USA > Ohio > Erie County > History of the Fire lands, comprising Huron and Erie Counties, Ohio, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of the prominent men and pioneers > Part 2
USA > Ohio > Huron County > History of the Fire lands, comprising Huron and Erie Counties, Ohio, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of the prominent men and pioneers > Part 2
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In May, 1795, the legislature, in session at Hart- ford, appointed a committee of eight persons to negotiate the sale of the Reserve excepting the "suf- ferer's lands" and the salt spring tract. They effected a sale in separate contracts with forty-eight different individuals, realizing for the State the sum of one million two hundred thousand dollars. The money thus realized was set apart as a common school fund. The following were the original purchasers of the Reserve, not including the Fire-lands:
Joseph Howland
Oliver Phelps.
Daniel L. Coit
$ 30,461
Gideon Granger
$ 80,000
Elias Morgan.
51,402
Solomon Griswold ..
10,000
Daniel L. Coit
William Hart.
30,462
Caleb Atwater.
22,846
Henry Champion, 2d. 85,675
Daniel Holbrook
8,750
Ashur Miller 34,000
Joseph Williams
15,231
Robert C. Johnson. .
60,000
William Law
10,500
Ephraim Post
42,000
William Judd
1
57,400
Oliver Phelps ..
168,185
James Johnson.
30,000
Asahel Hathaway
12,000
Samuel Mather, Jr
18,461
John Caldwell
15,000
Elijah Boardman
60,000
Timothy Burr
15,231
Ebenezer King, Jr
William Lyman.
John Stoddard
24,730
Titus Street
22.846
Moses Cleaveland Samuel P. Lord.
32,600
Aaron Olmstead.
30,000
Roger Newbury
Pierpont Edwards.
60,000
Enoch Perkins
38,000
Jonathan Bruce
Grand total
$1,200,000
These gentlemen formed themselves into a body corporate, under the name of " The Connectient Land Company," and proceeded to survey and divide their lands. The survey of the lands east of the Cuyahoga was made in 1796, and partition effected, by draft, January 29, 1798. The lands of the Reserve west of the Cuyahoga were divided in 1807.
CHAPTER II. THE SUFFERING TOWNS OF CONNECTICUT.
THOUGH her sons were not wanting in patriotism, and freely offered up their lives in the cause of inde- pendence, the soil of Connecticut was not the theater of any of the great battles or campaigns of the revo- Intionary period, and was, for the most part, remote
from the scene of hostilities. None of the historic battles-Lexington, Bunker Hill, Monmouth, Tren- ton, Yorktown-were fought within her borders. Yet the war did not terminate without leaving here, as elsewhere, the evidence that it is its mission to cause suffering and death. On many different occasions the British troops, who occupied New York City for the greater part of the war, sent out expeditions to de- stroy stores and shipping in the towns of Connecticut. The object of these expeditions, or forays, was best attained by landing in the night, destroying and burn- ing what they could, and then retiring and putting to sea before any considerable force could be gathered to prevent them from carrying out their plans, but in nearly every instance there was skirmishing, resulting in loss of life, the most notable being the massacre at Groton. Nine towns were thus visited, burned, plun- dered, laid waste, or despoiled. The account of the misfortunes that befell these towns and their citizens furnishes some of the most deeply interesting chap- ters of the history of the Revolution; doubly interest- ing to the people of the Fire-lands, as it is from these occurrences that the land of their occupancy derives its name and being, and it is therefore appropriate that space be given to their recital in the present work.
NEW LONDON.
The following account of the burning of New Lon- don is mainly, and often literally, taken from Caulkin's history of that town and county. More space is given to the incidents attending the destruction of New London, and the massacre at Groton, not only on account of their greater relative importance, but be- cause many scenes related as transpiring here were common at other places, and are therefore mentioned but once.
The writer referred to says: "It may be observed in general terms, that during the whole war New London was a den of serpents to the British-constantly send- ing out its sloops and schooners, well manned by skill- ful and daring seamen, to harass the boats and ten- ders along the shore, or to cut off merchant vessels on the high seas. Rich prizes, in spite of their vigilance, would run into this open port, and if pursuit was ap- prehended, they might be hurried up to Norwich, entirely out of reach. The year 1727 forms, indeed, an exception to the universality of this assertion; so great was the vigilance of the British squadron on this coast, that between the summer of 1776 and that of 1128, not a single prize was brought into the harbor of New London.
" Althrough New London had been repeatedly threatened, no direct attack was made upon the town till near the close of the war in 1281. Gen. Arnold, on his return from a predatory descent upon the coast of Virginia, was ordered to conduct a similar expedi. tion against his native State. A large quantity of West India goods and European merchandise, brought in by various privateers, was at this time collected in
Uriel Holmes, Jr.
Ephraim Starr.
17,415
Luther Loomis ..
Sylvanus Griswold
1,683
41,318
Jahez Stocking
Joshua Stow.
11,423
Davis King
James Bull
14,092
John Wyles.
19,039
Elisha Hyde.
Uriah Tracey.
16,250
Nehemiah Hubbard, Jr. Solomon Cowles.
10,000
Ephraim Kirby
Peleg Sanford.
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HISTORY OF HURON AND ERIE COUNTIES, OHIO.
New London: the quantity of shipping in port was very considerable, and among the prizes recently taken was the Hannah, Capt. Watson, a rich merchant ship from London, bound to New York, which had been captured a little south of Long Island, by Capt Dnd- ley Saltonstall, of the Minerra privateer. The loss of this ship, whose cargo was said to be the most val- nable brought into America during the war, had exas- perated the British, and more than any other single circumstance, is thought to have led to the expedition. At no other period of the war could they have done so much mischief; at no other had the inhabitants so much to lose.
"The expedition was fitted out at New-York, and consisted of thirty-two sail, including twenty-four transports, and the troops numbered eighteen hundred. Late in the evening of the 5th of September, 1181, information was received in New London, of the pres- ence of a British fleet on the shore of Long Island. So many false demonstrations of attack had been made during the war that this intelligence caused but little alarm. No public notice was given of it, and no nnusual precaution taken against surprise. At nightfall the fleet began to move, and arriving on the coast at one o'clock would undoubtedly have accom- plished its design, which was to descend suddenly upon the town, under cover of darkness, with such expedition as to destroy the fortifications, shipping, stores, etc., and depart before any considerable force could be collected to oppose them. As they were about making preparations to land the wind shifted, the fleet was obliged to stand off until morning, and it was ten o'clock before the troops debarked. They were in two divisions, about eight hundred landing on the Groton side, and nine hundred or a thousand on the New London side. A considerable portion of the troops were loyalists.
" In the meantime confused and hasty preparations had been made to receive them. At early dawn the fleet had been discovered lying off, becalmed, but the transports were making preparations to beat in to the mouth of the river. Signal guns were fired to eall assistance from the neighboring country. * *
* *
* In the town consternation and fright were suddenly let loose. No sooner were the terrible guns heard, than the startled citizens made haste to send away their families, and their portable and most valuable goods. Throngs of women and children were dismissed into the fields and woods, some without food, and others with a piece of bread or a bisenit in their hands. Such was the confusion of the scene, that families, in many cases, were seattered upon dif- ferent roads; children eight or ten years of age were sent off into the country, their parents lingering to bury or conceal some of their effects. Groups of fugitives gathered on the high hills afar off, watching with intense interest the movements of the enemy, whose course might be traced by their gleaming arms and scarlet coats, until the sun hid them from their view. Colonel William Ledyard was the military com-
mandant. The garrisons were small, barely sufficient to keep the posts in order, and in cases of emergency they depended on volunteers from the neighborhood or details of militia. These were coming in now and the commander confidently anticipated the arrival of sufficient aid to warrant a defense.
"In the meantime great efforts were made to secure the shipping in the harbor by getting it up the river, but at first neither wind nor tide favored the attempt.
"Toward noon, however, before the enemy had got possession of the town, a favorable breeze came in from the water, and a considerable number of vessels escaped up the river. * * * Such con- fusion reigned in the town, every householder being * * engaged in the care of his family and effects, that it was difficult to form any concerted plan of action. But when the women and children had departed, the . men began to gather in groups, and consult respecting the course to be pursued. They could muster but few effective men; flight and concealment seemed the only prudent course for them to adopt."
But about one hundred, hastily armed, and indig- nant at the thought of abandoning their homesteads without a blow, collected on Tower Hill, with a view of obstructing the course of the enemy. They were without a commander, and as the advancing files of regular soldiers, in firm array, with glistening steel, appeared in sight, they saw the rashness of their de- sign, and scattering into the fields, concealed them- selves behind rocks and fences, and annoyed the troops whenever they could.
No serious resistance was, however, made to the entrance of the troops, and once in the town the de- struction of property was begun. "Vengeance and destruction had no check; shops, stores, dwellings, piles of Imber, wharves, boats, rigging and vessels were soon enveloped in smoke and flame. Hogsheads were knocked in, sugar and coffee lay in heaps, and rum and Irish butter, melt in the fire, trickled along streets and filled the gutters. * * On the pa- rade all was destroyed. The market, wharf, the old magazine and battery, the court house, jail and jail house, the Episcopal church, and several contiguous shops and dwelling houses, were soon a heap of ashes. The western part of this street was left unhurt. The ancient, dilapidated old building, still extant near the corner of Green street, was then, as it sinee has been, a well known tavern stand. The landlady, like many other American women in those disastrous times, had her nearest friends ar- rayed on opposite sides. Her husband, as sergeant in the militia, was at his post in the field annoying the invaders, and her brother was one of those in- vaders, an officer under Arnold's command. Before mounting her horse to escape, she had her table spread and furnished bountifully with provisions. Though fleeing with her patriot husband, she could not refrain from leaving a dinner for her tory brother. That officer eagerly sought the threshold of his relative, and though he found her not, refreshed himself and
13
HISTORY OF HURON AND ERIE COUNTIES, OHIO.
his brother officers with the collation." The enemy, however, did not, in general, spare the dwellings of their reputed friends. This, instead of being a favor, would have marked them out for patriot vengeance. Arnold himself took some refreshment that day at the house of an old acquaintance in Bank street, but even before they rose from the table, the building was in flames over them. It has been often stated that some whose property was destroyed, re- ceived in the end double compensation; that is, from the British, on account of their loyalty, and from Congress, in the grant of Fire-lands, by which repar- ation was made to the sufferers. Arnold was born within fourteen miles of New London, and had lived so long in the vicinity that he had many acquaint- ances in town; some of these, it was well known, had held secret intercourse with him, and officiated as counsellors and guides in this expedition.
It is doubtless a fact that the wanton burning of dwellings had not been at first intended. Arnold says in his report: "The explosion of the powder and the change of wind soon after the stores were fired, communicated the flames to part of the town, which was, notwithstanding every effort to prevent it, un -. fortunately destroyed." Sir Henry Clinton, in his official letter to England, expresses his concern that the town was burned, but says it was unavoidable, and occasioned by the explosion of gunpowder.
"It ought to be stated as a general fact that Ar- nold's orders appear to have been given with some reference to humanity and the laws of civilized war- fare. Private houses were to be spared, unless in some few instances where the owners were particularly obnoxions. It was afterwards well understood that most of the spoil and havoc in private houses was the work of a few worthless vagrants of the town, who prowled in the wake of the invaders, hoping in the general confusion not to be detected." The loss of life was not great, being a half dozen killed and a dozen wounded on each side. A few of the inhab- itants were carried off as prisoners.
The next morning at eight o'clock the fleet made sail. " By this timet he whole surrounding country was in motion. All the militia, all who had friends on the seaboard, all who hated the British, all who were impelled by curiosity, came rushing to the scene of desolation, mingled with the fugitives returning after a night of terror and anxiety, to their forlorn homes. On the hights, in view of the town, they paused and gave vent to lamentations and cries of an- guish over the smoking ruins."
That the enemy suffered so little annoyance on the New London side, and were allowed to retire nnmo- lested to their ships, has been attributed to the want of an efficient leader to concentrate and direct their force. But even under the ablest commander, . no position of attack or defense could have been sus- tained. What could be effected by a motley assem- blage of two hundred citizens against a compact army of one thousand disciplined soldiers? It was well
that no daring leader came forward to germinate and encourage rash attempts, whose only result must have been a duplicate of the slaughter on the other side of the river. A single spark more, to kindle indignation to a flame, and the inhabitants had come rushing down on the enemy to pour out their blood like water.
The loss of New London, from this predatory visit can only be given in its main items: sixty-five dwell- ing houses were burnt, occupied by ninety-seven tam- ilies; thirty-one mercantile stores and warehouses; eighteen mechanics shops, twenty barns, and nine other buildings for public use, including the Episco- pal church, court house, jail, market, custom house, etc. Nearly all the wharfing was destroyed, except sixteen sloops which escaped up the river.
GROTON.
While at New London the loss of life was inconsid- erable, it was different on the other side of the river, at Groton; and the occurrences of the 6th of Septem- ber are among the most sad and tragic of the revolu- tionary period. A small body of brave men, hastily gathered together in the morning, occupied Groton fort. They numbered only one hundred and fifty men all told, and were commanded by Colonel Ledyard. They were assaulted by an overwhelming force of eight hundred British, under command of Lientenant Colonel Eyre, and though they made a heroic de- fense it was all in vain, the fort was taken, nor did the work of butchery stop even after the surrender. The few remaining brave men were mostly massa- cred. Arnold says eighty-five were killed and sixty wounded, most of them mortally; about thirty of the least injured were taken away as prisoners. The others were paroled, taken out of the fort, the maga- zine of which was then set on fire, but it was extin- guished, before the explosion, by an American who approached the fort soon after the British had left.
"As soon as it was known that the British had re- embarked, all Groton was moved, enquiring for her sons. Women and children assembled before the morning dawn, with torches in their hands, examin- ing the dead and wounded in search of their friends. They passed the light from face to face, but so bloody and mangled were they-their features so distorted with the energy of resistance, or the convulsion of pain, that in many cases the wife could not identify her husband. or the mother her son. Forty wives had been made widows that day, all residing near the scene of action. A woman,, searching for her hus- band among the slain, cleansed the gore from more than thirty faces before she found the remains she sought."
The wounded men left, in a house at the foot of the hill, were given attention. Two had already died, but most of the others finally recovered. Fourteen among the dead, and three among the wounded, bore the title of captain, some having served in the army, others in the militia, while others commanded vessels. Of the killed, sixty belonged to Groton and twelve to
14
HISTORY OF HURON AND ERIE COUNTIES, OHIO.
New London. Eleven bore the name of Avery and six that of Perkins.
The British loss is stated to have been fifty-four killed and one hundred and forty-three wounded. A granite monument one hundred and twenty-seven feet in height, bearing the names of the heroic dead, com- memorates the scene of the bloody encounter.
DANBURY.
In the latter part of the year 1726, this town was selected as a place for the deposit of military stores for the Continental army. A large quantity having been collected, Governor Tryon, with a detachment of two thousand British troops, set out to destroy them, in which attempt they were successful, as the inhabitants were not prepared to defend the town against such odds. They entered the town in the afternoon of April 26, 1722, and left the next morn- ing. The amount of stores destroyed was about three thousand barrels of pork, one thousand barrels of flour, several hundred barrels of beef, one thousand six hundred tents, two thousand bushels of grain; also, rum, wine, rice, etc., a considerable amount. Nineteen dwelling houses, a meeting house, and twenty-two stores and barns, were destroyed by fire.
NEW HAVEN.
The attack on New Haven was preceded by a proc- lamation, or address, to the inhabitants of Connecti- cut, dated July 4, 1779, and signed by Commodore George Collier, commander-in-chief of his majesty's ships and vessels on the coast, and also by Major General William Tryon, commanding his majesty's land forces on a separate expedition. Three sentences of the proclamation will indicate its character: "The ungenerous and wanton insurrection against the sov- ereignty of Great Britain, into which this colony has been deluded by the artifices of designing men, might well justify in you every fear which conscious guilt could form, respecting the intentions of the present armament. Your towns, your property, yourselves, lie within the grasp of the power whose forbearance you have ungenerously construed into fear, but whose lenity has persisted in its mild and noble efforts, even though branded with the most unworthy imputation. The existence of a single habitation on your defence- less coast, ought to be a subject of constant reproof of your ingratitude."
On the following day a descent was made upon New Haven. The fleet consisted of forty-eight sail, under command of Commodore Sir George Collier. There were on board about three thousand troops un- der command of General Tryon. They soon got full possession of the town, not without opposition on the part of the hastily collected militia, who soon deliv- ered it up to promiscuous plunder and destruction. A number of stores were burned, and eight houses in East Haven. The conduct of the troops was brutal, and many needless cruelties and indignities practiced upon the persons of the inhabitants. Wounded men
were put to death, women were ravished and aged people murdered. Twenty-seven of the inhabitants were killed, and some thirty or forty carried off as prisoners. Among the wounded was Rev. Naphthali Daggett, president of Yale college, who was maltreated after he was taken prisoner.
FAIRFIELD.
This place was laid in ashes by Governor Tryon, in the revolutionary war. The event took place July 8, 1779. A few militia assembled to oppose the advance- of the British troops, but the invasion was so sudden and unexpected that their efforts were fruitless. The town was phundered; a great part of the houses hurnt, and the inhabitants turned ont into the world almost literally destitute. Eighty-four dwelling houses, two churches, an elegant court house, fifty-five barns, fif- teen stores, and fifteen shops were destroyed by fire.
NORWALK.
After having laid Fairfield in ashes, Governor Tryon and his forces, crossed the sound to Huntington Bay and remained until July 11, 1779, when they sailed over to Norwalk and landed in the evening. In the morning they proceeded to burn the town. Only six houses were left standing, eighty being consumed, as well as two churches, eighty-seven barns, four mills,. and five vessels.
CHAPTER III.
THE FIRE-LANDS-A LIST OF THE SUFFERERS AND THEIR LOSSES.
FROM the preceding chapter the reader has learned how the inhabitants of the suffering towns sustained losses during the revolutionary war. To make com- pensation for these losses, the State of Connecticut, prior to the sale to the Connecticut Land Company, released and quit-claimed to the suffering inhabitants five hundred thousand acres, to be taken from the western end of the Reserve. The tract so granted embraces the present counties of Huron and Erie, the township of Ruggles in Ashland county, and of Dan- bury in Ottawa county. The name "Fire-lands " had had its origin in the fact that the lands were donated because of losses which occurred by reason of fire.
Frequently did the inhabitants of the nine suffering towns appeal to the Connecticut legislature for some material recognition of their claims for relief. The State afforded limited aid by the abatement of taxes, but no adequate compensation was provided for some years.
In 1787, at the May session, the memorialists made. another and a strong appeal, asserting the justness of their claims and complaining of the neglect their previous petitions had suffered. They earnestly urged the attention of the legislature to their prayer, which was signed for the petitioners of the several towns as follows: By Charles Chauncey, of New
15
HISTORY OF HURON AND ERIE COUNTIES, OHIO.
Haven; Philip Burr Bradley, of Ridgefield; Daniel Taylor, of Danbury; Thomas Fitch, of Norwalk; Jonathan Sturges, of Fairfield; John Mead, of Green- wich; John Deshon, of New London; and Andrew Ward, of Groton. The assembly referred this memo- rial to a special committee, consisting of Hon. Andrew Adams, of the upper house, and Colonel Jeremiah Wadsworth, Major Charles Phelps, Major Wm. Hart, Colonel Charles Burrell and Captain Moses Cleave- land, of the lower house. [See documents relating to revolutionary war, volume XXXVI, number three hundred and fifty-one. ]
In October of the same year, this committee re- ported that, for want of exhibits, certificates and vouchers, they were unable to present either a correct statement of the amount of losses, or of the relief already granted by the State; that the houses, build- ings and furniture destroyed by the enemy "ought to be, by this State, paid for at their just value;" and that the only means in the power of this State at present to pay the same, is in western lands." [Ib., Doc. 117.]
The report, after discussion, was approved, and with. this the matter rested. Further action being postponed from session to session, Thaddeus Burr and others. at the December session of 1790, presented a new petition. Thereupon a committee, consisting of Hon. John Treadwell, Ashur Miller and Captain John Chenwood, was appointed to ascertain the amount of the losses of the memorialists and others who had undergone similar misfortunes. This com- mittee entered upon its work without delay. At the May session of 1491, further time was asked and given. It was not until May, 1792, that the labors of the committee were so far completed as to enable the assembly to take action, which it then did as fol- lows:
"At a general assembly of the State of Connecticut holden at Hart- ford on the second Thursday of May, A.D., 1792:
"Upon the memorial of the inhabitants of the towns of Fairfield and Norwalk, shewing to this assembly that many of the inhabitants of said towns suffered great losses by the devastations of the enemy during the late war, praying a compensation therefor, and a report of a committee appointed by the assembly at this session held at Hartford in May, 1791, to ascertain from documents in the public offices the amount of the losses of the said memorialists, and others under similar circumstances. which had been estimated conformably to acts of this legislature, being such as were occasioned by excursions of the enemy during the late war, distinguishing the losses of buildings and necessary furniture from those of other articles, by said documents or otherwise, and also to ascertain the advancements which have been made to sufferers by abatement of taxes or otherwise, and to report the same, with their opinion relative to the ways and means of affording for the relief, as per memorial and report on file.
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