USA > Virginia > Historical collections of Virginia : containing a collection of the most interesting facts, traditions, biographical sketches, anecdotes, &c. relating to its history and antiquities ; together with geographical and statistical descriptions ; to which is appended, an historical and descriptive sketch of the District of Columbia. > Part 47
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There was a memorable battle fought with the Indians, called the battle of Trough MiD. The whites were surrounded, and greatly outnumbered, but they fought with Spartan-hice bravery ; and cutting their way through the savages, retreated to Fort - Picasant with the loss of many killed and wounded .. In retreating, they were obliged to swim a river, Some, ivo badly wounded for this, loaded their rifles and deliberately awaited the approach of the savages from behind some cover, and .dealt certain death to the first who approached, and then calmly yielded to the tomahawk.
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HARRISON COUNTY.
When Cornwallis entered Virginia, a party of tories, at the head of whom was a Scoteliman named Claypole, and his two sons, raised the British standard, and gained a large party on Lost River, and on the south fork of the Wappatomaka. It was theit intention to join Cornwallis. It was, however, crushed in the bud by a force from Win- chester, under General Daniel Morgan; and several of the young men, achance of their conduct, volunteered and marched to aid in the capture of the British at Yorktown.
HARRISON.
HARRISON was created in 1784, from Monongalia, and named in honor of Benjamin Harrison, governor of Virginia from 1781 to 1784, and father of the late President of the U. States. The sur- face is much broken, and much of the soil on the streams fertile. The bounds have been reduced within a few years by the for- mation of Marion. Ritchie, Barbour, and Taylor counties. Pop. in 1840, whites 16,850, slaves 693, free colored 126 ; total, 17,699.
Bridgeport, 6 miles east of Clarksburg, contains I Methodist and 1 Baptist church, and 25 dwellings. Lewisport, Milford, and Shinnston, are small villages in the county.
Clarksburg, the county-seat, lies 253 miles northwesterly from Richmond, and 70 cast of the Ohio River, at the junction of Elk creek with the west fork of the Monongahela. The village stands on a rolling table-land, surrounded by an amphitheatre of hills, while Elk creek, meandering through and around the town, imparts additional beauty to the scene. Clarksburg was estab- lished by law, Oct., 1785, and William Carpenter, John Myers, William Haymond, John M'Ally, and John Davisson, gentlemen, were appointed the trustees. It is now a flourishing town, and contains 7 mercantile stores, 2 newspaper printing offices, 2 fine classical academies, 1 Methodist, and 1 Presbyterian church, and a population of about 1100. There are inexhaustible supplies of coal in the immediate neighborhood ; and being in the midst of a fertile country, possessing great mineral wealth in its iron, salt, etc., it possesses the elements of prosperity. This immediato vicinity was settled a few years before the commencement of the . revolutionary war. The early settlers in this region of country suffered greatly in the wars with the Indians, until Wayne's treaty in 1795. Withers Chronicles of Border Warfare and History of Northwestern Virginia, published at Clarksburg in 1831, details many soul-harrowing cases of savage barbarity.
JESSE HUGHE was one of the bold pioneers who acted a conspicuous part against the Indians. Ho was bred from infancy in the hotbed of Indian warfare, and resided in Clarksburg. He was a light-built, sparo man, and remarkably active on foot, and for His constant practice of heating, became one of the best woodsmen and Indian banters of his day. The anvexed anecdotes we derive from the American Pioneer :
About the your 1799, the Indians one night came secretly upon the settlement af Clarksburg, and stole some horses. Next morning at daylight a party of about 25 ni ... started in pursuit, and come upon the Indian trail, and judged from appearances there were only 8 or 10 of them. The captain and a majority, in a hasty council, were fre pursuing the trail. Hughs opposed it, and advised them to let him pilot them by a near
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bay to the Ohio, and intercept the Indians in. their retreat. But this they would not Esten to. He then showed them the danger of following their trail ; and that in that case they would be waylaid, -- that the Indians would choose a secure position, shoot two or three of them, and escape. The commander, jealous of Hughs' influence, broke up the council, by exclaiming : " All the men may follow me -- let the cowards go home !" and dashed off at full speed. Hughs felt the insult, but followed with the rest. The result proved as he had predicted. Two Indians in ambush on the top of a clin, fired and stortally wounded two of the party in the author, and escaped. Now convinced of their error, they put themselves under Hughs ; but on arriving at the Ohio, they saw that the savages had crossed it. Hughs then got some satisfaction of the captain for his insult to him. He told them he wanted to find who the cowards were ; that if any would go with him, or even one, he would cross the river in the pursuit. They all refused. He then said he would go alone, and get a scalp, or leave his own with them. Alone he crossed the river, and the next morning came upon their camp. They were all ab- sent hunting except one Indian, who was left to guard the camp. He, unsuspecting danger, was fiddling on some dry bones, and singing, to pass the time, when Hughs crept up and shot him ; and, with the poor fellow's scalp, returned to his home some 70 miles distant, through the wilderness.
At a time of great danger from the incursions of the Indians in Virginia, when the citizens of the neighborhood were in a fort at Clarksburg, Hughs one morning observed a lad very intently fixing his gun. "Jim," said he, " what are you doing that for ?" " I am going to shoot a turkey that I hear gobbling on the hillside," said Jim. "Ibear no turkey," said Hughs. " Listen," says Jim ; " there, didn't you hear it ? listen again." "Well," says Hughes, after hearing it repeated, " I'll go and kill it." " No you won't," says Jim, " it is my turkey ; I heard it first." " Well," says Hughs, "but you know I am the best marksman ; and besides, I don't want the turkey, you may have it." The lad then agreed to let Bughs go and kill it for him. Hughs went out of the fort on the side that was farthest from the supposed turkey, and taking along the river, went up a ravine and came in on the rear ; and, as he expected, he espied an In- dian sitting on a chestnut stump, surrounded by sprouts, gobbling, and watching to see if any one would come from the fort to kill the turkey. Hughs crept up behind him, and shot him, before the Indian knew of his approach. He took off the scalp and went into the fort, where Jim was waiting for his prize. "There, now," says Jim, " you have let the turkey go. I would have killed it if I had gone." " No," says Hughs, " I didn't let it go ;" and taking out the sealp. threw it down. " There, take your turkey, Jim, I don't want it." The lad was overcome, and nearly fainted, to think of the certain death he had escaped, purely by the keen perception and good manage- ment of Mr. Hughs.
HENRICO.
HENRIro was one of the eight original shires into which Virginia was divided in 1634. Its mean length is 27 miles; mean breadth 102 miles. Excepting the lands on the James and Chickahominy, the soil is generally light and unproductive. The surface is mode- rately undulating, terminating in abrupt precipices, both on the Chickahominy and James River bottoms. Over one million of bushels bituminous coal are annually mined in the western section of the county. A rail-road connects the mines with James River. Population, including Richmond, whites 16,900, slaves 13,237, free colored 2,989 ; total, 33,076.
As early as 1611, Sir Thomas Dale established a town on the James River, which, in honor of Prince Henry, he called Henrico. From this originated the uante of the county. It contained three streets of framed houses, with a good church, he- sides storehouses, watchhouses, &c., and was defended by a palisade and several forte. 4. Upon the verge of the river bank," says Stith, in his History of Virginia, published about a century since, " stood five houses maabited by the better sort of purple, wine kept continual sontinel for the town's security.
" About two miles from the town, into the main, he ran another palisade, from river
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to river, near two miles in length, guarded with several forts, with a large quantity of corn ground impaled, and sufficiently secured. Besides these precautions, there may still be seen, upon the river bank, within the island, the ruins of a great ditch, now over- grown with large and stately trees; which, it may be supposed, was defended with a palisade, to prevent a surprise on that side. by crossing the river ; and for a still further security to the town, he intended, but never quite finished, a palisade on the south side of the river, as a range for the hogs ; and he called it Hope in Faith and Coxendale. It was about two miles and a half long, and was seenred by five of their sort of forts, called Charity fort, Elizabeth fort, fort Patience, and Mount Malady, with a guest house for sick people, upon a high and dry situation, and in a wholesome air, in the place where Jefferson church now stands. On the same side of the river also, Mr. Whitaker; their preacher, chose to be seated; and he impaled a fine parsonage, with a hundred acres of land, calling it Rock. Hall."
"Richmond, the metropolis of Virginia, is situated on the north side of James River, at the Great Falls, distant 117 miles from Washington City, 342 from New York. 557 from Boston, 520 from Cincinnati. 1055 from New Orleans, 423 from Charleston, 351 from Wheeling, 116 from Lynchburg. 62 from Fredericksburg, 106 from Norfolk, 146 from Winchester, and 23 from Petersburg.
Although Richmond is comparatively a modern town, yet its site is frequently alluded to in the early history of Virginia, The first mention of it ie in 1693, when Master West in a causeity of provisions, went up from Jamestown to the Falle of Janine Diyor as the place was then called, to procure food, but found nothing edible except acorns. In the same year West was sent with a colony of 120 men, to settle at the fulls. Capt. John Smith, then president of the colony, visiting West's settlement found his people planted " in a place not only subject to the river's inundation, but round environed with many intolerable inconveniences." This was, perhaps, where Rockett's now is, just below Richmond.
"To remedy these inconvenivares, Smith, by means of a messenger, proposed to Powhatan to purchase from him the place of that name .* The settlers, however, dis- dainfully rejected Smith's plan, and became so mutinous upon the occasion that Smith landed among them and committed the ringleaders to confinement. At length, how- ever, overpowered by their numbers, he being only supported by five, was forced to retire to a vessel in the river. At this time the savages daily supplied Smith with provisions, in requita! for which the disorderly English stole their corp, plundered their rardens, beat them, broke into their wigwams and made them prisoners, so that the poor Indians com- plained to Smith that those whom he had planted there as their protectors were worse than their enemies the Monocans. Smith embarked for Jamestown. No sooner had he sailed, then a -handful of Indians assaulted West's people, and slew many of -thom. However, before Smith had proceeded a mile and a half down the river, his vessel ran aground, whereupon he comidoned the mal contents to a parley, and with sech a panic were they struck at the assault of a few savages, that they submitted themselves to the president's mercy. He arrested the ringleaders, and established the rest at Powhatan in the Indian palisade fort there, which was so well fortified with poles and bark of trees as to defy all the savages of Virginia. They found, also, there, dry wigwams, and near 200 acres of land ready to be planted. And from the strength and beauty of the place, they called it . Nonsuch.' Smith bring now on the eve of his departare, West arrived. which renewed all the troubles, and the npshot was that they abandoned Nonsuch and returned to the Falls. Smith. finding all his efforts frustrated, embarked for Jamestown in his boat, for the vessel had sailed two days before."
In 1644-5, the Assembly of Virginia ordered a fort to be erected at the Falls'of James River, to be called . fforte Charles." In 1616 an act was passed, of which the follow- ing is an extract :---
" And, whereas, there is no plantable land adjoyning to ffort Charles, and therefore no encouragement for any vodertiker to nrantoine the same, It is, therefore, thought fitt and inacted. That if any person or persons purchasing the right of Cape. Thomas Harris shall or will create or inhabitt on the south side of James River right opposite to the sand fByte, soo it be done this or the ensseine years, That hee or they so vudertikeing as aforesaid shall lince and enjoy the houseing belonging to the said ifort for the vse of timber, or by burning thein for the nailes or otherwise, as also shall be excepted from the publique taxes for the term of three years, provided that the number exceed not tern, as also shall have and enjoy the boats and ammituition belonging to the said fort."
* The town where this monarch resided was called efter him. Powhatan. It consisted of about a dozen houses, and stood about two miles below the site of Richmond.
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HENRICO COUNTY.
In March, 1675- 6, war was declared against the Indians. Five hundred then were ordered to proceed to the frontier, and eight forts garrisoned. "Fifty-five men out. of James City county to be garrisoned neare the ffalls of James River, at Captain Byrd's, or at man fort of place of defence over against him at Newletto, [or Howletts.] of which forte Coll. Edward Ramsay be captaine or cheife commander."
In 1:26, s party of ladies. evacuating a fort on the l'otanne where they had been besieged by the colonists, " took their reale over the head of that river, and thence aver the heads of Rappahannock and York Rivers, killing whom they found of the uomoat plantations, until they came to the head of James River, where (with Bacon and others) they slew Mr. Bacon's overseer, whom he much loved. and one of his servants, whose blood he vowed to avenge, if possible ">* 1
" Bacon's Quarter Branch and Bloody Run, near Richmond, still call to mind Bacon and his rebellion. The term Bicoa's Quarter, indicates that his plantation lay there. Bloody Run, according to tradition, is so called from a bloody battle Bacon fought there with the Indians. We have not been able to find any thing in the history of those times to confirm this tradition, and it would seem more probable that Bloody Rua de- rived its name from the battle in which H!I was defeated, and Totop tomoi skin. The stream is a small one, and is said during the battle to have run blood."+
In 1479, certain privileges were granted Capt. Win. Bord, upon the condition that he should settle fifty able-bodied and well-armed men in the vicinity of the falls, to act as a protection to the frontier against the Indians.
In the Westover mss. Col. Byrd mentions his plantations at the falls, as follows : "September 15th, (1732,) for the pleasure of the good company of. Alrs. Byrd and her little governor, my son, I went about half-way to the falls in my chariot. There we halted not far from a purling stream, and upon the stump of a propagate oak picked the bones of a piece of roast beef. By the spirit which it gave me, I was the better able to part with the dear companions of my travels, and to perform the rest of my journey on horseback by myself. I reached Shacco's before two o'clock, and crossed the river to the mills. I had the grief to find them both stand as still for the want of water, as a dead woman's tongue for want of breath. It had rained so little for many weeks above the falls, that the Naiads had hardly water enough left to wash their faces. How- over, as we ought all to turn our misfortunes to the best advantage, I directed. Mir. Booker, my first minister there, to make use of the lowness of the water for blowing up the rocks at the mouth of the canal. *
* The water now flowed out of the river so slowly, that the miller was obliged to pond it up in the canal, by setting open the food-gates at the month, and shutting those close at the mill. By this contrivance, ho was able at any time to grind two or three bushels, either for his choice customers or for the use of my plantations. Then I walked to the place where they broke the flax, which is wrought with much greater ease than the hemp, and is much better for spin- ning. From thence I paid a visit to the weaver, who needed a little of Minerva's in- spiration to make the most of a piece of cloth. Then I looked in upon my Caledonian spinster, who was mended more in her looks, than in ber humor. * On the next day, after I had swallowed a few poached eggs, we rode down to the mouth of the canal, and from thence crossed over to the broad-rock island in a canoe. Our errand was to view some iron ere, which we dug up in two places. That on the surface seemed very spongy and poor, which gave us no great encouragement to search deeper, nor did the quantity appear to be very great. However, for my greater satisfaction, I ordered a hand to dig there for some time this winter. We walked from one end of the island to the other, being about half a mile in length, and found the soil very good, and too high for any flood less than Deucalion's to do the least daneste. There is a very wild pros- pect both upwards and downwards, the river being full of rocks, over which the stream tumbled with a murmur loud enough to drown the notes of a scolding wife, This island would make an agreeable hermitage for any good Christian, who had a mind to retire from the world."
Richmond was established a town by law in the reign of George II, May, 1742, on land belonging to Col. William Byrd, who died in 1744. The locality was anciently called Byrd's Warehouse. That gentleman, at the time, had a warehouse near where the Exchange Hotel now is. The svat of a Col. Byrd is thus described in Burnaby's Travels in North America in 1759-60. He " has a small place called Belvidere, upon & hill at the lower end of these falls, (James River,) as romantic and elegant as any thing I have ever seen. It is situated very high, and commands a fine prospect of the
* 'T- M.'s account of Bacon's Rebellion.
1 From muss. of Charles Campbell Hisq.
RICHMOND. The Capital City Hall & the Governor's House are seen in the central part - the State Penitentiary is seen on the actoome Lett.
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river, which is half a mile broad, forming cataracts in the manner above described. There are several little islands scattered carelessly about, very rocky and covered with trees, and two or three villages in view at a small distance. Over all these you discover a prodigious extent of wilderness, and the river winding majestically along through the inidst of it."
In 1777, the assailable situation of Williamsburg to the aggressions of the enemy, occasioned the Assembly of the state to remove the troops, arms, and ammunition, toge- ther with the public records, to Richmond ; and, partially from the saine cause, and the extension of the population westward, an act was passed, May, 1779, to remove the ceut of government here. At this time, Richmond was an insignificant place, scarcely affording sufficient accommodations for the officers of government. The legislature bestowed upon it the name of a city; but it was then only a city in embryo, with scarcely any thing of interest except the grandear of its natural scenery. The analo- gy of the situation of the place to that of Richmond-on-the-Thames, in England, sug. gested the name the town bears. The public buildings were temporary. The old capi- tol, which was private property, stood on the site now occupied by the custom-honse, and some of the adjacent buildings. It was a wooden structure, long since destroyed.
Richmond was invaded by the traitor Arnold in 1781. The sub- joined account is from Tucker's Life of Jefferson :
On the 3d of January the fleet came to anchor at Jamestown, and on the 4th it reached Westover, where about 900 men, but then supposed to be a much larger force, landed under the command of the notorious Arnold, and proceeded on their march to- wards Richmond. Until then, it was. not known whether that town or Petersburg was the shiest of after The governor, [Jefferson, ] on the same day, called out the whole of the militia from the adjacent counties ; but having no means of present resistance, he endeavored to secure that part of the public property which could be removed, by having it transported to the south bank of James River. Such of it as had been pre- viously sent to Westham, six miles above Richmond, was also ordered to cross the river. That night the enemy encamped at Four-mile creek, 12 mites below Richmond. At half after seven o'clock at night, the governor set out for Westham, and, baving stopped to hasten the transportation of the arms and stores, he proceeded to join his family at Tuckahoe, cight iniles further, which place he reached after midnight.
The next morning, having taken his family across the river, and sent them to a place of safety, he rode down to Britton's, opposite to Westham, and gave further orders con- cerning the public property, the transportation of which had been continued through the whole night, and part of the next day, until the approach of the enemy. He then pro- ceeded to Manchester, from whence he had a full view of the invading force. They had reached Richmond at 1 o'clock in the afternoon of that day, at which time there were only 200 militia, including those of the town, embodied.
'The governor wishing to advise with Baron Steuben, then commanding the new levica in the state intended for the south, and which then amounted to 200 recruits, went to Chetwood's, his head-quarters, a few miles from Manchester, but learning he was at Col. Fleming's, the governor proceeded to that place, where he continued that night. While there, some of the citizens of Richmond waited on him, to tender an offer from Arnold not to burn the town, provided British vessels were permitted to come to it un- molested, and take off the tobacco there deposited. The offer was unhesitatingly re. jected. As soon as Arnold reached Richmond, he sent a detachment under Col. Sim- coe to destroy the canton foundry above the town -- which having done, they advanced to Westhamn ; but finding that all the public property sent thither had been transported over the river, they returned to Richmond the same day. On the 6th, the governor re- turned to Britton's, and having given orders respecting the public archives, rejoined his family in the evening at Fine creek. The British, after burning some public and some pri- vate buildings, as well as a large quantity of tobacco, left Richmond about 24 hours after they entered it, encamped at Four-mile creek, and on the 7th, at Berkley and Westover ; having thus penetrated 33 miles into the country from the place of debarkation, and completed their incursion, without loss, in 48 hours from the time of their landing. On the ith, the governor went to Manchester, where he remained that night, and the next day returned to Richmond.
The bare communication of the fact, that a force of 1,000, or at most 1.500 men, was able to invade a country containing at that time a population of more than half a million, and 50,000 enrolled militia-march to its metropolis-destroy all the public and much of the private property found there, and in its neighborhood-and to leave the
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country with impunity, is, at first, calculated to excite our surprise, and to involve both the people, and those who administered its affairs, in one indiscriminate reproach. But there seems to be little ground for either wonder or censure, when it is recollected that these 50,000 militia were scattered over a surface of more than as many square miles ; that the metropolis, which was thus insulted, was but a village, containing scarcely 1,800 inhabitants, half of whom were slives ; and that the country itself. intersected by several navigable rivers, could not be defended against the sudden incursions of an vaemy whose riaval power gave it the entire command of the water, and enabled is to approach within a day's march of the point of attack.
Skirmish at Richmond, Jon. 5th, 1781.
A. Rebel Infantry .- B. Rebel Cavalry .-- C. Queen's Rangers .-- D. Queen's Rangers' Cavalry .- E. Yagers .- F. British Army .- W. Warehouses.
We here give a narration of the invasion of Richmond, from Simcoe's Journal. Lieut .- Col. Simcoe was the celebrated com- mander of a partisan corps called the Queen's Rangers. Late in life he was lieutenant-governor of Upper Canada. Although a gentlemanly man, he was noted for his prejudices against the United States. The engraving given is mainly important as de- lineating Richmond as it then was :
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