Andrew Montour
Encyclopedia
Andrew Montour also known as Henry Montour, Sattelihu, and Eghnisara, was an important métis
interpreter and negotiator in the Virginia and Pennsylvania
backcountry in the 1750s and 1760s.
Montour's date of birth is unknown; historian James Merrell
estimated it to be 1720. Montour was of European and Native American ancestry. His mother was Madame Montour, a well-known, influential interpreter whose exact identity is uncertain; she was probably of French and Native ancestry. She spoke several languages and often served as an interpreter between Europeans and Native Americans. Andrew Montour's father was Carondawanna, an Oneida
war chief.
Montour shared his mother's gift for languages. He spoke French, English, Delaware
, Shawnee
, and at least one of the Iroquois
languages. Comfortable with both Native Americans and Europeans, he made a good living as a translator for several colonial governments. In 1742 when Count Zinzendorf met Montour he wrote that Montour looked "decidedly European, and had his face not been encircled with a broad band of paint we would have thought he was one."
In 1745 he accompanied Weiser
and Shikellamy
on a mission to Onondaga where the federal capital of the Iroquois confederation was established. In 1748 Weiser
recommended Montour as a person especially qualified to act as an interpreter or messenger and Montour was presented to the Pennsylvania council of the proprietary government.
Throughout the French and Indian War
Montour sided with the British and worked, at various times, for Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Sir William Johnson's Indian Department
. He was with George Washington
before the battle at Fort Necessity, and was also one of the few Native Americans to travel with Edward Braddock
. So strong was his influence with tribes in the Ohio River Valley that the French put a bounty on his head. Montour was murdered by a Seneca Indian in 1772.
Montour County, Pennsylvania
, is named for Andrew Montour. The Montour School District
, a comprehensive public school system located 16 miles west of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
, also bears his name.
Andrew had a number of children, who he hoped would also live in both white and Native American worlds. His son John Montour followed in his footsteps and became a well-known negotiator, translator and go-between.
Métis
A Métis is a person born to parents who belong to different groups defined by visible physical differences, regarded as racial, or the descendant of such persons. The term is of French origin, and also is a cognate of mestizo in Spanish, mestiço in Portuguese, and mestee in English...
interpreter and negotiator in the Virginia and Pennsylvania
Province of Pennsylvania
The Province of Pennsylvania, also known as Pennsylvania Colony, was founded in British America by William Penn on March 4, 1681 as dictated in a royal charter granted by King Charles II...
backcountry in the 1750s and 1760s.
Montour's date of birth is unknown; historian James Merrell
James Merrell
James Hart Merrell is the Lucy Maynard Salmon Professor of History at Vassar College. Professor Merrell is one of the leading scholars of early American history, and has written extensively on Native American history during the colonial era. Professor Merrell is one of only five historians to be...
estimated it to be 1720. Montour was of European and Native American ancestry. His mother was Madame Montour, a well-known, influential interpreter whose exact identity is uncertain; she was probably of French and Native ancestry. She spoke several languages and often served as an interpreter between Europeans and Native Americans. Andrew Montour's father was Carondawanna, an Oneida
Oneida tribe
The Oneida are a Native American/First Nations people and are one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois Confederacy in the area of upstate New York...
war chief.
Montour shared his mother's gift for languages. He spoke French, English, Delaware
Lenape language
The Delaware languages, also known as the Lenape languages, are Munsee and Unami, two closely related languages of the Eastern Algonquian subgroup of the Algonquian language family...
, Shawnee
Shawnee language
The Shawnee language is a Central Algonquian language spoken in parts of central and northeastern Oklahoma by only around 200 Shawnee, making it an endangered language. It was originally spoken in Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania...
, and at least one of the Iroquois
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
languages. Comfortable with both Native Americans and Europeans, he made a good living as a translator for several colonial governments. In 1742 when Count Zinzendorf met Montour he wrote that Montour looked "decidedly European, and had his face not been encircled with a broad band of paint we would have thought he was one."
In 1745 he accompanied Weiser
Weiser
Weiser is the name of two towns in the United States:* Weiser, Idaho* Weiser Township, North DakotaSeveral individuals have the surname Weiser:* Conrad Weiser, German pioneer* Grethe Weiser, German actress...
and Shikellamy
Shikellamy
Shikellamy , also known as Swatana, was an Oneida chief and overseer for the Iroquois confederacy. In his position as chief and overseer, Shikellamy served as a supervisor for the Six Nations, overseeing the Shawnee and Lenape tribes in central Pennsylvania along the Susquehanna River and...
on a mission to Onondaga where the federal capital of the Iroquois confederation was established. In 1748 Weiser
Weiser
Weiser is the name of two towns in the United States:* Weiser, Idaho* Weiser Township, North DakotaSeveral individuals have the surname Weiser:* Conrad Weiser, German pioneer* Grethe Weiser, German actress...
recommended Montour as a person especially qualified to act as an interpreter or messenger and Montour was presented to the Pennsylvania council of the proprietary government.
Throughout the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
Montour sided with the British and worked, at various times, for Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Sir William Johnson's Indian Department
Indian Department
The Indian Department was established in 1755 to oversee relations between the government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and those First Nations in British North America. At that time of its establishment it was a wing of the British Military.The department was initially led by...
. He was with George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
before the battle at Fort Necessity, and was also one of the few Native Americans to travel with Edward Braddock
Edward Braddock
General Edward Braddock was a British soldier and commander-in-chief for the 13 colonies during the actions at the start of the French and Indian War...
. So strong was his influence with tribes in the Ohio River Valley that the French put a bounty on his head. Montour was murdered by a Seneca Indian in 1772.
Montour County, Pennsylvania
Montour County, Pennsylvania
Montour County is located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. In 2010, the county's population was 18,267. Its county seat is Danville. It is named for Andrew Montour, a prominent métis interpreter who served with George Washington during the French and Indian War. The county is part of the...
, is named for Andrew Montour. The Montour School District
Montour School District
The Montour School District serves Kennedy Township, Robinson Township, Ingram, Thornburg and Pennsbury Village, which are western suburbs of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the United States.-School Board Members:...
, a comprehensive public school system located 16 miles west of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, also bears his name.
Andrew had a number of children, who he hoped would also live in both white and Native American worlds. His son John Montour followed in his footsteps and became a well-known negotiator, translator and go-between.