Potawatomi

Potawatomi Indian Research

Pottawatomie Indians   J. B. Bottineau, speaking Chippewa and Cree fluently, gives Potawatanubñk or Potawaganiñk, i. e. ‘People of the place of the fire,’ as the primary form of the name. This derivation is strongly confirmed by the Huron name Asistagueroüon (Champlain, 1616), for Otsistă’ge`roñnoñ’, likewise signifying ‘People of the place of fire,’ which was applied by them to their enemies who dwelt in 1616 on the west shores of Lake Huron. Read More about the Potawatomie History Potawatomi Indian Biography Pottawatomie Chiefs and Leaders Chief Kack-kack (hosted at Pottawatomie Web) Bureau of Indian Affairs Bureau of Indian Affairs Tracing … Read more

Mascouten Tribe

Mascouten Indians (‘little prairie people,’ from muskuta (Fox) or mashcodé, (Chippewa), prairie’; ens, diminutive ending. By the Hurons they were called Assistaeronon, ‘Fire people,’ and by the French ‘Nation do Fen.’ These last names seem to have arisen from a mistranslation of the Algonquian term. In the Chippewa dialect ‘fire’ is ishkote, and might easily be substituted for mashkodé, ‘prairie’ ). A term used by some early writers in a collective and indefinite sense to designate the Algonquian tribes living on the prairies of Wisconsin and Illinois; LaSalle even includes some bands of Sioux under the name. The name (Mashkótens) … Read more

The Potawatomi of Illinois

The tribe that held the Chicago region from about the close of the seventeenth century until 1833 were the Potawatomi. They axe discussed here at some length, as they played an important role throughout the early American period, and we are fortunate in possessing quite detailed accounts of their mode of life. According to a tradition possessed by all three tribes, the Potawatomi, Chippewa, and Ottawa were once one people, and appear in history more or less simultaneously in the territory about the upper end of Lake Huron. The name Potawatomi means “People of the Place of Fire,” as did the … Read more

Indians of The Chicago Region

Sketch of Chicago in 1820

The history of the Chicago region is deeply intertwined with the lives and cultures of the indigenous peoples who inhabited this area long before the arrival of European settlers. This booklet, “Indians of The Chicago Region,” focuses particularly on the Illinois and Potawatomi tribes, drawing on extensive research and firsthand information. Prepared by Assistant Curator Strong, this work is based on materials collected by Mr. M. G. Chandler, an adopted member of the Potawatomi tribe, whose intimate knowledge of the central Algonkian group has been invaluable.

Songs of the Wabeno

Pictorial Signs used in the Society of the Wabeno; A Description of the Character and Objects of this Institution; Etymology of the term; The Season favorable for this, and other Ceremonial observances; Vicissitudes of Indian Life; Fallacy of the Indian Theology; Interpretation of the Pictorial Mnemonic Signs of the Wabeno, with the text of the Nuga-moon-un; Synoptical Table, showing the Ideographic value of the Symbols.

Potawatomi’s Secure All Illinois Tribe Territory

Summertime was when the families of the village lived together in a village.

This great event in Indian history secured to the Pottawatomie all the territory then belonging to the Illinois, and the exclusive right to which was undisputed by other tribes. It extended their possessions to the lands of the Peoria on Peoria Lake. They occupied to the Wabash as far south as Danville and even beyond. On the other side they occupied to the Hock River, though their right to a strip of land on the east side of that river was disputed by the Sac and Fox Indians who ranged the prairies west of there and beyond the Mississippi. They … Read more

Potawatomi Settlement in Illinois

Summertime was when the families of the village lived together in a village.

Soon after their discovery by LaSalle, the great Iroquois Confederation, whose battlefields were strewn with their victims almost from the Atlantic coast to the Wabash, and from the Great Lakes, and even north of them, to the Alleghenies and the Ohio, finally extended their enterprises to the Illinois Tribe. With a great slaughter they defeated this hitherto invincible people, laid waste their great city, and scattered them in broken bands over their wide domain. From this terrible blow they never recovered. For a century later they struggled with waning fortunes against northern encroachments, till finally they were exterminated by the … Read more

Great War Dance

Metea

I shall close this paper with an account of the great war dance which was performed by all the braves which could be mustered among the five thousand Indians here assembled. The number’ who joined in the dance was probably about eight hundred. Although I cannot give the precise day, it must have occurred about the last of August 1835. It was the last war dance ever performed by the natives on the ground where now stands this great city, though how many thousands had preceded it no one can tell. They appreciated that it was the last on their … Read more

End of the Illinois Tribe

Native American caught large fish with spears and smaller fish with nets, traps or baited hooks.

It was very different, however, with the Prairie Indians. They despised the cultivation of the soil as too mean even for their women and children, and deemed the captures of the chase as the only fit food for a valorous people. The corn, which grew like grass from the earth which they trod beneath their feet was not proper meat to feed their greatness. Nor did they open their ears to the lessons of love and religion tendered them by those who came among them and sought to do them good. If they tolerated their presence they did not receive … Read more

The Teepee

teepee1

The teepee, a versatile and historically significant structure, has been widely associated with the Lakota Sioux in popular culture, particularly through depictions in Hollywood Westerns. However, the use of conical dwellings like the teepee extends beyond the Plains tribes to other indigenous peoples across North America, as well as to groups in northern Scandinavia and Siberia. This article explores the origins, construction, and cultural significance of the teepee, with a particular focus on its architectural features and adaptations to various environments. It also addresses misconceptions about indigenous housing styles, highlighting the diverse ways in which Native American tribes built their homes, depending on their resources and needs.

Four Seasons of the Potawatomi

Summertime was when the families of the village lived together in a village.

A visual and written model of the culture and lifestyle of the Potawatomie tribe during the four seasons – Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter.

Potawatomi in the Early 1800’s

Potawatomi Farming Village

Never heard of the Potawatomi Indian Tribe? The Potawatomi Nation is a sister tribe to the Ottawa and Ojibwe (Chippewa.) At one time, they were part of the same tribe and living somewhere in the vicinity of Canada’s Maritime Provinces or perhaps, New England. As the tribe gradually migrated westward along the edge of Lake Erie, it eventually broke up into three bands, which eventually became distinct tribes. The three tribes still share very similar cultural traditions and languages. Although they never lived in permanent villages until the early 1800s, the Three Sister Tribes had very rich cultural traditions. Still … Read more

Indian Tribes of the Southern Plains Region

The Regional Director represents the Southern Plains Region in dealing with other governmental entities and tribal entities. The Regional Director serves as the representative for the Director of the Bureau of Indian Affairs with the responsibility to work toward strengthening intergovernmental assistance to all the Federally-recognized tribes under the jurisdiction of the Southern Plains Regional Office. The Southern Plains Region has two (2) Deputy Regional Directors, who work directly under the Regional Director. Dan Deerinwater, Regional Director Southern Plains Regional Office Bureau of Indian Affairs WCD Office Complex P.O. Box 368 Anadarko, OK 73005 Anadarko Agency Bureau of Indian Affairs … Read more

A Sketch of the Potawatomi

Wabaunsee A Pottawatimie Chief

More than thirty-seven years ago, when I first became a citizen of Chicago, I found this whole country occupied as the hunting grounds of the Pottawatomie Indians. I soon formed the acquaintance of many of their chiefs, and this acquaintance ripened into a cordial friendship. I found them really intelligent and possessed of much information resulting from their careful observation of natural objects. I traveled with them over the prairies, I hunted and I fished with them, I camped with them in the groves, I drank with them at the native springs, of which they were never at a loss … Read more