USA > Ohio > Biographical and historical memoirs of the early pioneer settlers of Ohio, with narratives of incidents and occurrences in 1775 > Part 8
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After speaking of his own lands on the Ohio and Ken- awha, he closes with,
"I am, dear sir, with very sincere esteem and regard, your most obedient servant,
G. WASHINGTON."
The project of an immediate establishment in the wilder- ness, northwest of the river Ohio, having failed, he, on the 2d of August of this year, left his home once more, to sur- vey a tract of land for the state of Massachusetts, bordering
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on the bay of Passamaquoddy, and returned from that ser- vice in November.
In the course of this year, the Leicester academy, one of the earliest and most respectable in the state, was incorpo rated, and Gen. Putnam became one of its principal friends and benefactors; giving, for its support, one hundred pounds, or three hundred and thirty-three dollars, and thirty-three cents, a liberal sum for one in his circumstances. He was appointed one of the trustees, in company with the Hon. Moses Gill, Hon. Levi Lincoln, Joseph Allen, Seth Wash- burn, Samuel Baker, and several respectable clergymen of the vicinity ; thus showing his regard for such institutions as would benefit his country.
In 1785, the Legislature being well satisfied with his la- bor, and the correct, intelligent report, made to them, of his doings in the preceding year, appointed him on the committee for the sale of their eastern lands, and also superintendent of the surveys to be made this year. In June, while he was in Boston making preparations for the voyage, he received notice of his appointment, by Congress, as one of the sur- veyors of their lands, northwest of the river Ohio, recently ordered to be surveyed for sale, being seven ranges of town- ships, immediately west of the Pennsylvania line. As he could not honorably relinquish his engagement with Massa- chusetts, and also wished to accept the office, he wrote to the secretary an affirmative answer, and at the same time, a letter to the Massachusetts delegation, requesting them to get Congress to appoint Gen. Tupper temporarily, in his place, until his present contract was fulfilled. This object was accomplished, and Gen. Tupper proceeded on to Pitts- burg, for this purpose, in 1785. On the 14th of June, he sailed, with his company of surveyors, from Beverly, and arrived at Blue Hill on the 20th. This season was occupied
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in surveying the coast, islands, and towns westward of Pen- obscot bay, and laid the foundation for a correct chart of that stormy sea-board. He returned late in December, and spent the winter in protracting the results of his labors, for the use of the state.
In January, 1785, a treaty was made with the Indians claiming the lands now in Ohio, at Fort McIntosh, but with conditions so repugnant to the Delawares and Shawnoes, who considered themselves as cheated and deceived by the com- missioners on the part of the United States, that they threat- ened with death any who attempted to execute the surveys, and were so manifestly hostile, that it was deemed impru- dent to make the attempt, and the work was abandoned for that year.
When Gen. Tupper returned in the winter, he made a very favorable report of the fertility and beauty of the country, and as there was no expectation of Congress doing anything more favorable for the officers and soldiers of the late army than wsa contained in their ordinance of the 20th of May, 1785, Gen. Putnam concluded to join with Gen. Tupper in proposing an association for the purchase of lands in the western country. Accordingly on the 10th of Jan- uary, 1786, after nearly a whole night spent in conferring on this momentous subject, they issued a public notice ad- dressed to the officers and soldiers, as well as other good citizens disposed to become adventurers in the Ohio country, to meet at Boston, by delegates chosen in the several coun- ties, on the 1st day of March, for the purpose of forming an association by the name of "The Ohio Company." From that night's conference of these two men, who had long been close and firm friends, on the 9th of January, 1786, proceeded the first germ of the present great state of Ohio. A full detail of the formation and progress of the company,
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will be found in " The History of the first Settlement of Wash- ington county, and the Transactions of the Ohio Company," a work which precedes the volume of Biographies.
In March, 1786, the United States surveyors were ordered to proceed west; and as Gen. Tupper had been at very se- rious expense in the last year's journey, without any profit, Gen. Putnam kindly continued him as his substitute, while he occupied the summer in closing the business of the Mas- sachusetts lands. In addition to this, he was appointed by the state a commissioner, in conjunction with Gen. Lincoln, and Judge Paine, of Wiscasset, to treat with the Penobscot Indians, which was accomplished in 'August and Septem- ber of that year. During the severe weather of January, 1787, he joined Gen. Lincoln at Worcester, as a volunteer aid to suppress the Shay insurrection, and continued to as- sist him with his advice and personal presence during this trying period, until the final dispersion of the insurgents at Petersham, in February. In April he was appointed a jus- tice of the peace by Gov. Bowdoin, and in May chosen by the town of Rutland, a member in the General Assembly, and attended the spring and autumn sessions of that year.
In November, 1789, the directors of the Ohio Company appointed him superintendent of all their affairs relating to the settlement of their lands northwest of the river Ohio. The first division of their pioneers left Danvers, in Massa- chusetts, under the direction of Maj. Haffield White, on the Ist day of December. The second assembled at Hartford, Conn., on the 1st of January, 1788, and were led by Col. Sproat; Gen. Putnam being obliged to go by the way of the city of New York, on the business of the company. On the 24th of that month he joined the division at Swatarra creek, Pa., which they crossed with much difficulty, on ac- count of the ice. On that night there fell a deep snow, which blocked up the roads, and with their utmost exertions
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they could get their wagons no further than Cooper's tav- ern, now Strawsburg, at the foot of the Tuscarawas moun- tain, on the 29th of January. Here they ascertained that no one had crossed the mountains since the last fall of snow, which, with that on the ground before, made about three feet. They therefore abandoned their wagons, built four stout sledges, to which they harnessed their horses in single file, preceded by the men on foot, who broke a track for the teams, and thus, after two weeks of incessant labor, they overcame the mountain ranges, and the numerous dif- ficulties of the way, reaching Simrel's ferry on the Yough- iogheny on the 14th of February, where they found the party under Maj. White, who arrived the 23d of January.
By the 1st of April, having completed their boats and taken in their stores of provisions, they embarked on the western waters for the mouth of the Muskingum, which place they reached on the 7th of April, and landed at the upper point, where they pitched their camp among the trees. The next day Col. Sproat and John Mathews commenced the survey of the eight acre lots, and in a few days after the city lots and streets, of the town of Marietta. On his way out, Gen. Putnam procured copies of the several treaties heretofore made with the western Indians, from which he became impressed, that they would not long remain at peace, when they saw the whites taking actual possession of the country north of the Ohio river, which had for many years been considered the boundary line between their lands and those of the United States. For this reason he directly com- menced the erection of a strong garrison on the margin of the plain, near the Muskingum river, for the protection of themselves and the emigrants soon expected to follow. This fort was called "Campus Martius," and is fully de- scribed in the preceding history. The pioneers that year planted about one hundred and thirty acres of corn, on the
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plain back of the garrison, after girdling the trees, and de- positing the seed, in the loose earth with a hoe, there being no under brush in the forests at this period. The season was propitious, and the yield about thirty bushels to the acre. He notes, " We had no frost until winter ; I had Eng- lish beans blossomed in December." Previous to taking possession of their lands, the directors and agents of the company had no correct knowledge of the face of the coun- try, or the quality of the soil, on the Muskingum, at and near its confluence with the Ohio, where they had determined on locating their capital, to cover, including commons, four thousand acres ; and contiguous to this, to lay off one thou- sand lots of eight acres each, for the convenience of the proprietors.
In June, Gen. Parsons and Gen. Varnum, two of the di- rectors, with a sufficient number of the agents, arrived, to form a meeting, on the 2d day of July. On examining the location of the eight acre lots, they were much disappointed to find that no one of them had drawn a lot so near the town as to make it prudent to cultivate them. To remedy this evil, they voted to divide three thousand acres of the land reserved for city commons, into three acre lots; but this unwise division did not mend the difficulty: they were still as little accommodated as before. The project of laying out eight acre lots had been opposed from the first by Gen. Putnam and a few others, who advocated the plan of laying off small farms of sixty-four acres of the best lands, to each share bordering on the Ohio or Muskingum; of which the first actual settlers might take their choice; but they were overruled and the eight acre lots having been drawn, it was too late to adopt the other plan.
In July, Gov. St. Clair arrived, and a code of laws for the government of the territory promulgated. In September the Court of Common Pleas and Quarter Sessions held their
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first session. Of the latter Gen. Putnam was the presiding officer, and gave the charge to the grand jury, in a very ap- propriate and impressive manner. It was an august and ever-to-be-commemorated occasion-the first opening of the halls of civil justice in a region destined to be filled with millions of happy human beings. Much to the credit of the moral and peaceful habits of the first settlers of Ohio, no suit of a civil or criminal kind was entered on the docket of the session.
In the course of the year 1788, in addition to the first forty-eight who landed on the 7th of April, there arrived eighty-four men, with several women and children, embra- cing fifteen families, making at its close nearly two hundred souls ; and let it be remembered that at the beginning of the year 1789, there was not a single white family within the present bounds of Ohio, but those in this settlement. Col. Harmer and many of his officers were proprietors in the Ohio Company. Judge Symmes passed down the Ohio during the summer, to his purchase, with a few families, but they spent the winter in Kentucky. The directors and agents early saw the necessity of providing some way to furnish actual settlers not proprietors, with lands, for the prosperity of the settlement. Emigrants were constantly passing down the Ohio river for Kentucky, many of whom were desirous of settling in the Ohio Company's purchase, if they could get lands. For this reason they resolved to donate one hundred acres from each share of land, to any actual settler who would take possession thereof; and a committee was appointed to reconnoiter the purchase, and select suitable spots for the settlements.
In 1789, the additions to the colony were one hundred and fifty-two men, and fifty-seven families, and settlements were commenced at Belpre, Waterford and Wolf creek mills. In this year Gen. Putnam was appointed, by the
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governor, judge of probate, for the county of Washington. The insignia on his seal of office was a balance; an emblem of the exact justice that ever balanced his own mind.
In 1790, he was commissioned as a judge of the United States Court, filling the place on the bench made vacant by the death of Gen. Parsons. In November of this year, he removed his family to Marietta, consisting of his wife, six daughters, two sons, and two grandchildren. During the autumn the French emigrants, nearly four hundred in num- ber, arrived, and he was at a good deal of expense, on ac- count of Mr. Duer, of New York, in erecting houses and supplying them with provisions, which was never repaid.
On the 2d of January, 1791, the Indians made their first hostile movements on the settlements of the company, sack- ing and destroying the station at Big Bottom, killing four- teen persons, and carrying five others into captivity. The troops had been withdrawn from Fort Harmer, in the unfor- tunate expedition into the country of the Shawnoes, who were greatly exasperated, instead of humbled thereby; and now with the other tribes who sided with them, threatened the destruction of the new establishments on the Ohio and Mus- kingum. By the return of the muster rolls of the militia at the time, it appears that the whole force amounted to two hundred and fifty men, to which may be added thirty-seven old men and civil officers, all that could be mustered for the defense of the three settlements. In this trying emergency, the wisdom and experience of Gen. Putnam were found to be of the utmost value. He, with the other old officers of the Revolution, devised the plan of erecting strong garrisons at Belpre and Waterford, while those at Marietta were strength- ened with additional works; to all which the Ohio Company lent their ready assistance, and during the four years of the war expended above eleven thousand dollars of their money in provisions, pay, clothing, &c., for the militia, which was
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never repaid by the United States, although rightly and justly due them. The plan of appointing a company of rangers to scour the woods in the vicinity of the stations, was the suggestion of Gen. Putnam, who had seen the wis- dom of the system in the old French war, and was one of the principal causes of so little loss by the colonists. The principal events of the war are detailed in the History of Washington county, and will not be recapitulated here.
In May, 1792, while in Philadelphia, on business for the Ohio Company, he was appointed by the senate a brigadier- general in the army of the United States, at the suggestion of his old and firm friend, Gen. Washington. This appoint -. ment he accepted with great reluctance, as appears by his letter to the secretary of war.
In a few days after, he received his instructions from the secretary ; one of the first duties of which was "to attempt to be present at the general council of the hostile Indians, about to be assembled on the Miami river of Lake Erie, in order to convince them of the humane disposition of the United States; and thereby to make a truce or peace with them." He arrived at Pittsburg on his way home, the 2d of June, and on the 5th sent a speech to the hostile tribes, by two Munsee Indians who had been taken prisoners, and whom he released for that purpose.
The purport of the speech was to notify them of the ob- ject of his mission, and "to request them to open a path to Fort Jefferson, where he expected to arrive in about twenty days ; and that they should send some of their young men, with Capt. Hendricks, to conduct him with a few friends to the place they should name for their meeting."
From unexpected delays, he, however, did not arrive at Fort Washington, or Cincinnati, until the 2d of July, where he learned that on the very day he had sent word to the In- dians he should be at Fort Jefferson, a body of one hundred
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Indians, dressed in white shirts, and their leader with a scar- let coat, attacked a party of whites who were making hay in a meadow near the fort, and killed and carried into cap- tivity sixteen men. From the extraordinary dress of these Indians, there is reason to suppose they were sent out, or at least furnished with their clothing, by the British agent at their post on the Miami, for the express purpose of decoying and taking off Gen. Putnam, which was further strengthened soon after by the murder of Col. Hardy and Col. Trueman, who had been sent out with flags of truce, and were to have accompanied him, but the Providential delays of the journey prevented his being killed or captured with them. From these events and other circumstances, he became satisfied that the grand counsel were determined on war, and there- fore it was useless to make any further efforts to induce them to treat of peace at present.
By a letter from Maj. Hamtramick, at Post Vincent, he was led to believe that the Wabash, and more western tribes, would listen to his proposals of peace. He, therefore, on the 24th, sent a speech to all the western tribes, inviting them to meet him in council, at Post Vincent, on the 20th of September; assuring them that he should bring their friends and relatives with him, now prisoners at Fort Wash- ington. On the 16th of August, he left that post, in his twelve-oared barge, under the escort of Capt. Peters, with two Kentucky boats, the Indian prisoners, sixty in number, with goods, provisions, &c., intending to ascend the Wabash in pirogues. He reached the mouth of that stream in about eighteen days, being retarded by the low stage of the water. Here he met a guard of fifty-one men, and four pirogues, with each a French voyageur, to conduct him to Post Vin- cent, sent on by Maj. Hamtramick, the commander of the post, where they arrived on the 13th of September. At
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the time he left the falls of Ohio, a large drove of cattle was sent across the country, under an escort from Fort Steu- ben, which stood at the head of the falls, intended to supply food for the Indians at the treaty, who were expected to number seven or eight hundred. The commandant at Vin- cennes had sent the commissioner's speech, of the 24th of July, to all the tribes on the Wabash, of which, he received notice, by letter of the 31st of August; and the prospect of a full attendance at the treaty was very flattering. A reg- ular correspondence was kept up with Gen. Wayne and Gen. Wilkerson, some of which letters are very interesting, detailing the progress of events on the frontiers. One from Wilkerson, of the last of September, gives an account of a reconnoisance, just made by him, to the outposts on the Miami and heads of the Wabash, across the battle ground of Gen. St. Clair, where he found two brass field pieces, left on the field by the Indians.
The treaty was opened on the 25th of September, and concluded on the 27th; and was strictly a treaty of peace and amity, between eight of the Wabash tribes and the United States. It was signed by thirty-one of their kings, chiefs, and warriors. It contained seven articles; the pur- port of which was, that these tribes were taken into the pro- tection of the United States, who warranted to them, the peaceable possession of their lands, and promised never to take them from them, without their consent and a just equiv- alent paid therefor. Perpetual peace was to be maintained between the contracting parties. All the white prisoners and negroes in their possession, were to be delivered up at Fort Knox, or Vincennes, as soon as possible; and they promised to cease from stealing negroes and horses from the whites. It was witnessed by the officers of the post, and the interpreters William Wells, Rene Codine, and the
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Rev. John Hackenwelder, who accompanied Gen. Putnam in his journey from Marietta, and was well known to many of the tribes.
In the journal of the proceedings, several of the speeches of the chiefs are given; some of which are quite sensible, but none of them equal to those made at the treaty of Greenville, in 1795, by the Shawanoes, Pottawatamies, and Wyandots. Turke, a Wyandot, said, "I now tell you, that no one in particular can justly claim this ground; it be- longs in common to us all; no earthly being has an exclu- sive right to it. The Great Spirit above is the true and only owner of this soil; and He has given us all an equal right to it." He also said, "We will offer our acknowledg- ments to the Great Spirit; for, it is Him alone who has brought us together, and caused us to agree in the good works which have been done," referring to the treaty. The New Corn, a Pottawatamie chief, and an old man, spoke at this treaty, and at the close, said, "My friends, I am old, but I shall never die. I shall always live in my children, and children's children." A beautiful sentiment, and worthy the best days of Socrates. These few brief specimens of their speeches are given to show that they are not destitute of native genius, brilliant thoughts, and just sentiments.
The treaty accomplished by Gen. Putnam was of essen- tial benefit to the country ; as it neutralized, and detached a large body of warriors from the hostile tribes, who lived near to the borders of Kentucky, and thus lessened the strength of our enemies. There were in attendance at the treaty, six hundred and eighty-six men, women and children; two hundred and forty-seven of which were warriors. After its close, a large quantity of clothing and ornaments was dis- tributed amongst them, which served to confirm their good intentions. On the 16th of September, nine days before the
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opening of the treaty, he issued a proclamation, reminding the inhabitants of Post Vincennes of the law prohibiting the sale of spirituous liquors to the Indians ; and forbid any one, whether licensed or unlicensed, from selling any during the continuance of the treaty. This was a wise precaution; as when under the influence of its insane effects, no good could have been accomplished with the Indians. On the 8th of October, the inhabitants of the town made a written address to Gen. Putnam, through Maj. Vanderburgh, in which they congratulate and thank him, for the happy manner in which he had accomplished the treaty of peace, with a part of the hostile tribes, and the benefits which would result to the in- habitants of that territory, from it. Amongst other things, they say, "Your happy success in this arduous enterprise affords another proof, how much you merit the honors which government has conferred upon you, and will remain a me- mento of the justice of Congress, and of your integrity, to the latest times." It was signed by Paul and Pierre Gamelin, and the principal French and English inhabitants of the place, and remains a memorial of their gratitude. . To this, he returned a polite answer; and among other things, says, "It must give a man of sensibility, peculiar pleasure, to find that his manner of treating the Indians meets the approba- tion of a people so long acquainted with their customs and manners ;" and closes with wishing them happiness and prosperity, "under a wise administration and the blessings of peace."
Amidst all this complication of business, he was suffering with severe illness, an attack of intermittent fever of the tertian type, on the 25th of September, the first day of the treaty. This continued to harass him until the 6th of Oc- tober. On the 29th of September, ten of the Indian chiefs, whom he had invited to visit their father, the President of
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the United States, left Post Vincent, under charge of Lieut. Prior and Mr. Hackenwelder, who accompanied them as far as Marietta.
On the 10th of October, Gen. Putnam left the post, by water, being yet weak and feeble. From sickness and va- rious delays, he did not reach his home until the 18th of December. On the way up, he encamped one night in com- pany with some hunters, who had a full supply of bear and other wild meat. This was cooked in their camp-kettle, hunter fashion. Of this, he ate very freely, contrary to the advice of his physician, who had forbidden animal food; and ascribed his recovery to that night's repast, as from that hour, his health was rapidly restored, and ague subdued. As soon as he was able to travel on horseback, he set out for Philadelphia, to make his report to the secretary of war, Henry Knox. Soon after this, he resigned his commission of brigadier-general, he being unfit for actual service, and not wishing to retain an office, the duties of which he could not fulfill with benefit to the government .. On the 15th of February, the secretary of war addressed to him the following :
"WAR DEPARTMENT, Feb. 15th, 1793.
SIR: Your letter of yesterday has been submitted to the President of the United States-while he accepts your resig- nation, he regrets that your ill health compels you to leave the army, as he had anticipated much good to the troops, from your experience as an officer. He has commanded me to tender you his thanks, for the zeal and judgment mani- fested in your negotiation with the Wabash Indians, and your further endeavors toward a general pacification.
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