<P> Comte de la Galissoniere, the governor of Canada, ordered Pierre Joseph Céloron de Blainville to strengthen the French claim on the Ohio Valley . Céloron carried out his "lead plate expedition" in the summer of 1749 . Céloron set out from Montreal on June 15, 1749, in a flotilla consisting of large boats and canoes . The expedition included 216 French and Canadians and 55 Native Americans . In Shannoah at the Scioto River's mouth, he again encountered English traders . Céloron demanded that the English leave, but most refused . </P> <P> The origin of the name "Kentucky" is not known with any certainty . One suggestion is that it is derived from an Iroquois name meaning "land of tomorrow". Native America: A State - by - State Historical Encyclopedia states that "Various authors have offered a number of opinions concerning the word's meaning: the Iroquois word "kentake" meaning "meadow land," the Wyandotte (or perhaps Cherokee or Iroquois) word "ken - tah - the" meaning "land of tomorrow," the Algonquian term "kin - athiki" referring to a river bottom, a Shawnee word meaning "at the head of a river," or an Indian word meaning land of "cane and turkeys ." However, the name does not mean "dark and bloody ground" in any language ." There were many variations of the word during early pioneer times, including Kentucke (as in The Discovery, Settlement and Present State of Kentucke), Kaintuckee and Cantuckey . </P> <P> The state's official nickname is the "Bluegrass State," which is derived from the famed species of grass grown in central Kentucky, Bluegrass, or Poa . "The nickname also recognizes the role that the Bluegrass region has played in Kentucky's economy and history ." </P> <P> Eskippakithiki, aka Indian Old Fields, was Kentucky's last surviving Shawnee village . It was located in present - day Clark County . A 1736 French census numbers Eskippakithiki's population at two hundred families . Blackhoof was born here . </P>

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