George Bonga

Biography

George Bonga (August 20, 1802 – 1874) was a fur trader, entrepreneur and interpreter for the U.S. government, who was of Ojibwe and African descent, fluent in French, Ojibwemowin and English. At the age of eighteen, he served as an interpreter for Governor Lewis Cass of Michigan Territory during a treaty council with the Ojibwe at Fond du Lac near present-day Duluth, Minnesota. Bonga worked for the American Fur Company from 1820 to 1839, progressing to the role of clerk or sub-trader working under the head trader William Alexander Aitken.

Explore Wikipedia contributors ↗