Black Beaver facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Black Beaver
Se-ket-tu-may-qua
Delaware leader
Personal details
Born	1806 Belleville, Illinois
Died	1880 Anadarko, Oklahoma
Resting place	Fort Sill, Oklahoma
Spouse	Three or four wives
Children	Four daughters
Education	tribal
Known for	Establishing the California and Chisholm trails; rancher and wealthiest Lenape in America

Black Beaver (also known as Se-ket-tu-may-qua) was a very important Lenape (or Delaware) leader. He lived from 1806 to 1880. He was a skilled trapper and worked as an interpreter for the American Fur Company.

Black Beaver was also a brave scout and guide. He knew English and many other Native American and European languages. People remember him for helping to create famous routes like the California Trail and Chisholm Trail.

After his time as a scout, he settled in Beaverstown, a village in Indian Territory. This was where his people had been moved in the 1830s.

During the start of the American Civil War, Black Beaver guided hundreds of Union soldiers. He led them and their long wagon train over 500 miles from Fort Arbuckle to Kansas. This helped them escape much larger Confederate forces. Amazingly, no one, no animals, and no wagons were lost on this journey. Later, Confederates destroyed Black Beaver's ranch. But after the war, he rebuilt his life in Indian Territory. He became a very successful rancher in what is now Anadarko, Oklahoma. His old ranch site is now a historic place.

Early Life and Trapping Skills

Black Beaver was born in 1806 near what is now Belleville, Illinois. This area was east of St. Louis on the Mississippi River. Many Lenape people had moved here after the American Revolutionary War. Their original home was along the Delaware River in the eastern United States.

When he was young, Black Beaver started trapping beavers. He traded their furs for the American Fur Company, owned by John Jacob Astor. The fur trade was a big business back then.

A Gifted Interpreter and Guide

Black Beaver's Lenape name was Se-ket-tu-may-qua. He became very good at languages. He spoke English, French, and Spanish, plus his native Lenape language. He also knew about eight other Native American languages. He could even use common trade sign language to talk with tribes whose languages he didn't know.

His language skills were incredibly helpful to settlers and military groups traveling west. He worked with the First Dragoon Expedition in 1834. During the Mexican–American War (1846–1848), he led a group of Native American volunteers as a captain in the U.S. Army.

In 1849, Captain Randolph B. Marcy hired Black Beaver as a guide. Marcy was escorting 500 people from Fort Smith to Santa Fe during the gold rush. On their way back, Black Beaver found a shortcut across the prairie. This cut the two-month trip down to just two weeks! Thousands of people later used this route to travel west. It became known as the California Trail.

After this, Black Beaver settled near Fort Arbuckle in Indian Territory. He became the chief of a Lenape village called Beaverstown. He also guided Captain Marcy on more trips through Texas in 1849, 1852, and 1854.

In 1859, Captain Marcy wrote about Black Beaver in his guide book, The Prairie Traveler. He said Black Beaver had traveled almost everywhere in the unsettled parts of America. He had been to the headwaters of the Missouri and Columbia rivers. He had also traveled south to the Colorado and Gila rivers, and even to the Pacific Ocean in California. Marcy described Black Beaver's life as full of exciting adventures. He called him "perfectly reliable, brave, and competent." Marcy also noted that Black Beaver was a brave warrior who was not boastful.

By 1860, Black Beaver was the richest and most famous Lenape person in America. He lived in what is now Caddo County, Oklahoma, near Anadarko. The U.S. government had moved the Lenape people here during the Indian removal period.

A Hero During the Civil War

In May 1861, the American Civil War began. General William H. Emory was at Fort Arbuckle. He learned that 6,000 Confederate troops were coming from Texas and Arkansas. Emory gathered his soldiers from nearby forts. To escape to Kansas across the open prairie, he needed a guide. Other Native American guides were too afraid of the Confederates to help. Also, some tribes, like the Cherokee, Chickasaw, and Creek, had sided with the Confederates.

Emory promised Black Beaver that the government would pay him back for any losses. So, Black Beaver agreed to help. He scouted the approaching Confederate troops. He even helped Emory capture their advance guard, who were the first prisoners taken in the Civil War.

Black Beaver then guided over 800 Union soldiers, their prisoners, and 200 teamsters. They had 80 wagons and 600 horses and mules, forming a mile-long train. He led them over 500 miles across open prairie to safety at Fort Leavenworth in eastern Kansas. He did not lose a single person, horse, or wagon. He also helped many enslaved people from various tribes gain their freedom.

The Confederate Army and their Native American allies destroyed Black Beaver’s ranch. They even put a reward on his head. Black Beaver stayed in Kansas until the war ended. Then he returned to Indian Territory to rebuild his life. Sadly, the U.S. government never fully paid him back for his losses.

A Successful Rancher

After the war, Black Beaver and his friend Jesse Chisholm returned. They helped turn a Native American path, which the Union Army had used, into what became the famous Chisholm Trail. They gathered thousands of stray Texas longhorn cattle. They drove these cattle along the Trail to railheads in Kansas. From there, the cattle were sent East, where beef sold for much higher prices. Other cowboys also used the Chisholm Trail to move millions of cattle to Kansas.

Black Beaver settled again in Anadarko. He built the first brick home in the area. He had 300 acres of fenced land for farming. He also owned many cattle, hogs, and horses.

Death and Lasting Legacy

Black Beaver passed away at his home on May 8, 1880. He was buried on his ranch. In 1976, his remains were moved to Fort Sill. This was done to honor his important help to the Union during the Civil War. His old ranch site is now listed as a historic place.

Black Beaver was the very first person to be inducted into the National Hall of Fame for Famous American Indians. This hall of fame is located in Anadarko, on part of his former ranch land.

Black Beaver's Native American name, Se-ket-tu-may-qua, is also used for a character in Mary Kathryn Nagle's play, Manahatta. His image was even used in the set design for the play at the Yale Repertory Theater.