page_title: Indian removals in Indiana
section_title: Treaties after statehood
hierarchical_section_title: Indian removals in Indiana / Treaties / Treaties after statehood
caption_attribution_description: English: Map displayed on the Historic Marker of the land cession in Indiana
context_page_description: Indian removals in Indiana followed a series of the land cession treaties made between 1795 and 1846 that led to the removal of most of the native tribes from Indiana. Some of the removals occurred prior to 1830, but most took place between 1830 and 1846. The Lenape, Piankashaw, Kickapoo, Wea, and Shawnee were removed in the 1820s and 1830s, but the Potawatomi and Miami removals in the 1830s and 1840s were more gradual and incomplete, and not all of Indiana's Native Americans voluntarily left the state. The most well-known resistance effort in Indiana was the forced removal of Chief Menominee and his Yellow River band of Potawatomi in what became known as the Potawatomi Trail of Death in 1838, in which 859 Potawatomi were removed to Kansas and at least forty died on the journey west. The Miami were the last to be removed from Indiana, but tribal leaders delayed the process until 1846. Many of the Miami were permitted to remain on land allotments guaranteed to them under the Treaty of St. Mary's and subsequent treaties.
context_section_description: In 1818 Jonathan Jennings, the first governor of Indiana, Lewis Cass, and Benjamin Parke negotiated a series of agreements collectively known as the Treaty of St. Mary's with the Miami, Wea, Delaware, Potawatomi, and other tribes that relinquished land in central Indiana and Ohio to the federal government. The treaty with the Miami acquired most of their land south of the Wabash River, except for the Big Miami Reserve in north central Indiana between the Eel River and the Salamonie River. Portions of these lands were assigned to individual members of the Miami tribe. These allotments to individuals would protect many of the Miami, especially its leaders, from removal in 1846. 
  The Miami were in good standing with the state because they had opposed Tecumseh and tried to remain neutral during the War of 1812. Under the terms of the treaty, the Miami also recognized the validity of a treaty with the Kickapoo, made in 1809, and led to the Kickapoo's subsequent removal from Indiana. The Wea, who inhabited the area around present-day Lafayette, Indiana, agreed to a $3,000 annuity for their cessions of land in Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois.
  Under the terms of the Treaty of St. Mary's, the Lenape (Delaware), who lived in central Indiana, around present-day Indianapolis, ceded their lands to the federal government, opening the area to further settlement, and agreed to leave Indiana and settle on lands provided for them west of the Mississippi River. In exchange for leaving the state, the Lenape were granted gifts and an annuity totaling $15,500. Most of the tribe left for the West during August and September 1820. The Potawatomi received annuities for ceding a portion of their Indiana land. Several tribal members were given individual grants of reservation land. Most of the Potawatomi did not remove from the state until 1838.
  After the years of peace that followed the War of 1812 and the land cessions under the Treaty of St. Mary's, Indiana's state government took a more conciliatory approach to Indiana relations, embarking on a plan to "civilize" their members rather than remove them. Using federal grants, several mission schools were opened to educate the tribes and promote Christianity; however, the missions were largely ineffective in meeting their goals.
  Land cessions resumed in 1819. On August 30, Benjamin Parke concluded negotiations with the Kickapoo to cede their land in Indiana, which included most of present-day Vermillion County, in exchange for goods worth $3,000 and a ten-year annuity of $2,000 in silver. The treaty was not recognized by the Miami, who claimed the Kickapoos' land, but European-American pioneers continued to settle in the area.
  Other agreements with the Wea, Potawatomi, Miami, Delaware, and Kickapoo were reached in 1819, when the tribes were invited to attend a meeting to establish a trade agreement. Trade with the Indians was among the most lucrative enterprises in the state. In exchange for treaty agreements the Wea were granted a $3,000 annuity; the Potawatomi were given a $2,500 annuity; the Delaware received a $4,000 annuity' and the Miami were granted a $15,000 annuity. Smaller amounts were to other tribes. The annuities were accompanied by additional gifts to tribal leaders that were close to the same value of the annuity payments. Tribes also agreed to annual meetings at trading grounds near Fort Wayne, where the annuities would be paid and tribes could sell their goods to traders. The annual event was the most important trading enterprise in the state from 1820 until 1840. Traders would gather and offer goods to the tribes, often at inflated prices and sell them on credit. After the tribes approved the bills traders would take them to the Indian agent, who would pay the claims out of tribe's annuity funds. (Traders frequently served liquor to their customers and took advantage of their drunken state during trading.) Many of the leading politicians in the state, including Jonathan Jennings and John W. Davis, took active part in the trade and made significant profits in the enterprise.
  In exchan
caption: map of the land cession
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