USA > Ohio > The history of the state of Ohio; from the discovery of the great valley, to the present time > Part 1
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Gc 977.1 Ab23h 1595966
M. L
REYNOLDS HISTORICAL GENEALOGY COLLECTION
GEN
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 02398 8030
Gc 977.1 Ab23h
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2016
https://archive.org/details/historyofstateof00abbo
NEW STATE HOUSE,
ILL
RICHE COCOMBOS
**
****
*** *
THE HISTORY
OF THE
STATE OF HIO:
FROM THE
DISCOVERY OF THE GREAT VALLEY, TO THE PRESENT TIME;
INCLUDING
NARRATIVES OF EARLY EXPLORATIONS ; THE STRUGGLES BETWEEN FRANCE AND ENGLAND FOR THE POSSESSION OF THE VALLEY ; THE WARS WITH THE INDIANS ; ORGANIZATION OF THE STATE ; THE ADVENTURES OF THE EARLY EMIGRANTS ; LIFE IN THE SOLITUDES OF THE WILDERNESS ; BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF ALL THE GOV- ERNORS OF OHIO, AND OF MANY OTHERS OF HER MOST ILLUSTRIOUS SONS; AND MOST OF THE IMPORTANT EVENTS ATTENDING THE BIRTH, GROWTH AND MATURITY OF A STATE NOW TRULY IMPERIAL IN POPULA- TION, WEALTH AND POWER.
BY JOHN S. C. ABBOTT,
Author of the Life of Napoleon ; The History of Frederick the Great ; Lives of the Presidents, Etc., Etc.
WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS,
DETROIT :
NORTHWESTERN PUBLISHING COMPANY.
SOLD EXCLUSIVELY BY R. D. S. TYLER & Co., SUBSCRIPTION BOOK PUBLISHERS, DETROIT, MICH.
1875.
Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year Eighteen Hundred and Seventy-four, b-7 THOMSON J. HUDSON AND WILLIAM H. LITTLE, in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C.
1595966
Dedication.
TO THE YOUNG MEN OF OHIO,
WHO HAVE RECEIVED FROM THEIR FATHERS THE RICH INHERITANCE OF ONE OF THE FAIREST REALMS UPON WHICH THE SUN NOW SHINES, THIS VOL- UME, WHICH IS INTENDED TO PERPETUATE THE MEMORY OF THEIR HEROIC ACHIEVEMENTS, IS RESPECT- FULLY DEDICATED, BY
JOHN S. C. ABBOTT.
4
xii
PREFACE.
howl of the wolf, and perhaps to the war whoop of the savage. We accompany the bold emigrant, in his long, long journey, over Alleghany ridges, and through forest glooms, to his lonely hut, where solitude and silence, in all their awfulness, reign. We are introduced to the plumed and painted savage, and, at one time, in his lodge, partake of his hospitality as a friend; and again we meet him and his fellow warriors, as they brandish tomahawk and scalping knife, in the horrid battle, making the forest resound with their demoniac yells.
It is through such scenes of tumult and suffering that Ohio has attained its present exalted position and power. And these are the scenes of heroic achievement and wondrous adventures which the writer of this volume would attempt to rescue from the obliv- ion in which the fast revolving years threaten to engulf them.
Fair Haven, Connecticut.
JOHN S. C. ABBOTT.
.
-
INDEX TO ENGRAVINGS.
MISCELLANEOUS.
PAGE.
FRONTISPIECE - New State Capitol.
Father Marquette's Expedition. I8
The Council Fire 21
Death of Marquette 24
La Salle on Lake Erie 27
Assassination of La Salle. 27
Indian Marriage Ceremony __ 39
Braddock's Expedition and. 63
Old Fort Michilimackinac.
II7
Old Fort Detroit. 124
Unveiling of the Conspiracy mtiac I26
Defeat of the Canoes
I34
Death of Logan 163
Heroism of Elizabeth Zane 184
Escape of General McCulloch 187
Escape of Daniel Boone
203
Simon Kenton's Lodge in the Wilderness
219
"Our Cabin " in the Wilderness
248 Mound at Marietta 299
Emigrants Floating Down the Ohio 306
New Hospital for Lunatics at Columbus 33I
The Warrior at Bay 346
Gallipolis in 1791 390
Night Scene
393
Capture of Major Goodale
422
Conneaut in 1796
447
Escape in the Flat Boat 485
First Hotel at Zanesville 520 Evening in the Woods 476
Escape of Johnston 512
First Court House in Green County 525
Birth Place of Tecumseh 594
The Encampment
624
xiv
INDEX TO ENGRAVINGS.
Desolation
PAGE. 639
Fort Seneca 654
-"J Imbecile Vis, at Columbus 671
Institution for the Deaf and Dumb, at Columbus
-849
PORTRAITS.
Hon. Arthur St. Clair 153
William Henry Harrison I71
Edward Tiffin 2II
Thomas Kirker -23I
Samuel Huntington 255
" Return J. Meigs 273
Othniel Looker 291
Thomas Worthington - 343
Ethan Allen Brown 363
Allen Trimble 399
Jeremiah Morrow 437
Duncan McArthur 459
Robert Lucas 489
Joseph Vance .503
Wilson Shannon
-513
Thomas Corwin 535
Thomas W. Bartley 545
Mordecai Bartley
55I
William Bebb
565
= Seabury Ford
571.
Reuben Wood
577
40 William Medill 583
Salmon P. Chase 589
William Dennison 607
David Tod 633
John Brough 643
" Charles Anderson 663
Jacob D. Cox 679
Rutherford B. Hayes 689
Edward F. Noyes 703
= William Allen 713
" John Sherman 721
" Morrison R. Waite 735
Allen G. Thurman 80
Gen. William T. Sherman 829
A
HISTORY OF ( OHIO.
3 1833 02398 8030
.
HISTORY OF OHIO.
CHAPTER I.
THE GREAT VALLEY.
DISCOVERY OF AMERICA-OF FLORIDA - SEBASTIAN CABOT - THE FRENCH ENTER THE ST. LAWRENCE - ADVENTURES OF MARQUETTE - EXPLORING TOUR OF LASALLE - FRENCH MILITARY POSTS IN THE GREAT VALLEY- JEALOUSY OF THE ENGLISH - CONFLICTING CLAIMS - LOCATION OF THE FRENCH ON THE LAKES- THE BARRIER OF THE ALLEGHANIES- RO- MANTIC STORIES OF THE GREAT VALLEY - ADVENTURES OF DANIEL BOONE.
IT WAS at midnight of the 11th of October, 1492, when Colum- bus, from the bows of his ship, discovered a light which revealed to him, and to Europe, a new world. The morning dawned serene and lovely, and the islands of the West Indies were opened before him in Eden-like luxuriance and beauty. It was not until four years after this, in 1496, that the Continent of North America was discovered, by an English navigator, Sebastian Cabot. Grad- ually an understanding arose, among the European powers, that any portion of the new world, discovered and taken possession of by expeditions from any court of Europe, should be recognized as belonging to that kingdom. This rule was not difficult of appli- cation in reference to an island. But on the continent, stretching out through unknown limits of thousands of miles, it was not easy to decide the boundaries which were to be attached to a spot upon which a seaman's eye had rested.
The Spaniards landed on the extreme southern part of the con- tinent, which they called Florida, in consequence of the bloom
FATHER MARQUETTE'S EXPEDITION.
19
HISTORY OF OHIO.
which they found spread around them in marvelous loveliness. But what were the limits of Florida, no one could pretend to tell. No one knew whether it was fifty miles or five thousand miles on the west, across to the Pacific Ocean. And there was no moun- tain, or river, or imaginary line, upon the north, definitely to bound their claim in that direction.
The French, in 1525, took possession of the immense valley of the St. Lawrence, giving the river that name, as they entered it on that saint's day. They claimed the country to the Pacific on the west, however near or remote those waters might be, and to the Pole on the north.
Sebastian Cabot, at the head of an English expedition, cruised along the coast from the region of Florida, to the vicinity of the St. Lawrence, catching occasional glimpses of the land; and England claimed that whole region, by the right of discovery. It was all called Virginia, in honor of Elizabeth, the virgin Queen of England. Of course the northern and southern boundaries were entirely indefinite. The Dutch afterwards discovered the Dela- ware River and the Hudson, landed upon the shores of the latter stream, took possession of them in the name of Holland, planted their colonies there, and claimed the territory under the title of discovery and settlement.
The French, having discovered the region called Canada, and having established flourishing colonies there, also discovered the mouth of the Mississippi, which, with its innumerable tributaries, meanders through the richest and the most magnificent valley on this globe. It seems hardly proper to call a realm, a valley, when it extends over thousands of miles in length and breadth, cover- ing an area, surpassing many of the kingdoms of Europe united, capable of supporting a population of hundreds of millions, and embracing majestic forests, and luxuriant prairies, such as the sun nowhere else shines upon.
The French Catholics had established a mission, for the instruc- tion of the Indians, at a point which they called St. Mary's, near the outlet of Lake Superior. There was a very remarkable man at the head of this mission, by the name of James Marquette. He was apparently an earnest Christian, an enthusiastic admirer of the beauties of nature, and in all respects, a man of true heroic mould. He resolved to explore the Mississippi from its upper waters. He repaired to an Indian village on the Fox River,
20
HISTORY OF OHIO.
which flows into Green Bay. He had already selected his com- panions for the enterprise, which was apparently full of difficulty. and peril. They consisted of a French gentleman, who would be his congenial companion, five hardy and experienced Canadian boatmen, and two Indians as guides through the wilderness which no white man, as yet, had ever penetrated.
For this party of nine, with all their needful stores of guns, ammunition, cooking utensils, and blankets, setting out on an expedition, which must occupy, at the shortest, several weeks, they took two birch canoes. Their food they expected to find mainly in such game as they might shoot by the way. Marquette had such faith in the protection of God, and in the friendliness of the Indians, whom he might meet by the way, that he seems to have had no fears of any hostile encounters.
It was a lovely summer morning, the 10th of June, 1673, when the party set out from Fox River. They carried the canoes upon their shoulders, over a portage of many miles through the wilderness, led by their Indian guides. It was an excursion of pleasure. The weather was delightful, the scenery enchanting, ever opening new views of beauty. The loads they bore were not oppressive, and they were all in health and vigor, and at home in the varied emergencies of encampments. Having reached the Wisconsin River, they launched their canoes upon its placid waters.
For nearly a month they were paddling down this beautiful stream, a distance of five hundred miles, before they entered the majestic flood of the Father of Waters. They seem to have found the voyage delightful in the extreme. There were fishes in abundance in the river, and there was game of the greatest variety and in profusion on the banks. Their dining room was canopied by the over-arching skies, and their table was spread with every luxury of game which hungry pioneers .could desire. At night they drew their boats ashore, and if the weather was pleasant, with the green sod for their bed, wrapped in blankets or furs, enjoyed that uninterrupted sleep, which is one of the richest of earth's enjoyments. The Psalmist understood this when he said : " He giveth His beloved sleep."
Should the weather chance to be tempestuous, with floods of rain and moaning winds, the storm was easily anticipated. Pad dling rapidly along the stream, they would select some picturesque
-
THE COUNCIL FIRE,
22
HISTORY OF OHIO.
and sheltered nook, and, in a short time would rear a cabin im- pervious to wind and rain. Many hands make quick work. Like magic the cabin would rise beneath the hatchets of these experi- enced pioneers of the wilderness. Thatched and lined with over- lapping plates of bark, it would afford perfect protection against the violence of the storm. Here they would promptly gather all their stores. With the camp entirely open on the lee side, the floor carpeted with robes of fur, and a cheerful fire blazing in front, men, capable of enjoying such scenes, could luxuriate in the sublimity of almost any storm, which might shake the forest. No country inn, no palatial city hotel, could offer a more enjoyable retreat from the tempest.
Neither did their seasons of rest pass in any weariness of monotony. Such men are not disturbed in their employments by any ordinary rain. There were fishes to be caught from the stream which flowed past their door. There was game to be taken, and it was to be found within a few rods of their camp fire. There were garments to be repaired; and not a little time was spent in feasting upon the delicate viands which they knew so well how to cook. When the clouds broke and passed away, and the sun again came out in all its glory, they would joyfully resume their heroic voyage, almost regretting to leave a home where they had found so much happiness.
On the 7th of July they entered the Mississippi River. It was: here, a broad, rapid stream,-clear as crystal. Marquette writes that when he first caught sight of this wonderful river, flowing from the unknown into the unknown, he experienced emotions of joy which no language could express. It was easy to be borne down by the current of this majestic flood, but to paddle back, against the tide, would try the muscles even of the hardiest men. Still the voyagers pressed on.
It was indeed a fairy scene which now spread before them .. Here bold bluffs, hundreds of feet high, jutted out into the river. Here were crags, of stupendous size, and of every variety of form, often reminding one of Europe's most picturesque stream, where
" The castled crags of Drachenfels Frown o'er the wide and winding Rhine."
Again, the prairie would spread out its ocean-like expanse, embellished with groves, garlanded with flowers of gorgeous colors
23
HISTORY OF OHIO.
waving in the summer breeze, checkered with sunshine and the shade of the passing clouds, with roving herds of the stately buffalo and the graceful antelope. And, again the gloomy forest would appear, extending over countless leagues, where bears, wolves, and panthers found a congenial home.
Having descended the river nearly two hundred miles, they came to an Indian trail leading back into the country, and so well trodden as to give evidence that a powerful tribe was near. It speaks well for the Indians-for the reputation which they then enjoyed-that Marquette, with his French companion, M. Joliet, far away in the wilderness, seven hundred miles from any point which a white man's foot had ever before trod, should not have hesitated alone to enter this trail to search out the habitations of this unknown tribe. They left all their companions with the canoes on the bank of the river.
For six miles they followed the narrow track, when they came in sight of a large Indian village. It was on the open plain, so that the Indians saw them approaching when at quite a distance. They knew, of course, that two strangers, unarmed, could not be advancing with any hostile intent.
Four of the patriarchs of the village immediately came forward bearing a pipe of peace, which was highly ornamented with bril- liantly colored plumes. As these chiefs drew near, they saw to their surprise and delight that the strangers were pale faces. Though none of them had ever before seen a white man, the knowledge of his arrival had spread widely through all the tribes. The French had pursued such a course of justice and friendliness with the Indians that wherever they went they were hospitably received.
One of these gentlemen of the barbarian school, as he led the guests into his cabin, spread out his hands to them invitingly and said : "How beautiful is the sun, Frenchmen, when it shines upon you as you come to visit us. Our whole village greets you with a welcome. You shall find a home in all our dwellings."
The strangers were entertained with the utmost hospitality. As they were about to take their leave, a venerable chief approached Marquette, and suspending by a cord a richly decorated pipe about his neck, said :
"This is the sacred calumet. It signifies that wherever you bear it you are messengers of peace. All our tribes will respect it, and will protect you from every harm."
1
.
DEATH OF MARQUETTE.
25
HISTORY OF OHIO.
We can not record this friendly reception without emotion. How beautiful is peace! How different would the history of this world have been but for man's inhumanity to man. On reaching their boats, the little band of voyagers resumed their journeying down the river. They floated by the mouths of the turbid Mis- souri and the beautiful Ohio, carefully observing their positions, but making no attempt to ascend either of the streams.
The Ohio was then, and for some years after, called the Wabash. Still they floated on, several hundred miles farther, until they reached the mouth of the Arkansas. Here again they found a large Indian village, and they were received by the natives with the same hospitality which had marked their intercourse with the Indians during the whole of the route.
They now reascended the majestic stream, and instead of con- tinuing their upward course to the Wisconsin River, these bold explorers entered the Illinois River, and again reached Green Bay by way of Lake Michigan. They had been absent two months. During this time the devoted missionary had lost no opportunity of proclaiming to the Indians the Christian's God, and the way of salvation through faith in an atoning Savior.
Even then Marquette had no adequate conception of the true grandeur of that valley he had entered, extending from the Alle- ghany ridges to the Rocky Mountains. Still, when the tidings of his wonderful discoveries reached Quebec, the exciting intelligence was received with the ringing of bells, with salvos of artillery, and most prominent and important of all, by nearly the whole popula- tion, led by the clergy and other dignitaries of the place, going in procession to the cathedral, where the Te Deum was sung, and high mass was celebrated.
Soon after this Marquette died. For several years the great river flowed through its vast solitude unexplored and unvisited. Five years after this, in 1678, another French gentleman by the name of LaSalle, attempted the exploration of the Mississippi. He was as enthusiastic, courageous and enterprising as his prede- cessor. It is said that the King of France had offered him the monopoly of the fur trade in all the new regions which he might explore, and had also furnished means to fit out an expedition to explore the Mississippi to its mouth.
LaSalle, with a brave Italian officer by the name of Tonti, sailed from Rochelle, in France, on the 14th of June, 1678. He was
26
HISTORY OF OHIO.
furnished with a ship well armed and supplied. Upon his arrival in Canada, he built a vessel upon Lake Erie, called the Griffin, which was the first craft, larger than a birch bark canoe, which had ever been launched upon those waters. With a crew of forty men he sailed to Mackinaw, where he purchased of the Indians a very rich cargo of furs. He spent his all in the purchase, but the furs were so valuable that the sale would make him immensely rich. The vessel was lost and LaSalle was ruined.
By the way of Lake Michigan and the Illinois River, LaSalle reached the Mississippi. It shows how little this continent was then known, that LaSalle should have sent a boat up the stream, hoping to discover in that direction a passage to China. This party, led by the missionary Father Hennepin, reached the Falls of St. Anthony, where it is said that the Sioux Indians detained them for three months, though they treated their captives kindly. We are not informed of the nature of this friendly captivity, though the travelers were soon released and returned to Canada.
LaSalle remained upon the Illinois River, anguish stricken in view of his loss of fortune. He foresaw the immense importance of the wide and unexplored realms he had entered, and he had already formed the plan of attaching them indissolubly to France, by a line of military posts extending from the lakes to the mouth of the Mississippi. With this object in view he commenced building a fort on the Illinois River just above the present site of Peoria. He gave his fortress the singular name of "Crevecœur," or the Broken-hearted.
His resources becoming exhausted, this enterprising man, with but three companions, in midwinter, traversed the wilderness on foot a distance of fifteen hundred miles, to Fort Frontenac, in Canada, to obtain supplies for those he had left behind. He returned with men and materials for building a strong boat, for navigating he knew not what unknown streams, hundreds of leagues in extent. In this barge, early in the year 1682, LaSalle and his companions floated down the whole length of the Mississippi to its mouth
This was the first descent of the river. LaSalle forgot his griefs in the grandeur of his achievement. He had a mind fully capable of appreciating the resources of the majestic valley he had thus far explored. With a heart throbbing with exultation he unfurled the banners of France on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, and
-
GRIFFIN
BRENNAN SCI DETROIT
LASALLE ON LAKE ERIE.
ASSASSINATION OF LA SALLE.
28
HISTORY OF OHIO.
in honor of the French King, gave the whole region he had explored the euphonious name of Louisiana.
Elated with his discovery, he hastened back to Quebec. It was a long and toilsome voyage against the stream. From Quebec he sailed to France, where he organized a colony of two hundred and eighty persons, to commence a settlement on the Lower Mississippi. The colonists sailed for that destination, but having no charts to guide them, could not find the mouth of the river; they passed by it and landed in Texas. Here, on the Bay of St. Bernard, LaSalle erected a fort and took possession of the country in the name of his king.
This colony came to a sad end. We have no knowledge of the details. We simply know that, being threatened with famine, LaSalle formed the desperate resolve of traversing the wilderness of more than two thousand miles on foot, to Canada, for aid. His men mutinied on the way and killed him. The colonists left behind were soon after all massacred by the Indians, excepting a few children, who were taken captive.
Not long after this another expedition was fitted out in France, for the mouth of the Mississippi, under the leadership of M. D'Iberville. He entered the river, with his vessels, and ascended it several hundred miles. At different points permanent estab- lishments were made. And, now, the French government, with ever-increasing vigor, pushed forward its enterprise of establish- ing military posts at all the points of strategic importance in the wide-spread realm. They had several forts on the lakes, and quite strong military posts on the Illinois River, the Maumee, the Ohio- then called the Wabash-and the Mississippi.
Especial attention was then directed to the valley of the Ohio, that vast region, drained by the " Beautiful River " and its many tributaries, and which is now divided off into several of the most powerful States in the Union. England began to look with much solicitude upon what that government called the encroach- ments of the French.
Both kingdoms claimed the territory. The French founded their title upon the fact that they had discovered the great valley, had been the first to explore it, and had taken possession of it by actual colonization. They maintained that, in accordance with the recognized laws of nations, any power, whose subjects first discovered a river, were entitled to jurisdiction over all the country drained by the waters of that river.
29
HISTORY OF OHIO.
On the other hand, the English Government maintained that, in taking possession of any portion of the sea coast, and establishing a settlement there, the power, thus in possession, was entitled, not only to the land actually occupied, but to all the contiguous interior territory. Thus they claimed the whole breadth of the continent, from the Atlantic to the Pacific. There seemed to be no compromise possible in claims so decidedly conflicting. The French demanded the land, as they had discovered the rivers which drained it. The English demanded the territory, as they had discovered the coast which fronted it. Both parties admitted that the Indians had certain rights of occupancy which were to be respected.
It was very obvious that ere long these two majestic kingdoms would engage in a great conflict of arms, for the possession of the grand valley. The French had greatly the advantage over the English in consequence of the situation of the valley in reference to their possessions on the St. Lawrence. The valley of the Ohio was easily accessible to them, by the great lakes and the many navigable rivers flowing from the north to the south. Thus they enjoyed the inestimable advantage of water communication, for the transportation of troops and stores, to almost any portion of the valley. The vivacious, flexible French were also much more popular with the Indians than the grave, sturdy, unbending English.
The valley of the Ohio was separated from the English settle- ments, on the Atlantic coast, by the rugged and almost impassa- ble ridges of the Alleghany Mountains. It required a journey of several hundred miles, through unknown defiles, and without roads, save the paths of the buffaloes and the trails of the Indians, before the Atlantic settler could catch sight of the tranquil waters of the Ohio.
Daniel Boone was one of the first white men who attempted to enter the great valley over the ridges of the Alleghanies. From the door of his solitary cabin on the Yadkin, in North Carolina, he could see, far away in the west, the majestic peaks of the mountains, some of them rising six thousand feet into the clouds. This drear and rugged wall, from fifty to two hundred miles in breadth, and at an average distance of nearly one hundred and fifty miles from the ocean, runs nearly parallel with the coast for hundreds of leagues. But few white men had ever climbed any of
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