History of Washington County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 74

Author: Crumrine, Boyd, 1838-1916; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Hungerford, Austin N
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia : H.L. Everts & Co.
Number of Pages: 1216

USA > Pennsylvania > Washington County > History of Washington County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 74

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285

THE WHISKEY INSURRECTION.

taverns closed, but the landlords were called on, and willingly set out their whiskey free of charge. Large quantities of liquor were furnished by others of the inhabitants, and H. H. Brackenridge said the amount furnished by him individually was four barrels. "I thought it better," he says, "to be employed in ex- tinguishing the fire of their throats than of my house, and most other persons thought in the same manner."

Immediately after the entrance of the army into the town the men of the Pittsburgh battalion (who marched in the rear) left their places, and set them- selves actively at work carrying water to the place where the other troops were halted. "Members of the committee," says Brackenridge, " set the example by carrying water and whiskey to these 'Whiskey Boys,' as they have since been called." It appears that there was liquor in plenty, and furnished with- out stint. The quantity consumed by four thousand five hundred thirsty and excited men must have been enormous, and it is a wonder that in their semi-intox- ! ication they could have been prevented from firing the town, as had been so freely threatened. But this desirable object was accomplished, and beyond the thorough frightening of the inhabitants very little serious damage was done during the brief stay of the " army."

There were some of the leaders (in fact, nearly all of them) who did not wish to have the town destroyed. It is certain that Major-General Bradford was of this number, for if he had wished to see it burned, the lightest word from him would have caused the torch 1 to be applied. Another, Col. James Marshel, of Washington, was in an agony of mind, fearing that it would be done by the half-drunken riflemen in spite of his efforts to prevent it. He with others co-oper- ated most earnestly with the leading people of Pitts- burgh to get the troops across the Monongahela to the south side as soon as possible. If the water had been high it would have taken many hours to cross them, for only three or four flat-boats could be collected from the ferries as a means of transportation ; but the river was at so low a stage that it could be forded by the mounted men, who formed the greater part of the army. These were piloted across by H. H. Bracken- ridge, who knew the fording-place, a short distance above the mouth of the Allegheny. Meanwhile, the few boats were being used for the transportation of the infantry, and before sunset nearly the entire army had been crossed in safety to the south side of the Monongahela. The boats were returned to the north side, and the citizens of Pittsburgh breathed freer, though their apprehensions were by no means entirely removed, for there still remained on the north side nearly two hundred of the insurgents, who could not be induced to cross the river, being determined to re- main overnight in the town, and any commotion raised or shots fired by these, indicating, as it would, a collision between them and the citizens, would cause the horsemen of the main body to return from the ! in the insurrection.

south side, in which case the consequences would doubtless have been deplorable.

During the night the men who were on the south side of the river set fire to the buildings of Maj. Kirk- patrick, on the bluff opposite Pittsburgh, and suc- ceeded in destroying his barn at that place, though the dwelling was saved. Meanwhile a part of the men not included in the body which had been enticed across the Monongahela had become somewhat riotous in Pittsburgh, and set fire to the town residence of | Maj. Kirkpatrick. It had been their intention to de- · stroy his house, as well as those of Neville, Gibson, and others, but the consummation of this design had been prevented, largely by the interference of Col. Marshel, Col. Edward Cook,1 and Andrew McFarlane, brother of Maj. McFarlane, who was killed in the attack on Neville's house at Bower Hill, two weeks before. A company dressed in butternut-dyed hunt- ing-shirts and under command of a Capt. Riddle were foremost in this attempt to burn Kirkpatrick's house. If they had succeeded in it, there is little doubt that the principal part of the town would have been burned ; but after the quelling of this outbreak the night passed without any further disturbance. In the following morning the main body of the host that had bivouacked on the opposite side of the Mononga- hela marched southward from the river, and long before sunset on that Sabbath-day the last stragglers of the rearmost bands had crossed the stream from Pittsburgh and disappeared from the vicinity.

An account of the turbulent proceedings at Brad- dock's Field and Pittsburgh was forwarded without delay to the State and national authorities, and on the 7th of August the President of the United States issued a proclamation, reciting in its preamble that " combinations to defeat the execution of the laws laying duties upon spirits distilled within the United States, and upon stills, have from the time of the commencement of those laws existed in some of the western parts of Pennsylvania, . . . that many per- sons in the said western parts of Pennsylvania have at length been hardy enough to perpetrate acts which I am advised amount to treason, being overt acts of levying war against the United States," and com-

1 Concerning this affair, the following card was published in the Pitts- burgh Gazette : "We, the undersigned, on behalf of ourselves and the great body of the column that marched from Braddock's Field on the 3d of August, 1794, think it necessary to express our disapprobation of the disorderly proceeding of those of the troops who were concerned in setting fire to the house of Abraham Kirkpatrick, on the hill opposite the town of Pittsburgh, also of the attempt made by others of burning his house in the town, as these acts were not within the sentence of the committee of volunteers in Braddock's Field, and therefore there could be no authority for carrying them into effect. We consider it as a blemish on the good order of the march of the column through the town of Pittsburgh and their cantonment in the neighborhood of it. It has been endeavored to be removed as much as possible by repaying the tenant of Kirkpatrick's his damages." The signatures to this card of explanation and disclaimer were headed by that of Edward Cook, which was followed by those of Col. Marshel and thirteen others prominent

286

HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

manding "all persons being insurgents, as aforesaid, and all others whom it may concern," to disperse and retire peaceably to their respective abodes on or before the 1st of September following ; moreover, warning all persons "against aiding, abetting, or comforting the perpetrators of the aforesaid treason- able acts, and requiring all officers and other citizens, according to their respective duties and the laws of the land, to exert their utmost endeavors to prevent and suppress such dangerous proceedings." At the same time the President called for troops to be raised and equipped in the States of Pennsylvania, Mary- land, Virginia, and New Jersey, and to be held in readiness to march at shortest notice, for the purpose of suppressing the insurrection and enforcing the law. The quotas of the States were assigned as fol- lows :

Infantry.

Cavalry.

Artillery.

Total.

Pennsylvania ...

4,500

500

200

5,200

New Jersey.

1,500

500

100

2,100

Maryland.

2,000

200

150

2,350

Virginia ..

3,000

300

.....

3,300

11,000

1,500

450

12,950

On the same day Governor Mifflin, of Pennsylva- nia, issued his proclamation directing that the State's quota of men be armed and equipped as speedily as possible, " and to be held in readiness to march at a moment's warning," and a second proclamation was issued calling together the Assembly of the State in special session. Previously (on the 6th of August) the Governor had appointed Chief Justice Mckean and Gen. William Irvine to proceed immediately to the disaffected counties, to ascertain the facts in reference to the recent acts of violence and lawless gatherings, and, if practicable, to induce the people to submit to the law.

The President, on the day next following the issu- ance of his proclamation, appointed James Ross, United States senator, Jasper Yeates, associate judge Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, and William Brad- ford, Attorney-General of the United States, com- missioners on the part of the United States, with full instructions and ample powers, to repair forthwith to the western counties, for the purpose of conferring, at their discretion, with individuals or bodies of men, "in order to quiet and extinguish the insurrection."

The call for a meeting of delegates from the town- ships of the four western counties of Pennsylvania and the neighboring counties of Virginia, adopted and issued by the Mingo Creek meeting of July 23d, has been mentioned. This was supplemented by an- other call, issued by Maj .- Gen. Bradford at Braddock's Field on the 1st of August, in the following circular letter :1

1 " Immediately after the Mingo Creek meeting, Bradford wrote to the principal persons in the neighboring counties of Virginia, pressing them in the most urgent manner to send delegates to the meeting which was appointed to be held at Parkinson's Ferry. His sending this letter, and the style in which it was written, indubitably proves the improvement

"To the Inhabitants of Monongahela, Virginia :

" GENTLEMEN,-I presume you have heard of the spirited opposition given to the excise law in this State. Matters have been so brought to pass here that all are under the necessity of bringing their minds to a final conclusion. This has been the ques- tion amongst us some days, 'Shall we disapprove of the conduct of those engaged against Neville, the excise officer, or approve?' Or, in other words, 'Shall we suffer them to fall a sacrifice to Federal persecution, or shall we support them ?' On the result of this business we have fully deliberated, and have deter- mined, with head, heart, hand, and voice, that we will support the opposition to the excise law. The crisis is now come, submission or opposition : we are determined in the opposition. We are determined in future to act agreeably to system; to form ar- rangements guided by reason, prudence, fortitude, and spirited conduct. We have proposed a general meeting of the four counties of Pennsylvania, and have invited our brethren in the neighboring counties in Virginia to come forward and join us in council and deliberation in this important crisis, and conclude upon measures interesting to the western counties of Pennsylvania and Virginia. A notification of this kind may be seen in the Pittsburgh paper. Parkin- son's Ferry is the place proposed as the most central, and the 14th of August the time. We solicit you by all the ties that an union of interests can suggest to come forward and join us in our deliberations. The cause is common to us all. We invite you to come, even should you differ with us in opinion. We wish you to hear our reasons influencing our conduct."

The events of the first days of August at Braddock's Field and Pittsburgh and of the two or three succeeding weeks seemed to mark the culmination of the popular frenzy on the subject of the excise law, and from the 15th of July to the last of August was the period of the greatest excitement that exhibited itself during the insurrection. During the interval of time be- tween the great muster at Braddock's and the day ap- pointed for the meeting at Parkinson's Ferry, great numbers of "liberty-poles" were erected by the in- surgents in various parts of the four counties, and upon these were hoisted flags, bearing such inscrip- tions as "DEATH TO TRAITORS," "LIBERTY AND NO EXCISE." Few persons were found hardy enough to refuse assistance in the erection of these poles, for to do so was to be branded as an enemy to the cause, and a fit subject for the vengeance of Tom the Tinker. One of these "liberty-poles" was erected in the town

he designed to make of the Parkinson congress. His robbing the mail and directing the rendezvous at Braddock's Field were calculated to in- flame the minds of the people previously to that meeting and increase the number of those who would be rendered desperate by their crimes. In this he was but too successful, . . . and by these means the infatua- tion was vastly extended, and the number of offenses was increased after the meeting at Mingo Creek, and before that at Parkinson's Ferry." --- Findley.

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THE WHISKEY INSURRECTION.

of Washington on the 24th of August, its raising being attended by scenes of great excitement and commotion. Similar poles were erected at about the same time at a great number of places in different parts of the county. They stood, bearing their threatening flags and inscrip- tions, until the tide of insurrection began to turn before the menace of military force, and then those who had raised them were glad enough to see them fall, and to deny all agency in their erection.

On the 14th of August, according to appointment, the meeting of delegates from the several counties was opened at Parkinson's Ferry (now Monongahela City), the place of meeting being near the river-bank " on an eminence under the shade of trees,"1 near which had just been erected a tall liberty-pole, from which floated a flag bearing the inscription, "Equal Taxation and no Excise-No Asylum for Traitors and Cowards." There were two hundred and twenty- six delegates present, of whom ninety-three (more than two-fifths of the whole number) were from the townships of Washington County, forty-three from Allegheny, forty-nine from Westmoreland, thirty- three from Fayette, two from Bedford, and six from Ohio County, Va. Gathered around the delegates as they sat in convention was a greater number of spec- tators, many of them armed.

The meeting was organized by the appointment of Col. Edward Cook and the Hon. Albert Gallatin, both of Fayette County, respectively as chairman and sec- retary. The proceedings were opened by a speech from David Bradford, in which he rehearsed the events which had occurred,-the coming of Marshal Lenox; the service of the writs; the attack on and destruction of Gen. Neville's house, and the death of McFarlane; the meeting at Mingo Creek; the great mustering of the clans at Braddock's Field; the march through Pittsburgh, and the expulsion from that town of the proscribed persons, at the latter point reading the objectionable letters which had been intercepted, commenting on their contents in severest terms, and in general advocating extreme measures against those who were recreant enough to side with the govern- ment by assisting or approving the execution of the laws. This speech was followed by another from Col. Marshel, which was less extreme but yet firm in sup- port of the insurrection and its purposes.

At the time when the meeting convened, the procla- mations of the President and Governor Mifflin had not been received, and neither the commissioners for the State nor those for the United States had made their appearance or been heard from, but during the proceedings there came news of the calling out of the troops, that the two delegations were on their way from Philadelphia, and that two of the United States

commissioners had just arrived at Greensburg .? The receipt of this intelligence marked the culminating point of the insurrection. It fell like a thunderbolt on those assembled at Parkinson's Ferry, and the fact became at once apparent that a reaction had com- menced, and that the tide of opinion had, with nearly all the leaders, begun to set against the adoption of violent measures.

It was claimed for some of those who at this meet- ing developed a strong opposition to the plans of Bradford and other extremists that their course was prompted by the same desire which had at first in- duced them to range themselves among the disaf- fected,-that of appearing to assume leadership for the purpose of curbing the lawless element, and di- verting its energies from the track leading to open violence and rebellion. But there is little doubt that their action at this time was in no small degree due to their late realization of the fact that the United States government had resolved to put down lawless- ness at whatever cost, that it would exert all its pow- ers, if necessary, to enforce obedience, and that as against that power the cause of the insurrectionists was hopeless. Brackenridge, an able and far-sighted man, had realized from the first that this result was probable, and in his connection with the insurgent movement, all his acts had been done, and all his speeches made, in a manner to admit of a double in- terpretation, so as to allow him to keep his popularity with the insurrectionists, and yet not compromise him with the government. Gallatin, a wily and prudent man, had foreseen that such might be the result, and his course had been much the same, though less adroit than that of Brackenridge. Findley was a time-server, and with all his bitterness against the administration of Washington, and all his love of of- fice and popularity, he was careful to avoid advancing to a point from which he would be unable to recede. But nearly all the other leaders believed, or appeared by their actions to believe, that their combination was extensive and strong enough to defy the government and force it to terms, but when the announcement was made that the commander-in-chief of the Revo- lutionary armies had invoked the military power to crush them, they were in a single hour awakened from their delusion, and the cry which before had been à l'outrance was now suuve qui peut, though each one was careful to conceal his misgivings from the others.

1 H. M. Brackenridge says, " The place was an open field on the banks of the river with fallen timber and stumps, with a few shade-trees in- stead of buildings for the accommodation of this important assembly, whose deliberations might be attended with the most serious conse- quences for good or evil."

" In a letter written by William Findley to Secretary Dallas, dated Aug. 23, 1794, he mentions that he was present at the meeting at Park- inson's, and says, " Messrs. Yates and Bradford came to Greensburg the morning of the meeting, and wrote by express to me of their pacific in- tentions and authority, which being communicated to the meeting had a salutary effect, and a committee of discreet men were appointed to confer with the commissioners at Pittsburgh, but unfortunately the news- papers came next morning with the President's proclamation and the orders for an armed force as a substitute for judicial proceedings; this irritated and inflamed those even who had been formerly moderate and regular, and greatly increased the difficulty of accommodation."

288

HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

Col. James Marshel, who in the first of the meeting had introduced a series of very strong resolutions, was thoroughly subdued by the alarming news from the East, "and from that moment," says Brackenridge, "he acted with the friends of the government with sincerity." Bradford alone, of all the leaders, stood defiant, even more so than before. In a fiery speech he demanded that measures be taken to prepare for re- pelling " invasion," declaring in effect that a show of vigorous military preparation would be sure to overawe the government and enable them to dictate their own terms. His speech found no favor with any of the other leaders, and was replied to in opposition by several of them ; but the insurgent rank and file who were present, sided with him almost unanimously. "I lay that night," says H. H. Brackenridge, "at a farm-house in the neighborhood, with a hundred or more of the gallery spectators and of the assembly about me; the whole cry was war."

At the reassembling of the meeting on the morning of the 15th of August, a committee composed of Albert Gallatin, H. H. Brackenridge, and Herman Husbands, of Bedford County, who had been appointed to re- model the resolutions previously offered by Col. James Marshel, submitted the result of their labors, which was read before the meeting and afterwards passed, though somewhat modified. During the forenoon the United States commissioners came to a house not far from the place of meeting, which, as Findley says, "ren. dered the situation of the friends of order more deli- cate," which means that they were so placed that if they flocked to the commissioners, each one anxious to have the first word, and to record himself as a " friend of or- der," the fact would at once be known to the body of the insurgents, and a loss of popularity would be the result ; whereas if they kept aloof from the commissioners it might place the ban of the government upon them as obdurate adherents to the insurgent cause. Most of them, however, forgot in their fears, all considerations of popularity with the masses, and the hopes of future election to office, and some of them insisted that the meeting should never adjourn until terms had been made with the commissioners, but this result was not accomplished.

The resolutions reported by the committee were passed in a modified form as before stated. The sec- ond of the series provided for the appointment of a standing committee, to consist of one member from each township, charged with various duties, among which was the drafting of a remonstrance to Congress, praying for a repeal of the excise law. They were also " to have power to call together a meeting, either of a new representation of the people or of the depu- ties here convened, for the purpose of taking such further measures as the future situation of affairs may require ; and in case of any sudden emergency to take such temporary measures as they may think neces- sary." The closing resolution" was to this effect, " That a committee, to consist of three members from

each county, be appointed to meet any commissioners that have been or may be appointed by the govern- ment, and report the result of this conference to the standing committee." The standing committee (con- sisting of sixty persons) met, and appointed the com- mittee to meet the commissioners of the United States and those of Pennsylvania, as provided by the final resolution. This committee of conference was com- posed as follows :

For Washington County : David Bradford, James Marshel, and James Edgar.

For Allegheny County : Hugh H. Brackenridge, Thomas Moreton, and John B. C. Lucas.

For Fayette County : Albert Gallatin, Edward Cook, and James Lang.

For Westmoreland County : John Kirkpatrick, George Smith, and John Powers.

For Bedford County : Herman Husbands.

For Ohio County, Va., William Sutherland.

The meeting of the delegates at Parkinson's Ferry adjourned at two o'clock P.M. on the 15th of August. The Committee of Sixty, after having appointed and instructed the committee of conference, adjourned to meet at Redstone Old Fort (Brownsville) on the 2d of September.

The commissioners for the State arrived at Pitts- burgh on the 17th of August, and those appointed by the President came immediately afterwards. On the 20th the two bodies met the committee of conference which was appointed at Parkinson's Ferry. At this meeting preliminary proceedings were taken, which resulted in propositions by both bodies of commis- sioners, who declared explicitly that the exercise of the powers vested in them to suspend prosecutions, and to promise a general amnesty and pardon for past offenses, " must be preceded by full and satisfactory assurances of a sincere determination in the people to obey the laws of the United States." The members of the committee who took the most prominent part in the proceedings were Bradford and Marshel, of Washington; Gallatin and Cook, of Fayette; and Brackenridge, of Allegheny County. All these, with the exception of Bradford, were in favor of acceding to the propositions of the commissioners, and this was found to be the sense of the committee; but they had no power to act, further than to report the result of the conference to the standing Committee of Sixty. That committee had adjourned to meet at Redstone Old Fort on the 2d of September, as before mentioned, but upon the conclusion of the conference with the commis- sionërs at Pittsburgh the time of their meeting was changed and made five days earlier,1 though this change

1 Following are extracts from a communication addressed by the com- mittee of conference to the United States commissioners :

" PITTSBURGH, Aug. 22, 1794.

" GENTLEMEN,-Having in our conference at considerable length stated to you the grounds of that discontent which exists in the minds of the people of this country, and,which has lately shown itself in acts of op- position to the excise law, you will consider us as waiving any question

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THE WHISKEY INSURRECTION.

of time gave great offense to Bradford and other ex- tremists. The change of time was made in deference to one of the conditions imposed by the commissioners, viz .: " It is expected and required by the said com- missioners that the citizens composing the said stand- ing committee do, on or before the first day of September next, explicitly declare their determination to submit to the laws of the United States, and that they will not, directly or indirectly, oppose the execution of the acts for raising a revenue on distilled spirits and stills."

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History of Washington County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 74

Author: Crumrine, Boyd, 1838-1916; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Hungerford, Austin N Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Philadelphia : H.L. Everts & Co. Number of Pages: 1216

Author: Crumrine, Boyd, 1838-1916; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Hungerford, Austin N
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia : H.L. Everts & Co.
Number of Pages: 1216