Beans of the Illinois and Miami tribes

[buffaloberry]

 Hello neighbors! Buffaloberry here to find out more beans from the Illinois Confederation and Miami nations in the Calumet region of Chicago and Indiana, off the southern shores of Lake Michigan. I've got Miami-Ohio pole bean, Miami-Potawatomi cranberry bean, Lamberson bean, from Arkansas where the Illinois used to range and scarlet red runner for this year's garden. I'm looking for more historic types of these beans to my restoration gardens at my community farm and does anybody know of any right now? Thanks!

[flowerbug]

i am not familiar with the names of the native bean varieties, but perhaps you can give the folks at greatlakesstapleseeds.com/ a try? tell them flowerbug sent you.

i don't know if Eleanor is a member here or not...

[buffaloberry]

I've already checked at the bean section. The only bean that's close to the Miami and Illinois is the Miami-Ohio pole bean, and it grew in the late 18th century in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where all tribes inhibited including the Miami, Kickapoo, Shawnee and other nations. There was a gut from Wildwood Farms in Kentucky, where he grows an amazing amount of indigenous tribal seeds from around the world, including here in the U.S. Some of the rarer ones I had from him are Miami snap bean, from the Western Miami nation in Oklahoma, Little People's rabbit bean from the Miami and Peoria tribes and a black bean from the Sac-Fox nations. All three had to be returned to Kentucky for them to be preserved for future generations. I've also been in contact with a lady from downstate Illinois, in the St Louis area near Fort De Charles, an old French fortress from the tribal and European colonialist wars, back centuries ago, and she told me that some type of cornfield bean has been traded between tribes from the Mississippi and Missouri river regions centuries back. Are there any more folks out there who have researched or studied more types of beans grown historically in the Illinois country, where the tribes and the French reside so many years ago? I need the documents, and more strong sources to help with my restoration efforts at my community farm. Peace family!

[flowerbug]

i meant send her a note via the contact form for that website. she may know where to get the beans you are interested in or know of them...

[buffaloberry]

Everybody's dead on this post. Is anybody gonna wake up anytime soon? Anybody found out yet on the Illinois and Miami tribal beans?

[buffaloberry]

Happy summer everybody! I'm looking for more beans from the Miami, Wea, Illinois, Potawatomi and Kickapoo to grow for next year. I'm looking for a white Kickapoo bean, a Wea fall bean, more Kickapoo bush bean, Prairie band Potawatomi bean, and another type of rabbit bean from the Miami or Illinois. Anybody have any ideas on who I reach to for this stuff?