USA > Ohio > The history of the state of Ohio; from the discovery of the great valley, to the present time > Part 34
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 | Part 72 | Part 73
While upon this journey an incident occurred which exhibits very strongly the sagacity of the Indian in traversing the forest. One day a severe storm came on. The smothering snow - flakes filled the air so that they could see but a few rods before them. They were in the midst of a vast swamp, covered with a very thick growth of beech trees. Most of the party became bewildered. Colonel Meigs took out his compass, and after carefully examining it, pointed to the east as the direction in which their course lay. But the Indian, whose name was Thom, shook his head and pointed to the southeast. The colonel, having more confidence in the accuracy of the compass than in the sagacity of the Indian, insisted on following the guidance of the needle. The Indian at length became irritated, and exclaimed in broken English, "What care I for compass," shouldered his musket and pursued his own
411
HISTORY OF OHIO.
course. They all followed the Indian and soon found that he was right, and the colonel and the compass wrong.
The party reached Marietta early in March, and the mother had the unspeakable satisfaction of again clasping in her arms her long lost son, for whom she had so perseveringly and fervently prayed. It was through the unwearied efforts of Colonel Meigs that this was accomplished. A few years after this he was appointed by President Jefferson Indian Agent among the Cherokees. He resided in their country until his death in 1832. It has been truly written of him :
"During a long life of activity and usefulness, no man ever sus- tained a character more irreproachable than Colonel Meigs. He was a pattern of excellence, as a patriot, philanthropist and Chris- tian. In all the vicissitudes of fortune, the duties of religion were strictly observed, and its precepts strikingly exemplified. In the discharge of his duties among the Cherokees, he acquired their highest confidence. They loved and revered him as a father, denominating him for his integrity and uprightness, 'The White Path.'"
Joseph Kelly, after his return to his friends, gave a very affect- ing account of the ruin and devastation inflicted upon his Indian friends by the army of General Wayne. Their villages on the Auglaise and the Maumee were very comfortably built. Their cabins, though lowly, furnished warm and cheerful homes for their inmates. They were supplied with many convenient articles of furniture, some of which had been constructed at an immensity of labor. They had also, with their furs, purchased of the white traders many articles of inestimable value to them, such as ket- tles, hatchets, and garden tools. They had articles of clothing, very elaborately and laboriously made, and often richly ornamented with embroidery, beads and fringes. They had also provided themselves with comfortable beds, with bedding of blankets and furs. In these dwellings were to be found the sick, the aged, and the new born babes. Each little hut had its garden and its corn- field, which were carefully cultivated by the women. In these they raised quite a rich supply of corn, beans, melons, squashes, and other vegetables. They had also some fine orchards.
The avenging army was commissioned to destroy every thing. Fearfully it accomplished its work. The most awful devastation swept the whole land. It would seem that the terrified and flying
1
412
HISTORY OF OHIO.
Indians themselves, when caught sight of, men, women and chil- dren, were shot down as wolves would be shot by the hunter. This may have been deemed, under the circumstances, a necessary policy. But it was terribly cruel, though it must be admitted, that it proved effective. Major Jonathan Haskell, who was a prom- inent actor in these scenes, writes :
"We have marched through the Indian settlements for about sixty miles. We have destroyed several thousand acres of corn, beans, and all kinds of vegetables, and burned their houses, with their furniture and tools. A detachment has gone to Fort Recov- ery for a supply of provisions for the troops, and when it returns we shall march up the Miami, sixty miles to where the St. Mary's unites with the St. Joseph's, and destroy all the corn in that country."
It is said that even the British troops, in their inroads upon the white settlements during the Revolutionary War, were never guilty of atrocities more horrible than were inflicted by our armies upon these native inhabitants of the soil. Joseph Kelly, then a boy of twelve years, was residing with his aged adopted parents in a very pleasant Indian village, at the junction of the Auglaise and the St. Mary's Rivers. All the warriors were gone; only the aged men, the women and the children, remained. Joseph had found there a very happy home. One morning, just after sunrise, as he was playing with the little Indian boys and girls, whom he loved, an Indian runner came rushing into the village, and almost breathlessly announced that the Indians had been utterly de- feated by General Wayne, and that a large party of white men, on horseback, was rapidly approaching, burning every house and shooting every Indian, old and young, male and female, whom they could overtake.
Dreadful was the consternation into which the little village was thrown. Not a moment was to be lost. In another instant, the dragoons might appear, applying the torch and shooting the help- less people. Terror-stricken, and with loud wailings, mothers with their babes, the aged men and the sick, rushed to the river, sprang into the birch canoes, and paddled up the stream, to find refuge in the remote fastnesses of the woods. They abandoned every thing. They had scarcely a blanket to wrap around them in the chill night. Scarcely had the canoes disappeared beyond the curvatures of the stream ere the clatter of the horses was heard,
413
HISTORY OF OHIO.
as the avengers entered the doomed village. Had a single canoe remained in sight, it would certainly have been riddled by the bullets of the sharpshooters, and Joseph Kelly and Bill might have been slain by their own countrymen. The torch was applied to the village; every house was burned; every fruit-bearing tree was cut down; every garden and field was laid waste. The melons were just beginning to ripen, and rich squashes embellished the gardens. The vines were pulled up by the roots, and all such products of the soil were devoured by the horses or trampled under their feet.
When the Indians again cautiously returned to their desolated homes, even their imobility was softened, and they wept bitterly over the ruin which had overtaken them, and the still greater ruin impending. The autumnal season would soon pass away. Cold Winter would soon be upon them. They had no houses, no suf- ficient clothing, no tools, no food. Starvation and misery stared them in the face.
Their worst anticipations were more than realized. All suffered from cold and hunger; many perished in lingering wretchedness. Game was by no means sufficient to supply their wants. They were in the habit of laying up their winter's stores as regularly as the white people. Those who survived the Winter were barely kept alive by the few deer they could shoot, and fish they could catch.
Alas for man ! The most mournful of all themes is the history of the nations. War and woe have, since the fall, been the lot of humanity. How long, O Lord ! how long !
-
CHAPTER XXII.
MODERN CHIVALRY.
CHARACTER OF THE EARLY SETTLERS OF OHIO - JAMES MITCHELL VARNUM - HIS CHARACTER, APPEARANCE AND DRESS- HE REMOVES TO MARIETTA - HIS FAILING HEALTH-HIS LETTER TO HIS WIFE - WILLIAM DANA -COLONEL BATELLE - HIS BIRTH, EDUCATION AND CHARACTER - CATCHING A BEAR - MAJOR GOODALE - HIS FORESIGHT - HIS DISAPPEARANCE - DR. TRUE-CRUELTY OF PROWLING INDIANS-CAPTAIN HUBBELL - HIS HEROISM - CAREFUL PREPARATIONS - FEAR- FUL BATTLES -SAVAGES DEFEATED,
As WE have mentioned, the majority of the early pioneers in the settlement of Ohio were very noble men, intellectually, morally and religiously. They were generally men who revered the religion of Jesus Christ; who recognized God as our common father, and all men as brothers. In heart and life they wished to adopt the fundamental rule of Christianity in their intercourse with their fellow men, Do unto others as ye would that they should do unto you. They would have had no difficulty with the Indians but for the worthless, vagabond white men, who roamed the country as regardless of right as fiends from pandemonium would have been, and whom no laws could restrain.
Among these good men who aided in laying the foundations of the State of Ohio, James Mitchell Varnum deserves honorable mention. He was one of those in whom all the elements of man- hood seemed to be thoroughly developed. He had a kind heart, a mind highly cultivated, a devout Christian spirit, and physical energies which it would seem nothing could tire. Mr. Varnum was born in Dracut, Massachusetts, in 1749, and graduated at Brown University, at the age of twenty, with the first honors of his class. He was distinguished alike for his mathematical abili- ties, his classical attainments, and his extraordinary gymnastic skill. He was a very active and efficient officer in the Revolution-
415
HISTORY OF OHIO.
ary war, was very highly regarded by Washington, and attained the rank of brigadier general. At the close of the war he re- sumed the practice of law at East Greenwich, and attained great celebrity for his remarkable oratorical powers. In the year 1786 he was elected to Congress, where he more than sustained the reputation he had already gained as a man of uncommon talents and brilliant eloquence.
Much of the old English aristocratic feeling at that time per- vaded the colonies. There was generally a marked distinction between the dress of the so-called gentleman and the commoner. General Varnum always appeared elegantly dressed. The follow- ing is a description of his person and attire as seen on the floor of Congress :
"General Varnum appeared with a brick-colored coat, trimmed with gold lace; buckskin small clothes, with gold lace bands; silk stockings and boots; a high, delicate and white forehead, eyes prominent and of a dark hue, his complexion rather florid; some- what corpulent, well proportioned, and finely formed for strength and agility; large eyebrows; nose straight and rather broad; teeth perfectly white; a profuse head of hair, short on the forehead, turned up some, and deeply powdered and clubbed. When he took off his cocked hat he would lightly brush his hair forward, and with a fascinating smile take his seat."
It will be remembered that the Ohio Land Company originated with the disbanded officers of the revolutionary army. They had but little chance of obtaining any pay for their services unless they took it in land. General Varnum was appointed one of the directors of this company. When General Arthur St. Clair en- tered upon his office as Governor of the Northwestern Territory, General Varnum, Samuel H. Parsons and John Cleaves Symmes were appointed Judges of the Supreme Court. General Varnum immediately repaired to Marietta, where he arrived in June of 1788. In the fourth of July celebration at Fort Harmar, to which we have before alluded, General Varnum delivered the oration. It is said to have been a production of unusual eloquence, and was published by order of the directors of the Land Company.
Soon after the arrival of General Varnum at Marietta, his health began to fail, and alarming symptoms of consumption made their appearance. Though he rapidly grew more feeble, he devoted himself with much energy to the fulfillment of all his duties. His
3
416
HISTORY OF OHIO.
fine taste led him to exert himself to preserve those ancient re- mains at Marietta of a departed race, who must have inhabited the valley in ages long gone by. Ere long it became evident that his life was drawing to a close. From his dying bed he wrote to his absent wife the following letter. It has often been published as a fine specimen of elegant composition. It is worthy of record here, as illustrative of the character of the man and of the power of Christian faith to sustain one in the dread hour of departure from earth :
" My dearest and most estimable friend :
"I now address you from my sick chamber, and perhaps it will be the last letter that you will receive from me. My lungs are so far affected that it is impossible for me to recover but by exchange of air and a warm climate. I expect to leave this place on Sun- day or Monday next for the Falls of the Ohio. If I feel myself mended by the tour, I shall go no further; but if not, and my strength should continue, I expect to proceed to New Orleans, and from thence, by the West Indies, to Rhode Island. My phy- sicians, most of them, think the chances of recovery in my favor. However, I am not either elevated or depressed by the force of opinion, but shall meet my fate with humility and fortitude.
"I cannot, however, but indulge the hope that I shall again embrace my lovely friend in this world, and that we may glide smoothly down the tide of time for a few years, and enjoy together the more substantial happiness and satisfaction, as we have al- ready the desirable pleasures of life. It is now almost nineteen years since Heaven connected us by the tenderest and most sacred of ties ; and it is the same length of time that our friend- ship hath been increased by every rational and endearing motive. It is now stronger than death, and I am firmly persuaded will fol- low us into an existence of never-ending felicity.
" But, my lovely friend, the gloomy moment will arrive when we must part. And should it arrive during our present separation, my last, and only reluctant thought, will be employed about my dearest Martha. Life, my dearest friend, is but a bubble. It soon bursts, and is remitted to eternity. When we look back to the earliest recollections of youthful hours, it seems but the last period of our rest, and we appear to emerge from a night of slum- bers, to look forward to real existence. When we look forward,
417
HISTORY OF OHIO.
time appears as indeterminate as eternity, and we have no idea of its termination but by the period of our dissolution.
"What particular relation it bears to a future state, our general notions of religion cannot point out : we feel something constantly active within us, that is evidently beyond the reach of mortality; but whether it is a part of ourselves, or an emanation from the pure source of existence, or re-absorbed when death shall have finished his work, human wisdom cannot determine. Whether the demolition of the body introduces only a change in the man- ner of our being, or leaves it to progress infinitely, alternately ele- vated and depressed, according to the propriety of our conduct ; or whether we return to the common mass of unthinking matter, philosophy hesitates to decide.
"I know, therefore, but one source from whence can be derived complete consolation in a dying hour; and that is, the divine sys- tem contained in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. There life and im- mortality are brought to light. There we are taught that our existence is to be eternal; and, secure in an interest in the aton- ing merits of a bleeding Saviour, that we shall be inconceivable happy. A firm and unshaken faith in this doctrine must raise us above the doubts and fears that hang upon every other system, and enable us to view with a calm serenity the approach of the king of terrors, and to hold him as a kind and indulgent friend, speeding his shafts only to carry us the sooner to our everlasting home.
"But should there be a more extensive religion beyond the veil, and without the reach of mortal observation, the Christian religion is by no means shaken thereby, as it is not opposed to any principle that admits the perfect benevolence of the Deity. My only doubt is, whether the punishment threatened in the New Testament, is annexed to a state of unbelief which may be re- moved hereafter, and so a restoration take place, or whether the state of the mind at death irretrievably fixes its doom forever.
" I hope and pray that the Divine Spirit will give me such assur- ance of an acceptance with God, through the merits and sufferings of his Son, as to brighten the way to immediate happiness. Dry up your tears, my charming mourner, nor suffer this letter to give you too much disquietude. Consider the facts, at present, as in theory; but the sentiments such as will apply whenever the change may come.
418
HISTORY OF OHIO.
" I know that humanity must and will be indulged in its keenest griefs ; but there is no advantage in too deeply anticipating our inevitable sorrows. If I did not persuade myself that you would conduct yourself with becoming prudence and fortitude, upon this occasion, my own unhappiness would be greatly increased, and perhaps my disorder too; but I have so much confidence in your discretion as to unbosom my inmost soul.
"You must not expect to hear from me again, until the coming Spring, as the river will soon be shut up with ice, and there will be no communication from below, and if in a situation for the purpose, I will return as soon as practicable. Give my sincerest love to all those whom you hold dear. I hope to see them again, and love them more than ever.
"Adieu, my dearest friend, and while I fervently devote, in one undivided prayer, our immortal souls to the care, forgiveness, mercy, and all-prevailing grace of Heaven, in time and through eternity, I must bid you a long, long, long farewell,
"JAMES M. VARNUM."
Such were the thoughts and the utterances of a dweller in a log cabin, on the forest-covered banks of the Muskingum three-fourths of a century ago. There were many such men, in that band of pioneers of whom Ohio may justly feel proud. The disease of General Varnum made such rapid progress, that he was unable to leave Marietta. He died on the 8th of January, 1789, and was buried with all the marks of respect and affection which his noble character had elicited. His wife, Martha Childe, was a highly educated and accomplished woman, from one of the distinguished families of Rhode Island. She survived her husband forty-eight years.
In searching the annals of those ancient days we, now and then, catch a very vivid glimpse of the physical hardships which the settlers were called to endure. William Dana, from Worcester, Massachusetts, was captain of an artillery company in the Revo- ution. His means were limited, and he found it difficult to support a growing family from a New England farm. Accounts which he received from military associates who had emigrated to the Ohio, led him to follow them.
Leaving behind him at Amherst, New Hampshire, his wife and younger children, until he could make preparation to receive them, he took with him his two older boys, and reached Marietta the last
419
-
HISTORY OF OHIO.
of June, 1789. It was too late to plant corn. He however built a small log cabin, and with his boys, commenced making bricks, the first which were made in the territory. These were in great demand for chimneys, and thus he supplied his immediate wants.
The next year he brought out his family, and joined the little colony of Belprè, which was situated on very beautiful meadow- land, just above the head of what has since been called Blenner- hassett's Island. The first labor of these pioneers was to clear the land of the gigantic growth of forest trees which encumbered it. This left but little time to build a comfortable cabin, and the family were lodged in a mere shed, so small that all could not be accommodated in it at night. The two oldest boys slept in a covered shed.
Such were the humble beginnings of real prosperity. The climate was delightful. The land was fertile. Crops were abun- dant, and with the rapidly increasing emigration, brought good prices. We soon find Captain Dana in a well-built and well- furnished frame house, surrounded with fertile fields and a thrifty forest. Eight sons and three daughters in health and happiness . surrounded his amply-provided table.
Colonel Battelle was another of these marked men whose virtues still live in the institutions which they established and maintained. He was born in Dedham, Massachusetts; the son of Christian parents, and was educated at Cambridge University, designing to enter the ministry. The Revolutionary struggle called him to the field of battle, where he attained the rank of colonel. At the close of the war he became partner in a book-store with Isaiah Thomas, of Worcester, and married Anna Durant, daughter of a rich merchant of Boston.
On the formation of the Ohio Company, he became an associ- ate, and was appointed one of their agents. It took him six weeks to effect the passage of the rugged defiles of the Alleghany moun- tains. He reached Marietta the latter part of May, 1788, and spent the Summer in erecting a comfortable dwelling for his family, who remained in Boston. The latter part of October, he recrossed the mountains to meet his wife and children at Balti- more, and conduct them in their long and toilsome journey over the Alleghanies. Mrs. Battelle, who had been nurtured amid all the luxuries of one of the most opulent families in Boston, found the journey excessively fatiguing. Having reached the Alleghany
. 420
HISTORY OF OHIO.
River, they abandoned their wagons, and, with several other fami- lies from New England, embarked in a large flatboat, to float down to Marietta. They reached their destination in December. The Winter passed very pleasantly away. There were then many gentlemen and ladies of high worth and culture occupying the log cabins at the mouth of the Muskingum. Governor St. Clair was there, with Judges Varnum, Parsons and Symmes. Many of the officers who garrisoned the Forts Harmar and Campus Martius, were men of science and refinement. The weather chanced to be unusually mild and salubrious. The Indians were all friendly, and the remarkable assemblage of chieftains and warriors from many tribes added much to the novel attractions of the place. Game was abundant, and there was no peril in pursuing it at any distance from the forts. The river was unincumbered with ice, and boats with provisions and all needful articles were continually floating down from Pittsburgh. Such are the blessings of peace.
It was during this Winter that the plan was formed for estab- lishing a new settlement, at Belprè or Beautiful Prairie. On the first of May, Colonel Battelle, with two of his sons, and another very distinguished emigrant, Griffin Greene, embarked at Marietta in a large canoe, with tools and provisions, to commence opera- tions there. Others very soon joined them. Two strong block- houses were built, sufficiently capacious to accommodate them all. Not long after this, before any families had moved to the place, a party of officers from Fort Harmar, with quite a number of ladies from Marietta, took a very splendid barge, propelled by twelve rowers, and descended the river to pay their friends a visit. These were the first white females who had ever set foot on the soil of Belprè. They had a very merry time, nothing occurring to mar their enjoyment.
As the party set out on its return to the barge, Colonel Bat- telle, with a few of his friends, followed in a light birch canoe. While on the way, a huge bear was seen swimming across the river. Rapidly plying their paddles in the canoe, they soon overtook him. He was a very formidable animal, with teeth and claws which warned all to keep at a distance. One blow from his paws might have overturned the boat, or rent open its side. It would seem that there was no rifle in the canoe. It was neces- eary to approach the creature with extreme caution. Colonel Battelle seized him by the tail, and by raising his haunches, threw
42I
HISTORY OF OHIO.
his head under water. The half-suffocated animal was soon dis- patched with an ax. He weighed over three hundred pounds, and his savory flesh afforded several very dainty feasts to the captors.
The colony of Belpre rapidly increased, and the celebrated fort called " Farmer's Castle," was built. The block-house, which Colonel Battelle had built for his family, occupied the northeast corner of the fort. A lower room of the building was fitted up for divine worship, and these religiously-disposed men had ser- vices there every Sabbath. The colonel's son, Ebenezer, a lad of fourteen years, who was drummer to the garrison, every Sabbath marched through the little settlement, summoning the inhabitants to the church. The colonel himself often officiated as chaplain. He frequently preached from the fullness of his own heart. Sometimes he read a sermon of some standard divine. Thus the Sabbath was honored, and the community ennobled. But as Satan entered Eden, so war came, eventually, to mar all this hap- piness.
Major Nathan Goodale was born in Brookfield, Massachusetts. In July, 1788, he arrived at the mouth of the Muskingum, with his family and several others from Massachusetts. It is worthy of notice, as illustrative of the foresight of the man, that when he left his native state in one of the strong, canvas-covered Ohio wagons, so well known in those days, instead of taking a team of horses or of oxen, as all others did, he selected three of the best cows and one of the finest bulls, and trained them to work to- gether in a team. With these he drew his wagon, with his family and household goods, the whole distance across the mountains, to Wheeling. Here he took a boat, and with cattle, wagon and family, floated down the Ohio. The journey was accomplished with as much ease, and in as short a time, as could have been the case with the best oxen. He had also the advantage of a supply of milk for his family while on the road. The stock from this breed has been widely spread. The cattle are held in high esti- mation, for their graceful forms, gentle dispositions, and great abundance of milk.
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.