USA > Indiana > Knox County > Vincennes > History of Old Vincennes and Knox County, Indiana, Volume I > Part 14
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OLD FORT SACKVILLE IN 1779
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is perhaps one of the finest rivers in the world, on its banks are several Indian towns, the most considerable is the Ouija [Wea, Quiatenon], where it is said there are 1,000 men capable to bear arms. I found them so nut- merous, and needy, I could not pass without great expense ; the presents though very large, were in a manner despised, saying their ancient father (the French) never spoke to them withoutt a barnfull of goods; having no troops and only a handful of French obliged me to esquiese [acquiesce] in part of their exorbitant demands, which has occasioned a much greater expense than I could have imagined, but I believe it not thrown away, as I left them seemingly well disposed for his majesty's service. I have drawn. . . for 6428 livres in favour of Jean Baptiste dit St. Marie, who has acted as commandant of this place since it was conceded to his majesty. The fair character he bears with the certificate annexed to his account makes me think it just."* Although remaining here little less than a year, Governor Abbott was a power for good in the community, and from the very day of his arrival the history of the old town began to contain brighter chapters. Unlike the general run of Englishmen, he en- tertained the broadest and most liberal views; wonderfully sympathetic in his nature, he shuddered at the suffering of a fellow-being, and strove hard to lighten the burdens and brighten the pathways along which trudged those over whom he had been given official power. By an untiring energy, born of a determination to lessen the cares of his luckless subjects, and a desire to better the social conditions of the community at large, he accom- plished wonderful results. By displaying a sympathy that was deep, honest and sincere, he imbued the natives with higher ideals, brought them to a fuller realization of the amenities of life, and left them in every way better citizens than he found them.t His departure from the old post, in Jan-
* Abbott, who was Lieutenant-Governor of Detroit, had been ordered by His Britanic Majesty's ministry to go to the Old Post and to personally take charge of affairs as the "Superintendent of St. Vincennes." He was not only the first, but was one of the most considerate and gentlemanly English commanders that ever held sway at this post.
t Lieutenant-Governor Abbott was never a partisan. Unlike the general run of British officers, he always sympathized with wretched humanity. A further illustra- tion of his honorable methods and humane policies-so at variance with those of Governor Hamilton-is given in a letter he wrote General Carleton from Detroit June 8, 1778, advising against the policy of the murderous Hamilton, in which he says: "Your Excellency will plainly perceive the employing of Indians on the rebel frontiers has been of great hurt to the cause, for many hundreds would have put themselves under His Majesty's protection was there a possibility; that not being the case, these poor, unhappy people are forced to take up arms against their sovereign, or be pillage and left to starve; cruel alternative. This is too shocking a subject to dwell upon. Your Excellency's known humanity will certainly put a stop to such proceedings, as it is not people in arms that Indians will ever daringly attack; but the poor, inoffensive families who fly to the deserts to be out of trouble, and who are inhumanly butchered, sparing neither women or children. It may be said it is necessary to employ Indians to prevent them serving our enemies. I will be bold
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nary, 1778, was a pathetic leave-taking, which only illustrated the loyal com- mandant's goodness of heart and showed the kindly feeling he entertained for those with whom he was about to sever relations. As a reciprocal testimonial of their high esteem, the inhabitants gathered about him on the eve of his farewell, and, delegating one of their number to speak for all, gave sincere manifestations of regret and eloquent expressions of gratitude for the unselfish manner in which he had so ardently and arduously labored for their welfare. Before taking his leave, Governor Abbott placed a Frenchman named J. M. P. Le Gras in charge of the British militia. The latter, evidently, did not remain long in command, neither were the British troops in evidence for any length of time, for it was only seven months after Abbott's departure that Captain Leonard Helm came from Virginia and installed himself as the first American commander of the old post, St. Marie Baptiste Racine delivering the fort into his hands without resist- ance. Governor Abbott, soon after his arrival, as previously stated, not only rechristened the fort, but put it in much better shape, a condition in which both Helm and Hamilton found it in 1778-9. It remained in a very good state of preservation until 1816, when it was razed, and nearly all the timber entering into its construction was subsequently used in the erec- tion of the smaller dwellings about the village (the greater number being in Frenchtown) which have since given place to more modern structures. For many years the site of Fort Sackville* had been a mooted question with local historians, no two of whom had ever agreed upon a fixed location. Many of the older inhabitants contended that it was located on the east bank of the river at a point between Broadway and Buntin streets. This locality, however, was early used as a burial ground by the Piankeshaw Indians, and it is not probable that the savages, with the great veneration they had for their forefathers, would permit their ashes to be distributed by the erection of such a structure within the sacred precincts of their necropolis. There was, however, after the withdrawal of the Indians, from this spot, a fortification of some character built near the foot of Broad- way, but it was not called "Sackville," and it did not long endure. About the same time, the territory lying between the river and First street, and extending from Broadway to Perry street, was used as parade grounds by the troops, and, later, near the corner of Buntin and First streets, a liberty pole was erected and the space surrounding it was utilized for patriotic celebrations and gatherings of a civil and military character. These con-
to say their keeping a neutrality will be equally, if not more, serviceable to us, as their going to war, for the reason I have already given; and surely the presents will prevent them acting against us."
* Goodspeed, in his History of Knox County, says the fort was named in honor of Jean Sacqueville, a French trader and soldier, an employe of the Detroit Fur Company. Several other historians coincide with him; but the conclusion of Mr. Cauthorn and Mr. English, that it was called after an English nobleman bearing the title of Lord Sackville, is evidently the correct solution of a problem that has long been a vexatious one to historical writers.
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ditions no doubt led many people to reach an erroneous idea regarding the location of Fort Sackville. Count Volney, who paid Vincennes a visit in 1796, says that the main street [which is First street] of the village ran in an irregular course along the river and ended in a stockade .* Major Bowman, one of Clark's most trusty lieutenants in his Illinois campaign, and who was with him when the latter stormed Fort Sackville, relates that "during the interview at the church between Hamilton and Clark, a party of Indian warriors, returning from a scalping expedition to the Falls of the Ohio, were discovered as they entered the plain near the village. A party of American troops sent out to meet them killed two on the spot, wounded three, took six prisoners and brought them to town. Two of them, proving to be whites, were released. The Indians were brought down the main street (First) before the gates of the fort, here tomahawked and thrown into the river." General Clark, referring to incidents preceding the interview of which Bowman speaks, in his journal, says that he, with Hamilton and others, "repaired to the church, distant from the fort eighty yards." The church referred to was St. Francis Xavier's, and it was located near the intersection of Second and Church streets, in proximity to the fort, according to Clark's idea of distances, which would not apply at all were the fort located at either Broadway, Buntin or Perry streets." Mr. English is of the opinion that "there may have been two forts called 'Sackville,' erected at different dates, and both not exactly on the same site," which could have been possible, but is hardly probable. Inasmuch as there is no documentary evidence to prove to the contrary, the conclu- sion must obtain that there was but one Fort Sackville.
Butterfield is one of the few historians who advances the idea that Abbott built a new fort remote from the old one, which claim is greatly confused by an attempted computation of the time during which the event is alleged to have taken place. He says, in his History of George Rogers Clark's Conquest of the Illinois and the Wabash Towns, 1778-1779, (pp. 49-50) : "It was, however, some years after the abandonment of the French fort before Abbott erected Fort Sackville, and the two evidently did not occupy the same ground."
When Lieutenant Governor Abbott arrived in Vincennes, as stated in his official report to his superiors, he found St. Marie Jean Baptiste Racine in charge of the fort. The fort was the old French fort, which Racine had received from St. Ange, when the latter took his departure from Vin- cennes in 1764. It was the same one which Lieutenant Ramsey found Racine in possession of when he came here in 1776. Abbott arrived here in May, 1777, and left the place in January, 1778, and in the same year, only seven months later, Captain Helm, as an American officer in charge of Virginia troops, took possession of the only fort located here, which
* This description would seem to indicate that the fort was located at Barnet and First, as the latter has an abrupt ending with the former street.
9841.
not correct. For the
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he subsequently yielded, with the honors of war, to General Hamilton who, in turn, surrendered it to General Clark. Hence there had been no "aban- donment" of the fort prior or subsequent to the time Abbott put in an ap- pearance ; and, as he only remained here eight months, how were it possible for him "some years after the abandonment of the French fort" to erect another fort? There is no question but what he greatly strengthened and fortified the old palisaded fortification, but there is every reason to doubt that he changed the location of the fort. Mr. Butterfield, in the same publication, and on the pages above designated, pursues the subject, relative to Abbott and his fort, as follows: "At the date of Hamilton's being made Lieutenant Governor of Detroit, David Abbott was appointed to a like office for Vincennes; but he did not reach his post until the nineteenth of May, 1777. He met with a cordial welcome from the inhabitants, mostly French Canadians, whom he required to take an oath of fidelity to his government. He formed three companies of militia ; but the savages of the Wabash gave him considerable trouble. 'The Indians are striving,' he wrote, 'to set the French [meaning the Vincennes people] against the English government and have told many of them I should not live long. I am endeavoring to secure myself as well as I can by stockading* the cabin I am in. I have likewise desired Monsieur Rochblave to send me four pieces of cannon from the Illinois, which he writes he has done.' Toward the close of the year Abbott wrote that his stockade was half finished and would be completed in a fortnight.t It was named Fort Sackville.# During the next January he determined to leave his post and return to Detroit. His reasons were to avoid the large expense for presents to the savages (who were soon expected from their hunt) which he would be compelled to incur, or exasperation on their part would follow. He started from Vincennes on the third day of February, 1778, and after a painful journey through the woods arrived with his family at Detroit on the seventh of March-leaving J. M. P. Legras in command of the militia upon his departure."
Although known, at various times, prior and subsequent to the advent of Governor Abbott, under different names, it was the same fort from which Helm wrote his distressing letter to Clark at Kaskaskia; the one which Hamilton took from Helm, which was subsequently captured by Clark from Hamilton, and had previously been occupied by Juchereau, Leonardy, Vinsenne and St. Ange. Since the "marker" has been placed
* Abbott to Carleton, July 9, 1777, Haldimand MSS. and Rocheblare to the former, June 1, 1777, in same. The cannon were iron and were sent on the second of June.
t Abbott to Carleton, Nov. 23, 1777 .- Haldimand MSS.
# The old cathedral at the end of Second street (in Vincennes) marks the spot of the beginning of Caucasian civilization in Indiana, while hard by it on the river bank stood the first rude fort in Indiana, and a little later the stronger Fort Sack- ville. (E. A. Bryan, in "Indiana's First Settlement," Magazine of American History, vol. XXI, p. 394.)
OF
FORT SACKVILLE
CAPTURED BY COL. GEO; ROGERS CLAP FROM THE BRITISH FEB. 25. 1779:
THE GREAT NØPTHWEST TERRITOR
S
1
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at the corner of First and Barnet streets, designating the site* of Fort Sackville, there has been no further controversy regarding the spot cov- ered by the ancient fortification, at the gates of which great international questions have caused a clash of arms between three of the most powerful nations in the world. The "marker," however, was not the means of set- tling the dispute relative to location. An old deed, describing the property on which the fort was located, unearthed only a few years ago, was the instrument which put a stop to further discussions and ultimately fixed the site. From the rudest of fortifications Fort Sackville grew to be a for- midable fortress, and at the time of its capture by Clark from Hamilton, according to a description given by Goodspeed, the historian, it presented a substantial and menacing appearance for a frontier post. The fort proper was located in front of the old catholic church {which then faced the river] in a northwesterly direction and the boundaries of the territory enclosing it composed lots 34, 35, 24 and 25, 23 and 26 [ Block House Square] and extended westward to the river, east to First street, north to Vigo and south to Barnet street. Goodspeed, in describing the location, fortifica- tions and the material entering into the construction of the fort, says : "Upon the river's side, and within forty feet of the water's edge, two lines of palisades, reaching twenty feet above the surface of the earth, con- structed of large timbers from the forest, planted firmly in the ground,
* The monument, which marks the site of Fort Sackville, was a gift to the city of Vincennes by the Fort Sackville Chapter of the Daughters of the Revolution, and was unveiled, amid pomp and ceremony, on Saturday afternoon, November 18, 1905. Miss T. L. Voss, of Indianapolis, State Regent of the Daughters of the Revolution, had charge of the exercises, and Hon. Clarence B. Kessinger delivered the opening address. Mrs. Reuben G. Moore, Regent of the local chapter of the Daughters of the Revolution, made the presentation speech. Master Robert Moore, son of Dr. M. G. Moore and grandson of Mrs. R. G. Moore, and Miss Emily Judah, daughter of Charles B. Judah, and granddaughter of Mrs. Samuel B. Judah, unveiled the monu- ment by drawing aside the large American flag that hid from view the tablet and its inscription. Mrs. Eunice Bedell, aged seventy-two years, the only living daughter of a revolutionary soldier belonging to any of the Indiana chapters, was one of the interested spectators of the ceremonies, having come from Mt. Carmel, Illinois, by special invitation, for the occasion. Preceding the exercises a "procession" was formed at the City Hall, followed by a parade to the historic spot where the unveil- ing of the tablet took place. The procession was headed by the First Regiment Band, under direction of Professor Arthur Blue, and proceeded via Main, Second, Church and Barnet streets, Major Thomas B. Coulter, of the Indiana National Guards, acting as Grand Marshal. Following the band was a squad of Vincennes University Cadets who, upon arrival at the site, stood guard around the monument. Following the cadets, keeping time to martial music, were soldiers of the Civil war, and in the rear of the grizzled, gray and loyal veterans were automobiles and carriages containing the members of the local chapter of the Daughters of the Revolution, venerable men and women, and prominent citizens, who had been selected to take part in the exercises. A large concourse of people assembled to witness the ceremonies, which were marked throughout with inspiring and patriotic features, not least among which was the singing of the High School quartette, directed by Miss Ada Bicking.
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-
were backed by a line of earthworks thrown up about eight feet high, behind which were mounted four six-pounders, en barbette. Along the line of Vigo street, at right angles with the river, and crossing First street, was the principal entrance, a gateway; and opening upon the latter high- way, protected by this, were similar lines of defense, protected by guns of the same calibre at each angle, mounted upon platforms of heavy tim- bers. At the elevation of twenty-five feet at each side of the gateway were swivels, trained to command the approach along the street. The entire walls were pierced at convenient height by a row of port-holes, from which musketry could be fired. A similar palisade, defended by two guns of ten pound calibre, protected the flank next to the church in the rear of the works, south of Barnet street, where there were two towers, or bastions, pierced for musketry, made exceptionally strong against an assault by a line of heavy timbers joined tightly together and covered with earth. Within the fortifications were barracks for one thousand men, a magazine and officers' quarters."
This, however, was not the condition in which Captain Leonard Helm, commanding a small detachment of Virginia troops, found the fort when he took possession on August 6, 1778. Four months later General Hamil- ton, the "hair buyer," became Helm's successor, as will be noted in suc- ceeding chapters, and it was he who put on the finishing touches. Within two months after assuming charge Hamilton had "built a guard house, barracks for four companies, sunk a well, and constructed two large block houses of oak embrazures above for five pieces of cannon each ; altered and lined the stockades, and laid the fort with gravel." And, later, as if to offer an excuse for his surrender, in the face of the statement of the "apple-pie" condition in which he placed the fort, he reasons out the cause of his humiliating defeat thusly: "The officers, who had continued in tents all winter, were exposed to the fire of the enemy's riflemen, as the picketing of the fort was so poorly set up that one might pass the clenched hand between the timbers of the stockades." When he penned the fore- going lines, General Hamilton had evidently forgotten that he had pre- viously written to his superiors of how nicely he had "altered and lined the stockades," etc., or else he was as conscienceless about telling the truth as he was about other matters of decency and propriety. And how are we to know whether the "clenched hand" could, or not, be passed "between the timbers of the stockades?" And who cares? !
The names the old fort has borne since its foundation by Juchereau in 1702 has been ".Vinsenne" (St. Vincent) "St. Ange," "Sackville," "Patrick Henry" and "Knox." The application of the last two names were, respec- tively, in honor of the Governor of Virginia and the secretary of war. There has been no little contention among historians relative to the name "Knox" as applied to "Fort Sackville," some writers maintaining that each was an appellation of a different fort. The late Dr. H. M. Smith who, in 1902, published a volume of "Historical Sketches of Old Vincennes," con-
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taining much interesting information and scintillating with original poetical gems, addressed a letter to an official of the war department, Washing- ton, D. C., inquiring as to the number of forts said to have been erected in Vincennes, and asking if there was any evidence on file there showing that there was ever more than one fort erected here, and if so, had it ever been moved out of the town, as had been supposed by many in reference to Fort Knox. The following reply was received: "The following writers who have said more or less on the history of Fort Sackville (otherwise known as Fort St. Vincent, Fort Patrick Henry and possibly identical with Fort Knox) make no mention of it having been removed from its original location : Butler's History of Kentucky, Dunn's History of In- diana, Brown's Old Northwest, Albuck's Annals of the West, Brice's His- tory of Ft. Wayne, Davidson and Stevenson's History of Illinois, Law's History of Vincennes, and Dr. Haas' Indian Wars of West Virginia." Dr. Smith pursues this interesting subject at considerable length, taking issue with quite a number of contemporaneous writers, and concludes his comments thereon as follows :*
"Dunn, in his history (p. 265) says: 'A fort was built in 1787 and named Fort Knox by General Harmar.' . This is evidently a mistake, but one that might have been easily fallen into. At the time specified Major Hamtramck was in command of this post, where some correspondence occurred between General Harmar, then at his post in Cincinnati; and Major Hamtramck, located at Post Vincennes, which in part is as follows :
"'FORT HAMMAR, Oct. 13, 1788.
" 'Dear Major : . . Let your fort be named Fort Knox,' etc.
"One need not conclude, from this expression of General Harmar, that a new fort had been built. There was precedent and reason why the name of the old fort should be changed. First, for many years the name of the fort at Vincennes had been changed by each successive commander ; second, General Knox was then secretary of war and it would be paying him a compliment to give the fort his name. On the accession of Virginia to the ownership of the country, the fort's name was changed from the name of Sackville to that of Fort Patrick Henry (the then governor and commander-in-chief of the Virginia forces) by General Clark. Third, why should Hamtramck desire to build the fort when there was one already constructed? In 1788 the rights of Virginia had passed to the United States government, when a United States army officer was placed in charge of the post then the pretty compliment to the secretary of war, General Knox, was suggested by General Harmar to Major Hamtramck-'Let your fort be named Fort Knox. As there is no record of a second fort having been built here, or removed elsewhere, the only rational solu- tion for the discrepancies that can be found is in the change of names, as suggested, as no new fort was erected at that time. If Major Hamtramck
* Hubbard Madison Smith, Historical Sketches Old Vincennes, pp. 62, 63.
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actually built a fort in Vincennes in 1788, as some historians assert, where was that fort in 1796, only eight years later, when Count Volney, a dis- tinguished French traveler, visited and remained some days here, and described the town? Mention was made by him of but one fort, and to suppose that this one was the new alleged fort built by Major Hamtramck is to suppose an unreasonable thing. At the time of the alleged building of a second fort for defense the necessity for forts was passing away, and dismantling them was the order of the day, if the condition of Fort Knox was truly represented by Count Volney, when he wrote of it in 1796. At that time the red man was turning his face towards the west, to return no more, and Great Britain had been whipped into good behavior. Thus it will be seen that Vincennes never had but one real fort, although during the passing years subsequent to its erection and the successive offi- cials controlling it it received many names."
"Another* statement has been made," says Dr. Smith, "that the alleged fort was built by Hamtramck early in July, 1788, and that it was moved to a site three miles up the river on the east bank of the same. The fact is, Major Hamtramck did not arrive at Vincennes until July 25th of that year to be commandant of the post. And no evidence exists to show that he built a fort here, except the mere suggestion of General Harmar, October 13, 1788, 'Let your fort be called Fort Knox'; nor is there any evidence to show that Fort Knox, or any other fort, was removed from Vincennes to any place outside of town. There is a tradition existing that the French citizens living in the vicinity of the fort complained to Governor Harri- son that the soldiers at the garrison gave them great annoyance and pe- titioned him to remove them; that he gave heed to their prayer, and that in 1803 the garrison was removed to the high ground facing Buntin street, west of Water street, about the place where the Baltimore & Ohio South- western Railway freight depot stands, and that the palisades of the old fort were used in making the new one."t Dr. Smith further states that the late A. B. McKee told him many years ago that one of the latter's aunts, a Mrs. Buntin, who lived above the Broadway mill site, told him that by looking out of her window north she could see a fort. And tradition says that the palisades of the old fort were used to build it, which leads Mri Smith to remark: "My investigations in relation to these traditions cor- roborate the contentions. After Governor Harrison came here the United States troops were mostly withdrawn from this post, and militia troops took their place. This being the case, he would have jurisdiction over the defences and management of the garrison, hence we can readily see that the governor might wish to please the people and grant their prayer for the removal of the soldiers. Another consideration might have influenced him to take this step, and that is, that the garrison moved up to the position
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