Many readers have probably heard that Miamis were sometimes called “Twightwees.” This appears to be a term applied to Myaamiaki by Indigenous people to the East. One of the explanations comes from a historic battle between the Cherokees and the Miamis, as recorded by C. C. Trowbridge in the 1820s: The original name of the…
Author: camshriver
Cam is a historian of early America specializing on Miami Tribe and Great Lakes ethnohistories and empires in North America.
The Battle of the Mississinewa, 1812
It was cold, that much we know. A decade plus two centuries ago, the War of 1812 made its violent impact on the Myaamia and Delaware families living along the Nimacihsinwi Siipiiwi ‘Mississinewa River.’ It happened along a stretch of the river near where Meshingomesia and his band would put their schoolhouse a couple of…
The Battle of the Wabash
On November 4, 1791, news of the Battle of the Wabash hit Native nations and the U.S. like a thunderclap. The Native victory shocked the United States. Miamis and their allies returned home, having defended their territory for another year. Following the Battle of Kiihkayonki the previous year, the United States re-mobilized, hoping to force…
The Battle of Kiihkayonki
About this time of year in 1790, the Myaamiaki (Miamis) and Mihši-maalhsaki (Americans) were at war. The violence in the middle of October is recalled as the Battle of Kiihkayonki. In this blog post, George Ironstrack narrates the actions of the Miamis and their allies, as well as the American forces. This prolonged battle initiated…
Minohsaya ‘Painted Hide’ Workshop Recap
As blog readers may recall, a group of artists, educators, and scholars have been discussing Myaamia and Peewaalia ‘Miami and Peoria’ painted hides held in a museum in Paris, France, and thinking about revitalizing the meaning and practice of this artistic form. In early August of 2022, a group got together in Miami, Oklahoma. The…
The Peace of Montreal, 1701
Chichicatallo* stood, an old and venerated Myaamia akima ‘chief,’ in front of hundreds of onlookers. Interpreters listened, and then a babble of languages filled the air as they translated his words into Wyandot and Seneca, Ojibwe and Mohawk. It was August 4, 1701. That was 321 years ago.[1] Days later, Chichicatallo signed the Great Treaty,…
Lacrosse in Historical Sources
As winter turns to spring, Myaamiaki ‘Miami people’ and their friends put down the threads of winter stories. With the other hand, they pick up lacrosse sticks. Peekitahaminki–lacrosse–is an ancient game in Indian Country, including among Myaamiaki ‘Miami folks.’ There are old records from the colonial period in which Europeans recorded their observations of Miami…
The Underground Railroad in Myaamionki
A while ago, an interesting blog post brought my attention to a fascinating and, at least to me, new aspect of Myaamia history: the Underground Railroad in Indian Country. I admit, I had never considered that the flight north to freedom for the formerly enslaved required movement through Myaamionki ‘Miami Territory.’ When I think about…
Boarding Schools
Warning: this post contains distressing details. Recent news coming from Canada, particularly from the grounds of Kamloops Indian Residential School, Marieval Indian Residential School, St. Eugene’s Mission School and just recently the Kuper Island Residential School, has illuminated a sobering truth: for many Indigenous children, school was a place of suffering, trauma, and death. U.S….
Four Versions of a Little Turtle Speech at Greenville, 1795
Four Versions of a Little Turtle Speech at Greenville, 1795 *and a conversation about them The following four primary sources all reveal aspects of a critical message delivered by the Myaamia leader Mihšihkinaahkwa ‘Little Turtle’ during the summer of 1795 at negotiations in Greenville in the Ohio territory. For the context, see our previous two…
Aacimotaatiiyankwi 