Great Woman: Tacumwah of the Miami

As we've seen in many societies, Native women on the frontier often held property and prestige in their own right, which they could confer on their husbands or children.  They could also pay a steep price for that honor when the men in their lives sought to use that power for their own ends.  And, they could also fight back.  One such woman was Tacumwah (c 1720- c 1790), sister to Miami leader Pacanne and mother of Miami leader Jean-Baptiste Richardville, of whom more later.

Tacumwah, whose name in the Miami language translates as parakeet, was born into prominence on both sides of her family.  Her father was also a noted Miami leader and warrior, Turtle (not Little Turtle), and her uncle was another warrior and leader, Cold Foot.  Through her mother, she had inherited the Long Portage, an eight-mile strip of land between the Maumee and Wabash Rivers.  Because these two rivers connected fur trade routes leading from Canada through Indiana to Louisiana, their family came into frequent contact with French officials, military commanders and traders in the area.  The Miami's main town of Kekionga became an important crossroads and Tacumwah, who was often left in charge of the village while Pacanne and other leaders were away hunting and fighting, became a force to be reckoned with in her own right. 

She married Antoine-Joseph Drouet de la Richerville, a nobleman and military officer stationed at Fort Miamis, what is now Fort Wayne, Indiana, and had at least three children by him.  She also converted to Catholicism, hence the other name by which she is often known, Marie-Louise Richardville.  She had all three of her children, including her eldest son Jean-Baptiste, baptized.  After the defeat of the French in the Seven Years War (1755-1762), Richerville, who had changed his name to the more Anglophone, Richardville, decided to stay in the area as a fur trader.  He and other fur traders, namely Alexandre and Francois Maisonville, wanted control of the Long Portage and Richardville believed that, as Tacumwah's husband, her property was his.  He reckoned without Miami law and tradition, which allowed property ownership to women through matrilineal heritage.  Tacumwah stood her ground and Richardville beat her severely in an argument.  She took refuge with another trader, Charles Beaubien and sued her husband for divorce. 

The court case brought Pacanne and the Miami tribe into the fracas, which played out like many nasty divorces do, over a lengthy period of time, culminating in a court trial at Fort Detroit in 1774.  The end result was that Pacanne took over the Portage as his property, Tacumwah was allowed the rest of her inheritance through her mother and retained some rights to custody of at least her elder son, Jean-Baptiste.  She married Charles Beaubien, but operated a trading post in her own right.  Tacumwah retained her standing among her people, running Kekionga for Pacanne and serving as a mentor and political advisor to her son as he matured into his position as a successor to his uncle.  And, he learned to take his mother seriously when she spoke.  Once, when he refused to release some White captives who were slated for execution, Tacumwah drew her knife and held it to his throat until he complied.  Jean-Baptiste, whose name in Miami translated to Wild Cat, inherited her trading post and other property when she died.