Elizabeth Brant, commonly known as Elizabeth Kerr after her marriage to

William Johnson Kerr William Johnson Kerr (1787 – April 23, 1845) was a political figure in Upper Canada. He was born in 1787, the son of Robert Kerr and grandson of Sir William Johnson. He was a captain in the Indian Department and with John Brant and John ...

, was a

Clan Mother A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clans may claim descent from founding member or apical ancestor. Clans, in indigenous societies, tend to be endogamous, meani ...

of the

Six Nations of the Grand River Six Nations (or Six Nations of the Grand River, french: Réserve des Six Nations, see, Ye:i’ Níónöëdzage:h) is demographically the largest First Nations reserve in Canada. As of the end of 2017, it has a total of 27,276 members, 12,848 of ...

. She was the daughter of Catharine Brant and

Joseph Brant Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant (March 1743 – November 24, 1807) was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York, who was closely associated with Great Britain during and after the American Revolution. Perhaps th ...

. In the matrilineal society of the

Haudenosaunee The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...

, Elizabeth Brant inherited her status as a Yakoyaner (Clan Mother) from her mother. Elizabeth Brant married

, the grandson of

Molly Brant Molly Brant ( – April 16, 1796), also known as Mary Brant, Konwatsi'tsiaienni, and Degonwadonti, was a Mohawk leader in British New York and Upper Canada in the era of the American Revolution. Living in the Province of New York, she was the co ...

and

Sir William Johnson Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet of New York ( – 11 July 1774), was a British Army officer and colonial administrator from Ireland. As a young man, Johnson moved to the Province of New York to manage an estate purchased by his uncle, Royal Na ...

. Together they had five children. Elizabeth and William Johnson Kerr were prominent residents of the British colony of

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of t ...

, where they enjoyed substantial wealth and large land holdings. The British consul to New York, James Buchanan, described Elizabeth Brant in 1819 as “a charming, noble-looking Indian girl, dressed partly in the native and partly in the English costume.” Like other members of her family, Elizabeth Brant was an important leader on the Grand River. Her brother John Brant was nominated by their mother Catharine Brant in 1828 as the new Tekarihogen, the most important civil chief of the Mohawk. As John never married, Elizabeth oversaw his household. After John's death in 1832, Catharine Brant nominated Elizabeth's son William Simcoe Kerr as the new Tekarihogen. Following Catharine's own death in 1837, Elizabeth Brant became the leading woman of the Mohawk nation on the Grand River.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brant, Elizabeth 1796 births 1845 deaths British Indian Department Indigenous leaders in Ontario Canadian Mohawk people Native American leaders Pre-Confederation Ontario people