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   Kickapoo

Kickapoo chief Gull

   Before contact with Europeans, the Kickapoo lived in northwest Ohio and southern Michigan in the area between Lake Erie and Lake Michigan. Beginning in the 1640s, the Algonquin tribes in this region came under attack from the east, first by the Ottawa and Iroquian-speaking Neutrals, and then the Iroquois. By 1658 the Kickapoo had been forced west into southwest Wisconsin. About 1700 they began to move south into northern Illinois and by 1770 had established themselves in central Illinois.

   In 1832 the Missouri Kickapoo exchanged their reserve for lands in northeast Kansas. After the move, factions developed, and in 1852, a large group left and moved to Chihuahua in northern Mexico. Apparently, there were Kickapoo already living there by this time. These Mexican Kickapoo were joined by others between 1857 and 1863. Few remained in Kansas. Between 1873 and 1878, approximately half of the Mexican Kickapoo returned to the United States and were sent to Oklahoma. Currently, there are three federally-recognized Kickapoo tribes: the Kickapoo of Kansas; the Kickapoo of Oklahoma; and the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas.

Kickapoo man

   (Kickapoo-man.jpg) Originally, population Kickapoo was as many as 4,000. By 1660 almost all Great Lakes Algonquin were living as refugees in mixed villages in Wisconsin. Intermarriage and mixed populations made accurate counts impossible. The French estimated there were 2,000 Kickapoo in 1684 but by 1759 had increased this to 3,000. Oklahoma and Mexican Kickapoo have routinely travelled back-and-forth ever since, so the 1910 census listed 211 in Kansas, 135 in Oklahoma, and an estimated 400 in Mexico. Current figures give over 2,500 Kickapoo in the United States divided between the 500 in Kansas and approximately 2,000 in Oklahoma. In addition, there are 700 members of Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas who live in both Texas and Mexico.

   The name comes from the Algonquin word Kiwegapawa "he stands about" or "he moves about."

Kickapoo women, 1900

   In a tradition shared by both tribes, Kickapoo and Shawnee believe they were once part of the same tribe which divided following an argument over a bear paw. The Kickapoo language is virtually identical to Shawnee, and culturally the two were very similar except for some southern cultural traits which the Shawnee had absorbed during the years they had lived in the southeastern United States. Typical of other Great Lakes Algonquin, both lived in fixed villages of mid-sized longhouses during summer. After the harvest and a communal buffalo hunt in the fall, the Kickapoo separated to winter hunting camps. The Kickapoo were skilled farmers and used hunting and gathering to supplement their basic diet of corn, squash and beans. Many Indian agents in the 1800s were startled just how well the Kickapoo could farm, but modern Americans would probably be just as surprised to learn how important buffalo hunting was to Kickapoo in Illinois during the 1700s. Before most of the other tribes in the area, the Kickapoo were using horses to hunt buffalo on the prairies of northern Illinois - a skill which allowed their rapid adaptation to the lifestyle of the Great Plains after removal.

Kickapoo house

   They were not a nomadic people and thus, did not move around much once they were settled in an area. The Kickapoo built wooden, bark covered structures for houses. These houses are called wickiups or wigwams. They raised crops, gathered fruits and nuts when in season, fished the rivers and hunted deer, bear and small game. Wood, gathered from the forests provided material for many of the tools and implements. For example, flint points, attached to wooden handles, served many purposes in day-to-day living and elaborately carved wooden war clubs were used in battle.

   In the northern climates where they used to live, the Kickapoo used many types of woods, barks and fibers, animal skins and bones, stone and clay to make their necessary tools. They made containers from tree bark to store food and carry water. When they moved south, the Kickapoo also made use of their natural surroundings and began to weave their containers out of reeds instead of making them from bark. Many anthropologists believe that the art of basketry came about because of a lack of certain types of bark in Texas and Mexico. Other containers, such as bowls, are made from soft stones. Animal skins are also made into containers. The Kickapoo have a very fine way of preparing the animal hides for use. I know, cause I have seen them. The hides turn out soft and are a rich golden color. They use animal brains to tan the hides and then they smoke them over a fire for a few days. The smoking is what gives the skin its rich color.

   Deerskin was used for clothing until the arrival of the white man. Moccasins, also made from deerskin, are still worn by many Kickapoo today.

   Like the Shawnee, the Kickapoo were organized into patrilineal clans with descent traced through the father, but the brothers and sisters of the mother had special responsibilities in raising the children.

   The most distinctive characteristic of the Kickapoo was their stubborn resistance to acculturization, and it is difficult to think of any other tribe which has gone to such lengths to avoid this. Years after the eastern tribes with famous names had given up the fight, the Kickapoo were still in the midst of the struggle to preserve Native America.

Kickapoo man (present day)

   (kickapoo-present-day-man.jpg) Following the American conquest of the Ohio Valley, the tribal authority of the Kickapoo disintegrated. Relocated first to Missouri and then Kansas, small bands of Kickapoo scattered across the plains warning other tribes that the white man was coming. In Kansas, white settlement closed in on them once again during the 1850s, and rather than surrender or adapt, most chose to escape by moving to northern Mexico. Although many of the Mexican Kickapoo returned to the United States during the 1870s, relatively few have converted to Christianity. The traditional Drum (or Dream) religion has the most adherents, followed by Kanakuk and the Native American Church. Of all the Kickapoo, the Mexican branch has remained the most traditional and generally has been reluctant to allow visits by outsiders. The American Kickapoo are similar in this regard. Most still speak the Kickapoo language, and they have one of the highest percentages of full-bloods of any tribe in the United States.

   Tribal government is located in Horton, Kansas and was organized under the Indian Reorganization Act (1934), and was approved in 1937. In 1951, they barely managed to avoid a government attempt to terminate their tribal status.

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