Journal_Entry_of_a_Subordinate_Group

Journal Entry of a Subordinate Group Member My name is Tecumseh and this is my story about my life and the lives of my people. I was born in 1768 in Old Piqua, along the Mad River in Ohio. I am a member of the Shawnee Indian tribe. My father was killed in battle at the Battle of Point Pleasant in 1774. (An online Encyclopedia of Ohio History, 2011). My mother and other tribe members moved westward because of the fear of the white settlers. I stayed behind with my oldest brother Chiksika and my sister Tecumpease. My brother Chiksika trained me to become a warrior. I got my first taste of battle against an army that was lead by George Rogers Clark in 1782. I was so scared that I ran off and I felt so humiliated that I swore that I would never run away from a fight again. I quickly grew into a mighty warrior and I became a Shawnee leader. I fought against the army of Arthur St. Clair in 1791. After that victory I became one of the most trusted leaders of the Shawnee. Other younger members of the tribe admired me for my violent resistance against further white settlements of our land. But the white settlers kept coming and soon another battle emerged. My people and I were defeated by the army of Anthony Wayne in 1794, at the Battle of Fallen Timbers. Many of my people believed that if they were to give up their land was the only way to appease the whites. The Greeneville treaty was signed in 1795, which this treaty we had to give up all our land except for a small corner piece in the northwestern of Ohio. But not all of us agreed with the tribe’s action of relinquishing the land. I was afraid that eventually the whites and the Americans would soon exterminate us and colonize us to small reservations which in turn would only leave us with small portions of land and a huge part of us would be no more. In the early 1800’s I started to gather other members of neighboring tribes together to rally against the whites taking over our lands and the more members we had, the better chances we had to defeating the whites and their army’s. I traveled all the way to Canada, Appalachian Mountains, and the Gulf of Mexico, trying to convince others to unite together. My younger brother Tenskwatawa (The prophet) also helped me out to unite the other tribesmen together. My brother had visions saying the Shawnee Indians’ primary god, told him to have the Indians to give up all the white customs and products. This would involve religious beliefs, agricultural practices, guns, cookware, and alcohol. If we did turn our heads against their ways we would be rewarded by being able to drive the whites from our land. Many natives embraced the Prophet’s visions and joined the two brothers at Prophetstown. The village was established in 1808 in the Indiana Territory. Of course the numerous numbers that were gathering was not unnoticed. The governor of the Indiana Territory, William Henry Harrison, noticed the growing numbers of Indians congregating at Prophetstown. In 1811, Harrison led an army towards our village. I was still gathering followers in the southern part of the United States. I left my younger brother in charge while I was away. I left him specific instructions to not attack any Americans or whites while I was gone. When I left my brother had another vision and he advised all the other tribe members and the warriors to attack the American. He also told them that the soldier’s bullets would not harm them. The Prophet orders the warriors to advance and the battle began. The Battle of Tippecanoe was devastating and we lost so many of our people. The Americans defeated my brother and his followers along with Prophetstown. Harrison lost more men than we did and he held the ground at the end of the day. Harrison’s victory eventually elected him “Old Tippecanoe” to be president of the United States. The defeat of Prophetstown weakened my warriors and tribe members. We were already experiencing problems with trying to convince other tribes to put aside their traditional differences to unite as one against Americans. Other Indians and Shawnees led by Black Hoof, had adopted white customs and had no desire to let them go. During the War of 1812, my followers and I allied ourselves with the British. I was hoping that if the English won, they would return our lands to us. Another battle was forming and we were getting prepared for it, and then it was upon us. We entered the Battle of the Thames in 1813, which the American army was lead by Harrison. When the battle started the British soldier’s ran from the battlefield leaving me and my followers to continue on our own. The Americans drove us from the field and I was shot by an American bullet and died. My death signified the end of united Indian resistance against the Americans.