USA > Ohio > Auglaize County > History of western Ohio and Auglaize County, with illustrations and biographical sketches of pioneers and prominent public men > Part 15
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71
155
AND AUGLAIZE COUNTY
him on his way, he was hoisted on a rail and carried to the Big Miami, in the waters of which they absolved him from the ยท obligations of courage and patriotism, and then gave him leave of absence.
"The troops were detained here (Piqua) until the 6th for want of flints, a very small, yet indispensable article. On that day they marched, leaving the greater part of their clothes and heavy baggage at Piqua, and overtook Colonel Allen's regiment at Girty's town (St. Mary's) on the St. Mary's river, where they were ordered to halt and construct block-houses in which to deposit provisions and care for the sick. The troops at this point were put on half rations. In the evening of the same day Major R. M. Johnson of Kentucky, arrived with a corps of mounted volunteers, consisting of the companies of Captains Arnold and Johnson, and a company from Mason county, under the command of Captain Ward. The army was now about two thousand two hundred men.
"While the troops were at Piqua, Mr. Johnson, the Indian agent, at the request of General Harrison, procured some Shaw- anee Indians to go down to the mouth of the Auglaize-the site of old Fort Defiance, and examine whether any British force had passed up to the siege of Fort Wayne. A Shawanee from Wapakoneta, a half blood, by the name of Logan, who had re- ceived this name in consequence of his having been taken prisoner when a boy, by General Logan in an excursion from Kentucky, had also been sent by the agent, to ascertain the situation of the fort. He was an Indian of great merit, and a chief warrior in his tribe. He was about six feet high, and robust, with broad shoulders and a prominent forehead. He was much attached to General Harrison and a warm friend to our cause, which he promoted by acting as a guide and a spy for the army. On his trip to Fort Wayne, he eluded all the vigilance of the enemy, got into the fort, and returned with the information of its be- ing besieged. He also brought intelligence that Stephen John- son, a brother to the Indian agent, had been killed in sight of the fort, while attempting to escape as an express, and that the Indians had tried every strategy to get possession of the fort. This information was important, as well as the report of the Indians from the Auglaize. that there was no appearance of a British army having gone up the Miami (Maumee) of the Lakes.
156
HISTORY OF WESTERN OHIO
The hostile Indians were taking similar measures to obtain in- formation of Harrison's movements. On the night of the 8th, while the army lay in tolerable open order, at St. Mary's, the besiegers at Fort Wayne sent their spies to examine it. They did not get around the camp before daylight, and returned with a report that 'Kentuck was coming as numerous as the trees.'"
"On the morning of the 9th the army marched for Fort Wayne, with the exception of the mounted volunteers, who re- mained until 12 o'clock to rest their horses, and to elect a major to command the corps. R. M. Johnson was chosen for this of- fice, and Benjamin S. Chambers was appointed quartermaster, and the Reverend James Sugette adjutant to his battalion. The army arrived at Shane's crossing in the evening and encamped with the regiment of Colonel Adams. Major Johnson came up in the night and encamped half a mile above the main army. A delay occurred on the morning of the 10th, caused by necessary repairs of broken wagons. During the delay every department underwent a personal inspection by the general. The different corps were paraded and drilled. Major Johnson's battalion was drilled on horseback by Captain James Johnson, whose zeal and military knowledge was surpassed by few men of his age and opportunities.
"After the completion of repairs the army marched in the following manner: The 17th United States Regiment, Col- onel Wells, and the rifle regiment, Colonel Allen, formed the right column, at the distance of two hundred yards from the road; Colonel Lewis and Scott's regiment, the left column, at the same distance from the road on the left. The wagons and pack-horses were on the road in the center. The horsemen from Ohio, under Colonel Adams, formed the right flank; and the mounted riflemen from Kentucky, under Major Johnson, the left. A battalion from the former, commanded by General Lytle, acting as major, constituted the advance; while Captain Gar- rard's troop of horse from Kentucky fromed the rear guard. Spies were placed from half a mile to a mile in front, and also beyond the right and left flanks.
"On the IIth, Lieutenant Sugette, Adjutant of Johnson's battalion, was sent with twenty men from that battalion to reconnoiter in advance. Logan and two other Shawanese went with them as guides. They fell in with a party of Indians, who
157
AND AUGLAIZE COUNTY
fled immediately, leaving a young Potawatamie chief mortally wounded. In the evening they returned to the army; and their little encounter being the first that had occurred, had some effect in raising the spirits of the troops. As soon as the army en- camped in the evening the General, with his aids and the officer of the day, Colonel Allen, rode around the grounds and inspected the whole encampment, which without delay was strongly fort- ified with a breast-work of logs, and the underbrush cleared away to the distance of thirty paces on the outside. The mounted men were encamped within the lines. During the night there were a number of alarms, caused by the Indians attempting to ap- proach and examine the camp. The army was now within twenty miles of Fort Wayne, at which it would be able to arrive the next day.
"Early on the morning of the 12th, the army was in motion, every man being prepared for action, and expecting to meet the Indians at a well known swamp, about fifteen miles distant. As the army approached it, the horsemen under Johnson and Adams were sent round it to the right and left. It was about a mile long and three hundred yards wide, except where the road crossed it, at which place it was not more than one hundred yards wide. At this season, it was tolerably dry, and no enemy was to be seen, nor any appearance of one, except a recent encamp- ment, immediately beyond the swamp." Brice in his history of Fort Wayne, says that "at the first gray of the morning of the 10th (the date is wrong, it was the 12th) of September, the distant halloos of the disappointed savages revealed to the anxious inmates of the fort the glorious news of the approach of the army. Great clouds of dust could be seen from the fort, rolling up in the distance, as the valiant soldiery, under General Harrison, moved forward to the rescue of the garrison ; and soon after daybreak the army stood before the fort. (The time of arrival, as stated, is a mistake. Captain McAfee who accom- panied the army states that they arrived about two hours before sunset.) The Indians had beat a hasty retreat to the eastward and northward, and the air about the old fort resounded with the glad shouts of welcome to General Harrison and the brave boys of Ohio and Kentucky."
As General Winchester had not yet arrived to take com- mand of the troops, General Harrison determined to employ the
.
158
HISTORY OF WESTERN OHIO
troops in destroying the Indian towns on the Wabash and Elk- hart rivers. Colonel Wells led a body of troops to the latter place, and the General, in person, headed those destined to the former. At both places the Indian settlements were broken up and large quantities of corn were destroyed. After the return of the troops to Fort Wayne, General Winchester arrived and took command of that portion of the army which had been as- signed to him by the War Department, composed of the regi- ments of Allen, Lewis and Scott, of the Kentucky troops, Gar- rard's troop of cavalry of the same state, and a part of the 17th United States regiment of infantry, under Wells. The command of the remainder of the Kentucky troops, embracing Simrall's regiment of cavalry, and the regiments of infantry under Colonel Jennings, Poague and Barbee, were retained by General Harrison, they having been placed under him, as gov- ernor of Indiana, by the Secretary of War. This change of com- manders was not very acceptable to the first named detachment, the troops having become attached to General Harrison. From the general order, issued by him at Fort Wayne, on the 19th, upon resigning the command to General Winchester, the following paragraph is taken :
"If anything could soften the regret which the general feels at parting with troops which have so entirely won his confidence and affection, it is the circumstance of his committing them to the charge of one of the heroes of our glorious revolution; a man distinguished as well for the service he has rendered the country, as for the possession of every qualification which con- stitutes the gentleman."
It required, indeed, all the influence of General Harrison and the officers of the detachment, to reconcile the men to this change of commanders.
On the evening of the 19th General Harrison departed from Fort Wayne for St. Marys, following the road up the St. Mary's river traversed by General Wayne in 1794. Pursuant to a call made by Governor Meigs and General Harrison, early in Sep- tember, regiments under Colonels Joshua Barber, Thomas Poague and William Jennings and three companies of mounted riflemen under Captains Roper, Bacon, and Clark; and a corps of mounted men from Ohio, rendezvoused at Dayton on the 15th of September. These troops were mobilized to take part in an
159
AND AUGLAIZE COUNTY
expedition against Detroit and Indian towns along the Maumee. These troops were commanded by Colonel Findlay, who had entered the service again after being surrendered by General Hull. The regiment of Colonel Wm. Jennings and the mounted men were dispatched to St. Marys to await the arrival of General Harrison, who reached the fort on the evening of the 20th.
On the 21st Colonel Jennings received orders to cross the St. Marys, and to proceed down the Auglaize river and estab- lish an intermediate post between St. Marys and Fort Defiance. After proceeding a distance of thirty miles from St. Mary's, so many signs of the presence of Indians were discovered that it was deemed advisable to halt and erect a fort, which was called Fort Jennings. It was intended as a post for the protection of troops, and a depository for military stores for future use in the north. In the evening of the 21st Colonel Jennings' spies re- turned and reported that the enemy were encamped at the mouth of the Auglaize in force. Whilst Colonel Jennings was occu- pied in the construction of block-houses Colonel Findlay was sent with three hundred and fifty mounted men to destroy the Ottawa towns on Blanchard's fork of the Auglaize.
In the meantime General Harrison proceeded to Piqua to hurry up an accumulation of supplies for the army, and mature arrangements for the contemplated attack on Detroit. On the 24th of September General Harrison received a dispatch from the War Department announcing to him that the President had appointed him to the command of the whole western department of the army. Connected with this appointment, was the following order: "Having provided for the protection of the western frontier, you will retake Detroit, and with a view to the conquest of Upper Canada, you will penetrate the country as far as the force under your command will justify."
On the 27th General Harrison announced his plan of the campaign as follows :
"The final arrangement for the march of the army towards Detroit is as follows: The right column, composed of the Penn- sylvania and Virginia troops, are directed to rendezvous at Woos- ter, a town upon the head waters of Mohecan, John's creek, thirty-five miles north of Mount Vernon, and forty-five miles west of Canton, and proceed from thence by Upper Sandusky, to the rapids of the Miami. The middle column, consisting of
160
HISTORY OF WESTERN OHIO
twelve hundred Ohio militia, will march from Urbana, where they now are, taking General Hull's road to the Rapids (Rapids of the Maumee) ; and the left column, composed of a detachment of regulars, under Colonel Wells, and six Kentucky regiments, will proceed from Fort Defiance down the Miami, to the Rapids. The mounted force, under an officer, whom I shall select for that purpose, will take the route mentioned in my former let- ter, from Fort Wayne up the St. Joseph's, and across the waters of the river basin. Upon reflection, I am induced to abandon the scheme of attacking Detroit; for should it be successful, as the infantry will not be in readiness to support them, it must necessarily be abandoned, and the inhabitants be more exposed to the depredations of the Indians than they now are. A more useful employment will be, to sweep the western side of the strait and lake, of the Indians who are scattered from Browns- town to the Rapids, rioting upon the plunder of the farms which have been abandoned."
One of the most difficult conditions with which General Har- rison had to contend was the deficiency of supplies. On the 27th day of September, he dispatched an express to Pittsburgh, order- ing artillery and supplies to be sent to Georgetown on the Ohio river, and from thence by way of New Lisbon and Canton to Wooster. Such supplies as Ohio could furnish he preferred to pur- chase in the state, as it saved much in the cost of transportation. The troops were nearly destitute of clothing. Many of them were dressed in summer clothing, and were without socks, mittens or shoes. An application was made to the government for such sup- plies, but fearing delay in the transportation of the goods, the Gen- eral addressed a letter to the citizens of Ohio and Kentucky, ap- pealing to them to contribute these articles of clothing forthwith to their patriotic defenders. The citizens responded to the appeal in a very liberal manner. It could not be said that "the soldiers were dressed in uniform," but they were comfortably clad.
After preparing the plan of the campaign General Harrison returned to St. Marys and dispatched Captain Hite to Fort Wayne with orders for the mounted troops under Colonel Simrall and Major Johnson to report at St. Marys. Such was the promptness with which the order was obeyed, that the advance battalion ar- rived in St. Marys in thirteen hours from the time the order was received, a distance of sixty-three miles.
161
AND AUGLAIZE COUNTY
"The forces at St. Marys at this time amounted to about three thousand. On the 30th the companies of Captains Roper, Clark and Bacon received orders to elect a major and form a bat- talion; which associated with Johnson's would constitute a regi- ment and elect a colonel. Roper was elected Major by the bat- talion, and R. M. Johnson was elected Colonel by the regiment. Captain Arnold was elected Major in the place of Johnson, and Lieutenant Ellison was elected to command Arnold's company." The new brigade was organized to scour the country in the direc- tion of Detroit. The same day that the brigade was organized, a dispatch was received from General Winchester, stating that his march down the Maumee had been impeded by the Indians, and that upon his arrival at a point near Fort Defiance, he discovered that they were accompanied by British troops, having with them some pieces of artillery. A few minutes afterward a letter was received from Governor Meigs, containing a dispatch from Gen- eral Kelso, who was stationed at a post on Lake Erie, stating that two thousand Indians and British regulars had left Malden on the 16th of September on an expedition against Fort Wayne.
Within three hours after the reception of the dispatches, all the forces at St. Marys were in motion to join General Winchester, who was supposed to have met the allied forces of British and In- dians at some point between Fort Wayne and the mouth of the Auglaize river.
On the second day of the march, October Ist, a heavy rain set in which caused the roads to become very muddy, and rendered the march very uncomfortable and tiresome. In the evening the army reached Fort Jennings, where the troops halted over night, exposed to a cold rain, without tents or other shelter. "Beech brush was the substitute for a bed and answered the purpose of keeping the men out of the mud and water."
The foot troops were ordered to remain at Fort Jennings for the present, whilst the mounted troops continued the march. On the evening of the second General Harrison met another express from General Winchester, who brought information that the enemy had retreated. The general then sent back orders for Colonel Bar- bee to return with his regiment to St. Marys, and Colonel Thomas Poague to cut a road from Fort Jennings to Defiance. The gen- eral and his troops were displeased when they discovered that the-
HAC
11
162
HISTORY OF WESTERN OHIO
intelligence sent them was more alarming than was warranted by the circumstances. The troops encamped in the evening within three miles of the Winchester forces, and in the morning proceeded down the river to the mouth of the Auglaize, where they encamped near the ruins of the old fort.
A party of six hundred and fifty men under Major Joseph Robb were ordered to build a new fort eighty yards up the Au- glaize river. At the same time General Winchester moved his com- mand to a point about a mile above, whilst Major Robb's force was constructing the fort. On the 5th of October General Harri- son, accompanied by Colonel Johnson and his battalion, returned to St. Marys, where the troops were honorably discharged, their term of enlistment having expired. "Colonel Poague was ordered, after cutting the road to Defiance, to return to the Ottawa towns on the Auglaize, about twelve miles from St. Marys, and erect a fort, which he did and named it Fort Amanda, in honor of his wife.
"The command of the left wing was now confided to General Winchester, who accepted it on the solicitation of General Harri- son. His principal employment for the present was to be the transportation of supplies to Defiance for the main expedition. He was also instructed to occupy the Miami Rapids as speedily as possible, for the purpose of securing a large quantity of corn, which had been raised at that place by the inhabitants, who had now fled to other settlements for safety."
Soon after General Harrison's return to St. Marys, he visited Piqua, Urbana, and Franklinton (now Columbus), which was the line of march of the right wing of the army. The main object of his tour of inspection was to hasten the supplies of provisions, clothing and ammunition, and make other arrangements for the advance of the troops. While at St. Marys, on his way to Frank- linton, he received information that Fort Wayne was undergoing 'a second siege. He forthwith dispatched Colonel Allen Trimble, with five hundred mounted riflemen, to the relief of the place. At Franklinton, he received a dispatch from Colonel Trimble, inform- ing him of the partial failure of the expedition, in consequence of the defection of one-half of his troops, who abandoned him upon reaching Fort Wayne. He proceeded, however, with the re- mainder of his force and destroyed two Indian villages.
Early in the month of November, General Tupper marched
163
AND AUGLAIZE COUNTY
with a force of six hundred and fifty men to the Maumee Rapids, to attack a force of several hundred Indians and British troops who were engaged in gathering corn at that point. General Win- chester had been informed of the intended movement, and it was expected that he would join General Tupper at that point. Gen- eral Tupper reached the Rapids on the evening of the 13th, and made an effort to cross the river in the night, intending to attack the enemy the next morning. After failing to cross the river he sent an express to General Winchester's camp, he was informed that a detachment of four hundred men had been sent under the command of Colonel Lewis to General Tupper's support. The detachment moved down the left bank of the river on the 15th, and in the course of the night Ensign Charles S. Todd was sent with a few men by Colonel Lewis to apprise General Tupper of his approach, and to arrange a time and manner of forming a junction of the two corps. When the ensign arrived at Tupper's camp, he found that it had been evacuated. He also found the bodies of two men, who had been killed and scalped. When the ensign returned with this information, Colonel Lewis returned to Winchester's camp. "If this expedition did not accomplish all that was expected of it, it was of service in one particular. The detachment of British and Indians, consisting of about four hun- dred of the latter, and seventy-five of the former, fell back upon the river Raisin, and gave up the idea of removing the corn from the abandoned farms at the Rapids, which was the object of their being at that place.
"About the period of this enterprise, General Harrison sent an expedition against the Indian towns on the Mississiniway river, one of the branches of the Wabash. The detachment was placed under Lieutenant Colonel Campbell, of the 19th United States regiment. It was composed of six hundred mounted men. They left Franklinton (Columbus) on the 25th of November, passed Greenville on the 14th of December, and reached the first village on the Mississiniway on the 18th, which was attacked, and eight men killed and forty-two prisoners taken. Two other towns were visited and destroyed, the inhabitants having fled. Before day on the following morning, the Indians attacked Colonel Campbell's camp. A severe action of an hour ensued, when the Indians were finally charged with great spirit and dispersed. They left fifteen dead on the ground ; others were thrown into the river
164
HISTORY OF WESTERN OHIO
or carried off. Colonel Campbell had eight killed and forty-eight wounded. When the detachment reached Greenville, on their re- turn, one-half of it was unfit for duty, being either wounded, frost- bitten, or sick."
In compliance with an order from General Harrison, Gen- eral Winchester on the Ioth of January moved his forces to Grand Rapids and erected buildings in which to quarter his men. General Harrison was then at Upper Sandusky, and General Tup- per with the central division at Fort McArthur. "On the 13th and 16th messengers arrived at Winchester's camp from the in- habitants of Frenchtown, on the river Raisin, representing the danger to which that place was exposed from the hostility of the British and Indians, and begging for protection. These repre- sentations and petitions excited the feelings of the Americans, and led them, forgetful of the main objects of the campaign, and of military caution, to determine upon the step of sending a strong party to the aid of the sufferers.
"On the 17th, accordingly, Colonel Lewis was dispatched with five hundred and fifty men to the river Raisin, and soon after Colonel Allen followed with one hundred and ten more. March- ing along the frozen borders of the bay and lake, on the afternoon of the 18th, the Americans reached and attacked the enemy, who were posted in the village, and after a severe contest defeated them. Having gained possession of the town, Colonel Lewis wrote for reinforcements, and prepared himself to defend the posi- tion he had gained. And it was evident that all his means of de- fense would be needed, as the place was but eighteen miles from Malden, where the whole British force was collected under Proc- tor.
"Winchester, on the 19th, having heard of the action of the previous day, marched with two hundred and fifty men, which was the most he dared to detach from the Rapids, to the aid of the captor of Frenchtown, which place he reached on the next even- ing. But instead of placing his men in a secure position, and taking measures to prevent the secret approach of the enemy, Win- chester suffered the troops he had brought with him to remain in the open ground, and took no efficient measures to protect himself from surprise, although informed that an attack might be expected at any moment. The consequence was, that during the night of the 21st, the whole British force approached undiscovered, and
165
AND AUGLAIZE COUNTY
erected a battery within three hundred yards of the American camp. From this, before the troops were fairly under arms in the morning, a discharge of bombs, balls, and grape-shot informed the devoted soldiers of Winchester of the folly of their commander, and in a moment more the dreaded Indian yell sounded on every side.
"The troops under Lewis were protected by the garden pickets, behind which their commander, who alone seems to have been upon his guard, had stationed them. Those last arrived were, as has been said, in the open field, and against them the main effort of the enemy was directed. Nor was it long so exerted without terrible results; the troops yielded, broke and fled, but under a fire which mowed them down like grass. Winchester and Lewis, (who had left his pickets to aid his superior officer), were taken prisoners. Upon the party who fought from behind their slight defenses, however, no impression could be made, and it was not till Winchester was induced to send them what was deemed an order to surrender, that they dreamed of doing so." The snow was deep, and the cold was intense. Winchester and Lewis were both taken prisoners, and were carried to the tent of Proctor. Conscious that the continuation of the struggle was only pro- longing the slaughter of their own men, they agreed to surren- der. They were surrounded by three times their own number, and their ammunition was expended. The captured troops were marched off to Malden. They numbered five hundred and forty men. A large number were left behind, so severely wounded that they could not be removed.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.