Wisconsin has eleven federally-recognized Tribal Nations, all of which have substantially contributed to the state’s history.  Black River Falls lies on the northern edge of the 1837 land cession of the Hochungra people and our community has grappled with this shared history for 180 years.  Since the early 1990s, and in part encouraged by the legislation known as Act 31, important work has been done in Wisconsin to more fully integrate First Nations history and cultural awareness in our schools.

Intro to First Nations Studies:  The Tribal World
Since 2014, I have been teaching an elective course in collaboration with the First Nations Studies Program of UW-Green Bay that encourages students to explore the story of First Nations people in Wisconsin, with an emphasis on the Hochungra people.  Beginning in the fall of 2020, I have been teaching the course virtually through UW-Green Bay’s Dual Access Academy.

The photograph here is of Mooga Šuc (Red Banks), their place of origin according to their oral history.  This is looking north from the shoreline into Green Bay.  The following information gives you a sense of the types of things we explore within the class:

Sites Related to First Nations Studies

UW-Green Bay: First Nations Studies
Transcending Barriers:  Our Journey With Act 31
BRF School District and the HCN:  A History to 1963
Ho-Chunk History: Key Vocabulary
Parallel Journeys Full Timeline
My Ancestors Project
Upper Mid-West Tribal Nations Map
Ho-Chunk History Video (Wisconsin Public TV)
Individual Clan Visuals
Hocak Worak (Newspaper of the HCN)

Relevant Sites for First Nations Studies

National Congress of American Indians
Indian Country Media Network
Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Commission
Wisconsin Tribal Histories (Wisconsin Public TV)