SHABBONA – The filing of a federal reservation resettlement act by a Kansas senator has renewed the hopes for the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation as it seeks to reclaim nearby land in Shabbona.

According to U.S. Congress records, the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation Shab-eh-nay Band Reservation Settlement Act of 2021 was introduced by U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kansas, on Nov. 18, 2021. That was one day after the DeKalb County Board voted in a 12-11 partisan split to table a plan that would have included creating a letter for support for the Potawatomi Nation, a request that also was tabled the month before.

The nation has sought the support of the County Board for years. The filing of the federal legislation, which hasn’t been passed yet, could encourage the board to review an additional request, said Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation Chairman Joseph Rupnick. The nation believes the more elected voices backing its cause, the stronger its message will be in Washington.

“Now that it’s actually filed – it’s in text, everybody can see it – we need to revisit that again and say, ‘OK, here’s the bill as it stands today, and this is what we’re asking for,’ ” Rupnick said. “So hopefully we can build that support again, too.”

Rupnick said Illinois museum officials, along with nation heads, have been working to identify Potawatomi Nation burial sites so they will no longer be disturbed.

“Right now, I know that there are a lot of areas that are looking to expand ... different roads and things like that,” Rupnick said. “And we’re working with the state to make sure that we’re notified anytime there’s anything that has disturbed in the land. We’ve occupied this entire area and there’s probably more mounds, grave sites and homesteads than we could probably ever imagine.”

Rupnick said that’s one of the reasons why he has been working to have the land near the village of Shabbona be returned to the native nation.

“I think what it does is it corrects a historical wrong,” Rupnick said.

Rupnick said nation officials are working with area U.S. House representatives to start a similar bill from those chambers as well.

The nation is seeking to reclaim 1,280 acres of land near Shabbona State Park in the southern part of DeKalb County. Under the Federal Non-Intercourse Act, the U.S. Congress is the only governing body with the authority to designate land titles for native nations.

Rupnick said it was his understanding that some of the County Board members were hesitant to show their support of the U.S. Senate bill until they actually saw the bill.

County Board Chairman John Frieders said at the time that the board would consider supporting the cause when legislation arrived.

Rupnick said he doesn’t hold the partisan split vote in November against the County Board.

[ Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation land reclamation bid for DeKalb County board support stalled ]

According to the federal bill, any human or cultural remains within the land owned by the state of Illinois and the local governments within the boundaries of the reservation would be protected. The bill also says the federal government would pay $10 million to the tribe as a partial settlement for the tribe’s economic development and land acquisition purposes.

DeKalb County State’s Attorney’s Office and county administrative officials confirmed the matter could be brought back to the County Board at a later date after going through committee. As of December, Rupnick said there has not been any date set for another presentation for county government.

Support from Shabbona locals

Rupnick said he feels that the nation has had a lot of support from Shabbona locals.

“We’ve spent really the last 30 years building relationships with the local community here,” Rupnick said.

Shabonna resident Denny Sands said his mother’s side of the family, the Higgins family, knew Chief Shab-eh-nay, Rupnick’s fourth great-grandfather.

“He used to come by their cabin and eat mush with them down by Seneca, that area,” Sands said.

The nation’s Chief Shab-eh-nay, Rupnick’s fourth great-grandfather, was given land near Shabbona in 1829 under the Treaty of Prairie du Chien. However, the land illegally was sold without the chief’s consent in 1849 and the land title was then passed to non-Native Americans.

Since 1849, several individuals, the state of Illinois, the DeKalb County government and corporate entities assumed ownership of the reservation. Only the U.S. Congress can extinguish the Native American land title under the Federal Non-Intercourse Act, however.

Since the mid 1800s, the nation has been working to get the federal government to recognize it is still a reservation and the Potawatomi people still have claim to the land.

Sands said he was first made aware of indigenous land reclamation efforts in the area when he was a DeKalb County Sheriff’s deputy in the 1970s.

Sands said some Shabbona residents at the time were concerned about what might happen to their community. He’s followed along with the Potawatomi Nation’s pursuits ever since.

“Obviously the community doesn’t want to become a downtown Chicago, with traffic and people coming in and out,” Sands said. “But yet, there’s the economic opportunity for businesses to come in. You could argue both ways.”

Rupnick said the nation is not looking to displace anyone who lives in the community currently.

“Our first and main goal is to get the land back and recognized under the Prairie Band Potawatomi jurisdiction,” Rupnick said.

Sands said he is “100% behind” the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation in its pursuit to reclaim the land.

“I think they have a legal and moral right – both,” Sands said. “It’s not just legal – it’s their moral obligation to protect their ancestors.”

Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation’s history with DeKalb County

The Potawatomi people were forced out of northern Illinois in the 1830s by the Indian Removal Act.

Rupnick said the nation’s chief was given land near Shabbona in 1829 under the Treaty of Prairie du Chien. However, the land illegally was sold without the chief’s consent in 1849.

The land title was then passed to non-Native Americans.

The reclamation efforts have been pursued by the nation for years.

In 2015, the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation approached the County Board for its blessing to open a Class 2 casino, which would include only bingo, in Shabbona. Rupnick has said the request is not related to the casino and is an attempt to “correct the land issue.”

“We appreciate all the support that we’ve gotten,” Rupnick said. “And we hope that we can get this issue resolved after 170 years.”