Pierre Bonga facts for kids

Pierre Chimakadewiiash Bonga (Ojibwe: Makadewiiyas, meaning "Black-skinned") was an important person in the fur trade history of North America. He was a black trapper and interpreter. He lived from about 1770 to 1831 in what is now Minnesota.

Pierre worked for big companies like the North West Company and later John Jacob Astor's American Fur Company. He mostly worked near the Red River of the North and Lake Superior. This area is now part of Wisconsin and Minnesota. Like many fur traders, he married an Ojibwe woman. Their children grew up learning the Ojibwe culture. Two of his sons also became well-known interpreters and guides in the fur trade.

Pierre Bonga's Early Life

Pierre Bonga was born in the 1770s. His parents, Jean and Marie-Jeanne Bonga, were enslaved. In 1781, during the American Revolutionary War, they were captured. They were then sold to traders at Mackinac Island.

Captain Daniel Robertson owned them for a while. He was in charge of Fort Michilimackinac. In 1787, Captain Robertson freed the Bongas before he moved away.

Mackinac Island was a busy place for fur trade. French, British, and American traders met with the Ojibwe and Ottawa people there. Many people on the island were descendants of French settlers and Métis people. French was the main language spoken.

After being freed, Jean and Marie-Jeanne Bonga got married on June 25, 1794. They stayed on Mackinac Island and opened the first hotel there. Jean Bonga died in 1795.

Pierre Bonga grew up on Mackinac Island. He learned to speak English and Ojibwe. He also became very good at trapping animals and scouting. The Ojibwe people called him Makadewiiyas, which means "black-skinned."

Working in the Fur Trade

Pierre Bonga started working in the fur trade. First, he worked for the North West Company, which was based in Canada. Later, he joined the American Fur Company, owned by John Jacob Astor. He also worked for other companies in the area.

In 1802, Pierre was working with the North West Company. He was with Alexander Henry the younger near the Red River of the North.

Pierre Bonga passed away in 1831 in what is now Minnesota. His children received his belongings and property.

Pierre Bonga's Family

Pierre Bonga had several children. Historians say his children included:

• Marguerite Bonga Fahlstrom (born around 1797-1798, died 1880). She married Jacob Fahlstrom in 1823.
• Stephen Bonga (born June 1799, died 1889). He married a woman named Susan.
• George Bonga (born around 1802, died 1884). He married two Ojibwe women.

The ethnologist Henry Schoolcraft met the Bonga family in 1820. He wrote that the children looked more African than Native American. Stephen Bonga later joked that he was the "first white child" born in Wisconsin. This was because the Ojibwe people called all non-Native Americans "white."

Pierre Bonga's Legacy

Pierre Bonga's sons, Stephen and George, became very famous. They were known as great interpreters and guides in the fur trade. Stephen Bonga even guided the American artist Eastman Johnson. Stephen helped Johnson meet Ojibwe people. This allowed Johnson to paint detailed pictures of them.