Image by Robert Griffing (no images based on real life Pontiac exist- this is an imagining of what he may have looked like)
Chief Pontiac (Odwaandi’eyaag) was a powerful Odawa war chief born around 17no20 in the Great Lakes Region (maybe near the Maumee River in Ohio). He led Pontiac’s War against the British; at that point, the British still owned the land that would later be part of the United States.
Pontiac was a brilliant military strategist, leader and strategic planner, forming an alliance of the Odawa (Ottawa), Delaware, Seneca, Miami, Ojibwa, Potawatomi, Shawnee and Missisauga tribes.This alliance was the Native Americans’ last chance to stop the steady move west by the British.
Little is really known about Pontiac’s early life; much of which has been romanticized but it’s clear that he understood that the British would take away their hunting, their self-governance and their way of life.
In July 1763, he won the Battle of Bloody Run at Fort Detroit (what is now Elmwood Cemeterelmsy). This battle was part of the Seven Years War (also known as the French and Indian War). Chief Pontiac and his comrades also won nine other battles against the British. Pontiac managed to capture all but two of the British forts.
The Seven Years War ranged from what is now New York, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Ohio all the way to St. Ignace, Michigan. (Think about traveling all that distance in the 1700’s - by horse or on foot!)
“They came with a bible and their religion stole our land, crushed our spirit…And now tell us we should be thankful to the “Lord” for being saved” - Chief Pontiac. He was killed near Peoria, Illinois in 1769 and buried in St. Louis, Missouri: “Seeking to end the war, British officials made him the focus of their diplomatic efforts. In July 1766, he made peace with British Superintendent of Indian Affairs Sir William Johnson. The British attention to Pontiac aroused resentment among other tribal leaders, as the war effort was decentralized while Pontiac claimed greater authority than he possessed. He was increasingly ostracized and in 1769 he was assassinated by a Peoria warrior.” - Wikipedia.
The city Pontiac, Michigan; an American Legion Post; a credit union, and the Pontiac car company were all named for this revered leader.
Detroit History: https://historydetroit.com/people/pontiac.php
