''Ozaawindib'' ("Yellow Head" in English, recorded variously as Oza Windib, O-zaw-wen-dib, O-zaw-wan-dib, Ozawondib, etc.) (

Ojibwe The Ojibwe (; Ojibwe writing systems#Ojibwe syllabics, syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the Great Plains, n ...

) was an early 19th century (

fl. ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...

1797-1832) warrior. Ozaawindib, who was born male, at times wore attire more typically associated with women. Ozaawindib had several husbands and was considered in a number of ways to be

gender-nonconforming Gender nonconformity or gender variance is gender expression by an individual whose behavior, mannerisms, and/or appearance does not match masculine or feminine gender norms. A person can be gender-nonconforming regardless of their gender identit ...

.''Captivity'', p. 89

Biography

Ozaawindib was likely born in the mid to late seventeen hundreds. Ozaawindib's father was ''Wiishkobak'' ("Sweet" or "''Le Sucre''", recorded as "Wesh-ko-bug"), a chief of the Leech Lake Pillagers.''Letters'', 2:241 By 1800, the Pillagers, including Ozaawindib, lived on Gaa-Miskwaawaakokaag near

Leech Lake Leech Lake (translated from the Ojibwe language ''Gaa-zagaskwaajimekaag'': Lake abundant with bloodsuckers) is a lake located in north central Minnesota, United States. It is southeast of Bemidji, Minnesota, Bemidji, located mainly within the L ...

- terrain earlier inhabited by the

Dakota people The Dakota (pronounced , or ) are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribe (Native American), tribe and First Nations in Canada, First Nations band government in North America. They compose two of the three main subcultur ...

, who engaged in warfare with migrating Ojibwe. John Tanner described ''Ozaawindib'' status as an in words: "This man was one of those who make themselves women, and are called women by the Indians." When Tanner encamped on the

Red River of the North The Red River (), also called the Red River of the North () to differentiate it from the Red River of the South, Red River in the south of the continent, is a river in the north-central United States and central Canada. Originating at the confl ...

around 1800, he reports that he was the subject of interest of Ozaawindib, who at that time was about 50 years old and already had several husbands. Tanner reported that after rejecting repeated advances by Ozaawindib, Ozaawindib was still determined to win Tanner's heart. Ozaawindib disappeared for a few days and returned to camp with much-needed fresh meat. However, even after gifting him with meat, Tanner still rejected Ozaawindib. Finally accepting that the courtship had failed, Ozaawindib became the third wife of Chief ''Wenji-dotaagan''. Alexander Henry reported from his Pembina Post in 1797 that when Ozaawindib was drunk, "he was not merely a nuisance but a bothersome man." By 1800, Ozaawindib and Wenji-dotaagan were listed by Henry as part of his crew, with Henry recalling Ozawiindib as having been "the best runner among the Saulteurs jibwe, famous for a heroic feat during a fight with the Dakota. In June 1832, Ozaawindib and another Ojibwe from Gaa-Miskwaawaakokaag were traveling to the fort at

Sault Ste. Marie Sault Ste. Marie may refer to: People * Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, a Native American tribe in Michigan Places * Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada ** Sault Ste. Marie (federal electoral district), a Canadian federal electora ...

to inform the

Indian agent In United States history, an Indian agent was an individual authorized to interact with American Indian tribes on behalf of the U.S. government. Agents established in Nonintercourse Act of 1793 The federal regulation of Indian affairs in the Un ...

Henry Schoolcraft Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (March 28, 1793 – December 10, 1864) was an American geographer, geologist, and ethnologist, noted for his early studies of Native American cultures, as well as for his 1832 expedition to the source of the Mississippi ...

, about a war party from Leech Lake, departing to pursue the Dakota. They met with Schoolcraft, accompanied by an expedition of men, near Fond du Lac. Schoolcraft convinced Ozaawindib to serve as his guide back to Gaa-Miskwaawaakokaag. Ozaawindib guided Schoolcraft and his men to Gaa-Miskwaawaakokaag and then to Omashkoozo-Zaaga’igan (Elk-Lake), renamed by Schoolcraft to

Lake Itasca Lake Itasca ( ) is a small glacial lake, approximately in area. It is located in Itasca State Park, in south-eastern Clearwater County, in the Headwaters area of north-central Minnesota, and is notable for being the headwater of the Mississip ...

. After visiting the source of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

, the expedition returned to the Ojibwe village on Gaa-Miskwaawaakokaag. On July 16th, 1832, Schoolcraft called a formal council, where he presented Ozaawindib with a medal. According to Schoolcraft, there was no '' ogimaa'' (hereditary chief) present in the village, but Ozaawindib was “the principal man in the band.” Schoolcraft did not mention the ''aayaakwe'' status or any gender nonconformity from Ozaawindib.

Legacy

Ozaawindib is remembered in place names such as

Lake Plantagenet Lake Plantagenet is a lake in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The name of the lake commemorates the House of Plantagenet. Its name in the Ojibwe language is ''Ozaawindibe-zaaga'igan'' (Yellow-head Lake), named after Ozaawindib, an Ojibwe who guide ...

(''Ozaawindibe-zaaga'igan'') and

Schoolcraft River The Schoolcraft River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 30 mi (48 km) long, in northern Minnesota in the United States. Although short, it is considered as the first major tributary of the Mississippi, since it is ...

(''Ozaawindibe-ziibi'') in the

Anishinaabe language Ojibwe ( ), also known as Ojibwa ( ), Ojibway, Otchipwe,R. R. Bishop Baraga, 1878''A Theoretical and Practical Grammar of the Otchipwe Language''/ref> Ojibwemowin, or Anishinaabemowin, is an indigenous language of North America of the Algon ...

, and as Yellow Head Point of

in English.

Explanatory notes

References

Bibliography

* Catlin, George. (1841) ''Letters and notes on the Manners, Customs and Condition of the Indians of North America, 1832-39.'' London: Tosswill and Myers. * Coues, Elliott, ed. (1897) ''New Light on the Early History of the Greater Northwest: The Manuscript Journals of Alexander Henry and of David Thompson''. New York: Francis P. Harper. * Gilfillan, J. A. (1893) ''Manuscripts of Rev. J. A. Gilfillan.'' St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press. * James, Edwin, ed. (1830) ''Captivity of John Tanner''. New York. * Schooolcraft, Henry Rowe. (1834) ''Narrative of an Expedition Through the Upper Mississippi to Itasca Lake: The Actual Source of This River''. New York: Harper & Brothers. * —————, (1851, reprint 1975) ''Personal Memoirs Of A Residence Of Thirty Years With The Indian Tribes On The American Frontiers''. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo and Co., reprint New York: Arno Press * Warren, William W. (1885, reprint 1984) ''History of the Ojibway People''. St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ozaawindib 18th-century births 19th-century deaths American Ojibwe people People from pre-statehood Minnesota People from pre-statehood Wisconsin Two-spirit people