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…
Category: History
Was a comet responsible for the decline of the Hopewell?
Written by Andrew Sawyer, Education Outreach Specialist On February 1, 2022 Scientific Reports published a report titled The Hopewell airburst event, 1699–1567 years ago (252–383 CE)[1]. In this report, the authors claim to have found evidence of a cosmic airburst event that took place in the Ohio River Valley between about 1,639 and 1,770 years…
Removal to Indian Territory
In the December 3 blog post, we learned about the 1847 second forced Removal of Myaamiaki from Indiana and the subsequent movements of Myaamia people between Indiana and the Miami Reservation in present-day Kansas. In the November 5 post, we saw that the winter of 1846-1847 was very hard for Myaamiaki, and many died. Still,…
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…
mihsoolatenwi ‘Canoe Hill’
In early November of this year, I made a trip to Šikaakonki ‘Chicago’ for a meeting at the Newberry Library about a project called Indigenous Chicago. I was born in Šikaakonki and still have a lot of family living in the city and surrounding suburbs. However, due to COVID, I hadn’t made many trips to…
Continued Movement between Indiana and the Miami Reservation
Content Warning: This post discusses specific names of Myaamia families impacted by Removal. It is possible that you may have a personal connection with some of those families. In the November 5 blog post, we saw that Myaamiaki had arrived at the Miami Reservation in what is today eastern Kansas “about one mile west of…
yaalanwi mateeni pipoonwe neepwaantiinki ‘Fifty Years of Learning from Each Other’
2022 is the 50th Anniversary of the relationship between the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma and Miami University. Much has been accomplished in this time, and we want to make sure that both the Myaamia and Miami University communities take the time to acknowledge what we have built together. You can learn more about the history…
Removal – Day 31
November 5, 1846 Arrival at the Miami Reservation Content Warning: This post discusses the conditions upon arrival at the Miami Reservation and death of Myaamiaki on the journey. In the November 4 blog post, we saw that some Myaamiaki had arrived at the Miami Reservation on Sugar Creek in the Osage River Sub-Agency. Upon arrival,…
Removal – Day 30
November 4, 1846 Sugar Creek Today some Myaamiaki completed the 50-mile journey from the Town of Kansas to the Miami Reservation on Sugar Creek in the Osage River Sub-Agency, one mile west of the military road they had traveled. In the next installment, to be posted on November 5, we will see what these Myaamiaki…
Removal – Day 29
November 3, 1846 The Overland Journey Content Warning: This post discusses the death of Myaamiaki. Myaamiaki continued their journey by horse and wagon toward their new reservation. Today a 16-year-old boy died, bringing the total deaths on this Removal journal to seven. As Myaamiaki traveled south on the military road, they passed the reservations of…
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