History of Washington County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 8

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 8

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1 The killing of Jumonville was stigmatized by the French as the assassination of a peaceful envoy, and their writers have covered thou- sands of pages with accusations against Washington as commander of the attacking force. Even a greater amount of writing has been done by American historians to refute those false allegations. But the character of WASHINGTON needs no vindication, and certainly none will be offered in these pages.

2 Afterwards Gen. Lewis, who fought the battle of Point Pleasant in Dunmore's war of 1774. He was a relative of Washington, and it is said that in 1775 the latter recommended him for the appointment which he himself soon after received, that of commander-in-chief of the Ameri- can armies.

WASHINGTON'S CAMPAIGN OF 1754.

informed him that the alarm was unfounded, for, that instead of the reported party of ninety, there were but nine Frenchmen, and these were deserters. There- upon he returned to the camp, leaving a small party to take the deserters and bring them in, which they accomplished soon afterwards.

Finding that there was as yet no French force in his vicinity, Washington now resolved to advance ! insufficiency of transportation and the severe labor towards Redstone, and accordingly on the 16th which the men were obliged to perform in hauling moved out on the path towards Gist's, taking with : the artillery pieces and military stores, and the re- him his artillery pieces, some of the wagons, and all treating column reached the fortified camp at Great Meadows on the 1st of July. his men except the Carolinians under Mackay, who were left behind at the fort to guard the stores. This was done to avoid a possible conflict of authority

It had been the intention, as before noticed, to con- tinue the retreat to Wills' Creek, but on the arrival with Mackay, who was indisposed to have his com- , at the Meadows, Washington found that it was im- pany perform its share of labor in clearing the way for the passage of the train.

This labor was found to be so great, that the force under Washington was employed thirteen days in making the road passable from the fort to Gist's, though the distance was only thirteen miles. Before reaching Gist's (on the 27th), Capt. Lewis was sent ahead, with Lieut. Waggoner, Ensign Mercer, and a detachment of seventy men, to attempt the opening of a practicable road beyond Gist's towards Redstone. Another detachment, under Capt. Polson, was sent out in advance to reconnoitre.

On the 29th of June, Washington arrived at Gist's, and there received information that a strong French force was advancing up the Monongahela. Thereupon he at once called a council of war, at which it was re- solved to concentrate all the forces at that point, and there await the French attack. Intrenchments were immediately commenced and pushed with all possible vigor ; a messenger was sent to call in Lewis' and Polson's detachments, and another to the Great Mea- dows with a request to Capt. Mackay to march his force without delay to Gist's. He promptly responded, and Lewis and Polson also came in the next morning. On their arrival Washington called a second council of war, which reversed the decision of the first, and resolved, without a dissenting voice, to abandon the work at Gist's and retreat to Wills' Creek, over the route by which they had advanced. This decision was at once acted on.

In the retreat, the means of transportation being very deficient, it is said that " Colonel Washington set a noble example to the officers by leading his own horse with ammunition and other public stores, leav- ing his baggage behind, and giving the soldiers four pistoles to carry it forward. The other officers followed this example. There were nine swivels, which were drawn by the soldiers of the Virginia regiment over a very broken road, unassisted by the men belonging to the Independent Company [Mackay's], who refused to perform any service of the kind. Neither would they act as pioneers, nor aid in transporting the public stores, considering this a duty not incumbent on them as king's soldiers. This conduct had a discouraging .

effect upon the soldiers of the Virginia regiment, by dampening their ardor and making them more dis- satisfied with their extreme fatigue." 1

The journey between Gist's and the Great Meadows, which Washington, on his outward march, had been unable to perform in less than thirteen days, was now made in less than two days, notwithstanding the

practicable to go on, for, says Sparks, " His men had become so much fatigued from great labor and a de- ficiency of provisions, that they could draw the swivels no farther, nor carry the baggage on their backs. They had been eight days without bread, and at the Great Meadows they found only a few bags of flour. It was thought advisable to wait here, therefore, and fortify themselves in the best manner they could till they should receive supplies and reinforcements. They had heard of the arrival at Alexandria of two independent companies from New York twenty days before, and it was presumed they must by this time have reached Wills' Creek. An express was sent to hasten them on with as much dispatch as possible."

When it had been decided to make a stand at the fortified camp at Great Meadows, Washington gave orders for the men to commence without delay to strengthen the rude defenses which had already been erected. More palisades were added, the stockade was extended and salient angles formed, and a broad but shallow ditch was made outside the fort, materi- ally adding to the strength of the work. Outside this ditch there was constructed a line of defense similar in character to the modern rifle-pits, but all joined in one extended trench, further protected in front by a low parapet of logs, embanked with the earth thrown from the trench. The work was done under the supervision of Capt. Robert Stobo, who had had some experience in military engineering. When completed, Washington named it "Fort Necessity," as expressive of the necessity he was under to stand there and fight, because of his inability to continue the retreat to Wills' Creek, as he had intended. The extreme scar- city of provisions, and other supplies too, made the name appropriate.

Washington's selection of a site for his fortification has been often and severely criticised by military men as being badly calculated for defense, and com- manded on three sides by high ground and closely approaching woods. The location was undoubtedly chosen partly on account of the peculiar conforma- tion of the ground, which Washington called " natural

1 Sparks

HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

intrenchments," and which materially lightened the labor of construction, and still more on account of the small stream which flowed by the spot, and across which at one point the palisade was extended, so as 1 to bring it within the work, and furnish the defenders with an abundant supply of water, a consideration of vital importance if the fort was to be besieged.

Sparks, in describing the fort and its location, says, "The space of ground called the Great Meadows is a level bottom, through which passes a small creek, and is surrounded by hills of moderate and gradual descent. This bottom, or glade, is entirely level, covered with long grass and small bushes [Wash- ington mentioned the clearing away of the bushes which covered the ground when the work was com- menced], and varies in width. At the point where the fort stood it is about two hundred and fifty yards wide from the base of one hill to that of the opposite. The position of the fort was well chosen, being about one hundred yards from the upland or wooded ground on the one side, and one hundred and fifty on the other, and so situated on the margin of the creek as to afford easy access to the water. At one point the high ground comes within sixty yards of the fort, and this was the nearest distance to which an enemy could approach under shelter of trees. The outlines of the fort were still visible when the spot was visited by the writer in 1830, occupying an irregular square, the dimensions of which were about one hundred feet on each side. One of the angles was prolonged farther than the others, for the purpose of reaching the water in the creek. On the west side, next to the nearest wood, were three entrances, protected by stout breastworks or bastions. The remains of a ditch, stretching round the south and west sides, were also distinctly seen." If Sparks had been in the least ac- quainted with military matters, he probably would not have spoken of a fortified position as being " well chosen". when it was commanded on three sides by higher ground, in no place more than one hundred and fifty yards distant, with the opportunity for an enemy to approach on one side within sixty yards under cover of woods.

Leaving Washington and his little army in occu- pation of their frail defenses at the Great Meadows, let us take a brief glance at the enemy which was approaching them from Fort Du Quesne by way of the Monongahela Valley.

The French force which was marching in pursuit of Washington was commanded by M. Coulon de Villiers,1 from whose journal of the campaign a few extracts are here given : "June the 26th .- Arrived at Fort Du Quesne about eight in the morning, with the several [Indian] nations, the command of which the General had given me. At my arrival, was informed

five hundred French, and eleven Indians of different nations on the Ohio, the command of which he had given to Chevalier le Mercier, who was to depart the next day. As I was the oldest officer, and com- manded the Indian nations, and as my brother2 had been assassinated, M. de Contrecœur honored me with that command, and M. le Mercier; though de- prived of the command, seemed very well pleased to make the campaign under my orders. . . .

"The 28th .- M. de Contrecœur gave me my orders, the provisions were distributed, and we left the fort at about ten o'clock in the morning. I began from that instant to send out some Indians to range about by land to prevent being surprised. I posted myself at a short distance above the first fork of the river Monongahela, though I had no thought of taking that route. I called the Indians together and demanded their opinion. It was decided that it was suitable to take the river Monongahela, though the route was longer.

"The 29th .- Mass was said in the camp, after which we marched with the usual precaution.

"30th .- Came to the Hangard, which was a sort of fort built with logs, one upon another, well notched in, about thirty feet in length and twenty in breadth; and as it was late, and would not do anything without consulting the Indians, I encamped about two mus- ket-shots from that place. At night I called the sa- chems together, and we consulted upon what was best to be done for the safety of our periaguas (large ca- noes), and of the provisions we left in reserve, as also what guard should be left to keep it.

"July the 1st .- Put our periaguas in a safe place. Our effects, and everything we could do without, we took into the Hangard, where I left one good sergeant, with twenty men and some sick Indians. Ammuni- tion was afterwards distributed, and we began our march."

The force of De Villiers consisted of five hundred Frenchmen and about four hundred Indians.8 March- ing from the Hangard in the morning of the 1st of July (at which time Washington's force was approach- ing the Great Meadows on its retreat from Gist's plan- tation), the French and Indian column moved towards Gist's, where De Villiers expected to find Washing- ton, his Indian scouts having reported the English force to be at that place.

" At about eleven o'clock," continues the journal, "we discovered some tracks, which made us suspect we were discovered. At three in the afternoon, hav- ing no news of our rangers, I sent others, who met those sent before, and not knowing each other, were near upon exchanging shots, but happily found their

that M. de Contrecœur had made a detachment of Villiers mentions in his journal as having been detached under com-

1 Both De Villiers and Contrecœur had been with Celeron's expedi- tion five years before.

2 Meaning M. de Jumonville, who was Villiers' half-brother.

3 The force of "five hundred French and eleven Indians" which De

mand of Mercier for this expedition, had been augmented by the large Indian force which De Villiers brought with him down the Allegheny to Fort Du Quesne.

WASHINGTON'S CAMPAIGN OF 1754.

mistake; they returned to us and declared to have been at the road which the English were clearing ; that they were of opinion no body had been that way for three days. We were no longer in doubt of our proceedings being known to the English."

At daybreak in the morning of the 2d the French force left its bivouac of the previous night and marched towards Gist's. " After having marched some time we stopped, for I was resolved to proceed no farther until I had positive news ; wherefore I sent scouts upon the road. In the meanwhile came some of the Indians to me whom we had left at the Han- gard; they had taken a prisoner, who called himself a deserter. I examined him, and threatened him with the rope if he offered to impose on me. I learned that the English had left their post [at Gist's] in order to rejoin their fort, and that they had taken back their cannon. Some of our people finding that the English had abandoned the camp we went thereto, and I sent some men to search it through- out. They found several tools and other utensils hidden in many places, which I ordered them to carry away. As it was late I ordered the detach- ment to encamp there. . . . We had rain all night."

When day broke on the morning of the 3d of July the weather was still wet and gloomy, but De Villiers moved forward at once with the main body, scouting parties having been sent in advance the previous evening. The rain continued, and increased during the long hours of the march towards Fort Necessity, but the French column pressed on with energy, and with all possible speed, for, said De Villiers, "I fore- , into the woods, and thus take them at a disadvantage. saw the necessity of preventing the enemy in their ; He suspected the design, and maintained his post till works." It also appears that he took the pains to he found the French did not incline to leave the woods and attack the fort by an assault, as he sup- posed they would, considering their superiority of numbers. He then drew his men back within the trenches, and gave them orders to fire according to their discretion, as suitable opportunities might pre- sent themselves. The French and Indians remained on the side of the rising ground which was nearest to the fort, and, sheltered by the trees, kept up a brisk fire of musketry, but never appeared in the open plain below. ride away from the road into the woods, to make a flying visit to the rocky defile where Jumonville had lost his life five weeks before. " I stopped," he says, " at the place where my brother had been assassin- ated, and saw there yet some dead bodies," and then proceeds : " When I came within three-quarters of a league from the English fort I ordered my men to march in columns, every officer to his division, that I might the better dispose of them as necessity would require." His column was now within striking dis- tance of the fort, after a drenching and dreary march of seven hours from Gist's.

Meanwhile, at Fort Necessity, Washington had been apprised of the arrival of the French at Gist's on the 2d, and had been constantly on the alert during the night. Not long after sunrise on the 3d some of the advance scouts of the French were seen, and one of Washington's men on picket was brought in wounded, but after this, three or four hours passed without further demonstrations. In the middle of the forenoon word came by scouts that the enemy in strong force was within two hours' march, and after- wards reports of their progress were brought in from time to time. Washington formed his forces in line

of battle outside the defenses, awaiting the enemy's appearance, and hoping to induce him to attack in the open field. Finally, at a little before noon, the French appeared in the edge of the woods towards the north- west and began firing at long range, but did no execu- tion. After a time, finding that the enemy manifested no disposition to make a general attack, Col. Wash- ington withdrew his men within the defenses, the Carolinians occupying the rifle-pit trenches behind the low log pararet which formed the outer line (though they were afterwards driven out, not by the enemy's fire, but the torrents of rain that inundated the trenches in which they were posted). The French, finding their fire ineffectual from their distant posi- tion in the woods to the northwest,1 moved to the left, where, on the eastern and southeastern side of the fort, the forest line was within fair musket-range of the work. From this new position they opened fire with more effect ; the battle became general, and continued through the remainder of the day. An account of the conflict at Fort Necessity is thus given by Sparks :

" At eleven o'clock they [the French] approached the fort and began to fire, at the distance of six hun- dred yards, but without effect. Col. Washington had drawn up his men on the open and level ground out- side of the trenches, waiting for the attack, which he presumed would be made as soon as the enemy's forces emerged from the woods, and he ordered his men to reserve their fire till they should be near enough to do execution. The distant firing was sup- posed to be a stratagem to draw Washington's men

1 De Villiers' account of the opening of the fight was as follows: "As we had no knowledge of the place, we presented our flank to the fort, when they began to fire upon us, and almost at the same time I perceived the English on the right, in order of battle, and coming towards us. The Indians, as well as ourselves, set up a great cry, and advanced towards them, but they did not give us time to fire upon them before they shel- tered themselves in an intrenchment which was adjoining to their fort, after which we aimed to invest the fort, which was advantageously enough situated in a meadow within a musket-shot from the woods. We drew as near to them as possible that we might not expose his Majesty's subjects to no purpose. The fire was very brisk on both sides, and I chose that place which seemed to me the most proper in case we should be exposed to a sally. We fired so briskly as to put out (if I may use the expression) the fire of their canuon with our musket-shot." But, concerning the first part of the above account by De Villiers, Washington afterwards wrote, " I cannot help remarking on Villiers' account of the battle of and transaction at the Meadows, as it is very extraordinary, and not less erroneous than inconsistent. He says the French received the first fire. It is well known that we received it at six hundred paces' distance."

HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

" The rain fell heavily through the day, the trenches were filled with water, and many of the arms of Col. Washington's men were out of order and used with difficulty. In this way the battle continued from eleven o'clock in the morning till eight at night, when the French called and requested a parley.1 Suspect- ing this to be a feint to procure the admission of an officer into the fort, that he might discover their con- dition, Col. Washington at first declined listening to the proposal ; but when the call was repeated, with the additional request that an officer might be sent to them, engaging at the same time their parole for his safety, he sent out Capt. Van Braam, the only person under his command that could speak French except the Chevalier de Peyronie, an ensign in the Virginia regiment, who was dangerously wounded and disabled from rendering any service on the occasion. Van Braam returned, and brought with him from M. de Villiers, the French commander, proposed articles of capitulation. These he read and pretended to inter- pret, and some changes having been made by mutual agreement, both parties signed them about mid- night."

It was a mortifying close to Washington's first cam- paign, and the scene must have been a most dismal one when he signed the capitulation at dead of night amid torrents of rain, by the light of a solitary splut- tering candle,2 and with his dead and wounded men around him; but there was no alternative, and he had the satisfaction at least of knowing that he had done his best, and that all his officers, with a single exception,3 had behaved with the greatest coolness and bravery.

The articles of capitulation were of course written in French. The following translation of them shows the terms granted to Washington, viz .:

" ARTICLE 1 .- We graut leave to the English commander to retire with allhis garrison, and to return peaceably into his own country, and

1 The account given by De Villiers of the closing scenes of the battle, and of the call for a parley, is as follows: " Towards six at night the fire of the enemy increased with more vigor than ever, and lasted until light. We briskly returned their fire. We took particular care to secure our posts to keep the English fast up in their fort all night; and after having fixed ourselves in the best position we could we let the English know that if they would speak to us we would stop firing. They accepted the proposal; there came a captain to the place where I was. I sent M. la Mercier to receive him, and I went to the Meadow, where I told him that as we were not at war we were very willing to save them from the cruelties to which they exposed themselves on account of the Indians; but if they were stubborn we would take away from them all hopes of escaping ; that we consented to be favorable to them at present, as we were come only to revenge my brother's assassination, and to oblige them to quit the lands of the king my master. . . . "

2 An officer who was present at the capitulation wrote: " When Mr. Van Braam returned with the French proposals we were obliged to take the sense of them from his mouth; it rained so hard that he could not give us a written translation of them, and we could scarcely keep the candle lighted to read them by."

8 When in the following August the Virginia House of Burgesses passed a vote of thanks to Washington and his officers " for their bravery and gallant defense of their country" at Fort Necessity, the names of all the officers were mentioned except that of the major of the regiment, who was charged with cowardice in the battle, and Capt. Van Braam, who was believed to have acted a treacherous part in interpreting the articles of capitulation.

promise to hinder his receiving any insult from us French, and to re- strain, as much as shall be in our power, the Indians that are with us.

"ARTICLE 2-It shall be permitted him to go out and carry with him all that belongs to them except the artillery, which we reserve.

" ARTICLE 3 .- That we will allow them the honors of war,-that they march out with drums beating and one swivel gun,-being willing thereby to convince them that we treat them as friends.

" ARTICLE 4 .- That as soon as the articles are signed by both parties the English colors shall be struck,

"ARTICLE 5 .- That to-morrow, at break of day, a detachment of French shall go and make the garrison file off, and take possession of --

the fort.

"ARTICLE 6 .- As the English have but few oxen or horses left, they are at liberty to hide their effects, and come again and search for them when they have a number of horses sufficient to carry them off, and that for this end they may have what guards they please, on condition that they give their word of honor to work no more on any buildings in this place, or any part on this side of the mountains.

" ARTICLE 7 .- And as the English have in their power one officer, two cadets, and most of the prisoners made at the assassination of M. de Jumonville, and promise to send them back with a safe guard to Fort Du Quesne, situate on the Ohio, for surety of their performing this article as well as this treaty, M. Jacob Van Braam and Robert Stobo, both captains, shall be delivered as hostages till the arrival of our French and Canadians above mentioned. We oblige ourselves, on our side, to give an escort to return these two officers in safety, and expect to have our French in two months and a half at farthest."

The capitulation was signed by Washington, Mac- kay, and Villiers. The latter had cunningly caused the articles to be so worded that the English officers (who knew nothing of the French language) were made to sign an apparent acknowledgment that the killing of Jumonville4 was an act of assassination. It was expected that Van Braam, the so-called inter- preter, knowingly connived at the deception, and this opinion was firmly held by Washington, who after- wards wrote in reference to it as follows: "That we were wilfully or ignorantly deceived by our inter- preter in regard to the word assassination I do aver, and will to my dying moment, so will every officer that was present. The interpreter was a Dutchman, little acquainted with the English tongue, therefore might not advert to the tone and meaning of the word in English ; but whatever his motives were for so doing, certain it is he called it the death or the loss of the Sieur Jumonville. So we received and so we understood it, until, to our great surprise and mortification, we found it otherwise in a literal trans- lation."

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History of Washington County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 8

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