The Trail of Death

By Kelcie Marie

  • Indian Removal Act

    Congress sealed the fate of Native Americans by passing the Indian Removal Act.

  • Potawatomi

    The Indiana Potawatomi signed nine traties, ceding their remaining reservations in Indiana to the United States.

  • The Treaty of the Yellow River

    Three of the chiefs that signed the Treay of the Yellow River and gave up most of the land on the parcel that included Chief Menominee's reservation a few miles north of Rochester, Indiana.

  • Trail of Death Begins

    The Deadline for the Potawatomi to vacate their land was in August 5, 1838. This meant that the Potawatomi that hadn't left the area would be forced to move to another land.

  • The Journey Ended

    The Indianas touched Kansas soil on November 2 and reached heir final destination of Osawatomie, Kansas on november 4, 1838. They traveled 660 miles in two months.

  • Death of Menominee

    Menominee died less than three years after arriving in kansas and is buried there.

  • 17 Years Later?

    Indiana acknowledged that the Potawatomi chief had a legitmate claim to the land.

  • Menominee Twin Lakes

    The state of Indiana erected a life-sized statue of Menominee at Twin Lakes, southeast of Plymouth, near the sit of Menominee's vanished village.