Historical collections of Ohio in two volumes, an encyclopedia of the state, Volume II, Part 12

Author: Howe, Henry, 1816-1893
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: Cincinnati : Published by the state of Ohio
Number of Pages: 916

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LOGAN'S EXPEDITION AGAINST THE MAC-O-CHEE TOWNS.

The Mac-o-chee towns were destroyed in 1786 by a body of Kentuckians under General Benjamin Logan. The narrative of this expedition is from the pen of General William Lytle, who was an actor in the scenes he describes.

March to the Mac-o-chee Towns .- It was in the autumn of this year that Gen. Clarke raised the forces of the Wabash expedition. They constituted a numerous corps. Colonel Logan was detached from the army at the falls of the Ohio, to raise a considerable force with which to proceed against the Indian vil- lages on the head waters of Mad river and the Great Miami. I was then aged 16, and too young to come within the legal requisi- tion ; but I offered myself as a volunteer. Colonel Logan went on to his destination, and would have surprised the Indian towns against which he had marched, had not one of his men deserted to the enemy, not long before they reached the town, who gave no- tice of their approach. As it was, he burned eight large towns, and destroyed many fields of corn. He took seventy or eighty prisoners and killed twenty warriors, and among them the head chief of the nation. This last act caused deep regret, humiliation and shame to the commander-in-chief and his troops.

Attack on the Towns .- We came in view of the first two towns, one of which stood on the west bank of Mad river, and the other on the northeast of it. They were separated by a prairie half a mile in extent. The town on the northeast was situated on a high, com- manding point of land, that projected a small distance into the prairie, at the foot of which eminence broke out several fine springs. This was the residence of the famous chief of the nation. His flag,was flying at the time from the top of a pole sixty feet high. We had advanced in three lines, the commander with some of the horsemen marching at the head of the centre line, and the footmen in their rear. Colonel Robert Patterson commanded the left, and I think Colonel Thomas Ken- nedy the right. When we came in sight of the towns, the spies of the front guard made a halt, and sent a man back to inform the commander of the situation of the two towns. He ordered Colonel Patterson to attack the towns on the left bank of Mad river. Col. Kennedy was also charged to incline a little to the right of the town on the east side of the prairie. He determined himself to charge with the centre division immediately on the

upper town. I heard the commander give his orders, and cantion the colonels against allowing their men to kill any among the en- emy that they might suppose to be prisoners. He then ordered them to advance, and as soon as they should discover the enemy, to charge upon them. I had my doubts touch- ing the propriety of some of the arrange- ments. I was willing, however, to view the affair with the diffidence of youth and inex- perience. At any rate, I was determined to be at hand, to see all that was going on, and to be as near the head of the line as my col- onel would permit. I was extremely solicitous to try myself in battle. The commander of the centre line waved his sword over his head as a signal for the troops to advance. Colonel Daniel Boone and Major (since General) Kenton commanded the advance, and Colonel Trotter the rear. As we approached within half a mile of the town on the left, and about three-fourths from that on the right, we saw the savages retreating in all directions, mak- ing for the thickets, swamps and high prairie grass, to secure them from their enemy. I was animated with the energy with which the commander conducted the head of his line. He waved his sword, and in a voice of thun- der exclaimed, "Charge from right to left !"

Captureof Moluntha. - The horses appeared as impatient for the onset as their riders. As . we came up with the flying savages, I was disappointed, discovering that we should have little to do. I heard but one savage, with the exception of the chief, cry for quarter. They fought with desperation, as long as they could raise knife, gun or toma- hawk, after they found they could not screen themselves. We dispatched all the warriors we overtook, and sent the women and chil- dren prisoners to the rear. We pushed ahead, still hoping to overtake a larger body, where we might have something like a general engage- ment. I was mounted on a very fleet gray horse. Fifty of my companions followed me. I had not advanced more than a mile, before I discovered some of the enemy, running along the edge of a thicket of hazel and plum bushes. I made signs to the men in my rear. to come on. At the same time,

LOGAN COUNTY.

pointing to the flying enemy, I obliqued across the plain, so as to get in advance of them. When I arrived within fifty yards of them I dismounted and raised my gun. I discovered, at this moment, some men of the right wing coming up on the left. The warrior I was about to shoot held up his hand in token of surrender, and I heard him order the other Indians to stop. By this time the men behind had arrived, and were in the act of firing upon the Indians. I called to them not to fire, for the enemy had surrendered. The warrior that had sur- rendered to me came walking towards me, calling his women and children to follow him. I advanced to meet him, with my right hand extended ; but before I could reach him the men of the right wing of our force had sur- rounded him. I rushed in among their horses. While he was giving me his hand several of our men wished to tomahawk him. I in- formed them they would have to tomahawk me first. We led him back to the place where his flag had been. We had taken thirteen prisoners. Among them were the chief, his three wives-one of them a young and handsome woman. another of them the famous grenadier squaw, upwards of six feet high-and two or three fine young lads. The rest were children. One of these lads was a remarkably interesting youth, about my own age and size. He clung closely to me, and appeared keenly to notice everything that was going on.

Brutal Murder of Moluntha .- When we arrived at the town a crowd of our men pressed around to see the chief. I stepped aside to fasten my horse, and my prisoner lad clung close to my side. A young man by the name of Curner had been to one of the springs to drink. He discovered the young savage by my side, and came running towards us. The young Indian supposed he was advancing to kill him. As I turned around, in the twinkling of an eye he let fly an arrow at Curner, for he was armed with a bow. I had just time to catch his arm; as he discharged the arrow. It passed through Curner's dress, and grazed his side. The jerk I gave his arm undoubtedly prevented his killing Curner on the spot. I took away his arrows, and sternly reprimanded him. I then led him back to the crowd which sur- rounded the prisoners. At the same moment Col. McGary, the same man who had caused the disaster at the Blue Licks, some years before, coming up, Gen. Logan's eye caught that of McGary. 'Col. McGary," said he. 'you must not molest these prisoners."

will see to that," said McGary in reply. ] forced my way through the crowd to the chief, with my young charge by the hand. McGary ordered the crowd to open and let him in. He came up to the chief, and the first salutation was in the question, "Were you at the defeat of the Blue Licks ?" The Indian, not knowing the meaning of the words, or not understanding the purport of the question, answered, "Yes."" McGary instantly seized an axe from the hands of the

grenadier squaw, and raised it to make a blow at the chief. I threw up my arm, to ward off the blow. The hand of the axe struck me across the left wrist, and came near breaking it. The axe sunk in the head of the chief to the eyes, and he fell dead at my feet. Provoked beyond measure at this wanton barbarity, I drew my knife, for the purpose of avenging his cruelty by dispatch- ing him. My arm was arrested by one of our men, which prevented me inflicting the thrust. McGary escaped from the crowd.

A Foot-Race after Hogs .- A detachment was then ordered off to two other towns, distant six or eight miles. The men and prisoners were ordered to march down to the lower town and camp. As we marched out of the upper town, we fired it, collecting a large pile of corn for our horses, and beans, pumpkins, etc., for our own use. I told Capt. Stucker, who messed with me, that I had seen several hogs running about the town, which appeared to be in good order, and I thought that a piece of fresh pork would relish well with our stock of vegetables. He readily assenting to it, we went in pursuit of them ; but as orders had been given not to shoot unless at an enemy, after finding the hogs we had to run them down on foot, until we got near enough to tomahawk them.

An Indian's Gallant Fight .- Being engaged at this for some time before we killed one, while Capt. S. was in the act of striking the hog, I cast my eye along the edge of the woods that skirted the prairie, and saw an Indian coming along with a deer on his back. The fellow happened to raise his head at that moment, and looking across the prairie to the upper town saw it all in flames. At the same moment I spake to Stucker in a low voice that here was an Indian coming. In the act of turning my head round to speak to Stucker I discovered Hugh Ross, brother- in-law to Col. Kennedy, at the distance of about sixty or seventy yards, approaching us. I made a motion with my hand to Ross to squat down ; then, taking a tree between me and the Indian, I slipped somewhat nearer, to get a fairer shot, when at the instant I raised my gun past the tree, the Indian heing about one hundred yards distant, Ross's ball whistled by me, so close that I felt the wind of it, and struck the Indian on the calf of one of his legs. The Indian that moment dropped his deer, and sprang into the high grass of the prairie. All this occurred so quickly that I had not time to draw a sight on him, before he was hid by the grass. I

was provoked at Ross for shooting when I was near enough to have killed him, and now the consequence would be that probably some of our men would lose their lives, as a wounded Indian only would give up with his life. Capt. Irwin rode up at that moment, with his troop of horse, and asked me where the Indian was. I pointed as nearly as I could to the spot where I last saw him in the grass, cautioning the captain, if he missed him the first charge, to pass on out of his reach before he wheeled to recharge, or the

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Indian would kill some of his men in the act of wheeling. Whether the captain heard me I cannot say; at any rate the warning was not attended to, for after passing the Indian a few steps Captain Irwin ordered his men to wheel and recharge across the woods, and in the act of executing the move- ment the Indian raised up and shot the captain dead on the spot-still keeping below the level of the grass, to deprive us of any opportunity of putting a bullet through him. The troop charged again ; but the Indian was so active that he had darted into the grass, some rods from where he had fired at Irwin, and they again missed him. By this time several footmen had got up. Capt. Stucker and myself had each taken a tree that stood out in the edge of the prairie, among the grass, when a Mr. Stafford came up, and put his head first past one side and then the other of the tree I was behind. I told him not to expose himself that way, or he would get shot in a moment. I had hardly expressed the last word when the Indian again raised up out of the grass. His gun, Stucker's, and my own, with four or five behind us, all cracked at the same instant. Stafford fell at my side, while we rushed on the wounded

Indian with our tomahawks. Before we had got him dispatched he had made ready the powder in his gun, and a ball in his mouth, preparing for a third fire, with bullet holes in his breast that might have all been covered with a man's open hand. We found with him Capt. Beasley's rifle-the captain having been killed at the Lower Blue Licks, a few days before the army passed through that place on their way to the towns.

An English Block-house Burned .- Next morning Gen. Logan ordered another detach- ment to attack a town that lay seven or eight miles to the north or northwest of where we then were. This town was also burnt, together with a large block-house that the English had built there, of a huge size and thickness ; and the detachment returned that evening to the main body. Mr. Isaac Zane was at that time living at this last village, he being married to a squaw, and having at the place his wife and several children at the time.

The name of the Indian chief killed by McGary was Moluntha, the great sachem of the Shawnees. The grenadier squaw was the sister to Cornstalk, who fell (basely murdered) at Point Pleasant.

Jonathan Alder (see Madison County) was at this time living with the Indians. From his narrative it appears that the news of the approach of the Ken- tuckians was communicated to the Indians by a Frenchman, a deserter from the former. Nevertheless, as the whites arrived sooner than they expected, the sur- prise was complete. Most of the Indians were at the time absent hunting, and the town became an easy conquest to the whites. Early one morning an Indian runner came into the village in which Alder lived, and gave the information that Mac-o-chee had been destroyed, and that the whites were approaching. Alder, with the people of the village, who were principally squaws and children, retreated for two days, until they arrived somewhere near the head waters of the Scioto, where they suffered much for want of food. There was not a man among them capable of hunting, and they were compelled to subsist on paw-paws, muscles and craw-fish. In about eight days they returned to Zane's town, tarried a short time, and from thence removed to Hog creek, where they wintered : their principal living, at that place, was " raccoons, and that with little or no salt, with- out a single bite of bread, hommony, or sweet corn." In the spring they moved back to the site of their village, where nothing remained but the ashes of the dwellings and their corn burnt to charcoal. They remained during the sngar season, and then removed to Blanchard's fork, where, being obliged to clear the land, they were enabled to raise but a scanty crop of corn. While this was grow- ing, they fared hard, and managed to eke out a bare subsistence by eating a " kind of wild potato" and poor raccoons, that had been snekled down so poor that dogs would hardly eat them : " for fear of losing a little, they threw them on the fire, singed the hair off, and ate the skin and all."

The Indian lad to whom General Lytle alludes was taken, with others of the prisoners, into Kentucky. The commander of the expedition was so much pleased with him that he made him a member of his own family, in which he resided some years, and was at length permitted to return. He was ever afterwards known by the name of Logan, to which the prefix of captain was eventually at- tached. His Indian name was Spemica Lawba, i. e., " the High Horn." He sub- sequently rose to the rank of a civil chief, on account of his many estimable in- tellectual and moral qualities. His personal appearance was commanding, being six feet in height, and weighing near two hundred pounds. He from that time

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continued the unwavering friend of the Americans, and fought on their side with great constancy. He lost his life in the fall of 1812, under melancholy circum- stances, which evinced that he was a man of the keenest sense of honor. The facts follow, from Drake's Tecumseh.

Logan's Indignation at False Accusations. -In November of 1812 General Harrison directed Logan to take a small party of his tribe, and reconnoitre the country in the direc- tion of the rapids of the Maumee. When near this point they were met by a body of the enemy, superior to their own in number, and compelled to retreat. Logan, Captain Johnny [see vol. i., p. 602] and Bright-horn, who composed the party, effected their es- cape to the left wing of the army, then under the command of Gen. Winchester, who was duly informed of the circumstances of their adventure. An officer of the Kentucky troops, Gen. P., the second in command, without the slightest ground for such a charge, accused Logan of infidelity to our cause, and of giving intelligence to the enemy. Indig- nant at this foul accusation, the noble chief at once resolved to meet it in a manner that would leave no doubt as to his faithfulness to the United States. He called on his friend Oliver [now Major Wm. Oliver, of Cincin- nati], and having told him of the imputation that had been cast upon his reputation, said that he would start from the camp next morning, and either leave his body bleaching in the woods, or return with such trophies from the enemy as would relieve his char- acter from the suspicion that had been wan- tonly cast upon it by an American officer.

Logan Captured by Winnemac .- Accord- ingly, on the morning of the 22d, he started down the Manmee, attended by his two faith- ful companions, Captain Johnny and Bright- horn. About noon, having stopped for the purpose of taking rest, they were suddenly sur- prised by a party of seven of the enemy, among whom were young Elliott, a half-breed, hold- ing a commission in the British service, and the celebrated Potawatamie 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 Gen. Winchester's army, for the purpose of joining the British. Win- nemac, 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 marching 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 oper- ation, adroitly did away the impression by remarking, "Me chaw heap tobac."

Fight and Escape of Logan's Party .- The evening being now at hand, the British In- dians determined to encamp on the bank of Turkeyfoot 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 near by, 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. Thus circumstanced, and during an active fight, the fourth man of the enemy passed round until Logan was uncovered by his tree, and shot him through the body. By this time Logan's party had wounded two of the surviving four, which caused them to fall back. Taking advantage of this state of things, Captain Johnny mounted Logan, now suffering the pain of a mortal wound, and Bright-horn, also wounded, ou two of the enemy's horses, and started them for Win- chester's camp, which they reached about midnight. Captain Johnny, having already secured the scalp of Winnemac, followed im- mediately on foot, and gained the same point early on the following morning. It was sub- sequently ascertained that the two Indians of the British party, who were last wounded, died of their wounds, making in all five out of the seven who were slain by Logan and his companions.

Logan Laughs while in the Death-throes .- When the news of this gallant affair had spread through the camp, and, especially, after it was known that Logan was mortally wounded, it created a deep and mournful sen- sation. 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 ; indeed, he was almost universally esteemed in the army for his fidelity to our cause, his un- questioned bravery, and the nobleness of his nature. He lived two or three days after reaching camp, but in extreme bodily agony ; he was buried by the officers of the army at Fort Winchester, with the honors of war.

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Previous to his death he related the particu- lars of this fatal enterprise to his friend Oliver, declaring to him that he prized his honor more than life ; and having now vin- dicated his reputation from the imputation cast upon it, he died satisfied. In the course of this interview, and while writhing with pain, he was observed to smile ; upon being questioned as to the cause, he replied, that when he recalled to his mind the manner in which Captain Johnny took off the scalp of Winnemac, while at the same time dexter- ously watching the movements of the enemy, he could not refrain from laughing-an inci- dent in savage life which shows the "ruling passion strong in death." It would, per- haps, be difficult, in the history of savage warfare, to point out an enterprise, the exe- cution of which reflects higher credit upon the address and daring conduct of its authors than this does upon Logan and his two com- panions. Indeed, a spirit even less indomit- able, a sense of honor less acute, and a patriotic devotion to a good cause less active, than were manifested by this gallant chief- tain of the woods, might, under other circum- stances, have well conferred immortality upon his name.

Col. John Johnston, in speaking of Logan, in a communication to us, says :

Logan's Children .- Logan left a dying re- quest to myself that his two sons should be sent to Kentucky, and there educated and brought up under the care of Major Hardin.

As soon as peace and tranquillity were restored among the Indians, I made application to the chiefs to fulfil the wish of their dead friend to deliver up the boys, that I might have them conveyed to Frankford, the residence of Major Hardin. The chiefs were em- barrassed, and manifested an unwillingness to comply, and in this they were warmly sup- ported by the mother of the children. On no account would they consent to send them so far away as Kentucky, but agreed that I should take and have them schooled at Piqua ; it being the best I could do, in compliance with the dying words of Logan, they were brought in. I had them put to school, and boarded in a religious, respectable family. The mother of the boys, who was a bad woman, thwarted all my plans for their im- provement, frequently taking them off for weeks, giving them bad advice, and even, ou one or two occasions, brought whiskey to the school-house and made them drunk. In this way she continued to annoy me, and finally took them altogether to raise with herself among the Shawanese, at Wapaghkonetta. I made several other attempts, during my connection with the Indians, to educate and train up to civilized life many of their youth, without any encouraging results-all of them proved failures. The children of Logan, with their mother, emigrated to the West twenty years ago, and have there become some of the wildest of their race.

Logan county continued to be a favorite place of residence with the Indians for years after the destruction of these towns. Major Galloway, who was here about the year 1800, gives the following, from memory, respecting the localities and names of their towns at that time. Zane's town, now Zanesfield, was a Wy- andot village ; Wapatomica, three miles below, on Mad river, was then deserted ; McKee's town, on McKee's creek, about four miles south of Bellefontaine, so named from the infamous McKee, and was at that time a trading station ; Read's town, in the vicinity of Bellefontaine, which then had a few cabins; Lewis' town, on the Great Miami, and Solomon's town, at which then lived the Wyandot chief, Tarhe, "The Crane." From an old settler we learn, also, that on the site of Bellefontaine was Blue Jacket's town, and three miles north the town of Buckon- gehelas. Blue Jacket, or Weyapiersensaw, and Buckongehelas, were noted chiefs, and were at the treaty of Greenville; the first was a Shawnee and the last a Del- aware. At Wayne's victory Blue Jacket had the chief control, and, in opposition to Little Turtle, advocated giving the whites battle with so much force as to over- power the better counsels of the other.

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Historical collections of Ohio in two volumes, an encyclopedia of the state, Volume II, Part 12

Author: Howe, Henry, 1816-1893 Publication date: 1907 Publisher: Cincinnati : Published by the state of Ohio Number of Pages: 916

Author: Howe, Henry, 1816-1893
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: Cincinnati : Published by the state of Ohio
Number of Pages: 916