It is a little known fact that the area of land and lakes that is called “Wisconsin” was home for more than 30 American Indian tribes in the history of the United States. No other state comes close to equal Wisconsin in that number nor in the complications arising from the fact that among that number there were at least three linguistic stocks; Algonquian, Iroquoian and Siouan.

The majority of Indians spoke Algonquian. Among that group were the Ojibwe {formerly called the Chippewa}, and the Kickapoo, Illinois, Munsee, Mahican, Menominee, Miaml. Peoria, Mascouten, Noquet, Potawatomi, Sauk, Stockbrdge, Wyandot and some sub-divisions.

Then there were tribes that spoke Siouan, and included the Iowa, Missouri, Ottawa, the Dakota, the Santee Dakota, and the Winnebago, the later now known by their traditional name, the Hochunk.

There were the Oneida and Seneca Indians who spoke Iroquoian, hanging on to the language and their names after leaving New York State for Wisconsin. One other tribe from New York was the Huron tribe who headed for the hospitable and future state of Wisconsin after a tremendous loss to the rival Iroquois in 1649. They first settled on the shore of Lake Pepin, but eventually moving into the Ashland area until the early 1660s when they moved to the Detroit, Mich., area.