Susan L. Kelsey is an author and documentary filmmaker. Her current project is a historical feature documentary called The Negotiator: Billy Caldwell. The film examines Chicago Native American Billy Caldwell's life as a Great Lakes fur trader and his negotiation of the 1829 and 1833 Treaties which ceded over 5 million acres of land in the Chicago area. Partnering with the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation in Mayetta, Kansas, the film interviews Native American Tribal Leaders, subject matter experts and their thoughts about that time. Susan is co-producing the film with Michelle Simon (Prairie Band Potawatomi) and Joe Mitchell (Prairie Band Potawatomi) A short film about Billy Caldwell has won a Telly Award and several other filmmaker awards.
Susan has authored four historical books: Downtown Lake Forest, West Lake Forest, Legendary Locals of Lake Forest and Billy Caldwell (1780-1841) Chicago and the Great Lakes Trail. Previously, Susan was the Economic Development Officer for the City of Lake Forest for ten years where she worked with commercial property owners to recruit businesses to Lake Forest. Susan and her family have lived in Lake Forest since 2006. Prior to moving to Lake Forest, Susan lived in the Sauganash neighborhood on the north side of Chicago. She was involved in Chicago politics for two decades as the 39th Ward Committeeman and Commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Chicago. It was living in Sauganash, the land that Billy Caldwell received in the 1829 Treaty, that sparked the interest in Billy Caldwell and began the research that has lasted over 33 years. Susan is currently President of the Mitchell Museum of the American Indian in Evanston