campbell, Mrs. Mary Armstrong,
Mrs. Mannie Bartles, Mrs. Adna Lourance and
Mrs. Anna Armstrong. All are
women of culture. The youngest des-
cendant of this family, is James
Carey Morse, born Nov 15, 1912 son
of Lelia M. & Jeter Morse, daughter of Cora Lee
Who was youngest child of Charles
Journeycake.

Mr. Journeycake moved his family
to the Indian Territory and with other
members of his tribe were adopted as
citizens of the Cherokee Nation. He located
in the North Eastern part of the Territory, and
organized the Delaware Baptist
Church on Lightening Creek of which
Church he was pastor until his death.
At the age of thirty eight, Mr. Journeycake
was made Chief of the wolf clan
and in 1861 became principal chief

(4)
of the Delawares. He made twenty-four
trips to Washington in the interest
of his people. He died January 3, 1894
after many years of faithful service in
the ministry, and as chief advisor for
his people, the Delawares.
Contributed by Mrs. Jeter Morse / (nee Lelia
M. Carey)