After the American Revolution concluded
in 1783, Girty had no recourse but to relocate
to Detroit, where he married a former captive
and raised a family. Over the next 10 years, he
continued venting his hatred of Americans by
ceaselessly working to bind Indian tribes of
the Old Northwest into a firm alliance against
the United States. Being the only white man
allowed at intertribal conferences, he spoke
out in favor of unity and frontier warfare in an
attempt to keep white settlers below the Ohio
River. When peace talks with the American
government invariably failed, no doubt thanks
to Girty’s interference, he was always willing
to take up arms. Girty fought with the Miami
Chief Little Turtleat the disastrous defeat of
Gen. Arthur St. Clair in 1791 and is credited
with ordering the death of captured Gen.
Richard Butler, the highest-ranking American
officer to die at the hands of Native Ameri-
cans. Three years later Girty supported the
Shawnee chief Blue Jacket in a confrontation
with Gen. Anthony Wayne at Fallen Timbers,
where the Indians were badly beaten. In the
wake of this disaster, Girty watched in disbe-
lief as British-controlled Fort Miami slammed
its gates in the face of his retreating allies.
By the terms of the Treaty of Greenville in
1795, Detroit passed over to the United
States, and Girty hurriedly relocated to
Amherstburg, Ontario. He spent the next two
decades performing his usual Indian Depart-
ment work, although he grew increasingly
melancholy and alcoholic. In the fall of 1813
the retreat of British Gen. Henry Procter
from Amherstburg forced the aged Girty, now
lame and nearly blind, to abandon his home
and seek shelter with the Grand River Mo-
hawks. He returned home in 1815, old, worn-
out, but still thoroughly despised by his fellow
Americans. Girty died at Amherstburg on Feb-
ruary 18, 1818, and was buried there with full
military honors. He was a brutal man who
lived and fought in a brutal age, but he was
apparently less savage than his portrayal in
American history suggests.See also
Brant, Joseph; Little TurtleBibliography
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Frontier in America, 1755–1830.” Canadian Historic
Sites,no. 14 (1975): 5–125. Beers, Paul B. “Simon
Girty: Beast in Human Form.” American History Il-
lustrated3, no. 8 (1968): 20–24; Clifton, James, ed.
Being and Becoming Indian: Biographical Studies
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curacy of the Reputation of Simon Girty in American
History.” Pittsburgh History77, no. 1 (1994): 30–42;
Frederic, Harold. The Damnation of Simon Girty.
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“Simon Girty: Degeneration Through Violence.” Un-
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lutionary Frontier, 1763–1783.New York: Holt,
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Wilderness: The True Story of Simon Girty, the
Renegade. Lancaster, PA: 4 Winds, 1989; Waller,
George M.The American Revolution in the West.
Chicago: Nelson-Hall, 1976.GIRTY, SIMON