ABOUT LOGAN FONTENELLE THE OFFICIAL NAMESAKE OF FONTENELLE FOREST Oil painting of Logan Fontenelle Courtesy of Josyln Art Museum The life of Logan Shon-ga-ska (White Horse) Fontenelle was brief, but fascinating. Born in 1825, he was the eldest son of fur trader Lucien Fontenelle and Me-um-ba-ne (Bright Sun), daughter of Omaha Chief Big Elk. Logan was raised and educated in the ways of two very different cultures. As boys, Logan and his younger brother Albert attended a private boarding school near St. Louis. While Lucien was away in the mountains on prolonged fur trading expeditions, the Fontenelle children often stayed with the Omaha tribe. When Logan was just 16 years of age, he signed a contract with the Indian agent Joseph V. Hamilton to serve as an interpreter for the Omaha tribe. For years, historians have debated Logan’s tribal status. Some feel that he replaced Chief Big Elk after his death in 1846. Others argue that Logan was not a chief, but merely gained unusual prominence in the tribe because of his education and influence. Regardless, he was definitely an influential person. In 1855, Logan was killed during the Omaha Tribe’s spring hunt. While in pursuit of an elk herd, the small hunting party was attacked by a band of warring Oglala Sioux along Beaver Creek near Petersburg, in Boone County, Nebraska. The Omahas returned to Bellevue with their fallen leader and buried him beside his father. Logan’s exact gravesite is unknown, but is assumed to be in the general vicinity of this stone marker, erected in his memory in 1926 by the Daughters of the American Revolution. It is officially Logan for whom the Forest is named. Stone monument markers: The Fontenelle Family assumes that family members, including both the father Lucien and the son Logan were buried on land near the original fort. They erected this stone monument in 1926. The inscription reads: “Last chief of the Omaha's was interred near this spot. His influence established friendship between his people and the United States Government. These stones taken from foundation of his home.” This is a second monument erected by the family. These stone monuments can still be found and are located just off History Trail at Fontenelle Forest. Logan Fontenelle Shon ga ska by Charles Plein (1870-1920) This painting was found at the Nebraska Masonic Home in the 1990s and donated to Fontenelle Forest in June 2019. We are currently working on having it restored. Read more about the history of Fontenelle Forest here. .