The Prophet Visits the Hōcągara

by Mark J. Green (Wą́nihegá)
translated by Bill Hall (Hų̄ka)

William Hall, ca. 1895

1. When they were through talking, then a short time later, two Sauk Indians were approaching. When they got to where the Winnebagoes were, they said, "Is this, or some other island, better?" When they asked the others about it, they answered, "This is better," they said. After this they returned home. Here a man called "Black Wing" arrived. They looked at him with apprehension and made ready for eventualities.

They knew that the Prophet-Orator was on his way there, so a runner was sent to meet him. When he arrived they took him into a large round tent. When he went in, it was full of people. His pipe was unlit. Most men of middle age were there. Two women were also sitting in there, in the middle was a pile of dress goods. There they made him sit down. After they did this, there, they were going to wash his face. This they did.

At this period, they were fasting. Here they prepared and cooked the leg of deer. When it was done, they took it and cut it up for him, all ready to eat. They wanted him to eat, they said. There, they had him eat a good meal. When he had finished eating, they also dyed his hair red. This done, some Menominees were among them and one was senior arrow maker. He was the first to speak.¹

Commentary

WorldIslandInfo.com
Two Views of Doty Island

"island" — the heavily populated island is no doubt Doty Island at the northern tip of Lake Winnebago.

"they returned home" — to whom does "they" refer? It seems likely that it means Hōcągara went back to their lodges, since the very next sentence refers to the arrival of Black Wing, presumed to be a Sauk. His presence, coupled with that of a number of Sauk, was a matter of concern, especially as they seemed to be asking how nice this island is to live upon. Their presence brings to mind an incident about a century prior in which the alter ego tribe of the Sauk, the Mesquakies (Fox) had Hōcągara trapped on Doty Island and under siege. They were saved by a rescue column of French troops accompanied by Menominee (see The Fox-Hocąk War). Given that incident, a group of Sauk showing up and asking how nice it might be to live here could hardly evoke any emotion other than apprehension.

"Black Wing" — the only Sauk chief known of this name is purely legendary. Judging from an older source, which quotes some of the tale in German, it likely originated with German settlers.² The versions that mention Black Wing say he is the father of Pinicon, a young man who fell in love with Wipsie who was either Fox or Dakota. Wipsie fell in love with Pinicon, despite having a suitor from her own tribe. As the couple fled for their own safety, this suitor followed them, and while they were in a canoe on the Wipsipinicon River, the jealous rival shot Pinicon with an arrow. The canoe capsized and both lovers disappeared below the waves. This is how the Wapsipinicon River got its name.³

"Black Wing" could be either a corruption of "Black Hawk," or a deliberate attempt to obscure the chief's real identity. As it happens, in his autobiography, Black Hawk himself tells a tale very similar to the one related about Black Wing:

In 1827, a young Sioux Indian got lost on the prairie, in a snow storm, and found his way into a camp of the Sacs. According to Indian customs, although he was an enemy, he was safe while accepting their hospitality. He remained there for some time on account of the severity of the storm. Becoming well acquainted he fell in love with the daughter of the Sac at whose village he had been entertained, and before leaving for his own country, promised to come to the Sac village for her at a certain time during the approaching summer. In July he made his way to the Rock river village, secreting himself in the woods until he met the object of his love, who came out to the field with her mother to assist her in hoeing corn. Late in the afternoon her mother left her and went to the village. No sooner had she got out of hearing, than he gave a loud whistle which assured the maiden that he had returned. She continued hoeing leisurely to the end of the row, when her lover came to meet her, and she promised to come to him as soon as she could go to the lodge and get her blanket, and together they would flee to his country. But unfortunately for the lovers the girl's two brothers had seen the meeting, and after procuring their guns started in pursuit of them. A heavy thunderstorm was coming on at the time. The lovers hastened to, and took shelter under a cliff of rocks, at Black Hawk's watchtower. Soon after a loud peal of thunder was heard, the cliff of rocks was shattered in a thousand pieces, and the lovers buried beneath, while in full view of her pursuing brothers. This, their unexpected tomb, still remains undisturbed.⁴

	Bird King
	Black Hawk

In his autobiography, Black Hawk describes how Ft. Madison was built near his village in what is now the state of Iowa. After several incidents, in April 1809 the Sauk moved to Rock River. Not long before this, the Shawnee Prophet and his brother Tecumseh had built Prophetstown near the Wabash. In his autobiography, Black Hawk has some interesting things to say concerning relevant events at this time:

Soon after our return from Fort Madison runners came to our village from the Shawnee Prophet. Others were dispatched by him to the village of the Winnebagoes, with invitations for us to meet him on the Wabash. Accordingly a party went from each village. All of our party returned, among whom came a prophet, who explained to us the bad treatment the different nations of Indians had received from the Americans, by giving them a few presents and taking their land from them. I remember well his saying: "If you do not join your friends on the Wabash, the Americans will take this very village from you!" I little thought then that his words would come true, supposing that he used these arguments merely to encourage us to join him, which we concluded not to do. He then returned to the Wabash, where a party of Winnebagoes had preceded him, and preparations were making for war. A battle [at Tippecanoe] soon ensued in which several Winnebagoes were killed. As soon as their nation heard of this battle, and that some of their people had been killed, they sent several war parties in different directions. One to the mining county, one to Prairie du Chien, and another to Fort Madison. The latter returned by our village and exhibited several scalps which they had taken.⁵

DeGolyer Library, SMU
Tenskwatawa, the Shawnee Prophet

The battle at Tippecanoe was fought on 11 November 1811, and the following June saw the outbreak of the War of 1812. It was around this time that the Hōcągara had sent out their warparties. Black Hawk makes it clear that before the war broke out, probably in the summer of 1809, the Shawnee Prophet sent messengers to both the Sauk and the Hōcągara to invite them to send people to live at the newly created Prophetstown. In our own story, it is the Prophet himself who comes to address the Hōcągara, and the Sauk just happened to be present at the Hōcąk settlement when he had arrived. In Black Hawk's account, somewhat later, another prophet was sent to preach the message of the Shawnee Prophet, and encourage both the Sauk and Hōcągara to join them in this new settlement. The Sauk declined, but the Hōcągara sent a contingent geared to fight a war and under the command of the warchief Dog Head. In our story, the runners who were sent out with invitations to join the Prophet, have been replaced by the Prophet himself, as has the secondary prophet sent as an emissary. The historical runners are still in the story, only they are sent to the Prophet rather than from him. This second prophet was no doubt confused with the Shawnee Prophet himself as this story was passed down by word of mouth. It seems at least plausible that a similar transmutation has occurred with Black Hawk, who was now replaced with the mythical Black Wing.

"his pipe was unlit" — this probably means that pipes were offered to him by his host so that he never had an occasion where he had to light his own pipe.

"Prophet-Orator"— this is Tenskwatawa, the Shawnee Prophet (1775-1836). Throughout the stories told by Mark Green, he is referred to as the "Prophet-Orator." His initial name was Lalawethika ("He Makes a Loud Noise" or "The Noise Maker"), but later in life was called Tenskwatawa ("Open Door" or "One With Open Mouth"). Some accept as factual that he was born as one of triplets, another of whom died in infancy.⁶ His older brother was the famous warleader Tecumseh. Unlike Tecumseh, Tenskwatawa seemed introverted and unaccomplished as a hunter or warrior.⁷ He soon turned to alcoholism for which he became notorious.⁸ While presumably drunk, he managed to strike out his right eye with his own arrow.⁹ During this period, the Shawnee and other tribes of the Northwest Territory were experiencing both a physical invasion of their territory by white settlers, as well as a cultural invasion, which was accompanied by alcohol and disease. At this time much of Ohio was ceded by compliant chiefs for U. S. government annuities. This led to considerable disaffection by the native tribes, including Hōcągara. This led to heightened resentment among the tribes of the region.¹⁰ In 1805, Tenskwatawa had a number of intense visions in which he learned of two possible worlds that the tribes could enter: one in which they adopted white ways, a world in which complete disaster would overcome them, and another world in which the Indians embraced and revived their own culture, creating a life full of blessings. It was then that he found himself, and became a prophet. More visions ensued, and he declared that the white invaders were the children of the Bad Spirit.¹¹ By 1805 he had become so influential that he and his cult followers founded their own settlement on the White River near Greenville.¹² After being challenged by William Henry Harrison to perform a miracle to prove his prophetic powers, Tenskwatawa learned of an upcoming solar eclipse, and prophesied its occurrence. When it occurred as predicted, he gain complete credence. In 1808, he and his brother Tecumseh founded a large multi-tribal town known as "Prophetstown." It was the center of the Prophet's purification movement as well as Tecumseh's grand military alliance. However, Gov. Harrison attacked the town on 7 Nov. 1811, precipitating the Battle of Tippecanoe. This largely destroyed the Indian alliance, and the Prophet and his brother Tecumseh fled to Canada where they supported the British cause in the War of 1812. Long afterwards, the government asked Tenskwatawa to return to lead the Shawnee exodus to their reservation in Kansas.¹³ He died there in relative obscurity in 1836.

"middle age" — this indicates that those most in authority, and whose opinion would be held in highest esteem, were present for the event.

"dyed his hair red" — such a practice has not been encountered hitherto. It may be noted in the picture of the Prophet above, that he wears a red bandanna over his hair, and has a luxuriant fur "ponytail" that is of the same bright red color. So the idea that the Prophet gave the top of his head a vivid red appearance can be confirmed. Red hair is often attributed to female Giants, who though the same height as humans, have a greater vitality. When Hare visited the land of perpetual summer, he found it governed by a beautiful woman with red hair. The color red is strongly associated with the Sun, whose ritual offering is a disc of red. The Sun is designated by the word Hą̄pwira (Al wi L), "The Light Luminary," or more usually just Hą̄p (Al). The word hą̄p can mean, "light, daylight, day," and metaphorically, "life." Hą̄p in the Medicine Rite is "Light-and-Life," and it is this that the Prophet is intending to convey to his followers. Red is the color of strength, vigor, youth, and life, as reflected in the imperative that only young people are allowed to wear red (šūc). Elders must wear clothing that is the opposite of šūc on the color wheel: cō, which denotes that part of the spectrum  that spans blue through green ("breen" or "grue"). In the context of the Prophet, the red may symbolize intellectual potency and vigor of mind, expressed in powers of insight that can only be granted by the Spirits. Inasmuch as the life soul resides in the marrow, and the brain is considered the very paradigm of marrow and its largest concentration, the hair that seemingly grows out of it, may well express its nature. In the case of red hair, that nature is vitality itself. This is why in battle, a scalp is a suitable substitute for taking the whole head. So red hair is meant to reflect the life power residing in the Prophet's cerebral soul.

"they were fasting" — this shows that despite the fact that the hosts were going without food, they cooked up the ideal meal for the visiting prophet, which must have been excruciating given their own hunger. This demonstrates the degree of regard that they had for their guest.

That this Hōcąk village was fasting may indicate that it was seeking a collective blessing from the Spirits, and given the context, it appears that this blessing manifested itself as a visit from the Prophet.

"senior arrow maker" — a reference to someone who specializes in weapons of war as the leading speaker shows that they understood that the Prophet was not preaching peace, but self-defence. The stress on seniority shows that those who were readying for war were not just the young warrior eager for honors, but those whose judgment was more reflective.

"the first to speak" — that the leadership of the tribe showed up indicates the seriousness of the occasion; yet courtesy is given first consideration, as they have a member of their friendship tribe, the Menominee, speak first.

Comparative Material. Usually, tribal members visited the Shawnee Prophet where he lived, and excursions by the Prophet to villages of other tribes was uncommon. However, there were two prominent cases in which he did visit other tribes:

In the following months many Delawares in eastern Indiana were converted, and in March 1806 at Woapikamunk, a village on the White River, Tenskwatawa assisted the Delawares in assessing the guilt of some tribesmen accused of witchcraft. The Delawares eventually burned four of their kinsmen at the stake before the witch-hunt ceased. In May, Tenskwatawa conducted a similar purge among the Wyandots on the Sandusky River, but pro-American chiefs interceded to save the accused.¹⁴

Links: ...

Stories: about seers: The Seer, The Shawnee Prophet and His Ascension, Witches, The Shawnee Prophet — What He Told the Hocągara, A Prophecy About the End Time, A Prophecy, Great Walker and the Ojibwe Witches, The Shawnee Prophet Predicts a Solar Eclipse, The Road to Tippecanoe, A Prophecy About the First School, Winnebagos Go to See the Prophet, The Journey of the Prophet’s Acolyte, The Woman Who Is Going to Stop the War (v. 1), Hōcągara and Other Tribes Camp with the Prophet, The Prophet Warns of the Consequences of Indian Fratricide, The Claw Shooter, Waruką́ną, The Tap the Head Medicine, The Old Man and His Medicine Bag, The Prophet is Accused of Untrue Predictions, The Diving Contest; about the Shawnee Prophet: The Shawnee Prophet — What He Told the Hocągara, The Shawnee Prophet Predicts a Solar Eclipse, The Shawnee Prophet and His Ascension, The Road to Tippecanoe, Winnebagos Go to See the Prophet, A Prophecy About the End Time, The Journey of the Prophet’s Acolyte, The Woman Who Is Going to Stop the War (v. 1), Hōcągara and Other Tribes Camp with the Prophet, The War of Indian Tribes against White Soldiers, The Prophet Warns of the Consequences of Indian Fratricide, The Prophet is Accused of Untrue Predictions, The Old Man and His Medicine Bag; mentioning the Sauk (Sac, Sagi): The First Fox and Sauk War, Mijistéga and the Sauks, Black Otter's Warpath, The Annihilation of the Hocągara I (v. 2), Annihilation of the Hocągara II, The Blessing of Kerexųsaka, Big Eagle Cave Mystery, The Chief Who Shot His Own Daughter, Little Priest's Game, Gatschet's Hocank hit’e (St. Peet ...), A Peyote Story, Introduction; mentioning the Menominee: Origin of the Name "Winnebago" (Menominee), The Hocąk Arrival Myth, Bear Clan Origin Myth (v. 2b) (Origins of the Menominee), The Fox-Hocąk War, First Contact, The Magical Powers of Lincoln's Grandfather, The Annihilation of the Hocągara I (v. 2), Annihilation of the Hocągara II, Two Roads to Spiritland, A Menominee Visit, Song to the Chiefs, Takira, The Two Children, A Waterspirit Blesses Mąnį́xete’ų́ga, The Journey of the Prophet’s Acolyte, Gatschet's Hocank hit’e (Extracts ...), Introduction.

Themes: red as a symbolic color: The Journey to Spiritland (hill, willows, reeds, smoke, stones, haze), The Gottschall Head (mouth), The Chief of the Heroka (clouds, side of Forked Man), The Red Man (face, sky, body, hill), Spear Shaft and Lacrosse (neck, nose, painted stone), Redhorn's Father (leggings, stone sphere, hair), The Sons of Redhorn Find Their Father (hair, body paint, arrows), Wears White Feather on His Head (man), The Birth of the Twins (turkey bladder headdresses), The Two Boys (elk bladder headdresses), Trickster and the Mothers (sky), Rich Man, Boy, and Horse (sky), The Blessings of the Buffalo Spirits (Buffalo Spirit), Bluehorn Rescues His Sister (buffalo head), Wazųka (buffalo head headdress), The Baldheaded Warclub Origin Myth (horn), The Brown Squirrel (protruding horn), Bear Clan Origin Myth (funerary paint), Hawk Clan Origin Myth (funerary paint), Deer Clan Origin Myth (funerary paint), Thunderbird Clan Origin Myth (stick at grave), Pigeon Clan Origins (Thunderbird lightning), Trickster's Anus Guards the Ducks (eyes), Hare Retrieves a Stolen Scalp (scalp, woman's hair), The Race for the Chief's Daughter (hair), The Daughter-in-Law's Jealousy (hair), Redhorn Contests the Giants (hair), Redhorn's Sons (hair), The Woman's Scalp Medicine Bundle (hair), A Wife for Knowledge (hair), Eats the Stinking Part of the Deer Ankle (hair), The Hocągara Contest the Giants (hair of Giantess), A Man and His Three Dogs (wolf hair), The Red Feather (plumage), The Man who was Blessed by the Sun (body of Sun), The Man Whose Wife was Captured (v. 2) (body of the Warrior Clan Chief), Red Bear, Eagle Clan Origin Myth (eagle), The Shell Anklets Origin Myth (Waterspirit armpits), The Twins Join Redhorn's Warparty (Waterspirits), The Roaster (body paint), The Man who Defied Disease Giver (red spot on forehead), The Wild Rose (rose), The Medicine Rite Foundation Myth (warclub), Įcorúšika and His Brothers (ax & packing strap), Hare Kills Flint (flint), The Twins Retrieve Red Star's Head (edges of flint knives), The Nannyberry Picker (leggings), The Road to Tippecanoe (the red hat of victory), The Seduction of Redhorn's Son (cloth), Yųgiwi (blanket).

Notes

¹ "Men smoke in wigwam and women outside circle wash, clothe, and feed a man who has been fasting," Archives of Traditional Music (ATM), Indiana University, translation by William Hall, Original Typescript (Black River Falls: ca. 1960-1970) F8-9, recording by Milford G. Chandler of Mark J. Green - vocals, bef. 1922, Black River Falls, Jackson County, Wisconsin. ATL no. 528.9 8743.1, tr. 1, Recording 71.SCY 183701:48, Collection number (collection identifier): 54-196-F, p. 74 of 87; OT 7696; APS accession number 7237.

² Albert Gallatin Riddle, History of Buchanan County, Iowa, with illustrations and biographical sketches (Cleveland: Williams Brothers, 1881) 27a-28b.

³ Iowa PBS > Iowa Pathways > The Wapsipinicon: A Love Story or a Swan's Potato? Electronic text, viewed: 10 August 2026.

⁴ Black Hawk, Autobiography of Ma-ka-tai-me-she-kia-kiak, or Black Hawk, embracing the traditions of his nation, various wars in which he has been engaged, and his account of the cause and general history of the Black Hawk war of 1832, his surrender, and travels through the United States, trs. Antoine LeClair (St. Louis: Press of Continental Printing Co., 1881) 65-66.

⁵ Black Hawk, Autobiography, 26.

⁶ R. David Edmunds, The Shawnee Prophet (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1985) 29.

⁷ James H. Madison and Lee Ann Sandweiss, Hoosiers and the American Story (Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Society Press, 2014) 13.

⁸ Andrew R. L. Cayton, Frontier Indiana (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1996) 206.

⁹ Madison and Sandweiss, Hoosiers and the American Story, 13. 

¹⁰ Gregory Evans Dowd, A Spirited Resistance: The North American Indian Struggle for Unity, 1745–1815 (Baltimore, Johns Hopkins University Press,1991) 116–140.

¹¹ Edmunds, The Shawnee Prophet, 38. Richard White, The Middle Ground: Indians, Empires, and Republics in the Great Lakes Region, 1650–1815 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991) 507.

¹² Linda C. Gugin and James E. St. Clair, edd., Indiana's 200: The People Who Shaped the Hoosier State (Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Society Press, 2015) 346. Edmunds, The Shawnee Prophet, 34.

¹³ "Shawnee Indians - Wapakoneta Ohio - Vincennes Indiana." Boston Reporter and Telegraph, 15 December 1826, p. 3.

¹⁴ Dictionary of Canadian Biography, Volume VII (1836-1850), TENSKWATAWA.