Ohio History Journal
DANIEL BOON.
WILLIAM A. GALLOWAY, B. S., M. D.,
XENIA, OHIO.
In Prof. McFarland's excellent article
on Simon Kenton, he
mentions Daniel Boon, as having been the
most prominent early
settler of Kentucky. He also quotes from
Boon's own account,
giving the date of his first journey,
from his home on the Yadkin
River, North Carolina, in quest of the
country of Kentucky, and
the names of his associates on this
memorable trip.
Some of Col. Boon's most strenuous
experiences occurred in
Ohio, and on this account his most
valuable contribution to Ohio
history is here given. His own narrative
may be found in
THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OR REPOSITORY OF
ANCIENT
AND MODERN FUGITIVE PIECES, ETC., PROSE
AND POETICAL. FOR OCTOBER, 1787.*
Several orthographical points of
interest will be noted. The
spelling of Old Chelicothe+ (pronounced
by the Shawanese--
*Complete volumes of The American
Museum from 1780 to 1789 are
a part of the valuable historical
library of Hon. James Edmund Galloway,
Xenia, Ohio.
+The pronunciation of Che-li-coth-e
comes down through the writer's
family, from James Galloway, Sr. It has
undoubtedly been preserved cor-
rectly.
In the American Pioneer, June, 1842, occurs the following edi-
torial note by Jno. S. Williams:
"Those valleys (the Scioto and Paint
Creek valleys) were favorites of the
Aborigines also, in each of which
they built their che-le-co-the, which
is understood to be an Indian name,
signifying town or city."
In the September number, 1842, of the
same in an article on Logan,
Felix Renick, Esq., writes:
"Captain Parsons informed me that he was
at the town where Logan then resided,
and where he delivered his
speech. He called it chi-le-coth-e, sounding
each syllable as it would,
detached from the rest."
263
264 Ohio
Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
Che-li-coth'-e); Peccaway (Piqua); Point Creek Town on
Sciota; Shawanese
(Shawnees); Kentucke; and the name of
Boon. The quaint
old-fashioned f, for our present use of s;
the circumflex mark
connecting c and t; and the use of both
small and capital
letters in military titles were common to a
later date than 1787.
The closing paragraphs
tell, in simple, heartfelt words, the
sum of his life's
story and reflect the shadows of his most event-
ful career. Boon was
indeed "an instrument ordained to settle
the wilderness."
Col. Boon, in this
narrative, locates Old Chelicothe as "the
principal Indian town
on Little Miami." His statement, that in
1782 Clark's
Expedition destroyed Old Chelicothe, Peccaway,
New Chelicothe, Wills
Town, and Chelicothe, leaves no doubt that
at that time the
various Chelicothes had different designations
and that the one on
the Little Miami river was "Old Chelicothe."
The court records of
Greene County verify this, and give the
exact location of the
village in the testimony of James Galloway
in the case of
In the Green County
Superior
JOHN STEVENSON Court in Chancery, before Jo-
vs siah Glover,
Master Commis-
PETER VANDOLAH sioner, at the house of Abner
Reed, June 15, 1818.
After testifying that
he first saw Old Chillicothe and the
Little Miami prairie
bottoms in 1782, to the question "Are you
now sitting in the
place called Old Chillicothe?" James Galloway
answered "I am
sitting within the bounds where the pickets
were." It may
here be said that these same pickets had to be
broken down with a
small cannon, before the town was finally
taken and destroyed by
Clark.
The house of Abner
Reed, in which this trial took place, is
a two story brick
residence, - still standing. It is situate at the
south-west edge of the
village of Oldtown, three and one-half
miles north of Xenia.
James Galloway removed
from Lexington, Ky., with his
family in 1797
to a place about one mile north of Oldtown. He
Daniel Boon. 265
was a Revolutionary soldier and was
Treasurer of Greene County,
from August 1803 till June
1819.
It should be added to these evidences of
the location of
"Old Chelicothe" that Simon
Kenton made his last visit to his
nephew and niece, Orin and Martha North,
at their residence
in Oldtown, about 1834. From the large
porch of their residence
-still standing--in full sight of the
most famous of all his
gauntlet runs, he showed them its
course, extending from the
foot of the Sexton hill to the door of
the Council House. He
located the Council House a few yards
north-east of the Abner
Reed residence. This course is 158 rods
bearing slightly east
of south from the Reed house. Kenton
also pointed out the
prairie where he found the drove of
horses, which got him into
this all but fatal captivity. It is
located between the Massie's
Creek bridge of The P. C. C. & St.
L. Railway and the first
steep of foothills east, bearing
northward between these two
points.
On page 24 of the January 1904 issue of
this Quarterly,
Prof. McFarland says, "It is
perfectly certain that Kenton first
ran the gauntlet at the Chillicothe on
the Little Miami."
These evidences set at rest all doubts
as to the true location
of "Old Chelicothe",
ordinarily spelled "Old Chillicothe"; now
Oldtown, Greene County, Ohio. The
article by Col. Boon is here
presented, an exact copy, except the use
of the letter f for s,
and the circumflex mark over ct.
Adventures of col. Daniel Boon, one of
the original
settlers at Kentucke; containing the
wars with the In-
dians on the Ohio, from 1769 to the year
1784, and the
first establishment and progress of the
settlements on
that river. Written by the colonel.
It was on the first of May 1769 that I
resigned my domestic
happiness, and left my family and
peaceable habitation on the
Yadkin river, in North Carolina, to
wander through the wilder-
ness of America, in quest of the country
of Kentucke, in com-
pany with John Finley, John Stuart,
Joseph Holden, James
Money, and William Cool.
On the 7th of June, after
travelling through a mountainous
wilderness, in a western direction, we
found ourselves on Red
|
266 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
River, where John Finley had formerly been trading with the Indians; and, from the top of an eminence, saw with pleasure |
|
|
the beautiful level of Ken- tucke. For some time we had experienced the most uncom- fortable weather. We now encamped, made a shelter to defend us from the inclement season, and began to hunt and reconnoitre the country. We found abundance of wild beasts in this vast forest. The buffaloes were more nu- merous than cattle on other settlements, browsing on the leaves of the cane, or crop- ping the herbage on those ex- tensive plains. We saw hun- dreds in a drove; and the |
|
numbers about the salt springs were amazing. In the forest, the habitation of beasts of every American kind, we hunted with great success until December. On the 22d of December, John Stuart and I had a pleasing ramble; but fortune changed the day at the close of it. We had passed through a great forest, in which stood myriads of trees, some gay with blossoms, others rich with fruits. Nature was here a series of wonders and a fund of delight. Here she dis- played her ingenuity and industry in a variety of flowers and fruits, beautifully coloured, elegantly shaped, and charmingly flavoured; and we were diverted with numberless animals, pre- senting themselves perpetually to our view. In the decline of the day, near Kentucke river, as we ascended the brow of a small hill, a number of Indians rushed out of a thick cane brake, and made us prisoners. The Indians plundered us, and kept us in confinement seven days. During this, we discovered no uneasi- ness or desire to escape, which made them less suspicious; but in the dead of night, as we lay by a large fire, in a thick cane brake, when sleep had locked up their senses, my situation not |
Daniel Boon. 267
disposing me to rest, I gently awoke my
companion. We seized
this favourable opportunity, and
departed, directing our course
toward our old camp, but found it
plundered, and our company
dispersed or gone home.
About this time my brother, Squire Boon,
with another ad-
venturer, who came to explore the
country shortly after us, was
wandering through the forest, and
accidentally found our camp.
Notwithstanding our unfortunate
circumstances, our meeting
fortunately in the wilderness, gave us
the most sensible satis-
faction.
Soon after this, my companion in
captivity, John Stuart, was
killed by the savages; and the man that
came with my brother,
returned home by himself. We were then
in a dangerous, help-
less situation, exposed daily to perils
and death, among savages
and wild beasts, not a white man in the
country but ourselves.
Thus many hundred miles from our
families in the howling
wilderness, we did not continue in a
state of indolence, but
hunted every day, and prepared a little
cottage to defend us from
the winter storms. We met with no
disturbance during the
winter.
On the first of May 1770, my brother
returned home by him-
self, for a new recruit of horses and
ammunition, leaving me
alone, without bread, salt, or sugar, or
even a horse or dog. I
passed a few days uncomfortably. The
idea of a beloved wife
and family, and their anxiety on my
account, would have dis-
posed me to melancholy, if I had further
indulged the thought.
One day I undertook a tour through the
country, when the
diversity and beauties of nature I met
with, in this charming
season, expelled every gloomy thought.
Just at the close of
day, the gentle gales ceased; a profound
calm ensued; not a
breath shook the tremulous leaf. I had
gained the summit of
a commanding ridge, and looking round
with astonishing de-
light, beheld the ample plains and
beauteous tracts below. On
one hand I surveyed the famous Ohio,
rolling in silent dignity,
and marking the western boundary of
Kentucke with inconceiv-
able grandeur. At a vast distance, I
beheld the mountains lift
their venerable brows, and penetrate the
clouds. All things were
still. I kindled a fire, near a fountain
of sweet water, and seated
268
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
on the loin of a buck, which a few hours
before I had killed.
The shades of night soon overspread the
hemisphere, and the
earth seemed to gasp after the hovering
moisture. My excur-
sion had fatigued my body, and amused my
mind. I laid me
down to sleep, and awoke not until the
sun had chased away the
night. I continued this tour, and in a
few days explored a con-
siderable part of the country, each day
equally pleased as at
first, after which I returned to my old
camp, which had not been
disturbed in my absence. I did not
confine my lodging to it, but
often reposed in thick cane brakes to
avoid the savages, who,
I believe, often visited my camp, but,
fortunately for me, in my
absence. No populous city, with all the
varieties of commerce
and stately structures, could afford so
much pleasure to my mind,
as the beauties of nature I found in
this country.
Until the 27th of July, I spent the time
in an uninterrupted
scene of slyvan pleasures, when my
brother, to my great felicity,
met me, according to appointment, at our
old camp. Soon after
we left the place, and proceeded to
Cumberland river, recon-
noitring that part of the country, and
giving names to the dif-
ferent rivers.
In March 1771, I returned home to
my family, being deter-
mined to bring them as soon as possible,
at the risk of my life and
fortune, to reside in Kentucke, which I
esteemed a second
paradise.
On my return I found my family in happy
circumstances.
I sold my farm at Yadkin, and what goods
we could not carry
with us; and, on the 25th of September
1773, we bade farewell to
our friends, and proceeded on our
journey to Kentucke, in com-
pany with five more families, and forty
men that joined us in
Powell's Valley, which is 150 miles from the
now settled parts
of Kentucke; but this promising
beginning was soon overcast
with a cloud of adversity.
On the 10th of October, the rear of our
company was at-
tacked by a number of Indians, who
killed six and wounded one
man. Of these my eldest son was one that
fell in the action.
Though we repulsed the enemy, yet this
unhappy affair scattered
our cattle, brought us into extreme
difficulty, and so discour-
aged the whole company, that we
retreated forty miles to Clench
Daniel Boon. 269
river. We had passed over two mountains,
Powell's and Wal-
den's, and were approaching Cumberland
mountain, when this
adverse fortune overtook us. These
mountains are in the wil-
derness, in passing from the old
settlements in Virginia to Ken-
tucke, are ranged in a south-west and
north-east direction, are
of great length and breadth, and not far
distant from each other.
Over them nature hath formed passes less
difficult than might
be expected from the view of such huge
piles. The aspect of
these cliffs is so wild and horrid, that
it is impossible to behold
them without terror.
Until the 6th of June, 1774, I
remained with my family on
the Clench when I and Michael Stoner
were solicited by governor
Dunmore, of Virginia, to conduct a
number of surveyors to the
falls of Ohio. This was a tour of near
eight hundred miles, and
took us sixty-two days.
On my return, governor Dunmore gave me
the command of
three garrisons, during the campaign
against the Shawanese.
In March, 1775, at the solicitation of a
number of gentle-
men, of North Carolina, I attended their
treaty at Wataga, with
the Cherokee Indians, to purchase the
lands on the south-side of
Kentucke-river. After this, I undertook
to mark out a road in
the best passage from the settlements,
through the wilderness to
Kentucke.
Having collected a number of
enterprizing men, well armed,
I soon began this work. We proceeded
until we came within
fifteen miles of where Boonsborough now
stands, where the In-
dians attacked us, and killed two, and
wounded two more.
This was the 20th of March, 1775. Three
days after, they
attacked us again; we had two killed and
three wounded. After
this, we proceeded on to Kentucke river
without opposition.
On the first of April, we began to erect
the fort of Boons-
borough, at a salt-lick, sixty yards
from the river, on the
south side.
On the 4th, they killed one
of our men.
On the 14th of June, having finished the
fort, I returned to
my family, on the Clench. Soon after I
removed my family to
this fort; we arrived safe; my wife and
daughter being the
first white women that stood on the
banks of Kentucke river.
270 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
December 24th. The Indians killed one
man, and wounded
another, seeming determined to persecute
us for erecting this fort.
July 14th, 1776. Two of col. Calway's
daughters, and one
of mine were taken prisoners near the
fort. I immediately pur-
sued the Indians, with only eighteen
men.
On the 16th, I overtook them, killed two
of them, and recov-
ered the girls.
The Indians had divided themselves into
several parties, and
attacked, on the same day, all our
settlements and forts, doing
a great deal of mischief. The husbandman
was shot dead in
the field, and most of the cattle were
destroyed. They continued
their hostilities until
The 15th of April, 1777, when a party of
100 of them at-
tacked Boonsborough, and killed one man,
and wounded four.
July 4th, they attacked it again with
200 men, and killed us
one and wounded two. They remained 48 hours, during which
we killed seven of them. All the
settlements were attacked at
the same time.
July 19th, Colonel Logan's
fort was besieged by 200 Indians;
they did much mischief; there were only
fifteen men in the
fort; they killed two, and wounded four
of them. Indians loss
unknown.
July 25. Twenty-five men came from
Carolina. About
August 20th, colonel Bowman arrived with
100 men from
Virginia. Now we began to strengthen,
and had skirmishes with
the Indians almost every day. The
savages now learned the
superiority of the LONG KNIFE, as they
call the Virginians; being
outgeneralded in almost every battle.
Our affairs began to wear
a new aspect; the enemy did not now
venture open war, but
practiced secret mischief.
January 1, 1778.*
I went with thirty men to the Blue Licks,
on Licking river, to make salt for the
different garrisons.
* Collin's Historical Sketches of
Kentucky under heading, Daniel
Boon, contains the following statement:
"During this period (from Jan-
uary, 1778 till the 16th of the
following June) Boone kept no journal
and we are therefore uninformed as to
any particular incidents which
occurred during his captivity." The
entire article follows Boon's narra-
tive closely and leaves an irresistible
impression that its author must have
had access to Boon's Journal, as here
given, although no credit is given
Daniel Boon. 271
February 7th. Hunting by myself, to
procure meat for the
company, I met a party of 102 Indians and
Two Frenchmen,
marching against Boonsborough. They
pursued and took me;
and next day I capitulated for my men,
knowing they could
not escape. They were 27 in number,
three having gone home
with salt. The Indians, according to the
capitulation, used us
generously. They carried us to Old
Chelicothe, the principal
Indian town on Little Miami.
On the 18th of February we arrived
there, after an uncom-
fortable journey, in very severe
weather.
On the 10th of March, I and ten of my
men were conducted
to Detroit.
On the 30th, we arrived there, and were
treated by gover-
nor Hamilton, the British commander at
that post, with great
humanity.
The Indians had such an affection for
me, that they refused
100 £. sterling offered them by the governor, if they would
leave
me with the others, on purpose that he
might send me home on
my parole. Several English gentlemen
there, sensible of my
adverse fortune, and touched with
sympathy, generously offered
to supply my wants, which I declined
with many thanks, adding
that I never expected it would be in my
power to recompense
such unmerited generosity. The Indians
left my men in cap-
tivity with the British at Detroit.
On the loth of April, they brought me
towards Old Cheli-
cothe, where we arrived on the
twenty-fifth day of the same
month. This was a long and fatiguing
march, through an ex-
ceeding fertile country, remarkable for
fine springs and streams
of water. At Chelicothe, I spent my time
as comfortably as I
could expect; was adopted, according to
their custom, into a
family, where I became a son, and had a
great share in the affec-
therefore. The Historical Sketches of
Kentucky were published 64 years
after Boon's narrative in the American
Museum and the narrative is now
republished 120 years after Boon wrote
it. Boon was born on Feb-
ruary 11th, 1731, on the bank of the
Delaware river in Bucks county,
Pennsylvania. He died in 1820 and was
buried at Flanders, Calloway
county, Missouri, aged 89. On September
13th, 1845, the state of Ken-
tucky lifted the remains of Boon and his wife and with
fitting and beauti-
ful ceremony reinterred them in the
public cemetery at Frankfort, Ky.
272 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
tion of my new parents, brothers,
sisters, and friends. I was
exceedingly familiar and friendly with
them, always appearing
as cheerful and satisfied as possible,
and they put great confidence
in me. I often went a hunting with them,
and frequently gained
their applause for my activity at our
shooting matches. I was
careful not to exceed many of them in
shooting; for no people
are more envious than they in this
sport. I could observe in
their countenances and gestures, the
greatest expressions of joy
when they exceeded me; and, when the
reverse happened, of
envy. The Shawanese king took great
notice of me, and treated
me with profound respect, and entire
friendship, often entrust-
ing me to hunt at my liberty. I
frequently returned with the
spoils of the woods, and as often
presented some of what I had
taken to him, expressive of duty to my
sovereign. My food and
lodging was in common with them, not so
good indeed as I
could desire; but necessity made
everything acceptable.
I now began to meditate an escape, but
carefully avoided
giving suspicion.
Until the first day of June I continued
at Old Chelicothe,
and then was taken to the salt springs
on Sciota, and kept there
ten days making salt. During this time,
I had hunted with
them, and found the land, for a great
extent above this river,
to exceed the soil of Kentucke, if
possible, and remarkably well
watered.
On my return to Chelicothe, four hundred
and fifty of the
choicest Indian warriors were ready to
march against Boons-
borough, painted and armed in a fearful
manner. This alarmed
me, and I determined to escape.
On the 16th of June, before sunrise, I
went off secretly, and
reached Boonsborough on the 20th, a
journey of one hundred
and sixty miles, during which I had only
one meal. I found our
fortress in a bad state, but we
immediately repaired our flanks,
gates, posterns, and formed double
bastions, which we completed
in ten days. One of my fellow prisoners
escaping after me,
brought advice, that on account of my
flight, the Indians had
put off their expedition for three
weeks.
About August 1st, I set out with
nineteen men to surprise
Point Creek Town on Sciota. Within four miles
we fell in with
Daniel Boon. 273
thirty Indians going against
Boonsborough. We fought, and
the enemy gave way. We suffered no loss.
The enemy had one
killed, and two wounded. We took three
horses and all their
baggage. The Indians having evacuated
their town and gone
all together against Boonsborough, we
returned, passed them on
the sixth day, and on the seventh
arrived safe at Boonsborough.
On the 8th, the Indian army, four
hundred and forty-four in
number, commanded by capt. Duquesne, and
eleven other French-
men, and their chiefs, came and summoned
the fort. I requested
two days consideration, which they
granted. During this, we
brought in through the posterns all the
horses and other cattle
we could collect.
On the 9th, in the evening, I
informed their commander, that
we were determined to defend the fort,
while a man was living.
They then proposed a treaty, and said if
we sent out nine men
to conclude it, they would withdraw. The
treaty was held within
sixty yards of the fort, as we suspected
the savages. The articles
were agreed to and signed; when the
Indians told us, it was
their custom for two Indians to shake
hands with every white
man in the treaty, as an evidence of
friendship. We agreed to
this also. They immediately grappled us
to take us prisoners,
but we cleared ourselves of them, though
surrounded by hun-
dreds, and gained the fort safe, except
one that was wounded by
a heavy fire from their army. On this
they began to undermine
the fort, beginning at the water-mark of
Kentucke river, which
is sixty yards from the fort. We
discovered this by the water
being made muddy with the clay, and
countermined them by
cutting a trench across their
subterranean passage. The enemy
discovering this, by the clay we threw
out of the fort, desisted.
On the 20th of August, they raised the
siege.
During this dreadful siege, we had two
men killed, and four
wounded. We lost a number of cattle. We
killed thirty-seven
of the enemy, and wounded a great
number. We picked up one
hundred and twenty-five pounds of their
bullets, besides what
struck in the logs of the fort.
Soon after this I went into the
settlement, and nothing worthy
of notice passed for some time.
18 Vol. XIII.
274 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
In July, 1779, during my absence, col.
Bowman, with 160
men, went against the Shawanese of Old
Chelicothe. He ar-
rived undiscovered; a battle ensued,
which lasted until ten in
the morning, when col. Bowman retreated
thirty miles. The
Indians collected all their strength,
and pursued him, when an-
other engagement ensued for two hours,
not to col. Bowman's
advantage. Col. Harrod proposed to mount
a number of horses
and break the enemy's line, who at this
time fought with remark-
able fury. This desperate measure had a
happy effect, and the
savages fled on all sides. In these two
battles we had nine men
killed, and one wounded. Enemy's loss
uncertain, only two scalps
being taken.
June 22d, 1780, about 600 Indians and
Canadians, under
colonel Bird, attacked Riddle's and
Martin's station, and the
Forks of Licking river, with six pieces
of artillery. They took
all the inhabitants captives, and killed
one man and two women,
loaded the others with the heavy
baggage; and such as failed
in the journey, were tomahawked.
The hostile disposition of the savages,
caused general Clark,
the commandant at the falls of the Ohio,
to march with his regi-
ment and the armed force of the country
against Peccaway, the
principal town of the Shawanese, on a
branch of the Great Miami,
which he finished with great success,
took seventeen scalps, and
burned the town to ashes, with the loss
of seventeen men.
About this time, I returned to Kentucke
with my family;
for, during my captivity, my wife,
thinking me killed by the
Indians, had transported my family and
goods on horses through
the wilderness, amidst many dangers, to
her father's house in
North Carolina.
The history of my difficulties in going
and returning, is too
long to be inserted here.
On the 6th of October 1780, soon after my
settling again at
Boonsborough, I went with my brother to
the Blue Licks, and
on our return, he was shot by a party of
Indians; they followed
me by the scent of a dog, which I shot,
and escaped.
The severity of the winter caused great
distress in Kentucke,
the enemy during the summer having
destroyed most of the
corn. The inhabitants lived chiefly on
Buffaloes' flesh.
Daniel Boon. 275
In spring 1782, the Indians
harrassed us.
In May they killed one man at Ashton's
station, and took a
negro. Capt. Ashton pursued them with 25 men, and in an
engagement which lasted two hours, his
party were obliged to
retreat, having eight killed, and four
mortally wounded. Their
brave commander fell in the action.
August 1oth, two boys were carried off
from major Hoy's
station. Capt. Holder pursued with 17
men; they were also de-
feated, and lost four and one wounded. Our
affairs became more
and more alarming. The savages infested
the country, killing
men at every opportunity.
In a field near Lexington, an Indian
shot a man, and running
to scalp him, was himself shot from the
fort, and fell dead upon
his enemy.
All the Indian nations were now united
against us.
August 15th, five hundred Indians and
Canadians came
against Briant's station, five miles
from Lexington; they as-
saulted the fort, killed all the cattle
around it, but being repulsed,
they retired the third day, having about
thirty killed, their
wounded uncertain. The garrison had four
killed and three
wounded.
August 18th. Col. Todd, colonel Trigg,
major Harland,
and myself, speedily collected one
hundred and seventy-six men,
well armed, and pursued the savages.
They had marched be-
yond the Blue Licks to a remarkable bend
of the main fork
of Licking river, about forty-three
miles from Lexington, where
we overtook them on the 19th.
The savages observing us, gave way, and
we, ignorant of
their numbers, passed the river. When
they saw our proceed-
ings, having greatly the advantage in
the situation, they formed
their line of battle from one bend of
the Licking to the other,
about a mile from the Blue Licks. The
battle was exceedingly
fierce for about fifteen minutes, when
we, being overpowered
by numbers, were obliged to retreat,
with the loss of sixty-seven
men, seven of whom were taken prisoners.
The brave and much
lamented colonels Todd and Trigg, major
Harland and my second
son, were among the dead. We were
afterwards told, that the
Indians on numbering their dead, finding
they had four more
276
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
killed than we, four of our people they
had taken, were given
up to their young warriors to be put to
death after their barbar-
ous manner.
On our retreat, we were met by colonel
Logan, who was has-
tening to join us, with a number of well
armed men. This power-
ful assistance we wanted on the day of
the battle. The enemy
said, one more fire from us would have
made them give way.
I cannot reflect upon this dreadful
scene, but sorrow fills my
heart. A zeal for the defence of their
country led those heroes
to the scene of action, though with a
few men, to attack a power-
ful army of experienced warriors. When
we gave way, they
pursued us with the utmost eagerness,
and in every quarter
spread destruction. The river was
difficult to cross, and many
were killed in the flight, some just
entering the river, some in
the water, others after crossing, in
ascending the cliffs. Some
escaped on horseback, a few on foot; and
being dispersed every-
where, in a few hours, brought the
melancholy news of this
unfortunate battle to Lexington. Many
widows were now made.
The reader may guess what sorrow filled
the hearts of the in-
habitants, exceeding any thing I am able
to describe. Being
reinforced, we returned to bury the
dead, and found their bodies
strewed every where, cut and mangled in
a dreadful manner.
This mournful scene exhibited a horror
almost unparalleled;
some torn and eaten by wild beasts;
those in the river eaten by
fishes; all in such a putrefied
condition, that no one could be
distinguished from another.
When general Clark at the falls of Ohio,
heard of our dis-
aster, he ordered an expedition to
pursue the savages; we over-
took them within two miles of their
town, and we should have
obtained a great victory, had not some
of them met us when
about two hundred poles from their camp.
The savages fled in
the utmost disorder, and evacuated all
their towns. We burned
to ashes Old Chelicothe, Peccaway, New
Chelicothe, Wills Town,
and Chelicothe; entirely destroyed their
corn and other fruits,
and spread desolation through their
country. We took seven
prisoners, and five scalps, and lost
only four men, two of whom
were accidentally killed by ourselves.
Daniel Boon. 277
This campaign damped the enemy; yet they
made secret
incursions.
In October, a party attacked Crab
Orchard; and one of
them, being a good way before the
others, boldly entered a
house, in which were only a woman and
her children, and a negro
man. The savage used no violence, but
attampted to carry off
the negro, who happily proved to strong
for him, and threw him
on the ground, and in the struggle the
woman cut off his head
with an axe, while her little daughter
shut the door. The sav-
ages instantly came up and applied their
tomahawks to the door,
when the mother putting an old rust gun
barrel through a crevice,
the savages went off.
From that time, until the happy return
of peace between the
united states and Great Britain, the
Indians did us no mischief.
Soon after the Indians desired peace.
Two darling sons, and a brother I have
lost by savage hands,
which have also taken forty valuable
horses, and an abundance
of cattle. Many dark and sleepless
nights have I spent, sepa-
rated from the chearful society of men,
scorched by the sum-
mer's sun, and pinched by the winter's
cold, an instrument or-
dained to settle the wilderness. But now
the scene is changed:
peace crowns the sylvan shade.
DANIEL BOON.
Fayette County, Kentucke.