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YALE
UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

HISTORY

STATE OF OHIO

BY

JAMES W- TAYLOR.

FIRST PERIOD.

1650-1787.

CINCINNATI:
H. W. DERBY & CO., PUBLISHERS.
SANDUSKY:
C. L. DERBY & CO.
1854.

Entered according to act of Congress, in tho year 1854j by
H. W. Derby & Co.,
In the Clerk's office ofthe District Court of the United States for the District
of Ohio.

FKANKLIN PRINTING 00.
Columbus, Ohio,

PREFACE.

The History of that region of North America,
which constitutes the State of Ohio, may properly
be divided into four epochs.
The First Period, or the ante-territorial epoch,
engrosses the present volume. Commencing with
the obscure memorials and traditions of the early
Indian tribes, which are preserved in the faithful
relations of Jesuit adventure upon the inland lakes
and rivers of the continent — tracing the rise and
progress of the fearful struggle for the Ohio and St.
Lawrence valleys, between those European powers,
that the lapse of a century finds in zealous alliance
and with apprehensive gaze turned in an opposite
direction — dweUing, once more, upon fragmentary
relics of that Indian occupation in Ohio, which
the first European settlers found in the Wyandot,
Delaware, Ottawa' and Shawanese successors of the
almost mythical Eries of the seventeenth century —
repeating the simple chronicles of Moravian zeal and
courage, which, not unfruitful of beneficent influence
upon the children of the forest, are also recognized
by an intelligent reader to have been an agency
(3)

IV PREFACE.
extremely salutary and effective, in the protection
of an exposed frontier during the disastrous hours of
the American Revolution — narrating the incidental
effect of that great struggle upon the rude commu
nities of savage life, which, at remote intervals, were
famUiar to the trader and missionary between Lake
Erie and the Ohio ; and, finally, preserving, with the
fullness of detaU which authenticity demands, those
early monuments of continental legislation, that
have proved, in their fuller development, the deep
and broad foundations of the Commonwealth of Ohio,
the foUowing pages, as the author needs not to be
reminded by others, hardly emerge from those mists
of time, which distinguish an antiquarian era from
the more sharply defined annals of our subsequent
history. The dates ofthe title-page— 1650-1787—
are made conspicuous, as an epitome of the author's
design, which perhaps may be deemed more curious
than useful. Its execution was certainly undertaken
— at first without any view of permanent publica
tion — mainly upon that sort of impulse, so admirably
illustrated by Walter Scott, in his delineation of
the Antiquary. The subsequent periods of Ohio
history, according to the classification above referred
to, are as foUows : The Second Period, 1787-1802,
may be denominated the Territorial; the Third, 1802
-1815, that of State Organization ; and the Fourth,
1815-1851, that of State Development, until, with

PKEFAOB.

the adoption of the Constitution of the latter year,
our Ohio has reached a career of Progress — a period
when the heterogeneous elements of her population
may be expected to mature into a type of character,
and the refinements of society and culture wUl be
come prevalent.
The first is unUke the subsequent periods in sev
eral particulars, that ha\e not been without their
influence upon the style and arrangement of the
present volume. Of course, prior to 1787, the mate
rials existed only in libraries — in books or manu
scripts — whUe, since that date, much which would
arrest the attention and investigation of a historical
student, rests in the memory of ihe living. Besides,
the authorities for whatever relates to Ohio from
1650 to 1787, are not numerous, and consist of rare
volumes long since out of print. The details con
tained in this work, have been wrested, therefore,
from the dead hand — mort gage — of old books, and
because these were inaccessible to most readers, and
unlikely to transpire in new editions, I have not
restrained myself from ample quotations. In doing
so, it has been an unavoidable result, that every
variety of style breaks the currents of the following
chapters ; but I have resisted the disposition to
paraphrase, whenever it seemed that the language of
the witness was in any respect desirable, either for
the statement or elucidation of a doubt, or as an

vi PREFACE.
iUustration of men or times. If the freedom and
fullness of citation from such unique publications as
the Journal of Rogers, James Smith's story of Indian
captivity, or the truthful and quaint narratives of
the Moravians, Heckewelder and Loskiel, is irksome
to the reader, the only apology here offered, or which
the nature of the case admits, is, that the practice
in question was adopted from a sentiment entirely
opposite to the vanity of authorship. It was de
liberately adopted for the sake of authenticity,
although sacrificing, in a considerable degree, the
unity of the volume.
In respect to Indian orthography, also, the indul
gence of the reader is entreated. The names of
places and personages are written with infinite
variety, and I have preferred, especially when a
quotation was in hand, to forbear any effort to
conform the orthography in these instances to any
other than the writers' own standard. The names
of " Coshocton," stUl applied to the Forks of the
Muskingum, and of " Bockengehelas," the noted
war-chief of the Delawares, may be particularly
mentioned, as illustrations of the confusion of tongues
which pervade aboriginal nomenclature.
Indeed, these pages aim at little more than a
compUation of memorials and traditions, hitherto dis
persed and often inaccessible. The writer, perhaps
from force of habit, has been indisposed to assume a

PREFACE. vii
relation to their contents much different from that
of an Editor. Hereafter, it may be, he may sustain
with more confidence, the independent bearing of
authorship. Meanwhile, the Press of Ohio are urged
to verify or expand the suggestions of this volume,
so far as connected with their respective localities.
The book may thus constitute a nucleus of historical
inquiry, and if so, notwithstanding in many particu
lars it may be convicted of mistake or omission, yet
the aggregate of historical knowledge will probably
be increased.
The Indian, during the period which bounds the
present pubUcation, is of course the central, almost
the exclusive, figure in the scenes described. There
has been no attempt to urge any hypothesis upon
his antecedents — no disposition to dogmatize upon
his character or destiny. So far as his personality
has been inseparable from the progress of events, he
has moved into view, but also been suffered to pass
from view without special chaUenge. In Ohio, the
Indian was a temporary sojourner, — not linked so
inseparably to the soil as the Six Nations to their
" Long House," between Niagara and the Hudson.
But while the tribes who were found in occupation
of Ohio, were comparatively strangers to that region
— having moved thither between 1720 and 1750- —
yet they are so far identified with its plains, forests
and waters, that any inquiry, however cursory or

viii PREFACE.
incidental, into their habits and history, is likely to
become an enthusiasm. The geography of the State
is likewise suggestive of the aboriginal dwellers.
The streams, more than the political subdivisions,
Ulustrate their vanished dialects, as has been beauti
fully expressed in some lines by William J. Sperry,
formerly ofthe Cincinnati Glole^ entitled "A Lament
for the Ancient People," and which, although a di
gression and not historically exact, are here inserted,
as well for their intrinsic merit as from a personal
regard to the writer :
" Sad are fair Muskingum's waters,
Sadly, blue Mahoning raves ;
Tuscarawas' plains are lonely.
Lonely are Hockliocking's waves.
From where headlong Cuyahoga
Thunders down its rooky way,
And the billows of blue Erie
Whiten in Sandusky's bay.
Unto where Potomac rushes,
Arrowy from the mountain side,
And Kanawha's gloomy waters
Mingle with Ohio's tide ;
From the valley of Scioto,
And the Huron sisters three,
To the foaming Susquehanna,
And the leaping Genesee ;
Over hill and plain and valley —
Over river, lake and bay —

PREFACE. IX
On tho water — in tho forest.
Ruled and reigned the Seneca.
But sad are fair Muskingum's waters.
Sadly, blue Mahoning raves ;
Tuscarawas' plains are lonely,
Lonely arc Hockhocking's waves.
By Kanawha dwells the stranger,
Cuyahoga feels the chain.
Stranger ships vex Erie's billows.
Strangers plow Scioto's plain.
And the Iroquois have wasted,
From the hill and plain away ;
On the waters — in the valley,
Reigns no more the Seneca.
Only by the Cattaraugus,
Or by Lake Chautauque's side,
Or among the scanty woodlands,
By the Alleghany's tide —
There, in spots, like sad oases,
Lone amid the sandy plains.
There the Seneca, stiU wasting,
Amid desolation reigns."
Even more total than the disappearance of the
Senecas, is the migration of the remnants of the
Ohio Tribes, who succeeded the New York confed
erates upon the Muskingum, the Scioto and the
Sandusky, and of whom not even a " sad oasis " is
visible, except upon the distant waters of the Kanzas
or Nebraska. This volume leaves the indomitable

PREFACE.

Wyandot, the sagacious Delaware, the flerce Shaw
nee, and the cunning Ottawa as yet unconquered,
although slowly and sternly retreating before the
insolent column of white emigration. Another epoch
witnessed the downfaU of their savage pride, before
the battalions of Wayne : while thenceforth, wholly
unchecked by Indian resistance, swelled within our
borders the rising tide of population, civil structure
and material development. Upon these scenes the
curtain is here unlifted. The task, delicate and re
sponsible in manifold aspects, extends immediately
over the threshold laid by these pages. He will be
fortunate to whom its proper execution shall be
allotted in the contingencies of the future.
To the writings ofthe late James H. Perkins, and
for valuable suggestions personally communicated to
the author by Hon. Ebenezer Lane, Hon. Elijah Hay
ward, Col. John Johnston, Thomas Means, Esq., and
other citizens of the State, an expression of acknowl
edgment is due, and is gratefully tendered.
J. W. T.

COITENTS.

chapter I. th'
The Fate op the Ancient Eries, 13
CHAPTER II.
The Nature and Extent op Iroquois Conquest in the Missis
sippi Valley, 22
CHAPTER III.
Indian Occupation or Ohio in 1750, - - 29
CHAPTER IV.
Lake Erie in the Seventeenth Century, - 41
CHAPTER V.
The French Establish Fort Sandusky— The Enolib-h Explore
the Ohio Valley, 55
CHAPTER VI.
The Ascendancy or France upon the Ohio, - - 69
CHAPTER VII.
A Picture of Ohio One Hundred Years since, SI
CHAPTER VIII.
The Surrender op the Western Posts to England, 115
CHAPTER IX.
Conspiracy op Pontiac, 127
CHAPTER X.
The Expeditions against the Western Tribes under Brad
street AND Bouquet, 140
CHAPTER XI.
Old Mai'S and Indian Trails, - 106
CHAPTER XII.
Submission and Fate op Pontiac, - 166
CHAPTER XIII.
English Negotiations with the Western Tribes — The Claim
TO Kentucky, 178
CHAPTER XIV.
The Moravian Missions on the Muskingum, 186
CHAPTER XV.
The Society op United Brethren, - - 202
CHAPTER XVI.
Dunmoee's Expedition in 1774 — The Story op Logan, 238
ai)

APPENDIX.

261
275

Xll CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XVII.
The Relation op the Western Tribes to the Kbvolutionabt
Contest, CHAPTER XVIII.
Border War op the Revolution, CHAPTER XIX.
The Conquest op Illinois by George Rogers Clark— Indian
Sieges op Fort Laurens, 280
CHAPTER XX.
The Kentucky Campaigns against the Shawanese, 309
CHAPTER XXI.
The Moravian Missions on the Muskingum, prom 1772 to 1782, 328
CHAPTER XXII.
Pennsylvania Campaigns against the Ohio Indians, 374
CHAPTER XXIII.
Subsequent Movements op the Moravian Congregation, 380
CHAPTER XXIV.
Embassies and Negotiations between the United States and
THE Omo Tribes, 412
Treaty of Fort Stanwix in 1784, 425 ; Treaty of Fort Mcintosh in
1785, 438 ; Treaty of Fort Finney in 1786, 442.
CHAPTER XXV.
Colonial Claims to Western Lands, and their Cession to
THE United States, 465
CHAPTER XXVI.
The Settlement op the North-Western Territory — Ordi
nance OP 1787, 493

I. Further Particulars of tlie Eries, Neutrals, and Andastes, 517
11. French Occupation by a Process Verbal, 520
III. The Delaware Villages on the Scioto, 521
IV. The Locality of the Canesadooharie, 521
V. Contemporary Accounts of the Indian Hostilities in 1774, 522
VI. Further Particulars of Connolly's Scheme, ' 525
VII. Incidents in the Life of James Dean, 527
VIII. Netawatwes, and other Delaware Chiefs, 53O
IX. Lewis Wetzell, the Borderer, _ gon
X. Surrender of the Moravian Tract to the United States, ,')39
XI. Bockengahelas, the War-Chief of the Delawares, ' 545
XII. Subsequent Indian Treaties, - - ' ^^n
XIII. Ordinance of 1787, ' tt.55'

HISTORY OF OHIO.

CHAPTER I.
THE FATE OF THE ANCIENT ERIES.
A PERIOD of two centuries prior to 1850, comprises our
knowledge of that region of the American Continent, which
is bounded by Lake Erie on the north, and the Ohio River
on the south ; and even within that brief segment of time,
many statements rest upon vague tradition.
An attempt to ascend beyond 1650, would involve a prof
itless discussion of the probable origin of the Indian race.
We shall decline the inquiry, whether the lost tribes of Israel
yet linger in the aborigines of the American woods; or
whether the latter are an ofF-shoot from the Tartars of Asia ;
or, abandoning the unitary theory of the race, whether the
Creator has not given to the continent of America its peculiar
inhabitants. These are ethnological problems, which are
aside from the purpose of the present volume.
The Ohio of 1650 we assume to have been a forest wilder
ness, principally occupied by a tribe of Indians, called the
Eries, whose villages skirted the shores of the lake so desig
nated. There is some conflict of opinion, whether the Eries were
not confined to the eastern shore of the lake, but the prepon
derance of authority is in favor of their occupation of the
(13)

14 HISTORY OF OHIO.
southern shore. Dewitt Clinton*, in his celebrated Historical
Discourse upon the Indians of North Amerioa, speaks of
" the nation of the Eries or Erigas on the south side of Lake
Erie." ^Louis Hennepin, a Franciscan friar, whose travels
in New France were published in 1698, mentions the return
of the Iroquois to their villages, bringing Erie Indians as
captives '¦'¦from beyond the. lake." Brant, the distinguished
Mohawk chief, in a letter to Timothy Pickering, dated Nov.
20, 1794, alludes to the Eries as " a powerful nation form
erly living -souihward of Buffalo creek." Charlevoix, the
historian of New France, may be cited as an authority that
the nation of Eries lived where the State of Ohio now is.
The recent discovery of ancient earthworks, and two inscrip
tions in the pictographic character, on Cunningham's. Island
(now KeUey's Island, a township of Erie county, Ohio), are
supposed by Schoolcraft to indicate that the archipelago of
islands in the western part of Lake Erie, was one of the
strongholds of the tribe. ^
1) Kelley's Island has an area of about 3000 acres, and is situated ten
miles north of the mouthof Sandusky Bay. It consists of a basis of hor
izontal limestone, of the species common to Lake Erie, rising about fifteen
feet above the water level. The surface, where it is exposed, discloses the
polish created by former diluvial or glacial action — a trait which is so
remarkable on the rocks of the adjoining shores of Sandusky. This is cov
ered with a. fertile limestone soil, and at the earliest period, all, except the
old fields, bore a heavy growth of hard wood timber.
On the south shore of the Island are two crescent-shaped embankments,
apparently intended to inclose and defend villages ; (a third circumvallation
is situated inland.) One has a front of 400 feet, and the other of .614 feet,
on the rocky and precipitous margin of the lake. Within these enclosures
have been found stone axes, pipes, perforators, bone fish hooks, net sinkers,
and fragments of human bones. In the vicinity is a rock, 32 by 21 feet on
the surface, in which a great variety of figures aud devices' are deeply sunk.
The summit of the rock is elevated eleven feet above the water. " It is by
far the most extensive and well-sculptured, and well preserved inscription
of the antiquarian period, ever found in America. Being on an islet sepa

PATE OP THE ANCIENT ERIES. 15
It is generally admitted that the Eries were a member of
the Iroquois family, as distinguished from the Algonquin
tribes. In 165^, the Iroquois, as the confederated Mohawks,
Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas and Senecas were called by
the French, occupied what is now New York and Northern
Pennsylvania ; the Hurons or Wyandots, and a kindred
Neutral Nation, held the peninsula between Lakes Huron,
Erie and Ontario ; the Eries were seated on the southern
shore of Lake Erie ; while the Andastes possessed the val
leys of the Alleghany or Upper Ohio River, — but all were
generically Iroquois, speaking dialects of the same lingual
stock. The Western tribes were singly more powerful than
either of the New York tribes, except perhaps the Senecas ;
but the Five Nations (afterwards increased to Six by the
accession of the Tuscaroras) had formed their celebrated
alliance at least as early as 1605, and, by the strength of
union, become the terror of their less sagacious neighbors.
Before proceeding with our immediate topic — the fortunes
of . the Eries, Hurons and Andastes — we will briefly classify
the other Indian tribes, as they were found by the first dis
coverers of the continent.
rated from the shore, with precipitous sides, it has remained undiscovered
till within late years. It is in the pictographic character of the natives.
Its leading symbols are readily interpreted. The human figures, the pipes,
smoking groups, the presents and other figures, denote tribes, negotiations,
crimes, turmoils, which tell a story of thrilling interest, in which the white
man or European plays a part. There are many subordinate figures which
require study. There are some in which the effects of atmospheric and lake
action have destroyed the connection, and others of an anomalous charac
ter. The whole inscription is manifestly connected with the occupation of
the basin of the lake by the Eries — of the coming of tho Wyandots — of
the final triumph of the Iroquois, and the flight of the people who havo
left their name to the lake." — History, Condition and Prospects of the Indi
an tribes of the United States : by H. iJ. Schoolcraft, LL.D. Illustrated by 8.
Eastman, JJ. S. A. Part second, 86-7.

16 HISTORY OP OHIO.
Except the Iroquois, antiquarians describe all other north
ern tribes as Algonquin, which term, though generic, was
tiie special designation of a nation living on the St. Lawrence
River, where also was the seat of the TJtawawas or Ottowas.
The leading tribe of the Algonquins, however, were the
Lenno Lenapees or Delawares, who were found by the first
colonists about the waters of the Delaware and its tributary
streams, within the present limits of New Jersey and Eastern
Pennsylvania. Their traditions declare them to be the parent
stem whence other Algonquin tribes have sprung — a claim
recognized by the latter, who accord to the ancient Lenapees
the title of Grandfather. The Lenapees, on their part, call
the other Algonquin tribes Children, Grandchildren, Neph
ews, or Younger Brothers ; but they confess the superiority
of the Wyandots and the Five Nations by yielding them the
title of Uncles, while they, in return, call the Lenapees
Nephews, or more frequently Cousins.^
" Except the detached nation of the Tuscaroras, and a few
smaller tribes adhering to them," to quote from the accom
plished historian of Pontiac's Conspiracy, "the Iroquois
family were confined to the region south of the Lakes Erie
and Ontario, and the peninsula east of Lake Huron. They
formed, as it were, an island in the vast expanse of Algon
quin population, extending from Hudson's Bay on the north
to the Carolinas on the south ; from the Atlantic on the east
to the Mississippi and Lake Winnipeg on the west. They
were Algonquins who greeted Jacques Cartier as his ships
ascended the St. Lawrence. The first British colonists found
savages of the same race hunting and fishing along the coasts
and inlets of Virginia ; and it was the daughter of an Algon
quin chief who interceded with her father for the life of the
2) Parkman's Conspiracy of Pontiac, 26.

FATE OP THB ANCIENT ERIES. 17
adventurous Englishman. They were Algonquins who, under
Sassacus the Pequot and Phillip of Mount Hope, waged
deadly war against the Puritans of New England ; who dwelt
at Penacook under the rule of the great magician Passacona-
way, and trembled before the evil spirits of the Crystal Hills ;
and who sang Aves and told their beads in the forest chapel
of Father Rasles by the banks of the Kennebec. They were
Algonquins who, under the great tree at Kensington, made
the covenant of peace with William Penn ; and when the
French Jesuits and far traders explored the Wabash and the
Ohio, they found their valleys tenanted by the same far-
extended race. At the present day, the traveler, perchance,
may find them pitching their bark lodges along the beach at
Mackinaw, spearing fish among the boiling rapids of St.
Marys, or skimming the waves of Lake Superior in their
birch canoes."
Bancroft, in a map of aboriginal America, concurs with
Parkman, but limits the Algonquins to the thirty-sixth degree
of north latitude, and gives four-fifths of the country south
of that parallel to the Mobilian race. The other southem
races were the Cherokees, who were mountaineers, and oc
cupied the upper valley of the Tennessee River, as far west
as Muscle Shoals, and the highlands of Carolina, Georgia and
Alabama, the Switzerland of the south ; the Uchees and
Catawbas, who occupied small areas adjacent to the Chero
kee country on the south and east ; and the Natchez, residing
in scarcely more than four or five villages, of which the
largest was near the site of the city thus called. Bancroft
has a general classification of Dacotah for the numerous tribes
west of the Mississippi, and within the valleys of the Arkan
sas and the Missouri. These distinctions have little other
foundation than language, of which eight radically difierent
1*

18 HISTORY OF OHIO.
varieties are said to have been spoken east of the Missis-
sippi.3 To return to the kindred but hostile Iroquois tribes.
About the middle of the seventeenth century, the Five Na
tions of New York, grown arrogant by fifty years of con
federation, invaded the territory of the Hurons or Wyandots.
The ancient seats of this nation were on the eastern shores
of the lake which now bears their name, and thither the
enemy penetrated, undisturbed by the Neutral Nation, who
occupied the eastern portion of the peninsula adjacent to
Lake Ontario, and probably extended beyond the Niagara
River .^ The Hurons were driven with great slaughter to the
Manitouline islands of the lake. They next occupied the
island of Michillimacinac, thinking its isolated position and
precipitous clifis would prove a shelter. But the enraged
enemy drove them thence. They fled into the territories of
the Odjibwas, in Lake Superior. But even there their ene
mies attempted to follow them, until they were defeated by
the Chippewas, in a battle fought at the foot of the south
cape of its outlet ; at a prominent elevation, which, in allu
sion to this incident, is still called Point Iroquois.
The extinction of the Neutral Nation soon followed, and
then the victorious Iroquois turned against their Erie breth
ren. In the year 1655, using their canoes as scaling ladders,
they stormed the Erie strongholds, leaped down like tigers
among the defenders, and butchered them without mercy.
The greater part of the nation was involved in the massacre,
and the remnant was incorporated with the conquerors, or
with other tribes, to which they fled for refuge.'*
3) History of the United States, vol. iii., p. 235.
4) We accede to what seems the weight of tradition, that the Neutral
Nation were a distinct tribe, and so called from their neutrality in the con
test between the Iroquois and the Hurons ; but Schoolcraft, in speakin"- of

FATE OF THE ANCIENT ERIES. 19
The Andastes shared the same fate, but their resistance
postponed their dispersion until 1672, when their ruin was
also accomplished. It seems likely that a tribe'called by the
Iroquois, Satanas, by the French, Chaouanons, and whom
we suppose to have been the Shawanese, were, about this
period, driven from the valley of the Ohio to the vicinity of
the Mexican Gulf. Thus, at the commencement of the eigh
teenth century, the territoi-y now Ohio was derelict, except
as the indomitable confederates of the North made it a trail
for further hostilities, or roamed its hunting grounds.
Attached to " Baron La Hontan's Voyages and Adven
tures in North America between 1683 and 1694," is a map,
upon which, near the source and mouth of the Sandusky
River, are indices of " savage villages destroyed by ye Iro-
quese." The latter would be the site of Sandusky, or the
vicinity near the outlet of the Bay and River. Parallel with
the southern shore of " Errie or Conti Lake," and apparently
at an average distance of thirty miles, is a line drawn con
necting the Mississippi with Western New York, which,
according to the map, " represents ye way that ye Ulinese
march through a vast tract of ground to make War against
ye Iroquese : The same being ye Passage of ye Iroquese in
their incursions upon ye other Savages, as far as the river
Missisipi." Upon the Maumee River a tribe of "Errie-
ronons " are put down, and in the country south of the source
of the Sandusky river, "Andastognerons " are mentioned,
probably remnants of the Eries and Andastes.^
the Eries, remarks, that " there can be no question, from the early accounts
of the French missionaries, that they were at the head of that singular con
federation of tribes called the Neutral Nation, which extended from the
extreme west to the extreme eastern shores of Lalce Erie, including the
Niagara." 5) The outline of Lake Erie on La Hontan's map is curious enough. It

20 - HISTORY OF OHIO.
This incidental reference to detachments of the Eries and
Andastes, which we presume that La Hontan here makes,
confirms the belief that they were not exterminated by the
war of 1655. Like the conquered Hurons, they were fugi
tives from their villages on the borders of the lake, but it is
quite likely that they became the allies of the formidable
Miamis or Twahtwahs, whose residence was on the Miami of
the Lakes and the Miami of the Ohio. According to the
French missionary authors, cited by Schoolcraft, the Iro
quois fell on the Miamis and Chiotaghicks or Illinois (en
raged, we may suppose, at their friendly reception of the
vanquished Indians) who were encamped together on the
banks of the Maumee River in the year 1680, being twenty-
five years after the final defeat of the Eries. In this attack
they killed thirty and took three hundred prisoners. But
the Illinois and Miamis rallied, and by a dexterous move
ment, got ahead of the retreating Iroquois, waylaid their
path, and recovered their prisoners, killing many of the
enemy. The future fate of the Eries is involved in obscurity.
General Lewis Cass has expressed the opinion that the
Kickapoos and Shawanese are remnants of the Eries, and
adds that the Canadians, to this day, term the Shawanese the
Nation of the Cat or Raccoon, which is weU known to be the
is made broader at the eastern extremity than elsewhere, the shore running
due south from the mouth of Niagara River to the southeast corner, where
is the mouth of a " Conde River "—as if the line from Bufifalo to Erie was
due south. Thence at right angles, but slightly indented now and then, we
have the southern shore, without any streams until the Sandusky and Mau
mee Rivers are noted with a fair degree of accuracy, except that Sandusky
Bay is not put down otherwise than as the mouth of the river. There is a
liberal allowance of islands opposite, and the river itself is represented as
rismg at a distance of 100 miles (according to the scale given) in a circular
lake of at least 15 miles in diameter.

FATE OF THB ANCIENT ERIES. 21
origin of the word Erie. On the other hand, some traditions
of the Catawbas of the South, render it not improbable that
they are the survivors of the vanquished Eries.''
6) For further details of these traditionary tribes, see Appendix No. I.

CHAPTER II.
THE NATURE AND EXTENT OF IROQUOIS CONQUEST IN THE
MISSISSIPPI VALLEY.
The extent of Iroquois conquest in the seventeenth cen
tury was the subject of much controversy between the French
and English, while Canada was under the dominion of the
former. The French title, by discovery of the Lakes and
the Mississippi, was sought to be overcome by a grant of
sovereignty from the Five Nations. This sovereignty was
claimed to result from a conquest of the entire country east
of the Mississippi. Colden in 1727, and Clinton in 1811,
are the prominent champions of the Iroquois pretension — the
former advancing it as a matter of vital importance to the
English colonies, and the latter reiterating it with the interest
of an antiquarian and the pride of a New Yorker. It is
interesting to observe how closely recent writers have pur
sued the authority, almost the text, of Gov. Clinton. The
following extract discloses the partisan tenor of his discourse :
" The conquests of the Iroquois, previous to the discovery
of America, are only known to us through the imperfect
channels of tradition ; but it is well authenticated, that since
that' memorable era, they exterminated the nation of the
Eries or Erigas, on the south side of Lake Erie, which has
given a name to that Lake. They nearly extirpated the
Andastes and the Chouanons ; they conquered the Hurons,
and drove them and their allies, the Ottawas, among the
Sioux, on the head waters of the Mississippi. Thev also
(22)

DEWITT CLINTON'S DISCOURSE. 23
subdued the Illinois, the Miamis, the Algonkins, the Dela
wares, the Shawanese, and several tribes of the Abenagins.
* * * The Illinois fled to the westward, after being
attacked by the Confederates, and did not return until a
general peace ; and were permitted in 1760, by the Confed
erates, to settle in the country between the Wabash and the
Scioto rivers. The banks of Lake Superior were lined with
Algonkins, who sought an asylum from the Five Nations.
They also harassed all the Northern Indians, as far as
Hudson's Bay, and they even attacked the nations on the
Missouri. When La Salle was among the Natchez, in 1683,
he saw a party of that people who had been on an expedition
against the Iroquois. Smith, the founder of Virginia, in an
expedition up the Bay of Chesapeake, in 1608, met a war
party of the Confederates then going to attack their enemies.
They were at peace with the Cowetas or Creeks, but they
warred against the Catawbas, the Cherokees, and almost all
the Southern Indians. The two former sent deputies to
Albany, where they efiected a peace through the mediation
of the English. In a word, the Confederates were, with a
few exceptions, the conquerors and masters of all the Indian
nations east of the Mississippi. ******
" In consequence of their sovereignty over the other na
tions, the Confederates exercised a proprietary right in their
lands. In 1742 they granted to the province of Pennsyl
vania certain lands on the west side of the Susquehannah,
having formerly done so on the east side. In 1744 they
released to Maryland and Virginia certain lands claimed by
them in those colonies ; and they declared at this treaty, that
they had conquered the several nations living on the Sus
quehannah and Potomac rivers, and on the back of the
Great Mountains in Virginia. In 1754, a number of the

24 HISTORY OF OHIO.
inhabitants of Connecticut purchased of them a large tract
of land west of the Delaware River, and from thence
spreading over the east and west branches of the Susque
hannah River. In 1768 they gave a deed to William Trent
and others, for land between the Ohio and Monongahela.
They claimed and sold the land on the north side of the
Kentucky River."
This is a skillful statement of the grounds for the Iroquois
claim, and was doubtless compiled by the learned writer from
the archives of the colonies, and whatever of the diplomatic
correspondence between the English and French governments
had then transpired. The provincial authorities took early
measures to obtain a transfer of whatever rights the New
York confederates had obtained. As early as 1684, Lord
Howard, governor of Virginia, held a treaty with the Six
Nations, at Albany, when, at the request of Colonel Dungan,
the Governor of New York, they placed themselves under
the protection of the mother country. This was again done
in 1701; and, upon the 14th of September, 1726, a formal
deed was drawn up, and signed by the chiefs, by which their
lands were conveyed to England, in trust, " to be protected
and defended by his majesty to and for the use of the grantors
and their heirs." ^
Without repeating the French argument in the premises,
it may be mentioned as an interesting coincidence, that Gen.
William H. Harrison, as recently as 1837, responded with
intelligent zeal to the exaggerated narrative of Clinton, and
vindicated the warlike qualities of the Western Indians, by
a denial that the Miami Confederacy of Illinois and Ohio
could have been conquered by the Iroquois. He cites nu-
1) Writings of James H. Perkins, Vol. II, p. 186. Pownall's Administra
tion of the Colonies, 4th Ed., London, 1768, p. 269.

EXTENT OP IROQUOIS CONQUEST. 25
merous evidences that in 1700 the Miami nation was very
numerous ; and, even within the memory of those living in
1837, that the Dlinois tribes could bring into the field four
thousand warriors. "In the year 1734," he adds, "M. de
Vincennes, a captain in the French army, found them in
possession of the whole of the Wabash, and their principal
town occupying the place of Fort Wayne, which was actually
the key of the country below. This officer was the first
Frenchman who followed the route of the Miami of the Lake
and the Wabash, in passing from Canada to their western
settlements. Long before this period, the French must have
known of the shorter and easier route, and no reason can be
assigned for their never having used it, but from its being
formerly the seat of war on some portion of it between the
Wyandots and Iroquois. De Vincennes found the Miamis
in the possession of the entire Wabash."
Briefly, Gen. Harrison admits the subjection of the Dela
wares, in Pennsylvania, the dispersion of the Hurons, Eries
and Andastes, and that the Iroquois advanced as far west as
Sandusky ; but denies that there is any tradition among the
Miamis of their ever having been conquered by the Iro
quois. He remarks that, at the treaty of Greenville, there
was no allusion to a claim, on the part of the Five Nations,
to any right of property in the soil, or jurisdiction over the
territory of the Miamis.^
Upon a careful review of all the evidence, we think the
hypothesis of Gen. Harrison deserves to be adopted in pref
erence to that of Colden and Clinton ; and for the following
reasons, in addition to those already adduced :
1. The distance from their homes to which war parties
2) Harrison's Discourse before the Ohio Historical Society. See Trans
actions, Vol. I, p. 257.
2

26 HISTORY OF OHIO.
were accustomed to march, has little significance when we
consider that, within the immense area eastward of the Mis
sissippi, the entire Indian population, two hundred years ago,
is estimated by Bancroft at only one hundred and eighty
thousand ; and that skill in eluding a foe, until the moment
chosen for a blow, has always been a favorite portion of In
dian tactics.
2. So far as the Lake region is concerned, the map of La
Hontan, above described, indicates thatthe "lUinese" were
as ready to make inroads upon the "Irroquese" as the latter
were to make westward incursions.
3. We have already shown that the Iroquois were repulsed
by the Chippewas from the pursuit of the Hurons (a cir
cumstance unnoticed by Clinton) ; and Schoolcraft's narrar
tive of the successful reprisal, in 1680, by the Illinois and
Miamis, on the banks of the Maumee River, should not be
forgotten. 4. In this connection, we should not overlook the relations
of the New York Indians, and their Canadian neighbors,
the French. Prior to 1663, their intercourse had been very
precarious, but in that year a deputation from the Iroquois
cantons, who proposed an errand of pacification to Montreal,
were surprised, and most of them killed by a party of Algon
quins, allies of the French. Of course, all prospects of
peace vanished, and a furious war raged along the Canadian
frontier. At the first outbreak, these hostilities were most
disastrous to the French; but the Canadian Governors, at the
head of disciplined troops, more than retaliated on their
savage enemies during the thirty years' war which followed.
Courcelles, Tracy, De la Barre, and De Nonville, invaded
by turns, with various success, the country of the Confede
rates; and at length, in the year 1696, the veteran Count

EXTENT OF IROQUOIS CONQUEST. 27
Frontenac, who was then, for the second time, Governor of
Canada, marched upon their cantons with all the force of the
province.^ He burned their deserted villages, and devasta
ted their maize fields. Even the fierce courage of the Iro
quois began to quail before these repeated attacks, while the
gradual growth of the colony, and the arrival of troops from
France, at length convinced them that they could not destroy
Canada. In 1700 a pacification was efiected, and the nume
rous prisoners on both sides were allowed to return. In the
year 1726, the French succeeded in erecting a permanent
military post at the important pass of Niagara, within the
limits of the Confederacy. On the 14th of September, in
the same year, the Six Nations made the well known cession
of their lands to England, in "trust to be protected and
defended by his Majesty, to and for the use of the grantors
and their heirs." The fact that the haughty Iroquois sub
mitted to such a measure, is a proof that their power was on
the wane, and that they had ceased to occupy the arrogant
position of conquering tribes.
It will be remembered that the conquest of the Eries was
in 1655, only eight years before the commencement of the
war between the French and the Iroquois ; and the resistance
of the Andastes was prolonged until 1672, seven years after
the massacre of the Indian deputation to Montreal. Our
inference is, that before the removal of the Eries and Andas
tes from the path to the Mississippi, Iroquois excursions
against the Miamis and Illinois were of course impracticable ;
and afterwards, aU the energies of the New York tribes
were summoned to resist the French, by whom their country
was frequently invaded and their villages destroyed. It is
evident, therefore, that they could have no leisure or force
3) Parkman's Pontiac, 61, 63.

28 HISTORY OF OHIO.
for western expeditions while these desperate hostilities were
in progress at home ; and after the peace of 1700, and es
pecially after the French occupation of Niagara, in 1726,
the denizens of Ohio had no ground to apprehend any dis
turbance in their possession.
Upon the whole, we are willing to compromise between
the positions respectively assumed by Clinton and Harrison.
We admit that the Indians of Pennsylvania and New England
were tributary to the Five Nations, made so by conquest,
and that the country oi^both sides of Lake Erie — the seats
of the Hurons and Neutrals in Canada, and the Eries, An
dastes and Shawanese in Ohio — were swept of their aborigi
nal occupants by their merciless enemies, but beyond the
Potomac, the Ohio and the Miamis, it seems to us that there
was a drawn battle, constantly renewing, and variable in
results. It may be that the Miamis and their IlUnois con
federates were more frequently repulsed, but they cannot be
said to have been subjugated, nor even conquered. Very
likely, on the conclusion of peace with Western and Southem
tribes, there may have been stipulations in the nature of quit
claim, but these did not necessarily imply the previous rela
tion of victor and vanquished, no more than a bill to quiet
title recognizes that alleged by a claimant to be paramount.
After 1663, however, when the long war with the Canar
dian colonists broke out, and until the peace of 1700, the
dominion of the Five Nations over the territory of Ohio was
nominal, never enforced to the exclusion of othei- Indian
tribes, who hastened to occupy the beautiful and vacant
realm.

CHAPTER III.
INDIAN OCCUPATION OF OHIO IN 1750.
This chapter will be devoted to a brief sketch of the
Indian tribes, who, during the interval between the inroads
of the Iroquois (vacating forcibly the region between the
Ohio and Lake Erie) and the earliest settlement by Euro
peans in 1750, gradually occupied the country. The reader
may expect some unavoidable repetition, especially in a
sketch of the Wyandots, for the materials of which we are
greatly indebted to the ethnological and historical labors of
Albert Gallatin.^
Four tribes were prominent within the limits of Ohio a
century since — the Wyandots, Delawares, Shawanese and
Ottawas. 1. The Wyandots or Hurons. — When Champlain ar
rived in Canada, the Wyandots were the head and principal
support of the Algonquin tribes against the Five Nations.
In our first chapter we have given their geographical position,
and their relations with the Neutral Nation, or Attiouanda-
rons, north, and the Eries and Andastes or Guandastogues
(Guyandots,) south of Lake Erie. The extent of their
influence and of the consideration in which they were held,
may be found in the fact, that even the Delawares, who
claimed to be the elder branch of the Lenape Nation, and
1) Gallatin's Synopsis of the Indian Tribes within the United States, east
of the Rocky Mountains, and in the British and Russian Possessions of
North America ; in Transactions of the American Antiquarian Society, II,
68, 72. (29)

80 HISTORY OF OHIO.
called themselves the grandfathers of their kindred tribes,
recognized the superiority of the Wyandots, whom to this
day they call their uncles. And though reduced to a very
small number, the right of the Wyandots, derived either
from ancient sovereignty, or from the incorporation of the
remnants of the three extinct tribes, to the country between
Lake Erie and the Ohio, from the Alleghany to the Great
Miami, has never been disputed by any other than the Five
Nations. Their real name Yendots, was well known to the French,
who gave them the nickname of Hurons. They were called
Quatoghee by the Five Nations, and one of their tribes Di-
onondadies or Tuinontatek. They were visited in 1615 by
Champlain, and in 1624 by Father Sigard ; and the Jesuits,
who subsequently established missions among them, have
given, in the " Relations of New France," some account of
their language, and ample information of their means of
subsistence, manners and religious superstitions. They had,
probably on account of their wars with the Five Nations,
concentrated their settlements in thirty-one villages, not
extending more altogether than twenty leagues either way,
and situated along or in the vicinity of Lake Huron, about
one hundred miles southwardly of the mouth of the French
River. They consisted of five confederated tribes, viz : the
Ataronch-ronons, four villages ; the Attiquenongnahai, three
villages; the Attignaouentan or "Nation de I'Ours," twelve
villages ; the Ahrendah-T:onoxys, the most northeastern tribe,
and with which Champlain resided, three villages ; and the
Tionontate, or " Nation of the Petun," the most southwest
erly, which formerly had been at war with the other tribes,
and had entered the confederation recently, nine villages.^
2) Father Lallemand, 1640 ; Relations, &c.

THE WYANDOTS OR HURONS. 31
The small-pox carried ofi" about twelve hundred souls in
the year 1639. The Missionaries, principally with a view of
baptizing dying children, visited at that time every village,
and, with few exceptions, every cabin; and embraced the
opportunity of making a complete enumeration of the whole
nation. They give the general result in round numbers,
seven hundred cabins, and two thousand families, which they
estimate at twelve, but which could not have exceeded ten
thousand souls. They were not only more warlike, but, in
every respect, more advanced in civilization than the North
ern Algonquins, particularly in agriculture, to which they
appear, probably from their concentrated situation, to have
been obliged to attend more extensively than any other
Northem Indian nation. The Missionaries had at first great
hardships to encounter, and found them less tractable than
the Algonquins. But, whether owing to the superior talents
of Father Brebeuf and his associates, or to the national char
acter, they made ultimately more progress in converting the
Hurons, and have left a more permanent impression of
their labors in the remnant of that tribe, than appears to
have been done by them, in any other nation without the
boundaries of the French settlements.
The only communication of the Hurons, with the infant
colony of Canada, was by the river Ottawa, of a difficult
navigation, interrupted by portages. The Five Nations
directed their attacks to that quarter, cut oS" the several
trading parties, which were in the habit of descending and
ascending the river once a year, and intercepted the commu
nication so efi'ectually, that, about the year 1646, the Mis
sionaries on Lake Huron were three years without receiving
any supplies from Quebec. The Hurons, who had lost sev
eral hundred warriors in those engagements, became dispirited

32 HISTORY OF OHIO.
and careless. They indeed abandoned the smaller villages
and fortified the larger. This only accelerated their ruin.
In the year 1649, the Five Nations invaded the country
with all their forces, attacked and carried the most consider
able of those places of refuge, and massacred all the inhabi
tants. The destruction was completed in the course of the
ensuing year. A part of the Hurons fied down the Ottawa
River and sought an asylum in Canada, where they were
pursued by their implacable enemies even under the walls of
Quebec. The greater part of the Ahrendas and several
detached bands surrendered, and were incorporaied into the
Five Nations. The remnant of the Tionontates took refuge
among the Chippewas of Lake Superior. Others were dis
persed towards Michillimacinac, or in some more remote
quarters. This event was immediately followed by the dis
persion of the Algonquin nations of the Ottawa River.
In 1671, the Tionontates, after an unsuccessful war with
the Sioux, left Lake Superior for Michillimacinac, where
they rallied around them the dispersed remnants of the other
tribes of their nation, and probably of the Andastes and other
kindred tribes, which had been likewise nearly extermuiated
by the Five Nations. Some years later they removed to
Detroit, in the vicinity of their ancient seats. And, though
reduced to two villages, they resumed their ascendancy over
the Algonquin tribes, and acted a conspicuous part with
great sagacity in the ensuing confiicts between the French
and the Five Nations. Charlevoix, in 1721, writes, that
they were still the soul of the councils of all the" Western
Indians. They claimed the sovereignty over the country
between Lake Erie and the Ohio River, which was exer
cised by frequent grants and cessions hereafter to be men
tioned. Col. John Johnston, of Piqua, the well known Indian

THE DELAWARES. 33
agent, says that their actual settlements extended from De
troit along the south shore of Lake Brie, as far east as San
dusky Bay.
2. The Delawares. — This interestuig tribe has been
awarded a higher rank in the page of Cooper, the American
novelist, and in the Memoirs of the Moravian Missionaries,
than Indian tradition seems to warrant. John Heckewelder,
as their annalist, and David Zeisberger, as their philologist,
have contributed largely to this favorable impression. The
former has preserved a Delaware tradition, that many hun
dred years ago, the Lenni Lenape resided in the. western
part of the American continent; thence by a slow emigra
tion, they at length reached the Alleghany River, so called
from a nation of giants, the Allegewi, against whom the Del
awares and Iroquois (the latter also emigrants from the west
ward) carried on successful war ; and, still proceeding east
ward, settled on the Delaware, Hudson, Susquehannah and
Potomac rivers, making the Delaware the center of their
possessions. The Delawares, thus seated on the Atlantic,
divided themselves into three tribes, distinguished by the
names of the Turtle, the Turkey and the Wolf; or the
Unamis, Unalachtgo and Minsi. The latter, also called Mon
s^s or Muncies, were considered the most warlike and active
branch of the Lenape. We shall see hereafter that the latter
designation was revived, with important consequences, in Ohio.
Heckewelder seeks unsuccessfully to explain the subjection
of the Delawares to the Five Nations, whom they called
Mengwe, as a stratagem by the latter ; but there is no doubt
that a tribe who, more readily than any other, accepted
Christianity, found themselves unable to cope with their more
warlike neighbors on the war path.^
3) Loskiel's History of the Moravian Missions in North America; Part
1, 130. Heckewelder's History Indian Nations.

34 HISTORY OF OHIO.
About 1740-50, a party of Delawares, who had been dis
turbed in Pennsylvania by European emigration, determined
to remove west of the Alleghany Mountains, and obtained
from their ancient allies and uncles, the Wyandots, the grant
of a derelict tract of land lying principally on the Muskingum.
Here they flourished and became a very powerful tribe.
From 1765 to 1795, they were at the height of their influ
ence, but the treaty of Greenville, and the disasters sustained
by the Delawares in Wayne's campaign, were a death blow
to their ascendancy.
3. The Shawanese. — The conflicting testimony, relative
to these Bedouins of the American wilderness, is accurately
stated by Gallatin.^ He conjectures that the " Shawnoes,"
as he writes the word, separated at an early date from the
other Lenape tribes, and established themselves south of the
Ohio, in what is now the State of Kentucky ; that having
been driven away from that Territory, probably by the
Chickasaws and Cherokees, some portion found their way,
during the first half of the seventeenth century, as far east
as the country of the Susquehannocks, a kindred Lenape
tribe ; that the main body of the nation, iavited by the
Miamis and the Andastes, crossed the Ohio, occupied the
country on and adjacent to the Scioto, and joined in the war
against the Five Nations ; and that, after their final defeat,
and that of their allies, in the year 1672, they were again
dispersed in several directions. A considerable portion made
about that time a forcible settlement on the head waters of
the rivers of Carolina ; and these, after having been driven
away by the Catawbas, found, as others had already done,
an asylum in difierent parts of the Creek country. Another
portion joined their brethren in Pennsylvania ; and some may
i) Gallatin's Synopsis, 65. Drake's Life of Tecumseh, 10.

THB SHAWANESE. 35
have remained in the vicinity of the Scioto and Sandusky.
Those in Pennsylvania, who seem to have been the most
considerable part of the nation, were not entirely subjugated
and reduced to the humiliating state of women by the Six
Nations. But they held their lands on the Susquehannah
only as tenants at wiU, and were always obliged to acknowl
edge a kind of sovereignty or superiority in their landlords.
They appear to have been more early and unanimous than
the Delawares in their determination to return to the country
north of the Ohio. This they efiected under the auspices of
the Wyandots, and on the invitation of the French, during
the years 1740-55. They occupied there the Scioto country,
extending to Sandusky, and westwardly towards the Great
Miami, and they have also left there the names of. two of
their tribes, to wit : Chillicothe and Piqua. Those who were
settled among the Creeks joined them ; and the nation was
once more reunited. Mr. Johnston, the Indian agent, says
that this southem party lived on the Sawanee River, which
empties into the Gulf of Mexico, and is supposed to derive
its name from them ; and that they retumed thence, about
the year 1755, to the vicinity of Sandusky, under the con
duct of a chief called Black Hoof. It has been reported
that Tecumseh and his brother, the Prophet, were sons of a
Creek woman married during that migration to a Shawnoe.
During the forty following years, the Shawanese were in
an almost perpetual state of war with America, either as
British colonies or as independent States. They were among
the most active allies of the French during the seven years'
war ; and, after the conquest of Canada, continued, in con
cert with the Delawares, hostilities which were only termi
nated after the successful campaign of General Bouquet.
The first permanent settlements of the Americans beyond

36 HISTORY OF OHIO.
the Alleghany mountains, in the vicinity of the Ohio, were
commenced in the year 1769, and were soon followed by a
war with the Shawanese, which ended in 1774, after they
had been repulsed in a severe engagement at the mouth of
the Kanhawa, and the Virginians had penetrated into their
country. They took a most active part against America,
both during the war of Independence, and in the Indian war
which followed, and which was terminated in 1795 at Green
ville. They lost, by that treaty, nearly the whole territory
which they held from the Wyandots ; and a part of them,
under the guidance of Tecumseh, again joined the British
standard during the war of 1812.
4. Ottawas. — The name of this tribe was either derived
from, or communicated to the Canadian River, on whose
banks they lived until driven westward by the Five Nations,
where they took refuge among the Pottawatamies and Ojib
was. The western shore of Lake Huron, and the northern
portion of the Michigan peninsula, was the asylum of the
fugitive Ottawas. The tribe has been distinguished in the
person of Pontiac, chief of the Ottawas, whose conspiracy
against the British garrisons in 1768, was a master stroke of
Indian sagacity, ranking its instigator with Phillip and Te
cumseh. The honor of his birth has been claimed by other
tribes, and his mother was said to be an Ojibwa woman, but
he was doubtless born among the Ottawas. He obtained a
controlhng influence over the Ojibwas and Pottawatamies,
and made their confederacy with the Ottawas the basis of his
combination against the English. But we must not anticipate.
We have mentioned him in these terms, because the practice
of antiquarian writers is to depreciate the Ottawas, and the
name of the great Ottawa chief is their best vindication.
It has been remarked that, among the Ottawas alone, the

INDIAN OCCUPATION OF 1750. 37
heavenly bodies were an object of veneration — the Sun rank
ing as their Supreme Deity. This tribe, whose mythology
was more complicated than usual with the Indians, were
accustomed to keep a regular festival to celebrate the benefi
cence of the Sun ; on which occasion the luminary was told
that this service was in return for the good hunting he had
procured for his people, and as an encouragement to perse
vere in his friendly cares. They were also observed to erect
an idol in the middle of their town, and sacrifice to it ; but
such ceremonies were by no means general. On first wit
nessing Christian worship, the only idea suggested by it was
that of asking some temporal good, which was either granted
or refused.^
Bancroft states that the word " Ottowa," signifies " tra
der," and was probably applied by the Hurons from the fact
that the tribe was principally settled on and in the vicinity
of an island in the Ottawa River, where they exacted a
tribute from all the Indians and canoes going to, or comimg
from the country of the Hurons. It is observed by a Jesuit
father, Le Jeune, that although the Hurons were ten times
as numerous, they submitted to that imposition ; which seems
to prove that the right of sovereignty over the Ottawa River
was generally recognized. After their expulsion from this
aboriginal custom house, the memory of their island home
seems to have been preserved ; for during the last century
they sought and were sufiered to take possession of the
islands of Lake Erie and the peninsula of Sandusky, where
their fishing and trapping parties were found by the French
traders as early as 1750.
Soon after the period now under consideration, straggling
parties of New York Indians were occasionally found near
5) Missions en la Nouvelle France, 1635, p. 72.

38 HISTORY OP OHIO.
Lake Erie ; and at least one Mingo town (the term designar
ting any of the Six Nations, but, in this instance, a party of
Cayuga Indians,) was situated on the Ohio River, just below
the present site of SteubenviUe. Logan, celebrated for the
specimen of Indian eloquence attributed to him by Jefferson,
was a Mingo or Cayuga, and resided in the village above
mentioned. We shall have further occasion to mention the
arrival of Caughnewagas and Senecas (the former, a tribe
from Canada, supposed by Heckewelder to be the old Con
necticut Mohicans, mingled with various Iroquois Indians,)
in difierent sections of the southern coast of Lake Erie. Th
four tribes above named, however, alone deserve the designa
tion of Ohio Indians at the date before us.
Some idea of the Indian occupation of Ohio in 1750 is
now attainable. It will be seen by what precedes,, that the
Delawares occupied the valley of the Muskingum, and thence
to Lake Erie and the River Ohio, asserting a possession over
about one-half of the State ; the Shawanese were soon
admitted to the valleys of the Scioto and Miami Rivers,
adjoining the Twigtwees or Miami Indians ; while the Wyan
dots, and a few bands of Ottawas, dwelt upon the waters of
Sandusky and Maumee, but nearer the bays into which they
fell than their sources. As for the Wyandots, it should be
remembered that the principal seat of the tribe was oppo
site Detroit, and the Ohio settlements were in the nature
of colonies from the peninsulas bordering Lake Huron.
Ihis was also the case with the Ottawas, whose villages were
scattered along the shore ; although, on a map drawn in 1763,
the remains of an " Ottowa fort" are visible near the present
site of Plymouth, Huron county, while an Ottawa town is
put down on the Cuyahoga River, about thirty miles from its
mouth. The Ohio Indians, it may be necessary to add, were

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE OHIO INDIANS. 39
superior specimens of the race. The Delawares were the
ancestral tribe, and their biography contains an unusual num
ber of remarkable personages, though none of so extraordi
nary career or character as to be known to the present gene
ration. They will receive a large degree of our notice when
the history of the Moravian mission comes before us ; for it
was principally among the Delawares that the missionaries
were successful in making conversions. The Shawanese,
whose rovings might vindicate their claim, at least, to be a
lost tribe of Israel, have been frequently characterized as the
"Spartans" of the race; and certainly their constancy in
braving danger and enduring aU the consequences of defeat,
merits the appellation. But it is by the name of Tecumseh,
a son of the nation, though by an alien mother, as we have
before observed of his great Ottawa prototype, that the name
" Shawnee," wiU be commemorated in the wild annals of
our aboriginal history. The Ottawas, so far as they have
ever been observed on the soil of Ohio, have hardly sustained
the gravity and dignity of position, which we spontaneously
assign to the Wyandot and the Delaware. Compared with
his forest brethren, the Ottawa, or Tahwah, (as the early
settlers called him,) whose life was nearly amphibious, by
his joint avocations of trapper and fisher, seems to be rather
a Pariah among his brethren, but to whom history will be
more indulgent, in deference to the name of Pontiac. As for
the Wyandots, ever recurring as the tribe will be in these
chapters, we can do no better than to give a paragraph from
Gen. Harrison's discourse, to which we have frequently
referred. He gives the Wyandots the unquestioned prefer
ence among the Western Indians on the score of bravery.
Wifli the other tribes, flight in battle, when occasioned by
unexpected resistance and obstacles, brought with it no dis-

40 HISTORY OF OHIO.
.grace, and was rather a part of their strategy : but otherwise
with the Wyandots. In the battle of the Rapids of the
Miami, in which the confederated tribes were broken by Gen.
Wayne, of thirteen chiefs of the Wyandots one only survived,
and he badly wounded. The following anecdote illustrates
this trait in their character :
" When General Wayne assumed the position of Green
ville, in 1793, he sent for Captain Wells, who commanded a
company of scouts, and told him that ' he wished him to go
to Sandusky and take a prisoner, for the purpose of obtain
ing information.' WeUs (who, having been taken from
Kentucky when a boy, and brought up among the Indians,
was perfectly acquainted with their character,) answered,
that 'he could take a prisoner, but not from Sandusky.'
'And why not from Sandusky?' said the General. 'Be
cause,' answered the Captain, 'there are only Wyandots
there.' ' Well, why will not Wyandots do ? ' 'For the best
of reasons,' said Wells, ' because Wyandots will not be taken
alive.' "

CHAPTER IV.
LAKE ERIE IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY.
Closely related as Ohio is to the mighty current of the St.
Lawrence, a rapid outline of its early exploration will not be
deemed too discursive, although our attention wiU thus be
recalled to events which transpired during the seventeenth
century. The magnificent water-course which constitutes the north
ern border of the Atlantic and Mississippi States, aided
materially in the colonization of its extended coast. As at
Plymouth, it was religious sentiment which first opened the
adventurous way to the borders of our inland lakes. As
early as 1616, Le Caron, an unambitious Franciscan monk,
the companion of the noted Champlain, had traversed New
York, and threading the Canadian peninsula, reached the
rivers of Lake Huron. As Quebec was founded only eight
years before, the voyage of the missionary probably deserves
the distinction of a first discovery. In 1625, we hear of the
Franciscans laboring with the Neutral Hurons near the Ni
agara river.
Tempting as the theme may be, we must be content with
a mere chronology of the French missions on the great lakes.
They were repelled from the south shore of Lake Erie du
ring tiie following fifty years, which was the period of their
greatest activity, by the hostility of the Iroquois, who were
often at war with the natives of the soil.^
1) Charles Whittlesey relates (Discourse before Ohio Historical Society
in 18-10, p. 8,) that trees have been found on the Western Reserve, bearing
the marks of an axe, which, judging from the rings, were- made in 1660.
2* (it)

42 HISTORY OF OHIO.
The Jesuits succeeded all other religious orders in the
labor of evangelization, and from 1634 to 1647, no less than
forty-two missionaries of that society were devoted to the
tribes in Upper Canada — assembling twice or thrice a year
at St. Marys, a central spot upon the banks of the Matche-
dash, between Lakes Toronto or Simcoe and Huron. Per
haps no passage of colonial history is so fuU of romantic
interest as the narrative of the Wyandot Mission, of which
Bancroft has furnished a faithful and fascinating picture ; but
as early as 1649, the principal seat of the • Jesuit Fathers,
the village of St. Ignatius, was destroyed by the ruthless
Mohawks, and the peaceful inmates involved in a general
massacre. The names of Anthony Daniel, Jean de Brebeuf
and Gabriel Lallemand, have been preserved to us, fragrant
with their, martyrdom in the wilderness.
Every dispassionate reader will readily respond to the
tribute by the single-hearted annalist of New France. "It
is certain," says Charlevoix, " as well from the annual rela
tions of those happy times, as from the constant tradition of
that country, that a peculiar unction attached to this savage
mission, giving it a preference over many others far more
briUiant and fruitful. . The reason no doubt was, that nature,
finding nothing there to gratify the senses or to flatter vanity—
stumbhng blocks too common even to the holiest — grace
worked without obstacle. The Lord, who never aUows him
self to be outdone, communicates himself without measure
to those who sacrifice themselves without reserve ; who, dead
to all, detached entirely from themselves and the world, pos-'
sess their souls in unalterable peace, perfectly established in
that child-like spirituality which Jesus Christ has recom
mended to his disciples as that which ought to be the most
marked trait of their character." " Such is the portrait,"

FRENCH EXPLORATIONS. 43
adds Charlevoix, " drawn of the missionaries of New France
by those who knew them best. I myself knew some of them
in my youth, and I found them such as I have painted them,
bending under the labor of a long apostleship, with bodies
exhausted by fatigues and broken with age, but stUl preserv
ing all the vigor of the apostolic spirit, and I have thought
it but right to do them here the same justice universally done
them in the country of their labors."
The Relations or Journals of the Jesuit Fathers contain
incidental descriptions of the lake coast fi-om " Unghiara,"
or Niagara, to Lake Superior, otherwise caUed "Tracy"
and " Upper Lake." A map, pubHshed at Paris, in 1660,
indicates a discovery of Lake Michigan, or " Lake of the
lUinois." In 1668, the mission of Sault St. Mary was established
by Claude Dablon and James Marquette — the oldest settle
ment in Michigan.
In 1671, Marquette gathered some wandering Hurons
round a chapel at poiat St. Ignace, on the main land north
of the peninsula of Michigan.
In 1673, Marquette, accompanied by Joliet, a trader of
Quebec, and five other Frenchmen, with a number of Indian
guides, paddled up Green Bay in birch bark canoes, ascended
Fox River to the head of navigation and crossed the Portage
to the banks of the Wisconsin. Here their guides deserted
the party, from fear of the Sioux, but the Frenchmen fear
lessly followed the current of the Wisconsin, untU, on the
17th of June, the Mississippi was discovered.
In 1678, La Salle, accompanied by Tonti, an Itahan sol
dier, and Lewis Hennepin, a Flemish friar of the order of
Recollects, commenced the construction of the " Griffin," a
bark of sixty tons, near the present site of Bufialo. During

44 HISTORY OP OHIO.
the next summer, this bark was ready for the voyage, and on
the 7th of August, 1679, the surface of Lake Erie was first
parted by the keel of civUization. The crew was thirty-four
in all — sailors, hunters and soldiers — ^whUe father Hennepin
was accompanied by several friars of his order.
Our purpose is not to follow this exploring expedition after
leaving Lake Erie. The present digression only relates to
their adventures from Niagara to Detroit. The voyage to
Mackinaw — the return of the Griffin loaded with furs, and
the wreck of the bark in Lake Brie— La SaUe's subsequent
wanderings in Blinois among innumerable discouragements —
his weary journey to Fort Frontenac on Lake Ontario, tra
versing the ridge which divides the basin of the Ohio from
that of the lakes — ^his return to the Illinois in 1681, these
and subsequent particulars of his heroic adventures and un
timely end in the wilderness of Louisiana, belong to general
history, and we must resist the temptation to pursue the
romantic record.
His companion, Hennepin, has left to us a readable, book,
which, authentic for our purposes of reference, has been
sharply criticised and also lustily defended,^ in respect to its
narrative of exploration and discovery in the valley of the
Mississippi. With that controversy we have nothing to do.
His sketch of Lake Erie, as it was in 1679, is our only con
cern with the gray-coated Franciscan. We even suppress
the inclination to give a personal history of the doughty friar.
We repeat Hennepin's description of Niagara Falls in his
own words, preserving also the typography of 1698, the date
of the edition in our possession :
" Betwixt the Lake Ontario, and Erie, there is a vast and
prodigious Cadence of Water which faUs down after a sur-
2) Democratic Review, v. 190, 381.

HENNEPIN'S DESCRIPTION OF NIAGARA. 45
prising and astonishing manner, insomuch that the Universe
does not afibrd its ParaUel. ' Tis true Italy and Suedeland
boast of some such things ; but we may weU say they are
but sorry Patterns, when compared to this of which we now
speak. At the foot of this horrible Prescipice, we meet with
the River Niagara, which is not above half a quarter of a
League broad, but is wondertully deep in some places. It
is so rapid above this Descent, that it violently hurries down
the wild Beasts while endeavoring to pass it to feed on the
other side, they not being able to withstand the force of its
Current, which inevitably casts them down above Six hun
dred feet.
" This wonderful Downfall is compounded of two great
Cross-streams of Water, and two Falls, with an Isle sloping
along the middle of it. The waters which fall from this vast
height do foam and boil after the most hideous manner im
aginable, making an outrageous noise, more terrible than
that of Thunder, for when the Wind blows from off the
South, their dismal roaring may be heard above fifteen
Leagues ofi".
" The River Niagara having thrown itself down this in
credible Precipice, continues its impetuous course for two
Leagues together, to the great Rock above mentioned, with
an inexpressible rapidity : But having passed that, its Im
petuosity relents, gliding along more gently for two Leagues,
tUl it arrives at the Lake Ontario or Frontenac.
" Any Barque or greater vessel may pass from the Fort
to the foot of this huge rock above mentioned. This rock
Hes to the Westward, and is cut off from the Land by the
River Niagara, about two Leagues farther down than the
great FaU ; for which two Leagues the people are oblig'd to
carry their Goods over-land ; but the way is very good and

46 _ HISTORY OF OHIO.
the Trees are but few and they chiefly Firr and Oaks.
From the great FaU unto this Rock, which is to the West
of the River, the two Brinks of it are so prodigious high,
that it would make one tremble to look steadily upon the
Water, rolling along with a Rapidity not to be imagined.
Were it not for this vast Cataract, which interrupts Naviga
tion, they might saU with Barks or greater Vessels, above
Four hundred and fifty Leagues farther, cross the Lake of
the Hurons, and up to the farther end of the Lake Illinois;
which two Lakes we may well say are Uttle Seas of fresh
Water." A chapter in Hennepin's Discoveries is devoted to Lake
Erie, which is written with an accent on the last letter, and
appears to have been pronounced in three syllables. He
says the lake is called Erie Tejocharontiong, and " extends
itself from east to west, a hundred and forty leagues in
length. But (he boastfully adds) no European has ever
surveyed it at all ; only I, and those who accompanied me
in this discovery, have viewed the greater part of it. This
lake encloses on its southern bank a tract of land as large aa
the Kingdom of France. It divides itself at a certain place
into two channels, because of a great island enclosed betwixt
them." In the narrative of the Griffin's " Trial Trip," some
further particulars are given of Lake Erie :
" On the 7th of August, 1679, we went on board,^ and
sailed from the mouth of Lake Erie, steering our course
west-south-west with a, favorable wind ; and though the ene
mies of our Discovery had given out, on purpose to deter us
from our enterprise, that the Lake Erie was full of rocks
and sands, which rendered the navigation impracticable, we
run above twenty leagues during the night, though we
3) The typography of 1698 is conformed to the present usage.

THE STRAIT OF DETROIT. 47
sounded all that whUe. The next day, the wind being more
favorable, we made above five and forty leagues, keeping at
an equal distance from the banks of the lake, and doubled a
cape to the westward, which we called the Cape of St.
Francis. The next day we doubled two other capes, and
met with no manner of rocks or sands. We discovered a
pretty large island towards the southwest, about seven or
eight leagues from the northern coast ; that island faces the
strait that comes from the Lake Huron.
" The loth, very early in the morning, we passed between
that island and seven or eight lesser ones ; and having saUed
near another, which is nothing but sand, to the west of the
lake, we came to an anchor at the mouth of the strait, which
runs firom the Lake Huron into that of Erie. The 11th, we
went farther into the strait, and passed between two smaU
islands, which make one of the finest prospects in the world.
This strait is finer than that of Niagara, being thirty leagues
long and everywhere one league broad, except in the middle,
which is wider, forming the lake we have caUed St. Clair.
The navigation is easy on both sides, the coast being low and
even. It runs directly from north to south. , ^
" The country between those two lakes is very well situa
ted, and the soU very fertUe. The banks of the strait are
vast meadows, and the prospect is terminated by some hills
covered with vineyards. Trees bearing good. fruit, groves
and forests so weU disposed that one would think nature alone
could not have made, without the help of art, so charming a
prospect. That country is stocked with stags, wild goats
and bears, which are good for food, and not fierce as in other
countries : some think they are better than our pork. Tur
key cocks and swans are there also very common ; and our
men brought several other beasts and birds, whose names are

48 HISTORY OF OHIO.
unknown to us, but they are extraordinary reUshing. The
forests are chiefiy made up of walnut trees, chestnut treesy
plum trees, and pear trees, loaded with their own fruit and
vines. There is also abundance of timber fit for buUding ;
so that those who shaU be so happy as to inhabit that noble
country, cannot but remember with gratitude those who have
discovered the way, by venturing to sail upon an unknown
lake for above one hundred leagues. That charming strait
lies between forty and forty-one degrees of northern latitude."
La Salle visited the Hurons, " who inhabited the Point of
Missilimakinakj" and the " Outtaouatz," or Ottawas, who
were three or four leagues more northward, who are described
as "in confederacy together against the Iroquese, their com
mon enemy. They sow Indian corn, which is their ordinary
food ; for they have nothing else to Uve upon, except some fish
they take in the lakes." Of the latter, the Indians " brought
abundance of whitings and some trouts of 50 and 60 pound
weight." Late in 1680, Father Hennepin returned from his explo
rations of the vaUey of the Mississippi and the upper lakes,
and passed the winter of 1681 at . Michillunaciaac, in com
pany with Father Pierson, a Jesuit, whom he found with the
Indians. We quote again :
" During the winter, we broke holes in the ice of Lake
Huron, and by means of several large stones, sunk our nets
sometimes twenty, sometimes twenty-five fathom under water,
to catch fish, which we did in great abundance. We took
salmon trouts which often -weighed from forty to fifty pounds.
These made our Indian wheat go down the better, which was
our ordinary diet. Our beverage was nothing but broth
made of whiteings, which we drank hot, because as it cools
it turns to jelly, as if it had been made of veal.

LAKE ERIE IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY. 49
" During our stay here. Father Pierson and I would often
divert ourselves on the ice, where we skated on the lake, as
they do in HoUand. I had learned this slight when I was at
Ghent." Hennepin here admitted forty-two Canadians to
the order of Saint Francis.
In Easter week, 1681, the Franciscan and his companions
left MichUlimacinac, and after drawing their canoes for twelve
or thirteen leagues over the ice, embarked on Lake Huron,
" the sides of which still continued froze five or six leagues
broad." After rowing a hundred leagues, they passed the
straits, and arrived at " the Lake Erie, or of the Cat,"
where they spent some time " to kill sturgeon, which come
here in great numbers to cast their spawn on the side of the
Lake." They took nothing but " the belly of the fish, which
is the most deficious part, and threw away the rest." Their
further adventures in Lake Erie are narrated as follows :
" This place afibrded also plenty of venison and foAvl. As
we were standing in the lake, upon a large point of land
which runs itself very far into the water, we perceived a bear
in it as far as we could see. We could not imagine how this
creature got there ; ' twas very improbable that he should
swim from one side to t' other, that was thirty or forty leagues
over. It happened to be very calm ; and so two of our men,
leaving us on the point, put off to attack the bear, that was
near a quarter of a league out in the lake. They made two
shots at him, one after another, otherwise the beast would
certainly have sunk them. As soon as they had fired, they
were forced to sheer off as fast as they could to charge again ;
which when they had done, they returnedl!^ the attack. The
bear was forced to stand it, and it cost them no less than
seven shot before they could compass him.
"As they endeavored to get him aboard, they were like

50 HISTORY OF OHIO.
to have been overset ; which, if they had, they must have
been infallibly lost : AU they could do was to fasten him to
the bar that is in the middle of the canoe, and so drag him
on shore ; which they did at last with much ado and great
hazard of their lives. We had all the leisure that was re
quisite for the dressing and ordering him, so as to make him
keep ; and in the meantime took out his entraUs, and havmg
cleansed and boiled them, eat heartily of them. These are
as good a dish as those of our sucking pigs in Europe. His
flesh served us the rest of our voyage, which we usually eat
with lean goats' flesh, because it is too fat to eat by itself ;
so that we lived for an hundred leagues upon the game that
wc killed in this place.
" There was a certain captain of the Outtaonacts, (Otta
was,) to whom the Intendant Talon gave his own name,
whilst he was at Quebec. He used to come often to that
city with those of his nation who brought furs thither. We
were strangely surprised at the sight of this man, whom we
found almost famished, and more like a skeleton than a living
man. He told us the name of Talon would be soon extinct
in this country, since he resolved not to Survive the loss ot
six of his family who had been starved to death. He added,
that the Fishery and the Chase had both failed this year,
which was the occasion of this sad disaster.
" He told us, moreover, that though the Iroquois were not
in war with his nation, yet had they taken and carried into
slavery an entire family of twelve souls. He begged very
earnestly of me, that I would use my utmost endeavors to
have them released, if they were yet alive, and gave me two
necklaces of black and white porcelain that I might be sure
not to neglect a business which he had so much to heart.
' I can rely upon thee. Barefoot, (for so they always caUed

HENNEPIN'S DISCOVERIES. 51
US,) and am confident that the Iroquese will hearken to thy
reasons sooner than any one's. Thou didst often advise them
at their CouncUs, which were held then at the Fort of Kata-
rockoni,* where thou hast caused a great cabin to be built.
Had I been at my village when thou cam'st through it, I
would have done all that I could to have kept thee instead
of the Black Coat, (so they call the Jesuits,) which was
there.' When the poor Captain had done speaking, I sol
emnly promised him to use my utmost interest with the Iro
quese for the releasement of his friends.
" After we had rowed above a hundred and forty leagues
upon the Lake Erie, by reason of the many windings of the
bays and creeks which we were forced to coast, we passed
by the Great Fall of Niagara, and spent half a day in con
sidering the wonders of that prodigious cascade."
" I could not conceive how it came to pass that four great
lakes, the least of which is 400 leagues in compass, should
empty themselves one into another, and then aU centre and
discharge themselves at this Great Fall, and yet not drown
good part of America."
Whereupon Hennepin, after modestly wishing that some
body had been with him " who could have described the
wonders of this prodigious frightful fall so as to give the
reader a just and natural idea of it," proceeds to submit
" the following Draught such as it is," but which we do not
choose to transcribe. On his route to Fort Frontenac, ho
claims to have visited the Iroquois, and obtained the " re
leasement " of the twelve prisoners whom they had taken,
and notices the flight of pigeons over their heads in clouds
as "a thing worthy of admiration. The birds that were
flying at the head of the others, keep often back to ease and
4) Fort Frontenac, now Kingston, at the foot of Lake Ontario.

62 HISTORY OF OHIO.
help those among them that are tired ; which may be a lesson
to men to help one another in time of need."
There is a map attached to Hennepin's work which shows
how little was known of the interior of this continent in
1698. " Lake Erie or of the Cat," is represented as three
times as large as Lake Ontario, and equal to Superior. It
is wider at the western extremity than elsewhere, extending
four degrees of latitude from the straits on the northwest
nearly south to the Une of the 36th degree, or the latitude of
Nashville. One degree below the southwest angle of the
lake, the " Hohio," as it is called near the mouth, or the
" Ouye," as elsewhere styled, is laid down as_ flowing be
tween " Apalachin HiUs," which range east and west from
Virginia towards the Mississippi. A lake nearly as large as
Ontario is placed on the south side of these hUls, apparently
the supposed source of the Savannah River. The Mischa-
sipi, or Mississippi, is laid down in reasonable proportion, the
foreshortening of the country east of it being the most ludi
crous feature of the map. It is the same, as if the Ohio
was sixty mUes south of Sandusky Bay, a mountain chain
intervening, and then the whole country as far south as Alar
bama ignored, sunk by a geographical earthquake. Tie
direction of the north shore of Lake Erie is not inaccurate,
for it was twice coasted by Hennepin, and the relation be
tween the Niagara and St. Clair rivers is about as we now
find it ; but instead of narrowing the lake west of the mouth
of Cuyahoga river, it sheers off to the south, making a broad
angle with the north and south Une of the western coast,
which is represented as 240 miles long ; and thus fuU one-
third of what is now the State of Ohio is swaUowed up by
an imaginary sea, or an imaginary extension of an actual sea.
Sandusky Bay and River, as well as the Maumee River,

ANCIENT MAPS OF LAKE ERIE. 53
are drawn at an accurate angle to the southern shore, and
rightly placed as to each other, yet their channels run from
east to west, as indeed might be expected when an area as
large as Lake Huron is dropped so unceremoniously at the
entrance of the strait of St. Clair. Between these streams
is found the only reference to an Indian tribe south of Lake
Erie, and that is the "Erieckronois," probably a detachment
of the unfortunate Eries, avaiUng themselves of the protec
tion of the adjoining Miami and Blinois tribes. As Henne
pin's first pubUcation was in 1683, it is probable that this
map includes the observations and traditions made and col
lected by hira in 1679-'81, and this record of the Eries
twenty-five years after the disastrous campaign of 1655, is
an additional proof, in the first instance, that they were not
exterminated by their enemies ; and secondly, that the power
of the Iroquois had been previously checked on the Miami
frontier. Father Hennepin's description of the " pretty large island
towards the southwest," is doubtless a modified form of his
previous statement that the lake " divides itself at a certain
place into two channels because of a great island enclosed
betwixt them." In both cases, (the first is from his general
description of Lake Erie, and the other from his narration
of the Griffin's cruise,) he probably refers to Point Pelee
Island, which, in connection with Kelley's Island, would
naturaUy arrest the notice of the explorer. Cape St. Francis
is now caUed Long Point, and the two other capes doubled
in the westward and coastwise progress of La SaUe's party,
must have been Point aux Pines or Landguard Point, and
Point Pelee. La Hontan, in his later map, while far more
accurate than Hennepin in his outline of the southern coast
of Lake Erie, interrupts his northem shore, about midway

54 HISTORY OF OHIO.
from Niagara to St. Clair, by a projection of a cape or pe
ninsula two-thirds across the lake. Hennepin places and
deUneates Long Point with reasonable accuracy.
We have mentioned La Hontan, whom we have had occa
sion to cite elsewhere. His letters include the period of
1683-'93, and are racy productions. He also exploredXake
Erie. Not to be outdone by his gray-coated predecessor, he
describes Niagara as " seven or eight hundred foot high and
half a league broad." After entering Lake Erie, his party
coasted along the north coast, "being favored bj the calms,"
for it was August, 1687. " Upon the brink of this lake (he
says) we frequently saw flocks of fifty or sixty Turkeys,
wliich run incredibly fast upon the sands, and the savages of
our company kUl'd great numbers of 'em, which they gave
to us in exchange for the fish that we catched. The 25th
we arrived at a long point of land which shoots out 14 or 15
leagues into the Lake, and the heat being excessive we chose
to transport our boats and baggage two hundred paces over
land, rather than coast about for thirty-five leagues," On
the 6th of September, La Hontan entered the Straits of St.
Clair, and pursued his western route, whither we will not
foHow him.

CHAPTER V.
THE FRENCH ESTABLISH FORT SANDUSKY— THE ENGLISH EX
PLORE THE OHIO VALLEY.
We have given a synopsis of French discovc«ry in the west.
These explorations were promptly followed by settlements.
In 1701, soon after the peace between the Iroquois and the
French in Canada, the latter effected a settlement at Detroit.
The party that first took possession of that important posi
tion were De la Motte CadUlac, with a Jesuit missionary and
one hundred Frenchmen. The fort, which, by its early es
tabUshment, made Michigan the oldest of the inland States,
except perhaps Illinois, soon became the centre of a valuable
trade with the Indians, and the Hurons returned to its vicin
ity from their fifty years' exile, while above, in Upper
Canada, was a colony of Ottawas. Thence, as we have
shown, these tribes, who became inseparable companions,
soon extended to the Sandusky Basin, where they were
firmly estabUshed long before any European exploration of
the country south of Lake Erie.
At New Orleans and in Illinois were the principal seats
of the French in the valley of the Mississippi. As early as
1729, the settlers in the vicinity of New Orleans amounted
to nearly six thousand, although a third of that number were
slaves ; whUe on the Mississippi, near the lUinois; there were
in 1750, five French vUlages, containing one hundred and
forty famiUes, and three viUages of colonized natives, num
bering not less than six hundred. (55)

56 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Prior to 1750, the communication between Canada and
Louisiana was carried on by the distant routes of Green Bay
and the Wisconsin, Lake Michigan and the Illinois, and more
recently by the Maumee and the Wabash, which latter river
was regarded by the French as the main stream to which the
Ohio was but a tributary. At the straits of MiehilUmaeinae
and the mouth of the St. Josephs river, at the head of Green
Bay, and on the site of Fort Wayne, were French settle
ments, convenient for Indian traffic and contributing to the
armed occupation of the country. There is some doubt
whether Fort Miamis on the Maumee, (now Fort Wayne,)
was founded before 1750, but it is mentioned by VaudrueU,
then Governor of Louisiana and afterwards of Canada, as
existing in 1751. Its real date is probably contemporaneous
with Fort Sandusky, namely, 1750. Detrdit, a post of great
importance, had been occupied since 1701.
It was nearly fifty years after the settlement of Detroit
by the French, that the attention of France or England was
turned to the region between Lake Erie and the Ohio River.
Perhaps its dense forests repelled the luxurious Gaul, whUe
tbe savannahs nearer the Mississippi tempted his occupation.
But at length a dispute arose, with the increasing strength
of the colonies, about the respective limits of the Atlantic
colonies and of Louisiana. Under the treaties of Utrecht
and Aix la Chapelle, England claimed that the valley of the
lakes and the country east of the Mississippi should be re
cognized as an Iroquois conquest, and by compact with those
tribes, as under the protectorate or dominion (in our days
the terms are yet synonyms) of Great Britain. In reply,
France cited discovery and occupation — ^the history of a
hundred years of missions, expeditions and colonization. The
missions had declined, but the Indian trade continued, and

-UK'
THE ENGLISH EXPLORE OHIO. 67
their posts, planted at the most eligible positions from Detroit
to New Orleans, were regular garrisons, relieved once in six
years. The boats from the Illinois country, descending
annually to New Orleans, carried fiour, Indian com, bacon,
both of hog and bear, beef and pork, buffalo robes, hides
and tallow. The downward voyage was made in December ;
in February the boat returned with European goods for con
sumption and Indian traffic. ^ The Northwestern Indians
were almost universally in the French interest. As respected
the country on the upper lakes, the Mississippi, the lUinois,
and the Wabash, the French title, according to European
usage, was complete. To forestall the EngUsh pretensions to
the country immediately south of Lake Erie, the Count de la
Galissonniere, shortly after assuming office as Governor Gen
eral of Canada, sent Monsieur Celeron de BienviUe, in 1749,
with three hundred men, to traverse the country from De
troit east to the mountains, to bury at the most important
points, leaden plates with the arms of France engraved, to
take possession with a formal process verbal, and to warn
the EngUsh traders out of the country .^
As will more fully appear in the sequel, the French, in
the winter of 1750-'51, followed their formal claim to the
territory between Lake Erie and the Ohio, wliich the explo
ring party of Celeron de BienvUle had reasserted, by taking
actual occupation of the northem frontier. This was done
by founding a fort and trading station at Sandusky.
MeanwhUe, the English colonies of Pennsylvania and Vir
ginia, deeply interested in the trade and pacification of the
Ohio Indians, no less than in the poUtical questions at issue,
were far from inactive. One George Croghan, an English
1) Hlldreth's History United States, H, 434.
2) See Appendix, No. H,

58 HISTORY OF OHIO.
trader, was also an envoy from the Government of Pennsyl
vania — distributing, on one occasion, goods to the value of a
thousand pistoles among the Indians settled on the Ohio and
Miami rivers. Licenses to trade with the Indian tribes
even to the Mississippi, were also granted by the Governor
of Pennsylvania.^ As early as June, 1744, the colonies of
Pennsylvania, Virginia and Maryland, went through another
ceremonial of receiving from a deputation of Iroquois, at
Lancaster, " a deed recognizing the King's right to aU lands
beyond the mountains," Still stimulated by a sense of dan
ger from the French and their Indian alUes, Pennsylvania,
at the instigation of Benjamin Franklin, organized her militia.
We have now reached, in order of time, the organization
of the Ohio Land Company of 1748, the exploration of Chris
topher Gist, and our first item of eirqumstantial evidence as
to the period when Fort Sandusky was built and occupied by
the French, In 1748, Thomas Lee, with twelve other Vir
ginians, among whom were Lawrence and Augustine, brother?
of George Washington, and also Mr. Hanbury, of London,
formed an association which was caUedthe " Ohio Company,"
and petitioned the King for a grant of lands beyond the
mountains. This petition was approved by the monarch, and
the government of Virginia was ordered to grant the petition
ers half a milUon of acres within the bounds of that colony,
beyond the AUeghanies, two hundred thousand of which were
to be located at once. This portion was to be hel(i for ten
years free of quit-rent, provided the company would put
there one hundred famUies within seven years, and build a
3) In 1749, La Jonquiere, the governor of Canada, learned to his great
indignation, that sever-al English traders had reached Sandusky, and were
exerting a bad influence upon the Indians of that quarter ; and two years
later he caused four of the intruders to be seized near the Ohio and sent
prisoners to Canada."— Parfcman's Pontiac, 64.

EXPEDITION OP CHRISTOPHER GIST. 59
fort sufficient to protect the settlement; all of which the
company proposed, and prepared to do at once, and sent to
London for a cargo suited to the Indian trade, which was to
come out so as to arrive in November, 1749. This grant
was to be taken principally on the south side of the Ohio
river, between the Monongahela and Kanawha rivers.*
In the autumn of 1750, the agents of the Ohio Company
employed Christopher Gist, a land surveyor and famiUar with
the woods, to explore their contemplated possessions on the
Ohio River, as weU as the adjacent country. He kept a jour
nal of his proceedings, which was published, and is entitled :
" A journal of Christopher Gist's journey, began from Colonel
Cresap's, at the old town on iJie Potomac River, Maryland,
Oetober 31, 1750, continued down the Ohio within fifteen
miles ofthe faUs thereof; and from thence to Roanoke River
in North CaroUna, where he arrived in May, 1751."* Mr.
Craig, in his notes on the early history of Pittsburgh, thinks,
from what he can ascertain, that he ascended the Juniata,
after crossing over from the Potomac, and descended the
Kiskeminetas to the AUeghany, which stream he crossed about
four mUes above Pittsburgh, and passed on to the Ohio.
From the mouth of Beaver creek he passed over to the Tus
carawas, or Muskingum River, caUed by him and by the In
dians Elk Eye creek ; striking it on the 5th of December, or
thirty-five days after leaving the Potomac, at a point about
fifty mUes above the present town of Coshocton, probably
within the county of Stark. On the 7th, he crossed over
the Elk Eye to a small viUage of Ottawas, who were in the
French interest. He speaks of the land as broken, and the
4) Perkins' Writings, ii, 191. Sparks' Washington, ii, 478.
5) S. P. Hlldreth's Pioneer History, 26— a valuable publication of the Ohio
Historical Society.

60 HISTORY OF OHIO.
bottoms rather narrow on this stream. On the 14th Decem
ber he reached an Indian town, a few miles above the mouth
of Whitewoman creek, called Muskingum, inhabited by Wy
andots, who, he says, are half of them attached to the French
and half to the EngUsh, containing about one hundred famUies.
" When we came in sight of it, we perceived English colors
hoisted on the King's house and at George Croghan's. Upon
inquiring the reason, I was informed that the French had
lately taken several EngUsh traders, and that Mr. Croghan
had ordered all the white men to come iato this town, and
had sent expresses to the traders of the lower towns, and
among the Piquatiners, and that the Indians had sent to their
people to come to council about it."
From this passage, it is evident that the Pennsylvania
traders had traversed the Indian villages, and obtained the
good wUl of their inhabitants in a considerable degree.
George Croghan was apparently at the head of a trading
party, and he and Andrew Montour accompanied Gist in his
further exploration. The latter, who acted as interpreter,
and was infiuential among the Delawares and Shawanese,
was a son of the famous Canadian half breed, Catharine
Montour, whose residence was at the head of Seneca Lake,
in New York.^ Catharine had two sons, Andrew and Henry,
6) Of this woman W. L. Stone (Life of Brant, i, 340) says : "She was a
native of Canada, a half-breed, her father having been one of the early
French governors — ^probably Count Frontenac, as he must have been in the
government of that country at about the time of her birth. During the wars
between the Six Nations and the French and Hurons, Catharine, when
about ten years of age, was made a captive, taken into the Seneca country,
adopted and reared as one of their own children. When arrived at a suit
able age, she was married to one of the distinguished chiefs of her tribe,
who signalized himself in the wsirs of the Six Nations against the Catawbas,
then a great nation living southwestward of Virginia. She had several
children by this chieftain, who fell in battle about the year 1750, after which
she did not marry again. She is said to have been a handsome woman when

FRENCH FORTS ON LAKE ERIE. 61
who were three-fourths of Indian blood. The late James H.
Perkins supposed that the companion of Gist was Henry, who
was a chief among the Six Nations, and says sthat Andrew
had been taken by the French in 1749. But Gist gives the
name of his interpreter and companion as " Andrew," and it
is unreasonable to suppose him mistaken. It is more likely
that Andrew Montour had escaped from his Canadian captors,
and was ready to make reprisals on them. Besides Croghan
and Montour, Gist was accompanied by Robert Kalender
during the latter portion of his journey. We resume the
diary of Gist :
" Monday, 17th December, 1750. Two traders belonging
to Mr. Croghan came into town and informed us that two of
his people had been taken by forty Frenchmen and twenty
Indians, who had carried them with seven horse loads of
skins to a new fort the French were building on one of the
branches of Lake Erie."
This we claim to have been Fort Sandusky. Bancroft
recognizes no doubt on the point, but quotes Gist as stating
that the captives were " carried to the new fort at Sandusky. "^
There was certainly no other fort or station on any branch of
Lake Erie at the close of 1750. Two years afterwards, or
early in 1763, twelve hundred men from Montreal built a
fort at Presque Isle, now Erie, and crossing thence to the
young, genteel, and of polite address, notwithstanding her Indian associa
tions. It was frequently her lot to accompany the chiefs of the Six Nations
to Philadelphia, and other places in Pennsylvania, where treaties were holden;
and, from her character and manners, she was greatly caressed by the Ameri
can ladies— particularly in Philadelphia, where she was invited by the ladies
of the best circles, and entertained at their houses. Her residence was at
the head of Seneca Lake." This account is mostly derived from Witham
Marshe's Journal of a Treaty with the Six Nations, held at Lancaster in 1744,
where Madame Montour (as Marshe calls her) was.
7) History of the United States, iv, 77.

62 HISTORY OP OHIO.
waters flowing south, they established posts at La Boeuf and
Venango, the one on French creek, the other on the main
stream of the AUeghany. AU accounts concur in fixmg this
aate for the posts at Erie, Waterford and Venango. Du
Quesne, afterwards Fort Pitt and now Pittsburgh, was occu
pied in 1754. It is true that Niagara and Detroit com
manded the extremities of Lake Erie, but in 1750-1, the only
French fort on a branch of the lake was Sandusky. This
wiU appear more distinctly as we proceed with Gist's diary.
" Tuesday, 18th December. I acquainted Mr. Croghan
and Mr. Montour with my business with the Indians, and
talked much of a regulation of trade, with which they were
pleased, and treated me well."
" Tuesday, 25th. This being Christmas day, I intended
to read prayers, but after inviting some of the white men,
they informed each other of my intentions, and being of sev
eral persuasions and few of them inclined to hear any good,
they refused to come ; but one Thomas Barney, a blacksmith,
who is settled there, went about and talked to them, and
then several of the well disposed Indians came freely, being
invited by Andrew Montour." Mr. Gist deUvered a dis
course, which was interpreted to the Indians, and read tLe
English church service. He then says : " The Indians seem
to be well pleased, and came up to me and returned me their
thanks and then invited me to live among them," &c.
"Friday, 4th January, 1751. One Taaf, an Indian
trader, came to town from near Lake Erie, and informed us
that the Wyandots had advised him to keep clear of the Ottar
was, (a nation firmly attached to the French, living near the
lakes,) and told him that the branches of the lakes were
claimed by the French, but that aU the branches of the Ohio
belonged to them and their brothers, the EngUsh, and that the

gist's OHIO DIARY. 63
French had no business there, aud that it was expected that
the other part of the Wyandots would desert the French and
come over to the English interest, and join their brethren on
the Elk Eye creek, and buUd a strong fort and town ther^-."
" Wednesday, 9th. This day came into town two traders
from among the Piquatiners (a tribe of the Tawightees) and
brought news that another English trader was taken pris
oner by the French, and that three French soldiers had
deserted and come over to the EngUsh, and surrendered
themselves to some of the traders of the Picktown, and that
the Indians would have put them to death to revenge the
taking of our traders; but as the French had surrendered
themselves to the English, they would not let the Indians
hurt them, but had ordered them to be sent under the care
of three of our traders, and delivered at this town to George
Croghan." " Saturday, 12th. Proposed a council — postponed — Indi
ans drunk.
"Monday, 14th. This day George Croghan, by the
assistance of Andrew Montour, acquainted the King and
councU of this nation (presenting them with four strings of
wampum) that their Roggony [father] had sent, under
care of the Governor of Virginia, their brother, a large
present of goods, which were now safe landed in Virginia,
and that the governor had sent me to invite them to come
and see him, and partake of their father's charity to aU his
chUdren on the branches of the Ohio. In answer to which,
one of the chiefs stood up and said that their King and aU of
them thanked their brother, the governor of Virginia, for his
care, and me for bringing them the news; but that they
could not give an answer untU they had a fuU and general
councU of the- several nations of Indians, which could not be

64 HISTORY OF OHIO.
untU next spring ; and so the king and councU shaking hands
with us, we took our leave."
" Tuesday, 15th. We left Muskingum and went west five
mUes to the White Woman's creek, on which is a small town.
This white woman -was taken away from New England, when
she was not above ten years old by the French Indians. She
is now upwards of fifty — has an Indian husband and several
chUdren. Her name is Mary Harris. She stUl remembers
they used to be very religious in New England ; and won
ders how the white men can be so wicked as she has seen
them in the woods."
Having crossed the Licking and Hockhocking, Gist de
scended the east bank of the Scioto, was favorably received
at several Delaware villages, and estimated the strength of
the tribe at about five hundred fighting men.^ On the 28th,
he reached Shawnee town, " situated on both sides of the
Ohio, just below the mouth of Scioto creek, and containing
about three hundred men. There were about forty houses
on the south side of the river, and about a hundred on the
north side, with a kind of state house, about ninety feet long,
with a tight cover of bark in which councils were held."
Thence on the 12th' of February, the party as before enu
merated, crossed to the Great Miami, and were received at
the Tawightwi town, which was on the northwest side of the
river, and consisted of about four hundred famiUes. The
Tawightwi, or Miami Indians, are described as a numerous
people, consisting of many different tribes, under the same
form of government. A chief of the confederacy was chosen
indifferently from the tribes, and at this time, was the king of
the Piankeshaws. Gist was kindly received, and notwith
standing four Ottawas were present as envoys from the
8) See Appendix, No. IIL

gist's CONFERENCE WITH THE MIAMIS. <;5
French, with tempting presents and offers of renewals of
friendship, the latter were rejected, and the powerful Miamis
gave the EngUsh envoy a promise to meet the Virginia com
missioners at Logstown, seventeen mUes below Pittsburg, for
a general treaty. The scene of this interview was probably
at the mouth of Loramies Creek, or just above Piqua.
The king of the Piankeshaws, setting up the EngUsh col
ors in the councU, as well as the French, rose and replied to
the overtures of the Ottawa messengers. - " The path to the
French is bloody, and was made so by them. We have
cleared a road for our brothers, the EngUsh, and your
fathers have made it foul, and have taken some of our broth
ers prisoners." "This," added the kmg, " we look upon as
done to us," and turning suddenly from them, he strode out
of the council. At this the representative of the French, an
Ottawa, wept and howled, predicting sorrow for the Miamis.
To the EngUsh, the Weas and Piankeshaws, after delib
eration, sent a speech by the great orator of the Weas.
" You have taken us by the hand," were his words, " into the
great chain of friendship. Therefore we present you with
these two bundles of skins to make shoes for your people,
and this pipe to smoke in, to assure you our hearts are good
towards you, our brothers."
In the presence of the Ottawa ambassadors, the great war
chief of the Picqua stood up, and summoning in imagmation
the French to be present, he spoke —
"Fathers! you have desired we should go home to you,
but I tell you it is not our home ; for we have made a path
to the sun rising, and have been taken by the hand by our
brothers, the EngUsh, the Six Nations, the Delawares, the
Shawanese, and the Wyandots ; and we assure you in that
road we wiU go. And as you threaten us with war in the
3*

66 HISTORY OF OHIO.
spring, we teU you, if you are angry, we are ready to receive
you, and resolve to die here, before we wiU go to you. That
you may know this to be our mind, we send you this string
of black wampum.
" Brothers, the Ottawas, you hear what I say, teU that to
your fathers, the French, for that is our mind, and we speak
it from our hearts."
" The French colors are taken down," adds Bancroft, " and
the Ottawas are dismissed to the French fort of Sandusky."^
On the 1st of March, Gist left on his return by the falls
of Ohio, and through the Cumberland mountains, to Nortb
Carolina; but in April, 1751, the Miami chiefs were revisited
by Croghan, with similar results, as narrated in his published
journal. The Shawanese, found by Gist at the mouth of the Scioto,
were lately returned from their southern wanderings, but as
the scattered portions of the tribe came to Ohio, they estab
lished themselves higher up the stream and on the waters of
the Miami, building several towns.
Having thus generally examined the land upon the Ohio,
in November Gist commenced a thorough survey of the tract
south of the Ohio, and east of the Kanawha, granted to the
Ohio Company, and spent the winter in that labor.
Early in 1752, a settlement of English traders was
attempted on the Great Miami, at the mouth of Loramie's
Creek. A party of French soldiers having heard of it, came
to the Twigtwees or Miamis, and demanded the traders as
intruders. The Indians refused — the trading house was
destroyed — fourteen natives killed, and the traders were
carried into Canada, and some of them, according to one
account, burned aUve. This fort or tradmg house, was
9) History of the United States, iv, 81.

ENGLISH EXPLORATIONS. 67
caUed by the EngUsh writers PickawiUany. These traders
were probably Pennsylvanians, for that State made a gift of
condolence to the Twigtwees for those slain in their defence. i"
On the 9th June, 1752, Messrs. Fry, Lomax and Patton,
Virginia Commissioners, met the Indians at Logstown, four
teen miles below Pittsburg, on the right bank of the Ohio,
which had long been a trading point, but had been abandoned
by the Indians in 1750. -Gist appeared as agent for the
Ohio Company. The Commissioners urged a confirmation of
the treaty of Lancaster. The Indians claimed that the
treaty at Lancaster did not cede any lands west of the war
rior's road, which ran at the foot of the_ Alleghany ridge.
Two old chiefs asked Mr. Gist where the Indians' land lay —
for the French claimed all the land on one side of the Ohio
river, and the English on the other? Mr. Gist found the
question difficult to answer. " However," said the savages,
" as the French have already struck the Twigtwees, we shaU
be pleased to have your assistance and protection, and wish
you would build a fort at once at the Fork of the Ohio."
The Virgmians asked much more, and at length, by bribing
one of the Montours to exert his infiuence, induced the
Indians to sign a deed, confirming the Lancaster treaty in
its fuU extent, consenting to a settlement southeast of the
Ohio, and guarantying that it should not be disturbed by
them. HUdreth says in 1752, " a band of the Miamis, or Twig
twees, as the EngUsh called them, settled at Sandusky,
10) This was in May, 1753. The present to the Miamis was two hundred
pounds, besides a grant of six hundred pounds for general distribution
among the tribes ; but so groat was the apprehension of the French, that
the money probably was not sent, though Conrad Weiser was dispatched
as a messenger in August to learn how things stood. Sparks' FrankUn, iii,
219 ; N. A. Bemew, xlix, 83.

68 HISTORY OF OHIO.
having refused to remove to Detroit, and persisting in trade
with the English, their viUage was burned, the English tra
ders were seized, and their merchandize confiscated."^'
This is probably an inaccurate version of the affair;^ at Lorar
mies or PickawiUany.
Early in 1753, Gist had estabUshed a plantation near the
Youghiogany, west of Laurel HUl, consisting of eleven fami
lies, but his purpose to lay off a town and fort near the
mouth of Chartier's creek, about two mUes below the Fork,
on the southeast side of the river, was reUnquished.
In the summer and fall of 1763, the French landed at
Erie, and planted their garrisons at Presq'' Isle, Le Boeuf
and Venango.
In November of the same year, George Washington, as
the envoy of Virginia, had his unsatisfactory interview of
remonstrance with the French commandant.
11) Histoiy of the United States, by Richard Hildreth, H, 436.

CHAPTER VI.
THE ASCENDANCY OF FRANCE UPON THE OHIO.
The year 1754 may be indicated as the period when the
favorable sentiments which Croghan and Gist had ascertained
and cultivated among the Ohio Indians, began to change to
hostUity. It was a year of French activity and English
foUy. The colonies were alarmed, but inefficient and parsi
monious ; while the French labored zealously to conciliate
the Indians by gifts and flatteries. The envoys of the latter
did not alarm the savages by any demands — their only object
was to concUiate good wiU. "During the autumn of 1754,"
says Perkins, " the pleasant Frenchmen were securing the
west step by step ; settling Vincennes, gaUanting with tbe
Delawares, and coquetting with the Iroquois, who still bal
anced between them and the English. The forests along the
Ohio shed their leaves, and the prairies filled the sky with
the smoke of their burning ; and along the great rivers, and
on the lakes, and amid the pathless woods of the west, no
European was seen whose tongue spoke other language than
that of France."!
On the other hand, the infatuation of the colonists in seek
ing a grant of extensive tracts, occupied by Ohio Indians,
from the Iroquois — the increasing numbers and influence of
the Shawanese, who were the hereditary enemies of the
EngUsh, and whose professions otherwise to Gist were proba
bly hypocritical or mercenary— the failure of the colonies to
1) Perkins' Writings, ii, 280.

70 HISTORY OE OHIO.
continue their donations to the western Indians, wMle French
emissaries swarmed in every vUlage, with gifts of trinkets
and exchanges of ammunition and ardent spirits ; and finally
the evidences of French activity and strength afforded by the
erection of forts at Sandusky, Vincennes, Miamis, Presque
Isle, Du Quesne, &c. — all these circumstances conspired to
alienate even the Delawares and Miamis from the EngHsh,
and to make all the tribes either alUes or acquiescent specta
tors of the French inroad. The main body of the Wyandots,
and the Ottawas, without exception, became the active allies
of the French.
Perhaps no one was more keenly sensitive to the approach
ing danger, and more sagacious in devising means to avert
it, than Benjamin Franklin. He was the Ufe and soul of
the Albany Congress of 1754, which was summoned to
promote the common defence and general welfare of the col
onies, and his writings refiect vividly the weakness of the
English counsels as contrasted with his clear perception of
the exigencies of the crisis. No western annaUst should
omit a cordial recognition of Franklin's timely and valuable
suggestions on the eve of that momentous struggle -which
terminated French dominion upon the St. Lawrence and the
Ohio. As is well known, the Albany Convention of 1754, re
sulted in a plan of union, drawn by the sagacious FrankUn,
which was deemed too loyal to the crown by the colonies,
and too democratic by the Court of England, and therefore
was universally rejected. There were present delegates
from New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York,
Pennsylvania and Maryland. The Six Nations were also
represented by Hendrick, the Mohawk Sachem, and certainly
no one was more capable than an Iroquois chieftain to im-

PRANKLIN UPON COLONIAL UNION. 71
press upon the delegates the necessity of union. The policy
of a confederacy had been the secret of the strength of the
Five Nations, and it was a remarkaible incident at the councU
of Lancaster, in 1744, that a recommendation of Union
came from Cannastego, one of their orators. At the session
of the Fourth of July, of that year, the eloquent Onon
daga warrior used this language :
" We have one thing further to say, and that is, we hear-
tUy recommend union and good agreement between you and
your brethren. Never disagree, but preserve a strict friend
ship for each other, and thereby you, as well as we, wUl be
come the stronger.
" Our wise forefathers established union and amity between
the Five Nations ; this has made us formidable : this has
given us great weight and authority with our neighboring na
tions. We are a powerful confederacy ; and by your observ
ing the same methods which our wise forefathers have taken,
you wUl acquire fresh strength and power ; therefore, what
soever befalls you, never fall out with each other."
There are evidences that Franklin's thoughts had been for
some time tumed to a union of the colonies. He had thrown
out hints to that effect in his newspaper. The Pennsylvania
Crazette for May 9, 1764, contains an account of the capture
by the French of Captain Trent's party, who were erecting
a fort (afterwards Fort Du Quesne) at the fork of the Ohio.
The. article was undoubtedly written by the editor. After
narrating the particulars and urging union to resist aggres
sion, he adds : " The confidence of the French in this under
taking seems well grounded in the present disunited state of
the British colonies, and the extreme difficulty of bringing so
many different governments and assemblies to agree in any
speedy and effectual measures for our common defence and

72 HISTORY OF OHIO.
security ; while our enemies have the very great advantage
of being under one direction, with one councU and one
purse." At the end of the article is a wood cut, in which
is the figure of a snake, separated into parts, to each of which
is affixed the initial of one of the colonies, and at the bottom,
ia larger capitals, the motto, " Join or Die." It is weU
known that this device was adopted with considerable effect
at the beginning of the Revolution. In some of the news
papers of that day, the mutUated snake makes a conspicuous
head-piece, running across the page, and accompanied by
the same significant motto.^
Not discouraged by the Albany faUure, FrankUn persisted
in devising other measures of relief for the colonial crisis.
He brought forward his " Plan for settling two Western Col
onies in North America, with reasons for the plan," dated
1754, and probably written shortly after the Albany Conven
tion of that year. One of these barrier colonies was to
guard the Niagara frontier, and the other to occupy the
northern bank of the Ohio. This was to be done by organ
izing a joint stock, one share of which, calUng for a blank
number of acres, was to be transferred to every settler or
subscriber of a given amount of money — by which he antici
pated that sufficient men and means would be coUected,
"provided only," added the shrewd FrankUn, "that the
crown would be at the expense of removing the Uttle forts
the French have erected in their encroachments on his Ma
jesty's territories, and supporting a strong one near the Falls
of Niagara, with a few smaU armed vessels, or half-gaUeys
to cruise on the lakes."
For the security of the Lake Colony in its infancy, he
proposed .3, temporary fort on French Creek, the principal
"""^-2) Sparks' FrankUn, iii, 25.

franklin's plan OF BORDER COLONIES. 73
branch of the AUeghany River, but which Franklin calls
" Buffalo creek of the Ohio," and " another at the mouth of
the Tioga, on the south side of Lake Erie, where a port
should be formed and a town erected for the trade of the
lakes." I presume that " Tioga " was intended for Cuya
hoga, for he immediately adds, that " the colonists for this
settlement might march by land through Pennsylvania."
The next paragraph contains an allusion to Fort Sandusky,
which demonstrates that it was founded before 1754 at least.
" The river Scioto, which runs into the Ohio about two
hundred miles below Logstown, is supposed the fittest seat
of the other colony ; there being for forty mUes on each side
of it, and quite up to its head, a body of all rich land : the
finest spot of its bigness in all North America, and has the
particular advantage of sea-coal in plenty (even above ground
in two places,) for fuel, when the wood shall be destroyed.
This colony would have the trade of the Miamis or Twigh-
twees ; and should, at first, have a smaU fort near Hochockin,
at the head of the river, and another near the mouth of the
Wabash. Sandusky, (in the earUest edition of FrankUn's
Works written Sandushi,^ a French Fort near the Lake
Erie, should also be taken; and all the little French forts
south and west of the lakes, quite to the Mississippi, be
removed, or taken and garrisoned by the EngUsh."
These colonies were to be on the French plan of western
colonization, every fort having a smaU settlement around it,
one furnishing protection and the other provisions ; and
Franklin assumes that " there are already in all the old col
onies many thousands of famiUes that are ready to swarm,
wantuig more land," who would be attracted by " the rich
ness and natural advantages of the Ohio country." He
opens his essay, indeed, by observing that " the great country

74 HISTORY OF OHIO.
back "of the Appalachian mountains, on both sides of the
Ohio and between that river and the lakes, is now weU known,
both to the EngUsh and French, to be one of the finest in
North America, for the extreme richness and fertUity of the
land, the healthy temperature of the air, and mUdness of the
climate ; the plenty of hunting, fishing and fowling ; the facil
ity of trade with the Indians ; and the vast convenience of
inland navigation or water carriage by the lakes and great
rivers, many hundreds of leagues around." " From these
natural advantages," he predicts "it must undoubtedly
(perhaps in less than another century,) become a populous
and powerful dominion."
In favor of his project of charters and encouragement to
two border colonies, as above sketched, FrankUn gives so
characteristic an outUne of the evils to be prevented, and the
benefits to be attained, that we cannot refrain from a quotar
tion of some extent :
" The French are now making open encroachments on
these territories, in defiance of our known rights ; and if we
longer delay to settle that country, and suffer them to possess
it, these inconveniencies and mischiefs will probably follow :
1. Our people being confined to the country between the
sea and the mountains, cannot much more increase in num
ber : people increasing in proportion to their room and means
of subsistence.
2. The French wUl increase much more, by that acquired
room and plenty of subsistence, and become a great people
behind us.
3. Many of our debtors and loose English people, our
German servants and slaves, wiU probably desert to them,
and increase their numbers and strength, to the lessening and
weakening of ours.

franklin's border COLONIES. 75
4. They wUl cut us off from all commerce and alUance
with the western Indians, to the great prejudice of Britain,
by preventing the sale and consumption of its manufactures.
5. They wUl, both in time of peace and war, (as they have
always done against New England,) set the Indians on to
harrass our frontiers, kUl and scalp our people, and drive in
the advanced settlers ; and so, in preventing our obtaining
more subsistence by cultivating of new lands, they discourage
our marriages, and keep our people from increasing ; thus
(if the expression may be allowed,) kUlmg thousands of our
chUdren before they are born.
"If two strong colonies of English were settled between the
Ohio and Lake Erie, in the places hereafter to be mentioned,
these advantages might be expected :
1. They would be a great security to the frontiers of our
other colonies, by preventing the incursions of the French
and French Indians of Canada, on the back parts of Pennsyl
vania, Maryland, Virginia and the CaroUnas ; and the fron
tiers of such new colonies would be much more easily
defended than those of the colonies last mentioned now can
be, as wiU appear hereafter.
2. The dreaded junction of the French settlements in
Canada with those of Louisiana would be prevented.
3. In case of a war, it would be easy, from those new
colonies, to annoy Louisiana, by going down the Ohio and
the Mississippi ; and the southem part of Canada, by saUing
over the lakes, and thereby confine the French within narrow
Umits. 4. We could secure the friendship and trade of the Miamis
or Twigtwees, (a numerous people, consisting of many tribes,
inhabiting the country between the west end of Lake Erie
and the south end of Lake Huron, [Michigan rather,] and

76 HISTORY OF OHIO.
the Ohio,) who are at present dissatisfied with the French and
fond of the English, and would gladly encourage and protect
an infant English settlement in or near their country, as some
of their chiefs have declared to the writer of this memou-.
Further, by means of the Lakes, the Ohio and Mississippi,
our trade might be extended through a vast country, among
many numerous and distant nations, greatly to the benefit of
Britain. 5. The settlement of all the intermediate lands, between
the present frontiers of our colonies on one side, and the
Lakes and Mississippi on the other, would be facUitated and
speedUy executed, to the great increase of Englishmen, Eng
lish trade, and English power.
"The grants to most of the colonies, are of long narrow
slips of land, extending west from the Atlantic to the South
Sea. They are much too long for their breadth ; the ex
tremes are at too great distance : and therefore unfit to be
continued under their present dimensions. Several of the
old colonies may conveniently be limited westward by the
Alleghany or Apalachian mountains, and new colonies formed
west of those mountains."
Tempting as this relic is, we wUl not further pursue the
extract. It is certainly the prophecy of history, and per
haps no passage in the useful life of Franklin, has been more
productive of service to his country, than his early labors to
unite the colonies. They were the germ of the confederacy
of the Revolution, and the Constitution of 1789. The fore
going project was in the alternative — only in case the Albany
scheme was not adopted. Both, however, were one generar
tion too soon. These councUs were unheeded, and after
1754, the reaction in favor of the French, so extensively
prevailed among the Westem tribes, for the reasons already

WASHINGTON'S FIRST CAMPAIGN. 77
indicated, that Braddock's defeat became the signal of a gen
eral rising against the colonies.
Our record of the subsequent occurrences of the French
and English war, can only be chronological.
On the 17th of AprU, 1754, while a smaU party of Vir
ginians were erecting a fort at the forks of the Ohio, Contre-
coeur, a French officer, appeared on the Alleghany with sixty
batteaiux, three hundred canoes and eighteen cannon. En
sign Ward, who, in the absence of Capt. Trent and Lieut.
Fraser, was in command of only forty-one men, surrendered
to a force of one thousand French and Indians, and was per
mitted to lead his party, with their tools, to Virginia. The
French erected Fort Du Quesne at once, and their communi
cation from Lake Erie to the Ohio was complete.
The retreating company fell in with a force of one hun
dred and fifty men, under Col. Washington, who, instead of
turning back, resolved to push boldly on, strike the Monon
gahela at the mouth of Redstone, (now BrownsvUle,) and
estabUsh a fort there. Informed by Tanacharison, a friendly
Indian chief, otherwise caUed Half King, that a French party
was seeking him, Washington advanced, a skirmish ensued,
M. de JunonvUle, the French commandant, and ten of his
men were kiUed, and twenty-two taken prisoners, one of
whom was wounded. One of Col. Washiagton's men was
kiUed, and two or three wounded. This event occurred on
the 28th of May, 1754.
Washington was soon joined by the rest of' his regiment
(his rank was Lieut. Colonel, but he had succeeded to the
command on the death of Col. Joseph Fry,) raising his force
to six hundred men. He erected a stockade at Great
Meadows, called Fort Necessity, and pushed on towards
Fort Du Quesne. The approach of a much superior force

78 HISTORY OF OHIO.
under M. de ViUiers, brother of JunonvUle, obliged him to
faU back to Fort Necessity. - His troops were fatigued, dis
couraged and short of provisions ; and, after a day's fightmg,
he agreed to give up the fort, and to retire with his arms and
baggage. Having retired to Wills creek, Washington's
troops assisted in the erection of Fort Cumberland, which
now became the frontier post of Virginia.
We need not repeat the tale of Braddock's defeat. It
occurred on the 9th of July, 1755. An expedition against
Niagara also faUed.
Singular as it may seem in this paper age, war was not
declared between England and France untU May, 1756.
This year was also barren of results.
Nothing decisive until 1758. Then, among other tri
umphs of English arms. Fort Du Quesne was abandoned on
the approach of Gen. Forbes through Pennsylvania. With
the fall of this fort ceased aU direct contest in the West.
From that time, Canada was the scene of operations, but in
1759, Ticonderoga, Crown Point, Niagara, and at length
Quebec itself, yielded to the English ; and, on the 8th of
September, 1760, Montreal, Detroit, and aU Canada were
given up by Vaudreuil, the French Govemor.
Our statement that Fort Sandusky was built and occupied
by the French as early as 1750-1, is now seen to be fully
sustained by the journal of Gist, and the essay of FrankUn
(both contemporary documents) as well as by the opinion of
Bancroft. The exact locality of this stockade cannot be
ascertained, but the probability is, on a comparison of all the
references which have faUen under our notice, that the site
was about three miles west of the city of Sandusky, near the
village of Venice, on Sandusky Bay. The traU from Fort
Du Quesne, afterwards Fort Pitt, and now Pittsburg, to

AN INDIAN TRAIL. 79
Detroit, evidently struck Sandusky Bay, near the locality
above mentioned, and Fort Sandusky was not probably far
from that traU.
AU the Revolutionary treaties with the Ohio Indians, as
weU as the treaties of January 9, 1789, at Fort Harmar,
and August 3, 1795, at GreenvUle, contain grants to the
United States of " six miles square upon Sandusky Lake,
where the Fort formerly stood." On a map of Ohio, pub
Ushed in 1803, this tract is clearly deUneated as extending
from the south shore of Sandusky Bay, and including the
locality which we have supposed to be the situation of Fort
Sandusky. Parkman, in a chart of "Forts and Settlements
in America, A. D. 1763," places nothing within the present
limits of the State of Ohio, except Fort Sandusky, which is
situated on the Bay or Lake of that name. The allusions
to Fort Sandusky imply so distinctly that it was near Lake
Erie, or easily accessible therefrom, that the opinion has
been expressed, that the Fort was situated on the peninsula
north of the Bay ; and Evans' " Map of the British Colo
nies," published in 1755, represents Fort Sandusky on the
left side of the outlet of the Bay, and marks a Fort Junan-
dat (a probable corruption of Wyandot) near the mouth of
the Sandusky River, on the south side. This location of
Fort Sandusky, placing it in Danbury township, Ottawa
county, is universaUy contradicted by subsequent charts and
descriptions, and we have adopted an opinion in favor of the
location on the great northwestern trail. That trail we sup
pose to have struck a poiat on the Tuscarawas River, near
the junction of Sandy creek, on the southern border of Stark
county ; thence westward through the southem tier of town
ships in Wayne county, and the towns of Mohican and Ver-
milUon, in Ashland county ; thence turning northwest through

80 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Mifflin, Franklin and Plymouth townships, of Richland county,
crossing the Black Fork of the Walhonding or Whitewoman
River twice ; stUl more northwardly through the townships
of New Haven, Greenfield, Peru and Ridgefield, of Huron
county, striking across a bend in the Huron River ; and so
through Erie county northwestwardly in the direction of De
troit.

CHAPTER VII.
A PICTURE OF OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE.
It is in our power, by transcribing freely from a Narrative
of the Captivity of Col. James Smith among the Ohio Indians,
between May, 1766, and AprU, 1759, to present a picture
of the wUdemess and its savage occupants, which, bearing
intrinsic evidence of faithful accuracy, is also corroborated by
the pubUc and private character of the writer.
Col. James Smith was a native of Pennsylvania, and after
his return from Indian captivity, was entrusted, in 1763, with
the command of a company of riflemen. He trained his men
in the Indian tactics and discipline, and directed them to
assume the dress of warriors, and to paint their faces red
and black, so that in appearance they were hardly distinguish
able from the enemy. Some of his exploits in the defence of
the Pennsylvania border are less creditable to him than his
services in the war of the Revolution. He Uved untU the
year 1812, and is the author of a Treatise on the Indian mode
of warfare. In Kentucky, where he spent the latter part of
his life, he was much respected, and several times elected to
the Legislature.
The first edition of Snuth's Journal was published in
Lexmgton, Kentucky, by John Bradford, in 1799.^ Samuel
G. Drake, the Indian antiquarian and author, accompanies
1) See a volume entitled " Indian Captivities, or Life in the Wigwam ; " by
S. G. Drake, author of the " BooTc of the Indians ; '' Derby & Miller, publish
ers, Auburn, N. Y
' (81)

82 HISTORY OF OHIO.
its republication in 1851 by a tribute to Smith as "an
exemplary Christian and unwavering patriot."
In the spring of 1755, James Smith, then eighteen years
of age, was captured by three Indians, (two Delawares and
one Canasatauga,) about four or five miles above Bedford, in
Western Pennsylvania. He was immediately led to the
banks of the AUeghany River, opposite Fort Du Quesne, where
he was compeUed to run the gauntlet between two long ranks
of Indians, each stationed about two or three rods apart. His
treatment was not severe, until near the end of the lines,
when he was felled by a blow from a stick or tomahawk han
dle, and, on attempting to rise, was blinded by sand thrown
into his eyes. The blows continued until he became insensi
ble, and when he recovered his, consciousness, he found him
self within the fort, much bruised, and under the charge of a
French physician.
While yet unrecovered from his wounds. Smith was a wit
ness of the French exultation and the Indian orgies over the
disastrous defeat of Braddock. A few days afterwards, his
Indian captors placed him in a canoe, and ascended the AUe
ghany River to an Indian town on the north side of the river,
about forty mUes above Fort Du Quesne. Here they
remained three weeks, when the party proceeded to a viUage
on the west branch of the Muskingum, about twenty mUes
above the forks. This viUage was called TuUihas, and was
inhabited by Delawares, Caughnewagas and Mohicans.^ The
2) Heckewelder, in his History of the Indian Nations (p. 77), says that
the Cochnewago Indians were a remnant of the Mohicans of New England,
who had fled to the shores of the St. Lawrence, where they incorporated
themselves with the Iroquois, and became a mixed race, of course under
French iniluence. A number of the Mohicans from Counecticut emigrated
to Ohio in 1762, and their chief was " Mohican John," whose village was ou
the trail from Sandusky to Fort Pitt, near the township of Mohican, in
Ashland county, according to our reckoning.

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 83
soU between the Alleghany and Muskingum rivers, on the
route here designated, is described as " chiefiy black oak
and white oak land, which appeared generally to be good
wheat land, chiefly second and third rate, intermixed with
some rich bottoms."
While remaining at TuUihas, Smith describes the manner
of his adoption by the Indians and other ceremonies, which
we prefer to give in his own words :
" The day after my arrival at the afbresaid town, a num
ber of Indians coUected about me, and one of them began to
puU the hair out of my head. He had some ashes on a piece
of bark, in which he frequently dipped his fingers in order to
take the firmer hold, and so he went on, as if he had been
plucking a turkey, untU he had all the hair clean out of my
head, except a smaU spot about three or four inches square
on my crown. This they cut off with a pair of scissors, ex
cepting three locks, which they dressed up in their own
mode. Two of these they wrapped round with a narrow
beaded garter, made by themselves for that purpose, and the
other they plaited at full length, and then stuck it fuU of
silver brooches. After this they bored my nose and ears,
and fixed me off with ear-rings and nose-jewels. Then they
ordered me to strip off my clothes and put on a breech-clout,
which I did. They then painted my head, face and body, in
various colors. They put a large belt of wampum on my
neck, and sUver bands on my hands and right arm ; and so
an old Chief led me out on the street, and gave the alarm
halloo, coo^gh, several times, repeated quick ; and on this,
aU that were in the town came runniag and stood round the
old Chief, who held me by the hand in the midst. As I at
that time knew nothing of their mode of adoption, and had
seen them put to death all they had taken, and as I never

84 HISTORY OF OHIO.
could find that they saved a man alive at Braddock's defeat,
I made no doubt but they were about putting me to death in
some cruel manner. The old Chief holding me by the hand,
made a long speech, very loud, and when he had done, he
handed me to three young squaws, who led me by the hand
down the bank, into the river, until the water was up to our
middle. The squaws then made signs to me to plunge my
self into the water, but I did not understand them. I thought
the result of the councU was that I should be drowned, and
that these young ladies were to be the executioners. They
aU three laid violent hold of me, and I for some time opposed
them with all my might, which occasioned loud laughter by
the multitude that were on the bank of the river. At length
one of the squaws made out to speak a Uttle EngUsh (for I
believe they began to be afraid of me) and said ' No hurt
you.^ On this I gave myself up to their ladyships, who were
as good as their word ; for though they plunged me under
water,, and washed and rubbed me severely, yet I could not
say they hurt me much;
" These young women then led me up to the council house,
where some of the tribe were ready with new clothes for me.
They gave me a new ruffled shirt, which I put on, also a pair
of leggins done off with ribbons and beads, Ukewise a pair
of moccasins, and garters dressed with beads, porcupine
quills and red hair — also a tinsel-laced cappo. They again
painted my head and face with various colors, and tied a
bunch of red feathers to one of those locks they had left on
the crown of my head, which stood up five or six inches.
They seated me on a bear-skin and gave me a pipe, tomar
hawk and polecat-skin pouch, which had been skinned pocket-
fashion, and contained tobacco, killegenico, or dry sumach
leaves, which they mix with their tobacco ; also spunk, flint

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 85
and steel. When I was thus seated, the Indians came ia,
dressed and painted in their grandest manner. As they
came in, they took their seats, and for a considerable time
there was a profound silence — every one was smokiag ; but
not a word was spoken among them. At length one of the
Chiefs made a speech, which was deUvered to me by an in
terpreter, and was as followeth : ' My son, you are now flesh
of our flesh and bone of our bone. By the ceremony which
was performed this day, every drop of white blood was
washed out of your veins ; you are taken into the Caughne-
wago nation and initiated into a war-like tribe ; you are
adopted into a great family, and now received with great
seriousness and solemnity in the room and place of a great
man. After what has passed this day, you are now one of
us by an old strong law and custom. My son, you have now
nothing to fear — ^we are now under the same obUgations to
love, support and defend you that we are to love and defend
one another ; therefore you are to consider yourself as one
of our people.' At this time I did not beUeve this fine
speech, especially that of the white blood being washed out
of me ; but since that time I have found that there was much
sincerity in said speech ; for, from that day, I never knew
them to make any distinction between me and themselves, in
any respect whatever, untU I left them. If they had plenty
of clothing, I had plenty ; if we were scarce, we aU shared
one fate.
"After this ceremony was over, I was introduced to my
new kin, and told that I was to attend a feast that evening,
which I did. And as the custom was, they gave me also a
bowl and wooden spoon, which I carried with me to the
place, where there was a number of large brass kettles, full
of boiled venison and green com ; every one advanced with

86 HISTORY OF OHIO.
his bowl and spoon, and had his share given hirn. After this,
one of the chiefs made a short speech, and then we began to
eat. "The name of one of the chiefs in this town, was Tecany-
aterighto, alias Pluggy, and the other AsaUecoa, alias Mo
hawk Solomon. As Pluggy and his party were to start the
next day to war, to the frontiers of Virginia, the next thing
to be performed was the war dance, and their war songs.
At their war dance, they had;" ;both vocal and instrumental
music ; they had a short hollow- gum, closed at one end, with
water in it, and parchment stretched over the open end
thereof, which they beat with one stick, and made a sound
nearly like a muffled drum. AU those who were going on
this expedition, coUected together and formed. An old
Indian then began to sing, and timed the music by beating
on this drum, as the ancients formerly timed their music by
beating the tabor. On this, the warriors began to advance,
or move forward in concert, Uke well disciplined troops would
march to the fife and drum. Each warrior had a tomahawk,
spear, or war-mallet in his hand, and they all moved regu
larly toward the east, or the way they intended to go to war.
At length they aU stretched their tomahawks toward the
Potomac, and giving a hideous shout or yeU, they wheeled
quick about, and danced in the same manner back. The
next was the war song. In performing this, only one sung
at a time, in a moving posture, with a tomahawk in his hand,
while all the other warriors were engaged in calling aloud,
he uh, he uh, which they constantly repeated while the war
song was going on. When the warrior that was singing had
ended his song, he struck a war-post vrith his tomahawk,
and with a loud voice told what warlike exploits he had done,
and what he now intended to do, which were answered by

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 87
the other warriors with loud shouts of applause. Some who
had not before intended to go to war at this time, were so
animated by this performance, that they took up the toma
hawk and sung the war song, which was answered with
shouts of joy, as they were then initiated into the present
marching company. The next morning this company aU
coUected at one place, with their heads and faces painted
with various colors, and packs upon their backs ; they
marched off, all sUent, except the commander, who, in the
front, sung the traveling song, which began in this manner :
hoo caughtainteheegana. Just as the rear passed the end ofthe
town, they began to fire in their slow manner, from the front
to the rear, which was accompanied with shouts and yeUs
firom aU quarters.
"This evening I was invited to another sort of dance,
which was a kind of promiscuous dance. The young men
stood in one rank, and the young women in another, about
one rod apart, facing each other. The one that raised the
tune, or started the song, held a smaU gourd or dry sheU of
a squash in his hand, which contained beads or small stones,
which rattled. When he began to sing, he timed the tune
with his rattle; both men and women danced and sung
together, advancmg towards each other, stooping untU their
heads would be touching together, and then ceased from
dancing, with loud shouts, and retreated and formed again,
and so repeated the same thing over and over, for three or
four hours, without intermission. This exercise appeared to
me at first irrational and insipid ; but I found that in singing
their tunes ya ne no hoo wa ne, &c., like our fa sol la, and
though they have no such thing as jingling verse, yet they
can intermix sentences with their notes, and say what
they please to each other, and carry on the tune in concert.

88 HISTORY OF OHIO.
I found that this was a kind of wooing or courting dance,
and as they advanced stooping with their heads together,
they could say what they pleased in each other's ear, with
out disconcerting their rough music, and the others, or those
near, not hear what they said."
Smith describes an expedition, about thirty or forty nules
southwardly, to a spot which he supposed to be between the
Muskingum, Ohio and - Scioto rivers — perhaps in Licking
county. It was a buffalo lick, where the Indians kiUed sev
eral buffalo, and in their small brass kettles made about half
a bushel of salt. Here were clear open woods, and thin
white oak land, with several paths, like wagon roads, leading
to the Uck.
Returning to the Indian village on the Muskingum, Smith
obtained an EngUsh Bible, which Pluggy and his party had
brought back among other spoUs of an expedition as far as the
south branch of the Potomac. He remained at TuUihas until
October, when he accompanied his adopted brother, whose
name was TontUeaugo, and who had married a Wyandot
woman, to Lake Erie. Their route -was up the west branch
of the Muskingum, through a country which for some distance
was " hUly, but intermixed with large bodies of tolerable rich
upland and excellent bottoms." They proceeded to the head
waters of the west branch of Muskingum, and thence
crossed to the waters of a stream, called by Smith the Cane
sadooharie. This was probably the Black River, which,
rising in Ashland, and traversing Medina and Lorain counties,
(at least by the course of its east branch,) falls into Lake
Erie a few mUes north of Elyria.^ If we suppose that Tul-
lihas, situated twenty miles above the principal forks of
Muskingum, was near the junction of the Vernon and Mo-
3) See Appendix, No. V.

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. <S9
hican Rivers, on the border of Knox and Coshocton counties,
Smith and his companion probably foUowed what is called on
Thayers' Map of Ohio the " Lake fork of the Mohican," untU
they reached the northern portion of Ashland county, and
there struck the headwaters of the Canesadooharie, where, as
Smith testifies, they found " a large body of rich, well-lying
land; the timber, ash, walnut, sugartree, buckeye, honey-
locust and cherry, intermixed with some oak and hickory."
Let us here resume the Narrative :
" On this route we had no horses with us, and when we
started from the town, all the pack I carried was a pouch,
containing my books, a little dried venison, and my blanket.
I had then no gun, but TontUeaugo, who was a first rate
hunter, carried a rifle gun, and every day kUled deer, rac
coons or bearSv We left the meat, excepting a little for
present use, and carried the skins with us untU we encamped,
and then stretched them with elm bark on a frame made with
poles stuck in the ground, and tied together with lynn or elm
bark ; and when the skins were dried by the fire, we packed
them up and carried them with us the next day.
" As TontUeaugo could not speak EngUsh, I had to make
use of aU the Caughnewaga I had learned, even to talk very
imperfectly with him ; but I found I learned to talk Indian
faster this way than when I had those with me who could
speak English.
" As we proceeded down the Canesadooharie waters, our
packs increased by the skins that were daily kUled, and
became so very heavy that we could not march more than
eight or ten miles per day. We came to Lake Erie about
six miles west of the mouth of Canesadooharie. As the wind
was very high the evening we came to the lake, I was sur
prised to hear the roaring of the water, and see the high

90 HISTORY OF OHIO.
waves that dashed against the shore Uke the ocean. We
encamped on a run near the lake, and as the wind fell that
night, the next morning the surface was only in a moderate
motion, and we marched on the sand along the side of the
water, frequently resting ourselves as we were heavy laden.
I saw on the strand a number of large fish that had been left
in fiat or hollow places : as the wind fell and the waves abar
ted, they were left without water, or only a small quantity,
and numbers of bald and gray eagles, &c., were along the
shore devouring them.
" Some time in the afternoon we came to a large camp of
Wyandots, at the mouth of Canesadooharie, where Tontil-
eaugo's wife was. Here we were kindly received : they gave
us a kind of rough brown potatoes, which grew spontaneoudy,
and were called by the Caughnewagas ohnenata. These
potatoes peeled, and dipped in raccoon's fat, taste nearly like
our sweet potatoes. They also gave us what they called
caneheanta, which is a kind of hominy made of green com,
dried, and beans mixed together.
"From the headwaters of Canesadooharie to this place the
land is generally good — chiefly first or second rate, and com
paratively little or no third rate. The only refuse is some
swamps that appear to be too wet for use, yet I apprehend
that a number of them, if drained, would make exceUent
meadows. The timber is black oak, walnut, hickory, cherry,
black ash, white ash, water ash, buckeye, black locust, honey
locust, sugar-tree and elm. There is also some land, though
comparatively but small, where the timber is chiefly white
oak or beech ; this may be caUed third rate. In the bottoms,
and also many places in the uplands, there is a large quantity
of wUd apple, plum, and red and black haw trees. It
appeared to be weU watered, and a plenty of meadow ground

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 91
intermixed with upland, but no large prairies or glades that
I saw or heard of. In this route deer, bear, tm'keys and
raccoons appeared plenty, but no buffalo, and very little signs
of elks.
" We continued our camp at the mouth of Canesadooharie
for some time, where we kUled some deer and a great many
raccoons : the raccoons here were remarkably large and fat.
At length we all embarked in a large birch bark canoe. This
vessel was about four feet wide and three feet deep, and
about five and thirty feet long ; and though it could carry a
heavy burden, it was so artfuUy and curiously constructed
that four men could carry it several miles, or from one land
ing place to another, or from the waters of the lake to the
waters of the Ohio. We proceeded up Canesadooharie a
few mUes, and went on shore to hunt ; but to my great sur
prise, they carried the vessel that we all came in up the
bank, and inverted it, or turned the bottom up, and conver
ted it into a dwelUng house, and kindled a fire before us to
warm ourselves by and cook. With our baggage and our
selves in this house, we were very much crowded, yet our
Uttle house tumed off the rain very weU.
" We kept moving and hunting up this river untU we came
to the falls : here we remained some weeks, and killed a
number of deer, several bears, and a great many raccoons.
* * * They then buried their large canoe in the ground,
which is the way they took to preserve this sort of a canoe
in the winter season.
" As we had at this time no horses, every one got a pack
on his back, and we steered an east course about twelve
mUes and encamped. The next moming we proceeded on
the same course about ten miles to a large creek that empties
into Lake Erie betwixt Canesadooharie and Cayahaga. Here

92 HISTORY OF OHIO.
they made their winter cabin in the foUowing form : they cut
logs about fifteen feet long, and laid these logs upon each
other, and drove posts in the ground at each end to keep
them together ; the posts they tied together at the top with
bark, and by this means raised a wall fifteen feet long, and
about four feet high, and in the same manner they raised
another wall opposite to this, at about twelve feet distance;
they then drove forks in the ground in the centre of each
end, and laid a strong pole from end to end on these forks ;
and from these walls to the poles, they set up poles instead
of rafters, and on these they tied small poles in place of
laths ; and a cover was made of linn bark, which will run
even in the winter season.
"As every tree wiU not run, they examine the tree first,
by trying it near the ground, and when they find it will do,
they fell the tree and raise the bark with the tomahawk, near
the top of the tree, about five or six inches broad, then put
the tomahawk handle under this bark, and pull it along down
to the butt of the tree ; so that sometimes one piece of bark
wUl be thirty feet long. This bark they cut at suitable
lengths in order to cover the hut.
" At the end of these walls they set up split timber, so
that they had timber all around, excepting a door at each
end. At the top, in place of a chimney, they left an open
place, and for bedding they laid down the aforesaid kind of
bark, on which they spread bear skins. From end to end
of this hut, along the middle, there were fires, which the
squaws made of dry split wood, and the holes or open places
that appeared, the squaws stopped with moss, which they
collected from old logs ; and at the door they hung a bear
skin ; and notwithstanding the winters are hard here, our
lodging was much better than I expected."

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 93
It appears that this Wyandot encampment consisted of
eight hunters and thirteen squaws, boys and chUdren. Soon
afterwards, four of the hunters started upon an expedition
against the English settlements, leaving TontUeaugo, three
other Indians, and Smith, to supply the camp with food.
The winter months passed in hunting excursions — the bear,
even more than the deer, being an object of active and suc
cessful pursuit. The months of February and March, 1756,
seem to have been occupied as follows :
" In February we began to make sugar. As some of the
elm bark wiU strip at this season, the squaws, after finding a
tree that would do, cut it down, and with a crooked stick,
broad and sharp at the end, took the bark off the tree, and
of this bark made vessels in a curious manner, that would
hold about two gaUons each ; they made above one hundred
of these kind of vessels. In the sugar-tree they cut a notch,
sloping down, and at the end stuck in a tomahawk ; in the
place where they stuck the tomahawk, they drove a long
chip, in order to carry the water out from the tree, and under
this they set their vessel to receive it. As sugar-trees were
plenty and large here, they seldom or never notched a tree
that was not two or three feet over. They also made bark
vessels for carrying the water that would hold about four
gaUons each. They had two brass kettles that held about
fifteen gallons each, and other smaller kettles in which they
boiled the water. But as they could not at times boil away
the water as fast as it was collected, they made vessels of
bark that would hold about one hundred gallons each for re
taining the water ; and though the sugar-trees did not run
every day, they had always a sufficient quantity of water to
keep them boUing during the whole sugar season.
" The way we commonly used our sugar whUe encamped

94 HISTORY OF OHIO.
was by putting it in bear's fat untU the fat was almost as
swe'et as the sugar itself, and in this we dipped our roasted
venison. About this time, some of the Indian lads and my
self were employed in making and attending traps for catch
ing raccoons, foxes, wild-cats, &c.
" As the raccoon is a kind of water animal, that frequents
the runs, or small water courses, almost the whole night, we
made our traps on the runs, by laying one small sapUng on
another, and driving in posts to keep them from rolling. The
under sapUng we raised about eighteen inches, and set so
that on the raccoon's touching a string, or a smaU piece of
bark, the sapling would fall and kill it ; and lest the raccoon
should pass by, we laid brush on both sides of the run, only
leaving the channel open.
" The fox-traps we made nearly in the same manner, at
the end of a hollow log, or opposite to a hole at the root of a
hollow tree, and put venison on a stick for bait ; we had it
so set that when the fox took hold of the meat the trap feU.
While the squaws were employed in making sugar, the boys
and men were engaged in hunting and trapping.
"About the latter end of March, we began to prepare for
moving into town, in order to plant corn. The squaws were
then frying the last of their bear's fat, and maldng vessels to
hold it ; the vessels were made of deer skins, which were
skinned by puUing the skin off the neck, without ripping.
After they had taken off the hair, they gathered it in small
plaits round the neck, and with a string drew it together
like a purse ; in the centre a pin was put, below which they
tied a string, and whUe it was wet they blew it up like a
bladder, and let it remain in this manner untU it was dry,
when it appeared nearly in the shape of a sugar loaf, but
more rounding at the lower end. One of these vessels wfald

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 95
hold about four or five gaUons. In these vessels it was they
carried their bear's oU."
When aU things were ready, the party returned to the
falls of Canesadooharie, and thence, after building another
canoe of elm bark, to the town at the mouth of the river.
By this time, Smith was thoroughly domesticated among
his Indian captors. He found himself treated as an equal
and often with disinterested kindness. His Indian name, by
which they habituaUy addressed him, was Scoouwa. At
length, he and his adopted brother, TontUeaugo, started for
a westward journey to Sandusky Lake — Smith oii horseback
along the strand of Lake Erie, and the Indian in a canoe
near the shore. Here we resume our extracts:
"After some time, the wind arose, and we went into the
mouth of a smaU creek, and encamped. Here we stayed sev
eral days on account of high wind, which raised the lake in
great billows. WhUe we were here, TontUeaugo went out
to hunt, and when he was gone, a Wyandot came to our
camp: I gave him a shoulder of venison which I had by the
fire, weU roasted, and he received it gladly, told me he was
hungry and thanked me for my kindness. When TontUe
augo came home, I told him that a Wyandot had been at
camp, and that I gave him a shoulder of venison ; he said
that was very well, and I suppose you gave him also sugar
and bear's_oU, to eat with his venison. I told him I did not ;
as the sugar and bear's oU was down in the canoe, I did not
go for it. He repUed, you have behaved just like a Dutch
man.-* Do you not know that when strangers come to our
4) It is stated in a foot note that " the Dutch he called Skoharehaugo,
which took its derivation from a Dutch settlement, Skoharey" — probably
Scoharie. It will be remembered that these Caughnewagas were a mixed
race of Mohicans and Iroquois— otherwise the name of a remote settlement
in New York would be unknown to an Ohio Indian.

96 HISTORY OF OHIO.
camp, we ought always to give them the best we have. I
acknowledged that I was wrong. He said that he could
excuse this, as I was but young, but I must learn to behave
like a warrior, and do great things, and never be found in
any such little actions.
" The lake being again calm, we proceeded, and arrived
safe at Sunyendeand, which was a Wyandot town, that lay
upon a smaU creek which empties into the Uttie lake below
the mouth of Sandusky.
" The town was about eighty rood above the mouth of the
creek, on the south side of a large plain, on which timber
grew, and nothing more but grass or nettles. In some pla
ces there were large fiats, where nothing but grass grew,
about three feet high when grown, and in ether places noth
ing but nettles, very rank, where the soil is extremely rich and
loose — ^here they planted corn. In this town, there were
also French traders, who purchased our skins and fur, and
we all got new clothes, paint, tobacco, &c.
"After I had got my new clothes, and my head done off
like a redheaded woodpecker, I, in company with a number
of young Indians, went down to the cornfield, to see the
squaws at work. When we came there, they asked me to
take a hoe, whieh I did, and hoed for some time. The
squaws applauded me as a good hand at the business ; but
when I returned to the town, the old men hearing of what I
had done, chid me, and said that I was adopted in the place
of a great man, and must not hoe corn like a squaw. They
never had occasion to reprove me for anything like this
again ; as I never was extremely fond of work, I readily
complied with their orders.
"As the Indians, on their return from their winter hunt,
bring in with them large quantities of bear's oU, sugar, dried

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 97
venison, &c., at times they have plenty, and do not spare
eating or giving — thus they make away with their provision
as quick as possible. They have no such thing as regular
meals, breakfast, dinner or supper ; but if any one, even the
town folks, would go to the same house several times in one
day, he would be invited to eat of the best — and with them
it is bad manners to refuse to eat when it is offered. If they
wUl not eat, it is interpreted as a symptom of displeasure, or
that the persons refusing to eat were angry with those
who invited them.
"At this time, hominy, plentifully mixed with bear's oil
and sugar, is what they offer to every one who comes in any
time of the day ; and so they go on until their sugar, bear's
oil and venison is all gone, and then they have to eat hominy
by itself without bread, salt or any thing else ; yet still they
invite every one that comes in, to eat whilst they have any
thing to give. It is -thought a shame not to invite people to
eat, while they have any thing ; but if they can, in truth,
only say we ha^ve got nothing to eat, this is accepted as an
honorable apology. All the hunters and warriors continued
in town about six weeks after we came in ; they spent this
tune in painting, going from house to house, eating, smoking,
and playing at a game resembling dice, or hustle cap. They
put a number of plum stones in a small bowl ; one side of
each stone is black, and the other white ; they then shake or
hustle the bowl, caUing hits, hits, hits, honesy, honesy, rego,
rego; which signifies calUng for white or black, or what
they wish to tum up ; they then turn the bowl, and count
the whites and blacks. Some were beating their kind of
drum [described elsewhere as " a short hoUow gum, closed
at one end, with water in it, and parchment stretched over
the end thereof, which they beat with one stick"] and sing-

98 .. HISTORY OF OHIO.
ing; others were employed in playing on a sort of flute,
made of hollow cane ; and others playing on the jews harp.
Some part of this time was also taken up in attending the
council-house, where the chiefs, and as many others as chose,
attended: and at night they were frequently employed in
singing and dancing. Towards the last of this time, which
was in June, 1756, they were all engaged in preparmg to
go to war against the frontiers of Virginia : when they were
equipped, they went through their ceremonies, sung their
war songs, &c. They all marched off, from fifteen to sixty
years of age : and some boys, only twelve years old, were
equipped with their bows and arrows, and went to war : so
that none were left in town but squaws and chUdren, except
myself, one very old man, and another about fifty years of
age, who was lame.
" The Indians were then in great hopes that they would
drive all the Virginians over the lake, which is all the name
they knew for the sea. They had some cause for this hope,
because at this time the Americans were altogether unac
quainted with war of any kind, and consequently very unfit
to stand their hand with such subtle enemies as the Indians
were. The two old Indians asked me if I did not think that
the Indians and French would subdue all America except
New England, which they said they had tried in old times.
I told them I thought not ; they said they had already drove
them all out of the mountains, and had chiefly laid waste the
great valley betwixt the North and South mountain, from
Potomac to James River, which is a considerable part of the
best land in Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania, and that
the white people appeared to them like fools : they could
neither guard against surprise, run, nor fight. These, they
said, were their reasons for saying that they would subdue

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 99
the whites. They asked me to offer my reasons fqr my opin
ion, and told me to speak my mind freely. I told them that
the white people to the east were very numerous, Uke the
trees, and though they appeared to them to be fools, as they
were not acquainted with their way of war, yet they were not
fools ; therefore, after some time they wUl learn your mode
of war, and turn upon you, or at least defend themselves. I
found that the old men themselves did not believe they could
conquer America, yet they were willing to propagate the idea
in order to encourage the young men to go to war.
" When the warriors left this town we had neither meat,
sugar or bear's oU left. AU that we had then to live on was
corn pounded into coarse meal or smaU hominy — this they
boiled in water, which appeared like well thickened soup,
without salt or anything else. For some time we had plenty
of this kind of hominy ; at length we were brought to very
short allowance, and as the warriors did not return as soon
as they expected, we were in a starving condition, and but
one gun in the town and very little ammunition. The old
lame Wyandot concluded that he would go a hunting in the
canoe and take me with him, and try to kill deer in the
water, as it was then watering time. We went up Sandusky
a few miles, then turned up a creek and encamped. We
had lights prepared, as we were to hunt in the night, and
also a piece of bark and some bushes set up in the canoe, in
order to conceal ourselves from the deer. A little boy that
was with us held the light, I worked the canoe, and the old
man who had his gun loaded with large shot, when we came
near the deer fired, and in this manner killed three deer in
part of one night. We went to our fire, ate heartily, and in
the morning retumed to town, in order to relieve the hungry
and distressed.

100 HISTORY OP OHIO.
" When we came to town the chUdren were crying bitterly
on account of pinching hunger. We delivered what we had
taken, and though it was but little among so many, yet it was
divided according to the strictest rules of justice. We
immediately set out for another hunt, but before we returned
a party of the warriors had come in, and brought with them
on horseback a quantity of meat. These warriors had divi- ,
ded into different parties, and all struck at different places iu
Augusta county. They brought in with them a considerable
number of scalps, prisoners, horses and other plunder. One
of the parties brought in with them one Arthur CampbeU. As
the Wyandots at Sunyendeand and those at Detroit were con
nected, Mr. Campbell was taken to Detroit ; but he remained
some time with me in this town ; his company was very
agreeable and I was sorry when he left me. During his
stay at Sunyendeand he borrowed my Bible, and made some
very pertinent remarks on what he read. One passage,
where it is said, ' It is good for a man that he bear the yoke
in his youth.' He said we ought to be resigned to the will
of Providence, as we were now bearing the yoke in our youth.
Mr. Campbell appeared to be about sixteen or seventeen
years of age.
" There was a number of prisoners brought in by these
parties, and when they were made to run the gauntlet, I
went and told them how they were to act. One John Sav
age was brought in, and a middle aged man of about forty
years old. He was to run the gauntlet. I told him what he
had to do ; and after this I fell into one of the ranks with the
Indians, shouting and yelling like them ; and as they were
not very severe on him, as he passed me I hit him with a
piece of a pumpkin, which pleased the Indians much, but
hurt my feeUngs.

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 101
" About the time that these warriors came in, the green
corn was beginning to be of use, so that we had either green
corn or venison, and sometimes both, which was comparatively
high living. When we could have plenty of green corn, or
roasting ears, the hunters became lazy, and spent their time,
as already mentioned, in singing and dancing, &c. They
• appeared to be fulfilling the Scriptures beyond those who
profess to beUeve them, in that of taking no thought of to
morrow; and also in love, peace and friendship together,
without dispute. In this respect they shame those who pro
fess Christiaiuty.
" In this manner we lived until October ; then the geese,
swans, ducks, cranes, &c., came from the north and alighted
on this little lake without number or innumerable. Sun
yendeand is a remarkable plaoe for fish in the spring, and
fowl both in the fall and spring.
" As our hunters were now tired with indolence, and fond
of their own kuid of exercise, they all turned out to fowling,
and in this could scarce miss of success ; so that we had now
plenty of hominy and the best of fowls ; and sometimes, as a
rarity, we had a little bread made of Indian corn meal,
pounded in a hominy block, mixed with boiled beans, and
baked into cakes under the ashes.
" This with us was called good living, though not equal to
our fat roasted and boUed venison, when we went to the woods
in the fall ; or bear's meat and beaver in the winter ; or sugar,
bear's oil and dry venison in the spring.
" Sometime in October, another adopted brother, older
than TontUeaugo, came to pay us a visit at Sunyendeand,
and asked me to take a hunt with him on Cayahaga. As
they always used me as a freeman, and gave me the liberty
of choosing, I told him that I was attached to TontUeaugo —

102 HISTOllY OF OHIO.
had never seen him before, and therefore asked some time to
consider this. He told me that the party he was going with
would not be along, or at the mouth of this little lake, in less
than six days, and I could in this time be acquainted with
him, and judge for myself. I consulted with Tontileaugo on
this occasion, and he told me that our old brother Tecaughre-
tanego, (which was his name,) was a chief, and a better man
than he was ; and if I went with him I might expect to be
well used ; but he said I might do as I pleased, and if I stayed
he would use me as he had done. I told him that he had
acted in every respect as a brother to me ; yet I was much
pleased with my old brother's conduct and conversation ; and
as he was going to a part of the country I had never been in,
I wished to go with him. He said that he was perfectly
wilUng. " I then went with Tecaughretanego to the mouth of the
little lake, where he met with the company he intended going
with, which was composed of Caughnewagas and Ottawas.
Here I was introduced to a Caughnewaga sister, and others
I had never before seen. My sister's name was Mary,
whieh they pronounced Maully. I asked Tecaughretanego
how it came that she had an English name. He said he did
not know that it was an English name ; but it was the name
the priest gave her when she was baptized, and which he said
was the name of the mother of Jesus. He said there were
a great many of the Caughnewagas and Wyandots that were
a kind of half Roman Catholics ; but as for himself, he said,
that the priest and him could not agree, as they held notions
that contradicted both sense and reason, and had the assu
rance to tell him that the book of God taught them these
foolish absurdities ; but he could not believe that the great
and good Spirit ever taught them any such nonsense ; and

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 103
therefore he concluded that the Indians' old religion was
better than this new way of worshipping God.
" The Ottawas have a very useful kind of tents which they
carry with them, made of flags, plaited and stitched together
in a very artful manner, so as to turn the rain and wind weU
— each mat is made fifteen feet long and about five feet
broad. In order to erect this kind of tent, they cut a
number of long straight poles, which they drive in the ground,
in the form of a circle, leaning inwards ; then they spread the
mats on these poles, beginning at the bottom and extending
up, leaving only a hole in the top uncovered — and this hole
answers the place of a chimney. They make fire of dry split
wood in the middle, and spread down bark mats and skins for
bedding, on which they sleep in a crooked posture, all round
the fire, as the length of their beds wiU not admit of stretch
ing themselves. In place of a door they Uft up one end of a
mat and creep in, and let the mat faU down behind them.
" These tents are warm and dry, and tolerably clear of
smoke. Their lumber they keep under birch-bark canoes,
which they carry out and turn up for a shelter, where they
keep everything from the rain. Nothing is in the tents
but themselves and their bedding.
" This company had four birch canoes and four tents. We
were kindly received, and they gave us .plenty of hominy and
wUd fowl boUed and roasted. As the geese, ducks, swans,
&c., here are well grain fed, they were remarkably fat, espe
cially the green necked ducks. The wild fowl here feed upon
a kind of wild rice that grows spontaneously in the shallow wa^
ter, or wet places along the sides or in the corners of the lakes.
"As the wind was high, and we could not proceed on our
voyage, we remained here several days, and kiUed abundance
of wild fowl, and a number of raccoons.

104 HISTORY OP OHIO.
" When a company of Indians are moving together on the
lake, as it is at this time of the year often dangerous saUing,
the old men hold a councU ; and when they agree to embark,
every one is engaged immediately in making ready, without
offering one word against the measure, though the lake may
be boisterous and horrid. One morning, though the wind
appeared to me to be as high as in .days past, the bUlows
raging, yet the call was given yohohyohoh, which was quickly
answered by all — ooh-ooh, which signifies agreed. We were
aH instantly engaged in preparing to start, and had consider
able 'difficulties in embarking.
" As soon as we got into our canoes we fell to' paddling
with all our might, making out from the shore. Though
these sort of canoes ride waves beyond what could be ex
pected, yet the water several times dashed into them. When
we got out about half a mile from, shore, we hoisted saU, and
as it was nearly a west wind, we then seemed to ride the
waves with ease, and went on at a rapid rate. We then aU
laid down our paddles, excepting one that steered, and there
was no water dashed into our canoes until we came near the
shore again. We sailed about sixty mUes that day and en
camped some time before night.
" The next day we again embarked and went on very weU
for some time ; but the lake being boisterous and the wind
not fair, we were obliged to make to shore, which we accom
plished with hard work and some difficulty in landing. The
next moming a council was held by the old men.
"As we had this day to pass by a long precipice of rocks
on the shore about nine miles, which rendered it impossible for
us to land, though the wind was high and the lake rough,
yet, as it was fair, we were all ordered to embark. We
wrought ourselves out from the shore and hoisted saU (what

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 105
we uSed in place of saU cloth were ' our tent-mats, which
answered the purpose very well) and went on for some time
with a fair wind, untU we were opposite to the precipice, and
then it turned towards the shore, and we began to fear we
should be cast upon the rocks. Two of the canoes were
considerably farther out from the rocks than the canoe I was
in. Those who were farthest out in the lake did not let
down their sails until they had passed the precipice ; but as
we were nearer the rock, we were obliged to lower our sails
and paddle with all our might. With much difficulty we'
cleared ourselves of the rock and landed. As the otter
canoes had landed before us, there were immediately runners
sent off to see if we were all safely landed.
" This night the wind feU, and the next morning the lake
was tolerably calm, and we embarked without difficulty, and
paddled along near the shore, until we came to the mouth of
the Cayahaga, which empties into Lake Erie on the south
side betwixt Canesadooharie and Presque Isle.
" We turned up Cayahaga and encamped, where we staid
and hunted for several days ; and so we kept moving and
hunting untU we came to the forks of Cayahaga.
" This is a very gentle river, and but few ripples, or swift
mnning places, from the mouth to the forks. Deer here
were tolerably plenty, large and fat ; but bear and other
game scarce. The upland is hilly, and principally second
and third rate land ; the timber chiefly black oak, white oak,
hickory, dog-wood, &c. The bottoms are rich and large,
and the timber is wahiut, locust, mulberry, sugar-tree, red
haw, black haw, wild apple-trees, &c. The west branch of
this river interlocks with the east branch of Muskingum, and
the east branch with the Big Beaver creek that empties iato
the Ohio about thirty mUes below Pittsburgh.

106 HISTORY OF OHIO.
"From the forks of Cayahaga to the east branch of Mus
kingum, there is a carrying place, where the Indians carry
their canoes, &c., from the waters of Lake Erie into the
waters of the Ohio.
" From the forks, I went over with some hunters to the
east branch of Muskingum, where they kUled several deer,
a number of beavers, and returned -heavy laden with skins
and meat, which we carried on our backs, as -we had no
horses. " The land here is chiefly second and third rate, and the
timber chiefly oak and hickory. A little above the forks, on
the east branch of Cayahaga, are considerable rapids, very
rocky for some distance, but no perpendicular falls."
From the east branch of the Muskingum, the party went
forty miles northeast to Beaver creek, " near a Uttle lake or
pond which is about two miles long and one broad, and a re
markable place for beaver." After various adventures in
pursuit of beaver and other game, they went in February,
1757, to the Big Beaver, and in March retumed to the forks
of Cuyahoga. Here occurred a lesson upon profane swear
ing, which is not unworthy of repetition :
" I remember that Tecaughretanego, when something dis
pleased him, said ' God damn it.' I asked him if he knew
what he then said ? He said he did, and mentioned one of
their degrading expressions, which he supposed to be the
meaning, or something Uke the meaning of what he had said.
I told him that it did not bear the least resemblance to it ;
that what he had said was calling upon the Great Spnit to
punish the object he was displeased with. He stood for some
time amazed, and then said, if this be the meaning of these
words, what sort of people are the whites ? When the tra
ders were among us, these words seemed to be intermixed

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 107
with all their discourse. He told me to reconsider what I
had said, for he thought I must be mistaken in my definition ;
if I was not mistaken, he said the traders applied these
words not only wickedly, but oftentimes very foolishly, and
contrary to sense or reason. He said he remembered once
of a trader's accidentally breaking his gun lock, and on that
occasion calling out aloud, ' God damn it ' — surely, said he,
the gun lock was not an object worthy of punishment for
Owananeeyo, or the Great Spirit ; he also observed the tra
ders often used this expression when they were in a good
humor and not displeased with any thing. I acknowledged
that the traders used this expression very often, in a most
irrational, inconsistent and impious manner ; yet I still as
serted that I had ^ven the true meaning of these words.
He replied, if so, the traders are as bad as Oonasharoona, or
the underground inhabitants, which is the name they give to
devils, as they entertain a notion that their place of residence
is under the earth."
Making a "large chestnut canoe," the party " embarked,"
had an agreeable passage down the Cuyahoga and along the
south side of Lake Erie, untU they passed the mouth of San
dusky ; then the wind arose, and they put in at the mouth
of the Miami of the Lake, at Cedar Point, and sailed thence
in a few days for Detroit. After remaining in the Wyandot
and Ottawa viUages opposite Fort Detroit until November, a
number of famUies prepared for their winter hunt, and agreed
to cross the lake together. Here occurs a description of the
Island Region of Lake Erie :
" We encamped at the mouth of the river the first night,
and a councU was held whether we should cross through by
the three islands, [meaning, of course. East Sister, Middle
Sister and West Sister,] or coast round the lake. These

108 HISTORY OF OHIO.
islands lie in a line across the lake, and are just In sight of
each other. Some of the Wyandots or Ottawas frequently
make their winter hunt on these islands ; though excepting
wUd fowl and fish, there is scarcely any game here but rac
coons, which are amazingly plenty and exceedingly large and
fat, as they feed upon the wUd rice, which grows in abun
dance in wet places round these islands. It is said that each
hunter, in one winter, wUl catch one thousand raccoons.
" It is a received opinion among the Indians, that the
snakes and raccoons are transmigratory, and that a great
many of the snakes turn raccoons every faU, and the rac
coons snakes every spring. This notion is founded on obser
vations made on the snakes and raccoons in this island.
" As the raccoons here lodge in rocks, the trappers make
their wooden traps at the mouth of the holes ; and as they
go daily to look at their traps, in the winter season they
commonly find them filled with raccoons ; but in the spring,
or when the frost is out of the ground, they say they find
their traps fiUed with large rattle-snakes ; and therefore con
clude that the raccoons are transformed. They also say that
the reason why they are so plenty in the winter, is, every
faU the snakes turn raccoons again.
" I told them that though I had never landed on any of
these islands, yet from the numerous accounts I had received,
I believed that both snakes and raccoons were plenty there ;
but no doubt they all remained there both summer and win
ter, only the snakes were not to be seen in the latter ; yet I
did not believe that they were transmigratory. These is
lands are but seldom -visited, because early in the spring and
late in the faU it is dangerous sailing in their bark canoes ;
and in the summer they are so infested with various kinds of
serpents (but chiefly rattle-snakes) that it is dangerous landing.

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 109
" I shall now quit this digression and return to the result
of the council at the mouth of the river. We concluded to
coast it round the lake, and in two days we came to the
mouth of the Miami of the Lake, and landed on Cedar Point,
where we remained several days. Here we held a coimcil,
and concluded we would take a driving hunt in concert and
in partnership.
" The river in this place is about a mile broad, and as it
and the lake form a kind of neck, which terminates in a
point, all the hunters, (which were fifty-three,) went up the
river, and we scattered ourselves from the river to the lake.
When first we began to move, we were not in sight of each
other, but as we all raised the yell, we could move regularly
together by the noise. At length we came in sight of each
other, and appeared to be marching in good order. Before
we came to the point, both the squaws and boys in the
canoes were scattered up the river and along the lake, to
prevent the deer from making their escape by water. As
we advanced near the point the guns began to crack slowly,
and after some time the firing was like a little engagement.
The squaws and boys were busy tomahawking the deer in
the water, and we shooting them down on the land. We
kiUed in all about thirty deer, though a great many made
their escape by water.
"We had now great feasting and rejoicing, as we had
plenty of hominy, venison, and wUd fowl. The geese at
this time appeared to be preparing to move southward. It
might be asked what is meant by the geese preparing to
move. The Indians represent them as holding a great
councU at this time concerning the weather, in order to con
clude upon a day, that they may all at or near one time
leave the northern lakes, and wing their way to the southern

110 HISTORY OF OHIO.
bays. When matters are brought to a conclusion, and the
time appointed that they are to take wing, then they say a
great number of expresses are sent off, in order to let the
different tribes know the result of this council, that they may
all be in readiness to move at the time appointed. As there
was a great commotion among the geese at this time, it would
appear from their actions, that such a councU had been held.
Certain it is, that they are led by instinct to act in concert,
and to move off regularly after their leaders.
"Here our company separated. The chief part of them
went up the Miami river, that empties into Lake Erie at
Cedar Point, whilst we proceeded on our journey in company
with Tecaughretanego, Tontileaugo, and two famUies of the
Wyandots. "As cold weather was now approaching, we began to feel
the doleful effects of extravagantly and foolishly spending the
large quantity of beaver we had taken in our last winter's
hunt. We were all nearly in the same circumstances;
scarcely one had a shirt to his back; but each of us had 'an
old blanket which we belted round us in the day, and slept
in at night, with a deer- or bear skin under us for our bed.
" When we came to the faUs of Sandusky, we buried our
birch bark canoes as usual, at a large burying place for that
purpose, a little below the falls. At this place the river falls
about eight feet over a rock, but not perpendicularly. With
much difficulty we pushed up our wooden canoes; some of us
went up the river, and the rest by land with the horses, until
we came to the great meadows or prairies that lie between
Sandusky and Scioto.
" When we came to this place, we met -with some Ottawa
hunters, and agreed with them to take what they caU a ring
hunt, in partnership. We waited until we expected rain

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. Ill
was near falling to extinguish the fire, and then we kindled
a large circle in the prairie. At this time, or before the
bucks began to run, a great number of deer lay concealed in
the grass, in the day, and moved about in the night ; but as
the fire bumed in towards the centre of the circle, the deer
fled before the fire ; the Indians were scattered also at some
distance before the fire, and shot them down every opportu
nity, which was very frequent, especiaUy as the circle became
small. When we came to divide the deer, there were about
ten to each hunter, which were all killed in a few hours.
The rain did not come on that night to put out the outside
circle of the fire, and as the wind arose, it extended through
the whole prairie, which was about fifty mU^s in length, and
in some places nearly twenty in breadth. This put an end
to our ringhunting this season, and was in other respects an
injury to us in the hunting business; so that upon the whole,
we received more harm than benefit by our rapid hunting
fi-oUc. We then moved from the north end of the glades,
and encamped at the carrying place.
" This place is in the plains, betwixt a creek that empties
into Sandusky, and one that runs into Scioto ; and at the
time of high water, or the spring season, there is but about
one half mUe of portage, and that very level and clear of
rocks, timber or stones, so that^with a little digging, there
may be water carriage the whole way from Scioto to Lake
Erie. " From the mouth of Sandusky to the falls, is chiefly first
rate land, lying fiat or level, intermixed with large bodies of
clear meadows, where the grass is exceeding rank, and in
many places three or four feet high. The timber is oak,
hickory, walnut, cherry, black ash, elm, sugar tree, buckeye,
locust and beech. In some places there is wet timber land

112 HISTORY OF OHIO.
— the timber in these places is chiefiy water-ash, sycamore
or button-wood."
" From the falls to the prairies, the land Ues weU to the
sun ; it is neither too fiat nor too hilly, and is chiefly first
rate ; the timber nearly the same as below the falls, except
ing the water-ash. There are also here some plats of beech
land, that appear to be second rate, as they frequently pro
duce spicewood. The prairie appears to be a tolerably fer
tUe soil, though in many places too wet for cultivation; yet
I apprehend it would produce timber, were it only kept from
fire. " The Indians are of the opinion that the squirrels plant
aU the timber, as they bury a number of nuts for food, and
only one at a place. When a squirrel is kUled, the various
kinds of nuts thus buried, will grow.
"I have observed that when these prairies have only
escaped fire for one year, near where a single tree stood, there
was a young growth of timber supposed to be planted by squir
rels. But when the prairies were again burned, all this young
growth was immediately consumed ; as the fire rages in the
grass to such a pitch that numbers of raccoons are thereby
burned to death.
" On the west side of the prairie, or betwixt that and the
Scioto, there is a large body of first rate land — the timber,
walnut, locust, sugar-tree, buckeye, cherry, ash, elm, mul
berry, plum-trees, spice-wood, black haw, red haw, oak and
hickory." After passing the winter on the Olentangy, a tributary
of the Scioto, the old Indian and his young companion
returned and proceeded down Sandusky, killing in the pas
sage " four bears and a number of turkeys." We quote
again :

OHIO ONE HUNDRED YEARS SINCE. 113
" When we came to the little lake at the mouth of Sandusky,
we called at a Wyandot town that was then there, called
Sunyendeand, [he speaks as if it was a first visit, whereas we
have devoted a large space to his former sojourn there.]
Here we diverted ourselves several days by catching rock
fish in a small creek, the name of which is also Sunyendeand,
which signifies rock fish. They fished in the night with lights,
and strack the fish with gigs or spears. The rock fish there,
when they begin first to run up the creek to spawn, are
exceedingly fat, sufficiently so to fry themselves. The first
night we scarcely caught fish enough for present use for all
that was in the town.
" The next morning I met with a prisoner at this place by
the name of Thompson, who had been taken from Virginia.
He told me if the Indians would only omit disturbing the
fish for one night, he could catch more fish than the whole
town could make use of. I told Mr. Thompson that if he
knew he could do this, that I would use my influence with
the Indians to let the fish alone for one night. I appUed to
the chiefs, who agreed to my proposal, and said they were
anxious to see what the Great Knife (as they caUed the Vir
ginian) could do. Mr. Thompson, with the assistance of
some other prisoners, set to work, and made a hoop net of
elm bark ; they then cut down a tree across the creek, and
stuck in stakes at the lower side of it to prevent the fish from
passing up, leaving only a gap at one side of the creek ; here
he sat with his net, and when he felt the fish touch the net
he drew it up, and frequently would haul out two or three
rock fish that would weigh about five or six pounds each.
He continued at this until he had hauled out about a wagon
load, and then left the gap open, in order to let them pass
up, for they could not go far on account of the shaUow water.
5*

114 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Before day Mr. Thompson shut it up, to prevent them from
passing down, in order to let the Indians have some diversion
in kiUing them in daylight.
" When the news of the fish came to town, the Indians all
coUected and with suTprise beheld the large heap of fish, and
applauded the ingenuity of the Virginian. When they saw
the number of them that were confined in the water above
the tree, tbe young Indians ran back to the town, and in a
short time returned with their spears, gigs, bows and arrows,
&c., and were the chief part of that day engaged in kilhng
rock fish, insomuch that we had more than we could use or
preserve. As we had no salt or any way to keep them, they
lay upon the banks, and after some time great numbers of
turkey-buzzards and eagles coUected together and devoured
" them." But enough of our Ohio Crusoe. His remaining adven
tures, before his restoration to his friends in 1760, consisted
of a trip to Detroit, another hunt up Sandusky and down
Scioto, and a journey to Caughnewaga, " a very ancient In
dian town about nine mUes above Montreal," besides an im
prisonment of four months in Montreal. This picture of
northern Ohio, a century since, has the merit of novelty at
least. That it is authentic, there can be no doubt, for in
several historians of authority occur frequent and respectftil
reference to the narrative from whose pages we have drawn
so copiously.
The geography of the last foregoing paragraphs, is less
difficult of explanation than in the first portion of the chap
ter. The falls of Sandusky are doubtless the same as the
rapids mentioned in the treaty of GreenviUe, near the site of
Fremont, and the Sandusky plains, which were burnt over by
the ring hunt, are in Marion, Wyandot and Crawford counties.

CHAPTER VIII.
THE SURRENDER OF THE WESTERN POSTS TO ENGLAND.
The fall of Fort Du Quesne, in 1758, terminated French
dominion upon the Ohio, but the narrative of Forbes' expe
dition against that important stockade is incomplete, if the
adventures of Charles Frederic Post, the Moravian envoy of
Pennsylvania to the Ohio tribes, were entirely omitted. The
Moravian annals first mention Post as laboring at Shekomeko,
in 1743, near the present site of Poughkeepsie, in Eastern
New York.i He married a baptized Indian woman, was
imprisoned in 1745, on an unfounded charge of instigating
the New York tribes to join the French, suggested by efforts
to leam their dialects ; resumed his missionary labors among
the Connecticut Indians, and finaUy sojourned in Pennsylvania,
when his infiuence with the Delaware chiefs was at length
recognized by the colonial authorities as their most efficient me
diation with the Western tribes. He was accordingly induced
to make two expeditions into the heart of the enemy's coun
try in the summer and autumn of 1758, and by his confer
ences with the representatives of eight nations, withheld thera
from an attack upon Forbes' expedition, and finally concluded
a peace. His route ascended the Susquehanna, crossed to
the AUeghany, opposite French creek, and thence to a town
on the Big Beaver creek, caUed " Kushkushkee," contaimng
ninety houses and two hundred Delaware warriors. The
decisive conference was held, however, opposite Fort Du
1 ) History of Moravian Missions, Part ii, p. 37.
(UB)

116 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Quesne, whither the savages assured Post " they would carry
him in their bosom, and he need fear nothing " — a pledge
which was honorably redeemed. On the 24th of August,
the Moravian, with his Indian protectors, reached the point
opposite the fort, where followed a series of speeches, expla
nations and agreements. At this interview, though resulting
in favor of an union with England, the Indians stUl complained
bitterly of the disposition which the whites showed in claiming
and seizing their lands. " Why did you not fight your bat
tles at home, or on tlie sea, instead of coming into our coun
try to fight them ?" they asked again and again, and were
mournful when they thought of the future. " Your heart is
good," they said to Post, "3/0M speak sincerely; but we
know there is always a great number who wish to get rich ;
they never have enough ; look ! we do not want to be rich,
and take away what others have." " The white people think
we have no brains in our head ; that they are big, and
we a little handful ; but remember, when you hunt for a rat
tlesnake you cannot find it, and perhaps it wUl bite you
before you see it."
The humble Moravian played no unimportant part in
restoring to His British Majesty the key of western America
— ^Fort Du Quesne, — and certainly warded an Indian attack
upon Forbes' army.^
It is probable that French garrisons remained at Sandusky,
and the forts on French creek, for a while after the occupa
tion of Fort Du Quesne by the EngUsh ; but as the contest in
Canada approached its crisis, the troops were gradually with
drawn. We have already given the Sth of September, 1760, as
2) Perkins' Writings, vol. ii, pp. 216-17 ; see also Post's Journals in Craig's
Olden Time, vol. i, pp. 98, 145

MAJOR ROBERT ROGERS. 117
the date of the surrender of Canada to the English by the
French Governor, VaudrueU. Maj. Robert Rogers, a native
of New Hampshire and an associate of Putnam and Stark,
was ordered to take possession of the Western forts. He left
Montreal on the 13th of September, with two hundred rangers,
who were " half hunters, half woodsmen, trained in a disci
pUne of their own, and armed, like Indians, with hatchet, gun
and knife." Rogers is described as follows: "their com
mander was a man tall and vigorous in person and rough in
feature. He was versed in all the arts of woodcraft, saga
cious, prompt and resolute, yet so cautious withal that he
sometimes incurred the unjust charge of cowardice. His mind,
naturaUy active, was by no means uncultivated, and his books
and unpubUshed letters bear witness that his style as a writer
was not contemptible. But his vain, restless, grasping spirit,
and more doubtful honesty, proved the ruin of an enviable
reputation. Six years after his Western expedition, he was
tried by a court martial for a meditated act of treason, the
surrender of Fort Michillimacinac into the hands of the Span
iards, who were at that time masters of Upper Louisiana.
Not long after, if we may trust his own account, he passed
over to the Barbary States, entered the service of the Dey
of Algiers, and fought two battles under his banners. At
the opening of the war' of independence, he returned to his
native country, where he made professions of patriotism, but
was strongly suspected by many, including Washington him
self, of acting the part of a spy. In fact, he soon openly
espoused the British cause, and received a colonel's commis
sion from the crown. His services, however, proved of little
consequence. In 1778, he was proscribed and banished,
under the act of New Hampshire, and the remainder of his

118 HISTORY OF OHIO.
life was passed in such obscurity that it is difficult to deter
mine when and where he died.^
On the 4th of November, Rogers left Presque Isle, and
thence went slowly up Lake Erie in fifteen whale boats.
From this point we prefer to give his own words. In 1765
he pubUshed in London a Journal of his MUitary Life, and
also a " Concise Account of North America," from which we
gather the particulars of his voyage along the southern coast
of Lake Erie :
" We left Presque Isle," says Rogers, in his Journal, " the
4th of November, kept a western course, and by night had
advanced twenty miles.
" The badness of the weather obUged us to Ue by aU the
next day ; and as the wind continued very high, we did not
advance more than ten or twelve mUes the 6th, on a course
west-south-west. " We set out very early on the 7th, and came to themouth
of Chogage River ;* here we met with a party of Attawawa
Indians, just arrived from Detroit. They were an embassy
from Ponteack,^ of some of his warriors, and some of the
chiefs of the tribes that are under him ; the purport of which
was, to let me know that Ponteack was at a small distance,
coming peaceably, and that he desired me to halt my detach
ment tiU such time as he could See me with his own eyes.
His ambassadors had also orders to inform me that he was
Ponteack, the king and lord of the country I was in.
3) Parkman's Pontiac, 145.
4) This is probably Geauga, or Grand River.
5) In a previous paragraph, Pontiac is described as the head of an Indian
Confederacy of the lakes. "He puts on an air of majesty and pfincely
grandeur, and is greatly honored and revered by his subjects," having cer
tainly " the largest empire and greatest authority of any Indian chief that
has appeared on the continent since our acquaintance with it."

ROGERS' WESTERN EXPEDITION. 119
" At first salutation, when we met, he demanded my busi
ness into his country, and how it happened that I dared to
enter it without his leave. When I informed him that it was
not with any design against the Indians that I came, but to
remove the French out of his country, who had been an
obstacle in our -w&y to mutual. peace and commerce, and
acquainted him with my instructions for that purpose ; I at
the same time delivered him several friendly messages, or
belts of wampum, which he received, but gave me no other
answer than that he stood in the path I traveled in tiU next
morning, giving me a small string of wampum, as much as
to say, I must not march further without his leave. When he
departed for the night, he inquired whether I wanted anything
that his country afforded, and he would send his warriors to
fetch it. I assured him that any provisions they brought
should be paid for ; and the next day we were suppUed by
them with several bags of parched com, and some other
necessaries. At our second meeting he gave me the pipe of
peace, and both of us by tums smoked with it, and he assured
me he had made peace with me and my detachment ; that I
might pass through his country unmolested and relieve the
French garrison ; and that he would protect me and my party
from any insults that might be offered or intended by the In
dians ; and as an earnest of his friendship, he sent one hun
dred warriors to protect and assist us in driving one hundred
fat cattle, which we had brought for the use of the detach
ment from Pittsburgh, by the way of Presque Isle. He
likewise sent to the several Indian towns on the south side and
west end of Lake Erie, to inform them that I had his consent
to come into the country. He attended me constantly after
this interview tUl I arrived at Detroit, and while I remained
in the country, and was the means of preserving the detach-

120 HISTORY OF OHIO.
ment from the fury of the Indians, who had assembled at the
mouth of the strait with an intent to cut us off.
" I had several conferences with him, in which he discov
ered great strengthof judgment, and a thirst after knowledge.
He endeavored to inform himself of our mUitary order and
discipline. He often intimated to me that he should be con
tent to reign in his country in subordination to the King of
Great Britain, and was willing to pay him such annual
acknowledgment as he was able in furs, and to caU him his
uncle . He was curious to know our methods of manufacturing
cloth, iron, &c., and expressed a great desire to see England,
and offered me a part of his country if I would conduct him
there. He assured me that he was incUned to Uve peacear
bly with the EngUsh while they used him as he deserved, and
to encourage their settling in his country ; but intimated that,
if they treated him with neglect, he should shut up the way,
and exclude them from it ; in short, his whole conversation
sufficiently indicated that he was far from considering himself
as a conquered prince, and that he expected to be treated with
the respect and honor due to a King or Emperor, by all who
came into his country, or treated with him.^
" From this place we steered one mile west, then a mUe
south, then four mUes west, then southwest ten nules, then
five mUes west and by south, then southwest eight miles, then
west and by south seven mUes, then four miles west, and then
southwest sis miles, which brought us to Elk River, as the
Indians call it, where we halted two days on account of bad
weather and contrary winds.''
" On the 15th we embarked and kept the following courses:
6) The particulars of this interview with Pontiac are from Rogers' "Ac
count," &c. ; what follows is from his Journal.
7) Forty-six miles to Cuyahoga River.

ROGERS' WESTERN EXPEDITION. 121
west-southwest two mUes, west-northwest three miles, west-
by-north one mile, west two mUes ; here we passed the mouth
of, a river,^ and then steered west one mUe, west^by-south
two miles, west-by-north four mUes, northwest three mUes,
west-northwest two miles, west-by-north ten mUes, where we
encamped at the mouth of a river twenty-five yards wide.^
" The weather did not permit us to depart tUl the 18th,
when our course was west-by-south six miles, west-by-north
four miles, west two miles ; here wc found a river about
fifteen yards over, then proceeded west half a mile, west-
southwest six mUes and a half, west two miles and a half,
northwest two miles, where we encamped and discovered a
river sixteen yards broad at the entrance. i"
" We left this place the next day, steering northwest four
miles, north-northwest six miles, which brought us to San
dusky Lake ; we continued the same course two mUes, then
north-northeast half a mile, northwest a quarter of a mUe,
north tbe same distance, northwest half a mUe, north-by-east
one furlong, northwesf>-by-north one quarter of a mUe, north
west-by-west one mile, west-northwest one mile, then west
half a mUe, where we encamped near a small river, on the
east side.
" The land on the south side of Lake Erie from Presque
Isle, puts on a very fine appearance ; the country level, the
timber taU and of the best sort, such as oak, hickerie and
locust ; and for game, both for plenty and variety, perhaps
exceeded by no part of the world.
"On the 20th we took a course northwest four miles and
a half, southwest two, and west three, to the mouth of a river
8) Eight miles to Eocky River.
9) Twenty miles to Black River.
10) Huron River, in Erie county.

122 HISTORY OF OHIO.
in breadth 300 feet.^' Here we found several Huron sar
chems, who told me ' that a body of 400 Indian warriors was
coUected at the entrance into the great streight, in order
to obstruct our passage.'
" On the 22d we^encamped on a beach, after having steered
that day northwest six miles, north-northwest four, to a river
of the breadth of twenty yards,^^ then nbrthwest-by-west
two miles, west-northwest one, west four, and west-northwest
five. It was with great difficulty we could procure any fuel
here, the west side of the Lake Erie abounding with swamps.
We rowed ten miles the next day, on a course northwest
and-by-west to Point Cedari^ and then formed a camp."
The rumors of intended hostiUty by the Indians, at the
instigation of the French Commandant at Detroit, proved
unfounded, and ~ after some delay, Monsieur Beleter yielded
the post on the 29th of November, 1760. Rogers remained
in the vicinity of Detroit until December 23d, meanwhile
making an excursion to Lakes St. Clair and Huron. From
Detroit the Major went to the Maumee, and thence across by
the Sandusky and Tuscarawas trail to Fort Pitt, and his
journal of this overland trip is the first description of the
route which has fallen under our notice. We shall renew
our extracts, and accompany Major Rogers through the limits
now constituting the State of Ohio :
" On the 23d of December I set out for Pittsburgh, march
ing along the west end of Lake Erie, tiU the 2d of January,
1761, when we arrived at Lake Sandusky.
" I have a very good opinion of the soil from Detroit to
this place ; it is timbered principally with white and bla«k
oaks, hickerie, locusts and maple. We found wUd apples
11) Portage Eiver, in Ottowa county.
12) Touissant creek, in Carroll township, Ottowa county.
13) Maumee Bay.

ROGERS' WESTERN EXPEDITION. 123
along the west end of Lake Erie, some rich savannahs of
several mUes extent, without a tree, but clothed with jointed
grass near six feet high, which rotting there every year adds
to the fertUity of the soU. The length of Sandusky is about
fifteen mUes from east to west, and about six mUes across it.
We came to a town of the Windot Indians, where we halted
to refresh.
" On January 3d, southeast-by-east three miles, east-by-
south one mile and a half, southeast a mUe through a meadow,
crossed a smaU creek about six yards wide, running east,
traveled southeast-by-east one mile, passed thro' Indian houses
southeast three quarters of a mile, and came to a small Indi
an town of about ten houses. There is a remarkable fine
spring at this place, rising out of the side of a small hill with
such force that it boUs above the ground in a column three
feet high. I imagine it discharges ten hogsheads of water
in a minute. 1* From this town our course was south-south
east three mUes, south two miles, crossed a brook about five
yards wide, running east-southeast, traveled south one mUe,
crossed a brook about four yards wide, running east-south
east, traveled south-southeast two miles, crossed a brook
about eight yards wide. This day we kiUed plenty of deer
and turkies on our march, and encamped.
" On the 4th we traveled south-southeast one mUe, and
came to a river about twenty-five yards wide, crossed the
river, where are two Indian houses, from thence south-by-east
one mile, south-southeast one mUe and a half, southeast two
mUes, south-southeast one mile, and came to an Indian house,
where there was a family of Windots hunting, from thence
southr-by-east a quarter of a mile, south five mUes, came to
the river we crossed this morning ; the course of the river
14) Castalia, or Cold Spring, in Erie county.

124 HISTORY OF OHIO.
here is west-northwest. is This day killed several deer and
other game and encamped.
" On the 5th, traveled south-southwest half a mile, south
one mUe, south-southwest three -quarters of a mile, south
half a mile, crossed two small brooks running east, went a
south-southwest course half a mile, south half a mile, south
east half a mile, south two miles, southeast one mUe, south
half a mile, crossed a brook running east-by-north, traveled
south-by-east half a mile, south-southeast two mUes, south
east three quarters of a mile, south-southeast one mile, and
came to Maskongam creek, i^ about eight yards wide, crossed
tbe creek, and encamped about thirty yards from it. This
day killed deer and turkies in our march.
" On the 6th, we traveled about fourteen or fifteen miles,
our general course being about east-southeast, killed plenty
of game, and encamped by a very fine spring. i''
" The 7th, our general course about southeast, traveled
about six miles, and crossed Maskongam creek, running south,
about twenty yards wide.i^ There is an Indian town about
twenty yards from the creek, on the east side, which is called
the Mingo Cabbins. There were but two or three Indians
in the place, the rest were hunting. These Indians have
plenty of cows, horses, hogs, &c.i^
" The 8th, halted at this town to mend our mogasons and
kUl deer, the provisions I brought from Detroit being entirely
15) If the reader will follow the track of the Sandusky, Mansfield and
Newark Railroad, eleven miles south from Monroeville, he will probably be
on the route of Rogers, and will twice cross the Huron River.
16) Black Fork of Mohican, now called White Woman or Walhonding.
17) Who will identify this " fine spring," somewhere between Montgomery
and -Vermillion townships, in Ashland county ?
18) Lake Fork of Mohican, near Jeromeville, Ashland county.
19) A prominent object on all early charts, but usually called "Mohican
John's Town." The township is now called " Mohecan."

125
expended. I went a hunting with ten of the Rangers, and
by ten o'clock got more venison than we had occasion for.
" On the 9th, traveled about twelve miles, our general
course being about southeast, and encamped by the side of a
long meadow, where there were a number of Indians hunting.^"
" The 10th, about the same course, we traveled eleven
miles, and encamped, having killed in our march this day
three bears and two elks.
" The 11th, continuing near the same course, we traveled
thirteen miles and encamped, where were a number of
Wiandots and Six Nation Indians hunting.
" The 12th, traveled six mUes, bearing rather more to the
east and encamped. This evening we killed several beaver.
" The 13th, traveled about northeast sis miles, and came
to the Delaware's Town, called Beaver Town.^i This Indian
town stands on good land, on the west side of the Maskon
gam river, and opposite to the town on the east side is a fine
river which discharges itself into it. The latter is about
thirty yards wide, and the Maskongam about forty ; so that
when they both join they make a very fine stream, with a
swift current running to the southwest. There are about
8000 acres of cleared ground round this place. The num
ber of warriors in this town is about 180. All the way from
the Lake Sandusky I found level land and a good country.
No pine trees of any sort ; the timber is white, black and
yellow oak, black and white walnut, Cyprus, chestnut and
20) Still called on the map of Ohio, " Long Prairie," in Plain township,
Wayne county.
21) The Indian town of Tuscarora, opposite Sandy creek, at this time
the residence of the leading Delaware chiefs. Here King Beaver resided in
1760, as also did the great war captain of the Delawarc.-i, Shingess, or King
Shingask, whom we suppose to have been the same personage as Bocken
gehelas, who was living in 1804.

126 HISTORY OF OHIO.
locust trees. At this town I staid till the 16th, in the mor-.
ning, to refresh my party, and procured some corn of the
Indians to boil with our venison.
" On the 16th, we marched nearly an east course about
nine miles, and encamped by the side of a small river.
" On the 17th, kept much the same course, crossing several
rivulets and creeks. We traveled about twenty mUes, and
encamped by the side of a small river.^^
" On the 18th, we traveled about sixteen mUes an easterly
course and encamped by a brook.
" The 19th, about the same general courfee, we crossed
two considerable streams of water, and some large hills tim
bered with chestnut and oak, and having traveled about
twenty miles, we encamped by the side of a small river, at
which place were a number of Delawares hunting,^
" On the 20th, keeping still an easterly course, and having
much the same traveling as the day before, we advanced on
our journey about nineteen mUes, which brought us to Bea
ver creek, where are two or three Indian houses, on the west
side of the creek, and in sight of the Ohio.
"Bad weather prevented ourjoumeying on the 21st, but
the next day we prosecuted our march. Having crossed the
creek, we traveled twenty miles, nearly southeast and en
camped with a party of IndiW hunters.
" On the 23d, we came agam to the Ohio, opposite to Fort
Pitt, from whence I ordered Lieut. McCormack to march the
party across the country to Albany, and after tarrying there
untU the 26th, I came the common road to PhUadelphia,
from thence to New York, where, after this long fatiguing
tour, I arrived February 14, 1761."
22) Nimishillen creek, perhaps. 23) Little Yellow Creek, veryUkely.

CHAPTER IX.
CONSPIRACY OF PONTLAC.
There was a sullen submission to the new dominion of
England through the Western wUderness. The French were
subdued, and the Indians could not faU to respect the power
of the British arms, but their jealousy of aggression on the
one hand, or of no less unwelcome neglect on the other, stUl
remained. Once more, as was the case ten years previously,
an opportunity was afforded to the English to conciUate the
natives, and avert for an indefinite period the horrors of a
frontier war. It certainly behooved the colonies not to be
less indulgent and considerate than the French had been.
The latter had, from motives of policy, made frequent gifts
to the tribes — treated their chiefs with consideration — sup
pUed them with ammunition and clothing on reasonable terms,
and by a frank and gay deportment won their good wiU.
If the reader wUl recall the interview between Rogers and
Pontiac, narrated in the preceding chapter, he can readily
appreciate not only the spirit of that chief, but alsp the dis
positions of his foUowers. His lofty permission to Rogers,
that the latter might " pass through his country unmolested,"
and his magnanimous protection of the detachment of Ran
gers from Indian attack, disclosed a proud consciousness that
he was indeed " the King and Lord of the country." Ho
was wiUing to recognize a slight protectorate in the English
monarch, by an annual acknowledgment in furs and the style
of " Uncle," yet this tenure, even less substantial than the
(127)

128 HISTORY OF OHIO.
sUghtest feudal relation, was not to impair the wUd independ
ence of the forest emperor.
The jealousies of the Ohio Indians were almost. immediately
excited by the encroachments of English emigrants. The
Ohio Company was revived ; Virginia multipUed her grants ;
traders and settlers pushed beyond- the mountains, which, by
the treaty of Easton, in 1758, had been fixed as the eastern
limit of the Indian hunting grounds ; and the savages were
not slow to perceive that the professions with which both
Braddock and Forbes had approached their frontier, that the
English would protect the tribes from French aggression,
were only intended to cover simUar designs. WhUe these appre
hensions prevailed among the Delawares and Shawanese, the
feeling among the Wyandots and Ottawas, as weU as the
more northern tribes, was even more distrustful. The par
simony of the EngUsh, as compared with the liberal and
attractive gifts of the French, added to the discontent.
Soon a bitter revulsion of feeling prevaUed through the
entire west. The Delawares and Shawanese were irritated
by the settlers from Virginia and Pennsylvania, whUe the
more remote tribes meditated revenge for the neglect of the
English, in particulars now become necessary to their com
fort, and also by the frequent outrages of a lawless soldiery,
who had replaced the French garrisons. There were not
wanting French traders and voyagers to remind the Indians
of a contrast so disadvantageous in aU respects to the recent
occupants, and to fan the fiame of disaffection to the height
of insurrection.
As early as the spring of 1761, Alexander Henry, an
English trader, went to Michillimacinac for purposes of busi
ness, and he found the strongest feeling against the English,
on account of their failure by word or deed to conciUate the

CONSPIRACY OF PONTIAC. 129
Indians. Having reached his destination, though in the
disguise of a Canadian, he was discovered, and an Indian
chief, supposed to be Pontiac himself, addressed him as fol
lows :
'" EngUshman ! Although you have conquered the French,
you have not yet conquered us. We are not your slaves.
These lakes, these woods, these mountains, were left to us by
our ancestors. They are our inheritance, and we will part with
them to none. Your nation supposes that we, like the white
people, cannot live without bread, pork and beef. But you
ought to know that the Great Spirit and Master of Life, has
provided food for us upon these broad lakes and in these
mountains." He then spoke of the fact that no treaty had been made
with them, no presents sent them ; and whUe he announced
their intention to allow Henry to trade unmolested, and to
regard him as a brother, he declared that with his King the
red men were stiU at war.i
On the 10th of February, 1763, the treaty of Paris was
concluded, and extensive settlements in the conquered west
were projectedin the colonies at the moment that a wide spread
conspiracy among the Indian tribes was on the eve of explo
sion. The soul of this secret and formidable movement was Pon
tiac. Of his origin there are confficting statements — one that
he was a Catawba prisoner, adopted into the Ottawa tribe ;
whUe the more prevalent opinion is, that he was the son of
an Ottawa father and an Ojibwa mother. AU accounts unite
that he was a chief of great genius and resources, possessing
quaUties unsurpassed by the most distinguished of his race.
1) Perkins' Writings, ii. 223; Travels of Alexander Henry in Canada
frora 1760 to 1776 : New York, 1809.

130 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Bancroft styles him " the colossal chief," whose " name still
hovers over the northwest, as the hero who devised and pon-
ducted a great but unavaiUng struggle with destiny for the
independence of his race." During the series of Indian wars
against the EngUsh colonies and armies, from the Acadian
war in 1747 to the general league of western tribes in 1763,
he appears to have exercised the influence and power of an
emperor, and by this name he was sometimes known. He
had fought with the French, at the head of his Indian allies,
against the English, in the year 1747. He had likewise
been a conspicuous commander of the Indian forces in the
defence of Fort Du Quesne, and took an active part in the
memorable defeat of the British and provincial army under
General Braddock, in 1755.
The voice of Pontiac appealed to savage superstition. He
claimed to speak by the inspiration of the Great Spirit, and
his messages were received with emotions of awe from Lake
Michigan to the frontiers of North Carolina. " Why, says
the Great Spirit, do you suffer these dogs in the red clothing
to enter your country and take the land I have given you ?
Drive them from it ! Drive them ! When you are in dis
tress, I wUl help you."
Thus in the winter of 1762-3 was sUently organized a
league, by which the confederated Indians were to environ
the feeble and scattered garrisons, and by stratagem and
force, simultaneously destroy them, and sweep the exposed
frontiers with an indiscriminate massacre.
The catastrophe of May, 1763, is thus dramatized in the
Historical Papers of J. H. Perkins. "The unsuspecting
traders journeyed from viUage to village : the soldiers in the
forts shrunk from the sun of the early summer, and dozed
away the day ; the frontier settler, singing in fancied seeu-

BRITISH FORTS SURPRISED. 131
rity, sowed his crop, or, watching the sunset through the
girdled trees, mused upon one more peaceful harvest, and
told his chUdren of the horrors of the ten yeai-s" war now,
thank God! over. From the AUeghanies to the INlississippi
the trees had leaved, and all was calm life and joy. But
through that gi-eat counti-y, even then, bands of suUen red
men were journeying from the central vaUeys to the lakes
of the Eastern hills. Bands of Chippewas gathered about
MissiUimacinac. Ottawas filled the woods near Detroit.
The Maumee post, Presqu' Isle, Xiagara, Pitt, Lingonier,
and every English fort was hemmed in by mingled tribes,
who felt that the great hattie drew nigh which was to deter
mine their fate and the possession of their noble lands. At
last the day came. The traders every where were seized,
their goods taken from them, and more than one hundred
put to death. Nine British forts yielded instantly, and the
savages drank, ' scoc^ed up in the hoUow of joined hands,'
the blood of many a Briton. The border streams of Penn
sylvania and Virginia run red again. 'We hear,' says a
letter from Fort Pitt, ' of scalping every hour.' In West
em Virginia, more than twenty thousand people were driven
from their homes. Detroit was besieged by Pontiac him
self, after a vain atttempt to take it by stratagem ; and for
many months that siege was continued in a manner and with
a perseverance, unexampled among the Indians. It was the
8th of May when Detroit was first attacked, and upon the 3d
of the foUowing December it was still in danger. As late
as March of the next year, the inhabitants were ' sleeping
in their clothes,' expecting an alarm every night."
By midsummer, the only westem posts which withstood
the attacks of the savages, were Fort Pitt, defended by
Capt. Ecuyer, with three hundred and fifty men, having two

132 HISTORY OF OHIO.
hundred women and chUdren under their protection ; Fort
Lingonier, the outpost of Fort Pitt at the foot of the AUe
ghanies ; and Detroit, where Maj. Gladwin and a garrison of
one hundred and twenty-eight men were closely beleaguered
by six hundred Indians, with the indomitable Pontiac at
their head.
Sandusky "on Lake Jenandat" (as described in an old
document) was the first to fall on the 16th of May.
On the 25th of May, -the stockade at the mouth of St.
Josephs on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan, was sur
prised by a party of Pottowatamies from Detroit ; Schlosser,
the commanding officer, seized ; and all the garrison of four
teen men, except three, massacred.
On the 27th of May, Ensign Holmes, the commandant at
Fort Miami, near the present site of Fort Wayne, on the
Maumee River, was entreated to visit and bleed a sick squaw
in a cabin three hundred yards distant, and on approaching
the place, was shot down by Indians in ambush, whUe his
sergeant, who foUowed, and the nine soldiers of the garrison,
were made prisoners.
Fort Ouatanon, on the Wabash, just below Lafayette, in
Indiana, yielded on the 1st of June, but the French in the
vicinity generously ransomed the Uves of the captives and
gave them asylum in their houses.
On the 2d of June, Capt. Etherington and his subordinate
officers were in-vited to witness a game of baU by rival par
ties of Chippewas, upon the plain adjoining the fort at
Michillimacinac. The game, which somewhat resembled
wicket, had proceeded with much animation from morning
until noon, when, by apparent accident, a ball was tossed
near the entrance of the fort ; a rush was made within the
enclosure, the war-whoop sounded, an officer, a trader,

FORT SANDUSKY DESTROYED. 133
and fifteen men were kiUed, while the rest of the garrison
of forty, and several Indian traders, were spared as captives.
Presque Isle, now Erie, a tenable structure, with a garri
son of twenty-four men, and within prompt reach of relief,
was surrendered, after a two days' defence, on the 22d of
June. Le- Boeuf, stiU further inland, was burned on the night of
the 18th of July, after successfully resisting an attack during
the previous day, but the garrison fortunately escaped unno
ticed through the darkness and the forest. On their way to
Fort Pitt, they passed the ashes of Venango — fort and gar
rison having been involved in the same destruction.
Drake, in his Book of the Indians, adds to our enumera
tion " Le Bay, on Lake Michigan, near Green Bay."
Sandusky, on Lake Junandat, or Wyandot, was the only
post within the present limits of Ohio. The_j)articulars of
its loss were fumished by Ensign PauUy, its commandant,
and by him transmitted to Sir Jeffrey Amherst, then Com
mander-in-Chief of the British forces. We give these de
taUs as compUed by Bancroft and Parkman.
On the 16th of May, Fort Sandusky was approached by
a party of Indians, principally from the Wyandot viUage.
Ensign PauUy, the commanding officer, was informed that
seven Indians were waiting at the gate to speak with him.
They proved to be four Hurons or Wyandots and three Ot
tawas, and as several of them were known to him, he ordered
them, without hesitation, to be admitted. Arrived at his
quarters, two of the treacherous -visitors seated themselves
on each side of the commandant, whUe the rest were dis
posed in various parts of the room. The pipes were lighted
and the conversation began, when an Indian, who stood in
the door-way, suddenly made a signal by raising his head.

134 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Upon this, the astonished officer was instantly seized, dis
armed and tied by those near him, whUe at the same moment
a confused noise of shrieks and yells, the firing of guns, and
the hurried tramp of feet sounded from the area of the fort
without. It soon ceased, however, and as PauUy was led
from the room, he saw the dead body of his sentry and the
parade ground strewn with the corpses of his murdered gar
rison. The body of his sergeant lay in the garden, where
he was planting at the time of the massacre. Some traders,
who were stationed within or near the enclosure of the pick
ets, were also killed, and their stores plundered. At night
fall, PauUy was conducted to the margin of the lake, where
several birch canoes lay in readiness ; and as, amid thick
darkness, the party pushed out from shore, the. captive saw
the fort, lately under his command, bursting on all sides into
sheets of flame.
PauUy was brought prisoner to Detroit, bound hand and
foot, and solaced on the passage with the expectation of being
burnt alive. On landing near the camp of Pontiac, he was
surrounded by a crowd of Indians, chiefly squaws and chil
dren, who pelted him with stones, sticks and gravel, forcing
him to dance and sing, though by no means in a cheerful
strain. A worse infliction seemed in store for him, when
happily an old woman, whose husband had lately died, chose
to adopt him in plaoe of the deceased warrior. Seeing no
alternative but the stake, PauUy accepted the proposal, and
having been first plunged in the river, that the white blood
might be washed from his veins, he was conducted to the
lodge of the widow, and treated thenceforth with all the
consideration due to an Ottawa warrior. This forced match
took place about the 20th of May, and in July foUowing a
divorce occurred. One evening a man was seen running

BATTLE OF BUSHY RUN. 135
towards the fort at Detroit, closely pursued by Indians. On
his arriving within gunshot distance, they gave over the chase
and the fugitive came panting beneath the waUs, where a
wicket was flung open to receive him. He proved to be the
commandant at Sandusky, who had seized the first opportu
nity to escape from the embrace of the Ottawa widow.
The tragedy at Sandusky did not long remain unavenged.
On the 26th of July, a detachment of two hundred and sixty
men, under the command of Capt. DalzeU, arrived at San
dusky on their coastwise route to the relief of Detroit. Thence
they marched inland to the Wyandot viUage, which they
burned to the ground, at the same time destroying the adja
cent fields of standing corn. After infficting this inadequate
retribution of the scene of May 16th, DalzeU steered north
ward, and under cover of night effected a junction with the
Detroit garrison.
Long and arduous were the hostilities at the forks of the
Ohio and the straits of Detroit. The siege of Fort Pitt first
reached a crisis favorable to the besieged. The Delawares
and Shawanese, conscious of the strength of the garrison,
endeavored to persuade Capt. Ecuyer to abandon the fort,
offering safe conduct to the settlements for all within the
inclosure. This overture was twice made and declined, and
as often, furious but ineffectual assaults were made by the
Indians. At length runners brought the inteUigence that
Bouquet, at the head of five hundred men, was advancing
through the wilderness of Westem Pennsylvania, and, as
August approached, the Indians disappeared from before Fort
Pitt for the purpose of-harassing, and, if possible, cutting off
the army of rescue and supply. The troops of Bouquet were
the remains of two regiments of Highlanders, recently from
active service in the West Indies — thoroughly disciplined and

136 HISTORY OF OHIO.
fortunate in their leader. Nothing interrupted their advance,
untU the 4th of August, when the advanced guard was sud
denly attacked by the savages at Edge HiU, a mUe east of
the Bushy Run, and four days' march from Pittsburgh. The
action continued two days, the enemy giving way before the
bayonets of the Highlanders, but constantly renewing their
treacherous ambuscades. As a last resort, Bouquet feigned
a retreat ; the Indians hurried to charge, when two compa
nies, that had been purposely concealed, feU upon the flank
of the savages, who were simultaneously attacked in front.
This manoeuvre decided the conflict in favor of the Ameri
cans, although their loss was fifty kiUed and sixty wounded.
The battle of Bushy Run is memorable in our border his
tory, as well for the valor exhibited on both sides as for the
important consequences. The Delawares and Shawanese,
who were the instigators and principal resource of the con
federation of 1763, never renewed the contest with the des
perate devotion which they exhibited at Bushy Run. At
Edge HUl the valley of the Ohio was virtually subjugated.
The genius of Pontiac prolonged the contest before the
walls of Detroit. Although his original design of taking the
fort by stratagem, on the 7th 'of May, was baffled, still he
hoped to reduce the position" by a close and vigorous siege.
Having been advised of the approach of Lieut. Cuyler with
ninety-six men and twenty-three batteaux laden with stores,
along the northern shore of Lake Erie, a band ^f Wyandots
was sent to surprise him, which they succeeded in doing on
the night of May 28th, near Point Pelee. Most of the de
tachment were captured, although Cuyler with thirty men
escaped, and, rowing all night, arrived at a smaU island.
Cuyler now made for Sandusky, (as he says in a report,)
which, of course, he found burned to the ground, and thence

ROYAL PROCLAMATION. 137
he returned to Niagara along the southern shore of Lake
Erie. However, in June, a schooner, with a reinforcement of
sixty men, reached Detroit, and early on the morning of the
29th of July, the garrison were agreeably surprised by the
arrival of Capt. DalzeU and his reinforcement of two hundred
and sixty men. DalzeU immediately resolved to make a night
sally against the besiegers. It proved unfortunate, the wUy
enemy being fully advised of the movement, and DalzeU's
own Ufe and the Uves of twenty of his men were sacrificed in
the inglorious retreat from the Indian ambuscade at Bloody
Run. This victory encouraged the confederates, and Pontiac
pressed the siege with a force increased to one thousand men.
Another month brought to the Ottawa chief the tidings of
Bushy Run, and the occupation of Fort Pitt by Bouquet.
Already it was apparent to Pontiac that the tide of success
was turning against himself and the great purpose of the con
federation, yet were his efforts unabated. Winter approached ;
the French commandant at Fort Chartres, on the IlUnois,
wrote to Pontiac that the Indians must expect no assistance
from the French, and M. De Neyon went so far as to send
belts, messages and peace pipes to the different western
tribes, exhorting them to conclude a peace with the English.
Finally, in the absence of any decisive success, the savages
became disheartened, jealousies were revived, and Pontiac
raised the siege of Detroit, repairing, with a number of his
chiefs, to the Maumee, but stiU intent upon renewing hostili
ties in the spring.
On the 7th of October, 1763, a royal proclamation issued,
which probably contributed to the pacification of the westem
border, by removing the causes of future outbreaks. It
anticipated, in some degree, what has become the permanent

138 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Indian policy of the United States. The colonial governments
were prohibited, " for the present," and untU the royal
pleasure should be further known, " to grant warrants of
survey or pass patents for any lands beyond the heads or
sources of any of the rivers which fall into the Atlantic
ocean from the west or northwest." These western lands
were declared to be under the sovereignty, protection and
dominion of the crown for the use of the Indians, and indi
viduals were warned not to settle them. Purchases from
Indians of lands reserved to them within the colonies, where
settlements had been permitted, were only to be conducted
by the authorities of the colonies, and in no case to be made
by individuals, but trade with the Indians was to be free and
open to all, on taking out a Ucense for that purpose from the
Governor or Commander-in-chief of any of the colonies.
The historical department of the London Annual Regis
ter for 1764, aUudes significantly to tbe terms of the old
colonial charters, which had no other bound to the westward
than the South sea, and adds that " nothing could be more
inconvenient, or attended with more absurd consequences,
than to admit the execution of the powers in those grants and
distributions of territories in aU their extent." The writer
concludes that " where the western boundary of each colony
• ought to be settled is a matter which must admit of great
dispute, and can, to all appearance, only be finally adjusted
by the interposition of Parliament."
The proclamation in question was claimed by Wash
ington, Chancellor Livingston and others, to have been
a measure of temporary expediency, with reference to the
Indian hostUities, which were pending. Such was the favor
ite construction among the colonists, and Virginia was not
Restrained from the issue of patents, very soon afterwards.

WESTERN COLONIAL LIMITS. 139
for considerable tracts of land on the Ohio far beyond the
Appalachian chain. If other and graver questions had not
mterposed, however, it cannot be doubted that this question
of western lands would have led to serious difficulty with the
mother country. As it was, the embarrassment was thrown
upon the first epoch of our national independence, and threat
ened for a time to defeat the union of the States. At length,
by a series of patriotic cessions, the wUderness of the west
became the domain of the nation, and, as such, has been
productive of more benefit to the citizens ofthe Atlantic States
than if the untenable claims of their vague charters had been
successfully asserted.

CHAPTER X.
THE EXPEDITIONS AGAINST THE WESTERN TRIBEg UlTDER
BRADSTREET AND BOUQUET.
In the spring of 1764, the frontiers were again alarmed
by savage incursions, and General Thomas Gage, who had
succeeded Sir Jeffrey Amherst, in the command, of the
British forces in North America, resolved to send two expe
ditions into the heart of the enemy's country — one by the
route of the lakes and another westward of Fort Pitt. Tbe
northern division was first upon the march under the com
mand of Col. John Bradstreet. It consisted of eleven hun
dred men, chiefly provincial battalions from New Jersey,
New York and Connecticut ; that of Connecticut led by Col.
Israel Putnam, and in July reached Niagara. i There were
gathered the representatives of twenty or more tribes, sup-
pUants for peace, and a grand council was held by Brad
street and Sir WilUam Johnson, at which the powerful Sen
ecas were the first to bring in their prisoners and accept the
terms dictated by the English negotiators.
Bradstreet had been ordered by Gage to chastise the In
dians whenever they appeared in arms, but aU hostUe indica
tions ceased on his advance. On the 12th of August, when
within two days' march of Presque Isle, he was met by ten
savages, who were probably Mingoes, or representatives of
the New York tribes settled in Ohio and near Presque Isle,
1) Albany was the rendezvous of the troops, and the route to Niagara
was by the Mohawk, Oneida Lake, Oswego Eiver and Lake Ontario,
(140)

BRADSTREET's EXPEDITION. 141
but who also assumed to speak for the Hurons of Sandusky,
the Shawanese and the Delawares. They agreed that all
prisoners should be deUvered at Sandusky within twenty-five
days ; that six of the deputation should be retained as hos
tages, and the remaining four, accompanied by an English
officer and a friendly Indian, should inform the chiefs of what
they were required to do ; that aU claims to the forts and
posts of the EngUsh in the west were to be abandoned, and
leave given to erect as many forts and trading houses as
might be necessary for the security of the traders, with a
grant of as much land around each post as a cannon could
throw a shot over ; that if any Indian kUled an EngUshman
he was to be delivered at Fort Pitt and there tried by Eng
Ush law, except that half of the jury were to be Indians of
the same nation as the offender ; and that if one tribe vio
lated the peace the others would unite in punishing them.
There is reason to believe that the Delawares, Shawanese
and Wyandots, had never authorized these Indians to stipu
late for them, since the first two tribes continued their ravar
ges after the treaty, and we find the Wyandots, when Brad
street reached Sandusky, making their separate submission,
and agreeing to follow him to Detroit for the purpose of
concluding a treaty there. Parkman insists that the Indians
who thus represented the Ohio tribes were only spies, and
that Bradstreet was duped.^ We notice among them the
name of Cuyashota, which we suppose to have been that of
the distinguished Seneca Chief, Guyasootha or Kayashuta,
who was almost as prominent as Pontiac himself in organi
zing the conspiracy of the year before. The seat of his
power and influence was on the upper Alleghany or near
Presque Isle, and his concurrence gives a high sanction to
2) Conspiracy of Pontiac, 461.

142 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Bradstreet's treaty of August 12, 1764. We shaU after
wards find Kayashuta active in the surrender of prisoners to
Col. Bouquet on the Muskingum, and the same chief, at a
conference held in Pittsburgh, by George Croghan, four
years afterwards, (May 4, 1768,) produced a copy of the
treaty with Col. Bradstreet, and avowed its vaUdity, and his
eonstant adherence to its provisions.^
Bradstreet was so sanguine, not only that a binding treaty
with tbe Ohio tribes had been concluded by him, but also of
a ready compliance on their part with all the stipulations,
that, on the 14th of August he wrote to Col. Bouquet, who
was preparing to leave the Pennsylvania frontier on the
southern expedition to the Ohio, requesting him to withdraw
his troops. The latter, percei-ring that the Delawares and
Shawanese continued their depredations, declined to comply,
and determined to prosecute his plan without remission, till
he should receive further instructions from head quarters.
Gen. Gage applauded his determination, " annulling and dis
avowing" the treaty at Presque Isle.
Bradstreet continued his route to Detroit, sparing the San
dusky vUlages, on a pledge that the Wyandots would make
their submission at Detroit, where his army arrived safely on
the 26th of August. A detachment was sent to take pos
session of MichUlimacinac, and on the 7th of September a
councU was held at Detroit, which effectually pacified the
northwestern tribes. Towards the head waters of the Mau
mee, however, were gathered many of the Ottawas and other
immediate adherents of Pontiac, who were insolent and tur
bulent. An envoy of Bradstreet, Capt. Morris, as he ap
proached the camp of the Indian leader, was confronted by
3) Craig's Olden Time, i. 344-67.

bradstreet's EXPEDITION. 143
the chief with menace and insult, making a narrow escape
of life from the hostile savages.
In respect tolh'e subsequent movements of Col. Bradstreet,
we have the authority of Hutchins,* the well-known histori
an of the contemporary expedition under Col. Bouquet, that
the plan of the campaign had been, that " the two corps
were to act in concert, and as that of Col. Bradstreet could
be ready much sooner than the other, he was to proceed to
Detroit, MiehilUmaeinae and other places. On his return,
he was to encamp and remain at Sandusky, to awe, by that
position, the numerous tribes of western Indians, so as to
prevent their sending any assistance to the Ohio Indians,
while Col. Bouquet should execute his plan of attacking them
in the heart of their settlements."
These instructions were promptly executed, and during
the month of September Bradstreet returned to Sandusky.
Here dispatches were received from Gen. Gage, condemning
the indulgent treaty at Presque Isle in severe terms, and
ordering him to advance upon the Indians Uving on the Sci
oto plains. At the same time, the journal of Morris, disclo
sing the hostile dispositions of the Indians upon the upper
Maumee, reached Bradstreet, and it was probably .apparent
to him, that the Ottawas and Miamis, who were reported to
have murdered their white prisoners, and who stUl rallied
around Pontiac, were more properly an object of chastise
ment than the Scioto viUages. It was true that the pledges
for the return of prisoners which were made to him in August
were not redeemed, but then it was to be considered that the
Delawares and Shawanese, who held most of them, were
4) Thomas Hutchins, afterwards Geographer of the United States, and
who accompanied Bouquet as " Assistant Engineer."

144 HISTORY OF OHIO.
remote from Sandusky, and were already confronted by the
army of Bouquet making a similar demand.
Under these circumstances, we think Parkman's strictures
upon Bradstreet are unnecessarily severe. He admits tiiat
the water in the Sandusky River was low with drought, while
the Cuyahoga route was circuitous and difficult of portage,
and that sickness was prevalent in the camp, and, it might
be added, the stormy season of lake navigation was at hand.
Bradstreet passed a month in Sandusky Lake and up the
river as far as na-vigaUe to Indian canoes, when, as he wrote
to Colonel Bouquet, "he found it impossible to stay longer
ia those parts, absolute necessity requiring him to tum off
the other way."
The return was unfortunate. As the boats of the army
were opposite the iron-bound precipices west of Cuyahoga, a
storm descended upon them, destroying several and throwing
the whole into confusion. For three days the tempest raged
unceasingly ; and when the angry lake began to resume its
tranquilUty, it was found that the remaming boats were in
sufficient to convey the troops. A large body of Indians,
together with a detachment of provincials, were therefore
ordered to make their way to Niagara along the pathless
borders of the lake. They accordingly set out, and, after
many days of hardships, reached their destination ; though
such had been their sufferings, from fatigue, cold, and hun
ger, from wading swamps, swimming creeks and rivers, and
pushing their way through tangled thickets, that many of
the provincials perished miserably in the woods. On the
fourth of November, seventeen days after their departure
from Sandusky, the main body of the little army arrived
safely at Niagara, and the whole, reembarking on Lake On
tario, proceeded towards Oswego. Fortune still seemed ad-

bouquet's MUSKINGUM EXPEDITION. 145
verse ; for a second tempest arose, and one of the schooners,
crowded with troops, foundered in sight of Oswego, though
most of the men were saved. The route to the settlements
was now a short and easy one. On their arrival, the regu
lars went into quarters, whUe the troops levied for the cam
paign were sent home to their respective provinces.^
The expedition to the Muskingum was fortunate in its re
sults, and also in ha-ring so intelligent an historian as Thomas
Hutchins, and is therefore better known than any contempo
rary occurrence in the West. Its leader, distinguished by
the success of Bushy Run, at the most critical period of the
campaign of 1763, enjoyed the full confidence of Gage, the
Commander-in-chief, and of the Pennsylvania and Virginia
Governments. Besides five hundred regulars, Pennsylvania
sent a thousand men, and Virginia replaced the desertions
by a corps of volunteers.
It was October before the troops took up their march from
Fort Pitt. Bouquet had previously seized three Indians,
who sought a conference, but were probably spies, and on
the 20th of September he sent one of them to the Delaware
and Shawanese chiefs, demanding, that they should furnish
two guides for an express to Col. Bradstreet, and threaten
ing to avenge any molestation of the messengers, by puttiag
the two captive Indians to death. He allowed twenty days
for the trip to Detroit. This firm and determined conduct
in opening the campaign, produced a favorable effect upon
its prosecution. Two Indian runners were promptly sent to
accompany the express.^
On the 3d of October, the army decamped from Fort Pitt,
and next day reached the Ohio River at the beginning of the
S) Parkman's Pontiac, 476.
6) Hutchins' Account of Bouquet's expedition, 3 et seq.
7

146 HISTORY OF OHIO.
narrows, following the course of the river along a flat grav
elly beach for about six mUes. When opposite the lower
end of a considerable island, the army left the river — the
distance from Fort Pitt being then about ten miles. Passing
Logstown and crossing Big Beaver River near its junction
with the Ohio, the course of the army was westward, appar
rently crossing the present boundary of Ohio near the line
between Middleton and St. Clair townships in Columbiana
county. On the 9 th, the army encamped on Yellow creek. Du
ring the day's march, (which was only five miles, from the
necessity of cutting a road through some dense thickets)
the path divided into two branches, that to the southwest
leading to the lower towns upon the Muskingum, and at the
forks stood several trees painted by the Indians in a hiero
glyphic manner, denoting the number of wars in which they
had been engaged, and the particulars of their success in
prisoners and scalps. Crossing Yellow creek, one mile
above, the next encampment was on a branch of Muskingum,
fifty yards wide.
The country on the right bank of the Muskingum (desig
nated Sandy creek at this point on modern maps) for ten
miles east of the Nimischillen creek is described as "fine
land, watered with small rivers and springs, where were
several savannahs or cleared spots, which are by nature
extremely beautiful, the second being, in particular, one
continued plain of nearly two mUes, with a fine rising
ground, forming a semicircle round the right hand side, and
a pleasant stream of water at about a quarter of a mUe dis
tant on the left."
Crossing, on Saturday, October 13, NimischiUen, (written
by Hutchins, Nemenshehelas) and another small stream;

bouquet's MUSKINGUM EXPEDITION. 147
the army defiled between a high ridge on the right, and
Sandy on the left, for a distance of seventy perches, passed a
very rich bottom, and came to the main branch of Muskingum,
about seventy yards wide, with a good ford. "A littie below
and above," adds Hutchins, "is Tuscarawas, a place
exceedingly beautiful by situation, the lands rich on both
sides of the river; the country on the northwest side being
an entire level plain, upwards of five mUes in circumference."
He estimated, from the appearance of the "ruined houses,"
that the Indians who had inhabited these were as many as
one hundred and fifty warriors.''
Thus, after a march of twelve days, or one hundred and
ten miles, the army reached a point, which, more than any
other, is noted in our ante-territorial annals. Here letters
were received from Col. Bradstreet, by the messengers sent
with Indian guides from Fort Pitt. They had been detained
for a few days at a Delaware vUlage, sixteen mUes distant,
but on the approach of the troops, they were set at liberty
with a message to Colonel Bouquet, that the headmen of the
Delawares and Shawanese were coming as soon as possible,
to treat of peace with him.
The army encamped two mUes further down the Muskingum
on the 15th, where the river was a hundred yards wide and
overlooked by a fine level country, extending from a high
bank some distance back, producing stately timber, free from
underwood, and with plenty of food for cattle ; here a bower
was erected at a short distance from the camp. At this
place the Indian chiefs and warriors, who were assembled
eight mUes off, were notified to appear on the 17th. When
7) Three years before, in January, 1761, Rogers had found Tuscarora a
populous town. It was probably deserted on the approach of Bouquet's

148 HISTORY OF OHIO.
that day arrived. Colonel Bouquet, " with most of the regular
troops, Virginia volunteers and light horse, marched from the
camp to the bower erected for the congress ; and soon after
the troops were stationed, so as to appear to the best advan
tage, the Indians arrived, and were conducted to the bower.
Being seated, they began in a short time to smoke their pipe
or calumet, agreeable to their custom. This ceremony being
over, their speakers laid down their pipes and opened then-
pouches, wherein were their strings or belts of wampum.
The Indians present were —
Senecas — Kiyashuta, chief, with fifteen warriors.
Delawares — Custaloga, chief of the Wolf tribe ; Beaver,
chief of the Turkey tribe, with twenty warriors.
Shawanese — Keissinautchtha, a chief, and six warriors.
Kiyashuta, Turtle-Heart, Custaloga and Beaver were the
chief speakers."
The submission of these savages was so unconditional and
abject as completely to tame their eloquence. Not untUthe
20th was an answer vouchsafed to them. They were then
required within twelve days to deliver at Wautamike, (an
Indian village a short distance below the mouth of White-
woman or Mohican river in Coshocton county,) all then:
prisoners, without exception. Englishmen, Frenchmen, women
and children, whether adopted or not, as well as all negroes,
furnishing at the same time clothing, provisions and horses
for their journey to Fort Pitt.
The Delawares, at the close of their speeches on the 17th,
had delivered eighteen white prisoners, and eighty-three
small sticks expressing the number of captives yet to be
delivered. The Shawanese deputy, in the absence of the
chiefs of his tribe, sullenly assented to the terms prescribed.
Kiyashuta addressed the Indians with an exhortation to com-

bouquet's MUSKINGUM EXPEDITION. 149
ply faithfully with their engagements, and Col. Bouquet
determined to march stUl further into the Indian country,
believing that the presence of his army was the best security
for a compliance with his requisitions. He was attended .by
the Indian deputations — Kiyashuta, as zealous now for peace
as he had been resolute in the late war, volunteering as the
guide. Three days' march, or a distance of about twenty-one
mUes, brought the troops within a mUe of the Coshocton forks
of the Muskingum, which was fixed upon instead of Wakata-
make as tiie most centi'al and convenient place to receive the
prisoners, " for," as Hutchins continues, "the principal In
dian towns now lay around them, distant from seven to twenty
mUes, excepting only the lower Shawanese town situated on
Scioto River, which was about eighty miles ; so that from
this place the army had it in their power to awe all the ene
my's settlements and destroy their towns, if they should not
punctuaUy fulfiU the engagements they had entered into.
Four redoubts were built here opposite to the four angles of
the camp ; the ground on the front was cleared ; a storehouse
for the provisions erected, and likewise a house to receive and
treat of peace with the Indians, when they should return.
Three houses, with separate apartments, were also raised for
the reception of the captives of the respective provinces, and
proper officers to take charge of them, with a matron to attend
the women and chUdren ; so that, with the officers, mess-
houses, ovens, &c., this camp had the appearance of a little
town in which the greatest order and regularity were
observed." Nothing of interest transpired before the 9th of November,
except the arrival of Peter, a Caughnawaga chief, and twenty
Indians of his nation, who brought letters from Col. Brad-

150 HISTORY OF OHIO.
street, at Sandusky, announcing his speedy return to Niagara.
At length all the prisoners were delivered, except one hun
dred in possession of the Shawanese, for whose surrender in
the spring hostages were demanded and given. The number
of prisoners thus surrendered was two hundred and six, of
whom thirty-two males and forty-eight females and children
were Virginians, and forty-nine males and sixty-seven females
and children were Pennsylvanians.
On the 9th commenced the closing scenes in Indian coun
cU. The Senecas and the Wolf or Muncie tribe of Delawares
were first treated with — Kiyashuta and ten warriors repre
senting the former, and Custaloga and twenty warriors the
latter. Most of their prisoners were already delivered, and
they now brought forAvard only three, " the last of your flesh
and blood," said they to the Americans, " that remained
among the Senecas and Custaloga's tribe of Delawares."
Then followed their figurative professions of peace. " We
gather together," continued Kiyashuta, " and bury with this
belt aU the bones of the people that have been kiUed during
this unhappy war, which the evil spirit occasioned among us.
We cover the bones that have been buried, that they may
never more be remembered. We again cover their place
with leaves, that it may no more be seen. As we have been
long astray, and the path between you and us stopped, we
extend this belt that it may be again cleared, and we may
travel in peace to see our brethren, as our ancestors formerly
did. While you hold it fast by one end, and we by the
other, we shaU always be able to discover anything that may
disturb our friendship."
In reply, Colonel Bouquet took the chiefs by the hand for
the first time, and informed them that while he should wage
no war against them, still a formal peace would be concluded

bouquet's MUSKINGUM EXPEDITION. 151
by Sir WUUam Johnson, to whom they were to send deputies
fuUy authorized to treat. For tliis purpose hostages -would
be retained, but Capt. Pipe and Capt. John, who were seized
at Fort Pitt, were set at Uberty, greatly to the joy of their
Delaware brethren.
A simUar conference was held next day, with the Turkey
and Turtle tribes of Delawares, King Beaver, their chief, and
thirty warriors representing the former, and Kelappana,
brother to their chief, with twenty-five warriors, the latter.
Displeased at the absence of Nettowhatways, the chief of
the Turtle Delawares, Col. Bouquet proclaimed that he was
deposed from his chiefship, whereupon the tribe submissively
named and instaUed his successor.
The 12th of November witnessed an inter-new between
the fierce Shawanese and the EngUsh commanders. On the
part of the Indians, Keissinautchtha and Nimwha, their
chiefs, with the Red Hawk, Larissimo, Bensivasica, Ewee-
cunwee, Keigleighque and forty warriors, appeared. The
Caughnawaga, Seneca and Delaware chiefs, with sixty war
riors, were also present.
The Red Hawk was their speaker. "Brother," he said
proudly, "when we saw you coming this road, you advanced
toward us with a tomahawk in your hand; but we your
younger brothers take it out of your hands and throw it up
to God to dispose of as he pleases ; by which means we hope
never to see it more. And now, brother, we beg leave that
you who are a warrior, will take hold of this chain (giving a
string) of friendship, and receive it from us, who are also
warriors, and let us think no more of war, in pity to our
old men, women and children — intimating that it was com
passion for them, not weakness of the nation, that closed the

152 HISTORY OF OHIO.
In reply. Colonel Bouquet severely rebuked the Shawa
nese for their omission to restore their captives at the pres
ent conference, but sternly enjoined their deUveiy in the
spring, and their humane treatment meanwhUe. The engage
ments of the Indians in both respects were fully and honora
bly redeemed.
Hutchins reserves to the close of his narrative, the dehn-
eation of the scenes which were witnessed on the meetings
of the prisoners with their relatives who had accompanied
the march of th'e army. We copy what has also furnished a
theme for the historic pencil of West.
"Language indeed can but weakly describe the scene,
one to which the poet or painter might have repaired to
enrich the highest colorings of the variety of human passions;
the phUosopher to find ample subject for the most serious
reflection, and the man to exercise all the tender and sympa
thetic feelings of the soul. There were to be seen fathers
and mothers recognizing and clasping their once lost babes,
husbands hanging round the necks of their newly recovered
wives, sisters and brothers unexpectedly meeting together,
after a long separation, scarcely able to speak the same lan
guage, or for some time to be sure that they were the chil
dren of the same parents. In all these interviews, joy and
rapture inexpressible were seen, while feelings of a very dif
ferent nature were painted in the looks of others, flying from
place to place, in eager inquiries after relatives not found;
trembling to receive an answer to questions ; distracted with
doubts, hopes and fears on obtaining no account of those they
sought for ; or stiffened into living monuments of horror and
woe, on learning their unhappy fate.
" The Indians too, as if wholly forgetting their usual sav
ageness, bore a capital part in heightening this most affect-

bouquet's MUSKINGUM EXPEDITION. 153
ing scene. They deUvered up their beloved captives with
the utmost reluctance — shed torrrents of tears over them —
recommending them to the care and protection of the com
manding officer. Their regard to them continued all the
whUe they remained in camp. They visited them from day
to day, brought them wheat, corn, skins, horses, and other
matters that w.ere bestowed upon them while in their famiUes,
accompanied with other presents, and all the marks of the
most sincere and tender affection. Nay, they did'nt stop
here, but when the army marched, some of the Indians
solicited and obtained permission to accompany their former
captives to Fort Pitt, and employed themselves in hunting
and bringing provisions for them on the way. A young
Mingo carried this stUl ftirther, and gave an instance of love,
which would make a figure even in romance. A young
woman of Virginia was among the captives, to whom he had
formed so strong an attachment as to call her his wife.
Against aU the remonstrances of the imminent danger to
which he exposed himself by approaching the frontier, he
persisted in foUowing her, at the risk of being killed by the
surviving relatives of many unfortunate persons who had
been captured or scalped by those of his nation.
" Among the captives, a woman was brought into camp at
Muskingum, with a babe about three months old, at the
breast. One of the Virginia volunteers soon knew her to be
his -wife. She had been taken by the Indians about six
months before. He fiew with her to his tent and clothed her
and his chUd with proper apparel. But their joy, after the
first transports, was soon dampened by the refiection that
another dear chUd, about two years old, taken with the
mother, had been separated from her, and was stiU missing,
although many chUdren had been brought in.

154 HISTORY OF OHIO.
" A few days afterwards, a number of other persons were
brought in, among them were several children. The woman
was sent for, and one supposed to be hers was produced to
her. At first sight she was not certain, but viewing the
chUd with great earnestness, she soon recollected its features,
and was so overcome with joy, that forgetting her sucking
chUd, she dropped it from her arms, and catching up the
new-found chUd, in ecstacy pressed it to her breast, and
bursting into tears, carried it off unable to speak for joy.
The father, rising up with the babe she had let faU, followed
her in no less transport and affection.
" But it must not be deemed that there were not some,
even grown persons, who showed an unwillingness to return.
The Shawnees were obliged to bind some of their prisoners
and force them along to the camp, and some women that had
been delivered up, afterwards found means to escape, and
went back to the Indian tribes. Some who could not make
their escape, clung to their savage acquaintances at parting,
and continued many days in bitter lamentations, even refusing
sustenance." On the 18th of November, the army broke up its canton
ment at the Whitewoman and. returned to Fort Pitt, which
they reached on the 28th of- the same month. This expedi
tion was conducted with such. skUl and prudence as to avoid
all disaster, except the loss of one man, who was kiUed and
scalped by an Indian, when separated from camp. The
Pennsylvania troops were under Lieut. Col. Francis and
Lieut. Col. Clayton. Col. Reid was next in command to Col.
Bouquet. The provincial troops were discharged, and the regulars
sent to garrison Fort Loudon, Fort Bedford and Carlisle.
Col. Bouquet arrived at Philadelphia in January and re-

HENRY BOUQUET. 155
ceived a conplimentary address from the Legislature, and
also from the House of Burgesses of Virginia. Before these
resolutions reached England, the King promoted him to be a
Brigadier General. He was ordered to the command of the
post at MobUe, and died within three years after his return
from Muskingum, of a fever contracted at Pensacola.

CHAPTER XI.
OLD MAPS AND INDIAN TRAILS.
The value of ancient maps to the student of history is
almost incalculable. They furnish, at a glance, a complete
summary of contemporary history as well as of geography,
A collection of the old maps, published during the colonization
and subsequent settlement of North America, might almost
dispense with the printed page, and would certainly constitute
its best elucidation. We have described the charts of Hen
nepin and La Hontan, whose ludicrous conceptions of westem
geography are yet fuU of interest, and the map now in ques
tion, nearly a hundred years later in date, is equally remark
able for its political features. The mere geography of the
continent — the courses of streams and mountains and the
outlines of lake and sea coast — are delineated with consider
able correctness, but aU other objects indicate an extraordinary
contrast with the present situation of things. However diffi
cult the task of description, still, so far as a few general
detaUs will avaU, it may be well to attempt a verbal synopsis.
Map of the British Possessions in 1763
This map is published with the Annual Register for 1763,
immediately after the cession by France to Great Britain, and
delineates the " British Dominions in North America, with the
limits of the Governments annexed thereto by the late treaty of
peace and settled by proclamation — October 7th, 1763 — ^En
graved by T. Kitchin. Geog'r." (156)

ANCIENT MAPS. 157
What is now the State of Maine is put down as " York
County," and included within New England. New York
embraces Upper Canada, including the entire peninsula
between Lakes Huron, Erie and Ontario, and with a fair
presumption from the Unes of boundary, that the colony was
nominally extended across the peninsula of Michigan. This
State is greatly shorn of its southern proportions, however,
for the northern line of Pennsylvania is carried as far as the
parallel of Buffalo, and thence eastwardly to Otsego Lake,
near Cooperstown, whence it strikes south to the Delaware
River. Virginia is extended west to the Mississippi as nearly
as possible within the southern line of Kentucky and Virginia,
and for a northern boundary, by the route of the National
Road, or from Wheeling west to Quincy, Blinois. North
CaroUna, South CaroUna and Georgia are also extended in
strips of about the same width from the Atlantic to the Mis
sissippi. West Florida is a narrow parallelogram between
the Apalachicola and Mississippi Rivers, now divided in nearly
equal instalments between Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and
Louisiana, while East Florida is about the same as laid down
on modern maps, except that it is now extended two and a half
degrees west of the Apalachicola on the Gulf of Mexico. All
the country west of the Mississippi is Louisiana.
The region afterwards organized as the Northwest Terri
tory, except the portion lying south of the latitude of Wheel
ing and Columbus, which was included within the claim of
Virginia, has no political classification, and seems to be
recognized as Indian territory, subject generally to tho crown
of England.
The map is extremely meagre and inaccurate so far as the
region which is now Ohio, is concerned. For instance, the
mouth of the Great Miami River, at the North Bend of the

158 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Ohio, is presented to be as much west bf the longitude of
Fort Wayne (then Fort Miami,) as it is actually east of that
locality — an error of full one degree to the westward. The
English trading post, fifty mUes above Dayton, which was
destroyed by the French in 1752, and is known in our his
tory as Loramie station, is put down as " PickawiUany ;" it
is correctly represented as on the upper waters of the Great
Miami or " G. Miamee " River. The " Sciota " Eiver is
correct, with a "Delaware town" near the present county
of the same name; "Elk River" is also laid down in the
proper place and direction, with a vUlage of " Muskingum,"
situated on the western trail from Fort Pitt ; and in the
vicinity of the Cuyahoga River, (of which there is no trace,)
there is a town caUed " Gwahago," doubtless intended for
Cayahaga. On reaching the southern shore of Lake Erie, the poverty
of the map becomes still more conspicuous. The only village
or settlement from Detroit to Niagara is " Sandoski," which
is represented to be on the same line of longitude as the
mouth of Elk or Muskingum River — that is, as far east as
Cleveland. It stands on a bay, but no signs of a river. No
stream in Northern Ohio is indicated, except the Maumee,
which is faintly traced at the right point, and on which, at a
reasonable distance from the mouth, stands "Miamis" or
Fort Wayne.
Only ninety years since and such was the knowledge of
the country now organized as the third State of the American
Union. It is recorded in a work of the highest authority.
Such a circumstance almost surpasses belief. As for " San
doski," the fort was bumed in May, 1763, and since it was
never rebuilt, the map may refer to what had been and yet
was a point of historical interest, or it might be a mode of

ANCIENT MAPS. l.'')9
designating the Indian vUlages which were known to adjoin
the Lake Junandat or Sandusky. This, of course, must now
rest altogether in conjecture.
Hutchins' Map oe 1763 and Pownall's Map of 1776.
We shall refer to these publications only so far as they deline
ate our Ohio region. Their geographical outlines are hardly as
disproportionate and imperfect as those of the London map
already described, and they especially include many new
detaUs of the Indian villages and the natural features of the
country. A prominent object is the " Salt Springs." They are
indicated on the Mahoning River, which were doubtless within
the present to-wnship of Weathersfield, near Warren, in
Trumbull county; on the Salt creek, east of the Scioto
River, and within the present county of Jackson ; on the
Little Miami, apparently within Warren county, and on the
Great Miami, near the site of Dayton. The first two locali
ties are readUy identified at the present time. Coal is noted
near the Tuscarawas forks of the Muskiagum and about mid
way of the right bank of the Hockhocking. Opposite Wheel
ing are "Ancient Sculptures;" in Jefferson county, at or
about Mount Pleasant, is "petroleum:" on the Mad River,
near the northwest angle of Greene county, is "Umestone,"
and on the Hocking and Ohio Rivers, above their junction
respectively, is " freestone." Hutchins also mentions a
"lead mine" on Walnut creek, a stream which faUs into the
Scioto above Circle-rille.
We should infer from these maps that there were five Del
aware villages within a few mUes from each other on the
Muskingum; one on Wills creek, where Cambridge, in
Guernsey county, stands ; one near the source of the Scioto,

160 HISTORY OF OHIO.
and in the present county of Delaware ; one on the KUlbuck,
a tributary of the Mohican or White Woman, and apparently
near the present MUlersburg, in Holmes county, besides the
settlement at the Tuscarawas forks of the Muskingum.
Near the source of the Hockhocking, "Beaverstown" is
put down by Hutchins, and in his narrative he mentions King
Beaver, a chief of the Turkey tribe of Delawares, as present
at the Muskingum council. Our inference was that the vil
lage on the Hockhocking, which is apparently where Lancas
ter how stands, was inhabited by Delawares, but George
Sanderson, Esq., in an address delivered before the Lancas
ter Institute, in March, 1844, states that the lands watered
by the sources of the Hockhocking river, and now compre
hended within the Umits of Fairfield county, when first dis
covered by the early settlers at Marietta, were owned and
occupied by Wyandots. He identifies the town, which in
1790, contained one hundred wigwams, and a population of
500 souls, with the present localities of Lancaster, and gives
its name Tarhe, or in English, Crane-town, from the princi
pal chief of the town. Another portion of the tribe, Mr.
S. says, lived at Tobytown, nine miles west of Tarhetown,
(now Royalton.) He adds that in 1795, the Wyandots
ceded all their land on the Hockhocking River to the United
States, and the Crane chief removed to Upper Sandusky.
On Pownall's map, (pubUshed but twelve years before the
Marietta emigration,) this village is noted as " Hockhocking
or French Margarets," and the situation is described as soulh
of a "Big Swamp" and " Plains of WUd Rye "—indications
of the scenery which suggested to Gov. St. Clair the name
of Fairfield. This favors Wyandot occupation, for that na
tion were always intimately associated with the French.
There is also evidence that Franklin and Hocking counties

ANCIENT MAPS. 161
were formerly occupied by Wyandots, and Fairfield is in a
fine drawn from the Sandusky plains through the former
counties. The Shawanese, on both maps, are clustered along the
Scioto, from the mouth northward to the Pickaway plains.
Then* viUages also extended northeastwardly through the
present counties of Clark, Champaign and Logac. Five are
noted by Pownall, principally on the Scioto.
The Sandusky Bay and River were the principal seats of
the Wyandots, who probably crossed the Scioto and occupied
the valley of the Hockhocking.
The west branch of the MusMngum, known on our maps
as the Whitewoman or Mohican, was assigned to the rem
nants of the old Connecticut tribe, whose name, otherwise
evanescent, has been embalmed by the genius of Cooper.
As we have seen from the diary of Smith, there was a
Caughnawaga -village (the Mohican was the origin of this
tribe, but fused with Canadians and Iroquois, and lately res
ident near Montreal) about twenty mUes above the Coshocton
Forks, and stiU further north on the lake branch of the
Mohican River, was the Mohican John's Town, near the (now)
viUage of Jerome-vUle, in Ashland county. Thence these
" Last of the Mohicans " were accustomed to range north
ward to the lake, and eastward over the comparatively vacant
plains, now constituting the counties of the Western Reserve.
On the Cuyahoga River, near the falls, and adjoining the
traU, which thence led to the Tuscarawas branch of the
Muskingum, was a village of " Tawas," or Ottawas, the only
reference to this tribe, except that on the site of Plymouth,
Richland county, Hutchins notices the " ruins of a fort buUt
by the Ottawas." There can be no doubt that they roamed
the Sandusky peninsula and islands.
7*

162 HISTORY OF OHIO.
On PownaU, also, at the FaUs of the Cuyahoga, is a Mingo
town, mentioned on Hutchins as " Cayahaga." Here was
doubtless a band of Cayuga Indians — the name of the New
York tribe being, as we suppose, the ori^n of our " Cuya
hoga " and " Geauga."
In the valley of the Mahoning, two towns are designated,
which were probably colonies of the Seneca Indians. Their
location seems to have been the present border of Mahoning
and Trumbull counties.
Huron River is put down as " Bald Eagle Creek," and
Black River, which we have supposed to be the Canesadoo
harie of Smith's diary, as " Gnahadahuyi."
Besides Fort Sandusky, and perhaps the affix of " French
Margarets" to the Hockhocking town, we also find another
indication of the French occupation of the Ohio, on the map
of 1776. Near the Ottawa town on the Cayahaga, a French
trading house is indicated. It has also been suggested (with
Uttle probability, however,) that the name of an Indian town
on the Scioto near what is now Pike County — " Hurricane
Tom's" — which is noted by Evans' map as early as 1755,
was derived from some French trader. It was more Hkely
the style of an Indian warrior.
The westem border of the State is indefinitely assigned to
the " Piques, or Tawichwis, or Mineamis, or Myamis " Indi
ans, their principal town being near the present Piqua,
although a smaU -rillage of this tribe was at the mouth of the
Littie Miami River.
The rivers generally bear their present names. To the Ohio
is added " or Palawa Thepild or Fair River." The Islands
of Lake Erie are, of course, imperfectly sketched, being called
" Rattiesnake Islands." It is stated that the Indians were
accustomed to cross the lake from island to island in canoes.

INDIAN TRAILS. 1G3
Indian Trails.
An interesting Appendix to Hutchins' History of Bou
quet's expedition gives five different routes from Fort Pitt
through the Ohio wUderness.
The First Route, which was N. N. W., after striking the
Big Beaver, at a place called Kuskeeskees Town, forty-
seven miles from Fort -Pitt, ascended the east branch fifteen
miles to Shaningo, and twelve mUes to Pematuning, thence
westward thirty-two miles to Mahoning on the west branch
of Beaver, (probably Youngstown;) thence ten mUes up
said branch (Mahoning River) to Salt Lick (near the junc
tion of Meander and Mosquito creeks in Weathersfield town
ship, TrumbuU county ;) thence thirty-two miles to the Cuya
hoga River (we suppose, just south of Ravenna — the name
of Portage county thus derived,) and ten miles down Cuya
hoga to Ottawatown, (Cuyahoga Falls.) The distance from
Fort Pitt by the above route, was one hundred and fifty-six
miles. Second Route, W. N. W. was twenty-five miles to the
mouth of Big Beaver, ninety-one mUes to Tuscaroras, (the
junction of Sandy and Tuscaroras Creeks at the south line
of Stark county ;) fifty to Mohikon John's Town (Mohican
township, near Jeromeville or MohicanvUle on the east Une
of Ashland county ;) forty-six to Junandat or Wyandot Town
(CastaUa or the source of Cold creek in Erie county ;) four
to Fort Sandusky (at mouth of Cold creek, near Venice on
Sandusky Bay ;) twenty-four to Junqueindundeh (now Fre
mont, on Sandusky River, and in Sandusky county.) The
distance from Fort Pitt to Fort Sandusky was two hundred
and sixteen mUes; to Sandusky River, two hundred and
forty miles.

164 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Third Route, W. S. W., was one hundred and twenty-
eight mUes to the Forks of the Muskingum, (at Coshocton ;)
six to BuUet's Town, on the Muskingum, (probably in Virginia
township ;) ten to Waukatamike, (near Dresden, Muskingum
county, we will suppose ;) twenty-seven to King Beaver's
Town, near the sources of the Hockhocking, (see above for
the probabilities whether this was the site of Lancaster, Fair
field county ;) forty to the lower Shawanese town, on the
river Scioto, (Circleville, we presume, but the route must
have been circuitous ;) twenty to Salt Lick Town, near the
sources of Scioto, (this is difficult to understand, but on
Hutchins' map, a small pond, situated the proper distance
to the northeast, is written " Source," and seems to be the
point designated ;) thence one hundred and ninety miles north
east to Fort Miamis (now Fort Wayne, Indiana, on the Mau
mee River) — the distance from Fort Pitt to Fort Miamis
being four hundred and twenty-six mUes.
Fourth Route, down the Ohio, was twenty-seven mUes
to mouth of Big Beaver, twelve to Littie Beaver ; ten to
Yellow Creek ; eighteen to Two Creeks (just below Wells-
burg, on Virginia side;) six to Wheeling ; twelve to Pipe
HiU (near Pipe Creek, quite likely ;) thirty to Long Reach
(probably opposite the township of Grandview, in Washing
ton county, where the Ohio River is without a bend for a
considerable distance;) eighteen to foot of Reach (near
Newport ;) thirty to mouth of Muskingum ; twelve to Little
Kanawha River; thirteen to mouth of Hockhocking River;
forty to mouth of Letort's creek (opposite Letart township,
Meigs county ;) thirty-three to Kiskeminetas (an Indian vil
lage, otherwise called " Old Town," on the Ohio bank, perhaps
in Cheshire township, Gallia county ;) eight to mouth of Big
Kenawha or New River ; forty to mouth of Big Sandy ; forty

INDIAN TRAILS. 165
to Scioto River ; thirty to Big Salt Lick River (Brush creek,
in Adams county ?) twenty to an island (opposite Manchester,
in Adams county;) fifty-five to mouth of Little Miami;
thirty to Big Miami or Rocky River, (no stoppage at Cincin
nati, as now ;) twenty to Big Bones, ("so called from the
bones of an elephant found there ;") fifty-five to Kentucky
River ; fifty to Falls of Ohio ; one hundred and thirty-one to
Wabash River ; sixty to Cherokee (Tennessee) River, and
forty to Mississippi. Total, from Fort Pitt, eight hundred
and forty.

CHAPTER XII.
SUBMISSION AND FATE OF PONTIAC.
In the spring of 1765, late in AprU, Sir WUUam Johnson
was seated in council at German Flats, far in the interior of
New York, and around him gathered the representatives of
aU the Western tribes. What the armies of 1764 had
accomplished on the waters of Muskingum and Sandusky,
was then consummated by the negotiations of the sagacious
superintendent. At this meeting, two propositions were
made ; one to fix some boundary line, west of which the Euro
peans should not go ; and the savages named as this line, the
Ohio or Alleghany and Susquehannah ; but no definite agree
ment was made, Johnson not being empowered to act. The
other proposal was, that the Indians should grant to the tra
ders who had suffered in 1763, a tract of land in compensa
tion for the injuries then done them, and this the Indians
agreed to do.
With the returning deputies of Senecas, Shawanese and
Delawares, George Croghan, Sir WUUam Johnson's sub-
commissioner, embarked at Pittsburgh on the 15th of May,
1765, intending to visit the Wabash and Illinois, secure the
allegiance of the French who inhabited their vaUeys, and
conclude a treaty with Pontiac and his Ottawa and Miami
adherents, whose submission was yet withheld.^ His voy
age down the Ohio in two batteaux was not eventful — ^the
Journal affording a panorama of "rich and fertUe bottoms;"
1) See Croghan's Journal in Craig's Olden Time, vol. i., p. 403.
(166)

CROGHAN DESCENDS THE OHIO. 167
hiUs now withdrawn beyond these bottoms, and anon "pinch
ing close on the river," and " islands mostly lying high out
of the water." About a mile below Big Beaver creek, a
deserted Delaware town, "buUt for that nation by the
French in 1756," was noticed — some of the stone chimneys
yet remaining on the north side of the river. About two
miles below where SteubenvUle stands, stUl on the north
side of the Ohio, and near the mouth of Indian Cross creek,
they passed a Seneca -vUlage, the chief of which joined the
party. This place is usually designated Mingo Town, and
although most of the Indians might have been Senecas, yet
doubtless many from the other New York tribes were among
its inhabitants. Here was afterwards the residence of Logan.
Croghan, on the 19th of May, encamped at the mouth of
Little Conhowa River, and "here" he says "buffaloes,
bears, turkeys, with aU other kind of wUd game, are
extremely plenty." Five days from Pittsburgh, he came to
the "mouth of Hochocen or Bottle River," passing within
twenty mUes above " five very fine islands ; the country
being rich and level, with high steep banks to the rivers."
From this place, an Indian runner was despatched to the
Plains of Scioto, with a letter to the French traders from the
Illinois residing there with the Shawanese, requiring them
to join him at the mouth of Scioto, that they might take the
oath of allegiance to the British crown, be properly licensed
to trade, and also accompany Croghan to the French settle
ments on the Wabash and BUnois.
Thirty mUes below Hockhocking, an encampment was
made at Big Bend, now within Meigs county. Here was
such abundance of buffalo, bears, deer, and all sorts of game,
that the party kUled whatever was needed " out of the boats ; "
and still a country fine and level, with high banks, and an

168 history of OHIO.
abundance of creeks falling into the Ohio. They passed " a
place caUed Alum HiU, from the great quantity of that
mineral found there by the Indians." Discovering some
Cherokees near their encampment on the evening of the 22d,
a good guard was kept the first part of the night, but noth
ing more was seen of them.
At the mouth of Scioto the journalist was enraptured.
" The soU on the banks of the Scioto," he writes, " for a vast
distance up the country, is prodigious rich, the bottoms very
wide, and in the spring of the year, many of them are flooded,
so that the river appears to be two or three mUes wide.
Bears, deer, turkeys, and most sorts of wild game, are very
plenty on the banks of the river. On the Ohio, just below
the mouth of Scioto, on a high bank, near forty feet, formerly
stood the Shawanese town, caUed the Lower Town, which
was all carried away, except three or four houses, by a great
flood in the Scidto. I was in the town at the time ; though
the banks of the Ohio were so high, the water was nine feet
on the top, which obliged the whole town to take to their
canoes and move with their effects to the hills. The Shaw
anese afterwards built their town on the opposite side of the
river, which, during the French war they abandoned for fear
of the Virginians, and removed to the plains on Scioto. *
In general, all the lands on the Scioto River, as weU as the
bottoms on Ohio, are too rich for anything but hemp, flax,
or Indian corn."
During the next three days, which were passed in camp
at Scioto, the French traders arrived from the Shawanese
towns, and on the 28th the party proceeded. The river
being wider and deeper, with no islands, they " drove all
night." On the 30th, the Great Miami was passed, and
about forty mUes below, they " arrived at the place where

croghan's journal. 109
the elephant's bones are found." Under date of May 31,
Croghan writes : " Early in the morning we went to the
great Lick, where these bones are only found, about four
mUes from the river, on the south-east side. In our way we
passed through a fine timbered clear wood ; we came into a
large road which the buffalos have beaten, spacious enough
for two wagons to go abreast, and leading straight into the
Lick. It appears that there are vast quantities of these
bones lying five or six feet under ground, which we discovered
m the bank at the edge of the Lick. We found here two
tusks above six feet long ; we carried one, with some other
bones, to our boats, and set off. This day we proceeded
down the river about eighty mUes, through a country much
the same as already described, since we passed the Scioto."
Passing the FaUs of the Ohio and the Five Islands, the
mouth of the Wabash was reached on the 6th of June, and is
thus described : " At the mouth of the Ouabache we found a
breast-work erected, supposed to have been done by the In
dians. The mouth of this river is about two hundred yards
wide, and in its course runs through one of the finest countries
in the world, the lands being exceedingly rich and well-
watered ; here hemp might be raised in immense quantities.
. All the bottoms, and almost the whole country abounds with
great plenty of the white and red mulberry tree. These trees
are to be found in great plenty in all places between the
mouth of the Scioto and the Ouabache ; the soU of the latter
affords this tree in plenty as far as Ouicatanon, and some
few on the Miami River. Several large fine islands lie in the
Ohio, opposite the mouth of the Ouabache, the banks of which
are high, and consequently free from inundations ; hence we
proceeded down the river about six mUes to encamp, as I
judged some Indians were sent to waylay us, and came to a
8

170 history of OHIO.
place called the Old Shawnese ViUage, some of that nation
having formerly lived there."
Letters were sent on the following day to Lord Frazer, an
English officer on the Blinois, and to Monsieur St. Ange, the
French commandant at Fort Chartres, and some speeches to
the Indians there, informing them of the late peace, and that
Croghan was coming to conclude matters with them. All
these plans were interrupted, however, on the 8th of June.
At day break, the English and their aUies were attacked by
a party of Indians, consisting of eighty warriors of the Kicka
poos and Musquattimes, who kUled two of the whites and
three Indians, wounding Croghan and all the rest of the
party, except two whites and one Indian. The survivors
were made prisoners and plundered. In answer to the
remonstrance of a Shawanese deputy, who was shot through
the thigh, the marauders confessed that their " fathers, the
French, had spirited them up, telUng them that the Indians
were coming with a body of southern Indians to take their
country from them and enslave them ; that it was this that
induced them to commit the outrage."
Seven days' travel, at first through heavy woods, but prin
cipally" prodigious rich bottoms," clear woods and "some
large meadows, where no trees for several miles together are
to be seen, but with buffalos, deer and bears in plenty,"
brought captives and captors to Port Vincent, (now Vincen
nes,) which is described as a village of eighty or ninety
French famiUes, settled on the east side of the Wabash, and
the inhabitants, as " an idle, lazy people, or parcel of rene
gades from Canada," who secretly exulted at the misfortunes
of the English, and fell to bartering trifles for the valuables
of which the prisoners had been plundered — ten of Croghan's
half Johannes, which a savage had appropriated, being extorted '

SUBMISSION OF PONTIAC. 171
for a pound of vermilUon. Two hundred and ten miles from
Port Vincent, they came to Ouicatanon, (now Lafaj'ette,)
where fourteen French famUies Uved in the fort, which stood
north of the river. A glowmg description is given of the
" spacious and beautiful meadows," with their growth of " fine
wUd grass, and wUd hemp ten or twelve feet high."
On the 25th of July, " after settling all matters happily
with the natives," as Croghan indefinitely says, he started
for the Miamis, and on the first of August was received with
distinction at a Twightwee or Miami vUlage, situated on both
sides of the St. Josephs River, a quarter of a mile from its
junction with the Miami, now Maumee. At this vUlage,
consisting of forty or fifty Indian cabins and nine or ten
French Houses, the English flag was hoisted by the savages,
some English prisoners surrendered, and peace estabUshed.
Among these Indians Pontiac had taken refuge, but his mood
was now submissive. The Indian chief and the EngUsh com
missioner smoked the calumet together and interchanged belts
of peace. "He would no longer," Pontiac said, "stand in
the path of the EngUsh. Yet they must not imagine that in
taking possession of the French forts they gained any right
to the country ; for the French had never bought the land,
and lived upon it by sufferance only." The impression upon
Croghan by this interview with the Ottawa chief is thus stated
in a letter to Sir Wm. Johnson : " Pontiac is a shrewd, sen
sible Indian, of few words, and commands more respect
among his own nation than any Indian I ever saw."
The scene of this interview was not far from Fort Miamis,
which stood on the east side of the junction of the St. Josephs
and the Maumee, and was then " somewhat ruinous," and we
presume was without a garrison.
Followed by Pontiac and other chiefs, Croghan descended

172 HISTORY OF OHIO.
the Miami River in a canoe. The banks were high and the
country overgrown with lofty timber of various kinds — the
land level and the woods clear. " About ninety mUes from
the Miamis or Twightwee," quoting again from the Journal,
" we came to where a large river that heads in a large Uck,
falls into the Miami River ; this they call the Forks (Auglaise
at Defiance.) The Ottawas claim this country, and hunt
here, where game is very plenty. From hence we proceeded
to the Ottawa viUage. This nation formerly lived at Detroit,
but is now settled here on account of the richness of the
country, where game is always to be found in plenty. Here
we were obliged to get out of our canoes and drag them
eighteen miles, on account of the rifts which interrupt the
navigation, (the rapids at Providence, between Lucas and
Henry counties, undoubtedly.) At the end of these rifts
we came to a village of Wyandots, who received us very
kindly, and from thence we proceeded to the mouth of this
river, where it falls into Lake Erie."
On the 17th of August, Croghan arrived at Detroit. We
shall further digress by repeating his account of that position:
"Fort Detroit is alarge stockade, inclosing about 80 houses,
and stands close on the north side of the river on a high bank ;
commands a very pleasant prospect for nine mUes above and
nine mUes below the fort ; the country is thickly settled with
the French, their plantations are generally laid out about three
or four acres in breadth on the river, and about eighty in
depth ; the soil good, producing plenty of grain. All the
people here are generally poor wretches, and consist of
three or four hundred French families, a lazy, idle people,
depending chiefly on the savages for subsistence ; though
the land, with little labor, produces plenty of grain, they
scarcely raise as much as will supply their wants, in imitar

INDIAN CONFERENCE AT DETROIT. 173
tion of the Indians, whose manners and customs they have
entirely adopted and cannot subsist without them. The
men, women and children speak the Indian tongue perfectly
well. In the last Indian war, the most part of the French
were concerned in it, (although the whole settlement had
taken the oath of allegiance to his Britannic Majesty ;) they
have, therefore, great reason to be thankful to the English
clemency in not bringing,, them to deserved punishment.
Before the Indian war, there resided three nations of Indians
at this place ; the Putawatimes, whose viUage was on the
west side of the river, about one mUe below the fort ; the
Ottawas, on the east side, about three mUes above the fort,
and the Wyandots, whose viUage lays on the east side, about
two mUes- below the fort. The former two nations have
removed to a considerable distance, and the latter stUl
remain where they were, and are remarkable for their good
sense and hospitality. They have a particular attachment
to the Roman CathoUc religion, the French, by their priests,
having taken uncommon pains to instruct them."
On the 27th, a meeting was held with the Ottawas and
the other tribes of Detroit and Sandusky, when Croghan,
with much flourish of Indian rhetoric, addressed them as
follows :
" ChUdren, we are glad to see so many of you here pres
ent at your ancient council-fire, which has been neglected
for some time past ; since the high winds have blown and
raised heavy clouds over your country. I now, by this belt,
rekindle your ancient fire and throw dry wood upon it, that
the blaze may ascend to heaven, so that all nations may see
it, and know that you live in peace and tranquiUity with your
fathers, the EngUsh.
"By this belt I disperse all the black clouds from over

174 HISTORY OF OHIO.
your heads, that the sun may shine clear on your women and
chUdren, that those unborn may enjoy the blessings of the
general peace, now so happily settled between your fathers,
the English, and you, and aU your younger brethren to the
sun-setting. " ChUdren, by this belt I gather up all the bones of your
deceased friends, and bury them deep in the ground, that
the buds and sweet flowers of the earth may grow over them,
that we may not see them any more.
" ChUdren, with this belt I take the hatchet out of your
hands, and pluck up a large tree, and bury it deep, so that
it may never be found any more ; and I plant the tree of
peace, which all our children may sit under and smoke in
peace with their fathers.
" ChUdren, we have made a road from the sunrising to the
sunsetting. I desire that you wiU preserve that road good
and pleasant to travel upon, that we may all share the
blessings of this happy union."
On the following day Pontiac spoke in behalf of the several
nations assembled at the council :
" Father, we have all smoked out of this pipe of peace.
It is your children's pipe, and as the war is all over, and the
Great Spirit and Giver of Light, who has made the earth
and everything therein, has brought us all together this day
for our mutual good, to promote the good works of peace, I
declare to all nations, that I have settled my peace with you
before I came here, and now deliver my pipe to be sent to
Sir Wm. Johnson, that he may know I have made peace,
and taken the king of England for my father in the presence
of all the nations now assembled, and whenever any of those
nations go to visit him, they may smoke out of it with him
in peace. Fathers, we are obliged to you for lighting up

SUBMISSION OF PONTIAC. 175
our old councU fire for us, and desiring us to return to it ;
but we are now settled on the Miami River, [Miami of tho
lakes or Maumee] not far from hence ; whenever you want
us you wUl find us there ready to wait on you. The reason
why I choose to stay where we are now settled, is, that wo
love liquor, and to be so near this as we formerly lived, our
people would be always drunk, which might occasion some
quarrels between the soldiers and our people. This, father,
is all the reason I have for not returning to our old settle
ments ; and where we live is so nigh this place, that when
we want to drink we can easily come for it. [Gave a large
belt with wampum tied to it.]
" Father, be strong and take pity on us, your chUdren, as
our former father did. It is just the hunting season of your
children. Our fathers, the French, formerly used to credit
his chUdren for powder and lead to hunt with. I request,
in behalf of aU the nations present, that you wiU speak to
the traders now here to do the same. My father, once more
I request that you tell your traders to give your chUdren
credit for a little powder and lead, as the support of our
famUies depends upon it. We have told you where we live,
not far from here, that whenever you want us, and let us
know, we wiU come directly to you. [A belt.]
" Father, you have stopped up the rum barrel, when we
came here, untU the business of this meeting was over. As
it is now finished, we request you may open the barrel, that
your children may drink and be merry."
A year afterwards, Pontiac visited Sir William Johnson
at Oswego, where was held, on the 23d of July, another
Congress of Ottawas, Pottawattamies, Hurons and Chippe
was, with ceremonials and results simUar to those of the
councU at Detroit.

176 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Thenceforth we have only vague memorials of Pontiac.
About the year 1769, when more than usual distrust pre
vaUed among the savages, the EngUsh traders on the Ilhnois
were disturbed by the appearance of Pontiac on a risit to
the French garrison and vUlage on the present site of St.
Louis. St. Ange, then in command of that post, w'as highly
esteemed by Pontiac, and a citizen of St. Louis, Pierre
Chouteau, who lived to a great age, was accustomed to
describe the appearance of the distinguished chief on that
occasion. He wore the full uniform of a French officer, the
gift of Marquis of Montcalm toward the close of the French
war. He remained at St. Louis for two or three days,
when, hearing that a large number of Indians were assem
bled at Cahokia, on the opposite side of the river, and that
some drinking bout or other social gathering was in progress,
he told St. Ange that he would cross over to see what was
going forward. St. Ange endeavored to dissuade him,
reminding him of the little friendship that existed between
him and the British. Pontiac's answer was, " Captain, I am
a man ! I know how to fight. I have always fought openly.
They wUl not murder me ; and if any one attacks me as a
brave man, I am his match." He went off, was feasted,
drank deeply, and, when the carousal was over, strode down
the village to the adjacent woods, where he was heard to
sing the medicine songs, in whose magic power he trusted as
the warrant of success in all his undertakings. In the mean
whUe, an EngUsh trader, named WilUamson, bribed a Kas
kaskia Indian with a barrel of rum, and the promise of a
greater reward, if he would succeed in killing Pontiac. The
assassin stole near Pontiac, in the forest, and watchmg his
moment, gUded behind him, and buried a tomahawk in his
brain.

FATE OF PONTIAC. 177
This murder roused the vengeance of all the tribes friendly
to Pontiac, and the Blinois were nearly exterminated in the
retributive war which was waged against them.
Pontiac was buried by his friends, the French officers and
residents, with warUke honors, near the fort at St. Louis.
" For a mausoleum," says his accomplished biographer, " a
city has risen above the forest hero ; and the race whom he
hated with such burning rancor, trample with unceasing foot
steps over his forgotten grave."

CHAPTER XIII.
ENGLISH NEGOTIATIONS -WITH THE -WESTERN TRIBES-THE
CLAIM TO KENTUCKY.
The English govemment, as we have seen, never failed to
assert the right of the New York tribes to treat the Ohio valley
as their conquest, and before the cession by France in 1763,
the English claim of sovereignty rested chiefiy upon a series
of treaties with the chiefs of the Six Nations in 1684, in
1701, and especiaUy on the 14th of September, 1726, by
which their lands were conveyed to England, in trust, "to be
protected and defended by his majesty, to and for the use of
the grantors and their heirs."
At Lancaster, in 1744, however, it was sought to obtain a
different and far more important concession from these Indians.
Deputies from Pennsylvania, Virginia and Maryland met the
chiefs of the Six Nations, and after a scene of debauchery in
the highest degree disgraceful to its EngUsh instigators, the
Indians were persuaded to give a deed " recognizing the
King's right to all lands that are, or by his Majesty'' s appointr
ment shall be, within the colony of Virginia."
Here was a claim to an indefinite extent of the Ohio
valley by purchase, but it was very justly obnoxious to the
Ohio Indians — to the Delawares and Shawanese especially,
whose villages were within the nominal limits of the colony of
Virginia, and who indignantly denied any proprietary right
in the Indians of New York.
Nevertheless, on this unsubstantial basis rested the grant
(178)

the LOGSTOWN TREATY. 179
of 1748 to the Ohio Company of five hundred thousand acres,
to be principally located on the south side of the Ohio River,
between the Monongahela and Kenhawa Rivers. The ex
ploration of Gist, in 1750-1, and thd mere designation of a
road to the Monongahela seem to have been the only effective
steps towards a realization of this design.
The Virginians were very sensible that some form of assent
by the Ohio Indians was indispensable. Great efforts were
therefore made to procure it, and at length representatives
of the western tribes were assembled at Logstown, seventeen
miles below Pittsburgh, on the 9th of June, 1752.
This was a favorable moment for the designs of the EngUsh
colonists, sinee the savages, even to the remote Twightwees,
were then inimical to the French and favorably disposed
towards the English, but the Virginia commissioners, Messrs.
Fry, Lomax and Patton, had no easy task. They produced
the Lancaster Treaty, and insisted upon the right of the
crown, under its grant, to sell the western lands ; but " No,"
the chiefs said, " they had not heard of any sale west of the
warriors' road, which ran at the foot of the Alleghany ridge."
The commissioners then offered goods for a ratification of the
Lancaster treaty ; spoke of the proposed settlement by the
Ohio Company ; and used all their persuasions to secure the
land wanted. Upon the 11th of June, the Indians replied.
They recognized the treaty of Lancaster, and the authority
of the Six Nations to make it, but denied that they had any
knowledge of the western lands being conveyed to the Eng
lish by said deed ; and decUned, upon the whole, having any
thing to do with the treaty of 1744. They were willing to
give special permission to erect a fort at the fork of the Ohio,
" as the French have already struck the Twigtwees," but the
Virginians wanted much more, and finally, by the influence

180 HISTORY OF OHIO.
of Montour, the interpreter, who was probably bribed, the
Indians united, on the 13th of June, in signing a deed con
firming the Lancaster treaty in its full extent, and consenting
to a settlement southeast of the Ohio.
The dissatisfaction of the Ohio savages with the proceed
ings at Logstown, is very apparent from the fact that in
September, 1753, William Fairfax met their deputies at
Winchester, Virginia, where he concluded a treaty, with the
particulars of which we are unacquainted, but on which, it is
stated, was an endorsement that he had not dared to mention
to thein either the Lancaster or Logstown treaty; a sad com
mentary upon the modes taken to obtain those grants.
All attempts to secure any practical results fi-om those ^
treaties were postponed by the outbreak and continuance of
hostilities, and it was not until after the pacification of 1765,
that the occupation of the lands west of the AUeghanies,
otherwise than by the Indians, was agitated in any consider
able degree.
The royal proclamation of October 7, 1763, our readers
have not forgotten, forbade all private settlement or purchase
of lands west of the AUeghanies, but as soon as peace was
restored by the treaty of German Flats, settlers crossed the
mountams and took possession of lands in Western Virgmia
and along the Monongahela. The Indians remonstrated—
the authorities issued proclamations warning off intruders —
orders were forwarded by Gen. Gage to the garrison of Fort
Pitt to dislodge the settlers at Redstone, but all was ineffec
tual. The adventurous spirits of the frontier were not alone
in their designs upon the wilderness. The old Ohio Com
pany sought a perfection of their grant — the Virginia volun
teers of 1754, who had enlisted under a proclamation offermg
liberal bounties of lands, were also clamorous — individual

TREATY OF FORT STANWIX. 181
grants were urged — Sir William Johnson was ambitious of
being the governor of an armed colony south of the Ohio,
upon the model proposed by Franklin in 1754, and the plan
of another company, led by Thomas Walpole, a London
banker of eminence, was submitted to the English ministry.
Notwithstanding such a fever of land speculation, it was
stiU felt, that a better muniment of titie was requisite, than
the obsolete pretensions of Lancaster and Logstown, and
Gen. Gage having represented very emphatically the grow
ing irritation of the Indians, Sir WUliam Johnson was
mstructed to negotiate another treaty. Notice was given to
the various colonial governments, to the Six Nations, the
Delawares, and the Shawanese, and a Congress was ap
pointed to meet at Fort Stanwix, now Rome, New York.
It assembled on the 24th of October, 1768, and was atten
ded by representatives from New Jersey, Virginia, and
Pennsylvania; by Sir WiUiam and his deputies; by the
agents of those traders who had suffered in the war of 1763 ;
and by deputies from aU of the Six Nations, the Delawares,
and the Shawanese. The first point to be settled, was the
boundary line, which was to determine the Indian lands of
the west from that time forward ; and this line the Indians,
upon the 1st of November, stated should begia on the Ohio,
at the mouth of the Cherokee (or Tennessee) River ; thence
go up the Ohio and Alleghany to Kittaning : thence across
to the Susquehannah, &c.; whereby the whole country south
of the Ohio and Alleghany, to which the Six Nations had
any claim, was transferred to the British. One deed, for a
part of this land, was made on the 3d of November, to WUl
iam Trent, attomey for twenty-two traders, whose goods
had been destroyed by tbe Indians in 1763. The tract con
veyed by this, was between the Kenhawa and Monongahela,

182 HISTORY OF OHIO.
and was by the traders named Indiana. Two days after
wards, a deed for the remaining western lands was made to
the King, and the price agreed on, paid down. There were
also given two deeds of lands in Pennsylvania, one to Cro
ghan, and the other to the proprietaries of that colony.
These deeds were made upon the express agreement, that no
claim should ever be based upon previous treaties, those of
Lancaster, Logstown, &c.; and they were signed by the
chiefs of the Six Nations, for themselves, their alUes and
dependents, the Shawanese, Delawares, Mingoes of Ohio,
and others ; but the Shawanese and Delaware deputies pres
ent, did not sign thejn.^
"Such," adds Perkins, "was the treaty of Stanwis,
whereon rests the title by purchase to Kentucky, Westem
Virginia, and Pennsylvania. It was a better foundation,
perhaps, than that given by previous treaties, but was essen
tially worthless ; for the lands conveyed, were not occupied
or hunted on by those conveying them. In truth, we can
not doubt that this immense grant was obtained by the influ
ence of Sir William Johnson, in order that the new colony,-
of which he was to be governor, might be founded there.
The fact that such an extent of country was ceded volunta
rily — not after a war, not by hard persuasion, but at once,
and wilUngly, — satisfies us that the whole affair had been
previously settled with the New York savages, and that the
Ohio Indians had no voice in the matter."
The efforts to organize, an immense land company, which
should include the old Ohio Company, and the more recent
Walpole scheme, besides recognizing the bounties of the Vir
ginia volunteers, were apparently successful by the royal
sanction of August 14, 1774, but previously there were
1) Perkins' -Writings, vol. ii., p. 232.

WASHINGTON'S OHIO TOUR. 183
immense private appropriations of the region south of the
Ohio. Prominent among those interested in such specula
tions, was George Washington.^ His impression in favor of
the country had been fully confirmed by a trip down the
Ohio jn 1770, his journal of which affords a glimpse of that
beautiful stream, simUar to the description of Croghan five
years before. Washington was accompanied by Capt. Wil
Uam Crawford, whose death at the stake is one of the most
appaUing traditions of the west. They descended the river
to the mouth of the Great Kenhawa, ascending that stream
fourteen mUes. On his return, after describing the Seneca
or Mmgo Town, which we have already, identified as Logan's
residence, Washington makes the foUo-wing significant ob
servations : " The Indians who reside upon the Ohio, the
upper parts of it at least, are composed of Shawanese, Dela
wares, and some of the Mingoes, who, getting but Uttle part
of the consideration that was given for the lands eastward of
the Ohio, view the settlements of the people upon this river
with an uneasy and jealous eye, and do not scruple to say,
that they must be compensated for their right, if the people
settle thereon, notwithstanding the cession of the Six Na
tions. On the other hand, the people of Virginia and else
where, are exploring and marking aU the lands that are
valuable, not only on the Redstone and other waters on the
Monongahela, but along the Ohio, as low as the Little Ken
hawa ; and by the next summer, I suppose they wUl get to
the Great Kenhawa at least." WeU might Washington
2) Sparks' Washington, vol. ii., pp. 346-7. He had patents for 32,373 acres
—9,157 on the Ohio, bet-ween the Keuhawas, with a river front of 134 miles
—23,216 acres on the Great Kenhawa, with a river front of forty miles. Be
sides these lands, he owned, fifteen miles below -Wheeling, 587 acres, with
a front of two and a half miles. He considered the land worth $3.33 per
acre.— Sparks' Washington, xii., 264, 317.

PROGRESS OF SETTLEMENT. 185
greeable to all nations of Indians, and now again desire you
to sit still at this place.
" They are also uneasy to see that you think yourselves
masters of this country because you have taken it from the
French, who, you know, had no right to it, as it is the pro
perty of us Indians. We often hear that you intend to fight
with the French again ; if you do, we desire you will remove
your quarrel out of the country, and carry it over the great
waters, where you used to fight, and where we shall neither
see or know any thing of it."
StiU, at a later period in the conference, when the dissat
isfied speaker was rebuked by" the Seneca and Delaware
envoys, these bold expressions were materiaUy modified, and
the Shawanese envoys desired Croghan to "forget what they
first spoke and help them to some councU wampum, as they
were very poor." Subsequently, as each year increased
the European occupation of Kentucky, there can be no doubt
of the increased alienation of the fierce denizens of the
Scioto. The peaceful Delawares met the encroachments upon their
huntmg grounds, by slowly retiring before the advancing
column of emigration — concentrating their vUlages, more and
more, within the wUderness north of the Ohio, and it was
not untU 1774 that the smothered fiame of hostility, which
had been long kindled among the Shawanese, burst forth.
The wanton murders of Logan's family immediately leagued
the bands of Mingoes or Senecas with their neighbors on the
Scioto, in the work of vengeance. But, untU we have
recaUed some events hitherto omitted, we shaU postpone the
consideration of the border war of 1774, otherwise called
Dunmore's war.

184 HISTORY OF OHIO.
make this prediction, for on reaching the mouth of the Ken
hawa, " at the beginning of the bottom above the junction of
the rivers, and at the mouth of a branch on the east side
(he) marked two maples, an elm and hoop-wood tree, as a
corner of soldiers' land, intending to take aU the bottom fi'om
(thence) to the rapids in the Great Bend, into one survey.
(He) also marked at the mouth of another run lower down
on the west side, at the lower end of the long bottom, an ash
and hoop-wood for the beginning of another of the soldiers'
surveys to extend up so as to include aU the bottom m a
body on the west side." Most certainly, Washington's own
example was on the most liberal scale of appropriation.
As early as 1768, the Shawanese indicated their jealousy
of the settlement of Kentucky— a region which, though often
the theatre of desperate conflicts with the Cherokees and
Catawbas, whose seats were further south, was stUl a most
desirable range for hunting; and they complained of the
frequent voyages of the EngUsh down the Ohio River. At
a conference with the Ohio tribes, held by George Croghan,
at Pittsburgh, in May, 1768, Nymwha, one of the Shawanese
chiefs, who submitted so reluctantly to the army of Bouquet,
thus expressed himself: " We desired you not to go down this
river in the way of the warriors belonging to the foolish
nations to the westward ; and told you that the waters of
this river, a great way below this place, were colored with
blood ; you did not pay any regard to this, but asked us to
accompany you in going do-wn, which we did, and we felt
the smart of our rashness, and with difficulty returned to our
friends, (alluding adroitly to Croghan's unlucky capture at
the mouth of the Wabash in 1765.) We see you now
about making batteaux, and we make no doubt you intend
going down the river again, which we now tell you is disa-

CHAPTER XIV.
THE MORAVIAN MISSIONS ON THE MUSKINGUM,
The most critical period in the history of the American
colonies, namely, from 1764 to 1776, was not particularly
eventful within the present limits of Ohio. Sandusky was a
blackened ruin, and no effort was made by the EngUsh to
extend their settlements in this region of the West. The
contest between the speculators and settlers from Virginia
and Pennsylvania on one side, and the Shawanese and Sen
ecas on the other, which interrupted the peace of the Ohio
valley in 1774, was confined to the westem districts of those
colonies, including the hunting grounds of the Indians within
the State of Kentucky. The Wyandots and Ottawas were
at that time too far removed from the scene of action, and
too much under the infiuence of the English garrison at
Detroit, to break the truce concluded by Pontiac on the
27th of August, 1765.
The progress of EngUsh emigration, like the French col
onization, seemed to avoid Ohio. There were settlements
on the Wabash, sooner than on the Scioto or the Miamis — a
circumstance attributable, perhaps, to the -vicinity of the
Mississippi, and the contrast in number and force of the Del
awares, Wyandots, and Shawanese of Ohio and the unfortu
nate Illinois, whose power had been broken, and their towns
desolated in revenge for the assassination of Pontiac. Then
the open prairies may have been more attractive than the
(186)

post's TUSCARORA MISSION. 187
heavy forests, which usually intercepted the sun between
Lake Erie and the Ohio. Traders of course, found their
way along the lake and river coasts, but no stockades were
founded, no efforts made by associations or individuals to
secure proprietary rights on the northern border of the Ohio
River. It was a sentiment of reUgious devotion, which first ven
tured within the existing limits of the State of Ohio, and has
invested its first permanent settlement with an interest,
simUar to the Puritan advent in New England, and the
Canadian, missions of the Jesuits. If the first European
settiement was by the French, when they estabUshed a fort
at Sandusky in 1750, yet, as we have seen, that locaUty
was abandoned by the English after the massacre and con
flagration of 1763, and it was reserved for a few German
missionaries to establish a permanent colony on the Mus
kingum. Of course we refer to the Moravians, who have
been characterized as "the most remarkable Christian so
ciety that has arisen on the European continent since the
era of the Protestant reformation."
As early as 1761, Charles Frederick Post, the indefatiga
ble and sagacious Moravian, whose success as an ambassador
to the Ohio Indians in 1758, has been noticed, penetrated
to the Muskingum, and obtained permission from the Dela
wares, who had recently removed thither, to settle on the
east side of the Muskingum, at the junction of its two forks,
the Sandy and Tuscarowas. On the spot designated by the
Indians, Post buUt a log cabin, and then retumed to Beth
lehem to seek a suitable associate, who might teach the Indi
an children to read and write, whUe the former preached to
the savages. This companion he found in John Heckewel
der, who, at the age of nineteen, was released from an

188 HISTORY OF OHIO.
apprenticeship to a cedar cooper, for the purpose of joining
Post on his benevolent errand.
In March, 1762, they started on their hazardous journey.
Narrowly escaping the snows of the AUeghanies, and the
swoUen streams, but encouraged by the hospitaUty of Col.
Bouquet and Capt. Hutchins, then stationed at Fort Pitt,
the adventurers crossed the Beaver River, assisted by the
canoes and services of the Indians residing there, who also
gave them some venison and bear's fat — White Byes, a
chief, adding a gift of " a few chickens." Four days after,
on the 11th of April, they arrived at their destination, after
a pilgrimage of thirty-three days. They entered their cabin
"singing a hymn."
Heckewelder, in his memoirs, says that " no one lived
near on the; same side of the river ; but on the other, a mile
down the stream, resided a trader, named Thomas Calhoon,
a moral and religious man. Farther south was situated the
Indian town, called Tuscarora; consisting of about forty
wigwams. A mile stUl farther down the stream, a few fam
iUes had settled ; and eight miles above, there was another
Indian -rillage." The locality called Tuscarora town, was
on the south (or west, according to Heckewelder) side of
the river, just above where Fort Laurens was afterwards
built, and immediately contiguous to the present riUage of
Bolivar, in Tuscarowas county.
Although the Indians had aUowed Post to erect his cabin,
during his absence they had become suspicious, fearing that the
missionary scheme was a mere pretence, in order to enable
the white people to obtain a footing in the Indian country,
and that in course of time a fort would be erected. "When
they observed Post marking out three acres of ground for a
corn-field, and beginning to cut down trees, they were alarmed.

post's TUSCARORA MISSION. 189
and sent him word to appear before them at the councU
house on the following day, and meanwhUe to desist from
doing any further work on the premises. On his appearance
before them at the time appointed, the speaker, in the name
of the councU, delivered the following address :
" Brother ! Last year you asked our leave to come and
live with us, for the purpose of instructing us and our chil
dren ; to which we consented ; and now being come, we are
glad to see you.
"Brother! It appears tons that you must since have
changed your mind ; for instead of instructing us or our chU
dren, you are cutting down trees on our land; you have
marked out a large spot of ground for a plantation, as the
white people do every where ; and by and by another and
another may come and do the same, and the next thing will
bc that a fort wiU be buUt for the protection of those intru
ders ; and thus our country wiU be claimed by the white
people, and we driven farther back, as has been the case
ever since the white people came into this country. Say, do
we not speak the truth?"
In answer to this address. Post said :
" Brothers ! What you say I told you, is true, with
regard to my coming to live with you, namely, for the purpose
of instructing you ; but it is likewise true that an instructor
must have something to live upon, otherwise he cannot do his
duty. Now, not wishing to be a burden to you, so as
to ask of you provision for my support, knowing that you
ah-eady have families to provide for, I thought of raising my
own bread ; and believed that three acres of ground were
little enough for that. You wiU recollect that I told you
last year that I was a messenger from God, and prompted by
him to preach and make known his wiU to the Indians ; that

190 HISTORY OF OHIO.
they also by faith might be saved, and become inheritors of
his heavenly kingdom. Of your land I do not want a foot,
neither will my raising a sufficiency of corn and vegetables
for me and my brother to subsist on, give me or any other
person a claim to your land."
Post having retired, to give the chiefs and councU time
to deliberate, was addressed as follows at a second inter
view: " Brother ! Now as you have spoken more distinctly, we
may perhaps be able to give you some advice. You say that
you are come at the instigation of the Great Spirit to teach
and to preach to us. So also say the priests at Detroit,
whom our Father, the French, has sent among his Indian
children. Well, this being the case, you, as a preacher
want no more land than those do ; who are content with a
garden lot to plant vegetables and pretty fiowers in, such as
the French priests also have, and of which the white people
are all fond.
" Brother ! As you are in the same station and employ
with those preachers we aUude to, and as we never saw any
one of those cut down trees and tiU the ground to get a live
Ubood, we are incUned to think, especiaUy as those men with
out laboring hard look well, that they have to look to another
source than that of hard labor for their maintenance. And
we think that if, as you say, the Great Spirit urges you to
preach to the Indians, he wiU provide for you in the same
manner as he provides for those priests we have seen at Detroit.
We are agreed to give you a garden spot, even a larger spot of
ground than those have at Detroit — ^it shall measure fifty
steps each way, and if it suits you, you are at liberty to plant
therein what you please."
Post agreed, as there was no remedy, and Capt. Pipe

THE TUSCARORA MISSION. 191
stepped off the boundaries of the lot, stakes were driven at
the corners, and Post told that now he might go on.'
We have given this transaction as narrated by Heckewel
der, and it illustrates the jealousy of the Indians, even towards
one who possessed their confidence, whenever the right of
their lands was in question.
Next came the danger of starvation. No fiour could be
procured from Fort Pitt, the reserved stock having been
destroyed by an inundation ; a famine prevailed among the
Indians, who saved every grain of maize for planting ; pota
toes were also very scarce ; although wild ducks were abun
dant, they had no canoe to hunt them ; the wUd geese fiew
near the centre of the river ; pheasants and squirrels were
worthless in summer ; and their food consisted chiefiy of fish
and the few vegetables of the surrounding forests. They
lived mostly on nettles which grew in the bottoms, but they
had brought some tea and coffee, their only luxury, although
drank without milk or sugar. Upon such a diet, the labor
of clearing their little garden, chopping the wood very short,
so as to drag or roU it from the enclosure, and of loosening
the ground with pickaxes, reduced their strength daUy.
" One day," says Heckewelder, " some chiefs came to
request my assistance for a few days in making a fence
round their land. I gladly accepted the in-ritation, being
desirous of doing anything to secure their good will ; and
I did my best to be of service to them. At the same
time, I was enabled to restore my health and strength ; for
as long as I stayed with them, I could eat enough to satisfy
the cravings of hunger. Thus I found myself suddenly
transferred, as it were, to a land of plenty, and where I had
opportunities to cultivate the acquaintance of the Indian
1) Heckewelder's Narrative, p. 98.

192 HISTORY OF OHIO.
youth, and to secure the favor of the tribe by my industry.
During my stay with them, I received the name of "Pisela-
tulpe," Turtle ; by which I was afterwards known among the
Delawares." Late in the summer an Indian conference was to be held
at Lancaster, and Post was desired by the Governor of Penn
sylvania to attend and bring with him as many of the Western
Delawares as possible, " but above all King Beaver, and the
great war-chief Mm^asA;, generally called by the whites, King
Shingas. King Beaver, and probably Conecogeauge, or
White Eyes, were among those who accompanied Post, but
the great war-chief was unwUUng to place himself in the
power of the Governor of Pennsylvania, who had set a high
price on his scalp. It had been arranged at Bethlehem, by
the Elders of the Congregation, that if Post retumed to Lan
caster, Heckewelder should not remain alone in the wUder
ness ; but the brave youth, unwUUng to abandon the enterprise,
resolved not to leave the lonely cabin on the Muskingum.
In order to bring cedar wood for the purpose of making tubs
and like articles for the Indians, and to procure game, a
canoe was constructed ; and a number of old sermons and
reUgious books were also left with Heckewelder, although he
was cautioned not to read or write in the presence of the
Indians, " for," said his more experienced friend, "they are
suspicious of those white people whom they see engaged in
reading or -writing, especiaUy the latter, believing that it
concerns them or their territory." With these prorisions
for the comfort and contentment of his comrade. Post
departed, and for a short time, Heckewelder did not lack for
food, frequently bringing down five or six wild duck at a shot,
and securing them by the aid of his canoe. In respect to his
spiritual food, " I kept," he writes, " my books and papersin

AN INDIAN FUNERAL. 193
the garret, from a window of which I could see whether any
one was approaching the cabin. Here I whUed away many
an hour, far from civUization, alone with my books, my
thoughts and my God."
Before many days were over, his canoe was lost by the
carelessness or dishonesty of the Indian boys, who often
borrowed it to spear fish, or to pursue the deer on the river
by torchlight. The young hermit's distress for food returned ;
he was often entirely destitute ; the nettles had become too
large and hard to use ; the vegetables in his garden were
stolen, and in consequence of exposure in wading through the
Muskingum to risit Calhoon, the trader, he was attacked
by ague and fever.
A short time before, tbe wife of the chief Shingask,
(Bog meadow) had died of a fever, or, as the Indians sup
posed, by the enchantment of a malicious sorcerer. As soon
as she had breathed her last, her death was announced, by
the shrieks and howUngs of women appointed for the pur
pose, and the funeral ceremony is thus described by Hecke
welder. "Mr. Calhoon and myself, two Indian men and
two Indian women, carried her to the grave. The body
was dressed in the most superb Indian style; and being
covered with ornaments and painted with vermiUion, was
placed in the coffin ; at the upper end of which an opening
had been made, that the soul might go in and out, untU it
had found a new home. A number of female mourners
formed part of the funeral procession ; which was conducted
amid a dead silence. On arriving at the grave, the deceased
was passionately entreated to stay with the Uving; after
which the coffin was lowered, the grave filled up, and a red
pole driven in at its head. So far the whole was sufficiently
solemn; but what followed, showed that the living were
9

194 HISTORY OF OHIO.
more thought of than the dead. A great feast was made,
and presents to the value of two hundred doUars were dis
tributed amongst the attendants : Mr. Calhoon and myself
received each of us, a black silk handkerchief and a pair of
leggins; but none were better rewarded than the women
who had acted as chief mourners. For three weeks after
the funeral, a kettle with provisions was carried out every
evening and placed upon the grave in order to refresh the
departed spirit on its way to the new country. During that
time the lamentations of the women-mourners were heard
every evening, though not so loud or so violent as before."
At length, his paroxysms of fever growing more violent,
and his weakness rendering him unable to ford the river,
Heckewelder remained in the cabin — destitute and disconso
late. He declined an invitation to remove to Mr. Calhoon's
house, although, as he says, he would gladly have accepted
the kind offer, but he " had promised Post to remain at the
cabin, as otherwise the Indians would have stolen every
thing." His journal continues: "Whilst I was in this mis
erable condition, I was once visited by an Indian of my
acquaintance ; and I begged him to make me a Uttie bark
canoe ; in return for which I promised to give him a knife.
He did so, and I soon made my first trial with it, passing
down the river to visit Mr. Calhoon. He hardly recognized
me, so much had hunger and fatigue changed my appear
ance. I was received in the most friendly manner, and food
was immediately set before me. I told him of my new
acquisition, and that I intended to use my canoe to visit him
and the Indians in the viUage, in order to procure some food,
until I should be sufficiently recovered to hunt. 'Very
well,' said he, 'never pass me by in your expeditions. I
shall cheerfully share with you.' I then preferred my first

TUSCARORA MISSION RELINQUISHED. 195
request for a knife to give the Indian as I had promised.
The good-natured trader immediately told me to send the
man to his store, so that he might have his choice, as he
was the best Indian that he had ever known ; and that I
need not pay him any thing for it. I had in fact not one
cent in my possession, but had permission from Post, in case
of necessity, to draw upon the trader for what was abso
lutely necessary. At this time I was frequently reduced to
such distress, that the least morsel of food, if offered, would
have been acceptable. But although I could make out to
Uve, I was unable to do any thing, towards effecting the
object for which I had come. Indeed it soon became evi
dent that our enterprise was to be a complete failure.
" Post had hardly been gone three weeks, when the rumor
was spread, that he never intended to return ; nay, more,
that even were he to attempt it, he would not be allowed by
the tribe to do so : that his sole purpose was to deliver the
Indian country into the hands of the white people, and that
this was the secret of his pretended missionary efforts. It
was also reported that a war would soon break out between
the EngUsh and Indians, in which the latter would be assisted
by their old allies, the French. All this I had written to
Post ; having found means to send him the information by a
Mr. Denison from Detroit, who was traveling to Philadel
phia. He returned answer, that he had already heard the
unwelcome news, and that, in the pass things had come to,
I could do no better than to retum as speeidUy as possible.
Gladly would I have followed his advice, but my horse was
lost, or had been stolen, for upwards of three months. I
was too weak to travel on foot ; and Mr. Calhoon's pack-
horse drivers, who had intended to set out for Pittsburgh
with furs, were all laid up with the fever. I was therefore

196 HISTORY OF OHIO.
under the necessity of waiting for their recovery ; and in the
meantime I put my trust in the Lord.
"MeanwhUe I was twice warned by friendly Indians to
leave their country ; and every time I visited Tuscarora, I
saw strangers among the real inhabitants, and perceived that
I was the object of their scrutiny. But I remained in
happy ignorance of my dangerous situation, until, one after
noon, one of Mr. Calhoon's men called from the opposite
bank of the Muskingum, requesting me to lock my door and
cross the river immediately, as Mr. Calhoon wished to speak
with me on business of great importance. Having wrapped
up a few articles of dress in my blanket, I paddled across.
As soon as I arrived at Mr. C's, he told me privately that
an Indian woman, who frequently came to his store, and who
made shirts which he kept for sale, had asked him that day
whether the white man, who lived above on the other side of
the river, were his friend ; and that on his answering in the
affirmative, she had said : ' Take him away ; don't let him
remain one night longer in his cabin ; he is in danger there.'
"The next morning I wished to return, to see whether
any thing had taken place at the cabin, and, if possible, to
fetch a few necessary articles which had been left behind in
the hurry of my departure. Mr. Calhoon, however, would
not let me- go, but sent two of his strongest men to see how
things stood. One of them, James Smith, was a man of such
uncommon strength, that the Indians considered him a Man-
itto, and would hardly be anxious to engage him personally.
They reported that the house had been broken open during
the night, and that, judging from appearances there, two
persons had been in. There were signs of a late fire on the
hearth, and they had evidently been waiting for me. Of
course my return was out of the question ; the attempt would

ESCAPE OF HECKEWELDER. 197
have been actual foolhardiness. I never saw my lonely cabin
again, remaining under the hospitable roof of the trader.
MeanwhUe, as I afterwards heard, emissaries ofthe Senecas
and Northem Indians, were busUy engaged in exciting the
Delawares to take up the hatchet against the EngUsh ; and
soon after my departure, war broke out, and more than thirty
white people of my acquaintance lost their lives.
"About this time, the Indian chiefs, whom Post had
accompanied to Lancaster, returned home ; and we soon per
ceived that, from some cause or other, their friendship had
considerably cooled. One of them, however. King Beaver,
remained favorably disposed ; but aU he could do was to give
me several friendly hints to hasten my departure. Fortu
nately, Mr. Calhoon's men were now restored to health, and
determined to set out on their journey to Pittsburgh. My
kind host lent me a young horse to ride on ; and in return I
offered what assistance I could give his men in loading and
unloading at the encampments.
" We now took an affectionate leave 8f each other. His
conduct had been that of a Christian indeed ; and his kind
ness wiU he remembered by me as long as I live. He would
have left the country with me ; but property of great amount
had been entrusted to him, and this he considered him
self bound to guard as long as possible. After my retum to
Bethlehem, I leamed through the public papers that he and
his brother, together with their servants, had been ordered by
the Delaware chiefs to leave their country ; as they were una
ble any longer to protect them. They set out for Pittsburgh,
but were attacked on the road, at the Beaver River, by a
party of warriors, and only two saved their lives, Mr. C.
himself, who outstripped his pursuers in the race, and James
Smith, who had strangled his antagonist.

198 HISTORY OF OHIO.
" On the third day after our depanture from Muskingum,
we met Post and the Indian agent. Captain McKee ; who
were returning to the Indian country, totally ignorant of the
real state of affairs. In spite of our earnest remonstrances,
they insisted on proceeding, not considering the danger so
imminent. They were soon undeceived on their arrival ; and
their lives were in danger. The agent was protected by the
friendship of the chiefs ; but Post, whom the Indians sus
pected of secret designs against them, as they were at a loss
to explain his missionary movements, had to fly for his life,
and was conducted to a place of safety, through a secret
forest-path, by one of his former fellow-travelers, to Lancaster.
"Having taken leave of Post, I hastened after my -com
panions, who had proceeded in the meantime. At a distance
of five miles I expected to find their tents ; and seeing the
smoke of an encampment curling above the trees, I rode on,
but was much surprised to find myself suddenly in the midst
of a war-party. The sight of the Indian captives and of the
scalping pole, with its savage decorations, was not calculated
to encourage me. I was, however, suffered to pass on; and
on riding five miles further, I found my company, by whom
I was informed that I had faUen in with a party of Senecas,
who had just returned from an expedition against the Chero
kees." In the third week of October, Mr. Heckewelder arrived
at Pittsburgh, and when he finally reached Bethlehem, fatigue
and disease had so altered his appearance that he was not at
first recognized by his brethren.^ /
Years afterwards, the young enthusiast, who accompanied
Post to the solitary cabin on the banks of the Muskingum,
and returned to his brethren at such imminent hazard of his
2) Life of Heckewelder, by Rev. Edward Roundthaler, 45-58.

THE MUSKINGUM. MISSION. 199
life, was instrumental in establishing a mission in Ohio, and
in later years became widely known as a useful envoy of the
United States to the Indian tribes, and as the author of sev
eral works of much historical value.
No less prominent in the history of the Moravian mission
in Ohio — ^indeed, its effectual founder — was the Rev. David
Zeisberger. This devoted missionary, encountering many
discouragements at the missionary stations founded on the
AUeghany, or Upper Ohio, in 1768, and on the Beaver in
1770, was agreeably surprised, in the spring of 1771, to
receive an invitation from a council of Delaware Indians on
the Muskingum, to remove a colony of missionaries and
Christian Indians to that river. Next year, the in-ritation
was with much earnestness renewed, the Wyandots joining
in it. Zeisberger was encouraged to make a journey of explo
ration, accompanied by a few Indian brethren, and on the
16th of March, 1772, (according to Loskiel,) discovered a
large tract of land, situated not far from the banks of the
Muskingum, with a good spring, a small lake, good planting
grounds, much game, and every other convenience for fhe
support of an Indian colony. This place was about seventy
miles from Lake Erie, and thirty mUes from Gekelemukpec-
hink, where resided the Delaware chiefs, upon whose invita
tion the Morarians had come. Thither Zeisberger repaired,
and informed the council that the converted Indians had
thankfully accepted of their invitation, desiring that the tract
of land he had just now discovered might be given to them.
In answer to this request, he heard with great pleasure that this
was the very spot of ground destined by the chiefs in council for
them. They also determined, in a solemn manner, that all the
lands from the entrance ofthe Gekelemukpechink creek into the
river Muskingum to Tuscarora, should belong to the converted

200 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Indians, and that no other Indians should be permitted to settle
upon them : further that aU Indians dwelling on the borders
of this country, should be directed to behave peaceably
towards them and their teachers, and neither disturb their
worship, nor prevent people from going to them to hear the
word of God.
" Zeisberger," adds Loskiel, " praised the Lord for his
gracious help in the execution of this important commission,
and having again visited the above mentioned country, took
possession ofit in the name of the Christian Indians, who were
uncommonly rejoiced by the account of his success given on
his return to Friedenstadt.
" Five famUies, consisting in all of twenty-eight persons,
were now appointed to begin the new settlement, and were
wilUng to undertake it. Brother Zeisberger set out with
them on the 14th of AprU, and after a safe but tedious journey,
arrived May 3d at the new land on the Muskingum. The day
following they marked out their plantations, erected field huts,
and were all dUigently employed in clearing land and planting.
" Brother Zeisberger began immediately to preach the
Gospel in this new settlement, to which he gave the name of
Schoen-brunn, (the Beautiful Spring.)"^
Our present purpose simply is to record the general fact
of the settiement on the Muskingum in 1772-3, by the
Moravians and their Indian disciples — ^hoping, however, that
the brief narrative has already enlisted the sympathy of the
reader with these unselfish colonists. Having thus introduced
them, we propose to enlarge upon the previous history of this
remarkable sect, whose labors of love have been attested in
the darkest recesses of the pagan world. The Moravian
3) Loskiel's History of the Moravian Missions in North America; Lon
don translation, 1794 ; part iii., p. 74.

MORAVIAN MISSIONS IN OHIO. 201
missionaries were more successful than any other class in
subduing the intractable soul of the American savage to the
Gospel. Indeed, their aptitude for these beneficent toils has
been Ulustrated with equal distinctness wherever their mis
sions have extended.
Our notice of their movements in Ohio would perhaps be
more cursory, if they had been confined to the southeastern
section of the State, but as, ten years afterwards, the Cuya
hoga and Huron Rivers were the scene of temporary settle
ments, it seems to be requisite that the character of this
extraordinary brotherhood, and their exertions among the
North American Indians should constitute the theme of
another chapter.

CHAPTER XV.
THE SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN.
The Christian society, generally called Moravians, which
has since extended its branches to so many nations and sup
plied at once the most industrious citizens to civiUzed commu
nities, and the most dUigent and successful missionaries to
heathen and savage hordes, has been described by different
writers under the various denominations of Moravians, from
the district of Moravia,^ in Germany, which they once inhab
ited ; of Herrnhutters, from Hermhutt, in Saxony, where in
1722, they found a refuge from persecution within the do
mains of the celebrated Court Zinzendorf, who became then:
bishop ; and of The United Brethren of the Protestant Epis
copal Ohufch, which is the title recognized by themselves.
According to the society's own account, however, they de
rive their origin from the Greek Church, in the ninth century,
when by the instrumentaUty of Methodius and CyrUlus, two
Greek monks, the kings of Bulgaria and Moraria, being con
verted to the faith, were, together with their subjects, united
in communion with the Greek Church.^ Methodius was their
1) The ancient province of Moravia adjoined Hungary on the northwest,
and was surrounded by that country, Bohemia and Austria. It lies nortli-
west from Vienna ; and Olmutz, the prison of Lafayette, is its principal
town. 2) Another version is, that in the ninth century a sister of the King of
Bulgaria being carried a prisoner to Constantinople, became a Christian;
and through her means, on her return to her native land, a Christian church
was established in her country, of which tho King of Moravia and the Date
of Bohemia became members. (202)

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 203
first bishop, and for their use CyriUus translated the Scrip
tures into the Sclavonian language.
The antipathy of the Greek and Roman Churches is well
known, and by much the greater part of the brethren were
in process of time compeUed, after many struggles, to submit
to the see of Rome. A few, however, adhering tb the rites
of their mother Church, united themselves, in 1470, to the
Waldenses and sent, missionaries into many countries. In
1547 they were caUed Fratres Legis Christi, or Brethren
of the Law of Christ : because, about that period, they had
thrown off all reverence for human compilations of the faith,
professing simply to follow the doctrines and precepts con
tained in the Word of God.
There being at this time no bishops in the Bohemian Church,
who had not conformed to the Church of Rome, three preachers
ofthe United Brethren were^ about the year 1467, ordained
by Stephen, a bishop of the Waldenses in Austria ; and these,
on their return to their own country, ordained ten bishops or
seniors, from among the rest. In 1523, the United Brethren
commenced a friendly correspondence, first with Luther, and
afterwards with Calvm, and other leaders among the reform
ers. A persecution which was brought upon them on this
account, and some reUgious disputes which took place among
themselves, threatened for awhUe the society with ruin ; but
the disputes were, 1570, put an end to, by a synod, which
decreed that differences about non-essentials should not de
stroy their union ; and the persecution ceased in 1557, when
the United Brethren obtained an edict for the pubUc exercise
of their reUgion. This toleration was renewed in 1609, and
liberty granted them to erect new churches. But a civU
war, which, in 1612, broke out in Bohemia, and a violent
persecution which followed it in 1621, occasioned the disper-

204 HISTORY OF OHIO.
sion of their ministers, and brought great distress upon the
brethren in general. Some of them fied to England, others
to Saxony and Brandenburg ; whUst many, overcome by the
severity of the persecutions, conformed to the Church of
Rome. One colony of these, who retained their original
principles and practice, was, in 1722, conducted by a brother
named Christian David, from Fulneck, in Moravia, to Upper
Lasatia, where they put themselves under the protection oT
Nicholas Lewis, Count of Zinzendorf, and buUt a vUlage- on
his estate, at the foot of a hUl, called Hutberg, or Watch
HiU. They called their settlement Herrnhut, " the watch
of the Lord." The Count, who soon after their arrival, re
moved from Dresden to his estate in the country, showed
every mark of kindness to the poor emigrants ; but being a
zealous member of the church estabUshed by law, he endeav
ored for some time to prevail upon them to unite themselves
with it by adopting the Lutheran faith and discipline. This
they declined ; and the Count, on a more minute inquiry into
their ancient history and distinguishing tenets, not only de
sisted from his first purpose, but became himself a convert
to the faith and discipline of the United Brethren.
The Synod, which, in 1570, put an end to the disputes
which then tore the church of the Brethren into factions,
had considered as non-essentials the distinguishing tenets of
their own society, of the Lutherans and of the Calvinists.
In consequence of this, many of the reformers of both these
sects had foUowed the Brethren to Hermhut, and been re
ceived by them into communion ; but not being endued with
the peaceable spirit of the church which they had jomed,
they started disputes among themselves, which threatened
the destruction of the whole establishment. By the indefat
igable exertions of Count Zinzendorf, these disputes wero

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 205
allayed ; and statutes being, in 1727, drawn up and agreed
to for the regulation both of the internal and of the external
concerns of the congregation, brotherly love and union were
again estabUshed ; and no schism whatever, in point of doc
trine, has since that period disturbed the church of the Uni
ted Brethren.
In 1735, their emment benefactor, Zinzendorf, was ordained
a Bishop, and congratulated on the event by Dr. Potter, then
Archbishop of Canterbury in England, and continued to dis
charge the duties of that station untU his death in 1760.
The United Brethren allow to their Bishops no eminence
of rank or authority. The form of govemment is essentially
representative, the source of power being the Synod of the
whole Unity. This Assembly meets at intervals of from ten
to twenty years ; the time of holding the Synod being deter
mined by lot. To this synod every congregation may send
a deputy, as also every provincial conference. The place of
meeting is either at Herrnhut, or at Bertherlsdorf in Sax
ony. AU questions of importance are determined by lot ;
and the resolutions of the Synod, copies of which are sent to
the different congregations, are binding on every member of
the Unity. At the close of the sessions, all of the asserabled
deputies vote for members of the General Conference of Elders
of the Unity ; who are to carry out the measures of the Synod,
and manage the affairs of the church until a new Synod is
assembled, at the commencement of which they resign their
ofSces. The members of this Conference are also determined
by lot, from among those who have received the highest num
ber of votes. By this Conference inferior ones are appointed
in the different provinces of the church ; of which there are
two in America, the members of which meet at Bethlehem
in Pennsylvania, and at Salem in North Carolina. The

206 HISTORY OF OHIO.
provincial conferences appoint ministers to the different con
gregations, with the consent of thei respective committees of
these latter.
As to the tenets of the Moravians, they adhered, to the
Augsburgh Confession of Faith, composed by the German
Reformers in the year 1530, and they professed a strictly
literal obedience to the primitive ordinances of Christianity.
Finding no warrant in Scripture for the common practice of
transferring Sabbatical honor to the first day of the week,
they dedicated Saturday to contemplative quiet, and entire
cessation from bodily labor ; and yet assembled on Sunday
to commemorate the death and resurrection of Christ. LUte
the Quakers, they renounced all war and violence; like the
Tankers^ they established a community of goods ; they
taught industry as a. branch of religion — -regarding its offices
and its fruits alike, as occasions or instruments of fulfiUing
the will of God ; and they retained the primitive practices
of washing feet, saluting with the kiss of holy love, and solv
ing doubts by appealing to Heaven through the intervention
of lots. This last practice was employed in particular, as a
test of the propriety of contracting intended marriages.''
3) For twenty years after the settlement of Bethlehem, in 1742, this so
cialism prevailed, when the members were allowed to purchase their tene
ments on payment of a slight ground rent.
4) Madame de Stael thus particularizes on this subject, (2 Germanp,Z16):
" -When a young man chooses to take a companion, he addresses himself
to tbe female superintendents of girls or widows, and demands of them tlic
person he wishes to espouse. They draw lots in the church, to know whether
he ought to marry tjie woman whom he prefers ; and if the lot is against
him, he gives np his demand. The Moravians have such, a habit of resig
nation, that they do not resist this decision; and as they only see the wo
men at church, it costs them less to renounce their choice."
There is no doubt that such was the case in their original constitution;
but the custom is now changed., and the consent of the elders can always
be obtained, where the marriage is suitable, and the conduct of the parties
has been free from impropriety.

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 207
The men and women, before marriage, lived separately
from each other, in assemblies where the most perfect equal
ity prevailed ; and ia each of these assemblies, one of the
members, in rotation, was appointed to pass the night in
watching and prayer. SUent assiduity in business, gentle
ness of manner, plainness of apparel, and the utmost personal
and domestic neatness were universally cultivated by the
members of this society. It was a fundamental principle of
their faith, that the true dignity and highest worth of a
human being, consist not in requiring and receiving service
from his fellows, but in rendering it to them. The Mora
rians have been termed by Madame de Stael, the monks of
Protestanism, for though they rejected vows, their society
was entirely ecclesiastical, every thing being accompUshed
by reU^ous influence, and all affairs subjected to the super
intendence and direction of the elders of the church.
Madame De Stael has left to us the following pleasing
description of a Moravian vUlage :^
" I was sometime ago at Dentendorf, a Uttle village near
Erforth, where a Morarian community is estabUshed. This
rillage is three leagues distant fi-om every great road ; it is
situated between two mountains, upon the banks of a rivulet ;
willows and lofty poplars environ it ; there is something tran
quil and sweet in the look of the country, which prepares the
soul to free itself fi-om the turbulence of life. The buUdings
and the streets are marked by perfect cleanliness; the
women, aU clothed aUke, hide their hair, and bind their
heads with a riband, whose color indicates whether they are
married, maidens or widows ; the men are clothed in brown,
almost like Quakers. MercantUe industry employs nearly
aU of them ; but one does not hear the least noise in the vil-
5) See her "Germany:" Philadelphia edition, 1814; vol. ii., p. 27<).

208 HISTORY OF OHIO.
lage. Everybody works in regularity and sUence; -and the
internal action of religious feelings luUs to rest every other
impulse. "Instead of bells, wind instruments, of a very sweet har
mony, summon them to divine service. As we proceeded
to church, by the sound of this imposing music, we felt our
selves carried away from the earth ; we fancied that we
heard the trumpets of the last judgment, not such as remorse
makes us fear them, but such as a pious confidence makes us
hope them ; it 'seemed as if the divine compassion manifested
itself in this appeal, and pronounced beforehand the pardon
of regeneration.
" The church was dressed out in white roses, and blossoms
of white thom ; pictures were not banished from the temple ;
and music was cultivated as a constituent part of religion ;
they only sang psalms ; there was neither sermon, nor mass,
nor argument, nor theological discussion ; it was the worship
of God in spirit and in truth. The women, all in white,
were ranged by each other without any distinction what
ever ; they looked like the innocent shadows who were about
to appear together before the tribunal of the Divinity.
" The burying ground of the Moravians, is a garden, tiie
walks of which are marked out by funeral stones : and by
the side of each is planted a funeral shrub. All these grave
stones are equal ; not one of these shrubs rises above the
other ; and the same epitaph serves for aU the dead. ' He
was born on such a day ; and on such an other, he returned
into his native country.' Excellent expression to designate
the end of our Ufe! The ancients said 'he Uved;' and
thus threw a veil over the tomb, to divest themselves of its
idea ; the Christians place over it the star of hope.
"On Easter-day, divine service is performed in the bury-

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 209
ing ground, which is close to the church, and the resurrec
tion is announced in the middle of the tombs. All those
who are present at this act of worship, know the stone is to
be placed over their cofiBn ; and already breathe the perfume
of the young tree, whose leaves and flowers wiU penetrate
into then: tombs.
" The communion of the Morarians cannot adapt itself to
the social state, such as circumstances ordain it to be ; but
as it has been long and frequently asserted that CathoUcism
alone addressed the imagination, it is of consequence to
remark that what truly touches the soul in religion is com
mon to all Christian churches. A sepulchre and a prayer
exhaust all the power of the pathetic : and the more simple
the faith, the more emotion is caused by the worship. "^
But the characteristic of the Moravians which has led to
this 'extended notice of the sect, is their missionary zeal.
" Their missionaries," it has been observed, " are all of them
volunteers ; for it is an inviolable maxim -vrith them to per
suade no man to engage in missions. They are all of one
mind as to the doctrines they teach, and seldom make an
attempt, where there are not half a dozen of them in the
6) This picture, by the author of Corinne, is repeated in its leading features
at Bethlehem and Litiz, which, with Nazareth, are still Moravian villages.
In Howe's Pennsylvania, (p. 515) Bethlehem is thus described; "The town
has always elicited the admiration of travelers by its substantial, neat and
orderly appearance. The principal buildings and other objects of interest
are the spacious church, capable of containing about 2,000 persons, the only
one in the place ; the Brother's house aud Sister's houso, where those who
choose to live in a state of single-blessedness, and still earn an independent
support, can do so ; the corpse house and cemeterj' ; tho museum of the
Young Men's Missionary Society, containing a cabinet of minerals and a col
lection of curiosities, sent in by the missionary brethren from all parts of
the world ; the celebrated female seminary ; the water works on the Manock-
isy, said to have been in operation more than 90 years, (prior to 1843,) and
which furnished the model for those in Philadelphia.
9*

210 HISTORY OF OHIO.
mission. Their zeal is calm, steady, persevering. They
,would reform the world, but are careful how they quarrel
with it. They carry their point by address, and the insinu
ations of modesty and mUdness, which commend them to all
men, and give offence to none. The habits of sUence, qui
etness, and decent reserve, mark their character. If any
of their missionaries are carried off by sickness or casualty,
men of the same stamp are ready to supply theh- place."
Perhaps by no class of Protestant Christians was so mnch
missionary merit acquired as by the Moravian brethren. In
the education of their own chUdren, not less than in their
exertions to instruct adult heathens, the members of this
society were preeminently successful. One main cause,
doubtless, was, that they regarded tuition, whether ciuldren
in years, or chUdren in understanding, as a process calcula
ted alike for the benefit of the instructors and the pupils:
and were primarUy careful to apply to themselves, and prac
tically demonstrate in their intercourse with others, the influ
ence of the doctrines and precepts which they communicated.
" As early as 1727," says Loskiel, " which was soon after
the restoration of the Unity of the Brethren, they began to
" All the property belongs to the Society, who lease out the lots only.to
members of their own communion. Each individual, when of age, becomes
a subscriber to the rules of the Society, with the right of withdrawing him
self at pleasure; in which case, however, he is required to dispose of his
property, if a householder, and remove from the town. Each member pur
sues his occupation on his own private account ; but if any particular trade
should suffer by too great competition, the Society will not permit a new
competitor in the same trade, although a member of the Society, to locate
himself in the place. This secures to all a competence." The same love
of music iu their worship — having au organ and a full band of instruments.
The grave-yard, as described by De Stael. The bodies of the dead lie in a
corpse-house three days before interment, -ffhen a member dies, they
have a peculiar ceremony : four musicians ascend to the tower of the
church with trumpets, and announce the event by performing a dirge.

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 211
take the conversion of the Heathen in general Into the most
earnest consideration." The first missionaries went to St.
Thomas, an island in the West Indies, in 1732 ; next year
to Greenland, and in 1734, a party of Moravians, who had
started for Georgia, changed their minds on reaching HoUand,
and went to Pennsylvania. Another company left Herrnhut
in November, 1734, and on the invitation of the Society in
England for propagatmg the Gospel, proposed to emigrate to
Savannah. Oglethorpe, the founder of Georgia, had pre-ri-
onsly corresponded with Count Zinzendorf, and been Uberal
in his encouragement of the Morarians. A free passage ;
provisions in Georgia for a whole season ; land for themselves
and their chUdren, free for ten years, then to be held for a
small quit-rent ; the privUeges of native Englishmen ; free
dom of worship — these were the promises made by the trus
tees of the colony, accepted and honorably fulfiUed. Count
Zinzendorf dismissed his brethren to their Georgia destination,
with written instrnetions, in which he particularly recom
mended, that they should submit themselves to the -wise di
rection and guidance of God in all circumstances, seek to
preserve Uberty of conscience, avoid aU religous disputes,
and always keep in view that caU, given unto them by God
himself, to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the Heathen,
and further, that they should endeavor as much as possible
to. earn their own bread.
According to Loskiel, the first detachment of Moravians
arrived in Georgia in the spring of 1735, but their number
was increased by a larger company during the summer.
Before embarking, they all disclosed to the trustees their
determination not to engage in war, and received a pledge
that they should be exempted from mUitary serrice.
On one of these voyages, probably the latter, the Wesleys,

212 HISTORY OF OHIO.
John and Charles, emigrated to Savannah. They had already
attracted attention in England for then- zealous piety, and
were induced by the trustees to join the infant colony — Charles
as secretary to Oglethorpe, and John with fervent longings to
become an apostle to the-Indians. " Our end in leaving our
native country," said they, " is not to gain riches and honor,
but singly this — to Uve whoUy to the glory of God." With such
sentiments, their attention could not faU to be drawn to the
walk and conversation of their Moravian companions. The
joumal of John Wesley, now known to Christendom as the
founder of a numerous sect, contains the following testi
mony: " I had long before observed the great seriousness of their
behavior. Of their humility they had given a continual
proof by performing those servUe offices for the other passen
gers, which none of the English would undertake : fov
which they desired and would receive no pay, saying, 'It was
good for their proud hearts, and their Saviour had done more
for them.' And every day had given them occasion ol show
ing a meekness which no injury could move. If they were
pushed, struck or thrown down, they rose again and went
away ; but no complaint was found in their mouth. There
was now an opportunity of trying whether they were deUv
ered from the spirit of fear, as well as from that of pride, anger
and revenge. In the midst of the psalm wherewith then-
service began, a storm arose, the sea broke over us, split the
mainsail in pieces, covered the ship, and poured in between
the decks as if the great deep had already swallowed us up.
A terrible screaming began among the English. The Ger
mans calmly sang on. I asked one of them afterwards, ' Was
you not afraid ?' He answered, ' I thank God, no !' I asked,
' But were not your women and children afraid ?' He rephed

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 213
mildly, ' No ; our women and children are not afraid to die."'
At -the time when the danger seemed most imminent, and
the vessel was expected immediately to founder, an infant
was brought to Wesley to be baptized. " It put me in mind,"
he says, " of Jeremiah's buying the field when the Chaldeans
were on the point of destroying Jerusalem, and seemed a
pledge of the mercy God designed to show us even in the
land of the Uving."
Of the manners of the Germans in Georgia, Wesley sub
sequently gives this representation : " They were always
employed, always cheerful themselves, and in good humor
-with one another." He adds, " They met this day to con
sult concerning the affairs of their church ; Mr. Spangenburg
being shortly to go to Pennsylvania, and Bishop Nitschman
to return to Germany. After several hours spent in confer
ence and prayer, they proceeded to the election and ordina
tion of a Bishop. The great simpUcity as well as solemnity of
the whole almost made me forget the seventeen hundred years
between, and imagine myself in one of those assembUes where
form and state were not, but Paul, the tent-maker, or Peter,
the fisherman, presided yet with the demonstration of the
Spirit and of power."
After their arrival, a spot for their vUlage was chosen and
called Ebenezer. " In a few years, the produce of raw silk
by the Germans amounted to ten thousand pounds a year ; and
indigo also became a staple. In eamest memorials, they long
deprecated the employment of negro slaves, pleading the
abiUty of the white man to toil even under the suns of Georgia.
Their religious affections bound them together in the unity of
brotherhood ; their controversies were decided among them
selves ; every event of life had its moral, and the fervor of
their worship never disturbed their healthy tranquiUity of

214 HISTORY OF OHIO.
judgment. They were cheerful and at peace."'' A school
house for the chUdren of the Creek nation was estabUshed—
the good will of the Indians was secured, and they frequently
came to hear the great word, as they expressed it — the Rev.
Peter Boehler, of the University of Jena, was chosen and
ordained minister of the Georgia colony, in 1737, and arrived
there in the year following, and everything seemed auspicious,
untU the outbreak of hostUities with the Spaniards subjected
the Moravians to peculiar trials.
In 1739, war was declared by England against Spain.
An act of Parliament was passed at the same tiine for nat
uralizing all foreign Protestants settled in any of the British
colonies in America. If this act was meant to gratify or
retain the Morarian settlers in Georgia, its efficacy was com
pletely defeated by the contemporary proceedings of the
English inhabitants of this province. About a year before,
when a provincial force was hastily assembled to encounter
an apprehended invasion of the Spaniards, the Moravians
were summoned to join their feUow-colonists m defending
their adopted country. This summons they mildly but
firmly refused to obey; declaring that no human power or
motive could induce them to take, the sword, and appealing
to the pledge they had received from the trustees, of exemp
tion from miUtary service. The magistrates were con
strained to admit the force of the appeal; but so much
jealousy and displeasure were expressed on this account by
the bulk of the planters against the Moravians, that several
of these sectaries, unwillirig to remain among a people in
whom their presence excited unfriendly sentiments, abandoned
the pro-vince and retired to the peaceful domain of the Qua
kers in Peimsylvania, where already a numerous society of
7) Bancroft's United States.

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 215
the Morarian brotherhood was coUected. The rest, under
the direction of their pastor, Boehler, continued to reside in
Georgia ; bemg desirous of discharging the pecuniary debt
which they had contracted to the trustees, and unwUling to
forsake their missionary labors. But in the present year,
they again received a summons to join the provincial militia ;
and declining to resume the former controversy, they bade
fareweU to Georgia, surrendered their fiourishing plantations
without a murmur, and reunited themselves to their brethren
who were established in Pennsylvania. One of their number,
John Hagen, returned in 1740 to Geor^a, at the request of
George Whitefield, for the purpose of prosecuting the work
which had been commenced among the Creeks. The Indi
ans were in an unfavorable mood, and, according to Loskiel,
Hagen, " finding their hearts and ears shut against him, and
that no firuits were to be expected, was obUged to desist and
retum sometime after to Pennsylvania." Nevertheless,
Georgia was not entirely abandoned by the Morarians, for
in 1751, when the ori^al prohibition of slavery in that col
ony was annulled, Bancroft represents some of the brethren
as " acquiescing " in the change. After the departure of
Oglethorpe, he says, " slavers from Africa saUed directly to
Savannah, and the laws against them were not rigidly
enforced. Whitefield, who believed that God's Providence
would certamly make slavery terminate for the advantage of
the Africans, pleaded before the trustees in its favor, as
essential to the prosperity of Georgia; even the poorest
people desired the change. The Moravians stUl expressed
regret, moved partly by a hatred of oppression, and partly
by antipathy to the race of colored men. At last, they too
began to think that negro slaves might be employed in a
Christian spirit, and it was agreed that, if the nesroes are

216 HISTORY OF OHIO.
treated in a Christian manner, their change of country would
prove to them a benefit. A message from Germany served
to hush their scruples. " If you take slaves in faith, and
with the intent of conducting them to Christ, the action wiU
be not a sin, but may prove a benediction."^
In 1739, the brethren at Herrnhut resolved to extend
their missions in North America. An incident which occur
red in 1736 served to animate the purpose which the Mora-
-rian Society in Europe had cherished for some time, of
attempting the instruction of the Indians. In the winter of
that year Conrad Weisser, a Pennsylvanian colonist of Ger
man descent, and interpreter between the prorincial govern
ment and the Indians, was dispatched by the Govemor of
Pennsylvania to treat with the Six Nations and dissuade
them from making war, which they were preparing to do, on
an Indian tribe within the territory of Virginia. In per
forming this journey of nearly five hundred miles, Weisser,
forcing his way mostly on foot through deep snow and thick
forests, was nearly exhausted by toil and hardship, when he
8) The trustees, at the outset, adopted a rule that forbade the introduc
tion of slaves. Bancroft quotes some pregnant sentences from the publi
cations of 1734 in favor of this feature of colonial policy. For instance:
" Slavery, the misfortune, if not the dishonor of other plantations, is abso
lutely proscribed. Let avarice defend it as it will, there is an honest reluc
tance in humanity against buying and selling and regarding those of our
species as our wealth and possessions." "The name of slavery is here un
heard, and every inhabitant is free from unchosen masters and oppression."
And the testimony of Ogelthorpe, who yet had once been willing to employ
negroes, and once, at least, ordered the sale of a slave, explains the motive
of tbe prohibition. " Slavery," be relates, " is against the gospel, as well ^
tho fundamental law of England. We refused, as trustees, to make a law
permitting such a horrid crime." " The purchase of negroes is forbidden,"
wrote "Van Reck, " on account of the vicinity of the Spaniards ; '' and this
was doubtless the governmental view. The colony was also "an astltim
TO KECEiVE THE DiSTEESSED. It was neccssary, therefore, not to permit
slaves in such a country ; for slaves stakve the poob laeobeb."

SOCIETY OP UNITED BRETHREN. 217
met two Indians, who exhorted him not to be faint, but to
take courage — adding that the sufferings endured by a man
in his mortal body cleansed the imperishable soul from sin.
On his return, Weisser related this occurrence to Spangen-
berg, a Moravian Bishop, by whom it was reported to his
brethren in Europe. They were greatly struck with it, and
determined to spare no pains to instruct those blind but
thinking heathens in the knowledge of a better way to that
expiation of which they obscurely felt the necessity, and
impart to them the experience of the only fountain capable
of cleansing the human soul from sin.
Ranch, a Moravian missionary, arriving at New York from
Europe, in the year 1740, commenced a course of apostolic
labor among the Mohican Indians inhabiting the borders of
Connecticut and New York. The sachem, or chief of the
tribe, declared of himself and his people, that they were all
helplessly sunk in misery, drunkenness and every vice and
crime that could defile and degrade human nature ; and
protested that the missionary would confer an inexpressible
benefit upon them if he could teach them how to lead a
wiser and happier life. They Ustened with profound aston
ishment to the first promulgation of the doctrines of Chris
tianity, but soon rejected them with unanimous derision.
Banch, however, was not to be discouraged ; he persisted in
his pious labors without any other visible fruit except in
creased unpopularity and ridicule among the Indians ; till
one day the chief, who was himself the worst man of the
tribe, earnestly requested him once more to explain how the
blood of a Divine Redeemer could possibly expiate and oblit
erate the defilement of the human soul. Ranch declared
that the most valuable gift in the world could not have
afforded him a gratification comparable to the delight with
10

218 HISTORY OF OHIO.
which that question inspired him. He who so felt was formed
to conquer in this glorious and happy field. Appearances
of mental conversion and a considerable reformation of man
ners ensued among the tribe. But now was aroused the
jealousy of a numerous band of European traders, who
derived a guilty gain from the dependence to which the
savages were reduced by their vices and poverty. Some of
them threatened to shoot Ranch if he remained longer in
the country ; others assured the Indians that the missionairy's
instructions tended to delude them, and that his real purpose
was to carry their children beyond seas and sell them for
slaves. The abused and ignorant people, as credulous of
this falsehood as they had been slow to believe divine truth,
began to regard the missionary with rage and detestation,
and meanwhile were copiously supplied with strong Uquor by
those perfidious counseUors, for the purpose of exciting them
to wreak their erring fury on their benefactor.
Ranch overcame this opposition by a wisdom and virtue
equal to every emergency. He softened the resentment of
some of the white settlers and traders by the mUd courtesy
of his manners, and gained the protection of one of them by
teaching his children to read and write. To the Indians he
behaved with an unabated tenderness and confidence, which
powerfuUy appealed to their remaining virtue — to that sense
of good which is never wholly obliterated whUe human life .
endures. They were struck with the new proof which he
afforded of the efficacy of the principles which he had
preached, in shielding their professor from evU and fear, and
rendering him always secure and happy ; they were aston
ished that a man, whom they studiously endeavored to insult
by contumely, and terrify by menace, should persist in fol
lowing them with patience, benedictions, tears, and every

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETIIREN. 219
other demonstration of affectionate and disinterested regard ;
and one of them, who had made an attempt to take the mis
sionary's life, contemplating him as he lay stretched in placid
slumber on the floor of the Indian's own hut, was constrained
to acknowledge to himself, " This cannot be a bad man ; he
fears no evU ; not even from us who are so savage ; but sleeps
comfortably, and places his life in our hands." The Indians
at length became generaUy conrinced that evil could not be
meditated by a man who was himself so completely exempted
from the suspicion of it ; his influence was restored and aug
mented, and his ministry attended with happy effects. All
the Morarian missionaries were charged by their ecclesiastical
superiors to study rather the confirmation of the faith than
the increase of the numbers of professed converts. Ranch's
first congregation consisted of ten baptized Indians, whose
devotion, simple yet profound, enthusiastic yet sincere and
sustained, excited the grateful deUght of their pastor and his
associates, and the wonder and admiration of the wildest of
the surrounding savages. Meanwhile, from the increasing
resort of members of the Moravian brotherhood to Pennsyl
vania, there were formed the principal settlements of the
society at places which (Obtained the names of Nazareth and
Bethlehem ; and from which, with all convenient speed, mis-
rionaries, animated with the same spirit as Ranch, carried
the benefit of their instructions and example among the Del
aware Indians, with the usual varieties of success which ever
attend the preaching of the gospel, and which are far more
strikingly manifested in tribes and nations to which the tidings
are delivered for the first time than in societies which have
been long nominally christianized, and where habit blunts
the force of impressions and veils the significance of language.
In the year 1742, Count Zinzendorf, who was chief bishop

220 HISTORY OF OHIO.
or warden of the society of Moravian brethren, having visited
their settiements in America,'' traveled, along with Conrad
Weisser, Peter Boehler, and other associates, into the Indian
territories and preached to a great variety of tribes. Some
of the fiercest warriors of the Six Nations, who, from a recent
quarrel among themselves, had been roused to a state of high
and dangerous excitement at the time when he casuaUy met
them, were exceedingly struck with the mixture of simplicity,
authority and benevolence that characterized his address to
them, and after some consultation, thus repUed to it: —
" Brother, you have made a long voyage over the seas, to
preach to the white people and to the Indians. You did
not know that we were here, and we knew nothing of you.
This proceeds from above. Come, therefore, to us, both you
and your brethren ; we bid you welcome, and take this fathom
of wampum in confirmation of the truth of our words."
After a short but successful ministry in America, Zinzendorf
returned to Europe in 1743, leaving a numerous and increas
ing body of missionaries to pursue the labors thus felicitously
begun. It was a rule with these missionaries to earn their
own livelihood by bodily labor for behoof of the objects of
their pious concern ; and this rule their Christian moderation
enabled them generally to practice, although their savage
employers could afford only a slender recompense of then-
toil ; but whenever they could not subsist in this manner,
they were supplied with the necessaries of life by the society
at Bethlehem. They lived and dressed in the Indian style ;
and one of them, Frederick Post, did not scruple to marry
a baptized Indian woman. In addition to the inevitable
9) Zinzendorf was accompanied in his tour of the Indian villages by his
daughter Benigna — a word worth preserving, perhaps, by those who think
that there is virtue in a name.

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 221
drudgery and privation which they incurred, they were fre
quently exposed to insult and danger from the savages who
rejected the boon of the gospel with contempt, and heard its
testimony against the corruption of human nature with indig
nation. Gideon Mack, one of the missionaries, having been
waylaid by an Indian who presented his gun and desired
him to prepare to die, for insulting the Indians by talking
perpetually of their need of Christ, repUed calmly, " If Christ
does not permit you, you cannot shoot me." The savage,
struck with the language and demeanor of his intended vic
tim, dropped his gun, retired in silence, and soon after
embraced the faith which, he perceived, was calculated to
form the highest style of character.
A curious objection, which reminds us of incidents and
reproaches that attended the first promulgation of the gospel
upon earth, was raised by some Indians, who, observing their
friends greatly moved by tiie discourses of the missionaries,
exclaimed that these men must be sorcerers, and in league
with eril spirits, for that nothing but magic could produce
such effects. The most formidable opposition was created
by a number of white traders, who were concerned at the
influence which the missionaries exerted in persuading the
savages to abstain from purchasing the spirituous Uquors, to
avoid contracting debts, and to exchange hunting for agricul
ture. They were aided by some weak and ignorant or bigoted
colonists of New York and New England, who looked on the
Moravian society as a branch of the Church of Rome, and
were convinced that the spread of their tenets and influence
would promote the interests of France among the Indian
race. Several of the missionaries were seized as Roman
CathoUc teachers by the inhabitants of Connecticut, and de
tained in custody some days, till they were Uberated by

222 HISTORY OF OHIO.
command of the provincial governor. But in New York,
which abounded with traders, hostUe to the conversion of the
Indians, and contained a number of clergymen and laymen
devoted exclusively to the Church of England, the opposition
grew daUy stronger, and was inflamed by the fluctuating
politics of the Six Nations. Some of the colonists assured
their savage neighbors that the Moravian brethren were not
legally entitled to undertake the pastoral office which they
exercised — a statement which the Indians were totally unable
to comprehend ; others, and especially certain persons en
gaged in the Indian trade, attempted to debauch the new
converts and seduce them to resume the vices they had for
saken ; and the provincial magistrates committed several of
the missionaries to prison, as enemies of the British govem
ment and corrupters of its Indian allies. The most respec
table inhabitants of the province, who had at flrst imbibed
prejudices against the missionaries, were speedily disabused, '
and not only encouraged them to persevere in their useful
labors, but openly declared of them, that they were, of aU
men, the best instruments of the security of the colonists
and the happiness of the Indians. At length, however, in
consequence of a report that a number of the Indian converts
had wholly detached themselves from their prerious friendly
connection with Britain, the public rage was kindled to such
a pitch that an act of the New York Assembly was passed,
prohibiting any member of the Moravian society from preach
ing or residing among tbe tribes connected with the province.
This policy was little calculated to soothe or concUiate the
Indians, who had generally conceived a high regard for the
missionaries — of whom some now quitted the province, and
others, lingering in it with the hope of being yet permitted
to resume their pious labors, were afterwards thrown into

" SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 223
prison and treated with great severity. The Indians who
seemed most attached to them, became the objects of a strong
aversion and jealousy to many of the colonists, who loudly
and fiercely importuned the government to send troops to
destroy them. Not long after the departure of the mission
aries, a number of converted Indians of the confederacy of
the Six Nations, forsaking their country and kindred, fol
lowed their teachers to Pennsylvania, and established them
selves at Bethlehem.
In the mean time, and for several years after, Spangenberg,
Nitchsman, Cammerhoff, and a great many other pastors sup
plied by the Moravian brotherhood, were actively and suc
cessfully engaged in proselyting and civiUzing the savage
tribes adjacent to the colonial settlements of Pennsylvania,
Delaware and New Jersey. They collected various Indian
societies, in which the duties of moraUty were practised, the
habits of civUized life studied and pursued, and the profession
of Christianity embraced with a sincerity which was tried and
attested by severe suffering and patient virtue. The Indian
converts and their chUdren were taught to read ; and some
portions of the Christian Scriptures were translated into
various dialects of the Indian tongue. So far from pretend
ing to any superiority over their converts, the missionaries
appeared at once their teachers and their servants ; and at
aU the settlements, not only participated in their rural labors,
but appropriated to themselves the heaviest part of every
drudgery, in consideration of the incompetence of Indian
constitutions for steady and continuous toil. The progress
of these beneficent exertions was interrupted by the outbreak
ofthe last war with France, and by the ravages which the
Indian aUies of the French inflicted on the borders of Penn
sylvania. Many of the Pennsylvania colonists were progres-

224 HISTORY OF OHIO.
sively incensed to such a degree, by the devastation of their
country, the massacre of their friends, and the danger of their
families, that they conceived an incurable hatred and jeal
ousy against the whole Indian race.
A sect of fanatics sprung up in Pennsylvania about the
year 1755, who clamorously demanded the total extirpation
of the aboriginal tribes, lest the vengeance of Heaven should
fall upon the Christians for not destroying the heathen, as the
Israelites by divine command had been directed to destroy
the Canaanites of old. The general delusion was increased
by the publication of a letter, which was said to have been
intercepted by the British forces, purporting to have been
written by a French officer at Quebec to one of his friends,
and extolling the Moravian brethren as the secret partizans
and useful agents of France. This letter, whether the
offspring of French or of EngUsh artifice, produced aU the
effect that its fabricators designed. A universal cry was
raised through the British colonies that the Moravian settiers
were snakes in the grass, and the most dangerous because the
most perfidious enemies of Britain. The persons and settie
ments of these calumniated men, in Pennsylvania, were now
exposed to the greatest danger ; and the prorincial govern
ment, though sincerely inclined to protect them, was evidently
incapable of withstanding the headlong rage with which the
great body of the people imprecated vengeance on the Mora
vian brethren and their Indian flocks. The mUdness and
patience with which this injustice was endured by the objects
of it was insufficient to quell the popular fury, which was on
the point of venting itself in some notable outrage, when, to
the general surprise, a sudden attack was made by tbe Indian
allies of France on a Moravian settlement, situated near Ma
honing creek, (a small tributary of the Lehigh river, and not

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 225
far from Bethlehem,) in which a number of the brethren and
of their Indian associates were slain. This circumstance,
concurring with the wiUingness of some of the Moravian set
tlers to prepare for defensive war against the enemy, andthe
liberal contributions of others to relieve the wants of their fel
low-colonists, who had suffered from hostile rage, produced a
great and sudden abatement of the public jealousy and dis
pleasure. The blessings of tranquillity and security were now
enjoyed in the Moravian settlements tUl the year 1763, when
all the hatred and fear that the Indian race had ever excited
in Pennsylvania, were revived with augmented violence by
the great Indian war which broke out at that period, and the
dreadful desolation of the frontiers of this province which
attended the first explosion of its fury. A general attack
was now projected by a great number of the inhabitants on the
Indian inhabitants of the prorince, of whom many were forced
to fly ; some were conveyed to PhUadelphia by order of the
government, which tendered its protection, and some were
cruelly slain.
Neartthe Susquehanna, and at no great distance from the
town of Lancaster, was a spot known as the Manor of Cones-
toga, where a small band of Indians, chiefly of Iroquois
blood, had been seated from the flrst settlement of the
province, and always remained on good terms with the Eng
lish. On the east bank of the river, some distance above
Conestoga, stood the town of Paxton, which had been devas
tated by the Indians in 1755. The relatives of those slain
at that time rebuilt the viUage, but were jpimical to the race
of their persecutors, and suspicious of the band at Conestoga.
They organized into a body of rangers, and were active in
defending the borders. At length, deeming their suspicions
confirmed, they feU upon the Conestoga Indians, and a horrr''

226 HISTORY OF OHIO.
massacre ensued, the victims bemg principally women and
" chUdren. Those who by absence escaped the fury of the
Paxton men, fied to Lancaster, and were placed in jail for
security, which was broken open soon after by a party of the
assassins, and the butchery completed. The provincial
authorities were impotent to prevent or redress these out
rages, and the Moravians next became objects of distrust and
persecution. About three months before the massacre at Conestoga, a
party of drunken rangers, fired by the general resentment
against the Morarian Indians, murdered several, of them,
both men and women, whom they found sleepmg in a barn.
Not long after, the same party of rangers were, in their turn,
surprised and killed, some peaceful settlers of the neighbor
hood sharing their fate. This act was at once ascribed,
justly or unjustly, to the vengeance of the converted Indians,
relatives of the murdered ; and the frontier people, who, like
the Paxton men, were chiefly Scotch and Irish Presbyterians,
resolved that the objects of their suspicion should live no
longer. At this time the Moravian converts consisted of two
communities, those of Nain and Wecquetank, near the Lehigh,
and to these may be added a third, at Wyalusing, near Wyo
ming. The latter, from its distant situation, was, for the
present, safe ; but the two former were in imminent peril,
and the inhabitants in mortal terror for their Uves, stood day
and night on the watch.
At length, about the tenth of October, 1764, a gang of
armed men approached Wecquetank, and encamped in the
woods at no great distance. They intended to make their
attack under favor of the darkness ; but before evening,
a storm, which to the missionaries seemed providential, de-.
scended with such violence, that the fires of the hostile camp

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 227
were extinguished in a moment, the ammunition of the men
wet, and the plan defeated.
After so narrow an escape, it was apparent that flight was
the only resource. The terrified congregation at Wecque
tank broke up on the following day, and under the charge
of their missionary, Bernard Grube, removed to the Mora
vian town of Nazareth, where it was hoped they might remain
in safety.
By order of the prorincial assembly, the Christian Indians
were removed to PhUadelphia, as the last means to secure
their protection. Their total number, including the mission
aries, was about one hundred and forty. Insulted by the
populace and soldiery, the unfortunate exUes only found sym
pathy and kindness from the Quakers. Attended by these
kindred sectarians, the Morarians and converts proceeded to
Prorince Island below the city, where they were lodged in
some deserted barracks, and their wants prorided for, by the
authorities and the society of Friends.
Immediately after the Conestoga murders at Lancaster
jaU, which did not take place untU some weeks after the
removal of the Morarian converts to PhUadelphia, the rioters
prepared to march upon the city and finish their work by
kilUng the Indians whom it had taken under its protection.
Such was the consternation that it was determined to send
the refugees to New York, and place them under the protec
tion of the Indian Superintendent, Sir WUUam Johnson.
Passing through Trenton, they reached Amboy, when a
message was received from Governor Colden, of New York,
forbidding the Indians to come to that province. Similar
letters were received from Gen. Gage and the city authori
ties, the latter threatening heavy penalties to the owners of
vessels if they should transport the Indians from New Jersey.

228 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Thus disappointed in their hopes of escape, the hapless
Indians remained several days lodged in the barracks at
Amboy, where they passed much of their time in religious
services. A message, however, soon came from the Governor
of New Jersey, requiring them to leave that provmce ; and
they were compelled reluctantly to retrace their steps to
Philadelphia. A detachment of one hundred and seventy
soldiers had arrived, sent by Gen. Gage, on the requisition
of Governor Penn ; and under the protection of these troops
the exiles began their backward journey. On the 24th of
January they reached Philadelphia, where they were lodged
at the barracks within the city, the soldiers, forgetful of for
mer prejudices, no longer refusing them entrance.
Again came tidings of danger from the country, and vigo
rous preparations for defence were made, even Quaker non-
resistance yielding to the imminence of the occasion. The
insurgents having advanced to Germantown, within seven
miles of Philadelphia, Governor Penn fied for safety and
counsel to the house of Dr. FrankUn ; and Pennsylvania
seemed to be on the brink of civil war. Franklin, however,
and some other popular individuals, undertook to meet and
expostulate with the insurgents ; and in the conference that
ensued, exerted their sense, address and influence so effectu
ally as to prevail with them to relinquish their ferocious
purpose and return to their homes. To improve this happy
success, Franklin immediately after composed and published
a pamphlet in defence of the Indians, which produced a con
siderable effect in soothing the passions of his countrymen
and restoring tranquillity.
From the year 1763, tiU the revolt of America from the
dominion of Britain, no general or considerable opposition
resisted the exertions of the Moravian brethren to dissemi-

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 229-
nate among the objects of their care the principles, habits,
and benefits of piety, morality and civUization. The chief
settlements were Bethlehem and Nazareth, in the county of
Northampton, where their modes of Ufe and worship still
attract the attention of the traveler. Here and at Litiz, a
beautiful Morarian vUlage, eight mUes north of Lancaster,
are institutions for the instruction of girls, which have been
long and justly celebrated. We are not aware that any
other Moravian communities, preserving the peculiarities
described so attractively by Madame de Stael, have survived
on this continent except at these three rillages. Bethlehem
was first settled in 1740, Nazareth soon after, and Litiz
in 1756.
To return to the Morarian traditions prior to the revolu
tion. The counties of Carbon, Lehigh, Schuylkill and Nor
thumberland Ue west of Bethlehem, and within their limits,
as now delineated on the map, were numerous Moravian
missionary stations between 1745 and 1765. These were
the principal sufferers during the tumiUts of 1764, which
have just been described. The settiement of Nain was about
a mUe from Bethlehem, and Wecquetank, described above as
near the Lehigh, is supposed to have been situated ilear the
eastern corner of Schuylkill county, on the border of Carbon.
Gnadenhutten, settied in 1746, was in Carbon county, about
half a mUe above the junction of Mahoning creek and the
Lehigh River. Here the first murder of Moravians took
place. StiU further west, at Shamokin, now Sunbury, in
Northumberland county, was a station in 1747. It is sup-
pos'ed that none of these are now in existence.
The Wyalusing station is even more closely related to our
Ohio mission than those already enumerated. It was estab
lished by Zeisberger, in 1763, and was called Friedenshutten

^.230 HISTORY OF OHIO.
or Tents of Peace. The site was on the Susquehanna river,
in Bradford county, and near the southern border of New
York. The Iroquois gave permission to occupy even a larger
Jract of land than was desired, but soon after, in 1768, sold
the whole country to Pennsylvania. At length, in 1772, the
entire community moved to the station on the Beaver River,
and thence, after a few days, proceeded to Shoenbrun, on
the Muskingum. They were accompanied by Rev. John
Ettwein and Rev. John Heckewelder — the veteran Zeisberger
having gone to the Beaver to escort the party. The hospi
table Delawares were informed of the arrival of the Susque
hanna party, and the brethren were congratulated, in full
council, with all the ceremony of Indian compliment.
The wandering settlement of western Pennsylvania is even
more closely related to the colony at Shoenbrun. In 1768,
Zeisberger penetrated to a spot in the now county of Ve
nango, on the left bank of the Alleghany, not far from the
mouth of Tiouesta. Here the mission of Goshgoshunk was
established, but soon after removed to fifteen mUes further up,
near Hickory town. There was a Delaware vUlage, forty
mUes north of Pittsburgh, in what is Butler county, called
Kaskaskunk, where resided Glikhikan, who became first the
friend of the Moravians, and afterwards a convert to Ghris-
tianity. On his first interview with Zeisberger, he was
struck by the fulfillment of a vision, which occurred to him
years before. He had dreamed that he came to a place
where a number of Indians were assembled in a large room.
They wore their hair plain, and had no rings in their noses.
In the midst of them, he discovered a short white man, and
the Indians beckoning to him to come in. He entered, and
was presented by the white man with a book, who desired
him to read. On his replying, "I cannot read," the white

SOCIETY OP UNITED BRETHREN. 231
man said: "After you have been with us some time you wUl
learn to read it." From this time he frequently told his
hearers that there were certainly white people somewhere,
who knew the right way to God, for he had seen them in a
dream. Therefore, when he came hither, and saw the Indi
ans and the short white man. Brother Zeisberger, exactly
answering to the figure of him he saw in his dream, he was
much astonished. He now frequently went to Lawunakhan-
nek, the mission where Zeisberger and his converted Dela
wares were, and conversed earnestly with the brethren."
Heckewelder says (Narrative, p. 109) that the name of the
chief signified "the stud ov foremost sight of a gun-barrel ;
that he was admired and dreaded by all who knew him, on
account of his superior courage as a warrior, for his talents
in councU, and his unequaled manner of deUvering himself as
a natural orator or speaker."
GlikhUsan was infiuential, and the missionaries were invi
ted, in 1770, to come to the Big Beaver, whither they went
in AprU of that year, settling about twenty mUes from its
mouth. About this time, Glikhikan left Kaskaskunk, (about
forty mUes north of Pittsburgh) and, avowing himself a
Christian convert, henceforth lived -with the brethren. The
new station on the Beaver was called Friedenstadt, the town
of Peace, whither the new disciple came. An old Delaware
chief, Pakanke, to whom Glikhikan had been chief captain
and speaker, was greatly concerned at this defection. Meet
ing the latter soon afterwards, he railed as follows : " And
even you have gone over from this council to them. I sup
pose you mean to get a white skin. But I tell you, not even
one of your feet will turn white, much less your body. Was
you not a brave and honored man, sitting next to me in
council, when we spread the blanket and considered the belts

232 HISTORY OF OHIO.
of wampum lying before us. Now you pretend to despise
all this, and think to have found something better. Some
time or other you wUl find yourself deceived." GUkhikan
made but a short and meek reply, and his accuser afterwards
was so much mollified, by a current superstition, that hostUity
to the missionaries was the cause of an epidemic sickness
among his people, that he went to hear the brethren preach,
declared his conviction and recommended his chUdren to
receive the gospel. Glikhikan was baptized by the name of
Isaac, and was henceforth very prominent in the history of
the Ohio mission.
In 1773, the Christian Indians on the Beaver River re
solved also to emigrate to Ohio, and on the 13th of April, the
village of Freidenstadt was evacuated, one part of the con
gregation traveling across the country by land, and the other,
led by John Heckewelder, descending the Big Beaver and
Ohio, and ascending the Muskingum to Shoenbrun in twenty-
two canoes.
The first settlement by Zeisberger consisted of twenty-
eight persons ; the emigration from the Susquehanna was two
hundred and forty-one in number ; and if we suppose the
population of the village on the Beaver now transplanted to
the Muskingum to have been one hundred, the number on
the Muskingum in 1773 was 369. The Mohicans buUt ten
mUes below Schoenbrun, calling the vUlage Gnadenhutten.
When the pUgrimage of 1772, from the distant Wyalusing,
was happily ended, and the Indians in councU had welcomed
the new arrival, David Zeisberger and John Heckewelder
summoned the congregation together. John Ettwein, about
to invoke the blessing of Heaven and depart to Bethlehem,
stood near while the rules of the congregation (the phrase
is Heckewelder's) as agreed to and approved by the national

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 233
assistants, were read and accepted by the whole congrega
tion. It was a scene not wholly unUke the first compact of
the Puritan community in the cabin of the Mayflower. An
August sky was above them — the waters of the Elk Eye
glided gently by — the " beautiful spring " refiected the mo
tionless group ; and the voice of prayer and praise hallowed
the adoption of the following homely frame of ciril and reU
gious obligation — the' first act of Ohio legislation — the con
stitution of 1772.10
1. We wUl know of no other God, nor worship any other
but him who has created us, and redeemed us with bis most
precious blood.
2. We wUl rest from aU labor on Sundays, and attend the
usual meetings on that day for divine serrice.
3. We wUl honor father and mother, and support them in
age and distress.
4. No thieves, murderers, drunkards, adulterers and whore
mongers shall be suffered among us.
5. No one shall be permitted to dwell with us without the
consent of our teachers.
6. No one that attendeth dances, sacrifices, or heathenish
festivals, can live among us.
7. No one using Trchappich (or witchcraft) in hunting,
shaU be suffered among us.
8. We wiU renounce aU juggles, lies and deceits of Satan.
9. We will be obedient to our teachers, and to the helpers
(national assistants) who are appointed to see that good order
be kept, both in and out of town.
10. We wUl not be idle and lazy — nor tell Ues of one
another — nor strike each other — we wiU live peaceably to
gether. 10) It is taken from Heckewelder's narrative.
10»

234 HISTORY OF OHIO.
11. Whosoever does any harm to another's cattie, goods
or effects, &c., shaU pay the damage.
12. A man shaU have only one wife — love her and provide
for her and the chUdren. Likewise a woman shall have but
one husband, and be obedient to him ; she shall also take care
of the chUdren, and be cleanly in all things.
13. We will not permit any rum, or spirituous Uquor, to be
brought into our town. If strangers or traders happen to
bring any, the helpers (national assistants) are to take it into
their possession, and take care not to deUver it to them until
they set off again.
14. None of the inhabitants shall run in debt with traders,
nor receive goods on commission for traders, without consent
of the national assistants.
, 15. No one is to go on a journey or long hunt without in
forming the minister or steward of it.
16. Young people are not to marry without the consent of
their parents, and taking their adrice.
17. If the stewards or helpers apply to the inhabitants for
assistance, in doing work for the benefit of the place, such as
building meeting and school houses, clearing and fencing
lands, &c., they are to be obedient.
18. AU necessary contributions for the pubUc ought cheer
fully to be attended to.
" The above rules were made and adopted at a time when
there was a profound peace; when, however, six years after
wards (during the revolutionary war) individuals of the Del
aware nation took up the hatchet to join in the conflict, the
national assistants proposed and insisted on having the fol
lowing additional rules added, namely :
19. No man incliaing to go to war — which is the shedding
of blood — can remain among us.

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 235
20. Whosoever purchases goods or articles of warriors,
knowing at the time that such have been stolen or plundered,
must leave us. We look upon this as giving encouragement
to murder and theft.
" According to custom, these rules were, at the commence
ment of every year, read in pubUc meeting; and no new
member or applicant could be permitted to live in the con
gregation without making a solemn promise that he or she
would strictly conform to them. When any person residing
in the congregation gave offence, or caused disturbance, it
was the duty of the national assistants first to admonish such
person or persons in a friendly manner ; but where such ad
monition proved ineffectual, then to consult together for the
purpose of publicly putting him, her or them, out of the soci
ety, and dismissmg such altogether from the place. Next
to these rules, other necessary and proper regulations were
made and adopted ; for instance, respecting the daUy meet
ings and the duty of church wardens, schools, attending to
visitors, and the attention to be paid to the poor, sick and
needy, or distressed — and also with regard to contributions
to be made from time to time for the benefit of the congre
gation at large, as also indiriduals in the same, unable to
support themselves, or furnish the necessary attire for the
deceased, so that the corpse of the poorest person in the com
munity was dressed as decent as the wealthy."
Our narrative of Morarian antecedents has been minute,
but not, as we submit, disproportionate. We should expect
that the historian of Massachusetts would not stint the chap
ters devoted to the tale of Puritan suffering in England,
which at length freighted the Mayflower. The annaUst of
Pennsylvania could devote no less space to the traditions
of Fox, Penn and their associates ; and who could object to

236 HISTORY OF OHIO.
* a general memoir of the Huguenots of France, in writing a
history of North CaroUna, or of the Jesuit organization, in
a narrative of Canadian colonization ? Such a relation the
Moravians bear to Ohio, and the theme is in aU respects too
attractive, not to have yielded to the temptation of fullness
in detaU. Indeed, the principal embarrassment has been,
not to seek, but how to decUne, the materials for the present
episode. '1
We have the authority of James Patrick, Esq., of New
PhUadelphia, that the present site of Shoenbrun is about
two mUes south of New PhUadelphia, in Tuscarawas county ;
seven (Heckewelder says ten) mUes farther south, was Gna
denhutten, in the immediate vicinity of the present vUlage
11) This sketch of the Moravians, prior to their occupation of Ohio in
1772, has been mostly compiled from Loskiel's History of the Missions in
North America, Graham's Colonial History of the United States, Bancroft's
History, Heckewelder's Narrative, Howe's Pennsylvania, the Religious En
cyclopedia and John -Wesley's Journal. The work of Loskiel appears to
be the fountain from which subsequent writers have drawn. The best com
pilation of his work is Graham's Colonization of America, to whose para
phrase this chapter is greatly indebted. Parkman's Conspiracy of Pontiac
has also supplied some particulars of the excitement in Pennsylvania in
1764, which were not attainable elsewhere. Graham's work has never been
appreciated. The author was a Scotchman, who nover visited this country,
but being a lover of civil and religions freedom, as well as a consummate
scholar and jurist, his attention was turned to the early planting ofthe
American States ; and by an intelligent and assiduous investigation of the
historical archives of England, France, Holland and Germany, he was ensr
bled to produce and perfect a work, accurate, liberal, authoritative and
attractive. Himself strongly religious by temperament and habit, the Mo
ravian annals seemed to have impressed his sensibilities in a remarkable
degree, and a transcript of the historian Loskiel forms an interesting por
tion of his work. It is a singular fact that an Italian (Botta) was one of
the earliest and most estimable historians of the American Revolution,
while the colonization of the continent was first satisfactorily narrated by
another foreigner— neither Graham or Botta having ever formed any perso
nal a.ssociatioas, as a visitor or resident, with a country whose history
afforded the theme of their enthusiastic and successful labors.

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 237
of that name ; and about five miles further below, was Salem,
afterwards estabUshed a short distance from the village of
Port Washington. The first and last mentioned were on the
west side of the Tuscaroras, now near the margin of the
Ohio canal. Gnadenhutten is on the east side of the river.
But at the moment that the first permanent colonization
of the State seemed to be progressing thus auspiciously, the
storm of Indian hostiUty was filling the horizon. We hasten
to record the events of 1774.

CHAPTER XVI.
DUNMORE'S EXPEDITION IN 1774. THE STORY OF LOGAN.
The name of Logan is closely associated with the hostili
ties of 1774, usually called Dunmore's war, from the fact
that Lord Dunmore, then Governor of Virginia, commanded
one division of the army, by whose invasion it was termina
ted. We shall precede our narrative of its events, by a few
memorials of the remarkable person above mentioned.
When Count Zinzendorf, the Morarian bishop, visited his
Pennsylvania brethren in 1742, he foUowed the course of
the Susquehannah River to Shomokin, a populous Indian
town, and thence crossed to the residence of Catharine Mon
tour, near the head of Seneca Lake in New York. He was
accompanied by Conrad Weisser, the Indian agent of Penn
sylvania, and four converted Indians. At Shomokin, they
were hospitably entertained by ShikeUimus, a Cayuga chief,
who is described as the "first magistrate and head-chief of
all the Iroquois Indians living on the banks of the Susque
hannah as far as Onondago." Afterwards ShikeUimus was
converted to Christianity, and the missionaries "considered
him a candidate for baptism, but hearing that he had been
already baptisetl by a Roman CathoUc priest in Canada,
they only endeavored to impress his mind with a proper idea
of the importance of this sacramental ordinance, upon which
he destroyed a small idol, which he wore about his neck.'"
1) Loskiel's North American Missions, part li., p. 120.
(138)

ANECDOTES OF LOGAN. 239
ShikeUimus died in 1749, attended in his last moments by
David Zeisberger.
There is no doubt that Logan was the second son of this
chief — his name being a tribute of respect to James Logan,
Secretary of the Province of Pennsylvania, who was highly
esteemed by ShikeUimus. Heckewelder wrote to Jefferson
that "about the year 1772, Logan was introduced to him by
an Indian friend, as son to the late reputable chief, Shi
keUimus, and as a friend to the white people." Hecke
welder was favorably impressed by the "superior talents"
and correct sentiments of Logan.^
" After reaching manhood, Logan Uved for a while in Penn
sylvania, within the present limits of Mifflin county, and the
following anecdotes of him during tbis period, are preserved
in Day's Historical CoUections of that State, but the dates of
their occurrence are not given.
William Brown, with two companions, had been hunting
bear, and was separated from his two companions in the pur
suit of one which they had started. In his own words, he
was traveling along, looking about on the rising ground for
the bear, when he suddenly came upon a spring, and laid
down to drink. Suddenly he saw refiected on the opposite
side, the shadow of a tall Indian. Brown sprung to his feet,
seized his rifie, but the Indian knocked up the pan of his
gun, threw out the priming, and extended his open palm in
token of friendship. This was Logan, and the two became
firm aUies. Further down the stream, w^ the camp of
another hunter, Samuel Maclay, and thither Logan con
ducted his new acquaintance. In a few days. Brown and
Maclay visited Logan at his camp, which was in the same
2) Jefferson's Notes on the State of Virginia. Philadelphia, 1801-; ap
pendix, p. 39.

240 HISTORY OF OHIO.
neighborhood — the KishacoquUas valley — and situated near
what is now known as Logan's spring, in Mifflin county.
Here Maclay and Logan shot at a mark for a doUar a shot.
Logan lost four or five rounds, and acknowledged himself
beaten. When the white men were about to leave, he went
into his hut, and brought out as many deer skins as he had
lost doUars, and handed them to Mr. Maclay, who refused to
take them, aUeging that he was Logan's guest, and did not
come to rob him ; that the shooting had been only a trial of
skiU, and the bet merely nominal. Logan drew himself up
with great dignity, and said "me bet to make you shoot
your best — ^me gentleman, and me take your doUar if me
beat." There was, of course, no alternative than to take
the skins. So sensitive was Logan, that he would not
accept even a horn of powder in return.
Mr. Brown, who was an associate judge of Mifflin county
from its organization till his death at the age of ninety-one
or two, soon afterwards settled in the ricinity. When his
little daughter was just beginning to waUi, her mother ex
pressed her regret that she could not get a pair of shoes to
give more firmness to her Uttle step. Logan stood by, but
said nothing. He soon after asked Mrs. Brown to let the
Uttle girl go up and spend the day at his cabin. The cautious
heart of the mother was alarmed at such a proposition ; but
she knew the deUcacy of an Indian's feelings — and she knew
Logan, too — and with secret reluctance, but apparent cheer
fulness, she complied with his request. The hours of the day
wore slowly away, and it was nearly night, when her Uttle one
had not retumed : but just as the sun was going down, the
trusty chief was seen coming down the path with his charge ;
and in a moment more the little one trotted into her mother's
arms, proudly exhibiting a beautiful pair of moccasins on her

LOGAN'S EMIGRATION TO THE OHIO. 241
little feet — the produce of Logan's skiU. It is no wonder that
Judge Brown should call the kind and noble hearted Logan
" the best specimen of humanity (he) ever met with, either
. white or red." " Poor Logan !" he is reported to have said on
the same occasion, the tears coursing down his cheeks, ' ' he soon
after went into the AUeghany, and I never saw him again. "^
We have already assumed that the Mingo town upon the
Ohio River at the mouth of Indian Cross Creek, was the res
idence of Logan, but it could not have been founded by him.
In 1765, George Croghan, in his journal of a voyage to the
Wabash, describes a Seneca viUage, " on a high bank on the
north side of the river at a place caUed Two Creeks, about
fifteen mUes from Yellow Creek," and says that the chief of
this vUlage offered his services to go with him to the Illinois
country, which were not refused, from a fear of giving offence,
although Croghan " had a sufficient number of deputies al
ready." Washington, in his journal of a tour to the Ohio in
1770, afler descending Long Island (now opposite Island
Creek township in Jefferson county), and Big Stony Creek, a
mUe or two below the island on the west side, adds: "About
seven mUes from the last mentioned creek, and about seventy-
five from Pittsburg, we came to the Mingo town, situate on
the west side of the river, a Uttle above Cross creeks : this
place contains about twenty cabins and seventy inhabitants
of the Six Nations. It is made probable by the communica
tion of Heckewelder, published by Jefferson, that this viUage
did not become the residence of Logan until after Washing
ton's visit. Heckewelder says that when he met Logan in
1772, on the Beaver River, the latter expressed an intention
to settie on the Ohio River below Big Beaver, but was then
encamped at the mouth of Beaver. In April, 1773, when
3) Historical Collections of Pennsylvania, by Sherman Day, p. 467.

242 HISTORY OP OHIO.
Heckewelder was on his way to the Muskingum, with the
Moravian emigration from Freidenstadt, he called at " Logan's
settlement, receiving every civility from such of the family
as were at hoirie." We assume, therefore, that the Mingo
town in question, composed of Indians from the different New
York tribes, but principally of Senecas, was known for some
years before Logan's emigration to the Ohio in 1772, but
that, almost immediately on his arrival, he became so promi
nent among the Indians of the frontier, that the village was
called after his name. David Zeisberger, the friend of his
father ShikeUimus, and who had known Logan from boyhood,
speaks of him as " a man of quick comprehension, good judg
ment and talents." There is evidence, also, that he was a
person of distinguished appearance.
We wiU now endeavor, from a mass of conffictmg testi
mony, to narrate the circumstances which transformed Lo
gan from the firm friend to the bitter enemy of the whites.
In the winter of 1773-4, one Dr. John Connolly, a
nephew of George Croghan, determined to assert the claims
of Virginia upon Fort Pitt and its ricinity. He issued a
proclamation to the inhabitants, to meet at Redstone, now
BrownsvUle, on the 24th and 25th of January, 1774, and
organize themselves as a Virginia mUitia. -Before the time
appointed, Connolly was arrested by Arthur St. Clair, who
then represented the Pennsylvania proprietors at Pittsburgh,
and the assemblage at Redstone dispersed without definite
action. As soon as Connolly was released from custody,
however, he renewed his efforts to establish the exclusive
authority of Virginia. He came to Pittsburgh on the 28th
of March, with an armed band of foUowers, and in the name
and by the authority of Lord Dunmore, proclaimed the
jurisdiction of Virginia — rebuUding Fort Pitt, which was

OUTBREAK OP HOSTILITIES. 243
caUed Fort Dunmore. He was recognized as Captain Com
mandant of a district called West Augusta, and almost
immediately exhibited a tyrannical spirit to all who were in
the Pennsylvania interest, while he seemed not unwilling to
involve the frontier in an Indian war — one motive for the
latter policy being, as suggested by Arthur St. Clair and
others, to cloak his extravagant civil expenditure, with the
indefinite item of frontier defence. At any rate, his letters
to the Virginians, who were scattered in exploring parties
along the south bank of the Ohio, contributed materially
to the outbreak of hostilities.* On the 21st of April, Con
nolly wrote that the Shawanese were not to be tfusted, and
that the whites ought to be prepared to revenge any wrong
done them. Already the Indians were accused of stealing
horses from the encampments and settlements of the Virgin
ians, and on the 16th of April, a canoe, belonging to William
Butler, a leading Pittsburgh trader, had been attacked near
Wheeling by three Cherokees, and one white man had been
kiUed. The alarm spread down the river, and a party of
Virginian surveyors and explorers organized, with Capt.
Michael Cresap at their head, and repaired to Wheeling, to
determine what course to pursue. George Rogers Clark,
who was of this band, has left a statement that Cresap dissua
ded them from an intention to attack a town called Horse-
head Bottom, on the Scioto and near its mouth, and proposed
the return to Wheeling.^ Here, according to Clark, two
letters were received from Connolly — one requesting the
men to keep their position for a few days, as war was
4) Forthe facts relative to Connolly's conduct, &c., see American Archives,
fourth series, i., 252 to 288, 435, 774, &c.
5) Clark's letter was originally published in the Louisville News Letter,
and is quoted in the Hesperian, February, 1839, p. 309.

244 HISTORY OF OHIO.
apprehended, and messengers were then at the Indian towns
to ascertain their purpose, and a second letter (we suppose
the same above mentioned as dated April 21,) addressed to
Capt. Cresap, informing him that the messengers had
returned from the Indians : that " war was inevitable, and
the country should be covered with scouts until the inhabi
tants could fortify themselves." Clark continues: "The
reception of this letter was the epoch of open hostiUties with
the Indians. A new post was planted, a council was called,
and the letter read by Cresap, all the Indian traders being
summoned on so important an occasion. Action was had,
and war declared in the most solemn manner : and the same
evening two scalps were brought into the camp."
These were probably the scalps of friendly Indians, who
had been despatched by WUliam Butler,, the Pittsburgh tra
der, to look after the cargo of the canoe, which the Chero
kees had attacked. Ebenezer Zane, who was settled at
Wheeling, has testified that he opposed the project of kUling
these Indians, but his good counsel was lost. The party, or
some of them, went up the river. On being asked at their
return, what had become of the Indians, they coolly answered
that " they had fallen overboard into the river." The tra
ders were brought back in safety, but Zane says that he
examined the canoe, " found much blood and bullet holes,"
and inferred the tragic condition of affairs.
We resume Clark's narrative. " The next day some canoes
of Indians were discovered on the river, keeping the advantage
of an island to cover themselves from our view. They were
chased fifteen miles down the river, and driven ashore ; a battie
ensued ; a few were wounded on both sides : one Indian only
taken prisoner. On examining their canoes, we found a con
siderable quantity of ammunition and other warlike stores.

SKIRMISH AT CAPTINA CREEK. 245
On our return to camp, a resolution was adopted to march the
next day, and attack Logan's camp on the Ohio, about thirty
miles above us. We did march about five miles, and then halted
to take some refreshment. Here the impropriety of executing
the attempted enterprise was argued. The conversation was
brought forward by Cresap himself. It was generally agreed
that those Indians had no hostUe intentions ; as I myself and
others present had been in their camp about four weeks
past, on our descending the river from Pittsburg. In short,
every person seemed to detest the resolution we had set out
with. We returned in the evening, decamped, and took the
road to Redstone."
We suppose that Col. Ebenezer Zane, in his statement,
dated Feb. 4, 1800, aUudes to the same affair as Clark here
relates, in the following paragraph : "On the afternoon of
the day this action (kiUing the two Indians above Wheeling)
happened, a report prevailed that there was a camp of Indi
ans on the Ohio, below or near the Wheeling. In conse
quence of this information. Captain Cresap with his party,
¦joined by a number of recruits, proceeded immediately down
the Ohio for the purpose, as was then generally understood,
of destroying the Indians above mentioned. On the succeed
ing day. Captain Cresap and his party retumed to Wheeling,
and it was generally reported by the party that they had
kiUed a number of Indians. Of the truth of this report I
had no doubt, as one of Cresap's party was badly wounded,
and the party had a fresh scalp, and a quantity of property,
which they caUed Indian plunder. At the time of the last
mentioned transaction, it was generally reported that the
party of Indians down the Ohio, were Logan and his family,
but I have reason to believe that this report was unfounded.
If we are correct in supposing that Clark and Zane refer

246 HISTORY OF OHIO.
to the same transaction, Doddridge is an authority to the
additional facts that the battie was fought at the mouth of
Captina creek, at the southeast border of Belmont county,
and that one of Cresap's party was severely wounded.^
"Two days afterwards," says Clark, or "within a few
days," according to Zane and Doddridge, or on the 4th of
May, according to a third account, occurred the tragedy
opposite the mouth of Yellow creek. One Baker was settled
on the Virginia side, and a party of thirty-two persons had
gathered in the neighborhood. On the north, or Indian side
of the Ohio, was an Indian encampment, from which a party
of five men, one woman, (some accounts say two) and a Uttle
child crossed to Baker's. Here rum was offered them by
the direction of Greathouse, and three of the men werfe
made drunk. The other two men and the woman refused to
drink and were shot down, whUe the intoxicated Indians
were tomahawked. This- was done by only five or six of
Greathouse's party, the rest protesting against it as an atro
cious murder, but not preventing the deed. The cMld, a
very young female infant, was spared by the humanity of
some one of the party.
The Indians in the camp at Yellow creek, hearing the firing
at the house, sent a canoe with two men in it to inquire what
had happened. These two Indians were both shot down as
soon as they landed on the beach. A second and larger
canoe was then manned with a number of Indians in arms ;
who, attempting to reach the shore some distance below the
house, were received with a well directed fire from the party,
which killed the greater number of them, and compelled the
survivors to retire. A great number of shots were exchanged .
6) Doddridge's Notes, p. 226. The subject is fully presented in the ap
pendix to Jefferson's Notels.

INDIAN WAR PARTIES. 247
across the river, but without damage to the white party, not
one of whom was even wounded. The Indian men who-
were murdered were all scalped. The surviving Indians
escaped down the river.
In the course of these bloody transactions, several rela
tives of Logan were killed — probably his brothers and a sister.
His own language, in the earliest copy of his celebrated
speech which is extant, was that " Col. Cresap cut off, in cold
blood, aU the relations of Logan, not sparing women and
chUdren ;" but Jefferson's version reads, " not sparing my
women and chUdren."
It is related by Henry Jolly, many years associate judge
of Washington county, Ohio, (whose narrative of the affair
at Yellow creek we have partially adopted) that a short time
before, in an Indian council, Logan had strongly recommen
ded peace. He reminded the Indians of some aggressions
on their own part, and that the only effect of hostilities
would be that the "Long Knife," or Virginians, would come
like the trees in the woods, and the Indians would, be driven
from the good lands they possessed. His advice was adopted,
the hatchet grounded — when the fugitives from Yellow creek
arrived with the appalling intelligence of the slaughter of
his own relatives.''
Our first specific account of Logan's retaliation is as late as
the 12th of July. Doubtless, in the six or eight weeks pre
vious, efforts were making to renew the confederation of the
Ohio Indians against the English. Loskiel mentions that
the Delawares were urged by the Senecas and Shawanese to
join in hostUities — but they refused, as a nation, to take up
the hatchet. They were called Shwonnoks, or white people,
in derision, greatly exasperating the young Delawares, many
7) Sec Appendix No. -V, for farther particulars of these massacres.

248 HISTORY OF OHIO.
of whom probably feU into the war-path as volunteers. But
even among the Shawanese there was a peace party. Their
great chief. Cornstalk, was influential in saving the Uves of
some Pittsburgh traders from the fury of the Mingoes, and
sent them in safety to their homes. It is said that Connolly,
as if determined to precipitate a general war; attempted to
seize the Shawanese Indians, three in number, who had
escorted the traders through the wilderness, and when re
strained by his uncle, Col. Croghan, sought to intercept them
on their return, and that one was severely wounded by the
whites. If so, all friendly dispositions would vanish of course.
There is no doubt that before August had arrived, the Shaw
anese, and all the Mingo bands, were in the-field, recruited
by a few Delawares and Cherokees.
Logan was determined that his blow for vengeance should
fall where it would produce the greatest consternation, and
with a chosen band of eight warriors, he penetrated to the
settlements on the head waters of the Monongahela, where
many scalps and several prisoners were taken, with which,
by the signal conduct of their chief, the party were enabled
to elude pursuit and return in safety.
Among these prisoners was WiUiam Robinson, with whom
Logan was very friendly during the journey to an Indian
town near Dresden, on the Muskingum River — "speaking
English well," as Robinson testifies in an affidavit annexed
to Jefferson's Notes on Virginia. Arrived at the viUage,
Logan made an extraordinary effort to save the life of Robin
son. He spoke nearly an hour, and very eloquently ; but the
council was resolved to torture the prisoner. He was at
length rescued, while bound at the stake — ^Logan cutting his
thongs, throwing a belt of wampum around him, and leading

DUNMORE AND LEWIS' EXPEDITION. 249
him in safety to his wigwam, where he was adopted in place
of a brother who was kiUed at YeUow creek.
About the 21st of July, Logan came to Robinson, and
brought a piece of paper, and told him to write a letter for
him. Some ink was prepared from gunpowder, and Logan
dictated the following letter :
"Captain Cresap: — What did you kill my people on
YeUow creek for ? The white people killed my kin at Cone
stoga, a great while ago ; and I thought nothing of that.
But you MUed my kin again, on YeUow creek, and took my
cousin prisoner. Then I thought I must kUl too, and I have
been three times to war since ; but the Indians are not angry :
only myself. ' Captain John Logan."
This document was afterwards found tied to a war-club, in
a house on the north fork of Holston creek, in Fincastie
county, the famUy haring been cut off by the Indians.®
WhUe the war was thus carried to the heart of the Alle
ghany range, the Virginians, in their tum, gathered in July
at WheeUng, descended the Ohio to the mouth of Captina,
or as some say. Fish creek, and thence struck westwardly to
the Indian town of Wappatomica, on the Muskingum. They
were commanded by Col. McDonald, and baffling an attempt
to surprise them, destroyed several vUlages, and returned with
three chiefs as prisoners. This foray only added to the
general irritation.
In August, the governor of Vir^nia determined to raise
a large force and carry the war into the enemy's country.
The plan of the expedition was soon arranged. Three com
plete regiments were to be raised west of the Blue Ridge,
under the command of General Andrew Lewis, while an
8) American Pioneer, vol. i., pp. 7-24 — an interesting compilation of facts
in respect to Logan.

250 history of ohio.
equal force from the interior should be commanded by Lord
Dunmore in person. The armies were to form a junction at
the mouth of the Great Kenhawa, and proceed together
under Dunmore to the Indian towns in Ohio.
On the 1st of September, a part of General Lewis' divi
sion, consisting of two regiments under the orders of Col.
Charles Lewis, his brother, and Col. WUUam Fleming, of
Botetourt, assembled at Camp Union, (now Lewisburgh,
Va.) where they were joined by an independent regiment
of backwoods volunteers, under the orders of Col. John
Fields, a distinguished officer, who, together with most of
those now assembled, had served under Braddock. Here
they remained, awaiting the arrival of Col. Christian, who
was busily engaged in coUecting another regiment. By the
junction of Field, Lewis' force amounted to about eleven
hundred men, accustomed to danger, and conducted by the
flower of the border officers. General Lewis, as well as his
brother, had been present at Braddock's defeat, and were
subaltern officers in two companies of Virginia riflemen, who
formed the advance of the English army.
Having waited several days at Lewisburgh for Colonel
Christian, without hearing from him. Gen. Lewis determined
no longer to delay his advance. On the 11th of September
he left Lewisburgh, and without any adventure of impor
tance, arrived at the concerted place of rendezvous. Dun
more had not yet arrived, and Lewis remained several days
in anxious expectation of his approach. At length he re
ceived dispatches from the governor, informing him that he
had changed his plan, and had determined to move directly
upon the Scioto vUlages, at the same time ordering Lewis to
cross the Ohio and join him.
Although not much gratified at this sudden change of a

BATTLE OF POINT PLEASANT. 251
plan which had been deliberately formed, Lewis prepared to
obey, and had issued directions for the construction of rafts,
boats, ,&c., with which to cross the Ohio; when, on the morn
ing of the 10th of October, two men were fired upon, while
scouting about a mile and a half from the camp. One was
kiUed, but the other escaped to the camp, bearing the alarm
that a body of Indians was at hand.
General Andrew Lewis immediately ordered his brother,.
Col. Charles Lewis, with one hundred and fifty of the
Augusta troops, to march to the right some distance from
the Ohio, while Col. Fleming, with one hundred and fifty of
the Botetourt, Bedford and Fincastie troops, was ordered to
the bank of the Ohio on the left. Col. Charles Lewis had
not marched half a mUe, when, about sunrise, he was attacked
by a large Indian force, and in " about the second of a min
ute," Col. Fleming's division was also engaged. The two
commandants fell mortally wounded, and the Augusta or
Lewis' division was forced to give way before the heavy fire
of the enemy. The former were shortly rtinforced by eight
companies led by Col. Field, and the Indians retreated in
turn, until the right wing was in line with Fleming's divis-
sion, who were stUl engaged on the bank of the Ohio. The
action was fiercely contested. " The close underwood and
many steep banks and logs, greatly favored the retreat of the
Indians." The savages made the best use of these advanta
ges, while small detachments were employed in throwing the
dead into the Ohio River, and removing their wounded.
The closing scenes of the engagement are thus described by
a Virginia officer, whose letter from camp bears date October
17, 1774. "After twelve," he writes, "the action in a
small degree abated, but continued, except at short intervals,
sharp enough until after one o'clock. The long retreat of

252 history OF oHia.
the Indians, gave them a most advantageous spot of ground,
from whence it appeared to the officers so difficult to dislodge
them, that it was thought most advisable to stand as the line
was then formed, which was about a mUe and a quarter in
length, and had sustained a constant and equal weight of the
action from wing to wing. A scattered fire continued until
near sunset, and as soon as it was dark, the Indians effected
a safe retreat.
Another letter (Staunton, Virginia, November 4, 1774,)
says that Lewis' division retreated about a quarter of a mUe.
After the reinforcement, " they continued fighting untU noon,
and were never above twenty yards apart from the Indians,
often within six and sometimes closer, tomahawking one
another." " Our men," the writer adds, " got upwards of
twenty scalps, eighty blankets, about forty guns, and a great
many tomahawks."
The foregoing narrative of the battle of Point Pleasant, ia
derived from contemporary publications,^ but the current
version is somewhat different. It describes the battie as
" raging until four o'clock in the afternoon, without any
decisive result " — that the Indians were at length entrenched
behind a breastwork of logs formed from one river to an
other, and enclosing the Virginians within the point, (whm
could it have been constructed without interruption from the
adjacent camp?) and that the savages did not give way,
until three companies under the command of Captam Evan
Shelby,!" y^^tA been detached by Gen. Lewis to ascend a
small stream which empties into the Kenhawa a short dis
tance above its mouth, and which at that time had high and
9) See letters in American Archives, fourth series, i., 808-18.
10) Father of Isaac Shelby, afterwards Governor of Kentucky, and then
a lieutenant in his father's company.

dunmore's EXPEDITION. 253
bushy banks, and attack the Indians in the rear. AU
accounts agree that the latter withdrew during the night
across the river, while the Virginians were indisposed to
molest them.
It is a tradition of the border, that Logan, Cornstalk,
BUenipsico, Red Hawk and many other celebrated chiefs
were present, and were often heard loudly encouraging their
warriors. Cornstalk, the well known Shawanese chieftain,
and leader of the aUied forces, was particularly conspicuous.
His voice rang above the din of the battle, " Be strong !
Be strong ! " and he is said to have buried his hatchet in the
brain of a warrior, who exhibited a disposition of flight.
In this desperate conflict the Virginians lost half their
commissioned officers and 52 men killed. It is not an un
reasonable statement that the . whole number of killed and
wounded was one-fourth of the force engaged. The Indian
loss is unknown, but 33 is the highest estimate of the number
found dead on -tiie field, and many were thrown into the river.
One statement makes their loss m kUled and wounded 233.
The force on both sides was nearly equal — about eleven
hundred. Soon after the battie, three hundred Fincastie troops, under
the command of Col. Christian, reached Point Pleasant, and
the Virginians, eager with the purpose of revenging their
deceased brethren, dashed across the Ohio, in obedience to
Dunmore's orders, leaving a garrison at the scene of the late
engagement. MeanwhUe, Lord Dunmore's division, about as numerous
as that of General Lewis, had passed the mountains at the
Potomac Gap, and came to the Ohio somewhere above
Wheeling. About the 6th of October, a talk was had with
the chiefs of the Six Nations and the Delawares, some of

254 " HISTORY OF DHIO.
wEom had been to the Shawanese towns on a mission of peace,
but they reported unfavorably. Dunmore descended the
Ohio to the mouth of the Hockhocking, where he ordered a
block-house, caUed'Fort Gower, to be erected. He was at
this point when the brittle at Point Pleasant occurred, and
Abraham Thomas, late of Miami county, has stated that by
laying his ear close to the surface of the river, on the day
of the battle, he could distinctiy hear the roar of musketry
twenty-eight miles distant. Leaving a garrison with some
stores at Fort Gower, Dunmore's army ascended- the Hocking
to the site of Logan, the present seat of Hocking county,
where he left the stream and marched westward to the left
bank of Sippo creek, about seven mUes southeast of .Circle
ville. Near this place he was met by a flag and a white man
named Elliott, who bore a message of submission from the
Shawanese chiefs. The governor complied with their request
to send in an interpreter, with Whom they could communi
cate, and ordered an encampment on Sippo creek. It was
called Camp Charlotte, and' was situated on the southwest
quarter of section 12, township 10, range 21, upon a pleas
ant piece of ground, in view of the Pickaway plains. Another
express was now started to intercept the march of General
Lewis, but that gallant officer and his men were sohcitous
for another opportunity to attack the Shawanese, and they
pressed forward in pursuit of the enemy, uritU, on the 24th
of October, they encamped on the banks of the Congo creek,
in Pickaway township, Pickaway county, within striking dis
tance of the Indian towns. The principal Shawanese vUlage
stood where the viUage of WestfaU is now situated, on the
west bank of the Scioto, and on the Ohio canal, near the
south line of Pickaway county. This was the head quarters
of the confederated tribes, and was called ChilUcothe, and

SUBMISSION OF THE SHAWANESE. 255
because there were other towns either at that time or soon
after, of the same name, it was known as Old ChilUcothe. '^
It was with the utmost difficulty that the Virginians could
be restrained from falling upon the Indian towns. They
were infuriated, not only by the border tragedies of the
summer, but by the jnore recent carnage at Point Pleasant.
They charged Dunmore with the design of forming an alliance
with a confederacy of Indians to assist Great Britain against
the colonies in the crisis of the revolution, which all foresaw.
The dissatisfaction and disappointment with the negotiation
for peace was almost a mutiny. Lewis, smarting with the
death of his gallant brother, refused to obey the command
for a halt. Dunmore went in person to enforce his orders,
and drew his sword upon General Lewis, threatening him
with instant death if he persisted in farther disobedience.
Regarded historically, however, the conduct of the English
governor in granting peace to a prostrate and supplicant
enemy, Qannot be blamed. The slaughter of- the Indians,
under such circumstances, would have been wanton massacre.
Dunmore probably hastened a-peace with the savages, from
an anxiety to return to the sea-coast, where the stability of
his government was already precarious, but beyond that
there seems to be no reason to suspect siiuster designs on his
part. On the opposite bank of Scioto, in the Indian town, there
was now but one voice — peace at any cost. When Cornstalk
returned from the battle of Point Pleasant, he called a council
of the nation to consult what should be done, and upbraided
them for not suffering him to make peace, as he is said to
have desired, on the evening before the battle. "What,"
said he, "wUl you do now? The Big Knife is coming on
11) Whittlesey's Discourse, 1840, p. 24.

256 HISTORY OF OHIO.
US, and we shall all be killed. Now you must fight or we
are undone." But no one answering, he said, " then let us
kiU all our women and chUdren and go and fight untU we
die." Still no answer was made ; when, rising, he struck
his tomahawk in a post of the council-house, and exclaimed,
" I'll go and make peace," to which all the warriors grunted,
" Ough ! ough !" and the chiefs immediately followed the
example of their great leader. The appearance and oratory
of Cornstalk, when he appeared before Lord Dunmore, is
thus described by Col. Wilson, one of the staff:
" When he arose, he was no wise confused or daunted, but
spoke in a distinct and audible voice, without stammering or
repetition, and with peculiar emphasis. His looks, while
addressing Dunmore, were truly grand and majestic, yet
graceful and attractive. I have heard many celebrated ora
tors, but never one whose powers of delivery surpassed those
of Cornstalk on this occasion."
As Dunmore approached the Scioto, the Indians had
besought him to send an interpreter, and John Gibson was
sent forward by Lord Dunmore. He has stated in an afSdavit
annexed to Jefferson's Notes, " that on his arrival at the
towns, Logan, the Indian, came to where the deponent was
sitting with the Cornstalk and the other chiefs of the Shawa
nese, and asked him to walk out with him ; that they went
into a copse of wood, where they sat down, when Logan,
after shedding abundance of tears, delivered to him the
speech, nearly as related by Mr. Jefferson in his notes on the
State of Virginia ; that he, the deponent, told him then that
it was not Col. Cresap, who had murdered his relations, and
that although his son, Capt. Michael Cresap, was with the
party that kUled a Shawanese chief and other Indians, yet he
was not present when his relations were kUled at Baker s,

LOGAN S SPEECH.

257

near the mouth of YeUow creek, on the Ohio ; that this
deponent, on his return to camp, delivered the speech to
Lord Dunmore ; and that the murders perpetrated as above
were considered as ultimately the cause of the war of 1774,
commoiUy called Cresap's war."
Of this speech or message, there are, besides that of
Jefferson, two versions — one contained in a letter from
WUliamsburgh, Virginia, dated February 4, 1775, and pre
served in the American Archives, volume 1, page 1020,
and another, which was published in New York, on the 16th
of February, as an extract of a letter from Virginia. Jef
ferson adopted the latter. Probably Gibson noted down the
expressions of Logan, as uttered by him in his simple Eng
lish, and on his return to Lord Dunmore's camp, the officers,
in taking copies, may have modified an occasional expres-
The different versions are presented for comparison:

sion, -fflLLIAMSEUGH. (Feb. 4, 1775.)-
I appeal to any white
man to say, that he ever
entered Logan's cabin,
hut I gave him meat;
that he ever came naked
but I clothed him.

In the course of the
last war, Logan remain
ed in his cabin an advo
cate for peace. I had
such an affection for the
white people, that I was
pointed at by the rest of
my nation. I should
have even lived with
them, had it not been
for Col. Cresap, who,
last year, cut off in cold
blood all the relations  „ ..., 
of Logan, not sparing juries of one man. Co-
¦\vomen and children, lonel Cresap, the last

New York.
(Feb. 16, 1775.)
I appeal to any white
man to say, if ever he
entered Logan's cabin
hungry, and I gave him
not meat; if ever he
came cold and naked,
and I gave him not
clothing. During the course of
the last long and bloody
war, Logan remained in
his tent an advocate for
peace. Nay, such was
my love for the whites,
that those of my own
country pointed at me
as they passed by, and
said, "Logan is the
friend of white men." I
had even thought to live
¦with you, but for the in-

There runs not a drop
of my blood in the veins
of any human creature.
This called on me for
revenge. I have sought
it— I have killed many,
11

spring, in cool blood and
unprovoked, cut off all
the relations of Logan,
not sparing even my
women and children.
There runs not a drop

Jefferson. (1781-2.)
I appeal to any white
man to say, if ever he
entered Logan's cabin
hungry, and he gave
him not meat; if ever
he came cold and naked,
and he clothed him not.
During the course of
the last long and bloody
war, Logan remained
idle in his cabin, an ad
vocate for peace. Such
was my love for the
whites, that my coun
trymen pointed as they
passed, and said, " Lo
gan Is the friend of
white men." I had even
thought to have lived
with you, but for the in
juries of one man. Co
lonel Cresap, the last
spring, in cold blood and
unprovoked, murdei-ed
all the relations of Lo
gan, not even sparing
my women and chil
dren. There runs not

258 HISTORY OF OHIO.
and fully glutted my re- of my blood in the veins a drop of my blood in
venge. I am glad that of any human creature, the veins of any living
there is a prospect of This called on me for creature. This- called on
peace, on account of the revenge. I have sought me for revenge. I have
nation; but I beg you it. I have fully glutted soughtit. I have killed
will lot entertain a my vengeance. For my many. I have fully
thought that any thiiig country, I rejoice at the glutted my vengeance.
I have said proceeds beams of peace. Yet, do For my country, I re-
from fear ! Logan dis- not harbor the thought joice at the beams of
dains the thought. He that mine is the joy of peace. But do not har-
will not turn on his heel fear. Logan never felt bor a thought that mine
to save his life. Who is fear. He will not tm-n is the joy of fear. Lo-
there to. mourn for Lo- on his heel to save his gan never felt fear. He
gan ? No one. life. Who is there to will not turn on,his heel
mourn for Logan ? Not to save his life. -^Vho is
one. there to mourn for Lo
gan t Not one.
Of this production, Jefferson says: "I may challenge the
whole orations of Demosthenes and Cicero, and of any more
eminent orator, if Europe has furnished any more eminent,
to'produce a single passage, superior to the speech of Logan,
a Mingo chief, to Lord Dunmore when governor of Virginia."
It was cited in refutation of the hypothesis, that the soU and
climate of America tended to impair the vigor, mental and
bodily, of the human race. Elsewhere he styles it a "mor
sel of eloquence." Certainly no specimen of the kind has
been more ividely circulated, or highly appreciated'.
At the subsequent conference at Camp Charlotte, Logan
did not attend, and the Mingoes were not parties to the
peace there concluded, although their pledge to observe a
peace had been communicated to Lord Dunmore. Littie is
known of this treaty, except that the Shawanese agreed not
to hunt south of the Ohio, nor molest travelers. A strong
block-house, strengthened with pickets, was erected at the
mouth of the Kenawha, and a hundred men left as its garri
son. Fort Dunmore or Pittsburgh, received a few troops—
also Fort Fincastie at Wheeling. Lord Dunmore was to
have returned to Pittsburgh in the spring, to meet the Indi
ans, and form a definite peace, but the Revolutionary move
ments prevented. The army, which numbered about 2600

SOCIETY OF UNITED BRETHREN. 259
men, returned to Fort Gower, and thence proceeded to
Western Virginia, where they were disbanded.
Of the future fate of Logan, we shall repeat all the evi
dence within our reach. Heckewelder, in a letter to Jeffer
son, thus speaks of him after the close of the war : " His
expressions from time to time, denoted a deep melancholy.
Life (said he) had become a torment to him : he knew no
more what pleasure was ; he thought it had been better if
he had never existed. Report further states, that he became
in some measure delirious, declared he would kiU himself,
went to Detroit, and on his way between that place and
Miamis, was murdered. In October, 1781, (whUe as pris
oner on my way to Detroit,) I was shown the spot where
this should have happened."
Mr. Benjamin Sharp, in 1842 a resident of Warren
county, Missouri, communicated to the "American Pioneer,"
a narrative of the capture of two of his sisters, with their
husbands and famUies, by a band of British and Indians, at
Riddle's station, on the Licking in Kentucky, some time in
1778. They Were taken prisoners to Canada, but after
wards returned in safety at the close of the Revolutionary
War. Mr. Sharp proceeds: "The celebrated Logan was
with this p^rty : my brother-in-law, Captain John Dunkin,
an intelUgent man, had several conversations with him on
this trip. He said Logan spoke both EngUsh and French :
he told Captain Dunkin that he knew he had two souls, the
we good and the other bad ; when the good soul had the
ascendant, he was kind and humane ; and when the bad soul
ruled, he was perfectly savage, and delighted in nothing but
blood and carnage. The account that Captain Dunkin gave
of his death, was, that his brother-in-law kiUed him as- they

260 HISTORY OF OHIO.
returned home from a council held at Detroit, on account of
some misusage he had given his sister at the councU."
Henry C. Brush, Esq., of Tiffin, Seneca county, has stated
on the authority of Good Hunter, an aged and familiar
acquaintance of Logan, that his last years were truly melan
choly. He wandered about from tribe to tribe, a solitary
and lonely man ; dejected and broken hearted by the loss
of his friends, and the decay of his tribe, he resorted to the
stimulus of strong drink, to drown his sorrow. He was at
last murdered in Michigan, near Detroit. He was, at the
time, sitting with his blanket over his head, before a camp
fire, his elbow resting on his knees, and his head upon his
hands, buried in profound refiection, when dn Indian, who
had taken some offence, stole behind him, and buried his
tomahawk in his brains.
Thus closed the mournful episode of the sorrows, the ven
geance and the fate of Logan. Although his motive was
personal — the paroxysm of private grief, — and therefore not
so imposing as the patriotic impulse of a Pontiac or a Tecum
seh, yet the appeal to our sympathies is irresistible; while
the genius of Logan has irradiated the history of his race in
the annals of the New World.

CHAPTER XVII.
THE RELATION OF THE WESTERN TRIBES TO THE REVOLU-
tlONARY CONTEST.
There is no passage in the history of the struggle between
England and her American colonies, which suggests more
impressively the special guidance and aid of Providence, than
the relations of the Indian tribes. One familiar with the
border wars of 1755 and 1763, would immediately anticipate
a third combination of all the tribes against the inhabitants
of the American frontier ; and if so, while the Atlantic cam
paigns exhausted the resources of the colonies, the most dis
astrous consequences were more than probable. There can
be no doubt that the British agents, even prior to the battle
of Lexington, urged the Indians to side with them, and assist
in subduing their rebellious children.
The first mention of the subject is in the address of the
Massachusetts Congress to the Iroquois, in April, 1775, in
which they say, that they hear the British are exciting the
savages against the colonies, and they ask the Six Nations
to aid the Americans or be neutral ; and in June following,
when James Wood visited the Western tribes, and invited
them to a councU, which he did under the direction of the
Virginia House of Burgesses, he found that Governor Carle
ton had already offered the alliance of England.^
It is not surprising that both parties should estimate highly
1) Perkins' Western Annals, p. 153. American Archives, fourth series,
iv., p. uo. (261)

262 HISTORY OF OHIO.
the miUtary power of the savages, and their abUity to turn
the impending scale of the contest. At the Revolutionary
period, Col. George Morgan supposed that the Indians of
New York, Ohio, and the vicinity of the Lakes, could bring
10,000 warriors into the field, and if a general confederacy
had been organized, the concurrence of attack — ^by the savage
hordes on one side and the British armies on the other — might
have been decisive of the result.
In their efforts to secure an Indian alliance, the English
had many advantages. Although Sir WilUam Johnson died
suddenly in June, 1774, his son-in-law. Col Guy Johnson,
had succeeded him as Superintendent. His influence, and
that of Sir William's son and heir, John Johnson, were hostile
to the colonies, and with them cooperated the celebrated Joseph
Brant. Such powerful advocacy was seconded by liberal
presents, and the English emissaries practiced with equal suc
cess the artful tactics by which the French effected the pow
erful combination of 1755, the first fruits of which was the
defeat of Braddock. On the other hand, the Americana
were poor and distressed to provide means for the army of
Washington, and the Indians were prompt to perceive the
disadvantageous contrast. Besides, the Americans were the
immediate aggressors on the hunting domains of the savages,
and their expulsion, with English aid, seemed practicable and
in aU respects desirable.
The battle of Lexington was fought on the 20th of June,
1775. In July, of that year, Col. Guy Johnson held a
Congress at Oswego with thirteen hundred and forty war
riors, and thenceforth all the Six Nations, except the Oneidas
and Tuscaroras, were in close aUiance with the British.
Joseph Brant, at the head of his fierce Mohawks, was fore
most m the league.

CONTINENTAL INDIAN DEPARTMENT. 263
How was it in the valley of the Ohio ? Dr. John Con
nolly, whose forcible occupation of Pittsburgh the year before
we have noticed, determined to show his loyalty to the crown
of England, by effecting a union of the northwestern Indians
with British troops, and, leading them from Detroit, traverse
the frontiers to eastern Virginia; where it was arranged that
he should join Lord Dunmore. But Connolly, on his retum
from a visit to Gen. Gage at Boston, where this scheme was
unquestionably concocted, was arrested at Hagarstown, Mary
land, and detained a close prisoner until 1781. Thus, at
the outset, the west was fortunate in its relief from the in
trigues of an active and unscrupulous partizan of the British
crown .^
Detroit soon became a centre of British influence, but it
is a remarkable coincidence that the efforts of officers and
agents stationed there to array the Indian tribes against the
Americans, encountered an obstacle similar to the disagree
ment of the Oneidas and Tuscaroras to the confederacy of
the New York tribes. A majority of the Delawares, and a
numerous party of the Shawanese, were in favor of neutrality
in the puzzling contest between the colonies and Great Britain.
To strengthen, and, if possible, extend this disposition. Con
gress, in July, 1775, organized three Indian departments ; a
northern one, including the Six Nations and all north and
east bf them, to the charge of which Gen. Schuyler, OUver
Wolcott and three others were appointed ; a middle depart
ment, including the western Indians, who were to be looked
to by Messrs. Franklin, Henry and WUson ; and a southern
department, including all the tribes south of Kentucky, over
which commissioners were to preside under the appointment
of the South Caroima Committee of Safety. The commis-
2) See Appendix No. VI, for further particulars of Connolly's scheme.

264 HISTORY OP OHIO.
sioners were to keep a close watch upon the nations in their
several departments, and upon the king's superintendents
among them. These officers they were to seize, if they had
reason to think them engaged in stirring up the natives
against the colonies, and in all ways were to s^ek to keep
them out of the contest. A series of conferences was held,
and Heckewelder has preserved in his narrative a report of
the talk at Pittsburgh in October or November, which the
Delaware chiefs carried back to the Muskingum :^-
" The commissioners, haring first informed the chiefs that
disputes had arisen between the king of England and the
people of this country, and that their quarreUng with each
other, could not affect them in any wise, provided they did
not interfere and take a part in it, they next proceeded to
state the cause from whence the dispute had originated,
calUng the same a family dispute, a quarrel between a parent
and his chUd, which they described as follows : ' Suppose a
father had a little son whom he loved and indulged While
young, but growing up to be a youth, began to think of
having some help from him, and making up a small pack, he
bid him carry it for him. The boy cheerfully takes this pack
up, following his father with it. The father finding the' boy
wUling and obedient, continues in this way ; and as the boy
grows stronger, so the father makes the pack in proportion
larger, — yet as long as the boy is able to carry the pack, he
does so without grumblmg. At length, however, the boy
having arrived at manhood, whUe the father is making up the
pack for him, in comes a person of an evU disposition and
learning who was to be the carrier of the pack, advises the
father to make it heavier, for surely the son is able to carry a
large pack. The father Ustening rather to the bad adriser,
3) Heckewelder's Narrative of Indian Missions, 136, etseq.

INDIAN CONFERENCE AT PITTSBURGH. 265
than his own judgment and the feelings of tenderness, follows
the advice of the hard-hearted adviser, and makes up a heavy
load for his son to carry. The son now grown up, examining
the weight of the load he is to carry, addresses the parent in
these words : ' Dear father, this pack is too heavy for me to
carry, do pray lighten it ; I am wiUing to do what I can, but
am unable to carry this load.' The father's heart by this
time having become hardened, and the bad adviser calling
to him to whip him if he disobeys and refuses to carry the
pack, now in a peremptory tone, orders his son to take up
the pack and carry it off, or he will whip him ; and already
takes up a stick to beat him. ' So,' says the son, ' am I to
be served thus, for not doing what I am unable to do ? Well,
if entreaties avail nothing with you, father, and it is to be
decided by blows, whether I am able or not to carry a pack
so heavy, then I have no other choice left me, but of resisting
your unreasonable demand by my strength ; and thus, by strik
ing each other, learn who is the strongest.' " The foregoing
parable was intended to make the colonial dispute clear to
the savage pack-carriers, and was probably concocted by that
adept m allegory, Benjamin Franklin. It -ivas^not unappre
ciated by those to whom it was directed.
This Pittsburg conference was attended by Delawares,
Senecas, and a portion of the Shawanese. One of the Dela
ware chiefs. Captain White Eyes, boldly advocated the Amer
ican cause, to the great annoyance of some Senecas, who were
in the British interest, and had come to Pittsburg to induce
the Delawares to foUow the example of the New York tribes.
These Seneca Indians reminded White Eyes, in a haughty
tone, that the Delawares were subordinate to the Six Nations,
when Captain White Eyes, (as reported by Heckewelder,)
"long since tired of this language, with his usual spirit and
12

266 HISTORY OF OHIO.
an air of disdain, rose and said, ' he well knew that the Six
Nations considered his nation as a conquered people, and their
inferiors.' ' You say (said he) that you had conquered me,^
that you had cut off my legs — had put a petticoat on me,
giving me a hoe and compounder in my hands, saying, Now
woman ! your business henceforward shall be to plant and
hoe corn, and pound the same for bread for us men and war
riors. Look (continued White Eyes) at my legs ; if as you
say, you had cut them off, they have grown again to their
proper size ! the petticoat I have thrown away, and have put
on my own proper dress ! the com hoe and pounder I have
exchanged for these fire-arms, and I declare that I am a
man.' Then waiving his hand in the direction of the Alle
ghany River, he exclaimed, ' and all the country on the other
side of that river is mine.' "
This spirited declaration by White Eyes was seized as a
pretext for a separation of the war party among the Delawares,
who were mostly the Monsie or Wolf tribe. These, led by
the Monsie chief, Newalike, and Captain Pipe, left the Mus
kingum, where the peace chiefs lived, and withdrew towards
Lake Erie, into the more immediate vicinity of the English
and their allies. The Delaware chiefs, who sustained White
Eyes' course in the councU, were, Netawatwes, who was de
posed by Col. Bouquet because he refused to attend the con
ferences on Muskingum in 1764, and whose son and nephew
had been recently converted to Christianity, Gelelemend or
KUlbuck, and Machingwi Puschus or Big Cat and others,
who (says Heckewelder,) did every thing in their power
to preserve peace among the nations, by sending embassies,
and exhorting them not to take up the hatchet, or to join
4) It must be remarked that the Indian orators always speak in the singu
lar number, though meaning the nation.

Ml!<SIONARY INFLUENCE. 267
either side, to which, however, the Sandusky Wyandots in-
solentiy replied, " that they advised their cousins, the Dela
wares, to keep good shoes in readiness to join the warriors."
This message being returned to them by the Delaware coun
cU, with the admonition " to set down and reflect on the
misery they had brought upon themselves by taking an active
part in the late war between the English and the French,"
was also carried to the Wyandots near Detroit, but having
been deUvered by White Eyes in the presence of the English
Governor, the latter treated the Delaware deputies with much
indignity. Another Delaware chief, whose influence was decidedly
for peace, was Welapachtschiechen,^ or Captain John. He
was from the Hockhocking, and had been detained as a pris
oner at Fort Pitt by Col. Bouquet, but in AprU, 1776, was
converted to Christianity, and declined his chiefship.
Heckewelder enumerates the Christian Indians at the
close of 1775, as four hundred and fourteen persons, and
there is no doubt that we owe to their pacific principles and
example, that the powerful Delaware tribe, with the excep
tions already mentioned, were restrained from joining the
hostile league, which soon embraced all the Ohio Indians,
except a few Shawanese. It was the infiuence of a mission
ary, Kirkland, which concluded the treaty at German Flats
on the 28th of June, 1775, by which the Oneidas and Tus
caroras gave to the Americans their pledge of neutrality ;6
and on the westem border, it was a missionary, Zeisberger,
who, by his timely colonization of the Muskingum in 1772,
5) Meaning " erect posture."
6) James Dean, the founder of Westmoreland, Oneida county. New York,
no less than Sarauel Kirkland, was influential in securing the friendship of
the Oneidas. We havo compiled (Appendix No. "VII,) the allusions to his
efforts and adventure."!, which occur in the American Archives, fourth series.

268 HISTORY OF OHIO.
was indirectly influential, three years afterwards, in remov
ing the keystone of a hostile league of all the tribes from the
Cherokees to the Chippewas, against the struggling colo
nies. It is our firm belief, that if God had not placed those
devoted messengers of the gospel in the interior of New
York, and on the Muskingum of central Ohio, respectively,
at the precise period, and in the precise circumstances of the
case, that an indomitable host of Indian warriors would have
penetrated to the heart of the Atlantic States, simultaneously
-with the lowest depression of the American army. At a
later period, even the Delawares were swept into the vortex
of hostilities, but fortunately the French alliance had then
been consummated, invigorating the army and the country —
the rumor of which was most potential upon the Indian tribes
and European colonists of the Wabash, the Illinois, the Mis
sissippi, and even the lakes.
If we mistake not, Samuel Kirkland sleeps in the valley
of the Oriskany, and the grave of David Zeisberger is visible
near the Muskingum — spots alike worthy of patriotic con}-'
memoration. Few. who bore arms in the revolutionary strug
gle, contributed more than they to its fortunate progress and
consummation. Fortunately also for the United States, Col. George Mor
gan of Princeton, New Jersey, was appointed Indian agent
for the middle department, with his headquarters at Pitts
burgh, in AprU, 1776. He is described in Hildreth's Pio
neer History, as "a man of unwearied activity, great perse
verance, and familiar with the Indian manners and habits;
having for several years had charge of a trading post in the
Illinois, after that country was given up by the French,
which was owned by a commercial house in PhUadelphia.
His frank manners, soldierly bearing, generosity, and, above

COL. GEORGE MORGAN'S INDIAN AGENCY. 269
all, his strict honesty in all his dealings with them, won their
fullest, confidence ; and no v/hite man was ever more highly
esteemed than was Col. Morgan, by all the savages who had
any intercourse with him. He was a native of Philadelphia,
and at the time of his appointment, held the post of Colonel
in the army of the United States." As we shaU see here
after, this praise is not exaggerated. The Delawares gave
the name of Tamenend to Col. Morgan, which, according to
Heckewelder, was the highest praise they could confer.
For nearly two years, the judicious and conciliatory course
of Morgan prevented a g^eral attack upon the frontier. It
was a gloomy period, nevertheless, but marked by more
apprehension of danger, than was in fact experienced. The
friendly dispositions of the Delawares and some of the Shaw
anese and Wyandots, led them to advise the agent at Pitts
burgh, of the hostile expeditions from the vicinity of Detroit
and Lake Erie, and vigilant measures in abandoning or pro
tecting an exposed situation, were usually successful. It was
'known that the British were making extraordinary efforts to
mature a formidable Indian campaign, but the explosion yet
Ungered. Still there were not wanting instances of savage
barbarity, which suggested measures of retribution, and in
the spring of 1777, Patrick Henry, then governor of Vir
ginia, had resolved to send an expedition under the command
of Col. David Shepherd, and Maj. Henry Taylor, to invade
the country west of the Ohio, and especially to chastise a
mongrel band of Indians, only sixty or eighty in number,
whose village on the head waters of the Scioto was caUed
¦P'^ggy's Town, from the name of their chief. Governor
Henry, in a letter to Col. Morgan, dated March 12, 1777,
was explicit in thus defining the destination of the party,
which was to consist of three hundred men. The Wyandots

27U nite'i'uui' OF uHiu.
were not yet in arms, though understood to be fully commit
ted to Govemor Hamilton of Detroit. But the agent at
Pittsburgh, even then, was conscious that the utmost circum
spection was requisite, or calamitous consequences would be
precipitated, and, jointly with John NevUl, he replied in
terms, of which an extract will forcibly indicate the feverish
condition of the border. After assuring Gov. Henry that
the most effectual measures to aid the expedition, if under
taken, should be pursued. Colonel Morgan .and his coUeague
added :
" We nevertheless wish we were left more at liberty to
exercise our judgments, or to take advice on the expediency
and practicability of the undertaking at this critical time :
for although we are persuaded, from what has already passed
between Col. Morgan and our allies, the Delawares and Shaw
anese, that they would wish us success therein ; yet we ap
prehend the inevitable consequences of this expedition wUl be
a general Indian war, which we are persuaded it is the inter
est of the State at this time to avoid, even by the mortifying
means of liberal donations to certain leading men among the
nations, as well as by calling them again to a general treaty.
And if the State of Pennsylvania should judge it prudent
to take some steps to gratify the Six Nations in regard to
the encroachments made on their lands on the northwestern
frontier of that State, of which they have so repeatedly com
plained, we hope and believe it would have a salutary effect.
The settiement of the lands on the Ohio, below the Kenhawa
and at Kentucky, gives the western nations great uneasiness.
How far the State of Virginia may judge it wise to withdraw
or confine those settlements for a certain term of years or dur
ing the British war, is too delicate a matter for us to give an
opinion; but we have reason to think that the measures we

MURDER OF UORNtiTALK. 271
have (though perhaps out of the strict line of our duty) pre
sumed to hint at, would not only tend greatly to the happiness
of this country, but to the interest of the whole State ; more
especially if measures can be taken to treat the different
nations in aU respects with justice, humanity, and hospitality ;
for which purpose, and to punish robberies and murders com
mitted on any of our allies, some wholesome orders or acts
of government may possibly be necessary ; for parties have
been formed to massacre some who have come to visit us in
a friendly manner, and others who have been hunting on their
own lands, the known friends to the commonwealth. These
steps, if continued, will deprive us of all our Indian allies,
and multiply our enemies. Even the spies who have been
employed by the county-lieutenants of Monongahela and Ohio,
seem to have gone on this plan, with a premeditated design to
involve us in a general Indian war ; for on the 13th of March,
at day-break, five or six of these spies fired on three Delaware
Indians on this side the Delaware town, between that and
Wheeling, and out of the country or track of our enemies.
Luckily all the Indians escaped, only one of them was wounded,
and that slightly in the wrist."
Col. Morgan, in the same letter, anticipates no attack from
Detroit or Sandusky, there being no garrison at the latter
place, and but sixty-six soldiers at Detroit, from whence by
land to Fort Pitt is near three hundred miles, impassable by
artiUery, and all that country (he is) told could not furnish
to an enemy of one thousand men, sufficient provisions or
horses, for such an expedition.
If the Shawanese, or any portion of the tribe, were dis
posed to be allies of the Americans, as Morgan intimates, an
event soon occurred, which extinguished any such sentiment.
The revolutionary annals of the Ohio valley have many dark

272 HISTORY OF OHIO.
stains, but none of deeper dye than the massacre of the heroic
Cornstalk. That magnanimous chief, after the treaty of 1774
with Dunmore, had been the steadfast friend of neutraUty
among the belligerent whites. Perhaps he had the sagacity
to perceive that the future of his race could not be altered
by any issue of the controversy — that the rapacity of Euro
peans, not of a party, was the proper object of patriotic dread.
In the spring of 1777, Cornstalk, accompanied by Red
Hawk (the reader wUl remember the Shawanese orator at
the council held by Col. Bouquet, in 1764,) came on a
friendly visit to the fort at Point Pleasant, communicated the
hostile disposition among the Ohio-iribes, and expressed his
sorrow that the Shawanese nation, except himself and his
tribe, were determined to espouse the British side, and his
apprehension that he and his people would be compelled to
go with the stream, unless the Long Knives could protect
them. Upon receiving this information, the commander of the
garrison. Captain Arbuckle, seized upon Cornstalk and his
companion as hostages for the peaceful conduct of his nation,
and set about avaUing himself of the advantage he had gained
by his suggestions. During his- captivity. Cornstalk held
frequent conversations with the officers, and took pleasure in
describing to them the geography of the west, then littie
known. One afternoon, while he was engaged in drawing
on the fioor a map of the Missouri territory, its water courses
and mountains, a halloo was heard from the forest, which he
recognized as the voice of his son, EUinipsico, a young war
rior, whose courage and address were almost as celebrated
as his own. EUinipsico entered the fort and embraced his
father most affectionately, having been uneasy at his long
absence, and come hither in search of him.

MURDER OF UOBNSTjiLK. 273
The day after his arrival, two men belonging to the fort,
whose names were Hamilton and Gilmore, crossed the Ken
hawa, intending to hunt in the woods beyond it. On their
return from hunting, some Indians, who had come to view
the position at the Point, concealed themselves in the weeds
near the mouth of the Kenhawa, and killed Gilmore while
endeavoring to pass them. Col. Stewart (who was at the
post in the character of a volunteer) was standing on the
opposite bank of the river at the time, and was surprised
that a gun had been fired so near the fort in violation of
orders. Hamilton ran down the- bank, and cried out that Gilmore
was killed. Captain Hall commanded the company to which
Gilmore belonged. His men leaped into a canoe and has
tened to the relief of Hamilton. They brought the body of
Gilmore, weltering in blood and the head scalped, across the
river. The canoe had scarcely reached the shore, when the
cry was raised, "KiU the red dogs in the fort!" Captain
HaU placed himself in front of his soldiers, and they ascended
the river's bank, pale with rage, and carrying their loaded
firelocks in their hands. Colonel Stewart and Captain Ar
buckle exerted themselves in vain to dissuade the men, exas
perated to madness by the spectacle of GUmore's corpse,
from the cruel deed which they contemplated. They cocked
their guns, threatening those gentlemen with instant death
if they did not desist, and rushed into the fort.
The interpreter's wife, who had been a captive among the
Indians, and felt an affection for them, ran to their cabin
and informed them that HaU's soldiers were advancing, with
the intention of taking their lives, because they believed that
the Indians who Idlled Gilmore had come with Cornstalk's
son on the preceding day. This the young man solemnly

274 uisTORir of ohio.
denied, declaring that he had come alone, and with the sole
object of seeking his father. When the soldiers came within
hearing, the young warrior appeared agitated. Cornstalk
encouraged him to meet his fate composedly, and said to
him, " My son, the Great Spirit has sent you here that we
may die together." He turned to meet his murderers the
next instant, and receiving seven bullets in his body, expired
without a groan.
When Cornstalk had fallen, EUinipsico continued still
and passive, not even raising himself from his seat. He
met death in that position with the 'utmost calmness. The
Red Hawk made an attempt to climb the chimney, but fell
by the fire of some of HaU's men.
The day before his death. Cornstalk had been present at
a council of the officers, and had spoken to them on the
subject of the war, with his own peculiar eloquence. In the
course of his remarks, he expressed something like a pre
sentiment of his fate ; " When I was young," he said, " and
went out to war, I often thought each would be my last
adventure, and I should return no more. I stUl Uved. Now
r am in the midst of you, and if you choose, you may kill
me. I can die but once. It is alike to me whether now or
hereafter." His atrocious murder was dearly expiated. The warlike
Shawanese were thenceforth the foremost in excursions upon
the frontier, particularly the scattered and exposed stations
of Kentucky.

CHAPTER XVIII.
BORDER WAR OF THE REVOLUTION.
We have forborne, with some effort of self-denial, to enlarge
upon the early explorations and occupation of Kentucky by
the whites. We have paused on the margin of the Ohio as
the boundary of our subject, as well as of the state whose
introductory annals constitute our special theme ; but with
a fuU consciousness of the fascinating interest which invests
pioneer life in Kentucky. The solitary wanderings of Boone
and Kenton as early as 1769, in the valleys of the Kentucky
and Licking, where immense herds of buffalo sought the
Saline springs — the adventures of Knox and his band of
forty hunters who crossed the Appalachian chain in 1770,
and explored the wild and broken region lying upon the_
northern boundaries of Tennessee — Boone's repulse by the
Indians, when, in 1773, he attempted to remove five families
besides his own, from the Yadkin in North Carolina to the
banks of the Kentucky — the settlements of the McAfees,
Thomas BuUett, Hancock, Taylor, James Douglas, Colonel
Floyd and others also in 1773 — the foundation of Harrods-
burg by the solitary log cabin of James Harrod in 1774 —
the claim of Richard Henderson to the lands lying between
the Kentucky and Cumberland Rivers, by a grant from the
Cherokee Indians, and under which, notwithstanding the
protest of Virginia afterwards successfully enforced, the col
ony of Transylvania was organized on the 23d of May, 1775
— the arrival of four American women, Mrs. Boone, Mrs.
(275)

276 HISTORY of ohio.
McGary, Mrs. Denton, and Mrs. Hogan, at Boonesborough
in September, 1775 — the rapid increase of emigration thence
forth — the appointment of George Rogers Clark, and one
Gabriel Jones, in June, 1776, at a little Congress assembled
in Boonesborough, to represent Kentucky in the Assembly
of Virginia — at length, after a year's suspense and appre
hension, excited by occasional outbreaks of Indian hostiUty,
the frightful scenes of 1777, Avh'en the Shawanese once more,
as in 1774, ravaged the settlements: — this succession of
events, although of thrilling interest, we must dismiss with
the most cursory allusion.
As we have said, the murder of Cornstalk terminated all
uncertainty, and precipitated the savages over the Kentucky
and Virginia border. At the close of 1777, only three set
tlements existed in the interior of Kentucky — Harrodsburg,
Boonesborough and Logan's — and of these three, the whole
mUitary population, did not exceed one hundred and two in
number. It was a year of siege, of struggle, of suffering —
but the gloomy months elicited some extraordinary instances
of heroism and humanity. We read of James Ray, a lad of
sixteen, loading an old horse with the game which he shot
by day, remote from Harrodsburg, and silently stealing into
the besieged fort at night, whence, however, he would again
emerge before the next dawn, thus for weeks saving the dis
tressed garrison from starvation — of Benjamin Logan, break
ing from the shelter of a block house, into a tempest of rifle
balls, to rescue a wounded comrade who had been surprised
by an ambush of savages : and of a journey of four hundred
mUes, through a wilderness swarming with war parties of
Indians, and across the mountains to the settlements, to
obtain ammunition for his beleaguered companions, success
fully accomplishing his hazardous errand. Such, and similar

SIEGE OF FORT HENRY. 27j
occurrences, which tradition fondly cherishes, are the romance
of history.
The month of September witnessed the siege of WheeUng.
Here, where the Zanes had settled in 1770, Fort Fincastie
(so called from the western county of Virginia,) was estab
lished by Lord Dunmore in 1774. The name was changed
in 1776, to Fort Henry, in honor of Patrick Henry, then
Governor of Virginia, and this fort was the central point
between Fort Pitt and the stockade at the mouth of Ken
hawa. In the early autumn of 1777, Colonel Hand, who
commanded at Fort Pitt, was informed that a large body of
the northwestern Indians was preparing to attack the posts
of the Upper Ohio. On the evening of September 26, smoke
was seen by those near Wheeling, down the river, and was
supposed to proceed from the burning of the block house at
Grave Creek, and the people of the vicinity, taking the
alarm, repaired to the fort. Here were assembled forty-two
fighting men, well supplied with rifles and muskets, but with
a scanty supply of gunpowder. Early on the 27th, two men,
who were sent out for horses, for the purpose of alarming
neighboring settlements, and had proceeded some distance
from the fort, met a party of six savages, by whom one of
them was shot. The commandant. Col. Shepherd, learning
from the survivor, that there were but six of the assaUants,
sent a party of flfteen men in pursuit. These were led into
an ambush, where, completely surrounded, all but three
were kiUed. StUl another band of thirteen men rushed from
the fort to the assistance of their comrades, and shared their
fate. It was now sunrise, and four hundred Indians, led by
Simon Girty, soon invested the fort, which was defended by
only twelve men and boys.
Fort Henry stood immediately upon the bank of the Ohio,

278 HISTORY OF OHIO.
about a quarter of a mUe above the mouth of Wheeling
creek. Between it and the steep river hiU on the east, were
twenty or thirty log huts, which the Indians occupied, and
challenged the garrison to surrender. Colonel Shepherd
refused, and the attack commenced. From sunrise until
noon, the fire on both sides was constant, when that of the
assailants slackened. Within the fort, the only alarm was,
for the want of powder, and then it was remembered that a
keg was concealed in the house of Ebenezer Zane, some
sixty yards distant. It was determined to make an effort to
obtain it, and the question, "Who wiU go?" was proposed.
Then occurred an incident which is related as follows by Mr.
G. S. McKiernan, in the American Pioneer :^
" At this crisis, a young lady, the sister of Ebenezer and
Silas Zane, came forward and desired that she might be
permitted to execute the service. This proposition seemed
so extravagant that it met with a peremptory refusal ; but
she instantly renewed her petition in terms of redoubled
earnestness, and all the remonstrances of the Colonel and
her relatives failed to dissuade her from her heroic purpose.
It was finally represented to her that either of the young
men, on account of his superior fieetness and famiUarity with
scenes of danger, would be more likely than herself to do
the work successfully. She replied that the danger which
would attend the enterprise was the identical reason that
induced her to offer her services, for, as the garrison was
very weak, no soldier's life should be placed in needless
jeopardy, and that if she were to fall her loss would not be
felt. Her petition was ultimately granted, and the gate
opened for her to pass out. The opening of the gate arrested
the attention of several Indians who were straggUng through
1) Vol. ii., p. .309.

SIEGE OF FOr.T HENRY. 279
the vUlage. It was noticed that their eyes were upon her
as she crossed the open space to reach her brother's house ;
but seized, perhaps, with a sudden freak of clemency, or
believing that a woman's life was not worth a load of gun
powder, or infiuenced by some other unexplained motive, they
permitted her to pass without molestation. When she reap
peared with the powder in her arms, the Indians, suspecting,
no doubt, the character of her burden, elevated their fire-
lopks and discharged a volley at her as she swiftly glided
towards the gate ; but the balls all flew wide of the mark,
and the fearless girl reached the fort in safety with her prize.
The pages of history may fumish a parallel to the noble
exploit of Elizabeth Zane, but an instance- of greater self-
devotion and moral intrepidity is not to be found any
where."^ The assault was resumed with much fierceness, and con
tinued until evening. , A party of eighteen or twenty Indians,
armed with rails and billets of wood, rushed forward and
attempted to force open the gate of the fort, but were
repulsed with the loss of six or eight of their number. As
darkness set in, the fire of the savages grew weaker, though
it was not entirely discontinued until next morning. Soon
after nightfaU, a considerable party of Indians advanced
within sixty yards of the fort, bringing with them a hoUow
maple log, which they had converted into a cannon by plug
ging up one of its ends with a block of wood. To give it
additional strength, a quantity of chains, taken from a black
smith's shop, encompassed it from end to end. It was heavily
charged with powder, and then filled to the muzzle with
2) " Elizabeth Zane afterwards lived about two miles above Bridgeport,
on the Ohio side of the river, near Martinsville, in Belmont county. She
was twice married — first to Mr. McLaughlin, and, secondly, to Mr. Clark."
— Howe's Ohio Historical Collections, 61.

280 HISTORY OF OHIO.
pieces of stones, slugs of iron, and such other hard substances
as could be found. The cannon was graduated carefuUy to
discharge its contents against the gate of the fort. When
the match was applied, it burst into many fragments, and
although it made no effect upon the fort, it killed and wounded
several of the Indians who stood by to witness its discharge.
A loud yell succeeded the failure of this experiment, and
the crowd dispersed.
Late in the evening, Francis Duke, a son-in-law of Col.
Shepherd, arrived from the forks of WheeUng, and was shot
down by the Indians before he could reach the gate of the
fort. Early next morning. Col. Swearingen, with fourteen
men from Cross creek, and Major Samuel McCuUough, with
forty mounted men from Short creek, succeeded in reaching
the inclosure, except Major McCuliough himself, who was
not permitted to pass the gateway. After a perUous pursuit,
Putnam-like,- he baffled the Indians, by dashing his horse
down an almost perpendicular precipice of one hundred and
fifty feet descent, with Wheeling creek at its base, and so
made his escape.
After the escape of Major McCuUough, the Indians con
centrated at the foot of the hUl, and soon after set fire to all
the houses and fences outside of the fort, and kUled about
three hundred head of cattle belonging to the settiers. They
then raised the siege and disappeared.
This band were principally Wyandots, with some Mingoes
and Shawanese, and their loss is estimated at from sixty to
one hundred. The total number of Americans kiUed was
twenty-six, and four or five -(vere wounded. During the
investiture of the fort, not a man within the waUs was killed,
and only one slightly wounded.
This attack upon Fort Henry indicates decisively that the

DELAWARE NEUTRALITY. 281
Wyandots, Ottawas, Mingoes and Shawanese were engaged
in open hostiUties against the Americans in the autumn of
1777 ; and about the same time, the Delawares began to
waver in their resolution to observe a neutrality. A report
was circulated that Col. Hand, who had recently been ap
pointed to the command at Pittsburgh, was about to march,
with a body of American troops, to attaclT Goschocking, the
Delaware town at the forks of the Muskingum. Captain
Pike's party was immediately on the alert, and he declared
that he would join the Wyandots to repel the Americans.
Very soon, however, friendly speeches were received from
the commandant at Pittsburgh and Col. Morgan, assuring
the Delawares that they had nothing to fear. Notwithstand
ing these assurances, the American officers were unable to
restrain a party of freebooters from the Ohio settlements,
who were proceeding in October to destroy the Delaware
towns, when they were encountered by a party of Wyandots,
and defeated with great slaughter. It can be readily con
ceived that such an outrage would exasperate the Delawares
and make it almost impossible to prevent an offensive alliance
with the Wyandots and Shawanese. The war-party increased
daily. During the winter of 1777-8, Alexander McKee,
Matthew Elliott and Simon Girty^ made their appearance in
3) These names will occur so frequently that some other than incidental
notice of them may be expected.
Alexander McKee had been an Indian agent of the British government ;
and, -n'hen here mentioned, had been permitted to go at large on parol,
which he forfeited by leaving Pittsburgh at this time.
Mathew Elliott was an Indian trader, and we first hear of him in 1774, as
an envoy to Lord Dunmore from the submissive Shawanese. He continued
to traverse the Indian country as a trader, but after the war between England
and the colonies, he received a commission as a British captain. He con
cealed this fact, however, and was once taken prisoner by a party of San
dusky warriors, but was of course liberated at Detroit. On his return to
Pittsburgh he endeavored to deceive the inhabitants and authorities with
12*

282 HISTORY OF OHIO.
the Muskingum towns, with the false inteUigence that the
English were completely victorious, and that the Americans,
driven to the westward, were about to wage an indiscrimmate
war against the Indians. This redoubled the activity of
Captain Pipe, and great consternation prevaUed among the
Delawares. The peace-chief, White Eyes, saw, with much
concern, that an overwhelming majority of his nation, under
the influence of McKee and his associates, were resolved
upon war, but he did not lose his self-possession. Knowing
that his conduct was closely watched by his astute rival,
Captain Pipe, White Eyes caUed a general councU of the
nation, in which, when assembled, he proposed to delay hos
tilities against the Americans for ten days, in order to obtain
further information, either from Tamenend, (Col. Morgan)
Col. Gibson, or some other friend. Pipe, thinking that the
regard to his real character, by boasting of his ingenuity in having pro
cured his liberation from the British. In the winter of 1777, McKee and
Elliott seemed to have absconded from Pittsburgh, and were thenceforth
tbe avowed emissaries of the British, as we find above.
There were three Girtys — Simon, George and James. They were taken
prisoners from Pennsylvania about 1755, and adopted into different tribes.
Simon became a Seneca; and, although a white savage, was not incapable
of humane conduct, and was scrupulously exact in the redemption of his
word. James was adopted by the Shawanese, and seems to have been an
unmitigated monster. George was adopted by the Delawares, and belonged
to that small fragment of the tribes who were constantly engaged in the
campaigns against the settlements. The trio were desperate drunkards.
Early in the Revolutionary struggle, the Girtys, like their Indian brethren,
were undecided how to act. Even in the summer of 1777, James Girty was
the medium of speeches and presents from the Americans, to atone for the
murder of Cornstalk ; while Simon Girty acted as interpreter forthe United
States on many occasions. About 1777, however, both brothers had been
seduced by the British emissaries,' and are known to border tradition as
renegades. This is hardly just. They should not be regarded otherwise
than as Indians of their respective tribes. Such had been their training—
their education. They wero white savages — nothing else — and the active
partizans of Great Britain for the rest of the century.

A CRISIS AT COSHOCTON. 283
moment had arrived to destroy the influence of White Eyes,
or "place him in the back ground," as Heckewelder ex
presses it, summoned the warriors together, and proposed
" to declare every man an enemy to the nation who should
throw an obstacle in the way that might tend to prevent the
taking up arms against the American people." White Eyes,
seeing the blow aimed against himself, once more assembled
his men and told them, " That if they meant in eamest to
go out, (as he observed some of them were preparing to do)
they should not go without him. He had taken peace meas
ures in order to save the nation from utter destruction. But
if they believed that he was in the wrong, and gave more
credit to vagabond fugitives, whom he knew to be such, than
to himself, who was best acquainted with the real state of
things — if they had determined to foUow their advice, and
go out against the Americans, he would go out with them,
but not like the hear hunter, who sets the dogs on the animal
to be beaten about with his paws while he keeps at a safe
distance. No ! he would himself lead them on, place him
self in the front, and be the first who should faU. They
only had to determine what they meant to do, for his own
nund was fully made up not to survive the nation ; and he
would not spend the remainder of a miserable life in bewail
ing the total destruction of a brave people who deserved a
better fate."
This spirited address of White Eyes had the desired effect ;
aU declared that they would wait until the ten days were
expired, and many added that they never would go to war
against the American people unless they had him for a leader.
It so happened that our old friend, John Heckewelder,
had been dispatched in February, 1778, by the Moravians
of Bethlehem, with instructions to repair to Pittsburgh, and,

284 HISTORY OF OHIO.
if possible, to the Muskingum, and ascertain the condition
and prospects of the Ohio missionaries and their flocks. He
bore a passport from Henry Laurens, the President of Con
gress, and, upon his arrival at Pittsburgh, found the officer
in ccpimand, Col. Hand, and the Indian agent, Col. Morgan,
extremely solicitous lest the machinations of McKee, EUiott
and Girty should result in the total alienation of the Dela
wares. They had sought in vain for a trusty messenger to
bear their pacific messages — the risk of death from the
numerous war parties of Indians being so imminent. The
devoted Heckewelder, "after due consideration during a
night," determined to undertake the hazardous journey. He
was accompanied, he says, " by a white man, brother John
Shabosch, who had married an Indian sister, and whose
family resided at Gnadenhutten." We shaU continue the
narrative of their subsequent , adventures in the words of
Heckewelder himself :
" Accordingly, in the morning," as his narrative proceeds,
" we made known our resolution to Cols. Hand and Gibson,
whose best wishes for our success we were assured of, and
leaving our baggage behind, and turning a deaf ear to all
entreaties of well-meaning friends, who considered us lost if
we went, we crossed the Alleghany River, and at eleven
o'clock in the night, after the third day, reached Gnaden
hutten, after having several times narrowly escaped faUing
in with war-parties. Indeed, in one instance, we were en
camped on the Big Beaver, near its mouth, when a party of
warriors in that very night were murdering people on Raccoon
creek, not many miles distant from where we were, though we
were ignorant of the circumstances at that time. We had
traveled all day and night, only leaving our horses time to feed.
We crossed the Big Beaver, which had overfiowed its banks,

A CRISIS AT COSHOCTON. 285
on a raft we had made of poles. Other large creeks on the
way we swam with our horses — never attempting to kindle a
fire, fearing lest we might be discovered by the warriors
perceiving the smoke. When arrived within a few mUes of
Gnadenhutten, we distinctly heard the beat of a drum, and
on drawing near, the war-song of an Indian party : all which
being in the direction of the town, we naturally concluded
that the Christian Indians must have moved off; wherefore
we proceeded with caUtion, lest we should fall into the hands
of the warriors. However, the people still there informed
us that the war-party consisted of Wyandots from Sandusky,
who arrived that evening, and were encamped on the bluff
two miles below the town, on the opposite side of the river ;
and who probably would the next morning travel along the
path we had just come.
" Fatigued as we were, after our journey, and without one
hour of sound sleep, I was now requested by the inhabitants
of Gnadenhutten, to proceed immediately to Goschoching,
about thurty miles distant. At that place, all was trouble and
confusion; and many were preparing to go off to fight the
American people, in consequence of the advice given them by
McKee, ElUott and Girty ; who had told them that the Ameri
cans were embodying themselves at this time, for the purpose
of kiUing every Indian they should meet with, be he friend or
foe. We were further informed that Captain White Eyes had
been threatened with death, if he persisted m vindicating the
character of the American people: many believing the sto
ries propagated by McKee and his associates, had, in conse
quence already shaved their heads, ready to lay on the war-
plume, and turn out to war, as soon as the ten days, which
White Eyes had desired them to wait, should have expired ;
and to-morrow being the ninth day, and no message having

286 HISTORY OF OHIO.
arrived from their- friends at Pittsburgh, they were now pre
paring to go; and further, that this place, Gnadenhutten
was now breaking up, and its inhabitants were to join the
congregation at- Lichtenan : they having been assured that
.they were not safe, even for one day, from an attack by the
Americans, while they remained here. Finding the matter
so very urgent, and admitting of not even a day's delay, I
consented to proceed. After enjoying a few hours' repose,
and furnished with a trusty companion and a fresh horse,
between three and four in the evenuig, the national assistant,
John Martin, being called on for the purpose, we sat out,
swimming our horses across the Muskingum River, and
taking a circuit through the woods, in order to avoid the
encampment of the war party, which was close to our path.
Arriving about ten o'clock in the forenoon, within sight of
Goschoching, a few yells were given by a person who had
discovered us, to notify the inhabitants that a white man was
coming. This immediately drew the whole body of the Indi
ans into the street ; but although I saluted them in passing,
not a single person returned the compliment; which, as my
conductor observed, was no good omen. Even Captain
White Eyes and the other chiefs, who had always befriended
me, no-w stepped back, when I reached out my hand to them.
This strange conduct would have disheartened me, had I not
observed among the crowd, some men well known to me as
spies of Captain Pipe, watching the actions of these peace-
chiefs. I was therefore satisfied, that they were acting from
policy, and not from any ill wiU against me personaUy.
Indeed, on looking round, I thought I could read joy in the
countenances of many of them, on seeing me among them at
so critical a juncture, when they had been told but a few
days before, that nothing short of their destruction had been

HECKEWELDER CONCILIATES THE DELAWARES. 287
determined upon by the long knives (the Virginians or Amer
ican people.) Yet as no one would reach out his hand to
me, I inquired into the cause : when Captain Whijse Eyes,
boldly stepping forward, replied : ' That by what had been
told them by McKee and his party, they no longer had a.
single friend among the American people : if, therefore, this
be so, they must consider every white man who came to
them from that side as an enemy, who came but to deceive
them, and to put them off their guard, in order to give an
enemy an opportunity to take them by surprise.' I repUed
that the imputation was unfounded, and that were I not
their friend, they would have never seen me here. ' Then,'
continued White Eyes, ' will you tell us the truth with regard
to what I ask?' On my having assured him of this, he
asked me : 'Are the American armies aU cut to pieces by
the English troops? Is General Washington kiUed? Is
there no more a Congress ; and have the EngUsh hung some
of them, and taken the rest to. England to hang them there ?
Is the whole country beyond the mountains in the posses
sion of the English ; and are the few thousand Americans,
who have escaped them, now embodying themselves on this
side of the mountains for the purpose of kiUing all the Indi
ans in this country, even our women and children? Now
do not^deceive us, but speak the truth; is all this true that I
have been saying to you ? '
"I declared before the whole assembly, that not one
word of what he had just now told me was true ; and held
out to him, as I had done before, the friendly speeches sent
for them by me ; which he however refused to accept, prob
ably from prudential considerations. I thought by the coun
tenances of most of the bystanders, that the moment bade
fair for their listening at least to the contents of these

288 HISTORY OF OHIO.
speeches, and accidentally catching the drammer's eye, I
called to him to beat the drum for the assembly to meet, for
the purpose of hearing what their American brethren had to
say to them. There was a general smUe of approbation;
and White Eyes, thinking the favorable moment had arrived,
asked the assembly, ' Shall we, my friends and relations,
Usten once more to those who call us their brethren ? ' The
question was answered almost by acclamation: the drum
was beat, and the whole body repaired to the councU house.
The speeches, all of which were of the most pacific nature,
were read and interpreted to them: when Captain White
Eyes rose, and in a long address, took particular notice of
the good disposition of the American people towards the
Indians; observing that they had never as yet called on
them to fight the English, knowing that wars were destruc
tive to nations ; and that they (the Americans) had, from
the beginning of the war to the present time, always advised
the Indians to remain quiet, and not to take up the hatchet
against either side. A newspaper containmg the capitular
tion of General Burgoyne's army, bemg found enclosed in
the packet. White Eyes again rose, and holding the paper
unfolded with both his hands, so that all could have 'a riew
of it, said, ' See, my friends and relatives, this document
contains great events ; not the song of a bird, but the truth.'
Then stepping up to me, he gave me his hand; saying, 'you
are welcome with us, brother.' Every one present immedi
ately followed his example."
But for the expedition of Heckewelder, and the foregoing
interview, the spring of 1778 would have ineritably recruited
the Indian allies of Great Britain with the Delawares of
Ohio. It is interesting, also, to mark the reverberation of
the victory at Saratoga (its date was October 17, 1777,)

burgoyne's SURRENDER. 289
in the westem wilderness. The surrender of Burgoyne,
which, in the old world, led to the recognition of American
Independence by France, and the presentiment in England
that the colonies were lost, was not without its salutary influ
ence upon the savage denizens of the Ohio and the other
tributaries of the mighty Mississippi.
The affair at Saratoga was of some use to the Indian
agent at Pittsburgh. The Spanish Governor of Louisiana,
addressed a letter written in his own language, to Colonel
Morgan, which was dated August 9th, 1777, but only
received "by due course," on the 24th of February, 1778.
Unluckily, the agent knew no Spanish, and on forwarding it
to Congress, not a member of that honorable body could
read it, nor (as the Colonel reluctantly confessed in his
reply) could any person be found capable and worthy of
trust to translate it. As it was, Col. Morgan replied to
Don Bernardo de Galvez in sturdy English, detailing with
much patriotic unction, what White Eyes had justly denomi
nated the " great event" of Burgoyne's surrender.

13

CHAPTER XIX.
THE CONQUEST OF ILLINOIS BY GEORGE ROGERS CLARK.
INDLAN SIEGES OF FORT LAURENS.
During the years 1777-8 the conviction had been forced
upon Congress, that Detroit must be taken, or the English
governor of that post checked in some manner, or a heavy
blow would fall upon the colonial cause from the depths of the
Western wilderness, which, in connection with the pressure
of the seaboard might be fatal to the United States. Early
in the spring of 1778, preparations for an invasion of the
enemy's territory were commenced. Col. Morgan was in
structed to make an estimate of the quantity of prorisions
necessary for the support of three thousand men for three
months. " The stock to be laid in amounted to 610,000 lbs.
of flour, 732,000 lbs. beef, requiring 3,812 horses for the
transport of the flour, and 2,440 head of cattle, which were
to be driven on foot and slaughtered as needed. It also
required 136 horses to transport the single article of salt.
The food for the horses and cattle was to be chiefly furnished
by the native growth of grass, vines, &c., found in abun
dance at that day during the summer months on the rich lands
of the West. The whole expense of this expedition was
estimated at $609,538. The cattie cost at that time £10,
or $33.33 a head : the horses cost .£25, or $83.25 each.
Flour was fifty shillings a hundred, or sixpence a pound,
equal to sixteen dollars a barrel. The price of a common
woodman's axe was thirty shillings, or five dollars, and the
(290)

M'INTOSH'S OHIO EXPEDITION. 291
price of a pack saddle was the same. Salt was six pounds
a bushel or twenty dollars. These were specie prices, not
estimated in a depreciated currency ."^
A simUar division of the army of invasion was proposed,
as was made by Dunmore in 1774. Fifteen hundred men
were to march through Green Briar, down the Big Kenawha
to Fort Randolph, at the junction with the Ohio, and the same
force was to assemble at Fort Pitt and descend the Ohio to
that post. In fact, the former detachment was never levied,
and Gen. Mcintosh, who was appointed to the command of
the expedition, had never a greater force than fifteen hundred
men, if so many. In the spring of 1778, he crossed the
mountains with a body of five hundred troops. Soon after,
he buUt a fort which bore his name, on the alluvian plain
near the mouth of Big Beaver, intended to cover any excur
sion into the Indian country. It was a regular stockade,
with four bastions, each mounted with a six-pounder.
The summer wore away, and on the 17th of September,
a councU with the Delawares was held at Pittsburg, and their
consent to march through their territory obtained. Of this
conference. Col. Morgan, who was absent at PhUadelphia when
it was held, says in a letter written soon afterwards : " There
never was a conference with the Indians so improperly or so
viUainously conducted as the late one at Pittsburg." The
assurances given to the Delawares were so wantonly neglec
ted, that Col. Morgan had great difficulty in preventing a
total aUenation of the tribe. To conciliate their chiefs, they
were encouraged to risit Congress in the spring of 1779.
In October, 1778, General Mcintosh assembled one thou
sand men at the newly erected fort at the mouth of Beaver,
and marched into the enemy's country. The design upon
1) Hlldreth's Pioneer History.

292 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Detroit had been relinquished, and the first object of the
expedition was to attack the Wyandots and other Indians
near Sandusky. After marching, about seventy mUes beyond
Fort Mcintosh, the troops halted on the west bank of the
Tuscarawas River, a Uttle below the mouth of Sandy creek.
Here, on a elevated plain, it was concluded to build a stock
ade, which was named Fort Laurens. After its completion,
a garrison of 150 men was placed in it, and left in the charge
of Col. John Gibson, while the rest of the army returned to
Fort Pitt. So unexpected and rapid were the movements of
Gen. Mcintosh, that the Indians were not aware of his pres
ence in their country, until the fort was completed.
Fortunately for the safety of the frontiers — fortunately
for the Republic, while this languid and inefficient campaign
disappointed the hopes of Congress on the upper Ohio, George
Rogers Clark was achieving the happiest results in the region
of the Wabash and the IlUnois. This hero of Kentucky dirides
the mUitary honors of the Northwestern Territory, with
Anthony Wayne alone. The men were not unlike — the same
combination of energy and sagacity.
Clark was born in Albemarle county, Virginia, in 1743 :
was in Dunmore's expedition of 1774, and among the earUest
emigrants to Kentucky ; in 1776, had the .boldness to urge
upon the people of the border to demand assistance fi-om
Virginia or independence of her dominion, and obtained five
hundred pounds of gunpowder for immediate defence, which
the prorince transported to Fort Pitt : was authorized, in
January, 1778, to raise a body of troops for the reduction of
the English posts of Kaskaskia and St. Vincents ; and, re
turning to the west with his instructions and twelve hundred
pounds of depreciated currency, was able to recruit only a
force of two hundred men. With three companies and several

CLARK'S ILLINOIS EXPEDITION. 293
private adventurers, Clark at length commenced his descent
of the Ohio, which he navigated as far as the faUs, where he
took possession of and fortified Corn Island, opposite the spot
now occupied by Louisville. At this place he had appointed
Capt. Joseph Bowman to meet him with such recruits as had
reached Kentucky by the southern route, and as many men
as could be spared from the stations. Here, also, he an
nounced the real destination of the expedition. Having
waited until his arrangements were all completed, and those
chosen who were to be of the invading party, on the 24th of
June, during a total ecUpse of- the sun, he left his position
and feU down the river. His plan was to follow the Ohio as
far as the old French fort, Massac, or Massacre, about sixty
mUes from the mouth of the river ; and thence to go by land
direct to Kaskaskia. His troops took no other baggage than
they could carry in the Indian fashion, and for his success he
trusted entirely to surprise. If he faUed, his plan was to
cross the Mississippi and throw himself into the Spanish set
tlements on the west of that river. Before commencing his
march, Clark received, two items of information which were
of much service in his subsequent operations. One of these
was the alliance of France with the colonies ; this at once
made the American side popular with the French and Indians
of IlUnois and the lakes, France haring never lost her hold
upon her ancient subjects and allies. The other item was,
that the inhabitants of Kaskaskia, and the other old towns,
had been led by the British to beUeve that the Long Knives,
or Virginians, were the most fierce, cruel, and blood-thirsty
savages that ever scalped a foe. With this impression on
their mind, Clark saw that proper management would readily
dispose them to submit from fear, if surprised, and then to

294 HISTORY OF OHIO.
become friendly from gratitude, when treated with unlooked-
for clemency.
At midnight of the sixth day after leaving the Ohio, July
3, they reached the precincts of Kaskaskia, having marched
two days without food, and determmed forthwith to take the
town or die in the attempt. The town was strongly fortified,
and contained about two hundred and fifty well-built houses ;
but the approach of the invaders was unknown ; the people
and the garrison were alike slumbering in security ; and both
town and fort were taken — the latter being carried by sur
prise, although the defences were sufficiently strong to resist
a thousand men. The commanding officer, PhUlip Roche-
blave, was made prisoner ; and among his papers, falling into
the hands of Col. Clark, were the instructions which he from
time to time had received from the British governors of
Quebec, Detroit and MichUlimacinac, urging him to stimulate
the Indians to war by the proffer of large bounties for scalps.
Rocheblave was sent a prisoner to WUliamsburgh, Virginia,
and with him were forwarded the papers taken from his
portfolio. On the day after the fall of Kaskaskia, Captain Joseph
Bowman, at the head of thirty mounted men, was sent to
attack three other towns upon the Mississippi, the first of
which, called Parraderuski, distant fifteen mUes from Kas
kaskia, was surprised, and taken without opposition — the
inhabitants at once assenting to the terms of the conqueror.
The next town was St. Phillips, distant nine mUes farther up.
The force of Captain Bowman was so small, that he wisely
determined to make a descent upon St. PhiUips in the night,
that his strength, or rather his weakness, might be concealed.
The precaution ensured success ; and the inhabitants, with
whom the whole affair was conducted in the night, acceded

CLARK'S ILLINOIS EXPEDITION. 295
to the terms prescribed.^jprom St. BhiUips, Bowman directed
his course upon the yet more considerable town of Cahokia,
distant between forty and fifty miles. This toWn contained
about one hundred families, and was also approached secretly,
and entered in the night. Captain Bowman, with his troops,
rode directly to the quarters of the commander, and deman
ded the surrender of himself and the whole town, which was
immediately complied with. Taking possession of a large
store-house, well fortified, the bold dragoon immediately
estabUshed his quarters therein, and awaited the morning's
dawn, which would disclose to the people the diminutive force
to which they had surrendered. Enraged at the discovery,
one of the enemy threatened to bring a body of one hundred
and fifty Indians against /the little American squadron and
cut them off. But he was secured, and in the course of ten
days upwards of three hundred of the inhabitants became so
reconciled to their change of masters as to take the oath of
aUegiance to the United States. Leaving a small guard at
Cahokia, Captain Bowman returned to Kaskaskia.
But St. Vincents, the most important western post except
Detroit, still remained unconquered, nor could Clark, with
his small force, hope to obtain possession of it, as he must
of necessity be for some time near the Mississippi, to organ
ize a government for the colonies he had taken, and treat
with the Indians of the northwest. But the French priest
of Kaskaskia volunteered to bring over the inhabitants of St.
Vincents (now Vincennes) to the cause of the Americans
without fighting. Hardly believing it possible, Clark dis
missed him on this embassy. The British governor was
absent, and M. Gibault succeeded entirely. In two or three
days after his arrival, the inhabitants threw off the British
¦government, and, assembling in a body in the church, took

296 HISTORY OF OHIO.
the oath of aUe^ance to VirgUm. A commandant was
chosen, and the American flag displayed over the fort, to the
astonishment of the Indians. The savages were told by
their French friends, " that their old Father, the king of
France, was come to Ufe again, and was mad with them for
fighting for the English ; that if they did not wish the land
to be bloody with war, they must make peace with the
Americans."^ But Clark's skiU in Indian diplomacy was no less remark
able than his gallantry. By an attentive study of the
Indian character, he had learned to combine dignity and
firmness with that respectful and ceremonious behavior which
pleases the pride and vanity of the savage. The following
speech to the tribes of the Wabash was weU adapted to
convey a conception of the causes of the war between the
United States and England :
" The Big Knife is very much Uke the red people ; they
don't know how to make blankets, and powder and cloth;
they buy these things from the EngUsh, from whom they are
sprung. They live by making com, hunting and trade, as
you and your neighbors, the French, do. But, the Big Knife,
daily getting more numerous, like the trees in the woods,
the land became poor and hunting scarce ; and having but
little to trade with, the women began to cry at seeing theb
children naked, and tried to leam how to make clothes for
themselves ; women made blankets for their husbands and
chUdren ; and the men learned to make guns and powder.
In this way we did not want to buy so much from the EngUsh ;
they then got mad with us, and sent strong garrisons through
our country (as you see they have done among you on the
lakes, and among the French ;) they would not let our women
2) Perkins' Western Annals, p. 189.

AN INDIAN TALK. 297
spin, nor our men make powder, nor let us trade with any
one else. The English said we should buy everything of
them, and since we had got saucy, we should give two bucks
for a blanket^ which we used to get for one : we should do
as they pleased, and they kUled some of our people to make
the rest fear them.
" This is the truth, and the real cause of war between the
EngUsh and us ; which did not take place for some years after
this treatment. But our women became cold and hungry,
and continued to cry ; our young men got lost for want of
counsel to put them on the right path. The whole land was
dark, the old men held down their heads for shame, because
they could not see the sun ; and thus there was mourning for
many years over the land. At last the Great Spirit took
pity on us, and kindled a great council-fire that never goes
out, at a place called Philadelphia ; he then stuck down a
post, and put a war tomahawk by it and went away. The
sun immediately broke out, the sky was blue again, and the
old men held up their heads and assembled at the fire ; they
took up the hatchet and sharpened it, and put it into the
hands of our young men, ordering them to strike the English
as long as they could find one on this side the great waters.
The young men immediately struck the war-post and blood
was shed. In this way the war began, and the EngUsh were
driven from one place to another until they got weak, and
then they hired you red people to fight for them. The Great
Spirit got angry at this, and caused your old father, the
French king, and other great nations, to join the Big Knife
and fight with them againstall their enemies. So the EngUsh
have become like a deer in the woods ; and you may see that
it is the Great Spirit that has caused your waters to be
3) The skin of a buck was " legal tender," in the wilderness, for a dollar.

298 HISTORY OF OHIO.
troubled, because you have fought for the people he is mad
with. If your women and chUdren should now cry, you must
blame yourselves for it, and not the Big Knife. You can
now judge who is in the right ; I have already told you who
I am ; here is a bloody belt and a white one, take which you
please. Behave like men, and don't let your being surroun
ded by the Big Knife cause you to take up one belt with your
hands, Avhile your hearts take up the other. If you take the
bloody path, you shall leave the town in safety, and may go
and join your friends, the EngUsh ; we wUl then try like
warriors, who can put the most stumbling blocks in each
others' way, and keep our clothes longest stained with blood.
If, on the other hand, you take the path of peace, and be
received as brothers to the Big Knife with their friends, the
French — should you then Usten to bad birds that may be
flying through the land, you will no longer deserve to be
counted as men, but as creatures with two tongues, that
ought to be destroyed. "4
This speech was not without the desired effect, and the
season passed in a series of successful negotiations with the
Indians, and the civil organization of the country of Illinois,
which the legislature of Virginia hastened to create. Thanks
were also voted " to Col. Clark and the brave officers and
men under his command, for their extraordinary resolution
and perseverance in so hazardous an enterprize, and for the
important services thereby rendered their country."
This summer campaign aroused Governor HamUton to
unusual exertions. He projected a powerful Indian expedi
tion against the Virginia frontier early in the spring. With
this design, he left Detroit in the autumn, and after personally
adjusting his arrangements on the Maumee and Sandusky,
4) See Butler's History of Kentucky, p. 68.

CLARK'S WINTER MARCH. 299
proceeded to St. Vincents, on the Wabash, in order to act
more efficiently as sOon as the winter should break up. He
arrived at St. Vincent with seventy-nine British soldiers and
upwards of four hundred Indians in the month of December,
and found that post occupied by two men. Captain Helm and
one Henry. Butler, the historian of Kentucky, relates that
Helm was not disposed to yield, even to such odds as flve
hundred to two ; so loading his single cannon, he stood by it
with a lighted match, and, as the British came nigh, bade
them stand, and demanded to know what terms would be
granted the garrison, as otherwise he should not surrender.
The governor, unwilling to lose time and men, offered the
usual honors of war, and could scarce believe his eyes when
he saw the threatening garrison was only one officer and a
private. HamUton, instead of pressing forward to attack Clark,
determined to wait until spring, and aUowed his Indians to
scatter. This was fatal, for his energetic antagonist correctly
supposing that his only chance of escape was to strike the
first blow, immediately despatched a boat with forty-six men
and the artUlery found at Kaskaskia, up the Wabash River,
to wait below the town for further orders. He then com
menced his march with one hundred and seventy men, of
whom two French companies made a part, for St. Vincents.
The march was commenced on the 7th of February. The
prairies were flooded and it was " still raining." When the
troops arrived at the Wabash, they found the country between
the Great and Little Wabash, "although a league asunder,"
inundated. Making a canoe, the men were ferried over, and
continued their march through "rain and water." On the
18th they heard Hamilton's moming guns, and guided their
course accordingly. On the 19th, Bowman records (we are

300 HISTORY OF OHIO.
quoting from a diary of Captain Joseph Bowman) that there
had been " no provision of any sort for two days," but this
" hard fortune" was sUghtly relieved on the 20th, when "one
of the men killed a deer which was distributed in the camp
very acceptably." On the 21st they came to a body of war
ter a league in extent, and which Clark, on sounding, found
" as deep as to his neck." The troops were half starved,
and without prorisions for men or horses, a delay of twenty-
four hours (the time requisite to transport themselves in their
few canoes,) would be unendurable ; and so Clark " put some
water in his hand, poured on powder, blackenedjiis face, gave
a war-whoop and marched into the water without saying a
word." He had directed those immediately near him to do
the same, and all followed. An acre of solid ground, called
Sugar Camp, was soon reached, where they passed the night,
the weather now growing suddenly and sharply cold. The
next morning another inundated plain was to be forded, be
fore reaching the table of land, on which stood the town and
fort of St. Vincents. The strength of the men was sorely
tried by this last struggle. The water was colder than the
day before, and no less deep, but the " low men and the
weakly hung to floating logs untU taken off by the canoes,
whUe the strong and tall got out and buUt flres." Fortunately,
an Indian canoe, containing a quarter of buffalo, some corn,
taUow, kettie, &c., was seized. " This was a grand prize,"
says Clark himself, " and was invaluable. Broth was imme
diately made and served out to the most weakly, with great
care ; most of the whole got a littie ; but a great many gave
their part to the weakly, jocosely saying something cheer
ing to their comrades. This Uttie refreshment and fine
weather by the afternoon gave new life to the whole. Cross
ing a narrow deep lake in the canoes, and marching some

CAPTURE OF HAMILTON. 301
distance, we came to a copse of timber called the Warrior's
Island. We were now in full view of the fort and the town,
not a shrub between us, at about two miles distance."
As Clark and his men emerged in sight of the garrison,
they availed themselves of a stratagem to convey an exag
gerated impression of their force. Clark thus describes this
artifice : " We moved on slowly in full view of the town, but
as it was a point of consequence to us to make ourselves
appear formidable, we, in leaving the covert that we were in,
marched and countermarched ui such a manner that we ap
peared numerous. In raising volunteers in the Blinois, every
person that set about the business had a set of colors given
them, which they brought with them, to the amount of ten
or twelve pair. These were displayed to the best advantage ;
and as the low plain we marched through was not a perfect
level, but had frequent raisings in it seven or eight feet higher
than the common level, (which was covered with water) and
as these raisings generally run in an oblique direction toward
the town, we took the advantage of one of them, marching
through the water under it, which completely prevented our
being numbered ; but our colors showed considerably above
the heights, as they were fixed on long poles procured for the
purpose, and at a distance made no despicable appearance ;
and as our young Frenchmen had, whUe we lay on the War
rior's Island, decoyed and taken several fowlers, with their
horses, officers were mounted on these horses, and rode about
more completely to deceive the enemy. In this manner we
moved, and directed our march in such a way as to suffer it
to be dark before we had advanced more than half way to
the town. We then suddenly altered our direction, and
crossed ponds where they could not have suspected us, and
about eight o'clock gained the heights back of the town."

302 HISTORY OF OHIO.
AU night of the 22d, and with brief mtervals, until the
morning of the 24th, a brisk fire upon the fort was sustained.
Negotiations ensued, and towards night HamUton surrend
ered, and the post was delivered to the Virginians on the
following day. The assailants had only one man wounded—
within the fort, seven were wounded through the ports.
It was the good fortune of Col. Clark, also to intercept
and capture a valuable convoy of prorisions and stores, com
ing to St. Vincents from Detroit. The surrender of St.
Vincents or Fort SackviUe, was most timely.- Hamilton,
instead of guiding the savage elements of a general border
war, was sent a prisoner to WilUamsburgh, where the Vir
ginia council were about to confine him in irons on bread
and, water, as a punishment of his barbarism in offermg
scalp-bounties, when Washington interposed again^ such a
step, as not in accordance with the terms of his surrender.
This imputation upon the British Governor, whom Clark,
in his proclamation to the people of Vincennes, just before
the attack on the fort, had not scrupled to call the "hau?-
buyer Hamilton," is also supported by the eridence of one
Daniel SulUvan, who, in March, 1778, retumed to Pitts
burgh with a statement of his discoveries at Detroit and in
the Indian country. Captured by the Delawares when a
boy, and living with them for nine years, he was weU suited
for such a service, and asserted positively that Governor
Hamilton instigated the Indians to massacre the white inhab
itants of the frontiers of Virginia and Pennsylvania, paying
them very high prices for aU the scalps they would bring.
In justice to the British commander, it should be mentioned
however, that when Daniel Boone and twenty-eight bf his
neighbors were captured at Blue Licks in February, 1778,
it was evidently the interest of the Shawanese captors, to

INDIAN SIEGE OF FORT LAURENS. 303
take' them alive to Detroit, and although scalps were market
able there, yet it is reasonable to suppose that the British
officers discriminated in favor of prisoners. On this occa
sion, Boone informs us that he was treated with much
humanity by Governor Hamilton, who desired to ransom him,
but the Indians prized their prisoner too highly to consent.
We recall our attention from these remote but highly
important transactions of the Illinois expedition, to an Indian
siege of Fort Laurens. This post had been erected as a
part of Mcintosh's design upon Detroit, but also, very prob
ably, to check the incursions of the Sandusky Indians upon
the settlements south of the Ohio River, and to protect the
Delawares who were still disposed for peace. The usual
approach from Fort Mcintosh, the nearest military station,
was by the old Indian trail from the vaUey of Yellow Creek,
across to Sandy and down that stream. In January, 1779,
Col. John Gibson and his garrison of one hundred and fifty
men were closely besieged by the Indians. Of the incidents
which preceded and accompanied this siege, we recognize a
manuscript narrative by Henry Jolly, Esq., late judge of
Washington county, Ohio, who was one of the garrison, as
the most satisfactory. He says :
" When the main army left the fort to return to Fort Pitt,
Captain Clark remained behind with a small detachment of
United States troops, for the purpose of marching in the
invalids and artificers who had tarried to finish the fort, or
were too unwell to march with the main army. He endeav
ored to take the advantage of very cold weather, and had
marched three or four mUes, when he was fired upon by a
small party of Indians very close at hand, I think, twenty or
thirty paces. This discharge wounded two of his men
slightly. Knowing as he did, that his men were unfit to

304 HISTORY OF OHIO.
fight Indians in their own fashion, he ordered them to reserve
their fire and to charge bayonet, which being promptly
executed, put the Indians 'to flight, and after pursuing a
short distance, he caUed off his men, and retreated to the
fort, bringing in his wounded." In other accounts of this
affair, it is stated that ten of Captain Clark's men were
kiUed. "During the cold weather, while the Indians were
lying about the fort, although none had been seen for a few
days, a party of seventeen men went out for the purpose of
carrying in flrewood, which the army had cut before they
left the place, about forty or fifty rods from the fort. Near
the bank of the river, was an ancient mound, behind which
lay a quantity of wood. A party had been out for several
preceding mornings, and brought in wood, supposing the
Indians would not be watching the fort in such cold weather.
But on that fatal moming, the Indians had concealed them
selves behind the mound, and as the soldiers passed round
on one side of the mound, a part of the Indians came round
on the other, and enclosed the wood party, so that not one
escaped." The statements hitherto published of this affair are, that
the Indians enticed the men from the fort to search for horses,
by taking off their bells and tinkling them, but Mr. Hildreth
is certain that no horses were left at the fort, as they must
either have starved or been stolen by the Indians.
Stone, in his Life of Brant, states that toward evening
of the day on which this detachment of seventeen men was
cut off, the whole force of the Indians, painted, and in the
fuU costume of war, presented themselves in sight of the
garrison, by marching in single files, though at a respectful
distance, across the prairie, and their number, according to
a count from one of the bastions, was eight hundred and forty-

SIEGE OP FORT LAURENS. 305
seven ; but Col. Morgan was told by the Delaware chiefs that
the party consisted of one hundred and eighty Indians, com
posed of Wyandots, Mingoes, Munsies and four Delawares,
and that the sons of Catherine Montour were among them.
After the display of strength above mentioned, the Indians
took a position upon an elevated piece of ground at no great
distance from the fort, though on the opposite side of the river.
In this situation they remained several weeks, in a state rather
of armed neutrality than of active hostility. Some of them
would frequently approach the fort, and hold conversation
with those upon the waUs. They uniformly professed a
desire for peace, but protested against the encroachments of
the white people upon their lands — more especially was the
erection of a fort so far within the territory claimed by them
as exclusively their own, a subject of complaint. There was
with the Americans in the fort, an aged friendly Indian named
John Thompson, who seemed to be in equal favor with both
parties, visiting the Indian encampment at pleasure, and
coming and going as be chose. They informed Thompson that
they deplored the continuance of hostilities, and finally sent
word by him, to Col. Gibson, that they were desirous of peace,
and if he would present them with a barrel of flour and some
meat, they would send in their proposals the next day. In
fact, the garrison was short of provisions, which the Indians
suspected, and perhaps their request was a ruse to ascertain
the resources of the besieged, but Colonel Gibson sent the
flour and meat promptly, and said that he could spare the
provisions very well, as he had plenty more. The Indians
soon after disappeared. They had, indeed, continued the
siege as long as they could obtain subsistence, and raised it
only because of the lack of supplies.
The situation of the garrison was now becoming deplorable.
13*

306 HISTORY OF OHIO.
For two weeks the men had been reduced to half a pound of
sour flour, and a like quantity of offensive meat, per diem ;
and for a week longer they were compelled to subsist upon
raw hides, and such roots as could be found in the adjacent
woods. A runner was sent to Fort Mcintosh with a state
ment of their distress, and requesting an immediate supply
of provisions. The inhabitants south of the Ohio volunteered
their aid, and General Mcintosh headed the escort. But
still they came near being immediately reduced to short allow
ance again, by an untoward accident causing the loss of a
great portion of the supplies. These were transported through
the wUderness upon pack-horses. The garrison, overjoyed at
the arrival of succors, on their approach to within about a
hundred yards of the fort, manned the parapets, and fired a
salute of musketry. The horses, which were probably young
in the service, became frightened, began to rear and plunge,
and broke from their guides. The example was contagious,
and in a moment more, the whole cavalcade of pack-horses
were bounding into the woods at fuU gaUop, dashing theii-
burdens to the ground and scattering them in all directions—
the greater portion of which could never be recovered. Of
the provisions saved, the officers very incautiously dealt out
two days' rations per man, the whole of which was devoured
by the famishing soldiers, to the imminent hazard of the lives
of aU, and the severe sickness of many. Leaving the fort
again, General Mcintosh assigned the command to Major
Vernon, who remained upon the station several months. He,
in turn, was left to endure the horrors of famine, and in the
summer of 1779, Fort Laurens was threatened with another
siege by forty Shawanese, twenty Mingoes and twenty Delar
wares, but by the interference of the friendly Delaware chiefs,
they were persuaded to abandon the siege without firing a gun,

DELAWARE HOSTILITY. 307
and the fort was soon after relinquished. It is worthy of
notice, that while there were only four Delawares (as distin
guished from Munsies) at the attack in January, twenty were
present on the last occasion, thus indicating that the infiuence
of Capt. Pipe and the war party of the tribe was on the
increase. In October, 1778, the distinguished peace-chief of the
Delawares, Captain White Eyes, or Koquetha-gaeehlon, who
had accompanied the army of General Mcintosh to Tusca
roras, died suddenly of smaU-pox. Thenceforth the efforts
of KUlbuck, Big Cat, and another chief, whose Indian name
was Tetepachsi, to resist the current against the Americans
became less effective than before the death of their able
coadjutor. In the summer of 1779, their friend, Col. Mor
gan, or Tamenend, resigned his post of Indian agent at Pitts
burgh, and the desertion of Fort Laurens exerted an unfa
vorable influence. The American agents, about the same
time, began to Urge the Delawares to change their form'er
attitude of neutrality, and to wage war against the Indian
alUes of the English. This was bad poUcy under the cir
cumstances of the Ohio frontier, for, as the tribe was situated,
any change of attitude must have been unfavorable to the
Americans. Very soon, therefore, the few Delawares, who
remained friendly to the colonies, were compeUed to take
refuge at or near Fort Pitt, and at length the Delaware
nation may be said to have openly joined the combination of
the Ohio Indians with the British.
Fortunately, this hostUe demonstration had been postponed
to a period when the defection was less disastrous than it
would have been at any former period of the war. The
pacification of the remote tribes on the Wabash and lUinois,
and the favorable dispositions of the French residents there

308 HISTORY OF OHIO.
and elsewhere- — the destruction of the Seneca towns in the
lake and Genesee region of New York, by the army under
SulUvan, in the autumn of 1779, and a simUar excursion
from Pittsburgh, by Colonel Daniel Brodhead, (who had suc
ceeded General Mcintosh in February, 1779,) at the head
pf six hundred men, during which he destroyed many vUlages
of the Seneca Indians on the head waters of the AUeghany,
ravaged five hundred acres of standing corn,, and captured
a booty of skins valued at three thousand dollars — these were
events which tended essentiaUy to reUeve the vaUey of the
Ohio, at least for a season.
Upon Brodhead' s return to Pittsburgh, September 14,
he found deputies from the Delawares, Wyandots, and, the
Maquichee branch of the Shawanese, with whom a conference
was held three days afterwards. The only Indian names
mentioned in the report of this council are Doonyontat, a
Wyandot chief, Kelleleman, a Delaware, and better known
as Killbuck, and Keeshmatree, the Maquichee or Shawanese
chief, and his counsellor, Nimwha. On this occasion, the
professions of amity were as ample and rhetorical as usual.
For a year or two, the settlements of the upp^r Ohio felt
the beneficial effect of these events, but, as we shall see, the
main body of the Shawanese, with their British and Indian
allies, continued to scourge the Kentucky station, but not
without a full retribution. We shall devote a separate chapter
to the narrative of these Shawanese campaigns.

CHAPTER XX.
THE KENTUCKY CAMPAIGNS AGAINST THE SHAWANESE.
The assassination of Cornstalk and his companions at Point
Pleasant, in 1777, effectually concurred with other causes of
irritation to inflame the Shawanese against the Americans,
and for the residue of the revolutionary period the tribe was
implacably hostile. There is some evidence that the Ma
quichee tribe were occasionally inclined to peace, but this
exception, so far as it existed, was probably attributable to
the influence of the Moravian missionaries, who interchanged
visits with those chiefs living near the Muskingum. The
tribe at large, irritated by the encroachments on their Ken
tucky hunting grounds, were determined to extirpate the
infant settlements ; and for this purpose the channels of the
prominent tributaries to the Ohio offered great facUities.
The canoes of their war-parties floated down the Scioto and
the Miamis, and silently ascended the Licking and Kentucky
rivers until within striking distance of the scattered stations.
At this time the Shawanese were divided into four tribes
or bands — the Maquichee, or Mequachake, the ChilUcothe,
the Kiskapocoke, and the Piqua. In the first tribe, to which
the priesthood was confided, the office of chief was heredi
tary — in the others it was conferred according to merit. It
is reasonable to suppose that the Shawanese living near
Wappatomica, on the Muskingum, (if any remained there
after it was destroyed by McDonald's party in the summer
of 1774) and in the Scioto towns, which were only saved
(309)

310 HISTORY OF OHIO.
from destruction by submission to Lord Dunmore on the
approach of his army, were less prompt to renew hostilities
than the inhabitants of the more remote towns on the Little
Miami and the Mad River. Cornstalk himself resided east
of the Scioto River, on the right bank of Sippo creek, just
above the junction of Congo creek, (now Pickaway township
and county) whUe on the opposite bank stood Grenadier
Squaw Town, so called from the residence of his sister, a
woman six feet high and well proportioned ; and notwith
standing the injuries infiicted upon the famUy of Cornstalk
by the whites, it is probable that the Shawanese on the
Scioto sympathized, in some degree, with the peaceful dis
positions of the neighboring Delawares. This opinion is
corroborated by the fact that aU the retaUatory expeditions
from Kentucky, during and after the revolutionary period,
passed by the mouth of Scioto, and were designed to chas
tise the Shawanese bands who were seated in the Miami and
Mad River vaUeys, and within the present counties of Greene,
Miami, Champaigne and Logan. The principal viUages in
the Miami region were ChUlicothe, standing near the mouth
of Massie's creek, three mUes north of Xenia : Piqua, memo
rable as the birth-place of Tecumseh, and situated on the
north bank of Mad River, seven mUes west of Springfield,
in Clark county : and Upper and Lower Piqua, in Miami
county, where the tribe at length concentrated in great
numbers.^ In the spring of 1778, while Clark was mustering his expe
dition to the Blinois, Daniel Boone, equally noted as the
pioneer hunter of Kentucky, was a captive in the Shawnee
town of ChUUcothe. He and twenty-seven others had been
seized in February, whUe making salt at Blue Licks, and his
1 ) See Appendix No. -VH, for further particulars of the Shawanese villages.

BOONESBOROUGH ATTACKED. 311
companions had been admitted to ransom or detained as
British prisoners at Detroit — but not so fortunate was Boone.
Although Governor HamUton had taken a great fancy to him,
and sought to obtain his release upon the usual terms, the
Indians refused to part with the hero of the woods. They
took him back to ChUUcothe, where he was formaUy adopted
as a son of the tribe, and consigned to the lodge of an Indian
woman, in place of a deceased warrior. Until June, he
adapted himself, with extraordinary address, to his new
position, and so far won the favor and confldence of the
Indians that he was suffered to accompany a party to the
Salt Lick, in the Scioto valley, within the present county of
Jackson. There they remained ten days and returned to
ChUlicothe, where Boone found four hundred and fifty war
riors, armed and painted for an expedition against his own
Boonesborough. Instantly, but sUently, he resolved to escape,
which was effected on the 16th of June, under the pretence
of chasing a deer that bounded past the vUlage. The weary
journey of one hundred and fifty miles was successfully
accomplished, but his flight seemed to have postponed the
march of the war-party, for neither in June or July did they
appear. On the 1st of August, Boone started with nineteen
men, among them Simon Kenton, to look after the enemy.
He approached their town on Paint Creek, but found it
deserted, and meeting a small band of warriors, in full paint,
marching southwardly, the suspicion flashed upon his mind
that Boonesborough would be speedily attacked. They im
mediately retraced their course, and only reached the borough
a day before it was surrounded by five hundred savages, with
British and French fiags flying and led by one Captain Du
Quesne, a Canadian. A day passed in parley before the
fort, and active preparation for defence within. On the 9th

312 HISTORY OF OHIO.
of August, Boone and eight of the garrison consented to
advance sixty yards into the plain for a further consultation
with the British commandant, but this interview was rudely
interrupted by 'an attempt to seize the Kentuckians — a treach
ery which was instantly checked by a fire from the alert
rifles of the garrison, and the sudden and safe retreat of
Boone's party within the walls. Of course the attack com
menced immediately, and lasted for ten days, but to no
purpose. On the 20th, the Indians were forced unwUUngly
to retire, having lost thirty-seven of their number, and wasted
a vast amount of powder and lead. The garrison picked up
from the ground, after their departure, one" hundred and
twenty-five pounds of their buUets.
The adventures of Simon Kenton, in the autumn of 1778,
afford us another glimpse of the scene of Boone's captirity,
and of other Shawanese vUlages. Colonel John Bowmaa
was then meditating an expedition against the Shawanese
villages, particularly ChilUcothe ; (Oldtown, Greene county,)
and Kenton, accompanied by Alexander Montgomery and
George Clark, undertook to explore the route to ChiUicothe,
and the vicinity and position of the town. This was effectu
ally done, and aU risk would have been avoided if the three
spies had not yielded to the temptation of running off a drove
of horses which they found enclosed in a pound. It was
late at night, but the noise of the operation alarmed the
Indians in the adjacent rillage. Kenton and his companions
were pursued, and although they reached the northern bank
of the Ohio River with the stolen animals, yet, before its
passage could be effected, they were overtaken, Montgomery
killed and Kenton made prisoner, Clark escaping.
The Indians were greatly exasperated at their captive,
abusing him as a "tief ! — a hoss steal — a rascal!" and he

KENTON'S ADVENTURES. 313
received no indulgence at their hands, except that he was
not struck dead with a toinahawk. With his hands tied
behind hun, and his feet lashed under the horse's belly, he
was compelled to ride a restive colt through the thickets of
the forest, whUe at night the prisoner was extended upon his
back and closely bound to the earth in a painful posture.
Arrived at ChilUcothe, he ran the gauntlet, but as Kenton
saw an Indian in the line with a drawn knife, ready to
plunge it into his breast, he broke through the lines and ran
towards the council-house with a crowd of several hundred
at his heels. Just before reaching that refuge, he was
thrown down by an Indian who was in his path and terribly
bruised by the blows of his pursuers. Immediately a council
was held, and soon Kenton saw, from the manner of speakers
and auditors, that he was doomed to die. When the vote
was taken, those who were for his torture struck the war
club, which was passed from hand to hand, violently on the
ground — their number far exceeding those who simply passed
the club to a neighbor in token of mercy. Then arose a
debate upon the time and place of the tragedy, and it was
resolved that he should be immediately taken to Wapatomika
(now Zanesfield, Logan county.) On his ,way thither, he
passed through the Indian towns of Piqua (now Boston,
seven miles west of Springfield, Clark county,) and Maehe-
cheek, (now West Liberty, Logan county,) running the
gauntlet at each town, and baffled at Machecheek in an
attempt to escape. Soon after his arrival at Wapatomika,
Simon Girty came to see him, and soon discovered that
Kenton had been his companion and friend at Fort Pitt and
in Dunmore's expedition. McDonald thus describes the
scene which ensued : " Girty threw himself into Kenton's
arms, embraced and wept aloud over him — calling him his
14

314 HISTORY OP OHIO.
dear and esteemed friend. This hardened wretch, who had
been the cause of the death of hundreds, had some of the
spariis of humanity remaining in him, and wept Uke a child
at the tragical fate which hung over his friend. ' WeU,' said^
he to Kenton, ' you are condemned to die, but I wiU use every
means in my power to save your life.'
" Girty immediately had a councU convened, and made a
long speech to the Indians to save the life of the prisoner.
As Girty was proceeding through his speech, he became very
animated ; and under his powerful eloquence, Kenton could
plainly discover the grim visages of his savage judges relent.
When Girty concluded his powerful and animated speech,
the Indians rose with one simultaneous grunt of approbation,
saved the prisoner's life, and placed him under the power
and protection of his old companion, Girty."^
The British had a trading post at Wapatomika, from which
Girty provided Kenton with clothing, and also furnished him
with horse and gun. The two friends were constantly together,
roaming the woods and passing from rillage to viUage. While
they were at Solomon's Town, a short distance from Wapar
tomika, a party of warriors returned to the latter place from
an expedition against Wheeling, in which they had been de
feated by the whites with considerable loss, and demanded
the life of Kenton. Another councU was summoned, and
Kenton was again sentenced to death, notwithstanding all
the efforts and eloquence of Girty. The latter could only
obtain a reprieve until the prisoner could be taken to Upper
Sandusky, where the Indians were soon to assemble and
2) For the above and following particulars of Simon Kenton, see Sketches,
by John McDonald, p. 196 — an interesting series of pioneer biography. Its
author is recently deceased, but his contribution to the history of the State
should preserve his memory. See McClung's -V^estern Adventure, p- 80.

KENTON'S ADVENTURES. 315
receive their annuities and presents from the British agents.
As the Indians passed from Wapatomika to Upper San
dusky, they reached a village upon the headwaters of Scioto,
where Kenton for the first time beheld the celebrated Mingo
chief, Logan, who walked gravely up to the place where
Kenton stood, and the following short conversation ensued :
" WeU, young man, these young men seem very mad at you ?"
" Yes sir, they certainly are." " Well, don't be dishear
tened, I am a great chief; you are to go to Sandusky; they
speak of burning you there ; but I will send two runners to
morrow to speak good for you." McClung adds that Logan's
form was striking and manly, his countenance calm and
noble, and he spoke the English language with fluency and
correctness. Kenton's spirits instantly rose at the address
of the benevolent chief, and he once more looked upon him
self as providentially rescued. from the stake.
On the following morning, two runners were despatched to
Sandusky, -as the chief had promised, and until their return,
Kenton was kindly treated, being permitted to spend much
^of his time with Logan, who conversed with him freely, and
in the most friendly manner. In the evening, the two run
ners returned and were closeted with Logan. Kenton felt
the most burning anxiety to know what was the result of their
mission, but Logan did not visit him again until next morning.
He then walked up to him, accompanied by Kenton's guards,
and giving him a piece of bread, told him that he was in
stantly to be carried to Sandusky; and without uttering
another word, turned upon his heel and left him.
At Upper Sandusky, Kenton was finally rescued from a
death of torture by the interposition of Peter Druyer, a
Canadian Frenchman, who was a Captain in the British ser
rice, and acted as liidian agent and interpreter. It was to

316 HISTORY OF OHIO.
this influential personage, probably, that Logan's message
had been conveyed. He offered the Indians one hundred
dollars in rum and tobacco, if they would aUow him to take
Kenton to Detroit for examination by the British govemor,
promising to return him when they should require. A shght
additional remuneration, afterwards paid to the Indians, com
pleted the ransom of Kenton, who accompanied Captain
Druyer to Detroit, and about a year afterwards, escaped and
returned to Kentucky.
In the summer of 1779, Col. John Bowman with one hun
dred and sixty Kentuckians, marched against ChiUicothe.
There are conflicting accounts of this expedition, some of
which exhibit a partisanship in favor of Captain Benjamin
Logan, at the expense of his commanding officer. The foUow
ing narrative of the expedition is authenticated by the recol
lection of the late Col. Robert Patterson of Dayton, who was
present, and we prefer to adopt it.
The mouth of Licking was the point of rendezvous. Tor
wards the close of the second night, after the commencement
of the march from the opposite shore, the party approached
the town of ChUlicothe undiscovered. An attack was or
dered to be made at daylight, but before the officers and
men had arrived at the places assigned them, the enemy
became alarmed, and a fire commenced on both sides. The
whole population of the rillage took refuge in several strong
cabins, in the heart of the town, and prepared for a vigorous
defence. The Kentuckians, having no arms but tomahawks
and rifles, dared not attack these entrenchments, and they
contented themselves with flring the deserted cabins, some
thirty or forty in number, after stripping them of kettles,
blankets and other articles. They also collected one hundred
and thirty-three horses in the adjacent woods, and then com-

AMBUSCADE AT LICKING RIVER. 317
meneed their march homeward. Th^ party had not gone
more than nine or ten miles, before the Indians appeared in
considerable force in their rear, and began to press hard upon
that quarter. Bowman selected his ground, and formed his
men into a square ; but the Indians declined a close engage
ment, only keeping up a scattered fire, and it was soon dis
covered that their object was to retard their march until they
could procure reinforcements from the neighboring villages.
As soon as a strong position was taken by Col. Bowman,
the Indians retired, and he resumed the line of march, when
he was again attacked in the rear. He again formed for
battle, and again the Indians retired. Thus harrassed, the
troops began to waver, when Benjamin Logan, John Bulger,
James Harrod and George Michael Bedinger, at the head
of a body of mounted men, scoured the woods in every direc
tion, forcing the Indians from their coverts, and cutting
down as many as they could overtake. This decisive step
completely dispersed the enemy, and the weary and dispiri
ted troops continued their retreat unmolested. Their loss
was nine killed and a few wounded. The Indian loss was
unknown, but a prominent chief, Blackfish, was disabled
(some accounts say mortally wounded) by a shot through
the knee.3 Bowman crossed the Ohio at the mouth of the
Little Miami, when the men dispersed to their several homes.
In the autumn of 1779, a number of keel boats were
ascending the Ohio River under the command of Major
Rogers, and had advanced as far as the mouth of Licking
without accident.* Here they were drawn ashore by a strat-
3) Butler says that Blackfish was killed, and that Red Hawk continued
the battle, and was also killed. — History of Kentucky, 109.
4) They were on their return from New Orleans, where they had been
sent by the Governor of Virginia, for the purpose of procuring supplies to

318 IlISTUHY OF OHIO.
agem. At first a few Indians only appeared, standing upon
a sand bar near the mouth of the Licking, whUe a canoe,
with three other Indians was paddling towards them as
though to receive them on board. Rogers immediately
ordered the boats to be made fast to the Kentucky shore,
while the crews, to the number of seventy men well armed,
cautiously advanced in such a manner as to encircle the spot
where the enemy had been seen. When Rogers had, as he
supposed, completely surrounded the enemy, and was pre
paring to rush upon them, from several quarters at once, he
was thunderstruck at beholding several hundred savages
suddenly spring up in front, rear, and upon both flanks.
They instantly poured in a close discharge of rifles, and then
throwing down their guns, fell upon the survivors with the
tomahawk. Major Rogers and forty-five of his men were
killed almost instantly. The survivors made an effort to
regain the boats, but the five men who had been left in
charge of them, had immediately put off from shore in the
hindmost boat, and the enemy had already gained possession
of the others. Disappointed in the attempt, they turned
furiously upon the enemy, and aided by the approach of
darkness, forced their way through their lines, and with the
loss of several severely wounded, at length effected their
escape to Harrodsburgh.
Among the wounded was Capt. Robert Benham. Shortly
after breaking the enemy's lines, he was shot through both
hips, and the bones being shattered, he instantly feU. Foi-r
tunately, a large tree had lately faUen near the spot where
ke lay, and with great pain, lie dragged himself into the top
and lay concealed among the branches. The Indians, eager
support the military posts on the upper Ohio and Mississippi.— £«''«'-'«
History of Kentucky, 102.

SINGULAR PARTNERSHIP. 319
in the pursuit of others, passed him without notice, and by
midnight, all was quiet. On the following day, the Indians
returned to the battle ground, in order to strip the dead and
take care of the boats. Benham, although in danger of
famishing, permitted them to pass without making known his
condition, very correctly supposing that his crippled legs
would only induce them to tomahawk him upon the spot, in
order to avoid the trouble of carrying him to their town. He
lay close, therefore, untU the evening of the second day,
when perceiving a raccoon descending a tree near him, he
shot it, hoping to devise some means of reaching it, when he
could kindle a fire and make a meal. Scarcely had his gun
cracked, however, when he heard a human cry, apparently
not more than fifty yards off. Supposing it to be an Indian,
he hastily reloaded his gun and remained silent, expecting
the approach of an enemy. Presently the same voice was
heard again, but much nearer. StUl Benham made no reply,
but cocked his gun, and sat ready to fire as soon as an object
appeared. A third halloo was quickly heard, followed by an
exclamation of impatience and distress, which convinced
Benham that the unknown must be a Kentuckian. As soon,
therefore, as he heard the expression, " Whoever you are,
for God's sake, answer me!" he replied with readiness, and
the parties were soon together. Benham, as we have already
observed, was shot through both legs ! the man who now
appeared, had escaped from the same battle with both arms
broken! Thus each was enabled to supply what the other
wanted. Benham having the perfect use of his arms, could
load his gun and kill game with great readiness, while his
friend, having the use of his legs, could kick the game to
the spot where Benham sat, who was thus enabled to cook it.
When no wood was near them, his companion would rake up

320 HISTORY OF OHIO.
brush with his feet, and graduaUy roU it within reach of
Benham's hands, who constantly fed his companion, and
dressed his wounds, as well as his own — tearing up both of
their shirts for the purpose. They found some difficulty in
procuring water at first, but Benham at length took his own
hat, and placing the rim between the teeth of his companion,
directed him to wade into the Licking, up to his neck, and
dip the hat into the water. The man who could walk, was
thus enabled to bring water by means of his teeth, which
Benham could afterwards dispose of as was necessary. When
the stock of squirrels and other small game in the neighbor
hood was exhausted, the man on his legs would roam away
and drive up a flock of wild turkeys, then abundant in those
woods, untU they came within range of Benham's rifle. Thus
they lived for six weeks, when, on the 27th of November,
they discovered a boat on the Ohio and were taken to Louis
ville. Both thoroughly recovered from their wounds.^
It -\vill be seen that the leading events of 1779 — the abor
tive expedition of Bowman, and the surprise of the party
under Rogers — were not likely to discourage Indian incur
sions ; and in June, 1780, occurred a most formidable inva
sion of Kentucky. A body of six hundred men, Canadians
and Indians, commanded by Colonel Byrd, a British officer,
and accompanied by either two or six cannon, marched up
the valley of the Licking. They first appeared on the 22d
of June, before Riddle's station, on the south fork of that
river. There was no alternative but a surrender, as the
cannon would have speedily prostrated the palisades. Mar
tin's Station, on the same stream, was next taken, and then,
to the infinite relief and astonishment of the settlers, the
invaders retreated. 5) Butler's Kentucky, 105.

SHAWANESE CAMPAIGNS. _ 321
An expedition for the destruction of the Shawanese towns,
which were well known to be the places of rendezvous for
these war-parties, was immediately proclaimed by General
George Rogers Clark, and within a month a thousand men
flocked to his standard — a fact conclusive of the rapid settle
ment of Kentucky, notwithstanding the discouragements of
an Indian war. One division of the army, under Col. Ben
jamin Logan, descended the Licking, while another division,
commanded by Clark, ascended the Ohio from the falls. The
present site of Cincinnati was the point of rendezvous.
The late Abraham Thomas, of Miami county, has published
a statement which presents a forcible contrast to the scene
now visible opposite the mouth of Licking. His own words
are : " Iri ascending the Ohio, Daniel Boone and myself
acted as spies on the Kentucky side of the river, and a large
party on the Indian side was on the same duty ; the latter
were surprised by the Indians, and several kiUed and wounded.
After making our destination, and before the boats crossed
over to the Indian side, Boone and myself were taken into
the foremost boat and landed above a small cut in the bank
opposite the mouth of Licking. We were desired to spy
through the woods for Indian signs. I was much younger
than Boone, ran up the bank in great glee, and cut into a
beech tree with my tomahawk, which I verily beUeve was the
first tree cut into by a white man on the present site of Cin
cinnati. We were soon joined by other rangers, and hunted
over the other bottom (the second table of land, probably ;)
the forest every where was thick set with heavy beech and
scattering underbrush of spicewood and paw-paw. We
started several deer, but seeing no sign of Indians, returned
to the landing." Here was erected a smaU stockade for
stores.

322 HISTORY OE OHIO.
On the 2d of August, General Clark took up his line of
march, which was as foUows : the first division under his own
command, took the front position ; the centre was occupied
by artiUery, military stores and baggage ; the second, com
manded by Col. Logan, was placed in the rear. The men
were ordered to march in four lines, at about forty yards
distant from each other, and a line of flankers on each side,
about the same distance from the right and left line. There
was also a. front and rear guard, who only kept in sight ofthe
main army. In order to prevent confusion, in case of an
attack of the enemy on the march, a general order was
issued, that in the event of an attack in front, the front was
to stand fast, and the two right lines to wheel to the right,
and the two left lines to the left, and form a complete line,
while the artiUery was to advance forward to the centre of
the line. In case of an attack on either of the flanks or side
lines, these lines were to stand fast, and likewise the artillery,
while the opposite lines wheeled and formed on the two
extremes of those lines. In the event of an attack being
made in the rear, similar order was to be observed as in an
attack in front.
On the 6th of August, at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, the
army reached ChilUcothe and found the town in flames, the
Indians having deserted and fired it that moming. After
destroying several hundred acres of corn, on the 7th the
march was resumed at 4 o'clock in the direction of Piqua,
on the Mad River, twelve mUes distant. After proceeding a
mile, the men were drenched by a thunder-stbrm of rain. As
soon as it ceased, near dark, the army encamped, kindled
fires — discharging and reloading their guns by single compa
nies successively. On the Sth, shortly after noon, they
approached Piqua. The Indian road from ChiUicothe to

SHAWANESE CAMPAIGNS. 323
Piqua, which' the army foUowed, crossed the Mad River
about a quarter of a mile below the town, and as soon as
the advanced guard crossed into a prairie of high weeds,
they were attacked by the Indians, who had concealed them
selves within the weeds. The ground on which the attack
was made, as well as the manner of it, left no doubt that a
general engagement was intended. Col. Logan was there
fore ordered, with about four hundred men, to file off to the
right, and march up the river on the east side, and to continue
to the upper end of the town, so as to prevent the Indians
from escaping in that direction. Another detachment, under
Cols. Lynn, Floyd and Harrod, was ordered to cross the
river and encompass the town on the west side ; whUe Gen.
Clark, with the troops under Col. Shaughter, and such as
were attached to the artillery, marched directly towards the
town. The prairie in which the Indians were concealed,
who commenced the attack, was only about two hundred
yards across to the timbered land, and the division of the
army destined to encompass the town on the west side found
it necessary to cross the prairie to avoid the fire of a con
cealed enemy. The Indians evinced great skill and judg
ment, and to prevent the western division from executing the
duties assigned. to them, they made a powerful effort to turn
their left wing. This was discovered by Lynn and ^loyd,
and to prevent being outflanked, they extended the line of
battle west more than a mile from the town, and whieh con
tinued warmly contested on both sides until about 5 o'clock,
when the Indians disappeared, except a few in the town.
The fleld-piece, which had been entirely useless before, was
now brought to bear upon the houses, when a few shot dis
lodged the Indians within them.
Piqua was built in the manner of the French towns, and

324 HISTORY OF OHIO.
extended along the margin of the river for more than three
miles ; the houses, in many places, being more than twenty
poles apart. Col. Logan, therefore, in order to surround the
town on the east, as was the order, marched fuUy three
miles, while the Indians turned their whole force against
those on the opposite side of the town ; and Logan's party
¦were not in the action at all. It is said that the sudden
cessation of the Indian fire was caused by the withdrawal
of Simon Girty and three hundred Wyandot and Mingo Indi
ans under his command.
Piqua was also burned to the ground, and all the cornfields
in the vicinity devastated. On the 10th of August, the army
commenced their return march, and from the mouth of Lick
ing dispersed to their homes. The Kentuckians lost seven
teen lives during the expedition.
The effect of this blow was to reduce the Indians to the
necessity of extraordinary efforts to support their women and
children during the ensuing year — greatly to the reUef of
the Kentucky settlements.
The summer of 1782 was a disastrous season for Kentucky.
Not only the Shawanese, but all the northwestern tribes who
were accessible to British influence, scourged the channel
and vaUey of the Ohio. A party of WyandSts, having com
mitted some shocking outrages near Estell's station, were
pursued by Capt. EsteU and twenty-flve men, and a severe
conflict occurred near the present town of Mount Sterling,
in Montgomery county, Kentucky. The parties were of
equal strength, but Capt. Estell divided his force for the
purpose of attacking the enemy in rear. This was fatal :
the Indian chief instantly charged across a stream that
divided the combatants, and overpowered the Kentuckians.
Captain Estell and eight of his party were kUled, and four

SHAWANESE CAMPAIGNS. 325
mortally wounded. In August, another Kentucky settle
ment, called Hoy's station, was visited by the Indians, by
whom two lads were carried into captivity. This band was
also pursued by Captain Holder, with a party of seventeen
men, who, coming up with the Indians, were likewise defeated
with a loss of seven killed and two wounded.
On the 14th of August, Bryant's station, five miles from
Lexington, was invested by five hundred Indians and Cana
dians, led by the notorious Simon Girty. Fortunately there
were assembled at this post a body of borderers who had
collected for the purpose of marching to the relief of a neigh
boring station, and were fully armed, and when --the Indians
assaulted the station on the third day, they were repulsed
with a loss of eighty kUled and many wounded, and the same
night abandoned the siege. They were pursued on their
retreat by Colonels Todd, Trigg and Boone, and Major Har-
land, at the head of only one hundred and seventy-six men.
It was known that Col. Logan was on the way to Bryant's
station with considerable reinforcements, but the infuriated
Kentuckians could not be restrained. The Indians drew the
pursuers into an unfortunate position on the 19th, when the
severe battle of Blue Licks ensued, in which the Kentuckians
were routed with the loss of seventy-six men ; among whom
were Colonels Todd and Trigg, Major Harland, and a son of
Colonel Boone. The battle lasted only fifteen minutes. The
retreat from the field was still more disastrous. The scene
of action was on the banks of the main fork of Licking
River, at the great bend, forty-three mUes from Lexington.
It was a sad day, and was long remembered as a tragic
anniversary. The cry for revenge rang from Kenhawa to
the faUs of Ohio, and once more a thousand volunteers fiocked
to the plain opposite the mouth of Licking. Clark led the

326 HISTORY OF OHIO.
expedition, and Col. Logan, as in 178.0, was in command of
a division. The army suffered greatly from hunger — ^their
supply of provisions being scanty and the requisite discipline
not suffering any diversion to obtain game. The route was
across the Mad River, not far from the present site of Dayton ;
thence up the east side of the Miami, crossing that river
about four miles below the Piqua towns. Shortly after
gaining the bottom, on the west side of the river, a party of
Indians on horseback, with their squaws, came out of a trail
that led to some Indian viUages near the present site of
Greenrille. The men took to flight, leaving their women and
a female captive in the hands of the Kentuckians. On
arriring at Piqua, that and the adjacent viUages were deserted,
and so suddenly, that fires were buming, meat roasting, and
corn still boiling in their kettles. The provisions were a most
acceptable treat to the Kentuckians, who were nearly fam
ished, but the escape of their enemies excited deep and
universal chagrin. The work of destruction was repeated
as on former occasions. The station of a French trader,
Loramie, was also destroyed at the mouth of the creek, which
henceforth bore his name — the same locality as the English
PickawiUany, which was destroyed by the French in 1752.
During this expedition five Indians were killed, and the loss
of the Kentuckians was only two.
The only other expedition of any importance, which pre
ceded the territorial organization, (except an abortive expe
dition in 1785, under Col. Edwards,) was led by Col. Ben
jamin Logan, in 1786. In the autumn of that year, Gen.
Clark projected and raised the forces for a campaign against
the Indians on the Wabash, and Col. Logan was detached
•from the army at the falls of the"Ohio, to raise a considerable
force with which to proceed against the Indian viUages on

SHAWANESE CAMPAIGNS. 327
the head waters of Mad River and the Great Miami. We,
have an interesting narrative of this incursion, in the papers
of the late Gen. WiUiam Lytle, of Cincinnati, who, although
a lad of sixteen, was present as a volunteer.
The Indian towns on the Mad River would have been
completely surprised, had not one of Logan's men deserted
.to the enemy. As it was, eight of the Machacheek vUlages
were burned — numerous cornfields destroyed — 70 or 80 war
riors taken prisoners, and about twenty others kiUed, among
them a distinguished chief, Moluntha, by a treacherous act
of one of the officers. Logan was accompanied by Daniel
Boone, Simon Kenton, Robert Patterson, and other famUiar
names of border history. The famous Grenadier Squaw was
among the captives — also a young Indian, who was afterward
adopted by Gen. Logan, and became a distinguished Indian
ally of the Americans. He was known as Captain Logan,
although his Indian name was Spemica Lawba, or " High
Horn." Here we close our outline of the Kentucky and Shawanese
campaigns. Each successive year of hostiUties had removed
the line of battle westward ; for, whUe in 1774, the banks
of the Kenhawa and the Scioto were the scene of action, the
vaUey of the Little Miami was the destination of Bowman and
Clark, in 1779 and 1780, and the Great Miami of the expe
dition of 1782. Logan, in 1786, penetrated further north
than any preceding invader. It was not until the treaty of
GreenviUe, in 1795, that this warlike tribe finally submitted
to destiny, and acquiesced in a permanent peace.

CHAPTER XXI.
THE MORAVIAN MISSIONS ON THE MUSKINGUM,
FROM 1772 TO 1782.
It is with a decided sensation of relief that we tum from
the repulsive reiteration of Indian massacre, and its swift
retaUation, which constitutes so marked a feature of Ameri
can border history, to the narrative of the Moravian Mission.
WhUe elsewhere on the Ohio and its tributaries, war assumed
its most hideous and demoniac form, the Muskingum yielded
the peaceable fruits of righteousness. Shoenbrun, the Beau
tiful Spring, and Gnadenhutten, the Tents of Grace, were ihe
abodes of a Christian community, where the regeneration of
the gospel was abundantly and admirably Ulustrated. The
annals of this colony of Indian converts have been faithfuUy
reported by the missionaries, Heckewelder and Zeisberger,
and also by George Henry Loskiel, historian of the Mission
of the United Brethren of North America. Our purpose is
only to preserve a transcript of these memorials.
Hitherto, a description of the temporary residence of Post
and Heckewelder at Tuscaroras, during the summer of 1762,
and the subsequent emigration from the Susquehanna and
Beaver Rivers of Pennsylvania, in 1772 and 1773, have
constituted our only direct reference to the devoted Ger
mans and their aboriginal congregation. Although Post's
pioneer mission was rudely interrupted by the general bor
der war of 1763, familiarly known as the conspiracy of Pon
tiac, yet the attempt was not entirely fruitless-. The Indians

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 829
appreciated its self-devotion, and when the Delaware Coun
cU at Gekelemukpechink forwarded their invitation to Zeis
berger to occupy the Muskingum, it was unquestionably
prompted by the favorable impressions which had been com
municated ten years previously.
The viUage of Shoenbrun, principally occupied by con
verted Delawares, was situated at the first settlement, on
the east bank of the Muskingum,^ about two miles below
New Philadelphia in Tuscarawas county ; whUe the Mohi
can viUage of Gnadenhutten was seven mUes south of Shoen
brun on the same side of the river. At each place, a chapel
was "buUt — that at Shoenbrun forty feet by thirty-six — of
squared timber, roofed with shingles, and surmounted by a
cupola and bell. Heckewelder describes the towns as regu
larly laid out, with wide and clean streets, and fenced to
exclude cattle ; presenting a neat and orderly appearance,
which excited the astonishment of their savage visitors.
Besides the missionaries already named, John Jacob Schmick
arrived in August, 1777, and was installed over the congre
gation at Gnadenhutten.
The indefatigable Zeisberger, before the close of 1773,
had twice risited the Shawanese viUages. He was accom
panied by the converted Delaware chief, GUkhikan, or Isaac
by baptism, and another native missionary or national assist
ant. Their first destination was Wakatameki, (probably at
the mouth of the creek still so called, near Dresden, in Mus-
Idngum county,) where they were hospitably received by a
Shawanese Indian, whose father had been an acquaintance
of Zeisberger in 1755, in the Wyoming valley of Pennsylva
nia. The son of Paxnous, their present host, spoke the Del-
1) In 1779, Schoenbrun, after a temporary desertion, was rebuilt on the
opposite or west side of the Muskingum.
14*

330 HISTORY OF OHIO.
aware language fluently, and accompanied the missionaries
on their farther journey, which extended to the •>' chief town
of the Shawanese." Here the party were entertained with
civUity by a heathen teacher of great infiuence, who as
sembled the Indians, and gave Zeisberger an opportunity to
address them in Delaware, a language generally understood
by those present. The exhortation made a profound impres
sion, and before his departure, the missionary received a
message from the chief and council of the town, avowing a
determination to receive the word of God, and live in con
formity with it," concluding with a request that the behev-
ing Indians and their teachers would come and Uve with
them. Zeisberger promised to communicate their message
to his brethren at Bethlehem, but the outbreak of Dunmore's
war in the following year, prevented the establishment of a
mission. On his second visit to the Shawanese country, in
September, 1773, Zeisberger found the head-chief of the
tribe very much exasperated against the whites, although his
reception of the missionary was kind. On meeting the lat
ter and his companions, he gave them his hand, adding in a
loud tone, " This day, God has so ordered, that we should
see and speak to each other face to face."
Our impression that this chief was the noted Cornstalk,
and that the " chief town" which the missionaries visited,
was the "Old ChiUicothe" of the Scioto plains, is strength
ened by the circumstance mentioned in Loskiel, that "in
May, 1775, the chief of a large Shawanese town spent six
days agreeably at Gnadenhutten, accompanied by his wife, a
captain, several counciUors, in all, above thirty persons.
Again, in Loskiel's narrative of 1776, we find the following
paragraph: "In Gnadenhutten, arrived about this time, a
chief of the Shawanese, commonly called Cornstalk, with a

TUE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 331
retinue of upwards of an hundred persons, men, women, and
children. His behavior was courteous, and he showed a
particular friendship for the missionary Jacob Schmick, to
whom he addressed the following speech through his inter
preter, an old mulatto, who had lived twenty years among
the Shawanese: "I greatly rejoice to see you and your
wife. I shall never forget the kindness you have shown me
during my last visit. Therefore, I consider you and your
wife as my parents and declare and own you anew as such."
Brother Schmick answered: "This is doing us too much
honor. We shall be satisfied if you will consider me as your
brother, and my wife as your sister." He seemed pleased,
and taking the missionary by the hand, thanked them, and
said : " I will acquaint all my friends that we have estab
lished this bond of friendship." The next spring, the mag
nanimous chief was murdered : but the foregoing circumstan
ces are sufficient to indicate that his well known inclination
to preserve the neutrality of his tribe during the revolu
tionary war, was, in a great degree, attributable to Mora
vian influence.
Very soon, indeed, after the erection of this chapel in the
wilderness, the happy effects of the Muskingum mission were
apparent among the Ohio Delawares. A chief called Ech-
palawehund, having announced his resolution to renounce
heathenism and live with the brethren, much confusion pre
vailed at Gekelemukpechink. He was prominent and influ
ential, and a party arose among the Indians demanding that
the missionaries should be banished from the country, as
disturbers of the peace and hostUe to their customs and sac
rifices. Another party held a councU of three days and
resolved that they would change their manner of living;
prohibit drunkenness ; exclude rum traders ; appoint six men

332 HISTORY OF OHIO.
to preserve good order ; and thus give no one a pretext for
leaving the town. A year afterward, however, these good
resolutions were so completely forgotten that Echpalawehund
abandoned the tribe for the communion of Gnadenhutten.
Another prominent Delaware chief, known to the whites
as Captain John — the same detained by Col. Bouquet at Fort
Pitt, in 1764 — joined the brethren in 1776. He was from
Achsinink, or Assiningk, (" solid rock,") on the Hockhock
ing River ,2 and his wife was a white woman, born in Virginia,
but from chUdhood a captive among the Indians. He
resigned, his station as chief and became a zealous Christian.
Among the converts were also a son and nephew of the old
and venerable chief, Netawatwes.
Netawatwes, or Nettowhatways, was the chief of the Turtle
Tribe of Delawares, who absented himself at the general
submission of the Delawares and Shawanese, in 1764, and
whose recusancy Col. Bouquet sought to punish by deposing
him from his chieftainship. Although the Indians seemed to
acquiesce in this deposition, and even proceeded to appoint a
successor, yet Netawatwes regained his former position and
influence immediately on the retirement of the invaders, and
in 1772 and afterwards resided at Gekelemukpechink.^ He
had warmly concurred in the original invitation to Zeisberger,
and welcomed the subsequent emigration under Heckewelder
and Rothe, but when it was proposed that the missionary,
Schmick, should take charge of the settlement at Gnaden-
2) Doubtless the well knovm " standing stone," now called Mt. Pleasant,
near Lancaster, Fairfield county. It is a sandstone formation. The base is
a mile and a half in circumference ; the apex about thirty by one hundred
yards, resembling, at a distance, a huge pyramid.
3) He was called King Newcomer by the whites; and the village of his
residence was probably on the site of Newcomers Town, in Tuscarawas
county. For further particulars of this chief, and other prominent Dela
wares, see Appendix No. VIII.

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 333
hutten, Loskiel reports that " Netawatwes was of opinion that
they had teachers enough, for the new one would teach nothing
but the same doctrine," although he after-^-ards agreed to his
coming. Towards the close of 1774, a warm debate,^ sprung Up
among the Delawares. Although the believing Indians^ad
been hospitably received, yet there had been no act of Mop-
tion or guaranty by the tribe. Glikhikan, whose former rank
as a warrior and an orator was not forgotten, often attended
the Indian council at Gekelemukpechink, by the invitation
of its leading members. Here he often enforced the doc
trines and duties of the gospel, butwas not unmindful ofthe
material interests of his brethren. At first he encountered
the opposition of old Netawatwes, whose jealousy of the
whites had now overcome his prepossessions in favor of the
missionaries ; but, on the other hand, was powerfully sup
ported by the eloquence of Captain White Eyes, who " de
manded (in the words of Loskiel) that the Christian Indians
should enjoy perfect liberty of conscience, and their teachers
safety and protection ; adding, that it was but right that the
believers should live separate from the rest, and be protected
by the chiefs and council against every intruder. But find
ing that his remonstrances would not avail, he separated
himself entirely from the chiefs and council. This occa
sioned great and general surprise, and his presence being
considered, both by the chiefs and people, as indispensable,
a negotiation commenced, and some Indian brethren were
appointed arbitrators (Glikhikan among them, doubtless).
The event was beyond expectation successful, for chief Neta
watwes not only acknowledged the injustice done to Captain
White Eyes, but changed his mind with respect to the believ
ing Indians and their teachers, and remained their constant

334 HISTORY OF OHIO.
friend to his death. He likewise pubUshed this change of
sentiment to the whole council, in presence of the deputies
from Shoenbrun and Gnadenhutten. Captain White Eyes
then repeated the proposal which they had formerly rejected ;
and the council agreeing to it, an act was made in the name
of the whole Delaware nation to the following effect : " From
this time forward we solemnly declare that we will receive
the word of God, and that the believing Indians and then-
teachers shall enjoy perfect liberty throughout the Indian
country, with the same rights and privileges enjoyed by other
Indians. The country shall be free to aU, and- the beUevers
shall have their right and share in it, as well as the unbe
lievers. Whoever wishes to go to the brethren, and to
receive the gospel, shall be at liberty to join them, and none
shaU hinder him.
" Netawatwes expressed great joy at this act and declara
tion, and concluded his speech with these words : ' I am an
old man, and know not how long I may live in this world. I
therefore rejoice that I have been able to make this act of
which our children and grandchildren wUl reap the benefit ;
and now I am ready to go out of the world whenever God
pleases.' He sent, moreover, the following message to chief
Pakanke, in Kaskaskunk, (on the Beaver River, in Pennsyl
vania, to whom Glikhikan had been a favorite counsellor.)
'You and I are both old, and know not how long we shall
live. Therefore let us do a good work before we depart,
and leave a testimony to our children and posterity, that we
have received the word of God. Let this be our last will
and testament.' Pakanke accepted the proposal, and he and
other chiefs made it known by solenin embassies in aU places
where it was necessary. For a still greater security, a treaty
was set on foot with the Delamattenoos, (Wyandots) who

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 335
had given this part of the country to the Delawares about
thirty years before, by which a grant was procured insuring
to the believing Indians an equal right with the other Dela
wares to possess land in it. And that this transaction might
be duly ratified in the Indian manner, and the act remain
unrepealed, the Christian Indians sent a formal embassy to
the chiefs and council of the Delaware nation, to retum their
humble thanks for it. The deputies repeated the whole
declaration of the council concerning the beliering Indians
and their teachers, and Netawatwes confirmed it to be their
own act and deed in presence of all the people ; adding that
they had called the Indian congregation and their missionaries
into this country, and that all the words now repeated by the
deputies had been spoken and ratified by this councU. Then
the deputies proceeded to return thanks in the name of both
congregations, delivering several belts of wampum, wHch
were forwarded to the neighboring nations. They were
made without ornaments, and immediately known by their
plainness to be the belts of the Christian Indians. Thus this
important business was concluded and confirmed in due
form." We regard this transaction as corroborating so fuUy our
opinions of the prominence of the Moravian mission, at the
outbreak of the American Revolution, and the corresponding
infiuence of the missionaries, not only among the Delawares
but with the other Ohio tribes — an infiuence which was po
tently exercised to preserve their relation of neutrality be
tween the parties to that struggle — that we shaU cite Hecke
welder in reiteration and confirmation of the European '
annaUst :
" In other respects," he says, " this year (1774) had been
remarkable to the Christian Indians. First, the chiefs of the

336 HISTORY OF OHIO.
nation, both on the Muskingum and at Cushcushkee,^ had
unitedly agreed and declared that the brethren should have
full liberty to preach the gospel to the nation wherever they
chose ; and this resolution they also made pubUcly known.
And secondly, these seeing that their friends and relations
pursued agriculture, and kept much cattle, they enlarged the
tract of land first set apart to them by moving their people
off to a greater distance. And consulting their uncles, the
Wyandots, on the subject, (they being the nation from whom
the Delawares had originally received the land) these set
apart, granted and confirmed, all that country lying between
Tuscaroras (old town) and the great bend below Newcom-
erstown,^ a distance of upwards of thirty mUes on the river,
and including the same, to the Christian Indians. Two large
belts of wampum were on this occasion delivered by the
Wyandots, and the chiefs of the Delaware nation, to the
Christian Indians, who, in return, thanked them for the gift,
both verbally and by belts and strings of wampum."
" MeanwhUe," says Loskiel, " Gekelemukpechink was for
saken by its inhabitants, and a new town buUt on the east
side of the Muskingum, opposite to the infiux of the Wal-
handing. This town was caUed Goschhocking, and chief
Netawatwes chose it for his future residence."
Under these auspicious circumstances, the year 1775 com
menced, and proved a season of extemal repose and mternal
prosperity to the mission. " The rest enjoyed by the Indian
congregation, in the year 1775, was pecuUarly pleasing,"
4) A town on the Beaver River.
5) In a communication by Johu Heckewelder, in 1822, to the Secretary
of War, the limits of this grant are thus described — " to extend from the
mouth of One Legged creek to the great bend in the river below Gakala-
mukpeking, old town, a distance of about thirty miles on the river, and
from whieh tract two small Indian villages wgre removed, besides single
families, so as to open the country at once to the Christian Indians entirely."

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 337
says Loskiel, " and much favored the -risits of strangers, who
came in such numbers that the chapel at Schoenbrun, which
might contain about five hundred hearers, was too smaU."
At the close of this year their number amounted to four
hundred and fourteen persons. All were in the enjoyment
of the coniforts, almost the luxuries, of civilization ; the lives
and deaths of the aboriginal converts, as reported to us, were
very exemplary ; while the children were zealously taught in
schools, into which the missionary Zeisberger had introduced
a spelling-book, published in the Delaware language.
In AprU, 1776, Zeisberger and Heckewelder founded
another settlement within two mUes of Gdschocking, and
called it Lichtenan. This spot had been selected by the
chiefs themselves, according to Heckewelder, " that they, as
well as their children, might have an opportunity of hearing
the gospel preached — a wish which the old and principal
chief, Netawatwes, had repeatedly informed them of, both by
public and private messages."
The external relations of the mission, (to adopt a favorite
expression of the Moravian historians) have been incidentally
included in our narrative of the efforts of the Delaware
peace-chiefs to preserve the neutrality of the nation. As
Netawatwes and the other chiefs at the forks of the Mus
kingum, were the protectors of the missionaries, and concur- '
red in the pacific dispositions of the Christian Indians, their
interests and sympathies in that respect were identical ; and
the American people unquestionably owe to the locality and
labors of the Moravian teachers at this critical period, that a
general combination of the western Indians was postponed
until 1780 — a date when the French aUiance and the increase
of population on the southern bank of the Ohio, concurred
to arrest its most disastrous consequences.
1.5

338 HISTORY OP OHIO.
Netawatwes died at Pittsburgh towards the close of 1776.
" Ever since his sentiments had changed in favor of the
gospel, he was a faithful friend of the brethren, and being
one of the most experienced chiefs in his time, his council
proved often most serriceable to the mission. The wish he
uttered as his last will and testament, that the Delaware
nation might hear and believe the word of God, preached by
the brethren, was frequently repeated in the councU by his
successor, and then they renewed their covenant to use their
utmost exertions to fulfill this last wish of their old worthy
and honored chief. Upon such an occasion. Captain White
Eyes, holding the Bible and some spelling-books in his hand,
addressed the councU with great emotion, and even with tears:
'My friends,' said he, 'you now have heard the last wiU and
testament of our departed chief. I wiU therefore gather
together my young men* and their children, and kneeUng
down before that God who created them, will pray unto him,
that he may have mercy upon us, and reveal his wUl unto
us. And as we cannot declare it unto those who are yet
unborn, we wUl pray unto the Lord our God, to make it
known to our children and chUdren's chUdren.' "^
The year 1777, already noticed as the period when the
Shawanese joined the Indians of the lakes against the Amer
icans, brought severe trials to the Moravian colony. The
inhabitants of Shoenbrun were mostly Delawares, and were
constantly tempted by the Muncie, or war party of the nation,
to abandon the missionaries. Newallike, a Muncie chief
hitherto belonging to the congregation at Schoenbrun, and
who had accompanied the emigration from the Susquehanna,
6) Loskiel's North American Missions, part iii., 116. The quotations from
Loskiel, in the present chapter, are numerous, and often made without spe
cial reference to the author, except by inverted commas. Heckewelder's
Narrative will be specially alluded to.

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 339
was the first to apostatize, and his example was followed by
so many that finally Zeisberger gathered the faithful remnant
together and abandoned Schoenbrun — thus increasing the
population of Gnadenhutten and Lichtenan. Soon after
wards, the missionaries Heckewelder and Youngman returned
to Bethlehem.
. Thenceforth the efforts of the Wyandots and Shawanese
to involve^he. Delawares at Goschocking in the warfare
against the colonies, were urgent and incessant. The mes
sages of the Wyandots, and the deference with which they
were received, confirm the impression that the Delawares
recognized the Wyandots as the original lords of the soU, and
that they were denizens of Ohio by the grace of their northern
neighbors. StiU, this tradition was not offensively suggested,
nor did it impair the independence of the Delawares. In
July, 1777, Loskiel informs us that an embassy of twenty
deputies from the Hurons arrived in Goschocking. They
offered the war-belt three times successively, demanding the
assistance of the Delawares to, make war against the colonies,
and declaring that all the nations on Lake Erie were united
as one man to fight against the Americans ; but the Dela
ware chiefs returned the war-belt arid answered that they
could not comply with their demand, having promised at the
treaty of peace made after the last war, that as long as the
sun should shine and the rivers fiow, they would not fight
against the white people ; that therefore they had no hand
left to take up the war-belt. The ambassadors returned,
greatly displeased with the answer, and the Moravians anti
cipated nothing less than an attack by the Indian aUies of
the EngUsh.
Early in August, they were alarmed by intelligence, that
a body of two hundred Wyandots led by Pomoacan, the

340 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Half King of Upper Sandusky, were on the way to Lich
tenan. "After mature consideration," to resume the narrar
tive of Loskiel, " the brethren resolved, to show no signs of
fear, but to gain these savages, by giving them a kind recep
tion. Oxen and pigs were kUled, and other food provided,
and the liberality of the Indian Brethren and Sisters in con
tributing to these preparations, was truly remarkable, for
they considered it as the only means of saving the Uves of
their beloved teachers. August the 8th, the warriors ar
rived in Goschocking, and upon their meeting a number of
the Christian Indians from Lichtenan, carrying prorisions
for them, their surprise and pleasure were equally great.
The good humor which this occasioned, was improved by the
assistants, who soon after sent a solemn embassy to the Half
King and other chiefs of the Hurons. Isaac Glikhikan thus
addressed them:
"'Uncle ! we, your cousins, the congregation of beliering
Indians at Lichtenan and Gnadenhutten, rejoice at the
opportunity to see and speak with you. We cleanse your
eyes from all the dust, and whatever the wind may have
carried into them, that you may see your cousin with clear
eyes and a serene countenance. We cleanse your ears and
hearts from all evil reports which an evil wind may have
conveyed into your ears, and even into your hearts on the
journey, that our words may find entrance into your ears
and a place in your hearts.' Here he delivered a string of
wampUm and proceeded: 'Uncle! hear the words of the
believing Indians, your cousins, at Lichtenan and Gnaden
hutten. We would have you know, that we have received
and believed in the word of God for thirty years and up
wards, and meet daily to hear it, morning and evening.
You must also know, that we have our teachers dwelling

THE MUSKIN(«JM MISSION. 341
among us, who instract us and our children. By this word
of God, preached to us by our teachers, we are taught to
keep peace with all men, and to consider them as friends ;
for thus God has commanded us, and therefore we are lovers
of peace. These our teachers are not only our friends, but
we consider and love them as our own fiesh and blood.
Now, as we are your cousin, we most earnestly beg of you.
Uncle, that you also would consider them as your own body,
and as your cousin. We and they make but one body, and
therefore cannot be separated, and whatever you do unto
them, you do unto us, whether it be good or evil.' Here
upon, another string of wampum, several fathoms in length,
was delivered. The Half King replied, that these words
had penetrated his heart, and that he would immediately
consult with his warriors about them. This being done, he
returned, the following answer to the deputies : ' Cousins !
I am very glad, and.^el great satisfaction that you have
cleansed mj eyes, ears, and heart from all evil, conveyed
into me by the wind on this journey. I am upon an expedi
tion of an unusual kind ; for I am a warrior, and am going
to war, and therefore many evil things and evil thoughts
enter into my head, and even into my heart. But thanks
to my cousin, my eyes are now clear, so that I can behold
my cousin with a serene countenance. I rejoice, that I can
hear my cousins with open ears, and take their words to
heart.' He then delivered a string of wampum, and re
peating all the words of the deputies relating to the mission
aries, he expressed his approbation of them, and added:
' Go on as hitherto, and suffer no one to molest you. Obey
your teachers, who speak nothing but good unto you, and
instruct you in the ways of God, and be not afraid that any
harm shall be done unto them. No creature shall hurt

342 HISTORY OF OHIO.
them. Attend to your worship, and never mind other affairs.
Indeed' you see us going to war; but you may remam easy
and quiet, and need not think much about it,' &c.
"During these transactions, the brethren at Lichtenan
were under great apprehensions, fearing the event. The
deputies had therefore agreed, that as soon as they should
perceive that the Half King spoke in an angry tone, they
would send a messenger full speed to Lichtenan, before he
concluded his speech,, that the whole congregation might
take fiight. So much the greater was the joy of aU, when
the affair took so favorable a turn, and every one felt him
self excited to thank and praise the Almighty Saviour of his
people, for having heard the numberless sighs and prayers
offered up to him at this critical juncture. The word of
Scripture for the day was: '¦Sing aloud unto Gfod ow
strength: make a joyful noise unto the Cod of Jacob.'' — Ps.
Ixxxi, 1. This was done with one accord, and with a full
heart. " The same day, Half King, the chief captain, and eighty-
two warriors came to Lichtenau. They were first shown
into the school-house, where the missionaries Zeisberger and
William Edwards received them. They shook hands with
aU they met, and the Half King spoke as foUows : ' We
rejoice to see our father, and to take him by the hand : from
this time forth we will consider you as our father, and you
shall own and consider us as your chUdren, nor shall any thing
ever disturb your minds in this respect, but our covenant shall
remain firm forever. We wUl also acquaint the other nations
with the proceedings of this day, and they wUl doubtless
rejoice.' Zeisberger answered this friendly compliment in a
proper manner, after which the missionaries and some Indian
brethren dined with the Half King and his officers, under a

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 343
hut made of green boughs : the other warriors seated them
selves in the shade in front of the place, and were so richly
provided with food, that after having made a hearty meal,
each could carry a large portion with him to Goschocking,
to which place they all retumed in the evening. " The Half
King then sent messengers to the English governor in Detroit,
and to the chiefs in the Huron country, to give them an account
of the covenant made with the believing Indians, adding that
he and his warriors had acknowledged the white brethren to
be their father and would ever own them as such."
During the first alarm, the missionary Schmick and his
wife were persuaded by the Indians to fly to Pittsburgh,
whence they returned to Bethlehem, leaving Zeisberger and
William Edwards in charge of the congregations. The band
of Indians under Half King increased to two hundred, com
posed, according to Loskiel, of " Hurons, Iroquois, Ottawas,
Chippeways, Shawanese, Wampanos, and Potawontakas,"
besides some Canadian French. It was a full fortnight before
the inhabitants of Lichtenau were relieved of their presence
in the vicinity.
For a period of four years, the mission experienced no
serious annoyance from the Ohio savages: but the friendship
of the Hurons, and the fact that their war-parties usually
traversed the Moravian viUages on their march to Pennsyl
vania and Virginia, exposed Gnadenhutten and Lichtenau
to the danger of attack by the American borderers. On one
occasion these vUlages were deserted, and the inhabitants fled
up the Walhonding, alarmed by a false report, that an armed
band of Virginians were marching against the Delaware
towns : while in October, 1777, a party which had actually
started upon such an expedition, was cut off by the Half King
of the Hurons.

344 HISTORY OF OHIO.
As long as the Delaware chiefs at Goschocking were de
termined to preserve their neutrality, Lichtenau, only two
miles distant, was the principal seat of the mission. Indeed,
in AprU, 1778, Gnadenhutten was abandoned on account of
the annoyances of " freebooters belonging to the whites," and
the whole community concentrated at Lichtenau. But in
1779, the neighborhood of Goschocking became less desira
ble. After the death of Captain White Eyes, in the autumn
of 1778, the English party among the Delawares rapidly
increased — with the evacuation of Fort Laurens by the Amer
icans, the peace-chiefs and their few adherents were compeUed
to retire to the vicinity of Pittsburgh ; and thus, late in the
summer of 1779, the Christian Indians stood alone, within
the present Umits of Ohio, in the resolution to observe a neu
trality between the contending whites. The inhabitants of
Goschocking thenceforth sought to molest their peace-loring
neighbors in various ways ; and their robberies, drunkenness
and other outrages became so insupportable to the congregar
tion, that Gnadenhutten was- at length reoccupied; Shoen
brun rebuilt, although on the opposite side or west side of the
Muskingum, and Lichtenau itself, on the 30th of March,
1780, was, in turn abandoned, and a new settlement, called
Salem, established about five miles below Gnadenhutten.
In May, 1780, Loskiel mentions the arrival of "the single
sister, Sarah Ohneberg, who afterwards married John Heck-
ev/elder." Their eldest daughter, Mary Heckewelder, was
born at Salem on the 16th of April, 1781, and is generally
supposed to have been the first born of white American chil
dren, north of the Ohio. In July, 1781, an arrangement of
religious teachers was effected, by Which Darid Zeisberger
superintended the whole mission, but particularly served the
congregation at Schoenbrun, assisted by John George Young-

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 345
man ; whUe Gottlob Senseman and William Edwards were
stationed at Gnadenhutten, and John Heckewelder and
Michael Young at Salem. The missionary Shebosch, who
was married to an Indian convert, also returned from Beth
lehem in November, 1780.
It was the peculiar hardship of these inoffensive religion
ists, that every act of benevolence or humanity on their
part, was sure to excite distrust and hostility in some quar
ter. If a war-party from the lakes halted near their towns,
and in obedience to universal Indian usage, were furnished
with a meal of rictuals : or if, on their return, the missiona
ries interposed to ransom a prisoner, the rumor ran through
the settlements that the Moravian Indians were leagued with
the hostile savages. On the other hand, the English emis
saries, McKee, Elliott and Girty, made frequent and bitter
complaints that Zeisberger and his companions were in the
habit of sending runners to the American commandant at
Pittsburgh, when informed that the Indians were meditating
an expedition upon some particular point of the Virginia
border. There is no doubt that such was frequently the
case. So far, the Moravians deviated from a strict neutral
ity, yet their motive was the simple suggestion of humanity
— in no sense political — and it is a melancholy reflection
that such acts of disinterested kindness were so iU-requited,
as we shaU see in the sequel. Still, it is due to the impetu
ous settlers of the upper Ohio, to add, that whatever ap
peared like a complication of the Christian Indians with the
savage enemy, was so notorious as to provoke exaggeratiou ,
whUe the eridence of an opposite or friendly disposition was
dUigently guarded by Morgan, Mcintosh or Brodhead — the
American officers at Pittsburgh — as confidential communi
cations

346 HISTORY OF OHIO.
In the summer of 1781, there was an illustration of the
different sentiments with which the Moravians were regar
ded by the American officers and the miUtia under then-
command. Colonel Daniel Brodhead, then stationed at
Pittsburgh, led an expedition against Goschocking, the Del
aware town on the east baiik of Muskingum, and on his
march thither, halted about five miles below Salem. Here
he addressed a note to Heckewelder, requesting a supply of
provisions, and that the missionary would risit his camp.
Heckewelder hastened to comply, and personaUy received
from the American officer assurances that his trOops should
not molest the Moravian Indians, who had conducted them
selves, he proceeded to say, in a maimer that did them
honor, and that neither the EngUsh or Americans could with
justice reproach them with improper conduct in their situar
tion. While Col. Brodhead was speaking, however, an
officer hastily entered to inform him that a body of militia
were about "breaking off for the purpose of destroying the
Moravian settlements up the river," and it was with great
difficulty that the commanding officer, aided by Col. David
Shepherd of Wheeling, could restrain the men from adding
such an outrage to the other acts of inhumanity which
attended this Coshocton campaign, and which wiU hereafter
occupy our attention.
Immediately after this Coshocton campaign, a deeply
interesting interview occurred between a distinguished Dela
ware chief, and the inhabitants of the Moi^lvian rillages.
Heckewelder calls him "the head war chief ofthe Delaware
nation," and we are satisfied that he is the same individual
of whom we first hear in the French and English war as
" Shingess;" next, in 1762, as Bog Meadow or King Shin-
gas; now in 1781, as PachgantschihUas ; again in 1785, at

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 347
an Indian Council near the mouth of the Great Miami, as
PacanchichUas, and long afterwards as the Bockingehelas,
whom many of the early settlers of Ohio recollect to have
been Uving in 1804, at a great age. This chief, on the
present occasion, was accompanied by eighty warriors, who
sUently surrounded Gnadenhutten before day break. As
they approached, the town was haUed, and their leader
demanded the delivery of Gellelemend or KUlbuck and the
other peace-chiefs of the Delawares. He was informed that
they had gone to Pittsburgh some time before, and after a
strict search, the Indians were satisfied that they were not
in the town. The nation now being at war, these peace-
chiefs had become subordinate to the war-chiefs, and Pach
gantschihUas was determined to remove them -s\^here they
could exercise no function, until their services were required
to conclude a peace.
The Delaware chief then demanded that deputies from the
three Moravian towns should be assembled, and he proceeded
to address them, according to Heckewelder, as foUows :
" Friends and kinsmen ! Listen to what I have to say to
you. You see a great and powerful nation divided. You
see the father fighting against the son, and the son against
the father. The father has called on his Indian chUdren to
assist him in punishing his children, the Americans, who have
become refractory. I took time to consider what I should
do — whether or not I would receive the hatchet of my father
to assist him. At first I looked upon it as a family quarrel,
in which I was not interested. However, at length it
appeared to me that the father was in the right, and his chil
dren deserved to be punished a little. That this must be the
case, I concluded from the many cruel acts his offepring had
committed from time to time on his Indian children ; in en-

348 HISTORY OF OHIO.
croaching on their lands, stealing their property, shooting at,
and murdering without cause, men, women and chUdren!
Yes ! even murdering those who at all times had been friendly
to them, and were placed for protection under the roof of
their father's house — the father himself standing sentry at
the door at the time !'
" Friends and relatives ! — Often has the father been obUged
to settle and make amends for the wrongs and mischiefs done
to us by his refractory children, yet these do not grow better.
No ! they remain the same, and will continue to be so as long
as we have any land left us. ^ Look back at the murders
committed by the Long Knives (Virginians) on many of our
relations, who lived peaceable neighbors lo them on the Ohio!
Did they not kill them without .the least provocation ? Are
they, do you think, better now than they were then ? No,
indeed not, and many days are not elapsed since you had a
number of these very men near your doors, who panted to
kill you, but fortunately were prevented from so doing by the
Great Sun,^ who, at that time, had, by the Great Spirit, been
ordained to protect you.
"Friends and relatives ! — You love that which is good, and
wish to live in peace with all mankind, and at a place where
you may not be 'disturbed whilst praying. You are very
right in this, and I do not reproach you in haring made the
choice. But, my friends and relatives, does the place you
are at present settled at answer this purpose ? Do you not
live in the very road the contending parties pass over when
they go to fight each other ? Have you not discovered the
footsteps of the Long Knives almost within sight of your
7) The allusion here is to the slaughter of the Conestoga Indians, of
Pennsylvania, by a mob of whites, although thej' had taken refuge in Lan
caster jail. '
8) A name given by the Indians to Col. Brodhead.

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 349
towns, and seen the smoke arising from their camps ? Should
not this be sufficient warning to you, and lead you to consult
your own safety? We have long since turned our faces
towards your habitations, in the expectation of seeing you
come from where you now are to us, where .you would be out
of danger ; but you were so engaged in praying that you
did not discover our anxiety for your sakes.
"Friends and relatives! — Now listen to me and hear what
I have to say to you. I am myself come to bid you rise
and go with me to a secure place. Do not, my friends, covet
the land you now hold under cultivation. I will conduct
you to a country^ equally good, where your fields shaU yield
you abundant crops, and where your cattle shall find abun
dant pasture ; where there is plenty of game ; where your
women and children, together with yourselves, will live in
peace and safety ; where no Long Knife shall ever molest
you. Nay, I will live between you and them, and not even
suffer them to frighten you. There you can worship your
God without fear. Here, where you are, you cannot do
this. Think on what I have now said to you, and believe
that if you stay where you now are, one day or the other,
the Long Knives wiU, in their usual way, speak fine words
to you, and at the same time murder you."
In the course of an hour, the Christian Indians replied to
the foregoing address with thanks for the kind expressions
of their friends and relatives, but stating that they were
unwiUing to believe that their American brethren, against
whom they had never committed a hostile act, should inflict
such injuries upon them. They hinted that their only danger
9) Here Heckewelder adds in a note, " the Miami country." There is
reason to believe that after this chief led his band from Tuscaroras, (the
upper forks of Muskingum) he emigrated, perhaps not immediately, to the
Miami, or Maumee River, near the junction of the Auglaize.

350 HISTORY OF OHIO.
grew out of the fact that war-parties,, like the present, by
going or returning through their viUages, might draw an
enemy upon them — otherwise they had no fears. As to the
invitation to leave their settlements, thj^y objected that they
were much too heavy (in possession of too much property,
provisions, etc.,) to think of rising and going with their
friends and relatives.
PachgantschihUas, after another consultation with his cap
tains, repeated his former warning, but disclaimed any pur
pose of compelling the Moravians to leave their settiements.
He requested, in conclusion, that any who chose to avoid
the dangers which he anticipated, might be free to accept
his protection, to which the missionaries assured him there
would be no objection. The next day, the chief and hia
warriors proceeded to Salem, where a feast had been pre
pared for them under the direction of Glikhikan, who came
forth to greet and welcome his guests. The warriors ap
proached gravely and decorously, without a yell or shout.
When they arrived in the centre of the viUage, opposite the ¦
chapel and the residence of Heckewelder, Pachgantschihilaa
ordered a halt, and publicly pronounced a warm eulogy upon
the believing Indians. He then dismissed them to the enter
tainment which had been provided in a grove of sugar-maple,
whUe the chief himself, accompanied by two Shawanese and
two Delaware war-captains, repaired to the house of Hecke
welder, in whom he recognized the youthful pall-bearer at
the funeral of his favorite wife, nineteen years before, at
Tuscaroras. Here, where also were assembled the national
assistants of the mission, he repeated his friendly assurances,
and soon after departed with his warriors, having first pro
claimed from the centre of the street, in a tone audible to
all the inhabitants, that " if at any time they should hear it

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 351
said that PachgantschihUas was an enemy to the believing
Indians, they should consider such words as lies."
It was from the English quarter that the first serious inter
ruption to the peacefjil pursuits of the Moravian community
proceeded. The tory leaders of the Ohio savages, McKee,
Elliott and Simon Girty, were extremely hostUe, and are
charged with having instigated several attempts to assassi
nate or seize the missionaries. Baffled in these, by the
vigUance and devotion of the Christian Indians, they repre
sented to the British commandant at Detroit, Col. Depeyster,
that the missionaries were partizans and spies of Congress,
and that their infiuence was extremely prejudicial to the
British interest. That officer was induced to insist upon
their removal from the vicinity of Pittsburgh, and early in
1781, his wishes were communicated to the great council of
the Six Nations, assembled at Niagara, by whom a message
was sent to the Ottawas and Chippewas to the following effect :
" We herewith make you a present of the Christian Indians
on the Muskingum to make broth of;" an expression well
understood to mean : " We desire you to put those people to
death." But those two nations, being a branch of the Del
aware stock, and ranking as their grandchildren, replied:
"We have no cause for doing this." The Wyandots, at
first, were even more disinclined to assume the ungrateful
task, because the Detroit division of the tribe held the rela
tion of guardian or protector to the Christian Indians among
themselves, who were the converts of Catholic missionaries,
and they knew no sectarian distinction between the Catholic
Wyandot and the Protestant Delaware or Mohican, whUe
Pomoacan, or the Half King, at Upper Sandusky, had hith
erto avowed and conducled himself as a friend and champion
of the Muskingum mission. But Captain Pipe and his foi-

352 ¦ HISTORY OF OHIO.
lowers were now the neighbors of Half King, at Upper San
dusky, and the latter was persuaded to lead a body of two
hundred warriors against the Moravian towns. Heckewelder,
after the arrival of some reinforcements, states the whole
force at three hundred men, and classifies them as Wyandots
from Upper Sandusky, commanded by Half King ; another
band of Wyandots from Detroit and Lower Sandusky, com
manded by Kuhn, a head war-chief of the latter place ; a
party of Delawares from Uppe.r Sandusky, led by the war-
chiefs Pipe and Wingemund ; about forty Muncies, also from
Upper Sandusky (probably under the apostate Newalike);
two Shawanese captains, named by the traders John and
Thomas Snake, with a few warriors from the Scioto ; several
straggling Indians of the Mohegan and Ottawa tribes, and
Elliott, whose rank in the British service was Captain, with
his attendant Michael Herbert and Alexander McCormicli:,
the bearer of a British flag, and a small train of unarmed
Wyandots, men and women, with horses, who had come to
assist in remoring the booty.
When this formidable band approached Salem, the Half
King sent a message to the Christian Indians, desiring them
to fear nothing, adding that he came himself to see that no
injury should be done to them ; but having good words to
speak, he wished to know which of their settiements would
be most convenient for a meeting. Now, as Gnadenhutten
was in every respect the most proper place, it was accor
dingly fixed upon. The warriors, therefore, pitched their
camp, on the 11th of August, on the west ' side of Gnaden
hutten, and were treated in the most liberal manner.
On the 20th of August, the Half King appointed a meet
ing of the beUeving Indians and their teachers, and deUvered
the following speech :

THB MUSKINGUM MISSION. 353
" Cousins ! ye beUeving Indians in Gnadenhutten, Schoen
brun and Salem ! I am much concerned on your account,
perceiving that you live in a dangerous spot. Two powerful,
angry and mercUess gods stand ready, opening their jaws
wide against each other ; you are setting down between both,
and thus in danger of being devoured and ground to powder
by the teeth of either one or the other, or of both. It is,
therefore, not advisable for you to stay here any longer.
Consider your young people, your wives and your children,
and preserve their lives, for here they must all perish. I
therefore take you by the hand, lift you up, and place you
in or near my dweUing, where you will be safe and dwell in
peace. Do not stand looking at your plantations and houses,
but arise and follow me. Take also your teachers with you,
and worship God in the place to which I shall lead you, as you
have been accustomed to do. You shall likewise find provi
sions, and our father beyond the lake (meaning the governor
of Detroit) will care for you. This is my message, and I
am come purposely to deliver it."
He then delivered a string of wampum, and the mission
aries and Indian assistants of the three settlements met in
conference to consider this unexpected address, and on the
21st, the latter delivered the following answer to the Half
King: " Uncle ! and ye captains of the Delawares and Muncies,
our friends and countrymen ! Ye Shawanese, our nephews,
and aU ye other people here assembled ! We have heard
your words ; but have not seen the danger so great, that we
might not stay here. We keep peace with all men and have
nothing to do with the war, nor do we wish or desire anything
but to be premitted to enjoy rest and peace. You see your
selves, that we cannot rise immediately and go with you, for
15*

354 HISTORY OF OHIO.
we are heavy, and time is required to prepare for it. But
we will keep and consider your words, and let you, uncle !
know our answer next winter, after the harvest ; upon this
you may rely."
The Half King certainly, and perhaps Captain Pipe, were
not disposed to press the matter further, and in the Indian
camp the current was so strongly in favor of the Christian
Indians, that some were disposed to make a shooting target
of the British flag, as a retaliation upon the agency of
Captain Elliot. That officer, whose zeal for the Enghsh
cause was stimulated by the prospect of pecuniary advantage
in the sacrifice of the stock and other valuable property of
the mission, labored zealously to remove the reluctance of
Half King and Pipe. He represented to them that the
English Governor at Detroit would be greatly dissatisfied, if
they returned without the missionaries. It unfortunately
happened that two Moravian Indians, whom the missionaries
had dispatched to Pittsburgh with information of the existing
state of things, were intercepted by the savages, and this
circumstance was exaggerated by ElUot into a proof, not only
that the missionaries wei-e leagued with their enemies, but that
they were instigating a hostUe expedition against the party
of Half King and Pipe. This turn of affairs greatly exas
perated those chiefs. At a second councU, held on the 25th,
Half King had seemed to waver — at least he listened to the
remonstrances of Glikhikan and his associates in sUence—
but in his altered humor he no longer hesitated. A third
council was convened on the second of September, before
which Zeisberger, Senseman and Heckewelder, with some of
their assistants, were summoned, and Half King msisted upon
their giring an immediate answer, whether they would go
with him or not, -without retiring to consult upon it. The

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 355
missionaries appealed to their former answer — the assembly
broke up without debate and in some confusion, and soon
afterwards Zeisberger, Senseman and Heckewelder, were vio
lently seized and imprisofled. They were voluntarily joined
by their associates, WiUiam Edwards, who was determined
to accept no exemption from their fate : and during that night
and the subsequent day their residences were pUlaged. The
other missionaries. Young and Youngman, were also impris
oned, although the latter was released the next day. The
wives and chUdren of the five missionaries were brought to
Gnadenhutten as captives, but were soon released, as were
the missionaries themselves, after five days of close confine
ment and distressing anxiety.
The life of Isaac Glikhikan was endangered by the heroic
act of a young Indian relative, who rode Captain Pipe's best
horse to Pittsburgh with the news of the recent violence. As
soon as her departure was discovered, she was instantly
pursued, but as she could not be overtaken, the savages
were enraged in the highest degree, and a party of warriors
immediately started to Salem and brought Isaac Glikhikan
bound to Gnadenhutten, singing a death song. Loskiel relates
that whUe the savages were binding him, perceiving that they
seemed much terrified, he encouraged them, saying, " For
merly, when I was ignorant of God, I should not have suffered
any one of you to touch me. But now, having been converted
unto him, through mercy, I am willing to suffer all things for
his sake. He no sooner arrived in the camp but a general
uproar ensued, the savages demanding that he should be cut
in pieces. The Delawares, who hated him more particularly
for his conversion, thirsted for his blood, but the Half King
interfering, would not suffer him to be killed. However,
they examined him very severely, and though his innocence

356 HISTORY OP OHIO.
was clearly proved, they attacked him with opprobious lan
guage. After some hours' confinement, he was set at liberty.
Although the young woman reached Pittsburgh, the comman
dant there deemed it too late, or otherwise unadvisable, to
attempt a forcible rescue. It was a prudent decision, and
probably prevented a massacre of the missionaries and their
families. On the 10th, the Indians resumed their outrages to such
a degree, that emigration seemed the desirable altemar
tive. It was accordingly proposed to the congregations, who
sorrowfully assented. " But they never," says Loskiel, "for
sook any country with more reluctance. They were now
obliged to forsake three beautiful settlements, Gnadenhutten,
Salem and Schoenbrun, and the greatest part of their pos
sessions in them. They had already lost above two hundred
head of horned cattle, and four hundred hogs. Besides this,
they left a great quantity of Indian corn in store, above three
hundred acres of corn land, where the harvest was just
ripening, besides potatoes, cabbage, and other roots and gar
den fruits in the ground. According to a moderate calcula
tion, their loss was computed at twelve thousand doUars or
two thousand pounds. But what gave them most pain, was
the total loss of all books and writings, for the instruction of
their youth. These were aU burnt by the savages."
On the third day after their departure, they arrived at
Goschocking, where a short halt was made to hunt a tamed
buffalo cow, which was shot as it came to the river to drink.
Here Elliott left for the Scioto to meet McKee, greatly to
the relief of the Morarian teachers. They then ascended
the Walhonding, partly by water and partly along the banks
of that stream. On the 19th, two of their best canoes,
heavily laden with provisions were sunk in a violent storm

TUB MUSKINGUM MISSION. 357
of wind and rain, and the women and children suffered
severely from exposure. Half King halted to give the
encampment an opportunity to dry their clothes and bag
gage, and hence dispatched a war-party to the Ohio.
" WhUe they were marching so proudly through our camp,"
adds Heckewelder, "they were not aware of what would
befall them: they were defeated with the loss of some of the
party, among whom were the Half King's two sons."
At Gockhosink, or the "habitation of owls," (probably
Owl Creek, now Vernon River) they left the river, travel
ing altpgether by land, and on the 11th of October, (a cal
endar month in making a journey of one hundred and
twenty-five miles) they arrived at the Sandusky River.
Here the Half King left them, and after roving to and fro
for some time, they "pitched upon the best spot they could
find in the dreary waste, and built small huts of logs and
bajk, to screen themselves from the cold, having neither
beds nor blankets, and being reduced to the greatest poverty
and want. The savages had by degrees stolen every thing
both from the missionaries and the Indians on the journey,
only leaving them the needful utensils for making maple
sugar." Loskiel mentions as an extraordinary proof of the
general distress, that " even the missionaries, who had hith
erto always lived upon their own produce, were now obliged
to receive alms, they and their famiUes being supported by
contributions gathered in the congregation." A party was
sent back to the Muskingum to gather a portion of the corn
yet standing in the fields; and returned with about four
hundred bushels. Six of their number including the mis
sionary Shebosch, were taken prisoners at Schoenbrun, and
carried to Pittsburgh, but were released soon after their
arrival there.

358 HISTORY OF OHIO.
The month of October had not passed, before a message
was received from the British commmandant at Detroit,
requiring the missionaries to appear before him. On the
25th, Zeisberger, Heckewelder, Senseman and Edwards,
with four Indian assistants, started upon the journey, and
after enduring the hardships and dangers of the land route
to the mouth of the Maumee River, (caUed Tawa or Ottawa
by Heckewelder,) and thence along the western shore of
Lake Erie, they reached Detroit at the expiration of nine
days. In their first interview with the Govemor, Arend
Schuyler Depeyster, he informed them that the reason of
calling them from their settiements on the Muskuigum, was
because he had heard that they carried on a correspondence
with the Americans to the prejudice of the English interest.
The missionaries justified themselves from such an imputa
tion, and a further investigation was postponed until the
arrival of Captain Pipe. Fortunately, that chief was not
accompanied by Elliott or Girty, and when he was con
fronted with the missionaries On the 9th of November, he
bore a frank and honorable testimony to their impartiaUty'
and worth, and in answer to a direct appeal by the Gover
nor, advised that they should be aUowed to retum to their
congregations. " I never witnessed," Heckewelder piously
observes, " a more manifest instance of the powerful work
ings of conscience than during the whole of this transaction.
Of course, all who were present, immediately acquitted us
of all the charges brought against us ; expressmg their sin
cere regret that we had innocentiy suffered so much."
The missionaries were thenceforth treated with much
kindness by the commandant, his officers, and the inhabi
tants of Detroit, and soon returned to Upper Sandusky.
Here, as the winter advanced, the unfortunate Indians were

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 359
often on the verge of starvation ; while Half King and Pipe,
instigated by EUiott and Girty, resumed their persecutions,
and demanded that the Governor of Detroit should remove
the teachers from Sandusky. Their threats were too signifi
cant to be disregarded, and an order was received on the
1st of March, 1782, directing Girty and Half Kmg to
remove the missionaries and their families to Detroit : but
as they had just arranged an expedition to the Ohio, one
Francis LevaUie, a Canadian Frenchman, living at Lower
Sandusky, was appointed to accompany them. This was a
fortunate exchange, for their conductor proved himself cour
teous and humane, even surrendering his own horse to the
missionary Zeisberger, who was sixty years old, and insist
ing that respect for his age and station alike prompted the
act. LevaUie, instead of urging the party, among whom
were the wives and children of the missionaries, through the
dreary wilderness beyond Lower Sandusky, tarried at the
latter place and sent a messenger to Detroit for further
instructions, while, until his return, two English traders,
Messrs. Arundel and Robbins, hospitably received the fugi
tives into their houses. In due course, two vessels arrived
from Detroit, under directions from the Governor to trans
port the missionaries and their families by Sandusky Bay
and Lake Erie. They embarked on the 14th of April,
greatly to the chagrin of Girty, who had complained in the
most brutal manner of their indulgent treatment, and made
the voyage safely to Detroit, where they were generously
received, and allowed their choice, either to remain under
the protection of Col. Depeyster, or be returned to BetHe-
hem. They chose to remain in the vicinity of their beloved
Indian congregation, although restrained from Uring among
them.

360 HISTORY OP OHIO.
Simultaneously with the removal of Zeisberger and his
fellow-teachers to Detroit, a tragedy was enacted on the Mus
kingum, which fills the darkest page in the border history of
the American Revolution. We refer 4;o the cruel and cow
ardly massacre of a party of Moravian Indians, who had
again repaired to their deserted cornfields to glean the scat
tered ears for the relief of their suffering brethren on the
Sandusky plains. Unhappily, while this peaceable party
were thus engaged on the Muskingum, a band of Indians from
Sandusky had made a descent upon the Pennsylvania frontier,
and murdered the family of Mr. WiUiam Wallace, consisting
of his wife and five or six children. A. man named John
Carpenter was taken prisoner at the same time. Enraged at
these outrages, a band of one hundred and sixty men, from
the settlements on the Monongahela, turned out in quest of
the marauders, under the command of Col. David WUUam-
son. Each man provided himself with arms, ammunition and
provisions, and the greater number were mounted. They
struck immediately for the settlements of Salem and Gnaden
hutten, arriring within a mile of the latter place at the close
of the second day's march. Colonel Gibson, commanding at
Pittsburgh, having heard of WUUamson's expedition, dis
patched messengers to apprise the Indians of the cu-cum-
stance, but they arrived too late.
StUl, the Christian Indians were aware of the approach
of WUUamson's band, but having recently been accustomed
to regard the savage allies of the English as the source of
their injuries, they made no effort to escape, although their
labors were accompUshed" and they were about to retrace
their steps to Sandusky. The bloody sequel we prefer to give
in the words of Loskiel :
" Meanwhile, the murderers marched first to Gnadenhutten,

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 361
where they arrived on the 6th of March. About a mile from
the settlement they met young Shebosch in, the wood, fired
at him, and wounded him so much that he could not escape.
He then, according to the account of the murderers them
selves, begged for his life, representing that he was She
bosch, the son of a white Christian man. But they paid no
attention to his entreaties, and cut him in pieces with their
hatchets. They then approached the Indians, most of whom
were in their plantations, and surrounded them almost imper
ceptibly, but feigning a friendly beharior, told them to go
home, promising to do them no injury. They even pretended
to pity them on account of the mischief done to them by the
EngUsh and the^ savages, assuring them of the protection and
friendship of the Americans. The poor beUeving Indians,
knowing nothing of the death of. young Shebosch, believed
every word they said, went home with them and treated
them in the most hospitable manner. They likewise spoke
freely concerning their sentiments as Christian Indians, who
had never taken the least share in the war. A small barrel
of wine being found among their goods, they told their per
secutors, on inquiry, that it was intended for the Lord's
Supper, and that they were going to carry it to Sandusky.
Upon this, they were informed that they should not return
thither, but go to Pittsburgh, where they would be out of the
way of any assault made by the English or savages. This
they heard with resignation, concluding that God would
perhaps choose this method to put an end to their present
sufferings. Prepossessed with this idea, they cheerfully
delivered their guns, hatchets and other weapons to the mur
derers, who promised to take good care of them, and in
Pittsburgh to return every article to its rightful owner. The
Indians even showed them those things, which they had
Ifi

362 HISTORY OF OHIO.
secreted in the woods, assisted in packing them~up, and
emptied aU their bee-hives for their pretended friends.
" In the meantime, the assistant, John Martin, went to
Salem, and brought the news of the arrival of the, white
people to the believing Indians, assuring them that they need
not be afraid to go with them, for they were come to carry
them to a place of safety, and to afford them protection and
support. The Salem Indians did not hesitate to accept of
this proposal, believing unanimously that God had sent the
Americans to release them from their disagreeable situation
at Sandusky, and imagining that when they had arrived at
Pittsburgh, they might soon find a safe place to buUd a set
tlement and easily procure advice and assistance from Beth
lehem. Thus, John Martin, with two Salem brethren, re
turned to Gnadenhutten, to acquaint both their Indian breth
ren and the white people with their resolution. The latter
expressed a desire to see Salem, and a party of them was
conducted thither and received with much friendship. Here
they pretended to have the same good wiU and affectiqn
towards the Indians as at Gnadenhutten, and easily persuaded
them to return with them. By the way they entered into
much spiritual conversation with the Indians, some of whom
spoke English well, giring these people, who feigned great
piety, proper and scriptural answers to many questions con
cerning religious subjects. The assistants, Isaac Glikhikan
and Israel, were no less sincere and unreserved in their
answers to some political questions started by the white peo
ple, and thus the murderers obtained a fuU and satisfactory
account of the present situation and sentiments of the Indian
congregation. In the meantime, the defenceless Indians at
Gnadenhntten were suddenly attacked and driven together
by the white people, and, without resistance, seized and bound.

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 363
The Salem Indians now met the same fate. Before they
entered Gnadenhutten, they were at once Surprised by their
conductors, robbed of their guns, and even of their pocket
knives, and brought bound into the settlement."
The officers, unwilling to take on themselves the whole
responsibUity of a massacre, agreed to refer the question to
a vote of the detachment. The men were drawn up in a
line, and WilUamson put the question, " whether the Moravian
Indians should be taken prisoners to Pittsburgh or put to
death?" requesting all in favor of saving their lives to
advance in front of the Une. On this, sixteen, some say
eighteen, stepped out of the rank, and formed themselves
into the second line. In this manner was their fate decided. i"
"Those who -were of a different opinion," continues Los
kiel, "wrung their hands, calling God to witness that they
Were innocent of the blood of these harmless Christian Indi
ans. But the majority remained unmoved, and only differed
concerning the mode of execution. Some were for burning
them alive, others for taking their scalps, aiid the latter was
at last agreed upon ; upon which one of the murderers was
sent to the prisoners to tell them that as they were Christian
Indians, they might prepare themselves in a Christian man
ner, for they must all die to-morrow.
" It may easily be conceived how great their terror was at
hearing a sentence so unexpected. However, they soon re
collected themselves, and patiently suffered the murderers to
lead them into two houses, in one of which the brethren, and
in the other the sisters and children were confined like sheep
ready for slaughter. They declared to the murderers, that
though they could call God to witness that they were per
fectly innocent, yet they were prepared and wiUing to suffer
10) Doddridge's Notes, 251.

364 HISTORY OP OHIO.
death. But as they had at their conversion and baptism
made a solemn promise to the Lord Jesus Christ, that they
would live unto him and endeavor to please him alone in this
world, they knew that they had been deficient in many re
spects, and therefore wished to have some time granted; to
pour out their hearts before him in prayer, and in exhorting
each other to remain faithful unto the end. One brother,
called Abraham, who for some time past had been in a luke
warm state of heart, seeing his end approaching, made the
following public confession before his brethren :
" ' Dear brethren ! it seems as if we should aU soon depart
unto our Saviour, for our sentence is fixed. You know that I
have been an untoward chUd, and have grieved the Lord and
my brethren by my disobedience, not walking as I ought to
have done. But yet I will now cleave to my Saviour with my
last breath, and hold him fast, though I am so great a smner.
I know assuredly, that He will forgive me all my sins and not
cast me out.' The brethren assured him of their love and
forgiveness, and both they and the sisters spent the latter
part of the night in singing praises to God their Saviour, in
the joyful hope that they should soon be able to praise him
without sin.
" When the day of their execution arrived, namely, the
Sth of March, two houses were fixed upon, one for the
brethren and another for the sisters and children, to which
the wanton murderers gave the name of slaughter-houses.
Some of them went to the brethren and showed great impa
tience that the execution had not yet begun, to which the
brethren replied that they were all ready to die, having com
mended their immortal souls to God, who had given them
that divine assurance in their hearts that they should come
unto him and be with him forever.

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 365
"Immediately after this declaration the carnage com
menced. The poor, innocent people, men, women and chil
dren, were led, bound two and two together with ropes, into
the above mentioned slaughter-houses, and there scalped
and murdered.^^
" According to the testimony of the murderers themselves,
they behaved with uncommon patience, and went to meet
death with cheerful resignation. The above mentioned bro
ther Abraham was the first victim. A sister called Christina,
who had formerly lived with the sisters in Bethlehem, and
spoke English and German well, fell on her knees before the
captain of the gang, and begged her life, but was told that
he could not help her.
"Thus ninety-six persons magnified the name of the Lord
by patiently meeting a cruel death. Sixty-two were grown
persons, among whom were five of the most valuable assis
tants, and thirty-four children.
" Only two youths, each between sixteen and seventeen
years old, escaped almost miraculously from the hands of the
murderers. One of them, seeing that they were in earnest,
11 ) As to the precise manner of this tragedy, Heckewelder differs from
Loskiel, whose narrative is preserved above. Heckewelder does not speak
of their removal from the place of their confinement. His language is
{Narrative, 319): "The murderci-s, impatient to make a beginning, came
again to them, while they were singing, and inquiring whether they were
now ready for dying, they were answered iu the affirmative; adding, 'that
they had commended their immortal souls to God, who had given them the
assurance in their hearts that he would receive their souls.' One of the
party now taking up a cooper's mallet, which lay in the house (the owner
being a cooper), saying, ' How exactly this will answer for the business,' he
began with Abraham, and continued knocking down one after the other,
until he had counted fourteen, that he had killed with his own hands. He
now handed the instrument to one of his fellow-murderers, saying, ' My arm
now fails me ; go on in the same way ! I think I have done pretty well.'
In another house, where tho women and children were confined, Judith, a
remarkably pious, aged widow, was the flrst victim," &c., &c.

366 HISTORY OF OHIO.
was so fortunate as to disengage himself from his bonds, then
slipping unobserved from the crowd, crept through a narrow
window into the cellar of that house in which the sisters were
executed. Their blood soon penetrated through the flooring, .
and according to his account, ran in streams into the cellar,
by which it appears probable that most, if not all of them,.
were not merely scalped, but kUled with hatchets or swords.
The lad remained concealed uhtil night, proridentially no
one coming down to search the cellar, when having, with
much difficulty, climbed up tbe waU to the window, he crept
through and escaped into a neighboring thicket. The other
youth's name was Thomas. The murderers struck him only
one blow on the head, took his scalp, and left him. But
after some time he recovered his senses, and saw himself
surrounded by bleeding corpses. Among these, he observed
one brother, called Abel, moring and endeavoring to raise
himself up. But he remained lying as still as though he had
been dead, and this caution proved the means of his deliver
ance ; for soon after, one of the murderers coming in and
observing Abel's motions, killed him outright with two or
three blows. Thomas lay quiet until dark, though suffering
the most exquisite torment. He then ventured to creep
to-svards the door, and observing nobody in the neighborhood,
got out and escaped into the wood, where he concealed him
self during the night. These two youths met afterwards in
the wood, and God preserved them from harm on their jour
ney to Sandusky, though they purposely took a long circuit
and suffered great hardships and danger. But before they
left the neighborhood of Gnadenhutten, they observed the
murderers from behind the thicket making merry after their
successful enterprise, and at last setting fire to the two
slaughter-houses filled with corpses.

THB MUSKINGUM MISSION. 367
" ProvidentiaUy, the believing Indians who were at that
time in Schoenbrun escaped. The missionaries had, imme
diately on receiving orders to repair to Fort Detroit, sent a
messenger to the Muskingum to call the Indians home, with
a view to see them once more, and to get horses from them
for their journey. This messenger happened to arrive at
Schoenbrun the day before the murderers came to Gnaden
hutten, and having delivered his message, the Indians of
Schoenbrun sent another messenger to Gnadenhutten to
inform their brethren there, and at Salem, of the message
received. But before he reached Gnadenhutten, he found
young Shebosch lying dead and scalped by the way-side,
and looking forward, saw many white people in and about
Gnadenhutten. He instantly fled back with great precipita
tion, and told the Indians in Schoenbrun what he had seen,
who all took flight and ran into the woods. They now hesi
tated a long while, not knowing whither to turn or how to
proceed. Thus, when the murderers arrived at Schoenbrun,
the Indians were stiU near the premises, observing every
thing that happened there, and might easily have been dis
covered. But here the murderers seemed, as it were, struck
with blindness. Finding nobody at home, they destroyed
and set fire to the settlement, and having done the same at
Gnadenhutten and Salem, they set off witii the scalps of their
innocent victims, about fifty horses, a number of blankets
and other things, and marched to Pittsburgh-, with a view to
murder the few Indians lately settled on the north side of the
Ohio, opposite to the fort. Some of them fell a sacrifice to the
rage of this blood-thirsty crew, and a few escaped. Among
the latter was Anthony, a member of the [Moravian] con ¦
gregation, who happened then to be at Pittsburgh, and both

368 HISTORY OP OHIO.
he and the Indians of Schoenbrun arrived, after many dan
gers and difficulties, safe at Sandusky.
" The foregoing account of this dreadful event was col
lected partly from what the murderers themselves related to
their friends at Pittsburgh, partly from the account given by
the two youths, who escaped in the manner above described,
and also from the report made by the Indian assistant Sam
uel of Schoenbrun, and by An^iony from Pittsburgh, all of
whom agreed exactly as to the principal parts of their re
spective evidences."
The Rev. Joseph Doddridge, in his Notes upon the Settie
ment and Indian Wars, of Western Virgmia and Pennsylva
nia, pubUshed at WheeUng, in 1824, closes his narrative of
this transaction with some observations, which, in justice to
Colonel Williamson and his detachment, should accompany
the indignant sketch of the Morarian historian :
"The pressure of the Indian war along the whole of the
westem frontier," Doddridge remarks, "for several years
preceding the event under consideration, had been dread
fully severe. From early in the spring, untU the commence
ment of winter, from day to day, murders were committed
in every direction by the Indians. The people lived in forts
which were in the highest degree uncomfortable. The men
were harrassed continually with the duties of going on scouts
and campaigns. There was scarcely a family of the first
settlers, who did not, at some time or other, lose more or
less of their number by the merciless Indians. Their cattle
were kUled, their cabins burned, and their horses carried off.
These losses were severely felt by a people so poor as we
were, at that time. Thus circumstanced, our people were
exasperated to madness, by the extent and severity of the
war. The unavailing endeavors of the American Congress

THB MUSKINGUM MISSION. 369
to prevent the Indians from taking up the hatchet agauist
either side in the revolutionary contest, contributed much to
increase the general indignation against them ; at the same
time that those pacific endeavors of Our government divided
the Indians amongst themselves, on the question of war or
peace with the whites. The Moravians, part of the Dela
wares, and some others, faithfully endeavored to preserve
peace; butin vain. The Indian maxim was: "He that is
not for us, is against us.' Hence the Morarian missionaries
and their followers were several times on the point of being
murdered by the warriors. This would have been done,
had it not been for the prudent conduct of some of the war-
chiefs. " On the other hand, the local situation of the Moravian
riUages excited the jealousy of the white people. If they
took no direct agency in the war, yet they were, as they
were then called, ' Half way houses,' between us and the
warriors, at which the latter could stop, rest, refresh them
selves and traffic off their plunder. Whether these aids,
thus given to our enemies, were contrary to the laws of
nautrality between belligerents, is a question which I wil
lingly leave to the decision of civilians. On the part of the
Morarians, they were unavoidable. If they did not give or
sell provisions to the warriors, they would take them by
force. The fault was in their situation, not in themselves.
" The longer the war continued, the more our people com
plained of the situation of these Moravian viUages. It was
said that it was owing to their being so near us, that the
warriors commenced their depredations so early in the
spring, and continued them until late in the fall.
" In the latter end of the year 1781, the militia of the fron
tier came to a determination to break up the Moravian viUa-

370 HISTORY OF OHIO.
ges on the Muskingum. For this purpose a detachment of
our men went out under the command of Col. David WU-
liamson, for the purpose of inducing the Indians with their
teachers to move further off, or bring them prisoners to Fort
Pitt. When they arrived at the vUlages they found but few
Indians, the greater number of them having removed to
Sandusky. These few were well treated, taken to Fort Pitt
and delivered to the commandant at that station, who, after
a short detention, sent them home again.
" This procedure gave great offence to the people of the
country, who thought that the Moravians ought to have been
killed. Col. WiUiamson, who, before this Uttle campaign,
had been a very popular man, on account of his activity and
bravery in war, now became the subject of severe animad
versions on account of his lenity to the Moravian Indians.
In justice to the memory of Col. Williamson I have to say,
that although at that time very young, I was personally
acquainted with him, and from my recollection of his con
versation, I say with confidence that he was a brave man, but
not cruel. He would meet an enemy in battle, and fight
like a soldier ; but not murder a prisoner. Had he possessed
the authority of a superior officer in a regular army, I do not
beUeve that a single Moravian Indian would have lost his
Ufe ; but he possessed no such authority. He was only a
mUitia officer, who could adrise, but not command. His
only fault was that of too easy a compUance with popular
opinion and popular prejudice. On this account his memory
has been loaded with unmerited reproach.
" Several reports unfavorable to the Moravians had been
in circulation for some time before the campaign against them.
One was, that the night after they were liberated at Fort
Pitt, they crossed the river and kiUed or made prisoners of a

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 371
family of the name of Montour. A family on Buffalo creek
had been mostiy kUled in the summer or fall of 1781, and it
was said by one of them, who, after being made prisoner,
made his escape, that the leader of the party of Indians
who did the mischief was a Moravian. These, with other
reports, of simUar import, served as a pretext for their de
struction, although no doubt they were utterly false.
" Should it be asked, what sort of people composed the
band of murderers of these unfortunate people ? — I answer,
they were not miscreants or vagabonds : many of them were
men of the first sta-nding in the country. Many of them were
men who had recently lost relatives by the hand of the sav
ages-: several of the latter class found articles which had
been plundered from their own houses, or those of their rel
atives, in the houses of the Moravians. One man, it is said,
found the clothes of his wife and chUdren, who had been
murdered by the Indians but a few days before. They were
still bloody: yet there was no unequivocal evidence, that
these people had any direct agency in the war. Whatever
of our property was found with them, had been left by the
warriors in exchange for the provisions which they took from
them. When attacked by our people, although they might
have defended themselves, they did not. They never fired
a single shot. They were prisoners, and had been promised
protection. Every dictate of justice and humanity required
that their lives should be spared. The complaint of their
vUlages being ' half-way houses for the warriors,' was at an
end, as they had been removed to Sandusky the fall before.
It was, therefore, an atrocious and unqualified murder. But
by whom committed ? By a majority of the campaign ? For
the honor of my country, I hope I may safely answer this
question in the negative. It was one of those convulsions of

372 HISTORY OP OHIO.
the moral state of society, in which the voice of the justice
and humanity of a majority is silenced by the clamor and
violence of a lawless minority. Very few of our men imbrued
their hands in the blood of the Moravians. Even those who
had not voted for saving their lives, retired from the scene of
slaughter with horror and disgust. Why then did they not
give their votes in their favor ? The fear of pubUc indignation
restrained them from doing so. They thought well: but had
not heroism enough to express their opinions. Those who did
so, deserve honorable mention for their intrepidity. So far
as it may hereafter be in my power, this honor shall be done
them : while the name of the murderers shall not stain the
pages of history from my pen at least."
Thus much for the amiable Doddridge. We leave his
plea for the friends and neighbors of his chUdhood undimin
ished, committing it freely to the discrimination of the reader.
But there was stiU another construction placed upon this
bloody deed — that of the savage fatalists of the woods. As
the sad tale passed from vUlage to village of the Ohio tribes,
the Indians, particularly the scattered Delawares, recognized
with simple reverence a providential design. They said they
had envied the condition of their relations, the beUeving In
dians, and could not bear to look upon their peaceful and
happy lives in contrast with their own lives of privation and
war. Hence they had endeavored to take them from their
own tranquU homes, and draw them back into heathenism,
that they might be reduced again to a level with themselves.
But the Great Spirit would not suffer it to be so, and had
taken them to himself.
Soon after the massacre on the Muskingum, the congregar
tion at Sandusky, reduced in numbers and deprived of their
teachers, yielded to the soUcitations of their Delaware and

THB MUSKINGUM MISSION. 373
Shawanese friends, and abandoned their settlement at San
dusky. They were ordered to do so by Half King, who
persisted in holding them in some degree responsible for the
fate of his two sons; but in their present situations, it was
doubtless a prudent resolution. Loskiel informs us, that on
their dispersion, " one part went into the country of the
Shawanese : the rest stayed some time in the neighborhood of
Pipestown, and then resolved to proceed farther — to the
Miami River." Heckewelder is more explicit, and mentions
the Scioto and Miami of the Lake, now Maumee, as their
respective destinations.
We have previously considered the probability, that Corn
stalk and the Shawanese tribe on the Scioto, were disposed
to peace, and perhaps to accept Christianity, through the
influence of the missionaries. Indeed, after the death of
Cornstalk, a tribe of Shawanese removed to the Muskingum
and concurred in the pacific policy of the Delaware chiefs,
only retiring to the Scioto when that policy was reversed.
These Indians doubtless tendered an asylum to the Moravi
ans. Their friends on the Maumee were the band of Dela
wares, who were the immediate followers of the magnanimous
PachgantschihUas, whose friendly solicitude and timely warn
ing to the missionaries had been so fully justified by recent
events as to seem almost prophetic. There is ample evidencp
that in 1791, nine years afterwards, Delawares inhabited the
banks of the Auglaize River near its junction with the Mau
mee ; and here, while the heathen, aboriginal and European,
raged around them, the simple-hearted proselytes of a religion
of peace, found a refuge from the persecutions of those pro
fessing the same benignant faith.

CHAPTER XXII.
PENNSYLVANIA CAMPAIGNS AGAINST THE OHIO INDIANS.
The border war of the Revolution upon the Ohio, consisted
of two series of expeditions in retaliation for Indian outrage
— those already considered, which issued from the region of
Kentucky traversed by the Kenhawa, the Licking and the
Kentucky Rivers, usually led by George Rogers Clark, and
designed to restrain the inveterate Shawanese, and those
which had WheeUng and the vicinity of Pittsburgh for their
base of operations, and aimed to chastise thp bands of Wy
andots, Ottawas, Mingoes, and finally the Delawares, whose
vUlages were scattered upon the sources of the Muskingum
and Sandusky Rivers and along the Lake shore. The latter
may be called the Pennsylvania Campaigns, from the fact
that the western counties of Pennsylvania furnished the vol
unteer mUitia, which composed the main force of these expe
ditions. To the Coshocton campaign of Col. Daniel Brodhead, inci
dental allusion has already been made. In the correspon
dence of that officer recently published,^ he says, under date
of March 27, 1781, that he had caUed upon the County
Lieutenants for a few of the militia, and intended to surprise
the Indian towns about Coochocking — written Goschocking
by Heckewelder, and now familiar as Coshocton. Soon
afterwards, probably before the close of AprU, these levies
1) Craig's Olden Time, vol. ii, p. 392.

COSHOCTON CAMPAIGN. 375
assembled at Wheeling, and their number, including a few
continental troops from Pittsburgh, are estimated by Dod-
dridge^ at eight hundred men. In justice to those upon
whom was imposed the responsibility of command, it should
be borne in mind that the army was mostly composed of the
tumultuous and intractable population of the frontiers.
When in the vicinity of the Moravian towns, it has been
mentioned, that Col. Brodhead and Col. Shepherd of Wheel
ing could with difficulty restrain a foray of the militia upon
the peaceful inhabitants. The i-emaining detaUs of the
expedition rest upon the authority of Doddridge.
At White Eyes Plain, a few mUes from Coshocton, an
Indian prisoner was taken. Soon afterwards two more Indi
ans were discovered, one of whom was wounded, but he as
weU as the other made his escape.
The commander knowing that these two Indians would
make the utmost despatch in going to the town, to give
notice of the approach of the army, ordered a rapid' niarch,
in the nudst of a heavy rain, to reach the town before them
and take it by surprise. The plan succeeded. The army
reached the place in three divisions. The right and left
wings approached the river a little above and below the
town, while the center marched directly upon it. The
whole number of the Indians in the village, on the east side
of the river, together with ten or twelve from a little viUage
2) Rev. Joseph Doddridge, M. D. Frequent allusion has already been
made to this narrator of frontier manners and incidents. In the infancy
of the Protestant Episcopal Church of Ohio, his services as a minister of
the Gospel were cheerfully given to the settlements opposite -Wheeling ;
but in 1S20, he announces an intention of resuming the medical profession,
as the means of acquiring a competency for his approaching age. See a
Republication of the Journals of Episcopal Conventions in Ohio, frora 1818
to 1827, edited by Rev. W. C. French, 1853. The citations of the text are
frnm Doddridge's Notes of Wc^torn -Virginia.

376 HISTORY OF OHIO.
some distance above, were made prisoners, without firing a
single shot. The river haring risen to a great height, owing
to the recent fall of rain, the army could not cross it, and
the rillages with their inhabitants on the west side of the
river escaped destruction.
Among the prisoners, sixteen warriors were pointed out
by PekUlon, a friendly Delaware chief, as engaged in a
recent excursion upon the frontiers of Virginia, during
which all the male captives had been put to death by torture
in the presence of their weeping famUies. A councU of war
was held in the evening to determine the fate of the warriors
in custody. They were doomed to death, and by the order
of the commander, they were bound, taken a littie distance
below the town, despatched with tomahawks and spears, and
scalped. Early the next morning, an Indian presented himself on the
opposite bank of the river and asked for the " Big Captain."
Brodhead came forward and inquired what he wanted? to
which he replied, "I want peace." "Send over some of
your chiefs," said the Colonel. "May be you kUl," said
the Indian. " They shall not be killed," was the answer.
A fine looking sachem thereupon crossed the river, and
entered into conversation with the commander in the street,
but whUe thus engaged, a man of the name of Wetzel^ came
up behind him, with a tomahawk concealed in the bosom of
his hunting shirt, and struck him on the back of his head.
He fell and instantly expired.
On the retreat from Coshocton, Col. Brodhead committed
the care of the prisoners, about twenty in number, to the
militia. After marching half a mUe, the men commenced
3) Lewis "Wetzel, a noted borderer. See Appendix No. IX, for a biograph
ical notice of this type of a numerous class.

DESTRUCTION OF LOCHRY'S PARTY. 377
killing them, and soon, all except a few women and children
were despatched in cold blood.
The reduction of Detroit, for which Congress had collected
troops and munitions in 1778, with no other result than the
useless fortifications of Laurens and Mcintosh, was again
proposed in 1780-1. Thomas Jefferson, then Governor of
Virginia, authorized Gen. George Rogers Clark to raise a
force adequate to march from the Falls of the Qhio through
the vaUeys of the Wabash and the Maumee to Detroit.
The expedition was approved by Washington, who wrote to
Col. Brodhead, the commandant at Pittsburgh, to send a
detachment with four field pieces and one eight inch howit
zer, besides other stores. Accordingly, Captain Isaac Craig
descended the Ohio with two companies of artillery to the
place of rendezvous, but Gen. Clark was obliged to relin
quish the expedition — ^his whole force, although nearly a
year had passed in exertions to recruit it, not exceeding
seven hundred and fifty men. Captain Craig returned to
Pittsburgh on the 26th of December, 1781, having been
forty days on the voyage from the faUs. He was obliged
to throw away his gun-carriages, but brought 'back the
pieces themselves, and the best of the stores.
The most melancholy incident in connection with Clark's
projected expedition against Detroit, was the massacre of a
party of Pennsylvania volunteers. In a letter from General
WiUiam Irvine, who assumed the command at Pittsburgh, in
the fall of 1781, addressed to General Washington, and
dated in December of that year, the affair is thus noticed :
" A Col. Lochry, of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania,
with about one hundred men in aU, composed of volunteers
and a company raised by Pennsylvania, for the defence of
that county, started to join General Clark, who, it is said,
16*

378 HISTORY OF OHIO.
ordered him to unite with him (Clark) at the mouth of the
Miami, up which river it was previously designed to proceed;
but the General having changed his plan, left a smaU party
at the Miami, with directions to Lochry to foUow him to the
mouth of the falls. Sundry accounts agree that this party,
and all of Lochry's troops, to a man, were waylaid by the
Indians and British, (for it is said they had artillery) and all
killed or taken, not a man escaping, either to join General
Clark or to return home." In a journal kept by General
Richard Butler, whUe attending a conference with the Ohio
Indians at the mouth of the Great Miami, in the winter of
1785-6, he designates Lochry's creek, about seven miles
south of the Great Miami, on the north side of the Ohio, as
the scene of this tragedy. "Col. Lochry," he says, "and
his party were defeated and cut to pieces by Brant and his
people, who perfectly surprised Lochry." It is singular that
our historical compUations contain so slight a reference to a
battle which resulted in the destruction of more than a hun
dred whites, especially as, in the language of Gen. Irvine,
" Lochry's party were the best men of the frontier." In
the disastrous battle of Blue Licks, the Kentucky loss was
but seventy-six, although on that occasion there were many
survivors, to report as well as to revenge the horrors of the
day. But at Lochry's creek a hecatomb of brave spirits
died and gave no sign.*
In the spring of 1782, occurred the Moravian campaign,
already noticed in the narrative of the mission on the Mus
kingum. It was immediately followed by active preparations for a
4) Craig's Olden Time, vol. ii., 541. Gen. Butler was doubtless mistaken,
if he supposed that the leader of the Indians engaged in the slaughter of
Lochry's party, was the Mohawk chieftain, Joseph Brant.

Crawford's campaign. 379
volunteer expedition against the new settlement of the Chris
tian Indians and the Wyandot and Delaware towns, on the
head waters of the Sandusky. The enterprise was con
ducted with secrecy and dispatch ; the men were all mounted,
and furnished themselves with all their outfits, except some
ammunition which was supplied by the Lieutenant Colonel
of Washington county.
On the 20th of May, 1782, the volunteers assembled at
the deserted Mingo viUage, on the west bank of the Ohio,
seventy-five mUes below Pittsburgh. No estimate of their
number is less than four hundred and fifty. Here, Colonel
Williain Crawford, the agent and friend of Washington, was
elected to the command. Col. David WUliamson was an
unsuccessful candidate for the post, and accompanied the
expedition. On Saturday, the 25th of May, the army commenced its
march, and on the fourth day reached Shoenbrun, on the
Muskingum, finding sufficient com in the adjacent fields for
a night's forage of their hdrses. On the morning of the 30th,
Major Brunton and Capt. Bean, being a few hundred yards
in advance of the troops, observed two Indians skulking
through the woods, apparently observing the movements of
the detachment. Although fibred upon, they escaped. From
the excitement and confusion of his troops on this slight
occasion, Crawford was held to apprehend the worst conse
quences from their want of discipline.
It had been supposed that the expedition would surprise
the Indians, but the spies of the latter had hovered near the
army during the whole route, visiting each encampment the
day after it was abandoned, and transcribing from the trees
where some loungers had carved the words, that "No quarter
was to be given to any Indian, whether man, woman or chUd."

380 HISTORY OP OHIO.
The savages were alert and ready to repel the invaders, who
now pressed rapidly forward.
"Nothing material happened," says Doddridge, "untUthe
sixth -day, when their guides conducted them to the site of
the Moravian vUlage, on one of the upper branches of the
Sandusky river, but here, instead of meeting with Indians
and plunder, they found nothing but vestiges of desolation.
The place was covered with high grass, and the remains of a
few huts alone announced that the place had been the resi
dence of the people whom they intended to destroy." The
removal of the missionaries to Detroit, and the dispersion of
the congregation a few weeks before, thus proved a prori-
dential interposition in their behalf.
The accounts of what followed are very confiicting. The
men here insisted upon returning, as their horses were jaded
and the stock of provisions nearly exhausted. The officers
held, a council and determined to march one day longer, and
if they should not meet the enemy in the course of the day,
to retreat. Doddridge states that the army commenced their
march next morning, which was continued untU two o'clock
in the afternoon, when the advance guard was attacked and
driven in by the Indians, who were discovered in large num
bers in the high grass with which the plain was covered.
Another version is,^ that on the eleventh day of the march,
" the army reached the spot where the town of Sandusky had
formerly stood, but from which the Indians had lately removed
to a spot about eighteen mUes below" — that here a council
was held with the result already mentioned ; and that "just
as the council broke up," one ofthe advance guards arrived
with the intelUgence that the Indians had appeared in force
" a few mUes in advance." If the army, all of whom were
5) McClung's -Western Adventure, 120.

CRAWFORD'S CAMPAIGN. 381
mounted, had advanced beyond the Moravian town from sun
rise on a June day, untU two hours after noon, the distance
to the place where the Indians were discovered would have
been more than a "few miles."
The traditions of Wyandot county represent the scene of
the engagement which ensued as three mUes north of the
Upper Sandusky of a modern map, and one mile west ofthe
Sandusky River. A spot near LeesvUle or Leesburg in
Crawford county, is called "the battle ground," from a
tradition that there, Crawford, on his way to Upper Sandusky,
had a skirmish with the Indians. If the route of his march
was so far north as LeesvUle, and we admit the statement of
a six hours' progress between the Moravian towns and the
battle field, it becomes probable that the temporary settlement
of the Christian Indians was in the vicinity of Bucyrus,
whence a westward march of six honrs before meeting the
enemy, might have occurred.
The discrepancy is not merely whether the alarm of an
enemy in advance, was communicated to the army "just as
the council broke up" or after a six hours' further march;
but it includes a contradiction as to the locaUty of the Mora
vian settiement on the Sandusliy. McClung makes it within
a short distance of the Indian ambuscade — Doddridge, a full
half day's journey by a mounted body of men. McClung's
Narrative is consistent with the opuiion that the councU was
held at the old Indian town of Upper Sandusky, which would
also be the site of the Moravian settlement, and stood on the
bank of the Sandusky River, four miles north-east of the
present town of Upper Sandusky. Heckewelder's Narrative
describes the destination of the captive congregation in a
manner favorable. to this view of the case. " On the 11th
of October" (1781,) he says " they arrived at the old Up

382 HISTORY OF OHIO.
per Sandusky town, which is on the east branch of the river of
that name, where the Half King and his party left them and
proceeded nine or ten miles further to their homes." Hecke
welder ako mentions that Pipestown was ten mUes distant.*
All the accounts unite that there were two Wyandot riUa
ges (of which one. Upper Sandusky Old Town, was probably
deserted at this time) and one Delaware vUlage, the residence
of Captain Pipe. The latter was situated on the Tymochtee,
about eight miles above its junction with the Sandusky, and
we assume that New Wyandot Town, probably the residence
of Half King, was at Big Spring, now SpringviUe in Seneca
county, These localities are ascertained with a fair degree
of certainty, and rest upon the authority of Col. John John
ston, and Joseph McCutchen Esq., of Wyandot county. The
only doubt is raised by Doddridge's Narrative, whether Old
Town of Upper Sandusky was the Moravian vUlage. We
incline to the affirmative belief, and that the councU of war
was held within a short distance of the battie field.
With these explanations, we resume the narrative of the
battle of Sandusky Plains.
The main body of the Indians had stationed themselves in
a grove of trees. Crawford immediately ordered his men to
dismount, tie their horses, and force the enemy from this
position, which was done. The Indians continued their fire
from the high grass of the prairie. Doddridge relates that
the savages attempted to gain a small skirt of wood on Craw
ford's right fiank, but were prevented by the vigUance and
bravery of Major Leet, who commanded the right wing;
while McClung's statement is, that Crawford was outflanked
and exposed, except as the wood was a partial shelter, to a
severe fire on every side. From four o'clock untU dark, the
6) Heckewelder's Narrative of Indian Missions, 281, 285.

CRAWFORDi'S DEFEAT. 383
contest was very animated. Doddridge admits only " three
kUled and several wounded" on the American side, which
was certainly an inconsiderable loss in so close an engage
ment. At night, the enemy drew off, and Crawford's party
slept on their arms upon the field of battie.
On the next day, the Indians did not resume the attack,
as they were awaiting reinforcements, but were seen in large
bodies traversing the plains in every direction. Some of
them appeared to be employed in carrying off their dead and
wounded. As soon as it was dark, the field officers assembled in
council; and, as the numbers of the enemy were evidently
increasing every moment, it was unanimously determined to
retreat by night, as rapidly as was consistent -with order and
the preservation of the wounded. The resolution was quickly
announced to the troops, and the necessary dispositions made
for carrying it into effect. The outposts were silently with
drawn from the vicinity of the enemy, and as fast as they
came in the troops were formed in three parallel lines, with
the wounded borne, upon biers in the centre. By nine
o'clock at night, all necessary arrangements had been made,
and the retreat began in good order.
Unfortunately, they had scarcely moved a hundred paces,
when the report of several rifies was heard in the rear, in the
direction of the Indian encampment. The troops soon be
came unsteady. At length a soUtary voice, in the front rank,
caUed out, that their design was discovered, and that the
Indians would soon be upon them. A panic, accompanied
by an immense uproar, ensued — the wounded were aband
oned to the mercy of the enemy — straggling parties wander
ed away from the main body, under the delusive expectation
of more safety by so doing: and of the whole number.

384 HISTORY OF OHIO.
scarcely three hundred reached the settlements. The Indi
ans soon ceased their attacks upon the raain body, but pur
sued the small parties with such actirity that few of them
escaped. Dr. Knight, the surgeon of the detachment, was in the
rear when the flight commenced, and hurried forward. He
had not advanced more than three hundred yards, when he
heard the voice of Colonel Crawford, a short distance in fi-ont,
calling aloud for his son, John Crawford, his son-in-law.
Major Harrison, and his two nephews. Major Rose and WiU
iam Crawford. Dr. Knight joined him, and they tarried
until the last straggler had passed, -without meeting or hear
ing of the young men. Presently a heavy fire was heard at
tiie distance of a mUe in front, accompanied by yeUs, screams,
and other indications of a fierce attack. Crawford had lost
aU confidence in his men, and not choosing to unite his
fortune with them, he changed his course to the northward
in such a manner as to leave the combatants on the right.
Dr. Knight, and two others, accompanied him. They con
tinued in this direction for nearly an hour, until they sup
posed themselves out of the Une of the enemy's operations,
when their course was tumed eastward. They were guided
by the north star, soon crossed the Sandusky, and pressed
forward untU daybreak, when their horses faUed, and were
abandoned. Continuing their journey on foot, they soon feU in with
Captain Biggs, who had generously surrendered his horse to
a wounded officer. Lieutenant Ashley, and was composedly
walking by his side, with a rifle in his hand and a knapsack
on his shoulders. This casual meeting was grateful to both
parties, and they continued their journey with renewed spir
its. At three o'clock in the afternoon a heavy rain feU and

CAPTURE OF CRAWFORD. 385
compelled them to encamp. A temporary shelter was formed
by barking several trees, after the manner of the Indians,
and spreading the bark over poles. Here they passed the
night. Resuming their route next morning, they were so fortunate
as to find the carcass of a deer, neatly sliced and bundled in
the skin, and a mile farther fell in with a white man, who
had kindled a fire. They breakfasted heartily after the fa
tigues and abstinence of thirty-six hours, and continued their
march. By noon, they had reached the path by which the
army had marched a few days before, in their advance upon
the Indian towns, and some discussion took place as to the
propriety of taking that road homeward. Biggs and Knight
strenuously insisted upon continuing their course through the
woods, and avoiding all paths, but Crawford overruled them,
representing that the Indians would not urge the pursuit
beyond the plains, which were already far behind. Unfor
tunately the colonel prevailed, and abandoning their due
eastern course, the party pursued the beaten path. They
had not advanced a mUe, when a party of Delaware Indians
sprang up within twenty yards of Crawford and Knight, v^ho
were one hundred and fifty yards in front of their comrades,
presented their guns, and ordered the fugitives in good Eng
Ush to stop. Crawford and Knight surrendered themselves
prisoners, but the rest of the party made their escape, al
though Captain Biggs and Lieutenant Ashley were overtaken
and kiUed the next day.
Col. Crawford and Doctor Knight were immediately taken
to an Indian encampment, at a short distance from the place
where they were captured. Here they found nine other
prisoners, and passed the foUowing day. The next morning,
Monday, June 10, they were paraded (and our quotations
17

386 HISTORY OF OHIO.
in this connection are from Dr. Kmght' s own narrative) "to
march to Sandusky, about thirty-three miles distant ;" but
" Col. Crawford was very desirous to see Simon Girty, who
lived with the Indians, and was on this account permitted to
go to town the same night, with two warriors to guard him."
The other prisoners " were taken as far as the old town,
which was within eight miles of the new."
Crawford had known Girty, before the latter's adherence
to the British, and hoped to make some arrangements forhis
ransom from captivity and torture. Girty promised to do
every thing in his power to save Crawford, and it is probable
that the former made a proposition to Captain Pipe, offering
three hundred and fifty dollars for the release of the Ameri
can commandant, intending, unquestionably, to exact a much
larger amount from Crawford. The Delaware chief treafed
the proposition as a gross insult, and threatened Girty him
self with torture at the stake, if it was renewed. This threat
had such an effect,- that Girty appeared subsequently at the
execution of Crawford, an acquiescent, perhaps an exultant
spectator. On the morning of June 11th, Crawford returned to his
companions in misfortune at the Old Town, but Captain Pipe
had preceded him and painted the faces of Dr. Knight and the
other nine prisoners black. Upon Crawford's arrival, Pipe
painted him also, but without any ferocity of language or
manner. On the contrary, he dissembled so far as to assure
Crawford that he would be adopted at the Wyandot riUage.
When the Indians marched. Col. Crawford and Dr. Knight
were kept back between Pipe and Wingemand, the two Del
aware chiefs, while the other nine persons were sent forward.
As they proceeded towards the Tymochtee, Crawford and
his friend -were shocked to see the bodies of four of the pris

ESCAPE OF KNIGHT AND SLOVER. 387
oners scattered along the path, and were themselves witnesses
of the slaughter of the remaining five by a crowd of squaws
and boys. Among them was one John McKinley, formerly
an officer in a Virginia regitnent, whose head was severed
from his body by an old hag, and kicked about among the
savages. Half a mile further, they reached the spot selected
for Crawford's execution, which was attended with all the
horrors of savage cruelty. Three hours of torture, during
which he entreated Girty in vain for the mercy of a bullet
through his heart, elapsed before the unfortunate, victim was
released from his unutterable- anguish.
His companion and friend. Dr. Knight, was compelled to
witness the horrible spectacle, and was taunted by Girty with
the certainty of a similar fate when he should reach the
Shawanese villages on the Mad River, whither, on the next
morning, (after passing the night at the house of Captain
Pipe, three quarters of a mile north of the scene of Craw
ford's fate,) he started under charge of a Delaware Indian.
The first day they traveled about twenty-five miles and en
camped for the night. In the morning the gnats becoming
very troublesome, the Doctor requested the Indian to untie
him that he might help him make a fire to keep them off.
With this request the Indian complied. While the latter
was on his knees and elbows, blowing the fire, the Doctor
caught up a dogwood stick, about eighteen inches long, with
which he struck the Indian on his head, knocking him for
ward into the fire. He sprang to his feet, but Knight had
seized the Indian's gun, and the latter fled. After twenty-
one days of wandering, Knight reached the frontier of Vir
ginia, nearly famished to death.
Another captive, John Slover, who was doomed to the
stake at the Shawanese vUlages, but who made a wonderful

388 HISTORY OP OHIO.
escape from his savage persecutors, saw the dead bodies of
William Crawford, a nephew of Col. Crawford and of Major
Harrison, his son-in-law, at Wakatomika. The unfortunate
Crawford had been assured by Pipe, that these relatives
would be admitted to mercy, but they, as well as Colonel
McLelland, the second in command, were beaten to death
soon after reaching the valley of Mad River.
Thus, life for life were the atrocities on the Muskingum
avenged at the sources of the Sandusky. It was the cry of
vengeance for the Christian Delawares slaughtered at Gna
denhutten, which was raised by Pipe on the banks of the
Tymochtee, drowning every appeal or suggestion of mercy
for one so estimable as aU contemporary accounts represent
Col. William Crawford to have been. . Although the Mus
kingum proselytes were the objects of persecution by their
heathen brethren, yet it was far from being a persecution
unto death. It had for its object their restoration to the
customs and associations of their former lives, and was en
tirely consistent with warm personal attachments. Loskiel
narrates that the wife of Captain Pipe had been strongly
moved by the persuasions of the missionaries ; and the chief
himself, when not instigated by Elliott, Girty or McKee, was
disposed to be just and tolerant even to the teachers. He
was a magnanimous savage, and his indignant repulse of all
compromise with his rude sense of justice — when Girty sought
to invoke his influence to save Crawford by an offer of money-
gives a heroic air to the dreadful tragedy which foUowed.
" Sir, do you think I am a squaw ?" repUed the indignant
Delaware. "If you say one word more on the subject, I
wiU make a stake for you and burn you along with the white
chief" With Crawford's defeat, and the carnage at Blue Licks in

RESTORATION OF PEACE. 389
August following, closed the drama of the American Revo
lution upon the wilderness of Ohio. Soon the motive power
of British intrigue and gratuities was withdrawn, as the ter
mination and result of the struggle became apparent, and the
ravages of their Indian alUes also abated. The latter were
glutted with vengeance and plunder, and while their riUages
rang with their savage festivals, there was comparative indis
position to assume the risks of fresh forays upon the frontiers
of Pennsylvania.
On the 30th of November, 1782, provisional articles of
peace had been arranged at Paris : on the 20th of January
foUowing, hostUities ceased : on the 19th of April, 1783,
peace was proclaimed to the army of the Uhited States, and
on the 3d of September a definite treaty was concluded.

CHAPTER XXIII.
SUBSEQUENT MOVEMENTS OF THE MORAVIAN CONGEEGATION.
The. removal of the Morarian missionaries to Detroit, and
the dispersion of their Indian congregation, did not terminate
the labors of Zeisberger, Heckewelder, and their associates
in the Western wilderness. There is no doubt that the in
terposition of Col. Depeyster was prompted by a disinterested
regard for their safety; and the departure of the Christian
Indians from Upper Sandusky, which soon foUowed, is com
memorated by Loskiel and Heckewelder as a manifest token
of the Divine protection, specially vouchsafed to arrest a
repetition of the massacre at Gnadenhutten.
On the arrival of the missionaries at Detroit, Governor
Depeyster offered to provide means for the removal of them
selves and their families to Bethlehem in Pennsylvania, but
they " resolved, from motives of duty and affection, to use
their utmost exertions to gather their scattered flock." In
this design, they received the countenance and aid of the
EngUsh officer. A site was selected in Michigan, thirty
miles distant from Detroit, and on the Huron River. The
Chippewas were induced, by the influence of Col. Depeyster,
to assent to such an occupation of a portion of their hunting
grounds : the settlement was affectionately called New Gnad
enhutten ; and thither the Christian Indians, by messages
directed to them on the Scioto and the Miami of the Lake,
were invited to come. The Governor accompanied the invi
tation by an assurance, that they should enjoy perfect Uberty
(890) - .

THE MORAVIANS NEAR DETROIT. 391
of conscience, and be supplied with provisions and other ne
cessaries of life.
On the second of July, 1782, two famiUes arrived from
the Miami, who were soon joined by Abraham, a venerable
assistant, and two other famUies : a seasonable remittance of
one hundred pounds sterling by their brethren in London,
reached the missionaries about the same time ; and on the
20th of July, the new settlement was commenced. On the
Sth of November, the missionaries (namely, Zeisberger, Heck
ewelder, Youngman and Senseman, with their families, and
the "single brethren," Edwards and Young) had the grati
fication of meeting fifty-three of their converts at the conse
cration of a chapel. Loskiel says that the fugitives to the
Shawanese had been in great danger of their lives, and had
only escaped by a precipitate flight. The larger portion had
sought the protection of their Delaware kindred on the Miami
— the personal adherents of PachgantschihUas, or Bockenge
helas, the great war chief of the Delawares, whose magnan
imous conduct at the Muskingum vUlages, in 1781, has
already been detailed. When Bockengehelas was urged by
Captain Pipe "not to suffer the believing Indians to leave
his territory," his reply is thus reported by Loskiel : " I shall
never hinder any one of my friends from going to their
teachers. Why did you expel them ? I have told you be
forehand, that if you drive the teachers away, the believing
Indians would 'not stay. But yet you would do it, and now
you have lost the believing Indians, together with their
teachers. Who murdered the believing Indians on the
Muskingum ? Did the white people murder them ? I say,
no ! You have committed the horrid deed ! Why could
you not let them live in peace where they were ? If you
had let them alone, they would all have been living at this

392 HISTORY OP OHIO.
day, and we should now see the faces of our friends: but
you determined otherwise."
The other Delaware chiefs made extraordinary exertions to
dissuade their converted kindred from joining the missiona
ries ; and although forty-three of their number retumed in
the summer of 1783, yet many relapsed into savage Ufe.
The manner in which the Indian congregation sustained
the severe winter of 1784, with other incidents of that period,
are thus narrated by the European historian of the Mission :
" In the beginning of the year 1784, a most extraordmary
frost set in, extending over the whole country about New
Gnadenhutten. All the rivers and lakes were frozen, and
the oldest inhabitants of Detroit did not remember ever to
have seen such a deep fall of snow. In some places it lay
five or six feet deep. The long continuance of this severe
weather was the cause of great distress. March 6th, the
snow was stiU four feet deep ; about the end of the month it
began to melt, but the ice on the River Huron did not break
till the 4th of April, and Lake St. Clair was not free from
ice in the beginning of May.
" As no one expected, so long and severe a winter, there
was no provision made either for man or beast. The extra
ordinary and early night frosts of the autumn before, had
destroyed a great part of the promising harvest of Indian
corn, and thus the Indians soon began to feel want ; for what
was bought at Detroit was very dear, and the bakers there
refused to sell bread at a Spanish doUar per pound. The
deep snow prevented all hunting. The Indians were there
fore obliged to seek a livelihood wherever they could get it,
and some lived upon nothing but wUd herbs. At length a
general famine prevailed, and the hollow eyes and emaciated
countenances of the poor people were a sad token of their

THE MORAVIANS NEAR DETROIT. 393
distress. Yet they appeared always resigned an-d cheerful,
and God in due season relieved them. A large herd of deer
strayed unexpectedly into the neighborhood of New Gnaden
hutten, of which the Indians shot above an hundred, though
the cold was then so intense, that several returned with
frozen feet, owing chiefly to their wearing snow-shoes." ^
Heckewelder mentions that the cattle were saved from
starvation, by the discovery that the deer fed upon a species
of rushes, or scrub grass, which grew along the river banks,
or the borders of the ponds. " Strange as it may appear,"
he says in his narrative, " even our hogs lived chiefly upon
those rushes, or the sap or juice thereof, for after chewing
the stalks, until they had drawn the juicy substance out, they
would drop the cud and take a fresh bite. Both these and
the homed cattie, were not qply saved from starving during
the winter, but were in fine order in the spring. Even the
fowls would eat it greedUy after being cut up in small pieces
of the size of a grain of Indian corn : and the Indians say,
that they lay more eggs when fed with rushes, than when
fed with com : but to the horses (who are equally fond of it)
it proved fatal. A lean horse would get fat on them in four
or five weeks, but if left to feed a few weeks longer, they
would surely die. On examining into the cause of this, it
was discovered, that their stomachs were cut up, or worn
quite thin, and full of small holes Uke a sieve : whereas, with
horn cattle and deer who chewed the cud, the roughness or
sharpness of the grass had not this effect."^
We resume Loskiel. " They now began again to barter
venison for Indian corn at Detroit, and thus were delivered
from the danger of suffering the same extremity of distress
1) Loskiel, part iii., p. 199.
2) Heckewelder's Narrative, p. 305.

894 HISTOilY OF OHIO.
as in Sandusky. As soon as the snow melted, they went in
search of wild potatoes and came home loaded with them.
When the ice was gone, they went out and caught an extra
ordinary number of fishes. Bilberries were their next re
source, and they gathered great quantities, soon after which
they reaped their crops of Indian corn, and God blessed them
with a very rich harvest, so that there was not one who lacked
any thing.
" Towards the end of May, the Governor of Detroit, Colonel
Depeyster, removed to Niagara, and both the missionaries
and the believing Indians sincerely regretted the loss of this
humane man, their kind friend and benefactor. He recom
mended them to the favor of his worthy successor. Major
Ancrom, in whom they found the same benevolent disposition
towards them. i ,
" The more the good fame of New Gnadenhutten spread,
the more frequent were the visits of the white people, who
could not sufficiently admire the expedition with which the
beUering Indians had raised this pleasant settiement. They
also heard here the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which doubtless
had a good effect on some. As it happened that no ordained
Protestant divine resided in Detroit at that time, the mission
aries, at tbe request of the parents, baptised several children,
when they visited the fort. Some parents brought their
children to New Gnadenhutten, to be baptised there, and a
trader, who had two unbaptised children, went thither with
his wife and whole famUy, and pubUcly presented his chUdren
to the Lord in holy baptism. But as to the ceremony of
marriage, which several persons desired the missionaries to
perform, they wished on many accounts to be excused as
much as possible.
" The industry of the Christian Indians had now rendered

ANOTHER YEAR ON THE HURON. 395
New Gnadenhutten a very pleasant and regular town. The
houses were as well buUt as if they intended to live and die
in them. The country, formerly a dreadful wUdemess, was
now cultivated to that extent that it afforded a sufficient
mamtenance for them. The rest they now enjoyed was par
ticularly sweet, after such terrible scenes of trouble and
distress. But towards the end of the year 1784, it appeared
that they would likewise be obliged to quit this place. Some
of the Chippewas had, the year before, expressed their dis
satisfaction that the beUeving Indians should form a settle
ment in a country which had been their chief hunting place ;
but the governor of Detroit pacified them at that time with
good words. Now they renewed their complaints, pretending
that they had only allowed the Christian Indians to Uve there
tUl peace should be established, and even threatened- to
murder some of them in order to compel the rest to quit the
country. After many consultations, it evidently appeared
that the complaints and vexatious demands of this nation
would not cease. Added to this, the governor of Detroit
sent word to the beUeving Indians that they should not con
tinue to clear land and build, nothing being yet fixed, either
as to the territory or government. The missionaries there
fore thought it most prudent to take steps to retum with their
congregation to the south side of Lake Erie, and to settle
near the river Walhonding. This proposal being approved
by the congregation, the governor of Detroit was informed
of it, and preparations were made to emigrate in the spring
of 1785."
But these preparations w.ere suspended by the unsettled
condition of affairs on the Ohio frontier, and another year
passed on the Huron River. In May, 1785, the missionaries
Youngman and Senseman returned with their families to

396 HISTORY OP OHIO.
Bethlehem, and the mission remained under the care of Zeis
berger, Heckewelder and Edwards. " The latter" (to con
tinue the selections from Loskiel) " went in July, with three
Indian brethren, to Pittsburgh, with a view to gain certain
information concerning the state of affairs in the Indian
country, and to search out a proper situation on the river
Walhonding for a new settlement. In Pittsburgh he was told
that strictiy speaking, not an inch of land to the east of Lake
Erie could be called Indian country, the United States having
claimed every part of it ; and though they did not intend to
drive the Indians away by force, yet they would not permit
them to live in the neighborhood of the white people. He
also received letters from Bishop John de WaterviUe, who
had arrived from Europe to hold a risitation in the congre
gations of the brethren in No^^h America, by which he was
informed that Congress had expressly reserved the district
belonging to the three settlements of the Christian Indians
on the Muskingum, to be measured out and given to them
with as much land as the surveyor should think proper. The
same intelUgence he likewise received from the PhUadelphia
papers, and hastened home to acquaint the Indian congregar
tion with this unexpected decision in their favor, which occa
sioned universal joy. An Indian is naturally very averse to
dwelling in any place where one of his relations has been
killed, but the beUeving Indians had even parted with this
kind of superstition, and longed to be there as soon as possi-
ble."3 3) The Moravian society at Bethlehem had memorialized Congress on
the 28th of October, 1783, to reserve to the remnants of the Muskingum
mission their three towns aud the surrounding lands. A favorable report
was made in March, 1784, and on the 20th of May, 1785, Congress ordered
that " the said towns and so much of the adjoining lands as, in the judg
ment of the geographer ofthe United States, (might) be suflacient for them,

THE RETURN TO OHIO. 397
Immediately after Easter, 1786, New Gnadenhutten was
abandoned, and its inhabitants proceeded to Detroit in twenty-
two cano*, with the purpose of thence returning to Ohio.
They were hospitably received by the govemor, and after a
parting interview with the Chippewa chiefs, to whom a bundle
of some thousands of wampum was presented in token of
gratitude, the congregation embarked on the 28th of April,
in two trading sloops, the Beaver and the Mackinaw, which
had been generously placed at their service by the agent of
the Northwest company. Their destination was the mouth
of the Cuyahoga, and in twenty-four hours the vessels had
reached the Bars Islands of Lake Erie, adjacent to the
Sandusky peninsula. Here the winds became adverse, and
a detention of four weeks ensued. The sea-sick voyagers
pitched their camp upon Cunningham's, or KeUey's Island,
going on board at every prospect of release from their bon
dage to the northeast wind. Once they set forward with a
brisk and favorable breeze, and were in sight of the coast of
Cuyahoga, when the wind shifted and drove them back to
their station on the Island. They lived by hunting and fish
ing, and found wUd potatoes, onions, and " several kinds of
wholesome herbs in abundance." At length this Island was
together with the buildings, &c., (should) be reserved for the sole use of the
Christian Indians formerly settled there." Congress passed another ordi
nance, dated 27th of July, 1787, " that the property of ten thousand acres,
adjoining to the former settlements of the Christian Indians, should be
vested in the Moravian Brethren at Pennsylvania, or a society of the said
Brethren for civilizing the Indians and promoting Christianity, in trust and
for the uses expressed in the ordinance of May 20, 1785, including Killbuck
and his descendants, and the nephew and descendants of the late Captaiu
White Eyes, Delaware chiefs who have distinguished themselves as friends
of the eause of America.'' The three town plats were six hundred and
sixty-six and two-thirds acres each, making, with the ten thousand above
mentioned, twelve thousand acres, which were surveyed in 1797, and pat
ented on the 4th of February, 1798.

398 HISTORY OP OHIO.
cleared of game, and they went to another, ("Hope's Love,
or Put-in Bay," according to Heckewelder) where they found
" a better haven and good hunting, but a remarkacle number
of rattlesnakes." v
On the 28th of May, a vessel arrived from Detroit to recall
the Beaver, and it was determined that the Mackinaw should
transport the baggage and a few of the company to Cuyar
hoga, whUe most of them should make the journey along the
coast. They were landed at Rocky Point,.^about eight miles
from Sandusky Bay (probably the promontory now known as
Scott's Point, or Ottawa City, in Ottawa county). "Here,"
says Loskiel, "they had to ascend very high and steep rocks,
and to cut a way through the thicket to their summit. Heck
ewelder records the capture and cure of "five hundred white
fish that had retired, during the high blowing wind, between
Rocky Island and the shore, where the water was about two
feet deep."
The travelers organized themselves into two divisions.
One, led by Zeisberger, proposed to make the journey by
land, while the second dirision of the congregation, led by
Heckewelder, constructed canoes of elm bark for a coasting
voyage to Cuyahoga. Zeisberger's party ' ' had hardly pitched
their camp (proceeds Loskiel) before a party of Ottawas,
who were hunting in that neighborhood, rode towards them
and expressed great astonishment to find such a large number
of people encamped in the pathless Aet»it.^ The Christian
Indians treated them as hospitably as their circumstances
would permit, and were in return presented by the Ottawas
with some deer's flesh, and informed of the manner in which
they might best make a way through the forests through
which they had to pass. The day following, they aU set out
on foot, and every one, the missionary and his wife not

Vj-ii^tliJ'-

SETTLEMENT AT PILGERRUH. 399
excepted, was loaded with a proportionable part of the pro
visions. Those who formed the van had the greatest diffi
culties to encounter, being obliged to cut and break their way
through the thicket. They soon arrived at a large brook
running through a swamp, through which all the Indians,
both men and women, waded, some being up to their armpits
in tbe water. Some of the children were carried, others
swam, and brother Zeisberger and his wife were brought over
upon a barrow, carried by four Indian brethren. When they
arrived at Sandusky Bay, they hired boats of the Ottawas,
from whom also they received frequent visits during their
stay. One evening the savages had a dance,* and none of
the Christian Indians appearing at it, as they expected, some
came and endeavored to persuade the young people to join
them ; but meeting with a refusal, they addressed brother
Zeisberger, begging him to encourage them. He repUed that
the Christian Indians lived no more after the manner of the
heathen, having found something better. June 3d, they
crossed the Sandusky Bay, and the day after, the river Pet-
quotting, in a vessel belonging to a French trader.® During
this journey they celebrated the Whitsuntide holydays, and
rejoiced to see many attentive hearers among the heathen.
"June 4th, the second division, led by John Heckewelder,
overtook them in slight canoes, the sloop Mackinaw having
saUed with the heavy baggage straight for Cuyahoga. The
whole congregation now traveled together, one half on foot
along the coast of the lake, and the others in canoes, keeping
as close to the shore as possible. June 7th, they arrived at
4) Johnson's Island, near the mouth of Sandusky Baj', and separated
from the Peninsula by a narrow strait, was a favorite resort ofthe Otta
was, for festivals and dances. It is probable that the transaction narrated
above occurred on that island.
•'i) Now Huron River.

400 HISTORY OF OHIO.
the celebrated rocks on the south coast of Lake Erie. They
rise forty or fifty feet perpendicular out of the water, and
are in many places so much undermined by the waves, that
they seem considerably to project over the lake. Some parta
of them consist of several strata of different colors, lying
in a horizontal direction, and so exactly paraUel that they-
resemble the work of art." In Heckewelder's narratives,
the ceremonies of a party of Chippewas, who sought, by
supplications and gifts of tobacco to propitiate the spirits of
the winds and waves, are fully described. They preceded
the Moravian party, and had scarcely passed the rocky range
when a terrific storm arose. When it subsided, Heckewel
der's little fleet also achieved the voyage without accident.
Zeisberger's land party reached the Cuyahoga simultane
ously. " The sloop also arrived safely, and drifted so near
the shore in a calm, that the baggage could be taken out and
carried to land in canoes, upon which the sloop returned to
Detroit." Both the Moravian annalists concur in mentioning "alarge
store-house filled with flour, at the mouth of Cuyahoga,"
which, Heckewelder adds, was owned by " Messrs. Duncan
& WUson, of Pittsburgh, who carried on a trade in articles
of provisions to Detroit."
As soon as additional canoes could be prorided, the party
ascended the Cuyahoga to " an old town about one hundred
and forty mUes distant from Pittsburgh, which had been for
saken by the Ottawas." Here the forest, which had been
unbroken from the mouth of the river, was cleared, and the
recent growth was easily removed, allowing them to plant
corn. Their encampment was on an elevated plain east of
the river, about twelve miles from its mouth, and received

SETTLEMENT AT PILGERRUH. 401
the name of PUgerruh, or Pilgrim's Rest.s "Here," as
Loskiel narrates, " they regulated their daily worship in the
usual manner, reestablished the statutes of the congregation,
and God blessed their labors. August the 13th, they partook
of the Lord's Supper for the first time on this spot, which to
them was the most important and blessed of all festivals.
"In externals, God granted them his gracious assistance.
Brother Zeisberger, having given information of the arrival
of the Indian congregation' at the Cuyahoga creek to the
governor of Pittsburgh, and brother Shebosch having been
at that place to endeavor to procure provisions, Messrs.
Duncan & Wilson were so kind as to provide a sufficient
supply, trusting them for a great part of the payment. Con
gress Ukewise ordered a quantity of Indian com and blankets
to be given them.'' They also found means to purchase
several necessary articles from traders passing through on
their way from Pittsburgh to Detroit, and as they had an
opportunity of going by water to Sandusky and Petquotting,
they easily procured Indian corn from those places. The
two hundred dollars which they received for their houses and
fields on the river Huron, enabled them to make their pay--
ments good. In hunting deer, bears, and moose-deer, they
were remarkably successful. The congregation at Bethlehem
had charitably collected a considerable quantity of different
articles to supply the necessities of the Christian Indians ;
but these having been detained on the road, did not arrive at
PUgerruh tiU August, 1786, when they were equally divided
6) "Within the present limits of Independence, Cuyahoga county." —
Howe's Hist. Coll., 120.
7) Lieut. Col. Harmar, then in command at Fort Mcintosh, was directed
to furnish the Christian Indians with five hundred bushels of Indian corn,
one hundred blankets and other necessaries. The supplies were not deliv
ered, however. — American State Papers, Indian Affairs, vol. ii., p. 373.
17*

402 HISTORY OP OHIO.
among all ; the chUdren even received their share, and the
whole congregation expressed, in the most lively terms, their
sincere acknowledgments to their kind benefactors. Salt
was not so easily procured here as on the river Huron, the
salt springs being a great way off."
The summer and winter passed without material change
in the situation and prospects of the little community. In
October, 1786, John Heckewelder returned to Bethlehem,
leaving David Zeisberger and WiUiam Edwards in charge of
the congregation ; and on the 10th of November, " a new
and spacious chapel was consecrated : but the Indians only
furnished themselves with fraU huts, hoping soon to reach the
Muskingum. In this they were destined to disappointment.
Every day added to the exposure and danger which would
attend a removal thither ; and towards the close of the year
1786, Captain Pipe sent a message, urging them to remove
westward to the Petquotting or Huron River. Another
message from the Delawares, was a pressing invitation to
Sandusky. Thus a dilemma was presented to the leaders of
the congregation. WhUe their own inclmation was decidedly
in favor of a speedy occupation of their former seats on the
Muskingum, they were advised by Gen. Richard Butier, the
Indian Agent of the United States, to remain for the present
on*the Cuyahoga, and the Indians insisted on their removal
to localities still more remote. The dispositions and final
action of the missionaries, with the attending circumstances,
are thus stated by Loskiel :
" Accustomed to venture their Uves in the serrice of the
Lord, they were unconcerned as to their own safety, and if
that alone had been the point in question, they would not
have hesitated a moment to return to the Muskingum : but
they durst not bring the congregation committed to their care.

THE MORAVIANS LEAVE PILGERRUH. 403
into SO dreadful and dangerous a situation. They rather
thought it their duty to sacrifice every other consideration to
the welfare and safety of their flock, and therefore, after
mature deliberation, resolved to propose to them, that they
should give up all thoughts of returning to the Muskingum
for the present, but at the same time not remain on the
Cuyahoga, but rather seek to find some spot between that
river and Petquotting, where they might procure a peaceable
and safe retreat. This proposal was solemnly accepted, first
by the Indian assistants, and then by the whole congregation.
Soon after this, the following message arrived from a Dela
ware chief to Brother Zeisberger : ' Grandfather ! having
heard that you propose to live on the Muskingum, I would
advise you not to go thither this spring. I cannot yet tell
you my reason ; nor can I say whether we shall have war or
peace, but so much I can say, that it is not yet time. Do
not think that I wish to oppose your preaching the word of
God to the Indians. I am glad that you do this ; but I
adrise you for your good. Go not to the Muskingum.' ^ This
message tended to confirm the people in the above mentioned
resolution, which was undoubtedly the most prudent at the
time ; and in the beginning of April, some Indian brethren
set out, with a view to seek a place for a new settlement, and
found one much to their mind.
" Meanwhile the Indian congregation of Pilgerruh, cele
brated Lent and Easter in a blessed manner. The public
reading of the history of our Lord's passion, was attended
with a remarkable impression on the hearts of all present.
The congregation could not sufficiently express their desire
to hear more of it, and it appeared as if they now heard this
great and glorious word for the first time.
8) No one was more likely to send such a message than the noble-hearted
Bockengehelas.

404 HISTORY OP OIUO.
"April 19th, 1787, the Christian Indians closed their
residence at Pilgerruh, by offering up solemn prayer and
praise in their chapels, which they had. used but a short time.
They thanked the Lord for all the internal and external
blessings he had conferred upon them in this place, and then
set out in two parties, one by land, led by Brother Zeisberger,
and the other by water, with Brother Edwards. The latter
were obUged to cross over a considerable part of Lake Erie.
But before they had left the Cayahaga creek, a dreadful
storm arose, the wind blowing from the lake. The waves
beat with such violence against the rocks described above,
that the earth seemed to tremble with the sound. -The trav
elers thanked God that they were yet in safety in the creek,
and being in want of provisions, spent the time in fishing.
One night they fished with torches, and pierced above three
hundred large fish of a good fiavor, resembUng pUses, and
weighing from three to five pounds, part of whioh they roasted
and ate, and dried the rest for provisions on the voyage.
AprU 24th, the travelers by land, and the day foUowing those
who went by water, arrived at the place fixed upon for their
future abode. It appeared like a fruitful orchard, several
wild apple and plum trees growing here and there. They
had never settled upon so good and fertile a spot of ground.
The camp was formed about a league from the lake, which in
these parts abounded with fish. WUd potatoes, an article
of food much esteemed by the Indians, grew here plentifully.
The brethren rejoiced at the thoughts of establishing a regu
lar settlement in so pleasant a country, especially as it was
not frequented by any of those savages who had hitherto
proved such troublesome neighbors.^
"But their joy was of short duration. AprU 27th, a
9) This was the fertile valley of the Black River in Lorain county.

SETTLEMENT AT NEW SALEM. 405
Delaware Captain arrived in the camp, and informed them
that they should not remain in this place but live with them
at Sandusky, adding, that they should consider it a matter
positively determined, and not first deliberate upon it. He
added, as usual, the most solemn declarations of protection
and safety. The Captain assured them likewise, that the
place appointed for their habitation was not in the vicinity
of any heathen towns, but ten miles distant from the nearest.
To the missionary, David Zeisberger, he had brought the
following particular message. 'Hear, my friend, you are
my grandfather. I am not ignorant of your having been
formally adopted by our chiefs as a member of our nation.
No one shall hurt you, and you need not have any scruples
about coming to live at Sandusky.' He then delivered a
string of wampum. Disagreeable as this message was to
the Christian Indians, and though they represented to the
Captain the malice, deceit and treachery of the Delaware
Chiefs, which they had painfully experienced for these six or
seven years past : yet after many serious consultations, they
and the missionaries could not but resolve to submit to the
wiU of the chiefs, lest they should bring new troubles and
persecutions upon the mission. Their answer was therefore
in the affirmative. Brother Zeisberger answered likewise
the particular message sent to him to the same effect, yet,
with this express condition, that all the other white brethren
should have the same privUeges granted them, and his suc
cessor in office enjoy the same rights.
" Nothing appeared in this affair so dreadful to the mis
sionaries as the prospect of being again subject to heathen
rule and government. Yet they could not deny that it was
more agreeable to their peculiar calling to live in the midst
of those heathen, to whom they were to preach the gospel,

406 HISTORY OE OHIO.
and therefore write : ' We must be satisfied to Uve in the
very nest of Satan, for it appears indeed, as if every savage
Indian was possessed by a number of evil spirits, with whom
we must be at war.' "
"In the beginning of May, they with great joy welcomed
two assistants in the work of the mission, sent by the con
gregation at Bethlehem, Michael Young and John Weygand,
and soon after left a country so pleasing in every respect,
with great regret, proceeding partly by water on Lake Erie,
partly by land along its banks to Petquotting, where they
encamped about a mile from the lake. Here they fbund that
the greatest part of the message brought by the -above men
tioned Captain from the Delaware chiefs was fallacious;
for the place fixed upon for their residence was not above
two mUes from the villages of the savages. Our Indians
therefore, and the missionaries, resolved not to go any far
ther for the present, lest they should be entangled in some
snare, but to settle near Petquotting, and even to maintain
their situation in opposition to the wUl of the Delaware
chiefs.' They then sought and found an uninhabited place
situated on a river caUed also Huron, which empties itself
into the lake at Petquotting, whither they all went in
canoes on the 11th of May, and before night a smaU viUage
of bark huts was erected. Hence they sent deputies to the
chiefs to inform them of their resolution and their reasons
for it, and obtained leave to stay at least one year in that
place without molestation. They hoped also that during
that period, circumstances might alter in their favor, and
that they might perhaps be permitted to continue there
longer. "They therefore made plantations on the west bank ofthe
river, and chose the east, which was high land, for their

STATION AT NEW SALEM. 407
dweUings. This place was caUed New Salem.^"' Here
they celebrated Ascension Day and Whitsuntide in the
usual manner, meeting in the open air, and on the sixth of
June, finished and consecrated their new chapel, which was
larger and better built than that at Pilgerruh. They indeed
wanted more room, for a larger number of heathen Indians
attended their public worship here, than at the Cayahaga,
and hardly a day passed without risits from strangers.
June 9th, the whole congregation held a love-feast, for
which flour had been sent from Bethlehem. A letter to the
beUering Indians from Bishop Johannes Von Wateville, was
read to them on this occasion, and heard with much emotion.
He had held a visitation in all the settlements of the Breth
ren in North America, but to his sorrow found it impossible
to go to the Indian congregation, and was then on his return
to Europe. On the same day the congregation at New
Salem partook of the Lord's Supper, rejoicing in God their
Sariour, whose gracious presence comforted their hearts in
an inexpresible degree."
And here, with an enthusiastic narrative of the reclama
tion of "many ofthe poor lost sheep," and "the increase of
the Indian assistants in grace and knowledge of the truth,"
the truthful chronicle of Loskiel draws to its close. "Ac
cording," he says, " to the accounts transmitted to the mid
dle of the year 1787, the missionaries were full of courage
and confidence, and diUgent in the work of God committed
to them."
Although the Umitation of Loskiel's narrative is contempo
raneous with the period to which this volume relates, yet we
cannot resist the inclination to foUow the subsequent fortunes
10) Near the north line of the township of Milan, Erie county.

408 HISTORY OF OHIO.
of the missions. For this purpose, Heckewelder wiU be our
principal authority.
Three years after the settlement of New Salem, in the
winter of 1789-90, the Ohio Indians joined a league of the
Western savages against the United States, and it was
determined at a general council to remove the Christian
Indians and their teachers from Petquotting to Kegeyunk,
now Fort Wayne, and that the former should then be re
quired to take part in the impending hostUities. Informar
tion of this plot was secretly communicated to Zeisberger by
some friendly Indians, and the missionary Edwards was
instantly despatched to Detroit, with a request that the
British commandant would grant them an asylum. He
readily consented, and in AprU, 1790, a vessel arrived at
the Huron River, and the whole Indian congregation aban
doned their settlement of New Salem. They were at length
removed to the river Thames, seventy mUes northeast of De
troit, where a town was built and called Fairfield.
In 1797, three separate tracts of four thousand acres each,
including the sites of Gnadehutten, Schoenbran and Salem
were surveyed and laid off to the mission. In the spring of
1798, John Heckewelder and the Rev. Benjamin Mortuner
repaired to Fairfield "by way of the Genessee county.
Black Rock, Niagara, Grand River, and the Pinery in
Upper Canada, to inform the congregation that the Congres
sional grant was perfected:" and thence, after a week's stay,
Heckewelder and Edwards, with two young Indians, started
for the Muskingum, to make the necessary preparations for a
permanent settlement. Their route was by Detroit, Browns-
town, River Raisen, rapids of the Maumee, Upper Sandusky,
Owl Creek (now Vernon River) and the Forks of the Mus
kingum. In October, Zeisberger and Mortimer, with "a

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 409
large number of the Christian Indians from Fairfield," ar
rived on the Muskingum and founded Goshen. In 1804, a
part of the Fairfield congregation removed to Petquotting,
and renewed their missionary settiement, which the late
Rev. E. Judson of Milan supposed to have been situated on
the spot where Milan now stands. It was under the charge
of Rev. Christian Frederic Dencke, but was reUnquished m
1809, when the lands had been surveyed, and began to be
appropriated by the whites. The Moravians returned to
Fairfield. David Zeisberger passed the remnant of his useful Ufe at
Goshen, Tuscarawas county, where he died November 7,
1808, aged 87 years, 7 months and 6 days. At the same
place, in 1801, WiUiam Edwards had rested from his labors,
aged about seventy. John Heckewelder, after remaining in
the scenes of his early missionary life from 1801 to 1810,
returned to Bethlehem, and became widely known as the
author of the "Narrative of the Missions of the United
Brethren among the Delaware and Mohegan Indians," and
of an "Account of the History, Manners and Customs of the
Indian Nations, who once inhabited Pennsylvania and the
neighboring States," besides many other publications. He
died at Bethlehem on the 31st of January, 1823, aged
seventy-nine years, and nearly eleven months.
The influence of the white settlements upon the Indian
colony of the Muskingum was so unfavorable,^' that their
11) At the session of the Territorial Legislature for 1799-1800, an act was
passed to protect the Moravian Indians from the trafflc in intoxicating
liquors. The missionaries were authorized to seize the same whenever
brought within the Schoenbrun tract, and " do with it as they should think
proper ; '' and Heckewelder mentions that on one occasion " the missionary,
Zeisberger, although then in his eightieth year, in his zeal for the cause in
which he was engaged, took up an axe and stove the kegs so that the liquor
ran into the river." The Moravian annalist adds, that " although this act
18

410 , HISTORY OP OHIO.
spiritual guardians at length induced Congress to adopt such
measures as would tend to the removal of the Indians, and
enable the society to divest itself of the trusteeship in the
land. On the 4th of August, 1823, an agreement or treaty
was entered into at Gnadenhutten between Lewis Cass, then
Governor of Michigan, on the part of the United States,
and Lewis de Schweinitz, on the part of the Morarian Mis
sionary Society, as a preliminary step towards the retroces
sion of the land to the government. By this agreement, the
members of the society reUnquished their right as trustees,
conditioned that the United States would pay six thousand
six hundred and fifty-four dollars, being but a moiety of the
money they had expended. The agreement could not be
legal without the written consent of the Indians, for whose
benefit the land had been donated. These embraced the
remainder of the Christian Indians formerly settled on the
land, "including KUlbuck and his descendants, and the
nephews and descendants of the late Captain White Eyes,
Delaware chiefs." The Goshen Indians, as they were then
called, repaired to Detroit for the purpose of completing the
contract. On the 8th of November, they signed a treaty
with Governor Cass, by which they relinquished their right
to the lands, on condition that Government would pay them
an annuity of four hundred dollars as long as they remained
on the River Thames in Canada, or in lieu thereof, should
they choose to return to the United States, secure to them a
reservation of twenty-four thousand acres.
The trustees could not, however, divest themselves of aU
of the missionai-y sprved as a check on some other disorderly people from
their making similar attempts of bringing liquor to the town, yet, upon the
whole, this act of the Assembly became highly offensive, and was termed an
infringement on the rights and liberties of a free and independent people;
and, consequently, soon repealed."

THE MUSKINGUM MISSION. 411
the associations of the Muskingum Mission. It is interest
ing to observe, that the fourth article of the treaty secures
in perpetuity to the Society of United Brethren, free from
any condition or limitation whatever, "ten acres of ground,
including the church called Beersheba, and the grave yard
on the Gnadenhutten tract; also the church lot, parsonage
house and grave yard in the town of Gnadenhutten, * * *
and also the missionary house and grave yard at Goshen."
These stiU constitute links between the period, when the
message of the cross was announced in the depth of a wil
derness and amid the horrors of border warfare, and the
passing era of material development and spiritual privileges.^^
12) See Appendix No. X, for this final negotiation with the remnant of
the Moravian congregation.

CHAPTER XXIV.
EMBASSIES AND NFfGOTIATIONS BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES
AND THE OHIO TRIBES
The student of diplomacy, either as an art or in its rela
tion to the events of history, will find no more suggestive
field of inquiry, than is presented by the negotiations of the
Indian tribes of North America. At the councU fire, the
loftiest quaUties of their character have been conspicuous —
self-control, courtesy, dignity, eloquence, and that instinctive
sagacity, which is the first requisite of statesmanship. Of
this, Jefferson seemed conscious, when he triumphantly rested
his defence of the native race of the American continent,
against Buffon's imputation of inferiority, upon the terse and
touching speech of the desolate Cayuga warrior, Logan.
The present chapter will relate to the negotiations with the
Ohio Indians, between 1768 and the Territorial epoch.
The American Revolution interrupted the dreams of power
and wealth, in which the leading spirits of the Middle Colo
nies had indulged at the consummation of the Treaty of Fort
Stanwix, on the 24th of October, 1768. Sir WiUiam John
son, who conducted that negotiation, hoped to found a colony
south of the Ohio ; the envoys of Pennsylvania exulted at the
extinction of the Indian title between the AUeghanies and
the Ohio River, as far north as Kittaning ; ^ while Virginia
was no less gratified by a stUl more westward extension of
1 ) The northwest corner of Cambria county, Pennsylvania.
(412)

INDIAN NEGOTIATIONS. 413
her territorial occupation. Land speculation was the mania
of that age, and the disbanded soldiery of the long wars with
France, desired the widest possible range of selection in the
location of their bounties.
The conference of Fort Stanwix only transferred the claim
of the Six Nations of New York. The Delawares, who were
seated upon the Upper Ohio, and the Shawanese, who had^
formerly occupied Kentucky, and now shared its range as a
hunting ground with the Cherokees and other Southern In
dians, were no parties to the treaty. As has been shown, a
prominent cause of the hostilities, which were terminated by
Dunmore's expedition of 1774, was the dissatisfaction of the
Shawanese with the settlement of Kentucky. The Delawares
were more wiUing to transfer their vUlages to the west bank
of the Ohio, for their name implies former removals westward,
and experience had convinced them of the futUity of any
other than a passive policy.
There is but little doubt, that a condition of the treaty
between the Shawanese of the Scioto and Lord Dunmore,
besides the surrender of prisoners and plunder, made the
Ohio River the boundary between themselves and the whites.
But this agreement to abaiidon the lands south of the Ohio,
did not probably include the Shawanese warriors and hunters
of the Miami vUlages ; and it was only after many bloody
campaigns, that the whole tribe acquiesced in a partition,
which was more a trophy of conquest by the bold Kentucki
ans, than a treaty stipulation on the part of the Indians.
When Lord Dunmore concluded the treaty of Camp Char
lotte, he required the delivery of four hostages by the Shawa
nese, and also detained twelve Mingo prisoners. The latter
were stUl imprisoned on the 9th of February, 1775, as, on
that date, Dr. John Connolly wrote to Col. George Washing-

414 HISTORY OP OHIO.
ton, asking what should be done with them.^ The Shawanese
hostages seem to have been released in the summer, and
would have been previously, if their tribe had more promptly
surrendered the white captives which they held. A WUl-
iamsburg publication of Feb. 10, 1775, mentions that a few
days before. Cornstalk, the chief of the Scioto Shawanese,
arrived at the mouth of the Great Kenawha, where a Capt.
Russell was then in command, and delivered to him "several
of the old white prisoners, and a number of horses."
On the 12th of July, 1775, Congress organized an admin
istration of Indian Affairs. Almost simultaneously, an envoy
of Virginia, Capt. James Wood, afterwards Govemor of that
State, was traversing Ohio, having been deputized by the
General Assembly of Virginia to invite the Indian tribes to
a council at Fort Pitt, on the 10th of September. While
thus employed, he ascertained that the British commandant
at Detroit, and one Mens. Baubee, a Canadian Frenchman,
had distributed belts and wampum among seventeen Westem
tribes, with a message, that the Virginians were about to in
vade their country and attack them from two directions^ — by
the" Ohio and by the Lakes. Hamilton's only object in
making such a statement, was to provoke a border war.
Capt. Wood, on the 22d and 23d of July, had a satisfac
tory interview with Newcomer,^ and other Delaware chiefs,
at Coshocton ; and on the 25th, arrived at a " Seneca Town,"
where he found Logan, with some of the Mingoes who had
been prisoners at Fort Pitt. They appeared very desirous
to know his errand. He called them together, and made the
2) American Archives, fourth series, vol. i., p. 1222.
3) Netawatwes. The details of -Wood's journey are compiled from Amer
ican Archives, fourth scries, vol. iii., p. 76 — an acconnt dated August 15,
1775 — without change in the names of persons and places.

A VIRGINIA ENVOY. 415
same speech to them as to the Delawares ; but their only
answer was, that they would acquaint the rest of the tribe
with what he had said. These Indians, Wood remarks, ap
peared very angry, and behaved with great insolence.
On the 27th of July, Capt. Wood had a hearing at the
Wyandot Town. A chief. War Post, postponed a reply until
the next day, when they would meet him in the Council
House. Meanwhile, War Post and six others came privately
to the Virginian, " to talk with him as friends," they said.
They had always understood the EngUsh had but one king,
who Uved over the Great River ; they were much surprised
lately to hear that there was a war, and several engagements
at Boston, where a great many men were kiUed on both sides ;
and as they had heard many different stories, they would be
glad to know the truth. Capt. Wood then explained to them
the nature of the dispute, and the general union of the colo
nies : removing an error into whioh-the Wyandots had been
led, that the Virginians were a distinct people from the other
colonies. On the following day. War Post replied publicly,
that they had fully considered the message, and thought it
good, but they would be ruled in the matter by their chiefe
beyond Lake Erie.
Wood reached the Shawanese towns on the 31st. Here
he found much excitement from the alarming reports brought
by one Chennsan, or the Judge, who had just escaped from
Williamsburg, where he had been detained as a hostage.
He said that all the people of Virginia, except the Governor,
were determined on war with the Indians ; that he had barely
escaped with his life, but there was no doubt that his fellow-
hostages, Cuttenwa and Newa, were killed. Capt. Wood
was soon confronted with the fugitive, denied his whole story,
and assured the Shawanese present that Cuttenwa and Newa

416 HISTORY OP OHIO.
were on the way, riding leisurely back to their towns, and
thai Chennsan, by his fiight, had lost a horse, saddled and
bridled, besides other presents. This explanation quieted
the crowd, and on the 2d of August, the Shawanese were
likewise invited to the council at Fort Pitt, and responded
with pacific assurances.^
On the return of Wood to Virginia, it was known that
Messrs. Franklin, Henry and Wilson had been appointed by
Congress Commissioners of Indian Affairs for the Middle
Department (including the Ohio tribes), and we presume
that it was under their direction that the conference at Fort
Pitt, of September, 1775, was held. Perhaps Mr. John
Gibson, who then represented the Virginia commissioners at
that place, may have held a separate interriew with the
chiefs ; but Heckewelder is an authority, that the Delawares
then heard from the representatives of Congress the celebra
ted allegory of the oppressive father and his pack-laden son.
This address was forwarded to all the Indian tribes of the
country, and its purport is apparent from a brief extract : —
" We desire you will hear and receive what we have now
told you, and that you will open a good ear and listen to
what we are going to say. This is a family quarrel between
us and Old England. You Indians are not concerned m it.
We do not wish you to take up the hatchet against the king's
troops. We desire you to remain at home, and not jom on
either side, but keep the hatchet buried deep. In the name
and behalf of all our people, we ask and desire you to love
peace and maintain it, and to love and sympathize with us in
4) The reader will readily identify the localities visited by Wood— first at
Coshocton; two days afterwards, either near the mouth of Vernon Eiver,
or at the village on the Lake fork of the Muskingum ; then two days after
at Upper Sandusky, and finally at the Shawanese villages within what is
now Logan county

ACTION BY CONGRESS. 417
our troubles : that the path may be kept open with all our
people and yours, to pass and repass without molestation."
It is probable that in the spring of 1776, some confusion
resulted from the fact that Richard Butler was acting as
United States agent, and John Gibson as agent of Virginia,
to the Western Indians : while Alexander McKee, formerly
a deputy of the British superintendent, was still at Pittsburgh,
although under parol " not to transact any business with
the Indians on behalf of the crown or ministry." On the
Sth of AprU, Mr. Butler wrote to Col. James WUson, that
Guyasotha (he calls him Kiosola, but it can be no other than
the noted Seneca chief who lived on the head waters of the
Ohio,) had faUed, in the fall of 1775, to carry a big belt
from the United States to the Western tribes, as he had
agreed to do. When asked by Butler the reason for this
failure, Guyasotha said that Captain Pipe did not meet him
at the Moravian town, nor had two Delawares joined him at
Wyandot town, according to the promises of Gibson. Butler
also mentions, that Logan had threatened Gibson, and that
the latter arrived on the 9th of April, with some Shawanese
white prisoners and slaves, probably in further redemption
of Cornstalk's stipulations with Lord Dunmore, in October,
1774. Perhaps Congress proposed, by the appointment of
Col. George Morgan on the 10th of AprU, as Indian agent
for the Middle Department, to adjust any local jealousy or
conflict of jurisdiction, which might have existed between
Butler and Gibson.
On the date of Morgan's appointment. Congress resolved
— partly on the petition of Coquataginta or Captain White
Eyes, then on a visit to PhUadelphia — to employ a preacher,
a schoolmaster, and a blacksmith, to live among the Delaware
Indians in Ohio ; to provide for the entertainment of their

418 HISTORY OP OHIO.
chiefs whenever they should visit Fort Pitt, and that a treaty
should be effected with the Indians to the westward by the
Commissioners of the Middle Department !
The first letters of Col. Morgan, after reaching Pittsburgh,
indicated a critical state of affairs on the Ohio frontier. Under
date of May 16, he alludes to a councU ofthe Six Nations, then
being held at Niagara by Col. John Butler, a British agent,
from which he apprehended unpleasant consequences. The
proceedings at that conference were well calculated to excite
alarm. Nearly one hundred Indians, representing the Six
Nations and " a number of the back nations," were induced
to visit Col. Guy Johnson at Quebec, after pledging themselves
to Butler to "support the King's peace or government." Gen.
Schuyler wrote, on the 17th of July, that " one Cajughsoda,
from some town toward the Ohio, inveighed bitterly against
Butler, on this* occasion, for attempting to make the Indians
parties to the war." This was undoubtedly the Guyasotha,
who is so prominent in the contemporary annals of the Alle
ghany region.
One William WUson seems to have been a trusted agent
of the United States among the Ohio Indians at this time.
Col. Morgan hearing that the Niagara conference was soon
to be foUowed by another at Detroit, which Governor Ham
Uton would be sure to manage with even less scruple than
Butler had exhibited, sent this Wilson in June to prevent
the attendance of the Shawanese, until Morgan should risit
them. When the latter arrived, he was referred to the
Wyandots (by no means a favorable indication,) and in July,
WUson, accompanied by Cornstalk, a chief called Hardman,
and several others, started for the Wyandot towns, with a
message from Morgan inviting the Indians to a treaty at
Pittsburgh.

EMBASSY TO DETROIT. 419
This party first proceeded to a small Shawanese town,
about ten miles from the principal towns, where they re
mained ten days. Hardman remained at this viUage, to
meet the " Shade" (another Shawnee chief, who was expected
soon to return from Niagara,) while the rest continued their
journey to Pluggy's town.^ Here they heard a rumor that
the Kentuckians had killed two Shawanese, and it was after
wards ascertained that a party of Shawanese and Cherokees
had kUled two men, and captured a woman on the Kentucky
River. Immediate pursuit was made by the whites: the
savages overtaken : two Shawanese killed, and the woman
rescued. While at Pluggy's Town, a French blacksmith residing
there overheard the Mingoes plotting to make Wilson and
one Joseph Nicholson prisoners and carry them to Detroit ;
whereupon Cornstalk advised that they should escape by
night to Coochocking. They did so, and remained with the
friendly Delawares eleven days, King Newcomer (Netawat
wes) dissuading Wilson from going to the Wyandot Towns.
Captain Killbuck was sent thither with Col. Morgan's invitar
tion, and returned with a message that the Wyandots of
Sandusky must first consult their chiefs on the other side of
the lake, but desired that WUson should eome on, assuring
him of safety. Accordingly, Wilson, the Delaware KiUbuck,
and two young men started, but were tumed back, after
going ten miles, by the sickness of Killbuck. Captain White
Eyes took his plaee, and at Winganons Town, six mUes from
Coochocking, the party was joined by the half-breed, John
Montour. Arrived at Detroit, whither Montour piloted them
5) We incline to the opinion that Pluggy's Town -was on the west branch
of the Muskingum, near the junction with the Vernon River, or Owl creek.
See the narrative of Smith's captivity, ante pp. 82, 86.

420 HISTORY OP OHIO.
" by a nearer way than Sandusky," Col. Morgan's message
to the Wyandots, " the purport of which was to ask their
assistance in brightening the chain of friendship with aU the
western tribes of Indians, and inviting them to a treaty to
be held at Pittsburgh in twenty-five days from that time, or
the 2d of December," was delivered with a belt by WUson,
and was at first favorably received by the chiefs assembled
at the Wyandot village opposite Detroit. As soon, however,
as governor Hamilton heard of the arrival and message of
the American deputies, he induced the Indians to return the
belt, and at a subsequent council held in Detroit, addressed
the Wyandots as foUows-:
" Children, I am your father, and you are my children.
I have always your good at heart. I am sent here to repre
sent the great king over the waters and to take care of you.
Those people from whom you received this message are ene
mies and traitors to my king, and before I would take one
of them by the hand, I would suffer my right hand to be cut
off. When the great king is pleased to make peace with his
rebelUons children in this big island, I wUl then give my
assistance in making peace between them and the Indians."
"With that," says WUson, "he tore the speech and cut
the belt to pieces, and contemptuously strewed it about the
council-house." The governor then made a speech on a
tomahawk belt in French to the Wyandots. Their chief
delivered the belt to the Cornstalk, who was asked by the
govemor if he knew what it meant. Cornstalk answered
that he did not, and Hamilton then informed him that the
belt was put into the hands of the Wyandots in March,
desiring them to request the nations who liyed next the river
from Presque Isle downwards, to be watchful, and inform him
if any army attempted to cross the Ohio, but now the belt

CONFERENCE AT PITTSBURGH. 421
had a greater meaning, and referred Cornstalk to the Wyan
dots for an explanation. He added that the Cherokees had
joined the general cause.
The Mingoes present then produced a black belt, which
they said was received from Guy Johnson, in the spring of
1775, and intimated very clearly their hostiUty to the colo
nies. HamUton had previously ordered Wilson to return imme
diately, and he now ordered White Eyes "to leave Detroit
before the sun set, as he regarded his hea d." He told him
" that he knew his character well, and so did all the nations
present" — adding " that he would lose the last drop of his
blood before he would suffer any one nation 'to come there
and destroy the union which was brought about by so many
nations." The Half King of the Wyandots — Pomacan of Sandusky —
was at Detroit, and whUe drinking with John Montour, ex
pressed himself hostile to the Big Knives ; he had accepted
a tomahawk belt from Hamilton, but believed that one half-
of the Wyandots would not join the British. The Cornstalk
and Hardman avowed their concurrence in the sentiments of
White Eyes, and, upon the whole, WUson returned to Coo
chocking and thence to Pittsburgh, with a report not so unfa
vorable as was apprehended.
StiU, it was not until the last of October, that the council
was convened at Fort Pitt. The commissioners — Messrs.
Thomas Walker, John Harvey, John Montgomery and J.
Yeats — were in attendance early in September, and on the
25th, wrote to a committee of Congress that the frontier had
been alarmed by a rumor that fifteen hundred Chippewas
and Ottawas were about to rendezvous at Tuscarawas, but
which proved unfounded. A letter from Col. Morgan to the

422 HISTORY OF OHIO.
president of Congress, dated November 8, announces that
the Six Nations, Delawares, Muncies, Mohicans and Shawa
nese had assembled to the number of six hundred and forty-
four, with their principal chiefs and warriors, and gave the
strongest assurances of peace and neutrality. The most
troublesome band in Ohio was an assemblage of "Mingo,
Wyandot and Cockanawaga warriors at the Kispapoo town,
(as they are described by the commissioners in their letter
of September 25) the chief part of whom consist of a ban
ditti, headed by one Pluggy." Col. Morgan thus describes
them: "About sixty or seventy families, composed of most
of the different tribes of the Six Nations, and a few of the
lake Indians,' but principaUy of the Senecas, who- removed
from near the mouths of Cross creeks, on the Ohio, a few
years ago, and are now seated on the heads of the Scioto,^
have been the perpetrators of all the mischief and murders
committed on the frontiers of Virginia since the last treaty."
Notwithstanding their hostility, he writes that the cloud which
threatened to break over the frontiers of Pennsylvania and
Virginia, had nearly dispersed, and the winter of 1776-7,
passed in comparative quiet.
We have elsewhere sketched the Indian administration of
Col. George Morgan, and shall hasten to the consideration
of the more prominent negotiations with the Ohio tribes.
In 1778, an expedition against Detroit was contemplated,
and on the 17th of September, Andrew Lewis and Thomas
Lewis, commissioners of the United States, obtained from
Captain White Eyes, The Pipe and John KUlbuck, Jr., a
formal stipulation that the United States might have a free
passage through the Delaware country for any expedition
against British posts. The treaty also contained an agree-
8) Pluggy's town was probably on the Muskingum.

TREATY WITH THB DELAWARES. 423
ment by the United States to construct a fort in the Delaware
country, and the tribe are guaranteed aU territorial rights as
bounded by former treaties.
There are prorisions for the mutual forgiveness of offences ;
of perpetual peace and defensive aUiance — that neither party
shaU inffict punishments on the citizens of the other, without
a fair and impartial trial by judges or juries of both parties,
as Congress and Delaware deputies shaU prescribe — for the
delivery of criminal fugitives — that the United States wiU
appoint an agent to trade with the Delawares on the princi
ples of mutual interest — and, finaUy, " it is further agreed on
between the contracting parties, should it for the future be
found conducive for the mutual interest of both parties, to
invite any other tribes who have been friends to the interest
of the United States, to join the present confederation, and
to form a State, whereof the Delaware nation shall be the
head, and have a representative in Congress. Provided,
nothing contained in this article to be considered as conclu
sive untU it meets with the approbation of Congress."'
The treaty is signed by the commissioners and chiefs, as
named above, in presence of Lachn. Mcintosh, Brigadier
General, commandant of the western department ; Daniel
Brodhead, Colonel of the 8th Pennsylvania regiment ; Wil
Uam Crawford, Colonel ; John Gibson, Colonel 13th Virginia
regiment; A. Graham, Brigade Major; Lach. Mcintosh, Jr.,
Brigade Major ; Joseph L. Finley, Captain Sth Pennsylvania
regiment ; John Finley, Captain Sth Pennsylvania regiment.
It is a sad commentary upon the beneficent professions of
these "Articles of Agreement and Confederation," that Col.
Morgan, who was absent in Philadelphia, should write in the
following January, that "there never was a conference with
7) United States Statntes at Large, vol. vii , p. 14.

424 HISTORY OF OHIO.
the Indians so improperly or so villainously managed," and
that he is " only surprised it had not worse effects."
The friendly Delaware chiefs were occasionally the guests
of Congress at Philadelphia, and their territorial claims, on
these visits, were very fluctuating. In March, 1776, Captain
White Eyes thus defines the grant to the Delawares by their
uncles, the Wyandots : " The Ohio River on the south, the
west branch of the Muskingum and the Sandusky on the
west. Lake Erie on the north, and Presque Isle on the east;"
while on the 10th of May, 1779, the Delaware chiefs com
municate the boundaries of their country, " From the mouth
of the Alleghany River at Fort Pitt, to Venango, and from
thence up French creek, and by LeBoeuf, along the old road
to Presque Isle, on the east ; the Ohio River, including aU
the islands in it from Fort Pitt to the Ouabache, on the
south ; thence up the river Onabache to the branch Ope-
comeecah, and up the same to the head thereof, and from
thence to the head waters and springs of the most north
western branches of the Scioto River, thence to the head
westernmost springs of Sandusky River, thence down the
said river, including the islands in it, and the Little Lake, to
Lake Erie, on the west and northwest ; and Lake Erie on
the north."
AUusion has already been made, with sufficient particular
ity ,8 to the submission of Doonyontat, a Wyandot chief, and
Keeshmatsee, a chief of the Maginchee, or Machacheek tribe
of Shawanese, to Col. Brodhead, which occurred September
14th, 1779, at Fort Pitt, on the return of that officer from
his expedition against the Seneca towns. The mediator on
that occasion was Kelleleman, or Killbuck.
Very soon, there was no room for negotiation with the
8) See Chapter xix., p. 308.

TREATY OF FORT STANWIX. 425
Western savages. Expept a few Delawares — who were be
come a minority of the tribe — the whole wilderness of Ohio
succumbed to British infiuence ; and it was not until after
the peace of 1783 with Great Britain, that the humbled
tribes, abandoned by their ally, rekindled the council fires.
TREATY OF FOET STANWIX IN- 1784."
The site of Rome, in New York, was the scene of a highly
important negotiation between Oliver Wolcott, Richard But
ler and -Arthur Lee, commissioners on the part of the United
States, and the representatives of the Six Nations, which
continued from the 3d to the 22d of October, when the treaty
was signed.
The attitude assumed on this occasion by the commission
ers was closely conneeted with the history of the West during
the next twenty years. A full abstract of their transactions
wiU therefore be presented.
On the first day, the commissioners met several of the
Indians from the different nations at the council place, and
announced their official character and purpose. The usual
formula was varied so far as to add, that they proposed to
" give peace and good counsel to those who have been un
fortunately led astray by evil advisers." It was stated that
the head men and warriors of the Western natipns would
attend in a few days, when they would speak more fully.
Meanwhile, the Indians were desired to " hearken to the voice
of Kayenlaa, the Marquis de Lafayette, a great man among
the French, one of the head warriors of the great Onondio,"
&c.

9) The following particulars of this important negotiation are gathered
from the Journal of Gen. Richard Butler, preserved in that valuable histori
cal compilation, Craig's Olden Time, vol. li., p. 404.
18*

426 HISTORY OP OHIO.
The reply of Kayenthogle, an Alleghany chief of the Sen
ecas, was dignified and courteous, responding appropriately
to every topic of the commissioners' address, except the sug
gestion, that the Indians had been " unfortunately led away
by evil advisers."
Most of the time until the 11th of October, was occupied
by efforts to prevent the sale of intoxicating liquors to the
Indians. The commissioners directed Lieut. John Mercer,
who attended them with a detachment of New Jersey troops
by resolution of Congress, to seize and store aU spirituous
liquors until the conclusion of the treaty. For the execution
of this order, a writ from a court of Montgomery coUnty was
issued for his arrest, but the commissioners would not suffer
any compliance with its mandate.
Another collision, which' might have been more serious,
took place before the Indians were fully assembled. The
Legislature of New York had already manifested a disposi
tion to expel the Six Nations from all the country within the
bounds of the State, which had not been ceded by them pre
vious to the warr This state of feeling had excited much
concern in Congress and elsewhere, and the commissioners
were probably prepared for some annoyance, if not palpable
interference, in the discharge of their duties. In a letter to
the President of Congress, dated Fort Stanwix, Oct. 5, they
state, that notwithstanding due notice to the Governor of
New York, that he might transact any business with the In
dians under the patronage of the United States, the governor
chose to hold a separate treaty with the Six Nationp. This
procedure is contrasted with the course of Pennsylvania,
whose commissioners were in attendance, with credentials
and instructions entirely satisfactory to the Continental com
missioners.

TREATY OF FORT STANWIX. 427
It happened that a Mr. Peter Schuyler was present at
Fort Stanwix, and soon attracted the attention of the com
missioners. He also assumed an official character, and was
notified on the 6th of October to desist from all interference
with the Indians. Schuyler produced a paper to the Secre
tary of the Commission, of which no particulars are given,
except that it was without seal or signature, and " directed
the said Peter Schuyler, together with one Peter Rightman,
as an interpreter, to attend at Fort Stanwix during the time
of the Commissioners of the United States holding their treaty
with the Indians, to observe the conduct of the said commis
sioners, and to oppose and frustrate any of their proceedings
which might eventually affect the interests of the State of
New York." After this discovery, particular care was taken
to include Messrs. Schuyler and Rightman in the execution
of the liquor ordinance, and to exclude them from the
councUs. On the 12th of October, the commissioners made an ad
dress to the sachems and warriors, in which they asserted
their authority from the Congress of the United States to
treat with the Indian Nations, and that the latter should not
listen to any overtures made by any person or body of men,
or by any particular State not authorized by Congress — ex
hibited the definitive treaty between the United States and
the King of Great Britain, expressing the readiness of Con
gress to " give peace to the Indian nations upon just and
reasonable terms, and to receive them into the friendship,
favor and protection of the United States" — called particular
attention to the sixth article, whereby the King of Great
Britain "renounces and yields to the United States all pre
tensions and claims whatsoever of all the country south and
west of the great Northern Rivers and Lakes, as far as the

428 HISTORY OF OHIO*.
Mississippi," making no reservation in favor of any Indian
nation, but leaving those tribes to seek for peace with the
United States, upon such terms as the United States shall
think just and reasonable ; and, after impressing upon them,
that the delivery of all prisoners, white and black, was es
sential to any peace, the commissioners closed by asking the
tribes present at the council, to propose such a boundary line
between the United States, and themselves, as would be just
for them to offer and the United States to accept. It was
intimated to the American alUes — Oneidas, Tuscaroras, and
Caughnewaghas — that the foregoing address was not intended
for them.
At the opening of the session, Capt. Aaron HiU, a Mo
hawk, who had just arrived, explained that his tribe had
received frequent messages from the Governor of New York
to meet him in council, but they were unwilling to partake in
any but a continental treaty, and that the message of the
Commissioners of the United States had been received so
recently, that it was difficult for many to attend, and impos
sible to deliver the prisoners at this time, but Capt. Brant
would instantly collect and send down the latter. He added,
that numbers of their brothers to the Westward, the Wyan
dots in particular, had returned home, by reason of the ad
vanced season of the year, after coming as far as Niagara,
so that themselves and their brothers, the Shawanese, were
only present.
Capt. O'Bail, or Complanter, was then recognized by the
commissioners as authorized to transact all business with the
United States on behalf of six towns.
It was not until the 17th of October, that the assembled
Indians were ready to reply. Capt. Aaron HiU first spoke.
After intimating that they could not answer so fully and sat-

TREATY OF PORT STANWIX. 429
isfactorily as they might do, if a copy of the commissioners'
speech had been furnished to them, allusion was made to the
statement, that the council fire was kindled for the purpose
of settling all differences and disputes between the United
States and the Indian nations, the speaker begged attention
to the words of the warriors, and thus proceeded : " The
words of the warriors are strong : they are persons who have
so traveled through the world, and borne all the difficulties
of the war, that it is in their power to make a lasting peace.
You told us that it was solely on us to make peace, but we
apprehend that it is mutually dependent upon both parties.
I speak in the name of the Six Nations, and not only in their
name, but also in the name of all the other tribes — my voice,
therefore, is strong — our minds are deep, and persevering,
and our wish to make peace is great. We are neither
haughty, nor proud, nor is it our disposition ever, of our
selves, to commence hostiUties. Our adherence to our cove
nant with the Great King, drew us into the late war, which
is a great proof to the commissioners of our strict observance
of our ancient covenant with the white people ; and you will
find the same attachment to the covenant now to be made, as
that which signalized our conduct during the late war. We
are free and independent, and at present under no influence.
We have hitherto been bound by the Great King, but he
haring broken the chain, and left us to ourselves, we are
again free and independent."
Recapitulating, without dissent, the points of the commis
sioners' speech in respect to their exclusive authority to con
clude a treaty, and the terms of peace between the United
States and Great Britain, the orator feeUngly remarked:
" You also assured us that the Great King in settling this
peace with the United States, made no mention of us, but

430 HISTORY OP OHIO.
left us to treat for ourselves. Certainly the Great King did
not look up to that Great Spirit, which he had caUed as a
witness to that treaty, otherwise common justice would not
have suffered him to be so inattentive, as to neglect those
who had been so just and faithful to him ; and we think that
our brothers, the United States, did not think of the Great
Spirit, otherwise they would have mentioned to the Great
King those persons who had been so faithful to him, when
they found that he had entirely neglected them."
The speaker claimed that the Indians present were ade
quate to treat of, and conclude a peace, not only on the part
of the Six Nations, but also on that of the Ottawas, Chippe
was, Hurons, Potowatames, Messasagas, Miamis, Delawares,
Shawanese, Cherokees, Chicasaws, Choctaws, and Creeks.
The sarcasm of the following paragraphs — at least that in
respect to the cession by France — is very apparent :
" You acquainted us that the King of France had ceded
to the United States all claim and title to any lands within
their boundary. We have only to thank the Great Spirit
for putting it into the mind of the King of France to make
this cession, as it is well known that he is extremely saving
of his lands, and that the United States are in great want of
them. " You informed us that it was indispensably essential to
the making of peace, that all the prisoners should be deliv
ered up, and that nothing could be finally done therein,
until that should be the case. We would propose to the
commissioners that for this purpose they should depute per
sons of their own nation to go and collect them, lest if it
should rest with us, the commissioners might apprehend
that they were not all brought, and for this purpose we will
give them aU the assistance in our power."

TREATY OP FORT STANWIX. 431
On the following day, the 18th, Cornplanter or Capt.
O'BaU, resumed and closed the speech on behalf of the Six
Nations. After an unsatisfactory attempt to explain the conduct of
his own tribe, the Senecas, in joining the British, after their
repeated pledges to observe a neutrality, Complanter ap
proached the boundary question, which he treated with con
summate tact. That entire portion is here given :
" Brothers, Representatives of the Thirteen United States :
" You have allotted to me the task of drawing a line be
tween us to your satisfaction. I feel the weight of it: I
feel for many of my brothers, who will be left destitute of
any lands, and have therefore taken care in my deliberations
to mark out that line which will give peace to both our minds.
"I hope that in our present negotiations, nothing but
friendship wiU prevail, and I am fully sensible that you will
never conduct yourselves towards us, as the King of Great
Britain has in throwing us away.
" Brothers, Commissioners of the Thirteen United States,
now hearken :
" When we shaU have drawn the line between us, what^
ever shaU remain within the boundary allotted to us, shall
be our own — ^it shall continue forever, as the sun which rolls
over from day to day.
"Brothers, Commissioners of the Thirteen United States:
" Let us go on with this business of peace with tenderness
and caution, as it is of the utmost importance, and should
what I now say not meet with a kind reception into your
breasts, it will greatly distress me, for I who stand before
you am a warrior, and should it not meet your approbation,
inform me whilst I am here :
"Brothers, I have several times repeated the words to

432 HISTORY OF OHIO.
proceed tenderly in this business, for I regard future gener
ations, and to them I attend while engaged in making peace
with you.
" Our fires wUl be a considerable distance from each
other, when I come to describe the boundary between us.
This wUl tend to our mutual peace.
" I think, brothers, that we warriors must have a large
country to range in, as indeed our subsistence must depend
on our having much hunting ground, and as it wiU also bring
in money to you, will tend to our mutual advantage.
" Now, brothers, I am about to draw the line — this we
Senecas do of ourselves, as the land belongs solely to us.
Let it begin at Tioga, and run thence by a straight line
inclining a little to the North to Ohigee, and when it strikes
the River Ohio, let it go down its stream to the old boundary
on the Cherokee River. As to the territory westward of
that, you must talk respecting it with the Western Nations,
towards the setting of the sun — they must consult of what
part they will cede to the United States.
" Brothers, should you approve of this boundary, you wiU
direct your people not to trespass upon our territory, or pass
over the line, and should any of our nation attempt to pass
over, or intrude upon your lands — ^let us know it — we wUl
take care to reprimand them, and prevent it.
" Brothers, by this belt you now see my mind. If what I
have mentioned be approved of by you, lay it along the Tioga,
as I have said — if not, I again request you to inform me."
On the 20th of October, the commissioners replied to HUl
and Cornplanter. No part of this speech is omitted :
" Sachems and Warriors : — We are now going to reply
to the answer you made to our speech — therefore open your
ears and hear.

TREATY OP FORT STANWIX. 433
"You informed us that your words were not the words of
the Six Nations only, but that you were empowered to speak
for aU the western nations of Indians. This surprises us.
We summoned the Six Nations only to this treaty — that
nations not caUed should send their voices hither, is extraor
dinary. But you have not shown us any authority, either in
writing or by belts, for your speaking in their names. With
out such authority, your words will pass away like the -winds
of yesterday that are heard no more.
" You have complained that we refused you a copy of our
speech, which might lead you into errors. When we refused
it we gave our reason, which was this, that having explained
our minds publicly and clearly to you all, and given belts and
strings to remind you of every proposition, we did not choose
you to be deceived, and our meaning to be misrepresented
by the few persons among you who understand EngUsh, and
might have exjilained our speech, if we had given a copy of
it, as they pleased. We knew there were such persons
among you who wished to deceive you, and under the direc
tion of those who led you into the war against us, were
planning to mislead you again for their o-wn purposes. We
did not wish to put you into the power of such persons, but
to clear your eyes and understandings. We explained, at
your desire, over and over again, our speech to you, and the
strings and belts which accompanied every part of it.
" You next excused your havmg taken up arms against us,
by aUeging you were drawn into it by your ancient covenant
with the king of England.
" Where was your sense of covenants, when, after solemnly
covenanting with us in 1775, and again as solemnly in 1776,
receiving our presents to cover you, to comfort and to
strengthen you — ^immediately you took up the hatchet against
19

434 HISTORY OT OHIO.
US and struck us with all your might ? Could you have so
soon forgotten your recent engagements with us, and yet be
influenced by those long past with the king of England ?
"We asked you — we exhorted you for your own sakes, to
remain neuter, though as living on the same ground with us,
we had a right to expect your assistance against all invaders.
You twice solemnly covenanted not to join in the war against ,
us — ^and without the smaUest provocation on our part, you
violated your covenants and spilt our blood.
" We should not have called to mind this conduct, had you
not attempted to justify it. You must not deceive your
selves, nor hope to deceive uS. To justify errors may lead
to a recommission of them, and it will be more safe and
honorable to repent of, than to paUiate, a conduct which,
though mischievous to us, has been fatal to you, and has left
you at our mercy.
"Again, you are mistaken in supposing that haring been
excluded from the treaty between the United States and the
king of Great Britain, you are become a free and indepen
dent nation, and may make what terms you please. It is
not so. You are a subdued people ; you have been overcome
in a war which you entered into with us, not only without
provocation, but in violation of most sacred obUgations. The
Great Spirit, who is at the same time the judge and avenger
of perfidy, has given us rictory over all our enemies. We
are at peace with all but ^om; you now stand out alone against
our whole force.
" When we offer you peace on moderate terms, we do, it in
magnanimity and mercy. If you do not accept it now, you
are not to expect a repetition of such offers. Consider weU,
therefore, your situation and ours. Do not suffer yourselves
to be again deceived so as to raise our arm against you. You

TREATY OF FORT STANWIX. 435
feel the sad effects of having refused this counsel before —
beware how you do it again.
" Compassionating your situation, we endeavored to make
the terms on which you were to be admitted into the peace
and protection of the United States, appear to spring from
your own contrition for what you had done, rather than from
a necessity imposed by us. We therefore proposed to you
to deUver up the prisoners, and to propose a boundary line,
such as it became the United States to agree to.
" On neither of these p6ints have you given us the smallest
satisfaction. You propose we should deputise people of our
nation to go and collect the prisoners. This you know from
experience is impracticable ; that it would only provoke
insults, and perhaps the murder of such deputation, by the
persons who hold our fellow citizens in bondage. You only
can CoUect them ; you only ought to collect them.; you must
collect and deliver them up. Our words are strong, and we
mean you should feel them. With regard to the boundary
Une you have proposed, the lands to the northwest of it have
almost aU been sold- already to Onas, and all the land south
east of it, to the Cherokee River, was sold by you in the
year 1768, at this place, and is all granted and settied by
the white people.
" We shaU now, therefore, declare to you the condition on
which alone you can be received into the peace and protec
tion of the United States. The conditions are these :
" The United States of America will give peace to the
Senecas, Mohawks, Onondagas and Cayugas, and receive
them into their protection upon the following conditions :
" Article 1. Six hostages shaU be immediately deUvered
to the commissioners by the said nations, to remain in the
possession of the United States till all the prisoners, white

436 HISTORY OF OHIO.
and black, which were taken by the said Senecas, Mohawks,
Onondagas and Cayugas, or by any of them, in the late war,
from among the citizens of the United States, shaU be de
livered up.
"Article 2. The Oneida and Tuscarora nations shaU be
secured in the possession of the lands on which they are settled.
"Article 3. Aline shall be drawn, beginning at the
mouth of a creek about four miles east of Niagara, called
Oyonwayea, or Johnston's Landing Place, upon the lake
named by the Indians Oswego, and by us Ontario; from
thence southerly, in a direction always four miles east of the
carrying path, between lakes Erie and Ontario, to the mouth
of the Tehoseroron, or Buffalo creek, on Lake Erie, thence
south to the north boundary of the State of Pennsylvania ;
thence west to the end of the said north boundary; thence
south along the west boundary of the said State to the river
Ohio ; the said Une from the mouth of the Oyonwayea to the
Ohio shall be the western boundary of the lands of the Six
Nations, so that the Six Nations shaU and do yield to the
United States, all claims to the country west of the said
boundary, and then they shall be secured in the peaceful
possession of the lands they inhabit east and north of the
same, reserving only six miles square round the fort of Os
wego, to the United States, for the support of the same.
" Article 4. The commissioners of the United States, in
consideration of the present circumstances of the Six Nations,
and in execution of the humane and Uberal views of the
United States, upon the signing of the above articles, wiU
order goods to be delivered to the said Six Nations for their
use and comfort.
" We shall make a few remarks on these articles, though
the moderation and equity of them are manifest :

TREATY OF FORT STANWIX. 437
" 1st. It is more than six months since you were informed
by General Schuyler, in the name of Congress, that you must
deliver up all the prisoners before peace could be granted to
you. Our message gave you the same information, yet you
have not delivered them up.
"As the delivery of them is indispensable, so you have
rendered hostages necessary by your delay.
" 2d. It does not become the United States to forget those
nations who preserved their faith to them, and adhered to
their cause^-those, therefore, must be secured in the full and
free enjoyment of those possessions.
"3d. The line proposed leaves as extensive a country to
the remaining four nations as they can in reason desire, and
more than, from their conduct in the war, they could expect.
"The king of Great Britain ceded to the United States
the whole; by the right of conquest they might claim the
whole. Yet they have taken but a small part compared with
their numbers and their wants. Their warriors must be
provided for. Compensations must be made for the blood
and treasures which they have expended in the war. The
great increase of their people renders more lands essential
to their subsistence. It is therefore necessary that such a
boundary line should be settled as will make effectual provi
sions for these demands and prevent any future cause of dif
ference and dispute.
" 4th. It ought to be felt by you as a signal proof of the
magnanimity ofthe United States, that though the present dis
tresses of most of the Six Nations have been incurred by their
own fault in fighting against them, yet they have determined
to minister such reUef to them as is at present in their power.
" These are the terms on which you may obtain perpetual
peace with the United States, and enjoy their protection.

438 HISTORY OF OHIO.
" You must be sensible that these are blessings which can
not be purchased at too high a price. Be wise, and answer
us accordingly."
The speech of Captain Aaron HiU, on the 21st, presents
no new points, and is tame and unimpressive. The written
proofs or belts of their right to speak in the name of the
western tribes, he said, had been left at the council fire which
was burning among the Shawanese, on the river Miami.
There is a tradition that young Red Jacket boldly opposed
the burial of the hatchet, and spoke with vehement eloquence
against the treaty. When the Marquis De Lafayette revisited
the United States, in 1824-5, he met Red Jacket at Buffalo,
and the General was reminded, by the venerable chief, of the
circumstance of their former meeting at Fort Stanwix. This
is the earliest allusion to the Seneca orator, afterwards so
widely renowned.
But the experienced and sagacious Complanter saw that
total banishment, perhaps a bloody extirpation, was the only
alternative, and his influence in favor of the treaty prevailed.
The motto of the commissioners was Voe Victis — woe to the
vanquished !
The official pubUcation of the treaty at Fort Stanwix is
identical with the proposition dictated by the commissioners.
The sword of victory was in the American scale, and it was
signed without the addition or diminution of a syUable. Its
future consequences will appear in the sequel.
TREATY AT FORT McINTOSH IN 1785.
The treaty with the New York Indians having extinguished
their western claims, measures were promptly taken to pre
scribe terms and boundaries to the Ohio tribes. On the 21st
of January, George Rogers Clark, Richard Butler and Arthur

TREATY OF FORT m'INTOSH. 439
Lee met a body of Indians at Fort Mcintosh, who asserted
themselves to be representatives of the Wyandots, Delawares,
Chippewas and Ottawas. We present this document with
its signatures and attestation :
" The Commissioners Plenipotentiary of the United States
in Congress assembled, give peace to the Wyandot, Delaware,
Chippewa, and Ottowa nations of Indians, on the following
conditions :
Article 1. Three chiefs, one from among the Wyandot,
and two from among the Delaware nations, shall be delivered
up to the Commissioners of the United States, to be by them
retained tUl all the prisoners, white and black, takeii by the
said nations, or any of them, shaU be restored.
Article 2. The said Indian nations do acknowledge
themselves and all their tribes to be under the protection of
the United States, and of no other sovereign whatever.
Article 3. The boundary line between the United States
and Wyandot and Delaware nations, shall begin at the mouth
of the River Cayahoga, and run thence up the said river
to the portage between that and the Tuscarawas branch of
Meskingum ; then down the said branch to the forks at the
crossing place above Fort Lawrence [Laurens] ; then west
erly to the portage of the Big Miami, which runs into the
Ohio, at the mouth of which branch the fort stood which was
taken by the French in one thousand seven hundred and fifty-
two ; then along the said portage to the Great Miami or Ome
River, and down the southeast side of the same to its mouth ;
thence along the south shore of Lake Erie, to the mouth of
Cayahoga, where it began.
Article 4. The United States allot all the lands con
tained within the said lines, to the Wyandot and Delaware
nations, to live and to hunt on, and to such of the Ottowa

440 HISTORY OF OHIO.
nation as now Uve thereon : saving and reserving for the
efstablishment of trading posts, six mUes square at the mouth
of Miami or Ome River, and the same at the portage on that
branch of the Big Miami which runs into the Ohio, and the
same on the Lake of Sanduske where the fort formerly stood,
and also two mUes square on each side of the lower rapids
of Sanduske River, which posts, and the lands annexed to
them, shall be to the use, and under the Govemment of the
United States.
Article 5. If any citizen of the United States, or other
person not being an Indian, shall attempt to settle on any of
the lands allotted to the Wyandot and Delaware nations in
this treaty, except on the lands reserved to the United States
in the preceding article, such person shall forfeit the protec
tion of the United States, and the Indians may punish him
as they please.
Article 6. The Indians who sign this treaty, as weU m
behalf of aU their tribes as of themselves, do acknowledge
the lands east, south and west of the lines described in the
third article, so far as the said Indians formerly claimed the
same, to belong to the United States ; and none of their tribes
shaU presume to settle upon the same or any part of it.
Article 7. The post of Detroit, -with a district ben
ning at the mouth of the River Rosine, on the west end of
Lake Erie, and running west six miles up the southern bank
of the said river, thence northerly and always six miles west
of the strait, till it strikes the Lake St. Clair, shaU be also
reserved to the sole use of the United States.
Article 8. In the same manner, the post of MichiUi-
machinac with its dependencies and twelve miles square
about the same, shaU be reserved to the use of the United
States.

TREATY OF PORT M'iNTOSH. 441
Article 9. If any Indian or Indians shall commit a
' robbery or murder on any citizen of the United States, the
tribe to which such offenders may belong, shaU be bound to
deliver them up at the nearest post, to be punished according
to the ordinances of the United States.
Article 10. The commissioners of the United States,
In pursuance of the humane and liberal views of Congress,
upon this treaty's being signed, wiU direct goods to be dis
tributed among the different tribes for their use and comfort.
Separate Article. — It is agreed that the Delaware
chiefs, Kelelarrand, or lieutenant-colonel Henry [alias KUl
buck,] Hengue Pushees or the Big Cat, Wicocalind or Cap
tain White Eyes, who took up the hatchet for the United
States and their famiUes, shall be received into the Dela
ware Nation, in the same situation and rank as before the
war, and enjoy their due portion of the lands given to the
Wyandot and Delaware Nations in this treaty, as fully as if
they had not taken part with America, or as any other per
son or persons in the said nations :
Geo. Clark, Talapoxie,
Richard Butler, Wingenum,
Arthur Lee, Packelant,
Daunghquat, Gingewanno,
Abraham Kuhn, Waanoos,
Ottawerreri, Konalawassee,
Hobocan, Shawnaqum,
Walbndightun, QUECPOKIA.
Witness. — Samuel J. Atlee, Francis Johnston, Commis
sioners of Pennsylvania ; Alexander Campbell ; Joseph Har
mar. Colonel Commandant; Alexander Lowrey; Joseph
Nicholas, interpreter : J. Bradford ; George Slaughter ; Van
Swearingen; John Boggs; G. Evans; D. Luckett."^"
10) U. S. statutes at Large, vol. vii., p. 16.

442 history of ohio.
Of the Indian names signed to this treaty, Daunnghquat
was the Wyandot chief who negotiated with Col. Brodhead
at Fort Pitt in 1779 ; Abraham Kuhn was a Wyandot from
Lower Sandusky, mentioned by Heckewelder as engaged in
the removal of the Moravians in 1781, from the Muskingum
to the Sandusky: "Hobocan" was the Indian name of Cap
tain Pipe : Talapoxie we suppose to be the friendly Delaware
chief called Tetepachksi by Heckewelder; Wingenum was
also a Delaware ; and Packelant may have been the same as
the Packgantschihilas of Heckewelder's Narrative, or our
favorite Bockengehelas. The other names are not recogniza
ble — probably Chippewas and Ottawas.
treaty of fort FINNEY IN 1786.
In pursuance of a resolution of Congress, March 18th,
1785, preparations had been made to hold a treaty with the
Wabash Indians at Fort Vincent, (now Vincennes) on the
20th of June, 1785, but these tribes were impracticable,
and by a resolution of the 29th of June, the place was
changed to the mouth of the Great Miami, and the time post
poned until January, 1786. The conference was finally
held at Fort Finney — a post established for the occasion on
the left bank of the Great Miami at its junction with the
Ohio — ^by George Rogers Clark, Richard Butler and Samuel
H. Parsons, Commissioners of the United States, and the
Shawanese Indians.
The journal of General Butler, whUe engaged upon the
mission, has recently been published,^' and a summary of its
contents will best reflect the posture of affairs, and the aspect
of the frontier, as well as the dispositions of the savages, at
that period. Its author, originally a trader of Pittsburgh,
11) Craig's Olden Time, vol. ii, p. 431.

TREATY OF FORT FINNEY. 443
distinguished himself in the war of the Revolution, enjoyed
in a high degree the confidence of Washington, and sealed his
devotion to the country, by the sacrifice of his life on the
bloody field of St. Clair's defeat. Having borne a part in
the negotiations which resulled in the treaties of Forts Stan
wix and Mcintosh, he left his residence in CarUsle, Pennsyl
vania, on the 9th of September, 1785, on a service in all
respects more arduous and uncertain. General Butler was
accompanied until the 11th of October, and as far as Lime
stone, now Maysville, on the Ohio River, by Colonel James
Monroe, then a member of Congress from Virginia, and after
wards President of the United States.
On the 27th of September, Butler caused three boats to
be loaded with goods for the treaty, and one large scow with
provisions for the troops that were to join him at Fort Mcin
tosh, and started for the mouth of Beaver — the site of that
post — where he arrived next day. Here he found the de
tachment in readiness (its strength is not mentioned), and
before again embarking, prepared and left a paper with Col.
Harmar, the commandant, in which the opinion was expressed
that the " mouth of the Muskingum would be a proper place
for a post to cover the frontier inhabitants, prevent intruding
settiers on the lands of the United States, and secure the
surveyors." At the west line of Pennsylvania, then being
run by David Rittenhouse and his assistants, the party met
Thomas Hutchins, the geographer of the United States, and
a corps of surveyors. " They had made a beginning," says
Butler, " at right angles on the Pennsylvania line at the post
set up by Mr. Rittenhouse, and had gone on westward six
mUes, the breadth of one range of townships, on which Capt.
Martain begins to-morrow (October 1,) having won it by
lots : the other gentlemen wUl foUow in rotation, and some

444 HISTORY OF OHIO.
are very anxious to get to business. The gentiemen were
very polite and seemed happy to see us. Capt. Hutchins
had a very good dinner ready, which we partook of with great
pleasure, as it was with a set of .gentiemen who are the first
at work on a fund which will eventually, and I think in a
short time, extinguish the debt of the United' States, and fix
a permanent prosperity on legal right, for miUions of people."
There was some discord among the gentlemen of this sur
veying party, as afterwards transpired in their private inter
views with Butler, which the latter labored to assuage. He
also found Captain Hutchins apprehensive of the safety of
his company, unless the Indian chiefs should personally assure
him of their good wiU.
From Yellow Creek to Cross Creeks — the present front of
Jefferson county on the Ohio River — ^Butler was often ashore
to warn off settlers upon the right bank of the Ohio. He
notified them that " Congress was determined to put all the
people off the lands, and that none would be allowed to settle
but the legal purchasers, and that these, and these only, would
be protected : that troops would be down next week, who had
orders to destroy every house and improvement on the north
side of the river, and that garrisons would be placed at Mus
kingum and other places, and that if any person or persons
attempted to oppose Government, they might depend on
being treated with the greatest rigor." Certainly a short
method with squatters.
WheeUng, m. 1785, is thus noticed : " This is a fine set
tlement, and belongs to one Zane ; an Island which is oppo
site the mouth of Wheeling Creek, containing about 400 acres
of most excellent land, and is a situation not only of great
profit, but real beauty. He says he seUs to amount of £300
per annum of the produce of his farm for cash, exclusive of

445
the other advantages by traffic. He is an inteUigent man,
but seems either timid through real doubt or affects it through
design." General Butler visited and describes the antiquities at
Grave Creek. " The Grave is an extraordinary pile of human
bones covered with earth. It is about sixty feet perpendicular
high, and about one hundred eighty feet in diameter at the
base ; a conical figure, with large trees on its sides and top,
where is one of three feet in diameter. Supposjng the
annual growth one-tenth of an inch, it is one hundred and
eighty years old ; how long its sides were naked may be
supposed fifty years, as these kinds of mounds do not produce
trees so soon as the land which is on a level with the country
round. There are two smaU forts, which, with the Grave,
form a triangle. Near one of these forts are three large
holes, which appear to have been places of deposit for provis
ions. About one-fourth of a mUe from these, forming an
angle of about twenty-five degrees, is a large fort which the
owner of the land has begun to plow up, where they find
pieces of earthen kettles; arrow points and stone tomahawks,
aU marks of savage antiquity."
From Muskingum (where a letter, recommending the site
of the fort at a point on the Ohio side, was " left fixed to a
locust tree") to the mouth of the Great Kenawha, the jour
nal, beyond the ordinary incidents of a voyage, dwells upon
the beauty and fertility of the bottoms, and the abundance
of wild game, pouncing occasionally upon a luckless squatter.
On reaching the Great Kenawha, Gen. Butler digresses into
a town-lot speculation. It was a common impression then,
that by the James River or Potomac, and the Kenawha, the
Muskingum or the Cuyahoga, the great commercial avenue
between the lakes and tidewater would be established, and

446 HISTORY OF OHIO.
the confluence of the Kenawha and Ohio, seemed clearly in
dicated as the site of a flourishing city. Here Butier met
^' young Col. Lewis, a most sensible young gentleman, very
interesting and communicative." They dined together — Col.
Lewis being " treated with attention, who received it very
politely. I inquired," Butler continues, " if they did not
intend to lay out a town at the point [Point Pleasant, proba
bly] : he told me it was laid out and the lots generally sold,
but if I wanted a lot, or more, I might still be supplied, as
many of the lots were forfeited. I told him I would pur
chase, on which we went to look over the ground ; and he
took me up the Ohio bank to a fine dry lot which fronts the
street on the river Ohio, a street that runs at right angles
from the river and the main street, or first paraUel street
with the Ohio, which gives it three fronts, being west, north,
and east. This I agreed for." Butler also purchased a lot
fronting on the Kenawha. The prices were " ten pounds for
front lots on each river, five pounds the -first back lots, and
four pounds the further back."
As the voyage continued, the enthusiasm of the journalist
becomes irrepressible. " This delightful country," he writes
on the 13th of October, " involuntarily draws from my pen
praises : it is fine, it is rich, and only wants the cultivating
hand of man to render it the joyous seat of happy thousands.
Here are the wild animals provided for the assistance of the
first settlers. Here are the finest and most exceUent sites
for farms, cities and towns. This seems provided as a reward
for the adventurous and industrious, by the Divine hand,
whose good providence appears in all his works. Here we
have nothing to do but spring from our boats among flocks
of turkeys, kill as we please^ for sport or gust ; the bear
growls in your hearing, and the deer, timid by nature,

GENERAL BUTLER'S JOURNAL. 447
bounds along before your eye ; in short, there is no end
to the beauty and plenty. I have just stepped from my boat
and kiUed, at one shot, two fine turkeys ; and our whole
party feasts on fine venison, bear meat, turkeys and cat-fish,
procured by themselves, at pleasure."
Passing a river below Guyandot, which is the most south
erly poi^t between Fort Pitt and sixty mUes below the Great
Miami, Butler caUed it South River, and then adds : " Near
the mouth of Big Sandy, Mr. Zane (Isaac Zane, who had
accompanied the party from Wheeling) killed a fine buffalo."
The following description evidently refers to the ricinity
of Ironton, Lawrence county : " About ten miles below Big
Sandy Creek, is a hill on the north side with fine trees on it :
there also a body of rocks appears with a southeast front,
below which, about five miles, opposite to alarge sand bar on
the south side of the river, is" an old Indian town and grave,
where we encamped. It is a body of as fine land as I have
seen, and well worthy attention ; indeed, there are on both
sides of the river fine lands : here Mr. Zane kUled three
buffalo, one of which seems to be a real curiosity for size.
Several of the gentlemen went to see it, viz : Lieut. Smith,
Lieut. Doyle and Mr. Peebles ; they brought with them the
head and one of the shoulders, with the whole leg to it. The
head weighed one hundred and twenty-nine pounds, and the
tongue six — total, one hundred and thu-ty-five pounds. The
head was cut off as close as possible, or at the large joint, so
that the neck was but a small addition to the weight. The
leg and shoulder, when set upright, was as high as my head,
which is five feet eight and a half inches : this, when on the
body, including that extraordinary protuberance caUed the
hump, Mr. Zane assured me, is higher than his head, which
is six feet (eighteen hands) : and it was agreed by aU who

448 HISTORY OF OHIO.
saw this amazing wUd animal, that it weighed at least fifteen
hundred pounds. Part of the beef of these fine animals was
delivered to the troops, and part salted for future use.
" I cannot help here describing the amazing plenty and
variety of this night's supper. We had fine roast buffalo
beef, soup of buffalo beef and turkeys, fried turkeys, fried
cat-fish, fresh caught, roast ducks, good punch, madeira,
claret, grog and toddy, and the troops suppUed in the most
abundant manner. They are all cheerful, and generaUy in
perfect health, and enjoying the bounties of heaven, the land
and the water. The industry and judgment of one man
could certainly supply many famUies. Mr. Zane kUled this
day, on the lowest computation, three thousand weight of as
fine beef as need be used, all in about four hours' huntmg."
There is special mention of " that sweet and deUghtful
Uttle river Sciota, whose charming banks are not only beau
tiful to a wonder, but the richest and most luxuriant soU."
Here he was " alarmed by a prodigious gust of wind, which
caused a great and extraordinary fog, that smelt of sulphur."
Next morning, Oct. 17, they passed the mouth of Scioto,
and twenty-four miles below, reached Buffalo Lick Creek,
where the indefatigable Zane was soon in successful pursuit
of a drove of buffaloes, kiUing a fine one.
Limestone, or MaysviUe, is described as containing " about
fifteen good cabins for famiUes, kitchens, &c., included, and
about twenty-five houses, with a good wagon road to Lexing
ton and other places." Here information was received that
Gen. Clark, one of the commissioners, was at the Miami with
a number of troops, and that some of the messengers had
arrived, accompanied by a few Indians.
The allusions to the vicinity of Cincinnati, are dimly pro
phetic : " About three o'clock (Oct. 21), passed the mouth

TREATY OP FORT FINNEY. 449
of the Little Miamis. About two miles below is a piece of
high ground, which, I think, will be the site of a town.
Pushed on to the mouth of Licking Creek, which is a pretty
stream : at the mouth, both above and below, are very fine
bottoms. The bottom below the mouth seems highest and
most fit to bmld a town on ; it is extensive, and whoever
owns the bottoms should own the hiU also. Passed this at
five o'clock, and encamped two miles below on the north
side." General Butler arrived at the Great Miami on the 22d of
October, and found General Clark at a station, (defined as
" a few famiUes coUected for mutual safety to one place, and
a little fort erected,") a short distance below, on the Ken
tucky side ; but it was liot until the 13th of November that
their coUeague, General Parsons, arrived. FuUy two months
elapsed before the Shawanese could be induced to attend the
councU. Meanwhile, " four block houses and quadrangular
work" were constructed under the superintendence of Major
W. Finney, (by whose name they were designated,) on the
Ohio, above the mouth of Miami. Excursions were made by
the leaders of the party to Big Bone Lick and the falls of
the Ohio ; and at LouisviUe, Butler found the people engaged
" in selling and buying lots in the back streets, but not liking
the situation, bought none."
There was no considerable arrival of Indians until the 18th
of November, when fifty Wyandots, ten Delawares and ten
Shawanese approached the fort. The Wyandot camp was
on the banks of the Miami, about three mUes north of Fort
Finney. Thenceforth, private interviews, accompanied by
presents, frequently occurred with the Half King and Crane
of the Wyandots ; with Wingenum, Pipe, White Eyes, (a son
of the celebrated Indian so called,) old Abraham, (probably
19*

450 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Kuhn,) who were Delawares, and John Harris and Micanim-
sica, Shawanese. It transpired that Simon Girty and one
Robert Suphlet, (cousin to the well-known British agent,
Alexander McKee,) were then in the Shawanese towns,
using every persuasion to prevent an attendance at the con
ference. Their labors proved so far successful, that another
month elapsed without any further arrival of Shawanese,
except " the Grenadier Squaw's daughter, Fanny, (Corn
stalk's niece) and her brother Morgan, with one other Shaw
nee man and woman." At length, on the 27th of December,
Captain Wingenum, (chronicled by Butler as " old, experi
enced and sensible ") was sent to the nations with a final mes
sage of invitation. This embassy seems to have been effective,
for, on the 14th of January, one hundred and fifty Shawanese
men, and eighty women, were received with due ceremony
by the commissioners and the garrison. The formal recep
tion of this " proud little nation" is thus described. "The
oldest chief leads, and carries a small drum, on which he
beats time and sings ; two young warriors, who dance well,
carry each the stem of a pipe painted and decorated with
feathers of the bald eagle and wampum ; these are joined
in the dance by several other young men, who dance and
keep time to the drum — the whole of the party painted and
dressed in the most elegant manner, in their way, which is
truly fantastic, but elegant though savage. The chief who
headed this party is called Melonthe. These were foUowed
by the chief warrior, Aweecauny, and last, the warriors
armed ; then came the headwoman, caUed Carwe-chUe, in
front of all the women and children. When they came near
the councU house, Aweecauny got on a stump and ordered
the whole to halt. They then sung for some time, when he
gave a signal and the song ceased. He then ordered the

TREATY OP FORT FINNEY. 451
armed men to make ready, which they did ; then to fire,
which was performed in the Indian style of a running fire.
This was repeated three times, on which our troops returned
the salute with three vollies from a platoon, well performed,
the drum beating an American march. We then entered the
councU house and took our seats ; they then arrived, and
after dancing a short time at the door, by way of salute,
they entered at the west door, the chiefs on our left, the
warriors on our right and round on the east end till they
joined the chiefs — the old chief beating the drum, and the
young men dancing and waving the feathers over us, whUst
the others were seated. This done, the women entered at
the east door, and took their seats on the east end with great
form. This over, the chief inquired who were the commis
sioners, which the young warrior, John Harris, told them,
and pointed us out. After a short song, the chiefs called on
Ke-kewepellethe, a Wagatommochie man, who immediately
rose to address us. His speech was short, but pathetic and
sensible. He said, that in consequence of our inritation
they had come to our councU fire — that they had also brought
their women and children — that they had shut their ears
against aU that advised them not to come, and now stood
before us. They hoped, on our part, we would also shut our
ears against evil stories, and banish from our memory every
evU impression ; that they cleared our ea-rs, wiped our eyes,
and with the strings of wampum removed all sorrow from our
hearts. They hoped, therefore, we would be strong, pity
their women and children, and go on with the good work of
peace, and suffer no evil reports to prevent our carrying it
into effect."
The commissioners replied complaisantly, and the affair
ended with a dinner and an allowance of " grog and tobacco."

452 HISTORY OP OHIO.
It was noticed that the Sachems only shook the hands of the
commissioners, but the warriors and women (" the strength
of the nation ") postponed that ceremony " untU peace was
certain." Another usage of the Shawanese, was subse
quently found to be, to transact business relating to peace
before noon, the day afterwards being the time for the busi
ness of war.
An interview, on the 20 th of January, between Bockenge
helas and George Rogers Clark, has been the subject of much
literary embellishment. Butler's simple narrative is as fol
lows : " This moming early, (Friday, January 20,) the Pipe,
a chief of the Delawares, came in and informed us that the
strange chief Pacanchichiles, or Iskittapiecica, in Shawanese,
with others, were at hand, and would salute us, on which we
ordered the usual salute of three platoons to return it. When
they advanced, this piece of ceremony was performed, and
our messengers showed them into the councU house, on which
the fiag of the United States is kept displayed. When they
were all seated, the commissioners were notified, and went to
the councU house with the officers. After being seated,
Packanchichiles rose and spoke. His first address was to the
Great Spirit, returning thanks for the preservation of his own
and General Clark's Ufe through the war, and for putting it
once more in their power to see each other, adding that he
felt very happy at the prospect which now opened to his view,
and thanked God for giving us this great day to meet and
declare the pleasure he felt. That now he felt the advan
tages his nation may experience by the good work his kings
have been transacting with the commissioners of the United
States; that he is determined to support it with all his
endeavor, and recommended to General Clark, as a warrior,
to assist on our part, with much more to the same purport.

TREATY OF FORT FINNEY. 453
General Clark told him he was glad to see him, and advised
him to be strong and sincere in his determination. "i^
On this occasion, " the old chief called Tetapaxicca," spoke
to the same purport, and the Big Cat, who had been employed
as a messenger to the western tribes, reported that a depu
tation of the Twightwees, and other Wabash and Miami Indi
ans, had reached the Shawanese towns, " where they received
such advice and accounts from Detroit as put them back."
He also charged the Shawanese with giving the tomahawk to
a town of Mohicans on the White River. The statements of
Big Cat were afterwards denied very stoutly by the Shaw
anese. On the 30th of January, the main business of the confer
ence proceeded. The commissioners addressed the Indians
so nearly in the spirit and terms employed at the treaty of
Fort Stanwix, as to render a transcript unnecessary. They
closed with a recital of the terms of a treaty which they
should impose upon the Shawanese. Immediately ensued a
scene of great excitement. The younger warriors of the
nation, as Butler admits und^r date of January 17th, " who
had grown up through the course of the war," had been
" trained Uke young hounds to blood, and were greatly under
British influence. When the latter were informed of the
stringent terms dictated to them — especially the surrender
of hostages for the delivery of prisoners — intense dissatisfac
tion prevailed. The chief from Wakatomaka, Kekewepel-
lethy, became the organ of this indignant feeling, and ad
dressed the commissioners as follows :
" Brothers, by what you said to us yesterday, we expected
everything past would be forgotten ; that our proposals for
12) For a more detailed sketch of Bockengehelas, the distinguished Dela
ware chief, see Appendix No. XL

454 HISTORY OF OHIO.
collecting the prisoners were satisfactory, and that we would
have been placed on the same footing as before the war.
To-day you demand hostages till your prisoners are returned.
You next say you will divide the lands. I now tell you it is
not the custom of the Shawnese to give hostages ; our words
are to be believed ; when we say a thing, we stand to it ; we
are Shawnese! As to the lands, God gave us this country;
we do not understand measuring out the lands ; it is aU ours.
You say you have goods for our women and chUdren ; you
may keep your goods, and give them to the other nations ;
we wUl have none of them. Brothers, you seem to grow
proud because you have thrown down the king of England ;
and as we feel sorry for our past faults, you rise in your de
mands on us. This we think hard. You need not doubt
our words — what we have promised we will perform. We
told you we had appointed three good men of our nation to
go to the towns and collect your flesh and blood ; they shaU
be brought in. We have never given hostages, and we wUl
not comply with this demand." A string of black wampum
was likewise deUvered.
After a short consultation, the commissioners determined
not to recede from any of the articles, and General Butler
thus addressed the turbulent assemblage :
" Shawnees : You have addressed us with great warmth.
We think the answer unwise and ungrateful ; and, in return
for just and generous proposals, you have not only given us
improper language, but asserted the greatest falsehoods. You
say you cannot give hostages for the performance of your
promises, as it is contrary to your usages, and that you never
break your word. Have you forgotten your brbach of treaties
in the beginning of the late war with Britain, between the
United States and your chiefs, in '75 and '76 ? Do you

TREATY OF FORT FINITEY. 455
think us ignorant of those treaties ? Do you think we have
forgotten the burning of our towns, the murder and captivity
of our people in consequence of your perfidy, or have you
forgotten them? Don't you remember when Col. Bouquet
came up to Tuscarawas, that you there gave hostages ? Do
you forget that you gave hostages to Lord Dunmore ? Do
you forget that when he had agreed to send people to collect
the prisoners, that they had like to have been murdered in
your towns ? Recollect, and you might know that these are
truths. You gave to both of .these great men hostages for
the performance of your promises ; and, even under that
engagement, you paid so little regard to your faith, which
you had pledged, that it was with difficulty our people got
from amongst you ; and although you had promised to do the
business yourselves, you did not even attempt to protect these
men who went to assist you. We know these things to be
truths, with much more we could relate equally aggravating.
You cannot, therefore, expect we will beUeve you ; I teU you
we cannot believe you, or rely on your words ; are the burn-
mg the houses of our peiople, "and barbarously ravaging
our frontier, besides the repeated violations of treaties of the
most sacred nature — are your barbarous murders, and the
cmelty shown our prisoners, marks of your fidelity, or proofs
of your pacific disposition, or a desire of enjoying the bles
sings of peace in common with us? I say, they are not.
These are the gifts of heaven, and they cannot be enjoyed
under such circumstances. You joined the British king
against us, and followed his fortunes ; we have overcome
him, he has cast you off, and given us your country ; and
Congress, in bounty and mercy, offers you country and peace.
We have told you the terms on which you shaU have it.
These terms we wiU not alter; they are liberal, they are just,

456 HISTORY OP OHIO.
and we wUl not depart from them. We now tell you, if you
have been so unfortunate and unwise as to determme and
adhere to what you have said, and to refuse the terms we
have offered to give to your nation peace, friendship and pro
tection, you may depart in peace ; you shall have provisions
to take you to your towns, and no man shall touch you for
eight days after this day ; but after that time is expired, be
assured that we shall consider ourselves freed from aU the
ties of protection to you, and you may depend the United
States will take the most effectual measures to protect their
citizens aild to distress your obstinate nation. It rests now
with you. The destruction of your women and children, or
their future happiness, depends on your present choice.
Peace or war is in your power ; make your choice Uke men,
and judge for yourselves. We shall only add this : had you
judged as it is your interest to do, you would have considered
us as your friends, and foUowed our counsel ; but if you
choose to follow the opinion which you have expressed, you
are guided either by evil counsel or rashness, or are bUnded.
We plainly tell you that this country belongs to the United
States — their blood hath defended it and wiU forever protect
it. Their proposals are liberal and just ; and you, instead
of acting as you have done, and instead of persisting in your
folly, should be thankful for the forgiveness and offers of
kindness of the United States, instead of the sentiments which
this string imports, and the manner in which you have de
livered it. [I then took it up and dashed it on the table.]
We therefore leave you to consider of what hath been said,
and to determine as you please."
The commissioners then threw down a black and a white
string, to signify that they might choose either war or peace,
and retired. " It was worthy of observation," Butler con-

TREATY OP FORT PINNEY. 457
tinues, "to see the different degrees of agitation which ap
peared in the young Indians at the delivery of Kekewapel-
lathe's speech." They were "ready for war," but the out
side pressure was too strong for that sentiment to prevail :
and at a subsequent interriew on the same day, the chief,
who had spoken so boldly, succumbed to the demands of the
American officers. Although the treaty is dated January
31, it was actuaUy signed on the 1st of February. It is
here transcribed from the United States Statutes at Large,
Vol. vU., p. 26 :
Article 1. Three hostages shall be immediately deliv
ered to the commissioners, to remain in the possession of the
United States until all the prisoners, white and black, taken
in the late war from among the citizens of the United States,
by the Shawanoe nation, or by any other Indian or Indians
residing in their towns, shall be restored.
Article 2. The Shawanoe nation do acknowledge the
United States to be the sole and absolute sovereigns of aU
the territory ceded to them by a treaty of peace made be
tween them and the King of Great Britain, the fourteenth
day of January, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-
four. Article 3. If any Indian or Indians of the Shawanoe
nation, or any other Indian or Indians residing in their
towns, shall commit robbery or murder on, or do any injury
to the citizens of the United States or any of them, that
nation shall deliver such offender or offenders to the officer
commanding the nearest post of the United States, to be
punished according to the ordinances of Congress ; and in
Uke manner, any citizen of the United States, who shall do
an injury to any Indian of the Shawanoe nation, or to any
other Indian or Indians residing in their towns, and under
20

458 HISTORY OF OHIO.
their pi-otection, shaU be punished according to the laws of
the United States.
Article 4. The Shawanoe nation having knowledge of
the intention of any nation or body of Indians to make war
on the citizens of the United States, or of their counseUing
together for that purpose, and neglecting to give information
thereof to the commanding officer of the nearest post of the
United States, shall be considered as parties in such war,
and be punished accordingly: and the United States shaU
in like manner inform the Shawanoes of any injury designed
against them.
Article 5. The United States do grant peace to the
Shawanoe nation, and do receive them into their friendship
and protection.
Article 6. The United States do aUot to the Shawa
noe nation, lands within their territory to Uve and hunt
upon, beginning at the south line of the lands allotted to the
Wyandots and Delaware nations, at the place where the
main branch of the Great Miami, which falls into the Ohio,
intersects the said line ; then down the River Miami to the
fork of that river, next below the old fort which was taken
by the French in one thousand seven hundred and fifty-two;
thence due west to the River de la Pause ; then down that
river to the River Wabash, beyond which lines none of the
citizens of the United States shall settle, nor disturb the
Shawanoes in their settlement and possessions ; and the Shaw
anoes do reUnquish to the United States, all title or pretence
of title, they ever bad to the lands east, west and south of the
east, west and south lines before described.
Article 7. If any citizen or citizens of the United States
shaU presume to settle upon the lands aUotted to the Shaw-

TREATY OP FORT FINNEY. 459
anoes by this treaty, he or they shall be put out of the pro
tection of the United States.
In testimony whereof, the parties hereunto have affixed their
hands and seals the day and year first above mentioned :
G. Clark, Musquauconocah,
RiCHD. Butler, Meanymsecah,
Saml. H. Parsons, Waupaucowela,
AWEECONY, NiHIPEEWA,
Kakawipilathy, Nihinessicoe,
Malunthy.
Attest : ALEXANDER CAMPBELL, Sec'y Commissioners.
Witnesses. — W. Finney, Maj. B. B. ; Thos. Doyle, Capt.
B. B. ; Nathan McDoweU, Ensign ; John Saffenger ; Henry
Govy ; Kagy Calloway ; John Boggs ; Sam. Montgomery ;
Daniel Elliot ; James Rinker ; Nathl. Smith : Joseph Suffrein,
or Kemepemo Shawno ; Isaac Zane (Wyandot) ; The Half
King of the Wyandots ; The Crane of the Wyandots ; Capt.
Pipe ofthe Delawares; Capt. Bohongehelas ; Tetebockshieha ;
The Big Cat of the Delawares ; Pierre DrouUar.
The orthography of the names of the Shawanese chiefs
varies considerably in Butler's journal. "The treaty was
signed," he says, " by Aweecauny, Kewepelathy, Captains
Melontha, Musquackhoonaka, Mianimsicca, Wapachcawela,
Nihipeewa, kings, and Nehinessica, a young chief. The
last named, Mianimsicca and four others were deUvered as
hostages — six instead of three. The witnesses were military
officers, and inhabitants of the ricinity : Joseph Suffrein,
mentioned as the White Shawnee, and probably an adopted
son of the tribe and the Wyandot and Delaware chiefs, whose
names are already familiar by their connection with the
treaty of Fort Mclntosb.is
During the period of these negotiations, the vigUance of
13) See Appendix No. XIL

460 history of ohio.
the commissioners was unable to prevent depredations upon
the Indians by white borderers,^* and it required an extraordi
nary exertion to check the organization of an expedition to
proceed from Lexington to the Falls of the Ohio, and thence
strike across the country to a point on the Great Miami, forty
miles north of its mouth, for the purpose of intercepting and
plundering the returning party of Shawanese. Such a con
dition of the frontier (for the savages, either in provocation
or refusal, were constantly making depredations), in connec
tion with the ill-suppressed dissatisfaction of the Shawanese
with the treaty itself, augured most unfavorably for the
future. Indeed, the treaty of Fort Finney, or the Great
Miami, was not worth the paper on which it was engrossed.
The savage inroads continued through the summer of 1786,
and in the autumn of that year Col. Logan led his expedi
tion against their towns, on the Mad River and Great Miami,
as already narrated.
It will be observed that the terms of this treaty were
peculiarly calculated to excite the jealousy of the Indians.
The Shawanese were made to " acknowledge the United
States to be the sole and absolute sovereign of all the terri
tory ceded by Great Britain" — a claim uninteUigible to the
savages, except in a sense fatal to their independence and
territorial rights. Nor was this an erroneous construction.
In a communication to President Washington, by H. Knox,
Secretary of War, dated June 15th, 1789, the foUowing ad
mission occurs : " By having recourse to the several Indian
14) An old -Wyandot chief, called Runtandy, who came to camp as early
as Oct. 23, with three young lads and a white interpreter, lost several horses,
and on account of his absence in pursuit of the thieves, his name does not
appear in the attestation. Quere. — Is the "Doonyontat" of Brodhead's
Conference, in 1779, the "Daungquat," of Fort Mcintosh, and "Runtandy,''
tho same name?

confederate COUNCIL AT DETROIT. 461
treaties, made by the authority of Congress, since the con
clusion of the war with Great Britain, excepting those made
January, 1789, at Fort Harmar, it would appear, that Con
gress were of opinion, that the treaty of peace of 1783,
absolutely invested them with the fee of all the Indian lands
within the limits of the United States ;, that they had the
right to assign or retain such portions as they should judge
proper. "1^
So general was the sensation of alarm, that the active and
intelUgent Brant succeeded in reviving his favorite project
of the New York and Northwestern tribes ; although there
is reason to doubt whether the former were ever represented
therein, except by himself and his Mohawks, already refugees
in Canada. There had been some indications of such a com
bination at the Treaty of Fort Stanwix, but the commissioners
on that occasion had sternly and peremptorily refused to re
cognize any other Indian parties to the negotiation than the
Six Nations. When, however, the transactions at the Ohio
conferences had penetrated the recesses of the Western
wUderness, it was not difficult, near the close of 1786, to
assemble a formidable body of savage protestants at the Huron
viUage opposite Detroit. The Indian archives of the United
States contain a document, addressed to Congress, and pur
porting to proceed from the Five Nations, Hurons, Delawares,
Shawanese, Ottowas, Chippewas, Powtewattimies, Twichtwees,
Cherokees, and the Wabash confederates, assembled in con
federate councU near the mouth of the Detroit River, from
the 28th of November to the 18th of December, 1786. Their
speech is of the latter date, and expressed a desire for peace,
while temperately yet firmly insisting, that the first step to
wards a lasting reconciliation should be, " that all treaties
15) American State Papers, vol. v., p. 13.

462 HISTORY OF OHIO,
carried on with the United States, should be -with the gen
eral voice of the whole confederacy, and in the most open
manner, without any restraint on either side, holding all
partial treaties as void and of no effect." They attributed
recent " mischief and confusion" to the fact that the United
States had " managed every thing their own way," and con
cluded treaties separately. Congress was also urged to order
surveyors and others to cease from crossing the Ohio River.
Notwithstanding the mischief that had happened, the councU
professed a sincere wish for peace and tranquUlity. " This,"
they said, " is the determination of all the chiefs of the con
federacy now assembled, notwithstanding that several Indian
chiefs were kiUed in our viUages, even when in councU, and
when absolutely engaged in promoting peace with you, the
thirteen United States." For this purpose, they proposed a
treaty at some half-way house early in the spring of 1787.
This important address closed with these words : " Brothers!
It shall not be our faults, if the plans which we have suggest
ed to you should not be carried into execution. In that case,
the event will be very precarious ; and if fresh mptures en
sue, we hope to be able to exculpate ourselves, and shaU most
assuredly, with our united force, be obliged to defend those
rights and privileges which have been transmitted to us by
our ancestors ; and if we should be thereby reduced to mis
fortunes, the world will pity us when they think of the ami
cable proposals we now make to prevent the unnecessary
effusion of blood. These are our thoughts and firm resolves,
and we earnestly desire that you would transmit to us, as
soon as possible, your answer, be it what it may." The ad
dress was not signed by the individual chiefs, but opposite
the name of each nation was drawn the figure of the bird or
animal, which had been adopted as a national emblem.

TREATY OF GREENVILLE. 463
In a letter to Col. Joseph Brant, dated " War Office, July
23, 1787," Gen. Knox explains that the Shawanese neglect
ed to forward the original speech ; and it appears by a letter
fi:om Captain Pipe of the Delawares, and the Half King of
the Wyandots, dated June 3, 1787, that they finally for
warded the despatches to Fort Pitt, whence they reached the
War Office on the 17th of July.
Such a communication could not fail to produce a profound
sensation in Congress. That body was almost powerless by
the weakness of the old system of confederation. The fight
ing population of the tribes apparently represented at the
council near Detroit, was estimated at five thousand warriors ;
whUe the British still held the frontiers, and their agents
ranged the vaUeys of the St. Lawrence, the Ohio and the
Mississippi. Under these circumstances, Congress wisely
modified their policy ; recognized the Indians as the rightful
proprietors of the soil ; and, on the 2d of July, appropriated
twenty-six thousand dollars " solely to the purpose of extin
guishing Indian claims to lands abeady ceded to the United
States, by obtaining regular conveyances for the same, and
for extending a purchase beyond the limits hitherto fixed by
treaty." The clause in relation to limits, was a mere salvo
to pride, as the treaties of Fort Harmar, negotiated on the
9th of January, 1788, by Governor St. Clair, with the Six
Nations and the Ohio Indians, respectively, were only a re
iteration of the boundary stipulations at Fort Stanwix and
Fort Mcintosh. v
The jealousies between the New York and the Westem
tribes, soon interrupted the Indian confederacy, which Brant
and Sir John Johnson had hoped to make an efficient agency
of embarrassment to the United States, but long and bitter
was the struggle, before the Western Indians acquiesced in

464 HISTORY OF OHIO.
the surrender of the valley of the Ohio. It was not untU the
treaty of Greenville, August 3, 1795, that the terrors of
savage warfare passed from the annals into the traditions of
the frontiers : but the campaigns of Wilkinson, Harmar, St.
Clair, and Wayne, are beyond our present design, and we
pause at a period when, with the territorial organization, the
idea of conquest had ceased to guide our Indian administrar
tion, and the more generous policy, of the recognition and
purchase of an aboriginal right to the soU, which Washington
was the first to urge, became the usage of his own and sub
sequent administrations of the General Govemment.

CHAPTER XXV.
OOLONL/LL CLAIMS TO -WESTERN LANDS, AND THEIK CESSION
ro THE UNITED STATES.
On the Sth of March, 1496, King Henry VII. of England
granted to the Venitian adventurer, John Cabot and his
three sons, Sebastian, Lewis, and Sanctius, a commission
by which they had authority and leave to sail to aU parts,
countries and seas of the east, of the west, and of the north,
and upon their own proper cost and charges, to seek out and
discover countries of the heathen and infidels, unknown to aU
Christians; there to set up the king's banner; to occupy
and possess, as his vassals and Ueutenants, the countries
they should find, on condition of paying him one-fifth of all
the gains obtained by them. Under this commission, John
Cabot and his son Sebastian, saUed from England in May,
1497, and in June came in sight of land, supposed to be a
part of Newfoundland. Thence they saUed along the coast
north and south, and returned without attempting a settle
ment, although they took possession of the country in behalf
of the crown of England.
In 1534 the celebrated Jaques Cartier made several voy
ages along the northern coast of North America, sailed up
the River St. Lawrence as far as Montreal, and took posses
sion of the country in the name of the King of France. On
the 17th of June, 1673, Father Marquette and M, JoUet
reached the Mississippi by the channels of the Fox and Wis
consin Rivers, and descended as far as the Arkansas ; whUe

466 HISTORY OP OHIO.
on the 9th of AprU, 1683, M. de la SaUe, the commandant
of Fort Frontenac on Lake Ontario, discovered the mouth
of the Mississippi, and took formal possession of the country
in the name of Louis XIV. of France.
Colonization gave significance to discovery. England
chiefly occupied the Atlantic sea-board : Canada and Louisi
ana became colonies of France, and, before the treaty of
1763, France had so successfully asserted her dominion to
the valley of the Ohio, that England proposed to limit her
American colonies on the west by a line drawn from Lake
Erie through French creek to its mouth, and thence direct
to the nearest mountains of Virginia.
When, in 1763, after a struggle of various fortune, the
title to the vast region of the Ohio, the Mississippi and St.
Lawrence was yielded by France, the government of Eng
land proclaimed that all the land west and northwest of the
sources of the Atlantic rivers was reserved under the sov
ereignty, protection and dominion of the King of Great
Britain, for the use of the Indians, and the governors of the
colonies were forbidden to make any grants of the lands
thus reserved.
Such a disposition of the conquest from France was incon
sistent with the pretensions of some of the colonies, whose
early charters included in their limits the whole breadth of
the continent — " from sea to sea." The adjustment of these
claims greatly embarrassed the country at the most critical
period of our national history, and is so closely related t»
individual rights in the soil of Ohio, as to justify a detailed
statement of their nature and extent.
In the year 1606, on the- 10th of AprU, James I., King
of England, on the application of a number of gentlemen, for
a license to settle a colony in that part of America called

COLONIAL CLAIMS TO WESTERN LANDS. 467
Virginia, not possessed by any Christian prince or people,
between the thirty-fourth and forty-fifth degrees of north
latitude, granted them a charter. In order to faciUtate.the
settlement of the country, and at the request of the adven
turers, he divided it into two colonies. To the first colony,
consisting of Sir Thomas Gates, Sir George Somers, Richard
Hackluyt, Edward Maria Wingfield and their associates,
caUed the London Company, he granted, " That they might
begin their first plantation and habitation at any place on the
said coast of Virginia or America, where they shall think fit
and convenient, between the said four-and-thirty and one-
and-forty degrees of the said latitude ; and they shall have
aU lands, &c., from the said first seat of their plantation and
habitation, by the space of fifty miles of English statute
measure, all along the said coast of Virginia and America,
towards the west and southwest, as the coast lieth, with all
the islands within one hundred mUes directly over and
against the same sea-coast; and also aU the lands, &c.,
from said place of their first plantation and habitation, for
the space of fifty Uke English mUes, all along the said coast
of Virginia and America, towards the east and northeast, or
towards the north as the coast lieth, with aU-the islands,
within one hundred miles, directly over and against the said
sea coast; and also all the lands, &c., from the same fifty
miles every way on the sea coast, directly into the main
land, by the space of one hundred Uke English miles, and
that no other subjects should be allowed to settle on the
back of them, towards the main land, without written Ucense
from the council of the colony."
To the second eolony, consisting of Thomas Hanman,
Raleigh Gilbert, William Parker, George Popham, and others,
principally inhabitants of Plymouth, Bristol, and the eastern

468 HISTORY OP OHIO.
parts of England, King James granted the tract between the
thirty-eight and forty-fifth degrees of north latitude, under the
same description, as the grant of the first colony. To these
grants a consideration was annexed, that a plantation should
not be made within one hundred miles of a prior plantation.
By the same charter, the king agreed that he would ^ve
and grant, by letters patent, to such persons, their heirs and
assigns, as the council of each colony, or the most part of
them, should nominate or assign, all the lands, tenements ¦
and hereditaments, which should be within the precincts lim
ited for each colony, to be holden of him, his heirs and suc
cessors as for the manor of East Greenwich, in the county
of Kent, in free and common socage only, and not in capite.
And that such letters patent should be sufficient assurance
from the patentees, so distributed and divided amongst the
undertakers of the plantations of the several colonies, and
such as should make their plantations in either of the said
several colonies in such manner and form, and for such estates,
as shall be ordered and set down by the councU of said col
ony, or the most part of them respectively, within which the
same lands, tenements or hereditaments shaU lie, or be ;
although express mention of the true yearly value or cer
tainty of the premises, or any of them, or of any other gifts
or grants by the king, or any of his progenitors or prede
cessors, to the guarantees, was not made, or any statute, &c.,
to the contrary notwithstanding.
On the 23d of May, 1609, Kuig James, on the apphca
tion of the first colony for a further enlargement and explana
tion of the first grant, gave them a second charter, in whioh
they were incorporated by the name of " The Treasurer and
Company of Adventurers and Planters of the city of London,
for the first colony of Virginia."

COLONIAL CLAIMS TO WESTERN LANDS. 469
In this charter, the king grants to them aU the lands, &c.,
in that part of America caUed Virginia, from the point of
land called Cape or Point Comfort, all along the sea-coast to
the northward, two hundred miles ; and from the said Point
or Cape Comfort, aU along the sea-coast, to the southward,
two hundred miles ; and all the space and circuit of land,
lying from the sea-coast of the precinct aforesaid up into the
main land throughout, from sea to sea, west and northwest ;
and also all the islands witlun one hundred miles along the
coast of both seas of the precinct aforesaid.
On the 12th of March, 1611-12, on the representation
that there were several islands without the foregoing grant,
and contiguous to the coast of Virginia, and on the request
of the said first colony, for an enlargement of the former
letters patent, as well for a more ample extent of their limits
and territories into the seas adjoining to, and upon the coast
of Virginia, as for the better government of the said colpny,
King James granted them another charter. After reciting
the description of the second grant, he then proceeds to give,
grant and confirm, to the Treasurer and Company of Adven
turers and Planters of the city of London for the first colony
of Virginia, and their heirs, &c., " all and singular those
islands, whatsoever, situate and being in any part of the
ocean, seas, bordering on the coast of our said first colony in
Virginia, and being within three hundred leagues of any of
the parts heretofore granted to the said treasurer and com
pany in said former letters patent as aforesaid, and being
within the one and-fortieth and thirty degrees of northerly
latitude, with all the lands, &c., both within the said tract of
land on the main, and also within the said islands and seas
adjoining, &c. Provided, always, that the said islands, or
any premises herein mentioned, or by these presents intended

470 HISTORY OP OHIO.
or meant to be conveyed, be not actuaUy possessed or inhab
ited by any other Christian prince or state ; nor be within
the bounds, Umits, or territories of the northern colony here
tofore by us granted, to be planted by our loving subjects in
the north part of Virginia."
On the 15th day of July, 1624, James I. granted a com
mission for the government of Virginia, in which it is aUeged
that the charters to the Treasurer and Company of Adventur
ers and Planters of the city of London, for the first colony of
Virginia, had been avoided upon a quo warranto brought, and
a legal and judicial proceeding therein by due course of law.
On the 20th day of August, 1624, James granted another
commission for the government of Virginia, in which itis
aUeged : " Whereupon we, entering into mature and deUber
ate consideration of the premises, did, by the advice of our
Lords of the Privy CouncU, resolve, by altering the charters
of the said company, as to the point of government, wherein
the same might be found defective, to settle such a course
as might best secure the safety of the people there, and cause
the said plantation to flourish ; and yet, with the preservation
of the interests of every planter and adventurer, so far forth
as their present interests shall not prejudice the pubUc plan
tations ; but because the said treasurer and company did not
submit their charters to be reformed, our proceedings therein
were stayed for a time, untU, upon quo warranto brought,
and a legal and a judicial proceeding therein, by due course
of law, the said charters were, and now are, and stand
avoided." On the 13th of May, 1625, Charles I., by his proclama
tion, after alleging that the letters patent to the colony of
Virginia had been questioned in a legal course, and thereupon
judicially repealed and judged to be void, declares that the

COLONIAL CLAIMS TO WESTERN LANDS. 471
government of the colony of Virginia, shall immediately
depend on himself, and not be committed to a company or
corporation. From this time, Virginia was considered to be a royal gov
ernment, and it appears that the kings of England, from time
to time, granted commissions for the government of the same.
The right of making grants of lands was vested in and
solely exercised by the crown.
' The colonies of Maryland, North and South Carolina,
Georgia, and part of Pennsylvania, were erected by the
crown, within the chartered limits of the first colony of Vir
ginia. In the year 1620, on the 3d of November, King James gave
a chartpr to the second colony of Virginia. After citing the
grants made to the first colony of Virginia, and stating an
application from the second colony for a further enlargement
of privUeges, he proceeded to declare, "that the tract of
land, in America, between the fortieth and forty-eighth de
grees of north latitude, from sea to sea, should be called New
England ; and for the planting and governing the same, he
incorporated a council at Plymouth, in the county of Devon,
and granted to them and their successors all that part of
America lying and being in breadth, from forty degrees of
northerly latitude from the equinoctial line, to forty-eight
degrees of the said northerly latitude inclusively, and in
length of and within all the said breadth aforesaid, throughout
all the main lands from sea to sea, together with all the firm
lands, &c., upon the main, and within the said islands and
seas adjoining. Provided, the said islands, or any of the
premises before mentioned, and intended by said charter to
be granted, be not actually possessed or inhabited by any
Christian prince or state, nor be within the bounds, limits or

472 HISTORY OF OHIO.
territories of the southern colony, granted to be planted in
the south part." King James, by said charter, commanded
and authorized said council at Plymouth, or their successors,
or the major part of them, to distribute and assign such por
tions of land to adventurers, &c., as they shall think proper.
In 1628, 4th March, the council of Plymouth, pursuant
to the authority vested in them by their charter, granted to
Sir Henry Roswell, Sir John Young, Thomas Southcoat, John
Humphrey, John Endicott and Simon Whetcomb, their heirs
and associates, a tract of land caUed Massachusetts ; and
King Charles I., on the 4th of March, 1629, confirmed the
sale and granted them a charter. After reciting the de
scription of the grant to the council of Plymouth, and their
grant to Sir Henry RosweU and others, he grants and con
firms to them " aU that part of New England in America,
which lies and extends between a great river there commonly
called Morromack River, aUas, Merrimack River, and a certain
other river there called Charles River, being in the bottom
of a certain bay, there called Massachusetts, aUas, Matta-
chnsetts, alias, Massactusetts Bay ; and also aU and smgular
those lands and hereditaments whatsoever, lying within the
space of three English miles, on the south part of the said
river, called Charles River, or of any or every part thereof;
and also all and singular, the lands and iereditaments what
soever, lying and being within the space of three EngUsh
mUes to the southward of the southernmost parts of the said
bay, called Massachusetts, alias, Mattachusetts, aUas, Mas
sactusetts Bay ; and also all those lands and hereditaments
whatsoever, which lie and be within the space of three Eng
lish miles to the northward of the said river, called Morro
mack, alias, Merrimack ; or to the northward of any and
every part thereof; and all lands and hereditaments whatso-

COLONIAL CLAIMS TO WESTERN LANDS. 473
ever, lying within the limits aforesaid, north and south, in
latitude and in breadth, and in length and longitude of and
within all the breadth aforesaid, throughout the main lands
there from the Atlantic and Western sea and ocean on the
east part to the South Sea on the west part, with a proviso
not to extend to lands possessed by a Christian prince, or
within the limits of the southern colony.
In the year 1631, on the 19th of March, the Eari of War
wick (to whomthe territory had been granted the year before
by the councU of Plymouth) granted to Lord Say and Seal,
Lord Brooke,* Lord Rich, Charles Fiennes, Sir Richard Sal-
tonstaU, Sir Nathaniel Rich, Richard Kingsly, John Pym,
John Humphrey, John Hampden and Herbert Pelham, " all
that part of New England in America which Ues and extends
itself from a river there caUed Narragansett River, the space
of forty leagues, upon a straight line near the sea shore,
towards the southwest, west and by south or west as the coast
lieth towards Virginia, accounting three EngUsh miles to the
league, and also all and singular the lands and hereditaments
whatsoever, lying and being within the lands aforesaid, north
and south, in latitude and in breadth, dnd in length and lon
gitude of, and within ail the breadth aforesaid, throughout
the main lands there from the Western ocean to the South
sea, &c., and also all the islands lying in America aforesaid,
in said seas, or either of them, on the western or eastern
coasts." In 1644, the patentees, in consequence of the new
state of things in England, relinquished their plan of removal
and sold their grant to the people of Connecticut. On the
23d of April, 1662, King Charles II. granted a charter in
which he constituted and declared John Winthrop and others,
his associates, " a body corporate and politic, by the name of
the governor and company of the EngUsh colony of Connec-
20*

474 HISTORY OP OHIO.
ticut, in New England, in America, with privUeges and
powers of government, and granted and confirmed to the said
governor and company and their successors, all that part of
his dominions in New England, in America, bounded on the
east by Narraganset River, commonly caUed Narragansat
Bay, where the said river falls into the sea ; and on the north
by the line of Massachusetts plantation, and on the south by
the sea, and in longitude as the line of Massachusetts colony,
runnmg from east to west, that is to say, from the said Nar
raganset Bay on the east, to the South sea on the west, with
the islands thereto adjoining." On the 23d of AprU, 1664,
King Charles addressed a letter to the governor and company
of Connecticut, in which, among other things, he speaks of
having renewed their charter.
On the 12th of March, 1664, Charles II. granted to James,
Duke of York, the region extending from the westem bank
of the Connecticut to the eastern shore of the Delaware,
together with Long Island and Hudson River. This grant
was inconsistent with the western Umits of Massachusetts
and Connecticut, and soon after, commissioners on the part
of the crown met those appointed by the General Assembly
of Connecticut for the settlement of this conffict of bounda
ries. On the 30th of November, 1664, the royal commis
sioners ordered " that the creek or river which is caUed
Monoromock, which is reputed to be about twelve mUes to
the east of Westchester, and a line to be drawn from the east
point or side where the fresh water faUs into the salt, at high
water mark, north-northwest to the line of Massachusetts, be
the western bound of said colony of Connecticut, and aU
plantations lying westward of that creek and line so drawn
shall be under his Royal Highness' govemment; and aU
plantations lying eastward of that creek and line to be under

COLONIAL CLAIMS TO, WESTERN LANDS. 4To
the government of Connecticut." To this the commissioners
of Connecticut subscribed in the following manner : " We,
the underwritten, on behalf of the colony of Connecticut,
have assented unto the determination of His Majesty's com
missioners in relation to the bounds and Unfits of his Royal
Highness the Duke's patent and the patent of Connecti
cut." A re-settlement of this line was finally effected in
1730, when Borain River, the present Une,was established.
On the 4th of March, 1681, Charies II. granted to WUliam
Penn, the first proprietary and governor of Pennsylvania,
" all that tract or part of land in America, with the islands
therein contained, as the same is bounded on the east by
Delaware River, from twelve miles distance northward of
Newcastle town, unto the three and fortieth degree of north
ern latitude, if said river doth extend so far northward ; but
if the said river shall not extend so far northward, then by
the said river so far as it doth extend, and from the head of
the said river the eastern bounds are to be determined by a
meridian Une to be drawn from the head of said river unto
the said forty-third degree ; the said land to extend westward
five degrees in longitude to be computed from the said eastern
bounds ; and the said lands to be bounded on the north by
the beginning of the three and fortieth degree of northern
latitude ; and on the south by a circle drawn at twelve miles
distance from Newcastle, northward and westward, unto the
beginning of the fortieth degree of northern latitude, and
then by a straight Une, westward, to the limits of longitude
above mentioned."
In 1754, some settlements were made from Connecticut,
on lands on the Susquehannah, about Wyoming, within the
chartered limits of Pennsylvania, and also within the char
tered limits claimed by Connecticut. Pennsylvania resisted

476 HISTORY OP OHIO.
these occupants as intruders ; and the organization by Con
necticut, of a county of Westmoreland, in the valley of Wy
oming, led to many scenes of civil strife. The controversy
was finally determined in 1782, by the intervention of Con
gress. The articles of confederation of 1779, provided for
the settlement of territorial disputes between the States by a
federal court, to be composed of judges selected by the par
ties litigant and commissioned by Congress. Such a tribunal
of five judges, having been in session six weeks at Trenton,
unanimously determined that the State of Connecticut had
no right to the lands included in the charter of Pennsylvania.
Congress confirmed this decision and Connecticut submitted.
In 1774, the ParUament of Great Britain passed an act
by which the whole country north of the forty-fifth paraUel
of latitude, and northwest of the west boundary of Pennsyl
vania and the Ohio River, was annexed and made parcel of
the pr-ovince of Quebec, as created and established by the
royal proclamation of October 7, 1763, with a proviso,- how
ever, that the act should not affect the boundaries of other
colonies. Thus it is obrious that, before the American Revolution,
the claims of any of the colonies to extend their Umits to the
" South Sea," were of little importance or value — entirely
disregarded by the crown, and constantly yielded by the
colonies. It remains to be seen, that a sentiment of hostility
to Great Britain tended to revive these claims until they
became a serious obstacle to the harmony of Congress and
the national defence.
The first demonstration proceeded from Virginia.. In
1776 that colony adopted a State Constitution, in which the
foUowing provision occurred : " The territories contained
within the charters, erecting the colonies of Maryland, Penn-

COLONIAL CLAIMS TO WESTERN LANDS. 477
sylvania, North and South Carolina, are hereby ceded, re
leased, and forever confirmed to the people of these colonies
respectively, with aU the rights of property, jurisdiction and
government, and all other rights whatsoever, which might, at
any time heretofore, have been claimed by Virginia, except
the free navigation and use of the rivers Potomaque and
Pokomoke, with the property of the Virginia shores and
strands, bordering on either of the said rivers, and all im
provements which have been, or shall be made thereon. The
westem and northern extent of Virginia shall, in all other
respects, stand as fixed by the charters of King James I., in
the year one thousand six hundred and nine, and by the
pubUc treaty of peace, between the courts of Britain and
France, in the year one thousand seven hundred and sixty-
three : unless, by act of this Legislature, one or more govern
ments be established westward of the Allegheny Mountains.
And no purchases of lands shall be made of the Indian na
tives, but on behalf of the public, by authority of the General
Assembly." North Carolina, inserted a similar assertion of
western boundary in her Constitution. Massachusetts, Con
necticut and New York did not refer to the subject in that
connection. Maryland led the resistance to these pretensions. When
the Articles of Confederation were under consideration, her
delegates contended, unsuccessfully, that Congress should
have the power to limit and ascertain the boundaries of those
colonies which claimed to the South Sea, and to dispose of all
lands beyond such boundaries for the benefit of the Union.
In June, 1778, it appeared that Maryland, New Jersey and
Delaware were the only colonies that had declined to ratify
the Articles, and the instrnetions to their delegates concurred
on the subject of the pubUc lands. Maryland now proposed

478 HISTORY OF OHIO.
an amendment, vesting Congress with power " to appoint
commissioners, who should be fully authorized and empow
ered to ascertain and restrict the boundaries of such of the
confederated States which claim to extend to the river Mis
sissippi or South Sea." It was negatived by the foUowing
vote : Aye, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Del
aware, Maryland; No, New Hampshire, Massachusetts,
Connecticut, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia^ — New York
dividedj and North Carolina absent. The whole subject was
postponed, and the compact only contained a prorision for
the arbitration, under the direction of Congress, of disputes
and differences between the States conceming boundary ju
risdiction or other causes — with the condition carefully added,
that " no State [should] be deprived of territory for the
benefit of the United States."
Virginia, in 1779, opened an office for the sale of unap
propriated lands. Congress earnestly recommended the re
consideration of the act, and directed Col. Brodhead, who
was then stationed with a detachment of continental troops
at Fort Pitt, to prevent any occupation of the west bank of
the Ohio by settlers. In the execution of these orders, that
officer, in October, 1779, being informed that certain inhab
itants of Virginia had crossed the Ohio and made improve
ments on the Indian lands, from the river Muskingum to Fort
Mcintosh, ordered them to be apprehended as trespassers,
and destroyed their huts. Information of this was immedi
ately given to the Governor of Virginia, but Congress re
solved, April 18th, 1780, that Colonel Brodhead should be
supported in any act or order which the nature of his service
had made, or should make necessary.
The example of Virginia was contagious, and other States
revived their dormant claims to the valley of the Mississippi.

COLONIAL CLAIMS TO WESTERN LANDS. 479
Some of them did so, it must be admitted, with better reason
than the former State could adduce. " The charter of Vir
ginia had been vacated by a judicial proceeding ; the com
pany to which it was granted had been dissolved ; the grant
itself had been resumed by the crown, and large tracts of the
country included by its original limits, had been patented to
various individuals and associations, without remonstrance on
the part of Virginia."^ We have already described the
charters of Massachusetts : the Carolinas had received simi
lar grants; under the proclamation of 1763, annexing to
Georgia the country west of the Altamaha and north of Flor
ida, that State also claimed to extend to the Mississippi : and
so did New York, under color of certain aUeged acknowledg
ments of her jurisdiction over the Six Nations, whom it had
long been colonial usage to regard as the conquerors of the
whole western territory on both shores of Lakes Ontario and
Huron, and both banks of the Ohio, as far south as the
Cumberland Mountains.
The Articles of Confederation, dated, in the preamble,
November 15, 1777, were signed by the representatives of
ten colonies, on the 9th of July, 1778. New Jersey deferred
her signature to the 25th of November, 1778, and Delaware
ratified the Articles on the 22d of February, 1779. Mary
land, however, still persisted in a refusaL In December,
1778, the Legislature of Maryland made a communication to
their delegates in Congress, in which they insisted, " that a
country unsettled at the commencement of the war, claimed
by the British crown, and ceded to it by the treaty of Paris,
if wrested from the common enemy by the blood and treasure
of the thirteen States, should be considered as a common
property, subject to be parceled out by Congress into free,
1) Historical Sketch of Ohio, by S. P. Chase. Statutes, vol. 1., p. 13.

480 HISTORY OP OHIO.
convenient and independent governments, in such manner
and at such times as the wisdom of that assembly shall here
after direct. Thus convinced," they proceed to say, " we
should betray the trust reposed in us by our constituents,
were we to authorize you to ratify on their behalf the con
federation, unless it be further explained. We have cooUy
and dispassionately considered the subject ; we have weighed
probable inconveniences and hardships against the sacrifice
of just and essential rights : and do instruct you not to agree
to the confederation, unless an article or articles be added
thereto in conformity with our declaration. Should we suc
ceed in obtaining such article 'or articles, then you are hereby
fully empowered to accede to the confederation."
The above are but the closing paragraphs of an able docu
ment, to wMch the State of New York was the first to re
spond by a contribution of indiridual interest to the general
welfare. In February, 1780, the legislature of that State
passed an act " to facilitate the completion of the Articles of
Confederation and perpetual union among the United States
of America ;" whereas, nothing under Divine Proridence,
can more effectually contribute to the tranquiUity and safety
of the United States of America, than a federal alUance, on
such liberal principles as will give satisfaction to its respective
members ; and, whereas, the Articles of Confederation and
perpetual union recommended by the honorable the Congress
of the United States of America have not proved acceptable
to all the States, it having been conceived that a portion of
the waste and uncultivated territory, within the Umits or
claims of certain States, ought to be appropriated as a com
mon fund for the expenses of the war : and the people of the
State of New York, being on aU occasions disposed to mani
fest their regard for their sister States, and their earnest

RESOLUTIONS OP CONGRESS. 481
desire to promote the general interest and security ; and
more especially to accelerate the federal alUance, by remov
ing, so far as it depends upon them, the before mentioned
impedimen^to its final conclusion," &c. By this act the del
egates of the People of New York in Congress, were em
powered " to limit and restrict the western boundaries of
that State, by such line or lines, and in such manner and
form, as they shall judge to be expedient, either with respect
to the jurisdiction as well as the preemption of soU, or reserv
ing the jurisdiction in part, or in the whole, over the lands
which may be ceded or relinquished, with respect only to the
right and preemption of the soil." This act, also, declared
that the territory thus ceded, " should be and enure for the
use and benefit of such of the United States, as should be
come members of the federal aUiance of the said States, and
for no other use or purpose whatever."
A remonstrance of Virginia in behalf of her title, and the
act of New York just cited, were referred to a committee of
Congress, who declined to examine into the merits or policy
of the instructions by Maryland and the remonstrance of
Virginia, but reported a resolution, which Congress adopted,
September 6th, 1780, earnestly recommending to those States
who had claims to the western country, to pass such laws
and g^e their delegates in Congress such powers, as would
effectuaUy remove the only obstacle to a final ratification of
the Articles of Confederation ; and that the legislature of
Maryland be earnestly requested to authorize their delegates
in Congress to subscribe the said articles.
A resolution of still more importance, since the terms of it
subsequently became conditions of the cessions by the States,
was adopted in Congress on the 10th of October, to wit :
" Eesolved, That the unappropriated lands that may be
21

482 HISTORY OF OHIO.
ceded or relinquished to the United States, by any particular
State, pursuant to the recommendation of Congress of the
6th day of September last, shall be disposed of for the com
mon benefit of the United States, and be settled «and formed
into distinct Republican States, which shall become members
of the federal union, and have the same rights of sovereignty,
freedom and independence as the other States : that each
State which shall be so formed shall contain a suitable extent
of territory, not less than one hundred, nor more than one
hundred and fifty mUes square, or as near thereto as circum
stances wiU admit; that the necessary and reasonable ex
penses which any particular State shall have incurred since
the commencement of the present war, in subduing any
British posts or in maintaining forts or garrisons within and
for the defence, or in acquiring any part of the territory
that may be ceded or relinquished to the United States, shaU
be reimbursed : that the said lands shall be granted or settled
at such times, and under such regulations as shall hereafter
be agreed on by the United States in Congress assembled,
or any nine or more of them."
The immediate results were a cession by Connecticut in
October, 1780, and by Virginia in January, 1781. Neither
of these cessions were accepted by Congress, but Maryland
was encouraged by their terms, and stimulated by her own
patriotism to accede to the articles of the confederation,
which thus became, on the 1st of March, 1781, the law of
the whole union. On the same day, James Duane, WiUiam
Floyd and Alexander M'DougaU, the delegates of New
York, executed a deed of cession, by which the western
bounds of that state were limited by " a line from the north
east corner of the State of Pennsylvania, along the north
bounds thereof, to its northwest corner, continued due west

THE CONNECTICUT CLAIM. 483
untU it shaU be intersected by a meridian line, to be drawn
from the forty-fifth degree of north latitude, through a point
twenty miles due west from the most westerly bent or incli
nation of the river or strait of Niagara ; thence by the said
meridian Une to the forty-fifth degree of north latitude,
thence by the said forty-fifth degree of north latitude."
The delegates reserved a right of retraction, unless the
same guaranty was given to New York as to any other
State making cessions.
The New York delegates alluded, in the qualification of
their cession last mentioned, to a proposition of Virginia,
which retarded the consummation of her cession for several
years, and was finally relinquished by that State : namely,
that Congress should guaranty to Virginia all the territory
southeast of the Ohio and included between the boundaries of
Pennsylvania, Maryland and North Carolina to the Atlantic.
Connecticut offered at this time, to cede all her claim to
the soil of the territory west of Pennsylvania, excepting the
tract south of Lake Erie and immediately adjoining Penn
sylvania, since known as the Connecticut Reserve, but Con
gress was then averse to making so material a concession.
On the other hand, Connecticut never receded from her
demand. Even after the Council of Trenton, on the 30th
of December, 1782, had excluded the Connecticut claim
from the chartered limits of Pennsylvania, the former state
reasserted her title to the lands beyond the western boun
dary of Pennsylvania. At a General Assembly, held at
New Haven on the second Thursday of October, 1783, the
following act was passed, viz :
"Whereas this State has the undoubted and exclusive
right of jurisdiction and preemption to all the lands lying
west of the western limits of the State of Pennsylvania, and

484 HISTORY OF OHIO.
east of the River Mississippi, and extending throughout from
the latitude forty-one degrees, to latitude forty-two degrees
and two minutes north, by virtue of the charter granted by
King Charles the Second to the late colony, now State of
Connecticut, bearing date the 23d day of April, A. D.
1662, which claim and title to make known, for the infor
mation of aU, to the end that they may conform themselves
thereto, " Resolved, That his exceUency the Governor, be desired
to issue his proclamation, declaring and asserting the right
of this State to all the lands within the limits aforesaid ; and
strictly forbidding aU persons to enter or settle thereon,
without special license and authority first obtained by the
General Assembly of this State."
Pursuant to this resolution, Govemor Trumbull issued a
proclamation, bearing date the 15th of November, 1783,
making known the determination of the State to maintain
their claim to said territory, and forbidding all persons to
enter thereon, or settle within the limits of the same.
It is interesting to observe the importance which Congress
attributed to the claim of New York, after the cession of
March, 1781. A committee, to whom the whole subject of
the public lands had been referred, reported on the 3d of
November in the same year, that " it clearly appeared to
them, that the crown of England had always considered and
treated the country of the Six Nations, and their tributaries,
inhabiting as far as the' 45th degree of north latitude, as ap
pendant to the government of New York ; that the neighbor
ing colonies of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Pennsylvania,
Maryland and Virginia, had also, from time to time, by their
public acts, recognized and admitted the said Six Nations,
and their tributaries, to be appendant to the government of

CESSION BY VIRGINIA. 485
New York ; and that the acceptance by Congress of the New
York cession, would vest the whole western territory belong
ing to the Six Nations and their tributaries, in the United
States, greatly to the advantage of the nation." The com
mittee also reported against a federal guaranty to Virginia
of the territory southeast of the Ohio, and maintained that
large tracts west of the mountains had been sold by Great
Britain before the Revolution ; "that in the year 1763, a
very large part thereof was separated and appointed for a
distinct government and colony by the King of Great Britain,
with the knowledge and approbation of the government of
Virginia," and that the west boundary line of Virginia had
been otherwise declared by the King of Great Britain, in
councU, previous to the Revolution. This report eUcited
much and warm debate, postponing the formal acceptance of
the deed of New York to October 31, 1782 — " an accept
ance intended," says Hildreth, " as a means to compel the
other States to make satisfactory cessions."^ Massachusetts
and Virginia voted against it; the CaroUnas were, divided;
aU the other States in the affirmative.
The subject of the Virginia cession was again referred, on
the 4th of June, 1783, to a select committee consisting of
Messrs. Rutledge, EUsworth, Bedford, Gorham and Madison.
They recommended that Congress should accept all the con
ditions proposed by Virginia, except the territorial guaranty
already mentioned, and a condition " that all Indian pur
chases, which had been or should be made for the use of
private persons, and all royal grants inconsistent with ' the
chartered rights, laws and customs of Virginia,' should be
declared void." This report was agreed to by all the States
except New Hampshire, New Jersey and Maryland ; and the
2) History of the United States, by Richard HUdreth, vol. iii., p. 427.

486 HISTORY OF OHIO.
General Assembly of Virginia, at their session commencing
on the 20th of October, 1783, passed an act accepting the
proposition of Congress, and authorized their delegates in
Congress to make the cession.
Accordingly, on the 1st day of March, 1784, Thomas
Jefferson, Samuel Hardy, Arthur Lee and James Monroe,
delegates of Virginia, executed a deed of cession to the
United States in Congress assembled, of aU right, title and
claim, as well of soil as jurisdiction, which that commonwealth
had to the " territory or tract of country within the Umits of
the Virginia charter, situate, lying and being to the north
west of the river Ohio," upon six enumerated conditions,
namely : Firstly, distinct RepubUcan States, not less than one
hundred, nor more than one hundred and fifty mUes square,
were to be formed and admitted members of the Federal
Union, having the same rights of sovereignty, freedom and
independence as the other States — a recital of the resolution
of Oct. 10, 1780. Secondly, Virginia to be reimbursed the
expenses of subduing British posts, and acquiring or defend
ing the territory conveyed, as the same should be adjusted
by commissioners, according to the intent and meaning of the
aforesaid resolution of Congress. Thirdly, the French and
Canadian inhabitants, who had professed themselves citizens
of Virginia, to be confirmed in their, possessions and titles, and
protected in their rights and liberties. Fourthly, one hun
dred and fifty thousand acres of land to be selected by the
officers and soldiers of Clark's regiment, who were engaged
in the reduction of Kaskaskia and St. Vincents, which should
be laid off in one tract not more than twice its breadth in
length. Fifthly, " that in case the quantity of good land on
the southeast side of the Ohio, upon the waters of the Cum
berland River, and between the Green River and Tennessee

FURTHER RESOLUTIONS OP CONGRESS. 487
River, which had been reserved by law for the Virginia
troops upon continental establishment, should, from the
North CaroUna Une, bearing in further upon the Cumberland
lands than was expected, prove insufficient for their legal
bounties, the deficiency should be made up to the said troops in
good land, to be laid off between the rivers Sciota and Little
Miami, on the northwest side of the river Ohio, in such
proportions as have been engaged to them, by the laws of
Virginia." Sixthly, " that all the lands within the territory
so ceded to the United States, and not reserved for, or
appropriated to, any of the before mentioned purposes, or
disposed of in bounties to the officers and soldiers of the
American army, shall be considered a common fund, for the
use and benefit of such of the United States as have become,
or shall become members of the confederation, or federal
alUance of the said States, Virginia included, according to
their usual respective proportions in the general charge or
expenditure, and shall be faithfully and bona fide disposed
of for that purpose, and for no other use or purpose what
soever." Congress declared, by resolution, that the United States
were ready to receive the foregoing deed. The delegates of
Virginia then proceeded and signed, sealed and delivered
the same ; whereupon Congress came to the following reso-
tion : " The delegates of the Commonwealth of Virginia
having executed the deed ; Resolved, That the same be re
corded and enroUed among the acts of the United States in
Congress assembled."
On the 29th of April, 1784, Congress adopted the follow
ing resolution :
" Congress, by their resolution of September 6th, 1780,
having thought it advisable to press upon the States, haring

488 HISTORY OP OHIO.
claims to the western country, a liberal surrender of a portion
of their territorial claims ; by that of the 10th of October, in
the same year, having fixed conditions to which the Union
should be bound on receiving such cessions; and haring
again proposed the same subject to those States, in their
address of April 18th, 1783, wherein, stating the national
debt, and expressing their reliance for its discharge on the
prospect of vacant territory in aid of other resources, they,
for that purpose, as weU as to obviate disagreeable controver
sies and confusions, included in the same recommendations a
renewal of those of September 6th and October 10th, 1780,
which several recommendations have not yet been fully com
plied with :
" Resolved, That the same subject be again presented to
the said States ; that they be urged to consider, that the war
being now brought to a happy termination, by the personal
services of our soldiers, the supplies of property of our citi
zens, and loans of money from them as well as foreigners ;
these several creditors have a right to expect that funds wiU
be provided, on which they may rely for indemnification ; that
Congress stiU consider vacant territory as an important re
source ; and that, therefore, said States be- earnestly pressed,
by immediate and liberal cessions, to forward these necessary
ends, and to promote the harmony of the Union."
Massachusetts, on the 13th of November, 1784, having
authorized her delegates in Congress to cede to the United
States so much of her claims to western territory as they
might see fit, it was proposed by Rufus King, one of her
delegates, on the 16th of March, 1785, to modify a report
on the western territory, which had been accepted by the
late Congress, by inserting a total and immediate prohibition
of slavery. This resolution, substantiaUy adopted by the

CESSION BY CONNECTICUT. 489
vote of seven States, including Maryland ; Delaware unrep
resented ; Virginia, the two Carolinas and Georgia in the
negative. This was a test vote, and having thus secured the
welfare of future generations, rather than any temporary
advantage to the ceding States, the delegates of Massachu
setts, Rufus King and Samuel Holten, on the 19th of AprU,
1785, executed a deed of cession as to all the territory west
of the present western boundary of New York ; whereupon
Congress resolved " to accept said deed of cession, and that
the same be recorded and enrolled among the acts of the
United States in Congress assembled."
Another year elapsed, when Connecticut resumed the con
sideration of a cession of western territory, and at a general
assembly of the State, on the second Thursday of May, 1786,
passed the following act :
" Be it enacted by the Gfovemor, Council and Representa
tives, in Q-eneral Court assembled, and by the authority of
ihe same, That the delegates of this State, or any two of
them, who shall be attending the Congress of the United
States, be, and they are hereby directed, authorized, and fully
empowered, in the name and behalf of this State, to make^
execute and deUver, under their hands and seals, an ample
deed of release and cession of all the right, title, interest,
jurisdiction and claim of the State of Connecticut, to certain
western lands, beginning at the completion of the forty-first
degree of north latitude, one hundred and twenty mUes west
of the western boundary line of the commonwealth of Penn
sylvania, as now claimed by said commonwealth, and from
thence by a line to be drawn north, parallel to, and one
hundred and twenty miles west of the said west Une of
Pennsylvania, and to continue north until it comes to forty-
two degrees and two minutes north latitude ; whereby aU the

490 HISTORY OF OHIO.
right, title, interest, jurisdiction and claim of the State of
Connecticut to the lands lying west of the said Une, to be
drawn, as aforementioned, one hundred and twenty mUes west
of the western boundary line of the commonwealth of Penn
sylvania, as now claimed by said commonwealth, shaU be
included, released, and ceded to the United States in Con
gress assembled, for the common use and benefit of said
States, Connecticut inclusive."
This pertinacity succeeded, and on the 26th of May, 1786,
it was resolved, " that Congress, in behalf of the United
States, are ready to accept all the right, title, interest, juris
diction and claim of the State of Connecticut to certain
western lands, beginning at the completion of the forty-first
degree of north latitude, one hundred and twenty mUes west
of the western boundary Une of the commonwealth of Penn
sylvania, as now claimed by said commonwealth ; and from
thence, by a line to be drawn north, parallel to, and one
hundred and twenty miles west of the said west line of Penn
sylvania, and to continue north until it comes to forty-two
degrees two minutes north latitude, whenever the delegates
of Connecticut shall be fumished with full powers- and shaU
execute a deed for that purpose."
On the 14th of September, 1786, WiUiam Samuel Johnson
and Jonathan Sturges, delegates from Connecticut, executed
a deed of cession agreeably to the above resolution, and it
was resolved " that Congress accept the said deed of cession,
and that the same be recorded and enroUed among the acts
of the United States in Congress assembled."
The western boundary of Pennsylvania, so frequently men
tioned in these transactions, had been in dispute between the
colonies of Virginia and Pennsylvania, but on the 31st of
August, 1779, an agreement was concluded between com-

THB CONNECTICUT RESERVATION. 491
missioners appointed by those States respectively, that the
line run in 1767, by Jeremiah Mason and Charles Dixon,
and which had been estabUshed as the boundary between
Maryland and Pennsylvania, should be extended due west
five degrees of longitude, to be computed from the river Del
aware for the southern boundary of Pennsylvania ; and that
a meridian drawn from the western extremity thereof to the
northern Umit of the said States respectively, should be the
western boundary of Pennsylvania forever. Both States
concurred in the action of the commissioners.
One of the conditions of the cessions just enumerated —
originaUy contained in the resolution of Congress of October
10th, 1780, and recognized in the deed of Virginia — pledged
the government of the Union to the formation of States, each
with an extent not less than one hundred nor more than one
hundred and fifty miles square. By a resolution of Congress,
dated July 7, 1786, to which Virginia responded by an act
dated December 30, 1788, this condition was changed so as
to empower Congress to make a division of the territory north
west of the Ohio, into not less than three nor more than five
States. Some further particulars upon the subject considered in this
chapter should here be added :
Connecticut, in 1786, provided for the survey of that por
tion of the Reserve east of the Cuyahoga River, and opened
a land office — in 1792, granted five hundred thousand acres,
the west part thereof, to certain citizens of the State as a
compensation for property burned and destroyed in the towns
of New London, New Havenj Fairfield and Norwalk, by the
British troops during the Revolution — in 1795, sold the
balance of the Reserve, and in 1800, ceded her jurisdiction
over the tract to the United States, in consideration of an

492 HISTORY OF OHIO.
act of Congress, passed April 28th, authorizing the President
to issue letters patent to the Governor of Connecticut in trust
for the grantees of the soil. The proceeds of the Western
Reserve were applied to the school fund of Connecticut.
On the 9th of August, 1787, South CaroUna, by John
Kean and Daniel Huger, her delegates in Congress, ceded to
the United States the territory west of the mountains which
divide the western from the eastern streams. A simUar
cession, but by no means so liberal in its terms, was made by
North Carolina on the 25th of February, 1790, -whUe the
Western limits of Georgia were not adjusted untU 1802.

CHAPTER XXVI.
THE SETTLEMENT OF THE NORTH -WESTERN TEBfelTORY. — OR
DINANCE OF 1787.
To dispose of the soil and to determine the political institu
tions of the valley between the AUeghanies and the Missis
sippi, was recognized by the Congress of the Confederation,
as a grave and urgent duty. The members exaggerated the
value of the lands, as a i^source of revenue and credit to the
government; but there was no error, either of purpose or
poUcy, in their political regulations for the undeveloped em
pire of the west.
StiU, the necessity of the case was substituted for any
direct constitutional authority. The Articles of Confedera
tion conferred upon Congi/ess the power pf " regulating the
trade and managing all affairs with the Indians, not members
of any of the States, provi«led that the legislative right of
any State within its own limits be not infringed or violated,"
and of admitting other colonies into the confederacy with the
assent of nine States by their delegates ; but we look in vain
for any other warrant of the legislation by Congress for the
disposition and government of the western territory. The
power to raise a revenue, from which the requisite implica
tion might have been derived, consisted only of a right to
make requisitions upon the respective States without the
authority to enforce their compUance. But, in the course
of events. Congress had acquired a pubUc domain, and the
proposition that checked or answered caril, was, that the
(493)

494 HISTORY OF OHIO.
right to acquire, necessarily implied the right to dispose of
the soil and protect the settlers by territorial governments.
The uitrusions of settlers forced a public system of survey
and sale upon the attention of Congress. On the 20th of
May, 1785, " an ordinance for ascertaining the mode of dis
posing of lands in the Western Territory" was perfected by
Congress, and became the foundation of the existing system.
A corps of surveyors — one from each State, and appointed
by Congress — were placed under the direction of Thomas
Hutchins, Geographer of the United States, and instructed
to divide the territory into townships of six mUes square, by
lines running due north and south, and others crossing these
at right angles, as far as practicable. The first line running
north and south was to begin on the Ohio River, at a point
due north from the western termination of the southem
boundary of Pennsylvania, and the first Une running east
and west was to begin at the same point and extend through
the' territory. The townships, whole or fractional, were to
be numbered from south to north — the ranges of townships
progressively westward. The townships were to be subdi
vided into thirty-six sections, each containiiig a mile square,
or six hundred and forty acres. The survey has since been
carried to half sections, quarter sections and eighths, and in
some cases to sixteenths.
When the survey of seven ranges of townships was com
pleted, plats were to be returned to the Board of Treasury,
and the Secretary of War was to reserve, by lot, one-
seventh part for the use of the late continental army, and
so of every subsequent seven ranges, when surveyed and
returned. Lots eight, eleven, twenty-six and twenty-nine
in each township were reserved by the United States for
future sale : lot sixteen for the maintenance of pubUc schools

CONTINENTAL LAND SYSTEM. 495
-within the townfehip, and " also one-third part of aU gold,
silver, lead and copper mines to be sold or otherwise dis
posed of as Congress should direct."
With these exceptions, the townships were to be drawn in
the name of the different States, in the proportion of the
latest requisitions by Congress upon them, and sold at pub
lic vendue, after a prescribed notice, by the commissioners
of the loan office of the several States, in the following man
ner: The township or fractional part of a township number
one, in the first range, to be sold entire ; and number two
in the same range, by lots: and thus in alternate order
through the whole of the first range. In the second range,
the first township to be sold in lots, the second entire : and
so alternately through the subsequent ranges. '¦'¦Provided,
That none of the lands within the said territory be sold
under the price of one dollar the acre, to be paid in specie,
or loan office certificates reduced to specie value by the
scale of depreciation, or certificates of liquidated debts of
the United States, including interest, besides the expense of
the survey and other charges thereon, which are rated at
thirty-six dollars, the township in specie or certificates as
aforesaid, and so in the same proportion for a fractional part
of a township, or of a lot, to be paid at the time of sales ; on
failure of which repayment, the lands shall again be offered
for sale."
If lands remained unsold by a State after eighteen months,
they were to be returned to the Board of Treasury, and sold
as Congress might direct.
This ordinance also gave the mode for diriding among the
continental soldiers the lands set apart for them : reserved
three townships adjacent to Lake Erie for refugees from
Canada and Nova Scotia, on account of their devotion to the

496 HISTORY OF OHIO.
American cause :^ secured to the Morarian Indians the towns
of Gnadenhutten, Schoenbrun and Salem on the Muskingum,
and such adjacent lands as would, in the judgment of the
geographer, be sufficient for them to cultivate: and exclu
ded from sale the territory between the Little Miami and
Scioto, in accordance with the provisions made by Virginia
in her deed of cession in favor of her own troops.^
On the 15th of June, 1785, Congress instructed the com
missioners empowered to conclude a treaty with the westem
Indians, to warn off " several disorderly persons who had
crossed the Ohio River and settled upon unappropriated
lands," which was industriously, however ineffectually, done
by General Richard Butler, on his journey to the conference
with the Shawanese at the mouth of the Great Miami.
Congress instructed Hutchins and his body of surveyors,
by a resolution of May 9th, 1786, not to proceed with their
survey further north than the east and west Une (the exten
sion of the southern boundary of Pennsylvania) mentioned
in the ordinance of May 20th, 1785. A year afterwards,
Congress directed that the sale of lands, after the deduction
of one-seventh for army bounties, should be held at the place
where Congress was in session.
The bounties to the officers and soldiers of the Revolution,
who had continued in service until the close of the war, or
until discharged, and the representatives of those who were
slain by the enemy, had been granted by resolutions of Con
gress, dated September 16th and 18th, 1776, and August
1) This tract was afterwards located eastwardly from the Scioto River,
near and including the city of Columbus. It is a narrow strip of country,
4J miles broad from north to sonth, and 48 miles in length— having the
United States twenty ranges of military or army lands north, and twenty-
two ranges of Congress lands south, and consisting of 100,000 acres.
2) Land Laws of the United States, edition of 1828, p. 349.

ORGANIZATION OF THE OHIO COMPANY. 497
12th and September 22d, 1780, and were as foUows : a Major
General, eleven hundred acres; Brigadier General, eight
hundred and fifty ; Colonel, five hundred ; Lieutenant Colonel,
four hundred and fifty ; Major, four hundred ; Captain, three
hundred ; Lieutenant, two hundred ; Ensign, one hundred
and fifty; each non-commissioned officer and soldier, one
hundred.^ The possession of these and other claims upon
the government of the Union, by the disbanded and often
impoverished soldiery of the Revolution, became a prominent
agency in the settlement of Ohio. In June, 1783, peace
having been proclaimed. General Rufus Putnam, of Massa
chusetts, forwarded to Washington a memorial from a number
of persons holding these claims for an appropriation of west
ern lands, which Washington transmitted to Congress, but
the States ha-d not made their cessions, and Congress was
obliged to postpone the consideration of the subject. In
July, 1785, Benjamin Tupper, a Revolutionary officer of
Massachusetts, was appointed a surveyor of western lands,
and during the year visited Pittsburgh. The survey was
interrupted by Indian troubles, and he went no further, but
returned with such impressions of the Ohio country that
Putnam and himself united in a pubUcation, dated January
10, 1786, which proposed an association for the purchase and
settlement of Ohio lands. Whoever desired to promote the
scheme were invited to meet in their respective counties of
Massachusetts, (enumerating the places) on the 15th of
February, and choose a delegate or delegates to meet at " the
Bunch of Grapes tavern, in Boston, Essex."
This convention assembled on the 1st of March, and con
sisted of the following persons : Winthrop Sargent and John
MUls, of Suffolk county ; Manassah Cutier, of Essex ; John
3) Land Laws of the United States, p. 336.
21*

498 HISTORY OP OHIO.
Brooks and Thomas Cushing, of Middlesex ; Benjamin Tup
per, of Hampshire ; Crocker Sampson, of Plymouth ; Rufus
Putnam, of Worcester ; John Patterson and JahlaUel Wood-
bridge, of Berkshire ; and Abraham WUUams, of Bamstable.
General Rufus Putnam was elected chairman, and Major
Winthrop Sargent clerk.
On the 3d of March, a committee consisting of Messrs.
Putnam, Cutler, Brooks, Sargent and Cushing, reported a
plan of association, which was adopted. The leading features
of the organization were these : a fund of a milUon dollars,
mainly in continental specie certificates, was to be raised for
the purchase of lands in the westem territory ; there were
to be a thousand shares of one thousand doUars each, and
upon each share ten dollars in specie were to be paid for
contingent expenses. One year's interest on the certificates
was to be appropriated to the charges of making a settlement
and assisting those who were unable to remove without aid.
The owners of every twenty shares were to choose an agent to
represent them, and attend to their interests, and these agents
were to choose five directors, a treasurer ^and secretary.
The next meeting of the associates was held at Bracket's
tavern, in Boston, on the Sth of March, 1787, caUed by special
advertisement. At this meeting it appeared that two hundred
and fifty shares had been subscribed in this "company's
funds," and " that many in the commonwealth of Massachu
setts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and New Hampshire, were
inclined to become adventurers, and restrained only by the
uncertainty of obtaining a sufficient tract of country, collec
tively, for a great settlement." It was resolved that three
directors be appointed for the company, who were to make
immediate apphcation to Congress for a private grant of lands.
General Samuel H. Parsons, General Rufus Putnam, and the

NEGOTIATIONS WITH CONGRESS. 499
Rev. Manassah Cutlep^were chosen. Major Winthrop Sar
gent was elected secretary. The appointment of the other
two directors and treasurer was postponed untU another
meeting. The directors employed Dr. Cutler to make a contract with
Congress, and for that purpose he passed the month of July
in New York, with the exception of a week's attendance
upon the federal convention, then engaged in Philadelphia in
framing the constitution of the United States. An interview
with Thomas Hutching, shortly after Cutler's arrival in New
York, confirmed the previous impressions of the New Eng
land adventurers in favor of a location inclusive and westward
of the Muskingum valley. General Parsons, as a commis
sioner to the Shawanese, in 1786, had shared the enthusiasm
of all the early voyagers along the river coast of that region
of Ohio, and Hutchins doubtless spoke from his preposses
sions while the companion of Colonel Bouquet twenty years
before. In a published journal of Dr. Cutler, under date
of July 9, he says that Hutchins adrised him " by all means
to make the location on the Muskingum, which -was decidedly,
in his opinion, the best part of the whole western country."
Another circumstance in favor of the Muskingum, was the
security to the colonists from the estabUshment, since the
autumn of 1785, of a post — Fort Harmar — at the confluence
of the Muskingum and the Ohio.
The journal of Cutler indicates very distinctly, that his
embassy to New York would have been unsuccessful if he
and Sargent (whom he associated with himself in the nego
tiation) had not consented to extend their contract for the
benefit of another company. He was also obUged to surren
der General Samuel H. Parsons, as a candidate for governor
of the territory, in favor of the appointment of General

500 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Arthur St. Clair, who was a delegate from Pennsylvania, and
also president of Congress. On the 20th of July, Colonel
WUliam Duer, aud " a number of the principal characters of
the city," induced Cutler to extend his purchase so as to
include their own speculations, although this part of the
transaction was to be kept " a profound secret ;" and Cutier
admits that " matters went on much better " after St. Clair
and his friends had been informed that Parsons was given up
for the governorship.
On the 23d, Congress authorized the Board of Treasury
to contract with any person or persons for a grant of a tract
of land which should be bounded by the Ohio from the mouth
of the Scioto to the intersection of the western boundary of
the seventh range of townships then in course of survey ;
thence by the said boundary to the nortiiem boundary of the
tenth township from the Ohio; thence by a due west line to
Scioto ; thence by the Scioto to the beginning."
Cutler, Sargent and Duer, as the former admits in his
diary, " now entered into the true spirit of negotiation with
great bodies. Every machine in the city that it was possible
to work was now put in motion," &;c. They succeeded, and
it appears from the resolution of July 23, authorizing the
Board of Treasury to contract on certain terms therein enu
merated, from a communication by Cutler and Sargent, as
" agents of the Ohio Company of Associates," dated July
26, and from the final resolution of Congress on the 27th,
that the foUowing were the terms of sale for the tract above
described. A survey of the tract, ascertaining its contents and plainly
marking the northern boundary, was to be made by the United
States, but the company should lay off the tract into town
ships and lots, pursuant to the ordinance of May 20th, 1785.

OHIO COMPANY. 501
The reservations in each township were : lot sixteen, for
schools ; twenty-nine, for the purposes of religion ; and eight,
eleven and twenty-six, for future disposition, by Congress.
The price to be one dollar per acre, " payable in specie, loan
office certificates reduced to specie value, or certificates of
liquidated debts of the United States," liable to a reduction
of one-third for bad lands and all contingencies. The prin
cipal of the certificates was only to be received, but miUtary
bounties were admitted, acre for acre, in payment of one-
seventh of the lands. Of the whole amount, five hundred
thousand doUars were to be paid down ; another five hundred
thousand when the tract above described should be surveyed
by the proper officer of the United States, and the remainder
in six equal semi-annual instalments, with interest on the
sums due from the completion of the United States survey.
' Congress, by their resolution of July 23, had stipulated
for a reservation of two townships to be given perpetuaUy
"for the uses of an university, and laid off by the purchasers
in good land as near the centre (of the whole tract) as might
be — that good and sufficient security be given for the com
pletion of the contract — and that the grant should be made
upon the full payment of the consideration money, and a
right of entry and occupancy be acquired immediately for so
much of the tract as should be agreed upon between the
Board of Treasury and the purchasers.
On these points the agents of the Ohio company submitted
the foUowing conditions, and induced Congress to acquiecse
in them as modifications of the original proposition :
" The lands assigned for the establishment of an university
to be nearly as possible in the centre of the first million and
a half of acres we shall pay for ; for to fix it in the centre of
the proposed purchase, might too long defer the estabUshment.

502 HISTORY OP OHIO.
" When the second payment is made, the purchasers shaU
receive a deed for as great a quantity of land as a miUion of
dollars wUl pay for, at the price agreed on ; after which we wiU
agree not to receive any further deeds for any of the lands
purchased, only at such periods and on such conditions as may
be agreed on betwixt the board and the purchasers.
"As to the security, which the act says shall be good and
sufficient, we are unable to determine what those terms may
mean, in the contemplation of Congress, or of your honorable
board ; we shall, therefore, only observe that our private foi>
tunes and those of our associates being embarked in the
support of the purchase, it is not possible for us to offer any
adequate security but that of the land itself, as is usual in
great land purchases.
" We wiU agree so to regulate the contract that we shall
never be entitled to a right of entry and occupancy but on
lands actually paid for, nor receive any deeds tiU our pay
ments amount to a milUon of dollars, and then only in pro
portion to said payment. The advance we shaU always be
under. Without any formal deed, together with the improve
ments made on the lands, will, we presume, be ample secu
rity, even if it was not the interest as well as the disposition
of the company to lay the foundation of their estabUshment
oil a sacred regard to the rights of property."
This communication was dated July 26 ; " Friday, July
27," as recorded in Dr. Cutler's diary, was occupied very
effectively in obtaining the consent of Congress. " I rose
very early this morning," writes Cutler, " and after adjusting
my baggage for my return, (for I was determined to leave
New York this day) I set out on a general morning visit, and
paid my respects to all the members of Congress in the city,
and informed them of my intention to leave the city that

CONTRACTS WITH CONGRESS. 503
day. My expectations of obtaining a contract, I told them,
were nearly at an end. I should, however, wait the decision
of Congress, and if the terms I had stated — and which I
conceived to be very advantageous to Congress, considering
the circumstances of that country — were not acceded to,
we must turn our attention to some other part of the country.
New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts, would sell us
lands at half a dollar, and give us exclusive privUeges beyond
what we have asked of Congress. The speculating plan
concerted between the British of Canada was now well
known. The uneasiness of the Kentucky people, with respect
to the Mississippi, was notorious. A revolt of that country
from the Union, if a war with Spain should occur, was uni
versally acknowledged to be highly probable ; and most
certainly a systematic settlement in that country, conducted
by men thoroughly attached to the federal govemment, and
composed of young, robust and hardy laborers, who had no
idea of any other than the federal govemment, I conceived
to be an object worthy of some attention."
Such tactics could hardly faU of success. Before the day
closed, the order of July 27th was obtained, of which Dr.
Cutler remarks : "By this ordinance we obtained the grant
of near five million of acres, amounting to three milUon and
a half of acres for the Ohio Company, and the remainder
for a private speculation, in which many of the principal
characters of America are concerned. Without connecting
this speculation, similar terms and advantages could not have
been obtained for the Ohio Company."
On the 27th of October, 1787, the verbal arrangement of
July was consummated by two contracts of purchase — the
first being the actual transaction of the Massachusetts associar
tion, and the other in secret trust for WUUam Duer and the

504 HISTORY OF OHIO.
" principal characters of America." In both instruments,
Cutier and Sargent appear as agents of the Ohio Company.
Their first purchase began where the Ohio is intersected by
the western boundary of the seventh range of townships, and
ran due north on that boundary one thousand three hundred
and six chains and twenty-five Unks; thence due west, to
the westem boundary of the seventeenth range of townships
(as afterwards surveyed by the government); thence due
south to the Ohio and up the river to thp beginning; the
whole area containing one million seven hundred and eighty-
nine thousand seven hundred and sixty acres of land, of
which two hundred and eighty-one thousand seven hundred
and sixty acres constituted the reservations of the United
States. The second purchase of Cutler and Sargent began at the
northeastern angle of the tract just described, and ran due
north to the northern boundary of the tenth township from
the Ohio ; thence, due west to the Scioto ; thence do-wn the
same and up the Ohio to the southwestern angle of the first
purchase, and along the western and northern boundaries
thereof, to the beginning, the whole area estimated by Jeffer
son, in a communication from the Department of State in
1791, to contain 4,901,480 acres, including the reservations
of the United States. Although Cutler and Sargent, on the
29th of October, (two days after their contracts with the
Board of Treasury,) executed an assignment to WUliam Duer
and his associates of a moiety of the tract last described, and
the latter proceeded to organize a Scioto Land Company, yet
they made no payments either to the Ohio Company or the
government in execution of their agreement, and the lands
finally reverted to the United States.
The Ohio Company did not even retain the whole of their

ORDINANCE OF 1784. 505
purchase proper— the subject of their first contract with the
Board of Treasury. By an act of Congress, dated AprU
21st, 1792, it was confirmed so far as to include a tract
bounded by the Ohio on the south, the seventh range of town
ships on the east, the western bounds of the fifteenth range
of townships on the west, and a Une on the north so drawn
as to make seven hundred and fifty thousand acres, besides
the reservations enumerated in the contract of October 27th,
1787. The President of the United States was authorized to
issue letters patent for the tract above described, to Rufus Put
nam, Manassah Cutler, Robert Oliver and Griffin Green, in
trust for the persons composing the Ohio Company of Associ
ates, besides a tract of two hundred and fourteen thousand
acres for the liquidation of army bounties under the resolutions
of 1776 and 1780, and a third tract of one hundred thousand
aeres, which the company received on condition that they
would, within five years, convey the same in tracts of one
hundred acres to actual settlers. The whole were to be loca^
ted with the original purchase of a million and a half acres.
The company finally became possessed of nine hundred and
sixty-four thousand two hundred and eighty-five acres.^
Simultaneously with the cessions of the Atlantic States,
the negotiations for the Indian title, and the preUminaries of
settlement, Congress was engaged upon a scheme of republi
can government for " the transmontane half of the American
RepubUc." Before the cession by Virginia, the subject had
been considered by a committee, consisting of Jefferson of
Virginia, Howell of Rhode Island, and Chase of Maryland ;
and on the 1st of March, 1784 — the date of the Virginia
4) A full abstract of Dr. Cutler's Journal is given in the North American
Review, for October, 1841 (vol. Iiii., 334 to 343). See also Perkins' -Western
Annals, 287 to 292 ; U. S. Land Laws, p. 362.
22

606 HISTORY OF OHIO.
cession — Thomas Jefferson, as chairman of the committee,
reported a plan for the government of the Westem Territory
— not lying north of the Ohio merely, but the whole territory,
ceded or to be ceded, from the north Une of Florida to the
north Une of the United States.
This plan proposed to divide the territory into seventeen
States ; eight between the Mississippi and a north and south
line through the FaUs of the Ohio, each to contain two par
allels of latitude, except the northernmost, which was to
extend from the forty-fifth parallel to the northern boundary; -
eight more between this line and another parallel to it, drawn
through the mouth of the Great Kanawha, to be laid out in
plots corresponding to the first eight ; the remaining tract
east of this last line, and between the Ohio, the Pennsylvania
boundary and Lake Erie, to constitute the seventeenth
State. " The settlers," to repeat the language of the report,
" shall, either on their own petition or on the order of Con
gress, receive authority, with appointments of time and place,
for their free males, of full age, to meet together for the
purpose of establishing a temporary government. * * *
* * * Such teinporary government shall only contmue in
force, in any State, until it shaU have acquired twenty thou
sand inhabitants ; when, giving due proof thereof to Congress,
they shall receive from them authority, with appointments
of time and place, to call a convention of representatives, to
establish a permanent constitution and government for them
selves : Provided, that both the temporary and permanent
governments, be established upon these principles as their

" First : That they shall forever remain a part of this
confederacy of the United States of America.

ORDINANCE OF 1784. 507
" Second: That they shaU be subject to the Articles of
Confederation in all those cases in which the original States
shall be so subject, and to all the acts and ordinances of the
United States in Congress assembled, conformable thereto.
" Third: That they in no case shall interfere with the
primary disposal of the soil by the United States in Congress
assembled, nor with the ordinances and regulations which
Congress may find necessary, for securing the title of such
soU to the bona fide purchasers.
" Fourth : That they shall be subject to pay a part of the
Federal debts, contracted or to be contracted, to be appor
tioned on them by Congress, according to the same common
rule and measure by which apportionments thereof shall be
made on the other States.
" Fifth : That no tax shall be imposed on lands, the prop
erty of the United States.
" Sixth : That their respective governments shall be re
pubUcan. " Seventh : That the lands of non-resident proprietors
shall, in no cases, be taxed higher than those of residents
within any new State, before the admission thereof to a vote
by its delegates in Congress.
" Eighth : That after the year 1800 of the Christian era,
there shall be neither slavery nor involuntary serritude in
any of the said States, otherwise than in the punishment of
crimes, whereof the party shaU have been duly convicted to
have been personally guilty."
The States thus authorized, were to be admitted by their
delegates into Congress, when any of them should have, of
free inhabitants, as many as the least numerous of the thirteen
original States, provided the consent of nine States to such
admission was given. An amendment of the Articles of

608 HISTORY OF OHIO.
Confederation, substituting the vote of two-thirds of the
States, wherever nine had been previously requisite, was also
proposed. During the temporary government. Congress
might take measures for the preservation of peace and good
order among the settlers in any of the said new States ; and
the latter were allowed, before their temporary organization,
to " keep a member in Congress, with a right of debatmg but
not voting." The plan under consideration closed with the
foUowing provision:
" That the preceding articles shall be formed into a charter
of compact ; shall be duly executed by the President of the
United States in Congress assembled, under his hand, and
the seal of the United States ; shall be promulgated, and
shall stand as fundamental constitutions between the thirteen
original States, and each of the several States now newly
described, unalterable from and after the sale of any part of
the territory of such State, pursuant to this resolve, but by
the joint consent of the United States in Congress assembled,
and of the particular State within which such alteration is
proposed to be made."
On the 19th of April, Mr. Spaight of North CaroUna
moved that the anti-slavery proviso be stricken out. Under
the Articles of Confederation, which governed the proceed
ings of Congress, a majority of the thirteen States was ne
cessary to an affirmative decision of any question ; and the
vote of no State could be counted, unless represented by at
least two delegates.
The question upon Mr. Spaight's motion was put in this
form: " Shall the words moved to be struck out stand ?"
The vote stood —
For the Proviso, six States, viz : New Hampshire, Massa-

ORDINANCE OF 1784. 609
chusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York and Penn
sylvania. Against the Proviso, three States, viz : Virginia, Mary
land and South Carolina.
Delaware and Georgia were not represented. New Jer
sey, by Mr. Dick, voted aye, but her vote, only one delegate
being present, could not be counted. The vote of North
Carolina was divided — Mr. WiUiamson voting aye, Mr.
Spaight, no. The vote of Virginia stood — Mr. Jefferson,
aye, Messrs. Hardy and Mercer, no. Of the twenty-three
delegates present and voting, sixteen voted for, and seven
agamst the proviso, which was thus defeated by a minority
vote. It so happened that Mr. Beatty of New Jersey, the
colleague of Mr. Dick, had left Congress a day or two
before, and returned a day or two after. Had he been
present, or had one of Mr. Jefferson's coUeagues voted with
him, the result would have been changed.^
The ordinance of 1784, with this material omission, was
passed on the 23d of April following. In 1785, Mr. Jef
ferson went as minister to France, and on the 16th of
5) Journals Cong. Confed., vol. iv. p. 374 : See also Congressional Globe,
1848-9, Appendix, 294, Speech of John A. Dix : also Speech of S. P. Chase,
on Mr. Clay's Compromise Resolutions, in U. S. Senate, March 26, 1850.
Besides the general provisions for the division of the -Western Territory,
Jefferson's original draft designated the States north of the Ohio — ten in
number — by specific boundaries and names. This paragraph, which the
committee suppressed on a recommitment, was as follows :
"That the territory northward of the forty -flfth degree, that is to say, of
the completion of forty-five degrees from the equator, and extending to the
Lake of the -Woods, shall be called Sylvania ; that of the territory under the
forty-fifth and forty-fourth degrees, that which lies westward of Michigan,
shall be called Michigania ; and that which is eastward thereof, within the
peninsula formed by the lakes and waters of Michigan, Huron, St. Clair,
and Erie, shall be called Cheronesus, and shall include any part of the pe
ninsula which may extend above the forty-fifth degree. Of the territory
under the forty-third and forty-second degrees, that to the westward

510 HISTORY OP OHIO.
March, Rufus King of Massachusetts, preceded the assent
of his colleague and himself to a cession of western lands in
behalf and by the authority of the State of Massachusetts,
with a motion that the following proposition be committed to
a committee of the whole House :
" That there shall be neither slavery nor involuntary ser
vitude in any of the States described in the resolves of Con
gress of the 23d of April, 1784, otherwise than in the
punishment of crimes, whereof the party shall have been
personally guilty ; and that this regulation shall be an arti
cle of compact, and remain a fundamental principle of the
constitutions between the thirteen original States, and each
of the States described in the said resolve of the 23d of
April, 1784."
The motion was seconded by Mr. EUery of Rhode Island,
and prevailed by the votes of New Hampshire, Massachu
setts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania and Maryland^-eight ; agauist the votes of
Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia —
four. Delaware was not represented. The vote of Mary
land was determined by two ayes against one no, whUe that
through which the Assenlsipi or Rock River runs, shall be called Assmisi-
pia; and that to the eastward, in which are the fountains of the Musliin-
gum, the two Miamies of Ohio, the -Wabash, the Illinois, the Miami of the
Lake, and the Sandusky Rivers, shall be called Metrqpotamia. Of the terri
tory which lies under the forty-first and fortieth degrees, the western,
through which the river Hlinois runs, shall be called lUinoia; that next
adjoining, to the eastward, Saratoga; and that between this last and Penn
sylvania, and extending from the Ohio to Lake Erie, shall be called Wash
ington. Of the territory which lies under the thirty-ninth and thirty-eighth
degrees, to which shall be added so much of the point of land within ihe
fork of the Ohio and Mississippi as lies under the thirty-seventh degree,
that to the westward, within and adjacent to which are the confluences of
the rivers Wabash, Shawnee, Tanisee, Ohio, Illinois, Mississippi and Mis
souri, shall be called Polypotamia ; and that to the eastward, farther up the
Ohio, otherwise called the Pelisipi, shall be called Pelisipia."

ORDINANCE OP 1787. 511
of Virginia was determined by two noes against one aye — the
single affirmative firom Virginia being the vote of Mr. Gray
son, the successor of Mr. Jefferson.®
The resolution of Mr. King differed from the proposition
of Mr. Jefferson, inasmuch as the prohibition of slavery was
total and immediate, and not deferred to the year 1800:
but was identical with it in the extension of the prohibition
over the whole western territory, from the thirty-first par
aUel of north latitude to the northern boundary of the Uni
ted States. No expression could be more conclusive of a
determination by the statesmen and patriots of the revolu
tionary epoch, to confine slavery to the Atlantic States.
The division of States contemplated by the ordinance or
resolution of 1784, was found inexpedient, and an act exclu
sively applicable to the recent cessions by New York, Mas
sachusetts, Virgima and Connecticut — the entire territory
then belonging to the United States — was proposed in Con
gress, and resulted in the celebrated ordinance of July 13,
1787. It was reported in September, 1786, by a commit
tee composed of Messrs. Johnson of Connecticut, Pinckney
of South CaroUna, Smith of New York, Dane of Massachu
setts, and Henry of Maryland. Subsequently it was sub
mitted to another committee, consisting of Messrs. Carring
ton of Virginia, Dane of Massachusetts, R. H. Lee of
Virginia, Keen of South CaroUna, and Smith of New York.
On its final passage, the Ordinance received the unanimous
vote of the States, and with a single exception from New
York, of all the delegates.
This weU-known enactment organized a single territory
northwest of the Ohio and eastward of the Mississippi, but
6) Journals Cong. Confed., vol. iv. p. 481.

512 HISTORY OF OHIO.
subject to a future division, if deemed expedient by Con
gress, into two districts.
The important principles of the equal inheritance of intes
tate estates, and the freedom of aUenation by deed or will,
were estabUshed and defined, with a reservation in favor of
the laws and customs in the French and Canadian settlements.
A governor, for the term of three years, a secretary for
four years, and three judges during good behavior, were to
be appointed by Congress. The governor was invested with
the appointment of civU and mUitary officers, and authorized
to establish the territorial divisions of counties and townships.
The legislative power was to be exercised by the govemor
and judges, by the adoption of such laws of the original
States, criminal and civil, as were suitable to the . circum
stances of the country, but which remained in force, only on
condition that Congress and the territorial legislature, when
created, should approve thereof. The other powers of the
officers above mentioned, were not unusual.
This was only a temporary system, however. A more
popular form would displace it, when there should be five
thousand free male inhabitants of full age in the district.
That fact ascertained, the people would be authorized to elect
representatives to a Territorial Legislature, and from their
nomination of ten persons, Congress (or the President of the
United States, after the adoption of the Federal Constitution)
would select five names, to constitute a legislative councU.
The representatives were to serve two, and councUmen five
years — the two bodies constituting a Territorial Legislature,
with power to make any laws, not repugnant to the National
Constitution or the Ordinance of 1787. The judges were
thenceforth to be confined to purely judicial functions. The
governor was to retain his appointing power, his general ex-

ORDINANCE OP 1787. 513
ecutive authority, and to have an absolute negative upon all
legislative acts. By a joint ballot of the council and house
of representatives, a delegate to Congress might be chosen,
with the right of debate but no vote.
The Ordinance concludes with six articles of compact, be
tween the original States and the people and States in the
Territory, which should forever remain unalterable, unless
by -common consent. The first declared that no person, de
meaning himself in a peaceable and orderly manner, should
ever be molested on account of his mode of worship or reli
gious sentiments. The second prohibited legislative inter
ference with private contracts, and secured to the inhabitants
trial by jury, the writ of habeas corpus, a proportionate rep
resentation of the people in the legislature, judicial proceed
ings according to the course of the common law, and those
guaranties of personal freedom and property, which are enu
merated in the BUls of Rights of most of the States. The
third provided for the encouragement of schools, and for good
faith, justice and humanity towards the Indians. The fourth
secured to the new States, to be erected out of the territory,
the same privUeges with the old ones ; imposed upon them
the same burdens, including responsibUity for the federal
debt; prohibited them from interfering with the primary
disposal of the soU by the United States, or taxing the public
lands, or taxing the lands of non-residents higher than those
of residents ; and established the narigable waters, leading
into the Mississippi and St. Lawrence, and the portages
between them, as common highways for the use of aU the
citizens of the United States.
The fifth article related to the formation of new States
within the territory, and to their admission into the Union.
There were to be not less than three nor more than five States.

514 HISTORY OP OHIO.
The western State was to include aU the country between a
line from .the mouth of the Wabash along that river to Vin
cennes, and thence due north to the territorial Une, and by
that line to the Lake of the Woods and Mississippi. The
middle State was to comprehend aU within a Ime drawn due
north from the mouth of the Great Miami, to the territorial
line and the eastern boundary of the westem State. The
residue was to constitute the eastem State, but Congress
reserved the power of forming one or two States north of an
east and west line, drawn through the southern bend or ex
treme of Lake Michigan. These States, haring a population
of sixty thousand, or at an earUer period, if consistent with
the general interest of the confederacy, were to have the
right of admission into the Union, agreeably, to the terms of
the Virginia cession and the resolution of October 10th, 1780,
and were to remain forever members of the confederacy.
The sixth and last article was in these words: "There
shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in the said
territory, otherwise than in the punishment of crimes, whereof
the party shall have been duly convicted. Provided, always,
That any person escaping into the same, from whom labor
or service is lawfully claimed in any one of the original States,
such fugitive may be lawfully reclaimed and conveyed to the
person claiming his or her labor or service as aforesaid."
The resolutions of the 23d of April, 1784, on the subject
of the Ordinance, were repealed.''
In October following, Congress ordered seven hundred
troops for the defence of the westem frontiers and to aid in
the organization of civil authority under their Ordinance of
July, and on the 5th of the month, appointed General Arthur
7) The Ordinance will be found in Appendix, No. xiii. See -Western Law
Journal, vol. v. p. 529.

ORGANIZATION OF THB TERRITORY. 515
St. Clair, Governor of the Northwestern Territory, associa
ting with him, Winthrop Sargent of Massachusetts .as Secre
tary, and Samuel Holden Parsons of Massachusetts, James
Mitchel Barnum of Pennsylvania and John Cleves Symmes
of New Jersey, as Judges of the territory.
On the Seventh of April, 1788, a party of forty-eight
men, with General Rufus Putman at their head, disembarked
at the mouth of the Muskingum River. They were the pio
neers of the Ohio Company, and they had made their voyage
from Pittsburgh in a vessel constructed for the purpose — the
"Adventure Galley" afterwards called the "Mayflower."
The aniversary of this interesting occasion wiU always be
cherished, as it is often celebrated by the people of Ohio.
On the Fifteenth of July, Governor St. Clair, who had
arrived at Fort Harmar six days before, was formally received
upon the site of Marietta — the " Seat of Government" — ^by
the veteran Parsons, the Secretary and Judges of the terri
tory, and an assemblage of inhabitants. Under a bower of
foUage, contributed by the surrounding forest, the Ordinance
of 1787 was audibly read — congratulations exchanged — and
three cheers, startiing the solitude of the streams, and the
denizens of the wilderness around them, closed the simple,
but impressive inauguration of Territorial Govemment beyond
the Ohio.

APPENDIX.

I.
(Page 21.)

FURTHER PARTICULARS OF THE ERIES, NEUTRALS, AND
ANDASTES.
The testimony of the Jesuit missionaries confirms the opinion expressed
in the text, that the Neutrals were one of several tribes, that suffered from
Iroquois hostility. In 1654, Father Simon Le Moine visited the country of
the Onondaga Indians, near the mouth of Lake Ontario. His party were
received by some Iroquois fishermen ; and among them was " a Huron pris
oner, and a good Christian," and some Huron squaws, for the most part
Christian women, formerly rich and at their ease, whom captivity had re
duced to servitude. " They requested me," the missionary continues in his
Journal, " to pray to God ; and I had the consolation to confess there at
my leisure Hostagehtax, our ancient host of the Petun nation. His senti
ments and devotion drew tears from my eyes : he is the fruit of the labors
of Father Charles Gamier, that holy missionary whose death has been so
precious before God."
At the principal Onondaga village, the missionary met other Huron cap
tives, and names Terese, a, good Christian woman, -who had with her a
young captive of the Neutral Nation — de la Nation Neutre — who became
"the first adult baptism at Onondago."
In a conference with the Indians, Le Moine, who bore a message and va
rious presents from M. de Lauson, then Governor of New France, delivered
"a hatchet to each ofthe fonr Iroquois Nations, for the new war they were
waging against the Cat Nation," with many other references to existing
hostilities. "Finally," he adds, "by the nineteenth present, I wiped away
the tears of all the young warriors for the death of their great chief Anne-
neraos, a short time prisoner with the Cat Nation." In reply, a captain of
the Oneida Nation "produced four large belts, to thank Onnontio (tbe
French Governor) for having encouraged them to fight bravely against
their new enemies ofthe Cat Nation." (BIT)

518 APPENDIX.
Another Missionary Journal, in 1658, alludes to the subjugation of the
dreaded Cat Nation, as having been then accomplished. See Documentary
History of New York, vol. i., pp. 30, 31, 32, 37.
A map published in Amsterdam in 1720, founded on a great variety of
memoirs of Louisiana, and attached to a work called Meceuil de Voyages,
represents within the present limits of Erie county, and directly east of
" Lac San dou ske,'' some villages of the " jEries — Nation du chat," adding,
that they were then destroyed (detndte). See French's Historical Collections
of Lguisiana, Fart II.
There are many traditions among the Senecas of a tribe, by them called
Kahkwahs, whose villages were west of the Genesee, and thence south to
the sources of the Alleghany. We suppose them to have been the Andastes,
who were vanquished by the New York confederates in 1672. H. R. School
craft (Notes ou the Iroquois, p. 318) has presei-ved the following Seneca tra
dition of the Kahkwahs. It will be seen that the writer identifies the Eries
-with the Kahkwahs. The terms may be synonymous, but if so, the seats
of the Eries were certainly extended to the western extremity of Lake Erie.
" My inquiries," Schoolcraft proceeds to say, " were answered one evening
at the mission house in Buffalo, by the Alleghany chief, Ha-yek-dyoh-kunh,
or the -Wood-cutter, better known by his English name of Jacob Black-
snake. He stated that the Kahkwahs had their chief residence, at the time
of their final defeat, on the Eighteen Mile Creek. The name by which he
referred to them, in this last place of their residence, might be written per
haps with more exactitude to the native tongue, Gah-Gwah-ge-o-nuh — but
as this compound word embraces the ideas of locality and existence along
with their peculiar name, there is a species of tautology in retaining the
two inflections. They are not necessary in the English, and besides, iu
common use, I fouud them to be generally dropped, while the sound of g
naturally changed in common pronunciation into that of k.
" Blacksnake commenced by saying, that -while tbe Senecas lived east of
the Genesee, they received a challenge from the Kahkwahs to try their skill
in ball-playing aud athletic sports. It was accepted, and after due prelimi
naries, the challengers came accompanied by their prime young men, who
were held in great repute as wrestlers and ball players. The old men
merely came as witnesses, while this trial was made.
"The flrst trial consisted of ball playing, in which, after a sharp contest,
the young Senecas came off victorious. The next trial consisted of a foot
race between two, which terminated also iu favor of the Senecas. The
spirit of the Kahkwas was galled by these defeats. They immediately got
up another race on the instant, which was hotly contested by new runners,
but it ended in their losing the race. Fired by these defeats, and still con
fident of their superior strength, they proposed wrestling, with the sanguin
ary condition, that each of the seconds should hold a drawn knife, and if

APPENDIX. 519
his principal was thrown, he should instantly plunge it into his throat and
cat off his head. Under this terrible penalty, the struggle commenced.
The wrestlers were to catch their holds as best they could, but to observe
fair principles of wrestling. At length the Kahkwah was thrown, and his
head immediately severed and tossed into the air. It fell with a rebound,
and loud shouts proclaimed the Senecas victorious in four trials. This ter
minated the sports, and the tribes returned to their respective villages.
"Some time after this event, two Seneca hunters went out to hunt west
of the Genesee River, and as the custom is, built a hunting lodge of boughs,
where they rested at night. One day, one of them went alone, and having
walked a long distance, was belated on his return. He saw, as he cast his
eye to a distant lodge, a body of the Kahkwahs marching in the direction
of the Seneca to-wns. He ran to his companion, and they instantly fled and
alarmed the Senecas. They sent off a messenger post-haste to inform their
confederates towards the east, who immediately prepared to meet their ene
mies. After about a day's march, they met them. It was near sunset when
they descried their camp, and they went and encamped in the vicinity. A
conference ensued in which they settled the terms of the battle.
" The next morning the Senecas advanced. Their order of battle was
this. They concealed their young men, who were called by the narrator
burnt knives,* telling them to lie flat, and not rise and join in the battle
until they received the war cry, and were ordered forward. With these
were left rolls of peeled bark to tie their prisoners. Having made this ar
rangement, the old warriors advanced and began the battle. The contest
was fierce and long, and it varied much. Sometimes they were driven
back, or faltered in their line — again they advanced, and again faltered.
This waving of the lines to and fro, formed a most striking feature in the
battle for a long time. At length the Senecas were driven back near to the
point where the young men were concealed. The latter were alarmed, and
cried out, ' Now we are killed !' At this moment the Seneca leader gave
the concerted war-whoop, and they arose and joined iu battle. The effects
of this reinforcement, at the time that the enemy were fatigued with the
day's fight, were instantaneously felt. The young Senecas pressed on their
enemies with resistless energy, and after receiving a shower of arrows, beat
down their opponents with their war-clubs, and took a great many prison
ers. The prisoners were immediately bound with their arms behind, and
tied to trees. Nothing could resist their impetuosity. The Kahkwah chiefs
determined to fly, and leave the Senecas masters of the field.
" In this hard and disastrous battle, which was fought by the Senecas
alone, and without aid from their confederates, the Kahkwahs lost a very
great number of their men, in slain and prisoners. But those who fled
* A term to denote their being quite young, and used here aa a cant phrase for prime
young warriors.

520 APPENDIX.
were not permitted to escape unpursued, and having been reinforced from
the east, they followed them and attacked them in their residence on the
Droseona (Buffalo Creek), and Eighteen Mile Creek, which they were
obliged to abandon, and fly to the Oheeo, the Seneca name for the Alle
ghany. The Senecas pursued them, in their canoes, in the descent of this
stream. They discovered their encampment on an island in numbers su
perior to their own. To deceive them the Senecas, on putting ashore,
carried their canoes across a narrow peninsula, by means of which they
again entered the river above. New parties appeared, to the enemy, to be
thus continually arriving, and led them greatly to overestimate then- num
bers. This was at the close of the day. In the morning not an enemy was
to be seen. The Eries had fled down the river and have never since ap
peared. It is supposed they yet exist west of the Mississippi.
" Two characteristic traits of boasting happened in the first great battle
above described. The Kahkwah women carried along, in the rear of the
warriors, packs of moccasins for the women and children, whom they ex
pected to be made captive in the Seneca villages. The Senecas, on the
other hand, said as they went out to battle, ' Let us not fight them too near
for fear of the stench,' alluding to the anticipated heaps of slain.
" It may here be inquired, perhaps, whether the Kahkwahs were not a
remnant, or at least allies of the ancient Alleghans. The French idea, that
the Eries were exterminated, is exploded by this tradition of Blacksnake,
at least if we concede that Erie and Kahkwah were synonyms. A people
who were called Erierions by the Wyandots, and Kahkwahs by the Iroquois,
may have had many other names from other tribes. It would contradict
all Indian history, if they had not as many names as there were diverse
nations to whom they were known."

n.
(Page B7.)

FRENCH OCCUPATION BY A PROCESS VERBAL.
The French government still retain this rather theatrical method of as
serting their sovereignty. When La Salle reached the mouth of the Mis
sissippi, it was with similar tokens that he proclaimed the dominion of his
royal master; and recently, when a French squadron occupied New Cale
donia, in the Pacific, it was observable that the lapse of centuries had not
materially changed the traditional ceremonies of such an occasion.

APPENDIX. 521
III.
(Pago 64.)
THE DELAWARE VILLAGES ON THE SCIOTO.
Gist by no means found the bulk of the Delawares upon the " east bank
of the Scioto," although " several villages" might have been scattered along
its course. His route was doubtless by the " Standing Stone," now Lancas
ter, and thence to the fertile Pickaway Plains, where the Shawanese were
afterwards assembled in considerable force. When the Delaware chiefs,
who were in the American interest, visited Philadelphia during the Revolu
tion, they spoke of "placing the Shawanese in their laps"— a figurative
expression for the surrender of the Scioto valley to them, as they ascended
from the mouth of the river. But the Delawares continued their occupation
of the region now bearing their name in Ohio ; aud George Sanderson,
Esq., in his " History of the Early Settlement of Fairfield county," mentions
them as joint occupants of that vicinity with the Wyandots. On a further
examination of Gen. Sanderson's interesting treatise, we have noticed that
he thus obviates the difflculties suggested iu the text (chap. xi. p. 160.)
While the Wyandots occupied the present site of Lancaster, a Delaware
chief, called Tobey, ruled over a village, called Tobeytown, near Royalton.
The reader is requested to note the error, ou page 160.

IV.
(Page 88.)

THE LOCALITY OF THE CANESADOOHARIE.
There are some circumstances mentioned by Smith, whieh might induce
the opinion, that the Canesadooharie was the Huron, and not the Black
River. ' He says that it " interlocks with the west branch of the Muskingum,
runs nearly a north course and empties into the south side of Lake Erie,
aiout eight miles east from Sandusky, or betwixt Sandusky and Cuyahoga."
A Wyandot camp would also be more likely to be found at the mouth of
Huron River. On the other hand, the Falls of Canesadooharie, are a marked
feature of analogy to Black River; and a party ascending the west branch
of Muskingum., with Lake Erie for their destination, would hardly extend
their route to the westward sources of the Mohican or west branch of Mus
kingum, when the Lake Fork led them northwardly and directly to their
destination. The mouth of Huron is certainly "about eight miles east from
22*

622 APPENDIX.
Sandusky," while the distance to Black River is at least twenty-five miles,
but this is probably an inaccuracy of Smith's memory— his Journal having
been published after an interval of more than forty years.

V.
(Page 247.)

CONTEMPORARY ACCOUNTS OF THE INDLAN HOSTILITIES OF
1774.
In the first volume of the fourth series of the American Archives, occurs
the following contemporary allusions to the border war, commenced or
precipitated by the massacre of Logan's family :
A communication to Lord Dunmore, dated March 24, 1774, speaks of the
unhappy murder near the Ohio, not long before, of " young Russell," by a
Cherokee chief, and anticipates further hostilities. (Page 278.)
Extracts are given from a " Journal of the United Brethren's Mission on
the Muskingum." These mention a rumor. May 6, 1774, from Mochwesung,
a Munsie village, that a Shawanese chief was killed on the Ohio, by white
people, and another wounded. May 8, the journal states that " an express
arrived from Gekelemuckepuck with the disagreeable news, that the white
people on the Ohio had killed nine Mingoes and wounded two." (p. 283.)
May 24, David Zeisberger writes (p. 284) that twenty Shawanese warriors
from Woakatameka had gone to make an incursion where the Mingoes were
killed, but that the lower Shawanese were peaceable and had protected the
traders. The missionary adds, " we are more than 200 souls in Schoenbrun,
besides the congregation at Gnadenhatten."
John Heckewelder was an EngUshman by birth, and it is barely possible
that he is " the Cosh, alias John Bull," who thus writes from the Muskin
gum Mission on the 24th of May :
" About three weeks ago, John Jungman and myself were at Fort Pitt.
On the way thither, we heard that three Cherokee Indians, going down the
river, had killed one trader and wounded another, and plundered the canoe :
the traders had imprudently shewn their silver things they had for trading.
In the Fort, we heard that the Mingoes had stolen that night fifteen horses,
and that they were all gone off from below Logtown. The white people
began to be much afraid of an Indian war. We hastened to get home again,
and after our return, received the news that a company of Virgmiaus,
under one Cresap, enticed some of the Mingoes, living at the mouth of
Yellow Creek, to the other side of the river, and gave them rum to make
them drunk, and then they killed flve ; two others, crossing the river to

APPENDIX. 523
look after their friends, were shot down as soon as fhey came ashore. Five
more were going over the river, whora they also waylaid, but the Indians
perceiving them, turned their canoe to make their escape, but being imme
diately flred at, two were killed and two wounded. The day following they
killed one Shawanese and one Delaware Indian, in a canoe down the river
with two traders. The same party killed Johu Gibson's wife, a Shawanese
woman; they further pursued a canoe, killed a Shawanese chief, and
wounded another man. They said they would kill and plunder all that
were going up and down the river. But they soon fled and left the poor
settlers as victims to the Indians; many are fled and left all their effects
behind. The Mingoes took their way up Yellow Creek, and struck our road
just where it turns off from the road to Gekelemuckepuck, where they
hunted for ten days to catch some traders, but as the Delawares had found
them out, they stopped the traders from going that road. The Mingoes
having sent word to the Shawanese, they fetched them to their town, Woa.-
katameka, where they had a council of war. * * * We are in great
disti-ess, and don't kuow what to do ; our Indians keep watch about us
every night, and will not let us go out of town, even not into our corn fields.
If there should be more bad news, we will be forced to move from here, for
we are in danger from both sides. I heard from some, that if the white
brethren should be forced to leave them, the greatest part would return to
the Susquehanna. But if only the Delawares continue in their peaceful
mind, it may go better than we now think. At the council at Woakatame
ka, were several head men of the Delawares present, who live at Schoen
brun and Gnadenhiitten, being particularly sent for by Netawatenees, to
assist them in the good work of preserving peace. The chief addressed the
Shawanese and Mingoes present in a fatherly manner, shewing unto them
the blessing of peace and folly of war ; and pressed it very much upon their
reason, what rhisery they would bring upon themselves and others by their
madness, and told them positively that they had not to expect any help or
assistance from the Delawares, and enjoined them very earnestly not to
stop the road to Philadelphia, but to let it be free and open. The Shawa
nese gave him in answer, they did believe his words to be good, and they
would take notice of them, and desired him to give also a fatherly admoni
tion to their wives to plant corn for them; which he did, but they seemed
more inclined to move off than to plant." (p. 285.)
May 29, Arthur St. Clair writes to Gov. Penn from Ligonier. He had
lately been to Pittsburgh. Capt. White Eyes protected Duncan, a trader,
from the hostile Shawanese, keeping him at Newcomerstown. Cresap and
Greathouse killed thirteen Indians. Cresap declares publicly that he acted
by Connolly's orders, (p. 286.)
From a speech of the Shawanese, it appears that Cornstalk sent his
brother to accompany and protect the traders to Pittsburgh, (p. 288.)

624 APPENDIX.
A newspaper publication at Philadelphia, dated May 23, 1774, gives the
following version of the affair at Yellow Creek, on the authority of " Capt.
Crawford and Mr. Neville, of Virginia :"
" That a number of Indians encamped at the mouth of Yellow Creek, op
posite to which two men named Greathouse and Baker, with some others,
had assembled themselves, at a house belonging to the said Baker, and
invited two men and two women of the Indians over the creek to drink
with them, when, after raaking thera drunk, they killed and scalped them ;
and two more Indian men then came over, who met with the like fate.
After which six of their men came over to seek their friends, and on ap
proaching the bank, where the white men lay concealed, perceived them,
and endeavored to retreat back, but received a fire from the shore, which
killed two Indians, who fell in the river; two fell dead in the canoe, and a
fifth was so badly wounded that ho could hardly crawl up the bank."
Among the unfortunate sufferers was an Indian woman, wife to a white
man, one of the traders ; and she had an infant at her breast, which these
inhuman butchers providentially spared and took with them. Mr. Neville
asked the man who had the infant, if he was not near enough to have taken
its mother prisoner without killing her. He replied that he was about six
feet from her, when he shot her exactly in tlie forehead, and cut the hoppaso
with which the child's cradle hung at her back ; and he thought to have
knocked out its brains, but remorse prevented him, on seeing the child fall
with its mother. This party, further informed them, that after they had
killed these Indians, they ran off with their families, and that they thought
the whole country was fled, as Cresap, who was the pei-petrator of the first
offence, was then also on his way to Red Stone, (p. 345.)
A letter from Fort Pitt, June 19, 1774, says: "We have an account of
Logan's being returned to the Shawanese towns, and that he took with him
thirteen scalps." (p. 429.)
A letter from Pittsburgh, June 24, states that one of the Shawanese escort
of the traders was shot near the mouth of Beaver Creek, by a party of
twelve whites sent out by Connolly, (p. 449.)
"Newcomerstown" also mentioned — also Snakestown, on the Muskin
gum, (p. 464.)
A letter from Devereux Smith (Pittsburgh, June 10), mentions a com
plaint by the Shawanese " down the Ohio," that Connolly's militia had fired
on their camps at the mouth of Sawmill Run, on the 25th of January — that
Butler's canoe was attacked by the Cherokees on the 16th of April — that the
attack on the second canoe by the whites under Cresap, was on the 27th of
April ; and about the same time a party headed by one Greathouse, had
barbarously murdered and scalped nine Indians at tho house of one Baker,
near Yellow Creek, about fifty-five miles down the river." The letter re
ports White Eyes as stating that " a Mingo man named Logan (whose

APPENDIX. 525
family had been murdered in the number), had raised a party to cut
down the Shawanese town traders at Canoe Bottom, on the Hockhock
ing Creek, where they were pressing their peltry. On the 6th of June, an
account was received of a family of eight killed on Monongahela by Logan's
party." (p. 467 )
The following persons, described as " chiefs of the Delawares," concur iu
pacific assurances, dated " Newcomersto-wn, June 21st, 1774 :'' King New
comer, White Eyes, Thomas McKee, Epaloined, Neolige, Killbuck, William
Anderson, and Simon Girty. (p. 545.)
Carlisle, June 30, 1774. " Logan's party has returned, and had thirteen
scalps and one prisoner. Logan says he is now satisfied for the loss of his
relations, and will sit still until he hears what the Long Knife (the Virgini
ans) will say." — (John Montgomery to Gov. Penn, p. 546.)
Speech of friendly Delawares refers to towns on Muskingum, as Kakelella-
mapeking, Gnadenhiitten and Tripiakeng, and mentions a Shawanese chief,
Keesmatela, as hostile, (p. 680.)
In a letter of Col. Wm. Preston, dated Fincastie, August 13, 1774, the
name of Jacob Sodousky is mentioned, as one of a surveying party ou the
Kentucky River, that had been in danger from an Indian attack, (p. 707.)
It has been supposed that the word Sandusky was derived frora the father
of this person, who was a native of Poland; and. had traded in Northwestern
Ohio about 1740, losing his life while r^rningffrom an excursion thither ;
but there is evidence (see Appendix No. I) tfiat as early as 1720, Lac San
doti sfce is found on European maps.
At Lord Dunmore's conference with the Ohio Indians (probably) at Fort
Pitt, in October, King Custaloga, and Captains White Eyes and Pipe, Dela
wares, and Captains Pluggy and Big Apple Tree, Mohawks, -n'cre present.
There is an allusion, by Pipe, to the " Standing Stone, near the Lower
Shawanese towns" — now Lancaster, Fairfield county.
During Dunmore's campaign, Capt. William Crawford was sent with a
detachment to destroy a Mingo town. He did so, making the prisoners
afterwards taken to Pittsburgh.

VI.
(Page 263.)

FURTHER PARTICULARS OF CONNOLLY'S SCHEME.
It is mentioned in Sabine's American Loyalists, p. 225, that this noted
character was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, and was bred a
physician. His Revolutionary movements are thus detailed in American
Archives, Fourth Series -.

526

APPENDIX.

In a letter to John Gibson, dated Portsmouth, August 19, 1775, Connolly
urged the former to "avoid an over-zealous exertion of what is now ridicu
lously called patriotic spirit ;" including a speech frora Lord Dunmore to
Captaiu White Eyes, which was immediately handed by Gibson to the
Committee of West Augusta. (Vol. iii. p. 72.)
Ou the 5th November, 1775, Lord Dunmore commissioned John ConuoUy,
Lieut. Col. ofthe Queen's Rangers. Afterwards Connolly was arrested and
coufined at Fredericktown, Md. On the 16th of December, he wrote to
Captain Lernonlt, at Detroit, and Captain Lord, on the Illinois, intimating
that his intention had been to penetrate to Detroit, aud thence conduct an
expedition through Virginia, thus dividing the Southern from the Northern
governments. These letters were sent by one Dr. Srayth.
This J. P. D. Smyth, in his " Tour," says : " It was proposed that I should
pass through Pittsburgh, with despatches to Mr. McKee, the Indian Super
intendent, and to some other friends of Government, then proceed down
the river Ohio to the mouth of the Sciota, and from thence up that river,
through the Shawanese, Delawares and Wyandots, and dowu Sandusky
River to Sandusky Old Fort; from thence I was to cross Lake Erie, by the
Rattlesnake Islands, to Detroit : while Lieut. Col. Connolly and a Mr. Cam
eron were to cross the Alleghany River, at the Kittaning, and proceed by
the nearest and most direct route to Detroit. Here a very considerable
force was to be collected from all the nearest posts in Canada, and trans
ported, early in the spring, across the Lake Erie to Presque Isle, where I
was to be employed during the,winter, with a detachment of 200 men, in
covering and conducting the building batteaus, aud collecting provisions,
in order to proceed by the French Creek, Venango, and the Alleghany
River, to Pittsburgh." Here were to be Head Quarters, and thence the de
sign was to strike through Virginia to the Potomac, or that scheme failing,
to fall down the Ohio, and, reinforced by the garrison, artillery and stores
from Fort Gage, at Kaskaskia on the Illinois, to proceed to the Gulf, and
thence join Lord Dunmore at Norfolk. (Vol. iv. p. 615.)
Prior to the Revolution, Connolly, in connection with one John Camp
bell, claimed lands at the FaUs of the Ohio (now Louisville), by grant of
Lord Dunmore, laid out a town there, and invited settlers. The interests
of Campbell in this locality were not forfeited.
Sabine states that Connolly was at Detroit in 1788, and that he and other
disaffected persons held conferences with some of the prorainent citizens of
the West as to the seizure of New Orleans, and the control of the naviga
tion of the Mississippi by force ; but -n'ere baffled by the vigilance of
Washington.

APPENDIX. 527
VII.
(Pages 267, 310.)
INCIDENTS IN THE LIFE OF JAMES DEAN.
James Dean, the founder of Westmoreland, New York, was no less active
and influential than Samuel Kirkland, in preserving the Oneida tribe as the
friends and allies of the Americans. His descendants are still living in
Oneida county, upon a portion of the tract allotted to their ancestor by his
Indianbrethren. In the Fourth Series of the American Archives (vol. ii. p. 152), a letter is
preserved from Rev. Eleazer Wheelock to Gov. TrurabuU of Connecticut,
dated Dartmouth College, March 16, 1775, in which, after stating the high
importance of conciUating the Indians, the following passage occurs :
" I have this spring sent Mr. James Dean (who, araong other excellent
qualifications, is a great master of the language of the Indians at Caghna-
waga), as a, missionary, to itinerate for a short time among the tribes in
Canada. Ten of their sons at Dartmouth — eight descendants of English
captives, one a son of the chief Sachem at St. Francis, and another, a
brother to the youth who was lately elected and crowned Sachem at Cagh-
nawaga. " Mr. Dean was brought up and naturalized araong the Six Nations ; is a
great raaster of their language, and rauch esteemed as an orator araong
them ; and his influence among them I apprehend to be greater than any
other man's, unless it be their present Superintendent, and is esteemed by
the best judges to be a man of genius, learning, piety, and great pradence,
—might induce the Six Nations to join the colonies-^will retum as soon
as the Lake shall be clear of ice," &c.
Another letter (March 22) repeats the above, adding that Mr. Dean could
also speak the Huron language — was early naturalized among the Indians,
had great interest in their affections, and was the fittest man to be employ
ed on behalf of the colonies among the Western and Northern Indians.
Gov. TrumbuU, on the 17th of AprU, responded to these letters, that " the
ability and influence of Mr. Dean to attach the Six Nations to the interest
ofthe colonies, is considered an instance of Divine favor."
In a letter of Volkert P. Douw, to the President of Congress, dated Albany,
Nov. 6, 1775, it is mentioned that Mr. Dean, who was sent by tbe Commis
sioners of Indian Affairs for the Northern Department, to the Six Nations,
had retumed with information that the Cayugas, Mohawks and Senecas
had taken up the hatchet against the colonies. (Vol. iii. p. 1372.)
On the 21st of March, 1776, James Dean, in company with the Oneidas
and a deputation from the seven tribes in Canada, set out from Kanonwaro-

528 APPENDIX.
Tiaro to attend a meeting of the Six Nations, at their Central Council-House
at Onondaga. They stopped at Kanaghsorage, a small vUlage inhabited by
the Onondagas and Tuscaroras, about sixteen miles west of Oneida. Here,
where they remained four days, they heard that the Mohawks were deter
mined to kill Dean. Little Abrahara, a friendly Mohawk sachem, preceded
the party of Oneidas, and dissuaded his countrymen from their purpose,
sending back a message to that effect. When it was received, a council of
Oneidas, Caughnawagas and Tuscaroras was held, and it was concluded
best that Dean should go on with thera.
The feraale governesses of the town, and those who were present from
Oneida, hearing of this purpose, took the matter into their consideration,
and about eight iu the evening presented the following speech :
" Brother : We, the feraale governesses, take this opportunity to speak a
word, and let you know our minds. In truth, our hearts have trembled
and our eyes have not known sleep since you have been here, while we
consider the danger that appears to us to threaten you at Onondaga, and
the dreadful consequences that raust ensue, should some fatal blow be given
you. We desire you to consider well of these things, and to retum back
from this place."
To which the foUowing answer was made :
" Sisters, Female Governesses : I sincerely thank you for what you have
said, and the concern you appear to have for my safety ; but, sisters, pos
sess your minds in peace, and let it not offend you if I do not comply with
your request. I am sent by the great men npon important business, and
must proceed as far as directed."
Next morning, they started for Onondaga, but found, on approaching
the viUage, that it was proposed to lodge the party, not altogether, but by
two or three in a place. This looked suspicious, and they chose to encamp
in a hemlock grove near by.
On the 28th, the councU coraraenced and continued untU the 3d of April.
Various speeches were made, and a general disposition exhibited to observe
neutrality between the English and the Americans. (Vol. v. p. 1079.)

Though not appurtenant to the foregoing note, still the reference on page
310, requires the insertion of the following communication, descriptive
of the Shawanese towns on the Mad River and Upper Miami, now Logan
county : " House op Representatives,
" Columbus, April 20, 1854.
"Dear Sik : In respect to the Indian localities of Logan county, the
most prominent was Wappatomica, two miles south of Zanesfield. My

APPENDIX. 529
impression is, that it was a Wyandot town, or a common rendezvous for
Wyandots, Shawanese and Mingoes— Wappatomica signifying the capital
or head town. Perhaps the name, like that of Wakatomaka Creek, in Mus
kingum county, is of Shawanese origin. The viUage of Zanesfield, and the
township of Zane, in the southeast corner of Logan county, are thus called
from Isaac Zane, who was an adopted member of tne Wyandot tribe.
"About nine miles southeast from Wappatomica, and not far from
King's Creek, near the line of Champaign county, was a Mingo village :
and such probably was Solomon's Town, which was on the waters of Cher
okee Man's Run, near the line between McArthur and Richland townships,
and about nine mUes northwest from BeUefontaine. It was named from a
chief called Mohawk Solomon — a New York or Mingo Indian.
" The Shawanese towns were more numerous— the Wyandots and Mingoes
being sojourners among the Shawanese. Lewistown, named from a Capt.
Lewis, who was living as late as 1820, was as prominent as any other Shaw
anese village. Lewistown was situated four miles south of Solomon's
Town, and about eight miles northwest from BeUefontaine. The Macha
cheek towns were two in number — one on the west bank of Mad River, and
not over three-quarters of a mile northeast from the present site of West
Liberty, and the other about a mile east from the former village, including
the farm of R. E. Runkle, and traversed by Mackacheek Creek, which runs
Bouthwestwardly into the Mad River. A mile and a half south of the village
last described, was a mound — still visible on the fai-m of John Enoch — from
the summit of which Simon Kenton was compelled, in 1778, to run the
gauntlet to the CouncU House, at or near the viUage. The whole vicinity
was an Indian settlement, but denser at the above points than elsewhere.
" Simon Kenton is buried about flve miles northeast of BeUefontaine, in
Jefferson township, on the east side of the road leading from Zanesfield to
Big Spring, near the line of Hardin county — the old Indian trace to the
Wyandot towns of the Sandusky. His grave is situated on a knoll, about
a quarter of a mile from the spot where the closing years of his life — at least
fifteen years — were passed. He died in 1836, and the impression produced
by his appearance and conversation is among the most cherished recollec
tions of my early life — so much so, that I have deemed it my duty, as a
Representative of Logan coanty in the current Legislature, to submit a biU
for the erection of a monument to his memory, as one of the most marked
and noble characters in our annals.
" There is a tradition, that there was a Shawanese settlement on the
creek, which rises within the limits of BeUefontaine, and fiows westwardly
untU it falls into the Bokongahelas, the latter being a tributary of the
Miami. This viUage was caUed Blue Jacket Town, probably from the
chief of that name, but I cannot exactly identify its locaUty. It was
doubtless in Lake township.
23

53/> APPENDIX.
.'.'The above are the impressions derived frora my personal recollections,
and iSie traditions of the first settlers. Perhaps prior to 1787, which I un
derstand to be the period included in your volume, the localities and the
inhabitants of these towns might have been different; and it is quite likely
that the population, about this time of the Revolution, was more exclu
sively Shawanese. • Yours, &c., "JOSEPH NEWELL.
" James W. Tatlok, Esq."

VIII.
(Page 332.)

NETAWATWES, AND OTHER DELAWARE CHIEFS.
Heckewelder says (Transactions of American Philosophical Society, vol.
iv. p. 388) that Netawatwes had been a signer of a treaty held at Conestogo,
near Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in 1718, and was then a young raan, between
twenty or thirty years of age. As an hereditary chief of the Turtle Tribe,
he was intrusted with " all verbal speeches, with warapum, bead vouchers,"
&c., from the time of William Penn. He died at a great age— upwards of
ninety. He was settled on the Cuyahoga, on his first arrival in Ohio, but
in 1773 was on the Muskingum, at a point still called from him, Newcom
erstown. White Eyes or Coquethagechton (as Heckewelder writes his name)
succeeded Netawatwes in 1776, or " at least accepted the appointment for a
limited time, and until the young chief by lineal descent should be of pro
per age." (See Biography in Am. Phil. Trans., p. 391.) His character and
career are sufficiently apparent from the text.
Gelelemend or Killbuck, after the death of White Eyes in 1?78, was
installed as temporary chief during the minority of the heir of Netawatwes.
He became a devoted adherent of the Americans, receiving the rank of
colonel. Machengive PnsHis or Big Cat afterwards removed to the Auglaise, as
appears from the interesting narrative of Johu Brickell, late of Franklin
county, who was a captive, from 1791 to 1795, among the Delawares. Du
ring that time, he was adopted as a son by " Whingwy Pooshies or Big
Cat." (See Brickell's Narrative in American Pioneer, vol. i. p. 46.) His
description of the parting with his Indian protector, when the tribe was
compelled to deliver their prisoners, is extremely touching — sufficiently so
to warrant its quotation.
" On the breaking up of spring [ in 1795J we all went up to Fort Defiance,

APPENDIX. 531
and on arriving on the shore opposite we sainted the fort with a round of
rifles, and they shot a cannon thirteen times. We then encamped on the
spot. On the same day Whingwy Pooshies told me I must go over to the
fort. The children hung around me crying, aud asked me if I was going
to leave them ? I told them I did not know. When we got over to the fort,
and were seated with the offlcers, Whingwy Pooshies told me to stand up,
which I did; he then rose and addressed me in about these words : 'My
son, there are men the same color with yourself. There may be some of
your kin there, or your kin may be a great way off from you. You have
lived a long time with us. I call on you to say if I have not been a father
to you? if I have not used you as a father would use a son ?' I said, 'You
have used me as well as a father could use a son.' He said, ' I am glad you
say so. You have lived long with me ; you have hunted for me ; but our
treaty says you must be free. If you choose to go with the people of your
own color, I have no right to say a word, but if you choose to stay with rae
your people have no right to speak. Now reflect on it and take your choice,
and tell us as soon as you make up your mind.'
"I was silent a few minutes, in which time it seemed as if I thought of
almost every thing. I thought of the chUdren I had just left crying ; I
thought of the Indians I was attached to, and I thought of my people which
I remembered ; and this latter thought predominated, and I said, ' I, will go
with my kin.' The old man then said, 'I have raised you — I have learned
you to hunt. You are a good hunter — you have been better to me than my
own sons. I am now getting old and I cannot hunt. I thought you would
be a support to my age. I leaned on you as on a staff. Now it is broken
— you are going to leave me and I have no right to say a word, but I am
ruined.' He then sank back in tears to his seat. I heartily joined him in
his tears — parted with him, and have never seen nor heard of him since."
Heckewelder mentions another prominent Delaware, Tetepachksi, whose
name will be readily identified at the subsequent treaties. In the PhUo-
sophical Transactions (vol. iv. p. 391), the Moravian biographer thus speaks
of him : " Tetepachksi, also called by the whites the Glaze King, was for a
number of years a counsellor of the Great Council of the Turtle Tribe at
Goshacking (forks of the Muskingum) ; afterwards he became a chief of
the Delawares, who resided on White River in Indiana. He was rather
timorous, and easily prompted to become jealous or mistrustful, though he
meant no harm to any body, and rather than make a mistake, would leave
others to act iu his stead. Yet harmless and innocent as he was, he was
by the prophet brother of Tecumseh declared a untch, and condemned to
die ¦ in consequence of which sentence, his executioners took him to the
distance of eight or ten miles from their village, and .there tomahawked
him, and then burnt his body on the pUes.— See Heckewelder's Narrative,

632 APPENDIX.
page 410." At a treaty with the United States, August 18, 1804, his name is
written Tetabuxika.
HopocAN or Pipe appears seldom, except as narrated above. He signed
the treaty of Jan. 9, 1789, at Fort Harmar, and is frequently mentioned in
the journals of the Marietta settlers. He probably died before the Treaty
of GreenvUle in 1795, as his signature does not appear.
Heckewelder speaks of NewaUke and Nihmha, as chiefs of the Munsie
tribe (of Delawares), at Minisink iu Pennsylvania, afterwards on the Sus
quehanna, and finally at Sandusky.

IX.
(Page 376.)

LEWIS WETZEL, THE BORDERER.
We have been favored with the following communication from Hon. E.
R. Eckley, of Carroll county ; which presents some facts of the later history
of this noted boi-derer, that are not generally known, besides vindicating
his meraory in respect to his Indian hostUities :
" J. W. Taylok, Esq. :
" Sik, — In compliance with your request, I send you snch facts, in
connection with the history and services of Lewis Wetzel, as are in my
possession, or within my power to furnish. I do it with the more pleasure,
because it may tend to wrest from oblivion the history of one who, in that
stirring time in our frontier history, fllled so conspicuous a place. The
date of events, in the life of that distinguished man, are now perhaps be
yond the reach of certainty. The date of facts contained in this letter, I
cannot even approximate. They were given me by my venerable father,
who, though cognizant to many of them, kept no record, and would not
undertake to fix even the year. He, at the time Wetzel was in Louisiana,
was engaged in the river trade, and was personaUy acquainted with hira ;
visited him while in^prison at New Orleans, also after he was released from
prison, while he lived with a relative near Natchez.
" Lewis Wetzel was supposed to have been born in the vicinity of what
is now the city of Wheeling ; at all events, his father occupied a sraall fai-m
at that place when he was a small boy. Of his family I am unable to learn
much, except that they were comparatively poor, which circumstance raay
account for the dangers and privations of a frontier life, to which he and
his family were exposed. Wetzel had a sister and brother (John or Jack)
who, with him, performed many daring adventures and exploits in the spy
department, at that day so important to the defence of the frontier. In

APPENDIX. 533
those days, every frontiersman man was, more or less, a hero ; every fron
tiersman was compeUed to defend himself and family against marauding
savages, who were constantly committing depredations upon the property
and persons of themselves and faraUies. Such circumstances, and the ser
vices they were compeUed to perform, inured them to dangers and deeds
of daring, that make up that record of thrilling events of which our past
history is so fruitful. In tho midst of these stormy scenes, Wetzel's early
impressions were formed; and doubtless from the fireside, on hearing tales
of daring adventure and personal courage, be conceived the idea of arrest
ing the savage on his war-path, and shivering from his hand the deadly
weapon, whUe aimed at the head of helpless females and unsuspecting
children. "The first feat in the life of Wetzel, worthy of notice, that has been pre
served, happened when he was about sixteen years of age. A party of In
dians had crossed the river and stolen off several horses, and -were making
their way back to their towns on the Muskingum, and further west. A
party of the hardy pioneers were soon assembled and enroute to recapture
the property and bring tbe aggressors to justice. In the pursuit the party
passed the farm of the elder Wetzel. Lewis was engaged in cultivating
a crop of growing corn. They solicited him to join their party. He had
been forbidden by his father to leave his home, but tbe adventure was too
gi-eat a temptation for the spirit of young Wetzel, and he was easily per
suaded to join them. He accordingly took from the plow a favorite mare
of his father's and started in pursuit of the fugitive Indians. They had
not proceeded far until they came upon the enemy, who were carelessly
loitering about their camp, apparently off their guard, and probably think
ing they had safety on their side, as the Ohio Eiver was between thera and
the neighborhoods upon which they lately comraitted depredations. The
stolen horses were spanceled and grazing at a short distance. They were
easUy surprised and fled, leaving the horses, which were recovered. The
party of settlers having accomplished their purpose, prepared to return,
but their horses were jaded and hungry, and they agreed that the horses
they had rode should be turned out to grass, three of their nuraber left to
bring them after they had refreshed a short tirae, and the balance of the
company, with the recaptured horses, should commence their retreat back
to the settlements. They had not proceeded many mUes until they were
overtaken by the three of their number they had left behind to bring their
horses, who informed them that soon after their departure they were sur
prised by tbe savages, who made their appearance between thera and their
horses, leaving them no alternative in saving their lives but to abandon
everything and escape by flight, which they succeeded in doing, overtook
their companions, but left their horses in the hands of the eneray. A
parley was caUed, and the hasty determination was soon formed to con-

534 APPENDIX.
tinue their way homeward and leave the Indians in possession of the
horses. To this determination Wetzel earnestly remonstrated. The loss
of a favorite animal improperly taken from home, the disappointment of
his flrst adventure, and the wrath of a father whom he both feared and
loved, drove him almost to desperation. He protested he would never
return alive to his father without the mare — swore he preferred the mare
without his scalp, to his scalp without the mare, and urged the company to
return and retake the horses. In this he was overruled in councU, against
which decision he uttered bitter anathemas. He next jiroposed that if only
one man would join him he would return and contest the right to the
horses, but no one would volunteer. He then swore that he would go alone,
that the mare he must and would have, and was actually upon the point
of starting, when two others, who had been active in inducing him to go,
reluctantly agreed to accompany him. The three left their companions on
ttfeir way to their homes, and started back in search of their horses. They
soon reached the camp and found the Indians engaged at their meals with
the horaes safely secured at a short distance. The Indians were three in
number, equal only to themselves, but the companions of Wetzel hesitated
and desired to return, but Wetzel counted chances and insisted upon suc
cess. The plan of attack was soon agreed upon. They were to advance in
single file, Wetzel in front, until they passed two trees, behind which his
companions were to ambush. When he reached the third it was the signal
for an attack. Wetzel reached his tree, and discovered that the Indians
had also treed ; but in looking around for his companions he found they
had retreated and were nearly out of sight, at the top of' their speed. His
condition was really critical ; to come out in an open field was almost cer
tain death. His only hope was in stratagem. He therefore placed his hat
on the end of his ramrod and gently pushed it partly from behind the tree.
This was no sooner done than all the Indians fired at it. The hat was
literally riddled, and Wetzel, still secure behind the tree, quick but cau
tiously dropped it to the ground. At this, the Indians believing they had
kUled their adversary, all sprung from their ambush and rushed towards
him. Wetzel now held tho trump, and taking advantage of the enemy,
whose guns were empty, he left his tree, and firing on the foremost brought
him to the ground, and then, with the fleetness of the wind, ran from the
scene, and was foUowed by the survivors. WetzeMoaded as he ran, and
wheeling quickly, fired into the breast of the foremost savage ; again ran,
loaded and fired on the last of the Indians, just as he was in the act of
hurling his tomahawk at the head of Wetzel. His fire was successful, and
the whole three were thus dead on the plain. Wetzel secured the evidence
of his victory, obtained the horses and overtook his companions before
they had stopped for the night. The exhibition of the bloody trophies
of victory, and the lost horses safely recaptured, all iu the hands of their

APPENDIX. 535
captor, a boy but sixteen years of age, of course from that time made him
a hero, one whose counsel was sought by men of riper years and more
experience. " The news of this daring adventure very soon made him the mau of the
frontier, eminently quaUfied as a leader in the spy department, iu which
position he aud his brother John rendered such important services to the
then western country, until Lewis, feeling himself deeply wounded by the
treatment of that conntry for which he had so often risked his life, and for
which he had rendered such great services, left the northem frontier for
the Spanish province of Louisiana. The many hazards and adventures of
which Lewis Wetzel was the hero, during his service in the spy depart
ment, would fill a volume, and could not be abridged, had I the material
arranged into an ordinary letter. And as most, if not all of his westem
adventures, have been collected and given to the public by others better able
to perform the task, and as my object is only to embody the outlines of the
life of one of the daring spirits of tbe early pioneers of our own land, I
pass over all that interesting, and to the frontiers valuable, part of his
service. " About the year 1790, Wetzel being on what was then called a scout, in
what is now the State of Ohio, killed and scalped an Indian warrior on the
Tuscarawas Eiver, who, it was claimed by recent negotiations at Fort Har
mar, was protected from harm from our spies and others employed in
our defence. The Indians made bitter complaints to the commandants of
our forts and garrisons, and insisted that unless Wetzel was punished they
would again tum loose their horde of warriors. Col. Harmar could not
do otherwise than offer a reward for the arrest of Wetzel. He accordingly
offered, with great reluctance, a reward of two hundred dollars for the arrest
of a man who had spent his life in the woods, standing as a bulwark
between the deadly weapon of the barbarian and the struggling settlements
of the Christian frontier ; a name that was dear to every man, woman and
chUd on the whole line of western settlements ; one whose deeds of daring
and adventure were taught to the children in their earliest lispings, and
whose achievements were to fill the brightest page in the history of their
early and desperate struggles. To place a price on a man as a criminal,
who had made such sacrifices, of course met with bitter denunciation frora
all who could appreciate his erainent services : particularly so when they
considered Wetzel guilty of nothing criminal whatever. True, he had cap
tured a warrior in the woods, at a tirae and under circumstances when he
(Wetzel) had good reason to believe the warrior was attempting his life ; he
was out-generaled by this hero of the forest and himself made a victim to
his unconquered adversary, — an Indian that belonged to a warlike tribe; a
tribe that had committed numerous murders and other depredations upon
tho very settlement in which lived the aged father and mother of the

536 APPENDIX.
daring Wetzel. Besides aU this, there was good reason to believe this
identical warrior had been concerned in the very outrages alluded to. That
any white man would atterapt to arrest him, no one believed, and that any
red man could, the friends of Wetzel did not fear. To avoid the constant
clamor of the Indians for the arrest of Wetzel, he was advised by his
friends to leave for a time, until the feeling on the part of the Indians
should subside. Wetzel accordingly, for the last time, left the humble
frontier abode of his venerable parents, and the place where he had played
many a tragic scene where life was the stake ; not, however, to arrest the
merciless savage on his mission of blood, but to avoid the action of his
own country which he had so faithfully served. He proceeded to the
vicinity of Cincinnati, where he engaged in the service of the country as a
spy, going where commanded, and returning when his mission was per
formed. He was often heard to say that no one would ever attempt his
arrest because he had killed an Indian, but that the love of the reward
might find some one heartless enough to, Judas like, sacrifice him for the
money. Against the danger of arrest he doubtless felt secure. In his
security, however, he was not safe. WhUe he was enjoying the confldence
and receiving the admiration of all the people of the west. Col. Parks was
ordered to remove with two hundred men frora Louisville to Fort Pitt. He
stopped at Fort Washington (Cincinnati) with his keel-boats, in which he
was transporting his troops. Wetzel was there, and frora a regard for his
duty, or sorae other cause, he ordered a flie of his men to arrest Wetzel,
which, after a violent opposition, they succeeded in doing, and he was placed
in irons and dragged on board the boats. The people of Cincinnati made
every exertion to procure his release. But to the efforts and appeals of the
people iu behalf of Wetzel, Col. Parks was immovable, and with a stoic
coldness, informed them that Wetzel must be delivered to the offlcers of
justice. Finding that nothing but force could procure his release, they,
during the night, raUied the entire force on both sides of the river, aud at
tbe da-wn of day next morning, flve hundred strong men, under arms,
raarched to the boats and pereraptorUy demanded the release of Wetzel.
Parks at first refused, but he was inforraed by their leader that if he did not
deliver Wetzel in ten rainutes he would sink his boats and take Wetzel by
force. The ferocious spirit of the people, and the determination of their
leader, compelled Parks to knock the irons off of Wetzel and surrender
him to his friends.
" At tbis conduct of his countrymen, Wetzel was deeply mortified, and to
avoid what he called the persecution of his own people, he declared his
determination of immediately leaving the country for ever. Accordingly
he left, the first opportunity, for tbe Spanish province of Louisiana. He
stopped at Natchez, and at once engaged in his favorite business of frontier
service, and soon became a general favorite with the settlers. In his new

APPENDIX. 537
home, Wetzel appeared to have every thing to make it comfortable, and
the change from his native to his adopted country appeared a happy one.
But the smooth current of his life was doomed soon again to be ruffled,
and his meridian sun again obscured by the clouds of trouble.
Wetzel was an unlettered man, and his whole Ufe proved his character
of unbending integrity. Placing no value upon money, none believed that
he would do a dishonest act for mere gain. But notwithstanding his
character and the circumstances of his life, he was an-ested for counter
feiting the coin of the king.
"A man by the name of Piatt, from near Pittsburgh, who had for some
cause sought refuge iu Louisiana, was the accuser of poor Wetzel. Whether
he was actuated by motives of maUce, self-protection, or other cause, is,
and perhaps ever will be, locked up in the secrets of the past. That an
unlettered man, like Wetzel, could counterfeit, was he ever so wUling, was
preposterous. Besides, all who knew him were confident he would not do
it if he could. But, upon the testimony of Piatt, he was convicted and
sentenced to the calaboose at New Orleans.
" The news of Wetzel's misfortunes soon reached the upper country, and
the, first office of the western boatman, on reaching New Orleans, was to
visit the prison of poor Wetzel and offer whatever was in his power for his
comfort And relief. Petition after petition was sent to the Spanish Gover
nor, praying for his release, but without effect. Col. Richard Brown, and
the Hon. P. McGuire, both distinguished raen at that day iu Western Vir
ginia, upon their own personal responsibility, at different times, offered the
Governor two thousand dollars for his release. The Governor, placing it
on the grounds of having no discretion in the matter, declined a compli
ance with their request; expressing, at tbe same time, a desire for Wetzel's
relief, but refusing a pardon, on the grounds that his sovereign required
the judgments of his majesty's courts executed to the letter.
"In that dark and loathsome prison, denied of all the comforts of life,
even the light of heaven, did the poor sufferer drag out four years and a
half of his mortal existence, with uo other inmates than the meanest
malefactors that were ever incarcerated for crime. Hope of obtaining his
liberty had fled. His friends that had previously made such disinterested
and noble efforts for his reUef, had long since given over in despair, or
regarded him as having fell a victim to his confinement, and by that
unwelcome monster been released from his chains. Wetzel regarded him
self, for the balance of his days, as a permanent fixture to the damp floor
of his prison, and almost ceased to pray for liberty.
" While Wetzel was counting with fevered anxiety every day as it passed,
as bringing him nearer the day of his deliverance from his miserable and
loathsome dungeon ' to that house not made with hands,' the Ught of hope
suddenly broke upon the solitude of his cell. Previous to this time, there

538 APPENDIX.
existed in Western Pennsylvania, what was familiarly known as the Whisky
Insurrection. One of the leaders of the insurgents was General Bradford
of Pennsylvania, who was prosecuted for resisting the execution of the
laws, and to avoid which he fled to Louisiana. Bradford was a man of
education, talents, and fine address. He claimed the protection of the
Spanish Governor, and soon became a favorite at his court. He soon
learned the condition of Wetzel. He knew his former character and great
services, and deeply sympathized with him in his misfortunes. Bradford
immediately set himself about procuring the release of his old friend and
countryman from that loathsome prison house in which he was dying by
the inch. He approached the Governor in person, in behalf of Wetzel.
He represented his services, his sufferings, and forraer good character, and
soon found that the kind nature of the Governor, too, sympathized with the
unfortunate prisoner in his sufferings. Bradford's hopes of success soon
ripened into reality, and through him Wetzel once more enjoyed his
liberty. " In those days a story was current, concerning the manner in which
Bradford effected tbe release of Wetzel, that savored strongly of the mar
velous. The Governor, it was said, through fear of his sovereign, refused
to exercise the pardoning power, although he very much desired that
Wetzel should be discharged from imprisonment; and to supply the want
of unbiassed power, resort was had to stratagem. The plan was briefly this :
Wetzel was to feign himself sick ; a report was to be put in circulation that
he had died ; a coffln-maker and undertaker was to be called on. His body
was coffined and carried out of the prison and delivered to his friends,
amongst whora was Bradford, and by thera carried out of the city, where
the dead man was taken alive out of tbe coffin and it sunk in the Mississippi.
Wetzel was conveyed to Natchez, and was taken into the faraily of a rela
tive of his, who was a wealthy planter near that place. Whether this story
vras true or not, could make but little difference to the unfortunate victim
of circumstances ; but the facts, about which there is no dispute, give it the
color of probabiUty. Certain it was that Wetzel was taken from prison to
Natchez, where he lived for a number of years in the family of a Mr.
Sicks, a cousin of Wetzel's. His long confinement in the damp and
unhealthy prison had undermined his constitution aud rendered him unfit
for his former vocation of frontier service. From long inactivity, his lirabs
had grown stiff and clumsy ; his stalwart arms had lost their strength, and
his whole system lacked the physical power to qualify him for the woods.
He was kindly treated and cared for by his friends, working when it suited
him and playing when he pleased.
" After the purchase of Louisiana by the United States, Sicks removed
on to the Brasos, in Texas, taking Wetzel with him. He remained a mem
ber of the family of his friend for a number of years, graduaUy yielding

APPENDIX. 539
to the encroachments of disease, until his powerful form could resist no
longer, when he died. On the banks of the Brasos, in the yet far distant
wilderness, sleeps, without mark or monument, the ashes of the intrepid
scout, the fearless and gallant spy. Who can listen to the winds as they
moan among the branches that overhang his grave, and reflect upon the
services, persecutions and sufferings of the fearless spirit that once animated
the entombed remain^s, without shedding a tear of sympathy for the name
of Lewis Wetzel?
" Wetzel never could forget the wrongs he had suffered from his O'wn
country and counti-ymen. Piatt, in particular, he denounced as a viUain.
Inasmuch as he (Piatt) is one of the promiaent characters mentioned in
this letter, a brief notice of his career and end might, by the curious, be
desirable. " After the conviction of Wetzel, Piatt was arrested for kiUing an Indian
on Red River, was tried, convicted, and placed in the calaboose at New
Orleans, where he remained nine years, and was then taken out and hung.
" I have thus given you all the facts within my knowledge, not already
before the public. I regret my inability to fix dates, but I have given cer
tain historical events, about the date of which there is no dispute, from
which to infer the date of the events mentioned in the letter.
" Yours, truly, &c.,
"E. E. ECKLEY."

X
(Page 411.)

SURRENDER OF THE MORAVIAN TRACT TO THE UNITED STATES.
Articles of agreement made and concluded at Gnadenhiitten, in the county
of Tuscarawas, aud State of Ohio, between Lewis Cass, on the one part,
of the United States, being thereto specially authorized by the President
of the United States, and Lewis D. Schweinitz, on the part of the Society
of the United Brethren for propagating the Gospel among the Heathen,
being thereto specially authorized by the said Society.
I. The said Society agree to retrocede to the United States the three
tracts of land, lying ou the Muskingum River, in the county, of Tuscarawas,
and State of Ohio, containing each four thousand acres ; which said tracts
of land were granted to the said Society by patent from the United States,
on tho 24th day of February, 1798, for certain purposes therein expressed,
which wiU more fuUy appear by reference to tbe said patent, and to the act
of Congress of June 1st, 1796, entitled " An act regulating the grants of land
appropriated for military services, and for the Society of the United Breth-

540 APPENDIX.
ren for propagating the Gospel araong the Heathen," by authority of which
act, said patent was issued.
The conveyance required by tbis article shaU be made by a good and
sufficient deed, at the expense of the said Society, as soon after the ratifi
cation of this agreement as possible ; which deed shall convey to the United
States all the right and title vested in the said Society by the patent aud
act of Congress aforesaid.
II. The schedule hereunto annexed, contains a descriptive list of aU the
leases which have been granted by said Society, together with the number
of the lots, and the quantity of acres granted to each person, the com-
mencement and expiration o^the lease, and the rent which each tenant is
bound to pay. These leases, as soon as this agreement is ratified, shall, by
a sufficient conveyance in law, be assigned by the said Society to the Uni
ted States, after which the rights and duties created by tbe said leases shaU
be vested in, and performed by the United States.
III. Whereas, by the documents which accompanied the President's
message to the Senate, of December 9th, 1822, it appears that the sum of
$43,356 was actually expended by the said Society upon the objects con
nected with the trust created by the acceptance of the said patent, to the
21st of August, 1822, and that the whole receipts from the said land were
$9,998.58i cents, leaving, a balance due to tbe said Society of $32,587.50|
cents, of which sum $15,840.10^ cents were actuaUy expended in procuring
the title of the said land, and in surveying the same (the repayment of
which, amounting now, with the interest, to $2,596.13 cents, was guarantied
by the ordinance of Congress, of September 3d, 1788), and in the settlement
at an early period of these remote tracts, being more than seventy mUes
distant from the nearest white settlement, iu cutting roads, building tem
porary mills, and making other improvements, which have greatly added
to the value of the said lands, all which will more fully appear by a refer
ence to the said dociiments ; and, whereas, the comraittee of the Senate, to
whora the said documents were referred, state that " it appears satisfacto
rily to the committee, that the Society, ever since they assumed the trast,
have, under circumstances of great difficulty and embarrassment, exerted
their best endeavors to effect the great and benevolent purposes of civiUz
ing, improving, and protecting the Indians thus placed under their charge,
and have, with persevering industry, care, and fidelity, performed the duty
and trust reposed in them by Congress ;" and, whereas, by an account this
day exhibited by the treasurer of said Society, it appears that the said three
tracts of land are actually holden for the payment of a debt of $6,654.25
cents, being part of the said sum of $15,840.10J cents, expended as afore
said: Now, therefore, it is reasonable, and it is hereby agreed, that the sum
of six thousand six hundred and fifty-four dollars and twenty-five cents,
shall be paid by the United States to the said Society, out of the first pro-

APPENDIX. 541
ceeds of the sales of the said land, in fnll consideration of the retrocession
hereby raade, and of all the expenses which the said Society have incurred
in the execution of the trust aforesaid, in relation to the said land.
IV. It is also agreed that ten acres of ground, including the church,
called Beersheba, and the grave yard, on the Gnadenhutten tract ; and, also,
the church lot, parsonage houses, and grave yard in the town of Gnaden
hiitten; the house and lot occupied by John 6. Derauth; the house and lot
occupied by David Peter, both which lots are about five rods in front by
sixteen rods in depth ; and the house and lot occupied by Frederick Dell,
which lot does not exceed two acres ; and, also, the Missionary house and
grave yard at Goshen ; shall be conveyed, by the United States, in perpetu
ity to the said Society, free frora any condition or limitation whatever.
V. Whereas, John Andreas, Neigaman, Jacob Winsch, and Catharine
Tschudy, have erected houses in the town of Gnadenhiitten upon lots of
five by fifteen rods, under leases from the said Society, conditioned for the
payment, the two former of the annual rent of $1.65 cents each ; and the
two latter of $3.60 cents each, with an understanding that the said lessees
should hold the said lots, as long as they complied with the conditions of
the lease, and should also be aUowed the privilege of selling the same at
their option ; it is therefore agreed, that tho said John Andreas, John Neiga
man, Jacob Winsch, and Catharine Tschudy, shall be allowed a preemption
light to the said lots, to be exercised in such manner as may be determined
by the United States.
VI. Five of the leases, yet unexpired, to wit : those to Isaac Simmers,
Jesse Walton, Barzillai Walton, and Boaz Walton, on the Gnadenhiitten
tract, and to Jesse HUl, on the Salem tract, contain clauses for the payment
of such sums, as may be awarded to them in tbe mode pointed out by the
said leases, for certain improvements upon the tracts leased to them. It is
therefore agreed, that a sum not exceeding one thousand eight hundred
doUars shall be paid, by the United States, out of the proceeds of the said
land, should that amount be awarded to the said persons. But should the
amount awarded to them fall short of them, then the United States shall
be held to pay only the amount actually awarded. Joseph Rhoads having
leased a lot for the terra of thirty-three years, from the 1st of April, 1^1, and
having advanced to the said Society the consideration therefor, amounting
to $215.25 cents, under an agreement that the same, at the expiration of
the lease, shaU be refunded to the said Rhoads, without interest, the said
Society agree to procure a surrender to the United States of the said lease
within the term of four years, aud to save the United States harmless from
the effect of any stipulation in the said lease.
VII. It is expressly understood and declared, that this agreement, and
every part thereof, is to be null and void, unless the assent of those persons
can be obtained, for whose benefit the trust specified in the said act of

642 APPENDIX.
Congress, was created, and who are in tho said patent declared to be the
" Christian Indians who were formerly settled there, or the remains of that
Society, including Killbuck and his descendants, and the nephew and descen
dants of the late Captain White Eyes, Delaware Chiefs," or such persons as are
now entitled to the benefits of the trust. It being the intention of the parties
hereunto that no responsibility shall be incurred by the said Society in con
sequence of the retrocession herein provided for. The motives of the Soci
ety being to divest themselves of a trust burdensome to them and useless
to the Indians, that their funds devoted to charitable purposes may be
applied where there is a prospect that they will produce some permanent
advantage. VIII. This agreement, after the same shall be ratified by the United
States, and by the said Society, and after the assent aforesaid shall be ob
tained, shall be obligatory ou the parties hereunto. LEWIS CASS,
LEWIS D. DE SCHWEINITZ.
Gnadbnhotten, AtTGUST 4th, 1823.
I do hereby certify that the above is a true copy of the original.
JACOB KUMMER, Secretary of the Society.
Whereas, at a stated annual meeting of the Society of United Brethren
for promulgating the Gospel among the Heathen, held at Bethlehem, on
the twenty-sixth day of Septeraber, in the year of our Lord one thousand
eight hundred and twenty-three, agreeable to adjournment, duly notified to
the members of said Society by the President and Directors thereof, an
agreement made and entered into on the fourth day of August last, at
Gnadenhutten, Tuscarawas county, State of Ohio, between Lewis D. de
Schweinitz, as Agent of said Society, thereunto specially authorized by said
Society, and Lewis Cass, as Agent of the United States, thereunto specially
authorized by the President of the United States, whereof the foregoing is a
certified copy was submitted to tbe said Society for consideration and ratifi
cation, whereupon the same was by a unaniraous vote of said Society duly
accepted, confirmed, and ratified. Now, therefore, we, the President and
Secretary of the said Society, do, by these presents, certify that the said
agreement, and each and every article thereof, is hereby, on the part of said
Society, duly adopted, confirmed, and ratified.
In testimony whereof, we, the President and Secretary of the Society,
have hereunto signed onr names, and affixed the Seal of the
[l. S.J jgogjgty tjjig 26th day of September, in the year of our Lord, 1823.
C. G. HUEFFEL, Ep. U. Per.
President United Brethren's Society for propagating the Gospel.
JACOB KUMMER, Secretary of the Society.

APPENDIX. 543
Articles of agreement, made this eight day of November, in the year of our
Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty-three, between Lewis Cass
Commissioner on the part of the United States, and Zacharias, or Koot-
alees, John Henry, or KiUbuck, Charles Henry, or Killbuck, Francis Henry
or KUlbuck, John Peter, Tobias, John Jacob, and Matthias, or Koolotshat-
shees, being the descendants and representatives of the Christian Indians,
who were formerly settled upon three tracts of land, lying on both sides of
the Muskingum River, in the State of Ohio, containing four thousand acres
each, which were granted by patent from the United States, dated Febraary
twenty-fourth, seventeen hundred and ninety-eight, in pursuance of the act
of Congress of June first, seventeen hundred and ninety-six, entitled " Au
act regulating the grants of land appropriated for mUitary services, and
for the Society of the United Brethren for propagating the Gospel among
the Heathen," to the said Society for the use of the said Christian Indians,
or the remains of that society, including Killbuck and his descendants,
and the nephew and descendants of the late Captain White Eyes, Dela
ware Chiefs.
Article I. The descendants and representatives aforesaid, for them
selves and for the society of the Christian Indians aforesaid, do hereby
declare their full assent to the agreement concluded at Gnadenhutten, in
the State of Ohio, on the fourth day of August, one thousand eight hun
dred and twenty-three, between Lewis Cass, Commissioner on the part of
the United States, and Lewis D. de Schweinitz, Agent for the Society of
United Brethren aforesaid.
Article II. The said descendants and representatives do for themselves,
and for the Christian Society of Indians aforesaid, forever cede to the
United States all right and interest in and to the tracts of land before de
scribed, the use of which was granted to them by the patent and act of
Congress aforesaid.
Article III. The United States agree to pay to the United Christian
Society of Indians, an annuity of four hundred dollars, which annuity shall
commence as soon as a sura is received frora the sale of the said lands
sufficient as a principal stock to produce the amount of four hundred dol
lars, at an interest of six per centum per annum. But the proceeds of the
sales of the lands are to be appUed to the sums secured to be paid to the
Society of United Brethren, and to tbe lessees described in the sixth article
of agreement, executed at Gnadenhutten aforesaid, before the creation of
the principal stock provided for in this agreement, and the annuity of four
hundred doUars shaU continue so long as the said Society of Christian
Indians shall occupy their present residence.
Article IV. It is further agreed, that, should the said Society of Chris
tian Indians be desirous of removing from their present residence, the
United States wiU secure to them a reservation, containing not less than

544

APPENDIX.

twenty-four thousand acres of land, to be held by them upon the usual
condition of Indian reservations, so long as they shall live thereon ; and
when the said Christian Society shall remove to the said reservation, then
the annuity herein granted shall cease.
Article V. This agreement shall be obligatory upon the parties, when
the same shall be ratified by the United States.
Done at Detroit, in the Territory of Michigan, the day and year aforesaid.
Lewis Cass,
Zacharias, or Kootalees, his x mark,
John Henry,
Charles Henrt, or Killbuck, his x raark,
Francis Henrt, or Killbuck, his x mark,
John Peter, his x mark,
Tobias, his x raark,
John Jacob, his x mark,
Matthias, or Koolotshaskeeb, his x mark.
In presence of
E. S. Forstth,
Adam Aaman,
Henrt S. Coles.
The contract or articles of agreement entered into on the Sth day of
November, 1823, between Governor Cass, and the Representatives of the
Christian Indians, for the tracts of laud specified in the agreement, and on
the conditions therein contained, is approved. JAMES MONROE.
Washington, Feeruart 10, 1824.
NOTE. — The deed of retrocession, iu pursuance of the foregoing articles, waa executed
1st April, 1S24, and is on file in the General Land Office.

XI.
(Page 453.)

BOCKENGEHELAS, THE WAR-CHEEF OF THE DELAWAEES.
The name of this noted chief is -written Bukongehelas, by Judge Bur
net (Notes p. 68), and is still preserved to designate a small tributary of the
Great Miami, in Logan county.
Our opinion that he is the same personage who was prominent in Western
Pennsylvania during the French and English war, as Shingess, is sus
tained by the fact that Heckewelder, in his biographies of the prominent
Delawares of Pennsylvania and Ohio, omits altogether to mention Shingess

APPENDIX. 545
(although intimately acquainted with him at Tuscarora, in 1764), but speaks
of " Buckengilla, so caUed by the white people," or PachgantschihiUas, as
the name is written in the Moravian Narrative. This adds probabUity to
the proposition that they were the same individual. (Am. PhU. Trans
vol. iv. p. 391.)
We first hear of Shingess in 1753. Washington then crossed the AUe
ghanies on his well known mission to the westem tribes, and in his diary,
after describing the forks of the Ohio, near Pittsburgh, he says : " About
two mUes from this, on the south-east side of the river, at the place where
the Ohio compauy intended to erect a fort, lives Shingess, king of the Del
awares." Washington called upon him to invite him to council at the
Logstown. Shingess at first attended, but afterwards made his wife's sick
ness an excuse for absence. He was probably in the French interest.
In 1755, Shingess was so active in the border war, that the Govemor of
Pennsylvania offered a reward of seven hundred dollars for his head, and
that of a Captain Jacobs. In Gordon's Pennsylvania (Appendix, p. 618),
several of the expeditions led by Shingess are detailed, and it is inciden-
taUy raentioned that a prisoner, one John Craig, was adopted by him as a
son. During the French and English war, when the Governor of Pennsylvania
sent C. P. Post to negotiate with the Ohio tribes, mention is often made in
his journal of Shingess, and uniformly to his advantage. On tbe first
mission, August 28, 1758, Post writes : " We set out from Sawcunk, in com
pany with twenty, for Kushcushkee. On the road, Shingess addressed
himself to me, and asked if I did not think that if he came to the English
they would hang him, as they had offered a great reward for his head. I
told him that was a great while ago, 'twas all forgotten and wiped away
now." Post dined with Shingess on the 29th, when the latter observed,
that although the English had offered a great reward for his head, yet he
had never thought to revenge himself, but was always very kind to such
prisoners as were brought in, and that he would do all in his power to
bring about a peace, and -wished he could be sure the EngUsh were in
earnest for peace also. Heckewelder says of Shingess, that he was " the
greatest Delaware warrior of his time," and that were his war exploits on
record, they would form an interesting document, though a shocking one.
Mr. Heckewelder gives him a good character, and adds (Hist. Ind. Na
tions, p. 264) : " Passing one day with him, in the sumraer of 1762, [this was
at Tuscarora, on the Muskingum, during Post and Heckewelder's unsuc
cessful mission, ante p. 187,] near by wbere his two prisoner boys (about
twelve years of age) were amusing theraselves with his own boys, and he
observing me looking that way, inquired what I was looking at. On my
replying that I was looking at his prisoners, he said, ' When I first took
them they were such, but they are now my children; eat then: victuals out
23*

546 APPENDIX.
of the same bowl !' which was saying as much as that they, in aU respects,
were on an equal footing with his own children — alike dear to him."
Though of smaU stature, Heckewelder observes, Shingess had a great
mind. In a narrative of Hugh Gibson's captivity among the Delawiire Indians
(Transactions Mass. Hist. Soe, 3d Series, vol. vi. p. 146,) he mentions the
chief as living in 1757, at the mouth of Big Beaver, where Gibson " re
mained, dweUing in king Shingess' tent, until autumn." Gibson states
that " about the middle of October, 1758, he was taken to Kus-ko-ra-vis,"
(Tuscarawas) the western branch of Muskingum. Custalogo, or King
Beaver, who Uved at this tovm of Tuscarora until 1764, was a brother of
Shingess, and Heckewelder's Narrative describes the latter as dwelUng
there in 1762, when the ceremony of mourning for the loss of Shingess'
wife occurred, as already described. Ante, chap. xiv. p. 193.
When, shortly before Col. Bouquet's expedition to the Muskingum, this
Indian town was deserted, Shingess removed westward, and finally was
seated on the Miami of the Lake, if our hypothesis that he was Bockenge
helas is admitted.
His appearances by the latter designation, until 1787, are already detailed
in the preceding pages. His salutation of General Clark, at the conference
in 1786, at the mouth of the Great Miami, is usually quoted as follows: "I
thank the Great Spirit for having this day brought together two such great
warriors as Bokongahelas and General Clark." See Gen. Butler's narra
tive of tbe incident. Ante, p. 452.
In 1791, the government of the United States sent Hendrick Aupaumet,
a friendly Mohican, or Stockbridge chief, as an envoy to the Indian viUa
ges on the Maumee. His narrative is pubUshed in vol. iii. of Pennsylvania
Historical Transactions, page 61. He arrived on the 13th of July, at the
" grand council fire, caUed the Eapids, about eighteen miles frora the raouth
of this Miamie Eiver," where, he adds, were two Delaware towns, in one of
whieh Captain Pipe resided. Here stood Col. McKee's house and stores for
the Indians, at that time under the charge of Captain Elliott. Captain
Hendricks delivered his messages, and long talks were interchanged — first
with a party of Delawares, living sixty mUes up the river, whose Sachem
was named Tautquhgtheet — then with a deputation of Shawanese ; aud
again with the Delawares, who were represented by " Hobakon, or Pipe-
Sachem," and the " head Heroe of the Delawares, named Puckonchehluh."
All parties then adjourned, to "meet at the Glaze or Forks — Naukhunwh-
nauk— where the Shawanese, Delawares, and part of the Miamis had
towns." The journey was by water, commencing on the 24th. On the
27tb, they " arrived at the first village of the Shawanese, and next day at
the Forks, where were other two viUages of Shawanny ; also, one of the
towns of Delawares, and the town of Wenuhtuko-wuk, and some outcast

APPENDIX. 547
Cherokees, and part of the Miamis, and about eight railes from this place
the town of Big Cat— this town the last on the river."
On the 1st of August, while waiting the arrival of deputies from westem
tribes, Hendricks says : " At this time I went up to Big Cat's town with my
brother ; arrived there in the evening ; went to the house of Pohquonnop-
pet, the Sachem — the Delawares having left word that we should give them
notice of my coming. Early in the morning of the 2d instant, ray uncle
sent a runner to inform the chiefs that we were arrived, and will meet them
in council. My business was to comfort Big Cat for the death of his
brother, who died last spring. He was the chief Sachem of the Delawares ;
also, Pukonchehluh for the death of his son." After an expression of con
dolence, Hendricks mentions that the "Head Heroe, whose name is Puck
onchehluh, got up with the strings and belt," and raade a suitable response.
He alludes to hira afterwards as " the great heroe." On the 28th of August,
" Wunummon, or VermUlion, a Heroe " (probably Wingemund), appears
on the stage, and although the Delaware chiefs seeraed pacific in their dis
positions, yet the outside pressure was too great for the Mohican envoy to
accoraplish any thing. McKee was active — au " alarming voice " from the
Shawanese viUages near the Ohio, announced new aggressions by the Long
Knives — Simon Girty made his ill-omened appearance on the 29th, and
finally there arrived some messengers from the wUy Brant, to tum the
scale against the Americans. The peace party went with the tide, " the
head warrior, Puckonchehluh, in response to the message of the Five Na
tions, admitting that the Indians, who were one color, had one heart and
one head, and that if one nation was struck all must feel it." Captain Hen
dricks was wholly unsuccessful, although, as he says, "endeavoring to do
his best in the business of peace."
Drake, in his " Book of the Indians," thus notices an act of magnanimity
by Bockengehelas in the foUowing year, 1792 : " Col. Hardin, Major True-
man, and several others, were sent, in May of that year, by Washington,
with a flag of truce, to the Indian nations of the west, particularly the
Maumee towns. They having arrived near the Indian town of Au Glaize,
on tho south-west branch of the Miami of the Lake, fell in with some Indi
ans, who treated them well at first, and made many professions of friend
ship, but in the end took advantage of them, while off their guard, and
murdered nearly aU of them. The interpreter made his escape, after some
time, and gave an account of the transaction. His name was WUliam
SmaUey, and he had been some time before with the Indians, and had
learned their manners and customs, which gave him sorae advantage in
being able to save himself. He was at first conducted to Au Glaize, and soon
after to ' Bukungahela, king of the Delawares,' by his captors. The chief
told those that committed the murder, " he was very sorry they had killed
the men ; that instead of so doing, they should have brought them to the

548 APPENDIX.
Indian towns, and then, if what they had to say had not been liked, it
would have been time enough to have killed them then. Nothing, he said,
' could justify them for putting them to death, as there was no chance for
them to escape.' The truth was, they killed them to plunder their effects.
Buckongahelas took Smally into his cabin and showed him great kindness ;
told him to stay there while he could go safely to his former Indian friends.
(He having been adopted into an Indian famUy in place of one who had
been killed in his former captivity.) While here with Buckongahelas,
which was near a month, M. SmaUy said the chief would not permit him
to go abroad alone, for fear, he said, that the young Indians would kill
him." Judge Burnet, in his Notes on the North-west Territory, page 68, gives a
spirited description of a visit to " the venerable old Delaware chief, Bukon
gehelas, who was living at the Ottawa town, on the Auglaize," during which
an Indian game of ball was ordered for the amusement of the white guests.
At the celebrated treaty of Greenville, August 3, 1795, " Bukongehelas, a
Delaware chief," in his speech immediately before the council closed, re
marked, proudly : " All who know me, know me to be a man and a war
rior ; and I now declare, that I wiU, for the future, be as strong and steady
a friend to the United States as I have heretofore been an active enemy."
An incident of the war then closed, with some further particulars of this
remarkable character, are copied from Thatcher's Indian Biography, vol.
ii. p. 177-9, as follows :
" He (Buckongahelas) was indeed the most distinguished warrior in the
Indian confederacy, and as it was the British interest which had induced
the Indians to commence, as well as to continue the war, Buckongahelas
relied on their support and protection. This support had been given, so
far as relates to provisions, arms, and ammunition ; and in the celebrated
engagement, on the 20th of August, 1794, which resulted in a complete
victory by General Wayne over the combined hostile tribes, there were said
to be two companies of British mUitia from Detroit on the side of tbe Indians.
But the gates of Fort Mimms being shut against the retreating and wounded
Indians, after the battle, opened the eyes of Buckongahelas, and he deter
mined upon an immediate peace with the United States, and a total aban
donment of the British. He assembled his tribe and embarked thera in
canoes, with tbe design of proceeding up the river, and sending a flag of
truce to Fort Wayne. Upon approaching the British fort, he was requested
to land, and he did so : ' What have you to say to me?' said he, addressing
the officer of the day. It was replied, that the commanding officer wished
to speak with hira. ' Then he may come here,' was the reply. ' He wUl
not do that,' said the officer, ' and you will not be suffered to pass the fort
if you do not comply.' ' What shaU prevent me?' said the intrepid chief.
' These,' said the officer, pointing to the cannon of the fort. ' I fear not

APPENDIX. 549
your cannon,' replied the chief. ' After suffering the Americans to defile
your spring, without daring to fire on them, you cannot expect to frighten
Buckongahelas ;' and he ordered the canoes to push off, and passed the
fort. " Never after this would he, like the other chiefs, visit the British, or re
ceive presents from them. ' Had the great Buckingehelos lived,' says Mr.
Dawson, alluding to these circumstances, 'he would not have suffered the
schemes projected by the prophet (brother of Tecumseh) to be matured.'
And the same writer states, that on his death-bed he earnestly advised his
tribe to rely on the friendship of the United States, and desert the cause
of the British. This was in 1804.
" In Dawson's Memoirs of Harrison, Buckongahelas is mentioned as being
present at a council of the chiefs of various tribes, called at Fort Wayne in
1803, for the purpose of ratifying a negotiation for land, already proposed
in a former one which met at Vincennes. The Governor carried his point,
chiefly by the aid of an influential Miami chief, and by being ^boldly
seconded in every proposition by the Pottawatamies, who (as Mr. Dawson
states), were entirely devoted tq the Governor.' It is not our intention here to
;;iscuss at length the character of this transaction, which rather belongs to
the general history of the period. How the Delaware chief and the Shaw-
anees understood it, and how they expressed their sentiments, raay be in
ferred from the following statement of Dawson :
" ' When the transaction at the council of Vincennes was mentioned, it
caUed forth all the wrath of the Delawares and the Shawanese. The re
spected Buckingehelos so far forgot himself that he interrupted the Gov
ernor, and declared with vehemence, that nothing that was done at Vin
cennes was binding upon the Indians ; that the land which was there
decided to be the property of the United States, belonged to the Delawares ;
and that he had then with him a chief who had been present at the transfer
made by the Piankishaws to the Delawares of all the country between the
Ohio and White rivers, more than thirty years before. The Shawanese
went still further, and behaved with so much insolence that the Governor
was obliged to tell them that thoy were undutiful aud rebellious children,
and that he would withdraw his protection from them until they had learnt
to behave themselves with more propriety. These chiefs immediately left
the council house in a body.'
" Subsequently the Shawanoes submitted, though it does not appear that
Buckongahelas set them the example : and thus, says the historian, the
Governor overcame all opposition, and carried his point.
"Itis said of Buckongahelas, that no Christian knight ever was more
scrupulous in performing all his engagements. Indeed he had all the
lualifications of a great hero— a perfect Indian independence— the inde-
lendence of a noble nature, unperceived to itself, and unaffected to others."

550 APPENDIX. XII.
(Page 459.)
SUBSEQUENT INDIAN TREATEES.
The foUowing signatures of Ohio Indians to subsequent treaties are com
piled for the sake of comparison by the curious. To the treaty at Green
ville, Aug. 3, 1795, the foUowing names, among many others, are attached:
Wyandots.— Ta,rhe, (or Crane), J. WiUiams, jr., Tey-yagb-taw, Ha-ro-en-
yow, (or Half King's son), Te-haaw-to-rens, Aw-me-yee-ray, Staye-tah,
Sha-tey-ya-ron-yah, (or Leather Lips), Daugh-shut-tay-ah, Sha-aw-run-the.
Shawanese. — Mis-qua-coo-na-caw, (or Red Pole), Cut-the-we-ka-saw, (or
Black Hoof), Kay-se-wa-e-se-kah, Wey-tha-pa-mat-tha, Nia-wym-se-ka,
Way-the-ah, (or Long Shanks), Wey-a-pier-sen-waw, (or Blue Jacket), Ne-
que-taugh-aw, Hah-goo-see-kaw, (or Captain Eeed.)
Delawares. — Teta-boksh-kee, (or Grand Glaise King), Le-man-tan-quis, (or
Black King), Wa-bat-thoe, Magh-pi-way, (or Red Feather,) Kik-tha-we-
nund, (or Anderson), Bu-kon-ge-he-las, Peikee-lund, Welle-baw-kee-lunds,
Peikee-tele-mund, (or Thomas Adams), Kish-ko-pe-kund, (or Captain Buf
falo), Ame-na-he-han, (or Captain Crow), Que-shawk-sey, (or George Wash
ington), Wey-Win-gins, (or BUly Siscomb), Moses.
Ottawas. — Au-goosh-away, Kee-no-sha-meek, La Malice, Ma-chi-we-tah,
Tho-wo-na-wa, Se-cah, Che-go-nicks-ka, (au Ottawa from Sandusky).
Delawares of Sandusky. — Haw-kin-pum-is-ka, Pey-a-mawk-sey, Eeyn-
tue-co, (of the Six Nations living at Sandusky).
Witnesses. — H. De Butts, first A. D. C, and Secretary to M. G. Wayne,
Wra. H. Harrison, Aid-de-Carap to M. G. Wayne, T. Lewis, Aid-de-Camp to
M. G. Wayne, James O'Hara, Quarter Master General, John Mills, Major
of Infantry and Adjutant General, Caleb Swan, P. M. T. U. S., Geo. Dera-
ten, Lieut. ArtUlery, Vigo, P. fris La Fontaine, Ant. Lasselle, H. Laselle, Jn.
Bean Bien, David Jones, Chaplain U. S. L., Lewis Beufait, R. Lacharabre,
Jas. Pepen, Baties Coutien, P. Navarre.
Sworn Interpreters. — Wm. Wells, Jacques Laselle, M. Morins, Bt. Sans
Crainte, Christopher MiUer, Robert WUson, Abraham M WUliams, Isaac t«J
Zane. June 7, 1803. — Gen. Harrison concluded a treaty defining the extent of
the reservation at Vincennes by the treaty of Greenville. Among the Del
awares signing it was " Bu-kon-ige-helas " and John Johnston, U. S. Factor,
and Hendrick Aupaumet, chief of Muhhecon, were witnesses.
On the ISth of August, 1804, the Delawares ceded a tract of country be
tween the Ohio and Wabash rivers, and below the tract ceded by the treaty

APPENDIX. 551
of Fort Wayne aud the road leading from Vincennes to the Falls of the
Ohio. The Delawares signing it were, Teta Buxika, Bokongehelas, Alimee,
or George White Eyes, Hocking Pomskann, Tomaquee, or the Bearer.
The United States recognized the right of the Delawares to the country
bounded by the White River on the north, the Ohio on the south, tho gen
eral boundary line running from the mouth of the Kentucky river on the
east, and the tract ceded by the treaty of Fort Wayne on the west and south.
At the treaty of Fort Industry, on the Maumee river (July 4, 1805), relin
quishing the title to the Western Reserve, the foUowing Indians partici
pated :
Ottawas. — Nekirk, or Little Otter, Kanachewan, or Eddy, Mechimen-
duck, or Big Bowl, Aubaway, Ogonse, Sawgamaw, Tusquagan, or McCarty,
Tondawgame, or the Dog, Ashawet.
iSAawanees.— Weyapurscawaw, or Blue Jacket, Cutheaweasaw, or Black
Hoof, Anonaseehla, or CivU Man, Isaac Peters.
Wyandots.— Tarhee, or the Crane, Miere, or Walk iu Water, Thateyyana-
yoh, or Leather Lips, Tschanendah, Tahunehawetee, or Adam Brown,
Shawrnnthie. Munsee and UcZaware.- Puchconsittond, Paahmelot, Pamoxet, or Arm
strong, Pappellelond, or Beaver Hat.

xni.
(Page 613.)

ORDINANCE OF 1787.
The following important document is transferred from Land Laws of the
United States (Edition of 1828), page 356:
An Ordinance for the government of the Territory of the United States Northwest of the
river Ohio.
Be it ordained by the United States in Congress Assembled, That the said
territory, for tho purposes of temporary government, be one district, subject,
however, to be divided into two districts, as future circumstances may, in
the opinion of Congress, make it expedient.
Be it ordained by the authority aforesaid. That the estates, both of resident
and non-resident proprietors in the said territory, dying intestate, shaU de
scend to, and be distributed among, their children, and the descendants of
a deceased cbUd, in equal parts ; the descendants of a deceased chUd or grand-
chUd to take the share of their deceased parent in equal parts among them :

652 APPENDIX.
And where there shaU be no chUdren or descendants, then in equal parts to
the next of kin in equal degree ; and, among coUaterals, the children of a
deceased brother or sister of the intestate shall have, in equ<al parts among
them, their deceased parents' share; and there shall, in no case, be a dis
tinction between kindred ofthe whole and half-blood; saving, in all cases,
to the widow of the intestate her third part of the real estate for life, and
one-third part of the personal estate ; and this law, relative to descents and
dower, shall remain in fuU force untU altered by the legislature of the dis
trict. And, untU the governor and judges shall adopt laws as hereinafter
mentioned, estates in the said territory may be devised or bequeathed by
wiUs in writing, signSd and sealed by him or her, in whora the estate raay be
(being of fuU age,) and attested by three witnesses ; and real estates raay be
conveyed by lease and release, or bargain and sale, signed, sealed, and deliv
ered by the person, being of full age, in whom tl\e estate raay be, and attest
ed by two witnesses, provided such wills be duly proved, and such convey
ances be acknowledged, or the execution thereof duly proved, and be
recorded within one year after proper magistrates, courts, and registers
shall be appointed for that purpose ; and personal property may be trans
ferred by delivery ; saving, however to tbe French and Canadian inhabi
tants, and other settlers of the Kaskaskias, St. Vincents, and the neighbor
ing villages who have heretofore professed themselves citizens of Virginia,
their laws and customs now in force among thera, relative to the descent
and conveyance of property.
Be it ordained by the authority aforesaid. That there shall be appointed,
from time to tirae, by Congress, a governor, whose coraraission shall con
tinue iu force for the term of three years, unless sooner revoked by Con
gress ; he shall reside in the district, aud have a freehold estate therein iu
1000 acres of land, while in the exercise of his office.
There shall be appointed, from time to tirae, by Congress, a secretary,
whose coraraission shall continue in force for four years unless sooner
revoked; he shall reside in tbe district, and have a freehold estate therein
in 500 acres of land, while in the exercise of bis office ; it shall be his duty
to keep and preserve the acts and laws passed by the legislature, and the
public records of the district, and the proceedings of the governor in his
Executive department; and transmit authentic copies of such acts and
proceedings, every six raonths, to the secretary of Congress : There shall
also be appointed a court to consist of three judges, any two of whom to
form a court, who shall have a comraon law jurisdiction, and reside iu the
district, and have each therein a freehold estate in 500 acres of land while
in the exercise of their offices ; and their commissions shall continue in
force during good behavior.
The governor and judges, or a majority of them, shall adopt and pubUsh
in the district such laws of the original States, criminal and civil, as may

APPENDIX. 553
be necessary and best suited to the cii-cumstances of the district, and report
thora to Congress from tirae to time ; which laws shaU be in force in the
district untU the organization of the General Assembly therein, unless dis
approved of by Congress ; but, afterwards, the legislature shaU havo
authority to alter thera as they shall think fit.
The governor, for the time being, shall be commander-in-chief of the
mUitia, appoint and commission all officers in the same below tho rank of
general officers ; all general offlcers shall be appointed and commissioned
by Congress.
Previous to the organization ofthe General Assembly, the governor shaU
appoint such magistrates and other civil officers, in each county or town
ship, as he shall flnd necessary for the preservation of the peace and good
order in the same : After the General Assembly shall be organized, tbe
powers and duties of the magistrates and other civil offlcers, shall be regu
lated and defined by the said assembly ; but all magistrates and other civil
offlcers, not herein otherwise directed, shall, during the continuance of this
temporary government, be appointed by the govemor.
For the prevention of crimes and injuries, the laws to be adopted or
made shall have force in all parts of the district, and for the execution
of process, criminal and civil, the governor shall make proper divisions
thereof; and he shall proceed, from time to time, as circumstances may
require, to lay out the parts of the district iu which the Indian titles shall
have been extinguished, into counties and townships, subject, however, to
such alterations as raay thereafter be made by the legislature.
So soon as there shall be 5000 free male inhabitants of full age in the
district, upon giving proof thereof to the governor, they shall receive
authority, with time and place, to elect representatives from their counties
or townships to represent them in the General Assembly : Prcmded, That,
for every 500 free male inhabitants, there shall be one representative, and
so on progressively with the number of free male inhabitants, shall the
right of representation increase, until the number of representatives shall
amount to 25 ; after which, the number and proportion of representatives
shall be regulated by the legislature: Provided, That no person be eligible
or qualified to act as a representative unless he shall have been a citizen
of one of the United States three years, and be a resident in the district, or
unless he shall have resided in the district three years ; and, in either case,
shall likewise hold in his own right, in fee simple, 200 acres of land within
the same : Provided, also. That a freehold in 50 acres of land in the district,
having been a citizen of one of the States, and being resident in the dis
trict, or the like freehold and two years residence in the district, shall be
necessary to qualify a raan as an elector of a representative.
The representatives thus elected, shall serve for the term of two years ;
and in case of the death of a representative, or reraoval from office, the
24

554 APPENDIX.
governor shaU issue a writ to the county or township for which he was a
member, to elect another in his stead, to serve for the residue of the term.
The General Assembly, or Legislature, shall consist of the governor,
legislative council, and a house of representatives. The legislative councU
shall consist of five members, to continue in office five years, unless sooner
removed by Congress ; any three of whom to be a quorum : and the mem
bers of the council shall be nominated and appointed in the following
manner, to wit : As soon as representatives shall be elected, the governor
shall appoint a time and place for them to meet together ; and, wheu met,
they shaU nominate ten persons, residents in the district, and each pos
sessed of a freehold in 500 acres of land, and return their names to Con
gress ; five of whom Congress shall appoint and commission to serve as
aforesaid ; and, whenever a vacancy shall happen in the council, by death
or removal from office, the house of representatives shall nominate two
persons, qualifled as aforesaid, for each vacancy, and return their names to
Congress ; one of whom Congress shall appoint and commission for the
residue of the term. And every five years, four months at least before the
expiration of the time of service of the members of council,- tho said house
shall nominate ten persons, qualified as aforesaid, and return their names
to Congress ; five of whom Congress shall appoint and commission to serve
as members of the councU flve years, unless sooner removed. And the
governor, legislative councU, aud house of representatives, shall have
authority to mako laws in all cases, for the good government of the dis
trict, not repugnant to the principles and articles in this ordinance estab
lished and declared. And all biUs, having passed by a majority in the
house, and by a majority in the council, shall be referred to the govemor
for his assent ; but no bill, or legislative act whatever, shall be of any force
¦without his assent. The governor shall have power to convene, prorogue,
and dissolve the General Assembly, when, in his opinion, it shaU be expe
dient. The governor, judges, legislative council, secretary, and such other offi
cers as Congress shall appoint in the district, shall take an oath or affirma
tion of fidelity and of offlce ; the governor before the president of Con
gress, aud all other offlcers before the governor. As soou as a legislatm-e
shall be formed in the district, the council and house assembled in one
room, shall have authority, by joint ballot, to elect a delegate to Congress,
who shall have a seat in Congress, with a right of debating but not of voting
during this temporary government.
And, for extending the fundamental principles of civil and religious
liberty, which form the basis whereon these republics, their laws and con
stitutions are erected ; to fix aud establish those principles as the basis of
all laws, constitutions and governments, which forever hereafter shall be
formed in the said territory : to provide also for the establishment of States,

APPENDLX. 555
and permanent government therein, and for their admission to a share in
the federal councils on an equal footing with the original States, at as early
periods as may be consistent with the general interest:
It is hereby ordained and declared by the authority aforesaid, That the fol
lowing articles shaU be considered as articles of compact between the ori
ginal States and the peoplecnd States in the said territory, and forever remain
unalterable, unless by common consent, to wit :
Art. 1st. No person, demeaning himself in a peaceable and orderly
manner, shall ever be molested on account of his mode of worship or reli
gious sentiments, in the said territory.
Art. 2d. The inhabitants of the said territory shaU always be entitled
to the benefits of the writ of habeas corpus, and of the trial by jury ; of a
proportionate representation of the people in the legislature ; and of judi
cial proceedings according to the course of the common law. AH persons
ShaU be bailable, unless for capital offences, where the proof shall be evi
dent or the presumption great. All fines shaU bo moderate; and no cruel
or unusual punishments shall be inflicted. No man shall be deprived of
his liberty or property, but by the judgment of his peers or the law of the
land ; and, should th« public exigencies make it necessary, for the common
preservation, to take any person's property, or to demand his particular
services, full compensation shall be made for the same. And, in the just
preservation of rights and property, it is understood and declared, that
no law ought ever to be made, or have force in the said territory, that shaU,
in any manner whatever, interfere v/ith or affect private contracts or en
gagements, bona fide, and without fraud, previously formed.
Art. 3d. Religion, morality, and knowledge, being necessary to good
government and the happiness of raankind, schools and the means of edu
cation shall forever be encouraged. The utmost good faith shall always be
observed towards tho Indians ; their lands and property shall never be
taken from them without their consent ; and, in their property, rights, and
Uberty, they shall never be invaded or disturbed, unless in just and lawful
wars authorized by Congress ; but laws founded in justice and humanity,
shall, from time to time, be made for preventing -wrongs being done to
them, and for preserving peace and friendship with thom.
Art. 4th. The said territory, and the States which may bo formed
therein, shaU forever remain a part of this confederacy of the United States
of America, subject to tho Articles of Confederation, and to such altera
tions therein as shall be constitutionally made; aud to aU the acts and
ordinances of the United States in Congress assembled, conformable thereto.
The inhabitants and settlers iu the said territory shaU be subject to pay a
part of the federal debts contracted or to be contracted, and a proportional
part of the expenses of government, to be apportioned on them by Con
gress according to the same common rule and measure by which appor-

656 APPENDIX.
tionments thereof shall be made on the other States ; and the taxes, for
paying their proportion, shall be laid and levied by the authority and
direction of the legislatures of the district or districts, or new States, as in
the original States, within the time agreed upon by the United States in
Congress asserabled. The legislatures of those districts or new States,
shall never interfere with the primary disposal of the soil by the United
States in Congress assembled, nop with any regulations Congress may find
necesary for securing tbe title in such soil to the bona fide purchasers. No
tax shall be imposed on lands the property of the United States ; and, in
no case, shall non-resident proprietors be taxed higher than residents.
The navigable waters leading into the Mississippi and St. Lawrence, and
the carrying places between the same, shall, be common highways, and
forever free, as well to the inhabitants of the said territory as to the citi
zens of the United States, and those of any other States that may be ad
mitted into the Confederacy, without any tax, impost, or duty, therefor.
Art. 5th. There shall be formed in the said territory, not less than three
nor more than five States ; and the boundaries of the States, as soon as
Virginia shall alter her act of cession, and consent to the sarae, shaU be
come fixed aud established as foUows, to wit : The Western State in the
said territory, shall be bounded by the Mississippi, the Ohio, an^ Wabash
rivers ; a direct line drawn from the Wabash aud Post St. Vincent's, due
North, to the territorial line between the United States and Canada ; and,
by the said territorial line, to the Lake of the Woods and Mississippi. The
middle State shall be bounded by the said direct Une, the Wabash from
Post Vincent's, to the Oluo ; by the Ohio, by a direct line,-drawn due North
from the month of the Great Miami, to the said territorial line, and by the
said territorial line. The Eastern State shall be bounded by the last men
tioned direct line, the Ohio, Pennsylvania, and the said territorial line :
Provided, however, and it is further understood and declared, that tbe boun
daries of these three States shall be subject so far to be altered, that, if
Congress shall hereafter find it expedient, they. shaU have authority to
form one or two States iu that part of the said territory which lies North
of au East and West Une drawn through the Southerly bend or extreme
of lake Michigan. And, whenever any of tho said States shaU have 60,000
free inhabitantsthorein, such State shall be admitted, by its delegates, into
the Congress of the United States, on an equal footing with the- original
States in all respects whatever, and shall be at liberty to form a permanent
constitution and State government : Provided, the constitution and govem
ment so to be formed, shall be repubUcan, and in conformity to the princi
ples contained in these articles ; and, so far as it can be consistent with
the general interest of the confederacy, such admission shall be allowed at
an earlier period, and when there may be a less number of free inhabitants
in the State than 60,000.

APPENDIX. 567
Art. 6th. There shall be neither slayery nor involuntary servitude in
the said territory, otherwise than in the punishment of crimes, whereof the
party shall have been duly convicted : Provided, always, That any person
escaping into the same, frora whom labor or service is lawfully claimed in
any one of the original States, such fugitive may be lawfuUy reclaimed and
conveyed to the person claiming his or her labor or service as aforesaid.
JBe it ordained by the authority aforesaid. That the resolutions of the 23d
of April, 1784, relative to tho subject of this ordinance, be, and the same
are hereby repealed and declared null and void. Done, &c.