History of Van Wert and Mercer counties, Ohio, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 31

Author: Sutton, R., & Co., Wapakoneta, Ohio, pub
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Wapakoneta, Ohio : R. Sutton
Number of Pages: 878

USA > Ohio > Mercer County > History of Van Wert and Mercer counties, Ohio, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 31
USA > Ohio > Van Wert County > History of Van Wert and Mercer counties, Ohio, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 31

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We have made mention of Rev. David Zeisberger as an author, and name the following as a partial list of his works :-

1. "Essay of a Delaware Indian and English Spelling Book, for the use of the Schools of the Christian Indians on the Muskingum River." Published in Phila- delphia, 1776. A second edition appeared in 1506.

2. "A Collection of Hymns for the Use of the Christian Indians of the Moravian Missions in North America." Published in Philadelphia in 1-03. This was a volume of 358 pages. A second edition was issued, in an abridged form. in 1817, under the editor-hipof Rev. Abraham Luckenback, of Bethlehem, where the second edition was published.

3. "Sermons to Children." This was a translation from the German into the Delaware, and was issued in Philadelphia in 1803.

4. "Something of Bodily Care for Children." This, also, is a translation from the German of Bishop Spangenberg into the Delaware, and has been bound into one volume with the " Sermons to Children ;" the two making a book of 115 pages.

3. "The History of our Lord and Savions Jesus Christ." This is also a trans. lation from the German of Rev. Samuel Lieberkuhn into the Delaware Indian lan- guage, and makes a volume of 222 pages It was printed in New York in 1821. It is supplemented with an "Address of the late Rev. David Zeisberger to the Christian Indians," bearing date Goshen, May 23, 1806.

G. "A Collection of Delaware Conjugations," published at Leipsic in 1821.

Of the writings of Rev. David Zeisberger many remain in manuscript. Of those deposited in the library of the American Philosophical Society at Philadelphia, are the following :-

1. "Lexicon of the German and Onondaga Languages ;" a very extensive pro. duction of seven or eight volumes. There is an abridgment of it, also in manu- script.

2. "A Complete Grammar of the Onondaga Language."

3. "A Grammar of the Language of the Lenni-Lenapi, or Delaware Indians."

The following is a list of his manuscripts deposited in the library of Harvard University :-

1. "A Dictionary in German and Delaware."

3. "Delaware Glossary."

3. " Delaware Vocabulary."

4. " Phrases and Vocabularies in Delaware."

5. " Delaware Grammar."

6. "Harmony of the Gospels in Delaware."

7. " Hymns for the Christian Indians in the Delaware Language."

8. "Litany and Liturgies in Delaware."

9. "Hymu-Book in the Delaware Language."

10. " Sermons in Delaware."

11. "Seventeen Sermons to Children."

12. " Church Litany in Delaware."

13. "Short Biblical Narratives in Delaware."

14. " Vocabulary in Maqua and Delaware."

Some of the foregoing are duplicates. The above manuscripts were handsomely bound after reaching the library of Harvard University, and occupy a conspicuous place there, and will be carefully preserved for posterity.

Rev. David Zeisberger died at Goshen, in the Tuscarawas Valley, November 17, 1808, having attained the ripe age of eighty-seven years and seven months. IIe left no issue, and the name has no living repre- sentative as a missionary, or even as a Moravian Christian. Mrs. Zeis- berger remained at Goshen until August 11, 1809, when she removed to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, where she died September 11, 1824, aged eighty years, six months, and twenty-one days.

A marble slab in the Goshen cemetery bears the following epitaph :-

DAVID ZEISBERGER,

Who was born 11 April, 1721, in Moravia, and departed this life 17 Nov. 1808, aged 87 years, 7 m. and 6 days.

This faithful servant of the Lord labored among the American Indians as a Missionary during the last sixty years of his life.

REV. JOLLY HECKEWELDER.

The chapter of our annals which acquaints us with the incidents con- nected with the efforts of the Morayin missionaries to civilize and Christianize our Indians, has been read with pleasure by all those who are interested in the facts, events, and philosophy of our history. To many the narratives of those evangelizing labors are of surpassing inter- est, and possess all the fascination of romance. And they have intensi- fied charms for those whose Christian impulses lead them into hearty sympathy with the laborious, self-sacrificing, devoted men who had relig- iously dedicated themselves to the toilsome and most unpromising task of lifting our untutored aboriginal inhabitants out of the degradation and savagery of their heathen state and comparatively hopeless condition, and by long-continued, faithful labors, raising them up and placing them upon the more elevated platform of civilization, and to the purer, higher, holier plane of Christianity. And, perchance, others may be brought to participate with those classes of readers, in the enjoyment of the charms

HISTORY OF VAN WERT AND MERCER COUNTIES, OIIIO.

and fascinations of the story of the brave-hearted, noble-minded, and con- scientious Moravian missionaries of Ohio, when the details of their ardu- ous labors are presented for their contemplation. Theirs is a sacredly classic history, abounding in most precious memories, and has always been, to many minds, redolent of ever-to-be-cherished associations.

Lessons deducible from the life-story of those self-sacrificing mission- aries may not be altogether without interest, or unimportant and value- less to the men of the present generation.

Rev. John Heckewelder (or, as it was originally written, John Gottlieb Ernestus Heckewelder) was born at Bedford, in England, March 12, 1743, his father having tled thither from Moravia, a province of Austria, in order to avoid perseention, and where he might enjoy religious freedom. John was sent to the parochial or sectarian schools, first at Buttermere and afterwards at Fulneck, where the chief object was the inculcation of moral and religious principles and thorough indoctrination into the truths of Christianity as understood and taught by the Moravian church, which has in an eminent degree, always hell secular learning subordi- nate to religious knowledge. With that denomination Bible teachings and the study of the sacred classics have, in a special sense, ever been esteemed of paramount importance. To create in the pupil's mind an overpowering interest in matters pertaining to the life to come was the all-in-all in the Moravian system of education, the chief object and pur- pose of Moravian schools. To make Christians (in the highest sense) of every student-to establish a thoroughly religious congregation in each one of their literary institutions-to infuse into each individual pupil the missionary spirit, and dedicate him to mission labors in heathen lands, was the beginning, the middle, and the end of their purpose- their main object-the principal aim at their seats of learning.

Such being the ideas always kept prominently before the pupils in Moravian educational institutions, it is not surprising that he who is the subject of this sketch should have become, in early life, deeply im- bued with the genius of Christianity-that he should have entered into the spirit of Christ's gospel, and during his school years have yieldled readily to those favorable influences and instructions -and entered enthusiastically, zealously, during his young manhood, into the mission field, and remained therein a faithful laborer for half a century, even to old age. And to the end of his life he cherished grateful recollections of the impressions made upon his mind, and of the religious instruction imparted to him while at these schools by his affectionate, devoted Christian teachers.

In 1754, when eleven years of age, John Heckewelder, in company with his parents and about forty other Moravian colonists, sailed for America in the ship Irene, which arrived at the port of New York April 24, when the immigrants disembarked and started for Bethlehem, the Moravian village on the Lehigh River, in Pennsylvania, all arriving there April 20, 1754. Just before the Irene sailed, Count Zinzendorf, the then head of the Moravian church, went on board and gave his parting blessing to those who had embarked for the new world. In a paternal manner he implored the young lad, John Heckeweller, to make it his principal aim to prepare himself for preaching the gospel among the heathen ; and then placing his hands upon his head, the pious and devout Christian count invoked a special blessing upon him.

John attended school at Bethlehem for two years, making good prog- ress in his studies, and then went to Christian Spring, a small Moravian settlement nine miles north of Bethlehem, where he was employed some- what at "field labor and other manual occupations." He, however, also, meanwhile enjoyed opportunities, which were not neglected, for improving himself during his leisure hours, having the benefit of the instruction of two Moravian teachers, Messrs. Zeigler and Fries, both reputed to pos- sess good scholarship. His parents, while he was at this place, were called to serve a mission station on one of the Spanish West India Islands, where they soon died, and he. in 1758, returned to Bethlehem and engaged himself as an apprentice to learn the art of making cedar- wood ware -- to be a cooper, in short. Here four years more of his life were spent, learning a trade and pursuing his studies diligently, when he was chosen by the missionary, Charles Frederick Post, as an assistant in the mission work in the Tuscarawas Valley, in 1761, as has been already related.

After his return to Bethlehem he assisted in establishing the new 13

mission of Friendenshiitten, and for nine years made himself extensively useful there and at other mission stations, and as an instructor in schools. In the spring of 1771 he accompanied Rev. David Zeisberger to the mis. sion station on Beaver River, in western Pennsylvania (now in Lawrence County), called Friedensstadt, where he remained a year, and then ac- companied Zeisberger to the Tuscarawas Valley, as heretofore stated. The chief incidents of his career, so far as they were connected with our mission stations from 1772 to 1798, when he entered actively upon his duties as the "agent of the Society of the United Brethren for Propagat ing the Gospel among the Heathen," have been presented. Between those years he was almost constantly engaged in the performance of mission work at various points, and in rendering services as a civilian by hold- ing councils, forming treaties, acting as an assistant ambassador, and sometimes as interpreter.

The expedition of General Harmer, in 1790, and that of General St. Clair in 1791, having failed to subjugate the unfriendly Indian tribes in the West, and the western settlements still being liable to attacks from marauding parties, it became a matter of the first importance with the federal government to secure peace by negotiation, if possible. With that object in view the Rev. John Heckewelder, who was thought to be a discreet man, and enjoying a high degree of public confidence, was appointed by General Knox, then Secretary of War, as an associate ambassador with General Rufus Putnam, of Marietta, with authority to form treaties of peace with various Indian tribes in the West. Instruc- tions were issued to them on the twenty-second of May, 1792. By arrangement they met at Pittsburgh near the last of June, and reached Fort Washington on the second of July, on their way to Post Vincennes, on the Wabash, where they arrived on the twelfth of September. Here. on the twenty-seventh of said month, a treaty of peace was concluded and signed by Putnam and Heckewelder, and by thirty-one chief's of the tribes from the upper and lower Wabash, Eel River, Cahokia, Kaskaskia, St. Joseph's River, and from Lake Michigan. After a liberal distribution of presents the commissioners started, on the fifth of October, with six- teen chiefs for Philadelphia, where they arrived early in February, Heckewelder having been absent nearly nine months.

As the results of these labors seemed encouraging and promising suc- cess, a second embassy was resolved upon. The ambassadors chosen this time were General Benjamin Lincoln, Col. Timothy Pickering, and Governor Beverly Randolph. Mr. Heckewelder's acquaintance with the language and character of the Indians, and his high personal reputation among them, it was thought might be of essential service to the embassy in their negotiations with the Indians; he was therefore attached to it as an assistant ambassador. They left Philadelphia April 27, 1793, for the Miami of the Lakes (now Maumee), where they were to meet the Indian chiefs of the northwest in council, to agree upon terms of peace, if pos- sible. To this end their fruitless labors were protracted until about the middle of August, when the ambassadors returned to Philadelphia, Mr. Heckewelder reaching his home at Bethlehem on the 25th of September, after an absence of five months.

In 1797 Mr. Heckewelder twice visited the Tuscarawas Valley, ex- tending his journey to Marietta. In 1798 he travelled as far to the northwest as the river Thames, in " Upper Canada," in the interest of the Moravian mission station of Fairfield. About midsummer of this year we find him again in the Tuscarawas Valley rebuilding Gnaden- hütten, as already stated.

He was elected an Associate Judge of Tuscarawas County upon its organization in 1808, and served as such until 1810, when he resigned his position of " superintendent of the missions west of the Ohio River." and also the judgeship, and returned to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to close his days in quiet retirement, after having served the missionary canse with ability and fidelity for almost half a century.

He lived more than twelve years after his dircet and active connection with western missions was dissolved, in 1810, his death occurring Janu- ary 31, 1823, having attained the ripe age of almost eighty years. But those twelve years of comparative retirement, although they embraced the period of his old age and infirmities, were not by any means years of idleness and uselessness. His biographer, Rev. Edward Rondthaler, says that "he still continued to serve missions and the mission cause in an efficient way, by giving to the public needed information pertaining

HISTORY OF VAN WERT AND MERCER COUNTIES, OHIO.

to them, and imparting much useful information relative to the language, manners, and customs of the Indians." He wrote extensively during his retirement, some of the productions of his pen being intended for the public generally. Among his- published works are his " History, Man- ners, and Customs of the Indian Nations who once inhabited Pennsyl- vania and the Neighboring States," and his "Narrative of the Mission of the United Brethren among the Delaware and Mohican Indians." The former of these works was written in 1819, at the repeated request of the I'resident of the American Philosophical Society, and was pub- lished under the auspices of the historical and literary committee of said Society, a society of which he was an honored member. The last-named work was prepared by him in 1821, when he had reached the age of more than seventy-seven years. In this paper he expressed the opinion that the "Crawford expedition to the Sandusky, in 1752, was organized for the purpose of destroying the remuant of the Moravian Indians on said river." The author of "Crawford's Campaign against Sandusky" (C. W. Butterfield) clearly refutes that charge against Col. Crawford, by testimony that conclusively shows the object of the expedition to have been " the destruction of the Wyandot Indian town and settlement at Sandusky."

The life of Rev. John Heckewelder was one of great activity. industry, and usefulness. It was a life of vicissitudes, of perils, and of wild, romantic adventure. How it abounded in hardships, privations, and · self-sacrificing devotion to the interests of the barbarians of the western wilderness! How carnestly, persistently, faithfully, zealously, he labored to propagate that Gospel, which was the chief inspiration of the exalted heroism that characterized his eventful life! Unselfishly he exposed himself to danger; disinterestedly he toiled to bring wild and barbarous tribes into the enjoyment of the blessings of civilization and of Chris- tianity. It would indeed be difficult to over-estimate the importance or value of the labors of Rev. John Heckewelder in the various characters of philanthropist, philosopher, pioneer, teacher, ambassador, author, and Christian missionary.

Rev. John Heckewelder was a gentleman of courteous and easy man- ners, of frankness, affability, veracity; without affectation or dissimula- tion; meck, cheerful, unassuming ; humble, unpretending, unobtrusive; retiring, rather taciturn, albeit, when drawn out, communicative and a. good conversationalist. He was in extensive correspondence with many "men of letters," by whom he was held in great esteem. Throughout his long life he was the red man's constant and faithful friend, having gone forth a pilgrim, while yet in his young manhood, in the spirit of enthusiastic heroism, unappalled by danger, unwearied by fatigue and privation, and undistayed by prospective toils and self-denials, to put forth his best efforts to ameliorate their condition and bring them under the benign influence of a noble, elevating, purifying, Christian civiliza- tion.

RETROCESSION OF THE MORAVIAN LAND GRANTS.

For reasons already stated, the retrocession of the three several tracts of Moravian lands in the Tuscarawas Valley, and the removal westward of the remnant of Moravian Indians who still occupied them, were die- cided upon in 1823. To consummate that purpose, General Lewis Cass, at that time Governor of Michigan Territory, was appointed Com- missioner to represent the General Government, and Rev. Lewis David de Schweinitz was chosen to act as the commissioner on behalf of " The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel among the Heathen." They met at Gnadenhütten, and there agreed upon the terms of retrocession, August 4, 1823, by which said society was divested of its trust of those lands, provided the Christian Indians assented thereto. That assent was obtained at a meeting held with Governor Cass, November 8, 1823. According to the terms of the treaty, twenty-four thousand acres of land (and a small annuity) were granted to the Indians, or for their benefit, situated in some one of the territories of the United States, in consider- ation of their relinquishment of their title to the foregoing tracts in the Tuscarawas Valley, which, as heretofore described, contained twelve thousand aeres. The deed of retrocession was executed April 1, 1824, and that art brought to a close, finally, Moravian missions among the Indians in Ohio.

THE FRIENDS AT WAPAKONETA.

About 1794 the Society of Friends became interested in the welfare of the Indians and frontiersmen of the Northwest Territory. A fresh war had broken out, drenching the frontier with blood, until deeply moved by this horror the "Yearly Meeting of Friends" appointed a large com- mittee to use its influence against these desolating hostilities. This com- mittee prepared and presented to Congress a memorial recommending the adoption of such just and pacific measures as appeared calentated to arrest further bloodshed, and establish a lasting peace. In 1795. Gen. Wayne held the Greenville Council, which was attended by the Shaw- nees, Delawares, Wyandots, Ottawas, Chippewas, Pottawatomics, Ect River, Weas, Kickapoos, and Kaskaskias. At the opening Gen. Wayne read the address of the " Friends Yearly Meeting" at Philadelphia, and delivered some presents, which had been sent to the Indians. He then spoke of this letter in very commendatory terms, and also of the great solicitude of the Quakers, touching the welfare of the Indians. For an indefinite period antecedent to the war of 1812 the Friends had labored with the Shawnees at Wapakoneta, but during that war the mission was suspended. Resuming then, they by the consent of the government, and at their own expenses, erected a grist- and saw-mill on the Auglaize, at Wapakoneta, and made various other improvements for the benefit of the Indians.

Among other things of this class they erected a residence for the super- intendent and his family, Isaac Harvey, who were placed in charge of the mission, the object of which was to encourage the Indians in the .improvement and cultivation of their lands and otherwise contribute to the amelioration of their condition. Under the instruction thus imparted the Indians soon acquired some proficiency in agriculture, the products being corn, beans, and pumpkins. The corn was ground at the mission mill free of toll, and the Indians were thus provided means superior to the old method of pounding the grain into hominy. The Society of Friends bore all the expense incident to the erection and maintenance of these mills. The expense, too, was enormous for those days, as Wapakoneta was a remote point thirty miles from white settlements. from which supplies were to be obtained. This distance was rendered terrible by the unfavorable condition of the country for any transfer of goods, as the whole route was through a vast wilderness. The Shaw- nees were very ignorant about building, and so the Society furnished young men to assist them in the erection of cabins and fences. About this time the Society received a handsome present from a lady Friend in England, which was used in the purchase of farming utensils for the better encouragement of agricultural pursuits.

By this assistance they made rapid progress in civilization, and the acquisition of property. Domestic animals were now introduced to the great advantage and comfort of the Indians, as the horse came to relieve the women of the labor of plowing and carrying burdens. While the men thus learned to provide for their families, the women acquired a better knowledge of their proper sphere and duties until at length a kind-hearted but savage and abused people began to realize better days, and look forward with brighter and higher hope. They had by two trea- ties secured an annuity of $3000, to be paid forever at Wapakoneta, Ohio, for the benefit of the whole tribe. This was promptly paid for a number of years, but at length it was neglected, and the Indians suf- fered. They had many obstacles to surmount. many doubts to undergo, and many difficulties to encounter in changing the character of their whole lives. It was a single-step transition from savage to civilized life. and this by a proud and independent race was as great a task of recon- ciliation as ever devolved upon a rude people. Their habits, manners, customs, and language ; their very life itself, with its wild unrest, eager pursuits, and burning desires, all to be cast aside like the child's dis- carded toy. They had from time immemorial been the undisputed lords of the forest, for a continent had been theirs for ages.

The unbounded forest was their home, and destiny had yichled it to them and theirs forever. They knew no superior but the Great Spirit, and they were that Spirit's special care. For them the forest produced its game; the earth ity fruit, and the waters their fishes. Their music way the songs of their mother Nature from whom they sprang, by whom they subsisted, and to whose bosom they would return. For generation+

HISTORY OF VAN WERT AND MERCER COUNTIES, OHIO.

n world was theirs, and the beneficent Spirit would never disinherit his favorite children. Blind superstitious faith, there approaches your world a pale-faced child of the Great Spirit who will teach you equity and rob you of your all; who will teach you philanthropy and exterminate your race. Ile has now demanded that you change in all save color, and be- come like him of the pale face, trespassing feet, and grasping avaricious hands. With this status this brave and generous people, yielding to the inevitable, undertook to forget the past, embrace the present, and build a future on the views and manners of the whites. In 1810 they received a letter from their agent, John Johnston, on the subject of their improve- ment. He urged them earnestly to improve the opportunities offered, and embrace the course recommended by the Friends. This letter is still preserved by the Shawnees, and held in reverence on account of its author, who never deceived them in all his dealings. These Indians were acknowledged to be well acquainted with human nature, and in order to judge a man only asked to look him in the face, and their judgment was generally correct. It was not difficult to persuade them to engage in agricultural pursuits, but it required years to overcome their aversion to the education of their children by the whites. Finally they agreed to this, and the pupils evinced a susceptibility beyond all expectation. The schools were conducted on the manual labor system, and the friends of the Indians expressed great gratification in finding this restless people advancing so rapidly in those pursuits which promised to rescue them from their late deplorable condition. Thus they progressed until 1×30, when it was intimated the government wished to purchase their lands. As this period marks a new era in their record by the introduction of a new superintendent, Henry Harvey, and the unsettled condition of affairs occasioned by the land negotiations, we pause a moment to con- sider their manners and mode of life prior to the improvements we have reviewed. They then occupied villages along the Auglaize River, where they remained during the summer cultivating their crops of corn and beans-the labor being performed by the women and children. The men would lounge about during the warm weather, as furs were not fit for market. If hunger drove them from the shade of repose. they only sought a shady stream and enught a few fish or plunged deeper into the forest and shot a deer. They never made any provision for the future, and so by winter their whole crop of corn would be exhausted. At this season they made preparation for the annual hunt. When leaving they took their families, ponies, and as much furniture as possible with them. This latter outfit consisted chiefly of brass kettles, wooden ladles, large bowls, some spoons, a tomahawk and butcher-knife. Even in cold weather might be seen the silver-haired grandmother, the care-worn mother, and the half-clothed children-even the infant carried in a blanket-on the march to the hunting grounds. Arrived at their destination, they erected a tent of suffleient size to accommodate a whole family. This lodge was made by placing in the ground poles lashed together at the top, and covered with skins of animals. These were so adjusted that the upper ones overlapped the lower, and rendered the lodge water- and suow-proof. The fire was built in the middle of this tent, and the smoke escaped at an opening at the top provided for the purpose. In the tent, skins were spread on which they reposed, while the blanket served for covering. These blankets were an indispensable article; if anything was to be car- ried it was enfolded in these; if not thus used it was worn upon the person until it became so inseparably associated with the Indian as to become almost a part of his person. If hunting, they are worn; if sleeping, they are whrn, and if attending a party, they are still worn. True. on the latter occasions, they were ornamented with beads and other trinkets, but the ubiquitous blanket was still there. An Indian was poor, indeed, if he did not possess a pony, gun, tomahawk, dog, butcher-knife, and blanket. These were his outfit, and were well nigh indispensable. Set- tled upon the hunting grounds, the men went in search of game, and if any was killed it was suspended to a tree, beyond reach of wolves, while the hunter pushed on sometimes for days before returning. On his return he carried back as much game as he could, and feasted at home one night in order to rest and refresh after the toil of the hunt. He then took his pony to gather the game he had already secured. Thus many might have game throughout the timber, and yet their honor never per- mitted one Indian to take from a tree the game of another.

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History of Van Wert and Mercer counties, Ohio, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 31

Author: Sutton, R., & Co., Wapakoneta, Ohio, pub Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Wapakoneta, Ohio : R. Sutton Number of Pages: 878

Author: Sutton, R., & Co., Wapakoneta, Ohio, pub
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Wapakoneta, Ohio : R. Sutton
Number of Pages: 878