Chief Oshkosh 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 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) Menominee Indian Reservation as a permanent home for his people on their ancestral land.
Portrait by Samuel Marsden Brookes, c. 1858
The Menominee are a federally recognized tribe of Native Americans officially known as the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin. Their land base is the Menominee Indian Reservation in Wisconsin. Their historic territory originally included an estimated 10 million acres (40,000 km2) in present-day Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The tribe currently has about 8,700 members.
Chief Oshkosh, c.1858
Ball-headed War Club with Spike, Menominee, early 19th century, Brooklyn Museum
Menomini dress at the Field Museum in Chicago
Spearing Salmon By Torchlight, an oil painting by Paul Kane. It features Menominee spearfishing at night by torchlight and canoe on the Fox River.