By Jessica, Fiona, Amelia ,Thomas, and Isaac Menominee Tribe By Jessica, Fiona, Amelia ,Thomas, and Isaac

Menominee tribal seal The red bird in the middle of the seal is a red THUNDER BIRD. The THUNDER BIRD is one of the many Menominee creatures. Many people think a thunder bird is an Eagle. Some people think the Thunder bird represents the CONDOR . Only a couple people very rarely see a condor. In the right corner there is a section of a log. On the end of the Thunder bird is a white arrow. By: Amelia

Menominee Traditional Name The Menominee believe they are Kiash Matchitiwuk (kee ahsh mah che te wuck) which is “Ancient Ones”. According to Menominee legend they were created at the Menominee River, sixty miles from the Menominee Reservation. The Menominee spoke the Algonquian language The Menominee lived in dome shaped wigwams or triangle shaped lodges.

Life Before European Contact Before the Europeans the Menomonee were a very peaceful tribe and even after white men came they were still peaceful. They depended a lot on nature to provide food, water, and clothing. They had a pretty good amount of wild rice and hunted for deer and other game of that sort for food too. The men wore deerskin pants, moccasins, and a shirt. The women wore wrap around deerskin skirts, leggings, and a shirt. Clothes for ceremonial events were decorated with dyed porcupine quills and other decorative things like that. They tried to live close to fresh water to get fish for food and obviously water.

Menominee History Menominee History After the French took over in the 1600’s the Menominee Nation faced great difficulties. They had to experience the pain of war, bad sicknesses, and big confusions. When both Indian and non-Indians moved into the Menominee Lands from the east, life changed for them. As the tribe relied more upon European trade goods, the metal pots took care of the clay ones, and the guns and knives took care of the stone tools. To obtain these objects all the men had to work harder to get the meat and furs. The more time they spent doing this, the more they were forced to go farther and farther away from their homes The American Revolution brought even more difficulties for the Menominee. Like most tribes by the Great Lakes area, they helped the British win battles against the Americans. Although the Americans eventually won the American Revolution a couple American traders came to the Menominee land at this time. Some of the British stayed.

Menominee History Continued The event taking place in the east Menominee was drawn into war again with the Americans and the British. This was called The War of 1812. In July of that year, about forty Menominee warriors, and groups of Ho-Chunk, Sioux, and the British officer and trader, took Fort Michilimackinac without firing a shot. Among Menominee warriors was a seventeen year-old named Oshkosh. When the War of 1812 ended Oshkosh became leader of the Bear Clan, with the guidance of great Menominee Chief Tomah. This began happening as the Menominee Tribe began facing important decisions about land. We still have to find more clues about the Menominee, but in Wisconsin are clues to their history!

Conflicts With Other Tribes and Europeans As the British moved farther onto Menominee land they started fighting with the French for control over the land. The Menominee fought alongside the French in all the battles and the many wars. One of the bigger battles and more well known one is the French and Indian war. After that war the British controlled the Menominee's land. In the end, the Menominee didn’t want any more war so they traded with the British as well as the French.

How the Menominee lost their land and where they had to move to. Menominee were forced westward by Ojibwa and Potawatomi US forced Menominee to give land to Oneida, Stockbridge, and Brother town Indians in the 1820’s The Menominee thought they were sharing the land with the other tribes, but the government set up a land cession for the land Menominee were worried about land when Mohican, Oneida, and Brother town Indians came The US offered $146,500 for 500,000 million acres They thought other tribes were renting land but the tribes really were taking over the land that was the Menominee’s land

Map of Current Menominee Lands The Menominee Reservation is its own county in Wisconsin The Menominee’s land is 276,000 acres of thick forest along the Wolf and Oconto Rivers as a permanent home. They chose the land so that they could be close to the Sturgeon migrating up the Wolf River. The Menominee once laid on the highway so their land would not be stolen. By: Amelia

Wisconsin population and current businesses The Menominee Indians own a casino, a gaming hall, a college, hotel complex, some health clinics, some schools, and some other buildings. The Menominee population is 3,400 to 7,200

Brooke Caldwell Brooke Caldwell, like half the Native American children in the U.S., lives in a city not a reservation. Brooke’s Menominee family lives close to the University of Madison Brooke is in fourth grade at the Shorewood Elementary School Her father studies forestry. She looks forward to International Day when she wears her traditional Menominee clothing For a project Brooke researched traditional food dyes that the Menominee used to color clothing