The Shawnee Indian Tribe
The Shawnee Indian Tribe, an Algonquian-speaking people, holds a place of significance in the history of North America. While the precise origins of the Shawnee Indian Tribe remain shrouded in some mystery, historical evidence indicates that by the year 1600, they had established themselves firmly in the Ohio River Valley. This expansive territory encompassed parts of what are now the states of Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Indiana. At that time, their population was estimated to be around 10,000 individuals. The very name of the Shawnee Indian Tribe is derived from the word "shawun," a term signifying "southerner," hinting at their geographic location relative to other Algonquian groups.
The Shawnee Indian Tribe are traditionally viewed as "grandfathers" by the Lenape (Delaware) people of the East Coast mid-Atlantic region, signifying their ancestral role as the source of all Algonquian tribes. Shared oral traditions with the Kickapoo suggest a common origin, a notion supported by linguistic similarities and their shared presence in northeast Ohio before European contact. The Shawnee also maintained a close, familial relationship with the Wyandot, whom they respectfully referred to as their "uncles."
The social structure of the Shawnee Indian Tribe was organized around a clan system, with leadership roles reserved for members of the "Chillicothe" clan. A village designated as Chillicothe served as the tribe’s principal seat, the home of the paramount chief and the effective "capital city" of the Shawnee Nation. Chiefships were hereditary and held for life, reflecting a patrilineal system where descent and inheritance were traced through the father’s lineage. War chiefs, on the other hand, were selected based on their demonstrable merit and skill in warfare.
During the warmer months, the Shawnee congregated in villages comprised of bark-covered longhouses. These villages typically featured a large council house, a central gathering place for meetings, religious ceremonies, and important decision-making. As autumn approached, the Shawnee dispersed into smaller hunting camps consisting of extended families, residing in wigwams. This seasonal shift reflected their adaptation to the natural cycles of the region. The men of the Shawnee were primarily responsible for hunting and fishing, providing sustenance for their families and contributing to the tribe’s economy. Women played a crucial role in farming, cultivating crops, and gathering essential resources like nuts, fruits, and edible roots.
From approximately 1630 onwards, the Iroquois Confederacy, seeking to expand its influence and control over resources, initiated a series of raids against the tribes inhabiting the Ohio Valley. This aggressive expansion pushed many of these tribes westward, disrupting their traditional territories and ways of life. The Shawnee, in particular, were fragmented into numerous bands and scattered across a wide geographic area, seeking refuge in South Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, Illinois, Virginia, Maryland, and Georgia. Ironically, despite their disruptive influence, the Iroquois never permanently occupied the Ohio Valley, maintaining it primarily as a hunting ground. This period of displacement led to the Shawnee gaining a reputation for being wanderers, a perception born out of necessity rather than choice.
In 1682, the Shawnee residing in Ohio and Pennsylvania forged a peace treaty with William Penn, an English nobleman, Quaker, and the founder of the Province of Pennsylvania. This landmark agreement marked the first formal treaty between the Shawnee and European settlers. When Thomas Chalkley, a minister of the London Society of Quakers, visited the Shawnee in 1706, he observed a unique aspect of their culture: the inclusion of women in tribal councils. Chalkley noted that some women were considered wiser than men and that the tribe had relied on the counsel of an "ancient, grave woman" for years in making important decisions. The Quakers further fostered positive relations by establishing schools, flour mills, and sawmills within Shawnee communities, contributing to their economic and social development.
As the power of the Iroquois waned, many of the Shawnee who had sought refuge in other regions began to return to the Ohio Valley by 1730. Simultaneously, both the French and English sought to establish alliances with the various tribes, recognizing their strategic importance in the ongoing competition for control of North America. These European powers actively sought to develop trade relationships with the tribes, offering goods and services in exchange for furs and other resources.
However, the late 1730s witnessed increasing pressure from colonial expansion, leading to repeated conflicts between settlers and the Shawnee. The fur trade, while initially beneficial, had a detrimental impact on Shawnee communities. European traders often exchanged furs for rum or brandy, leading to widespread alcohol abuse and associated social problems. Concerned about the negative consequences, several Shawnee communities in Pennsylvania opposed the sale of alcohol within their territories. In response, approximately 400 Shawnee migrated from Pennsylvania to Ohio, Kentucky, Alabama, and Illinois in 1745, seeking to escape the harmful influence of alcohol and preserve their traditional way of life.
Prior to 1754, the Shawnee maintained a primary headquarters in Virginia. However, they eventually relocated across the Allegheny Mountains to join their brethren further west, seeking greater autonomy and security. Initially, the Shawnee allied themselves with the French during the French and Indian War (1754-1763). However, in 1758, they switched their allegiance and sided with the British. That year, the British entered into the Treaty of Easton with 13 tribes, including the Shawnee, promising to respect their hunting grounds in the Ohio River Valley and to refrain from establishing colonial settlements west of the Allegheny Mountains.
This peace was short-lived, as Pontiac’s War erupted in 1763. Dissatisfied with British postwar policies, warriors from numerous tribes united under the leadership of Pontiac to drive out British soldiers and settlers from the region. In response, the English issued the Proclamation of 1763, legally confirming the 1758 border as the limit of British colonization, reserving the land beyond for Native Americans. Despite this proclamation, colonists continued to move westward, leading to continued conflict. The rebellion lasted until 1766, leaving relations between British colonists and Native Americans severely strained.
In 1768, the Treaty of Fort Stanwix further exacerbated tensions by extending the boundary westward, granting British colonists claims to West Virginia and Kentucky. This influx of Anglo-American settlers into the Ohio River Valley led to renewed conflicts as area tribes, who held treaty rights to hunt in the region, began to attack the encroaching settlements. In May 1774, John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore, the Governor of Virginia, declared war on the Indians. A prominent Shawnee leader named Cornstalk led his tribe in resistance against the British colonists during what became known as Lord Dunmore’s War. The conflict concluded shortly after Virginia’s victory at the Battle of Point Pleasant in October 1774. Subsequently, Lord Dunmore signed agreements with the Iroquois, ceding the "hunting grounds" across the Ohio River, including Kentucky and West Virginia, to the British.
During the American Revolution, the majority of the Shawnee sided with the British against the Americans. They believed that Britain would prevent the colonists from further encroaching upon their lands. However, some Shawnee remained neutral, recognizing the complexities of the conflict. After the British defeat, the Shawnee continued to resist Anglo-American settlement, participating actively in the Northwest Indian War of the 1790s. This resistance culminated in the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794, where the Shawnee and other tribes were defeated. As a result, they were forced to surrender most of their lands in Ohio by signing the Treaty of Greenville in 1795.
Despite these setbacks, some Shawnee remained determined to reclaim their ancestral lands in Ohio. One such leader was Chief Tecumseh, who united several tribes in a confederacy to fight against settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains. Tecumseh’s War began in 1810 and officially ended with the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811. However, the Shawnee and other tribes continued their struggle against the Americans into the War of 1812. The death of Chief Tecumseh at the Battle of the Thames in October 1813 marked a significant turning point, effectively ending his war with the British.
With the Treaty of Fort Meigs in 1817, the Shawnee effectively ceded all their remaining lands to the U.S. Government. They were subsequently placed on three reservations in present-day Ohio, sharing these lands with some Seneca who had migrated west from New York. However, other Shawnee groups rejected the treaty and migrated independently to Missouri, settling near Cape Girardeau. Some of these groups later moved to Louisiana. These bands were joined by other Shawnee groups from Alabama and Ohio, with some relocating to Arkansas and Texas.
Following Missouri’s admission to the Union in 1821, the Treaty of St. Louis was enacted in 1825, resulting in the relocation of 1,400 Missouri Shawnee from Cape Girardeau to a reservation in northeastern Kansas. This 1.6 million-acre reservation, located south of the Kansas River and west of the Missouri River, extended westward for many miles. The Shawnee chose to occupy only a small portion of this vast territory, sharing the reservation with the Kanza and Osage tribes. The population of the Shawnee in Kansas increased with the arrival of additional members of their tribe. In 1828, the spiritual leader Tensquatawa, the Shawnee Prophet, arrived with approximately 200 Shawnee, further bolstering their community in Kansas.
Between 1831 and 1833, the United States government forced the Shawnee to relinquish their land claims in Ohio. The Lewistown group of the Seneca-Shawnee migrated directly to Oklahoma. Shortly thereafter, the Wapakoneta and Hog Creek groups moved to the Shawnee Reservation in Kansas. By 1833, only Black Bob’s band of Shawnee resisted removal, but they too were eventually relocated to northeastern Kansas in 1833.
The Shawnee Indian Methodist Mission and school were established in 1839 to provide education and religious instruction to the Shawnee, Delaware, and other Indian nations. Construction of the mission continued until 1862. The building still stands today in Fairway, Kansas, serving as a National Historic Landmark and state historic site, a testament to the complex history of the Shawnee and their interactions with European settlers.
By 1840, many of the scattered Shawnee groups had migrated to Indian Territory (Oklahoma), settling along the Canadian River within the territories of the Choctaw and Creek Nations. Due to their absence from the Kansas Shawnee reservation, they became collectively known as the "Absentee Shawnee."
Those Shawnee who remained in Kansas experienced increased contact with white settlers following the opening of Kansas to settlement in 1854. Prior to this, interactions were limited to missionary workers and a few traders, such as the French Chouteau brothers who established trading posts among the Shawnee and Delaware in 1828 and 1829. The U.S. government reduced the Kansas reservation to 160,000 acres, parceling out the remaining land in 200-acre allotments to individual Indians. Kansas soon became embroiled in a struggle between Free State and Pro-slavery forces, transforming the state into a battleground.
Many of the Shawnee began to flee Kansas, seeking refuge with the Cherokee on their reservation in Oklahoma. Those with Southern sympathies joined the Absentee Shawnee on the Canadian River. During the Civil War, some of these Shawnee served in the Confederate army.
In 1869, the remaining members of the Shawnee tribe living in Kansas were also sent to Oklahoma to live with the Cherokee. The old missions, once renowned as the first Christian educational institutions in Kansas, were either closed or converted into houses of worship for white settlers.
The Shawnee members of the former Lewistown group became known as the "Eastern Shawnee," while their Seneca allies became the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma. The Eastern Shawnee Tribe is currently headquartered in Wyandotte, Oklahoma. The Shawnee who settled with the Cherokee became known as the "Loyal Shawnee" and are headquartered in Miami, Oklahoma. The Absentee Shawnee Tribe is located in Shawnee, Oklahoma.
Numerous other Shawnee bands, not recognized by the Federal Government, continue to reside in Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, Louisiana, Kentucky, Kansas, Illinois, and Maryland, preserving their cultural heritage and traditions.
Today, the total population of the Shawnee is estimated to be around 14,000, a testament to their resilience and enduring spirit in the face of adversity.