History of Van Wert County, Ohio and Representative Citizens, Part 3

Author: Thaddeus S. Gilliland
Publication date: 1906
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 870

USA > Ohio > Van Wert County > History of Van Wert County, Ohio and Representative Citizens > Part 3

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"17th. Lieutenant Lowery and Ensign (formerly Dr.) Boyd, with the escort of ninety men guarding the wagons, were attacked by a party of thirty or forty Indians, who rushed on with savage fury and yells, which panic struck the whole party (excepting the two officers and fifteen or twenty men, who fell a sacrifice to savage barbarity) and they all fled and have been coming into Fort St. Clair, by twos and threes, ever since. The Indians plundered the wagons and carried off with them sixty-four of the best wagon horses in the army, killing six horses at the wagons in the defeat. Colonel Adair pursued the Indians and found several horses dead, which he supposed had been tired and they killed them, a proof that their flight was very rapid.

"In this attack we lost two promising, worthy and brave officers, and about twenty men, mostly of Captain Shaylor's company, for his and Captain Prior's formed the escort and are both now rather in disgrace."

Late in October. General Wayne estab- lished his winter headquarters about six miles north of Fort Jefferson, and there erected Fort Greenville, the present site of the county seat of Darke County.

On Christmas Day a detachment reoc- cupied the ground where General St. Clair had been defeated three years before, and called it Fort Recovery.

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HISTORY OF VAN WERT COUNTY

A reward was offered for every human skull. and 600 were gathered and buried beneath one of the blockhouses.

During the early months of 1794, General Wayne kept himself well posted by the services of numerous spies, and was aware that he was surrounded by a powerful enemy in the sur- rounding country. The government had already sent five different commissions to offer generous terms to the Indians, but to no avail. The Indians, urged on by the promise of assis- tance by the British and French, and elated by their former victories, would not listen to the pleadings and promises of the commissioners. In June, 1794, a detachment, which had acted as escort of provisions from Fort Recovery, fell into an ambush of Indians about a mile from the fort and were driven back with great loss, the victors following the fugitives to the gates of the fort and attempting to enter the fort with them. The siege lasted two days, and General Wayne states that there were a number of white men, speaking the English language, in the rear, urging the Indians on to the assault; they had their faces blackened. And there were a number of ounce balls and buckshot lodged in the fort, these being suited to the British arms. It was evident that during the siege they were looking for the artillery abandoned by St. Clair and hidden by the Indians in the fallen timber, but this had been recovered by the soldiers, and was being used in defending the fort.

On July 26th reinforcements of 1,600 mounted troops, from Kentucky, joined Wayne, and he started on the 28th to follow the line of retreat of the Indians. He halted at Girty's long enough to build Fort Adams on the bank of the St. Mary's; from here he was :able to arrive unobserved almost in sight of Auglaize, the headquarters of the Indians, of which he took possession without opposition.

The Indians abandoned their villages in great haste. having been informed by Newman, the deserter, of the strength of Wayne's army.

The treachery of the deserter Newman enabled the Indians to escape punishment, but at the expense of all their property, with exten- sive, cultivated fields and gardens. Here Gen- eral Wayne took possession and erected a strong fort, with four blockhouses, at the junc- tion of the Auglaize and Maumee, and called it "Fort Defiance." This fort might well be called "Defiance" from its construction. Out- side of the fort and blockhouses there was a wall of earth, eight feet thick, and sloping up- wards and outwards, supported by a log wall. on the side of the ditch, which was 15 feet wide and eight feet deep. surrounding the whole fort. except on the side towards the Auglaize. What a difference between this precaution and that observed by Harmar and St. Clair!

MAUMEE R.

AUGLAIZE R.

PLAN OF FORT DEFIANCE.

Explanations .- At cach angle of the fort was a block-house. The one next the Maumee is marked 1. having port-holes B, on the three exterior sides, and door D. and chimney C. on the side facing to the in- terior. There was a line of pickets on each side of the fort, connecting the block-houses by their nearest angles. Outside of the pickets and around the block- houses was a glacis, a wall of earth eight feet thick. sloping upwards and outwards from the feet of the pickets, supported by a leg wall on the side of the lich and by fascines, a wall of fagots, on the side next

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GEN.GEORGE ROGERS CLARK

GEN. ANTHONY WAYNE

GEN. WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON

GEN. JOSIAH HARMAR

GEN. ARTHUR ST. CLAIR

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AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS.

the Auglaize. The ditch, fifteen feet wide and eight feet deep, surrounded the whole work except on the side toward the Auglaize; and diagonal pickets, eleven feet long and one foot apart were secured to the log wall and projected over the ditch. E and E were gate- ways. F was a bank of earth, four feet wide. left for a passage across the ditch. G was a falling gate or drawbridge, which was raised and lowered by pulleys, across the ditch, covering it or leaving it uncovered at pleasure. The officers' quarters were at H, and the storehouses at I. At K, two lines of pickets converged toward L, which was a ditch eight feet deep, by which water was procured from the river without exposing the carrier to the enemy. M was a small sand-bar at the point .- From Knapp's "Ilistory of the Maumce l'alley."

BATTLE OF THE FALLEN TIMBER.

On the 13th of August, General Wayne sent a messenger of peace in the person of Christopher Miller, who had lived among the Shawnees, offering terms of peace. After wait- ing three days for word from Miller, Wayne ordered an advance and met Miller, who said that if the army would wait at Fort Defiance ten days the Indians would decide whether it would be peace or war, but Wayne refused to return. The Indians had chosen as the battle- ground the place that gave the name to the bat- tle-field. "Fallen Timber," as a cyclone had recently passed and the fallen timber was a protection against the use of cavalry.

On the 20th the army moved forward to attack the Indians, who were encamped at Fallen Timber on the bank of the Maumee, at a place called Presque Isle, about two miles south of the present Maumee City, and four miles south of the British fort. Miami. This fort had been occupied by a garrison sent from Detroit in the spring of the same year, although the country had been ceded to the United States Il years before. General Wayne had about 3.000 troops and the Indians numbered about the same. As he approached the Indian en- campment. he sent forward a battalion of

mounted riflemen, with orders if attacked to retreat in apparent disorder so as to draw the Indians away from their chosen position. This was done and the Indians fell into the trap. When fired on, the troops fell back in apparent disorder and were pursued by the Indians, and when they reached the ground chosen by Wayne, the battle opened. After hard fighting, the victory was complete, about 100 Indians being killed.

After being fully satisfied that the Indians were dispersed, General Wayne ordered a stockade built below the mouth of the junction of Swan Creek and the Maumee, and placed in charge of Capt. J. Rhea, and a sufficient force to hold the same.

Thereupon the army returned to Fort De- fiance, destroying the villages and crops on the way. On the 14th of September, after leaving a sufficient force to garrison Fort Defiance, the army took up its march to the Miami villages, where a fort was constructed and placed in command of Lieutenant Colonel Hamtramck, who christened it "Fort Wayne." On the 28th of October, General Wayne, having fully accomplished his mission, returned to Fort Greenville.

Gen. Anthony Wayne, was called "Mad Anthony," but was there ever more method in madness? There was never a precaution left untaken, and caution was as much a character- istic as that of dash when all was ready.

THE SCOUT, CAPT. WILLIAM WELLS.

It is said that one of the most valuable aids to General Wayne was Capt. William Wells. captain of the spies connected with Wayne's army. He was captured by the Indians when 12 years old and adopted by the Miami tribe. He married the sister of the great war chief. Little Turtle. After the war he was joined 1.7

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HISTORY OF VAN WERT COUNTY

his wife and family and settled, near the junc- tion of the St. Marys and the St. Joseph, on a small stream that bears the name of Spy Run.

WAR OF 1812.

By the surrender of General Hull, at De- troit, August 16, 1812, the whole Maumee Valley, except Fort Wayne and Fort Harrison. was again in the possession of the British and the Indians. Early in September Fort Harri- son was attacked, and was defended by Zachary Taylor, who was afterwards elected President, in 1848.

On the 17th of September, 1812, Gen. Wil- liam Henry Harrison was appointed to the command of all the forces in the Northwest.

He repaired to St. Marys where about 3,000 men were collected for the purpose of an expedition against Detroit. While at St. Marys he was informed that a large force of British and Indians with artillery was passing up the left bank of the Maumee toward Fort Wayne. General Harrison immediately de- termined by a rapid march, to Fort Defiance at the junction of the Auglaize and the Maumee, to try to intercept the return of this detachment, knowing it would be met in front by the return of General Winchester. He had with him the Ohio cavalry under Colonel Finley, the Ken- tucky cavalry under Col. R. M. Johnson, and the infantry regiments of Poague, Barbee and Jennings. Jennings was then at Fort Jennings, where he had been sent to build a fort between St. Marys and Defiance. On the 30th of September. General Harrison set out on the march at the head of the cavalry, having or- dered the infantry to remain in camp, thinking it would be a hindrance. On the third day the General was met by an officer from General Winchester, who infornred him of the arrival

of Winchester at Fort Defiance, and that the British had retired down the Maumee.

SIEGE AND RELIEF OF FORT MEIGS.

In the spring of 1813. General Harrison stationed his forces at Fort Meigs, at the foot of the rapids, and there awaited the result of the naval operations on Lake Erie. As soon as the ice broke up in the lake. the British Gen- eral Proctor with all his disposable force of regulars and Canadian militia from Malden, and a large body of Indians, under Tecumseh, in all about 2,000 men, laid siege to Fort Meigs. To encourage them. the British promised the Indians an easy victory, and assured them that General Harrison should be delivered up to Tecumseh.

On the 26th of April. the British estab- lished their principal batteries opposite Fort Meigs. On the 27th the Indians crossed the river and estal:lished themselves in the rear of the Americans. The garrison. not having their wells completed, had no water. except what was obtained from the river under constant fire from the enemy. On the ist. 2nd and 3rd of May, the enemy kept up an incessant shower of balls and shells on the fort and erected a gun and mortar battery. in the night. on the left bank of the river within 250 yards of the American lines. The Indians climbed the trees in the vicinity of the fort and poured a galling fire upon the garrison. In this situation. Gen- eral Harrison received a summons from Proc- tor to surrender the garrison. greatly magni- fying his means of annoyance. This was answered by a prompt refusal. assuring the British general that if he obtained possession of the fort. it would not be by capitulation. and that the fort would not be surrendered upon any terms; that if it should fall into his hands,

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AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS.

it would be in a manner calculated to do him more honor and give him higher claims upon the gratitude of his government than any capit- ulation could possibly do.

General Harrison had reported to the Governors of Kentucky and Ohio the situation and the necessity for reinforcements for the re- lief of Fort Meigs. His requisition had been anticipated and General Clay was at this moment descending the Maumee with 1,200 Kentuckians, conveyed on flatboats. At 12 o'clock in the night of the 4th, Capt. William Oliver arrived from General Clay with the wel- come intelligence of the latter's approach, stat- ing that he was just above the rapids and could reach the fort in two hours, and requesting General Harrison's orders. Harrison at once determined upon a general sally, and directed Clay to land 800 men on the left bank, take possession of the British batteries, spike their cannon, and then to immediately return to their boats and cross over to the American fort. The remainder of Clay's forces were ordered to land on the right bank and fight their way to the fort while sorties were to be made from the garrison, in aid of these operations. Cap- thin Hamilton was ordered to proceed up the river in a pirogue with a force to land on the right bank, who should be a guide to pilot Clay's men to the fort, and then to cross over and station his pirogue at the place designated for the other division to land. General Clay. having received these instructions, descendedl the river in order of battle.

Colonel Dudley was ordered to take the men in the 12 front boats and execute General Harrison's orders on the left bank. He effected his landing at the place designated without diffi- culty. General Clay kept close along the right bank. until he came opposite the place of Dud- ley's landing. but not finding the subaltern

there he attempted to cross over and jom Colonel Dudley ; but this was prevented by the violence of the current; he again attempted to land on the right bank, and accomplished this with only 50 men under a heavy fire from the enemy and made his way to the fort.

Colonel Dudley, operating on the left bank with his detachment of 800 Kentucky militia. completely succeeded in driving the British from their batteries and spiking their cannon. But, blinded by their success. his troops refused to return to the boats and cross over to the fort, when ordered to do so, and. instead. fol- lowed the Indians about two miles and were led into a trap surrounded by double their number, where they were compelled to surren- der. Fortunately Tecumseh commanded and forbade the massacre, burying his tomahawk in the head of one of his chiefs who refused to desist. Thus the lives of 500 captives were saved. Of the 800 men, only 150 escaped. the others being either killed or captured.

The battle of Lake Erie. on the 10th of September, 1813, virtually closed the war. Proctor attempted to retreat. with Harrison following him closely on the 2nd of October. and on the 5th overtaking him. In a short space of time the British regulars surrendered. which was largely brought about by Col. Richard M. Johnson, and his brother James. with whom the former had divided his force. They charged, the regulars broke through the British lines, and wheeling. poured a murder- ous fire into their rear. Here Tecumseh was killed by Colonel Johnson.

The troops engaged were about equal on beth side, and numbered about 5.000 in all. The whole number killed was less than 40. The time occupied was less than 30 minutes.

This virtually closed the Indian wars in Northwestern Ohio.

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HISTORY OF VAN WERT COUNTY

DISPOSSESSION OF THE INDIANS.

A treaty was concluded with the Delaware Indians, October 3. 1818, by which they ceded all their lands in Indiana to the United States. on condition that they be furnished a home on the west bank of the Mississippi and guaran- teed peaceable possession of the same. By a treaty made at St. Marys in 1818. the Miami nation ceded their lands to the United States.

The Wyandots, in a treaty at Upper Sandusky. March 17. 1842. ceded their lands to the United States and left for Kansas in July. 1843. This was the last tribe in the State of Ohio. From a once powerful nation, they only numbered 700 souls at the time of their re- moval.

Thus the last vestige of the red man was removed from our border.

Borysburg

$ FORT

NEIGS

Encamper

Nounce City

Roche

Battle GY

PLAN ILLUSTRATING THE BATTLES OF THE MAUMEE.

Explanations .- The map above shows about eight miles of the country along each side of the Maumee. including the towns of Perrysburg. Maumee City and Waterville.

Fort Meigs, memorable from having sustained two seiges in the year 1813. is shown on the east side of the Maumee, with the British batteries on both sides of the river, and above the British fort, the posi- tion of Proctor's encampment.

From Knapp's "History of the Maumee Valley."

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de Bœuf

Wayne's

CHAPTER II

THE TOLEDO WAR

The Famous Dispute Over the Northern Boundary of Ohio-Armed Troops Dispatched to the Scene of Trouble by Both Ohio and Michigan-Aggression on the Part of Michi- gan-What Changed the Sentiment of the People of Toledo.

Scarcely had the Indian war-whoop ceased to resound in our foresets, than another con- troversy arose that for a time promised to be as bloody. A dispute arose, as to the boundary line between the State of Ohio and the Terri- tory of Michigan and was known as the "Toledo War."

The general supposition was, that the southern point on Lake Michigan was very near the 42nd degree of North Latitude, while in fact it is much further south. Thus it stood, when a man that had trapped and hunted along Lake Michigan appeared at Chillicothe, then capital of the state. and said that the lake ex- tended very much farther south than the maps represented it to be, and that a line run duc east from the southern shore of the Lake Mich- igan would strike above the mouth of the Mau- mee. instead of below. The convention, in session in 1802, was induced by the represen- tation of the man to change the line. prescribed in the act of Congress, so far as to provide that if it should be found to strike Lake Erie below the Maumee River. then the boundary of the State should be a line drawn from the point where the prescribed line intersected the west- ern boundary of the State direct to the most

northern cape of the Maumee Bay. That pro- vision saved to the State of Ohio the valuable ports and harbors on the Maumee river and bay. Yet for many years after, it was a source of bitter strife between the officers of Michigan and those of Ohio. In June, 1802, Congress passed a resolution directing the Commissioner of the General Land Office to cause a line to Le surveyed, but the resolution was not carried out until 1817, when William Harris, under the instruction of the Surveyor General of the United States, laid off the northern boundary on the line defined in the Ohio constitution of 1802. Through the influence of General Cass. then Territorial Governor of Michigan, another survey was made, under the authority of the United States government, by John A. Fulton. known as the Fulton line, which touched closer to conformity with the claims of Michigan. On the 23rd of February. 1835, the Legisla- ture of Ohio passed an act extending the north- ern boundaries of Wood, Henry and Williams to the Harris line. Previous to this, the author- ities of Michigan exercised jurisdiction over the entire territory lying between the Harris line on the north and the Fulton line on the south. as a part of Michigan. Previous to

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HISTORY OF VAN WERT COUNTY

1835 the authorities of Wood County at- tempted to extend the laws of Ohio over that part of the territory, claimed to be in that county. by levying taxes. but the people did not recognize the act and refused to pay the taxes. An act of the Legislature. on the 23rd of Febru- ary. 1835. directed the Governor to appoint three commissioners to run and remark the Harris line.

The Governor appointed U'ri Seely. Jona- than Taylor and John Patterson, commission- ers to run and remark the line. Stevens T. Mason, Secretary and acting Governor of Michigan Territory, anticipating the action of the Legislature of Ohio, sent a special message to the Legislative Council, apprising it of the special message of Governor Lucas, and ad- vised the passage of an act to counteract the proceedings of Ohio.

Governor Mason wrote to Gen. Joseph W. Brown, who was in command of the Third Division of the Michigan Militia, as follows:

EXECUTIVE OFFICE, DETROIT, Mch. 9th, 1835.

SIR: You will herewith receive the copy of a let- ter just received from Columbus. You now perceive that a collision between Ohio and Michigan is in- evitable, and will therefore be prepared to meet the crisis. The Governor of Ohio has issued a procla- mation, but I have neither received it nor have I been able to learn its tendency.

You will use every exertion to obtain the carliest information of the military movements of our adver- sary, as I shall assume the responsibility of sending you such arms. etc .. as may be necessary for your suc- cessful operation. without waiting for an order from the Secretary of War. so soon as Ohio is properly in the field. Till then I am compelled to await the direc- tion of the War Department.

Very respectfully your obedient servant. STEVENS T. MASON.

On the 31st of March, Governor Lucas. ac- companied by his staff and the boundary com- mission, arrived in Perrysburg, on their way to run and remark the Harris line, in compli-

ance with the act of the 23rd of February previous.

Gen. John Bell, in command of the 17th Division of Ohio Militia, embracing the dis- puted territory, arrived about the same time with his staff and mustered into service a vol- unteer force of about 600 men, fully armed and equipped. The force went into camp at old Fort Miami, and awaited the orders of the Gov- ernor. The force consisted of five companies of the First Regiment, Second Brigade of the 17th Division of Ohio Militia. under the cont- mand of Col. Mathias Van Fleet. The cap- tains of these companies were J. 1. Scott. Stephen S. Gilbert, John Pettinger. Felton and Granville Jones, of the "Lucas Guards." an independent company of Toledo. These companies numbered about 300 men. There were also a part of a regiment from Sandusky County, and part of a regiment from Seneca County, these numbering about 300 men.

Governor Mason, with Gen. Joseph W. Brown, arrived at Toledo, with a force under his immediate command. variously estimated at from 800 to 1,200 men, ready to resist any advance of the Ohio authorities upon the dis- puted territory, to run the boundary line. or to do other acts inconsistent with Michi- gan's right of jurisdiction over it. Before there were any acts of violence, two commis- sioners from the President of the United States, in the persons of Richard Rush. of Philadelphia, and Colonel Howard. of Balti- more, were sent to use their personal influence to prevent any further demonstrations of a war- like character. Hon. Elisha Whittlesey. of Ohio, accompanied the commissioners.

The commissioners and Mr. Whittlesey had several conferences with the Governor. and on the 7th of April submitted the following proposition.

"Ist. That the Harris line should be run

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FORT WASHINGTON (CINCINNATI)

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(From a sketch by Maj, Jonathan Heart. U. S. A., drawn in 1791)

AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS.

and remarked. pursuant to the act of the last session of the Legislature of Ohio, without in- terruption.

"2nd. The civil election under the laws of Ohio having taken place throughout the dis- puted territory, that the people residing upon it should be left to their own government, obey- ing the one jurisdiction or the other, as they may prefer. without molestation from the authorities of Ohio, or Michigan, until the close of the next session of Congress."

To this Governor Lucas assented and Gov- ernor Mason refused.

Governor Lucas disbanded his troops and Governor Mason disbanded part of his also, but still made preparations for any emergency that might occur. Governor Lucas now ordered the commissioners to proceed to survey and remark the Harris line, with the result as shown in their appended report.

PERRYSBURG, May 1, 1835. To ROBERT LUCAS. ESO. Governor of the State of Ohio. SIR: In the discharge of the duties, which de- volve upon us as the commissioners appointed by your excellency for remarking the northern boundary of this State, which is known and distinguished as Harris' Line, we met at Perrysburg on Wednesday, the Ist of April last, and after completing the necessary ar- rangements proceeded to the northwest corner of the State and there succeeded in finding the corner as described in the field notes of the Surveyor Harris, a copy of which we had procured from the Surveyor General's office. Thence your commissioners pro- ceeded eastwardly along said line, which they found with little difficulty and remarked the same, as di- reeted by law. in a plain and visible manner to the dis- tance of thirty-eight miles and a half, being more than half the length of the whole line.

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History of Van Wert County, Ohio and Representative Citizens, Part 3

Author: Thaddeus S. Gilliland Publication date: 1906 Publisher: Number of Pages: 870

Author: Thaddeus S. Gilliland
Publication date: 1906
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 870