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Netawatwees | |
|---|---|
| Netahutquemaled, Netodwehement, or Netautwhalemund | |
| Lenape leader | |
| Succeeded by | White Eyes |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1686 ProbablyDelaware River valley |
| Died | 1776 |
| Children | SonBemino (John Killbuck Sr.), grandsonGelelemend (John Killbuck Jr.) |
Netawatwees orKing Newcomer (c. 1686–1776,Lenape) was Sachem (principal Chief) and spiritual leader of theDelaware. His name, meaning "skilled advisor" or "first in council," is spelled in a variety of ways including Netaut Twelement, Na-taut-whale-mund, Neattawatways, Netahutquemaled, and Netodwehement.[1]
During theFrench and Indian War, he escaped some of the hostilities by migrating to the confluence of theTuscarawas andMuskingum rivers, where he was chief ofGekelukpechink village. Later he moved to the village of Coshocton, a center of Lenape settlement on the Tuscarawas. Both these villages were in present-day Ohio. He was among the signatories of the Fort Pitt treaty with Continental/United States forces. He allied with the rebels in the hope of gaining an all-Native American state in the new nation.
Netawatwees was probably born in the lowerDelaware River Valley around 1686.[2] He was part of theUnami-speaking Lenape, the southern part of this mid-Atlantic coastal people whose territory extended to the lower Hudson River, western Long Island, and Connecticut. When he was young, he moved west with his family and band to escape encroachment from European-American colonists. In July 1758, he was living in a Delaware settlement at the mouth of Beaver Creek, a tributary of theOhio River below present-dayPittsburgh. Records identify him as "ye great man of theUnami nation."
Netawatwees moved toOhio with other migrant Delaware during theFrench and Indian War (1754–63). He favored alliances with the English in that conflict, which was part of theSeven Years' War between England and France in Europe.[2] He established a village near present-dayCuyahoga Falls.
From there, he moved to theTuscarawas, a tributary of theMuskingum, where he became a chief of the Delaware town calledGekelukpechink, meaning "still water." This town, which became known as Newcomer's Town, was on the north bank of the Tuscarawas. Present-dayNewcomerstown developed west of here.[3]
Although Netawatwees never converted toChristianity, he was influenced by theMoravian missionaries. Infirm in his old age, he was succeeded byWhite Eyes in 1776. In his dying words on October 31, 1776, Netawatwees was said to plead with the Delaware to follow the teachings of the Moravian pastors.[citation needed]
Netawatwees married and he and his wife had a family together. Their sonBemino (John Killbuck Sr.) became a renowned war leader allied with the French during the French and Indian War. His grandson wasGelelemend (1737–1811), or John Killbuck Jr., who was a chief active during theAmerican Revolutionary War.