A Centennial Memorial History of Allegany county, New York, Part 5

Author: Minard, John Stearns, 1834-1920; Merrill, Georgia Drew
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: Alfred, N.Y., W. A. Fergusson & co.
Number of Pages: 1102

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The paper title to the land being in the Holland Company, they sold it to Benjamin Chamberlain, Staley N. Clarke and Wm. Ghalliger, who held the lands adjoining it. It is claimed however, that they regarded it as Indian property, and treated it as such until some years after when Mr. Clarke was sent to Congress. While in Washington Mr. Clarke examined the books of treaties and made the discovery, much to his surprise (?) that the Oil Spring reservation was not named in the treaty papers, and that the legal title was in him and his two partners. The reader will probably find some trouble in suppressing the thought that these land buyers and speculators, had some correct intimation as to the existing conditions before they made the purchase. It certainly looks so to the writer. Immediately after making this important discovery, they took possession of the reservation, surveyed it into four equal parts, and one quarter was conveyed to Gov. Horatio Sey-

HISTORY OF ALLEGANY COUNTY, N. Y.

mour of Utica, but the quarter containing the oil spring was conveyed to one Philonius Pattison. who, about 1856. cleared and fenced 80 acres, erected a house and barn, and planted an orchard.

About this time the Indians directed Daniel Sherman, their attorney, to bring an action of ejectment against Pattison. It was done, and, after con- siderable litigation. the Indians won the case, almost wholly on the testi- mony of Governor Blacksnake. who related substantially what has already been recited, with the addition that he "had for years kept in a chest under his bed. a map made by Joseph Ellicott of the Indian lands sold at the treaty of Big Tree, with the reservations marked in red ink."

Blacksnake said that Ellicott presented the map to the Senecas in a gen- eral council of the chiefs and warriors at the Tonawanda reservation about 1801. when he stated that the map contained a correct description of the eleven reservations, reserved to the Senecas by the treaty of Big Tree; that the eleven places marked in red on the map belonged to the red men. Among the places so marked was the Oil Spring reservation. This map is on file with the testimony of Blacksnake concerning it, in the county clerk's office at Little Valley. It is said that Mr. Seymour utterly refused to take any part in the defense of the suit.

Since this action the title of the Indians has never been questioned, and they have continually exercised dominion over this land. The tract is nearly denuded of timber, and a large proportion of it has grown up to bushes; blackberries being the most notable product. It is controlled by the Indi- ans on the reservation at Salamanca, and until quite recently a single In- dian family has resided there, but now that has gone, and the territory is little else than a waste.

CHAPTER VIII.

SOME EARLY SKIRMISHERS AND PIONEERS.

ORD BELMONT in his letter of instructions to Col. Romer, under date L° of Albany, Sept. 3, 1700, used these words "You are to go and visit the well or spring, which is eight miles beyond the Seneca's further castle, which, it is said, blazes up in a flame when a lighted coal is put into it." Col. Romer was "His Majesty's Chief Engineer in America," and, it is reason- able to suppose, carried out the instructions of his superior officer. M. De Joncaire, a French officer under or in conjunction with Charlevoix, was the next white man whom I have been able to learn traversed the territory of Allegany, though it is reasonably certain that Father Hennepin and perhaps

SOME EARLY SKIRMISHERS AND PIONEERS.

LaSalle visited this region not far from the middle of the seventeenth cen- tury. Hennepin certainly visited Tonawanda, and probably also the upper Genesee.

In 1759. Mary Jemison came from the Ohio town on her way to Gen-i- shu-a, and stopped for a day and a night at Caneadet, then a chief town, for rest. She was attended by the family into which she had been adopted, and perhaps other Indians.

When Major Moses Van Campen in 1782. then a captive with the Indians. was compelled to run the gauntlet at Caneadea, he there found a Captain Nellis, who was living with a squaw wife. As Captain Nellis was a Tory rene- gade, who made his headquarters at Caneadea only to organize marauding bands of Indians, and prepare them for descents upon the frontier settle- ments, he could in no sense be considered a settler; in fact as soon as hostil- ities were concluded he left the country.

The first half of the last decade of the last century found our territory absolutely uninhabited, save by a few Indians who had two or three villages near the northern limits of the county on the Genesee river, and the wild animals so prevalent in those days in all this region. Here reigned an impressive, an ominous stillness, like the stillness which precedes the shock of battle, a stillness which was soon to be broken and to never again return, for plans were even then being laid which involved the opening of this dense wilderness to the light of civilization, and the glorious arts of peace.

In the spring of 1795, Nathanael Dike, a native of Connecticut. but who settled soon after the Revolutionary war was ended in the Mohawk valley somewhere near Canajoharie, where he lived for a few years and then made his way to Tioga Point, Pa., began settlement in the eastern part of present Wellsville, on what is yet called Dike's Creek, and in a locality known as Elm Valley. Mr. Dike was a man of good parts, a devoted patriot during the war for independence, serving on the staff of Gen. Joseph Warren of Bunker Hill fame, and later for a time a member of Washington's military family. It is said he was educated at Yale College, though it must be confessed that an examination of his account-book reveals no modern proficiency in scho- lastic acquirements. Beyond what has been above recited. but very little has been learned of Mr. Dike. No incidents attendant upon his advent into this new country have been handed down, and although many by the name, descendants and distant relatives, are to be found in our county, they seem utterly unable to afford any certain information concerning the pioneer settler of Allegany. This is much to be regretted, as there must have been some interesting occurrences and exciting incidents attending his journey from Tioga to Wellsville. From Hornellsville up the Whitney Valley creek to its summit, thence down Dike's Creek. following substantially the route afterward adopted by the Erie Railway, the progress of the small party must have been laborious, slow, incurring hardships of every conceivable kind. His family consisted of himself, his wife, two sons and possibly other chil- dren, and it may be other persons helped make up the party.

HISTORY OF ALLEGANY COUNTY, N. Y.

From a critical examination of an account-book which he kept we are led to conclude that Mr. Dike was a sort of "all-round-man," and, as such, a very important person in a new country. He could turn his hand to almost anything, and must have been very useful to his neighbors in the many and varying exigencies sure to have occurred in the settlement of a new country one hundred years ago. His name frequently and honorably appears in our early records, and, as if in some way atoning for the lack of specific knowl- edge concerning him, the stream upon which he constructed his cabin and made the first settlement in Allegany has been given his name, and so, in the long years to come, will the name, if not the memory, of Nathanael Dike be preserved.

In the following year, 1796, Rev. Andrew Gray, Wm. Gray, Maj. Moses Van Campen, Matthew McHenry and Joseph Rathbun settled in what after- ward came to be Almond, some in Karr Valley, and some in McHenry Valley. These settlers had the advantage of the road (?) which Mr. Dike made the previous year. and travelled not nearly so far as he to get to their several locations. The first cabins they constructed must have been of the rudest kind, and they managed somehow to get along without any chimneys through the summer months, as Major Van Campen years after related "In the fall they all united, and in one week built three chimneys and killed thirty-six deer." Two brothers of Maj. Van Campen, Samuel and Benjamin, came from Pennsylvania, settling in Almond in 1797. Religious services, without doubt the first in the county, were conducted at Karr Valley by Rev. Andrew Gray, a clergyman of the Reformed Dutch Church, at his own house, May 1, 1797. Mr. Gray afterward ministered in the neighboring settlements. Judge Philip Church described him as "a broad-shouldered man, of extra- ordinary muscular power," and said "I remember his getting so earnest, on one occasion while preaching in Angelica, in enforcing religious precepts upon his back-woods congregation, that in his gestures he knocked to pieces our store desk that we gave him for a pulpit."

In 1798 John Cryder settled in Independence. Where he came from or went to is lost to history, but it is known that he built a house and sawmill, made a few other improvements, and suddenly left the country. The creek upon which he located is called Cryder's Creek, and so his name is perpet- uated and passed down to remote generations.

In the old cemetery at Elm Valley is a rude stone upon which is recorded the death on January 21, 1798, of " Zeriah Dike, daughter of James and Phebe Dike, aged 10 months and 5 days." This was the first interment as far as can be ascertained of any white in Allegany county, and it is quite safe to assert that Zeriah Dike enjoys the distinction also of being the first white child born in the county.

So, with the few settlers whose names have been recited, and possibly as many more scattered about in settlements commenced in Wellsville, Almond, and Independence, the last century closes. Closes with religious services inaugurated, but not a school within the present limits of the county, but it

EARLY VISITORS-EXTINCTION OF THE INDIAN TITLE.

also closes with ominous forebodings which meant much to its grand old forests. forebodings that the woodman's axe is soon to ring continuously in its valleys and on its hilltops. And so, as the index on the dial of the centuries points to 1800. and the 19th century is dawning, the awful and oppressive stillness which has hitherto pervaded the primitive woods of Allegany is broken. for, in the language of Alfred B. Street, often quoted but none the less appropriate,

Through the deep wilderness, where scarce the sun Can cast his darts along the winding path, The Pioneer is treading ; in his grasp Is his keen axe, that wondrous instrument, That, like the talisman, transforms Deserts into fields and cities. He has left

The home in which his early years were past,

And, led by hope, and full of restless strength,

Has plunged within the forest, there to plant His destiny. Beside some rapid stream, He rears his log-built cabin. When the chains

Of winter fetter nature, and no sound Disturbs the echoes of the dreary woods, Save when some stem cracks sharply with the frost, Then merrily rings his axe, and tree on tree Crashes to earth ; and when the long, keen night Mantles the wilderness in solemn gloom, He sits beside his ruddy hearth, and hears The fierce wolf snarling at the cabin door, Or through the lowly casement sees his eye Gleam like a burning coal.

CHAPTER IX.

EARLY VISITORS-EXTINCTION OF THE INDIAN TITLE.

TTP to the American Revolution (1775-1783) our immediate territory was known to only a very few venturesome explorers, whose restless natures and innate curiosity, coupled with a natural desire for speculation and love of adventure, with which they were highly endowed, impelled them to make the acquaintance of the country and its inhabitants. Jesuit missionaries, like LaSalle, and Hennepin, had also no doubt invaded its soli- tude, and the best of reasons exist for the supposition that the Rev. Samuel Kirkland had also visited the Caneadea villages, for he was a missionary among the Six Nations for a number of years previous to the Revolution. and "on January 16, 1765, he left the mission station at Johnson Hall on the Mohawk, in company with two Seneca Indians on a mission which embraced all the settlements of the Iroquois. They traveled upon snow-shoes. carrying a pack containing his provisions. some books, and a few articles of

HISTORY OF ALLEGANY COUNTY, N. Y.

clothing, weighing in all about forty pounds." There is no doubt but that he visited the Caneadea villages on this mission. He had numerous ad- ventures with the Indians, but after a while "lived in great harmony, friendship and sociability" with them. Writing in March of one of those years when a sort of famine occurred (the corn had been short and the game was scarce), he said he had sold a shirt for four Indian cakes baked in the ashes which he could have devoured in one meal, but, on the score of pru- dence, he ate only one." He lived four days on " white oak acorns fried in bear's grease." His sufferings and privations were as severe as any his Jesuit predecessors had endured. The discovery of a neatly-carved Jesuit cross on one of the timbers of the old Council House (which was more than twenty years ago removed from its site near the old Indian village of Can- eadea, by Hon. William P. Letchworth to his beautiful grounds at Glen Iris,) would seem to support the idea that it had either been done by a Jesuit, or by some Indians recently converted, or who had been made acquainted with the symbols of the "true faith."

The territory embraced in the Caneadea Indian reservation, so remotely situated upon the "upper Genesee," in contra-distinction to the "lower Genesee country," was considerably removed from the scene of the depreda- tions of De Nonville's expedition, which invaded the lower Genesee country in 1689, but there is every reason to believe that it has been the scene of many a sanguinary conflict, not only long ago between aboriginal tribes, but also during the French and English controversy for the supremacy. The lower Genesee country was brought into very conspicuous notice by Sullivan's expedition against the Indians in 1779, and its settlement and occupation by the whites was no doubt much accelerated by that event.

Some idea of the extent of production of the famous lower Genesee country can be learned from General Sullivan's report, wherein he says: "The quantity of corn destroyed, at a moderate computation, must amount to 160,000 bushels, with a vast quantity of vegetables of every kind, and I am well persuaded that, except one town situated near the Allegany, about fifty-eight miles from the Chinesee (Genesee), there is not a single town left in the country of the Five Nations." The town Sullivan refers to must have been the Caneadea village, and it is no tax upon our credulity to suppose that the Indian population of this immediate neighborhood was pro- portionally as thrifty, and had comparatively as large corn fields and as great a variety of vegetables.

Soon after the Revolution Robert Morris, the financier of that memor- able struggle, and the most potent individual ally that Washington had in the prosecution of the war, hearing the glowing accounts of those who had seen the famous "Genesee country," resolved to visit Western New York and see for himself if these accounts were true. He did so. and, after some- thing of an exploration, determined to make an extensive purchase. It is certain that he visited the site of Mt. Morris, and good authority says made the selection of what has since become famous as "Murray Hill," as his

EARLY VISITORS-EXTINCTION OF THE INDIAN TITLE.

future country seat. Whether this journey was made through the upper Genesee valley, or by way of the Conhocton and Dansville. the writer has failed to learn. but inclines to the opinion that the latter route was the one employed .*

Negotiations were at once opened with the Commonwealth of Massa- chusetts, in which the pre-emptive right to purchase of the Indians had be- come vested by cession from the state of New York.

Oliver Phelps, of Connecticut, had. for himself and others, begun negotiations in 1787. with a view to purchase a portion of the lands con- tained in this grant of pre-emption right " from New York, and Nathaniel Gorham, about the same time, made an offer to the legislature of Massa- chusetts. of one shilling and six pence per acre for 1,000,000 acres of those lands, to be paid for in the public paper of the Commonwealth." This offer was not accepted, but had the effect of exciting public attention and to bring other competitors into the field, who as fast as they appeared were taken into the association much after the manner of the modern "trust." " com- bine " or " syndicate," Messrs. Phelps and Gorham. having already united their interests and efforts. In April. 1788. Phelps & Gorham, acting for their company, purchased all the land comprised in the cession to Massa- chusetts for $1,000,000, payable in three years in the public paper of the state, which had become greatly depreciated. Phelps at once began opera- tions looking to the extinguishment of the Indian title, and was immediately confronted by another complication. He found that what was in common parlance called the "Lessee Company. " had been formed, and had procured two leases from the Indians, covering a large portion of the territory just purchased by Phelps and his associates. Massachusetts promptly declared the leases void, and Governor Clinton commenced active operations against them, personally meeting the Indians in council, warning them of the in- validity of the leases, and taking evidence which established the fact that the leases had been procured by bribery and corrupt means. The influence however of the leasers and their agents with the Indians and others was so strong, at one time threatening to form a new state from the disputed terri- tory, at another time stirring up enmity and dissatisfaction among the Indi- ans, that finally the purchasers of the pre-emption right were forced to com- promise, and granted the lessees an interest in the property. Mr. Phelps then soon perfected arrangements for a treaty with the Indians which was opened on the 14th of July, 1788. at Buffalo Creek, which resulted in the Indians selling for $5,000 and an annuity of $500. about 2.600.000 acres lying adjacent to the Massachusetts pre-emption line. Meantime the scrip with which Phelps and Gorham and their associates had agreed to make pay- ment for the lands had so much appreciated in value, owing to the increased prospects of the state as a member of the Union. that they were unable to

* I am aware that this may be questioned by some, and still I understand it is only claimed by the doubt- ers that he never set his foot upon the "Holland Purchase." Such a statement is easily reconciled with the fact of his visiting Mt. Morris, as that place is several miles east of the " Holland Purchase."

HISTORY OF ALLEGANY COUNTY, N. Y.

obtain it to meet their obligations, and suit was entered against them by Massachusetts. A compromise however was effected, by which they were allowed to retain the portion of the purchase to which they had extinguished the Indian title. re-conveying to Massachusetts the residue. This arrange- ment was the more easily perfected owing to the appearance of Mr. Morris with an offer to purchase these lands.

On the 12th day of March, 1791, Massachusetts agreed to sell to Samuel Ogden, as agent for Robert Morris, all the lands before sold to Phelps and Gorham except the portion retained by them, and, on the 11th day of May. 1791, the state conveyed to Morris, for a consideration of $225,000, the whole of this land by five separate deeds; the first tract adjoining the Phelps & Gorham purchase and comprising 500,000 acres. Massachusetts reserved in this conveyance one-sixtieth of the whole tract to satisfy a claim of John Butler, who had entered into a contract for the purchase of the same from Phelps and Gorham prior to their surrender of the lands back to Massa- chusetts, which interest Morris afterward purchased from Butler, thereby acquiring the entire title. This tract of 500,000 acres was retained by Morris, and sold by him in different tracts, and was called the "Morris Reserve." And so the reader can see how it came about that this tract so generally known as the "Morris Reserve " and so commonly referred to, covered two ranges of towns immediately east of the eastern "transit meridian," or eastern boundery of the Holland Land Company's land.

The land covered by the four other deeds, being 3,600,000 acres, was conveyed by as many separate conveyances, dated one December 4, 1792, one, February 27, 1793, and two on July 20, 1793, by Robert Morris to Herman Le Roy and others, as trustees for the Amsterdam capitalists, afterward so generally and favorably known as the Holland Land Company, of whom Wilhelm Willink, was the largest owner, and Rutger Jan Schim- melpenninck bore the most conspicuous name.

These conveyances all contained a covenant on the part of Mr. Morris to extinguish the Indian titles, and he at once set about the business. It was an undertaking of considerable proportions, and its accomplishment brought into requisition a high degree of skill, tact and diplomacy. Upon his son, Thomas Morris, devolved the task of procuring the consent of the Indians to hold a treaty. He proved an able lieutenant. He went into the heart of their country, followed their trails from the wigwam of one chief to that of another, and, after much difficulty and the most lavish use of all his persuasive arts, the Indians finally agreed to hold a conference and desig- nated Big Tree, now Geneseo, as the place where the council should be held. President Washington nominated Jeremiah Wadsworth as commissioner on the part of the United States, and the interested parties met in August, 1797, and negotiations began, Gen. William Shepard representing Massachusetts. A large tent was provided by Mr. Morris under which daily conferences took place. (This was the fact notwithstanding the popular tradition goes to the effect that the treaty was held under the umbrageous shade of a large

EARLY VISITORS-EXTINCTION OF THE INDIAN TITLE.

oak or elm.) William Bayard of New York represented the interests of the Holland Company, and Mr. Morris appeared through his agents, Thomas Morris and Colonel Williamson. Mr. Williamson's engagements were such as to call him away, so the whole responsibility of conducting the treaty devolved upon Thomas Morris.

Great preparations had been made by Mr. Morris. A large herd of fat cattle had been sent on to furnish meat. Great numbers of Indians were present. attracted as much. perhaps, by the prospect of good cheer, as by a desire to consider the business in hand. After duly opening the council the commissioners offered their credentials, and explained the reason of their appointment; after which Mr. Morris presented in a speech of some length the object for which they had been convened. Representing the desire of his father to obtain by purchase a part, or all of their lands, and how much better it would be for them to dispose of all, except what were actually needed for settlement, and place the money at interest, than to retain in their possession uncultivated wastes, whose only value to them could be such as were derived from the chase; and that this advantage would not be lost, for they could still use it for hunting the same as before, he concluded by offering them the sum of $100,000 for the entire tract which still remained to them in the state, allowing them such reservations as might be needed for actual use.

After deliberating for some time the Indians returned an answer unfavorable to Mr. Morris. saying " they did not wish to part with any more of their land." Mr. Morris urged them to reconsider their answer, telling them they ought not to decide hastily, setting before them in different ways the favorable terms he had proposed. They again deliberated, and again they returned the same answer as before. Meetings and speeches suc- ceeded: Corn Planter, Little Billy, Farmer's Brother, Little Beard and Red Jacket, each taking a part in the discussion, Red Jacket assuming the chief burden of debate. Mr. Morris urged upon them the liberal sum he had offered for their lands. Red Jacket replied. "We are not yet convinced that it is best for us to dispose of our lands at any price." "But," replied Mr. Morris, "what value can they be to you as they now are, any farther than the consciousness that you own them ? "

"YES, " said Red Jacket, "BUT THIS KNOWLEDGE IS EVERYTHING TO US. IT RAISES US IN OUR OWN ESTIMATION. IT CREATES IN OUR BOSOMS A PROUD FEELING WHICH ELEVATES US AS A NATION. Observe the difference between the estimation in which a Seneca and an Oneida are held. We are courted, while the Oneidas are considered a degraded people, fit only to make brooms and baskets. WHY THIS DIFFERENCE ? It is because the Senecas are known to be the proprietors of a BROAD DOMAIN, while the Oneidas are cooped up in a narrow space."

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A Centennial Memorial History of Allegany county, New York, Part 5

Author: Minard, John Stearns, 1834-1920; Merrill, Georgia Drew Publication date: 1896 Publisher: Alfred, N.Y., W. A. Fergusson & co. Number of Pages: 1102

Author: Minard, John Stearns, 1834-1920; Merrill, Georgia Drew
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: Alfred, N.Y., W. A. Fergusson & co.
Number of Pages: 1102