The Potawatomi used the natural resources around them in many ways. They made wooden cups and spouts to tap trees for maple sap. They made knockers for harvesting wild rice and snowshoes for traveling in winter. The Potawatomi hunters and warriors used bows and arrows and wooden clubs. Fishermen used spears and nets. They were farmers and ate the crops they grew like corn, beans, and squash. They also ate things that they gathered like berries and rice. The Potawatomi are a settled tribe. They lived in homes and farmed. Their homes were called wigwams. Wigwams were rectangle shaped, made of bark, and had domed shaped roofs.

Potawatomi artists are known for their quill embroidery, basketry, and floral beadwork. One style of bead embroidery, the Potawatomi weave is named after the tribe. The Potawatomi also crafted wampum out of white and purple shell beads. Harvest time was a time of celebration because it was a time of plenty. The tribe enjoyed telling stories to the children around the fire.

The Potawatomi tribe was known for several things. They tapped trees for maple syrup and the women harvested corn, squash and tobacco. They were known for their herb gardens and used the herbs for medicine. The Potawatomi adapted well to change. They were very friendly Indians to the settlers. This was uncommon since most Indians weren’t friendly.

They were friends with 2 other tribes. The 2 other tribe names were Ojibwe and Ottawa. They were all together called the Council Of Three Fires. They were friends because they had similar customs and they lived close to each other. They were able to talk to each other because they spoke the same language.

The first European the came in contact with the Potawatomi was Jean Nicolet. They met him at Green Bay, Wisconsin. People think they were probably visiting from Michigan since that is where the Potawatomi lived. They met French settlers later Wisconsin in 1701. They soon became trading partners and helped each other in wars.

There were a lot of situations that led to tension, conflict and war for the Potawatomi. Five tribes known as Iroquois Confederacy began to attack different Indian tribes including the Potawatomi tribe in the 1640s. The Iroquois Confederacy attacked them because they wanted to be the only ones selling fur. They fought for 30 years. The Potawatomi moved to Wisconsin to get away from them. After the war there were only 4,000 Potawatomi Indians left. Later in 1712 and 1735 they assisted the French settlers in wars against other Indian tribes. In 1746-1763 the French settlers were fighting in wars with the English. The Potawatomi fought with the French. The most famous war they had was the French and Indian war but they lost. Later in 1863 the Potawatomi fought the British again. They did not win but the British agreed to be nice to them. Over time but the British continued to take over their land.

There were major cultural differences between the Potawatomi tribe and Americans and other Indians. The Potawatomi were farmers and the Americans wanted their land. They were also good hunters. The Iroquois Indians wanted to be selfish and be in control of the fur trade so they also fought for their land. Another cultural difference was the government. The Potawatomi had different tribes and leaders. This made trouble for the Americans because they needed a treaty for every tribe.

Two famous people helping the Potawatomi tribe were the Shawnee Prophet Temskawatawa and his little brother Tecumseh. They resisted the Americans taking over their lands. At the beginning of the war of 1812 the 2 brothers made an Indian military alliance and fought with British. Another very famous person was Chief Menominiee. He did not want to leave were they lived at the Twin Lakes village. The chief united a bunch of Potawatomi who wanted to stay. Soon Chief Menominee’s group went from 4 wigwams (huts) to hundreds of wigwams. In August 1838 they got pushed away by soldiers from their home. This was called the Potawatomi Trail Of Death.

There was one outsider who played a part in the tribes history. The U.S.A government tried to put a boundary for the Ohio tribes but the settlers ignored them. They had a very violent war between the U.S. and Ohio tribes from 1790-1794. The Potawatomi were in the war too. The war kept on going until the tribe was defeated by “Mad Anthony” Wayne in the Battle of the Fallen Timbers.

There were a lot of wars and battles between the Americans and the Indians. There were a bunch of treaties too. The Potawatomi tribe had to give up some of their land after the Detroit Treaty in November of 1807. They had a hard time after this because they could not hunt or grow food. To survive they had to give up their land to the United States. This happened a bunch and the Potawatomi were removed west of the Mississippi River from 1834 to 1842.