Indigenous Peoples Statement

The Plainfield Historical Society acknowledges that we gather on the ancestral lands of the Council of Three Fires—the Potawatomi, Ojibwe, and Odawa Nations as well as many other tribes, including the Illinois, Miami, Sauk, Fox, Kickapoo, and Ho-Chunk.

During the early 1800s, opportunity-seeking European-American settlers entered northern Illinois, leading to years of both peaceful coexistence and aggressive conflict, culminating in the Black Hawk War of 1832.

The Treaty of Chicago of 1833 required both the removal of most Potawatomi people living in Illinois and the ceding of the lands where the Potawatomi had gathered, resided, traded, hunted, and harvested for generations and where other indigenous tribes had traveled and sought seasonal shelter.

The Plainfield Historical Society commits to building relationships with descendants of these tribal nations who continue to call this area home and pledges to sharing the history and contributions of native peoples with the Plainfield community.