Kansas drove out this Native tribe, then stole its name

The Kansa Nation’s Expulsion from 20 Million Acres

The Wind People once owned all of Kansas. The Kansa Nation hunted bison across 20 million acres of tallgrass prairie, yet by 1825, a treaty cut their land to just 2 million acres.

Soon after, disease and starvation struck hard. More treaties followed – 256,000 acres in 1846, then a mere 80,000 in 1859.

When the government came to kick them out in 1872, Chief Allegawaho stood firm.

He said they were treated like turkeys, chased from stream to stream until they’d drown in the ocean. Still, on June 4, 1873, the last 553 Kansa left for Oklahoma.

Today at Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, you can walk the same hills where this tragic story unfolded.

Kansas Got Its Name From The People It Pushed Away

The Kansa Nation, called the “Wind People,” once owned 20 million acres across northern and eastern Kansas.

Their land stretched from the Missouri River to the Smoky Hill River, covering some of the best prairie in North America. They hunted bison in the Flint Hills and used fire to keep the grasslands healthy.

Before white people arrived, thousands of Kansa lived in villages along rivers and set up hunting camps in the Flint Hills.

First Treaty Stripped Away 90% Of Kansa Land

In 1825, the U. S. government forced the Kansa to sign a treaty that cut their land to just 2 million acres west of Topeka. This huge land grab opened Kansas for white settlers moving west.

The Kansa lost most of their hunting grounds with one signature.

By then, their numbers had dropped to around 1,500 people because of European diseases and crooked traders who often cheated them.

Life Got Worse On The Smaller Reservation

From 1825 to 1846, the Kansa faced hunger and more sickness on their smaller reservation. The government failed to deliver food, tools, and money they had promised in the treaty.

Buffalo became harder to find as white hunters killed them off. Traders took advantage by selling alcohol to the Kansa and trading goods at unfair prices.

White settlers also started moving onto reservation land without permission, taking what little the Kansa had left.

Another Treaty Cut Their Land To A Tiny Fraction

The 1846 treaty slashed Kansa land again, leaving them with just 256,000 acres near Council Grove. This small piece was less than 2% of what they once controlled.

Their new home was terrible for farming, with floods often destroying villages and crops along the Neosho River. The nearby town of Council Grove became a center for whiskey sellers who targeted the Kansa.

White settlers kept moving onto reservation land without consequences.

Dividing The Land Broke Tribal Traditions

By 1859, another treaty cut Kansa land to only 80,000 acres.

The government split this land into 40-acre personal plots, breaking up the traditional group ownership system.

These small plots made buffalo hunting impossible and were too small for good farming in harsh Kansas weather. The Kansa could no longer follow their seasonal hunting patterns that had kept them fed for generations.

Meanwhile, white settlers kept taking even these small remaining plots.

The Government Announced Final Removal In Person

Interior Secretary Columbus Delano traveled to Council Grove in June 1872 to tell the Kansa people face-to-face they must leave Kansas entirely.

He claimed this would protect them from white settlers and alcohol, though both problems came from the government’s failure to enforce its own treaties. The Kansa population had shrunk to just 553 people.

No one asked if they wanted to move or where they might go.

A Chief’s Powerful Words Fell On Deaf Ears

Chief Allegawaho spoke against the removal in one of the strongest speeches in Kansas history. He compared his people to turkeys being chased from stream to stream until they would be driven into the ocean.

He pointed out the bitter twist that his people had already lost everything and now faced being kicked out of the very land that carried their name.

Despite his moving words, the government ignored his protests.

Wagons Carried The Last Kansa People South

On June 4, 1873, the remaining 553 Kansa people loaded their few belongings into wagons and left Kansas forever. Their two-week journey covered 170 miles south to a new 100,137-acre reservation in Kay County, Oklahoma.

They traveled through summer heat, leaving behind their ancestors’ graves and the last pieces of their homeland. The state of Kansas kept the name of the people it had pushed out.

Oklahoma Reservation Brought More Suffering

The Oklahoma land proved much different from the Kansas prairies the Kansa knew how to live on. The soil, plants, and climate required completely different farming methods.

Disease spread quickly through the weakened community. Within just 16 years of arriving in Oklahoma, the Kansa population crashed to only 194 people.

This represented an 85% drop from their already small numbers at removal time.

Government Officially Erased The Tribe In 1902

The Kaw Allotment Act of 1902 divided the Oklahoma reservation into individual plots and opened “extra” land to white settlement.

This law officially erased the tribe as a recognized entity and destroyed their communal land base. Many Kansa families lost their individual plots through sales or unpaid taxes.

After taking their homeland, the government now took away their legal status as a tribe.

The Kaw Nation Survives Despite Everything

The federal government finally recognized the Kaw Nation again in 1959, after 57 years of official non-existence. Today, the tribe has headquarters in Kaw City, Oklahoma, far from their original Kansas home.

The Kaw Nation now counts over 3,700 enrolled members, showing remarkable recovery and resilience.

They run businesses and cultural programs in Oklahoma, while Kansas continues to use the name of the people it forced out 150 years ago.

Visiting Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, Kansas

Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve at 2480B Kansas Highway 177 in Strong City tells the story of the Kansa Nation’s forced removal from their ancestral Flint Hills home.

You can visit for free and download cell phone audio tours covering Native American history. The visitor center opens 8:30am to 4:30pm daily, with 40+ miles of hiking trails open around the clock.

Walk the trails to see the bison herd in Windmill Pasture and explore the prairie the Kansa people once called home.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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