HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 25 in this rising was Pontiac, and he commanded in person the united forces which attempted the capture of Detroit through stratagem. The success with which the savages met emboldened them to the highest pitch of enthusiasm, while it struck terror to the hearts of the settlers by reason of the barbarity practiced by the savages. The English commandant determined to take the most active measures to arrest this tide of blood and desolation. Accordingly he dispatched Col. Henry Bouquet, a soldier who had seen much service both in Europe, and this country during the French war. At the time he was stationed at Philadelphia, from which place he marched with a force of about 500 men, and as already stated, after a fierce and hotly contested fight at Brushy Run he pushed on with his force to the Ohio valley, and in due time arrived at Fort Pitt. Here he was reinforced and now with a force of fifteen hundred men he took up his line of march on the third day of October, against the Indian towns on the Muskingum, which he reached near the forks of that river without opposition, and there dictated terms of peace to them. Hutchins' in his Historical Account of Bouquet's Expedition, says: " Immediately after the peace was concluded with the Indians the king made him brigadier general and commandant of the troops in all of the southern colonies of British America. He died in Pensacola in 1767, lamented by his friends, and regretted universally." Having somewhat anticipated our narrative we propose to return and take up the thread of it so far as it is connected with the evacuation of Fort Du Quesne by the French and the erection of Fort Pitt. In November, 1758, the French learning of the approach of a formidable army under Gen. Forbes, became alarmed, and as they had been deserted by most of their allies, they determined to abandon their fort. Before doing so, however, they placed the torch to all the buildings and a slow match to their magazine, whereupon the whole party took to boats and descended the Ohio. On the 25th of November, 1758, the English took possession of the blackened and defaced ruins of the fortress. With the fall of this post the struggle began between the French and English for the possession of the Ohio valley. The war between these two powers was concluded by the treaty of Fontainebleau in November, 1762. The banner of St. George now floated over what had hitherto been called Fort Du Quesne, but which the unanimous voice of those present named Fort Pitt, in honor of the able and eloquent premier of England, William Pitt. Bancroft in giving an account of this capture uses the following language: " Long as the Monongahela and Allegheny shall flow to form the Ohio, long as the English tongue shall be the language of freedom in the boundless valleys which their waters traverse, his name shall stand inscribed upon the gateway of the west." Comparative quiet prevailed along the borders for some years after the treaty to which we have referred was entered into between Col. Bouquet and the Indians. A fixed and determinate boundary line was now desired, both by the English and the Indians. 26 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. In the beginning of the year 1766, a proposition was made by Gov. Franklin, of New Jersey, to the superintendent of Indian affairs, Sir William Johnson, that they should purchase a large body of lands situated south of the Ohio river, with the intention of filling them with English settlers. In this enterprise it was stipulated that Gov. Moore, Gen. Gage, Gov. Franklin and Sir William Johnston, were to be joint and equal partners. The Five Nations, subsequently styled the Six Nations, after the admission of the Tuscarawas into their confederacy, claimed all this territory by right of conquest. The proposition having been approved by those interested, Gov. Franklin at once communicated with his father, Dr. Benjamin Franklin, who was then in London, to secure his influence and efforts in behalf of the contemplated enterprise, at the same time requesting him to obtain a grant from the government. But the crown had made a previous grant of the same territory to the Ohio company and, moreover, they appear to have had some misgivings for a season as to the propriety of establishing a colony so far inland. But their scruples were finally overcome and the company was formed under the name of the " Walpole Company," into which the Ohio company was merged about the year 177o, to which the royal sanction was given in the year 1772. The outbreak of the revolution destroyed both of these grants. In the year 1768, under the authority of the British cabinet, a congress was appointed to meet at Fort Stanwix, to be composed of the governors of the several colonies and the Indians composing the Six Nations. In the latter part of September, of this last named year, twenty batteaus arrived at the fort laded with presents for the Indians, and were accompanied by Gov. Franklin, of New Jersey, George Croghan and others. The day following, Gov. Penn and the commissioners of Pennsylvania arrived, the commissioners of Virginia already being on the spot. The Indian traders were also represented at this congress. These traders, during the war known as Pontiac's, had been robbed of their goods, and these representatives possessed a power of attorney authorizing them to seize upon and appropriate lands under a clause contained in the treaty of 1765. It was the beginning of October before any great number of Indians assembled, and the delay was causing a scarcity of provisions. Hence messengers were dispatched to hasten the gathering of the Indians. It was not until the latter part of the month that the congress was formally opened. A still further delay was occasioned of several days, owing to the indulgence of the Indians in a pow-wow or talk, so that it was not until the first days of November before they were ready to report a boundary line. This line began at the mouth of the Tennessee river, and followed the Ohio and Allegheny to Kittanning, thence it continued in a direct line to the nearest bank of the west branch of the Susquehanna river, and followed that stream through the Alleghenies, passing by way of Burnett's hills in the eastern branch of the Susquehanna and Delaware, into New York, with its northern terminus at the confluence of the Canada and Woods rivers. HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 27 As the Six Nations claimed the title to the territory south of the Ohio river by right of conquest, they were emphatic in their refusal to recognize any boundary whatever, unless their claim was acknowledged. Besides the deed to the territory indicated they gave three other deeds at the same time—one to William Trent, representing the Indian traders as before mentioned, for an indemnity lying between the Kanawha and Monongahela rivers, embracing the greater portion of the present state of West Virginia, another to the proprietors of Pennsylvania, for the Wyoming tract of land, and a third to George Croghan for previous grants, and about 1,300 acres of land on the Allegheny river. It is on this treaty rests the title by purchase to Kentucky, Western Virginia and Pennsylvania. Permit us here in passing to refer briefly to that wonderful organization known in history as the Confederacy of the Six Nations, an organization which cannot fail to challege the admiration and scrutiny of the antiquarian and student as being one of the most unique and remarkable established by an Indian race in North America, if we except the ancient Aztec dynasty. The original tribes composing this confederacy were the Mokawks, the Onondagas, the Senecas, the Oneidas and Cayugas, and some time subsequent to the formation of the confederacy a sixth tribe was admitted, the Tuscarawas. The last, however, were not admitted to membership on an equal footing with the others, but occupied a subordinate position. The Six Nations extended the exercise of their authority and jurisdiction over a large portion of the territory of our country, embracing under their legislative control what are now the states of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, a portion of Michigan, and a portion of the Canadas. Their dignity and importance was in the order in which we have named the tribes which composed their Nation. Like the tribe of Judah which always occupied the fore front of the Lord's hosts, the Mohawks occupied the first and most prominent place in the council and the field. At the time of the Saxon occupation of the great Ohio valley, the Six Nations dominated all the other tribes, none dared to withstand them in battle, or if they did, proved unsuccessful in coping with them, much less were they successful in opposing them in the execution of their plans and purposes. Tradition, itself now almost lost in the mists of obscurity, tells of a tribe of superior intelligence, but few in numbers, which was located in a portion of what is now Marshall county, in the state of West Virginia, which by some unfortunate circumstance called down upon their devoted heads the ire of these powerful nations, who in the madness of their rage exterminated the last soul of them, razed their village and destroyed every last vestige of them as a tribe so completely, that even their name has been obliterated from the memory of mankind. Simultaneously, while one of the tribes of the Nation would attack the red men of New England, another would attack their brothers dwelling on the banks of the Tennessee, while another would carry death to the savages dwelling on the shores of the Mississippi. They were swift in execution, indom- 28 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. itable in energy and unyielding in fortitude. They claimed lordship over a territory extending from the Canadas to the distant Mississippi, and from the Appalachian chain of mountains to an indefinite line westward. But with the advent of the Saxon race their power gradually diminished, their prestige waned and their glory departed, and to-day the vanished remnants of their race have left behind them only a fast fading memory, which in the whirlpool and excitement of a utilitarian age, we fear, will be wholly submerged, or if it survives at all, will live only in the character of a myth. The country immediately bordering on the waters of the Upper Ohio was not inhabited by the Indians unless at some exceptional points, and these very few in number; but their tribal towns and villages were for the greater part at a remove of some distance west of that river. As, for instance, the Shawnees dwelt in the territory embraced in the central portion of the present state of Ohio, extending westward into the present state of Indiana. The Delawares lived adjacent to these on the Muskingum and the Cuyahoga, and the two tribes not infrequently united their forces and co-operated together both in war and council. The Ottawas inhabited the country lying to the northwest in the vicinity of the chain of the great lakes. There were a number of other tribes, not quite so prominent as the foregoing, such as the Chippewas, Wyandots, Pottowatomies and Miamis and in the same district of country others of still- less note, all of whom contributed more or less to the disturbance and annoyance of the first settlers on the Ohio and its tributary streams. The Six Nations were located in the northeast along the shores of the Hudson and St. Lawrence rivers. That portion of western Virginia known as the Panhandle was never the abode of the Indians. In their raids to the Monongahela and Cheat rivers to the eastward their trail was through this portion of the present state of West Virginia. Moreover, West Virginia was their hunting ground -- a favorite resort where the choicest game was found in abundance —the elk, deer, bear, wild turkey and smaller specimens. It is no wonder that they looked with a jealous eye upon the encroachments of the whites upon this portion of their domain and that they resented it by attempting to drive the aggressors away. Nor was the emigration which in 1769-70 began to set in, calculated to lessen their apprehensions, as it had now spread to the shores of the Ohio river. Hence, a feeling of restlessness and feverish uneasiness began to be manifested which increased in intensity during the succeeding years, and finally having gathered head it burst forth in its fiercest fury, carrying with it death, destruction and desolation. HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 29 CHAPTER II. THE ALARM ON THE BORDERS - THE KILLING OF TWO INDIANS BY THE WHITES - ATTACK UPON THE INDIANS AT CAPTINA -THE AFFAIR AT YELLOW CREEK - LOGAN ON THE WAR-PATH - LETTER OF EBENEZER ZANE - EXPEDITION COMMANDED BY COL. ANGUS MC DONALD - DUNMORE'S CAMPAIGN - BATTLE AT POINT PLEASANT - DUNMORE ENTERS INTO A TREATY WITH THE INDIANS. DURING the early part of the year 1774 the tranquility which had prevailed along the borders in the interval between this year and the year 1764, by virtue of the treaty entered into between the Shawnees and the Delawares and Col. Bouquet was now interrupted. Prior to the year 1774 numbers of persons were induced to settle and to seek homes in these western wilds upon and contiguous to the waters of the Ohio, where lands were cheap and easily acquired, many of which latter were held by no other title than that of a " tomahawk right." The peace and quiet which prevailed during the period mentioned had encouraged a great number of land jobbers in addition to the permanent inhabitants to flock into the new settlements, who took up large quantities of land amounting in the aggregate to many thousands of acres. The movements of these land jobbers in taking up and appropriating such large quantities of the best lands aroused in the settlers a desire to go and do likewise and the spirit of land speculation speedily became rife among them. This aroused the jealousy of the neighboring tribes which was intensified by the settlement and appropriation of land by the whites on the Virginia side of the river below the mouth of the Scioto which the Shawnees claimed as belonging to the Indians, the title to which, as they insisted, had never been parted with by them. In the early spring of this year Col. Ebenezer Zane in company with others had left Wheeling and descended the river to the mouth of Sandy for the purpose of selecting and taking up land. It was while thus engaged that they received information that hostile acts were being committed against the settlers by the Indians in the way of thieving, plundering and robbing and that the lives of jobbers and settlers alike were in imminent peril, and advising them to return at once. This induced the immediate return of Col. Zane and his party as well as others absent on the same errand. Upon their arrival at Wheeling they were regaled with exaggerated stories concerning the hostile attitude of the Indians, expressing their fears that they would soon gather in force and fall upon and slaughter them. In the excitement which prevailed conflicting views were entertained and urged. Some proposed to anticipate them in their move- 30 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. ments and at once inaugurate measures to surprise and attack them, thinking it probable that such prompt action upon the part of the whites would strike terror to their foes and paralyze their efforts. But others again, and Col. Zane among them, counselled moderation and prudence, and wisely sought to restrain the more precipitate. In the midst of the agitation which prevailed it was reported- that a canoe containing two Indians was on the river a short distance above the settlement, and was approaching. This information served to inflame the indignant passions of the settlers, or at least that portion of them who harbored in their breasts resentment and revenge, and it was proposed to intercept them. Col. 'Zane, the proprietor of the settlement, strenuously objected to any overt act of hostility on the part of the whites, giving as a reason that the killing of these Indians would result in a general war, and that in itself it would be an atrocious act and nothing less than criminal murder, which would forever disgrace the names and memories of the perpetrators. But these humane and peaceful counsels were unheeded. His advice, counsels and arguments all proved to be in vain. In opposition to all efforts put forth to restrain them a party set out, whose thirst for blood could only be quenched by the slaughter of their intended victims. Upon their return within a few hours subsequent to their departure, upon inquiry made of them as to what had become of the Indians, at first their replies were evasive and unsatisfactory. They finally stated that the Indians had " fallen overboard." Their cool indifference, and especially the significance of their statement that the warriors had fallen overboard, produced the conviction in the minds of their hearers that the warriors had been wantonly murdered, and this conviction was fully confirmed when the canoe was afterward found which was splotched with blood and pierced with numerous bullets. The result was as predicted — the tribes at once entered upon the war-path to avenge this as well as other acts of wanton provocation. The wise and discreet among the settlers condemned the act at the time in unmeasured terms and characterized it very properly as a wanton outrage and a gross and unjustifiable deed. No doubt these manifestations of disapproval upon the part of their acquaintances and neighbors instead of mollifying the tempers and dispositions of those who had been engaged in this affair, served only to exasperate them; for either on the evening of the same day or the day following (it is not clear which), the same party received intelligence that some warriors were encamped at the mouth of Captina creek on the Ohio side of the river, about sixteen miles below Wheeling, upon whom an attack was made which resulted in the killing of one or two of the Indians. In this affair one of the whites was severely wounded, but was safely brought away by his comrades. Much confusion prevails as to the precise dates on which these occurrences transpired, some historians fixing the time in the latter part of April, and others again in the latter part of May; but the weight of evidence seems to preponderate in favor of the latter part of April. However, this does not affect the reality of the events, and is more a HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 31 matter of idle curiosity than substance, as there is nothing in regard to which the human memory is more treacherous than the correctness of dates. About the time of the happening of this affair at Captina, occurred the massacre (for by that name only can it be justly described), at the mouth of Yellow creek, a stream emptying into the Ohio river on the Ohio side about forty-two miles above Wheeling. A nervous feeling of dread existed among the settlers along the whole line of the frontier of that subtle and indefinable character which though felt cannot be fully explained. Their apprehensions led them to realize that they were standing on the verge of a crater which was liable, without a moment's notice, to burst forth in volcanic eruption. Such appears to have been the state of public feeling when the murderous assault and consequent destruction of life took place at Yellow creek, which was not only one of the most inexcusable, but one of the most unjustifiable acts ever perpetrated by the whites upon a deceived and unsuspecting foe, and for which they eventually suffered the direst vengeance. It appears that in the latter part of April, 1774, a large body of Indians were encamped just above the mouth of Yellow creek, on both sides of that stream. A person by the name of Daniel Baker, who had been in the habit of selling " fire water " to the Indians, resided on the Virginia side of the river. Under the pretext of protecting Baker and his family, one Daniel Greathouse, in command of a force of some thirty men, went to his relief. It is said that upon arriving in the vicinity of Baker's house he placed his men in ambush and crossing the river, under pretence of making a friendly visit, entered the Indian encampment with a view really to ascertain their strength and position, intending, if his force was sufficient for the purpose, to cross to their side and attack them. The Indians, deceived by his apparent frankness and friendship, and not for a moment suspecting his motives, welcomed him into their midst and received him in the same spirit in which he professed to be influenced. He spent some time with them, mingling freely among them, but at the same time taking note of their numbers, position, etc. Having effected his purpose he recrossed the river and returned to his command, and reported that their strength and the weakness of his command precluded the idea of openly attacking them, and he therefore proposed to effect by stratagem what he could not otherwise accomplish. It was therefore arranged between Baker and himself, that the former should furnish free to such Indians as might cross the river as much " fire water " as they could drink, and thereby get as many of them drunk as he possibly could. In this proposition it is said that Baker acquiesced and it was not long before he had the opportunity of carrying out his undertaking, as several Indians came over and were supplied with drink to such an extent that they became hopelessly intoxicated, except one — Logan's brother —but he, with the others, was shot down like so many brutes. It is however a redeeming trait in the characters of a large majority of those who were members of this expedition that they 32 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. refused to sanction or take part in the accomplishment of the base artifice which had been practiced by their commander. Not more than eight or ten out of the entire number were actors in the foul conspiracy, and the remainder stoutly protested against it, but in vain. The firing having attracted the attention of the Indians in camp, they sent over two of their number in a canoe to ascertain and report the cause of the alarm, but these last had no sooner landed than they were ruthlessly and mercilessly shot down. Thereupon, another and larger canoe was promptly manned, filled with armed Indians who ventured out and essayed in vain to reach the shore, being prevented from so doing by a well directed fire which proved to be so deadly and effective as to greatly cripple them and compel their return. Shots were then exchanged between the parties across the river, but these did but little if any execution, the distance being too great to prove disastrous to either. Among the killed, however, were the brother and sister of Logan, the famous Mingo chief, who, with himself, were the only remaining members of his family. Prior to this time Logan had been the firm friend and unflinching ally of the whites and the advocate, of peace, on many occasions effi- ciently using his efforts to promote harmony and good feeling, but this disastrous event aroused all the frenzy of the savage in his nature, and the implacable hatred towards the whites thereafter became as bitter, as before his devotion to them had been unswerving. A brief quiet followed, but it was the calm which preceded the approaching storm when it gathers its forces for its fierce outburst. In the meantime measures were taken to arouse all the tribes by sounding among them the tocsin of war. In July, 1774, Logan, at the head of a small party of eight warriors, made his presence felt where it was least expected, by striking a blow against some inhabitants on the Monongahela. It was presumed by every one, that in case of war, the settlements on the Ohio would be the first to be attacked. Taking advantage of this belief, was the reason for his successes. Drake, in his Indian Biography; Book V., p. 41, says: Logan's " first attack was upon three men who were pulling flax in a field. One was shot down and the two others taken. These were marched into the wilderness, and as they approached the Indian town, Logan gave the scalp halloo, and they were met by the inhabitants who conducted them in. Running the gauntlet was next to be performed. Logan took no delight in tortures, and he in the most friendly manner instructed one of the captives how to proceed to escape the severities of the gauntlet. This same captive, whose name was Robinson, was afterward sentenced to be burned; but Logan, though not able to rescue him by his eloquence, with his own hand cut the cords that bound him to the stake, and caused him to be adopted into an Indian family. He became afterward Logan's scribe." As confirmatory of the facts which led to the war, known as Dunmore's war, we submit the following extract from a letter from Colonel Ebenezer Zane to Hon. John Brown, one of the senators in congress from Kentucky, dated " Wheeling, February 4, 1800." HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 33 " I was myself, with many others, in the practice of making improvements on lands upon the Ohio, for the purpose of acquiring rights to the same. Being on the Ohio, at the mouth of Sandy creek, in company with many others, news circulated that the Indians had robbed some of the land-jobbers. This news induced the people, generally, to ascend the Ohio. I was among the number. On our arrival at Wheeling, being informed that there were two Indians with some traders near and above Wheeling, a proposition was made by the then Captain Michael Cresap, to waylay and kill the Indians upon the river. This measure I opposed with much violence, alleging that the killing of those Indians might involve the country in a war. But the opposite party prevailed, and proceeded up the Ohio with Captain Cresap at their head. In a short time the party returned, and also the traders in a canoe; but there were no Indians in the company. I enquired what had become of the Indians, and was informed by the traders and Cresap's party that they had fallen overboard. I examined the canoe and saw much fresh blood and some bullet-holes in the canoe. This finally convinced me that the party had killed the two Indians, and thrown them into the river. " On the afternoon of the day this action happened a report prevailed that there was a camp or party of Indians on the Ohio below and near Wheeling. In consequence of this information Captain. Cresap, with his party, joined by a number of recruits, proceeded immediately down the Ohio for the purpose, as was then generally understood, of destroying the Indians above mentioned. On the succeeding day Captain Cresap and his party returned to Wheeling, and it was generally reported by the party that they had killed a number of Indians. Of the truth of this report I had no doubt, as one of Cresap's party was badly wounded, and the party had a fresh scalp, and a quantity of property which they called Indian plunder. At the time of the last mentioned transaction, it was generally reported that the party of Indians down the Ohio were Logan and his family; but I have reason to believe that this report was unfounded. " Within a few days after the transaction above mentioned; a party of Indians were killed at Yellow creek. But I must do the memory of Captain Cresap the justice to say that I do not believe that he was present at the killing of the Indians at Yellow creek. But there is not the least doubt in my mind that the massacre at Yellow creek was brought on by the two transactions first stated. "All the transactions which I have related happened in the latter end of April, 1774; and there can scarcely be a doubt that they were the cause of the war which immediately followed, commonly called Dunmore's war. " I am with much esteem, yours, etc., " EBENEZER ZANE." Prior to the successful attacks made by Logan on the settlements on the Monongahela it had been ordered by the authorities of Virginia, that a force should be raised in the district of West Augusta for the purpose of making an inroad into the Indian country and 3—A. 34 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. attacking their towns with a view of calling off the straggling bands of predatory Indians which greatly infested the neighborhoods of the frontier settlements, in which forts were erected by the settlers for their protection. It was in this year that the fort at Wheeling was erected. At the same time many private ones were erected, among which may be mentioned Tomlinson's, at Grave creek, Shepherd's and Bonnett's, near Wheeling, Van Atetre's on Short creek, the court house fort at West Liberty, Wolff's on the waters of Buffalo, Jackson's on Ten-mile with other stockades and defences too numerous to mention.. Owing to the threatening state of affairs expresses were sent to Williamsburgh, the then seat of government of Virginia, informing the authorities of the commencement of hostilities, and thereupon a. plan was adopted for the purpose of taking active measures against the Indians. Withers in his account of the expedition raised at this time says: " Early in June the troops, destined to make an incursion into the Indian country, assembled at Wheeling, and being placed under the command of Col. Angus McDonald, descended the Ohio to the mouth of Captina, debarking at this place from their boats and canoes they took up their march to Wappatomica, an Indian town on the Muskingum. The country through which the army had to pass was one unbroken forest presenting many obstacles to its speedy advance, not the least of which was the difficulty of proceeding directly to the point proposed. To obviate this, however, they were accompanied by three persons in the capacity of guides; * whose knowledge of the woods, and familiarity with those natural indices, which so unerringly mark the direction of the principal points, enabled them to pursue the direct course. When they had approached within six miles of the town, the army encountered an opposition from a party of fifty or sixty Indians lying in ambush; and before these could be dislodged two whites were killed and eight or ten wounded —one Indian was killed and several wounded. They then proceeded to Wappatomica without further molestation. " When the army arrived at the town, it was found to be entirely deserted. Supposing that it would cross the river, the Indians had retreated to the opposite bank, and concealing themselves behind trees and fallen timber, were awaiting that movement in joyful anticipation of a successful surprise. Their own anxiety and the prudence of. the commanding officer, however, frustrated that expectation. Several were discovered peeping from their covert, watching the motion of the army; and Col. McDonald, suspecting their object, and apprehensive that they would re-cross the river and attack him in the rear, stationed videttes above and below, to detect any such purpose, and to apprise him of the first movement toward effecting it. Foiled by these prudent and precautionary measures, and seeing their town in possession of the enemy, with no prospect of wresting it from them until destruction would have done its work, the Indians sued for peace; and the commander of the expedition consenting to negotiate with * They were Jonathan Zane, Thomas Nicholson and Tady Kelly. A better woodsman than the first named of these three, perhaps never lived. HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 35 them, if he could be assured of their sincerity, five chiefs were sent over as hostages, and the army then crossed the river, with these in front. When a negotiation was begun, the Indians asked that one of the hostages might go and convoke the other chiefs, whose presence, it was alleged, would be necessary to the ratification of a peace. One was accordingly released; and not returning at the time specified, another was then sent, who, in like manner, failed to return. Col. McDonald suspecting some treachery, marched forward to the next town, above Wappatomica, where another slight engagement took place, in which one Indian was killed and one white man wounded. It was then ascertained that the time which should have been spent in collecting the other chiefs, preparatory to negotiations, had been employed in removing their old men, their women and children, together with what property could be readily taken off, and for making preparations for a combined attack on the Virginia troops. To punish this duplicity and to render peace really desirable, Col. McDonald burned their towns and destroyed their crops; and being then in want of provisions, retraced his steps to Wheeling, -taking with him the three remaining hostages, who were then sent on to Williamsburgh. The inconvenience of supplying provisions to an army in the wilderness, was a serious obstacle to the success of expeditions undertaken against the Indians. The want of roads at that early period, which would admit of transportation in wagons, rendered it necessary to resort to pack horses; and such was at times the difficulty of procuring these, that not unfrequently, each soldier had to be the bearer of his entire stock of subsistence for the whole campaign. When this was exhausted, a degree of suffering ensued, often attended with consequences fatal to individuals, and destructive to the objects of the expedition. In the present case the army being without provisions before they left the Indian towns, their only sustenance consisted of weeds, an ear of corn each day, and occasionally a small quantity of venison; it being impracticable to hunt game in small parties, because of the vigilance and success of the Indians in watching and cutting off detachments of this kind, before they could accomplish their purpose and regain the main army. No sooner had the troops retired from the Indian country, than the savages in small parties invaded the settlements in different directions seeking opportunities of gratifying their insatiable thirst for blood. And although the precautions which had been taken, lessened the frequency of their success, yet they did not always prevent it. Persons leaving the forts on any occasion, were almost always either murdered or carried into captivity— a lot sometimes worse than death itself." In addition to the measures, we have recounted for the repression of Indian outrages, more extensive ones had been taken by Governor Dunmore in the adoption of a plan of campaign, by an army of such superior force, as promised to effectually crush the spirit of the Indians and call a halt in their warfare on the borders. To resist this force would require the combined efforts of all the Indian warriors. The army, designed for this expedition was chiefly composed of volunteers 36 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. and militia collected from the counties west of the Blue Ridge, and consisted of two columns, the one commanded by the Earl of Dunmore in person, and the other by Gen. Andrew Lewis. The former were to assemble at Fort Pitt and the latter were to rendezvous at Camp Union, in the Greenbrier country. On the 17th of September, 1774, Gen. Lewis with a force of 1,100 men took up his line of march. from Camp Union (now Lewisburgh) for Point Pleasant, situated at the confluence of the Great Kanawha and the Ohio, a distance of 16o miles. This march was through an unbroken wilderness through which by means of a guide acquainted with the passes in the mountains and the trails of the ,Indians, they were safely conducted to the Point after a laborious and toilsome march of nineteen days, arriving there on the afternoon of the 3oth of September, fully expecting, according to the arrangemements with the Earl of Dunmore to meet this latter at this place. To the great disappointment and chagrin of Gen. Lewis, Dunmore failed to keep his appointment. The army at once went into camp, expecting daily the arrival of the column from Fort Pitt. After an interval of nine days a runner from Dunmore came into camp, sent by the nobleman to convey to Gen. Lewis the announcement of a change of his original plan of operations and also conveying the information that he had marched for the Chellico, the town at which place he gave instructions to Gen. Lewis to join him. Prior to the arrival of the runner sent by Dunmore, Gen. Lewis had dispatched runners by land to Wheeling and if necessary to proceed to. ,Fort Pitt, to obtain if possible some tidings of Earl Dunmore, and to ascertain the reason of his delay, with instructions to advise him promptly. In their absence, however, as already indicated, advices were received on the 9th of October from Dunmore, that he had concluded to proceed across the country by the most direct route to the Shawanee towns without mentioning the reasons which had influenced him in arriving at such determination. Though left in doubt as to these, Gen. Lewis recognized it to be his duty to at once obey the command of his superior officer and immediately began to make preparations for the transportation of his troops across the Ohio river. But before the necessary preparations for crossing were concluded an attack was made upon the force of Gen. Lewis by a large body of Indians, composed of the Shawnee, Delaware, Mingo and Wyandot tribes. This attack occurred on Monday morning, the loth of October. The main part of the army under the command of Col. Charles Lewis and Col. Fleming was at once involved. The Indians as usual took advantage of cover and fought from behind logs and. fallen timber, forming a line extending across the Point from the .Ohio to the Kanawha. The battle commenced at sun rise and the severity of the engagement was unequalled. Victory for a time hung in an equal balance. But at last the pluck and discipline of the whites turned the scales in their favor, and as the sun went down in the west the shouts of victory from the whites arose and were borne away on the wings of evening as she spread the mantle of her covering over the sanguinary field. HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 37 During the engagement Col. Lewis was slain, and Col. Fleming was wounded. The battle was sustained with stubbornness and obstinacy by both sides. During the engagement a large number of officers were killed, besides privates, these latter numbering not less than seventy and about 140 wounded. Owing to their peculiar mode of warfare and the facility with which they carry away and conceal their slain, it is impossible to give an accurate account of the number of Indians who were killed, but thirty-seven of their dead were found upon the field and it is known that many of their slain were cast into the waters of the Ohio. It is also impossible to state the number of the enemy engaged. Some of their prominent leaders were Red Hawk, a Delaware chief; Scopathus, a Mingo; Ellinipsco, a Shawnee; Chyawee, a Wyandot, and Logan; but the most prominent one, whose bravery was prominent and whose skill was conspicuous, was that able and consummate warrior, Cornstalk. If for a moment amid the contest his warriors seemed to waver, his shout in stentorian tones rung out above the din of the conflict as he urged them onward, with the voice of a trumpet, "Be strong! Be strong!" If one hesitated and was reluctant to engage in the charge, or showed the least sign of trepidation, with giant-blow he severed the skull of the recreant with one swing of his tomahawk. Inspired by his presence and animated by his example, his undisciplined followers manifested a bravery and exhibited a fortitude unexcelled by the most thoroughly furnished and well-drilled troops among civilized nations. Withers in his mention of this battle, in speaking of Cornstalk, says: " This distinguished chief and consummate warrior, proved himself on that day, to be justly entitled to the prominent station which he occupied. His plan of alternate retreat and attack was well conceived and occasioned the principal loss sustained by the whites." After burying his dead he entrenched his camp, and leaving a sufficient guard to minister to the wounded and to protect them during his absence, on the day subsequent to the battle, Gen. Lewis commenced his march to the Shawnee's towns on the Scioto. Dunmore, who had in the meanwhile gathered his forces at Fort Pitt, where he had provided boats and canoes, descended the river to Wheeling, arrived at which latter place he halted his army and remained for a few clays before proceeding down the river on his voyage. While at Fort Pitt he was joined by the notorious Simon Girty, who remained with him until the close of the expedition. After completing some necessary arrangements at Wheeling he continued his journey down the Ohio, and on his way was joined by that infamous tory, Dr. John Connolly. Instead, of proceeding to the mouth of the Great Kanawha, as he had arranged to do with Gen. Lewis, he landed at the mouth of the Big Hockhocking, where he built a block house as a receptacle for his surplus stores and ammunition. Resuming his movements from this point and re-commencing his advance toward the Indian towns, in a day or two he was met by an Indian trader bearing a flag of truce, with proposals of peace and requesting that a council might be held at Fort Pitt. Dunmore replied to these overtures in effect that as the 38 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. chiefs were already near him, it would be advisable and more convenient to hold a treaty then and there. The movements of Gen. Lewis after he had crossed the Ohio were rapid, and in a short time he had reached the Pickaway plains. Here he was met by an express from Dunmore ordering him to stop, as he was about to negotiate a treaty of peace with the Indians. But Lewis, disregarding the orders, continued to advance until when he had arrived within three or four miles of Dunmore's camp, he was met by Dunmore himself, who reiterated his orders and peremptorily ordered him to return to Point Pleasant, where he was to leave a competent guard to protect the place and a sufficient amount of provisions for the wounded, and then to march the remainder of his troops to the place of rendezvous, where he was instructed to disband them. It would be in vain to attempt to describe the chagrin and disappointment of these brave men exasperated by the losses they had met with in the battle at the Point and the hardships they had experienced in their difficult march through the wilderness, to be compelled to forego the object of the expedition, which was now so near its accomplishment and just within their grasp. It was no wonder that indignant murmurings were indulged in and fearful threats were uttered. But these were quelled by the tact of Gen. Lewis, who, although his sympathies were with his men yet his duty as a soldier led him to set the example of obedience which is the highest virtue of those who bear arms. After the treaty was concluded the division of the army led by Dunmore returned over the same route by which they had advanced, to the mouth of the Hockhocking, where he disbanded his troops and they returned to their homes in Virginia, with the exception of a few who accompanied Dunmore by water to Fort Dunmore, which name had been bestowed upon Fort Pitt, by Dr. John Connolly, a protege of Dunmore, and which had been forcibly seized under the orders of Dunmore and at his instance, by Connolly in the winter preceding. The seizure was made under the claim that it was within the jurisdiction of Virginia. It was also claimed by Pennsylvania as being within her boundaries. These occurrences transpired at a time when the feeling between the mother country and the the colonies was daily growing more bitter and intense, The destruction of the tea in Boston harbor had occurred in the month of March, of this year. The Boston port bill, the immediate cause for actual conflict between the mother country and the colonies, had been received by the House of Burgesses in May, and they had recommended that the first day of June, the day on which the bill was to go into operation, be observed " as a day of fasting, humiliation and prayer, imploring the .Divine interposition to avert the heavy calamity which threatened destruction to their civil rights and the evils of a civil war." It was on account of this recommendation that Gov. Dunmore prorogued the assembly. Dunmore, as we have already stated, on his way from Fort Pitt, had halted with his army at Wheeling. It was while at this place on that occasion that he received dispatches from the British govern- HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 39 ment, but what their tenor was we are unable to state, but it is certain that the plan of campaign settled on between him and Gen. Lewis at Williamsburgh, was not changed until after their receipt. It would not, however, be a violent conjecture in view of his dissolution of the assembly, and the sudden change made by him in the plan of his campaign while at Wheeling and the state of feeling existing at the time between the mother country and the colonies, to conclude that his government had instructed him to take necessary steps to secure the Indians, if possible, as allies of Great Britain in the apprehended conflict, which was now looming up in the near future. It is certain, at all events, that his treaty with the Indians was entered into at a time and under circumstances which gave just cause of suspicion to his conduct, and that he was inimical to the interests, well-being and prosperity of the colony of Virginia. The treaty entered into with the Indians by Dunmore was not assented to by Logan, who indignantly refused to be present and participate in it, but instead he sent in a belt of wampum, his famous speech which is known to every school boy and is so familiar that we forbear quoting here.* Thomas Jefferson first gave this speech to the public. Shortly after its publication attempts were made to cast doubt upon it, and it was declared to have been the coinage of Mr. Jefferson's brain. The most prominent among these questioners was the able and distinguished Luther Martin, of Maryland, a son-in-law of Col. Cresap, who pronounced it a sheer fabrication. A long and bitter controversy ensued, which was participated in, not only by the immediate parties interested, but by many others also not directly interested. Evidently Logan was mistaken in his views that Col. Cresap was involved in the Yellow creek massacre or that he took any part in it. * This speech may be found on page 44 of Vol. II. 40 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. CHAPTER III. THE BOUNDARY LINE BETWEEN PENNSYLVANIA AND VIRGINIA-THE SEIZURE OF FORT PITT BY DR. JOHN CONNOLLY - CONFLICTING CLAIMS TO THE DISPUTED TERRITORY - PROCLAMATION OF LORD DUNMORE - CIRCULAR LETTER OF THE DELEGATES OF PENNSYLVANIA AND VIRGINIA-PROPOSAL TO ESTABLISH A NEW STATE - PATRIOTISM OF THE PEOPLE- COMMISSIONERS APPOINTED BY PENNSYLVANIA AND VIRGINIA - SETTLEMENT OF THE CONTROVERSY BETWEEN THE TWO STATES. THE boundary line between Pennsylvania and Virginia, defining the jurisdiction of these two colonies, had for several years prior to 1774, been a subject of controversy. At the close of the Dunmore's campaign the excitement of the inhabitants of Westmoreland (a county which had been established in the year 1773 by the legislature of the first-named colony) and those of Augusta county, Va., began to assume a threatening character, occasioned by the state of Pennsylvania including in the new county all of the territory in dispute between the two colonies. The origin of this difficulty is traceable mainly to the indefinite provisions of their charters and the loose manner in which they were worded, thus involving their respective boundaries in uncertainty and doubt. In 1773 Lord Dunmore, the colonial governor of Virginia, attempted to enforce jurisdiction over the territory around the headwaters of the Ohio, claiming it as being within the boundaries of Augusta county, Va. Virginia claimed title under the charter of James I., granted in the year 1606, while Pennsylvania claimed title under the charter issued by Charles II., in 1681. The ideas of geography, so far as the western continent was concerned, in those early days were rather crude and indefinite. The controversy between Dunmore and Gov. Penn in regard to the disputed territory waxed very warm, and in the year 1774 had reached a high state of excitement. Two separate authorities claimed jurisdiction over it, and the inhabitants of the territory in dispute recognized the one or the other as it suited their individual tastes and inclinations. Warrants conveying titles to the same lands were issued under the authority of both colonies, the result of which was to encourage quarrels and disputes and arouse the most embittered feelings among the settlers. In the year 1774, Governor Dunmore opened offices for the sale of lands in what are now the counties of Fayette, Washington, Allegheny and Greene, in the state of Pennsylvania, which were issued at the rate of two shillings and sixpence, as fees. The price paid per hundred acres was ten shillings, but even this sum was not, in many instances, demanded. The price per hundred acres charged by the HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 41 Pennsylvania land office was greatly in excess of that charged by the Virginia offices, amounting to about $25. Hence, the inducement to purchase from the Virginia offices in preference to the Pennsylvania office had a prevailing influence with the settlers. In the year 1774, Dunmore determined to take advantage of the unsettled condition of affairs on the western border, and accordingly appointed Dr. John Connolly as vice-governor and commandant of the district of West Augusta, a rash and unscrupulous man, who, with a force of Virginia militia, seized Fort Pitt and held it as the property of Virginia, and changed its name to Fort Dunmore. The nearest court at that time was held at Staunton, Va. The distance from the western borders to that town being so great and the unsettled condition of the country, led to the establishment of a court at Fort Pitt, of which Connolly was one of the justices. Upon the return of Lord Dunmore from his campaign against the Indians, to Fort Pitt, he issued a proclamation with a view of quelling the disturbances prevailing in the disputed territory and warning the inhabitants not to obstruct the administration of His Majesty's government as he had reason to apprehend. The document we here subjoin: " WHEREAS, I have reason to apprehend that the government of Pennsylvania, in prosecution of their claims to Pittsburgh and its dependencies, will endeavor to obstruct His Majesty's government thereof, under my administration, by illegal and unwarrantable commitment of the offices I have appointed for that purpose, and that settlement is in some danger of annoyance from the Indians also, and it being necessary to support the dignity of His Majesty's government and protect his subjects in the quiet and peaceable enjoyment of their rights, I have therefore thought proper, by and with the consent and advice of His Majesty's council, by this proclamation in His Majesty's name, to order and require the officers of militia in that district to embody a sufficient number of men to repel any insult whatsoever, and all His Majesty's liege subjects within this colony are hereby strictly required to be aiding and assisting therein, or they shall answer the contrary at their peril; and I further enjoin and require the several inhabitants of the territories aforesaid, to pay His Majesty's quit rents and public dues to such officers as are or shall be appointed to collect the same within this dominion until His Majesty's pleasure therein shall be known." This proclamation indicates to some extent the feeling prevailing in the upper Ohio valley at that day. The prevailing state of affairs was the more to be deprecated from the circumstances surrounding the political situation of the colonies at this period, which were making the necessary preparations at the time, to meet the approaching storm of war, which threatened in a few months at the furthest to develop into actual conflict between the mother country and the colonies. The conservative and patriotic citizens of each colony exerted their influence in endeavoring to quell the passions and excitements of the hour, but in vain. The passions of the masses appear to have become more inflamed and their excitement to increase. Deeming it the 42 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. best mode to arrive at a solution of the difficulty, it was proposed finally to petition congress to establish a new state, in which was to be included the disputed territory. Hence a petition to this effect was presented to congress proposing the fourteenth state. In this petition was set forth the conflicting claims of the two states, and also justly complaining of the laying of land warrants on land claimed by others, which had been issued by Dunmore's officers. The unfortunate state of affairs existing 'at the time will be more evident from a circular letter, addressed to the discontented inhabitants and appealing to their patriotism, to desist from extreme measures, and to exercise a spirit of mutual forbearance. This letter was issued by the delegates from the two states in congress, and bears the date of Philadelphia, July 25, 1775, and is as follows: To the Inhabitants of Pennsylvania and Virginia on the west side of the Laurel Hill: FRIENDS AND COUNTRYMEN: It gives us much concern to find that disturbances have arisen and still continue among you, concerning the boundaries of our colonies. In the character in which we now address you, it is unnecessary to inquire into the origin of those unhappy disputes, and it would be improper for us to express our approbation or censure on either side; but as representatives of two of the colonies united among many others, for the .defense of the liberties of America, we think it our duty to remove as far as lies in our power, every obstacle that may prevent her sons from co-operating as vigorously as they would wish to do toward the attainment of this great and important end. Influenced solely by this motive, our joint and earnest request to you is, that all animosities which have heretofore subsisted among you, as inhabitants of distinct colonies, may now give place to generous and concurring efforts for the preservation of everything that can make our common country dear to us. We are fully persuaded that you, as well as we, wish to see your differences terminate in this happy issue. For this desirable purpose we recommend it to you, that all bodies of armed men kept up under either province, be dismissed; that all those on either side who are in confinement, or under bail for taking a part in the contest, be discharged; and that until the dispute be decided, every person be permitted to retain his possessions unmolested. By observing these directions the public tranquility will be secured without injury to the titles on either side; the period we flatter ourselves, will soon arrive when this unfortunate dispute, which has produced much mischief and as far as we can learn, no good, will be peaceably and constitu tionally determined. We are your friends and countrymen: JOHN DICKINSON, P. HENRY, GEO. ROSS, RICHARD HENRY LEE, B. FRANKLIN, BENJ. HARRISON, JAMES WILSON, TH. JEFFERSON. CHAS. HUMPHREYS, PHILADELPHIA, July 25, 1775. HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 43 Such was not only the state of affairs at the time the foregoing document bears date, but such they continued to be in 1776 at the time of the declaration of our independence. Neither the kindling of the flames of the revolution, nor the conciliatory and kind letters of the delegates in congress from the two colonies, nor the patriotic and earnest appeals of individuals, had the effect of wholly quenching the spirit of bitterness and prejudice which had been enkindled and which continued to smoulder and at intervals to burst forth in fearful intensity and power. It was believed at the time and this belief, in part at least, appeared. to have been confirmed by subsequent events, that it was the policy of Lord Dunmore to fan the flames of discord and to keep alive the jealousies existing between the discontented of the two colonies as the issue between the mother country and the colonies was rapidly assuming shape, and the hour for decisive action was near at hand. Hence, if he could succeed in embroiling the inhabitants of this region in internicine quarrels and at the same time turn loose upon them the savages as allies of the mother country, his sagacity assured him that to that extent at least he would paralyze the energies of the colonists and compromise their cause. As has been supposed, with a view of accomplishing this purpose, he had appointed Dr. John Connolly as an instrument who could be depended upon. As heretofore stated Connolly took possession of Fort Pitt, and proceeded to repair and rebuild it, and changed its name. This man Connolly was a native of Lancaster county in the state of Pennsylvania, and was a tory of the deepest dye. He was an unprincipled schemer and withal excessively ambitious. He devoted himself earnestly to the work which he had in hand and ingeniously kept alive the broils and troubles existing between the inhabitants of the two colonies. Some of the means employed by him consisted in the arrest and imprisonment of unoffending magistrates for no other reason than that they held commissions from the governor of Pennsylvania and were acting under the authority of these commissions. These persons he would send to Virginia for trial on treasonable charges. The property of individuals deemed by him to be personally obnoxious, he unhesitatingly confiscated or destroyed. Private houses were entered and carefully searched for letters or documents with the purpose of finding evidence which might compromise them or in some manner involve them as being criminally guilty of offenses. He also insolently abused those individuals who did not think, speak or act as he did, as enemies. The more surely to attach him to himself and to secure his services, Dunmore made him a grant of 2,000 acres of land at the falls of the Ohio, where the city of Louisville now stands. He occupies in local history the same unenviable notoriety which Arnold does in national history. Both were traitors to their country — both were the victims of licentious wickedness and unbridled ambition — both were unprincipled and treacherous — both sold themselves and would, if they could have accomplished it, have sold their country for British gold, as they in fact attempted to do, but failed in the effort, and both merited the gibbet. To complete their likeness both were placed on 44 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. half pay on the British establishment as a further reward for their treason to their country. A few years since, the writer discovered among the papers of the Pennsylvania Historical Society a document which has never been published heretofore and which was found among the papers of Hon. Jasper Yeates, which had, just before the writer's discovery been turned over to that society. The writer was subsequently informed that the original was lost and could not be found. If this be so, this copy taken by me at the time, is, so far as we are aware, the only one in existence. Judge Yeates was a distinguished jurist of Lancaster county, Penn. In the year 1776 he was sent by the continental congress to Fort Pitt to act as commissioner of Indian affairs. In 1774 he was a member of the committee of correspondence of Lancaster county. He was one of the judges of the supreme court of Pennsylvania from the year 1791 to the year 1817, and was also a member of the convention which ratified the constitution of the United States. He also published reports of cases decided by the supreme court of Pennsylvania. He was a man of fine abilities, scholarly and refined, and exercised a guiding and directing influence in shaping the future- greatness and growing destiny, as well as in forming and shaping the history of his native state. A man of enterprise and great public spirit, he has left behind him as a proud heritage the noble record of a well-spent, exceptional and honorable life. The document above referred to sets forth the differences and complaints of the inhabitants in the disputed territory, and their request to be established as a separate state. The length of the document, which is in the form of a petition, does not detract from its value and importance. Jacob, in his " Life of Captain Cresap," has a brief reference to this paper, but declined to publish it on account of its length. But as it fits into this boundary question and is a part of its history, no apology is needed for its publication. It is as follows, verbatim et literatim. " To the Honorable the President & Delegates of the thirteen united American Colonies in General Congress assembled: "The Memorial of the Inhabitants of the Country, West of the Allegheny Mountains, Represents: " That —Whereas the Provinces of Pennsylvania & Virginia set up Claims to this large and extensive Country, which for a considerable Time past have been productive of & attended with the usual Concomitants & pernicious & destructive Effects of discordant & contending Jurisdictions, innumerable Frauds, Impositions, Violences, Depredations, Feuds, Animosities, Divisions, Litigations, Disorders & even with the Effusion of human Blood, to the utter Subversion of all Laws human & divine of Justice, Order, Regularity & in a great Measure even of Liberty itself & must unless a timely speedy Stop be put to them in all Probability terminate in a Civil War, which how far it may effect the Union of the Colonies & the General Cause of America, we leave to your prudent, impartial & Serious Consideration. HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 45 "And Whereas (exclusive of & as an Addition & further aggravation to the many accumulated Injuries & Miseries and complicated & insupportable Grievances & Oppressions, we already labor under, in Consequence of the aforesaid Claims & the Controversies &c there-by occasioned, the fallacies, Violences, and fraudulent Impositions of Land Jobbers, pretended Officers & Partisans of both Land Officers & others under the Sanction of the Jurisdiction of their respective Provinces, the Earl of Dunmore's Warrants, Officer's & Soldier's Rights & an Infinity of other Pretexts, in which they have of late proceeded so far, as in express Contradiction to the Declaration of the Continental Commissioners made on the ninth day of October 1775 at the Treaty at Fort Pitt made encroachments on the Indian Territorial Rights by improving laying Warrants & Officers Claims & Surveying some of the Islands in the Ohio and Tomahawking (*or as they term it) improving in a Variety of Places on the Western side of the said River, to the great, imminent & Manifest Danger of involving the Country in a bloody, ruinous & destructive War with the Indians, a people extremely watchful, tenacious & jealous of their. Rights, Privileges & Liberties, and already it is to be doubted, too much inclined to a Rupture and Commencement of Hostilities from the Persuasions & Influences of British Emissaries, Agents & Officers & the little attention unfortunately hitherto paid to them by the American Confederacy in Conciliating their Affections, Confidence and Friendship:) there are a number of private or other Claims to Lands within the Limits of this Country, equally embarrassing & perplexing: George Croghan Esquire, in various Tracts, Claims Lands by Purchase from the Six Nations in 1748 and confirmed to him at the Treaty of Fort Stanwix in 1768 to the Amount by Computation of 200,000 Acres on which are settled already 150 or 200 Families:— Major William Trent in Behalf of himself & the Traders who suffered by the Indian Depredations in 1763 another large Tract containing at least 4,000p00 of Acres by Donation & Cession of the Six Nations aforesaid at the aforesaid Treaty of Fort Stanwix in 1768 & on which 1500 or 2000 Families are already Settled:— and there was on the 4th Day of January 1770 a Certain Contract & Purchase made by the Honourable Thomas Walpole & Associates (including the Ohio Company & the Officers & Soldiers in the Service of the Colony of Virginia Claiming under the Engagements of that Colony in the year 1754) under the name of the Grand Ohio or Vandalia Company with and of the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury on Behalf of Crown for an Extensive Tract of Country within the Purchase & Cession from the aforesaid Six Nations & their Confederates at the said Treaty of Fort Stanwix aforesaid made and by his Majesty's Special Command & Direction notified to the Indians of the Western Tribes of the aforesaid Confederacy on the 3d day of April 1773, by Alexander McKee Esq Deputy Agent of the Western Department for Indian Affairs on the Plains of Scioto, who by their Answer of the 6th of the Same Month expressed their Approbation thereof, & Satisfaction & Acquiescence 46 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. therein, at the same time justly observing that for the Peace of the Country, it was as necessary for prudent People to govern the White Settlers, as for the Indians to take Care of their foolish young men. "This is a country of at least 240 Miles in Length from the Kittanning to opposite the mouth of Scioto 70 or 8o in Breadth from the Allegheney Mountains to the Ohio, rich, fertile & healthy even beyond a credibility & peopled by at least 25,000 Families since the year 1768 (a population be believe scarce to be paralled in the Annals of any Country. Miserably distressed an harassed and rendered a scene of the most consumate Anarchy & Confusion by the Ambition of some & averice of others, and its wretched Inhabitants (who through almost insuperable Difficulties, Hardships, Fatiegues & Dangers at the most imminent Risque of their lives, their little all & every thing that was dear & Valuable to them, were endeavoring to secure an Asylum. & a safe Retreat from threatning Penury for their tender & numerous Families with which they had removed from the lower Provinces & settled themselves in different Parts of the afore said Lands & Claims, Agreeable to the usual Mode of Colonization &Ancient equitable & long established Custom & usage of the Colonies, the Rights of Pre-Emption whenever those Lands could be rightfully & legally conveyed & disposed of after surmounting every other obstacles to their hopes, their wishes, their Expectations now unhappily find themselves in a worse & more deplorable situation than whilst living on the poor barren rented Lands in their various respective Provinces below; through Party Rage, the Multiplicity of Proprietory Claims & Claimants & the Precariousness & Uncertainty of every kind of Property from the fore cited causes, the want of regular Administration of Justice & of a due & proper Execution & Exertion of a System of Laws & Regulations & Mode of Polity & Government adapted to their peculiar Necessities, local Curcumstances & Situation, and its Inhabitants, who though neighter Politicians, Courtiers nor orators, are at least a rational & Social People, inured to hardships & Fatigues & by Experience taught to despise Dangers & Difficulties, and having immigrated from almost every Province of America, brought up under & accustomed to vareous different & in many respects discordant and even contradictory Systems of Laws & Government and since their being here from the want of Laws & order irritated & exasperated by ills & urged & compelled by oppressions & sufferings, and having imbibed the highest & most extensive Ideas of Liberty, as the only pure effecient Source of happiness and Prosperity will with difficulty submit to the being annexed to or Subjugated by (Terms Synonomous to them) any one of those Provinces, much less the being partitioned or parcelled out among them, or be prevailed on to Entail a State of Vassalage & Dependence on their Posterity or suffer themselves who might be the happiest & perhaps not the least useful Part of the American Confederacy as forming a secure extensive & Effectual Frontier & Barrier against the Incursions, Ravages & Depredations of the Western savages to be enslaved by any set of Proprietary or other claimants or arbitrarily deprived HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 47 & robbed of those Lands & that country to which by the Laws of Nature & of Nations they are entitled as first occupants and for the Possessions of which they have resigned their all & exposed themselves and Families to Inconveniences, Danger & Difficulties which language itself wants words to express & describe, whilst the Rest of their Countrymen softened by Ease, enervated by Affluence & Luxurious Plenty & unaccustomed to Fatigues, Hardships, Difficulties or Dangers are bravely Contending for & Exerting themselves on Behalf of a Constitutional, Natural, rational & Social Liberty: " We the Subscribers Inhabitants of the Country as aforesaid therefore by Leave by hereby plenarily, amply & specially delegated, interested, authorised & impowered, to act & to do for us on this occasion as our immediate Representatives, Solicitors, Agents & At- . tornies, Humbly to represent to you, as the Guardians, Trustees & Curators, Conservators & Defences of all that is dear to us or valuable to Americans, that in our opinions no Country or People can be either rich, flourishing, happy or free (the only laudable rightful, useful, warrantable & rational Ends of Government) or enjoy the Sweets of that Liberty, the Love & Desire of which is radically impressed or Self-Existent with & animates & actuates every brave, generous, humane, and honest soul, and for which every American Breast at this this time pants & glows with an unusual Flow of Warmth & Expectation & with redoubled Zeal & Ardor; whi'lst annexed to or dependent on any Province whose Seat of Govern-. ment is those of Pennsylvania or Virginia four or five hundred miles distant and Separated by a vast, extensive & almost impassable Tract of Mountains by Nature itself formed & pointed out as a boundary between this Country & those below it, that Justice might be both Tedious & Expensive, the Execution of the Laws dilatory & perhaps mercenary, if not arbitrary; Redress of Grievances precarious & Slow & the Country so Situated without participating of any of the Advantages, Suffer all the Inconveniences of such a Government & be continually exposed, as we already too well know by Dear bought & fatal experience, to the Violence, Frauds, Depredations, Exactions Oppressions of interested, ambitious, designing, insolent, avaricious, rapacious & mercenary Men & Officers- " And pray that the Said Country be constituted declared & acknowledged a separate, distinct, and independent Province & Government by the Title and under the Name of —` the Province & Government of Westsylvania, be empowered & enabled to form such Laws & Regulations & such a System of Polity & Government as is best adapted & most agreeable to the peculiar Necessities, local Circumstances & Situation thereof & its inhabitants invested with every other Power, Right, Privilege & Immunity, vested, or to be vested in the other American Colonies, be considered as a Sister Colony & the fourteenth Province of the American Confederacy; that its Boundaries be — Beginning at the Eastern Branch of the Ohio opposite the mouth of the Scioto & running thence in a direct Line to the Owasioto Pass, thence to the top of the Allegheny 48 - HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY. Mountain, thence with the top of the said Mountain to the Northern Limits of the Purchase made from the Indians in 1768, at theTreaty of Fort Stanwix aforesaid, thence with the said Limits to the Allegheny or Ohio river, and thence down the said River as purchased from the said Indians at the aforesaid Treaty of Fort Stanwix to the Beginning. "And that for the more effectual Prevention of all future & further Frauds & Impositions being practiced upon us, thereby all Proprietary or other Claims or Grants heretofore, by, or to whomsoever made of Lands within the aforesaid Limits of the said Province be discountenanced & Suspended to all Intents & Purposes, until approved of & Confirmed by the Legislative Body of the said Province with & under the Approbation & Sanction of the General Congress, or Grand Continental Council of State of the United American Colonies. "And your Memorialists, as by all the Ties of Duty, Interest & Honor bound as Americans, Brethren & Associates, embarked with you in the Same Arduous and glorious Cause of Liberty & Independency Shall ever Pray that your Councils & Endeavors for the Common Good, may be continually attended, blessed & crowned with a never ceasing & uninterrupted Series of Success, Happiness & Prosperity." This document so verbose and quaint in style has the following ,endorsement: " Memorial to congress for erecting the government of Westsylvania, 1776." In less than a century after this document was penned the greater portion of the territory it proposed to establish " as the fourteenth province of the American confederacy," was admitted into the Union as a separate and distinct state under the name of West Virginia. The proposals contained in the foregoing memorial for the accomdation of the disputes between the counties of Westmoreland, in Pennsylvania, and West Augusta, in Virginia, it would appear, did not represent the unanimous sentiment of the inhabitants of West Augusta, and hence a committee of this latter district as representatives of the conservative portion of its inhabitants in the fall of 1776, drafted the following address and memorial to the house of delegates of the general assembly of Virginia, with the purpose of inducing that body to take such steps as in its wisdom might be deemed best to arrest the contemplated object which that paper had in view. We give it literally and in the form in which it was originally drafted: "To the Honourable, the Speaker of the lower House of Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia: " Most humbly sheweth That your Memorialists conceiving themselves in some sort the Guardians of the Rights of the People in this Frontier County find themselves under the indispensable necessity of representing to your Honourable House Some matters which they have lately learned. " A number of designing Persons influenced by motives of Interest & Ambition about the beginning of July last have set on foot a HISTORY OF THE UPPER OHIO VALLEY - 49 Memorial to the Honourable Continental Congress, praying that a Tract of Country Beginning " (here are inserted the boundaries and description as given in the memorial we have heretofore recited) " might be constituted, declared, & acknowledged a distinct and independent government by the Title of the Government of Westsylvania; and in prosecution of this, their favorite Scheme, the Persons aforesaid have dispersed Advertisements throughout the Country recommending it to the Inhabitants of the different Districts to meet at their respective Places of appointment, to give voice whether they would join in a Petition to Congress for their Interposition in settling the unhappy Disputes which have prevailed in these parts, or whether they should not immediately colonize themselves by their own authority & send their Delegates to Congress to represent them as the fourteenth Link, in the American Chain, the Copies of which said Memorial & Advertisement we now do ourselves the Honour of transmitting to you for the Consideration of your House, your Memorialists humbly beg leave to observe, that in Consequence of the Scheme aforesaid and the Measures taken to effect it, this Frontier Country is divided & distracted by jarring views and Contradictory Opinions concerning public Operations; — the Rigour & Energy of Government & of its wholesome Laws are relaxed and many of the inhabitants instead of consulting the safety of the whole as their only security & Happiness assiduously attach themselves to their own private Views & Interests, regardless of the Obligations of Gratitude for the many great Sums expended by the State of Virginia for their Defence & Protection. Your Memorialists cannot but consider the present Scheme of a new Government as infallibly productive of the same Mischiefs & Disorders which have lately been experienced by the Inhabitants of this Government from the unsettled Limits of the State of Virginia & Pennsylvania, which all good men most sincerely wish to be happily accommodated. "Your Memorialists therefore humbly pray that your Hon'ble House* will take Such Steps in the premises and make Such necessary Regulations, to Insure Union to the Inhabitants in these- Times of Public Calamity & obviate the Unhappiness & Difficulties attendant on this wild Scheme of a new Government, as the Wisdom of your Hon'ble House may Suggest to you. "And your Memorialists as in duty bound will ever pray, etc." From a letter of Mr. Yeates, written by him from Pittsburgh under date of July 3o, 1776, we learn that the Memorial to Congress had been laid aside by its originators and abandoned, and in lieu thereof an advertisement had been published and circulated among the inhabitants of the disputed territory (as is mentioned in the memorial address to the speaker of the house of delegates of Virginia), suggesting " the dividing of the people of the proposed new government into districts and desiring them to choose convention men who are forthwith to meet and appoint delegates to represent them in Congress. How shockingly" he explains in his letter —" Are the people here divided! And to what ridiculous lengths are not most of them hasten- 4—A.