Nonhelema Hokolesqua (–1786) was an 18th century

Shawnee The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...

leader and sister of

Cornstalk Cornstalk (c. 1720? – November 10, 1777) was a Shawnee leader in the Ohio Country in the 1760s and 1770s. His name in the Shawnee language was Hokoleskwa. Little is known about his early life. He may have been born in the Province of Pennsylv ...

. She was a participant in

Pontiac's War Pontiac's War (also known as Pontiac's Conspiracy or Pontiac's Rebellion) was launched in 1763 by a loose confederation of Native Americans dissatisfied with British rule in the Great Lakes region following the French and Indian War (1754–176 ...

and advocated Shawnee neutrality during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. Following the war, and despite her support for the United States, Nonhelema's village was attacked. Her husband, Shawnee Chief

Moluntha Moluntha, also spelled Molunthe, Melonthe, and Malunthy (d. 1786), was a prominent civil chief of the Shawnee people in the 1780s. He was murdered by a Kentucky soldier at the outset of the Northwest Indian War (1785–1795). Moluntha belonged to ...

, was killed, and Nonhelema was captured. She died later that year. Born in 1718 into the Chalakatha (Chilliothe) division of the Shawnee nation and spent her early youth in Pennsylvania. Her brother

, and her metis mother Katee accompanied her father Okowellos to the Alabama country in 1725. Their family returned to Pennsylvania within five years. In 1734 she married her first husband, a Chalakatha chief. By 1750 Nonhelema was a

chief, having significant influence within the Shawnee settlement in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

known as

Lower Shawneetown Lower Shawneetown, also known as Shannoah or Sonnontio, was an 18th-century Shawnee village located within the Lower Shawneetown Archeological District, near South Portsmouth in Greenup County, Kentucky and Lewis County, Kentucky. The population ...

. Nonhelema had three husbands. The first was a Shawnee man. The third was Shawnee Chief

. She had a son,

Thomas McKee Thomas McKee (c. 1770 – 20 October 1814) was a Canadian soldier and political figure. Biography McKee was born in the Ohio Country around 1770. He was the son of Alexander McKee (c. 1735–1799), an important official in the British Indian ...

, through her relationship with

Indian agent In United States history, an Indian agent was an individual authorized to interact with American Indian tribes on behalf of the government. Background The federal regulation of Indian affairs in the United States first included development of t ...

Colonel

Alexander McKee Alexander McKee ( – 15 January 1799) was an American-born military officer and colonial official in the British Indian Department during the French and Indian War, the American Revolutionary War, and the Northwest Indian War. He achieved the ...

and another son, Captain Butler/Tamanatha, through her relationship with Colonel Richard Butler. Nonhelema, known as a warrior, stood nearly six feet, six inches (198 cm). Some called her "The Grenadier" or "The Grenadier

Squaw The English word ''squaw'' is an ethnic and sexual slur, historically used for Indigenous North American women. Contemporary use of the term, especially by non-Natives, is considered derogatory, misogynist, and racist.King, C. Richard,De/Sc ...

", due to the large height of 18th-century grenadiers. She was present at the

Battle of Bushy Run The Battle of Bushy Run was fought on August 5–6, 1763, in western Pennsylvania, between a British column under the command of Colonel Henry Bouquet and a combined force of Delaware, Shawnee, Mingo, and Huron warriors. This action occurred du ...

in 1763. Nonhelema and Cornstalk supported neutrality when their land became the

Western theater of the American Revolutionary War The Western theater of the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783) was the area of conflict west of the Appalachian Mountains, the region which became the Northwest Territory of the United States as well as what would become the states of Ken ...

. In Summer 1777, Nonhelema warned Americans that parts of the Shawnee nation had traveled to

Fort Detroit Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit or Fort Detroit (1701–1796) was a fort established on the north bank of the Detroit River by the French officer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac and the Italian Alphonse de Tonty in 1701. In the 18th century, Fre ...

to join the British. Despite Cornstalk's 1777 murder at Fort Randolph, Nonhelema continued to support the United States, warning both Fort Randolph and Fort Donnally of impending attacks. She dressed

Phillip Hamman Phillip Hamman was an American soldier in the Revolutionary War of 1775–1783. In 1823 he was ordained preacher of the Friendship Baptist Church of Fackler, Alabama. In 1970 the Tidence Lane chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution ...

and John Pryor as natives so they could go the 160 miles to Fort Donnally to give warning. In retribution, her herds of cattle were destroyed. Nonhelema led her followers to the Coshocton area, near Lenape Chief

White Eyes White Eyes, named ''Koquethagechton'' (c. 1730 – 5 November 1778), was Chief Sachem of the Lenape (Delaware) people in the Ohio Country during the era of the American Revolution. Sometimes known as George White Eyes, or Captain Grey Eyes al. S ...

. In 1780, Nonhelema served as a guide and translator for Augustin de La Balme in his campaign to the Illinois country. In 1785, Nonhelema petitioned Congress for a 1,000-acre grant in Ohio, as compensation for her services during the

. Congress instead granted her a pension of daily rations, and an annual allotment of blankets and clothing. Nonhelema and Moluntha were captured by General

Benjamin Logan Benjamin Logan (May 1, 1743 – December 11, 1802) was an American pioneer, soldier, and politician from Virginia, then Shelby County, Kentucky. As colonel of the Kentucky County, Virginia militia during the American Revolutionary War, he was s ...

in 1786. Moluntha was killed by an American soldier, and Nonhelema was detained at Fort Pitt. While there, she helped compile a dictionary of Shawnee words. She was later released, but died in December 1786.

Fictional depictions

Nonhelema is the subject of ''Warrior Woman'', a 2003 novel authored by James Alexander Thom and Dark Rain Thom. She is portrayed by

Karina Lombard Karina Lombard is a Tahitian-born American actress. She appeared as Isabel Two in ''Legends of the Fall'', as chief Nonhelema in ''Timeless'', and as Marina Ferrer in the first season of ''The L Word''. She has also appeared in the films '' Wid ...

in the November 2016 episode "Stranded" of the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

TV series '' Timeless''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nonhelema 18th-century women rulers Female Native American leaders Native Americans in the American Revolution Native American people of the Indian Wars Native American women in warfare Shawnee people Women in the American Revolution 1720s births 1786 deaths Year of birth uncertain 18th-century Native American women Native American people from Pennsylvania