Great Leader: Shabbona of the Ottawa-Potawatomi

Native leaders facing war between competing colonial powers or encroaching settlers faced a daunting task, balancing resistance against the theft of their land with the reality that fighting might do more harm then good.  Striking that balance was key to survival and none knew that better than Shabbona (c 1775-1859) of the Ottawa and Potawatomi.

Shabbona's name derives from two cognate words, either Potawatomi or Ottawa, meaning strong or hardy.  It is sometimes also translated as "built like a bear".  He was born either on the Maumee River in Ohio, in Ontario, or in Illinois.  Shabbona's biography, dictated many years later, placed his birth in 1775 along the Kankakee River, in present-day Will or Kankakee County, Illinois.  A member of the Ottawa tribe, Shabbona was said to be a great-nephew of Pontiac and achieved his own status as a chief while still a young man, by virtue of his skill as a warrior.  The Ottawa and Potawatomi were allies and it would not have been unusual for a young man of the Ottawa tribe to rise to prominence among the Potawatomi.  He readily joined Tecumseh's Revolt in 1811 and soon became one of Tecumseh's more trusted lieutenants.  He helped Tecumseh persuade many other tribes, including the Potawatomi, Sac, Fox, Winnebago and others to join the fight.  He was present at the Battle of Tippecanoe in November, 1811.  Harrison's victory scattered the tribes back to their respective ranges, but Shabbona traveled to Canada to offer his services to the British.  After the fall of Fort Detroit, he, Tecumseh and several others followed the British army deeper into Canada.  On September 27, 1813, at the Battle of the Thames, Shabbona led his warriors until Tecumseh fell, before returning to the United States, now convinced that fighting the Americans was futile.

Indian Agents and military commanders often interfered directly in tribal governance, choosing and backing leaders they believed would be more amenable to their demands.  Shabbona became involved in a three way rivalry with several other Native leaders that led to the Winnebago revolt known as the Red Bird Uprising.  Shabbona volunteered to travel to Red Bird's village on Lake Geneva to determine if any Potawatomi members were involved in the uprising and to persuade them to abandon it.  He was captured by the Winnebago, and allowed to return to his village on condition that he not travel to Chicago to report to the Americans.  As he was being escorted back to his village, he passed an area where his companions had remained hidden, complaining loudly about how he was being treated and giving details.  While these men took word back to the Americans about which tribes and leaders were involved in the uprising, Shabbona returned home unharmed.  He was later awarded a tract of land in the Treaty of Prairie du Chien in 1829.

During the Black Hawk War of 1812, Shabbona became convinced that Black Hawk's actions would only involve more harm than good for the Potawatomi.  He met with Black Hawk and urged him not to resist the Americans, but could not convince him nor all of the Potawatomi, to stay peaceful.  On May 16, 1832, Shabbona rode across Northern Illinois, warning as many Settlers as he could of the coming danger.  Some of them disregarded his warning and later became victims of the Indian Creek Massacre of May, 1832.  Shabbona also served as a guide for the Americans during the war, known for warning Settlers of impending attacks on several occasions.

In 1836, Shabbona led his people to Nebraska, but returned to Peru, Illinois, where he lived out his final days  He died in Morris, Illinois in 1859 and was buried there at the age of 84.  A large granite rock bearing his name was placed on his gravesite in 1903.  The unincorporated community of Shabbona, Michigan is named in his honor.  The Shabbona Trail, from Joliet to Morris, Illinois is named in his honor.  The Prairie Band Potawatomi remain committed to reclaiming the land that was promised to Shabbona in the Prairie du Chien treaty.