Saturday, November 2, 2024

The Shawnee - Forced out or Bought out?


Whenever I ask someone why do you think the Shawnee left Ohio, the response is almost always the same, “The government forced them out because it wanted their land.” In fact, every internet article I read said the same thing; “they were forced out,” or “they were removed.” Ready to give up and accept the fact the Shawnee were ousted from the state by a land grabbing government, I came across a site that said the Shawnee were "persuaded" to move and that caused me to wonder if there was a lot more to this story than is normally thought.  The question remains; why did the government want the Shawnee land in Ohio.  The answer; white migration.  

Consider This
In 1820 the population of Ohio was 581,434. By 1830 it had grown to 937,903, an increase of 356,469 (62%). Put into perspective, in the course of 10 years an average of almost 700 people were moving into Ohio every week. They were coming into Ohio because:

1. Ohio was a popular destination for migrants from New England, New York, and Pennsylvania.

2. The soil in western Ohio was a huge attraction, especially for European farmers.

3. The Ohio & Erie and the Miami-Erie Canals were in full operation by 1832, and they were transforming Ohio's economy, with towns and businesses growing up along the canal's banks.

With the massive influx of whites moving west, President Andrew Jackson and his government needed a plan, the result; The Indian Removal Act of 1830.

The Indian Removal Act of 1830
The Act established a process whereby the. President of the United States could grant land west of the Mississippi River to Indian tribes that agreed to give up their homelands. As incentives, the law allowed the Indians financial and material assistance to travel to their new locations and start new lives and guaranteed that the Indians would live on their new property under the protection of the United States Government forever.

1831
By 1832 all the Delaware and most of the Shawnee tribes had left Ohio under an 1817 treaty. Only 422 Shawnee remained and were headquarted in Wapakoneta, Ohio. To deal with them the government created the "Treaty of Wapakoneta", also known as the "Treaty with the Shawnee."

Relationships
Articles IX and X of the Indian Removal Act gives us a good idea of the relationship between the government and the Shawnee tribe at the time.

Article IX - In consideration of the good conduct and friendly dispositions of the said band of Shawnees towards the American Government, and as an earnest of the kind feelings and good wishes of the people of the United States, for the future welfare and happiness of the said Shawnees, it is agreed that the United States, will give them, as presents, the following articles, to be fairly divided by the chiefs, among their people, according to their several necessities.

Article X - :The President of the United States will cause said tribe to be protected at their intended residence, against all interruption or disturbance from any other tribe or nation of Indians, or from any other person or persons whatever,


The Treaty of Wapakoneta 1831
What the government offered was if the Shawnee ceded all their lands in Ohio, it would:

1. Advance the tribe $13,000 initially to cover expenses as they settle into their new homes west of the Mississippi

2. Provide them with 100,000 acres of land west of the Mississippi.

3. Supply them with a sufficiency of good and wholesome provisions, to support them for one year after their arrival at their new residence.

4. Build a sawmill and a grist mill along with 2 pairs of mill stones and a good bolting cloth[1]. Build a blacksmith shop along with necessary tools plus employ a blacksmith to work with the tribe as long as the President deemed proper and until the tribe was sufficiently trained.

5. The farming utensils, livestock, and other chattel property the Shawnee now owns and would not be able to carry with them shall be sold under the superintendence of some suitable person, appointed by the Secretary of War with the proceeds paid over to the Shawnee owner of such property.

6. The government would sell the ceded Shawnee land after which it would deduct from the sales 75 cents per acre to cover the costs of surveying, the cost of the grist mill, sawmill and blacksmith shop and the $13,000 advance. The balance along with profits from future sales would be put into a fund for the future needs of the tribe.

7. Provide 200 hundred blankets, forty plows, 40 sets of horse gears[2], 150 hoes, 50 axes and Russia sheeting[3] sufficient for 50 tents – the whole to be delivered to them as soon as possible after their arrival at their new residence, except the blankets and Russia Sheeting[I] which shill be given previous to their removal.

8. Twenty-five rifle guns

9. Three cross-cut saws, 4 grindstones annually, 10 hand saws, 10 drawing knives, 20 files, 50 glets[4],20 augurs of different sizes, 10 planes of different sizes, 2 braces and bits, 4 hewing axes, 24 scythes, 5 frows[5] and 5 grubbing hoes[6].


Incentives for the Shawnee to Leave Ohio
In addition to the items listed above in the "Treaty or Wapakoneta" there were other incentives that no doubt contributed to the Shawnee agreeing to leave Ohio. Those were:

Like most tribes, the Shawnee were tired of war and all its deprivations. They had been at war for centuries even being pushed out of Ohio by the Iroquois in the 1600's. The Shawnee tribes did not return to Ohio until the early 1700s.

The Shawnee tribal leaders were not naive; they could see the handwriting on the wall. Whites were pouring into the state in record numbers and they knew eventually they would be eventually become nothing more than nomadic bands moving from one place to another.
Another contributing factor was the Shawnee found themselves sandwiched between two fully operational canal systems; the Ohio-Erie Canal on the eastern side of the state and the Miami-Erie Canal on the western part of the state. No doubt the Shawnee were feeling they were being squeezed out.


Where Did the Shawnee Go?
1832 - 1835
Tribal leaders eventually agreed to the government’s proposal and signed The Treaty of Wapakoneta in Wapakoneta on August 8, 1831. Most of the 422 remaining tribal members began to leave in 1832 while others who had assimilated into the white man’s society probably stayed behind. Some had married white women and now had children. A common perception of the Shawnee wearing loin cloths feathered headdresses with a tomahawk stuffed in his belt and living in a teepee is simply Hollywood. In fact, at the time most dressed in the white man’s style of clothing. One observer, seeing a group of Shawnee on their way to Cincinnati at the time commented that at first glance he thought they were his white neighbors.

Do not confuse the Shawnee leaving Ohio incident with the Cherokee "Trail of Tears."  While the latter, was part of the "Indian Removal Act" it involved an different set of circumstances.

1854 - 1869
By 1854 members of the Shawnee owned the land that later became Lenza, Kansas. Each man, woman and child in the local tribe had been allotted 200 acres. The Shawnee prospered in Kansas owing to their agricultural skills. Apparently those "skills" did not include order and neatness. In my book "Fort Amanda - a Historical Redress," I describe how the soldiers at the fort used to trade with the Shawnee in Wapakoneta. In his journal, Ensign William Schillinger, wrote the following about the Indian gardens in Wapakoneta.


Friday the 23rd July  1813

 I took a Horse & rode with the Lieut to Wapukannati,  took A survey of the Indian Gardens or farms (for they know no difference between their farm or garden).  I found variety of vines, such as Pumkins, water & musk melons, cucumbers, beens of various kinds, growing among their corn which was planted without any kind of order,  Patatoes was tolerable plenty growing  They break up their ground with the hoe,  & no other machine is made use of for to till their corn,  The work is principly done by squaws.

 

The Story Doesn’t End Here
When Kansas gained statehood in 1861, Kansans demanded that all Indian tribes be removed from their state. In 1869, the Shawnee and the Cherokee Nation entered into an agreement by which 722 Shawnee were granted Cherokee citizenship in the Indian Territory. Despite the disagreements in Kansas, while their Shawnee men served in the Union Army during the Civil War (1862-1864).

In 1869 the Shawnee and the Cherokee Nation entered into an agreement by which 722 Loyal Shawnee were granted Cherokee citizenship in the Indian Territory. By1871 most had settled in the present Craig and Roger counties in Oklahoma. Having no political organization, they lost their tribal identity and became known as the Cherokee Shawnee.

Regaining their Identity
The Cherokee Shawnee received federal recognition as the Shawnee Tribe in 2000. They are governed by an eleven-member business committee. Tribal operations during the early twenty-first century were limited, but in 2011 a language retention program was developed. In 2018 in Miami the tribe opened the Shawnee Tribe Culture Center, which offers exhibits and special programming.
Currently, there are about 2,226 enrolled tribal members, with 1,070 of them living within the state of Oklahoma.

Conclusion
Many readers will always believe the Shawnee were "forced" or "removed" from Ohio and that's OK we all have our own opinions and keeping in mind what Descarte once said, "We don't know what we don't know"  As for me, the apparent friendly relationship between the Shawnee and the government at the time, along with the generous terms of the Treaty of Wapakoneta,  I won't be thinking of  their departure as a "trail of tears,"   but rather as “peaceful and amiable exodus.

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[1] Bolting cloth was basically a filter or sieve that filtered out large chunks of materials

[2] Horse gears or tack horse gears or tack, is equipment or accessories equipped on horses and other equines in the course of their use as domesticated animals. This equipment includes such items as saddles, stirrups, bridles, halters, reins, bits, and harnesses.

[3] Russia sheeting, also known as Russia drill, is a thick twilled fabric used to make military and civilian clothing. Can also be used to make jackets and coats.

[4] A Glet is a metallic tool used to apply glet, a cement-based compound used to level and fill walls and ceilings. It's ideal for concrete surfaces and mortar. Like a spackling compound.

[5] A froe (or frow), shake axe or paling knife is a tool for cleaving wood by splitting it along the grain. It is an L-shaped tool, used by hammering one edge.

[6] Grubbing hoes are used to till the soil, make a new garden, remove sod, chop big weeds, or dig a trench.
 

 

Sunday, October 6, 2024

Why was Gen. Harison at Ft. Amanda?


Short answer, he needed to get to Fort Meigs ASAP

The War of 1812 was well underway.  General Harrison had received intelligence that the number of troops  at Fort Meigs (Perrysburg, Oh) had been reduced in size and that the British, seeing an opportunity to seize it, were planning to attack.  He needed to assemble and move as many  troops as possible to go to their aid.  Failure to do would have been a catastrophe.

Thursday, April 8, 1813, the weather was clear and pleasant.  The troops at Fort Amanda had been told that General Harrison and his army would be coming to the fort that day on their way to Fort Meigs.  After breakfast all the men at the fort were sent across the Auglaize to cut push poles and make oars for maneuvering the boats that would transport them.

 Around 1 o'clock that afternoon General Harrison and his staff arrived at the fort.  An hour later Captain Nathan Hatfield's company of riflemen arrived and at 4 o'clock Captain Nearing’s detachment of 140 regulars arrived making a total force of about 300.  The men set up camp one-half mile north of the fort in an area called "the commons."   

During the night the weather changed and by morning (April 9, 1813) the sky was cloudy with a light rain that continued throughout the day. Meanwhile Harrison had been awake since  4 o’clock that morning, penning a letter to the governor of Kentucky.  In it he  basically pleaded for more troops.  He originally been given the power to request troops from neighboring states and territories, however that power had been annulled.   Desperate Harrison reminded the Governor. 

 "the critical situation of our affairs in the country that I am induced to request your Excellency to take such measures as you may judge most effectual and speedy to send me a reinforcement of at least fifteen hundred men."   

  Harrisons original letter to the Governor of Kentucky 

“Head Quarters Fort Amanda on the Auglaize River

The three hundred men Harrison had with him at were infantry soldiers he had collected from the posts between Cincinnati and Amanda leavcing some of them very vulnerable.  So sparce was one garrison, Harrison wrote that it was manned only by a sergeant, 3 soldiers and some friendly Indians. 

For the sake of time, Harrison had already sent a squadron of Dragoon Regulars  (cavalry) ahead. He  requested the governor send mounted militia from his state assuring him that there was enough food for the animals along the way. He suggested the governor send mounted troops ahead of the rest and not delay things waiting for the infantry.

He went on to say that even if the government disapproved of his decision to go ahead and request troops, he felt confident that at the end of the day they (the government) would agree it was a good decision and that all the soldiers involved would feel it was worth the effort.   One thing was for certain, Kentuckians liked to fight.  

 Meanwhile Harrisons soldiers, camped at the Commons, were busy taking down their tents, and packing up their supplies and taking them down to the rivers edge. A man named Captain Perry oversaw the operations.  Around 11:30 that morning with boats loaded with soldiers and supplies, the armada started north.

Late to the Party

At 4 o'clock that afternoon, Captain Hamilton, commander at Fort Logan (Wapakoneta) arrived at Fort Amanda along with sixty more infantry troops and 30 Indians. They had marched ten miles through rain and mud and did not arrive at Amanda until just as the General and his staff were leaving. Fifteen Indians from Hamilton’s group went with the other boats. The boat carrying their baggage for Hamilton's company had not yet arrived and would not until 7 o’clock, shortly before sunset.  

There was only a half-moon and cloudy skies that night so by the time Hamilton and his men shoved off around  8:30 PM. it would have been very dark. Having canoed the Auglaize after dark, even with moonlite and flashlights, I can tell you it would have been very difficult. . 

 The Fort Amanda Armada 

Question:  How Many and How Large Were the Boats

The number of individuals leaving Fort Amanda by water on April 9th included Harrison's 300 troops along with his personal staff,  and Capt. Hamilton's 60 soldiers and 30 Indians from Fort Logan making a grand total of approx. four hundred.  The type of boat used would have been the “batteaux” with its pointed bow like the one shown below. With only a 2-foot draft, batteaux were ideal for navigating shallow rivers. A boat the size of the one below could carry fifteen men. 

                           

How Many Boats Were Needed?

Using the figure of 15 men per boat, Harrison would have needed at least 25 to 30 boats just to transport his men. Add to that  another 2 or 3 boats to transport baggage, supplies, ammunition, food, etc., the total number of boats needed could easily have been 27 to 33.



Shoving off 
How comfortable were those boats?  As one British soldier put it; "Nothing more uncomfortable than our flat-bottomed boats."   Using Google Earth, I calculated the river miles from Fort Amanda to Fort Meigs to be approx. 120 river miles.  I hope the men had cushions

Regardless of the type final number, it was without a doubt the largest number of watercraft ever to navigate the Auglaize River before or since.


  

Thursday, August 15, 2024

Avoiding the Military Draft - War of 1812

                                   


Captain Daniel Hosbrook
Commander at Ft. Amanda
Feb. 28 - Aug. 2,  1813

Despite the patriotic fervor of the times, not everyone drafted to serve in the military was fit for service.   In addition to physical health or mental conditions that exempted men from serving, individuals could also be exempted for personal objections to the war, certain occupations, finding a substitute and even poor dental hygiene.
 
Automatically Exempted
Automatically exempted from duty were jail keepers,

 judges of the Supreme and Common Pleas Courts of the State of Ohio, custom house officials and their clerks, post officers,



stagecoach drivers engaged in United States postal service  and ferry-men employed at a ferry or post road. 
 

 Conscientious Objectors
 In addition, clergy of all denominations were automatically exempted upon proof of occupation.  

If an individual was a member of the “Society of Friends” (Quakers), Mennonites  and Dunkers he was exempted as a conscientious objector however exemption wasn’t automatic.   In Maryland for example, it became effective only after the individual paid a three dollar fee with the money used to cover the cost of a certificate that was issued explaining the reason for the exemption and for compensation for the services of the militia captain who had to complete the paperwork, etc.  

Morally Unfit
In addition, a man could even be exempted if he was considered morally unfit for duty.  I don't know how a man could be considered unfit unless he was known to be a drunkard or a considered a general menace to society.  The number of drunkards at the beginning of the War of 1812 is quite astounding.  
Note;  In fact, in the early republic, Americans drank quantities we would consider astounding today. In 1790, we consumed an average of 5.8 gallons of absolute alcohol annually for each drinking-age individual. By 1830, that figure rose to 7.1 gallons!

Find a Sub 
Another way a man could be exempted from service was if he could find someone to serve in his place, a substitute. 


  Those individuals could pay or otherwise compensate someone to serve in his place or as was often the case, a family member served for them. Re-enlisting or serving as a substitute was an excellent way to earn extra money, particularly single men without families to support.
No Front Teeth?  Can't Use You.
 
If you had few, or better yet, no front teeth, you might be exempted from service.  During the War of 1812, a rifle cartridge consisted of a paper tube filled with black powder and a lead ball.  

Cartridge
To fire his musket, the man needed to be able to tear or bite off the end of the paper tube to pour the powder and ball down the barrel.  With few or no teeth, the man might have a problem opening the paper tube which, in a battle situation could have put not only him but his comrades in a compromising situation.

Muster Roll Complete
Once his muster roll was completed and his officers named,  Capt. Daniel Hosbrook and his company of men from Clermont, Hamilton and Warren Counties started north to Fort Amanda 129 miles to the north.  His mission, relieve the company of Kentucky militia under command of Captain Thompson Ward at Fort Amanda. 
Captain Daniel Hosbrook
1785 - 1868

Captain Daniel Hosbrook’s Company at Fort Amanda

Feb 28, 1813 - Aug. 3, 1813

Hosbrook, Daniel                        Captain

Davis, Joseph                                Lieutenant

Schillinger, William                   Ensign

Van Winkle, David R.                 1st Sgt.

Swing, Lawrence  Sgt                 Broadwell, Baxter Sgt.               Bradbury, Jacob Sgt.

Johnson, William  Corp.           Irwin, Robert   Corp.                  Covalt, Isaac     Corp.

Patterson, Wm.  Corp.               Bayley, Lewis   Drummer         Ross, Robert  Fifer

 

PRIVATES                                   PRIVATES                                   PRIVATES

Abbott, Joseph                             Bailey, James                                Burris, John  

Barton, Joseph                             Bridges, Elisha                              Bennett, Leonard

Bowman, George                         Campbell, James                          Clark, Jonathon

Curry, John                             Crank, John G                               Carter, John

Couch, Issah                              Daniel, Isaac                                 Dougherty, James

Dowden, Thomas                         Edinger, Boyd                              Farmer, Fred

Fleek, John                                     Flora, Thomas                              Gaston, William

Goldsworthy, William               Gilman, Ichabod W                     Gray, Runey

Hamilton, John                            Irwin, Robert                                 Jenkins, Henry

Ketchum, Jeremiah                     Job, Archibald R                          Knott, John  

Landon, John                             Leming, John                                Laird, David

Landon, John                                Lovel, John                                    Murry, Charles             

Matthew, G. W.                            McNeilly, Robert                          McMullin, Loe

Neely, John                                    Neville, William                            Pine, William

Plicard, Henry                               Patterson, Thomas                      Sedgwick, George  

Shetterley, Henry                         Strickland, Mark                          Skinner, Caleb

South, Peter                                  Shinn, Joab                                    Trukle, Henry

Thompson, James                       Tiberghein, Leo                            Tomley, Amos

Wooley, Joseph   .                        Weir, James                                   Westerfield, Peter   

Wright, Zephamiah                    White, Forman                             Warbington, James

Winner, John                               Woodworth, Daniel                    Briggs, William 







 
 

Saturday, June 22, 2024

Celebrating the 4th of July in 1813 at Fort Amanda

                               

July at Fort Amanda
1813

What was it like celebrating the 4th of July at Fort Amanda in 1813?
IT WAS AWFUL


 When one visits historic sites, particularly those where the only thing remaining is a marker, it’s often easy to get lost in the beauty and serenity of the place and lose sight of what the place actually looked like at the time of the event. In the case of Fort Amanda, it’s easy to stand at the obelisk and visualize a John Wayne western fort and all the Hollywood hoopla that goes with that but the truth is, Fort Amanda was not the quiet picturesque site we see today but was in fact a noisy, ugly and smelly place. 

Fortunately for us, an ensign stationed at Amanda (William Schillinger) kept a daily journal of daily activities at Fort Amanda from February until August 1813.   
From his writings we have a very good idea of what the site looked like at the time.  

A Tour of Fort Amnda in 1813


July 4th, 1813
It's Sunday, the 4th of July 1813. The first thing you notice upon entering the fort is the unpleasant smell, a combination of smoke from the chimneys and campfires, manure from the corrals and animal pens southwest of the fort, not to mention a latrine that was not properly closed. The next thing you notice is the noise. Ft. Amanda is a busy place so the air is filled with the sounds of men barking orders, singing, yelling and cursing at one another. Add to this the sounds of blacksmith shop, the boat building area across the river and the animal sounds emanating from the animal pens on the outside of the walls.

There is very little grass remaining inside the enclosure the result of the high foot traffic and construction work and with all the recent rains, the dirt has turned into a muddy quagmire with potholes everywhere filled with water. 

The trail from St. Marys rising up from the southwest (near the houses across the road) and leading to the new gate opening (at the concrete post at the edge of the grass area) is also a muddy mess and slippery because of all the wagon traffic and one has to be especially careful walking down the ramp to the river.

The blockhouses have been repaired and are now functional. Unlike the perfectly round logs like those seen in movies, they’re rough hewn timbers stacked upon each other with horsehair and mud stuck in between the logs to prevent draft and keep out the weather, bugs, squirrels rats and other creepy crawlers. They’re built for functionality not beauty. There are several sheds lining the walls where materials are stored, some open and some with sides to protect them from the weather.   Standing at the monument looking toward the river you'd have seen cabins for the soldiers.  The largest building is at the corner of the stockade was originally officers quarters.
   
  

There is also a woodpile inside the walls for the men to gather and use for heating and cooking.

Walking out the gate to the southeast, the first thing you see are the corrals and building where the butchering is done. There is absolutely no grass in this area either and the smell is overpowering. This is a large corral area as hundreds of animals are kept there at any given time. It’s almost spring so there are fewer hogs waiting to be slaughtered now that the summer months are approaching and beef will be the main meat source. The animals are brought to Amanda “on the hoof” because it’s cheaper than paying a contractor to transport the meat. You are surprised to see chickens and ducks running loose.  No, Fort Amanda was not the most pleasant place to live but it was home for the time being. 


How Did the Men at Fort Amanda Celebrate  July 4, 1813
The answer, they didn't.  Unfortunately things weren't quite as festive for the men at Fort Amanda that year or at the other forts along the Auglaize River for that matter.  The week before, a measles epidemic struck Fort Amanda with a vengeance. The company had just returned from Fort Winchester and because of the large numbers of sick men there, some of Hosbrook's company apparently contacted the disease while they were there and brought it back to Amanda with them.   Many of the men, including Schillinger, were complaining of flu like symptoms (diarrhea ad stomach cramps).

On July 4th: Schillinger wrote "Our men many of them sick prevented us from Celebrating the Day in the usual way"  Schillinger wrote in his journal that at one point less than a dozen men of his company were fit for duty.  So many of the men were sick with the measles in 1813 it was decided to cancel any kind of celebrations.  It must have been a very depressing place.   That didn't stop Captain Benaugh, the forts Forage Master . He took a horse and rode to St. Marys so he could join in the festivities there.



Notice the weather fluctuations at Fort Amanda in 1813:




Of the 180 days the soldiers were on active duty, 80% (144) were either cool, rainy or cold. Only 20% (36) of the days were warm or pleasant. No wonder sickness was a constant problem at Fort Amanda.
Frontier Medicine for Measles
Measles can affect the eyes, causing them to become red and swollen, which creates extreme sensitivity to light. In 1812, the common treatment was a potion called “eye water.” In the field, soldiers made eye water by taking the scrapings from a green ozier root, mixing it with water and dropping it into the patient’s eyes several times a day. Seriously ill soldiers at Amanda were placed in darkened cabins to protect their eyes from the sunlight..



On June 20th, Schillinger wrote "took a walk out with Sergant Bradbury this afternoon to get some root to make Eye water, Got some, found A Bee Tree or swarm of bees in a tree - A number of our men sickening. for the meazels." The 2 men made rounds administering the "eye water" to the sick soldiers.

Have the Brits Gotten over all this?
As I was writing this blog I began to wonder if sentiments in Britain had changed any over the past 208 years.   What I found was "Yes and No."

In 2019 The Sun newspaper in London wrote:
The Anglo-American "Special Relationship" is much celebrated, at least on this side of the pond. So if you find yourself in the Mother Country on Independence Day, while Americans worldwide celebrate their separation from Britain, there are several places where you can, eat, boogie and drown your sorrows over loosing the colonies.

You don’t need to be in the US to celebrate Independence Day, here are some of the events going on to mark the day.

The American Museum in Bath will be hosting an Independence Day celebration on July 6 which will include a barbecue, live music and a picnic

Balthazar restaurant in Covent Garden will host a week-long celebration from June 29 to July 6, serving up their famous American menu and cocktails

Unico Lounge in Manchester is hosting a cocktails night on the Fourth of July itself

The Courtyard Cinema in Edinburgh is showing three films over the weekend, as well as hosting an American barbecue and selling US themed drinks

Of Course There Will Always Be Sore Losers
While they might raise a pint with you to join the celebration, you can bet behind those British laughs and smiles, some are thinking to themselves, "good riddance mate." :-)  Somemay even be wearing T-shirts like this on;
Fair enough because behind your laughs and smiles you're probsbly thinking, "That's OK, not only did we beat you guys, "WE DID IT TWICE."




 

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If you would like learn more about Fort Amanda and the patriots who served there, these books can be purchased locally, on the net or by contacting me at djohnson43@att.net
 
        $20                                                                $15

Available at;
Readmore's Hallmark stores in Lima, Ohio (E. Elm st., Eastgate and Flanders ave.
Casa Chic (109 W. Auglaize st) in Wapakoneta, Ohio
The Allen County Museum (620 W. Market st) in Lima, Ohio
Amazon.com

If you'd like a signed copy email me at djohnson43@att.net and I'll send you the details.






  


Saturday, May 18, 2024

"In early times the people were honest to each other. If a man did wrong, they sent him across the Ohio.


This Blog Is Not For the Faint Of Heart

How dangerous was the Ohio/Kentucky frontier?  An interview with an early Kentucky pioneer woman, Mrs. General Webb said it best;,  
"In early times the people were honest to each other. If a man did wrong, they sent him across the Ohio.


In previous blogs I've purposely avoided writing too many gruesome details of what life was like on the frontier, particularly in the Ohio and Kentucky territories thinking it really served no purpose. That all changed after reading a book called "Frontier Memories II," a collection of interviews by Rev. John Dabney Shane as compiled from the Draper manuscripts. Through his interviews with early settlers Shane helps dispel the perception that life was like a typical romanticized Daniel Boone movie, when in fact it was anything but. It was a brutal existence where life was cheap and death waited just outside the cabin door. So for those who still believe the frontier was a wilderness utopia with occasional problems with Indians, buckle up because here's a dose of reality as the interviewers would say, "straight from the horses mouth."
How Dangerous Was the Southern Ohio Frontier?
  

Scalping didn't kill the victim but it did give him/her and awful haircut

The Inventory
During the 10 year period 1780 to 1789, Indians, with the help of their British allies had murdered over 1500 settlers in Kentucky and along the north side of the Ohio River. In a letter dated, May 7, 1782, a British officer sent a letter and eight packages to Sir Federick  Haldimand, British Governor of Canada containing the scalps of 983 men, women and children the Indians had murdered on the frontier.

 

May it please your excellency,

At the request of the Seneca Chief, I hereby send your Excellency, under the care of James Hoyd, eight packages of scalps, cured, dried, hooped and painted with all the triumphal marks of which the following is the invoice and explanation:

No. 1. Containing forty-three scalps of Congress soldiers, killed in different skirmishes. These are stretched on black hoops, four inches in diameter. The inside of the skin is painted red with a small black spot to denote their being killed with bullets; the hoops painted red, the skin painted brown, and marked with a hoe’ a black circle all around to denote their being surprised in the night; and a black hatchet in the middle, signifying their being killed with that weapon.

No. 2. Containing ninety-eight farmers killed in their houses; hoops red, figure of a hoe, to mark their profession; great white circle and sun, to show they were surprised in the day time; a little red foot to show that they stood upon their defense and died fighting for their lives and families.

No. 3. Containing ninety-seven of farmers; hoops green to show they were killed in the fields; a large white circle with a little round mark on it , for a sun to show it was in the daytime; black bullet mark on some, a hatchet mark on others.

No. 4. Containing one hundred and two of farmers, mixture of several of the marks above; only eighteen marked with a little yellow flame, to denote their being prisoners burnt alive, after being scalped; their nails pulled out by the roots and other torments. One of these latter being supposed to be an American clergyman, his hand being fixed to the hook of his scalp. Most of the farmers appear, by their hair, to have been young or middle aged men, their being but sixty-seven very gray heads among them all, which makes the service more essential.

No. 5. Containing eight-eight scalps of women; hair long, braided in Indian fashion, to show they were mothers; hoops blue, skin yellow ground, with little red tadpoles, to represent by way of triumph the tears of grief occasioned to their relatives; a black scalping knife or hatched at the bottom to mark their being killed by those instruments. Seventeen others, hair very gray, black hoops, plain brown colors, no marks but the short club or castete to show they were knocked down dead, or had their brains beat out

No. 6. Containing one hundred and ninety-three boys scalps of various ages. Small green hoops, whitish ground on the skin, with red tears in the middle and black marks, knife, hatchet or clubs as their death happened.

No. 7. Containing two hundred and eleven girls, scalps big and little, small yellow hoops, white ground tears, hatchet and scalping knife

No. 8. This package is a mixture of all the varieties above mentioned to the number of one hundred and twenty-two, with a box of birch bark, containing twenty-nine little infants scalps of various sizes; small white hoops with white ground.”


While Indians did on occasion kidnap children and raise them as their own, as the list shows, that wasn’t always the case, and because a scalp meant bounty money, if it had hair it was scalped regardless of age.


Frontier Trophies

During the 10 year period 1780 to 1789, Indians, with the help of their British allies had murdered over 1500 settlers in southern Ohio and across the Ohio River in northern Kentucky.  In a letter dated, May 7, 1782, a British officer sent a letter and eight packages  to Col. Haldiman, the British Governor of Canada, containing the scalps of 983 men, women and children the Indians had murdered on the frontier. 

 

Note: While the interviews were conducted with white people, it should be remembered that while the brutality and savagery of the Indians mentioned in the interviews below, actions perpetrated by whites on the Indians were often equally savage and in some cases, far more horrendous.  For and example click on this link: 


Family Murdered


"It was the morning just after breakfast. The Indians were at the door before we seen them. The dog baked and I went to the door with the child in my arms, and as soon as I came out, one Indian took hold of me and another pulled the child from me and took it by the legs and knocked it's brains against the wall and then went into the house killed my mother and two other little children and after taking all out of the house they wanted to carry with them, and they stripping all the clothes off my mother and the children they killed, they then drew the dead bodies out of the house and set it on fire and it was burnt."

A Captive

"Washington County, Ohio. Mrs. Cunningham who was taken captive, when her house was raided by Indians, and several family members killed and scalped, stated upon her return from captivity that for ten days all she had to eat was the head of a wild turkey and three paw paws. That the skin on her feet was scalded by the frequent wading of the streams and upon arrival at a Delaware village, when she removed her stockings and shoes her skin and nails came off with them."

Dog Food

"In 1778 Nicholas Dyfert was made a prisoner and given to an old squaw to replace a son that had been killed. He suffered severely from hunger on his way to Canada. One day when almost famished, he observed his new mother make several attempts to eat a hot dumpling, which she could not master for the want of teeth. After rolling it around her mouth for some time, she cast it to her dog; but hardly had the animal seized it in his teeth, when Dyfert caught him by the ears and after a long shake he forced the dainty morsel from his jaws and transferred it to his own. The inference of her son with her will displeased the old woman and seizing him by his ears, which freedom he dared not resist, she shook him until he restored the dog with his dinner."

Using the Child As Bait
"Miss Noaks went out to her brother's cabin, all within a few yards of each other, she went into her brother's cabin, her brother had gone to bed, his wife and child with him. She sat down on the bedside and was relating something that had happened in the other cabin. When she came in she had neglected to, as was customary, to bar the door.  An Indian slipped up and put his gun through, leaning against the chink of the door Miss Noak's turned her eye and seeing it screamed. Her brother raised up to get his gun, just over where he lay, and the Indian fired. The ball passing through his sisters arm, and killing the brother. They then rushed into the house and scalped the brother, jerking his head upon a chest that set there. The sister scuffled under the bed and while they were trying to get her out (she clinging to the bed stock behind as they tried to drag her out, the bed would still drag). the old man came out and fired and they ran out. The child lay all the while in the bed. How the wife escaped we know not. There were 1/2 dozen Indians. When the gun fired they thought there was an alarm and they did not know the real strength of the Indians. A man, George Trumbo and wife (they were not man and wife, he was under age and his father wouldn't let him marry, they had a child however and when he got of age he married her) ran out of their cabin. The man couldn't run the fastest, 2 Indians saw them and took after them by moonlight. She saw they were gaining on her and dropped her child which was about 6 months old, and she hid in the bough of a tree that had fallen. The Indians stopped and tried to make the child cry, to get her to come back and then they killed it and passed on. They were followed the next day about 30 miles but were not overtaken, they were Cherokees and this was at Hartgrove's Station a a collection of farms."

Young Boys Out For A Ride
"Bob & Nathan MC Clure & John McClure and John Ping and three others, seven in all pursued seven Indians that had killed a boy. Two boys were going to English Station, probably from Hartgrove's and were on a horse. The Indians had waylaid the trace they were on and shot. The horse was shot and killed and when it fell confined the leg of the foremost boy. The Indians ran up, killed and scalped him. The one behind was loose and made his escape. They were cousins neither had been touched by the shot. In the pursuit the Indians passed on and turned back and way laid the trail and fired. They fought three hours with the scouting party, trying to get the advantage over each other. Nathan McClure was wounded as were two of the Indians. Both mutually withdrew. That night they left Nathan MC Clure in a sink and were to return the next morning with a horse. In they morning they found his gun and a dead wolf, but his body was torn all to pieces. They pursued further but never met with the Indians any more."

A Nasty Indian Game
His captors had tied his wrists together and drawn them over his knees after which a stick was passed under his knees and over the wrists and a rope tied to it between them then thrown over a limb of a tree. His tormentors then drew him up a distance and let him fall by slacking the rope; continuing their hellish sport until the concussion extinguished the vital spark.
 In other words, they pulled him up by the legs and kept letting him fall on his head until he finally died.

 A Rather Grotesque Kid's Game

The carcass of the Indian, a remarkably large fellow was left unburied for a time and the boys about the fort took turns in playing Indian, so they termed it, and with the tomahawk of it's former possessor; each running up and giving the head a hack with a tiny war-whoop.  

EPILOGUE
In the period 1788 - 1789, almost 1,500 men, women and children were murdered by Indians along the Ohio River, and 2 years later (1791) one-forth of the entire United States army (650 soldiers) along with 150 women and 50 children were massacred at Fort Recovery, 30 miles southwest of Lima, Ohio, and I'll bet this was never taught in your Ohio or even American History class. The stories you' just read were from actual interviews with people who experienced life on the frontier in Ohio.

People often  tell me they don't enjoy history because they can't relate to it. What they may not realize is that of the many of the men and women mentioned in this blog and the 932 men, women and children people killed at the battle at Fort Recovery in 1791 could in fact be their genetically related ancestor.  You can't find more relevance than that.

 

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If you would like learn more about Fort Amanda and the patriots who served there, these books can be purchased locally, on the net or by contacting me at djohnson43@att.net
     

                 $20                                                              $15

Available at;
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Casa Chic (109 W. Auglaize st)  in Wapakoneta, Ohio

The Allen County Museum (620 W. Market st) in Lima, Ohio 

Amazon.com

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