100 - DARKE COUNTY to be an excellent arrangement, and was adopted by Gen. in. Harrison in his later expeditions against the northwestern tribes with much success. The rate of advancement was about twice that of St. Clair's undisciplined army and the camp was duly fortified each evening to forestall a surprise. On the thirteenth of October a beautiful high plain on the south bank of the southwest branch of Stillwater (Greenville creek) was reached (Greenville, O.), the army now being some eighty miles in advance of Fort Washington and about six miles beyond the advanced post, Fort Jefferson. This was the same spot where St. Clair had camped two years previously while awaiting the arrival of supplies. For a similar purpose Wayne decided to halt and encamp on this opportune site where the council fires of two important treaties were later to be kindled, and where Tecumseh and his brother "The Prophet" were to inflame the northwest tribes for a second attempt to drive the whites beyond the Ohio. From this place he wrote the Secretary of War complaining of the difficulty experienced in furnishing a sufficient escort to guard the provision and supply trains from sudden assaults, and, at the same time, keeping a sufficient force in camp to properly sustain his advanced position. He then related the unfortunate experience of one of the convoys, consisting of twenty wagons of grain and one of supplies, which was attacked on the morning of October 17th, at a place known as "The Forty Foot Leap," about seven miles in advance of Fort St. Clair (Eaton, O.). The escort was in charge of Lieutenant Lowery, of the Second sub-legion, and Ensign Boyd, of the First, and consisted of some ninety men. The attacking savages, far outnumbering the escort, soon drove the latter from the field, with the exception of a small party who offered an obstinate resistance. As the result of this engagement the commanding officers, together with thirteen non-commissioned officers and privates, were killed and some seventy pack horses either killed or carried off. The wagons and supplies were left standing in the road and were later brought to camp with small loss. This incident caused Wayne to increase and strengthen the escort recently sent out under Col. Hamtramck and forewarned him, no doubt, of the constant danger which menaced his further progress at that time. The season being well advanced, and a large number of men on the sick list, Wayne dismissed the Kentucky militia DARKE COUNTY - 101 until the following spring, and prepared to go into winter quarters at the place of his encampment. Accordingly a large fortification was constructed overlooking the extensive prairie to the southwest and the creek in front, and was named Greene Ville, in honor of Gen. Nathaniel Greene, a fellow officer of Wayne in the Revolution. This post covered some fifty acres and was fortified to resist any attack that the savages and their allies might make against it. The soldiers were quartered in commodious log 'huts, each sheltering six men, and extensive provisions were made for the convenience and comfort of the entire army. Storehouses, artificers' shops, mess rooms, officers' headquarters, and a magazine were also erected at suitable places. Late in December Wayne sent a strong detachment to the site of St. Clair's defeat, twenty-three miles, on which they built Fort Recovery. The detachment arrived on the 23d and soon collected and interred some 600 skulls and skeletons of St. Clair's unfortunate soldiers. Tradition says that all but one of St. Clair's cannon, which were found hidden under logs, were recovered and mounted in the new fort. The other cannon was found about 1830 and came into possession of an artillery company in Cincinnati, 0. This post was soon completed, garrisoned and placed in charge of Captain Alex Gibson. Early in 1794 painted scouts and spies were sent among the savages and kept informed of their movements and designs. Some twenty or thirty of these were attached to the army and included such noted characters as Wm. Wells, Win. Miller, Robt. McClellan and a few southern Indians. The road-cutters were also working in various directions, leaving the Indians in doubt as to the route to be followed in the advance march, because of which they called Wayne "The Black Snake." 'Early in June it was reported by some Indians captured on the Maumee that probably two thousand warriors of the Chippewas, Wyandots, Shawanese, Tawas, Delawares and Miamis were then collected on the Maumee, and if joined by the Pottawatomies the numbers would be augmented to over three thousand; also, that the British to the number of 400, besides the Detroit militia, were at the foot of the Maumee Rapids on their way against the Americans. Gov. Simcoe of Canada, had recently built Fort Miami, at the rapids, on American soil and from this base was aiding and inciting the tribes. Later it was ascertained that the warriors of seven nations were assembled at Grand Glaize 102 - DARKE COUNTY (Defiance) with the chiefs in council, and that war or peace depended upon the conduct of the British assembled at the rapids. These reports were soon credited, for on June 30th an escort of ninety riflemen and fifty dragoons, commanded by the redoubtable Major McMahon, and encamped just without the walls of Fort Recovery, was attacked by a very numerous body of the above Indians. The escort was about to return to Fort Greenville from which post it had brought a brigade of laden pack horses on the day previous. On account of the superior number of the savages and their sudden onslaught the men were soon driven into the Fort and the horses captured. This successful attack was followed by a general assault upon the post and garrison in every direction. The savages, however, were soon repulsed with great slaughter, but renewed the attack and kept up a heavy and constant fire, at a good distance, for the remainder of the day. They again renewed the attack with vigor on the following day, but were finally compelled to retreat with disgrace from the same field where they had formerly gained such a signal victory over unfortunate St. Clair. Wayne estimated the number of savages in this engagement at from 1,500 to 2,000. The Americans lost twenty-two men and had thirty wounded, including Major McMahon, Capt. Hartshorn and Lieut. Craig. The Indian loss was much heavier, and was greatly deplored by the chiefs who mentioned it with regret at the treaty of Greenville in the following year. Major-General Scott, of Kentucky, arrived at Greenville on July 26th with 1,600 mounted volunteers. William Lewis and Meriwether Clark, who explored the far west in 1804, were with Scott. The army commenced to advance on the 28th, marching some twelve miles per day. Wayne wished to deceive the enemy and had previously made such demonstrations as would induce the savages to expect his advance by the route of the Miami villages to the left or toward the rapids of the Maumee by the right. Instead he took a circuitous route in a central direction, while their attention was directed to the above points. On the thirtieth Beaver Swamp (near Coldwater, O.) was reached and two days were spent for construction of a seventy foot bridge of logs over this swale. On August 1st the army arrived at the St. Mary's river, twenty-four miles beyond Recovery, where a small fort was erected, provisioned, garrisoned and named Fort Adams (near Rockford, O.). DARKE COUNTY - 103 Crossing that stream the march was directed toward the northeast, and on the 7th the "Oglaize Town," on the Auglaize river, was reached. The army reached the junction of that stream with the Maumee on the 8th, some seventy-seven miles beyond Recovery. Referring to this spot in his report to the Secretary of War, Wayne says: "Thus, sir, we have gained possession of the grand emporium of the west, without loss of blood. The very extensive and highly cultivated fields and gardens show the work of many hands, the margins of these beautiful rivers, the Miamis of the lake, and Auglaize, appear like one continued- village for a number of miles, both above and below this place; nor have I ever before beheld such immense fields of corn in any part of America, from Canada to Florida." Here a strong garrison was established and called Fort Defiance. A last overture of peace was now made to the assembled Indians, who thereupon sent word that they would decide for peace or war if the Americans would wait ten days at Grand Glaize (Defiance). Impatient of delay, Wayne moved forward and on August 20th arrived in sight of Fort Miami, the British garrison at the rapids of the Maumee, 150 miles from Greenville, having previously deposited all the heavy baggage and prepared for light action. The enemy were encamped behind the thick, bushy wood and the British fort. Advancing about five miles down the west hank of the river, the front guard of mounted volunteers under Major Price were suddenly fired upon by the enemy at about 11 o'clock and put to confusion, retreating through the front guard of the regulars. A stand was soon made, however, and the position held until joined by a battalion of riflemen about fifteen minutes later. The Americans immediately formed in two lines, principally in a close thick wood of fallen timber, where the Indians had sought refuge, hoping to find shelter for fighting after .their usual manner. The savages were formed in three lines within supporting distance of each other and extending for nearly two miles at right angles with the river. They made a strong attack on the front of the Americans and were endeavoring to turn their left. Seeing their purpose Wayne, realizing the insufficiency of a cavalry charge or a standing fire, ordered a charge made by the front line with trailed arms, to rouse the enemy from their coverts. This was to be followed by a well directed fire on the backs of the enemy when aroused, and a brisk charge so as not to 104 - DARKE COUNTY give them time to reload. The second line was ordered to support the first; the mounted volunteers under Major-General Scott on the left flank were directed to turn the enemy's right by a circuitous route; and the cavalry under Capt. Campbell, were ordered to advance along the river to turn the left. These orders were obeyed with spirit and promptness and with such impetuosity that the first line drove the Indians and Canadians from their positions so quickly that the second line could scarcely get up to participate in the action, the enemy being driven in one hour more than two miles through the high grass and thick woods by half their numbers. The savages with their Canadian allies fled and dispersed with terror and dismay, leaving the victorious Americans in full and quiet possession of the field of battle. In this engagement the official loss of the Americans was thirty-three officers and privates killed and 104 wounded. The enemy, who were estimated at from 1,500 to 2,000, probably lost twice the number. The American troops actually engaged in this decisive battle were less than nine hundred. On the night before the battle, it is said, the Indians held a council to decide what action should be taken, and Blue Jacket, the chief of the Shawanese, because of former successes, spoke in favor of an engagement, but Little Turtle was inclined to peace. The latter is credited with speaking thus : "We have beaten the enemy twice under separate commanders; we cannot expect the same good fortune always to attend us. The Americans are now led by a. chief who never sleeps; the night and day are alike to him, and during all the time that he has been marching upon our villages, notwithstanding the watchfulness of our young men. we have never been able to surprise him. Think well of it. There is something whispers me, it would be prudent to listen to his offers of peace." Being reproached for cowardice, which was foreign to his nature, he laid aside resentment and took part in the battle, but left the leadership to his opponent. The result proved his sagacity. After the battle the army encamped near Fort Miami, a post built by order of the British Governor of Canada in 1794 and commanded by Major William Campbell, who was ordered to withdraw and remove to the nearest military post occupied by the British at the peace of 1783. This he refused DARKE COUNTY - 105 to do, and Wayne contented himself with burning everything within reach of the fort. The army returned to Fort Definance on the 27th after laying waste the villages and cornfields on both sides of the Maumee along the route. Referring to this engagement Rufus King said: "The battle at the rapids of the Maumee opened the land for the Ordinance of 1787. Measured by the forces engaged it was not a great one, nor was that which had been fought on the heights of Quebec. But estimated by the difficulties overcome and the consequences which followed, both were momentous. To the bold spirit of Pitt, Earl of Chatham, is due presumably that the people of the Mississippi valley are not today Canadian-French. Next in honor with the people of the northwest, as among their founders, might well be placed the lionhearted Anthony Wayne, who opened the glorious gates of the Ohio to the tide of civilization so long shut off from its hills and valleys." Roosevelt says of the Battle of Fallen Timbers: "It was the most complete and important victory ever gained over the northwestern Indians during the forty years' warfare to which it put an end; and it was the only considerable pitched battle in which they lost more than their foes." This expedition has been aptly compared with Caesar's campaign against the Gauls on account of the gigantic tasks accomplished, the rude condition of the country and the sav- age ferocity of the foe. When it is recalled that the field of action was some five hundred miles from Fort Pitt by the route taken ; and that it was necessary to cut a road for nearly half that distance through howling wilderness, inhabited by enraged savages, the stupendous task accomplished is faintly realized. After the return to Defiance this post was greatly strengthened and a road cut along the Maumee to the Indian villages at the confluence of the St. Marv's and St. Joseph, forty-seven miles distant. The army left Defiance on September 14th and arrived at the Miami villages on the 17th, where it encamped until a suitable fort was erected, provisioned, garrisoned and called Fort Wayne. Several weeks were spent here during which the troops destroyed the Indian towns, cornfields and stores. The term of service of the mounted Kentuckians having expired they were dismissed and soon left for their homes. 106 - DARKE COUNTY On October 28th the march for Greenville was taken up, by the regulars, and the army arrived at this post November 2d, saluted with twenty-four rounds from a six pounder. Wayne re-established headquarters here and sent out detachments to build forts at Upper Piqua, Loramie's Store and St. Mary's guarding the portage betwen the Great Miami and St. Mary's rivers and at the old Tawa towns, at the head of navigation on the Auglaize. These posts were established (some say in 1794) for the storage of supplies to facilitate their transportation by water in proper seasons, and also with the view of abandoning the old overland route and adopting this one, "as the most economical, sure and certain mode of supplying those important posts, at Grand Glaize and Miami villages, and to facilitate an effective operation toward the Detroit and the Sandusky, should that measure eventually prove necessary;" also to "afford a much better chain for the general protection of the frontiers," etc. CHAPTER VI. THE GREAT PEACE. After the battle of the Maumee the Indians of the northwest still hesitated to seek peace. The British agents, Simcoe, McKee and Brant, stimulated them to continued hostilities. They strengthened Fort Miami, supplied the savages from their magazines, called a council and urged them to propose a truce or suspension of hostilities until spring, in order to deceive the Americans, that they might neglect to keep sufficient troops to retain their position. They advised the savages to convey their land to the king in trust, so as to give the British a pretext for assisting them, and, in case the Americans refused to abandon all their posts and possessions on the west side of the Ohio, to make a general attack and drive them across the river. Notwithstanding all this advice the Indians began to understand their critical condition and to lose faith in the British. Some in despair crossed the 'Mississippi, but the humane disposition of the Americans finally won their confidence. Late in December the chiefs of several tribes manifested their desire for peace to the commandant at Fort Wayne. Proceeding to Greenville representatives of the Chippewas, Ottawas, Sacs, Pottawatomies and Miamis entered, together with the Shawanese, Delawares and Wyandots, into preliminary articles with General Wayne, January 24th, 1795. It was agreed that all the sachems and war chiefs representing the above nations should meet Wayne at Greenville on or about June 15th, to consult and conclude such a peace as would be for the interest and satisfaction of both parties. In the meantime hostilities ceased, prisoners were exchanged and the Indians were preparing to meet in June as agreed. The first to arrive were a large number of Delawares, Ottawas, Pottawatomies and Eel River Indians. On June 16th, Wayne met these in general council for the first time. Parkman, the historian, says "An Indian council, on solemn occasions, was always opened with preliminary forms, sufficiently wearisome and te- 108 - DARKE COUNTY dious, but made indispensable by immemorial custom; for this people are as much bound by conventional usages as most artificial children of civilization. The forms were varied, to some extent, according to the imagination of the speaker; but in all essential respects they were closely similar, throughout the tribes of the Algonquin and Iroquois lineage. "An Indian orator was provided with a stock of metaphors, which he always made use of for the expression of certain ideas. Thus, to make war was to raise the hatchet; to make peace was to take hold of the chain of friendship; to deliberate was to kindle the council fire; to cover the bones of the dead was to make reparation and gain forgiveness for the act of killing them. A state of war and disaster was typified by a black cloud; a state of peace by bright sunshine, or by an open path between two nations. “The orator seldom spoke without careful premeditation of what he was about to say; and his memory was refreshed by belts of wampum, which he delivered after every clause in his harangue, as a pledge of the sincerity and truth of his words. These belts were carefully preserved by the hearers, as a substitute for written records; a use for which they were the better adapted, as they were often in hieroglyphics expressing the meaning they were designed to preserve. Thus, at a treaty of peace, the principal belt often bore the figure of an Indian and a white man holding a chain betwen them." Accordingly, when addressing the council on June 16th, Wayne first passed around the calumet, to be smoked by the assembled chiefs, after which he said: "I have cleared the ground of all brush and rubbish, and opened roads to the east, to the west, to the north and to the south, that all nations may come in safety and ease to meet me. The ground on which the council house stands is unstained with blood and is as pure as the heart of General Washington, the great chief of America and of his great council—as pure as my heart, which wishes for nothing so mach as peace and brotherly love. I have this day kindled the council fire of the United States; we will now cover it up and keep it alive until the remainder of the different tribes assemble, and form a full meeting and representation. I now deliver to each tribe present a string of white wampum to serve as record of the friendship that is this day commenced between us." Owing to the great distance of some of the tribes and the difficulty of traveling, also to the interference of the British DARKE COUNTY - 109 agents, the Indians kept arriving in small bands from their homes on the Maumee, the Wabash and the Great Lakes. These were the chief men, the scions of many a proud and noted tribe. Some had met in former treaties and had fought the Americans on many a bloody field; many had helped to rout the armies of Harmar and St. Clair, and all had been defeated by the troops of Mad Anthony. As they arrived they were cordially received and expressed sentiments of peace. On the 15th of July, Wayne addressed the council at length, explaining his powers and urging the treaty of Fort Harmar as a basis for lasting peace. Time was given for deliberation, and discussion followed on the 18th, relative to the merits and force of this treaty, of which some of the chiefs pleaded ignorance. On the 20th Wayne read to the assembled warriors the offer of peace sent to them just before the battle on the Maumee. He also read and explained the treaty of Fort Harmar and pointed out a number of chiefs who were present and had signed both that and the previous treaty at Fort McIntosh, and asked them to consider seriously what he had said and make known their thoughts at their next meeting. On the 21st the discussion was continued, several prominent warriors took part, and were followed by Me-she-kun-no-quo, or Little Turtle, the great chief of the Miamis, who claimed ignorance of the lands ceded along the Wabash and expressed surprise that these lands had been ceded by the British to the Americans when the former were beaten by and made peace with the latter. On Wednesday, the 22d, this tall and crafty warrior made a shrewd and eloquent address before the great council, setting forth in a touching, forceful and statesmanlike manner the claims of his offended nation. Let us imagine this tall and swarthy chieftain stepping majestically to the center of the assembled council. Thoughts of the past power and prestige of his waning nation and the early victories over the advancing Americans throng his brain as he casts his eagle eyes toward the blazing July sun and then turns impressively toward his large and picturesque audience. On the one side he beholds the somber, but sympathetic, faces of a hundred bronzed warriors who have figured in every raid and engagement of the tribes throughout the border wars; on the other side he sees the Great Chief who defeated his people on the Maumee, a young aide who will one day lead the victorious Americans against the combined British 110 - DARKE COUNTY and Indian foe and finally sit in Washington's chair, besides a motley assembly of officers, interpreters and spies required to properly conduct the important deliberation of the occasion. On this interesting occasion he arose with dignity and said: "General Wayne! I hope you will pay attention to what I now say to you. I wish to inform you where my younger brothers, the Miamis live, and also the Pottawatomies of St. Joseph, together with the Wabash Indians. You have pointed out to us the boundary line between the Indians and the United States; but I now take the liberty to inform you that that line cuts off from the Indians a large portion of country which has been enjoyed by my forefathers, time immemorial, without molestation or dispute. The prints of my ancestor's houses are everywhere to be seen in this portion. I was a little astonished at hearing you and my brothers, who are now present, telling each other what business you had transacted together, heretofore, at Muskingum, concerning this country. It is well known that my forefather kindled the first fire at Detroit; from thence he extended his lines to the headwaters of the Scioto; from thence to its mouth ; from thence down the Ohio to the mouth of the Wabash, and from thence to Chicago, on Lake Michigan. At this place I first saw my elder brothers, the Shawanese. I have now informed you of the boundaries of the Miami nation, where the Great Spirit placed my forefather a long time ago and charged him not to sell or part with his lands, but to preserve them for his posterity. This charge has been handed down to me. I was much surprised to hear that my brothers differed so much from me on this subject; for their conduct would lead me to suppose that the Great Spirit and their forefathers had not given them the same charge that was given me, but on the contrary, had directed them to sell their lands to any white man who wore a hat, as soon as he should as it of them. Now, elder brother, your younger brothers, the Miamis, have pointed out to you their country and also to your brothers present. When I hear your proposals on this subject, I will be ready to give an answer. I came with an expectation of hearing you say good things, but I have not yet heard what I expected. "Brothers, the Indians! I expected, in this council that our minds would have been made tip. and we should speak DARKE COUNTY - 111 with one voice. I am sorry to observe that you are rather unsettled and hasty in your conduct." After the great chief of the Miamis had spoken, Tar-he, the Wyandot, arose and said that the ground belonged to the Great Spirit above, and that they had an equal right to it; that he always considered the treaty of Muskingum as founded upon the fairest of principles, as being binding upon the Indians and the United States alike; and that peace was now desired by all. During the following days, discussion concerning the boundaries and terms were continued and on the 24th, General Wayne arose and spoke in part as follows: "Brothers, the Miamis! I have paid attention to what the Little Turtle said, two days since, concerning the lands which he claims. He said his father first kindled the fire at Detroit and stretched his line from thence to the headwaters of the Scioto; thence down the same to the Ohio; thence down that river to the mouth of the Wabash, and from thence to Chicago, on the southwest end of Lake Michigan, and observed that his forefathers had enjoyed that country undisturbed from time immemorial. "Brothers! These boundaries enclose a very large space of country indeed; they embrace, if I mistake not, all the lands on which all the nations now present live, as well as those which have been ceded to the United States. The lands which have been ceded have within these three days been acknowledged by the Ottawas, Pottawatomies, Wyandots, Delawares and Shawanese. The Little Turtle says the prints of his forefathers' houses are everywhere to be seen within these boundaries. Younger brother! It is true these prints are to be observed, but at the same time we discover marks of French possessions throughout this country established long before we were born. These have since been in possession of the British, who must, in their turn, relinquish them to the United States, when they, the French and the Indians, will be all as one people. "I will point out to you a few places where I discover strong traces of these establishments; and first of all, I find at Detroit, a very strong print, where the fire was first kindled by your forefathers; next at Vincennes on the Wabash again at Musquiton on the same river; a little higher up on that stream, they are to be seen at Ouiatenon. I discover another strong trace at Chicago, another on the St. Joseph's of Lake -Michigan. I have seen quite distinctly the prints of 112 - DARKS COUNTY a French and of a British post at the Miami villages, and of a British post at the foot of the rapids, now in their possession. Prints, very conspicuous, are on the Great Miami, which were possessed by the French forty-five years ago; another trace is very distinctly to be seen at Sandusky. "It appears to me that if the Great Spirit, as you say, charged your forefathers to preserve their lands entire for their posterity, they have paid very little regard to the sacred injunction, for I see they have parted with those lands to your fathers, the French, and the English are now, or have been, in possession of them all; therefore, I think the charge urged against the Ottawas, Chippewas and other Indians, comes with bad grace indeed, from the very people who, perhaps, set them the example. The English and French both wore hats; and yet your forefathers sold them, at various times, portions of your lands. However, as I have already observed, you shall now receive from the United States further valuable compensation for the lands you have ceded to them by former treaties. "Younger brothers! I will now inform you who it was who gave us these lands in the first instance; it was your fathers, the British, who did not discover that care for your interests which you ought to have experienced. This is the treaty of peace, made between the United States of America and Great Britain twelve years ago, at the end of a long and bloody war, when the French and Americans proved too powerful for the British ; on these terms they obtained peace." Here part of the treaty of 1783 was read. "Here you perceive that all the country south of the Great Lakes has been given up to America; but the United States never intended to take that advantage of you, which the British placed in their hands. They wish you to enjoy your just rights, without interruption, and to promote your happiness. The British stipulated to surrender to us all the posts on this side of the boundary agreed on. I told you some time ago treaties should ever be sacredly fulfilled by those who make them; but the British on their part did not find it convenient to relinquish those posts as soon as they should have done, but a precise period is now fixed for their delivery. I have now in my hand a copy of a treaty, made eight months since. between them and us, of which I will read you a little. (First and second articles of Mr. Jay's treaty read.) "By this solemn agreement they promise to retire from DARKE COUNTY - 113 Michilimackinac, Fort St. Clair, Detroit, Niagara and all other places on this side of the Lakes in ten moons from this period, and leave the same to the full and quiet possession of the States. "Brothers! All nations present, now listen to me! "Having now explained those matters to you and informed you of all things I judged necessary for your information, we have nothing to do but to bury the hatchet, and draw a veil over past misfortunes. As you have buried our dead, with the concern of brothers, so I now collect the bones of your slain warriors, put them into a deep pit which I have dug, and cover them carefully over with this large belt, there to remain undisturbed. I also dry the tears from your eyes, and wipe the blood from your bodies, with this soft, white linen. No bloody traces will ever lead to the graves of your departed heroes; with this I wipe all such away. I deliver it to your uncle, the Wyandot, who will send it around amongst you. (A large belt with a white string attached.) "I now take the hatchet out of your hands, and with a strong arm throw it into the center of the great ocean, where no mortal can ever find it; and I now deliver to you the wide and straight path to the Fifteen Fires, to be used by you and your posterity, forever. So long as you continue to follow this road, so long will you continue to he happy people. You see it is straight and wide, and they will he blind indeed, who deviate from it. I place it also in your uncle's hands for you: (A large road belt.) "I will, the day after tomorrow, show you the cessions which you have made to the United. States, and point out to you the lines which may for the future divide your lands from theirs ; and, as you will have tomorrow to rest, I will order you a double allowance of drink, because we have buried the hatchet and performed every necessary ceremony to render propitious our renovated friendship. Discussion and explanation continued until the 3d of August, various noted chiefs acting as sopkesmen for their respective tribes. On that day the general read for the third time the articles of the proposed new treaty, which was then signed by some ninety chiefs and tribal representatives on the part of the Indians, by General Wayne, several officers, his aides-de-camp, interpreters, and guides on behalf of the United States. A large number of belts and strings of wampum were passed by the various tribes during (8) 114 - DARKE COUNTY the deliberations ; mention being made of road belts, mixed belts, a blue helt, a belt with nine white squares, a large belt with men and a house designated upon it, a war belt, numerous white and blue and white belts and strings of wampum. Some of these belts probably contained a thousand or more beads of wampum, and, as each bright flinty bead is said to have represented a day's labor for these primitive people, we readily conclude that they meant more than a great sum of money might mean to the whites, and were, indeed, a striking pledge of good will. The Indians remained a few days at Fort Greenville; speeches were delivered and the calumet of peace was fially passed to those who had not yet smoked it. Thus was consummated a treaty of far-reaching importance, concerning the effectiveness of which King, the historian, testifies: `Never after that treaty, to their honor be it remembered, did the Indian nations violate the limits which it established. It was a grand tribute to General Wayne that no chief or warrior who gave him the hand at Greenville ever after lifted the hatchet against the United States. There were malcontents on the Wabash and Lake _Michigan who took sides with Tecumseh and the Prophet in the War of 1812, perhaps for good cause, but the tribes and their chiefs sat still." The tribes were represented as follows at the treaty: Delawares, 381; Pottawatomies, 240; Wyandots, 180; Shawanese, 143: Miamis and Eel Rivers, 73; Chippewas, 46; Ottawas, 45; Weas and Piankeshaws, 12; Kickapoos and Kaskaskias, 10; in all, 1,130. The following chiefs and representatives signed the document for the tribes: Wyandots. Tar-he (or Crane). William Sur (?) Tey-yagh-taw. Ha-re-en-yow (or Half King's Son). Te-haaw-te-rens. Aw-me-yee-ray. Laye-tah. Sha-tey-ya-ron-yah (Leather Lips). Daugh-shut-tay-ah. Sha-aw-run-the. DARKE COUNTY - 115 Delawares. Moses. Bu-kon-ge-he-las. Pee-kee-lund. Welle-baw-kee-lund. Pee-kee-tele-mend (or Thomas Adams). Kish-ke-pe-kund (or Captain Buffalo). Ame-na-he-han (or Captain Crow). Que-shawk-sey (or George Washington). Wey-win-quis (or Billy Siscomb). Teta-boksh-ke (or Grand Glaize King). Le-man-tan-quis (or Black King). Wa-bat-thee. Magh-pi-way (or Red Feather). Kik-tha-we-nund (or Anderson). Haw-kin-pum-is-ka (from Sandusky). Pey-a-mawk-sey (from Sandusky). Six Nations. Reyn-two-co (living at Sandusky). Shawanese. Mis-qua-coo-na-caw (or Red Pole). Cut-the-we-ka-saw (or Black Hoof). Kay-se-wa-e-se-kah. Wey-tha-pa-mat-tha. Nia-nym-se-ka. Way-the-ah (or Long Shanks). Wey-a-pier-sen-waw (or Blue Jacket). Ne-que taugh-aw. Hah-goo-see-kaw (or Captain Reed). Miamis. Na-goh-quan-gogh (or Le Gris). Me-she-kun-nogh-quoh (or Little Turtle). Pee-jee-wa (or Richardville). Coch-ke-pogh-fogh. Wa-pa-man-gwa (or White Loon). She-me-kun-ne-sa (or Soldier) of the Eel river tribe. Weas (for Themselves and the Piankeshaws.) A-ma-cun-sa (or Little Beaver). 116 - DARKE COUNTY A-coo-la-tha (or Little Fox). Francis. Kickapoos and Kaskaskias. Kee-aw-hah. Ne-nugh-ka (or _____ Reynard). Pai-kee-ka-nogh. Pottawatomies (From the St. Joseph River). Thu-pe-ne-bu. Naw-ac (for himself and brother Et-si-me-the). Ne-nan-se-ka. Kee-sass (or Sun). Ka-ba-ma-saw (for himself and brother Chi-sau-gau). Sug-ga-nunk. Wrap-me-me (White Pigeon). Wa-che-ness (for himself and brother Pe-dar-go-shak) Wal-shi-caw-naw. La-Chasse. Me-she-ge-the-nogh (for himself and brother Wa-wal-sek) Hin-go-swash. A-ne-wa-saw. Naw-budgh. Mis-se-no-go-maw. Wa-we-eg-she. Thaw-me (or Level Plane). Gee-que (for himself and brother She-win-se). Pottawatomies (From Huron). O-ki-a. Chamung. Se-ga-ge-wan. Na-naw-me (for himself and brother Agin). Mar-chand. We-na-me-ac. Ottawas. Au-goosh-away. Kee-no-sha-meek. La-Malice. Ma-chi-we-tab. Tho-wa-na-wa. Se-caw. Che-go-nick-ska (from Sandusky). DARKE COUNTY - 117 Chippewas. Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish (or Bad Bird). Nah-sho-ga-she (from Lake Superior). Ka-tha-wa-sung. Ma-sass. Ne-me-kass (or Little Thunder). Pe-shaw-kay (or Young One). Nan-guey. Mee-ne-doh-gee-sogh. Pee-wan-she-me-nogh. Wey-me-gwas. Gol-ma-a-tick. Among the chief speakers were Blue Jacket, the Shawanese; Massas, the Chippewa; Tarhe, or Crane, the Wyandot, and Augoosh-away, the Ottawa. Besides the signatures of George Washington and Anthony Wayne, the names of William H. Harrison, aide-de-camp, and several officers, interpreters and scouts appear on the treaty. Among the latter were William Wells, Christopher Miller and Isaac Zane. The treaty was neatly engrossed in the legible penmanship of the day on two pieces of parchment about twenty-six inches square, one of which was inscribed on both sides. An excellent photographic copy, exact size of the original, is today framed and exhibited on the walls of the public museum in the basement of the Carnegie Library, Greenville, Ohio. The preamble states the purpose of the treaty "to put an end to a destructive war, to settle all controversies and to restore harmony and friendly intercourse between the United States and Indian tribes." The nine articles provide for the cessation of hostilities, exchange of prisoners, definite description of boundaries, the delivery of $20,000 worth of goods at once to the Indians and the promise of $9,500 worth of goods yearly forever thereafter. The respective rights and privileges of the Indians and Americans within the lands and reservations ceded and the penalties for violation are also explicitly set forth. The boundary line established began at the mouth of the Cuyahoga river, ran up that stream to the portage crossing to the Tuscarawas across this portage (which was a part of the ancient boundary between the Six Nations and the lands of the North- 118 - DARKE COUNTY west tribes), down that stream to Fort Laurens (near Bolivar, Ohio), thence westerly to near Loramies (Fort Loramie, Ohio), (on a branch of the Miami at the beginning of the portage to the St. Mary's), thence to Fort Recovery and thence southwesterly to a point on the Ohio opposite the mouth of the Kentucky river, embracing about two-thirds of the present state of Ohio, and a triangular piece of southeastern Indiana. Besides this large and valuable tract, numerous small but invaluable tracts, mostly from two to twelve miles square, were included, among them being the present sites of Defiance, Ohio, Fort Wayne, Ind., Toledo, Ohio, Fremont, Ohio, Detroit, Mich., St. Mary's, Ohio, Sandusky, Ohio, Mackinac, Chicago, Ill., Peoria, Ill., Vincennes, Ind., and 150,000 acres above the falls of the Ohio, opposite Louisville, Ky., to General George R. Clark and his soldiers. The privileges of trading between these posts was also granted to the Americans, and this proved to be an entering wedge, which was finally to help split up the tribal confederacy and counteract its power. It is now impossible to estimate the value of these concessions. At the centennial celebration at Greenville, August 3, 1895, Governor William McKinley said, "The day thrills with historic interest. It is filled with stirring memories and recalls the struggles of the past for peace and the majesty of constitutional government. Ht is most fitting to celebrate this anniversary. Ht marks an epoch in our civilization. One hundred years ago Hndian hostilities were suppressed and the compact of peace concluded between the government and the Indians, which made the northwest the undisputed territory of the United States, and what was once a dense wilderness, inhabited by barbarous tribes, is now the home of a happy and progressive people and the center of as high an order of civilization as is to be found anywhere in the world." The pledge of security given by this treaty encouraged immigration. A hardy population soon settled in the fertile valleys, and gained a foothold which has never been relinquished. and today millions of people live and enjoy the blessings of civilized life where, but a short time since, a few untutored savages dwelt. A forcible change in stewardship had taken place by which the one talent man was supplanted by the ten talent man, thus forwarding the cause of humanity and civilization. The importance of this peace is not measured simply by the amount of land ceded but comprehends also its effect in DARKE COUNTY - 119 opening up the Ohio valley for settlement. In fact, viewed in one light, it may be considered the end of the Revolutionary war. It is also true that this was not the last treaty with the northwestern Indian tribes, but measured by results it stands pre-eminent. The fact that Ohio was applying for admission to the Union in seven years from this treaty is forcible testimony to its significance. On August 3, 1906, the Greenville Historical Society unveiled a beautiful bronze tablet with this inscription: "Placed to commemorate the Treaty of Greenville, signed August 3, 1795, by General Anthony Wayne, representing the United States government, and the chiefs and agents of the allied Indian tribes of the territory northwest of the Ohio river." This inscription is enclosed in a circle surrounded by emblems of savage war and peace. The tablet is attached to a large diorite boulder standing nearly five feet high, near the spot where the treaty was signed. The hero of Fallen Timbers lies buried in Pennsylvania. After leaving Greenville he returned to that State fatigued in mind and body, and was later appointed sole commissioner to treat with the Indians of the northwest, and to take possession of all the British forts in that territory. Hn the autumn of 1796, after receiving the surrender of Detroit, he embarked on Lake Erie for home, but was seized with a severe attack of the gout and died at Erie, Pa. Here his remains were interred, but in 1809 his bones were transferred to the family burying ground in the village of Radnor, Pa. Over this grave the Pennsylvania Society of the Cincinnati erected a small marble monument, which was dedicated with appropriate ceremonies, July 4, 1809. Thus ended the forty years of war which had scourged the frontiers with blood and fire, and reduced the power and prestige of the brave and war-like tribes of the old northwest. opening the flood-gates through which the sons of western Europe were to pour into and subdue the mighty unbroken forests with ax and plow. Henceforth the remnants of the once powerful tribes must seek shelter in the remoter west, retreating before the ever advancing whites. As descendants of the hardy pioneers who occupied their lands, we ought not lightly to forget their heroic traits and the bitter regret with which they reluctantly left one of the richest and most beautiful tracts of land that the sun ever shone upon. Neither should we disregard the inestimable services of Clark, 120 - DARKE COUNTY Harmar, St. Clair, Wayne and the host of less prominent soldiers, who blazed the way for all that followed. Harmar was chagrined by his reverses and soon retired to private life, dying in obscurity; St. Clair was maligned in the east and passed the declining years of his life amidst turmoil and vituperation and died at an advanced age stinging from the poor appreciation of his countrymen; Wayne passed away in the prime of life performing the arduous labors appointed by his government. Let us raise suitable memorials to all these servants of the state, at the places of their most noted labors, that the fire of patriotism be not allowed to go out in the hearts of coming generations. CHAPTER VII. TECUMSEH AND THE PROPHET. About ten years after Wayne's treaty an attempt was made to unite the scattered bands of Shawnee Indians then living at the old Tawa towns at the head of the Auglaize river, Tecumseh's party on the White Water and another party on the Mississinewa. Deputations were sent out from the Tawa towns inviting the other bands to join them and live together there. Both bands responded promptly to the invitation and met at Greenville, the "Big Ford," at which their trails converged. Through the influence of Tecumseh's twin brother, Lau-le-wa-si-kaw, it is said, the Indians were persuaded to remain at that place. Accordingly a large council house of hewn timbers and a village of huts were erected on the low bluff skirting the west side of the Mud Creek prairie some two miles below the site of the old Fort Greenville, on land now owned by James Bryson, A. D. Shell and Ida E. Cashman, in section nine, range two east, Greenville township. About three miles to the southeast of this site arose the gravel knolls about Fort Jefferson, later called the "Hills of Judea." To the northeast, at a similar distance, could be seen the elevated plain on which the city of Greenville, Ohio, now stands. From this point trails radiated in various directions through the primitive forest and across the prairie. From the first the gifted, crafty and eloquent Tecumseh and his cunning, cruel and boastful but extremely graceful and eloquent brother Lati-le-wa-si-kaw (the "Loud Mouth") were the moving spirits. One hundred and forty-three members of the Shawnee tribe had signed Wayne's treaty, but Tecumseh never became reconciled to their action and used his influence to counteract its effect among his people. The twin brothers had brooded long over the degradation and declining power of their people and the rapid advance of the white settlements. In one of his moods of despondency, it is said, the cruel, crafty, egotistical boaster "Loud '_1-Louth" fell in a swoon and became quite rigid. Thinking him dead his tribesmen were preparing to remove him to his grave when he revived and 122 - DARKE COUNTY said, “Be not fearful, H have been to the land of the blessed. Call the nation together that I may tell them what I have seen and heard. Two beautiful young men were sent by the Great Spirit who said: `The Master of Life is angry with you all. He will destroy you unless you refrain from drinking, Lying, stealing, and witchcraft and turn yourselves to Him." Richard McNemar, one of the Shaker missionaries, mentioned later in this article, gives this version of Laulewasikaw's presumptive call to the prophetic office at this time. He had been a doctor, and a very wicked man, and while attending the sick among his people at Attawa, in the White river settlement, about 1805, was struck with a deep and awful sense of his sin and cried mightily to the Good Spirit to show him some means of escape. In his distress and confusion he fell into a vision in which he appeared to be traveling along a road and came at length to where it forked. The road to the right, he was advised, led to happiness while that to the left was the way to misery. By both of these paths, he said, the Great Spirit had led him and finally instructed him to build his fire at the "Big Ford" (Greenville, Ohio), and there preach to his people what he had seen and heard and instruct all who might come to him from the different tribes. It was a remarkable experience, real or assumed, psychological or religious, and from this time "Loud Mouth" assumed the name "Tens-kwata-wa," meaning "The Open Door," and became known among his people as "The Prophet." His system of religion was a jumble of the superstitions and prejudices of his own people intermingled with many of the teachings of the Christian missionaries with whom he had probably come into contact during his wanderings. In spite of his former disrepute, large numbers of his people came from their scattered settlements in Ohio and Indiana, and many from distant tribes of other Indians, to hear his eloquent, and apparently sincere, pleading for a return to the simple life of their forefathers. Apparently there was nothing very objectionable in his system of morals and religion and it seemed at first that he had the good of his people at heart. In this connection we quote from his reputed speech to General Harrison at Vincennes: "Father, it is three years since I first began the system of religion which I now practice. The white people and some of the Hndians were against me, but I had no other intention but to introduce among the Indians those good principles of religion which the white people profess. The Great Spirit DARKE COUNTY - 123 told me to tell the Indians that he made them, and made the world, that He had placed them on it to do good, and not evil. I told the redskins that the way they were in was not good, and they should abandon it; that we ought to consider ourselves as one man, but we ought to live agreeable to our several customs, the red people after their mode and the white people after theirs ; particularly that they should not drink whisky; that it was made for the white people, who knew how to use it, and that it was the cause of all the mischief the Indians suffer; and that they must listen to Him, as it was He who made us. Determine to listen to nothing had; do not take up the tomahawk, should it be offered by the British or by the Long Knives; do not meddle with anything that does not belong to you, but mind your own business and cultivate the ground, that your women and children may have enough to live upon." Whatever may have been his original motive he seems to have departed somewhat from his good intentions and allowed his shrewd and talented brother to develop the political side of this semi-moral and religious revival, and mightily increase his prestige as chief. This Tecumseh did by urging his numerous visitors to lay aside former tribal animosities, unite in one great confederacy, on the order of that formed by Pontiac, and thus make a united stand against the further advance of the whites. For some reason, probably in order to keep the secrets of their many conferences and connivances from their fellow tribesmen, the twin brothers soon left Prophetstown and established themselves on a knoll at the junction of Greenville and Mud Creeks, just opposite the old fort and fording place, now known as Tecumseh's Point. The spread of witchcraft and the fear of "The Prophet" among the neighboring tribes had such a detrimental influence that Governor Harrison sent a special message to the Delawares warning them against his false doctrines. Among other things he said, "Who is this pretended prophet who dares to speak in the name of the Great Creator? Examine him. Is he more wise and virtuous than-you are yourselves, that lie should be selected to convey to you the orders of God. Demand of him some proofs at least of his being the messenger of the Deity. If God has really employed him, He has doubtless employed him to perform miracles that he may be known and received as a prophet. If he is really a prophet, 124 - DARKE COUNTY ask of him to cause the sun to stand still, the moon to alter its course, the rivers to cease to flow, or the dead to rise from their graves. If he does these things, you may believe that he has been sent from God." This challenge came at an unfortunate time. An eclipse of the sun was to occur in 1806, and the prophet seems to have heard of this fact from the whites. Taking advantage of the ignorance and superstition of his people he boldly announced that he would darken the sun on the appointed day, and when the event occurred he stood in the midst of his affrighted brethren and reminded them of his recent prophecy. This stroke convinced the Indians of his supernatural power and greatly increased his prestige. In the spring of 1807, it is said, the Prophet had gathered some four hundred Indians about him, who were greatly stirred by religious fanaticism and liable to carry out the instructions of the twin brothers, whatever they might be. About this time William Wells, the Indian agent at Fort Wayne, dispatched Anthony Shane, a half-blood Shawnee, to Tecumseh and the Prophet, requesting them and two of their chiefs to visit him that he might read to them a letter which he had just received from the Great Father, the President of the United States. Shane delivered his message to the council, at which Tecumseh arose with characteristic haughtiness and said, "Go back to Fort Wayne and tell Captain Wells that my fire is kindled on the spot appointed by the Great Spirit above; and if he has anything to communicate to me, he must come here. H shall expect him in six days from this time." Shane returned with this message but was sent back at the appointed time with a copy of the President's letter requesting them to move beyond the boundary agreed upon at the treaty of Greenville, and promising the assistance of the government in the accomplishment of this enterprise. Because Captain Wells had not delivered the message in person, Tecumseh showed great indignation and addressed the council in a long, fiery and eloquent speech, at the conclusion of which he turned to Shane and said: "If my father, the President of the Seventeen Fires, has anything more to say to me, he must send a man of note as his messenger. I will hold no further intercourse with Captain Wells." Much activity was now manifested among distant tribes and the Prophet's headquarters were thronged with visitors. Speaking of this time Eggleston says DARKE COUNTY - 125 "The stir among the Indians went on increasing and at the last of May it was estimated that as many as fifteen hundred Indians had passed and repassed Fort Wayne on visits to the Prophet. Many of these were from remote nations. There was a great assembling of councils; messengers were sent from tribe to tribe with pipes and belts of wampum, and it was evident that some uncommon movement was afoot. English agents were also known to be very active in assisting in the excitement while the object was kept entirely secret from the Americans and friendly Indian chiefs. It was estimated by those familiar with Indian affairs, that in the month of August the Prophet and Tecumseh had gained the leadership of seven or eight hundred Indians at Fort Wayne and Greenville. Many of these were armed with new rifles." These facts moved the governor of Ohio to send Thomas Worthington and Duncan MacArthur to hold a council with Tecumseh and the Prophet that they might ascertain their motives in assembling so many Indians on forbidden ground. These messengers were courteously received and a great council held, at which Stephen Ruddell, who understood the Shawnee dialect, acted as interpreter. During the course of the deliberation Blue Jacket delivered a conciliatory speech and the Prophet endeavored to explain why the Indians had settled at Prophetstown. In this speech he said, "The Indians did not remove to this place because it was a pretty place or very valuable, for it was neither, but because it was revealed to him that the place was a proper one to establish his doctrines." Responding to the governor's request, Tecumseh, the Prophet, Blue Jacket, Round Head and Panther went to Chillicothe, then the Capital of the state. Here Tecumseh eloquently recited the woes of his people and denied any secret conspiracy against the whites. In spite of all outside interference the influence of the gifted brothers seemed to increase and the tribes became more restless at this juncture. Governor W. H. Harrison, of Indiana Territory, wrote them a letter reminding them of the treaties of peace which they had made. Among other things, he said: "My children, I have heard bad news. The sacred spot where the great council fire was kindled, around which the Seventeen Fires and ten tribes of their children smoked the pipe of peace—that very spot where the Great Spirit saw his red and white children encircle themselves with the chain of friend- 126 - DARKE COUNTY ship—that place has been selected for dark and bloody councils. "My children, this business must be stopped. You have called in a number of men from the most distant tribes to listen to a fool, who speaks not the words of the Great Spirit, but those of the devil and of the British agents. My children, your conduct has much alarmed the white settlers near you. They desire that you will send away those people, and if they wish to have the impostor with them they can carry him. Let him go to the lakes, he can hear the British more distinctly." The Prophet answered this letter in a spirit of regret, denying the allegations of General Harrison, and insinuating that he had been misinformed by evil minded men. However, in the spring of 1808 they deserted their village and established a new Prophetstown among some kindred spirits on the Tippecanoe, a branch of the Wabash, in northern Indiana, to which place they had been invited by some friendly Kickapoos and Pottawatomies. While the Shawnees were living in the Mud Creek settlement they were visited by a small delegation of Shakers from Turtle Creek (later Union village), Warren county, Ohio, whose object it was to investigate the feasibility of establishing a mission among them. The missionaries, Darrow, McNemar and Youngs, arrived at Prophetstown on March 23, 1807. They afterwards made a detailed report of their experiences, from which the following interesting extracts are taken. "When we came in sight of the village, the first object that attracted our view was a large frame house, about 150 by 34 feet in size, surrounded with fifty or sixty smoking cottages. We rode up and saluted some men who were standing before the door of a tent, and by a motion of the hand were directed to another wigwam where we found one who could talk English. We asked him if their feelings were friendly. A. O, yes, we are all brothers. Q. Where are your chiefs? We wish to have a talk with them. A. They are about four miles off making sugar. Q. What are their names? A. Lal-lu-e-tsee-ka and Te-kum-tha. Q. Can any of them talk English. A. No; but there is a good interpreter there; George Blue Jacket. He has gone to school, and can read and talk well. DARKE COUNTY - 127 Q. What is that big house for? A. To worship the Great Spirit. Q. How do you worship? A. Mostly in speaking. Q. Who is your chief speaker? A. Our prophet, Lal-lu-e-tsee-ka. He converses with the Great Spirit, and tells us how to be good. Q. Do all that live here believe in him? A. Yes; we all believe; he can dream to God. Conducted by a pilot, we repaired to the sugar camp, where thirty or forty were assembled with the Prophet, who was very sick and confined in his tent. We expressed our desire of having a talk with him. But George informed us that he could not talk to us, that ministers of the white people would not believe what he said, but counted it foolish and laughed at it, therefore he could not talk; besides, he had a pain in his head, and was very sick. After informing him we were not such ministers, he asked : Do you believe a person can have true knowledge of the Great Spirit, in the heart, without going to school and learning to read? A. We believe they can ; and that is the best kind of knowledge. After some talk of this kind with George, he went into the Prophets's tent, where several chiefs were collected, and after continuing their council there about an hour, Lal-lu-e-tsee-ka came out and took his seat in a circle of about thirty persons who sat round the fire. All were silent—every countenance grave and solemn, when he began to speak. His discourse continued about half an hour, in which the most pungent eloquence expressed his deep and heartfelt sense of what he spoke, but in language which George said he could not correctly translate into English. However, the general sense he occasionally communicated during our stay. * * * * They asked us several questions concerning our people, and particularly whether they drank whisky; and appeared not a little rejoiced to learn that there were some among the whites so far reclaimed as to lay aside the use of that pernicious liquor. We inquired how they made out for provisions. They answered they had none. So many people came there—eat up all they had raised. The only meal we saw them eat was a turkey divided among 128 - DARKE COUNTY thirty or forty. And the only relief we could afford them was ten dollars for the purpose of buying corn. After the evening conversation closed we concluded to return to the village, with George and several others; and mounted our horses. It was now in the dusk of the evening, and the full moon just rising above the horizon, when one of their speakers stood up in an alley, between the camps, and spoke for about fifteen minutes, with great solemnity, which was heightened at every pause, with a loud Seguoy from the surrounding assembly. On this occasion our feelings were like Jacob's when he cried out, "How dreadful is this place! Surely the Lord is in this place !" And the world knew it not. With these impressions we returned to the village, and spent the night. Next morning, as soon as it was day, one of their speakers mounted a log, near the southeast corner of the village, and began the morning service with a loud voice, in thanksgiving to the Great Spirit. He continued his address for near an hour. The people were all in their tents, some at the distance of fifteen or twenty rods; yet they could all distinctly hear, and gave a solemn and loud assent, which sounded from tent to tent, at every pause. While we stood in his view, at the end of the meeting-house, on rising ground, from which we had a prospect of the surrounding wigwams, and the vast open plain or prairie, to the south and east, and which looks over the big fort, toward the north, for the distance of two miles, we felt as if we were among the tribes of Israel, on their march to Canaan. Their simplicity and unaffected zeal for the increase of the work of the Good Spirit—their ardent desires for the salvation of their unbelieving kindred, with that of all mankind—their willingness to undergo hunger, fatigue, hard labor and sufferings, for the sake of those who came to learn the way of righteousness, and the high expectations they had, of multitudes flocking down to hear the prpohet the ensuing summer, etc., were considerations truly affecting; while Ske-law-wa hailed the opening day with loud aspirations of gratitude to the Good Spirit, and encouraged the obedient followers of Divine light to persevere. They showed us several letters of friendship from the Governor of Ohio, Gen. Whiteman and others, from which it appeared that the Americans believed their dispositions to he peaceable and brotherly. Their marks of industry were considerable, not only in preparing ground for cultivation, but DARKE COUNTY - 129 also in hewing and preparing timber for more commodious buildings. From all we could gather, from their account of the work, and of their faith and practice, what we heard and felt in their evening and morning worship, their peaceable dispositions and attention to industry, we were induced to believe that God, in very deed, was mightily at work among them. And under this impression, we invited three or four of them to come down and see us, as soon as they found it convenient." The stay of the deputation was short, for on March 27 they returned. The time actually at Greenville is nowhere stated, but in all probability it was not more than five days. The sugar camp mentioned above was probably either in what was later known as the Hiller settlement, or along the bluff of Greenville creek a short distance above the present site of Weimer's mill, in western Greenville township. It is said that some plague, probably smallpox, visited the Indians while at Prophetstown. As noted before a number of graves were encountered while constructing the pike at Bishop's crossing adjoining this site which would seem to lend color to the above statement. The reputed site of Chief Blue Jacket's burial is pointed out in a field just west of the old orchard which occupies the site of the Council house on the Bryson farm. This also corresponds with the old tradition that Blue Jacket was assaulted and hanged on this spot after his wife and daughter had been murdered through the treachery of Tecumseh.luee Jacket it seems was friendly to the whites, and taught his people that their best interests would be conserved by living on friendly terms with the latter and conforming to the requirements of civilized life. Tecumseh, on the other hand, was disturbed by the rapid advance of the white settlements and the insidious diffusion of civilized ways among his people. He thought that the Indian's only salvation lay in resisting the whites, and throwing off their influence. In this he was probably sincere, consequently, we can understand the jealousy and enmity which is said to have existed between the two warriors, and to have finally caused the brutal murder of the older and more peaceable by the younger and more unscrupulous. This tradition, however, is challenged by the statement that the old chief Blue Jacket is buried in Illinois, which makes it appear probable that the chief who was buried at Prophetstown was the George Blue (9) 130 - DARKE COUNTY Jacket, above mentioned, who seems to have been a son or a nephew of the old chief. Tradition also says that Tecumseh buried twin children on the spot of his later machinations and the supposed site of their grave is still pointed out by the Morningstar descendants in the rear of the old Morningstar home on the knoll, near the junction of Mud and Greenville creeks. The incidents connected with the reputed tragic death of Blue jacket at Prophetstown throw some interesting sidelights on the character of Tecumseh and his associates, and make an interesting addition to the traditional lore of this community. Fortunately a local chronicler published an account of this tradition which we herewith incorporate because of its historical value. Although the date and reputed relation with the early settlers do not correspond with what has already been written, the affair contains enough dramatic and historic features to justify a record in this work. "The war of 1812 was a new source of trouble and trials to the new settlers. Those who had settled here as early as 1810, found the Indians were already treacherous and stealthy. There were some indeed who preserved friendly relations with the settlers, but the great majority of them were gruff and insolent. Not that they were as yet regarded as dangerous, but annoying, going into houses and demanding something to eat, and refusing to leave until the demand was complied with. Tomahawks and butcher knives were frequently used to coerce compliance. When they had eaten at one house they would go to the next and demand in the same way, eating six or eight times in less than a day, so that they would often become sick from over--gorging. Among those who proved particularly friendly to the whites and seemed to court good understanding with them, was the old prophet Blue Jacket. He seemed to be a really good Indian. Bad feeling existed between him and the rival prophet Tecumseh, so that Blue Jacket was to a considerable degree, through the influence of Tecumseh, persecuted by his tribe. Tecumseh was the shrewdest or more dishonest of the two. Had an inveterate hate against the whites, was stirring up his tribe to the war paint against them, while Blue Jacket contended with him, that war with the whites only meant their decimation and ruin. That the Great Spirit had set his face against the red man, and that to prohibit the progress DARKE COUNTY - 131 of the settlement of the country by the white man, was beyond the combined power of all the tribes, and as for him, he was maintaining friendly relations with them. He had been with the whites a good deal and always found them friendly disposed, and not averse to living in the country with the red man, and he believed the white man's method of living was the best, and that in time the red man could live as comfortable as the whites. This reasonable logic took deep effect, and for a time the Pottawatomies and Miamis seemed to be content with it. Tecumseh was now in some dispute with these tribes and being deeply chagrined left the country and was no more heard of for several months. He had traveled south, west and north and had succeeded in persuading many tribes to join in a general war against the whites. With this success he now returned to renew his efforts with his own tribes. These he found still peaceably disposed and mainly under the influence of Blue Jacket. He now openly made the charge against him, that he was no true prophet, and inaugurated a system of trial by which it should be determined which of the two was the true one, as holding different opinions about the same thing one must surely be wrong. To test this matter Tecumseh demanded that ten young men should be selected, five from each tribe, as a hunting party. That they should go out from the village to hunt every day for ten days and always return at night with whatever game they had. That each morning he and Blue Jacket should prophesy in the presence of three old men, but not in the presence of each other, the result of the day's hunt. To this Blue Jacket readily agreed. Three old men were selected who went into a tent to themselves and sent for the prophet, Blue Jacket. He soon appeared wrapped in his sacred shawl, which was a very bright red, except a blue border. He entered the tent, sat down upon a wolf skin, drew his shawl over his head, and after a silence of one or two minutes spoke in a rough wavering voice, "I see only a few turkeys and two or three deer." He arose and retired from the tent. In the meantime Tecumseh had employed a spy to listen at a crack in the tent, and immediately report to him the conduct of Blue Jacket, and what he said. This spy performed his duty. Tecumseh was now sent for. He repaired to the tent without any marks of humiliation but rather in a pompous way, stood erect in the presence of the 132 - DARKE COUNTY old men, and without hesitation said, "I see six deer and a load of turkeys." The young men were now armed and equippel ready for the hunt. Tecumseh sent his spy with them, with instructions to be sure to get six deer and as many turkeys as they could carry. The result of this day's hunt was awaited with considerable interest and anxiety. The evening at length came, and the hunters began to gather in with their game, which was carried to the middle of the village and lain down. When the old men came to inspect and count the game, they found as the result of the day six deer and eight turkeys. The next morning at sunrise the old men had reassembled at the tent, and Blue Jacket again sent for. He entered the tent with greater humiliation than before, having caused his nose to bleed profusely, and his whole face daubed with blood and paint, was quite a disgusting object. The old men looked at him with pity. He sat down as before, drawing his shawl still closer about him. He now gave a long groan and said, "I see the young men grappling with the game, five deer and seven turkeys, with some other small game." He then arose and retired. Tecumseh's spy was instructed this day to bring in no game except one deer, but be sure to have that. The hunters again returned at the close of day, the old men went to see and count the game, an.d were astonished to find but one deer. The tribes now began to look upon Tecumseh with more than usual wonder while poor Blue Jacket was almost entirely neglected. This heightened the arrogance of Tecumseh, but was quite depressing on Blue Jacket. Tecumseh had instructed his spy that if any young men should kill any other kind of game such as bear, elk, wolf or panther, they should not bring that in till the next day, but that he should inform him of the fact. The morning of the third day now came. Blue Jacket now entered the tent with still greater humiliation and dejection, crawling into the presence of the old men on his hands and knees, portions of his hair torn from his head, and hanging on his shoulders, daubed with blood and dirt, his head covered with his shawl. i s which was also daubed with blood. The old men reviewed his condition with more levity than pity, which Blue Jacket discovered, and threw himself flat upon the ground, gave a heavy groan, and said: "I see the young men in their way but the game has grown wild and timid—the hunt will not DARKE COUNTY - 133 be good today, two deer and no other game." He arose and left the tent. Tecumseh's spy in the meantime had told him that in yesterday's hunt he had seen a bear crawl into a hollow log, and had run quickly to the place, and with other logs stopped the hole so that he could not get out, that he could easily kill and bring him in the next day. He having been informed of what Blue Jacket had said now repaired to the tent. Standing erect he closed his eyes and said: "It is good to understand the ways of the Great Spirit and to be led by him. What more evidence of his power can we have than this, that he enables us to tell in advance what will happen to our benefit in the future? I see four deer, yes, and a bear and turkeys. The game runs into the way of our young men and stands to be captured. Tecumseh now sat down and had a long talk with the old men, telling them of various dreams he had, and how they had become true; that nothing affecting the interests of the tribes, even remotely, but that he had a premonition of it—that he had a dream last night, in which he plainly saw Blue Jacket hanging on a tree, because he was a false prophet, a traitor and the friend of the white man. This conversation deeply affected the old men, and was soon whispered about the camp. The result of this day's hunt was still more eagerly looked for, and when the hunters came in bearing on a stretcher a black bear, four deer, and several turkeys, the excitement was unbounded. It was announced that the young men would not hunt on the morrow, but that they would have a feast of bear's meat. The old men now gathered Tecumseh upon their shoulders and amidst great shouting carried him to his tent. Poor Blue Jacket rather skulked than walked away to his tent, unnoticed, except by Tecumseh's spy, who, hopping after him in a stooping posture, cried out in a harsh guttural tone, "the game is wild today, H see but two deer." The conduct of the spy being now noticed by others, a great shout of merriment and derision was raised and followed Blue Jacket to his very tent door. The old prophet crawled into his tent, threw himself down on his buffalo robe, and refused to be consoled by his family. He lay till near the hour of midnight when he arose, told his wife that he feared some great evil foreboded them; that he had made up his mind to flee to the white settlement, and ask them to conceal him for a time. His wife now did everything in her power to reconcile him and 134 - DARKE COUNTY banish his apprehensions, but to no effect. He got up, put on his belt, adjusted his tomahawk and butcherknife in it, took up his medicine bag, and as the camp by this time had become quiet, stealthily walked away. He traveled six or seven miles, and as daylight was not yet apparent, and not wishing to approach the settlement in the night season, lay down behind a log, which was well covered with brush, and concealed himself within, having neither ate nor slept much for several days, and being worried from travel, he unconsciously fell asleep. At an early hour the camp was astir, and some having supposed the prophet may not have understood the arrangements for the day called at his tent to inform him that there would be no hunting that day. But upon making inquiry for him found he had left the camp during the night. This was soon noised about, and the whole camp was in an uproar. Tecumseh now rushed to the middle of the camp, and cried with a loud voice to the old men, "What now is my dream, is it so soon to be made true?" The dream was soon rehearsed by Tecumseh, whereupon his spy, with several others, ran to the prophet's tent and demanded of his wife where he was. To this she replied that she did not know at which answer the spy flew into a great rage, and with one blow of his hatchet almost cleft her head in two. He now turned to the prophet's daughter, a very fair young squaw about sixteen years old, and demanded of her where the prophet was. She answered that lie had left in the night while she was sleeping, and she did not know where he had gone. "Lying creatures, as your parents tell me, now this hatchet will also do its work on you. For a moment she was silent, then looking imporingly up, she said, "H do not know." Quick as lightning the hatchet fell on her defenseless head, splitting it to her very ears. These atrocities were quickly made known to the camp, and a party under the directions of Tecumseh were soon upon the track of the prophet. Nor had they much trouble in finding him, as he did not expect to be pursued, and had taken no pains to conceal his trail. He was found still asleep and within half a mile of the settlement. This party had been instructed by Tecumseh to pursue him into the white settlements, and if they refused to give him up, not to leave one of them alive. It is well the prophet had not gone into the settlement as the worst of calamity would have befallen them. The prophet was dragged from his couch, placed in the midst of DARKE COUNTY - 135 the party and forced back to camp. Here a ring was soon formed and the prophet placed in the center, three or four steps from the inner portion of the ring. It was now demanded of him that he should explain his conduct, and promised that he might make a short speech. He then said: "My conduct is not so bad and so full of mischief as to justify all this suspicion. Some evil spirit seems to have taken hold of me, and compelled me to lie to the old men, and rather than lie and deceive I gave up the prophesying and to avoid the disgrace left the camp. You should have remembered that I have always been a good and true man, that my nation has always been dear to me, and my life has been devoted to it. I had four sons, rood and true, who brought much provisions to my tent, enough for us and much to spare which your children ate. Where now are those four sons' Their bodies a prey to wolwes and wild beasts, and their bones bleaching on that last disastrous battlefield (Wayne's victory on the Maumee). My family are now all taken away from me. What have I to live for You can kill me, as I expect you will, but first I demand to know who has killed my defenseless and innocent wife and daughter. Does no one speak? Are you already ashamed of the deed that you hide it? Let the cowardly brute who has performed this perfidious deed acknowledge it. Coward, you dare not say, "I am the man." The spy now advanced a few inches, and said, "False prophet, I am the man." Quick as lightning the prophet drew his hatchet, and with unerring aim and terrific force threw it, striking the s' full in the breast, where it was buried to the poll. The spy fell dead at his feet. He now, with dexterous like motion drew his knife, and with full force made a plunge at Tecumseh. At this instant a savage from behind struck him with a heavy club on the side of his head, which felled him stunned to the ground. His knife was now taken from him, his hands tied firmly behind his back, when Tecumseh cried out with a loud voice, "Let him be hanged to that tree." A piece of raw buffalo hide was soon procured, and fastened round his neck. Several now caught and lifted him up while another in the tree made him fast to a limb. They then walked away from under him and the prophet was left kicking and dangling in the air. "Thus is recorded the tragic end of one of the great men of the Miami nation. He did not die as the coward, yet he was 136 - DARKE COUNTY not entirely satisfied. He knew that Tecumseh had brought on his ruin. If the unfortunate blow on his head had been delayed but for a single second his knife would have cut the heart of Tecumseh and he would have been satisfied. As it was Tecumseh still lived to bring great calamity upon both his friends and foes. All the day long Blue Jacket hung upon the tree, for a while the jilt and sport of the camp. But toward night a reaction took place. They remembered his speech and his family, and the many kind acts he had performed. They had been cured of sickness by his medicines, shared his sumptuous fare, and his spritely conversation. He was now taken down from the tree, his property gathered about him, and early next morning nearly the whole tribe accompanied his remains to the burial ground at the council house, which was situated on the lands now owned by Joseph Bryson, Esq., where his grave remains to this day." We close this chapter with an appropriate descriptive and narrative poem by the late Barney Collins, formerly of Darke county. This poem was published in the Greenville Courier, edited by Mr. John Calderwood, a brother of Mrs. Collins, and should be treasured as the work of one of the best literary geniuses that the county ever produced. Within these lovely vales, these hills around, There still remains of former times the trace When great Tecumseh and his brother bound By oaths in common league their war-like race, To drive from hence, their favorite hunting place, The pioneers, and boldly strike a blow That would them crush and ev'ry line efface They had established here, so that no foe Could tempt again these haunts so sacred to the bow. Where form our tranquil streams their confluence, The mighty Shawnee had his cabin reared; And oft upon their shores his eloquence To wildest rage his dusky warriors stirred, And gathered chiefs and tribes that list'ning heard Their common cause his voice persuasive plead, His counsels chose, and him as chief preferred, Their restless bands to fields of war to lead, Where ev'ry home should blaze and ev'ry inmate bleed. DARKE COUNTY - 137 Then he who rul'd with more than regal power, No less did Laulewasikaw the Seer Who here foretold the time—the day—the hour— When in deep gloom the sun would disappear, And black, obscuring shades o'erspread this sphere! And where our hill embosomed waves unite, The prophet waiting stood with air severe, 'Till Luna's shadow hid the orb of light And cried: "Have I not veiled that burning world from sight? Behold! ye tribes! the truth behold at last! Yon sun is rayless at the noon of day! O'er it his frown great Manito has cast That you might doubt no more but me obey! The time will come! It is not far away! When he, will you, ye braves! to victory call! But here your chief must first his bands array In these deep wilds so sacred to us all, Ere yet, war's path we take where ev'ry foe shall fall !" They could not doubt—with awe their breasts were fill'd As to the darkened earth they trembling bent; Nor were their souls that shook with terror stilled, Until this sun encumb'ring gloom was rent, No more to his commands they urg'd dissent, But what their proven prophet did direct They chose to do, and gave their full assent To ev'ry scheme of war that he'd project, And though they failed, on him they never would reflect. From here his hostile bands Tecumseh led To join that no less savage, heartless foe That Britain sent upon our shores-to spread Ruin and war's infinity of woe! A few there are who yet survive that know The perils that did the pioneers invest When tomahawk and torch and bended bow Their work of death perform'd with horrid zest, Nor age was spared, nor babe that clasp'd the mother's breast! But when at Thames the red man's hopes were crushed, And with him here a final treaty was made— Here, a broad tide of emigration rush'd Which to improvement gave its needed aid, 138 - DARKE COUNTY Where through the wildreness the footpath stray'd O'er which the foliage of the forest spread Broad avenues of enterprise and trade Were built—and progress forward swiftly sped Until these vales were filled with wealth unlimited. CHAPTER VIII. PIONEERS AND PIONEER SETTLEMENTS. After the peace of Greenville in 1795, and the occupancy of Detroit by the Americans in 1796, a feeling of security came over the settlers along the Ohio. They soon left their palisaded forts and blockhouse stations and advanced into the beautiful valleys of the Muskingum, Scioto and the two Miamis to establish new homes, and reclaim the land. In 1796 the advance guard of the Miami valley settlers arrived at the junction of Mad river with the Miami and established the settlement of Dayton. In order to secure nails and hardware for their log cottages they burned the log fort and buildings at Greenville, which had been evacuated in the spring of that year. On account of accessibility by water, no doubt, also probably because of the more open condition of the country, the land immediately adjacent to the Miami river first became sparsely settled, with nucleii at Hamilton, Dayton and other well located sites. The swampy and less accessible lands about the headwaters of the branch streams awaited the establishment of a larger population in the more open and better known country before brave hearts essayed to explore their mysteries. Prof. W. H. McHntosh speaks of conditions at this time, as follows: "At the close of the Greenville treaty, the county to the westward was a wilderness; but, in addition to the Indian traces leading from the Miami to the Maumee, and threading their devious way to other savage villages, there were the broad trails cut by pioneers, trodden by horsemen and footmen, and marking the route of armies and the forays of detachments. The soldier was also the citizen and the settler, and his quick, appreciative glance took in the possibilities of the countries he had traveled. For him the woods of Darke had no charm. The conditions elsewhere were here wanting. Contrast the statement made concerning the Miami settlement to the east with the actual condition of the lands of this county. There the country was attractive all about the settlement. Nature presented her most lovely appear- 140 - DARKE COUNTY ance; the rich soil, mellow as an ash-heap, excelled in the exuberance of its vegetation. Cattle were lost from excessive feeding, and care was required to preserve them from this danger. Over the bottom grew the sweet annis, the wild nettle, the rye and the pea vine, in rich abundance, where the cattle were subsisted without labor, and these, with nutritious roots, were eaten by swine with the greatest avidity. In Darke lands there were found the woods, the endless variety of vine and shrub, impassable swamps, lack of roadway, and the great difficulty of making passable roads. Nor were the forests the only or most formidable barrier to early settlement. We have seen the woods to be filled with Indians. Their principal town was at Piqua, distant but eighteen miles; their camps were along the creeks. In the neighborhood of larger settlements they were treated roughly, and are entitled to little consideration, and it was known from hitter experience that lone families were in constant danger of the sudden wrath of the savage." * * * "Some portions of the county abounded in game, and among those timid and harmless animals were found those fierce and dangerous, as might be judged from the names of creek and locality. Still this might be regarded more as an annoyance than as a dread, and, aterr, premiums for scalps of wolf and panther supplied the settler with means of paying tax or buying necessaries. There existed a still more potent influence debarring occupation, and this was ill reports of health and climate. The men of that day were little afraid of labor; they knew the Indian must give way, but they were peculiarly influenced by whatever partook of the mysterious, and rumor's many voices soon changed the natural to the marvelous, and Darke county was shunned as the haunt of a plague, designated "milk sickness." Some implicitly believe in its prevalence to this day, while others assert that it is a myth, undeserving of credence. Endeavors to find a case have always proved futile. It is heard of "just over in the next township," but, going thither, report placed it further on in the next township, or perhaps in the one just left, and the phantom always places the breadth of a township between its locality and the curious investigator. But whether a myth or a reality, the report spread along the Miami and beyond; the settlers believed it, and, what was worse, regarded it with dread. Even the Indians asserted that certain districts were infected with an air freighted with the odors of disease, and DARKE COUNTY - 141 gravely told the whites, "Not live much here—too much belly sick," and, whatever the cause, there was sickness where they gave this word of warning. It will thus be seen that the territory which afterward became Darke county had won an unenviable reputation, and land titles were held at low rates, with few bidders. These things undoubtedly delayed settlement and caused a tardy growth, while they gave in compensation a class of men possessed of pluck and energy, well qualified to leave their impress on the soil. "In the settlement of Darke county, which for eight years was a dependency of Miami, two classes of land occupants were recognized—the transient and the permanent. The historian called to do justice to the worthy class finds but few of their descendants resident citizens of the county, and it is not till 1816 and later, that families came to stay and make their fortune blend with that of their future home. "Coming up the army roads, striking across the country, eligible locations caught the eye, and established the hunter at a creek-side home, while an unusual hard time in sickness and losses impelled the intended resident to move away. Thus there were conversions from one class to another, and all shared in a certain degree of restlessness while in search of a home, but a strongly marked distinction between the two diwisions existed. There was seen to he here, as elsewhere, a border class of trapper and hunter affiliating with the savages, only endured by genuine settlers and hanging upon the outmost fringe of advancing occupation. Ht matters little who they were, these openers or beginners, who held aloof from neighbors, occupied miserable huts, raised small patches of corn, and left when the clearings became too numerous. Many poor men came into the county, put up small log cabins, cleared somewhat of ground, then, disheartened by privation, sickness and inability to make payments, gave way to others, who built with better success upon their broken fortunes. An old Darke county settler, located not far from Greenville, thus speaks of the actual pioneers as a class: "The place for the squatter is not quite among the Indians, for that is too savage, nor yet among good farmers, who are too jealous and selfish, but in the woods, partly for clearing it up and partly for hunting." The histories of townships, dealing with the first settlers, often speak of the unknown squatter, whose abandoned claims gave brief home to the settler, and whose ill-cleared vegetable patch, growing up to weeds and 142 - DARKE COUNTY bush, made the spot seem yet more wild than the woods surrounding. * * * "In recounting the incentives to Western emigration, the ruling motive was the hope of improving the condition. The land was cheap, undoubtedly fertile, and the prospects of a rise in values certain. There were those who expected to find a 'paradise in the West, and journeyed thither only to suffer from disease, want and discouragements. Some went back, telling of suffering, and dissuaded those lightly influenced; others, with inherent manhood, resolved, since they were here, to make the best of it, and gradually won their way to affluence and comfort." So far as we know, no white men penetrated the forests of Darke county after the burning of the fort except the government surveyors—the Ludlows, Cooper, Nelson and Chambers and their assistants—until early in the nineteenth century. In a former chapter it has been noted that a large number of women were with St. Clair's army, many of whom were either killed or captured. It is supposed that these were wives and members of the families of men with the army who intended to settle in the neighborhood of the fort which St. Clair intended to build at the junction of the St. Mary's and St. Joseph rivers. According to the following article by Mr. James O. Arnold, a prominent member of the Dayton Historical Society, an attempt at settlement was made by at least one family during Wayne's occupancy at Fort Greenville. We herewith quote the article because of its apparent authenticity, and because it paints a vivid picture of life his in the wilderness. "Four walls of wood growth of hickory, walnut, oak, ash and elm, mingled with maples and undergrowth, so dense that a horseman could not pass, so tall that its shade cast a gloom around about, and between these walls a clearing and military fort. Beyond, another clearing and a cabin built of logs, lighted by a little window. The heavy oaken door swung on wooden hinges; the curling smoke from the chimney made of lath, grass and clay, and `the latchstring out,' bid welcome to the guest without, an invitation to enjoy the open fire and the hospitalities of the host. A veritable, typical home of the pioneer in the county of Darke, in the village of Greenville, O.—`a U. S. military fort,' in the latter days DARKE COUNTY - 143 of the seventeenth century, where General Wayne bid the Indians all adieu. "The military engineers then laid their roads on the 'highways' abowe the lowlands, swamps and fallen timbers, and so narrow that the wheels of the connestoga wagons would touch the undergrowth and trees in passing to the fort. Through lands so wet and ruts and mud so deep that to ride the saddle horse of the team, and the family on horseback, in the trail was a lullaby in comparison to the rocking, jolting wagon that sheltered the mother and her babes on their journey to the clearing in the forest wild. Grandfather Hardman (Herdman) of Pennsylvania, his heroic wife and two sons, one son and his wife Mary, and her babe, were the pioneers in such a home. True to family tradition, often told in later years, that made the small boy tremble with fear as he heard it before the great open fire in the home yet standing in Dayton View. The story of the hostile Indians, who were jealous of their rights, and would have scalped the family long before but for the mother, Mary Hardman, who knew their habits from a child and her mother's way of pleasing them by `putting the kettle on' to make them soups whene'er she'd see them come, thus to appease their wrath and to afford protection. The son was doing duty as a soldier at the fort and pleaded and pleaded in vain to have them come within the lines and not expose themselves to fate. But, heeding not, they held their own opinion, determined to carve a home in the forest for themselves and children. "The morning dawned, the atmosphere so dense that smoke from all the clearing around seemed so depressing that boded the coming of the foe, and she often looked through the chinks toward the wagon road to sight them first, that they might be ready in defense. Grandfather said in muffled tones: `It is one of the old woman's scares that she cooks tip on gloomy days.' But hark! Behind the cabin footsteps of no uncertain sound to the practiced ear, reassured the mother of her alarm, and she hastened to place the kettle on the fire, for well she knew their stealthy tread on mischief bent. And when she saw the swarthy face between the cabin chinks she knew their fate was sealed and called her son and bade him hasten to escape and alarm the soldiers at the fort, for all her hope was gone. The mother clasped her babe to run for life. Each must seek themselves a place of safety and ere the father crossed the fence. an arrow swiftly sped, had 144 - DARKE COUNTY laid him cold in death. The mother ran, hid by bushes, with her babe, until faint and weary with her load and finding they were on her trail, concealed her babe, thinking they might spare it, and ran to hide herself in a place of safety. So well she knew the woods and dens to trap the fox, she jumped in one of these and covered with leaves she lay hiding until the night passed. They had found the babe and by torture cruel, so that she could hear it cry, exclaiming as they passed, `Calf cry, cow come.' This too heartrending for a mother's love she raised her head and thus exposed to sight, when a warrior active, yet quite young, turned back to cleave her skull, but touched with pity followed on and left the babe and mother to their fate, in answer to her prayer. When all was quiet she went her solitary way toward the fort and there found help and started to their forest home. O, what a scene. Her father, mother, slain, her husband dead beside the bush fence, and the son beyond." "They gathered all and carried them to the fort, leaving the desolated home. The soldiers swore in wrath their vengeance and pursued the Indians to their death and captured many who paid the penalty, "save one." And she who never forgot the face of him, so young, who saved her life and babe, when he, a captive taken, she in turn saved him from death with pleading tears. He, then unknown to fame, was the future great Tecumseh, born on the shores of Mad river, in the northwest territory, now the state of Ohio, U. S. A. The child thus saved was named Mary, after her mother, and lived to be a strong healthy woman of fine, large stature, nearly twenty stone in weight. She married James Bracy Oliver, of Augusta Springs, Va., who came to Dayton in 1802. * * * "Mary Hardman and James Bracy Oliver, her husband, lived a prosperous and happy life, raised six sons and five daughters and left a large estate. His first farm he sold to the Montgomery county commissioners for an infirmary, after A. D. 1820, and purchased lands north of the soldiers' home, where the brick house and log barn is standing, owned by William King. And they are buried in the family lot alongside the road. The graves are marked by four large stone ashlers set on edge, hooped with iron, marking the spot where the once little babe, who lived to see her grandchildren. was once saved from death by Tecumseh, near Fort Greenville, O. Many pass the spot thinking little of its historic lore. Uncle Jimmy and his wife passed away a full half century ago, and DARKE COUNTY - 145 this story has lain in manuscript fully thirty years, written in memory by the oldest grandson, who now resides at 629 Superior avenue, Dayton, 0., in the same house where he stood when a child of 12, between the jams in the chimney, nine feet square, more than 50 years ago, listening with fear and trembling to the Indian stories told, as "Granny's tales about the Injuns," by Granny's own self as she knit and knit from morn till night." * * * Likewise the first attempt to establish a business in old Darke county was unsuccessful. About the year 1805 a Frenchman built a little log cabin north of the creek, on the present site of Minatown (probably near the present intersection of N. Main and N. Broadway) and started to traffic with the Indians. It is said, that he was compelled to leave in the summer of 1806 as the Indians associated with the "Prophet" had stolen his entire stock. Probably in the fall of the same year, or not later than the spring of 1807, Azor Scribner, leaving his family temporarily near Middletown, 0., established himself in the cabin deserted by the Frenchman with a stock of merchandise suited for trading with the Hndians, including, no doubt, powder, lead, gun-flints, knives, hatchets, rifles, tobacco, rum and fancy calicoes. These goods were hauled over Wayne's trace from Fort Washington on a crude drag or "mud boat" by a yoke of oxen and the trip is said to have taken usually from three to six weeks. In the spring of 1808 Scribner brought his family, consisting of his. wife Nancy and daughters. Sarah, Elizabeth and Rhoda, from Middletown and established them in this little cabin. On the night before the arrival of the family, it is said, the Indians burned Prophetstown and started for their new home in Indiana. Scribner soon abandoned the Frenchman's cabin and moved into one of the buildings of old Fort Greenville, which had escaped the fire of the plunderers in 1796. This building was located somewhere near the present intersection of West Water and Elm streets, overlooking the old fording place. Here he enjoyed a monopoly of the frontier trade until 1811 or 1812 when David Connor set up a store on the southeast corner of West Water and Sycamore streets, where he remained until after the British and Indian war. Connor then moved to Fort Recovery and later to the Mississinawa region, following up the migrating tribes with whom he gained considerable influence. The savages had this peculiar manner of trading which (10) 146 - DARKE COUNTY could best be learned by experience. They would enter the trader's cabin, each with a roll of furs, hunt convenient seats and await the hospitality of the trader, who soon presented each with some tobacco. Pipes were then lighten, and smoking and conversation leisurely indulged in among themselves. Finally one arose, secured a stick, pointed out the desired article and asked the price. If the price and article suited him he would unroll his pack of furs and pay for it forthwith, the muskrat skin being accepted for a quarter of a dollar, the raccoon for thirty-three and a third cents, the doeskin for fifty cents and the buckskin for one dollar. This operation would he repeated after the selection of each article until the first customer had completed his purchases. Each one now quietly took his turn and bought what he wanted without needless parley and when all were through they departed as they had come. Just how long Azor Scribner occupied the old soldiers' cabin is not now known, but from circumstantial evidence it would appear to have been until after the war. From the testimony of his oldest daughter it was learned that he lived in a double log cabin on the northeast corner of Main and Elm streets. This cabin was constructed in such a manner that a team could be driven between the two lower sections of the building, while a loft or second story extended entirely across and joined together the separate cabins. The family lived in one end of the building and the store or tavern was located in the other end, while one of the rooms upstairs was used as a jail. It is probable that this was the building in which the first session of the Court of Common Pleas was held in 1817, as mentioned elsewhere. At the outbreak of the War of 1812, Scribner enlisted in Captain Joseph Ewing's company, Lanier's Independent Battalion of Ohio militia. His service began Aug. 9th, 1812, and expired Feb. 8th, 1914. He participated in the important battle of the Thames (sometimes called the battle of Fallen Timbers) in the fall of 1813, in which Tecumseh was killed and the British General Proctor, signally defeated by the Americans under Gen. Wm. H. Harrison. To General Johnston, of Kentucky, was given the credit of shooting the great Shawnee chief. However, it has been handed down in Azor Scribner's family that he himself shot Tecumseh from ambush and refused to reveal the fact to anybody during his lifetime, except to his wife, whom he straitly charged with DARKE COUNTY - 147 secrecy. He knew Tecumseh personally, having traded with him many times at Greenville, no doubt, and feared the consequences should it be revealed to his old dusky customers that he had done the awful deed. His wife, who survived him several years, revealed the secret after his death to her second daughter, Elizabeth, who in turn revealed it to her daughter, Mrs. Marcella Avery, now living at an advanced age with her son Ira and daughter Prudence on North Main street (Minatown) near the site of Scribner's first trading post. Scribner seems to have made money in his traffic with the Indians, but after he opened his tavern competition arose and he had to be satisfied with his share of the trade. He died in 1822 in the prime of life, leaving a wife and several daughters. Dr. C. F. McKhann, of Greenville, is a descendant of his oldest daughter, Sarah. He has numerous other descendants in Darke county today, who are numbered among her best citizens. (See sketch in Vol. II.) Samuel C. Boyd has the reputation of being the first white man who settled with a family within the present limits of Darke county. He came in 1807, probably in the fall, and established himself on a knoll, on a branch of Stillwater, now known as Boyd creek, near the present site for the Children's home in section 14, southeast quarter, Greenville township, on the farm now owned by Perry Bachman. Boyd was born in Maryland, but moved to Kentucky, where, it is supposed, he married. Later, it seems, he came to Ohio and stopped a year or two in Butler county, from which place he moved to Darke county as above noted. The presence of Indians, the news of occasional murders, and the continual fear that distressed the exposed pioneers just prior to the War of 1812, caused Boyd's fami~y first to find refuge in a blockhouse and later to return to southwestern Ohio. When the war was over they returned and improved their land. Mrs. Boyd died about 1816 and was buried in the old graveyard on East Water street, Greenville, being the first person interred at that place. Boyd died in 1829 or 1830. In the spring of 1808 Abraham Studabaker came with his wife and one or two children and settled on the south. side of Greenville creek (in section 25, Adams township) below the bridge at Gettysburg on land now belonging to A. M. Cromer. Mr. Studabaker was a striking figure in the early history of 148 - DARKE COUNTY the county, as will be noted more fully in the sketches of notable citizens. John Devor purchased from the U. S. government the half section of land on which Fort Greenville had been located and together with his son-in-law, Robert Gray, surveyed and platted the original town of Greenville in the summer of 1808. This plat included the territory now embraced between Elm street and Ash street, and betwen Water and Fourth streets, being about half within and half without the old fort. The plat was executed on August 14th, 1808, and sent to Miami county, of which Darke was then a part, to be recorded. The principal streets in this plat—Water, Main and Third—ran practically northeast and southwest, being approximately parallel to the general course of the creek. According to the custom of the times for county seats, a large space was set aside for a public square at the intersection of Broadway and Main street, near the center of the plat, in which space was reserved for a court of justice. Main street, which, no doubt, was intended for the main business thoroughfare, was made six rods wide, and the other streets were all of ample width. The lots were six rods wide and ten rods long. The plat possessed many commendable features, and as a practical application of the old rectangular system to the peculiarities of the ground platted could scarcely he improved upon. Landscape gardening as applied to city platting was not much in vogue in those days, however, and the remarkable natural beauty of the site was largely overlooked for purposes of expediency and utility. In these days we look at the beautiful high bluff facing the creek and prairie and regret that a driveway was not laid out overlooking the valley, with avenues leading at convenient, but regular distances toward a civic center, and park spaces left at various intersections. John Devor, like the practical pioneer of his day, was interested in cutting down the timber and making as large an opening for the sunlight as possible, and probably thought little and cared less for natural scenery and parks. He remained a citizen of Montgomery county, to which he had come from Pennsylvania, until 1816, at which time he moved his family to Darke county, and became an active citizen. At this late date it is impossible to state the names of all the pioneers of Darke county and the order of their coming. Especially is this true of those who afterward left the county DARKE COUNTY - 149 for more alluring lands farther west. Among those substantial emigrants who stayed were Thomas McGinnis and family, and his wife's stepfather, Barnabus Burns, all of whom emigrated from Tennessee and came to Greenville in 1808. They purchased a large tract of land on the west side of the prairie between Greenville and the recently abandoned Prophetstown. About this time Enos Terry entered the quarter section northeast of Devor's town site and laid off another town plat which he called Greeneville. This plat comprised some twenty acres in the northwest corner of the quarter section. It was established as the county seat for a brief period, although no one built a house within its limits at that time. The Wilson brothers, William and Joseph, came in 1809. William located on a quarter section half a mile north of Devor's town, and Joseph on a quarter section one mile further north. These men were natives of Ireland, but had emigrated to Pennsylvania and later to the valley of the Little Miami from whence they came to Darke county, bringing families of children with them. On this account the vicinity in which they settled was long known as "Ireland." Shortly after the laying off of the town plat of Greenville by Devor and Gray, the latter sold his interest to an aunt, Mrs. Rachel Armstrong, a widow with four young children, who removed to and settled in Greenville late in 1809. Mrs. Armstrong died in 1812, leaving an estate which remained in the hands of her heirs and descendants for many years, until after the Civil War—the Armstrong commons extended southward in an almost unbroken stretch from near the present location of Martin street, and a line extending to the intersection of Fourth street, near Sycamore, to the south line of section 35 (Sater street), and from the present location of Central avenue to the D. & U. railway, comprising 108 acres now entirely within the city limits, and almost solidly covered with substantial residences, schools, churches, etc. The creation of the county of Darke in 1809 seems to have stimulated emigration somewhat. Several families settled in Greenville and vicinity about this time, some of whom remained but a short time, whilst others lingered a few years until attracted further westward by the promise of richer lands. These helped to clear the forests and open up the land for the permanent settlers, thereby contributing materially