Mythologies of the Kickapoo Tribe
Kickapoo, Algonquian-speaking Indians, related to the Sauk and Fox. When first reported by Europeans in the late 17th century, the Kickapoo lived at the portage between the Fox and Wisconsin rivers, probably in present-day Columbia county, Wisconsin. They were known as formidable warriors whose raids took them over a wide territory, ranging as far as Georgia and Alabama to the southeast, Texas and Mexico to the southwest, and New York and Pennsylvania to the east. From the beginning of European contact, the Kickapoo resisted acculturation in economic, political, and religious matters, retaining as many of their old ways as possible. Traditionally, the Kickapoo lived in fixed villages, moving between summer and winter residences; they raised corn (maize), beans, and squash and hunted buffalo on the prairies. Their society was divided into several exogamous clans based on descent through the paternal line.
Address:
2212 Rosita Valley Road
Eagle Pass, TX 78852
Phone: (830) 773-2105
(830) 773-2105 info@kickapootexas.org
Web site: https://kickapootexas.org/
KICKAPOO INDIANS.The Kickapoo Indians, an Algonkian-speaking group of fewer than 1,000 individuals scattered across Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and northern Mexico, are the remnants of a larger tribe that once lived in the central Great Lakes region. When first encountered by French explorers in the early 1640s, the Kickapoos, or Kiikaapoa, as they call themselves, were still living in the region between lakes Michigan and Erie-the area considered to have been their ancestral home. By the 1660s, however, accelerating conflicts with the Iroquois over access to hunting grounds rich in fur-bearing animals had driven the Kickapoos and other central Algonkians to seek refuge in what is now Wisconsin. There they formed a loose alliance with other displaced Algonkians while carrying on a vigorous trade with the French. At the time of first contact with Whites, the Kickapoos were an independent and self-sufficient people whose mode of life was well adapted to their rich environment. Their self-reliant attitude set them apart from other Indians and continues to be a distinguishing characteristic of the group. It suited them well, for in the seventeenth century the Kickapoos, like other closely related tribes such as the Sacs, Foxes, and Shawnees, lived in a fashion best described as seminomadic. Their yearly subsistence pattern was split between periods of sedentary village life, when the group practiced horticulture and performed religious ceremonies, and time spent on the prairies, where, broken down into smaller, family-based bands, they hunted game and gathered wild foods. For generations, this roving life provided the Kickapoos with adequate nutrition while helping them maintain their autonomy.
Though scholars find language the most efficient way to classify American Indian groups, many tribes would fall under broad language groups. The Kickapoo, meaning “those who walk the earth” or “he who moves here and there,” are grouped with other tribes in the Algonquian linguistic lineage, and were situated in what A. M. Gibson refers to as the “Algonquian heartland” (1963:3). This area was bordered on the east and north by the Great Lakes, on the west by the Mississippi, and on the south by the Ohio River. Tribes living in this region also possessed common cultural traits – a quasi-sedentary lifestyle, similarities in their methods of raising war parties, and their hospitable nature towards visitors. Kickapoo roots can be found in the Great Lakes region, and were first mentioned in Lower Michigan in the 1600s. By 1654, French explorers identified the Kickapoo, along with the Sauk, Fox and Potawatomi tribes, in southeast Wisconsin, having moved due to the heavy Iroquois influence in the east. Once the Kickapoo, in common with many American Indians, came into regular contact with Europeans, the actions of the tribe were guided by the will to survive – culturally, spiritually, physically and spatially. The Kickapoos maintained a love-hate relationship with the French, dictated by which tribes were allied against the French, the trade goods the French brought into the area, or the actions of settlers within particular areas. In 1765, the Kickapoo, Sauk, and Fox made their way into Illinois, where the Kickapoo set up camp near the city of Peoria.
The Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas has been in its present area since the 1832 Treaty of Castor Hill where the Kickapoo lived near the Missouri River. The Treaty of 1854 with the Kickapoo Tribe ceded over 600,000 acres of land to the US Government but retained approximately 150,000 acres of land. The Kickapoo Tribe was the first of three other Indian tribes in North East Kansas to compact with the state for their gaming operations called the “Golden Eagle Casino”, the largest employer in Brown County. Economic development is the top priority for the Kickapoo Tribe to meet the growing needs of its community and to maximize its economic resources for the benefit of tribal members. Drinking water needs are critical. The reservation sits on a rock formation blocking access to groundwater. The Kickapoo Tribe has had a water plant since the 1970’s. The water used on the reservation comes from the Delaware River and is treated at the water plant. Over the years it has been repeatedly repaired but the structure is old and inadequate for the current needs. Recent rainstorms have further damaged the dam structure and surrounding area. Governmental agencies have agreed to supply fund to help rebuild the damaged areas. The Kickapoo Tribe has a diverse workforce made up of over 130 professionals and technical staff members. The day-to-day operations include issues with environmental, health, road maintenance, compliance, financial, legal, gaming, and planning community growth, just to mention a few.
The Kiikaapoi derive from the Algonquian language group, brethren of the Pottawatomie, Menomonee, Sauk and Fox, and Shawnee, among others, all share a close similarity in language and customs. The Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas consists of approximately 1,600 enrolled members, not including those bands located in Oklahoma, Texas and Mexico. This nation has overcome centuries of oppression from the United States government and their continuous attempts at assimilation. From the initial contact of the early Europeans, the Kickapoo have been resistant of the European views and customs. Today, with over 1,600 enrolled members of the Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas, half still reside on the reservation assigned to them in the Treaty of 1854. Although the land size has diminished enormously since then, the people still call it home.
Kickapoo Language
Information and language learning materials from the Kickapoo Indian language.
Kickapoo Facts for Kids
Questions and answers about Kickapoo culture.
Kickapoo Legends
Collection of Kickapoo Indian legends and folktales.
Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma
Official homepage of the Oklahoma Kickapoo tribe, including government information and the tribal enrollment department.
Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas
Official homepage of the Kansas Kickapoo tribe (under construction.)
Kickapoo Lucky Eagle Casino
Homepage of the Texas Kickapoo casino.
Constitution of the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas
1989 constitution of the Texas Kickapoo tribe.
Kickapoo Indian History
Tribal history of the Kickapoo people.
Kickapoo History
Article on the history and genealogy of the Kickapoo tribe.
No-ko-aht’s Talk
A Kickapoo chief’s account of a tribal journey from Kansas to Mexico and back.
Treaty With the Kickapoo
1862 Kickapoo treaty.
Kickapoo Titles in Oklahoma
Legal history of the Oklahoma Kickapoo tribe.
Four Directions: Kickapoo
Timeline and links about Kickapoo history.
The Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas is a federally recognized sovereign Indian Tribe, and is organized in accordance with section 16 of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, as amended by the Act of June 15, 1935. Kickapoo Constitution and By-Laws established the procedures to elect a governing body called the Kickapoo Tribal Council, a body of seven elected enrolled members of the Kickapoo Tribe to serve three-year terms. The Kickapoo Tribal Council is the official governing body for the Kickapoo Tribe and is so authorized in Section 1, in Article III of the Kickapoo Constitution and By-Laws. They have enumerated powers as to negotiate with Federal, State, and local governments. As a Sovereign Indian Nation, the Kickapoo Tribal Council carries the same unique powers and duties as any city council officials across the United States. Regular meetings are held by Tribal Council to discuss, and vote on tribal matters that affect the Kickapoo Reservation community, enterprises, legal issues, and overall tribal government operations. The Kansas Kickapoo people have their own traditions, history, culture, and language. The Kickapoo Reservation covers a five-by-six mile area and is located approximately five miles west of Horton, Kansas. The tribal enrollment office reports a total membership of 1,610 as of October 2018.
The Kickapoo people (Kickapoo: Kiikaapoa or Kiikaapoi; Spanish: Kikapú) are an Algonquian-speaking Native American and Indigenous Mexican tribe, originating in the region south of the Great Lakes. Today, three federally recognized Kickapoo tribes are in the United States: the Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas, the Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma, and the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas. The Oklahoma and Texas bands are politically associated with each other. The Kickapoo in Kansas came from a relocation from southern Missouri in 1832 as a land exchange from their reserve there. Around 3,000 people are enrolled tribal members. Another band, the Tribu Kikapú, resides in Múzquiz Municipality in the northern Mexican state of Coahuila. Smaller bands live in Sonora, to the west, and Durango, to the southwest.
Before contact with Europeans, the Kickapoo lived in northwest Ohio and southern Michigan in the area between Lake Erie and Lake Michigan. By common tradition, the Kickapoo and Shawnee believe they were once a single tribe but separated after an argument over a bear’s paw. When the white man pushed west, the Kickapoo migrated, first to Wisconsin, then Illinois. By treaty, they were relocated to southern Missouri, but less than half stayed, wondering south and west. Fiercely independent, many Kickapoo people fled all the way to Mexico rather than surrender to the Americans. Of those that went to Mexico, approximately half returned to the United States and were sent to Indian Territory in Oklahoma. Kickapoo comes from their word “Kiwigapawa,” means “he stands about” or “he moves about.” The tribe of the central Algonquian group formed a division with the Sac and Fox, with whom they had close ethnic and linguistic connections. The Kickapoo first appeared in written history about 1667-70 when they were found by Allouez near the portage between the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers. The Kickapoo were associated with other more powerful tribes occupying the country watered by the Ohio, Wabash, and Miami Rivers, in which they participated in a treaty made at Greenville, Ohio in 1795 by General Wayne, and in those of 1803, at Fort Wayne and Vincennes, Indiana. By these and succeeding treaties, the tribe ceded all their lands on the Wabash, White, and Vermilion Rivers.
Comments
Post a Comment