Thomas Little Shell
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Thomas Little Shell (-1901) (also known in Ojibwe as Esens ("Little Shell" or "Little Clam") and recorded as Ase-anse or Es-sence), was a Ojibwa chief, whom the United States found extremely difficult to negotiate.
[edit] Negotiations
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During the 1850s the United States commenced to negotiate with the plains Anishinaabeg of North Dakota, but they infuriated the plains Pembina by claming to the plains Anishinaabeg that their tribe was entirely mix bloods or, they were not an Native American tribe. Little Shell knew exactly what the United States was up to and built up a wall of defense in his negotiations with the United States over his kingdoms land. Much earlier, probably during the mid or early 18th century, the greedy Anishinaabeg made their first military advance onto the plains of Canada and the United States. By the time the Canadians and the United States made their first permanent settlements on the Pembina and Saulteaux lands on the plains, their territory had advanced to southeastern Alberta and northern and eastern and southern Montana. Little Shell was one of the Anishinaabe signatures of the 1863 Treaty of Old Crossing which ceded this Pembina Anishinaabe land in Minnesota and North Dakota. Look for the numbers 445 and 446. Little Shell was still extremely upset with the United States after the 1863 treaty and in 1864 the determined Pembina leader refused to negotiate with the United States further more about ceding more land. For almost another 30 years Little Shell refused to negotiate with the United States over his kingdoms remaining land which covered an area of over 63 million acres or, over 98,000 square miles of land. Much of that land was in North Dakota and South Dakota, but also included Pembina land in Montana that may have reached all the way to the Rocky Mountains. We only need to understand that the location in Montana now, which has the largest population of the Little Shell Chippewa's is Great Falls, which is located about 50 miles east of the Rocky Mountains, and about 150 to 200 miles just south of the plains Anishinaabeg lands in southeastern Alberta. By the early 1890s the United States was probably extremely upset with Little Shell's stance and obviously sent their representatives to Little Shell to attempt to get the defiant Anishinaabe chief to negotiate again with them about ceding his kingdoms remaining land which covered almost 100,000 square miles. At that time (1892) Little Shell was living on his Montana lands and probably fed up with the intense American pressure to get him to negotiate with the Americans. In 1892 Little Shell met with American representatives and attempted to reach an agreement about ceding his kingdoms remaining land but it ended in failure. Even before 1892 the Americans were illegally settling down to live throughout Little Shell's lands in Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota. Little Shell attempted to sell his remaining lands for $1.00 per acre and be allowed to have at least 10 million acres of his kingdoms remaining lands in Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota set aside as an Reservation. The Americans offered to pay 10 cents an acre and refused to set aside the 10 million acre Reservation. No agreement was reached. The United States was forced to (Hire Chippewa's Who Did Not Have The Authority To Act On Behalf Of Their People To Reach An Legal Treaty Agreement) in order to get the illegal treaty signed. In other words that 63 million acres is still Pembina Chippewa land. The Americans can claim that land by conquest but the Little Shell Chippewa's can claim it because no legal treaty was made. Little Shell's Montana lands started at the Missouri River on the Montana-North Dakota border, then followed the Yellowstone river to its beginning, and probably included the Big Belt Monutains and Little Belt Mountains, and may have reached to the Rocky Mountains near Augusta. Of course, the pains Anishinaabeg shared their Montana lands with the Assiniboine and probably the Gros Ventre too.
[edit] Legacy
Little Shell died in 1901. The Band's leadership went to his son-in-law Rising Son, and then to his grandson Thomas Little Shell (Ayabiwewidang).
