THE IOWAS
We first hear of the Iowa Indians in 1690 when they were found in
the
vicinity of the great lakes. Their noted chief, Man-haw-gaw, was
then at the head of
the tribe and under his leadership they migrated westward. They
crossed the
Mississippi and occupied the country about the lower valley of the
Iowa River,
giving to that stream its present name, although it was for a long
time
called the Ayouas by the earliest French explorers.
Lewis and Clark
in the journal
of their explorations, in 1804, refer to this tribe of Indians as
the
Ayouways. In later years the orthography became changed to Ioway
and finally the y
was dropped and we have the beautiful name Iowa, with the accent on
the I.
Antoine Le Claire, a half-breed of French and Indian parentage, who
was
familiar with several of the Indian languages, defines the word Iowa
as "This is
the place." Theodore S. Parvin, a high authority, relates an Indian
legend as
follows:
"This tribe separated from the Sacs and Foxes and wandered off
westward in
search of a new home. Crossing the Mississippi River they turned
southward,
reaching a high bluff near the mouth of the Iowa River. Looking off
over the
beautiful valley spread out before them they halted, exclaiming 'Ioway!'
or 'This
is the place!' "
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As far back as the history of the Iowa nation has been traced by
Schoolcraft
and other, it is found that this tribe migrated fifteen times. It
appears to
have moved in about 1693 from the vicinity of the great lakes to
near the
mouth of Rock River and some years later to the Iowa.
The next move
was to the
Des Moines Valley in the vicinity of Van Buren, Wapello and Davis
counties.
Many years later the Iowas journeyed through southern and western
Iowa, up the
Missouri Valley, into Dakota. For several years they lived near the
red
pipestone quarries in the valley of the Big Sioux River, roaming
over into
northwestern Iowa as far as Spirit Lake and the upper valleys of the
Little Sioux and
Des Moines rivers.
Leaving these regions they descended the
Missouri into
southeastern Nebraska in the Platte Valley. They next wandered into
northern
Missouri and from there into southern Iowa in the region of the
Chariton and Grand
rivers. They engaged in frequent wars with the Sioux and Osages.
In 1807
they had a battle with Osages. After a fierce conflict they
captured the
village, destroying thirty lodges and massacring all the
inhabitants. A few years
later the smallpox ravaged their settlement, destroying more than a
hundred of
their warriors and nearly two hundred women and children. Twelve
years later
they lost nearly two hundred more of the tribe by the same disease.
In 1819
they were attacked by a superior force of Sioux and a desperate
battle was
fought. In the end the Iowas were defeated, losing scores of their
best warriors. The Sioux captured and carried into captivity many of their women
and
children.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
One of the most noted chiefs after the death of Man-haw-yaw was his
son
Ma-has-kah. His home was in the Des Moines Valley, near where the
town Eldon now
stands, at the village of Iowaville. He had seven wives; the
favorite one
was a beautiful woman named Rant-che-wai-me (Female Flying Pigeon).
In 1824,
when Ma-has-kah, with a party of warriors, went to Washington to
have an
interview with President Monroe, this favorite wife joined the party
the third day
after their departure and announced her intention to accompany her
husband and
shake hands with the President. She was permitted to go with him
and
attracted marked attention in Washington from her great beauty and
intelligence.
Her
portrait was painted by an artist at the Capital and for a long time
adorned
his studio. She was a kind and generous woman, devoting much of
her time to
ministering to the sick and unfortunate. General Huges, the Indian
agent, who
was well acquainted with her, spoke in the highest terms of her
excellent
qualities. She returned from Washington with new views of life and
tried to
impress upon the young women of her race useful lessons from her
observations of
civilized people. Ma-has-kah was deeply attached to her and was
greatly
depressed at her tragic death, which was the result of a fall from a
horse soon
after her return from Washington. He never ceased to extol her many
virtues and
beautiful character.
Debbie Clough Gerischer
Iowa Gen Web, Assistant CC, Scott County
http://www.celticcousins.net/scott/
IAGENWEB: Special History Project:
http://iagenweb.org/history/index.htm
Gerischer Family Web Site:
http://gerischer.rootsweb.com/
The Mesquakie Indian Settlement, is the reservation land of the
Sac and Fox.
While the lands are held in federal trust, all acreage has been
purchased by
the tribe. The settlement has grown from the original 84 acres,
purchased in
1857 to about 3500 acres in trust plus another 700 acres subject to
life estate.
The Mesquakie are currently paying for another 1100 acres which will
be
placed in trust when the debt is cleared. All lands are commonly
owned with no
individual allotments.
The Mesquakie (commonly called the Sac and Fox Tribe) were members
of the
Algonguian confederacy and lived on the eastern seaboard. Pressure
from white
settlers and encroachment from other tribes caused them to migrate
to the Lake
Michigan area.
The Mesquakie, known as the Red Earth People, traditionally occupied
permanent villages of rectangular houses and subsisted on summer
crops. In the winter,
the tribe followed the herds and lived in wigwams.
Toward the end of the 18th century, the tribe moved west and settled
along
the Mississippi River. They allied themselves with the Iroquois and
later with
the Five Nations in the French and Indian Wars. This is when the
"Fox" became
associated with the Mesquakie. After moving across the river from
the Sauk
group (about where Rock Island, IL is now located), the federal
government
combined the identities of both groups by referring to them as "Sac
and Fox."
After the Blackhawk Wars in 1842, the Mesquakie were forcibly
removed to a
reservation in Kansas. To prevent a forced resettlement to Indian
Territory in
what is now known as Oklahoma, the tribe returned to the Mississippi
River
Valley in Iowa and purchased its own land. The original purchase was
placed in
trust with the Governor of IA. In 1896, the BIA assumed jurisdiction
over the
tribe and the land is now held in trust by the US government.
A casino and a bingo hall provide much of the tribe's income. Also a
Trading
Store, leasing of some of the property to farmers who raise soybeans
and corn,
and forestry provide additional revenue for the tribe. Members
engage in
agriculture and the raising of livestock on the agricultural land.
Also the
residents have their own gardens up to an acre, which accounts for
the remaining
tillable land in use.
They have installed an underground aeration system for sewage
treatment. They
have also installed a deep, fresh water well and a 30,000 gallon
reservoir in
1983. The tribe provides for the health of its residents, and has
also built
a 20-room apartment complex for its aged residents. Reservation
children
attend school, pre-kindergarten through the eighth grade, on the
Mesquakie Indian
Settlement. There are over 500 people in the settlement.
To contact the tribe directly:
Sac & Fox Tribal Office
3137 F Avenue
Tama, IA 52339
(515) 484-4678 or 484-5358
Judy Neu
Springwater, NY
No The Mesquauki indian tribe were an Iowa tribe and their
reservation has
always been near Tama IA. JAN
Don Kelly wrote:
It is curious that my ggmother told me, "I was borned in DeMoin, Ioway."
She
told me many stories of Indians she played with as a child during 1860s to
1870s).
I have to therefore assume all tribes (or individuals) were not
transported
south to Oklahoma, etc. as many apparently were.
Don Kelly
----- Original Message -----
From: <Bare67deb@aol.com
To: <IOWA-L@rootsweb.com
Sent: Saturday, September 25, 2004 4:28 AM
Subject: [IOWA] Making of Iowa Vol 1 chapter 6
The whole chapter can be seen on the Iowa History site. Below is just a
small section of the Chapter.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE IOWAS
We first hear of the Iowa Indians in 1690 when they were found in the
vicinity of the great lakes. Their noted chief, Man-haw-gaw, was then at
the head of
the tribe and under his leadership they migrated westward. They crossed
the
Mississippi and occupied the country about the lower valley of the Iowa
River,
giving to that stream its present name, although it was for a long time
called the Ayouas by the earliest French explorers. Lewis and Clark in
the journal
of their explorations, in 1804, refer to this tribe of Indians as the
Ayouways. In later years the orthography became changed to Ioway and
finally the y
was dropped and we have the beautiful name Iowa, with the accent on the
I.
Antoine Le Claire, a half-breed of French and Indian parentage, who was
familiar with several of the Indian languages, defines the word Iowa as
"This is
the place." Theodore S. Parvin, a high authority, relates an Indian
legend as
follows:
"This tribe separated from the sacs and Foxes and wandered off westward
in
search of a new home. Crossing the Mississippi River they turned
southward,
reaching a high bluff near the mouth of the Iowa River. Looking off over
the
beautiful valley spread out before them they halted, exclaiming 'Ioway!'
or 'This
is the place!' "
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As far back as the history of the Iowa nation has been traced by
Schoolcraft
and other, it is found that this tribe migrated fifteen times. It
appears
to
have moved in about 1693 from the vicinity of the great lakes to near the
mouth of Rock River and some years later to the Iowa. The next move was
to the
Des Moines Valley in the vicinity of Van Buren, Wapello and Davis
counties.
Many years later the Iowas journeyed through southern and western Iowa,
up
the
Missouri Valley, into Dakota. For several years they lived near the red
pipestone quarries in the valley of the Big Sioux River, roaming over
into
northwestern Iowa as far as Spirit Lake and the upper valleys of the
Little Sioux and
Des Moines rivers. Leaving these regions they descended the Missouri
into
southeastern Nebraska in the Platte Valley. They next wandered into
northern
Missouri and from there into southern Iowa in the region of the Chariton
and Grand
rivers. They engaged in frequent wars with the Sioux an dOsages. In
1807
they had a battle with Osages. After a fierce conflict they captured the
village, destroying thirty lodges and massacring all the inhabitants. A
few years
later the smallpox ravaged their settlement, destroying more than a
hundred of
their warriors and nearly two hundred women and children. Twelve years
later
they lost nearly two hundred more of the tribe by the same disease. In
1819
they were attacked by a superior force of Sioux and a desperate battle
was
fought. In the end the Iowas were defeated, losing scores of their best
warriors.
The Sioux captured and carried into captivity many of their women and
children.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
One of the most noted chiefs after the death of Man-haw-yaw was his son
Ma-has-kah. His home was in the Des Moines Valley, near where the town
Eldon now
stands, at the old village of Iowaville. He had seven wives; the
favorite
one
was a beautiful woman named Rant-che-wai-me (Female Flying Pigeon). In
1824,
when Ma-has-kah, with a party of warriors, went to Washington to have an
interview with President Monroe, this favorite wife joined the party the
third day
after their departure and announced her intention to accompany her
husband
and
shake hands with the President. She was permitted to go with him and
attracted marked attention in Washington from her great beauty and
intelligence. Her
portrait was painted by an artist at the Capital and for a long time
adorned
his studio. She was a kind and generous woman, devoting much of her
time
to
ministering to the sick and unfortunate. General Huges, the Indian
agent,
who
was well acquainted with her, spoke in the highest terms of her excellent
qualities. She returned from Washington with new views of life and tried
to
impress upon the young women of her race useful lessons from her
observations of
civilized people. Ma-has-kah was deeply attached to her and was greatly
depressed at her tragic death, which was the result of a fall from a
horse
soon
after her return from Washington. He never ceased to extol her many
virtues and
beautiful character.
Debbie Clough Gerischer
Iowa Gen Web, Assistant CC, Scott County
http://www.celticcousins.net/scott/
IAGENWEB: Special History Project:
http://iagenweb.org/history/index.htm
Gerischer Family Web Site:
http://gerischer.rootsweb.com/
Hi Judy,
Thanks for all your facts about the Mesquakie Indian
settlement,most of which I
didn't know. My comments were based on personal observations. I
remember visiting their
places of business in the 1920's with my parents where they sold
hand made jewelry and
souvenirs to the general public using small stands (Kiosks) along
the highway. I remember
my Dad saying that they had figured out how to merchandise because
the stands were ran by
the most beautiful young indian girls that he had ever seen. The
parking area then would
hold 10 to 20 cars
They had another annual fund raiser that lasted about a week
called the pow-wow and
they presented their tribal dances as well as sold their souvenirs I
was never able to
attend a pow-wow but they used to have an exibit at the dairy cattle
congress in Waterloo
and they would present their Dances and usually have a tee-pee set
up to look at. I always
felt sorry for the Children, their clothes tended to be I'll fitting
and there was an aura
of poverty about them. Today they should all be comfortably rich
because their casino is
very popular and has undergone at least two huge expansions. I
thought these additional
tid-bits might be interesting to others.
JAN
Jtrippneu@aol.com wrote:
The Mesquakie Indian Settlement, is the reservation land of the Sac and
Fox.
While the lands are held in federal trust, all acreage has been purchased
by
the tribe. The settlement has grown from the original 84 acres, purchased
in
1857 to about 3500 acres in trust plus another 700 acres subject to life
estate.
The Mesquakie are currently paying for another 1100 acres which will be
placed in trust when the debt is cleared. All lands are commonly owned
with no
individual allotments.
The Mesquakie (commonly called the Sac and Fox Tribe) were members of the
Algonguian confederacy and lived on the eastern seaboard. Pressure from
white
settlers and encroachment from other tribes caused them to migrate to the
Lake
Michigan area.
The Mesquakie, known as the Red Earth People, traditionally occupied
permanent villages of rectangular houses and subsisted on summer crops. In
the winter,
the tribe followed the herds and lived in wigwams.
Toward the end of the 18th century, the tribe moved west and settled along
the Mississippi River. They allied themselves with the Iroquois and later
with
the Five Nations in the French and Indian Wars. This is when the "Fox"
became
associated with the Mesquakie. After moving across the river from the Sauk
group (about where Rock Island, IL is now located), the federal government
combined the identities of both groups by referring to them as "Sac and
Fox."
After the Blackhawk Wars in 1842, the Mesquakie were forcibly removed to a
reservation in Kansas. To prevent a forced resettlement to Indian
Territory in
what is now known as Oklahoma, the tribe returned to the Mississippi River
Valley in Iowa and purchased its own land. The original purchase was
placed in
trust with the Governor of IA. In 1896, the BIA assumed jurisdiction over
the
tribe and the land is now held in trust by the US government.
A casino and a bingo hall provide much of the tribe's income. Also a
Trading
Store, leasing of some of the property to farmers who raise soybeans and
corn,
and forestry provide additional revenue for the tribe. Members engage in
agriculture and the raising of livestock on the agricultural land. Also
the
residents have their own gardens up to an acre, which accounts for the
remaining
tillable land in use.
They have installed an underground aeration system for sewage treatment.
They
have also installed a deep, fresh water well and a 30,000 gallon reservoir
in
1983. The tribe provides for the health of its residents, and has also
built
a 20-room apartment complex for its aged residents. Reservation children
attend school, pre-kindergarten through the eighth grade, on the Mesquakie
Indian
Settlement. There are over 500 people in the settlement.
To contact the tribe directly:
Sac & Fox Tribal Office
3137 F Avenue
Tama, IA 52339
(515) 484-4678 or 484-5358
Judy Neu
Springwater, NY
Thank you for that bit of info Marilyn. I was raised in Tama
and always
heard it called the "reservation". I know that there is a sign
that says Sac
and Fox, but I also knew that there were Mesquaki Indians that
either lived
there or at least they lived around Tama/Montour somewhere. I also
remember a
time around 1973 when it was said that the Indians were threatening
an
"uprising"(?) in Tama, and the whole town stayed home and kept their
doors locked.
(Never had seen that little town that quiet!!) Of course nothing
happened and it
could have just been a rumor. The Indians would come to town(Tama)
on the
weekends and get their gullets full of spirits and then get a little
rowdy. But
then so did many a white man!! Cheryl
