Landmarks of Oswego County, New York, Part 5

Author: Churchill, John Charles, 1821-1905; Smith, H. P. (Henry Perry), 1839-1925; Child, W. Stanley
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason
Number of Pages: 1410

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1 Another evidence of the Indian's traitjof never forgetting a kindness, and of his good will towards the early-coming white men.

LANDMARKS OF OSWEGO COUNTY.

daga; visited the salt springs on his return journey, August 16, and further writes :

On the 17th we entered the outlet of the lake [Onondaga] and passed the river of the Senecas on the left, the addition of which enlarges the stream. It rises, they say, in two streams among the Cayugas and Senecas. After three leagues more of pleasant traveling we passed on our ,right the river of Oneida, which seemed quite deep. A league further we encountered some rapids [at the site of Phoenix], which gave the name to the village of fishermen.

So well pleased were the Indians with Le Moyne's visit that they begged that other missionaries might be sent to their country, and that a French settlement might be planted on the shore of Onondaga Lake. Who shall say what might have been the destiny of this country had , this been done and the French taken full and prompt advantage of their early possibilities in that region ? Fathers Chaumont and Dablon, who followed Le Moyne's footsteps to the Onondagas in the same autumn, were also requested to establish a French settlement and build a French fort among them.1

In prompt response to these overtures, Father Dablon returned to Montreal in April, 1656, explained the request of the Onondagas, and Charles de Lauson-Charny, then governor of Canada, took immediate steps to carry out the project. On the 17th of May, fifty Frenchmen, under Sieur Du Puys (or Dupuis), accompanied by Dablon and three other Jesuit fathers and two brothers of the order, set forth in bateaux on their mission. The mouth of the Oswego River was reached early in July, whence a messenger was sent ahead to the Onondagas, the provisions of the party being exhausted. A number of Indians soon met them and, relieving their necessities, accompanied them on their way to Lake Genentaha (Onondaga). Read the following from the " Relation " of one of the fathers :

We entered the Lake Genentaha, on whose banks we prepared for abode. . We disembarked five pieces of cannon, whose diminutive thunder rolled over the waters of the lake; this was followed by the discharge of all our arquebuses. This was the first salute we had sent through the water, the air and the woods to the

1 It has been advanced by some authorities that this friendship was feigned by the Onondagas in order to get the French in their power ; and by others that they probably wished to obtain the French firearms and their aid to destroy their enemies of the Cat nation, on the shores of Lake Erie. There does not seem to be the slightest foundation for such a belief. The friendship ex- hibited by the Onondagas was no more than was displayed by other nations on many early occa- sions towards the white men.

DU PUY'S EXPEDITION.

ancients of the country, who had expected us, with a great multitude of people. This sound boomed over the waters, burst forth loudly in the air, and resounded very agreeably in the forest. We sailed afterwards in beautiful order, our canoes, or little bateaux, going four by four over this small lake. Our French gunners made a second discharge upon coming in sight, with a grace which delighted all these poor people.

This was the first body of white men in any considerable number that ever passed up the Oswego River, and it is clear from the foregoing description by the Jesuit, that it was the Frenchmen's intention to over- awe, if they did not overwhelm in battle, the central nation of the Iroquois, and thus gain either a permanent alliance or a permanent victory. The unusual display, and the roar of the cannon certainly made a deep impression for a time on the Indians; but for some not clearly explained reason, the expedition as a whole was a failure. The party remained in the Indian country nearly two years, but early in the spring of 1658, while the Oswego River was yet filled with tossing ice, the whole party, in hastily constructed bateaux, hurried down to Lake Ontario and made their way to Montreal, where they arrived on the 3d of April.

Du Puys reported that he was compelled to leave the Iroquois on account of their treachery, and that if he had not done so his party would have been destroyed; that he was informed to this effect by one of the Jesuit converts ; that he built the bateaux secretly in the en- closure of the Jesuit mission, procured the holding of a great feast, and while the Indians were sleeping off its effects, the party fled.

This was the end of all substantial effort at French colonization in Central New York, though French missions were soon afterward estab- lished at Onondaga, and continued there and at other points until about the close of the century.

LANDMARKS OF OSWEGO COUNTY

CHAPTER IV.

Accession of the English to the Dutch Possessions in America-Peaceful Relations of the English and the Indians -Conflict between the French and the English-French and English Efforts to secure Alliance of the Iroquois-Operations of the French under De la Barre-Council at La Famine-Situation of La Famine-Arrival of the Marquis de Nonville.

The peaceful relations which existed between the Dutch colonists and the Iroquois were perpetuated by the English on their accession to the Dutch possessions in 1664; and, with immaterial exceptions, the Iro- quois remained the firm allies or the neutral friends of the English until the domination of the latter was broken by the triumph of the colonists in the war of the Revolution. But the strife between the French and the English did not cease, and while the former displayed the most energy and enterprise in the extension of their dominion and influence, the latter, as we have noted, were far the most successful in securing the fealty of the Indians. The Iroquois were regularly engaged in ex- terminating their savage enemies, and at the same time kept up a desultory warefare on the French, broken by intervals of peace only when their own interests or inclinations demanded a cessation of hos- tilities.

On April 6, 1672, Louis de Bouade, Count de Frontenac, was ap- pointed governor and lieutenant-general of Canada, and under his very efficient management confidence was restored, and in 1673 a treaty of peace was made with the Iroquois.1

In 1684 another rupture occurred between the French and the Iro- qnois, and an expedition was planned against the Senecas, which was to have passed up the Oswego River, but proceeded only to the mouth of Salmon River, and it is in the papers concerning this invasion that we find the first mention of the French name of Oswego-" Choueguen,"

1 Count de Frontenac wrote September 14, 1674: " In spite of the efforts of the Dutch to get the Iroquois to make war on the French, the Iroquois came last year on solemn embassy to Mon- treal; brought eight children belonging to the principal families of their villages ; and ratified the treaty made with them in 1673."-[N. Y. Colonial History.

DE LA BARRE AND THE SENECAS.

or " Ochoueguen " 1 as it was sometimes spelled. M. Le Febvre de la Barre had been appointed governor of Canada in 1682, and received from his sovereign detailed instructions regarding a campaign against the Senecas, who had in the year 1684 pillaged 700 canoes belonging to Frenchmen, and taken fourteen prisoners, whom they detained nine days.

In order to lighten his task, De la Barre informed Colonel Dongan, then governor of New York, of his purpose, and requested him to re- frain from selling guns and ammunition to the Iroquois.2 Dongan was neither ready to join with the French nor to make promise of neutrality.

In the spring of 1684, one of De la Barre's officers reconnoitered the southern shore of Lake Ontario and the Seneca country, and on the 9th of August De la Barre reached Fort Frontenac (Kingston), where his forces were gathered. The French officer appears to have been either cowardly and afraid of his foes, or else, in order to advance his own fortunes, did not wish to seriously engage the powerful Senecas. He was accused of both by his own countrymen.3 In his memoir of

1 Crisfield Johnson in his History of Oswego County, p. 20, erroneously states that in the French papers of 1724 is found the first mention of "Choueguen," as applied to the ground now covered by Oswego city. The fact is that in a series of letters from Father Lamberville, then among the Senecas, to De la Barre, previous to the contemplated invasion, and under date of July 18, 1684, he more than once mentions the place by that name. "We, however," he wrote, "await your orders, which you will please convey to us by M. le Moine whom the Onnontagues request you to send instantly to them at Choueguen in all security and without the least fear." And again, under date of August 17, 1684, he wrote : "The Onnontagues have dispatched some of theirs to notify the Oneida, the Mohawk and the Cayuga to repair to Choueguen to salute you and to reply to your proposals." Moreover, even earlier than this, and in 1681, or 1682, after De Frontenac had fixed a rendezvous for the Iroquois at Fort Frontenac for the end of August, (1682) "it was repre- sented to them that it was for the spring, and they were persuaded to request M. de Frontenac to visit them at the first running of the sap, not at Fort Frontenac, but at Techouegen, at the mouth of the Onondaga River, where the principal village lies." This quotation is from the memoir on the state of affairs in Canada, in the Colonial History of New York, vol. IX, p. 190, and gives us the best of authority for carrying the beginning of the history of this place back about 215 years. The name "Oswego " does not appear until about 1727, when it is found in Governor Burnet's report of operations at this point to the Board of Trade of New York. The original pronunciation of the name was "Oswaygo," and it is quite probable that both this and "Choueguen " were derived from the same Indian word, modified by English and French lips. This view is strengthened by the fact that the place the English called Oswegatchie, the French called Chouegachie.

2 I dispatched Sieur Bourbon to Manate and Orange to notify Colonel Dongan of the insult the French had received from the Senecas, which obliged me to march against them, whereof I gave him notice, assuring him if he wished to avenge the twenty-six Englishmen of Merilande, whom they had killed last winter, I would promise him to unite my forces to his, that he may obtain sat- isfaction for it or avenge them .-- [Memoir of M. de la Barre, Doc. Col. History, vol. IX. p. 240.

3 Though I had the honor, my lord, to entertain you with the preparations we are making for the war, and the great expenses to which the General [De la Barre] subjects his Majesty, I shall, without being a prophet, take the liberty to tell you, my lord, that I do not perceive any disposi-

LANDMARKS OF OSWEGO COUNTY.

what occurred in connection with this affair, De la Barre wrote that after his arrival at Frontenac he sent one of the De Lambervilles to his brother "at Onnontague whom I instructed to assure those of that nation that I had so much respect for their request, that I should prefer their mediation to war, provided they made me a reasonable satisfaction." The Onondagas consented to act as mediators, and sent nine of their chiefs, with three Oneidas, and two Cayugas, for the pur- pose. Not a single Seneca was present.

On August 21 De la Barre sent the greater part of his force from Fort Frontenac to a point designated as La Famine1 (now generally acknowl-

tion in the governor to make war on those savages. I believe he will content himself with pad- dling as far asiCataracouy or Fort Frontenac, and then send for the Senecas to negotiate peace with them, and make a fool of the people, of the Intendant, and of His Majesty, which proves that he sacrifices everything to his own interests .- [M. de Meulles to M. de Seignelay, July 8, 1684. Doc. Hist., vol. IX, p. 231.

After the conclusion of the expedition, M. de Meulles wrote again as follows : " What Indians there were evinced the best disposition to fight the Iroquois to death. . . All the French breathed nothing but war. . . But the General did not think proper to push matters any further, and, without any necessity, sent Sieur Lemoyne to the said Iroquois to treat of peace at a time when every one was in good health, and when all necessary provision was made of food, etc., to dare every enterprise ;; and finally, after various comings and goings on one side and the other, concluded peace. This peace, my lord, has astonished all the officers who had command in that army."-[Doc. Hist., vol. IX, p. 245.

1 La Famine, or " Hungry Bay," as the name has been translated and handed down to the present day, has been variously located at Black River Bay, at Chaumont Bay, and at Henderson Harbor, in Jefferson county, and at the mouth of Salmon River in Oswego county. The late Franklin B. Hough, the historian of Jefferson county, after quoting from Colden's History of the Five Nations, and from De Muelles, the commissary of the expedition, says: "These render it probable that the locality was in Henderson or Ellisburgh, more probably in the latter town, which has extensive marshes on the lake, on both branches of Big Sandy Creek." But old maps, which must have been made mostly by persons unfamiliar with such work; and early estimates of distances, which must have been made in very many instances by mere estimates of time consumed in traveling, cannot be otherwise than unreliable. La Famine has been located as twenty-four leagues from Onondaga; as thirty miles from Onondaga (by Colden as above), and by De la Barre as four leagues from Onondaga. While the latter estimate is clearly and grossly inaccurate, it is only made more so by placing the locality still farther northward. The record of Count Frontenac's expedition of 1696 against the Onondagas states that he set out with his flotilla from Fort Frontenac (now Kingston), and on the first day reached Isle aux Chevreuils, or Deer Island (now Grenadier Island). The next day he advanced to a place " within three leagues of Riviere de la Famine," and on the third proceeded to the mouth of Oswego River. This third day's journey could hardly have been accomplished, if we accept Black River Bay as La Famine. As further evidence in favor of the identity of La Famine and Salmon River, the records of Pouchot, the eminent French engineer, from whom we shall frequently quote, state : "The Riviere a la Famine enters very far into the interior, and goes quite near to the portage of the height of land." This statement occurs in a very careful and detailed description of the shores of Lake Ontario made by him, and no stream other than Salmon River answers so well to his description ; while his further and later mention of Sandy Creek and other streams to the northward, as he proceeded in that direction, conclusively estab- lishes the identity of Salmon River and La Famine. Parkman in his " Frontenac and New France under Louis XIV," in his account of this expedition, says that La Barre " crossed to the mouth of Salmon River, then called La Famine.''

DE LA BARRE'S DOUBTFUL TREATY.

edged to have been the mouth of Salmon River in Oswego county), where they landed, after two days of tempestuous voyage. This was the first large force of white men that ever appeared in the territory of Oswego county and was altogether a motley gathering. M. de Muelles writes that there were " nine hundred French and three hundred sav- ages, and from the Niagara side there was an army of six hundred men, one third of whom were French, and the remainder Outawacs and Hu- rons, amounting in all to 1,800 men."1 Gaily dressed troops trained in the gallant service of Louis le Grand; Canadian militia, decked in all manner of costumes; voyageurs from that remarkable class which was created by the fur trade, in their garb of the backwoods; and Indians in their war paint and little else-all mingled to form perhaps the most astonishing army, small though it was, that ever took the field.

The Iroquois chiefs, sent to act as mediators, arrived at La Famine September 3, 1684, and on the following day a council was held. After the usual ceremonies De la Barre made a speech, the burden of which was that if the Indians did not grant him satisfaction for their misconduct; cease taking the English into their lakes and making in- cursions upon the French allies; he would forsooth declare war.

The reply came from a celebrated Onondaga chief, Garangula, called by the French, " Grand Geule " (Big throat), and is a marvel of eloquent satire, sarcasm and defiance, worthy of any civilized orator. We can can transcribe only a part of his words :

Yonnondio, you must have believed, when you left Quebec, that the sun had burnt up all the forests which render our country inaccessible to the French, or that the lakes had so far overflowed their banks that they had surrounded our castles, and that it was impossible for us to get out of them. Yes, Yonnondio, surely you must have dreamed so, and your curiosity to see so great a wonder has brought you so far.

Now you are undeceived, since that I and the warriors here present are come to as- sure you that the Senecas, Cayugas, Onondagas, Oneidas and Mohawks are yet alive. I thank you in their name for bringing back into the country the calumet which your predecessor received from their hands. It was happy for you that you left under ground that murdering hatchet that has so often been dyed in the blood of the French.

Hear, Yonnondio, I do not sleep, I have my eyes wide open, and the sun which en- lightens me shows me a great captain at the head of a company of soldiers, who speaks as if he was dreaming. He says that he only came to the great lake to smoke the cal- umet with the Onondagas. But Garangula sees the contrary ; he sees that it was to knock them on the head if sickness had not weakened the arms of the French.

1 Doc. Hist., vol. IX, p. 245.

LANDMARKS OF OSWEGO COUNTY.

I see Yonnondio raving in a camp of sick men, whose lives the Great Spirit has saved by inflicting this sickness upon them.

Hear, Yonnondio ; our women had taken their clubs, our children had carried their bows and arrows into the heart of your camp, if our warriors had not disarmed them and kept them back when your messenger, Obguesse [Le Moine] came to our castles.

The Indian continued by defending the action of the Senecas in at- tacking the western Indians; upholding their conduct towards the En - glish ; and claiming they had not attacked the French except when the latter carried arms to their enemies, closing with the declaration : " We are born free. We depend on neither Yonnondio nor Corlear."1

De la Barre concluded what he termed a treaty with the ambassadors of the Senecas, which did not contain even promises of good behavior on the part of the Iroquois ; instead De la Barre promised to quit the country the next day, and that future councils should be held at La Famine, in the territory of the Iroquois, and not at Fort Frontenac. A feast was given to the French officers, which the Indians could well afford under the circumstances, and before dawn on the following morn- ing, and while the chiefs were still sleeping off their festal lethargy, De la Barre was busied in superintending the removal of the sick of his force to his boats so as to hide his real condition from the enemy. When daylight came the whole party embarked and hurried away for Frontenac, under conditions remarkably like those of Du Puys a quarter of a century earlier, when he fled with his party from Onondaga lake.

De la Barre says of his return :

I departed on the sixth [of Sept. 1684], having had all the sick of my troops em- barked before day (so as not to be seen by the Indians), to the number of one hun- dred and fifty canoes and twelve flat bateaux, and arrived in the evening of the same day at Fort Frontenac, where I found one hundred and ten men, of the number I had left there, already departed, all sick, for Montreal.2

Although the French officer excused his action as best he could, he was recalled by his government on the 10th of March, 1685, and Jacques

1 During the whole period of French occupation of Canada the French governor 'was called "Yonnondio " by the Iroquois. The name arose from that of one of the early governors, M. de Montmagny. The Indians were told that this meant "great mountain." Translating this into their own language they applied the name " Yonnondio " to all the governors alike. So of "Cor- lear," which they used towards all of the governors of New York; it was derived from that of Arent Van Curler, an early agent of Kiliaen Van Rensselaer, the first patroon of the territory of nearly all of the present counties of Rensselaer and Albany. Van Curler endeared himself to the Indians, and they gave the name " Corlear " to him and to all the governors of the province.

2 Doc. Hist., vol. IX, p. 243.

COMING OF DE NONVILLE.

Rene de Brisay, Marquis de Nonville, was appointed in his stead. On March 10, 1685, Louis XIV wrote to his minister in Canada : " I have reason to be dissatisfied with the treaty concluded between Sieur de la Barre and the Iroquois. His abandonment of the Illinois has seriously displeased me, and has determined me to recall him. I have chosen as his successor Sieur de Nonville, who will, of himself, understand the state of affairs." 1 At the same time the king thus let De la Barre down as easily as he could : "Having been informed that your years do not permit you to support the fatigues inseparable from the duties of your office of Governor and Lieutenant-General of Canada, I send you this letter to advise you that I have selected Sieur de Nonville to serve in your place ; and my intention is that on his arrival, and on your having resigned to him the command and instructions of all that concerns it, you embark for the purpose of returning to France." 2

When it is known that at the time under consideration there were, according to the authority of Wentworth Greenhalgh, who went through the Iroquois country in 1677 and made a careful computation, only a little more than 2,000 warriors in the Five Nations, the action of De la Barre, and the situation of the French consequent thereupon, ap- proaches the disgraceful; and yet, the diplomatic Jesuits so worked upon the feelings of the Indians, that the chiefs made a special request that the mission should not be removed from Onondaga. This, of course, De la Barre was ready enough to grant.

1 Doc. Hist., vol. IX, p. 269.

2 Doc. Hist , vol. IX, p. 269.

LANDMARKS OF OSWEGO COUNTY.

CHAPTER V.

Efficient Action of De Nonville-Campaign Against the Senecas-Destruction of Montreal by Indians - Burning of Schenectady-Repair of Fort Frontenac-Campaign Against the Iroquois in 1696 -- Consequences of French Warfare on the Indians-Close Alliance of the Indians and the English -- Peace of Ryswick -- Beginning of Queen Anne's War-Extension of English Fur Trade-French Post at Niagara -- Governor Burnet Protests -- Establishment of Military Post of Chouaguen -- Its Effect Upon the French -- Plan of Oswego in 1727 -- Approaching War -- Mismanagement at Oswego -- Declaration of War -- Military Importance of Oswego -- Treaty of Aix la-Chapelle -- Sir Wm. Johnson-His Management at Oswego.

De Nonville, on his arrival in Canada, made a study of the situation ; reported in full to his royal master ; and soon began preparations to open a war on the Iroquois, with the especial view of subjugating the Senecas. He explained the defenseless condition of the French ; counseled the erection of fortifications ; and asserted that the Iroquois were powerful and dangerous, chiefly through their ability to secure unlimited arms and ammunition from the English.1 He also sent over an estimate of the quantity of beaver sent out from Canada from 1675 to 1685 inclusive-an average of about 90,000 pounds annually. Altogether it was a rather discouraging picture that he drew of the situation.

Preparations for an attack upon the Senecas having been completed, De Nonville with a large force crossed Lake Ontario in 1687, and landed on the shore of Irondequoit Bay. Proceeding to the Seneca villages, a battle followed, with little advantage to either side, after which the Senecas fled into the forest, while the French destroyed their villages and crops.2

1 Their large purchases of arms and ammunition from the English, at a low rate, have given them (the Iroquois) hitherto all the advantage they possess over other tribes; who, in consequence of being disarmed, have been destroyed by the Iroquois, all of whom are proud of the act .- [De Nonville's memoir on the state of Canada, Paris Doc., Col. History. vol. III, p. 281.

2 On the 13th about 4 o'clock in the afternoon, having passed through two dangerous defiles, we arrived at the third where we were very vigorously attacked by 800 Senecas, 200 of whom fired ; but the resistance they met with produced such a great consternation, that they soon resolved to

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Landmarks of Oswego County, New York, Part 5

Author: Churchill, John Charles, 1821-1905; Smith, H. P. (Henry Perry), 1839-1925; Child, W. Stanley Publication date: 1895 Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason Number of Pages: 1410

Author: Churchill, John Charles, 1821-1905; Smith, H. P. (Henry Perry), 1839-1925; Child, W. Stanley
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason
Number of Pages: 1410