A social history of the Mesquakie Indians, 1800–1963

Abstract

<p>The Mesquakie Indians, now living at Tama, Iowa, physically repelled domination by the white man during the first early contact in Wisconsin, and thus resisted unwanted cultural influences; Yet the Mesquakie did incorporate those white cultural traits which seemed valuable to them and which fitted their own cultural framework. Then when the ever growing population and greater military force or the white man pushed other Indian tribes off their land and onto reservations, the Mesquakie began to purchase land from the whites and thus secured title to their land. This ability to use the white man's laws to preserve their own traditional way or life makes the Mesquakie Indians unique in the history of Indian-white relations.</p>