The pictorial history of Fort Wayne, Indiana : a review of two centuries of occupation of the region about the head of the Maumee River, Vol. I, Part 15

Author: Griswold, B. J. (Bert Joseph), 1873-1927; Taylor, Samuel R., Mrs. The story of the townships of Allen County
Publication date: 1917
Publisher: Chicago : R.O. Law Co.
Number of Pages: 760


USA > Indiana > Allen County > Fort Wayne > The pictorial history of Fort Wayne, Indiana : a review of two centuries of occupation of the region about the head of the Maumee River, Vol. I > Part 15


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"At 8 o'clock on the morning of the 20th the army advanced in columns, agreeable to the Standing Order of March, the legion on the right, its right flank covered by the Miamis [Maumee], one brigade of mounted volunteers on the left under Brigadier General Todd, and the other in the rear, under Brigadier General Barbie. A selected battalion of mounted volunteers moved in front sufficiently advanced so as to give timely notice for the troops to of the legion, commanded by Major Price, who was directed to keep


131


WAYNE AND "FALLEN TIMBER"


1792 1794


form in case of action, it being yet undetermined whether the Indians would decide for peace or war.


"After advancing about five miles, Major Price's corps re- ceived so severe a fire from the enemy, who were secreted in the


woods and high grass, so as to compel them to retreat. The legion was immediately formed in two lines, principally in a close, thick wood which ex- tended for miles on our left, and for a considerable distance in front, the ground being cov- ered with old fallen timber probably occasioned by a tor- nado which rendered it imprac- ticable for the cavalry to act with effect, and afforded the enemy the most favorable cov- ert for their mode of warfare. The savages were formed in three lines, within supporting MAJOR AMBROSE WHITLOCK distance of each other and ex- Major Whitlock was General Wayne's aide-de-camp when the army reached the site of the city of Fort Wayne. To Whitlock, Wayne gave the camp bed which the general used during the Rev- olution and the Indian campaign of 1792 to 1794, and which is now on ex- hibition in Fort Wayne. Whitlock was first in command under Major Ham- tramck. He served as a lieutenant in the company of which William Henry Harrison was the captain. In after years, while Whitlock was in charge of the land office in Indiana, he founded the city of Crawfordsville. The port- rait is from Lossing's "Pictorial Field- book of the War of 1812," to which the original was contributed by General Lew Wallace. tending for nearly two miles at right angles with the river. I soon discovered from the weight of the fire and extent of their lines, that the enemy were in full force in front in possession of their favorite ground, and endeavoring to turn our left flank. I therefore gave orders for the second line to advance and support the first, and directed Major General Scott to gain and turn the right flank of the savages with the whole of the mounted volunteers by a circuitous route; at the same time, I ordered the front line to advance and charge with trailed arms and rouse the Indians from their coverts at the point of the bayonet, and, when up, to deliver a close and well-directed fire on their backs, followed by a brisk charge, so as not to give them time to load again.


"I also ordered Captain Mis Campbell, who commanded the legionary cavalry, to turn the left flank of the enemy, next to the river, and which afforded a favorable field for that corps to act in. All these orders were obeyed with spirit and promptitude; but such was the impetuosity of the charge by the first line of infantry, that the Indians and Canadian militia, and volunteers, were driven from all their coverts in so short a time that, although every possible exertion was used by the officers of the second line of the legion and by Generals Scott, Todd and Barbie of the mounted volunteers to gain their positions, but part of each could get up in season


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THE PICTORIAL HISTORY OF FORT WAYNE


to participate in the action, the enemy being driven in the course of one hour more than two miles through the thick woods already mentioned, by half their numbers.


"From every account, the enemy amounted to two thousand combatants. The troops actually engaged against them were short of nine hundred. The horde of savages, with their allies, abandoned themselves to flight, and dispersed with terror and dismay, leaving our victorious army in full and quiet possession of the field of battle which terminated under the influence of the guns of the British garrison. * *",


Wayne makes special mention of the gallant conduct of Brig- adier General Wilkinson, Colonel John F. Hamtramck, Aides-de- Camp Captains Butte and T. Lewis, Lieutenant William Henry Harrison, Major Mills, Lieutenant Covington, Lieutenant Webb, Captains Slough and Prior, Lieutenant Campbell Smith, Captain Van Rensselaer, Captain Rawlins, Lieutenant McKenny, Ensign Duncan, Captain H. Lewis and Captain Brock. "But whilst I pay this just tribute to the living," he adds, "I must not neglect the gallant dead, among whom we have to lament the early death of those worthy and brave officers, Captain Mis Campbell of the Dra- goons and Lieutenant Towles of the light infantry of the legion, who fell in the first charge."


The total loss to the Americans was thirty-three killed and one hundred wounded. Eleven of the latter died before the sending of the report. The loss to the Indians was double that of the Amer- icans.


With lightness of heart the troops set about the establishment of their camp within sight of the British fort. The duty of the care of the wounded and the burial of the dead tempered the out- ward demonstration of rejoicing; but each man felt that a decisive blow against the enemies of American progress in the west had been delivered by the small army of which he was a part.


Directly a messenger from the British fort, with a flag, ap- peared. He bore a communication to General Wayne from the British commandant, Major William Campbell, who wrote:


"Sir: An army of the United States of America, said to be under your command, having taken post on the banks of the Miami [Maumee] for upwards of the last twenty-four hours, almost within the reach of the guns of this fort, being a post belonging to His Majesty the King of Great Britain, occupied by his Majesty's troops, it becomes my duty to inform myself as speedily as possible in what light I am to view your making such near approaches to this garrison. I have no hesitation on my part to say that I know of no war existing between Great Britain and America."


The tone of this note was such as to arouse the patriotic spirit of "Mad Anthony," who replied in the following vigorous language :


L


-


1792 1794


WAYNE AND "FALLEN TIMBER"


133


"Sir: I have received your letter of this date requiring from me the motives which have moved the army under my command to the position they at present occupy, far within the acknowledged jurisdiction of the United States of America. Without questioning the authority, or propriety, sir, of your interrogatory, I think I may, without breach of decorum, observe to you that, were you entitled to an answer, the most full and satisfactory one was an- nounced to you from the muzzles of my small arms yesterday


morning in the action against the horde of savages in the vicinity of your post, which terminated gloriously to the American arms; but had it continued until the Indians, &c., were driven under the influence of the post and guns you mention, they would not have much impeded the progress of the victorious army under my com- mand, as no such post was established at the commencement of the present war between the Indians and the United States. I have


FALLEN TIMBERS


FORT


A DEFIANCE


1


1


1


1


FORT WAYNE 1


WAYNE TRACE


ONCE AN INDIAN TRAIL TO CINCINNATI


THE ROUTE


OHIO


OF GENERAL HARMER'S ARMY IN 1790 // OF GENERAL WAYNE'S


IND


WHEN LEAVING THE STOCKADE CHRISTENED BY MAJOR HAMTRAMCK "1 "FORT WAYNE" IN 1794 / // ALSO OF GENERAL HARRISON'S ARMY IN 1812


ERECTED BY


FORT JEFFERSON


MARY PENROSE WAYNE CHAPTER DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION


1906


WAYNE TRACE


FORT KNOX


ROUTE


FORT


BETWEEN


HAMILTON


FORT


WAYNE


AND


CINCINNATI


R


ARROWS INDICATE WAYNE'S ROUTE


WAYNE TRACE "MARKER


ERECTED IN 1906 BY THE MARY PENROSE WAYNE CHAPTER. D.A.R., AT NEW HAVEN AVE. AND WAYNE TRACE


WAL


WABASH-


ST


ET


ON A


AV.NETRACE


VE. ( ANTHONY


PENNSYLVANIAGE EAST YARDS


PENNSYLVANIA


WAYNE TRACE AND ITS CONNEC- TION WITH THE CITY STREETS


"WAYNE TRACE."


The famous "Wayne Trace," extending from the city of Fort Wayne to the city of Cincinnati, marks the pathway of General Wayne from the fort which bore his name to the site of Fort Washington. The upper map indicates the route taken by General Wayne and the lower drawing shows that portion of the route within the city of Fort Wayne. A sketch of the "marker" erected by the Daughters of the American Revolution in 1906, is also shown.


WINCH


SARILINE


Sunn


ALLIGER


WARREN


FLETCHER


ST.


ST


HAVEN


NEW


WAYNE TRACE- "MARKER"


OHIO


FORT WASHINGTON ( CINCINNATI)


AVE.


FORT GREENVILLE


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THE PICTORIAL HISTORY OF FORT WAYNE


the honor to be, sir, with great respect, your most obedient and humble servant."


This letter, and especially the phrase "&c.," referring, of course, to the British participants in the conflict, aroused the ire of Major Campbell, who retorted in these keen sentences of de- fiance :19


"Although your letter of yesterday's date fully authorizes me to any act of hostility against the army of the United States of America in this neighborhood under your command, yet, still anxious to prevent that dreadful decision which, perhaps, is not intended to be appealed to by either of our countries, I have for- borne, for those two days past, to resent those insults you have offered to the British flag flying at this fort, by approaching it within pistol shot of my works, not only singly, but in numbers, with arms in their hands. Neither is it my wish to wage war with individuals; but should you, after this, continue to approach my post in the threatening manner you are at this moment doing, my indispensable duty to my King and country, and the honor of my profession, will oblige me to have recourse to those measures which thousands of either nation may hereafter have cause to regret, and which, I solemnly appeal to God, I have used my utmost en- deavors to arrest.'


Campbell's anger had been aroused by Wayne's minute inspec- tion of the British fort, which, according to Wayne, was "a reg- ular strong work, the front covered by a wide river, with four guns mounted in that face. The rear, which was most susceptible of approach, he added, "had regular bastions, furnished with eight pieces of artillery, the whole surrounded by a deep ditch.''20


Wayne responded to Campbell accusing him of "taking post far within the well-known and acknowledged limits of the United States, and erecting a fortification in the heart of the settlement of the Indian tribes now at war with the United States. Hence," he declared, "it becomes my duty to desire, and I do hereby desire and demand, in the name of the President of the United States, that you immediately desist from any further act of hostility or aggression, by forbearing to fortify, and removing to the nearest post occupied by his Brittanic Majesty's at the peace of 1783, and which you will be permitted to do unmolested by the troops under my command."


Said Campbell, in his reply :


"I certainly will not abandon this post at the summons of any power whatever, until I receive orders from those I have the honor to serve under or the fortunes of war should oblige me. I must still adhere, sir, to the purport of my letter this morning, to desire that your army, or individuals belonging to it, will not approach within reach of my cannon, without expecting the consequences attend- ing it.''21


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WAYNE AND "FALLEN TIMBER"


1792 1794


Wayne, in his report of the situation, records that "the only notice that was taken of this letter was by immediately setting fire to, and destroying, everything within view of the fort, and even under the muzzles of his guns. Had Mr. Campbell carried his threat into execution, it is more than probable that he would have experienced a storm."


The destroyed property included the farm buildings of Colonel Alexander McKee,22 the British Indian agent, on the opposite shore of the Maumee. A vast area of corn was also consumed. The "madness" of "Mad Anthony" may have been held in check by a realization of the weighty consequences of an attack upon the British fort, but it is important to know that at that very moment he held on his person the supreme authority to open hostilities against the British if he had considered it best to do so.


"If in the course of your operations against the Indian enemy," read his instructions, "it should become necessary to dislodge the party [the British garrison], you are hereby authorized in the name of the president of the United States to do it."


Wayne's great victory was hailed with joy wherever the news reached the American settlements and cities. "Anthony Wayne," says Rufus King, "opened 'the glorious gates of the Ohio' to the tide of civilization so long shut off from its hills and valleys." Theodore Roosevelt declares that Wayne's "victorious campaign was the most noteworthy ever carried on against them [the Indians of the northwest] for it brought the first lasting peace on the border and put an end to the bloody turmoil of forty years' fighting. It was one of the most striking and weighty feats in the winning of the west.''23


NOTES ON CHAPTER XIII.


(1) Major General Anthony Wayne was born in East Town, Pennsyl- vania, January 1, 1745. Early in life he became a land surveyor, and as an intimate friend of Benjamin Franklin, he took an active interest in public affairs. After his marriage to Mary Penrose in 1767, he became a farmer. Elected to the Pennsyl- vania convention and legislature in 1774, he served on the committee of safety, and in 1775 raised a regiment which did service in the campaign in Canada. He was wounded at the bat- tle of Trois Rivieres, in January, 1776, and held the fortress of Ticon- deroga and Mount Independence un- til May, 1777. After receiving his commission as brigadier general, he led a division at Brandywine, com- manded the right wing at German- town and made a dashing raid on the British lines and carried off a large quantity of supplies. His most brilliant achievement was the storm- ing of Stony Point, on the night of July 15, 1779, a display of daring un-


excelled in American history and for which he received a medal and the thanks of congress. By a bayonet charge, he rescued Lafayette in Vir- ginia, made a daring attack on the whole British army at Green Spring and defeated the British and Indians in Georgia. After the war, he retired to his farm in Georgia. But the need of a great leader against the western Indians brought him forward in 1792, at which time he was made a major general. His defeat of the savages at the battle of Fallen Timber and the building of Fort Wayne in 1794, have given him a name as "the savior of the west." He died December 15, at Presque Isle (Erie) Pennsylvania, while returning from Detroit, where he had received the surrender of the fort from the British.


(2) Interest is added to the situa- tion by a thorough acquaintance with the circumstances of the ill-feeling between Wayne and St. Clair during the revolution, which culminated in the appointment of St. Clair to suc-


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THE PICTORIAL HISTORY OF FORT WAYNE


ceed Wayne in command of the Penn- sylvania line following the battle of Monmouth. (See letter of Wayne, Stille's "Life of General Wayne," page 186; Fort Wayne Public Library).


(3) It was Lee who, in spite of his disappointment, retained his high re- gard for Washington, and, on the day of the funeral of the president uttered the words, "First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen."


(4) "Washington's Writings," vol. x, page 248.


(5) Quoted in "Historic Highways of America," vol. viii, page 173.


(6) John Randolph Spears, "History of the Mississippi Valley," page 351; Fort Wayne Public Library.


(7) In the meantime, every effort to secure a peace treaty with the savages had been made. Small bands had entered into satisfactory agree- ments with Major John F. Ham- tramck, at Vincennes; about fifty chiefs had signed a treaty at Phila- delphia, and later General Putnam succeeded in closing terms of peace with about thirty tribes at Vincennes. But at the largest gathering of sav- ages in the history of the west- during the council at the Maumee rapids-the savages rejected all pro- posals and their decision was made known to General Benjamin Lincoln, of Massachusetts, Beverly Randolph, of Virginia, and Timothy Pickering, of Pennsylvania, commissioners ap- pointed by Washington to visit the west. As a climax, the savages re- ported to the commissioners that "if you seriously design to make a firm and lasting peace, you will immedi- ately remove all your people from our side of the [Ohio] river."


(8) "American Pioneer," vol. i, page 294. See Slocum's "The Ohio Coun- try," page 77.


(9) Wayne's Report to Knox, July 7, 1794.


(10) John Randolph Spears, "His- tory of the Mississippi Valley," page 351.


(11) The parents of Captain Wells were pioneers in Kentucky. When the boy had reached the age of twelve years he was stolen by the Miamis and brought to the Maumee region, where he became a favorite of Little Turtle; later he married a daughter of the great chief. In 1792, he learned the whereabouts of his people, visited them with reluctance, and finally broke away from his Indian alliance and joined Wayne's army. Previous to this move he had informed Little Turtle of his intentions and urged him to use his influence with the other chiefs for a peaceful treaty with Wayne. This appeal was favor- ably considered by Little Turtle, but, as will be seen, his counsel was un- heeded, and from that moment his power as a leader of the Miamis waned. Later, because of his great services to the government, Wells was given a grant of land which in- cludes those sections of the city of Fort Wayne now known as Blooming- dale and Spy Run. It was at the home of Captain Wells at Fort Wayne that Little Turtle died in 1812, and in this same year Wells lost his life In the Fort Dearborn massacre. The west has produced no more interest- ing character than Captain William


Wells, the hero of many a pioneer episode. For many interesting side- lights on the life and character of Wells, the reader is referred to the following works and others in the Fort Wayne Public Library: "The Story of Old Fort Dearborn," by J. Seymour Currey; "History of the Maumee River Basin," by Dr. Charles E. Slocum; "The Winning of the West," by Theodore Roosevelt; "An- nals of the West," and Dunn's "True Indian Stories."


(13) Quoted in the "Maumee River Basin," vol i, page 207. Newman was later captured.


(12) In his daily journal of the expedition, Lieutenant William Clark failed not to criticise every notable move made by General Wayne, of whom he spoke in the most uncompli- mentary terms. After finding fault with Wayne's refusal to adopt the plans suggested to attack the Indians at the Auglaise river, Clark wrote: "This evening, as the camp was formed, we were alarmed by the dis- charge of several guns of volunteers who said [they had] seen and wound- ed an Indian; but he was not taken. Had this alarm been well founded, and the enemy on our heels, the old gentleman [General Wayne] would have been caught asleep, for he had already gone to bed to give ease to his infirmities, and was so fast in the arms of Morpheus as to give some trouble to wake him [to an] under- standing of the bustle." Concerning the battle of Fallen Timber, Clark analyzed the result as a piece of luck. After the arrival of the army at the site of Fort Wayne, he wrote: "I rejoice at the bad policy of our enemy. We owe for this successful campaign of '94, much-but to Fortune we owe all." (From a copy of the original, in the Burton Historical Collection, De- troit).


(14) American State Papers, Indian Affairs, vol. 1, page 361.


(15) See Slocum's "The Ohio Coun- try," page 109.


(16) Lossing's "Pictorial Fieldbook of the War of 1812," page 54. Harri- son served as Wayne's aide-de-camp during the entire campaign, and was a signer of the Greenville treaty.


(17) The savages gave several de- scriptive names to Wayne, including "The Wind," and "The Blacksnake." Major Hamtramck, in a letter to Wayne in 1795, says: "I asked them for an explanation of your name ("The Wind"). They told me you were exactly like a hurricane which drives and tears everything before it." The name "Dandy" Wayne was often used by his soldiers because of the style and neatness of his dress.


(18) That the savages were playing for time is proven by a letter of Col- onel McKee to Colonel English. "The Indians * *


* have returned an answer to General Wayne's speech," said he. "It is entirely calculated to gain a few days' time In hope that the Putiwatimies and Indians about Detroit may increase their strength." (Michigan Pioneer and Historical Col- lection).


(19) That the troops confidently ex- pected to be called upon to attack the British fort is shown by the fol- lowing record in the journal of Lieu- tenant William Clark: "Remained in


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WAYNE AND "FALLEN TIMBER"


1792 1794


camp the whole day, all full with expectation and anxiety of storming of the British garrison, which was all that remained for us to do, for the savages were no more to be found. * * * His Excellency [General Wayne] declared if he had ten days' provisions he would assail it." (Michigan Pioneer and Historical Col- lection. )


(20) Major Campbell's real state of mind is revealed by a note which he dispatched to Colonel English, in command at Detroit, directly after the first passage of notes between himself and Wayne. "I sincerely wish the governor [Simcoe] himself may soon arrive and take all responsi- bility upon him," he wrote. "I trust a reinforcement from you is not far off at present. * *


* I have per- haps been more forebearing [toward Wayne] than an officer of higher rank would have been, but I con- sidered my situation a very delicate one, and if I have erred, it has been on the safe side. What Mr. Wayne's people mean by burning all the In- dian huts in the neighborhood and all the hay on Colonel McKee's island to- day I cannot say. He reconnoitered the fort today in all parts *


* * but he will never do it again." (Mich- igan Pioneer and Historical Collec- tion).


(21) "If Wayne be permitted to establish himself at Detroit, it may occasion the loss of both Canadas," wrote Governor Simcoe to Lord Dor- chester. The latter asked the gov- ernor as to whether "by calling all the force in your power to assem- ble, you would be in condition to re- sist Wayne's attack, should he at- tempt by force to take possession of the country," to which Simcoe replied: "I think no force in this country could resist Wayne's direct attack." Simcoe believed at this time that Wayne would return and accomplish the destruction of the British forts on the Maumee and at Detroit. Dor- chester in a letter to Simcoe says: "I believe there are few instances of an invading army being suffered to pene- trate so far as General Wayne has done without some check, or to re- treat without being pursued." (Mich- igan Pioneer and Historical Collec- tion).


(22) McKee, reporting the loss of his property, in a letter to Joseph Chew, at Montreal, secretary of In- dian affairs, September 20, 1794, said: "All the store houses, my own house, with many things that could not be removed, were burnt. * *


* At present, I am waiting until the In- dians, whose cornfields and villages are totally destroyed, shall determine where they and their families will set themselves down, it being a matter of the highest importance to the in- terest of Great Britain to prevent, if possible, their emigrating to the southern and western parts of the continent. They seemingly now have lost all hopes of the interference of [the British] government." In the bitterness of his situation, McKee de- clared the American losses at the battle of Fallen Timber to have been between 300 and 400, with but 19 sav- ages killed. He added the falsehood that "besides scalping and mutilating the Indians, who were killed in the action, they have opened the peaceful graves, exposed the bones of the con- sumed and consuming bodies, and, horrid to relate, have, with unparal- leled barbarity, driven stakes through them and left them, objects calling for more than human vengeance." (Michigan Pioneer and Historical Col- lection).


(23) Wayne's victory cost many De- troit citizens vast fortunes through the loss of property which had been ceded to them by the Indians on American soil. As an example, there is cited the instance of a letter writ- ten by Alexander Henry, at Montreal, addressed to John Askin, John Askin, Jr., P. McNeiff, John Askwith and Israel Rowland, at Detroit, in October, 1795, after the signing of the treaty of Greenville, which tells of the writer's visit to Alexander Hamil- ton, secretary of the treasury in Washington's cabinet, to plead for the restoration to his clients valuable lands which were being withheld from them. Hamilton sustained Wayne's decision that the lands belonged to the United States. "We have lost a fortune of at least one million dol- lars," said Henry in his letter. (From the original letter in the Askin Papers, Burton Historical Collection, Detroit).




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