4 days ago
Shawnee farmers plant historic corn at Angel Mounds
VANDERBURGH COUNTY, Ind. (WEHT) – Historic seeds return home to Indiana. Members of the Shawnee Nation spent their Friday navigating rain-soaked fields, planting corn on the same land used for planting two centuries ago. 'This corn seemed most appropriate to plant at this site because it was born right here in Indiana,' says Shawnee farmer Ryan Conway, 'during the time of a spiritual movement led by a Shawnee man.'
That Shawnee man is the prophet Tenskwatawa. Conway says tribes gathered in Prophetstown, Indiana in the early 1800s to plant and share their corn, which would then cross pollinate to create what is called Tenskwatawa corn.
'I think that is a symbol of that movement, and then also a symbol for our times,' explains Conway. 'Moving forward, finding ways of there being cross cultural acceptance, cross cultural tolerance, cross cultural thriving.'
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The seeds going into the ground are based on Indiana University research, which used ground penetrating radar and excavation to show how these crops would have grown. The project creates a living demonstration for visitors to Angel Mounds. 'The exciting thing is,' says Angel Mounds Site Director Mike Linderman, 'through archaeology, we found remnants of this kind of planting here on the site. This is the first time we've visually seen it in modern times.' Linderman says this provides a representation of what the Angel Mounds site would have looked like during that time period.
When Conway and other Shawnee members are away, the garden will be tended to by local Scouts troops. Conway says though a different blend of corns, the growth process will be similar to the corn grown here in the Tri-State. 'The difference is that she is very big, she is very girthy,' explains Conway. 'She puts out a lot of tillers, but all of the tillers are productive. So, what I'm told, is that she can put out 7 to 10 tillers, and each one will still have at least one full viable ear of corn.'
The corn is expected to grow throughout the Summer and the new garden to be on full display for Native American Days later this year.
Shawnee farmers plant historic corn at Angel Mounds
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