The Meskwaki Nation: Our Mission
To rely on the knowledge and experiences of the past, along with the will to survive to advance the people, culture and well-being of the Meskwaki Nation.
Meskwaki: A Brief History
The Meskwaki people (sometimes spelled “Mesquakie”) are of Algonquian origin from the Eastern Woodland Culture areas. The Meskwaki spoken language is of similiar dialect to the Sauk and Kickapoo and they are working hard to maintain it.
The tribe has been historically located in the St. Lawrence River Valley, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri and Iowa. Meskwaki were called “Renards” (the Fox) by the French, but have always identified themselves as “Meskwaki”. The Meskwaki fought against the French in what are now called the Fox Wars (1701-1742) and in 1735, the Sauk and Meskwaki allied together to fend off Europeans and other Indian Tribes. Both tribes moved southward from Wisconsin into Iowa, Illinois and Missouri. Even though the Meskwaki and Sauk are two distinct tribal groups, with linguistic and cultural similarities, the two tribes have often been associated throughout history.
After the Black Hawk War of 1832, the United States officially combined the two tribes into a single group known as the Sac & Fox Confederacy for treaty-making purposes. Through a series of land concessions in 1845 under the name of “Sac & Fox”, the Sauk and Meskwaki formally lost all lands and were removed to a reservation in east central Kansas (although some persevered and chose to stay). After their banishment to Kansas, Meskwaki ancestors longed to reclaim their Iowa woodland homeland. Choosing to remain, some stayed hidden in Iowa, while others left for the Kansas reservation only to journey back to Iowa over the next few years. Throughout, there was an unbroken presence in Iowa and by 1856, the State of Iowa enacted a law allowing the continued residence of the tribe.
To rely on the knowledge and experiences of the past, along with the will to survive to advance the people, culture and well-being of the Meskwaki Nation.
Meskwaki: A Brief History
The Meskwaki people (sometimes spelled “Mesquakie”) are of Algonquian origin from the Eastern Woodland Culture areas. The Meskwaki spoken language is of similiar dialect to the Sauk and Kickapoo and they are working hard to maintain it.
The tribe has been historically located in the St. Lawrence River Valley, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri and Iowa. Meskwaki were called “Renards” (the Fox) by the French, but have always identified themselves as “Meskwaki”. The Meskwaki fought against the French in what are now called the Fox Wars (1701-1742) and in 1735, the Sauk and Meskwaki allied together to fend off Europeans and other Indian Tribes. Both tribes moved southward from Wisconsin into Iowa, Illinois and Missouri. Even though the Meskwaki and Sauk are two distinct tribal groups, with linguistic and cultural similarities, the two tribes have often been associated throughout history.
After the Black Hawk War of 1832, the United States officially combined the two tribes into a single group known as the Sac & Fox Confederacy for treaty-making purposes. Through a series of land concessions in 1845 under the name of “Sac & Fox”, the Sauk and Meskwaki formally lost all lands and were removed to a reservation in east central Kansas (although some persevered and chose to stay). After their banishment to Kansas, Meskwaki ancestors longed to reclaim their Iowa woodland homeland. Choosing to remain, some stayed hidden in Iowa, while others left for the Kansas reservation only to journey back to Iowa over the next few years. Throughout, there was an unbroken presence in Iowa and by 1856, the State of Iowa enacted a law allowing the continued residence of the tribe.