USA > Ohio > History of the Upper Ohio Valley, with family history and biographical sketches, a statement of its resources, industrial growth and commercial advantages, Vol. I > Part 11
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After an interval of an hour or two, when silence had settled down upon the scene and the campfires of the savages had been put out, and it was presumed that the whites had relaxed, in some degree, their caution and vigilance, a savage, with a half-burned brand in his hand, crawled in the direction of the kitchen of the house, upon near- ing which, he slowly rose from the ground and waving the brand to
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and fro and blowing upon it to enliven and re-kindle it, was about to stealthily apply it to the building when, of a sudden, the quiet was dis- turbed by the sharp crack of a rifle which rang out in the stillness of the night, which, a moment later, was accompanied by a sharp yell of pain and rage ere the echoes of the shot had ceased to resound in the mazes of the forest. The vigilant and quick eye of "Daddy Sam " had detected the savage in time to foil him in his designs and spoil his calculations, thereby saving his master's property from de- struction. Other similar attempts were made on the same night, but in every instance "Daddy Sam" was on the alert and always frus- trated them. And here we will be pardoned if, in passing, we say a word or two concerning this individual. He was an original importa- tion from Guinea and had all the characteristics of a native of that country, believing in charms, incantations and signs, and was a bundle of strange superstitions and beliefs, and these he retained until the day of his death. He and his wife were assiduously cared and pro- vided for by Col. Zane and his family until their decease. This gentleman erected for them a cosy cabin on the upper portion of the island known as Zane's Island, immediately opposite the city of Wheeling. "Daddy Sam" died in peace and contentment, honored and respected by the whole community, worn out with age and its attendant infirmities. At his death he left strict injunctions to have his rifle and his accoutrements, tomahawk, knife and silver snuff box, buried with him, that they might bear him company to the happy hunting grounds of the African. So greatly was he esteemed, that he was buried with military honors, and he was followed to the grave by an immense concourse of citizens, composed of the most promi- nent as well as the humblest members of society. In stature he was small and of light frame, with arms of unusual length, and a complex- ion as black as coal.
But to resume our narrative. At daylight on the following morn- ing the lines of the enemy showed that they were tightly drawn and in compact order, but they were laggard in renewing the assault. However they were not idle, but were actively employed in making preparations evidently for some important event. Shortly after dark of the preceding day a canoe loaded with cannon balls from Fort Pitt and destined for the falls of the Ohio, had put ashore under the cover of the fort. It was discovered by the Indians, but its occupants suc- ceeded in effecting an entrance for themselves into the fort, in their efforts to do which, however, one of them-Daniel Sullivan -was wounded in the foot. The savages secured the canoe and took pos- session of its contents. A new idea now dawned upon them-why not utilize these missiles and make them play a part in the reduction of the fort? The idea was approved and the suggestion was at once put into execution. Securing a hollow log, which they deemed adapted for the purpose, they proceeded to bind it with iron chains, which they found in the blacksmith shop of the village. Filling it with a heavy charge of powder, they rammed home as many of the captured balls as it could conveniently hold, and with as much accur-
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acy as possible under the circumstances, aimed it against one of the bastions. All was now ready as soon as it was primed, for which pur- pose a big Indian stepped forward emptying from his powder horn a sufficient quantity around the vent. A crowd of Indians collected around to witness this new engine of destruction and the effect pro- duced upon the fort by its discharge, not doubting in the least that it would prove more or less destructive in its effects. In this supposition they were not deceived, but were sorely disappointed in the nature of the result which ensued. All things being ready an In- dian advanced with a lighted brand which he applied to the vent hole and thereby stamped "finis" on the last page of his own and the life history of his curious companions who were near by him at the time. Several were killed, many were seriously, and some slightly wounded, and all were terror stricken by the unexpected re- sult. The unlooked for and unexpected havoc caused among their number by the explosion of their wooden artillery, which burst into fragments, led them to become wild and furious under their dis- appointment and the loss and wounding of so many of their number, and wild with rage in their excitement they redoubled their exertions, renewing the assault with heedless desperation and exposing them- selves in the most careless manner to the shots from the house and the fort. At times it appeared that the Indians would succeed, but then the fortunes of the day would change and the fortunes of the in- mates of the fort appeared to be in the ascendant. Thus the conflict wavered until noon when the forces of the Indians were drawn off temporarily.
It was exceedingly fortunate for the little garrison that the savages desisted from their attack when they did, as the ammunition of the defenders of the fort was beginning to grow short. The alarm given by Linn of the approach of the enemy having, as we have stated, been so limited, and the fact that the fort was destitute to a great extent of any large supply of ammunition to enable it to withstand a pro- tracted siege, it was discovered. that the supply on hand was being rapidly exhausted, and some measures must be adopted to supply the need. As before stated, there was plenty of powder stored in the magazine at Col. Zane's house, but for all practical purposes it might as well have been a hundred miles away. The contingency which had now happened could not have been foreseen and the emergency now upon them was a grave one. But it was one which had to be met, and the question was, how could they best replenish their almost exhausted stock? An effort at least to obtain powder from Col. Zane's house it was absolutely necessary should be made, for should the enemy return to the assault in their then condition the danger of the inmates was not only imminent but their almost certain doom was sealed. Among the many propositions which were made and the one which seemed to obtain favor was, that one of the fleetest runners among the younger men should be selected for the perilous undertaking of ob- taining a keg of powder from Col. Zane's house and hasten with it to the relief of the besieged. It was an undertaking full of daring, with
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the prospect of almost certain death to the person who might essay the task. But undeterred by the magnitude of the feat and the peril which attended it, at the call of Capt. Zane for a volunteer to risk, several brave men stepped forward, each one of whom insisted on be- ing permitted to make the attempt. The loss of a single man at this juncture would be keenly felt by the entire company. While Capt. Zane was hesitating in arriving at a decision, and making his choice from among those chivalric spirits who had so promptly offered their services, there came bounding into his presence his own sister -- Eliza- beth Zane- in the elasticity of her youthful strength - and volun- teered to attempt the accomplishment of the errand, regardless of what might befall her, if thereby she could be instrumental in saving the lives of others; when told that a man would encounter less dan- ger by reason of his superior fleetness, she nobly replied, -- "That the loss of a man under the circumstances would be more severely felt than her own-you have not one man to spare," she said -" a woman will not be missed in the defense of the fort." All the argu- ments adduced by her brother and others to disuade her from mak- ing the attempt, together with the expostulations of the other females, had the effect of only confirming her in her resolution. Reluctantly they finally acquiesced in her purpose and her services were accepted. Divesting herself of all unnecessary clothing which might impede her in her progress, she appeared ready for the dangerous ordeal. The gate was swung open and the young heroine sprang out in the swell- ing buoyancy of hope, knowing no such word as fail, in the full confi- dence of success, and swift as a deer she sped away on her mission, arriving safely at the cabin of her brother - Col. Ebenezer Zane - who saw her coming and promptly opened the door to receive her.
When the Indians saw her bounding along at the top of her speed, they were amazed at her temerity, but did not offer to fire at her but contented themselves with simply exclaiming with contemptuous sneers - "a squaw-a squaw." Upon reaching her destination she lost no time in stating her business. After a brief breathing spell she announced her readiness to return, whereupon, Col. Zane, taking a table-cloth and fastening it securely around her waist with two of its ends, while the other ends were held by her in her hands, emptied into it a keg of powder, when she again ventured forth on her return to the fort. Her black hair, like a banner, streamed out upon the air, as with swift feet she lessened the intervening distance. But she had not covered more than half the space between the cabin and the fort, when the savages, apprehending her purpose, showered a rain of bul- lets around her, none of which, however, did any execution, as she reached the fort in safety, and delivered the powder without losing any perceptible portion of it. Subsequently, in recounting her ex- perience on this occasion, she would relate how the bullets whistled around her so thick and fast that the dust thrown up by them, as they struck the ground, blinded and confused her so that she could scarcely distinguish her way. As she neared the fort the gate was again thrown open for her entrance, when the Indians made an un-
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availing effort to reach it before it could be closed, by making a sud- den rush. Finding themselves foiled, they quickly withdrew. This act of heroism, on the part of Elizabeth Zane, doubtless saved the lives of the inmates of the fort; and enabled them successfully to with- stand the siege.
As night closed in the enemy renewed their efforts to reduce the fortress and continued them until daylight. Times almost without number during that trying and eventful night the enemy attempted to accomplish by the torch what they could not by superior numbers and vantage. Bundles of hemp and wood and rubbish were heaped by them against the pickets and set fire to at different places. The hemp fortunately being wet, after being ignited would not burn, and the dry wood and rubbish proved also to be in vain to accomplish their end. When the day dawned after that terrible and trying night, it was greeted by the besieged with a renewal of hope which had been well nigh banished from their hearts. The morning light was the harbinger indeed of joy and gladness and infused fresh life and en- ergy into their despairing souls. When the intelligence reached Shepherd's Fort, located at the forks of Wheeling, of the investiture of Fort Henry by an army of Indians and British soldiers, a party left the former fort with a view of rendering assistance to the inmates of the latter, but on arriving in the vicinity they found that it would be impossible for them to gain admission and therefore reluctantly de- termined to return from whence they came. This conclusion was ar- rived at in opposition to the views of their leader --- Francis Duke --- a relative of Col. Shepherd. He insisted that if no one else would, he alone would make the attempt to gain ingress at the fort, at the risk of his life. To all persuasions against the undertaking he turned a deaf ear. He recognized their force and complained not at the resolution of his men to return, but his chivalric character and deter- mined spirit could not be curbed by argument nor persuasion. He did not regard the imminent danger attaching to the bold undertak- ing, but subordinating this to the higher and nobler promptings of his nature, which enabled him only to see the peril of friends who needed every man for defense, he spurned all restraints, and taking his life in his hands and putting spurs to his horse he sped swift as. his horse could carry him toward the gate of the fort calling aloud as he rode, "Open the gate! Open the gate!" He was recognized by those within the fort and the gate was swung open for his admission, but before reaching it he was pierced with bullets and this young and gallant chevalier fell a martyr to his reckless daring and noble disin- terestedness.
On the morning of the third day the enemy despairing of success, and abandoning all hope of the reduction of the fort they resolved on raising the siege. This resolution was announced to the inmates by a series of terrific yells and deafening whoops which was the means adopted by them to give expression to their disgust at their failure. Turning their backs upon the scene they took their departure and re- crossed the river, except a party of about 100 chosen warriors who
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remained on the Virginia side for the purpose of plundering and lay- ing waste the adjacent country. The loss of the enemy during the siege must have been quite large, as those in the fort and in the dwell- ing of Col. Zane were not in the habit of throwing away their shots. It is a remarkable fact that none of the inmates of either were killed, and but one was slightly wounded - Daniel Sullivan. The chivalric Duke was the only white man slain on the part of the defenders. The persistent and determined courage displayed, both by men and women in the fort and in the cabin of Col. Zane, was simply grand and heroic. In the evening preceding the departure of the Indians from the fort, two white men who had been captured several years before by the Indians and held commands in the force, deserted from them. Early on the following morning they were taken prisoners by Col. Swearingen who, with a force of about 100 men, was hastening to aid in the defense of Wheeling fort and the chastisement of its assailants. From them he learned the intention of the Indians to withdraw from Wheeling, but leave a portion of their army to operate in the sur- rounding country. One of these deserters was sent by James Marsh- all, lieutenant commandant of Washington county, Pennsylvania, to Gen. Irvine, commanding at Fort Pitt, to which latter person himself was the bearer of the following letter:
" Dear Sir :- The bearer is one of the deserters from the enemy in time of the action at Wheeling. Some people say the other deserters report this fellow as a villain, however be that as it may, I think it best to send him to you that such order may be taken respecting him as you may think proper.
" I am, sir, with attachment, your obedient and humble servant, "JAMES MARSHALL, L. W. C., " 16th Sept., 1782, Endorsed: Public."
" To the Hon'ble William Irvine,
" Brigadier General, Fort Pitt."
The following extract from a letter written by the author of the foregoing letter and addressed by him to Gen. Irvine, under date of September 12, 1872, will be of interest in this connection.
"By an express, this moment, arrived from Wheeling, I have re- ceived the following intelligence, viz .: That a large trail was discov- ered yesterday about three o'clock near that place. Capt. Boggs, who brought the account, says that when he left the fort about one mile and a half he heard the swivel at Wheeling fired and one rifle. He further says that Ebenezer McColloch, from Vanmetre's fort, on his way to Wheeling, got within half a mile of the place shortly after Boggs left it, when he was alarmed by hearing a heavy and constant fire about the fort, and makes no doubt the fort was then attacked. Boggs is gone into the settlements to alarm the inhabitants, and I am afraid, will injure the expedition, * as we have had so many false alarms this summer. I can't think of making much of the present one until the truth of it is known with certainty, notwithstanding, I should be inexcusable in not giving you the account as I have received it."
* A proposed expedition to act against Sandusky.
/
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Two days after the foregoing letter was written, the following, written by Ebenezer Zane, was sent to Gen. Irvine by the hands of a Mr. Loyd.
" WHEELING, 14th of September, 1782.
"SIR :- On the evening of the rith instant, a body of the enemy appeared in sight of our garrison. They immediately formed their lines round the garrison, paraded British colors and demanded the fort to be surrendered, which was refused. About 12 o'clock at night they rushed hard on the pickets in order to storm, but were re- pulsed. They made two other attempts to storm before day, but to no purpose. About 8 o'clock next morning there came a negro from them to us and informed us that their force consisted of a British cap- tain and forty regular soldiers and 260 Indians. The enemy kept up a continual fire the whole day. About 10 o'clock at night they made a fourth attempt to storm, to no better purpose than the former. The enemy continued round the garrison till the morning of the 13th instant, when they disappeared. Our loss is none. Daniel Sul- livan, who arrived here in the first of the action, is wounded in the foot. I believe they have driven the greatest part of our stock away, and might, I think, be soon overtaken.
" I am with due respect, your obedient servant, " EBENEZER ZANE."
Addressed, " William Irvine,
" Brigadier General, commanding at Pittsburg."
The names of some of the heroic little band who were in the fort on this occasion we give as follows, viz .: Silas Zane, Jonathan Zane, Andrew Zane, John Caldwell, Abraham Rogers, John Linn, John Salter, Joseph Biggs, Robert Lemmon, John Neiswanger, Daniel Sul- livan, Elizabeth Zane, Lydia Boggs, Mary Burkitt and Betsey Wheat. De Hass, in his "History and Indian Wars in Western Virginia," gives additional names and includes the most of those herein men- tioned, but the names mentioned were obtained many years ago from a person now deceased * who, at the time of the siege was an inmate of the fort, and who gave the names of those only which she was able to recollect.
It is much to be regretted that a full list cannot be secured and inscribed upon a roll of honor where their names and memories might be preserved throughout all coming generations. We need to vitalize these epochs of our early history which have rendered our local annals so illustrious. They are the story of a romance woven not by the fertile fancy of poetic imagination, but of the plain and un- varnished truths of a stern reality.
If anything is wanting to inspire our zeal or to awaken our dormant enthusiasm it should be found in the fact that the capstone of the temple of American independence was laid upon the soil of Western Virginia, and that it was upon the soil of upper Ohio valley that the flag of St. George was humbled in the dust and the last British gun was fired during the war of the revolution.
* Mrs. Mary Burkitt, who died about 1861, in the one hundred and fifth year of her age.
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CHAPTER V.
THE ATTACK ON RICE'S FORT-THE KILLING OF GEORGE HUMPHREY - THE KILLING OF WILLIAM COCHRAN - LEWIS WETZEL AND THOMAS MILLS -CAPTURE OF TWO BOYS-THE DEATH OF JOHN NEISWANGER - THE MURDER OF THE VAN METRE FAMILY - JOHN VAN METRE - CAP- TURE OF JOHN WETZEL AND ANOTHER BOY.
AVING left the main body, after they had determined to raise the siege of the fort at Wheeling, as stated in the last chapter, a detachment of about 100 warriors re- mained on the Virginia side of the river for the purpose of plundering and laying waste the adjacent country. The following extract from a letter written by James Marshall, commandant of Washington county, Penn., addressed to the commandant of Fort Pitt, dated Sunday morning, Sep- tember 15, 1782, gives an explanation of the movements of this de- tachment and their objects:
" DEAR SIR :- You may depend upon it, as a matter of fact, that a large party of Indians are now in our country. Last night I saw two prisoners who made their escape from Wheeling in time of the action, who say the enemy consists of 238 Indians and forty rangers, the latter commanded by a British officer; that they attacked Wheel- ing fort on Wednesday night and continued the attack until Thurs- day night, at which time the above deserters left them; that fort, they say, was the principal object of the hurry, but it appears both from their account and the enemy's advancing into the country, that they have dispaired of taking it, the deserters say that shortly before they left the enemy, that they had determined to give up the matter at Wheeling and either scatter into small parties in order to distress and plunder the inhabitants or attack the first small fort they could come out, the latter, I'm this moment informed is actually the case, that they have attacked one Rice's block house on what is called the Dutch fork of Buffalo, and it is to be feared it will fall into their hands," etc., etc.
One Jacob Miller, during his absence from home, having received intelligence that a body of Indians was on the war-path, and appre- hending that this place where he resided would be the object of their attack, hastened to return to the block house and give the alarm. He succeeded in reaching it just as the Indians appeared before it, and at once, together with the small number of whites gathered there, at once commenced their preparations for its defense. This fort, or block house so called, was situated a few miles north of the present town of Bethany, in Brooke county, West Virginia. Including Miller there were but seven men in the fort, and the others, about twenty in num-
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ber, being absent on a scout. The fort was built in the form of a square and occupied about a half of an acre of ground. The Indians, who had thought to execute a surprise and to take the place by storm or by slight resistance, were greatly disappointed on discovering that the whites were not only aware of their vicinity, but were also pre- pared to receive them. Shouting their war whoop they rushed for- ward to the assault. They were promptly met and answered by the fire of the brave little band within and forced to take refuge behind the trees and fallen timber. Both sides continued their firing, while in the interval the savages who could speak English would call out to the whites -" give up- give up - Indians too many - Indians too big- give up- Indians no kill. But the whites were not to be deceived by any such vain assurances, as they had no faith in the promises of the red man. So, instead of complying with their demands, those in the fort replied in words calculated to exasperate them -cowards who skulked behind logs- and taunted them by daring them -" to leave their covers - to show their yellow hides and they would make holes in them."
To reach the upper story of the block house from which the men fought, it was necessary to ascend by means of a ladder. In one of the houses in the enclosure lived a man by the name of " Deeds," who thought the quarters he occupied were not so safe as some of the others were. He therefore concluded to mount the ladder and pass over to another near by. He had ascended several rungs when one of the men called to him and told him he would have forty bullet holes in his person before he could succeed in accomplishing the under- taking. Upon hearing this he at once let go of the ladder, falling heavily to the ground, and crawled under a bed, where he remained during the whole action, and until the Indians had withdrawn. In one of the houses occupied by Mrs. Jacob Leffler, was a small window which she attempted to cover by placing a quilt over it, which was pierced by seven bullet holes before she succeeded in accomplishing her purpose. A continuous firing was kept up by the savages until night and was replied to promptly by those within the fort. In the evening the shots of the Indians were principally directed against the stock as it came up to the station as it was accustomed to do, and the ground was strewn with its carcasses. About thirty or forty yards from the stockade stood a large barn of logs which the Indians set fire to, and the flames from which for a time seemed to threaten the destruc- tion of the block house, but being situated on more elevated ground and the current of air changing to a contrary point of the compass, the fort escaped destruction. Before the burning of the barn, several of the Indians had taken advantage of it as a cover from which to fire upon the whites. In front of it extended a wide platform. One of the Indians was observed several times to jump out on it and cry out "booh!" to those in the fort and suddenly jump back to the inside. Capt. Miller, whose attention had been directed to the antics of this fellow, remarked to those standing by, "Let him try that once more and I will fix him." He had not long to wait, for in a short time he made his appearance as usual, but failed to jump back into the inside
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