OGONTZ (OGANTZ) was the leader of a band of Ottawa Indians encamped near the mouth of the CUYAHOGA RIVER during the first few years of Cleveland's settlement. The Ottawas usually spent the winter months on the west side of the river, migrating in the spring to the Sandusky area. Ogontz, although not known for his friendliness, was nonetheless tolerant of the white settlers and encouraged trade with them. As white settlement increased in the first years of the 1800s, the Ottawas resettled further west, mainly in the Sandusky area. Ogontz, by white accounts, was last seen there in 1811.
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