One of the small group of tribes comprising the Illinois division of the Algonquian linguistic family, the Miamis emerged as a pivotal tribe only during the French and British imperial wars, the Miami Confederacy wars of the eighteenth century, and the treaty-making period of the nineteenth century. The Miamis reached their peak of political importance in the Indian confederacies which blocked the Northwest Territory in the 1790's and during the War of 1812. Their title to much of the present state of Indiana enabled them to make advantageous treaties and delay emigration until the late 1840's. The tribe's 1846-47 emigrations produced two branches, the Indiana group and the Kansas-Oklahoma group, which have maintained political co-operation in spite of deep-seated cultural antipathies and dispossession. Their solidarity has been rewarded by success in their suits before the United States Court of Claims. This account spans the years from 1658 to the present, emphasizing the occasions on which the Miamis were a decisive influence on the course of American history.
Now scattered in small communities in northern Indiana, the Eastern Miami Indians, once a well-known tribe, have lived in undeserved obscurity since the 1840s. In recent years they have become more visible as they have sought restoration of treaty rights and have revitalized their culture. The post-removal history of the Indiana Miami tribe is a rich texture of social, legal, and economic history, much enhanced by folklore and a rich series of photographic images. In The Miami Indians of Indiana: A Persistent People, 1654–1994, Rafert explores the history and culture of the Miami Indians.
“In this riveting account, Frank moves beyond stories of recent development to uncover the deep history of a place profoundly shaped by mound-builders, slaves, raiders, and traders. This book will change the way you think about Florida history.”—Christina Snyder, author of Slavery in Indian Country: The Changing Face of Captivity in Early America “Reveals that Old Miami seems a lot like New Miami: a place bursting with energy and desperation, fresh faces, and ancient dreams.”—Gary R. Mormino, author of Land of Sunshine, State of Dreams: A Social History of Modern Florida “A deep, intelligent look at the parade of peoples who dotted the north bank of the Miami River for thousands of years before Miami’s modern era.”—Paul S. George, author of Along the Miami River “A masterful history. A must-read for anyone who wants to learn about Miami.”—Arva Moore Parks, author of George Merrick, Son of the South Wind Formed seemingly out of steel, glass, and concrete, with millions of residents from around the globe, Miami has ancient roots that can be hard to imagine today. Before the Pioneers takes readers back through forgotten eras to the stories of the people who shaped the land along the Miami River long before most modern histories of the city begin. Andrew Frank begins the chronicle of the Magic City’s long history 4,000 years ago when Tequesta Indians settled at the mouth of the river, erecting burial mounds, ceremonial centers, and villages. Centuries later, the area became a stopover for Spanish colonists on their way to Havana. Frank brings to life the vibrant colonies of fugitives and seafarers that formed on the shores of Biscayne Bay in the eighteenth century. He tells of the emergence of the tropical fruit plantations and the accompanying enslaved communities, as well as the military occupation during the Seminole Wars. Eventually, the small seaport town flourished with the coming of “pioneers” like Julia Tuttle and Henry Flagler who promoted the city as a place of luxury and brought new waves of residents from the North. Frank pieces together the material culture and the historical record of the Miami River to re-create the fascinating past of one of the world’s most influential cities. A volume in the series Florida in Focus, edited by Frederick R. Davis and Andrew K. Frank
"With this latest book, historian John Hann has completed his remarkable trifecta on Florida's Indians, adding South Florida to his previous UPF volumes on the Apalachees and Timucuans. Hann deftly weaves a diverse range of Spanish documentary sources into a comprehensive overview of the nonagricultural peoples of the southern Florida peninsula, providing readers with a wealth of much-needed information in a single volume. This book will instantly become required reading for anyone studying South Florida's indigenous peoples."--John Worth, Florida Museum of Natural History "Finally, a concise, authoritative, and exhaustively researched ethnohistorical synthesis of the native peoples of South Florida. This book presents important documentation on the culture, religion, and political organization of the aboriginal peoples of South Florida, including some of the most politically complex groups in all of North America. . . . A marvelous exposé of Florida's lost natives and how they lived and interacted with each other and the Spanish, ultimately leading to their demise and extinction."--Randolph J. Widmer, University of Houston John Hann, a preeminent authority and prize-winning author of books on Florida's native peoples, offers here the first survey available of Indians of the peninsula south of Timucua and Apalachee territory, from their earliest contact with Europeans to their disappearance in the 18th century. The book will have broad appeal for residents of South Florida interested in learning about the Indians and colonial history of the areas in which they live and will be of specific interest to historians, anthropologists, and archaeologists. Hann discusses the peoples who occupied an area south of a line drawn roughly from the mouth of the Withlacoochee River eastward to Turtle Mound, located a little north of Cape Canaveral. He focuses on the Calusa of the southwest coast, the people of the Tampa Bay region, and the Surruque and Ais and their kin of the east coast from Turtle Mound southward through the Keys, as well as their hinterland kin from the St. Johns through the Kissimmee valleys. Using original unpublished sources that are virtually unknown to most anthropologists and archaeologists, Hann examines documents from the first periods of contact in North America. He also analyzes archaeological investigations from the last quarter century, particularly those involving the Calusa and the Tequesta living at the mouth of the Miami River. Common features among these people, he concludes, are the almost total absence of agriculture in their lives and their slight, episodic contact with Spaniards. Hann offers new insights on subjects such as the marriages and political alliances of chiefs, and his topics range from beverages and household utensils to ceremonial items, musical instruments, and fishing techniques and tools. He also presents an unparalleled compilation of information on indigenous Native American belief systems. This important work will be significant for understanding aboriginal culture not only of Florida but North America in general. John H. Hann, historian at the San Luis Archaeological and Historic Site in Tallahassee, is a member of the Florida Department of State, Bureau of Archaeological Research. He is the author, coauthor, or translator of many books on the native peoples of Florida, including The Apalachee Indians and Mission San Luis (with Bonnie McEwan, UPF, 1998) and Hernando de Soto among the Apalachee: The Archaeology of the First Winter Encampment (with Charles R. Ewen, UPF, 1998).
Forty-one individuals, from seventeen different tribes, representing eleven nations, tell their stories in Always a People. As descendants of people who shaped the history of the North American continent from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, the narrators herein continue to feel closely bound to the land from which most of them have been forcibly removed. The eleven nations represented in this volume are the Miami, Potawatomi, Delaware, Shawnee, Peoria, Oneida, Ottawa, Winnebago, Sac and Fox, Chippewa, and Kickapoo. All of the people interviewed here have a very deep and abiding commitment to their families and speak of great-great grandparents as intimately as they do of their parents. All see themselves as real people who do not fit the stereotypes often associated with ""native Americans."" All speak of the urgency for making room for multiple voices drawn from many traditions.
Postcards of the Florida Seminole and Miccosukee tribes originated in towns where the Everglades and Big Cypress dwelling Indians came to trade. The natives' dress and accessories presented a novelty to southern Florida's early visitors. With Henry Flagler's Florida East Coast Railroad and hotels, tourism became a rising industry. During World War I, a failing hide market forced Indians to find a new livelihood, and the "Seminole Indian Village Attractions" began in Miami. Indians sold crafts and wrestled alligators, embracing tourism while keeping their culture intact. Tourist-attraction Indians (later organized as the Miccosukee Tribe) moved their Everglades camps to the Tamiami Trail. By the mid-1930s, many families had opened their own tourist attractions, becoming the first native entrepreneurs. Economic reinvention, especially through tourism, has sustained these tribal groups, most recently with bingo and gaming.
"An exceptional book for popular consumption. . . . It is a wonderful synthesis, and will be avidly read by both professional archaeologists and the general public."--Marvin T. Smith, Valdosta State University Florida's Indians tells the story of the native societies that have lived in Florida for twelve millennia, from the early hunters at the end of the Ice Age to the modern Seminole, Miccosukee, and Creeks. When the first Indians arrived in what is now Florida, they wrested their livelihood from a land far different from the modern countryside, one that was cooler, drier, and almost twice the size. Thousands of years later European explorers encountered literally hundreds of different Indian groups living in every part of the state. (Today every Florida county contains an Indian archaeological site.) The arrival of colonists brought the native peoples a new world and great changes took place--by the mid-1700s, through warfare, slave raids, and especially epidemics, the population was almost annihilated. Other Indians soon moved into the state, including Creeks from Georgia and Alabama, who were the ancestors of the modern Seminole and Miccosukee Indians. Written for a general audience, this book is lavishly illustrated with full-color drawings and photographs. It skillfully integrates the latest archaeological and historical information about the Sunshine State's Native Americans, connecting the past and present with modern place-names, and it gives a proud voice to Florida's rich Indian heritage. Jerald T. Milanich, curator in archaeology at the Florida Museum of Natural History in Gainesville, is the author of Florida Indians and the Invasion from Europe (UPF, 1995) and Archaeology of Precolumbian Florida (UPF, 1994), among numerous other books.
In the second volume of the IHS Press’s Peopling Indiana Series, anthropologist Elizabeth Glenn and ethnohistorian Stewart Rafert put readers in touch with the first people to inhabit the Hoosier state, exploring what it meant historically to be an Indian in this land and discussing the resurgence of native life in the state today. Many natives either assimilated into white culture or hid their Indian identity. World War II dramatically changed this scenario when Native Americans served in the U.S. military and on the home front. Afterward, Indians from many tribal lineages flocked to Indiana to find work. Along with Indiana's Miami and Potawatomi, they are creating a diverse Indian culture that enriches the lives of all Hoosiers.
