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BIOGRAPHICAL    SKETCH 


OF      THE 


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^'■M.cCila^tA^^ 


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Life  of  the  Late 


Captain  Michael  Cresap. 


»■*■» 


I 

I  ftppcftl  to  »ho  White  1^  ungnitefiil,  to  ■<«y, 

If  he  e'er  from  my  Cabin  went  hungry  »w»y  ? 

If  imkc.l  !Hnl  I'oM  unto  I.o^n  he  came, 

And  h.  gave  him  no  blanket,  and  kindled  no  n.me  ? ' 


Oil- 


5^  JOEJ^  J.  JACOB. 

CincinnatT,  (8)1)10 : 

Reprinted  from  the   Chr,d>^lard    Edition  of   1826,  with  Note,  and    Appendix  for 
William  Dodqic,  by  Jno.  F.  Uhlhorn,  Steam  Job  Printer,  58  West  3d  St. 

1866. 


20 


STIRLING 

(LORD). 


STIRLING 
(LORD). 


STIRLING 
(LORD). 


STIRLING 
(LORD). 


f 
Tip 


STIRLING 
'   (LORD). 


STIRLING 

(LORD). 


Autograph  letter.  2  pages  4to,  dated  "  Eliza- 
beth Town,  Decern.  5th,  1775,"  to  John  Han- 
cock, President  of  C'ongres®,  relating  to  the 
movements  of  troops  to  "  the  new  Fortress 
on  Hudson  River,"  etc.  .         .         6-3.00 

Autograph  letter.  H  pages  folio,  dated 
"Elizabeth  Town,  Decem.  19,  1775,"  to  John 
Hancock,  President  of  Congress,  concerning  the 
protection  of  vessels  lying  in  the  Kills  and 
recommending  that  all  the  ammunition  imported 
be  purchased  by  Congress.         .         .         $5.00 

Autograph  letter.  1  page  4to,  dated  "  Eliza- 
beth Town,  Jan.  G,  1776,"  to  John  Hancock, 
President  of  Congress,  relating  to  a  bearer  of 
British  disj)atches  which  he  had  captured,  and 
whose  letters  he  sends  to  the  Congress.       83.00 

Autograph  letter.  2  pages  folio,  dated  "  Eliza- 
beth Town,  Jan.  10,  1776,"  to  John  Hancock, 
President  of  Congress,  concerning  the  move- 
ments of  the  troops  in  New  Jersey  and  on  Long 
Island  and  Staten  Island,  and  an  attempt  to 
regain  possession  of  New  York.  .         S5.00 

Autograph  letter.  1  page  4to,  dated  "  E.  T., 
Jan.  10,  1776,"  to  John  Hancock,  President  of 
Congress,  relating  to  Gov.  Franklin,  who 
"  intended  to  no  longer  remain  quiet "  so  he 
provided  "good  Genteel  private  Lodgings  for 
him  at  Mrs.  Boudinot's."  .         .         $3.00 

Autograph  letter.  1  page  4to,  dated  "  Eliza- 
beth Town,  Jan.  11,  1776,"  to  John  Hancock, 
President  of  Congress,  concerning  the  arrest  of 
William  Franklin,  Governor  of  New  Jei-sey 
and  a  Tory.  ....         S3.00 

*"  He  sent  two  officers  attended  by  proper  guard  to  wait  upon 
(iov,  Franlilin,  who  at  first  refuswl  paying  anv  attention 
to  the  Message  they  carried,  but  finding  it  in  Vain  to  act 
that  pari,  he  ordered  up  his  Coach  to  come  to  this  place." 


) 


) 


«l 


._J 


ADVERTISEMENT. 

I  think  it  necessary,  as  the  name  of  Mr.  Jeiferson  is  intro- 
duced into  this  work,  to  inform  the  reader  that  it  was  finished 
and  sent  to  the  press  as  early  as  March  last;  but  from  circum- 
stances not  within  the  control  of  the  author,  has  remained  to 
this  late  period  silently  on  the  printer's  shelves.  The  author 
gives  this  notice,  lest  it  should  be  thought  ungenerous,  if  not 
invidious,  to  call  in  question  any  statement  of  facts  made  by 
a  man  now  dead,  and  incapable  of  making  any  reply. 

September  26,  1826. 


I 


TO  THE 

HON.    JOHN    E.    HOWARD,    Esq., 

Late  GoTernor  of  Marjland, 

And  the  rest  of  my  compatriots  and  grey-headed  feUoio-snfferers — 
the  surviving  Officers  of  the  Revolutionarij  War : 

Gentlemen:  From  the  nature  of  the  subject  of  the  following 
memoir,  as  well  as  from  that  cordial  and  sincere  affection  I 
feel  as  a  fellow-soldier,  I  take  the  liberty  of  dedicating  to  you 
the  following  sheets,  containing  a  short  narrative  and  defense 
of  the  character  of  not  only  a  soldier  but  a  hero. 

Accept,  gentlemen,  this  first  and  last  and  only  pledge  in  my 
power  of  an  unceasing  friendship— begotten  in  youth,  strength- 
ened by  mutual  sufferings,  and  matured  with  old  age. 

It  is  doubtless  an  unpleasant  reflection,  that  now  in  the  de- 
cline of  life  we  are  placed  in  such  circumstances  as  to  preclude 
all  the  endearments  connected  with  social  intercourse.  We 
can,  however,  collect  our  neighboring  youth  around  us,  and 
fight  our  battles  o'er  and  o'er  again,  by  our  firesides;  and 
when  left  alone,  like  Uncle  Toby,  build  forts  with  brickbats 
and  lay  sieges  with  wooden  guns  and  hickory  sticks. 

And,  gentlemen,  although  I  feel  no  disposition  to  involve 
or  identify  you  in  a  controversy  of  this  kind — a  controversy 
in  which  you,  perhaps,  feel  but  little  interest — yet  permit  me 
to  observe  that,  in  a  national  view,  it  is  a  controversy  in 
which  we  are  all  in  some  degree  involved;  because  it  is  not 
the  family  of  Captain  Cresap  only,  but  all  the  officers  of  the 


6  DEDICATIOJf. 

army,  the  State  of  Maryland,  and  the  National  character  that 
are  at  stake ;  for  it  will  not  be  forgotten  that  Captain  Cresap 
was  the  tirst  captain  selected  by  the  State  of  Maryland  in  the 
Revolutionary  war. 

It  is,  then,  I  conceive,  a  poor  compliment  to  the  officers  of 
the  army,  and  especially  to  Maryland,  to  say,  or  permit  it  to 
be  said,  that  an  '■'■infamous  murderer''^  was  selected  as  one  of 
her  distinguished  citizens  by  the  State  of  Maryland,  to  fill  the 
most  honorable  military  station  in  her  gift. 

If,  then,  gentlemen,  I  am  so  happy  as  to  be  able  to  remove 
this  stigma,  and  expunge  all  those  black  spots  imputed  to 
Captain  Cresap,  I  certainly  render  my  country  a  service. 

And  I  sincerely  pray,  gentlemen,  that  you  and  each  of  you 
may  now,  in  the  decline  of  life,  enjoy  all  that  felicity,  ease, 
prosperity  and  happiness  that  your  services  merit  and  your 
age  and  infirmities  require;  and  may  none  of  us  in  a  dying 
hour  have  it  to  say,  from  penury  and  want,  what  was  pathet- 
ically the  dying  dirge  of  poor  old  Wolsey :  "  If,"  said  he,  "  I 
had  served  my  God  as  faithfully  as  my  King  (country),  he 
would  not  have  forsaken  me  in  my  last  moments." 

THE  AUTHOR. 


Preface. 

Soon  after  Mr.  Jeiferson's  celebrated  Notes  were  published, 
or  rather  soon  after  I  became  acquainted  with  them,  I  con- 
ceived the  design  of  refuting  the  unfounded  and  unjust 
charges  therein  against  my  deceased  friend  Captain  Michael 
Cresap* — knowing  most  assuredly  from  personal  acquaintance 
with  the  accused  that  those  charges  were  not  true.  But  I 
foresaw,  from  the  celebrity  of  the  author  of  the  Notes  on  Vir- 
ginia— not  only  as  a  man  of  superior  talents,  but  as  standing 
high,  yea,  pre-eminent  in  the  estimation  of  his  fellow-citizens 
as  a  politician — I  foresaw,  I  say,  to  catl  in  question  the  truth 
of  any  statement  made  by  such  a  man,  especially  by  such  a 
pigmy  as  myself,  however  encircled  with  the  shield  of  truth, 
would  in  all  probability  be  as  unavailing  and  feeble  as  the 
efforts  of  a  mosquito  to  demolish  an  ox. 

Thus  perplexed,  and  doubtful  what  course  to  pursue,  I  re- 
ceived an  assurance  from  Luther  Martin,  Esq.,  Attorney  Gen- 
eral of  Maryland,  who  had  intermarried  with  a  daughter  of 
Captain  Cresap,  that  he  would  undertake  a  defense  of  his 
character.  This  assurance  of  Mr.  Martin  relieved  my  mind, 
feeling  confident  as  to  the  result,  knowing  him  not  only  to  pos- 
sess superior  talents,  but  occupying  a  station  and  moving  in  a 
circle  co-equal  in  respectability  with  the  Philosopher  of  Mont- 
icello.  I  therefore,  without  delay,  placed  in  his  hands  the 
materials  for  the  work  (as  they  were  in  my  possession).     Mr. 

*Mr.  Jefferson  calls  him  Colonel  Michael  Cresap — which  mistake,  trifling  as  it  may  appear, 
yet  goes  to  prove  the  imperfect  acquaintance  he  had  with  the  man  and  the  character  he  han- 
dles so  freely.  It  is  true  there  was  a  colonel  of  this  name,  but  everybody  knows  be  was  not 
the  man  intended. 


4 

J- 


8  PREFACE. 


Martin  soon  after  published,  in  pamphlet  form,  the  defense  of 
Captain  Cresap's  character,  but  it  had  not  the  desired  effect; 
first,  because  it  was  not,  nor  could  in  its  nature  be  coextensive 
with  the  Notes  on  Virginia;  secondly,  pamphlets,  after  the 
first  reading,  are  thi-own  aside,  lost  and  forgotten.     And  per- 
mit me  to  add,  thirdly,  that  at  the  period  when  Mr.  Martin's 
piece  issued  from  the  press  politics  ran  high,  party  spirit  was 
hot,  and  Mr.  Jefferson's  name  stood  highest  among  his  breth- 
ren of  the  great  and  respectable  Republican  party.     It  was 
but  too  evident  that  any  blemish  on  the  moral  fame  of  such  a 
man  Was  easily  transferable  to  his  political  standing;  hence  it 
was  better  upon  the  whole,  some  men  might  think,  that  Cre- 
sap,  however  innocent,  should  yet  remain  under  censure  than 
that  any  suspicion  as  to  the  perfection  of  so  great  a  character 
should  rest  on  the  public  mind.     Since  which  period,  regard- 
less of  truth,  honor  and  justice,  a  great  many  orators,  poets 
and  scribblers  have  been  dashing  away  at  the  name,  and  fame, 
and  character  of  a  man  of  whom  it  is  presumable  they  know 
just  about  as  much  as  of  Kouli  Khan  or  prester  John,  and  who 
was  as  much  their  superior  as  the  noble  lion  is  to  the  muskrat. 
All  these  little  folks,  I  knew,  would  soon  sink  into  the  dusky 
shades  of  oblivion,  and  therefore  regarded  them  as  squibs  of 
smoke  that  the  wind  would  carry  away. 

But  a  book  has  lately  fallen  into  my  hands,  written  by  Rev 
Dr.  Doddridge  of  Wellsburg,  a  man  for  whom  I  had  hitherto 
entertained  the  highest  respect— yea,  warmest  friendship— in 
which  book,  for  what  cause  to  me  utterly  problematical,  the 
old  sore  is  irritated  and  laid  open  again.  Not  only  the  old 
Logan  speech  is  raised  from  the  dead,  but  a  new  and  hitherto 
unheard-of  charge  leveled  against  the  character  and  fame  of 
Captam  Cresap.  It  therefore  now  becomes  my  indispensable 
and  imperative  duty,  however  late,  as  the  only  remainino-  per- 


PREFACE.  9 


son  on  earth  qualified  from  personal  knowledge  to  do  that 
justice  to  the  memory  of  this  mistaken  and  abused  character 
that  I  think  no  other  individual  can  do,  and  which,  in  fact,  has 
been  too  long  delayed. 

The  piece  published  some  years  since  by  Mr.  Martin  aimed 
at  nothing  more  than  a  refutation  of  the  charges  brought 
against  Captain  Cresap  in  the  celebrated  Notes  on  Virginia, 
to-wit:  the  Logan  speech,  and  Mr.  Jeflferson's  superaddition, 
that  he  (Captain  Cresap)  "was  infamous  for  his  many  Indian 
murdersy  Now,  however  conclusive  and  satisfactory  the  facts 
and  arguments,  as  stated  in  Mr.  Martin's  piece,  might  appear 
to  men  of  candor  at  the  time  that  piece  appeared  in  public, 
yet  it  is  believed  that  at  this  day  scarcely  a  vestige  remains, 
nor  do  I  know  where  I  should  apply  successfully  for  a  copy. 
Hence  my  plan  is  different.  I  mean,  in  order  the  more  effect- 
ually to  put  to  silence  forever  all  his  calumniators  and  adver- 
saries, to  bring  into  public  view  all  the  life  of  the  late  Captain 
Michael  Cresap  deemed  necessary  not  only  to  refute  the 
charges  against  him,  but  to  evince  and  demonstrate  to  the 
world  that  they  have  been  imposed  upon,  and  greatly  deceived 
in  the  man.  But  my  task  is  difficult:  to  prove  a  negative  is 
no  easy  matter;  nor  can  it  be  done  in  any  other  way  than  by 
producing  positive  proof  that  positive  charges  cannot  be  true ; 
and  in  this  case  the  various  circumstances  combined  with  the 
weight  of  testimony  must  decide. 

The  name  and  fame  of  Hector  and  Achilles  live  only  in  the 
poems  of  Homer;  nor  would  a  Phocion  or  Caius  Gracchus 
have  been  heard  of  in  succeeding  ages  without  a  Plutarch. 
What  a  pity  a  greater  man  than  either  should  have  so  poor  a 
biographer ! 

JOHN   J.  JACOB. 

March  10,  1826. 


I  NT  RO  DU  CTION. 

It  may,  perhaps,  be  satisfactory  to  the  readers  to  hear  some- 
thing of  the  competency  and  qualification  of  the  author  for  a 
work  of  this  kind;  indeed,  in  my  view  it  is  all  important. 
I  therefore  beg  leave  to  state  that  I  became  an  inmate  of  the 
family  of  Captain  Cresap  in  my  fifteenth  year,  and  soon  after, 
although  very  young,  had  the  principal  charge  of  his  store; 
and  such  was  his  confidence  in  me,  that  about  one  year  after 
he  branched  out  his  goods  and  sent  me  to  a  stand  he  had  se- 
lected in  the  Allegheny  Mountains,  with  a  small  assortment. 
The  next  year,  to-wit:  1774,  he  sent  me  still  further  west,  to- 
wit:  to  the  place  now  called  Brownsville,  with  a  pretty  large 
cargo.  This  whole  cargo,  in  consequence  of  his  instructions, 
I  sold  to  the  officers  and  soldiers  in  the  Virginia  service,  in 
Dunmore's  war.  This  store  being  dissolved,  I  returned  to  his 
family,  at  his  residence  in  Oldtown,  now  Allegheny  county, 
Maryland.  Early  in  the  year  1775  Captain  Cresap  marched 
to  Boston  with  a  company  of  riflemen,  and  committed  all  his 
intricate  and  multifarious  business  to  my  care.  I  was  then 
eighteen  years  old.  Dunmore's  war  being  over,  the  colony  of 
Virginia  (for  such  she  then  was)  appointed  Commissioners  to 
settle  the  expenses  thereof,  to-wit:  Richard  Lee,  Esq.,  Colonel 
Henry  Lee,  Colonel  Clapham,  Colonel  Blackburn  and  Colonel 
F.  Payton.  These  gentlemen  sat  at  Pittsburg,  Redstone,  Old 
Fort  and  Winchester,  at  all  of  which  places  I  attended.  The 
gentlemen  composing  this  board  were  remarkably  kind  and 


««       ;    ft    I       ' 

C'^lllMi  lb 
Of  I" 


12  IJ^TRODUCTIOM. 


accommodating  to  me;  they  called  me  young  Cresap,  and 
allowed  me  a  table  and  chair  near  them — the  consequence  of 
which  was,  that  when  any  of  the  captains  or  officers  appeared 
on  whom  I  had  claims  for  Captain  Cresap,  the  Commissioners 
first  deducted  my  claims  out  of  their  pay,  and  gave  me  a  cer- 
tificate for  the  amount ;  and  if,  as  it  sometimes  happened,  a 
dispute  arose  between  these  officers  and  myself,  the  Commis- 
sioners would  laugh,  and  I  believe  invariably  decided  in  my 
favor.  Thus,  through  my  persevering  diligence  and  the  ac- 
commodating spirit  of  the  Commissioners,  I  obtained  for 
Captain  Cresap  during  his  absence  drafts  on  the  Treasury  of 
Virginia  to  a  large  amount,  and  was  delighted  with  the  pros- 
pect of  presenting  him  with  such  a  handsome  sum  of  money 
on  his  return  home;  but,  unhappily  for  his  family,  he  never 
did  return.  My  hopes  perished,  and  I  felt  as  an  orphan  cast 
upon  an  unfriendly  world  without  father,  mother  or  friend. 
I  remained,  however,  with  the  widow  and  family  until  about 
the  first  of  July,  1776,  when,  being  now  nineteen  years  old, 
I  was  selected  as  the  ensign  to  a  company  of  militia,  ordered 
to  march  to  General  Washington's  camp.  These  militia,  when 
collected  together,  amounted  to  about  1,500  men,  from  the 
State  of  Maryland,  commanded  by  General  Beale,  and  were 
called  the  Flying  Camp.  We  arrived  at  Fort  Lee,  on  the 
west  side  of  the  Hudson  river,  just  in  time  to  see  Fort  Wash- 
ington, on  the  opposite  shore,  taken  by  the  British.  The  next 
day,  I  believe,  or  very  soon  after,  we  retraced  our  stejis,  and 
had  a  tag-rag  race  through  the  Jerseys,  with  General  Howe 
and  the  English  army  at  our  heels;  and  we  proved  that,  how- 
ever much  the  British  might  be  over  our  match  in  some 
things,  yet  there  was  one  thing  in  which  we  beat  them  — 
namely,  in  running!  We  reached  Philadelphia  in  safety  early 
in  December,  and  were  discharged;  but  I  applied  for  a  com- 


IJ^TRODUCTIOJ^.  13 

mission  in  the  regular  army  and  was  appointed  a  lieutenant, 
and  remained  in  the  army  during  five  campaigns,  to-wit:  until 
the  Winter  of  1781.  I  then  retired,  as  the  Maryland  line  had 
suffered  greatly,  and  was  much  reduced  in  the  fatal  battle  of 
Camden,  in  South  Carolina.  And  I  think  it  was  in  the  Sum- 
mer or  Autumn  of  this  year,  1781,  that  I  was  married  to 
Captain  Cresap's  widow,  with  whom  I  lived  near  forty  years. 
Thus  it  will  appear,  from  my  intimate  acquaintance  with 
Captain  Cresap  from  the  year  1772  to  his  death — from  my 
intermarriage  with  his  widow,  with  whom  I  lived  a  great 
many  years — from  the  circumstance  of  all  his  papers,  books 
and  memorandums  falling  into  my  hands,  and,  permit  me  to 
add,  from  that  implicit  and  unbounded  confidence  he  placed  in 
me — it  must  be  evident  to  every  man  that  no  part  of  his  pub- 
lic life  was  or  could  have  been  concealed  from  me.  Captain 
Cresap  was  naturally  cheerful,  full  of  vivacity,  and  very  com- 
municative; and  I  am  certain  that  there  was  no  occurrence, 
no  interesting  circumstance,  especially  in  respect  to  the  In- 
dians, but  what  was  detailed  to  his  wife,  and  often  in  my  pres- 
ence. Therefore,  I  venture  to  predict  that  if  any  man  shall 
presume  to  contradict  what  I  shall  advance  in  the  following 
memoirs  of  the  life  of  Captain  Cresap,  he  must  prove  that 
truth  is  not  truth,  or  that  facts  are  lies. 

And  with  the  readers'  permission,  I  will  add,  that  this  short 
narrative  of  my  proceedings,  as  the  clerk  or  agent  of  Captain 
Cresap,  with  the  Virginia  Commissioners,  furnishes  strong 
presumptive  proof  that  at  this  period,  to-wit:  in  the  Summer 
and  Autumn  of  the  year  1775,  no  such  idea  was  entertained 
of  Captain  Cresap,  by  the  gentlemen  who  settled  the  expenses 
of  Dunmore's  war,  as  that  he  was  the  murderer  of  Logan's 
family,  or  that  he  was  a  man  of  infamous  character  as  an  In- 
dian murderer,  or  that  he  was  the  cause  of  the  war.     I  say,  if 


14  IJVTRODVCTIOM- 

those  gentlemen  had  entertained  any  such  idea  I  should  cer- 
tainly have  heard  it  from  some  of  them,  either  at  Pittsburg, 
Redstone  or  Winchester;  but  I  most  solemnly  declare  that  I 
never  did,  to  my  knowledge  or  recollection,  hear  the  least 
whisper  or  the  smallest  intimation  of  the  kind  from  them,  or 
any  other  individual ;  so  far  from  it,  that  Captain  Cresap  was 
treated  with  the  most  marked  and  respectful  attention,  mani- 
fested to  me  who  acted  as  his  representative,  although  only 
a  boy. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH 


OF   THE    LIFE 


OF   THE    LATE 


a^hPT.  mmuhEL  m^m^. 


CUMBERLAND,  MD. 
Printed  for  the  Author,  by  J.  M.  Buchanan. 

1826. 


CHAPTER    I. 

A  concise  View  of  the  Customs,  Manners  and  Physical  Strength 
of  the  American  Nation  at  the  commencement  of  the  Revo- 
lutionary War. 

As  nearly  every  circumstance  connected  with  our  late  Revo- 
lutionary War  has  already  become  history,  it  would  be  super- 
fluous to  attempt  a  detail  of  facts  already  recorded.  I  mean, 
therefore,  only  to  make  a  few  remarks,  merely  with  a  view  to 
show  the  perilous  state  of  the  Nation  when  the  hero  whose 
life  I  am  endeavoring  to  portray  in  its  real  colors  was  in  his 
zenith,  and  actively  and  almost  unremittingly  engaged  in  his 
country's  service. 

It  is,  I  believe,  historically  a  fact,  that  as  early  as  the  year 
1763  the  British  Government  began  to  frown  and  threaten,  to 
stretch  out  her  arbitrary  arms  and  shake  them  first  at  her 
American  children.  Nor  did  they  stop  with  words  and  vapor- 
ing, but  proceeded  to  pass  what  was  called  the  Stamp  Act, 
designed,  it  is  presumed,  not  only  to  feel  how  our  pulses  beat, 
but  also  as  an  entering  wedge  to  ulterior  measures.  This  law 
was,  however,  so  unpopular,  and  met  with  such  resolute  and 
determined  opposition  that  John  Bull  thought  it  best  at  that 
time  to  draw  in  his  horns,  and  the  Stamp  Act  was  repealed  in 
March,  1766.  It  was  not,  however,  as  the  sequel  has  proved, 
an  abandonment,  but  a  mere  suspension  of  that  correction 
they  were  preparing  for  such  a  refractory  and  disobedient  set 
of  children;  and  consequently,  in  the  years  1773  and  1774, 
they  came  to  the  determination  to  give  us  such  a  sound  drub- 


18  LIFE  OF  C APT  AIM  CRESAP. 


bing  as  to  make  us  mend  our  manners,  or  whip  us  until  we 
did.  They  noAV  threw  away  the  feelings  of  a  parent  and  com- 
menced tyrant,  and  passed  several  laws  subversive  of  our 
liberties,  and  past  endurance ;  and  to  cap  the  climax,  declared 
explicitly  that  they  had  the  right  to  bind  us  in  all  cases  what- 
ever. These  proceedings  and  this  language  were  indigestible 
food  to  our  Yankee  stomachs;  we  would  not  swallow  it,  and 
the  Revolutionary  War  ensued. 

I  suppose  it  is  with  Nations  as  with  individuals,  that  is  to 
say,  while  young  men  continue  in  their  minority  they  think  it 
no  degradation  strictly  to  conform  to  the  laws  and  rules  of 
parental  authority ;  but  when  they  arrive  at  maturity  of  phys- 
ical and  mental  powers  they  become  restive,  impatient  and 
anxious  for  freedom  and  emancipation  from  the  dominion  and 
control  of  others.  And  so  it  is,  and  so  I  presume  it  should 
be,  with  Nations  who  have  understanding  and  energy  sufficient 
to  assert  and  maintain  their  rights.  Some  Nations  have  been 
handcufi^ed  and  fettered  until  their  wrists  and  ancles  have  be- 
come callous,  and  they  no  longer  feel  their  chains ;  others  are 
so  eff'eminate  that,  so  long  as  they  can  eat,  and  drink,  and 
sleep,  they  care  not  who  suffers,  who  governs,  and  how  the 
world  goes;  others,  again,  are  so  ignorant  that  they  neither 
know  nor  care  for  their  rights.  But,  to  the  honor  of  the 
American  name,  we  have  set  an  example  to  the  world  sublime 
in  its  nature  and  imperishable  in  its  efl^ects.  The  intensity  of 
that  sacred  flame  of  patriotism  that  burnt  in  the  breasts  of 
our  old  Congresses,  revolutionary  armies,  and  Nation  at  large, 
has  not  been  nor  will  be  extinguished  so  long  as  materials  re- 
main in  our  little  world  to  feed  the  flame.  The  southern  hem- 
isphere of  this  vast  continent,  so  long  enveloped  in  a  dark 
cloud  of  ignorance  and  superstition,  has  at  length  emerged 
from  her  long  night  of  abject  degradation,  and  now  begins  to 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJf  CRESAP.  19 

shine  a  star  in  the  phalanx  of  rational  liberty.  Living  coals 
and  sparks  of  fire  occasionally  shed  a  ray  of  light  in  the  thick 
fog  of  enslaved  Europe.  But  the  sun  will  rise  in  due  time, 
and  the  fog  will  be  dispersed.     Enough  of  this. 

There  was  one  peculiar  circumstance  in  our  Revolutionary 
War,  that  I  believe  has  not  been  noticed  by  any  historian :  I 
mean  that  remarkable  Providence  that  restrained  and  sus- 
pended the  uplifted  arm  of  vengeance  from  falling  upon  us 
until  we  were  prepared  to  meet  the  stroke  and  repel  its  force; 
and  if  we  advert  to  the  state  of  our  population,  numerical 
strength,  and  to  our  habits,  customs  and  manners  at  that 
period,  it  would  seem  that  there  never  could  have  happened 
a  time  more  propitious,  either  in  respect  to  the  state  of  our 
own  country  or  in  reference  to  the  European  Governments. 
Our  numerical  strength — perhaps  about  500,000  fighting  men, 
or  men  able  to  bear  arms — was  now  equal  to  the  power  of  our 
enemies,  fettered  and  cramped  as  they  were  at  such  a  distance 
from  the  scene  of  action,  or  theater  of  war.  We  were,  more- 
over, from  habits  and  manners,  prepared  and  fitted  for  the 
tented  field.  Our  young  men  were  vigorous,  athletic  and  act- 
ive; inured  to  fatigue,  privations  and  plain  living  from  their 
infancy,  they  were  prepared  to  suflfer  more  and  complain  less 
than  the  dandies  of  the  nineteenth  century,  if  placed  in  similar 
circumstances.  Those  days  of  bacon  and  cabbage,  of  hominy 
and  pone,  milk  and  mush,  of  hunting-shirtsj  leggings  and  moc- 
casins, have  passed  away;  we  are  now,  please  your  honors,  a 
refined,  polished,  polite  people. 

But  still,  may  we  not  ask  the  all-important  question :  First, 
if  the  British  Nation  had  struck  us  somewhat  sooner,  should 
we  have  had  strength  to  repel  the  blow?  And  if  some  thirty 
or  forty  years  later,  are  we  sure  that  the  Nation  at  such  a 
period,  under  the  influence  of  the  British  Government,  and  so 


20  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJN"  CRESAP. 

much  older  in  vice  and  effeminacy,  would  have  j)ossessed  pub- 
lic virtue,  patriotism  and  energy  sufficient  not  only  harmoni- 
ously and  cordially  to  unite,  but  energy  sufficient  to  make 
effectual  resistance? 

These  questions,  I  know,  contain  problems  not  now  to  be 
solved ;  but  they  point  us  to  a  kind  Providence  for  our  deliver- 
ance. Our  Revolutionary  War  was  the  womb  that  gave  birth 
to  the  Nation.  And  although  many  historians  have  recorded 
the  most  prominent  and  important  scenes  and  circumstances 
connected  therewith,  yet  I  do  not  remember  having  seen  any 
history  written  by  a  soldier — none  written  by  a  man  who  saw 
and  tasted  and  felt  all  the  fatigues,  privations  and  sufferings 
of  several  campaigns,  or  even  of  one  campaign,  during  this 
period  that  tried  men's  souls.* 

To  enter  minutely  into  a  detail  of  the  sufferings  of  an 
American  soldier  of  the  Revolution  would,  perhaps,  in  some 
cases,  appear  almost  fabulous  to  the  sweet-scented  bucks  of 
1826.  We  will  therefore  touch  the  subject  slightly.  It  is  a 
fact  well  known,  that  the  prisoners  taken  at  Fort  Washington 
and  York  Island,  in  1776,  were  crowded  in  jails  and  prison- 
ships,  where  all  suffered  severely  and  many  died;  that  after 
General  Washington  commenced  his  retreat  through  the 
States  of  New  York  and  the  Jerseys,  at  the  close  of  this  cam- 
paign, to-wit:  about  the  last  of  November,  many  of  the  sol- 
diers were  barefoot  and  nearly  naked,  and  it  was  said  that  the 
army  might  be  traced  by  their  blood. 

The  campaign  of  1777  was  emphatically  the  campaign  of 
suffering,  fighting  and  blood.  In  it  was  fought  the  battles  of 
Brandywine,  Germantown  and  Saratoga,  exclusive  of  smaller 
affairs.  Two  of  these  battles  I  was  personally  engaged  in,  to- 
wit:  Brandywine  and  Germantown.     As  to  the  first,  we  laid 

*  I  believe  Colonel  Lee  has  given  ns  some  account  of  the  Southern  army. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJf  CRESAP.  21 

on  our  arms  all  night,  and  slept  little,  if  any.  We  fought,  or 
were  in  our  ranks  and  stations,  all  day,  and  the  battle  ended 
at  night.  We  then  marched  in  a  disorderly  manner  nearly 
all  night — slept  but  little,  if  any,  and  ate  nothing  from  the 
night  of  the  10th  of  September  until  some  time  in  the  day  of 
the  12th.  The  army  then  marched  to  a  place  called  Red-clay, 
where  we  attempted  again  to  give  the  British  army  battle,  but 
such  a  severe  storm  of  cold  rain  came  upon  us  that  each  army 
parted  by  mutual  consent;  and  so  severe  was  the  storm,  which 
continued  with  unabated  fury  all  night,  and  the  night  was  so 
dark,  that  our  baggage  wagons  could  not  come  up  to  us;  and 
we  laid  in  this  storm  without  tent,  or  covering,  or  food,  or  fire. 
I  saw,  I  believe,  but  one  in  camp. 

On  the  3d  of  October  following,  we  left  our  camp  early  in 
the  night  and  marched  to  attack  the  British  in  Germantown. 
We  arrived  and  commenced  firing  at  dawn  of  day.  The  bat- 
tle continued  with  alternate  success  until  9  or  10  o'clock  A.  M. 
We  then  left  the  field,  at  first  in  tolerable  good  order;  but 
loss  of  sleep  and  want  of  food  had  so  completely  unhinged  all 
our  bodily  and  mental  powers,  that  in  spite  of  all  the  efforts 
of  the  officers  the  men  were  continually  falling  behind,  turning 
into  the  woods  and  getting  to  sleep.  Here  again  we  had  no 
opportunity  of  getting  food  until  in  the  night  of  the  4th — 
about  twenty-four  hours.  At  the  close  of  this  campaign  Gen- 
eral Washington  built  huts  or  cabins,  and  went  into  Winter 
quarters  at  a  place  called  Valley  Forge,  but  sent  the  Mary- 
land line,  to  which  I  was  attached,  to  take  up  their  Winter 
quarters  in  Wilmington,  on  the  Delaware  river.  At  this 
period  the  Maryland  line,  and  I  suppose  the  army  in  general, 
were  nearly  naked;  and  the  main  army,  who  took  up  their 
quarters  at  Valley  Forge,  were,  I  believe,  without  a  supply 
of  food  for  several  days.   Fortunately,  however,  the  Maryland 


22  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJY  CRESAP. 

line  fared  better,  for  it  so  happened  that  a  kind  Providence 
sent  us  a  supply  from  our  enemies.  And  so  remarkable  was 
this  circumstance,  that  it  deserves  a  page  in  history. 

The  Maryland  line  had  but  just  taken  possession  of  the 
post  assigned  them  for  their  Winter  quarters,  which  lay  upon 
a  hill  in  view  of  the  river  Delaware,  on  which  river  the  Brit- 
ish ships  were  continually  passing  up  and  down,  and  it  so 
happened  that  a  jiretty  large  brig  loaded  with  the  baggage  of 
the  British  army  got  aground  near  the  Pennsylvania  shore. 
This  was  soon  discovered,  and  a  party  of  men  with  a  six- 
pound  field-piece  or  two  were  sent  to  take  her.  This  was 
easily  eifected,  for  she  could  make  no  resistance.  We  found 
in  this  brig  a  great  quantity  of  clothing  for  officers  and  sol- 
diers, rum,  wine,  tea,  coffee,  sugar,  etc.,  all  of  which  articles 
were  exactly  what  we  needed.  This  rendered  our  situation 
truly  comfortable;  and  the  Winter  of  1777-'78  was  the  most 
pleasant  we  spent  during  the  whole  war. 

The  campaign  of  1778  was  more  agreeable.  We  were 
better  fed  and  clothed,  and  had  only  one  battle — that  of  Mon- 
mouth, in  the  month  of  June,  and  at  this  time  had  the  pleasure 
of  beating  and  driving  Sir  Harry  Clinton  and  his  red-coats  off 
the  field.  Of  the  campaign  of  1779  I  have  little  to  say,  because 
very  little  was  done ;  but  one  remark  may  go  to  show  what 
must  have  been  the  poverty  and  sufferings  of  the  officers 
especially.  Sometime  toward  the  conclusion  of  this  campaign 
I  took  a  journey  from  the  Jerseys  to  Baltimore,  at  the  request 
of  the  officex's  of  the  regiment,  to  purchase  for  them  as  much 
cloth  as  would  make  each  of  them  a  regimental  coat  of  fine 
blue ;  this  I  effected,  after  a  pretty  long  search  in  Baltimore 
before  I  could  find  any,  and  for  which  I  paid  the  merchant 
£1,500  for  fifteen  yards.  And  this  fifteen  yards  was  designed 
to  make  ten  coats,  and  ten  coats  it  did  make. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  23 

The  campaign  of  1780  fell  with  peculiar  severity  on  the 
Maryland  line  and  Delaware  regiment  always  attached  to 
and  almost  identifled  with  the  Maryland  troops.  Early  in 
the  Spring  of  this  year  these  troops  were  detached  from  the 
grand  army  and  ordered  to  the  Southern  Department,  under 
the  command  of  General  Baron  DeKalb.  They  marched 
leisurely  and  in  high  glee  through  Maryland  and  Virginia, 
and  reached  the  Carolinas,  I  believe,  toward  the  last  of 
July.  The  intense  heat  of  the  weather  at  this  season  to  a 
Northern  people  in  a  Southern  climate  was  extremely  un- 
pleasant ;  yet  we  had  very  little  sickness  and  no  complaining. 
We  had  advanced  far  into  the  Southern  Carolina  when  Gen- 
eral Gates  arrived — perhaps  about  the  8th  or  10th  day  of 
August — and  took  the  command  in  chief  He  had  no  sooner 
assumed  command  than  he  moved  the  army  with  great 
rapidity,  presuming,  I  suppose,  that  he  would  surprise  Bur- 
goyne,  the  Earl  of  Cornwallis.  I  believe  it  was  in  the 
evening  of  the  13th  or  14th  of  August  we  arrived  at  Rugely's 
mill,  encamped,  and  were  joined,  perhaps  the  next  day,  by 
the  Virginia  militia,  said  to  be  2,000.  Our  own  numbers  of 
regular  effective  men  did  not,  I  think,  exceed  1,000.  Early 
in  the  night  of  the  15th  of  August  we  struck  our  tents,  and 
marched  directly  for  Camden,  to  catch  Cornwallis  napping. 
But,  whether  he  had  any  intimation  of  Gates's  design,  or 
Wuether  he  had  the  same  design  upon  him,  I  know  not; 
but  certain  it  is  we  met  about  half  way  between  the  two 
camps  at  near  midnight.  The  moon  shone  brightly,  and  the 
surprise  was  mutual.  We  exchanged  a  few  shots,  formed  in 
line  of  battle,  and  sat  down  in  our  places  until  day  appeared, 
which  no  sooner  began  to  dawn  than  our  morning  guns  on 
each  side,  being  well  charged,  were  directed  at  our  enemies, 
which  were  immediately  followed  by  an  incessant  roar  from 


24  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJf  CRESAP. 

the  center  to  each  wing  of  cannon  and  musketry.  It  was  an 
open,  fine  woods,  with  little  undergrowth,  and  we  had  no 
cavalry;  and  this  single  circumstance  gave  the  enemy  much 
the  advantage.  The  militia  soon  fled,  but  our  regular  troops, 
under  every  jiossible  disadvantage — flanked  on  the  left,  which 
Avas  now  deserted  by  the  militia,  the  Commander-in-Chief 
gone — maintained  their  ground  until  8  or  9  o'clock  A.  M. 

The  Maryland  line  at  this  time  were  generally  old  veteran 
soldiers.  They  could  and  did  defend  themselves  until  so 
cut  up,  flanked  and  surrounded  that  it  was  imjjossible  to 
sustain  the  shock  any  longer  without  the  loss  of  the  whole 
army.  Indeed,  few  were  left — not  more,  I  think,  than  250 
men;  and,  although  we  lost  the  day  and  most  of  our  army, 
no  blame  or  censure  can,  without  the  greatest  injustice,  attach 
to  the  name  of  any  individual  officer  or  soldier  of  the  Mary- 
land line.  Never  were  a  braver  set  of  men— no,  never  was 
a  better  fought  battle ;  and  I  am  under  the  impression  that  a 
better  disposition  of  the  army  and  better  generalship,  with  a 
few  hundred  horsemen,  would  have  given  us  a  very  difi^erent 
result,  the  superiority  of  Cornwallis's  army,  and  the  desertion 
of  the  militia  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding.  I  saw,  in  par- 
ticular, such  coolness  and  personal  bravery  in  Greneral  Gist, 
Colonel  Howard  and  some  others — ^yea,  many  others — that  I 
am  confident  upon  equal  ground  we  could  have  fought,  and  I 
think  subdued  an  equal  number  of  the  best  of  the  British 
troops.  But  oh,  woful  day  for  Maryland  and  Delaware! 
How  many  weeping  wives  and  mothers  who  can  tell  ?  We 
must  have  lost,  in  killed,  wounded  and  prisoners,  out  of  our 
small  army,  between  seven  and  eight  hundred  men.  General 
Baron  DeKalb  and  many  valuable  officers  being  among  the 
slain. 

As  every  splendid  act  of  heroism  deserves  a  reward,  I 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAI:N'  CRESAP.  25 


think  it  proper  to  mention  one  that  deserves  notice.  After 
the  battle  was  over,  of  what  troops  were  left  General  Small- 
wood — who  commanded  the  rear  line,  and  who  had  the  brunt 
and  most  dreadful  part  of  the  battle — collected,  with  the  aid 
of  General  Gist  and  others,  about  150  men,  and  moved  west- 
ward. Colonel  Howard,  who  was  among  the  last  that  left  the 
field,  collected  also  at  first  about  50  or  60  men,  but  which  in- 
creased, I  believe,  to  80  or  90.  With  this  little  company  he 
marched  toward  the  south  about  five  or  six  miles  and  then 
turned  westward.  I  was  in  this  party.  About  1  o'clock  we 
halted  in  the  woods  to  rest — not  to  eat,  for  we  had  nothing  of 
this  kind.  While  lying  at  this  place  a  soldier  who  had 
escaped  from  the  field  of  battle  joined  us,  and  said  Captain 
Somerville,  of  the  Sixth  Regiment,  was  badly  wounded  and 
left  upon  the  field.  On  hearing  this  Captain  Truman  said,  if 
Colonel  Howard  would  remain  where  he  then  was,  and  any 
one  individual  would  go  with  him,  he  would  go  down  to  the 
battle  field  and  bring  oflP  Somerville.  To  this  proposal  Colonel 
Howard  acceded;  and  one  of  our  party  volunteering  to  go 
with  him,  he  took  a  horse,  went  to  the  field  of  battle,  found 
Somerville,  and  brought  him  to  us  in  a  short  time,  badly 
wounded  in  one  arm,  which  he  finally  lost  by  amputation. 
Many  more  such  interesting  anecdotes  might  be  mentioned, 
but  my  limits,  and  the  object  I  have  primarily  in  view, 
forbid  it. 

After  this  battle  no  poor  fellows  were  in  a  more  destitute 
and  suffering  condition.  The  baggage  wagons  that  were  with 
the  army  were  all  taken,  all  our  clothes  were  lost,  very  few  of 
the  officers  having  a  second  shirt.  Neither  had  we  food  of 
any  kind;  we  lived  on  watermelons,  peaches,  etc.,  from  the 
night  of  the  15th  of  August  to  the  night  of  the  17th  or  18th, 
I  do  not  recollect  which;    and  then  the  party  I  was  with 


26  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIjy  CBESAP. 

supped  upon  a  cow  they  killed,  without  bread,  and  a  very 
little  salt.  As  well  as  I  remember — for  I  was  sick  and  could 
eat  no  supper — they  proceeded  in  the  following  manner: 
They  skinned  the  cow  far  enough  to  emj)ty  out  the  intestines, 
and  then  cut  off  ribs  and  pieces  until  they  reached  the  skin, 
and  then  proceeded  to  skin  fai'ther  as  they  wanted.  Nor  was 
our  situation  much  bettered  until  we  reached  Hillsborough,  in 
North  Carolina,  a  distance,  I  believe,  to  follow  the  route  we 
pursued,  of  more  than  two  hundred  miles.  Here  we  halted, 
collected  our  scattered  forces  and  made  a  stand.  From 
this  place  I  was  sent  to  Maryland,  as  a  supernumerary 
officer.  And  here  I  close  my  few  remarks  as  to  the  sufferings 
of  the  army  in  the  war  of  our  Revolution.  The  narrative  is 
simply  a  mere  recital  of  a  few  facts  and  incidents,  without 
any  effort  to  embellish  or  portray  in  dark  and  dismal  colors 
the  suiferings  of  a  meritorious  set  of  men,  most  of  whom 
have  now  sunk  into  their  graves. 

Having  made  these  few  remarks  upon  the  subject  of  our 
Revolutionary  War,  we  will,  with  the  reader's  permission, 
bring  into  view  some  other  circumstances  illustrative  of  the 
ground  we  have  taken — namely,  that  it  was  a  peculiar  and 
kind  Providence  that  brought  upon  us  the  war  of  the  Revolu- 
tion precisely  at  the  period  when  we  were  in  circumstances 
better,  perhaps,  than  any  other  to  meet  and  breast  the  storm. 

Among  other  things  of  this  nature,  it  was  not  a  small  one 
that  the  yeomanry,  or  men  in  the  middle  and  lower  walks  of 
life,  especially  on  or  near  our  frontiers,  were  the  best  marks- 
men in  the  world.  An  anecdote  or  two  will  demonstrate  this 
fact:  I  remember  when  the  company  commanded  by  Captain 
Cresap  lay  at  Redstone  Old  Fort,  in  the  time  of  Dunmore's 
war,  a  buzzard  came  sailing  over  us  at  some  considerable 
hight,  when  three  men — Daniel  Cresap,  Joseph  Cresap  and 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  27 

William  Ogle — all  raising  their  rifles,  fired  at  the  same 
instant.  The  buzzard  fell,  and  they  all  declared  they  had 
killed  it;  we  examined  the  buzzard,  and  found  all  three  of 
their  balls  had  pierced  it.  But  a  more  important  fact,  and 
one  which  will  not  soon  be  forgotten,  was  the  dreadful  havoc 
made  among  the  Hessians  by  Colonel  Rawlings's  Rifle  Re^- 
ment,  at  the  time  Fort  Washington  and  York  Island  were 
taken  by  the  British.  Captain  Cresap  also  had  in  his  com- 
pany two  brothers  of  the  name  of  Shain,  such  unerring 
marksmen  with  their  rifles  that  they  seldom  missed  a  mark 
the  size  of  a  cent  at  the  distance  of  twenty  oit  twenty-five 
yards,  off-hand  shooting.  As  I  was  among  these  people  I 
heard  many  tales  of  this  close  shooting,  but  I  waive  them 
and  proceed. 

Let  it  be  remembered  that  this  hardy  race  of  young  men 
and  this  state  of  things  were  not  only  the  result  of  our  pe- 
culiar habits  and  simplicity  of  manners,  but  naturally  grew 
out  of  our  wars  with  the  Indians.  Our  frontier*  inhabitants 
were  always  exposed  to  a  predatory  war  with  the  Indians — 
not  embodied  as  an  army  publicly  invading  our  country,  but 
a  straggling  banditti,  attacking  individuals  and  families  re- 
mote from  a  dense  population.  These  attacks  were  often  in 
the  night,  or  just  at  break  of  day — sometimes  killing  all  the 
family,  at  other  times  only  a  part,  to- wit:  the  men  and  small 
children,  leading  the  women  and  elder  children  captives,  but 
I  believe  always  burning  the  houses  and  stealing  all  the 
horses.  They  were,  however,  sometimes  deceived  and  dis- 
appointed— a  remarkable  instance  of  which  occurred  in  Ken- 
tucky about  the  time  of  its  first  settlement.  Five  Indians 
about  daybreak  attacked  the  house  of  a  man  (if  I  recollect 

•  What  was  called  "the  frontier"  was  continually  changing  and  diverging  westward,  so 
that  the  habits  and  feelings  of  the  people  remained  the  same  many  miles  eastward  after 
the  frontier  was  changed. 

3 

(/)•::  til  it^ 


28  LIFE  OF  CAFTAIK  CRESAP. 


right  of  the  name  of  Chcnoweth).  Mr.  Chcnoweth,  hearing 
a  suspicious  noise  about  his  door,  sprang  from  his  bed  and 
seized  his  rifle,  but  as  he  was  advancing  toward  his  door 
was  shot  down  by  an  Indian.  His  wife  immediately  took  up 
her  husband's  gun  and  shot  the  Indian  dead;  and  then  pick- 
ing up  an  ax,  flew  to  the  door,  and  as  the  Indians  attempted 
to  force  their  way  in  she  killed  two  more  with  the  ax;  a 
fourth  jumped  on  her  cabin  and  was  making  his  way  down 
the  chimney,  but  she  threw  an  old  bed,  or  something  of  the 
kind,  on  the  fire,  smoked  him  down,  and  killed  him  also. 
The  fifth  Indian  now  ran  away,  and  she  had  leisure  to  attend 
to  her  husband,  who  was  not  mortally  wounded.  She  dressed 
his  wounds,  and  he  finally  recovered.  I  had  this  story  from 
the  man  himself,  who  appeared  to  be  a  man  of  plain  manners, 
and  I  had  no  reason  to  doubt  his  veracity.  But  it  was  many 
years  ago,  and  I  may  be  mistaken  in  some  particulars  in  the 
detail;  it  is,  however,  I  believe,  substantially  correct;  and  if 
so,  which  of  you,  my  fair  countrywomen,  at  this  day  could 
do  likewise  ?  The  story  of  the  two  little  fellows  of  the  name 
of  Johnson,  who  killed  two  Indian  men  who  had  taken  them 
prisoners,  is  of  more  recent  date,  and  I  believe  is  so  gener- 
ally known  that  it  need  not  be  repeated  here. 

The  reader,  may,  perhaps,  be  of  opinion  this  chapter  has  no 
immediate  connection  with  the  subject  matter  before  us.  That 
it  has  not  that  immediate  connection,  we  allow;  but  as  Cap- 
tain Cresap  was  now  in  his  zenith,  and  a  conspicuous  character 
at  this  period,  and  among  the  first  and  most  valuable  officers 
in  the  Revolutionary  War,  it  was  thought  a  general  view  of 
the  state  of  the  Nation  might  tend  to  illustrate  and  shed  light 
upon  our  history,  and  therefore  serve  as  a  proper  introduction 
before  we  present  him  personally  to  public  view — more  espe- 
cially as  this  war  cost  him  his  life. 


CHAPTER    II. 

The  Cresap  Family. 

The  author  is  aware  that  a  mere  catalogue  of  names,  how- 
ever respectable,  must  be  an  insipid  and  tasteless  treat  to  the 
reader ;  but  in  the  present  case  it  seems  so  indispensable  that 
if  omitted  it  would  leave  a  chasm  in  his  book,  so  all-important 
as  to  supersede  in  a  good  degree  the  necessity  of  this  work ; 
because  it  is  evident  that,  inasmuch  as  Captain  Cresap  is  now 
dead,  and  so  long  dead,  if  his  accusers  and  enemies  had  suf- 
fered his  ashes  to  rest  in  peace,  time  itself,  at  this  late  day, 
would  have  nearly  obliterated  the  memory  of  his  name.* 
But,  I  say,  as  Captain  Cresap  is  now  dead  and  beyond  the 
reach  of  malevolence  and  calumny,  so  of  course  nothing  that 
has  been  or  can  be  said  can  affect  him  personally.  But  the 
Cresap  family  is  large,  extensive  and  respectable  ;  it  will  not 
yield  the  homage  of  superiority  to  any  family  in  Virginia  or 
Maryland.  If,  then,  those  black  spots — this  stigma  upon  the 
name  and  character  of  Captain  Cresap — were  permitted  to 
remain,  it  would  affect  the  whole  family  through  all  its  vari- 
ous branches  to  the  remotest  degree  of  affinity.  Hence  the 
necessity  of  presenting  to  public  view  all  or  most  of  the 
names  and  grades  of  a  family  thus  attempted  to  be  exposed 
to  public  infamy. 

Colonel  Thomas  Cresap,  the  father  of  the  subject  of  this 
memoir,   and   the  head   and  founder  of   the  Cresap  family, 

*Dr.  D.  tells  us  in  his  preface  that  a  pious  rejjard  for  the  ashes  of  ancestors  is  not 
without  its  influence  on  the  morals  and  piety  of  their  descendants.  If  this  be  true,  what 
shall  we  say  of  those  who  labor  to  consign  those  ashes  to  infamy  and  abhorrence? 


30  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESdP. 

emigrated  from  Yorkshire,  England,  when  about  fifteen 
years  of  age :;  but  the  dark  shades  of  oblivion  rest  upon  all 
the  intermediate  part  of  his  life  from  this  period  until  he 
arrived  at  the  age  of  about  thirty,  when  he  married  a  Miss 
Johnson,  and  settled  at  or  near  the  place  now  called  Havre- 
de-Grace,  on  the  Susquehanna.  He  was  at  this  time  poor, 
and  in  providing  the  necessary  articles  for  housekeeping  got 
involved  in  debt  to  the  enormous  sum  of  nine  pounds,  cur- 
rency, when,  with  a  view  it  is  believed  to  extricate  himself 
from  the  pressure  of  this  debt,  he  took  a  trip  to  Virginia, 
got  acquainted  with  and  rented  a  farm  from  the  Washing-ton 
family,  with  the  intention  of  removing  to  that  colony.  But 
during  his  absence  his  wife  was  delivered  of  her  first-born 
son,  Daniel,  and  on  his  return  refused  to  go  with  him  to 
Virginia.  Now,  however  he  might  be  displeased  at  this,  he 
acquiesced ;  and  after  having  paid  his  nine  pound  debt  he 
removed  higher  up  the  Susquehanna,  to  or  near  the  place 
called  Wright's  Ferry,  opposite  where  the  town  of  Columbia 
now  stands,  and  obtained  a  Maryland  title  for  five  hundred 
acres  of  good  land.  But  this,  unfortunately,  at  that  time  was 
disputed  territory;  and  as  others  set  up  a  claim  to  this 
land  under  a  Pennsylvania  title,  a  war — called  the  Cono- 
jacular  war — ^took  place.  Cresap  espoused  the  cause  of  Lord 
Baltimore  with  as  much  zeal  and  ardor  as  the  Pennites  did 
that  of  Mr.  Penn ;  and  a  battle  ensued  at  a  place  called 
Peach  Bottom.  Cresap's  party  proved  victorious,  kept  the 
field,  and  wounded  some  of  the  Pennites.  But  they  soon 
recruited  their  army  and  besieged  the  old  fellow  in  his  own 
house — ^which  happened,  I  think,  to  be  built  of  stone.  The 
attack  was  made  in  the  night;  but  as  the  besiegers  had 
neither  cannon  nor  battering  rams,  it  was  found  that  the 
fort  was  impregnable.     Finding  that  it  would  in  all  proba- 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  81 

bility  be  a  work  of  time,  the  besiegers  built  a  fire  some 
distance  from  the  house,  that  they  might  warm  themselves, 
counsel  and  deliberate,  Cresap,  aware  of  his  perilous  situ- 
ation, put  out  his  son  Daniel,  now  nine  or  ten  years  old,  to 
warn  his  neighbors  and  friends  to  his  assistance;  but  the 
assailants  discovered  and  took  him  prisoner.  The  little 
fellow,  however,  well  nigh  played  them  a  trick,  for,  seeing 
their  powder  in  a  handkerchief,  he  seized  and  attempted  to 
throw  it  into  the  fire,  which  he  certainly  would  have  done, 
but  they  saw  and  prevented  it. 

The  besiegers,  finding  all  their  efforts  unavailing,  at  length 
adopted  the  same  plan  that  Colonel  Lee  devised  to  take  the 
British  in  Mrs.  Mott's  new  house  in  Carolina,  during  our 
Revolutionary  War — namely,  setting  fire  to  the  roof  of  his 
house.  This  had  the  desired  effect,  and  the  fort  was  no 
longer  tenable.  As  no  terms  of  capitulation  were  offered,  the 
Colonel  flew  to  the  door,  wounding  the  sentinel  who  stood 
there,  and  made  good  his  retreat  to  his  boat,  which  happened 
to  be  so  fast  as  not  to  be  loosened  in  time,  and  he  was  sur- 
rounded and  taken.  They  tied  his  hands  behind  him,  and 
were  pushing  across  the  river  with  their  herculean  prisoner 
watched  and  guarded  by  a  man  on  each  side ;  but  our  old 
Yorkshire  hero,  seizing  a  favorable  opportunity,  elbowed  one 
of  his  guard  overboard  into  the  river.  The  night  being 
dark,  the  Pennites  thought  it  was  Cresap  in  the  water,  and 
fell  upon  him  randum  tandum  with  their  poles ;  but  poor 
Paddy — he  was  an  Irishman — not  pleased  at  all  at  all  with 
this  sport,  made  such  lamentable  cries  that,  discovering  their 
mistake,  they  hoisted  him  out  of  his  cold  bath. 

When  the  guard  arrived  at  Lancaster  with  the  prisoner 
they  had  him  handcuffed  with  iron,  which  was  no  sooner 
done  than,  raising  both  hands  together,  he  gave  the  smith 


32  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP. 

such  a  tremendous  blow  upon  his  black  pate  that  it  brought 
him  to  the  ground.  Now,  having  their  prisoner  secure,  they 
marched  him  in  triumph  to  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  where 
the  streets,  windows  and  doors  were  crowded  with  spectators 
to  view  siich  a  monster  of  a  man.  He,  the  more  to  irritate 
them,  exclaimed,  "  Why,  this  is  the  finest  city  in  the  State  of 
Maryland!"  And  indeed  it  appears  that  he  really  thought 
so.  I  have  myself  more  than  once  heard  him  say  that  if 
Lord  Baltimore  had  attended  to  his  own  interests,  or  re- 
garded his  own  rights,  his  title  to  the  city  of  Philadelphia 
was  certainly  good ;  for  inasmuch  as  the  charter  of  the  State 
of  Maryland  extended  to  the  40th  degree  of  north  latitude, 
it  included  the  whole  of  that  degree,  and  was  not  to  be 
limited  by  the  beginning. 

But  to  resume  our  history.  After  the  party  reached  Phila- 
delphia with  their  prisoner  he  was  committed  to  jail ;  but 
for  some  reasons  not  recollected  it  seems  they  soon  grew 
weary  of  their  guest  and  wanted  him  to  go  home,  which  he 
refused  to  do  until  liberated,  I  believe  by  order  of  the  King. 
During  all  the  time  of  the  colonel's  captivity  Mrs.  Cresap, 
with  her  children,  took  shelter  in  an  Indian  town  on  Con- 
doms, near  Little  York,  Avhere  they  were  received  and  hos- 
pitably supported  by  the  Indians  until  he  returned  to  his 
family.  Soon  after  this  Colonel  Cresap  removed  to  Antietam, 
on  a  valuable  farm  called  the  Long  Meadows,  now  in  posses- 
sion of  the  Sprigg  family.  On  this  farm  he  built  a  house  of 
stone  over  a  spring,  designed  as  a  fort,  because  he  was  on 
the  frontier  and  in  advance  of  a  white  population.  He  now 
commenced  as  an  Indian  trader,  and  borrowed  from  Mr. 
Dulany  £500,  to  aid  him  in  his  business.  Having  provided 
a  large  quantity  of  skins  and  furs,  he  shipped  them  for 
England.     But  fortune  still   frowned.     The  ship   was  taken 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJi  CRESAP.  33 

by  the  French,  with  all  his  skins  and  furs,  and  once  more 
he  was  compelled  to  begin  the  world  anew.  In  this  dilemma 
he  sent  for  Mr.  Dulany,  stated  his  loss,  and  offered  him  his 
land — about  1,400  acres — for  the  debt.  Mr.  Dulany  acceded 
to  the  proposal,  and  Colonel  Cresap  made  another  remove, 
to  the  place  now  called  Old  Town,  but  by  himself  called  Skip- 
ton,  after  the  place  of  his  nativity.  This  place  is  a  few  miles 
above  the  junction  of  the  North  and  South  branches  of  the 
Potomac,  on  the  North  fork,  and  at  length  became  the  place 
of  his  permanent  residence;  and  here  he  acquired  an  im- 
mense landed  estate  on  both  sides  of  the  river — i.  e.,  in  Vir- 
ginia and  Maryland.  It  was,  perhaps,  about  this  time,  or 
soon  after,  that,  having  renewed  his  acquaintance  with  the 
Washington  family,  he  entered  conjointly  into  an  association 
with  two  or  three  gentlemen  of  this  name— of  whom,  I  think, 
the  General  was  one — Colonel  George  Mason,  and  many  other 
gentlemen  in  England  and  America,  and  formed  what  was 
called  "  The  Ohio  Company."  This  Company  made  the  first 
English  settlement  at  Pittsburg  before  Braddock's  war ;  and 
it  was  through  their  means  and  efforts  that  the  first  path  was 
traced  through  that  vast  chain  of  mountains  called  the  Alle- 
gheny. Colonel  Cresap,  as  one  of  that  Company,  and  active 
agent  thereof  in  this  section  of  the  country,  employed  an 
honest  and  friendly  Indian  to  lay  out  and  mark  a  road  from 
Cumberland  to  Pittsburg.  This  Indian's  name  was  Nema- 
colin ;  and  he  did  his  work  so  well  that  General  Braddock 
with  his  army  pursued  the  same  path,  which  thenceforward 
took  the  name  of  Braddock's  road,  and  which  does  not  at  this 
day  materially  differ  from  the  present  great  National  Road. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  exertions  and  influence  of 
this  Company  had  a  strong  tendency  to  accelerate  the  explor- 
ation and  settlement  of  the  Western  country.     They  were,  in 


94  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIM  CRESAP. 


fact,  and  might  truly  be  said  to  be  the  corps  of  Pioneers  that 
opened  the  way  to  that  immense  flood  of  population  we  now 
see  spreading  like  a  mighty  torrent  to  the  Pacific  Ocean; 
and  it  may  not,  perhaps,  be  amiss  at  this  place  to  state  a 
circumstance,  perfectly  in  my  memory,  demonstrative  of  that 
energetic  and  enterprising  spirit  always  so  conspicuous  in  the 
character  of  Colonel  Cresap.  The  circumstance  I  allude  to 
is  a  plan  conceived  and  digested  by  the  old  gentleman  when, 
I  believe,  upward  of  ninety  years  of  age ;  it  was  to  explore 
and  examine  the  country  quite  to  the  Western  ocean,  and  it 
appeared  so  rational  and  practicable,  that  if  he  had  been 
thirty  years  younger  it  is  probable  he  would  himself  have 
tested  its  practicability. 

But  to  return.  We  do  not  pretend  to  say  that  all  those 
efforts  and  exertions  of  the  Ohio  Company  were  purely  dis- 
interested. Not  so  ;  nor  would  it  be  reasonable  to  expect  it. 
On  the  contrary,  they  felt  the  impulse  of  a  strong  excitement 
from  a  most  powerful  motive,  viz :  self-interest.  They  had 
the  promise  from  the  King  and  court  of  Great  Britain  of  a 
grant  for  500,000  acres  of  land  on  the  Ohio,  and  this  land  was 
actually  surveyed  in  1775,  but  our  Revolution  prevented  the 
consummation  of  the  title.  But  let  their  motive  be  what  it 
might,  the  Nation,  it  must  be  acknowledged,  is  under  obliga-  \ 
tions  to  this  Company,  and  especially  to  the  bold  and  enter- 
prising spirit  of  *Colonel  Cresap  for  an  early  knowledge  and 
acquisition  of  the  country  west  of  the  Allegheny  mountains. 

But  there  is  a  very  material  fact  not  to  be  forgotten  in  the 
annals  of  our  history,  to-wit :  that  soon  after  the  settlement 
made  at  Pittsburg,  under  the  auspices  and  at  the  expense  of 
the  Ohio  Company,  the  place  was  taken  possession  of  by  the 

*  I  have  among  my  papers  a  bill    paid  by  Colonel    Cresap  to  an  old  fellow  for  digging 
Sideling  Hill,  amounting  to  £25. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAI^r  CRESAP.  36 

French,  who  built  a  Fort,  and  which  they  called  Duquesne. 
This  place  being  considered  all-important  as  well  by  England 
as  by  France,  soon  became  a  bone  of  contention ;  a  war  en- 
sued, which  cost  England  two  hot-headed  Scotch  Generals, 
Braddock  and  Grant — the  latter  I  believe  was  only  a  colonel 
— and  their  armies  many  subsequent  battles  and  much  blood 
and  treasure  to  regain  possession  of  this  place,  and  it  is  pos- 
sible, I  think,  that  the  great  battle  between  Wolf  and 
Montcalm  on  the  plains  of  Abraham,  near  Quebec,  decided 
the  fate  of  the  whole  Western  country. 

This  war,  which  is  known  and  distinguished  in  this  country 
by  the  term  of  Braddock's  War,  placed  Colonel  Cresap  and 
his  family  in  a  perilous  situation.  The  settlers  around  him 
were  few  and  thinly  scattered,  and  the  settlement  in  fact  was 
broken  up.  Colonel  Cresap  removed  his  family  to  Conoco- 
cheague,  but  he  was  compelled  to  fight  his  way,  for  he  had 
advanced  but  five  or  six  miles  on  his  journey  when  he  was 
attacked  by  some  Indians.  They  did  no  injury,  however, 
and  were  soon  dispersed — after  which  he  proceeded  without 
further  molestation. 

It  appears,  however,  that  he  did  not  remain  an  idle  specta- 
tor of  these  scenes  of  blood  and  devastation  that  threatened 
ruin  and  desolation  to  the  infant  settlements  on  the  head  of 
the  Potomac.  He  raised  a  company  of  volunteers,  and 
marched  to  attack  his  Indian  enemies  whenever  and  wher- 
ever he  might  find  them.  He  pursued,  it  seems,  Braddock's 
road,  not  expecting,  it  is  probable,  to  meet  with  the  enemy  un- 
til he  had  crossed  the  mountains ;  but  if  so,  he  was  deceived, 
for  he  met  a  small  party  of  Indians  just  on  the  west  foot  of 
the  Savage  mountain ;  a  battle  ensued,  and  his  son  Thomas 
was  killed  by  an  Indian ;  but  as  both  fired  at  the  same  time, 
be  also  killed  the  Indian,  or  so  badly  wounded  him  that  he 


36  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CRESAP. 

was  killed  a  few  minutes  afterward  by  William  Lynn. 
Nothing  more,  I  believe,  was  done  at  this  time  or  place,  and 
the  party  returned  home. 

Colonel  Cresap,  however,  soon  got  together  another  com- 
pany of  volunteers,  and  with  his  two  surviving  sons — Daniel 
and  Michael — and  a  negro  of  gigantic  stature,  marched  again, 
taking  the  same  route  on  Braddock's  road.  They  advanced 
this  time  as  far  as  Negro  mountain,  where  they  met  a  party 
of  Indians.  A  running  fight  took  place ;  Cresap's  party 
killed  an  Indian  and  the  Indians  killed  the  negro ;  and  it  was 
this  circumstance — the  death  of  the  negro  on  the  mountain — 
that  has  immortalized  his  name  by  fixing  it  on  this  ridge 
forever.  This  was,  I  believe.  Colonel  Cresap's  last  battle  with 
the  Indians,  for  after  peace  was  made,  he  returned  to  his  farm 
at  Old  Town,  and  what  I  have  further  to  say  respecting 
Colonel  Cresap  will  be  rather  in  the  disjunctive  and  desultory 
way. 

The  reader  has  not  forgotten,  perhaps,  that  I  have  already 
mentioned  the  name  of  the  Indian  Nemacolin,  employed  by 
Colonel  Cresap  to  lay  out  the  road  to  Pittsburg.  Now  so 
strong  was  the  affection  of  this  Indian  for  Colonel  Cresap  and 
his  family,  that  he  not  only  spent  much  of  his  time  with  them, 
but  before  he  finally  went  away,  brought  his  son  George  and 
left  him  with  the  family  to  raise;  and  it  is  a  fact  within  my 
own  knowledge  that  this  George  lived  and  died  in  the  family. 

Again,  at  the  time  of  Colonel  Cresap's  Conojacular  war 
with  the  Pennites,  they  hired  an  Indian  to  go  to  his  house  and 
kill  him.  The  Indian  accordingly  went  to  the  Colonel's  house, 
and  continued  lounging  about  several  days,  reluctant  savage 
as  he  was  to  commit  such  cold  blooded  murder,  until  at  length 
overcome  with  the  kindness  of  the  family,  he  confessed  the 
whole,  and  went  away  in  peace. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  37 

Once  more,  while  the  Indians  were  carrying  on  the  desola- 
ting war  already  noticed  upon  the  head  waters  of  the  Potomac, 
and  other  frontier  settlements,  they  one  day  made  an  attack 
upon  Colonel  Cresap's  fort,  at  his  own  house,  near  Old  Town. 
They  killed  a  Mr.  Wilder,*  who  happened  to  be  some  distance 
from  the  fort ;  but  the  attack  was  feeble,  easily  repelled,  and 
the  Indian  was  killed  who  killed  Mr,  Wilder.  But  a  certain 
old  Indian  named  Kill-buck  contrived  to  get  under  a  bridge 
over  a  mill  race,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards  from  the 
fort,  where  he  lay  quietly  and  patiently,  two  or  three  days 
and  nights,  with  the  sole  view  of  killing  old  Cresap,  whom  he 
never  saw  during  the  whole  time ;  and  to  add  to  his  mortifica- 
tion, one  day,  while  lying  under  the  bridge,  an  old  woman 
coming  on  the  bridge,  stopped  directly  over  him,  and  let  her 
water  upon  him.  Now,  whether  this  old  fellow  had  ever 
heard  of  the  Philosopher  Socrates  and  his  wife  Xantippe,  I 
know  not ;  but  certain  it  is,  that  under  similar  circumstances 
he  was  more  passive  and  silent  than  even  Socrates  himself. 
For  this  story  we  are  indebted  to  Kill-buck  himself,  or  it 
would  have  remained  a  secret  forever. 

Although  we  believe  every  man  is  under  the  protection  of 
Providence,  yet  from  these  anecdotes  it  would  seem  to  appear 

•  As  Mr.  Saml.  Wilder  was  going  to  a  house  of  his  about  300  yards  Distant  from  mine  with 
4  men  and  several  women,  the  Indians  rushed  on  them  from  a  rising  Ground,  but  they  per- 
ceving  them  coming,  Run  towards  my  house  hollowing,  which  being  heard  by  those  at  my 
house,  they  run  to  their  assistance  and  met  them  and  tne  Indians  at  the  Entrance  of  my  lane, 
on  which  the  Indians  Immdiatcly  fired  on  them  to  the  amount  of  18  or  Twenty  and  Killed 
Mr.  Wilder , — the  party  of  white  men  Returned  their  fire  and  killed  one  of  them  dead  on  the 
Spot  and  wounded  severall  of  the  others  as  appeared  by  Considerable  Quantity  of  Blood 
strewed  on  the  Ground  as  they  Run  off,  which  ihey  Immdiately  did,  and  by  their  leaving 
behind  them  3  Gunns,  one  pistole  and  Sundry  other  Emplements  of  warr  &c.  &c. 

I  have  Inclosed  a  List  of  the  Desolate  men,  Women  and  Children  who  have  fled  to  my 
house  which  is  Inclosed  by  a  small  stockade  for  safety,  by  which  you'll  see  what  a  number  of 
poor  Souls,  destitute  of  Every  necessary  of  Life  are  here  penned  up  and  likely  to  be  Butchered 
without  Imuidiate  Relief  and  assistance,  and  cad  Expect  none,  unless  from  the  province  to 
which  they  Belong.  I  shall  submitt  to  your  wiser  Judgment  the  Best  and  most  Effectual 
method  for  Such  Relief,  and  shall  Conclude  with  hoping  we  shall  have  it  in  time. —  Extract 
/rom  a  Letter  from  Colonel  Thomcu  Oretap  to  Governor  Sharjae,  o/  Maryland. 


38  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CRESAP. 


that  this  old  gentleman  was  most  specially  and  peculiarly 
preserved. 

Colonel  Cresap's  literary  attainments  were  small ;  the  inci- 
dents and  unpropitious  circumstances  of  his  early  life  were 
such  as  to  preclude  and  forbid  every  thing  of  this  nature. 
His  mind  was,  however,  vigorous,  comprehensive  and  strong; 
for  notwithstanding  the  defect  in  his  early  education,  and  all 
the  disadvantage  of  acquiring  scientific  knowledge  in  mature 
ao-e,  yet  by  industry  and  application  he  obtained  a  sufficient 
knowledge  of  mathematics  to  be  entrusted  with  the  surveyor- 
ship  of  Prince  Greorge's  county;*  and  such  also  was  his  decis- 
sion  and  energy  of  mind,  that  he  frequently  represented  his 
county  in  the  Legislature,  and  for  clearness  of  understanding, 
soundness  of  judgment,  and  firmness  of  mind,  he  was  es- 
teemed one  of  the  best  members. 

Perhaps  no  part  of  Colonel  Cresap's  character  was  more 
estimated  than  his  benevolence  and  hospitality.  In  early 
times  when  there  were  but  few  taverns,  and  those  few  were 
very  indifferent,  his  house  at  Old  Town  was  open  and  his 
table  spread  for  all  decent  travelers,  and  they  were  welcome. 
His  delight  was  to  give  and  receive  useful  information ;  nor 
was  this  friendly  disposition  limited  to  white  people  only. 
The  Indians  generally  called  on  him  in  pretty  large  parties  as 
they  passed  and  repassed  from  North  to  South  on  their  war 
expeditions,  and  for  which  special  purpose  he  kept  a  very 
large  kettle  for  their  use ;  and  he  also  generally  gave  them  a 
beef  to  kill  for  themselves  every  time  they  called,  and  his 
liberality  toward  them  gained  for  him  among  them  the  hon- 
orable title  of  the  Big-spoon. 

His  person  was  not  large  but  firmly  set,  and  his  muscu- 
lar strength  was    very  great;    he  had  a  sound  constitution, 

•  This  county  at  that  time  comprehended  Montgomery,  Frederick,  Washington  and  Alle- 
gheny. 


LIFE  OF  CdPTAIJi  CRESAP.  39 

and  lived  to  the  uncommon  age  of  one  hundred  and  five  or 
six.  About  the  age  of  three  score  and  ten  he  undertook  and 
performed  a  voyage  to  England,  and  came  back  in  safety, 
bringing  with  him  four  nieces — sister's  daughters* — one  of 
whom,  an  ancient  woman,  is  still  living.  While  in  London, 
Colonel  Cresap  was  commissioned  by  Lord  Baltimore  to  run 
the  western  line  of  Maryland,  with  a  view  to  ascertain  which 
of  the  two  branches  of  the  Potomac  was  the  largest,  and 
which  was  in  reality  the  fountain-head  or  first  source  of  that 
river.f  I  recollect  having  heard  Colonel  Cresap  say  that 
many  years  ago  some  gentlemen  who  were  appointed  commis- 
sioners to  settle  this  question,  came  up  to  the  junction  of  the 
two  branches,  but  considering  it  difficult  and  dangerous  to 
proceed  further,  measured  the  width  and  depth  of  the  rivers, 
and  finding  the  north  branch  the  widest  and  deepest,  reported 
accordingly. 

On  his  return  home  he  employed  surveyors  and  run  the 
line,  as  follows :  A  due  north  line  from  the  head  spring  of 
the  north  branch  to  intersect  the  Pennsylvania  line,  and  then 
beginning  at  the  head  spring  of  the  south  branch  and  running 
a  parallel  line  north  to  the  Pennsylvania  line.  It  was  thus 
discovered  that  the  line  from  the  head  of  the  south  branch 
was  twelve  miles  west  of  that  drawn  from  the  north  branch ; 
hence  it  is  probable  that  if  our  Revolution  had  not  dissolved 
the  charter  of  Baltimore  and   Fairfax,  that  the  high  Court 

*  I  am  aware  that  public  report  has  attached  a  different  and  unfavorable  character  to  these 
women,  bat  they  were  really  his  nieces.  Three  of  them  married,  and  one  returned  to 
England. 

t  The  original  autograph  map  was  made  by  Colonel  Cresap,  in  the  neat  style  of  a  good 
country  surveyor,  and  sent  by  him  to  Governor  Sharpe.  It  came  to  Mr.  Gilmor's  possession 
with  many  other  of  the  "  Ridout  Papers,"  and  is  attested  by  Horatio  Ridout,  whose  father 
was  Sharpe's  secretary.  This  was  the  first  map  ever  made  to  show  the  course  and  fountains 
of  the  north  and  south  branches  of  the  Potomac  river,  in  regard  to  which  there  has  been  so 
much  controversy  between  Maryland  and  Virginia. —  Oilmor  MSS.,  Maryland  Paper;  vol.  1, 
Portfolio  oj  "  Surveys,  Letieri,  etc.,  connected  vith  the  running  of  the  Divition  line  betwetn 
Maryland  and  Penntybxmia." 

4 


mi" 


40  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJSr  CRESAP. 


of  Chancery  in  Great  Britain  would  have  had  an  important 
cause  to  decide;  but  as  the  case  now  stands,  it  is  a  ques- 
tion between  the  two  States  of  Maryland  and  Virginia, 
which  may,  it  is  possible,  in  some  future  day  become  a 
subject  of  inquiry  and  investigation. 

A  few  more  remarks  and  I  am  done  with  Colonel  Cresap. 
When  he  was  upward  of  eighty  years  old  he  married  a  sec- 
ond wife,  and  at  the  age  of  about  one  hundred,  performed 
a  journey,  partly  by  sea  and  partly  by  land,  from  his  resi- 
dence at  Old  Town  to  an  island  near  the  British  Province 
of  Nova  Scotia,  and  returned  in  safety.  From  this  we  seem 
warranted  in  asserting,  that  had  Providence — or  chance  if  you 
like  the  word  better — ^placed  Colonel  Cresap  at  the  head  of  an 
army,  or  state,  or  kingdom,  he  would  have  been  a  more  con- 
spicuous character.  He  was  not  inferior  to  Charles  XII  of 
Sweden  in  personal  bravery ;  nor  to  Peter  the  Great  of  Rus- 
sia  whom  in  many  things  he  much  resembled — in  coolness 

and  fortitude,  or  that  peculiar  talent  of  learning  experience 
from  misfortune,  and  levying  a  tax  upon  damage  and  loss  to 
raise  him  to  future  prosperity  and  success. 

Having  now  done  with  Colonel  Cresap,  I  must  entreat  the 
reader's  patience  while  I  enter  with  some  minuteness  upon  a 
catalogue  of  the  Cresap  family.  I  have  already  assigned — 
and  need  not  repeat  them — weighty  reasons  for  pursuing  this 
course. 

Colonel  Thomas  Cresap  had  five  children ;  three  sons — Dan- 
iel, Thomas  and  Michael ;  and  two  daughters — Sarah  and 
Elizabeth. 

Daniel  was  a  plain  man — the  patriarch  of  the  day  and 
country  in  which  he  lived — a  man  of  sober  habits,  great  in- 
dustry, economy  and  temperance.  Like  Jacob  of  old,  agricul- 
ture was  his  occupation  and  delight ;  and  in  the  midst  of  his 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  41 

family,  his  flocks,  and  his  herds,  he  spent  his  days  and  ac- 
quired immense  wealth.  He  was  proverbially  the  poor  man's 
friend,  and  has  been  known,  in  scarce  times,  to  refuse  to  sell 
corn  to  those  who  had  money,  that  he  might  have  enough  to 
supply  those  who  had  none;  and  I  suspect  this  original, 
although  faithful  portrait,  has  but  few  copies.     What  a  pity. 

I  do  not  purpose  writing  the  lives  of  all  the  Cresaps,  yet 
there  are  a  few  circumstances  in  this  man's  life  that  deserve 
recording,  esjiecially  as  they  have  a  remote  bearing  on  the 
main  object  of  this  work,  namely:  to  show  that  the  public 
are  greatly  deceived  in  their  opinion  of  the  Cresap  family 
respecting  Indians  and  Indian  affairs. 

Old  Nemacolin,  the  Indian  already  mentioned,  was  very  in- 
timate with  and  spent  much  of  his  time  in  the  family  of 
Daniel  Cresap.  They  agreed  one  day  to  go  out  on  a  bear 
hunt,  and  after  getting  into  what  they  thought  proper  ground, 
they  separated,  having  fixed  upon  a  place  known  to  both 
where  they  would  meet.  Cresap  pursued  his  way  to  the  top  of 
the  Allegheny  mountain,  and  soon  started  and  treed  some  cubs. 
Anxious  to  get  the  cubs,  and  to  learn  his  dog  to  fight  them, 
he  ascended  the  tree ;  but  the  cubs  still  moving  higher,  he 
pursued  until  the  limbs  of  the  tree  broke,  and  down  came 
Cresap  and  cubs  to  the  ground — or  rather  to  the  stones — for 
it  happened  on  a  rough,  stony  piece  of  ground.  This  fall 
from  such  a  height,  and  among  stones,  broke  his  bones,  and 
nearly  took  his  life.  He  lay  on  the  ground  motionless  and 
senseless  until  the  old  Indian,  who  not  finding  him  at  the 
time  and  place  agreed  upon,  and  supposing  that  something 
had  befallen  him,  had  the  good  fortune  to  find  him,  after  dili- 
gent search,  in  the  situation  above  described ;  but  his  wounds 
and  bruises  were  such  that  he  could  not  be  moved.  Nem- 
acolin,  moved  with   compassion,  went  to  his  house  and  in- 


42  LIFE  OF  CAPTAlJi  CRESAP. 


formed  his  wife,  and  between  them  with  the  aid  of  a  horse 
and  litter  they  took  him  to  his  home. 

I  tell  the  reader  this  story  not  only  to  show  the  habits  of 
intimacy  between  the  Cresap  family  and  the  Indians,  but  it 
was  this  circumstance — or  his  dwelling  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
mountain — ^that  has  immortalized  his  name  ;  for  it  was  from 
him  that  the  ridge  of  the  Allegheny  mountain  called  Dan's 
Mountain  took  its  name,  and  Avhich  I  presume  is  fixed  on  it 
forever. 

Daniel  Cresap — son  of  Colonel  Thomas — ^had  by  his  first 
wife  one  son,  Michael,  who  commanded  a  company  in  Dun- 
more's  war,  and  was  afterward  colonel  of  the  militia  of 
Hampshire  County,  Virginia,  who  is  dead ;  and  by  a  second 
wife  he  had  seven  sons  and  three  daughters,  to-wit :  Thomas, 
Daniel,  Joseph,  Van,  Robert,  James,  and  Thomas  again; 
and  Elizabeth,  Mary  and  Sarah.     Thomas  died  young. 

Daniel  Cresap — son  of  Daniel — ^was  a  lieutenant  in  his  uncle 
Michael's  company  of  Riflemen,  who  marched  to  Boston 
in  1775 ;  was  afterward  colonel  of  the  militia  of  Allegheny 
county,  Maryland,  and  also  commanded  a  regiment  in  Gene- 
ral Lee's  army  against  the  whisky  boys.  He  died  on  his 
return  from  this  expedition. 

Joseph,  his  second  son  by  his  second  wife,  was  also  with  his 
uncle  in  Dunmore's  war,  although  very  young.  He  was  in 
both  expeditions :  that  commanded  by  McDonald,  and  also 
in  that  commanded  by  Dunmore  in  person.  He  also  marched 
to  Boston  in  the  company  commanded  by  his  uncle,  and  was 
one  of  his  lieutenants.  He  has  often  represented  the  county 
of  Allegheny,  Maryland,  in  the  Legislature,  and  was  lastly  a 
member  of  the  Senate.  He  is  still  living,  is  a  man  of  wealth 
and  respectability,  has  been  four  times  married,  and  has  a 
large  family  of  children. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIM  CRESAP.  43 

Van,  his  fourth  son,  is  dead.  He  left  two  sons  and  two 
daughters,  three  of  whom  are  still  living,  have  families,  and 
are  respectable. 

Robert,  like  his  father,  is  a  plain,  domestic  man.  His 
habits  of  industry  and  economy  have  produced  their  natural 
results — wealth  and  independence — and  in  respect  to  wealth, 
is  among  the  first  in  Allegheny  county.  He  is  yet  living, 
and  has  a  large  family  of  children. 

James  is  rich  and  very  popular  ;  has  often  represented  his 
county  in  the  State  Legislature,  and  has  a  fine  family  of  chil- 
dren.    He  is  still  living. 

Thomas,  his  youngest  son,  occupies  his  father's  old  mansion 
house,  and  is  highly  respectable ;  has  also  represented  his 
county  in  the  State  Legislature  ;  is  at  present  one  of  the 
judges  of  the  Orphan's  Court;  is  living,  and  has  a  large 
family  of  children. 

And  now  may  I  not  ask  :  how  many  fathers  have  so  many 
sons  honorable  to  their  family  and  in  such  high  estimation 
among  their  fellow  citizens  ? 

Elizabeth,  his  eldest  daughter,  was  married  to  Thomas 
Collins,  Esq.,  of  Hampshire  county,  Virginia.  They  are  both 
dead,  but  left  several  children,  one  of  whom  is — or  was — 
colonel  of  the  militia  of  Hampshire,  but  he  has  removed  to 
Maryland. 

Mary,  his  second  daughter,  was  unfortunate  in  her  mar- 
riage, but  her  dissipated  husband  is  dead,  and  she  has  several 
fine  children. 

Sarah,  his  youngest  daughter,  is  married  to  Aquilla  A. 
Brown,  Esq.,  attorney  at  law;  they  reside  in  Philadelphia, 
are  wealthy  and  respectable,  and  have  several  fine  children. 

Thomas  Cresap — second  son  of  Colonel  Thomas — was,  as 
already  related,  killed  by  an  Indian,  but  both  firing  at  the 


44  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIM  CRESAP. 


same  instant,  killed  each  other.  He  was  married  and  left  a 
widow  and  one  female  child.  This  daughter  of  Thomas  Cre- 
sap,  Jr.,  was  first  married  to  a  Mr.  Brent,  a  lawyer,  by  whom 
she  had  a  son  and  daughter,  both  still  living.  Her  son 
Thomas  Brent,  Esq.,  lives  in  Washington  county,  Maryland, 
and  is  wealthy  and  respectable.  She  was  afterward  married 
to  John  Reid,  Esq.,  of  Allegheny  county ;  they  had  several 
children,  one  of  which,  William  Reid,  Esq.,  is  now  a  repre- 
sentative for  his  county. 

Michael  Cresap,  the  subject  of  this  memoir  and  youngest 
son  of  Colonel  Thomas,  left  five  children — two  sons  and  three 
daughters.  But  as  the  daughters  were  the  oldest  we  will  be- 
gin with  them : 

Mary,  the  eldest  daughter,  was  married  to  Luther  Martin, 
Esq.,  Attorney  General  of  Maryland.  She  is  dead,  and  has 
left  two  daughters,  one  of  whom  is  also  dead. 

Elizabeth,  the  second  daughter,  married  Lenox  Martin, 
Esq., — brother  of  Luther.  He  was  also  raised  to  the  profes- 
sion of  the  law,  and  was  for  a  period  a  practitioner,  but  is 
now  a  justice  of  the  peace,  and  resides  in  Allegheny  county, 
near  Old  Town.  Himself  and  wife  are  both  living,  and  have 
a  large  family  of  children. 

Sarah,  the  youngest  daughter,  married  Osborn  Sprigg,  Esq. 
They  are  both  dead,  but  left  four  sons,  one  of  whom  (Michael) 
is  a  popular  character,  and  at  present  is  a  candidate  for  Con- 
gress with  a  fair  prospect  of  success. 

James,  the  eldest  son,  was  first  married  to  a  Miss  Reid, 
but  she  dying  young,  he  afterward  married  Mrs.  Vanbiber, 
widow  of  Mr.  Abraham  Vanbiber,  of  Baltimore,  by  whom 
he  had  one  son,  Luther  Martin  Cresap,  who  is  still  living, 
but  his  father  is  dead. 

Michael,  youngest  son  of  Captain  Michael,  married  a  Miss 


LIFE  OF  CAFTAIJ^  CRESAP.  45 

Ogle,  a  young  lady  raised  by  his  mother.  They  live  on  the 
Ohio  river,  have  several  fine  children,  and  are  wealthy  and 
respectable. 

Sarah,  daughter  of  Colonel  Thomas  Cresap,  was  twice 
married;  first  to  Colonel  Enoch  Innis,  and  afterward  to  a  Mr. 
John  Foster.     They  are  all  dead,  and  she  had  no  children. 

Elizabeth,  the  youngest  daughter  of  Colonel  Thomas  Cre- 
sap, was  married  to  a  Mr.  Isaac  Collier,  from  Pennsylvania, 
who  was  rather  a  dissipated  character.  They  are  both  dead, 
but  left  several  children,  who  reside  in  the  States  of  Kentucky, 
Ohio  and  Alabama,  and  all  of  them  are  wealthy  and  respect- 
able. 

Thus  have  I  brought  into  public  view  this  numerous  and 
respectable  family,  that  it  may  at  once  be  seen  how  many 
persons  and  characters  of  the  first  estimation,  who  move  in 
the  highest  circles  of  society  wherever  they  dwell,  and  who 
certainly — in  a  comparative  view — stand  upon  equal  ground 
with  any  family  of  the  United  States  ;  and  where,  permit  me 
to  add,  shall  we  find  a  catalogue  of  names,  all  of  the  same 
stock  and  family,  so  free  from  blemishes  and  so  equally  and 
generally  respectable.  I  regret  that  there  should  be  any  ex- 
ceptions, but  they  are  few.  And  shall  I,  who  know  them  all, 
and  know  that  the  charges  against  one  of  the  most  conspicu- 
ous characters  of  this  family  are  most  untrue ;  knowing,  I  say, 
as  I  do,  that  Captain  Michael  Cresap  was  neither  a  man  in- 
famous for  his  many  Indian  murders  nor  the  cause  of  Dun- 
more's  war — with  this  conviction  upon  my  mind,  with  the 
truth  before  me  as  clear  as  the  resplendent  beams  of  the  sun 
— shall  I,  or  can  I,  remain  silent  when  I  have  it  in  my 
power  most  positively  and  completely  to  refute  all  these 
charges?  Surely  I  shall  be  pardoned  if,  contrary  to  my 
wish  or  intention,  any  warmth  or  disrespectful  expression  to- 


46  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJY  CRESAP. 


ward  Captain  Cresap's  accuser  should  unguardedly  drop  from 
my  pen,  for  I  verily  believe  few  circumstances  in  life  can 
have  a  stronger  tendency  to  irritation  and  warmth  of  excite- 
ment than  to  be  contradicted,  browbeaten  and  pertinaciously 
opposed  as  to  the  truth  of  a  well  known  fact,  especially  in  all 
cases  where  the  character  of  a  friend  is  calumniated,  and, 
contrary  to  truth  and  reason,  is  consigned,  or  attempted  to  be 
consigned,  to  public  execration  and  infamy. 

If  indeed  Captain  Cresap  was  the  man  represented  by  Mr. 
Jefferson — infammis  for  his  many  Indian  murders — or  if  as  Mr. 
Doddridge,  of  recent  date,  asserts,  he  was  the  cause  of  Dun- 
mare's  war,  the  public  would  never  have  heard  from  me.  I 
should  neither  have  stained  paper  nor  opened  my  mouth. 
But  conscious  as  I  am  that  there  is  not  a  word  of  truth  in  all 
this,  I  stand  upon  terra  firma ;  I  set  my  feet  upon  this  immu- 
table basis  of  truth,  stretch  out  my  hand  and  defy  the  world ! 
I  am  no  Cresap ;  his  widow,  it  is  true,  was  my  wife,  and  he 
was  my  friend ;  my  more  than  friend — my  foster  father.  The 
world  will  therefore  judge  how  far  I  should  be  excusable 
were  I  to  remain  silent  in  a  cause  so  just,  in  a  case  so  clear. 
Nay !  like  one  of  old,  we  say :  '*  We  cannot  hut  speak  of  the 
things  we  have  seen  and  heard P 


CHAPTER    III. 

A  brief  sketch  of  the  life  of  Captain  Cresap^s  youth  up  to  the 

year  1774. 

It  is  not  my  view  in  this  work  to  give  the  public  a  de- 
tailed or  particular  history  of  the  life  of  Captain  Cresap, 
but  only  so  much  and  such  parts  as  is  deemed  necessary 
to  present  his  life  as  a  whole  portrait  sufficiently  united  in 
symmetry — to  present  in  full  view  a  character  not  known, 
but  little  understood  though  much  abused  by  those  who 
judge  without  knowledge  and  condemn  without  reason. 

He  was,"  as  has  been  already  stated,  the  youngest  son  of 
Colonel  Thomas  Cresap,  of  Frederick — but  now  Allegheny 
— county,  Maryland,  and  was  born  on  the  29th  day  of  June, 
1742.  The  remoteness  of  Colonel  Cresap's  habitation  from 
a  dense  population,  or  any  seminary  of  learning,  induced 
the  old  gentleman  to  send  his  son  Michael  to  a  school  in 
Baltimore  county,  kept  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Craddock;  but 
young  Cresap  being  a  backwoods  boy,  and  [speckled  bird 
among  his  school  fellows,  had  to  fight  his  way  into  their 
good  graces,  which,  I  think,  he  soon  effected,  and  became 
their  champion.  Not  relishing,  however,  the  restraints  of  a 
school,  or  for  some  other  cause,  he  ran  away,  and  traveled 
home  on  foot,  a  distance  of  140  miles.  But  his  father,  far 
from  sanctioning  any  such  conduct,  gave  the  poor  fellow  a 
terrible  whipping  and  sent  him  back,  where  thenceforward 
he  steadily  remained  until  he  had  finished  his  education; 
soon  after  which  he   married  a  Miss  Whitehead,  of  Phila- 


48  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJSr  CRESAP. 

delphia — both  very  young — and  settling  in  a  little  village 
near  his  father's  residence,  commenced  life  as  a  merchant. 
He  imported  his  goods  first  from  London,  dealt  largely, 
and  well  nigh  ruined  himself  from  his  benevolence  and  mis- 
placed confidence  in  his  customers.  A  circumstance  also 
occurred  about  this  time  that  injured  him  most  materially. 
The  gentleman  who  acted  as  agent  for  the  London  mer- 
chant from  whom  he  received  his  goods,  wrote  to  him  that 
Cresap  was  a  suspicious  character,  and  that  he  was  under 
the  apprehension  he  intended  to  remove  to  some  place  in 
the  Western  country  where  he  would  be  out  of  the  reach 
of  the  law.  But  this  story  came  to  the  ears  of  Captain 
Cresap ;  his  goods  were  withheld  and  the  cause  discovered. 
The  consequence  was  that  a  dreadful  battle  ensued  between 
Cresap  and  this  agent,  whose  name  I  forbear  to  mention. 
This  dreadful  battle  was  fought  in  a  private  room  in  Fred- 
ericktown,  and  I  am  under  the  impression  that  no  other 
person  was  present.  But  Captain  Cresap  soon  discovered 
that  fighting  did  not  fill  his  coffers,  and  however  other 
men — as  Cyrus,  Alexander  and  Napoleon — might  amass 
wealth  and  treasure  from  the  science  of  war  and  maH-kill- 
ing,  yet  it  had  an  inverse  operation  on  his  funds,  as  will 
appear  in  the  sequel  of  his  history. 

But  to  return  from  this  digression.  Captain  Cresap, 
from  the  causes  above  recited,  discovered  that  his  affairs 
were  in  a  ruinous  condition,  and  might  be  said  to  be  daily 
growing  worse.  From  the  peculiar  circumstances  of  the 
times,  the  tide  of  emigration  began  to  flow  with  great  rapid- 
ity to  the  West,  and  his  debtors,  some  to  a  large  amount, 
were  daily  removing  to  the  land  of  milk  and  honey.  He 
now  discovered  that  he  had  dealt  upon  too  liberal  a  scale, 
and  though  late,  determined  to  be  more   cautious   in  the 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  49 

future.  I  was  in  his  store  at  this  time,  and  was  strictly 
charged  by  him  to  trust  no  man  unless  I  knew  him  to  be 
good ;  but  if  at  any  time  he  was  caught  in  the  store  him- 
self— which  sometimes  happened — a  plausible  story  from  a 
man,  or  a  piteous  tale  from  a  woman,  would  soon  demolish 
all  the  fortifications  about  his  heart ;  and  the  result  was, 
turning  to  me,  he  would  say :  John,  let  this  man  or  this 
woman  have  what  they  want!  and  soon  after  leave  the 
store  for  fear  of  another  attack. 

Captain  Cresap's  whole  deportment,  in  all  his  various 
relations,  diversified  scenes  and  circumstances,  exhibited  the 
character  of  a  benevolent,  noble  and  generous  spirit.  He 
was  a  man  of  uncommon  energy,  enterprise  and  decision — 
plan  and  execution  with  him  followed  in  rapid  succession, 
and  as  already  remarked,  the  deranged  and  unpropitious 
aspect  of  his  aifairs  determined  him  to  adopt  some  judi- 
cious and  feasible  plan  to  rescue  his  sinking  fortune  from 
ruin.  The  case  admitted  of  no  parley  or  delay;  nor  was 
his  character  of  a  complexion  to  hesitate.  He  saw  a  way 
open,  and  that  way  he  boldly  pursued,  conscious  that  he 
must  emerge  from  the  ocean  of  difficulty  in  which  he  was 
involved  or  sink.  Thus  urged  by  necessity — prompted  by 
a  laudable  ambition  and  allured  by  the  rational  and  exhil- 
arating prospect  before  him — he  thought  he  saw  in  the  rich 
bottoms  of  the  Ohio  an  ample  fund  if  he  succeeded  in  se- 
curing a  title  to  those  lands,  not  only  to  redeem  his  credit 
and  extricate  himself  from  his  difficulty,  but  also  to  afford 
a  respectable  competency  for  a  rising  family. 

Under  the  impression  of  this  idea,  and  with  every  rational 
prospect  of  success,  early  in  the  Spring  of  the  year  1774, 
he  engaged  six  or  seven  active  young  men,  under  the  wages 
of  £2  10s  Od,  each  per  month,   and    repairing   to   the   then 


60  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJy  CRESAP. 


wilderness  of  the  Ohio,  commenced  the  business  of  building 
houses  and  clearing  lands ;  and  being  one  of  the  first  adven- 
turers into  this  exposed  and  dangerous  region,  he  had  it  in 
his  power  to  select  some  of  the  best  and  richest  of  the  Ohio 
bottoms.  But,  while  thus  peaceably  and  diligently  engaged 
in  the  prosecution  of  his  object,  he  was  suddenly  arrested 
by  a  circular  letter  from  Major  Connoly,  the  Earl  of  Dun- 
more's  Vice-Governor  of  Western  Virginia,  and  command- 
ant at  Pittsburg.  This  letter  was  sent  by  express  in  every 
direction  through  the  country,  warning  the  inhabitants  to  be 
on  their  guard ;  that  the  Indians  were  very  angry  and  man- 
ifested such  a  hostile  disposition  that  it  was  evident  they 
would  fall  on  the  inhabitants  somewhere.  As  soon  as  the 
season  would  permit,  this  letter  was  sent  to  Captain  Cre- 
sap,  accompanied  with  a  confirmatory  message  from  Colonel 
Croghan  and  Alexander  M'Gee,  Esq.,  Indian  agents  and 
interpreters.  The  result  was,  that  Captain  Cresap  immedi- 
ately abandoned  his  object,  and  ascended  the  Ohio  to  Fort 
Wheeling,  the  nearest  place  of  safety. 

As  I  shall  give  the  reader  a  more  ample  detail  of  the 
whole  affair  in  my  next  chapter,  I  shall  waive  any  further 
remarks  at  this  time,  save  only  that  from  the  foregoing 
statement,  which  I  am  confident  is  substantially  correct, 
it  is  most  apparent  that  Captain  Cresap's  primary,  yea, 
only  object  in  leaving  his  family  and  stationing  himself  on 
the  banks  of  the  Ohio,  in  the  Spring  of  the  year  1774,  was 
to  secure  and  improve  some  lands  on^  that  river ;  and  con- 
sequently, that  an  Indian  war  would  be  to  him,  above  all 
men,  most  disastrous,  and  therefore  to  be  deprecated  and 
dreaded  as  opposed  to  all  his  golden  dreams  of  ease  and 
affluence  in  declining  life — and  this  single  circumstance  will 
serve  as  a  key  to   all   subsequent  facts,  and  tend   to  open 


LIFE  OF  CdPTAIJ\r  CRESAP.  61 

and  elucidate  the  natural  results,  causes  and  effects,  as  it 
should  seem  inevitably  growing  out  of  this  state  of  things 
at  this  period. 

Captain  Cresap's  loss  and  sacrifice  on  this  occasion, 
affords  an  auxiliary  and  powerful  argument  in  support  of 
what  is  remarked  above;  for  in  addition  to  the  paralyzing 
and  blasted  views  now  presented  to  his  mind  respecting  his 
own  lands,  his  expenses  must  have  amounted  to  nearly  £30 
per  month — adding  subsistence,  at  such  a  distance  from  any 
place  where  provisions  could  be  obtained — to  the  monthly 
wages  of  his  men.  He  had  also  with  him  the  necessary 
furniture  and  camp  equipage,  which  he  foresaw  must  be, 
and  I  believe  was,  finally  lost. 

May  I  not  then  be  permitted  to  repeat,  that  it  must  bo 
evident  that  no  man  of  sane  mind — that  none  but  a  mad- 
man^-could  under  these  circumstances,  at  this  time,  have 
wished  for  an  Indian  war. 


C'Tiiai  10 


CHAPTER    IV. 

ihinvwre's  war — preliminary  remarks — inquiry  into  the  canse — 
Connoly^s  circular  letter — state  of  the  Western  country  in 
the  year  1774 — Captain  Cresap  improviny  lands — ascent 
to  Fort  Wlieeling — two  Indians  killed  in  a  canoe — suhse- 
quent  affair  with  the  Indians — skirmish  on  the  Ohio — 
quarrel  with  Connoly,  and  return  to  his  family — Commis- 
sion from  and  implied  approbation  of  the  Earl  of  Dunmore 
— Major  McBonaWs  expedition  to  Wapj)atomica — Dun- 
morels  campaign — Treaty  at  Chillicothe — conclusion  of  the 
war. 

It  will  appear  from  the  bill  of  fare,  or  short  analysis  of 
the  various  subjects  embraced  in  the  chapter  before  us, 
that  we  are  now  entering  into  an  extensive  field ;  a  field 
so  fraught  with  imj^ortant  matter,  that  it  will  require  the 
closest  attention,  and  utmost  accui'acy  to  delineate  in  their 
true  colors  the  various  and  multifarious  scenes  through  which 
we  are  destined  to  travel ;  and  inasmuch  as  what  I  am  now 
about  to  detail  may  become  matter  of  record  to  succeeding 
ages,  I  cannot  but  feel  an  uncommon  solicitude  to  keep  close 
in  the  straight  path  of  truth,  and  therefore,  it  is  my  design, 
while  I  speak  positively  as  to  known  facts,  to  be  cautious  and 
guarded  in  my  expressions  as  to  doubtful  subjects. 

And  permit  me  to  add  that  I  am  now  old,  and  as  all  the 
facts  and  circumstances  I  am  now  about  to  record,  are  also  old 
— obsolete,  and  to  most  men  of  this  generation  unknown,  and 
I  believe  nearly  obliterated  from  the  memory  of  my  co-equals 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CBESAP.  53 

in  age — neither  is  my  memory  very  tenacious  ;  it  is  therefore 
possible  I  may  be  mistaken  in  the  detail  of  some  trivial  cir- 
cumstances, and  I  now  promise,  that  if  a  reader  should  dis- 
cover any  such  mistake  of  sufficient  importance  to  merit  cor- 
rection, I  will  then  freely  do  it — provided  he  is  right  and  I 
am  wrong. 

The  question  of  justice,  or  injustice,  as  to  the  means  used 
by  the  American  nation  in  the  acquisition  of  the  Indians' 
lands,  and  their  gradual  expulsion  from  their  native  seats, 
farther  and  still  farther  West,  I  leave  to  be  settled  among 
statesmen  and  philosophers,  who  have  more  leisure  and  better 
talents  for  the  discussion ;  but  it  is  certain  that  our  quarrel 
with  the  Indians,  or  their  quarrel  with  us,  is  nearly  coeval 
with  our  earliest  settlement  on  this  continent.  It  is  true 
that  we  have  had  many  treaties,  and  often  made  peace,  with 
our  aboriginal  neighbors,  but  this  state  of  things  was  never 
l^ermanent.  The  restless,  roving  disposition  of  the  Indians, 
whose  only  business  is  hunting  and  war,  together  with  the 
frequent  encroachments  of  the  white  people  on  their  lands 
and  hunting  grounds,  soon  kindled  again  the  fire-brands  of 
war,  which  was  generally  protracted  and  destructive  in  its 
eifects  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  Indian  nations  engaged, 
and  their  aggregate  numerical  strength. 

At  this  period,  to-wit :  in  the  commencement  of  the  year 
1774,  there  existed  between  our  people  and  the  Indians,  a 
kind  of  doubtful,  precarious  and  suspicious  peace.  In  the 
year  1773,  they  killed  a  certain  John  Martin  and  Guy  Meeks, 
(Indian  traders),  on  the  Hockhocking,  and  robbed  them  of 
about  £200  worth  of  goods.  They  were  much  irritated  with 
our  people,  who  were  about  this  time  settling  Kentucky,  and 
with  them  they  waged  an  unceasing  and  destructive  predatory 
war ;  and  whoever  saw  an  Indian  in  Kentucky  saw  an  enemy 


54  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJf  CRESAP. 

— no  questions  were  asked  on  either  side  but  from  the  muz- 
zles of  their  rifles.  Many  other  circumstances  at  this  period 
combined  to  show  that  our  peace  with  the  Indians  rested  upon 
such  dubious  and  uncertain  ground,  that  it  must  soon  be  dis- 
persed by  a  whirlwind  of  war  and  carnage,  and  as  I  consider 
this  an  all-important  point  in  the  thread  of  our  history,  and 
an  interesting  link  in  the  chain  of  causes  combining  to  pro- 
duce Dunmore's  war,  I  will  present  the  reader  with  another 
fact  directly  in  point;  it  is  extracted  from  the  journal  of 
Esquire  M'Connel,  in  my  possession.  Esquire  M'Connel  says, 
that  about  the  8d  day  of  March,  1774,  while  himself  and  six 
other  men,  who  were  in  company  with  him,  were  asleep  in 
their  camp  in  the  night,  they  were  awakened  by  the  fierce 
barking  of  their  dogs,  and  thought  they  saw  something  like 
men  creeping  toward  them.  Alarmed  at  this,  they  sprang 
up,  seized  their  rifles  and  flew  to  trees.  By  this  time  one 
Indian  had  reached  their  fire,  but  hearing  them  cock  their 
guns,  drew  back,  stumbled  and  fell.  The  whole  party  now 
came  up,  and  appearing  friendly,  he  ordered  his  men  not  to 
fire,  and  shook  hands  with  his  new  guests.  They  tarried  all 
night,  and  appeared  so  friendly,  prevailed  with  him  and 
one  of  his  men  to  go  with  them  to  their  town,  at  no  great 
distance  from  their  camp;  but  when  they  arrived,  he  was 
taken  with  his  companion  to  their  council — or  war  house— a 
war  dance  was  performed  around  them,  and  the  war  club 
shook  at,  or  over,  them,  and  they  were  detained  close  prisoners 
and  narrowly  guarded  for  two  or  three  days.  A  council  was 
held  over  them,  and  it  was  decreed  that  they  should  be  threat- 
ened severely  and  discharged,  provided  they  would  give  their 
women  some  flour  and  salt.  Being  dismissed,  they  set  out 
on  their  journey  to  their  camp,  but  met  on  their  way  about 
twenty-five  warriors  and  some   boys;  a  second  council  was 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIN  CBESAP.  65 

held  over  them,  and  it  was  decreed  that  they  should  not  be 
killed,  but  robbed,  which  was  accordingly  done,  and  all  their 
flour,  salt,  powder  and  lead,  and  all  their  rifles  that  were  good, 
were  taken  from  them ;  and  being  further  threatened,  the  In- 
dians left  them.  As  already  noticed,  this  party  consisted  of 
seven  men,  to-wit:  Esquire  M'Connel,  Andrew  M'Connel, 
Lawrence  Darnal,  William  Ganet,  Matthew  Riddle,  John 
Laferty,  and  Thomas  Canady. 

But  I  must  advertise  the  reader  here,  that  I  have  con- 
densed, and  not  copied  verbatim.  Esquire  M'Connel's  journal 
— it  was  too  long  to  transcribe.* 

We  have  also  in  reserve  some  material  facts,  that  go  to 
show  the  aspect  of  afilairs  at  this  period,  and  that  may  be  con- 
sidered as  evident  precursors  to  an  impending  war.  And  it  is 
certainly  not  a  trifling  item  in  the  catalogue  of  these  events, 
that  early  in  the  Spring  of  1774 — whether  precedent  or  sub- 
sequent to  Connoly's  famous  circular  letter  I  am  not  prepared 
to  say,  having  no  positive  data ;  but  it  was,  however,  about 
this  period — that  the  Indians  killed  two  men  in  a  canoe,  be- 
longing to  a  Mr.  Butler,f  of  Pittsburg,  and  robbed  the  canoe 
of  the  property  therein.  This  was  about  the  first  of  May, 
1774,  and  took  place  near  the  mouth  of  Little  Beaver,  a  small 
creek  that  empties  into  the  Ohio  between  Pittsburg  and 
Wheeling — and  this  fact  is  so  certain  and  well  established, 

•  Since  writing  this  chapter,  Mr.  Josepli  Cresap  stated  to  me  this  fact,  evincing  the  general 
impression  on  the  minds  of  the  western  people  of  an  immediate  attack  from  the  Indians.  He 
says  that  in  the  month  of  April,  in  the  year  1774,  he  was  with  some  surveyors  running  lands 
on  Cheat  river,  about  four  miles  above  the  Horse-shoe  bottom ;  that  they  were  indistinctly  dis- 
covered by  some  hunters  who  reported  that  they  were  a  party  of  Indians ;  that  a  company  was 
immediately  raised  in  Tyger'a  Valley,  who  marched  down  about  thirty  miles  to  attack  them, 
but  fortunately  discovered  their  mistake  before  any  mischief  was  done. 

t-Mr.  William  Butler,  who  seems  not  to  have  heeded  the  earlier  warnings,  had  sent  off  a 
canoe,  loaded  with  goods  for  the  Sliawancsc  towns,  and  on  the  16th  of  April  it  wns  attacked, 
forty  miles  below  I'ittsburg,  by  three  Cherokees,  who  waylaid  it  on  the  river.  They  killed 
one  white  man,  wounded  another,  while  a  third  made  his  escape,  and  the  savages  plundered 
the  canoe  of  the  most  valuable  part  of  the  cargo. — Discourse  by  lirantz  Mayer,  delivered  before 
the  Maryland  Historical  Society,  p.  48. 


56  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJy  CRESAP. 


that  Benjamin  Tomlinson,  Esq., — who  is  now  living,  and  as- 
sisted in  burying  the  dead — can,  and  will,  bear  testimony  to 

its  truth. 

And,  it  is  presumed,  it  was  this  circumstance  that  produced 
that  prompt  and  terrible  vengeance,  taken  on  the  Indians  at 
Yellow  Creek  immediately  after,  to-wit :  on  the  3d  of  May, 
which  gave  rise  to,  and  furnished  matter  for,  the  pretended 
lying  speech  of  Logan,  which  I  shall  hereafter  prove  a  counter- 
feit ;  and  if  it  was  genuine,  yet  a  genuine  fabrication  of  lies. 

Thus  we  find  from  an  examination  into  the  state  of  affairs 
in  the  West,  that  there  was  a  pre-disposition  to,  war  at  least 
on  the  part  of  the  Indians.  But  may  we  not  suspect  that 
other  latent  causes,  working  behind  the  scenes,  and  in  the 
dark,  were  silently  marching  to  the  same  result? 

Be  it  remembered  then,  that  this  Indian  war  was  but  as 
the  portico  to  our  Revolutionary  war,  the  fuel  for  which  Avas 
then  preparing,  and  which  burst  into  a  flame  the  ensuing 
year. 

Neither  let  us  forget  that  the  Earl  of  Dunmore  was  at  this 
time  Governor  of  Virginia,  and  that  he  was  acquainted  with 
the  views  and  designs  of  the  British  Cabinet,  can  scarcely  be 
doubted.  What  then,  suppose  ye,  would  be  the  conduct  of  a 
man,  possessing  his  means,  filling  a  high  official  station,  at- 
tached to  the  British  Government,  and  master  of  consum- 
mate diplomatic  skill  ? 

Dunmore's  penetrating  eye  could  not  but  see — and  he  no 
doubt  did  see — two  all-important  objects,  that  if  accom- 
plished, would  go  to  subserve  and  promote  the  grand  object 
of  the  British  Cabinet,  viz :  to  establish  an  unbounded  and 
unrestrained  authority  over  our  North  American  continent. 

These  two  objects  were,  first :  setting  the  new  settlers  on 
the  west  side  of  the  Allegheny  by  the  cars,  and  secondly,  cm- 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJsr  CRESAP.  57 

broiling  the  Western  people  in  a  war  with  the  Indians.  These 
two  objects  accomplished,  would  place  it  in  his  power  to 
direct  the  storm  to  any  and  every  point  conducive  to  the 
grand  object  he  had  in  view.  But  as  in  the  nature  of  the 
thing  he  could  not;  and  policy  forbidding  that  he  should 
always  appear  personally  in  promoting  and  effectuating  these 
bjects,  it  was  necessary  that  he  should  obtain  a  confidential 
agent  attached  to  his  person  and  to  the  British  government, 
and  one  that  would  promote  his  views — either  publicly  or 
eovertly — as  circumstances  required. 

The  materials  for  his  first  object  were  abundant,  and 
already  prepared.  The  emigrants  to  the  Western  country 
were  almost  all  from  the  three  States  of  Virginia,  Mary- 
land and  Pennsylvania;  the  line  between  the  two  States  of 
Virginia  and  Pennsylvania  was  unsettled,  and  both  these 
States  claimed  the  whole  of  the  Western  country.  This 
motley  mixture  of  men  from  different  States  did  not  har- 
monize. The  Virginians  and  Marylanders  disliked  the  Penn- 
sylvania laws — nor  did  the  Pennsylvanians  relish  those  of 
Virginia — thus  many  disputes  arose,  and  were  sometimes 
followed  by  battles,  or  broils,  or  fisticuffs. 

The  Earl  of  Dunmore,  with  becoming  zeal  for  the  honor 
of  the  Ancient  Dominion,  seized  this  state  of  things  as  pro- 
pitious to  his  views,  and  having  found  Dr.  John  Conoly,  of 
Pennsylvania,  with  whom,  I  think,  he  could  not  have  had 
much  previous  acquaintance,  by  the  art  of  hocus-pocus — or 
some  other  art — converted  him  into  a  staunch  Virginian, 
and  appointed  him  Vice-Governor  and  commandant  at  Pitts- 
burg and  dependencies ;  that  is  to  say,  of  all  the  Western 
country.  Affairs  on  that  side  of  the  mountain  now  began 
to  wear  a  serious  aspect.  Attempts  were  made  by  both 
Stat  s  to  enforce  their  laws,  and   the  strong   arm  of  power 


58  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJy  CRESAP. 

and  coercion  was  let  loose  by  Virginia.  Some  magistrates 
acting  under  the  authority  of  Pennsylvania,  were  arrested, 
sent  to  Virginia,  and  imprisoned. 

But  that  the  reader  may  be  well  assured  that  the  hand 
of  Dunmore  was  in  all  this,  I  present  him  with  a  copy  of 
his  Proclamation.     It  is,  however,  deficient  as  to  date. 

"  Whereas,  I  have  reason  to  apprehend  that  the  govern- 
"ment  of  Pennsylvania,  in  j)rosecution  of  their  claims  to  Pitts- 
"burg  and  its  dependencies,  will  endeavor  to  obstruct  His 
"Majesty's  government  thereof,  under  my  administration,  by 
"illegal  and  unwarrantable  commitment  of  the  officers  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  govern- 
"ment,  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  coun- 
"cil,  by  this  Proclamation  in  His  Majesty's  name,  to  order 
"and  require  the  officers  of  the  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  assist- 
"ing  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  ajipointed 
"to  collect  the  same  within  this  dominion,  until  His  Majesty's 
"pleasure  therein  shall  be  known." 

It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  ray  coj)y  of  this  Procla- 
mation is  without  date ;  there  can,  however,  be  no  doubt  it 
was  issued  cither  in  1774,  or  early  in  1775;  and  I  am  in- 
clined to  think  it  was  issued  in  [1774,  but  it  would  be  satis- 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  69 

factory  to  know  precisely  the  day,  because  chronology  is  the 
soul  of  history. 

But  this  state  of  things  in  the  West,  it  seems  from  sub- 
sequent events,  was  not  the  mere  effervescence  of  a  tran- 
sient or  momentary  excitement,  but  continued  a  long  season ; 
the  seeds  of  discord  had  fallen  unhappily  on  ground  too 
naturally  productive,  and  were  also  too  well  cidtivated  by 
the  Earl  of  Dunmore,  Connoly,  and  the  Pennsylvania  officers, 
to  evaporate  in  an  instant. 

We  find  by  recurring  to  the  history  of  our  Revolutionary 
war,  that  that  awful  tornado,  if  it  had  not  the  effect  to  sweep 
away  all  disputes  about  State  Rights  and  local  interests, 
yet  it  had  the  effect  to  silence  and  suspend  every  thing  of 
that  nature  pending  our  dubious  and  arduous  struggle  for 
national  existence;  but  yet  we  find,  in  fact,  that  whatever 
conciliatory  effect  this  state  of  things  had  upon  other  sec- 
tions of  the  country,  and  upon  the  nation  at  large,  yet  it 
was  not  sufficient  to  extinguish  this  fire  in  the  West,  for 
in  the  latter  end  of  the  year  1776,  or  in  the  year  1777,  we 
find  these  people  petitioning  Congress  to  interpose  their 
authority,  and  redress  their  grievances.  I  have  this  peti- 
tion before  me,  but  it  is  too  long  to  copy — I  therefore  only 
give  a  short  abstract. 

It  begins  with  stating  that  whereas,  Virginia  and  Penn- 
sylvania both  set  up  claims  to  the  Western  country,  it  was 
productive  of  the  most  serious  and  destructive  consequences; 
that  as  each  .State  pertinaciously  supported  their  respective 
pretensions,  the  result  was,  as  described  by  themselves,  ^[frauds, 
impositions,  violences,  depredations,  animosities,"  etc. 

These  evils  they  ascribe — as  indeed  the  fact  was — to  the 
conflicting  claim  of  the  two  States ;  and  so  warm  were  the 
partisans  on  each  side,  as  in  some  cases  to  produce  battles 


eO  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CRESAP. 

and  shedding  of  blood ;  but  they  suj)eradd  another  reason 
for  this  ill  humor,  viz :  the  proceedings  of  Dunmore's  warrant 
officers  in  laying  land  warrants  on  lands  claimed  by  others, 
and  many  other  claims  for  land  granted  by  the  crown  of  Eng- 
land to  individuals  and  companies,  covering  a  vast  extent  of 
country,  and  including  most  of  the  lands  already  settled  and 
occupied  by  the  greater  part  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  western 
country ;  and  they  finally  pray  Congress  to  erect  them  into  a 
separate  State,  and  admit  them  into  the  Union  as  a  fourteenth 
State. 

As  this  petition  recites  the  treaty  of  Pittsburg,  in  October, 
1775,  it  is  probable  we  may  fix  its  date  (for  it  has  none)  to 
the  latter  part  of  1776,  or  1777.  I  rather  think  the  latter,  not 
only  from  my  own  recollection  of  the  circumstances  of  that 
period,  but  especially  from  the  request  in  the  petition  to  be 
erected  into  a  new  State,  which  certainly  would  not  be  thought 
of  before  the  Declaration  of  Independence. 

But  the  unhappy  state  of  the  western  country  will  appear 
still  more  evident  when  we  advert  to  another  important  docu- 
ment which  I  have  also  before  me.  It  is  a  proclamation 
issued  by  the  delegates  in  Congress  from  the  States  of  Penn- 
sylvania and  Virginia,  and  bears  date,  "Philadelphia,  July 
25,  1775." 

But  the  heat  of  fire,  and  the  inflexible  obstinacy  of  the  par- 
ties engaged  in  this  controversy,  will  appear  in  colors  still 
stronger  when  we  see  the  unavailing  efforts  made  by  the  dele- 
gates in  Congress  from  the  two  States  of  Virginia  and  Penn- 
sylvania, in  the  year  1775.  These  gentlemen — it  was  obvious 
under  the  influence  of  the  best  of  motives,  and  certainly  with 
a  view  to  the  be^st  interests,  peace  and  happiness  of  the  west- 
ern people  —  sent  them  a  proclamation,  couched  in  terms 
directly  calculated  to  restore  tranquillity  and  harmony  among 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJf  CRESAP.  61 

them ;  but  the  little  effect  produced  by  this  proclamation  their 
subsequent  petition,  just  recited,  and  sent  the  next  year  or 
year  after  to  Congress,  fully  demonstrates.  As  I  consider 
this  proclamation  an  important  document,  and  nowhere  re- 
corded, I  give  it  to  the  reader  verbatim,  in  toto  : 

"  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  char- 
"acter  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  cen- 
"sure  on  either  side;  but  as  representatives  of  two  of  the  colo- 
"nies  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  gener- 
"ous  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  inert  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 

♦This  word  is,  in  the  origiual,  "  wc,"  not  "who." 


'.''^: 


62  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJY  CRESAP. 


"the  dispute  be  decided  every  person  be  permitted  to  retain 
"his  possessions  unmolested. 

"  By  observing  these  directions  the  public  tranquillity  will 
"be  secured  without  injury  to  the  titles  on  either  side ;  the 
"period,  we  flatter  ourselves,  will  soon  arrive  when  this  unfor- 
"tunate  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, 

P.  HENRY, 

RICHARD  HENRY  LEE, 
BENJ.  HARRISON, 
TH.  JEFFERSON, 
JOHN  DICKINSON, 
GEO.  ROSS, 
B.  FRANKLIN, 
JAMES  WILSON, 
CHA.  HUMPHREYS. 
'' PJiiladelphia,  My  25,  1775." 

But  to  conclude  this  part  of  our  subject.  I  think  the 
reader  cannot  but  see  from  Dunmore's  proclamation  the 
violent  measures  of  his  lieutenant,  Connoly,  and  the  Virginia 
officers ;  and  from  the  complexion  of  the  times,  and  the  sub- 
sequent conduct  of  both  Dunmore  and  Connoly — as  we  shall 
see  hereafter — that  this  unhappy  state  of  things,  if  not  actu- 
ally produced,  was  certainly  improved  by  Dunmore,  to  sub- 
serve the  views  of  the  British  Court. 

We  now  proceed  to  examine  the  question,  how  far  facts 
and  circumstances  justify  us  in  supposing  the  Earl  of  Dun- 
more himself  instrumental  in  producing  the  Indian  war  of 
1774. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  63 

It  has  been  already  remarked  that  this  Indian  war  was  but 
the  precursor  to  our  Revolutionary  war  of  1775 ;  that  Dun- 
more,  the  then  Governor  of  Virginia,  was  one  of  the  most 
inveterate  and  determined  enemies  to  the  Revolution  ;  that 
he  was  a  man  of  high  talents,  especially  for  intrigue  and 
diplomatic  skill ;  that,  occupying  the  station  of  Governor  and 
Commander-in-Chief  of  the  large  and  respectable  State  of 
Virginia,  he  possessed  means  and  power  to  do  much  to  serve 
the  views  of  Great  Britain. 

And  we  have  seen  from  the  preceding  pages  how  eifectually 
he  played  his  part  among  the  inhabitants  of  the  western 
country.  I  was  present  myself  when  a  Pennsylvania  magis- 
trate, of  the  name  of  Scott,  was  taken  into  custody  and 
brought  before  Dunmore,  at  Redstone  Old  Fort;  he  was 
severely  threatened  and  dismissed,  perhaps  on  bail,  but  I  do 
not  recollect  now.  Another  Pennsylvania  magistrate  was 
sent  to  Staunton  jail.  And  I  have  already  shown  in  the  pre- 
ceding pages  that  there  was  a  sufficient  preparation  of  mate- 
rials for  this  war  in  the  predisposition  and  hostile  attitude  of 
our  affairs  with  the  Indians ;  that  it  was,  consequently,  no 
difficult  matter  with  a  Virginia  Governor  to  direct  this  incipi- 
ent state  of  things  to  any  point  most  conducive  to  the  grand 
end  he  had  in  view — namely,  weakening  our  national  strength 
in  some  of  its  best  and  most  efficient  parts.  If,  then,  a  war 
with  the  Indians  might  have  a  tendency  to  produce  this  re- 
sult, it  appears  perfectly  natural  and  reasonable  to  suppose 
that  Dunmore  would  make  use  of  all  his  power  and  influence 
to  promote  it ;  and,  although  the  war  of  1774  was  brought  to 
a  conclusion  before  the  year  was  out,  yet  we  know  that  this 
fire  was  scarcely  extinguished  before  it  burst  out  again  into  a 
flame  with  tenfold  fury ;  and  two  or  three  armies  of  the 
whites  were  sacrificed  before  we  could  get  the  Indians  sub- 
6 


64  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIM  CRESAP. 


dued.  And  this  unhappy  state  of  our  aflfiiirs  with  the  Indians 
happening  during  the  severe  conflict  of  our  Revolutionary 
war,  had  the  very  effect  I  suppose  Dunmore  had  in  view — 
namely,  dividing  our  forces  and  enfeebling  our  aggregate 
strength ;  and  that  the  seeds  of  these  subsequent  wars  with 
the  Indians  were  sown  in  1774  and  1775,  appears  almost 
certain.  Yet  still,  however,  we  admit  that  we  are  not  in  pos- 
session of  materials  to  substantiate  this  charge  against  the 
Earl,  and  all  we  can  do  is  to  produce  some  facts  and  circum- 
stances that  deserve  notice,  and  have  a  strong  bearing  on  the 

case. 

And  the  first  we  shall  mention*  is,  a  circular  letter  sent  by 
.Major  Connoly,  his  proxy,  early  in  the  Spring  of  the  year 
1774,  warning  the  inhabitants  to  be  on  their  guard ;  that  the 
Indians  were  very  angry,  and  manifested  so  much  hostility 
that  he  was  apprehensive  they  would  strike  somewhere  as 
soon  as  the  season  looM  permit,  and  enjoining  the  inhabitants 
to  prepare  and  retire  into  forts,  etc.  It  might  be  useful  to 
collate  and  compare  this  letter  with  one  he  wrote  to  Captain 
Cresap  on  the  14th  July  following — see  hereafter.  In  this 
letter  he  declares  there  is  Avar,  or  danger  of  war,  before  the 
war  is  properly  begun ;  in  that  to  Captain  Cresap  he  says  the 
Indians  deport  themselves  peaceably,  when  Dunmore,  and 
Lewis,  and  Cornstalk  are  all  on  their  march  for  battle. 

This  letter  was  sent  by  express  in  every  direction  of  the 
country.  Unhappily  we  have  lost  or  mislaid  it,  and  conse- 
quently are  deficient  in  a  most  material  point  in  its  date,  but 
from  one  expression  in  the  letter,  namely,  he  says  the  Indians 
will  strike  when  the  season  permits,  and  this  season  is  gener- 
ally understood  to  mean  when  the  leaves  are  out — that  is,  in 

*  The  reiuftrk,  as  it  should  seem  incidentally  made  in  Dunmore's  proclamation  as  to  the  In- 
dian war  (see  page  58),  deserves  notice,  as  it  has  no  connection  with  the  subject  of  that  pro- 
clamation.. 


I 


I 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJy  CRESAP.  «B 

the  month  of  May.  We  find  from  a  subsequent  letter  from 
Pentecost  and  Connoly  to  Captain  Reece,  that  this  assumed 
fact  is  proved — see  hereafter.  Therefore  this  letter  cannot  be 
of  a  later  date  than  sometime  in  the  month  of  April,  and  if 
so,  before  Butler's  men  were  killed  on  Little  Beaver,  [that 
this  was  the  fact,  is,  I  think,  absolutely  certain,  because  no 
mention  is  made  in  Connoly's  letter  of  this  affair,  which  cer- 
tainly would  not  have  been  omitted  if  precedent  to  this 
letter,]  and  before  Logan's*  family  were  killed  on  Yellow 
Creek,  and  was  in  fact  the  fiery  red  cross  and  harbinger  of 
war,  as  in  days  of  yore  among  the  Scottish  clans. 

This  letter  produced  its  natural  result :  the  people  fled  into 
forts,  and  put  themselves  into  a  posture  of  defense,  and  the 
tocsin  of  war  resounded  from  Laurel  Hill  to  the  banks  of  the 
Ohio.  Captain  Cresap,  who  was  peaceably  at  this  time  em- 
ployed in  building  houses  and  improving  lands  on  the  Ohio, 
received  this  letter,  accompanied  it  is  believed  with  a  confirm- 
atory message  from  Colonel  Croghan  and  Major  McOee,  In- 
dian agents  and  interpreters,  as  already  stated  in  my  third 

*LooAN  was  the  second  son  of  Shikellemcs,  a  celebrated  chief  of  the  Cayuga  nation. 
This  chief,  on  account  of  his  attachment  to  the  English  government,  was  of  great  service  to 
the  country ;  having  the  confidence  of  all  the  Six  Nations,  as  well  as  that  of  the  English,  he 
was  very  useful  in  settling  disputes,  &c.,  kc.  He  was  highly  esteemed  by  Conrad  Weisser,  Esq., 
(an  officer  for  government  in  the  Indian  depivrtment,)  with  whom  he  acted  conjunctly,  and 
was  faithful  unto  his  death.  His  residence  was  at  Shamokin,  where  he  took  great  delight  in  acts 
of  hospitality  to  such  of  the  white  people  whose  business  led  them  that  way.  His  name  and 
fame  were  so  high  on  record,  that  Count  Zinzendorf,  when  in  this  country,  in  1742,  became 
desirous  of  seeing  him,  and  actually  visited  him  at  his  house  in  Shamokin.  About  the  year 
1772,  Logan  was  introduced  to  me,  by  an  Indian  friend,  as  son  to  the  late  reputable  chief  Shi- 
kellemus,  and  as  a  friend  to  the  white  people.  In  the  course  of  conversation,  I  thought  him  a 
man  of  superior  talents  than  Indians  generally  were.  The  subject  turning  on  vice  and  immor- 
ality, he  confessed  his  too  great  share  of  this,  especially  his  fondness  for  liquor.  He  exclaimed 
against  the  while  people  for  imposing  liquors  upon  the  Indians;  ho  otherwise  admired  their 
ingenuity;  spoke  of  gentlemen,  but  observed  the  Indians  unfortunately  had  but  few  of  these  as 
their  neighbors,  &c.  He  spoke  of  his  friendship  to  the  white  people,  wished  always  to  be  a 
neighbor  to  them,  intended  to  setttle  on  the  Ohio,  below  Big  Beaver;  was  (to  the  best  of  my 
recollection)  then  encamped  at  the  mouth  of  this  river,  (Beaver,)  urged  me  to  pay  him  a  visit, 
&c.  Note. — I  was  then  living  at  the  Moravian  town  on  this  river,  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Cuskuskee.  In  April,  1773,  while  on  my  passage  down  the  Ohio  for  Muskingum,  I  called  at 
Logan's  settlement,  where  I  received  every  civility  I  could  expect  from  such  of  the  families  as 
were  at  home. — American  Piotieer,  by  J.  S.   WiUianu,  p.  22. 


66  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CBESAP. 

chapter,*  and  he  thereupon  immediately  broke  up  his  camp 
and  ascended  the  river  to  Fort  Wheeling,  the  nearest  place 
of  safety ;  from  whence  it  is  believed  he  intended  speedily  to 
return  home,  but  during  his  stay  at  this  place  a  report  was 
brought  into  the  fort  that  two  Indians  were  coming  down  the 
river.  Captain  Cresap,  supposing  from  every  circumstance 
and  the  general  aspect  of  aflPairs  that  war  was  inevitable,  and 
in  fact  already  begun,  went  up  the  river  with  his  party,  and 
two  of  his  men,  of  the  name  of  Chenoweth  and  Brothers, 
killed  these  two  Indians  ;  and  beyond  controversy  this  is  the 
only  circumstance  in  the  history  of  this  Indian  war  in  which 
his  name  can  in  the  remotest  degree  be  identified  with  any 
measure  tending  to  produce  this  war.  And  it  is  certain  that 
the  guilt  or  innocence  of  this  affair  will  appear  from  its  date. 
It  is  notorious,  then,  that  those  Indians  were  killed  not  only 
after  Captain  Cresap  had  received  Connoly's  letter,  and  after 
Butler's  men  were  killed  in  the  canoe,  but  also  after  the  affair 
at  Yellow  Creek,  and  after  the  people  had  fled  into  forts. 
But  more  of  this  hereafter,  when  we  take  up  Dr.  Doddridge 
and  his  book — simply,  however,  remarking  here  that  this 
affair  of  killing  these  two  Indians  has  the  same  aspect  and 
relation  to  Dunmore's  war  that  the  battle  of  Lexington  had 
to  our  war  of  the  Revolution. 

But  to  proceed.  Permit  us  to  remark,  that  it  is  very  diffi- 
cult at  this  late  period  to  form  a  correct  idea  of  those  times, 
unless  we  can  bring  distinctly  into  view  the  real  state  of  our 
frontier.  The  inhabitants  of  the  western  country  were  at  this 
time  thinly  scattered  from  the  Allegheny  mountain  to  the 
eastern  banks  of  the  Ohio,  and  most  thinly  near  that  river. 
In  this  state  of  things,  it  was  natural  to  suppose  that  the  few 
settlers  in  the  vicinity  of  Wheeling,  who  had  collected  into 

•  I  had  this  from  Captain  Cresap  himself  a  short  time  after  it  occurred. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  St 

that  fort,  would  feel  extremely  solicitous  to  detain  Captain 
Cresap  and  his  men  as  long  as  possible — especially  until  they 
could  see  on  what  point  the  storm  of  war  would  fall.  Captain 
Cresap,  the  son  of  a  hero,  and  a  hero  himself,  felt  for  their 
situation ;  and  getting  together  a  few  more  men  in  addition 
to  his  own,  and  not  relishing  the  limits  of  a  little  fort  nor  a 
life  of  inactivity,  set  out  on  what  was  called  a  scouting  party 
— that  is,  to  reconnoitre,  and  scour  the  frontier  border ;  and 
while  out,  and  engaged  in  this  business,  fell  in  with  and  had 
a  running  fight  with  a  party  of  Indians,  nearly  about  his 
equal  in  numbers.  One  Indian  was  killed,  and  Cresap  had 
one  man  wounded.  This  affair  took  place  somewhere  on  the 
banks  of  the  Ohio.  Doddridge  says  it  was  at  the  mouth  of 
Capteening  ;  be  it  so — it  matters  not ;  but  he  adds,  it  was  on 
the  same  day  the  Indians  were  killed  in  the  canoe.  In  this 
the  Doctor  is  most  egregiously  mistaken,  as  I  shall  prove 
hereafter. 

But  may  we  not  ask — What  were  these  Indians  doing  here 
at  this  time  on  the  banks  of  the  Ohio  ?  They  had  no  town 
near  this  place,  nor  was  it  their  hunting  season,  as  it  was 
about  the  8th  or  10th  of  May.  Is  it  not  then  probable,  nay, 
almost  certain,  that  this  straggling  banditti  were  prepared 
and  ready  to  fall  on  some  part  of  our  exposed  frontier,  and 
that  their  dispersion  saved  the  lives  of  many  helpless  women 
and  children. 

But  the  old  proverb,  "  Crtj  mad-dog,  and  kill  him,"  is,  I 
suppose,  equally  as  applicable  to  heroes  as  to  dogs. 

Captain  Cresap  soon  after  this  returned  to  his  family,  in 
Maryland ;  but  feeling  most  sensibly  for  the  inhabitants  on 
the  frontier  in  their  perilous  situation,*  immediately  raised  a 

*Cre3ap  is  spoken  of  as  remarkable  for  his  brave,  hardy,  and  adventurous  disposition,  and 
awarded  credit  for  often  rescuing  the  whites  by  a  timely  notice  of  the  savages'  approach,  a 
knowledge  of  which  he  obtained  by  unceasing  vigilance  over  their  movements. — Brantx 
Mayer' t  Addriai,p.  34. 


68  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CRESAP. 


company  of  volunteers  and  marched  back  to  their  assistance, 
and  having  advanced  as  far  as  Catfish's  camp — the  place 
where  Washington,  Pennsylvania,  now  stands — he  was  ar- 
rested in  his  progress  by  a  peremptory  and  insulting  order 
from  Connoly,  commanding  him  to  dismiss  his  men  and  to 
return  home. 

This  order,  couched  in  offensive  and  insulting  language,  it 
may  be  well  supposed  was  not  very  grateful  to  a  man  of 
Captain  Cresap's  high  sense  of  honor  and  peculiar  sensibility, 
especially  conscious  as  he  was  of  the  purity  of  his  motives 
and  the  laudable  end   he  had   in   view.     He    nevertheless 
obeyed,  returned  home  and  dismissed  his  men,  and  with  the 
determination,  I  well  know  from  what  he  said  after  his  return, 
never  again  to  take  any  part  in  the  present  Indian  war,  but 
to  leave  Mr.  Commandant  at  Pittsburg  to  fight  it  out  as  he 
could.    This  hasty  resolution  was,  however,  of  short  duration; 
for  however  strange,  contradictory  and  irreconcilable  the  con- 
duct of  the  Earl  of  Dunmore  and  his  Vice-Governor  of  Pitts- 
burg may  appear,  yet  it  is  a  fact  that  on  the  10th  of  June  the 
Earl  of  Dunmore — unsolicited,  and  to  Captain  Cresap  cer- 
tainly unexpected — sent  him  a  caj)tain's  commission  of  the 
militia  of  Hampshire  county,  Virginia,  notwithstanding  his 
residence  was  in  Maryland.     This  commission  reached  Cap- 
tain Cresap  a  few  days  after  his  return  from  the  expedition  to 
Catfish's  camp,  just  above  mentioned  ;  and  inasmuch  as  this 
commission,  coming  to  him  in  the  way  it  did,  carried  with  it 
a  tacit  expression  of  the  Governor's  apj)robation  of  his  con- 
duct— add  to  which,  that  about  the  same  time  his  feelings 
were  daily  assailed  by  petition  after  petition,  from  almost 
every  section  of  the  western  country,  praying,  begging  and 
beseeching  him  to  come  over  to  their  assistance.     Several  of 
these  petitions,  and  Dunmore's  commission,  have  escaped  the 


LIFE   OF  CAPTAIM  CBESAP.  69 

wreck  of  time,  and  are  in  my  possession.  This  commission, 
coming  at  the  time  it  did,  and  in  the  way  and  under  the  cir- 
cumstances above  recited,  aided  and  strengthened  as  it  was 
by  the  numberless  petitions  aforesaid,  broke  down  and  so  far 
extinguished  all  Captain  Cresap's  personal  resentment  against 
Connoly,  that  he  once  more  determined  to  exert  all  his  power 
and  influence  in  assisting  the  distressed  inhabitants  of  the 
western  frontier.  He  accordingly  immediately  raised  a  com- 
pany, placed  himself  under  the  command  of  Major  Angus 
McDonald,  and  marched  with  him  to  attack  the  Indians,  at 
their  town  of  Wappatomica,  on  the  Muskingum.  His  popu- 
larity at  this  time  was  such,  so  many  men  flocked  to  his 
standard,  that  he  could  not,  consistently  with  the  rules  of  an 
army,  retain  them  in  his  company,  but  was  obliged  to  transfer 
them,  much  against  their  wills,  to  other  captains.  The  result 
was,  that  after  retaining  in  his  own  company  as  many  men  as 
he  could  consistently,  he  filled  completely  the  company  of  his 
nephew.  Captain  Michael  Cresap,  and  also  partly  the  company 
of  Captain  Hancock  Lee.  This  little  army  of  about  400 
men,*  under  Major  McDonald,  penetrated  the  Indian  country 
as  far  as  the  Muskingum,  after  a  smart  little  skirmish  with  a 
party  of  Indians  under  Captain  Snake,  about  four  miles  on 
this  side  of  that  river,  in  which  battle  McDonald  lost  six  men 
and  killed  the  Indian  chief,  Captain  Snake. 

A  little  anecdote  here  will  go  to  show  what  expert  and  close 
shooters  we  had  in  those  days  among  our  riflemen :     When 

•These  men  were  collected  from  the  western  part  of  Virginia;  the  place  of  rendezvous  was 
Wheeling,  some  time  in  the  month  of  June,  1774.  They  went  down  the  river  in  boats  and 
canoes,  to  the  mouth  of  Captina,  from  thence  by  the  shortest  route  to  the  Wappatomica  town, 
about  sixteen  miles  below  the  present  Coshocton.  The  pilots  were  Jonathan  Zane,  Thomas 
Nicholson  and  Tady  Kelly.  About  six  miles  from  the  town  the  army  was  met  by  a  party  of 
Indians,  to  the  number  of  forty  or  fifty,  who  gave  a  slcirmish,  by  the  way  of  ambuscade,  in 
which  two  of  our  men  were  killed  and  eight  or  nine  wounded.  It  was  supposed  that  several 
more  of  them  were  killed,  but  they  were  carried  off. — Red  Men  of  the  Ohio  Valley,  by  J.  R. 
Dodge,  p.  161. 


70  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP. 

McDonald's  little  army  arrived  on  the  near  bank  of  the  Mus- 
kingum, and  while  lying  there,  an  Indian  on  the  opposite 
shore  got  behind  a  log  or  old  tree,  and  was  lifting  up  his  head 
occasionally  to  view  the  white  men's  army.  One  of  Captain 
Cresap's  men,  of  the  name  of  John  Hargiss,  seeing  this, 
loaded  his  rifle  with  two  balls,  and  placing  himself  on  the 
bank  of  the  river,  watched  the  opportunity  when  the  Indian 
raised  his  head,  and  firing  at  the  same  instant,  put  both  balls 
through  the  Indian's  neck  and  laid  him  dead,*  which  circum- 
stance, no  doubt,  had  great  influence  in  intimidating  the 
Indians. 

McDonald,  after  this,  had  another  running  fight  with  the 
Indians,  drove  them  from  their  towns,  burnt  them,  destroyed 
their  provisions,  and  returning  to  the  settlement,  discharged 
his  men. 

But  this  aifair  at  Wappatomica  and  expedition  of  McDon- 
ald f  was  only  the  prelude  to  more  important  and  efiicient 
measures.  It  was  well  understood  that  the  Indians  were  far 
from  being  subdued,  and  that  they  would  now  certainly  collect 
all  their  force,  and  to  the  utmost  of  their  power  return  the 
compliment  of  our  visit  to  their  territories. 

The  Governor  of  Virginia,  whatever  might  have  been  his 
views  as  to  ulterior  measures,  lost  no  time  in  preparing  to 
meet  this  storm.  He  sent  orders  immediately  to  Colonel 
Andrew  Lewis,  of  Augusta  county,  to  raise  an  army  of  about 

•  The  Indians  dragged  off  the  body,  and  buried  it  with  the  honors  of  war.  It  was  found 
the  next  morning,  and  scalped  by  Hargiss.  The  Muskingum  at  this  place  is  said  to  be  about 
two  hundred  yards  wide. 

t  McDonald,  agreeably  to  Danmore's  orders,  after  a  dreary  march  through  the  wilderness, 
had  rendezvoused  his  four  hundred  men  at  Wheeling  creels  in  June,  and,  from  this  place,  it  was 
resolved  to  invade  the  Indian  territory  on  the  head  waters  of  the  Muskingum,  and  to  destroy 
the  Wappatomica  towns.  The  results  of  this  expedition  were  not  of  remarkable  value  in  the 
campaign,  though  the  Indian  towns  were  destroyed  by  the  invaders  after  the  savages  had  fled. 
McDonald  and  his  men  were  harassed  by  the  foe,  and  being  short  of  provisions,  returned  with 
dispatch  to  Wheeling. — Discourte  by  Branlz  Hayer,  delivered  hrfore  the  Maryland  Hittorical 
Society,  p.  53. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  71 

one  thousand  men,  and  to  march  with  all  expedition  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Great  Kanawha,  on  the  Ohio  river,  where,  or  at 
some  other  point,  ho  would  join  him  after  he  had  got  together 
another  army,  which  he  intended  to  raise  in  the  northwestern 
counties  and  command  in  person.  Lewis  lost  no  time,  but 
collected  the  number  of  men  required,  and  marched  without 
delay  to  the  appointed  place  of  rendezvous. 

But  the  Earl  was  not  quite  so  rapid  in  his  movements, 
which  circumstance  the  eagle  eye  of  old  Cornstalk,  the  gen- 
eral of  the  Indian  army,  saw,  and  was  determined  to  avail 
himself  of,  foreseeing  that  it  would  be  much  easier  to  destroy 
two  separate  columns  of  an  invading  army  before  than  after 
their  junction  and  consolidation.  With  this  view,  he  marched 
with  all  expedition  to  attack  Lewis  before  he  was  joined  by 
the  Earl's  army  from  the  north — calculating  confidently,  no 
doubt,  that  if  he  could  destroy  Lewis  he  would  be  able  to 
give  a  good  account  of  the  army  under  the  Earl. 

The  plans  of  Cornstalk  appear  to  have  been  those  of  a  con- 
summate and  skillful  general,  and  the  prompt  and  rapid  exe- 
cution of  them  displayed  the  energy  of  a  warrior.  He  there- 
fore, without  loss  of  time,  attacked  Lewis  at  his  post.  The 
attack  was  sudden,  violent,  and  I  believe  unexpected ;  it  was 
nevertheless  well  fought,  very  obstinate,  and  of  long  continu- 
ance, and  as  both  parties  fought  with  rifles,  the  conflict  was 
dreadful ;  many  were  killed  on  both  sides,  and  the  contest 
was  only  finished  with  the  approach  of  night.  The  Virgin- 
ians, however,  kept  the  field,  but  lost  many  valuable  officers 
and  men,  and  among  the  rest  Colonel  Charles  Lewis,  brother 
to  the  Commander-in-Chief. 

Cornstalk  and  Blue  Jacket,  the  two  Indian  captains,  it  is 
said  performed  prodigies  of  valor ;  but  finding  at  length  all 
their  efforts  unavailing,  drew  off  their  men  in  good  order,  and 


72  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CRESAP. 

with  the  detei'mination  to  fight  no  more  if  peace  could  be 
obtained  upon  reasonable  terms. 

This  battle  of  Lewis's  opened  an  easy  and  unmolested  pas- 
sage for  Dunmore  through  the  Indian  country ;  *  but  it  is 
proper  to  remark  here,  however,  that  when  Dunmore  arrived 
with  his  wing  of  the  army  at  the  mouth  of  the  Hocking,  he 
sent  Captain  White-eyes,  a  Delaware  chief,  to  invite  the  In- 
dians to  a  treaty,  and  he  remained  stationary  at  that  place 
until  White-eyes  returned,  who  reported  that  the  Indians 
would  not  treat  about  peace.  I  presume,  in  order  of  time 
this  must  have  been  just  before  Lewis's  battle,  because  it  will 
appear  in  the  sequel  of  this  story  that  a  great  revolution  took 
place  in  the  minds  of  the  Indians  after  the  battle. 

Dunmore,  immediately  upon  the  report  of  White-eyes  that 
the  Indians  were  not  disposed  for  peace,  sent  an  express  to 
Colonel  Lewis  to  move  on  and  meet  him  near  Chillicothe,  on 
the  Scioto,  and  both  wings  of  the  army  were  put  in  motion. 
But  as  Dunmoref  approached  the  Indian  towns  he  was  met 
by  flags  from  the  Indians  demanding  peace,  to  which  he  ac- 
ceded, halted  his  army,  and  runners  were  sent  to  invite  the 
Indian  chiefs,  who  cheerfully  obeyed  the  summons  and  came 
to  the  treaty,  save  only  Logan,  the  great  orator,  who  refused 
to  come.  It  seems,  however,  that  neither  Dunmore  nor  the 
Indian  chiefs  considered  his  presence  of  much  importance,  for 

*  A  little  anecdote  will  prove  that  Dunmore  was  a  general,  and  also  the  high  estimation 
in  which  he  held  Captain  Crcsap.  While  the  army  was  marching  through  the  Indian  country 
Dunmore  ordered  Captain  Cresap  with  his  company  and  some  more  of  his  best  troops  in  tho 
rear.  This  displeased  Cresap,  and  he  expostulated  with  the  Earl,  who  replied,  that  the  reason 
of  this  arrangement  was,  because  he  knew  that  if  he  was  attacked  in  front  all  those  men 
would  soon  rush  forward  into  the  engagement.  This  reason — which  was,  by  the  by,  a  hand- 
some compliment — satisfied  Cresap  and  all  the  rear  guard. 

t  John  Gibson,  in  the  year  1774,  accompanied  Lord  Dunmore  on  the  expedition  against  the 
Shawanese  and  other  Indians  on  the  Scioto;  that  on  their  arrival  within  fifteen  miles  of  the 
towns  they  were  met  by  a  flag  and  a  ichite  man  by  the  name  of  Elliot,  who  informed  Lord 
Dunmore  that  the  chiefs  of  the  Shawanese  had  sent  to  request  his  lordship  to  halt  his  army  and 
lend  in  some  person  who  understood  their  language ;  that  this  deponent,  at  the  request  of  Lard 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  7S 

they  went  to  work  and  finished  the  treaty  without  him — refer- 
ring, I  believe,  some  unsettled  points  for  future  discussion  at 
a  treaty  to  be  held  the  ensuing  Summer  or  Fall,  at  Pittsburg. 
This  treaty — the  articles  of  which  I  never  saw,  nor  do  I  know 
that  they  were  ever  recorded— concluded  Dunmore's  wal*,  in 
September  or  October,  1774.  After  the  treaty  Avas  over,  old 
Cornstalk,  the  Shawanee  chief,  accompanied  Dunmore's  army 
until  they  reached  the  mouth  of  Hocking,  on  the  Ohio ;  and 
what  was  most  singular,  he  rather  made  his  home  in  Captain 
Cresap's  tent,  with  whom  he  continued  on  terms  of  the  most 
friendly  familiarity.  I  consider  this  circumstance  as  positive 
proof  that  the  Indians  themselves  neither  considered  Captain 
Cresap  the  murderer  of  Logan's  family  nor  the  cause  of  the 
war.  It  appears,  also,  that  at  this  place  the  Earl  of  Dunmore 
received  dispatches  from  England.  Doddridge  says  he  re- 
ceived these  on  his  march  out. 

But  we  ought  to  have  mentioned  in  its  proper  place,  that 
after  the  treaty  between  Dunmore  and  the  Indians  commenced 
near  Chillicothc,  Lewis  arrived  with  his  army  and  encamped 
two  or  three  miles  from  Dunmore,  which  so  alarmed  the 
Indians,  as  they  thought  he  was  so  much  irritated  at  losing 
so  many  men  in  the  late  battle  that  he  would  not  easily  be 
pacified ;  nor  would  they  be  satisfied  until  Dunmore  and  old 
Cornstalk  went  into  Lewis's  camp  to  converse  with  him. 

Dr.  Doddridge  represents  this  affair  in  different  shades  of 

Dunmore,  and  the  whole  of  the  officers  with  him,  went  in;  that  on  his  arrival  at  the  towns, 
Logan,  the  Indian,  came  to  where  this  deponent  was  sitting  with  the  Cornstallc,  and  the  other 
chiefs  of  the  Shawancse,  and  asked  him  to  walli  oat  with  him;  that  they  went  in  to  a  copse  of 
wood  when  they  sat  down,  when  Logan,  after  shedding  abandancc  of  tears,  delivered  to  him 
the  speech,  nearlg  as  related  by  Mr.  Jefferson  in  his  Notes  on  the  State  of  Virginia;  that  he  the 
deponent,  toM  him  then  that  it  was  not  Colonel  Crksap  who  had  murdered  his  relatives,  and 
although  his  son.  Captain  Michael  Cresap,  was  with  the  party  who  had  killed  a  Shawaneee  chief 
and  other  Indians,  yet  he  was  not  i>resent  when  nis  bklatives  were  killed  at  Baker's,  near  the 
mouth  of  Yellow  Creek,  on  the  Ohio;  that  this  deponent,  on  his  return  to  camp,  delivered  the 
speech  to  Lord  Dunmore;  and  that  the  murders  perpetrated  as  above  were  considered  as 
ultimately  the  cause  of  the  war  of  1774,  commonly  called  Cbesaps  wab. — Appendix  to  J}rantt 
Maytr't  Addresi  b^ore  the  Maryland  Ilislorical  Society,  p.  76. 


74  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJS^  CRESAP. 

light  from  this  statement.  I  can  only  say,  I  have  my  inform- 
ation from  an  officer  who  was  present  at  the  time. 

But  it  is  time  to  remind  the  reader  that,  altlaougli  I  have 
wandered  into  such  a  minute  detail  of  the  various  occurrences, 
fact?  and  circumstances  of  Dunmore's  war — and  all  of  which 
as  a  history  may  be  interesting  to  the  present  and  especially 
to  the  rising  generation — yet  it  is  proper  to  remark  that  I 
have  two  leading  objects  chiefly  in  view  :  First,  to  convince 
the  world  that,  whoever  and  whatever  might  be  the  cause  of 
the  Indian  war  of  1774,  it  was  not  Captain  Cresap ;  secondly, 
that  from  the  aspect  of  our  political  affairs  at  that  period,  and 
from  the  known  hostility  of  Dunmore  to  the  American  Revo- 
lution, and  withal  from  the  subsequent  conduct  of  Dunmore, 
and  the  dreadful  Indian  war  that  commenced  soon  after  the 
beginning  of  our  war  with  Great  Britain — I  say,  from  all 
these  circumstances  we  have  infinitely  stronger  reason  to  sus- 
pect Dunmore  than  Cresap ;  and  I  may  say  that  the  dis- 
patches above  mentioned,  that  were  received  by  Dunmore  at 
Hocking,  although  after  the  treaty,  yet  were  calculated  to 
create  suspicion.* 

But  if,  as  we  suppose,  that  Dunmore  was  secretly  at  the 
bottom  of  this  Indian  war,  it  is  evident  that  he  could  not 
with  propriety  appear  personally  in  a  business  of  this  kind ; 
and  we  have  seen,  and  shall  see,  how  effectually  his  sub-gov- 

*In  Burk's  History  of  Virginia,  vol.  4,  p.  74,  the  reader  will  find  a  further  development  of 
Connoly's  subsequent  conduct  and  hostility  to  American  interests,  as  disclosed  in  the  plot 
formed  by  Lord  Dunmore  to  bring  the  Indian  tribes  of  the  West  into  the  Revolutionary  con- 
flict. He  had  been  commissioned  by  the  Earl  as  a  Lieutenant  Colonel  Commandant.  [4th 
Burk,  Appendix  4.]  The  joint  plans  of  these  loyal  Britons  show  the  great  probability  that 
there  was,  in  truth,  a  scheme  in  embryo  to  crush  the  American  Revolution  at  its  birth,  by  a 
union  between  the  Indians,  negroes  and  loyalists,  and  by  the  excitement  of  an  Indian  war  on 
the  frontier,  which  would  compel  the  settlers  to  think  of  self-protection  against  savages, 
instead  of  demanding  from  England  the  security  of  rights  and  liberty,  at  the  point  of  the 
sword  or  muzzle  of  the  rifle.  By  a  letter  from  Lord  Dartmouth  to  Lord  Dunmore,  dated  at 
Whitehall  on  the  2d  August,  1775,  it  appears  that,  in  the  previous  May,  Dunmore  had  commu- 
nicated to  the  home  government  his  vile  plan  of  raising  the  Indians  and  negroes  to  join  the 
miscalled  loyalists  iu  au  onslaught  against  tho  Americans. — lirantz  Moj/ers  Address,  p.  41. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CRESAP.  75 

ernor  played  his  part  between  the  Virginians  and  Pennsylva- 
nians,  and  it  now  remains  for  us  to  examine  how  far  the 
conduct  of  this  man  (Connoly)  will  bear  us  out  in  the  suppo- 
sition that  there  was  also  some  foul  play,  some  dark,  in- 
triguing work  to  embroil  the  western  country  in  an  Indian 
war. 

And  I  think  it  best,  now,  as  we  have  introduced  this  man 
Connoly  again,  to  give  the  reader  a  short,  condensed  history 
of  his  whole  proceedings,  that  we  may  have  him  in  full  view 
at  once.  We  have  already  presented  the  reader  with  his 
circular  letter,  and  its  natural  results  and  consequences,  and 
also  with  his  insulting  letter  and  mandatory  order  to  Captain 
Cresap  at  Catfish's  camp,  to  dismiss  his  men  and  go  home ; 
and  that  the  reader  may  now  see  a  little  of  the  character  of 
this  man,  and  understand  him — if  it  is  possible  to  understand 
him — I  present  him  with  the  copy  of  a  letter  to  Captain 
Reece : 

"As  I  have  received  intelligence  that  Logan,*  a  Mingo 
"Indian,  with  about  twenty  Shawanese  and  others,  were  to 
"set  off  for  war  last  Monday,  and  I  have  reason  to  believe 
"that  they  may  come  upon  the  inhabitants  about  Wheeling, 

*  One  of  the  incidents  attending  this  incursion  deserves  to  be  mentioned,  as  illustrating  the 
character  of  Logan.  While  hovering,  with  his  followers,  around  the  skirts  of  a  thick  settle- 
mentjhe  suddenly  came  within  view  of  a  small  field,  recently  cleared,  in  which  three  men 
were  pulling  flax.  Causing  the  greater  part  of  his  men  to  remain  where  they  were,  Logan, 
together  with  two  others,  crept  up  within  long  shot  of  the  white  men  and  fired.  One  man  fell 
dead,  the  remaining  two  attempted  to  escape.  The  elder  of  the  fugitives  (Hellew,)  was  quickly 
overtaken  and  made  prisoner  by  Logan's  associates,  while  Logan  himself,  having  thrown  down 
his  rifle,  pressed  forward  alone  in  pursuit  of  the  younger  of  the  white  men,  whose  name  wag 
Robinson.  The  contest  was  keen  for  several  hundred  yards,  but  Robinson,  unluckily,  looking 
around,  in  order  to  have  a  view  of  his  pursuer,  ran  against  a  tree  with  such  violence  as  com- 
pletely to  stun  him,  and  render  him  insensible  for  several  minutes. 

Upon  recovering;  he  found  himself  bound  and  lying  upon  his  back,  while  Logan  sat  by  his 
side,  with  unmoved  gravity,  awaiting  his  recovery.  He  was  then  compelled  to  accompany 
them  in  their  further  attempts  upon  the  settlements,  and  in  the  course  of  a  few  days,  was 
marched  off  with  great  rapidity  for  their  villages  in  Ohio.  During  the  march,  Logan  remained 
silent  and  melancholy,  probably  brooding  over  the  total  destruction  of  his  family.  The 
prisoners,  however,  were  treated  kindly,  until  they  arrived  at  an  Indian   village   upon   the 

7 

4"     ;'    (■■•   1; 

OlllMIIU 


76  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CBESAP. 

"I  hereby  order,  require  and  command  you,  Avith  all  the 
"men  you  can  raise,  immediately  to  march  and  join  any  of 
^'the  companies  already  out  and  under  the  pay  of  the  Govern- 
'■'■ment,  and,  upon  joining  your  parties  together,  scour  the 
"frontier  and  become  a  barrier  to  our  settlements,  and  en- 
"deavor  to  fall  in  with  their  tracks  and  pursue  them,  using 
"your  utmost  endeavors  to  chastise  them  as  open  and  avowed 
"enemies. 

"I  am,  sir,  your  most  humble  servant, 

"Dorset  Pentecost,  for 

"JOHN  CONNOLY. 
''Captain  Joel  JReece:     Use  all  expedition.     May  27,  1774." 

Now,  here  is  a  fellow  for  you.  A  very  short  time  before 
this,  perhaps  two  or  three  days  before  the  date  of  this  letter, 
Captain  Cresap,  who  had  a  fine  company  of  volunteers,  was 
insulted,  ordered  to  dismiss  his  men  and  go  home ;  and 
indeed  it  appears  from  one  expression  in  this  letter — namely, 
''the  companies  who  are  already  ouV — that  these  companies 
must  have  been  actually  out  at  the  very  time  Cresap  was 
ordered  home. 

Muskingum.  When  within  a  mile  of  the  town,  Logan  became  more  animated,  and  uttered  the 
"scalp  hallo"  several  times,  in  the  most  terrrible  tones.  The  never  failing  scene  of  insult  and 
torture  then  began.  Crowds  flocked  out  to  meet  them,  and  a  line  was  formed  for  the 
gauntlet. 

Logan  took  no  share  in  the  cruel  game,  but  did  not  attempt  to  repress  it.  He,  however, 
gave  Robinson,  whom  he  regarded  as  his  own  prisoner,  some  directions  as  to  the  best  means  of 
reaching  the  council  house  in  safety,  and  displayed  some  anxiety  lor  his  safe  arrival,  while 
poor  Hellew  was  left  in  total  ignorance,  and  permitted  to  struggle  forward  as  he  best  could, 
liobinson,  under  the  patronage  of  Logan,  escaped  with  a  few  slight  bruises,  but  Hellew,  not 
knowing  where  to  run,  was  dreadfully  mangled,  and  would  probably  have  been  killed  upon 
the  spot,  had  not  Robinson  (not  without  great  risk  on  his  own  part)  seized  him  by  the  hand 
and  dragged  him  into  the  council  house. 

On  the  following  morning,  a  council  was  called  in  order  to  determine  their  fate,  in  which 
Logan  held  a  conspicuous  superiority  over  all  who  were  assembled.  Helltw's  destiny  came 
first  under  discussion,  and  was  quickly  decided  by  an  almost  unanimous  vote  of  adoption. 
Robinson's  was  most  difficult  to  determine.  A  majority  of  the  council  (partly  influenced  by  a 
natural  thirst  for  vengeance  upon  at  least  one  object,  partly,  perhaps,  by  a  lurking  jealousy  of 
the  most  imposing  superiority  of  Logan's  character,)  were  obstinately  bent  upon  putting  him 
to  death.     Logan  spoke  for  nearly   an   hour  upon   the  question  |  and  if  Robinson   is   to  be 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ\r  CRESAP.  77 

Now,  if  any  man  is  skilled  in  the  art  of  legerdemain,  let 
him  unriddle  this  enigma  if  he  can. 

But,  as  so  many  important  facts  crowd  together  at  this 
eventful  period,  it  may  be  satisfactory  to  the  reader,  and 
have  a  tendency  more  clearly  to  illustrate  the  various  scenes 
interwoven  in  the  thread  of  this  history,  to  present  to  his 
view  a  chronological  list  of  these  facts  ;  and  I  think  the  first 
that  deserves  notice  is  Connoly's  circular  letter,  which  we 
date  the  25th  day  of  April ;  secondly,  the  two  men  killed  in 
Butler's  canoe  we  know  was  the  1st  or  2d  day  of  May ; 
thirdly,  the  affair  at  Yellow  Creek  was  on  the  3d  or  4th  day 
of  May ;  fourthly,  the  Indians  killed  in  the  canoe  above 
Wheeling  the  5th  or  6th  day  of  May ;  fifthly,  the  skirmish 
with  the  Indians  on  the  river  Ohio  about  the  8th  or  10th  day 
of  May ;  after  which  Captain  Cresap,  returning  home,  raised 
a  company  of  volunteers  and  returned  to  Catfish's  camp  about 
the  25th  of  May.  Indeed,  this  fact  speaks  for  itself ;  it  could 
not  be  earlier,  when  it  is  considered  that  he  rode  home  from 
the  Ohio,  a  distance  of  about  140  miles,  raised  a  company  and 
marched  back  as  far  as  Catfish,  through  bad  roads,  near  120 

believed,  with  an  energy,  copiousness,  and  dignity,  which  would  not  have  disgraced  Henry 
himself.  He  appeared  at  no  loss  for  either  words  or  ideas ;  his  tones  wore  deep  and  musical, 
and  were  heard  by  the  assembly  with  the  silence  of  death.  AH,  however,  was  vain.  Rob- 
inson was  condemned,  and  within  an  hour  afterward,  was  fastened  to  the  stake.  Logan  stood 
apart  from  the  crowd  with  his  arms  folded,  and  his  eyes  fixed  upon  the  scene  with  an  air  of 
stern  displeasure. 

When  the  fire  was  about  to  be  applied,  he  suddenly  strode  into  the  circle,  pushing  aside  those 
who  stood  in  the  way,  and  advancing  straight  up  to  the  etiike,  cut  the  cords  with  his  tom- 
ahawk, and  taking  the  prisoner  by  the  hand,  led  him  with  a  determ'ned  air  to  his  own 
wigwam.  The  action  was  so  totally  unexpected,  and  the  air  of  the  chief  so  determined,  that 
he  had  reached  the  door  of  his  wigwam  before  any  one  ventured  to  interfere.  Much  dis- 
satisfaction was  then  expressed,  and  threatening  symptoms  of  a  tumult  appeared ;  but  so  deeply 
rooted  was  his  authority,  that  in  a  few  hours  all  was  quiet,  and  Robinson,  without  opposition, 
was  permitted  to  enter  an  Indian  family.  He  remained  with  Logan  until  the  treaty  of  Fort 
Pitt,  in  the  autumn  of  the  ensuing  year,  when  he  returned  to  Virginia.  He  ever  retained  the 
most  unbounded  admiration  for  Logan,  and  repeatedly  declared  that  his  countenance,  when 
speaking,  was  the  most  striking,  varied,  and  impressive,  that  he  ever  beheld.  And  when  it  is 
recollected  that  he  had  often  heard  Lee  and  Henry,  in  all  their  glory,  the  compliment  must  be 
regarded  as  a  very  high  one. — Appendix  to  Weitem  Adventure,  by  John  A.  Me  Clung,  p.  278. 


78  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CBESAP. 

miles — and  all,  agreeable  to  my  statement,  in  seventeen  days. 
Then  it  is  evident  he  was  not  at  Catfish's  camp  sooner  than 
the  2oth  of  May ;  and  if  so,  he  was  ordered  home  at  the  very 
time  when  scouts  were  out,  and  the  settlement  threatened 
with  an  attack  from  the  Indians,  as  is  manifest  from  Connoly's 
own  letter  to  Captain  Reece,  dated  May  27,  1774. 

But  the  hostility  of  Connoly  to  Captain  Cresap  was  unre- 
mitting, and  without  measure  or  decency ;  for  on  the  14th  of 
July,  of  the  same  year,  we  find  one  of  the  most  extraordinary, 
crooked,  malignant,  Grubstreet  epistles  that  ever  appeared 
upon  paper.     But  let  us  see  it: 

"Fort  Dunmore,  July  14,  1774. 
"Your  whole  proceedings,  so  far  as  relate  to  our  disturb- 
'  ances  with  the  Indians,  have  been  of  a  nature  so  extraord- 
inary, that  I  am  much  at  a  loss  to  account  for  the  cause; 
'but  when  I  consider  your  late  steps,  tending  directly  to 
'ruin  the  service  here,  by  inveigling  away  the  militia  of  this 
'  garrison  by  your  preposterous  proposals,  and  causing  them 
'thereby  to  embezzle  the  arms  of  Grovernment,  purchased  at 
'an  enormous  expense,  and  at  the  same  time  to  reflect  infinite 
'  disgrace  upon  the  honor  of  this  colony  by  attacking  a  set  of 
people  which,  notwithstanding  the  injury  they  have  sus- 
'tained  by  you  in  the  loss  of  their  people,  yet  continue  to 
'rely  upon  the  professions  of  friendship  which  I  have  made, 
'and  deport  themselves  accordingly — I  say,  when  I  consider 
'these  matters  I  must  conclude  that  you  are  actuated  by  a 
'spirit  of  discord  so  prejudicial  to  the  peace  and  good  order 
'of  society,  that  the  conduct  calls  for  justice,  and  due  execu- 
'tion  thereof  can  only  check.  I  must  once  again  order  you 
'to  desist  from  your  pernicious  designs,  and  require  of  you,  if 
'you  are  an  officer  of  militia,  to  send  the  deserters  from  this 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  79 

"place  back  with  all  expedition,  tliat  they  may  be  dealt  with 
"  as  their  crimes  merit. 

"I  am,  sir,  yoiir  servant, 

"JOHN  CONNOLY." 

This  letter,  although  short,  contains  so  many  things  for 
remark  and  animadversion,  that  we  scarcely  know  where  to 
begin.  It  exhibits,  however,  a  real  picture  of  the  man,  and 
a  mere  superficial  glance  at  its  phraseology  will  prove  that  he 
is  angry,  and  his  nerves  in  a  tremor.  It  is,  in  fact,  an  inco- 
herent jumble  of  words  and  sentences,  all  in  the  disjunctive. 
But  it  is  a  perfect  original  and  anomaly  in  the  epistolary  line, 
and  contains  in  itself  internal  marks  of  genuine  authenticity. 

The  first  thing  in  this  letter  that  calls  for  our  attention,  is 
the  language  he  uses  toward  the  people  he  calls  "  militia 
deserters.''  "That  they  may  be  dealt  with,"  he  says,  "as 
their  crimes  merit."  Now,  I  pray  you,  who  were  those 
people  ?  Doubtless  the  respectable  farmers  and  others  in 
the  vicinity  of  Pittsburg.  And  what  does  this  Mogul  of  the 
West  intend  to  do  with  them?  Why,  hang  them,  to  be 
sure,  for  this  is  military  law.  But  the  true  state  of  this  case 
doubtlef-S  is,  that  these  militia  considered  themselves  free 
men ;  that  they  were  not  well  pleased  either  with  Connoly  or 
garrison  duty ;  that,  viewing  their  country  in  danger,  and 
their  wives  and  children  exposed  to  savage  barbarity,  pre- 
ferred more  active  service,  and  joined  the  standard  of  Captain 
Cresap.  And  is  this  a  new  thing,  or  reprehensible  ?  How 
often  do  our  militia  enter  into  the  regular  army,  and  who 
ever  dreamed  of  hanging  them  for  so  doing? 

But  secondly,  we  say,  it  is  possible  Captain  Cresap  did  not 
know  from  whence  these  men  came;  and  if  he  did,  he  deserves 
no  censure  for  receiving  them.     And  as  to  the  charge  of  in- 


80  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CRESAP. 

veigling  away  the  militia  from  the  garrison,  we  know  this 
must  be  j)ositively  false,  because  he  was  not  in  Pittsburg  in 
the  year  1774,  either  personally  or  by  proxy. 

As  to  the  general  charge  against  Captain  Cresap  of  attack- 
ing the  Indians,  and  the  great  injury  he  had  done  them,  I 
need  only  say,  this  charge  is  refuted  again  and  again  in  the 
course  of  this  history ;  and  its  unparalleled  impudence,  espe- 
cially at  the  date  of  this  letter,  merits  the  deepest  contempt. 
But  the  most  extraordinary  feature  in  this  most  extraordinary 
letter  is  couched  in  these  words,  namely:  "  That  the  Indians 
relied  upon  the  expressions  of  friendship  he  made  them,  and  de- 
ported themselves  accordingly.''^ 

Be  astonished,  oh  ye  nations  of  the  earth,  and  all  ye  kin- 
dreds of  the  people,  at  this  !  For  be  it  remembered  that  this 
is  the  14th  day  of  July,  1774,  when  Connoly  has  the  unblush- 
ing impudence  to  assert  that  the  Indians  relied  upon  his 
expressions  of  friendship  and  deported  themselves  accord- 
ingly, when  at  this  very  time  we  were  engaged  in  the  hottest 
part  of  Dunmore's  war;  when  Dunmore  himself  was  raising 
an  army,  and  personally  on  his  way  to  take  the  command ; 
when  Lewis  was  on  his  march  from  Augusta  county,  Virginia, 
to  the  Ohio ;  and  when  Cornstalk,*  with  his  Indian  army, 
was  in  motion  to  meet  Lewis  ;   and  when  Captain  Cresap  was 

*  Cornstalk  and  Elenipsico,  his  son,  were  killed  during  a  friendly  visit  to  Point  Pleasant,  in 
the  summer  of  1775,  only  a  few  months  after  the  action.  The  circumstances  attending  the 
affair  are  thus  related  by  Colonel  Stewart : 

"  A  Captain  Arbuckle  commanded  the  garrison  of  the  fort  erected  at  Point  Pleasant  after 
the  battle  fought  by  General  Lewis  with  the  Indians  at  that  place,  in  October,  1774.  In  the 
succeeding  year,  when  the  Revolutionary  war  had  commenced,  the  agents  of  Great  Britain  ex- 
erted themselves  to  excite  the  Indians  to  hostility  against  the  United  States.  The  mass  of  the 
Shawnees  entertained  a  strong  animosity  against  the  Americans.  But,  two  of  their  chiefs, 
Cornstalk  and  Red  Hawk,  not  participating  in  that  animosity,  visited  the  garrison  at  the  Point, 
where  Arbuckle  continued  to  command.  Colonel  Stewart  was  at  the  post  in  the  character  of 
a  volunteer,  and  was  an  eye-witness  of  the  facts  which  he  relates.  Cornstalk  represented  his 
unwillingness  to  take  a  part  in  the  war,  on  the  British  side ;  but  stated,  that  his  nation,  except 
himself  and  his  tribe,  were  determined  on  war  with  us,  and  he  supposed  that  he  and  his  people 
would  be  compelled  to  go  with  the  stream. 

"On  this  intimation,  Arbuckle  resolved  to  detain  the  two  chiefs,  and  a  third  Shawnee  who 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  GBESAP.  81 

actually  raising  a  company  to  join  Dunmore  when  he  arrived. 
And  it  was  while  engaged  in  this  business  that  he  received 
this  letter  from  Connoly. 

Now,  if  any  man  can  account  for  this  strange  and  extra- 
ordinary letter  upon  rational  principles,  let  him  do  so  if  he 
can ;  he  has  more  ingenuity  and  a  more  acute  discernment 
than  I  have. 

Soon  after  receiving  this  letter,  Captain  Cresap  left  his 
company  on  the  west  side  of  the  mountain  and  rode  home, 
where  he  met  the  Earl  of  Dunmore  at  his  own  house,  and 
where  he  (the  Earl)  remained  a  few  days  in  habits  of  friend- 
ship and  cordiality  with  the  family.  One  day,  while  the  Earl 
was  at  his  house,  Captain  Cresap,  finding  him  alone,  intro- 
duced the  subject  of  Connoly's  ill  treatment — with  a  view,  I 
suppose,  of  obtaining  redress,  or  of  exposing  the  character  of 
a  man  he  knew  high  in  the  estimation  and  confidence  of  the 
Earl.  But  what  effect,  suppose  ye,  had  this  remonstrance  on 
the  Earl  ?  I'll  tell  you :  it  lulled  him  into  a  profound  sleep  ! 
Aye,  aye — thinks  I  to  myself,  young  as  I  then  was — this  will 
not  do.  Captain ;  there  are  wheels  within  wheels,  dark  things 
behind  the  curtain,  between  this  noble  Earl  and  his  sub- 
satellite. 

Captain  Cresap  was  himself  open,  candid  and  unsuspicious, 

came  with  them  to  the  fort,  as  hostages,  under  the  expectation  of  preventing  thereby  any 
hostile  efforts  of  the  nation.  On  the  day  before  these  unfortunate  Indians  fell  Tictims  to  the 
fury  of  the  garrison,  Elenipsico,  the  son  of  Cornstallt,  repaired  to  Point  Pleasant  for  the  pur- 
pose of  visiting  his  father,  and  on  the  next  day,  two  men  belonging  to  the  garrison,  whose 
names  were  Uamilton  and  Gillmore,  crossed  the  Kanawha,  intending  to  hunt  in  the  woods 
beyond  it.  On  their  return  from  bunting,  some  Indians  who  had  come  to  view  the  position  at 
the  Point,  concealed  themselves  in  the  weeds  near  the  mouth  of  the  Kanawha,  and  killed  Gill- 
more  while  endeavoring  to  pass  them.  Colonel  Stewart  and  Captain  Arbuckle  were  standing 
on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river  at  that  time,  and  were  surprised  that  a  gun  had  been  fired  so 
near  the  fort,  in  violation  of  orders  which  had  been  issued  inhibiting  such  an  act. 

"Hamilton  ran  down  the  bank,  and  cried  out  that  Gillmore  was  killed.  Captain  Hall  com- 
manded the  company  to  which  Gillmore  belonged.  His  men  leaped  into  a  canoe,  and  hastened 
to  the  relief  of  Hamilton.  They  brought  the  body  of  Gillmore  weltering  in  blood,  and  the 
head  scalped,  across  the  river.  The  canoe  had  scarcely  reached  the  shore,  when  Hall's  men 
cried  out,  'let  us  kill  the  Indians  in  the  fort.'     Captain  Hall  placed  himself  in  front  of  big 


82  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJf  CRESAP. 

and  I  do  not  know  what  he  thought ;  but  I  well  remember 
my  own  thoughts  upon  this  occasion. 

But  that  we  may,  as  nearly  as  possible,  finish  our  business 
with  Connoly,  although  we  must  thereby  get  a  little  ahead  of 
our  history ;  yet,  as  already  remarked,  we  think  it  less  per- 
plexing to  the  reader  than  to  give  him  here  a  little  and  there 
a  little  of  this  extraordinary  character. 

We  find,  then,  that  in  the  year  1775,  Connoly,  finding  that 
his  sheepskin  could  not  cover  him  much  longer,  threw  oif  the 
mask  and  fled  to  his  friend  Dunmore,  who  also,  about  the 
same  time,  was  obliged  to  take  sanctuary  on  board  a  British 
ship-of-war  in  the  Chesapeake  Bay ;  from  this  place — i.  e., 
Portsmouth,  in  Virginia — Connoly  wrote  the  following  letter 
to  Colonel  John  Gibson,  who,  no  doubt,  he  supposed  possessed 
sentiments  somewhat  congenial  with  his  own.  It  happened, 
however,  that  he  was  mistaken  in  his  man,  for  Gibson  ex- 
posed him,  and  put  his  letter  into  the  hands  of  the  commis- 
sioners who  were  holding  a  treaty  with  the  Indians.  But  let 
us  see  this  letter.     It  is  dated — 

"Portsmouth,  August  9,  1775. 
"Bear  Sir:     I  have  safely  arrived  here,  and  am  happy  in 
"the  greatest  degree  at  having  so  fortunately  escaped   the 

soldiers,  and  they  ascended  the  river's  bank,  pale  with  rage,  and  carrying  their  loaded  firelocks 
in  their  bands.  Colonel  Stewart  and  Captain  Arbuckle  exerted  themselves  in  rain  to  dissuade 
these  men,  exasperated  to  madness  by  the  spectacle  of  Gillmore's  corpse,  from  the  cruel  deed 
which  they  contemplated.  They  cocked  their  guns,  threatening  those  gentlemen  with  instant 
death  if  they  did  not  desist,  and  rushed  into  the  fort. 

"  The  interpreter's  wife,  who  had  been  a  captive  among  the  Indians  and  felt  an  affection  for 
them,  ran  to  their  cabin  and  informed  them  that  Hall's  soldiers  were  advancing,  with  the  in- 
tention of  taking  their  lives,  because  they  believed  that  the  Indians  who  killed  Gillmore  had 
come  with  Cornstalk's  son  on  the  preceding  day.  This  the  young  man  solemnly  denied,  and 
averred  that  he  knew  nothing  of  them.  His  father,  perceiving  that  Elenipsico  was  in  great 
agitation,  encouraged  him  and  advised  him  not  to  fear.  '  If  the  Great  Spirit,'  said  he,  'has  sent 
yon  here  to  be  killed,  you  ought  to  die  like  a  man  I'  As  the  soldiers  approached  the  door, 
Cornstalk  rose  to  meet  tliem,  and  received  seven  or  eight  balls,  which  instantly  terminated  his 
existence.  His  son  was  shot  dead  in  the  seat  which  he  occupied.  The  Red  Hawk  made  an  at- 
tempt to  climb  the  chimney,  but  fell  by  the  fire  of  some  of  Hall's  men." — Appendix  lo  Western 
Adventure,  by  John  A.  Mc  Clung,  p.  286. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  83 

"narrow  inspection  of  my  enemies — the  enemies  to  their 
"country's  good  order  and  government.  I  should  esteem 
"myself  defective  in  point  of  friendship  toward  you,  should  I 
"neglect  to  caution  you  to  avoid  an  over-zealous  exertion  of 
"what  is  now  ridiculously  called  'patriotic  spirit;'  but  on 
"the  contrary,  to  deport  yourself  with  that  moderation  for 
"which  you  have  always  been  so  remarkable,  and  which 
"must  in  this  instance  tend  to  your  honor  and  advantage. 
"You  may  rest  assured  from  me,  sir,  that  the  greatest  una- 
"nimity  now  prevails  at  home,  and  the  iHnovating  spirit 
"among  us  here  is  looked  upon  as  ungenerous  and  undutiful ; 
"and  that  the  utmost  exertions  of  the  powers  in  Government 
"(if  necessary)  will  be  used  to  convince  the  infatuated  people 
"of  their  folly. 

"I  would,  I  assure  you,  sir,  give  you  such  convincing  proofs 
"of  what  I  assert,  and  from  which  every  reasonable  person 
"may  conclude  the  effects,  that  nothing  but  madness  could 
"operate  upon  a  man  so  far  as  to  overlook  his  duty  to  the 
"present  Constitution,  and  to  form  unwarrantable  associations 
"with  enthusiasts,  whose  ill-timed  folly  must  draw  down  upon 
"them  inevitable  destruction.  His  Lordship  desires  you  to 
"present  his  hand  to  Captain  White-eyes,*  and  to  assure  him 
"he  is  sorry  he  had  not  the  pleasure  of  seeing  him  at  the 
"treaty,  [a  treaty  held  by  Connoly  in  his  name,]  or  that  the 
"situation  of  affairs  prevented  him  from  coming  down. 

"Believe  me,  dear  sir,  that  I  have  no  motive  in  writing 
"sentiments  thus  to  you,  further  than  to  endeavor  to  steer  you 
"clear  of  the  misfortunes  which  I  am  confident  must  involve 
"but  unhappily  too  many.  I  have  sent  you  an  address  from 
"the  people  of  Great  Britain  to  the  people  of  America,  and 
"desire  you  to  consider  it  attentively,  which  will,  I  flatter 

*  A  Delaware  Indian  Chief. 


84  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIM  CRESAP. 

"myself,  convince  you  of  the  idleness  of  many  determinations, 

"and  the  absurdity  of  an  intended  slavery. 

"Grive  my  love  to  George,  [his  brother,  afterward  a  Colonel 

"in  the  Revolutionary  war,]  and  tell  him  he  shall  hear  from 

"me,  and  I  hope  to  his  advantage.     Interpret  the  inclosed 

"speech  to  Captain  White-eyes,  from  his  Lordship.     Be  pre- 

"  vailed  upon  to  shun  the  popular  error,  and  judge  for  your- 

"self,  as  a  good  subject,  and  expect  the  rewards  due  to  your 

"services.     I  am,  &c., 

"JOHN  CONNOLY." 

The  inclosed  speech  to  White-eyes  we  shall  see  in  its 
proper  place,  after  we  have  finished  our  business  with  Con- 
noly.  It  seems,  then,  that  either  a  mistaken  notion  of  his 
own  influence,  or  greatly  deceived  by  his  calculations  on  the 
support  of  Colonel  Gibson,  his  brother  and  friends,  or  in 
obedience  to  the  solicitations  of  his  friend  Dunmore,  he  under- 
takes, incog.,  a  hazardous  journey  from  the  Chesapeake  Bay 
to  Pittsburg,  in  company,  if  I  recollect  right,  with  a  certain 
Dr.  Smith;  but  our  Dutch  republicans  of  Fredericktown, 
Maryland,  smelt  a  rat,  seized  and  imprisoned  him*  in  limbo, 
from  whence  he  was  removed  to  the  Philadelphia  jail,  where 
we  will  leave  him  awhile  to  cool.  But  let  us  now  look  at 
these  two  characters.  Connoly  uses  every  effort  to  destroy 
us  and  subvert  our  liberties,  and  Cresap  marches  to  Boston 
with  a  company  of  riflemen  to  defend  his  country.  If,  then, 
men's  actions  afford  us  the  true  and  best  criterion  to  judge  of 

*  The  original  papers  relative  to  the  arrest  of  Connoly  and  bis  incendiary  companions  in 
Maryland  in  1775  are  recorded  in  the  MS.  "Journal  of  the  Committee  of  Observation  of  the 
Middle  District  of  Fredericli  County,"  under  date  of  21  Nov.,  1775,  in  the  possession  of  the 
Maryland  Historical  Society.  This  record  gives  1st :  the  letter  from  Jolin  Connoly  to  John 
Gibson,  dated  at  Portsmouth,  Aug.  9,  1775  ;  2d  :  A  letter  from  Lord  Dunmore  to  the  Indian 
Captain  White-eyes.  It  contains  a  loving  message  to  "  his  brother"  The  Cornstalk — (the  same 
who  had  fought  at  Point  Pleasant) ;  3d :  Proposals  to  General  Gage  for  raising  an  army  to  the 
Westward  for  the  purpose  of  effectually  obstructing  a  communication  between  the  Southern 
and  Northern  Governments.  One  of  the  chief  proposals  was  to  raise  the  Indians. —  Braniz 
Mayn't  Addrtts,  p.  41. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  86 

their  merit  or  demerit,  we  can  be  at  no  loss  to  decide  on  this 
occasion. 

Nor  can  there  be  any  doubt  that  this  man,  so  full  of  tender 
sensibility  and  sympathy  for  the  sufferings  of  the  Indians, 
when  arrested  with  his  colleague,  Smith,  in  Frederick,  had  a 
Pandora's  box  full  of  firebrands,  arrows  and  death,  to  scatter 
among  the  inhabitants  of  the  West. 

But  it  is  probable  the  reader,  as  well  as  the  writer,  is  weary 
of  such  company.  We  therefore  bid  him  adieu,  and  once 
more  attend  His  Excellency  the  Governor  of  Virginia,  whom 
we  left,  I  think,  on  board  a  British  sloop-of-war  in  the  Chesa- 
peake Bay,  and  to  avoid  confusion  in  our  narrative  took  up 
Connoly,  and  have  been  so  long  paying  our  respects  to  him 
as  almost  to  have  forgotten  the  Earl. 

The  reader  has  not  forgotten,  we  presume,  that  we  long 
since  stated  it  as  our  opinion  that  it  was  probable,  and  that 
we  had  strong  reasons  to  believe,  that  Dunmore  himself, 
from  political  motives,  though  acting  behind  the  scenes,  was 
in  reality  at  the  bottom  of  the  Indian  war  of  1774.  We  have 
already  alluded  to  several  circumstances  previous  to  and 
during  that  war,  but  we  have  in  reserve  several  more,  evinc- 
ing the  same  fact,  subsequent  to  the  war. 

It  may  be  remembered  that  at  the  treaty  of  Chillicothe  it 
was  remarked  that  some  points  were  referred  for  future  dis- 
cussion at  Pittsburg,  in  the  ensuing  Fall ;  and  it  appears 
that  a  treaty  was  actually  held  by  Connoly,  in  Dunmore's 
name,  with  the  chiefs  of  the  Delaware  and  some  Mingo  tribes 
in  the  Summer  ensuing.  And  this  is  historically  a  fact,  and 
matter  of  record,  Avhich  I  extract  from  the  minutes  of  a 
treaty*  held  in  the  Autumn  of  the  same  year  with  several 

•The  original  minutes  of  this  treaty  are  in  my  possession.  It  was  presented  to  me  by  my 
friend  John  Madison,  Secretary  to  the  Commissioners. 


86  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJY  CRESAP. 

tribes  of  Indians,  by  commissioners  from  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States  and  from  Virginia. 

But  to  understand  this  perfectly,  the  reader  must  be  in- 
formed that  previous  to  tliis  treaty  Captain  James  Wood,* 
afterward  Grovernor  of  Virginia,  was  sent  by  that  State  as 
the  herald  of  peace,  with  the  olive  branch  in  his  hand,  to 
invite  all  the  Indian  tribes  bordering  on  the  Ohio  and  its 
waters,  to  a  treaty  at  Pittsburg,  on  the  10th  day  of  September 
following.  Captain  Wood  kept  a  journal,  which  is  incorpo- 
rated in  the  proceedings  of  the  treaty,  from  which  journal  I 
copy,  as  follows : 

"July  the  9th,  I  arrived  at  Fort  Pitt,  where  I  received 
"information  that  the  chiefs  of  the  Delawares  and  a  few  of 
"the  Mingoes  had  lately  been  treating  with  Major  Connoly, 
"agreeable  to  instruction  from  Lord  Dunmore,  and  that  the 
"Shawanese  had  not  come  to  the  treaty,"  &c. 

Captain  Wood,  however,  acknowledges  in  a  letter  he  wrote 
to  the  Convention  of  Virginia  from  this  place,  that  this  treaty 
held  by  Connoly  was  in  the  most  open  and  candid  manner ;  that 
it  was  held  in  the  presence  of  the  committee,  and  that  he  laid  the 
Governor's  instructions  before  them.  Very  good.  But  why 
these  remarks  respecting  Connoly  and  Dunmore  ?  Does  not 
this  language  imply  jealousy  and  suspicion,  which  Captain 
Wood — who  certainly  was  deceived — was  anxious  to  remove  ? 
But  to  proceed.     He  says  : 

»  On  the  26th  of  July,  1775,  Captain  James  Wood  having  been  sent  with  a  single  compan- 
ion to  invite  the  Western  Indians  to  a  treaty  at  Fort  Pitt,  encountered  Logan  and  several  other 
Mingoes  who  had  been  prisoners  at  that  post.  He  found  them  all  deeply  intoxicated  and  in- 
quisitive as  to  their  designs.  To  his  appeal  the  savages  made  no  definite  reply,  but  represented 
the  tribes  as  very  angry.  The  wayfarers  bivouacked  near  the  Indian  town,  and  about  ten 
o'clock  at  night  one  of  the  savages  stole  into  the  camp  and  stamped  upon  the  sleeper's  head. 
Starting  to  his  feet  and  arousing  his  companion.  Wood  and  the  interpreter  found  several  In- 
dians around  them  armed  with  knives  and  tomahawks.  For  awhile  the  Americans  seemed  to 
have  p;icitied  the  red  men,  but  as  a  friendly  squaw  apprized  them  that  the  savages  meditated 
their  death,  they  stole  away  for  concealment  in  the  recesses  of  the  forest.  When  they  returned 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJSr  CRESAP.  87 

^^July  10. — White-eyes  came,  with  an  interpreter,  to  my 
"lodging.  He  informed  me  he  was  desirous  of  going  to  Wil- 
"liamsburg  with  Mr.  Connoly,  to  see  Lord  Dunmore,  who 
"had  promised  him  his  interest  in  procuring  a  grant  from 
"the  King  for  the  lands  claimed  by  the  Delawares ;  that  they 
"were  all  desirous  of  living  as  the  white  people  do,  and  under 
"their  laws  and  protection ;  that  Lord  Dunmore  had  engaged 
"to  make  him  some  satisfaction  for  his  trouble  in  going  sev- 
"eral  times  to  the  Shawanee  towns,  and  serving  with  him  on 
"the  campaign,  &c.  He  told  me  he  hoped  I  would  advise 
"him  whether  it  was  proper  for  him  to  go  or  not.  I  was 
"then  under  the  necessity  of  acquainting  him  with  the  dis- 
"putes  subsisting  between  Lord  Dunmore  and  the  people  of 
"Virginia,  and  engaged  whenever  the  assembly  met  that  I 
"would  go  with  him  to  Williamsburg,  &c.  He  was  very 
"thankful,  and  appeared  satisfied." 

The  reader  must  observe  this  is  July  the  10th,  1775;  and 
if  he  will  please  to  refer  to  page  75,  he  will  see  from  Con- 
noloy's  letter  of  August  9th  how  much  reliance  was  to  be 
placed  on  his  candor  and  sincerity,  as  sjtated  by  Captain 
Wood  to  the  Convention  on  the  9th  day  of  July.  Thus  we 
find  that  about  thirty  days  after  Captain  Wood's  testimony 
in  his  favor,  Connoly  threw  away  the  mask  and  presented 
himself  in  his  true  character ;  and  from  his  own  confession, 
and  the  tenor  of  his  letter  to  Gibson,  it  is  plain  that  the 
current  of  suspicion  ran  so  strongly  against  him  that  he  de- 

again  to  the  Indian  town  after  daylight,  Logan  repeated  the  foal  story  of  the  murder  of  his 
"  mother,  sister,  and  all  his  relations"  by  the  people  of  Virginia.  By  turns  he  wept  and  sang. 
Then  he  dwelt  and  gloated  over  the  revenge  he  had  taken  for  his  wrongs ;  and  finally,  he  told 
Wood  that  several  of  his  fellows,  who  had  long  been  prisoners  at  Fort  Pitt,  desired  to  kill  the 
American  messengers,  and  demanded  if  the  forester  was  afraid  ?  "  No  I  "  replied  Wood,  "  we 
are  but  two  lone  men,  sent  to  deliver  the  message  we  have  given  to  the  tribes.  We  are  in 
your  power ;  we  have  no  means  of  defence,  and  you  may  kill  us  if  you  think  proper  I " 
"  Then,"  exclaimed  Logan,  apparently  confounded  by  their  coolness  and  courage,  "  you  shall 
not  be  hurt !  " — nor  were  they,  for  the  ambassadors  departed  unmolested  to  visit  the  Wyandotte 
towns.— iiW«eo«r»«  by  BrdmU  Mayer,  p.  65. 

8 


88  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJy  CRESAP. 


clared   himself   ^^  most   hajypy  in  escaping  the  vigilance  of  his 


enemiesy 


We  owe  the  reader  an  apology  for  introducing  this  man 
again;  but  the  fact  is,  that  Dunmore  and  Connoly  are  so 
identified  in  all  the  political  movements  of  this  period  that 
we  can  seldom  see  one  without  the  other;  and  Connoly  is  the 
more  prominent  character,  especially  in  the  affairs  of  the 
West. 

But  we  now  proceed  with  Captain  Wood's  journal.  He 
tells  us  that,  on  the  20th  of  July,  he  met  Garrett  Pendergrass 
about  9  o'clock ;  that  he  had  just  left  the  Delaware  towns ; 
that  two  days  before  the  Delawares  had  just  returned  from 
the  Wyandots'  towns,  where  they  had  been  at  a  grand  council 
with  a  French  and  English  officer  and  the  Wyandots ;  that 
Monsieur  Baubee  and  the  English  officer  told  them  to  be  on 
their  guard,  that  the  white  people  intended  to  strike  them 
very  soon,  &c. 

^'■July  21. — At  1  o'clock,  arriving  at  the  Moravian  Indian 
"town,  examined  the  minister  (a  Dutchman),  concerning  the 
"council  lately  held  with  the  Indians,  &c.,  who  confirmed  the 
"account  before  stated. 

^^July  22. — About  10  o'clock  arrived  at  Coshocton  (a  chief 
"town  of  the  Delawares),  and  delivered  to  their  council  a 
"speech,  which  they  answered  on  the  23d.  After  expressing 
"their  thankfulness  for  the  speech,  and  willingness  to  attend 
"the  proposed  treaty  at  Pittsburg,  they  delivered  to  Captain 
"Wood  a  belt  and  string  that  they  said  were  sent  to  them  by 
"an  Englishman  and  Frenchman  from  Detroit,  accompanied 
"  with  a  message  that  the  people  of  Virginia  were  determined  to 
"strike  them ;  that  they  would  come  upon  them  two  different 
"ways — the  one  by  the  way  of  the  lakes,  and  the  other  by 
"way  of  the  Ohio,  and  the  Virginians  were  determined  to 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAm'  CRESAF.  89 

"  drive  them  off  and  to  take  their  lands ;  that  they  must  be 
"constantly  on  their  guard,  and  not  to  give  any  credit  to 
"whatever  you  said,  as  you  were  a  people  not  to  be  depended 
"upon;  that  the  Virginians  would  invite  them  to  a  treaty,  but 
"that  they  must  not  go  at  any  rate,  and  to  take  particular 
"notice  of  the  advice  they  gave,  which  proceeded  from  mo- 
" fives  of  real  friendship." 

Now,  by  comparing  and  collating  this  with  the  speech  sent 
from  Dunmore,  inclosed  in  Connoly's  letter,  it  will  furnish  us 
with  a  squinting  at  the  game  that  was  playing  with  the  In- 
dians by  the  Earl  of  Dunmore  and  other  British  officers — to 
be  convinced  of  which,  read  the  following  speech  from  Dun- 
more :  * 

^'■Brother  Captain  White-eyes:  I  am  glad  to  hear  your  good 
"speeches,  as  sent  to  me  by  Major  Connoly ;  and  you  may 
"be  assured  I  shall  put  one  end  of  the  belt  you  have  sent 
"me  into  the  hands  of  our  great  King,  who  will  be  glad  to 
"hear  from  his  brothers,  the  Delawares,  and  will  take  strong 
"hold  of  it.  You  may  rest  satisfied  that  our  foolish  young 
"men  shall  never  be  permitted  to  have  your  lands,  but  on 
"the  contrary  the  great  King  will  protect  you,  and  preserve 
"you  in  the  possession  of  them. 

"Our  young  people  in  this  country  have  been  very  foolish, 
"and  have  done  many  imprudent  things,  for  which  they  must 
"soon  be  sorry,  and  of  which  I  make  no  doubt  they  have 
"acquainted  you;  but  I  must  desire  you  not  to  listen  to  them, 
"as  they  would  be  willing  you  should  act  foolishly  with  them- 
"  selves  ;  but  rather  let  what  you  hear  pass  in  at  one  ear  and 
"out  of  the  other,  so  that  it  may  make  no  impression  on  your 
"heart,  until  you  hear  from  me  fully,  which  shall  be  as  soon 
"as  I  can  give  further  information. 

•  This  speech  was  inclosed  in  a  letter  to  Gibson. 


90  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CRESAP. 


"Captain  White-eyes  will  please  acquaint  the  Cornstalk* 
"with  these  my  sentiments,  as  well  as  the  chiefs  of  the  Min- 
"goes  and  othei*  Six  Nations. 

[Signed]  "  DUNMORE." 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  remark  here  that  the  flight  of 
Dunmore  from  Williamsburg,  of  Connoly  from  Pittsburg, 
this  speech  of  Dunmore's,  and  the  speech  of  the  Delawares 
to  Captain  Wood,  are  all  nearly  cotemporaneous,  and  point 
the  reader  pretty  clearly  to  the  aspect  of  our  affairs  with  the 
Indians  at  this  period.  Dunmore's  speech,  as  you  have  it 
above,  although  pretty  explicit,  is  yet  guarded,  as  it  had  to 
pass  through  an  equivocal  medium ;  but  he  tells  Captain 
White-eyes  he  shall  hear  from  him  hereafter ;  and  this  here- 
after speech  was  no  doubt  in  Connoly's  portmanteau  when  he 
was  arrested  in  Frederick. 

But  to  conclude  this  tedious  chapter.  Nothing  more  now 
seems  necessary  than  to  call  the  attention  of  the  reader  to 
those  inferences  that  the  facts  and  circumstances  detailed  in 
the  foregoing  pages  seem  to  warrant.  The  first  circumstance 
in  the  order  of  events  seems  to  be  the  extraordinary  and  con- 
tradictory conduct  of  Dunmore  and  Connoly  respecting  Cap- 
tain Cresap.  They  certainly  understood  each  other,  and  had 
one  ultimate  end  in  view ;  yet  we  find  on  all  occasions  Dun- 
more treats  Cresap  with  the  utmost  confidence  and  cordiality, 

*  Few,  if  any,  chiefs  in  history  are  spoken  of  in  terms  of  higher  commendation  than 
Cornstalk,  sachem  of  the  Shawanese,  and  king  of  the  Northern  Confederacy  in  1774,  a  chief 
remarkable  for  many  great  and  good  qualities.  He  was  disposed  to  be  at  all  times  the  friend 
of  white  men,  as  he  ever  was  the  advocate  of  honorable  peace.  But  when  his  country's 
wrongs  "  called  aloud  for  battle,  "  he  became  the  thunderbolt  of  war,  and  made  her  oppressors 
feel  the  weight  ol  his  uplifted  arm.  His  noble  bearing,  his  generous  and  disinterested  attach- 
ment to  the  colonies  when  the  thunder  of  British  cannon  was  reverberating  through  the  land, 
his  anxiety  to  preserve  the  frontier  of  Virginia  from  desolation  and  death  (the. object  of  hia 
visit  to  Point  Pleasant),  all  conspired  to  win  for  him  the  esteem  and  respect  of  others;  while 
the  untimely  and  perfidious  manner  of  his  death  caused  a  deep  «nd  lasting  regret  to  pervade 
the  bosoms  even  of  those  who  were  enemies  to  his  nation,  and  excited  the  just  indignation  of 
all  toward  his  inhuman  and  barbarous  murdeiers.  The  blood  of  the  great  Cornstalk  and  of 
his  gallant  son  was  mingled  with  the  dust,  but  their  memory  is  not  lost  in  oblivion. — Drake't 
"  Indxant  of  North  America"  Book  V.,  p.  49. 


LIFE  OF  CAFTAIM  CRESAP.  91 

and  that  Connoly's  conduct  was  continually  the  reverse — even 
outrageously  insulting  him  while  under  the  immediate  orders 
of  Dunmore  himself;  secondly,  we  find  Dunmore  acting  with 
duplicity  and  deception  with  Colonel  Lewis  and  his  brigade 
from  Augusta  county ;  *  thirdly,  we  find  Captain  Cresap's 
name  foisted  into  Logan's  pretended  speech,  when  it  is  evi- 
dent, as  we  shall  hereafter  prove,  that  no  names  at  all  were 
mentioned  in  the  original  speech  made  for  Logan ;  fourthly, 
it  appears  pretty  plainly  that  much  pains  was  taken  by  Dun- 
more at  the  treaty  of  Chillicothe  to  attach  the  Indian  chiefs 
to  his  person,  as  appears  from  facts  that  afteward  appeared ; 
fifthly,  the  last  speech  from  Dunmore  to  Captain  White-eyes 
and  the  other  Indian  chiefs,  sent  in  Connoly's  letter  to  Gib- 
son ;  to  all  which  we  may  add  his  Lordship's  nap  of  sleep 
while  Cresap  was  stating  his  complaints  against  Connoly,  and 
all  Connoly's  strange  and  unaccountable  letters  to  Cresap. 

I  say,  from  all  which  it  will  appear  that  Dunmore  had  his 
views,  and  those  views  hostile  to  the  liberties  of  America,  in 
his  proceedings  with  the  Indians  in  the  war  of  1774.  And 
the  circumstances  of  the  times,  in  connection  with  his  equivo- 
cal conduct,  lead  us  almost  naturally  to  infer  that  he  knew 
pretty  well  what  he  was  about ;  and  among  other  things,  that 
he  knew  a  war  with  the  Indians  at  this  time  would  materially 
subserve  the  views  and  interests  of  Great  Britain,  and  conse- 
quently he  perhaps  might  feel  it  a  duty  to  promote  said  war ; 
and  if  not,  why  betray  such  extreme  solicitude  to  single  out 
some  conspicuous  character  and  make  him  the  scajie-goat  to 
bear  all  the  blame  of  this  war,  that  he  and  his  friend  Connoly 
might  escape  ? 

•  So  says  Doddridge. 


CHAPTER     V. 

The  famous  Logan  speech  examined  and  refuted. 

It  is  not  the  smallest  misfortune  entailed  upon  the  fallen 
sons  and  daughters  of  Adam,  that  the  unhallowed  flame  of 
hatred  and  misanthropy  seems  to  have  consumed  all  that 
milk  of  human  kindness,  benevolence  and  love,  originally 
planted  in  the  heart  of  man  in  his  primeval  state.  Hence 
we  find — and  every  day's  exjierience  and  a  thousand  facts 
confirm  it — that  one  of  the  strongest  propensities  of  human 
nature  is  to  search  out  and  expose  the  failings  of  our  breth- 
ren. A  thousand  good,  great  and  noble  actions  pass  in  review 
before  us  daily,  unnoticed,  and  sink  into  oblivion,  while  the 
smallest  deviation  from  the  more  rigid  rules  of  propriety  is 
presented  before  the  public  for  scorn  and  derision.  So  true 
it  is  that  we  are  eagle-eyed  to  see  the  mote  in  our  brother's 
eye,  when  behold !  a  beam  is  in  our  own. 

It  is  not,  however,  my  business  at  present  to  inquire  after 
the  beams  in  the  eyes  of  the  Philosopher  of  Monticello  and 
the  pious  Dr.  Doddridge,  but  to  remove,  if  I  can,  the  mote 
from  the  eye  of  Captain  Cresap. 

He  stands  charged  by  the  former  with  the  murder  of  Lo- 
gan's (the  Indian)  family  on  Yellow  Creek,  and  with  being 
infamous  for  his  many  Indian  murders.  Heavy  charges. 
And  by  the  latter  with  being  the  cause  of  Dunmore's  war 
of  1774. 

These,  we  grant,  are  heavy  charges ;  and  supported,  or 
attempted  to  be  supported,  by  witnesses  of  the  first  respecta- 
bility. If,  then,  these  facts  can  be  proved  and  sustained, 
there  can  be  no  question  that  my  client  must  be  condemned ; 


LIFE  OF  CAFTAIJV  CRESAP.  93 

but  may  it  please  this  honorable  court  and  jury  (I  mean  all 
the  world)  to  suspend  their  decision  for  one  half-hour.  I 
hope  in  that  time  to  satisfy  them  that  all  these  charges,  what- 
ever may  be  the  blackness  of  their  present  aspect,  are  but  the 
visions  of  fancy,  the  offspring  of  hasty  credulity,  and  as  flip- 
pant and  unsubstantial  as  the  quivering  gossamer  of  a  Sum- 
mer's day. 

But  to  avoid  confusion,  we  will  take  up  the  several  counts 
in  the  indictment  in  the  order  they  stand,  and  devote  this 
chapter  to  an  examination  of  the  charges  offered  by  the  first 
witness,  i.  e.,  Mr.  Jefferson ;  and  as  there  are  two  counts  in 
this  charge  we  will  attend  to  each  in  due  order. 

But,  may  it  please  the  court,  it  is  my  duty  before  we  enter 
into  a  discussion  as  to  the  truth  or  falsity  of  the  charges  in 
the  indictment,  to  enter  my  protest  and  file  a  bill  of  exceptions 
to  the  competency  of  this  witness ;  first,  because  we  say  his 
residence  was  several  hundred  miles  from  the  scene  of  action, 
either  where  Logan's  family  were  killed,  or  where  and  when 
this  pretended  speech  was  delivered;  secondly,  because  his 
testimony  is  hearsay  testimony,  and  therefore  inadmissible  in 
any  legal  court — which  the  witness  himself,  as  a  lawyer,  will 
not  deny ;  thirdly,  as  to  the  second  item  in  his  charge,  we  say 
the  accuser,  Mr.  Jefferson,  never  saw  nor  had  any  acquaint- 
ance with  the  accused,  Captain  Cresap ;  nor  do  we  believe  he 
ever  heard  any  man,  woman  or  child  say  that  Captain  Cresap 
was  a  man  " infamous  for  his  many  Indian  murders ;^.^  and  if 
he  did,  it  was  hearsay  testimony  again,  and  is  good  for 
nothing. 

But  inasmuch  as  a  great  many  respectable  members  of  this 
court  are  now  absent,  and  scattered  all  over  this  vast  conti- 
nent, and  it  is  more  than  probable  that  they  have  already 
decided  on  this  case  on  an  ex-parte  hearing,  I  must  take  the 


94  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ\'  CBFSAP. 

liberty  of  entering  into  an  argument  upon  the  merits  of  the 
question,  in  hopes  of  obtaining  a  reversal  of  judgment. 

The  leading  and  most  important  fact  in  this  case  is,  may  it 
please  your  honors,  that  Logan  never  made  any  speech*  at 
all  ;  and  if  he  did,  he  told  an  absurd,  willful  and  wicked  lie. 
But  we  say  he  never  made  any  speech — at  least,  not  the 
speech  in  question ;  neither  was  he  at  the  treaty  of  Chilli- 
cothe,  where  it  is  said  this  pretended  speech  was  delivered ; 
and  fortunately  we  have  indubitable  living  testimony  to  this 
fact,  from  a  gentleman  of  unimpeachable  veracity,  which  the 
reader  shall  see  in  the  appendix.  But,  as  this  is  the  first  and 
perhaps  most  important  link  in  the  chain,  it  is  proper  the 
reader  should  have  it  in  detail. 

It  appears,  then,  that  while  preparations  were  making  for 
the  treaty  of  Chillicothe,  in  the  autumn  of  the  year  1774, 
Simon  Grirty,  an  Indian  interpreter,  was  sent  by  the  Earl  of 
Dunmore  to  Logan's  town  to  invite  him  to  the  treaty ;  that 
Benjamin  Tomlinson,  Esq.,  one  of  Dunmore's  officers,  was 
then  on  the  out-guard ;  that  as  Girty  was  passing  by  him  he 
stopped  and  conversed  some  time  with  him ;  that  he  told  Mr. 
Tomlinson  his  business,  but  said  he  did  not  like  it,  for  that 
Logan  was  a  surly  fellow,  &c.;  that  after  the  treaty  had  com- 
menced, and  when  he  was  officer  of  the  day  to  preserve  order, 
he  saw  Simon  Girty  return;  that  a  circle  or  ring  was  immedi- 
ately formed  around  him ;  that  Logan  was  not  with  him,  nor 
did  he  come  to  the  treaty;  that  John  Gibson, f  who  was  in  the 

»  Of  the  genuineness  of  that  speech  nothing  need  be  said.  It  was  known  to  the  camp  where 
it  was  delivered ;  it  was  given  out  by  Lord  Dunmore  and  his  oncers  :  it  ran  through  the  public 
papers  of  these  States ;  was  rehearsed  as  an  exercise  at  schools ;  published  in  the  papers  and 
periodical  works  of  Europe;  and  all  this  a  dozen  years  before  it  was  copied  into  the  Notes  on 
Virginia.  In  fine,  General  Oibson  concludes  the  question  forever,  by  declaring  that  he  received 
it  from  Logan  and  delivered  it  to  Lord  Dunmore,  and  that  the  copy  in  the  Notes  is  a  faithful 
copy. — Appendix  to  Jefferson's  Notes,  p.  265. 

tJohn  Gibson  has  always  been  regarded  as  an  honest  and  trnthful  person.  He  enjoyed  the 
confidence  of  Washington,  who,  in  1781,  entrusted  him  with  the  command  of  the  Western 
Military  Department.     In  1782,  when  Gen.  Irvine  had  succeeded  him,  Col.  Gibson  was  en- 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CRESAP.  95 

ring,  took  Simon  Girty  aside,  and  after  conversing  a  little 
while  in  private,  he  saw  Gibson  go  into  a  tent  and  soon  after 
return  with  a  piece  of  new,  clean  paper  in  his  hand,  on  which 
was  written  a  speech  from  Logan.  "As  I  stood,"  says  Mr. 
Tomlinson,  "near  Dunmore's  person,  I  heard  this  speech  read 
three^ times — once  by  Gibson  and  twice  by  Dunmore  ;  but 
neither  was  the  name  of  Cresap  nor  any  other  name  men- 
tioned in  this  speech.  I  then  saw  Dunmore  put  the  speech 
among  the  treaty  papers." 

Now  here,  may  it  please  the  court,  is  a  witness  unimpeached 
and  unimpeachable,  and  fully  competent  to  bear  testimony, 
who  declares,  first,  that  Logan  was  not  at  the  treaty ;  that 
the  pretended  speech  was  made  by  Gibson,  whose  sensi- 
bility, perhaps,  was  a  little  wounded  by  the  loss  of  his 
squaw,  who  was  Logan's  sister,  and  unhappily  killed  at  Yel- 
low creek;  nor  yet  was  Cresap's  name  in  the  speech. 

I  ask  then,  where  shall  we  look,  or  where  is  the  man, 
that  can  unriddle  this  mystery?  To  charge  this  interpola- 
tion upon  Mr.  Jefferson  seems  not  fair,  because  we  have  no 
evidence  of  the  fact;  to  say  that  it  was  in  the  original  is 
most  manifestly  untrue,  not  only  from  the  testimony  of  Mr. 
Tomlinson,  but  from  the  certainty  that  so  malicious  and  un- 
just a  charge  against  Captain  Cresap  in  his  own  presence, 
and  not  only  in  his  own  presence,  but  in  the  presence  of 
at  least  five  hundred  persons,  who  all  well  know,  from  per- 
gonal knowledge,  that  Captain  Cresap  had  no  more  concern 
nor  connection  with  the  affairs  at  Yellow  creek  than  Mr. 
Jefferson  himself.     I  say  then,  that  it  is  impossible  that  it 

trusted  with  the  command  during  the  General's  absence,  which  continued  for  several  mouths. 
Jefferson,  Madison  and  Harrison  respected  him.  He  was  a  Major  General  of  Militia,  Secretary 
of  Indian  Territory  under  the  administration  of  Jefferson  and  Madison;  member  of  the  Penn- 
Bjlvania  Convention  in  1778;  and  an  Associate  Judge  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  of 
Alleghany  County,  Pa.  Chief  Justice  Gibson  and  General  George  Gibson,  sons  of  Colonel 
Gibson  who  was  mortally  wounded  at  St.  Clair's  defeat,  are  his  well  known  and  esteemed 
nephews. — Brantz  Mayer  i  Addrett,  p.  80. 


96  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CKESAP. 

should  be  in  the  original,  because  the  lie  would  have  been 
detected  and  exposed  upon  the  spot. 

The  only  rational  way  that  occurs  to  my  mind  to  solve 
this  difficulty  is  to  suppose  that  Dunmore — or  Connoly,  after 
he  joined  Dunmore,  with  a  view  to  throw  the  blame  of  this 
war  on  Cresap,  and  divert  the  public  attention  from  them- 
selves— copied  this  Gribson-Logan  speech,*  and  inserted  the 
name  of  Cresap;  and  that  this  copy,  by  some  means,  came 
to  the  hands  of  Mr.  Jefferson.  If  not  so,  there  is  an  inex- 
plicable secret  in  this  business  that  nothing  but  the  light 
of  Eternal  Justice  can  ever  develope. 

Had  Mr,  Jefferson  stopped  at  this  point,  we  have  our- 
selves hammered  out  an  excuse  for  him ;  but  what  shall  we 
say  to  the  more  dreadful  charge  against  Cresap,  of  being  a 
man  ^^ infamous  for  Ms  many  Indian  murders ^  It  is  well 
Captain  Cresap  did  not  live  to  hear  this  story ;  if  he  had, 
alas !  alas ! 

Gentle  reader,  I  have  given  you  an  honest,  complete  and 
faithful  detail  of  all  the  affairs  Captain  Cresap  ever  had 
with  the  Indians,  and  I  know  that  I  am  sufficiently  ac- 
quainted with  his  whole  history,  to  declare  that  nothing  is 
hid ;  nothing  behind  the  curtain.  Where  then  do  we  find, 
in  all  his  proceedings  against  these  people  any  one  fact  or 
circumstance  that  will  warrant  such  a  charge  as  this ;  and 
I  beseech  you,  where  in  the  name  of  common  "sense,  of  jus- 
tice, mercy,  truth,  or  that  common  civility  due  from  -man  to 
man,  could  our  honorable  ex-president  find  a  motive  to  pub- 
lish to  the  world,  and  all  succeeding  generations,  a  charge 
so  odious  and  detestable. 

*Iii  respect  to  the  speech  of  Logan,  it  would  be  highly  gratifying  if  a  few  matters  connected 
■with  it  could  be  settled;  but  whether  they  ever  will,  time  only  can  determine.  From  the 
Btateinent  of  Dr.  Barton,  we  are  led  to  expect  that  he  had  other  documents  than  those  he  at 
that  time  published,  going  to  show  that  Cresap  was  not  the  murderer  of  Logan's  family,  but 
be  never  published  them,  as  I  can  learn,  and  he  has  left  us  to  conjecture  upon  such  as  we 
have. — 'Druke's  Fi/th  Book  of  the  Indians,  p.  48. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJf  CRESAP.  97 

I  take  it  for  granted,  that  no  honest  historian  will  record 
facts  equivocal  and  doubtful  and  hand  them  down  to  pos- 
terity for  truth,  with  the  imposing  sanction  of  their  own 
celebrity.  If  then,  Mr.  Jeiferson  had  heard  stories  of  Captain 
Cresap  (which  we  are  under  the  impression  he  never  did), 
yet  if  it  was,  it  was  vague  report,  unsubstantiated  by  any 
evidence,  because  it  was  not  true. 

And  I  ask,  what  would  this  honorable  gentleman  think, 
were  we  to  measure  to  him  the  same  measure  he  has  meted 
to  Cresap?  "We  also  have  heard  stories  about  him,  but  as 
we  know  but  little  as  to  their  truth,  we  let  them  sleep. 

Yet  certainly  it  is  the  best  for  those  who  dwell  in  glass 
houses  not  to  throw  stones.  But  before  we  dismiss  this 
subject,  I  must  be  permitted  to  return  to  a  remark  long 
since  made,  namely,  that  my  task  is  extremely  diflBcult. 

To  prove  a  negative,  and  especially  a  negative  so  indef- 
inite as  not  to  apply  to  any  particular  or  specific  period,  is 
more  difficult  still.  For  instance,  A  charges  B  with  stealing 
a  horse,  but  does  not  say  of  whom,  where  nor  when ;  now, 
I  pray  you,  how  is  B  to  meet  and  refute  a  charge  of  this 
kind  ?  But  again,  A  charges  B  with  stealing  a  horse  from 
D,  on  the  night  of  August  20th,  1820,  out  of  D's  stable,  in 
the  town  of  Wheeling;  now  in  this  case  a  negative  can  be 
proven,  because  B  can  prove  that  on  the  first  day  of  August, 
and  for  many  preceding  and  succeeding  days  he  was  in  the 
city  of  Baltimore.  So  here  is  positive  proof  against  positive 
proof,  and  the  credibility  of  the  witness  will  decide  it.  But 
the  first  case  is  the  case  before  us.  Captain  Cresap  is 
charged  with  being  infamous  for  many  Indian  ^murders ;  now 
this  charge  embraces  his  whole  life,  and  is  of  that  vague, 
shapeless,  and  indefinite  kind  that  it  is  impossible  to  bring 
testimony  to  bear  upon  it,  unless  we  could  prove  where  he 


98  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP. 

was  and  what  he   was  about   every   day   of  his    life,  from 
about  ten  years  old  until  his  death. 

But  it  is  our  duty  and  our  business  to  deny  the  charge 
in  toto,  and  call  upon  the  accuser  to  prove  it.  Here  then 
we  rest  the  subject,  until  these  charges  are  put  into  some 
shape  or  specific  form.  We  trust  they  will  sink  with  all 
general  charges  of  the  kind,  into  the  dark  shades  of  obliv- 
ion, and  where  also  the  names  and  characters  of  the  accuser 
and  accused  must  shortly  go.* 

*Tbis  was  written  in  March,  1824,  since  which,  the  answer- has  also  gone  to  the  accused. 
August  28,  1826. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

Doctor    Doddridge's  Book — Charge  against  Captain  Cresap  ex- 
amined and  refuted. 

Having  had  the  honor  of  traveling  so  long  with  one  of 
the  ex-Presidents  of  the  United  States,  we  part  by  mutual 
consent,  and  I  trust  in  good  humor,  at  least  it  is  so  on  my 
part.  I  now  turn  round  to  face  my  old  friend,  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Doddridge ;  and  is  it  true,  that  this  herald  of  the  gospel  of 
peace  and  good  will  to  men;  this  son  of  the  West — who  can 
not  but  be  perfectly  acquainted  with  the  nature  of  savage  war- 
fare, and  who  has,  I  believe,  seen,  and  heard,  and  felt  some  of 
its  eifects — who  ought  not  to  have  forgotten  the  efforts  made 
by  Captain  Cresap  to  defend  the  frontier  at  this  perilous 
season,  and  that  among  those  exposed  families,  his  father's 
was  one ;  and  is  it,  I  say,  or  can  it  be  true,  that  this  reverend 
Doctor,  like  another  Brutus,  raises  his  consecrated  and  hal- 
lowed hand  to  give  another  stab  to  wounded  Caesar? 

And  why  and  wherefore  is  this,  Doctor  ?  Did  you  think  it  a 
duty  incumbent  upon  you,  as  a  faithful  historian,  to  state  facts 
of  a  vague,  equivocal  and  doubtful  nature,  merely  to  swell 
the  pages  of  your  history?  or  were  you  of  opinion  that  the 
name  of  a  man  so  well  known  and  so  conspicuous  a  character 
as  Captain  Cresap  would  embellish  your  discrepant  narrative? 
But  whatever  may  have  been  your  motive,  nothing  will  justify 
a  departure  from  truth  in  a  historian ;  for,  although  were  we 
to  admit  that  a  writer  is  not  bound  to  say  everything  he 
knows  respecting  a  character  he  attempts  to  narrate,  yet  he  is 
certainly  bound  to  say  nothing  at  random,  or  what  he  does 
not  know. 
9 


100  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CRESAP. 


Doctor  Beattie  says,  when  we  doubt  a  man's  word,  we  have 
always  one  of  these  four  reasons  :  1st.  We  think  that  what 
he  says  is  incredible  or  improbable.  2d.  There  is  some 
temptation  or  motive  which  inclines  him  in  the  present  case  to 
violate  truth.  3d.  That  he  is  not  a  competent  judge  of  the 
matter  wherein  he  gives  testimony.  4th.  We  doubt  his  vera- 
city now  because  we  have  known  him  to  be  a  deceiver  formerly. 

And  he  says  again,  that  of  a  person  of  whom  we  know 
nothing,  modesty  requires  that  we  should  say  nothing;  and 
candor  at  least  requires  that  we  should  say  nothing  abusive. 

But  Dr.  Doddridge  not  only  says  a  great  deal  about  Cap- 
tain Cresap,  of  whom  he  never  knew  anything,  for  I  sup- 
pose he  was  dead  before  Doddridge  was  born ;  but  he 
also  violates  most  egregiously  Dr.  Beattie's  other  rule, 
namely :  by  abusing  him  most  unmercifully. 

But  he  (Beattie)  gives  us  four  reasons  for  doubting  testi- 
mony, one  of  which,  and  the  most  innocent  I  believe  of  the 
four  is,  that  the  testifier  is  an  incompetent  judge  of  the  matter 
wherein  or  whereof  he  gives  testimony.  Now  as  we  know, 
and  are  confident,  that  Dr.  Doddridge  has  given  us,  to  say  the 
least,  a  most  incorrect  and  uncandid  statement  of  the  cause  of 
Dunmore's  war,  and  of  the  proceedings  of  Captain  Cresap 
about  the  time  that  war  commenced,  hence,  we  will  for 
charity's  sake  attribute  the  incorrect  statement,  made  by  the 
Doctor,  to  a  want  of  competency  to  judge  and  report  of  facts 
with  which  he  could  not  in  the  nature  of  the  things  have  any 
knowledge  ;  at  least  no  other  knowledge  than  mere  vague  re- 
port, or  perhaps  vain  conjecture.  But  what  is  most  strange 
in  this  business  is,  that  Dr.  Doddridge  himself  acknowledges 
in  his  preface  how  imperfect  his  acquaintance  is  with  this 
part  of  his  history. 

But  to  proceed.    Doddi'idge  says  (page  225),  ^'devoutli/  might 


I 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.\  101 

humanity  wish  that  the  record  of  the  causes  which  led  to  the  de- 
structive war  of  1714,  might  be  blotted  from  the  annals  of  our 
country;^'  and  permit  me  to  retott,  that  it  is  most  devoutly  to 
be  Avished,  that  a  minister  of  the  everlasting  gospel  had  not 
been  the  first  to  commit  to  record  a  string  of  assumed  facts, 
upon  no  better  authority,  and  thus  to  register  in  the  annals  of 
our  country  what  never  appeared  before  in  any  record ;  most 
devouthj  is  it  to  be  wished,  might  the  Doctor  say,  that  I  could 
some  way  or  another,  have  avoided,  or  been  restrained  from, 
uttering  what  I  do  not  know  to  be  true  ;  and  I  now  call  upon 
the  Doctor  to  produce  those  records  in  the  annals  of  our 
country  which  he  says  is  now  too  late  to  efface. 

How  passing  strange  is  this !  what  affected  sensibility  for 
the  honor  of  our  country !  when  at  the  same  time — so  far  as 
the  honor  of  our  country  is  involved  in  the  causes  leading  to 
Dunmore's  war,  he  himself,  even  Dr.  Doddridge  has  used  his 
best  endeavors,  by  laying  before  the  public  and  the  world, 
a  statement  oi  false  facts  (I  have  Jefferson's  authority  for 
these  words),  and  giving  such  erroneous  views  of  the  real 
causes  of  Dunmore's  war,  that  if  the  honor  of  our  country 
suffers  it  must  be  through  his  means,  and  for  the  want  of 
correct  information. 

But,  inasmuch  as  I  have  in  my  IV  chapter  given  the  reader 
what  I  think  is  a  faithful  and  correct  view  of  the  causes  lead- 
ing to  the  war  of  1774,  and  not  from  vague  report  or  conjec- 
ture, but  from  personal  memory  and  many  records,  it  is, 
therefore,  I  presume,  needless  to  repeat  and  say  over  again 
what  has  already  been  said;  and  I  trust,  that  personal  knowl- 
edge of  facts  aided  and  frequently  confirmed  by  records,  will 
be  deemed  sufficient  testimony  to  outweigh  the  credibility  of 
a  story  told  from  hearsay  fifty  years  after  all  the  facts  and 
circumstances  have  laid  buried  in  oblivion. 


102  LIFE  OF  CAFTAIM  CRESAP. 

But  the  Doctor  says  (page  266),  tliat  a  certain  report  of  the 
Indians  stealing  horses — which  report,  he  says,  was  not  true, 
but  I  say  it  was  true,  although  of  little  importance — yet  that 
report,  vague  as  it  was,  induced  a  jyretty  general  belief  that  the  In- 
dians were  about  to  make  war  upon  the  frontier  settlements,  but  for 
this  apprehension  there  does  not  appear  to  be  the  slightest  found- 
ation. 

Now  all  this  is  wonderful — passing  wonderful — for  either 
Dr.  Doddridge  did  know,  or  did  not  know,  of  some  of  the 
material  facts  connected  with  the  beginning  of  this  war, 
to-wit :  Connoly's*  circular  letter;  the  white  men  killed  by  the 
Indians  on  Hocking,  in  1773,  and  the  two  men  killed  in  But- 
ler's canoe  about  the  first  of  May,  1774 ;  the  unceasing  hostil- 
ities between  the  Indians  and  whites  in  Kentucky,  and  the 
general  panic  among  all  the  settlements  in  the  western 
country,  and  their  running  into  forts  about  the  last  of  April. 
Now  if  the  Doctor  knows  all  this,  and  has  suppressed  it, 
he  is  bound  to  account  with  the  public  and  the  world  for 
such  a  material  omission.  But  if  he  did  not  know  these 
facts — most  of  which  are  matters  of  record — it  proves  to  ab- 
solute demonstration  his  incompetency  and  ignorance  of  the 
most  material  facts  connected  with  the  history  he  under- 
takes to  write.  But  his  own  history  confutes  itself;  for  I 
ask  if  any  man  in  his  senses  can  believe,  that  a  mere  idle 

*0n  the  21st  of  April,  Connoly  wrote  to  the  settlers  along  the  Ohio,  that  the  Shawanese 
were  not  to  be  trusted,  and  that  they  (the  whites)  ought  to  be  prepared  to  revenge  any  wrong 
done  them.  Fire  days  before  its  date,  a  canoe,  belonging  to  William  Butler,  a  leading  Pitts- 
burg trader,  had  been  attacked  by  three  Cherokees,  and  one  white  man  had  been  killed.  This 
happened  not  far  from  Wheeling,  and  became  known  there  of  course;  while  about  the  same 
time  the  report  was  general  that  the  Indians  were  stealing  the  traders'  horses.  When,  there- 
fore, immediately  after  Connoly's  letter  had  been  circulated,  the  news  came  to  that  settlement 
that  some  Indians  were  coming  down  the  Ohio  in  a  boat,  Cresap,  in  revenge  for  the  murder  by 
the  Cherokees,  and  as  he  afterward  said,  in  obedience  to  the  direction  of  the  commandant  at 
Pittsburg,  contained  in  the  letter  referred  to,  determined  to  attack  them.  They  were,  as  it 
chanced,  two  friendly  Indians,  who,  with  two  whites,  had  been  dispatched  by  William  Butler, 
when  he  heard  his  first  messengers  were  stopped,  to  attend  to  his  peltries  down  the  river,  in  the 
Shawanee  country. — Perldru's  Annalt  of  the  Wat,paj/e  123. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  103 

and  doubtful  report  of  the  Indians  stealing  horses,  as  he 
states  it,  would  have  had  the  effect  of  putting  a  whole 
country,  at  least  sixty  miles  square,  into  such  a  panic  and 
alarm  as  to  fly  into  forts,  which  he  knows  was  the  fact ; 
and  we  also  know,  that  the  Indians  as  well  as  the  white 
people,  often  stole  horses  from  our  frontiers  in  peace  as  well 
as  in  war. 

But  that  the  Indians  did  actually  steal  horses  from  Mr. 
Joseph  Tomlinson,  at  Grave  creek;  and  Mr.  Richard  Mc 
Macken,  a  little  below  Wheeling,  about  this  time,  is  most 
certain ;  yet  this  was  a  very  inconsiderable  item  in  the  causes 
leading  to  Dunmore's  war. 

Having  premised  thus  much,  we  pronounce  beforehand, 
that  the  Doctor's  book  will  not  bear  the  scrutiny  of  being 
judged  by  these  rules,  (the  rules  laid  down  by  Dr.  Beattie, 
and  also  by  myself),  because  none  of  the  charges  he  brings 
against  Captain  Cresap  stand  upon  any  better  testimony 
than  his  mere  say  so,  and  this  say  so  proof  is  unsupported 
by  any  direct  or  inferential  evidence.  Hence  it  appears 
that  they  all  originated  in  himself. 

But  we  will  do  the  Doctor  ample  justice,  and  pay  him 
the  respect  of  traveling,  however  tedious  and  irksome  our 
journey  may  be,  through  all  his  charges,  taking  them  in 
the  order  they  rise,  admitting  what  is  truth — if  we  find  any 
— and  exposing  and  refuting  what  is  most  assuredly  untrue. 

The  Doctor's  first  charge  is  general,  and  like  one  we  have 
lately  discussed,  not  susceptible  of  direct  proof  against  it, 
to- wit :  that  Captain  Cresap  was  the  cause  of  Bunmore^s  war ; 
but  he  has  also  superadded  several  specific  and  direct 
charges,  which  are  consequently  more  in  our  power  to  con- 
trovert. 

I  believe  his  first  specific  assertion,  bearing  on  this  sub- 


104  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP. 


ject,  that  deserves  our  notice  is,  that  the  white  people  shed 
the  first  blood  in  the  war  of  1774;  or,  in  other  words,  be- 
gan the  war. 

Secondly :  He  says  Captain  Cresap  commanded  the  Fort 
at  Wheeling. 

Thirdly:  He  charges  Captain  Cresap  with  the  murder  of 
two  Indians  in  a  canoe,  and  goes  on  to  say,  that  afterward 
on  the  same  day,  he  went  down  to  Capteening  and  had  a 
battle  with  some  more. 

Fourthly:  He  says  Colonel  Zane  expostulated  with  Cap- 
tain Cresap  before  he  attacked  the  Indians  in  the  canoe, 
but  that  he  would  not  regard  him. 

Fifthly :  He  says  the  massacre  on  Yellow  Creek,  and  battle 
at  Capteening,  comprehended  all  the  family  of  Logan,  mean- 
ing, I  suppose,  that  they  were  all  killed  at  these  two  places. 
Sixthly  :  He  calls  Colonel  Lewis  General  Lewis,  and  Logan* 
a  Cyuga  chief;  whereas,  he  was  a  Mingo,  and  no  chief. 

Seventhly :  He  says  the  authenticity  of  Logan's  speech 
is  no  longer  a  subject  of  doubt. 

Eighthly :  Logan,  he  says,  sent  his  speech  in  a  belt  of 
wampum. 

I  believe  the  foregoing  affords  us  an  analysis  of  all  the 
general  and  specific  charges  in  Doddridge's  book  against 
Captain  Cresap.  We  shall  therefore  now  take  them  up  in 
the  order  they  stand. 

•  Simon  Kkntok,  who  was  taken  prisoner  by  the  savages,  spent  two  nights  with  his  captors 
and  Logan  on  the  head  waters  of  the  Scioto.  "Well,  young  man,"  said  Logan  addressing 
Kenton,  the  night  of  his  arrival,  "these  chaps  seem  very  mad  with  you.'  "Yes,"  replied  Ken- 
ton, "they  appear  so."  "But  don't  be  disheartened,"  interrupted  Logan,  "I  am  a  great  chief; 
you  are  to  go  to  Sandusky ;  they  talk  of  burning  you  there ;  but  I  will  send  two  runners  to- 
morrow to  speak  good  for  you  !"  And  so  he  did,  for  on  the  morrow,  having  detained  the  hostile 
party,  he  dispatched  the  promised  envoys  to  Sandusky,  though  he  did  not  report  to  Kenton 
of  their  success  when  they  returned  at  nightfall.  The  runners,  by  Logan's  orders,  interceded 
with  Captain  Druyer,  an  influential  British  Indian-agent  at  Sandusky,  who  with  great  difficulty 
ransomed  the  prisoner  and  saved  him  from  the  brutal  sacrifice  of  the  stake. — Ducourie  by  BranU 
Moj/er,  p.  66. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJV  CRESAP.  105 

And  first,  as  to  the  general  charge  that  Captain  Cresap 
was  the  author  of  Dunmore's  war.  Now,  although  we  have 
admitted,  and  do  admit,  the  difficulty  of  answering  this  broad, 
vague  and  indefinite  charge,  yet  I  trust  we  shall  be  able  to 
oifer  stronger  reasons  against  the  truth  of  it  than  he  has  or 
can  produce  for  it. 

In  the  first  place,  then,  we  believe,  and  are  convinced,  that 
no  man,*  red,  white  or  black,  ever  heard  of  this  charge  before, 
either  in  English,  Indian,  Dutch,  French,  Latin,  Greek  or 
Hebrew,  in  the  whole  course  of  about  fifty  years,  to-wit:  from 
the  year  1774  to  1824;  hence  we  are  led  to  the  inevitable  con- 
clusion that  this  charge  is  bran  span  new — just  hatched  in  a 
parson's  cap  in  Wellsburg.  I  therefore  deny  the  charge,  and 
call  upon  Dr.  Doddridge  for  the  proof,  either  from  certain 
and  indisputable  testimony,  or  from  any  genuine  record  of  the 
transactions  of  the  day ;  and  until  he  does  so,  I  give  this 
charge  to  the  winds,  or  throw  it  back  with  all  its  malignity 
upon  himself,  to  shake  off  if  he  can. 

Second. — We  have,  however,  more  arguments  in  reserve  to 
meet  and  refute  this  charge;  and  I  cannot  but  think  that  the 
candid  and  faithful  detail  I  have  given  the  reader  in  the 
fourth  chapter  of  this  work,  of  all  the  proceedings  of  Captain 
Cresap,  and  every  circumstance  in  connection  with  the  Indian 
war  of  1774,  affords  one  of  the  most  weighty  and  forcible 
arguments  in  this  case. 

Third. — I  ask,  how  comes  it  to  pass  that  neither  Cornstalk, 
head  chief  of  the  Shawanee  tribe  of  Indians,  nor  any  other 
chief  of  the  various  tribes  who  attended  the  treaty  of  Pitts- 
burg, in  September,  of  the  year  1775,  never  once  mentioned 
the  name  of  Cresap  as  the  aggressor,  or  cause,  or  beginner  of 


*  I  am  not  absolutely  certain  that  Mr.  Jefferson  does  not  hint  something  like  this.     I  hars 
not  his  book  before  me,  and  it  is  many  years  since  I  read  it. 


106  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP. 

the  war  of  the  preceding  year?  And  this  is  the  more  re- 
markable as  Cornstalk  and  the  Shawanee  chiefs  were  hard 
pressed  by  the  Virginia  commission  as  to  their  compliance 
with  one  of  the  articles  of  the  treaty  of  Chillicothe ;  and  this 
fact  happens  to  be  matter  of  record,  as  I  have  before  me,  as 
already  remarked,  this  original  treaty. 

Moreover,  it  is  stated  by  Captain  Wood  that  on  the  25th 
day  of  July  he  arrived  at  the  Seneca  town,  where  he  found 
Logan*  and  several  other  Mingoes;  that  they  were  pretty 
drunk  and  angry;  that  Logan  repeated  in  plain  English  how 
the  people  of  Virginia  had  killed  his  mother,  sister  and  all 
his  relations,  during  which  he  wept  and  sung  alternately. 
Now,  may  we  not  ask  how  it  happened  that  this  drunken 
Indian,  with  his  feelings  highly  excited,  never  once  mentions 
the  name  of  Cresap  ?  And  may  we  not  further  remark  that 
this  fact,  which  happens  to  be  matter  of  record,  cuts  like  a 
two-edged  sword — not  only  by  implication  giving  the  lie  to 
his  pretended  speech,  but  affording  at  the  same  time  an  argu- 
ment that  whatsoever  might  be  the  opinion  of  their  advocate. 
Dr.  Doddridge,  it  was  not  the  opinion  of  the  Indians  them- 
selves that  Cresap  was  the  cause  of  Dunmore's  war.  But 
enough. 

And  we  now  proceed  to  take  up  the  Doctor's  long  list  of 
specific  charges,  in  the  order  they  occur. 

•The  Rev.  Dr.  David  McClure,  during  a  visit  to  Fort  Pitt  and  the  neighboring  regions  of 
the  Ohio,  met  our  hero,  and  saw  many  other  Indians  who  were  in  the  habit  of  resorting  to  the 
settlements  for  the  salce  of  a  drunken  frolic,  staggering  about  the  town.  At  that  time  Logan 
was  still  remarkable  for  the  grandeur  of  his  personal  appearance.  TAH-GAH-icJTE,  or  "SAo7-< 
Dress,"  tor  such  was  his  Indian  name,  stood  several  inches  more  than  six  feet  in  hight;  he 
was  straight  as  an  arrow;  lithe,  athletic,  and  symmetrical  in  figure;  firm,  resolute,  and  com- 
manding in  feature ;  but  the  brave,  open,  and  manly  countenance  he  possessed  in  his  earlier 
years  was  now  chanjred  for  one  of  martial  ferocity.  After  tarrying  and  preaching  nearly  three 
weeks  at  Fort  Pitt,  Dr.  McClure,  in  the  summer  or  ahtumn  of  1772,  set  out  for  Muskingum, 
accompanied  by  a  Christian  Indian  as  his  interpreter.  The  second  day  after  his  departure,  the 
wayfarers  unexpectedly  encountered  Logan.  Painted  and  equipped  for  war,  and  accompanied 
by  another  savage,  he  lurked  a  few  rods  from  the  path  beneath  a  tree,  leaning  on  his  rifle  ;  nor 
did  the  missionary  notice  him  until  apprised  by  the  interpreter  that  Logan  desired  to  speak 


( 


LIFE  OF  CAFTAIM  CRESAP.  107 

The  first  is,  that  the  white  people  began  the  war  of  1774. 
Now,  it  is  evident  that  if  we  were  to  admit  its  truth,  it  would 
not  apply  to  Captain  Cresap  more  than  any  other  man  ;  but, 
interwoven  and  connected  with  the  thread  of  his  history,  he 
appears  to  wish  it  to  be  understood  as  applying  to  Cresap. 
But  as  I  have  already  proved  in  my  fourth  chapter — not  from 
assertion  only,  but  from  authentic  documents — that  this  asser- 
tion is  not  true,  and  that  it  rests  upon  no  better  authority 
than  the  parson's  ipse  dixit,  we  need  not  weary  the  reader's 
patience  by  multiplying  arguments  or  using  repetition  in  this 
case. 

The  Doctor's  second  assertion  is,  that  "  Captain  Cresap  com- 
manded Fort  Wheeling  at  the  commencement  of  the  war."  Now 
this  charge,  considered  as  detached  from  inferences  and  con- 
sequences, would  seem  to  mean  nothing,  nor  have  any  tend- 
ency to  injure  the  character  of  Cresap.  But  when  we  con- 
sider the  adjuncts  and  inferences  the  Doctor  designs  we  shall 
draw  from  this  circumstance,  it  wears  a  serious  aspect,  be- 
cause he  intends  we  shall  consider  Cresap  as  a  prowling  wolf, 
who  makes  his  den  in  Wheeling,  sallying  out  occasionally  and 
killing  his  poor  sheep,  the  Indians ;  and  moreover,  because 
the  design  of  this  assertion  is  to  entirely  mislead  the  mind  of 
the  public  as  to  the  real  fact  and  circumstances  that  accident- 
ally led  Captain  Cresap  to  that  place  at  all. 

with  him.  McCIare  immediately  rode  to  the  spot  where  the  red  man  remained,  and  asked 
what  he  required.  For  a  moment  Logan  stood  pale  and  agitated  before  the  preacher,  and  then, 
pointing  to  his  breast,  exclaimed  ;  "I  feel  bad  here.  Whererer  I  go  the  evil  Manethoes  pursue 
"  me.  If  I  go  into  my  cabin,  my  cabin  is  full  of  devils.  If  I  go  into  the  woods,  the  trees  and 
"  the  air  are  full  of  devils.  They  haunt  me  by  day  and  by  night.  They  seem  to  want  to 
"  catch  me,  and  throw  me  into  a  deep  pit,  full  of  fire."  In  this  moody  strain  of  abrupt,  maud- 
lin musing — with  the  unntitural  pallor  still  pervading  his  skin — he  leant  for  awhile  on  his  rifle, 
and  continued  to  brood  over  the  haunting  devils.  At  length  he  broke  forth  with  an  earnest 
appeal  to  the  missionary  as  to  "what  he  should  do?"  Dr.  McClure  gave  him  sensible  and  friendly 
advice  suggested  by  the  occasion ;  counselled  him  to  reflect  on  his  past  life ;  considered  him 
as  weighed  down  by  remorse  for  the  errors  or  cruelties  of  past  years,  and  exhorted  him  to  that 
sincere  penitence  and  prayer  which  would  drive  from  him  the  "evil  Manethoes"  forever. 
— Brantz  Mayer't  Addreu,  p.  32. 


108 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJy'  CBESAP. 


I  have  already  stated,  in  my  third  and  fourth  chapters,  the 
real  and  true  state  of  this  case — namely :  that  Captain  Cresap, 
being  warned  of  his  danger,  fled  to  Fort  Wheeling  as  a  place 
of  refuge;  that  he  was  a  mere  bird  of  passage — a  transient 
(though  I  believe  very  welcome)  guest ;  that  he  had  no  more 
right  to  assume  the  command  of  Fort  Wheeling  than  a  trav- 
eler, who  may  call  and  tarry  a  night  with  any  of  you  gentle- 
men, has  to  assume  the  command  of  your  family  and  servants ; 
and  that  in  fact  he  tarried  there  but  a  few  days,  as  he  was, 
perhaps,  at  this  time  dependent  upon  the  hospitality  of  his 
friend  Colonel  Zane,  who  was  the  real  commandant. 

Third. — But  the  Doctor  has  more  yet  against  us,  and  of  a 
more  serious  nature — namely:  that  Captain  Cresaj)  killed  two 
Indians  in  a  canoe. 

I  have  already  admitted  that  two  Indians  were  killed  in  a 
canoe — not  by  Captain  Cresap  personally,  but  two  of  his  men ; 
and  we  also  admit  that  some  of  the  English  red-coats  were 
killed  at  Lexington  by  some  wicked  Yankees,  in  April,  1775.  ■ 
Now,  in  the  former  case,  we  have  shown  that  it  was  subse- 
quent to  acts  of  hostility  by  the  Indians,  and  at  a  time  when 
war  was  considered  as  inevitable,  and  as  actually  begun.  But 
in  the  latter  case,  the  red-coats  and  the  Yankees  went  at  it 
pell  mell,  and  both  were  the  first  aggressors;  yet  who  ever 
blamed  our  Yankees  for  this  ? 

But,  as  I  have  already  anticipated  and  answered  the  Doctor 
as  to  this  charge,  in  my  fourth  chapter,  I  need  not  add  any 
more  here.  But  the  Doctor  adds,  that  after  Captain  Cresap 
killed  the  two  Indians  in  the  canoe,  he  went  down  the  Ohio 
the  same  day,  and  killed  more  Indians  at  the  mouth  of  Cap- 
teening.  So,  then,  this  prowling  wolf  having  killed  two 
Indians — up  the  river,  the  Doctor  says,  but  he  does  not  say 
how  far  up — yet  insatiable,  passed  by  his  den  and  went  down 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  109 

the  river  about  fifteen  or  eighteen  miles  the  same  day,  and 
killed  more.  Now  this  story  contradicts  itself;  'tis  scarcely 
possible  that  any  men  could  do  this  without  the  aid  of  swift 
horses  or  a  balloon,  neither  of  which  I  suppose  they  had. 
But  I  have  also  given  the  reader  a  candid  and  honest  state- 
ment of  this  fact  in  my  fourth  chapter,  therefore  need  not 
repeat  it  again  and  again. 

Fourth. — But  Colonel  Zane,  says  the  Doctor,  ^'■expostulated 
with  Captain,  Cresap  about  killing  the  two  Indians^  We  deny 
this  assertion,  and  call  on  his  reverence  to  prove  it — and  not 
by  assertion  or  vague  report,  but  positively  and  pointedly ; 
because  we  conceive  this  charge  the  mere  offspring  of  malevo- 
lence, and  designed  to  present  Captain  Cresap  before  the 
public  in  the  most  odious  colors. 

Fifth. — He  tells  us  that  the  massacre  on  Yellow  Creek  and 
the  battle  on  Capteening  comprehended  all  the  family  of  Logan — 
meaning,  I  presume,  that  all  Logan's  family  wore  killed  at 
those  two  places.  Now,  that  several  of  Logan's  family  were 
killed  at  Yellow  Creek  we  never  heard  disputed,  but  that  any 
part  of  that  family  was  killed  at  Capteening  we  never  heard 
before ;  and  we  have  seen  in  the  preceding  pages  of  this  work 
that  only  one  Indian  was  killed  there,  or  in  the  skirmish 
Cresap  had  with  the  Indians  on  the  Ohio — whether  at  Cap- 
teening or  elsewhere  is  uncertain ;  but  who  this  Indian  was, 
or  of  what  family,  I  know  not,  nor  ever  heard;  nor  can  any 
reason  be  offered  why  these  two  affairs  of  Yellow  Creek  and 
Capteening  should  be  thus  blended  together,  except  that  the 
Doctor  is  determined  in  some  way  or  other  to  lug  in  Captain 
Cresap  as  one  of  the  murderers  of  Logan's  family.* 

*  JoliQ  Sappington  states  that  lie  was  "  intimately  acquainted  with  all  the  circumstances  re- 
specting the  destruction  of  Logan's  family,"  though  he  does  not  admit,  in  his  carefully  drawn 
statement,  that  he  was  present  at  the  scene  of  murder.  McKee,  in  his  certificate  appended  to 
Sappington's  testimony  in  JefTerson's  Notes,  says  that  Sappington  admitted  be  was  the  man  who 


110  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIM  CRESAP- 

But,  if  we  were  to  admit  that  this  Indian  killed  at  Cap- 
teening  was  in  fact  one  of  Logan's  family,  it  would  neither 
add  nor  diminish  aught  to  the  innocence  or  criminality  of  the 
action.  The  only  conceivable  motive  for  blending  the  two 
affairs  of  Yellow  Creek  and  Capteening,  is  to  give  a  kind  of 
currency  to  the  Logan  speech ;  for  we  shall  presently  see  that 
the  Doctor  himself  is  constrained  to  acknowledge,  although 
indirectly  and  covertly,  yet  plainly  enough,  that  Captain 
Cresap  was  not,  nor  had  he  any  agency  or  concern  in  the 
affair  on  Yellow  Creek. 

Sixth. — The  Doctor  calls  Colonel  Lewis  General  Lewis,  and 
Logan  a  Cayuga  chief — in  both  of  which  he  is  incorrect ;  nor 
is  it  of  any  other  importance  than  to  show  a  want  of  precision 
and  accuracy  in  his  history,  that  may  lead  to  suspicion  in 
matters  of  greater  importance ;  and  that  the  Doctor  is  mis- 
taken in  the  grade  of  Colonel  Lewis  is  most  certain,  because, 
before  our  Revolutionary  war,  Virginia  had  in  her  militia  no 
higher  military  grade  than  county  lieutenant  with  the  title  of 
colonel ;  and  that  he  is  also  mistaken  respecting  his  favorite, 
the  grand  Indian  orator,  Prince  Logan,  appears  not  only  from 
the  certificate  of  Benjamin  Tomlinson,  Esq.,  but  also  from 
Captain  Wood's  journal. 

Seventh. — He  says  the  authenticity  of  the  Logan  speech  is 
now  no  longer  a  subject  of  doubt;  and  for  fear  the  reader  should 
be  so  unhappy  as  to  die  without  being  gratified  with  such  a 
delicious  feast,  he  gives  him  the  whole  speech. 


killed  Logan's  brother.     See  also  the  statement  written  by  Mr.  Jolly,  published  in  the  Ameri- 
can Journal  of  Science  and  Art,  toI.  xixi,  p.  10. 

It  is  important  to  recollect  that  all  these  statements  and  depositions  positively  prove  that 
Captain  Michael  Cresap  was  neither  present  at  nor  countenanced  the  alleged  murder  of  Logan's 
kin  at  the  Yellow  Creek  massacre.  The  fact  that  Sappington's  statement  was  published  by  Mr. 
Jefferson  himself,  indicates  the  confidence  he  placed  in  it,  especially  as  he  inserts  it  as  a  sort  of 
supplement  to  the  other  testimony  on  the  subject  which  had  been  printed  before  its  reception. 
Logan's  mother,  brother  and  sister,  (Gibson's  Indian  wife  or  squaw,  in  all  likelihood,)  were, 
probably,  all  of  the  relatives  of  Logan  killed  there. — Branli  Mayer' t  Address,  p.  53. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  Ill 

Now,  gentle  reader,  I  do  most  earnestly  entreat  your  pa- 
tience while  I  endeavor,  with  all  simplicity,  to  bring  into 
your  view  this  crooked  and  unparalleled  jumble  of  contradic- 
tions.    Let  us  see  how  this  story  will  hang  together : 

1.  We  are  told  that  there  is  now  no  longer  any  doubt  as  to 
the  authenticity  of  this  Logan  speech,  and  of  course,  I  pre- 
sume he  means  to  say,  the  facts  contained  in  that  speech — one 
of  which  most  prominent  facts,  according  to  the  speech  as 
recited  by  himself,  is  that  Colonel  Cresap,  the  last  Spring,  in 
cold  blood  and  unprovoked,  murdered  all  Logan's  relations, 
not  even  sparing  his  women  and  children. 

2.  He  says  the  massacre  at  Capteening,  and  that  which  took 
place  at  Baker's,*  about  forty  miles  above  Wheeling,  a  few 
days  after  that  at  Capteening,  were  unquestionably  the  sole 
cause  of  the  war  of  1774.  The  last  was  perpetrated  by  thirty- 
two  men  under  the  command  of  Daniel  Greathouse.  The 
whole  number  killed  at  the  place,  and  on  the  river  opposite, 
was  twelve,  &c.,  &c. 

Now,  here  is  an  artful,  dark,  and  yet  sufficiently  explicit 
confession  that  Captain  Cresap  had  no  concern  in  the  Yellow 
Creek  business,  or  in  killing  Logan's  relations ;  yet  it  is  told 
in  such  ambiguous  and  indistinct  terms,  as  it  should  seem 
purposely  to  deceive  the  reader;  for,  instead  of  telling  us 
plainly  that  this  affair  at  Baker's  was  in  fact  the  affair  of 

*  Baker  was  a  man  who  sold  ram,  and  the  Indians  had  made  frequent  visits  at  his  house, 
induced  probably  by  their  fondness  for  that  liquor.  He  had  been  particularly  desired  by  Cresap 
to  remove  and  take  away  his  rum,  and  he  was  actually  preparing  to  move  at  the  time  of  the 
murder.  The  evening  before  a  squaw  came  over  to  Baker's  house,  and  by  her  crying  seemed 
to  be  in  great  distress.  The  cause  of  her  uneasiness  being  asked,  she  refused  to  tell;  bat 
getting  Baker's  wife  alone,  she  told-  her  that  the  Indians  were  going  to  kill  her  and  all  her 
family  the  next  day,  that  she  loved  her,  did  not  wish  her  to  be  killed,  and  therefore  told  her 
what  was  intended,  that  she  might  save  herself  In  consequence  of  this  information,  Baker  got 
a  number  of  men,  to  the  amount  of  twenty -one,  to  come  to  his  house,  and  they  were  all  there 
before  morning.  A  council  was  held,  and  it  was  determined  that  the  men  should  lie  concealed 
in  the  back  apartment;  that  if  the  Indians  did  come  and  behaved  themselves  peaceably,  they 
should  not  be  molested ;  but  if  not,  the  men  were  to  show  themselves  and  act  accordingly.  Early 
in  the  morning  seven  Indians,  foar  men  and  three  squaws,  came  over.    Logan's  brother  was  on* 

10 


112  LIFE  OF  CAPTAI^r  CRESAP. 


Yellow  Creek,  and  that  the  people  that  were  killed  there  were 
Logan's  relations,  he  has  put  the  statement  of  this  fact  into 
such  a  shape  as  no  doubt  to  have  deceived  his  readers,  with 
the  meritorious  view  of  saving  the  Logan  speech  and  vilifying 
most  cruelly  and  unjustly  the  character  of  Captain  Cresap. 
And  what  makes  this  suspicion  stronger  is,  he  calls  the  battle 
at  Cap  teen  ing  (for  he  will  have  a  battle  there,  right  or 
wrong,)  a  "massacre;"  whereas  I  have  shown,  and  I  hope 
satisfactorily,  too,  that  there  was  no  more  reason  to  call  that 
battle  a  massacre  than  Lewis's  battle  at  the  mouth  of  Kan- 
awha, or  any  other  battle  fought  during  the  whole  war.  Nor 
do  I  believe,  from  everything  I  have  heard — although  I  am 
far  from  advocating  this  Yellow  Creek  business  of  murdering 
women  in  cool  blood — yet  I  say  from  all  I  have  ever  heard 
of  this  business,  that  the  Doctor  has  given  a  tolerably  correct 
and  honest  statement  of  that  aifair ;  certainly  he  is  wrong  in 
a  most  essential  point,  for  the  Yellow  Creek  business  was 
antecedent  to  that  at  Capteening,  and  is  entirely  distinct,  and 
has  no  connection  with  it. 

But  the  wonderful  part  of  this  story  yet  remains  to  be  told> 
and  it  plainly  comes  out  to  be  Doddridge  versus  Doddridge ; 
for  first  he  tells  us  that  the  authenticity  of  the  Logan  speech 
is  now  no  longer  a  subject  of  doubt,  that  this  authentic  speech 

of  them.  They  immediately  got  rum,  and  all,  except  Logan's  brother,  became  rery  much 
iutoxicated.  At  this  time  all  the  men  were  concealed,  except  the  man  of  the  house,  Baker,  and 
two  others,  who  staid  out  with  him.  Those  Indians  came  unarmed.  After  some  time  Logan's 
brother  took  down  a  coat  and  hat  belonging  to  Baker's  brother-in-law,  who  lived  with  him, 
and  put  them  on,  and  setting  his  arms  akimbo,  began  to  strut  about,  till  at  length  coming  up 
to  one  of  the  men,  he  attempted  to  strike  him,  saying,  "white  man  son  q/  a  bitch."  The  white 
man,  whom  he  treated  thus,  kept  out  of  his  way  for  some  time,  but  growing  irritated  he  jumped 
to  his  gun,  and  shot  the  Indian  as  he  was  making  to  the  door  with  the  coat  and  hat  on  him. 
The  men  who  lay  concealed  then  rushed  out  and  killed  the  whole  of  them,  excepting  one  child, 
which  I  believe  is  alive  yet.  But  before  this  happened,  two  canoes,  one  with  two,  the  other 
with  five  Indians,  all  naked,  painted,  and  armed  completely  for  war,  were  discovered  to  start 
from  the  shore  on  which  Logan's  camp  was.  Had  it  not  been  for  this  circumstance,  the  white 
men  would  not  have  acted  as  they  did;  but  this  confirmed  what  the  squaw  had  told  before. 
The  whit«  men  having  killed  as  aforesaid  the  Indians  In  the  house,  ranged  themselves  along 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  113 

gives  us  clear  and  unequivocal  testimony  that  Colonel  Cresap 
murdered  all  Logan's  family  at  Yellow  Creek,  not  sparing 
his  women  and  children ;  secondly,  that  this  family  of  Logan's 
who  were  killed  at  Baker's — which  is  the  same  place  and 
same  people — were  killed  by  Daniel  Greathouse  and  thirty- 
two  men,  among  whom  he  has  not,  and  among  whom  truth 
and  his  own  conscience  would  not  permit  him  to  name  Captain 
Cresap.  So  here  we  have  Logan  in  a  speech  charging  Colonel 
Cresap  with  killing  his  relations,  and  a  Dr.  Doddridge  con- 
firming the  truth  of  that  speech  with  all  the  weight  his  asser- 
tion, his  book  and  character  can  give  it,  and  at  the  same  time, 
in  the  same  book  and  in  the  same  chapter,  acknowledging 
that  it  was  not  Cresap  but  Greathouse  that  committed  the 
murder  and  massacre  at  Yellow  Creek.  Now,  I  ask  the  reader 
if  he  ever  saw  an  argument  so  much  like  the  letter  X  with 
the  Doctor  stuck  on  each  point  ? 

But,  how  shall  we  account  for  all  this  ?  Did  Dr.  Doddridge 
believe,  or  did  he  not  believe  that  Captain  Cresap  killed  Lo- 
gan's family  ?  If  he  did,  and  does  believe  it,  pray  who  were 
the  people  killed  by  Greathouse  ?  And  why  has  he  not,  somo 
where  in  his  book,  charged  Captain  Cresap  with  this  amonj, 
all  his  other  charges  ?  For  I  have  nowhere  yet  discovered 
any  disposition  in  the  Doctor  to  spare  him.     But  if,  on  the 

the  bank  of  the  river  to  receive  the  canoes.  The  canoe  with  the  two  Indians  came  near,  being 
the  foremost.  Oar  men  fired  upon  them  and  killed  them  both.  The  other  canoe  then  went 
back.  After  this  two  other  canoes  started,  the  one  containing  eleven,  the  other  seven  Indians, 
painted  and  armed  a)  the  firtt.  They  attempted  to  land  below  our  men,  but  were  fired  upon, 
had  one  killed,  and  retreated,  at  the  same  time  firing  back.  To  the  best  of  my  recollection 
there  were  three  of  the  Greathouses  engaged  in  this  business  This  is  a  true  representation  of 
the  affair  from  beginning  to  end.  I  was  intimately  acquainted  with  Cresap.  and  know  he  had 
no  hand  in  the  transaction.  He  told  me  himself  afterward,  at  Redstone  Old  Fort,  that  the  day 
before  Logan's  people  were  killed,  he,  with  a  smill  party,  had  an  engagement  with  a  party  of 
Indians  on  Capteener,  about  forty-four  miles  lower  down.  Logan's  people  were  killed  at  the 
month  of  Yellow  Creek,  on  the  •24th  of  May,  1774;  and  the  'ISA.  the  day  before,  Cresap  wa3 
engaged,  as  already  stated.  I  know  likewise  that  he  was  generally  blamed  fjr  it,  and  believed 
by  all,  who  were  not  acquainted  with  the  circumstances,  to  have  been  the  perpetrator  of  it.  I 
know  that  he  despised  and  hated  the  Greathouses  ever  afterward  on  account  of  it. — Appendix 
to  Jefferton'i  Notet  an    Virginia,  p.  266. 


114  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP. 

contrary,  he  did  not,  nor  does  not  believe  that  Captain  Cresap 
had  any  concern  in  this  Yellow  Creek  massacre,  why  does  he 
attempt  to  palm  the  Logan  speech  on  the  public  for  a  genuine, 
authentic  document  ? — knowing  in  his  own  conscience  that  if 
the  speech  itself  is  authentic,  it  is  an  authentic  record  of  lies, 
which  he  was  bound  in  honor,  as  an  honest  man,  and  in  can- 
dor and  veracity  as  a  historian,  to  publish  to  the  world. 

Eighth. — But  as  Logan  was  not  at  the  treaty,  Dr.  Dodd- 
ridge tells  us  he  sent  Ms  speech  in  a  belt  of  wampum ;  so,  right 
or  wrong,  by  hook  or  by  crook,  in  some  way  or  other,  the 
Doctor  must  have  a  Logan  speech. 

" He  sent  his  speech  in  a  belt  of  wampum!" 

Now,  if  I  am  not  greatly  mistaken  here  is  one  new  thing 
under  the  sun — a  perfect  original.  That  the  Indians  use  belts 
of  wampum  and  strings  of  wampum  in  their  treaties,  which 
serve  for  them  as  records,  and  also  generally  at  the  conclusion 
of  their  harangues  or  speeches,  as  a  kind  of  amen  or  confirm- 
ation, is  not  disputed ;  but  a  speech  in  a  belt  of  wampum, 
unaccompanied  with  a  message,  is  quite  a  new  thing — and  in 
fact  a  thing  that  never  happens.  The  reader,  by  recurring  to 
a  preceding  page  of  this  work,  will  see  the  use  of  belts  and 
strings  of  wampum,  as  well  from  the  English  and  French 
officers  at  Detroit,  the  Delaware  tribe  of  Indians,  as  from  the 
said  Delawares  to  Captain  Wood,  and  from  Captain  Wood  to 
them ;  but  we  do  not  find  that  in  either  instance  these  belts 
became  vocal ;  on  the  contrary,  they  were  as  quiescent  and 
silent  as  a  dormouse. 

But  as  the  speech  of  the  Delaware  chiefs  to  Captain  Wood 
is  not  very  long,  and  may  serve,  as  a  specimen  of  Indian 
speeches  and  customs,  we  give  it  to  the  reader,  as  follows : 

"  Brothers  the  Big-knife:  Your  brothers,  the  Delawares,  are 
"  very  thankful  to  you  for  your  good  talk  yesterday,  and  are 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJSr  CRESJ.F.  116 

"glad  to  find  their  brothers'  hearts  are  good  toward  them, 
"and  they  will  be  joyful  at  meeting  them  at  the  time  and 
"place  you  mention. 

"Brothers,  in  order  to  convince  our  elder  brothers  of  Vir- 
"ginia  that  we  desire  to  live  in  friendship  with  them,  I  now 
"deliver  to  you  this  helt  and  string;  they  were  sent  to  us  by 
"an  Englishman  and  a  Frenchman  [in  a  subsequent  meeting 
Captain  Wood  had  with  the  Wyandots,  they  denied  that  the 
French  had  any  concern  in  this  business,  but  that  it  was  the 
English  only,]  at  Detroit,  with  a  message  that  the  people  of 
"Virginia  were  determined  to  strike  us;  that  they  would 
"come  upon  us  two  diiferent  ways — the  one  by  the  lakes  and 
"the  other  by  the  Ohio — and  that  the  Virginians  were  deter- 
"  mined  to  drive  us  off  and  to  take  our  lands ;  that  we  must 
"  be  constantly  on  our  guard,  and  not  give  any  credit  to  what- 
"ever  you  said,  as  you  were  a  people  not  to  be  depended 
"upon;  that  the  Virginians  would  invite  us  to  a  treaty,  but 
"we  must  not  go  at  any  rate  ;  and  to  take  particular  notice  of 
"the  advice  they  gave,  which  proceeded  from  motives  of  real 
"friendship,  and  nothing  else." 

They  then  delivered  the  belt  and  string  received  from  De- 
troit. I  trust  the  reader  now  sees  and  understands  the  use 
made  by  Indians  and  those  concerned  in  Indian  affairs  of  belts 
of  wampum.  They  are  among  these  people  significant  symbols 
of  peace  and  war,  and  commemorative  of  conditions  and  arti- 
cles of  treaty.  But  to  send  a  speech  in  a  belt  of  wampum, 
unaccompanied  with  a  message,  is  a  thing  never  known.  We 
find  the  message  from  Detroit  to  the  Indians  accompanied 
with  a  belt  and  string  of  black  wampum  ;  this  was  significant, 
and  agreeable  to  Indian  customs,  and  denoted  war.  We  find, 
also,  Captain  Wood  delivers  a  string  of  white  wampum  ;  this 
we  know  was  emblematical  of  peace  and  good  will. 


116  LIFE  OF  CAFTAIJ\-  CltFSAF. 

I  have  taken  more  pains  to  elucidate  this  subject  than,  per- 
haps, was  necessary.  But  as  it  Avas  the  last  fibre  in  the 
Doctor's  cobweb,  I  thought  it  best,  with  the  brush  of  plain, 
simple,  honest  truth,  to  clash  it  all  away  together.  But,  before 
I  dismiss  the  Doctor  and  conclude  this  chapter,  may  we  not 
ask  this  sensitive,  this  tender-hearted  and  noble  champion 
and  defender  of  the  Indians,  where  was  his  sympathy  for  the 
christian  Delaware  Indians  that  were  massacred  in  cold  blood 
by  hundreds  ?  It  is  true  he  speaks  with  horror  of  the  action, 
but  finds  an  apology  for  the  perpetrators ;  be  it  so ;  I  feel  no 
wish  to  disturb  the  ashes  of  the  dead,  or  irritate  old  sores  that 
time  and  oblivion  have  buried ;  and  only  mention  the  circum- 
stance to  show  with  what  avidity  he  seized  every  idle  report 
to  aid  him  in  consigning  to  infamy  and  detestation  a  character 
which  duty,  gratitude,  and  the  best  feelings  of  the  noblest 
mind  ought  to  have  urged  him  rather  to  eulogize.  It  is  re- 
markable that  Dr.  Doddridge  closes  his  chapter  on  the  mas- 
sacre of  the  Moravian  Indians  in  the  following  words — i.  e., 
that  the  names  of  these  murderers  should  not  stain  the  pages 
of  history,  from  his  pen,  at  least.'    (Page  265.) 

Alas,  sir,  what  have  you  done  ?  You  have  used  your  best 
endeavors  to  hand  down  to  succeeding  generations  the  name 
and  character  of  a  man  with  whom  you  had  no  acquaintance, 
as  the  most  odious,  the  most  detestable ;  and  so  far  as  your 
book  and  influence  extends,  you  no  doubt  intended  they 
should  have  this  efifect. 

In  the  name,  then,  of  that  awful  being  whose  minister  you 
are,  or  ought  to  be,  in  the  name  of  truth,  justice  and  mercy, 
I  ask  what  reparation,  what  atonement  can  you  make  ?  —  not 
to  the  manes  of  Captain  Cresap  only,  but  to  his  large,  ex- 
tensive and  respectable  family,  who  never  did  nor  ever 
wished  to  injure  you. 


I 


CHAPTER    VII. 

Concluding  scenes  of  Captain  Cresap's  life — marches  to  Boston 
— taken  sick  in  camp — makes  an  effort  to  get  home — dies 
at  New  York. 

As  a  traveler  worn  down  with  weariness  and  fatigue  looks 
forward  with  joyful  and  pleasing  anticipations  of  ease  and 
rest  at  his  journey's  end,  so  my  weary  hands  and  aching 
head  are  cheered  as  they  approximate  the  end  of  toil  and 
labor,  now  full  in  view. 

Although  we  have  repeatedly  mentioned  the  name  of  Cap- 
tain Cresap  on  various  occasions  in  the  course  of  our  history, 
yet  we  left  him  personally  at  the  conclusion  of  our  third  chap- 
ter, to  which  the  present  may  properly  be  considered  a  sup- 
plement. 

It  was  there  stated,  that  Captain  Cresap  was  engaged  at 
the  commencement  of  Dunmore's  war  in  improving  lands  on 
the  Ohio ;  that,  being  driven  by  the  hostile  attitude  of  our 
affairs  with  the  Indians  from  the  business  he  was  engaged  in, 
he  took  an  active  part  in  that  war,  and  never  after  attended 
to  his  own  business  until  after  its  conclusion.  But  the  con- 
cluding scene,  however,  of  this  story,  this  chequered  drama  of 
life,  remains  yet  to  be  told. 

After  the  treaty  of  Chillicothe,  and  the  army  was  disbanded. 
Captain  Cresap  returned  to  his  family,  and  spent  the  latter 
part  of  the  Autumn  of  1774  and  succeeding  Winter  in  repose 
in  his  domestic  circle — a  thing,  by  the  by,  not  very  common 
with  him.  But  very  early  in  the  Spring  of  1775  he  hired 
another  set  of  young  men  and  returned  to  the  Ohio,  with  the 


118  LIFE   OF  CAPTAIJY  CRESAP. 


view  of  finishing  the  work  he  had  commenced  the  year  before. 
Nor  did  he  stop  at  this  time  at  his  old  station  on  that  river, 
but  descended  with  a  part  of  his  hands  as  low  as  Kentucky, 
.where  he  also  made  many  improvements;  but  being  indis- 
posed, he  left  his  hands  and  started  for  home.  However,  this 
eventful  period  scattered  again  all  his  golden  dreams,  as  we 
shall  presently  see.  American  blood  was  shed,  the  battle  of 
Lexington  had  taken  place,  and  all  America  was  in  a  flame ; 
Congress  had  met,  conventions  were  formed,  and  committees 
were  appointed  in  every  section  of  the  country ;  and  a  letter 
was  addressed  by  the  delegates  from  Maryland  in  Congress 
to  the  committee  of  Frederick  county,  requesting  them  with 
all  convenient  speed  to  raise  two  companies  of  riflemen,  &c. 

But,  as  this  letter  is  an  important  document,  and  naturally 
leads  the  mind  back  and  gives  us  a  view  into  those  times  that 
tried  men's  souls,  and  moreover  as  I  am  not  sure  that  it  has 
a  place  in  any  record,  I  give  it  to  the  reader  at  full  length : 

"Philadelphia,  June  15,  1775. 

''Gentlemen:  We  inclose  you  a  resolution  of  Congress  for 
"raising  two*  companies  of  riflemen,  two  of  which  in  our  own 
"province.  It  is  thought  this  small  body  of  men,  all  of  which 
"we  expect  to  be  expert  hands,  will  be  more  serviceable  for 
"the  defense  of  America  in  the  continental  army  near  Boston. 
"You  will  please  to  observe  the  men  are  to  be  enlisted  for 
"one  year,  unless  the  affairs  of  America  will  admit  of  their 
"  discharge  before  that  time.  It  is  left  to  the  delegates  of 
"Pennsylvania,  Maryland  and  Virginia  to  fall  on  such  meas- 
"ures  as  may  appear  most  likely  to  get  the  companies  quickly 
"formed  and  on  their  march. 

"The  gentlemen  of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia  write,  as  we 


*  It  is  "two"  in  the  origiual,  but  it  ought  to  be  "six." 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  119 


"do,  to  the  committees  of  the  counties,  where  it  is  most  likely 
"the  best  men  may  the  soonest  be  had ;  and  for  the  conveni- 
"ence  of  having  the  whole  end  on  all  events  on  the  same  day, 
"have  agreed  the  year  shall  finish  on  the  first  day  of  July, 
"1776,  as  we  suppose  the  enlistments  will  begin  about  the 
"first  day  of  next  month. 

"The  committee  of  your  county,  it  is  expected,  will  give 
"recommendatory  certificate  of  the  officers  for  their  respective 
"places  and  ranks,  and  the  commissions  can  be  made  out  ac- 
"cordingly  under  the  direction  of  Congress.  The  companies, 
"as  soon  as  formed,  will  march  forward  to  Boston  with  all  ex- 
"pedition,  and  it  is  unnecessary  that  there  should  be  a  rendez- 
"  vous  of  all  the  company  at  any  one  place  before  they  get  to 
"the  camp.  You  will,  doubtless,  if  possible,  get  experienced 
^^  officers,  and  the  very  best  men  that  can  be  procured,  as  well  from 
'■'■your  affection  to  the  service  as  for  the  honor  of  our  province ;  we 
"hope  it  will  appear  to  you  as  to  us,  prudent  to  [get  the  men 
"as  far  back  as  may  be,  not  only  because  there  is  a  fair 
"chance  of  their  being  as  good  as  any  others,  but  that  those 
"whose  situations  will  permit,  may  be  left  at  hand,  to  act 
"in  our  own  province,  if  unhappily  there  should  be  occasion, 
"unless  you  should  be  advised  time  enough  of  a  difi'erent 
"provision.  You  will  direct  captains  to  give  certificates  of 
"their  necessary  expenses  incurred  on  the  way  for  sub- 
"sistence.  The  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania  captains  will,  if 
"necessary,  do  so  too. 

"We  shall  expect  to  be  advised  from  time  to  time  of 
"the  success  of  your  endeavors,  or  any  difficulty  you  may 
"meet  with.  We  have  wrote  to  you  only  on  this  subject, 
"thinking  the  whole  may  be  executed  in  your  county;  but 
"if  you  are  likely  to  meet  with  any  embarrassment,  we 
"should  be  glad  you  would  speedily  consult  the  committee 


120  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIK  CRESAP- 

"of  Baltimore,  who  may  probably  be    able    to   render  you 

"some  assistance. 

"We  are,  gentlemen, 

"Your  most  obedient  servants, 

"MATTHEW  TILGHMAN, 

"THOMAS  JOHNSON,  Jr. 

"JOHN  HALL, 

"ROBERT  GOLDSBOROUGH, 

"T.  STONE, 

"WILLIAM  PACA, 

"SAMUEL  CHACE. 

"To  the  Committee  of  Frederick  County,  Maryland." 

In  consequence  of  this  resolve  of  Congress,  and  letter  from 
the  delegation  of  Maryland,  the  committee  of  Frederick  im- 
mediately appointed  Captain  Michael  Cresap  and  Thomas 
Price,  of  Fredericktown,  captains  to  command  these  two  rifle 
companies ;  and  as  soon  as  this  was  known,  I  was  dispatched 
in  all  haste  to  give  Captain  Cresap  notice  of  this  appointment, 
and  met  him  in  the  Allegheny  mountains  on  his  way.  As  I 
have  already  remarked,  he  had  left  his  hands  and  business 
through  indisposition,  and  was  making  homewards. 

When  I  communicated  my  business,  and  announced  his 
appointment,  instead  of  becoming  elated  he  became  pensive 
and  solemn,  as  if  his  spirits  were  really  depressed;  or  as  if 
he  had  a  presentiment  this  was  his  death  warrant.  He  said 
he  was  in  bad  health,  and  his  aflfairs  in  a  deranged  state,  but 
that  nevertheless,  as  the  committee  had  selected  him,  and  as 
he  understood  (from  me)  that  his  father  had  pledged  himself 
that  he  should  accept  of  this  appointment,  he  would  go,  let 
the  consequences  be  what  they  might.  He  then  directed  me 
to  proceed  to  the  west  side  of  the  mountains,  and  publish  to 
his  old   companions  in  arms   this  his  intention ;  this  I  did, 


LIFE  OF  CAFTAIM  CRESAP.  121 

and  in  a  very  short  time  collected  and  brought  to  him,  at  his 
residence  in  Old  Town,  about  twenty-two  as  fine  fellows  as 
ever  handled  a  rifle,  and  most,  if  not  all  of  them,  com- 
pletely equipped  with  rifles,  etc.,  etc.  Soon  after  these  men 
joined  his  company,  he  marched,*  and  bid,  alas !  a  final  fare- 
well to  his  family. 

The  immense  popularity  of  this  ^^infamous  Indian  murderer'^ 
will  appear  not  only  from  the  circumstance  of  twenty  men 
marching  voluntarily  nearly  one  hundred  miles — leaving  their 
families  and  their  all,  merely  from  a  message  sent  by  a  boy — 
to  join  the  standard  of  their  ol  dcaptain  ;  and  that,  too,  from 
the  very  county  where,  if  his  name  was  odious,  it  must  be 
most  odious,  as  being  in  the  vicinity  of  those  dreadful  Indian 
murders. 

But  the  high  estimation  in  which  Captain  Cresap  stood  with 
his  fellow-citizens,  who  certainly  knew  him  best,  will  appear 
further  from  the  factj  that  while  he  was  passing  through  the 
lower  end  of  the  county  in  which  he  lived,  his  company  in- 
creased and  swelled  to  such  a  multitude,  that  he  was  obliged, 
daily,  to  reject  many  men  that  wished  to  join  his  company  ; 
and  I  think  there  is  no  question  but  that  he  could  have  raised 

•  "  I  have  had  the  happiness  of  seeing  Captain  Michael  Cresap  marching  at  the  head  of  a 
formidable  company  of  upward  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  men  from  the  mountains  and 
backwoods,  painted  like  Indians,  armed  with  tomahawks  and  rifles,  dressed  in  hunting  shirts 
and  moccasins,  and  though  some  of  them  had  traveled  near  eight  hundred  miles  from  the  banks 
of  the  Ohio,  they  seemed  to  walk  light  and  easy,  and  not  with  less  spirit  than  at  the  first  hour 
of  their  march.  Health  and  vigor,  after  what  they  had  undergone,  declared  them  to  be  inti- 
mate with  hardship  and  familiar  with  danger.  Joy  and  satisfaction  were  risible  in  the  crowd 
that  met  them.  Had  Lord  North  been  present,  and  been  assured  that  the  brave  leader  could 
raise  thousands  of  such  like  to  defend  his  country,  what  think  you,  would  not  the  hatchet  and 
the  block  have  intruded  on  his  mind?  I  had  an  opportunity  of  attending  the  Captain  during 
his  stay  in  town,  and  watched  the  behavior  of  his  men,  and  the  manner  in  which  he  treated 
them;  for  it  seems  that  all  who  go  out  to  war  under  him  do  not  only  pay  the  most  willing 
obedience  to  him  as  their  commander,  but,  in  every  instance  of  distres.s  look  up  to  him  as  their 
friend  and  father.  A  great  part  of  his  time  was  spent  in  listening  to  and  relieving  their  wants, 
without  any  appar.int  sense  of  fatigue  and  trouble.  When  complaints  were  before  him,  he 
determined  with  kindness  and  spirit,  and  on  every  occasion  condescended  to  please  without 
losing  his  dignity. 

"Yesterday  the  company  were  supplied  with  a  small  quantity  of  powder  from  I  he  magazine, 


122  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIM  CRESdP. 

a  reo-iment,  merely  and  chiefly  from  his  personal  influence,  in 
less  than  two  months ;  and  I  am  clearly  of  opinion,  that  no 
other  individual  in  the  state  of  Maryland  could,  at  that  period, 
have  raised  as  many  men  as  himself. 

And  as  a  further  proof  of  public  sentiment  at  this  period — 
which  happens  to  hang  on  the  very  heels  of  Dunmore's  war 

I  add  a  few  lines,  extracted  from  a  letter  written  to  Captain 

Cresap,  by  John  Gary,  a  respectable  citizen  of  Fredericktown. 
Mr.  Gary,  after  speaking  of  some  private  business,  concludes 
his  letter  in  the  following  words : 

"  You,  and  your  brother  soldiers,  have  relieved  us  in  one  quarter, 
^^and  our  own  virtue,  joined  with  yours,  is  like  to  relieve  us  in  the 
'■'•other.     I  wish  you  prosperity  and  happiness,  and  am, 

^^  Yours,  <S:c., 
[Signed]  "JOHN  GARY. 

''Frederick,  April  11, 1775." 

The  reader  will  permit  me  to  remark  here,  that  at  this 
period,  viz :  immediately  after  the  conclusion  of  Dunmore's 
war,  no  individual,  great  or  small,  friend  or  enemy,  ever  said, 
or  heard  it  said,  either  that  Captain  Cresap  murdered  Logan's 
family  or  was  infamous  as  an  Indian  murderer,  or  that  he  was 

•which  wanted  airing,  and  was  not  in  good  order  for  rifles ;  in  the  evening,  however,  they  were 
drawn  out  to  show  the  gentlemen  of  the  town  their  dexterity  at  shooting.  A  clapboard  with 
a  mark  the  size  of  a  dollar,  was  put  up ;  they  began  to  fire  off-hand,  and  the  bystanders  were 
surprised,  few  shots  being  made  that  were  not  close  to  or  in  the  paper.  When  they  had  shot 
for  a  time  in  this  way,  some  lay  on  their  backs,  some  on  their  breast  or  side,  others  ran  twenty 
or  thirty  steps,  and  firing,  appeared  to  be  equally  certain  of  the  mark.  With  this  performance 
the  company  were  more  tlian  satisfied,  when  a  young  man  took  up  the  board  in  his  hand,  not  by 
the  end  but  by  the  side,  and  holding  it  up,  his  brother  walked  to  the  distance  and  very  coolly 
shot  into  the  white ;  laying  down  his  rifle,  he  took  the  board  and  holding  it  as  it  was  held 
before,  the  second  brother  shot  as  the  first  had  done.  By  this  exercise  I  was  more  astonished 
than  pleased.  But  will  you  believe  me  when  I  t«ll  you  that  one  of  the  men  took  the  board, 
and  placing  it  between  his  legs,  stood  with  his  back  to  a  tree  while  another  drove  the  centre ! 

"What  would  a  regular  army  of  considerable  strength  in  the  forests  of  America  do  with  one 
thousand  of  these  men,  who  want  nothing  to  preserve  their  health  and  courage  but  water  from 
the  spring,  with  a  little  parched  corn,  with  what  they  may  easily  procure  in  bunting ;  and  who, 
wrapped  in  their  blankets,  in  the  damp  of  night,  would  choose  the  shade  of  a  tree  for  thei: 
covering  and  the  earth  for  their  bed." — Brantz  Mayer't  Addrets,  p.  63. 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CBESAP.  123 

the  cause  of  Dunmore's  war.  The  two  first  of  these  charges 
appeared  first  in  JeflTerson's  Notes,  how  many  years  after  this 
pretended  date  I  do  not  recollect ;  the  third  was  hatched  by 
Dr.  Doddridge,  in  the  hotrbed  of  ignorance  and  prejudice, 
about  fifty  years  after  Dunmore's  war.  Please  pardon  this 
digression,  and  we  proceed. 

With  this  first  company  of  riflemen,  although  in  bad 
health,  Captain  Cresap  proceeded  to  Boston,  and  joined  the 
American  Army  under  the  command  of  Gren.  Washington ; 
but  at  length  admonished  of  his  declining  health,  and  feeling 
in  himself,  no  doubt,  serious  forebodings  of  its  consequences, 
made  an  effort  to  reach  home ;  but  finding  himself  too  ill  to 
proceed,  stopped  in  the  city  of  New  York,  where  he  ended  his 
earthly  career,  on  the  5th  day  of  October,  1775,  having  lived 
a  little  more  than  thirty-three  years. 

Thus  we  are  led  to  the  concluding  scene  of  Captain  Cresap's 
life,  than  whom  no  man,  considering  the  short  period  of  his  ex- 
istence, ever  did  more  for  his  country ;  and  few  men,  since 
the  mad-caps  of  G-reece  and  Rome,  have  been  so  shamefully 
abused  and  so  ungratefully  treated.  Captain  Cresap  not  only 
sacrificed  his  life  in  defense  of  his  country,  but  all  his  lands 
in  Kentucky ;  and  much  of  that  on  the  Ohio  was  lost. 

But  we  have  seen— and  indubitable  facts,  not  to  be  dis- 
puted, prove  it — that  he  died  at  last  in  the  service  of,  and  a 
martyr  to,  the  liberties  of  his  country ;  and  we  are  certain 
that  his  funeral  was  attended  with  the  most  splendid  military 
honors ;  so  much  so,  that  I  myself  heard  a  gentleman  say— 
whether  wisely  or  unwisely  matters  not — that  he  would  not 
begrudge  to  die  if  his  funeral  could  be  as  honorable  as 
Cresap's. 

But  that  no  doubt  may  remain  upon  the  public  mind  as  to 
the  estimation  in  which  Captain  Cresap  stood  in  the  year 
11 


124  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP. 

1775,  I  take  the  liberty  of  calling  their  attention  to  the  letter 
from  the  Maryland  delegates  in  Congress  to  the  committee  of 
Frederick,  and  the  proceedings  of  that  committee  in  conse- 
quence thereof.     We  must  not  forget  the  strong  and  emphatic 
injunction  in  that  letter  to  the  committee,  to  select  the  most 
experienced  officers  and  best  men  that  could  be  procured — 
not  only  that  the  service  required  it,  but  that  the  honor  of  the 
State  would  also  be  identified  with  this  appointment.     And 
what   was   the   result?     Did   this   respectable   committee  of 
Frederick,  with  this   injunction   before   their  eyes  and   the 
honor  of  the  State  in  their  hands,  appoint  a  man  infamous  as 
an  Indian  murderer,  as  the  principal  instrument  and  cause  of 
the  Indian  war  of  the  preceding  year,  yea,  the  murderer  of 
the  helpless  women  and  friends  of  Logan  in  cold  blood  ?   Did 
this  committee,  I  say,  appoint  such  a  man  as  this  to  the  most 
distinguished  and  honorable  station,  in  a  military  view,  then 
in  the  gift  of  the  State  of  Maryland  ?     Can  any  man  in  his 
sober  senses  believe  this  ?    If  they  do,  they  must  believe  that 
the  county  of  Frederick,  certainly,  if  not  the  whole  State  of 
Maryland,  was  composed  of  characters  the  most  detestable,  if 
the  best  man  among  them  was  an  infamous  murderer.'    Were 
Cresap's   accusers   and  defamers   aware  of  this  ?     Did  they 
intend  this  stigma  should  rest  not  only  on  Frederick  county, 
but  the  State  at  large,  and  indeed  in  some  degree  upon  every 
military  officer  in  Maryland  ? — because,  as  already  remarked. 
Captain  Cresap  was  the  very  first  captain  appointed  in  that 
State. 

I  ask  a  Smallwood,  a  Gist,  a  Howard,  a  Smith,  a  Williams 
(Williams  was  Lieutenant  to  Captain  Price),  how  they  relish 
the  idea  of  such  a  character  being  preferred  before  them  ?  or 
what  is  tantamount,  if  he  had  lived  and  continued  in  the 
army  he  must,  according  to  seniority — and  I  hope  I  may  now 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRESAP.  125 

say  without  a  blush,  according  to  merit,  also — have  filled  the 
first  station  and  highest  grade  in  the  Maryland  line.  This 
is  abundantly  evident  from  the  fact  that  Rawlings,  who  was 
Cresap's  Lieutenant,  commanded  the  rifle  regiment  that  made 
such  havoc  among  the  Hessians  who  attacked  Fort  Washing- 
ton in  1776.  Thus  we  find  his  Lieutenant  was  promoted  to 
a  regiment  in  less  than  a  year  after  Captain  Cresap's  death. 
Again,  Williams,  who  was  Price's  Lieutenant,  obtained  the 
rank  of  Brigadier  General  before  the  war  was  over. 

When  the  nature  and  date  of  these  facts  are  considered, 
and  contrasted  with  the  loose  and  quite  recent  date*  of  the 
guess-work,  malevolent,  unsupported  and  vague  charges 
against  the  character  of  Captain  Cresap,  it  must  appear,  I 
think,  to  all  men,  that  whatever  had  been  the  motive,  or  with 
what  view,  or  to  whatsoever  end  these  charges  were  laid  be- 
fore the  public,  yet  they  certainly  rest  upon  no  better  founda- 
tion than  the  baseless  fabric  of  a  vision. 

We  may  also  add,  if  any  additional  evidence  is  necessary 
to  demonstrate  the  high  estimation  in  which  Captain  Cresap 
stood  in  the  year  1775,  that  while  on  his  march  through  Fred- 
erick county,  Maryland,  and  through  all  the  diflferent  States, 
cities,  towns  and  villages,  on  his  way  to  Boston,  he  was  hailed, 
caressed  and  honored  in  the  highest  degree,  the  citizens 
vieing  with  each  other  who  should  show  him  most  respect ; 
indeed,  so  much  so  that  I  was  informed  by  one  of  his  officers 
that  it  was  his  opinion  that  this  unremitting  scene  of  feasting 
and  hilarity  shortened  his  days. 

•I  do  not  exactly  know  the  date  of  Mr.  Jefferson'g  Notes,  but  am  certain  they  were 
written  after  this  period. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

Recapitulation,  or  condensed  view  of  the  whole  work,  to  assist  the 

reader's  memory. 

In  my  introduction,  as  I  conceived  it  would  be  satisfactory 
to  the  reader,  I  have  given  a  brief  sketch  of  my  connection 
and  acquaintance  with  Captain  Cresap  and  the  Cresap  family, 
to  evince  from  matter  of  fact  and  substantial  reason  my  com- 
petency— so  far  as  a  knowledge  of  fact  was  concerned — to  dis- 
charge with  truth  and  fidelity  the  work  I  undertook;  and 
this  point,  I  trust,  is  certainly  gained. 

My  first  chapter  has  much  about  the  same  relation  to  the 
subject  and  nature  of  my  history  that  a  corps  of  pioneers  has 
to  an  army — namely  :  to  clear  away  the  brush  and  rubbish, 
but  who  are  not  designed  to  render  any  efficient  service  in  the 
ranks.  I  have,  however,  presented  the  reader  with  a  few 
hints  as  to  the  habits,  customs  and  manners  of  our  citizens  in 
1774_'75_'76;  related,  also,  a  few  interesting  anecdotes,  and 
especially  called  his  attention  to  the  peculiar  providence  that 
tied  the  hands  of  our  enemies  until  the  proper  time  was  come. 

My  second  chapter,  being  a  catalogue  of  names,  the  reader, 
after  he  has  satisfied  his  curiosity  in  running  over  the  little 
interesting  sketch  of  the  life  of  old  Colonel  Cresap,  may,  if  he 
pleases,  leave  all  the  rest  to  examine  when  he  has  leisure. 

My  third  chapter  is  short,  containing  little  more  than  a 
brief  view  of  the  juvenile  days  of  Captain  Cresap.  It  is, 
however,  in  some  degree,  the  key  to  the  whole  work,  because 
it  leads  us  to  the  cause  and  motives  that  led  Captain  Cresap 
to  the  Ohio  in  the  Spring  of  the  year  1774, 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CRFSAP.  127 

My  fourth  chapter  contains  the  body,  nerves  and  sinews  of 
my  book.  In  this  chapter  we  are  led  to  view  many  and  im- 
portant facts  connected  with  Dunmore's  war. 

In  preceding  pages  the  reader  has  a  view  into  the  preca- 
rious state  of  the  western  country,  the  hostile  attitude  of  our 
affairs  with  the  Indians,  and  the  slender  thread  of  a  dubious 
peace. 

The  Earl  of  Dunmore  is  introduced  as  suspected  of  com- 
bining his  own  influence,  with  predisposing  causes,  not  only 
to  set  the  Virginians  and  Pennsylvanians  by  the  ears,  but 
by  artful  and  indirect  means  provoking  a  war  with  the 
Indians. 

Arguments  are  adduced  to  prove  the  first,  and  circum- 
stances produced  to  beget  strong  suspicion  of  the  latter ;  and 
to  elucidate  these  two  important  points  I  have  devoted  sev- 
eral pages. 

But  especially  as  to  the  latter — i.  e.,  the  cause  we  have  to 
suspect  Dunmore  as  being  concerned  in  producing  the  Indian 
war  of  1774 — ^we  mentioned,  as  the  first  item  in  our  list  of 
suspicious  circumstances,  a  circular  letter  from  Dr.  Connoly, 
his  sub-governor  and  confidential  agent  at  Pittsburg,  warning 
the  inhabitants  to  be  on  their  guard,*  &c.  This  letter  I  have 
applied  as  it  ought  to  be  applied — namely:  to  the  justification 
of  Captain  Cresap,  and  every  other  person  that  considered  it 
the  herald  and  proclamation  of  war ;  and  also  as  implying 
suspicion  that  it  was  designed  to  accelerate  and  make  certain 
what  was  at  the  time  only  squally  and  threatening. 

This  letter,  with  the  confirmatory  messages  as  related  in 
the  chapter  I  am  now  analyzing,  brought  up  Captain  Cresap 
from  some  distance  down  the  Ohio  river  to  Wheeling,  and  in 

•  I  must  regret  that  I  cannot  lay  my  hands  on  this  letter,  but  I  not  only  recollect  it,  but 
recollect  its  motive  and  contents.  Nor  does  the  truth  of  this  letter  and  its  effects  rest  on  my 
testimony  only ;  Dr.  Wheeler  says  the  same. 


128  LIFE  OF  CAFTAIM  VREiiAF. 

conjunction  with  other  facts  and  circumstances  laid  the  found- 
ation— and  was  in  fact  the  real  cause — of  all  the  subsequent 
proceedings  of  Captain  Cresap  with  the  Indians,  which  are 
given  in  detail  as  they  occurred. 

I  have  also  led  the  reader  with  Major  McDonald  and  his 
little  army  to  Wappatomica,  on  the  Muskingum,  and  to  the 
end  of  that  campaign ;  then  presented  him  with  a  view  of 
Colonel  Lewis  and  his  fine  body  of  western  Virginians  en- 
camped at  the  mouth  of  Big  Kanawha,  and  the  sanguinary 
battle  at  that  place.*  Also,  with  the  northern  wing  of  the 
army  under  Dunmore  in  person,  their  march  to  the  Scioto, 
treaty  with  the  Indians,  and  conclusion  of  the  war. 

But  I  have  interwoven  throughout  the  course  of  this  nar- 
rative several  circumstances  implying  suspicion  that  Dunmore 
and  Connoly  were  often  moving  ostensibly  one  way  and  cov- 
ertly another ;  and  as  an  argument  evincive  and  confirmatory 
of  this  fact,  we  are  led  to  a  view  of  them  naked  and  without 
a  covering  in  the  concluding  scene  of  the  drama;  nor  need 

*  This  battle  was  the  most  bloody  ever  fought  with  the  Indians  within  the  limits  of  Vir- 
ginia. Its  sanguinary  nature  made  it  long  remembered  among  the  borderers,  and  its  history 
is  given  in  a  rude  song,  which  is  even  heard  to  the  present  day  among  the  mountain  cabins  of 
that  region: 

Let  us  mind  the  tenth  day  of  October,  By  which  the  heathen  were  confounded, 

Seventy-four,  which  caused  woe ;  Upon  the  banks  of  the  Ohio. 

The  Indian  savages  they  did  cover 

The  pleasant  banks  of  the  Ohio.  Colonel  Lewis  and  some  noble  captains 

Did  down  to  death  like  Uriah  go, 
The  battle,  beginning  in  the  morning,  Alas !  their  heads  wound  up  in  napkins, 

Throughout  the  day  it  lashed  sore,  Upon  the  banks  of  the  Ohio. 

Till  the  evening  shades  were  returning  down 

Upon  the  banks  of  the  Ohio.  Kings  lamented  their  mighty  fallen 

Upon  the  mountains  of  Gilboa ; 
Judgment  precedes  to  execution.  And  now  we  mourn  for  brave  Hugh  Allen, 

Let  fame  throughout  all  dangers  go ;  Far  from  the  banks  of  the  Ohio. 

Our  heroes  fought  with  resolution. 

Upon  the  banks  of  the  Ohio.  0,  bless  the  mighty  King  of  Heaven 

For  all  his  wondrous  works  below, 
Seven  score  lay  dead  and  wounded.  Who  hath  to  us  the  victory  given. 

Of  champions  that  did  face  their  foe ;  Upon  the  banks  of  the  Ohio. 

—Howii  Cheat   Wett,  p.  82. 


LIFE  OF  CAFTAIM  CRESAP.  129 

we  thank  them  that  it  was  not  to  the  people  of  the  West  a 
most  direful  tragedy. 

I  have,  in  my  fifth  chapter,  taken  up,  examined,  exposed 
and  refuted  the  famous  Logan  speech,  and  proved  by  the 
most  respectable  and  indisputable  testimony  that  it  is  a  mere 
counterfeit ;  and  even  that  counterfeit,  base  as  it  is,  is  still 
more  base  and  detestable  from  the  malignant  interpolation 
foisted  in,  to  serve  no  earthly  purpose  but  to  blacken  the 
character  of  a  most  valuable  and  distinguished  citizen. 

0,  ye  philosophers,  orators,  poets  and  scribblers,  how  little, 
how  contemptible  do  you  feel,  and  should  you  feel !  After 
bandying  about  from  north  to  south,  and  from  south  to  north 
again,  this  speech — after  sporting  with  the  name  and  fame  of 
a  man  you  never  knew,  and  who,  if  alive,  would  chastise  you 
as  you  deserve — how  must  you  feel  to  be  told,  and  have  it 
proved  in  your  teeth,  that  your  Logan  speech,  your  fine  speci- 
men of  Indian  oratory,  is  a  lie,  a  counterfeit,  and  never  in 
fact  had  any  existence  as  a  real  Indian  speech !  No  doubt 
Colonel  Gibson,  if  alive,  must  be  highly  delighted  with  the 
compliment  you  pay  him,  and  truly  diverted  at  your  credulity. 
But  bark  on,  gentlemen ;  we  know  that  fiests  may  with  im- 
punity bark  at  a  dead  lion. 

My  sixth  chapter  is  devoted  to  an  indispensable  but  very 
unpleasant  subject ;  and  I  cannot  but  express  my  regret  that 
truth  and  justice  compel  me  to  handle  rather  roughly  a  man 
I  always  esteemed.  Dr.  Doddridge,  for  some  cause  to  me 
inexplicable,  has  thought  proper,  in  a  book  he  has  lately  pub- 
lished, to  introduce  the  name  and  fame  of  my  friend  Captain 
Cresap,  who  has  now  been  dead  something  more  than  fifty 
years,  and  to  load  his  memory  with  many  atrocious  and 
scandalous  crimes;  and  knowing,  as  I  do  from  personal 
knowledge,  that  every  item  in  his  long  list  worth  notice  is 


130  LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^  CBESAP. 

either  not  true,  or  if  true,  so  distorted,  misrepresented  and 
falsified  in  their  coloring  as  to  be  actually  untrue,  I  have 
therefore,  as  the  most  conspicuous  as  well  as  most  compend- 
ious method,  dissected  and  analyzed  his  various  charges,  and 
I  trust  satisfied  a  candid  public  that.  Dr.  Doddridge  and  his 
book  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding.  Captain  Cresap  is  en- 
tirely innocent  of  every  charge  against  him.  For  shame, 
Doctor!  You  know  the  good  book  says — "Thou  shalt  not 
bear  false  witness  against  thy  neighbor ; "  but  this  witness  of 
yours  is  the  more  malignant  and  permanent  in  its  kind,  as 
you  have  embodied  it  in  your  book,  with  a  view  to  send  it 
down  to  all  succeeding  generations. 

My  seventh  chapter  concludes  the  short,  eventful  and  active 
life  of  Captain  Cresap.  After  marching  a  company  of  rifle- 
men to  Boston  he  is  taken  sick  in  camp,  gets  worse,  sets  off 
for  home  and  reaches  New  York,  where  he  dies,  and  is  buried 
with  military  honors. 

And  here  I  advance  an  argument  which  I  conceive  con- 
clusive and  incontrovertible:  that  the  very  circumstance  of 
his  appointment  to  the  command  of  this  company  is  the 
strongest  possible  evidence  of  the  high  estimation  in  which 
he  stood  with  his  fellow  citizens  at  that  period,  to-wit:  in 
June,  1775;  and  that,  as  he  died  in  less  than  four  months 
after  this  date,  and  as  his  ashes  have  been  honored  and  per- 
mitted to  repose  in  peace  for  many  years,  is  it  not  strange, 
and  one  of  those  mysteries  that  reason  searches  in  vain  for  a 
cause,  why  they  should  be  disturbed  at  this  late  period  ? 

May  I  not  be  permitted  to  say  that  no  benevolent  heart, 
no  heart  in  which  is  one  drop  of  the  milk  of  human  kindness, 
that  has  either  father  or  mother,  brother  or  sister,  wife  or 
children,  could  or  would,  we  should  naturally  suppose,  merely 
for  the  sake  of  defamation,  even  admitting  they  had  truth  on 


LIFE  OF  CAPTAIJ^'  CRESAP.  131 

their  side,  wish  to  wound  the  feelings  of  honorable  and  sur- 
viving relatives,  merely  to  pour  contempt  and  contumely 
upon  the  ashes  of  the  dead.  But  how  much  worse,  how  much 
stronger  the  case  when  the  devoted  victim  is  an  honest  man ! 
And  here  I  close  my  book,  bidding  adieu,  I  expect  for- 
ever, at  least  in  this  world,  to  all  Captain  Cresap's  accusers, 
calumniators  and  enemies,  and  pray  God  to  forgive  them; 
and  that  no  unhallowed  hands  or  tongues  may  disturb  their 
ashes,  some  ten,  or  twenty,  or  fifty  years  after  they  are  dead. 


Appendix. 

The  first  witness  we  introduce  is  Benjamin  Tomlinson, 
Esq.,  who  is  still  living — a  man  universally  respected,  and 
whose  testimony  no  man  dare  to  call  in  question.  It  is  given 
by  way  of  interrogatory. 

Question  1st.  What  number  of  Indians  were  killed  at  Yel- 
low Creek? 

Answer.  Logan's  mother,  younger  brother,  and  sister,  who 
was  called  Gribson's  squaw ;  this  woman  had  a  child  half 
white,  which  was  not  killed. 

Ques.  2d.  Do  you  recollect  the  time  and  circumstances  of 
the  aflPair  at  Yellow  Creek  ? 

Ans.  Yes ;  the  time  was  the  third  or  fourth  day  of  May, 
1774,  and  the  circumstances  were  that  two  or  three  days  be- 
fore these  Indians  were  killed  at  Yellow  Creek  [the  reader 
has  not  forgotten  that  this  is  precisely  what  I  say  in  my 
fourth  chapter,  and  the  more  gratifying  to  me  as  I  had  not 
Mr.  Tomlinson's  certificate  then  before  me,]  by  the  whites, 
two  men  were  killed  and  one  wounded  in  a  canoe  belonging 
to  a  Mr.  Butler,  of  Pittsburg,  as  they  were  descending  the 
Ohio  river  near  the  mouth  of  Little  Beaver,  [Little  Beaver 
and  Yellow  Creek  are  not  far  apart,]  and  this  canoe  was 
plundered  of  all  the  property ;  and  moreover,  about  this  time 
the  Indians  were  threatening  the  inhabitants  about  the  river 
Ohio,  [this  I  state  in  my  fourth  chapter  also,  and  confirm  it 
by  Connoly's  letter  or  proclamation,]  and  I  was  also  informed 


134  APPENDIX. 


they  had  committed  some  depredations  on  the  property  of 
Michael  Cresap.  I  assisted  in  the  burial  of  the  white  men 
killed  in  Butler's  canoe. 

Qwes.  3(Z.  Who  commanded  the  party  that  killed  the  In- 
dians at  Yellow  Creek,  and  who  killed  those  Indians  ?  Do 
you  know? 

Ans.  The  party  had  no  commander.  I  believe  Logan's 
brother  was  killed  by  a  man  named  Sappington ;  who  killed 
the  others  I  do  not  know,  although  I  was  present.  But  this 
I  well  know — that  neither  Captain  Michael  Cresap  nor  any 
other  person  of  that  name  was  there,  nor  do  I  believe  within 
many  miles  of  the  place. 

Qp,es.  Mh.  Where  was  Logan's  residence,  and  what  was  his 
character  ? 

Ans.  I  believe  his  residence  was  on  Muskingum.  His 
character  was  no  ways  particular ;  he  was  only  a  common 
man  among  the  Indians — no  chief,  no  captain. 

Qaes.  hth.   Where  and  when  did  Logan  die  ? 

Ans.  To  this  question  I  answer,  that  I  do  not  know  when 
or  where  Logan  died,*  but  was  informed  by  Esquire  Barkley, 
of  Bedford,  that  he  became  very  vile;  that  he  killed  his 
own  wife,  and  was  himself  killed  by  her  brother.  I  am, 
however,  certain  he  did  not  die  until  after  Dunmore's  treaty 
on  the  Scioto. 

•  Logan,  at  an  Indian  Council  held  at  Detroit,  became  wildly  drunk,  and,  in  the  midst  of 
delirious  passion,  prostrated  his  wife  by  a  sudden  blow.  She  fell  before  him  apparently  dead. 
In  a  moment,  the  horrid  deed  partly  sobered  the  savage,  who,  thinlcing  he  had  killed  her,  fled 
precipitately  lest  the  stern  Indian  penalty  of  blood  for  blood  might  befall  him  at  the  hand  of 
some  relative  of  the  murdered  woman.  While  traveling  alone,  and  still  confiised  by  liquor 
and  the  fear  of  vengeance,  he  was  suddenly  overtaken  in  the  wilderness  between  Detroit  and 
Sandusky,  by  a  troop  of  Indians  with  their  squaws  and  children,  in  the  midst  of  whom  he 
recognized  his  nephew  or  cousin  Tod-kah-dohs.  Bewildered  as  he  was,  he  imagined  that  the 
lawful  avenger  pursued  him  in  the  form  of  his  relative, — for  the  Indian  rule  permits  a  relation 
to  perform  the  retributive  act  of  revenge  for  murder, — and  rashly  bursting  forth  in  frantic 
passion,  he  exclaimed  that  the  whole  party  should  fall  beneath  his  weapons.  Tod-kah-dohs, 
seeing  their  danger,  and  observing  that  Logan  was  well  armed,  told  his  companions  that  their 
only  safety  was  in  getting  the  advantage  of  the  desperate  man  by  prompt  action.  But  Logan 
was  quite  as  alert  as  his  adversary ;  yet  while  leaping  from  his  horse  to  execute  his  dreadful 


APPEMDIX.  136 


Ques.  Gth.  Was  Logan  at  the  treaty  held  by  Dunmore  with 
the  Indians  at  Camp  Charlotte,  on  the  Scioto  ?  Did  he  make 
a  speech  ?     And  if  not,  who  made  a  speech  for  him  ? 

Arts.  To  this  question  I  answer:  Logan  was  not  at  the 
treaty ;  perhaps  Cornstalk,  the  chief  of  the  Shawanee  nation, 
mentioned  among  other  grievances  the  Indians  killed  on 
Yellow  Creek ;  but  I  believe  neither  Cresap  nor  any  other 
persons  were  named  as  the  perpetrators.  I  perfectly  recollect 
that  I  was  that  day  officer  of  the  guard,  and  stood  near  Dun- 
more's  person,  and  consequently  I  saw  and  heard  all  that 
passed  ;  that  also  two  or  three  days  before  the  treaty,  when  I 
was  on  the  out-guard,  Simon  Grirty,  who  was  passing  by, 
stopped  with  me  and  conversed ;  he  said  he  was  going  after 
Logan,  but  he  did  not  like  his  business,  for  he  was  a  surly 
fellow  ;  he,  however,  proceeded  on,  and  I  saw  him  return  on 
the  day  of  the  treaty,  and  Logan  was  not  with  him.  At  this 
time  a  circle  was  formed  and  the  treaty  begun.  I  saw  John 
Gribson,  on  Girty's  arrival,  get  up  and  go  out  of  the  circle  and 
talk  with  G-irty ;  after  which  he  (Gibson)  went  into  a  tent, 
and  soon  after  returning  into  the  circle,  drew  out  of  his  pocket 
a  piece  of  clean,  new  paper,  on  which  was  written,  in  his  own 
hand-writing,  a  speech  for  and  in  the  name  of  Logan.  This 
I  heard  read  three  times— once  by  Gibson  and  twice  by  Dun- 
threat,  Tod-kah-dohs  lereled  a  shot-gun  within  a  few  feet  of  the  savage  and  killed  him  on  the 
spot! 

Tod-kah-dohs,  or  The  Searcher,  originally  from  Oonestoga,  and  probably  a  son  of  Logan's 
sister  residing  there,  died,  about  1844,  at  the  cold  spring  on  the  Allegheny  Seneca  Reservation, 
nearly  100  years  old.  He  was  better  known  as  Captain  Logan,  and  was  either  a  nephew  or 
couein  of  the  celebrated  Indian.  He  left  children,  two  of  whom  have  been  seen  by  Mr.  Draper; 
so  that,  in  spite  uf  Logan's  speech,  tome  of  bis  "blood"  ttill  "rum"  in  human  veins,  77  years 
after  the  Yellow  Creek  tragedy.  The  substance  of  this  narrative  was  given  me  in  MS.  by 
Mr.  Lyman  C.  Draper,  who  received  it  from  Dab-gan-on-do,  or  Captain  Decker,  as  it  was  related 
to  him  by  Tod-kah-dohs,  who  killed  Logan.  "  Decker,  "  says  Mr.  Draper,  "  was  a  venerable 
Seneca  Indian,  and  the  best  Indian  chronicler  I  have  met  with.  His  narratives  are  generally 
sustained  by  other  evidence,  and  never  seem  confused  or  improbable."  Logan's  wife,  who 
was  a  Shawanese,  and  had  no  children  by  him,  did  not  die  in  consequence  of  her  husband's 
blow,  but  recovered  and  returned  to  her  people. — BranU  Mayer' t  Addreu,  p.  67. 

12 


136  APPENDIX. 

more — the  purport  of  which  was,  that  he  (Logan)  was  the 
white  man's  friend ;  that  on  a  journey  to  Pittsburg  to  brighten 
this  friendship,  or  on  his  return  from  thence,  all  his  friends 
were  killed  at  Yellow  Creek ;  that  now,  when  he  died,  who 
should  bury  him? — for  the  blood  of  Logan  was  running  in 
no  creature's  veins  ;  but  neither  was  the  name  of  Cresap  or 
the  name  of  any  other  person  mentioned  in  this  speech.  But 
I  recollect  having  seen  Dunmore  put  this  speech  among  the 
other  treaty  papers. 

Qfms.  1th.  If  Logan  was  not  at  the  treaty,  and  made  no 
speech,  pray  from  whence  came  and  who  was  the  author  of 
that  famous  speech  ? 

Ans.  In  addition  to  what  is  stated  above,  I  say  there  is  no 
doubt  in  my  mind  that  it  originated  altogether  with  and  was 
framed  and  produced  by  Colonel  John  Gibson. 

Qaes.  8th.  Do  you  recollect  the  names  of  any  gentlemen 
who  were  present  at  the  treaty  ? 

Ans.  Yes ;  I  recollect  the  following  persons,  and  believe 
they  are  still  alive*  and  live  at  the  following  places,  to-wit : 
General  Daniel  Morgan,  Berkley  county,  Virginia ;  Colonel 
James  Wood,  now  Governor  of  Virginia ;  Captain  David 
Scott,  Monongahela ;  Captain  John  Wilson,  Kentucky  ;  Lieu- 
tenant Gabriel  Cox,  Kentucky ;  Captain  Johnson,  Youghio- 
gheny ;  Captain  James  Parsons,  Moorfield ;  General  George 
R.  Clark,  Captain  William  Harrod,  Colonel  L.  Barret,  Lieu- 
tenant Joseph  Cresap  and  Captain  Wm.  Henshaw,  Berkley. 

[I  believe  most  of  these  gentlemen  are  now  (1826)  dead.] 

Ques.  dth.  Was  the  question  as  to  the  origin  of  the  war  dis- 
cussed at  the  treaty  ? 

Ans.  Yes ;  the  Indians  gave  as  a  reason,  the  Indians  killed 
at  Yellow  Creek,  Whetstone  Creek,  Beech  Bottom  and  else- 

»  This  was  on  the  17th  of  April,  1797. 


APPEJ^DIX.  137 


where.     But  the  Indians  were  in  fact  the  first  aggressors,  and 
committed  the  first  hostilities. 

Ques.  10th.  Were  not  some  white  men  killed  by  the  Indians 
in  the  year  1773? 

Ans.  Yes ;  John  Martin  and  two  of  his  men  were  killed  on 
Hockhocking,  about  one  year  before  Dunmore's  army  went 
out,  and  his  canoe  was  plundered  of  above  £200  worth  of 
goods. 

I  lived  on  the  river  Ohio,  and  near  the  mouth  of  Yellow 
Creek,  from  the  year  1770  until  the  Indians  were  killed  at 
Yellow  Creek,  and  several  years  after ;  I  was  present  when 
the  Indians  were  killed,  and  also  present  at  the  treaty  in  Sep- 
tember or  October,  1774,  near  Chillicothe,  on  the  Scioto ;  and 
certify  that  the  foregoing  statements  of  facts  are  true,  to  the 
best  of  my  recollection. 

[Signed]  BENJAMIN  TOMLINSON. 

Cumberland,  April  17,  1797. 

We  now  present  the  reader  with  the  testimony  of  Dr. 
Wheeler,  a  man  equally  respectable,  but  now  dead.  It  is 
also  in  the  same  way  of  question  and  answer  : 

Question  1st.  Do  you  know,  or  recollect  to  have  heard,  of 
the  murder  of  John  Martin  and  other  Indian  traders,  on  the 
Hockhocking,  in  1773? 

Answer.  I  recollect  that  John  Martin  and  Guy  Meeks  were 
killed  by  the  Indians  in  1773 ;  the  former  I  personally  knew, 
the  latter  I  was  acquainted  with,  but  thought  they  had  been 
killed  at  the  mouth  of  Capteening. 

Ques.  2d.  Do  you  know,  or  have  you  heard,  of  two  men  that 
were  killed  and  one  that  was  wounded  in  a  trading  canoe 
belonging  to  Mr.  Butler,  of  Pittsburg,  at  or  near  the  mouth 
of  Little  Beaver,  by  the  Indians  ?  And  did  you  hear  that 
the  canoe  was  plundered  ? 


138  AFFEJS'DIX. 


Ans.  I  heard  an  acquaintance  say  he  was  well  acquainted 
with  one  of  the  men  that  was  wounded  in  Butler's  canoe,  but 
whether  it  was  plundered  or  not  I  cannot  say. 

The  third  question,  not  being  answered,  is  omitted. 

Ques.  4th.  Was  there  not  a  bustle  before  or  about  the  time 
Butler's  men  were  killed — an  express  sent  by  Major  Con- 
noly,*  the  commandant  at  Pittsburg,  warning  the  inhabitants 
to  be  on  their  guard,  that  the  Indians  were  about  to  strike  ? 
And  had  not  this  express  a  written  message,  or  circular  letter? 

Am.  There  was  a  circular  letter  sent  to  the  inhabitants  of 
Redstone  Old  Fort  by  Major  Connoly,  for  the  purpose  of 
warning  them  to  be  on  their  guard;  but  whether  before  or 
after  Butler's  canoe  was  robbed,  I  cannot  tell. 

Ques.  5th.  Were  there  not  about  this  time,  to-wit :  a  little 
before  any  Indians  were  killed,  a  general  panic  and  uneasy 
apprehensions  among  the  people  on  the  Ohio  and  its  vicinity, 
fearing  daily  a  stroke  from  the  Indians  ?  And  were  not  the 
people  flying  in  all  directions  to  forts,  &c  ? 

Ans.  To  this  question  I  can  answer  from  experience,  [the 
Doctor  lived  at  this  time  about  four  or  five  miles  west  of 
the  Monongahela,]  and  assert  that  it  was  the  case. 

Ques.  6th.  Do  you  apprehend  that  when  Captain  Cresap 
went  down  the  Ohio,  in  1774,  it  was  to  fight  Indians  or  im- 
prove lands  ? 

•  Dr.  John  Connoly,  who  played  so  prominent  a  part  as  commandant  of  Pittsburg,  where 
he  continued  at  least  through  1774,  was,  from  the  outset  of  the  ReTolutionary  movements,  a 
tory ;  and  being  a  man  extensively  acquainted  with  the  West,  a  man  of  talent,  and  fearless 
withal,  he  naturally  became  a  leader.  This  man,  in  1775,  planned  a  union  of  the  north- 
western Indians  with  British  troops,  which  combined  forces  were  to  be  led,  under  his  com- 
mand, from  Detroit,  and,  after  ravaging  the  few  frontier  settlements,  were  to  join  Lord  Dun- 
more  in  eastern  Virginia.  To  forward  his  plans,  Connoly  visited  Boston  to  see  General 
Gage;  then,  having  returned  to  the  South,  in  the  fall  of  1775,  he  left  Lord  Dunmore  for  the 
West,  bearing  one  set  of  instructions  upon  his  person,  and  another  set — the  true  ones — most 
artfully  concealed  under  the  direction  of  Lord  Dunmore  himself,  in  his  saddle,  secured  by  tin 
and  waxed  cloth.  He  and  his  comrades,  among  whom  was  Dr.  Smyth,  had  gone  as  far  as 
Hagerstown,  where  they  were  arrested  upon  suspicion  and  sent  back  to  Frederick.  There 
they  were  searched,  and  the  papers  upon  Connoly's  person  were  found,  seined  and  sent  to  Con- 


APPEJ^DIX.  139 

Ans.    I  can  in  justice  say  it  was  to  improve  lands. 

Ques.  7th.  Was  Captain  Cresap,  or  any  of  the  Cresaps,  at 
Yellow  Creek  when  the  Indians  were  killed  at  that  place,  and 
where  was  he? 

Ans.  At  the  time  the  Indians  were  killed  on  Yellow  Creek 
Captain  Cresap  was  at  Wheeling.  Oreathouse  killed  Logan's 
sister  at  Yellow  Creek. 

Ques.  8th.  Do  you  apprehend  that  if  Captain  Cresap  had 
not  heard  of  Connoly's  message,  of  the  murder  committed  in 
Butler's  canoe,  nor  seen  nor  heard  of  anything  hostile  in  the 
Indians,  that  he  would  ever  have  attacked  them  ? 

Ans.  It  was  evident  Captain  Cresap  was  much  interested 
at  that  time  in  improving  lands  for  himself;  therefore  it  can 
not  in  reason  be  thought  he  would,  to  his  injury,  have  en- 
couraged an  Indian  war,  to  the  hindrance  of  that  business 
and  to  his  loss ;  but,  being  well  assured  of  the  hostile  dispo- 
sition of  the  Indians,  he,  like  a  man  of  spirit  and  resolution, 
armed  himself  and  others  ^against  their  attacks. 

Ques.  9th.   [Omitted,  as  it  is  implied  and  answered  above.] 

Ques.  10th.  Was  Captain  Cresap  a  man  infamous  for  his 
many  Indian  murders  ?  When,  where,  and  who  were  the 
Indians  killed  by  him  before  the  year  1774  ? 

Ans.  I  was  closely  acquainted  with  Captain  Cresap  at  the 
time  he  was  over  the  Monongahela  river,  and   with  truth 

gress.  Washington  having  been  informed  by  one  who  was  present  when  the  genuine  instruc- 
tions were  concealed  as  above  stated,  wrote  twice  on  the  subject  to  the  proper  authorities,  in 
order  to  lead  to  their  discovery,  but  we  do  not  learn  that  'hey  were  ever  found.  Gonnoly 
himself  was  confined,  and  remained  a  close  prisoner  till  1781,  complaining  much  of  his  hard 
lot,  but  finding  few  to  pity  him. 

Gonnoly,  soon  after,  was  for  a  short  time  released  by  the  sheriff,  upon  the  promise  to  return 
to  the  law's  custody,  which  promise  he  broke,  however,  and  having  collected  a  band  of 
followers,  on  the  28th  of  .March,  came  again  to  Pittsburg,  still  asserting  the  claim  of  Virginia 
to  the  government.  Then  commenced  a  series  of  contests,  outrages  and  complaints,  which 
were  too  extensive  and  complicated  to  be  described  within  our  limited  space.  The  upshot  of 
the  matter  was  this,  that  Gonnoly,  in  Lord  Dunmore's  name,  and  by  his  authority,  took  and 
kept  possession  of  Fort  Pitt;  and  as  it  had  been  dismantled  and  nearly  destroyed,  by  royal 
orders,  rebuilt  it,  and  named  it  Fort  Dunmore. — Perkiru's  AnnaU  of  the  Wat,  pp.  151,  122. 


140  AFFEJ^'DIX. 


assert  that  he  killed  no  Indian  before  the  year  1774.  But  a 
little  before  McDonald's  campaign,  Captain  Cresap  went  on  a 
scout  with  a  few  men  to  the  frontier,  at  which  time  he  killed 
and  scalped  an  Indian  man ;  he  had  also  a  man  named  Mas- 
terson  wounded  in  the  groin  in  the  engagement. 

Ques.  l\th.  If  Captain  Cresap  had  no  reason  to  apprehend 
an  attack  from  the  Indians,  why  did  he  leave  his  lands  and 
business  and  ascend  the  Ohio  twenty  or  thirty  miles  to  the 
nearest  place  of  safety — i.  e.,  Wheeling — when  he  had  at  the 
same  time  eight  or  ten  men  hired  at  $6  50  per  month,  and 
their  loss  of  time  must  have  been  to  him  a  serious  injury  ? 
Say  what  you  think  and  believe  of  this. 

Ans.  Captain  Cresap  frequented  my  house,  alias  cabin,  on 
his  way  out  and  return  from  the  frontier,  and  I  remember  his 
observing  the  great  disappointment  and  injury  he  had  sus- 
tained from  the  hostile  disposition  of  the  Indians  at  that  time, 
as  it  prevented  his  improving  the  lands  he  had  taken  up. 

Ques.  12th.  How  do  Indians  begin  their  war — with  procla- 
mations or  with  scalping-knives  ? 

Ans.  It  has  been  unhappily  experienced  that  Indians  have 
no  honor  or  regular  form  with  white  inhabitants ;  before 
going  to  war  their  first  proclamation  is  gun,  tomahawk  and 
knife. 

With  respect  to  this  certificate  of  Dr.  Wheeler,  it  is  proper 
to  remark  that  the  interrogatories  were  sent  to  him  in  a  letter ; 
that  he  himself  set  down  the  answers,  and  sent  them  back, 
also  in  a  letter ;  so  that  what  he  says  is  entirely  his  own, 
neither  myself  nor  any  other  friend  of  Captain  Cresap  being 
present;  and  this  accounts  for  the  defect  as  to  date — his  en- 
velope being  mislaid. 

We  now,  thirdly,  add  the  testimony  of  General  Minor : 

"  I  do  hereby  certify  that  I  was  intimately  and  particularly 


APPEJfDIX.  141 


"acquainted  with  the  late  Captain  Michael  Cresap,  as  well 
"before  as  after  the  Indian  war  of  1774,  called  Dunmore's 
"war;  that  from  that  intimacy  I  not  only  believe  but  am  well 
"assured  that  the  object  of  his  journey  to  the  Ohio  in  the 
"Spring  of  the  year  1774  was  not  to  fight  Indians  ;  that  after 
"the  rencounter  or  skirmish  that  took  place  between  Captain 
"Cresap  and  some  Indians  on  the  Ohio,  near  Grave  Creek, 
[this  is  Dr,  Doddridge's  Capteening  battle,  and  Dr.  Wheeler 
alludes  to  the  same  battle  when  he  says  Captain  Cresap  killed 
an  Indian  man  and  had  one  man  wounded,]  "I  was  frequently 
"in  his  company,  and  always  when  the  subject  of  that  fight 
"was  introduced,  heard  him  say  that  no  man  dared  to  charge 
"him  with  making  an  unjust  or  improper  attack  upon  Indians; 
"and  that  while  he,  the  said  Cresap,  was  on  the  Ohio,  he  re- 
"ceived  a  message  from  Major  Connoly,  commandant  at  Pitts- 
"burg,  Mr.  Alexander  McKee,  and  I  believe  Colonel  Croghan, 
"giving  him  (Cresap)  notice  that  he  must  be  on  his  guard — 
"that  the  Indians  were  about  to  strike,  and  manifested  a  very 
"hostile  disposition. 

"I  further  certify  that  from  my  long  and  intimate  acquaint- 
"ance  with  Captain  Cresap,  I  believe  and  am  certain  that  he 
"ought  not,  nor  could  not  with  justice  and  propriety,  be 
"deemed  a  man  infamous  for  murdering  Indians,  nor  in  any 
"other  point  of  view.  He  was,  it  is  true,  a  good  soldier,  and 
"report  says  (which  I  believe)  that  he  shot  an  Indian  with  a 
"pistol  while  he  (the  Indian)  was  attempting  to  scalp  a  Mr. 
"Welder  that  the  Indian  had  killed  at  Old  Town  many  years 
"before  Dunmore's  war,  and  while  Cresap  was  a  youth. 

"Given  under  my  hand  this  24th  September,  1800. 

[Signed]  "JOHN  MINOR,  B.  G.  of  Militia." 

^'■Witness:  Evan  Gwynn,  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  Alle- 
"gheny  county." 


142  APPEJ^BIX. 


To  which  certificate  General  Minor  adds,  that  he  recollects 
having  heard  Captain  Cresap  speak  with  pointed  disapproba- 
tion of  the  Indian  massacre  at  Yellow  Creek. 

I  have  all  these  original  certificates  by  me,  which  any 
skeptical  reader  is  at  liberty  to  consult. 

But  now  to  conclude  the  whole,  if  I  may  be  permitted  to 
add  my  own  testimony,  I  say  that  from  my  intimate  personal 
acquaintance  with  Captain  Cresap  and  the  most  minute  cir- 
cumstance in  his  public  life,  all  of  which  I  have  faithfully 
detailed  in  the  preceding  memoir,  I  am  absolutely  certain 
that  he  had  no  more  concern,  either  directly  or  indirectly,  in 
the  murder  of  Logan's  relations,  than  he  had  in  stabbing 
Julius  Caesar,  or  cutting  oif  Pompey's  head ;  and  that  there 
is  no  more  reason  to  stigmatize  him  as  a  detestable  Indian 
murderer,  than  Hancock,  Adams,  Washington  and  Jeiferson 
as  rebels  and  traitors ;  neither  is  there  any  more  justice  in 
saddling  him  with  all  the  carnage,  blood  and  awful  conse- 
quences of  Dunmore's  war,  than  to  charge  Dr.  Doddridge  with 
setting  fire  to  the  theater  in  Richmond  and  burning  the  Gov- 
ernor of  Virginia. 

I  have,  however,  in  reserve  an  anecdote,  which  indeed  at 
this  late  period  may  be  considered  rather  a  work  of  superero- 
gation, yet  as  it  is  directly  in  point  as  to  the  Logan  speech, 
and  has  not  yet  been  told,  I  think  it  best  the  reader  should 
have  it : 

Some  ten  or  twelve  years  ago,  in  a  little  journey  I  took  to 
the  West,  I  called  and  tarried  a  day  at  Wheeling,  and  lodged 
with  my  old  friend  Colonel  Zane.  After  dinner  we  took  a 
walk  into  town,  and  stepped  into  a  tavern,  where  several  gen- 
tlemen were  just  finishing  their  dinners.  We  sat  down,  and 
the  conversation  soon  turned  upon  Mr.  Jefferson's  Notes, 
when  a  gentleman  from  New  York — of  the  name,  if  I  recol- 


APPEJ^DIX.  143 


lect  right,  of  Miller — said  he  must  continue  to  think  that 
what  Mr.  Jefferson  had  said  respecting  Cresap's*  killing  Lo- 
gan's family,  was  certainly  true. 

I  replied:  "Sir,  I  thought  Mr.  Martin  had  put  that  ques- 
tion to  rest." 

He  said :  "  No,  sir ;  I  have  seen  Mr.  Martin's  piece,  and 
he  has  not  satisfied  my  mind." 

I  then  said:  "If  so,  sir,  I  am  happy  to  have  it  in  my 
power  to  satisfy  you  upon  the  spot." 

He  seemed  pleased  with  this,  and  observed  that  he  should 
be  glad  to  get  at  the  truth.  I  then  addressed  myself  to  Col. 
Zane,  and  said: 

"I  think,  Colonel,  you  know  something  about  this  busi- 
ness?" 

He  replied:  "Yes,  I  do.  I  was  here  at  Wheeling  at  the 
time  Logan's  relations  were  killed  on  Yellow  Creek,  and 
Captain  Cresap  was  here  also  with  me." 

I  then  addressed  Colonel  Chaplaine,  and  said:  "  It  is  prob- 
able you  also  know  something  of  this  business,  Colonel?" 

He  replied:  "Yes,  I  know  very  well,  for  I  was  here,  and 
know  that  Captain  Cresap  was  also  here." 

I  then  turned  to  Mr.  Miller  and  said  :  "Are  you  now  sat- 
isfied, sir?" 

He  replied :  "  Yes  ;  and  gratified  and  glad  to  get  at  the 
real  truth."  I  think  I  then  requested  him,  upon  all  proper 
occasions,  to  state  the  fact  as  he  now  knew  it,  which  I  believe 
he  promised  to  do. 

*  Gibson,  it  is  true,  states  in  bis  testimony  that  be  corrected  Logan  on  the  spot  when  he 
made  the  charge  against  Cresap,  for  be  knew  bis  innocence,  but  either  the  Indian  did  not 
withdraw  it  or  the  messenger  felt  himself  compelled  to  deliver  it  as  originally  framed.  When 
it  was  read  in  camp,  the  pioneer  soldiers  knew  it  to  be  false  as  to  Michael  Cresap  ;  but  it  only- 
produced  a  laugh  in  the  crowd,  which  displeased  the  Maryland  Captain.  George  Rogert  Clark, 
who  was  near,  exclaimed,  that  "  he  must  be  a  very  great  man,  as  the  Indians  palmed  every 
thing  that  happened  on  his  shoulders  I"  The  Captain  smiled  and  replied  that  "  he  had  a  great 
inclination  to  tomahawk  Greathouse  for  the  murder!" — Brantx  Mayer' t  Addrett,  p.  61. 


144  APPENDIX. 


If,  then,  truth  is  not  falsehood  and  facts  are  not  lies,  it  must 
be  evident  from  the  plain  and  incontrovertible  statement  I 
have  laid  before  the  public  of  the  life  of  Captain  Cresap,  that 
none  of  the  many  malicious  and  reiterated  charges  against 
him  have  any  foundation  in  fact.  I  can,  therefore,  and  do, 
confidently  appeal  to  the  world,  and  ask,  in  the  name  of  can- 
dor, justice,  mercy  and  truth,  to  what  particular  period,  to 
what  circumstance,  to  what  public  or  private  act  in  the  life  of 
Captain  Cresap  can  we  point  our  finger  and  say — "Here  is 
the  murderer  of  Logan's  family;"  or,  "here  is  the  infamous 
murderer  of  Indians;"  or,  "here  is  the  man  that  was  the 
primary  and  first  moving  cause  of  Dunmore's  war,  or  in  any 
way  the  cause  of  that  war." 

FINIS. 


If  there  is  any  error  in  the  foregoing  narrative  it  is  in  the  chronology. 
The  author  has  lost  or  mislaid  some  important  papers,  and  consequently 
has  in  some  instances  supplied  the  defect  from  memory,  but  thinks  he  is 
even  substantially  correct  in  this  also  —  and  especially  as  in  one  instance 
he  has  tested  his  accuracy  by  a  record. 


Supplement. 

As  the  author  of  the  foregoing  sketch  had  nothing  in  view 
but  to  rescue  from  public  odium  and  infamy  the  name  and 
character  of  a  friend,  he  therefore  turned  his  attention  wholly 
and  only  to  some  remarks  made  by  Mr.  JeflPerson  in  his  cele- 
brated Notes  on  Virginia,  and  to  Dr.  Doddridge's  chapter  on 
Dunmore's  war.  The  residue  of  the  Doctor's  book  escaped 
his  notice  and  attention  until  his  manuscript  went  to  the 
press.  But,  being  now  relieved  from  that  intense  application 
indispensable  in  the  prosecution  of  his  work,  and  other  multi- 
farious concerns,  he  has  leisurely  and  attentively  traveled 
through  the  Doctor's  book,  and  must  say  he  is  sorry  to  find 
so  many  things  in  that  book  that  merit  animadversion. 

On  page  101,  the  Doctor  says  that  '■'■  those  atrocious  murders 
of  the  peaceable  and  irwffensive  Indians  at  Capteening  and  Yellow 
Creek^  brought  on  the  war  of  Lord  Danmore  in  the  Spring  of  the 
year  1774."  Very  good ;  but  he  forgets  to  tell  us  that,  two  or 
three  days  before  this  atrocious  murder  at  Yellow  Creek,  and 
several  days  before  his  assumed  fact  of  the  atrocious  murder 
at  Capteening,  these  Indians,  or  some  other  Indians,  (to  retort 
his  own  language)  were  guilty  of  the  atrocious  murder  of  two 
or  three  men  in  Mr.  Butler's  canoe,  near  the  mouth  of  Little 
Beaver,  almost  in  the  neighborhood  of  Yellow  Creek,  and  no 
doubt  was  the  cause  of  that  strong  excitement  and  irritation 
that  eventuated  in  the  massacre  at  that  place. 

But  let  us  hear  what  the  Doctor  says  himself  respecting 


146  SUPPLEMEJVT. 


these  "peaceable  and  inoffensive  Indians."  Page  117  lie  tells 
us  that  '■^the  Indian  mode  of  warfare  was  an  indiscriminate 
slaughter  of  all  ages  and  both  sexes''  Again,  page  125 — but 
marked  in  his  book  132 — he  says  his  ^^ uncle  Teter's  hunting- 
camp  was  so  judiciously  and  artfully  selected,  that,  unless  by  the 
report  of  his  gun  or  the  sound  of  his  ax,  it  would  have  been  by 
mere  accident  if  an  Indian  had  discovered  his  concealment.''  So, 
then,  it  seems  his  uncle  was  a  little  suspicious  of  these  peace- 
able fellows.  And  if  the  Doctor  is  correct  in  what  he  imme- 
diately adds,  his  uncle  certainly  acted  wisely ;  for  on  the  same 
page  he  (the  Doctor)  says,  ^Hhe  hunters  were  often  surprised 
and  killed  in  their  camps." 

But  that  the  reader  may  more  cleai-ly  see  what  peaceable 
fellows  these  Indians  are,  or  then  were,  we  will  present  him 
with  a  few  more  extracts  from  the  Doctor's  book.  Page  133, 
under  the  title  of  "The  Wedding,"  in  portraying  the  sim- 
plicity and  rustic  manners  of  that  period,  he  says,  among 
other  things,  that  "  it  was  a  custom  for  some  of  the  company 
to  take  Black  Betty — i.  e.,  the  whisky  bottle — in  their  hands 
and  say,  'Here's  health  to  the  groom,  not  forgetting  myself; 
and  here's  to  the  bride — thumping  luck  and  big  children.' 
This,  so  far  from  being  taken  amiss,  was  considered  an  ex- 
pression of  a  very  proper  and  friendly  wish ;  for  big  children, 
especially  sons,  were  of  great  importance,  as  we  were  few  in 
number,  and  engaged  in  perpetual  hostility  with  the  Indians, 
the  end  of  which  no  one  could  foresee." 

Again,  on  page  139,  he  says  that  "  the  early  settlers  on  the 
frontiers  of  this  country  were  like  Arabs  of  the  deserts  of 
Africa,  at  least  in  two  respects :  Every  man  was  a  soldier, 
and  from  early  in  the  Spring  till  late  in  the  Fall  was  almost 
continually  in  arms.  Their  work  was  carried  on  by  parties, 
each  of  whom  had  his  rifle  and  everything  belonging  to  his 


SUPPLEMEJ^T.  147 


war  dress.  These  were  deposited  in  some  central  place  in 
the  field,  a  sentinel  was  stationed  on  the  outside  of  the  fence, 
so  that  on  the  least  alarm  the  whole  company  repaired  to 
their  arms,  and  were  ready  for  the  combat  in  a  moment." 

Now,  from  my  own  knowledge  of  the  state  of  things  in  the 
western  country  at  the  period  alluded  to  by  the  Doctor,  I  can 
add  my  testimony  that  the  statement  he  has  made  is  tolerably 
correct ;  yet  candor  compels  me  to  say  that  the  shades  he  has 
drawn  are  rather  too  dark,  because  it  is  not  exactly  true  that 
the  first  settlers  were  engaged  in  perpetual  hostility ;  if  so, 
Dunmore's  war  of  1774  could  have  had  no  origin,*  and  must 
have  been  nothing  more  than  a  continuation  of  pre-existing 
hostility,  and  could  be  in  no  other  way  distinguishable  from 
the  preceding  time  than  by  the  increase  of  forces  on  each  side, 
and  the  fury  of  the  combatants ;  and  the  fact,  I  believe,  is, 
that  there  were  some  short  periods  of  precarious  peace,  or 
suspension  of  hostilities,  although  the  people  never  thought 
themselves  secure  from  attacks  from  the  savages. 

But,  admitting  the  dark  picture  the  Doctor  has  given  us  of 
the  savage  nature  and  conduct  of  the  Indians  to  be  correct, 
I  ask,  what  are  we  to  do  with  his  bright  side?  He  calls 
them  a  '^^ peaceable  and  inoffensive''^  people,  and  proves  it  by 
declaring  that  their  "  mode  of  warfare  was  an  indiscriminate 
slaughter  of  all  ages  and  both  sexes;"  that  they  frequently 
killed  the  hunters  in  their  camps,  and  that  they  were  en- 
gaged in  perpetual  hostility  with  the  early  settlers  on  the 
frontier.  Now,  if  this  is  the  character  of  "  peaceable  and  in- 
offensive" people,  I,  for  one,  would  beg  to  be  excused  from 
residing  in  their  neighborhood. 

But  it  seems  when  the  Doctor  is  disposed  to  abuse  white 
people — Captain  Cresap  especially — he  lays  a  white  ground 

•  Page  225,  the  Doctor  says  the  western  settlers  had  peace  from  1764  to  1774. 

13 


148  SUPPLEMEJiT. 


for  his  profile  in  the  character  of  the  Indians,  that  the  reader 
may  trace  more  accurately  the  black  lines  of  his  picture.* 
And  vice  versa — when  he  wishes  to  puff  and  trumpet  the  fame 
and  delineate  the  sufferings  of  the  early  settlers  on  the  fron- 
tiers, why  then,  to  be  sure,  the  Indians  are  dreadful  fellows — 
ferocious  savages,  murdering  indiscriminately  old  and  young, 
male  and  female,  killing  the  hunters  in  their  camps,  and 
granting  the  people  no  respite,  no  peace,  but  war,  war,  un- 
ceasing hostility. 

But,  I  thank  Grod  that  however  just  and  accurate  the 
Doctor's  pencil  may  be  in  delineating  those  gloomy  days  of 
wars  and  blood,  I  trust  the  scene  has  changed,  and  is  rapidly 
changing,  into  circumstances  vastly  more  congenial  to  the 
feelings  and  wishes  of  all  who  love  peace,  and  whose  bosoms 
swell  with  an  ardent  and  pure  desire  to  see  our  Aceldama — 
our  world  of  blood — changed,  revolutionized,  and  converted 
into  a  world  of  peace  and  love,  of  harmony  and  universal 
good  will  among  men ;  and  that  the  time  is  come,  or  near  at 
hand,  when  the  savage  yell  and  war-whooj)  of  an  Indian  shall 
no  more  be  heard — to  the  terror  of  the  helpless  female  and 
feeble  infant — echoing  through  our  hills ;  but  on  the  contrary, 
white  men,  red  men  and  black  men  shall  sweetly  unite  in 
harmonious  anthems  of  praise  and  loud  hallelujahs  to  God 
and  the  Lamb ;  when  our  American  wilderness  and  solitary 
places  shall  be  glad,  and  our  desert,  as  far  as  the  Pacific 
ocean,  shall  blossom  as  the  rose. 

But  to  return  to  the  Doctor.  I  think  it  probable  he  will 
attempt  to  escape  from  the  nook  into  which  he  has  so  unguard- 
edly wedged  himself,  in  some  way  or  other.  But  we  will  save 
him  the  trouble  by  anticipating  and  examining  every  hole  and 

*  Others  that  are  really  guilty,  and  certainly  deserve  the  severest  censure— as,  for  instance, 
the  murderers  of  Old  Cornstalk  and  his  son  and  the  Moravian  Indians  —  be  just  brushes 
with  a  feather. 


SUPPLEMEJfT.  149 


( 


path  through  which  he  may  attempt  to  escape.  In  the  first 
pUice,  if  he  says  the  description  he  has  given  us  of  the  fero- 
cious and  savage  nature  of  Indians  has  no  reference  to  a  pe- 
riod antecedent  to  Dunmore's  war,  we  meet  him  with  his  own 
words.  He  tells  us  that  the  settlement  between  the  Monon- 
gahela  and  the  Laurel  Ridge  commenced  in  the  year  1772, 
and  that  in  the  succeeding  year  they  reached  as  far  as  the 
Ohio  river.  [I  think,  however,  it  was  one  year  sooner.]  But 
be  this  as  it  may,  these  settlements  were  anterior  to  Dun- 
more's war ;  and  that  he  refers  to  the  period  of  the  first  set- 
tlement of  the  country  he  tells  us  himself,  for  he  says  the 
early  settlers  were  in  a  state  of  perpetual  hostility  or  almost 
always  at  war  with  the  Indians. 

But  only  let  us  suppose  that  his  meaning  is,  that  those  In- 
dians who  were  killed  at  Yellow  Creek  and  Capteening  were 
"peaceable  and  inofi'ensive."  Now,  supposing  this  to  be  his 
meaning,  we  answer,  that  although  these  Indians  at  this  par- 
ticular period  at  Yellow  Creek  might  have  had  no  hostile  in- 
tentions, yet  it  is  absolutely  certain,  as  I  have  already  re- 
marked, that  only  a  day  or  two  before  this  afliiir  these 
Indians,  or  some  of  this  party,  or  some  other  Indians,  had 
killed  two  or  three  white  men  in  Butler's  canoe,  near  Yellow 
Creek  ;  and  moreover,  that  Captain  Cresap,  on  whom  the 
Doctor  seems  anxious  to  throw  the  whole  weight  of  Dunmore's 
war,  had  no  more  concern  in  that  business  than  Dr.  Dodd- 
ridge himself;  nor  was  he  by  many  miles  as  near  the  scene  of 
action  as  his  reverence. 

Again,  that  Cresap  may  by  no  means  escape  the  bitterness 
of  the  Doctor's  pen,  he  has  coupled — unfairly,  unjustly,  and,  I 
may  add,  contrary  to  all  rules  of  propriety  and  candor  in  a 
historian — two  things  difi'erent  in  their  nature,  and  at  a  dis- 
tance as  to  time,  place  and  circumstances.      The   atrocious 


150  ^VFPLEMEJ^T. 


murder,  he  says,  of  the  peaceable,  inoflPensive  Indians  at 
Yellow  Creek  and  Capteening,  brought  on  the  war  of  Lord 
Dunmore,  in  the  Spring  of  the  year  1774.  Now,  as  I  have 
already  set  this  aifair  at  Cai^teening  before  the  reader  in  the 
clearest  light,  and  proved  that,  so  far  from  being  an  atrocious 
murder,  it  was  a  regular  battle,  in  which  both  parties  were 
engaged,  and  one  man  at  least  killed  or  wounded  on  each 
side,  and  that  it  was  several  days  after  the  affair  at  Yellow 
Creek,  and  many  miles  distant  from  it,  hence  I  suppose  it  is 
needless  to  add  anything  here  to  repel  this  deadly  blow  aimed 
at  the  fair  fame  of  Captain  Cresap. 

But,  as  our  extreme  anxiety  to  rescue  from  unmerited 
odium  the  character  of  a  deceased  friend,  has  led  us  to  handle 
the  Doctor  a  little  roughly,  we  will  with  great  pleasure  eke 
out  for  him  the  best  apology  we  can  devise,  or  that  presents 
itself  to  our  view,  and  this,  too,  from  himself — to-wit :  In  the 
second  page  of  his  address  to  his  readers,  he  says  that  the 
history  of  our  Indian  wars  (his  own  history)  is  in  every 
respect  quite  imj^erfect,  and  that  the  very  limited  range  of 
the  war  he  had  in  view  in  this  work  is  not  fully  accomplished ; 
and  on  his  next  page  he  adds  that  the  whole  amount  of  his 
present  memorials  of  this  widely-extended  warfare  consists  of 
merely  detached  narratives,  and  these  for  the  most  part  badly 
written,  in  many  instances  destitute  of  historical  precision 
(and  no  doubt  chronological  also).  And  in  the  second  page 
of  his  preface  he  holds  the  same  language,  and  says  the  want 
of  printed  documents  was  not  the  only  difficulty  he  had  to 
contend  with ;  that  when  he  traveled  beyond  the  bounds  of 
his  own  memory  (which  I  presume  was  no  great  journey)  _he 
found  it  extremely  difficult  to  procure  information  from  the 
living  which  he  wished  to  relate. 

Now,  I  suppose,  if  language  has  any  meaning,  the  natural 


SUPPLEMEJfT.  151 


inference  from  all  this  is,  that  the  Doctor  had  at  best  but  an 
imperfect,  partial  and  superficial  acquaintance  with  the  facts, 
or  assumed  facts  stated  in  his  history ;  and  therefore,  without 
any  reflection  upon  his  veracity  as  a  historian,  we  may  pre- 
sume he  has  been  led  into  numberless  errors,  mistakes,  and 
even  contradictions,  from  the  incorrect,  partial  and  mutilated 
testimony  of  incompetent  and  ignorant  witnesses ;  and  if  so, 
his  errors  are  rather  to  be  attributed  to  improper  credulity 
than  malevolence,  and  to  negligence  in  not  cautiously  collating 
and  examining  his  materials.  But  we  must  be  permitted  to 
remark,  however,  that  after  admitting  the  foregoing  as  some 
apology  for  errors  and  mistakes  in  a  historian,  yet  it  does  not 
follow  that  any  man  is  justifiable  in  recording  as  facts,  and 
handing  them  down  to  posterity  as  such,  any  matters  or 
things  doubtful  in  their  nature  and  uncertain  as  to  their  truth 
in  his  own  mind ;  and  more  especially  when  those  doubtful 
facts  and  circumstances  have  a  direct  tendency  to  consign  to 
perpetual  infamy  the  character  of  a  respectable  fellow  citizen. 

As  to  any  recollection  the  Doctor  himself  could  pretend  to 
have  as  to  any  matter  or  thing  beyond  the  bounds  of  his 
father's  cornfield  at  the  period  he  so  emphatically  alludes  to — 
to-wit:  17  72-' 73-' 74 — it  must  certainly  be  very  limited  and 
imperfect,  for  he  was  then  very  young.  Therefore,  when  his 
own  knowledge  with  all  its  strength  is  combined  with  the 
information  he  received  from  others  as  to  the  truth  and  cer- 
tainty of  the  facts  he  records,  it  will  only  amount  at  last  to 
mere  conjecture,  which  the  reader  is  at  liberty  to  think  of  as 
he  pleases.  And  as  it  was  impossible  that  any  man  could 
write  a  correct  history  from  the  materials  in  the  Doctor's 
hands,  he  has  therefore  only  left  undone  what  no  man  could 
possibly  do. 

June  5,  1826. 


CONCLUSION. 

In  bidding  adieu  to  my  opponents,  I  would  take  the  liberty 
to  observe  that  I  am  at  peace  with  them  and  all  mankind,  and 
therefore  extremely  regret  that  what  I  conceived  to  be  indis- 
pensable duty,  and  indeed  imperious  necessity,  over  which  an 
accordance  with  my  feelings  I  scarcely  can  say  I  had  control, 
I  have  been  urged  and  propelled  to  launch  into  a  field  quite 
new  to  me,  discordant  to  my  wishes,  and  in  good  degree  at 
variance  with  my  habits  and  the  general  course  of  my  pur- 
suits.    If,  therefore,  in  pursuing  with  a  steady  eye  the  main 
object  I  had  in  view — namely:  rescuing  from  undeserved  in- 
famy the  character  of  a  friend  and  the  reputation  of  a  respect- 
able family,  identified  inevitably  and  involved  unavoidably  in 
the  attempted  stigma  upon  the  character  of  one  of  the  most 
brilliant  and  conspicuous  characters  of  the  name — if,  I  say,  in 
pursuing  this  object  necessity  has  compelled  me  to  name  some 
very  respectable  gentlemen,  I  hope  those  gentlemen  and  all 
the  world  will  see  that  it  was  impossible  to  avoid  it;  for  I  can 
and  do  assure  those  gentlemen  that  if  any  method  could  pos- 
sibly have  been  thought  of  or  devised  to  defend  the  character 
of  Captain  Cresap  and  at  the  same  time  cover  them  with  the 
mantle  of  love,  it  should  have  been  done ;  but  as  this  was  not 
possible,  I  must  therefore  entreat  those  gentlemen  to  accept 
as  an  apology  for  any  tart  expressions  or  apparent  unfriendly 
remarks  they  may  discover  in  my  work,  my  extreme  anxiety 
to  obliterate  from  the  minds  of  my  fellow  citizens  those  preju- 
dices, and  premature,  prejudged  and  erroneous  ojiinions  they 
must,  from  what  they  have  seen  and  heard,  have  imbibed  re- 
specting the  character  of  the  man  I  defend.     More  especially. 


SUPPLJi:MEJ\'-T.  •         153 


the  venerable  age  of  our  honorable  ex-President  certainly 
merits  respect;  and  I  can  and  do  assure  that  gentleman 
that  it  would  be  more  congenial  with  my  feelings  to  offer 
him  a  cordial,  or  something  to  exhilarate,  rather  than  depress 
the  spirit  or  wound  the  feelings  of  an  old  man,  with  whom 
my  own  feelings,  even  in  the  absence  of  better  motives,  would 
teach  me  to  sympathize. 

Finally,  as  it  is  possible  that  under  a  momentary  impulse  I 
may  have  been  led  beyond  the  bounds  of  cool  and  dispassion- 
ate argument,  if  so,  I  beg  those  gentlemen's  pardon,  and  hope 
they  will  attribute  it  to  the  right  motive— namely :  an  ardent 
wish  to  do  the  same  thing  that  they  themselves,  if  placed  in 
my  circumstances,  would  certainly  have  done,  i.  e.,  to  rescue 
from  infamy  the  character  of  a  highly  esteemed  friend.  May 
you,  gentlemen,  notwithstanding  all  you  have  said  and  written 
against  Captain  Cresap,  and  all  I  have  written  in  refutation 
of  those  charges,  enjoy  felicity  and  happiness  in  the  present 
world,  and  unceasing  pleasure  and  joy  unspeakable  in  the 
world  to  come. 

THE  AUTHOR. 
June  5,  1826. 


The  author  thinks  it  proper  to  inform  the  public,  and  especially  the  friends 
of  Dr.  Doddridge,  that,  notwithstanding  the  unjust  attack  of  the  Doctor  upon 
the  character  of  his  deceased  friend  Captain  Cresap,  and  his  determination  to 
refute  those  charges,  yet,  being  anxious  to  treat  him  personally  with  all 
possible  candor,  he  addressed  to  him  a  letter,  written  as  early  as  May  last, 
but  was  utterly  at  a  loss  where  to  direct  the  letter  (as  he  understood  the 
Doctor  had  removed  to  the  State  of  Ohio,  and  he  knew  not  to  what  place); 
consequently  the  letter  was  never  sent;  and  as  the  Doctor  is  now  dead,  the 
opportunity  is  lost  of  giving  him  any  notice  of  his  intention 


General  Clark's  Account. 

[The  publisher  deems  it  proper  to  introduce  here,  as  bearing 
directly  upon  the  subject  matter  of  this  book,  the  following 
letter  from  G-eneral  Greorge  Rogers  Clark,  in  vindication  of 
Captain  Cresap.  It  was  addressed  to  Samuel  Brown,  Esq., 
and  dated  June  17,  1798.] 

The  conduct  of  Cresap  I  am  perfectly  acquainted  with. 
He  was  not  the  author  of  that  murder,  [of  Logan's  family,] 
but  a  family  by  the  name  of  Greathouse. 

This  country  was  explored  in  1773.  A  resolution  was 
formed  to  make  a  settlement  the  Spring  following,  and  the 
mouth  of  the  Little  Kanawha  appointed  the  place  of  general 
rendezvous,  in  order  to  descend  the  river  from  there  in  a  body. 
Early  in  the  Spring  the  Indians  had  done  some  mischief. 
Reports  from  their  towns  were  alarming,  which  deterred 
many.  About  eighty  or  ninety  men  only  met  at  the  appointed 
rendezvous,  where  we  lay  some  days. 

A  small  party  of  hunters  that  lay  about  ten  miles  below  us 
were  fired  upon  by  the  Indians,  whom  the  hunters  beat  back, 
and  returned  to  camp.  This  and  many  other  circumstances 
led  us  to  believe  that  the  Indians  were  determined  on  war. 
The  whole  party  was  enrolled,  and  determined  to  execute 
their  project  of  forming  a  settlement  in  Kentucky,  as  we  had 
every  necessary  store  that  could  be  thought  of.  An  Indian 
town  called  the  Horsehead  Bottom,  on  the  Scioto  and  near 


CLARK'S   ACCOVMT.  155 

its  mouth,  lay  nearly  in  our  way.  The  determination  was  to 
cross  the  country  and  surprise  it.  Who  was  to  command  ? 
was  the  question.  There  were  but  few  among  us  that  had 
experience  in  Indian  warfare,  and  they  were  such  that  we  did 
not  choose  to  be  commanded  by.  We  knew  of  Captain  Cresap 
being  on  the  river  about  fifteen  miles  above  us,  with  some 
hands,  settling  a  plantation,  and  that  he  had  concluded  to 
follow  us  to  Kentucky  as  soon  as  he  had  fixed  there  his  people. 
We  also  knew  that  he  had  been  experienced  in  a  former  war. 
He  was  proposed,  and  it  was  unanimously  agreed  to  send  for 
him  to  command  the  party.  Messengers  were  dispatched,  and 
in  half  an  hour  returned  with  Cresap.  He  had  heard  of  our 
resolution  by  some  of  his  hunters  that  had  fallen  in  with 
ours,  and  had  set  out  to  come  to  us. 

We  now  thought  our  army,  as  we  called  it,  complete,  and 
the  destruction  of  the  Indians  sure.  A  council  was  called, 
and  to  our  astonishment  our  intended  commander-in-chief  was 
the  person  that  dissuaded  us  from  the  enterprise.  He  said 
that  appearances  were  very  suspicious,  but  there  was  no  cer- 
tainty of  a  war ;  that  if  we  made  the  attempt  proposed  he  had 
no  doubt  of  our  success,  but  a  war  would  at  any  rate  be  the 
result,  and  that  we  should  be  blamed  for  it,  and  perhaps 
justly ;  but  if  we  were  determined  to  proceed,  he  would  lay 
aside  all  considerations,  send  to  his  camp  for  his  people,  and 
share  our  fortunes.  He  was  then  asked  what  he  would  advise. 
His  answer  was,  that  we  should  return  to  Wheeling,  as  a  con- 
venient post,  to  hear  what  was  going  forward;  that  a  few 
weeks  would  determine ;  as  it  was  early  in  the  Spring,  if  we 
found  the  Indians  were  not  disposed  for  war,  we  should  have 
full  time  to  return  and  make  our  establishment  in  Kentucky. 
This  was  adopted,  and  in  two  hours  the  whole  were  under 
way.     As  we  ascended  the  river  we  met  Killbuck,  an  Indian 


156  CLABK'S   ACCOUJVT. 

chief,  with  a  small  party.  We  had  a  long  conference  with 
him,  but  received  little  satisfaction  as  to  the  disposition  of 
the  Indians.  It  was  observed  that  Cresap  did  not  come  to 
this  conference,  but  kei^t  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river. 
He  said  that  he  was  afraid  to  trust  himself  with  the  Indians; 
that  Killbuck  had  frequently  attempted  to  waylay  his  father, 
to  kill  him  ;  that  if  he  crossed  the  river  perhaps  his  fortitude 
might  fail  him,  and  that  he  might  put  Killbuck  to  death. 
On  our  arrival  at  AVheeling  (the  country  being  pretty  well 
settled  thereabouts)  the  whole  of  the  inhabitants  appeai'ed  to 
be  alarmed.  They  flocked  to  our  camp  from  every  direction, 
and  all  that  we  could  say  could  not  keep  them  from  under  our 
wings.  We  oifered  to  cover  their  neighborhood  with  our 
scouts  until  further  information,  if  they  would  return  to  their 
plantations ;  but  nothing  would  prevail.  By  this  time  we  had 
got  to  be  a  formidable  party.  All  the  hunters,  men  without 
families,  etc.,  in  that  quarter,  had  joined  our  party.  Our 
arrival  at  Wheeling  was  soon  known  at  Pittsburg.  The 
whole  of  that  country  at  that  time  being  under  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  Virginia,  Dr.  Connoly  had  been  appointed  by  Dunmore 
Captain  Commandant  of  the  District,  which  was  called  West 
Augusta.  He,  learning  of  us,  sent  a  message  addressed  to  the 
party,  letting  us  know  that  a  war  was  to  be  apprehended,  and 
requesting  that  we  would  keep  our  position  for  a  few  days,  as 
messages  had  been  sent  to  the  Indians,  and  a  few  days  would 
determine  the  doubt.  The  answer  he  got  was,  that  we  had 
no  inclination  to  quit  our  quarters  for  some  time;  that  during 
our  stay  we  should  be  careful  that  the  enemy  should  not 
harass  the  neighborhood  that  we  lay  in.  But  before  this 
answer  could  reach  Pittsburg  he  sent  a  second  express,  ad- 
dressed to  Captain  Cresap,  as  the  most  influential  man  among 
us,  informing  him  that  the  messages  had  returned  from  the 


CLARK'S  ACCOUJ^T.  157 

Indians,  that  war  was  inevitable,  and  begging  him  to  use  his 
influence  with  the  party  to  get  them  to  cover  the  country  by 
scouts  until  the  inhabitants  could  fortify  themselves.  The 
reception  of  this  letter  was  the  epoch  of  open  hostilities  with 
the  Indians.  A  new  post  was  planted,  a  council  was  called, 
and  the  letter  read  by  Cresa|3 — all  the  Indian  traders  being 
summoned  on  so  important  an  occasion.  Action  was  had,  and 
war  declared  in  the  most  solemn  manner;  and  the  same  even- 
ing two  scalps  were  brought  into  camp. 

The  next  day  some  canoes  of  Indians  were  discovered  on 
the  river,  keeping  the  advantage  of  an  island  to  cover  them- 
selves from  our  view.  They  were  chased  fifteen  miles  down 
the  river,  and  driven  ashore.  A  battle  ensued — a  few  were 
wounded  on  both  sides — one  Indian  only  taken  prisoner.  On 
examining  their  canoes  we  found  a  considerable  quantity  of 
ammunition  and  other  warlike  stores.  On  our  return  to  camp 
a  resolution  was  adopted  to  march  the  next  day  and  attack 
Logan's  camp  on  the  Ohio,  about  thirty  miles  above  us.  We 
did  march  about  five  miles,  and  then  halted  to  take  some  re- 
freshment. Here  the  impropriety  of  executing  the  jirojected 
enterprise  was  argued.  The  conversation  was  brought  forward 
by  Cresap  himself.  It  was  generally  agreed  that  those  Indians 
had  no  hostile  intentions,  as  they  were  hunting,  and  their 
party  was  composed  of  men,  women  and  children,  with  all 
their  stuif  with  them.  This  we  knew,  as  I  myself  and  others 
present  had  been  in  their  camp  about  four  weeks  past,  on  our 
descending  the  river  from  Pittsburg.  In  short,  every  person 
seemed  to  detest  the  resolution  we  had  set  out  with.  We 
returned  in  the  evening,  decamped,  and  took  the  road  to 
Redstone. 

It  was  two  days  after  this  that  Logan's  family  were  killed. 
And  from  the  manner  in  which  it  was  done,  it  was  viewed  as 


ir>8  CLARK'S   ACCOUJfT. 

a  horrid  murder.  From  Logan's  hearing  of  Cresap  being  at 
the  head  of  this  party  on  the  river,  it  is  no  wonder  that  he 
supposed  he  had  a  hand  in  the  destruction  of  his  family. 

Since  the  reception  of  your  letter  I  have  procured  the 
"  Notes  on  Virginia."  They  are  now  before  me.  The  act 
was  more  barbarous  than  there  related  by  Mr.  Jeiferson. 
Those  Indians  used  to  visit  and  to  return  visits  with  the 
neighboring  whites,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river.  They 
were  on  a  visit  to  a  family  of  the  name  of  Greathouse,  at  the 
time  they  were  murdered  by  them  and  their  associates. 

The  war  now  raged  in  all  its  savage  fury  until  the  Fall, 
when  a  treaty  of  peace  was  held  at  Camp  Charlotte,  within 
four  miles  of  Chillicothe,  the  Indian  capital  of  the  Ohio.  Lo- 
gan did  not  appear.  I  was  acquainted  with  him,  and  wished 
to  know  the  reason.  The  answer  was,  that  he  was  like  a  mad 
dog ;  his  bristles  had  been  up,  and  were  not  yet  quite  fallen, 
but  the  good  talk  now  going  forward  might  allay  them.  Lo- 
gan's speech  to  Dunmore  now  came  forward,  as  related  by  Mr. 
Jefferson.  It  was  thought  to  be  clever,  though  the  army  knew 
it  to  be  wrong  as  to  Cresap ;  but  it  only  produced  a  laugh  in 
camp.  I  saw  it  displeased  Captain  Cresap,  and  told  him  that 
he  must  be  a  very  great  man — that  the  Indians  palmed  every 
thing  that  happened  on  his  shoulders.  He  smiled  and  said 
that  he  had  an  inclination  to  tomahawk  Greathouse  for  the 
murder. 

What  I  have  related  is  fact.  I  was  intimate  with  Cresap. 
Logan  I  was  better  acquainted  with,  at  that  time,  than  with 
any  other  Indian  in  the  western  country.  I  was  perfectly  ac- 
quainted with  the  conduct  of  both  parties.  Logan  was  the 
author  of  the  speech,  as  altered  by  Mr.  Jefferson ;  and  Cre- 
sap's  conduct  was  as  I  have  here  related  it. 


JOURNAL 


o  p 


WAYNE'S     CAMPAIGN. 

Bsnro  an  Adthbntic  Daily  Record  op  thb  most  Important  Occcr- 

RBNCES   DtTRING  THE     CaMPAION    OP     MaJOR     GENERAL 

Anthony    Waynb,   against    the 

NORTHWESTERN   INDIANS; 

Commencing  on  the  28th  day  op  July,  and  ending  on  the  2d  day 

OF  November,  1794 ;   including  an  account  of  the 

great  battle  of  August  20Tn. 


By  Lieutenant  BOYER. 


I 
I 


CINCINNATI,  0.: 

PRINTED    FOR    WILLIAM    DODGE, 

By  Jno.  F.  Uhlbobn. 

18  66. 


14 


^■1 


DAILY  JOURNAL  OF  WAYNE'S  CAMPAIGN, 

From  July  28^A  to  November  2d,  1794,  including  an  account  of 
the  memorable  battle  of  20^A  August. 

Fort  Greenville — ^where  we  were  employed  in  erecting  huts, 
and  remained  until  the  28th  July,  1794. 

Camp  at  Stillwater,  28th  July,  1794. — Agreeable  to  the  gen- 
eral order  of  yesterday,  the  legion  took  up  their  line  of  march 
at  8  o'clock,  and  encamped  at  half  past  3  on  the  bank  of  Still- 
water, twelve  miles  from  Greenville.  The  weather  extremely 
warm — water  very  bad.     Nothing  occurred  worth  noticing. 

Camp  one  mile  in  advance  of  Fort  Recovery,  29^A  July,  1794. 
At  5  o'clock  left  the  camp;  arrived  on  this  ground  at  1  o'clock, 
being  fifteen  miles.     Nothing  took  place  worth  reciting. 

I  am  now  informed  that  tracks  were  perceived  on  our  right 
flank,  supposed  to  be  runners  from  the  Oglaize. 

Camp  Beaver  Swamp,  eleven  miles  in  advance  of  Fort  Recovery, 
Wth  July,  1794. — This  morning  the  legion  took  up  the  lin"  of 
march,  and  arrived  here  at  3  o'clock.  The  road  was  to  cut, 
as  will  be  the  case  on  every  new  route  we  take  in  this  country. 
The  weather  still  warm — no  water  except  in  ponds,  which 
nothing  but  excessive  thirst  would  induce  us  to  drink.  The 
mosquitoes  are  very  troublesome,  and  larger  than  I  ever  saw. 
The  most  of  this  country  is  covered  with  beech,  the  land  of  a 
wet  soil  intermixed  with  rich  tracts,  but  no  running  water  to 
be  found.  A  bridge  to  be  built  over  this  swamp  to-morrow, 
which  prevents  the  march  of  the  legion  till  the  day  after.  We 
are  informed  there  is  no  water  for  twelve  miles. 


Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Camimign. 


July  31s^,  1794. —  Commenced  building  the  bridge — being 
seventy  yards  in  length — which  will  require  infinite  labor ;  it 
will  be  five  feet  deep,  with  loose  mud  and  water. 

One  hundred  pioneers  set  out  this  morning,  strongly  es- 
corted, to  cut  a  road  to  the  St.  Mary's  river,  twelve  miles.  I 
expect  the  bridge  will  be  completed  so  as  to  march  early  in 
the  morning. 

Camp  St.  Mary's  River,  August  1st,  1794. — Proceeded  on  our 
way  before  sunrise,  and  arrived  at  this  place  at  3  o'clock,  being 
twelve  miles  as  aforesaid.  Our  encampment  is  on  the  largest 
and  most  beautiful  prairie  I  ever  beheld,  the  land  rich  and 
well  timbered ;  the  water  plenty,  but  very  bad ;  the  river  is 
from  forty-five  to  fifty  yards  wide,  in  which  I  bathed.  I  am 
told  there  is  plenty  of  fish  in  it. 

August  2d,  1794. — The  legion  detained  here  for  the  purpose 
of  erecting  a  garrison,  which  will  take  up  three  days.  This 
day  one  of  the  deputy  quartermasters  Avas  taken  up  by  the 
Indians.  Our  spies  discovered  where  four  of  the  enemy  had 
retreated  precipitately  with  a  horse,  and  supjDosed  to  be  the 
party  the  above  person  had  "been  taken  by.  It  is  hoped  he 
will  not  give  accurate  information  of  our  strength. 

August  3d,  1794.^An  accident  took  place  this  day  by  a  tree 
falling  on  the  commander-in-chief  and  nearly  putting  an  end 
to  his  existence ;  we  expected  to  be  detained  here  some  time 
in  consequence  of  'it,  but  fortunately  he  is  not  so  much  hurt  as 
to  prevent  him  from  riding  at  a  slow  pace.  No  appearance  of 
the  enemy  to-day,  and  think  they  are  preparing  for  a  warm 
attack.  The  weather  very  hot  and  dry,  without  any  appear- 
ance of  rain. 

Canip  thirty-one  miles  in  advance  of  Fort  Recovery,  4t7i  August, 
1794. —  The  aforesaid  garrison  being  completed,  Lieutenant 
Underhill,  with  one  hundred  men,  left  to  protect  it ;  departed 


Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign. 


at  6  o'clock  and  arrived  here  at  3  o'clock,  being  ten  miles. 
The  land  we  marched  through  is  rich  and  well  timbered,  but 
the  water  scarce  and  bad ;  obliged  to  dig  holes  in  boggy  places 
and  let  it  settle. 

Camp  forty-four  miles  in  advance  of  Fort  Recovery,  5th  August, 
1794. — We  arrived  at  this  place  at  4  o'clock,  nothing  partic- 
ular occurring.  The  land  and  water  as  above  described — had 
some  rain  to-day. 

Camp  fifty -six  miles  from  Fort  Recovery,  6th  Atigust,  1794. 
Encamped  on  this  ground  at  2  o'clock.  In  the  course  of  our 
march  perceived  the  track  of  twenty  Indians.  I  am  informed 
we  are  within  six  miles  of  one  of  their  towns  on  the  Oglaize 
river,  supposed  to  be  the  upper  Delaware  town.  If  so,  I  ex- 
pect to  eat  green  corn  to-morrow.  Our  march  this  day  has 
been  through  an  exceeding  fine  country,  but  the  water  still 
bad  ;  the  day  cooler  than  heretofore. 

Camp  sixty-eight  miles  from  Fort  Recovery,  7th  August,  1794. 
This  day  passed  the  upper  town  on  the  Oglaize,  which  the 
Indians  evacuated  some  time  ago.  I  expect  to  see  one  of 
their  new  towns,  where  I  am  told  there  are  all  sorts  of  veget> 
ables,  which  will  be  very  acceptable  to  the  troops.  We  have 
had  no  appearance  of  Indians  to-day. 

Camp  Grand  Oglaize,  8th  August,  1794. — Proceeded  on  our 
march  to  this  place  at  5  o'clock  this  morning,  and  arrived  here 
at  the  confluence  of  the  Miami  and  Oglaize  rivers  at  half  past 
10,  being  seventy-seven  miles  from  Fort  Recovery.  This 
place  far  excels  in  beauty  any  in  the  western  country,  and  be- 
lieved equalled  by  none  in  the  Atlantic  States.  Here  are 
vegetables  of  every  kind  in  abundance,  and  we  have  marched 
four  or  five  miles  in  cornfields  down  the  Oglaize,  and  there  is 
not  less  than  one  thousand  acres  of  corn  round  the  town.  The 
land  in  general  of  the  fir  nature.     This  country  appears  well 


Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign. 


adapted  foi*  the  enjoyment  of  industrious  people,  who  cannot 
avoid  living  in  as  great  luxury  as  in  any  other  jjlace  through- 
out the  States,  Nature  having  lent  a  most  bountiful  hand  in 
the  arrangement  of  the  position,  that  a  man  can  send  the  pro- 
duce to  market  in  his  own  boat.  The  land  level  and  river 
navigable,  not  more  than  sixty  miles  from  the  lake.  The 
British  have  built  a  large  garrison  about  fifty  miles  from  this 
place,  and  our  sjiies  inform  us  that  the  enemy  are  encamped 
about  two  miles  above  it,  on  the  river. 

Grand  Oglaize,  9th  August,  1794. —  We  remain  here.  The 
commander-in-chief  has  ordered  a  garrison  to  be  erected  at 
the  confluence  of  the  Miami  and  Oglaize  rivers,  which  was 
begun  this  morning,  and  will  take  up  some  time;  by  this 
means  the  troops  will  be  much  refreshed,  as  well  as  the 
horses  and  cattle,  the  latter  being  much  wearied  and  in  need 
of  a  recess  of  labor.     No  appearance  of  an  enemy. 

Grand  Oglaize,  10th  August,  1794. —  The  troops  in  good 
spirits.  No  interruption  from,  or  account  of,  the  enemy.  We 
have  plenty  of  vegetables.  One  of  our  militia  officers  was 
wounded  by  his  own  sentinel  by  mistake. 

Grand  Oglaize,  11th  August,  1794. — Nothing  occurs  to  pre- 
vent the  completion  of  our  work.         ***** 

Took  up  the  line  of  march,  and  at  1  arrived  on  this  ground 
without  any  occurrence.  Our  camp  is  situated  in  sight  of 
Snaketown,  on  the  Miami  of  the  Lake.  Vegetables  in 
abundance. 

Camp  nineteen  miles  from  Oglaize,  16th  August,  1794. — Our 
march  this  day  was  through  a  bushy  ground,  and  the  road 
generally  bad.  Miller  (the  flag)  returned  this  day  from  the 
enemy  with  information  from  the  tribes,  that  if  the  com- 
mander-in-chief would  remain  at  Grand  Oglaize  ten  days  they 
would  let  him  know  whether  they  would  be  for  peace  or  war. 


Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign. 


Camp  thirty-one  miles  from  Graml  Oglaize,  11th  August,  1794. 
This  day  a  small  party  of  the  enemy's  spies  fell  in  with  ours ; 
both  parties  being  for  discoveries,  they  retreated,  at  which 
time  the  enemy  fired  and  wounded  one  of  our  horses.  Our 
camp,  head  of  the  Rapids. 

Camp  forty-one  miles  from  Grand  Oglaize,  18th  August,  1794. 
The  legion  arrived  on  this  ground,  nothing  particular  taking 
place.  Five  of  our  spies  were. sent  out  at  3  o'clock — they  fell 
in  with  an  advanced  body  of  the  enemy,  and  obliged  to  retreat ; 
but  May,  one  of  our  spies,  fell  under  the  enemy's  hold. 
What  his  fate  may  be  must  be  left  to  future  success. 

Camj)  Deposit,  19th  August,  1794. — The  legion  still  continued 
in  encampment,  and  are  throwing  up  works  to  secure  and 
deposit  the  heavy  baggage  of  the  troops,  so  that  the  men  may 
be  light  for  action,  provided  the  enemy  have  presumption  to 
favor  us  with  an  interview,  which  if  they  should  think  proper 
to  do,  the  troops  are  in  such  high  spirits  that  we  will  make 
an  easy  victory  of  them. 

By  this  morning's  order,  the  legion  is  to  march  at  5  o'clock. 

Cavi])  in  sight  of  a  British  garrison,  on  the  Miamis  of  the  Lake, 
August  20th,  1794 — one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  from  Greenville. 
This  day  the  legion,  after  depositing  every  kind  of  baggage, 
took  up  the  line  of  march  at  7  o'clock,  and  continued  their 
route  down  the  margin  of  the  river,  without  making  any 
discovery,  until  11  o'clock,  when  the  front  guard,  which  was 
composed  of  mounted  volunteers,  were  fired  on  by  the  enemy. 
The  guard  retreated  in  the  utmost  confusion  through  the  front 
guard  of  the  regulars,  commanded  by  Captain  Cook  and 
Lieutenant  Steele,  who,  in  spite  of  their  utmost  exertion, 
made  a  retreat.  These  fell  in  with  the  left  of  Captain 
Howell  Lewis'  company  of  light  infantry  and  threw  that  part 
of  the  men  into  confusion,  which  Captain  Lewis  observing,  he 


8  Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign. 

ordered  the  left  of  his  company  to  retreat  about  forty  yards, 
where  he  formed  them  and  joined  tlic  right,  which  had  stood 
their  ground.  They  continued  in  this  i^osition  until  they 
were  joined  by  part  of  Captain  Springer's  battalion  of  riflemen, 
which  was  nearly  fifteen  minutes  after  the  firing  commenced, 
who  drove  the  enemy  that  had  attempted  to  flank  us  on  the 
right.  Nearly  at  the  same  time,  the  right  column  came  up, 
and  the  charge  was  sounded — tjie  enemy  gave  way  and  fired 
scattering  shots  as  they  run  ofi'. 

About  the  time  the  right  column  came  up,  a  heavy  firing 
took  place  on  the  left,  which  lasted  but  a  short  time,  the 
enemy  giving  way  in  all  quarters,  which  left  us  in  possession 
of  their  dead  to  the  number  of  forty.  Our  loss  was  thirty 
killed  and  one  hundred  wounded.  Among  the  former  we 
have  to  lament  the  loss  of  CaiDtain  Miss  Campbell  of  the 
dragoons,  and  Lieutenant  Henry  B.  Fowles  of  the  4th  sub- 
legion  ;  and  of  the  latter,  Captains  Prior  of  the  first,  Slough 
of  the  fourth,  and  Van  Rensselaer  of  the  dragoons,  also 
Lieutenant  Campbell  Smith  of  the  fourth  sub-legion.  The 
whole  loss  of  the  enemy  cannot  at  present  be  ascertained,  but 
it  is  more  than  probable  it  must  have  been  considerable,  for 
we  pursued  them  with  rapidity  for  nearly  two  miles.  As  to 
the  number  of  the  enemy  engaged  in  this  action,  opinions  are 
so  various  that  I  am  at  a  loss  to  know  what  to  say ;  the  most 
general  opinion  is  one  thousand  five  hundred,  one-third  of 
which  are  supposed  to  be  Canadians ;  I  am  led  to  believe  this 
number  is  not  over  the  mark.  After  the  troops  had  taken 
some  refreshment,  the  legion  continued  their  route  down  the 
river,  and  encamped  in  sight  of  the  British  garrison.  One 
Canadian  fell  into  our  hands,  who  we  loaded  with  irons. 

Camj)  Foot  of  the  Bapids,  21st  August,  1794. — We  are  now 
lying  within  half  a  mile  of  a  British  garrison.    A  flag  came  to 


Baihj  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign.  9 

the  commander-in-chief,  the  purport  of  which  was  that  he,  the 
commanding  officer  of  the  British  fort,  was  surprised  to  see 
an  American  army  so  far  advanced  in  this  country ;  and  why 
they  had  the  assurance  to  encamp  under  the  mouths  of  His 
Majesty's  cannons !  The  commander-in-chief  answered,  that 
the  affair  of  yesterday  might  well  inform  him  why  this  army 
was  encamped  in  its  present  position,  and  had  the  flying 
savages  taken  shelter  under  the  walls  of  the  fort,  his  Majesty's 
cannons  should  not  have  protected  them. 

Camp  Foot  of  the  Rapids,  22d  August,  1794. — We  have  de- 
stroyed all  the  property  within  one  hundred  yards  of  the  gar- 
rison. The  volunteers  were  sent  down  eight  miles  below  the 
fort,  and  have  destroyed  and  burnt  all  the  possessions  belong- 
ing to  the  Canadians  and  savages.  The  commander-in-chief 
led  his  light  infantry  within  pistol  shot  of  the  garrison  to 
find  out  the  strength  and  situation  of  the  place,  and  in  hopes 
of  bringing  a  shot  from  our  inveterate  but  silent  enemies. 
They  were  too  cowardly  to  come  up  to  our  expectations,  and 
all  we  got  by  insulting  the  colors  of  Britain  was  a  flag,  the 
amount  of  which  was,  that  the  commanding  officer  of  the  fort 
felt  himself  as  a  soldier  much  injured  by  seeing  His  Majesty's 
colors  insulted,  and  if  such  conduct  was  continued  he  would 
be  under  the  necessity  of  making  a  proper  resentment ;  upon 
which  the  commander-in-chief  demanded  the  post,  it  being 
the  right  of  the  United  States,  which  was  refused.  A  small 
party  of  dragoons  Avere  sent  over  the  river  to  burn  and  de- 
stroy all  the  houses,  corn,  etc.,  that  were  under  cover  of  the 
fort,  which  was  effected. 

Camp  Deposit,  23(Z  August,  1794. — Having  burned  and  de- 
stroyed everything  contiguous  to  the  fort  without  any  opposi- 
tion, the  legion  took  up  the  line  of  march,  and  in  the  evening 
encamped  on  this  ground,  being  the  same  they  marched  from 


10  Daily  Journal  of  Wayne^s  Campaign. 

the  20th.  It  may  be  proper  to  remark  that  we  have  heard 
nothing  from  the  savages,  or  their  allies  the  Canadians,  since 
the  action.  The  honors  of  war  have  been  paid  to  the  remains 
of  those  brave  felloAvs  who  fell  on  the  20th,  by  a  discharge  of 
three  rounds  from  sixteen  pieces  of  ordnance,  charged  with 
shells.  The  ceremony  was  performed  with  the  greatest  so- 
lemnity. 

Camp  Thirty-two  Mile  Tree,  24th  August,  1794. — The  wounded 
being  well  provided  for  with  carriages,  etc.,  the  legion  took  up 
the  line  of  march,  and  halted  in  their  old  camp  about  2  o'clock 
in  the  evening,  without  any  accident.  In  this  day's  march  we 
destroyed  all  the  corn  and  burnt  all  the  houses  we  met  with, 
which  were  very  considerable. 

Camp  Fifteen  Mile  Tree,  25th  August,  1794. — The  legion 
continued  their  march,  and  encamped  on  this  ground  at  3 
o'clock  P.  M.  This  morning  a  few  of  the  volunteers  remained 
in  the  rear  of  the  army,  and  soon  after  the  legion  took  up 
their  line  of  march  they  saw  eight  Indians  coming  into  our 
camp ;  they  fell  in  with  them,  killed  one  and  wounded  two. 

Camp  Nine  Mile  Tree,  2Gth  August,  1794. — The  legion  con- 
tinued their  march,  and  after  burning  and  destroying  all  the 
houses  and  corn  on  their  route,  arrived  on  this  ground  at  2 
o'clock,  being  one  of  our  encamping  places  when  on  our  ad- 
vance. All  the  wounded  that  were  carried  on  litters  and 
horseback  were  sent  forward  to  Fort  Defiance.  Dr.  Carmi- 
chael,  through  neglect,  had  the  wounded  men  of  the  artillery 
and  cavalry  thrown  into  wagons,  among  spades,  axes,  picks, 
etc.,  in  consequence  of  which  the  wounded  are  now  lying  in 
extreme  pain,  besides  the  frequent  shocks  of  a  wagon  on  the 
worst  of  roads.  The  wounded  of  the  third  sub-legion  are 
under  obligations  to  Dr.  Haywood  for  his  attention  and  hu- 
manity to  them  in  their  distress. 


Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign.  11 

Camp  Fort  Defiance,  21th  August,  1794. — The  legion  contin- 
ued their  route,  and  at  3  o'clock  were  encamped  on  the  Miami, 
one  mile  above  the  garrison.  On  this  day's  march  we  de- 
stroyed all  the  corn  and  burnt  all  the  houses  on  our  route ; 
the  wounded  are  happily  fixed  in  the  garrison,  and  the  doctors 
say  there  is  no  great  danger  of  any  of  them  dying. 

Fort  Defiance,  28<A  August,  1794. — The  commander-in-chief 
thinks  proper  to  continue  on  this  ground  for  some  time,  to 
refresh  the  troops  and  send  for  supplies.  There  is  corn,  beans, 
pumpkins,  etc.,  within  four  miles  of  this  place,  to  furnish  the 
troops  three  weeks. 

"General  Orders. — The  Quartermaster  General  will  issue 
"one  gill  of  whisky  to  every  man  belonging  to  the  Federal 
"army  (this  morning),  as  a  small  compensation  for  the  fa- 
"tigues  they  have  undergone  for  several  days  past.  Major 
"General  Scott  will  direct  his  quartermasters  to  attend  accord- 
"ingly  with  their  respective  returns.  The  commander-in- 
"  chief  wishes  it  to  be  fairly  understood  that  when  he  men- 
"tioned  or  may  mention  the  Federal  army  in  general  orders, 
"that  term  comprehends  and  includes  the  legion  and  mounted 
"  volunteers  as  one  compound  army ;  and  that  the  term  legion 
"comprehends  the  regular  troops,  agreeable  to  the  organiza- 
"tion  by  the  President  of  the  United  States,  and  by  which 
"appellation  they  are  known  and  recognized  on  all  occasions 
"when  acting  by  themselves,  and  separate  from  the  mounted 
"volunteers.  As  the  army  will  probably  remain  on  this 
"ground  for  some  time,  vaults  must  be  dug,  and  every  pre- 
"  caution  taken  to  keep  the  encampment  clean  and  healthy. 

"The  legion  will  be  reviewed  the  day  after  to-morrow  at  10 
"o'clock.  In  the  interim  the  arms  must  be  clean  and  var- 
"  nished,  and  the  clothing  of  the  soldier  repaired  and  washed, 
"to  appear  in  the  most  military  condition  possible;  but  in 


12  Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign. 

"these  necessary  preparations  for  a  review  great  caution  must 
"be  used  by  the  commanding  officers  of  wings,  not  to  permit 
"too  many  men  at  one  time  to  take  their  locks  off,  or  to  be 
"engaged  in  washing. 

"All  the  horses  belonging  to  the  quartermaster  and  conr 
"tractor's  department,  in  possession  of  the  legion,  must  be 
"returned  this  afternoon." 

This  is  the  first  fair  day  we  have  had  since  we  began  to 
return  to  this  place,  it  having  rained  nearly  constant  for  five 
days,  which  was  the  occasion  of  fatiguing  the  troops  very 
much. 

Fort  Defiance,  2Qth  August,  1794. — We  are  as  yet  encamped 
on  this  ground ;  all  the  pack-horses  belonging  to  the  quarter- 
master and  contractor's  department  moved  this  morning  for 
Fort  Recovery,  escorted  by  Brigadier  General  Todd's  brigade 
of  mounted  volunteers,  for  the  purpose  of  bringing  supplies  to 
this  place.  It  is  said  the  legion  will  continue  in  their  present 
camp  until  the  return  of  this  escort.  Our  spies  were  yesterday 
twelve  miles  up  this  river,  and  they  bring  information  that 
the  cornfields  continue  as  far  as  they  were  up  the  river. 

Fort  Defiance,  dOth  August,  1794. — This  day  at  10  o'clock, 
the  commander-  in-chief  began  to  review  the  troops  at  the 
posts  occupied  by  the  different  corps,  and  I  am  led  to  believe 
that  he  was  well  pleased  at  their  appearance.  Major  Hughes, 
Captain  Slough,  Captain  Van  Rensselaer  and  Lieutenant 
Younghusband  obtained  a  furlough  to  go  home  to  repair  their 
healths,  being,  as  they  pretended,  very  much  injured  by  the 
service.  I  believe  the  two  first  and  the  last  mentioned  if  they 
never  return  will  not  be  lamented  by  the  majority  of  the  army. 

The  out-guards  were  much  alarmed  this  morning  at  the 
mounted  volunteers  firing  off  all  their  arms  without  our  having 
any  notice. 


Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign.  13 

Headquarters,  31«<  August,  1794. — "General  Orders. — 
"general  court-martial  to  consist  of  five  members,  will  sit  to- 
-morrow morning  at  10  o'clock,  for  the  trial  of  such  prisoners 
"as  may  be  brought  before  them.    Major  Shaylor,  President, 
"Lieutenant  Wade,  Judge  Advocate. 

"  The  disorderly  and  dangerous  practice  of  permitting  the 
"soldiery  to  pass  the  chain  of  sentinels,  on  pretext  of  going 
"after  vegetables,  can  no  longer  be  suffered.  In  future,  on 
"issuing  day,  only  one  man  from  each  mess,  properly  armed, 
"and  commanded  by  the  respective  sub-legionary  quarter- 
"  masters,  will  be  sent  as  a  detachment  for  vegetables,  to 
"march  at  7  o'clock  in  the   morning. 

"The  pack-horses  shall  forage  daily  under  protection  of  a 
"squadron  of  dragoons;  every  precaution  must  be  taken  to 
"guard  against  surprise.  Any  non-commissioned  officer  or 
"soldier  found  half  a  mile  without  the  chain  of  sentinels, 
"without  a  pass  signed  by  the  commanding  officer  of  wings 
"or  sub-legion,  or  from  headquarters,  shall  be  deemed  a 
"  deserter,  and  punished  accordingly.  Every  sentinel  suflfering 
"a  non-commissioned  officer  or  private  to  pass  without  such 
"written  permit,  except  a  party  on  command,  shall  receive 
"fifty  lashes  for  each  and  every  violation  of  this  order. 

"A  fatigue  party  of  three  hundred  non-commissioned  officers 
"and  privates,  with  a  proportion  of  commissioned  officers, 
"will  parade  at  7  o'clock  to-morrow  morning,  furnished  with 
"one  hundred  axes,  one  hundred  picks,  and  one  hundred 
"spades  and  shovels,  with  arms,  commanded  by  Major 
"Burbeck." 

A  part  of  this  order  was  in  consequence  of  three  men  of  the 

first  sub-legion  being  either  killed  or  taken  by  the  enemy, 

when  out  a  foraging,  which  was  done  some  time  since,  in  a 

very  disorderly  manner,  at  the  same  time  liable  to  the  attacks 

15 


14  Daily  Journal  of  Wayne  s  Campaign. 

of  the  enemy,  without  having  it  in  their  power  to  make  the 
smallest  resistance. 

Fort  Defiance,  1st  September,  1794. — This  morning  the  fatigue 
party  ordered  yesterday  began  to  fortify  and  strengthen  the 
fort  and  make  it  of  sufficient  strength  to  be  proof  against 
heavy  metal :  the  work  now  on  hand  is  a  glascis  with  fascines, 
and  a  ditch  twelve  feet  Avide  and  eight  feet  deep ;  the  block- 
houses are  to  be  made  bomb-proof. 

Fort  Defiance,  2d  September,  1794. — Every  effective  man  of 
the  light  troops  in  the  redoubts  round  the  camp  were  ordered 
this  morning  to  make  three  fascines. 

The  foraging  party  that  went  out  this. day  brought  in  as 
much  corn,  dry  enough  to  grate,  as  will  suffice  the  troops  three 
days.  The  soldiery  get  sick  very  fast  with  the  fever  and 
ague,  and  have  it  severely. 

Fort  Defiance,  3d  September,  1794. — Nothing  but  hard  fatigues 
going  forward  in  all  quarters.  The  garrison  begins  to  put  on 
the  appearance  of  strength,  and  will  in  a  few  days  be  able  to 
stand  the  shock  of  heavy  cannon ;  the  troops  are  very  sickly, 
and  I  believe  the  longer  we  continue  in  this  place  the  worse  it 
will  be. 

Fort  Defiance,  Mh  September,  1794. — The  number  of  our  sick 
increases  daily;  provision  is  nearly  exhausted;  the  whisky 
has  been  out  for  some  time,  which  makes  the  hours  pass 
heavily  to  the  tune  of  Roslin  Castle,  when  in  our  present 
situation  they  ought  to  go  to  the  quick  step  of  the  merry  man 
down  to  his  grave.  Hard  duty  and  scanty  allowance  will 
cause  an  army  to  be  low  spirited,  particularly  the  want  of  a 
little  of  the  wet. 

If  it  was  not  for  the  forage  we  get  from  the  enemy's  fields, 
the  rations  would  not  be  sufficient  to  keep  soul  and  body 
together. 


Bailij  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign.  15 

Fort  Defiance,  5th  Septemher,  1794. — No  news  of  the  escort; 
this  day  the  troops  drew  no  flour,  and  I  fear  we  will  shortly 
draw  no  beef ;  however,  as  long  as  the  issuing  of  beef  continues 
the  troops  will  not  suffer,  as  there  is  still  corn  in  abundance 
on  the  river. 

Fort  Defiance,  Qtk  September,  1794. — The  work  on  the  garrison 
goes  on  with  life  and  will  be  completed  in  a  few  days.  The 
weather  very  wet  and  cold ;  this  morning  there  is  a  small  frost. 

Fort  Defiance,  1th  September,  1794. — Nothing  of  consequence 
took  place  this  day.     Our  sick  are  getting  better. 

Fort  Defiance,  8th  September,  1794. — This  day  brings  us 
information  of  the  escort ;  by  express  we  learn  it  will  be  with 
us  to-morrow.  It  will  be  fortunate  for  us  should  provisions 
arrive,  as  we  have  not  drawn  any  flour  since  the  7th  instant ; 
nevertheless  we  have  the  greatest  abundance  of  vegetables. 

Fort  Defiance,  9fh  September,  1794. — The  escort  has  not  yet 
arrived,  but  will  be  in  to-morrow.  General  Scott  with  the 
residue  is  ordered  to  march  to-mori'ow  morning  at  reveille. 
The  commander-in-chief  engaged  with  the  volunteers  to  bring 
on  the  flour  from  Greenville  on  their  own  horses,  for  which 
they  are  to  receive  three  dollars  per  hundred,  delivered  at  the 
Miami  villages. 

Fort  Defiance,  10th  September,  1794. — The  escort  arrived  this 
day  about  3  o'clock,  and  brought  with  them  two  hundred  kegs 
of  flour  and  nearly  two  hundred  head  of  cattle.  Captain 
Preston  and  Ensigns  Strother,  Bowyer  and  Lewis,  joined  us 
this  day  with  the  escort.  -We  received  no  liquor  by  this 
command,  and  I  fancy  we  shall  not  receive  any  until  we  get 
into  winter  quarters,  which  will  make  the  fatigues  of  the 
campaign  appear  double,  as  I  am  persuaded  the  troops  would 
much  rather  live  on  half  rations  of  beef  and  bread,  provided 
they  could  obtain  their  full  rations  of  whisky.     The  veget- 


16  Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign. 

ables  are  as  yet  in  the  greatest  abundance.  The  soldiers  of 
Captain  William  Lewis's  company  are  in  perfect  health,  the 
wounded  excepted. 

Fort  Defiance,  11th  Sejyteviber,  1794. — This  day  General 
Barber's  brigade  of  mounted  volunteers  marched  for  Fort 
Recovery  for  provisions,  to  meet  us  at  the  Miami  villages  by 
the  20th. 

Fort  Defiance,  12th  September,  1794. — This  day  the  pioneers 
were  ordered  to  cut  the  road  up  the  Miami  under  the  direction 
of  the  sub-legionary  quartermaster ;  they  are  to  commence  at 
7  o'clock  to-morrow  morning. 

Fort  Defiance,  IWi  September,  1794. — This  day  a  general 
order  was  issued,  setting  forth  that  the  legion  would  march 
to-morroAV  morning  precisely  at  7  o'clock,  every  department 
to  prepare  themselves  accordingly. 

The  squaw  that  Wells  captured  on  the  11th  August,  was 
this  day  liberated  and  sent  home.  Three  soldiers  of  the  1st 
and  three  of  the  3d  sub-legions  deserted  last  night;  sixteen 
volunteers  pursued  them;  they  are  to  receive  twenty  dollars  if 
they  bring  them  in  dead  or  alive. 

Camp  11^  Mile  Tree,  14th  September,  1794. — The  legion  began 
their  march  for  the  Miami  villages  at  7  o'clock  this  morning 
and  encamped  on  this  ground  at  3  o'clock,  after  marching  in 
the  rain  eight  hours. 

Camp  23d  Mile  Tree,  15th  September,  1794.— The  legion 
marched  at  6  and  encamped  at  4  o'clock.  Caj)tain  Preston, 
who  commanded  the  light  troops  in  the  rear,  got  lost  and  lay 
out  from  the  army  all  night  with  a  large  part  of  the  baggage. 

Camp  S3d  Mile  Tree,  IQth  September,  1794. — We  encamped 
on  this  ground  at  4  o'clock,  after  passing  over  very  rough 
roads,  and  woods  thick  with  brush,  the  timber  very  lofty  and 
the  land  generally  rich  and  well  watered. 


Dailij  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign.  17 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  Vlth  September,  1794. — The  army 
halted  on  this  ground  at  5  o'clock,  P.  M.,  being  47  miles  from 
Fort  Detiance  and  14  from  our  last  encampment ;  there  are 
nearly  five  hundred  acres  of  cleared  land  lying  in  one  body  on 
the  rivers  St.  Joseph,  St.  Mary's  and  the  Miami ;  there  are 
fine  points  of  land  contiguous  to  those  rivers  adjoining  the 
cleared  land.  The  rivers  are  navigable  for  small  craft  in  the 
summer,  and  in  the  winter  there  is  water  sufficient  for  large 
boats,  the  land  adjacent  fertile  and  well  timbered,  and  from 
every  appearance  it  has  been  one  of  the  largest  settlements 
made  by  the  Indians  in  this  country. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  \Sth  September,  1794. — This  day  the 
commander-in-chief  reconnoitered  the  ground  and  determined 
on  the  spot  to  build  a  garrison  on.  The  troops  fortified  their 
camps,  as  they  halted  too  late  yesterday  to  cover  themselves. 
Four  deserters  from  the  British  came  to  us  this  day ;  they 
bring  information  that  the  Indians  are  encamped  eight  miles 
below  the  British  fort  to  the  number  of  1,600. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  19/A  September,  1794. — This  day  we 
hear  that  General  Barber's  brigade  of  mounted  volunteers 
are  within  twelve  miles  of  this  place,  and  will  be  in  early  to- 
morrow with  large  supplies  of  flour;  we  have  had  heavy  rains, 
the  wind  northwest,  and  the  clouds  have  the  appearance  of 
emptying  large  quantities  on  this  western  world. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  20th  September,  1794. — Last  night  it 
rained  violently,  and  the  wind  blew  from  the  northwest  harder 
than  I  knew  heretofore.  General  Barber  with  his  command 
arrived  in  camp  about  9  o'clock  this  morning  with  553  kegs 
of  flour,  each  containing  100  pounds. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  21s^  September,  1794.  —  The  com- 
mander-in-chief reviewed  the  legion  this  day  at  1  o'clock. 
All  the  quartermaster's  horses  set  off  this  morning,  escorted 


18  Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaiffn. 

by  the  mounted  volunteers,  for  Greenville,  and  are  to  return 
the  soonest  possible.  We  have  not  one  quart  of  salt  on  this 
ground,  which  occasions  bad  and  disagreeable  living  until  the 
arrival  of  the  next  escort. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  22d  September,  1794. — Nothing  of  con- 
sequence took  place  to-day,  except  that  the  troops  drew  no 
salt  with  their  fresh  provisions. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  23d  September,  1794. — Four  deserters 
from  the  British  garrison  arrived  at  our  camp ;  they  mention 
that  the  Indians  are  still  embodied  on  the  Miami,  nine  miles 
below  the  British  fort;  that  they  are  somewhat  divided  in 
opinion — some  are  for  peace  and  others  for  war. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  24th  September,  1794. — This  day  the 
work  commenced  on  the  garrison,  which  I  am  apprehensive 
will  take  some  time  to  complete  it.  A  keg  of  whisky  contain- 
ing ten  gallons  was  purchased  this  day  for  eighty  dollars,  a 
sheep  for  ten  dollars ;  three  dollars  was  offered  for  one  pint  of 
salt,  but  it  could  not  be  obtained  for  less  than  six, 

Camj)  Miami  Villages,  25th  September,  1794. — Lieutenant 
Blue  of  the  dragoons  was  this  day  arrested  by  ensign  Johnson 
of  the  4th  S.  L.,  but  a  number  of  their  friends  interfering  the 
dispute  was  settled  upon  Lieutenant  Blue's  asking  ensign 
Johnson's  pardon. 

Carap  Miami  Villages,  2Qth  September,  1794. —  McClelland, 
one  of  our  spies,  with  a  small  party  came  in  this  evening  from 
Fort  Defiance,  who  brings  information  that  the  enemy  are 
troublesome  about  the  garrison,  and  that  they  have  killed 
some  of  our  men  under  the  walls  of  the  fort.  Sixteen  Indians 
were  seen  to-day  near  this  place ;  a  small  party  went  in  pur- 
suit of  them.  I  have  not  heard  what  discoveries  they  have 
made. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  21th  September,  1794 — No  intelligence 


Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign.  19 

of  the  enemy.     The  rain  fell   considerably  last  night;  this 
morning  the  wind  is  southwest. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  28^A  September,  1794.^ — The  weather 
proves  colder. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  ZOth  September,  1794. — Salt  and  whisky 
were  drawn  by  the  troops  this  day,  and  a  number  of  the  sol- 
diery became  much  intoxicated,  they  having  stolen  a  quantity 
of  liquor  from  the  quartermaster. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  1st  October,  1794. —  The  volunteers 
appear  to  be  uneasy,  and  have  refused  te=^.o  duty.  They  are 
ordered  by  the  commander-in-chief  to  march  to-morrow  for 
Greenville  to  assist  the  pack-horses,  which  I  am  told  they  are 
determined  not  to  do. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  2d  October,  1794. — This  morning  the 
volunteers  refused  to  go  on  command,  and  demanded  of  Gen- 
eral Scott  to  conduct  them  home ;  he  ordered  them  to  start 
with  General  Barber,  or  if  they  made  the  smallest  delay  they 
should  lose  all  their  pay  and  be  reported  to  the  war  office  as 
revolters.  This  had  the  desired  effect,  and  they  went  off,  not 
in  good  humor. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  3d  October,  1794. — Every  officer,  non- 
commissioned officer  and  soldier  belonging  to  the  square  are 
on  fatigue  this  day,  hauling  trees  on  the  hind  wheels  of  wag- 
ons ;  the  first  day  we  got  an  extra  gill  per  man,  which  appears 
to  be  all  the  compensation  at  this  time  in  the  power  of  the 
commander-in-chief  to  make  the  troops. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  4ih  October,  1794. — This  morning  we 
had  the  hardest  frost  I  ever  saw  in  the  middle  of  December; 
it  was  like  a  small  snow ;  there  was  ice  in  our  camp-kettles 
three-fourths  of  an  inch  thick.  The  fatigues  go  on  with  ve- 
locity, considering  the  rations  the  troops  are  obliged  to  live  on. 
Camp  Miami   Villages,  5th  October,  1794. — The  weather  ex 


20  Daih/  Journal  of  Wayne's  Camjyaign. 

tremely  cold,  and  hard  frosts — the  wind  northwest.  Every- 
thing quiet,  and  nothing  but  harmony  and  peace  throughout 
the  camp,'which  is  something  uncommon. 

CampJ^iami  Villages,  6th  October,  1794. — Plenty  and  quiet- 
ness, the  same  as  yesterday.  The  volunteers  engaged  to  work 
on  the  garrison,  for  which  they  axe  to  receive  three  gills  of 
whisky  per  man  per  day ;  their  employment  is  digging  the 
ditch  and  filling  up  the  parapet. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  ^th  October,  1794. —  The  volunteers 
are  soon  tired  of  work,  and  have  refused  to  labor  any  longer ; 
they  have  stolen  and  killed  seventeen  beeves  in  the  course  of 
these^^two  days  past. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  8th  October,  1794. — The  troops  drew 
but  half  rations  of  flour  this  day.  The  cavalry  and  other 
horses  die  very  fast — not  less  than  four  or  five  per  day. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  9th  October,  1794. —  The  volunteers 
have  agreed  to  build  a  block-house  in  front  of  the  garrison. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  11th  October,  1794. — A  Canadian  [Ro- 
zelle]  with  a  flag  arrived  this  evening ;  his  business  was  to 
deliver  up  three  prisoners  in  exchange  for  his  brother,  who 
was  taken  on  the  20th  August.  He  brings  information  that 
the  Indians  are  in  council  with  Girty  and  McKee  near  the 
fort  of  Detroit ;  that  all  the  tribes  are  for  peace  except  the 
Shawanese,  who  are  determined  to  prosecute  the  war. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  12th  October,  1794. — The  mounted  vol- 
unteers of  Kentucky  marched  for  Greenville,  to  be  mustered 
and  dismissed  the  service  of  the  United  States  army,  they 
being  of  no  fui-ther  service  therein. 

Camj)  Miami  Villages,  13th  October,  1794. —  Captain  Gibson 
marched  this  day,  and  took  with  him  a  number  of  horses  for 
Fort  Recovery  to  receive  supplies  of  provisions. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  14th  October,  1794. — Nothing  particu- 
lar this  dav. 


Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign.  21 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  15tk  October,  1794. —  The  Canadian 
that  came  in  on  the  11th  left  us  this  day,  accompanied  by  his 
brother ;  they  have  promised  to  furnish  the  garrison  at  Defi- 
ance with  stores  at  a  moderate  price,  which,  if  performed,  will 
be  a  great  advantage  to  the  officers  and  soldiers  of  that  post. 

Catnp  Miami  Villages,  l&h  October,  1794. —  Nothing  new; 
weather  wet  and  cold — wind  from  the  northwest.  The  troops 
healthy  in  general. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  11th  October,  1794. — This  day  Captain 
Gibson  arrived  with  a  large  quantity  of  flour,  beef  and  sheep. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  l^tk  October,  1794. — Captain  Springer 
and  Brock,  with  all  the  pack-horses,  marched  with  the  cavalry 
this  morning  for  Greenville,  and  the  foot  for  Recovery,  the 
latter  to  return  with  the  smallest  delay  with  a  supply  of  pro- 
visions for  this  post  and  Defiance. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  IQth  October,  1794. —  This  day  the 
troops  were  not  ordered  for  labor,  being  the  first  day  for  four 
weeks,  and  accordingly  attended  divine  service. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  20th  October,  1794. — An  express  ar- 
rived this  day  with  dispatches  to  the  commander-in-chief ;  the 
contents  are  kept  secret. 

A  court-martial  to  sit  this  day  for  the  trial  of  Lieutenant 
Charles  Hyde. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  21st  October,  1794. — This  day  were  read 
the  proceedings  of  a  general  court-martial  held  on  Lieutenant 
Charles  Hyde  (yesterday),  was  found  not  guilty  of  the  charges 
exhibited  against  him,  and  was  therefore  acquitted. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  22d  October,  1794. — This  morning  at 
7  o'clock  the  following  companies,  under  the  command  of 
Lieutenant  Colonel  Commandant  Hamtramck  of  the  1st  sub- 
legion,  took  possession  of  this  place,  viz :  Captain  Kingsbury's 

1st;  Captain   Greaton's   2d;   Captain   Spark's   and   Captain 

,-.'■■'•''<■  >.■ 
>''  --   'V 

</')|llHI  10 


22  Daily  Journal  of  Wayne's  Campaign. 

Reed's,  3d;  Captain  Preston's  4th;  and  Captain  Porter's  of 
artillery;  and  after  firing  fifteen  rounds  of  cannon,  Colonel 
Hamtramck  gave  it  the  name  of  Fort  Wayne. 

Camj)  Miami  Villages,  23(Z  October,  1794. — The  general  fatigue 
of  the  garrison  ended  this  day,  and  Colonel  Hamtramck,  with 
the  troops  under  his  command,  to  furnish  it  as  he  may  think 
fit.  All  the  soldiers'  huts  are  completed  except  covering,  and 
the  weather  is  favorable  for  that  work. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  24th  October,  1794. — This  day  the 
troops  drew  but  half  rations  of  beef  and  flour,  the  beef  very  bad. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  ^bth  October,  1794. — Nothing  extraor- 
dinary the  same  as  yesterday. 

This  evening  Captain  Springer  with  the  escort  arrived, 
with  a  supply  of  flour  and  salt.  A  Frenchman  and  a  half 
Indian  came  to  headquarters,  but  where  they  are  from  or 
their  business  wo  cannot  learn  but  that  it  is  of  a  secret  nature. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  26th  October,  1794. — Nothing  occurring 
to-day  except  an  expectation  to  march  the  day  after  to-morrow. 

Camp  Miami  Villages,  21th  October,  1794. — Agreeable  to  gen- 
eral orders  of  this  day,  we  will  march  for  Greenville  to-morrow 
morning  at  8  o'clock. 

Camp  nine  miles  from  Fort  Wayne,  2^th  October,  1794. — The 
legion  took  up  the  line  of  march  at  9  o'clock  and  arrived  here 
without  anything  particular  occurring. 

Camp  twenty-one  miles  from  Fort  Wayne,  2dth  October,  1794. 
The  troops  proceeded  on  their  march  at  sunrise,  and  arrived 
on  this  ground  at  half  past  3  o'clock,  our  way  was  through 
rich  and  well  timbered  land,  the  weather  cold  and  much  like 
for  rain. 

Camp" Southwest  side  of  St.  Mary''s  river,  30#A  October,  1794. 
The  legion  proceeded  on  ther  march  at  7  o'clock,  and  arrived 
here  at  sunset ;  continual  heavy  rain  all  day. 


Daily  Journal  of   Wayne's  Campaign.  23 

Camp  Girty's  Town,  31st  October,  1794. — The  troops  took  up 
their  line  of  inarch  at  sunrise,  and  arrived  here  three  hours 
after  night,  through  heavy  rain. 

Greenville,  2nd  November,  1794. — This  evening  the  legion 
arrived  here,  where  they  marched  from  28th  July,  1794. 

We  were  saluted  with  twenty-four  rounds  from  a  six- 
pounder.  Our  absence  from  this  ground  amounted  to  three 
months  and  six  days.  And  so  ends  the  expedition  of  General 
Wayne's  campaign. 


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