Ohio History Journal
|
OHIO Archaeological and Historical PUBLICATIONS.
THE CROGHAN CELEBRATION.
LUCY ELLIOT KEELER. It was not bad usage of the old Romans to bring down from its niche the waxen image of an eminent ancestor on the anni- |
|
|
|
turning of the tide in the War of 1812, which up to that time had been a series of disasters to the American arms. The first formal observance of the anniversary of Croghan's Victory occurred in 1839, at which time messages from Croghan himself were received. Since that date every decade has wit- nessed one or more celebrations, notable among which were those of 1852, when "Old Betsy" was brought back to the scene of Vol. XVI-1. (1) |
2 Ohio Arch. and
Hist. Society Publications.
her great triumph; 1860, presaging the
Civil War, when Cassius
M. Clay was the orator of the day; and
1885, when the Monu-
ment on the fort was unveiled in the
presence of the President of
the United States and many other
distinguished soldiers and
civilians.
The celebration of August 2d, 1906, was,
however, more
notable and imposing than any of its
predecessors, since on that
date the remains of Croghan were
interred at the base of the
monument erected to the memory of
himself and the brave men
of his command, on the very spot they
had so gallantly defended
ninety-three years before.
Following the defense of Fort Stephenson
Croghan figured
conspicuously in the closing events of
the War of 1812. His sub-
sequent career as Colonel Inspector
General, United States Army,
during the Mexican War and until his
death, will be noted in the
pages following. He died of cholera, in
New Orleans, January
8, 1849, his spirit taking flight just
as the last gun of the national
salute commemorating the 34th
anniversary of Jackson's victory,
was fired.
For many years past it was the general
supposition that the
remains of this hero lay in one of the
numerous cemeteries of
New Orleans. Colonel Webb C. Hayes,
imbued with patriotic
sentiment and historic spirit, began
several years ago the search
for the grave of Croghan. Through
Colonel Hayes' efforts the
Quartermaster General at Washington took
up the matter and
made diligent investigation in New
Orleans, but finally was
compelled to abandon the search as
fruitless. Colonel Hayes
persevered and in February, 1906,
received a letter from Mrs.
Elizabeth Croghan Kennedy, grand
daughter of George Cro-
ghan and wife of the late Captain
Kennedy, U. S. N., which
gave the information leading to the
coveted discovery of the re-
mains in the family burial plot in the
beautiful old Croghan
estate, Locust Grove, on the Ohio river,
several miles from Louis-
ville, Kentucky.
Col. Hayes, in company with R. C.
Ballard-Thruston and
S. Thruston-Ballard, of the Kentucky
Historical Society, pro-
ceeded to the old estate, now owned by
J. S. Waters, and located
the burial plot about 300 yards from the
mansion. Thickly over-
The Croghan Celebration. 3
grown with beautiful myrtle were the
moss-covered tombstones of
Major William Croghan and wife, the
parents of George Croghan,
his brothers, Dr. John and N. Croghan,
and one sister, Elizabeth.
In one corner lay an overturned
headstone on which appeared the
inscription, Col. G. C., marking the
long-sought resting place.
General George Rogers Clark, brother of
Lucy Clark Cro-
ghan and uncle of George Croghan, died
at the Croghan home-
stead and was buried in the Croghan
family burying ground at
Locust Grove, Ky. In 1869 the State of
Kentucky authorized the
removal of the remains to Cave Hill
Cemetery, Louisville, Ky.,
where a beautiful and imposing monument
was erected in his
honor.
Arrangements were at once made for the
disinterment by
Messrs. Ballard and Thruston who, with
their wives and Miss
Mary Clark, of St. Louis, were present,
all being related to Col.
Croghan through his mother, of the great
Clark family.
The mahogany casket, found at a depth of
six feet, was
badly decomposed, but the leaden casket
within was intact, being
six and one-half feet in length, 20 inches wide and
eight inches
deep. It was immediately boxed and taken
to Louisville and
thence directly to Fremont.
The remains arrived in Fremont Monday
evening, June 11th,
1906, and were conveyed to the city hall
on the fort. The room
had been beautifully decorated by the
George Croghan Chap-
ter, D. A. R., with flowers and
evergreen, and myrtle from the
Kentucky grave. A detail from Company K
stood at the head and
foot of the casket as the remains lay in
state. On the afternoon
of the 13th, the flag-draped
casket was lifted to the shoulders
of six members of Company K, who were
preceded by the com-
pany's trumpeter, and followed by the
five local veterans of the
Mexican War who had served in that
campaign under Croghan.
These veterans acted as honorary
pall-bearers. The ladies of the
D. A. R. and many citizens followed. The
procession passed out
in front of the Soldiers' Monument,
where it was photographed,
and then proceeded to Oakwood Cemetery,
marching over the
Harrison trail through Spiegel Grove. At
Oakwood the re-
mains were placed in the vault, a song
was sung by the D. A. R.,
and the trumpeter sounded taps.
4 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
The.surviving members of the Croghan
family graciously ac-
quiesced in Col. Hayes' action and gave
all assistance in their
power. The following letter, from a
nephew of Colonel Croghan,
Mr. R. C. Ballard-Thruston, tells the
story of the discovery, to-
gether with other important facts
regarding the distinguished
family to which our hero belonged. We
give the letter entire:
LOUISVILLE,
KY., June 13, 1906.
COL. WEBB C. HAYES.
My Dear Colonel: As per my letter of a few days ago I now take
pleasure in writing you of certain data
regarding the Clark family, which
you desired and, in addition thereto,
the facts regarding the location of
the grave of Col. George Croghan and the
exhuming and forwarding of
his remains to you.
Major William Croghan and wife Lucy, lived about five or six
miles east or northeast of the court
house of Louisville, Ky., and probably
something over a mile from the Ohio
river, at a place which was called
Locust Grove, now owned by J. S. Waters.
What was formerly the rear
of the house is now the front. An
illustration of the house with the
present front is shown in Gov. English's
work, vol. II, page 887. And it is
north of this house about 300 yards that
their family burying ground
is located. A description of this and
what we found there will follow
later. Quite an account of them is given
by Gov. English in his work,
vol. II, page 1002 et seq., in which
there are a few errors that should
be corrected as follows: Page 1003,
first line, "1767" should be "1765."
Page 1004, line four,
"seventy-first" should be "seventy-third." And on
line 3, after the word
"marriage" should be inserted the words "License
issued July 13, 1789-no return
made." In the next paragraph on that
page is a list of the children of Major
William Croghan and wife, which
I notice does not include "Serina
E," mentioned in the foot note on that
page. I think she was Serena Livingston,
wife of George Croghan, and
therefore a daughter-in-law.
I have no list of the dates of the
births of these Croghan children.
Their names as given in Gov. English's
work, page 1004, are correct.
From an original letter which I have,
written about the early part of last
century, John, George and Nicholas were
among the eldest of the chil-
dren and I have a newspaper clipping
giving the death of Nicholas
Croghan in 1825.
The marriage records of this county show
that a marriage license
for George Hancock and Elizabeth
Croghan, daughter of Major William
Croghan, was issued September 29, 1819,
and return made by the Rev.
D. C. Banks on the same day. A marriage
license for Gen. Thomas
Jessup with Ann Croghan, daughter of
Maj. William Croghan, was is-
The Croghan Celebration. 5
sued May 15, 1832. Return made two days
later by the Rev. Daniel
Smith. My notes on this subject were
made some years ago and I fail
to find among them the marriage records
of any other of these Croghan
children.
As to the family burying ground at
Locust Grove. It lies about
three hundred yards north of the
dwelling surrounded by a stone wall
eighteen inches thick and from three to
five feet high, the sides facing the
cardinal points, and the entrance six
feet wide in the center of the
southern wall. It, however, has since
been filled in with stone, making a
north and south walls which are each 48
feet long on the outside, the east
and west walls being 47 feet. There are
quite a number of trees within
the enclosure, the most prominent of
which is a five-pronged elm. We
also found two red elms, four
hackberries, two cherries and two locusts.
Almost the entire space is covered with
myrtle and some underbrush.
The walls are largely overgrown with
Virginia creeper and poison ivy
or oak. The graveyard seems to have been
designed with four parallel
rows of graves running from north to
south, in each case the grave
facing the east. The eastern one of
these rows apparently was not
used, as we saw neither headstone nor
evidence of a grave on that row.
On the next row, five feet from the
north wall, we found a headstone
marked "McS." I am at a loss to know whose grave this
could be.
Fourteen feet from the north wall on
this line is the center of a one-
foot space between two large marble
slabs, each being three feet wide
and six feet long with ornate edges. The
northern one of these seems
to have rested on four pedestals, one at
each corner. They have since
fallen and the slab is now resting on
the ground and covers the remains
of Mary Carson O'Hara, wife of William
Croghan, Jr. The inscription
on this slab is as follows:
Beneath this slab
are deposited the remains of
Mrs. Mary Carson Croghan
(late of Pittsburgh)
who departed this life
October 15th, A. D. 1827,
In the 24th year of her age.
Also
her infant daughter
Mary O'Hara,
who expired July 18, 1826,
in the ninth month of her age.
6 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
Slab B rests on four slabs, each of
which is ornately carved. The
inscription being:
Eliza,
youngest daughter of
William and Lucy Croghan,
born April 9th, 1801,
married George Hancock Sept., 1819,
died July 12th, 1833.
The next headstone was twenty feet from
the north wall and was
marked "Mrs. L. C." The next
headstone, twenty-three feet from the
north wall, was marked "Maj. W.
C." These were evidently the graves
of Major and Mrs. William Croghan, the
parents of Colonel George
Croghan. On this same row south of Major
Croghan's grave was quite
a sunken space, which probably marks the
spot from which the remains
of Gen. George Rogers Clark were removed
in 1869. On the next row
of graves west of the last and fourteen
feet from the north wall is a
headstone marked "E. C." This
is probably Edmund Croghan's grave.
On this row, seventeen feet from the
north wall, is a headstone marked
"N. C.," or Nicholas Croghan,
a brother of Col. George Croghan, who
died in 1825. At ten feet from the south
wall on this same row is a
headstone marked "Dr. J. C.,"
Dr. John Croghan, who lived at Locust
Grove after the death of his parents and
at whose home my mother was
a frequent visitor in her younger days.
As there were no other head-
stones found between those of Dr. John
Croghan and Nicholas Croghan,
the probabilities are that other members
of the family were buried within
this enclosure whose headstones have
since been lost, or whose graves
were not properly marked.
Near the southwest corner in the most
western one of these rows,
we found but one headstone, four feet
from the western wall and five
feet from the southern wall. It was
lying on its face entirely covered
with myrtle and upon investigation bore
the marks of "Col. G. C." mark-
ing the grave of Col. George Croghan,
which you were searching for,
and whose remains you desired to remove
to Fremont, Ohio, having ob-
tained permission of his daughter and
other descendants.
When this grave was found, on Thursday,
June 7, there were
present yourself, my brother, S.
Thruston Ballard, Mr. J. S. Waters
and myself. After definitely locating
and identifying the grave, my
brother sent to his country place for
two negro hands (John Bradford
and Alex Howard) and after lunch we
proceeded to open the grave. At
nearly five feet below the surface we
found fragments of a mahogany
casket, now almost entirely decayed, and
a leaden case which con-
tained the remains. This latter was
broken in several places, and as
would naturally be expected, its top was
resting upon the skeleton.
|
The Croghan Celebration. 7
This leaden case containing the remains, the headstone above mentioned, a footstone marked "G. C." which we also found at the foot of the grave, and some myrtle which was growing over the grave, which you desired, were carefully taken to my brother's place, and the following morning brought into Louisville, where I had them properly boxed (the leaden case being covered with a United States flag) and the following day, June 9, expressed them to you at Fremont, Ohio, and I hope, before |
|
|
|
R. C. BALLARD THRUSTON, Member of the Filson Club, Virginia Historical Society.
George Croghan himself left three children; a son, Col. St. George Croghan, a brave soldier on the Confederate side, killed in Virginia, in one of the early battles of the Civil War; Mrs. Mary Croghan Wyatt, who died in California in February, 1906; and the youngest and only surviving child, Mrs. Serena Livings- ton Rodgers, wife of Augustus F. Rodgers, U. S. N. Mrs. Rodgers lives in San Francisco, and is now 86 years of age. |
8 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
Col. St. George Croghan left two
children, both living, a
son, George, and a daughter, Elizabeth
Croghan, now the widow
of Capt. Duncan Kennedy, U. S. N., who
has one son.
Mrs. Rodgers has a daughter, and Mrs.
Wyatt a son,
Judge Wyatt, of New York. All living
descendants of Croghan
were invited to be present at the
re-interment of the remains of
their famous father, grandfather and
great-grandfather.
On the occasion of the unveiling of a
tablet to Croghan, on
Fort Stephenson Park, by the D. A. R.,
Mrs. Wyatt, to whom
an invitation to be present had been
sent, wrote, under date of
July 14, 1903:
"My Dear Miss Keeler: It was indeed most gratifying to receive
your invitation to be with you when the
Croghan tablet will be unveiled.
If would indeed be a delight to me to be
present when such honor was
paid to my dear father, but with sorrow
I must decline. My journeyings
in this world are pretty much over. I
have lately injured my knee and
walk with difficulty. * * * Sincerely,
"MARY CROGHAN WYATT."
CROGHAN'S ANCESTRY AND LIFE.
The name Croghan is an illustrious one
in the early annals
of our country, especially in the Western annals preceding the
establishment of the Republic.
On the paternal side George Croghan came
of fighting blood.
He belonged to the race of "the
Kellys, the Burkes and the
Sheas," who always "smell the
battle afar off." The first Cro-
ghan we hear of in this country was
Major George Croghan, who
was born in Ireland and educated at
Dublin University. Just
when he came to America we do not know.
He established him-
self near Harrisburg, and was an Indian
trader there as early as
1746. He learned the language of the
aborigines and won their
confidence. He served as a captain in
Braddock's expedition in
1755, and in the defense of the western
frontier in the following
year. The famous Sir William Johnson, of
New York, who was
so efficient in dealing with the natives
and whom George II had
commissioned "Colonel, agent and
sole superintendent of the
affairs of the Six Nations and other
northern Indians," came to
recognize Croghan's worth, and made him
deputy Indian agent
for the Pennsylvania and Ohio Indians.
In 1763 Sir William
|
The Croghan Celebration. 9
sent him to England to confer with the ministry in regard to some Indian boundary line. He traveled widely through the In- dian country which is now the Central West. While on a mis- sion in 1765 to pacify the Illinois Indians he was attacked, wounded and taken to Vincennes. But he was soon released and |
|
|
|
accomplished his mission. He was deeply impressed with the great possibilities of this western country and urged upon Sir William Johnson the importance of securing this region to the English colonies. It is a singular coincidence that this first Major George Croghan was pitted against Pontiac in much the |
10 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
same way that Major George Croghan the
second was pitted
against Tecumseh. In May, 1766, he fixed
his abode near Fort
Pitt, using his good offices and
influence in pacifying the Indians
and conciliating them to British
interests. He died about 1782.
It is altogether probable that his
reports regarding the northwest-
ern country had something to do with
impressing George Rogers
Clark with its importance.
The similarity of name and title makes
this reference to the
first George Croghan pertinent, although
his kinship with the
second George Croghan was but
collateral. The father of our
hero of Ft. Stephenson was William
Croghan, born in Ireland
in 1752. Just when he came to this
country it has been impossible
to ascertain. At any rate the young man
was well established
here at the time of the Declaration of
Independence. He
promptly volunteered his services,
becoming a captain of a Vir-
ginia company. He served to the end of
the war, being mustered
out the senior Major of the Virginia
line. He took part in the
battles of Brandywine, Monmouth and
Germantown; and he was
with the army that bitter winter at
Valley Forge. In 1780 his
regiment was ordered South and he was
made prisoner at the
surrender of Charleston. He was present
at Yorktown, when the
last great battle of the war was fought,
though he could not share
in the fighting, as he was on parole. He
served for a time on the
staff of Baron Steuben, and he was one
of the officers present at
the Verplanck mansion on the Hudson in
May, 1783, when the
Society of Cincinnati was instituted.
Shortly after the war Cro-
ghan joined the increasing drift of
Virginians over the moun-
tains into the new land of Kentucky and
found a home near the
Falls of the Ohio.
There, presumably, he won and wed his
wife. She, too,
came of valorous stock. Her name was
Lucy Clark, daugh-
ter of John Clark, recently come to
Kentucky from Virginia.
She had five brothers, four of whom
served in the Revolu-
tionary War. The most distinguished of
these was George
Rogers Clark, to whose great and heroic
campaign through
the wilderness to Vincennes we owe the
winning of the North-
west Territory. It was to this George
Rogers Clark, uncle of
Croghan, that Harrison referred in his
official report of the
The Croghan Celebration. 11
battle when he said with evident
gratification: "It will not be
among the least of General Proctor's
mortifications to know
that he has been baffled by a youth who
has just passed his
twenty-first year. He is, however, a
hero worthy of his gallant
uncle, Gen. G. R. Clark, and I bless my
good fortune in having
first introduced this promising shoot of
a distinguished family
to the notice of the government."
Another brother, William,
who was too young to participate in the
Revolution, was the
Clark who, with Captain Lewis, made the
famous expedition of
exploration across the continent. He was
appointed in 1813 by
President Madison Governor of Missouri
Territory.
To William Croghan and his wife, Lucy,
at Locust Grove,
Ky., November 15, 1791, was born the
boy that was destined to
make the family name illustrious. He was
christened George, in
honor of the mother's brother, whose
great and daring achieve-
ment had given his name vast renown. We
know practically
nothing of George Croghan's boyhood.
Doubtless it was like
that of the ordinary Virginia boy of the
period, who was the
son of a well-to-do planter, modified by
the exigencies of frontier
life.
Our boy had books to read, and lessons
to learn; and there
were always his father's and his uncles'
tales of the recent Revo-
lutionary War and of the untamed country
through which they
had traveled; as well as of the Dublin
kindred and society.
George was ready for college at an early
age, and went to
William and Mary, in Virginia, next to
Harvard the oldest col-
lege in the land. From it graduated four
presidents of the
United States, Jefferson, Monroe, Tyler
and Harrison, beside
Chief Justice Marshall and Gen. Winfield
Scott. After Croghan's
graduation he took up the study of law.
War was in the air,
however, as well as in his blood, and in
1811 the youth enlisted
as a private in the volunteer army under
Harrison. His hand-
some face, alight with intelligence, won
him speedy notice from
the officers, a good impression which
was strengthened by his
conduct and ability. He was soon
appointed aide-de-camp to Gen.
Boyd, second in command. At the battle
of Tippecanoe, shortly
after, his zeal and courage induced Gen.
Harrison to recommend
12 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
the lad's appointment to the regular
army, and he was made cap-
tain of the 17th U. S. Infantry.
In August, 1812, his command accompanied
the detachment
under Gen. Winchester, which marched
from Kentucky to the
relief of Gen. Hull at Detroit. Hull's
disgraceful surrender made
a change of plan necessary, and
Winchester's men marched
through the wilderness to assist Gen.
Harrison at Fort Wayne,
and then down the Maumee to Fort
Defiance, in September,
1812.
Here, in spite of his extreme youth,
Croghan was left
in command by Harrison. So successful
was he in this trying
ordeal that Winchester left him in
command of Fort Defiance,
while he himself marched on to the River
Raisin. All know the
frightful massacre which followed,
Croghan owing his escape to
his duty at Defiance.
Capt. Croghan then joined Gen. Harrison
at the newly con-
structed Fort Meigs on the Maumee,
taking gallant part in its
defense during the seige. Here the
famous pair, Proctor and
Tecumseh, the one with a thousand
British regulars and the
other with twice that number of Indians,
were the besieging
leaders. The siege continued during
thirteen days of that May,
and included one direful incident. Col.
Dudley, with his Ken-
tucky troops, came to the relief of the
fort, but owing to an am-
buscade arranged by Tecumseh, Dudley's
forces were surrounded
and 650 of the 800 soldiers were killed,
wounded or taken
prisoners.
In a sortie made to save these
unfortunate troops, Capt.
Croghan so distinguished himself by the
vigor and bravery of his
assault on a battery, that Gen. Harrison
recommended him for
further promotion. He was soon afterward
commissioned major
in the 17th U. S. Infantry. In July of that year he and his
command appeared at Fort Stephenson, the
wretched little stock-
ade in Lower Sandusky. When they left
this place three weeks
later, they were the heroes of the whole
country.
The story of the battle of Fort Stephenson,
the hurried prep-
aration therefor, and its results in the
War of 1812 are given on
a later page in the words of a
contemporary. For this notable
victory Croghan was brevetted lieutenant
colonel by the president
of the United States; Congress awarded
him a medal, and the
|
The Croghan Celebration. 13
ladies of Chillicothe, then the capital of Ohio, presented him with a beautiful sword. The famous repulse of August 2, 1813, marks the turning point in the war that ended in sweeping the haughty British navy from our Lakes, and hurling their army from our borders. Croghan remained in the army after the close of the war till March, 1817, when he resigned. In May, 1816, he mar- ried Serena Livingston, daughter of John R. Livingston, of New York, and niece of Chancellor Robert Livingston, famous as jurist and diplomat, who administered the oath of office to Wash- ington when he first became president of the United States, and |
|
|
|
wonder that the flame of patriotism burned intensely in the veins of Croghan. There was much of the Irish in our hero, as his impulsive speeches, which sometimes got him into trouble, easily testify; and like well-born Irish everywhere, he was proud of his good blood, proud of his forebears, and determined not to bring dis- credit on their name. It is the best heritage any man can have, and Croghan, for one, knew it. Just before the attack on Fort Stephenson Croghan wrote a friend: "The enemy are not far distant. I expect an attack. I will defend this post to the last extremity. I have just sent away the |
14
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
women and children, with the sick of the
garrison, that I may
be able to act without incumbrance. Be
satisfied. I shall, I hope,
do my duty. The example set me by my
Revolutionary kindred
is before me. Let me die rather than
prove unworthy of their
name."
THE CELEBRATION.
Thursday, August 2, 1906, dawned auspiciously on the his-
toric city of Fremont. The Toledo
battery which had arrived
the night before and was stationed in
Fort Stephenson aroused
the people at sunrise with a salute of
twenty-one guns, announc-
ing that the events of the day had
begun. Thousands of visitors
from far and near, including many
prominent officials of state and
nation, made pilgrimage to the historic
shrine of Fort Stephenson.
The city was appropriately decorated and
every hospitality and
courtesy possible was extended by the
citizens to their guests.
At eight o'clock the casket of Major
Croghan, which had been
temporarily placed in the vault at
Oakwood, was taken therefrom
and borne to the city, with military
honors of music and soldiery
escort. The line of march was over the
old Harrison trail,
through Spiegel Grove, down Buckland and
Birchard avenues
to Park avenue and then to the high
school building where, in
the hallway, the casket, draped with
flags, was placed. Guarded
by a detachment of state troops the
remains lay in state until the
big parade of the day passed the school
house, when the casket,
borne on the shoulders of six stalwart
members of the National
Guard, was tenderly escorted to Fort
Stephenson Park. The
civic and military parade, which was the
feature of the forenoon,
was an imposing spectacle. It was headed
by the city police force
and fire department, followed by a
provisional Brigade of the
Ohio National Guard commanded by
Brigadier General W. V.
McMaken, O. N. G. the local and visiting
posts of the Grand
Army of the Republic, Spanish War
Veterans, Masons, Wood-
men of the World and secret orders,
German musical socie-
ties, commercial organizations and
school children waving the
American emblem and singing patriotic
songs. An interesting
link in the procession brought the
present event in close touch
with the historic past, for in a
spacious carryall were Fremont's
five Mexican War veterans, Captain
Andrew Kline, his brother
|
Thc Croghan Celebration. 15
Louis Kline, Grant Forgerson, Martin Zeigler and Jacob Faller. They had all personally known Croghan. The parade passed in review before the handsomely decorated stand at Croghan street and Park avenue, on which stood Vice President Fairbanks, Gov- ernor Harris, Mayor Tunnington, General Chance, Congressman Mouser, Hon. J. F. Laning and Hon. A. H. Jackson; behind them the governor's staff, Col. Kautzman, Col. Weybrecht, Major Hall, Captain Williams, Capt. Knox, Capt. Garner, Capt. Wood and |
|
|
|
Lieut. Moulton. Vice President Fairbanks stood up in his auto- mobile almost the entire length of Front street, and with his hat in hand acknowledged the cheers and applause of the crowds, while Governor Harris kept bowing to people on both sides of the street in response to the cheers with which he was greeted. At the high school the procession halted and the Croghan remains were escorted from their resting place at the base of the monu- ment by the George Croghan Chapter of the D. A. R., the mem- |
|
16 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
bers of which had charge of the final interment. The children scattered flowers in the grave, a salute was fired, taps were sounded, and the honored dust of the gallant George Croghan was consigned to its final resting place on the spot and in the sacred soil he had so bravely and loyally defended ninety-three years before. The grave was covered with a large block of Quincy granite bearing this inscription: George Croghan Major 17th U. S. Infantry, Defender of Fort Stephenson, August 1st and 2d, 1813. Born Locust Grove, Ky., Nov. 15, 1781. Died New Orleans, La., Jan. 8, 1849, Colonel Inspector General United States Army. Remains removed from Croghan Family Burying Ground, Locust Grove, Ky., August 2, 1906. |
|
|
|
REV. W. E. TRESSEL, CHAPLAIN. God of our fathers, we praise and worship Thee! Assembled on historic ground, which has been consecrated by heroes' blood, we not only hold in glad and grateful remembrance the noble deeds of valiant men, |
The Croghan Celebration. 17
but we proclaim Thy great glory, O Lord
of hosts; for Thou art the
God of battles, and right and truth
triumph by Thy blessing. And whilst
we thank Thee for the brave men of that
older day who fought so nobly
in freedom's holy cause, we give Thee
laud and honor for the pa-
tience, the skill, the industry, through
which were won those notable
victories of peace, no less renowned
than those of war, that made the
wilderness to blossom as the rose and
laid the foundations for the
splendid material prosperity which
to-day is our portion. For health,
and peace, and plenty, for home, good
government, for our great educa-
tional system, we give Thee thanks, 0
God. And richer gifts than these
have flowed to us from Thy bounteous
hand. Thou hast revealed to us
Thy dear son, Jesus Christ, and hast
made Him to be our Savior from
the bondage of sin and from eternal
death; and in Thy precious word
Thou hast conveyed to us Thy saving
grace and power. Eternal praise be
to Thee for these, Thy choicest gifts!
We pray Thee to continue to us Thy
favor. To this end bless
with repentance and faith; help us to
renounce all sin and error, to love
and to follow truth and righteousness,
that we may hold fast what
Thou hast in mercy given. Instil more
and more into our hearts love
of country. Do Thou use the exercises of
this day to impress on our
mind the responsibilities of
citizenship. Awaken and quicken within us
civic spirit. And thus let this
memorable day on which we stand before
Thy holy throne, result in countless
blessings, for time and eternity, to us
and to our children.
"Our God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home!
"Under the shadow of Thy throne
Thy saints have dwelt secure:
Sufficient is Thine arm alone,
And our defence is sure.
"Before the hills in order stood,
Or earth received her frame,
From everlasting Thou art God,
For aye wilt be the same.
"A thousand ages in Thy sight
Are like an evening gone;
Swift as the watch that ends the night
Before the rising sun.
Vol. XVI-2.
|
18 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
Time, like an ever-rolling stream, Bears all its sons away: They fly, forgotten, as a dream Dies at the opening day.
"0 God, our help in ages past, Our hope for years to come, Be Thou our Guard while troubles last, And our eternal home!"
Thou, who hearest prayer, for Jesus' sake give ear to these our prayers and praises, which we sum up in the words of our Lord: Our Father, Who art in heaven; Hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; Give us this day our daily bread; And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil; For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen!
ADDRESS OF HON. SAMUEL D. DODGE. When your fellow citizen, Col. Webb C. Hayes, asked me to ad- dress you upon this occasion, and I accepted the invitation, I did so |
|
|
|
1812; eminent writers have described to you the campaign preceding the attack on Fort Stephenson; and distinguished orators, with brilliant phrases, have pictured to you the handsome youth standing upon the ram- parts of Fort Stephenson, and amid the yells of savages and the fierce at- tacks of the veterans of Wellington urging his little band to deeds of hero- |
The Croghan Celebration. 19
ism. The life and deeds of George
Croghan are familiar tales in every
household of this historic neighborhood.
Your fellow townswoman, Miss
Julia M. Haynes, in her admirable paper,
"Fremont in History," read to
you a few years ago, has given us a
clear, concise and eloquent statement
of the events which have made your city
famous. Dr. Charles R. Williams,
in his public address delivered at Spiegel
Grove, a few years since, has
added to the historical literature of
Fremont a brilliant and polished essay,
and other distinguished men and women
have placed before you the
geography, history, and traditions of
your town in pamphlet and speech.
You have listened to the thrilling
eloquence of General Gibson and the
polished sentences of Governor Jacob D.
Cox, and at that memorable
meeting when you dedicated this handsome
monument, a meeting pre-
sided over by your distinguished
citizen, Rutherford B. Hayes, you lis-
tened to the voices of Sherman, Foraker,
Henry B. Payne and others.
That I could add anything to what has
been said and written concerning
these historical events, I have not for
a moment dared to hope, but per-
haps a personal allusion, if I may be
allowed, will partially explain my
presumption and willingness to accept
this invitation.
On July 9th, 1813, there was born in my
grandfather's house in
Cleveland, a son, and for several weeks
no agreement could be reached
as to the name he was to bear. Less than
a month after the child's
birth, from every hill top to every
valley, from settlement to settlement
of pioneers along shores of Lake Erie
came the news that Major George
Croghan, a young man, had put to rout
the English and Indians and
saved Fort Stephenson, and my
grandfather's family had found a name
for their son, and to-day there is a
grave in Lake View cemetery in
Cleveland and at its head a simple
granite monument with the inscription
George Croghan Dodge, born July 9th,
1813, died June 6th, 1883; and
so I regard it as a privilege to pay a
simple tribute to-day to a man
whose name my father bore, the story of
whose achievement told me in
my boyhood was a narrative to which no
tale of giants or fairies could
compare.
Fifty years before the defense of Ft.
Stephenson or "Sandusky," as
the name was engraved on the gold medal
presented by congress to the
peerless Croghan, this historic neighborhood
had been the scene of the
capture and utter destruction at the
outbreak of Pontiac's gigantic con-
spiracy of old Fort Sandusky, built in
1745 on the left or west side
of Sandusky bay and river on the
Marblehead peninsula.
"The storm burst early in May of
1763. * * *Nine British forts
yielded instantly and the savages drank,
scooped up in the hollow of
joined hands, the blood of many a
Briton. * * * Sandusky was the
first of the forts to fall, May 16th.
Ensign Paully * * * was seized,
carried to Detroit, adopted, and married
to a squaw, who had lost her
husband, the remainder of the garrison
were massacreed and the fort
burned."
20 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
Fort Sandusky, the first fort
established in Ohio, was built in 1745 by
British traders from Pennsylvania and
Virginia under the instruction, it
is said, of George Croghan, later deputy
Indian Commissioner to Sir.
Wm. Johnston. It was located on the
Marblehead peninsula on the
left or west side of the Sandusky river
and bay at the portage where
Indians and trappers coming from
Detroit, in their course skirting
the chain of islands in Lake Erie, would
land to carry their canoes
across to the Sandusky river on their
way to the Scioto and Ohio.
The French, resenting this intrusion,
"usurped F. Sandoski" and in 1754
built another fort,
"Junundat," on the east or right side of the Sandusky
river and bay. The maps of John Mitchell
and Lewis Evans, both pub-
lished in 1775, clearly show the
location of these two forts.
Mitchell's map shows the fort on the
west side of the river and
bay with the notation "Sandoski
usurped by the French, 1751," while
Evans' map has "F Sandoski" on
the west side and also "F Junundat
built in 1754" on the east side of
the river and bay and diagonally across
from "Sandoski."
"Sandusky was afterward evacuated
and on the 8th of September,
1760, the French governor, Vandreueil
surrendered Canada to the Eng-
lish" and then ended French
dominion in America. "Major Robert Rogers,
a native of New Hampshire, was directed
to take possession of the west-
ern forts. He left Montreal on the 13th
of September, 1760, with two
hundred rangers. * * * Proceeding west,
he visited Sandusky * * *
after securing the fort at Detroit
returned by land via Sandusky and
and Tuscarawas trail to Fort Pitt."
Soon after Major Rogers took possession
of the western forts for
the British, Ensign Paully was placed in
command of Fort Sandusky and
so remained until his capture, and the
massacre of his garrison and the
utter destruction of the fort on May 16,
1763, at the outbreak of Pon-
tiac's conspiracy. As soon as the news
of the capture of the nine British
forts reached the British authorities,
Detroit and Fort Pitt alone escap-
ing capture, expeditions were sent to
relieve the latter and to re-establish
British supremacy in the northwest.
Captain Dalyell arrived at the
ruins of old Fort Sandusky in the fall
of 1763 and then proceeded up
the Sandusky river to the village of the
Hurons and Wyandots at the
lower rapids of the Sandusky river (now
Fremont) and utterly destroyed
the Indian villages located there.
In 1764, twelve years before the
declaration of Independence, Col.
John Bradstreet started from Albany to
relieve Major Gladwyn at De-
troit. Pontiac, the crafty, powerful and
ambitious chief of the Ottawa
Indians, the year before, had sent his
red-stained tomahawk and his
war belts to the various Indian tribes
between the Allegheny mountains
and the Mississippi river, stirring the
hearts of the red men against the
pioneers, and was preparing to
continue his attacks upon the various
western forts, and in his hatred toward
the whites was determined
The Croghan Celebration. 21
to accomplish by force what he could not
accomplish by treachery. He
had returned from Detroit in November,
1763, and it was evident that
he was preparing for a more complete
siege of that important military
post. It was then that General Thomas
Gage wrote the Colonies and
asked for troops to suppress the growing
insurrection of the Indian na-
tions; and Colonel Bradstreet set forth
from Albany with his army of
1180 men, 766 being provincial troops
from New York, New Jersey and
Connecticut under Israel Putnam. Along
they came to Lake Ontario
and with two vessels, 75 whale boats,
and numberless canoes, issued
forth and steered westward. Remaining a
while at Fort Niagara, passing
on and founding Fort Erie, they pushed
on to Detroit after making
short encampments on the banks of the
Cuyahoga river, on the present
site of Cleveland, and at the ruins of
old Fort Sandusky. All along the
journey Indians had been sent to treat
for peace, but knowing from
experience the treacherous character of
the Indians, Bradstreet was warned
against putting trust in the overtures
of the savages. Yet notwithstanding
the protests of his followers,
Bradstreet promised to refrain from march-
ing against the Delawares, Shawanese and
other tribes, if within twenty-
five days the representatives of the
tribes would meet him at Fort San-
dusky for the purpose of giving up
prisoners and concluding a definite
treaty. Bradstreet had, however, been
ordered to give to the Wyandots,
Ottawas and Miamis a thorough
chastisement, but on the approach of
the English commander these three tribes
sent deputies to meet him
and promised to follow him to Detroit
and make a treaty there, if he
would abandon the hostile plan against
them. It was with this expecta-
tion that he reached Detroit, only to
learn that the Indians whom he
had expected to meet on his return to
Fort Sandusky for the purpose
of making a treaty, had assembled there
to oppose the disembarkment
of the English soldiers. So Bradstreet
started with sixty long boats and
one barge and glided down the Detroit
river out upon the bosom of
Lake Erie. All expected to engage in a
fierce combat with the savage
foe, but Bradstreet soon received better
news. With this expedition of
Bradstreet was one Lieutenant Montresor,
who kept a journal, and this
journal has been preserved among the
collections of the New York
Historical Society. From the journal we
learn that "news soon arrived
that the Delawares and Shawanese are
assembled at Sandusky where the
old fort stood in order to treat with us
for peace." With this information
Bradstreet's "troops entered
Sandusky lake or bay" September 18, 1764,
and "encamped on a good clay bank
half a mile west of the spot where
sixteen months before Pontiac had
butchered the English garrison and
burned the fort." Indians soon
appeared and pledged if he would not at-
tack the Indian village they would
conclude a definite treaty and surrender
all prisoners they had. Bradstreet did not
attack them. After waiting
seven days "Col. Bradstreet then
proceeded up Sandusky river to the
village of the Hurons and Wyandots,
which had been destroyed by Cap-
22 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
tain Dalyell the preceding year."
Montresor in his journal says "Brad-
street's whole force proceeded and
encamped one mile below the rapids
of the Sandusky River, and here at this
camp near the Huron village
on Sandusky river, Major Israel Putnam
served as Field Officer for the
picket and presided at a General Court
Martial at his own tent to try
all prisoners brought before
him."* So to this very spot, now
Fort
Stephenson Park, Fremont, Ohio, fresh
with the laurels won while in
command of Provincial troops in the
siege of Havana, Cuba, with this
expedition came Israel Putnam, who
afterwards became Senior Major
General in the army of the United States
of America, one of the heroes
of Bunker Hill, an indomitable soldier,
a man of generous soul and
sterling patriotism, and of whom his
biographer, Col. David Humphreys,
says, "He seems to have been formed
on purpose for the age in which
he lived. His native courage, unshaken
integrity, and established repu-
tation as a soldier gave unbounded
confidence to our troops in their first
conflict in the field of battle."
The colonial records of Connecticut for
March, 1764, says this as-
sembly doth appoint Israel Putnam, Esq.,
to be major of the forces now
ordered raised in this colony for his
Majesty's service against the In-
dian Nations who have been guilty of
perfidious and cruel massacres of
the English.
Thus to the long list of patriots and
statesmen and pioneers, who
in the early days wandered through the
densely wooded trails, over these
plains which smiled to the sun in grass
and flowers, and along the banks
of this historic river; to the names of
Daniel Boone, Simon Kenton,
William Henry Harrison, George Croghan
and a host of others we can
add the immortal name of Israel Putnam.
The fifty odd years between the campaign
of Bradstreet and the
War of 1812, the years preceding and
following the Revolutionary War
are filled with the stirring events of
pioneer history. Northern Ohio was
the scene of border wars and Indian
outrages. The massacre of the Mo-
ravians, Crawford's Expedition, the
destruction of St. Clair's army, and
the victory of General Wayne at Fallen
Timbers are a few of the many
important events that go to make up the
history of the region around
the Maumee and Sandusky rivers. The
disasters to the American arms
incident to the opening of the campaign
of the War of 1812 in the north-
west-the disgraceful surrender of Hull
at Detroit, the massacre of Win-
chester's men at the River Raisin, and
Dudley's massacre, so-called, in the
otherwise successful defence of Fort
Meigs culminated, however, on
August 2, 1813, in the unparalleled
discomfiture of the British and In-
dians by a young Kentucky major. This
defense, so brilliant and com-
plete, followed by Perry's Victory on
Lake Erie and General Harrison's
triumph at the battle of the Thames
practically closed the campaign.
* Livingstone's Life of Israel Putnam,
p. 139.
The Croghan Celebration. 23
The war of 1812 only supplemented the
Revolutionary War. We
had become at once independent and
feeble. Articles of confederation
bound us loosely together, and we had
not yet fully won our place
among the nations of the earth. Other
nations looked upon us as an
easy prey-they could seize our ships and
imprison our seamen, but these
results were only incidents which gave
rise to the conflict for which the
time was ripe and for which there was
and could be no postponement.
This war must be had. We must
consolidate and finish the work of
independence. It must be a reality and
not a name, England must ac-
knowledge us as a distinct member of the
family of nations, and this is
what we accomplished by the contest of
1812 and 1813. When that war
broke out the Indians were banded
together in this Northwestern quar-
ter of the state under the leadership of
Tecumseh, to whom the English
had given the rank of a general in their
army. There was no city of
Fremont. The spot called Lower Sandusky
was a military reservation two
miles square, established by treaty in
1785. Here was built Fort Stephen-
son-one of the many outposts in the
midst of this hostile country. Built
to protect the communications of the army
with the more distant posts
at Chicago and Detroit; built perhaps
that a crossing at this point of this
then important river might be made in
safety. Up this Sandusky river
from the lake came all who wished to
reach the Ohio river on their way
from Canada to Mississippi for, with a
short portage, they could enter
the Scioto and then on down to the great
rivers beyond. It was an im-
portant place then for a growing
settlement, a vigorous colony might
be started here and Major Croghan
appreciated its importance even if
Harrison did not. The English had made
allies of the Indians. Te-
cumseh was made a general. British
emissaries were busy among the
Northwest tribes stirring them up to war
upon the Americans. Gen-
eral Proctor, with his savage allies had
failed to capture Fort Meigs,
and Proctor had withdrawn to his old
encampment and there he re-
mained until on July 28th, 1813, the
British embarked with their stores
and started for Sandusky bay and river
for the purpose of attacking
Fort Stephenson. Again and again have
you heard the story of this
fight. How General Harrison had sent
word to Major Croghan that
if the British approached with force and
cannon and he could discover
them in time to retreat, that he must do
so. How Harrison in council
with his other Generals had decided that
the fort was untenable and
ordered him to abandon it. How the
messenger lost his way, and when
he did arrive Croghan sent back word to
Harrison the memorable mes-
sage, "We have determined to
maintain this place, and by heavens we
can." The natural anger of General Harrison at this seeming diso-
bedience to his order and the summoning
of Croghan to come to Fort
Seneca and the placing of another in
command until the gallant boy
had explained and appeased the wrath of
his superior and was sent back to
his post, are familiar facts of history.
On the afternoon of August 1st,
|
24 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
1813, we find the young hero back in command and with 160 men and "Old Betsy," sending back to Proctor with his 700 veterans, 2,000 In- dians and Barclay's gunboats in the river, a defiant refusal to his summons to surrender. General Harrison, in his report to the Secretary of War, thus de- scribes the battle. "Their troops were formed into two columns, one led by Lieut.-Colonel Short, headed the principal one. He conducted his men to the brink of the ditch under a galling fire from the garrison, and by Lieut.-Colonel Shortt headed the principal one. He conducted his men and the light infantry. At this moment a masked porthole was sud- |
|
|
|
denly opened and the six-pounder, with a half-load of powder and a double charge of leaden slugs, at a distance of thirty feet, poured destruc- tion upon them, and killed or wounded every man who entered the ditch. In vain did the British officers try to lead on the balance of the column. It retired under a shower of shot, and sought safety in the adjoining woods." And who was this young man who defended this place against a force of British and Indians and drove them discomfited from the field of battle. We seem to see him now as he stood there a model of manly beauty in his youthful prime, "a man in all that makes a man ere man- |
The Croghan Celebration. 25
hood's years have been fulfilled";
standing on the threshold of his
career. This young, accomplished,
handsome youth was born at Locust
Grove, Ky., November 15, 1791. His
mother was Lucy Clark. Of
uncles he had upon his mother's side,
George Rogers Clark, whose great
campaign through the wilderness won for
us the Northwest Territory
was one; and William Clark, who with
Captain Lewis made the famous
Lewis and Clark expedition of
exploration across the continent, was
another. His father, William Croghan,
was born in Ireland in 1752,
was a soldier in the Revolutionary War
and fought at Brandywine,
Monmouth and Germantown, and when young
George had finished
his preliminary schooling he entered at
the age of 17 the College of
William and Mary and graduated two years
later with the degree of
Bachelor of Arts. His purpose was to
become a lawyer, but when the
governor of Indiana, William Henry
Harrison, called for volunteers to
strike at Tecumseh and his stirring red
men, Croghan joined the little
army as a private and began his life as
a soldier at the battle of
Tippecanoe.
From that day until General Harrison
sent him to this place, the
spirit of the soldier in him had met
every test of skill and bravery, and
he took command of Fort Stephenson with
the confidence of his su-
periors and with the love and admiration
of his soldiers. In a report
of this battle by an English historian
occurs this sentence: "The first
division were so near the enemy that
they could distinctly hear the various
orders given in the fort and the faint
voices of the wounded and dying
in the ditch, calling out for water,
which the enemy had the humanity
to lower to them on the instant."
Over in that beautiful cemetery at
Clyde, on its sunkissed slopes,
bright with the foliage of this August
day, rests one who, fifty years
after the defense of Fort Stephenson,
honored this country, his state and
his country by his conduct upon the
field of battle-General James B. Mc-
Pherson, as good a soldier, as
chivalrous a leader, as gallant a gentle-
man, as pure a man as ever fell upon the
field of battle. General Sher-
man says of him "History tells us
of but few who so blended the grace
and gentleness of the friend with the
dignity, courage, faith and man-
liness of the soldier." Now Sandusky County has gathered to herself
all that remains of another hero, her
first if not her greatest. Here under
the shadow of this monument among the
people who love to do him honor,
on the very spot he so gallantly
defended, will he lie
Till mouldering worlds and tumbling
systems burst;
When the last trump shall renovate his
dust.
Till by the mandate of eternal truth,
His soul will flourish in immortal
youth.
Such names as Croghan and McPherson are
like the sound of a
26 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
trumpet. They are the precious jewels of
our nation's history, to be
gathered up among the treasures of the
nation and kept immaculate from
the tarnishing breath of the cynic and
the doubter.
My Friends; Wars are cruel. They crush
with bloody heel all
justice, all happiness, all that is
God-like in Man. We have but to
read the History of Nations to discern
the hideous slaughters which
have marked their progress, and yet man
is such a savage that until
the present generation he has insisted
that the only way to settle things
is by the gage of battle. He has covered
a hundred battle fields with
men and horses; with the groans of the
wounded and the dying. He
has covered the pages of our history with
gore, and if history, such
history as you have learned here on the
banks of this gentle flowing
river that for a half a century had been
the scene of strife and battle,
if such history I say, cannot cultivate
out of man the brutal spirit of
war, teach him the wisdom of diplomacy
and the need of arbitration,
then has the lesson been lost and he has
failed to taste the fruit or
imbibe the philosophy of humanity. It is
for us to substitute law for
war, reason for force, courts of reason
for the settlement of contro-
versies among nations following up the
maintenance of the law with the
vitalizing forces of civilization until
all nations are molded into one
International Brotherhood, yielding to
reason and conscience. Then can
we draw the sword from its sheath and
fling it into the sea rejoicing
that it has gone forever. Let us
recognize this truth and today on this
anniversary we will lay a new stone in
the temple of Universal Peace.
This temple which shall rise to the very
firmament and be as broad as
the ends of the earth. May such
occasions as this lead us away from
an era of wars and battleships and new
navies and bring us to a time
when Patriotism and Humanity can be
compatible one with another and
to a time
When navies are forgotten
And fleets are useless things,
When the dove shall warm her bosom
Beneath the eagle's wings.
When memory of battles.
At last is strange and old,
When nations have one banner
And creeds have found one fold.
Then Hate's last note of discord
In all God's world shall cease,
In the conquest which is service
In the victory which is peace!
|
The Croghan Celebration. 27
ADDRESS OF HON. CHARLES W. FAIRBANKS.
VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. I am gratified, indeed, to be present and participate with you for a brief while upon this historic occasion. I have not come to make a formal speech, nor did I come to make you a speech at all. According to the programme, I am to indulge only in a few "remarks." What I shall say to you shall be born of the moment. I have brought with me no well-turned phrases. I have come simply to join with you in paying tribute to the memory of men who did valiant service |
|
|
|
remains of this brave soldier to their everlasting sleep beneath the shade of yonder monument. I wish we knew the names of the hundred and sixty men who stood with him August 2, 1813, that we might call the roll of them here to- day and pay to them the tribute of our gratitude and our admiration. The brave commander who rendered illustrious service here in a critical period of the war of 1812, is known to us and his name is upon our lips and it will be sung by our children in days to come, but his brave compatriots are unknown. The one hundred and sixty men who stood here--as brave men as ever placed their lives upon the sacrificial altar of their country--are known, for God Almighty knows men who go down to the battle field to preserve American institutions for ages to come. There is one brave young man, who stood with Croghan, whose name we cannot forget, and which we recall with pride and satisfaction, and that is the name of Ensign Shipp. When the British General Proctor |
28 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
came bearing a flag of truce, supported
by an army trained in the art
of arms -five hundred British, eight
hundred savages, I believe, twelve
hundred in all, -against an hundred and
sixty-one, commander and
soldiery, it was believed that the flag
of truce would win a complete
surrender of the small garrison. But the
British commander knew little
of the metal that was in George Croghan
and Ensign Shipp and the
hundred and fifty-nine others who shared
with them the fortunes of
war. The young commander who had barely
reached his majority sent
to meet the officers bearing the flag of
truce, this young Ensign, younger
still than himself. The British officer
demanded the surrender of the
garrison. The Ensign answered--and
history can never forget his an-
swer: "My commandant and the
garrison," said he, "are determined
to defend the post to the last extremity
and bury ourselves in its ruins
rather than surrender to any force
whatever."
It was pointed out by the British
commander that resistance would
probably result in massacre by the
savages. To this suggestion the
Ensign defiantly replied: "When the
fort shall be taken there will be
none to massacre. It will not be given
up while a man is able to
resist."
This was the note of sublime heroism. It
was essentially the
answer of a brave American patriot. It
was a sentiment kindred to
one uttered by General Grant during the
Civil War. The great General,
as I remember, in one of his campaigns,
crossed a river and sought an
engagement with the enemy with the river
in his rear, and with only
one transport. When it was suggested
that this was, perhaps, inade-
quate provision in the event of the
necessity of a retreat, the great
captain of our armies made the laconic
reply that if he was obliged to
retreat, one transport would be
sufficient.
As Shipp made his way back to the fort,
Major Croghan awaited
him. The latter knew the British would
demand surrender and that
the brave Ensign would decline to accede
to his demand. As the fort
opened for the Ensign's return, Croghan
said: "Come in Shipp and
we will blow them all to Hell."
That was a naughty word. (A voice:
"But it was the right one under the
circumstances.") Yes, you are
right. If it was ever to be used, then
was the occasion to use it, and
I think that a word like that, used in
the cause of liberty, is a dis-
infected word.
(The Vice-President indicated he was
about to close. Several
voices: "Go on! Go on!")
I do not want to talk longer than it
took George Croghan to lick
the British and the savages here. He
illustrated better than any man
can that it is not words which win
victories, but it is deeds that accom-
plish them.
Fellow citizens, American liberty has
cost something. It is a
singular fact that those great blessings
to the human race which it
most longs for, which it most prays for,
always come at the greatest
|
The Croghan Celebration. 29
cost. Humanity, in all her march, back from the early mist of history, down to this present hour, has won her victories for liberty mainly upon the battle field. We who are here to-day are in the enjoyment of liberty which was won upon the field of battle. We are a great, happy, contented nation of eighty millions. We look out across the sea to the Empire of Russia, with her one hundred and forty millions struggling with the great problems of human liberty. We see their wars, we see their massacres, we see their bloodshed unspeakable. We each and every one wish that those people could come out of the bondage of iron rule into the glad sunshine of liberty. America has had five wars: the War of the American Revolution; the War of 1812 which made us forever secure against the efforts of |
|
|
|
Great Britain to wrest liberty from us - the liberty fought for by our continental fathers; the war with Mexico was the third, and I am glad to see here to-day and take by the hand several of the survivors of the war with Mexico. Their presence is an inspiration. It is a curious coincidence that there is now present a man who knew Croghan in the Mexican War. It seems to carry us back from the present to the very presence of the hero of Fort Stephenson. Then the war of the great Rebellion-the mightiest war in the history of man. There are here to-day scores of men bearing upon their breasts the evidence of their loyalty to the Union in the hour of its supremest exigency. And later came the war with Spain. These five wars were fought by the people of the United States, |
30 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
not to enslave men but to make men free,
to enlarge in a vast degree
the zone of Republican government.
All honor to George Croghan and his
heroic band. All honor
to the soldiers of the revolution. All
honor to the soldiers of the
Mexican war. All honor to the soldiers
of the Union. All honor to
the soldiers of the Spanish-American
war. The American people honor
them. They honor them each and all. They
hold them forever within
the embrace of their fondest memory.
Fellow citizens, it would be impossible
for me to close these few
words without expressing that
appreciation to Col. Webb C. Hayes
which is in the hearts of all of us here
to-day. It is a happy circum-
stance that he, a soldier himself, and a
son of one of the brave defenders
of the Union in the Civil War, should
thoughtfully and generously bring
back from the soil of Kentucky where he
was sleeping his everlasting
sleep the remains of this brave,
fearless leader, in order that they might
rest here amid the theater of his
immortal achievements.
All honor to Colonel Hayes for what he
has so splendidly done,
and all honor to the community which
respects and preserves the memory
of those who have served so well in the
cause of their country.
I will leave you, my friends, and I
leave you with regret. I leave
you, however, with the confident hope
that you will go forward in the
enjoyment of peace and happiness which
are the legitimate fruits of
those who fought here and elsewhere for
Republican government.
ADDRESS OF GENERAL ANDREW L. HARRIS.
GOVERNOR OF OHIO.
The chairman has stated that I will make
a few remarks, and this
is truly said. When your committee came
to Columbus to invite me to
participate on this occasion I frankly
told them that it would be im-
possible for me to make any preparation,
but that I could come provid-
ing no speech was expected of me, and,
fellow citizens, Col. Hayes
gladly accepted the promise, and it was
with that understanding that I
am here to-day, for the purpose of
participating with you in my pres-
ence more than by words or speech on
this memorable occasion.
I sometimes think that we have never
given sufficient importance
in history to the gallant deeds that
were performed here in 1813. You
remember that up to that time the
results of the war seemed against us.
We had met many reverses, but it was
Col. Croghan and his 160 men
who won one of the most important
victories, according to the numbers
engaged on our side and the numbers of
the enemy, that is recorded
in American history. It was from this
moment that the tide of the
battle turned in our favor. From that
time victory after victory followed
until in a few months' time the war was
ended, and victory seemed
vouchsafed to us so far as the mother
country was concerned, the
|
The Croghan Celebration. 31
liberty that we are enjoying to-day, and I wish to say that upon this spot, this historic spot that the tide turned in favor of the American nation, in the war of 1812-13. How unfortunate you are to have within your corporate limits the most historic spot in the United States of America. I never stood upon this ground, upon this battlefield until to- day. My mind turns back to my youthful days, when I read of the |
|
|
|
ory of the American people, in the person of Col. Webb C. Hayes. I thank you for your attention for you must be getting tired and I will leave you, saying that I am glad it was my privilege to be with you to-day, and I will ever remember this meeting as long as I live. This day will be deep in my memory.
ADDRESS OF E. O. RANDALL.
SECRETARY OHIO ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL SOCIETY. The only apology I have for the honor of appearing before you on this interesting occasion is that my college friend of years ago, your splendid, patriotic and enterprising fellow-citizen, Colonel Webb. C. Hayes, invited me to come; his apology being that I am an official of the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society, whose business it is to gather, preserve and disseminate the lore, historic and prehistoric of our great state. The orator of the day, the Hon. Samuel D. Dodge, has recited to you in graphic terms the history that led up to the siege of Fort Stephenson and the incomparable bravery and patriotism with which the youth George Croghan and his gallant little band defended the crude stockade fort and stemmed the tide that to that moment seemed against the Americans. The successful repulse of Proctor and the British |
|
32 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
soldiers and Tecumseh, with his hundreds of braves, was the first real victory on Ohio soil in the War of 1812. That we may all the more appreciate the extent and significance of that event, let us for purposes of comparison look to other parts of the world, and note some of the stupendous acts that were being performed in the theatre of great things. In this very month, indeed on this very day and the days fol- lowing, in August, 1813, Bolivar, known as the Liberator and often called the Washington of South America, as the head of several hundred vol- unteer revolutionists, was entering as conqueror, Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, which country was thus freed from the oppression of Spanish monarchial rule and became one of the first republics of South America. In Europe a greater scene was being enacted. The incomparable Napo- leon was engaged in that series of military movements on the banks of the Elbe, which were the crowning events of his generalship and the culmination of his career. At this date (August 1813) Napoleon was |
|
|
|
of the Ohio Valley, devoid of the "pomp and circumstance" of gigantic war, was being fought the battle for freedom and the best form of demo- cratic government ever given man. Here, in this little stockade fort George Croghan, a native American lad, with but 160 men, heroes of struggle and sacrifice with a might almost miraculous, repelled the forces of the British under Proctor, with 500 of the weathered veterans of the Peninsula War, the trained troops of the victorious Wellington and two thousand or more Indian braves under command of Tecumseh, the most sagacious and daring leader of his race. How did George Croghan do it? He had the versatility as well as the valor of the pioneer soldier. He had but one mounted gun, "Old Betsy," whose venerable presence now stands guard over the new grave of her old commander,-this one cannon Croghan so deftly shifted behind the stockade walls, firing a shot now through one port-hole and then through another, that the enemy were fooled into the idea that Fort Stephenson was "chuck full" of firing |
The Croghan Celebration. 33
Betsies. The bravery of this American
boy and his dauntless band ex-
ceeded in results for the betterment of
humanity arid the advance of
civilization all the campaigns combined
of Napoleon and his antagonists.
Croghan and his 160 followers were
victorious because they were typical
pioneer Americans- Americans, a new type
of character in the history
of the world. Someone has said that God
sifted four races to produce
the American. Each one of you within the
sound of my voice can
vividly recollect how on that
magnificent May morning, 1898, Dewey
sailed into the Bay of Manila and almost
in the twinkling of an eye sunk
the Spanish fleet, without the loss of a
single American sailor and
scarcely the scratching of the paint
from any of the American ships.
We thought that that was the most
unparalleled event in history and
could never be repeated, but in sixty
days thereafter it was encored in
the Bay of Santiago when the fleet of
Cervera emerged and on that
July Sunday morning left the bay for the
sea to encounter the storm
of fire and shot from the ships of
Sampson and Schley. The war cor-
respondent of the London Times, one
who for the last forty years had
been an eye-witness of the chief
military and naval feats, both in the
old world and the new, gave in his paper
a most graphic picture of this
battle of Santiago, which he viewed from
the deck of one of the American
vessels. At the close of his vivid
description, he made the significant
remark that the behavior of the American
sailor was one of the most
marvelous exhibitions of coolness,
bravery and accuracy he had ever wit-
nessed. Said he, "I verily believe
that had those rival seamen exchanged
places, namely, had the Spanish sailors
possessed the modern, thoroughly
equipped American ships and thus emerged
from the bay, and had the
American sailors possessed the decrepid
and time-worn ships of Spain,
the result would have been the same,
namely, that the Americans
would have won the victory, because that
victory was won by the char-
acter of the American boy who manned the
American ships." The
American boy, Croghan, who defended Fort
Stephenson against such tre-
mendous odds was the same type as the
sailors of Dewey and Sampson
and Schley and the followers of the
generals who led in the Spanish
War. It is related that when the Sultan
of Turkey heard of the great
victory of the Americans at Manila and
Santiago, he sent for the Amer-
ican ambassador and asked him if the
reports of the marvelous feats
of the Americans were true. The
ambassador replied that they were,
when the sultan asked if he could buy
ships and guns like those which
the Americans employed. The ambassador
told him that he supposed
the sultan could get them, they were
made in America for money by
great manufacturers. "Then,"
said the sultan, "I will buy some of them
that I may win great victories."
"Oh," said the ambassador, "that you
can do; but you cannot buy the American
boys to man them for you."
It is of such men and boys as those who
fought the American Revolution,
Vol. XVI- 3.
34 Ohio Arch. and
Hist. Society Publications.
the War of 1812, of 1848, the Rebellion
of 61-5 and the Spanish War
that this republic is composed. Your
Vice-President and your Governor
have told you in eloquent language of
the heroism and patriotism of
the American soldiers in those wars for
independence, unity, liberty and
humanity. It is a noble record of a
noble people and in that record
Ohio has taken a most conspicuous part.
Three thousand Revolutionary
soldiers, scarred and wearied after the
battles for independence, came
across the Alleghanies to establish
homes for their declining years in the
peaceful and fruitful plains and valleys
of Ohio. Their lives had been
dedicated to independence and freedom
and their buried bones made
sacred the soil of Ohio. The seed of
that Revolutionary patriotism
ripened into an hundred fold in the war
for the national Union, for
300,000 loyal recruits went forth from
the "Buckeye State" to fight on
the battle-fields of the Sunny South for
the preservation of the republic
whose foundation was laid by their
revered sires. In the crypt of St.
Paul's Cathedral, London, that splendid
temple erected to the faith of
Christianity, lie the remains of its
great architect, Christopher Wren.
They repose beneath the floor in which
is sunken a simple plate, upon
which is inscribed the name
"Christopher Wren," and the Latin inscrip-
tion "si monumentum requiris,
circumspice"; if you seek his monument,
look about you. So I say, we may erect
monuments, the graven metal
or carved marble, to the heroes of the
past, not for them, for they
need them not, but for us that this
reminder of their heroic deeds may
lead us to emulate their examples and
push on to loftier heights. No,
I would say of George Croghan and the
heroes of 1776 and 1812, if you
should ask for their monument, look
about you and contemplate the mag-
nificent republic of which they laid the
corner-stone, a republic whose
people present the highest of type character
and civilization and whose
principles of liberty and humanity are
being borne to all the inhabitants
of the earth and the islands of the sea.
James A. Garfield, than whom
there was no more exalted example of the
American citizen, soldier,
statesman, scholar and orator, a
martyred President from Ohio, at the
close of one of his brilliant addresses
used these words: "The history
of the worlds is a divine poem; the
history of every nation is a canto in
that poem; and the life of every man is
a word in that poem. The
harmony of that poem has ever been
resounding through the ages and
though its melody has been marred by the
roaring of cannon and the
groans of dying men, yet to the
Christian philosopher, to you and me,
that poem breathes a prophecy of more
happy and halcyon days to
come." What a word was the life of
George Croghan in that poem of
universal history--a word that was a
clarion note of bravery, heroism
and patriotism, a note that shall ever
resound clear and distinct in the
harmony of American history.
|
The Croghan Celebration. 35
HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
BY BASIL MEEK, ESQ., FREMONT, OHIO. We have met today on this ground, famous in history, because of the victorious defence of Fort Stephenson, then standing on this spot, |
|
|
|
tablet near the spot from which the British cannon bombarded the fort. The tablet reads as follows:
Near this spot British cannon from Commodore Barclay's fleet bombarded Major Croghan in Fort Stephenson August 1, and 2, 1813. General Proctor attempted to capture the fort by assault with his Wellington veterans, assisted by Indians under Tecumseh. Major Croghan with only 160 men and one cannon "Old Betsy,"repulsed the assault. The British retreated to their ships with many killed and wounded, but leaving Lt. Col. Short, Lieut. Gordon and 25 soldiers of the 41st regiment dead in the ditch. Commodore Barclay was wounded and with his entire fleet including the cannon used against Fort Stephenson was captured by Commodore Perry at the battle of Lake Erie, Sept. 10, 1813. General Proctor, with his British regulars, was defeated and Tecumseh with many of his Indians, was killed by General Harrison at the battle of the Thames, Oct. 5, 1813. Major Croghan was awarded a gold medal and each of his officers a sword by the congress of the United States for gallantry in the defense of Fort Stephenson. Erected by the George Croghan Chapter, D. A. R.
It is not for me, in this paper, to enter into any detailed account of the engagement, or any description of the fort; nor to enter into details of the causes or military movements that led up to the attack, |
|
36 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
as these have been assigned to others. Reference, however, is made to the accompanying cut of the plan of the fort and its environs.
"In long years past, on the banks of this river Whose current so peaceful, flows silently down, Roamed the race of the red man, with bow and with quiver, Where stands fair Fremont, our beautiful town."
Here centuries ago, according to tradition, there were two fortified neutral towns. One on the east and one on the west bank of the river, remains of which, in the shape of earthworks were visible within the remembrance of inhabitants now living. |
|
|
|
REFERENCE TO THE ENVIRONS.--a--British gunboats at their place of landing. b- Cannon, a six-pounder. c - Mortar. d - Batteries. e - Graves of Lieut. Col. Short and Lieut. Gordon, who fell in the ditch. f - Road to Upper Sandusky. g -Advance of the enemy to the fatal ditch. i-Head of navigation.
Major B. F. Stickney, for many years Indian agent in this locality and familiar with its history and traditions, in a lecture in Toledo in 1845, speaking of these towns, said: "The Wyandots have given me this account of them. At a period of two and a half centuries ago all the Indians west of this point were at war with those east. Two walled towns were built near each other, inhabited by those of Wyandot origin. They assumed a neutral character. All of the west might enter |
|
The Croghan Celebration. 37
the western city and all of the east the eastern. The inhabitants of one city might inform those of the other that war parties were there; but who they were or whence they came or anything more must not be mentioned." Gen. Lewis Cass, in an address in 1829 before the Historical Society of Michigan, alluding to these neutral towns, said: "During the long and disastrous contest which preceded and followed the arrival of the Euro- peans, in which the Iroquois contended for victory, and their enemies for existence, this little band (Wyandots) preserved the integrity of their tribe and the sacred character of peacemakers. All who met upon their threshold met as friends. This neutral nation was still in existence when the French Missionaries reached the upper lakes two centuries ago. The details of their history and of their character and privileges are meager and unsatisfactory, and this is the more to be regretted as such a sanctuary among the barbarous tribes is not only a |
|
|
|
REFERENCES TO THE FORT. -Line 1-Pickets. Line 2-Embank- ment from the ditch to and against the picket. Line 3. Dry ditch, nine feet wide by six deep. Line 4-Outward embankment or glacis. A- Blockhouse first attacked by cannon, b. B-Bastion from which the ditch was raked by Croghan's artillery. C--Guard blockhouse, in the lower left corner. D- Hospital during the attack. E E E -Military store-houses. F-- Commissary's store-house. G - Magazine. H- Fort gate. K K K-Wicker gates. L- Partition gate.
singular institution but altogether at variance with that reckless spirit of cruelty with which their wars are usually prosecuted." Internal feuds finally arose, as the tradition goes, and the villages were destroyed. Here then the Indians for centuries had their homes and swarmed along the banks and in the forests and plains of the valley of their beloved river. Large game abounded on every hand, the river teemed with fish, |
38 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
and the marshes were alive with wild
fowl. To them it was an ideal
abode and typical of their heaven, the
happy hunting ground. They were
mostly of the Wyandot tribe, whose
ancestors' home was once on the
north side of the river St. Lawrence,
and who, becoming involved in a
war with the Senecas, living on the
opposite side, which threatened their
extermination, concluded to leave their
country. They settled first in the
vicinity of Greenbay; the Senecas
followed them and the war was
renewed with varying fortunes, until
finally it came to an end with the
Wyandots victors, but so badly worsted
as to be unable to take much
advantage of their victory, and they
finally settled here. They were
more civilized than any of the other
tribes inhabiting this region, among
whom were Delawares, Shawanees and
Ottawas.
The origin of the name of the river has
been variously explained.
A map, published in Amsterdam in 1720
founded on a great variety of
Memoirs of Louisiana, represents within
the present limits of Erie
county a water called Lac San douske.
There is also a map published by
Henry Popple, London in 1733, where the
bay is called "Lake Sandoski."
A very probable account of the origin of
the name is the tradition of
aged Wyandot warriors given to Gen.
Harrison in the friendly chat of
the Wigwam from which it appeared that
their conquering tribes in
their conflict with the Senecas,
centuries ago, having landed at Maumee,.
followed the lake shore toward the east,
passing and giving names to
bays, creeks and rivers until on coming
to Cold creek, where it enters.
the bay, they were so charmed with the
springs of clear, cold water in
the vicinity that they pitched their
tents and engaged in hunting and
fishing, and by them the bay and river
was called Sandusky. Meaning
in their language "At the Cold
Water." Butterfield gives a conversation
of John M. James, with William Walker,
principal chief of the Wyandots
at Upper Sandusky, at Columbus, 1835. He
said the meaning of the
word was "at the cold water,"
and should be pronounced San-doos-tee.
The Lower San-doos-tee (cold water) and
Upper San-doos-tee being the
descriptive Wyandot Indian names known
as far back as our knowledge
of this tribe extends.
Here at Lower Sandusky was one of the
most important Wyandot
villages, named Junque-indundeh, which
in the Wyandot language, noted
for its descriptive character, signifies
"at the place of the hanging haze
or mist (smoke)," a name applicable
and of a poetic tinge when its site
with the surrounding forests, prairies
and marshes, and the burning
leaves and grass are considered. Through
this village passed one of
the main Indian trails from Detroit to
the Ohio River country through
the Ohio wilderness. There was good
navigation from here to Detroit
and the upper lakes, and a good waterway
for their canoes, with but a
short portage, between the Sandusky
river and the Scioto, to the Ohio
river.
For a period of nearly sixty years
before the battle of Fort Stephen-
The Croghan Celebration. 39
son this spot was on the route pursued
by military expeditions of France,
Great Britain and our forefathers, and
by the war parties of the savage
red man from the St. Lawrence to the
Mississippi. The first military ex-
pedition of white men to this place of
which we have a record at the pres-
ent time, was that of the French sent
out by DeLongueuil, commandant at
Detroit, in 1748, during the conspiracy
of Nicolas, the Wyandot chief
who resided at Sandosket, on the north
side of the bay of that name,
and who had permitted English traders
from Pennsylvania to erect
a large blockhouse at his principal town
on the north side of Lake
Sandoski, in 1745, named Fort Sandusky.
After the failure of his con-
spiracy, Nicolas resolved to abandon his
towns on Sandusky Bay, and
on April 7, 1748, destroyed his villages
and forts and with his warriors
and their families moved to the Illinois
country.
The French sent another expedition in
1749 under Captain de
Celeron who after passing up the
Sandusky river conducted an expe-
dition to the Ohio country, burying
engraved leaden plates along the
Ohio river. The first British expedition
up the Sandusky was after
the close of the old French War in 1760,
when Robert Rogers, a native
of New Hampshire, was directed to take
possession of the western forts.
He left Montreal on the 13th of
September, 1760, with two hundred Ran-
gers-proceeding west he visited Sandusky--after
securing the fort at
Detroit returned by land via Sandusky
and Tuscarawas Trail to Fort
Pitt, stopping at the Lower Rapids of
the Sandusky, probably on this
very knoll. The succeeding expedition,
that of Colonel Bradstreet and
Israel Putnam in 1764, was outlined in
the address of Hon. S. D. Dodge.
In May, 1778, the Renegades Alexander
McKee, Matthew Elliott
and Simon Girty passed through Lower
Sandusky to join the notorious
Lieutenant-Governor Henry Hamilton at
Detroit, and lead the savages
in their attack on the settlers. James
Girty came from Fort Pitt a few
weeks later to join them. Later in the
year 1778 Daniel Boone and
Simon Kenton, then held captive by the
Indians, at different times passed
through Lower Sandusky en route to
Detroit. Strange to say Simon
Girty saved Simon Kenton's life and sent
him to Detroit after he had
been condemned to be burned and
tortured.
The next military expedition of which we
have knowledge which
stopped at or passed through this place
was the British contingent which
served with the Indians in repelling
Crawford's expedition which cul-
minated in the terrible scene of
Crawford's execution by burning at
the stake. This followed about two
months after the passage of the
Moravians through this place on their
removal to Detroit.
The pathetic story of the Moravian
Indians whose villages were
originally planted on the banks of the
Tuscarawas river, in 1772, had a sad
ending some ten years later in the
brutal massacre which forms one
of the darkest pages of Revolutionary
times. The Moravian missio-
naries and Christian Indians seemed to
excite the special enmity of the
40 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
savages both white and red, British and
American. The renegades, Elliott,
Girty and McKee, finally persuaded the
British Commandant at Detroit
to order their removal, and sent the
bloody Wyandot Indians under
their war chiefs Kuhn of Lower Sandusky,
and Snip of Upper Sandusky,
accompanied by the famous Delaware chief
Captain Pipe of Upper San-
dusky, to transfer them to the Sandusky
villages or to the vicinity of
Detroit. This was carried out in their
usual ruthless manner. While
the Indian converts remained at Upper
Sandusky, De Peyster, the Com-
mandant of Detroit, through the
machinations of Simon Girty, ordered
the missionaries brought before him.
Rev. John Heckewelder, one of
the missionaries, afterward wrote, in
his "History of the Mission": "On
the morning of the 13th of March, 1782,
a Frenchman named Francis
Levallie, from Lower Sandusky, gave us
notice that Girty who was to
have taken us to Detroit, having gone
with a party of Wyandots to war
against the Americans on the Ohio, had
appointed him to take his place
in taking us to Detroit, and that on the
next day after tomorrow (the
15th) he would be here again to set out
with us. A little conversation
with this man satisfied us that we had
fallen into better hands. He
told us: 'Girty had ordered him to drive
us before him to Detroit, the
same as if we were cattle, and never
make a halt for the purpose of
the women giving suck to their children.
That he should take us
around the head of the lake (Erie) and
make us foot every step of
the way.' He, however would not do this,
but would take us to Lower
Sandusky, and from that place send a
runner with a letter to the Com-
mandant at Detroit, representing our
situation and taking further orders
from him respecting us."
Notwithstanding Girty's hard order, the
kind-hearted Frenchman
conducted the missionaries with every
regard for their comfort and
safety, and boats were sent to take them
from Lower Sandusky to Detroit.
A short time after reaching Lower
Sandusky they received word that the
almost equally brutal white borderers on
the American side, led by the
notorious Col. Williamson, had marched
from Fort Pitt and cruelly
slaughtered some ninety or more
Christian Indians who still remained
at the Moravian villages on the
Tuscarawas. The missionary band at
Lower Sandusky consisted of the senior
missionary David Zeisberger,
and his wife; John Heckewelder, wife and
child; Senseman, wife and
babe but a few weeks old; Youngman and
wife; and Edwards and
Michael Young, unmarried. The two latter
were, while in Lower San-
dusky, lodged in the house of Mr.
Robbins. The other four missionaries
with their families were guests of Mr.
Arundel. Robbins and Arundel
were English traders at this place.
Heckewelder in his History of Indian
Nations describes the ordeal
of running the gauntlet as follows:
"In the month of April, 1782, when
I was myself a prisoner at
Lower Sandusky, waiting for an
opportunity to proceed with a trader to
The Croghan Celebration. 41
Detroit, - three American prisoners were
brought in by fourteen war-
riors from the garrison of Fort
McIntosh. As soon as they had crossed
the Sandusky river to which the village
lay adjacent, they were told
by the captain of the party to run as
hard as they could to a painted
post which was shown to them. The
youngest of the three without a
moment's hesitation immediately started
for it, and reached it fortu-
nately without receiving a single blow;
the second hesitated for a moment,
but recollecting himself, he also ran as
fast as he could and likewise
reached the post unhurt. The third,
frightened at seeing so many men,
women and children with weapons in their
hands ready to strike him,
kept begging the captain to spare him,
saying that he was a mason and
would build him a fine large stone house
or do any work for him that
he would please.
"Run for your life," cried the
chief to him, "and don't talk now of
building houses!" But the poor
fellow still insisted, begging and praying
to the captain, who at last finding his
exhortations vain and fearing the
consequences turned his back upon him
and would not hear him any
longer. Our mason now began to run, but
received many a hard blow,
one of which nearly brought him to the
ground, which, if he had fallen
would have decided his fate. He,
however, reached the goal, and not
without being sadly bruised, and he was
beside bitterly reproached and
scoffed at all round as a vile coward,
while the others were hailed as
brave men and received tokens of
universal approbation."
"In the year 1782," says
Heckewelder, "the war chief of the Wyandot
tribe of Indians of Lower Sandusky sent
a young white man whom he
had taken as prisoner as a present to
another chief who was called the
Half King of Upper Sandusky, for the
purpose of being adopted into
his family in the place of one of his
sons who had been killed the pre-
ceding year. The prisoner arrived and
was presented to the Half King's
wife, but she refused to receive him;
which according to the Indian rule
was in fact a sentence of death. The
young man was therefore taken
away for the purpose of being tortured
and burnt on the pile. While
the dreadful preparations were making
and the unhappy victim was
already tied to the stake, two English
traders, moved by feelings of pity
and humanity, resolved to unite their
exertions to endeavor to save
the prisoner's life by offering a ransom
to the war chief; which how-
ever he refused, saying it was an
established rule among them to sacri-
fice a prisoner when refused adoption;
and besides the numerous war
captains were on the spot to see the
sentence carried into execution.
The two generous Englishmen, were,
however, not discouraged, and
determined to try another effort. They
appealed to the well-known high-
minded pride of an Indian. 'But,' said
they, 'among all these chiefs
whom you have mentioned there is none
who equals you in greatness;
you are considered not only as the
greatest and bravest, but as the
best man in the nation.' 'Do you really
believe what you say?' said
|
42 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
the Indian looking them full in the face. 'Indeed we do.' Then without speaking another word, he blackened himself, and taking his knife and his tomahawk in his hand, made his way through the crowd to the un- happy victim, crying out with a loud voice, 'what have you to do with my prisoner?' and at once cutting the cords with which he was tied, took him to his house, which was near that of Mr. Arundel, whence he was secured and carried off by safe hands to Detroit, where the Com- mandant sent him by water to Niagara, where he was soon after liberated; the Indians who witnessed this act, said it was truly heroic; they were so confounded by the unexpected conduct of this chief and by his manly and resolute appearance, that they had not time to reflect upon what they should do, and before their astonishment was well over, the prisoner was out of their reach." |
|
|
|
Another description of the same ordeal is related by Jeremiah Arm- strong, who with an older brother and sister, was captured by the Indians in 1794 opposite Blennerhassett's Island and brought to this place. He says: "On arriving at Lower Sandusky, before entering the town, they halted and formed a procession for Cox (a fellow prisoner), my sister and myself to run the gauntlet. They pointed to the home of their chief, Old Crane, (Tarhe), about a hundred yards distant, signifying that we should run into it. We did so and were received very kindly by the old chief; he was a very mild man, beloved by all." Tarhe when critically analyzed means "at him," "the tree," or "at the tree," the tree personified. Crane was a nickname given him by the French on account |
The Croghan Celebration. 43
of his height and slender form. Tarhe's wife was a white woman, a
captive named Sally Frost, who had been
adopted by the Wyandots.
LOWER SANDUSKY.
The two mile square tract which still
comprises the corporate limits
of the city of Fremont, was ceded to the
government of the United States
by the Indians at the treaty of Fort
McIntosh, January 21, 1785, renewed
at Fort Harmar, January 9, 1789, and
reaffirmed at the treaty of Green-
ville, August 3, 1795; and has
constituted a distinct military or civil
jurisdiction now for 121 years. Gen.
George Rogers Clark, the uncle
of our Major George Croghan, was one of
the Commissioners of the
United States who made the treaty with
the Indians at Fort McIntosh,
by which the spot so gallantly defended
by his nephew, twenty-eight years
after, was first ceded to the
government.
While this region was within the
jurisdiction of Delaware county
(1809-15) the term or name Lower
Sandusky was sometimes understood
to apply to all that region within the
Sandusky river valley north of
an undefined line dividing the upper
from the lower Sandusky country.
On April 29, 1811, as recorded in
journal 1, page 35, the board of county
commissioners of Delaware county passed
the following resolution:
"Resolved by the board of
commissioners of Delaware county in
conformity to a petition from the white
inhabitants of Sandusky and by
the verbal request of some of the
inhabitants of Radnor township, that
all that part of country commonly known
and called by the name of
Upper and Lower Sanduskys shall be and
now is attached to Radnor
township enjoying township privileges so
far as is agreeable to law."
This is the first record concerning
local civil government here, that
I have been able to find.
It is quite reasonable to conclude that
more than the two-mile square
tract is meant by "All that part of
country commonly known and called
by the name of Lower Sandusky." In
further support of this conclusion
may be mentioned a criminal prosecution
in the common pleas court of
Huron county at the May term, 1819,
while this territory was within
that jurisdiction. - Law Record, Vol. 1,
page 217.
The case referred to was the
State of Ohio vs. Ne-go-sheek, Ne-
gon-e-ba and Ne-gossum, three Ottawa
Indians, indicted for the murder
of John Wood and George Bishop, white
men, at a hunter's and trap-
per's camp on the Portage' river, at a
point about twelve miles from its
mouth, near what is now Oak Harbor in
Ottawa county, April 21, 1819.
The indictment was drawn and the
prosecution conducted by Ebenezer
Lane, assisted by Peter Hitchcock, both
very able lawyers and not likely
to be mistaken in the averments as to
the venue or place where the
crime was committed, which, though known
to have been several miles
distant from the two-mile square tract,
was nevertheless charged in the
indictment as committed "At the
county of Huron in Lower Sandusky."
44 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
A very interesting account of this case
may be found in the Fire-
land Pioneer, June 1865, page 43.
Ne-gossum was discharged without
trial. The other two were convicted and
sentenced to be hung, which
sentence was executed at Norwalk, July
1, 1819. Lane and Hitchcock both
subsequently became Judges of the
Supreme Court of the State.
On August 1, 1815, while the region
known as Lower Sandusky was
within the civil jurisdiction of Huron
County, having been transferred
from Delaware County to Huron, January
31, 1815, the Township of
Lower Sandusky was formed by the
commissioners of that county, and
provision made for the first election of
township officers for the town-
ship, the same to be held August 15, 1815,
at the house of Israel Har-
rington.
The order, among other things,
provided: "Said township to
comprise all that part of Huron County
west of the 24th range of Con-
necticut Reserve," which meant then
all that region of country between
the west line of Huron and the east
lines of Hancock, Wood and Lucas
Counties, lying south of Lake Erie and
extending to the south line of
Seneca County.
At this election Israel Harrington,
Randall Jerome and Jeremiah
Everett (father of Homer Everett) were
elected township trustees;
Isaac Lee, clerk; Morris A. Newman and
William Ford, overseers of
the poor, and Charles B. Fitch and Henry
Dubrow, appraisers.
This immense township thus remained
until May 18, 1819, when by
action of the county commissioners of
Huron County another township
was formed by detaching from the
township of Lower Sandusky all that
part of the same east of the Sandusky
river. To the new township the
name of Croghan was given.
FORT STEPHENSON PARK AND BIRCHARD
LIBRARY.
Fort Stephenson Park, the site of the
fort, covers a little more than
two acres of ground, and is a part of a
57 acre tract, numbered 9, of
the subdivision of the two-mile square
reservation made in 1817, and
about that time platted into inlots and
is located near the center of
the historic two-mile square tract. The
first purchaser from the gov-
ernment was Cyrus Hulburd, whose deed is
dated March 11, 1824.
From him it passed through successive
grantees till the title to the three-
fourths part fronting Croghan street was
acquired by Lewis Leppelman,
the southwest one-eighth by Dr. W. V. B.
Ames, and the southeast
one-eighth by Lucinda Claghorn. The city
of Fremont purchased this
property in 1873, the Birchard Library
Association, having contributed
$9,000 toward the purchase of the
property, and being the equitable owner
of one-third thereof. On March 29, 1878,
the Birchard Library Associa-
tion became the owner of the legal title
to the undivided one-third of
this ground by deed of conveyance from the
City council of Fremont
pursuant to an ordinance duly passed
February 18, 1878. This deed
The Croghan Celebration. 45
contained the conditions prescribed in
the ordinance which are as fol-
lows: "That said Birchard Library
Association are to have the right to
erect, maintain and occupy a building
for the Birchard Library on Lots
number two hundred and twenty-one (221)
and two hundred and forty
(240), and that said City have the right
to erect, maintain and occupy a
building on said premises for a City
Hall, where the same is now be-
ing erected on the corner of Croghan and
Arch streets, and that no other
building, fence or structure of any kind
shall hereafter be erected or
put upon any part of said Lots, nor
shall the same ever be used for any
purpose other than as a Public Park or
any part thereof sold or con-
veyed without the consent of both the
said City Council and the said
Birchard Library Association. The
control and supervision of said Park
shall be vested in the City Council and
said Birchard Library Associa-
tion jointly, but said City Council
shall have the exclusive use and con-
trol of the building now on said
Lots."
The Birchard Library Association, which
was largely instrumental in
preserving old Fort Stephenson for the
public, was founded in 1873 by
Sardis Birchard, who named a Board of
Trustees of which his nephew
Rutherford B. Hayes was the president,
and arranged to place with such
Board property and securities to the
value of $50,000. Mr. Birchard died
January 21, 1874, before the property
intended to be given was legally
vested in this Board of Trustees, and
his last will, dated August 21, 1872,
contained no provision for the Library.
His nephew and residuary legatee,
Rutherford B. Hayes, however,
on February 14, 1874, but fifteen days
subsequent to the probating of Mr.
Birchard's will, himself made a will in
his own handwriting, witnessed
by J. W. Wilson and A. E. Rice, which
will was for the sole purpose of
correcting this omission and securing
for the Library the endowment in-
tended by Mr. Birchard. Item 2 of
General Hayes's will was as follows:
"To carry out the intention of my
uncle for the benefit of the people
of Fremont and vicinity, I give and
bequeath to the Birchard Library all
my right, title and interest to the
following property, viz." Then
fol-
lowed the description of parcels of real
estate in Toledo, out of which
was to be realized an aggregate of
$40,000 for the Library. Subse-
quently this property was conveyed by
deed and later it was sold. It
was undoubtedly the expectation and
intention of Mr. Birchard to com-
plete his gift while living; hence the
absence of any provision for it in
his will, although his cash bequests to
educational and charitable institu-
tions and relatives and friends other
than his residuary legatees, aggre-
gated some $40,000.
General Hayes, in making this will at
the time he did, evidently in-
tended that even in the case of his own
death, the people of Fremont
and vicinity should receive the
unexecuted gift of Mr. Birchard; so that
the people are indebted both to the
benevolence of Sardis Birchard and to
the generosity of Rutherford B. Hayes
for Birchard Library.
46 Ohio Arch. and
Hist. Society Publications.
It is an interesting fact that the
existence of the above mentioned
will was only learned during the present
year by the finding of a photo-
graphic copy of it, which has since been
placed in Birchard Library.
The name Fort Stephenson first appears
in the military records as
follows:
"FORT STEPHENSON, May 22, 1813.
May it please your Excellency:
Sir: Agreeably to your orders I have
forwarded all the articles
specified therein. * * * Considerable
manual labor has been done on
the garrison since you left this place
and improvements are daily making.
*
* *One person has been buried since you left this place. He came
from Fort Meigs with a part of the
baggage of Major Tod. * * * "
R. E. Post, Adjutant.
The Major Tod mentioned became the
president judge of the com-
mon pleas court of the district to which
Sandusky county was attached
when organized and presided at the first
term of that court held in the
county, May 8, 1820, at Croghansville.
At the time of the defense of Fort
Stephenson there were but very
few white inhabitants in Lower Sandusky,
as is evidenced by the follow-
ing petition to Governor Meigs, dated
December 21, 1813:
"May it please your Excellency:-
"The undersigned inhabitants and
settlers on the plains of Lower
Sandusky on the reservation beg leave to
humbly represent their present
situation."
"In the first instance B. F.
Stickney, Indian Agent has denied us
the right or privilege of settling on
these grounds * * * and has
actually instructed Gen. Gano, our
present Commandant, to dispossess us
of our present inheritance. Many of us *
* * have been severe suff-
erers since the commencement of the
present war. * * * We do not,
neither can we attempt to claim any
legal right to the ground or spot
of earth on which we have each
individually settled; but the improve-
ments which we have made and the
buildings which we have erected we
trust will not be taken from us. * * *
Permission to build has been
granted by Gen. Gano to those who have
erected cabins since his arrival."
Signed by Morris A. Newman, Israel
Harrington, George Bean,
Geo. Ermatington, R. E. Post, Asa Stoddard,
R. Loomis, Jesse Skinner,
William Leach, Walter Brabrook, Louis
Moshelle, Wm. Hamilton, Lewis
Geaneau, Patrick Cress.
Whether this petition was granted or not
there is no record to
show, but it is probable that it was.
But few of the names of the four-
teen signers appear in the subsequent
history of the county affairs.
Israel Harrington and Morris A. Newman,
however, became Associate
Judges of the Common Pleas Court, and
Judge Newman was also County
Commissioner. It was at his tavern on
the northeast corner of Ohio
The Croghan Celebration. 47
Avenue and Pine Street, in
Croghansville, that the first term of the
common pleas court in the county was
held, and Judge Harrington was
one of the associate judges presiding at
that term.
BALL'S BATTLE.
On July 30, 1813, when General Harrison
sent Colonel Wells to
relieve Major Croghan from command at
Fort Stephenson, he was
escorted from Fort Seneca by Colonel
Ball's squadron, consisting of about
100 horse. On the way down they fell in
with a body of Indians and
fought what has since been called Ball's
Battle. Israel Harrington, a
resident of Lower Sandusky at the time
of the battle and one of the
first associate judges of Sandusky
county, said that "three days after
he passed the ground and counted thereon
thirteen dead Indians awfully
cut and mangled by the horsemen. None of
the squadron were killed
and but one slightly wounded." The
scene of this battle is about one
and a half miles southwest of Fremont on
the west bank of the river,
near what is now the residence of
Birchard Havens. There was an
oak tree on the site of the action
within the memory of persons still
living, with seventeen hacks in it to
indicate the number of Indians killed;
but this tree has unfortunately
disappeared as have many other monu-
ments of those stirring times. Howe
says: "The squadron were moving
toward the fort when they were suddenly
fired upon by the Indians from
the west side of the road, whereupon
Colonel Ball ordered a charge
and he and suite and the right flank
being in advance first came into
action. The colonel struck the first
blow. He dashed in between two
savages and cut down the one on the
right; the other being slightly in
the rear, made a blow with a tomahawk at
his back, when, by a sudden
spring of his horse, it fell short and
was buried deep in the cantel and
pad of his saddle. Before the savage
could repeat the blow he was shot
by Corporal Ryan. Lieut. Hedges (now
Gen. Hedges of Mansfield) fol-
lowing in the rear, mounted on a small
horse pursued a big Indian and
just as he had come up to him his
stirrup broke, and he fell headfirst
off his horse, knocking the Indian down.
Both sprang to their feet, when
Hedges struck the Indian across his
head, and as he was falling buried
his sword up to its hilt in his body. At
this time Captain Hopkins was
seen on the left side in pursuit of a
powerful savage, when the latter
turned and made a blow at the captain
with a tomahawk, at which the
horse sprang to one side. Cornet Hayes
then came up, and the Indian
struck at him, his horse in like manner
evading the blow. Serj. Ander-
son now arriving, the Indian was soon
dispatched. By this time the
skirmish was over, the Indians who were
only about 20 in number being
nearly all cut down; and orders were
given to retreat to the main
squadron. Col. Ball dressed his men
ready for a charge, should the
Indians appear in force, and moved down
without further molestation
to the fort, where they arrived about 4
P. M."
48 Ohio
Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
Among Colonel Ball's troopers was a
private, James Webb, the
father of Lucy Webb Hayes, whose old
flint-lock rifle and hunting horn
are among the treasures of Spiegel
Grove.
In the plan of the environs of the Fort,
it will be noted that the
spot where the British officers, Lieut.
Colonel Shortt and Lieut. Gordon
were buried, is marked. The new High
School building now covers this
spot, and in 1891, while excavating for
its foundation portions of the
graves were uncovered and metallic
buttons with the number of the
regiment, 41, stamped on them were
found, which have been placed in
Birchard Library by Mr. H. S. Dorr,
their owner. Mr. Dorr, soon after
finding these buttons showed them to
President Hayes who stated that
in reading an autobiography of a Scotch
Bishop Gordon, he found the
following: "The great sorrow of my
life was the loss of a son in an
unimportant battle in an obscure place
in North America--called Fort
Sandusky."
From an English work, the
"Dictionary of National Biography" the
following facts are gathered. The father
of Lieut. Gordon was James
Bently Gordon (1750-1819) of
Londonderry, Ireland, who graduated from
Trinity College, Dublin, in 1773 took
Holy Orders and subsequently was
presented with the living, first of
Cannaway on Cork and finally that of
Killegney in Wexford, both of which he
retained till his death, in April,
1819. He was a zealous student of
history and geography and a volum-
inous writer of books on such subjects,
among which were "Terraquea
or a New System of Geography and Modern
History," "A History of the
Rebellion in Ireland in 1798,"
"A History of the British Islands" and
"An Historical and Geographical
Memoir of the North American Con-
tinent."
He married in 1779 a daughter of Richard
Bookey of Wicklow, by
whom he had several children. His eldest
son, James George Gordon,
entered the army and was killed at Fort
Sandusky in August, 1813.
DEFENDERS OF FORT STEPHENSON.
The public is greatly indebted to Col.
Webb C. Hayes for his un-
tiring and partially successful efforts
in procuring the names, appearing
below, of the officers and soldiers in
the garrison at Fort Stephenson at
the time of its heroic defence.
The list is not complete, containing
only seventy-eight names out of
the 160 in the fort at the time. The war
records at Washington do not
show the names of the volunteers, who
were detached and assigned to
this service; hence it was impossible
for him to obtain their names.
The following are the names furnished by
Col. Hayes:
Major George Croghan, Seventeenth U. S.
Inf., commanding.
Captain James Hunter.
First lieutenant, Benjamin Johnson;
second lieutenant, Cyrus A.
The Croghan Celebration. 49
Baylor; ensign, Edmund Shipp; Ensign,
Joseph Duncan, all of the
Seventeenth U. S. Infantry.
First Lieutenant, Joseph Anthony,
Twenty-fourth U. S. Infantry.
Second Lieutenant, John Meek, Seventh U.
S. Infantry.
Petersburg Volunteers.
Pittsburg Blues.
Greensburg Riflemen.
Captain Hunter's company, Capt. James
Hunter commanding. Ser-
geants, Wayne Case, James Huston,
Obadiah Norton. Corporals, Matthew
Burns, William Ewing, John Maxwell.
Privates: Pleasant Bailey, Samuel Brown,
Elisha Condiff, Thomas
Crickman, Ambrose Dean, Leonard George,
Nathaniel Gill, John Harley,
Jonathan Hartley, William McDonald,
Joseph McKey, Frederick Metts,
Rice Millender, John Mumman, Samuel
Pearsall, Daniel Perry, William
Ralph, John Rankin, Elisha Rathbun,
Aaron Ray, Robert Row, John
Salley, John Savage, John Smith, Thomas
Striplin, William Sutherland,
Martin Tanner, John Zett, David Perry.
Captain Duncan's company, 17th U. S.
Inf., First Lieutenant Benja-
min Johnson commanding. Second
Lieutenant Cyrus A. Baylor. Ser-
geants, Henry Lawell; Thomas McCaul,
John M. Stotts, Notley Williams.
Privates: Henry L. Bethers, Cornelius S.
Bevins, Joseph Blamer,
Jonathan C. Bowling, Nicholas Bryant,
Robert Campbell, Samuel Camp-
bell, Joseph Klinkenbeard, Joseph
Childers, Ambrose Dine, Jacob Downs,
James Harris, James Heartley, William
Johnson, Elisha Jones, Thomas
Linchard, William McClelland, Joseph
McKee, John Martin, Ezekiel
Mitchell, William Rogers, David
Sudderfield, Thomas Taylor, John
Williams.
Detachment Twenty-fourth U. S. Infantry.
First Lieutenant Joseph
Anthony commanding.
Privates: William Gaines, John
Foster, Jones, Samuel
Riggs, Samuel Thurman.
Greensburg Riflemen. Sergeant Abraham
Weaver.
Petersburg Volunteers. Private Edmund
Brown.
Pittsburg Blues.
CAPTAIN SAMUEL BRADY.
During the war of the Revolution,
Captain Samuel Brady was sent
here by direction of Washington to learn
if possible the strength of the
Indians in this quarter. He approached
the village under cover of night
and fording the river secreted himself
on the Island just below the falls.
When morning dawned a fog rested over
the valley which completely
cut off from view the shore from either
side. About 11 o'clock a bright
sun quickly dispelled the mist and the
celebrated borderer became the
witness from his conealment of a series
of interesting horse races by
the Indians during the three days he
remained on the Island, from which
Vol. XVI-4.
50 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
he concluded that they were not then
preparing for any hostile move-
ments, and started to return, and after
a perilous tramp of several days
reached the fort from which he had been
sent out. This Island where
Brady secreted himself was known among
the early settler's as Brady's
Island. Capt. Brady subsequently started
on a scout towards the San-
dusky villages as before and had arrived
in the neighborhood, when he
was made a prisoner and taken to one of
the villages. There was great
rejoicing at the capture of Brady, and
great preparation and parade were
made for torturing him. The Indians
collected in a large body, old
and young, on the day set for his
execution. Among them was Simon
Girty, whom he knew, they having been
boys together. Girty refused
to recognize or aid him in any way. The
time for execution arrived,
the fires were lighted, the circle
around him was drawing closer and he
began sensibly to feel the effects of
the fire. The withes which confined
his arms and legs were getting loose and
he soon found he could free
himself. A fine looking squaw of one of
the chiefs ventured a little too
near for her own safety and entirely within
his reach. By one powerful
exertion he cleared himself from
everything by which he was confined,
caught the squaw by the head and
shoulders, and threw her on top of the
burning pile, and in the confusion that
followed made his escape. The
Indians pursued, but he outdistanced
them, the crowning feat being his
celebrated leap across the Cuyahoga
river at the present site of Kent,
known as Brady's Leap.
Brady's name is perpetuated in the chief
island of Sandusky river,
within the limits of the city of Fremont;
his exploits are typical of the
emergencies of that early frontier life
and of the spirit in which they
were everywhere met.
SANDUSKY COUNTY.
Gen. Arthur St. Clair, governor of the
Northwest Territory, or-
ganized Hamilton County, February 11,
1792, with Cincinnati as the
county seat, and the present Sandusky
County forming a very small
portion of it. Subsequently Wayne County
was organized, August 15,
1796, with Detroit as the county seat,
covering a vast extent of terri-
tory from the Cuyahoga river on the east
and extending as far west
as Fort Wayne, Indiana, and the present
site of Chicago, with its northern
boundary the Canadian boundary line,
extending through the Great Lakes
from Lake Superior to Lake Erie. This
included the present county of
Sandusky. On the organization of the
state of Ohio it was included
in Franklin county with Franklinton as
the county seat, until February 17,
1809, when it became a part of Delaware
county with Delaware the county
seat, and so remained until January 31,
1815. In April, 1811, Lower
Sandusky by name was attached to Radnor
township of Delaware county,
by the county commissioners for township
purposes. On January 31,
1815, it became a part of Huron county
with Avery, now Milan, as the
county seat, until 1818, and after that
date with Norwalk as the county
The Croghan Celebration. 51
seat. On February 20, 1820, the state
legislature organized the terri-
tory ceded by the Indians under the
treaty of September 29, 1817, into
fourteen counties, of which Sandusky was
one. Sandusky county as
thus organized, extended from the west
line of the Western Reserve
to the east line of Wood county, and
from the north line of Seneca
county to the lake; and included all of
the present counties of San-
dusky and Ottawa, and parts of Erie and
Lucas. For the first four
years, Sandusky and Seneca counties were
joined for judicial purposes.
Croghansville, on the east bank of the
Sandusky river, was the first
county seat, until 1822, when the town
Sandusky on the west bank became
the permanent county seat and later
these two towns were joined and
known as the town of Lower Sandusky, as
mentioned below.
The name of the county is derived from
that of the river, which
enters from the south, two miles east of
the southeast corner of Ball-
ville township, and flows northeasterly,
entirely across the county, a dis-
tance, following its meanderings, of
about thirty miles, when it empties
into the bay which by early geographers
was named Lake Sandusky.
Originally, as is shown by a plat of a
survey made by Josiah At-
kins, Jr. (Plat Record 3, page 3), the
term "Lower Sandusky" was ap-
plied to the entire tract of "two
miles square on each side of the lower
rapids of the Sandusky River," as
originally ceded by the Indians at the
treaty of Fort McIntosh, January 21,
1785, and contained the village of
Croghansville. According to this plat,
Croghansville extended across the
river and included several inlots and
some larger tracts on the west side,
the 57-acre tract containing the site of
the Fort being one.
After the township of Croghan was formed
in 1819, this term had
reference to the whole tract on both
sides of the Sandusky river; but
thereafter the name "Sandusky"
was applied to the west side exclu-
sively, both as to the village and
township, the village being sometimes
called "Town of Sandusky."
When the county was organized it
contained two townships only,
namely, Sandusky, which included the
village of that name on the west
side and all of the county west of the
river; and Croghan, which in-
cluded the village of Croghansville and
all of the county east of the
river. Subsequently, in 1827, that
portion of Croghan township in which
the village on the east side was
located, was attached to Sandusky town-
ship by the county commissioners. In
1829 the territory of both villages,
by act of the legislature, was
incorporated by the name of the "Town
of Lower Sandusky." It was changed
to Fremont at the October term,
1849, of the common pleas court (Journal
6, page 437).
It is a matter of regret that the name
about which cluster so many
interesting traditions and local
historical associations was ever changed
to one which, however highly honored,
carries with it no suggestions of
these traditions or local history. The
change was, however, thought to
be called for in order to prevent
confusion in the matter of the postal ser-
vice, owing to the quadruplication of
names.
|
52 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
The name Croghansville, for the village, was probably first suggested by Josiah Meigs, Commissioner of the General Land Office, in a letter from Washington City, April 12, 1816, in which, among other words are these: "If it were left to me to name the town at Lower Sandusky I should name it in honor of the gallant youth, Col. Croghan -and should say it should be Croghansville. The name is still preserved in that of the school on the hill on the East Side, known as Croghansville School, as well as in the street abutting on Fort Stephenson.
REMARKS OF J. P. MOORE. I was born in Pennsylvania in 1829 and brought to the Black Swamp in, 1834. All my older brothers attended the Croghan celebra- |
|
|
|
construction of the fort and many incidents connected with its building and its defense against the British and Indians. The late David Deal, who was a member of Col. James Stephen- son's regiment of Ohio militia, told me that Col. Stephenson left them at Fort Meigs in January, 1813, to go to Lower Sandusky to build the fort which has ever since been called Fort Stephenson. I had always supposed that the first fort constructed on this site was built by Col. Stephenson's soldiers in January, 1813, but Col. Hayes has shown me a number of official records and a copy of an order issued by Brig. General William Irvine dated at Fort Pitt (now Pitts- burg) November 11, 1782, during the Revolutionary War, to Major Craig as follows: "Sir. I have received intelligence through various channels that the British have established a post at Lower Sandusky, etc., etc., also a copy of the treaty by which the reservation (present corporation limits of Fremont), two miles square, of which Fort Stephenson is about the center, was established by the treaty of Fort McIntosh as early as 1785 and continued in all subsequent treaties. Also an order from Governor Meigs of Ohio to Captain John Campbell dated Zanes- |
The Croghan Celebration. 53
ville, June 11, 1812. "You will
take with you the necessary tools for
building two blockhouses at
Sandusky." * * *. "You will build two
blockhouses and piquet them so as to
protect the United States trading
house and store at the place." * *
* "I expect you will meet at San-
dusky Major Butler, from Delaware with a
company to assist you."
Governor Meigs' letter shows that the
fort was built in 1812, but
the official record also shows that it
was abandoned for a short time
after Hull's surrender.
The old soldier Figley, of Columbiana
county, came here early in
February, 1813, and worked on the fort
until mustered out at Cleveland
on June 1st of that year. He related to
me how the pickets were drawn
by oxen from the vicinity of Stony
Prairie to the fort and points sharp-
ened and the posts set in the ground
close up one against the other.
Many of the oxen engaged in drawing them
died of starvation or were
devoured by the wolves howling around
the fort.
The company to which James Kirk belonged
came to the fort June
1, 1813, and worked here until the
arrival of the British and Indians
the day before the battle. James Kirk
himself had been detailed to carry
dispatches to Fort Seneca the day before
the battle so that he was not
present but came down early on the
morning of August 3 and helped
bury the British dead. He distinctly
heard the firing of the British can-
non and howitzers and noticed that some
discharges were louder than
others.
Kirk was 25 years old at that time and
after his discharge opened
a blacksmith shop in Lower Sandusky in
1818 and in 1828 went to Port
Clinton. He said that the well in the
fort was not a good one, so that
the garrison got their water from a
spring at the foot of Garrison
street, bringing it through a small gate
on the east side of the fort,
for which gate Kirk made the hinges.
I sent my son Theodore to visit James
Kirk in 188- and get a
description of the fort. Kirk said
"Mark off a square plat of ground
containing half an acre with a block
house on the northeast corner and
one in the northwest corner, this was
the original fort. In June, 1813,
when we came here the fort was found to
be too small. He said, "mark
off another square on the west side of
the old square and this you will
see will place the northwest blockhouse
in the center of the north line
of the enlarged fort. This was the
blockhouse from which "Old Betsy"
cleared the ditch when it was filled
with Col. Shortt's men. There was
a sealed log house in the new part
filled with biscuit for Perry's fleet.
This house was knocked down level with
the pickets by the British
cannon balls. The northeast blockhouse
was in the center of Croghan
and Arch streets. The center blockhouse
was about opposite the monu-
ment. The northwest angle of the fort
extended out about 15 feet into
High street. There were many extra guns
in the fort, as a company
of Pennsylvania soldiers had deposited
their guns there a few days be-
|
54 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
fore the battle on their way here from Fort Meigs. Their time being out, they were on their way home to be mustered out. The walls of the fort were made of logs, some round, some smooth on one side, half of the other logs averaging about 18 inches in thick- ness, all set firmly in the earth, each picket crowded closely against the other and all about ten feet high, sharpened at the top. The walls enclosed about one acre of ground. After Major Croghan took com- mand July 15, 1813, he had a ditch dug six feet deep and nine feet wide around the outside, throwing about one-half of the earth against the foot of the pickets and graded down to the bottom of the ditch; |
|
|
|
the rest of the earth was thrown on the outer bank and the depth of the ditch thus increased. Major Croghan had large logs placed on top of the wall of the fort, so adjusted that an inconsiderable weight would cause them to fall from their position and crush any who might be below. When the British landed opposite Brady's Island they sent a flag of truce under Col. Elliott who was met by Ensign Shipp on the ridge where the parsonage of St. John's Lutheran Church (which was for- merly the court house), now stands. This was eloquently described to me by Thomas L. Hawkins, the poet, preacher and orator. A ravine ran up from the river north of the fort through Justice street across the pike in a southwestern direction near the court house, |
The Croghan Celebration. 55
the British brought their cannon up this
ravine. They would load
their cannon and then run them up out of
the ravine and after dis-
charging them, back them down again to
reload out of range of the
guns of the fort. The next ravine south
of this ran up Croghan street,
turning to the southwest at High street,
thence northwest through the
northwest corner of the Presbyterian
church lot. This ravine formed
the north boundary of the plateau or
ridge on which Fort Stephens on
was located and on which ridge ran the
Harrison trail to the southwest
up through Spiegel Grove and on to Fort
Seneca. The next ravine
south of this extended between Birchard
avenue and Garrison street,
one branch ran towards the Methodist
church through the Dorr and
McCulloch property. It was from this
last named ravine that the British
Grenadiers made a feint against Capt.
Hunter's company just before Col.
Shortt made his assault on the northwest
corner of the fort.
Lieut. Col. Short and Lieut. J. G.
Gordon, of the 41st Regt. were
buried near the south entrance of the
high school building.
RECEPTION AT SPIEGEL GROVE.
Following the exercises of the afternoon
at Fort Stephenson, an
informal reception was held at Spiegel
Grove, to the out-of-town guests
of the city and the citizens at large.
Col. Webb C. Hayes, the prime
mover of the whole celebration, Mr. and
Mrs. Birchard A. Hayes and
Mrs. Fanny Hayes Smith cordially
received the guests on the great
piazza, where the Vice-President, the
Governor, the Governor's Staff
and the staff and line officers of the
Sixth Regiment were guests of
honor. Great numbers of persons moved
about through the beautiful
grounds, enjoying the music by the Light
Guard Band stationed in
front of the house, the superb weather
and the gay spectacle. The week
having been observed as Old Home Week,
many former residents of
Fremont were at hand to renew old
acquaintances and assist in doing
the honors of the place to the crowds of
strangers.
THE VENETIAN SPECTACLE.
With the falling of dusk the immense
crowds commenced to assemble
to witness the glories of as realistic a
Venetian night as was possible
to produce, following the plans
originated by Dr. Stamm, who has
several times viewed these spectacles in
Venice.
The river banks between the L. E. &
W. and State street bridges
were thronged with crowds, while the
special guests and those, by whose
efforts the day was a success, occupied
the guests' stand, built on the
water just north of the bridge.
More than a hundred boats and launches,
gaily decorated and illum-
inated, approached the reviewing stand,
presenting a beautiful sight
with their swaying colored lights on a
background of dark sky,
|
56 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
emphasized by the hundreds of Japanese lanterns strung along either bank and in sweeping festooons across the big Lake Erie bridge. Near the bridge, and extending across the river, were seven of the largest boats in the river, bearing huge electric transparencies upon which appeared six-foot letters spelling the name Croghan, which was also seen in a set piece. The hit of the evening was the reproduction of Fort Stephen- |
|
|
|
The fireworks, in charge of Chief Reiff, of the fire department, were magnificent and no accidents occurred. Especial praise is due Charles Hermon, the lamplighter, who superintended the illuminations. Commo- dore Coonrod's fleet as managed by Charles Grable, was a thing of beauty. The display occupied three hours and general satisfaction on the part of all was evident in their attention.
HARRISON'S NORTHWESTERN CAMPAIGN. The best description extant of General Harrison's Northwestern Campaign is that contained in "A History of the Late War in the Western Country," by Robert B. McAfee, Lexington, Ky., 1816, a rare and valuable volume. Major McAfee was himself an officer in that campaign, serving as a captain in the regiment of mounted riflemen commanded by Col. Richard M. Johnson. In his Preface he acknowledges his indebtedness to Gen. Harrison, Governor Shelby, Colonels Croghan and Tod and Colonel Wood of the Engineers for official correspondence and assistance in procuring material and formation. The chapter relating to the Tippecanoe campaign in 1811 contains the following references to some of the Kentucky Vol- unteers: "Colonel Keiger, who raised a small company of 79 men near Louisville, including among them Messrs. Croghan, O'Fallen, Shipp, Chum and Edwards, who afterward distinguished themselves as officers in the army of the United States." |
The Croghan Celebration. 57
Governor Shelby in his letters to the
War Department speaks
highly of Colonel Boyd and his brigade
and of Clark and Croghan who
were his aides.
Of the above, Croghan and Shipp fought
together at the defense
of Fort Stephenson. Shipp was the
officer sent by Croghan to meet the
flag of truce sent by General Proctor
when the formal demand for the
surrender of Fort Stephenson was made.
O'Fallen was a cousin of
Croghan and during the campaign was
aide-de-camp to General Harrison.
We copy from McAfee his account of the
defense of Fort Stephenson
and of Harrison's expedition to Canada
and the victorious battle at the
Thames. Also Colonel Croghan's
subsequent campaign against the British
at Mackinac in the joint army and naval
expedition under the command
of Commodore Sinclair.
"General Harrison had returned from
Cleveland to Lower Sandusky
(July, 1813) several days before the
arrival of the enemy, and received
at that place from the express the
information that Camp Meigs was
again invested. He then immediately
removed his headquarters to Seneca
town, about nine miles up the Sandusky
river, where he constructed a
fortified camp, having left Major
Croghan with 160 regulars in Fort
Stephenson and taken with him to Seneca
about 140 more, under the
immediate command of Colonel Wells. A
few days afterward he was
reinforced by the arrival of 300
regulars under Colonel Paul, and Colonel
Ball's corps of 150 dragoons, which made
his whole force at that place
upwards of 600 strong. He was soon
joined also by Generals McArthur
and Cass; and Colonel Owings with a
regiment of 500 regulars from Ken-
tucky, was also advancing to the
frontiers; but he did not arrive at head-
quarters before the siege of Fort Meigs
had been abandoned by the
enemy. * * *
The force which Proctor and Tecumseh
brought against us in this
instance has been ascertained to have
been about 5,000 strong. A greater
number of Indians were collected by them
for this expedition than ever
were assembled in one body on any other
occasion during the whole war.
Having raised the siege of Camp Meigs,
the British sailed round
into Sandusky bay, whilst a competent
number of their savage allies
marched across through the swamps of
Portage River, to co-operate in
a combined attack at Lower Sandusky,
expecting no doubt that General
Harrison's attention would be chiefly
directed to forts Winchester and
Meigs. The General however had
calculated on their taking this course,
and had been careful to keep patrols
down the bay, opposite the mouth
of Portage River, where he supposed
their forces would debark.
Several days before the British had
invested Fort Meigs, General
Harrison, with Major Croghan and some
other officers, had examined the
heights which surround Fort Stephenson;
and as the hill on the opposite
or southeast side of the river, was
found to be the most commanding
eminence, the General had some thoughts
of removing the fort to that
place, and Major Croghan declared his
readiness to undertake the work.
58 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
But the General did not authorize him to
do it, as he believed that if
the enemy intended to invade our
territory again, they would do it be-
fore the removal could be completed. It
was then finally concluded, that
the fort which was calculated for a
garrison of only two hundred men,
could not be defended against the heavy
artillery of the enemy; and that
if the British should approach it by water,
which would cause a pre-
sumption that they had brought their
heavy artillery, the fort must be
abandoned and burned, provided a retreat
could be effected with safety.
In the orders left with Major Croghan it
was stated,-"Should the
British troops approach you in force
with cannon, and you can dis-
cover them in time to effect a retreat,
you will do so immediately, destroy-
ing all the public stores. * * * You
must be aware that the attempt
to retreat in the face of an Indian
force would be vain. Against such
an enemy your garrison would be safe,
however great the number."
On the evening of the 29th, Gen.
Harrison received intelligence by
express from Gen. Clay, that the enemy
had abandoned the siege of Fort
Meigs; and as the Indians on that day
had swarmed in the woods round
his camp, he entertained no doubt but an
immediate attack was intended
either on Sandusky or Seneca. He
therefore immediately called a council
of war, consisting of McArthur, Cass,
Ball, Paul, Wood, Hukill, Holmes
and Graham, who were unanimously of the
opinion that Fort Stephen-
son was untenable against heavy
artillery, and that as the enemy could
bring with facility any quantity of
battering cannon against it, by which
it must inevitably fall, and as it was
an unimportant post, containing
nothing the loss of which would be felt
by us, that the garrison should
therefore not be reinforced but
withdrawn and the place destroyed. In
pursuance of this decision the General
immediately despatched the fol-
lowing order to Major Croghan:
"Sir, immediately on receiving this
letter, you will abandon Fort
Stephenson, set fire to it and repair
with your command this night to
headquarters. Cross the river and come
up on the opposite side. If
you should deem and find it
impracticable to make good your march
to this place, take the road to Huron
and pursue it with the utmost
circumspection and despatch."
This order was sent by Mr. Conner and
two Indians, who lost
their way in the dark and did not arrive
at Fort Stephenson before 11
o'clock the next day. When Major Croghan
received it, he could not
then retreat with safety, as the Indians
were hovering round the fort
in considerable force. He called a
council of his officers, a majority
of whom coincided with him in opinion
that a retreat would be unsafe,
and that the post could be maintained
against the enemy at least until
further instructions could be received
from headquarters. The major
therefore immediately returned the
following answer:
"Sir, I have received yours of
yesterday, 10 o'clock P. M., ordering
me to destroy this place and make good
my retreat, which was received
The Croghan Celebration. 59
too late to be carried into execution.
We have determined to maintain
this place and by heavens we can."
In writing this note Major Croghan had a
view to the probability
of its falling into the hands of the
enemy, and on that account made
use of a stronger language than would
otherwise have been consistent
with propriety. It reached the General
on the same day, who did not
fully understand the circumstances and
motives under which it had been
dictated. The following order was
therefore immediately prepared, and
sent with Colonel Wells in the morning,
escorted by Colonel Ball with
his corps of dragoons.
"July 30, 1813.
"Sir. The General has received your
letter of this date, informing
him that you had thought proper to
disobey the order issued from this
office, and delivered to you this
morning. It appears that the informa-
tion which dictated the order was
incorrect; and as you did not receive
it in the night as was expected, it
might have been proper that you should
have reported the circumstance and your
situation, before you proceeded
to its execution. This might have been
passed over, but I am directed
to say to you, that an officer who presumes
to aver that he has made
his resolution and that he will act in
direct opposition to the orders
of his General can no longer be
entrusted with a separate command.
Colonel Wells is sent to relieve you.
You will deliver the command to
him and repair with Col. Ball's squadron
to this place. By command
etc.; A. H. Holmes, Asst. Adj.
General."
The squadron of dragoons on this trip
met with a party of Indians
near Lower Sandusky and killed 11 out of
12. The Indians had formed
an ambush and fired on the advance guard
consisting of a sergeant and
five privates. Upon seeing the squadron
approach they fled, but were
pursued and soon overtaken by the front
squad of Captain Hopkins's
troop. The greater part of them were cut
down by Colonel Ball and
Captain Hopkins with his subalterns,
whose horses being the fleetest over-
took them first. The loss on our part
was two privates wounded and
two horses killed.
Colonel Wells being left in the command
of Fort Stephenson, Major
Croghan returned with the squadron to
headquarters. He there explained
his motives for writing such a note,
which were deemed satisfactory and
having remained all night with the
General who treated him politely,
he was permitted to return to his
command in the morning with written
orders similar to those he had received
before.
A reconnoitering party which had been
sent from headquarters to
the shore of the lake, about 20 miles
distant from Fort Stephenson, dis-
covered the approach of the enemy by
water on the evening of the 31st
of July. They returned by the fort,
after 12 o'clock the next day, and
had passed it but a few hours when the
enemy made their appearance
before it. The Indians showed themselves
first on the hill over the river,
60 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
and were saluted by a 6-pounder, the
only piece of artillery in the fort,
which soon caused them to retire. In
half an hour the British gun-
boats came in sight; and the Indian
forces displayed themselves in every
direction, with a view to intercept the
garrison should a retreat be
attempted. The 6-pounder was fired a few
times at the gun-boats,
which was returned by the artillery of
the enemy. A landing of their
troops with a 51/2-inch howitzer was
effected about a mile below the
fort; and Major Chambers accompanied by
Dickson was despatched
towards the fort with a flag, and was
met on the part of Major Cro-
ghan by Ensign Shipp of the 17th Regiment.
After the usual cere-
monies Major Chambers observed to Ensign
Shipp, that he was in-
structed by Gen. Proctor to demand the
surrender of the fort, as he
was anxious to spare the effusion of
human blood, which he could not
do, should he be under the necessity of
reducing it by the powerful force
of artillery, regulars and Indians under
his command. Shipp replied
that the commandant of the fort and its
garrison were determined to
defend it to the last extremity, that no
force however great could induce
them to surrender, as they were resolved
to maintain their post or to
bury themselves in its ruins. Dickson
then said that their immense
body of Indians could not be restrained
from massacring the whole
garrison in case of success-of which we
have no doubt, rejoined
Chambers, as we are amply prepared.
Dickson then proceeded to re-
mark that it was a pity so fine a young
man should fall into the hands
of the savages-sir, for God's sake
surrender, and prevent the dreadful
massacre that will be caused by your
resistance. Mr. Shipp replied that
when the fort was taken there would be
none to massacre. It will not
be given up while a man is able to
resist. An Indian at this moment
came out of an adjoining ravine and
advancing to the Ensign took hold
of his sword and attempted to wrest it
from him. Dickson interfered,
and having restrained the Indian,
affected great anxiety to get him safe
into the fort.
The enemy now opened their fire from
their 6-pounders in the gun
boats and the howitzer on shore, which
they continued through the
night with but little intermission and
with very little effect. The forces
of the enemy consisted of about 500
regulars, and about 800 Indians
commanded by Dickson, the whole being
commanded by Gen. Proctor
in person. Tecumseh was stationed on the
road to fort Meigs with a
body of 2,000 Indians, expecting to
intercept a reinforcement on that
route.
Major Croghan through the evening
occasionally fired his 6-pounder,
at the same time changing its place
occasionally to induce a belief that
he had more than one piece. As it
produced very little execution on
the enemy, and he was desirous of saving
his ammunition, he soon dis-
continued his fire. The enemy had
directed their fire against the north-
western angle of the fort which induced
the commandant to believe that
an attempt to storm his works would be
made at that point. In the
The Croghan Celebration. 61
night Captain Hunter was directed to
remove the 6-pounder to a block-
house from which it would rake that
angle. By great industry and per-
sonal exertion, Captain Hunter soon
accomplished this object in secrecy.
The embrasure was masked, and the piece
loaded with a half charge of
powder and double charge of slugs and
grape shot.
Early in the morning of the second, the
enemy opened their fire
from their howitzer, and three
6-pounders which they had landed in
the night, and planted in a point of
woods about 250 yards from the
fort. In the evening, about 4 o'clock,
they concentrated the fire of all
their guns on the northwest angle, which
convinced Major Croghan that
they would endeavor to make a breach and
storm the works at that
point; he therefore immediately had that
place strengthened as much
as possible with bags of flour and sand,
which were so effectual that
the picketing in that place sustained no
material injury. Sergeant Weaver
with five or six gentlemen of the
Petersburg Volunteers and Pittsburgh
Blues, who happened to be in the fort,
was entrusted with the manage-
ment of the 6-pounder.
Late in the evening when the smoke of
the firing had completely
enveloped the fort, the enemy proceeded
to make the assault. Two
feints were made towards the southern
angle, where Captain Hunter's
lines were formed; and at the same time
a column of 350 men were dis-
covered advancing through the smoke,
within 20 paces of the north-
western angle. A heavy galling fire of
musketry was now opened upon
them from the fort which threw them into
some confusion. Colonel
Shortt who headed the principal column
soon rallied his men and led
them with great bravery to the brink of
the ditch. After a momentary
pause he leaped into the ditch; calling
to his men to follow him, and in
a few minutes it was full. The masked
porthole was now opened, and
the 6-pounder, at a distance of 30 feet,
poured such destruction upon
them that but few who had entered the
ditch were fortunate enough to
escape. A precipitate and confused
retreat was the immediate conse-
quence, although some of the officers
attempted to rally their men. The
other column which was led by Colonel
Warburton and Major Chambers,
was also routed in confusion by a
destructive fire from the line com-
manded by Captain Hunter. The whole of
them fled into the adjoining
wood, beyond the reach of our small
arms. During the assault, which
lasted half an hour, the enemy kept up
an incessant fire from their
howitzer and five 6-pounders. They left
Colonel Shortt, a lieutenant
and 25 privates dead in the ditch; and
the total number of prisoners
taken was 26, most of them badly
wounded. Major Muir was knocked
down in the ditch, and lay among the
dead, till the darkness of the
night enabled him to escape in safety.
The loss of the garrison was
one killed and 7 slightly wounded. The
total loss of the enemy could
not be less than 150 killed and wounded.
When night came on, which was soon after
the assault, the wounded
in the ditch were in a desperate
situation. Complete relief could not be
62 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
brought to them by either side with any
degree of safety. Major Cro-
ghan however relieved them as much as
possible - he contrived to convey
them waterover the picketting in
buckets, and a ditch was opened under
the pickets through which those who were
able and willing were en-
couraged to crawl into the fort. All who
were able preferred of course
to follow their defeated comrades, and
many others were carried from
the vicinity of the fort by the Indians,
particularly their own killed and
wounded; and in the night about 3
o'clock the whole British and Indian
force commenced a disorderly retreat. So
great was their precipitation,
that they left a sail boat containing
some clothing and a considerable
quantity of military stores; and on the
next day 70 stand of arms and
some braces of pistols were picked up
round the fort. Their hurry and
confusion was caused by the apprehension
of an attack from Gen. Har-
rison, of whose position and force they
had probably received an exag-
gerated account.
It was the intention of Gen. Harrison,
should the enemy succeed
against Fort Stephenson, or should they
endeavor to turn his left and
fall back on Upper Sandusky, to leave
his camp at Seneca and fall back
for the protection of that place. But he
discovered by the firing on the
evening of the 1st inst that the enemy
had nothing but light artillery,
which could make no impression on the
fort; and he knew that an
attempt to storm it without making a
breach could be successfully re-
pelled by the garrison; he therefore
determined to wait for the arrival
of 250 mounted volunteers under Rennick,
being the advance of 700 who
were approaching by the way of Upper
Sandusky, and then to march
against the enemy and raise the siege,
if their force was not still too
great for his. On the 2d inst. he sent
several scouts to ascertain their
situation and force; but the woods were
so infested with Indians that
none of them could proceed sufficiently
near the fort to make the neces-
sary discoveries. In the night a
messenger arrived at headquarters with
intelligence that the enemy were
preparing to retreat. About 9 o'clock
Major Croghan had ascertained from their
collecting about their boats
that they were preparing to embark, and
immediately sent an express
to the commander-in-chief with this
information. The general now de-
termined to wait no longer for
reinforcements, and immediately set out
with the dragoons, with which he reached
the fort early in the morning,
having ordered Generals McArthur and
Cass, who had arrived at Seneca
several days before, to follow him with
all disposable infantry at that
place, and which at this time was about
700 men, after the numerous
sick, and the force necessary to
maintain the position were left behind.
Finding that the enemy had fled entirely
from the fort so as not to be
reached by him, and learning that
Tecumseh was somewhere in the
direction of Fort Meigs with 2,000
warriors, he immediately ordered the
infantry to fall back to Seneca, lest
Tecumseh should make an attack
on that place, or intercept the small
reinforcements advancing from the
Ohio.
The Croghan Celebration. 63
In his official report of this affair,
General Harrison observes that,
"It will not be among the least of
Gen. Proctor's mortifications to find
that he has been baffled by a youth who
has just passed his twenty-first
year. He is, however, a hero worthy of
his gallant uncle, Gen. George
R. Clarke."
"Captain Hunter, of the 17th
Regiment, the second in command,
conducted himself with great propriety;
and never was there a set of
finer young fellows than the subalterns,
viz., Lieutenants Johnson and
Baylor, of the 17th; Anthony, of the
24th; Meeks, of the 7th, and
Ensigns Shipp and Duncan of the
17th."
Lieutenant Anderson, of the 24th, was
also mentioned for his good
conduct. Being without a command, he
solicited Major Croghan for a
musket, and a post to fight at, which he
did with the greatest bravery.
"Too much praise," says Major
Croghan, "cannot be bestowed on
the officers, non-commissioned officers,
and privates under my command
for their gallantry and good conduct
during the siege."
The brevet rank of Lieutenant Colonel
was immediately conferred
on Major Croghan by the president of the
United States for his gal-
lant conduct on this occasion. The
ladies of Chillicothe also presented
him an elegant sword accompanied by a
suitable address.
On the 9th of August, at Lower Sandusky,
a British boat was
discovered coming up the river with a
flag. When it landed below
the fort, Captain Hunter was sent to
meet the commander, who proved
to be Lieut. LeBreton, accompanied by
Doctor Banner, with a letter
from Gen. Proctor to the commandant at
Lower Sandusky, their object
being to ascertain the situation of the
British wounded and afford them
surgical aid. Captain Hunter invited
them to the fort. Le Breton
seemed to hesitate, as if he expected
first to be blind-folded, as usual
in such cases; but Captain Hunter told
him to come on, that there was
nothing in the fort which there was any
reason to conceal; and when
he introduced him to Major Croghan as
the commandant of the fort,
he appeared to be astonished at the
youthful appearance of the hero,
who had defeated the combined forces of
his master.
As the letter of General Proctor also
contained a proposition for
the paroling of those prisoners who
might be in a condition to be re-
moved, the flag was sent by Major
Croghan to headquarters at Seneca.
Gen. Harrison replied to the letter of
Proctor, that "Major Croghan,
conformably to those principles which
are held sacred in the American
army, had caused all possible care to be
taken of the wounded prisoners
that his situation would admit-that
every aid which surgical skill could
give was afforded," and that he had
already referred the disposal of
the prisoners to his government and must
wait for their determination.
Dr. Banner in the meantime had examined
the situation of the wounded,
and was highly gratified with the humane
treatment they had received.
He informed Major Croghan that the
Indians were highly incensed at the
64 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
failure of the late expedition and were
kept together with the utmost
difficulty.
*
* *
[Governor Shelby.]
HEADQUARTERS, SENECA. 12 Sept., 1813.
"You will find arms at Upper
Sandusky; also a considerable quan-
tity at Lower Sandusky. I set out from
this place in an hour. Our fleet
has beyond all doubt met that of the
enemy. The day before yesterday
an incessant and tremendous cannonading
was heard in the direction
of Malden by a detachment of troops
coming from Fort Meigs. It
lasted two hours. I am all anxiety for
the result. There will be no oc-
casion for your halting here. Lower
Sandusky affords fine grazing. With
respect to a station for your horses,
there is the best in the world im-
mediately at the place of embarkation.
The Sandusky Bay, Lake Erie,
and Portage river form between them a
peninsula, the isthmus of which
is only a mile and a half across. A
fence of that length, and a sufficient
guard left there, would make all the
horses of the army safe. It would
enclose fifty or sixty thousand acres,
in which are many cultivated fields,
which have been abandoned are now grown
up with the finest grass. Your
sick had better be left at Upper
Sandusky or here.
HARRISON."
Within half an hour after the above
letter was written, the gen-
eral received the following laconic note
from the commodore, by express
from Lower Sandusky:
"U. S. BRIG NIAGARA, OFF THE WESTER
SISTER, ETC.,
September 10, 1813.
"DEAR GENERAL- We have met the
enemy and they are ours-
two ships, two brigs, one schooner and a
sloop.
"Yours with great respect and
esteem,
OLIVER HAZARD PERRY."
The exhilirating news set Lower Sandusky
arid camp Seneca in
an uproar of tumultous joy. The general
immediately proceeded to the
former place, and issued his orders for
the movement of the troops,
and transportation of the provisions,
military stores, etc., to the margin
of the lake, preparatory to their
embarkation.
In bringing down the military stores and
provisions from the posts
on the Sandusky river, to the vessels in
the lake, a short land carriage
became necessary to expedite the
embarkation. The peninsula formed by
the Sandusky Bay on the right and by the
Portage river and Lake Erie
on the left, extending between fifteen
and twenty miles from the anchor-
age of the shipping in the mouth of the
Portage; at which place the
isthmus on which the army was encamped
was less than two miles
The Croghan Celebration. 65
across from one river to the other. The
boats in going round the
peninsula to the shipping, would have to
travel upward of forty miles,
and to be exposed to the dangers of the
lake navigation. It was there-
fore deemed the most safe and
expeditious to transport the stores and
drag the boats across the isthmus, which
was accomplished between the
15th and 20th of the month, whilst the
army was detained in making
other necessary arrangements.
The Kentucky troops were encamped across
the narrowest part
of the isthmus, above the place of
embarkation; and each regiment was
ordered to construct a strong fence of
brush and fallen timber in front
of its encampment, which extended when
finished, from Portage River
to Sandusky River. Within this enclosure
their horses were turned
loose to graze on ample pastures of
excellent grass. The preparations
for the expedition being nearly
completed, it became necessary to detail
a guard to be left for the protection of
the horses. The commandants
of regiments were ordered by the
governor to detach one-twentieth part
of their commands for this service; and
Colonel Christopher Rife was
designated as their commander. In
furnishing the men, many of the
colonels had to resort to a draft, as
volunteers to stay on this side the
lake could not be obtained.
On the 20th, Gen. Harrison embarked with
the regular troops
under Generals McArthur and Cass, and
arrived the same day at Put-
in-Bay in Bass Island, and about 10
miles distant from the point of
embarkation. Next morning the governor
(Shelby) sailed with a part
of his troops, having ordered Major
General Desha to remain at Portage
and bring up the rear, which he
performed with great alacrity and vig-
ilance. On that and the succeeding day
all the militia arrived at Bass
Island. Colonel Rife was left in command
at Portage, with Doctor Ma-
guffin as his surgeon. The whole army
remained on Bass Island on the
24th, waiting for the arrival of all
necessary stores and provisions at
that place.
On the 25th, the whole army moved to the
Middle Sister, a small
island containing about five or six
acres of ground, which was now
crowded with men, having about 4,500
upon it. Whilst the transport
vessels were bringing up the military
stores and provisions on the 26th,
Gen. Harrison sailed with Commodore
Perry in the Ariel to recon-
noitre off Malden, and ascertain a
suitable point on the lake shore for
the debarkation of his troops.
On Monday the 27th, the whole army was
embarked early in the
day, and set sail from the Middle Sister
for the Canada shore, Gen.
Harrison having previously circulated a
general order among the troops
in which he exhorted them to remember
the fame of their ancestors and
the justice of the cause in which they
were engaged.
Soon after the British force had
surrendered and it was dis-
covered that the Indians were yielding
on the left, Gen. Harrison ordered
Vol. XVI-5.
66 Ohio Arch. and
Hist. Society Publications.
Major Payne to pursue Gen. Proctor with
a part of his battalion. * * *
But Proctor was not to be taken. His
guilty conscience had told him
that his only chance for safety from the
vengeance of those whose
countrymen he had murdered lay in the
celerity of his flight. The
pursuers, however, at last pressed him
so closely that he was obliged
to abandon the road, and his carriage
and sword were captured by the
gallant Major Wood.-Six pieces of brass
artillery were taken, three of
which had been captured in the
Revolution at Saratoga and York, and
surrendered again by Hull in
Detroit."
Lieut.-Colonel Eleazer Wood was one of
the first graduates of the
military academy at West Point, 1806,
and was a distinguished engineer.
In 1812 he built the fort at Lower
Sandusky, which was later named
after Col. Stephenson, and was so
gallantly defended by Major George
Croghan on the 2d of August, 1813. He
was also the engineer who
planned Fort Meigs in 1813, and
participated most gallantly in its siege
and also in the Battle of the Thames. He
was killed September 17, 1814.
Proctor's carriage, captured by Major
Wood, was brought to Lower
Sandusky; and for many years was shown
upon all public occasions as one
of the trophies of the war, second in
interest only to "Old Betsy."
One of the "six pieces of brass
artillery" referred to above, is
now one of the most cherished relics in
the museum on Fort Stephenson.
It is a handsome brass piece, evidently
a French gun originally, as it
has near its muzzle the royal cipher of
King Louis of France. It was
presented to King George of England, or
was captured by him, and has
the monogram G. R., with the crown, near
its base. It was captured
from the British under Burgoyne at
Saratoga, and in common with other
trophies was elaborately inscribed:
TAKEN AT THE STORM OF
THE BRITISH LINE NEAR SARATOGA.
BY
October 7, 1777.
After Benedict Arnold turned traitor at
West Point, his name was
carefully erased from all trophies. This
gun was one of the number so
ignominously surrendered at Detroit by
Gen. Hull, August 16, 1812, to
the British Major General Brock. After
being captured for the second
time from the British under Proctor, by
the Americans under Gen. Har-
rison at the Battle of the Thames,
October 5, 1813, it was retired from
active service and has now for more than
twenty-five years been an
object of the greatest interest in the
museum on the site of old Fort
Stephenson.
The Croghan Celebration. 67
McAfee's History continues: In April,
1814, Colonel Butler obtained
leave to return to Kentucky, and the
command of Detroit devolved on
Lieut.-Col. Croghan, Commodore Sinclair,
who succeeded Commodore
Perry as the naval commander on the
lakes, had received orders to
conduct a military and naval expedition
against the British on Lake
Huron.
About the time these instructions were
communicated to the Com-
modore, the secretary of war thought
proper to send a corresponding order
directly to Major Holmes, entirely
passing by Col. Croghan, the com-
mandant at Detroit, and merely notifying
Gen. Harrison, the commander
of the district, through whom the
arrangements for the expedition should
have been made. This course of the
secretary was a violation not only
of military etiquette, but also of the
most important military principles,
which require that the commander of a
district, or of a separate post,
especially when situated on a distant
frontier, should have the supreme
direction of minor matters within the
sphere of his command. The
interference of the government in such
matters must inevitably derange
his plans, and produce confusion and
disaster in the service. The gen-
eral should be furnished with the object
and outlines of the campaign or
expedition and with the necessary
supplies of men, money and munitions
for accomplishing that object; and then
be made responsible for their
proper management. But the secretary in
this instance issued his or-
ders to Major Holmes under the nose of
his colonel, whereby the rank
and authority of the latter were
superseded, and the resources of his post
were to be clandestinely withdrawn from
his power. This was highly
resented by Colonel Croghan, who
communicated his sentiments on this
subject without reserve to Commodore
Sinclair and Gen. Harrison. He
assured the Commodore that he had
already taken every means to recon-
noitre the upper lakes and the country
with a view to obtaining such in-
formation as he requested, and that he
would be happy to co-operate
and assist him in the enterprise, but
could not pledge himself in the
present state of his resources to
furnish any important assistance. To
the general he wrote: "Major Holmes
has been notified by the war de-
partment that he is chosen to command
the land troops, which are in-
tended to co-operate with the fleet,
against the enemy's forces on the
upper lakes. So soon as I may be
directed by you to order Major Holmes
on that command, and to furnish him with
the necessary troops, I shall
do so, but not till then shall he or any
other part of my force leave
the sod."-Croghan.
In answer to a second letter from the
commodore, written in the
latter part of May, he proceeds: "I
much fear, sir, that in your ex-
pectation of being joined at this place
by a battalion or corps of regu-
lars under Major Holmes, you will be
disappointed. Major Holmes, it is
true, has been notified by the war
department that he is selected to
command the land troops on the
expedition up the lakes. But this no-
|
68 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
tification, even did it amount to a positive order to the major, could not be considered as an order to me; nor can I deem it in itself sufficient to justify me in weakening the present reduced strength of my command. My objection to co-operate with you at this time is not, I assure you, moved by anything like chagrin at this departure from military etiquette, but is bottomed on a thorough conviction that nothing less than a pos- itive order could justify or excuse my detaching a part of the small force under my command from the immediate defence of this frontier. I agree with you that the promised force under Major Holmes appears too weak to effect the desired end. I cannot speak positively on the subject, as my knowledge even of the geographical situation of the coun- try is but limited; yet my belief is, that if resistance be made at all, |
|
|
|
it will prove too stout for 1,000 men. The position of Mackinaw is a strong one, and should the enemy have determined on holding it, he has had time enough to throw in reinforcements. The Engages in the em- ploy of the N. W. Co., generally get down to Mackinaw from their win- tering grounds, about the last of May in every year. Will these hardy fellows, whose force exceeds 1,000, be permitted to be idle? Will it not be the interest of the N. W. Co. to exert all its means in the defence of those posts in which it is so immediately concerned? I send you a few queries on the subject, with the answers as given by an intelligent gentleman, formerly an agent to the N. W. Co., and well acquainted with the geographical situation of that country. Every arrangement is made for securing the entrance into Lake Huron. I am under no solici- tude about the passage up the strait."-Croghan. |
The Croghan Celebration. 69
Although the colonel appears to consider
the order to Holmes as
a mere notification of his appointment,
yet it was certainly intended by the
secretary to be sufficiently positive
and ample to put the expedition in
motion, without any other communication
from the war department, ex-
cept the instructions to the Commodore.
Soon after the above was writ-
ten, the Colonel addressed another
letter to Gen. Harrison, from which
the following is an extract: "I
know not how to account for the
Secretary of War assuming to himself the
right of designating Major
Holmes for this command to Mackinaw. My
ideas on the subject may
not be correct, yet for the sake of the
principle were I a general com-
manding a district, I would be very far
from suffering the Secretary of
War, or any other authority, to
interfere with my internal police.
"I have not yet been able, even by
three attempts, to ascertain
whether the enemy is building boats at
Mackedash (Gloucester Bay).
None of my spies would venture far
enough, being either frightened
at the view of Lake Huron, or alarmed at
the probability of meeting
hostile Indians."-Croghan.
This letter was written in the latter
part of May. Gen. Harrison,
actuated by similar sentiments, had
already resigned his commission of
Major General in the army, which he had
received about the time his
appointment in the Kentucky militia had
expired. He believed that the
Secretary of War disliked him, and had
intentionally encroached on
the prerogatives of his rank to insult
him, by corresponding with the of-
ficers under his command, and giving
them orders direct which ought at
least to have been communicated
indirectly through the commander-in-
chief of the district. He had
remonstrated in a spirited manner against
this interference, and finding it again
renewed in the present case, he
resigned his commission by the following
letters to the Secretary and
President.
"HEADQUARTERS, CINCINNATI, 11th
May, 1814.
"SIR, I have the honor through you to request the President
to
accept my resignation of the appointment
of major general in the army
with which he has honored me.
"Lest the public service should
suffer, before a successor can be
nominated, I shall continue to act until
the 31st inst., by which time I
hope to be relieved.
"Having some reasons to believe
that the most malicious insinua-
tions have been made against me in
Washington, it was my intention to
have requested an inquiry into my
conduct, from the commencement of
my command. Further reflection has
however determined me to de-
cline the application -because from the
proud consciousness of having
palpably done my duty, I cannot believe
that it is necessary either for
the satisfaction of the government or
the people, that I should pay so
much respect to the suggestions of
malice and envy.
"It is necessary, however, that I
should assure you, sir, that I sub-
|
70 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
scribe implicitly to the opinion that military officers are responsible for their conduct, and amenable to the decisions of a court martial after they have left the service, for any improper act committed in it. "The principle was established in England, in the case of Lord George Sackville after the battle of Minden; it was known and recog- nized by all the ancient republics; and is particularly applicable I think to a government like ours. I therefore pledge myself to answer before a court martial at any future period, to any charge which may be brought against me. "I have the honor, etc., "The Hon. J. Armstrong, etc." "HARRISON.
OLD BETSY. Fort Stephenson is unique in retaining its original area, armament and the body of its Defender. Armament is an im- |
|
|
|
which occured in 1813. On the 3d, a mounted regiment under Col. Richard M. Johnson, of Kentucky, "the man who killed Tecumseh" and the future vice president, marched from Fort Meigs to Lower Sandusky to recruit their horses here. "The Fourth was celebrated," says McAfee's History of the Late War, "by the garrison and mounted men together, in great harmony and enthusiasm. Colonel Johnson delivered an appropriate ad- dress; arid a number of toasts, breathing sentiments of the republican soldier were drunk, cheered by the shouts of the men and the firing of small arms and the discharge of a six-pounder from the fort." Major McAfee, in his History of the Late War, says: "A |
The Croghan Celebration. 71
reconnoitering party which had been sent
from headquarters to
the shore of the lake, about twenty
miles distant from Fort Steph-
enson, discovered the approach of the
enemy by water on the
evening of the 31st of July. They
returned by the fort, after
twelve o'clock the next day, and had
passed it but a few hours,
when the enemy made their appearance
before it. The Indians
showed themselves first on the hill over
the river, and were
saluted by a six-pounder, the only piece
of artillery in the fort,
which soon caused them to retire. In
half an hour the British
gun-boats came in sight; and the Indian
forces displayed them-
selves in every direction with a view to
intercept the garrison
should a retreat be attempted. The
six-pounder was fired a few
times at the gun-boats, which was
returned by the artillery of
the enemy."
McAfee further says: "Sergeant
Weaver with five or six
gentlemen of the Petersburg Volunteers
and Pittsburg Blues,
who happened to be in the fort, was
entrusted with the manage-
ment of the six-pounder."
On the first and second days of the
following month "Old
Betsy" lifted her voice in deadly
earnest. How she was shifted
from place to place in the fort to
convey the impression that the
defenders had several guns; how she was
finally hoisted into the
blockhouse and stationed behind a masked
port hole and at the
psychological moment "raked the
ditch" with a double charge of
leaden slugs; and the appalling fatal
effect--these facts have
been related in preceding pages.
General Harrison winds up his official
report to the Secretary
of War, August 4, 1813, as follows:
"A young gentleman, a private in
the Petersburg Volun-
teers, of the name of Brown, assisted by
five or six of that com-
pany and the Pittsburg Blues who were
accidentally in the fort,
managed the six-pounder, which produced
such destruction in
the ranks of the enemy." The
private Brown referred to was
so severely burned by the frequent
explosions of powder in the
priming of Old Betsy, that his condition
was graphically de-
scribed by the last survivor of the
Petersburg Volunteers, Reuben
Clements, in 1879, who also said
that he was quite positive that
72 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
Brown was the only member of the
Petersburg Volunteers pres-
ent during the engagement.
A roster of the Greensburg Riflemen has
been furnished
by Richard Coulter, jr., a grandnephew
of Major John B. Alex-
ander, who commanded an independent
battalion of U. S. twelve-
month Volunteers, consisting of the
Pittsburg Blues, Capt. James
R. Butler; the Petersburg Volunteers,
Capt. Robert McRae; the
Greensburg Riflemen, Lieut. Peter Drum,
vice Alexander, pro-
moted Major. The roster of the
Greensburg Riflemen contains
the name of Abraham Weaver as a private
in 1812, who was
the Sergeant Weaver in charge of the
firing squad of Old Betsy,
and who returned to Greensburg, where he
died in 1846.
After the war in which the gun did such
valiant service it
was removed to the Pittsburg arsenal.
Later Congress ordered
its return to Lower Sandusky. The
ingenious Thomas L. Haw-
kins, commissary officer at Fort
Stephenson during the campaign,
identified the gun in Pittsburg,
recognizing it by the scar on its
breach which he believed was made by a
cannon ball while in
action, during the old French and Indian
war. Owing to the
duplication of the name Sandusky the
cannon was sent to San-
dusky City, which for many years after
the battle was called
Ogontz's Place, and later Portland, and
of course had no claim
to the gun. The authorities there tried
to keep it, and for better
concealment buried it under a barn.
Mayor B. J. Bartlett, of
Lower Sandusky, traced the gun and sent
men and a wagon to
bring it home. This home-coming of Old
Betsy was just prior
to the 2d of August celebration of 1852,
when the Tiffin fire
department came down to join in the
festivities. William H.
Gibson, clad in the red shirt and white
trousers of the fire
brigade uniform, delivered the stirring
address of the day, in the
woods back of the Rawson house on State
street.
"Old Betsy" is frequently
mentioned in press notices of
former years. The Fremont Journal of
September 12, 1856, says:
"On the 1oth, about one hundred and
fifty Republicans of
Fremont took passage on the Island Queen
for Sandusky to
join in the mass gatherings of Freemen.
We were accompanied
by "Old Betsy." It talked
some, and had many admirers, and
with the Fremont delegation was received
by the thousands with
The Croghan Celebration. 73
three tremendous cheers. The day was a
glorious one for the
cause of freedom." This of course
foreshadows the civil war.
"Who used Old Betsy last?"
asks the Journal of January
23, 1857. "It has been standing in
the street for several weeks
now. Captain Parrish should see to this
old servant."
In a long article on the celebration of
August 2, 1860, the
Journal says: "At 6 o'clock Captain
Parrish brought out 'Old
Betsy' and fired a salute of thirteen
rounds. Soon after the peo-
ple of the county began to pour in.
Cassius M. Clay was the
orator of the day." At the
celebration of 1852 Thomas L Haw-
kins, a well-known Methodist preacher
and the town poet, who
had been appointed commissary of the
fort after the battle of
Fort Stephenson, read a poem addressed
to the old six-pounder,
apostrophizing her as Betsy Croghan, a
name by which she is
frequently called. This poem is printed
below. In another
poem on Croghan's victory, Mr. Hawkins
calls her "Our Bess,"
while tradition has it that the garrison
called her "Good Bess."
But "Old Betsy" she is now and
ever will be in local and na-
tional parlance. Little children play
about her, the birds often
build their nests in her mouth, visitors
pass curious hands over
her breech, and young reporters take her
photograph and write
"story" about her. After all
she is the only one left who saw
our hero in battle, who heard the quick
orders of those two days'
fight, who faced the oncoming veterans
of Wellington's troops
and settled it that they should rest
thereafter in Lower Sandusky
soil.
"Old Betsy's" voice will
probably never be heard again, but
as she stands her silent guard over the
remains of George Cro-
ghan, on the scene of their great
victory, she "yet speaketh."
"OLD BETSY."
THOMAS L. HAWKINS.
Hail! thou old friend, of Fort MeGee
Little did I expect again to see,
And hear thy voice of victory,
Thou defender of Ohio!
74 Ohio Arch. and
Hist. Society Publications.
I wonder who it was that sought thee,
To victory's ground again hath brought
thee
From strangers' hands at length hath
caught thee;
He is a friend to great Ohio!
He is surely worthy of applause,
To undertake so good a cause,
Although a pleader of her laws,
And statutes of Ohio.
What shame thy blockhouse is not
standing,
Thy pickets as at first commanding,
Protecting Sandusky's noble landing,
The frontier of Ohio!
Thy pickets, alas! are all unreared,
No faithful sentinel on guard,
Nor band of soldiers well prepared,
Defending great Ohio.
Where have the upthrown ditches gone,
By British cannon rudely torn?
Alas! with grass they are o'ergrown,
Neglected by Ohio.
O tell me where thy chieftains all-
Croghan, Dudley, Miller, Ball,
Some of whom I know did fall
In defending of Ohio.
Canst thou not tell how Proctor swore,
When up yon matted turf he tore,
Which shielded us from guns a score,
He poured upon Ohio?
And how Tecumseh lay behind you;
With vain attempts he tried to blind
you,
And unprepared, he'd find you,
And lead you from Ohio.
Perhaps like Hamlet's ghost, you've
come,
This day to celebrate the fame
Of Croghan's honored, worthy name,
The hero of Ohio.
|
The Croghan Celebration. 75
I greet thee! Thou art just in time To tell of victory most sublime, Though told in unconnected rhyme; Thou art welcome in Ohio.
But since thou canst thyself speak well, Now let thy thundering voice tell What bloody carnage then befell The foes of great Ohio. (And then she thundered loud.)
PROCTOR'S REPORT OF THE BATTLE OF FORT STEPHENSON. The following letter, recently unearthed by Col. Webb C. Hayes in the Canadian Archives at Ottawa, is most interesting as giving General Proctor's own account of the battle in which he was so badly worsted. It is addressed to Sir George Provist, Lieut. General, at Kingston, and reads: "SIR: It being absolutely requisite for several urgent reasons that my Indian force should not remain unemployed, and being well aware |
|
|
|
I was, very contrary to my judgment, necessitated to go to the Miami, in the vicinity of the enemy's fort, where I remained a few days in the hope that General Harrison might come to the relief of the fort which was invested in the Indian mode, when finding that the Indians were returning to Detroit and Amherstberg I moved to Lower Sandusky where, however, we could not muster more hundreds of Indians than I might reasonably have expected thousands. The neighborhood of Sandusky, and the settlement on the Huron river, eight miles below it, could have afforded cattle sufficient to have fed my whole Indian force for some time, had they been induced to accompany us. Sandusky is |
76 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
nearly fifty miles by water from Lake
Erie and nearly forty miles from
several points whence strong
reinforcements might be expected; I could
not therefore with my very small force
remain more than two days,
from the probability of being cut off
and of being deserted by the few
Indians who had not already done so.
The fort at Sandusky is composed of
blockhouses connected by
picketing which they flank, and is
calculated for a garrison of five or six
hundred men. On viewing the fort I
formed an opinion entirely different
from any person under my command. The
general idea being that that
garrison did not exceed fifty men, and
that the fort could be easily
carried by assault. On the morning of
the 2d inst. the gentlemen of
the Indian Department, who have the
direction of it, declared formally
their decided opinion that unless the
fort was stormed we should never
be able to bring an Indian warrior into
the field with us, and that they
proposed and were ready to storm one fan
of the fort, if we would
attempt another. I have also to observe
that in this instance my judg-
ment had not that weight with the troops
I hope I might reasonably
have expected. If I had withdrawn
without having permitted the assault,
as my judgment certainly dictated, much
satisfaction would have followed
me and I could scarcely have reconciled
to myself to have continued to
direct their movements. I thus with all
the responsibility resting on me
was obliged to yield to circumstances I
could not possibly have pre-
vented. The troops, after the artillery
had been used for some hours,
attacked two fans, and impossibilities
being attempted, failed. The fort,
from which the severest fire I ever saw
was maintained during the
attack, was well defended. The troops
displayed the greatest bravery,
the much greater part of whom reached
the fort and made every effort
to enter; but the Indians who had
proposed the assault and had it
not been assented to would have ever
stigmatized the British character,
scarcely came into fire, before they ran
off out of its reach. A more
than adequate sacrifice having been made
to Indian opinion, I drew off
the brave assailants who had been
carried away by a high sense of honor
to urge too strongly the attack. I
enclose a disembarcation return to
show how small my disposable force was.
The enemy had a six-pounder
and a smaller one in the fort. I also
enclose a return of the killed,
wounded and missing. Our loss though
severe and much to be regretted,
is less, everything considered, than
could have been expected. You will
perceive that the Indian force is seldom
a disposable one, never to be
relied on in hour of need, and only to
be found useful in proportion as
we are independent of it. Ten Indians
were surprised on a plain near
Sandusky and were cut to pieces. The
Indians have always had a dread
of cavalry of which the enemy have a
considerable number. A troop of
the 19th would be of the greatest
service here in the confidence they would
give to our mounted Indians. I have
experienced much deficience in my
artillery, another officer at least is
absolutely requisite, and one of
The Croghan Celebration. 77
science and experience. The enemy's
defences are composed of wood;
if we knew how to burn them as they did
ours at Fort George, Mr.
Harrison's army must have been destroyed
long since. The enemy's ves-
sels are out of Presqueisle Harbor, and
so decidedly stronger than ours
that Captain Barclay has been
necessitated to return to Amherstburg,
and with all haste to get the new vessel
ready for sea, where she will
be in eight or ten days at furthest, and
then only wants hands.
Whatever may happen to be regretted may
be fairly attributed
to the delays in sending here the force
your Excellency directed should
be sent. Had it been sent at once, it
could have been used to the greatest
advantage, but it arrived in such small
portions and with such delays
that the opportunities have been lost.
The enemy are in great numbers
at Presqueisle and have been already
reinforced at Fort Meigs. Gen.
Harrison's headquarters are near Lower
Sandusky where he arrived on
the 3d inst. I must now look for the
enemy from two quarters and
will have to meet them with my small
force divided, for the Indians will
make no stand without us. You will
probably hear of the enemy's landing
shortly at Long Point, where they may
gain the rear of the Center Divi-
sion and also affect my supplies. An
hundred and fifty sailors would have
effectually obviated this evil. I
apprehend the enemy's rapid advance
to the River Raisin in force, and
establishing himself there, which he
can do surprisingly soon. If I had the
means I would establish a post
at that river, but not having two or
three hundred men to send there
it is not in my power. I must entreat
your Excellency to send me
more troops, even the 2d Battalion of
the 41st Regt., though weak,
would be extremely acceptable. If the
enemy should be able to establish
themselves in the Territory it will
operate strongly against us with our
Indian allies. Your Excellency may rely
on my best endeavors, but I
rely on the troops alone, and they are
but few and I am necessitated to
man the vessels with them. I have never
desponded, nor do I now,
but I conceive it my duty to state to
your Excellency the inadequateness
of my force.
I have the honor to be with much
respect, etc.,
HENRY PROCTOR,
Brigadier General Commanding.
The British War Office contains the
following brief records of the
attack on Fort Stephenson, as mentioned in the colonial
correspondence
of that time.
"HEADQUARTERS, KINGSTON, UPPER
CANADA, Aug. 1, 1813.
"My Lord - The arrival of Mr.
Dickson from the mission with 2,000
Indian warriors, has enabled me to
resume offensive operations with the
left division of the Upper Canada army
under the command of Brig.
Gen. Proctor. Maj. Gen. Harrison having
shown some of his cavalry
78 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
and riflemen in the Michigan territory,
a forward movement has been
made by the Indian warriors, upon
Sandusky, from whence they will
unite with Tecumseh's band of warriors,
employed in investing Fort
Meigs.-George Provost." Also:
"St. Davids, Niagara Frontier, Aug.
25, 1813. Maj. Gen. Proctor
having given way to the clamor of our
Indian Allies to act offensively
moved forward on the 20th ult. with
about 350 of the 41st regiment and
between 3,000 and 4,000 Indians and on
the 2nd inst. attempted to carry
by assault the block houses and works at
Sandusky where the enemy had
concentrated a considerable force.
He however soon experienced the timidity
of the Indians when ex-
posed to the fire of musketry and cannon
in an open country and how
little dependence could be placed on
their numbers. Previous to the
assault they could scarcely muster as
many hundreds as they had before
thousands, and as soon as it had
commenced they withdrew themselves
out of the reach of the enemy's fire.
They are never a disposable force.
The handful of his Majesty's troops
employed on this occasion dis-
played the greatest bravery; nearly the
whole of them having reached
the fort and made every effort to enter
it; but a galling and destructive
fire being kept up by the enemy from
within the block houses and from
behind the picketing which completely
protected them and which we
had not the means to force, the Major
General thought it most prudent
not to continue longer so unavailing a
combat; he accordingly drew off
the assailants and returned to Sandwich
with the loss of 25 killed, as
many missing and about 40 wounded.
Amongst the killed are Brevet
Lieut. Col. Shortt and Lieut. J. G.
Gordon of the 41st Regt."
"The Military Occurrences of the
War of 1812," by William James.
an English publication of the time,
contains the following story of Gen-
eral Proctor's campaign against Fort
Stephenson on the Sandusky, which
is a typical British account, showing
the writer's patriotic bias:
"The American headquarters were at
Seneca-town, near to San-
dusky Bay on Lake Erie. Fort Meigs,
already so strong, had its works
placed in a still more vigorous state of
defence; and a fort had since
been constructed on the west side of
Sandusky river, about 40 miles
from its mouth, and 10 from the
general's headquarters. It stood on a
rising ground, commanding the river to
the east; having a plain to the
north and south, and a wood to the west.
The body of the fort was
about 100 yards in length and 50 in
breadth, surrounded outside of all
by a row of strong pickets, 12 feet over
ground; each picket armed at
top with a bayonet. Next to and against
this formidable picket was an
embankment, forming the side of a dry
ditch, 12 feet wide, by seven
feet deep; then a second embankment or
glacis. A strong bastion and
two blockhouses completely enfiladed the
ditch. Within the fort were the
hospital, military and commissary
store-houses, magazines, etc. As far
as we can collect from the American
accounts, the fort mounted but one
6-pounder; and that in a masked battery
at the northwestern angle. The
The Croghan Celebration. 79
number of troops composing the garrison
cannot exactly be ascertained.
One American account states that the effective
force did not amount to
160 men, or rank and file.
"Major General Proctor when he
landed near the mouth of San-
dusky river, on the 1st of August, had
it is admitted no other white
troops with him than the 41st regiment.
An American editor says that
the major general, previous to his
appearance on the Sandusky, had
detached 'Tecumseh with 2,000 warriors,
and a few regulars, to make a
diversion favorable to the attack upon
Fort Stephenson; and yet the
same editor states Major General
Proctor's force before the fort, on
the evening of the 1st, at 500 regulars
and 700 Indians.' Of the latter
there were but 200 and they, as was
generally their custom when the
object of assault was a fortified place,
withdrew to a ravine, out of
gun-shot, almost immediately that the
action commenced. Of regulars
there were two lientenant-colonels, four
captains, seven subalterns, (one
a lieutenant of artillery) eight staff,
22 sergeants, seven drummers, and
241 rank and file, including 23
artillerymen; making a total of 391
officers, non-commissioned officers and privates.
"On the morning of the 2nd the
British opened their artillery
consisting of two light 6-pounders, and
two 5½ howitzers upon the fort;
but without producing the slightest
impression; and the different Am-
erican accounts, as we are glad to see,
concur in stating, that the fort
'was not at all injured' by the fire
directed against it. Under an im-
pression that the garrison did not
exceed 50 or 60 men, the fort was
ordered to be stormed. Lieut. Col.
Shortt at the head of 180 rank and
file, immediately advanced toward the
northwest angle; while about 160
rank and file, under Lieut.-Col.
Warburton, passed around through the
woods skirting the western side of the
fort, to its south side. After
sustaining a heavy fire of musketry from
the American troops, Lieut.-Col.
Shortt approached to the stockade; and
with some difficulty, succeeded
in getting over the pickets. The instant
this gallant officer reached the
ditch he ordered his men to follow and
assault the works with the
utmost vigor. The masked 6-pounder,
which had been previously pointed
to rake the ditch, and loaded 'with a
double charge of leaden slugs,' was
now fired at the British column, 'the
front of which was only 30 feet
distant from the piece.' A volley of
musketry was fired at the same
instant and repeated in quick
succession. This dreadful and, as to the
battery, unexpected discharge killed
Lieut.-Col. Shortt, and several of his
brave followers; and wounded a great
many more. Still undaunted, the
men of the 41st, headed by another
officer, advanced again to carry the
masked 6-pounder, from which another
discharge of 'leaden slugs' aided
by other volleys of musketry, was
directed against them, and cleared
the 'fatal ditch' a second time. It was
in vain to contend further; and
the British retired, with as many of
their wounded as they could carry
away.
"Lieut. Col. Warburton's party,
having a circuit to make, did not
80 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
arrive at its position till the first
assault was nearly over. After a
volley or two, in which the British
sustained some slight loss, the troops
at this point also were ordered to
retire. The loss amounted to 26
killed, 29 wounded and missing, and 41
wounded (most of them slightly)
and brought away; total 96. The
Americans state their loss at one
killed and seven wounded. Considering
the way in which they were
sheltered, and the circumstances of the
attack altogether, no greater
loss could have been expected.
"The American editors seem
determined to drag the Indians, in
spite of their confirmed and to an
American well-known habits, within
the limits of the 'fatal ditch.' 'The
Indians,' says Mr. Thomson, 'were
enraged and mortified at this
unparalleled defeat; and carrying their
dead and wounded from the field, they
indignantly followed the British
regulars to the shipping.' 'It is a fact
worthy of observation' says Mr.
O'Connor, 'that not one Indian was found
among the dead, although it
is known that from three to four hundred
were present.' A brave
enemy would have found something to
praise in the efforts of Colonel
Shortt and his men, in this their
'unparalleled defeat;' but all is forgotten
in the lavish encomiums bestowed upon
Major Croghan and the band
of 'heroes,' who 'compelled an army,'
says an American editor, 'much
more than 10 times superior,' to
relinquish the attack."
LAST SURVIVOR OF FORT STEPHENSON.
A group of distinguished visitors
entering unannounced the
Blue Room at the White House, during the administration of
President Hayes, were surprised to find
the beautiful mistress
of the house sitting on the floor,
needle and thread in hand,
while before her half reclining on the
central divan, sat an old
soldier in the uniform of an ordnance
sergeant of the United
States Army.
The callers, who were Sir Edward
Thornton, the British
Minister, with some English friends,
were about to retire, when
Mrs. Hayes looked up from her work, saw
them, and laughingly
called them to stay. She rose from the
floor, shook hands warmly
with the old man, and parrying his
thanks and assuring him that
his uniform was now perfect, handed him
over to the care of
her son.
The story is one of her many kindly,
self-unconscious acts.
One of her sons, visiting the Barnes
Hospital at the Soldiers'
home near Washington, had examined the
list of soldiers living
there and discovered that one was a
veteran of Fort Stephenson,
|
The Croghan Celebration. 81
at Fremont, Ohio, the home of the Hayes family, named William Gaines, late ordnance sergeant United States Army. Subsequently Sergeant Gaines was granted a pension for his service in the War of 1812 and also for the Mexican War, and a complete full dress uniform was ordered sent to the White House for him. Sergeant Gaines was brought in from the Sol- diers' Home to don his uniform and have his photograph taken in it. After putting on his uniform, the old soldier trembling with excitement and weakness discovered that the sergeant's |
|
|
|
Lake Erie and the decisive Battle of the Thames. At the request of the members of the Hayes family, Repre- sentative William McKinley introduced a bill to place William Gaines, late ordnance sergeant, U. S. Army, on the retired list of the army with seventy-five per cent. of the full pay and allowance of an ordnance sergeant; he having served faithfully and honorably in the army of the United States for more than fifty-one years, having been an ordnance sergeant for over thirty- three consecutive years of said service, and having participated Vol. XVI--6. |
82 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
in the siege of Fort Meigs, the defense
of Fort Stephenson, and
the Battle of the Thames in the War of
1812.
Gen. Anson G. McCook secured the passage of the bill
through the House of Representatives and
Gen. A. E. Burnside
secured concurrent action by the Senate,
and the Act was ap-
proved by President Hayes.
Sergeant Gaines' story as told by
himself in an interview
with Mr. Webb C Hayes at Washington in
1879, is as follows:
"My name is William Gaines. I was
born in Frederick City, Md.,
Christmas Day, 1799. My father and
mother were both born in Virginia.
My father and General Gaines were
cousins. My father had died and my
mother was not in very good
circumstances. We started from Frederick
City, and when we reached Washington
stopped for five or six hours
and called on President Madison. Our
folks came from Montpelier, Va.,
President Madison's home, and my uncle
and President Madison were
well acquainted. I had another uncle in
Kentucky named Daveiss. They
both lived in Lexington. During the
Indian war in 1811, my uncle,
Colonel Daveiss, raised a volunteer
regiment and joined General Harrison.
He took me along with him to take care
of his horses and that is the
way that I came to be in the battle of
Tippecanoe, November 5, 1811.
"I occupied a tent with the Orderly
Sergeant of the company. His
tent was next to that of my uncle,
Colonel Daveiss, and then came the
company tent. We were surprised by the
Indians, who got in the camp
before we were aware of it. Some rushed
into our tent, but we crawled
out on the opposite side. Before getting
out, however, the thumb of my
left hand was cut by an Indian tomahawk
or knife and laid wide open.
It was sewed up by Dr. Woodward. The
Indians were defeated, but my
uncle, Colonel Daveiss, was killed.
"I enlisted on July 18, 1812, as a
drummer boy in Captain Arm-
strong's company of the Twenty-fourth
Infantry. I was then in my
thirteenth year. We marched from
Knoxville to Nashville, and then
against the Creek nation. We marched
from Nashville down the Cumber-
land river to the Ohio, which was full
of ice and impassable, and were
obliged to stop at a small French fort
called Fort Massack, which was
occupied by one company, about forty men
of the Second Artillery under
Lieutenant Tanner. We remained there
until next spring and then started
for Fort Meigs. We marched first to
Newport, Ky., which took us, I
think, twenty days, but we made a stop
at Harrisonburg, where we were
invited to the farm of Col. George
Harrison and had everything we
wanted. We stopped at Newport three days
washing and cleaning our-
selves and then crossed to
Cincinnati. From Cincinnati we marched
due north through the state of Ohio
until we came to Franklinton, which
was the extreme frontier. At Franklinton
two deserters were tried and
The Croghan Celebration. 83
shot. They came from camp Meigs, where
they had mutinied and came
near killing the captain. They were
taken by some citizens between
Upper Sandusky and Franklinton. General
Harrison ordered a general
court martial and charges were sent from
Fort Meigs. Both were sen-
tenced to be shot and both were shot the
next day. They were buried
on the banks of the Little Sciota.
"We then marched due north to Upper
Sandusky. At Upper San-
dusky we drew two days' rations to carry
us through the Maumee Black
Swamp. We then marched due north until
we reached a point about five
or six miles from Fort Stephenson, and
then turning west the road ran
through the Maumee Valley Black Swamp on
to Fort Meigs, which we
reached the next day. Gen. Green Clay
was in command. While we were
at Fort Meigs, Gen. Harrison established
his headquarters at Fort Seneca,
so that he might be handy for the
different departments. We were at
Fort Meigs something like a month, and
during a portion of the time
were besieged by Indians and British,
and kept up a constant fire on
them for about eight days.
"Our company was then ordered to
Camp Seneca, in July I think,
and while there a rumor came that Fort
Stephenson was to be attacked.
A detail was made from the different
companies to relieve Fort Stephen-
son, and that was done that each company
should have equal chance in
the glory. All this time I was a private
in Captain Armstrong's com-
pany, Twenty-fourth Infantry, having
exchanged my drum for a musket,
and was acting as cook for Lieutenant
Joseph Anthony of my company.
Lieutenant Anthony, Samuel Thurman, John
Foster, James Riggs, a man
named Jones and myself composed the
detail from my company. We
started at the break of day, and got to
Fort Stephenson between nine
and ten o'clock. We had not been there
more than an hour and a half
or two hours before the British hove in
sight and began landing their
troops, cannon, etc. Between 11 and 12
o'clock there came a flag of
truce and an officer and six men; they
were blindfolded and taken in at
the west gate. It was rumored that the
officer was sent to demand the
surrender of the fort or to show no
quarter. When they were gone
Major Croghan told us to prepare
ourselves, as no quarter was to be
shown. They came around on the northwest
side which was covered
with woods, about 150 yards distant, and
between the woods and fort
was a ravine down which they would haul
the cannon to load and then
push up on the brow of the hill and
fire. They could not approach from
the east side because that was an open
field, and we could have brought
them down. To the north and south it was
also quite open. The
weather was good but warm, and a storm
which had threatened finally
disappeared. They fired on us for a
time, but Major Croghan would
not let us return it. Samuel Thurman was
in the block house and de-
termined to shoot a red coat. He climbed
up on top of the block house
and peered over, when a six-pound ball
from the enemy's cannon took his
head off. Finally toward evening they
made a charge, and when they got
84 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
on level ground we got orders to fire.
We shot through loop holes in
the pickets and port holes in the
blockhouses. I recollect very well
when Colonel Shortt fell. I see it all
now as distinctly as I see you two
gentlemen. Our cannon was loaded with
six-pound ball and grape. I
was in the blockhouse and after Col.
Short fell he held up a white
handkerchief for quarter. Somebody in
the blockhouse said, 'That man
is hollering for quarter. He said he
would show none. Now give him
quarter.' It passed all through the
fort. Then the bugle sounded the
retreat. They had old Tecumseh and about
1,500 Indians, and I think
about 700 or 800 regulars. I only
estimated them by seeing them march-
ing away.
There were no buildings near the fort,
nor any women in the fort,
as there was not settlement nearer than
Franklinton. They landed below
us, near the race track, opposite the
Island. The British wounded who
were not taken away lay in the ditch. I
do not know anything about the
passing of water over to the wounded. It
might have been done unbe-
known to me. The British soldiers were
buried the next day. I do not
know how many were killed. You see they
took them away at night and
we did not know anything about it.
"At the siege of Fort Meigs there
was a large tree into which an In-
dian climbed and thus obtained a view of
the interior of the fort. A
man named Bronson brought him down with
a rifle. I do not think it
can be true that we loaded our cannon
with nails and scraps on ac-
count of lack of ammunition. I have
often thought that if General Har-
rison had marched his troops from Fort
Seneca down the east side of
the Sandusky river and crossed, it would
have brought him between the
enemy and their boats, and thus we could
have captured them all. I
have often thought of it and talked it over with men of our company.
When the firing commenced, Lieut.
Anthony was panicstruck and secreted
himself, and did not come out until the
battle was over. He was put
under arrest by Major Croghan and sent
to Fort Seneca and court-
martialed for cowardice and cashiered
the service. Gen. Harrison was
a small and very slim man, a little on
the dark complected order, and
advanced in years. Major Croghan was a
very thin man and stood about
five feet eight or nine inches. He was
tall and slim. He became very
corpulent and fleshy some years after. I
remember well when Colonel
Croghan was placed in arrest. He had an
order from Gen. Harrison to
destroy all public property that he
could not bring away and retreat.
When he got the order it was too late to
retreat. He was tried and ac-
quitted. He was a very courageous man,
afraid of nothing under the
sun. After the battle of Fort Stephenson
we were returned to our com-
panies again. Every company got their
own men but ours, which had
one killed, Samuel Thurman, who was the
only man killed on our side.
We lay at Camp Seneca until the news
came from Commodore Perry
that "we have met the enemy and
they are ours." We then marched
past Fort Stephenson to the lake, where
we were furnished with boats
|
The Croghan Celebration. 85
and crossed over into Canada. We landed about one mile below Colonel Elliott's quarters. I must tell you a little story about this. I took six beautiful silver spoons from that man's house. Everybody had left and I was hard up. The house was furnished in the English fashion. I sold them at Detroit. We did not get paid in those days like we do now. We often went eighteen months without pay. From Elliott's we went to Fort Malden. They had evacuated and taken all they could get from there, and then we went up to Sand Beach. Colonel Johnson followed with more men, and we all followed the British troops until they got to Moravian Town. On the 2d of October we fought the battle of the Thames. I recol- lect that day just as well as I do sitting in this chair. It was their last battle. We made short work of the British. They knew we were com- |
|
|
|
ing and General Proctor and an aide fled before we were within a mile of them. We captured all of them but these two. We had more fighting with the Indians than with the British Regulars. The Indians retreated across the river in canoes, but many of them were shot and tumbled over in the water. We marched to Detroit, where we embarked in Com- modore Perry's fleet. General Harrison and my company were on the same boat with Commodore Perry, and also a British Commodore and other British officers who were prisoners. We sailed to Buffalo, and then marched to Sackett's Harbor, where we joined General Wilkinson's com- mand that was to attack Montreal. We took open boats and started across, but owing to the ice we had to abandon the expedition and return to the shore, from where we marched to a place called Chateaugay Four Cor- ners, on a little lake, and wintered there. The next spring the captain, |
86 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
one officer and myself went to New York
on recruiting service. That
was in 1814. I remained in New York
about two years. When we left
New York we marched with recruits to
fill up the companies stationed
on the northern frontier. I had
re-enlisted on the 23d of November,
1816, for five years. We marched to
Sackett's Harbor, and I was there
assigned to Company D, Second Infantry.
The other recruits were dis-
tributed at the different stations. I
was stationed at Sackett's Harbor
something like seventeen years. We
remained quietly at barracks all
this time, until the Black Hawk War
broke out beyond Chicago. We
started in the month of July, 1832, and
got back October 6, of the same
year. We had no battles in that
campaign. There was nothing but hard
marching, etc. I was appointed an
ordinance sergeant of the U. S. army
October 18, 1833, and was ordered to
Boston, but finally exchanged with
the ordnance sergeant at Madison
barracks. Colonel Kirby, paymaster,
and others arranged the matter for me.
During the Florida War I was
in Sackett's Harbor in charge of all the
property at that post. I was
there too during the Mexican War and got
an order from General
Augur to enlist all the men that I could
and send them to Syracuse. I
got from four to six every day, and sent
them to Syracuse for Mexico.
I was a recruiting officer for General
Augur. During the war of the Re-
bellion I was left alone in charge of
the quartermaster's stores, medical
and other property at Madison Barracks,
New York. I was discharged
December 31, 1866, by Secretary Stanton
and came to this home. I have
had charge of a great many improvements
in the home and was lodge
keeper at the Whitney Avenue gate for a
number of years."
Sergeant Gaines was at the time of this
interview an active
old man about five feet seven inches in
height, of dark complex-
ion. He had bright grey eyes, white hair
and strongly marked
features. He stood perfectly erect, and
had a very soldierly bear-
ing. His mind was clear and his memory
quite remarkable. He
described with great detail the incident
of his early service. He
was the last survivor of the gallant
defenders of Fort Stephenson.
He enlisted when in his thirtieth year
and probably no man served
longer in the United States Army than
he.
REUBEN CLEMENT.
In 1880 there still lived in Petersburg,
Va., a survivor of the
War of 1812, one of the Petersburg
Volunteers, one member of
which, Brown, fought at Fort Stephenson.
A letter from this
aged man, Mr. Reuben Clements, reads:
The Croghan Celebration. 87
"PETERSBURG,
VA., 4th March, 1880.
Colonel:
According to promise I will now attempt
to tell you what little I
know about Croghan and Sandusky. The
opening of the spring cam-
paign in 1813 found the garrison of Fort
Meigs exceedingly weak.
General Harrison having gone in the
states to hasten forward rein-
forcements, leaving General Clay in
command. The British and In-
dians in considerable numbers, knowing
perhaps of the absence of the
General-in-Chief, and our weakness, as
also our expecting succor from
Kentucky, surrounded the fort and
engaged in a sham battle, hoping
by this ruse to draw us out. Failing in
this they left us, taking the
Military Road in the direction of Fort Stephenson,
which was said to
have been forty miles in length, and
fell upon Major Croghan and
his little band at Sandusky. The fort at
this place was quite small,
covering I should say not more than one
English acre of ground. In
form it was quadrilateral, without
traverses, but having in front of
curtain on its four sides a broad and
deep fosse. At the north-east
angle of the fort was a blockhouse, and
just here was mounted the
only cannon (a six pounder) which made
such havoc with the red coats
occupying the ditch. My impression is
that my old comrade Brown
was the only member of my company
present on that occasion; and
that he did not (as has been asserted)
command the piece but only
assisted in working it. The captain of
the gun was a sergeant either
of the Pittsburg Blues, or Greensburg
Blues. However Brown was ter-
ribly burned about the face which
disfigured him for life. I forgot to
state that the Fort was short of
ammunition of all sorts, having only three
rounds in all for the cannon. You ask if
I knew Major Croghan. I an-
swer, Yes, I have seen him oftentimes
before and after the glorious fight
at Sandusky. He was a beardless
stripling; I should say rather below
the medium size, and did not look more
than eighteen years of age.
This is about all I know of Croghan and
Sandusky. I might add, though
not exactly pertinent, that our Company
was quite largely represented
on the decks of Commodore Perry's ships,
when he so gloriously fought
and overcame the British Fleet on Lake
Erie.
With great respect,
Your obedient servant,
REUBEN CLEMENTS.
THE FIRST PERMANENT WHITE SETTLERS IN
OHIO, JAMES WHIT-
AKER AND ELIZABETH FOULKE.
The first permanent white settlers in
Ohio were James
Whitaker and Elizabeth Foulks, who were
captured in western
Pennsylvania in 1774 and 1776
respectively, by the Wyandot
Indians, by whom they were adopted and
taken to Lower San-
88 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
dusky, now Frement, Ohio, where they
were brought together
as adopted members of the Wyandot tribe.
They were married
in Detroit, in 1781, and returned to a
tract of land which had
been given to them by the Wyandots on
the Sandusky River,
three miles below the lower rapids known
as Lower Sandusky.
Here they lived and raised a family of
eight children. Two
of their grandchildren and several great
grandchildren are resi-
dents of Fremont and vicinity.
James Whitaker, who became an Indian
trader, died of
poison, it is said, in 1804, at Upper
Sandusky, where he had a
store; but his remains were brought to
his home established in
1781, where he was buried on the tract
originally given him as
a wedding gift by the Indians, which
tract, containing 1280
acres, was set aside to his widow by the
treaty made at Fort
Industry September 29, 1817. His
tombstone was brought from
the old Whitaker farm and placed in
Birchard Library, just one
hundred years after its erection over
his grave. It bears the
following inscription:
IN MEMORY OF
JAMES WHITEACRE
WHO DIED
DEC. 17, 1804
In the 48th year of his age.
The tombstone of his daughter, Mary
Whitaker Shannon,
was also brought from the Whitaker
family burying-ground to
Birchard Library. Its inscription
records her death as occur-
ring August 15, 1827, in the 36th
year of her age, which places
her birth in 1791. She was the fourth
child of James Whitaker.
The Hon. Homer Everett, who came to
Fremont in 1815,
and was the recognized authority and
historian of Sandusky
county, relates in his History of
Sandusky County an interview
with Mrs. Rachel Scranton, the seventh
child of James Whitaker,
as follows:
The Croghan Celebration. 89
"About the year 1780 two brothers,
Quill and James Whitaker, in
company with another young man, left
Fort Pitt one morning on a
hunting expedition. They wandered a
considerable distance from the
fort, intent upon securing game with
which to gratify their friends, but
at an unexpected moment a volley of
rifle balls rattled among the trees.
One took mortal effect in the body of
the young man, another passed
through the hat of Quill Whitaker, who
saved himself by flight; a third
ball shattered the arm of James, the
younger brother, and in a few minutes
he was the prisoner of a band of painted
Wyandot warriors. After several
days' hard traveling, the Indians with
their captive reached a village
within the present boundaries of
Richland County, Ohio. Here the lines
were formed and Whitaker's bravery and
activity tested on the gauntlet
course. The boy, wounded as he was,
deported himself with true heroism.
The first half of the course was passed
without a single scratch, but as he
was speeding on toward the painted goal
an old squaw who cherished a
feeling of deep revenge, mortified by
the captive's successful progress,
sprang forward and caught his arm near
the shoulder, hoping to detain
him long enough for the weapon of the
next savage to take effect. The
prisoner instantly halted and with a
violent kick sent the vicious squaw
and the next Indian tumbling from the
lines. His bold gallantry received
wild shouts of applause along the line.
Attention being thus diverted, he
sprang forward with quickened speed and
reached the post without ma-
terial injury. Not satisfied that this
favorite amusement should be so
quickly ended, it was decided that the
prisoner should run again. The
lines for the second trial were already
formed, when an elderly and dig-
nified squaw walked forward and took
from her own shoulders a blanket
which she cast over the panting young
prisoner, saying, 'This is my son.
He is one of us. You must not kill him.'
Thus adopted, he was treated
with all that kindness and affection
which the savage heart is capable
of cherishing."
Miss Helen Scranton, daughter of Mr.
Everett's informant
above, relates that her grandfather,
James Whitaker, was born
in London, England, in 1756, and brought
to New York when
twelve years of age by his uncle, John
Whitaker, who was a
trader and the captain of his own ship.
The boy wandered
away from his uncle's ship while in New
York and was later
reported as having been captured by the
Indians.
The first documentary evidence we have
of James Whitaker
is found in his signature to a
proclamation issued by Henry
Hamilton, the British Lieutenant
Governor at Detroit. This
notorious scalp-hunter three months
later welcomed the rene-
gades Girty, Elliott and McKee, and sent
them forth to lead the
90 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
savages against American settlers on the
borders of Pennsyl-
vania and Virginia. The proclamation
reads:
"DETROIT, January 5th, 1778.
"Notwithstanding all endeavors to
apprize his majesty's faithful and
loyal subjects, dispersed over the
colonies of his gracious intentions to-
wards them, signified to them at
different times, it is to be feared the
mistaken zeal of the deluded multitude,
acted upon by the artful and
wicked designs of rebellious counsellors
has prevented many from profit-
ing of his majesty's clemency. This is
to acquaint all whom it may con-
cern, that nothing can give greater
satisfaction to those persons who com-
mand for his majesty at the different
posts, than to save from ruin those
innocent people who are unhappily
involved in distresses they have in no
ways merited. The moderation shown by
the Indians who have gone to
war from this place, is a speaking proof
of the truth; and the injunc-
tions constantly laid upon them on their
setting out, having been to
spare the defenceless and aged of both
sexes, show that compassion for
the unhappy is blended with the severity
necessary to be exercised in the
obstinate and perverse enemies of his
majesty's crown and dignity.
"The persons undernamed are living
witnesses of the moderation and
even gentleness of savages shown to
them, their wives and children;
which may, it is hoped, induce others to
exchange the hardships experi-
enced under their present masters, for
security and freedom under their
lawful sovereign.
"The bearer hereof, Edward Hazle,
has my orders to make known
to all persons whom it may concern, that
the Indians are encouraged to
show the same mildness to all who shall
embrace the offer of safety and
protection, hereby held out to them; and
he is further to make known,
as far as lies in his power, that if a
number of people can agree upon
a place of rendezvous, and a proper time
for coming to this post, the
Miamis, Sandusky or post Vincennes, the
properest methods will be taken
for their security, and a safe guard of
white people, with an officer and
interpreter sent to conduct them.
"Given under my hand and seal in
Detroit.
"Signed, Henry Hamilton[Seal],
Lieutenant Governor and Super-
intendent.
"God save the King."
"We who have undersigned our names,
do voluntarily declare that
we have been conducted from the several
places mentioned opposite our
names to Detroit by Indians accompanied
with white people; that we
have neither been cruelly treated nor in
any way ill used by them; and
further that on our arrival we have been
treated with the greatest hu-
manity and our wants supplied in the
best manner possible.
"George Baker, for himself, wife
and five children-now here from
five miles below Logstown.
The Croghan Celebration. 91
"James Butterworth from Big
Kenawha.
"Thomas X Shoers, from Harrodstown,
Kentucky.
his mark.
"Jacob Pugh, from six miles below
the fort at Wheeling.
"Jonathan Muchmore, from Ft. Pitt.
"James Whitaker, from Detroit,
taken at Fish Creek.
"John X Bridges, from Detroit,
taken at Fish Creek.
his mark.
After Whitaker's marriage and return to
Lower Sandusky,
he became an influential Wyandot chief
and follower of Tarhe,
the Crane, the famous Indian chieftain
whose home was at
Lower Sandusky. Charles Johnson, states
in his Narrative that
Whitaker fought with the Wyandots under
Crane in the defeat
of St. Clair in 1791, and again in the
Battle of Fallen Timbers
in 1794, when Wayne defeated the Indians
so decisively and
brought permanent peace to the frontier.
James Whitaker died in 1804, but the
Wyandots of Lower
Sandusky, under Tarhe, fought on the
American side in the War
of 1812. Although compelled through self-interest
and the cir-
cumstances of his location to fight the
battles of his adopted Indian
brothers, there are many notable
instances of his kindness to
white prisoners, and his constant
efforts to alleviate their suffer-
ings whenever possible. A number of
instances are cited later.
Mr. Everett's narrative, cited above,
continues:
"About two years after the capture
of Whitaker, another party of
warriors made an incursion into
Pennsylvania and captured at Cross
Roads, Elizabeth Foulks, a girl eleven
years old, whom they carried into
captivity and adopted into a family of
the tribe. Both captives lived con-
tentedly and happily, having adopted the
manners and customs of their
hosts.
"A few years after--probably here
on the Sandusky river, at a
general council of their tribe, these
two adopted children of the forest
made each other's acquaintance. A
marriage according to the customs
of civilized life was at once arranged
and the couple, ardent in their love
and happy in their expectations, set off
for Detroit, where the Christian
ritual was pronounced which made them
man and wife.
"The Indians seemed well pleased by
this conduct of their pale-
faced children. They gave them a choice
tract of farming land in the
river bottom. Mr. and Mrs. Whitaker
reared a large family for whose
education they expended considerable
sums of money.
"Mr. Whitaker entered into
mercantile business, for which he was
92 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
well fitted. He established a store at
his residence, one at Tymochtee
and one at Upper Sandusky. He
accumulated wealth rapidly, having at
the time of his death his goods all paid
for and 2,000 pounds on deposit
with the Canada house where he made his
purchases. At Upper San-
dusky he had a partner, Hugh Patterson,
with whom in the year 1804
he drank a glass of wine and died a
short time afterwards, his death
being attributed to poison in the wine.
Mrs. Whitaker, to whom a reser-
vation was granted in the treaty of
1817, survived her husband many
years."
Miss Helen Scranton states that her
grandmother, Elizabeth
Foulks, was taken prisoner by the
Wyandots during the first
year of the War of the Revolution, 1776,
when eleven years old,
at Beaver Creek, Pa. The children of the
neighborhood were
making sugar when they were attacked by
the Indians, her
brother John Foulks was tomahawked and
killed, and her brother
George, who was several years older than
Elizabeth, was taken
prisoner with her. Both were carried
through to the vicinity
of Detroit: She remained with the
Indians at Detroit, being
very kindly treated by them, until she
was married to James
Whitaker, also a prisoner at Detroit,
some five years and three
months after her capture, namely in 1781
or 1782. She was
adopted by the Wyandots, but in common
with the white pris-
oners, including her brother George, she
was freed a short time
before her marriage. George Foulks
returned at once to Beaver
Creek, Pa., where he married, leaving at
least ten children.
Elizabeth was married to James Whitaker
according to rites of
civilized life, but whether by a civil
or a religious ceremony is
not known. In 1782, very soon after
their marriage, Whitaker
and his wife left Detroit and returned
to the banks of the San-
dusky River, where they built a log
cabin three miles below
Lower Sandusky, now Fremont. A few years
after settling on
the Sandusky, Whitaker traded his furs
and Indian supplies
for lumber from Canada, and after
rafting it up the Sandusky
River built a large frame, two-story
house, also a warehouse
and store building. When her first
child, Nancy, was nine or
ten months old, Mrs. Whitaker started on
her first trip home
to Beaver Creek, carrying her baby on
her horse in front of
her and being accompanied by two Wyandot
squaws. She was
the mother of eight children, from her
marriage in 1782 until
|
The Croghan Celebration. 93
the death of her husband in 1804, at Upper Sandusky. She made several trips to her old home in Beaver Creek, going for the last time in 1823 to attend a family reunion at the home of her sister. An incident of that occasion is that her sister sat at the table with twenty-two of her own children, two others having died. Of the twenty-two, a quartet of boys, born at one birth, were dressed in suits of handsome green cloth presented to them by President Monroe. Mrs Whitaker died suddenly in 1833, |
|
|
|
while on a visit to Upper Sandusky, where her husband also had died neatly thirty years before. She was buried at Upper San- dusky, although her husband's body had been taken back to Lower Sandusky. Her will, dated February 13, 1833, was admitted to probate in this county September 13, 1833, in which are mentioned the names of several of her children, including Isaac and James, the latter being her executor. In her will among other things |
94 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
mentioned as her property was "a
chest containing valuable arti-
cles." From the inventory of her
estate as recorded in the office
of the probate judge the following
articles of silver were found
in a chest: Silver castor, cruets,
tablespoons, sugar tongs, Indian
armband and shoe buckles.
The children of James Whitaker and
Elizabeth Foulks
Whitaker were all born on what was
afterward called the
Whitaker Reservation, a tract of 1280
acres set aside for her
by the treaty of 1817, which
reads:
"To Elizabeth Whitaker, who was
taken prisoner by the Wyandots
and has ever since lived among them,
1280 acres of land, on the west
side of the Sandusky river, near
Croghansville, to be laid off in a square
form, as nearly as the meanders of the
said river will admit, and to run
an equal distance above and below the
house in which the said Elizabeth
Whitaker now lives."
A deed was made to her by the Government
in 1822 for
these lands, containing the restriction
that she should not con-
vey them to others without permission
from the President of
the United States. This permission she
obtained from President
Monroe and in 1823, for the
consideration named in the deed
of $1200, conveyed the whole tract to her son George Whitaker.
The names of the children of James and
Elizabeth Whitaker
were:
Nancy, born in 1782, married William
Wilson in 1803.
Isaac moved to Indiana.
James moved to Michigan.
Mary, born in 1791, married George Shannon,
died in 1827.
Elizabeth who died during the War of
1812.
Charlotte who died in 1824.
Rachel, born in 1800, who married James
A. Scranton in
1823.
George, born in 1803, moved to
Missouri in February, 1884.
James Whitaker had a number of trading
posts or stores,
one at his home, one on the Tymochtee
and one at Upper San-
dusky. While visiting the latter he died
suddenly, in 1804, sup-
posedly being poisoned by his partner,
Hugh Patterson, a Cana-
dian from Sandwich, Upper Canada, who
owed Mrs. Whitaker
The Croghan Celebration. 95
"$1300 on a judgment on which
Richard Patterson was surety,"
as stated in Elizabeth Whitaker's will.
James Whitaker did a great deal of his
trading at Montreal,
making one or two trips thither a year.
On one of these trips
he took his eldest daughter, Nancy, a
young girl, to Montreal,
where she visited an English family
named Wilson. The Wil-
sons proposed sending one of their
daughters to Scotland to be
educated, and Nancy Whitaker accompanied
her and remained
at Glasgow, Scotland, at school for
nearly three years. Shortly
after Nancy's return to her father's
home near Lower Sandusky,
William Wilson, an English officer and
son of the Montreal
Wilsons, came to visit the Whitakers,
and on a second visit some
months later he was married to Nancy at
the Whitaker home,
when she was between seventeen and
eighteen years of age.
William Wilson, the British officer, and
his wife Nancy lived
with the Whitakers, where they had many
English officers as
visitors. Two girls and a boy were born
to them before the
death of Nancy Whitaker Wilson, which
occurred shortly before
the death of her father, James Whitaker,
in 1804. The British
officer, Wilson, was recalled to England
in 1810 or 1811 to
assume the position of Captain in his
regiment, and left his
three children with their grandmother,
Elizabeth Whitaker, who
had charge of them until after the close
of the war between
Great Britain and America, as well as of
her own seven children.
One of her children, Mary, married
George Shannon. She
died in 1827, leaving five sons and one
daughter; two sons,
James and John, lived and died here,
leaving large families who
are prosperous people. Rachel Whitaker
Scranton died Octo-
ber 7, 1862, eleven years after the
death of her husband, James
A. Scranton, who died while
Sergeant-at-Arms of the Ohio State
Senate, in 1851. They had ten children,
of whom two survive:
James A. Scranton, a farmer near
Fremont, and Mrs. Hannah
Scranton-Stoner, a widow.
Charles Johnston of Botetourt County,
Virginia, while engaged in
securing depositions of witnesses in
litigation in relation to lands in
Kentucky, left his home in 1789 and
repaired to what is now Point
Pleasant on the Ohio river, While
passing down the river with Mr.
May, Mr. Skyles, William Flinn and Peggy
and Dolly Fleming, one of
96 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
whom
was a particular friend of Flinn who with the young women
were residents of Pittsburg, the party
was hailed by two white men who
implored to be taken on board and
rescued from the Indians by whom
they had been captured. These white men
were simply used as a decoy,
and when the boat containing Johnston
and his companions approached
the shore they were fired on by a body
of 54 Indians, killing Dolly
Fleming and Mr. May, and capturing
Skyles, Flinn, Peggy Fleming and
Charles Johnston. The date was March 20,
1789. The prisoners were
separated and later Flinn was burned at
the stake on the Sandusky
river, Skyles was condemned to a similar
fate on the Miami of the
Lakes, but providentially escaped to
Detroit. In 1827, Johnston, then a
prominent citizen of his native state,
printed a "Narrative of the Inci-
dents attending the Capture, Detention
and Ransom of Charles Johnston."
The following extracts relate to his
fellow captive, Peggy Fleming, and
to his experiences at Lower Sandusky.
When he reached Upper San-
dusky, he met a Canadian trader, named
Francis Duchouquet, who suc-
ceeded after many efforts in purchasing
Johnston from the Indians for
600 silver broaches. "This
event" says Johnston, "to me the most im-
portant of my life, by a singular
coincidence occurred on the 28th of
April, in the year 1790, the day on
which I attained the age of 21 years."
"The small band of Cherokees, three
in number, to whom Peggy
Fleming had been allotted in the
distribution made of the prisoners on
the Ohio, brought her to Upper Sandusky
while I was there. She was
no longer that cheerful, lively creature
such as when separated from
us. Her spirits were sunk, her gayety
had fled; and instead of that
vivacity and sprightliness which
formerly danced upon her countenance
she now wore the undissembled aspect of
melancholy and wretchedness.
I endeavored to ascertain the cause of
this extraordinary change, but
she answered my inquiries only with her
tears; leaving my mind to its
own inferences. Her stay with us was
only for a few hours, during
which time I could not extract a word
from her, except occasionally
the monosyllables yes and no. Gloom
and despondency had taken entire
possession of her breast; and nothing
could be more touching than her
appearance. Her emaciated frame and
dejected countenance, presented
a picture of sorrow and of sadness which
would have melted the stoutest
heart, and such was its effect upon me
that I could not abstain from
mingling my tears with hers. With these
feelings we parted. When we
met again it was under far different and
more auspicious circumstances,
as will hereafter be seen.
"Mr. Duchouquet sold his goods and
collected his peltry at Upper
Sandusky. The season had arrived for
transporting his purchases to De-
troit; and with a light heart I began
the journey to that post in his
party. The Sandusky river is not
navigable from the upper town: and
Mr. Duchouquet's peltry was carried on
pack horses to Lower Sandusky;
whence there is a good navigation to
Detroit. When we reached Lower
Sandusky, a great degree of
consternation prevailed there, produced by
The Croghan Celebration. 97
the incidents of the preceding day, and
of the morning then recently
past. The three Cherokees, who had
possession of Peggy Fleming, had
conducted her to a place where they
encamped, within a quarter of a
mile's distance from the town. It was
immediately rumored that they
were there, with a white female captive.
The traders residing in the
town instantly determined to visit the
camp of the Cherokees and to
see her. Among them was a man whose name
was Whitaker, and who
like the one that I had met at Upper
Sandusky had been carried into
captivity from the white settlements by
the Wyandots in his early life.
He was not so entirely savage as the
first; could speak our language
better; and though naturalized by his
captors retained some predilection
for the whites. The influence which he
had acquired with his tribe was
such that they had promoted him to the
rank of chief; and his standing
with them was high. His business had led
him frequently to Pittsburg
where the father of Peggy Fleming then
kept a tavern in which Whit-
aker had been accustomed to lodge and
board. As soon as he appeared
with the other traders at the camp of
the Cherokees, he was recognized
by the daughter of his old landlord, and
she addressed him by his name,
earnestly supplicating his efforts to
emancipate her from the grasp of
her savage proprietors. Without
hesitation he acceded to her request.
He did not make an application to the
Cherokees but returned to the
town and informed the principal chief,
distinguished by the appellation
of King Crane, that the white female
captive was his sister; a misrepre-
sentation greatly palliated by the
benevolent motive which dictated it.
"He had no difficulty in obtaining
from the King a promise to pro-
cure her release. Crane went immediately
to the camp of the Cherokees;
informed them that their prisoner was
the sister of a friend of his, and
desired as a favor that they would make
a present to him of Peggy
Fleming, whom he wished to restore to
her brother. They rejected his
request. He then proposed to purchase
her; this they also refused with
bitterness telling him that he was no
better than the white people and
that he was as mean as the dirt;
terms of the grossest reproach in their
use of them. At this insult Crane became
exasperated. He went back
to the town; told Whitaker what had been
his reception and declared
his intention to take Peggy Fleming from
the Cherokees by force. But
fearing such an act might be productive
of war between his nation and
theirs, he urged Whitaker to raise the
necessary sum in value for her
redemption. Whitaker, with the
assistance of the other traders at the
town, immediately made up the requisite
amount in silver broaches.
This was not accomplished until it was
too late to effect their object
on that evening. Early next morning,
King Crane, attended by eight
or ten young warriors, marched out to
the camp of the Cherokees, where
he found them asleep, while their
forlorn captive was securely fastened,
in a state of utter nakedness, to a
stake, and her body painted black;
an indication always decisive that death
is the doom of the prisoner.
Vol. XVI-7.
|
98 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
Crane, with his scalping knife, cut the cords by which she was bound; delivered her the clothes of which she had been divested by the rude hands of the unfeeling Cherokees; and after she was dressed, awakened them. He told them in peremptory language that the captive was his, and that he had brought with him the value of her ransom. Then throwing down the silver broaches on the ground, he bore off the terri- fied girl to the town, and delivered her to Whitaker; who after a few days sent her, disguised by her dress and paint as a squaw, to Pitts- burg, under the care of two trusty Wyandots. I never learnt whether she reached her home or not; but as the Indians are remarkable for their fidelity to their undertakings, I presume she was faithfully con- ducted to her place of destination. "The Cherokees were so incensed by the loss of their captive, that |
|
|
|
they entered the Wyandot town of Lower Sandusky, declaring they would be revenged by taking the life of some white person. This was the cause of the alarm, which was spread among the traders at the time of our arrival, and in which our party necessarily participated; as it was indispensable that we should remain there several days, for the purpose of unpacking Mr. Duchouquet's peltry from the horses, and placing it on board the batteaux in which it was to be conveyed to Detroit. The Cherokees painted themselves, as they and other savages are accustomed to do when they are preparing for war or battle. All their ingenuity is directed to the object of rendering their aspect as horrible as pos- sible, that they may strike their enemies with terror, and indicate by external signs the fury which rages within. They walked about the town in great anger, and we deemed it necessary to keep a watchful eye upon |
The Croghan Celebration. 99
them and to guard against their
approach. All the whites, except Whit-
aker, who was considered as one of the
Wyandots, assembled at night
in the same house, provided with weapons
of defence, and continued
together until the next morning; when to
our high gratification they
disappeared and I never heard of them
afterwards."
Mr. Johnston's Narrative continues:
"At Lower Sandusky we found Mr.
Angus McIntosh, who was
extensively engaged in the fur trade.
This gentleman was at the head
of the connection to which Mr.
Duchouquet belonged, who was his factor
or partner at Upper Sandusky, as a Mr.
Isaac Williams was here.
Williams was a stout, bony, muscular and
fearless man. On one of those
days which I spent in waiting until we
were ready to embark for Detroit,
a Wyandot Indian, in his own language,
which I did not understand,
uttered some expression offensive to
Williams. This produced great
irritation on both sides and a bitter
quarrel ensued. Williams took down
from a shelf of the store in which the
incident occurred two scalping
knives; laid them on the counter; gave
the Wyandot choice of them;
and challenged him to combat with these
weapons. But the character
of Williams for strength and courage was
so well known, that he would
not venture on the contest and soon
afterward retired.
"Lower Sandusky was to me
distinguished by another circumstance.
It was the residence of the Indian
widow, whose former husband I had
been destined to succeed, if the Mingo
had been permitted to retain and
dispose of me according to his
intentions. I felt an irresistible curiosity
to have a view of this female, and it
was my determination to find her
dwelling, and see her there, if no other
opportunity should occur. She
was at last pointed out to me as she
walked about the village, and I
could not help chuckling at my escape
from the fate which had been
intended for me. She was old, ugly and
disgusting.
"After the expiration of four or
five days from that on which we
reached Lower Sandusky, our preparations
were completed; the boats
were laden with the peltry of the
traders; and the whole trading party
embarked for Detroit. On the afternoon
of the second day, having de-
scended the river into Sandusky Bay, we
landed on a small island near
the strait by which it enters into Lake
Erie. Here we pitched a tent
which belonged to our party. The island
was inhabited by a small body
of Indians, and we were soon informed
that they were preparing for a
festival and dance. If I then understood
the motive or occasion which
induced this dance, it is not now within
my recollection. Several canoes
were employed in bringing guests from
the main, which is at a short
distance, separated from the island by a
narrow arm of the bay. We
were all invited to the dance by short
sticks, painted red, which were
delivered to us, and seemed to be
intended as tickets of admission. A
large circular piece of ground was made
smooth, and surrounded by
something like a pallisade, within which
the entertainment was held.
We had expected that it would commence
early in the evening, but the
100 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
delay was so long that we laid down to
sleep in the tent, which stood
near the spot of ground prepared for the
dance.
"About eleven o'clock we were
awakened by the noise of Indian
mirth. One hundred, perhaps, of both
sexes had assembled. Both men
and women were dressed in calico shirts.
Those of the women were
adorned with a profusion of silver
broaches, stuck in the sleeves and
bosoms; they wore, besides, what is
called a match-coat, formed of
cloth, confined around the middle of
their bodies by a string, with the
edges lapping toward the side, and the
length of the garment extended
a little below the knees. They wore
leggings and moccasins. Their
cheeks were painted red, but no other
part of their face. Their long
black hair was parted in front, drawn
together behind, and formed into
a club. The liberal use of bear's oil
gave it a high gloss. Such are
the ornaments and dress of an Indian
belle, by which she endeavors to
attract the notice of admiring beaux.
The men had a covering around
their waists, to which their leggings
were suspended by a string, extend-
ing from their top to the cord which
held on the covering of the waist;
and a blanket or robe thrown over the
shoulders and confined by a belt
around the body, of various colors and
adorned with beads. The women
were arranged together and led the
dance, the men following after them
and all describing a circle. The
character of this dance differed essen-
tially from that of the war dance, which
I had witnessed on a former
occasion. The one was accompanied by
horrid yells and shrieks and
extravagant gestures, expressive of fury
and ferocity, with nothing like
a mirthful cheerfulness. The other which
I saw in this last instance
was mere festivity and lively mirth. The
women were excluded from
the first, but had an active share in
the second; and both sexes were
highly animated by the music of the
tamborine. An abundant supper
had been provided, consisting altogether
of the fresh meat of bears and
deer, without bread or salt and dressed
in no other manner than by
boiling. It was served up in a number of
wooden trenchers, placed on
the ground and the guests seated
themselves around it. We were in-
vited to partake but neither the food
nor the cookery were much to our
taste; yet we were unwilling to refuse
their hospitality, and joined in
their repast. We were not gainers by it;
for when we were faring
not very sumptuously on their boiled
meat, without bread or salt, they
entered our tent and stole from our
basket which contained provisions
enough for our voyage, a very fine ham
on which we had intended to
regale ourselves the next day."
It is a curious fact that of the first
settlers of the Ohio
Company at Marietta, the first organized
settlement in the
Northwestern Territory, who were
captured by the Indians to
be taken for ransom to Detroit, two of
their number, Major
Nathan Goodale, the Revolutionary hero,
and Daniel Convers,
The Croghan Celebration. 101
then a young lad, should have been
treated with great kindness
by the Indian trader James Whitaker and
his family, the first
permanent white settlers in Ohio, at
their home near Lower
Sandusky. In fact Major Goodale died at
the home of the
Whitakers and was buried by them; while
young Convers makes
personal mention of their kindness to
him, in his Reminiscences.
The lad Daniel Convers was captured by
nine Indians on
the 29th of April, 1791, just
outside of Fort Frye, while engaged
with three armed soldiers in cutting a
tree for the purpose of
making a hoop for the body of a drum.
They were fired on,
when the three soldiers ran, leaving
Daniel, who was unarmed,
to be captured by the Indians. He was
hurried into a canoe
on the river which crossed over to the
mouth of Wolf Creek.
On arriving at Lower Sandusky, on the
9th of May, he found
oxen and other cattle that had been
taken from the settlement
at Marietta.
Some young Indian boys ran with him up
the river bank
to keep him out of sight of the other
Indians who lived in the
large Indian village, and he thus
received only kind treatment,
except in the case of a drunken Indian,
who knocked him down
several times. Hildreth's Pioneer
History says that they moved
the next day down the Sandusky,
"and stopped a short time at
Mr. Whitaker's, an Indian trader. He had
a white wife who
like himself had been taken prisoner in
childhood and adopted
into the tribe. The trader made them a
present of a loaf of
maple sugar, giving Daniel a share.
Whitaker said but little
to the prisoner, lest he should excite
the jealousy of the war-
riors."
On arriving at the mouth of the Portage
River, near the
ruins of old Fort Sandusky, Convers was
delivered to his new
master, a Chippewa. The price paid for
him was a horse and
several strings of wampum.
He was then taken to Detroit, where on
the 14th of July
he escaped and after secreting himself
for several weeks was
finally taken to the hospital by the son
of the British Command-
ant, who treated him kindly and sent him
on down to Montreal
and then on to his relations in
Killingly, Connecticut. He re-
turned to Marietta in February, 1794,
and became an influential
102 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
citizen. He drew the sketch of Fort Frye
found in Hildreth's
Pioneer History, which he assisted, as a
boy, in building.
Of the many acts of kindness extended by
James Whitaker
and his wife during their residence
among the Indians at Lower
Sandusky, the most noted person whom
they were able to assist
was Major Nathan Goodale. Gen. Rufus
Putnam, the intimate
friend of Washington and his chief
engineer and the "Father
of Ohio" in its first organized
settlement, was warmly attached
to Major Goodale, who had served as an
officer in his regiment
through the entire war. General Putnam,
in a remarkable letter
to General Washington written at
Massachusetts Huts, June 9,
1783, calls Washington's attention to
the numerous conspicuous
acts of personal bravery and of the
gallant duty performed by
Major Goodale during the Revolutionary
War.
Major Goodale was a native of
Brookfield, Mass., but
joined the Ohio Company in 1788. He
removed to Belpre, near
Marietta, in 1789, where he was captured
March 1, 1793, while
working on his farm within fifty rods of
the garrison, by eight
Wyandot Indians, who hurried him off
toward Detroit in order
to secure a large ransom. While en
route, near Lower San-
dusky, he fell sick and could not
travel. The Whitakers learn-
ing of his condition took him to their
home, where Mrs. Whitaker
carefully nursed him until he finally
died and was probably
buried in what afterward became the
Whitaker family grave-
yard. Mrs. Whitaker said "the
Indians left him at her house,
where he died of a disease like pleurisy
without having received
any very ill usage from his captors
other than the means neces-
sary to prevent his escape."
James Whitaker may be regarded as the
first educator of
this region. About 1800, at large
expense, he hired a teacher
from the east to instruct the older
children. His oldest daugh-
ter, Nancy, had been taken to Montreal,
and then sent to Scot-
land, where she remained three years at
school, returning well
qualified to teach her younger brothers
and sisters.
The Sandusky and Maumee Valleys, as well
as Detroit and
the Michigan peninsula, practically
remained under British do-
minion until after the Battle of Fallen
Timbers and the subsequent
treaty of Greenville. Detroit was
evacuated by the British in
The Croghan Celebration. 103
1796, nevertheless the British through
their Indian allies kept
an envious eye on this region and almost
immediately after the
declaration of war in June, 1812, again took possession of much
of this territory through the
ignominious surrender of Detroit.
Under these circumstances and on account
of James Whitaker's
almost semi-annual business trips to
Montreal it was but natural
that he and his family, including his
son-in-law, Captain Wilson
of the British Army, should be counted
on as having warm British
sympathies, many British officers,
including Proctor himself it is
said, visited at the Whitaker home at
Lower Sandusky prior to
the War of 1812. After James Whitaker's
death in 1804, and for
nearly thirty years thereafter, Mrs.
Whitaker resided in the old
home and transacted the business of a
frontier trader, but her
connections were more with the Americans
on the Ohio River
and at Pittsburg than with the British
at Montreal. Many acts of
kindness on her part to the foreign
missionaries are recorded.
The Rev. Joseph Badger, born in
Springfield, Mass., and a
Revolutionary soldier who fought at
Bunker Hill, was appointed
a missionary in the Connecticut Western
Reserve in October,
1800, and in 1801 began his work which
also extended into the
Sandusky Valley. In 1805, in the
records left by him, we read
of his swimming his horse across the
Sandusky River by the
side of his canoe. Associated with him
was Quintus F. Atkins,
whose diary is in the W. R. Historical
Society. There we read
that in 1806 these two men sailed up the
Sandusky River to
Mrs. Whitaker's, where they unloaded and
had family prayers.
A little later they heard Crane, the
Wyandot chief, "expressing
his pleasure in granting permission to
work their land and to
get food and hoping they would dwell
together in peace." In
the fall of 1809, when war rumors were
afloat, Mr. Badger
made an appointment for the Indians to
meet him at Mrs.
Whitaker's, at Lower Sandusky. His
address to them was so
convincing and his influence over them
for four or five years
had been so powerful for good, that they
resolved to take no
part against the Americans. This was
doubtless one of the rea-
sons together with the influence of Mrs.
Whitaker, why the
Wyandots under Tarhe at Lower Sandusky,
kept their faith with
|
104 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
the Americans and did not join the other Indians in behalf of the British. General Harrison often stopped at her house and she nursed him there through an illness of over six weeks. When the British expedition set out from Detroit under Proctor late in July, 1813, against Fort Meigs and then against Fort Stephenson at Lower Sandusky, it is only fair to presume that they counted on Mrs. Whitaker being friendly or at least neutral, as it was known that she had in her house the three children of a Captain in the British Army in the persons of the children of her daughter Nancy. The British gun-boats stopped at Whitaker's wharf three miles below the fort, where the large fine dwelling-house, store-house, factory |
|
|
|
and wharves of the Whitakers were located, but Mrs. Whitaker with her children and grandchildren on the approach of Tecum- seh's horde of Indians had fled to the protection of Fort Stephen- son and had been sent but a day or so before the battle, with other refugees, women and children, on toward Upper Sandusky and Delaware. She, herself, was fired on by the Indians, whose bullets riddled her cape. Her descendants, and in fact many old residents, ascribe much of Major Croghan's success to the information and advice given him by Mrs. Whitaker. She certainly had every opportunity of learning of the intention of the Indian allies of the British and this information she undoubtedly im- parted to General Harrison and Major Croghan, although it |
The Croghan Celebration. 105
is hard to estimate the actual value of
the assistance given to
Croghan in the battle. Nevertheless the
British were so in-
censed at her conduct that they stopped
at the Whitaker home
on their retreat down the river from
Fort Stephenson and re-
mained long enough to utterly destroy
the old home, the ware-
house, the factory and the wharves.
Before Mrs. Whitaker fled
from her riverside home, she buried a
handsome silver service
which had been presented to her and her
husband, years before,
by British officers. It was unearthed
and carried off by the Brit-
ish. Among the evidences of the landing
of British soldiers at
the Whitaker homestead and also of the
character of the troops
engaged against Fort Stephenson is a
Wellington half-penny
token, coined in 1813, and presented to
British troops participating
in Wellington's Peninsular Campaign in
Spain and Portugal,
which was found within the last ten
years near the Whitaker
homestead and was placed in the Birchard
Library Museum. After
the close of General Harrison's
Northwestern Compaign he ap-
pointed a commission to appraise the
damage and loss sustained
by American citizens by the British
invasion of Ohio during the
War of 1812. This commission awarded
Mrs. Whitaker $8000
as the damage and loss sustained in the
destruction of her prop-
erty by the British forces under General
Proctor. "I have claims
on the United States," says her
will, probated in 1833, "to $8000
for spoilation during the last
war." Voluminous papers were pre-
pared many years ago containing original
affidavits of settlers
of that period, and placed in the hands
of Congressman Frank
H. Hurd, who represented this
Congressional District some
twenty-five years ago.