Chapter SIX: Wisconsin’s Indians Today

In considering the story of those Indians who were important in the history of our state, we have seen that from time to time some tribes have left the Wisconsin scene. We might well wonder what has been their final fate and where they may be found today. As we remember the United States Government removal plan, we are not too surprised to find many of them located at reservations and agencies in our western United States.

The Sauk and Fox are at agencies in Iowa, Kansas, and Oklahoma. The Sauk and Fox reservation in Iowa has an Indian population of 473, and there are 129 Sauk and Fox at the Kansas reservation and an additional 910 at the Sauk and Fox reservation at the Shawnee agency in Oklahoma.

The Kickapoo have small reservations in Oklahoma and Kansas. The Indian population at the Kickapoo reservation in Oklahoma numbers 269; and at the Kickapoo reservation in Kansas, 343. In addition, there are some 350 Kickapoo living in the state of Coahuila, Mexico, having split off from the Oklahoma band in 1852. Population figures given here for the Sauk, Fox, and Kickapoo are from the estimates of the Office of Indian Affairs of the United States Department of the Interior for the year 1940.

The present whereabouts of the Mascoutens presents somewhat of a mystery. Most students of the subject at present believe that members of the Prairie Band of the Potawatomi, who also call themselves the Mascoutens, are the descendents of that tribe, which is so often referred to in early Wisconsin history. The early Mascoutens were closely related to the Sauk, Fox, and Kickapoo, according to early reports, in language and culture, and usually were the political allies of these tribes as well. Some bands of the Prairie Potawatomi are found associated with the Kickapoo in Oklahoma and Kansas, and also in Mexico.

As for the Santee Sioux, who were in northern Wisconsin even before the arrival of the white man, it is again difficult to give accurate present population figures. The term Santee originally designated one band of Indians, but eventually came to mean all of the forest bands of the Sioux, of whom, in all probability, many never resided in Wisconsin. There are, according to the 1940 estimate, 1,197 Sioux living on the Santee reservation in Nebraska, and there are 585 Sioux in Minnesota who would be included in the Santee division. If we were to include all tribes generally classed as Santee Sioux today, expressed in round numbers, 5,000 would probably be a conservative estimate. However, many of these are not derived from those bands formerly living in Wisconsin.

Returning to the Wisconsin scene today, we learn from the 1940 estimates of the Office of Indian Affairs that the present Indian population in Wisconsin is 13,678. Of this total, 5,605 are Chippewa, residing at the Bad River, Lac Court Oreilles, Lac du Flambeau, and Red Cliff reservations. Also included in this figure are the Mole Lake Chippewa and the St. Croix band.

Included in Wisconsin’s present Indian population are also 2,454 Menomini, located at their reservation in Shawano County; 460 Stockbridge and Munses, on their reservation adjoining that of the Menomini; 1,700 Oneida, scattered around the village of Oneida, 10 miles southwest of Green Bay; 1,498 Winnebago, on public domain land allotments, primarily in Jackson, Wood, and Shawano counties; and 310 Potawatomi, in Forest County. While only a small number of Potawatomi have returned to this state since their removal, over half of the Winnebago are now back in their Wisconsin homeland. In addition to the Winnebago who returned to Wisconsin after their removal by the United States Army, 1,268 remained at their reservation in Nebraska. Thus of this reportedly numerous and powerful tribe first encountered by the French when Nicolet landed near Green Bay, in 1634, about 2,766 still survive.

The future status of Wisconsin’s Indians presents a considerable problem to the United States Government. Their life on reservations is hardly an easy one for the majority. Even among the Menomini, whose tribal lumbering industry makes them economically the most prosperous in the state, the standard of living is not high. Finding a means whereby they can earn a decent living is probably the greatest difficulty. For the most part they suffer for lack of adequate clothing and food, particularly during the winter season. To alleviate the situation, a considerable number have migrated to the cities to obtain employment, and there are an estimated one thousand Indians living in Milwaukee, for example, of which the largest group is Oneida.

So far no satisfactory solution to the problem has been reached, although some sincere attempts have been made in that direction. The hope, of course, is that eventually the Indians will be assimilated by the rest of our population and be able to live normal lives as United States citizens. Without intelligently directed help this process will take a long time, and during that period the Indians will continue to suffer.

The Wisconsin Indians of today are acculturated to a greater or lesser degree: among the Chippewa, Potawatomi, Menomini, and Winnebago a considerable amount of the traditional culture survives; among the Stockbridge and Oneida nearly all of the old culture is lost. It is to be hoped that all of the colorful pattern of Indian culture and tradition is not lost in the process of assimilation.

One thing is certain, the Indians of Wisconsin, along with most of those of the entire United States, have suffered much at the hands of the white man. They deserve constructive help now toward accomplishing the ultimate adjustment to the final demands made on them by the white man’s civilization.

LOCATION OF INDIAN TRIBES

SANTEE SIOUX
MENOMINI
WINNEBAGO

OTTOWA
CHIPPEWA
SANTEE SIOUX
HURON
MENOMINI
SAUK
FOX
WINNEBAGO
POTAWATOMI
MASCOUTEN
MIAMI
KICKAPOO
ILLINOIS

CHIPPEWA
SANTEE SIOUX
MENOMINI
SAUK
FOX
WINNEBAGO
POTAWATOMI
KICKAPOO

RED CLIFF RES.
LA POINTE RES.
CHIPPEWA
LAC DU FLAMBEAU RES.
POTAWATOMI
ST. CROIX BAND
LAC COURT OREILLES RES.
MENOMINI
STOCKBRIDGE
WINNEBAGO
ONEIDA

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Transcriber’s Notes

—Silently corrected a few typos.

—Retained publication information from the printed edition: this eBook
is public-domain in the country of publication.

—In the text versions only, text in italics is delimited by
_underscores_.