USA > Indiana > Knox County > Vincennes > History of Old Vincennes and Knox County, Indiana, Volume I > Part 20
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t In a letter to Mason Clark says: "Many leading Men in the fronteers had like to have put an end to the enterprise, not knowing my Destination, and through a spirit of obstinacy they combined and did everything that lay in their power to stop the men that had Enlisted, and set the whole Fronteers in an uproar, even con- descended to harbour and protect those that Deserted; I found my case desperate, the longer I remained, the worse it was * I plainly saw that my Principal Design [an attack on Detroit] was baffled I was resolved to push to Kentucky with what men I could gather in West Augusta; heing joined by Capts. Bowman and Helms, who had raised a Compy. for the Expedition, but two thirds of them was stopt by the undesigned Enemies to the Country that I have before mentioned. In the whole I had about one hundred and fifty Men Collected and set sail for the Falls of the Ohio [Louisville]."
* R. G. Thwaites, How George Rogers Clark Won the Northwest, pp. 20, 21, 22. The garb which Mr. Thwaites so interestingly describes was not confined to any nationality, nor did it belong to any particular locality-it was the typical dress of the pioneer hunters and trappers, as well as many of the early colonists of all western and northern sections of the country, and, as he says, was the conventional attire of the borderers during the eighteenth century-"an adaptation to local conditions, being in part borrowed from the Indians."
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from the coast settlements because no longer to be tolerated in a law-abiding community. There were not lacking mean, brutal fellows, whose innate badness had, on the untrammeled frontier, developed into wickedness. Many joined Clark for mere adventure, for plunder and deviltry. The majority, however, were men of good parts, who sought to protect their homes at whatever peril-sincere men, as large of heart as they were of frame, many of them in later years developing into citizens of a high type of effectiveness in a frontier commonwealth. As a matter of history most of them proved upon this expedition to be heroes worthy of the fame they won and the leader whom they followed." Clark had a wonderful faculty of winning the confidence and respect of his men, who looked on him with both awe and admiration. Over these heroic backwoodsmen who had en- gaged in bloody hand-to-hand encounters with savages and fought wild beasts in forest and glen, Clark wrought a magic spell-bringing them within a few days completely under his control by enforcing disciplinary measures among a class who had never known restraint, to which they con- formed without a full realization of having been taught discipline; "and on the 12th of May," he writes in his celebrated letter to Mason, "I set out from Redstone [Brownsville, Pa.], leaving the country in great confusion, much distressed by Indians." Regulation flatboats such as were used by the early settlers were the vessels in which the party floated cautiously down the Monongahela into the waters of the Ohio, stopping at Wheeling and Pittsburg to take on supplies and to provide themselves with munitions of war through requisitions drawn by Governor Henry on the military offi- cials at those points ; and on the last day of May, or first of June, the ex- pedition arrived at the falls of the Ohio (Louisville). They encountered little or no opposition from the numerous Indian war parties they met en route, and having been joined at the mouth of the Great Kanawha by a party of immigrants on their way to the Ozark country, had a pleasant time during the remainder of the voyage. "Corn Island," in the center of the falls, was selected as the spot to pitch tents, for the reason, as Clark* says [his memoirs] "that my secret instructions were yet unknown, even to the party with me, and not knowing what would be the consequence when they should be divulged on our being joined by the whole, I wished to have everything secure as much as possible. I observed the little islandt of about seventy acres opposite where the town of Lewisville now stands, seldom or never was entirely covered by the water. I resolved to take possession and fortify, which I did, in June, dividing the island among the
* This portion of Clark's memoirs, according to the statement of the late William H. English, who was in possession of the original manuscripts at the time of his death, had never appeared in print until published in English's "Conquest of the Northwest," from which valuable work we are enabled to reproduce it.
Here a rude fort, designed after the regulation block-houses of frontier posts, was built. The settlers also planted the first crop of Indian corn on the island, on account of which, it is said, the name Corn Island was applied.
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families for gardens. These families that followed me I now found to be of real service, as they were of little expense, and with the invalids, would keep possession of this little post until we should be able to occupy the main shore, which happened in the fall, agreeable to instructions I had sent from the Illinois. The people on the Monongahela, hearing by word, I had sent them, of this post, great numbers had moved down. This was one of the princi- pal, among other causes, of the rapid progress of the settlement of Kentucky.
Within a few days after taking possession of Corn Island, Colonel Clark was joined by Capts. Helm,1 Bowman,2 Harrod 3 and Montgomery,+
1 Captain Helm was a native of Fauquier county, Virginia-a man of some wealth, having a fair education, and imbued with a spirit of patriotic devotion to country. He was the senior in years of both Clark and Bowman, and, unlike them, was a married man and the proud head of an interesting family, from whom he tear- fully tore himself to answer the call of a soldier. His military career is high and honorable, and the splendid service rendered his country on the field of battle was at the sacrifice of all his earthly belongings. He died worse than poor in Louisville, in 1782, and an inventory of his personal estate showed that he only had two coats, one waistcoat, one hat, one pair of shoes and a blanket, aggregating in value £5 12s. His poverty was induced by his representations, while he was in service of Virginia at the front, selling his landed estates for continental scrip, which, contrary to belief, proved utterly worthless. Much of his property, however, was subsequently recov- ered by his children on the ground of lack of consideration.
2 Major Joseph Bowman came of a wealthy family-a native Virginian, and left his comfortable home, in Frederick county, to go on this expedition. He and Clark were very close friends, and the latter advised with him in some of his most impor- tant military affairs. In the Illinois campaign he stood shoulder to shoulder with Clark, and was next to him in rank. He was probably the only officer of the Amer- ican forces to lose his life in actual service. He died in Fort Patrick Henry about two months after Vincennes was captured from the British, and his remains were interred on the shores of the Wabash near the fort.
3 Captain William Harrod was a brother of James Harrod, after whom Harrods- town, Ky., was named. He had served with Clark in Dunmore's war, and, like his colleague, was also a Virginian, having been born in Big Cove Valley, Franklin county, December, 1737. He was an expert scout, and had the reputation of being a judicious purchaser of army supplies. After the capture of Vincennes he commanded a company in the expedition of Colonel John Bowman, a brother of Joseph, against the Ohio Indians. He was married in Western Pennsylvania in 1765 and died there in 1801, in the locality from which he had recruited a portion of his company.
4 John Montgomery was the fourth and last captain to join the expedition. Like Helm, Bowman and Harrod, he was also born a Virginian, the place of his birth being Bottecourt county and the year 1748. He belonged to the celebrated "long hunters" which did such effective fighting against the savages in the settlements of southwest- ern Kentucky in 1771, had fought with Dunmore at Point Pleasant and figured in many other bloody conflicts against the Indians. After Clark took Kaskaskia he sent Montgomery to Virginia with prisoners. For a time he lived in Tennessee, where he was elected Sheriff, but subsequently returned to Kentucky, to take up arms against the hostile Indians, who were again terrorizing the settlements in the southwest por- tion of that state. In the latter part of November, 1794, in Livingston county, while engaging a host of warriors in deadly conflict, he was killed by a ball from a rifle in the hands of one of the enemy.
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commanding four companies of volunteers, mustered for an invasion of the Illinois country. After consulting Colonel Bowman, the county lieutenant, and several other gentlemen prominent in the Kentucky affairs of that day, Clark decided that it would be inadvisable, at that time, owing to the exposed condition of Kentucky, to take too many men with the expedition. However, it was decided that the entire command of Capt. Montgomery, which was the last to put in an appearance, should be pressed into service. Clark had estimated that, to properly carry out his plan of conquest and assure the success of his campaign, it would require at least five hundred men. Had he succeeded in marshaling such a force, there is no doubt but that the taking of Detroit would have followed the capture of Kaskaskia, Cahokia and Vincennes. The failure to raise the requisite number of troops for carrying out the project as originally conceived by the dauntless Virginian, was due largely to the interference of leading men in the frontier settlements who, Clark says, not knowing his real design, not only discouraged enlistments, but caused the desertion of some who had enlisted. And on this account, after a temporary absence, both Bowman and Helm returned to Corn Island to find that the ranks of their respective commands had been lessened by withdrawals. Clark had not yet found in his lexicon the word fail, and in the face of all these discouraging and distressing circumstances, resolved to carry out his project or die in the attempt. Although he had scarcely more than one hundred and fifty men now mustered, he bid defiance to the fates and determined to start out on a campaign, the end of which would reveal to the world the inspiring visions of his ambitious dreams. The hope of securing additional forces for Kentucky's defense, or of obtaining troops from the Holston country, which were being recruited by Major Smith,* for the nonce gave him en- couragement. On learning subsequently that Smith's boasted numbers were only large enough to form one small company, he felt keenly dis- appointed, but not disconcerted; and when many of them withdrew, on being apprised of the objective point of the expedition, he heroically and strategically kept his outward appearances from betraying the feelings of discouragement and disgust he experienced inwardly.
All of the available forces Clark could collect being now assembled on Corn Island, and the eve of departure being close at hand, he revealed to his companions in arms for the first time the real object of the campaign on which they were about to enter.t While it has never been shown, it is
* An express had already arrived from Major Smith with information that he had recruited four companies on the Halston, ready to be marched to Kentucky. Clark also received word that the military strength in Kentucky had been largely in- creased since he left there by new-comers .- [W. H. English, Conquest of the North- c'est, p. 127.]
t Butler's History of Kentucky says: "Here Clark disclosed to the troops his real destination to be Kaskaskia; and honorably to the gallant feelings of the times, the plan was ardently concurred in by all the detachment, except the company of Captain Dillard. The boats were, therefore, ordered to be well secured, and sentries were
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presumed that Helm and Harrod (and certainly Bowman) were given knowledge of the scheme prior to making their voyage down the Ohio, and that Montgomery, who came to the falls at a later day, was informed of the undertaking immediately upon his arrival. The men whom Clark first recruited, and disciplined with kindness, at the announcement of his pro- gramme were inclined to be more mutinous than obedient. Many of them felt that, having been taken into the ranks in a sort of an informal way, and not knowing the nature of the service expected of them, they had a perfect right to withdraw after learning of the real object for which they were enlisted without being considered deserters. This assumption was more than the stifled emotions of Clark could withstand, and he burst forth in a torrent of rage, terrorizing the malcontents with the savagery of his demeanor and the fierceness of his visage. His frame shook with the tremors of anger and his eyes flashed with the fire of defiance and deter- mination as he declared that henceforth the strictest military discipline would be enforced and that the first man who talked of deserting the ranks would do so at his peril .* With this admonition he dismissed the men,
placed where it was supposed the men might wade across the river to the Kentucky shore. This was the day before Clark intended to start; but a little before light the greater part of Captain Dillard's company, with a lieutenant whose name is gener- ously spared by Colonel Clark, passed the sentinels unperceived, and got to the oppo- site bank. This disappointment was cruel, its consequences alarming; Clark immedi- ately mounted a party on the horses of Harrodstown gentlemen and sent after the deserters, with orders to kill all who resisted; the pursuers overtook the fugitives about twenty miles in advance; these soon scattered through the woods, and except seven or eight, who were brought back, suffered every species of distress. The people at Harrodstown felt the baseness of the lieutenant's conduct so keenly and resented it with such indignation that they would not for some time let him or his companions into the fort."
* The obstacles with which Clark was confronted, the discouragements he met, the disappointments that beset him from the inception of the movement to recruit men up to the very moment he started upon his expedition, were sufficient to crush the spirits of the most ambitious. Here he was, launching a gigantic undertaking with a force of one-half the men he expected. His position was so desperate that it filled the hearts of his well-wishers with despair. No one realized his weakened condition more fully than Clark himself, for he says, "I knew my case was desperate, but the more I reflected on my weakness the more I was pleased with the enterprise." To falter would have been ruinous. To have shown the least bit of hesitation would have led to the disorganization of his lukewarm followers. Few men would have been equal to the emergency at this crisis in the progress of such a stupendous under- taking. But Clark was. He saw that the only way to hold his half-hearted forces in line and win success was to get them in action, and for that reason started several days in advance of the designated time towards the enemy's country. Most men would have abandoned the project altogether. This, however, was an epoch that marked a turning point in the life of George Rogers Clark, as well as in the destiny of the nation, and he determined to make the best of a distressing situation, which only increased his enthusiasm for conquest and heightened the charm of adventure. Had Clark deferred, or declined, to start upon the journey, which ended in such magnifi- cent achievements and glorious results, the Northwest Territory may never have
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whom he had called in a circle around him, and proceeded to give further instructions, prior to his departure therefrom, to those who were to re- main to guard the island, which had been provided with cabins, temporary storehouses and fortifications. Among the men selected for this duty, some of whom had seen military service under Clark, were Richard Chenowith, James Patten, John McManus, Sr., John McManus, Jr., Edward Worth- ington, William Swan, Neal Dougherty, Samuel Bickens, John Sitzer, John Tuel, William Faith, John Means, Isaac Kimbley, James Graham, James Galloway, John Donne, Joseph Hunter, Jacob Reager, John Sinclair, Rob- ert Travis.
It was on June 24, 1778, in the early dawn of a bright morning, that Clark and his "small army," comprising in all about one hundred and sev- enty-five men, with a transport of flatboats, shot the falls of the Ohio and pulled down the river. Three hours before noon of that memorable day the moon's shadow, passing over the northern part of the Gulf of Mexico, obscured the "tender eye of the pitiful god of day," causing an almost total eclipse* of the sun-a phenomenon not understood by the simple back- woodsmen, who viewed the spectacle with superstitious dread, looking upon it as an ominous foreboding for the success of the undertaking.
The usual water route-by descending the Ohio to its mouth and as- cending the Mississippi-was not pursued, for the reason that Clark knew that spies were kept on the river below Kaskaskia, and had resolved to march part of the way by land, which necessitated leaving behind much necessary baggage and the discarding of all equipments that would be in the least cumbersome. By pressing into service relays of oarsmen, and running the boats day and night, towards the close of the fourth day the party landed at the foot of a small island in the mouth of the Tennessee, three leagues above Fort Massac. At the latter place Clark had decided to leave the Ohio and take to the land, and the stop at this island was made for the purpose of preparing for the march. Shortly after the landing had been made, a boat was sighted, and when it hove within hailing distance, required to land. Fortunately, the occupants proved to be a hunting party friendly to the American cause who were out only eight days from Kas- kaskia, and readily imparted much valuable information regarding the con- dition of affairs at that post. They stated the fort was in good repair,
become the priceless possessions of the United States, the boundary lines of our common country west would have been the Ohio instead of the Mississippi, the Louisiana purchase may not have occurred, and it is not likely the star spangled banner would have ever been recognized as an emblem of authority in any of the isles of the sea.
* If Clark's departure at the very time of the occurrence of this eclipse was accidental the coincidence is very singular, and it may be he had some information of its expected occurrence, and took advantage of it. At all events the departure was attended with surroundings but seldom, if ever, equaled in awe-inspiring effect. It was a fitting introduction of an event humble in itself, but truly great and far-reaching in its ultimate results. [W. H. English, Conquest of the Northwest, p. 100.]
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strongly fortified and garrisoned, the force defending it outnumbering Clark's three to one; that large numbers of Indians, friendly to the British and hostile to the Americans, had been in conference with the commandant for several days, but had taken their departure, leaving behind only a few chiefs. The hunters expressed a desire to join Clark's expedition, and after a consultation among the officers and a critical examination of the applicants, only one of their number was accepted-John Duff.
Having concluded preparations at the island, "we moved down to a little gully," relates Clark, "a small distance above Massac, in which we concealed our boats," etc. And here the forces were allowed to repose for the night, "and in the morning took a route to the northwest, having a very fatiguing journey for about fifty miles, until we came into those level plains that are frequent throughout this extensive country. As I knew my success depended on secrecy, I was much afraid of being discov- ered in those meadows, as we might be seen in many places for several miles." The distance from Fort Massac to Kaskaskia was about one hun- dred and twenty miles, affording pathless wildernesses and untrodden prai- ries. Before starting on the dreary march Colonel Clark received a letter from Colonel Campbell, dated at Pittsburg, informing him that France had formed an alliance with the United States in the prosecution of the Revo- lutionary war, which inspired him with the hope of more readily inducing the French inhabitants of settlements in the Illinois and Wabash counties to rally under the banner of America, and impelled him to hasten his steps in the direction he was going. Indian signs were numerous, but they had no terror for Clark. Since the severe reprimand given the men at Corn Island a day or two before the expedition started, he had exhibited neither passion nor anxiety, until the third day of the march, when John Sanders, the principal guide, became bewildered and confused, and finally confessed that he had lost the way. Clark strongly suspected the man of deception, and charged him with treachery, declaring that he would give him two hours in which to regain his bearings, and if he failed to discover the route within that length of time he would put him to death. The terror that struck his heart by this warning seemed to quicken his perceptive faculties, and with the cry of traitor from the whole detachment ringing in his ears. the wretched pilot went in search of the trail, which he found within an hour, much to his own gratification and to the great satisfaction of Clark and his men, who were now convinced, after all, that the poor fellow had been really bewildered.
With renewed vigor, the dauntless and fearless Colonel pushed on, reaching the banks of the Kaskaskia river three miles below the town on the Fourth of July, just as the shades of evening were falling towards the west. Under cover of darkness and with a silence enjoined through fear of the death penalty being enforced by the commander, the troops were cautiously rowed to the opposite bank of the stream, two hours being re- quired in the prosecution of the work. The night being now well advanced,
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Clark's forces crept stealthily toward the town, having been divided into two divisions, one long-drawn out column to surround the village, so that none of the villagers might escape, the other, composed of picked men, Clark himself led in the direction of the fortress. From every aperture of the fort shafts of light shot forth into the darkness and strains of music floated out on the still air of a sultry night. Crawling on his hands and knees with the stealth of an Indian, Clark approached to within a few feet of the British stronghold. Sounds of mirth and jollity and the melody of sweet voices fell upon his ear. The officers of the garrison were giving a ball, and from the loud and continuous exclamations of the joyous revelers it seemed as though the entire populace had graced the occasion with their presence. His quick eye noticed that in the midst of all this revelry the sentinels had temporarily left their posts, and, gliding swiftly to a postern gate on the river side of the enclosure, he passed through and entered the fort, having first taken the precaution to place his men about the entrance. Finding his way alone to the great hall where the mirth-making spirit had reached its zenith, he leisurely strolled to the ballroom door, and leaning with folded arms against the jamb, calmly watched the beautiful Creole girls whirling in the mazy waltz, apparently as much interested in the fes- tivities as though he were an invited guest. He loved the spectacular, and eagerly grasped this opportunity for the enactment of a dramatic scene. It was, however, some moments before his presence was regarded, and no notice had been taken thereof until a painted and plumed Indian chief, re- clining on the floor at some distance from the doorway, observing the armed stranger, gave a frightful war-whoop. At this alarm the dancing instantly ceased, and the joyous mouthings of the merry throng were changed into exclamations of alarm. Frightened women ran hither and thither and the faces of the men took on grave and serious aspects. But Clark, standing as firin and immovable as a statue* of adamant, never twitched a muscle or changed his facial expression, as lie solemnly bade them to proceed with the dance, but to remember that they would dance under Virginia and not Great Britain. His men by this time were at his side, with the officers of the garrison, including M. Rochblave, commandant of the post, as prison- ers. A panic ensued, the females shrieked with fright and swooned on the floor, the captured officers gave vent to profane invectives, the war-whoops
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