The Peoria were part of the
The Illiniwek confederation and were located in northwestern Illinois including the
Galena,
Jo Daviess County area and most of the
Illinois River Valley; southwestern Wisconsin and northeastern Iowa. The name means "Prairie Fire that Wanders About".
Socially, the men hunted, fished (usually with spears) and traded with other tribes and the Europeans who began to appear in the Mississippi River Valley in the mid-1600's. The women took care of raising the children, tended crops (mostly maize with some squash, pumpkins and beans), and gathered berries and nuts.
Twice a year, after the spring planting and fall harvest, they would migrate up to 100 miles to hunt buffalo, deer and other game.
With depleted numbers after warring with the Iroquois and other tribes, they decided to relocate to west of the Mississippi finally settling in the northeast corner of Oklahoma in about 1870. Today their population is about 2,600.
