USA > West Virginia > Harrison County > History of Harrison County, West Virginia : from the early days of Northwestern Virginia to the present > Part 13
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Some days after, circumstances induced the belief that the Indians were yet in the neighborhood and men were again assembled for the pur- pose of tracing them. They were now enabled to distinguish the trail and pursued it near to the cave, where from the number of rocks on the ground and the care which had been taken by the Indians to leave no vestige, they could no longer discover it. They, however, examined for it in every direction until night forced them to desist. In thinking over the incidents of the day, the cave occurred to the mind of Major Robinson, who was well acquainted with the woods, and he concluded that the savages must be concealed in it. It was examined early the next morning but they had left it the preceding night and departed for their towns.
After her return from captivity, Mrs. Cunningham stated that at the time of the search on the day before, the Indians were in the cave, and that several times the whites approached so near that she could distinctly hear their voices, the savages standing with their guns ready to fire in case they were discovered, and forcing her to keep the infant to her breast lest its crying might point to their place of concealment.
In consequence of their stay at this place on account of their wounded companion it was sometime before they arrived in their own country, and Mrs. Cunningham's suffering of body as well as mind were truly great. Fatigue and hunger oppressed her sorely, the infant in her arms wanting the nourishment derived from the due sustenance of the mother plied at the breast for milk in vain, and the Indians perceiving this, put a period to its sufferings with the tomahawk even while it was clinging to its mother's bosom.
The anguish of this woman during the journey to the towns can only be properly estimated by a parent, her bodily sufferings may be inferred from the fact that for ten days her only sustenance consisted of the head of a wild turkey and three pawpaws, and from the circumstances that the skin and nails of her feet scalded by frequent wading of the streams came with her stockings when upon their arrival at a village of the Delawares, she was permitted to draw them off. Yet was she forced to continue on with them the next day. One of the Indians belonging to the village where they were, by an application of some sanative herbs very much relieved the pain which she endured.
When she came to the town of those by whom she had been made prisoner, although receiving no barbarous or cruel usage, yet everything indicated to her that she was reserved for some painful torture.
The wounded Indian had been left behind and she was delivered to his father. Her clothes were not changed as is the case when a prisoner is adopted by them, but she was compelled to wear them, dirty as they
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were, a bad omen for a captive. She was, however, not long in apprehen- sion of a wretched fate.
A conference was soon to take place between the Indians and whites preparatory to a treaty of peace, and witnessing an uncommon excitement in the village one evening upon inquiring learned that the great captain Simon Girty had arrived. She determined to prevail with him, if she could, to intercede for her liberation, and seeing him the next day passing on horseback she laid hold of his stirrup and implored his interference. For awhile he made light of her petition, telling her that she would be as well there as in her own country, and that if he was disposed to do her a kindness he could not, as his saddle bags were too small to conceal her; but her importunity at length prevailed, and he whose heart had long been steeled against every kindly feeling, every sympathetic impression was at length induced to perform an act of generous, disinterested benev- olence.
He paid her ransom, had her conveyed to the commissioners for negotiating with the Indians, and by them she was taken to a station on the South side of the Ohio River. Here she met with two gentlemen, Long and Denton, who had been at the treaty to obtain intelligence of their children, taken captives sometime before, but not being able to gain any information respecting them, they were then returning to the interior of Kentucky and kindly furnished her a horse.
In consequence of the great danger attending a journey through the wilderness, which lay between the settlements in Kentucky and those on the Holstein river in South West Virginia, persons scarcely ever perform it except at certain periods of the year, and in large parties to better defend themselves against attacks of the savages.
After some delays a party assembled to travel the forest route to the east. Mrs. Cunningham joined it and was furnished with a horse be- longing to a gentleman on the Holstein, which had escaped from him while on a buffalo hunt in Kentucky, and was found after his return, to carry her that far on her way home. Experiencing the many un- pleasant circumstances incident to such a journey, she reached the settle- ments on the Holstein, and proceeded by way of the Shenandoah valley to Harrison County. Here she was sadly disappointed in not meeting her husband, having understood that she had been ransomed and taken to Kentucky, he had sometime before gone in quest of her.
Anxiety for his fate, alone and on a journey, which she well knew to be fraught with many dangers, she could not cheerily partake of the general joy excited by her return. In a few days, however, he came back. He had heard on the Holstein of her having passed there, and he retraced his steps. Arriving at his brother Edward's he again enjoyed the satisfaction of being with all that was then dear to him on earth. It was a delightful satisfaction, but presently dampened by the recollection of the fate of his luckless children. Time assauged the bitterness of the recollection, and blessed them with other and more fortunate children.
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SHINNSTON, W. VA., AUGUST 24, 1905.
Henry Haymond, Esq., Clarksburg, W. Va. DEAR SIR :-
The exact spot where the house occupied by Thomas and Edward Cunningham lived is now occupied by the residence of the late Wm. L. Richardson, in which his widow now resides. This is located on Cunning- ham's Run, a branch of Bingamon Creek, Eagle District, one mile above Peora and one-half mile below where I now reside. The rock under which Mrs. Cunningham and the Indians were said to be secreted is about two miles from the Cunningham residence and is on the land now owned by Luther W. Pigott, on the waters of Little Indian Run. In my boy- hood days there was a well beaten foot path leading from Cunningham's Run over the ridge to Little Indian Run. This path went close by this rock. I have often travelled this path. This was a large sand stone rock with a projecting roof, sufficient to give shelter to several persons. Other- wise there is no appearance of a cave in which a person might hide.
The Harbert block house was on Jones' Run, about two miles above Lumberport, on lands owned and occupied for many years by Noah Harbert, afterwards sold to John M. Boggess and William H. Lucas, and now owned by their heirs.
I am not familiar with the history of William Johnson or the McIntire family. The Left Hand fork of our run was called in my boyhood days the "Oil Fork of Cunningham's Run." It took its name from a friendly Indian hunter, who had his camp in the bottom, near the forks of said run. Here he had troughs in which he kept his bear oil and hides. Once a year he would float his wares to Pittsburg. On one of his trips he was shot from the shore and fell dead in his canoe. I have heard my father tell of this often.
On the end of a prominent point on the farm of E. M. Hess, just above the mouth of Cunningham's Run is an Indian graveyard, which is covered by pile of rock some twenty-five feet in diameter. I do not know that any excavation has ever been made.
Very truly yours,
F. W. CUNNINGHAM.
Mrs. Cunningham stated that while in the cave an Indian stood over her with an uplifted tomahawk to prevent her from crying out to her friends. Professor Thwait in his new edition of Border Warfare pub- lishes the following :
"Tradition states that the Indians remained in the cave a night and a day, and that just before they departed before daylight during the second night, Mrs. Cunningham says the wounded Indian was carried from the cave by his comrades and she saw him no more. Her opinion was that he was then dead and his body was sunk in a neighboring ford.
On the day before her capture a little bird came into Mrs. Cunning- ham's cabin and fluttered around the room. Even afterwards she grew frightened whenever a bird would enter her house. The fear that such an occurrence would bring bad luck to a household was an old and wide
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spread superstition. Mrs. Cunningham was three years a captive with the Indians."
Colonel John P. Duval the County Lieutenant of Harrison County, in reporting this affair to Governor Patrick Henry under date of Clarks- burg, September 5, 1785, states that Mrs. Cunningham was killed, as such was the report at the time, but this fortunately turned out to be incorrect. He writes as follows :
"The Indians have again repeated their barbarities in Harrison County on the 31st of August, by killing the wife and four children of Thomas Cunningham and burning his house and that of Edward Cun- ningham. The people are terrified. Expresses are arriving with intelli- gence of traces of Indians being near by. He would do all he could to keep the people together until succor should arrive, but the Militia were not organized, and amunition very scarce. He had sent out fifty men and six spies. The effective force in county being only about two hundred and fifteen men and about one hundred and thirty guns. He is about to send for the powder and lead agreeable to directions, but adds in case there are any rifles belonging to the State in any of the back magazines at Alexandria, Winchester or Fredericksburg should acknowledge it as a . singular favor to send an order for about two hundred of them."
Colonel Benjamin Wilson wrote to Governor Edmund Randolph on May 28, 1787, the following report :
"Sir :- About the middle of April the Indians made an incursion in this County and took away eight horses, which incursion has put the inhabitants in much fear, as they lay exposed in a direct line opposite the enemy, and no endeavors in their view, made either by Congress or this State to effect a peace with them, I have ordered out six spies on the frontiers, although in my opinion, not less than eight would be a number sufficient. I can discover no warrant in the Militia laws for spies, or for their payment, and sure I am if spies are to be paid with audited certifi- cates, it will be difficult to get suitable men to engage in that business, and on good men alone depends the safety of the house-holders and provisions for their families.
In the absence of the County Lieutenant and myself the Major applied to the Lieutenant of Hampshire County for aid and believes twenty-five of his Militia will be sent to the relief of Harrison.
I am your very humble servant, BENJAMIN WILSON.
In September 1787 a party of Indians were discovered in the act of catching some horses on the West Fork River above Clarksburg, and company led on by Captain William Lowther went immediately in pur- suit of them. On the third night the Indians and whites unknown to each other, encamped not far apart, and in the morning the fires of the latter being discovered by Elias Hughes the detachment which was accom- panying him fired upon the camp and one of the savages fell. The remainder taking to flight, one of them passed near to where Captain Lowther and other men were, and Lowther firing at him as he ran, the ball entered at his shoulder, perforated him and he fell.
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The horses and plunder, which had been taken by the savages were then collected by the whites and they commenced their return home in the confidence of false security. They had not proceeded far when two guns were fired at them, and John Bennett fell pierced through the body. He died before he reached home.
The new edition to the Border Warfare by Thwait, says :
" Alexander West was a member of this party, and after being up most of the night previous on sentry duty, he sat down with his back to a tree, with his rifle across his lap and fell asleep. On awakening he sprang to his feet and cried out "Boys look out, some of us will be killed to-day. I saw the old red doe in my dreams, that is the sign of death. I never knew it to fail." When Bennett fell it was considered in camp to be a verification of the red sign.
Bennett was carried on a rude stretcher but died in four days. His body was placed in a cleft of rocks and the entrance securely closed."
The Indians never thought the whites justifiable in resorting to arms to punish them for their horse thieving, and raids for the purpose of plunder. They claimed they were only taking rent for the use and occu- pancy of their lands by the settlers.
The killing of the two Indians by Hughes and Lowther, mentioned above was soon followed by murderous expeditions on the frontier by Indians, it is supposed in retribution for this act.
On the 5th. of December, 1787, a party of Indians and one white man, Leonard Schoolcraft, came into the settlement on Hacker's Creek, now in Lewis County, and meeting with a daughter of Jesse Hughes took her prisoner. Passing on they came upon Edmund West carrying some fodder to the stable and taking him likewise captive, carried him to where Hughes' daughter had been left in charge of some of their party. Here the old gentleman fell upon his knees and expressed a fervent wish that they would not deal harshly with him. His petition was answered by a stroke of the tomahawk and they then went to the house of Edmund West, Junior, where were Mrs. West and her sister, a girl of eleven years of age, daughter of John Hacker, and a boy of twelve, a brother of West.
Forcing open the door Schoolcraft and two of the savages entered and one of them immediately tomahawked Mrs. West. The boy was taking some corn from under the bed and the tomahawk sunk twice into his head. The girl was standing behind the door. One of the savages aimed a blow at her, which she tried to evade, but it struck on the side of her neck though not with sufficient force to knock her down. She fell. however, and laid as if killed. Thinking their work of death accomplished here, they took from the press some milk, butter and bread, placed it on the table and deliberately sat down to eat, the little girl observing all that pased in silent stillness. When they had satisfied thier hunger they arose, scalped the woman and boy, plundered the house, even empty- ing the feathers to carry off the ticking, and departed dragging the little girl by the hair forty or fifty yards from the house. They then threw her over the fence and scalped her, but as she showed symptoms of life, Schoolcraft observed "that is not enough" when immediately one of the
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savages thrust a knife into her side and they left her. Fortunately the point of the knife came in contact with a rib and did not injure her much.
Old Mrs. West and her two daughters, who were alone when the old gentleman was taken, became uneasy that he did not return, and fearing that he had fallen into the hands of savages, as they could not otherwise account for his absence, they left the house and went to Alexander West's who was then on a hunting expedition with his brother, Edmund. They told of the absence of old Mr. West and their fears for his fate, and as there was no man here, they went over to Jesse Hughes, who was himself uneasy that his daughter did not come home. Upon hearing that West, too, was missing he did not doubt but that both had fallen into the hands of Indians, and knowing of the absence from home of Edmund West, Junior, he deemed it advisable to apprize his wife of danger and removed her to his house. For this purpose and accompanied by Mrs. West's two daughters, he went on. On entering the door the tale of destruction, which had been done there was soon told in part. Mrs. West and the boy lay weltering in their blood, but not yet dead. The sight overpowered the girls and Hughes had to carry them off. See- ing that the savages had but just left them, and aware of the danger which would attend any attempt to move out and give the alarm that night, Hughes guarded his own house until day when he spread the sorrowful intelligence, and a company was collected to ascertain the extent of the mischief, and to try to find those who were known to be missing.
Young West was found standing in the creek about half a mile from where he had been tomahawked. He survived in extreme suffering for three days. Old Mr. West was found in the field where he had been tomahawked. Mrs. West was in the house. She had probably lived but a few minutes after Hughes and her sisters-in-law had left there.
The little girl, Hacker's daughter, was in bed at the house of old Mr. West. She related the history of the transaction at Edmund West's, Junior, and said she went to sleep when thrown over the fence and was awaked by the scalping. After she had been stabbed at the suggestion of Schoolcraft and left, she tried to recross the fence to the house, but as she was climbing up, she again went to sleep and fell back. She then walked into the woods, sheltered herself as well as she could in the top of a fallen tree and remained there until the cocks crew in the morning.
Remembering that there was no person left alive at the house of her sister, awhile before day she proceeded to the house of old Mr. West. She found no person at home, the fire nearly out, but the hearth being warm she lay down on it. The heat produced a sickly feeling, which caused her to get up and go to the bed, in which she was found. She recovered, grew up, married, gave birth to ten children and died as was believed of an affection of the head, occassioned by the wound she received that night.
Hughes' daughter was ransomed the next year by her father and lived for many years in sight of the theatre of those savage enormities. The Wests lived on Hacker's Creek, above Jane Lew.
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During the year 1788, the Monongahela Valley was not much dis- turbed by Indian raids. Numerous alarms ocurred, occasioned by predatory horse stealing bands, but not much serious mischief was done.
It seems that the Indian tribes in Ohio were expecting an expedition against their villages by the whites, which may have had a tendency to keep them more at home.
It seems from the following that such a movement was contemplated by the authorities.
Colonel John P. Duval, County Lieutenant of Harrison County, writes to Governor Randolph under date of March 18, 1788.
Sir :- At my return from the Assembly, I found the inhabitants on the frontier of this county much confused respecting the murders which were committed last fall, and some were determined to leave the country and them who had the fortitude enough to stand was also deter- mined to foot, but at the same time having some hopes of something being done by the Government for their relief waited my return, who with much difficulty had prevailed on them to stand their ground, and engage to defend them as much as was in my power, which engagement has induced me to order out the thirty Rangers, as I fully expect a visit from the savages early this spring, and the extensiveness of the County is such that the whole of them is not sufficient as we have to cover a part of Randolph County.
I have agreeably to your excellencies directions called a council of Militia Officers of the County in order to make a choice of scouts, but they have construed the meaning of this order of the executive in a different point of view to what I do myself.
The Council of officers have supposed the intention and meaning of the Executive was that four scouts consisted of eight men as two generally go together on a scout.
I should be glad to find myself in the mistake, as I well know the necessity of having the eight, and hope they may be augmented to that number, in case my idea should be right.
I have appointed a Captain to command the thirty men and await your instructions for the appointment of a Lieutenant or Ensign.
Sir, I subscribe myself, your humble servant,
JOHN P. DUVALL."
John P. Duvall writes to Governor Randolph on May 14, 1788, as follows :
Reiterates his letter of March 18th which is still unanswered, and states that he has this day received information that the savages have lately fell on the inhabitants of the Big Kanawha, and expects a visit from them every day, and continues,
"The Rangers have been kept out since the first of March and I fear I shall be under the necessity to continue them out the whole season, as I am informed the Indians refuse to treat with the New Englanders as has been expected, and we are told they are disposed for war, but as a friend to the public treasury as well as to my county, shall discharge
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the Rangers or a part of them as soon as there is any appearance of safety."
Asks that instructions be sent by the bearer Mr. Anderson.
The New Englanders referred to in the above letter means the eastern colony that settled on the Ohio River at the mouth of the Musk- ingum in the early Spring of 1788 and founded the city of Marietta.
Colonel William McCleery writes from Monongalia County, Decem- ber 12, 1788 to the Governor protesting at the instance of the inhabitants of Monongalia, Harrison and Randolph Counties against the recent order directing a certain number of the Militia of those Counties to hold them- selves in readiness to march to the Ohio River to report to General St. Clair.
The families of the absent Militia would starve as they could make no crops, and besides be left helpless and unguarded.
Suggests that the Militia required be taken from the counties between the Alleghenies and the Blue Ridge, as those counties are popu- lous and situated in perfect safety.
Colonel John P. Duvall writes to Governor Beverly Randolph on December 29, 1788 :
States that it is the opinion of the Delegates of the District of Monongalia, Ohio, Harrison and Randolph that Colonel George Jackson of Harrison and Major Zachariah Sprigg of Ohio, should command the Militia of the said District should they be called for.
The Delegates in the Legislature from the Counties of Harrison and Randolph under date of Richmond, January 5, 1788, presented the follow- ing statement addressed to the Governor:
That horseman would be of no use in those counties as they say their enemies in that part must be pursued in that still and quiet manner in which they came on their war against us.
They think sixty rangers under two captains both under the orders of the County Lieutenant of Harrison County, would cover the frontier of both counties, as the distance from the Monongalia line along the back settlements of Harrison and including the exposed frontier of Ran- dolph is about seventy or eighty miles.
Ten scouts or spies added would be necessary to watch the early movement of the Indians.
Signed by,
JOHN P. DUVALL, JOHN PRUNTY, GEORGE JACKSON.
William Lowther and Hezekiah Davisson of Harrison County ad- dressed the following communication to Governor Randolph and his council on December 31, 1788 :
We beg leave to inform your honorable board that from that account we have had from our county, and also our own knowledge that the Militia ordered out of our county and State will be very injurious and disagreeable to the people in general, therefore we humbly request to have the draft countermanded or the number lessened.
We observe that thirty men could scarcely be raised last year.
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In August, 1789, five Indians on their way to the settlements on the waters of the Monongahela, met with two men on Middle Island creek now Doddridge County, and killed them. Taking their horses they con- tinued on their route until they came to the house of William Johnson on Ten Mile Creek and made prisoners of Mrs. Johnson and some children, plundered the house, killed part of the stock, and taking with them one of Johnson's horses, returned towards the Ohio.
When the Indians came to the house Johnson had gone to a lick not far off, and on his return in the morning, seeing what had been done and searching until he found the trail of the savages, and their prisoners ran to Clarksburg for assistance. A Company of men repaired with him immediately to where he had discovered the trail, and keeping it about a mile found four of the children lying dead in the woods. The savages had tomahawked and scalped them, and placed their heads close together, turned their bodies and feet straight out so as to represent a cross. The dead were buried and further pursuit given over. The letter of William Haymond printed elsewhere in this volume refers to the murder of the Johnson family, he being one of the party that went in pursuit.
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