The Mohawk Major John Norton (Teyoninhokovrawen) played a prominent role in the War of 1812, leading Iroquois (Haudenosaunee) warriors from Grand River into battle against American invaders at Queenston Heights, Stoney Creek, and Chippawa.
Norton was born of a Cherokee father and a Scottish mother, in the early 1760s. His father was taken as a boy by British soldiers when his hometown of Keowee was destroyed by the British. It seems that Norton's...
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The Mohawk Major John Norton (Teyoninhokovrawen) played a prominent role in the War of 1812, leading Iroquois (Haudenosaunee) warriors from Grand River into battle against American invaders at Queenston Heights, Stoney Creek, and Chippawa.
Norton was born of a Cherokee father and a Scottish mother, in the early 1760s. His father was taken as a boy by British soldiers when his hometown of Keowee was destroyed by the British. It seems that Norton's father eventually joined the British Army and moved to Scotland, where he married. John Norton was likely educated in Scotland. He served as an apprenticeship as a printer, but ran away to join the army. He was stationed in Ireland before being relocated to Lower Canada in 1785.
While with his regiment at Niagara (Upper Canada) in 1787, he deserted the army. For a time, Norton taught at Tyendinaga on the Bay of Quinte, west of Kingston, Ontario. In 1791 he traveled through the Ohio region as a trader and established many contacts. During this...
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