ROBERT E. SMITH
The Clash of Leadership at the
Grand Reserve: The Wyandot
Subagency and the Methodist
Mission, 1820-1824
The War of 1812 ended in 1815 with the
Indian tribes of
the Old Northwest divided and
demoralized. Officials of the
United States government soon attempted
to stabilize relations
between the federal government and its
native American in-
habitants in Ohio where numerous
treaties were negotiated be-
tween United States commissioners and
chiefs representing the
Ohio tribes. Among those tribes caught
up in government ef-
forts to set up a viable Indian policy
were the Wyandots. Four
treaties affecting the Wyandots were
concluded with the fed-
eral government between 1815 and 1818.1
By then most of the
tribe occupied reserves in Ohio,
although a small Wyandot re-
serve remained near Detroit in Michigan
Territory and another
branch of the tribe lived on land in the
lower peninsula of
present Ontario, Canada. A majority of
the Ohio Wyandots
resided on the Grand Reserve, in
Northwest Ohio near the site
of the present town of Upper Sandusky.
Tarhe, the venerable
chief of the Wyandots for twenty years,
died in 1815 and was
replaced by Dunquod. The new chief was
confronted with the
Robert E. Smith is Chairman of the
Department of Social Science and
Associate Professor of History at
Missouri Southern State College, Joplin.
The author gratefully acknowledges a
research grant from the American
Philosophical Society.
1. Charles J. Kappler, comp. and ed., Indian
Affairs: Laws and
Treaties, United States Senate, 58th Congress, 2nd Session, Executive
Document Number 319 (5 vols., Washington, D. C., 1904), II, 117-19, 145-55,
162-64.
182 OHIO HISTORY
task of guiding his people through
difficult years which saw a
floodtide of white settlement in Ohio.
The postwar period also witnessed the
first successful ef-
fort by American missionaries to
convert the Wyandots to
Christianity. Earlier efforts by Roman
Catholic French priests
met temporary success, but the defeat
of France in the French
and Indian War curtailed any
significant Catholic missionary
activity among the Wyandots. Then in
1781 and 1782 Moravian
preachers failed to establish a
successful mission.2 The Mora-
vian failure discouraged other
Protestant denominations and
fourteen years passed before the
Quakers dispatched George
Ellicott and Gerard T. Hopkins to the
Delawares, Shawnees,
and Wyandots. The Quakers also were
unsuccessful, but not
because the Wyandots were unreceptive
to the Society of Friends:
in 1798 Chief Tarhe stated that the
Quakers were good people
and urged continued friendship between
the Society of Friends
and the Wyandots.3 However,
the Quakers concentrated their
missionary activities among other
Indian tribes in Ohio. Next,
Thomas E. Hughes and James Satterfield,
two Presbyterian
preachers, reached the Wyandots in 1800
and tried to convert
the tribe. The following year Hughes,
accompanied by Joseph
Badger, preached to the Wyandots, but
the two exploratory
missions found the Indians
unresponsive. Undaunted, the Pres-
byterians persevered by sending George
M. Scott and Alexander
Mathews to visit the Wyandots in 1803,
and Scott returned to
Upper Sandusky the following year.4
Hughes and Badger re-
turned in 1805, and eventually the
Wyandots agreed to allow
a Presbyterian mission. Before the
church could prosper, how-
ever, the War of 1812 forced the
Presbyterians to abandon their
2. Randall L. Buchman, "The History
of the Wyandot Indians in
Ohio," (unpublished Master of Arts
thesis, Ohio State University, Colum-
bus, Ohio, 1958), 63-66.
3. Gerard T. Hopkins, A Mission to
the Indians: From the Indian
Committee of Baltimore Yearly Meeting
to Fort Wayne in 1804 (Phila-
delphia. 1862), 132-66; Speech delivered
by Tarhe, September 8, 1798,
The Quaker Collection, Haverford College
Library, Haverford, Penn-
sylvania.
4. Thomas Hughes, "Missionary Tours
to Detroit," The Western
Missionary Magazine and Repository of
Religious Intelligence, I (April,
1803), 91-98; Records of the Synod of
Pittsburgh, September 29, 1802 to
October, 1832 (Pittsburgh, 1852), 10-13;
George Scott, "A Journal," The
Western Missionary Magazine and
Repository of Religious Intelligence, I
(October, 1803), 339-54; ibid., II (October,
1804), 224-37, Pittsburgh
Theological Seminary, Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania
Clash of Leadership 183
fragile mission. When peace came, the
Presbyterians did not
renew their missionary efforts among
the Wyandots.5
The most successful missionary to the
Wyandots was John
Stewart, a very unlikely candidate. A
free mulatto from Pow-
hatan, Virginia, and a recent convert
to Methodism, Stewart
learned about the lack of Christian
activity among the Wyandots
and visited their reserve in 1816.
Despite initial distrust of his
motives, a few Indians listened to his
sermons, and although
progress was slow, Stewart began to
gain converts for the
Methodist Episcopal Church. He held an
exhorter's license, but
was not a licensed missionary preacher
of the church. This made
his task more difficult, because
missionaries from other de-
nominations told the Indians that
Stewart did not have the
power to exercise his ministerial
efforts. In March, 1819, how-
ever, Moses Crume, presiding elder of
the Cincinnati District
of the Methodist Episcopal Church,
issued Stewart a license to
preach. That year James Montgomery was
instructed to assist
Stewart once each month. After
Montgomery was appointed
subagent for the Seneca Indians later
in the year, Moses Henkle
was assigned to assist Stewart, and the
Methodists considered
establishing a permanent mission school
at Upper Sandusky.6
No permanent resident Indian agent
resided at Upper
Sandusky in the chaotic years following
the War of 1812. Dur-
ing the war Benjamin F. Stickney served
as Indian agent at
Upper Sandusky, but when the war ended
he was transferred to
the Fort Wayne Agency in Indiana. John
Johnston, the Indian
agent at Piqua, Ohio, was assigned
jurisdiction over the Wyan-
dots, Shawnees, and Seneca residing in
Ohio. Primitive transpor-
tation facilities made it obvious that
the Wyandots could not be
well-managed from the Piqua Agency, but
the Wyandots never-
theless remained an orphan child of the
Piqua Agency.7
5. Records of the Synod of
Pittsburgh, 30-40; Joseph Badger,
"A
Diary, 1801-1808," Manasseh Cutler
Papers, and Quintus F. Atkins, "A
Diary While on a Mission with the
Reverend Joseph Badger to the Wyandot
Tribe of Indians Inhabiting the Sandusky
River, April 1, 1806-August
14, 1807," Western Reserve
Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio; Joseph
Badger to Thomas Worthington, December
13, 1806, Thomas Worthington
Papers, Ohio Historical Society,
Columbus, Ohio.
6. John H. Satterwhite, "John
Stewart and the Mission to the Wyandot
Indians," Historical Papers
presented at American Methodism's Bicen-
tennial Celebration, Baltimore,
Maryland, April 21-24, 1966 (Lake
Juna-
luska, North Carolina, 1967), 59-64.
7. Gayle Thornbrough, ed., Letter
Book of the Indian Agency at Fort
Wayne, 1809-1815 (Indianapolis, 1961), 210, 242-43, 245-47, 253, 256; A
184 OHIO HISTORY
Governor Lewis Cass of Michigan
Territory, who also served
as United States Superintendent of
Indian Affairs, recommended
to Secretary of War John C. Calhoun
that Stickney be appointed
Indian agent for the Wyandots, but no
action was taken.8 This
left John Johnston with the burden of
fulfilling the provisions
promised the Wyandots in their
1795-1818 treaties with the
United States. In addition to paying
Indian annuities, the gov-
ernment agreed to provide additional
benefits in consideration
of several Indian cessions. In the
Wyandot Treaty of September
29, 1817, the most important of the
postwar treaties, the United
States agreed to "engage to
appoint an agent, to reside among
or near the Wyandots, to aid them in
the protection of their
persons and property, to manage their
intercourse with the
government and citizens of the United
States, and to discharge
the duties which commonly appertain to
the office of Indian
agent."9 Despite poor
health and the location of his agency in
Piqua, Johnston attempted to perform
these duties pending a
decision by the Secretary of War.
Johnston also tried to fulfill
another provision of the treaty whereby
the United States
promised to "erect a sawmill and a
gristmill, upon some proper
part of the Wyandot reservation, for
their use, and to provide
and maintain a blacksmith, for the use
of the Wyandots and
Senecas, upon the reservation of the
Wyandots."10 Johnston
informed Cass in June, 1819, that he
was making arrangements
to employ a blacksmith to reside at
Upper Sandusky. He con-
tended, however, that "nothing
could be done this summer on the
subject of building the mills for the
Wyandots except having the
river examined and the site
ascertained. This I shall have done
in September or October when the water
is low." Johnston en-
gaged a blacksmith at $469 per year,
and in October, 1819, he
signed a contract for $550 for part of
the cost of building both
mills at Upper Sandusky and indicated
that the work would
biography on the life of John Johnston
is Leonard U. Hill, John Johnston
and the Indians: In the Land of the
Three Miamis (Piqua, Ohio, 1957);
John Johnston to John C. Calhoun,
October 13, 1818, W. Edwin Hemphill,
ed., The Papers of John C. Calhoun (Columbia,
South Carolina, 1967), III,
199-200, 365; Calhoun to William Turner,
May 24, 1819, Letters Sent
Relating to Indian Affairs, 1800-1824,
Office of Indian Affairs, National
Archives, Washington, D. C. (hereafter
cited as L.S.R.I.A.)
8. Cass to Calhoun, January 9, 1819,
Hemphill, The Papers of John C.
Calhoun, III, 480.
9. Kappler, Indian Affairs: Laws and
Treaties, II, 149.
10. Ibid.
Clash of Leadership 185
commence the next summer. A month
earlier, a millwright
went to Upper Sandusky and fixed the
site of the mills on a
spot below the Wyandot Council House.1l
By the winter of 1819-1820 Johnston
managed to fulfill
most of the provisions stipulated in the
postwar treaties, and
he evaluated Wyandot improvements which
would be turned
over to the government under the terms
of the treaties. Secre-
tary of War Calhoun believed the
appraisal was correct, but
was unwilling to permit an evaluation by
an Indian agent.
Thus in July, 1819, he appointed George
Hunt and William
Cotton, two men who had already
appraised Delaware Indian
improvements, to evaluate the Wyandot
improvements. In early
September, Cotton and Hunt reached Piqua
and informed
Johnston that they had been commissioned
to conduct the ap-
praisal. Johnston gave them his
assessment and told them to
return to their homes in Indiana because
the task was com-
pleted, but Cotton and Hunt disregarded
his advice. Incensed,
Johnston maintained that they had
mischievous purposes which
accounted for their conduct; the agent
further complained that
the appraisers stopped seven miles
outside of Upper Sandusky
when they made the evaluation, and thus
their findings were
incomplete. Calhoun ended the argument
by reversing his pre-
vious stance; he disregarded the Hunt
and Cotton evaluation
and approved Johnston's appraisal.
However, the Secretary of
War informed the two appraisers that
they would be reimbursed
for their services.l2
After Hunt and Cotton left the Grand
Reserve, Johnston
turned his attention to implementing
other provisions of post-
war Wyandot treaties with the
government. In April, 1820, he
drew on $1,000 in government funds for
the construction of
the Wyandot mills at Upper Sandusky.
Johnston indicated that
he would purchase mill irons, iron,
steel, and tools in Cin-
cinnati for building the mills and that
he expected to leave
Piqua for Upper Sandusky in May with a
millwright and
laborers. Johnston urged Governor Cass
to recommend to Sec-
retary of War Calhoun that a subagent be
appointed for the
11. Johnston to Cass, June 9, and
October 23, 1819, Letters Received,
Michigan Superintendency, Office of
Indian Affairs, National Archives,
Washington D. C. (hereafter cited as
L.R.M.S.)
12. Calhoun to Cass, July 31, 1819, and
Johnston to Cass, Septem-
ber 12, 1819, L.R.M.S.; Calhoun to
George Hunt and William Cotton, July
20 and 31, 1819, L.S.R.I.A.
186 OHIO HISTORY
Wyandots, because all the tribes under
the jurisdiction of the
Piqua Agency created too large a volume
of work for just one
man. The agent believed the task
warranted an assistant, for
by 1820 there were 632 Wyandots living
in Ohio, over half of
whom lived in and around Upper
Sandusky; moreover, most of
the remainder were within a day's ride
from Upper Sandusky.
Also, communications and travel between
Piqua and the Wyandot
Reserve were tedious and unreliable.13
Johnston suggested to Cass that John
Shaw, who had served
with him at the Fort Wayne Agency
before and during the War
of 1812, be appointed subagent for the
Wyandots. The Piqua
Agent wished to take Shaw with him when
he left Piqua for
Upper Sandusky with the construction
crew around May 18.
In April, Johnston informed Cass that
his cost estimate for con-
struction of the mills was $4,000; he
believed it impossible to
eliminate any additional expenditures,
despite economy requests
from the governor. Johnston also feared
that economy measures
would forestall the appointment of a
subagent for the Wyandots
at Upper Sandusky. He tried to ease any
concern over in-
creased costs when he indicated to Cass
that, "if you allow me
Mr. Shaw as assistant at Sandusky, I
will not ask any addition
to my estimate at present . . . $1700.00
per quarter-will en-
deavor to make up his salary out of
that sum."l4
Despite his anxiety about the absence
of a subagent at
Upper Sandusky, Johnston performed the
duties of Indian
agent of the Piqua Agency. On April 28,
1820, he was issued
a warrant for $17,000 to be paid as
annuities to Indians, and of
this sum $6,900 was earmarked for the
Wyandots. The follow-
ing week Johnston held a council at
Piqua with representatives
of the Shawnees, Senecas, Wyandots, and
Delawares to determine
if the tribes were willing to remove to
the Trans-Mississippi
West. No official Indian removal policy
had yet been imple-
mented, but there was a movement within
government circles
to initiate an Indian removal program
in response to pressure
exerted by whites who coveted Indian
land east of the Mis-
sissippi. In addition, other whites
sincerely believed that re-
moval was the only way the Indians
could survive. A secondary
13. Johnston to Cass, April 3 and 19,
1820, L.R.M.S.; Thomas Mc-
Kenney to Walter Leake, April 19, 1820,
Letters Sent, Superintendent of
Indian Trade, 1807-1823, Office of
Indian Affairs, National Archives,
Washington, D. C.
14. Johnston to Cass, April 19 and 25,
1820, L.R.M.S.
Clash of Leadership 187 |
|
purpose for holding the council was to refute allegations made by a few government officials that Johnston was deliberately dragging his feet because he did not want the Indians removed from Ohio. Reporting to Governor Cass on the progress of the council, Johnston stated that the Indians were unwilling to sell their land. He added that their representatives asked him to send them a resident agent and that he had informed them of his proposal to send them John Shaw and they were receptive to his choice. Cass began an inspection tour of Michigan Terri- tory in late May, but before he left Detroit the governor en- dorsed Johnston's recommendation that Shaw be appointed sub- agent for the Wyandots. Calhoun, in turn, approved the recom- mendation and appointed John Shaw subagent in June, 1820.15
15. Calhoun to Johnston, April 28, 1820, and Calhoun to Cass, June 12, 1820, L.S.R.I.A.; Johnston to Cass, May 9, 1820, L.R.M.S.; Cass to Calhoun, May 23, 1820, Hemphill, The Papers of John C. Calhoun, V, 136; Cass to Johnston, September 15, 1820, Letters Sent, Michigan Superin- tendency, Office of Indian Affairs, National Archives, Washington, D. C. (hereafter cited as L.S.M.S.) |
188 OHIO HISTORY
Johnston proceeded with his plans for
the Wyandot Reserve.
He disclosed to Cass his progress in
explaining to the Wyandots
the benefits of removal from Ohio. He
also revealed in October
that the Wyandot sawmill was complete
but not operational be-
cause the river was too low. The agent
lamented this, for it
prevented the construction crew from
using the sawmill to saw
lumber for the erection of the grist
mill. Construction costs
thus increased because all lumber had to
be prepared with an
ax, a much slower method than sawing.
Despite the delay,
Johnston expected the structure to be
finished within two or
three weeks and he reported that the
Indians were satisfied
with the mills.16
In early October John Shaw accepted his
appointment as
subagent, although he feared that the
salary of $500 per year
was inadequate to support his family.
The new subagent, a
native of Bucks County, Pennsylvania,
was forty years old and
a prominent Quaker. Shaw emigrated to
Redstone in western
Pennsylvania with his father,
stepmother, and brother in 1797.
In 1805 Shaw traveled by keelboat from
Brownstown, Penn-
sylvania to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he
decided to go into partner-
ship in a store with his future
brother-in-law, Jonathan Wright,
Jr. Also, Shaw and another Quaker, David
Holloway, started a
trading post in Waynesville, Ohio. Shaw
traded for supplies, and
each year made two keelboat trips up the
Kanawha River to the
Kanawha salt works where he exchanged
clothing, boots, and
shoes for salt, venison, and animal
skins. Although occupied
by the duties of subagent at the Fort
Wayne Agency during the
chaotic days of the War of 1812, Shaw
managed to marry
Elizabeth Wright, a well-educated Quaker
from Maryland who
was a sister of one of his business
partners. When Shaw was
appointed subagent for the Wyandots, he
and Elizabeth were
the parents of two small
children-Edward, age five, and
Thomas, who was three.17
Shaw arrived in Upper Sandusky on
November 11, 1820.
There was no agency residence for the
first winter, so the sub-
16. Johnston to Cass, October 1, 1820,
L.R.M.S.
17. Cass to John Shaw, September 15,
1820, L.S.M.S.; Shaw to Cass
October 9, 1820, L.R.M.S.; E. Ray
Sullivan, "Shaw Family Genealogy,"
unpublished typescript, Indianola, Iowa,
1948, 1, la, 2; Miscellaneous
clippings, The Literary Era, no
date, 125; Cincinnati Enquirer, no day or
month, 1903, 1; Friends Historical
Library of Swarthmore College, Swarth-
more, Pennsylvania.
Clash of Leadership 189
agent, and later his family, shared a
cabin with the family of
John Lewis, the subagency blacksmith.
Shaw inherited a serious
problem: white men trespassed or
settled upon the Grand Re-
serve without permission and refused to
leave. He reported that
white men hunted on the reserve,
removed large quantities of
honey from hollow trees, and stole
horses, hogs, and cattle. The
subagent noted in December, 1820, that
"considerable quantities
of whiskey has [sic] been brought
within this reserve by white
men who located themselves with their
wagons in a state of con-
cealment while they sold out the liquor
to what is termed the
drunken part of Indians." Despite
the harassed subagent's best
efforts, liquor sales to the Wyandots
remained a problem on the
Grand Reserve.18
Meanwhile, the Wyandot mills were
completed by late fall,
1820, and Johnston reported after an
inspection trip to Upper
Sandusky that they were well
constructed despite the fact that
the construction crew had not been
paid; the crew would be paid
a month later, in December, when
Johnston received $4,643 in
federal government funds. The cost of
mill construction at
Upper Sandusky, improvements at other
sites in Ohio, and un-
foreseen expenses incurred during
treaty councils prompted
Governor Cass to request that Secretary
Calhoun add $1,000 to
the fund for the Michigan
Superintendency.19
In January, 1821, Shaw brought his wife
and children from
Cincinnati to Upper Sandusky, The
subagent appreciated the use
of a portion of the John Lewis cabin as
lodging, but he now de-
sired new, larger quarters. He proposed
to Cass that $400 be
allowed for a subagency residence. Cass
approved his request
and instructed him to submit an
estimate of the construction
cost.20 Johnston, however,
disagreed with Cass, contending that
Shaw's situation was, "as
comfortable and respected as his
former habits and prospects would
entitle him to." Moreover,
Johnston feared that a substantial
subagency residence would
encourage the Wyandots to remain in
Ohio, and informed Cass
that he intended to save enough from
agency funds to build a
house for Shaw.21
18. Cass to Shaw, November 18, 1820, and
Shaw to Cass, December
11, 1820, L.S.M.S.; Richmond
(Indiana) Weekly Palladin, May 28, 1891, 1.
19. Johnston to Cass, November 21, and
December 5, 1820, Shaw to
Cass, December 11, 1820, L.R.M.S.; Cass
to Calhoun, January 6, 1821,
L.S.M.S.
20. Shaw to Cass, January 28, 1821,
L.R.M.S.; Cass to Shaw, Feb-
ruary 10, 1821, L.S.M.S.
21. Johnston to Cass, February 13, 1821,
L.R.M.S.
190 OHIO HISTORY
In April Cass received information that
Congress had lopped
off $100,000 from Indian appropriations
for 1821, an unexpected
turn of events which dictated that
strict economy would be en-
forced throughout the Michigan
Superintendency. Neverthe-
less, Cass urged Johnston to find a way
to save enough agency
funds to construct a subagency
residence at Upper Sandusky.
Johnston pledged he would aid Shaw in
acquiring funds for a
home and would direct agency employees
to assist the subagent
in its construction. Without waiting
for funds, Shaw built a
two-story log home in an unused fort
located at Upper San-
dusky. Johnston was understandably
shocked when he observed
the building in September, 1821, for
Shaw had neglected to
inform him he was building the
subagency residence before re-
ceiving any funds for the project.22
The Piqua Agent began to
believe that Shaw was trying to bypass
him. To make matters
worse, Shaw suggested to Governor Cass
in January, 1821, that
he should report directly to Cass in
Detroit instead of to John-
ston. Shaw claimed that Johnston was
"a gentleman I respect
and would not be willing to put more
duties of this kind on him
than necessary. Also, the mail route to
Piqua is rather indirect
and tedious."23 Cass
agreed, but cautioned Shaw that "the
payment of the Wyandot annuity will be
made by Mr. Johnston
and that tribe for general purposes
will be considered within his
agency."24 The governor
informed Johnston that Shaw should
report directly to Detroit and added
that it would be best to
keep subagency funds in Shaw's name.
Johnston, upset when he
learned of this, maintained that
regular mail service existed
between Piqua and Upper Sandusky. He
contended that Shaw
knew no accounts could be opened in the
name of a subagent,
for when Shaw had served with Johnston
at Fort Wayne he had
made an unsuccessful attempt to open an
account: the Treasury
Department had refused to open an
independent account for
Shaw. Johnston reminded Cass that,
"my surety bonds embraces
the expenditures at Sandusky as well as
here. The monies ad-
vanced Mr. Shaw can be charged to
myself and the amount
taken out of the next draft."25
22. Cass to Johnston, April 21, 1821,
L.S.M.S.; Johnston to Cass,
May 14 and September 25, 1821, L.R.M.S.;
Richmond Weekly Palladin,
May 28, 1891, 1.
23. Shaw to Cass, January 28, 1821,
L.R.M.S.
24. Cass to Shaw, February 10, 1821,
L.S.M.S.
25. Cass to Johnston, February 25, 1821,
ibid.; Johnston to Cass,
March 24, 1821, L.R.M.S.
Clash of Leadership 191
One problem with a semi-independent
subagency at Upper
Sandusky was that Johnston could not
accurately estimate its
expenditures. Johnston informed Shaw
that all funds were to
be dispersed in his (Johnston's) name,
but Shaw refused to
follow this directive until Cass
rescinded the order to report
directly to Detroit. Shaw informed
Johnston, "if Governor Cass
attaches me to your agency, I shall
most cheerfully obey. Until
then I think it very improper in me to
do so." The Wyandot
subagent confided to Cass that he had
no private motives that
influenced his judgment, "but the
public good." He went on to
state that, "I am not so tenacious
but that if you should feel so
disposed to gratify Johnston, I will
endeavor quietly to sub-
mit."26 Perhaps Johnston
feared that the importance of his
position would diminish if Shaw was
given too much control
over the Indians at Upper Sandusky,
because he wrote to Secre-
tary of War Calhoun to discount the
necessity of an Indian
agency for the Wyandots. Johnston also
urged Cass to re-
consider an Indian subagency for the
Wyandots because "the
small number of Indians under his
charge would not justify
the government in increasing the
expense there and the number
of Indians at Sandusky must constantly
diminish by removal."27
The controversy over Shaw's
independence faded as depart-
mental belt-tightening, due to slashes
in appropriations, in-
creased the difficulty of managing the
Piqua Agency.
Living conditions at Upper Sandusky
improved, and Shaw
reported in January, 1821, that the
Wyandots were most indus-
trious and easier to work with than any
other tribe in the re-
gion. He also noted that several Indian
families had raised
considerable quantities of corn and
vegetables, and a few families
had planted wheat in anticipation of
the completion of the
Wyandot grist mill. The grist mill
ground a few bushels of corn
each day, but its soft grindstones
produced gritty cornmeal.
Shaw removed the grindstones after
grinding about 300 bushels
of corn, contending that they should be
replaced. The subagent
was upset over the flawed grindstones
also because white settlers
used the grist mill, the only
operational mill in the area. These
individuals were permitted to use the
facility for a fee, but the
Indians did not pay to have their grain
ground. In addition,
Shaw believed that the government
should oversee maintenance
26. Ibid., April 16, 1821; ibid.,
Shaw to Cass, May 4, 1821.
27. Calhoun to Johnston, November 30,
1821, L.S.R.I.A.; Johnston to
Cass, September 25 1821, L.R.M.S.
192 OHIO HISTORY
of the mills because the Indians were
unfamiliar with the opera-
tion of the facilities. Finally, the
Indians did not have a suf-
ficient number of implements for
full-scale farming operations.
To help remedy the situation, Shaw
suggested that the govern-
ment provide the tribe with a good farm
wagon, pointing out
that the Wyandot hay harvest would have
been larger in 1820
had the tribe possessed such a wagon.
Unfortunately, before the
Indians could cut and store their hay,
using very primitive
methods, a fire raged through their
hayfields destroying much
of the crop, thus making it difficult
to provide forage for their
lovestock during the winter. Cass
agreed with Shaw that the
government should maintain the Wyandot
mills. Moreover, if
a wagon was required for the Indians
the subagent should pur-
chase one. Cass also gave Shaw
permission to purchase new
millstones if the subagent believed the
original stones were
inadequate.28
Shaw was tireless in his efforts to
improve the Wyandots'
standard of living. In March, 1821, he
appealed to Cass for
more iron to be used to make
agricultural implements. The In-
dians had only six plows and Shaw
wanted to furnish them with
iron plows, axes, hoes, and wedges. By
March the reserve's
iron supply was exhausted, and the
subagent contended that the
need for a new supply was critical.
Shaw maintained that the
Wyandot's annuity of $6900 was
inadequate to meet the in-
creasing demands of the tribe as they
turned to agricultural
pursuits. On a per capita basis the
annuity amounted to just
over eleven dollars for each Indian, a
sum so small that it could
not pay for the necessities of
establishing a farm. As an added
rebuff to those who contended that the
Indians wasted their
money, Shaw stated that the Wyandots
dressed sensibly in
leather and did not squander their
funds on expensive garments
or silver jewelry as was customary in
other tribes.29
Meanwhile, in response to the
government's 1821 reduction
of appropriations Johnston reduced the
salaries of the black-
smith and interpreter rather than
dismiss any government em-
ployees at Upper Sandusky; thus he was
able to maintain the
same services while reducing costs to
meet the emergency
created by the cut in appropriations.
The annuity payments
28. Shaw to Cass, January 28, 1821, ibid.;
Cass to Shaw, February 10,
1821, L.S.M.S.
29. Shaw to Cass, March 27, 1821,
L.R.M.S.
Clash of Leadership 193
were not altered, but in November
Johnston blamed Shaw for
overspending-the passage of time had
not lessened disagree-
ments between Shaw and Johnston.
Johnston charged that Shaw
attempted to impugn his character and
avoided him at Upper
Sandusky. Offended, Johnston castigated
Shaw for his lack of
respect. In April Cass concluded that,
"I am at length satisfied
that Mr. Johnston and Mr. Shaw will do
no good together....
I shall recommend to the Secretary of
War that Mr. Shaw be
rendered independent." But Cass'
recommendation hinged on
the availability of increased
congressional appropriations.30
However, funding did not increase and
in June Johnston
was warned to cut expenditures to the
bone. The Wyandot chiefs
received their annuity on August 5,
1822, nine days before the
other Wyandots received their payments.
In all, there were 625
Indians receiving payments, but this
number included between
twenty-five and forty Wyandots who
resided in Canada. Illness
prevented Johnston from making the
payment personally, so
the funds were delivered to Upper
Sandusky by James Mc-
Pherson, an employee at the Piqua
Agency. Johnston recovered
by September, and immediately chided
Shaw for overspending.
But Shaw countered that in fact he was
forced to use his per-
sonal funds to operate the subagency.31
In September Cass began to formulate a
new funding policy
regarding the difficulties between Shaw
and Johnston. The
lack of appropriations having forced
him to postpone a formal
separation of the Wyandot Subagency
from its parent Piqua
Agency, he therefore indicated to Shaw
that funds for the
Wyandot Subagency would be sent to
Upper Sandusky after
passing through Piqua. The difference
was that although the
funds were still charged to Johnston's
account, he no longer had
control over the amount forwarded to
Upper Sandusky.32
Although the subagency suffered from
clashes between
Johnston and Shaw, missionary
activities prospered and ex-
30. Shaw to Cass, July 21, 1821,
Johnston to Cass, November 21,
1821, and January 14, 1822, ibid.; Johnston
to Ethan Allen Brown, July
31, 1821, Ethan Allen Brown Papers, Ohio
Historical Society; Cass to
Stickney, April 11, 1822, L.S.M.S.
31. Robert A. Forsyth to Johnston, June
20, 1822, ibid.; Shaw to Cass,
August 22, 1822, Nicholas Greenham to
Cass, August 22, 1822 and M.
Johnston to Cass, August 26, 1822, Shaw
to Cass, August 22, 1822 and
Johnston to Cass, September 16, 1822,
L.R.M.S.
32. Cass to Shaw, September 11, 1822,
Cass to Shaw and Cass to
Johnston, October 4, 1822, L.S.M.S.
194 OHIO HISTORY
panded under the direction of Moses
Henkle and John Stewart.
In fact, the Wyandot chiefs wanted a
mission school on their
reserve, and during the summer of 1821
had requested one from
the Methodist Conference in Lebanon,
Ohio. The Wyandots of-
fered the Methodists a spring-fed
section of land for the site of
the facility, and promised to assist in
constructing the school
if the Methodists would supply a
teacher. The Wyandots pledged
that the young people of the tribe
would attend school.33
Activities of rival denominations
spurred the Methodists
into action. Moses Henkle reported in
September, 1821, that the
Presbyterians were asking the Indians
if they could establish a
school on the Wyandot reserve at Big
Spring, Ohio. Henkle
added that the Presbyterians had
cautioned the Wyandots not
to rely on promises made by the
Methodists. Incensed by the
Presbyterian attack, Henkle offered to
send his son to Big
Spring, where the young man would
conduct an elementary
school for twelve or thirteen Indian
children. In addition, Henkle
employed William Walker, Jr., a
well-educated member of the
Wyandot tribe, as a temporary teacher
at Upper Sandusky.
Henkle also feared that John Stewart
and Jonathan Pointer, a
black man who often acted as Stewart's
interpreter, were losing
some of their influence with the
Indians. Some whites tried to
embarrass the Wyandots by pointing out
that the Indians
listened to the teachings of black men.
An adopted Wyandot,
Pointer continued to assist Stewart.
Notwithstanding inter-
ference by white men, the two blacks
were successful in their
missionary activities among the
Wyandots. The Wyandots were
unwilling to condemn a man because of
his color and they recog-
nized that the two blacks were useful
individuals.34
The Methodist Conference agreed to send
a permanent mis-
sionary to the Wyandots and appointed
James B. Finley to
serve at this post. A dedicated
missionary, Finley was well
known in Methodist circles. An
outstanding spokesman for
Indian rights, he was an experienced
preacher and organizer.
One of the members of his congregation,
Harriet Stubbs, volun-
33. James B. Finley, History of the
Wyandott Mission, At Upper
Sandusky, Ohio: Under the Direction
of the Methodist Episcopal Church
(Cincinnati, 1840), 110-11. This is an
excellent description of the Meth-
odist missionary work among the
Wyandots.
34. Moses Henkle, Report on the Mission,
September 4, 1821, Upper
Sandusky Mission of Methodist Episcopal
Church Records, Ohio Historical
Society.
Clash of Leadership 195
teered to serve as teacher, and she
accompanied Finley and his
wife on their journey from Highland
County, Ohio, to Upper
Sandusky. The three missionaries, and
two young men hired to
assist them on their journey, arrived
at the Wyandot Reserve on
October 16, 1821, and soon were busy
organizing a permanent
mission and making preparations for
establishing a school.
Finley was injured while cutting logs
for a cabin, but with the
assistance of the Indians he was able
to move his family into
the structure the day before the first
snowfall.35
Although it was impossible to start a
boarding school that
winter because there was no suitable
building, Finley took six
Indian children into his cabin where a
makeshift school was con-
ducted. Harriet Stubbs taught the
Indians, and by that spring
her class had grown to ten pupils.
During the summer of 1822
a school forty-eight feet long and
thirty-two feet wide, including
porches, was completed. Finley and his
assistants had prepared
the logs for this structure during the
winter, which enabled them
to finish the construction rapidly.
Unfortunately, illness forced
Finley to leave the mission and move to
Urbana, Ohio. In the
fall of 1822, Charles Ellicott was
appointed missionary, with the
understanding that Finley would resume
his duties as superin-
tendent of the mission as soon as he
regained his health. Ellicott
reemployed William Walker, Jr., to
teach male Wyandot students
and hired a white woman, Lydia Barstow,
to instruct Indian
girls. Finley returned and resumed his
duties in the fall, al-
though he remained in poor health.36
In contrast to the settled situation at
the Wyandot mis-
sionary school, John Shaw and his
subagency continued to suf-
fer monetary difficulties. Shaw
complained in October, 1822,
that it was impossible for him to
economize any further and
still meet subagency requirements. He
went on to note that
the inadequacy of buildings and the
repair and maintenance ex-
pense of government property forced him
to overspend his
budget. John Johnston disagreed and
suggested to Governor
Cass that if Shaw "is not content,
he can resign and I engage to
procure an able and good man to replace
him."37 Cass believed
that Shaw was an honest man working
under great pressure, so
35. Finley, History of the Wyandott
Mission, 115-17.
36. Ibid., 141-42, 161-64.
37. Shaw to Cass, October 11, 1822, and
Johnston to Cass, October
12, 1822, L.R.M.S.
196 OHIO HISTORY
he suggested to Calhoun that the
government purchase new
millstones for the Wyandot Mill and
assist the chiefs in sur-
veying a tract on the reserve.
Johnston, however, continued to
express disapproval of Shaw, informing
Cass in late 1822 that if
an independent agency were established
at Upper Sandusky, Shaw
would not be appointed agent because he
was unknown to poli-
ticians in Ohio. In January, 1823,
Cass, exasperated by the fric-
tion between Johnston and Shaw,
informed Johnston that, "all
I intended or do intend is that you
should allow him as much
latitude of discretion as is consistent
with your general con-
trol .... I do not look upon him as an
ordinary sub-Indian agent,
but as an officer of intelligence
entitled to much consideration."38
To compound Shaw's difficulties in
managing a subagency,
new arguments arose between him and
Johnston. In February
Shaw reported the death of William
Walker, Sr., his interpreter,
and proposed that the duties and salary
of interpreter be shared
by Walker's son Isaac and Robert
Armstrong, a white man who
was a member of the tribe. Cass
approved the appointments and
notified Johnston. However, Johnston
was angry because Shaw
had not notified him about the
appointment of the two inter-
preters. Johnston also was irritated
because Cass had given
Shaw permission to replace the
millstones in the Wyandot Mill,
while budgetary cuts prevented his
[Johnston] purchasing new
equipment. When Cass instructed Shaw to
secure new mill-
stones for the Wyandots at government
expense, Johnston pro-
tested vehemently: he contended that
"every pain was taken in
the first place to procure a good
pair," and pointed out that Shaw
selected the original millstones.
Johnston added that the Indians
were making a good profit from the mill
and thus they should
buy the millstones.39 In May
the Wyandots took the matter into
their own hands when they decided to
pay for the additional pair
of millstones. The mill could now
operate during periods of high
water and the construction costs would
be paid by the Indians.40
While Shaw and Johnston disagreed over
agency policy, no
one doubted the success of the
Methodist Mission. Future United
States Postmaster General John McLean,
a friend of James B.
38. Johnston to Cass, December 10, 1822,
L.R.M.S.; Cass to Calhoun,
October 23, 1822, and Cass to Johnston,
January 19, 1823, L.S.M.S.
39. Shaw to Cass, February 22, 1823,
Johnston to Cass, March 24,
1823, Cass to Shaw, February 27, 1823,
L.R.M.S.; Cass to Shaw, February
27, 1823, L.S.M.S.
40. Johnston to Cass, March 24, 1823,
L.R.M.S.
Clash of Leadership 197
Finley, wondered in February, 1823, why
the Methodist mis-
sionary had not applied for government
funds which had been
appropriated to assist Indian missions.
Finley soon corrected this
oversight by applying for the funds,
and in May he was informed
by Secretary of War Calhoun that the
mission would receive $500
in government assistance. It was
fortunate that the government
assisted the mission, for by the spring
of 1823 the complex in-
cluded three buildings and an
additional schoolhouse of one and
one-half stories was planned for
immediate construction. Eighty
acres of fenced mission land was used
as pasture and ten acres of
cleared river bottom land had been
planted in corn during the
1822 growing season. Shaw complimented
Finley on his achieve-
ments and noted that "his mild and
ingenuous manner of govern-
ing their weakness and prejudices has
given him a conspicuous
place in their affections." The
subagent estimated that Finley
and his assistants were educating
between forty and fifty Wyan-
dot youths, and there was little doubt
that Indian enrollment
would increase with the availability of
more accommodations.41
Finley obtained materials for the
Indians whenever he could per-
suade Methodists to donate money or
other gifts to the mission.
For example, in the spring of 1823 when
the Wyandots did not
have enough potatoes to meet their
needs, the persistent mis-
sionary obtained between forty and
fifty bushels from a benevo-
lent Methodist. During the late winter
and spring of 1823
Finley often appealed for extraordinary
aid from generous
Methodists because the Wyandots had
seriously depleted their
grain supply.42
Shaw also worked hard to obtain
necessities for the Indians,
even though he overspent his budget in
doing so. He reported to
Governor Cass that squirrels had eaten
much of the corn crop in
the field and the severity of the
winter forced the Indians to feed
their livestock more grain than usual.
Some of the Indians were
in danger of having to use their seed
grain for food, which would
41. Shaw to Cass, March 10, 1823, ibid.;
John McLean to James B.
Finley, February 12, 1823, James B.
Finley Papers, United Methodist
Archives Center, Beeghly Library, Ohio
Wesleyan University, Delaware,
Ohio (hereafter cited as Finley
Papers.); Calhoun to Finley, May 1, 1823,
Hemphill, The Papers of John C. Calhoun, VIII,
42-43; Estimate of Cost,
March 18, 1823, and Certificate of John Shaw, March 21,
1823, Letters Re-
ceived Relating to Indian Affairs,
1800-1823, Office of Indian Affairs,
National Archives, Washington, D. C.
(hereafter cited as L.R.R.I.A.)
42. Nathan Emery to Finley, April 16,
1823, Finley Papers.
198 OHIO HISTORY
have wrecked plans for an agricultural
society. However, the
danger was averted when Shaw persuaded
Cass to spend an ad-
ditional $100 for immediate subsistence
needs. In May Shaw
informed Cass that the Quakers sent many
supplies to the
Shawnees at Wappakonneta and Lewistown.
He added that, "the
Methodist Society in their operating
here, although zelous [sic]
and faithful in their engagements in the
school and missionary
establishment expend nothing for the
Wyandots on any other
score."43 Although
Johnston continued to criticize Shaw for
overspending, the subagent at Upper
Sandusky performed well,
considering the conditions which existed
on the reserve.44
Notwithstanding his displeasure over the
performance of the
Wyandot subagent, Johnston was
enthusiastic in his support of
the Wyandot Methodist Mission. Unable to
travel to Upper San-
dusky in June, 1823, because of ill
health, Johnston informed
Finley that he hoped to reach the
Methodist Mission in August or
September. Though pleased with the
success of the mission, he
cautioned Finley not to expect the
Wyandots to remain in Ohio.
Johnston believed that the Wyandots
would be overwhelmed by
their white neighbors in Ohio, and he
warned Finley not to be-
come involved in the debate over Indian
removal because the
Wyandots and the mission would only
suffer. Finley reported in
July that there were 220 Methodist
Wyandots and over fifty In-
dian and white children enrolled in the
mission school. He in-
dicated to Governor Cass that he was
attempting to convert the
Wyandots from hunters to farmers. Finley
claimed that his ex-
periment was working, for the Indians
cultivated over fifty acres
of mission land that summer and also
planned a large fall plant-
ing. Shaw continued his enthusiasm for
the mission's work, as
did Johnston. In August when Johnston
finally reached Upper
Sandusky, he sent a glowing report about
the Wyandot Mission to
Methodist Bishop William McKendre of
Urbana, Ohio. Accord-
ing to Johnston, the fifty acres of
mission corn was the finest crop
he had seen that year and would yield
3,000 bushels. An addi-
tional twelve acres were devoted to
vegetables, ranging from
potatoes to cabbages. Impressed with the
progress of the Indians
at the mission school, Johnston praised
Finley's performance as
superintendent of the Wyandot Mission.
Finley, in turn, received
43. Cass to Shaw, May 8, 1823, L.S.M.S.;
Shaw to Cass, May 10,
1823, L.R.M.S.
44. Finley to Cass, July 21, 1823, ibid.
Clash of Leadership 199
more welcome news that fall when
Secretary of War Calhoun in-
formed him that the government would
reimburse the Methodists
$1300 to cover two-thirds of the
construction costs of the Wyandot
Mission buildings. In early December
Johnston informed Finley
that he would reach Upper Sandusky by
Christmas to pay sub-
agency personnel and assist in the
preparation of requisitions for
the promised $1300. However, inclement
weather prevented
Johnston from making the journey;
therefore, he sent an as-
sistant, James McPherson, with the
requisitions.45
Despite bright prospects for the future,
a serious blow struck
the Wyandot Mission in late 1823. John
Stewart, the mulatto
missionary who brought Methodism to the
Wyandots, developed
poor health but he refused to abandon
his duties. On December
17, 1823, Stewart died. Therefore,
Finley and his assistants were
forced to assume the duties of this
remarkable missionary. De-
spite the loss of Stewart's labors, the
mission prospered in 1824,
although several controversies developed
which seriously af-
fected the subagency. A tragedy occurred
at an 1824 New Year's
celebration in the store of Joseph
Chaffy. An intoxicated cele-
brant, David Hill, was asked to leave
the party, and when he re-
fused was forcibly removed from the
building. Hill attempted to
reenter the store, but James Wright, a
black employee at the
trading post, refused to admit him. When
the enraged white man
again stormed the trading post, Wright
hit him on the head with
a club and Hill died. Although Wright
was released under bond,
Shaw, fearing retaliation by whites,
believed that the young
black should be placed in jail under
protective custody. Despite
Shaw's fears, Wright remained free.
Although Wright was not
harmed, he was forced to live in fear of
reprisal by Hill's white
friends. Within a month, a Wyandot
delegation, including five
of the seven chiefs, met with Shaw. They
criticized his adminis-
tration of the subagency and his
handling of the Wright-Hill af-
fair, and asked him to resign. Shaw
contended that the Indians
blamed him for not punishing Wright
immediately. To complicate
matters, the death of Chief Dunquot in
1823 left Wyandot tribal
leadership badly divided. When the five
chiefs met with Shaw,
two other chiefs were absent hunting and
could not be reached.
After receiving information from Finley
concerning the meeting,
45. Johnston to Finley, June 26,
December 9, and December 23, 1823,
Finley Papers; Finley to Cass, July 21,
1823, Shaw to Cass, July 26, 1823,
L.R.M.S.; Johnston to William McKendre,
August 28, 1823, L.R.R.I.A.;
Calhoun to Finley, October 31, 1823,
L.S.R.I.A.
200 OHIO HISTORY
Johnston decided to conduct an
investigation at Upper Sandusky
in March. Meanwhile, the five Wyandot
chiefs sent Johnston a
list of charges leveled against Shaw.
This was the first time that
the Wyandots expressed displeasure over
Shaw's conduct.
Johnston went to Upper Sandusky and
conducted a hearing on
the matter. After an extensive
investigation, Johnston concluded
that Shaw erred in judgment and lacked
energy, but was an
honest man. One possible factor in the
Wyandots' discontent was
Shaw's unwillingness to show
preferential treatment to the in-
creasing number of Methodist members of
the tribe over the
non-Christian Indians. Shaw himself
claimed that the spark
which ignited the controversy occurred
before the death of David
Hill. The subagent had sold an ox for
Chief John Hicks, for
what he considered a good price, when
the Indian was away hunt-
ing. When Hicks returned, however, he
expressed displeasure
at the deal. Fortunately, Shaw was able
to recover the ox. Al-
though initially reluctant to forgive
Shaw for his action, the
chief later accepted the situation and
said he was "perfectly
reconciled" with Shaw.46 Nevertheless,
Shaw felt that the in-
cident had sown seeds of discontent.
The main reason Johnston desired to
resolve the controversy
between Shaw and the Indians was fear
that his own position
was in jeopardy. In January, 1824,
apparently due to charges
questioning his fitness for the job, he
defended his record as
agent and informed Finley that he
suspected that Duncan Mc-
Arthur, an enemy and land speculator,
wanted him removed as
Indian agent. Johnston contended that
McArthur wanted an
Indian agent more sympathetic to the
demands of speculators and
more favorable to immediate Indian
removal. Searching for allies,
the fearful Piqua agent requested
Finley to compose a testimonial
petition to counteract any charges
leveled by his enemies.
Johnston urged Finley to persuade the
chiefs and whites living
on the Wyandot Reserve to sign the
petition. He cautioned
Finley, however, not to permit Shaw to
learn of the existence of
the testimonial because "I know in
proof, that he on one occasion
endeavored to destroy me."
Johnston also informed James Mont-
gomery, the Seneca subagent, of his
plight and requested him to
46. Satterwhite, "John Stewart and
the Mission to the Wyandot In-
dians," 68; Johnston to Finley,
February 23, 1824, Finley Papers; Shaw to
Cass, February 5, 1824, and February 28,
1824, Johnston to Cass, March
27, 1824, Shaw to Cass, April 16, 1824,
and Isaac Walker to Cass, May
19, 1824, L.R.M.S.
Clash of Leadership 201
obtain a testimonial letter from the
Senecas and Shawnees of
Lewistown, Ohio. Soon the Senecas,
Shawnees, Wyandots, and
many influential whites sent letters to
President James Monroe
and Secretary of War Calhoun attesting
to Johnston's honesty
and good character. Johnston also
defended his performance as
Indian agent to Cass and Ohio Governor
Ethan Allen Brown.
Johnston's defensive efforts proved a
success, for the charges
were disregarded and he retained his
position.47
Meanwhile, Shaw continued to believe he
was acceptable to
the Wyandots. Johnston, however, wanted
to assign Shaw to the
Seneca Subagency and replace him at
Upper Sandusky with
James Montgomery. Finley was
unenthusiastic about the pro-
posal because Montgomery was a
Methodist: Finley had plans for
a Methodist Mission on the Seneca
Reserve and he counted on
strong support from Montgomery should
his plans prove fruitful.
Reluctantly, Finley agreed to accept
the exchange if Secretary
of War Calhoun approved it. In March,
Thomas L. McKenney,
the head of the newly-created Bureau of
Indian Affairs, indi-
cated to Johnston that the decision to
exchange Shaw should be
left to the discretion of Finley.48
Of more immediate concern than the
replacement of Shaw
was a widening split between the
Methodist Wyandots and those
members of the tribe who remained
outside the church. The two
groups-designated Christians and Pagans
by the Methodist mis-
sionaries-disagreed over whether the
reserve should be divided
into individual farms. In May, 1824,
Finley agreed to hold a
council with the Indians to discuss the
problems. Johnston indi-
47. Johnston to Calhoun, January 19,
1824, Johnston to Ethan Allen
Brown, February 4, 1824, Shawnees and
Senecas of Lewistown to James
Monroe, February 10, 1824, Finley et al
to Monroe, February 17, 1824,
Wyandot Chiefs to Monroe, February 17,
1824, Johnston to Brown, Joseph
Vance and William McLean, March 9, 1824,
Letters Received, Piqua Agency,
Office of Indian Affairs, National
Archives, Washington, D. C. (hereafter
cited as L.R.P.A.) Johnston to Finley,
January 27, 1824, James Montgomery
to Finley, February 16, 1824, Finley
Papers; Johnston to Cass, February 3,
1824, L.R.M.S.; Johnston to Calhoun,
March 9, 1824, and Brown to Calhoun,
March 9, 1824, Hemphill, The Papers
of John C. Calhoun, VIII, 571 and 597.
48. Johnston to Finley, April 14, 1824,
Finley Papers; Finley to
Calhoun, May 24, 1824, L.R.P.A.; Thomas
L. McKenney to Johnston, June
1, 1824, Letters Sent, Office of Indian
Affairs, National Archives, Wash-
ington, D. C. (hereafter cited as
L.S.I.A.); Secretary of War John C.
Calhoun, without special Congressional
authorization, set up a Bureau of
Indian Affairs within the War Department
on March 11, 1824. He as-
signed the duties of head of the bureau
to Thomas L. McKenney, who held
the position until dismissed by
President Jackson in 1830.
202 OHIO HISTORY
cated to Cass that unless the two sides
settled their differences,
the Wyandots would be unable to elect a
head chief.49 The
Methodist Mission suffered a serious
setback while Finley at-
tended a missionary conference in
Baltimore during the spring
of 1824. In July Finley learned that
during his absence the
Pagan faction had regained the
allegiance of many of the
Wyandot converts. Finley contended that
Shaw favored Chief
Warpole and the Pagan Wyandots;
horrified that Shaw had at-
tended an Indian feast and participated
in the accompanying
festivities, Finley accused him of encouraging the
Wyandots to
revert to their Indian customs. While
the Methodist preacher
was in Baltimore, the Wyandots held a
dance although Finley
had taught them to discontinue such
merrymaking on religious
grounds. Finley castigated Shaw for not
halting the dance and
claimed that there were many
individuals on the reserve capable
of performing the duties of subagent.
Finley contended that as
superintendent of the mission he could
also perform the duties
of subagent.50
Finley had reason to be proud of his
accomplishments at the
mission and he needlessly feared that
Shaw would destroy them.
The missionary reported that he was
encouraging the Indians to
raise sheep and planned to install
equipment at the Wyandot Mill
to enable them to manufacture woolen
cloth. Finley also noted
that the mission had accumulated 600
bushels of corn from the
crop of the previous year and he
expected sixty acres of healthy
corn to yield seventy bushels per acre.
Moreover, wheat, oats,
potatoes, and other garden crops
flourished in smaller mission
tracts. These reports could not be
ignored, and the success of the
mission was of prime concern to the
Secretary of War. There-
fore, in August, after deciding that
Finley would not tolerate
Shaw, Calhoun informed Shaw that he
would not be retained
as subagent for the Wyandots. At the
same time the Secretary
expressed confidence that Finley could
perform the dual func-
tions of missionary and subagent at
Upper Sandusky.51 Finley
agreed to serve without pay as
subagent. The Bureau of Indian
Affairs' Thomas L. McKenney informed
Finley that, "if the
experiment should prove successful in
this instance . . . it will
49. Shaw to Cass, May 29, 1824, Johnston
to Cass, June 19, 1824,
L.R.M.S.; Finley to Calhoun, May 24,
1824, L.R.P.A.
50. Finley to Calhoun, July 17, 1824,
L.R.P.A.
51. Ibid.; Calhoun to Shaw,
August 17, 1824, and Calhoun to Cass,
August 17, 1824, L.S.I.A.
Clash of Leadership 203
lay the foundation at extending the
same principal to other points
with a saving to the government as well
as benefit to the In-
dians."52 Cass
recommended and Calhoun approved that Finley
be put in charge of the operation of
the Wyandot Mills.53
The Shaw family left Upper Sandusky in
November, but
not without yet more clashes with
Finley. The former subagent
attempted to sell wooden rails he had
split, but Finley maintained
the rails belonged to the government.
Then Shaw advertised an
auction of household articles he was
unable to take with him to
his new home in Dunlapsville, Indiana;
he claimed that at the
time of the sale, Finley assembled the
Indians for labor at the
mill dam so that no prospective buyers
could attend the auction.
Notwithstanding the strained relations
with Finley which ac-
companied Shaw's dismissal, the Shaw
family eventually settled
in their new home in Indiana.54
The Methodist Mission prospered under
the direction of
Finley and his successors, and a
mission church completed in
1824 served the Wyandots until their
removal to Kansas in 1843.
However, Finley was mistaken in his
belief that he could oversee
all the missionary activities on the
Wyandot Reserve and still
perform the duties of subagent. Though
his assistants at the
mission were zealous workers, the
combined operation of the
mission and the subagency proved too
great a burden for the
frail preacher.55 In 1825
Wyandot interpreter Isaac Walker
complained to Governor Cass that the
missionary was too inde-
pendent and could not perform all the
tasks required by his dual
position. Walker suggested that the
government appoint another
subagent to serve at Upper Sandusky.
Cass agreed with Walker
and proposed to Calhoun's successor as
Secretary of War, James
Barbour, that a subagent be appointed
for the Wyandots. Con-
currently, Governor Cass recommended
his brother, Charles L.
Cass, for the position. In February,
1826, McKenney relieved
Finley of his duties as Wyandot
subagent and filled the position
with Charles L. Cass.56
52. McKenney to Finley, August 17, 1824,
L.S.I.A.
53. Cass to Calhoun, September 2, 1824,
L.R.M.S. and Calhoun to
Cass, September 21, 1824, L.S.I.A.
54. Shaw to Cass, November 30, 1824,
L.R.M.S.
55. A recent history of the Wyandot
Mission is Thelma R. Marsh,
Moccasin Trails to the Cross (Upper Sandusky, Ohio, 1974).
56. Isaac Walker to Cass, December 16,
1825, L.R.P.A.; Cass to
James Barbour, January 17, 1824,
L.R.M.S.; McKenney to Finley, Feb-
ruary 6, 1826, LS.I.A.
204 OHIO HISTORY
Surprisingly, Shaw was considered for
the position, but
Johnston warned Governor Cass that the
former Quaker sub-
agent simply could not work with
Finley. Johnston suggested to
Cass that although he thought Shaw
should be restored to his
former rank of subagent, it was unwise
to assign him to Upper
Sandusky. Failing to gain the position,
Shaw and his family,
which now included three children,
moved to Greene County,
Ohio, where the former Wyandot subagent
became a farmer.
There the Shaw family became quite
prosperous in the woolen
industry. Shaw and his family had a
tearful reunion with the
Wyandots in their camp, south of
Waynesville, Ohio, when the
Wyandots passed through the area when
they were removed to
Kansas in 1843. The Shaws also
corresponded frequently with
the Wyandots while the Indians were
establishing a new home on
the site of present Kansas City,
Kansas. John Shaw died in
Greene County, Ohio, in 1851, while
Elizabeth died six years later
in Waynesville, Ohio.57
United States Government officials
dealing with Indians
were groping for a suitable Indian
policy following the War of
1812. The value of the whole concept of
resident subagents as-
signed to small tribes was
questionable, for the Secretary of War
and his subordinates assumed that the
Wyandots would be re-
moved much more quickly than was the
case; thus it seemed
wasteful to maintain a subagent.
Officials believed that a mis-
sionary could perform the task without
remuneration for the
anticipated short life of the Grand
Reserve in Ohio. They could
not anticipate that the Wyandots would
remain in Ohio longer
than any other tribe. The clash of
wills between Shaw and Fin-
ley was not an isolated incident in the
history of Indian affairs,
but it came at a critical time and
might have postponed the
orderly removal of the tribe to the
Trans-Mississippi West. Each
man thought his policy was correct, but
neither Shaw nor Finley
acted out of a desire to increase
personal or political gain. Each
felt that in the long run the Indians
would benefit from his
guidance.
Shaw was not able to retain his
position as subagent at
57. Johnston to Cass, December 17, 1825,
L.R.M.S.; Land deeds to
and from John and Elizabeth Shaw, 1816,
V, 265-66; 1843, XXII, 511,
516; 1844, XXIII, 252; 1847, XXV, 120,
Office of the Greene County Re-
corder, Xenia, Ohio; United States
Census for 1850. Sugarcreek Township,
Greene County, Ohio, 97; Richmond
Weekly Palladin, May 28, 1891, 1;
Sullivan, "Shaw Family
Genealogy," la.
Clash of Leadership 205
Upper Sandusky, but he was concerned
for the welfare of the
Indians. A nonpolitical person, Shaw
had no friends in important
government positions. Furthermore, the
paucity of government
funds made it difficult to manage the
subagency, and even these
meager amounts were often delayed. Shaw
added to his own
problems by building the subagency
house without Johnston's
approval, thus incurring the
displeasure of his superior. Perhaps
Johnston believed, with some validity,
that Shaw attempted to
circumvent his authority when the new
subagent suggested to
Governor Cass that subagency
correspondence from Upper San-
dusky be sent directly to Detroit.
Shaw, who lacked tact, was in
over his head in a political situation
which called for compromise.
Shaw approved missionary activity at
Upper Sandusky, but when
he criticized the Methodists for not
sending more aid to the
Wyandots he failed to realize that
Finley was using all his in-
genuity and resources to obtain more
donations from white
Methodists to keep the mission afloat
during crisis periods.
Shaw and Finley had different
objectives and perceptions of
what should become of the Indians at
Upper Sandusky. Shaw
wanted to raise the standard of living
of the Indians; whether
they became Christians through
missionary efforts was of
secondary importance. Moreover, should
the Indians choose to
become Christians, they should not be
forced to forsake entirely
their traditional way of life. On the
other hand, Finley wanted
to "civilize" the Indians by
persuading them to abandon tribal
customs and become farmers. He was
pleased that the Wyan-
dots were apparently adapting so well
to his plans, but was
disturbed when during his absence in
Baltimore Shaw permitted
the Indians to resurrect some of their
former practices. There-
fore, the Methodist preacher decided he
could never achieve his
civilizing mission if Shaw remained subagent at Upper
Sandusky.
By 1824 Finley's goals for the Wyandots
better coincided with
War Department policies than Shaw's.
Thus, when it became a
question of which man to support,
Secretary of War Calhoun
opted for Finley, believing his policy
would best serve the in-
terests of the government and was more
important to the future
welfare of the Wyandots.
ROBERT E. SMITH
The Clash of Leadership at the
Grand Reserve: The Wyandot
Subagency and the Methodist
Mission, 1820-1824
The War of 1812 ended in 1815 with the
Indian tribes of
the Old Northwest divided and
demoralized. Officials of the
United States government soon attempted
to stabilize relations
between the federal government and its
native American in-
habitants in Ohio where numerous
treaties were negotiated be-
tween United States commissioners and
chiefs representing the
Ohio tribes. Among those tribes caught
up in government ef-
forts to set up a viable Indian policy
were the Wyandots. Four
treaties affecting the Wyandots were
concluded with the fed-
eral government between 1815 and 1818.1
By then most of the
tribe occupied reserves in Ohio,
although a small Wyandot re-
serve remained near Detroit in Michigan
Territory and another
branch of the tribe lived on land in the
lower peninsula of
present Ontario, Canada. A majority of
the Ohio Wyandots
resided on the Grand Reserve, in
Northwest Ohio near the site
of the present town of Upper Sandusky.
Tarhe, the venerable
chief of the Wyandots for twenty years,
died in 1815 and was
replaced by Dunquod. The new chief was
confronted with the
Robert E. Smith is Chairman of the
Department of Social Science and
Associate Professor of History at
Missouri Southern State College, Joplin.
The author gratefully acknowledges a
research grant from the American
Philosophical Society.
1. Charles J. Kappler, comp. and ed., Indian
Affairs: Laws and
Treaties, United States Senate, 58th Congress, 2nd Session, Executive
Document Number 319 (5 vols., Washington, D. C., 1904), II, 117-19, 145-55,
162-64.