USA > New York > Oneida County > History of Oneida County, New York : with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 37
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This tribe or nation had once been among the most powerful and important of the famous Ko-nosk-i-o-ni, and, on account of their situation in the centre of the Confed- eracy and their wisdom and political importance, had been made the keepers of the great central council-house, and the perpetual fire which had burned from time imme- morial. It had been twice temporarily extinguished,-in 1696 by Count Frontenac, and again in 1777,-and it was now doomed to go out in darkness for a third time. Since the spring of 1775 it had ceased to be the grand central fire of the Confederacy ; for the Mohawks had withdrawn from the State, and the Oneidus and Tuscaroras had seceded from the remainder of the Confederacy.
But though the expedition had been conducted with all possible secrecy, the surprise was not complete. The alarm was given by some means, and the bulk of the Indians with their families fled into the forest ; but they left in such haste that they took nothing with them, scarcely even their arms. The troops, however, succeeded in killing 12 of the warriors, and 33 were taken prisoners. Three villages, containing altogether about 50 houses and a large quantity of provisions, consisting mostly of corn, beans, etc., were destroyed. About a hundred muskets and several rifles were found and brought away ; and a small swivel kept at the council-house was rendered useless.
When the destruction was complete the expeditiou re- turned to Fort Schuyler, which it reached on the 24th, after an absence of six days, during which the troops had traveled by land and water 180 miles without the loss of a man. The expedition was fired upon only once by a small party of Indians in the woods, one of whom was killed by the return fire.
Colonel Van Schaick, in his official report of the expedi- tion to General Clinton, spoke in the highest terms of the good conduct of officers and men, and particularly mentioned
* Oncida, Seneca, and Oswego Rivers.
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IHISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY, NEW YORK.
Colonel Willett and Major Cochran as having rendered the most efficient services.
This act of warfare against the Onondagas has some- times appeared unnecessarily harsh and vindictive, but it was deemed necessary by Washington, Schuyler, and other military leaders, and by those in civil authority. It was supposed that a sharp, sudden, and decisive blow dealt upon the vacillating Onondagas would bring not only that nation to their senses, but also have a salutary effect upon the Cayugas and Senecas, and teach them that they were by no means so powerful or remote but the arm of the United States would surely reach them if they continued hostile.
The effect upon the Oncidas was astounding. They had been kept in profound ignorance of the whole matter, and, when the blow fell, like lightning from a clear sky, upon their nearest neighbors, their alarm was great; and a dele- gation of their principal men, headed by the renowned Sken-an-doa, and accompanied by Good Peter, the orator, and Mr. Dean, the interpreter, waited upon Colonel Van Schaick to learn its meaning.
The proceedings were opened by Good Peter, who spoke as follows :
" Brother : You see before you some of your friends, the Oneidas ; they come to see you. The engagements that have been entered into between us and our brothers, the Americans, are well known to you.
" We were much surprised a few days ago by the news which a war- rior brought to our castle with a war shout, informing us that our friends, the Onondagas, were destroyed.
"We were desirous to see you on this occasion, as they think you might have been mistaken in destroying that part of the tribe.
"We suppose you cannot answer us upon this subject, as the matter was agreed upon below. But perhaps you may know something of this matter.
" When we heard of this account we sent back word to our friends remainiog among them, telling them not to be pale-hearted because some of them were destroyed, but to keep up with their former en- gagements.
" We sent off some of our people to Canseraga to invite them to come to our village, but they returned an answer that they had sent some of their own runners to Onondaga to loarn the particulars, and they waited for their return.
" Our people brought for answer that they were much obliged to their children, the Queidas, for attending to them in their distresses, and they would be glad if they would speak smoothly to their brethren, the Americans, to know whether all this was done by design or by mistake.
"If it was a mistake, say they, we hope to see our brethren the prisoners; if by design, we still will keep our engagements with you, and not join the King's party. But if our brethren, the Americans, mean to destroy us also, we will not fly ; we will wait here and receive our death.
" Brother : This was the answer of the Onondagas. As for us, the Oucidas and Tuscaroras, you know our sentiments. We have sop- posed we know yours.
"The commissioners promised us that when they found anything wrong they would tell us, and make it right.
" Brother : If we have done anything wrong, we shall be glad if you would now tell us so."
To this eminently diplomatic address, Colonel Van Schaick responded in the following words :
" I am glad to see my frien Is the Oneidas and Tuscaroras. I per- fectly remember the engagements the Five Nations entered into four years ago, and that they promised to preserve a striet and honorable neutrality during the present war, which was all we asked them to do for us.
" But I likewise know that all of them, except our brethren, the Oneidas and Tuscaroras, broke their engagements, and flung away the chain of friendship. The Onondagas have been great murderers; we have found the scalps of our brothers at their castle.
" They were cut off, not by mistake, but by design. I was ordered to do it, and it is done.
" As for the other matters of which you speak, I recommend a depa-
: tation to the commission at Albany. I am not appointed to treat with you on those subjects.
"I am a warrior. My duty is to obey the orders which they send me."
This plain, straightforward, and soldierly reply settled the business. The Oneidas at once saw the uselessness of seeking definite information, much less redress, of Colonel Van Schaick, and the conference ended without further proceedings. They well knew the treacherous course pur- sued by the Onondagas, and felt that their chastisement was deserved.
On the same day of the departure of Colonel Van Schaick from Fort Schuyler, various parties of savages made their appearance in the valleys of the Mohawk and Schoharic. Several prisoners were taken in the lower valley of the Mohawk, and some plunder was carried away. Another party appeared simultaneously in Stone Arabia, where they killed two men and burnt several buildings. They also had a sharp fight with Captain Richer and his two sons, who succeeded in killing or badly wounding two of the Indians, and compelling their retreat, though the whites were all wounded in the encounter. These Indians were Mohawks from Canada.
A party of Senecas appeared on the same day in the Schoharie Valley, where they captured two men and plun- dered their houses. The panic was general, and word was sent at once to General Clinton at Albany, asking for aid. The general immediately put himself at the head of Colonel Gansevoort's regiment and the Schenectady militia, and made a rapid march through the valley, returning on the 28th of April. The general, in reporting to the Governor, expressed the opinion that but for his tiniely move the Indians would have driven the whole settlement in upon Schenectady.
Previous to Colonel Van Schaick's move upon Onondaga, a party of Oneida Indians, under Lieutenants McClellah and Hardenburgh, had been dispatched ostensibly upon an expedition against Ogdensburg, with a view of taking it by surprise, but really, no doubt, to call the attention of the Oneidas from the movement against the Onondagas. This party returned on the 30th of April to Fort Schuyler, having failed to surprise the garrison or to draw them by stratagem from the fort.
A Caughnawagu Indian was sent from this party with a letter from a " French general" (most probably Lafayette), addressed to the Canadians, and this was about the amount of service performed by the expedition ; but it served the purpose of taking the Oneida Indians, who were around Fort Schuyler, away in season to prevent their giving in- formation of Colonel Van Schaick's movement.
The object aimed at in the attack upon the Onondagas was not accomplished ; for, instead of causing them to come in and humbly sue for peace, it stirred within them a terrible demon of revenge, and, true to the spirit of the great Gurangula, they resolved on a bloody reprisal. Three hundred of their warriors were speedily on the war-path, directing their course towards the Schoharie Valley, already smoking in rnin. Their first point of attack was the Ger-
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HISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY, NEW YORK.
man settlement of Cobleskill, but the alarm was sounded, and a detachment of regular troops was quickly summoned frrm Schoharie. This body, reinforced by fifteen militia- men, was enticed into an ambush, ennningly laid, and in the desperate fight that ensued twenty-two were killed, including the captain and seven brave fellows, burnt to death in a log house, which they valiantly defended, and two taken prisoners. The loss of the Indians was quite severe.
CHAPTER XIV. SULLIVAN'S CAMPAIGN.
Gathering of the Forces-The Oneidas and Goneral Haldimand- General Clioton's Operations-Battle of Newtown-Destrnetiun of the Indian Country-Episodes and Ineidents-Expeditions into the Mohawk Valley-Peace-War of 1812.
THE continual incursions of the hostile portion of the Six Nations, and their evident determination to fight to the bitter end, called the attention of the American leaders to the necessity of taking effectual means for the protection of the exposed frontiers, and Congress, on the 25th of Febru- ary, 1779, had requested the commander-in-chief to take such measures as his judgment might deem best to effect the desired result.
After mature deliberation it was deemed expedient that the Indians should receive a thorough chastisement, and in order to accomplish this, a powerful expedition was set on foot to carry the war into the enemy's country. General Gates was offered the command of the expedition, which promised to be the most important of the year; but that officer declined the proffered honor in terms by no means satisfactory to Washington, who finally selected General Sullivan for the position.
The main body of the army, under the immediate com- mand of Sullivan, was to assemble in Pennsylvania, while an auxiliary division, consisting of 1500 men, under Geo- eral James Clinton, was to collect at Canajoharie, and thence make the portage to the head of Otsego Lake, from which it was to descend the Susquehanna to Tioga, where it would form a junction with the main body, and the consolidated forces would then move into the fertile country of the Cuyu- gas and Senecas, where Sullivan was instructed by General Washington to make a complete destruction of everything belonging to the Indians.
The history of this campaign is only partially connected with that of Oneida County, but it so intimately concerns the region of Central and Western New York, and withal had so close a connection with operations affecting the val- ley of the Mohawk, that a brief synopsis is included in this work, in order to give our readers a better understanding of the chain of events which makes up the history of the Revolutionary war in this region.
General Clinton received his instructions from General Sullivan on the 2d of June, and his operations were pushed with so much energy that on the 16th he was at Canajo- harie, ready to move towards the head-waters of the Susque- hanna. The movements were substantially aided by lis brother, the efficient Governor of New York.
Bateaux were provided at Schenectady and taken up the river to Canajoharie, and from thence transported over the portage to Otsego Lake. Fort Schuyler was freshly pro- visioned for any emergency, and every possible preparation made for a successful campaign. The bateaux altogether numbered 220, and were successfully carried over the port- age, each boat requiring four horses to liaul it over the hills. Provisions and stores for a three months' supply were also taken over in the same manner, and on the 30th of June everything was in readiness for a move down the Susque- hanna River. Colonel Willett was with General Clinton's command, and the latter, in a letter to General Schuyler, spoke in the highest terms of the efficient services rendered by him, as also of the alacrity with which the inhabitants had rallied to his standard.
During these preliminary movements two spies were cap- tured, tried, condemned, and executed. They were a Lieu- tenant Hare, of the British service, and a Tory sergeant, named Newberry, and were at the head of a band of 60 Seneca warriors, who were to harass the country around Cherry Valley, Schoharie, and Fort Schuyler.
It seems to have been the intention of General Sullivan to employ the Oneidas in this expedition, and he gave it- structions to General Clinton to enlist as many as possible, though the latter was opposed to the scheme. At that time Rev. Mr. Kirkland had been summoned to Albany for consultation. He had also been appointed chaplain to Sul- livan's army, which he joined in Pennsylvania. Io his ab- sence the business of negotiating with the Oneidas was con- fided to Mr. James Dean, who was a resident among them, and had a thorough knowledge of their language. IIe was at the time the regular interpreter employed at Fort Schuyler.
At first everything went on smoothly ; the Oneidas vol- unteered almost to a man, and the clan of the Onondagas who adhered to the Americans were also desirous of enlist- ing with them. Everything looked so promising that, on the 20th of June, Clinton wrote to Sullivan that Mr. Dean would join him at the head of Otsego Lake with the Oneida warriors on the following Saturday.
In the midst of these favorable proceedings the Indians received an address from General Haldimand, which reached Fort Schuyler on the 22d of June, and produced a sudden change in their feelings, rendering it very uncertain whether they would adhere to their resolution of joining Sullivan's army. Mr. Dean wrote that he hoped to obtain the co-op- eration of at least a part of them. The arrangement with them was that in case the Canadian Indians were let loose upon them, as threatened, the garrison at Fort Schuyler would not only assist them, but their women and children should find shelter in the fort.
The following is the address of General Haldimand, be- fore alluded to. It was written in the Iroquois language, and translated by Mr. Dean :
" Brothers: Be very attentive to what I, Ashanegown, the great King of England's representative in Canada, am going to say. By this string of wampum I shake you by the hand to rouse you, that you may seriously reflect upon my words. A string of wampum.
" Brothers : It is now about four years since the Bostonians began to rise and rebel against their Father, the King uf England, sinee which time you have taken a different part from the rest of the Five Nations,
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HISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY, NEW YORK.
your confederates, and have likewise deserted from the King's oanse, through tho deceitful machinations and snares of the rebels, who in- timidated yon with their numerous armies, by which means you became bewildered, and forgot all your engagements with, and formor care and favor from, the great King of England, your Father. You also soon forgot the frequent bad nsage, and continued encroachinents of the Americans upon the Indian lands throughout the Continent. I say, therefore, that at the breaking out of these troubles yon firmly declared to observe a strict neutrality in the dispute, and made your declaration known to Sir Gny Carleton, my predecessor, who much approved of it, provided you were in earnest. I have hitherto strictly observed and examined your conduet, and find that you did not adhere to your assertion, although I could trace no reason on the side of the government, as well as the Indians, why you should act so treacher- ons and double a part, by which means we, not mistrusting your fidel- ity, have had many losses among the King's subjects and the Five Nations, your friends and connections; and finding yon, besides, prond and haughty on the occasion, as if you gloried in your perfidy, doubt- less in sure confidence, as if your friends, the rebels, were getting the better at last; and, captivated with that pleasing opinion of yours, you have presumed twice during the course of last winter to send im- pertinent and daring messages to the Five Nations, as if you meant to pick a quarrel with them. In consequence of this, your daring and insolent hehavior, I must iasist upon, by this helt of wampum, that you declare yourselves, immediately on the receipt of this my speech and message, whether you mean to persist in your daring and insult- ing course, and still intend to net as you hitherto have done, treacher- ously, under the cloak of neutrality, or whether yon will accept of this, my last offer of reuniting and reconciling yourselves with your own tribes, the Five Nations. Do not imagine that the King has hitherto treated the rebels and their adherents with so much mildness and in- dulgence out of any apprehensions of their strength, or gaining the better. No, by no menos. For you will find that, in case you slight or disregard this my last offer of peace, I shall soon convince you that I have such a number of Indian allies to lot loose upon you as will instantly convince you of your folly when too late, as I have hardly been able to restrain them from falling upon you for some time past. I must therefore once more repeat to you that this is my last and final message to yon, and that you do not hesitate or put off giving me your direct and decisive declaration of peace or war, that in case of the lat- ter (knowing that there are still some of your nation who are friends to the King and the Five Nations) I may give them timely warning to separate themselves from you.
" Brothers : Let me lastly convince you of the deceit and dissimula- tion of your rebel brethren, General Schuyler, Parson Kirkland, and others. Have they not told you in the beginning of the rebellion that they wantel net your assistance, and to have your blood spilt; and you likewise declared that you would not join them, but remain neuter? Have either of you stuck to your word? No! you hasely broke it, and seemed from the beginning to be of mutual hostile senti- ments against the King and his allies, and soon after manifested it by your actions. What confirms me 'in this opinion, and proves your deceitful and treacherous dispositions, is your behavior during the course of the last war, when you likewise acted a double part in clan- destincly joining and carrying intelligence to the French in this country, which I myself am a witness to, and also was told of it by your friend, the late Sir William Johnson, who, notwithstanding your base behavior upon promising that you would be true and faithful for the future, forgave you and received you into favor again, advising you to be more pradent and honest in time to come, and frequently after that loaded you with the king's bounty and favor. But he was no sooner dead than you ungratefully forgot his good advice and benefactions, and, in opposition to his family and Indian friends, and everything that is sacred, adopted the cause of robels and enemies to your King, your late patron, Sir William Johnson, and your own confederacy and connections. These are facts, brothers, that, unless you are lost to every sense uf feeling, cannot but recall in you a most hearty repentance and deep remorse for your past vile actions. The belt.
"FRED. HALDIMAND." ʻ
While General Clinton was lying at the foot of Otsego Lake he received a letter from General Sehnyler, annouu- cing important news from Canada, brought by a spy who
had been sent to obtain information of the enemy's move- ments. He stated that a force consisting of 450 regular troops, 100 Tories, and 30 Indians, had left Montreal on the 18th of June, to assist the Five Nations in repelling Sullivan. Also that they were to be joined by half of Sir John Johnson's regiment, and a part of the garrison of Niagara.
Mr. Dean joined the army on the 5th of July, with 35 Oneida warriors. They did not come, however, to serve in the expedition, but merely to explain their situation since receiving General Haldimand's letter.
At a conference with the general, held on the same day, they made the following statements :
" Brother : We suppose you imagine we have come here in order to attend you upon your expedition, but we are sorry to inform you that onr situation is such as will not admit of it.
" Brother : From intelligence which we mny depend upon, we have reason to believe that the Six Nations mean to embrace the opportunity of our absence in order to destroy our castles; these accounts we have by spies from amoog them, and we know that a considerable hody of them are now collected at Cayuga for that purpose, waiting in expecta- tion of our warriors leaving the castle to join you.
" Brother: It was our intention to have joined you upon your in- tended route, and hope you will not think hard of it that we do not; but such is our present danger, that in case we leave our castle it must he eut off, as a large party of the enemy are waiting for that purpose.
" Brother: This is a time of danger with us. Our brethren, the Americans, have always promise.l us assistance for our protection when- ever we stand in need of it; we therefore request that, agreeable to these promises, we may have some troops sent to our assistance in this time of great danger. Should you send a body of troops to our assist- ance and protection, and the enemy attack ns, and we should have the fortune to beat thein, we will, with those troops, pursue thein, and join you down in their country ; or if they should not make an attack upon our castle in a short time, we will march through their castles until we join you." A belt.
To this speech General Clinton made the following reply :
"Brethren : Our present expedition is intended to chastise those nations who have broken their faith with us and joined our enemies. The force we have is quite sufficient for that purpose. Our route is planned io the great council of this country. It is not my desire that the whole of your warriors should leave their castles. I have given a general invitation to onr brethren the Oneidas, the Tuscaroras, and such Onondagas as may have entered into friendship with ns. In order to give all our Indian friends an equal chance of evincing their spirit and determination to partake of our fortune, I am entirely satis- fied that such only should join me as think proper. It is not for want of warriors that I have given you this invitation, hut that every war- rior who is a friend to these United States may have an equal oppor- tunity of punishing the enemies of our country.
" As your situation is such as causes you to suppose your castles in danger of beiog destroyed by your enemies in case of your absence, I by no means desire that more of your warriors should leave your castles than your councils think proper to permit.
" As yet, I am fully persuaded that all our enemies of the Six Nations will find too much to do at home to suffer aoy of their warriors to go abroad to do mischiof. If you should be satisfied after a little while that your castles are out of danger, and the whole or any part of your warriors think proper to come to us, I shall be glad to see you; and in the mean time perhaps you may be as serviceable where you are as if you were with ns.
"I shall immediately give orders to the officer commanding at Fort Schuyler to send some troops to your eastle, and write to Colonel Van Schaick, who commands in my absence, tu afford you every assistance in his power, as I am not authorized to order any of the troops now with me on any other command, being directed by our great chiof and warrior to proceed with the whole of these troops on the present route."
An order was soon after issued by Clinton for the coni- manding officer at Fort Schuyler to detach thirty or forty
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HISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY, NEW YORK.
men to the Oneida castles, to be used and recalled as cir- eumstances might make necessary. With this understanding ten of the warriors returned to their people, and the re- maining twenty-five accompanied the troops. It is said, however, that they subsequently all deserted but two of the meaner sort.
During the time that Sullivan's army was gathering and preparing for the grand movement, the Mohawk chieftain, Brant, was not idle. He had collected a force of about 300, consisting principally of Indians, with a few Tories, for the purpose of watching Sullivan's advance, and of harassing his detached parties; but that general's movements were so dilatory that the chief determined to make a diversion, and, if possible, draw off a portion of Sullivan's force. He accordingly, with a small but select band, fell upon the set- tlement of Minisink, located in the western part of what is now Orange County. The noted Count Pulaski, afterwards fatally wounded in an attack upon Savannah, had been sta- tioned at this place with a battalion of cavalry during the preceding winter, but in February had been ordered to join the army of General Lincoln, in the South.
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