USA > Ohio > Seneca County > History of Seneca County : Containing a detailed narrative of the principal events that have occured since its first settlement down to the present time > Part 12
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To the inhabitants of this section of Ohio, a minute de- scription of the council house, would be deemed unnecessary. Suffice it to say, that its dimensions were perhaps, sixty by twenty-five feet ; a place in the center for the fire, and corres- ponding therewith, an aperture was left on the roof for the smoke to ascend.
Contiguous to the fire-place were two upright posts, four or five feet apart ; between these posts, a board fourteen or fif- teen inches broad, was firmly fastened ; and over this board the skin of a deer was stretched very tight. On a seat near this board, sat a blind Indian, with a gourd in his hand, in which were beans or corn-with this he beat time for the dan- cers. Such was the musician, and such the music.
The dancing had commenced previous to our arrival and was continued with little intermission for several successive days and nights. An effort by me to describe their manner of dancing, would be fruitless. I have witnessed dancing as- semblies in populous cities of the east, among the refined class- es of society-but having seen nothing like this, I must there- fore, pronounce it sui generis. I was strongly solicited by some of the chiefs to unite with them in the dance ; I, however, declined the intended honor-but gave to one of them my cane, as a proxy, with which he seemed much delighted. Several of their white neighbors, both male and female, entered the ring.
There was on this occasion a splendid display of ornament. Those who have seen the members of a certain society, in their most prosperous days, march in procession, in honor of their
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patron saint, decorated with the badges and insignia of their Order, may have some conception of the dress and ornament- al decoration of those head men while engaged in the dance.
I will select " Unum e Pluribus." Their doctor, as he was called, wore very long hair, and from the nape of his neck, to the termination of his cue, there was a continuous line of pieces of silver-the upper one being larger than a dollar, and the lower one less than a half dime.
Some of the more inferior Indians were stuck over with baubles, and hung round with strings. Many of them wore small bells tied round their ancles ; and those who could not afford bells had deer hoofs in place thereof: these made a jing- ling sound as they put down their feet in the dance.
The squaws also exhibited themselves to the best advantage. Several of them were splendidly attired and decorated. Their dresses were chiefly of silk, of various colors, and some of them were of good old fashioned queen's gray. These dresses were not "cut," as our fair belles would say, a la mode-but they were cut and made after their own fashion ; that is, not so long as to conceal the scarlet hose covering their ancles, their small feet, or their moccasins, which were so ingeniously beaded, and manufactured by their own olive hands.
Nor must I omit saying, that the sobriety and correct de - meanor of the Indians, and the modest deportment of the squaws merited the highest commendation.
At the commencement of each dance, or to borrow our own phraseology, each " set dance," a chief first rose, and began to sing the word " YAH-HO-WAH !" with a slow, sonorous and strong syllabic emphasis, keeping time with his feet, and advancing round the house ; directly another rose, and then in regular succession, one after the other, rising and singing the same word and falling in the rear, until all the Indians had joined in the dance ; next, the squaws, at a respectful distance in the
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rear, in the same manner, by seniority, rose and united in the dance and the song. Now the step was quicker, and the pro- nunciation more rapid-all singing and all dancing, while Jim, the blind musician, struck harder and faster with his gourd on the undressed deer skin ; thus they continued the same dance for more than one hour, without cessation !
The Indian boys who did not join in the dance, amused them- selves the meanwhile, discharging heavy loaded muskets through the aperture in the roof, the reverberations of which were almost deafening. Taken altogether, to the eye and the ear of a stranger, it seemed like frantic festivity.
Tall Chief, who was confined to his bed by indisposition, felt it so much his duty to join in the dance with his people, that he actually left his bed, notwithstanding it was mid-winter, came to the council house, and took part in the dance as long as he was able to stand.
About the "noon of night," Hard-hickory invited Mr. D. and myself to accept of a bed at his residence ; to this propo- sition we readily assented. Here we were hospitably provi- ded for, and entertained in a style which I little anticipated. Even among many of our white inhabitants, at this early day, a curtained bed was a species of luxury not often enjoyed- such was the bed we occupied.
Shortly after our arrival at the house of this chief, Mr. D. retired ; not so with our friendly host and myself-while sit- ting near a clean brick hearth, before a cheerful fire, Hard- hickory unbosomed himself to me unreservedly. Mr. D. was asleep, and the chief and I were the only persons then in the house.
Hard-hickory, among other things, told me it was owing chiefly to him that this feast was now celebrated ; that it was in part to appease the anger of the Good Spirit, in consequence
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of a dream he lately had, and as an explanation he gave me the following narration :
" He dreamed he was fleeing from an enemy-it was, he sup- posed, something supernatural, perhaps an evil spirit ; that af- ter it had pursued him a long time, and for a great distance, and every effort to escape from it seemed impossible, as it was now just at his heels, and he almost exhausted ; at this peril- ous time he saw a large water, to which he made with all his re- maining strength, and at the very instant when he expected each bound to be his last, he beheld, to his joy, a canoe, near the . shore ; this appeared as his last hope ; breathless, and faint, he threw himself into it, and that moment, of its own accord, quick as an arrow from the bow, it shot from the shore leav- ing his pursuer on the beach."
While relating this circumstance to me, which he did with earnestness, trepidation, and alarm, strongly expressed in his countenance, he took from his bosom something neatly and very carefully enclosed in several distinct folds of buck-skin. This he began to unrol, laying each piece by itself, and on opening the last, there was enclosed therein, a canoe in min- iature.
On handing it to me to look at, he remarked that no oth- er person save himself and me, had ever seen it, and that, as a memento, he would wear it in his bosom as " long as he lived."
It was a piece of light wood, resembling cork, about six inches long, and, as intended, so it was, a perfect model of a * canoe.
The night now being far advanced, he pointed to the bed, and told me to sleep there ; but that he must go to the council house to the dance, for his people would not like it, if he would stay away, and wishing me good night, he withdrew.
The proceedings of the next day, have already been related. | | [See conclusion of Chapter II.]
CHAPTER XII.
Death of Hard-hickory-Benjamin F. Warner-Peter Pork-Charlieu -- Jacob Nicely.
An annuity of sixteen hundred dollars was due, from the state of New York, for a limited number of years, to certain families of Cayugas, of which Hard-hickory's, was one, and previous to their removal, was regularly paid to them at their old home, upon the Sandusky river .* By an arrangement with the government in their treaty at Washington, that annu- ity was to be forwarded to them, at their new home, on the Ne- osho, through the hands of the government agents.
In the year 1834, a draft, for the sum due them from the state of New York, was forwarded and received by them ; and in order to make a distribution of the money amongst those en- titled to receive it, it was necessary to have the draft cashed, for which purpose Hard-hickory, with George Herrin, for inter- preter, were delegated to go to Fort Gibson. They went- sold their draft, and received the money.
Hard-hickory then proposed to Herrin, a trip to Washing- ton city to see after the business of the tribe, relative to the sale of their lands in Ohio. Said he, "let us go while we have this money ; it will make no difference to our people, as our great father, the president, will pay us back all the money
* For this statement relative to the death of Hard-hickory, I am indebted to Henry C. Brish. He received it personally, from Small-cloud-Spicer, a chief of the Senccas, in the year 1836.
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we spend in going there, and returning home, as he did when we went to make our treaty." So off they started for Wash- - ington. For more than a month they revelled in all the luxu- ries and dissipation of that city, until they were tired of them, when they determined to return to their homes. They then requested the commissioner of Indian affairs to reimburse the amount they had expended, and furnish means for their return, which could not be complied with.
On arriving at home, their money was nearly gone. Hickory was then called before his people to give an account of himself. He stated that there was something wrong about the draft, and he had to go to Washington to arrange it-that the presi- dent said it should all be made right, and they would get the money soon, all in silver.
Doubting this statement, they sent a messenger to Fort Gib- son, to ascertain the truth. He reported, on his return, that Hickory had drawn the money for the draft, and consequently, the chief's statement to the contrary, was false. A solemn council was called, before which he was summoned to appear, and this he did accordingly. To the charge of falsehood he plead guilty, and attempted not to palliate the offense or to justify it, but threw himself upon the mercy of his people, offering at the same time, to surrender all his horses and other property, as an indemnity for the money spent, which would have been sufficient, or nearly so, to have satisfied the amount. For sev- eral days the council went on, and some were for saving his life ; but a large majority were against him. He had betray- ed his trust, and dishonored his high station as a chief. At length the verdict came that Hard-hickory was sentenced to die.
If Hickory had stood forth before his people, and asserted at once the truth of the matter, he would have preserved his honor ; and from my knowledge of the tribe to which he be-
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longed, says Mr. Brish, I have no doubt, but that he would have saved his life.
In hopes that they would come to terms, and spare him ; and believing that no one would attempt to kill him in the presence of his wife, who was much respected by the tribe, he confined himself to his house, heavily armed. For several days and nights, his house was surrounded. At length the notorious Shane, (who was one of the murderers of Seneca John, ) vol- unteered to kill him in his house. Shane, having just return- ed from the Cherokee country, went that night to the house of Hickory, who was his uncle, and rapped at the door. Hickory recognized his voice, and supposed he would have one friend who would try to save him.
On being assured that no one accompanied him, Hickory di- rected his wife to unbar the door, and let him in, which she did. Shane wore a blanket, and approached Hickory in the middle of the room, holding out his left hand, whilst his right was under his blanket, holding the handle of a long knife. Hickory held out his right hand to Shane, and as soon as theit hands were grasped, Shane drew his knife, and stabbed Hickory through the body, and then dragged him out of doors, where several Indians stabbed and tomahawked him! Thus perished the renowned chief, Hard-hickory, with the seal of falsehood- stamped upon his hitherto unblemished name.
In the previous chapter, mention was made of Benjamin F. Warner. Judging from the dress of that individual-says Mr. Brish-which was entirely Indian, and the fact that he was al- most constantly with Hard-hickory, and other chiefs, of whom he was a great favorite, my friend, Samuel Crowell, might readily have supposed, that he was part Indian, as well as a sub-chief- such, however, was not the case. He neither spoke their lan- guage at that time, nor had a drop of Indian blood in him-he was a Yankee.
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Ben. was a good fellow, as will be shown by a circumstance, which I will hereafter relate. He came among the Senecas but a short time previous to their removal to their new homes, having, for a wife, a Mohican woman, from Green Bay, whose name was Betsey Kon-ke-pot, and was adopted with his wife and child into the Seneca tribe, and in common with them, drew a proportion of the annuity money due from the govern- ment. He became a sort of Major Domo of the tribe, making their bargains, and adjusting their settlements of business transactions with their white neighbors. If a horse was miss- ing, Ben. could track him with unerring precision, till he found him. He could stock a gun or a plow, build a house, tan a skin, in short was always ready for sport, or work, and withal, remarkable for sobriety.
He emigrated with the Senecas. His wife died on the jour- ney soon after crossing the Mississippi river, and Ben, with his child, went on with the tribe to their new homes upon the Neosho.
On reaching the west part of the state of Missouri-con- tinues Mr. Brish-we came to a solitary cabin, far beyond any other habitation, which we found occupied by a woman and three or four children, all of whom had been sick of the fever, of which the husband of the woman, and father of the children had but recently died, and was buried by his own family near the door. They were in an utter state of destitu- tion, almost without clothing, and totally without provisions.
We supplied them abundantly with such things as they need- ed. At that time, Warner was acting as one of my teamsters, and had with him a cow, which he bought of a frontier settler, and was driving her to the Indian country for his own use. After we had left the cabin some distance, I heard the woman call out-" you have left a cow behind." On looking back, I saw Warner's cow in a small picket enclosure, near the house, 15
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and immediately drew his attention to the fact. His reply was, "I put her there-guess the woman 'Il want her worse than I shall!" So the cow was left, and Benjamin Franklin Warner proved, that under a rough exterior, he carried a no- ble and generous heart.
There were many Indians among the Senecas, who were highly esteemed, for their uprightness and honesty, by their white neighbors-many that were respected for their kindness, hospitality and civility-yet there was one, who was, in every respect, a savage-a perfect monster ; delighting in the shed- ding of blood, whether of friends, or foes. This was Peter Pork, the Indian who caused the death of Benajah Parker.
Pork was a Cayuga, and the terror of his nation. Strong- arm-Tequania, an Indian of his tribe, was killed by him. It occurred just before the fatal affray with Parker. Both had been at Lower Sandusky, and as they were returning home, somewhat intoxicated, they concluded to try the speed of their horses. A race ensued, which ended in a regular fight-or duel-between them. The weapons chosen were axes ! Te- quania was mangled in a terrible manner. His wounds, which were deep and fatal, were dressed by Dr. Ely Dresbach, of Tif- fin. After nine days' suffering he expired.
An Indian woman, usually known as "Thomas Brandt's old wife," was also killed by this Indian. She was then at a very advanced age, and lived in a log hut, at some distance from any of her tribe, entirely alone. She was met one day by Peter Pork, (who had accused her of witch-craft,) who tomahawked her without farther ceremony. He then covered her remains with brush, near the spot where she had fallen. A search was instituted, and her body found some distance from the place where it had been left, horribly mangled by the wolves ! We are informed, that since the Senecas removed to the west, he has killed another Indian, named Joseph Silas, who
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. was greatly beloved by the whites while living upon the San- dusky. As many as eight Indians, in all, are known to have been slain by this savage.
There was an old Indian living upon the Vanmeter tract, a Mohawk, whose name was Charlieu, who was famous for his animosity to the Americans. At the age of about twenty-five, he fought with the rest of the Canadian Indians, under Mont- calm, upon the heights of Abraham, where the brave and gen- erous Wolfe was killed. At that time he was married, and had one child. He fought during the last war, on the side of the British, and had a large number of scalps in his possession when in this county, which he had taken during the war. He join- ed the Seneca Indians, with the rest of his tribe, in 1829, and with them, started for the west. At St. Louis, he was taken sick, and died on the 26th of April, 1832. As he wore sev- eral crosses suspended from his long hair, he was claimed by the Roman Catholics, and received a Christian burial in the Catholic church-yard of that city. He was supposed to be over one hundred years of age when he died. He spoke French fluently and was well known to the first settlers of this county.
It has already been stated, that the frontiers of New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, during the Revolutionary war, were continually harassed by the murderous incursions of the savages from the region of the Sandusky, and from Canada.
Besides those captive whites, whose homes were formerly within the limits of this county, and who had a quantity of land granted to each, at the treaty of the rapids of the Miami of Lake Erie, in 1817, there was one to whom no land was granted, whose history is somewhat remarkable. He was a son of a Mr. Nicely, then a resident of the state of Pennsyl- vania, on the banks of the Loyal Hannah river, and was cap- tured by the Wyandot Indians.
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It was a pleasant day in the summer, and two daughters of Mr. Nicely proceeded to a hay-field, not far away, for the pur- pose of gathering berries. Taking with them their youngest brother, who was then about three years of age, they placed him upon a pile of hay, and went some distance to seek for berries. While thus employed the child was discovered and carried off by a band of Wyandots, who were lurking about the settlements in that vicinity.
But the little fellow cried so loud, and, as the Indians said, " made a noise so much like a crow," that they gave him the name of that bird.# By this title, he was ever after known among the Indians. He was adopted by the Wyandots, and educated in all the arts of savage warfare.
Many years subsequent, his father learning that there were captives residing upon the banks of the Sandusky river, de- termined to visit this country, in hopes of finding his long lost son. He came to Upper Sandusky, and after visiting all the whites among the Wyandot Indians, without receiving any intelligence of him, and with hopes well nigh exhaust- ed, he proceeded down the river to the home of the Senecas.
After first calling upon Spicer, he went to the residence of "the Crow." The instant the old man fixed his eyes upon him, he exclaimed - " You are my son! Is your name Jacob ?" The Crow replied in the affirmative ; as he had never forgotten his name. The anxious father then exam- ined one of the arms of his son, and found a scar, produced by a burn, when a child. This was a sufficient identity ; and we can imagine the heart-felt joy of the old man as he gazed long upon his swarthy features.
He then tried to persuade his son to leave the Indians and return with him to his home. But no : there was too much
* In Indian he was called Che-kaw-wa.
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pleasure in roaming the deep wild-woods-too much glory and delight in the excitement of the chase! 'The unfettered, un- restrained indulgences of an Indian's life, were far more con- genial to his feelings, than the habits, manners and forced re- straints of civilized society. No persuasion-no argument, was for a moment listened to, as all that was dear to him was here ; and to leave them all forever, he could-he would not. His father was wealthy and offered him land. But what cared he for riches or lands ? Freedom in the " far west " was all he desired ; and the hunting grounds of his youth were much more to be preferred, than the fenced and cultivated fields of his native state.
But after much importunity, he consented to return and make his mother a short visit. Accordingly, both started on their journey ; but the first night, at the house where they had put up, and when all were asleep around him, the recol- lection of by-gone days, and years spent in tranquil secu- rity upon the banks of the Sandusky, made the Crow already anxious to return. While these things were revolving in his mind, the idea occurred to him, that, when he had once reach- ed the place of his nativity, his relations would strive to compel him to remain. He immediately resolved to return ; and before day-break, he arose and retraced his steps to his family and his home. His father proceeded on, dispirited and discouraged ; and soon after died of a broken heart ! Such is the force of education ; and such the power of paternal af- fection.
The Crow's place of residence was in Pleasant township- this county-upon the farm at present owned by the heirs of the late Israel P. Haines. He emigrated with the Senecas to the west, and died of the cholera, in 1833, on the banks of the Neosho river. A truly honest man, he was highly res-
15*
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pected by all who knew him; although a perfect Indian in habits and manners. He spoke Indian and French fluently, and the English intelligibly, and was often employed as inter- preter by the Americans.
CHAPTER XIII.
Murder of Drake-Seneca township-Berwick-Hopewell township- Bascom - Loudon township - Rome - Risdon-Liberty township- Bettsville-Jackson township.
It has been stated that at the time of establishing the first post-office at Oakley, there was but one mail-route through the county, leading from Lower Sandusky to Columbus. Many years ago, the mail was carried along this route, by a young man, (a son of Judge Drake, of Marion,) who was killed, as was supposed at that time, by an Indian. He was found, torn by the wolves; and there were marks of a knife also discovered upon his body.
In 1830, Judge Drake came to this county to find out, if possible, who the murderer of his son was ; or to what tribe he belonged. He called upon Mr. Brish, then agent of the Senecas ; and, in company with the latter, proceeded to the resi- dence of Jacob Nicely or "the Crow." The interpreter em- ployed, was Martin Lane. Upon being interrogated, the Crow stated that the son of Judge Drake was killed by an In- dian whose name was " Big Kettles," and that, as soon as he committed the murder, he fled to Canada. The judge return- ed home, fully satisfied that his son was murdered by a Cana- dian Indian. But such was not the fact. Mr. Brish, some time subsequently, asked George Herrin what Indian was called " Big Kettles." The reply was, that it was Spicer, the white man who lived upon the banks of the Sandusky.
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It appears that the young man had passed over to the east side of the river ; and, when near Spicer's residence, was met by him and accompanied to the place where he was to cross back to the west side of the river. Spicer mounted the horse behind him; and as soon as they had reached the opposite bank, he drew his knife, and reaching around the young man, with one effort cut him nearly in twain !
He then dragged him behind an old log near a spring, which is just below the dam of John Keller, on the Sandusky river. As soon as this was done, he proceeded to Crow's house, who, observing that he was covered with blood, inquired if he had killed a deer. Spicer replied, that he had killed a white man, whereupon Crow ordered him to be gone, as, in all probability, he would be pursued ; and if traced to his (Crow's) residence, they might suspect him as being accessory to the murder. Spicer fled to Canada, but after a while returned. These par- ticulars, until related to Mr. Brish, were kept a profound se- cret.
Soon after the Senecas concentrated upon the Sandusky, they erected their first council house upon the river bank on the farm at present owned and occupied by General Treat, in what is now Sandusky county. This tribe had several burying- grounds, the principal of which was at the old council house, and contained, about 20 acres of land within the enclosure. The majority of the Seneca Indians lived in log cabins, while the chiefs, generally resided in good comfortable houses. They usually hunted over all this section of country-on the Mau- mee, and sometimes around the marshes near New Haven.
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