Archaeological evidence indicates men lived in this area before the time of Christ. Chippewa Indians settled here sometime before 1790, and their village, Kechewandaugoning, is said to mean "Big Salt Lick." This was the birthplace of Okemos and the summer residence of Wasso, two of Michigan's best known Indian chiefs. About 1817, Henry Bolieu, a trader and the first white settler, built a cabin here on the Shiawassee River. When an Indian reservation was created in 1819, Peter Whitmore Knaggs built a trading post here, which he maintained for several years. Later, a relative, John Knaggs, operated a store and tavern at the same site until 1839. A bridge was first built here in 1838. In 1850 the reservation was opened to settlement, and a dam, the remains of which can be seen, was built in 1856.