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THE LIFE OF HON. RIX ROBBINSON A PIONEER OF
WESTERN MICHIGAN BY GEORGE H. WHITE
He selected a lovely site on the bank of the river at a point from which he could readily penetrate into the remote interior parts of the lower peninsula by means of the Grand river and its numerous long tributaries, navigable for the canoe and the Mackinac boats, as his permanent home. For he had now become so completely weaned from civilized life as to have no desire to return to it. He also selected and married according to the Indian customs, Pee-miss-a-quot-o-quay (flying cloud woman), the daughter of the principal chief of the Pere Marquette Indians, in September, 1821. By her he had one child, now the Rev. John Robinson, an exemplary Methodist missionary among the Ottawa and Chippewa Indians of the state.
She died he married again (the white man's way) another Indian woman "who had been educated in the mission school at Mackinac. Her name was Se-be-quay (river woman); the ceremony was performed by Rev. Leonard Slater, the Baptist missionary at Thomas Station. She was a sister of Na-bwn-na-ge-zhick ("half day" or "part of the day") and granddaughter of
Na-nom-ma-daw-ba, the head chief of the Grand river Indians at the mouth. By her he had no children.
'He established other posts at Flat river, at Muskegon and up the Kalamazoo a few miles from its mouth. His firmness and decision, his absolute fairness of dealing, his knowledge of their character, and his remarkable knowledge of their language, his acquaintance with their traditions, customs and unwritten laws, his truthfulness, and his taking to himself an Indian wife resulted in giving him a very great influence among that people.
Michigan
Page 13
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