William M'Intosh (fur trader) facts for kids

William M'Intosh (around 1760 – July 1832) was an important person in early American history. His last name is sometimes spelled "McIntosh." He was a fur trader, a treasurer for the Indiana Territory (when William Henry Harrison was governor), and a successful real estate owner.

He became well-known because of a big case in the Supreme Court of the United States called Johnson v. M'Intosh in 1823. He also owned a huge amount of land along the Wabash River. William M'Intosh was once good friends with William Henry Harrison. But their friendship ended, and Harrison even sued him. M'Intosh had to pay Harrison a lot of money after Harrison won the lawsuit.

Early Life and Moves

William M'Intosh was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, around 1760. He moved to Canada, and then in 1785, he came to Vincennes, Indiana. In Vincennes, he started working as a fur trader. He traded furs in the Illinois country, especially along the Wabash River.

Around 1815-1820, he moved to some land he owned. This land was on the Illinois side of the Wabash River. It was close to where Mount Carmel, Illinois is today. People think he lived near where the Grand Rapids Dam was built much later. Thomas S. Hinde, who helped start Mount Carmel, later bought this land from M'Intosh.

A Fur Trader and Land Owner

M'Intosh worked as a fur trader in the Northwest Territory. He was connected with a fur trading company owned by John Askin in Detroit. His main home was in Vincennes, Indiana.

M'Intosh became known for owning a lot of land. He claimed to own 11,560 acres (that's over 18 square miles!) around the Wabash River.

Family Life

William M'Intosh lived with a woman named Lydia. She had been a slave before. They had to work to protect Lydia's freedom when some people tried to claim she wasn't free. William and Lydia had two daughters and one son together.

The Famous Court Case: Johnson v. M'Intosh

Johnson v. M'Intosh (1823) is a very important case from the Supreme Court of the United States. This case decided that regular people could not buy land directly from Native Americans. It said that only the United States government could deal with land purchases from tribes.

Chief Justice John Marshall wrote the decision for the court. He was a good friend of Thomas S. Hinde, who later bought a big part of the land involved in this case.

Here's what happened: M'Intosh had received his land from the United States government. But another family, the Johnsons, said they owned the land. They had inherited it from an ancestor who bought it directly from the Piankeshaw Native American tribe. The Supreme Court decided that the Johnson family's purchase was not valid. This was because after the United States became a country, only the government had the right to buy land from Native Americans. So, M'Intosh won the case. This decision created something called the "discovery doctrine," which shaped how land was claimed in America.

Later Years

William M'Intosh passed away in July 1832. The Vincennes Gazette newspaper reported his death on July 14, 1832. It said he died at the Grand Rapids of the Wabash. The newspaper also mentioned that he was from Scotland and had moved to America when he was young.