Colonel John Francis Hamtramck

John Francis Hamtramck, a native of Canada born in 1756, dedicated his life to the new American nation. He fought in the American Revolution and distinguished himself during and after the war fighting both Indian and British forces. In 1787 he became commander of Post Vincennes in the Illinois Territory, where Major Hamtramck was instrumental in negotiating a peace treaty with area Indians. In 1793 he was named lieutenant colonel in the forces led by General Anthony Wayne, and the next year he was cited for bravery in Wayne's decisive victory at the Battle of Fallen Timbers. In 1796, newly appointed a colonel, he was given command of the fort at Detroit, which had previously been in British hands, and except for two years he remained there until his death in 1803. In 1798, one of the four townships in Wayne County was named for him.

Hamtramck, Michigan · United States