Minooteeni (Village) Park

Wabash Valley Progressives created a park at the north end of the Vincennes Riverwalk which honors the Native Americans that lived in our area before us. We started this project to raise awareness about the indigenous people who lived in and were caretakers of the land before us (including this specific site), to assist indigenous people in their mission to preserve their languages, and to reimagine an underutilized public space into a welcoming, interpretive park. In consultation with the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma and the Peoria Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma, we settled on the name “minooteeni” which means “village” in the Myaamia language. The park includes:

• Interpretive signage about Native Americans who lived in the region

• A nature playground with a water feature

• Native plantings around the site to emulate the vegetation around that time in history

Minooteeni Park Project Background

The Minooteeni Park project started as a discussion by WVP Board Members on how to raise awareness/honor the Native Americans of our area. After some discussion, WVP reached out to several tribal nations representing the people who occupied our area at one time, and then coordinated with them to plan a public space that would be culturally appropriate and help with their goal of preserving indigenous languages. Mader Design graciously offered to draft a design pro bono that WVP, Knox County CISMA, and the City of Vincennes approved.

Our partners in this project include the City of Vincennes, Knox County Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area (CISMA), the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma, and the Peoria Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma.

How You Can Help

By donating to this project, you can support Minooteeni Park and raise awareness about the indigenous people of our area. Besides donating, you can volunteer your time at the park.

Please make donations to the Knox County CISMA (our fiscal agent for the project) at 604 S. Quail Run Rd., Vincennes, IN 47591.

If you have questions or inquiries, please contact us.