Complex sentence: Dick Pointer (before 1778--1827) was an American frontier hero and an African slave who was commended for bravery in the defence of Fort Donnally of Greenbrier County, West Virginia from a Shawnee attack in 1778.
Split into simpler sentences: Dick Pointer (before 1778--1827) was an American frontier hero and an African slave. He is best known for his bravery in the defence of Fort Donnally, in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, from a Shawnee attack in 1778.