History of Belmont and Jefferson Counties, Ohio, and incidentially historical collection pertaining to border warfare and the early settlement of the adjacent portion of the Ohio Valley, Part 18

Author: Caldwell, J. A. (John Alexander) 1n; Newton, J. H., ed; Ohio Genealogical Society. 1n
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Wheeling, W. Va. : Historical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 728

USA > Ohio > Jefferson County > History of Belmont and Jefferson Counties, Ohio, and incidentially historical collection pertaining to border warfare and the early settlement of the adjacent portion of the Ohio Valley > Part 18
USA > Ohio > Belmont County > History of Belmont and Jefferson Counties, Ohio, and incidentially historical collection pertaining to border warfare and the early settlement of the adjacent portion of the Ohio Valley > Part 18

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The Ottawas, Hurons, and Pottawattomies took the lead in the Northwest, and the Delawares, Shawanese, Senecas and others, bore the brunt in the region of the Ohio valley.

On the 27th of May bands of Indians, flushed with their victories, appeared before Fort Pitt, but failing to deceive the commandant and gain possession by treachery, they postponed their attack until late in July, when they made a furious assault with a large force. They crawled along the banks of the rivers, and dug holes with their knives in the bank, to shelter themselves from the fire of the garrison. From these a constant fire was poured upon the fort for many days. But the brave garrison ably defended the fort, and about August first a rumor reached the Indians that a large army was coming to their relief, when the assailants abandoned the siege and penetrated farther to the east.

On receipt of the first rumors of the impending Indian out- break, Sir Jeffrey Amherst, the English Commander-in-chief, was stationed at New York, and Colonel Henry Boquet, a brave and talented officer, then in Philadelphia, prepared to leave with an army and mareh to the relief of Fort Pitt.

Col. Boquet started from Philadelphia with a force of about five hundred men and reached Carlisle on the first of July, where he found the whole settlement in a panic, the country deserted, and the wretched and famishing people crowded into the town for protection. Here he rested for a number of days to gather supplies, and again resumed his march. He encoun- tered the Indians in the hotly contested battle of Bushy Run, where, under the lead of the Seneca chief, Guyasutha, they fought with a desperation seldom equaled in the annals of savage war- fare. After a struggle which lasted nearly two days, Colonel Boquet's genius and the superior discipline of veteran soldiers prevailed, and his command finally reached Fort Pitt in August of that year.

The campaign against the Indians terminated successfully at the end of 1763. The signal victory gained over them by Col. Boquet, at Bushy Run, had so dismayed them that they not not only eeased their attacks upon the settlements, but with- drew from the frontiers, retreating far beyond the Ohio, and not returning to this region until after the treaties of peace of the following year, made by him with them on the Muskingum.

Col. Boquet remained at Fort Pitt until October 3d, 1764, when he marehed into the territory of Ohio to the forks of the Muskingum with fifteen hundred men, regulars and provincials, to further punish the Delawares, Shawanese and other tribes.

The order of march was as follows: A corps of Virginia vol- 7-B. & J. COS.

unteers advaneed in front, detaching three scouting parties, one of them preceded by a guide, marched in the center path which the army was to follow. The other two extended them- selves in a line abreast, on the right and left, to scour the woods on the flanks. Under cover of this advance guard the axmen and two companies of infantry followed in three divisions to elear the sidepaths and eut a road in which the main army and the convoy marehed as follows: The front face of the square, composed of parts of two regiments, marched in single file in the right-hand path, and a Pennsylvania regiment marched in the same manner in the left-hand path. A reserve corps of grenadiers followed in the paths and they likewise by a second battalion of infantry. All these troops covered the convoy which marched between them in the center path or main road. A company of horsemen and a corps of Virginia volunteers followed, forming the rear guard. The Pennsylvania volunteers in single file, flanked the side paths opposite the convoy. The ammunition and tools were placed in the rear of the first column, which were followed by the baggage and tents. The cattle and sheep came after the baggage in the center road, properly guarded. The provisions eame next on pack-horses. The troops were ordered to observe the most profound silence, and the men to march at two yards distance from each other. By marching in this order, if attacked, the whole force could be easily thrown into a hollow square, with the baggage, pro- visions, &c., in the center.

From the day of starting to the 9th was occupied in reaching camp number seven, by way of Logstown, Big Beaver and Little Beaver.

Col. Boquet's journal proceeds as follows :

" Tuesday, October 9th. In this day's mareh, the path di- vided into two branches, that to the southwest leading to the lower towns upon the Muskingum. In the forks of the path stand several trees painted by the Indians in a hieroglyphie manner, denoting the number of wars in which they have been engaged, and the particulars of their success in prisoners and scalps. The camp No. 8 lies on a run, and level piece of ground, with Yellow creek close on the left, and a rising ground near the rear of the right face. The path, after the army left the forks, was so brushy and entangled that they were obliged to cut all the way before them, and also to lay several bridges, in order to make it passable for the horses; so that this day they proceeded only five miles, three quarters and seventy perches.

" Wednesday, 10th. Marched one mile, with Yellow creek on the left at a small distance all the way, and crossed at a good ford fifty feet wide ; proceeding through an alternate suecession of small hills and rich vales, finely watered with rivulets, to camp No. 9, seventy miles and sixty perches in the whole.

" Thursday, 11th. Crossed a branch of Muskingum river about fifty feet wide, the country much the same as that de- scribed above, discovering a good deal of free-stone. The camp No. 10, had this branch of the river parallel to its left face, and lies ten miles one-quarter and forty perches from the former encampment.

" Friday, 12th. Keeping the aforcsaid creek on their left, they marehed through much fine land, watered with small rivers and springs; proceeding likewise through several savan- nahs or cleared spots, which are by nature extremely beautiful; the second which they passed, being in particular, one con- tinued plain of near two miles, with a fine rising ground forming a semicirele round the right hand side, and a pleasant stream of water at about a quarter of a mile distant on the left. The camp No. 11, has the above mentioned branch of the Muskingum on the left, and is distant ten miles and three quarters from the last encampment.

"Saturday, 13th. Crossed Nemenshelas creek, about fifty feet wide, a little above where it empties itself into the aforesaid branch of Muskingum, having in their way a pleasant pros- pect over a large plain, for near two miles on the left. A little further, they came to another small river, which they crossed about, fifty perches above where it empties into the said branch of Muskingum. Here a high ridge on the right, and the creek close on the left, form a narrow defile abont seventy perches long. Passing afterwards over a very rich bottom, they came to the main branch of Muskingum, about seventy yards wide, with a good ford. A little below and above the forks of this river is Tuscarawas, a place execedingly beautiful by situation, the lands rich on both sides of the river; the country on the northwest side being an entire level plane, upwards of five miles in circumference. From the ruined houses appearing here, the Indians who inhabited the place and are now with the Delawares, are supposed to have had about one hundred and

HISTORY OF BELMONT AND JEFFERSON COUNTIES, OHIO.

fifty warriors. This camp, No. 12, is distant eight miles nine- teen perches from the former.

"Sunday, 14th. The army remained in camp, and two men who had been dispatched by Col. Bouquet from Fort Pitt, with letters from Colonel Bradstreet, returned and reported : ‘That, within a few miles of this place, they had been made prisoners by the Delawares and carried to one of their towns, sixteen miles from hence, where they were kept till the savages, know- ing of the arrival of the army here, set them at liberty, ordering them to acquaint the Colonel that the head men of the Dela- wares and Shawanese were coming as soon as possible to treat of peace with him.'

" Monday, October 15, 1764. The army moved two miles and forty perches further down the Muskingum, to camp number thirteen, situated on a very high bank, with the river at the foot of it, which is upward of one hundred yards wide at this place, with fine level country at some distance from its banks, producing stately timber free from underwood and plenty of food for cattle. Six Indians came to inform the colonel that all their chiefs had assembled about eight miles from the camp, and were ready to treat with him of peace, which they were earnestly desirous of obtaining. He returned for answer that he would meet them next day in a bower at some distance from camp. In the meantime he ordered a small stockaded fort to be built to hold provisions for the troops on their return, and to lighten their convoy, as several large bodies of Indians were within a few miles of the camp, whose former instances of treachery-although they now declared they came for peace -- made it prudent to trust nothing to their intentions.

" Wednesday, October 17, 1764. The colonel, with most of the regular troops, Virginia volunteers and lighthorse, marched from the camp to the bower erected for the congress, and soon after the troops were stationed so as to appear to the best advan- tage. The Indians arrived and were conducted to the bower. Being seated, they began in a short time to smoke their pipes- the calumet-agreeably to their custom. This ceremony over, they laid down their pipes and opened their pouches wherein were their strings and belts of wampum.

"The Indians present were Seneca Chief Guyasutha, with fifteen warriors, Custologa, chief of the Wolf-Delaware tribe, Beaver, chief of the Turkey tribe, with twenty warriors, Shawa- nese Chief Keiffiwautchtha, a chief and six warriors."

Guyasutha, Turtle Heart, Custologa, and Beaver were the speakers. The general substance of what they had to offer con- sisted in excuses for their late treachery and misconduct, throwing the blame on the rashness of their young men and the nations living to the westward of them-sueing for peace in the most abject manner, and promising severally to deliver up all their prisoners. After they had concluded the colonel promised to give them an answer the next day, and the army returned to camp. The badness of the weather however pre- vented his meeting them until the 20th, when he spoke to them.

The boldness with which Col. Boquet spoke, excited the chiefs but remembering how terribly he had chastised them at the battle of Bushy Run a year previous, they succumbed at once, and the two Delaware chiefs delivered eighteen white pris- oners, and eighty-three small sticks expressing the number of other prisoners they still held, and promised to bring them in as soon as possible. Keiffiwautchtha, the Shawanese deputy, promised on behalf of his nation to submit to Colonel Boquet's terms. Guyasutha addressed the several tribes before their de- parture, exhorting them to be strong in complying with their engagements, that they might wipe away the reproach of their former breach of faith, and convince the English that they could speak the truth, adding that he would conduct the army to the place appointed for receiving the prisoners.

" Monday, October 22d. The army, attended by the Indian deputies, marched nine miles to camp No. 14, crossing Mar- garet's Creek, about fifty feet wide. The day following they proceeded sixteen miles one quarter and seventy-seven perches farther to camp No. 15, and halted there one day.

" Thursday, 25th. They marched six miles, one half and six- teen perches to camp No. 16, situated within a mile of the Forks of Muskingum; and this place was fixed upon instead of Wakautamike, as the most central and convenient place to receive the prisoners; for the principal Indian towns now lay round them, distant from seven to twenty miles; excepting only the lower Shawanese town, situated on Scioto river, which was about eighty miles; so that from this place the army had it in their power to awe all the enemy's settlements and destroy their towns, if they should not punctually fulfill the engage- ments they had entered into. Four redoubts were built here

opposite to the four angles of the camp; the ground in the front was eleared, a store-house for the provisions erected, and likewise a house to receive, and treat of peace with, the Indians, when they should return. Three houses with separate apart- ments were also raised for the reception of the captives of the respective provinces, and proper officers appointed to take charge of them, with a matron to attend the women and ehil- dren; so that with the officers' mess-houses, ovens, &c., this camp had the appearance of a little town in which the greatest order and regularity were observed.

"On Saturday, 27th, a messenger arrived from King Custo- loga, informing that he was on his way with his prisoners, and also a messenger from the lower Shawanese towns of the like import. The Colonel, however, having no reason to suspect the latter nation of baekwardness, sent one of their own people, desiring them 'to be punctual as to the time fixed; to provide a sufficient quantity of provisions to subsist the prisoners; to bring the letters wrote to him last winter by the French eom- mandant at Fort Chartres, which some of their people had stopped ever since ;' adding that, 'as their nation had expressed some uneasiness at our not shaking hands with them, they were to know that the English never took their enemies by the hand before peace was finally concluded.'

"The day following the Shawanese messenger returned, saying that when he had proceeded as far as Wakautamike the chief of that town undertook to proceed with the message himself and desired the other to return and acquaint the English that all his prisoners were ready, and he was going to the lower towns to hasten theirs.

" Monday, October 28, 1764. Peter, the Caughnawaga chief and twenty Indians arrived from Sandusky with a letter from Colonel Bradstreet. The Caughnawagas reported that the In- dians on the lakes had delivered but few of their prisoners; that the Ottowas had killed a great part of theirs, and the other nations had done the same, or had kept them. From this time to November 9th was chiefly spent in sending and receiv- ing messages to and from the Indian towns relative to the pris- oners who were now coming into camp in small parties. The colonel kept so steadily to this article of having every prisoner delivered, that when the Delaware kings (Beaver and Custologa) had brought in all theirs except twelve, which they promised to bring in a few days, he refused to shake hands or have the least talk with them while a single captive remained among them. By the 9th of November most of the prisoners had ar- rived that could be expected this season, amounting to two hundred and six, besides about one hundred more remaining in possession of the Shawanese, which they promised to deliver in the following spring. Everything being now settled with the Indians the army decamped on Sunday, the 18th of No- vember, from the forks of Muskingum, and marched for Fort Pitt, [up the Tuscarawas valley to its provision stockade, near present town of Bolivar; thence by way of Sandy valley and Yellow creek to the Ohio, and up to Fort Pitt,] where it arrived on the 28th of November. The regular troops were sent to garrison the different points of communication, and the pro- vincial troops with the captives to their several provinces. Here ended the first armed expedition that had ever penetrated the Tuscarawas valley, and as the chronicler says, notwith- standing the difficulties attending it, the troops were never in want of any necessaries, continuing perfectly healthy dur- ing the whole campaign, in which no life was lost, except one soldier killed at the Muskingum.

There were 206 prisoners delivered to Col. Boquet, of which the following is a synopsis:

VIRGINIANS -- Males, 32

Females and children, 58

PENNSYLVANIANS-Males, 49

Females and children, 67

Total, 206

JOURNAL OF COL. GEORGE CROGHAN, WHO WAS SENT AFTER THE PEACE OF 1763, BY THE GOVERNMENT, TO EXPLORE THE COUN- TRY ADJACENT TO THE OHIO RIVER, AND TO CONCILIATE THE INDIAN NATIONS WHO HAD HITHERTO ACTED WITH THE FRENCH.

May 15th, 1765. I set off from Fort Pitt with two batteaux, and encamped at Chartier's Island, in the Ohio, three miles below Fort Pitt.

16th. Being joined by the deputies of the Senecas, Shawanese, and Delawares, that were to accompany me, we set off at 7 o'clock in the morning, and at 10 o'clock arrived at the Logs-

HISTORY OF BELMONT AND JEFFERSON COUNTIES, OHIO.

town, an old settlement of the Shawanese, about seventeen miles from Fort Pitt, where we put ashore, and viewed the remains of that village, which was situated on a high bank, on the south side of the Ohio river, a fine fertile country round it. At 11 o'clock we re-embarked and proceeded down the Ohio to the mouth of Big Beaver creek, about ten miles below the Logstown; this creek empties itself between two fine rich bottoms, a mile wide an each side from the banks of the river to the highlands. About a mile below the mouth of Beaver ereek we passed an old settlement of the Delawares, where the French, in 1756, built a town for that nation. On the north side of the river some of the stone chimneys are yet remaining; here the high- lands come close to the banks, and continue so for about five miles. After which we passed several spacious bottoms on each side of the river, and came to Little Beaver creek, about fifteen miles below Big Beaver ereek. A number of small rivulets fall into the river on each side. From thence we sailed to Yellow creek, being about fifteen miles from the last mentioned creek ; here and there the hills come close to the banks of the river on each side, but where are bottoms, they are very large, and well watered; numbers of small rivulets running through them, falling into the Ohio on both sides. We encamped on the river bank, and find a great part of the trees in the bottoms are cover- ed with grape vines. This day we passed by eleven islands, one of which beng about seven miles long. For the most part of the way we made this day, the banks of the river are high and steep. The course of the Ohio from Fort Pitt to the mouth of Beaver creek inclines to the north-west; from thenee to the two creeks partly due west.

17th. At 6 o'clock in the morning we embarked, and were delighted with the prospect of a fine open country on each side of the river as we passed down. We came to a place called the Two Creeks,* about fifteen miles from Yellow creek, where we put to shore ; here the Senecas have a village on a high bank, on the north side of the river ; the chief of this village offered me his service to go with me to the Illinois, which I could not re- fuse for fear of giving him offence, although I had a sufficient number of deputies with me already. From thence we pro- ceeded down the river, passed many large, rich, and finc bottoms; the highlands being at a considerable distance from the river banks, till we came to the Buffalo creek, being about ten miles below the Seneca village; and from Buffalo creek we proceeded down the river to Fat Meat creek, f about thirty miles. The face of the country appears much like what we met with before; large, rich, and well watered bottoms, then suc- ceeded by the hills pinching close on the river; these bottoms, on the north side, appear rather low, and consequently sub- jeet to inundations in the spring of the year, when there never fails to be high freshes in the Ohio, owing to the melting of the snows. This day we passed by ten fine islands, though the greatest part of them are small. They lay much higher out of the water than the mainland, and of course less subject to be flooded by the freshes. At night we encamped near an Indian village. The general course of the river from the Two creeks to Fat Meat creek inclines to the southwest.

18th. At 6 o'clock A. M. we set off in our batteaux; the coun- try on both sides of the river appears delightful; the hills are several miles from the river banks, and consequently the bottoms large; the soil, timber and banks of the river, much like those we have before described; about fifty miles below the Fat Meat creek, we enter the long reach, where the river runs a straight course for twenty miles, and makes a delightful prospect; the banks continue high; the country on both sides, level, rich, and well watered. At the lower end of the reach we encamped. This day we passed nine islands, some of which are large, and lay high out of the water.

19th. We decamped at six in the morning, and sailed to a place called the Three Islands, being about fifteen miles from our last encampment; here the highlands come close to the river banks, and the bottom for the most part-till we come to the Muskingum (or Elk) river-are but narrow : this river emp- ties itself into the Ohio about fifteen miles below the Three Islands}; the banks of the river continue steep, and the coun- try is level for several miles back from the river. The course of the river from Fat Meat ercek to Elk river, is about south- west by south. We proceeded down the river about fifteen miles, to the mouth of Little Conhawa river, with little or no alteration in the face of the country; here we encamped in a

fine rich bottom, after having passed fourteen islands, some of them large, and mostly lying high out of the water. Here buf- faloes, bears, turkeys, with all other kinds of wild game are extremely plenty. A good hunter, without much fatigue to himself, could here supply daily one hundred men with meat. The course of the Ohio, from Elk river to Little Conhawa, is about south.

20th. At six in the morning we embarked in our boats, and proceeded down to the mouth of Hohocken or Bottle river, where we were obliged to encamp, having a strong head wind against us. We made but twenty miles this day, and passed by five very fine islands; the country the whole way being rich and level, with high and steep banks to the rivers. From here I despatched an Indian to the Plains of Scioto, with a letter to the French traders from the Illinois residing there, amongst the Shawnesse, requiring them to come and join me at the mouth of the Scioto, in order to proceed with me to their own country, and take the oaths of allegiance to his Britannic Majesty, as they were now become his subjects, and had no right to trade there without license. At the same time, I sent messages to the Shawanese Indians to oblige the French to come to me in case of refusal.

21st. We embarked at half past 8 o'clock in the morning, and sailed to a place called the Big Bend, about thirty-five miles below Bottle river. The course of the Ohio, from Little Conhawa river to Big Bend, is about southwest by south. The country hereabouts abounds with buffalo, bears, deer, and all sorts of wild game, in such plenty that we killed out of our boats as much as we wanted. We proceeded down the river to the Buffalo Bottom, about ten miles from the beginning of the Big Bend, where we encamped. The country on both sides of the river much the same as we passed the day before. This day we passed nine islands, all lying high out of the water.

22d. At half an hour past five o'clock set off and sailed to a place ealled the Alum Hill, so called from the great quantity of that mineral found there by the Indians; this place lays about ten miles from Buffalo Bottom; thence we sailed to the mouth of Great Conhawa river, being ten miles from the Alum Hill. The course of the river, from the Great Bend to this place, is mostly west; from hence we proceeded down to Little Guyandotte river, where we encamped, about thirty miles from Great Conhawa; the country still fine and level; the banks of the river high, with abundance of creeks and rivulets falling into it. This day we passed six fine islands. In the evening one of our Indians discovered three Cherokees near our encamp- ment, which obliged our Indians to keep out a good guard the first part of the night. Our party being pretty strong, I imag- ine the Cherokees were afraid to attack us, and so ran off.

23d. Decamped about five in the morning, and arrived at Big Guyandotte, about twenty miles from our last eneampment ; the country as of yesterday ; from hence we proceeded down to Sandy river, being twenty miles further ; thence to the mouth of Scioto, about forty miles from the last mentioned river. The general course of the river, from Great Conhawa to this place, inclines to the southwest. The soil rich, the country level, and the banks of the river high. The soil on the banks of the Scioto, for a vast distance up the country, is prodigiously rich, the bottoms very wide, and in the spring of the year, many of them are flooded, so that the river appears to be two or three miles wide. Bears, deer, turkeys, and most sorts of wild game are very plenty on the banks of this river. On the Ohio, just below the mouth of Scioto, on a high bank, near forty feet, formerly stood the Sharanese town, called the Lower Town, which was all carried away except three or four houses. by a great flood in the Scioto. I was in the town at the time, though the banks of the Ohio were so high, the water was nine feet on the top, which obliged the whole town to take to their canoes, and move with their effects to the hills. The Shawra- nese afterwards built their town on the opposite side of the river, which, during the French war, they abandoned, for fear of the Virginians, and removed to the plains on Seioto. The Ohio is about one hundred yards wider here than at Fort Pitt, which is but a small augmentation, considering the great num- ber of rivers and ereeks that fall into it during the course of four hundred and twenty miles; and as it deepens but very little, I imagine the waters sink, though there is no visible appearance of it. In general all the lands on the Scioto river, as well as the bottoms on the Ohio, are too rich for anything but hemp, flax or Indian eorn.

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History of Belmont and Jefferson Counties, Ohio, and incidentially historical collection pertaining to border warfare and the early settlement of the adjacent portion of the Ohio Valley, Part 18

Author: Caldwell, J. A. (John Alexander) 1n; Newton, J. H., ed; Ohio Genealogical Society. 1n Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Wheeling, W. Va. : Historical Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 728

Author: Caldwell, J. A. (John Alexander) 1n; Newton, J. H., ed; Ohio Genealogical Society. 1n
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Wheeling, W. Va. : Historical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 728