Throughout Potawatomi history, women have contributed to Nishnabé communities in innumerable ways. Some prominent female leaders since the 1800s include Massaw, Watseka, Mary Ann Benache, Joyce Abel, Beverly Hughes and more.
In February 1996, Citizen Potawatomi from across the United States cast their votes during a special secretarial election to reflect the Tribe’s sovereignty as a tribal nation by officially changing its name from the Citizen Band Potawatomi Tribe of Oklahoma to the Citizen Potawatomi Nation.
Greg Riat, a Welch family descendant, continues to live and farm on 120 acres of allotted land assigned to the Potawatomi family through treaties during the mid-1860s.