The Power of Womanhood in Miami Culture

Fernando Daza shares about his experience exploring Chief Richardville House, a Historical Myaamia (Miami) treaty house in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

On a surprisingly chilly May morning, our class boarded the iconic Goshen College bus at Camp Friedenswald, our home for the first two weeks of our class. We headed to Fort Wayne, Indiana, to the Chief Richardville House, a Native American National Historic Landmark. This historic building stands at 5705 Bluffton Road and opens its doors to visitors on the first Saturday of the month from May through November. A couple of days leading up to our visit, I shared with our May Term group leaders, Danaé Wirth and Anna Groff, just how excited I was to explore what was once considered the mansion of the wealthiest Native American man in the United States, and to dive into the overlooked, rich history right beneath our noses.

Our first tour guide was Meehcikaatia (Claudia) Hedeen, a member of the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma and four times granddaughter of Chief Richardville. She carried herself remarkably with grace and strength. She had powerful presence that drew my attention and respect. As we walked into the main bedroom of the house, Claudia began sharing the story of her great-great-great-great grandfather, Chief Jean Baptiste de Richardville, whom she referred to as “Peshewa,” which is his name in their native language Myaamiaataweenki.

Through her detailed storytelling, we learned that Peshewa was the son of a French man named Antoine Joseph Derouet and a Miami woman named Tahkamwa. Claudia also described how Peshewa came from a well educated family known for their success in the fur trade. Fluent in French, English, and Myaamiaataweenki, Peshewa was a clever negotiator that used language and cultural awareness as a tool to look out and protect his people. Even as other tribes were forcefully being displaced, Peshewa was able to help secure land grants for Miami families across northern Indiana. In fact, Peshewa himself had influence over 20 square miles of property along St. Joseph, St. Mary’s, Mississinewa, Salamonie, Salamonie, and Wabash rivers.

However, what caught my attention the most was the powerful story behind Tahkamwa, which was Peshewa’s mother. Contrary to the patriarchal regimes we are used to, the Miami culture practiced a more balanced distribution of power. As we approached the mansion’s kitchen, Claudia described how the tribe recognized four chiefs in total: two women and two men. One female chief oversaw military matters, while the other attended to the needs of the women; similarly, one male chief handled military leadership, and the other oversaw the needs and interest of the men. In this system, women were the ones who in our western view, “owned” the land and took care of it.

Another fascinating detail that Claudia mentioned was Tahkamwa’s ability to influence decisions in a way that would make things go her way. Because the women chief owned the land, they had the authority to make major choices that were of interest to the land, including war. For example, if a male chief decided to go to war but the female chief disagreed, she could withhold supplies and restrict land access to assert her position.

This deep rooted respect and power of women reminded me of how I grew up with my mom as the head of the household and my biggest role model. At home, she was the one who had the final say and her decisions shaped everything around me. Within her own family, she also held a position of influence as the eldest of six siblings. This trip was a personal and emotional experience for me because it gave cultural and historical context to truths I’ve always known at home.