USA > Ohio > Allen County > A standard history of Allen county, Ohio : an authentic narrative of the past, with particular attention to the modern era in the commercial, industrial, educational, civic and social development > Part 15
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Leaving a few men to erect a blockhouse the army advanced on the 1st of July. When they reached the River Raisin, "on which there
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is a handsome village of French inhabitants," information was received of the capture of the schooner. Definite news of the declaration of war also arrived. On the fifth the army reached Detroit. Says McAfee: "The town of Detroit contains 160 houses and 700 inhabitants. It is handsomely situated on the west side of the River Detroit, about nine miles below Lake St. Clair, the opening of which can be seen from the town. Fort Detroit stands on an elevated spot of ground." A high- sounding proclamation was at once issued to the "Inhabitants of Canada," by the American commander. The wavering of Hull now began. It was not long until both officers and men had lost all confidence in their commander. "At one moment he seemed determined to make an obsti- nate defense, and save his army from disgrace and his Territory from invasion ; then again he would discover symptoms of the greatest fear and pusillanimity." An advance was made into Canada towards Malden, but the men were quickly recalled.
It would not be within the scope of this writing to detail the waver- ings and cowardice of General Hull, which has been elaborated upon so frequently. With scarcely a show of resistance Detroit was surrendered to the British with nearly two thousand American soldiers on the 16th of August. The white flag of surrender was raised without consulting his officers. As most of the troops were from Ohio, this state felt the disgrace and humiliation more keenly than any of the other common- wealths. It was a terrible loss and gave the British wonderful prestige with the natives. As a result of this action, Hull was accused of both treason and cowardice, and was found guilty of the latter.
ยท Capt. Henry Brush and a company of 230 volunteers, with a hun- dred beef cattle and other supplies, had been sent by Governor Meigs to reinforce the army at Detroit. They were restrained by the British from advancing beyond the River Raisin from the first days of August, without relief from Detroit. General Hull included this force in his surrender ; but when Captain Elliot, son of the notorious Capt. Matthew Elliot, came to claim this prize, Captain Brush placed him under arrest and immediately started his command and supplies southward, deftly con- ducting them back to Governor Meigs.
The surrender of General Hull exposed all Northwestern Ohio, to incursions of the enemy. All eyes turned toward William Henry Harri- son as the man of the hour. Governor Scott of Kentucky swept aside technicalities and appointed Harrison to the command of the state troops being raised to wipe out the disgrace of Hull's surrender. At the head of these troops Harrison proceeded northward. When just north of Dayton he received word from Washington that General Winchester had been appointed to the chief command, but that he himself had been raised to the rank of brigadier-general. He was naturally disappointed, and his men were even more chagrined. As immediate action seemed necessary, and without awaiting either the arrival or orders of General Winchester, Harrison dispatched relief to Fort Wayne, then being besieged by the Indians. He accompanied these troops and every precau- tion was taken against a surprise by the savages. The siege was raised and the Indian villages in the vicinity destroyed. By this prompt action another bloody massacre was doubtless averted. General Harrison, under orders from his superiors, turned over his command to Winchester with- out a murmur, although it was known that he had much more experience in Indian fighting than had his successor. Few men understood the dusky native of the forests as did Harrison. Gen. James Winchester was a Tennesseean and a revolutionary officer, but he was little known
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among the frontier men of this section. In charge of several thousand troops, most of whom were from Kentucky, he entered upon an exten- sive campaign in Northwestern Ohio. He was authorized to call upon Governor Meigs for reinforcements. He soon afterwards asked for two regiments of infantry to join him at the "Rapids of the Miami of the Lake about the 10th or the 15th of October next, well clothed for a fall campaign."
A volunteer company of spies was organized under Captain Ballard, Lieutenant Munday and Ensign Liggett. Liggett and four other men obtained permission to advance as far as the old Fort Defiance. Being surprised by a Frenchman and eight Indians they surrendered but all were traitorously murdered. Other spies brought back information of considerable bodies of hostiles along the Maumee. Many British regu- lars were also with the savages. Captain Elliot commanded the Indians while Major Muir was in chief command. General Winchester advanced cautiously in order to provide against surprise. He found evidence of the recent retreat of British troops at one or two places along the Maumee, not far from Defiance. In their haste, the British threw one cannon into the river which was afterwards recovered and used in the campaign. The march along the Auglaize was made under the most distressing conditions. The rain fell in torrents. The flat beech woods were covered with water, and the horses sank up to their knees in the mud at almost every step. "From Loraine on the south to the River St. Mary, and then to Defiance at the north, was one continuous swamp knee deep to the pack horses, and up to the hubs of the wagons." At times it was impossible to move a wagon without a ford. Happy indeed were they who could find a dry log at night in which a fire could be kindled. Many passed the night sitting in the saddles at the root of trees against which they leaned, and thus obtained a little sleep.
Late in September, the position of the two officers was reversed, and General Harrison was given the supreme command of the Northwestern Army. The letter of notification, which reached him at Piqua, read : "The President is pleased to assign to you the command of the North- western Army, which in addition to the regular troops and rangers in that quarter, will consist of the volunteers and militia of Kentucky, Ohio, and three thousand from Virginia and Pennsylvania, making your whole force ten thousand men. * * Exercise your own discre- tion, and act in all cases according to your own judgment."
When General Harrison received the notification of his appointment there were about 3,000 troops at Fort Barbee (St. Marys), a considerable number of which were cavalry. The cavalry were under the command of Gen. Edward W. Tupper. This army was at once set in motion for Defiance with three days' ration. Receiving word that the enemy had retreated, a part of the troops were sent back. General Harrison con- tinued down the Auglaize with his cavalry. When he reached the camp of General Winchester, he found a sad state of affairs, as one of the Kentucky regiments was on the point of mutiny. He ordered a parade of the troops and addressed them in his characteristic way. He said that any troops that wanted to retire could do so as he already had sol- diers to spare. But he likewise spoke of the scoring that would await them at home. Their fathers would order their degenerate sons back to the field of battle to recover their wounded honor, while their mothers and sisters would hiss them from their presence. The mutinous Ken- tuckians soon subsided and gave three hearty cheers for the popular commander.
Vol. I-7
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General Winchester immediately issued the following order :
"Camp at Defiance, October 3, 1812.
"I have the honor of announcing to this army the arrival of General Harrison who is duly authorized by the executive of the Federal Gov- ernment to take command of the Northwestern Army. This officer is enjoying the implicit confidence of the States from whose citizens this army is and will be collected and, possessing himself great military skill and reputation, the General is confident in the belief that his presence in the army, in the character of its chief, will be hailed with unusual approbation.
J. Winchester, Brig .- Gen. U. S. Army."
General Harrison planned a three column march into the enemy's country. The right wing of his army was to be composed of three
GEN. WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON
brigades from Virginia and Pennsylvania, together with some Ohio troops, and was to proceed down the Sandusky River. General Tupper's command was styled the center, and was to move along Hull's trail. The main command devolved upon General Winchester, and was known as the left wing. It included the United States troops, six regiments of Ohio and the Kentucky militia. They were "to proceed down the Auglaize and Miami from St. Marys and Defiance to the Rapids." St. Marys was intended to be the main supply depot for provisions. They were also to superintend the transportation of supplies in readiness for the advance movement.
General Harrison had suggested that General Tupper with all the cavalry, almost one thousand in number, should be sent down the Maumee and beyond the Rapids to disperse any of the enemy found there. They were to return to Fort Barbee by way of the Tawa towns, on the Blanch- ard River. These orders were never executed. At first General Tupper alleged he was waiting until his Indian spies should return with desired information. He then stated that he would prefer to reverse the route
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to the Rapids. Some of the cavalry became so disgusted that they de- serted. Tupper followed his own course without regard to orders. He went as far as Urbana where some of his troops were discharged. He then proceeded towards the Rapids by Hull's Trail. He finally reached the Rapids where he reported that there were 300 to 400 Indians and about seventy-five British. His men attempted to cross the river and attack the enemy but "when nearly two hundred had gone over, the greater part of one section were washed off their feet and lost their guns. The water was waist deep, and ran very swift." The attempt was then abandoned and Tupper withdrew because of a shortage of provisions. His arrest was ordered by the military authorities. McAfee says : "A court of inquiry was afterwards demanded by General Tupper at Fort Meigs, when no person acquainted with these transactions was there-he was, of course, honorably acquitted. The failure, however, appears to have been caused chiefly by his want of energy and decision, and in some measures by the insubordination of the troops, proceeding from a want of confi- dence in their general."
When the troops under General Winchester reached the confluence of the Auglaize and the Maumee rivers, they found Fort Defiance in ruins. Even had it remained in good condition, that stockade would have been inadequate for the larger army which it was now called upon to shelter. The entire area embraced within the palisades of the fort built by Gen- eral Wayne almost a score of years earlier, would not exceed one-quarter of an acre. General Harrison, who had by this time joined the army, drew a plan for a new fort a dozen times as extensive as Fort Defiance. A force of men were detailed with axes to cut timber for the buildings and the palisades. This new fort was named Fort Winchester by Gen- eral Harrison, in deference to the superseded commander. For a con- siderable length of time, this fortress was the only obstruction against the incursions of the British and the aborigines in Northwestern Ohio. Fort Winchester was located along the high and precipitous west bank of the Auglaize River, about eighty rods south of Fort Defiance. It was in the form of a parallelogram, and enclosed three acres or more of land. There was a strong two-story blockhouse at each corner, and a large gate midway on each side with a sentinel house above. The whole enclosure was surrounded by a strong palisade of logs set on end, deep in the ground, snugly matched together, pointed at the upper ends, and rising twelve or fifteen feet above ground. A cellar was excavated under the blockhouse at the northeast corner, from which an underground pas- sageway was made to the river, where there was also a barrier of logs in order to protect the water supply of the garrison. It fulfilled its mis- sion during the war as an important stronghold as a rendezvous for troops and for the storing of supplies to be boated down the Maumee River as wanted by the advancing troops.
Shortly after the Tupper expedition to the Rapids, a tragical inci- dent happened in the army of General Winchester. As a result the name of an Indian, faithful to the whites, deserves to be recorded high in the annals of Northwestern Ohio. John Logan was a Shawnee warrior whose mother is said to have been a sister of Tecumseh. When a boy this Shawnee lad had been taken prisoner by some Kentuckians, and had lived for several years with the family of General Logan. Hence the name Logan, to which the title of "Captain" was eventually attached. Although he returned to his people, he ever remained a true friend of the whites who had treated him so kindly. He subsequently rose to the rank of a civil chief in his tribe. His personal appearance was command- ing, being six feet in height, and weighing near two hundred pounds.
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When General Harrison reached Piqua, he requested Colonel Johnson to furnish him some reliable spies. It was then that Captain Logan entered the service of the American commander. In November Harrison directed Logan to take a small party and reconnoitre the country in the direction of the Rapids of the Maumee. When near their destination the three scouts were met by a body of the enemy superior to their own, and compelled to retreat. Logan, Captain Johnny and Bright Horn effected their escape to the army of General Winchester, who was duly informed of the circumstances of their adventure. A thoughtless officer of the Kentucky troops without the slightest ground for such a charge, accused Logan of giving intelligence to the enemy. Wounded to the quick by this foul accusation, the red man at once resolved to meet it in a manner that would leave no doubt as to his loyalty.
"Accordingly on the morning of the 22d," so runs the account, "he started down the Maumee, attended by his two faithful companions, Captain Johnny and Bright Horn. About noon, having stopped for the purpose of taking rest, they were suddenly surprised by a party of seven of the enemy, among whom were young Elliott, a half-breed, holding a commission in the British service, and the celebrated Pottawatomie chief, Winnemac. Logan made no resistance, but, with great presence of mind, extending his hand to Winnemac, who was an old acquaintance, proceeded to inform him that he and his two companions, tired of the American service, were just leaving General Winchester's army, for the purpose of joining the British. Winnemac, being familiar with Indian strategy, was not satisfied with this declaration, but proceeded to disarm Logan and his comrades, and placing his party around them, so as to prevent their escape, started for the British camp at the foot of the rapids. In the course of the afternoon Logan's address was such as to inspire confidence in his sincerity, and induce Winnemac to restore to him and his companions their arms. Logan now formed the plan of attacking his captors on the first favorable opportunity and while march- ing along succeeded in communicating the substance of it to Captain Johnny and Bright Horn. Their guns being already loaded, they had little further preparation to make than to put bullets into their mouths, to facilitate the reloading of their arms. In carrying on this process Captain Johnny, as he afterwards related, fearing that the man marching by his side had observed the operation, adroitly did away the impression by saying 'Me chaw heap toback.'
"The evening being now at hand, the British Indians determined to encamp on the bank of Turkey Foot Creek, about twenty miles from Fort Winchester. Confiding in the idea that Logan had really deserted the American service, a part of his captors rambled around the place of their encampment in search of blackhaws. They were no sooner out of sight than Logan gave the signal of attack upon those who remained behind; they fired, and two of the enemy fell dead-the third, being only wounded, required a second shot to dispatch him; and in the mean- time the remainder of the party, who were nearby, returned the fire, and all of them 'treed.' There being four of the enemy, and only three of Logan's party, the latter could not watch all the movements of their antagonists. During an active fight, the fourth man of the enemy passed around until Logan was uncovered by his tree, and shot him through the body. By this time Logan's party had wounded two of the surviv- ing four, which caused them to fall back. Taking advantage of things, Captain Johnny mounted Logan, now suffering the pain of a mortal wound, and Bright Horn also wounded, on two of the enemy's horses, and started them for Winchester's camp, which they reached about mid-
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night. When the news of the gallant affair had spread through the camp, and, especially after it was known that Logan was mortally wounded, it created a deep and mournful sensation. No one, it is believed, more deeply regretted the fatal catastrophe than the author of the charge upon Logan's integrity, which had led to this unhappy result."
Logan's popularity was very great, and he was almost universally esteemed in the army for his fidelity to the American cause, his recog- nized bravery, and the nobleness of his nature. He lived two or three days after reaching camp, but in extreme bodily agony. His body was borne by the soldiers to Wapakoneta, where his family lived, and there he was buried with mixed military honors and savage rites. Previous to his death he related the particulars of this fatal enterprise to a friend, declaring to him that he prized his honor more than life. Having now vindicated his reputation from the imputation cast upon it, he died satisfied.
A number of ambuscades by the savages occurred around Fort Win- chester. These generally happened to soldiers who had strayed away from the fort either to gather food or to shoot game. Five soldiers were killed and scalped while after the plums that were so plentiful. "Some breaches of discipline were noted, and their punishment relieved the monotony of camp life. On the 8th of October Frederick Jacoby, a young man, was found asleep while posted as guard. He was sentenced by court martial to be shot. A platoon was ordered to take places before the paraded army and twenty paces from the prisoner who, blindfolded, was on his knees preparing for the order to the soldiers to fire. A great stillness pervaded the army. Just as the suspense was at its height a courier arrived with an order from General Winchester saving his life by changing the sentence. This sentence and scene produced a pro- found effect upon the soldiers. It was their first real view of the stern- ness of military discipline ; and they recognized its necessity and justness while in the country of the stealthy and savage enemy."
The greatest suffering was caused by the lack of provisions and inadequate clothing. Fort Winchester was completed on the 15th of October, 1812. Nevertheless a large number of troops continued to camp outside the enclosure. The longest stay was made at Camp Number Three, several miles down the Maumee, for here there was an abundance of firewood, and the ground was dry. Of this place, one who was with the army said: "On the 25th of December, 1812, at sunrise we bade adieu to this memorable place, Camp Number Three, where lie the bones of many a brave man. This place will live in the recollection of all who suffered there, and for more reasons than one. There comes up before the mind the many times the dead march was heard in the Camp, and the solemn procession that carried our fellow sufferers to the grave; the many times we were almost on the point of starvation ; and the many sickening disappointments which were experienced by the army from day to day, and from week to week, by the failure of promised sup- plies." Most of the soldiers were provided only with summer clothing, and it was well into the winter before any heavier outfitting was received. Army life was certainly deprived of its glamor. The rations were constantly short. Some days the rations consisted only of beef and other days only of flour, or some hickory nuts which were gathered near the camp. The lack of salt was also greatly felt. It is no wonder that sickness increased from the inadequate food and the thin clothing worn by the soldiers. Their weakened conditions made the men an easy prey to pestilence. Three or four deaths a day with the constant
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succession of funeral rites greatly depressed the soldiers. Hunger drove many away from the camp in search of food.
The army contractors were largely to blame for the shortage of neces- sities, but there were contributing causes. "The roads were bad beyond description but those who have actually seen the state of the country seem to have formed a correct estimate of the difficulties to be encoun- tered. The road *
* * to Defiance was one continued swamp, knee- deep to the packhorses and up to the hubs of the wagons. It was found impossible in some instances to get even the empty wagons along, and many were left sticking in the mire and ravines, the wagoners being glad to get off with the horses alive. * * * The only persons who could be procured to act as packhorse drivers were generally the most worthless creatures in society, who took care neither of the horse nor the goods with which they were entrusted."
General Harrison, from his headquarters in Franklinton, now Colum- bus, was kept fully informed, and he in turn advised the department, but communications were slow and the War Department was so demor- alized that supplies did not reach this outlying fortress. No other troops operating in this part of the state had to endure such hardships as befell this army in the fall and early winter of 1812. There was one attempt to send food which is reported as follows :
"About the first of December, Major Bodley, an enterprising officer who was quartermaster of the Kentucky troops, made an attempt to send near two hundred barrels of flour down the River St. Marys in pirogues to the Left Wing of the army below Defiance. Previous to this time, the water had rarely been high enough to venture into a voyage on these small streams. The flour was now shipped in fifteen or twenty pirogues and canoes, and placed under the command of Captain Jordan and Lieutenant Cardwell with upwards of twenty men. They descended the river and arrived about a week afterwards at Shane's Crossing upwards of one hundred miles by water but only twenty by land from the place they started. The river was so narrow, crooked, full of logs, and trees overhanging the banks, that it was with great difficulty they could make any progress. And now in one freezing night they were completely ice bound. Lieutenant Cardwell waded back through the ice and swamps to Fort Barbee with intelligence of their situation. Major Bodley returned with him to the flour, and offered the men extra wages to cut through the ice and push forwards; but having gained only one mile by two days' labor, the project was abandoned, and a guard left with the flour. A few days before Christmas a temporary thaw took place which enabled them with much difficulty and suffering to reach within a few miles of Fort Wayne, where they were again frozen up. They now abandoned the voyage and made sleds on which the men hauled the flour to the Fort (Wayne) and left it there."
General Harrison himself reported to the Secretary of War as fol- lows: "Obstacles are almost insuperable; but they are opposed with unabated firmness and zeal. * * * The prodigious destruction of horses can only be conceived by those who have been accustomed to military operations in the wilderness during the winter season. I did not make sufficient allowance for the imbecility and inexperience of the public agents, and the villainy of the contractors. * * If the plan of acquiring the naval superiority upon the lakes, before the attempt is made on Malden or Detroit, should be adopted, I would place fifteen hundred men in cantonment at Miami Rapids-Defiance would be better if the troops had not advanced from there."
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Following a custom of the day captives were occasionally brought in to give information. In one official report to Governor Meigs by Gen- eral Tupper we find as follows :
"Camp, Near McArthur's Block-house, November 9th, 1812.
"Sir :- I have for some time thought a prisoner from near the Mau- mee Rapids would at this time be of much service, and highly acceptable to General Harrison. For this purpose, I ordered Captain Hinkton to the Rapids, with his company of spies, with orders to take a prisoner if possible. He had just returned and brought in with him Captain A. Clark, a British subject, who resides two miles above Malden, and was out with a party of about five hundred Indians and fifty British, with two gunboats, six bateaux, and one small schooner at the foot of the Rapids, to gather in and carry over to Malden the corn. Captain Clark had but just arrived with the van of the detachment. The vessels and boats had not yet anchored when the spies surprised him as he advanced a few rods from the shore to reconnoitre, and brought him off undis- covered ; and this from a number of Indians, who were killing hogs and beginning to gather corn. At the same time, several of Captain Hink- ton's spies lay concealed on the bank within five rods of the place where some of the first boats were landing. Captain Hinkton has conducted this business with great skill and address. Captain Clark was taken prisoner on the 7th instant, a little before sun setting.
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