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Fort Wayne in Allen County, Indiana — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
 

First Americans

 
 
First Americans Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., December 30, 2008
1. First Americans Marker
Inscription. The confluence area of the Three Rivers was known to the native people since as early as the end of the last Ice Age, more than 10,000 years ago. As the glaciers melted and receded, they paused here creating a high point in the topography of the land. Early native people followed the edge of the glacier taking advantage of the food sources it provided, such as vegetation and wild game. The St. Mary's and St. Joseph Rivers join a few hundred yards east of this point and form the Maumee River that flows east to Lake Erie. The waters west of this high ground flow into the Wabash River and eventually to the Gulf of Mexico. Native Americans first settled in the area in the late 1600s near the Maumee-Wabash portage, the headwaters of the Maumee River. The French were the first Europeans to enter this area in the late 1600s. Because of the high ground, a land portage or carrying place was necessary to take advantage of the natural water passage from the Maumee to the Wabash. It was the shortest water route between the Great Lakes and the Gulf of Mexico. During seasons of heavy rains, this area was inundated with floodwaters. One of the first recorded floods here occurred in 1790. However, the Native Americans told of the great floods their people had experienced in prior years. Floods, such as the ones of 1790 and 1982, demonstrate why development
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of permanent settlements in the flood plain is unwise. Headwaters Park is the result of the lesson taught by the first Americans to settle here over 200 years ago.
 
Erected by City of Fort Wayne and Superior Essex.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Colonial EraDisastersNative AmericansNatural FeaturesSettlements & SettlersWaterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1790.
 
Location. 41° 5.102′ N, 85° 8.329′ W. Marker is in Fort Wayne, Indiana, in Allen County. Marker is one of a series that ring the Great Meadow in Headwaters Park, 333 S. Clinton Street. This marker is about 100 feet east of Clinton Street and about 20 feet SE of the Fountain Plaza. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Fort Wayne IN 46802, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. The Fur Traders and the Military at Fort Wayne (within shouting distance of this marker); Headwaters Park (within shouting distance of this marker); Miami Legend of the Sandhill Crane (within shouting distance of this marker); Flood Retention Walls (within shouting distance of this marker); Early Effort To Build A Park (within shouting distance of this marker); Little Turtle
First Americans Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Craig Doda, May 1, 2022
2. First Americans Marker
(within shouting distance of this marker); Early Masonic Lodge (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); a different marker also named Headwaters Park (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Fort Wayne.
 
First Americans Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Joel Seewald, July 22, 2023
3. First Americans Marker
Great Meadow in Headwaters Park image. Click for full size.
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., December 30, 2008
4. Great Meadow in Headwaters Park
Several markers along path circling the Great Meadow, looking north with Clinton Street on the extreme left and the Hamilton Women Plaza on extreme distant right of photo. Fountain Plaza area is in right foreground.
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on August 31, 2023. It was originally submitted on March 15, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 1,966 times since then and 16 times this year. Photos:   1. submitted on March 15, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.   2. submitted on May 3, 2022, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio.   3. submitted on August 21, 2023, by Joel Seewald of Madison Heights, Michigan.   4. submitted on March 15, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 19, 2024