We Remember the Myaamia Forced Removal

aya eeweemilakakoki (Hello my relatives), 170 years ago today, the United States government began the forced removal of Myaamia people from our historic homelands in the Wabash River Valley. On October 6, 1846, Myaamia people boarded canal boats near Iihkipihsinonki (“the Straight Place,” near Peru, Indiana) and on the next day loading concluded near Kiihkayonki (Fort Wayne, Indiana). All told, in just over a month of forced travel, over 320 Myaamia people were moved via canals and rivers to Kanza Landing (Kansas City, Missouri) in the Unorganized Indian Territory. At least, six Myaamia people died on the journey and many more died over the following winter. This removal also fragmented the Miami Nation, as five families were exempted from the removal and remained behind on individual or family reserves in Indiana. As we move through the early days of kiiyolia kiilhswa and celebrate the fall harvest, we should all take a moment and reflect on this very difficult journey and remember the Myaamia people who suffered being separated from their homes and their families in the fall of 1846. It is through their struggles that the Miami Nation endured on a new national land base west of the Mihsi-siipiiwi (Mississippi River). If you would like to read more about Myaamia Aancihseeciki (the Myaamia Forced Removal), follow this link to download “A Cultural Exploration of the Myaamia Removal Route.”