Shawnee are a Native American people thought to have originated in the Ohio Valley. When European settlers arrived in the 1600’s, Shawnee lived in what are now the southeastern and midwestern United States. The Shawnee speak an Algic language in the Algonquian language group. The Shawnee language is related that of several nearby groups, including the Arapaho, Blackfeet, Cheyenne, Chippewa, Fox, Illinois, Kickapoo, Menominee, Miami, and Sauk. Scholars believe the Shawnee descended from an earlier people known as the Fort Ancient culture. The Fort Ancient culture built mounds, earthen forts, and other structures in what is now Ohio. See Mound builders (Mississippian Period).
The Shawnee fiercely resisted European settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains in a series of conflicts beginning with the French and Indian War (1754-1763). They became known for prominent leaders, such as the chiefs Cornstalk and Tecumseh. In 1774, however, colonial troops from Virginia defeated the Shawnee—led by Cornstalk—in a battle at what is now Point Pleasant, West Virginia. The battle marked the end of Lord Dunmore’s War, named after Virginia’s governor.
After the battle, many Shawnee moved west across the Mississippi River. Those who stayed behind included Tecumseh and his brother Tenskwatawa, known as the Shawnee Prophet. The two leaders called for a unification of all indigenous (native) people west of the Appalachians, from Canada to Mexico. They urged a return to traditional ways and denounced alcohol, fighting between Native American groups, and the ways of Europeans. Together, they founded Prophetstown where the Wabash and Tippecanoe rivers meet in Indiana. However, their movement to found a unified Native American nation disbanded following their defeat in the Battle of Tippecanoe in November 1811.
About 6,200 Shawnee live in the United States today. They are divided into four tribes. The Piqua Shawnee remain east of the Mississippi River. The Loyal Shawnee, Absentee Shawnee, and Eastern Shawnee live in Oklahoma.
See also Cornstalk; Indian wars (Lord Dunmore’s War (1774)); Indian wars (The Shawnee Prophet); Shawnee Prophet; Tecumseh.
