Oshkosh, Chief, 1795-1858

Chief Oshkosh (also spelled Os-kosh or Oskosh) (1795–August 31, 1858[a]) was a chief of the Menominee Native Americans, recognized as the leader of the Menominee people by the United States government from August 7, 1827, until his death. He was involved in treaty negotiations as the United States sought to acquire more of the Menominee tribe's land in Wisconsin and Michigan for both white settlers and relocated Oneida, Stockbridge, Munsee, and Brothertown Indians. During his tenure as head chief, the Menominee ceded over 10,000,000 acres (40,000 km2) of land to the United States. However, Oshkosh resisted U.S. government pressure for the tribe to relocate to northern Minnesota and played a key role in securing the 235,524-acre (953.13 km2)[5] Menominee Indian Reservation as a permanent home for his people on their ancestral land.

Oshkosh, Wisconsin, is named after him. Oshkosh ("Claw";[6] cf. Ojibwe oshkanzhiin, "claw")[7] was probably born in 1795 at Point Basse on the Wisconsin River, near present-day Nekoosa, Wisconsin.[8] His family belonged to the Bear Clan,[9] and his grandfather Chawanon was head chief of the Menominee. During the War of 1812, Oshkosh fought on the British side with a band of approximately one-hundred Menominee warriors led by Tomah,[10] also known as Thomas Caron, a Menominee chief whose paternal grandfather was a French military officer.[11] Oshkosh was present at the sieges of Fort Mackinac, Fort Meigs, and Fort Stephenson,[8] as well as the 1814 Battle of Mackinac Island.[12] On August 7, 1827, Cass and McKenney declared Oshkosh to be the Principal Chief of the Menominee,[15][8] making him the intermediary between the United States government and the Menominee people.[16] On June 3, 1830, a Pawnee man named Okewa (also known as Antoine), who was enslaved by a Métis family in Green Bay was hunting and accidentally killed a Menominee man who belonged to Oshkosh's band. He reported the incident to Oshkosh, who was in Green Bay at the time. Oshkosh and two other men stabbed Okewa to death. The three men were arrested and charged with murder. Some historians have interpreted Oshkosh's actions as having fallen in line with the Menominee traditional of justice practiced at that time; an enslaved person could be killed for taking a Menominee person's life under any circumstances, even if it was an accident.[17][18][19]

When the case came to trial, the jury ruled that while Oshkosh was guilty of killing Okewa, he had acted in accordance with Menominee custom and could not be convicted of murder. Unfamiliar with the nuances of the law, the jury asked Judge James Duane Doty to render the final verdict. Doty acquitted Oshkosh and the other two men, believing that they should not be punished for following traditional customs.[ The territorial dispute between the Menominee, the U.S. government, and the New York Native American groups was not resolved until 1832. The Menominee first signed the 1831 Treaty of Washington,[22] in which they ceded 2,500,000 acres (10,000 km2) between Lake Michigan and Lake Winnebago to the United States for $125,000. They then signed a second treaty in Washington, D.C., on October 27, 1832, ceding an additional 250,000 acres (1,000 km2) to the New York Native American groups. Oshkosh was present at the initial negotiations in Green Bay, but he did not travel to Washington, D.C., to sign the treaties. His younger brother signed the 1832 treaty in his stead.[23]

While the negotiations of the 1832 treaty were ongoing, the Menominee sided with the United States during the Black Hawk War.[8] Three hundred pro-U.S. Native American troops were raised in Green Bay in July 1832, including Oshkosh, who was part of a band that patrolled the Mississippi River under the command of William S. Hamilton.[24]