The land that became Germantown was originally inhabited by Native Americans, including the Potawatomi tribe. The Potawatomi surrendered the land that became Germantown the United States Federal Government in 1833 through the Treaty of Chicago, which required them to leave Wisconsin by 1838. While many Native people moved west of the Mississippi River to Kansas, some chose to remain, and were known as "strolling Potawatomi" because they were migrant squatters. Eventually the Potawatomi who evaded forced removal gathered in northern Wisconsin, where they formed the Forest County Potawatomi Community.