In our language we are myaamia - the downstream people. Today you will hear our name pronounced Miami, a derivation of our traditional name. The United States government recognizes us as a Sovereign Nation, the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma. We originate from the Great Lakes region where our homelands lie within the boundaries of the states of Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, lower Michigan and lower Wisconsin.
We were among those Nations exposed to early European contact, first through the Jesuit mission in the late 1600’s, followed soon after by the French and British invasion and struggle for control of the Great Lakes region. In those days we numbered into tens of thousands. The following years of struggle toward the establishment of the United States of America is a history that includes, by necessity, accounts of the efforts of our people to retain their homeland and connection to that landscape. Stories of our Chiefs and War Chiefs, their wisdom, victories and defeats, are all recorded in history. We are known.
The treaty period was devastating, marked by the massive cession of lands required at the Greenville Treaty of 1795. It was the vicious tenacity of the early leaders of this country that lead to President Andrew Jackson signing the Indian Removal Act of 1830, an action that set in motion a chain of events that would alter our place and people forever. The Treaty of 1840 called for the removal of the Miami Tribe to regions beyond the Mississippi. After many attempts to avoid this devastating move, in October of 1846 our ancestors, numbering approximately 500 souls, were herded at gunpoint and forced onto canal boats to begin the long journey down the Erie Canal system from eastern Indiana to the Ohio River. The remaining journey called for the use of steam boats to take our people west, down the Ohio River to the Mississippi, up to the Missouri and across to Westport Landing near Kansas City. From that landing our ancestors made their way south by horseback and wagon to a reserve held for them in the land of the Kaw people, near modern day La Cygne, Kansas. Our people remained in Kansas until the Treaty of 1867 called for their removal again, this time to the Indian Territory, known today as Oklahoma. Upon arrival in the Indian Territory our Nation numbered fewer than 100 adults.
We were among those Nations exposed to early European contact, first through the Jesuit mission in the late 1600’s, followed soon after by the French and British invasion and struggle for control of the Great Lakes region. In those days we numbered into tens of thousands. The following years of struggle toward the establishment of the United States of America is a history that includes, by necessity, accounts of the efforts of our people to retain their homeland and connection to that landscape. Stories of our Chiefs and War Chiefs, their wisdom, victories and defeats, are all recorded in history. We are known.
The treaty period was devastating, marked by the massive cession of lands required at the Greenville Treaty of 1795. It was the vicious tenacity of the early leaders of this country that lead to President Andrew Jackson signing the Indian Removal Act of 1830, an action that set in motion a chain of events that would alter our place and people forever. The Treaty of 1840 called for the removal of the Miami Tribe to regions beyond the Mississippi. After many attempts to avoid this devastating move, in October of 1846 our ancestors, numbering approximately 500 souls, were herded at gunpoint and forced onto canal boats to begin the long journey down the Erie Canal system from eastern Indiana to the Ohio River. The remaining journey called for the use of steam boats to take our people west, down the Ohio River to the Mississippi, up to the Missouri and across to Westport Landing near Kansas City. From that landing our ancestors made their way south by horseback and wagon to a reserve held for them in the land of the Kaw people, near modern day La Cygne, Kansas. Our people remained in Kansas until the Treaty of 1867 called for their removal again, this time to the Indian Territory, known today as Oklahoma. Upon arrival in the Indian Territory our Nation numbered fewer than 100 adults.