The Chicagoan Myth Fighting to Become a Man: Jean Baptiste Point Du Sable
The Chicagoan Myth Fighting to Become a Man: Jean Baptiste Point Du Sable
The Founder of Chicago
"Map of Chicago, Incorporated as a Town August 5, 1833." Walter Conley & O.E. Stelzer, 1933.
Introduction
Chicago has had many feet journey through its early paths – a time before its bustling streets were filled with tall buildings and city creatures following their daily agenda. As shown in the map above, it was fields cut by the Chicago river inhabited by the various Native tribes that were the first to live with the land. Named by Native people, “Chigagou” means “the wild garlic place,” as its fields were filled with wild garlic plants. It was a safe haven as the calm river allowed sailors and Europeans to use its banks as shelter from strong winds and storms. In 1833, the remaining Native tribes which included but are not limited to the Potawatomi, the Kickapoo, the Myaami, and the Peoria, signed the rest of their land over to European settlers. However, a European wasn’t the first non-Native to establish their home in Chicago despite popular belief. A man named Jean Baptiste Point DuSable is credited for the founding of Chicago along with the aid of a few others, but this acknowledgement would start skirmishes amongst historians for years.
Gale, Ph.D. Dr. Neil. “An In-Depth History of Jean Baptiste Pointe de Sable, Chicago’s Founder.”
II. Who is Jean Baptiste Du Sable?
Jean Baptiste DuSable was a mixed-race, black man who established a farm and a fur-trading post in the late 1700s, on the northern bank of the Chicago river. There, he traded with the neighboring Native communities and European settlers. As a result of a lack of documentation, Du Sable’s ethnicity is not concrete. “Until about 1933 it was generally accepted that Point Du Sable was a free Santo Domingo [man].” However, some historians like William Cronon believe he was from Quebec, Canada, and others that he was born in what is now Haiti. As stated by Thomas Meehan in “Jean Baptiste Point Du Sable, the First Chicagoan,” Du Sable’s ancestry traces back to the Dandonneau family originally from France. The family later on traveled to Canada where their lineage expanded. Along the way, a male descendant gained the name “Sieur Du Sable” and following, descendants would use either Dandonneau or Du Sable as their chosen surname. From historical documentation of slaves in the Northwest territory of Canada and papers from the Du Sable family, Meehan concludes that Jean Baptiste Du Sable is the son of a black woman and a male descendent of Angélique Du Sable. Living in Chicago, Du Sable would marry a Potawatomi woman and even get to see his first grandchild born in the city.
III. The Controversy
In “Northern Rebel: The Journal of Nellie Kinzie Gordon, Savannah, 1862,” the author, Mary Robertson, states that, “[John Kinzie] built the first house on the site of what is now the city of Chicago.” John Kinzie, a white trader and politician, was widely believed to be the first non-Native inhabitant of Chicago. It wasn’t until 2006, that Du Sable was recognized as the founder of Chicago, but why was this a misconception if there was documentation pointing to Du Sable?
Some historians argue that Kinzie was given the credit because he was more of an ideal “founding father” than Du Sable as he was white, protestant, and wealthy. However, the reasons why Du Sable wasn’t given the credit of founding Chicago are just as unclear as the evidence that proves he is the founding Father of Chicago.
Further adding to the confusion, after Du Sable decided to move from the Chicago river area, Fort Dearborn was built on the remnant land of his property by the U.S Army in 1803. Nine years later, all the residents of the fort were killed by the Potawatomi tribe, an ally to the British, at the beginning of the War of 1812. Thus, the massacre washed away any living documentation of who inhabited the land prior. This lack of evidence would prove to be an issue that would prohibit Du Sable from receiving his deserved acclamation.
IV. Recognition
Most agree that Du Sable had a trading post in the late 1700s but still repudiate his title as founder. Despite this, many have welcomed his legacy with open arms. However, the lack of documentation on Du Sable would still pose an issue even when trying to establish a tribute towards him.
Mayor Harold Washington established Jean Baptiste Du Sable park around 1988 but nothing had been done to the land for over fifteen years. Amid Du Sable's official recognition, the communities of Chicago, especially black communities, were ecstatic to learn that a Black man was going to be given the title of founder. Thus, historians and communities in Chicago, especially black communities, were pushing for more to be done. However, when trying to establish an official layout of the park, historians struggled in deciding what assumptions they were going to claim as Du Sable’s history. They didn’t have concrete evidence of what time period he lived in Chicago, where he was actually born, or even the correct spelling of his name.
Despite this, even though the holes in his biography were still a factor, Chicago’s diversity proved as a bridge to connect the facts. As stated by Monica Davey in the New York Times, “How better to teach people, at last, about Jean Baptiste Point DuSable than to build and name a park for him right in the center of Chicago, his city, where the river meets the lake?” Thus, Chicagoans agreed to honor him in 2006, by renouncing his title as founder of Chicago and honoring him with a sculpture.
Although some statements in his statue might be controversial, historians like Linda Wheeler encourage us to remember that, “If you have a theory about where he came from and make it yours, you can,'' she said. Hers happens to be that he paddled in on a canoe.”
V. Conclusion
Chicago’s founding directly reflects to it’s present atmosphere. Its history of trade and wealth has made it the most prolific trading center in the United States. Its founder, a black man, emulates its diversity and its rich culture. As someone who visits the city often and has seen the environment house bright minds looking towards the future, I can acknowledge that it was all made possible by Jean Baptiste Point Du Sable.
Citations
Cronon, William. Nature's Metropolis : Chicago and the Great West. New York: W.W. Norton, 1997.
Davey, Monica. "Tribute to Chicago Icon and Enigma." The New York Times, June 25, 2003. https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/25/us/tribute-to-chicago-icon-and-enigma.html#.
Meehan, Thomas A. "Jean Baptiste Point Du Sable, the First Chicagoan." Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society (1908-1984) 56, no. 3 (1963): 439-53. JSTOR.
Robertson, Mary D. "Northern Rebel: The Journal of Nellie Kinzie Gordon, Savannah, 1862." The Georgia Historical Quarterly 70, no. 3 (1986): 477-517. JSTOR.
Zelazko, Alicja. "Who Founded Chicago." Britannica. Last modified May 19, 2023. https://www.britannica.com/story/who-founded-chicago.