Meskwaki Tribal Museum

10/08/2026

Please join us tonight at the opening celebration of 𝘈 𝘔𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘛𝘪𝘮𝘦: 𝘗𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘔𝘦𝘴𝘬𝘸𝘢𝘬𝘪 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 21𝘴𝘵 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘺! We hope to see you there!

Exhibition Catalogs will be available for purchase from Grinnell Area Arts Council for $25.

📍 Grinnell Area Arts Council, 926 Broad St, Grinnell, IA 50112
⏰ 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm | Performance & Remarks @ 6 pm

We are pleased to invite you to the opening celebration of 𝘈 𝘔𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘛𝘪𝘮𝘦: 𝘗𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘔𝘦𝘴𝘬𝘸𝘢𝘬𝘪 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 21𝘴𝘵 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘺.

Featuring photographs taken by Robert Campagna at the 1999 Meskwaki Annual Powwow, the exhibition offers a look at the Meskwaki community at the close of the 20th century, Together, these portraits document a moment in time and the continued presence of the Meskwaki in Iowa.

Join us on Thursday, October 8, at the Grinnell Arts Center as we celebrate the exhibition.

𝐖𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐥𝐥 𝐣𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐮𝐬! Details are included in the poster below.

09/30/2026

The Meskwaki Cultural Center & Museum is pleased to share 𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪 𝘋𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘶𝘦𝘴, an Indigenous-led public art and mapping project exploring the Mississippi River through Indigenous histories, knowledge, and perspectives.

Tieranny Keahna, Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the Meskwaki Nation, collaborated on this project, contributing Meskwaki perspectives to a larger effort to bring Indigenous voices and knowledge into the public understanding of the Mississippi River. The project also received additional Meskwaki language support and review from Language Preservation Director Wayne Pushetonequa.

For Indigenous peoples the Mississippi River is more than a geographic feature. It is connected to homelands, histories, movement, relationships, and generations of cultural knowledge. Projects such as 𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪 𝘋𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘶𝘦𝘴 provide an opportunity to bring those perspectives forward and encourage a broader understanding of the River and its Indigenous histories.

We are proud to see Meskwaki knowledge, language, and perspectives represented in this project and look forward to seeing 𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪 𝘋𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘶𝘦𝘴 shared with the public.

Mississippi Dialogues is a collaborative public art project to elevate Indigenous experience and knowledge about the Mississippi River.

09/30/2026

Ketebi to Miss. Lacy's Preschool for asking Johnathan to come speak to the little ones yesterday morning. Johnathan enjoyed sharing all things Meskwaki with them!

09/16/2026

We are pleased to invite you to the opening celebration of 𝘈 𝘔𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘛𝘪𝘮𝘦: 𝘗𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘔𝘦𝘴𝘬𝘸𝘢𝘬𝘪 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 21𝘴𝘵 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘺.

Featuring photographs taken by Robert Campagna at the 1999 Meskwaki Annual Powwow, the exhibition offers a look at the Meskwaki community at the close of the 20th century, Together, these portraits document a moment in time and the continued presence of the Meskwaki in Iowa.

Join us on Thursday, October 8, at the Grinnell Arts Center as we celebrate the exhibition.

𝐖𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐥𝐥 𝐣𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐮𝐬! Details are included in the poster below.

09/08/2026

Section 106 is vital to Tribal Nations. It provides an important opportunity for Tribal voices, histories, and cultural knowledge to be included in decisions affecting places and resources connected to our communities.

While Section 106 is often discussed through the lens of archaeology and historic preservation, its importance extends beyond the archaeological record. For Tribal Nations, it provides an avenue for meaningful consultation and recognition of our ongoing relationships with our ancestral lands, cultural resources, and places of significance.

As conversations surrounding Section 106 continue, it is important to understand the role the process plays in Iowa's cultural resource landscape and why meaningful Tribal participation matters.

We encourage our community, friends, and followers to take some time to read the Iowa Archaeological Society's recent article, "The Impact of Section 106 on Archaeology in Iowa," and consider the broader role Section 106 plays in protecting and understanding Iowa's cultural heritage.

~Written by: Tieranny Keahna, Meskwaki Tribal Historic Preservation Officer~

Elizabeth C. Reetz, IAS Newsletter Editor, UI Office of the State ArchaeologistNewsletter of the Iowa Archeological Society, Issue 267, Vol. 76, No. 2, Summer 2026Copyright: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International) The term “Section 106” is deeply engrained in the...

08/31/2026

We are excited to announce the launch of the Indigenous Book Circle!

We hope you'll join us for this special event and the beginning of a new opportunity to gather, learn, and engage through Indigenous stories and literature.💚❤️

See the flyer below for details!

07/13/2026

Today, we honor Proclamation Day, commemorating the 1857 purchase of land in Tama County by the Meskwaki Nation.

This historic act of determination marked the beginning of the Meskwaki Settlement and our return to our Iowa homeland. We remember the resilience and vision of our ancestors, whose actions continue to shape our community today.

Happy Proclamation Day! 💚❤️

Iowa Time Machine ⏰: On July 13, 1857, the Meskwaki paid $1,000 in gold to purchase 80 acres along the Iowa River to return the tribe to the state and create the Meskwaki Settlement. Today, the Meskwaki hold nearly 9,000 acres throughout the state and represent a vital part of Iowa’s past, present, and future.

The Meskwaki, an Algonquian-speaking people, were located throughout the upper Midwest before European colonization. They fought the French for nearly forty years in the 1700s. Allying with the Sauk to fend off extermination at the hands of the French, the Meskwaki eventually moved out of the Great Lakes region to settle in today’s Iowa and Illinois.

The Sauk and Meskwaki also fought against American incursion, choosing to ally predominantly with the British during the War of 1812. In the aftermath, treaties in 1825 and 1830 at Prairie du Chien started the removal of the Sauk and Meskwaki from east of the Mississippi River. Although some leaders, like Wapello, advocated for accommodating American-driven changes, others, including Black Hawk, fought back. Following the Black Hawk War of 1832, treaties concluded during the 1830s and early 1840s ultimately aimed to dispossess the tribe and relocate them to Kansas.

However, many Meskwaki remained in Iowa. After a forced departure from Iowa in October 1845, the American official overseeing the arrival in Kansas recorded that only 20% of the tribe had arrived by the end of the following year. Other military reports record the discovery of groups numbering as many as 200 hidden throughout Iowa during the decade that followed.

In 1856, the Iowa General Assembly passed a measure allowing the formal return of the Meskwaki to the State of Iowa, opening the door to the initial land purchase on July 13, 1857. A settlement owned by the sovereign Meskwaki people (not a federal government reservation), the Meskwaki's return to Iowa marks an important moment in the state’s early history.