The Fox Tribe originally lived in eastern Michigan, but migrated due to conflicts with the French and the US Army. They are now found in Iowa, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri. They were a migratory farming tribe and skilled craftsmen and warriors. They fought with the Huron tribe and eventually joined the Sauk Tribe. They were relocated to a reservation in Kansas after Black Hawk’s War and now have reservations in Iowa, Kansas, and Oklahoma.
The Fox Tribe is a Native American tribe that originally lived along the St. Lawrence River in eastern Michigan. The tribe gradually migrated during the 1600s and mid-1800s due to tribal skirmishes, wars with the French, and conflicts with the United States Army and state militias. The modern Fox tribe is found in Iowa, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri and currently has a population of approximately 3,500 members. The tribe is also known as Meskwaki, “the people of the red earth”. The name Fox originates from the French, which called the tribe “Renards”, literally translated as “the fox”.
Culturally, the Fox were a migratory farming tribe, growing wild corn and rice in the summer and hunting game in the winter. They lived in hut-like huts in the winter and bark house villages during the summer season. The Foxes were excellent craftsmen and brave warriors. They had three chieftains, each of whom oversaw a different aspect of life. The ceremonial head was the spiritual head of the tribe, who conducted shamanic rituals. War Chief was a position chosen by the council based on prowess in battle and Peace Chief was a patrilineal position, serving as the head of the village council.
Historically, the Fox Tribe numbered more than 10,000 members, living east of Michigan. The Fox fought with the Huron tribe for years, and eventually, as their numbers dwindled, constant skirmishing forced them west into what is now Wisconsin. The tribe gained control of the Fox River system, which was a necessary means of transportation for the fur trade in the 1600s and 1700s. The French first came into contact with the Fox tribe in the mid-1600s, at which point the tribe numbered about 6,500 members. The French took the war to the Fox tribe when they sought rights to use the Fox River system.
In the Second Fox War, the French reduced the Fox Tribe’s numbers to fewer than 500. The tribe spread south through Wisconsin and along the Iowa-Illinois border and joined the Sauk Tribe, bringing their animosity French. By 1800, the population of the Fox tribe had rebounded to about 1,500.
In 1832, the Sauk, Fox, and Kickapoo Native Americans united under Chief Black Hawk and fought the United States Army for land in what is now Wisconsin. Black Hawk’s War led to the United States uniting the Fox and Sauk tribe into the Sac & Fox Confederacy, and after a series of treaties and land cessions, the tribes lost all land they owned and were relocated to a reservation in Kansas. After the land cessions, some of the Fox moved off the reservation to Iowa, and eventually bought and held land there. The modern Fox tribe has reservations in Iowa, Kansas and Oklahoma.
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