Born in Detroit, Coquillard was an explorer and fur trader. He was a veteran of the War of 1812, serving under Major General William Henry Harrison. In 1823, he moved to Indiana’s St. Joseph River Valley and established a trading post near fellow American Fur Company agent Pierre Frieschutz Navarre. Trading with local Potawatomi and Miami communities, Coquillard became one …
The Darling family’s Potawatomi ties began with the marriage of Elizabeth Ouilmette and Lucius (Louis) Ripley Darling. Darling was of Scottish and Irish descent and operated a ferry. He married Elizabeth on July 15, 1836. She was the daughter of Antoine, known as one of the first residents of Chicago, and Archange Chevalier Ouilmette. Archange’s mother, Chopa, was the daughter …
Wanyanoshonya was an influential and powerful ogema (leader) among the Elkhart River Potawatomi. He led many great battles against warring tribes in the Great Lakes Region as well as secured peace and safety for his kinsmen through numerous treaties with France, Britain and America. As a warrior, Wanyanoshonya fought alongside famed Miami Mshikenikwe (Little Turtle) at the Battle of Fallen …
The Frapp’s association with the Tribe began with the marriage of John B. Frapp and Josette Wilmette. Josette was the daughter of Archange Chevallier and Antoine Wilmette (Ouilmette), who were early residents of present-day Chicago. The community of Wilmette, Illinois, north of Chicago still bears the family’s name. In the 1830s, many of the Wilmette family emigrated to Council Bluffs, …
Giwani was a headman and warrior of the Wabash Potawatomi. He was one of many Potawatomi who resisted William Henry Harrison’s encroachment on Native lands at the Battle of Tippecanoe and War of 1812. Present-day Lake Bruce, Indiana was the site of his village and important removal negotiations during the 1830s. Giwani’s name can be found among the treaties drafted …
Laframboise foundation Theresa Laframboise Hardin Watkins Beaubien — Chee Chee — and her family removed to Council Bluffs, Iowa, before making the journey to the Potawatomi reservation in Kansas. Theresa was the daughter of Chief Joseph Laframboise and Therese Peltier. Joseph held a standing as one of the Chicago Chiefs, along with Chief Wabunsee, Chief Thomas “Billy” Caldwell or Sauganash, …
Higbee-Potawatomi beginnings The Higbee’s Potawatomi roots begin in the 1800s with the marriage of Julia Justine Bertrand and Alva Higbee. Julia’s parents, Madeline and Joseph Bertrand, were successful fur traders and business owners near Lake Michigan. Madeline was the daughter of Daniel Bourassa I and an unknown Potawatomi woman. Her mother was most likely a member of Potawatomi communities in …
Iowah was a young and influential headman among the Wabash Potawatomi. He was the nephew of headman and principal orator Naswawkay. Along with his brother M’joquis, he led a younger faction of Potawatomi who allied themselves with U.S. Indian agents. Together, the allies conspired and unlawfully sold reserve lands belonging to leaders who refused to cede their reservations to the …
The Iroquois Confederacy or the Haudenosaunee (People of the Longhouse), was made up of five tribes, Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, and the Seneca originating from New York. In 1722, the Tuscarora tribe, who originated from North Carolina, joined the Confederacy. The nations of the confederacy saw themselves as the important parts that hold up the one united longhouse. They were …
Jim Thorpe was a world class athlete and a member of the Citizen Potawatomi, Sac and Fox, and Kickapoo nations. He was the son of Hiram P. Thorpe, who was Irish and Sac & Fox, and Charlotte Vieux, who was a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation and Kickapoo. He was born on his family’s ranch near present-day Prague, Oklahoma. …