Little Turtle - Legacy and Honors

Legacy and Honors

• Little Turtle was honored with a military-style funeral at Fort Wayne. He was buried in his ancestral burial ground near Spy Run.

In 1912 his grave was accidentally disturbed during a construction excavation. The sword and other artifacts buried with him were placed with the Allen County-Fort Wayne Historical Society, and his remains were reinterred. The site had been accidentally discovered by a homebuilder on Lawton Place in Fort Wayne, and the plans for the house were altered.

• A small memorial stone was placed there, which reads:

This site honors the great Chief of the Miamis, Meshekinoqua, "The Little Turtle," son of the great Chief Acquenacque. He is held in the hearts of his people, allies, and foes with the greatest of honor and respect for his courageous valor and peacemaking.

• In 1959, the site was purchased by the Smeltzly sisters of Fort Wayne, to hold up Little Turtle's peacemaking efforts "as an example to future generations." They donated the land to the city as a public park "dedicated to the children of America." In 1994, the memorial was improved with additional markers and a trust established for its maintenance.