Late Woodland-Emergent Mississippian Occupation and Plant Use at the AE Harmon Site (11MS136)

Abstract

The Removal period, which nationally spanned the years 1785–1840, posed new environmental challenges to the Potawatomi. They were forced to respond to everything from shrinking landholdings, to changing subsistence patterns, to a domineering U.S. presence. These dynamics touched off a complicated intra-tribal debate over how best to manage the risk and survive. A band-level split emerged with the so-called “prairie” band acceding to removal and the “woods” band advocating resistance in an innovative way. These “woodland” Potawatomi fashioned a syncretized identity that was the byproduct of a deliberate attempt to deploy the U.S. “civilization” policy against the U.S. removal policy. For many of these Potawatomi, particularly those of Pokagon Village where the identity and strategy began, the plan succeeded. This article provides an overview of band origins, surveys some key aspects of this band’s identity, why it was unique yet traditional, and how the band successfully managed its environmental risk.