Winthrop Sargent 273
became adopted amongst them, his head
shaved, painted, etc., as
is their custom upon such occasions, and
has since, by his own
account, been much in favor with them.
He relates that he has
been with them to the British posts,
Michilmackinac particularly.
That they are there equipped with all
the necessaries to come to
war against the United States--march out
upon these occasions
under English colors, and are received
when they return with
scalps with military parade and every
mark of approbation and
encouragement. This man has brought to me from
Michilmack-
inac a couple of small memorandum books
in manuscript which I
left in the field upon the 4th of November at General
St. Clair's
defeat. They were sewed up under a blank
cover to my address,
but without any information of the
person sending them to me.
EXTRACTS FROM WINTHROP SARGENT'S
JOURNAL.
1793-1795
In the library of the Ohio State
Archaeological and
Historical Society is a typewritten copy
of the Journal
of Winthrop Sargent, Secretary of
the Territory North-
west of the Ohio River, covering the period from Oc-
tober 1, 1793, to December 31, 1795.
This for the most
part is made up of weather reports day
by day but oc-
casionally other items of interest are
included. It shows
that the writer by no means spent all of
his time at his
post in the Northwest Territory. There
were visits to
the East covering a number of months.
The Journal
begins when he was in New York, setting
out on a jour-
ney to Mount Vernon where he visited
General Wash-
ington October 13 and 14, 1793. He
describes Mount
Vernon and its environs. Washington's
farm, he tells
us, includes about 10,000 acres of land,
"700 of which
are in plantations the present season,
cultivated by
slaves of which the President has now
fully 200, better
Vol. XXXIII--18.
274 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications
clothed and fed than negroes generally
are in this coun-
try." The writer then continues:
I saw and conversed with many of them in
my walks of this
morning, who seem well contented in
their situation and most
attached to their master.
A very advantageous situation for a
fortress was pointed out
to me by the President nearly opposite
to Mount Vernon, com-
manding perfectly the channel of the
Potomac both up and down
the river to a very considerable
distance. The mansion house,
which is of wood, has been considerably
improved since it came
into the possession of its present
dignified owner. It is about 120
feet in length with a capacious open
piazza towards the water,
supported by a proper number of pillars,
very lofty and majestic
columns.
Then follows a detailed account of the
Mount Ver-
non residence, its gardens, greenhouse
and surround-
ings. He has an interesting account of
the meeting
with President Washington and his
family:
Around the breakfast table were
collected the party of yes-
terday, all in health and cheerful. Mrs.
Washington and the
President seem as yet to have suffered
but little since the close of
the last war by the ravaging hand of
time. He endures exercise
unremitted and even fatigues of body and
mind very uncommonly
for his season. After a very substantial
repast in which Indian
hoe cake with butter and honey seemed
the principal component
parts, we withdrew till dinner at which
and till late this evening
we were favored with his company. Our
conversation general
and the subject of politics avoided. I
am a little disappointed,
coming from the western country now the
theater of war and
having borne some considerable part in
the unfortunate campaign
of General St. Clair which is still a
subject of public discussion,
that the President did not avail himself
of the information I
might have reasonably been supposed to
be capable of imparting
His silence, however, upon this head was
a good lesson to me
and for once I suffered prudence to
assume the government. A
total apathy to friendship, all
affectionate attachments or en-
couragements to friendly confidential
communications should
mark the character of that public man
who would appear im-
maculate to the jaundiced eye of a
diversified multifarious re-
publican government. Upon the topics of
old campaigns under
the unfortunate General Braddock and his
successor, Forbes, I
Winthrop Sargent 275
obtained information, by queries
however, for the President cer-
tainly is never communicative. He bore a material part
under
these officers and I learn from him that
the British were very
much indebted to chance for the
possession of Fort Duquesne
(now Pittsburgh) in the campaign. * * *
For the French com-
mandant had dismissed the Indians at a late period when
his
enemy was about making winter
cantonment, not having supplies
of provisions to advance; but convoys
accidentally arriving,
Forbes pushed on and acquired his object
without any opposi-
tion--except some skirmishings which had previously
taken place
between his advanced guards and small
parties of Indians.
The family by whom Sargent was
entertained con-
sisted of the "President, Mrs.
Washington, Mr. Dand-
ridge, the President's secretary, three
Miss Custises
and a Mrs. Washington, widow of the
President's
nephew." The diary continues:
Between the President, Mr. Dandridge and
the ladies we
have passed the afternoon and evening
very pleasantly. The
Miss Custises are granddaughters of Mrs.
Washington through
a first husband, all of them handsome
and agreeable, but Nelly
who has of late accompanied her
grandmamma in public life is
of acknowledged excellence; with their
vocal and instrumental
music we have been much charmed; Mrs.,
the widow Washing-
ton, is of most amiable person and
manners. On the morrow
after breakfast we were necessitated to
bid adieu to this honored
assemblage, deeply impressed with a
sense and esteem of and for
the private virtues and accomplishments
of each and every one of
them and with added veneration and
respect for the august chief,
our illustrious President.
On February 10, 1794, Sargent was in
Philadelphia
and was somewhat surprised at a
distinguished arrival
in that city. He writes:
The governor of the Western Territory
arrived in the city
last evening, upon which occasion I feel
more than a little awk-
ward, for though I left him there and
may in propriety myself
be absent, yet there being no provision
for the administration of
the government when we are both away, to
those ignorant of
circumstances a degree of censure may be
implied in which I
must come in for a share; and the
subject is too delicate to suffer
276
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications
a general public explanation unless I
should be called upon
officially for the purpose.
From the foregoing we gather that
Sargent felt that
he and St. Clair were subject to
criticism for having
left their distant post at a time when
the country was
at war with the Indians in that
quarter.
By the 4th of July following he had
reached Pitts-
burgh where the day was appropriately
celebrated.
That city was still subject to
annoyance from the In-
dians and the whites on its outskirts
had recently been
attacked and a number of them killed.
On the after-
noon of the 4th he started on his
voyage down the Ohio.
On July 8 he spent a day at Marietta
and continued his
voyage, making extended notes on the
weather and giv-
ing much space to a description of the
river. At about
noon July 15 he arrived in Cincinnati.
On the 16th he
makes a somewhat extended entry in his
diary com-
mencing with the following
observations:
The army has moved since I quitted this
place, but so many
of the retainers of it remain behind
that quarters are extremely
difficult to be obtained and I am
obliged to continue on board
my boat. Almost all the bad habits and
practices of military
people seem to have been imbibed by the
people of Cincinnati
and none of their virtues, so that it is
at present infinitely a more
vitiated place than has fallen within my
observation from the
extreme of Massachusetts to Alexandria
in Virginia.
Then follows an account of Indian
depredations
which shows that while St. Clair and
Sargent were
away the pioneers of the territory had
been having a
rather lively time of it. Here is a
portion of the sum-
mary:
After receiving since my arrival the
following in-
formation of Indian hostilities, viz:
Winthrop Sargent 277
Some time last autumn they attacked
White's Station, the
people almost all absent, killed one man
and two children and
lost two or three of their own party; in
April took some plunder
from near the house of a Mr. Smith,
clergyman, of Columbia;
were pursued by Captain Kibbey the next
morning, plunder
retaken and two Indians killed; in the
same month one Jennings
near Columbia wounded and died in a day
or two; in the month
of January, three of the inhabitants
attacked near Fort Hamil-
ton, one made his escape, one was killed
and the other taken
prisoner; in March, Scott Travers,
another of the inhabitants of
Cincinnati, was killed near Hamilton; in
the month of May a
convoy was attacked upon the way to Fort
Hamilton, about six
miles from Cincinnati, the vanguard
defeated and the Indians
in the act of plundering the pack horses
were charged by a party
of dragoons and routed--seven or eight
supposed to have been
killed on each side,--a Major Winston
commanding the com-
pany and escort had remained in
Cincinnati over night and was
not out in season to conduct the march
and defense; in the same
month some Indian horse thieves were
pursued by the Columbians
and one killed; in June Mr. Stites and
Mr. Reeder from Co-
lumbia to Cincinnati were fired upon and
pursued some distance,
but though the latter was wounded they
made their escape; upon
the 1st inst. at the ground of General
St. Clair's defeat (now
Fort Recovery) an escort which had upon
the preceding evening
disposed their convoy were attacked by a
very large force of
Indians; the major commanding the party
and three other com-
missioned officers were killed and two
wounded; twenty-one
rank and file killed and twenty-nine
wounded and 300 pack and
cavalry horses taken, and it is presumed
by an observer that this
was a very complete defeat, but the
General with very great
policy establishes it as a victory in
his orders of ----------.
It is probable about thirty Indians were
killed, for they exposed
themselves very much in a continued
firing upon the fort for
some long time after the defeat of the
before mentioned party,
and in aid of a few good marksmen behind
the walls there were
about a dozen Chickasaws and Choctaws
who stole out of a
sallyport and got into the rear of the
enemy undistinguished
from them, and brought off ten scalps. I
am told by a Mr.
----------, a very candid young man who
was in the action,
that there was a great confusion among
the men--that they
could not be brought to take aim on
level well, and that from the
very heavy cartridges which they were
directed to charge with,
he believes an extreme apprehension of
the recoil prevailed, and
to the detriment of service upon that day. * * * The
mounted
volunteers of Kentucky, (so-called) are coming for the
purpose
278 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications
of acting with the regulars under
General Wayne against the
Indians.
Tuesday (July) 22.--General Scott,
commmanding the
mounted volunteers of Kentucky, moved forward with a
strong
escort to join General Wayne at the head
of the line. His whole
corps are encamped a mile from town and
are to advance soon.
It is said that they amount to about
1700. Some of the horses
and men are of very shabby
appearance--riotous and disorderly
while in this town and seem not to be
capable of fulfilling the
public expectations.
Under date of July 31 Sargent adds to
his previous
list casualties in minor engagements
with the Indians
above Cincinnati aggregating a loss of
about twelve
killed and a supposed greater loss on
the part of the
Indians. Later follows an account of
the killing of
Colonel Elliot:
Tuesday (August) 7.--Last evening within
five miles of
Fort Hamilton was killed Mr. Robert
Elliott by the Indians; a
servant, the only person in his company,
escaped. He was of
the state of Massachusetts and for
several years one of the pro-
vision contractors for the army; a man
of much public spirit,
intimately acquainted with the resources
of this western country
and very influential therein. At any
time such a character would
have been important to the government,
but in the present mo-
ment when infinite exertion is required
to forward any supplies
to the army in its advanced situation,
it seems arduous indeed to
fill his place and the public will join
with his friends and par-
ticular acquaintances in most
unfeignedly regretting a loss of
so much more than common and private
concern.
Wednesday 8.--Last evening a party of
fifty men in the
contractor's service, thirty-seven of
whom were armed with guns,
coming from Hamilton with the body of
Mr. Elliot in a wagon,
were fired upon fifteen miles from this
place by about twenty-five
Indians and completely routed in an
instant, without returning a
shot. Some few of them were killed and
the rest got back to
Hamilton, leaving the wagon and corpse
with the enemy. In the
night an express coming in here believes
he saw the Indians en-
camped not far from the place of action,
which, together with
some reports of British deserters (five
of whom have come in)
that a considerable body of Indians have
left their towns to
commit depredations upon our
settlements, induced me to order
out fifty of the militia from Cincinnati
and eighty from Columbia
Winthrop Sargent 279
under the command of Major Gano to scour
the country as far
as Hamilton and return on the morrow.
Thursday 9.--The militia returned at
noon that were ordered
out yesterday, having seen no Indians
and bringing in the body
of Mr. Elliot, which, with that of his
servant, the lad who escaped
when his master was killed and who was
shot in the attack upon
the wagon and party with the corpse,
were interred this evening
with the usual ceremonies of respect.
From the observation of
the officer commanding the militia it
seems the Indians were not
so numerous as was imagined and appeared
to have been in
great haste after attacking the wagon,
not taking time to plunder
it or even pick up knapsacks and
blankets which had been thrown
away by the party they defeated. They
opened the coffin but
did not disturb the body. It is a little
remarkable that Mr. Elliot
was not scalped. Some false hair worn
upon the part usually
taken off by them, was, however, carried
away, perhaps in lieu
of a scalp. One man was shot through the
body within four
miles of Hamilton last evening.
Later he gave some extended accounts of
the re-
ports brought by letter and messengers
of Wayne's vic-
tory over the Indians in the battle of
Fallen Timbers.
He then records some serious
difficulties in Cincinnati
between the friendly Indians there and
the citizens:
Monday (September) 8.--Some Chickasaw
Indians violently
set upon this day with little or no provocation
at Cincinnati;
many of them badly wounded and the
authors of the tumult in
considerable concern for their property.
In the afternoon those
same Indians in their camp, (about 55 in
number) surrounded
by an armed party of the
inhabitants--perhaps almost all of
them concerned in this outrage.
Interfered myself and by the
assistance of one of the magistrates
dispersed the people without
mischief and violence; the ostensible
cause of their collecting a
report industriously circulated that a
poor white child, naked,
was confined and suffering in captivity
and was to be carried to
their nation. Upon inquiry there appears
no foundation for the
tale. But still the people seem in a
ferment--have combined
with some of the inhabitants of Columbia
to raise a party in the
night and attack the Indian camp. Fort
Washington unequal
at present to protect them; have
thereupon ordered out a militia
guard and shall be upon duty myself.
Indians very much in-
timidated. In the course of this
business I have become well
acquainted with them; find that they are
great cowards and very
280 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications
much attached even at this time to the
British nation--have left
our army in consequence of an idea that
the post upon the Mis-
souri would be attacked by General
Wayne; however they are
under the protection of the laws of the land and our
national
dignity interested most amply in affording it to them.
Tuesday 9.--Very extravagant conduct
last night and this
morning by some of the people of the
town; my own house and
several others fired into by persons
unknown; two rifle balls near
the bed I lodged in; soon after daylight
and dismission of the
militia guard one McLeod, a discharged
soldier, with several
others in arms, visited the Indian camp
menacing their lives, but
were prevented doing mischief by a small
party of regular troops;
soon after they took protection at Fort
Washington and will de-
part on the morrow.
Wednesday 10.--The Indians were
unmolested under the
guns of the fort last night, but a
number of disorderly persons
paraded the streets discharging their
muskets. Issued a proclama-
tion in the morning detailing many of
the violences which have
taken place and enjoining it upon the
magistrates immediately to
inquire into the same, as also to
suppress disorderly taverns and
tippling houses which are amongst the
principal causes of the
disturbances at Cincinnati. The Indians
departed this day, a
good deal provoked at the abuse and
insults offered them, but
persuaded that the general government
must disapprobate the
same and that proper measures have been
taken by me to bring
the offenders to justice.
Winthrop Sargent was not only
interested in the
weather recording the temperature,
precipitation and
direction of winds but he found much
time to spend in
his garden and relates in this diary
some of his horti-
cultural experiments in the new
country.
Monday (March) 30, 1795.--Put turnips
and cabbage stumps
in the ground for early greens.
Wednesday (April) 1.--Put in the ground
sweet marjoram,
parsley, pepper, sage, cauliflower,
pepper grass and variety of
other seeds; also planted early potatoes
in beds.
Thursday 2.--Pepper grass, mustard,
radishes and spinach
sowed the 20th ult. Have come up some
days but not a healthy
appearance.
Saturday 4.--Planted corn and sowed
turnips for a general
summer crop.
Winthrop Sargent 281
Sunday 5.--Peas planted upon the 23d are
coming up.
Monday 6.--Planted asparagus and beet
seed.
Tuesday 7.--Sowed currant seed. Was
drowned yesterday
a Mr. Conrade, ferryman, at this place.
Saturday 18.--Peach trees have been in
bloom a day or two.
Wednesday 22.--Grafted a number of
apples, viz.: in the
two southwestern rows from the north
post 25 pearmain, 3 cider
apples succeeding in western row,
following immediately in both
rows 33 red streaks--2 sorts, total 61.
From the state of the
season little prospect of success.
Monday 27.--Planted watermelon seed and
some soft In-
dian corn.
Wednesday 29.--Planted dwarf marrow-fat
peas and some
Indian corn.
May 10.--Planted a few days past 19
pecan nuts cracked,
in the western strawberry beds
longitudinally between the vines.
The cut worms have commenced their
ravages upon the corn
and beans, against which as yet has been
discovered no pre-
ventative.
Saturday 16.--Planted melons to supply
those destroyed by
the yellow bug. Also corn and winter
squash.
Monday 18.--Second planting lima beans
and watermelon
seed to supply those destroyed by the
worms.
Saturday 23.--Second and third planting
of corn and beans
to supply those destroyed by the cut
worms which still continue
to ravage.
Wednesday 27.--The cut worms now abating
some of their
depredations upon our gardens are
followed by numberless green
worms of the size of common
caterpillars, preying upon every
green thing and even destroying whole
fields of corn and grass.
Friday 29.--The worms, bugs and
caterpillars still continuing
to ravage and great numbers of
grasshoppers.
And thus continued the warfare with the
bugs and
worms followed for a season with weather
discour-
agingly dry. In spite of this, however,
we have later
records of roasting ears and vegetables
from the
garden.
Later in the year Sargent made another
trip to the
East. As he ascended the river he
stopped at Man-
chester Wednesday, August 9. Among other
things
he has entered the following record:
282 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications
This settlement seems to have increased
a little since my
observations of 1793. The Indians are now troublesome
about
it; lately have stolen five horses,
killed a man also up the Scioto
River, and a short distance across the
Ohio have killed and
taken two or three of a family which, notwithstanding
the peace
concluded with the Indians lately by
General Wayne, has so
much alarmed the people that they are
getting into stations for
security. This as well as the other late
mischief of the Indians
will probably be ascribed to the attack
of Mr. Massie's upon
a hunting camp this spring after the
preliminary articles were
made and which is very much complained
of by them and repre-
sented to the executive of the Territory
and of Kentucky.