Chief Okemos
Okemos was born in Shiawassee County around 1775. He distinguished himself at the Battle of Sandusky and won the respect of the Chippewa people. Chief Okemos later signed several treaties on behalf of the Chippewa, including the 1819 Treaty of Saginaw. during the 1830s and 1840s led a band of Indians, most likely Chippewa, Ottawa, Potawatomi people, who lived south of here along the Red Cedar River. The band traded with white settlers in the area, including Freeman Bray, who founded the village of Hamilton in 1840. By 1850 the band had dispersed as some were forced by the U.S. Government to live on reservations. Chief Okeoms eventually relocated to Shimicon, an Indian settlement in Ionia County. He died near DeWitt in 1858.