Kiilhsoohkwa

Kiilh-sooh-kwa (var. Kiilhsoohkwa, Kil-so-quah, Kilsoquah, Margaret Revarre) was a member of the Myaamia Nation and granddaughter of Myaamia Chief Mihšihkinaahkwa (var. Little Turtle).[1] She was born in 1810 and died in 1915.[2] She was one of the few Myaamia who was not removed from Indiana in 1846.[3]

Kiilh-sooh-kwa
Image of Kiilh-sooh-kwa from The Star Press (Muncie, Indiana) on 6 September 1915.
Born	1810 Huntington County, Indiana
Died	1915 Huntington County, Indiana
Resting place	Glenwood Cemetery (Roanoke, Indiana)
Other names	Margaret Revarre
Known for	Granddaughter of Mihšihkinaahkwa. Reportedly cared for the flag presented to her other grandfather at the Treaty of Greenville.

Early life

Kiilh-sooh-kwa was born in 1810 in an area she described in an interview in 1906 as near present-day Markle, Huntington County in northeast Indiana.[4] Separate sources suggest she was born at the Forks of the Wabash, closer to present-day Huntington, Huntington County, Indiana.[5] She was the granddaughter of Myaamia Chief Mihšihkinaahkwa (var. Little Turtle). Her father, Wok-shin-gah (var. Crescent Moon) was Mihšihkinaahkwa's son. Her mother was Nah-wah-kah-mo-kwa (var. Snow Woman).[6]

Her first husband was John Owl, the son of Chief John Owl. In 1826, the pair wed in an area referred to as Seek's Village around the Eel River.[4] John died within the first year or two of their marriage. In 1832, Kiilh-sooh-kwa wed Shaw-pe-nom-quah (var. Anthony Revarre), who was of half Native American, half French descent trader. Together Kiilh-sooh-kwa and Shaw-pe-nom-quah had six children, four of whom died in infancy. Her two surviving children were a son, Wa-pe-mung-quah (var. Little White Loon, Anthony Revarre, Jr.), and a daughter, Wan-nog-quan-quah (var. Snow, Mist, or Fog; Blowing Snow; Happy Fawn; Mary E. Johnson).[7][4][8][9]

Later life

Little is documented of her young adult life, though in 2013 she was described by the Smithsonian Institution as an important midwife in Indiana who understood and used plant knowledge related to childbirth.[10] In her later years, she lived in Roanoke, Indiana on but forty acres of what remained of her family's and her nation's territory.[11] She only spoke in her native language despite some sources suggested she understood some English.[2][4] One of the few English words that she knew and used frequently was "rheumatism," given her affliction with the disease.[9] She was described in 1905 as "a big woman, of swarthy appearance, and...a devotee of the pipe, which she has with her almost incessantly" and, separately, was described as a devout Catholic.[12][13]

In 1915, a Fort Wayne-based newspaper reported that, "if a stranger called, the old woman would grasp the hand and give a firm grip, and after looking you over would in her quaint way and feeble voice mutter a few words in her native tongue, that if interpreted would be a hearty welcome."[2][6] An estimated 15,000 attendees celebrated her 100th birthday in Roanoke and her centennial was well-documented in Indiana newspapers.[14]

Historic sign at Glenwood Cemetery in Roanoke, IN commemorating and memorializing Kiilhsoohkwa.

Historic sign (reverse) at Glenwood Cemetery in Roanoke, IN commemorating and memorializing Kiilhsoohkwa.

Headstone at Glenwood Cemetery in Roanoke, IN commemorating and memorializing Kiilhsoohkwa.

She passed away on 4 September 1915 at her home in Roanoke after spending a few weeks ill and confined to her bed. Her death was described as "without a struggle, for death was only a break in the well worn thread of life."[9] Her passing was characterized in 1917 as a loss of "the last royal Miamis and the oldest resident of the State of Indiana, who had enjoyed a national reputation."[9] Her funeral services were held at St. James Catholic Church in Roanoke and she was buried in the I.O.O.F. Cemetery (Glenwood Cemetery) in Roanoke.[9]

Kiilh-sooh-kwa and her son, 1910 by L. M. Huffman. Courtesy of Smithsonian Institution National Museum of the American Indian.

Kiilh-sooh-kwa in June 1913 with her son and her daughter. Originally printed in 1917 in Little Turtle (Me-she-kin-no-quah): The Great Chief of the Miami Indian Nations by C. M. Young.

References

1. Cottman, George S. (December 1906). "Historical Interest in Whitley County". The Indiana Quarterly Magazine of History. Indiana University Press. 2 (4): 200–202.
2. "Kilsoquah Dies At Age Of 105". The Fort Wayne News (City; Saturday Evening ed.). Fort Wayne, IN. 4 September 1915.
3. "IHB: Kiilhsoohkwa (Kilsoquah)". www.in.gov. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
4. Kaler, Samuel P.; Maring, R. H. (1907). Kilsoquah. History of Whitley County, Indiana. Indianapolis, IN: B. F. Bowen & Co. pp. 79–83.
5. "Dr. Perry G. Moore Affidavit". Indiana Historical Bureau. 30 August 1923. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
6. "Death of Kil-So-Quah, 105, Ends Royal Line Of Miamis". The Star Press (Muncie, Indiana). 6 September 1915.
7. "Kil-So-Quah, The Last of the Miamis, 1810-1915". Indiana Magazine of History. Indiana University Press. 11 (4): 368–377. December 1915.
8. "Kil-So-Quah, Age 105, Dying". The Waterloo Press (Waterloo, Indiana). 9 September 1915.
9. Young, Calvin M. (1917). Little Turtle (Me-she-kin-no-quah): The Great Chief of the Miami Indian Nation; Being a Sketch of His Life, Together with that of William Wells and Some Noted Descendants. Digitized by Google: Sentinel Ptg. Company. p. 215.
10. "Not the "Last of the Miamis"". blog.nmai.si.edu. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
11. Henderson Wheelock, Matilda (22 August 1909). "The Last Of The Miamis". The Star Press (Muncie, Indiana), Sunday Edition.
12. "Indiana's Only Princess". The Elwood Daily Record (Elwood, IN). 8 November 1905.
13. "Paleface Tribute Makes Squaw Glad – Kil-So-Quah Excited Over One Hundredth Birthday Celebration at Roanoke Today – 20,000 People Expected". The Indianapolis Start (Indianapolis, Indiana). 4 July 1910.
14. "Kilsoquah Centennial". The Weekly Republican (Plymouth, Indiana). 7 July 1910.