USA > Wisconsin > An illustrated history of Wisconsin from prehistoric to present periods : the story of the state interspersed with realistic and romantic events > Part 14
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*Smith's "History of Wisconsin," Vol. I., 429-430.
+De Langlade died in January, 1800, at the age of seventy-five years, after an ill- ness of only two weeks, and was buried in the cemetery at Green Bay, close to the spot where his father lay buried. He was said to have been a fine appearing man, and the remarkable purity and elegance of his French was wondered at by all France.
#Hebberd's " Wisconsin Under French Dominion," 167.
F HAUME
POPE LEO XIII.
CHAPTER XVIII.
WISCONSIN UNDER ENGLISH RULE .- 1763-1796.
British Supremacy in the West .- Land Grants .- Pontiac's Conspiracy .- Military Posts Captured .- Decline and Downfall of English Rule.
BRITISH supremacy was founded upon the ruins of the French empire, upon the downfall of Quebec. The capture of Quebec in 1759, and the capitulation of Montreal in 1760, extinguished the French dominion in the St. Lawrence basin, and by the terms of the Treaty of Paris in 1763, * all of the possessions and claims of the French nation to the vast coun- tries watered by the Ohio and Mississippi were ceded to Great Britain. Thus a new era in the history of the west commenced with the year 1763. England now held the sovereignty of Nova Scotia, Acadia, Canada, and, in fact, the whole of New France, including the country from the Gulf of Mexico to the sources of the Mississippi, then designated as Louisiana. Of all the power that France once held over those vast regions not an iota remained, except the deeply-seated affection and enduring friend- ship of some of the Indian nations.
The transfer of the dominion from the French to the English gov- ernment, and the occupancy of the military posts by the new masters, did not in any great degree alter the social condition of the inhabitants. By the terms and conditions of the capitulation of Montreal, the French subjects were permitted to remain in the country, in the full enjoyment of their civil and religious rights. The great fur trade, which had been prosecuted upon the lakes and rivers with such success by the French, was now pushed forward with great energy by the English company, who employed French agents, voyegeurs, and courriers du bois, to conduct their trading transactions with the Indians. Agriculture was not pur- sued by the English to any greater extent than by their predecessors, as but few of their nation had yet come into this country, except for the purpose of trade. The French settlements were along the principal streams of the lakes, and in the immediate vicinity of the military posts. t The farms were scattered along the banks of the rivers in a narrow form, surrounded by pickets.
At the time of the surrender of the post to the English, there were about fifty cottages on the Straits of Detroit, į with small orchards by their side. The cottages were constructed of logs, with roofs of bark or
*The articles of the Treaty of Paris were signed on the 3d day of November, 1762, but were not concluded. On that day, a secret treaty between Spain and France was entered into, wherein France ceded to Spain all Louisiana west of the Mississippi, together with the island of Orleans. The Treaty of Paris was concluded on the 10th day of February, 1763, by the terms of which Great Britain became possessed of the whole of New France, and all that portion of the province of Louisiana east of the Mississippi, except the town of New Orleans, and the island on which it was situated, which was reserved by France. The navigation of the Mississippi was to remain equally free to the subjects of Great Britain and France.
+Lanman's Michigan.
#Smith's History of Wisconsin, Vol. I., 129,
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HISTORY OF WISCONSIN.
straw thatching. Wheat was then sown in rows, and about this time corn was introduced under English jurisdiction. Peltries were at that time the chief circulating medium.
England, previous to the war, had affirmed that the discoverer and occupant of a coast was entitled to all of the country contiguous to it. She had carried her colonial boundaries from sea to sea, but, as against France, had maintained the original charter limits of her colonies. But now that France had retired vanquished, the situation was materially changed, and she now began to see things in a new light.
His majesty, George III., issued a royal proclamation on October 7th, 1763, wherein he congratulated his subjects upon the great advan- tages that would naturally accrue to their trade, manufactories, and navigation, from the newly-acquired territory. His majesty then pro- ceeded to constitute four new governments, three of which were on the continent, and one in the West Indies. His territory on the Gulf he divided into East Florida and West Florida. The boundary line being the Appalachian river ; separating them from their possessions in the north by the 31st parallel from the Mississippi to the Chattahoochee, by that stream to its confluence with the Flint, by a straight line to the source of the St. Mary's, and then by the St. Mary's to the Atlantic ocean. The other government established by his majesty was the gov- ernment of Quebec.
Among the first acts of England was the protection of the eminent domain of the government, and the restriction of individuals to acquire title to Indian lands. By his majesty's proclamation of 1763, the British governors were prohibited from issuing land grants, except within certain prescribed limits, and all private persons were forbidden the liberty. of purchasing lands from the Indians, and of making settle- ments, without these prescribed limits. Notwithstanding this procla- mation, and within three years after its promulgation, a tract of country nearly one hundred miles square, including a large portion of northern Wisconsin, was claimed to have been purchased from the Indians by Captain Jonathan Carver,* and a ratification of his title solicited from the British crown.
Similar to the " Carver Grant " was the purchase made by William Murray, in 1773, from the Illinois Indians, of several parcels of land, amounting to double the quantity of land embraced in "Carver's Grant," and known as the Illinois and Wabash Company's purchase. For these several purchases the Indians were paid more than £50,000 sterling, while the deeds were executed at places where solemn treaties were held, and every detail pertaining to the transfer of title was conducted in good faith between the contracting parties. Three noted crown lawyers,
*It appears that the claims of Captain Jonathan Carver were not conceded by the king and council, and were finally rejected by the United States, when the claims were presented to congress asking for their confirmation.
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WISCONSIN UNDER ENGLISH RULE.
Pratt, Yorke, and Dunning, two of whom afterwards became lord-chan- cellors, gave their opinions in favor of the purchase. Notwithstanding the numerous attempts of the Illinois and Wabash Land Company to have their claims ratified by congress they were unsuccessful, as the king's proclamation of October 7, 1763, prohibiting individuals from purchasing lands from the Indians, has always been maintained by con- gress.
As early as 1806, the United States instituted inquiries into the nature of the claims of the inhabitants of the northwest to lands in the territory of Michigan, of which Wisconsin is now a part. The able report of the commissioners on this subject embraced the titles to all the farms in six classes:
The first class consisted of grants made by the French governors of New France and Louisiana, and confirmed by the king of France.
The second class consisted of grants made by the French governors, and not confirmed by the king of France.
The third class consisted of occupants by permission of the French military commanding officers, without confirmation or grant, and without written evidence of any permission, but accompanied by long and undis- turbed possession.
The fourth class consisted of occupancies while France possessed the country, without permission, but accompanied by undisturbed pos- session.
The fifth class was composed of similar titles, together with dis- tinguishments of native right by individuals, while the country belonged to Great Britain.
The sixth class was composed of occupancies and extinguishments of native right by individuals, since the country belonged to the United States. *
Of the latter class United States commissioners reported that there were Indian grants generally for a few hundred acres, though some were for five, ten, thirty, fifty, and even as high as one hundred thou- sand acres, but the policies and principles of the celebrated royal proc- lamation of 1763, and adopted by the United States government, determined all such grants and claims invalid.
Another class embraced claims based on actual settlements and improvements, without other pretended title. This class included all the old claims to lands and lots at Green Bay and Prairie du Chien, which were afterwards approved and favorably reported on by the United States commissioners, and finally confirmed by the general government.
After the Canadian provinces had been wrested from the crown of France, and the English power had extended over the west, a change came over the happy and peaceful homes of the French in New France
*Smith's History of Wisconsin, Vol. I., 127.
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HISTORY OF WISCONSIN.
and Louisiana. The inhabitants were repugnant to English submission, their ancient and natural enemy, and many preferred to leave their quiet homes and fields, and seek new dwelling-places under the domin- ion of France, which was still maintained west of the Mississippi. In consequence the French settlements began to decline, and in order to prevent an almost abandonment of them, the English government assured the inhabitants that their religion, rights, and property, should be protected and remain inviolate under the dominion of Great Britain. Although many consented to remain, yet many retired to western Louisiana, and French settlements began to extend on the west side of the Mississippi, principally within the limits of the present state of Missouri. Here, under the Spanish authority exercised by the mild and paternal government of Spain, which differed not in many respects from that of France, their tranquil lives were not again disturbed, until the Americans began to approach the Mississippi. In 1803, a total change was effected in their social and political life, by the ceding of Louisiana to the United States. *
In October, 1765, under orders of General Gage, Captain Sterling, of the British army, arrived by way of the Ohio, and established his headquarters at Fort Chartres, as commandant of the Illinois country, and commander-in-chief of the British forces in America. t
At this time the French population of the whole Illinois country, from the Mississippi eastward to the Wabash, was about five thousand persons, including about five hundred negro slaves. Subsequent loss by emigration was not replaced by English settlers, and, in consequence, ten years later, the population of Kaskaskia was estimated at but little over one hundred families ; that of Cahokia, fifty families ; and of Prairie Dupont and Prairie du Rocher, each fourteen families ; these were the principal points of settlement in the country. Fort Chartres, afterwards called Fort Gage, was a stockaded fort, opposite the town of Kaskaskia, on the east bank of the Kaskaskia river. Cahokia was a small post on the bank of the Mississippi, about three miles below St. Louis.
Puttman, who visited the Mississippi country in 1770, in speaking of the soil and productions of this region, says that a man in the Illinois country could have fed and lodged the year around for two months' work; one month in seeding time, the other in harvest. In 1769, one man furnished the king's stores from his crop, eighty-six thousand pounds of flour ; } and, the same year, one hundred and ten hogsheads of wine were produced from the native Illinois grape. §
This highly productive portion of the northwest, under the new masters, for a series of years we find hardly or any account of improve- ments in Illinois, and still less in that portion of the country lying imme-
*Stoddard's Louisiana. Martin's Louisiana. Monette, and authorities.
+Smith's History of Wisconsin, Vol. I., 154.
¿Puttman's State of Eng. Sett. on the Miss., 43-55.
§Hutchin's Top. Descr., 43.
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WISCONSIN UNDER ENGLISH RULE.
diately west of Lake Michigan, as Green Bay in those days was sparsely settled, while the mythical fort and fortifications of Prairie du Chien were not then dreamed of .*
The succession of authority to the English over the northwest did not bring with it the friendship of the Algonquin tribes in that quarter. The English were regarded by the Indians as intruders, and the long- cherished affection which the numerous tribes had for the French pro- duced an opposite feeling in them toward their new masters, the enemies of the great French father, which quickly ripened into the bitterest of hatred.
The ink with which the celebrated Treaty of Paris was written was scarcely dry ere the hatred of Pontiac became manifest. Pontiac had conceived the great design of driving the English effectually from the country, by the destruction of their forts, which would deprive them of their possessions in the west, as well as be a great obstacle to their future advance on the waters of the northwest. His plan was to unite all the tribes in one grand confederacy, and simultaneously attack all the English posts, massacre the garrisons, take possession of the British strongholds, drive the British from the land, and secure the return of their old friends-the French.
Abbé Raynal, commenting on the characteristics of Pontiac, says : "A hundred traits of equal elevation had fixed upon Pontiac the gaze of the savage nations. He wished to reunite all his tribes for the purpose of making his territory and independence respected, but unforeseen cir- cumstances prevented the project. The terrible drama got up by this son of the forest stamps his name with greatness. The living marble and the glowing canvas may not embody his works, but they are identical with the soil of the western forest, and will live as long as the remem- brance of its aboriginal inhabitants-the Algonquins."t
Without doubt, the league formed by Pontiac in his great undertak- ing was the most extensive which was ever formed upon the continent by any Indian chief. A large majority of the tribes inhabiting the region extending from the lakes, on the north, to the southern limits of Cali- fornia, thence west of this great frontier, back as far as the Mississippi, were engaged in it, through the influence of this great chief, who exer- cised the power of an absolute dictator, with all the magnetism and influence of an inspired leader.
Pontiac had evinced great judgment and clearness of discrimination in his interviews with the astute Major Rodgers. He not only sought to inform himself of the discipline of the English forces, but inquired into the mode of manufacturing cloth and iron, and expressed a desire to visit England, and even offered a part of his country to the English
*The old French fort and fortifications were not at Prairie du Chien or within the county of Crawford, but were a short distance below the mouth of the Wisconsin. Wis. Hist. Col., Vol. X., 307-320.
+Smith's History of Wisconsin, Vol. I., 143.
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HISTORY OF WISCONSIN.
commander if he would take him there. He also stated to the English that he was willing to be in subordination to Great Britain, to pay an annual tax and call him uncle. In a mild way he intimated that he was also ready to encourage the settlement of the English in this country, so long as they treated him with due respect. But if they failed in this, he would "shut up the way," and exclude them from the country.
After Pontiac's plans had been well matured, he called a grand coun- cil of the warriors of the western tribes, the Miamis, Ottawas, Chip- pawas, Wyandots, Pottawatomies, Missagas, Shawanese, Outagamies, and the Winnebagoes. He made a powerful and eloquent appeal to them against the advance of the British power, and showed them the mystic belt, which he pretended the king of France had sent him. Taking advantage of the superstition characteristic of the Indians, he stated that the Great Spirit has appeared to a Delaware Indian, in a dream, and had mapped out the course which the Indians at this crisis should pursue. He further told them that the Great Spirit had forbid- den them to use ardent spirits; to cast away the manufactures of the white men; to return to the use of the skins of the wild beasts for cloth- ing, and to resume the use of their bows and war-clubs. He described the Great Spirit as having said, "Do you suffer those dogs in red coats to enter your country, and take the lands I have given to you ? Drive them from it-drive them, and when you are in trouble, I will help you."*
The speech of Pontiac had its immediate effect, for he had appealed to the pride, interest and superstition of the savages. Belts of wampum and messages were sent to the Indians along the whole line of frontier, stretching more that a thousand miles on the lakes and rivers in the northwest, in order to secure their cooporation. No mili- tary commander ever displayed more skill, nor their troops exhibit more determined courage, than those red men of the wilderness in the prosecution of their plans for the recovery of their beautiful country from the possession of the English. It was a war of extermination on a large scale, where a few almost-destitute savage tribes arrayed them- selves in defense of their country and their homes against the colossal power of the nation that was then mistress of the world. This was a contest where human nature, in its plainest state, was the antagonist of wealth and civilization, and where the red man was obliged, through necessity, to call to his aid stratagem, treachery, revenge, and even cruelty against the innocent, the helpless and the unoffending. Such has always been the stern method of savage warfare, which knows no mercy to the feeble, the aged or the infant. All alike are doomed to the fate of the tomahawk and the scalping-knife.
Shortly prior to the breaking out of the war, Pontiac secretly visited Wisconsin, and formed an alliance with the Milwaukee band, which was
*Lanman's Michigan. Cass's Discourse.
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WISCONSIN UNDER ENGLISH RULE.
composed of many different tribes, who were at all times refractory and turbulent. Before suspicion had been excited in the part of the English, the bloody frontier Indian war was upon them, in all its demoniac fury.
In the month of May, the attack was made almost simultaneously on all the British posts, nine of which were captured or surrendered, namely: Ouiatenon, Green Bay, Michilimackinac, St. Joseph's, Miami, Sandusky, Presqu'isle, Le Bœuf, and Venango. Some of these were taken by open attack, others by stratagem and treachery, and in nearly all the people of the garrisons shared the usual fate of Indian victory. The taking of the posts at Presqu'isle, St. Joseph's and Michilimackinac was attended by a general slaughter of the garrison. Besides these posts which were now in the hands of the savages, not less than six other posts were beleaguered for many weeks, and some for months, until they were finally relieved by reinforcements from older settlements and from England. The principal beleaguered towns were Detroit, Cum- berland, Maryland, Legonier, Bedford, and London; the last three were Pennsylvania posts. Most of these posts were reduced to the greatest extremities before relief reached them. Niagara was not attacked nor besieged.
At the time of the Pontiac war in 1763, Tomah, the great chief of the Menomonees, was said to have gone to the commander at Green Bay, at the British fort, and told him of the great conspiracy of Pontiac, formed to take possession forcibly of all the British garrisons. He further said that if they (the English) would abandon their post and give up their arms, he would convey them in safety to Montreal. There were only about twenty men at the post in Green Bay, and these all surrendered their weapons to Tomah, with the exception of one Ser- geant Nobles, who was obstinate, saying that never would he yield up his gun to an Indian. This caused considerable parley, but Sergeant Nobles remained firm, and was finally permitted to retain his gun. Tomah then, in canoes, carried quietly and safely the white men to Montreal.
Sergeant Nobles was highly praised for his dauntless courage, and although promotion was impossible, because of his family. his discharge was granted, and he settled down at his old trade ot shoemaking, and in a short time became immensely wealthy .*
*This tradition, judging from Gorrell's Journal and Parkman's History of the Con- spiracy of Pontiac, cannot be regarded as reliable. It is certain that Lieutenant Gorrell and his men made no surrender of themselves or arms, and that the Menomonees, and others, conducted them to the village of L'Arbre Croche, in the region of Mackinaw, whence the Menomonees returned to Green Bay. But this tradition serves to confirm us in the belief that Tomah, or Carroy, was much older than represented by the inscrip- tion on his tombstone, and that he was a man of consequence during the border wars of 1755 to 1763. In Gorrell's Journal, referring to the events of May 18, 1763, he speaks thus: "The chiefs (of the Menomonees) were much displeased at Carroy's getting a present from Mr. Gorrard of a fine suit of embroidered clothes. This Carroy was much thought of by the French." This refers undoubtedly to the noble Tomah, or Carron. His nobleness and generosity of character reflect real honor on the Indian race, and on the Menomonees especially. Wis. Hist. Coll .. Vol. II., 177.
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HISTORY OF WISCONSIN.
Shortly prior to Pontiac's great plan of attack, suspicions of the hostile intentions of the Indians were entertained, and in some instances information of the impending danger was given. Such information was given to Major Etherington, the commandant at Michilimackinac, by several Canadians who were not hostile to the Indians. Mr. Laurent Ducharme informed the major that a plan had not only been matured for destroying him and his garrison, but all the English in the upper country. The commander, believing that such reports had a tendency to do mischief, and that they were conceived by ill-disposed persons, expressed great displeasure against Mr. Ducharme, and even threatened to send the next person who should bring him a like story a prisoner to Detroit. At this time the garrison consisted of ninety privates, two sub- alterns, four English merchants, and the commandant. With this strength they entertained little anxiety concerning the Indians, who had no weapons but small arms. In the meanwhile the Indians were daily assembling at and in the vicinity of the post, in unusual numbers, but with every appearance of friendship, frequenting the fort every day, and disposing of their peltries in a manner not to create any suspicion.
During the preceding year one Alexander Henry, who lived near the fort, was visited by a Chippewa, named Wa-wa-tam, who had previously visited his house, showing strong marks of personal friendship. At one time he visited him accompanied by his whole family, bringing many presents of skins, sugar and dried meat, and begged Henry to accept of them, as he had dreamed of adopting an Englishman as a son and brother, and from the moment he first saw Henry he had recognized in him the person whom the Great Spirit had pointed out to him as a brother, and that he would always regard him as one of his family. The presents were accepted by Henry, who gave the Indian a present in return, and thereby cemented the tie of friendship and brotherhood between them. Wa-wa-tam then went on his winter hunt, and was not again seen by his adopted brother until the next year, two days before the time of the massacre at Michilimackinac, which occurred on the second day of June, 1763.
Wa-wa-tam came to Henry's home, looking melancholy and thought- ful, and when Henry asked after his health, his Indian brother, without answering the question, told him that he was sorry to see that Henry had returned from Sault Ste. Marie ; that he intended to go at once from Michilimackinac to the Sault, and wished Mr. Henry and his family to start with him the next morning. He also inquired whether the com- mandant at the fort had heard bad news, remarking that he himself had, during the winter, frequently been disturbed with the noise of "evil birds," and suggested that there were a great many Indians around the fort, many of whom never entered it. Henry told him that he could not go the Sault at that time, but would follow him there after the arrival of his clerks. Wa-wa-tam withdrew, but returned again the next morning, accom-
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WISCONSIN UNDER ENGLISH RULE.
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