USA > Indiana > An illustrated history of the state of Indiana: being a full and authentic civil and political history of the state from its first exploration down to 1875 > Part 23
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58
Our readers will remember that the British occupation of the northwestern outposts was distasteful to the Indians, who,
* The compiler of this work, who visited Fort Wayne, received much more valuable information from John P. Hedges and Judge Borden. He was also aided by J. L. Williams, F. P. Randall, John Hough, Mr. Edger- ton, and many others.
34.1
ALLEN COUNTY - EARLY HISTORY.
during the old French war, had continued fast allies of their French father. This dissatisfaction was soon augmented into a spirit of revenge by the insolence of British officers, and the Indians, in the Spring of 1763, were strongly united under the great Ottawa chief, Pontiac, determined upon driving the red coats from their country. Francis Parkman, the ablest American writer on the Indian wars of North America, has given us a volume on this Pontiac war -a literary treasure of rare merit-in which he gives us a graphic and thrilling account of the fate of Ensign Holmes and his feeble garri- son at Fort Wayne. Our mention of this affair is necessarily brief.
The Miamis of the Maumee had taken up the hatchet at the will of the Ottawa chief, and in the Spring of 1763, the valley around Kekionga resounded with many a savage war- whoop. Holmes had observed the savages gathering with unusual demonstrations, and, suspecting their designs, kept a close watch upon their movements. Nevertheless he became a victim to savage ingenuity.
An Indian girl with whom Hohines was intimate, and in whom he placed too much confidence, by compulsion, it is said, went into the fort and told Holmes that there was a sick squaw lying in a wigwam not far from the fort, and expressed a desire that he should go and see her. The fatal hour had come .* Unsuspectingly, and with a view to serve and per- haps relieve the supposed sick squaw, (knowing perhaps some- thing of medicine; for, it would seem, had there been a surgeon in the fort, he would have been more likely to have at least been called on by the Ensign than for Holmes to have gone himself,) preceded by the Indian girl, he was soon without the enclosure of the garrison, and advancing with cautious steps in the direction of the hut wherein lay the object of his phi- lanthropic mission. Nearing a cluster of huts, which are described to have been situated at the edge of an open space, " hidden from view by an intervening spur of the woodland," the squaw directed him to the hut wherein lay the supposed
* Parkman's Conspiracy of Pontiac; Bryce's History of Fort Wayne, etc.
342
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
invalid. Another instant -a few more paces-and the sud- den crack of two rifles from behind the wigwam in view, felled Holmes to the earth, and echoed over the little garrison, start- ling the guards and inmates into momentary surprise and wonder. Amid the confusion, the sergeant unthoughtedly passed without the fort to ascertain the cause of the rifle shots. But a few paces were gained, when, with loud, tri- umphant shouts, he was sprung upon by the savages and made a captive; which, in turn, brought the soldiers within, about nine in all, to the palisades of the garrison, who clam- bered up to see the movement without, when a Canadian, of the name of Godfroi, (or Godfri) accompanied by " two other white men," stepped defiantly forth, and demanded a surrender of the fort, with the assurance to the soldiers that, if at once complied with, their lives would be spared; but, refusing, they should " all be killed without mercy." The aspect before them was now sadly embarrassing. Without a commander - with- out hope, and full of fear, to hesitate, seemed only to make death the more certain, and the garrison gate soon swung back upon its hinges; the surrender was complete, and English rule, at this point, and for a time, at least, had ceased to exer- cise its power.
But we have some local traditions of this affair. Mrs. Laura Suttenfield, one of the " Mothers " of Fort Wayne, living there since 1814, whose portrait appears in another place in this work informed one of the compilers that she became acquainted with this woman in 1815; that she and her family lived neighbors to her for several years. At the period of Mrs. S.'s acquaint- ance with the woman, she had a son, a man of some years. On one occasion, being at the hut of the woman, the man, her son, came in intoxicated, and somewhat noisy, and the woman, by way of an apology to Mrs. S., remarked that he was a little SQUABBY, or drunk; and concluded with the remark that he was a SAGINASH, (English); and from the age of the man, the infer- ence is drawn that he was a son of Holmes. After leaving here, the woman took up her residence at Raccoon Village. She lived to a very old age, and was known to many of the early settlers of Fort Wayne. Mrs. Suttenfield's recollections
343
ALLEN COUNTY - FORT WAYNE.
of the account she received are, that the Indians at the time of the conspiracy, (probably induced by Godfroi and his asso- ciates) forced her to act as she did towards Holmes, which is quite probable.
In 1764, Captain Morris was sent with a small detachment of English soldiers, and again the English fort on the St. Joseph was garrisoned.
CHAPTER XLII.
ALLEN COUNTY - FORT WAYNE.
F ROM 1764 to 1794, there is but little to record in the history of Fort Wayne, except those general events of war which are sufficiently noticed elsewhere, and which form, more properly, a part of the general history of the State. Passing on to Wayne's campaign, and over that part of its progress which brought his army into the field, we find him at the head of the Maumee in October, 1794. The work of erecting a fort was immediately commenced, and was com- pleted on the twenty-second of the month, when Lieut .- Col. Hamtramck gave it the name of FORT WAYNE. Previous to this date the place was not known by that name.
This was the starting point of tho present city, the nucleus around which the civilization, industry and wealth of northern Indiana early began to accumulate, and to which it still centres.
Colonel Hamtramck commanded at Fort Wayne from its erection in 1794 to 1796, during which time nothing of any great importance transpired.
After the surrender of Detroit to the British, Tecumseh devised a scheme for the reduction of Forts Wayne and Har- rison, and in September, 1812, began to assemble his warriors
344
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
in the vicinity of the forts. The garrison at Fort Wayne, at this time, was under the command of Captain Rhea, " whose habits of intemperance," says Mr. Knapp, "disqualified him for the place; and during a period of two weeks the safety of the fort, principally owing to the incompetency of the com- mander, was in jeopardy."
An express had been sent to General Harrison requesting reinforcements, but many long weary days passed, bringing no tidings of the expected assistance. At length, one day a white man and four Indians arrived at the fort on horseback. The white man was Major William Oliver. He was accompa- nied by four friendly Indians, among whom was the brave Logan. The garrison had been in a state of cruel suspense for more than two weeks, wishing ardently for reinforcements on the one hand, and fearfully expecting the approach of the British forces on the other. It is not surprising, then, that in this extremity they were anxious to hear news from any quarter.
The little party, with Oliver at its head, had reached the fort in defiance of five hundred Indians -" had broken their ranks and reached the fort in safety." Oliver reported that Harrison, having been informed of the dangerous situation of Fort Wayne, had determined to march to its relief. Ohio was raising volunteers. Eight hundred were then assembled at St. Mary's, Ohio, sixty miles south of Fort Wayne, and would march to the relief of the fort in three or four days, or as soon as they were joined by reinforcements from Kentucky. Oliver prepared a letter, announcing to General Harrison his safe arrival at the besieged fort, and giving an account of its beleagured situation, which he dispatched by his friendly Shawanoes, while he determined to take his chances with the occupants of the post. As soon as an opportunity presented itself, the brave Logan and his companions started with the message to Governor Harrison. They had scarcely left the fort when they were discovered and pursued by the hostile Indians, but, passing the Indian lines in safety, they were soon out of reach.
The Indians now began a furious attack upon the fort, but
345
ALLEN COUNTY --- FORT WAYNE.
the little garrison, with Oliver to cheer them on, bravely met the assault, repelling the attack day after day, until the army approached to their relief. During this seige the command- ing officer, whose habits of intemperance rendered him unfit for the command, was confined in the "black-hole," and the junior officer assumed charge. This course was approved by the General, on his arrival, but Captain Rhea received but little censure, undoubtedly owing to his services in the Revo- lutionary war. In those days, to have been a gallant officer in the Revolutionary war was, to official imperfections, as charity is to sins.
On the sixth of September, the army under General Harri- son moved forward to relieve Fort Wayne. On the seventh it reached a point to within three miles of the St. Mary's river, making the remaining distance to the river on the eighth, on the eve of which they were joined by two hundred mounted volunteers, under Colonel Richard M. Johnson. On the ninth the army marched eighteen miles, reaching "Shane's crossing," on the St. Mary's, where it was joined by eight hundred men from Ohio, under Colonels Adams and Hawkins. At this place, chief Logan and four other Indians offered their services as spies to General Harrison, and were accepted. Logan was immediately disguised and sent forward. Passing through the lines of the hostile Indians, he ascertained their number to be about fifteen hundred, and entering the fort, he encouraged the soldiers to hold out, as relief was at hand. General Harrison's force, at this time, was about three thousand five hundred. "Friday morning," says Mr. Knapp, " we were under marching orders after an early breakfast. It had rained, and the guns were damp ; we were ordered to discharge them and re-load, as we were then getting into the vicinity of the enemy, and knew not how soon we might be attacked. A strong detachment of spies, under Captain James Suggett, of Scott county, Ohio, marched considerably ahead of the army. Indications of the enemy having advanced from their position at Fort Wayne, for the purpose of watching the movements of our army, were manifest, and Captain Suggett came upon the trail of a large party, which he immediately
.
346
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
pursued. After following the trail for some distance, he was fired on by an Indian who had secreted himself in a clump of bushes so near to Suggett that the powder burnt his clothes, but the ball missed him. The Indian jumped from his covert and attempted to escape, but Andrew Johnson, of Scott county, Ohio, shot him."
On the return of Suggett's party, a breastwork was erected in expectation of an attack from the Indians, but the night passed with repeated alarms but no formidable onset.
Mr. Bryce, in his history, tells us that on the tenth of Sep- tember the army expected to reach Fort Wayne, but thought, in all probability, that the march would be a fighting one, as the Indians were encamped directly on their route at the Black Swamp, but this expectation was happily disappointed, as " at the first grey of the morning of the tenth of September, the distant halloos of the disappointed savages revealed to the anxious inmates of the fort the glorious news of the approach of the army. Great clouds of dust could be seen from the fort, rolling up in the distance, as the valiant soldiery under General Harrison moved forward to the rescue of the garrison, and soon after daybreak the army stood before the fort. The Indians had beat a retreat to the eastward and northward, and the air about the old fort resounded with the glad shouts of welcome to General Harrison and the brave boys of Ohio and Kentucky."
This siege of Fort Wayne occasioned great inconvenience and considerable loss to the few settlers who had gathered around the fort. At the date of its commencement there was quite a little village clustered around the military works, but with the first demonstrations of the enemy, the occupants of these dwellings fled within the fort, leaving their improve- ments to be destroyed by the savages. Every building out of the reach of the guns of the fort was leveled to the ground, and thus was the infant settlement totally destroyed.
During the siege the garrison lost but three men, while the Indians lost about twenty-five. There was a plenty of provi- sions in the fort, and the soldiers suffered only from anxiety and a fear of slaughter at the hands of the savages.
: Nathaniel Field
348
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
The following information concerning the movements of General Harrison at Fort Wayne, on the occasion, is compiled from the writings of Messrs. Knapp and Bryce:
"The second day following the arrival of the army at Fort Wayne, General Harrison sent out two detachments, with the view of destroying the Indian villages in the region of country lying some miles around Fort Wayne, the first division being composed of the regiments under Colonels Lewis and Allen, and Captain Garrard's troop of horse, under General Payne, accompanied by General Harrison. The second division, under Colonel Wells, accompanied by a battalion of his own regi- ment under Major Davenport, (Scott's regiment,) the mounted battalion under Johnson, and the mounted Ohio men under Adams. These expeditions were all successful; and after the return of the divisions under Payne and Wells, General Har- rison sent them to destroy Little Turtle Town, some twenty miles northwest of the fort, with orders not to molest the buildings formerly erected by the United States for the benefit of Little Turtle, whose friendship for the Americans had ever been firm after the treaty of Greenville. Colonel Simrall most faithfully performed the task assigned him, and on the even- ing of the nineteenth returned to the fort.
" In addition to these movements, General Harrison took precaution to remove all the undergrowth in the locality sur- rounding the fort, extending toward the confluence of the St. Joseph and St. Mary, to where now stands Rudisill's mill, and westward as far as St. Mary, to the point where now stands the Fort Wayne College; thence southeast to about the point of the residence of the late Allen Hamilton, and to the east down the Maumee a short distance. And so well cleared was the ground, including a very large part of the entire limits of the present site of the city of Fort Wayne, that it was said by those who were here at that early day, and to a later period, a sentinel 'on the bastions of the fort looking westward, could see a rabbit running across the grounds as far as so small an object was discernible to the naked eye.' The seclusive points were thus cut off, and the Indians now had no longer any means of concealing their approach upon the fort. Some
349
FORT WAYNE -- EARLY SETTLEMENT.
thirty or forty acres of what is now known as the Cole farm, extending to the junction of the rivers, and just opposite the Maumee, was then known as the Public Meadow, which of course was then, as it had long before been, a considerable open space. The soldiers were thus readily enabled to observe the approach of any hostile movement against the fort, and to open the batteries, with formidable effect, upon any advance that might be made against the garrison from any direction."
It will be observed that Fort Wayne, up to this period, and for several years after, was but little else than a military post. This may be said of it during the whole period of its exist- ence, or from 1705, when the first French stockade was erected, until the final evacuation of Fort Wayne in 1819. During this time it had been in charge of different commanders. Captain Hugh Moore succeeded Captain Rhea, in 1812, who, in 1813, was superseded by Joseph Jenkinson. In the spring of 1814, Major Whistler took charge of the post and repaired it, or built an addition to it, which he occupied until 1817, when he was succeeded by Major J. H. Vase, who held the command until the post was permanently evacuated in 1819.
CHAPTER XLIII.
FORT WAYNE- EARLY SETTLEMENT.
A SIDE from a mere military post, we may date the first settlement of the town of Fort Wayne in 1815. In this year a few houses began to appear some distance from the fort, but usually under the protection of its guns. One of these, and perhaps the first, was built about the center of what is now Barr street, near the corner of Columbia, which, some years afterwards, being removed from its original location, formed a part of the old Washington Hall building, on the
350
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
southwest corner of Columbia and Barr streets, wnich was destroyed by fire in 1858. In referring to incidents of pioneer life in these years, Mr. Bryce, in his work, says that during 1818, "a year remarkable for the congregation of many Indi- ans here, the red man is referred to as presenting a general spirit of order and love of peace, not surpassed by many of the whites of the time, and well worthy of emulation in many instances. It was no uncommon thing, in their visits to Ke-ki-on-ga, seeing a new hut, to inquire whether the new- comer was quiet-if he 'make no trouble for Injun,' etc. And their intuition and close observation were presented very often in the most striking and remarkable light. On one occasion, about this period, an elderly Miami had come to the village to trade a little. Soon meeting his old friend, Jas. Peltier, the interpreter, his observing eye, in looking about the place, soon fell upon a hut near, that had but recently been built. 'Ugh!' ejaculated the Indian; 'new wigwam!' He now became most anxious to know if the white man was peaceable- whether he come to make trouble for Injun? The two now soon entered the hut of the new-comers, and shook hands with the inmates. The Indian at once began to look about him, and to inquire how many warriors (children) they had, etc. Eyeing the matron of the house or squaw, as the Indian called her, and observing that she was quite sad, the Indian became anxious to know what was the matter with her - he was sure she was sick. The woman averred that she was not sick. But the Indian knew she was. Turning to his old friend P. again, after looking at the woman and striking his hand upon his breast, exclaimed, 'White squaw sick at heart;' and was anxious to know if she had not left something behind at the settlement from which they came to Fort Wayne. In response to this, the woman quickly replied that she had left her only son, by her first husband, at Piqua, and that she was anxious to have him with her, but her present husband did not want him to come. 'Didn't I tell you white squaw sick at heart!' replied the Indian, much elated; and he at once proposed to go to Piqua and bring her son to her, if Mr. P. would give him a blanket-which was readily agreed to.
351
FORT WAYNE - EARLY SETTLEMENT.
Receiving a note from the mother, the next morning early, with two Indian ponies, the generous red man was on the road to Piqua, and in five days from that time returned with the boy ! The woman's heart was eased, and as the faithful Indian gazed upon the happy meeting of the mother and the son, his heart warmed within him, and turning to his friend Peltier, he exclaimed: 'Isn't that good medicine for the white squaw!' The Indian now became the faithful protector and friend of the woman and her son, assuming the special guardianship of the latter; telling the husband that if he ever heard a word of complaint, either from the son or mother, as to ill treatment, ' he would have his hide, if he had to lay in the Maumee river until the moss had grown six inches on his back.' "
Attached to the fort, and extending west of it, to about where the " Old Fort House " afterwards stood, and embracing about one acre of land, was a well cultivated garden, belonging to the commanding officer, always filled, in season, with the choicest vegetables. West of this was the company's garden, extending to about where the Hedekin House afterwards stood. This was also well tilled, affording suitable labor for the soldiers when military discipline was slackened. The main thoroughfare in those days, extended westward from the fort along what is now the canal.
Not far south of the fort in what is now known as "Taber's addition," was located the burial ground of the garrison, and where also were deposited others who died, not immediately connected with the garrison. Lieutenant Ostrander, who had one day unthoughtedly fired upon a flock of birds passing over the fort, had been reprimanded by Captain Rhea, and because of his refusal to be tried by a court-martial, was con- fined in a small room in the garrison, where he subsequently died, was among the number buried in this old place of inter- ment. Another place of burial, where also a number of Indi- ans were interred, extended along the northwest corner of Columbia and Clinton streets, and to the adjoining block. Many bones were removed from this point some years ago, in digging cellars, and laying the foundations of buildings.
In 1846, while some parties were making an excavation for
352
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
a foundation wall, in the vicinity of Main and Calhoun streets, they dug up and removed the remains of an Indian, who had long before that been buried, with a gun excellently mounted, some trinkets of silver, and a glass pint flask of whisky, which liquid was still preserved in at least as good a state as when buried. The hair was also in a fair state of preservation, though the skull was much decayed, as were the gun mount- ings corroded.
At that date, the old Indian burying ground was still a scene of attraction. The stranger would often see swinging from the bough of a tree, in some grove near the bank of the river, the infant of the Indian mother; or a few little log enclosures, where the bodies of adults sat upright, with all their former apparel wrapped about them, and their trinkets, tomahawks, etc., by their sides. Such were a few of the features of pioneer Fort Wayne.
In those days a "new comer " was hailed with delight. He was welcome. There was "enough and to spare " of every- thing but money. Land was plenty and cheap, and the few pioneers, tired of seeing only each other, always extended a cordial welcome to new settlers.
One of the most general ways by which Fort Wayne was reached in early days, was by water, either by way of the St. Mary's or Maumee rivers, usually in flat boats, and what was then called pirogues. The old boat landing was just below the fort, about where the Maumee bridge was afterwards erected. For many years, and down to 1838, it was a common sight for residents to see pirogues and flat boats, laden with various articles of merchandise, whisky, flour, furs, etc., load and unload at this little commercial center. This system of river navigation was finally impeded, and completely obstructed by dams which were erected on the St. Mary's for mill pur- poses. The first of these was built on the St. Mary's in 1822, · at the " Devil's Race Ground," by Captain James Riley. Two years later, Samuel Hanna and Joseph Barnett built a mill about three miles from Fort Wayne, at the present site of " Beaver's Mill."
Fort Wayne was, for many years, one of the principal depots
353
FORT WAYNE - EARLY SETTLEMENT.
of the fur trade. Many persons became wealthy in the busi- ness. Indeed it was the principal commerce of the place during the first ten or fifteen years of its settlement. Rich- ardville, the last celebrated chief of the once great Miami nation of Indians, who was licensed as a trader with his people at Fort Wayne, as early as 1815, is said to have accu- mulated an immense fortune mainly by this trade and the sale of lands. Mr. Schoolcraft estimated his wealth some years prior to his death at about two hundred thousand dollars in specie, much of which he had had so long buried in the earth that the boxes in which the money was inclosed had mainly decayed, and the silver itself considerably blackened.
The following short sketch of the early history of Fort Wayne is taken from Mr. Bryce's work : “When Major Whist- ler assumed command of the garrison, in May, 1814, aside from the little band of soldiers here, were the two daughters of the commandant, Mrs. Laura Suttenfield, George and John E. Hunt; Lieutenant Curtiss, and William Suttenfield, hus- band of Mrs. L. Suttenfield. Soon after the war broke out, with many other members of the tribe, including his family, Chief Richardville made his way to the British lines for pro- tection, and with a view, doubtless, to render some aid to the enemy; for, as the reader already knows, but few among the tribes of the northwest remained neutral, or failed to give aid in some way to the British cause. At the close of the troubles in 1814, he again returned to this point, and soon passed on up the St. Mary's, about three miles from Fort Wayne, where he encamped. Major Whistler, desiring to see him, at once sent an interpreter to him by the name of Crozier, requesting him to come immediately to the fort, with which he readily complied. The treaty of Greenville, already referred to, was now about to take place, and the Major desired that the chief should be present, and so requested him; but Richardville was very indifferent about the matter, hesitated, and soon returned to his camp again. A few days subsequently, however, he came back to the fort, where he was now held as a hostage for some ten days, when he at length consented to attend the treaty, and was soon after accompanied thither by Chief
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.