History of Cumberland and Adams counties, Pennsylvania. Containing history of the counties, their townships, towns, villages, schools, churches, industries, etc.; portraits of early settlers and prominent men; biographies; history of Pennsylvania, statistical and miscellaneous matter, etc., etc, Part 31

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USA > Pennsylvania > Adams County > History of Cumberland and Adams counties, Pennsylvania. Containing history of the counties, their townships, towns, villages, schools, churches, industries, etc.; portraits of early settlers and prominent men; biographies; history of Pennsylvania, statistical and miscellaneous matter, etc., etc > Part 31
USA > Pennsylvania > Cumberland County > History of Cumberland and Adams counties, Pennsylvania. Containing history of the counties, their townships, towns, villages, schools, churches, industries, etc.; portraits of early settlers and prominent men; biographies; history of Pennsylvania, statistical and miscellaneous matter, etc., etc > Part 31

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Early in 1776 a number of British prisoners captured on the northern fron- tier and in the east were confined at Lancaster, but by order of Congress they were removed in March, half to York and half to Carlisle. At that time Lieuts. Andre, Despard and Anstruther were taken to Carlisle; and, as stated by early writers, were confined in a stone building which stood on the east side of Hanover Street, on Lot 161. These prisoners were exchanged in the latter part of the same year, most of them being sent to New York, Novem- ber 28, "under the escort of Lieut. - Col. John Creigh and Ephraim Steel, two members of the committee of inspection, with their servants and their ser- vants' wives and their baggage, by way of Reading and Trenton to the near- est camp of the United States in New Jersey." With the subsequent fate of Andre, promoted to captain and then to major, everybody is familiar. A large number of the Hessians captured at Trenton, December 25, 1776, were sent to Carlisle, and while here were set at work building barracks, which became noted in later years as a school for cavalry training and in other ways, and stood on the site now occupied by the Indian school.

HISTORY OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY.

"About the Ist of August, 1777," says Dr. Wing, "John Penn, James Hamilton, Benjamin Chew, and about thirty others who had been officers un- der the royal and proprietary government, and declined to take the oath of allegiance to the new government, were arrested in Philadelphia, received by the sheriff of Reading and by the sheriff of Cumberland County, and escorted through this valley to Staunton, Va., where they were detained until near the conclusion of the war."

In April. 1777. Gen. Armstrong, of Carlisle, was placed in command of the militia of the State; resigning his position as first brigadier-general in the Continental Army, he was appointed first brigadier-general and a month after- ward major-general of the State of Pennsylvania. Though advanced in years he entered vigorously upon the work of protecting the State against the enemy, and erected and maintained defensive works along the Delaware River. Portions of his command did splendid service at Brandywine and Germantown. Five hundred men or more enlisted and went to the fort from Cumberland County early in 1775. The county was nearly bereft of men to carry on neces- sary business or to guard the prisoners which from time to time were sent to Carlisle. It was difficult to provide arms and ammunition until France came to the aid of the colonies in 1775. "Hence the efforts in the beginning of the conflict to establish at every available town shops for the manufacture of rifles, muskets and even cannon. Old arms were repaired and altered so that even fowling-pieces could be used for deadlier purposes, and bayonets were prepared. Armories are spoken of in Carlisle and Shippensburg at which hundreds of rifles were got in readiness at one time. A foundry was started at Mount Holly and perhaps at Boiling Springs, at which cannon were cast, and at which William Denning [ Deming ?] was known to have worked at his inventions. Aware of the many failures which had followed all previous at- tempts, under the most favorable conditions, to make cannon of wrought iron; he is said to have persevered until he constructed at least two of such uniform quality and of such size and calibre as to have done good service in the Ameri- can Army. One of them is reported to have been taken by the British at the battle of Brandywine, and now kept as a trophy in the Tower of London, and another to have been for a long time and perhaps to be now, at the barracks near Carlisle. (William Denning was a resident of Chester County when the war broke out; enlisted in a company and was its second lieutenant for nine months: was a blacksmith by trade, and very ingenious; was placed at head of a band of artificers at Philadelphia, but removed to Carlisle upon the ap- proach of the British Army; iron from the South Mountain was made into gun- barrels, bayonets, etc., and Denning had a chance to exercise his ingenuity to his greatest desire. In welding the heavy bars of iron for bands and hoops to his wrought iron guns, few could be induced to assist him on account of the great heat. He made four and six-pounders and attempted a twelve-pounder, but never completed it. He resided at Big Spring after the war. and died December 19, 1830, aged ninety-four years). So great was the destitution of lead for bullets, that the council of safety requested all families possessing plates, weights for clocks or windows, or any other articles made of lead, to give them up to the collectors appointed to demand them, with the promise that they should be replaced by substitutes of iron. Payments were acknowl- edged for considerable quantities of lead thus collected in this county. Every part of the county was explored to obtain sulphur and other substances in suf- ficient quanties for the manufacture of gunpowder. Jonathan Kearsley, of Carlisle, was for some months employed in learning the art and in the attempt to manufacture saltpetre out of earths impregnated with nitrous particles in

HISTORY OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY.

Dauphin County. After nearly three months of experiments he wrote that the amount obtained was not sufficient to warrant his continuance at the work in that vicinity. Common salt finally became so scarce that Congress took upon itself the business of supplying the people as well as the soldiers. Before the construction of those vast establishments which have since been created for the manufacture of these articles, the whole population was dependent on for- eign countries, and now were cut off from all importation of it. Near the close of 1776 a law was passed against those who endeavored to monopolize the sale of salt, and a large purchase of it was made by Congress itself. A cer- tain quota was assigned to each State, and then to each county under the direction of the State authorities. The proportion which fell to Cumberland County (November 23, 1776) was eighty bushels. On its arrival a certain por- tion was delivered to each householder who applied for it with an order from the county committee, 'on his paying the prime cost of 15 shillings a bushel, expenses of carriage only added.' "

August 17, 1776, by authority of a resolution of the Assembly passed a month previous, the committee of inspection and observation for Cumberland County drew an order on the council of safety for £200 for the relief of the poor families of associators called into service. The greater part of the grain raised in the county was sent away for supplies or distilled into liquor, and the men were so scarce it was difficult to harvest and thresh the grain. Gen. Armstrong, noting this condition of affairs, wrote on the 17th of February, 1777: "From the best information that I can get, the rye in both this and the county of York is almost all distilled, as is also considerable quantities of wheat, and larger still of the latter bought up for the same purpose; nor can we doubt that Lancaster and other counties are going on in the same destruc- tive way, so that in a few months Pennsylvania may be scarce of bread for her own inhabitants. Liquor is already 10 shillings per gallon, wheat will im- mediately be the same per bushel, and if the complicated demon of avarice and infatuation is not suddenly changed or cast out, he will raise them each to twenty!"

To Col. Ephraim Blaine, of Cumberland County, as assistant quartermas- ter-general, under Gen. Greene, quartermaster-general, was due great praise and much credit for his aid in times of financial depression during the war. His flouring-mill on the Conodoguinet, near Carlisle, was enlarged and kept in operation to its utmost capacity for the benefit of the suffering army and without profit to himself. His extensive fortune was ever at the disposal of his country, and by his earnest and careful management he kept the soldiers from actual starvation, more than once in the face of pronounced opposition to his measures. His name became dear to his countrymen. The schemes of Con- gress to provide money led to disastrous results, and many inhabitants of Cum- berland County were very seriously embarrassed or completely broken up finan- cially for years. Many dark days were experienced by the people of the struggling republic during the war, and at times even mutiny and violence were advocated or attempted; the Indian troubles of 1778 and succeeding years brought to mind the terrible scenes of days gone by, and soldiers from the county were sent with others for the punishment of the marauding mur- derers. The sad end of the expedition of Col. Crawford, in 1782 against the western Indians, called numbers into the service for vengeance, for Crawford was known and loved in the valley, but the British recalled their Indian allies from the frontiers of the northwest, and the troops organized to march against them under Gens. Irvine and Potter were disbanded.

The peace of 1783 brought relief to the land, and the war cloud was lifted.

HISTORY OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY.

March 3, 1781, Samuel Laird and William Lyon were appointed auditors of depreciated accounts, " to settle with officers and soldiers in the county the amount which should be allowed on their pay for the depreciated value of the notes paid them." Gen. William Irvine, of Carlisle, was made one of the board of censors October 20, 1783, from Cumberland County, as was also James Me- Lene, of Chambersburg. The only meeting was at Philadelphia November 10, 1753, for the new constitution (1790) abolished it.

The Whiskey Insurrection, 1791. - When it became evident that some source of revenne must be looked to besides the duties on imported goods, and Con- gress decided to lovy a tax (of 4 pence per gallon) on distilled spirits (March 3. 1791), believing that article to be of the least necessity, the tax was violently opposed by people in the interior and western parts of Pennsylvania, where it bore with most severity. There had been no market for the great quantities of grain raised, and it was largely used to fatten cattle and hogs upon. When distilled it was more easily transported over the mountains and found a ready market, and in numerous sections every fifth or sixth farmer had a still-house. [The consumption was not all away from home, either. - Ed. ] The excise law was felt to be oppressive, as most of the money brought into the region was sent out in the shape of excise duties. The people hoped the law would be unexeented and finally repealed, and the collectors were often threatened, intimidated, and as in the instance of Pittsburgh, roughly handled and their property destroyed. The excitement spread and the fury grew by the aid of mass meetings, pole raisings, and the like, and steps were taken for an armed resistance to the authorities should a force be sent against the disturbers. Braddock's Field, ten miles cast of Pittsburgh, was designated as a place of rendezvous for the rebellious troops. The general sympathy of even the most prominent men was with those who openly opposed the law, but they did not. as the end shows, believe in a resort to arms. President Washington issued proclamations. September 15, 1792, and Angust 7, 1793, requiring insurgents to disperse and directing that troops should be raised to march at a moment's warning before the 15th of September in the latter year. Those who had been opposed to the law, but hoped a few trials of aggressors would lead to its repeal, now joined hands with the Government. An army of 12, 900 men was called for from the four States most interested, and the quota of Pennsylvania was 5,200. Gen. William Irvine, of Carlisle, was one of a number of commission- ers appointed to confer with such deputies as the deputies might appoint, but they returned with an adverse or unfavorable report, though they were fol- lowed by commissioners from the insurgents who were more reasonable than those with whom they had conferred. The army was put in motion and final- ly reached Carlisle. The softened commissioners met the President and com- mander-in-chief at that point October 10, 1794, and assured him that it was unnecessary to send the military to obtain submission and order, but he do- clined to stay the march of the army, though promising that no violence would be offered if the people would return to their allegiance. Carlisle was the place of rendezvous for the army. Cumberland County furnished 363 men and officers who were brigaded with others from York, Lancaster and Franklin Counties, under Brig.Gen. James Chambers, of Franklin County. They encamped on "an extensive common near the town (Carlisle) said to be admirably fitted for the purpose."

A large number of distilleries then undoubtedly existed in Cumberland County, where those opposed to the law had not been over-cautious in making remarks or in demonstrations of disfavor. A liberty pole had been erected in the Public Square on the night of September 8, 1794, with the words,

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HISTORY OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY.

"Liberty and No Excise, & Whisky," thereon. A few friends of law and

order cut it down the next morning, and the excitement was great. A large number of country people, some bearing arms, came in a few days later, one afternoon, and put up a large pole with the words, "Liberty and Equality." They were mostly of the poorer class, although the connty treasurer was a leader among them and distributed money to buy whisky. Deeds of violence were offered occasionally, the insurgents patroling the town to prevent the pole being taken down. Col. Ephraim Blaine was pursued and fired upon by three of them while conducting his sister, Mrs. Lyon, out of town, but fortu- nately withont injury. Threats were made against the militia should they turn out, and affairs were rather desperate. Gen. Irvine, as commissioner, attend- ed strictly to the business of his office, saying, "I make a rule of doing what I think is right, and trust to events for consequences." The presence of troops in Carlisle brought the people to their senses. Gov. Mifflin arrived on the 1st of October, and in the evening delivered a stirring address in the Presbyterian Church. His arrival was in advance of the army, which reached Carlisle October 3. A writer says "the beloved Washington" approached in a traveling dress, attended by his secretary, Alexander Hamilton, and proceeds: "As he passed our troops he pulled off his hat and, in the most respectful manner, bowed to the officers and men, and in this manner passed the line, who were (as you may suppose) affected by the sight of their chief, for whom each individual seemed to show the affectionate regard that would have been paid to an honored parent. As he entered the town the inhabitants seemed anxious to see this very great and good man; crowds were assembled in the streets, but their admiration was silent. The President passed to the front of the camp, where the troops were assembled in front of the tents; the line of artillery, horse and infantry appeared in the most perfect order; the greatest silence was observed. The spectacle was grand, interesting and affecting; ev- ery man as he passed along poured forth his wishes for the preservation of this most valuable of their fellow-citizens. Here you might see the aged veteran, the mature soldier and the zealous youth assembled in defense of that govern- ment which must (in turn) prove the protection of their persons, family and property." The court house was illuminated in the evening, and a transpar- ency was prepared, bearing the inscriptions: "Washington is ever triumphant." "The reign of the laws," and " Woe to Anarchists." President Washington while here was the guest of Col. Ephraim Blaine. A number of the princi- pal inhabitants presented him the following address on Monday of the week following:

CARLISLE, October 17, 1794.

TO GEORGE WASHINGTON, ESQ., PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES:

Sir: We, the subscribers, inhabitants of this borough, ou behalf of ourselves, our fel- low-citizens, friends to good order, government and the laws, approach you at this time to express our sincere admiration of those virtues which have been uniformly exerted with so much success for the happiness of America, and which at this critical period of impend- ing foreign and domestic troubles have been manifested with distinguished lustre.

Though we deplore the cause which has collected in this borough all classes of virtuous citizens, yet it affords us the most heartfelt satisfaction to meet the father of our country and brethren in arms, distinguished for their patriotism, their love of order and attach- ment to the constitution and laws; and while on the one hand we regret the occasion which has brought from their homes men of all situations, who have made sacrifices un- equaled in any other country of their private interests to the public good, yet we are con- soled by the consideration that the citizens of the United States have evinced to our enemies abroad and the foes of our happy constitution at home that they not only have the will but possess the power to repel all foreign invaders and to crush all domestic traitors.

The history of the world affords us too many instances of the destruction of free gov- ernmeuts hy factious and unprincipled men. Yet the present insurrection and opposition

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HISTORY OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY.

to government is exceeded by none, either for its cnuseless origin or for the extremo malignity und wickedness with which it has been exeented.

The uuexampled clemency of our councils in their endeavors to bring to a sense of duty the western insurgents, and the ungrateful returns which have been made by that de- luded people, have united all good men in one common effort to restore order and obe- dience to the laws, and to punish those who have neglected to avail themselves of and have spurned at the most tender and humane offers that have ever been made to rebels and traitors.

We have viewed with pain the great Industry, art and misrepresentations which have been practiced to delude our fellow-citizens. We trust that the efforts of the General Government, the combination of the good and virtuous against the vicious and factious, will cover with confusion the malevolent disturbers of the publie peace, and afford to the well disposed the certainty of protection to their persons and property. The sword of jus- tice in the hands of our beloved President can only be considered an object of terror by the wicked, and will be looked up to by the good and virtuous as their safegard and pro- tection.

We bless that Providence which has preserved a life so valuable through so many important scenes, and we pray that He will continue to direct and prosper the measures adopted by you for the security of our internal peace and the stability of our Government, and that after a life of continued usefulness and glory you may be rewarded with eternal felicity.

There was no doubt of the sincerity of the foregoing address, and Wash- ington, whom it could not fail to touch with a feeling of pleasure, responded as follows:

GENTLEMEN: I thank you sincerely for your affectionate address. I feel as I ought what is personal to me. and I can not but be particularly pleased with the enlightened and patriotic attachment which is manifested towards our happy constitution and the laws.

When we look around and behold the universally acknowledged prosperity which blesses every part of the United States, facts no less unequivocal than those which are the Inmented occasion of our present meeting were necessary to persuade us that any portion of our fellow-citizens could be so deficient in discernment or virtue as to attempt to dis- turb a situation which, instead of murmurs and tumults, calls for our warmest gratitude to heaven, and our earnest endeavors to preserve and prolong so favored a lot.

Let us hope that the delusion cannot be lasting, that reason will speedily regain her empire, and the laws their just authority where they have lost it. Let the wise and the virtuous unite their efforts to reclaim the misguided. and to detect and defeat the arts of the factious. The union of good men is a basis on which the security of our internal peice and the stability of our government muy safely rest. It will always prove an ade- quate rampart against the vicious and disorderly.

In any case in which it may be indispensable to raise the sword of justice against oh- stinate offenders. I shall deprecate the necessity of deviating from a favorite aim, to estab- lish the authority of the laws in the affections rather than in the fears of any.

GEORGE WASHINGTON.

Before Washington arrived at Carlisle, the accidental discharge of a sol- dier's pistol killed the brother of a man whom a party of soldiers were pur- suing because of his action in conjunction with the insurgents, and another countryman was killed in a quarrel with a soldier. The circumstances were regretted by the President and his secretary (Gen. Hamilton). Several who had acted with the insurrectionists were arrested and lodged in jail at Carlisle, but they appeared to be little concerned at the consequences of their proceed- ings.

Andrew Holmes, Esq., a member of a company from Carlisle, in the com- maud of Gen. Chambers, kept a privato journal in which he recorded the movement of the troops, and under date of Sunday, October 11, 1794, 2 o'clock P. M .. he wroto as follows: "The Cirlisle Light Infantry, together with from 3.000) to 4,00 ) troops, cavalry, rifle and infantry, marched from Carlisle to Mount Rock. The officers of the Carlisle Infantry were as follows: Captain, Gorge Stevenson; first lieutenant. Robert Miller; secon l-lientenant, William Miller; ensign. Thomas Creigh; orderly sergeant, William Armor; sergeant-mijor, George Hackett; drum-major, Jam 's Holmes; and fifty-two privates, among whom were Thomas Duncan, David Watts, Robert Duncan,

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HISTORY OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY.

John Lyon, Nathaniel Weakley, George Pattison, Charles Pattison, William Andrew, Abraham Holmes, Archibald Ramsey, Joseph Clark, William Dun- bar, Archibald McAllister, William Crane, Jacob Fetter, Archibald Loudon, Thomas Foster, Jacob Housenet, George Wright, Thomas Wallace, Francis Gibson, Joseph and Michael Egolf, Robert McClure and William Levis. At Sideling Hill Capt. Stevenson was made a major, and William Levis, quarter- master."

The following brigade order, December 4, 1794, is from the same journal :

The General congratulates the troops which he has the honor to command, on their ar- rival at Strasburg, * and feelingly anticipates the pleasure which the worthy citizen soldiers and himself shall have in the company of their nearest connections. He also has the pleasure of announcing to the brigade the entire approbation of the commander-in-chief for their orderly conduct and strict discipline, which reflects the highest honor on both offi- cers and soldiers. He is likewise happy in assuring his fellow-citizens that their soldierly behavior during the whole campaign has merited his highest acknowledgments and as they have supported the laws of their country he rests assured that they will, when they have retired to private life, support civil society in every point of view. As the worthy men who stepped forward in support of the happiness of their country and the support of the Con- stitution of the Federal Government are to deposit their arms in this town to-morrow, the commanding officers of the regiments composing the brigade will see that fair inventories of every article are made to Mr. Samuel Riddle, brigade quartermaster, who is to give re- ceipts for such delivery. And the quartermaster of the brigade is to detain a sufficient number of wagons to transport the arms to the place pointed out in the orders of the com- mander-in-chief of the 17th ult. The officers commanding the several corps will meet to- morrow morning to certify to the men as to their time of service and the balance due and to becon e due, agreeable to General Irvine's orders of the 30th of November.

By order of

GEN. CHAMBERS. WILLIAM Ross, Adjutant.

The company of Carlisle infantry was mustered out of service and arrived at home December 5, 1794. Thus ended the famous "Whiskey Insurrection of 1794."

The following account of Washington's visit is from a recent account pub- lished by George R. Prowell in the Gettysburg Compiler :

" Much has been written that is inaccurate concerning the visit of Gen. Washington to western Pennsylvania for the purpose of quelling the so-called Whisky Insurrection in that section of our State in 1794. An original record of the facts and incidents of that famous trip having lately come into my pos- session, and in a condensed form, I feel a pleasure in hereby furnishing them to the readers of the Compiler.

" President Washington, accompanied by a portion of his cabinet, left Phil- adelphia, then the capital of the United States, for the west via Reading, on Wednesday, October 1, 1794. He reached Harrisburg on the afternoon of Fri- day, October 3, when he was presented with an address by the burgesses, to which he replied the next morning. He reached Carlisle at 12 o'clock, noon, October 4. The town was the place of rendezvous for the Pennsylvania and New Jersey troops. and he remained in Carlisle from Saturday, October 4, to

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Author: Publication date: Publisher: W. Taylor Number of Pages: 1280

Author:
Publication date:
Publisher: W. Taylor
Number of Pages: 1280