Madore Beaubien was the son of Jean Baptiste Beaubien who moved the Chicago area in 1816, after the Battle of Fort Dearborn. Jean Baptiste was a well-known fur trader, learning the business from Joseph Bailly. He married Mahnawbunokwe, the daughter of respected warrior and leader Shabbone, and had two children: Charles Henry and Madore. He then married Josette LaFromboise, daughter …
Seeking to expand their range and broker the thriving fur trade, the Dutch-supported Iroquois engaged in one of the earliest and longest territorial conflicts with the French-allied confederated Algonquin nations. Hoping to dominate the lucrative market, the Iroquois sought to leverage their European trade relationships into territorial expansion. Armed with British and Dutch weapons, they disrupted French trade and seized …
Mary Anne was the daughter of noted warrior and leader Segnak or Benache. She was the wife of local trader Edward McCartney, who was the business partner of Logansport, Indiana founder Alexis Coquillard. After her divorce from McCartney, Mary Ann married Potawatomi warrior Peashwah. Upon her father’s death, she inherited his vast land holdings and became one of the most …
Francis Xavier Bergeron was a French-Canadian born near Quebec, Canada, and arrived around the Kankakee area in the late 1830s. After removal west of the Mississippi, a Potawatomi tribal member named Watchekee or Watseka often made trips back to Illinois. She and Francis met on one of these excursions and wed around 1840. They had four children: Jean Batiste, Catherine …
Benjamin Hendre Bertrand was born June 25, 1812 in Berrien Country, Michigan to Madeline Bourassa and Joseph Bertrand. Like his cousins Joseph and Jude Bourassa, Benjamin attended the school at Carey Mission at the age of 7. He later transferred to a private school in Detroit, Michigan and then reunited with his Bourassa family at the Choctaw Academy at White …
This contemporary artifact, styled after an ancient Potawatomi war club known as a bgemagen, was created by tribal member Bud Onzahwah. Crafted from wood, stone and leather, its historically ergonomic design eased storage, travel and use during battle. The bgemagen [war club] is part of the permanent collection and on exhibition at the Citizen Potawatomi Nation Cultural Heritage Center. Pre-dating …
Potawatomi observed Bkongises in spring, but harvesting bark continued throughout the warmer months as tree sap flowed heavier. The more sap a tree produced, the easier it was to peel its bark. The sap also acted as a safety barrier, protecting the tree from pests and disease after it was peeled. A variety of bark species were harvested, each having …
The event known as “Bleeding Kansas” was a period of guerilla warfare, in what was then known as the Kansas Territory, which started in 1854 and lasted until 1859. The violence was sporadic, mostly small-scale and unorganized, but led to mass terror erupting within the Kansas Territory. The conflict arose after passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the question of …
Bmadzewen [life] and our existence are in tune with the environment. We interact with our world in concurrent cycles of four, understanding that physical and spiritual realms are always in motion. Our sacred medicines, lifecycles, directional powers, and the creation and destruction of world progress on this principle. Governing our ancient world was the season. Each season warranted and prohibited …
31in W x 25in H x 19in D The camel back trunk was used as a footlocker by David P. Johnson when he attended Carlisle Indian Industrial School [Pennsylvania] from 1895-1899. The trunk is made of wood, metal and leather. Embossed on the latch is the patent date, July 9, 1872. Stenciled on the side of the trunk is, Indian …