Ottawa Tribe of Oklahoma
Encyclopedia
The Ottawa Tribe of Oklahoma is one of four federally recognized Native American tribes of Ottawa
Indians. The other three tribes, the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians
, Little River Band of Ottawa Indians
and the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians
, are located in Michigan
.
Ottawa or Odaawaa comes from the word, Adaawe, which means "to trade." They traded with other tribes and eventually the French. Ottawas are part of the Three Fires Confederacy
, with the Ojibwe and Potawatomi
. The Oklahoma Ottawas are descended from Ottawa bands that moved from Manitoulin Island
and the Bruce Peninsula
, both in Ontario, Canada, south into Michigan
. They agreed to settle near Fort Detroit
and the Maumee River
in Ohio
.
Pressured the passage of the Indian Removal Act
of 1830, the Ottawa of Blanchard’s Fork, Roche de Bœuf and Auglaize Reserves of Ohio signed a treaty in 1833. The treaty ceded their lands in Michigan, Ohio, and Illinois
in exchanged for lands in first Iowa
, then Kansas
. They did not relocate until April of 1837. Of the 600 Ottawa who emigrated to Kansas, "more than 300 died within the first two years, beccause of exposure, lack of proper food, and the great difference between the cool, damp woods of Ohio and the dry, hot plains of Kansas."
To survive as a people, the tribe made a remarkable investment in their children's future. Of the 74000 acres (299.5 km²) the Ottawa controlled in Kansas, they set aside 65 acres (263,045.9 m²) for a school and sold 20000 acres (80.9 km²) of land to fund its construction and maintenance. The Baptist university would educate both Indians and non-Indians and was named Ottawa University
. The university still offers free tuition to any enrolled member of the tribe today.
The present day town of Ottawa, Kansas
grew up around the Ottawa Reservation. They remained there until 1867, when, under the guidance of Chief John Wilson, the tribe sold their lands in Kansas and purchased 14863 acres (60 km²) of land in Indian Territory
from the Eastern Shawnee
. More of the tribe died during relocation and only 200 Ottawa arrived in their new lands.
Tribal lands were broken up under the Dawes Act
of 1887. In 1891, 157 Ottawa were allotted land, and the US federal government sold the rest of their tribal lands. In 1936 tribe organized under the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act
and gained federal recognition; however, under the US's Termination
policy, the federal government terminated the Ottawa tribal government in 1956. The tribe persevered and federal recognition was restored under a bill signed by President Jimmy Carter
on May 15, 1978. In 1979 the US Congress recognized the tribal council and ratified the tribal constitution.
. Currently, there are 2,490 enrolled tribal members, with only 723 of them living within the state of Oklahoma. John R. Ballard is the elected Chief. The Ottawa Tribe issues its own tribal vehicle tags. They operate two tribal smoke shops; one gas station, the Otter Stop Convenience Store; and one casino, the High Winds Casino. Their annual economic impact is estimated by the Oklahoma Indian Affairs Commissions to be $3,349,661. The tribe operates a Community Health Program and the Healthy Living Center in Miami, as well as a Department of Environmental Protection. The tribe publishes the Adawe News for its tribal members and offers Ottawa language classes.
The Ottawa Tribe of Oklahoma's annual powwow
is held every Labor Day weekend.
Odawa people
The Odawa or Ottawa, said to mean "traders," are a Native American and First Nations people. They are one of the Anishinaabeg, related to but distinct from the Ojibwe nation. Their original homelands are located on Manitoulin Island, near the northern shores of Lake Huron, on the Bruce Peninsula in...
Indians. The other three tribes, the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians
Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians
The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians is a federally recognized Native American tribe in Michigan. Derek Bailey is the current chairman of the Tribal Council, whose offices are in Peshawbestown, Michigan...
, Little River Band of Ottawa Indians
Little River Band of Ottawa Indians
Little River Band of Ottawa Indians is a federally recognized tribe of Ottawa Indians whose headquarters are located on their 1836 reservation in Manistee, Michigan. They also own lands in their 1855 reservation in Mason County, Michigan. They represent 9 villages or bands of the original Grand...
and the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians
Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians
The Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians is a federally recognized Native American tribe of Odawa Indians. A large percentage of the more than 4000 tribal members continue to reside within the tribe's traditional homelands on the northwestern shores of the state of Michigan's Lower Peninsula...
, are located in Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
.
History
Council of Three Fires
The Council of Three Fires, also known as the People of the Three Fires, the Three Fires Confederacy, the United Nations of Chippewa, Ottawa, and Potawatomi Indians, or Niswi-mishkodewin in the Anishinaabe language, is a long-standing Anishinaabe alliance of the Ojibwe , Ottawa , and Potawatomi...
, with the Ojibwe and Potawatomi
Potawatomi
The Potawatomi are a Native American people of the upper Mississippi River region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, a member of the Algonquian family. In the Potawatomi language, they generally call themselves Bodéwadmi, a name that means "keepers of the fire" and that was applied...
. The Oklahoma Ottawas are descended from Ottawa bands that moved from Manitoulin Island
Manitoulin Island
Manitoulin Island is a Canadian island in Lake Huron, in the province of Ontario. It is the largest island in a freshwater lake in the world. In addition to the historic Anishinaabe and European settlement of the island, archeological discoveries at Sheguiandah have demonstrated Paleo-Indian and...
and the Bruce Peninsula
Bruce Peninsula
The Bruce Peninsula is a peninsula in Ontario, Canada that lies between Georgian Bay and the main basin of Lake Huron. The peninsula extends roughly northwestwards from the rest of Southern Ontario, pointing towards Manitoulin Island, with which it forms the widest strait joining Georgian Bay to...
, both in Ontario, Canada, south into Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. They agreed to settle near Fort Detroit
Fort Detroit
Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit or Fort Détroit was a fort established by the French officer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac in 1701. The location of the former fort is now in the city of Detroit in the U.S...
and the Maumee River
Maumee River
The Maumee River is a river in northwestern Ohio and northeastern Indiana in the United States. It is formed at Fort Wayne, Indiana by the confluence of the St. Joseph and St. Marys rivers, and meanders northeastwardly for through an agricultural region of glacial moraines before flowing into the...
in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
.
Pressured the passage of the Indian Removal Act
Indian Removal Act
The Indian Removal Act was signed into law by President Andrew Jackson on May 28, 1830.The Removal Act was strongly supported in the South, where states were eager to gain access to lands inhabited by the Five Civilized Tribes. In particular, Georgia, the largest state at that time, was involved in...
of 1830, the Ottawa of Blanchard’s Fork, Roche de Bœuf and Auglaize Reserves of Ohio signed a treaty in 1833. The treaty ceded their lands in Michigan, Ohio, and Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
in exchanged for lands in first Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
, then Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
. They did not relocate until April of 1837. Of the 600 Ottawa who emigrated to Kansas, "more than 300 died within the first two years, beccause of exposure, lack of proper food, and the great difference between the cool, damp woods of Ohio and the dry, hot plains of Kansas."
To survive as a people, the tribe made a remarkable investment in their children's future. Of the 74000 acres (299.5 km²) the Ottawa controlled in Kansas, they set aside 65 acres (263,045.9 m²) for a school and sold 20000 acres (80.9 km²) of land to fund its construction and maintenance. The Baptist university would educate both Indians and non-Indians and was named Ottawa University
Ottawa University
Ottawa University is a private, non-profit, faith-based liberal arts college located in Ottawa, Kansas. It was founded in 1865 and is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA...
. The university still offers free tuition to any enrolled member of the tribe today.
The present day town of Ottawa, Kansas
Ottawa, Kansas
Ottawa is a city situated along the Marais des Cygnes River in the central part of Franklin County, located in east-central Kansas, 50 miles southwest of Kansas City, Mo., in the central United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 12,649. It is the county seat and most populous...
grew up around the Ottawa Reservation. They remained there until 1867, when, under the guidance of Chief John Wilson, the tribe sold their lands in Kansas and purchased 14863 acres (60 km²) of land in Indian Territory
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
from the Eastern Shawnee
Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma
The Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma is a federally recognized Native American tribe in Oklahoma and Missouri.-History:The Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma is one of three federally recognized Shawnee tribes. They are an Eastern Woodland tribe, who were once nomadic. They originally came from...
. More of the tribe died during relocation and only 200 Ottawa arrived in their new lands.
Tribal lands were broken up under the Dawes Act
Dawes Act
The Dawes Act, adopted by Congress in 1887, authorized the President of the United States to survey Indian tribal land and divide the land into allotments for individual Indians. The Act was named for its sponsor, Senator Henry L. Dawes of Massachusetts. The Dawes Act was amended in 1891 and again...
of 1887. In 1891, 157 Ottawa were allotted land, and the US federal government sold the rest of their tribal lands. In 1936 tribe organized under the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act
Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act
The Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act of 1936, also known as the Thomas-Rogers Act, is a United States federal law that extended the US Indian Reorganization Act of 1934. It sought to return some form of tribal government to the many tribes in former Indian Territory...
and gained federal recognition; however, under the US's Termination
Indian termination policy
Indian termination was the policy of the United States from the mid-1940s to the mid-1960s. The belief was that Native Americans would be better off if assimilated as individuals into mainstream American society. To that end, Congress proposed to end the special relationship between tribes and the...
policy, the federal government terminated the Ottawa tribal government in 1956. The tribe persevered and federal recognition was restored under a bill signed by President Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
on May 15, 1978. In 1979 the US Congress recognized the tribal council and ratified the tribal constitution.
Today
The headquarters of the Ottawa Tribe of Oklahoma is Miami, OklahomaMiami, Oklahoma
Miami is a city in Ottawa County, Oklahoma, United States. As of 2009, the population estimate was 12,910. It is the county seat of Ottawa County. The city is named after the Miami tribe...
. Currently, there are 2,490 enrolled tribal members, with only 723 of them living within the state of Oklahoma. John R. Ballard is the elected Chief. The Ottawa Tribe issues its own tribal vehicle tags. They operate two tribal smoke shops; one gas station, the Otter Stop Convenience Store; and one casino, the High Winds Casino. Their annual economic impact is estimated by the Oklahoma Indian Affairs Commissions to be $3,349,661. The tribe operates a Community Health Program and the Healthy Living Center in Miami, as well as a Department of Environmental Protection. The tribe publishes the Adawe News for its tribal members and offers Ottawa language classes.
The Ottawa Tribe of Oklahoma's annual powwow
PowWow
PowWow is a wireless sensor network mote developed by the Cairn team of IRISA/INRIA. The platform is currently based on IEEE 802.15.4 standard radio transceiver and on an MSP430 microprocessor...
is held every Labor Day weekend.