History of Wayne, Pike, and Monroe counties, Pennsylvania, Part 17

Author: Mathews, Alfred, 1852-1904. 4n
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Philadelphia : R.T. Peck & Co.
Number of Pages: 1438

USA > Pennsylvania > Monroe County > History of Wayne, Pike, and Monroe counties, Pennsylvania > Part 17
USA > Pennsylvania > Pike County > History of Wayne, Pike, and Monroe counties, Pennsylvania > Part 17
USA > Pennsylvania > Wayne County > History of Wayne, Pike, and Monroe counties, Pennsylvania > Part 17

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cealing themselves behind rocks and trees, ad- vanced from time to time, as opportunity offer- ed, and thus a running fire was kept up. At every weak point Brandt directed his efforts, but without avail. Colonel Hathorn, while guarding every point in the line, as far as pos- sible, gave strict orders to his men to reserve their fire until it could be made effective. Thus the ammunition, which was lamentably short, was carefully husbanded. As the day wore on, Brandt became disheartened, and was about to abandon the conflict and withdraw from the field, when the death of one of the most effec- tive militiamen, who had for hours successfully guarded a point towards the northwesterly point of the line, and near where Colonel Tusten was with the wounded, gave the Indians and Tories an opportunity to break through. Amid deaf- ening yells, they came pouring through this opening in such numbers that further resistance was impossible, and the brave men who, for six long hours, without water, under a burning July sun, with insufficient ammunition, had successfully defied an enemy many times out- numbering them, fled from the field soaked with the blood of their comrades. Colonel Tusten being, as we have seen, a physician and surgeon, was at this time, as he probably had been during the greater part of the engagement, attending to the necessities of the wounded behind a cliff of rocks. He and the seventeen disabled men under his care were at once set upon and killed. Others who were wounded, and some who were not, were pursued and dispatched. Some died of their wounds, so that we may safely conclude that not more than thirty of the ninety who were in the engagement survived. What be- came of the fifty men who were isolated from the main force history does not record. The loss of the enemy has never been ascertained, but was undoubtedly much greater than that of the patriots.1

1 The one hundredth anniversary of the battle was cele- brated at Lackawaxen, or rather upon the field opposite that village, and also at Goshen, N. Y., July 22, 1879.

At the battle-field a monument was dedicated and an in- teresting programme of exercises rendered before a large audience. The introductory address was delivered by J. W. Johnston and then followed Prayer, by Rev. J. B. Wil-

SULLIVAN'S MARCH.

The names of the slain upon the American side, so far as they have been preserved, were as follows :

Colonel Benjamin Tusten, Captain Bazaliel Ty- ler, Ensign Ephraim Masten, Adjutant Nathaniel Fitch, Captains John Duncan, Samuel Jones, John Little, Ensign Ephraim Middagh, Captain, Benja- min Vail, Lieutenant John Wood, Gabriel Wisner, Stephen Mead, Nathaniel Terwilliger, Ephraim Fer- guson, Robert Townsend, Samuel Knapp, James Knapp, Benjamin Bennett, William Barker, Jacob Dunning, Jonathan Pierce, James Little, Joseph Norris, Gilbert S. Vail, Joel Decker, Abram Shep- pard, - Sheppard, Nathan Wade, Simon Wait, Talmage, John Carpenter, David Barney, Gamaliel Bailey, Moses Thomas, Jonathan Has- kell, Abram Williams, James Masher, Isaac Ward, Baltus Niepas, Eleazer Owens, Adam Embler, Sam- uel Little, Benjamin Dunning, Daniel Reed.

A word should be said about the leaders of the little American army, brave, but unfortu- nate.

Col. Benjamin Tusten was born on Long Island in 1743, and, consequently, was thirty- six years old at the time of the battle. His father moved into Orange County when the son was but three years old, and settled about tlirec miles from the village of Goshen. Young Tusten, after a thorough academic education, studied medicine, and became a prominent and successful physician and surgeon. He con- tinued the practice of his profession, having the confidence and esteem of the entire community

liams ; Oration, by Hon. Wm. J. Groo ; Addresses, by Hon. A. C. Butts, J. W. Johnston, Hon. George H. Rowland, IIon. Thomas J. Lyon; and a Poem, by Ezra F. Calkin, Esq. Anaccount of these exercises, together with copies of the addresses and a history of the battle by J. W. Johnston, were afterwards published in a pamphlet.

At Goshen a salute of thirteen guns was fired at sunrise, and at half-past nine o'clock forty-four guns were fired in honor of the forty-four who fell under the tomahawk of Brandt and his men. At the same time the village bells were tolled, all flags were displayed at half-mast and a procession a mile and a half long marched through the streets. Not less than ten thousand persons were in the place.

Harrison W. Manny, president of the village of Goshen, delivered an address of welcome. Ex-Judge James W. Tay- lor, of Newburgh, presided and made an address. An ora- tion was delivered by the Rev. Dr. J. Halstead Carroll, of Newburgh. Speeches were made by State Assessor James A. Briggs, of Brooklyn, and Chas. H. Winfield, of New York. The monument was wreathed with flowers, and many public and private buildings were decorated.

in which he lived to the time of his death. He did not live to witness the independence of the colonies.

Colonel (afterward General) John Hathorn, was, at the time of the battle, about the same age as Col. Tusten and Brandt. He lived at least forty-three years after the engagement, and was present at the laying of the foundation of the monument at Goshen, Orange County, N. Y., on the 22d of July, 1822, which per- petuated the fame of the fallen in the battle, and he made an address on that occasion. He served several terms in the State Legislature and the National Congress.

It has been averred by some writers that the Pennsylvania militia took part in the battle of the Lackawaxen, but this is an error. Captain Bazaliel Tyler and Moses Thomas, to be sure, were Pennsylvanians-from the neighborhood of Cushutunk-but there were few, if any, others in the battle from the Pennsylvania side of the river, and, certainly, no organized force. Sev- eral forces of men appear to have set out in pur- suit of the Indians, but not to have come up with them ; for John Van Campen, of Lower Smith- field, wrote, on July 22d, to President Reed, of the Supreme Executive Council, informning him that Captain Shymer, with one hundred and seventy men had, that morning, at ten o'clock, marched across the Delaware with intent to " head the enemy off at the Lackawaxen," and also that one hundred and five men, under the command of Major Meeker, of the State of New York, were in pursuit of the savages.

Sullivan's expedition against the Indian strong- holds on the North Branch of the Susquehanna had in the mean time been undertaken and accomplished, and thus Wyoming was in some measure avenged, and the Indians were so cowed that they made no more large incursions into the settlements.

It was on June 18, 1779, that General Sul- livan left Easton with two thousand five hun- dred men en route to chastise the Indians in the Wyoming Valley. His route lay through Mon- roe County.1 The first day he went as far as

' The sketch of Sullivan's route from Easton to Wyoming is furnished by William S. Rees.

WAYNE, PIKE AND MONROE COUNTIES, PENNSYLVANIA.

Heller's1 tavern, about two miles below the Wind Gap (afterwards known as Lever's). On the second day he marched through the Wind Gap, and passed about half a mile east of what is now " Ross Common," coming into the val- ley (below Saylorsburg) near the Indian Springs, passing what is now Saylorsburg and Brinker's (now Sciota), and thence marching in a nearly direct line to Learn's (called then Larne's and Larner's, now the village of Tannersville), where he camped the second night. From Learn's he went up the westerly branch of the Pocono Creek, by Scott's Run, to "Camp Chowder,"2 at or near the mouth of White Oak Run (at which place there was afterwards a tavern kept by a man by the name of Zabrieski, and known at that time as Zabrieski's, but for the last fifty years known as " White Oak Run "). From White Oak Run the army passed over " Birch Hill,"3 crossing Bircli Run and Mud Run. Soon after crossing Mud Run they came to a knoll, or small round hill, and encamped, and sent back to Fort Penn (Stroudsburg) for provisions, and lay there sev- eral days making a road through a swamp at the north western base of the hill while waiting for provisions from Fort Penn. Sullivan named the two places respectively "Hungry Hill " and " Hell's Kitchen." On the hill a tree was marked by letters cut in it, "HUNGRY HILL," and one in the swamp, "HELL'S KITCHEN," in letters about two inches in size, by peeling the bark off the tree about half-way around and cutting the letters in the solid peeled wood. As the bark grew over the letters it was cut away by different ones, so as not to cover the letters from view by new- formed wood and bark. The tree on the hill has been broken by the wind. About thirty or thirty-five years ago the tree in the swamp was broken down in a storm, and Frederick P. Miller, who kept a hotel a few miles west of

" Hell's Kitchen " (now Tompkinsville), sawed a block out of the tree with the letters on, and had it on the mantel in his bar-room for some time, when the late Jolin Newton Stokes, of Stroudsburg, purchased it from him and sent it to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, where it is at present.4

While at Hungry Hill one of Sullivan's sol- diers died, and was buried by the side of the road, on the crest of the hill, and the grave is plainly to be seen by all passers, being indicated by the mound and a large stone at the head of the grave.

The army crossed the Tunkhanna Creek at or near the present site of Tompkinsville, and a few miles farther west crossed the Tobyhanna at an island, where afterwards there was a tavern or hotel kept by a man named Levers. One or two of the old apple-trees at the place are to be seen at this day. About two and one- half miles west of the Tobyhanna Creek (after crossing Tobyhanna Branch and Deep Run) the army passed around the south side of " Locust Ridge," a large round hill or mountain, which can be seen from a distance in almost any direc- tion (in fact, can be seen from a point on the " Godfrey Hill," about two miles from Strouds- burg).

At Locust Ridge, close to the Sullivan road, there is a grave, with a stone mound, said by some in early days to be the grave of one of Sul- livan's men, and by others to be the grave of a man named Everitt (a Pennamite), killed in the fight at Locust Ridge between the Yankees and Pennamites, in 1784.

About four miles west of Locust Ridge Gen- eral Sullivan crossed the Lehigh River, a short distance below the mouth of Trout Creek, from what is now Tobyhanna township, Monroe County, into the township of Buck, Luzerne County, and between three and four miles from the Lehigh in a northiwesterly course, struck the road leading from the Wyoming Valley to the Wind Gap (in what was called the " Shades of Death," which extended from the Lehigh

1 Called Hillard's in most of the accounts of Sullivan's march.

2 It was said that trout were so plenty that the army made a chowder of them, and, consequently, called the place Camp Chowder.

. 3 White Oak Run passes along the foot of Birch Hill on the southeast, and Birch Run on the north and northwest at the base of the hill.

4 It was said years ago by the old settlers that Gen. Sul- livan's son, a lad of about seventeen years of age, was with the general, and that he cut the letters in both trees.

SULLIVAN'S MARCH.

River to and west of Bear Creek, in Luzerne County), which on the surveys and drafts was generally designated as " The road from Shupp's to Wyoming, or Old Shupp road."

The place where Gen. Sullivan came on the Shupp road was at the location of Buck's tav- ern,-now Baumont, Luzerne County,-three miles from "Lchigh Falls" (at what is now Stoddartsville.)

On the 1st of July, preparations having all been made, the army left Wilkesbarre to ascend the Northi Branch. As we have before said, the force consisted of twenty-five hundred men, many of them sharpshooters, and was followed by a train of two thousand pack-horses. It was the bravest sight which the Susquehanna Val- ley had ever seen. One hundred and twenty boats had been collected to assist the army in its passage up the North Branch. As they passed the fort which Captain Spaulding had rebuilt mutual salutes were passed, and the col- umn pushed on through the wild woods to Tioga Point. At that place he was joined by an aux- iliary body under General Clinton (father of De Witt Clinton), and together the united forces -consisting of fifteen hundred riflemen, thirty- five hundred of the other arms, four six-pounder and three three-pounder guns-proceeded on the campaign, with one month's provisions laden on their pack-horses. The Indians believed it impossible that a regularly-appointed army should reach them in their fastnesses and destroy their towns, but soon they saw their mistake. Then, in the presence of actual dan- ger, they collected their warriors, and, accept- ing battle near where Elmira, New York, now stands, they fought with the utmost bravery and desperation, but it was of no avail; they were utterly defeated and fled in a panic, leav- ing their fields and villages unprotected before the vietors. The women and children fled in crowds to the protection of Fort Niagara, and the warriors made no further stand, except to harass the avenging columns from places of con- cealment along the march, and even in this manner they could inflict but slight damage on the whites. The day of reckoning and of retribution had come. Their corn-fields were totally destroyed, their villages burned, and

themselves, cowed in spirit and stripped of all, forced to seek food and protection with their British allies. Having thus struck the blow which forever destroyed the Iroquois confeder- acy, and accomplished the object of the cam- paign, General Sullivan once more turned his face towards the southeast, and moved his col- umn, by easy marches, back to their starting- point in Northampton County.

The following eulogistic review of General Sullivan's operations is taken from Chastilleux's " Voyages dans l'Amerique Septentrionale," vol. ii. p. 316. " In whatever manner this ex- pedition was set on foot, which took place in 1779, after the evacuation of Philadelphia and the diversion made by d'Estaing's squadron, the greatest difficulty to surmount was the long march to be made through woods, deserts and morasses, conveying all their provisions on beasts of burden and continually exposed to the attacks of the savages.

" The instructions given by General Sullivan to his officers, the order of march he prescribed to his troops, and the discipline he had the ability to maintain, would have done honor to the most experienced amongst ancient or modern generals. It may fairly be asserted that the journal of this expedition would lose nothing in a comparison with the famous retreat of the ten thousand Greeks, which it would resemble very much, if we could compare the manœuvres, the object of which is attack, with those which have no other than the preservation of a forlorn army.

" General Sullivan, after a month's march, arrived without any check at the entrenched camp, the last refuge of the savages ; here lic attacked them, and was received with great courage, insomuch that the victory would have been undecided had not the Indians lost many of their chiefs in battle, which never fails to in- timidate them, and they retreated during the night. The general destroyed their houses and plantations, since when they have never showu themselves in a body. However slight and in- sufficient the idea may be that I have given of this campaign, it may nevertheless astonish our European military men to learn that General Sullivan was only a lawyer in 1775, and that

WAYNE, PIKE AND MONROE COUNTIES, PENNSYLVANIA.

in the year 1780 he quitted the army to resume his profession, and is now civil Governor of New Hampshire."

General Sullivan returned by the same route upon which he went to Wyoming, and halted at Brinker's (in Hamilton township, formerly Fen- nersville, now Sciota) several days, waiting for his wagon-train, which took the Shupp road and came down through what is now Chestnut Hill town- ship, by way of Shupp's. Both of those roads (Shupp's and Sullivan's) are plainly indicated in many places, where they had been dug out against side hills, and also by belts of yellow (or pitch) pine trees across the barrens on the Pocono Mountain. The old Shupp road is plainly seen on the spur of the mountain, east of the Gap and turnpike, and forty-five years ago the Indian path, at the Sullivan road, could be clearly seen in places. Both roads were made near old Indian trails.

The capture and escape of John Hilborn 1 formed one of the most notable occurrences of the Indian War of the Revolutionary period. Of this we have quite a minute and circumstan- tial account,2 which we give at length, partly

1 John Hilborn was one of the trustees who fixed the site for the seat of justice for Wayne County at Bethany, and erected the first county buildings there. He and his two brothers, Joseph and William, had the charge of and performed much of the work in first opening the State road, called the "North and South road," in 1788, from Pocono Point, through the western part of the county, to the north line of the State, with a branch road to Har- mony, and in opening, in 1792, the State road from Stroudsburg, via " Bloomingrove Farm" and " Union Sugar Co.," property to Equinunk and Stockport. This last-men- tioned road was known as the " Hilborn road," and in the erection, in 1798, of the "Six Northern Townships " (then so called), it was made the boundary line between Palmyra and Lackawaxen townships. In 1791 John Hil- born settled with his family on the Susquehanna flats, at the mouth of Cascade Creek, in Harmony township-now Susquehanna County. In making their journey to this new home, his wife traveled all the way from Strouds- burg, a distance of one hundred and ten miles, on horse- back, and carried an infant child in her arms. Mr. Hilborn died at Harmony in April, 1826, in the eighty-fifth year of his age.

2 The sketch is contributed by Luke W. Brodhead, who derived it from Paul S. Preston, who, in turn, had the facts from the journal of his father, Samuel Preston, of Stockport, Wayne County, written in 1787. It appears that in June of that year the father, Samuel Preston, was a guest at the house of Colonel Jacob Stroud, of Strouds-

because of its intrinsic, and partly because of its illustrative interest.

"Mr. Hilborn and his few scattered neigh- bors had, in their isolated condition, become apprehensive of the danger of a sudden attack by the Indians, and had agreed to keep each other informed on what was taking place, by communicating as frequently as possible. Among these neighbors was John Price, a relative of Hilborn's, who lived seven miles above, on the north branch of the creek.

"One morning in the early part of June, 1779, an old woman came running down the stream in great distress, saying that her son's family were all killed or taken prisoners by the In- dians, herself only escaping. This family re- sided on the west branch of the creek, though I am unable to give the name.

"Mr. Hilborn set out immediately to give the warning to John Price. On his way, after ascending a hill, he saw the house in flames from which the family had been captured. Pro- ceeding in the direction of Mr. Price's, and when about one mile from the burning dwell- ing, on ascending another hill, he found him- self suddenly surrounded by five Indians, all armed with guns, who demanded his surrender ; seeing no possibility of escape, he felt that he must submit to whatever conditions they might be disposed to exact, and resolved to do it with as good grace as possible. They then informed him (as they all spoke tolerably good English) that if he would give a solemn promise not to attempt to escape, they would spare his life; if not, they would kill him on the spot. He made the promise, and, as will appear, kept it faithfully during the entire period of his cap-

burg, and on the morning of the 16th he, in company with John Fish, went to sec John Hilborn, who lived seven miles up Brodhead's Creek. Mr. Preston, as also Mr. Hilborn, were members of the Society of Friends. They reached the house about noon, and were kindly received by Mr. Hilborn and his brother, whom Mr. Preston repre- sents as worthy men, and the owners of a large property and mill, where they manufactured pine lumber, which was then in great abundance, and hauled it some seven or eight miles to the Delaware River to be rafted. During his stay Mr. Preston received from Mr. Hilborn a detailed narrative of his capture and his subsequent adventures with the Indians, which is here related in as condensed form as possible, without omitting incidents of interest.

SULLIVAN'S MARCH.

tivity. They then bound a heavy burthen on his back and ordered him to march. Soon after they passed in sight of John Price's house, where a halt was made. The Indians ques- tioned Hilborn closely as to who lived there, what sort of a man he was, whether he was rich, etc., and also whether he kept a gun. He answered truthfully all their questions; that Price was a peaceable, quiet mnan, that he was not rich, that he kept a gun, as every one did, to supply himself with game, that he took no part in the war, etc. After an excited talk of considerable length they concluded to pass by the house of Mr. Price and spare him for the present, to the great relief of Mr. Hilborn. He discovered that all the family whose house they had burned were in company except one little boy, who, on account of his loud eries-as he some time after learned-was killed at the house. They made rapid marches all the way to the North Branch of the Susquehanna, cross- ing many streams of considerable depth, which they were obliged to wade, and proved a eause of much suffering to the women and children, who became greatly fatigued and at times nearly exhausted. They crossed the Susque- hanna above the mouth of the Tioga, and found the foriner deep and difficult of passage, so mueh so that two of the young girls were only saved from drowning by the extraordinary efforts of Mr. Hilborn. He seems to have had great sympathy for this captive family, consist- ing of the mother and four or five children, affording them all the relief possible in their tiresome journey, and encouraging them, when- ever opportunity afforded, with comforting words ; and they were greatly endeared to him, confirming our observations of all similar expe- rience in life, that community of suffering makes the sufferers kin. After crossing the Susquehanna the Indians seemed to feel them- selves out of danger of pursuit, and their marches were thereafter much easier. A little girl of the captive family became a great favor- ite with all the Indians, and was treated with much kindness, they doing everything possible for her comfort on the journey, promising her many things on their arrival at their home in Shenango, telling her many times that she

should have plenty of milk, etc. But what seemed very remarkable in view of the care and consideration bestowed on this child, was the fact, that they frequently showed her the scalp of her little brother, killed at the house, the sight of which caused her to weep bitterly.

" After crossing the river, a few short marches brought them to the place where their canoes were tied up; why they were not left on the opposite side of the river on setting out with their expedition, Mr. Hilborn could not under- stand. They placed him in one of the canoes with the larger portion of the party, and under guard, ordered him to pole it up the stream, which he did the whole distance to Shenango. They frequently went ashore, and on one occa- sion the old Delaware Indian, who scemed to act the part of a chief, went out hunting and killed a large buck. On his return he ordered two Indians, young men, with Mr. Hilborn, to go and dress the deer and bring it in. One of these Indians was a Delaware, a large, eoarse man, the other a genteel young Mohawk, wlio had on several occasions before shown kindness to Mr. Hilborn. The Delaware was surly and overbearing and ordered the young Mohawk to dress the dcer, which he undertook, but not succeeding very well, they soon engaged in a quarrel in their own language and finally in a desperate fight. The Mohawk, though the younger, was the more active and proved the conqueror, compelling the Delaware to finish dressing the deer.

"On the arrival of the party at the Indian settlements at Shenango, Mr. Hilborn found himself quite ill from exposure, and nearly exhausted. He was compelled to perform a great amount of severe labor for the Indians, and imposed an additional amount on himself in his efforts to relieve his fellow-captives. In this condition he learned to his horror that he was required to undergo the severe ordeal of running the gauntlet.

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History of Wayne, Pike, and Monroe counties, Pennsylvania, Part 17

Author: Mathews, Alfred, 1852-1904. 4n Publication date: 1886 Publisher: Philadelphia : R.T. Peck & Co. Number of Pages: 1438

Author: Mathews, Alfred, 1852-1904. 4n
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Philadelphia : R.T. Peck & Co.
Number of Pages: 1438