Adam Dollard des Ormeaux

Who was Adam Dollard des Ormeaux?

Adam Dollard des Ormeaux, also known as Adam Daulaut, Daulac, or simply as Dollard des Ormeaux, was a colonist and soldier of New France. As garrison commander, in 1660 he led his companions and native allies from the fort at the town of Ville-Marie, with its population of 600 colonists, to an area up the Ottawa River known as Long Sault. The exact nature or purpose of Dollard's 1660 expedition is uncertain, but it is believed that they intended to ambush a larger force of Iroquois warriors that were rumoured to be approaching from the west to attack the French colonists.

One alternative theory is that Dollard led a group of men into the forest to massacre what he had incorrectly been informed was a group of 16 or 17 Iroquois, with the intention of stealing their furs. According to this story, it turned out the group was considerably larger than he had anticipated. Another version has Dollard hearing the Iroquois are coming down the St. Laurence river so he tries to escape up the Ottawa river and bumps into the Iroquois party.