USA > Pennsylvania > Lackawanna County > The Wyoming Valley, upper waters of the Susquehanna, and the Lackawanna coal-region : including views of the natural scenery of northern Pennsylvania : from the Indian occupancy to the year 1875 > Part 8
USA > Pennsylvania > Susquehanna County > Susquehanna > The Wyoming Valley, upper waters of the Susquehanna, and the Lackawanna coal-region : including views of the natural scenery of northern Pennsylvania : from the Indian occupancy to the year 1875 > Part 8
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In 1784, after peace had settled upon the coun- · try, two of the Slocum brothers visited Niagara, in hopes of learning something of the where- abouts of the lost sister, but to no purpose. Large rewards were offered, but money will not extract a confession from an Indian which will break into the family circle.
Little Frances all this time was widely known by many tribes of Indians, but she had become one of thein, hence the mystery which enshroud- ed her fate.
The efforts of the family were untiring. Sev- eral trips were made westward, and each resulted
tribes were convened, in 1789, at Tioga Point, to effect a treaty with Colonel Proctor. This opportunity seemed to be the fitting one, for one visit could reach several tribes, but Mrs. Slocum, after spending weeks of inquiry among them, was again obliged to return home in sorrow, and almost despair.
The Brothers took a journey in 1797, occupy- ing nearly the whole summer, in traversing the wilderness and Indian settlements of the west, but to uo purpose. Once, indeed, a ray of hope seemed to glimmer upon the domestic darkness, for a female captive responded to the many and urgent inquiries, but Mrs. Slocum discovered at once that it was not her Frances. The mother of the lost child went down to the grave, having never heard from her daughter since she was carried away captive.
In 1826, Mr. Joseph Slocum, hearing of a prominent Wyandot chief who had a white wo- man for a wife, repaired to Sandusky, but was disappointed when he beheld the woman who he knew to a certainty could not be Frances. Hope had become almost abandoned, and the family was allowing the memory of the lost girl to sink into forgetfulness, when one of those strange freaks of circumstances which seem so mysteri- ous to humanity, but which are the ordinary actions of Infinity, brought to light the history and the person of the captive girl of Wyoming,
Colonel Ewing, who was connected with Indian service, had occasion to rest with a tribe on the Wabash, when he discovered a woman whose outlines and texture convinced him that she must be a white woman, although her face was as red as any squaw's could be. He made inquiries, and she admitted that she had been taken from her parents when young, that her name was Sto- cry, and that she was now so old that she had no objections to having her relations know of her whereabouts.
The Colonel knew full well, how anxious many eastern hearts were to hear of the lost one of earlier days, and thinking that he would do a charitable service, he addressed the following letter to the Postmaster of Lancaster, Pennsyl- vania :
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FRANCES SLOCUM, THE CAPTIVE GIRL.
Logansport, Indiana, January 20, 1535.
"DEAR SIR,-In the hope that some good may result from it, I have taken this means of giving to your fellow-citizens-say the descendants of the early settlers of the Susquehanna-the follow- ing information ; and if there be any now living whose name is Slocum, to them, I hope, the following may be communicated through the public prints of your place.
"There is now living near this place, among the Miami tribe of Indians, an aged white woman, who a few days ago told me, while I lodged in the camp one night, that she was taken away from her father's house, on or near the Susque. hanna river, when she was very young-say from five to eight years old, as she thinks-by the Delaware Indians, who were then hostile toward the whites. She says her father's name was Slocum; that he was a Quaker, rather small in stature, and wore a large-brimmed hat ; was of sandy hair and light complexion, and much freckled ; that he lived about a half a mile from a town where there was a fort ; that they lived in a wooden house of two stories high, and had a spring near the house. She says three Delawares came to the house in the day time, when all were absent but herself, and perhaps two other children : her father and brothers were absent making hay. The Indians carried her off, and she was adopted into a family of Delawares, who raised her and treated her as their own child. They died about forty years ago, somewhere in Ohio. She was then married to a Miami, by whom she had four children ; two of them are now living-they are both danghters -and she lives with them. Her husband is dead ; she is old and feeble and thinks she will not live long.
"These considerations induced her to give the present history of herself, which she would never do before, fearing that her kindred would come and force her away. She has lived long and happy as an Indian, and, but for her color, would not be suspected of being anything else but such. She is very respectable and wealthy, sober and honest. Her name is without reproach. She says her father had a large family, say eight chil- dren in all -- six older than herself, one younger, as well as she can recollect ; and she doubts not
that there are still living many of their descend- ants, but seems to think that all her brothers and sisters must be dead, as she is very old herself, not far from the age of eighty. She thinks she was taken prisoner before the two last wars, which must mean the Revolutionary war, as Wayne's war and the late war have been since that one. She has entirely lost her mother tongue, and speaks only in Indian, which I also understand, and she gave me a full history of herself.
"Her own Christian name she has forgotten, but says her father's name was Slocum, and he was a Quaker. She also recollects that it was on the Susquehanna River that they lived. I have thought that from this letter you might cause something to be inserted in the newspapers of your county that might possibly catch the eye of some of the descendants of the Slocum family, who have knowledge of a girl having been car- ricd off by the Indians some seventy years ago. This they might know from family tradition. If so, and they will come here, -I will carry them where they may see the object of my letter alive and happy, though old and far advanced in life.
"I can form no idea whereabouts on the Sus- quehanna River this family could have lived at that early period, namely, about the time of the Revolutionary war, but perhaps you can ascertain more about it. If so, I hope you will interest yourself, and, if possible, let her brothers and sis- ters, if any be alive,-if not, their children- know where they may once more see a relative whose fate has been wrapped in mystery for sev- enty years, and for whom her bereaved and af- flicted parents doubtless shed many a bitter tear. They have long since found their graves, though their lost child they never found. I have been much affected with the disclosure, and hope the surviving friends may obtain, through your good- ness, the information I desire for them. If I can be of any service to them, they may command me. In the mean time, I hope you will excuse me for the freedom I have taken with you, a total stranger, and believe me to be, sir, with much respect, your obedient servant,
"GEO. W. EWING."
This letter nict the fate of many others of im- portance-it was flung away as a wild story.
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THE WYOMING VALLEY.
The student of human nature readily sees the advantage of many a trivial affair, but the Post- master of Lancaster could not grasp the intent of a superior mind. and Ewing's letter went to the waste basket.
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Dr. Peck, the venerable preacher of the Meth- odist church, states in his history, that "there was a providence in the discovery of the lost one, and will that providence, which was concerned in the first developement, allow the light to die out, and the whole matter to be hid from the vision of those so deeply interested in the revela- tion ?" It seems that there is an overruling Power who ordains and controls events, as will be seen in this case.
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The Postmaster died, and had been in his grave time sufficient to allow the wife an oppor- tunity of straightening his affairs. She was in the act of overhauling a mass of papers belong- ing to her husband's business, when she encoun- tered the letter of Colonel Ewing. A woman's perceptions are keen and quick, and the tender emotions which were begotten in her mind, were but the responses of her better nature. IIer sympathy yearned for one of her sex, and she could do no more than proclaim the story to the world. Accordingly she sent the letter to the editor of the Lancaster Intelligencer, and therein it was published.
Newspapers of limited circulation may net revolutionize matters of great importance, but they have their sphere in detail, and when the aggregate is summed up, they accomplish more than the mighty engines of larger mediums.
It was so in this case,-the Lancaster paper was about issuing an extra for temperance pur- poses, and this letter happened to go into the form to help "fill up," as poor printers sometimes express it. The Lancaster office was not poor,- but the foreman did "fill up" with the Ewing let- ter. Rev. Samuel Bowinan, of Wilkes-Barre, by chance saw a copy. He knew the Slocums, and the entire history of the valley as it was given by tradition.
He was not present in the valley at the time, but bis heart warmned for the scenes and associa- tions of carly times in Wyoming. He mailed one of the papers to a Slocumi, a brother of the captive girl, and the effect produced was as if by
magic. Everybody was acquainted with the his- tory of Frances, and all were interested in her fate. Sixty years had gone by since she was carried away, an innocent girl, and now the world had found the lost one.
The result of the discovery is embodied in the following letters :
"Wilkes-Barre, Penn., August 8, 1937. GEORGE W. EWING, EsQ. :
"DEAR SIR,- At the suggestion of my father and other relations, I have taken the liberty to address you, although an entire stranger.
"We have received, but a few days since. a letter written by you to a gentleman in Laneas- ter, of this state, upon a subject of deep and in- tense interest to our family. How the matter should have lain so long wrapped in obscurity we cannot conceive. An aunt of mine-sister of my father-was taken away when five years old by the Indians, and since then we have only had vague and indistinet ramors upon the subject. Your letter we deem to have entirely revealed the whole matter, and set every thing at rest. The description is so perfect, and the incidents (with the exception of her age) so correct, that we feel confident.
"Steps will be taken immediately to investi- gate the matter, and we will endeavor to do all in our power to restore a lost relative who has been sixty years in Indian bondage.
"Your friend and obedient servant, "JON. J. SLOCUM."
"Logansport, Indianna, August 26, 1537, "Jos. J. SLocUM, EsQ., Wilkesbarre :
"DEAR SIR,-I have the pleasure of acknowl- edging the receipt of your letter of the 8th instant, and in answer can add, that the female I spoke of in January, 1835, is still alive; nor can I for a moment doubt but that she is the identi- cal relative that has been so long lost to your family.
"I feel much gratified to think that I have been thus instrumental in disclosing to yourself and friends such facts in relation to her as will enable you to visit her and satisfy yourselves more fully. She recovered from the temporary illness by which she was afflicted about the time I spent the night with her in January, 1835, and
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FRANCES SLOCUM, THE CAPTIVE GIRL.
which was, no doubt, the cause that induced her to speak so freely of her early captivity.
"Although she is now, by long habit, an In- lian, and her manners and customs precisely theirs, yet she will doubtless be happy to see any of you, and I myself will take great pleasure in accompanying you to the house. Should you come out for that purpose, I advise you to re- pair directly to this place ; and should it so hap- pen that I'should be absent at the time, you will find others who will take you to her. Bring with you this letter ; show it to James T. Miller, of Peru, Ind., a small town not far from this place. He knows her well. He is a young man whom we have raised. He speaks the Miami tongue, and will accompany you if I should uot be at home. Inquire for the old white woman, mother-in-law to Brouriette, living on the Missis- inewa River, about ten miles above its mouth. There you will find the long-lost sister of your father, and, as I before stated, you will not have to blush on her account. She is highly respect- able, and her name as an Indian is without re- proach. Her daughter, too, and her son-in-law, Brouriette, who is also a half-blood, being part French, are both very respectable and interesting people-none in the nation are more so. As In- dians they live well, and will be pleased to see you. Should you visit here this fall, I may be absent, as I purpose starting for New York in a few days, and shall not be back till some time in October. But this need not stop you ; for, al- though I should be gratified to see you, yet it will be sufficient to learn that I have furthered your wishes in this truly interesting matter.
"The very kind manner in which you have been pleased to speak of me shall be fully appre- ciated.
"There perhaps are men who could hear her 'story unmoved, but for me, I could rot; and when I reflected that there was, perbaps, still lin- gering on this side of the grave some brother or sister of that ill-fated woman, to whom such in- formation would be deeply interesting, I resolved on the course which I adopted, and entertained the fond hope that my letter, if ever it should go before the public, would attract the attention of some one interested. In this it seems, at last, I have not been disappointed, although I had long
since supposed it had failed to effect the object for which I wrote it. Like yon, I regret that it should have been delayed so long, nor can I con- ccive how any one should neglect to publish such a letter.
"As to the age of this female, I think she her- self' is mistaken, and that she is not so old as she imagines herself to be. Indeed, I entertain no doubt but that she is the same person that your family have mourned after for more than half a century past. Your obedient humble servant,
"GEORGE W. EWING.
There was one mark which could not be mis- taken-little Frances, when a child had played with a brother in the blacksmith's shop, and by a careless blow from the latter a finger was crushed in such a manner that it never regained its original form.
Mr. Isaac Slocum, accompanied by a sister, and brother, sought an interview with the tanned woman, through the aid. of an interpreter, and the first question asked after an examination of the finger was :- 'how came that finger jammed ?' The reply was convincing and conclusive -. My brother struck it with a hammer in the shop, a long time ago, before I was carried away.'
Here then, at last, by this unmistakable token, the lost was found. Her memory proved to be unerring ; the details of events sixty years old were perfect, and given in such a manner as to awaken in the hearts of the Slocum family warm emotions for the withered old woman. Her life, although rude, had been a happy one, and no in- ducements were strong enough to persuade her to leave the camp fires of her adoption.
By act of Congress, MA-CON-A-QUA, the Indian title of Frances Slocum, was granted one mile square of the reservation which was appointed to the Indians of Indiava, west of the Mississippi -- to be held by herself during her life, and to re- vert to her heirs forever. She died March 9th 1847, and was given Christian burial in a beau- tiful spot where the romantic waters of the Mis- sisinewa and Wabash rivers join their ripples on the way to the sea.
The story of the captive girl of Wyoming has been breathed around the hearths of the entire Christian world as one of the most fruitful in ro- mance and song.
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CHAPTER X.
THE PENNAMITE WAR. PERMANENT PEACE RESTORED TO WYOMING VALLEY.
[And the future is dark, and the present is spread Like a pillow of thorns for thy slumberless head.
-Shelley.
Thy touch has stamped these limbs with crime, These brows thy branding garland bear ; But the free heart, the impassive soul, Scorn thy control !
-Hellas.
Following the winter of 1782-83, peace be- twecn the Colonies and Great Britan dawned with the warm rays of spring. Beautiful Wy- oming had, however, since the fated day of July, 1778, nearly five years before, suffered more in detail than any other section of country along the entire Atlantic seaboard. It seemed to be miraculous how sudden and casy hostile parties could meet in this enchanted vale. The diaries and more detailed histories of the earlier days are replete with the many and thrilling tales of adventure, cruelty and sacrifice of these five years preceeding peace between the two countries, but alas, Wyoming's landscape was as scarlet streams of gore long after. The old feud between the Yankees, from New England, on the one part, and the native Pennsylvanians on the other, which had been slumbering during the years of Revolutionary story when a'l hearts were united in a common cause-now broke out afresh, and apparently with redoubled vigor and vindictive malice.
The Decree of Trenton which was passed in December, 1782, adjudged the right of jurisdic- tion and preemption to Pennsylvania.
Upon the concluding of amicable relations be- tween England and the United States during the spring, the garrison which had been stationed at Wilkes-Barre was removed, and for some reason known only to the authorities, the fort was at once manned with Pennsylvania state troops.
The entire nation, weary with the long war, was in a happy mood in the spring, and all hands joined with an earnest effort to prepare for the crops of the coming summer. Wyoming lent its cooperation to the good work, and during the pleasant days of the genial months, peace and order prevailed.
The Valley was augmented in numbers by parties arriving from different directions, to seek a home in the renowned vale on the Susque- hannna; New Jersey and Pennsylvania furnished the greatest number.
During the autumn months affairs assumed a sterner aspect, and it was evident that the Penn- sylvania bitterness was determined to show itself once more in its fury toward the Connecticut settlers.
A number of the former met secretly, and elected justices of the peace and other officers. The Assembly of Pennsylvania, in hearty co- operation, commissioned those duly elected, and soon every Yankee against whom any trivial charge could be trumped up was sued, and par- tial, if not diabolical judgments meted out to them. Men were publicly whipped with gun- rods, compelled to lie in pens with mud for bed- ding, and a rule enforced that if three Yankees Were secu together, they were to be punished.
The troops under Pennsylvania state officers, acted brutally toward the hard struggling set- tlers, and instances are recorded where the sol-
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THE PENNAMITE WAR.
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diers purposely destroyed the fences around grain fields, that cattle might enter for pastur- age.
. Miner in describing the scenes attending the outbreak says :- "On the 13th and 14th of May the soldiers were sent forth, and at the point of the bayonet, with the most high-handed arro- gance, dispossessed one hundred and fifty fami- -lies ; in many instances set fire to their dwell- ings, avowing the intention utterly to cxpel them from the country. Unable to make any effect- ual resistance, the people implored for leave to remove either up or down the river, as with their wives and children, in the state of the roads, it would be impossible to travel. A stern refusal inet this seemingly reasonable request, and they . were directed to take the Lackawaxen road, as leading most directly to Connecticut. But this way consisted of sixty miles of wilderness, with scarce a house ; the roads were wholly [neglect- ed during the war, and they then begged leave to take the Easton or Stroudsburg route, where bridges spanned the larger streams, still swollen by recent rains. All importunities were vain, and the people fled toward the Delaware, objects of destitution and pity that should have moved a heart of marble. About five hundred men, women, and children, with scarce provisions to sustain life, plodded their weary way, mostly on foot, the roads being impassable for wagons, mothers carrying their infants, and pregnant women literally wading the streams, the water reaching to their armpits, and at night slept on the naked earth, the heavens their canopy, and scarce clothes to cover them. A Mr. John Gard- ner and John Jenkins, both aged rren and lame, sought their way on crutches. Little children, tired with traveling, crying to their mothers for bread, which they had not to give them, sunk from exhaustion into stillness and slumber, while the mothers could only shed tears of sorrow and compassion, till in sleep they forgot their griefs and cares. Several of the unfortunate sufferers died in the wilderness, others were taken sick from excessive fatigue, and expired soon after reaching the settlements. A widow, with a nu- merous family of children, whose husband had been slain in the war, endured inexpressible hard- ships. One child died, and she buried it as she 5
could beneath a hemlock log, probably to be dis- interred from its shallow covering, and be de- voured by wolves."
Hollister in his history of the Lackawanna Valley mentions the fact that "a small mound, sheltered by a friendly hemlock, lies by the roadside in Wayne county, where the little one was buried."
It is but justice to note that the proceedings of the troops drew forth peremptory repudiation from the State authorities, and the companies then on duty were instantly relieved.
The Connecticut people had not lost all faith in the wisdom of State government, and it was determined, in order to procure protection and justice, to appeal by petition to the existing ad- ministration of State authority. The rule forbid- ding three to be seen together, was a bar to any effective action, and the result was, to confer by sending around two to notify all of plans adopt- ed.
A meeting was finally held within forty rods of the fort, where a number assembled with great secrecy, darkened the windows, then drew and signed a petition which was forwarded to Phila- delphia by a messenger who contracted to deliv- er it. It reached the Assembly, and a commit- tee was appointed to repair to Wilkes-Barre, to inquire into the cause of the complaint.
The committee met pursuant to. instructions, heard the evidence on both sides, which clearly established the position taken by the Connecti- cut people, when they retired and reported, but without effect.
The trials of the families who had left their quiet New England homes, were indeed severe ; besides the troubles from Indian raids, added to the inconveniences imposed by Pennsylvanians, a great ice flood, which carried away cattle and horses, and even dwellings, almost ruined the prosperity of the community. The locks had been taken from New England guns, and in fact every disability which could render inefficient the aims of the settlers was resorted to. The Pennamites for a time obtained full possession and control of the country, but only to be met again by the persistent Yankees.
In the fall of 1785 a brisk skirmishwas had be- tween a party of the Pennamites and another of
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THE WYOMING VALLEY.
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Yankees, in a piece of woods near Plymouth, in which two were killed aud several wounded. The Pennamites fled in confusion, and were pur- sued to their fort, where a state of siege was com- menced which lasted for several days. Intelli- gence reached the assailants that a force was on the way to assist the besieged Pennamites, which compelled the Yankees to raise the siege and di- rect their attention to opposing the advance of the coming columns, which they did in a satis- factory manner. The war was not confined alone to flint-locks and gunpowder-the law was putting its machinery to its fullest capacity. The Sheriff of Northumberland county accompanied by several justices came to Wilkes-Barre to at- tempt a restoration of peace. After much nego- tiation an agreement was entered into by which both parties were to resume the ordinary duties of life, and under this state of affairs the Yankees returned to their deserted homes, and the Penn- amites to their forts. A short time after a body of men, some two or three hundred in number, headed by John Armstrong and a Mr. Boyd the members of the Senate of Pennsylvania, en. tered the valley and demanded the surrender of both factions. The submission of the Penna- mites was but a farce, and no sooner had the Yankees laid down their arms, than they were made prisoners, and Pennamite sentinels were placed over them as guards. Several were sent in irons to the jail at Easton, others to Sunbury. Those at the latter place readily found bail and returned, but a severer fate awaited the incarce- rated ones at Easton. They were placed in cells, from which a large number forced their way out, and obtained arms once more and proceeded to assert their rights headed by one John Franklin. No bills were found against the others at Easton
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