What was the Treaty of Greenville?

The Treaty of Greenville, signed on August 3, 1795, at Fort Greenville (present-day Greenville, Ohio), ended hostilities between the United States and the Northwest Indian Confederation, led by Miami Chief Little Turtle. The Native American groups ceded most of what is now Ohio, as well as parts of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan. The U.S. gained strategically significant land parcels, including sites of modern cities such as Fort Wayne, Lafayette, Chicago, Peoria and Toledo. The treaty also ceded Mackinac Island, its surrounding areas, and a large tract including much of metropolitan Detroit. After the treaty, Little Turtle advocated cooperation with the United States.

Why was the Treaty of Greenville signed in 1795?

The Treaty of Greenville, signed on August 3, 1795, concluded hostilities between the United States and the Northwest Indian Confederation, headed by Miami Chief Little Turtle. This agreement was reached after the confederation faced defeat at the Battle of Fallen Timbers and the loss of British support. Under the treaty, the Native American confederation ceded most of what is now Ohio, as well as parts of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan. In exchange, the United States granted the confederation a termination of hostilities and agreed to an exchange of prisoners. The treaty also granted the United States strategically significant parcels of land, including the sites of modern cities such as Fort Wayne, Chicago, and Detroit.

What land changes happened because of the Treaty of Greenville?

The Treaty of Greenville, signed on August 3, 1795, between the United States and the Northwest Indian Confederation, redefined the boundary between the United States and Indian lands. The confederation ceded most of Ohio and significant portions of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan. The U.S. gained strategically significant parcels of land to the north and west of this boundary, including the sites of modern cities such as Fort Wayne and Lafayette, Indiana; Chicago; Peoria, Illinois; and Toledo, Ohio. The treaty also ceded Mackinac Island and its environs and a large tract of land encompassing much of the area of metropolitan Detroit.

How did the Treaty of Greenville affect Native American tribes in the Northwest Territory?

The Treaty of Greenville, signed on August 3, 1795, concluded hostilities between the United States and the Northwest Indian Confederation, led by Miami Chief Little Turtle. The Native American tribes ceded most of Ohio and significant portions of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan. The confederation was forced to agree to American terms after their defeat at the Battle of Fallen Timbers and the loss of British support. The treaty redefined the boundary between the United States and Indian lands, granting the U.S. strategically significant parcels of land, including the sites of modern cities such as Fort Wayne, Chicago, and Detroit. Shawnee chief Tecumseh criticized the treaty, but organized Indian resistance effectively ended in the Northwest after his death in 1813.

What was the long-term impact of the Treaty of Greenville on U.S. expansion and Native Americans?

The Treaty of Greenville , signed in 1795 after the Battle of Fallen Timbers, had significant long-term impacts on U.S. expansion and Native Americans. The treaty ceded to the U.S. most of what is now Ohio, as well as portions of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan, opening up the Northwest Territory to American settlers. The treaty redefined the boundary between the United States and Indian lands, granting strategically significant parcels of land to the U.S. and effectively ending hostilities. However, it also sparked criticism from some Native American leaders like Tecumseh, who opposed ceding tribal lands. The treaty led to further westward expansion but also the effective end of organized Indian resistance in the Northwest.

Treaty of Greenville

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Map illustrating the Northwest Territory as defined by the Northwest Ordinances of 1785 and 1787, covering present-day Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Insets show the Ohio Company's land purchases with numbered townships and sections, and a diagram explaining how land was divided into square-mile sections, with further subdivisions labeled by acreage. Section 16 in each township is marked as reserved for public schools. Current state boundaries and years of statehood are indica

Oil painting of the 1795 Treaty of Greenville signing, showing General Anthony Wayne with U.S. officers and Miami chief Little Turtle with Native American leaders in a grassy landscape.

Quick Facts

Also called:: Treaty of Fort Greenville

Date:: August 3, 1795

Participants:: Lenni Lenape; Miami; Northwest Indian Confederation; Ojibwe; Ottawa; Potawatomi; Shawnee; United States

Context:: Battle of Fallen Timbers

Key People:: Little Turtle

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Treaty of Greenville

United States-Northwest Indian Confederation [1795]

Also known as: Treaty of Fort Greenville

Written by

Michael Ray

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

History

Top Questions

What was the Treaty of Greenville?
The Treaty of Greenville, signed on August 3, 1795, at Fort Greenville (present-day Greenville, Ohio), ended hostilities between the United States and the Northwest Indian Confederation, led by Miami Chief Little Turtle. The Native American groups ceded most of what is now Ohio, as well as parts of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan. The U.S. gained strategically significant land parcels, including sites of modern cities such as Fort Wayne, Lafayette, Chicago, Peoria and Toledo. The treaty also ceded Mackinac Island, its surrounding areas, and a large tract including much of metropolitan Detroit. After the treaty, Little Turtle advocated cooperation with the United States.
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1. Treaty of Greenville
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Who were the main groups involved in the Treaty of Greenville?
The Treaty of Greenville, signed on August 3, 1795, concluded hostilities between the United States and the Northwest Indian Confederation. The U.S. delegation was led by General Anthony Wayne, while the Native American confederation was headed by Miami Chief Little Turtle.

The Northwest Indian Confederation was a loose alliance of mainly Algonquian-speaking peoples, including the Shawnee, Delaware, Ottawa, Ojibwa, Miami, and Potawatomi tribes. The treaty redefined the border between the United States and Indian lands, with the confederation ceding most of Ohio and significant portions of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan to the United States. Some chiefs refused to sign the treaty.
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2. Battle of Fallen Timbers: Casualties and aftermath
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Why was the Treaty of Greenville signed in 1795?
The Treaty of Greenville, signed on August 3, 1795, concluded hostilities between the United States and the Northwest Indian Confederation, headed by Miami Chief Little Turtle. This agreement was reached after the confederation faced defeat at the Battle of Fallen Timbers and the loss of British support.

Under the treaty, the Native American confederation ceded most of what is now Ohio, as well as parts of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan. In exchange, the United States granted the confederation a termination of hostilities and agreed to an exchange of prisoners. The treaty also granted the United States strategically significant parcels of land, including the sites of modern cities such as Fort Wayne, Chicago, and Detroit.
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1. Treaty of Greenville
2. North-West Rebellion
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What land changes happened because of the Treaty of Greenville?
The Treaty of Greenville, signed on August 3, 1795, between the United States and the Northwest Indian Confederation, redefined the boundary between the United States and Indian lands. The confederation ceded most of Ohio and significant portions of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan.

The U.S. gained strategically significant parcels of land to the north and west of this boundary, including the sites of modern cities such as Fort Wayne and Lafayette, Indiana; Chicago; Peoria, Illinois; and Toledo, Ohio. The treaty also ceded Mackinac Island and its environs and a large tract of land encompassing much of the area of metropolitan Detroit.
1 Britannica Source
1. Treaty of Greenville
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
How did the Treaty of Greenville affect Native American tribes in the Northwest Territory?
The Treaty of Greenville, signed on August 3, 1795, concluded hostilities between the United States and the Northwest Indian Confederation, led by Miami Chief Little Turtle. The Native American tribes ceded most of Ohio and significant portions of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan. The confederation was forced to agree to American terms after their defeat at the Battle of Fallen Timbers and the loss of British support. The treaty redefined the boundary between the United States and Indian lands, granting the U.S. strategically significant parcels of land, including the sites of modern cities such as Fort Wayne, Chicago, and Detroit. Shawnee chief Tecumseh criticized the treaty, but organized Indian resistance effectively ended in the Northwest after his death in 1813.
1 Britannica Source
1. Treaty of Greenville
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
What was the long-term impact of the Treaty of Greenville on U.S. expansion and Native Americans?
The Treaty of Greenville, signed in 1795 after the Battle of Fallen Timbers, had significant long-term impacts on U.S. expansion and Native Americans. The treaty ceded to the U.S. most of what is now Ohio, as well as portions of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan, opening up the Northwest Territory to American settlers.

The treaty redefined the boundary between the United States and Indian lands, granting strategically significant parcels of land to the U.S. and effectively ending hostilities. However, it also sparked criticism from some Native American leaders like Tecumseh, who opposed ceding tribal lands. The treaty led to further westward expansion but also the effective end of organized Indian resistance in the Northwest.
2 Britannica Sources
1. Treaty of Greenville
2. Battle of Fallen Timbers: Casualties and aftermath
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Treaty of Greenville, (August 3, 1795), settlement that concluded hostilities between the United States and an Indian confederation headed by Miami chief Little Turtle by which the Indians ceded most of the future state of Ohio and significant portions of what would become the states of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan.

As American settlers moved into the Northwest Territory in the years following the American Revolution, their advance was opposed by a loose alliance of mainly Algonquian-speaking peoples. The Shawnee and the Delaware, both of whom had been driven west by prior territorial encroachments, joined the Ottawa, Ojibwa, Miami, and Potawatomi in the Northwest Indian Confederation. Led by Little Turtle, the Native American confederation skirmished with settlers and Kentucky militia in the late 1780s.

Anthony WayneAnthony Wayne, detail of an engraving by E. Prud'homme from a drawing by J. Herring after a sketch by John Trumbull.

In an effort to pacify the region and to stake a conclusive claim to areas that had been ceded by the British under the terms of the Peace of Paris (1783), a series of expeditions were dispatched to the Northwest Territory. The first, under Gen. Josiah Harmar, was routed in a pair of engagements in October 1790. The second, led by Northwest Territory governor Arthur St. Clair, was crushed on November 4, 1791, in one of worst defeats ever suffered by the U.S. military against a Native American force. Emboldened by the victories and the promise of support from the British, who still occupied strategic forts within the Northwest Territory, the confederacy appeared to have checked the American advance. In 1792 Pres. George Washington appointed Gen. “Mad” Anthony Wayne as commander of the United States Army and tasked him with crushing the resistance.

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Unlike the previous expeditions, which relied heavily on militia troops of questionable quality, Wayne’s force consisted of professional, seasoned infantry. On August 20, 1794, Wayne’s 2,000 regulars, supplemented by some 1,000 mounted Kentucky militia, met 2,000 of the confederation’s warriors near Fort Miami (southwest of modern Toledo, Ohio). In the ensuing Battle of Fallen Timbers, Wayne’s troops broke the Indians’ line, and the warriors fled. The defeat was compounded by the evaporation of support from Britain, which had since become entangled in the French Revolutionary wars and did not wish to risk a confrontation with the United States. Within months of Fallen Timbers, Britain made clear its intentions with the Jay Treaty (November 19, 1794), wherein it promised to evacuate its forts in the Northwest Territory. Beaten in battle and with no prospect of outside assistance, the confederation agreed to the terms set forth by the Americans.

On August 3, 1795, Wayne, Little Turtle, and their delegations met at Fort Greenville (now Greenville, Ohio) to conclude the treaty. Both sides agreed to a termination of hostilities and an exchange of prisoners, and Little Turtle authorized a redefinition of the border between the United States and Indian lands. By the terms of the treaty, the confederation ceded all lands east and south of a boundary that began at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River (in modern Cleveland) and extended south to Fort Laurens (modern Bolivar, Ohio) and then west to Fort Recovery. The boundary then continued southwest to the point at which the Kentucky River emptied into the Ohio River (modern Carrollton, Kentucky). In addition, the United States was granted strategically significant parcels of land to the north and west of this line, including the sites of the modern cities of Fort Wayne, Indiana; Lafayette, Indiana; Chicago; Peoria, Illinois; and Toledo, Ohio. The treaty also ceded Mackinac Island and its environs, as well as a large tract of land encompassing much of the area of modern metropolitan Detroit. After the signing of the treaty, Little Turtle advocated cooperation with the United States, but he was roundly criticized by the Shawnee chief Tecumseh, who stated that the so-called “peace” chiefs had given away land that they did not own. Although Tecumseh led a brilliant campaign against the Americans during the War of 1812, his death in 1813 and the disintegration of his pan-Indian confederacy spelled the effective end of organized Indian resistance in the Northwest.

Michael Ray

Treaty of Greenville

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