BOUCHARD, JAMES. - American Jesuit, b. in 1823 at Muscagola to a Delaware chief and a Frenchwoman abducted by the Indians. After various adventures in his tribe, the little Natomika allowed himself to be won over by a Presbyterian missionary and, after his first studies at Marietta College, Ohio, chose the career of Protestant minister. Having converted to Catholicism at St. Louis in 1848, he entered the Society of Jesus. He was a great friend of Fr. De Smet. In 1861 he was transferred to the California mission, where by his zeal and the success of his preaching he contributed not a little to the progress of the Catholic Church. He died at San Francisco on 27 Dec. 1889. His childhood adventures and the beauty of his figure have inspired various authors who write for the young.

Bibliography3 works

BIBL.: A. Bresciani, Il schaggio Natomiha, in La Civiltà Catt., 3rd series, IV (1857, II), pp. 144-56; F. Weiser, Natomiha, der letzte Häuptling der Delawaren, Ratisbon 1933; G. J. Garraghan, J. B. S. I., French-Delaware Indian, in Mid-America, 19 (Chicago 1939), pp. 265-85 (with the autobiography of B.).

Edmondo Lamalle

@incollection{ec2_bouchard_james, author = {Lamalle, Edmondo}, title = {Bouchard, james}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {II}, pages = {1975--1976}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1949}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/bouchard-james} }

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Bouchard, James

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