USA > Pennsylvania > Lycoming County > Picture of Lycoming County, 1st ed > Part 3
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15
6. From whom did William Penn purchase the land in which Lycoming County is now included?
7. What was accomplished by the Treaty of 1737?
By the Treaty of Fort Stanwix?
8. Who was Madame Montour?
9. What other members of the Montour family figured in the early history of Lycoming County?
CHAPTER IV
Early Settlement
I N the early days of the Province of Pennsylvania, William Penn's policy was to reserve one-tenth of all lands purchased from the Indians. These tracts were selected and laid out for the purpose of granting them to persons who had rendered spe- cial service to the Provincial Government, or were held by the Proprietaries for their own personal benefit.
The first grant, or reserve, to be laid out within the present Lycoming County was the one given to Andrew Montour, October 29, 1768. The next was "Muncy Manor," the war- rant for which was issued by John Penn on December of the same year. The manor had been located and recommended to the Penns by Job Chilloway, a friendly Indian, and in recogni- tion of this service the Governor of the Province had the words "Job's Discovery" affixed to the original draft.
The manor included in its acres practically all of the level and rolling land around the mouth of Muncy Creek, on the east bank of the Susquehanna River. The fertility of its soil, its natural beauty, and its location at a point where the old Indian trails met were factors which contributed to its desira- bility.
The third and last of the reserves was "Orm's Kirk." It contained 599 acres and included all of what is now the western part of the. city of Williamsport. Part of this tract was pur- chased by Hawkins Boone, a relative of the celebrated hunter and Indian fighter, Daniel Boone. Hawkins Boone was killed in the battle of Fort Freeland, at the time of the Little Runaway. Orm's Kirk eventually became the Amariah Sutton farm. Sutton
28
A PICTURE OF LYCOMING COUNTY
donated a portion of his farm to the Methodist congregation, which erected one of the first church buildings in the county.
In 1776, Muncy Manor was divided into five tracts and sold to the following persons: Tract No. 1 to Mordecai Mc- Kinney, Tract No. 2 to Peter Smith and Paulus Sheep, Tract No. 3 to Captain John Brady, Tract No. 4 to Caleb Knapp, and Tract No. 5 to John Scudder.
Scudder was born in New Jersey in 1738. He came to Muncy Manor in 1769 on a prospecting tour and the next year brought his family here. His wife was the first white woman to locate in the settlement, and their second child, Mary, was the first white girl born west of the Muncy Hills. Scudder's cabin stood beside Glade Run, not far from the river. It was rudely constructed and without windows. The bed was set on posts, forked at the bottom, as a precaution against rattlesnakes and copperheads. Scudder served as lieutenant in the Associated Militia in guarding the frontier and also fought in the Revolu- tionary War. Mordecai Mckinney also came here from New Jersey in 1775. At the time of the Big Runaway, he fled with his family to Harris's Ferry and never returned.
JOB CHILLOWAY
Job Chilloway, friend of John Penn and discoverer of Muncy Manor, was a Delaware Indian. Because of his knowl- edge of Indian dialects and his familiarity with the Indian trails his services as a spy and messenger were valuable to the Pro- vincial Government. As a young man, while serving under Sir William Johnson, noted Indian agent of New York, he dis- tinguished himself by his ability and honesty in negotiations with various chiefs. He entered military service during the Revolutionary War, serving in Colonel Potter's Regiment at the battle of Red Bank. At the expiration of his military ser- vice he returned to his home on the West Branch.
29
EARLY SETTLEMENT
His favorite hunting grounds were in Nippenose Valley and it was while sojourning there that he became a friend of Colonel Antes, in command of Antes Fort. Because of his fre- quent long journeys through the country Chilloway was able to keep Colonel Antes informed of the movements and intentions of the Indians, and thus to prevent surprise attacks on the valley settlers.
In appearance he was a "tall, muscular man, with his ears split to hang pendant, like a pair of earrings." He was married to an Indian girl whom the white settlers called Betsy. Unlike her husband she was not friendly toward the white settlers. As friendship grew between Job and the whites, his wife's unfriend- liness developed into hatred. Gathering what information she could from her husband, she carried it to her Indian friends. Her conduct so greatly annoyed Job that he warned the white men against having any communication with her. Betsy finally left Job because of his friendship with the whites and returned to her people.
In 1770, Job joined the Moravian mission at Wyalusing. So highly regarded was he by those in charge that when they abandoned the mission and migrated to Ohio, Job was made custodian of the property. He was known and trusted by all the settlers in the valley. Even the unprotected women and children welcomed him to their cabins. Although he had a home in the Nippenose Valley, he left it and went to the Moravian settlement in Ohio, where he remained the rest of his life.
SAMUEL WALLIS
Samuel Wallis, born in 1730 of Quaker ancestry, erected the first permanent dwelling in Lycoming County in 1769, and became one of the most prominent land speculators in the his- tory of Pennsylvania. While engaged as a shipping merchant in Philadelphia before the Revolution, he saw the possibilities
Brock Mansion, near Halls Station, first substantial dwelling in Lycoming County
-
31
EARLY SETTLEMENT
offered to surveyors in this new country, and he spent consid- erable time preparing himself for that profession.
When the "New Purchase" of 1768 was made, Wallis was working with a crew of surveyors along the Juniata River. As soon as he received news of the purchase he hurried to the West Branch Valley and settled in Muncy Township, purchased all the land he could in his own name, and induced others to take out claims and transfer the titles to him for five shillings each. By this method he acquired thousands of acres. So vast were his holdings that at one time he owned almost all of the terri- tory in the river valley between Muncy and Jersey Shore, be- sides thousands of acres in other parts of the state.
The site he selected for his home is one-quarter mile west of Halls Station on Highway US 15, now (1939) owned by Henry G. Brock. This tract alone contained 7,000 acres. At Wallis' death in 1798 he left a large estate, heavily mortgaged. When his lands had been sold to satisfy creditors, nothing was left for his heirs.
NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY INCORPORATED
In 1772 the population of the West Branch Valley had grown to such proportions that the residents began a movement for the formation of a new county. The valley was included in Berks and Cumberland counties, but their county seats, Read- ing and Carlisle, were too far away. At some seasons of the year the roads were almost impassable, and even in good weather travel was slow and expensive.
On March 21, 1772, a new county was erected from por- tions of Berks, Bedford, Cumberland, Lancaster, and North- ampton; it was named Northumberland for a northern county of England. Fort Augusta was established as the county seat, with the fort itself serving as a courthouse until a new one could be constructed. The first court met April 9, 1772, as a "private
32
A PICTURE OF LYCOMING COUNTY
session of the peace." One of the first actions of this court was to divide the new county into five townships. Muncy town- ship, one of the five, embraced an extensive area, nearly all of what is now Lycoming County. During this period it was the most thickly settled section in the West Branch Valley.
FIRST ROAD SURVEYED
In the same year the court authorized the "viewing and laying out" of a road from Fort Augusta to Lycoming Creek. The order called for a road thirty-three feet wide. It was not constructed at once, for a later court order instructed a group under Colonel Antes to "view, and if they saw cause, lay out a bridle path from Bald Eagle Creek to Sunbury."
Eventually, however, the first order led to the building of a road to the settlement at Muncy, Lycoming Creek, and on up the river. It was the first road in the county upon which wagons could be used. Today it is part of the famous Susque- hanna Trail.
FIRST GRIST MILL
Another innovation of 1772 was a grist mill. It was erected by John Alward on the bank of Muncy Creek, just out- side the present borough of Muncy, near the junction of Big and Little Muncy Creeks. This rudely constructed mill, the first west of Muncy Hills, served an important purpose in the section. People came with their "grists" from miles around and "going to mill" was an event in the lives of the settlers.
THE MORAVIAN EMIGRATION (1772)
At Wyalusing on the North Branch of the Susquehanna the Indians who had been converted by the Moravian mission- aries had settled and established a mission. When the Iroquois sold their lands to the Provincial Government, the Moravians ap- pealed to the authorities for permission to remain. Failing to re- ceive this, they decided to abandon their town and migrate to
33
EARLY SETTLEMENT
Ohio. For the first leg of their journey, they divided into two parties.
The first party, consisting of about 140 persons, descended the North Branch of the Susquehanna River to the West Branch, and ascended the latter to the mouth of Muncy Creek. The other group, which included 54 persons, 60 head of cattle, and 50 horses, traveled an overland route through what is now Sullivan County, following the old Wyalusing path down Muncy Creek to its mouth. By prearrangement the two parties were to unite at Samuel Wallis' place, near the present Halls Station.
The overland caravan was led by Bishop John Ettwein, who recorded in his journal the perils and obstacles of the wild, unsettled region. They crossed an almost impassable swamp where the undergrowth was so dense that it was impossible to see more than six feet ahead. At several places the trail was en- tirely wiped out, and it was difficult to bring the cattle and horses through in safety. To add to the emigrants' discomfort, it rained continually during the passage through the swamp. When they reached Muncy, they had crossed Muncy Creek thirty-six times. The distance between these two points can be traveled today in a few hours. While waiting for the river party to join them their hunters killed fifteen deer and dried the meat for use on the remainder of the journey.
On Saturday, June 20, 1772, the two groups united at Wallis' place and the next day they held a religious meeting, attended by settlers from a radius of twenty miles. The follow- ing Monday a market day was held. Among the things offered for sale were: cattle, canoes, fowls, casks, buckets, chains, and ironware.
After resting a few days they traveled up the river, passing Loyalsock Creek, and camped near the mouth of Larrys Creek. The next night they camped on Long Island (Jersey Shore) .
34
A PICTURE OF LYCOMING COUNTY
Here the Bishop wrote about the numerous rattlesnakes that were killed and of a horse that died of snake-bite. From Long Island they pushed on to Lock Haven, then over the mountains to their new home in Ohio.
The appearance of these Moravians and Christian Indians in the West Branch was an event of great interest to the settlers and the chief subject of conversation among them for many weeks.
"YANKEES" IN WEST BRANCH
During the period of early settlement Pennsylvanians came into the West Branch Valley mainly from the southeast. At the same time New England was extending its settlements from the northeast. Their villages were in the Wyoming Valley, along the North Branch, and at the present sites of Wilkes-Barre, Kingston, and Plymouth. Later they became a part of the Con- necticut Colony in the township of Westmoreland. The Con- necticut Colony claimed the land along the northern border of Pennsylvania. which in fact had been given to both Connecticut and Pennsylvania by the Crown.
Originally the West Branch was not included in West- moreland Township, but an act of the Connecticut Council ex- tended the territory of the "Yankees" to the western boundary of the New Purchase, which at the time had been accepted as Lycoming Creek. In 1771 two townships were surveyed on the West Branch and named Charleston and Judea. They included the settlement at Muncy. The Susquehanna Land Company of Connecticut sent a group of about 540 colonists to settle at Wyoming. Three hundred of them expected to receive land along the West Branch river. The number that reached the river lands is not known, but there were enough to create a great disturbance among the Pennsylvanians who had preceded them.
The new arrivals were looked upon as impostors and were told to leave immediately. But the "Yankees" claimed the
35
EARLY SETTLEMENT
territory was legally theirs and said they intended to occupy it. The Pennsylvanians petitioned Richard Penn, acting Governor of the Province, for legal redress. The petition stated that a large body of armed men had invaded their territory and if the government did not provide some means of protecting their rights, they would assume the responsibility themselves and oust them by force. The governor, under instructions from the Assembly, objected to the invasion and advocated their removal on the grounds that their presence threatened the "destruction of the infant county" and "the peace of the whole province." He also called upon the various magistrates to protect the in- terests.of the Pennsylvania settlers.
Zebulon Butler, the Connecticut leader, then announced that he had been appointed a justice by the authorities of Con- necticut. The Governor of Pennsylvania replied with an order forbidding the people to have any dealings with "this usurper" on the grounds he had no legal authority in the Pennsylvania colony.
As the controversy continued, excitement increased. The Connecticut men held to their claim to the land and the Penn- sylvanians were just as resolute in their demands that they "get out." Finally it became evident that severe measures were neces- sary. The Yankees had not only demonstrated that they in- tended to stay, but it was rumored that re-enforcements were to be sent in to assist them.
Colonel William Plunkett, with a force of fifty men, was ordered to march from Fort Augusta to "meet and demand a reason for this intrusion and hostile appearance." Evidently there was little resistance, since only one man was killed and several wounded. The Yankees' buildings were burned, their property taken, and a number of them made prisoners.
Two of their leaders, William Judd and Joseph Shuman, were captured and placed in jail at Philadelphia. The women
36
A PICTURE OF LYCOMING COUNTY
and children were sent back to their friends in Wyoming. This was the end of Connecticut's attempt to establish a colony on the West Branch of the Susquehanna River.
FAIR PLAY MEN
It will be recalled that the treaty of Fort Stanwix specified Tiadaghton Creek as the western boundary of that purchase. The Indians claimed that Tiadaghton referred to Lycoming Creek and not Pine Creek as the Provincial authorities had sup- posed. This was the state of affairs until the treaty of 1784, when the Indians finally admitted that Pine Creek was the Tiadaghton. Thus for sixteen years the territory lying between these two tributaries of the West Branch of the Susquehanna River was to all intents and purposes Indian land and was recognized as such by the Provincial Government.
Although the governmental authorities had forbidden set- tlers to enter this disputed territory under penalty of a heavy fine and imprisonment, a number of fearless Scotch-Irish settlers from the lower counties and from New Jersey had come up the river and squatted near the mouth of Pine Creek.
Where Pine Creek empties into the river there was a wide flat area covered with a vigorous growth of tall grass and a few trees. The soil was so rich and fertile that the squatters were willing to risk Indian attacks and the threats of the Provincial Government in order to hold it. Because of their insecure posi- tion with both the government and the Indians they were de- pendent entirely upon themselves for protection. For their own safety they organized a simple form of self-government which they called the Fair Play System.
This system functioned under three commissioners, elected by ballot in March of each year. It was their duty to see that each person received "fair play" and to mete out punishment to all violators. They had no regular place or time of meeting.
37
EARLY SETTLEMENT
When necessity demanded, a general summons was circulated and the place of meeting made known. No person could join the settlement except by permission of the commissioners. If any person absented himself from his land for more than six weeks at one time he lost all claim to it. The only exception to this rule was absence for military service.
The decisions of the Fair Play Men were final. Anyone disregarding their verdict was placed in a canoe, paddled down the river to the mouth of Lycoming Creek, and set adrift with orders not to return. The justice of their decrees was never questioned. This was due to the high character and sense of honor of the men who administered them. Unfortunately no written records of their transactions exist. One reason advanced for their failure to keep records is that they were not friendly to the English Crown and did not wish to put anything in writing that might be used against them at any future time.
At the time of the "Pine Creek Declaration of Independ- ence" of July 4, 1776, the Fair Play commissioners were Bratton Caldwell, John Walker, and James Brandon. Since these three men are the only commissioners mentioned in contemporary ac- counts, it is presumed that they were reelected from year to year and served throughout the system's existence.
The Fair Play territory embraced the present townships of Old Lycoming, Woodward, Piatt, Porter and a portion of Watson. The system was in operation from 1773 to 1785. After the treaty of 1784 and the opening of a land office in May of the next year the rights of these settlers to the land were recognized, and deeds were granted to them by Act of Assembly.
PINE CREEK DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
A remarkable coincidence occurred in the Fair Play Terri- tory in 1776. At a mass meeting held July 4, the Fair Play Men wrote and signed their own Declaration of Independence
38
A PICTURE OF LYCOMING COUNTY
on the same day and at approximately the same hour as the better-known document was signed in Independence Hall in Philadelphia. That these pioneers, living more than two hundred miles from the seat of government, should frame a similar docu- ment is indeed unusual, but that it should take place on the same day has caused historians to proclaim it "an unparalleled coincidence in the annals of American history."
Less than a mile from the mouth of Pine Creek, just over the Clinton County line, stands a stately elm more than seven- teen feet in circumference and approximately three hundred years old. It is said that it was under this giant tree that the meeting was held and after a great deal of discussion and nu- merous patriotic speeches, these pioneer patriots passed resolu- tions, renouncing allegiance to Great Britain and declaring them- selves free and independent.
After the document had been signed the leaders retired to Fort Horn, on the south bank of the river, where its disposal was discussed. It was finally decided to place the original in a strongbox and bury it within the stockade of the fort and to send a copy-to the seat of government in Philadelphia.
Two of the most daring men 'of the settlement, Patrick Gilfillan and Michael Quigley, Jr., were chosen as dispatch riders. Their course lay along Bald Eagle Mountain and the Susquehanna River to near the present site of Harrisburg; thence southward through Lancaster to Philadelphia. While crossing Blouser Mountain, near the present town of Dalmatia, the couriers were ambushed by Indian allies of the British and robbed of their horses, saddles, money, and rifles. They then proceeded on foot to Harris Ferry, where they were arrested as spies. Quigley, who could speak the Indian language, enlisted the aid of an Indian girl named Lily Ann.
At night the girl unlocked the prison in which the mes- sengers had been placed and guided them to freedom. The Fair
39
EARLY SETTLEMENT
Play Men then concealed themselves under the hay in a covered wagon bound for Philadelphia. They finally reached their des- tination on July 10, only to discover that the Liberty Bell had proclaimed the Philadelphia Declaration almost a week pre- viously.
After remaining for a few days in Philadelphia to take .part in the festivities and to gather news of the great event, they returned to the West Branch to urge their friends to join in the fight for American independence.
In spite of a thorough search no draft of the Pine Creek Declaration has been found. Three reasons for its loss have been advanced. One is that when the two couriers were robbed on Blouser Mountain the copy they carried may have passed into the hands of British Tories, who under the circumstances would have certainly destroyed it. Another possibility is that no written document existed, in accordance with the policy of the Fair Play System. A third theory, considered by many the most plausible, is that the original document was lost during the Great Runaway of 1778, when Indians and Tories burned Fort Horn.
It was the opinion of the late Jacob Quiggle, Esq., (1821- 1911) whose grandfather, Phillip Quiggle (1745-1800), was one of the signers, that the actual signing took place inside the palisade of Fort Horn, after the meeting had retired to the fort from the great elm. According to Quiggle more than two hun- dred persons were within the palisade at the time the document was signed.
He also claimed that a copy of the Declaration was writ- ten in the Clark family Bible, in the handwriting of Thomas Clark.
Among the signers were: Thomas, Francis and John Clark, Alexander Hamilton, William Campbell, James Crawford, Alexander Donaldson, John Jackson, Jacob Pfouts, Adam Car- son, Henry McCracken, Adam Dewitt, Robert Love, Simon
40
À PICTURE OF LYCOMING COUNTY
Curts. Hugh Nichols, Peter Pents, Peter Grove, Robert Coven- hoven, Samuel Horn, and Phillip Quiggle.
QUESTIONS CHAPTER IV
1. What was Muncy Manor?
2. Who was Job Chilloway?
3. Who built the first permanent house in present Lycoming County?
4. Where was this house erected?
5. When was Northumberland County created? Where did it get its name?
6. What was the cause for the Moravian Emigration? Where did they desire to settle?
7. What group of colonists from outside of Pennsylvania laid claim to territory in the West Branch Valley and attempted to occupy it?
8. What was the "Fair Play System"?
9. What was the Pine Creek Declaration of Independence?
CHAPTER V
Lycoming In The Revolution
TT the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, Lycoming A
County was a part of Northumberland County. It was sparsely settled, with few centers of population. The settlers, and especially the Fair Play Men, were enthusiastic supporters of the Declaration of Independence. Unfortunately they faced a difficult problem. The territory was a wild frontier, covered with dense forests, and inhabited by roving bands of Indians allied with the British. In addition to assisting the Continental Army by sending men and limited quantities of supplies, the settlers had to defend their homes and settlements against savages.
At the beginning of the War the Proprietary Government was replaced by the State Government. Each township formed a Committee of Safety. On July 11, 1774 the township Com- mittee of Safety selected William Scull and Samuel Hunter to represent Northumberland County on the "Provincial Com- mittee of Deputies."
COMPANY RECRUITED
On June 15, 1775, a request for marksmen was received from the Continental Congress. John Lowden was commis- sioned as captain and instructed to raise a company of riflemen. He quickly performed the duty assigned him. The company as- sembled at Sunbury on July 8, 1775 and marched to Cam- bridge, Massachusetts. In it were many men from the West Branch Valley. Later the unit became part of the Second Regi- ment of the Army of the United Colonies, under the command
42
A PICTURE OF LYCOMING COUNTY
of Washington. On January 1, 1776 it was absorbed into the First Regiment of the Continental Army. Military records of the War describe the regiment's personnel as being remarkably accurate shooting, most of them being able to hit a seven-inch mark at a distance of two hundred yards.
The company left Cambridge on March 14, 1776 with a battalion sent by General Washington to prevent the British from landing at New York. They were dismissed from service July 1, 1776. Almost to a man, the company re-enlisted for two years, a term which in October of the same year was ex- tended to the "end of the war." The First Regiment, com- manded by Colonel Daniel Morgan, participated in the Battle of Saratoga, and as "Morgan's Riflemen," became famous throughout the Continental Army.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.