Jean François Hamtramck

Who was Jean François Hamtramck?

Jean-François Hamtramck was a French-Canadian from Quebec who joined the Continental Army and became a decorated officer in the American Revolutionary War.

After the war he continued in the service and, in 1787, he was made commander of Vincennes in the Illinois Country, where he negotiated a peace treaty with local Native American tribes.

In Autumn of 1790, Major Hamtramck was ordered to move against Indian villages on the Wabash, Vermilion, and Eel rivers to create a distraction from the campaign led by General Josiah Harmar. The Hamtramck expedition consisted of his own garrison, with militia from the local French residents and Kentucky. They found only one empty village, and lacked the supplies to reach more villages with the full force. Hamtramck returned to Vincennes, learning later that a force of 600 warriors from the Wabash Confederacy had assembled to fight—nearly double his own force. Hamtramck considered the Wabash force evidence that his primary mission had been accomplished.

In 1793, Hamtramck was named lieutenant colonel in the Legion of the United States led by General Anthony Wayne to secure the Northwest Territory. Hamtramck was cited for bravery at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794. Hamtramck, now a full colonel, was appointed the first commandant of Fort Wayne, where he co-owned a large farm with his friend, William Wells. In 1796, he led the garrison to secure Fort Maumee. He was then transferred to Fort Lernoult and the settlement of Detroit for the United States on July 11, 1796.