USA > Ohio > Champaign County > The history of Champaign and Logan counties : from their first settlement > Part 16
USA > Ohio > Logan County > The history of Champaign and Logan counties : from their first settlement > Part 16
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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
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of his line. He waved his sword, and in a voice of thunder ex- claimed, " Charge from right to left !"
The horses appeared as impatient for the onset as the riders. As we came up with the flying savages, I was disappointed, discov- ering that we should have little to do. I heard but one savage, with the exception of the chief, cry for quarter. They fought with desperation as long as they could raise knife, gun or toma- hawk, after they found they could not screen themselves. We dispatched all the warriors that we overtook, and sent the women and children prisoners to the rear. We pushed ahead, still hoping to overtake a larger body, where we might have something like a general engagement. I was mounted on a very fleet gray horse. Fifty of my companions followed me. I had not advanced more than a mile, before I discovered some of the enemy running along the edge of a thicket, of hazle and plum bushes. I made signs to the men in my rear to come on. At the same time, pointing to the flying 'enemy, I obliqued across the plain, so as to get in ad- vance of them. When I arrived within fifty yards of them, I dismouted and raised my gun. I discovered, at this moment, some men of the right wing coming up on the left. The warrior I was about to shoot held up his hand in token of surrender, and I heard him order the other Indians to stop. By this time the men behind had arrived, and were in the act of firing upon the Indi- ans. I called to them not to fire, for the enemy had surrendered. The warrior that had surrendered to me, came walking towards me, calling to his women and children to follow him. I advanced to meet him, with my right hand extended : but before I could reach him, the men of the right wing of our force had surrounded him. I rushed in among their horses. While he was giving me his hand, several of the men wished to tomahawk. him. I in- formed them that they would have to tomahawk me first. We led him back to the place where his flag had been. "We had taken thirteen prisoners. Among them was the chief, his three wives, one of them a young and handsome woman, another of them the famous grenadier squaw, upwards of six feet high, and two or three fine young lads. The rest were children. One of these lads was a remarkably interesting youth, about my own age and size. He clung closely to me; and appeared keenly to notice everything that was going on.
When we arrived at the town, a crowd of men pressed around
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fo ree the chief. I prepped aside to fasten my horse on pris- our lad cung close to my side. A young man by the name of Corner had been to one of the springs to drink. He louvered the young -avage by my side, and came running towards me. The soling Indian supposed he was advancing to kill him :. A: I turned around, in the twinkling of an eye, he let fly an arrow af Corner, for he was armed with a bow: I had just time to catch his arm, as he discharged the arrow. It passed through Curner's dress, and grazed his stde. The jerk I gave his arm undoubtedly prevented his killing Curner on the spot. I took away the arrows. and steraly reprimanded him. I then led him back to the crowd which surrounded the prisoners. At the ame moment Colonel MeGary, the same man who had caused the disaster at the Blue Licks, some years before coming up. Gen. Logan's oye caught that Gary. "Col. M'Gary " call Le, "robinet not molest " I will see to that." safe M'Gary in reply. P' Brentmy way through the crowd to theelig with my Sons. APGaly . CPvel there vit to ppen and 14
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murmel which provanel au ray malning the inius wy exped from the crowd.
then ordered off ". two other towns, dastan. Fix or digni all'. The men and prisoners were order de march down to the lower warn and encamp. As we marched out of the upper town, we fred it, collecting a large pile of corn for our horses, and beans, pumpkins, &c., for our own use. I told Capt. Stuckor, who messed with me, that I had seen several hogs running about the town, which appeared to be in good order, and that I thought a piece of fresh pork would relish well with our stock of vegetables. He readily assonting to it, we went in
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pursuit of them; but as orders had been given not to shoot unless at an enemy, after finding the hogs we had to run them down on foot, until we got near enough to tomahawk them. Being engaged at this sometime before we killed one, while Capt. S. was in the act of striking the hog, I cast my eye along the edge of the woods that skirted the prairie, and saw an Indian coming along with a deer on his back. The fellow happened to raise his head at that moment, and looking across the prairie to the upper town, saw it all in flames. At the same moment I spoke to Stucker in a low voice, that here was an Indian coming. In the act of turning my head round to speak to Stucker, I discovered Hugh Ross, brother- in-law to Col. Kennedy, at the distance of about 60 or 70 yards, ap- proaching us. I made a motion with my hand to Ross to squat down ; then taking a tree between me and the Indian, I slipped somewhat nearer, to get a fairer shot, when at the instant I raised my gun past the tree, the Indian being about 100 yards distant, Ross's ball whistled by me, so close that I felt the wind of it, and struck the Indian on the calf of one of his legs. The Indian that moment dropped his deer, and sprang into the high grass of the prairie. All this occurred so quickly, that I had not time to draw a sight on him, before he was hid by the grass. I was provoked at Ross for shooting when I was near enough to have killed him, and now the consequence would be, that probably some of our men would lose their lives, as a wounded Indian only would give up with his life. Capt. Irwin rode up that mo- ment, with his troop of horse, and asked me where the In- dian was. I pointed as nearly as I could to the spot where I last saw him in the grass, cautioning the captain, if he missed him the first charge, to pass on out of his reach before he wheeled to re-charge, or the Indian would kill some of his men in the act of wheeling. Whether the captain heard me, I cannot say ; at any rate, the warning was not attended to, for after passing the Indian a few steps, Captain Irwin ordered his men to wheel and re-charge across the woods, and in the act of executing the movement, the Indian raised up and shot the captain dead on the spot-still keeping below the level of the grass, to deprive us of any opportunity of putting a bullet through him. The troop charged again; but the Indian was so active, that he had darted into the grass, some rods from where he had fired at Irwin, and they again missed him. By this time several footmen had got up. Capt. Stucker and myself
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had each of us taken a tree that stood out in the edge of the prairie, among the grass, when a Mr. Stafford came up, and put his head first past one side and then the other of the tree I was behind. I told him not to expose himself that way or he would get shot in a moment. I had hardly expressed the last word when the Indian again raised up out of the grass. His gun, Stucker's, and my own, with four or five behind us, all cracked at the same instant. Staf- ford fell at my side, while we rushed on the wounded Indian with our tomahawks. Before we had got him dispatched, he had made ready the powder in his gun, and a ball in his mouth, preparing for a third fire, with bullet holes in his breast that might have all . been covered with a man's open hand. We found with him Capt. Beasley's rifle-the captain having been killed at the Lower Blue Licks, a few days before the army passed through that place on their way to the towns.
Next morning, Gen. Logan ordered another detachment to at- tack a town that lay seven or eight miles to the north or north- west of where we then were. This town was also burnt, together with a large block-house that the English had built there, of a huge size and thickness; and the detachment returned that eve- ning to the main body. Mr. Isaac Zane was at that time living at this last village, he being married to a squaw, and having at the place his wife and several children at the time.
The name of the Indian chief killed by M'Gary was Moluntha, the great sachem of the Shawnees. The grenadier squaw was the sister to Cornstalk, who fell [ basely murdered ] at Point Pleasant.
Jonathan Alder, was at this time living with the Indians. (See sketch of his life on another page.)
From his narrative it appears that the news of the approach of the Kentuckians was communicated to the Indians by a French- man, a deserter from the former. Nevertheless the whites arrived sooner than they expected. The surprise was complete; most of the Indians were at the time absent hunting, and the towns became an easy conquest to the whites. Early one morning, an Indian run- ner came into the village in which Alder lived, and gave the in- formation that Macacheek had been destroyed, and that the whites were approaching. Alder, with the people of the village, who were principally squ ows and children, retreated for two days, until they arrived somewhere near the head waters of the Scioto, where
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they suffered much for want of food. There was not a man among them capable of hunting, and they were compelled to subsist on paw-paws, muscles and craw-fish. In about eight days they re- turned to Zane's town, tarried a short time, and from thence re- moved to Hog Creek, where they wintered : their principal liv- ing at that place was " raccoons, and that with little or no salt, without a single bite of bread, hominy, or sweet corn." In the spring they moved back to the site of their village, where nothing remained but the ashes of their dwellings, and their corn burnt to charcoal. They remained during the sugar season, and then re- moved to Blanchard's Fork, where, being obliged to clear the land, they were enabled to raise but a scanty crop of corn. While this was growing, they fared hard, and managed to eke out a bare sub- sistence by eating a kind of wild potato and poor raccoons, that had been suckled down so poor that dogs would hardly eat them ; " for fear of losing a little, they threw them on the fire, singed the hair off, and ate skin and all."
The indian lad to whom General Lytle alludes, was taken with others of the prisoners into Kentucky. The commander of the expedition was so much pleased with him, that he made him a member of his own family, in which he resided some years, and was at length permitted to return. He was ever afterwards known by the name of Logan, to which the prefix of captain was eventu- ally attached. His name was Spemica Lawba, i. e. "High Horn." He subsequently rose to the rank of a civil chief, on account of his many estimable intellectual and moral qualities. His personal appearance was commanding, being six feet in height, and weigh- ing near two hundred pounds. He from that time continued the unwavering friend of the Americans, and fought on their side with great constancy. He lost his life in the fall of 1821 under melan- choly circumstances, which evinced that he was a man of the keen- est sense of honor. The facts follow from Drake's Tecumseh :
In November of 1812, General Harrison directed Logan to take a small party of his tribe, and reconnoitre the country in the di- rection of the Rapids of the Maumee. When near this point they were met by a body of the enemy superior to their own in number, and compelled to retreat. Logan, Captain Johnny, and Bright- horn, who composed the party, effected their escape to the left wing of the army, then under the command of General Winches-
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ter, who was duly informed of the circumstances of their adven- ture. An officer of the Kentucky troops, General P., the second in command, without the slightest ground for such a charge, accused Logan of infidelity to our cause, and of giving intelligence to the enemy. Indignant at this foul accusation, the noble chief at once resolved to meet it in a manner that would leave no doubt as to his faithfulness to the United States. He called on his friend Mr. Oliver, ( now Major Oliver, of Cincinnati,) and having told him of the imputation that had been cast upon his reputation, said that he would start from the camp next morning, and either leave his body bleaching in the woods, or return with such trophies from the enemy, as would relieve his character from the suspicion that had been wantonly cast upon it by an American officer.
Accordingly, on the morning of the 22d, he started down the Maumee, attended by histwo faithful companions, Captain Johnny and Bright-horn. About noon, having stopped for the purpose of taking rest, they were suddenly surprised by a party of seven of the enemy, among whom were young Elliott, a half-breed, hold- ing a commission in the British service, and the celebrated Potta- watamie chief, Winnemac. Logan made no resistance, but with great presence of mind, extending his hand to Winnemac, who was an old acquaintance, proceeded to inform him that he and his two companions, tired of the American service, were just leaving General Winchester's army for the purpose of joining the British. Winnemac, being familiar with Indian strategy, was not satisfied with the declaration, but proceeded to disarm Logan and his com- rades, and placing his party around them so as to prevent their es- cape, started for the British camp at the foot of the rapids. In the course of the afternoon, Logan's address was such as to inspire confidence in his sincerity, and induce Winnemac to restore to him and his companions their arms. Logan now formed the plan of attacking their captors on the first favorable opportunity ; and while marching along succeeded in communicating the substance of it to Captain Johnny and Bright-horn. Their guns being already loaded, they had little further preparation to make than to put bullets into their mouths, to facilitate the re-loading of their arms. In carrying on this process, Captain Johnny, as he afterwards re- lated, fearing that the man marching by his side had observed the operation, adroitly did away the impression by remarking " me . chaw heap tobac."
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The evening being now at hand, the British Indians determined to encamp on the bank of Turkeyfoot creek, about twenty miles from Fort Winchester. Confiding in the idea that Logan had really deserted the American service, a part of his captors rambled around the place of their encampment in search of black-haws. They were no sooner out of sight than Logan gave the signal of at- tack upon those who remained behind; they fired, and two of the enemy fell dead-the third, being only wounded, required a sec- ond shot to dispatch him ; and in the meantime, the remainder of the party, who were near by, returned the fire, and all of them "treed." There being four of the enemy, and only three of Lo- gan's party, the latter could not watch all the movements of their antagonists. Thus circumstanced, and during an active fight, the fourth man of the enemy passed round until Logan was uncovered by his tree, and shot him through the body. By this time, Logan's party had wounded two of the surviving four, which caused then to fall back. Taking advantage of this state of things, Captain Johnny mounted Logan, now suffering the pain of a mortal wound, and Bright-horn, also wounded, on two of the enemy's horses, and started them for Winchester's camp, which they reached about midnight. Captain Johnny, having already secured the scalp of Winnemac, followed immediately on foot, and gained the same point early on the following morning It was subsequently ascer- tained that the two Indians of the British party, who were last wounded, died of their wounds, making in all five out of the seven who were slain by Logan and his companions.
When the news of this gallant affair had spread through the camp, and, especially, after it was known that Logan was mortally wounded, it created a deep and mournful sensation. No one, it is believed, more deeply regretted the fatal catastrophe than the author of the charge upon Logan's integrity, which had led to this unhappy result.
Logan's popularity was very great ; indeed, he was almost uni- versally esteemed in the army for his fidelity to our cause, his un- questioned bravery, and the nobleness of his nature. He lived two or three days after reaching the camp, but in extreme bodily agony ; he was buried by the officers of the army at Fort Winches- ter, with the honors of war. Previous to his death, le related the particulars of this fatal enterprize to his friend Oliver, declaring to
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him that he prized his honor more than life; and having now vin- dicated his reputation from the imputation cast upon it, he died satisfied. In the course of this interview, and while writhing with pain, he was observed tosmile; upon being questioned as to the cause, he replied, that when he recalled to his mind the manner in which Captain Johnny took off the scalp of Winnemac, while at the same time dexterously watching the movements of the enemy, he could not refrain from laughing-an incident in savage life, which shows the "ruling passion strong in death." It would, perhaps, be diffi- cult, in the history of savage warfare, to point ont an enterprize, the execution of which reflects higher credit upon the address and daring conduct of its authors, than this does upon Logan and his two companions. Indeed, a spirit even less indomitable, a sense of honor less acute, and a patriotic devotion to a good cause less active, than were manifested by this gallant chieftain of the woods, might, under other circumstances, have well conferred immortality upon his name.
Col. John Johnson, in speaking of Logan, says :
Logan left a dying request to myself, that his two sons should be sent to Kentucky, and there educated and brought up under the care of Major Hardin. As soon as peace and tranquillity were re- stored among the Indians, I made application to the chiefs to fulfill the wish of their dead friend to deliver up the boys, that I might have them conveyed to Frankford, the residence of Major Hardin. The chiefs were embarrassed, and manifested an unwillingness to comply, and in this they were warmly supported by the mother of the children. On no account would they consent to send them so far away as Kentucky, but agreed that I should take and have them schooled at Piqua ; it being the best that I could do, in compliance with the dying words of Logan, they were brought in. I had them put to school, and boarded in a religious, respectable family. The mother of the boys, who was a bad woman, thwarted all my plans for their improvement, frequently taking them off for weeks, giv- ing them bad advice, and even, on one or two occasions, brought whisky to the school-house and made them drunk. In this way she continued to annoy me, and finally took them altogether to raise with herself among the Shawanoese, at Wapakonetta. I made several other attempts, during my connection with the In- dians, to educate and train up to civilized life many of their youth,
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without any encouraging results-all of them proved failures. The children of Logan, with their mother, emigrated to the west twenty years ago, and have there become some of the wildest of their race.
Logan county continued to be a favorite place of residence with the Indians for years after the destruction of these towns. Major Galloway, who was here about the year 1800, gives the following, from memory, respecting the localities and names of their towns at that time. Zane's town, now Zanesfield, was a Wyandot village ; Wapatomica, three miles below, on Mad River, was then leserted ; McKee's town, on McKee's creek, about four miles south of Belle- fontaine, so named from the infamous McKee, and was at that time a trading station; Read's town, in the vicinity of Bellefon- taine, which then had a few cabins; Lewistown, on the Great Miami, and Solomon's town, at which then lived the Wyandot chief, Tarhe, "the Crane." From an old settler we learn, also, that on the site of Bellefontaine, was Blue Jacket's town, and three miles north, the town of Buckongehelas. Blue Jacket, or Wey- apiersensai, and Buckongehelas were noted chiefs, and were at the treaty of Greenville; the first was a Shawnee, and the last a Delaware. At Wayne's victory, Blue Jacket had the chief control, and, in opposition to Little Turtle, advocated giving the whites battle with so much force as to overpower the better counsel of the other.
By the treaty of September 29, 1817, at the foot of the Maumee rapids, the Seneca and Shawnees had a reservation around Lewis- town, in this county ; by a treaty, ratified April 6, 1832, the Indians vacated their lands and removed to the far west. On this last oc- casion, James B. Gardiner was commissioner, John McElvain agent, and David Robb, sub-agent.
The village of Lewistown derived its name from Cantain John Lewis, a noted Shawnee chief. When the count -- was first settled there was living with him, to do his drudgery, an aged white wo- man, named Polly Keyser. She was taken prisoner in early life, near Lexington, Ky., and adopted by the Indians. She had an Indian husband, and two half-breed daughters. There were sev- eral other whites living in the county, who had been adopted by the Indians. We give below sketches of two of them; the first is
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from N. Z. McColloch, Esq., a grandson of Isaac Zap-the last from Col. John Johnston.
Isaac Zane was born about the year 1753, on the south branch of the Potomac, in Virginia, and at the age of about nine years, was taken prisoner by the Wyandots, and carried to Detroit. He re- mained with his captors until the age of manhood, when, like most prisoners taken in youth, he refused to return to his home and friends. He married a Wyandot woman, from Canada, of half French blood, and took no part in the war of the revolution. After the treaty of Greenville, in 1795, he bought a tract of 1800 acres, on the site of Zanesfield, where he lived until his death, in 1816.
James McPherson, or Squa-la-ka-ke, "the red-faced man, " was a native of Carlisle, Cumberland county, Pa. He was taken pris- oner by the Indians on the Ohio, at. or near the mouth of the Big Miami, in Loughry's defeat ; was for many years engaged in the British Indian department, under Elliott and McKee, married a fellow-prisoner, came into our service after Wayne's treaty of 1795, and continued in charge of the Shawanoese and Senecas of Lewis- town, until his removal from office in 1730, since which he has died.
Simon Kenton first came out to Kentucky in the year 1771, at which time he was a youth of sixteen. He was almost constantly engaged in conflicts with the Indians from that time until the treaty of Greenville. He was probably in more expeditions against the Indians, encountered greater peril, and had more narrow escapes from death, than any man of his time. The many incidents of his romantic and eventful life are well detailed by his friend and biog- rapher, Colonel John M'Donald, from whose work we extract the thrilling narrative of his captivity and hair-breadth escapes from a cruel and lingering death.
Kenton lay about Boon's and Logan's stations till ease became irksome to him. About the first of September of this same year, 1778, we find him preparing for another Indian expedition. Alex- ander Montgomery and George Clark joined him, and they set off from Boon's station, for the avowed purpose of obtaining horses from the Indians. They crossed the Ohio, and proceeded cautiously to Chillicothe, (now Oldtown, Ross county.) They arrived at the town without meeting any adventure. In the night they fell in with a drove of horses that were feeding in the rich prairies. They
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were prepared with salt and halters. They had much difficulty to catch the horses ; however, at length they succeeded, and as soon as the horses were haltered, they dashed off with seven-a pretty good haul. They traveled with all the speed they could to the Ohio. They came to the Ohio near the mouth of Eagle creek, now in Brown county. When they came to the river, the wind blew almost a hurricane. The waves ran so high that the horses were frightened, and could not be induced to take the water. It was late in the evening. They then rode back into the hills some dis- tance from the river, hobbled and turned their horses loose to graze ; while they turned back some distance, and watched the trail they had come, to discover whether or no they were pursued, Here they remained till the following day, when the wind sub- sided. As soon as the wind fell they caught their horses, and went again to the river ; but their horses were so frightened with the waves the day before, that all their efforts could not induce them to take the water. This was a sore disappointment to our adven- turers. They were satisfied that they were pursued by the enemy ; they therefore determined to lose no more time in useless efforis to cross the Ohio ; they concluded to select three of the best horses, and make their way to the falls of the Ohio, where Gen. Clark had left some men stationed. Each made choice of a horse, and the other horses were turned loose to shift for themselves. . After the spare horses had been loosed, and permitted to ramble off, avarice whispered to them, and why not take all the horses. The loose horses had by this time scattered and straggled out of sight. Our party now separated to hunt up the horses they had turned loose. Kenton went towards the river, and had not gone far before he heard a whoop in the direction of where they had been trying to force the horses into the water. He got off his horse and tied him, and then crept with the stealthy tread of a cat, to make observa- tions in the direction he heard the whoop. Just as he reached the high bank of the river, he met the Indians on horseback. Being unperceived by them, but so nigh that it was impossible for him to retreat without being discovered, he concluded the boldest course to be the safest, and very deliberately took aim at the foremost Indian. His gun flashed in the pan. He then retreated. The In- dians pursued on horseback. In his retreat he passed through a piece of land where a storm had torn up a great part of the timber. The fallen trees afforded him some advantage of the Indians in the
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