Ignace Tonené

Ignace Tonené (1840 or 1841 15 March 1916), also known as Nias or, by his Ojibwe name , was a Teme-Augama Anishnabai chief, fur trader, and gold prospector in Upper Canada. was most commonly known by his French name, Ignace Tonené, that often was shortened to Nias. He was a prominent employee of the Hudson's Bay Company.

Tonené was the elected deputy chief of his community before being the lead chief and later, the life chief. In his role as deputy, he negotiated with the Canadian federal government and the Ontario provincial government, advocating for his community to receive annual financial support from both. He negotiated in both English and French, as well as native languages. His attempts to secure land reserves for his community were thwarted by the Ontario premier, Oliver Mowat.

In 1906, his successful prospecting triggered a gold rush. One of his claims was stolen from Tonené by white Canadian prospectors. He was the grandson of Temagami chief White Bear . In 1878, Tonené became the head chief. In his separate negotiations, Tonené advocated for redress and support for his people.

During a speech in January 1889, Tonené warned his community: "The white men were coming closer and closer every year and the deer and furs were becoming scarcer and scarcer... so that in a few years more Indians could not live by hunting alone."

In 1889, after Oliver Mowat's refusal to create the reserve, and as his chiefdom ended, Tonené moved his family to land between Lake Opasatica and Lake Dasserat near Abitibi, Quebec. In 1889, he travelled to Bear Island to meet Indian agent Thomas Walton and to negotiate for seeds and farming equipment for his community. Tonené hunted and trapped to feed his family and, motivated by the recent silver discovery at Cobalt, Ontario, The Tonené Old Indian Mining Company issued a prospectus just prior to the start of World War I, but sources do not indicate whether Tonené benefited from the company. The lake is south of Bear Lake and north of Larder Lake,