The Potawatomi Tribe – Legends of America
The Potawatomi, a name resonating with the spirit of the Great Plains, the flow of the upper Mississippi River, and the vastness of the western Great Lakes region, are an Algonquian Native American people with a rich and storied history. Their name, a translation of the Ojibwe word "potawatomink," evokes the image of "people of the place of fire," a testament to their vibrant culture and enduring presence. Within their own language, the Potawatomi identify themselves as the Nishnabek, simply meaning "the people," a reflection of their deep connection to their community and heritage.
A Bond of Three Fires
Historically, the Potawatomi were integral members of the Council of Three Fires, a long-standing alliance with the Ojibwe and Ottawa tribes. This alliance was forged on shared linguistic roots, similar customs, and a unified approach to life. In the early days of their recorded history, the Potawatomi population was estimated to be around 8,000 individuals, a significant presence in the Great Lakes region.
Encounters and Displacement
The year 1634 marked the first recorded encounter between the Potawatomi and Europeans when Jean Nicolet arrived at Green Bay, Wisconsin. While a few Potawatomi were present, their primary territory at the time was in Michigan, suggesting they were likely visiting the area. The 1640s brought upheaval as the Iroquois Confederacy of New York launched raids throughout the Great Lakes region, aiming to monopolize the lucrative fur trade. This forced the Potawatomi westward, leading them to settle on the Door County Peninsula in Wisconsin. After three decades marked by war, displacement, and devastating disease epidemics, the French estimated the Potawatomi population to be approximately 4,000 in 1667.
Shifting Territories and Alliances
As the Algonquin tribes pushed back against the Iroquois, the Potawatomi moved southward, settling at the southern end of Lake Michigan. In 1701, the French established Fort Ponchartrain at Detroit, and groups of Potawatomi established villages nearby. By 1716, the majority of Potawatomi settlements were situated between present-day Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Detroit, Michigan, underscoring their strategic importance in the region.
The Potawatomi forged a strong partnership with the French, becoming both trading partners and military allies. During the Fox Indian uprising against the French in Wisconsin between 1712 and 1735, the Potawatomi fought alongside the French in numerous battles. They later assisted the French in conflicts with the Chickasaw and Illinois tribes. As the 1760s dawned, the Potawatomi expanded their territory into northern Indiana and central Illinois, further solidifying their presence in the Midwest.
Navigating Colonial Conflicts
When France and England clashed over control of North American lands, the Potawatomi found themselves embroiled in a series of wars, including King George’s War in 1746-47 and the French and Indian War from 1754 to 1763. With England’s victory, all French possessions in Canada and the Midwest came under British control. Wary of their new colonial rulers, the Potawatomi participated in Ottawa Chief Pontiac’s Rebellion against the British in 1863. The British suppressed the rebellion in 1866 and subsequently worked to establish improved diplomatic and economic ties with the tribes to prevent future uprisings.
During the American Revolution, the Potawatomi in Illinois largely remained neutral or even favored the Americans, while their counterparts in Michigan leaned towards the British. The Revolutionary War officially concluded in 1783 with the Treaty of Paris, which set the western boundary of the United States at the Mississippi River.
Treaties and Tensions
The U.S. government sought to establish a boundary with the Ohio tribes through treaties, but frontiersmen often disregarded these agreements, encroaching upon native lands. This led to a bloody war between the United States and the Ohio Indians, supported by the British, from 1790 to 1794, in which the Potawatomi from Michigan and Indiana participated. The conflict continued until the Indians were defeated by "Mad Anthony" Wayne at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794. In November, the British signed the Jay Treaty, resolving their differences with the United States and agreeing to abandon their forts on American territory. The alliance chiefs signed a treaty ceding most of Ohio, including 240 Potawatomi members. Although the Potawatomi did not surrender any of their lands, they received $1,000 for signing. In the aftermath, over 60 Potawatomi leaders who had attended the treaty negotiations at Greenville, Ohio, mysteriously fell ill and died, leading the British to accuse the Americans of poisoning them.
The native tribes signed several treaties in the following years, but it wasn’t until the Detroit Treaty of November 1807 that the Potawatomi were compelled to surrender some of their lands. By this time, Potawatomi tribal lands encompassed northern Illinois, southeastern Wisconsin, northern Indiana, southern Michigan, and northwestern Ohio.
Resistance and Displacement
Many Potawatomi became followers of Tenskawatawa, the Shawnee Prophet, and his brother Tecumseh, who advocated resisting American expansion onto Indian lands. The brothers formed an Indian military alliance that included the Potawatomi, who fought on the British side during the War of 1812. Early in the war, the Potawatomi defeated the American garrison at Fort Dearborn in Chicago. When the war ended in 1814, the British relinquished their claims to lands in Wisconsin and other parts of the Midwest.
In the years that followed, the Potawatomi faced hardship, struggling to hunt and grow enough food to sustain themselves. They were often left with little choice but to cede their land to the United States in exchange for money to survive. Several treaties and land cessions were made in the ensuing years, and the Potawatomi west of the Mississippi River were forcibly removed between 1834 and 1842.
The Trail of Death
The Potawatomi were removed in two main groups. The Prairie and Forest Bands from Illinois and Wisconsin were relocated to Council Bluffs in southwestern Iowa, while the Potawatomi of the Woods, including the Michigan and Indiana bands, were moved to eastern Kansas near Osawatomie. One band of Potawatomi, led by Chief Menominee, refused to leave their ancestral homelands at their Twin Lakes village in Indiana. Menominee was soon joined by hundreds of other Potawatomi who shared his determination to remain. Over time, Menominee’s band grew from four wigwams to over a hundred. However, in August 1838, soldiers forced them to begin a march to Kansas, an event now known as the Potawatomi Trail of Death. During this forced removal, 42 of the 859 Potawatomi perished.
In 1846, the Iowa and Kansas groups were merged and placed on a single reservation north of Topeka, Kansas. This unified group separated in 1867, with the Citizen Potawatomi moving to Oklahoma near present-day Shawnee.
Resilience and Dispersion
Throughout these years of removal, the Potawatomi tribe fractured. Many members managed to avoid removal and remained in the Great Lakes area. Others joined the Kickapoo in Texas and Kansas, while some migrated to Canada. Approximately 200 of the Potawatomi who were initially relocated to Iowa and Kansas eventually returned to Wisconsin and settled near Wisconsin Rapids.
The Potawatomi Today
Today, several federally recognized bands of Potawatomi thrive in the United States and Canada, a testament to their resilience and enduring spirit:
United States:
- Citizen Potawatomi Nation, Shawnee, Oklahoma
- Forest County Potawatomi Community, Wisconsin
- Hannahville Indian Community, Michigan
- Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi (Gun Lake Tribe), Dorr, Michigan
- Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi, Calhoun County, Michigan
- Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, Michigan and Indiana
- Prairie Band of Potawatomi Nation, Mayetta, Kansas
Canada:
- Caldwell First Nation, Point Pelee and Pelee Island, Ontario
- Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation, Bruce Peninsula, Ontario
- Saugeen First Nation, Ontario
- Chippewa of Kettle and Stony Point, Ontario
- Moose Deer Point First Nation, Ontario
- Walpole Island First Nation, on an unceded island between the United States and Canada
- Wasauksing First Nation, Parry Island, Ontario
The Potawatomi people have faced countless challenges throughout their history, from displacement and disease to war and forced removal. Yet, they have persevered, maintaining their cultural identity and traditions. Today, the Potawatomi continue to contribute to their communities and work towards a brighter future for generations to come.