Chicago’s First Urban Indians – the Potawatomi by John N. Low A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (American Culture) in The University of Michigan 2011 Doctoral Committee: Professor Gregory E. Dowd (Chair) Professor Philip J. Deloria Professor Raymond A. Silverman Associate Professor Vicente M. Diaz © John N. Low ________________________________________________________________________ 2011 Dedication To Irving (Hap) McCue and Daniel (Danny) Rapp – two elders who taught me more than they ever realized; and to my parents, Wilma and Joseph, who gave me opportunity. ii Acknowledgements Every book has many authors and the same is true for this dissertation. I am indebted to many individuals, institutions, and communities for making my work possible. I owe much to the Williams/Daugherty family who made their grandfather’s papers available to me. I am also grateful for the kind assistance from the staffs at the Chicago History Museum archives, the special collections at the Clarke Memorial Library at Central Michigan University, Western Michigan University, the Rackham Graduate Library and the Bentley Library at the University of Michigan, the Harold Washington Library in Chicago, the Grand Rapids Public Museum, the Logan Museum at Beloit College, the Chicago American Indian Center, the Regenstein Library at the University of Chicago, the D’Arcy McNickle Center and special collections at the Newberry Library in Chicago, Pokagon State Park, and the Great Lakes Regional Branch of the National Archives. I also substantially benefitted from the financial support afforded by the award of a five year Rackham Merit Fellowship at the University of Michigan – without which I could not have pursued my dream of returning to academia. Thank you also to the Education Department of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi and the Master of Arts Program in the Social Sciences at the University of Chicago for their financial assistance during my graduate education. Like an award recipient at the Oscars, I apologize if I leave anyone out who deserves special thanks. Having said that, I need to express my deepest gratitude to Professor David Rayson, who first inspired me to pursue graduate work in American Indian Studies while I was at the University of Minnesota and is an incredible teacher. I also want to thank Eric Buffalohead, who also inspired me to want to continue my studies while at Minnesota. While at the University of Chicago, I had the opportunity to be mentored by Ray Fogelson and Terry Straus, both of whom have become dear friends as well as deep influences on my scholarship. I also wish to thank Morris Fred and John iii MacAloon who supported my work while in Chicago. Steve Nash was also of great help while he was at the Field Museum of Natural History. Since coming to Ann Arbor, I have benefitted greatly from the support of members of my American Culture and Museum Studies cohorts and members of the graduate student Native caucus. I have also appreciated the refreshing ideas and insights from the students I have had the honor to teach while at the University of Michigan and elsewhere – including the University of Chicago, Northeastern Illinois University, Indiana University Northwest, the University of Illinois at Urbana/ Champagne, the University of Illinois at Chicago, and North Central College. During my year as a visiting professor at UIUC, I benefitted immensely from the wisdom and insight of Robert Warrior, LeAnne Howe, Robert Parker, Keith Camacho, Jody Bird, Fred Hoxie, and Matthew Gilbert. While at the Newberry Library, I have also benefitted especially from the assistance of Scott Stevens, LaVonne Brown-Ruoff, and Cameron Wesson. Larry Nesper and Susan Johnson from the University of Wisconsin have also had significant influences on my work beyond what they might imagine and I thank them for this. The same is true of my friends from Michigan State University, including Susan Sleeper- Smith and Susan Applegate Krouse (who we all miss dearly). I also wish to thank Craig Howe for his insights into graduate education and the advice, early on, from N. Scott Momaday on my work and Malea Powell and Amy Lonetree for their inspiration. Thank you Charlene Teters, John Truedell, and Winona LaDuke for showing me that scholarship and activism can make a difference. At the University of Michigan, I have been blessed with wonderful professors – four of which agreed to serve on my dissertation committee. Greg Dowd, Vince Diaz, Phil Deloria, and Ray Silverman are incredible scholars and teachers who have supported me through every step of the Ph.D. process. I am forever grateful to each of them. I also want to thank specifically Marlene Moore, who helped me navigate through much of the process of getting to this jumping-off-point. Thank you too, Bruce Conforth, for allowing me the privilege of serving as your graduate student instructor. Through my entire doctoral career, I have also benefitted from the assistance of Cheryl Cash, who helped flesh out ideas, provided critique, helped edit, and generally made this dissertation possible. iv Back home, I have had the support of members of my tribal community, the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi, which has helped me move forward. Special thanks go to all the members of the Traditions and Repatriation Committee for their support and assistance. Specifically, I need to say igwein to Kevin Daugherty, Tom Topash, Steve Winchester, Majel DeMarsh, Clarence White, and Jason Wesaw. Thank you too, Grandma Goldie and Great Grandma Sarah and to all my ancestors. I pray that what I have done honors you for all you endured. I also need to express my deepest respect for the sacrifices of the Daniel Closson family. As a child, my parents encouraged my curiosity and nurtured me as best they could. I was blessed with such parents. Thank you, Mom and Dad. Also, thank you to my Aunt Rose for your encouragement. Lastly, thank you to Barbara for your patience and support. v Table of Contents Dedication………………………………………………………………………………...ii Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………………iii List of Figures…………………………………………………………………………....ix List of Appendices……………………………………………………………………….xi Abstract………………………………………………………………………………….xii Chapter 1. Prologue- Chicago’s First Urban Indians – the Potawatomi…………………….1 Methodology………………………………………………………………3 The Potawatomi…………………………………………………………...6 Life before Contact…………………………………………………..……8 Material Culture……………………………………………………….…..9 Village Life………………………………………………………………..9 The Contact Era……………………………………………………….....11 The Emergence of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi…………………...17 2. Orientation: Topics, Themes and Literature………………………………...25 Simon Pokagon and His Relation to Other 19th Century American Indian Writers………………………………...……………………….…25 The Development of Cultural Geography and Critical Landscape Studies........................................................................................................26 Treaty Rights and Land Claims by American Indians …..………………33 The Nature and Characteristics of Interactions Between Peoples as Reflected In Such Concepts as Frontier, Borderlands, Contact Zones, and Transculturation………………………………………………….….37 The Emergence of an “Indigenous” Identity in the United States……….39 Canoes and Canoeing by American Indians and Others…………………40 The Power of Traditional Practices and Objects………………………....48 American Indians and Sports in the 20th century………………………..50 Urban Indians………………………………………………………...…..52 Memory Work……………………………………………………………53 Conclusion……………………………………………………………….57 3. The Rhetoric of Simon Pokagon: Claims of Equality, Appeals for Reconciliation & Inclusion…………………………………………………..59 Introduction………………………………………………………………59 The Ancestral Voice of Simon Pokagon…………………………………59 vi The Life of Simon Pokagon…………………………………………...…63 The Literature of Simon Pokagon………………………………………..71 Authorship of Queen of the Woods……………………………………...73 Queen of the Woods: Preserving Community Through Storytelling…….78 Reading the Imbedded Meanings……………………………………...…87 Conclusion……………………………………………………………….90 4. The Politics of Monuments and Memorials for the Potawatomi in Chicago…………………………………………………………………….94 Introduction……………………………………………………………....94 Monuments and Memorials………………………………………...……95 A Celebration of Chicago’s Native Past………………………………..100 A Moving Memorial – Floats as Ephemeral Monuments………………104 Potawatomi Monuments……………………………………………..…107 The Materiality of Potawatomi Monuments………………………...….110 The Memorialization of Chief Menominee………………………...…..115 Black Ash Basketry and Winter Storytelling…………………………..120 The Politics of the Battle of Fort Dearborn Park………………………121 The Bricolage at the Foster Avenue Underpass of Lakeshore Drive…..124 Conclusion……………………………………………………………..127 5. Claims Making to the Chicago Lakefront………………………………….129 Introduction…………………………………………………………….129 A Brief Excursion Into Chicago………………………………………..132 Mapping the Potawatomi Land Claim………………………………….137 Making a Claim on the Turtles Back………………………….…..……140 Conclusion………………………………………………………...……153 6. The Legacies of Turner, Cody, Streeter, and the Pokagon Potawatomi…....158 Introduction……………………………………………………………..158 The Odyssey of George Wellington Streeter……………………...……159 The Popular Version of Streeter in Chicago……………………………162 The Economies of Streeter and the Potawatomi………………………..195 Meaning Making and the Chicago “Frontier”………………………….199 Conclusion……………………………………………………...………211 7. Leroy Wesaw and the Chicago Canoe Club………………………………..215 Introduction……………………………………………………………..215