HISTORY OF THE GIRTYS
BEING. A CONCISE ACCOUNT OF THE GIRTY BROTHERSTHOMAS, SIMON, JAMES AND GEORGE, AND OF THEIR
HALF-BROTHER, JOHN TURNER-ALSO OF THE PART
TAKEN BY THEM IN LORD DUNMORE'S WAR, IN
THE WESTERN BORDER WAR OF THE REVOLUTION, AND IN THE INDIAN WAR OF 1790-95
WITH A RECITAL OF THE PRINCIPAL EVENTS IN THE WEST DURING
THESE WARS, DRAWN FROM AUTHENTIC SOURCES,
LARGELY ORIGINAL
BY
CONSUL WILLSHIRE BUTTERFIELD       1   -4::Zcl
Author of "An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky under
Col. William Crawford in 1782," etc.
CINCINNATI
ROBERT CLARKE  CO.
1890Contents.
A fiction as to Samuel Brady..............................................   211
Girty recalled from the Ohio wilderness.............................. 211
De Peyster informs the Indians that peace is made............. 213
Girty visited by his brother Thomas and half-brother, John
Turner.........................................................................  213
Sir John Johnson counsels the Indians not to yield their
lands............................................................................ 214
Girty marries Miss Catharine Malott.................................... 215
They locate in Canada, on the Detroit river.......................... 216
CHAPTER XXIII.
Col. Josiah Harmar commands the First American Regiment.. 220
A treaty with the Western Indians held at Fort McIntosh..... 221
Simon Girty directed wholly by Alex. McKee....................... 222
Girty and others inflame the savages against the Americans... 223
Another treaty held-this time at "Fort Finney "................. 225
The Western savages, owing to British emissaries, getting
hostile.....................2                           6................................226
Col. Harmar ordered to protect the border.......................... 227
Girty and McKee go to Niagara to an Indian council............ 227
Capt. Joseph Brant urges the Indians to unite...................... 228
The savages determined to oppose Western settlements......... 229
A fiction regarding James Girty being on the Ohio................ 229
CHAPTER XXIV.
Capture of James Moore by the Indians.............................. 233
Mary Moore, his sister, afterward taken prisoner................... 235
She is purchased of the Indians by a loyalist....................... 235
Simon Girty and MIcKee aid her in getting released.237
Thomas Girty sent as a messenger to the Indians.................. 238
Simon Girty is very active with the Ohio savages.................. 239
He has great influence among the Indians........................... 240
A Mrs. Thomas Cunningham captured by the savages............ 240
Girty and McKee get her ransomed..................................... 241
Portents of an Indian War in the West............................... 241
A treaty in 1789 held at Fort Ilarmar.................................. 242
CHAPTER XXV.
Simon Girty is not very active in 1789.244
He is again visited by his half-brother, John Turner.............. 245
Hostility of the Wabash and Miami Indians.245
An unsuccessful expedition led by Gen. Hlarmar against the
Miaiis...................................................................... 246
Maj. Hamtramck lays waste Wabash towns.247
The Western savages determine upon war.......................... 248
A fiction as to Simon Girty attacking Baker's Station......  249
John Dunlap forms a settlement on the Great Miami..      249
xHistory of the Girtys.
dians, and threatened the whole British power in the Northwest. At the very time when Hamilton received the news,
there was a large gathering of Indians at his post with whom
he was holding negotiations. "He gave them the hatchet
anew, and urged them to more general and violent assaults
upon the frontier, and to hold themselves in readiness to join
him in proposed movements against the Americans." He sent
a menacing letter to the Council of the Delawares, upon the
Muskingum, calling upon them " for the last time" to take
up the hatchet, and was greatly infuriated at their firm refusal.
He immediately planned an expedition for the recovery of
the Illinois, to be commanded by himself. It was composed
of thirty-five regular soldiers, including officers and men; of
"irregulars," forty-four rank and file; of militia, about
seventy; and about sixty Indians, his force of savages being
augmented on the way. The volunteers were subsequently
paid for their services from the seventeenth of September, but
the expedition did not leave Detioit until the seventh of October. He proposed to march first to Vincennes, in what is
now the State of Indiana; thence, he intended to proceed to
Kaskaskia, where Clark's force was mostly stationed. He
urged Major Arent Schuyler De Peyster, in command at
Michilimackinac, to send him assistance. De Peyster had
also received special orders from General Frederick Haldimand, commanding at Quebec, to do all in his power to aid
Hamilton in his enterprise; and, on the twenty-fifth of October, he dispatched officers to arouse the Indians around Lake
Michigan and assemble them at Fort St. Joseph, a stockade
near a Pottawattamie village, in the vicinity of what is now
South Bend, Indiana. They were to march thence and join
Hamilton with all the force they could raise, or descend the
Illinois, if that would be better calculated to promote the
success of Hamilton's operations. These officers were told
to use economy, " as the nations in general" had "many
presents from his Majesty." They were to exhort the warriors to use humanity toward their prisoners, who would be
86History of the Girtys.
ransomed. It was thus that De Peyster early in the war
showed himself a humane soldier.
Hamilton was greatly delayed by storms and bad weather,
and did not reach Vincennes until the seventeenth of December. This place, as we have seen, had yielded to the Americans, and it was now held by Captain Leonard Helm, who at
once capitulated. The British commander " dismissed his Indian allies to prowl upon the frontiers or return to their
homes, with the purpose in the early spring of re-assembling
them, with a largely increased force both from the north and
the south, and then, after re-establishing the British power in
Illinois, of marching to Fort Pitt, sweeping Kentucky" and
what is now West Virginia on the way, and thus completing
the conquest of the American settlements in the West.
Eastward, along the frontiers of Pennsylvania and Virginia,
and westwardly across the Ohio for a considerable distance in
the Indian country, throughout the year 1778, after the flight
of Girty, Elliott, and McKee to the British, there were stirring
events continually transpiring. General Hand at Fort Pitt
was succeeded by Brigadier-General Lachlan McIntosh. To
that post marched the Eighth Pennsylvania Regiment, commanded by Colonel Daniel Brodhead. Previous to this, that
portion of the Thirteenth Virginia remaining at Valley Forge
had been placed in marching orders for the same destination.
The residue of the regiment were already in the WVest. The
command of this body of men was given temporarily to Colonel
John Gibson, the same person who wrote down from the verbal
translation by Simon Girty, the famous " speech " of the
Mingo, Logan. Active measures against Detroit were now
concerted. A treaty with the Delaware Indians was held ill
September. These savages stipulated to join the troops of
the general government with such a number of their best and
most expert warriors as they could spare consistent with their
own safety. Just below the mouth of the Beaver, upon the
right bank of the Ohio, Fort McIntosh was erected. There,
as early as the 8th of October, the head-quarters of the army
was moved, where a large force of Continental troops and
87History of the Girtys.
militia, mostly from the western counties of Virginia, was assembled.*  A march was made into the wilderness, and Fort
Laurens erected on the west bank of the Tuscarawas river below the mouth of Sandy creek. A garrison under Colonel
Gibson of one hundred and fifty men, with scant supplies,
was left to guard the post, and General McIntosh returned
with the residue of his army to the fort at the mouth of
Beaver.t
Some time near the close of the year, Simon Girty received
from Lieutenant-Governor Hamilton orders to watch the
movements of the enemy near Fort Pitt. On the 6th of
January, 1779, with seventeen Indians, mostly Mingoes, he
proceeded from the upper Scioto on his mission. He had information of the building of Fort Laurens, and he started to
reconnoiter the post to gain what news he could from the capturing of any prisoners. He would also, if possible, take
some scalps, particularly Colonel Gibson's. He was, in this
instance, it must be said, engaged in legitimate warfare.
But the secret of Girty's movements became known to Killbuck, a Delaware chief. The Delaware at once informed Zeisberger, and the last named wrote immediately to Colonel Gibson in Fort Laurens: " Captain John Killbuck sent messengers here [one of the Moravian missionary establishments] requesting me to inform you of the following intelligence they
had to-day [January 19th] by two warriors who came to
Coshocton and were going to war but-were stopped [by the
Delawares]: They told that thirteen days ago two companies
of warriors, one of seven, the other of eighteen men (among
the latter is Simon Girty), were gone to Fort Laurens in order to get Colonel Gibson's scalp. Their scheme is to deceive you by carrying deet's tails on their heads and by that
means to get into the fort.". This carrying of deer's tails on
* It was much the largest army of white soldiers got together in the West,
either by the Americans or British, during the Revolution.
t Washingtoii-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 20-28.
+ Zeisberger to Gibson, January 19, 1779.-M-L1S. letter, Haldimand Papers.
88History of the Girtys.
their heads was the token used by the friendly Delawares to
find a speedy entrance to Gibson's quarters, which token the
enemy liad in some way found out.
The colonel does not seem to have been at all alarmed
about losing his scalp.  " Mr. Girty," he wrote Colonel Morgan, on the twenty-second, " has not yet made his appearance;
I hope, if he does, to prevent his taking my scalp." * And
thus he wrote General McIntosh at the same time: "I hope,
if Mr. Girty comes to pay a visit, I shall be able to trepan
him." t
Girty was, meanwhile, approaching Fort Laurens; and
on arriving in its immediate vicinity he took care not to discover himself and his savages to the garrison, but lay in ambush on the road leading to Fort McIntosh, watching an opportunity to strike an effective blow. He and his dusky followers had not long to wait, for Captain John Clark, of the
Eighth Pennsylvania Regiment, who had commanded an escort
of provisions from Fort Pitt to Colonel Gibson, reaching the
latter on the twenty-first, was seen returning with a sergeant
and fourteen men. About three miles from the post, they
were suddenly attacked by Girty and his Indians, suffering a
loss of two killed, four wounded, and one taken prisoner. The
remainder, including the captain, fought their way back into
the fort.  Letters written by Gibson (two of which have already been cited), containing information of importance, were
captured by Girty.t   The success of the latter in this attack was at once made known to the Fort Pitt commander,
who learned through advices from the Tuscarawas who it was
that commanded the savages in the ambuscade.~     This be(Gibson to Morgan, January 22, 1779.-MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
t Gibson to McIntosh, January 22, 1779.--MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
t Copies of these letters I have bef,re me. Compare, as to the amlbuscade, Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 31. The bravery displayed by
Clark, who was outnumbered by the enemy, shows he was on the alert.
} "I ami just informed that Capt. Clark, of the 8th Pennsylvania Regm't,
who was sent to command an Escort to Fort Laurens, as he was returning
with a Sergeant and 14 men, three miles this side of that fort, was attacked
89History of the Girtys.
coming known in the border settlements, tended to increase
the terror of Girty's name. He afterward boasted greatly
of this exploit of killing his own countrymen.
On the 29th of January, 1779, Clark heard the news of
Hamilton's occupation of Vincennes, and the condition of his
forces.  He saw that he must capture the lieutenant-governor,
or be taken by him; so, on the 7th of February, with a force
of one hundred and seventy-six men, he started for Vincennes,
and on the twenty-fifth the post was taken, and Hamilton
made prisoner.
From the vicinity of Fort Laurens, Girty hastened on his
way with his prisoner and captured correspondence, to Detroit, to turn them over to Captain Lernoult, then in command
there-Governor Hamilton being at that time, as we have
just shown, in the hands of the Americans. Girty also took
with him " strings" from the Mingoes, from  the Shawanese
and Sandusky Wyandots, and from a few Delawares who had
become allies of the British. He arrived on the 4th of February, giving the Detroit commandant full particulars, as he
had learned them, of the marching of McIntosh to the Tuscarawas in the previous fall; of the building, upon that river, of
Fort Laurens; and of the intentions of the American commander to move toward Detroit " the latter end of March." *
That Girty gave to Lernoult the particulars of his ambuscading the soldiers at the post just mentioned may be presumed.
Heckewelder wrote to Colonel Brodhead from Coshocton
that Girty had "gone to Detroit,... but seemed to be
very low-spirited."  This information the Moravian had obtained from some Indians. It would seem, therefore, that
Girty's heart was not yet fully steeled against his countrymen,
by Simon Girty and a party of Mingoes, who killed two of our men,
wounded four, and took one prisoner."--McIntosh to Colonel Lochry, January 29, 1779, in Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. VII, p. 173.
* Colonel Mason Bolton to General Hadlimand, March 24, 1779.-MS. letter, Haldimand Papers. This letter has been published. See Michigan
Pioneer Collections, Vol. IX, p. 427.
90History of the (Girtys.
notwithstanding his boasting concerning his success at Fort
Laurens. HIe had not yet become, as some have supposed, to
all intents and purposes a white savage" Whose vengeance shamed the Indians' thirst for blood;"
still, it is clear that his prestige among the Ohio Indians, was
increasing.
The letters of Colonel Gibson revealed to Girty that he was
particularly pointed out as one who, if captured, could expect
little mercy from that officer, causing at first a feeling of despondency, which was succeeded by vindictiveness against his
countrymen such as before had not possessed him. In his
maraud into Kentucky along with his brother James and
another white man, with a few Indians, he was acting under
the advice of Lieutenant-Governor Hamilton, he having been
persuaded, doubtless, that such expeditions were a necessity.
It is evident, from what he afterward told Kenton, that what
he had thus far done was under mental protest, to a certain
extent. Now, however, the letters of Gibson awakened his
animosity-the "rebels" were his personal enemies. It is
clear his feelings were undergoing a change; soon the "tiger
was unchained." His hatred of Gibson thenceforth was intense.
91History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XI.
The two warriors from Sandusky, who were stopped at Coshocton by the Delawares, and who communicated the intelligence as to Simon Girty marching with a party of Indians to
take Colonel Gibson's scalp at Fort Laurens, also gave information, which was promptly sent to the colonel, that the savages, about the 2d of March, 1779, intended, with a great number of warriors, to attack the fort; and they would get white
soldiers from Detroit to aid them if possible. At this very day,
declared the two warriors, they are assembling and mustering
at Sandusky and Detroit, to be ready at the appointed time.
This news was discouraging to Gibson, who had no doubt that
an expedition was on foot by the enemy against his post; but,
though short of supplies, he resolved to fight to the last. No
braver man than he commanded American soldiers during the
Revolution.
Upon the return of Girty to Detroit, after his success at
Fort Laurens, he declared that seven or eight hundred warriors intended to attack Fort Laurens, and that when he left
the Sandusky river, that number of Six Nation Indians (Mingoes), Shawanese, Wyandots, and Delawares, was assembled
at Upper Sandusky. While they had little expectation of
making any particular headway against the fortification itself,
they would drive off and destroy the cattle; and, if any of
the main army from Fort McIntosh attempted to go to the assistance of the garrison, they were resolved to attack them in
the night and to distress them as much as possible.
Girty not only asked of Captain Lernoult ammunition to be
given the Indians in their proposed expedition, but earnestly
solicited, on behalf of the savages, that an English captain
might be sent with them, "to see how they would behave."
92History of the Girtys.
Captain Henry Bird,* of the Eighth (or King's) regiment,
and ten soldiers, all volunteers and "anxious to go," were at
once dispa'tched to Upper Sandusky, along with Girty, to aid
the undertaking; several Ottawas and Chippewas also went
with them from Detroit. Captain Bird took with him a large
supply of ammunition and clothing to encourage the savages,
besides presents to the chief warriors.t
Upon arriving among the Wyandots, Captain Bird found them
not at all anxious to march at once against the Americans; for,
just then they wTere enjoying the immediate prospect of torturing a prisoner at the staka, to the exclusion, in their minds, of
all else. " The captain," for so the story runs, " on hearing this,
did all that was in his power to save the poor man, begging
and praying their head men to save his life, and frequently
offering four hundred dollars for him on the spot, and, indeed,
was about to offer one thousand dollars, but he found it all to
no purpose. He then went to the prisoner, told him he could
do nothing; that if he (the captain) was in his place he would
pick up a gun and defend himself as long as he could. But
the prisoner seemed pretty easy, and only told the Indians
that the time would come that they would pay dear for all
their murders. He was then taken away and murdered at a
most horrid rate."
Captain Bird " took the body [and] buried it, but they (the
Wyandots) digging it out again and sticking the head upon a
pole [the captain] had to bury it a second time. After all was
[over] the captain went up to them (they were all assembled)
and spoke to them in the following manner:'You damned
rascals, if it was in my power, as it is in the power of the
Americans, not one of you should live. Nothing would please
me more than to see such devils as you all are killed. You
cowards, is that all you can do, to kill a poor, innocent pris* In many histories relating to the West, this officer's name is erroneously
spelled "Byrd."
t Bolton to Haldimand, March 24,1779, already cited. Captain Lernoult
declared that he did every thing in his power to encourage the Indians,
showing that Girty's solicitations were eminently successful.
93History of the Girtys.
oner? You dare not show your faces where an army is; but
there [here] you are busy [brave?] when you have nothing to
fear. Get away from me; never will I have nothing [any
thing more] to do with you.' " *  After this defiant and denunciatory speech, the irate but humane captain, it may be
presumed, did not treat his Wyandot allies with much respect,
for a time at least.
About the 22d of February, one hundred and twenty savages, mostly Wyandots and Mingoes, but all under Captain
Bird (who, it seems, had conquered his disgust for the former),
reached the Tuscarawas from the Sandusky and lay in ambush
near Fort Laurens. Lukewarmness on part of the Wyandots
toward the British operated to keep back much the larger
number of warriors of that tribe living upon the Sandusky
from going upon this expedition. The Mingoes (all Senecas)
who marched with Bird were under the immediate lead of
Girty, and were far more vindictive at this time against the
Americans than were the Wyandots.     Captain Bird, it should
be borne in mind, was an officer in the British army, and was
on the campaign as a volunteer from his regiment, the Eighth
(or King's).
On the twenty-third, Colonel Gibson, in command of Fort
Laurens, unwisely (for he had knowledge, as we have seen,
that the enemy contemplated a movement against him) sent
out a wagoner for the horses belonging to the post, to draw
wood. With him went a guard of eighteen men.      The party
were fired upon and all killed and scalped in sight of the fort,
except two, who were made prisoners.    The whole besieging
force then showed themselves, and Fort Laurens was com-* Heckewelder to Colonel Brodheaa, from Coshocton, June 30, 1779, in
Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. VII, pp. 524, 525. It has often
been said, and the tradition has found its way into print (see An Historical
Account of the Expedition against Sandusky under Col. William Crawford, in 1782, p. 164), that the Wyandots did not torture their prisoners at
the stake, as was frequently done by other tribes (compare, also, Magazine
of American History, Vol. XV, p. 265); but 1 have since seen an abundance of both published and unpublished evidence to the contrary, of the
most authentic character.
94History of the Girtys.
pletely invested. The siege was continued until the garrison
was reduced to the verge of starvation; a quarter of a pound
of sour flour and an equal weight of spoiled meat constituting
a daily ration for each; but the assailants themselves, about
the 20th of March, ran short of supplies, and, because of this,
and treachery on part of the Wyandots, returned home.*
The siege (although a failure), considering that the fort was
a regularly built fortification, planned by an engineer of the
regular army of the United States, and garrisoned by regular
troops, and considering, also, the persistency of the besiegers,
nearly all of whom were savages, and who closely invested the
post for twenty-five days, was the most notable of any in the
West during the Revolution.
Soon after the return of Bird to Upper Sandusky, what he
believed was a well-authenticated report reached him that a
party of Delawares, stimulated by a reward of eight hundred
dollars offered by the Americans for Girty's scalp, did
actually go in pursuit of the renegade, expecting to find
him marching homeward from the siege of Fort Laurens with
his Mingoes along with that officer; but, discovering he was
not in the company of the latter, went off without any hostile demonstration against the captain's command. Thereupon,
Girty went with " his Senecas [Mingoes] in quest" of the Delaware warriors, but it is probable he did not find them. "Girty,
I assure you, sir," says Bird, in writing to Captain Lernoult
of the circumstance just narrated, " is one of the most useful, disinterested friends in his department that the government has." tGeneral McIntosh, in April, was relieved, at his own request, of the command of the Western Department, being succeeded by Colonel Brodhead, all thoughts of moving against
the Indians upon the Sandusky, and going thence to Detroit,
having been abandoned by him.
*e See, as to most of these facts, Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp.
31, 32; also, pp. 32-38 of the same work, for further particulars as to Fort
Laurens and its final abandonment.
t Bird to Lernoult, -, 1779.-MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
95Contents.
Girty leads an Indian force against Dunlap's Station............   251
Shocking torture of Abner Hunt.........................................   252
The siege of Dunlap's Station raised........................ 254
The U. S. endeavor to treat with the hostile savages.............. 256
CHAPTER XXVI.
" Moravian" Indians paid in rum, by Simon Girty, for labor... 259
Gen. Arthur St. Clair marches against the Miami towns......... 260
St. Clair's army defeated................................................... 62
Girty fights bravely in the battle........................................  263
He recognizes Gen. Richard Butler on the battle-field............ 263
He captures a white woman................................................ 264
Girty and a party of Indians attack Fort Jefferson............... 265
A grand council of Indians to be held at " The Glaize........... 266
Young Spencer captured.................................................. 267
CH APTER XXV II.
Simon Girty the only white man in the "Grand Council"...... 274
An armistice determined upon by the Indians................... 274
The U. S. attempt to treat with the savages.......................... 275
Commissioners reach the Detroit river................................. 276
Negotiations with the savages fail....................................... 278
Gen. Wayne immediately moves toward the Maumee............ 278
Quakers hold a meeting at Simon Girty's home..................... 279
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Simon Girty is very active as interpreter.............................. 281
He is seen by Jacob Lewis in Detroit................................... 281
Savages under Little Turtle attack Fort Recovery.................  283
The enemy repulsed......................................................... 283
Girty fights bravely in the attack......................................... 283
Battle of the "Fallen Timber"............................................. 9285
Wayne's victory complete................................................... 286
A vain attempt by the British to induce the savages to continue the war................................................................ 287
Proposals for peace made by the lndians to Wayne............... 288
CHAPTER XXIX.
James Girty marries Betsy, a Shawanese women................... 289
Locates as a trader at St. Mary's......................................... 289
Removes to the "Grand Glaize......................................... 290
Young Spencer is frightened by him................................ 292
Girty, with his family, in 1794, removes to Canada................. 292
George Girty gives himself up wholly to an Indian life...........293
Meets young John Brickell............................................... 293
CHAPTER XXX.
Simon Girty, McKee, and Brant endeavor to prevent peace.... 296
xiHistory of the Girtys.
After the siege of Fort Laurens, Simon Girty busied himself in the Mingo country. attentive to the behests of Captain
Lernoult. On the 28th of May, Heckewelder, at Coshocton,
wrote Brodhead: "Simon Girty acts wickedly, and does all
he can against you." *  His remorse for joining the enemies
of his country was rapidly wearing off.
Colonel John Bowman, in the month last mentioned, collected a small army in Kentucky, to attack Chillicothe, the
Shawanese town (before spoken of as " Old Chillicothe," in
connection with the capture of Simon Kenton), about three
miles north of the present Xenia, Ohio. With two hundred
and sixty-two men, early in the morning of the thirtieth, he
encompassed the village and set fire to it. His success was only
partial, the council-house of the enemy defying the assaults of
th, Kentuckians. After killing several savages, and securing
considerable plunder, the expedition returned with slight loss,
proving by no means a failure, although not as much had been
accomplished as had been expected.t A report, which, however, was erroneous, reached the ears of Bowman during the
attack, that Simon Girty and a hundred Mingoes were at
Piqua (the Shawanese town already mentioned as on Mad
river, not a great distance away), and that they had been sent
for. This, it has been' alleged, without any authority, caused
the Americans to retreat.
After the return of Captain Bird to the Sandusky from the
siege of Fort Laurens, another incursion was planned by him
against the same post.'
"After much running about," said he, in writing from Upper Sandusky, on the 9th of June, " and making some presents
to chiefs, we had collected at Mingo town [on the upper waters
of the Scioto] near two hundred savages, chiefly Shawanese,
* Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. VII, p. 516.
t The Washington-Crawford Letters, p. 71, note 2. See also, for further
particulars, Collins's History of Kentucky, Vot. II, p. 425. Accounts of
this expedition, more or less accurate, are likewise to be found in many
Western histories. But the actual date of the attack on Chillicothe was first
published in the Washington-Crawford Letters, just cited.: McKee to Lernoult, May 26, 1779.--MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
96History of the Girtys.
when lo! a runner arrived with accounts of the Shawanese
towns being attacked by a body from Kentucky." This was
the expedition of Bowman.      "News flew," continues Bird,
"that all the towns were to be attacked; and* our little body
separated in an instant, past reassembling."      "Girty," he
adds, "is flying about." *    So, as we have said, the report
that Simon Girty, with a hundred Mingoes, was at Piqua when
Bowman attacked Chillicothe, and had been sent for, was a
false one, although the gathering of the two hundred savages
by Bird at the Mingo village may have been the inspiring
cause of it.
Toward the end of June, Simon Girty, with seven Mlingoes,
reached Coshocton, on his way to one of the settlements near
Fort Pitt, where he had been advised there was a bundle of
letters hid in a hollow tree, which it was important to obtain.t No sooner, however, had he got to the Delaware town
than a messenger was dispatched to Colonel Brodhead by
the friendly Delawares informing him of Girty's arrival, and
that it was his intention, after securing the letters he was to
go in search of, to make a raid into the settlements near
Holiday's Cove, in what is now West Virginia.       Thereupon,
the American commander dispatched Captain Samuel Brady
* Bird to Lernoult--MS. letter: Haldimand Papers. This letter has recently been published (see The Winning of the West,Vol. II., pp. 397, 398). In
it will be found a brief account brought to Bird by the Indians of Bowman's
attack on Chillicothe. Roosevelt declares, without, so far as I can discover,
a shadow of authority, that Bird, in gathering "two hundred Indians at
the Mingo town," intended to march, not toward the Tuscarawas, but against
Kentulcky. He then reasons that, because, on hearing of Bowman's expedition, " the Indians dissolved in a panic," therefore, although a defeat, "the
expedition was of great service to Kentticky, though the Kentuckians never
knew it," as it kept Bird away.
t "I should think at a very proper thing for you to keep two Delaware
men as spies at the mouth of Gajahoga [Cuyahoga] river, who might hunt
there without being discovered. I further inform you that Simon Girty,
with eight Mingoes, is gone to the inhabitants [American settlements eastward] to fetch a packet of letters out of a hollow tree, I understand, somewhere about Fort Pitt."-Heckewelder to Brodhead, June 29, 1779, from
4Loshocton.
7
97History of the Girtys.
and John Montour with a party of men from Fort Pitt to endeavor, if possible, to capture the renegade and his Mingoes; *
but they were unsuccessful.
Girty reached Coshocton on his return, with one prisoner,
early in July, he having also secured the letters he was so
anxious to get. This was his first raid across the Ohio to the
eastward-the first time he had ventured with a war-party
east of the Tuscarawas river.' It was this foray and the ambuscading of Captain Clark at Fort Laurens, every-where quickly
heard of upon the frontiers of South-western Pennsylvania
and North-western Virginia, that made his name a household
word of terror thenceforth all along the border from Kittanning to Louisville. There was no longer any question in the
minds of the borderers as to his actual presence, frequently,
with tomahawk and scalping-knife, killing the inoffensive inhabitants regardless of age or sex. This belief was, of course,
as to the frequency of Girty's visits, greatly an exaggeration
of the facts; that he himself ever killed women and children
as did the Indians with-whom he associated on his raids and
whom he frequently led, has not been positively proven, although there can, seemingly, be no doubt that such was the
fact. He could not ask the savages to do what he himself
would hesitate about doing. In the minds of the Indians, it
would be arrant cowardice.
Accidentally, while Girty was returning to Coshocton, he
and his party met David Zeisberger, the MIoravian mnissionary, who was on his way from   a small "Moravian" Indian
village called Lichtenau to another missionary station some
distance above.  "Mr. Zeisberger," wrote Heckewelder to
Brodhead, a few days after, from Coshocton, "who had been
here to see us, and who, on his way home, met with those fel" Captain Brady and John Montour, with a party of men, are gone to
bring in Simon Girty and seven Mingoes, who are come toward Holliday's
Cove, and an express is dispatched by the Delaware chiefs [who were then
at Pittsburgh] to order the Delawares of Coochoching [Coshocton] to seize
Girty and his party should he return there; and they are to be brought to
me."-Brodhead to Bayard, from Pittsburgh, July 1, 1779, in Pennsylvania
Archives, Old Series, Vol. XII, p. 134.
98History of the Girtys.
lows, had certainly been. killed by them if not accidentally
Caleb and some more of the Delawares had met together.
He [Girty] expressed himself here with great dissatisfaction
concerning the disappointment, and wished us all in his power."*
Now, this expression of disappointment at not being able to'
kill Zeisberger, and his wishing the missionaries all in his
power, was, on'the part of Girty, if actually indulged in, all
bluster; he was the last person who would have harmed the
Moravian. He knew too well what effect such a proceeding
would have at Detroit. The fear and easy credulity of Heckewelder made it, however, seem certain to the latter that the
renegade only needed an opportunity, and that then his
threats would certainly be carried into execution.
A hostile demonstration on part of Girty and his Mingoes
at their meeting, Zeisberger and " Caleb and some more of
the Delawares," was only what would naturally occur at the
moment of discovery and until there was a recognition as to
who constituted the party. It was enough, however, to convince Heckewelder, when he learned what had taken place,
that Zeisberger "had certainly been killed" but for the
presence accidently of his protectors. And the expressions
and wishes of Girty made, in his mind, "assurance doubly
sure," that his Moravian companion had had a very narrow
escape.
Girty, it will be remembered, could neither read nor write;
and he was desirous, on reaching Coshocton, on his way back
from his maraud into the settlements across the-Ohio, to have
Alexander 5lcCormick, who was in the Delaware village at
the time of his reaching there when moving eastward, to explain the contents of the letters he had secured; but McCormick, whose head-quarters were at Upper Sandusky, had
started for that place before Girty's return. There was, however, in Coshocton, besides Ileckewelder, an American named
Richard Connor; but, of course, he was not asked, nor was
the Moravian, to read what the renegade was so anxious to
* Heckewelder to Brodhead, July 8, 1779, from Coshocton, in Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. VII, pp. 541, 542.
99100               History of the Girtys.
hear. Girty " told Mr. Connor," wrote Heckewelder to Brodhead, "to tell his brethren, the Americans, that he did not
desire they should show him any favor, neither (said he)
would he show them any." Had it not been for Big Cat, one'of the Delaware chiefs, Girty would have been detained by
force in Coshocton, and sent to Fort Pitt, so Heckewelder
declares.*  And this is doubtless true; as the majority of
the Delawares were still friendly to the Americans, and Brodhead had sent, as we have seen, some of their chiefs (who
were at Fort Pitt) on purpose to have him seized should he
return to Coshocton, and brought to Pittsburgh.
Colonel Brodhead was kept by Heckewelder, at this period,
fully advised of Girty's movements, so far as the Moravian
had any knowledge of them, either personally or by what he
learned from others. Notwithstanding this fact, he wrote,
many years after, as follows:
"News being brought to Goschochking [Coshocton] that
the governor of Detroit [Henry Hamilton], who, a short time
before, had gone with troops to Port [Post] Vincennes, and
was there, together with his officers, taken prisoners by an
American army under General Clarke [Colonel George Rogers
Clark], and by him taken to Virginia, the peaceable Indians,
and the missionaries, entertained a hope that the threats,
so repeatedly circulated through the country, and attributed
to this governor, would forthwith be at end. They, however,
found themselves mistaken, as it now became more evident
that much had been laid to the charge of this gentleman, of
which he probably hdd no knowledge, but which had been the
work of McKee, Elliott, and [Simon] Girty. These three
men, whose hostility to the United States appeared to be unbounded, were continually plotting the destruction of the
Christian [' Moravian'] Indians' settlements, as the only means
of drawing the Delaware nation, and with these, the Christian
Indians, into the war. The missionaries, in particular, were
as a thorn in their eyes, being considered not only as the cause
that the Delaware nation would not join in the war, but they
* Ieckewelder to Biodhead, July 8, 1779, already cited.History of the G irtys.
also mistrusted them of informing the American government
of the part they [McKee, Elliott, and Simon Girty] were acting in the Indian country.*
The expedition of Girty from the upper Scioto, to secure
the letters which had been left by some unfriendly American
for British perusal, was declared by Heckewelder, over forty
years after, to have been for the purpose of taking " off the
missionary, Zeisberger, or to bring in his scalp." This Moravian author, after the lapse of so many years, had forgotten
that, no sooner had the renegade gone from Coshocton, on his
way eastWyard, than he wrote to the Fort Pitt commandant,
giving the reason for his (Girty's) going into one of the settlements near that post, leaving it to be inferred by Brodhead
that what was thus mentioned was the object of the renegade
coming to Coshocton, and of his going further on.t
"At the very time," says Heckewelder, in contradiction of
this letter to Brodhead, " th.at the governor [Henry Hamilton]
was a prisoner of General Clarke [Colonel George Rogers
Clark], a plot was laid at Sandusky to take off the missionary,
Zeisberger, or to bring in his scalp; and Simon Girty had engaged to lead the party on for the purpose. Fortunately,
there lived, at the time, at Ipper Sandusky, a trader, by the
name of Alexander McCormick, well known to the missionaries for many years past as a friend and admirer of missions
among the Indians, who, on learning the intention of this
party, found means to inform the writer of this, who lived at
Lichtenau, of the plot, and at which place, as it had happened, this very missionary, at the time, had come on a visit
from Shonbrun, which, the spies of the hostile party discovering, they, to insure his capture, waylaid the path on which
" Heckewelder's Narrative, pp. 203, 204. It was exactly what Heckewelder himself did do-inform the American government of the part "they
[McKee, Elliott, and Girty] were acting in the Indian country." That
this trio were "continually plotting thb destruction of the Christian Indians' settlements, as the only means of drawing the Delaware nation, and
with these the Christian Indians, into the war," or that they were so doing
for any other purpose, is wholly untrue.
t Heckewelder to Brodhead, June 29, 1779, from Coshocton, before cited.
101History   of the Girtys.
Zeisberger must return. Two spirited Indian brethren, of
whom Isaac Glickhican was one, were selected to conduct the
missionary home by way of Gnadenhutten, with directions,
however, to strengthen the guard at that place, should it be
thought necessary. They left Lichtenau, when, having scarcely
proceeded nine miles on the journey, all of a sudden the hostile party, consisting of eight Mingoes (of the Six Nations),
and Simon Girty, the person who was to point out to them the
object they were come for, appeared before them on the path.
At this critical moment, and while Girty was uttering to the
captain of the gang the words, " This is the very man we are
come for; now act agreeable to the promise you have made! "
two young Delawares, on their return from a hunt, accidently,
and very fortunately, struck from out of the woods exactly
on the path where these were standing, and concluding, from
the words spoken by Girty, as also by the appearance of the
party, that something bad was intended against the missionary, they boldly stepped forward, with their arms in readiness,
to defend him, at the risk of their own lives; which, the captain observing, and justly concluding that the two other Delawares, who accompanied the missionary, would join these
against them, were they to make the attempt, he, by a signal
prudently given, declined laying hands on him." *
That Mr. McCormick sent Heckewelder word that some
kind of a plot had been laid at Upper Sandusky to take off
or kill Zeisberger, is doubtless true; but that he did not mention Girty as in any way connected with it, or as having
been deputed to carry it out, is evident.   In his letter to
Brodhead, written at the very time that Girty first reached
H Heckewelder's Narrative, pp. 204, 205. Compare, in this connection,
ahd in nearly the same strain, Heckewelder's Indian Nations (Richel's edition), p. 279. The discrepancy between this account and that given in his
letter, written over forty years before, will be noticed. It would have been,
forsooth, an act of great bravery far Girty and his seven Mingoes, who had
come all the way from the head of the Scioto for the etxpress purpose of killing or capturing Zeisberger, now that the person they were looking for was
before them and unarmed, to have been deterred-frightened back, as it
were-by four Delawares I
102History   of the Girtys.
Coshocton, the Moravian not only does not say a word about
any plot, but, as we have seen, gives another and the real reason for his (Girty's) advent to the Delaware town. After
many years, in turning the matter over in his mind, it was
enough for him that Girty had met Zeisberger on his way
back with his bundle of letters and one prisoner, and had made
a threatening demonstration on the occasion, to connect him
with the plot.
A recent Moravian writer gives some additions to Heckewelder's recollections, just related, citing "Heckewelder's MS.
Biographical Sketch: "
" Zeisberger passed much of his time [at this period] in visiting the other stations, especially at communion seasons. In
the early part of July [1779], he spent such a season at Lichtenau, and was about to return to Schinbrunn, when Alexander McCormick, a trader and friend of the mission, arrived
with evil tidings. McKee, Elliott, and Girty, he said, were
still plotting Zeisberger's ruin; a party of Indians, led by
Girtv himself, was on his trail, with orders either to bring
him alive to Detroit, or to shoot him down and take his scalp.
It was a most timely warning, to which, however, he listened
unmoved, and mounted his horse to go.
"A short distance from Lichtenau, the trail forked, one
branch leading to a salt-lick about two miles distant. Down
the branch he turned, lost in meditation, and did not perceive
his mistake until he had advanced a considerable distance.
Retracing his steps, he got to the fork just as his escort came
up. If he had not missed the road they would not have overtaken him, and he would have been at the mercy of his enemies. For suddenly, at the foot of a little hill, Simon Girty
and his band stood before them.'That's the man!' cried
Girty to the Indian captain, pointing out Zeisberger.'Now
do what you have been told to do.' But in that instant there
burst through the bushes two athletic young hunters of Goschachgiink [Coshocton]. Divining at a glance the posture of
affairs, they placed themselves in front of Zeisberger, drew
their tomahawks, and began deliberately to load their rifles.
103History of the Girths.
As soon as the Wyandot captain saw this, and moreover recognized among Zeisberger's escort the great Glikkikan, he shook
his head, motioned to his men, and disappeared with theni in
the forest.  Girty followed him, gnashing his teeth in impotent
rage." *
It is thus we find set forth, finally, Heckewelder's relation
of the meeting of Simon Girty and Zeisberger.   Now, McCormick goes himself to Lichtenau. Now, Girty is "' ordered to
bring him [Zeisberger] alive to Detroit, or to shoot him down
and take his scalp."  Now, it is a Wyandot (not a Mingo) captain that Girty addresses. Now, instead of saying to him,
" act agreeable to the promise you have made," Girty orders
him to do what he had "been told to do."     Then the " two
athletic young hunters" begin " deliberately to load their
rifles."  This and the "great Glikkikan" were too much for
the "Wyandot captain!"       He disappears "in the forest,"
followed by Girty, "gnashing his teeth in impotent rage!" t
It is not known what became of the prisoner captured by
Girty, but it is probable that he was tortured at the stake by
the Mingoes, after the return of the renegade and his warriors to
the Mingo villages.}  The letters which Girty had secured were
taken by him to Detroit and delivered to Captain Lernoult.
NoTE.-Hecekewelder's letters to Brodhead, mentioning.the
name of Girty frequently, led to the conclusion that he was
already a leading spirit in the Ohio wilderness for evil toward
the Americans, and of course he was in the border settlements
every-where denounced. Girty heard of this general denunciation. " They can do their best against me and I will against
them," were his words, in effect.
* Schweinitz' Life and Times of David Zeisberger, pp. 473-475.
t Relying upon what Sehweinitz says in his work just cited as to Girty's
meeting Zeisberger, I have, in a previous account of the renegade, given
credence to Hecke.welder's fiction as related above (see pp. 189, 190, of An
Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, etc.)
t i' Simon Girty is for the Mingo country as soon as he returns [from his
search, not after Zeisberger, but after the'packet of letters']"-Heckewelder
to Brodhead, June 30, 1779, in Pennsylvaniat Archivea, Old Series, Vol. VII.,
p. 524.
104History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XII.
That George Girty was not in the wilderness beyond the
Ohio at the beginning of 1778, has previously been explained,
so, also, his having been, on the 12th of February, of that
year, commissioned a second lieutenant in Captain James
Willing's company of marines, in the Continental army. He
remained with his company until the 4th day of May, 1779,
when he deserted his colors,* making his way subsequently to
Detroit. His arrival was noted by some one who wrote out
a statement of his experiences after leaving Fort Pitt in the
early part of the previous year, doubtless for the Detroit commandant's perusal. But the account erroneously explains (as
might be expected) how he became a member of Willing's
company, and why he accepted a commission from that
officer:
"August 8th [1779].-Arrived [at Detroit] George Girty, a
person whom a Mr. McKee had employed at the commencement of the present war and sent with a gentleman in the
king's service going down the Mississippi, to prevent his entering into the service of the Americans-they having made
frequent application to him, being an active woodsman and
well acquainted with several of the Indian languages.
" He was taken and robbed on the Mississippi by a James
Willing, captain of a boat sent down the Ohio by Congress to
plunder the merchants and inhabitants of that country, which
he did, without distinction. And as Girty was carried to
Orleans a prisoner by him, and threatened with being sent to
the mines, he acquiesced to a proposal of the said Willing to
appoint him an ensign [second lieutenant] in the American
service, in hopes of getting up to the Illinois, whence he could
make his escape to Detroit, where, he had been informed, he
* Potter's American Monthly, Vol. VII., p. 388.
105Contents.
John Jay concludes a treaty with Great Britain....................  297
The UJ. S. and the Western Indians treat at Greenville.......... 298
T'he Indian XWar ended.........                    298
Possession obtained of the Western posts............................ 299
The treaty of Greenville a "bitter pill" for Simon Girty and
MIcKee..................................................  300
Girty swims his hor-e across the Detroit river...................... 300
Girty's banter to an Indian................................................ 301
CHAPTER XXXI.
Girty, at his home, continues as interpreter for Britain........... 304
Sketch of Prideaux, Simon's last chilt................................. 304
Simon gets a grant of land from the Crown.......................... 305
He separates from his wife............................................. 306
Marriage of his three eldest children...................................  307
Deeds half his land to his son Tholllas................................. 307
Went to Detroit when it capitulated to the British................ 308
He goes to the Mohawks to be out of danger........................ 309
The property of MIatthew Elliott destroyed by the Americans.. 310
CHAPTER XXXII.
Death of Thomas, son of Simon Girty................................. 315
George Girty marries and dies among the Delawares.............. 3]5
James Girty returns to the Maumee to trade........................ 316
Granted land in Gosfield, Essex county, Canada.................... 316
Death of his wife.............................................................. 316
Gives up his business on the Maumee................................. 317
Dies in Gosfield, on his farmr, in 1817.................................... 318
His character................................................................. 318
CHAPTER XXXIII.
Simon Girty returns home totally blind............................... 320
His wife lives with him again............................................. 321
His death and burial....................................................... 322
His personal appearance described...................................... 323
His ill-will toward the Americans........................................ 324
His general character......................................................... 324
Ele was never a vagabond................................................... 327
CHAPTER XXXIV.
Thiomas Girty moves from Pittsburgh.................................. 331
Dies on "Girty's Run," across the Alleghany.................. 331
He was never an "Indian hunter"....................................332
Death of John Turner at "Squirrel Htill"............................ 332
Bequests in his will........................................................... 333
Turner described in the Pittsburgh Daily Gazette.................. 333
Death of Mrs. Catharine Malott Girty.............................. 333
xiiHistory   of the Girtys.
would find Mr. McKee and his [Girty's] brothers. He had
neither taken the oaths nor acted in an official capacity, when
a party of British soldiers were brought prisoners to the Illinois (soon after his arrival there), to some of whom he made
known his intentions, and offered to conduct them safely to
Detroit, which sixteen of them agreed to; but one entering
an information and making oath against him, he was seized,
put into irons, and closely confined; but soon after found means
to effect his escape to the Spanish side of the Mississippi, and
there collected five soldiers of the King's (or 8th) regiment,
three deserters from the Americans, and one man of Governor
Hamilton's volunteer company, all of whom he has brought to
this place [Detroit], having set out the 19th of June last from
the Illinois.
"He says that, upon his arrival at the Spanish garrison [in
St. Louis], the commandant ordered him into confinement, but
next morning, after some inquiry, released him, informing him
that it was not his intention to interfere with or molest any person from either side, unless for murder or some capital offense
against civil society, and that it was his desire to remain in
tranquillity and treat all well who behave as becometh them.
"The rebels, he says, were preparing to carry on an expedition against Detroit, but that their credit was hurt by their
bills being returned protested from New Orleans, and the only
recourse left them was to purchase provisions and pack-horses
with the merchandise taken from Governor Hamilton, as the
Canadians were concealing their property, rather than dispose
of it for Continental currency; and that the number of Virginians that could be raised to come this way [towards Detroit] from that quarter would not exceed two hundred, and
perhaps two hundred and fifty or three hundred Canadians,
the whole to make five hundred men, destitute of almost every
necessary requisite for such an undertaking; the field-piece
taken at Vincennes being the only one fit for such a service in
their possession.
4"As they fell upon the Wabash near the Vermillion town,
they were informed by the Indians of that village that a
106History of the Girtys.
Colonel Clark, the rebel commandant at the Illinois, was on
his way against Detroit, but that, notwithstanding, the Indians treated him [Girty] kindly, and furnished him and his
companions with provisions to carry them on their journey.
They pushed up the Wabash, and met on their way seven
Frenchmen, driving fifteen or twenty empty pack-horses
towards the enemy, which appeared designed for their [the
enemy's] use, and induced Girty to seize a Frenchman, whom he
looked upon to be the principal person of their party, in order to
bring him to Detroit, to account to the commanding officer for
his conduct; but they were overtaken at a Miamis village
upon Eel river by a party of Weatanon Indians, under the influence of one Gamblier, a French trader, who, with the assistance of some other Frenchman, robbed them of their arms,
released their prisoner, and endeavored to persuade the Indians to take them back and deliver them into the hands of
the enemy.
"The chiefs of the village, being made acquainted with the
design, assembled and made a speech to the following effect:' That the road leading to Detroit had been opened and made
clear by the mutual consent of their father, who sat at that
place, and his children, the chiefs and wise men of all nations.
That it behooved them to keep it so, for, by it, all their wants
were supplied, and they would not allow foolish young men,
instigated by ill-disposed Frenchmen, to disturb it. Therefore, the subjects of their father, the king of Great Britain,
must travel it in peace; and they recommended it to them to
keep the straight road forward, as it never yet was sprinkled
with blood. No nation would be so hardy as to molest them;
and as to the Virginians, they had nothing to expect from
them; they were unable to supply their own wants; therefore,
they had nothing to spare to Indians.' "*
"George Girty," wrote Mason Bolton to General Haldimand, from Niagara, on the twenty-seventh of August, "arrived at Detroit on the ninth [eighth] instant, with four
soldiers of the king's regiment (who were taken with Gov* MS. account, Haldimand Papers.
107History of the Girtys.
ernor Hamilton), three Virginia deserters and Captain La
Mothe's fifer.* George was at once engaged by Captain
Lernoult, in the Indian Department as interpreter (also to go
to war when necessary), and sent to the Shawanese, with
head-quarters at Wapatomica, at the same wages paid his two
brothers, namely: sixteen shillings, York currency, a day.t
It was also the same pay as was then received by Matthew
Elliott, Pierre Drouillard, William Tucker, Robert Surphlit
(McKee's cousin), and Fontenoy Dequindre-all engaged in
the Indian Department. He (George) began his inglorious
career against his country as well equipped as his brothers
Simon and James; for he was not only allowed one and onehalf rations a day, but was furnished with a gun, three horses,
and a saddle and bridle.
George acted also as disbursing agent at the Shawanese
towns, dealing out supplies to the Shawanese. A cotemporaneous statement, as to himself and others, of goods thus
furnished the Indians, is extant:
~.   s. d.
"Charles Beaubien furnished goods to Indians at Miami Town...................  1603  8  0
Matthew Elliott, in Indian country.....  47  6  9
Captain McKee,       "...... 835   5  6
George Girty,        ".....  75 17   0"
A charge "to George Girty " at this period is also in existence:
Bucks.
"To salt at Shawanese towns..................... 4
To 116 pounds flour......................4.. 14
To 1 bag with  do..............................  2
To tobacco.......3.......................3
23"
* MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
"I wish your excellency could allow Mr. [Duperron] Baby, the now
Acting Indian Commissary, solnething more than the common and low-lived
interpreters-who all have, like he, two dollars per day."-Brehm to Gen108History   of the Girtys.
Deer skins then were worth about a dollar each. These skins
all through the Indian country, previous to and during the
Revolution, passed as money (under the names of "bucks"
and " does ") instead of sterling and York currency.*
After delivering to Captain Lernoult, at Detroit, the
"packet of letters" he had secured in one of the border settlements to the eastward, Simon Girty returned to ~the Ohio
wilderness. A plan had been laid by the Detroit commander
for him again to march to the Tuscarawas to learn. the true
state of affairs at Fort Iaurens. At Sandusky, Girty wrote
Lernoult that there were " no certain accounts of the rebels
leaving Tuscarawas [Fort Laurens]."'I intend," he adds,
"to go there directly, and shall send you the token you gave
me at Detroit, if they are not there. If the Delawares are in
possession of the fort, I intend to turn them out-and burn it
(if my party is able), as you gave me the liberty to act as I
thought best; and they and I are not on the best of terms." t
But the post had then been abandoned by the Americans for
about a month; and, as the fortification was not afterward
burned, it would seem that Girty did not march thither as he
had contemplated. Indeed, he soon went in quite another
direction, as will presently be seen.
In September, James Girty, who had spent a large portion
of the previous twelve months with the Shawanese, was at
Detroit, where Captain Lernoult needed his services; as that
officer was ju'st then greatly excited over the prospective visit
from the Americans led by George Rogers Clark. "As I can
not," wrote the Captain, "spare a soldier now (our numbers
are reduced), I intend to send one James Girty to the Shawanese towns to endeavor to raise a party to reconnoitre toward
the Weas, and to communicate this news [the visit of Clark]
to all the Indians in our interest to harass the enemy should
eral Haldimand, from Detroit, July 5, 1779, in Michigan Pioneer Collections,
Vol. IX, p. 418.
* Address of Charles I. Walker before the State Historical Society of
Wisconsin, January 31, 1871, pp. 28, 30, 41. -
t Girty to Lernoult, September 6, 1779.--MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
109History of the Girtys.
they advance further." *  But Clark's endeavors proved
abortive and James Girty's efforts were for naught. The latter remained at Wapatomica.
In June, 1778, David Rogers, who, on the 14th of January
preceding, had been selected by Virginia to proceed to New
Orleans to purchase supplies for the use of the troops of
that state, raised a party of about thirty men in the region
of what is now Brownsville, Fayette county, Pennsylvania, and,
in keel-boats, floated down the Ohio and Mississippi. He did
not reach New Orleans until after considerable trouble and
delay. When he arrived, he found he would have to return to St. Louis, to obtain the goods, for which he was given
an order. From the latter place, in the autumn of 1779, he
made his way up the Ohio to the Falls, where he was reinforced. On the 27th of September, with about seventy men,
he continued up the river to a point above the mouth of the
Licking, but about three miles below that of the Little Miami,
when, on the 4th of October, he discovered Indians. Rogers
made a disposition of his men upon the Kentucky side of the
Ohio to surprise the enemy, consisting of Senecas (Mingoes),
Wyandots, Delawares, and Shawanese, under the general direction of Simon Girty, his brother George, and Matthew Elliott, who had reached the Ohio river the evening before.
Their force was nearly a hundred strong, but over half were
out hunting. However, they had discovered Rogers, and they
acted quickly, with the result of killing not less than forty-two
of his party (Rogers among the number, shot by Simon Girty
probably) and making five of his men prisoners. The loss of
the Indians was two killed and three slightly wounded. Forty
bales of dry goods, a quantity of rum and fusees, together with
a " chest of hard specie," fell into the hands of the victors.t
"I... have the pleasure," wrote DePeyster to Jial*Lernoult to Bolton, September 25, 1779.--MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
t Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 44, 45, and the authorities there
cited. Elliott to Captain Lernoult (Official Report), from the Shawanese
towns, October 11, 1779-MS. letter; also,.John Campbell to same, October
23, 1779-MS. letter; both friom the Haldimand Papers.
110History   of the Girtys.
dimand, "to acquaint you that          Simon Girty, his
brother [George], and Matthew  Elliott, have defeated a
Colonel Rogers on the Ohio, a stroke which must greatly disconcert the rebels at Pittsburgh."  This success increased'
the prestige of the three white leaders in a marked degree
throughout the Indian country and at Detroit.
After their successful attack on Rogers and his party, both
the Girtys and Elliott-" myself and the two Girtys," as the
last-named wrote to Lernoult-proceeded to Detroit. Simon
subsequently returned to the Mingoes, George to the Shawanese.
Although Simon and James Girty had been outlawed and
were traitors, and George was a deserter, they were looked
upon by the British in quite a different light. To the latter
they were only escaped borderers, who were anxious to make
their peace with "his majesty;" and it was now sufficiently
evident to the Detroit commandant that all three could be relied upon under any circumstances as faithful adherents to the
crown.
If we turn our eyes to the upper lakes during the summer of
1779, we shall still see MIajor DePeyster in command at Michiliniackinac, who had, for a considerable time sought from General Frederick Haldimand, at Quebec, to be transferred to some
other post. The general finally ordered him to the command
of Fort Lernoult, as the new fortification erected at Detroit
was called, where he arrived in October.
The taking of the Illinois by George Rogers Clark, and the
utter defeat of all of Hamilton's plans of conquest and his
capture by the Americans, by this time had lessened the estimation of the Indians in the West for the British, and DePeyster felt the necessity of striking an effective blow to recover
whatever of prestige had been lost by the failure of the lieutenant-governor; for the confidence of the confederated nations in league with the English must be retained, let the
cost be ever so great. Disaffection, also, was rapidly spreading among the French at Detroit; they now had less liking
* IMS. letter, November 1, 1779, Haldimand Papers.
111History of the Girtys.
for the British cause; and, since the treaty between France
and the United States, they began to express, in various ways,
their sympathy with the Americans. Evidently DePeyster
must do something, and that quickly.
NOTE I.--" [Simon] Girty won the widest fame on the border
by his cunning and cruelty; but he was really a less able foe
than the two others [McKee and Elliott]," says Roosevelt.
That he was not as able a foe, during the Revolution, as these
two men, particularly McKee, is true; but it was not because
of a lack of bravery, but of military position. In hand-tohand encounters, he was as courageous as they. As to his
cunning, there is no evidence extant that he was particularly
gifted in that way.
NOTE II.--" The frontiersmen hated [Simon] Girty as they
did no other man. and he was credited with numerous actions
done by other white leaders of the Indians."-Roosevelt
(The Winning of the West, Vol. II, p. 9, note.) This is
strictly true; and the sentence following, by that author, can
not be questioned: " The British accounts say comparatively
little about him." But the next assertion, by the same writer,
is open to criticism: "He seems to have often fought with
the Indians as one of their own number, while his associates led
organized bands of rangers." The question here to be answered is, who were his " associates" in the Ohio wilderness
during the Revolution? No persons, surely, were more intimate with him than his two brothers, and they did not lead
"organized bands of rangers," nor did Captain McKee or
Elliott, during that war. There were no rangers at Detroit
during the Revolution but "Butler's," and these were always
led by their own officers, none of whom were Girty's "associates "-none " Indian officers " or others, of the British Indian Department in the West.
NOTE III.-In "An Historical Account of the Expedition
against Sandusky, under Col. William Crawford, in 1782"
112History of the Girtys.
(p. 189), the inference is that DePeyster, early in 1779, found
Girty ready for any undertaking, either against the Americans,
or the [Moravian] missionaries and their converts upon the Muskingum, as his hostility to the latter seemed as unbounded as
to the former."  This needs correcting in two particulars.
DePeyster was not then in command at Detroit to give him
orders "for any undertaking," nor was he (Girty) hostile to
the " Moravian" Indians at that date, or subsequently. He
had, however, no good feeling toward the missionaries.
NOTE IV.--The letter of Simon Girty to Captain Lernoult,
wherein he states his determination to march to Fort Laurens
and turn out any Delawares found there, "if my party is
able," is as follows:
"SANDUSKY, Sept. 6, 1779.
"SIi:--I take the liberty to acquaint you that I intend
leaving this place to-morrow. There is a party of twenty-five
Wyandots that have been turned to go as volunteers with me
the road I proposed when I left Detroit; likewise a party of
ten MIingoes, which party Sandithtas commands. The Wyandots are commanlided by Seyatamah.
"Sir, I refer you to Captain McKee for the knowledge of
the above-mentioned chiefs, if you are not already acquainted
with their names. To-morrow, my friend, Nouthsaka, sets off
with ten warriors to the falls of the Ohio. Our great friend,
Captain Pipe, is gone to Fort Pitt to a council; likewise
Maulmatas and Duentate. Six days ago, a party of Wyandots
brought here three prisoners from Kentucky. They say there
are three hundred men under pay in those parts. They also
say there are nine forts in and about Kentucky.
" There are no certain accounts of the rebels leaving Tuscarawas [Fort Laurens]. I intend to go there directly, and
shall send you the token you gave me at Detroit if they are
not there. If the Delawares are in possession of the fort, I
intend to turn them out and burn the fort (if my party are
able), as you gave me the liberty to act as I thought best, and
they and I are not on the best of terms.
8
113History of the Girtys.'"Yesterday, Sandithtas arrived here, with the account of
ten parties of Shawanese that are gone to war. This is all I
have to acquaint you with at present.
"I am, etc.,
"SIMON GIRTY.
"To CAPTAIN LERNOULT, Commander at Detroit."
NOTE V.--"They [Simon, James, and George Girty] were
for a time apparently weaned away from their adopted brethren, but they never even then fought against them, were
always at ease in their company, and... ultimately took
up the savage life again."-Magazine of American History,
Vol. XV, p. 259. But, as we have already shown, Simon Girty
fought, not only against the Shawanese, but against his
"adopted brethren," the Senecas (1Mingoes), in Lord Dunmore's War. He took part, also, it will be remembered, in
the " Squaw Campaign" against the Indians. Neither Simon
nor James, strictly speaking, took up the savage life again:
dressing as the Indians dressed; hunting with the Indians;
conforming to their habits, manners, and customs in all things.
But of this hereafter.
NOTE VI.-The site of Fort Laurens was about ten miles
due north from the present New Philadelphia, Ohio. Close
by, in 1764, Col. Bouquet erected a small stockaded fort (see
An Historical Account of the Expedition against the Ohio
Indians in the year MDCCLXIV, under the Command of
Henry Bouquet, Esq., Colonel, etc., pp. 51, 52). Fort Laurens
covered about half an acre of ground, and the parapet walls
were crowned with pickets made of the split halves of the
largest trunks of trees. It was one mile south of what is now
Bolivar, Tuscarawas county, Ohio. A plan of the fort was
made in January, 1850,-what then existed of the fortification being taken as a basis for the drawing (see Mitchener's
Historic Events, in the Tuscarawas and Muskingum Valleys,
etc., pp. 128, 129). The fort remained entire as late as 1782.
114History   of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XIII.
The spring of 1780 opened gloomily upon the western frontiers of Pennsylvania and Virginia. As early as the middle
of March, the Indians began their depredations. At a sugar
camp on Raccoon creek, a stream flowing into the Ohio, on
the left, thirty-three miles by the course of the river below
Pittsburgh, five men were killed and three girls and three
boys taken prisoners. On the thirtieth, Heckewelder, at
Coshocton, wrote Brodhead: "We have heard nothing at all
this whole winter what the enemy [British and their Indian
allies west] are about; the snow being so deep and the weather
so continually cold has, I suppose, prevented this; but this
day I am informed that three young fellows, two Delawares
and one Wyandot, have turned back from a body of warriors
consisting of twenty-six men. They inform that five or six
companies of warriors have gone out; two parties of Wyandots toward Beaver creek and the others down this river
[Muskingum]." *
On the 2d of April, Brodhead was written to by David
Zeisberger from the Tuscarawas: "I have not heard of any
hostile thoughts among the Cooshocking [Coshocton] Indians
[Delawares] yet, and if I should perceive any thing of that
kind I would give you intelligence by an express. But yesterday we heard that a party of warriors, among which was
the well-known Monsey, Washnash, has attacked a boat in the
river [Ohio], killed three men, and has taken twenty-one men,
wornen, and children prisoners, and likewise the whole boat.
No doubt this action will encourage them to do more mischief." t There were three boats in all. They were attacked
a few miles below Captina creek, which empties into the Ohio
on the right, twenty-one miles below Wheeling, and one of
* Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. VIII, p. 152.
t Id., p. 159.
115Contents.                        xiii
APPENDIX.
A-First published account of the Girtys............................ 335
B-Record of the baptism of John Turner (translation)......... 337
C-M-ention of George Girty as a trader............................... 337
D-Fictitious account of Simon Girty joining the Indians in
1774..............................................................  339
E--Oaths taken by Simon Girty when commissioned second
lieutenant under iMajor John ('onnolly............................. 341
F'-" Letting loose the horrible hell-hounds of savage war."... 342
G-Simon Girty and the siege of Fort Henry, Wheeling, in
1777.............................................................................. 344
H--Simon Girty's visit to the Seneca towns up the Alleghany,
in  the  fall of  1777........................................................... 346
I-The reason why Getneral Hand gave up his intended expedition to French creek, in the spring of 1778.....................  348
J-Concerning certain orders said to have been given by Gen.
Haldimand to Lieutenant-Governor Henry Hamilton while
at Detroit...................3............................................... 348
K-Kenton and the iMingo Logan................................. 350
L-Lochry's (lefeat........................................................ 351
M--Why the Moravian missionary establishments on thel'uscarawas were broken up................................................   353
N-Simon Girty and Colonel Crawford on the Sandusky........ 355
O-A fictitious account of Simon Girty attitudinizing as an
orator.........................................................................  372
P--Concerning the Blue Licks campaign..............................  373
Q-l'he Haldimand Manuscripts...................................... 377
R-George (;irty to Captain Alexander McKee..................... 382
S-Examination of John Leith........................................ 382
T-McKee the principal stimulator of the war of 1790-95.......  385
U-Governor Simcoe, of Canada, prevenlts peace in 1794......... 386
V--Simon Girty antd the Scotch-Irish of Western Virginia..... 387
W--Deed of Simon Girty to his son Thomas........................ 389
X-General Harrison in Canada in 1813............................ 390
Y-Letters of William Charles Mickle................................. 392
Z-Published estimates of Sinion Girty................................  394
AA-James Girty's will...................................   397
BB-John Turner's will.................................................. 399
CC-Simon Girty and boy prisoners.................................... 401
DD-" Simon )Girty " in a Cyclopcedia.............................   403
EE-Illustrative notes, also extracts from printed accounts,
concerning the Girtys.................................   405History   of the Girtys.
them captured, as mentioned by Zeisberger; the others
reached Kentucky without further molestation. The boat
which fell into the hands of the savages belonged to a man by
the name of Reynolds, who was either killed at the time or
was soon after tortured to death in the wilderness; a small
child, his daughter, was shot in the boat, probably by accident. The others of his family were captured.
In one of the boats which escaped was Peter Malott, from
Maryland; but his wife Sarah and several children, being in
the boat which was taken, were made prisoners.   The oldest of the children was a daughter, Catharine, a girl in her
teens.* Simon Girty, who, it may be premised, afterward
married her, has generally been spoken of as having been
present at the time of her being made a prisoner; but
such was not the case. There are accounts extant, not only
of his having taken a prominent part in the capture of Reynolds's boat, but detailing the conversation which then took
place; these, however, are fictitious. The Indians who did
the mischief were Munceys, a Delaware clan living to the
westward. With these Girty had not the particular fellowship that he had with the Mingoes and Wyandots. The savages, with their plunder and prisoners, immediately made their
way to the Muskingum, where they halted, for rest.t It was
either from "Moravian" Delawares who then saw them, or
from some of the Coshocton Delawares (the latter had not yet
taken up the hatchet against the Americans), that Zeisberger
learned the particulars which, on the 2d of April, he transmitted to Brodhead at Fort Pitt, as before mentioned.
There were, at this time, straggling villages of Delawares,
from Coshocton westward, up the Walhonding, across to the
Scioto, thence to the Mad river; and, in general, the further
* Compare, in this connection,,Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 47,
which gives a correct account of the affair, so far as it goes, except as to the
number of boats.
t See, as to the capture of the Malotts, IMcKnight's Our Western Border,
pp. 422, 423. But the account there given is erroneous in some of its particulars.
116History of the Girtys.
removed from the Muskingum, the more hostile to the Americans were the occupants of these towns; but the loyalty of
Zeisberger and IIeckewelder could then be counted on, under
all circumstances: the former being somewhat cautious and
circumspect; the latter, fearless and outspoken, though taking pains that his zeal and aid should not be discovered to the
enemy.
Before entering upon an inquiry as to the part taken by
the Girtys in the stirring events of 1780 in the West, it is
proper to state that the winter following the victory obtained
near the mouth of the Little Miami over the force under Rogers, was spent by them in the Ohio wilderness among the Mingoes and Shawanese. Early in March, the three brothersSimon, James, and George-arrived together at Detroit,*
called thither, it is presumed, by DePeyster to get from them
whatever information they might have obtained during the
preceding three or four months concerning the movements of
the " rebels" upon the border.
In the spring of that year, emigration began early; not
less than three hundred large family boats filled with emigrants arrived at the Falls, where the town of Louisville was
established by an act of the Virginia legislature.  Colonel
Clark, by direction of Thomas Jefferson, then governor of
Virginia, erected a fort on the east side of the Mississippi
river, five miles below the mouth of the Ohio, upon the lands
of the Chickasaws and Choctaws, calling it Fort Jefferson.
To keep up the spirits of the Indians, and in hopes of destroying "the rebels " in Kentucky, on the Wabash, and at
the Illinois, Lieutenant-Governor Patrick Sinclair, in command
at Michilimackinac, and Major DePeyster, at Detroit, sent
some white soldiers and a large number of Indians against
those countries nearly simultaneously. The field of operations of Sinclair was not only to include the Illinois villages,
but the Spanish settlement of St. Louis as well; for Spain
* DePeyster to Haldimand, March 8, 1780.-MS. letter, Haldimand Papers. As the "three Girtys" remained in Detroit until the 12th of April, it
is certain that Simon was not present at the capture of the Malotts.
117History   of the Girtys.
was now at war also with Britain. The result of the expedition fitted out by him was a few persons killed and a small
number of prisoners taken, in the vicinity of St. Louis; while
Cahokia, one of the Illinois villages (thanks to the activity of
the inhabitants and George Rogers Clark, who hastened thither
from Fort Jefferson), met with a loss still smaller.*
But, as we shall now see, the operations started by DePevster proved niuch more serious. He assembled at Detroit
a force of about one hundred and fifty whites and one hundred lake Indians, provided with two small cannon, to assail
the fort at the Falls of the Ohio, when, if successful, they
would-attack other forts in Kentucky.t    He sent in advance
some Indians by way of the Wabash to re-capture Vincennes
and to amuse Clark, who was supposed to be at the Rapids
(Louisville)-the main force to move up the Maumee and
down the Great Miami and the Ohio.    The expedition was under the command of Captain Bird.        With him   went " the
three Girtys." Proceeding to the Miami, he was joined by
Captain McKee (then Deputy Indian Agent in place of Jehu
Hay, who was captured with Hamilton) and a large Indian
force. The whole moved to the Ohio, when Bird, at the instigation of the Indian chiefs, was compelled to change his
plans.  He must attack, first, some of the interior stations--
"'the forts on Licking creek" being most accessible; afterward, he would drop down to the falls of the Ohio (Louisville).
So he urged his pirogues up the Ohio, from the mouth of the
Great Miami, his Indians then numbering over seven hundred.` Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. IX,passim. Consult, also, Calendar
of Virginia State Papers, Vol. I, and Scharff's History of St. Louis, Vol. I.
Some additional particulars may be gleaned from Billon's Annals of St.
Louis. See, too, Wisconsin State Historical Society's Collections, Vol. XI.
t "Soon after the rush of spring immigration was at its height [in 1780, in
Kentucky] the old settlers and the new-comers alike were thrown into the
utmost alarm by a formidable inroad of Indians, accompanied by French
partisans, and led by a British officer. DePeyster, a New York tory of old
Knickerbocker family, had taken command at Detroit."-Roosevelt. That
he came there from Michilimackinac, or, indeed, that there was any such
British post (which was, throughout the Revolution, second only to Detroit,
in the West), that writer does not inform his readers.
118History of the Girtys.
Captain Bird, after reaching the mouth of the Licking
river, proceeded up that stream. And here, we may say, that
Simon Girty had no command in the expedition; he simply
acted as interpreter; so, too, his brothers, as their services
were required. The enemy reached Ruddle's Station (or
" Fort Liberty," as it was sometimes called) without accident, when McKee, taking two hundred Indians, surrounded
the stockade in the night. Firing commenced at daylight.
Captain Bird arrived at noon with the rest of the force and
the smaller of the two field-pieces. After two discharges of
this gun, the captain sent Simon Girty with a flag of truce
demanding the surrender of the fort. According to Girty's
story, many rifles were pointed at him as he entered the
stockade. He declares he kept cool, and informed those inside the pickets that, unless they surrendered, they would all
be killed; a determination they clearly saw would be carried
out in the event of longer resistance, as the other field-piece
was now brought up. The two would soon, of course, batter
down the fraZil stockade.
But Isaac Ruddle, the commander of the garrison, determined not to. surrender without making an effort, at least,
for terms. He told Girty he could not consent to open the
gates but on certain conditions, one of which was that the
prisoners should be under the protection of the British and
not suffered to be held by the Indians. To these conditions
Bird consented, he and Captain McKee going into the fort to
settle the terms of capitulation with Captain Ruddle. So the
station was surrendered, but the savages were uncontrolable;
"they rushed in, tore the poor children from their mothers'
breasts, killed and wounded mIany," says Bird,-each Indian,
afterward, securing, if in his power, a prisoner; however, all
except the Lake Indians returned theirs to the Captain the
next morning. Near three hundred were taken. The cattle
at the post were all shot down by the savages; this, in the
end, as we shall see, proved a serious affair.
Martin's Station was next assailed with a similar result.
Bird would then have been hnppy could he have moved down
119History of the Girtys.
the Licking and Ohio, to attack the fort at Louisville; but
this, now, was out of the question. He was nearly out of
provisions, and there was danger of his prisoners starvingall because of the wanton destruction of the catle at the first
fort by the savages. There was no other alternative but to
return, as quickly as possible, to Detroit.    He made rapid
marches to his boats (where most of his Indians left him), and
was soon upon the Ohio again. After ascending the Great
Miami, he was forced to leave his two cannon at Lorimer's.*
George Girty, who had remained with him      to this point, now
returned to the Shawanese; but Simon and James had previously gone back-the former to the homes of the Mingoes,
the latter to the Shawanese.   George was of much service in
getting the prisoners along, who numbered in all about three
hundred and fifty. Bird reached Detroit on the 4th of August.t His expedition was the most successful against Kentucky of any during the war; and but for the intractability
of his Indian allies, that whole region would have been depopulated.We have already seen that the appearance of the savages
upon the frontiers of Pennsylvania and Virginia in the spring
of 1780 was as early as the middle of March.    These marauds
* Bird to DePeyster, July 24, and Bombardier William Homan to Bird,
August 18, 1780.--IS. letters, Haldimand Papers.
t Besides the various published accounts of the expedition, I have consulted the following MS. letters of 1780 from the Haldimand Papers, in addition to the two already cited: McKee to Bird, Mlay 3d; DePeyster to
Haldimand, May 17th; same to Sinclair, Mlay 18th; Bird to DePeyster,
May 21st; same to DePeyster, June 3d; McKee to same, June 4th; Bird
to same, June 11th; same to same, July 1st; McKee to same, July 8th; and
DePeyster to Haldimand, August 18th.
+ Koosevelt declares that " Bird was not one of the few men fitted to command such a force as that which followed him; and contenting himself with
the slight success he had won, he rapidly retreated to Detroit, over the same
path by which he had advanced." But that author wrote, of course, without
knowledge of Bird's or McKee's Official Report, or he would not speak of
the commanding officer, " contenting himself with the slight success he had
won." Both Bird and MIcKee were well "fitted to command such a
force "-no two in the WVest were better; but the nature of Indians is not
to brook control in war f,)r any lengthl of time.
120History of the Girtys.
continued with frequency throughout the summer and until
the coming in of winter. However, on at least one occasion,
the Indians were severely punished for their audacity.*
To prevent, if possible, another visitation of the savages in
force into the Kentucky settlements, as had been the case in
Bird's expedition, which resulted in the taking of Ruddle's
and Martin's Stations, and as a retaliatory measure for the
success of the enemy in that undertaking, General George
Rogers Clark, making all haste " with what men he could well
spare,t started from Fort Jefferson for Louisville, resolved to
lead an expedition against the Shawanese towns on the waters
of the Little Miami and Mad river, in what are now Greene
and Clark counties, Ohio. With a strong force and one fieldpiece he reached Chillicothe on the 6th of August only to find
it burning and the savages gone.  On the seventh, having destroyed all the corn in the vicinity, the march was renewed
for Piqua upon the Mad river. This was reached on the
eighth and the village at once attacked. James and George
Girty were there and took part in the defense. All but about
seventy, if McKee is to be believed, of the Indians immediately
fled; the residue with the two Girtys stood their ground manfully, but were finally compelled to leave the village to the enemy.: After destroying all the corn, Clark, on the tenth, began
his return march. Not less than six of the Indians were killed,
but the whites lost seventeen. A number of Clark's men
were wounded, but only three of the savages. The destruction of the corn proved a very serious blow to the Indians,
and gave ease to Kentucky for a number of months following.
In nearly all the printed statements heretofore given to
the public, not only is Simon Girty represented as being
* Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 47-50.
t Roosevelt gives credit to the oft-published fiction of Clark having with
him but two men. He had, in all probability,'two hundred. That writer
also reprints the silly tale about Clark dressing himself as an Indian, "so as
to deceive the lurking bands of savages" while on the journey.
t Captain McKee to DePeyster, from the Upper Shawanese Village
(Wapatomica), August 27, 1780.-MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
121History of t4e Girtys.
present at the battle, but as having command of a large force
of Mingoes, who ingloriously fled the town. The usual account is to the effect that "the action was so severe a short
time before the close, that Girty... drew off three
hundred of his men [Mingoes], declaring to them it was folly
in the extreme to continue the action against men who acted
so much like madmen as General Clark's, for they rushed
in the extreme of danger, with a seeming disiegard of consequences. This opinion of Girty, and the withdrawal of the
three hundred Mingoes, so disconcerted the rest, that the
the whole body soon dispersed."
But there were no Mingoes in Piqua when the town was attacked by Clark, neither was Simon Girty there.*
The conduct of James and George-his brothers-was
highly commended by the savages in their accounts subsequently given of the battle.
Notwithstanding the destruction of the Indian towns by
Clark, the- Shawanese did not forsake their country. With
them remained James and George Girty; while Simon, who,
since Bird's campaign into Kentucky, had been inactive, continued with the Mingoes. The three occupied themselves in
the Ohio wilderness throughout the following winter, attending to the behests of DePeyster and looking after the interests of the tribes with whomr they were particularly associated.
NOTE.-T-In a foot-note by Lyman C. Draper, added to Charles
I. Walker's Address before the State Historical Society of
Wisconsin, January 31,1871, on " The North-west During the
Revolution," is the following with regard to Bird's expedition
(the italicizing is by the writer of this narrative):
" This memorable expedition was originally designed to
strike at Col. Clark and his garrison at Louisville; but the
streams were unusually full that season, which circumstance
* Roosevelt says, that "both Simon Girty and his brother were in the
town." He reaches this conclusion, evidently, from the circumstance that
McKee speaks of "the two Girtys."  He did not know, as before intimated,
that there were three Girtys (brothers) in the Ohio wilderness.
122History of the Girtys.                123
induced Bird to change his original purpose of attacking Louisville first; and therefore, decided to ascend Licking river, into
the heart of the Kentucky settlements, conveying his artillery
by water to Ruddell's and Martin's Stations, and thence by
land to Bryan's Station and Lexington."
But the Official Report of the commander of the expedition
clearly shows that it was the determination of the Indian
chiefs, not high water, that "induced Bird to change his
original purpose."EHistory  of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XIV.
The beginning of 1781 found Thomas Girty still a resident
of Pittsburgh. It is a matter of record that one Myndert
Fisher, a soldier, forged his name to a letter directed to a
loyalist, then in the Indian country. Fisher, for some cause,
had become disaffected, and had opened a correspondence with
the enemy. Being detected, he confessed that he had made
use of Girty's name. He was tried by court-martial at Fort
Pitt, on the 7th of January, and sentenced to death, but was
subsequently pardoned.*
From the time that 1Brodhead had taken command at Fort
Pitt, he had made the most strenuous endeavors to preserve
friendly relations with the Delawares, who, ever since the war
began, had been objects of suspicion to the borderers. It was
not known, of course, at what moment they might take up
the hatchet, in which event their proximity to the settlements
would give them great advantages for mischief. Besides, it
was well understood that some of them were actually hostile
while the nation at large was, professedly, the ally of the
United States. The inability of the government to carry
out treaty stipulations, and the influences and threats of the
British and their Indian allies, induced them finally, though
unwillingly, to rise against the border, only a small band remaining in the interest of the United States. Thus the Indian war, early in 1781, became general-not a single tribe in
the Ohio country continuing friendly.
The commander of the Western Department was early
informed of the defection of the Delawares. "The people
at Coshocton," wrote Heckewelder, from one of the Moravian
villages upon the Tuscarawas, to Brodhead, on the 26th of
* As to the trial, sentence, and subsequent pardon of Fisher, see Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 72, 82.
124History of the Girtys.
February, " have been very busy in trying to deceive you this
long time."  "I indeed believe," he continued, "that the
greater part of them will be upon you in a few days."  "They
have arranged themselves in three parties," he added, "and,
if I am right, one party is gone already; but -I hope they
will receive what they deserve." And thus wrote, also, a
friendly Delaware Indian from the Moravian towns: " Every
body here knows that the Coshocton men are getting ready to
go and fight you."  Now, the leader of these hostile Delawares
was the war-chief Wingenund. Brodhead, acting upon the
suggestion of the patriotic missionary, determined, thereupon,
to carry the war to the homes of the Coshocton Indians.
It was well that Brodhead made this resolve; for the Delawares were now determined on war, and were earnestly soliciting the British commandant at Detroit to send traders among
them, declaring that they wouldl no longer listen to " the Virginians," who, they said, had deceived them.* The artful DePeyster encouraged them, sending them, on the 12th of April,
a speech by Simon Girty, who had been called, previously, to
Detroit from the Mingo country, bv the commandant:
" Indians of Coshocton! I have received your speech sent
me by the IHalf King of Sandusky. It contains three strings,
one of them white, and the other two checkered. You say
that you want traders to be sent tto your village and that you
are resolved no more to listen to the Virginians, who have deceived you. It would give me pleasure to receive you again
as brothers, both for your own good and for the friendship I
bear to the Indians in general." t
Simon Girty, early in 1781, at the express direction of
DePeyster, took up his residence at Upper Sandusky, among
the Wyandots, sent thither from the Mingoes because his
services would be greatly enhanced by the change. It was
the beginning of a long intimacy with those Indians, but he
was never able to speak their language with as much fluency
as he did that of the Senecas (Mingoes). His official duties
* Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 50, 51.
t DePeyster's Miscellanies, p. 253.
125History of the Girtys.
with the tribe were the same as with the last-named Indians;
that is, he was to interpret for them, and go to war with them,
when occasions offered.    He was at all times to do the bidding of the Detroit commandant-" attending," as he well
expressed it, "to the king's business "-and his pay was the
same as formerly. He was not adopted by the Sandusky
Wyandots as one of their people, as generally supposed,
although highly respected by them;* while with the Detroit
Wyandots, he had no more affiliation than with other Indians
who were under the immediate direction of DePeyster.
From  Wapatomica, early in MIarch, McKee wrote DePeyster that Simon Girty, with a party of Wyandots (" Ilurons,"
he calls them) and Shawanese, had brought in three prisoners
to that place. It was the result of a raid into Kentucky.
How many scalps were also brought in is not mentioned. So
it was that Girty signalized his change of domicil by going
upon this successful maraud. Kentucky was the theater, generally, of attacks by the savages earlier in the season than
were the settlements in South-western        Pennsylvania   and
(what is now) West Virginia; and this for obvious reasonsthe climate was milder.
Brodhead, with over one hundred and fifty regulars and
*'Roosevelt, in speaking of Sirnon Girty (The Winnling o,f the West, V,ol.
I, p. 220, citing the MZagazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 256), says:
"He was the son of a vicious Irish trader, who was killed by the Indians;
he was adopted by the latter, and grew up among them, and his daring ferocity and unscrupulous cunning early made him one of their leaders." If
the idea here is, that Girty, while he was held captive among the Senecas,
became one of their leaflers, it is erroneous. Or, if the author means to say
that Girty's "daring ferocity and unscrupulous cunning" alone made him,
during the Revolution, a "leader" of the Indians, it is also a mistake. It
was not only the characteristic first mentioned (he had no "'unscrupulous
cunning") that gave him prestige with the Mingoes and Wyandots; it was
(2) his being sent among them by Hamilton and DePeyster; and (3) for the
reason that he spoke their language. And even then, his being a " leader"
must be taken in a restricted sense; he was only such on the war-path
with parties of Indians, when the latter were not led by Rangers, or " Indian
officers." His voice was never, during that war, particularly potent in their
councils.
126History of the Girtys.
nearly as many militia (who joined him at Wheeling), crossed
the Ohio on the 10th of April, 1781, on an expedition against
the Delawares of Coshocton. The colonel's success was complete. Hle returned with considerable plunder, after killing
fifteen warriors and taking more than that number prisoners,
four of whom, with the women and children, he released.
About this time, and while Simon Girty was at Upper Sandusky, a prisoner, Ilenry Baker, was brought in-a boy
eighteen years of age-by a small war-party. He was captured at the narrows, on Wheeling creek, in what is now the
State of West Virginia. Nine prisoners were also at Upper
Sandusky besides young Baker. These were from Kentucky.
They were all compelled to run the gauntlet. The boy, being
very active, ran it easily and without receiving a blow. This
so enraged a young Indian that he knocked him down with a
club, after he had reached the council house. The nine Kentuckians were all burned-one a day until all had miserably
perished. Baker was a witness to these frightful scenes.
Then caine his turn. He was ordered to be taken out by an
old chief and tied to a stake. He resisted somewhat, and
tried to parley with the savages; for, on starting, he espied a
white man on horse-back rapidly approaching. When he
came up, Baker ran up to him and implored him to save his
life. This white man was Simon Girty. The latter inquired
who he was and where he was from, and at once interceded in
his behalf. His efforts were crowned with complete success;
for the savages relented and let him go free. Girty asked him,
aside, a great many questions concerning Wheeling and its
vicinity, which induced the boy to believe that he.intended soon
to make him a guide in an attack on that place. However. in
this he was mistaken; for, through Girty's importunities, he
was sent to Detroit, where DePeyster set him at liberty.
Hiring himself to a man who traded with the Indians, he
afterward escaped, along with two others, and all three reached
their homes in safety.*
* Newton's History of the Pan-Handle, West Virginia, p. 362.
127History of the Girtys.
" We sent to Coshocton," wrote Simon Girty after the destruction of that place, to the Detroit commandant, from Upper Sandusky, "twenty of our men [Wyandots] some time
ago, and this day they have returned with the following news: "
"20th April. Colonel Brodhead, with five hundred men,
burned the town and killed fifteen men. He left six houses
on this [west] side of the creek that he did not see. He likewise took the women and children prisoners, and afterward
let them go. He let four men [Delawares] go that were prisoners who showed him a paper that they had from Congress.
Brodhead told them that it was none of his fault that their
people [the Delawares slain] were killed, but the fault of the
militia that would not be under his command. HIe likewise
told them that in seven months he would beat all the Indians
out of this country. In six days from this date, he is to set
off for this place [Upper Sandusky] with one thousand men;
and Colonel Clark is gone down the Ohio river with one thousand men.
" There were one hundred and twenty Wyandots ready to
start off with me, until this news came. Your children [the
Wyandots] will be very glad if you will send those people you
promised to send to their assistance; likewise send the Indians that are about you, to assist us.  The Christian
[" Moravian "] Indians have applied to us to move them off
before the rebels come to their town.
"I have one hundred and sixty Indians at this place.
Their provisions are all gone; and they beg that you will
send them some.
" Mr. Le Villier, when he heard that the rebels were in the
Indian country, went off to the lower town [Lower Sandusky],
where there was not a man but himself, and told the women
and children that the rebels were close by. He ran off in the
night [from Upper Sandusky] without giving notice to the
[Wyandot] chiefs' or me. He minds trading more than the
king's business.
" I will be much obliged to you, sir, if you send me a little
128History of the Girtys.
provisions for myself, as I was compelled to give mine to the
Indians." *
The hostile Delawares now entirely forsook the valleys of
the Tuscarawas and Muskingum, drawing back to the Scioto,
Mad river, and the Sandusky.t  DePeyster then addressed
them as his " children.".
General George Rogers Clark, who had gone from Kentucky over the mountains to Virginia, and who had determined on an expedition against Detroit, reached the Ohio, and
began the descent of that river with a considerable force
about the end of July. ~ Following him was a Pennsylvania
body of soldiers, composed of volunteers and a company of
state troops (Rangers), all under the command of Colonel
Archibald Lochry, lieutenant of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania.
Already had extraordinary efforts been made to hasten to
the southward what Indians could be collected to interpose a
barrier to the advance of General Clark. These were under
the direction of Captain McKee; with them was a company
of one hundred Rangers (" Butler's ") commanded by Captain
Andrew Thompson. Captain Joseph Brant (Thayendanegea),
a noted.Indian of the Six Nations, and George Girty, with a
party of Indians, " advanced upon the Ohio," capturing one
of Clark's boats. They soon learned that Colonel Lochry was
also on his way down the river, aud they lay in wait for him.
They attacked him on the twenty-fourth of August, about
eleven miles below the mouth of the Great Miami, in what is
now the State of Indiana. Every man present of the Americans-numbering in all over one hundred-was killed or cap* Girty to DePeyster, May 4, 1781.--MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
t Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 62.
t DePeyster to the Delawares, June 7, 1781, in " Miscellanies" of that
officer, pp. 253, 254.
Q Roosevelt makes the glaringly erroneous statement that Clark "'passed
and repassed from Fort Pitt to the Falls of the Ohio and thence to the Illinois in the vain effort to get troops " for this expedition.
9
129History of the Girtys.
tured.*  The fame of George Girty was considerably increased
by this success. The knowledge he had gained of military
affairs in Captain Willing's company before his desertion was
not lost upon him.
Captain Brant and George Girty, after defeating Lochry,
moved their command up the Great Miami, forming a junction with the Rangers and savages under Captains Thompson and McKee.    With the latter from Sandusky had marched
Simon Girty. The whole force of the enemy, except a sergeant and eighteen men left to take care of prisoners and
stores, proceeded, August 28th, to the banks of the Ohio, to
watch the movements of Clark, who was at Louisville.-jWhile the enemy were thus "waiting and watching," Simon
Girty had an exceedingly narrow escape from death. His
would-be slayer was rnone other than the haughty and redoubtable Captain Brant.    It is not surprising that the latter, after his success against Lochry, felt elated-that he
boasted in his cups of his prowess and of the capturing of a
number of the enemy by his own hands.       Simon's envy was
awakened. Bluntly he told the boastful savage that he lied.
The insult was instantly resented. Thayendanegea struck with
his sword the head of the white man, who fell desperately
wounded; but he lived, and finally recoverled; carrying, however, a deep scar upon his forehead ever after. He declared; Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 55, 56, 229, 230, and the anuthorities there cited. But none of these accounts have the given name of
Captain Thompson. This I have obtained elsewhere. " George (irty, the
only one of the Girty brothers who, contrary to tile popular impression,
ever actually deserted from the American army, was duly heard fiom in
the summer of 1781. General Irvine, then irn commllland of Fort Pitt, records
the fact that a band of Indians under this loyal savage and the nrted
Brandt attacked on the 24th of August and below the mouth of the Great
Miami a force of volunteers on their way to join Clarke, and killed or captured every man in the expedition."-Magazine of American History, Vol.
XV, p. 263. But General Irvine did not make this' record about George
GCirty, as here stated, but such a record was made by the writer of this narrative in the Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 55, 230, drawn from
other sources than those of the Irvine letters.
-t See McBride's Pioneer Biography, Vol. I, p. 280.
130History   of the Girtys.
subsequently that he had received the saber-cut in battle and
had killed his assailant;* it being his turn now to boast! It
was a number of weeks before he could sit up; nevertheless,
his recovery, considering the dangerous nature of the wound,
was surprisingly rapid. It had no sooner healed so as to admit of his moving about than he started north, first reaching
the Mingoes, and then going to Upper Sandusky, where he remained during the winter. By the middle of January, 1782,
he had fully recovered; that is to say, he was well and hearty
though the wound ever after gave him trouble, it having at
times, some effect upon his mental condition.t
The rejoicing of the savages over Lochry's defeat was great.
They believed that all danger of invasion by Clark was now
over, and it required much persuasion on part of Thompson,
McKee, and Brant to induce them to march further toward the
Falls (Louisville).  On the 9th of September, when within
thirty miles of that place, they learned that Clark had abandoned his expedition, and they immediately began to disband.
However, two hundred Wyandots and Miamis under McKee
and Brant, moved southward into Kentucky " to attack some
of the small forts and infest the roads," while the Rangers
and the residue of the Indians returned to the northward.
McKee and Brant's party (with which was George Girty)
succeeded in killing a number of men, women, and children at
Long Run; after which, these warriors, too, returned to their
homes.   Thompson reached Detroit early in October.+:: Indian Captivity: A True Narrative of the Capture of Rev. O. lM.
Spencer, by the Indians, in the Neighborhood of Cincinnlati. Written by
Himself. p. 89. "I was," says Spencer, t"afterward told [the wound] was
inflicted by the tomahavwk of the celebrated Indiiian chief, Brandt [Brant], in
a drunken frolic." History and tradition abundantly corroborate this, except as to the instrument eniployed. For mention of the quarrel (but giving
an erroneous statement as to its result), see Albach's Western Annals, p.
334. Compare, also, Howe's Ohio, p. 248.
t Concerning the affair between Simon Girty and Brant, many traditions
have been preserved, all of a character more or less exaggerated, while some
are wholly fictitious. That Brant regretted the act after he became sober,
is probable.
I For particulars of this inroad, see the current histories of the West.
131History of the Girtys.
A party of Indians (not any, however, of those who had
previously started south under McKee) numbering about two
hundred and fifty, consisting of Wyandots, Delawares, Munceys, and a small number of Shawanese, also a few tories and
French Canadian partisans, the whole headed by Captain
Matthew  Elliott (for that loyalist was now an "Indian
officer " of that rank), marched from the Sandusky eastward
until the Tuscarawas was reached at the "Moravian " Indian
towns. This was the latter part of August. A portion, afterward, moved on toward the border, appearing, finally, in the
vicinity of Fort Henry (Wheeling). There were three boys
outside the fort; one was killed, one made prisoner, and
the other escaped inside the fortification. In a moment the
garrison (information having been sent from Pittsburgh to the
post of the danger threatened) was ready to receive the savages. The latter seeing the borderers fully prepared for them,
soon disappeared, doing but little mischief, except killing all the
cattle they could find. Their depredations up Wheeling and
Buffalo creeks, however, were, before they re-crossed the
Ohio, much more serious. They killed and captured several
persons.
Much fiction has found its way into print concerning this
attempt of the enemy against the fort at Wheeling. " Both
the date and the facts of the second demonstration against
Fort Henry," says a published account, already a number of
times cited, "which occurred early in September, 1781, have
been badly mixed by different writers; but it is quite evident
that the Girtys participated in the siege." * It is now known,
however, that neither of the three Girty brothers-Simon,
James, or George-took part in this expedition; nor was the
stockade sufficiently invested by the savages to justify the
movement being designated a siege. Fort Henry was twice
Additional facts recently published may be found in the The Winning of
the West, Vol. II, pp. 128-130; and the authorities there cited may be consulted with advantage. See, too, McBride's Pion. Biog., Vol. I, p. 280.
* Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 263.
132History of the Girtys.
besieged and only twice; once in 1777 as already mentioned,
and again in 1782 as will hereafter be shown.*
The enemy, before leaving the Tuscarawas on their return
home, broke up the missionary establishments upon that river,
taking the missionaries and their families, and all the "Moravian " Indians, with them to the Sandusky, where, at a point
a little over two miles above the present Upper Sandusky,
county seat of Wyandot county, Ohio, but, on the opposite
(east) side of the river, they (the Moravians and their Indians)
prepared to spend the winter. The Girtys, it must be understood, did not help plan the expedition, nor did they take
any part in it.t  Zeisberger giving information to the Americans was the cause of the enemy's action.
While the savages were on their way back to Sandusky,
seven of the Wyandots, of whom three were sons of the Half
King, left the main party and again marched for the border,
raiding into a small settlement on Harman's creek, in Washington county, taking one prisoner-a man about sixty years
of age. The savages immediately started on their return,
but were soon pursued by a number of settlers, to the Ohio
river, where they were overtaken and all killed except one;
and he, their leader, Scotosh by name, one of the three brothers before alluded to, escaped wounded. The white prisoner
was released. Andrew Poe, one of the pursuers, his gun
missing fire, boldly sprang upon and grappled two of the Indians-sons of the Half King. During a most violent struggle, which was continued first on shore and then in the river,
"It is absolutely impossible to find out the real facts concerning the
sieges of Wheeling; it is not quite certain even wlhether there were two or
three."-Roosevelt. There is, however, it is suggested, no difficulty in finding out all the important facts concerning them, or in discovering that there
were but two.
t In a previous work (An Historical Account of the Expedition against
Sandusky, p. 190), the writer of this narrative says: "[Simon] Girty was
one of the plotters of the scheme which resulted in the breaking up of the
missionary establishments upon the Muskingum [i. e., upon the Tuscarawas,
as afterwards known]." But fhrther investigation makes it certain that he
had nothing to do with it, directly or indirectly; neither had his brother
James or George.
133History of the Girtys.
Andrew killed one of the Indians, but was himself badly
wounded. Adam Poe, a brother, coming to his relief, shot
the other savage. Meanwhile, Andrew then in the water, by
mistake, received a second wound from one of his own men.
The settlers lost one of their number. Neither of the Indians
killed by the Poes was named Big Foot, nor was either of
them' of unusual size, as has been so long and persistently
claimed by Western writers.*
NOTE I.-It will not be forgotten that, in the first place,
Simon Girty was sent by Hamilton to dwell among the Mingoes; and that too, for specific purposes. It has, however,
been published that he first "allied himself with the Wyandots,'the bravest of the tribes,' with whom he was more or
less identified until the day of his death. They had known
him ever since his childhood, and they received him now as
an adopted Indian."--Magazine of American History, Vol.
XV, p. 261. (Compare, also, An Historical Account of the
Expedition against Sandusky, under Col. William Crawford,
in 1782," p. 187.) But Girty's residence upon the Sandusky did not take place, as before narrated, for nearly three
years from the time of his joining the British, and then, at
the instigation of DePeyster. He had seen little of the Sandusky Wyandots previous to the beginning of the war, except
at Pittsburgh; the Detroit Wyandots he had never visited;
nor was he received by the former as an adopted Indian.
NOTE II.--" Simon Girty (spelled Girtee in the old records) was born and raised in the Cumberland valley, Pennsylvania," declares a modern Pennsylvania author. "His parents were Swiss-Germans, and were much addicted to the use
of strong drink and gambling, both of which became characteristics of Simon. It was, doubtless, owing to the fact that
Simon Girty's parents taught him by example these bad habits, and left him no legacy but one of dishonor, that he for* Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 61, where the name of the leader
of the Indians is incorrectly spelled " Scotash."
134History of the Girtys.
sook the settlements to serve with young Simon Kenton on
the frontiers. He joined the Virginia militia, and seemed
anxious to distinguish himself as a soldier. He was disappointed at being promoted, and instead, through the influence
of his colonel, publicly disgraced. He fled from the settlements and took up his abode along with a number of others
on Sherman's creek, but here he was again followed by the
whites, who burnt his cabin in 1750, and turned him loose to
roam the wilds as an outcast under the ban of the law. He
took up his abode with the Wyandotte Indians, with whom he
livwed a foe to the whites, more cruel and relentless than his
adopted people."-Wright's History of Perry County, Pennsylvania, pp. 33, 34. In all that has come under my notice
concerning Simon Girty, I have found no such confusion of
dates and statements as this.
NOTE III.--Most writers on Western history give the name
of the unfortunate colonel killed while going down the Ohio
on his way to join Clark, as " Loughry " or "Loughrie," but
the proper spelling is "Lochry."  Before Brant's return to
Detroit, he (Brant) was wounded in the leg (Powell to Haldimand, October 20th; and same to same, December 6, 1781.MS. letters, IHaldimnand Papers). This fact and the previous
quarrel between him and Simon Girty have led to the erroneous tradition, which is current, that Girty wounded Brant.
NOTE IV.-The story of the Poe fight was first written for,
and printed in, a magazine, with a number of fanciful embellishments, about "Big Foot," etc. The whole article was
copied by Doddridge as veritable history in his notes. It has
since been re-copied numberless times and with many variations. I have given simply the facts, with the imaginary
portions omitted.
135HISTORY OF THE GIRTYS.
CITAPTER I.
On the Susquehanna river, there lived, in the second quarter of the eighteenth century, upon the soil of what was then
Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, an Irishman, whose name
was Simon Girty -sometimes written, in early accounts,
"Girte;" sometimes, "Girtee;"      and frequently, "Gerty."
At least one writer has declared, though erroneously, that the
word is a corruption of " Guthrie." *
Girty emigrated from the Emerald Isle at middle age, engaging, soon after his arrival in America, and in the province
just named, in ttle Indian trade, in the employment of packhorse driver. Subsequently, after he had saved enough of his
earnings to go into business for himself in trafficking with the
Indians, he married Mary Newton, an English girl.t Of previous events in her life, nothing whatever is known.    Girty
was married about the year 1737.      His first child, named
Thomas, was born in 1739.+     The birth of a second child,
called Simon after the father, was in 1741.~ A third son* Charles Cist, in Cincinnati Miscellany, Vol, I, p. 126.
T Registres des Baptesmes et Sepultures qui se sont faits au Fort Duquesne. Pendant les ann6es 1763, 1754, 1755, and 1756. New York, 1859.
pp. 43, 44.
The writer of this narrative, by putting reliance upon an erroneous traditionary account, states, in a letter published some years since, that the
maiden name of Mrs. Girty was Crosby. See History of Clark County,
Ohio, pp. 377, 378.                  h
1 In Niles's Weekly Register, Vol. XIX, p. 262, the year 1731 is incorrectly given as the date of Thomas Girty's birth.
Q It is declared by John MacLeod, in the Amherstburg (Canada) Echa,
of November 21, 1884 (Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. VII, p. 123;
1                                           (1)History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XV.
The year 1782 was one of great activity in the West. In
no year during the war were there enacted so many stirring
events. Simon Girty acted his part in the drama, but it was
not one so prominent upon the wilderness stage as history has
been disposed to assign him. He appeared in many " characters;" and just at this point, where we get a close view of
him, we find how perverse and cruel he had become. Evidently, to a great extent, had his sorrow for hasty action in
leaving his country, which would occasionally possess his
mind, worn off. More and more was he growing attached to
the cause he had espoused. Being naturally of an impulsive
turn, the dictates of humanity would occasionally get the better of his pernicious feeling against his countrymen, prompting him to save the life of a fellow-being from the awful tortures of the savages; but increasing in frequency was his
giving loose rein to the ferocity of his nature. He was, in
the latter part of the winter, a constant companion of
Dunquat, the Half King of the Wyandots. Heckewelder saw
much of him at this time. In speaking of the suffering of
the missionaries and the " Moravian " Indians, who, it will be
remembered, were left upon the Sandusky, at the coming in
of winter, he says: " Towards the end of January [1782], the
cold during the nights became almost insupportable; the more
so, on account of the smallness of our huts, not permitting
the convenience of our having large fires made within them,
and even wood being scarce where we were. Our houses
having no flooring, whenever a thaw canie on, the water, forcing passages through the earth, entered in such quantities
that we scarcely could keep our feet dry. The cattle finding
no pasture in these dreary regions, and we not being able to
procure any for them, now began to perish by hunger, and,
as provision for so many people could not be had even for
136History of the Girtys.
money, famine took place, and the calamity became general;
many had now no other alternative but to live on the carcases
of the starved cattle, and in a few instances suckling babes
perished for want of nourishment from the mothers' impoverished breasts.
" The missionaries had, at this time, reduced their daily
allowance of provision for bread to a pint of Indian corn, per
man, a day. Now and then Mr. McCormick sent them a
leg of venison purchased of the hunters. Yet, in this wretched
situation, the hungry Wyandots would often come in our huts
to see if there was any victuals cooking, or ready cooked.
At one time, just as my wife had set down to what was intended for our dinner, the Half King, Simon Girty, and
another, a Wyandot, entered my cabin, and seeing the victuals
ready, without ceremony, began eating." *
The Half King at Sandusky, as may be supposed, lost
none of his animosity against the Americans because of the
killing of two of his sons (by the Poes, it will be remembered) in the previous fall, while on a marauding expedition
across the Ohio. And that his enmity should be kindled
against the Moravian missionaries, who were upon the Sandusky, was very natural, for he very well knew what their
sympathy had been for the Americans. That Simon Girty
should have been his willing instrument to aid him in getting
these men out of tlie country, is not at all a matter of
wonder.
" Girty (or'Captain Girty,' as he called himself)," says
Heckewelder, "an outcast among mankind-dwelling among
the Wyandots, and frequently going with them to war against
the people of the United States, would instigate the former
[that is, the Wyandots] to do us all the mischief they could;
and was a principal in raising their suspicion against us.
This man (as we were informed from good authority) came one
day about that time [February, 1782] to Mr. McCormick, and
requested him to write a letter for the Half King, the purport
* Heckewelder Narrative, pp. 299,.00.
137jistory of the Girtys.
of which was:' that the missionaries at Sandusky kept up a
continual correspondence with the Americans; and received
regularly, every ten days, letters from Pittsburg; and that
they were endeavoring to persuade the Virginians to destroy
the Wyandot nation, etc.' That gentleman, however, inquiring of him as to the truth of which he wanted written, and
being answered,' that it made no difference to him [McCormick] whether it was true or not:' and he peremptorily declined writing falsehoods for him; however, reports stated,
that he had got the letter written by some other person. A
letter was, shortly after this, written for the I-Half King to the
commandant [Major DePeyster, at Detroit], stating''that he,
(the Half King) would be uneasy in his mind, as long as the
teachers [Moravians] remained at Sandusky, he fearing some
misfortune, and therefore requested the commandant to take
them away as soon as possible; but that, if he refused, he
himself would know what to do!'
"This last letter had the desired effect, the commandant
[DePeyster] well understanding, what was meant to be done
to us, in case we were not removed: he sent an answer to the
Half King to that purpose, we however were entirely ignorant,
of what was intended, until on the first day of March, a messenger, sent by the Half King and Simoh Girty arrived,
who by their order cited all the teachers' to appear before
them to-morrow morning at the house o'f McCormick, there to
hear a letter read written by the commandant at Detroit to
the Half King and " Captain Girty " respecting us.'
"We considered it unnecessary for all of us to go so great
a distance, for the purpose of hearing the contents of a letter;
David Zeisberger, and the writer of this, concluded to go by
themselves, and accordingly we set off on foot early on the
next morning, and having waded the eight miles through the
snow, found the Half King and Simon Girty there [about five
miles below the present Upper Sandusky, county seat of
Wyandot county, Ohio], waiting for us. The latter seeing
but two of us arrive, impudently insulted us, for having disobeyed their orders, to which we calmly, and in a civil manner
138History of the Girtys.
replied. After which, Girty having mounted on a kind of
stage, about six feet in height, he took an open letter in one
hand and a black string of wampum beads in the other, and
addressed us with an air of contempt in these words:' Gentlemen! At length you have brought upon yourselves what
you have so long deserved, by means of your attachment to
the rebels! Your deeds are no more hidden! they are known
to the commandant at Detroit! hear this letter read, which is
sent to the Half King! I will read it to you; No! take it
and read it yourselves-and look at this! (holding up the
string of wampum) look well! do you see that it is black?
The cause of its being a black string instead of a white one,
you already know, so that I need not tell you; mind! it is
sent witch the letter  
"The contents of the letter alluded to were to this effect:'That in consequence of the Half King's request, the comnmandant [DePeyster] had determined to remove the teachers
[missionaries] from among the Christian [',-Moravian"] Indians-and he hereby did appoint " Captain Girty" to bring
them to Detroit. That, in case Girty should be otherwise engaged, he should appoint another fit person to bring the
teachers on. That should Girty, or any other person bringing them in, want assistance, the Half King should help
him!'
"On those words, where the Half King was called on to
render him assistance, if required, Girty laid a particular
stress--mneaninTg:vhereby, to threaten us if we refused to go,
and saying (with a loud laugh),' Gentlemen! take notice! the
Half King is to help me!'
"We saw nothing in this message that tended to frighten
us. That the wampum beads sent with the speech of the commandant, were black, did not surprise us in the least-nor
was any thing bad meant against us, by asking the assistance
of the Half King in bringing us to Detroit, if Girty stood in
need of it; for the commandant had closed his letter, or speech
to them, with a special charge,' not to plunder us, nor other139History of the Girtys.
wise abuse us; neither to suffer us to be plundered or abused
by any person whatsoever.'"
"On the morning of the 13th of March," continues Heckewelder, "a Frenchman named Francis Levallie [Le Villier],
from Lower Sandusky, gave us notice that Girty, who was to
have taken us to Detroit, having gone with a party of Wyandots to war against the Americans on the Ohio, had appointed
him to take his place in taking us to Detroit, and that on the
next day after to-morrow (the 15th) he [Le Villier] would be
here again to set out with us. A little conversation with this
man satisfied us that we had fallen into better hands. He
told us' that Girty had ordered him to drive us before him to
Detroit, the same as if we were cattle, and never make a halt
for the purpose of the women giving suck to their ehildren.
That he should take us routld the head of the lake (Erie) and
make us foot every step of the way'-that he, however, would
not do this, but would talke us to Lower Sandusky, and from
that place send a runner with a letter to the commandant at
Detroit, representing our situation, and taking further orders
from him respecting us." *
Leaving the missionaries preparing to obey the orders of
DePeyster, at Detroit, by getting ready for the journey to
Lower Sandusky as suggested by the loquacious Frenchman
who was to take charge of them, let us follow Simon Girty in
his raid with his war-party of Wyandots to the Ohio. He
left Upper Sandusky, on the 17th of March, under instructions
from the Detroit commandant, to see certain disaffected persons on the border if possible. He had with him Scotosh,
the Half King's son, and eight other Wyandots.  Before
reaching the Ohio, his force was joined by other Wyandots
under the lead of the war chief, Abraham Kuhn; so that the
party then numbered thirty. Girty soon saw from the report
of an Indian he had sent ahead that it would be too dangerous to undertake the real object of his journey, the Virginians
having scouts so thick in that quarter. He determined at
once, upon getting this information, to see what he could do
* Heckewelder's Narrative, pp. 303-306, 308, 309.
140History of the Girtys.
in the way of taking some scalps or prisoners, or perhaps
both.*  The force divided-one party crossing that river at
Mingo Bottom, a short distance below what is now Steubenville, Ohio; another numbering fourteen, with Abraham Kuhn,
proceeding to Fort McIntosh, in hopes of ambuscading some
of the soldiers of that post. With those who crossed the
Ohio, went Girty.
Girty's party again divided, ten of the warriors going some
distance up the Ohio, while he and the residue soon struck
inland. On the first of April, Scotosh, who led the ten warriors, captured with his own hands Thomas Edgerton, who
was on his way from his cabin, at the mouth of Harman's
creek, to Colonel James Brown's fort, to borrow a log-chain
of him. The Indians camne suddenly upon him and made
signs to him to surrender; but he made an effort to escape;
was mired in the creek; and the savages made him prisoner,
hurrying him with them across the Ohio. The warriors who
went to Fort McIntosh were even more successful; for they
ambushed five of the garrison, killing or taking prisoners the
whole party, who were out wood-cutting and had carelessly
laid down their arms to load their wagon. Girty and his warriors went to the home of Zachariah Spriggs, near the site of
the present West Liberty, took prisoners John Stevenson of
the militia and one of Spriggs's negroes, the latter, however,
effecting his escape. The marauders passed a point of land
about a mile above the mouth of the Virginia Short creek,
which is still called " Girty's Point."  They succeeded in recrossing the Ohio with their prisoner and one scalp, reaching
Upper Sandusky on the eighth of April.t
On the return of the whole force, Edgerton was left at the
Half King's town, where a portion of the Wyandots remained,
while the residue. with Girty among them, proceeded on to
Lower Sandusky, when, on the twelfth of April, Girty wrote
to DePeyster, giving him an account of his maraud.4 So far
* Girty to DePeyster, April 12, 1782, from Lower Sandusky.-MS. letter,
Haldimand Papers.
t Girty to DePeyster, April 12, 1782.-MS. letter before cited.
t Id.
141History of the Girtys.
as shooting down inoffensive and unsuspecting bordermen, or
hurrying them into the wilderness as captives to be tortured
by the Indians, was concerned, he was now certainly acting
the part of a sasvage. If he did not, with his own hands,
tomahawk and scalp women and children, it only serves to
show that his civilized nature revolted from doing directly
what his savagery prompted him to do indirectly in leading
and encouraging the Indians to such barbarity. It is not
known that he actually took part with the savages in torturing prisoners at the stake; but it is certain, as we shall presently see, that he took delight in seeing it done.
Of the "Point" before mentioned as having received its
name from the circumstance of Girty and his warriors passing the place with their prisoners, much has been written.
"Girty's Point, above the mouth of Short creek," says a
Western chronicler, " is a short distance from the Ohio, and
is the abrupt terminations of one of the elevated ridges. It
derived its name froimn the famous and infamous white renegade, Simon Girty. It was his favorite place for striking into
the interior. The path first made by his Indians is still used
by the people of the neighborhood." *
"A settlement at West Middletown, in Washington county,
Pennsylvania, and one at West Liberty, in the adjoining
county of Ohio, in the State of Virginia," are the words of
another Western writer, "were, in the year 1781, the most
advanced posts of the North-western frontier. These settlements had been the scenes of frequent skirmishes between the
settlers and savages. The tribes of the Scioto and Miami
valleys had made this frontier a favorite point of their marauding incursions. The war-parties generally crossed the Ohio
river at the Mingo bottom [on the west side of the river just
below the present Steubenville, Ohio]; and, taking advantage
of a deep ravine above a high promontory that projects boldly
into the river, and known as Girty's Point, concealed themselves, if circumstances made concealment necessary, or as* De Bass, in his History of the Early Settlement and Indian Wars of
Western Virginia, p. 342.
14:2History of the Girtys.
cended into the highlands of the interior, to the neighborhood
of the settlements. The infamous Simon Girty frequently
led these marauding parties to this high point bearing his
name, whence he sent out his parties, and where he remained
till they returned ladened with the sanguinary spoils-prisoners and scalps from the devasted settlements." *
But these extracts are misleading.  The maraud when
Stevenson was taken prisoner was the only one in which Girty
ever led a war-party across the Ohio at or near the "Point,"
so far as there is any positive evidence.
NOTE I.--Heckewelder's assertion that Girty was "an outcast among mankind" is wholly unwarranted.' In no sense
(whatever was the cruelty-the savagery-of his nature) had he
been cast out or expelled by his countrymen; he was not an
exile-one driven from home or country.
NOTE II.-" Friday, March 1 [1782], through a messenger
[we] were summoned to Pomoacan [the Half King], who sent
word he had something to tell us. Br. David [Zeisbergerl who
was especially summoned went there Saturday, the 2d [of March]
with Br. Heckewelder aid two Indian brethren, where also acouncil of Wyandots and Delawares was assembled; there it
was told us by the Half King that a letter had come from the
commandant in Detroit [DePeyster], which a white man, Simon Girty by name, had given him to read, and indeed it was
not written to us, but to him [Simon Girty]; and to our great
amazement it contained the following sentence regarding us
missionaries:
"' You [Simon Girty] will please present the strings I send
you to the Half King and tell him I have listened to his demand. I therefore hope he will give you [Girty] such assistance as you may think necessary to enable you to bring the
teachers [missionaries] and their families to this place [Detroit]. I will by no means allow you to suffer them to be
* S. C. Coffinberry, in the Monthly Literary Miscellany for September,
1851, p. 388.
143History of the Girtys.
plundered or any way ill-treated.' "-Diary of David Zeisberger, Vol. I, p. 68.
NOTE III.-It is altogether probable that Le Villier told the
missionaries what was not true as to Girty having ordered him
to drive them like cattle to Detroit. Between this Frenchman
and Girty there was no good feeling; besides, it would have
been strange indeed for the latter to be in any manner instrumental in disobeying the positive injunction of DePeyster
that they (the missionaries) should not be in any manner illtreated.
NOTE IV.--The site of Upper Sandusky was no longer
up the river from what is now the county-seat of Wyandot
county, Ohio. The Wyandots had moved their village eight
miles farther down the river and on the west side of the
stream. Here the Half King had his home; and this was
now the head-quarters of Simon Girty, although he was
frequently, so long as the Revolution lasted, at Lower Sandusky. Upper Sandusky of 1782 and the Half King's town
were, therefore, identical. (For its exact location, see An
Historical Account of the Expeditiof against Sandusky under Col. William Crawford in 1782, p. 162.)
144History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XVI.
We will now return to the Moravian missionaries at their
quarters upon the Sandusky, eight miles above the Half King's
town. Agreeably to the letter from DePeyster and the desire
of Le Villier, they had departed for Lower Sandusky on their
way to Detroit, commencing their journey on the 15th of
March, with the person last named, instead of Girty, as their
conductor. " Many of the brethren and sisters [' Moravian' Indians]," says Heckewelder, " accompanied us part of the way,
and some continued with us until our arrival at this place
[Lower Sandusky]; the sisters carrying our two small children
by turns on their backs well secured in their blankets from the
wet and cold. Our conductor, Mr. Lavallie [La Villier], seeing the senior missionary [David] Zeisberger, (at that time
upwards of sixty years of age) set out on foot, took his own
riding horse to him, saying:' No, monsieur! that will not do!
here is my horse at your service! Zeisberger replying: that
he would try to walk with the rest.'No!' (said the Frenchman)'respect both for your age, and the station you are in,
demands this of me as a duty!' and walking off, he took his
post in the rear of us. It was a most fatiguing journey to
us all, on account of the badness of the roads; and particularly to those who were afflicted with rheumatic pains.
"Arriving at Lower Sandusky, after several days traveling
through the wilderness and swampy grounds, we were kindly
received, by two English traders, who resided about a mile
from each other, with the principal village of the Wyandots
between them. Mr. Arundle having a spacious house, took
in those who had families, while Mr. Robbins made the two
single brethren welcome at his house, our conductor lodging
with the former. With the assistance of Mr. Arundle, a letter was immediately written to the commandant at Detroit
10
145History of the Girtys.
James-was born in 1743. The birth of George, the fourth
child, was in 1745.  There were no daughters.*
It is certain that the home of the Girty family, at least
from the date of the birth of their first child, was at Chambers's Mill, on the east side of the Susquehanna, above Harris's-that is, above the site of the present city of Ilarrisburg-then in the county of Lancaster, in that portion which
has since been formed into Dauphin county. The place was
familiarly known, at that period, as i" Chambers's, in Paxtang."
Five miles above Harrisburg, there empties into the Susquehanna, on the eastern side, a sinall stream, called Fishing creek. At the mouth, or, rather, several hundred yards
from it, at an early day, at least prior to 1730, several
brothers of the name of Chambers erected      a mill, hence,
the name of the place--" Chambers's Mill."       It was this
family of Chambers that settled Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, in 1736.  During the French and Indian war, a fort,
or stockade, was built at Chambers's Mill, named "Fort
Hunter."   This was subsequently called "McAllister's;" it
is yet known as " Fort Hunter.",t Chamnbers's Mill was a settleinent not famous for its morality. Indeed, it had few, if
any, rivals, for its wickedness, in the province."
Of those who lived at Chambers's and in its vicinity, employed, as was Simon Girty, Sr., in the Indian trade, the
names of several have been preserved, some of whom were
then (and others afterward became) noted in their calling; but,
in that class, "Girtee," of "Paxtang," can not be reckoned.
Of Indian traders, licensed from the 10th of August, 1747, to
Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 256), that Simon Girty, Jr.,
was born in 1744; but this is error.
* There is a tradition afloat in Essex county, Canada, which I have met
with, to the effect that the Girty boys above mentioned had a sister; but this
is clearly erroneous.
t Compare Rupp's History of Dauphin, Cumberland, Franklin, Bedford,
Adams, and Perry Counties (Pa.), pp. 69, 80; also, Egle's History of Daup1hin County, pp. 50, 51.: Consult, in this connection, An Account of the Life of the Late Reverend Mr. David Brainerd. Boston, 1749. p. 200.
21istory of the Girtys.
[Major DePeyster], and sent by express, to inform him
of our arrival at this place, setting forth our situation-the
impossibility of our traveling by land to Detroit (as. Girty
had ordered it), and hoping he would assist us with a boat,
etc." *
The return to Lower Sandusky of the warriors of that place
who had gone against Fort McIntosh and the settlements
above Wheeling, is thus given by Heckewelder:
"It so happened, that one day, when all appeared quiet at
and about the village [of Lower Sandusky], I took a walk to
Mr. Robbins's house, where the brethren, Young and Edwards,
were lodged; and while there, the scalp yell was sounded at the
same time, in two opposite directions; and both war-parties
could, owing to the very high situation of the spot the house
was on, be plainly seen, coming on with their prisoners and
scalps, though'yet a great distance: both parties having
prairie ground to travel on. Having asked Mr. Robbins's
opinion, which would be the best for me to do, to go straightway home to my quarters, or wait until the storm was over,
he advised the first; for me it was fortunate that the situation
of the village, prevented the inhabitants hearing the yells on
the back side, the way I was coming; while from the other
side, they not only heard the yells plainly, but also saw the
party with their prisoners and scalps advancing, and knowing
that they would be taken to the dwelling of the captain of the
party (but about fifteen yards beyond Mr. Arundle's house),
they all ran full speed from the village to meet them; which
gave me an opportunity of passing through the village after
they left it; and I had just reached my lodgings, when the
party, consisting of fourteen warriors, with three prisoners,
and some scalps, which they had taken at Fort McIntosh (they
being on fatigue while attacked and taken), were ascending
the bank at the back side of the house we lodged in, and from
whence these prisoners had to take their start, in running
what is generally called the'gauntlet.' The other party,
* Heckewelder's Narrative, pp. 329, 330.
146History   of the Girtys.
who came in from the back side, havirig none but scalps,
stopped at the village, from where as from the opposite side,
the scalp yell was sounded and resounded at intervals." *
The missionaries, who had now been nearly four weeks at
Lower Sandusky awaiting an answer from the commandant
at Detroit, were getting uneasy lest Girty should return before
their departure; in which event, they feared ill-treatment at
his hands, believing as they did all they had heard as to orders he had given LeVillier respecting them. We will let
Heckewelder narrate what happened now that Girty had arrived and found them not yet gone:
"He [Girty] did return, and behaved like a madman, on
hearing that we were here, and that our conductor had disobeyed his orders, and had sent a letter to the commandant at
Detroit respecting us. He flew at the Frenchman, who was
in the room adjoining ours, most furiously, striking at him,
and threatening to split his head in two for disobeying the
orders he had given him. He swore the most horrid oaths respecting us, and continued in that way until after midnight.
His oaths were all to the purport that he never would leave the
house until he had split our heads in two with his tomahawk,
and made our brains stick to the walls of the room in which
we were. I omit the names he called us by, and the words he
made use of while swearing, as also the place he would go to
if he did not fulfill all which he had sworn that he would do
to us. He had somewhere procured liquor, and would, as we
were told by those who were near him, at every drink renew
his oaths, which he repeated until he fell asleep.
" Never before did any of us hear the like oaths, or know
any body to rave like him. IIe appeared like an host of evil
spirits. He would sometimes come up to the bolted door between us and him, threatening to chop it in pieces to get at
us. No Indian we had ever seen drunk would have been a
match for him. How we should escape the clutches of this
white beast in human form no one could foresee. Yet at the
proper time relief was at hand; for, on the morning, at break
* Heckewelder's Narrative, pp. 831, 332.
147History of the Girtys.
of day, and while he still was sleeping, two large flat-bottomed
boats arrived from Detroit, for the purpose of taking us to
that place. This was joyful news! And seeing the letter
written by the commandant to Mr. Arundle respecting us, we
were satisfied that we would be relieved fiom  the hands of
this wicked white savage, whose equal, we were led to believe,
was (perhaps) not to be found among mankind.*
And thus Zeisberger: "An Englishmnan [Girty] who lives
among the Wyandots, who received the order to conduct us to
Detroit, but, because, together with the Indians, he went to
the war, had got another to take his place to go with us, came
back from the war and showed himself a Satan towards us,
swore at us, and threatened to bury the tomahawk in our
heads. Through the whole night he drank his fill in the house
where we were, and we were in danger of our life, not alone
from him: a Wyandot squaw who robbed us in Schbnbrunn,
we heard say again and again, she would come and kill us all.
We could not sleep the whole night, for he [Girty] was like
one mad, and worse than the drunken Indians, yet the Savior
shielded us from harm and let the angels sing:'They shall be
uninjured.' "t
A curiosity is noW naturally awakened to know if the confident expectations of Heckewelder in escaping the wrath of
Girty were realized. His account of the matter is interesting:
" The letter from the commandant [at Detroit-Major DePeyster]-after first thanking the gentlemen here [at Lower
Sandusky], for their kindness to us; next requested them to
inform him, if they knew any of the persons, who had taken
the liberty of insulting us, either before or since we had arrived at this place [Lower Sandusky], and if so, to give him
* Heckewelder's Narrative, pp. 332-334.
t Diary of David Zeisberger, Vol. I, p. 86. Both the missionaries were
unduly frightened at the boisterous behavior of Girty. Had he broken
in upon them, the result would have been, beyond a doubt, only more
swearing and threatening; for the renegade stood in too much fear of DePeyster to have harmed them, drunk as he was.
148History of the Girtys.
their names, that he might punish them, etc.-That he had
given strict orders to the sergeant, who was to take us on, to
treat us kindly--not endanger our lives on the lake (Erie) by
sailing in stormy weather, nor even to proceed, when he found
that we considered it dangerous, or showed marks of fear,
and finally that Francis Lavallie [Le Villier], who had- brought
us so carefully thus far, should continue with us, till our arrival at Detroit; and guard us against any insults, which
might be intended against us by Indians, c. The letter being read to Captain Girty by Mr. Arundle, in the morning,
we saw no more of him while here.
" On the morning of the 14th of April, after a stay of
near four weeks at this place, we, after taking an affectionate
leave of our humane and hospitable hosts, Arundle and Robbins, embarked in the boats, with seven men of the king's
rangers to each boat, the one under the care of Sergeant Race,
and the other under a corporal of the same name. The boats
were either rowed or put under sail, as the wind was favorable;
but lying to in boisterous weather. We were on the whole
voyage treated by the boatsmen, with kindness; and not an
oath was heard during the voyage." *
Some time after the return home of Scotosh to Upper Sandusky from his raid to the eastward, the prisoner he had captured was presented to his mother, the wife of the Half King,
to be adopted in place of the sons she had lost in the Poe
fight; but the squaw refused the present. It was thereupon
decided that he should be tortured at the stake. The story
of the whole affair subsequently reached the ears of Heckewelder, who was misinformed, however, as to the person that
captured the prisoner, as well as regarding other matters connected with it. The following is his version of the event:i
"In the spring of the year 1782, the war chief [Abraham
Kuhn] of the Wyandots of Lower Sandusky sent a white
prisoner (a young man whom he had taken at Fort McIntosh)
as a present to another chief, who was called the Half King
* Heckewelder's Narrative, pp. 8834, 385.
149History of the Girtys.
of Upper Sandusky,-for the purpose of being adopted into his
family, in the place of one of his sons, who had been killed
the preceding year while at war with the people on the Ohio.
[In the Poe fight.] The prisoner arrived and was presented
to the Half King's wife, but she refused to receive him, which,
according to the Indian rule, was, in fact, a sentence of death.
The young man was therefore taken away, for the purpose
of being tortured and burnt on the pile. While the dreadful preparations were making near the village, the unhappy
victim being alrea(ly tied to the stake, and the Indians arriving from all quarters to join in the cruel act or to witness it,
two English traders, Messrs. Arundle and Robbins (I delight
in making this honorable mention of their names), shocked at
the idea of the cruelties which were about to be perpetrated,
and moved by feelings of pity and humanity, resolved to unite
their exertions to endeavor to save the prisoner's life by offering a ransom to the war-chief [Abraham Kuhn], which he
however refused, because, said he, it was an established rule
among them that when a prisoner who had been given as a
present was refused adoption, he was irrevocably doomed to
the stake, and it was not in the power of any one to save his
life. Besides, added he, the numerous war captains who were
on the spot had it in charge to see the sentence carried into
execution. The two generous Englishmen, however, were not
discouraged, and determined to try a last effort. They well
knew what effects the high-minded pride of an Indian was
capable. of producing, and to this strong and noble passion
they directed their attacks.'But,' said they in reply to the
answer which the chief had made them,'among all those
chiefs whom you have mentioned, there are none whio equals
you in greatness; you are considered not only as the greatest
and bravest, but as the best man in the nation.''Do you
really believe what you say?' said at once the Indian, looking
them full in the face.'Indeed, we do.' Then without saying
another word he blackened himself and taking his knife and
tomahawk in his hand made his way through the crowd to the
unhappy victim, crying out with a loud voice,' What have you
150History of the Girtys.
to do with my prisoner?' and at once cutting the cords with
which he was tied, took him to his house which was near Mr.
Arundle's, where he was forthwith secured and carried off by
safe hands to Detroit." * The name of the prisoner was
Thomas Edgerton, already mentioned.t      Scotosh  treated
Edgerton with kindness on his way to the Sandusky and upon
his arrival at the Half King's town.
After the departure of the missionaries from Lower Sandusky, Simon Girty made his way (it was the thirteenth of
April) to Upper Sandusky, meeting Edgerton there and informing him (which, before, he had not known; for this was
before his narrow escape from torture) that the Indian whose
prize he (Edgerton) was, was none other than the survivor of
the Poe fight and the only remaining son of the Half King--
bearing on his hand the scar of a severe wound there received.. Scotosh had previously given the particulars of the
encounter to Girty, the latter recounting them to Edgerton.
He (Scotosh) stated that, on finding himself disabled by his
wound, he stole away from the fight and, swimming the Ohio,
hid in the bushes until dark. He then constructed a raft, recrossed the river, and recovered the body of his slain brother
(the other one having floated off), conveyed it to the Indian
side of the Ohio, and there buried it, after which he made his
way in sorrow to the Sandusky. Edgerton paid a high tribute
to Indian virtue in his description of this warrior. According
to his account, he was a man of excellent principles. He
(Scotosh) defended him on his way to the Sandusky, when his
life was in danger from the other warriors of the party, and
shared with him his blanket, even giving him the largest
part; he also divided with him the last morsel of meat.
Edgerton was afterward sent to Detroit and finally released,
reaching his home in safety. ~
* Heckewelder's History Indian Nations, pp. 162, 163.
t Vermont Historical Society Collections, Vol. II., p. 356 (where Edgerton's name is given "Adgerton ").
t Newton's History of the Pan-Handle, West Virginia, p. 114.
a Newton's History of the Pan-Handle, West Virginia, p. 144. The fiction
about the big Indian, in the Poe fight, is retained by Roosevelt.
151History of the Girtys.
Among those captured at Lochry's defeat was Christian
Fast, of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, of that part
which afterward became Fayette-a boy about seventeen
years of age. He was wounded before being made prisoner,
suffering much, but his life was spared. He was taken by
the Delawares to Upper Sandusky (the Half King's town),
thence to Pipe's town on the Tymochtee, some eight miles
away. Young Fast was adopted into a Delaware family, in
the place of a son who had lost his life in a border skirmish.
He was still residing with his Indian parents on the banks of
the Tymochtee, in 1782, when Girty came up from Lower
Sandusky to the Half King's town. Girty was constantly on
the move; first at Wingenund's camp in the present Jackson
township, Crawford county, Ohio, a short distance west of
what is now Crestline; then at Pipe's town, where young
Fast was living. Naturally, the latter became at times very
melancholy.  Thoughts of home stole upon him.   Upon
one of these occasions, he left the wigwam where he was
staying and proceeded a short distance into the woods, and,
seating himself upon a log, soon was lost in meditation.
While thus musing, he was accosted by a stranger who had
suddenly come near him unperceived. Fast was spoken to in
the Delaware language by his visitor, the latter inquiring
what he was thinking about. The reply was, that he had no
company and felt lonesome.  "That is not it," said the
stranger, "you are thinking of home. Be a good boy and
you shall see your home again." The speaker was Simon
Girty. It was but another instance of his kindness to bov
prisoners. Fast afterward got pretty well acquainted with
Girty, and was the recipient of several favors at his hands.
The boy subsequently made his escape from a war-party with
which he had gone into the settlements, and reached home in
safety.*
In 1782, Thomas Girty is again heard of, from a petition
* For particulars of the capture of Christian Fast, see Knapp's History
of Ashland county, Ohio, pp. 507-509. Compare also Hill's History of the
same county, pp. 133-138. See, too, Beach's Indian Miscellany, pp. 56, 67.
152History of the Girtys.
signed by him and four other citizens, addressed to BrigadierGeneral William Irvine, then in command of Fort Pitt, and
dated the 29th of May of the year last mentioned.           "The
humble petition," say the signers, " of a part of the inhabitants of the town of Pittsburgh most humbly begeth: that
your honor will be pleased to take it into consideration, that
several of the officers and soldiers of this town have of late
made a constant practice in playing at long bullets in the
street that goes up by the brew-house, and that a number of
children belonging to us, who are dwellers on the same street,
are in danger of their lives by the said evil practices,-we
therefore hope (since we have no civil magistrate to apply to)
that your honor will condescend to put a stop to such practices
in the street, by your own special orders." * The practice, it
is hardly necessary to say, was at once strictly prohibited.
* Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 290, 291. " The power of circumstances and education to affect the lives and conduct of men is here
strikingly exemplified. Thomas Girty, reared among patriotic and civilizing influences, was now one of the respected and substantial citizens of
Pittsburgh (Fort Pitt), and at the very time his three Indian brothers
were joining in the war-whoop of the braves... he was known as a
lover of his country and was seeking to increase the security and good order
of his town."-Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, pp. 266, 267.
This statement is based upon the petition given in the text above, from the
Washington-Irvine Correspondence, where it is for the first time published.
153154
History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XVII.
Leaving Simon Girty upon the Sandusky chiefly in the
company of the Half King of the Wyandots, plotting against
his countrymen, doing all in his power to further British interests, and urging parties of Indians onward to attack the
frontiers, let us turn our attention to the aspect of affairs in
the border settlements to the eastward. In the previous fall1781--Colonel Brodhead had been relieved as commandant at
Fort Pitt by Colonel John Gibson, and the latter in November
following by Brigadier-General William Irvine.
Because of the scarcity of provisions upon the Sandusky,
about one hundred and fifty of the "Moravian " Indians, including men, women, and children, were allowed to go back to
the Tuscarawas, by the Half King, to gather corn, which had
been left standing by them in the fields of their villages.
They started, some on the 16th and others on the 19th of January, 1782, neither of the missionaries nor any other white
persons accompanying them. However, it was the 9th of February, before all had departed. With these "Moravians"
went ten other Indians,* but of what tribe is unknown, though
doubtless they were Wyandots. On the 8th of February, warriors reached the border, killing one person-John Fink. A
party of Indians, numbering forty, as indicated by their
tracks, of whom not less than thirty were, from the best information that can be got " Moravians," raided from the Tuscarawas into the settlements, capturing, on Raccoon creek,
Mrs. Robert Wallace and her three children, but the youngest
and Mrs. Wallace were tomahawked before the Ohio was
reached. This occurred on the tenth of the same month.t
* Dorsey Pentecost to the Governor of Pennsylvania, May 8, 1782, in
Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. IX, p. 540.
t The tracks of forty warriors were noted (see Pennsylvania Packet,
March 30, and April 16, 1782); there could not have been, therefore, less
than thirty of the party "Moravians," as no other Indians, save the tenHistory of the Girtys.                 155
Soon after, a war-party of six, of whom two were "Moravians," also left the valley of the Tuscarawas, striking the
settlements on Buffalo creek and carrying off John Carpenter
as prisoner.*  There was now no doubt in the minds of the borderers that " enemy Indians "-that is, " British Indians "were harboring in the recently deserted " Moravian" Indian
towns upon the Tuscarawas. Thereupon, James Marshel, lieutenant of Washington county, Pennsylvania, ordered out, according to law, some of the militia to march across the Ohio and
attack them.t  The force was commanded by Colonel David
Williamson. Upon reaching the Tuscarawas, ninety of the
"Moravian "- Indians--men, women, and children-together
with six of the other Indians who had come with them from the
Sandusky, were captured at Gnadenhiitten, and subsequently all
killed, except two boys who succeeded in eluding the militia.+
The residue of those from the Sandusky were in one of the
other villages; these, taking the alarm, made good their escape. The militia supposed, until they learned the contrary
from their prisoners, that they had captured only British Indians. When they became assured that most of the captured
were " Moravians," they concluded to take them to Fort Pitt
and deliver them to General Irvine, who commanded there,
and they so informed their prisoners; but subsequently they
discovered garments and other things in possession of the'
captives, which convinced them  that they-the "Moravian"
Indians-had just been raiding into the settlements, and that
it was their trail which had been followed by the militia; which
belief, as to about thirty of those Indians, there can be no
doubt was' well founded.
warriors already mentioned, had, up to that time, reached the Tuscarawas
from their villages to the westward of that river.
* Pennsylvania Packet, April 16, 1782.
t Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 239, 240, where this fact (that
is, that those who marched were not only militia, but were regularly called
out by the proper authority) is, for the first time, published.
"t One of them [that is, one of the militia] took off with him a small Indian boy, whose life was thus spared."-Roosevelt. This has long since
been proven erroneous.History of the Girtys.
the same day of the next year, the list is extant; also, of those
not licensed; among the latter is found the name of Girty.*
However, there is no evidence that he fell into the clutches
of the law for his dereliction; as, on the 10th of August,
1748, he received the proper authority to traffic with the, savages; when, it is probable, the amount of license for the year
previous was paid.
The homre of Girty, at this time, was on the confines of
civilization; nevertheless, the " course of empire " was " westward," across the Susquehanna-" beyond the Endless mountains, on Juniata, on Sherman's creek, and elsewhere," to the
great uneasiness of the Indians, for more than thirty families
of white people, in the spring of 1749, had settled on their
lands.t
The number of adventurers increased, and the Indians became thoroughly alarmed. They demanded their removal.
Pennsylvania could not do otherwise than to comply with the
wishes of the savages; but it was resolved to try peaceable
measures-warnings to the interlopers-and, if these failed,
force would be employed. So the sheriff of Lancaster county,
and three magistrates, with a government agent, were sent to
the Trans-Susquehanna settlements to warn the people to leave
immediately. Little heed was given to their words. Not
only were there no returns to the east bank, but settlers continued to arrive. Among these, in 17'49, was Simon Girty,
Sr., and family, from Chambers's. He settled on Sherman's
creek, in what is now Perry county. But his career as a farmer was suddenly cut short.
On the 22d of May, 1750, eight provincials, good and true
men, appointed by the government, and accompanied by an
under-sheriff of the county (Cumberland), proceeded "by
force of arms," to carry out the wishes of the Indians. The
first settlement reached contained five log cabins. The occupants were taken into custody, and the houses burned.
* For the entire list of "Indian Traders Lycensed" and "Unlycensed,"
see Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. II, p. 14.
t Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. II, p. 24.
3History of the Girtys.
Williamson's men, suddenly made desperate by what they
had discovered (some of the bloody garments being recognized
as having belonged to the victims of one of the raids before
mentioned), resolved to put to death, without discrimination,
all who were in their hands; and this resolution, as we have
already mentioned, they proceeded to carry into effect. It
was a ghastly retaliation, only made possible by the previous
aggressions of the thirty " Moravian" Indians and the " British Indians" who were with them.
Dorsey Pentecost, a prominent citizen of the West, wrote
to the governor of Pennsylvania on the 8th of May. In
speaking of the killing of the " Moravians," he declares that,
" Thus far, I believe, it may be depended on, that they [Williamson's men] killed rather deliberately the innocent with the
guilty, and it is likely the majority was the former;" that is,
that a majority of the "Moravian" Indians taken prisoners
at Gnadenhiitten had not, it is likely, been on the late maraud
into the settlements.
It was no new thing for the " Moravians" to go upon the
war-path against the border settlements, though this was never
with the consent of the missionaries. But the former could
not always be kept under control, much less watched. " Did
your Indians," afterward asked DePeyster of Zeisberger,
" ever go to war?"  "Never," was the reply, " while under
our charge." This was virtually an admission that they did
sometimes go to war when not under the missionaries' charge.
And it is certain they were not, at any time during the year
1782, under the charge of any one of them; either at Gnadenhiitten or any where else upon the Tuscarawas. Tha?t the surviving "Moravians," some of them, afterward went to war
upon the Sandusky, is susceptible of the clearest proof.
That garments and other articles were found at Gnadenhiitten
in possession of the " Moravian " Indians, which had just been
taken from the Americans in the raids before mentioned, even
the Moravian writers do not deny. It must stand as a fact
that can not be gainsaid. " It is said here [in Pittsburgh], and
I believe with truth," wrote Pentecost in the letter already re156History of the Girtys.
ferred to, "that sundry articles were found amongst the
[" Moravian"] Indians that were taken from the inhabitants
of Washington county [on the then recent raids]." *
"The borderers," wrote one who got his information from
the militia after their return, "' discovered that some of the
[' Moravian'] Indians were wearing their friends' clothes who
had been killed and scalped; and they also saw various kinds
of plunder that had been taken in tile war." t
Corroborative, to a certain extent, of the " Moravian" Indians having taken part, in considerable numbers, in the raid
on Raccoon creek, which resulted in the killing of Mrs. Robert
Wallace, as before mentioned, is the opinion of H. H. Brackenyidge, of Pittsburgh, as given to Francis Bailey, of Philadelphia, on the 3d of August, of the same year.   "I am
disposed to believe that the greater part of the men [" Moravian" Indians] put to death [at Gnadenhiitten] were warriors; this appears from the testimony of one against another,
from the confession of many,' from their singing the war
song when ordered out to be tomahawked, from the cut and
painting of their hair, and from other circumstances.".
It is the uniform testimony of all persons who were under
Williamson and who afterward made statements concerning
the expedition which have been preserved, that it was the discovery of articles of clothing in possession of the " Moravians," taken from persons killed on the then recent raids
into the settlements, which induced the militia to change their
minds about taking them to Fort Pitt.
* Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. IX, p. 640, already cited.
t James Smith, in a Treatise on Modern Management of Indian WVar,
p. 68.
t From the Kniight and Slover Narratives, original edition (1783), p. 31.
As to the "Gnadenhiitten Affair," compare, for many particulars, Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 67, 99, 127, 236-239, 240-242, 244, 282,
288, 289, 361, 372-374, 377, and the authorities there cited. For a weak attempt of a Moravian writer to account for the "Moravian " Indians having
in their possession trophies of the raids into Washington county, and at the
same time to exonerate them from any participation in those marauds, see
Schweinitz's Life and Times of David Zeisberger, p. 646, note.
157History of the Girtys.
A wild and wholly sensational story--erroneous in every
particular-has found its way into print to the effect that
Williamson's expedition was planned in reality by the British
at Detroit; that it was part of the British policy matured
there, of having the " Moravian " Indians massacred by excited American borderers, in order to brirng over to the British side all the tribes, and unite them against the colonists;
and that Simon Girty in disguise went to the border settlements and among his old acquaintances, where he statted and
hurried on the expedition against the AIoravian towns. " This
was the kind of double life that Girty gloried in; first on the
border, exciting the whites to kill the Christian [" Moravian "]
Indians and burn their towns in the valley; next at the warriors' towns, inciting them to revenge the deaths of those
Christians; and he lost no time in fanning the flame in their
camp fires." *
Appropos of the account of the killing of the " Moravian "
Indians at Gnadenhiitten, is the fiction of Simon Girty having, about that time, sold to one of them a young lad named
Isaac Walker. The writer of that romance mentions that a
patriarch of these Indians,'named Abraham, visited in the
previous fall, " along with other worthies," the Wyandot villages on the waters of the Sandusky, for the purpose of purchasing some captives that might have fallen into the hands
of the ruthless Wyandots that season. They remained on the
Sandusky until after the tragedy of Gnadenhiitten and then
set out to return (at least one of them--" Father Abraham).
The writer then goes on to say:
" Six weeks after the spoiler had left his bloody foot-prints
on the thresholds of the Moravian villages, the good patriarch,
Father Abraham, returned from his mission to the Wyandots.
He led in his hand a white lad of twelve years old, by the
the name of Isaac Walker, whom, at an exorbitant price, he
had purchased from [Simon] Girty, with a view of restoring
him to his pareats in Virginia. But he found his village
* Newton's History of the Pan-Handle, West Virginia, pp. 112, 118.
158listory of the Girtys.
[Gnadenhiitten] in ashes, his fields laid waste, and the blood
of his children dried in clots on his giant stairway. The poor
old man stood and gazed in silence over this scene of desolation. The party that had accompanied [him] remained in
the forest behind him, to chase the elk and the moose. He
stood alone of all his people in the midst of this ruin. No
one was present but the fair-haired boy, he led by the hand.
He turned to that boy and thus addressed him:
"'Boy, I took you from the firm Wyandot to restore you
to the bosom of your parents; but go, plunge again into the
wilderness; it is better to be a redman than a pale face. The
God of the pale face is false; he will not protect his children.
The pale face lies. He teaches the redman to spare the blood
of his victim, but drinks it himself into his belly. Go, boy,
fly from the footsteps of the pale face and worship the Manitou of the redman. The pale face is false.'
"This boy returned with Abraham to Sandusky, where he
grew up a Wyandot chief, and where his posterity remained
till within a few years, when the Wyandots were removed by
Congress to a place west of the Mississippi." *
S-o far as Isaac Walker is concerned, all that is not pure fiction in this account is, the fact of his capture by the Wyandots, when a boy, his being adopted into their tribe, and his
descendants going West, when the Wyandots left the Sandusky.
" The small parties that I served out ammunition to, the 1st
of March last,'" wrote Simon Girty from Lower Sandusky to
DePeyster, on the 12th of April, " are all returned except one
party. They have brought in fourteen men's scalps and four
men prisoners; so that there have neither woman or child
suffered this time. There is one Indian killed and three
wounded. I shall leave this place to-morrow morning and
proceed to Upper Sandusky. I take with me one hundred
pounds powder and two hundred pounds of ball and eight
dozen of knives, for the use of the Wyandots, Monseys and
* C. S. Coffinberry, ihL the Monthly Literary Miscellany, of September,
1851, pp. 385-394.
159History of the Girtys.
Delawares. I was obliged to purchase some little necessaries
from Mr. Arundel [the trader] that were not in the king's
store, which I hope you will be good enough to excuse, as I
did it for the good of the service. I should be very much
obliged to you if you would be kind enough to order me out
some few stores, that I may have it in my power to give a
little to some Indians that I know to be deserving." *  I
It is thus seen that Girty among the Wyandots was not, as
some have supposed, to all intents and purposes an Indian of
th%t tribe-roaming lawlessly about, with no aim, when not on
the war-path, but to pass his time in dancing, feasting, and
drinking. On the contrary, although only paid as an interpreter, he was frequently attending to the king's business
upon the Sandusky for the Detroit commandant, as though he
had been actually a sub-agent of the British Indian Department.
At Detroit, Major DePeyster had been busy, during the
winter, in concerting measures for the Indians and British to
attack Fort Pitt, so soon as the weather in the spring would
allow; but, in February, two deserters arrived at the Shawanese towns upon the Mad river from General Clark at Louisville, giving the information that Fort Pitt was put into such
a state of defense as would render the reduction of it uncertain; but that the fortification at Louisville was weak and
could easily be taken.
However, just at this time, alarming intelligence came from
the East, sent to Detroit by Simon Girty, inducing an immediate concentration of every available force upon the Sandusky, to be prepared to act on the defensive.
Many schemes had been advocated-many plans had been
laid-in the border settlements and at Fort Pitt against
the Wyandots; as it was well known their towns and those
of their neighbors were the prolific hives of mischief to
* MS. letter, already cited. The words, "so that there have neither
woman or child suffered this time," tell but too plainly a tale of woe-a horrible tale of thousands of innocent victims that had "suffered",by savages
as did the Indian women and" children at Gnadenhiitten by white men.
160History of the Girtys.                161
the frontiers of Pennsylvania and Virginia. As yet, the expeditions that had actually marched to attack them were, first,
the abortive one under General McIntosh, who, had he continued against Detroit, would have assailed the enemy upon
the Sandusky on his way thither; and, second, that of Brigadier-General Clark, in 1781, who, had he been able to
have marched from the Falls of the Ohio, would have struck
the Wyandots and their allies on his way also to Detroit. It
was finally determined (the consent of General Irvine having
first been obtained) to organize a volunteer force and assail
these savages in their homes; for their aggressions had become wholly unendurable to the bordermen. Prominent citizens of Westmoreland and Washington counties, Pennsylvania, and of Ohio county, Virginia, engaged actively in recruiting and in otherwise aiding the undertaking.
Of the volunteers who went upon the campaign, about twothirds were from Washington county; the residue, except a
few  from  Ohio county, Virginia, were from  Westmoreland.
The final rendezvous was at the Mingo Bottom, on the west
side of the Ohio river, where, on the twenty-fourth day of
May, four hundred and eighty finally congregated. General
Irvine materially helped along the movement by furnishing
some supplies of ammunition and flints, and by sending his
aid (John Rose) and an assistant surgeon of his garrison (Dr.
John Knight) to accompany the expedition.
The whole force, with Colonel William Crawford, of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania (an officer of the Continental
army), as their leader, began their march, on the 25th of May,
for Upper Sandusky.*   All were mounted. But, previous to
* Roosevelt, in The Winning of the West, Vol. II, p. 159, says:' Colonel
William Crawford was a fairly good officer, a just and upright man, but
with no special fitness for such a task as that he had undertaken." To say
that Colonel Crawford was "a fairly good officer," is "damning with faint
praise." General Joseph Reed declared him a "very good officer," and
Washington said he was " brave and active." And it is positively anld particularly wrong to assert that he had "no special fitness for such a task as
that he had undertaken."
11History of the Girtys.
giving further particulars of their march, it will be necessary, to a proper understanding of the part taken by Simon
and George Girty on the side of the Indians before the Americans reached the Sandusky, to follow up the chain of events
in the Sandusky country and at Detroit, from the time knowledge of the movement first reached there until all measures
had been perfected for as complete a defense as possible.
The fear of an expedition under command of General Irvine from Fort Pitt against Detroit, kept DePeyster, at the
post last mentioned, fully awake for early information, should
such an enterprise be undertaken by the former. From John
Stephenson, the prisoner taken by Girty in his raid across the
Ohio, information was gained of an expedition on foot against
Upper Sandusky; and the latter, upon his return to Lower
Sandusky, sent the intelligence to DePeyster.*  However,
the intended campaign was given up almost as soon as formed;
but another was afterward set on foot, the one before noted as
being under command of Colonel Crawford; which fact soon
came to the knowledge of the Wyandots, who sent to the Detroit commandant an urgent request for help. DePeyster at
once responded to the appeal by getting ready a vessel (the
"Faith") to convey Rangers to the Sandusky river.t Girty
was with the Half King when the account reached the Wyandots of the actual marching of Crawford; and he exerted himself to the utmost in aiding that chief to call in all the absent
warriors and hunters of the nation. The Delawares at Wingenund's camp, near what is now Crestline, Ohio; those on the
Tymochtee, at Pipe's town; and such as were in their villages,
to the southward;-all were quickly notified of the impending
danger. Runners were also sent to the Mingoes and Shawanese with the intelligence that the Wyandots were to be assailed; for this fact was immediately made evident to the Indians
who were watching the movements of the Americans at the
Mingo Bottom, when the direction taken by the latter was observed as they took up their line of march from the Ohio.
* Girty to IyePeyster.-MS. letter of April 12th, already frequently cited.
t DePeyster to Powell, May 16, 1782.-MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
4
162History of the Girtys.
DePeyster lost no time in dispatching Rangers and some
"Lake Indians " to the help of the Wyandots. The former were
a company commanded by Captain William Caldwell.*     Crossing Lake Erie to Lower Sandusky, they began their march up
the Sandusky river, making all possible haste to succor their
Indian atllies. The Rangers had with themn two field-pieces, and
a mortar, which, however, they were compelled to leave for a
detachment to bring forward as best they could, while the main
force was urged on to Upper Sandusky, where they arrived
"just in time of need," meeting there a wild assemblage of
whooping and stamping Wyandots and Delawares, and some
Mingoes.   Adding to the foregoing the "Lake Indians," and
the whole Indian force numbered not less than two hundred.
These, with the white troops, were gathered at the Half King's
town, on the 4th of June, to give battle to Crawford's advancing army. In command of the entire army was Captain
Caldwell. Under him, to direct the movements of the Indians,
was Captain Elliott. Dunquat had the immediate command
of the Wyandots; Captain Pipe, of the Delawares.    With the
latter was George Girty; with the former, Simon Girty.
NOTE I.-No one of the prominent events occurring in the
West during the Revolution has been written about with so
much ignorance of the facts as Williamson's expedition to the
Tuscarawas, which resulted, as we have seen, in the killing of
ninety " Moravian" Indians and six " British Indians," prisoners-men, women, and children. Nearly all published accounts from Doddridge (Notes on the Settlement and Indian
VVWashington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 122, 127, 305, 368, 370, 371, 378.
N'one of the officers or interpreters (or other employes) of the British Indian Department at Detroit were Rangers. Nor were any French-Canadian
partisans, American prisoners, or loyalists, unless regularly enlisted in one
of the companies of " Butler's Rangers," as the whole were usually designated, although they were sometimes spoken of simply as "the Corps of
Rangers" (see DePeyster's Miscellanies, pp. 247, 261). Caldwell was not,
as Roosevelt asserts, an Englishman. He was born in Ireland. At the
commencement of the Revolution, he lived in Pennsylvania. He was a
" refugee loyalist."
163History of the Girtys.
Wars of the Western Parts of Virginia and Pennsylvania, etc.)
to Roosevelt (The Winning of the West), contain many errors.
Among the Moravian writers, there is nothing lacking in coloring or in misstatements; and, with some of them, there is
downright falsification.
As neither of the Girtys was directly or remotely (except
in foolish traditions) connected with the expedition, a more
extended account than that which is found in this chapter
could not be indulged in; and even this has only been given
because it paves the way for introducing other events in which
they were actors of more or less importance.
NOTE II.--The letter of Simon Girty to DePeyster, of April
12, 1782, from which several extracts have heretofore been
given, was as follows:
"[LOWER] SANDUSKY, April 12, 1782.'SIR:--I left Upper Sandusky as early as the 17th of
March in company with the Half King's son and eight others;
but, as to the place I intended to go, I found it impracticable,
for the Virginians were too thick scouting in that quarter,
which rendered my design abortive; and the paper that you
gave me, I had no opportunity of delivering to them that I
wanted to see. I was obliged to go another way and make a
stroke, and push off as fast as possible. We killed one soldier and took one man prisoner, and arrived at Upper Sandusky the 8th of April. The said prisoner informed me that
General Irvine had returned from the Congress to Fort Pitt;
that he had been down for two battalions of troops; but
whether he had obtained them or not, he could not tell. He
further says on his [Irvine's] arrival at Fort Pitt, he had
called all the militia officers together and likewise the regular
captains to a council of war, and that it was determined to
start in a few days on a small campaign, their number to consist of about 500 foot and 300 horse; that they intended to
go to Sandusky-and are to march from Fort McIntosh.
"The'Moravians' that went from Upper Sandusky this
spring to fetch their corn from their towns where they lived last
164History of the Girtys.
summer, are all killed by the Virginia militia; the number of
dead amounts to ninety-six men, women, and children. There
is a Delaware man arrived, that has been some time confined
at Fort Pitt. He made his escape, and informs that all the
Delawares that lived there as friends to the Americans are
killed by the Virginians-and as to the other news from that
quarter, it is just the same as given by the prisoner that I
brought in.
" The small parties that I served out ammunition to, the 1st
of March last, are all returned, except one party. They have
brought in fourteen men's scalps, and four men prisoners; so
that thiere have neither woman nor child suffered this time.
There is one Indian killed and three wounded. I shall leave
this place to-morrow morning, and proceed to Upper Sandusky. I take with me one hundred pounds of powder and
two hundred pounds of ball, and eight dozen of knives for the
use of the Wyandots, Monseys, and Delawares. I was obliged
to purchase some little necessaries, from Mr. Arundell, that
were not in the King's store, which I hope you will be good
enough to excuse, as I did it for the good of the service. I
should be very much obliged to you, if you would be kind
enough to order me out some few stores, that I may have it
in my power to give a little to some Indians that I know to
be deserving.
"These are the particulars the prisoner gave. As to what
Mr. Arundell or Levellee [Le Villier] has sent in, I know
nothing; for what information they had was from an Indian.
I have nothing more particular to acquaint you with.
"I remain, with much respect, sir, your most obedient,
humble servant,                          "SIMON GIRTY.
"MAJOR DEPEYSTER."
NOTE III.-" On the forenoon of the 4th day of June [1782],
there were [before the arrival of the Rangers] but few white
men in the wild assemblage of whooping and stamping Delawares and Wyandots at their rendezvous. But of these few
was one deserving particular notice. He was dressed as an
165History of the Girtys.
Thence, the valorous nine proceeded to Sherman's creek,
where they found, besides Girty, nine other trespassers. The
ten were taken also into custody. It was found that each had
settled upon a separate tract of land, and erected a cabin
thereon. The houses, like those in the first settlement visited, were burned to the ground. Each settler was bound in
a recognizance of one hundred pounds to appear and answer
for his trespass on the first day of the next county court,
which was to be held at Shippensburg.*   In view of all the
circumstances, this violation of the law on the part of Girty
and the others can not be set down greatly to their discredit.
The former returned to Chambers's.    It was the last of his
farming operations.
Girty was not free from the vice, which every-where prevailed upon the border, of drinking too much.  It is a tradition, long since hardened into print, and many times repeated,
that he was "beastly intemperate;" that a "'jug of whisky
was the extent of his ambition;" and that "grog was his
song, and grog would he have." This, however, is overdrawn.
He would have his sprees, but he was not an habitual drunkard, although, after his return with his family to Chambers's,
an end was put to his existence, remotely, by his indulgence.
Concerning his final " taking off," the same tradition is also
at fault.  It is asserted that " his hours were wasted in idleness and intemperance, and he was finally knocked on the
head by a neighboring boor, who bore off Mrs. Girty as a trophy of his prowess." t Another published statement is, that
he had a difficulty with a neighbor. Girty challenged him.
They mef; rifles were used; but both missed.  They were then
* Rupp's History of Dauphin, Cumberland, Frankllin, Bedford, Adams,
and Perry Counties (Pa.), p. 555.
t This tradition was first given to the public in the Missouri Gazette, of
May 7, 1814; then in " The Girtys," in John W. Campbell's Biographical
Sketches (Columbus, Ohio, 1838), p. 147. From the latter it has been frequently copied. Campbell drew for his article wholly from the Gazette.
In the supplement to Vol. IX, of Niles's Weekly Register, p. 181, the Gazette article is given verbatim, but with credit.
4History of the Girtys.
Indian, but without ornaments. He seemed, as he really was,
the very incarnation of fierceness and cruelty. His name
was SIMON GIRTY. His voice rose high above the din and
tumult around. He spoke the Delaware and Wyandot languages fluently. As he rode furiously back and forth, he
volleyed forth fearful oaths in his native tongue." This,
principally upon the authority of William Walker, was given
to the public as fact in 1873, in An Historical Account of
the Expedition against Sandusky, under Col. William Crawford, in 1782," p. 182. But, I am now satisfied that, so far
as the statement relates to Girty, it is, in the main, pure fiction.
NOTE IV.-That Williamson's men at Gnadenhiitten first
intended to take their prisoners to Fort Pitt and deliver them
to General Irvine,'and that they so informed the captives,
there is not a shadow of doubt; but the Moravian writers,
with the full knowledge of this in the relation of one of their
church members, made public at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania,
soon after the expedition to the Tuscarawas, make no mention
of the fact. The reason is evident. It proves that, up to
that moment, the militia intended no harm to the " Moravian "
Indians; that what was afterward discovered was the cause of
their putting them to death. One of the " Moravians," it is
true, was shot when the Americans first approached the town;
but this was when the assailants supposed they were attacking
"British Indians" only. (Compare, in this connection, the
Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 237, 238.)
166History   of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XVIII.
On the fourth of June, Crawford and his army reached a
point a short distance north of what is now Upper Sandusky,
Ohio, where the enemy was encountered and a battle commenced between two and three o'clock in the afternoon, which
ended at sundown with the advantage on the side of the
Americans. The firing wholly ceased as the daylight disappeared. The enemy had five killed and eleven wounded; the
Americans, five killed and nineteen wounded. Captain Caldwell was among the wounded, and was compelled to leave the
field at the beginning of the action.* Captain Henry Hoagland, of the Americans, was shot and instantly killed; and
Captains James Munn and Ezekiel Ross were wounded; both,
however, recovered. Major James Brenton was also slightly
wounded. John Rose and John Gunsaulus were the undoubted
heroes of the conflict on the side of the borderers; while
Captain Elliott and Lieutenant Clinch, the latter of the Rangers,
"in particular, signalized themselves," on the British and Indian side.t The fighting was in and around a grove afterward
well known as " Battle Island," three miles north and a half
mile east of the present Upper Sandusky, and about two miles
south-westerly of the Upper Sandusky of 1782, or the Half
King's town, in what is now Crane township, Wyandot county,
Ohio.
It is a well authenticated tradition that George Girty behaved well upon the battle-field; that he exhibited consider* Lieutenant John Turney to DePeyster, from Upper Sandusky, June 7,
and Captain Caldwell to same, June 11, 1782.-Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 368, 369.
t " Too much can not be said in praise of the officers and men and the Indians. No people could behave better. Captain [Matthew] Elliott and
Lieutenant Clinch in particular signalized themselves."--Turney to DePeyster, June 7, 1782, before cited.
167History of the Girtys.
able bravery and was active in encouraging his redskin companions to greater exertions; but as to the part taken by
Simon Girty, there is no mention; none in all the British
and Indian official correspondence; and even tradition itself
(as coming from the side of the enemy) is utterly silent as to
him. It was very different among the Americans. A large
number saw him, as they verily believed. Some thought they
heard his commands given in the Indian tongue and recognized who was giving orders. Francis Dunlavy, who was
present, afterward declared, unhesitatingly, that several times
during the conflict his voice fell upon his ears. Philip Smith,
too, not only heard him, but more than once saw and recognized him-beyond gunshot, however, each time. He declared
that Girty rode a white horse; appropriately-" death on a
pale horse." Both Dunlavy and Smith had previously known
him; nevertheless, both were, evidently, mistaken in their
man. It was the general belief that he commanded the entire
force; vet nothing is more certain than that he had no command whatever during the battle.
That the volunteers could have been so easily and so generally deceived is by no means surprising. The fighting was
done in the tall grass of the Plains and the borderers had no
idea they were combatting besides a large force of Indians,
a considerable number of white men. It was their belief that,
except a few renegades, they had savages exclusively to deal
with. All knew that Simon Girty was making his home among
the Wyandots--to all his name was a familiar one. Therefore
it was that, whenever words were heard that seemed like those
of a white man, the volunteers at once imagined them as the
commands of Girty to his savages. Captain Elliott, as already noted, was conspicuous and active in his movements
during the battle, and he it was, doubtless, who was frequently
mistaken for Girty.*
* The statement in An Historical Account of the Expedition against
Sandusky (p. 208), as to Simon Girty being frequently seen and heard, was
given upon what seemed to be wholly reliable evidence, but which has
since been discovered to be error.
168History of the Girtys.
During the night after the battle, both parties lay on their
arms, each adopting the plan of building large fires along their
lines and then retiring some distance, to prevent being surprised. Daylight the next morning brought with it no change
in the relative position of the belligerents. Soon, however, the
firing was renewed between the contending parties, but in a desultory manner and at long shot only. Crawford would gladly
have attacked the foe at early dawn, but there were obstacles
in the way; several of his men were sick and a number
wounded. After nightfall a general attack was to be made.
Early in the afternoon an event transpired which changed the
aspect of affairs; this was the arrival of not less than one
hundred and forty Shawanese under the command of Captain
Snake as a reinforcement to the enemy. With them came Captain McKee and James Girty from Wapatomica. Then it was
that the Americans discovered, for the first time, the presence of
the Rangers, whom they supposed had also just arrived as succors to the enemy. Crawford concluded, therefore, that the
contemplated attack had better be abandoned, and that a defensive policy would have to be adopted. A council of war
was called and a retreat that night resolved upon. This was
effected, but not without considerable confusion, as might be
expected, and some loss in killed and captured.
Much fiction has found its way into print concerning an
alleged interview between Colonel Crawford and.Simon Girty
during the 5th of June--the day after the battle. The account which has, probably, received the most credence, but
which is wholly without foundation in fact, is the following
Wyandot Indian tradition:
"The story respecting the battle is, that if Crawford had
rushed on when he first- came amongst the Indians, they would
have given way and made but little or no fight; but they had
a talk with him three days previous to the fight, and asked
him to give them three days to collect in their chiefs and head
men of the different tribes, and they would then make a treaty
of peace with them. The three days were therefore given;
and during that time all their forces gathered together that
169History of the Girtys.
could be raised as fighting men, and the next morning Crawford was attacked, some two or three miles north of the island
where the main battle was fought.' The Indians then gave back in a south direction until they
got into an island of timber [" Battle Island"], which suited
their purpose, which was in a large plain, now well known as
Sandusky Plains. There the battle continued until night. The
Indians then ceased firing; and, it is said, immediately afterwards a man came near to the army with a white flag. Colonel
Crawford sent an officer to meet him. The man said he wanted
to talk with Colonel Crawford, and that he did not want Crawford to come nearer to him than twenty steps, as he (Girty)
wanted to converse with Crawford, and might be of vast
benefit to him.
" Crawford accordingly went out as requested. Girty then
said,' Colonel Crawford, do you know me?' The answer was,'I seem to have some recollection of your voice, but your Indian dress deprives me of knowing you as an acquaintance.'
The answer was then,'My name is Simon Girty;' and after
some more conversation between them, they knew each other
well.
i' Girty said,'Crawford, my object in calling you here is to
say to you, that the Indians have ceased firing until to-morrow
morning, when they intend to commence the fight; and as
they are three times as strong as you are, they will be able to
cut you all off. To-night the Indians will surround your
army, and when that arrangement is fully made, you will hear
some guns fire all around the ring. But there is a large
swamp or very wet piece of ground on the east side of you,
where there will be a vacancy: that gap you can learn"by the
firing; and in the night you had better march your men
through and make your escape in an east direction.'
"Crawford accordingly in the night drew up his men and
told them his intention. The men generally assenting, he
then commenced his march east; but the men soon got into
confusion and lost their course." *
* American Pioneer, Vol. II, pp. 283, 284. Joseph McCutchen, who fur170History of the Girtys.
At daybreak, on the morning of the 6th of June, about
three hundred of the Americans, in retreating, had reached
what had formerly been Upper Sandusky (south of the present
town of that name, but on the east side of the river), across the
site of which the army had passed on its inward march. It
was then discovered that Colonel Crawford, Major McClelland,
Captain Biggs, Dr. Knight, and John Slover were among the
missing. McClelland was reported killed. The enemy had
not been very eager in the pursuit, or the loss would, doubtless, have been much greater. The command of the army
now devolved upon Colonel David Williamson. He was powerfully assisted by the gallant John Rose, who at once proffered his services as aid, which were gladly accepted.
Not long after the army had resumed its march, it was
seen that the enemy were in pursuit. A considerable body of
Indians and some Rangers were at length visible in the rear.
So hard was the retreating party pressed, that, at two o'clock,
when the eastern verge of the Plains was not far ahead and
the woodland had almost been reached, a halt was called, and
a general resistance determined upon by Williamson, to give
his light horse at the same time a chance to secure the entrance to the woods. Although the enemy attacked on the
front, left flank, and rear at the same moment, they soon gave
way in every direction, so well directed was the fire of the
Americans. Williamson lost three killed and eight wounded.
Among the latter was Captain Bane, who was shot through
the body, but recovered. The enemy soon rallied their scattered forces in the open country and renewed the pursuit;
but on the morning of the seventh they were seen for the last
time, and Williamson's march to the Ohio was not again interrupted. He recrossed the river on the thirteenth, and the
next day the army was disbanded, it having received considerable accessions from straggling parties on its homeward
march.*
nished this tradition for publication, assured the writer of this narrative,
years after, that he was satisfied of its being wholly fictitious.
* According to Roosevelt, the campaign against Sandusky "was badly
171History of the Girtys.
Colonel Crawford became separated from his men just as
the retreat commenced, on the evening of June 5th; and,
with a few others, including Dr. Knight, made his way eastward, when, after striking the trail of the army, on the afternoon of the seventh, at a point just east of the present Leesville, in what is now Jefferson township, Crawford county,
Ohio, he was captured by a party of Delawares, and most of
those with him. The camp of Wingenund, a war-chief of the
Delawares, was near by; there the capfured were taken, and
there kept until the tenth, when. early in the morning, they
all started, strongly guarded, for Upper Sandusky Old Town.
Colonel Crawford had been told that Simon Girty, with whom
he was acquainted,* was at the Half King's town; and he
had hopes, could he meet him, that an appeal to him might
save his life. He therefore made a request of his captors
that they would take him to the home of the Half King.
This was agreed to, especially as, in so doing, two horses that
had been left by Crawford's party, while retreating on the
same route, were to be hunted for. The colonel, guarded by
two Delawares, reached the Wyandot village-the Half King's
town-some time duriilg the night, and had an interview with
Girty.
Girty told Crawford that William    Harrison, the colonel's
son-in-law, and William Crawford, his nephew (both of whom
conducted from beginning to end, and reflected discredit on most who took
part in it; Crawford did poorly, and the bulk of his men acted like unruly
cowards." This whole statement is far removed from the fact. See, in this
connection, the Official Report of John Rlose, printed in the WashingtonIrvine Correspondence, pp. 367-378.
* In An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky under
Col. William Crawford, in 1782 (p. 184), it is said:'- He [Simon Girty] was
frequently the guest at Crawford's hospitable cabin on the banks of the
Youghiogheny." That Girty and Crawford were well acquainted is true;
but that the former was a frequent guest of the latter is probably erroneous.
The tradition, too, that Girty aspired to the hand of one of Crawford's
daughters, but was denied, it is altogether certain has no foundation in fact.
Crawford had frequently met him at Pittsburgh, and, it will be remembered,
both were participants in Lord Dunmore's War, in the same division of the
army.
172History of the Girtys.
came out with the army, and had been missing since the night
of the retreat from the battle-field, on the sixth), were captured by the Shawanese, but had been pardoned and their lives
spared at their towns. This information was true as to their
having been taken prisoners, but false as to their capture by
the Shawanese, for they had been taken by the Delawares;
also false as to their lives having been saved: they had been
most inhumanly tortured at the stake. Girty assured Crawford that he would do all he could for him.
Of the conversation which took place between the two, nothing is known with any degree of certainty. A "Moravian "
Indian from the Tuscarawas, who understood English, was
near the two, it has been told, and heard what was said. According to the statement of this Indian, Colonel Crawford
offered Girty a thousand dollars if he would save his life.
But Girty afterward reported that the Colonel " declared he
would communicate something of importance if his life could
be saved, but that nothing else would induce him to do itintimating that some great blows would be struck against the
country." *  Girty did not mention any thing as to the alleged offer of a thousand dollars; it is certain, therefore, that
it was not made.
Simon Girty must have known of Crawford's capture before
the arrival of the latter at the Half King's town, as a letter
written by Captain Caldwell to DePeyster from Lower Sandusky, on the eleventh of June, says that " amongst the prisoners [are] Colonel Crawford and some officers." t Now, as
the colonel did not reach Upper Sandusky (the Half King's
town) until some time in the night of the tenth of that month,
it is not reasonable to suppose that Captain Caldwell, at
Lower Sandusky, got the news of his being a prisoner for the
first time on the eleventh. It is quite probable that word of
the capture of the'i Big Captain" reached the ears of Girty
by the ninth, if not the day previous. Did he make any effort
* Caldwell to DePeyster, June 13, 1782.-MS. letter, Haldimand Collection.
t Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 370, 371.
1731History of the Girtys.
in the colonel's behalf before the two had an interview during
the night of the tenth? There is not the slightest evidence
(nor is there any tradition) that he did. The great anxiety
on the part of Girty to favor " his friend Crawford," so persistently paraded by himself and his friends and relatives in
after years, was certainly not indicated in any manner before
the unfortunate colonel made an earnest appeal to him for
help. Did that indicate a friendly interest on Girty's part?
But, did Simon Girty, after his interview with Crawford,
make an effort to save the life of the latter? In other words,
did he do all he could for him, as he had promised? There
is nothing mentioned about any thing of the kind in any of
the correspondence extant between the British officers there
and DePeyster--not a word intimating that any thing was
said or done by Girty while at the Half King's town to save
the life of his "friend."  Captain Pipe, head-chief of the
Delawares, was there, and if he was importuned by Girty to
spare the unfortunate colonel, certainly DePeyster was kept
in ignorance of it by the renegade.* Now, is it probable that
the latter would have'kept this information from the Detroit
commander when he learned with what anxiety that officer
inquired into the affair? Certainly he would not. Nor does
it make it any more probable that Girty fulfilled, on his part,
what he engaged to do, by his asserting strenuously, in after
years, that he did all he could with Captain Pipe for Crawford while at the Half King's town; for, coupled with his subsequent declarations to that effect, were others which have
been proven to be false.
Besides these statements of Girty, others have been preserved, taken from the lips of aged persons who, in previous
years, had been prisoners among the Ohio Indians, and were
present, as they claimed, upon the Sandusky (or not far away)
when Crawford was captured, all purporting to give certain
* It is said in An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky
(p. 194), that Girty's influence, at this period, was as great with Captain Pipe
as with the Half King. But this is a mistake. He was never on intimate
terms with the Delaware chief.
174History of the Girtys.
facts showing Girty's determination while upon the Sandusky
to ransom, if possible, his "' friend." But-all these traditionary accounts, in one way or another, impeach themselves. " I
have often heard my mother-in-law speak of Simon Girty,"
says an aged informant, as set forth in a published article
cited already many times in these pages. "She both saw
and heard him interceding with the Indian chief for the life
of Colonel Crawford; and he offered the chief a beautiful horse
which he had with him, and the stock of goods he then had
on hand, if he would release him, but the chief said' No.' If
you were to stand in his place it would not save him.' " *
Now, it is well known that Girty was not a trader-never had
any goods or a store upon the Sandusky, as will hereafter
be fully explained; besides, the last declaration, as coming
from the Indian chief, is a gross absurdity.
NOTE.--The reasons why, on a previous page, I have given
as probably erroneous the tradition that Simon Girty, previous to his flight from Pittsburgh, had often enjoyed the hospitality of Crawford, are (1) the distance of the home of the
latter from that town; (2) the difference irn the standing of
the two-in their habits and manners--Crawford being looked
upon as one of "the first gentlemen in the West;" and (3)
the diverse employments they were engaged in-one a farmer,
surveyor, officer in the American army latterly; the other an
Indian interpreter. The writer in the Magazine of American
History, of the article cited in the preceding note, is indebted
to An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, for the tradition concerning the aspiring of Girty to
the hand of one of Crawford's daughters, but he has added
to it by calling it a " romantic attachment," and changed it
somewhat, by referring to the girl as if she was the only
daughter of Crawford.
* Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 266.
175History of the Girtys.
furnished with swords by their seconds and Girty fell mortally
wounded-run through his body by the weapon of his antagonist.
So much for traditionary accounts. The following are the
facts:  He was killed, in a drunken frolic, by an Indian
named " The Fish," at his home, about the ending of the year
1751.*  While, therefore, he received his death-wound at the
hand of a savage, it can not be said, as some accounts have it,
that he was " killed by the Indians "-the inference being that
he was the victim of a war-party, marauding in the white settlements.-tThe killing of Girty was a deed which must needs be
avenged, and the avenger was at hand. His name was John
Turner. He lived with Girty. To make things equal, he put
an end to the existence of " The Fish"-the murderer of his
friend. So, in the backwoods, justice was satisfied. It was
the law of-an eye for an eye; a tooth for'a tooth; a life for
a life.  But Turner must have his reward; and he married,
in Paxtang, early in 1753, Mrs. Girty, the widow, a woman of
unblemished character.    At the commencement of 1754, a
son was born of this union, who was named John,. after his
father.
About six months subsequent to this event, the lands in
Sherman's Valley, and on the Juniata, besides much other,
were purchased, by the Penns, of the Indians, and a land office opened for their sale, on the 3d of Februaay, 1755. ~
Immigration quickly began to make rapid strides into the' See, as to the name of the Indian who killed Girty, Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 257. It is erroneously asserted by Theodore
Roosevelt (The Winning of the West, Vol. I, p. 96), that Girty was tortured at the stake-tomahawked, finally, by a papoose held up by its father
for that purpose.
* t See Sparks's Library of American Biography, Second Series, Vol. XIII
(Peck's Life of Boone), p. 109, note.
t Registres des Baptesmes et Sepultures qui se sont faits au Fort Duquesne, loc. cit..
Q Wright's History of Perry County, Pennsylvania, pp. 13, 14. The
deed from the Indians was dated July 6, 1754.
5176               History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XIX.
When on the morning of the 10th of June, the Delaware
guard left Wingenund's camp having in charge eleven American prisoners (including Colonel Crawford and Dr. Knight)
to go to the Old Town-the former Upper Sandusky-twentyfive miles distant, it was not long before Crawford was separated from his companions to go to the Half King's town to
see Simon Girty, as before related. It was late in the afternoon before the others reached their destination. Here they
were securely guarded during the night, and early the next
morning Captain Pipe and Wingenund, the Delaware warchiefs, came up the Sandusky river from the Wyandot village
to the place where they (the captives) had staid (luring the
night. Captain Pipe, with his own hands, painted the faces
of all the prisoners black. As he was painting Dr. Knight,
he told him (the war-chief spoke very good English) he should
go to the Shawanese towns to see his friends-an implication
that other American prisoners were there and unharmed; but
Knight knew very well the meaning of the work engaged in
by the wily savage-knew but too well if he saw any of his
friends there it would be to suffer with them frightful tortures
at the stake.
About an hour after the Delaware chiefs reached the Old
Town, Crawford also arrived, whither he had been brought, as
he had been told, to march into the Half King's village with
the other captives. Captain Pipe and Wingenund, who had
avoided him at the town below, now came forward and greeted
him; he was personally known to both. They had frequently
been in each others company. The colonel had met Captain
Pipe at Fort Pitt as: early as 1759. The dissembling warchief told Crawford he was glad to see him, and that he
would have him shaved-that is, adopted by the Indians--History    of the Girtys.
when he came to see his friends (the prisoners) at the Half
King's town; but, at the same time, he painted his face black.
The painting the faces of their prisoners black by the Delawares and by other tribes, was their death-warrant. These
Indians declared that the decree was prompted by the killing
of the "Moravians" at Gnadenhiitten. Although it served
as an excellent excuse,* it is altogether probable that, without
such plea, the captives would still have been put to death.
The whole party now started on the trail leading to the
Half King's town-the. Wyandot village, eight miles below,
on the Sandusky; but, as the march began, Colonel Crawford
and Dr. Knight were kept back by Captain Pipe and Wingenund. They were, however, soon ordered forward. They had
not traveled far before they saw four of their comrades lying
by the path tomahawked and scalped.
The two war-chiefs guarded well the colonel and Dr.
Knight to the spot, the site of the present Upper Sandusky, when
another trail than the one leading to the Half King's town
was taken. Their course was now to the north-west, toward
the Delaware village-Captain Pipe's town-on the Tymochtee. At the Little Tymochtee creek, the five captives besides
Colonel Crawford and Dr. Knight who yet remained alive
were overtaken. The prisoners were all now required to sit
down on the ground--Crawford and Knight with the rest,
but at some distance from the others. The doctor was then
given in charge of one of the Indians to be taken on the morrow
to the Shawanese towns. At the place where they had halted,
there were a number of squaws and boys. These now fell
on the five prisoners and tomahawked them all. The young
Indians came frequently up to the colonel and Dr. Knight
and slapped them' in their faces with the reeking scalps.
Again the march began when they were soon met by Simon
Girty and several Indians, on horseback. The former, well
knowing what was to be the fate of Crawford, had come from
the Half King's town, across the Plains to Pipe's town, to be
* Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 127.
12
177History of the Girtys.
present at his torture, and had started out on the trail to meet
the Delawares with their prisoners. Girty rode up to the
colonel and spoke to him, but did not inform him that he was
soon to suffer at the stake. Crawford and Knight were now
separated-the former being about one hundred and fifty
yards in advance of the latter. As they moved along, almost
every Indian the prisoners met, struck them with sticks or
their fists. Girty waited until Knight was brought up and
then asked if that was the doctor. Knight answered him in
the affirmative, and went toward him, reaching out his hand,
but the renegade bid him begone, calling him a damned
rascal; upon which the Indian having him in charge pulled
him along. Girty rode after him telling him he "was to go
to the Shawanese towns." At that place there lived about
thirty Delawares; there, he was to be burnt, Girty said, " to give
some satisfaction for the killing of the' Moravian' Indians." *
Surely, in this, one can not fail to see an encouragement to
the Delawares to carry out their determination to burn the
doctor; and, further, that it was a pleasure to Girty to know
that such would be the result. A short distance further brought
them near to the Tymochtee creek, where another halt was
made. They had now arrived within three-quarters of a mile
of the Delaware village, which was further down the stream.
"When we were come to the fire," says Knight, " the colonel was stripped naked, ordered to sit down by the fire, and
then they beat him with sticks and.their fists. Presently after,
I was treated in the same manner. They then tied a rope to
the foot of a post about fifteen feet high, bound the colonel's
hands behind his back and fastened the rope to the ligature
between his wrists. The rope was long enough for him to sit
down or walk round the post once or twice and return the
same way. The colonel then called to Girty and asked if
they intended to burn him? Girty answered, yes. The colonel said he would take it all patiently. Upon this Captain
Pipe made a speech to the Indians, viz., about thirty or forty
* Washington-IIvine Correspondence, p. 876. But it is not entirely certain whethler he was told this at the time or a little later.
178History   of the Girtys.
men, sixty or seventy squaws and boys. When the speech
was finished they all yelled a hideous and hearty assent to
what had been said." *
It is very evident that, from the time Simon Girty met
Crawford on the road to the Tymochtee, guarded by Captain
Pipe and Wingenund, to the moment when the chief first
named had finished his harangue, he (Girty) made not the
slightest effort to save his old acquaintance from the cruel
fate that awaited him; nevertheless, there are stories handed
down from generation to generation, in the West, some as traditions among the whites, others as Indian traditions, to the
contrary. Some of these have found their way into print.
One preserved among the Wyandots runs as follows: "He
[Crawford] was taken by a Delaware; Gonsequently the Delawares claimed the right, agreeably to their rules, of disposing
of the prisoner. There was a council held, and the decision
was to burn him. He was taken to the main Delaware town,
on a considerable creek, called Tymochtee, about eight miles
from the mouth. Girty then supposed he could make a speculation by saving Crawford's life. He made a proposition to Captain Pipe, the head chief of the Delawares, offering three hundred and fifty dollars for Crawford. The chief received it as
a great insult, and promptly said to Girty,' Sir, do you think
I am a squaw? If you say one more word on the subject, I
will make a stake for you, and burn you along with the white
chief.' Girty, know.ing the Indian character, retired and said
no more on the subject. But, in the meantime, Girty had
sent runners to the Mohican creek and to Lower Sandusky,
where there were some white traders, to come immediately
and purchase Crawford; knowing that he could make a great
speculation in case he could save Crawford's life. The traders
camne on, but tpo late." t
* Knight and Slover's Narratives, p. 11. The citation is fron the original
publication.
t The American Pioneer, Vol. II, p. 284. There is in all this not a word
of truth. It is a continuation of the Wyandot Indian tradition cited on a
previous page.
179History   of the Girtys.
There are statements by descendants of Girty and others
preserved, wherein are recorded what are claimed to be the
facts concerning his attempts upon the Tymochtee to save the
life of Crawford. But all these come from interested parties,
and, when carefully examined, are found entitled to no credit.
So soon as Captain Pipe had finished his speech to the assembled savages-men, squaws, and children-the Indian men
took up their guns and shot powder into Crawford's naked
body from his feet as far up as his neck. It was the opinion
of Knight that not less than seventy loads were discharged
upon him! They then crowded about him, and, to the best
of Knight's observation, cut off both his ears; for, when the
throng had dispersed, he saw the blood running from both
sides of his head!
The fire was about six or seven yards from the post to which
Crawvford was tied. It was made of small hickory poles burnt
quite through the middle, each end of the poles remaining
about six feet in length. Three or four Indians by turns
would take up, individually, one of these burning pieces of
wood, and apply it to his naked body, already burnt black
with powder.
These tormentors presented themselves on every side of
him, so that, which ever way he ran round the post, they met
him with the burning faggots. Some of the squaws took
broad boards, upon which they would carry a quantity of
burning coals and hot embers, and throw. on him; so that, in
a short time, he had nothing but coals of fire and hot ashes
to walk on!
In the midst of these extreme tortures, Crawford called to
Girty and begged of him to shoot him; but the cruel rengade making no answer, he called again. Girty then, by
way of derision, told Crawford he had no gun; at the same
time, turning about'to an Indian who was behind him, he
laughed heartily, and, by all his gestures, seemed delighted at
the horrid scene!
Girty then came up to Knight and bade him prepare for
death. He told him, however, he was not to die at that place,
180History   of the Girtys.
but was to be burnt at the Shawanese towns. He swore, with
a fearful oath, that he need not expect to escape death, but
should suffer it in all its extremities! He then observed that
some prisoners had given him to understand that, if the
Americans had him, they would hurt him. For his part, he
said he did not believe it; but desired to know Knight's opinion of the matter.  The'latter, however, was in too great anguish and distress, on account of the torments Crawford was
suffering before his eyes, and because of the expectation of
undergoing the same fate in two days, to make any answer.
Girty expressed a great deal of ill-will toward Colonel John
Gibson, saying he was one of his greatest enemies-and more
to the same purpose;* to all which Knight paid but little
attention.
Crawford, at this period of his suffering, besought the Almighty to have mercy on his soul, spoke very low, and bore
his torments with the most manly fortitude. He continued,
in all the extremities of pain, for an hour and three-quarters
or two hours longer; when, at last, being unable to stand, he
lay down upon his stomach.
The savages then scalped him, and repeatedly threw the
scalp into the face of Knight, telling him that was his " great
captain." An old squaw, whose appearance, thought Knight,
every way answered the ideas people entertain of the devil,
got a board, took a parcel of coals and ashes, and laid them
on the colonel's back and head. He then raised himself upon
his feet, and began to walk around the post. They next put
burning sticks to him, as usual; but he seemed more insensible
to pain than before. Knight was now taken away from the
dreadful scene.t  Crawford was then "roasted" "by a slow
* One of the letters of Gibson, captured by Girty at Fort Laurens, when
the latter ambuscaded Captain Clark, was well calculated, as already
stated, to stir up the wrath of the renegade, Gibson having declared, it
will be remembered, that if he cautght him he would trepan him.
t Knight and Slover's Narratives (edition of 1783), pp. 11, 12, where what
took place at the torturing of Crawford is circumstantially, and, beyond all
question, very truthfully described by Dr. Knight.
181History of the Girtys.
fire " * until death put an end to his frightful suffering. After
he died-so runs the tradition-the faggots were heaped together, his body placed upon them, and around his charred
remains danced the delighted savages for many hours.f
NOTE.-In the Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 368372, were printed, in 1882, from copies of the originals in the
Public Record (State Paper) Office, London, England, the
letters written by British officers engaged against Colonel
Crawford and by DePeyster, giving an account of the fighting
upon the Sandusky Plains; also one letter by an Indian chief
who was present, written to the Detroit commandant. These
transcripts were received by the author of this narrative after
the publication by him of An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky under Col. William Crawford in
1782. They are, in general, extravagant in their estimate of
the number of men killed by the Americans under Crawford,
and erroneous as to the intent of the volunteers who marched
upon that expedition. They, however, corroborate, in many
cases, American statements, and, in some instances, especially
as to who had command of the Rangers from Detroit, correct
them. These letters also are a part of the Haldimand Collection in the British Museum, copies of which are in the public
archives in Ottawa, Canada.
* Caldwell to DePeyster, June 13, 1782.--MS. letter, Haldimand Collection.
t An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, under Col.
William Crawford, in 1782, pp. 391, 392.
182History of the Girtys.'
CHAPTER XX.
After the torturing of Crawford upon the Tymochtee was
ended, Simon Girty returned to the Half King's town and immediately started for Lower Sandusky, reaching there the
night following. And this was his report to Captain Caldwell
there of the awful scene, as that officer the next day informed
DePeyster by letter:
" Simon Girty arrived last night from the upper village
(Half King's town) who informed me, that the Delawares
had burnt Colonel Crawford and two captains, at PipesTown, after torturing them a long time. Crawford died like a
hero; never changed his countenance tho' they scalped him
alive, and then laid hot ashes upon his head; after which,
they roasted him by a slow fire. He told Girty if his life
could be spared, he would communicate something of consequence, but nothing else could induce him to do it. He said
some great blows would be struck against the country. Crawford and four captains belonged to the Continental forces. He
[Girty] said fourteen captains were killed. The rebel doctor
[Knight] and General Irvine's aid-de-camp [Rose] are takefi
by the Shawanese; they came out on a party of pleasure." *
It will be noticed that Girty here puts in no claim to having
interposed, in any way, to save the life of Crawford while the
latter was being tortured; but Captain Elliott, on returning
to Detroit, declared that he [Elliott] endeavored to save him,
but without avail. That this was true there can be no doubt;
and it must ever stand as very greatly to his credit. Had
Girty made an effort in the colonel's behalf, Elliott, it is
more than probable, would have mentioned the fact to DePeyster.
Ctrldwell to DePeyster, June 13, 1782.--MS. letter, Haldimand Papers,
cited in the previous chapter. Whether the error as to Rose and the "two
captains," in this letter, are due to Girty or Caldwell, it is impossible to say.
r
183184                History of the Girtys.
James and George Girty soon made their way to the Indian
villages to the southward, the former going with the Shawanese,
the latter, with those Delawares (not belonging to the bands
of Captain Pipe and Wingenund) who had come to the assistance of their friends and allies upon the Sandusky. George had,
at the direction of DePeyster, gone among the Delawares to
live, where he could be of more service than with the Shawanese. This took place soon after Brodhead's visit to Coshocton and the Delawares had withdrawn from the waters of the
Muskingum. But what became of Dr. Knight after being
taken from the terrible scene of Colonel Crawford's torture?
"The doctor," wrote General Irvine to Washington from Fort
Pitt, on the 11th of July, 1782, " returned the fourth instant
to this place." *  On his way to the Shawanese town, un(ler
guard of a single Indian, he "found an opportunity of demolishing the fellow and making his escape."  He reached
Pittsburgh after suffering much from the want of food.t
Of the stragglers from the American army who became separated from it on the night Colonel Crawford commenced his
retreat from the battle-field of the 4th of June, John Slover
was one. He was one of the guides to the expedition. On the
ninth, when about twenty miles from the Tuscarawas, he, with
two others, was, while making his way homeward through the
wilderness, captured by the savages-two of his companions being killed, and one, James Paull, making his escape.
The three prisoners were taken to the Shawanese towns.
After arriving at Wapatomica, one was killed in a shocking
manner; one was sent to another village, while Slover remained unharmed, except some injuries received previously
in running the gauntlet. He was now, at a council, closely
questioned in their own tongue by the Shawanese (for he spoke
* Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 126.
t Knightand Slover's Narratives, 1783, pp. 10-15, where the doctor gives
a full account of his escape. The route taken bv him from the Tymochtee,
I have taken some pains to trace in An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, under Col. William Crawford, in 1782, pp. 3842, 343,
369-374.their language, also the Miami and Delaware, the first two with
fluency, he having previously been a prisoner among the Indians). They interrogated him concerning the situation of his
country; its provisions; the number of its inhabitants; the
state of the war between it and Great Britain. He informed
them Cornwallis had been taken.'The next day Captain Elliott
(who had arrived from the Half King's town) came with James
Girty to the council. The last-mentioned, it will be borne in
mind, had returned with the Shawanese from the Sandusky
soon after the retreat of Crawford's army. The former assured
the Indians that Slover had lied; that Cornwallis was not
taken; and the Indians seemed to give full credit to his
declaration.
Hitherto, Slover had been treated with some appearance of
kindness, but now the savages began to change their behavior
toward him. James Girty had informed them that when he
asked him how he liked to live there, he had said that he had
intended to take the first opportunity to take a scalp and run
off. It was, to be sure, very probable that if he had had such
intention, he would have communicated it to him! It was
simply a story concocted to bring the prisoner to the stake.
After Slover's examination, the Indians gathered for a number of days in council laying plans against the settlements of
Kentucky, the Falls (Louisville), and Wheeling, from fifty to
one hundred warriors being usually present, and sometimes
more. Slover also was generally in attendance. Every warrior was admitted, but only the chiefs or head warriors had
the privilege of speaking-these being accounted such, from
the number of scalps and prisoners they had taken. The
third day Captain McKee, who had come on from Lower Sandusky (having gone thence from Upper. Sandusky), which
place he left on the 11th of June,* was in council, and afterward was generally present.  He spoke little. He asked
Slover no questions; indeed, did not speak to him at all. He
then lived about two miles from Wapatomica; had a house
* Caldwell to DePeyster, June 11, 1782 (from Lower Sandusky).-Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 371.
185
Hi'story of the Girtvs.COPYRIGHTED
ROBERT CLARKE  CO
1890History   of the Girtys.
Trans-Susquehanna region. Well had it been had the pioneers
postponed their coming. Among those who crossed the river
into Sherman's Valley was John Turner and family. He took
up his residence near where Simon Girty, Sr., had previously
located.*
There was now open war between France and England.
Braddock's defeat, in July, 1755, was a humiliating blow to
the power last named. The savages of the West-allies of
the French-were soon murdering and burning in the border
settlements of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia. In the
province first mentioned, these marauds were carried on far
down the streams which, on the west, enter the Susquehanna.
Forts, as they were called, were erected in various places
for the security of the inhabitants. Among these was one
called Fort Granville. It was located at Old Town, on the
bank of the Juniata, not a great distance from  the present sight of Lewistown, then in Cumberland county, now
Mifflin. Its position was unfavorable.
Already had more than a score of persons been killed or
carried off by the Indians. " Thereupon," so runs the record, "on the 23d of October, 1755, forty-six of the inhabitants on Susquehanna, about Harris' Ferry, went to Shamokin [the Forks of the Susquehanna], to inquire of the Indians
there who they were that had so cruelly fallen upon and ruined
the settlement." The result of this mission of inquiry was
most disastrous. On their return from Shamokin, they were
fired upon by some Indians who lay in ambush, and four were
shot, four drowned, and the rest put to flight.
It would be foreign to the object in view in this narrative,
to enter into particulars concerning the devastation upon the
frontiers which followed. Our story, for the present, must
center at one point, and that point Fort Granville.
Sometime during the month of July, 1756, a party was
made up at Fort Duquesne, " at the forks of the Ohio," where
* Not "on the Juniata," as stated in the Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 257.
6History of the Girtys.
built of square logs, with a shingle roof. He was dressed in
gold-laced clothes.
Not long after this council ended, about forty warriors, accompanied by George Girty, who, as previously shown, had
returned to the Delaware villages from the Sandusky after
the retreat of Crawford's force, came early in the mornirtg
round the house where Slover was. He was sitting before the
door.  The squaw gave him up.    They put a rope around his
neck, tied his arms behind his back, stripped him naked, and
blacked him in the usual manner. Girty, as soon as he was
tied, cursed him, telling him he would get what he had many
years deserved-showing clearly that he was delighted to
know that death by torture was to be his doom. However,
after the Indians had tied their prisoner to the stake, a sudden storm came up and they postponed their deadly work.
Before it was renewed, Slover found means to escape, reaching the settlement at Wheeling in safety. "A certain Mr.
Slover," wrote General Irvine to Washington, from Fort Pitt,
on the eleventh of July, in a letter already alluded to, " came
in yesterday [to Pittsburgh], who was under sentence of death
at the Shawanese towns." * He was the last of all to reach
home directly from the Western wilderness.t   The entire loss
to the Americans on the expedition, including those who subsequently died of their wounds, was less than seventy.
The truthful reports brought in by Knight and Slover concerning the three Girtys, conclusively show that they (the
Girtys) had lost all feeling of compassion for their unfortunate
countrymen held as captives by the Indians. It was now a
*Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 127. The fnll particulars of
Slover's escape are given in the Knight and Slover Narratives of 1783,
pp. 17-31.
t In a return of prisoners belonging to the provinces of New York and
Pennsylvania, made on the 2d of November, 1782, by Nicholas Murray,
commissary of prisoners, preserved among the Haldimand Papers, and
published in the second volume of the Collections of the Vermont Historical
S3pciety, is the name of Joshua Collins, taken at Sandusky, June 6, 1782.
Collins is the only one known to have been captured, besides Knight and
Slover, who was not put to death by the savages.
186History of the Girtys.
delight to them to know of, and to witness, the horrible sufferings of these prisoners at the stake. Did they sometimes
actually assist the savages in inflicting these tortures? This
question will never be answered. "Dead men tell no tales."
NOTE.-Simon Girty is not without an apologist as to the
part taken by him upon the Tymochtee, at the burning of
Crawford. " Our border histories have given only the worst
side of Girty's character. He had redeeming traits.
He certainly befriended Simon Kenton, and tried to save
Crawford, but could not. In the latter case he had to
dissemble somewhat with the Indians, and a part of the time
appear in their presence as if not wishing to befriend him,
when he knew he could not save him, and did not dare to
shoot him, as he himself was threatened with a similar fate."Lyman C. Draper, as quoted by Charles McKnight, in Our
Western Border, pp. 424, 425.
When it is said that " he [Girty] had to dissemble somewhat with the Indians," the meaning of Draper is, the Delaware Indians. Why, or for what cause, was it necessary for
Girty "to dissemble somewhat" with the Delawares?   DePeyster declares that an "Indian officer" (Captain Elliott)
was present and did all he could to save Crawford. Surely
there was no dissembling on part of Elliott; and why should
there have been on Girty's part? And then Girty had "a
part of the time " to " appear in their [the Delawares'J presence as if not wishing to befriend him."  Why was it necessary for Girty to go about eight miles to see the Delawares
burn Crawford, "and a part of the time appear in their presence as if not wishing to befriend him [Crawford]?"  Especially, why did he go all that distance " when he knew he could
not save him?" That Girty " did not dare to shoot him, as
he himself was threatened with a similar fate," is a tradition
not entitled to a moment's consideration. Girty's cruelty and
hard-heartedness were manifested, not in his refusing to put
Crawford at once out of his horrible sufferings by shooting
him, but in the manner of his refusal.
187History of the Girtys.
"Dr. Knight, who was captured with Crawford and witnessed his tortures, and who has long been accepted as a most
reliable authority on this subject, while he says that Girty refused the prayer of the tortured man to shoot him and'by
all his gestures seemed delighted at the horrid scene,' does
not make him in any way an assistant at it."--Magazine of
American History, Vol. XV, p. 265. This, however, must be
taken with some grains of allowance. By his presence and
delight, he encouraged the Delawares.
The Wyandots who were there, afterward affirmed, it would
seem, that Girty actually did take part in the torture. There
is also this additional on that point: " Dr. Knight, in his
narrative of his captivity and burning of Col. Crawford," says
Howe, in his Historical Collections of Ohio, p. 247, " speaks
of the cruelty of Simon Girty to the colonel and himself.
Col. John Johnston corroborates the account of Dr. Knight.
In a communication before us he says:'He [Simon Girty]
was notorious for his cruelty to the whites, who fell into the
hands of the Indians. His cruelty to the unfoltunate Col.
Crawford is well known to myself, and although I did not witness the tragedy, I can vouch for the facts of the case, having
shad them from eye-witnesses. When that brave and unfortunate commander was suffering at the stake by a slow fire in
order to lengthen his misery to the longest possible time, he
besought Girty to have him shot to end his torments, when
the monster mocked him by firing powder without ball at
him."' But the statements made by the Wyandots present
were only the outgrowth of a desire on their part to fix as
much responsibility as possible on Girty for the torture of
Crawford. That he was present, encouraging the Delawares,
and, by his words and actions, seemed to take delight in the
awful scene, was the part taken by him on that occasion.
The article in the Magazine of American History, just cited,
says (Vol. XV, p. 264): " It is easy... to believe that the
blackest thing that has ever been alleged against him [Girty]
is that he not only did not save the tortured and slowly-dying
colonel [Crawford], but answered him with a mocking laugh
188History of the Girtys.                   189
when he begged him to shoot' him and relieve him of his
agony. It is said that even the devil is not as black as he
is painted, and it is possible that the same may be said of
Girty. Exactly how far his savage and perverted nature carried him on this occasion will never probably be accurately
known." But the facts as related by Dr. Knight none can
misunderstand; and, just how he acted and just what he said
to Crawford and the doctor, are sufficiently described by tie
latter in his narrative.
The following, from an old ballad, entitled " Crawford's Defeat," is, of course, an erroneous account of the part taken
by Girty:
" Well, now they have taken these men of renown,
And dragged them away to Sandusky town,
And there in their council condemned for to be
Burnt at the stake by cruel Girty.
"Like young Diabolians, they this act did pursue,
And Girty the head of this infernal crewThis renegade white Inan was a stander-by
While there in the fire their bodies did fry." *
*This ballad, furnished by the author of this narrative to Frank Cowan,
is printed entire by him in Southwestern Pennsylvania in Song and Story,
pp. 353-356, and has since been copied into Newton's History of the PanHandle, West Virginia, p. 123..History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XXI.
Assembled at Wapatomica, in June, after the battles upon
tle Sandusky Plains, were all the tribes that were near-Ottawas, Chippewas, Wyandots, Delawares, Shawanese, Munceys,
and a portion of the Cherokees. With the WTyandots went
Simon Girty, who stopped at Solomon's town. Although
plans were laid against the settlements in Kentucky, including the Falls (Louisville), yet, as no further tidings of an aggressive movement on part of Clark had been received, it was
determined, in the first place, to reduce Wheeling.
Captain McKee, the most influential white man at Wapatomica among the Indians, attended the most important of
their councils, and gave advice to the savages, which was, in
general, acted upon by them. The credit of this has, however, been erroneously given to Simon Girty in most published accounts. An inflammatory speech against the Kentuckians made, it is said, on the occasion, is credited to him.
We are told that, in order to stir up the minds of young warriors
against those settlers, he " took an elevated stand, when he disengaged his arm from his blanket, assuming the attitude of an
orator, and to the painted savage assembly, equipped in all
the habiliments of war, delivered the following address:
"Brothers-The fertile region of Kentucky is the land of
cane and clover, spontaneously growing to feed the buffalo,
the elk, and the deer: there, the bear and the beaver are always fat-the Indians from all the tribes have had a right, from
time immemorial, to hunt and kill, unmolested, these wild animals, and bring off their skins, tom purchase for themselves
clothing--to buy blankets for their backs and rum to send
down their throats, t6 drive away the cold and rejoice their
hearts, after the fatigues of hunting and the toil of war.
(Great applause from the crowd.)
" But, brothers, the Long Knives have overrun your country
190History of the Girtys.
and usurped your hunting grounds: they have destroyed the
cane, trodden down the clover, killed the deer and the buffalo,
the bear and the raccoon. The beaver has been chased from
his dam and forced to leave the country. (Palpable emotion
among the hearers.)
"Brothers-The intruders on your lands exult in the success
that has crowned their flagitious acts.-They are building
cabins and making roads, on the very grounds of the Indian
camp and war-path. They are planting fruit trees and plowing the lands where not long since were the cane-brake and
clover-fields.  Were there a voice in the trees of the forest or
articulate sounds in the gurgling waters, every part of this
country would call on you to chase away these ruthless invaders, who are laying it waste. Unless you rise in the majesty
of your might, and extirminate the whole race, you may bid
adieu to the hunting grounds of your fathers-to the delicious
flesh of the animals with which it once abounded, and to the
skins with which you were once enabled to purchase your
clothing and your rum."
Then, we are further informed, that, inflamed to frenzy with
this harangue (of Girty), the young warriors expressed their
approbation, and evinced their determination to comply with
the recommendations of the speaker, by extending outstretched
arms toward Kentucky, and by grasping their tomahawks
and striking them into the ground with an hideous yell. The
old warriors signified their approbation by a loud, sonorous
grunt.*
There was a request made immediately after Crawford's retreat from the Sandusky, by Captain Snake, of the Shawanese,
to DePeyster, that he would let Captain Caldwell, with his
Rangers, remain at Lower Sandusky about ten days, and then' G. W. Stipp's Western Miscellany (Bradford's Notes), pp. 81, 82. Compare Marshall's History of Kentucky, Vol. I, pp. 132, 133. It is hardly
necessary to inform the reader that this speech is fictitious. It bears upon
its face its own refutation. Besides, the unlettered Simon Girty never didnever could-talk in that manner even in English; whereas, if the speech was
made at all, it must have been in the language of one of the Indian tribes.
1911History of the Girtys.
march to the Shawanese villages on the head-waters of the
Mad river.* This request was granted-that officer marching
to Wapatomica. In the early part of July, Caldwell, with his
white soldiers and three hundred Indians, started eastward,
ititending, in accordance with the wishes of the savages, to
attempt the reduction of the fort at Wheeling. A day or
two after his departure, runners came into Wapatomica, who
gave information that General Clark was approaching with a
train of artillery and a large body of troops. The alarm was
wide-spread, and an express was sent after Caldwell, who,
with McKee, returned to Wapatomica; but, before turning
back, he sent forty warriors with two Frenchmen to watch the
frontiers to the eastward, and give intelligence of any movements of the Americans, particularly if there was any expedition in progress.t
Before recording events which took place as the result of
Captain Caldwell's countermarch, it may be mentioned that
in the border settlements east of the Ohio and around Pittsburgh, the miscarriage of the expedition under Crawford
stimulated the borderers to ask General Irvine to organize
another on a more extensive scale, the command of which he
was to assume in person. He finally commenced operations
looking to a compliance with their wishes. But this movement soon reached the ears of DePeyster, at Detroit, who at
once dispatched Captain Andrew Bradt with a company of
Rangers to reinforce Captain Caldwell at Wapatomica.4
* Captain Snake to DePeyster, from Upper Sandusky, June 8, 1782.Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 369, 370. The original of this letter is one of the iHaldimand MSS. Its existence was, of course, unknown
to Roosevelt when he wrote The Winning of the West.
t McKee to DePeyster, from Wapatomica, July 22, 1782.-MS. letter;
also, Caldwell to DePeyster, August 26, 1782.-MS. letter: Haldimand Papers. Since the above was written, this last letter has been published in
The Winning of the West, Vol. II, pp. 402-404. Compare WashingtonIrvine Correspondence, pp. 332, 383, as to the march toward Wheeling.
t " We have been alarmed here [at Detroit] with the accounts of a formidable body of the enemy under the command of General HIands [Irvine],
advancing thi* way, which occasioned my reinforcing Captain Caldwell."DePeyster to Haldimand, August 18, 1782.-Washington-Irvine Corre192History of the Girtys.
There coming in to Wapatomica what was believed to be
a confirmation of the report as to General Clark's movements,
the utmost exertions were put forth by McKee to collect all
the Indians possible to resist the invader. It was resolved to
march south, the determination on part of Caldwell being to
meet and fight the enemy near the town (Piqua) which Clark
had driven the Shawanese from     two years before, which was
about forty miles away. The Indians that assembled on the
occasion were Shawanese, Delawares, Wyandots, Mingoes,
Munceys, Ottawas, and Chippewas. Under Captain Caldwell
were Captains McKee and Elliott; the former having the
general marshaling and oversight of all the savages, while the
latter was, there are reasons for believing, in command only
of the Shawanese.   In the army were the three Girtys.   "We
had," wrote McKee, "on this occasion, the greatest body of
Indians collected, on an advantageous piece of ground near
the Picawee [Piqua] village, that has been assembled in this
quarter since the commencement of the war."*         "I had,"
says Caldwell, "eleven hundred Indians on the ground and
three hundred more within a day's march." t
Scouts soon returning from    the Ohio informed Caldwell
spondence, pp. 373, 374. In current Western histories, Bradt's nanle is
usually (though erroneously) spelled Pratt.'' McKee to DePeyster, August 28, 1782.--MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
This letter, since the above was written, has been published by Roosevelt
in The Winning of the W'est, Vol. II, jp. 399-402.
t Caldwell to DePeyster, August 26, 1782, already cited. Roosevelt (The
Winning of the West, Vol. II, pp. 187, 188) gets excited over this "great
army:" " In July the British captains Caldwell and`McKee came down
from Detroit with a party of rangers, and gathered together a great army
of over a thousand Indians-the largest body of either red men or white
that was ever mustered west of the Alleghanies during the Revolution."
But Caldwell and McKee did not come down from Detroit in July at all.
After the battles with Crawford's force on the Sandusky Plains, both went
to Wapatoniica. That writer has the erroneous idea, too, that Caldwell, in
marching toward Wheeling, had his " great army " along. It is also to be
inferred from what he says, that Captain McKee had, along with Caldwell,
command of the Rangers, which, of coil'se, is wholly wrong. He has no
true conception of McKee's niilitary office.
13
193History of the Girtys.
that the accounts he had received as to Clark's marching
toward him were false.  "This disappointment," declared
McKee, "notwithstanding all our endeavors to keep them
[the savages] together, occasioned them to disperse, in disgust with each other. The inhabitants of this [the Shawanese] country, who were the most immediately interested in
keeping in a body, were the first that broke away; and, although we advanced towards the Ohio with upwards of three
hundred Hurons [Wyandots] and Lake Indians, few of the
Delawares, Shawanese, or Mingoes followed us." *  With the
returning Shawanese went James Girty; but Simon and
George remained with Caldwell on the march with his Rangers
and Indians to the Ohio.
"On our arrival at the Ohio," adds McKee, "we remained
still in uncertainty with respect to the enemy's motions; and
it was thought best to send scouts to the Falls, and that the
main body should advance into the enemy's country and endeavor to lead out a party from some of their forts, by which
we might be able to gain some certain intelligence.''t  "I
crossed the Ohio," are the words of Caldwell, "with three
hundred Indians and Rangers."+  The point aimed at was
Bryan's Station, located in what is now Fayette county, Kentucky, detached parties having previously penetrated into the
settlements.
Captain Caldwell, with his Rangers and two hundred Indians, crossed the Ohio not fai below the mouth of Limestone
creek (Maysville), probably at the mouth of Eagle creek, seven
miles distant. The place of destination was reached on the
night of the fifteenth and the station surrounded. On the
succeeding morning; the besiegers showed themselves, laying
siege, at sun-up, to the fort; but, fortunately, the small garrison were not surprised; they were under arms, intending to
march to the aid of a neighboring settlement that had been
threatened.' Two couriers from the garrison managed to
* From McKee's letter, just quoted.
t Id.
t Caldwell to DePeyster.-Letter before cited.
194History of the Girtys.
make their way through Caldwell's lines unobserved, and hastened to Lexington with the news of the presence of the
enemy. v
A reinforcement of thirty men attempted to throw themselves into the fort; a number on horseback succeeded. Those
on foot were driven back with the loss of one killed and three
wounded.   It is said that one of the settlers-a stout, active
young fellow-who had come to the assistance of his besieged
friends, was so hard pressed by a white man and several savages that he turned and fired, and the white man fell. The
latter, it is claimed, was Simon Girty. "'It happened, however, that a piece of thick sole-leather was in his shot-pouch
at the time, which received the ball and preserved his life, although he was felled to the ground. The savages halted upon
his fall and the young man escaped." But this story is undoubtedly fictitious. Who of the Americans knew about
Girty's shot-pouch?  Besides, he was too much of a boaster
to let such an incident pass without afterward relating the
facts; and in no instance, so far as can be discovered, did he,
in after years, ever refer to any such event.* During all the
time of the presence of the enemy around the station, they
continued their efforts without cessation.
Just here we must mention a tradition, which is to the
effect that, before the close of the day, the garrison was summoned by Girty to surrender. The particulars, as recorded
in many Western histories-notably in McClung's Sketches of
Western Adventure--are that the day was well nigh ended,
and still the efforts of the enemy were unavailing. The Indians had become discouraged. Their loss in the morning's
assault was heavy; they had made no impression upon the
fort; and, without artillery, Simon Girty, in command, could
hope to make none. The chiefs spoke of raising the siege
and marching homewards; thereupon it was determined to
* It was in the Kentucky settlements as in Western Pennsylvania and
Virginia: a white man seen in battle on the Indian side was almost certain
to be set down as Simon Girty by the borderers--as we have seen was the
case at the conflict upon the Santdusky Plains between Crawford's force and
the Rangers and Indians.
195History of the Girtys.
now stands Pittsburgh, consisting of twenty-three Frenchmen,
and thirty Indians, under the command of Neyon de Villiers,
for a maraud into the back settlements of Pennsylvania, or to
attack some of the forts therein.*  De Villiers's band was reinforced up the Alleghany by nearly seventy savages.t The
Indians were largely Delawares4, with some Shawanese, and a
few Senecas. They appeared before Fort Granville, on the
twenty-second of the month, and challenged the garrison to
combat; but this was declined by the commander, in consequence of the weakness of his force. The enemy did not
leave the vicinity, but contented themselves with harrassing
the nearest settlements, keeping an eye, however, upon the
fort; but this was unknown to the commander, Captain Edward Ward, who took it for granted that the assailants had returned to their homes.
Captain Ward's company was made up of enlisted men;
they were all provincials, in the pay of Pennsylvania. The
first in command under him was Lieutenant Edward Armstrong; the second, John Turner, the avenger of Simon Girty,
Sr., who had with him his whole family, for their better protection. Indeed, Sherman's Valley was wholly depopulated;
but grain had been sown in the spring by the settlers, who
were compelled to do their work under gdard. The harvest
was now ripe-the fields were suffering for the reapers--but
no one dared to venture out without a protector. Captain
Ward determined to guard the laborers, and, on the 30th of
July, marched all his force, except twenty-three, who were
left, under the command of Lieutenant Armstrong, as defenders of the fort if assailed. The enemy were at once
aware of this withdrawal, and, the very day of the marching
* New York Colonial Documents, Vol. X, p. 480.
t The whole force under De Villiers was about one hundred and twenty.
See Colonial Records of Pennsylvania, Vol. VII, p. 232.: Deposition of Thomas Girt'y, in Calendar of Virginia State Papers,
Vol. I, p. 280. "A party of Delawares, Shawanese, and French "-Deposition of Simon Girty, in Jefferson MSS, Fifth Series, Vol. VIII, in Department of State, Washington.
7History    of thle Girtys.
try negotiation-Girty hoping to obtain by a demand what he
had failed to secure by arms. He took upon himself to demand the surrender of the station. Near one of the bastions
of the fort there was a large stump. To this he crept on his
hands and knees, and, mounting it, hailed the garrison. He
had approached under cover of a thick growth of hemp-the
precise spot where he stood when he began his parley was the
site of the "'dwelling-house of Mr. Rogers," in later years.
After demanding a surrender, he gave his name, following it by
an inquiry as to whether he was known to the people of the fort.
He declared-so the story runs-that the people would be
protected if they would open the gate; but this would be out
of his power if the fort was taken by storm, as it would be
that night, on the arrival of his cannon and strong reinforcements, then hourly expected.
The garrison were intimidated. They had listened in silence to Girty's speech; and the mention of artillery awakened in thetm much dread; as they well remembered the fact
that cannon had been brought with the army of invasion
under Bird, when Martin's and Ruddle's Stations, two years
before, had been captured. But a young man, the story continues, by the name of Aaron Reynolds, highly distinguished
for courage, energy, and a frolicsome gayety of temper, perceiving the effect of Girty's speech, took upon himself to reply to it. To Girty's inquiry whether the garrison knew him,
Reynolds replied that he was very well known; that he himself had a worthless dog to which he had given the name of
" Simon Girty," in consequence of his striking resemblance
to the man of that name; and that, if he had reinforcements,
he might bring them up; that if either himself or any of the
naked rascals with him, found their way into the fort, they
would disdain to use their guns against them, but would drive
them out again with switches, of which they had collected a
great number for that purpose alone; and, finally, he declared
that they also expected reinforcements; that the whole country was marching to their assistance; and that, if Girty and
his gang of murderers remained twenty-four hours longer be196History of the Girtys.
fore the fort, their scalps would be found drying in the sun
upon the roofs of their cabins.
Girty took great offense at the tone and language of the
young Kentuckian, we are assured, and retired with an expression of sorrow for the inevitable destruction which awaited
the people in the fort on the following morning. He quickly
rejoined his chiefs, and instant preparations were made for
raising the siege. The night passed away in uninterrupted
tranquillity, and at daylight in the morning the Indian camp
was found deserted.
But this account, so circumstantially given by many writers,
carries with it its own refutation. It is too much to believe
that Captain Caldwell sent, without a flag and in the manner
indicated, a person to demand the surrender of the garrison;
besides, Simon Girtv was not so foolhardy as to creep up under
cover to a stump, and then suddenly show himself as a target
for the sharpshooters of a Kentucky station. And further, the
language imputed to him, speaking of himself as the commander of the besieging force, and asking if the garrison knew
him, would have sounded strangely enough in the ears of
Caldwell, who must have been, like those inside the stockade,
within hearing distance of his speech, if one was made. The
fact was, the attack began about sunrise on the sixteenth, and
was continued unremittingly, as previously stated, all that
day, all the ensuing night, and until ten o'clock in the forenoon of the seventeenth. In all cotemporaneous accounts of
the siege, there is no mention of a demand for surrender-a
strange omission, had one been made.
During the forenoon of the seventeenth, the force under
Captain Caldwell, despairing of the reduction of the station,
began their return march in a leisurely manner, having burnt
five houses which were a part of the fort, killed upwards of
three hundred hogs, one hundred and fifty head of cattle, and
a number of sheep, taken a number of horses, and destroyed
all the potatoes that could be found, cut down a great deal of
the corn growing, burned the hemp in the fields, and done
considerable other damage. The loss of the Indians was five
197History of the Girtys.
killed and two wounded. Of those defending the fort, there
were four killed and three wounded.
The Kentuckians soon gathered in considerable force at
Bryan's Station, and determined to pursue the retreating
army, having little idea of its numerical strength. The pursuit commenced on the eighteenth, the whole number of the
pursuers amounting to one hundred and eighty-two.       These
were under the command of Colonel John Todd. About
eight o'clock on the morning of the nineteenth, the enemy,
consisting of about two hundred Indians (one hundred having
previously left) and thirty picked Rangers,* was discovered
on the Licking river, in what is now Nicholas county, in sight
of where the Maysville and Lexington Turnpike crosses that
stream, not far north of the Lower Blue Licks. A battle
(known in history as that of the Blue Licks) immediately ensued, the result being disastrous to the Kentuckians: not less
than seuenty were killed, a number badly wounded, and seven
made prisoners. The loss of the British was one killed;-t of
the Indians, ten killed and fourteen wounded.
Throughout all the western settlements of Pennsylvania
and Virginia, and especially in Kentucky, Sirnon Girty was
afterward credited with having been the leader of the savages
in the battle of the Blue Licks; though some were in the belief that he was only one of the " many white men " who commanded that day.
Beyond the mountains, in Virginia, eastward, the idea of
* DePeyster to Haldimand, Septeimber 4, 1782.-MS. letter, Haldimand
Papers. " We were," says McKee, " not much superior to them [ttie Kentuckians] in numrnters," which was true. After much tribulatiotn, the author
of The Winning of the West, in V,l. II, p. 199, figures out that Caldwell's
entire force, on the morning of the 19th of August, consisted of "nearly
three hundred men in all." The trouble with Roosevelt is, he is lackinrg in
Haldimand MSS., notwithstanding in his Preface he declares he had till'he
"needed." A knowledge of what is containred in 1)ePeyster's letter to
Haldimand (f SPptember 4, 1 82, would have saved him an erroneous estimate.
t This manr was not a " ranger," as Roosevelt declares, but belonged to the
British Indian Department, the same as his two companions in arms-Simon
and George Girty.
198listory of the Girtys.
Simon Girty's power in the Ohio wilderness to marshal the
savages, and of his prowess in battle, was even more exaggerated than upon the border.
"Never were the lives of so many valuable men lost more
shamefully," wrote a Virginian, not long after the battle of
the Blue Licks, in criticising those in command on the American side, " than in the late action of the 19th of August; and
that not a little.through the vain and seditious expressions of a
Major McGeary. How much more harm than good can one
fool do. Todd and Trigg had capacity, but wanted experience.
Boone, Harlan, and Lindsay had experience, but were defective in capacity. Good, however, would it have been had their
advice been followed. Logan is a dull, narrow body, from
whom nothing clever need be expected. What a figure he exhibited at the head of near 500 men, to reach the field of action six days afterward, and hardly wait to bury the dead, and
when it was plain part of the Indians were still in the country. General Clark is in that country, but he has lost the
confidence of the people and it is said become a sot; perhaps
something worse. The chance is now against General Irvine's
succeeding [in the expedition against Sandusky and Detroit,
supposed at the date of the writing actually to have marched
from Fort Pitt, but which expedition was finally given up],
disappointed [as he is] in Clark's co-operation, which he was
promised; and, it is said, [he] set out with only 1,200 men.
Simon Girty can outnumber him; and, flushed with so many
victories, to his natural boldness, he will be confident." *
And from more than a month before that was written to. the
present day (with few exceptions), Simon Girty has been
spoken of, by those who have written of the battle of the Blue
Licks (when the leader of the enemy has been mentioned at
all), as the master-spirit of that contest of arms;t dividing
* Colonel Arthur Campbell to Colonel Wm. Davies, October 3, 1782, in
Calendar of Virginia State Papers, Vol. III, pp. 337, 338.
t He is so credited in An Historical Account of the Expedition against
Sandusky, under Col. William Crawford, in 1782, pp. 195, 196. A more
recent following in the same channel is the Magazine of American History,
Vol. XV, pp. 267, 268.
-199History of the Girtys.
the honor, however, sometimes, with Captain McKee; at other
times, with both Captain Caldwell and the last-named. That
he was in the battle is certain; but it is equally certain that
he did not have command of the enemy's force-not even of
the Indians. There are four official reports extant of the
battle of the Blue Licks-two American * and twQ British; t
neither mention his name at all.  He had no position except
that of interpreter. The same may be said of his brother,
George.
Leisurely, after the battle, the victors recrossed the Ohio,
Captain Caldwell with his Rangers returning to Wapatomica,
going thence to Upper Sandusky, where he arrived on the
24th of Septembdr.+    That officer soon left the Sandusky
for Detroit, very ill with intermitting fever.~ The savages
made their way to their homes Ij-George Girty going with
the Delawares to the Mad river and Simon with the Wyandots
to the Half King's town.
There were now prospects of peace; and, during the last
half of August, DePeyster received from Brigadier-General
Powell at Niagara a letter directing him to act on the defensive
only in all operations in the Ohio country. He immediately
dispatched, therefore, an express to Captains Caldwell and
Bradt, and one to McKee, or(lering them   "not to make any
incursions into the enemy's country."    "I hope," said DePeyster, "the courier will be in time to stop Captain Bradt,
who is on the point of setting out for the neighborhood of
Wheeling, but I fear Captain Caldwell has already passed the
- Calendar pf Virginia State Papers, Vol. III, pp. 275, 333.
t Caldwell to DePeyster, August 26, and 3McKee to same, August 28,
1782.
$ Caldwell to DePeyster, September 24, 1782..--IMS. letter, Hlaldimand
Papers.
{ Dundas to Haldimand, October 6, 1782.-MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
]l Roosevelt, in informing his readers of the savages after' the battle, says:
"The victorious Inidians, glutted with ven)geance, recrossed the Ohio and
vanished into the northern forests." lie is in ignortance, it seems, as to
what became of Caldwell and his Rangers.
200.History of the Girtys.
Ohio, in order to be satisfied of the enemy's motions, in which
case he will strike some strokes before he returns." *
Captain Bradt, with his company of forty Rangers and all'
the Indians that could be mustered-two hundred and thirtyeight in number-resolved, as mentioned by DePeyster, to
march at once against Wheeling, the courier ordering him to
act only on the defensive not reaching him in time to prevent
his departure; so he proceeded eastward and crossed the
Ohio. He laid siege to Fort Henry, but with little success.
He reached the vicinity of Wheeling on the llth of September, and continued around the fort until the morning of the
thirteenth, when he and his force disappeared. The garrison
had none killed and but one wounded.     A small stockadeRice's fort-was next attacked by the enemy, but they were
repulsed with loss of two Indians killed-the besieged losing
one of their number shot. Captain Bradt with his Rangers
and Indians thereupon recrossed the Ohio, reaching Wapa-'
tomica on the twenty-first, with his white troops and a few
Delawares.   It was the last attempt of the British and Indians in force across the Ohio into the border settlements to
the eastward during the w-ar. With the expedition was James
Girty, but he had no command.T
The counter-stroke to Caldwell's success at the Blue Licks
was the marching of General Clark with over a thousand men
against the principal Shawanese town on the Miami river, now
Piqua, Miami county, Ohio, and the complete sacking of that
D I)ePeyster to Brigadier-General Powell, AuguAt 27, 1782.-M-S. letter,
Haldimand Papers.
t Besides local histories of thb Pan-Handle, West Virginia, and other
Western works, consult, as to this second siege of Wheeling, the Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 312-316, 397. I have bef,re me, giving interesting particulars, McKee to Caldwell, September 2; same to DePeyster,
September 23, 1782.-MS. letters, Haldimand Papers. "But its [Wheeling's] most noteworthy siege," says Roosevelt (The Winning of the West,
Vol. II, pp. 118, 119), "occurred during the succeeding summer [after 1781],
when Simon Girty, with fife and drum, led a large band of Indians and Detroit rangers against it, only to be beaten off." But in a foot-note on the
same page, he declares he does "not know which of the two brothers Girty
was in command."
201History of the Girtys.
village and Lorimer's at the portage above, early in November. This was the ending virtually of the Western Border
War, so far as Pennsylvania and Virginia were concerned, although, as a matter of fact which will hereafter be noted
more particularly, savage incursions did not entirely cease for
months afterward.
After the cold weather had set in, Simon Girty was kept
actively employed in carrying intelligence from the Sandusky
to Detroit and return--visiting tile latter place at least twice
during the ensuing winter.*
NOTE I.--The relation of the supposed speech of Simon
Girty at Wapatomica to be found in the Bradford Notes, loses
nothing in the Magazine of American History (Vol. XV, p.
267): " Elated by their victory over Crawford and spurred
on by rumors of a peace which would leave the choicest of
their hunting-grounds forever in the possession of their enemies, the Indians were eager to make a crowning effort for
the recovery of Kentucky, and early in August of this year,
1782, a grand council of the North-western tribes was held
at Chillicothe to decide the question of invasion.   Simon
Girty, who was now one of the most trusted and devoted of
the Indian leaders, was the foremost figure at this meeting,
and is credited by Bradford with having made the decisive
speech of the occasion.... To the assembled chiefs his
words were the words of Katepacornen, their adopted brother,
who was as faithful to them as the panther to her cubs; whose
tent-poles had been strung with the scalps of their enemies,
whose cunning was that of the fox and whose heart had never
failed him in time of battle. In' his speech, which aroused
the warriors to the highest pitch of excitement, he depicted
the ruin the whites were making of their favorite hunting* In the Findlay (O.) Courier, published some years since, it is asserted
that, "A short time ago, a dirk-knife was found imbedded in the center of a
tree on the farm of Alex. Morrison, about three miles north-east of Findlay.
On being cleaned, there was found on the blade of the knife, rudely cut, the
letters'S. Girty, 1782.'" This, however, I have not been able to verify.
202History of the Girtys.
203
ground, urged an immediate blow for its recovery, and then
with significant flourishes of his tomahawk he closed his impassioned words by a fiery call for the extermination of their
enemies, which was answered by a wild and unanimous yell of
approval. The council promptly declared for invasion."
NOTE II.-The ubiquity of Simon Girty, as represented by
different writers, is remarkable. At the very time that he
was "on the wing" in the Mad river country, he was represented as being in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, by
one writer, who says:'"I had almost forgot informing your
excellency that the noted Girty has for some years past
threatened the town of Bedford with destruction, in like manner as he has that of Hanna's Town. He has effected his design on the latter, and how soon he may effect a similar destruction on the former I know not."  See Bernard Dougherty
to Moore, August 19, 1782, in Pennsylvania Archives (Old
Series), Vol. IX, p. 620.  [Hannastown was burned July
13th.]
It is not enough that fiction has taken Sitnon Girty as far
eastward, after he-went to live with the Wyandots, as Hannastown; it has described him as making excursions even to the
Susquehanna, as the following indicates: " He [Simon Girty]
made frequent incursions from the Wyandotte settlement to
the Susquehanna. Ile is said to have slept during his stay at
Halifall Hills in a cave next the river in the end of the mountain. Hie camine here for the purpose of watching the whites
at Fort Halifax from the top of this mountain. The narrow
channel in the river at the end of Halffall Hills was named'Girty's Notch.' The traveler is reminded [1872] of his approach to the notch, as he descends the river, by the sign' Girty's Notch Hotel.' "-Wright's History of Perry county,
Pennsylvania, p. 34. This, we believe, is as far toward the
sea-board as the wildest speculation has taken the renegade
in his marauds.
NOTE III.-Concerning the (supposed) attempt of SimonHistory   of the Girtys.
Girtv to induce the garrison of Bryan's Station to surrender,
Roosevelt, in The Winning of the West, Vol. II, pp. 195,
196, says:
" Girty, who was among the assailants, as a last shift, tried
to get the garrison to surrender, assuring them that the Indians were hourly expecting reinforcements, including the
artillery brought against Ruddle's and Martin's stations two
years previously; and that if forced to batter down the walls
no quarter would be given to any one. Among the fort's defenders was young Aaron Reynolds... and he now undertook to be spokesman for the rest. Springing up into
sight he answered Girty in the tone of rough banter so dear
to the backwoodsmen, telling the renegade that he knew him
well, and despised him, that the men in the fort feared
neither cannon nor reinforcements, and if need be, could
drive Girty's tawny followers back from  the walls with
switches; and he ended by assuring him that the whites,
too, were expecting help, for the country was roused, and if
the renegade and his followers dared to linger where they
were for another twenty-four hours, their scalps would surely
be sun-dried on the roofs of the cabins."
Roosevelt (p. 193, note) gives his reasons for not rejecting
the account of Girty's demand and of Reynolds's reply. " Of
course, his [Reynolds's] exact words, as given by McClung
[in his Sketches of Western Adventure], are incorrect; but
Mr. L. C. Draper informs me that, in his youth, he knew several old men who had been in Bryan's Station and had themselves heard the speech. If it were not for this I should reject it, for the British accounts do not even mention that Girty
was along, and do not hint at the incident. It was probably
an unauthorized ruse of Girty's." What Roosevelt means by
" British accounts" is, " British cotemporaneous accounts;"
and he might have said the same of American cotemporaneous
accounts; none mention the name of Girty at all. As to the
4" ruse of Girty," it may be affirmed that he was altogether
too intelligent to attempt to shoulder any such responsibility
204History of the Girtys.
as the demanding of the surrender of the fort without authority
from Captain Caldwell.
As to the declaration of Draper, it will be observed that he
does not claim that "several old men" told him they had
heard the speech; but, suppose such was the fact, how stands
the case? These men must have been very aged; for when
Draper became acquainted with them, it seems probable he
was a "youth" of some twenty-five years.  (See Magazine
of Western History, Vol. V, p. 339.) These old men had
possibly read the account of Girty's demand and Reynolds's
reply, and had come to believe them as having actually been
made. Nothing is more treacherous than the recollections of
the aged. The whole story is based upon the fictitious idea
that Girty had command of the enemy. Some writers say
the parley was in the night. As to the " switches," that would
have been nonsense.
In An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky (pp. 195, 196), currency has been given to the story of
the parley between Girty and Reynolds--following the account
as usually published. See, also, the Magazine of American
History, Vol. XV, p. 1268.
NOTE IV.-So much credence has been given to the report
that Simon Girty commanded the combined force of British
and Indians at the Blue Licks, and so interwoven is it in the
histories of the West-especially of Kentucky--that an inquiry is proper as to its origin. The first American accounts
of the battle, given by writers who took part in the action,
evidently had not heard the report.
"In the meantime," wrote Levi Todd to his brother, Robert
Todd, on the twenty-sixth of August, "' the Indians made a
violent attack upon Bryant's Fort [Bryan's Station], and continued it all day and night."-Calendar of Virginia State
Papers, Vol. III, p. 333 (compare Boone to the Governor of
Virginia, August 30, in same, p. 275). The report, however,
soon became current; but it coupled, originally, Girty's name
with " many other white men," as commander (Logan to Governor Harrison, August 31, 1782, in Calendar of Virginia
205History of the Girtys.
of Ward, commenced a furious attack upon the fortificationif such it could be called.
Having assaulted the fort in vain during the afternoon and
night, the enemy took to the Juniata creek, and, protected by
its bank, attained a deep ravine, by which they were enabled
to approach, without fear of injury, to within thirty or forty
feet of the stockade, which they succeeded in setting on fire.
Through a hole made by the flames, they killed the lieutenant
and one private, and wounded three others, who were endeavoring to put out the fire. The enlemy then offering quarter to
the besieged, if they would surrender, Turner opened the gate
to them.*
At this time there were inside the stockade the enlisted men,
besides a number of women and children, including Turner's
family. One of the soldiers, named Brandon, was tomahawked, and one, Peter Walker, afterward escaped. The loss
of the enemy in killed was more than that of the besieged.
Colonel John Armstrong wrote, on the 20th of August, that
"McDowell [an interpreter with the French] told Walker [the
prisoner who afterward escaped] they had two Indians killed
in the engagement; but the captains, Armstrong and Ward,
whom I ordered, on their march to Fort Shirley, to examine
every thing at Granville, and send a list of what remained
among the ruins, assure me they found some parts of eight of
the enemy, burnt in two different places, the joints of them
being scarcely separated, and parts of their shirts [were]
found through which there were bullet holes; to secrete these
from our prisoners [that is,'our meii made prisoners'] was,
doubtless, the reason why the French officer marched our people some distance from the fort before he gave orders to burn
the barracks, etc." t
The fort was burned, and the prisoners-among whom were
Turner, his wife and children-were quickly hurried into the
western wilderness, " loaded with burdens."
In a letter written by Colonel William Clapham, from Fort
* Gordon's History of Pennsylvanit, p. 619.
t Pennsylvania Colonial I'ecord, Vol. VII, p. 232.
8History of the Girtys.
State Papers, Vol. III, p. 280); showing, conclusively, that
it was all guess-work-all imagination. Then it was declared
he, alone, led the enemy (Levi Todd to Governor Harrison
and Council, September 11, 1782, in Calendar of Virginia
State Papers, Vol. III, p. 300); which declaration has been,
more than others, the one to gain the greatest currency.
However, the credit, as before intimated, has been sometimes
divided between him and Captain McKee (Filson's Narrative
of Daniel Boone, of 1784). In one account, Caldwell, Girty
and McKee, are all sharers in the honor (Collins's Kentucky,
Vol. I, p. 20),
The report is, it is believed, more strongly set forth in the
following from the Magazine of American History, Vol. XV
(pp. 267, 268), than in any other published account:
" Girty was chosen the leader of the savage army of nearly
six hundred warriors, and Bryant's- and Lexington stations,
which were only five miles apart, were marked as the first in
order of destruction. By the middle of the mo'nth the dusky
horde, after a swift and stealthy march, reached the center of
the wilderness now so widely known as'the Blue Grass Region of Kentucky,' and on the night of the 14th of August
silently settled around the famous Bryant's Station, which
they had expected would fall at once into their hands through
the absence of its usual male defenders. With admirable
skill the wily Girty had maneuvered to draw them out to the
relief of Hoy's Station, which he had caused to be threatentd
several days before for that very purpose, and the pioneers,
-completely deceived by the device, were busy with preparations for a march by sunrise, when he arrived fortunately for
them a few hours before their intended departure. The deceiver was himself deceived. Mistaking the bustle and the
lights within the fort to mean that his presence had been discovered, Girty ordered a premature attack, which revealed to
the unsuspecting and astounded garrison the imminence of its
danger and ultimately resulted in the failure of its enemies.
The gallant charge of the men of Lexington through the Indian lines and into the beleaguered fort; the heroic exploit of
206History of the Girtys.                207
the women who marched into the jaws of death to get water
for the garrison, and the successful defense of Bryant's Station, are now too celebrated in story and in song to need
another telling.
"At this siege Girty displayed his usual courage. He led
on the Indians when they stormed the palisades, and in a close
encounter with a Lexington rifleman barely escaped with his
life. His parley with the garrison, however, when he tried to
negotiate a surrender, resulted only in his mortification and
the taunt of the fearless Reynolds that'they knew him, and
he himself had a worthless dog that looked so much like
him, that he called him Simon Girty,' must have convinced
the White Indian how greatly he was detested by the pioneers.
The alarm had now gone forth, the rescue was sounded and
the siege was abandoned. Girty's plan., so admirably conceived, so well conducted and so nearly realized, failed, but in
the very face of defeat and while the brave hunters of Kentucky were gathering and marching against him, beset by
difficulties but undiscouraged, he formed a scheme still deeper
and more dangerous to his foes. He retreated, but it was a
subtle and seductive retreat, which lured the small but dauntless band of his pursuers to the fatal hills and deadly ravines
of the Blue Licks, where the advice of the sagacious Boone
was disregarded, and where, on the 19th of August, 1782, the
Indians struck a blow that sent horror and grief to every
cabin in the wilderness of Kentucky and invested the name
of a barren and rugged spot of earth with a sad and sanguinary immortality. The criminal rashness of McGary, the
precipitate crossing of the fatal ford, the unequal struggle,
the desperate heroism of the pioneers and the sickening
slaughter of the flower of Kentucky's soldiery, constitute one
of the most familiar and interesting episodes of Western history."
To this, the following is added: "But the part played in
it [battle of the Blue Licks] by the principal actor, Girty,
has for some reason been substantially ignored by the writers
who have treated the event during the entire century that hasHistory of the Girtys.
elapsed since its occurrence. The borderers of 1782, exasperated at Estill's defeat, inflamed by the burning of Crawford, and lashed into a fury of mortification and grief over
this last and great disaster, were in no mood to admit the
ability of the man they hated and despised as a renegade.
The disaster was charged entirely to the recklessness of the
hot-headed McGary and the odious Girty was treated with
silent contempt. The example thus set seems to have been
followed by'all the Western chroniclers since that day. But,
viewing now the cold facts with eyes undimned by prejudice
or passion, it becomes evident that the soldiership of Girty
had more to do with the defeat of the gallant pioneers than
the rashness of McGary."
As to what has been published heretofore, showing Captain
Caldwell to have been in command at the battle, see Haldimand to Carleton, October 10, 1782, in Vermont Historical
Society's Collections, Vol. II, p. 304; Albach's Western Annals (1857), p. 395; McBride's Pioneer Biography, Vol. I, p.
208; Roosevelt's The Winning of the West, Vol. II, pp. 191207, 399-404.
INOTE V.-There has been heretofore a diversity of published
statements as to which of the three Girty brothers (Simon,
James, and George) was in the expedition to Wheeling in 1782.
Knapp, in his History of Ashland County (Ohio), p. 508, says:
"Connected with this expedition was the notorious James
Girty." Another account is to the effect that George Girty
was with the Indians and had command (see An Historical
Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, p. 276); still
another that Simon was the Girty who lead the savages; but,
as we have shown, the two last named did not leave Captain
Caldwell.
"When the attack [on Fort Henry, Wheeling] began, there
were but about twenty efficient men to oppose nearly four
hundred savages led on by James Girty."-Dr. Geo. W.
Hill, in the Ashland (O.) Press, November 26, 1874. This is
copied in Beach's Indian Miscellany (see, for the whole ac208History of the Girtys.
count, pp. 51-64). So far as this relates to James Girty, the
statement that he was present is correct, but erroneous as to
his having command of the savages. Anothor error of Dr.
Hill, besides making the number of savages too' great, is that
which makes their determination to assail Wheeling an afterthought: "Arriving at that point [the ruins of the "Moravian " Indian towns on the Tuscarawas] a difference of opinion arose as to the exact destination of the expedition. After
some consultation in council, as the expedition to Kentucky
was proving successful, it was decided that the Indian army
should proceed to and attack the small fort or block-house.at what is now the city of Wheeling, West Virginia."
NOTE VI.-General Clark, in marching against the principal Shawanese town on the Miami river, in retaliation for
"Blue Licks," left the Ohio river on the 4th of November,
1782, with one thousand and fifty men, reaching the Indian
village, now Piqua, Ohio, on the tenth, in the evening, completely surprising its occupants. Every thing the Shawanese
possessed was destroyed, except such articles as might be useful to the troops. The British trading post at the portage
above-"Lorimer's," but afterward usually written "Loramie's "--shared the same fate. "The loss of the enemy was
ten scalps, seven prisoners, and two whites retaken." Clark
lost one killed and had one wounded. (See his Official Report, printed in Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 401,
402.)
14
209History   of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XXII.
The news of peace between the United States and Great
Britain did not reach Fort Pitt until May,l 783, and excursions
into the settlements by small war-parties of savages were still
carried on. Simon Girty, from the Sandusky, led warriors to
Nine-mile Run, within five miles of Pittsburgh, where they
took some scalps. This was just at the time when the fact
became known at the fort that hostilities had been declared at
an end. To commemorate this, Lieutenant-Colonel Stephen
Bayard, then in command of the post, in the absence of General Irvine, was firing a salute, while the death-dealing work
of Girty was going on; the sounds of the cannon being distinctly heard by him.
A lad named John Burkhart was captured. He was asked
by Girty the meaning of the firing. The boy told him that
there was peace. This the renegade did not believe, so he
took his youthful prisoner to Detroit, but DePeyster sent him
back in care of a person returning to Pittsburgh.*  Young
Burkhart was kindly treated by Girty during hisjourney through
the wilderness-another instance of humanity to be passed to
his credit. This raid was the last of Girty's incursions during
the Revolution against the border of Western Pennsylvania,
or into any of the American settlements. He never again
visited his native state painted and plumed as a savage, to imbrue
his hands in the blood of his countrymen. But he remained
as interpreter in the employ of the British Indian Department on half-pay-on a " pension " as it was called t---making
at first his head-quarters at Detroit, as there was no longer a
necessity for his remaining upon the Sandusky, he having been
* Washington-Irvine Coirrespondence, p. 418.
t Howe's Historical Collections of Virginia, p. 367.
210History of the Girtys.
recalled from the Ohio wilderness by DePeyster.*   However,
before we dismiss him from his sojourn among the Wyandots
as interpreter and warrior, attention is properly called to one
of the many absurd traditions with which his name is associated-this time in connection with that of Samuel Brady,
who had been captured, according to the relation, by the Indians:
" Brady was taken [a prisoner] to the Sandusky villages," so
the story goes, "and as he was, and had been for years, the
most noted and feared white man, there was great rejoicing
amongst the Indians at his capture, and great preparations
and parade were made for torturing him. Runners were sent
to all the neighboring Indians, with the news that Brady was
a prisoner, and every Indian that got the news was there on
the day set for his execution. A very large body of Indians,
old and young, were collected together.
"Brady said that when he was first taken to Sandusky,
there was something in one of the chiefs which struck him
very forcibly.  He soon 1~ecame satisfied that he had somewhere seen him before. And after close observation and examination, he became satisfied that this person was Simon
Girty, the boy who was brought up with him as a brother. He
took the first opportunity he could get to say to him that he
knew him as Simon Girty.    He told him who he was, and related transactions that took place when they were boys and
that he could not possibly have forgotten. For some time
Girty refused to know him, or even to understand a word of
English; but at last he owned himself as Simon Girty. He
was at this time a noted chief amongst the Indians, and was
noted as being the most savage amongst the savages.
"Another tradition of Girty was, that Brady and he were
* "The great struggle in which the savages had been so actively engaged
was now over, and Girty, resigning for a season the ambitions of military
life, betook himself again to his old desultory occupations of trader, hunter,
and interpreter."-Magazine of American IHistory, Vol. XV, p. 269. But
the change was simply this: he dropped for the time all warlike endeavors
against his countrymen, simply continuing his occupation as interpreter.
That he was never a trader will more fully appear in a subsequent chapter.
211History of the Girtys.
young together and intimate acquaintances and associates;
that Girty was at one time a leader in the excursions against
the Indians, but for some reason he left the whites, joined
with and became a celebrated and savage chief amongst the
Indians.
" Brady plead with Girty at first to assist him to escape;
that he could do it without the fear of detection; that from
their early associations and friendship, he was bound to do it.
He used and urged by every reason and argument he could
think of to induce him to do so, but without effect. Girty
would have but little conversation with him, and refused to
assist him in the least.
"As the time for Brady's execution drew nigh, be begged
of Girty to furnish him with the means to take his own life
and escape the tortures preparing for him, but all without
effect. The time for his execution arrived; the fires were
lighted, and the excitement among the Indians became intense.  Their pow-wows had commenced, and the circle
around him was drawing closer, ana he began sensibly to feel
the effects of the fire. The withes which confined his arms
and legs were getting loose by the effects of the fire, and he
soon found he could at any time free himself from them.
He watched his opportunity, when, in the excitement of the
scene, a fine looking squaw-a squaw of one of the chiefsventured a little too near him for her own safety and entirely
within his reach. He, by one powerful exertion, cleared himself from every thing by which he had been confined, caught
the squaw by the head and shoulders and threw her on the
top of the burning pile, and in the confusion that followed
made his escape." *
At Detroit, in July, 1783, DePeyster gathered together the
chiefs of eleven Indian nations, comprehending all the tribes
as far south as the Wabash and the Great Miami. At this
council the services of Simon Girty as interpreter were brought
into requisition. Colonel DePeyster informed the savages
* See the letter of Frederick Wadsworth in tract No. 29, published by the
Western Reserve and Northern Ohio Historical Society, December, 1875.
212History of the Girtys.
that peace. was at hand and counseled them to bury the
hatchet. He then praised them for their valor, and dismissed
them with presents.
After five years of residence among the Indians, Simon Girty
now left (so far as actual and continuous living was concerned)
the wilderness and its dusky occupants, never to return.
When making his home with the Mingoes and Wyandots, he
did not become, as many have supposed, one of these people,
adopting their style of dress, falling in with all their habits,
hunting with them, and going with them to their councils at
Detroit as an Indian-he was never considered by these people as one of their number. It is safe to say that from
August, 1778, to August, 1783, not much more than half his
time was spent with these savages. He was constantly "on
the wing "-" flying about," as the British reports of that period so frequently affirm-now in the wilderness, now at Detroit. At the close of the Revolution, he was not so much
enamored of Indian life as his brother James, and the latter
was not so much charmed with it as their brother George.
Late in August, 1783, Simon Girty was visited at Detroit by his brother Thomas and his half-brother, John
Turner. The truth was that, at the close of the Revolution,
both the last-named were somewhat dissatisfied with the turn affairs had taken. Neither had the cause of his country deeply
at heart. During the war, both had been suspected of tory
proclivities, and there is a tradition current that during the
early days of that conflict, Turner had actually been arrested,
but nothing was proven against him and he was discharged.
The object of their journey, which will now be explained,
shows that their patriotism was not, at the date of their visit,
of a genuine character. " Three men," wrote DePeyster, on
the ninth of October, to Brigadier-General Maclean, from
Detroit, "are lately arrived from  Redstone creek [now
Brownsville, Fayette county, Pennsylvania]. They [that is,
two of them-Thomas Girty and John Turner] are brothers
to our interpreters, the Girtys,'and [one, Nathaniel McCarty,
to] a McCarty lately killed. The sole intent of their journey
213History of the Girtys.
is, to see what encouragement they will meet [with] if they
settle under the British government, [they] assuring me also
that several hundred will be glad to come off, as they see
nothing but persecution preparing for such as were not hearty
in the American cause." *
But the mission of the visitors to Detroit was a failure-why,
it is not known positively, although the fact that the persecutions which were expected did not follow in their cases, doubtless had somethiing to do with it.  Both Thomas Girty and
John Turner remained in their own country and became loyal
and good citizens.
In the fall, the different Western tribes in British interest
were again assembled in council; this time at Sandusky, and
by Sir John Johnson, then Superintendent-General of Indian Affairs. He made a powerful appeal to the Indians to
stand up for their rights as against the Americans, counseling
them to take up the hatchet again rather than yield to the
latter the possession of their lands. Simon Girty was also
present at this gathering, acting as interpreter.
The next year [1784], being one unusually free from
Indian assemblages, gave Simon Girty time to turn his
thoughts upon a subject of a wholly different character fromthat which had heretofore burdened his mind. In short, he
resolved to marry. But the object of his affections was much
younget than himself and a prisoner among the Indians. Hlow
much genuine love there was on either side, in the affair, is
the merest conjecture. She who was to become his wife was
Catharine Malottz who, it will be remembered, was captured
upon the Ohio river in 1780 t-a girl then in her teens, but
now grown to womanhood. To her, a savage life was more
terrible than death-she would even marry Girty would he
X MS. letter, Haldimand Papers. That the visitors were " lately arrived
from Redstone creek," implies (at least so far as Girty and Turner were
concerned) that they were lastly from there, where they had been, probably,
to get a list of such as might desire to change their habitations. The three
gave to DePeyster the names of twenty-three persons besides themselves,
all of whom, save two, had families. A copy of the list is before me.
t Ante, p. 116.
214Ilistory of the Girtys.
devise some means for her escape from captivity rather than
remain with the Indians-this is doubtless the correct view to
take of the matter. And Girty, who had made her acquaintance in the Indian country, was not slow in planning for her
release, making a trip for that express purpose to the tribe
where she was living; for the maiden was " fair to look upon,;"
and, in her old age, it is said, her comeliness did not forsake
her.
It was in August, 1784, that Girty, on his way out of the
wilderness, having in charge the one who was soon to become
his wife, reached the mouth of the Detroit river. Here, on
the Canada side of that stream, they were soon after married;
and here they at once took up their abode, at a point less than
two miles below the present Amherstburg, Essex county.* In
the vicinity, a settlement had already been commenced.
" I take the opportunity of Commodore Grant's going to
Quebec," wrote the then lieutenant-governor of Detroit to
the governor of Canada, to inclose to your excellency a list
of the names of those who claim Indian lands in the vicinity
of this place, from grants recorded in the recorder's office
and as I understand by the knowledge of the commanding
officers here since the year 1780, bv which it will appear your
excellency's orders to me to discountenance such proceedings,
is something too late to have any effect, as almost all the
land between the Lakes Erie and Huron on both sides the
strait [Detroit river] is claimed, and a great part settled upon
and improved. If it is your excellency's pleasure this should
be stopped nothing but your excellency's public and positive
orders will effect it. As Lieut.-Governor Hamilton knows
most of the claimants, he can inform your excellency many of
them are very unworthy any indulgence in that way.
"I have consulted Mr. McKee upon the most probable
method of obtaining a tract for the Crown to be distributed
* In An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, under
Col. William Crawford, in 1782, p. 198, it is erroneously stated, in effect,
that, in 1795, Girty settled just below Malden and married thiere. The
date was 1784.
215History of the Girtys.             9
Augusta, on the 14th of August, to the governor of Pennsylvania, the statement is made, that the writer had " received by
express, the disagreeable news that Fort Granville was taken
and burnt to the ground by a body of 500 French and Indians,
[and] that the whole garrison had been killed, except one person who was much wounded and made his escape." *
This report, as to the number killed, was, as we have seen,
erroneous.t
* Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. II, p. 144.
t See the statement of Peter Walker, as related by Colonel John Arnmstrong. Pennsylvania Colonial Records, ATol. VII, p. 232, already cited.History  of the Girtys.
as your excellency may think proper, and he is of opinion
with me, that a strip of two or three leagues deep on the
strait between the Lakes Erie and Huron may easily be obtained, but that a greater quantity might give umbrage to the
nations on the lakes. He likewise tells me the purchase which
has been made at Niagara has not been made known to the
lake Indians, and it is more than probable they will not be
pleased with the boundaries extending so far up Lake Erie.
"I am informed several of the reduced provincial officers
and many of the soldiers wish to settle on the south side
of Detroit rather than any-where else. Sever-al have built
upon and improved lands who have no other pretension than
the [lake] Indians' consent to possession; Captains Bird and
Caldwell are of the number, at a place that they have called
Fredericksburg [Amherstburgh]; besides all which, there are
some concessions of lots in the town of which I have not yet
got a full account." *
It was less than a month after this letter was written that
Simon Girty determined to locate oni a site chosen by him immediately after his marriage, which tract was washed along
its western boundary by the Detroit river, he having, however,
at the time no other right "than tbe [lake] Indians' consent
to possession;" the same that was relied upon by Captains
Bird and Caldwell.t' Jehu Hay to General Haldimand, July 22, 1784.--IS. letter, Haldimand
Papers. " During the same season [1784], a settlement was made
at Amherstburg [Malden] by the Loyalists."-Canniff's History of Canada,
p. 182.
t "Here [at Fort Malden, in 1796] he [Simon Girty] fo0und many warriors of his own tribe preparing to settle on lands granted them as allies of
the crown."-Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 273. By "his
own tribe" is here meant the Wyandots; but no lands, at this period, were
granted the Detroit Wyandots. " as allies of the crown," so far as I have
been able to learn, at or near Fort Malden; and certaintly none became the
property of the Sandusky Wyandots. Hay's letter of 1784, when Girty really
settled near what was afterward Fort Malden, speaks of the best method, it
will be noticed, of obtaining a tractfor the crownfrom the Indians-notfor
the Indians from the crown.
216History of the Girtys.
NOTE I.-" Girty was now [after the battle of the Blue
Licks] by far the most prominent and influential leader among
the Ohio Indians, and was dreaming of still greater military
achievements, when fortunately for the distressed and weakened pioneers his career as a soldier was checked for a while
by the close of the War of Independence, but not before he
had, according to Bradford, made a narrow escape from the
swiftly moving forces of George Rogers Clarke,' the Napoleon
of the West,' who pursued him to the valley of the Miami.
The autumn, so dreaded by Boone, instead of bringing Indians, brought the glad tidings of the cessation of hostilities,
an event which crushed all the hopes of the savages of ever
recovering Kentucky-hopes which seemed just after their
great victory at the Blue Licks to be on the very verge of a
glorious realization. Girty learned with disgust of the return
of peace while at the head of an Indian force operating about
Fort Pitt, and the news, strange to say, was first made known
to him by the salutes of rejoicing fired from the very fort that
he had shamelessly abandoned and whose downfall he had so
confidently predicted."-Magazine of American History, Vol.
XV, p. 269.
It is error to declare (1) that Simon Girty, after the battle
of the Blue Licks, was by far the most prominent and influential leader among the Ohio Indians; (2) that he was dreaming
of still greater military achievements [than at the Blue Licks];
and (3) that afterward he made a narrow escape from " Clarke,"
who pursued him to the valley of the AMiami.
Again: That the savages north of the Ohio, after the battle
of the Blue Licks, had hopes, which then seemed to be just on
the verge of realization, of recovering Kentucky, is an unwarranted statement. And it may be added that Simon Girty
was never a soldier during the Revolution in Fort Pitt (except
in the first half of 1775 as a Virginia partisan under Major
Connolly, who called it Fort Dunmore); he never, therefore,
shamelessly abandoned it; and never confidently predicted its
downfall, so far as the writer of this narrative has been able
to discover.
217History of the Girtys.
NOTE II.-It has only been within late years that any thing
has appeared in print as to the marriage of Simon Girty.
"Catherine MIalott, the oldest daughter of the family, was
in her fifteenth year at the time of the capture [of the Malotts
already mentioned in this narrative] and was carried to one
of the Shawnee [Delaware] towns on Mad river [it was on
the Scioto]. Simon Girty seems to have come across her on
one of his circuits amon(g the various Indian towns, and fell
violently in love with her. This was about three years after
her capture, and while her mother was known by Girty to be
in Detroit for the purpose of collecting her family from captivity. Indeed, it is probable that Girty had been employed
by Mrs. Malott to trace up, if possible, her lost children.
[This about Mrs. Malott is error.] However this may be, he
found Catherine now grown and very pretty, and adopted into
an Indian family [of the Muncey tribe or clan of Delawares].
They refused to give the girl up; but, on Girty's promising to
bring her back after she had seen her mother in Detroit, he
succeeded in getting Catherine away."--McKnight's Our
Western Border, p. 423.
The following is a more recent account; nevertheless, as
will be seen, it contains mistakes. Miss Malott was never a
resident of Detroit, and was not, as we have already shown,
captured by the Shawanese:
" It was during the, to him [Simon Girty], monotonous calm
of the first year after the war, 1783, that he secured a white
wife by marrying Catharine Malotte, a young lady about half as
old as himself, and reputed to have been at that time the beauty
of Detroit. There is an air of romance even about his marriage.
His wife, like himself, had been a victim of a border tragedy
and a prisoner among the Indians. A party of settlers, including her own family, while descending the Ohio in a flatboat, seeking new homes in the wilds of Kentucky, were fired
into by a band of Shawanese, who seized the boat, killed several of the party, and carried into a miserable captivity all
the survivors, including the then young girl, Catharine Malotte. She was released through the interposition of Girty.
218History of the Girtys.
o
Gratitude paved the way for love, and when her deliverer returned from the war as the victor of the Blue Licks, she
turned away from her red-coated and more civilized admirers
of the British post [Detroit] and accepted their strange and
notorious white savage confederate."-I-agazine of American
History, Vol. XV, pp. 269, 270.
NOTE III.-That Simon Girty, immediately after his marriage, took up his residence in Canada., below Amherstburg, is
fully established. He was frequently in Detroit afterward,
which has led some writers to assert that he lived there; but
this is error. His determination to settle where he did was
due to the fact that lie could be a resident of Canada, and at
the same time secure to himself, as he believed, a valuable
tract of land; and also because it was a very accessible point
for him (still engaged, as he was, in the British Indian Department), with Detroit on one side and the Ohio Indians on
the other, the close relations of' these savages with his department not having been particularly interrupted by the establishing of peace. The Magazine of American History,
Vol. XV, p. 273, not only gives the wrong date for his settling in Canada (1796), but adds: "As this society (about
Malden), Indians, refugees and British, was the most homelike Girty could expect to find, the soil fertile, the region
sufficiently wild and abounding with game, and no war promising immediate excitement, he settled with his family on a
piece of land at the head of Lake Erie and about a mile and
a half below Malden."
219History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XXIII.
The acknowledging by Great Britain of the independence
of the United States of America, could it have been immediately followed by the yielding possession to the latter of the
military posts of the former in the West, would have brought
at once to terms the various Indian nations therein located,
and the loss of the fur trade to the English would have been
the result. But possession was withheld; and it was of vital.
importance to that traffic that the different tribes should continue to occupy their hunting-grounds north-west of the Ohio.
To stir up an animosity, or, rather, to keep alive the war
spirit engendered in the late conflict, was the policy of the
traders. And the emissaries of Great Britain were not slow,
as we have already shown, in urging the Indians to stand up
for what they told them were their rights.
It was aid (first covert and'then open) given the savages by
the English, which fillally brought on between them and the
Americans actual war. A powerful agent in its instigation
was Simon Girty.* He is now suddenly brought forward as
a leading character for mischief to the United States. For~
the next ten years, nearly, he stands forth, as will be shown, a
prominent figure in the West. To him much is to be charged
in bringing about the discomfiture of one of our armies and
the loss of another. And yet, until quite recently, so little
had been recorded of his career during this period, that what
had found its way into the current histories of the West was
only tq the effect that, some years after his marriage, he was
comparatively quiet, attending to the affairs of his growing
family, and largely occupied in trading with the Indians.
Troops raised under resolutions of Congress of the 3d of"
June, 1784, were embodied in what was known as the First
* Journal of Capt. Jonathan Heart, p. 72.
220History of the Girtys.
American Regiment, in command of which was LieutenantColonel Josiah I1armar.*  It was determined to hold a treaty
with the Western Indians at Pittsburgh, and messages were
sent into the Indian country beyond the Ohio, inviting the
various tribes to meet at that place. The troops (Harmar's)
raised in Pennsylvania were ordered to march there; and by
the last of October two detachments had arrived out. The
United States Commissioners to hold the treaty were Arthur
Lee, Richard Butler, and George Rogers Clark. They did
not meet in Pittsburgh until the 5th of December, when, because of the season being so far advanced, and for other reasons, it was determined to hold the treaty at Fort McIntosh.
There the troops immediately marched, where chiefs of the
Wyandots, Chippewas, Delawares, and Ottawas, together with
the three government Commissioners just named, were afterward assembled; and there, early in January, 1785, a treaty
was held and articles duly signed.
Could the Wyandots and Delawares, after the treaty of
Fort McIntosh, have been left to themselves-could they have
followed out (without the fur trader and the British agent interfering) the dictates of their own better judgments, a good
understanding would doubtless have continued between them
and the Americans. The result of that treaty was already
having its effect upon the Shawanese on the Mad river and to
the westward, notwithstanding they were not' represented at
the meeting with the United States Commissioners, for it was
soon manifest that they too were desirous to treat with the
Americans; but just then came the British fur traders from
Detroit, first to the Wyandots and Delawares upon the Sandusky and then to the other tribes, sounding the note of alarm
that peace only meant the driving of the nations from their
homes and their hunting-grounds. And Simon Girty also
followed with his harangues, which were far more potent for
mischief than were the declarations of the traders. Thus
was the seed of disaffection sown among the Ohio Indians just
* Journal of Capt. Jonathan Heart, p. 36, note 2.
221History of the Girtys.
at the time when the American government was using every
effort to treat with the various tribes and bring about a permanent understanding with them.
It was one of the articles of the Fort McIntosh treaty that
"three chiefs, one from among the Wyandot and two from
among the Delaware nations," should "be delivered up to the
Commissioners of the United States, to be by them retained
till all the prisoners, white and black, taken by the said Indians, or any of them," should be restored.
Simon Girty was now wholly under the direction of McKee
-as completely so as he had been in the Revolution under
that of Hamilton, of Lernoult, or of DePeyster. His general
movements in the. Indian countrv--in the Ohio wildernesswere all at the bidding of his old-time friend, still agent in
the British Indian Department. He did not go among the
savages after peace between the United States and Great
Britain had been proclaimed, to live with them, but as a British emissary, to counsel them as dictated to him by McKee,
and, in the end, as we shall hereafter see, to go to war with
them, as circumstances might best require.
On the first day of June, 1785, Colonel Harmar, in command at Fort McIntosh, wrote the Secretary of War of the
United States as follows (which, it will be seen, is confirmatory
of the statement as to the evil effects produced by the wiles
of the fur traders and Girty):
" The Wyandot and Delaware nations have brought in their
prisoners (fifteen in number), agreeably to treaty, and the
hostages left in my possession are now dismissed. These nations are friendly, and I believe wish to cultivate a good understanding with the Americans. The Shawanese make great
professions of peace, and are desirous of a treaty being held
with them. The Cherokees are hostile, and have killed and
scalped seven people near the mouth of the Scioto, about three
hundred and seventy miles from hence.
"Speeches have been continually sent by the British
from Detroit to the Indians since the treaty, and I have good
intelligence that several traders have been amongst them,
222History of the Girtys.
using all means to make them entertain a bad opinion of the
Americans. One Simon Girty, I am informed, has been to
Sandusky for that purpose. I have taken every means in my
power to counteract their proceedings, and have directed the
Indians not to listen to their lies, but to tie and bring in here
any of those villains who spread reports among them injurious to the United States, in order that they may be punished." *
Of the regularly authorized agents of the British, it is
highly probable that Girty was the very first one to revisit
the Ohio wilderness, to awaken in the minds of the savages
animosities against the United States.    And he played well
his part, as the sequel shows.
The General Government resolved to hold a conference with
the Western Indians at the moutlh of the Great Miami, and
messengers were dispatched     to the various tribes inviting
them to the meeting. But, since the treaty at Fort McIntosh
in the previous January, stirring events had transpired in
the wilderness west. The intrigues of Girty and the fur
traders with the Wyandots and Delawares, before mentioned,
awakened the slumbering war-spirit of some of the braves
of these tribes; and now, for the first time, savage aggressions,
wholly independent of Great Britain, though stimulated by
her agents, took place; five or six people at the mouth of
the Hockhocking river falling victims during the summer to
the tomahawk and scalping-knife.     And, at the Tuscarawas,
these aggressions were afterwardl repeated. Indeed, at the
-: St. Clair Papers, Vol. II, pp. 6, 7. See also:Memoirs of the Historical
Society of Pennsylvania, Vol. VII, p. 417, where the same is given, with a
number of sentences omitted; but what is given follows the originail closer
than the other. Compare, in this coinection, Heart's Journal, pp. 71-73.
The Magazine of American History, Vtol. XV, p. 270, says: "The Indians
at this time, 1785, and for years after, were c,onstantly aggravated by the encroachnient of the wliites upon their North-western lands, and certainly
Girty did his best to fan the increasing flaume, which finally resulted in Harmar's campaign of 1790." The accuracy of this statement as to, " encroatchments," in 1785, of the whites upon the North-western lands of the Indians
is doubtful. The Indians in interest had acknowledged the paramount
rights of the United States to all lands "enceroached upon" by the whites
during that year.
223History   of the Girtys.
very time-that is, in the latter part of September, 1785, and
in the early days of October following-when Richard Butler,
one of the Commissioners of the United States, was passing
down the Ohio, on his way to the mouth of the Great Miami,
to the treaty to be there held, a council had convened, near
the Delaware village of New Coshocton, three miles north of
the present site of Bellefontaine, in Logan county, Ohio, at
which were chiefs of the Delawares, Wyandots, Shawanese,
Mingoes, Cherokees, Pottawattamies, Kickapoos, and Miamis,
with belts and speeches from the Weatenons, Ottawas, Chippewas, and the Fox nations, to form an alliance against the
Americans. Simon Girty, also, had no sooner heard of the
intended treaty at the mouth of the Miami than he hastened,
along with William Caldwell, from Detroit to the Sandusky,
to use his utmost endeavors to prevent the Delawares and
Wyandots from   attending the conference.*  Thence, Girty
passed on to the Shawanese, employing every means in his
power to stop those Indians also from going.t
Richard Butler, United States Commissioner, with Captain
Walter Finney and his company of infantry, from Fort McIntosh did not reach the mouth of the Great Miami until the
twenty-second of October. Two days after, a place on the
north side of the Ohio, just above the junction of the two
rivers, was fixed upon as a proper one to be occupied while
holding the treaty, and orders were immediately issued to
clear it of trees. The same day, George Rogers Clark, another
of the government Commissioners, arrived, and on the twentyfifth, Captain Finney "began to lay out and clear the ground
for four block-houses and quadrangular work, which was
pushed on with great alacrity by himself and officers." To
this post was given the name of Fort Finney. By the arrival,
* For the fact that Girty and Captain Caldwell, "of tie British Rangers,"
were at the Delaware and Wyandot towns in October, 1785, persuading the
Indians not to go to the treaty at the Big Miami, see -McCormick's Statement, in St. Clair Papers, Vol. II, p. 11, note; and Leith's Statement, in;same, p. 633.
t Taylor's Ohio, p. 450.
224IIistory of the Girtys.
on the thirteenth of November, of Samuel H. Parsons, the
Board of Comrmissioners was filled. and the business of treating with the savages was ready to be entered upon; however,
but few Indians had arrived. Suffice it to sayv that it was late
in January, 1786, before articles had been agreed upon, and
when signed (which was on the first day of February), only
the Shawanese of the Indian nations were subscribers, along
with the United States Commissioners. This treaty is known
in history as the Treaty of Fort Finney.
By article sixth of this compact, the United States granted
to the Shawanese "lands within their territory to live and
hunt upon, beginning at the south line of the lands allotted
to the Wyandot and Delaware natiohs, at the place where the
main branch of the Great Miami, which falls into the Ohio,
intersects the said line; then down the river Miami to the
fork of that river next below the old fort which was taken by
the French in one thousand seven hundred and fifty-two;
thence due west to the River de la Panse; then down that
river to the river Wabash;" beyond which lines none of the
citizens of the United States were to settle or disturb that
nation in its settlements and possessions. These Indians relinquished to the United States all title or pretense of title
they ever had to the lands east, west, and south of the east,
west, and south lines before described.
It may be said that the same policy was pursued toward
the Shawanese in this treaty as was pursued toward the
Wyandots and Delawares in the one at Fort McIntosh the
year before; that is, both were based upon the opinion of
Congress that the treaty of peace of 1783 with Great Britain
absolutely invested the government with the fee of all the Indian lands within the limits of the United States, and that they
had the right to assign or retain such portions as they should
judge proper. Enough information was obtained at Fort
Finney by the United States Commissioners to make it certain
that the chief cause of the disturbance in the West by the
Indians was owing to the wiles of men (like Simon Girty)
15
205History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER II.
Leaving the unfortunates captives of Fort Granville in the
hands of the French and Indians, let us follow, briefly, the
current of events in the vicinity of that post for the next
month, August, 1756. From the fifth to the tenth, many
murders were committed in Cumberland county. This county
was of great extent. It included " all and singular [the]
lands lying within the province of Pennsylvania, to the westward of the Susquehanna, and northward and westward of the
county of York." It is not a matter of wonder that the
affrighted inhabitants, in every direction, but especially of the
Juniata and Sherman's valley, should have deserted their
homes. About the twentieth, on the Salisbury plain, near
the mouth of Conococheague creek, as a number of men,
women, and children were attending a funeral, they were fired
on by about thirty Indians; fifteen persons were killed and
scalped, and a number of others wounded.  All around,
throughout the month, wherever anl opportunity offered, there
the wily savages were murdering, plundering, and burning.
But the day of retribution was at hand. It was determined
to carry the war into the Indian country-to attack the savages in some one of their villages beyond the mountains.
How this determination was carried out the sequel will shdw.
Far in the west, upon the east bank of the Alleghany river,
was the Delaware Indian village of Kittanning, now the site
of the present town of that name, county seat of Armstrong
county, Pennsylvania. Down the Alleghany, below the mouth
of the Kiskiminetas, a trail struck its banks, coming from
Shippensburg through the Indian village of Frank's Town, in
the present county of Huntingdon. Another from the same
place, "round Parnel's Knob and by Ray's Town [now Bedford]," reached the Alleghany not far above its uniting with
the Monongahela to form the Ohio. These routes were the
10History of the Girtys.
kept in employ by the British Indian agent, and to some traders
who wished to monopolize the peltry trade. These designing
parties had much the advantage of the Americans. They
were constantly among the Indian nations, and there had been
no counteracting influence brought directly to bear by the
United States.
It was in the previous April, that the settlement near the
mouth of the Scioto river was, as mentioned by liarmar, broken
up by the Cherokees. These Indians continued their hostilities. The close of the war with Great Britain and the calling in of the Indian braves by that power had little or no effect upon these bands, who inhabited a few villages in various
parts of the North-west: They were not satisfied to wreak
their vengeance upon emigrants who had crossed over to the
north side of the Ohio, but carried their forays into Kentucky
and what is the present West Virginia.
And now the Wabash Indians, as they had not come forward to the treaty at Fort Finney, joined these hostiles in
their attacks upon the Americans. Their incursions became
so galling that the Governor of Virginia, on the 16th of
May, 1786, brought the subject to the attention of Congress.
By this time, the Shawanese, also, in open disregard of their
treaty stipulations, showed, unmistakably, their warlike intentions; for already had Simon Girty and other emissaries
from Detroit reached that tribe upon the head-waters of the
Great Miami, and, to a considerable extent, counteracted the
policy determined upon at their late conference with the
United States Commissioners. But the principal work for mischief was done by Matthew Elliott, who had taken up his residence with the Indians last mentioned, at one of their villages.
To the letter sent by the Virginia governor to Congress,
that body, on the thirtieth of June, replied that they were
desirous of giving the most ample protection in their power
to the citizens of the United States, and that they had directed
their commandant (Colonel Harmar) on the Ohio, to detach
two companies of infantry to the rapids of that river (Louisville). They requested the governor to give orders to the
226History   of the Girtys.
militia of Kentucky to hold themselves in readiness to unite
with the federal troops in such operations as the commanding
officer of the latter might judge necessary to protect the
frontiers.  This proved, in the end, a declaration of war
against the Western Indians, though not so intended by
Congress at the time; for " an Indian war," wrote the Secretary of War to Colonel HIarmar, " disagreeable at all times,
would be peculiarly distressing in the present embarrassed
state of the public finances; therefore, it must be avoided if
possibly consistent with the interest and dignity of the United
States."  "The emissaries," he continued, "who are stimulated by the British officers or their agents, will be industrious to urge the Indians to open hostilities; it will be your
duty to counteract them; and I shall flatter myself that you
will be effectually able to accomplish it." But the sequel will
show how futile were his efforts against these' emissaries."
Simon Girty, by the first of June, had returned from the
Shawanese towns to the Sandusky, along with McKee and
Elliott, and some Sliawanese, when the principal chiefs of
the Wyandots were persuaded to go along with them to
a treaty to be held at Niagara by Sir John Johnson, who had
invited them and the Six Nations to be present on that occasion. The three emissaries just named, with forty Indians,
among whom were three Wyandot chiefs and one each of the
Ottawas and Chippewas, living upon the lower waters of the
Maumee, sailed from Lower Sandusky, onI the seventh, under
Commodore Grant, giving out that they (McKee, Elliott, and
Girty) were going to Quebec to purchase lands on the north
side of the lake (Erie) from the Indians. This was only a
pretense to cover the knowledge of their going to meet Sir
John, which these Indians were desirous should be kept from
the Americans, they being, ostensibly, at peace with the latter, and constantly affirming that they desired to so remain.*
* Col. Josiah Harmar to Brig.-Gen. Knox, July 3, 1786, in Memoirs of
the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Vol. VII, pp. 419, 420. However, to
obtain lands was really one of the objects in view in the three going to
Niagara.
227Besides, as Great Britain, too, was at peace witli the United
States, it would not do to make public the fact that the
Superintendent General of British Indian Affairs in America
had presumed to invite a nation living upon the soil of the
United States to a treaty in Canada.
At Niagara, Johnson told the Indians they would be no
people in a short time if they did not unite. They should all
be one people; and what they did, either to make war or
peace, would then be of some avail. Of course, the savages
well understood this to be directed against the United States;
and a much larger assemblage, in the following December,
brought together by Thayendanegea (Captain Brant), in Canada, set forth effectivelv the same policy.
At the Niagara gathering, Simon Girty, McKee, and Elliott obtained the promise of certain lands in Canada, on the
east side of the Detroit river, as a reward for their services
during the Revolution. Girty, having previously obtained, as
we have already seen, at least a tacit consent firom the Lake
Indians to a tract, was already living upon it;* and it was
here that his daughter, Ann, was born, late in the fall of 1786.
A child born in the first half of the previous year had died in
infancy.
Encouraged by the presence of so many Indians from the
country south of Lake Erie, in the summer, at Niagara,
another council was planned by Sir John Johnson, to be held
in Canada, at the Huron (Wyandot) village, on the Detroit
river, in hopes to bring together a large representation of the
tribes living within the limits of the United States north-west
of the Ohio, where the same policy could be urged more effectively of uniting the Western nations, in opposition to the
United States acquiring the Indian lands, as had been done in
the previous treaties held with them. Captain Brant, of the
Mohawks in Canada, was put forward to guide the movement.
To this end, he visited the Sandusky. Representatives from
some of the Six Nations-from the (Hurons) Wyandots, Ottawas, Miamis, Shawanese, Chippewas, Cherokees, Delawares,
* The exact locality will hereafter be described.
Histor of tlte CTirtys.
228History of the Girtys.
Pottawattamies, and Wabash nations-assembled at the appointed place, and, on the 18th of December, 1786, agreed
upon a message to Congress, the tone of which was pacificprovided the United States made no encroachments upon their
lands beyond the Ohio. It was but the reflex of what had
been said by Johnson at Niagara, and was, to the United
States, a grand deception; no chief put his sign-manual to
the document; but, in lieu thereof, as a cunningly devised
scheme, appeared the names of each nation, with the proper
emnblems following them.
The address did not reach Congress until the next July,
when action was taken upon it, hereafter to be mentioned.
At this council, Simon Girty was extremely active, along with
McKee and Elliott, in stirring up the minds of the savages
against the Americans. Many other emissaries and some furtraders, from Detroit, were present to fan the flame of discontent. In their message, the Indians proposed a council with
the Americans, at some half-way place, the ensuing spring,
and they recommended to the United States that, in the meantime, their surveyors and other people be prevented from
crossing the Ohio.
NOTE I.-During the year 1785, many families went down
the Ohio river in boats, landed at Limestone (now Maysville),
and continued their route to such parts of Kentucky as
pleased them. Among them was Thomas Marshall, who had
embarked with a numerous family on board a flat-boat, and
descended the Ohio without any incident of note until he
passed the mouth of the Great Kanawha, when, about ten
o'clock at night (so we have the relation), he was hailed from
the northern shore of the river by a man who announced
himself as James Girty, the brother of Simon. The boat
dropped slowly down within one hundred and fifty yards of
the shore, and the man made a corresponding movement
along the beach. The conference was kept up for several
minutes.
After the person on shore had given his name, he inquired
229History of the Girtys.
as to that of the master of the boat. When told it was Marshall, he said he knev, him (Marshall) well and respected him
highly. He had been posted there, he said, by order of his
brother, Simon, to warn all boats of the danger of permitting
themselves to be decoyed ashore. The Indians, he said, had
become jealous of his brother, who had lost the influence
which he formerly held amongst them, and now deeply regretted the injury lhe had inflicted upon his countrymen,
and wished to be restored to their society. Simon, in order
to convince the Americans of the sincerity of his regard, had
directed him to warn all boats of the snares spread for them.
Every effort would be made to draw passengers ashore. White
men would appear upon the. bank, and children would be
heard to supplicate for mercy. "But," continued the man,
" do you keep the middle of the river and steel your heart
against every mournful application you may receive."  Marshall thanked him for his intelligence, and continued his
journey.
He who is responsible for publishing this story adds: " From
this it would appear that [Simon] Girty's situation was by no
means enviable. The superior intelligence which had first
given him influence, gradually attracted envy. Combinations
were probably formed against him, as they are in civilized
life, against every man who is guilty of the unpardonable offense of mounting rapidly above his fellows.  Ambition,
jealousy, intrigue, combinations for particular objects, prevail
as strongly among savages as among civilized beings, and spring
in each from the same source- a tender, passionate, inordinate love of self-a passion the most universal, deeply rooted,
and infinitely diversified in its operations of any in existence--
a passion as strong and easily offended in the degraded Hottentot as in the Emperor Napoleon, in the superannuated old
woman as in the blooming belle-the only human passion
which age can not tame or misery extinguish, or experience
cure, or philosophy expel;'which flutters as strongly in the
jaws of death as in the vigor of life, and is as buoyant and
ridiculous in the breast of the philosopher, as in that of a vil230History   of the Girtys.
lage beauty. Nothing more was ever heard of Girty's wish
to be restored to his station in society; but his warning, by
whatever motive dictated, was of service to many families."
As to the foregoing tradition, it is only necessary to say,
that if such a conversation with Marshall as is therein related
actually took place, the mIan claimDing to be James Girty was
an imposter, for at that time James was, it may be premised,
quietly trading with the Indians at his establishment, where is
now located St. Marys, Ohio. (For this relation concerning
Thomas Marshall, see McClung's Sketches of Western Adventure, pp. 195-197.) The subsequent history of Simon
Girty, as given in this and the following chapters, shows the
fallacy of the story of his " deeply regretting the injury he
had inflicted upon his countrymen," and of his wishing "'to
be restored to their society." Whether his influence with the
savages was on the wane will also presently appear.
The Magazine of American Historv, Vol. XV, p. 270, has
this to say concerning the account:
"About two years after his marriage, 1785, Girty did an
act of kindness, as singular as it was unexpected, and the motive for which has never been clearly explained. According
to Colonel Thomas Marshall, he posted his brother, James
Girty, who was himself a thorough savage, on the northern
bank of the Ohio, near the mouth of the Kanawha, to warn
immigrants traveling by boat of the danger of being decoyed
ashore by the Indians..McClung says that this timely notice
was of service to many families, and that those who did not
heed it suffered. It is asserted that Girty did this to curry
favor with the Americans, and to help pave the way for his
return to the people he had abandoned, but nothing has been
produced to support this opinion. His conduct otherwise did
not indicate it."
As to James Girty being at this time " a thorough savage,"
it may be remarked, that his employment did not indicate it.
He had a cruel and savage nature, it is true, but he had by no
means given himself up to the simple and lazy life of an In231History of the Girtys.
dian, living upon scanty food like the red men, hunting as
they did, dressing like them, or depending upon gifts from
the British, or obtaining the necessaries of life by selling
skins to traders. He was himself a trader, and a thrifty one,
as will hereafter be shown. It may be mentioned that Marshall did not assert that the man who hailed him was inl fact
James Girty-only that he announced himself as such. It
can not be affirmed then, as a verity, that, "according to Colonel Thomas Marshall, he [Simon] posted his brother, James
Girty," on the northern bank of the Ohio, to give warning
to emigrants. And if, as stated by McClung, "this timely
notice was of service to many families," its effectiveness in nowise depended upon the one hailing being actually the person
he represented himself to be, but upon the claim that he was
James Girty.
NOTE II.-The depredations of the Wabash Indians, in the
summer of 1786, into Kentucky were so frequent and deplorable that George Rogers Clark commanded an expedition
against them, which proved "' a shameful failure." Not so, a
campaign under Benjamin Logan against the Shawanese upon
the Mad river. With five hundred Kentuckians, he " burned
eight towns, laid waste many hundreds of corn-fields, killed
twenty braves, and, with eighty prisoners, hastened back to
Kentucky." (Compare McMaster's History of the People of
the United States, Vol. I, pp. 385-388, and the authorities
there cited; also other current Western histories, local and
general.)  The Cherokees, also, it may be said, met their
deserts.
232History of the Girtys.               233
CHAPTER XXIV.
In the first half of the year 1787, Simon Girty was frequently at Detroit, going there from his home in Canada. On
one of these visits, he was called upon by James Moore, a young
American, to assist him in obtaining from another American,
but a loyalist, his sister, whom the latter had purchased from a
Shawanese Indian. Moore had himself been a captive; and,
before giving the result of his application to Girty for help,
it will be interesting to learn the particulars of the young
man's captivity, which began the 4th of September, 1784, in
App's Valley, Virginia. He was then in the fourteenth year
of his age. His father had sent him to a waste plantation,
about two miles and a quarter away, to get a horse to go to
mill. He had reached a point within a short distance of the
horses, when he was suddenly confronted by Indians, one of
whom took him prisoner. There were three of the savages.
They were Shawanese from the upper waters of the Mad river,
in what is now Logan county, Ohio. He was captured by the
leader of the band, Black Wolf by name. It was about one
o'clock in the afternoon, and in a few minutes the Indians
started with the boy on their return down the north fork of
Sandy river.
After about twenty-two days' traveling, Wapatornica (still
a Shawanese town) was reached. They had crossed the Ohio
between the mouths of Guyandotte and Big Sandy, on a raft
made of dry logs tied together with grapevines. They lay
one day on the Scioto, where the Indians made pictures on
the trees of three warriors and their prisoner. The boy was
not taken directly to Wapatomica, but to the residence of the
Black Wolf's half-sister, some distance away, to whom he was
sold for an old gray horse.
In about two weeks after young Moore had been sold, he
was sent, in company with the half-brother of the squaw who234               History of the Girtys.
had purchased him and others, on a winter's hunting excursion. They were very unsuccessful. The sufferings of the
boy from hunger and cold were very great, as he had scarcely
any clothing. The snow was knee deep, and his blanket too
short to cover him. Often, in lying down and drawing his
feet up to get them under the blanket, he would get so benumbed that he could not without considerable exertion get
his limbs stretched out again. At his return from hunting, in
the spring of 1785, he was given up to Matthew Elliott, who
acted as trader among the Shawanese and as British emissary.
But the old woman who had purchased him, finding it out,
got very angry, threatened Elliott, and got him back. Young
Moore was then living at Pigeontown, not far from the present West Liberty, Ohio. He was frequently at the Shawanese Indian town of Mac-a-cheek, where, some time in
April, there was held a large dance. This dance young
Moore was permitted to attend, in company with the Indian
to whom he belonged. He there met with a French trader,
who took a fancy to him on account of his having a resemblance to one of his sons. The Frenchman purchased him for
fifty dollars in brooches and other trinkets, and took him
to Detroit. He was treated by his purchaser with great
kindness, living with him until October, 1789, the latter
ever ready to give him up whenever any chance might present itself for his return to his friends.
WThile living with Baptiste Ariome, his generous protector,
the boy always ate at his table and slept in a good feather bed
with his son. In him and his wife he met with a father and
mother indeed. Sometimes he went with Ariome to trade
with the Indians in the Ohio country. While on one of these
expeditions, young Moore heard from a Shawanese with
whom he had become acquainted while living at the Mad river
towns, of the destruction by the savages of a part of his father's
family and the captivity of the balance, the relator being one
of the party on that occasion. The event occurred, he was
told, in July, 1786, and the circumstance was related to him
not long after. In the winter following-that is, early in theHistory of the Girtys.
year 1787, he learned that a sister of his was living with a
white family some distance from Detroit. She had been purchased by a man named Stockwell,* an Amtrican loyalist, from
the Shawanese. He got the information from Stockwell himself, by whom he was told that he intended in the spring to
move to Frenchtown, below Detroit. As soon as the young
man learned that Stockwell had taken up his residence there,
he went to see his sister-Mary by name, generally called
Polly by the family. He found her in a inost abject condition, almost naked, clothed in a few dirty rags, an object of pity
indeed. Her owner was, of course, unfrieindly to the Americans-a refugee from his countrymen--" in short," Moore
declared, "a man of ba(d character and an unfeeling wretch."
" It is impossible," he says, " for me to detail my feelings;
sorrow and joy were combined: and I suppose her feelings
on that occasion were similar to my own." Having found
his sister in so disagreeable a situation, he was advised to
apply to the commanding officer at Detroit, informling him of
her treatment, in order to effect, if possible, her release. But,
before reciting the particulars of his exertions in that direction
and the result, and of the part taken by Simon Girty to aid
him, it will not be amiss to recount briefly the disasters which
had befallen the young nian's family,. and concerning which he
had now obtained from his sister a inuch fuller account than
from his Indian acquaintance.
James Moore (father of young James, whose captivity
has just been narrated), his wife, Martha, and their children, John, Jane, Mary, and Margaret, were living in App's
Valley on the 14th of July, 1786, when the disaster overtook
them we are now about to relate. Another one of the family,
Joseph by name, was away from home, at the time, attending
school, while James, the second son, was, as before related, at
* "My father was well acquainted with Simon Girty, with Elliott, McKee, Caldwell, Stockwell, Hazle, the Lytles, and all the other renegades in
Canada WVest; but there was very little of the entente cordiale between him
and them."-MS. letter of William Walker, March 21, 1872, from Wyandotte City, Kansas.
235History   of the Girtys.
ones usually followed by traders and others in passing over
the mountains, in Pennsylvania. On the northern trail, some
distance beyond Frank's Town, a branch trail led off to Kittanning. After the commencement of hostilities, all these
trails were deserted save by war-parties of the enemy making
their way into the exposed settlements east of the mountains
to plunder and destroy.
The Indians who accompanied the French on their expedition, which resulted in the capture of Fort Granville, were
largely from  Kittanning.   No sooner, therefore, had the
stockade been burnt, than the enemy with their prisoners and
plunder began their march for that village.   Each captive
able to carry a burden was loaded to the very limit of his
strength and endurance. It is a tradition that Turner's share
was a hundred pounds of salt. Arrived at Kittanning and
preparations were made by the savages to torture at least one
of their prisoners. Turner, so runs the tradition (and it is
only a tradition), was recognized as the one who at Chambers's
had put an end to the existence of The Fish-the slayer of
Simon Girty, Sr., and his fate was sealed. Be this as it may,
it is certain, that he was doomed to the stake.  "They tied
him to a black post; danced around him; made a great fire;
and, having heated gun-barrels read hot, ran them through
his body!    Having tormented him    for three hours, they
scalped him alive, and at last held up a boy with a hatchet
in his hand to give him the finishing stroke." *  Such was the
awful death of John Turner. The miserable wife was compelled to witness the terrible sufferings of her husband. She
sat upon a log near by with her young son, a beholder of the
dreadful scene! The four boys-Thomas, Simon, James, and
George-were also horrified spectators of their step-father's
agony.t The mother and her five sons were now left'to the
* Gordon's Ilstory of Pennsylvanitl, p. 619. It is surmised that Roosevelt has confounded Turner with Simon Girty, Sr., and therefore applies
this method of givin " the finishing stroke" to the latter.
tSparks's Library of American Biography, Second Serie., Vol. XIII,
p. 109, note. Whether Sparks had any positive authority for the assertion,
is doubtful. However, it is probably true.
11History of the Girtys.
that date living at Detroit with the good Baptiste Ariome. A
party of Shawanese had come up Sandy river, crossed over to
the head of Clinch; passed near where Tazewell Court-House
was afterward erected, murdered a Mr. Davidson and wife and
burned their dwelling, and then passe(l on to App's Valley
hastily, before any alarm could be given, and lay in ambush for
the Moore family. The savages numbered about thirty. James
Moore, the father, was shot dead, while the mother, with her four
children, John, Jane, Mary, and Margaret (an infant) were captured. In a short time the Indians were on their march to the
Shawanese towns, in what is now the State of Ohio, with their
prisoners and plunder. The son, John, was soon tomahawked,
and on the third day the infant's head was dashed against a
tree by one of the savages, and its lifeless body, without a
word, tossed into the bushes! Upon reaching the Scioto, Mrs.
Moore and her two remaining children were shown the hieroglyphics upon some trees which represented her son, James,
and his captors, mention of which has before been made. The
mother was informed that he was still in captivity. The prisoners were then taken to Wapatomica and Mack-a-cheek,
where they were well treated by the Shawanese. This was in
August, 1786.
After a few days, a council was called to discuss matters
appertaining to the attitude of the nation against the Government of the United States. The aged chief, Moluntha, made
a long speech dissuading the Shawanese from war; but the
warriors shook their heads and retired.  This chief was
killed soon after by one of Colonel Benjamin Logan's men,
in the expedition of the Kentuckians before spoken of,
to the Shawanese towns on Mad river. Mary Moore was
taken by the old chief to his wigwam, and treated by him
with great kindness; his actions clearly evincing that he commiserated her condition. But the mother and sister were soon
tortured at the stake by some Cherokees while the Shawanese
were on a drunken frolic. Their sufferings were prolongedtheir agony, what words can picture! After Logan's expedition, the Indians, because of the destruction of their pro236History of the Girtys.
visions, and winter setting in, sought aid from Detroit. Of
those who journeyed thither, one was tile Indian with whom
lived Mary Moore. Her sufferings on the road were terrible.
Arrived at their destination, the Indians gave themselves up
to drinking; and, to indulge their appetites, sold their captives,
among whom was Mary, who was purchased by Stockwell for
half a gallon of rum. The latter, as we have already seen,
took her to his home, some distance away, and made a servant of her, furnishing her with very little clothing and compelling her to eat the most scanty fare. Upon the moving of
Stockwell to Frenchtown, her brother, James, was gratified
to meet her there, grieved, however, at her cruel treatment,
as we have seen.
Young Moore, some time during his captivity, or while
living with Baptiste Ariome, had made the acquaintance of
Simon Girty. To him the young Virginian applied for assistance in releasing his sister from the slavish bondage in which
she was held by Stockwell. Girty interested himself in the
boy's behalf, and the two laid the matter before Alexander
McKee, who was still the deputy Indian agent of the British
for Detroit and its dependencies. McKee had Stockwell
brought to trial for ill-treatment of the girl, but her brother
failed, for the time, notwithstanding the aid given him by Girty,
in having her released from the service of her master; however, it was decided that, when an opportunity should present
itself for the return home of both brother and sister, the latter should be given her liberty. This event subsequently occurred, and both reached their friends in Virginia without
accident.*
Simon Girty was employed during the year 1787 sometimes at his home attending to domestic matters, but oftener
at Detroit or in the Indian country south, to do the bidding
of the Detroit commandant, but particularly of McKee.
As no reply had been received from Congress to the address
* For an " account of the captivity and destruction of the Moore family
by the Indians," see Howe's Historical Collections of Virginia, pp. 489-494;
also, Foote's Sketches of Virginia (1860), pp. 506-524.
237History   of the Girtys.
sent the previous fall by the Indians assembled at the Wyandot village, Canada, but was expected early in the autumn of
1787, a number of nations gathered at the foot of the Rapids
of the Maumee, awaiting its arrival. Brant was present at
the Maumee council; so, also, was McKee, at whose instigation Simon Girty had visited the Sandusky Indians and persuaded both the Wyandots and Delawares to take part in its
proceedings. The Indians sent forward a request that any
message from the United States should be forwarded to them
at that place, which was at the principal crossing of the Maumee river, on the south side thereof; but, as none came, the
Indians there concluded to send another address, and to meet
again at the same place the next year for the purpose of considering the answer.
The resolution of the savages upon the Maumee to meet
again upon that river in the ensuing year (1788) becoming
known to Richard Butler, the superintendent of Indian affairs, he resolved to use every exertion in his power to produce at least a division in their councils, if he could do no
better; so a trusted trader was sent to the point of the proposed gathering, where some of the Indians had already arrived. Singularly enough, one of the messengers dispatched
from Pittsburgh to the Sandusky by Butler, to gather information, was Thomas Girty, Simon's brother.* The loyalty of
Thomas to his country, although, as we have seen, of a doubtful character at the close of the Revolution, was now to be
depended upon. But the brothers did not meet in the wilderness, for Simon, at that time, was at his home in Canada.
It was soon developed that the Wyandots upon the Sandusky and near Detroit were anxious to have the meeting at
the Wyandot village on that river; for these Indians could
then exert a powerful influence in favor of peaceful measures,
which they were inclined to, with the United States. But the
arrival at that village, in August, of Captain Brant, turned
* i"[Thomas] Girty and some other persons brcougbt alarming accounts
fronm Sandusky."-General Richard Butler to St. Clair, July 1, 1788.-St.
Clair Papers, Vol. II, p. 47.
238History of the Girtys.
the scale in favor of the Maumee river as a place of meeting,
where lie attended with a number of Mohawks and a few
others of the Five Nations.
The Western tribes represented at the council were the Wyandots (of Sandusky and Detroit), Chippewas, Ottawas, Pottawattamies, and Delawares; also the Shawanese, Miamis, and
Kickapoos, and some of the Sacs. At this gathering was McKee, who sent full reports of the proceedings to his supeiriors.
More time had been spent by Simon Girty since the beginning of 1788, to this time, at his Canadian home, than during
all of 1787. Notwithstanding this, he was active in his endeavors to obey the behests of the Detroit commandant and
Deputy Indian Agent McKee. He was several times sent
into the Ohio wilderness; and finally (as during the year previous), to thile foot of the Rapids of the Maumee, to the Indian
conference, at or near the site of the present Perrysburgh,
Ohio. Girty's wife remained at their place on the east side
of the Detroit river, where, in the summer, a son was born,
and named Thomas, after its uncle living at Pittsburgh.
Governor Arthur St. Clair, of the North-west Territory,
and Indian Agent Richard Butler, had, previous to the meeting of the Indians on the MIaumee, sent invitations to the
various nations to meet at the falls of the Muskingum, at a
place afterward known as Duncan's Falls, near the present
Taylorsville, Muskingurn county, Ohio, to hold a treaty. The
point fixed upon was about seventy miles up that river from
its mouth, at the head of boat navigation. The place of meeting was afterward changed to Fort Harmar, at the mouth of
the Muskingum.
The result of the conference on the Maumee was that the
Indians resolved to go to the treaty to be held at Fort Harmar; but, on their way to that post, they met a message from
Governor St. Clair, which asserted positively that the obligations of former treaties must be carried out. This caused
Brant, with his Mohawks and the others of the Five Nations
with him, to turn back; as he now saw, positively, that, as
between war and the Ohio river being made the boundary of
239History of the Girtys.
the Indian lands, the IUnited States would choose the former.
With him returned not only those Delawares who now resided
upon the Maumee, but the Shawanese, Miamis, an4 Kickapoos-the very tribes that St. Clair was most anxious to treat
with, but which, in fact, he did not much expect to see.
Although, at the council held by the savages at the Maumee,
Simon Girty played but a subordinate part, it was an effective
-one. No white man so readily entered into fellowship with
many of the chiefs there assembled as he. His acquaintance with individual members of the various tribes was much
extended. He spoke with many of them in their own tongue.
He was recognized now more than ever as the true friend of
the Indian. Still, the peace party gave him the cold shoulder.
He was the mouth-piece for McKee and powerfully aided
Brant. Whatever were their counsels were his. In the meetings he was a most prominent figure, but a silent one; his
work was prosecuted outside the council-house. While at this
gathering, he aided in obtaining the freedom of an American
woman held as a prisoner by one of the Indians attending the
conference. It was as creditable to his magnanimity as were
his efforts on behalf of Mary Moore, and much more speedy
in its results. The particulars of her captivity and its termination are interesting.
In the latter part of June, 1785, a small party of Indians
reached a branch of the West Fork of the Monongahela, in
what is now West Virginia, on a marauding expedition.'Here resided an enterprising settler by the name of Edward Cunningham. A brother, named Thomas, lived in a house almost adjoining. At the time spoken of, Edward and his family were
in one cabin, and the wife of Thomas, with her four children
(her husband having gone east on a trading expedition), was
in the other. Both families were eating their dinner, when
they were attacked by the savages. The result was the killing of the four children and the capturing of Mrs. Thomas
Cunningham, while the family of Edward made a successful
defense in their house, keeping the Indians at bay until, fear240History of the Girtys.
ing a longer stay, the savages beat a retreat, carrying with
them their prisoner.
Mrs. Cunningham suffered untold mental and physical
agonies on her march to the Indian towns across the Ohio.
For ten days her only nourishment was the head of a wild
turkey and a few paw-paws. She remained over three years
with the savages, and finally was brought by them  to the
council at the Maumee last mentioned, where she saw Simon
Girty, to whom she appealed for aid in getting released from
the Indians. He told her at first that she was better off there
than at home, but her importunities were continued, when he
declared, in a jocose manner, that his saddle-bags were too
small to conceal her. Mrs. Cunningham persevered, imploring on her knees for his help to get her away from the savages. His stubborn heart finally relented, and he brought
the matter to the notice of AMcKee, who furnished him with
some Indian trinkets, and he secured her ransom.  She
reached her home, finally, in safety.*
No sooner had the council upon the Maumee broken up
and the Indians departed for Fort Harmar, than McKee and
Girty returned to Detroit, the latter soon proceeding to his
home across the Detroit river, where he remained during the
winter.
It was plain to be seen that a war-cloud in the western
horizon was rising; and, all around, there were portents of a
coming storm. By no one were the signs welcomed with
more delight than Simon Girty. He had been all along really
for war, though counseling peace could the Americans be kept
from crossing the Ohio, which he very well knew was impossible; anld he was especially certain that war was not far off,
after the return to the Huron village, on their way home, of
the Mohawks led by Brant-upon the latter informing him,
as he had already done the Detroit commandant and McKee,
of St. Clair's ultimatum.
It was not until the middle of December, 1788, that a suf* McKnight's Our Western Border, pp. 714, 715.
16
241History of the Girtys.
ficient number of Indians had arrived at Fort Harmar to
justify St. Clair in attempting a treaty. The representatives
of the Six Nations (other than the Mohawks) came down the
Ohio, notwithstanding Brant, as early as the eighth of July,
had written from the mouth of Buffalo creek to Butler, American Indian agent, t]tat " we [the Five Nations] are preparing
to meet your council, and shall be able to write you from the
Miami river [the Maumee *] what time you may expect to
see us;"--as though he was to lead them to the treaty and
by way of Detroit andthe Maumee-a pure deception on his
part. From the great Indian conference came only representatives of the Wyandot, Delaware, Chippewa, Ottawa,
Pottawattamie, and Sac nations. To the demand made by
these Indians for the Ohio river to be declared the boundary
line, St. Clair, of course, refused to listen.
The business was concluded on the 9th of January, 1789,
and two separate treaties entered into: the first with the Six
Nations (excepting the Mohawks); the second with the residue
of the Indians. The first confirmed the treaty of Fort Stanwix of October, 1784; the second confirmed and bettered the
treaties of Fort McIntosh and Fort Finney. It can hardly
be said that the treaties of Fort Harmar recognized the Indians as having a title in fee to the lands claimed by them,
although in both it is declared they did " release, quit-claim,
relinquish, and cede" all that they had before granted by
previous treaties. It was scarcely yet saying to them " you
are the absolute owners of certain lands which we, the United
States, are desirous to purchase of you, and for which we will
pay you whatever sum can be agreed upon, or whatever
amount we, the United States, think you are entitled to."
But, had they said so, and had words of that import been incorporated in the treaties,. it would not have changed the
aspect of affairs in the least as to those Indians who did not
* The Maumee river was usually spoken of at that date as the "Omnee "
or " Omi," sometimes as the "Miiami," or' Miami of Lake Eric," often as,, Miami of the Lakes," again as the "Ottawa," frequently abridged to
" Tawa."
242History   of the Girtys.
attend at Fort Harmar. Of these, one part was for war
without regard to any boundary; while the other was for the
Ohio river as a boundary, or for war if that could not be
agreed upon.
NOTE.-By the treaty of Fort Stanwix, of October 22,
1784, with the Six Nations, the latter ceded their claim to all
territory north-west of the Ohio. By the treaty of Fort
McIntosh, concluded January 21, 1785, the Wyandots and
Delawares agreed to limit themselves to the west side of a
line drawn from what is now Cleveland to the Tuscarawas, and
to the north side of one drawn thence to the Great Miami
river-through nearly the center of the present State of Ohio.
What territory was yielded by the Shawanese at Fort Finney,
February 1, 1786, has already been stated. It was, therefore,
a captious right which the other Western nations insisted upon,
of claiming the Ohio as the boundary between the United
States and the Indians, begotten only from a desire to lhave
an excuse to bring on a war with the Americans. There had
been no encroachments upon " Indian lands" either by individuals or by any of the states or the general government;
for there were now no such "lands," speaking in general
terms, in the south half of what are now the States of Ohio
and Indiana, to be encroached upon. But Great Britain determined to use every means to induce the savages to repudiate the treaties held with the United States-to insist that
the Ohio must be fixed upon as the boundary line between
the two, and to go to war rather than yield the point.
243History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XXV.
The year 1789 was one of comparative inactivity for Simon
Girty. One reason for this was that the Wyandots, Chippewas, Ottawas, Pottawattainies, and a part of the Delawares
with whom he was the most intimate, and over whom he
had the most influence, had formed, before the treaty at
Fort Harmar, a confederation in order to uphold peace
with the United States by all the means in their power.
Because of this, and the death of the Half King of the Wyandots in the summer of 1788, he was received at the Maumee conference not with the unbounded favor he had expected,
although his influence with the "war faction" was great; and
after the council broke up, and he had returned to Detroit, there
was still rankling in his mind considerable feeling against " the
peace party" for their determined peace talk, and this feeling
he could not divest himself of so long as their actions toward
the United States were of a friendly character, which was the
case throughout the year. So far, then, as Indian affairs
were concerned, he had much less to do than usual. There
were no councils of importance held by the tribes near Detroit. But tradition, with her busy tongue, has made him,
of course erroneously, an active participant during the year
in some of ttle cruel raids of the Indians across the Ohio
into what was then the State of Virginia.
"Mr. John Van Meter," says one of these accounts, "at
one time, lived in this fort [Van Meter's, on the south side of
Short creek, a few miles above its junction with the Ohio
river, in Ohio county, Virginia], and at the period of the occurrence narrated, resided on the farm now.owned by Alexander
Walker, Esq., in the immediate neighborhood of the fort. It
was during his occupancy of this farm, in 1789, that a party
of Indians visited his peaceful domicil, murdered his wife,
daughter, and two small sons, taking the three elder sons
244History of the Girtys.
prisoners, and burning the house. Hannah, the daughter who
was killed, was washing at a spring a short distance from the
house; she had on a sun-bonnet and was stooping over the
tub, unconscious of danger, when one of the savages stealthily
advanced, and, supposing her to be an old woman, buried his
tonmahlawk in her head. When the Indians saw her face and
perceived that she was young and beautiful, they deeply lamented their precipitancy, saying,'she would have made a
pretty squaw.' This information was subsequently communicated by the notorious Simon Girty, who was one of the party
which committed the murders." *
There is a tradition, seemingly well authenticated, that
sonie time during the autumn of 1789, Girty was visited at
his home upon the east side of the Detroit river, by his halfbrother, John Turner, from Pittsburgh. The whole matter
was kept from the neighbors and friends of the latter, as he
did not care to incur the odium of having paid a visit to one
who was so thoroughly detested by all Americans-to one
whose very namne was still a terror to the whole country
around. The object of his journey is unknown; but it was
probably undertaken to close up some business affairs. There
is extant a receipt, which adds to the credibility of the story.
It is as follows:
"Received 2d January, 1790, of James McKee, Esquire,
the sum of eighteen pounds two shillings Pennsylvania currency, being in full of an order drawn by me on said Jas.
McKee and accepted by him in favor of my brother John
Girty, alias Turner.                           HIS
"SIMON + GIRTY.
"Witness-I. SELBY,                          MARK
M. ELLIOTT." t
Early in 1790, measures were taken to conciliate the Wabash Indians and those at the head of the Maumee, but all
* Doddridge's Notes (Revised Ed.), p. 308.
t For a copy of this receipt, I am indebted to Isaac Craig, of Alleghany,
Pennsylvania. At an early day, Turner was often called " Girty."
245History of the Girtys.
tender mercies of the savages; but the wrath of the Indians,
so far as the family was concerned, was spent upon the husband
and father; the others were spared.
The family were soon separated. Mrs. Turner and her
young son, John, were claimed by the Delawares, and by them
taken down the river to Fort Duquesne, and there, doubtless
because of " the immediate danger to which the tender life of
the child was exposed," the boy, on the eighteenth day of
August, 1756, was baptized by a Recollet priest, Denys
Baron-John Hannigan and Sarah Foissi standing for the
child as god-father and god-mother respectively; * after
which, both mother and boy were taken to the wilderness by
the savages.t Thomas, Simon, James, and George were still
with the Indians at Kittanning. But the rescue of one of
them--only one-was nigh at hand. How this was brought
about will now be explained.
After the capture of Fort Granville, it was resolved by
Lieutenant-Colonel John Armstrong, in command of the provincial forces west of the Susquehanna, to march against Kittanning, the destruction of which, it was believed, would be a
serious blow to the enemy; give, perhaps, temporary ease to
the suffering border; and, perchance, set at liberty a number
of prisoners. He started on his expedition with about three
hundred men. This was on the 30th of August, 1756. On
the 3d of September, he joined an advance party near Frank's
Town. On the seventh, in the evening, being within six miles
of Kittanning, the scouts discovered a fire in the road and
reported that there were but three or at most four Indians
at it. This, as will hereafter be seen, was, to some, a fatal
mistake. It was not thought proper to attempt surprising
"Registres des Babtesmes et Sepultures qui se sont faits au Fort Duquesne," loc. cit. See, also, Rev. A. A. Lambing's Register of Fort Duquesne, pp. 79, 96.
t That Mrs. Turner went with the Delawares, is made reasonably certain
by the relation of two captives, who saw her at one of their towns in 1759.
See the Narrative of Marie le Roy and Barbara Leininger, in Pennsylvania
Archives, Second Series, Vol. VII, p. 412, where her name, by misprint or
inadvertence, is given as Mary Taylor instead of Mary Turner.
12History of the Girtys.
efforts in that direction proved unavailing; and it was decided
that they must be brought to terms by force of arms. General Harmar, with militia from Virginia, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania, and his own regulars, would march against the
Miamis, where Ft. Wayne, Indiana, now stands, while a force
under Major J. F. Hamtramck was to move against the savages upon the Wabash.  Harmar's force amounted to nearly
fourteen hundred and fifty men. His army was well under
way. by the 3d of October, from Fort Washington-Cincinnati. During the previous months, Girty had been active.
The Indians, in 1790, had seven villages, it seems, clustering about the junction of the rivers St. Mary's and St. Joseph,
which form, as is well known, the Maumee. These were, first,
the Miami village, which lay in the forks of the St. Joseph
and Maumee; second, a village of thirty houses, also of the
Miamis, called Kekionga, in the fork of the St. Mary's and
Maumee; third, Chillicothe, down the Maumee, on its north
bank, of fifty-eight houses; opposite this was another of the
same tribe (Miami) of eighteen houses. The Delawares had
two villages on the St. Mary's, about three miles from its
mouth and opposite each other, with forty-five houses together; while a third one, of thirty-six houses, was on the
east side of the St. Joseph, two or three miles from its
mouth.
The Miami villages were reached by Harmar on the seventeenth, and found deserted. After the destruction of every
thing that could be of use to the Indians, the army began its
return march, not, however, until a detachment, meeting the
savages, had suffered severely from them. Soon after this,
another and larger detachment, under Hardin, met with a
still worse fate.*  The expedition proved a defeat rather than
* "The very name of the White Indian [Simor Girty] seemed an omen
of evil to the pioneers, for it was at'Girty's Town,' now St. Mary's, Ohio,
that Hardin was defeated in this campaign [that of Harmar, in 1790]."Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 270. This connecting Simon
Girty with "Girty's Town " is error; so, too, placing the defeat of Hardin
at that point.
246History of the Girtys.
a victory. Major Hamtramck was more successful. He laid
waste several deserted villages, and returned to Vincennes,
Indiana, unmolested.
" The military expedition," says a recent writer, " of General Harmar, in 1790, against the hostile Indians in the northwest, was the first one organized after civil government was
established in the'territory north west of the river Ohio.'
General H1-armar who was appointed the previous year, was at
that time commander-in-chief of the Western Military Department. The relations between the Indian tribes north-west of
the Ohio river, and the frontier settlers, were those simply of
intensified hostility. The Indians had undoubtedly assumed
their threatening attitude toward the western frontiersmen
through the instigation of the British agents in the northwest-notably of Alexander McKee and Matthew Elliott. And
the infamous renegade, Simon Girty, was conspicuously preeminent, in rendering such services as he could, favorable to
the interests of England, and which would be as detrimental
as possible to the north-west, and to Kentucky, to whose settlement by the white race he determined to interpose all possible obstacles. It may be premised, however, that Girty's
movements in this direction were dictated more by his ingrained and long-cherished hatred of the western pioneers,
than  by any affectionate regard he had for British interests." *
While it is true that Simon Girty, at this period, had no
love for " the western pioneers," still, his hatred did by no
means stop at that point; there was a general antagonism in
his heart against all his countrymen who were not loyalists,
with a very few exceptions. It does not seem that he, at this
date, was particularly opposed to the settlement of Kentucky
by the whites. He had already seen how absurd such opposition was; and, along with McKee and Elliott, as carrying out
the policy of the British government, he was, it may be stated,
advocating among the Indians the necessity of keeping the
* Isaac Smucker, in Ohio Statistics, 1880, p. 14.
247History of the Girtys.
hated Americans, as much as possible, from settling on the
Indian side of the Ohio, not on the south side.
The marching of General Harmar against the Indians of the
Maumee, and of Major Hamtramck against those of the Wabash, as the result of the hostile attitude of those savages,
induced the calling at once of a grand council by the Indians
at the foot of the rapids of the Maumee. The object was to
take into consideration the propriety of the nations all uniting
against the Americans. McKee attended the conference and
put forth active exertions to fan the hostile spirit of the redmen into a flame. He summoned Simon Girty from his home
in Canada.   Immediately " great quantities of provisions,
ammunition, and other necessaries were sent to the Maumee
to supply the Indians," all under Girty's charge and that of
"some other persons from the garrison of Detroit." * Nothing
was left undone by the Deputy Agent of Indian Affairs and
the commandant, at that post, in their power to do, to help
the savages, short of sending actual reinforcements of British
soldiers to the iMaumee.
Girty took part in the deliberations of the chiefs who were
assembled at the Maumee. His voice was for sending speeches
to all the nations far and near to assemble at that point in the
early spring to combat the forces which would be sent against
them. Before the council broke up, a general war was determined upon, to the great delight of all the British agents
and traders there assembled, and to none more so than
Girty, whose advice as to sending war-belts to the nations was
adopted. A deputation was appointed to go to Quebec to confer with Lord Dorchester. Active measures were not postponed until the coming spring on the part of the Indians. Already the chilling blasts of winteri were felt at the north. A
campaign, but not on a large scale, was proposed by Girty
against some one of the forts or stations north of the Ohio,
to be carried on notwithstanding the inclement weather. He
* Col. Thomas Proctor's Journal, in Pennsylvania Archives, Second Series,
Vol. IV, p. 598.
248History of the Girtys.
would lead the force himself. The proposition was favorably
received and soon acted upon. It was now December, 1790.
And here it is proper for a moment to digress somewhat
in our narrative.  About this period, Baker's Station, located not far below Grave creek, on the Virginia side of the
Ohio, was "attacked by about three hundred Indians," so the
tradition runs, "with Simon Girty at their head." This was
another instance of mistaken identity. Girty never crossed
the Ohio to the eastward or southward-either into Virginia,
Pennsylvania, or Kentucky-during the Indian war which
followed the Revolution. The account goes on to say: "The
whites had sufficient warning of their approach to enter the
fort, and were prepared for its defense. When the Indians
advanced along the hill-side (near the base of which the fort
stood), Simon Girtv called out to those in the fort to turn out
and surrender. The voice of Girty was recognized by some
of the men, who answered him by curses, telling him, if they
did not leave before Inorning (this being between sundown and
dark), they would come out and drive them from the country.
The Indians, however, fired upon the fort, and perceiving that
their shots would not take effect from their present position,
they proceeded further up the hill, in order the more easily to
discover those in the fort. From this position, they engaged
the fort all the next day and part of the next night. But the
whites concealed themselves under cover of the walls so securely that no one sustained any injury. The Indians finding
their efforts to be vain, abandoned the attack, and wvent off
without effecting their purpose." *
In 1790, John Dunlap, who had been one of John Cleves
Symmes's confidential surveyors, formed a settlement on the
east side of the Great Miami river, at a point eight miles from
where the town of Hamilton now is, and seventeen miles from
Cincinnati. "The county of Hamilton," says a writer in
1791, "lies between the two Miami rivers. Just below the
mouth of the Little Miami, is a garrison called Fort Miami;
* Communication of A. B. Tomlinson, in American Pioneer, Vol. II, pp.
352, 353.
249Hi.story of the Girtys.
at a small distance below this garrison, is the town of Columbia. About six miles from Columbia, is the town of Cincinnati, which is the county-seat of Hamilton [county]; and
here is erected Fort Washington, the head-quarters of the
Federal army. This fort is pleasantly situated on the banks
of the Ohio river. Seven miles below this, is a settlement of
eighteen or twenty families called South Bend. About seven
miles from this, also on the Ohio river, is the City of Miami
founded by the Hon. John Cleves Symmes. Twelve miles up
the Great Miami is the settlement called Dunlap's Station;
and twelve miles up the Little MIiami, is a settlement called
Covalt's Station. The number of militia in these places, according to the best accounts I have received are, at Columbia, two hundred; Cincinnati, one hundred and fifty; South
Bend, twenty; City of Miami, eighty; Dunlap's, fifteen; and
at Covalt's, twenty."  
The settlers at Dunlap's erected a fortification for their security, consisting of several block-houses built of logs and a
number of cabins, with pickets in the unoccupied spaces between them, in the form of a square, inclosing a little more
than an acre of ground. This situation was considerably exposed, and Indians were frequently hovering about. The consequence was that, in the early part of the winter of 17901791, General Harmar sent them a detachment of soldiers for
their protection, from Fort Washington, consisting of a lieutenant-Jacob Kingsbury-and eighteen privates.
On the night of the 7th of January, 1791, four men were encamped on the river bank just above the settlement. They
had been out exploring the country on the west side of the
Miami, and were wholly unsuspicious that (langer was near.
The next morning, they had not proceeded more than a
hundred yards from their camp, when they were attacked by
savages, who fired a volley of eight or ten guns. One of the
men was killed; one made prisoner, whose name was Abner
Hunt; the other two escaped (one badly wounded), and finally
* Dr. W. Goforth, from Ft. Washington, N. W. Territory, September 3,
1791. See Cist's Cincinnati Miscellany, Vol. I, p. 200.
250Hi.story of the Girtys.
reached the station (Dunlap's), apprising the garrison of the
presence of the Indians in the vicinity. The next day, a
party of six men went out, found the dead man, buried the
body, and returned to the fort. The utmost vigilance was
exercised by the officer in command, during that day and
the next. There were in the inclosure, besides Lieutenant
Kingsbury, "thirty-five men total, old and young, sick and
well, in such bad works;" also quite a number of women and
children. The commander fully realized the peril he was in,
so far in the country, with so small a force, and he did not,
for a moment, relax his watchfillness. It was this unusual
ca.ution, as we shall soon see, that saved the station.
Simon Girty, who had, as we have shown, solicited the command of a war party, went on to the Miami towns at the head
of the Maumee, with the Indians who lived there and in the
vicinity, soon after the breaking up of the council at the
Rapids, and immediately organized a force to march toward
the infant settlements on the north side of the Ohio. Their
(lestination was Dunlap's, the first that could be reached
after crossing over to the upper waters of the Great Miami,
and then descending that stream. They numbered nearly
three hundred.
Girty sent a few warriors in advance of the main force to
reconnoitre the situation. It was this party that attacked
the four men on the morning of the eighth of January, making prisoner of Abner Hunt.    These savages returned
leisurely up the river with their captive securely bound.
Girty, on his downward march, was soon met and the whole procee(led toward the station, arriving in its immediate vicinity in
the evening of the ninth, undiscovered. Before sunrise the next
morning, Girty and his Indians suddenly made their appearance, firing a volley as they approached the fortification,
which wounded one of the soldiers. The commander inside
the stockade immediately posted his men to the best advantage, and the fire was returned.
The investment of the works was soon made complete,
and the attack was kept up during the entire day. Attempts
2512History of the Girtys.
were made by the savages to fire the cabins and pickets, but
these were foiled by the vigilance and activity of those within.
During the night, the enemy shot blazing arrows against the
stockade and upon the roofs of the buildings, but these efforts
were every-where thwarted by the coolness and bravery of
the regulars and settlers. Before morning two of the besieged
managed to silently pass out of the station, cross the river,
and hasten toward Cincinnati, to obtain aid from General
Harmar, at Fort Washington. On their way they met a force
marching rapidly to the relief of the place from Columbia
and Cincinnati, alarm having been given by some hunters
who had heard the firing at the fort when it first began, and
had rightfully concluded it was attacked by savages. Between ten and eleven o'clock, the relief party arrived at the
top of the hills overlooking the plain on which the station
was located, when it was discovered that the Indians had
raised the siege and were gone. Such, in brief, was the attack on Dunlap's Station, during which, it must be admitted
the enemy evinced under the leadership of Girty, who had
with him his brother George, a determination to succeed
that nothing but the presence of regulars and the coolness
of their commander could have withstood. But there was one
circumstance (which is now to be related) which is but an accumulation of positive evidence of the savagery of Simon at
this period.
The unfortunate prisoner, Abner Hunt, was brought back
by the Indians to the vicinity of the station, accompanied by
the party that had captured him, and, soon after the attack
commenced, was placed on a stump within speaking distance
of the garrison and compelled by Girty to urge a surrender, which, in hope of saving his own life, he did in the
most pressing terms, promising that, if it were done, life and
property would be spared. As he carried a flag, the garrison
ceased firing and listened as best they could to his enforced
plea, but determined not to yield. His failure doomed the
unfortunate prisoner to the stake. He was tortured with the
most shocking barbarity during the night of the siege. " The
252History of the Girtys.
Indians tied him to a sapling within sight of the garrison,
who distinctly heard his screams, and built a large fire so near
as to scorch him, inflicting the most acute pain; then, as his
flesh, from the action of the fire and the frequent application
of live coals, became less sensible, they made deep incisions
in his limbs, as if to renew his sensibility of pain. They answered his cries for water, to allay the extreme thirst caused
by burning, by fresh tortures. Finally, when, exhausted and
fainting, [and] death seemed approaching to release the
wretched prisoner, they terminated his sufferings by applying flaming brands to his naked bowels."
"They stripped him    naked," says William   Wiseman, who
was inside the fort, "pinioning his outstretched hands and
feet to the earth, kindling a fire on his naked abdomen, and
thus, in lingering tortures, they allowed him to die. His
screams of agony were ringing in our ears during the remainder of the night, becoming gradually weaker and weaker
till toward daylight, when they ceased." *
" During the night," is the language of Samuel Hahn, Who
was also of the garrison, " and at a late hour, finding that
they could do nothing with us, they brought up Hunt, within
a short distance of the fort, for the purpose of burning him
alive. Accordingly, having stripped and fastened him to a
log, they kindled a fire of dead limbs upon his belly, and
commenced a horrid dance, whooping and yelling around the
wretched object of their revenge. The screams of Hunt were
plainly heard by the garrison, in the midst of these yells, for
a long time, growing fainter as life expired." t
* Cist's Cincinnati in 1859, p. 95.
t Id., p. 106. Many western writers have heretofore not been well informed as to Hunt's death.  "In Februnary, 1791," says the Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 270, "at the head of a large
force of savages, he [Simon] Girty tattacked and besieged Dunlap's Station,
on the G reat Miami, but he fitiled as he did at Bryant's, after trying by every
device of skill and terror to induce the brave and determined garrison to
surrender. It was at this place that Abner Hunt met his death, but exactly how will probably never be known. 0. MN. Spencer, who was captured by the Indians about this time, and while he was yet a child, says in
253History of the Girtys.
If Simon Girty did not actually assist in this horrible affair,
he must have ordered it, or, at least, given it his approval; and,
judging from what Dr. Knight saw when the unfortunate
Crawford was undergoing a like fate, he must have looked
upon the cruel scene with the keenest pleasure.
The retiring of the besiegers on the morning of the 11th
of January, was because they had come to despair of success
and were apprehensive of the alarm having reached Fort
Washington. They soon returned to the Miami towIlns, and
Girty hastened onward to Detroit, nowise discouraged by his
failure to capture Dunlap's Station.
It was not long after this gallant defense before Lieutenant
Kingsbury received the following from General Harmar:
"FORT WASHINGTON, 14th January, 1791.
"EXTRACT OF GENERAL ORDERS:-The general is highly
pleased with the cool and spirited conduct displayed by Lieutenant [Jacob] Kingsbury in repulsing a body of about three
hundred savages, who surrounded Dunlap's Station on Monday last and besieged it, endeavoring to set it on fire with
their arrows, and keeping up a heavy fire against his small
party for the space of twenty-four hours.... The spirited defense made by Lieutenant Kingsbury, with so small a
force as thirty-five men total, old and young, sick and well,
and in such bad works, reflects the greatest credit upon him
and his party. The general returns his thanks to him, and
directs that the adjutant transmit him a copy of these orders
by first conveyance.           Jos. HARMAR,
Brigadier- General." *
Before dismissing the subject of the attack on Dunlap's
Station, it is proper to consider what has passed into current
his Captivity, that Hunt was burned and tortured to death by Girty's Indians. Judge Burnet, in his well-known and valuable Notes, makes no
mention whatever of the burning, but says:' Mr. Hunt was killed before
he could reach the fort.' "
~ Woodward's History of Franklin County, Connecticut, pp. 85, 86.
254History of the Girtys.history as the conversation had between the prisoner, Hunt,
and Lieutenant Kingsbury, beside what has already been suggested in this narrative. It is stated, that " Lieutenant Kingsbury took an elevated position where he could overlook the
pickets, and promptly rejected all their propositions [made
through IHunt], telling them that he had dispatched a messenger to Judge Symmes, who would soon be up to their relief,
with the whole settlement on the Ohio. He failed, however,
to impose on them [the savages]. They replied that it was a
lie, as they knew Judge Symmes was then in New Jersey;
and informed him that they had five hundred warriors, and
would soon be joined by three hundred more; and that, if an
immediate surrender was not made, they [the Americans]
would all be massacred and the station burned. Lieutenant
Kingsbury replied, that he would not surrender if he were
surrounded by five hundred devils, and immediately leaped
from his position into the fort. The Indians fired at him, and
a ball struck off the white plume he wore in his hat." * Much
in this account, it is evident, is an exaggeration. It is hardly
to be presumed that the lieutenant would have referred to
Judge Symines, when the name of General Harmar, at Fort
Washington, would have been so much more effective; besides,
it is quite incredible that he would have exposed himself, as
stated in the account, to the treacherous foe he had to deal
with.t
After remaining in Detroit a few days, Simon Girty went
to his home in Canada. By the end of winter, he was eager
for the time when he could again start for the Ohio wilderness
and join the Indians in the war against his countrymen; for
he had fully determined to continue in active service with the
savages. In April, a third child was born into the family- a
daughter, to whom was given the name of Sarah. It was but a
* McBride's Pioneer Biography, Vol. I, p. 18.
t As to the attack, see, in addition to the authorities already cited, Farnsworth's Cincinnati Directory, 1819; American Pioneer, Vol. II; Burnet's
Notes; Cist's Cincinnati Advertiser.for March 21, 1848, and August 22,.1849; and Howe's Ohio.
255History of the Girtys.
these few Indians at that time, lest if one should escape, the
town might be alarmed; so a lieutenant with twelve men was
left to watch them, with orders not to fall upon them till daybreak. Armstrong, thereupon, with his army, turned out of
the path to pass by their fire without disturbing them.
About three o'clock in the morning'of the eighth, having
been guided by the whooping of the savages, at a dance in
their village, the provincials reached the river, one hundred
perches below the principal part of the town, near a corn-field.
As soon as day appeared, the attack began. The result was
the destruction, by burning, of nearly thirty houses, and the
killing of between thirty and forty of the Indians; besides
this, eleven white persons, held captives by the savages, were
rescued from their clutches, among whom was Thomas, the
eldest of the Girty boys.
A tradition, long current, which finally found its way into
print, was to the effect that " One of the prisoners, named
[Thomas] Girty returned [having eluded his captors after the
burning of Fort Granville], in a wounded condition. When
he escaped, he was followed by two Indians to the head-waters
of Blacklick, where they attempted to recapture him; but, in
the fight that followed, he slew one of the Indians, and the
other ran. He scalped-the one he killed, and took his scalp
to Aughwick." *  All this would be creditable to tht bravery
of Thomas, were it true; but the official report of Colonel
Armstrong disproves it, for, in his list of those who were recaptured from the savages, is the name of Thomas, who, it is
expressly said, was retaken at Kittanning.t
Why a number of other prisoners were not rescued, among
whom were the three brothers of Thomas.Girty--Simon,
James, and George-is best related in Armstrong's own
words: "Captain Hugh Mercer, who, early in the action,
was wounded in the arm, had been taken to the top of a hill
above the town, to whom a number of the men and some of
the officers were gathered; from whence they had discovered
* Jones's History of the Juniata Valley, p. 97.
t Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. II, p. 776.
13History of the Girtys.
few days after the birth of his daughter, before the father was in
Detroit. He was then sent to the Maumee, as in the previous
fall, to assist in the transportation thither of arms, ammunition, clothing, provisions, and other articles for the Indians,
who were to assemble on that river, or had already reached
there.
Steps were now taken to bring the hostile savages to treat
with the United States. Colonel Thomas Proctor was sent
on a mission to the Miami and Wabash Indians, to impress
them "with the candor and justice" of the United States,
asking them to "demean themselves peaceably."  He was to
journey to these nations by way of " Cornplanter's residence,"
which was upon a branch of the Alleghany river, to Sandusky;
thence to the Miami towns which General Harmar had attacked; and from there to Fort Washington.
While one Thomas Rhea, a prisoner to the Indians, was at
the " great crossing " of the Maumee "' called Sandusky," he
mentioned to McKee, and the other officers vwho were there,
that he had seen Colonel Proctor on his way to Fort Franklin
(the name of the po'st erected at Venango by Captain Jonathan
Heart, at the command of Colonel Harmar)-that he understood he was on his way to the Miami towns or Sandusky,
with some of the Senecas, that he expected that Cornplanter
would accompany him in order to settle matters with the hostile nations, and that he anticipated getting shipping at Fort
Erie, just across the Niagara river, at its head, in Canada, to
bring him and the Senecas to the Miami villages or Sandusky.
It was the further testimony of Rhea, that the officers at the
Rapids of the Maumee, in their conversation with each other,
said that if they were at Fort Erie, Colonel Proctor should get no
shipping there. The Mohawks, who were then at the Maumee
crossing, as well as other Indians, declared that if Proctor, or
any other Yankee messenger, came where they then were, he
should never carry messages back. This was frequently expressed not only by the Indians, but also by Simon Girty.
But the latter, along with McKee, left for Detroit, before
256History of the Girtys.
Rhea, who embarked on the 4th of June.* It being reported
that the Americans, in a large body, were again ~approaching
the Miami towns, Girty immediately returned to the Maumee,
determined to join the Indians, taking passage with Matthew
Elliott, who sailed on the 8th of June for that river, with a
boat load of goods for the savages, so that, by the middle of
that month, he had doubtless reached the head of that stream.
But the report of the marching of Americans was a false
alarm.  It served(, however, to hasten forward all the parties
who had reached the Rapids. Girty now made his way homeward, arriving at his residence early in July.
NOTE I.-It has been stated on a previous page that George
Girty was present at the attack on Dunlap's Station.  William Wiseman, in 1850, told Charles Cist that it was indicated,
in the course of the parley which ensued, not only that Simon
Girty was in command, but that his brother, George, was with
him. Mr. Cist was also told by Samuel Hahn, at the same
time, that George was of the party. (See Cist's Cincinnati
in 1859, pp. 94, 105.) I find no evidence to the contrary of
this.  Wiseman and Hahn were both in the fort when it was
beset by the enemy.
"In 1850, I had the pleasure of bringing together, after a
separation of sixty years, two of the surviving defenders of
-Dunlap's Station, which, it will be remembered, was attacked
by the Girtys an(d a large body of savages on the 7th February [January], 1791."-Charles Cist, in Cincinnati in 1859,
p. 90. This has led some writers to suppose that all three
of the Girtys-Simon, George, and James-were present;
* Narrative of Thomas Rhea, in American State Papers--" Indian Affairs," Vol. I, pp. 196, 197. See, as to the transmission of his Narrative to
President Washington, the St. Clair Papers, Vol. II, p. 224. The character
of Rhea was, it was afterwards ascPrtained, none of the best; nevertheless,
his statements of what he saw and heard during his captivity were true.
Colonel Thomas P'roctor got no farther than Buffalo creek, New York, on
his mission. See his Journal, in Pennsylvania Archives, Second Series, Vol.
IV, pp. 651-622.
17
257History   of the Girtys.
but the context shows that the writer meant by " the Girtys,"
only Simon and George. See pp. 94, 105, in the publication
of Cist referred to.
"George and James Girty were' as completely identified
with the Indians all this time as if they had been actually
born savages. They lived with them, fought with them, and
apparently wanted no other society.... They participated in the attack on Dunlap's Station, and each took an Indian's part in the struggle then in progress."--Magazine of
American History, Vol. XV, p. 271. But James was not at
the attack on Dunlap's Station; did not fight with the Indians
against the Americans after the close of the Revolution; and,
besides, it is improper to suppose (as already mentioned) that,
in all respects, he was as thoroughly an Indian as if born one.
NOTE II.-Chronological Record: (1) Peace with Great
Britain proclaimed April 19, 1783. (2) Claiming states (except Connecticut) yield their claims to the North-west on or before March 1, 1764. (3) Surveying began west of the Ohio,
September, 1785. (4) Fort Harmar at mouth of the Muskingum erected 1786. (5) Ordinance for government of the
North-west passed July 13, 1787. (6) The Ohio Company
and John Cleves Symmes make large purchases in southeastern and southern portions of the present State of Ohio in
October following. (7) Arthur St. Clair commissioned governor of the territory north-west of the Ohio, February 1,
1788. (8) Marietta settled April 7, following. (9) Cincinnati founded January 7, 1789. (10) Fort Washington completed at Cincinnati, December following.
NOTE III.-In 1790, Symmes's Purchase had a population
of 1,300; the Ohio Company's, 1,000. Against this tIopulation, the savages were then particularly hostile; although, as
we have seen, they had made, since the close of the Revolution, numerous raids across the Ohio, southward and eastward.
258History   of the Girtys.,CHAPTER XXVI.
The "Moravian" Indians, under the charge of Moravian
missionaries, moved, in the spring of 1791, from the Huron
river, in the present State of Ohio, to the Detroit river, on
the east side, just above its mouth. "We examined the
country," says Zeisberger, on the 4th day of May, in his journal, "and encamped with the Indian brethren for the most
part on [Alexander] McKee's plantation, where no one lived;
for it had been vacated for us, where there is much cleared
land for planting. Next to this is Elliott's plantation, where
also we got much cleared land and a house to live in." This
little " Moravian " settlement, which received the name of the
Warte, or the Watch-Tower, stood in full view of the lake.
Opposite to it, on the American side of the Detroit river,
was a Wyandot village-not of the Sandusky Wyandots, but
of those of Detroit. A few Canadian farmers lived in the
vicinity of the Watch-Tower. Of these, one, of course, was
Simon Girty. Planting soon followed the arrival of the "Moravians," and the harvest came on in due time; but there was
trouble among the "Christian" Indians; "for," as Zeisberger declares, "there was drinking in the neighborhood, so
that our people were also led astray." Girty was, in particular, a thorn in the side of the missionary; as he not only employed some of the " Moravians," but paid them in rum, making them drunk.* That he called in the services of others in
harvest shows conclusively that he was prospering as a
farmer.
On the 2d of May, General Scott and Colonel James Wilkinson left the Ohio, opposite the mouth of the Kentucky river,
for the Wabash towns, marching directly for the Wea villageWeatenon. This and other important towns were destroyed,
* Zeisberger's Diary, Vol. II, pp. 202, 203.
259History of the Girtys.
and a few Indians killed, and some captured. A second expedition was authorized by St. Clair on the 25th of June. It was
commanded by Wilkinson, and consisted of five hundre(d mounted
men. The march commenced from near Fort Wa,shington, on
the 20th of July, for the Indian village of l'Anguille, situated
on the Eel river, about six miles above its confluence with the
Wabash.   This and various other towns were destroyed;
also several hundred( acres of corn. Some Indians were
killed, and a considerable number captured. These active
operations were in strange contrast with the tardy measures
put forth to furnish St. Clair with men and the munitions
of war to prosecute a campaign, which had been resolved upon,
against the AMiami towns. It was the 7th of September before
Major-General Richard Butler, the second in.command, and
Quartermaster-General Hodgdon, reached Fort Washington.
By this time, General St. Clair had already moved two thousand men about twenty-four miles on the way northward; but,
before repeating the story, so often told, of his dire disaster,
we must turn our attention to the enemy upon the Maumee,
against which his forces were particularly directed.
Throughout the summer there was an unwonte(i activity
among the;Miami Indians andcl those who dwelt near them.
The expeditions of Scott and Wilkinson to the Wabash towns
kept alive the fears of the savages at the head of the Maumee.
In the month of August, ammunition which had been received
from Detroit, was dispatched to the Wabash, but it came too
late to be of use against the Kentuckians in the last expedition. The march of Wilkinson so near to the Miaimi towns
had caused a second concentration of all the warriors, within
reach, at that place. As to Simon Girty, who made haste
(his harvest being over) to reach the MIiami villages from his
Canadian home, it may be said that he busied himself in
advising with the Indians; and, on at least one occasion,
he joined a war-party in an attempt against the Americans.
He may have returned once or twice to ietroit to take charge
of supplies which were sent forward to the AMaumee, but this
is not- probable, as he was resolved on fighting.
Now that the army under St. Clair, so long gathering upon
260History    of the Girtys.
the Ohio, had actually taken up its line of march up the Great
Miami, there could be no doubt in the minds of the Indians
as to its destination. The warriors, from the heads of the
last mentioned river, from the Sandusky, from the Maumee,
and from the vicinity of Detroit and other places, gathered to
oppose the advance of the Americans. The principal tribes,
ready to send their braves to contest the onward progress of
St. Clair, were the Delawares, Shawanese, Wyahdots, Miamis,
Ottawas. Kickapoos, Chippewas, and Pottawattamies, with
some Mlohawks from Canada, and a few Creek Indians. Munitions of war and other supplies continued to arrive at the
Miami towns from Detroit. But all this was entirely unknown
to General St. Clair. He was ignorant from the commencement of his march to the end, of the collected force and situation of the enemy. The Miami chief, Little Turtle, the
Shawanese chief, Blue Jacket, and the Delaware chief, Buckongahelas, formed an alliance not to be despised. And these
powerful chiefs not only had the aid of Simon Girty, but of
McKee and Elliott, of the British Indian Department, and of
a number of British and French traders " who generally resided arnong the Indians, and supplied them with arms and
ammunition, in exchange for furs and peltries."  One of these
traders, as the sequel shows, was James Girty, the brother of
Simon.
The first move made by the Indian chiefs upon hearing of
St. Clair's forward progress, was to dispatch the Shawanese
chief, Tecumseh, at the head of a small party of spies, to
watch the motions of the American ariny and report its advancement. This work he accomplished most faithfully. So
well were the Indians kept informed of its march, and of the
failure of the Americans to send forward a sufficient number
of scouts, that they were all soon greatly inspired with hopes
of surprising their enemy. Their courage and determination
were thus kept up. At the proper time they, too, advanced.
Simon Girty led the Wyandots. The whole force amounted to
less, probably, than fifteen hundred men.
But what of General St. Clair? Twenty-four miles from
261History   of the Girtys.
Fort Washington, on the Great Miami, he erected a stockade
fort with four bastions. To this fortification was given the
name of Fort Hamilton; it was on the site of what is now
Hamilton, Ohio. On the 4th of October, St. Clair resumed
his march, and, in ten days, had advanced forty-two miles
only. At a point six miles south of what is now Greenville,
Ohio, another fortification was built and named Fort Jefferson.
It was made of logs laid horizontally. The army did not
move again until the twenty-fourth. For the next nine days,
there was much desertion among the militia; heavy rains fell;
provisions ran short; St. Clair was sick; when, on the evening of the 3d of November, the army of fourteen hundred
men encamped at the site of the present town of Fort
Recovery, Ohio, at a distance, in a straight line, of fifty miles
from the head of the Maumee, the objective point, as we
have seen, of the expedition. Meanwhile, the enerhy were
marching directly to meet St. Clair, sending out in advance numerous scouting-parties, some of which during the
night came so near as to draw fire from the pickets of the
Americans. On the morning of the 4th of November, the
troops at early dawn paraded and had been dismissed but
a few minutes (the sun not yet up), when the woods in front
rung with the yells and firing of the savages. At this moment, St. Clair was lying sick in his tent.
The story of the battle which ensued has often been told.
At the first fire, the militia in front fled through the first line
of regulars, causing some confusion. Then the whole camp
seemed to be surrounded by the foe. The soldiers were
pressed toward the center and fell in scores. St. Clair quickly
arose from his sick couch and endeavored, but in vain, to reform the lines. The officers fell on every hand. Major-General Butler was early wounded, but continued to urge resistance. When, at last, all the artillery officers had either
been killed or wounded, and the Indian fire was threatening
a total annihilation of the army, preparation was made for retreat, which was accomplished, though in a disorderly manner, after such of the wounded as could be moved were
262History of the Girtys.
gathered together. The killed and missing numbered thirtyseven officers and five hundred and ninety-three privates; the
wounded, thirty-one officers and two hundred and fifty-two
privates. Such was "' St. Clair's Defeat!"
The Wyandots fought most courageously, and none with
more bravery than their leader, Simon Girty, who was presented with three of the captured cannon; * but the present
proved of no value to him, as he could not remove them.
He afterward told a prisoner (William May) t that there
were twelve hundred Indians of the whole force, three hundred of which were not in the battle, but were left in the rear
to take care of the horses. The same prisoner was also informed that three hundred savages were on the march at the
time, under the command of a white officer, Lieutenant Prideaux Selby, of the Fifth British Regiment, but did not get
up in time to participate in the action, and that Captain
Joseph Bunbury, of the same regiment, was in the action, but
did not learn that he took any command. Both of these officers also belonged to the British Indian Department.
Among those who fought with the savages were considerable
numbers of Canadians, mostly young men, and in particular
such as were born of Indian mothers. There were also some
refugees present. Girty was not the only one who, on that
day, fought against his countrymen. After the action, he
found General Butler on the field, writhing from the agony of
his wounds. The general spoke to him and requested him to
end his misery. "The traitor refused to do this, but turning
to one of the Indian warriors, told him the wounded man was
a high officer; whereupon the savage planted his tomahawk in
his head, and thus terminated his sufferings. His scalp was
instantly torn from his crown, his heart taken out and divided
into as many pieces as there were tribes engaged in the
battle.":
* See May's Statement (affidavit), in American State Papers--" Indian
Affairs," Vol. I, p. 243.
t May's Statement, just cited.
t Of the various published accounts of the death cf General Butler, the
above seems the most trustworthy. See Stone's Life of Brant (ed. of 1865),
263History of the Girtys.
On the retreat and general rout of the army, Girty captured, it is said, a white woman.  A Wyandot squaw who accompanied the warriors of her nation, perceiving this, demanded the prisoner, on the ground that usage gave all female
captives to the women accompanying the braves.        Girty refused and became furious; when some warriors came up and
enforced a compliance with this rule of the Indians-to the
great relief of the prisoner. The woman was afterward sold
to a respectable French family in Detroit.*
The valor displayed by Girtv at St. Clair's defeat greatly
increased his reputation among the savages, and more
than ever were the Wyandots his friends after that signal victory.  He returned to the Maumee with them; and the commencement of 1792 still saw him upon that river. Whether
or not he visited Detroit and his home during the latter part
of winter is uncertain; but, in the early spring, he is known
to have been again with the Indians.    The Miami towns were
no longer the principal point for the rendezvousing of the
savages. It was seen that a place not so much the object of
the Americans would be preferable; so the junction of the
~ol. II, p. 310; Sabine's AImerican Loyalists, Vol. II, p. 474; Events in Indian Hi~tory, Lancaster, 1843, p. 290. In mnarny statements that have been
printed, it is said, simply, that, after the battle, Girty foiund among the dead,
the body of Butler, which he recognized. Compare An thistorical Account
of the Expedition tgainst Sandusky under Col. Williaml Crawford, in 1782,
p. 197.
Concerning Geneial Butler's death, the old ballad entitled "St. Clair's
Defeat" has this to say:
"We had not been long broken when General Butler found
Himself so badly wounded, was forced to quit the ground.' My God,' says he,' what shall we do; we're wounded every man;
So cbarge them, valilant heroes, and beat ttlem if you can.'
"He leaned his back against a tree and there resigrned his breath,
And like a valiant soldier sunk in the arms o,f death;
When blessed angels did await his spirit to convey;
And unto the celestial fields he quickly went his way."
William Walker, in Wyandotte (Kas.) Gazette, April 18, 1872. The
anecdote will be found, also, in An Historical Account of the Expedition
against Sandusky, p. 197.
264History of the Girtys.
Auglaize with the Maumnee became the Indian head-quarters.
It is the site of the present Defiance, Ohio.
On the 13th of April, William    May, whose name has previously been mentioned, a private soldier, was sent from Fort
Hamilton on the trail of three men who had previously left
that post, dispatched as a flag to the Indians. Mlay was soon
after captured and brought to a Delaware town about ten
miles above the mouth of the Auglaize, "iwhere he was much
beat."  At the junction of the Auglaize with the Maumee,
the prisoner found a nuinber of English traders; and either
here or at the Delaware village above, he met Girty, who
saved his life, he having been condemned to death.*         He
was then sent to war with twenty-two Indians.        This was
about the first of May.    The party in eight days reached
Fort St. Clair, a post which had recently been established by
the Americans, twenty-five miles north of Fort Hamilton, and
near where Eaton, Ohio, is now located, where they killed one
man, and returned through the battle-field of the previous 4th
of November.
On the twenty-fifth of June, about one hundred Indians
commanded, it is believed, by Girty, made an attack on a
party of soldiers at Fort Jefferson, five miles south of
the present Greenville, county-seat of Darke county, Ohio,
who were out cutting hay, not far from the fort. Sixteen
were killed and taken prisoners; four dead bodies only could
be found.t
May was employed for the next three months in the trans* It is a matter o,f regret that nothing whatever is known of the particulars of this act of kindness on part of Girty. It redounds more to his
eredit-when we consider that May was a total stranger to him--than in
saving the life of Kenton. That he has not heretofore received commendation for what he did, is because the incident has, to a great extent, escaped
the notice of Western historians.
t American State Papers.-Indian Affairs, Vol. I, p. 238. It is not entirely certain that Girty commanded the savages on this occasion; but there
is no doubt of his presence.-See Rondthaler's Lifez of Heckewelder, p. 118.
Historians of the West have overlooked this affair. I find it nowhere recorded by them. Compare, also, Pa. Mag. of Hist., Vol. XII, p. 45.
265History of the Girtys.
some Indians cross the river [Alleghany] and take the hill
with an intention, as they thought, to surround us and cut off
our retreat. From these men I had sundry pressing messages
to leave the houses and retreat to the hills, as we should all
be cut off; but to this I could by no means consent until all
the houses were set on fire, though our spreading upon the
hills appeared very necessary, yet did it prevent our researches of the corn-field and river side, by which means sundry scalps were left behind, and, doubtless, some squaws, children, and English prisoners that otherwise might have been
got." *
The "English prisoners" not rescued-including Simon
Girty and his brothers James and George-were hurried across
the Alleghany, and immediately started, with a guard of savages, for the woods to the westward, in order that, should they
attempt to escape, in hopes of overtaking Armstrong's force,
they would have little or no chance of success. As soon as
danger was over, all were brought back to Kittanning.t
"There," say two eye witnesses, " we had the mournful opportunity of witnessing the cruel end of an English woman,
who had attempted to flee out of her captivity, and to return
to the settlements with Colonel Arnistrong. Having been recaptured by the savages, and brought back to Kittanning, she
was put to' death in an unheard of way. First, they scalped her;
next, they laid burning splinters of wood, here and there, upon
her body; and then they cut off her ears and fingers, forcing
them into her mouth so that she had to swallow them. Amidst
such torments, this woman lived from nine o'clock in the
morning until toward sunset, when a French officer took compassion on her, and put her out of her misery. An English
soldier, on the contrary, named John --, who escaped from
prison, at Lancaster, and joined the French, had a piece of
flesh cut from her body and ate it. When she was dead, the
* Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. II, p. 770. In copying this, I
have slightly changed the wording, but not the sense.
t Kittanning was only occupied temporarily by the Indians after it was
burnt by Armstrong.
14History of the Girtys.
port service, on board a schooner that carried about one hundred and sixty barrels. As he had formerly followed the sea,
Elliott purchased him from the Indians to utilize his knowledge in the way just mentioned. He made a trip from the
Maumee to Detroit and back generally in from  eight to
twelve days. It was at the foot of the rapids of the river,
that McKee, as agent in the Indian Department, kept his
stores to supply the savages, and Elliott was engaged in their
transportation and distribution. " From  the mouth of the
[Maumee] river to Detroit," says May, " is one hundred and
eight miles, or ninety miles along the lake and eighteen up
the [Detroit] river."  "It was the common opinion," is his
testimony, "and the common conversation, that no peace
would take place unless the Ohio river was established as the
boundary line between the Indians and the Americans." *
May left Detroit about the first of September, sailing down
the lake to Fort Erie, where he arrived on the fifth, and not
long after was permitted to retutln to Pittsburgh. Before his
leaving the Maumee, a grand council had been called of all
the North-western tribes to assen:ble at "the Glaize" in
October. Already there were gathered thirty-six hundred
Indians-Pottawattamies, Shawanese, Miamis, Ottawas, Wyandots, Delawares, Munceys, and Chippewas. They drew
daily rations from the British government, which were supplied to them from Detroit. May affirmed that it was the
general and unanimous sentiments of all the Canada Indians
and other nations who had assembled and were assembling at
"au Glaize" (generally known as " the Glaize" or " Grand
Glaize ") to confer together, that the Ohio must be the boundary line, and that all the Western savages would join the Confederacy against the Americans unless the latter would agree
to it. Nor would they return home until they had compelled
a compliance with their wishes in that regard, they having
brought their families with them or sent for them.t It was
the great coming on of this grand council that kept Girty at
* May's statement, before cited.
t Id.
266History   of the Girtys.
or near " the Glaize" during the summer. From the subsequent relation of another prisoner, 0. MI. Spencer, we gather
further information of him during this time, and also, as will
hereafter appear, of his brother James.
It was on the 3d day of July, 1792, when young Spencer
(his age was eleven years) left Columbia, a settlement just
above Cincinnati, on the north side of the Ohio, for Fort
Washington, to participate in celebrating "the glorious 4th."
On the seventh, the boy, with four others, started in a canoe
to return up the river. The persons with him were a Mrs.
Coleman, Mr. Jacob Light, and a drunken man whose name is
unknown. They were, when well on their way, fired on by two
Indians in ambush on the river bank; the intoxicated man was
killed and Light wounded. The latter and Mrs. Coleman
jumped into the river and escaped, but young Spencer was
captured and hurried into the wilderness.* The party crossed
Buck creek in what is now Clark county, Ohio, and soon after
forded the Mad river, striking thence in a north-westerly direction to the Great Miami.  After crossing this stream,
probably not far from the present location of Sidney, Ohio,
the boy was taken to the Auglaize, down which river he was
conducted to its confluence with the Maumee, which place,
"the Glaize," was reached c" a little before noon of the thirteenth of July."  Here, on the opposite side of the river last
mentioned, he was left in charge of an old widowed squaw,
occupying a bark cabin near its bank. Concerning her family
we have some interesting particulars.
There was a dark Indian girl (an orphan) two years older
than Spencer, and a half Indian boy, about a year his junior,
both her grandchildren. The mother of the girl and boy was
then the wife of George Ironside, a British Indian trader, living at a trading station, on a high point directly opposite the
grandmother's cabin, a few hundred yards above the mouth of
the Auglaize. The boy was reputed to be the son of Simon
Girty, and was very sprightly, but, withal, passionate and will* See, in this connection, Rondthaler's Life of Heckewelder, p. 111; also
M[cBride's Pioneer Biography, Vol. I, p. 36.
2672History  of the Girtys.
ful, a perfectly spoiled child. The grandmother called him
Simo-ne; that is, Simon.*
About the twenty-first of July, the old squaw took the boy
prisoner on a visit to a Shawanese village located farther
down the Maumee. They were kindly received by an Indian
acquaintance, whose wife, a very pleasant and rather pretty
woman of twenlty-five, set before them, according to custom,
some refreshments, consisting of dried green corn boiled with
beans and dried pumpkins, making, as the youngster thought,
a very excellent dish, indeed. After spending a few hours
with this family, they went to pay their respects to Blue
Jacket, the most noble in appearance of any Indian Spencer
had ever before seen. His person was about six feet high,
was finely proportioned, stout, and muscular; his eyes large,
bright, and piercing; his forehead high and broad; his nose
aquiline: his mouth rather wide; and his countenance open
and intelligent, expressive of firmness and decision.  He was
considered one of the most brave and accomplished of the Indian chiefs, second only to Little Turtle, of the Miamis, and
Buckongahelas, of the Delawares. He had signalized himself
on many battles, particularly in the defeat of Colonel Hardin's
detachment in Ilarmar's campaign, and that of General St.
Clair on the previous fourth of November. HIe held, as the
boy was told, the commission and received the half-pay of a
brigadier-general from the British crown.
On the day of their visit to Blue Jacket, this chief was expecting what, to him, was distinguished company; it was none
other than Simon Girty, accompanied by a chief of a neigh* "The family of Cooh-coo-cheeh [the old squaw in- whose charge he had
been left], consisted of a dark Indian girl (an orphan) two years my elder,
and a half Indian boy, about a year younger than myself, both her grandchildren byv her only daughter, now the wife of Georze Ironside, a British
Indian trader, living at the trading station, on the high point directly opposite to her cabin, a few hundred yards above the mouth of Auglaize. The
boy, reputed to be the son of the famous, or rather infamous renegade,
Simon Girty, was very sprightly, but withal, passionate and willful, a perfectly spoiled child, to whom his mother gave the Mohawk name of Kedzaw-saw, while his grandmother called him Simo-ne [Simon]."-Spencer's
Indian Captivity, p. 78.
268History of the Girtys.
boring village--the Snake, a Shawanese warrior, spoken of in
a previous chapter. In honor of the occasion, Blue Jacket
was dressed in splendor; had on a scarlet frock, richly laced
with gold, and confined around his waist with a parti-colored
sash; also, red leggins and moccasins, ornamented in the
highest style of Indian fashion. On his shoulders, he wore a
pair of gold epaulets, and on his arms broad silver bracelets;
while from his neck hung a massive silver gorget, and a large
medallion of his majesty George I[I. Around his lodge were
hung rifles, war-clubs, bows and arrows, and other implements
of war, while the skins of deer, bear, panther, and otter, the
spoils of the chase, furnished pouches for tobacco, or mats for
seats and beds.  His wife was a remarkably fine-looking
woman; his daughters, much fairer than the generality of Indian women, were quite handsome; and his two sons, about
eighteen and twenty years ol0, educated by the British, were
very intelligent.
The expected visitors soon came; and, to young Spencer,
who had often heard of him, Simon Girty was a person of
more than usual curiosity; and he subsequently wrote of his
personal appearance in an exaggerated manner.
Girty wore the Indian costume, but without ornament, upon
this occasion; and his silk handkerchief, while it supplied the
place of a hat, hid the unsightly scar in his forehead, caused
by the wound which, the reader has already been told, was
given him by Captain Joseph Brant. On each side, in his
belt, was stuck a silver-mounted pistol, and at his left hung a
short, broad dirk, serving occasionally the uses of a knife.
He made many inquiries of Spencer; some about his family
and the particulars of his captivity, but more of the strength
of the different garrisons, the number of American troops at
Fort Washington, and whether the President of the United
States intended soon to send another army against the Indians. He spoke of the wrongs he had received at the hands
of his countrymen, and, with fiendish exultation, of the revenge he had taken. He boasted of his exploits, of the number of his victories, and of his personal prowess; then, rais269History   of the Girtys.
ing his handkerchief, he exhibited, to his youthful listener, the
deep scar in his forehead; said it was a saber cut which he received in the battle at St. Clair's defeat, adding that he had
sent the damned Yankee officer who gave it to hell.* He
ended his talk by telling young Spencer that he would never
see home again; but, if he should turn out to be a good hunter and a brave warrior, he might one day be a chief. The
captive boy then returned, with the old squaw, up the river.t
NOTE I.-"A few years after the close of the Revolution,"
says a published account, " a daughter of Captain John Van
Bebber, named Rhoda, aged seventeen, and Joseph Van Bebber, a young lad of thirteen,... had crossed over in a
canoe, one morning, to the west side of the Ohio, opposite
Point Pleasant, on an errand to Rhoda's father, then living
temporarily in a house that side of the stream, when a party
of Indians suddenly made their appearance. Dave, a black
man belonging to Captain Van Bebber, gave the alarm, and
rushed into the house. The Indians attacked the house, but
were driven off br Dave and Captain Van Bebber with the loss
of two or three of their number. Joseph and Rhoda, in their
terror, hastened to the canoe, whither the Indians pursued
them, killed and scalped the young lady and took Joseph a
prisoner to Detroit.... While at Detroit, he became acquainted with the notorious Simon Girty, then [as he said] a
pensioner [on half pay] for services in the Revolution. He
said Girty was an affable man, but extremely intemperate.
Girty denied to him that he was the instigator of the death of
Colonel Crawford; but that he went so far to save him that
his own life was in danger."-HIlowe's Historical Collections
of Virginia, p. 367. It is evident that the capture of the
son of Van Bebber was in the early days of the Indian
war, which, in this chapter, is described as actually existing in the West; but it is an exaggeration to say that,
at that period, Girty was extremely intemperate. He would
* Of course, this was all false.
t Spencer's Narrative (" Indian Captivity "), p. 365 et seq.
270History of the Girtys.
occasionally get drunk; and he was rather more inclined to
the "flowing bowl" than when he left Pittsburgh; but he was
far from being an habitual drunkard.
NOTE II.-The part taken by Simon Girty at St. Clair's
defeat has not, heretofore, been well understood.
"Simon Girty figured in the terrible defeat of the brave
but unfortunate St. Clair, November 4, 1791, and was evidently a personage of some importance, but owing to the fact
that the Indian side of the story of these early and bloody
days is not recorded, the part he took is not clear."-Magazine of American Ifistory, Vol. XV., p. 271. It is to be presumed that the affidavit, or statement, of May, before referred
to, escaped the notice of the writer of the foregoing, as it
makes very clear the part Girty took in the action.
"At about half an hour before sunrise (but after the morning parade), the militia,... while engaged in preparing
their morning meal, were attacked, unexpectedly attacked, by
a large body of Indians, supposed to have been commanded
by the infamous renegade Simon Girty."-Isaac Smucker, in
Annual Report of the (Ohio) Secretary of State, 1880, p. 31.
While it is certain that Girty commanded the Wyandots only,
on that memorable occasion, it may have been that he led in
the attack-that the Wyandots were the first to engage in the
action.
NOTE III.--Two prisoners to the Pottawattamies came in
to Fort Jefferson in July, 1792, reporting that the Indians
would hear no propositions for peace until all forts and settlements north of'the Ohio were abandoned; that they would
kill all peace messengers and deserters coming to them; and
that Simon Girty was personally present at the last attack on
Fort Jefferson (June 25th), made by more than one hundred
Indians.-Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography,
Vol. XII, pp. 45, 46.
271272
History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XXVII.
Indian Agent McKee, at the Maumee Rapids, was continually planning expeditions against the Americans, to be carried on by the Indians, under the leadership of white men,
when thev could be induced to go; and none were, as a general thing, more willing to engage in this warfare, and,
with tomahawk and scalping-knife, march toward the settlements upon the Ohio, than refugees from the states. The
prowess exhibited by Simon Girty of late made it an easy
matter to induce the savages, with him in command, to undertake expeditions of more than ordinary danger. It was
at'McKee's suggestion and request that he marched, with
two hundred and forty-seven Wyandots and Mingoes, with
two white guides (prisoners among the savages, and forced to
the disagreeable duty), to strike at the pack-horses at a place
called "The Fallen Timber," between Forts St. Clair and
Hamilton.
It was Girty's determination, if he missed of his object
there, to go to Columbia, and do every mischief in his power
before the meeting of tlle proposed council, so as to influence
its sittings; in short, to use his own words, he "would raise
hell to prevent a peace."*  This preventing peace was the
great end and aim-the work to be accomplished by the British in Canada, although the letters of those high in office to
American officials were characterized by a pacific tone. However, Girty and his warriors were recalled. The presence of
the former was imperatively demanded at "the Glaize."  It
was resolved by the Indians, notwithstanding, to undertake an
expedition of the kind after the proposed meeting of the na* May's Statement: American State Papers--" Indian Affairs," Vol. 1, p.
244, already cited.History of the Girtys.               273
tions; and that resolution was successfully carried out, but
under the lead of Little Turtle, instead of Girty.
The meeting of all the Indian nations of the North-west
took place in the fall of 1792, at " The Glaize."  The place
where the council was held was high ground, on the point between the Auglaize and the Maumee. Here, extending from
the latter river up the first-mentioned stream, was an open
space, on the west and south of which were oak woods, with
hazel undergrowth. Within this opening, a few hundred yards
above the point, on the steep, high bank of the Auglaize, were
five or six cabins and log-houses, inhabited principally by Indian traders. The most northerly, a large hewed log-house,
divided below into three apartments, was occupied as a warehouse, store, and dwelling, by George Ironside, the most
wealthy and influential of the traders " on the point." Next
to this was the house of Pirault, a French baker, and McKenzie, a Scotchman, who, in addition to merchandising, followed the occupation of a silversmith, exchanging with the
Indians his brooches, ear-drops, and other silver ornaments,
at an enormous profit, for skins and furs. Still farther up,
were several families of French and English; and two American prisoners, Henry Ball and wife, were allowed to live
there. They were captured at St. Clair's defeat, and were
permitted by their masters to work and earn the price of their
ransom; he by boating to the Rapids of the Maumee, and she
by washing and sewing.
Fronting the house of Ironside, and about fifty yards from
the bank, was a small stockade, inclosing two log-houses. In
one of these, McKee and Elliott stored their supplies of arms,
and other articles which were now being handed out to the
savages in lavish quantities; in the other, lived a trader, mention of whom will hereafter be made, and with whom Simon
Girty had his home while the council continued. From this
station, a fine view could be had of a large Indian village--
more than a mile south, on the east side of the AuglaizeBlue Jacket's town; and of the Maumee river for several
18
273
History of the Girtys.History   of the Girtys.
miles below.  An extensive prairie, covered with corn, directly opposite, could also be seen-the whole forming a very
handsome landscape.
It was in October when the great council was held. The
chiefs of all the North-west tribes were present. There were
representatives of the seven nations of Canada also in attendance. Thither went more than forty chiefs of the Six Nations. "Besides these," said Cornplanter, "'there were so
many nations that we can not tell the names of them."
Twenty-seven from beyond Canada were there-of course, by
their representatives. A large number came from westward
of the Mississippi. But, in all that assemblage, there was but
one white man-only one admitted to the council-and that
one, Simon Girty! This was a very clear and striking proof
of the hold he had upon the feelings of the Indians. To him,
but to none other, not even McKee or Elliott, who were below,
at the Rapids, could they feel safe in confiding their inmost
thoughts. It was, doubtless, a proud moment for the renegade. Well had he earned the confidence now reposed in him
by the savages. He advocated to the fullest extent what the
Indians desired; and he could, therefore, be trusted by
them.
The Shawanese chiefs spoke for war; but the Six Nations,
through Red Jacket, the Seneca chief, advocated peace, declaring to the assembled multitude that the United States desired to hold a council with the nations. The eloquence of
Red Jacket induced them finally to consent to an armistice;
they would hear what the President had to say, at the Rapids
of the Maumee, the next spring,' or at a time when the leaves
are fully out." But, even while the Indians were in council,
two hundred Shawanese and Miamis, under Little Turtle,
learning of some threatening movements of the Americans
to the southward, marched to one of their camps near Fort
St. Clair, and attacked it pretty successfully on the 6th of
November. The savages returned with a number of scalps,
many horses, and a great deal of captured baggage.
In December, the American forces, now recruited and
274History of the Girtys.
trained, were gathered at a point about twenty-two miles below Pittsburgh, on the Ohio. The army was called the Legion
of the United States, and was divided into four sub-legions,
and provided with legionary and sub-legionary officers.
The United States early took measures to meet the hostile tribes at the foot of the Rapids of the Maumee, as had
been suggested by them. Three Commissioners* were appointed, but the proposed meeting, it was determined, should
be held at Lower Sandusky. A number of Quakers (and Heckewelder, the Moravian) were also deputed to take part in the
conference.t Meanwhile the Indians of the West, dissatisfied
with the response of the United States to the address sent
by them in the previous October, had held another council at
"the Glaize."  This was in February, 1793. Word was sent
the Six Nations that they would not listen to any proposition
from the United States save upon the basis of the Ohio river
as the boundary, and the removal of the American forts from
the Indian territory. They also informed them that the
Western nations would hold a private council at the Maumee
Rapids before they would meet the American Commissioners.
Simon Girty was present at the meeting in February, so that
the probability is he remained upon the Maumee during the
winter.
The " Preliminary Council " (that was to be such) was begun in June, at the Maumee Rapids, by the North-western
Indians. Soon after its commencement a message was transmitted to the American Commissioners-meeting them at Fort
Erie, in Canada-asking explanations as to whether they were
authorized to establish a boundary between the United States
and the Indians, and indicating an uneasiness at the demonstrations of the American troops upon the Ohio. Sending
back a satisfactory answer, the Commissioners, on the 14th
* Benj. Lincoln, of Massachusetts; Beverley Randolph, of Virginia; and
Timothy Pickering, of Pennsylvania. For their instructions, see American
State Papers-" Indian Affairs," Vol. I, pp. 340-342.
t For the names of the whole party, see Rondtbhaler's Life of Heckewelder, pp. 131, 132.
275History   of the Girtys.
Indians chopped her in two, through the middle, and let her
lie until the dogs came and devoured her.
" Three days later, an Englishman was brought in, who had,
likewise, attempted to escape with Colonel Armstrong, and
burned alive in the same village. Iis torments, however, con-,
tinued only about three heurs, but his screams were frightful
to listen to. It rained that day very hard, so that the Indians
could not keep up the fire. Hence, they began to discharge
gunpowder at his body. At last, amidst his worst pains, when
the poor man called for a drink of water, they brought him
melted lead, and poured it down his throat. This draught at
once helped him out of the hands of the barbarians, for he
died on the instant." *
But to return to the three Girty boys. What became of
Simon, is best related in his own words:  "Simon Girty deposeth and saith, that while the French were in possession of
Fort Duquesne, he was made prisoner by a party of Delawares, Shawanese, and( French; that he was carried to Kittanning, which was then inhabited by Delawares, or Munceys,
upon which he was delivered to the Senecas, one of the Six
Nation tribes." t Jamnes went with the Shawanese; George
with the Delawares.   They were adopted by, and became
members of families belonging to the respective nations mentioned.
Captured, as Sirnon Girty was, at the age of fifteen, he
speedily mastered the Seneca language. His brothers James
and George also readily acquired the language of the tribes
to which they belonged.
Leaving the five captives-Mrs. Turner and her son John, also
Simon, James, and George Girty-with the Indians for " a
considerable time," as Simon afterward computed the length
of his sojourn with the Senecas, let us turn our attention for
* Narrative of Marie le Roy and'Barbara Leiniriger, in Pennsylvania
Archives, Second Series, Vol. VII, p. 406.
t From a deposition by Girty, printed in the Calendar of Virginia State
Papers, Vol. I, p. 280. This is a portion of the same deposition found in
the Jefferson MISS, Fifth Series, Vol. VIII, in the Department of State,
Waslhington, already citoed. It was probably taken in March, 1777.
15History of the Girtys.
of July, embarked for the mouth of the Detroit river, which
they reached on the twenty-first, where they were obliged to
land, the British authorities at Detroit forbidding their approach farther toward S'xndusky.
Leaving the Commissioners where they had landed, which
was on the Canada side of the river, let us consider for a moment the condition of affairs upon the Ohio and the Maumee.
General Wayne advanced his head-quarters from Legionville,
a short distance below Pittsburgh, on the 30th of April, to a
point near Fort Washington (Cincinnati), and was there engaged in organizing and drilling his army, in forwarding supplies to Fort Jefferson, and in cutting military roads northward--making preparations for an immediate campaign in the
event of the failure of the Commissioners to make peace with
the Indians.
At the Rapids of the Maumee were assembled representatives of the Wyandots, Delawares, Shawanese, Miamis, Pottawattamies, Ottawas, Connoys, Chippewas, Seven Nations of
Canada, Senecas of "the Glaize" (Mingoes), Nantekokies,
Mohicans, Messassagoes, Creeks, Cherokees, and Munceys.
But the Six Nations were excluded. Simon Girty was in attendance having remained at the Rapids since the gathering
in February at " the Glaize." McKee was also there counseling with the savages and dealing out supplies right and left
from the government stores.
The Commissioners of the United States upon leaving their
vessel in the river took up their abode at the house of Elliott,
which was not far from Girty's. As McKee was Deputy Indian Agent for the Crown and was at the council upon the
Maumee, along with Girty, they addressed him a note, informing him of their arrival and requesting that the meeting with
the Indians might be hastened. This message was sent in
charge of Elliott, on the morning of the 22d of July, to the
Rapids.
On the 29th, a deputation of " upwards of twenty Indians,"
including a Wyandot chief, and accompanied by Elliott, Thomas
276History   of the Girtys.
McKee (son of Alexander), Simon Girty, and Thomas Smith,*
an interpreter, arrived on the island in the Detroit river near
where the Commissioners were stopping, and the next morning the chief delivered a message to them in writing, in the
name of the "Confederacy" demanding an explicit answer
to the question-"Are you fully authorized by the United
States to continue and firmly to fix on the Ohio river as the
boundary between your people and ours." In presenting the
document, the Wyandot made a speech which Girty translated.
A lengthy reply in writing was made by the Commissioners
on the thirty-first, the gist of which was that they were not
authorized to fix the Ohio river as the boundary. This was
interpreted by Girty and a Mr. Jones in the Seneca tongue,
which was well understood by the Wyandot chief and by others
of the deputation. The rejoinder was made on the 1st of August by the same Wyandot (Girty again interpreting), the purport of which was that they would lay the written document
of the Commissioners before the warriors upon the Maumee;
but he added, so Girty interpreted, that they (the Commissioners) might' now go home!"
This piece of strategy on part of either the Wyandot or
Girty to end the council with the Western nations, was immediately foiled by Elliott mentioning what had been said, to
a Shawanese chief who was present, declaring that it was
wrong, and the latter agreed with him; but Girty insisted that
he had interpreted truly what the Wyandot had spoken. However, as the words were of vital importance and contrary to
what the interpreters of the Americans had heard other chiefs
say, the evidence is strong that the declaration was wholly the
work of Girty. Besides, the Wyandot himself came back and
said it was wrong. The matter was settled finally by the chief
adding (what Girty now correctly interpreted)--" Brothers: Instead of going home, we wish you to remain here for an answer
from us. We have your speech in our breasts and shall consult our head warriors." The Indians with Elliott and Girty
* For this man's given name, I am indebted to Rondthaler's Heckewelder,
p. 133.
277  History of the Girtys.
thereupon returned to the Rapids of the Maumee with the
written speech of the Commissioners. Heckehelder, who was
present at this meeting on the island, declares that Girty
" supported his insolence by a quill or long feather run through
the undler part of his nose cross ways." *
On Friday, the 16th of August, two Wyandot runners arrived at the Detroit river and handed to the Commissioners a
final answer from the Indian council. It was in effect that
the Ohio river must be made the dividing line between the Indian lands and those of the United States; that they would
agree to no other boundary. A brief reply was returned
that this was impossible and that the negotiation was at an
end.t Information of the failure of the Commissioners to arrange matters with the Indians was rapidly communicated to
General Wayne and hostile movements were made at once
from the Ohio toward the Maumee. On both sides the war
was renewed.
There are incidents connected with the visit of the Commissioners and the Quakers to the mouth of the Detroit of interest to our narrative, as they refer to the family of Girty.
One of the Friends (William Savery) kept a journal, from
which we make an extract, beginning with the 3d of August,
1793, just at the time when all were awaiting the final answer
from the Indian council:
"3d. The vessel called Detroit, bound to Fort Erie, appearing in sight, I wrote a hasty letter. Appointed a meeting
to be held at Simon Girty's, to-morrow at ten o'clock.
"4th. First-day morning. Very rainy, and much wet in
my tent; rose about three o'clock, bundled up my mattress,
and tied it in a painted cloth, and sat upon it till sunrise. The
rain continuing, three of us went to Simon Girty's, but find* Heckewelder's Narrative, pp. 402, 408.
t American State Papers--' Indian Affairs," Vol. I, pp. 342-357. While
it is true, as we have shown, that Girty took a very active part with the Indians and aided powerfully to bring to naught the negotiations, it can not
be said, with truth, that he alone secured the failure. It is error, therefore,
in Appleton's Cyclopadia of American Biography (art. "Simon Girty") to
claim it for him.
278Hi8tory of the Girtys.
ing none met, except the family, returned. Captain Hamilton, an amiable man, and an officer in the Fifth Regiment,
dined with us. The Chippeway, a vessel bound from Fort
Erie to Detroit, brought one hundred and eighty Indians and
landed them at the Miami [Maumee] river. The afternoon
being pleasant, had a meeting at Simon Girty's, about one and
a half miles from our camp, at which a number of Indians
were present and behaved soberly.  General.[Benjamin]
Lincoln, General Chapin, Captain Hamilton, Lieutenant
Givans, and several seamen, also attended; I believe it was to
satisfaction. The few scattered white people in this Indian
country, many of whom have been prisoners of war, have no
opportunity of public worship; yet some of them are glad of
our meetings; among whom was the wife of Simon Girty, who
also had been a prisoner among the Indians." *
Along the Maumee during the remainder of the year, after
the breaking up of the council at the Rapids, there was
much excitement. It was plainly foreseen that that stream
the next year would be the seat of war with the savages.
Causes of irritation having arisen between the United States
and Great Britain, war also seemed not to be among the impossible events that might soon happen between the two governments. So the savages were more openly encouraged; for,
in case of a rupture between the two powers, they would be
found, as during the Revolution, valuable auxiliaries. Girty
returned to his home (only two days' sail from the Rapids)
some time during the autumn. Here he remained during the
winter, frequently, however, visiting Detroit.
NOTE.- Heckewelder's account of the termination of the
Commissioners' efforts to arrange matters with the savages
assembled on the Maumee is as follows (see his Life by Rondthaler, pp. 134, 135):
"August 16th. Two young Wyandots arrived from the
council, with a written speech to the Commissioners in re* A Journal of the Life, Travels, and Religious Labors of William
Savery (Philadelphia, 1863), p. 67.
279280               History of the Girtys.
ply to their former speech delivered on this ground; which
address was both impertinent and insolent, being intended to
put an end to the treaty business. The language in the
speech was such that no person having knowledge of the Indians and their modes of expression, would believe it an Indian speech; but be that now as it may, there were assembled
at Miami [Rapids of the Maumee] by this time fifteen hundred
warriors, and, anxious for mischief, they threw off the mask. The
messengers [the two young Wyandots] having gone off agreeably
to Simon Girty's orders, after they had delivered their message,
the Commissioners sent after them, desiring them to take an
answer back to the council, which they agreed to. We saw
quite plainly that the Indians were not allowed to act freely
and independently, but were under the influence of evil advisers; wherefore this speech was to convince them of the pains
the United States had taken to bring about a peace with them;
and that as they had slighted this golden opportunity and been
inattentive to their own welfare and disappointed the United
States, they must abide by the consequence, and blame themselves and their advisers alone if the result should be disastrous."History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
The year 1794 was one of great activity for Simon Girty
as "British interpreter "-for this was his only official designation. He received pay by the day for this work. Besides
this, he got regularly his half pay, or pension, and was, subsequently, as will be hereafter seen, granted the land by the
Crown which had been promised him. He was seen in February, in Detroit, by an American, under circumstances which
will now be related.
On the 3d of February, 1794, Jacob Lewis, in an endeavor
to rescue from captivity a sister of his-Mrs. Joseph Kinanreached Detroit from New Jersey. One day while sitting
talking with a gentleman-Dr. Freman-at his house in the
outskirts of the town, the latter suddenly exclaimed: " Here
comes Simon Girty." As Lewis had heard of the renegade,
and knew what his reputation was among Americans, he was
not only surprised, but alarmed. Girty entered the house
without knocking; and, without saying a word, stood looking
at the American stranger. He had evidently been drinking,
which fact made his presence any thing but agreeable. After
a few minutes, in which he stood still as a statue, Lewis
asked him if he had ever seen him before. "No," was his
emphatic answer; " but if ever I see you again, I shall know
you," at the same time drawing out from its sheath a large
butcher-knife and throwing it down between the American and
the gentleman with whom the latter was conversing. It was
not long, however, before he picked up the dangerous weapon
and left the house. Lewis saw Girty several times afterward,
but was always well treated by him.
Jacob succeeded, finally, in rescuing his sister, after much
difficulty, from the savages. He looked upon Girty as " grown
old, broken down, and dissipated, so much so that he was
281History of the Girtys.
neither fit for a soldier or an Indian." * But this estimate
made of the "British interpreter" was quite an erroneous
one. It is true that, at home and in Detroit, he was frequently
under the influence of liquor, but he was not " grown old," as
our previous record discloses, nor was he " broken down," as
the sequel shows.
In the same spring of 1794, Girty was again upon the Maumee. His services as interpreter were now greatly in demand, for the Governor of Canada was marching thither with
a force of regulars, not actually to join with the savages in
taking the field against Wayne, but in doing every thing he
well could, to assist them short of this. After reaching the
Maumee, he proceeded to the erection of a fort at the rapids,
to the great indignation of Washington. The fortress was
located on the north-west side of the river, nearly opposite
the site of what is now Perrysburgh, Ohio. It was built for
the express purpose of supporting the operations of the Indians. The British authorities were almost in open war with
General Wayne.t
The time had now arrived for active operations on part of
the Indians. A blow was to be struck against the advancing
army of the Americans, and Girty was to join in the affair.
It was planned by McKee that the warriors should march to
attack convoys and any garrisons that could be enticed out of
forts. The Indians were led by Little Turtle. His force
amounted to more than one thousand savages. Many white
men besides Girty helped to swell the ranks of the enemyThomas McKee, son of Alexander McKee, was one of these.
By the twenty-seventh of June, the Indians had reached the
site of the present town of St. Mary's, in what is now Auglaize county, Ohio, which shows they must have started
from " the Glaize " (or " Grand Glaize," as it was frequently
* McBride's Pioneer Biography, Vol. II, pp. 269-276. "He [Simon
Girty] had a family and lived at Malden, on the opposite side of the [Detroit] river."-Id., p. 276.
t Compare Stnith's History of Wisconsin, Vol. I, p. 199.
282History of the Girtys.
called), marched up the Auglaize river to a point where it
was necessary to leave the stream in order to march directly,
in a south-west direction, for Fort Recovery.
At seven o'clock on the morning of the thirtieth of June,
one of the American escorts, consisting of ninety riflemen
and fifty dragoons, commanded by Major William McMahon,
was attacked by the Indians, who had now reached their objective point-Fort Recovery. The fighting began under the
walls of the fort, and was followed by a general assault, " imprudently made," afterward said McKee, upon the post and
garrison. The enemy were soon repulsed with considerable
loss, but immediately rallied and renewed their attack.
They kept up a heavy and constant fire, at a more respectable distance, for the remainder of the day, which was
answered with spirit and effect by the garrison, and that part
of Major McMahon's command that had regained the post.
The savages were employed during the night, which was dark
and foggy, in carrying off their dead by torch-light, which occasionally drew a fire from the fort. They succeeded so well,
however, that there were but eight or ten bodies left on the
field, and those were within easy reach of the fire from the
fortification.
The enemy, on the morning of the next day, renewed the
attack, but were ultimately compelled to retreat ingloriously,
from that very field where, on the fourth of November, 1791,
they had been so proudly victorious. The loss of the Americans was twenty-two killed, thirty wounded, and three missing; that of the enemy, according to their own admission,
was very severe-more than they suffered at St. Clair's defeat. It was an unexpected reverse to the Indians; and,
upon their return, it required the most active exertions of
the British at their new post at the foot of the rapids (" Fort
Miami," as it was called), to keep up the spirits of the savages, notwithstanding they could boast of having inflicted considerable loss upon the Americans. Girty, in this attack, fought
with his usual bravery; but whether he had any command is
2832History of the Girtys.
unknown. It was the last battle against his own countrymen
in which he took an active part.*
All through the early months of 1794, Wayne was busily
engaged in preparing for a sure blow when the proper time
came. On the 26th of July, a large number of mounted men
from Kentucky joined him at Fort Greenville, and on the
twenty-eighth the legion began its forward movement. The
point aimed at was "the Glaize," but Wayne feinted to draw
the attention of the savages to the head of the Maumee and
to the Rapids. It is probable but for the desertion of one of
his men he would have succeeded in his strategem and surprised the " Grand Glaize." As it was, he was so near, that
they were compelled to abandon the place precipitately. Here
at the junction of the Auglaize and Maumee, Wayne built
Fort Defiance.
From this post, it was determined to march down the river
and meet the foe who were in force near the British fort.
Meanwhile, an effort was made for the last time to bring about
peace with the savages without further bloodshed, but it resulted only in the foe asking for time, which Wayne was not
disposed to give. On the 15th of August, the legion was
again on the march. Three days more, and forty-one miles
had been reached, when some light works were commenced to
secure the baggage during the expected battle.   On the
twentieth, all baggage being left in "Fort Deposit," as the
place was called, the army moved down the Maumee, on its
north bank, to fight the Indians, if it was war they wanted.
The enemy, upon abandoning "the Glaize," soon began to
rendezvous at the Rapids, near the British post. The deficiencies in arms, ammunition, and equipments were there supplied them by the commander of the fort. There, they were
* "Girty and his Wyandots," says the Magazine of American History,
Vol. XV, p. 272, " were found arrayed against the Americans in the campaign of 1794, and they took part in the desperate attack on Fort Recovery,
on the 30th of June." But I have seen no evidence that he either led those
savages or fought more especially with them than with others present on
that occasion.
284History of the Girtys.
fed with regular rations from the king's stores, consisting of
flour and Irish beef. This was substantial aid.
On the 13th of August, McKee wrote the commandant at
Detroit that he was glad that such'exertions were being made
by him to supply the Indians with provisions. HIe declared
that scouts had been sent up to view the situation of Wayne's
army, and he added: " We now muster one thousand Indians.
All the lake Indians from Saginaw downwards should not lose
one moment in joining their brethren, as every accession of
strength is an addition to their spirits." The principal nations there gathered were the Miamis, Shawanese, Delawares,
Ottawas, and Wyandots-something less than fifteen hundred
in all, when, on the 20th of August, they chose their ground
and awaited the attack of Wayne. Their position was a
formidable one, about four miles above the British fort, and
on the same side of the Maumee. In their front, the ground
was covered by old' fallen timber, occasioned, years previous,
by a tornado. The Indians formed in three lines, within supporting distance of each other. They extended for nearly
two miles at right angles with the river. Girty, Elliott, and
McKee " were in the field, but at a respectable distance and
near the river." *  They doubtless had a premonition that the
day would end in disaster.
The American army moved to the attack-the legion on the
right, its flank covered by the Maumee; one brigade of
mounted volunteers on the left, and the other in the rear.
A select battalion of like troops moved in front of the
legion, which was directed to keep sufficiently advanced,
so as to give timely notice for the soldiers to form in case of
action, it being yet undetermined, so far as Wayne was concerned, whether the Indians would decide for peace or war.
After advancing about five miles, the corps in front received
so severe a fire from the enemy, who were secreted in the
woods and high grass, as to compel them to retire. The legion
was immediately formed in two lines, principally in a close,
* American State Papers--" Indian Affairs," Vol. I, p. 494.
285PREFACE.
It adds much to the pleasure of an author, in writing biographies of persons, to be in sympathy with them; but this occasionally results in unmerited praise. On the other hand, where
the writer pursues his self-imposed labor with a feeling of antagonism, unjust detraction may ensue.
While it is true that an extended notice of the three GirtysSimon, James, and George-was undertaken because of the notoriety they had obtained, yet the principal reason for prosecuting this
work to a final completion has been that there is an apparent necessity for our Western annals to be freed, so far as may be, from
error, every-where permeating them as to the part actually taken
by these brothers-particularly Simon--in many of the important
events which, to a considerable extent, make up the history of the
Trans-Alleghany country.
It is because so many "conflicting statements" have heretofore
been published concerning the Girtys-sometimes, however, in fragmentary form, but generally incorporated in Western historical
works-that, along with the accounts of them in these pages, are
also given brief sketches of the principal occurrences in which they
took part to a greater or less extent. These events are drawn from
authentic sources, largely original; and as they are interwoven
with the life-record of the three brothers, they are arranged, of
course, in chronological order. This book, then, is historical as
well as biographical. And it may here be added that the author has
kept constantly in mind one object as paramount to all others-the
statement of facts, as he understands them.
To confine these pages, however, to a bare mention of occurrences, giving the name'of the Girty who took part in any particular one, would be simply to make a dry chronological record; this
might be useful, but it would not be entertaining.' If it should
appear that Simon's name, during the Revoluttion, became a household word of terror all along the Western borders of Pennsylvania
and Virginia, the reader will naturally want to know the reason why.
Details, therefore, become necessary. We shall see that not only
Simon, but James and George, were cognizant of, or participants in
(iii)History of the Girtys.
a moment to the events of most importance in the West following the attack upon Kittanning, to the disappearance of
the French from the Ohio.
The Delawares and Shawanese (notwithstanding the Indians
of the Susquehanna had made a treaty of peace with the English, at Easton, in 1757) remained hostile upon the Ohio, continuing their murderous attacks until the summer of 1758,
when the advance of General John Forbes, with a considerable army, against Fort Duquesne, and the timely sending of
an emissary among them, brought these savages to reason.
When, therefore, the English army appeared before Fort Duquesne, the French were abandoned by their savage allies, and
the post would have fallen an easy conquest for the invaders,
even had not the enemy wisely vacated it, leaving the fortification little else than smoldering embers; its former occupants retiring, some of them to their posts up the Alleghany,
others, down the Ohio.
During the autumn, the Ohio Indians sent their deputies to
Easton, Pennsylvania, and a treaty was concluded with them
by the provinces. This treaty was followed by several conferences at Pittsburgh, in that year and the one following, between agents of the English, on the one side, and the chiefs
of the Ohio Indians and Six Nations (Senecas), on the other.
Among those of the Indians first named, were Delawares,
Shawanese, and Wyandots. As a result of these " talks " with
the savages, all prisoners held by them were brought into
Pittsburgh and delivered up. Of these were the three Girty
boys, their mother, and her young son--John Turner.*   This
took place some time during the year 1759.
* See Niles's Weekly Register, Vol. XIX, p. 262, as to the return of the
whole family to civilization, except Thomas Girty, who had previously escaped, as before mentioned. Compare, also, the Missouri Gazette, for May
7, 1814; Sparks's Library of American Biography, Second Series, Vol.
XIII (Peck's Life of Boone), p. 109, note; and Albach's Western Annals (1857), p. 261. But Albach makes the mistake of declaring that "' only
the mother and Simon returned." In the Magazine of American History,
Vol. XV, p. 259, it is said, erroneously, that " there is nothing to show " that
Mrs. Turner ever escaped from the Indians.
162History of the Girtys.
thick wood, which extended for miles on the left and for a
considerable distance in front, the fallen timber before spoken
of rendering it impracticable for the cavalry to act with effect,
and affording the Indians the most favorable protection for
their mode of warfare. Wayne soon discovered, from the
weight of their fire and the extent of their lines, that the
savages were in full force and in possession of their favorite
ground, and were endeavoring to turn his left flank. He
therefore gave orders for the second line to advance and support the first. At the same time, the whole of the mounted
volunteers were directed to gain and turn the right flank of
the enemy by a circuitous route.
The front line was now ordered to advance with trailed arms
and rouse the Indians from their coverts at the point of the
bayonet, and, when up, to deliver a close and well-directed
fire on their backs, followed by a brisk charge, so as not to
give them time to load again. The legionary cavalry were
ordered to turn the left flank of the savages next the river, the
ground affording a favorable field for that corps to act in.
All these orders were obeyed with spirit and promptitude, but
the charge by the first line of infantry was so rapid and impetuous that the enemy--Indians, Canadian militia, and
volunteers-were quickly driven back, giving the mounted
volunteers and second line of the legion little opportunity to
engage the foe, who were forced back, in the course of an
hour, more than two miles, and finally were put to flight.
The victory was complete. Wayne's loss was-killed, thirtythree; wounded, one hundred: that of the Indians is unknown. Girty made good his escape.;* so, also, McKee and
Elliott. Such was " the battle of the Fallen Timber."
* "Girty and his Wyandots... were present at the battle of Fallen
Timber on the 20th of... August [1794], when old Mad Anthony
Wayne visited such a crushing defeat upon the brave but fated savages."Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 272. It is true that Girty and
the Wyandots were in this battle. He did riot, however, lead them in the
action, nor was he actively engaged therein. They were not, therefore,
"his Wyandots." But the latter fought bravely.
286History of the Girtys.
After the battle of the Fallen Timber, McKee wrote to the
Detroit commandant that it would require great efforts to induce the Indians to remain in a body. He and Girty now
sailed for Detroit, where plans were concerted to call the savages again in council. The governor of Canada, with McKee
and Captain Brant (the latter having with him one hundred
Indians-Mohawks and Messassagoes), repaired to the Miami
fort upon the Maumee. The chiefs of the various nations
were gathered there, and invited by the governor to meet him
at the mouth of the Detroit river, to hold a treaty, which invitation was immediately accepted. At this gathering, which
was held in October, the Indians were advised to propose
a truce until spring. More presents than ever were made
by the British.  The chiefs were asked to hold a grand
council, after the next winter was over, for the purpose of
compelling the Americans to cross to the east side of the
Ohio. Meanwhile, they could convey all their lands on the
west side of that river to the king, to be held in trust, so as
to give the British a pretext for helping them. The Indians
promised to do what the governor asked-at least some of
them. At this council was Simon Girty. He exerted himself
to the utmost to further the wishes of the British.* But it
was the last opportunity for him to display, in a general
council, his animosity to his countrymen-the Americans.
The chiefs had experienced enough of war.
During November, Girty assisted McKee, at the mouth of
the Maumee, where the Indians (who had had all their corn
destroyed by Wayne) were in huts, in furnishing them with
provisions. About the 1st of January, 1795, he returned to
his home in Canada. His wild career in the Ohio country
was well-nigh ended.
* "Camp Miami Villages [Ft. Wayne], 11th October, 1794.-A Canadian
(Rozelle) 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 Au.
gust; he brings information that the Indians are in council with [Simon]
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."-Daily
Journal of Wayne's Campaign, in American Pioneer, Vol. I, p. 865.
287History of the Girtys.
It was not long after Wayne's return to Fort Greenville
(whither he had retired subsequent to his victory over the
savages), before the wishes of the Indians to make peace began to be made apparent to him. On the last days of December, the. chiefs of the Chippewas, Ottawas, Sacs, Pottawattamies, and Miamis came into Fort Wayne, a post which had
been erected-now the site of the city of the same name in
Indiana-with friendly messages. During the month of January, 1795, these chiefs, together with representatives from
the Delawares, Ottawas, Wyandots of Sandusky, and Shawanese, entered into preliminary articles at Fort Greenville
with the commander-in-chief. During the winter, prisoners
were exchanged, and preparations made on both sides to meet
in June for the purpose of forming a definite treaty. These
arrangements coming to the ears of the British, Simon Girty
was sent to admonish them to desist. It was his last effort,
in a public way, to endeavor to influence the Western nations
to still hold out against the Americans; and the effort was a
signal failure. He returned to Detroit to report that nothing
could change the minds of the chiefs of the various tribes.
He then made his way to his Canadian home, never again to
appear in the Indian country as a British emissary to antagonize the interests of America.
288History of the Girtys.               289
CHAPTER XXIX.
In going with the enemy to assail Fort HIenry at Wheeling,
in September, 1782, James Girty, for the last time, so far as
it is known, marched to attack his own countrymen. Living
with the Shawanese at Wapatomica, he had become well acquainted with the country to the westward, especially upon
the St. Mary's, and upon the west branch of the Great Miami,
now known as Loramie creek. To his mind, the point where
the portage began at the head of the St. MIary's, leading south
across to the last-named stream, was one where a tradinghouse might properly be established. It was identical with
the site of the present town of St. Mary's,* in Auglaize
county, Ohio, and was then a small Indian village. He had
already been trafficking to a considerable extent with the
Shawanese and other tribes, purchasing his supplies at Detroit. He had also married a Shawanese woman, who was
known to the whites as Betsey. She could speak English.
In 1783, immediately after being assured that peace between
the United States and Great Britain had been made, he moved
his family and effects to the place just described, where he
was soon established as a trader. His new home subsequently
received the name of "Girty's town," because of his having
lived there, which it retained long after he had left.t
James enjoyed for a little over seven years a complete monopoly of the Indian trade at his trading-house. He shipped
peltry down the St. Mary's to the Maumee; thence, down the
stream last mentioned to the Rapids (a point already frequently mentioned), and from that place across Lake Erie to
Detroit, returning with stores to be disposed of to the Indians
* See An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, p. 198.
t Compare, in this connection, Sutton's History of Auglaize County,
(Ohio, pp. 26, 27.
192History of the Girtys.
at large profits. These goods were brought by water, right to
his door.
During his residence at what is now St. MIary's, James was
frequently frightened by reports of the advance of American
troops, especially in 1786 of Colonel Logan; and on several
occasions, he had his goods packed ready for immediate removal; but, until the fall of 1790, they all proved false alarms.
He had timely warning of the approach of General Harmar in
that year; whereupon, he moved his stock first to the head of
the Maumee, and immediately after down that river to " Grand
Glaize," where he was out of harm's way.
M~ention has been made of the captivity of young Spencer,
and of his visit upon the Maumee, in July, 1792, to the
Shawanese chief, Blue Jacket. He remained at " the Glaize"
until the next February, when, near the close of the month,
he and the Indian family with whom he lived proceeded down
the river some four or five miles, and engaged in sugarmaking. While thus employed, a messenger arrived at their
camp, and privately informed the old Indian woman that the
British Indian agent from Detroit had arrived at the Grand
Glaize; that the boy had been purchased by him; and that he
(the messenger) had been sent to conduct him to the Pointthat is, to " the Glaize." The young prisoner, the next morning, was on his way with the man who had been sent to get
him, greatly excited at the prospect of being released from
captivity.
It was a pleasant morning on the last day of February,.
1793, that young Spencer bade adieu to his Indian friends.
The sun, just setting, seemed to shine with unusual splendor;
never before, as he thought, had it appeared so bright and
beautiful.  The captive had been at first "as one that.
dreamed," scarcely crediting the fact that he was no longer a
prisoner; gradually, however, as he left his late dwelling farth,er and farther behind him, he became assured and conscious
of the truth that he was indeed free; he was, as a consequence, like a bird loosed from his cage, or a young colt from
his stall; to suppress his feelings, or restrain his joy, would
290History of the Girtys.              291
have been almost impossible. He laughed, he wept, he whistled, he shouted, and sung by turns. Never had he moved
before with step so elastic-now skipping over logs, jumping,
dancing, and running alternately, while the messenger, a
Frenchman (whose name he found on inquiry to be Joseph
Blanch), sometimes stopped and looked at him intensely, as if
suspecting he was more than half crazy.
By degrees, the boy became more temperate; his extreme
joy gradually subsided. He now confined the expression of
his happiness to singing and whistling, which he kept up almost without intermission until the Auglaize was reached,
when, stepping into a canoe, and crossing that river, in a few
minutes he entered the hospitable dwelling of Mr. Ironside.
This gentleman received him with more than usual kindness,
andt, congratulating him upon his release from captivity very
heartily, introduced him to Matthew Elliott, the assistant British Indian agent, and to a Mr. Sharpe, a merchant of Detroit, who had accompanied Elliott to the Auglaize. Elliott
received young Spencer with considerable hauteur, and with
a look that spoke that his noticing him was condescension, notwithstanding, as the boy afterward learned, he had been sent
by the express order of Governor Simcoe, of Canada, to effect his ransom and convey him to Detroit.
As if such service as rescuing Spencer was degrading, Elliott pretended that, being at Auglaize on public business, he
ha(l accidently heard of the captive, and, actuated wholly by
motives of humanity, had procured his release, for which he
had agreed to pay one hundred and twenty dollars. The wife
of Ironside now kindly invited the boy to breakfast; but Elliot, objecting to the trouble it would give her, ordered the
Frenchman to take him over to James Girty's, where, he said,
their breakfast would be provided. Girty's home was one of
the two log houses before spoken of as within a small stockade at " the Glaize," where his brother Simon made his headquarters while at that place; the other house being occupied
by McKee and Elliott, occasionally, while on the Maumee.
James Girty's domicil served the double purpose of a living292               History of the   Tirtys.
room and store. Girty's wife soon furnished Spencer and the
Frenchman with some coffee, wheat bread, and stewed pork
and venison, of which the boy ate with great gusto, it being so
much better than the food to which he had lately been accustomed; but he had not more than half breakfasted when
James Girty came in.
The latter seated himself opposite Spencer, and said to
him: "So, my young Yankee, you're about to start for
home?"   The boy answered: " Yes, sir; I hope so."  That,
he rejoined, would depend upon his master, in whose kitchen
he had no doubt the youthful stranger should first serve a few
years' apprenticeship as a scullion. Then, taking his knife,,
said (wlhile sharpening it on a whetstone): "I see your ears
are whole yet; but I'm greatly imistaken if you leave this
without the Indian ear-mark, that we may know you whenl we
catch you again." Spencer did not wait to prove whether
Girty was in jest or in downright earnest; but, leaving his
meal half finished, lie instantly sprang from the table, leaped
out of the door, and in a few seconds took refuge in Mr. Ironside's house. On learning the cause of the boy's flight, Elliott
uttered a sardonic laugh, deriding his unfounded childish fears,
as he was pleased to term theln; but.Ironside looked serious,
shaking his head, as if he had no doubt that if Spencer had
remained Girty would have executed his threat. The boy
soon started down the Maumee, and reached Detroit on the
3d of Marclh, 1793, when he was delivere(l to Colonel Richard
England, the officer in command of that post.*
The arrival of General Wayne in the vicinity of "the
Glaize," in 1794, was made known to James Girty in time for
him to pack up his goods and make a safe retreat with his
family, consisting of his wife and two children-James and
Ann-down tbe Maumee. He finally made his way to Detroit, thence to Essex county, Canada.
George Girty, after the battle of the Blue Licks, returned,
it will be remembered, in the latter part of August, 1782, to
* Spencer's Narrative (" Indian Captivity"), pp. 117-129.History of the Girtys.
the upper waters of the Mad river. He afterward so completely gave himself up to savage life that his identity is with
difficulty traced. It is known, however, that he continued to
reside with the Delawares. From "Buckungehelas town,"
inhabited by Indians of that tribe, and located upon the upper waters of the Great Miami, he wrote Captain McKee, on
the 5th of September, 1784, concerning affairs there and
further westward. "I have to acquaint you," he says, "that
some of the Cherokees and Shawanese are gone a horse-hunting again. I am likewise informed that the Kickapoos and
Weas have taken several prisoners lately from about the Falls
[Louisville] and Salt creek, which has occasioned an army to
march from the place first mentioned against them." This
and other information was given MIcKee with as much particularity as if there was still war between the United States and
Great Britain. His letter shows, in strong light, how the
Kentucky settlements were harassed, even at so late a date
as the fall of 1784.
It will be remembered that, after the commencement of hostilities between the Western Indians and the United States,
George again took part against his countrymen, as his presence at the attack upon Dunlap's Station proves, and as the
following relation concerning the captivity of a boy in Western Pennsylvania sufficiently demonstrates: John Brickell
was captured in February, 1791, on the Alleghany river, at
the age of ten years, by Delawares, and immediately hurried
into the wilderness. After going a little distance, the savages
and young Brickell fell in with George Girty. He spoke to
the boy in English, and told him that white people had killed
Indians, and that the Indians had retaliated, and now there
was war, and that he (Brickell) was a prisoner. "We will
take you," said he, " to our town and make an Indian of you.
You will not be killed if you go peaceably; but, if you try to
get away, we will not be troubled witlh you, but we will kill
you and take your scalp to our town." Brickell informed
Girty that he would go peaceably and give them no trouble.
The next morning, the Indian who had captured the boy
2932i.story of the Girtys.
delivered him to the care of Girty, and took another direction.
The latter, with his young prisoner, continued his course toward the Tuscarawas. They traveled all that day through
hunger and cold, camped at night, and continued until about
three o'clock in the afternoon of the third day, since Brickell
had tasted a mouthful of food.    A fire was then made, and
the boy was tied to a sapling, while Girty went to kill somiething to eat.   The boy untied himself before the return of
Girty, but did not attempt to run away.       Girty left himl at
the Tuscarawas in charge of his Indian captor, whom they
met there.  The lad, after remaining a considerable time with
the Indians, was released from captivity.*
NOTE.-In    "An   Historical Account of the     Expedition
against Sandusky," it is stated (pp. 197, 198) that, "After
this [St. Clair's defeat, Simon] Girty was engaged in the Indian trade at Lower Sandusky, going thence to' Girty's town,'
on the St. Mary's, where he established a trading-house."
But this, it is noiv well known, is erroneous. He never was a
trader with the Indians, either at Lower Sandusky, " Girty's
town,"  or elsewhere.    The   statement   (only inferential)
first appeared in print in Howe's Ohio, p. 353, and then
in the Wyandot (Kan.) Gazette, of April 18, 1872, in an article by the late William Walker, which has already been cited
in this narrative. It will be found repeated in substance in
Appleton's Clyclopaedia of American Biography, Art. " Simon
Girty." "We all know that the headwaters of the St. Mary's
* Narrativeof John Brickell, in the Amerlcan Pioneer, Vol. I, p. 53.
The Magazine of American History (Vol. XV, p. 271 ) says: "George and
James Girty were as completely identified with the Indians all this timne, as
if they had been actually born savtges. They lived with them, fiught with
them, and apparently wanted no other society, and did all they could to
make Indians out of the white children they frequently captured." But
the writer of this narrative has not discovered any attempt of James Girty
to make Indians out of white childien he "frequentlly captured." He was
from all accounts, willing, when upon the war-path, to tomahawk young
and old; and if children were taken prisoners by the Indians when he was
on a maraud into the border settlements, he seems to have given himself no
trouble as to what became of them.
294ii.story of the Girtys.              295
are where old Fort Barbee stood, just below where the three
streams-the east, middle, and west branch'es-form   that
river.... We have spoken of James Girty as being the
Girty who lived at the headwaters of the St. Marys, and gave
his name to the old Indian town here. It has been supposed
by many that it was Simon who lived here."-Sutton's History of Auglaize County, Ohio, pp. 26, 27. Consult, farther, as
to the location of "Girty's town," Wayne's dispatches; also
the artidles of the Greenville treaty. Several early published
maps give the location correctly.History of the Girtys.               17
NOTE.--Simon Girty's deposition, before referred to as
from the Jefferson MSS, Fifth Series, Vol. VIII, in the Department of State, Washington, D. C., is as follows:
"Simon Girty deposeth and saith that, while the French
were in possession of Fort Duquesne, he was made prisoner by
a party'of Delawares, Shawanese, and French; that he was
carried to Kittanning, which was then inhabited by Delawares,
or MIunceys, after which he was delivered to the Senecas, one
of the Six Nation tribes, where he continued a considerable time; that he always understood that the party who defeated Colonel Grant consisted of French, Wytandots, Senecas,
Delawares, Shavwanese, and Ottawas, and that he hears that
Hiashota [usually written Guyasutha] was with them. The
deponent further saith that the party which defeated Captain
Bullitt consisted of about fifty-five Indians and French, a majority of which were of the Seneca Tribe. And the deponent
further saith that he heard Hiashota acknowledge that he was
in the engagement, and commanded when the attack was made
on Colonel Bouquet.
"The deponent further saith that he never understood the
Indians returned to their side of the Alleghany river, or
formed any settlements, after the Kittanning being destroyed;
and that he has been informed it is not customary for Indians
to re-settle a town after being destroyed by an enemy, or deserted on any other occasion. The deponent further saith that
he does not know of any settlements being made between the
mouth of Monongahela and the Little Kanawha till after
opening the Pennsylvania Land Office.  SLrON GIRTY."
2296               History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XXX.
Let us now consider the condition of affairs in the Indian
country, as preparations were going forward looking to a geineral gathering of all the nations determined to make peace
with the United States. Even Simon Girty, as we have seen,
had signally failed in his last endeavor to move any of the
chiefs from their firm resolution to bury the hatchet. They
had had enough of war-enough of the misery which war had
brought in its path. Nothing could prevent the holding of a
great and definitive treaty with General Wayne.
Nevertheless, both Girty and McKee continued to influence
those Indians living contiguous to Detroit, preventing, in the
end, a few from going to Greenville. And Captain Brant
was even more influential at this time than they in his appeals
to the savages, arguing, against any arrangement looking to a
permanent peace. " We should have come in greater numbeis," said a Chippewa sachem to General Wayne on the 18th
of July, 1795, i" but for Brant's endeavors to prevent us."
" The commission you received from Johnson," said McKee
to the Shawanese chief, Blue Jacket, some time before, "was
not given you to carry to the Americans. I am grieved to
find that you have taken it to them [referring to the preliminary treaty of January previous, made with General
Wayne]. It was with much regret I learned that you had deserted your friends, who always caressed you, and treated you
as a great man. You have deranged, by your imprudent conduct, all our plans for protecting the Indians, and keeping
them with us. They have always looked up to you for advice
and direction in war, and you have now broken the strong ties
which held them all together under your and our direction.
You must now be viewed as the enemy of your people and
the other Indians whom you are seducing into the snares the
Americans have formed for their ruin; and the massacre andHistory of the Girtys.
destruction of these people by the Americans must be laid to
your charge." But all was unavailing; no arguments, no persuasions, no presents, of McKee had any effect upon the great
majority of the war chiefs and sachems.
The struggle which ended in the independence of the United
States was hardly over before the treaty which had been
negotiated between this country and Great Britain was, as we
have previously noted, openly violated by the last mentioned
power. In England it was complained that there was in the
United States an equally open violation. And so with criminations and recriminations matters went on. As has already
been intimated, one of the principal causes of the Indian war
which had now for nearly six years raged in the North-west was
the refusal of the British government to give up the military
posts in this region. There could be but little hopes of a permanent peace.so long as these forts were garrisoned by English
troops. It was an imperative necessity that a new treaty be
entered into between the two countries.
John Jay was sent to England, and the result was that negotiations were concluded and the " Jay treaty," as it is called
in the United States, signed on the 19th of November, 1794,
ninety days after the victory of Wayne over the Indians upon
the Maumee. The particular article of the treaty most important to tlhe North-west was the one stipulating that the
Western posts should be vacated by the English soldiers.
Therefore it was that, in the spring and early summer of 1795,
with the lofty spirit of the hostile Indian tribes subdued, there
seeined to be, an(d there really was, with the certainty that
soon the Americans would have actual possession of all the
military posts in the North-west, the brightest prospects of
peace of a lasting nature with all the savage nations between
the Great Lakes on the north and the Ohio river on the soiuth.
It was "a consummation devoutly to be wished."
Now, from far. and near came the sachems and war chiefs
and others of the different tribes to Greenville; and they continued to comlre until twelve nations had their representatives on
the ground, swelling the number of the latter to eleven hundred
297History   of the Girtys.
and thirty. The assembled multitude were of the Wyandots,
Delawares, Shawanese, Ottawas, Chippewas, Pottawattamies,
Miamis, Eel Rivers, Weas, Piankashaws, Kickapoos, and- Kaskaskias. It was the most notable gathering that had ever before taken place at any council with the Indians, so far as the
United States was concerned. Considering the interests involved and the magnitude of the questions settled, it must
ever be considered, perhaps, the most important of our Indian
treaties. The result was this:
The Indian boundary was to commence on the north side of
the Ohio, opposite the mouth of the Kentucky river; thence
to extend north a little east of Fort Recovery; thence eastwardly to the Muskingum (now Tuscarawas river); thence
up the latter to Cuyahoga portage, and down the last named
stream to Lake Erie, where Cleveland now stands. All west of
this line, to the Great Lakes and the Mississippi, except a few
small tracts, was to remain Indian territory. This settled the
question of boundary. It ceded to the United States a tract
of country west and north of the Ohio river of not less than
twenty-five thousand square miles--all east of the line drawn
as before described. There were sixteen detached portions of
territory west of the line, also ceded, including, among
others, all the military posts with contiguous territory, soon
to be vacated by the British. " It is with infinite pleasure,"
wrote General Wayne (who, by a commission dated the 4th
of April, 1794, and another of the 15th of April, 1795, had
authority'for settling a peace with all the tribes') to the
Secretary of War, on the ninth of August of the year last
mentioned, " I now inform you that a treaty of peace between
the United States of America and all the late hostile tribes
of Indians north-west of the Ohio, was unanimously and voluntarily agreed to, and cheerfully signed by all the sachems
and war chiefs of the respective nations on the third, and exchanged on the seventh instant."*  The Indian war of 1790-95
was ended.
* The several articles of the treaty of Greenville, together with a lengthy
298History of the Girtys.
"The relations between the two countries [Great Britain
and the United States] were not permanently established [by
the recognition of our independence], and discussions soon
commenced, which assumed a character of severity. They
were fraternally closed by Jay's treaty, at the moment when
a war appeared inevitable. But during the progress of these
discussions, the usual indications of Indian hostilities, such as
have preceded and accompanied all our differenees with the
British Government, gave unerring warnin,g of the storm
which was approaching. It burst upon our frontiers; and
during the administration of General Washington this unprovoked war embarrassed and perplexed the infant governiment.
Detroit was then, as in the period of the Revolution,
the British Indian head-quarters. The elder iMcKee was at
the head of the Indian Department, and he was aided by
Elliott and [Simon] Girty, men well qualified to serve in such
a cause, where hands that stayed not, and hearts that relented
not, and zeal that tired not, could furnish examples which
even savages might admire in despair." *
It now only remained for the United States to get possession of the military posts of the North-west-of Fort Miami
upon the Maumee, and of the forts at Detroit and Mackinaw.
About the middle of May, 1796, a force was sent from Fort
Wayne for that purpose. In July, the fort upon the Maumee
and the one at Detroit received each an Americanl garrison;.and, in October, the United States flatg floated out upon the
breeze at Mackinaw. So the general government was in
actual possession before the close of the year of all its territory " north-west of the river Ohio;" but the Indian nations
had for their homes (where Americans, with but here and
there small tracts as exceptions, had no right of occupation)
the north-west half of what is now the State of Ohio, nearly
all of the present Indiana, and the whole of the region now
account of the proceedings attending the negotiations of the same, are to be
found in American State Papers--" Indian Affairs," Vol. I, pp. 562-583.
* Lewis Cass, April, 1827.
299History of the Girtys.
constituting the States of Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and
so much of Mlinnesota as lies east of the Mississippi river.
When the treaty of Greenville became known at Detroit
and in its immediate vicinity, and the particulars of the "Jay
treaty " had been fully digested there, it was apparent to all
the inhabitants, as well as to the British officers of the army
and Indian Department, that longer opposition to the march
of American jurisdiction westward was unavailing. This was
a bitter pill (as may well be imagined) for the loyalists in that
quarter to swallow. The oaths of McKee were long and loud.
Simon Girty drowned his deep-mouthed execrations in the
"' flowing bowl." He continued, however, to visit Detroit, declaring he would make that post a place of resort, to defy the
power of the United States until their soldiers should appear
in sight. And he made good his word.
When the fort at Detroit was taken possession of, it was
discovered that "the wells had been filled with stones, the
windows broken, the gates locked, and the keys deposited
with an aged negro, in whose possession they were afterward
found." As the detachment of American soldiers neared the
town, it became known that they were approaching. There
were no British officers to turn over the post to the Americans; but in the town was Simon Girty, who declared he
would not stir one inch, unless driven out. However, at the
sight of boats coming up the river with American troops on
board, he became so much alarmed that he could not wait for
the return of thle ferry-boat, but plunged his horse into the
stream, at the risk of drowning, and made for the Canada
shore, which he reached in safety, pouring out a volley of
maled(ictions, as he rode up the opposite bank, upon the
United States government and troops, mingled with all the
diabolical oaths his imagination could coin.*  The truth was,
that ever since his desertion from Pittsburgh in the spring of
1778, he had upon one subject seemed to be ill at ease. He
* Compare, in this connection, the Wyandotte (Kas.) Gazette; of April
18, 1872; also, An Historical P ecount of the Expedition against Sandusky,
p. 201.
300History of the Girtys.
was curious to know of prisoners what was in store for him
should he be captured by the Americans. The idea of his
falling into their hands was a terror to him. It was only
that he had nerved himself up with strong drink tllat he
remained as long as he did before making himself secure
on British soil. He often boasted in after years of his
exploit in swimming the river, and of the power of the horse
that carried him safely over.* Henceforth, except when Detroit was in possession of the British in the War of 1812, the
river he had so heroically crossed was the boundary between
him and the country of his birth, which he never passed.
It does not appear that Girty was possessed of an extraordinary amount of courage; nevertheless, there is nothinog on
record to imply that he was a coward. In battle, he usually
displayed a fair amount of bravery. As to his foolhardiness,
there is some testimony, if the following story is to be credited. He got into a quarrel at one time with a Shawanese,
caused by some misunderstanding in a trade.  Whlile bandying hard words to each other, the Indian, by inuendo, questioned his opponent's courage. Girty instantly produced a
half-keg of powder, and snatching a fire-brand, called upon
the savage to stand by him. The latter, not deeming this a
legitimate mode of settling disputes, hastily evacuated the
premises.t
NOTE I.-The Magazine of American History (Vol. XV,
p. 272), says: "[Simon] Girty was now getting on in years,
and when the treaty of Greenville, in the summer of 1795,
closed the old Indian wars of the West, and brought his hunting grounds and his adopted kinsmen under the authority of
the people he had fought so long and hated so cordially, the
* Brice's History of Ft. Wayne, p. 135. There is a tradition, seemingly
well authenticated, that the plunge into the river was off a high bank, and
was really a daring affair. See Farmer's History of Detroit, p. 269.
t Wyandotte Gazette, before cited. See, also, An Historical Account of
the Expedition against Sandusky, p. 200. The story is also copied in
the Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 271.
301302               History of the Girtys.
battle-8carred warrior, disappointed, disgusted and furious,
abandoned forever his old home on the St. Mary's and followed the retiring British to Detroit." In this extract are to be
noted a number of errors: (I) Girty had no hunting-grounds in
the West, nor were any of the tribes there his adopted kinsmen (unless, indeed, the Mingoes are to be so considered);
(2) lie did not abandon his old home on the St. Mary's, for he
never, as already shown, lived there; and (3) he did not follow the retiring British to Detroit, but had years before taken
up his residence in Canada.
NOTE II.--The Miagazine of American History, Vol.
XV., p. 273, also says: " Driven at last from  American
soil, Girty found a refuge at Fort'Malden, a post which had
been established by the British on the east side of Detroit
river, on the Canadian frontier just before the evacuation of
Detroit [in 1796], and distant only fifteen miles from that
stockaded village so famous in the annals of Indian warfare.
Fort Malden commanded the entrance to Detroit river and
from its walls the red-coated sentinel could look for many a
mile up the streamn which separated him froIn the territory of
the new Republic, and turning, view the beautiful waters of
Lake Erie spreading out before him as far as the eye could
reach. The ground once occupied by this defense is now the
property of Hon. John McLeod, ex-member of the Canadian
Parliament.  A platform of elevated earth cast up in the
long ago by the veterans of George III., and the stump of the
flag-staff that once surmounted it, are now the only remains
of the fort from whence issued the invading forces which
brought death and disaster to the American soldiers of the
War of 1812. The very name'Malden' has almost disappeared from the maps, and its successor,'Amherstburg,' now
designates the picturesque spot in the county of Essex, Upper Canada, where once the royal stronghold stood." But, as
has before been shown, Girty was, at the close of the Revolution, re-called by DePeyster from "American soil "-he was not.
driven from it; nor did he find a refuge at Fort Malden; but,.History of the Girtys.               303
as we have seen, he quietly settled, in 1784, about two miles
below the spot where that fort was subsequently built.
NOTE III.-" The Mlalden of 1796," is the further language
of the same article-Magazine of American History, Vol.
XV, p. 273-(the writer of which article supposes it was in
that year that Simon Girty first made his home in that neighborhood), "which Girty sought, though but an outpost of the
wilderness frontier, was busy enough just then, surrounded as
it was by hundreds of hungry refugee Indians, from the wardesolated North-west, who were clamoring for aid and comfort from their British employers.  Here,... safely
ensconced were Elliott and McKee, his corrupters of Fort.
Pitt and his boon companions for twenty years. They had
found it convenient to be among the earliest arrivals. These
educated white mercenaries grew rich from the fruits of their
treason, while the illiterate Girty, Indian like, waxed poorer
and poorer. It was well said lately to the writer by a scholarly correspondent who owns original papers bearing upon the
Girty case, that' Girty was terribly punished for his conduct,
whilst men who deserved it more escaped almost unscathed.''"
But Girty had little or nothing when he was married and
settled near what was afterward Fort Malden. He was, at
the close of the Revolution, as shown in a previous chapter,.
granted half-pay by the Crown, and, as will be presently
seen, was further rewarded by the government in a grant of
land, so that he did not grow poorer and poorer, dating either
from 1784 or 1796; nor was he ever terribly punished for his
conduct, unless, indeed, from remorse arising from cruelties
to his countrymen, or from a knowledge of the execrations
heaped upon him by the Americans.
NOTE IV.-The article referred to in Note III, also says
that the troops of Wayne, as they approached Detroit, felt
sure " that now at last the daring and notorious White Indian
[Simon Girty] would fall into their clutches."  This is error.304               History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XXXI.
From the taking possession of Detroit by the Americans in
1796, the career of Simon Girty was, to the end of his days,
one largely appertaining to his home life. That his enforced
and somewhat novel farewell to the American side of the Detroit river, ended his intercourse, to a very great extent, with
the Ohio Indians, will readily be imagined. He continued,
nevertheless, to act as interpreter, when occasion required, at
conferences between Indians in Up'per Canada and the British
authorities. A resident of his vicinity, many years after,
asserted, that "he used to go to Fort Malden as interpreter
under the employment of the government." *
The region of Canada where Girty had his home, was
formed into the county of Essex by proclamnationi of the 16th
of July, 1792.  It was made to include all the territory
bounded on the east by the county of Suffolk; on the south
by Lake Erie; on the west by the river Detroit to Maisonville's mill; thence by a line running Tparallel to that river
and Lake St. Clair, at the distance of four miles, until it met
the river La Tranche, or Thames; and thence up that stream
to the north-west boundery of the county of Suffolk.t
In October, 1797, Girty's last child was born. It was a
boy, and was named Prideaux, after Prideaux Selby, before
mentioned, a friend of the father. The child grew to manhood,
married, and settled in Essex county. He raised a large family. In 1836, upon the death of King William IV, a dissolution of the Canadian Parliament occurred, and a new election
ensued. The candidates for seats from the county of Es* See the statement of Mrs. McCormick, as copied into the Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. VII, p. 126.
t Compare Smyth's Topographical Description of Upper Canada (London, 1799), pp. 74, 75,History of the Girtys.
sex were John Prince, Francis Caldwell, Prideaux Girty, and
Dominique Langlois, of whom, the first two named were
successful. Mr. Girty was a resident of Colchester-a man
of some influence in his own locality, where he afterward figured in municipal affairs. He was commissioned a major
during the Canadian rebellion, and'in that capacity served under Colonel Prince throughout the continuance of the ruffled
state of affairs in that region. He died in Ohio, in January,
1853, leaving a widow, Catharine Mackenzie Girty.
"At the close of the war of 1783," says a Canadian historian, "it was determined by government to confer grants
of land to the refugee loyalists in Canada, on the same scale
to officers and men as had been done after the conquest of
Canada, 1763, with the exception that all loyalists under the
rank of subaltern were to receive two hundred acres."'" The settlers of Upper Canada," continues the same writer,
" up to 1790, may be divided into those who were forced away
from the states by persecution during and after the war; the
disbanded troops; and a nobler class who left the states, being unwilling to live under other than British rule." * To
this latter class belonged McKee and Elliott, and, in a certain sense, Simon Girty and his brother James and George.t
Simon did not, however, secure his land just below Amherstburg, upon which he had lived ever since his marriage,
until the 6th of March, 1798, when the Crown granted him Lot
No. 11, Concession 1, in the township of Malden, Essex county,
Canada, described as " beginning at a post on the bank of the
river Detroit, marked 10f; thence east 131 chains; thence
* Canniff's History of Canada, pp. 165, 183.
t It was not, as has been shown, that Simon Girty was unwilling to remain a Whig-a patriot--under the new order of things inaugurated by
the determined spirits of the Rovolution, that induced him to put himself
under British rule, but the persuasions of McKee and Elliott; and James
was prevailed upon by all three not to return to Pittsburgh again-not,
however, because he was particularly averse to living under "rebel" sway;
while George, undoubtedly deserted for the reason that his two brothers had
gone over to the British.
20
305History of the Girtys.
CHAPTiER       III.
Of Mrs. Turner, mother of the Girty boys and John Turner, Jr., all that has been preserved is that, subsequent to her
being delivered up by the Indians, she made her homne in
Pittsburgh and its vicinity. When she (lied has not been ascertainied.
The very brief captivity of Thomas Girty, extending only
from the time of the taking of Fort Granville to the destruction of Kittanning (less than forty days), precludes the idea
of his having received, during that short period, impressions
of savage life that could have become, to any extent, assimilated with his own. If, then (as a published account says of
him), he was " an Indian of the worst stamp, in every thing
but complexion and costume,"' it certainly arose from his association with them before or after his being taken prisoner.
However, it could not have been possible that before his
capture his education was of a savage cast; as, from his birth
to that date, he lived at home; and the idea that he became
an Indian in character and action subsequent to that event,
his life-career, as hereafter briefly recorded, sufficiently disproves.
Brought in by the savages from the woods, as were Sitnon
Girty and his brothers James and George, after the French
had been driven from the Ohio, only the first named was of an
age sufficient to engage in any regular employment, and even
he had only reached eighteen; all were left, of course, to shift
for themselves; however, when arriving at manhood, it is
probable that they might have settled down to something like
ordinary business habits lhad their lots been cast away from
the western border; but, remaining in Pittsburgh, then a
rough frontier settlement, is it to be wondered at that their
lives were shaped by their surroundings? Trading with the
Indians was the principal employment of the people at this
18History of the Girtys.
south 12 chains, 52 links; thence west to the river Detroit,
and thence northerly along the shore of the river against the
stream to the place of beginning, containing 164 acres." *
Simon and his wife, a few months after the birth of their
son, Prideaux, separated. Drunkenness, and cruelty caused
by it, on his part (he would often, when intoxicated, strike
Mrs. Girty on her head with the flat of his sword), were the
reasons for the separation-the wife leaving her home. Frequently, at this period, he would go to Malden and get drunk.
In 1800, he broke his right ankle. He suffered much from
the accident, and was lame the rest of his life. Because of
this mishap, he was, to a great extent, incapacitated from laboring on his farm, even had he been inclined so to do. Then,
his previous training, his habits of intoxication, and his sight,
which was now beginning to be impaired--all militated against
outdoor work on his part. Besides his half-pay, his support
was mostly obtained from what he received occasionally from
the government for interpreting, and from the proceeds of his
farm.
"Sometimes," says a published account (already often referred to in these pages) in mentioning the life led by Girty
during these years, "he sought excitement in the rum he
loved so much and which was dealt out so freely at the fort
[Malden], and then he was an Indian indeed, and would tear
around on horseback flourishing an Indian war club, singing
Indian war songs, and filling the air with the terrible sounds
of the scalp halloo. Sometimes his recreation would be a
long hunt with a party of savage kindred, and again it would
be some dangerous expedition." t But his taking an occasional recreation in a long hunt with a party of savage kindred (if any such kindred there had been), and his indulging
in some dangerous expedition occasionally, are to be doubted:
his age, habits, and his physical condition would seem to preclude, on his part, enjoyment of such things. As to savage
$ Magazine of Western History, Vol. III, pp. 821, 322.
tNMagazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 274.
306History of the Girtys.
kindred, he had none-neither blood relatives, nor relatives
by adoption-in his vicinity.
There are a number of traditions afloat concerning a visit
said to have been made by Girty in 1811 (or just before that
time) to his brother, Thomas, and his half-brother, John
Turner, both residing near Pittsburgh. No two of these agree
as to particulars.*  Besides, it is now known that he had not,
at any time after 1796, and before the war of 1812 was fully
inaugurated, been in the Uuited States-not once had he
crossed the Detroit river.  He was, indeed, too much disabled
froin his infirmities to have undertaken the journey, which
would have been at that day one of hardships.
Down to 1811, Girty's three eldest children-Ann, Sarah,
and Thomas-had all married; Ann to Peter Govereau, Sarah
to Joseph   Munger, and Thomas to Miss Moneka Evans.
Girty's eye-sight, which had been for some time impaired, as
already mentioned, was now seriously failing him.
On the first day of May, 1812, Girty, " in consileration of
natural affection " and the sum of five shillings, made a deed
to his son, Thomas, of the north half of "Lot number eleven
in the first Concession of the Township of Malden, in the
County of Essex and Province of Upper Canada, containing
by measurement eighty-two acres, be the same more or less."
Girty's mark is made in signing this deed, for, it will be re* For one of these traditions, see -Maganzine of American History, Vol.
XV, p. 274: "All sorts of wonderful and improbable tales are told of this
bold appearance of Simon in the very midst o(f his enemies. One of the
wildest recounts an attack thatt wts made upon him while he was concealed
at Turner's house, and the statement is made that he then received a sabercut in the head which ultimately caused his death. Unfortunately f.r this
thrilling tale, the saber-cut dated back to St. Clair's defeat. He was convinced, however, that he was still cordially detested, and especially at that
time when the hostile movements of the Wabash Intdians caused the savage
horrors of the past to be so vividly recalled. His presence was detected
and vengeance was threatened, but he escaped, and returning home found
all Upper Canada in excited commotion over the rapidly approaching war
between the United States and England and the certain invasion of the
province." But the saber-cut, as we have shown, was not given at St. Clair's
defeat.
3070History of the Girtys.
membered, he could not write; and the indenture didl not
have the signature of Mrs. Girty appended, as she and her
husband still lived apart. The names of "A. Masonville, of
Amherstburg, merchant," of " William Elliott, advocate," and
William Duff appear in the instrument as witnesses. But the
deed was not actually signed by Girty at the date of its being
written-that is, on the day just mentioned.
Stirring scenes were now at hand in the vicinity of Girty's
home. War had been declared between Great Britain and the
United States, and Detroit, in August, 1812, was surrendered to
the enemy. "At the capitulation of Detroit," says Brice, "A Mrs.
Suttenfield and her husband being there, [they] saw Simon
Girty.... When he had last visited Detroit some years
prior [1796], he had caused his horse to jump off a considerable embankment into the river and then swam her over the
same.' Here's old Simon Girty again on Amierican soil!' he
exclaimed as he approached a crowd gathered at a prominent
point in the place...' What did you do with the black
mare you jumped into the river when Wayne was after you?'
inquired one of the crowd.' O0, she is dead, and I buried her
with the honors of war,' replied Girtv." *
It had been sixteen years since Girty set foot upon "Americal soil;" and in the conflict of arms now carried on, he took
no part. "Old Girty" was too far advanced in life-too
feeble-for military service, however much he may have desired again to engage in deadly strife against his countrymen.
He was only with the British army as a looker-on when the
red-coats'took possession of Detroit; and, for the next few
months, he frequently visited the town.
On the 3d of July, 1813, Girty finally signed the deed
already noticed (which had been written over a year) of the
north half of his farm. It was registered, on the ninth day
of August following, in the registry office for the county of
Essex.
When the news of Perry's victory reached the east side of
the Detroit river, Proctor and Tecumseh were at Fort Malden
* History of Fort Wayne, p. 135, note.
308History of the Girtys.
with a motley army of British and Indians, two thousand
strong, waiting to lay waste the frontier of the United States.
It may be presumed that Proctor's hopes had not, of late,
been of a very sanguine character, for his repulse at Fort
Meigs and defeat at Fort Stephenson were not calculated to
strengthen, in any marked degree, his expectations of success.
Girty was advised by his old-time friend, Elliott, to leave his
home and retire out of harm's way, well knowing that he
would be in danger-in imminent peril, in fact-should he remain upon his farm, as it was now a certainty that Canada
would at once be invaded by General Harrison. Girty gave
heed to the warning and immediately made preparations for his
journey, intending to go to the Mohawk Indian country upon
Grand river. It is related by one who saw him soon after his
departure, but before reaching Sandwich, that he said despondingly he was nearly blind and somewhat old, and thought it
doubtful if he should ever return to his home.*
After his victory of September 10, 1813, Commodore Perry
converted a part of his captured vessels into transports, and
taking Harrison's troops on board, conveyed them to Canadato the east side of the Detroit river. Proctor having anticipate(l this movement, dismantled Fort Malden, burned the
barracks, and, after securing all the horses and cattle in the
neighborhood, commenced a retreat.t
The American army landed just below Amherstburg. The
right wing was composed of Kentucky volunteers under
command of Governor Shelby. The latter issued an order
to his men to the effect that while the armv remained
in the country of the enemy, he should expect the inhabitants to be well treated-" with justice and humanity "and their property be secure from unnecessary and wanton injury. Upon the approach of the Americans, most of the people in the whole region around hastily abandoned their houses,
* Note from William Walker to the writer.
t Girty did notfollow but preceded Proctor. The statement to the contrarv in An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, p. 198,
is error. It is copied into Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 276.
309History   of the Girtys.
having hid their property as best they could. But Mrs. Girty
remained at the home of her daughter-Mrs. Ann Govereauin Amherstburg, where she had'been living for considerable
time. There was much fear and trepedation in the place as
the soldiers approached, and a number of the women came out
to implore the protection of the commander. They were, of
course, quickly assured that no harm would be done them or
their property.
Just here it may be proper to state, for reasons that will be
presently seen, that Simon Kenton, the same whose life had
been saved by Girty, was with the army. He had volunteered
with the Kentucky troops as a private for no other reason
than to serve his country. He was a privileged member of
Governor Shelby's military family. As he passed with the
rest of the Kentucky troops, on the 27th of September, the
house of his old companion in arms in Dunmore's War, he
was totally ignorant as to who was its owner; nor had he the
slightest suspicion that in Amherstburg was the wife and
daughter of Simon Girty.
Some time after Harrisen landed in Canada, Commodore
Perry had occasion to send one hundred Kentucky soldiers to
Detroit. They went on shore on the Canada side of the river,
below Malden, and proceeded thence to their point of destination; but, before reaching there, the men destroyed the house
and furniture of Elliott (then known in all that region as
"Colonel Elliott "), also ruining his fences, barn, and storehouses.
In thus destroying the property of Colonel Elliott, the Kentuckians were prompted by right motives, but acted upon erroneous information. Elliott (and this must be said to his
especial credit) had no hand in the massacre at the River
Raisin in urging on Indians, or in any way inciting them to
murder prisoners, as the American soldiers who destroyed his
property believed; * on the contrary, he was kind to those
* Colonel Elliott's son William, then a captain in the liritish army, was
at the river Raisin; and, because of the course pursued by him, there are
some grounds for the belief that he winked at the terrible slaughter. " I
310History of the Girtys.
who afterward were so fortunate as to reach Malden, seven of
whom he ransomed.    Neither can it be charged against Girty
that he aided or abetted the bloody work, as was, immediately
afterward, reported. lie was not on the west side of the
river at this period, and could not have taken part either by
counseling or otherwise in the butchery of the unfortunate
troops. Doubtless had his property been pointed out to the
Kentucky detachment, it would likewise have been ruined.
There is a current (but erroneous) tradition that his house
was about to be burned when Simon Kenton stept forward
and declared it should not be done; that Girty was his friend,
who had once done him a great kindness; and that, thereupon, the soldiers desisted. But, as we have shown, Kenton
was, at this time, with Harrison, and could not, therefore, have
interposed to save the property of " his friend."
NOTE I.--" Girty," it has been published, "' was an old man
when the war [of 1812] commenced, but not too old to encourage a band of Wyandots to rally around Tecumseh and
the British standard. After the lapse of many years the
aged victor of the Blue Licks, and the remnant of his broken
people, were again united against their ancient and inveterate
North western foes. But the ljealth of Girty was shattered,
and he was so nearly blind that he could lead no more his
dusky hosts to battle, but he dimly saw the flash of the guns
which announced the shameful surrender of Hull; stood once
again within the stockad(ed walls of Detroit, to which he had
been so long a stranger, and heard the exultant shouts of his
lessening tribe as it returned from  the bloody massacre of
Raisin, a deed which inspired every Kentucky soldier with the
feelings of an avenger, revived bitter menmories of the Indian
frequently, and on every occasion," said John Todd, surgeon of the Fifth
Kentucky Regiment, " urged the British officers to exert themselves and
procure the release of the wounded from the Indians-urging the necessity
of having their wounds dressed. In a conversation on this subject with
Captain Elliott, and while urging it, he replied,'the Indians are excellent
surgeons.'
311History   of the Girtys.
tragedies of the past, and with them the name of Girty, which
was mentioned again with threats and curses."-Magazine of
American History, Vol. XV, pp. 274, 275. (1) If Simon Girty
encouraged any Wyandots to rally around the British standard,
it must have been those whose homes were near Detroit, for
the Ohio Wyandots remained friendly to the United States
during the war. Now, of course, the Indians I have first
mentioned were not "the remnant of his broken people."
That Girty gave encouragement, therefore, to a band of Wyandots more than to other Indians there could be no good reason for, unless he saw no others to encourage. (2) Girty's
name was mentioned with threats and curses not simply because there was a bloody massacre at the River Raisin, but
for the reason that he was supposed to have taken part in it.
NOTE II.-The following story is related in the Magazine
(Vol. XV, pp. 271, 272, 275), quoted in the previous note:
"An incident which is thought to have occurred shortly after
St. Clair's defeat, and which is given on British authority, indicates that Girty shared the feelings of his tribe [the Sandusky Wyandots] against the horrible practice of burning
prisoners. Several captives who had been taken during the
recent battle by some of the Indian allies, were condemned to
the stake, and, in spite of every influence that Girty could
bring to bear, the fatal fires were kindled to the delight of the
assembled multitude of drunken braves, screeching squaws,
and capering children of all ages. Among the prisoners was
an American officer, in whose behalf Girty especially exerted
himself, but without effect. Finally, when his doom seemed
inevitable, Girty, who was always fertile in expedients, seized
a favorable moment when unobserved and dropped him a significant hint. The officer, very fortunately, instantly comprehended it, and, as he was being taken to the stake, he suddenly snatched a papoose from the arms of a squaw an threw
it toward the flames where another prisoner was burning. The
wildest excitement instantly ensued; men, women, and children fell over each other in the simultaneous rush that was
312History of the Girtys.
made to save the baby. The child was rescued, but, in the
midst of the frantic and indescribable confusion, the officer
made good his escape. To his credit, be it said, that he never
forgot his deliverer, and... did his best to prove his
gratitude in 1812, when the fortunes of war brought trouble
to Girty.
"The tide of war turned [that is, the War of 1812], the
British fleet was destroyed, Malden was captured, and Girty
became a fugitive. But one at least of the soldiers who pursued the retreating forces of Proctor wished the White Indian
[Simon Girty] no evil. It was the American officer whose
life he had saved by suggesting the desperate expedient of
casting the Indian papoose toward the flames. A British authority asserts that, though this officer had retired from the
American army, he rejoined it in 1813, with the express purpose of doing his best to protect Girty in the event of his capture. It was an exhibition of that rarest of noble qualities,
gratitude, which makes one think better of his race. But the
ill-starred Girty, from whom happiness always stood afar off,
was denied the pleasure of ever knowing that he had a single
friend among the advancing Americans. They never met."
The allusion to a retired American officer being with the
army in pursuit of Proctor for the express purpose of doing
his best to protect Girty, and that that officer was one who
had been saved by a hint from him, makes it certain that the
story is but a revamping of the account of Kenton's life having been spared at his solicitation (as before related) when
Kenton was a prisoner.
NOTE III.--" Simon Girty was not only not killed at the
battle of the Thames, but he was prevented by blindness and
rheumatism from taking any part whatever in the engagement.... The collapse of the British at the Thames
found Simon Girty homeless and a wanderer; but, moved by
the same instinct of savage brotherhlood which ever characterized him, he sought and found a refuge at a village of the Mohawks on Grand river. This village, which was located in the
313,1History of the Girtys.
midst of some of the finest land in the Dominion, and on
probably the most picturesque of Canadian streams, was settled at the close of the American Revolution, under the leadership of Girty's Indian friend and comrade, the distinguished
Brandt. It is a singular coincidence that Campbell, the celebrated poet, should have made a mistake about Brandt so
similar to the one made by another and more obscure Campbell [John W.] about Girty. In Gertrude of Wyoming,' the
monster Brandt' is mentioned as a participant in that coldblooded massacre, of which Thomas Campbell so touchingly
sung, though the fact is established that he was not present
on that tragic occasion." Magazine of American History,
Vol. XV, pp. 275, 276. (1) This was written, it is evident,
with the erroneous understanding that Girtyfollowed the retreating British army. (2) It was not the instinct of savage
brotherhood which determined him to choose a village of the
Mohawks on Grand river as a temporary place of refuge, but
because it was the nearest place of safety. (3) I have not
been able to discover that Girty was a comrade of Brant,
either in the Revolution or subsequent thereto.
314History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XXXII.
Sirnon Girty's son Thomas died from being overheated in
carrying a wounded British officer from a field of battle,*
but what battle is unknown; that he had fought gallantly during
the war is generally conceded. At the time of his death, he
had three children. These and their father were buried on
the Girty farm below Malden, where the family was living.t
And now that we have Simon safely domiciled in one of the
Mohawk Indian villages, secure from the vengeance of American soldiers, let us turn our attention for the last time to his
brothers, James and George.
George married among the Delawares, and had several
children. During the latter years of his life, he was an
habitual drunkard. He died at a trading post on the Maumee, belonging to his brother James, about two miles below
Fort Wayne, near a bend of the river, just before the last war
with Great Britain. He was drunk at the time. His family
remained with.the Delawares. Of his personal appearance
there is no account extant. He was, as we have before explained, more of an Indian in habits and proclivities than
James. For a number of years after his deatli, his surviving
savage associates, many of them, delighted to talk of his
bravery in battle-especially in the conflict on the plains of
Sandusky, where the Indians and Rangers encountered the
Americans under Colonel Crawford, as previously related,
and in the battle of the Blue Licks.
James, who left the Maumee for Canada upon the approach
of General Wayne's army, in 1794, remained there until after
the treaty of Greenville, in 1795. He then returned, and
* Magazille of American History, Vol. XV, p. 276; Michigan Pioneer
Collections, Vol. VII, pp. 126, 127.
t Statements of Mrs. McCormick, of Pel6e Island, and of James Mickle,
of Malden.-Michigan Pioneer Collections, loc. cit.
315History of the Girtys.
out-of-the-way place, previous to the war of 1763, known as
"Pontiac's Conspiracy;" and the traffic was resumed immediately after the restoration of peace.  This brought into requisition the linguistic acquirements of the three boys, and
gave tliem employment as interpreters, frequently, for the
traders; Simon speaking the Seneca language, George the
Delaware, and James the Shawanese, as already mentioned.
Simon soon male himself popular with the Delawares, many
of whom, before they were induced, by the artful wiles of
Pontiac and his fellow-" conspirators," to take up the hatchet
against the English, were constantly at Pittsburgh; he acquired their language, so as to speak it fluently; and we find
that one of their principal warriors-Katepakomen, afterward
a chief of that nation-toolk his name.*  But this assuming,
on the part of the savage, a white man's name, was not a
strange circumstance.  Other Delawares had done the same.
It was something, also, not unusual for Indians of other tribes
to (do.
Now, as Katepakomen, under the name of " Simon Girty,"
was delivered to Colonel HIenry Bouquet, in 1764 (upon the
occasion of that officer's marching with an army beyond the
Ohio), as a hostage, but escaping soon after, it has been supposed that the real Simon Girty had not, at that date, left the
Indians and returned to civilization,t and that his brothers,
James and George, were still held as captives -+ a supposition
wholly unfounded, as already shown.   The Delaware "Simon
Girty " as we have said, afterward became a chief.~
It is a grave error to suppose that, after the return of the three
Girty boys to Pittsburgh, and while residing there, they did
* Early History of Western Pennsylvania, Appendix, pp. 161, 173; Colonial Records of Pennsylvania, Vol. IX, pp. 212, 228, 256.
t Compare An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky,
under Colonel William Crawford, in 1782, p. 183.
$ See Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 259.
Q That Katepakomen afterward became a chief. see Pennsylvania Archives,
Old Series, Vol. IV, p. 532; also, American Archives, Fourth Series, Vol.
I, p. 545. At this time (June, 1774), "Thomas McKee" and "William
Anderson " were also Delaware chiefs.
19History of the Girtys.
again engaged in trading with the Indians on that river, leaving his family, however, in Canada--in Gosfield, Essex county.*
On the 17th of May, 1802, he was granted "Lot No. 8, in
Front [First] Concession, Western Division," of that township, amounting to two hundred acres, described as "lying
between Cedar creek and Mill creek." Meanwhile, his wife,
"Betsey, an Indian woman," of the Shawanese nation, had
died. In 1804, when at his home in Gosfield, he made his
will.
To his son James and his daughter Ann, who were then
living with him, he gave the land, a description of which has
just been given, directing how it should be divided between
them. He also bequeathed to his son six negro slaves, naming them; and to his daughter, a negro wench " called Sal,"
likewise a negro woman named Nancy and her five children.
As to all the remaining part of his personal estate, including
household furniture, cattle, horses, swine, poultry, money,
grain, and all other descriptions of personal property, and
also all the cattle and other stock' which was the property of
his " deceased wife Betsey, an Indian woman," and the mother
of his children-he directed that the whole lie equally divided
between his son and daughter, except the utensils of husbandry, which he gave to hls son, and a negro named Paul,
who was to have his freedom     "for his long and faithful
services." t
On the 7th of July, 1807, James was granted an additional
tract of land-" Lots 23 and 24, in the 6th Concession, Eastern Division," in the same township in which was located the
* "Leaving Languard, you arrive at Point Pel6e, or the South Foreland,
which makes a great projection into the lake [Erie]; and having doubled
that point, you enter the settlements made by the loyalists, in the townships
of Mersea, Gosfield, and C(olchester."-Stnyth's Topographical Description
of Upper Canada (1799), p. 36.
t The witnesses to the will were T. McKee, T. Alex. Clarke, and Geo.
Ironside. The executors named were Leonard Scratch and James Stewart.
Girty declares in the will that the slave Nancy was the property of the
mother of his children, and intended by her for her daughter Ann. The
land bequeathed is bounded by Lake Erie on the south.
316History of the Girtys.
first grant. This donation consisted of four hundred acres.
To this date, and for some years subsequent thereto, he continued his traffic' with the Indians upon the Maumee, but his
family, numbering still but his two children, remained in Gosfield. "Mrs. Suttenfield informed the writer," says the historian of Fort Wayne, Indiana, " that she learned some time
subsequent to the arrival of herself and husband at the fort
here [Fort Wayne], in 1814, that Simon and James Girty
had lived for some time prior to the [commencement] of the
War of 1812, near the bend of the Maumee, about two miles
below Fort Wayne." *  It was, however, George instead of
Simon who was with James. That it was not Simon is made
clear froIn what Mrs. Suttenfield herself afterward relates; for
she avers, as we have seen, that Simon's last visit to Detroit
before Hull's surrender was when he swam the Detroit river
to escape General Wayne's soldiers (in 1796).t Now, to have
traded with the Indians upon the Maumee without having once
visited Detroit for the purchase of supplies, or in going to and
from his home in Canada, is of course what he would not have
done.
James gave up his business upon the Maumee and retired
permanently to his Gosfield homqe in Canada before the beginning of the War of 1812, for the reason that he did not
find it so profitable as previous to the Indian War of 1790-95,
as the Indian trade had been largely transferred to the Wabash and its tributaries.
The last pIlace where James had a trading-house on the
Maumee was at what is known as "Girty's Point," five miles
above the' present Napoleon, Ohio, near which is "Girty's
Island," in the Maumee; both of which received their names
from the circumstance of his having been there engaged in
traffic with the Indians. After a time Simon was confounded
with James as having been the trader there; and some writers
have gone so far as to fix the exact spot where he dealt out
paints, trinkets, blankets, and "fire-water" to the savages:
* Brice's History of Fort Wayne, p. 135, note.
t Ante, p. 300.
317History of the Girtys.
"' The notorious Simon Girty once resided five miles above Napoleon, at a place called' Girty's Point.' His cabin was on the
bank of the Maumee, a few yards west of the residence of Mr.
Elijah Gunn. All traces of his habitation have been obliterated by culture, and a fine farm now [1846] surrounds the
spot."'"  It is not itnpossible that the location mentioned was
really the site of James's trading-house.
During the War of 1812-15, James was too old and infirm
to take part, notwithstanding it has been repeatedly asserted that he was in the battle of the Thames.      He
died on the 15th of April, 1817.   During his last years
he suffered much from rheumatism.   He had always been
thrifty, and had turned his intercourse with the Shawanese and other Indian tribes to good account, as he had accumulated at his death considerable property, largely the result
of his labors as trader with them, although the grants of land
which he obtained and the proceeds of his farming operations
tended materially to increase his store; all of which, as he
made no other will than the one already described, descended
to his two children, both of whomn survived him.
Through,life James, unlike Simon and George, was temperate in his habits.  He was' tall in stature, and lithe
in limb.    His  general  character has  been  generally
painted by those' who have written of him as bad; and
his course during the Revolution exhibits him as a man of
sanguinary spirit when impelled by hatred or roused by anger.
In his predatory incursions into Kentucky with small warparties (for that country was his field of operations), he was,
from all accounts both published and traditionary, as indiscriminate in his cold-blooded murders as the most forocious
savage-as the most blood-thirsty of the warriors with whom
he was associated. Neither age nor sex was spared at his
hands. He would often boast, it is said, while in the wilderness, that no woman or child escaped his tomahawk, if he got
* Howe's Ohio, p. 246. Compare Knapp's Maumee Valley, tp. 579. In'An Historical Acoount of the Expedition against Sandusky (p. 201, note),'
it is incorrectly stated that " Girty's island" was named after Simon Girty.
318History of the Girtys.
within reach of the victim. Traders who were acquainted
with him related that he never turned on his heel to save a
wretched prisoner from torture at the stake; and, though taking no active part himself, would, nevertheless, instruct the
Indians in new and more terrible methods of torture! *
NOTE I.-It is incorrectly stated in the Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 278, that James, when he took up
his abode in Canada, settled on Middle Sister Island: "He
settled with his Shawnee squaw, his dogs and his wild young
children, on Middle Sister Island not far from  his brother
[Simon]." So, also, in the Michigan Pioneer Collections,
Vol. VII, p. 127, we have this account: "He [Mr. James
Mickle, of Malden] remembers Simon's brother, James Girty,
who lived on Middle Sister Island, and raised tobacco and
water-melons. He was then living alone."
NOTE II.-As to the death of James, the writer who reports
Mr. Mickle's recollection (mentioned in the previous note)
says that, according to the latter's statements, he (James)
" was either drowned or was found dead in the bush."  And
this is made still more erroneous in the magazine article:
" Shunned by white people, and deserted even by his Indian
squaw, the miserable creature [James] lingered on through
months of pain and at last was found dead on the beach of
Middle Sister Island."  (See Magazine of American History,
Vol. XV,p. 276.)
- Missouiri Gazette, May 7, 1814 (copied in Niles's Weekly Register,
Supplement to Vol. IX, p. 181.) The article is before referred to in this
narrative. I am inclined to think James has usually been painted worse
than be really was, from a desire to heap the Girty odium on his shouldersr
to ease the load from his brother Sirnon's. But of this hereafter.
319History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
The coming back to his home, just below Malden, in 1816,
from his three years residenc,e among the Mohawks and
at Burlington Heights, of Simon Girty, was, to him, far from
being a pleasant return, for he was totally blind.*  While absent, he had not been entirely idle, having, on several occasions, been employed as interpreter by the government. He
now spent much of his time at the home of his daughter,
Ann, in Amherstburg, whose husband, Peter Govereau, kept
there a house of entertainment. "In 1813 [1816]," says
Daniel Workman, " I went to Malden and put up at a hotel
kept by a Frenchman [Peter Govereau]. I noticed in the
bar-room a grey-headed and blind old man. The landlady,
who was his daughter [Ani], a woman of about thirty years
of age, inquired of me,' Do you know who that is?' pointing
to the old man. On my replying,' No,' she rejoined,' It is
Simon Girty.' IHe had then been blind about four years." t
It was reported, immediately after the battle of the Thames,
* The Magazine of American Histery, Vol. XV, p. 276, says with
truth: "Girty shared the whisky and venison of his Indian friends until
the close of the war in 1815, when he returned to his solitary farm near
Malden. It was solitary indeed. His two daughters were mnarried, and in
homes of their own; the son of his heart had died during the war." The
son here referred to was Thomas.  That author then adds:  "And his
[Girty's] wife, worn out by his wild and irregular life and Indian-like ways,
had left him long ago. Only one of his family, his son Prideaux, lingered
about him." But it was Girty's drinking, and that only, which caused his
wife to leave him, as before explained. His Indian-like ways no one would
be more likely tO overlook than Mrs. Girty, who was longer a captive to the
savages than was her husband.
t Howe's Ohio, p. 248. It is certain that Mr. Workman is mistaken as to
the year of his visit. The age of Mrs. Govereau, and the circumstance of
Girty being totally blind, show it to have been not earlier than 1816. Besides, Mr. Workman would scarcely have ventured in Malden in 1813-the
most dangerous period for an American to have gone there durirng the war.
He is also in error as to the length of time Girty had been blind.
820History of the Girtys.
among the American troops, that Simon was among the killed,
and the next year it was so stated in print: " For the last ten
years," so runs the account, "he had been crippled with
rheumnatism, yet he rode to his hunting-grounds in pursuit of
game, and would boast that he preserved a war-like spirit in
the midst of bodily pain, and would often exclaim,'May I
breathe my last on a field of battle!'  In this wish Simon has
been gratified; for in the battle of the Moravian towns, on
the river Thames, he was cut to pieces by Colonel Johnson's
mounted men."* But all this (including his riding "to his
hunting-grounds in pursuit of game ") is pure fiction.
From the time of Girty reaching home, until late in the
summer of 1817, was a period to him not only of darkness
to all surrounding objects (deprived, as he was, totally of
sight), but of mental gloom.  He would manage to obtain occasionally a flask of whisky at Malden, though he seldom
drank so much as to be intoxicated. Finally, as if having a
premonition that he would live only a few months, he gave up
entirely the use of liquor. He was taken suddenly ill on the
afternoon of the 15th of February, 1818, and he at once realized fully that he was at the threshold of eternity.     He
seemed very penitent as his end drew       nigh.   He listened
with the utmost attention to the words of his wife, who was
again living with him, and who now administered to his wants
as though he had ever been kind to her.t She explained to
X Missouri Gazette, May 7, 1814 (copied in Niles's Weekly Register, Supplement to Vol. IX, p. 181, and already cited). Compare p. 336, post;
Perkins's Western Annals, pp. 170, 171, note; Carmpbell's Biographical
Sketches, p. 147; John Mason Brown's Oration, pp. 86, 50; where the -error as to Girty's death is repeated. Many recent writers have also helped
to perpetuate the mistake. "Over thirty years later he [Richard Johnson]
led the Kentucky mounted riflemen at the victory of the Thames, when
they killed not only the great Indian chief Tecumnseh, but also, it is said,
the implacable renegade Simon Girty himself, then in extreme old age."Roosevelt, in "The Winning of the West," Vol. II, p. 197.
t That Mrs. Girty was a very kind-hearted and most exemplary woman
there can be no doubt.
21
321History   of the Girtys.
him how he might still obtain pardon for his sins, and prayed
earnestly for him at his bedside.
In an article oft-quoted from in these pages, it is said that
"he [Girty] had paid no attention to religion as understood
by white men; and if he died in any faith at all it was in that
of the Indian-a simple trust in the power and goodness of
the Great Spirit." * It is true he had paid little heed heretofore to religion, but he understood far more of the Christian's faith than the untutored savage; and, just as he had
asked forgiveness of all those near him for any wrongs done
them, his perturbed spirit fled its clay tenement.
It was on the 18th of February, 1818, that Simon Girty
died. "And so ended the unhappy life of a creature who
became, by force of warping circumstances, the anomally
of Western History."    He was buried on his farm   two days
after his decease, his funeral being attended by a detachment
of troops from Fort Malden. British soldiers fired a parting
salute over his grave. He was laid to rest with military
honors and as a loyal subject of Great Britain-but at that
very moment his name was held in abhorrence by all Americans who had heard of him! "He died in the winter," says
a Canadian writer, " and it was said that his body could not be
carried through the gate on account of the snow-banks, and had
to be taken over the fence.... The place [of burial] can still
be pointed out, though it is not inclosed or marked in any
way, while a farm-gate swings over the spot."
Going south from Amherstburg some two miles, the traveler
sees, as he drives along, a carriage road, the Detroit river to
* Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 277. In "An Historical
Account of the Expedition against Sandusdy" (p. 198), is the following,
which conveys an erroneous impression:':[Simon] Glrty married in the
neighborhood [of Malden] and raised a family. In vain he tried to become
a decent citizen, and command some degree of respect. The depravity of
his untamed and undisciplined nature was too apparent. He was abhorred
by all his neighbors." The same in effect had been previously published of
him, and has -since been repeated in several works in the West. The truth
is, he was on friendly terms with his neighbors, and, when not intoxicated,
was far from being shunned by them.
322History of the (Girtys.
the right and some trees growing between him and the stream;
to the left is the farm on which Girty died. The house in
which he breathed his last breath was located toward the
south-west corner of the tract, while his final resting-place
is to the north-east of the spot where his log         dwelling
stood.*
" The subsequent career," says the most errroneous, probably, of all the accounts ever hitherto published of Girty's
death, "of this notorious man is uncertain.     It is probable
that he was killed' by Col. Clayton, in Kentucky. It is related that Girty stole Clayton's wife from his home while the
latter was with Forbes and Bouquet in the expedition against
Fort Duquesne, in 1757 and 1758. Clayton returned home
after the war to find that his wife had been stolen by an Indian, which he devined to be Girty, whereupon he pursued the
renegade with a savage thirst for revenge, and finally met the
dispoiler of his household on'the dark and bloody soil of
Kentucky,' where, in a desperate contest, Girty was slain! " t
Girty was about five feet nine inches in height.   His hair,
originally black, turned gray several years before his death.
His eyes were black and piercing; his face round and full.
His neck, unlike his brother James's, was short, and his whole
frame heavy. His intemperance, and the scar upon his forehead, mnarred, to some extent, his features. It can not be
said, however, that he was a repulsive looking man.+ In his
prime, he was very agile.
* For most of these facts, I am indebted to William Charles Mickle, son
of William Mickle. Compare, also, the statement of James Mickle as published in the Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. VII, p. 127. " The house
that Simon Girty lived in has disappeared. It was a log-house with two
windows and a door in front, and one window in the end upstairs."-W. C.
Mickle to the writer, January 21, 1887, already cited.
t Wright's History of Perry County. Pennsylvania, p. 34.
t For published statements of Girty's personal appearance, see Brice's
Fort Wayne, p. 135, note; Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. VIl, p. 126;
Wyandotte (Kan.) Gazette, of April 18, 1872. A decidedly sensational description is by 0. M. Spencer: "His dark, shaggy hair; his low forehead;
his brows contracted, and meeting above his short, fiat nose; his gray,
sunken eyes, averting the ingenuous gaze; his lips thin and compressed;
823What the feeling of Girty was toward the Americans at the
date of his last illness may now be properly spoken of; and
as this brings up the whole subject of the ill-will entertained
by loyalists in Canada West, it will be considered from   that
stand-point. During the Revolution (or, as the tories called it,
the Rebellion), many loyalists-some voluntary, others under
compulsion-abandoned the United States and retired to Detroit and its vicinity, subsequently settling in Canada, where
they received land (as did Simon Girty and his brother James)
as a reward for their adherence to the British government;
all of which has heretofore been sufficiently disclosed. The
aversion with which they regarded the "rebels " did not die
out after peace had been declared; and this, of course, was
shared in by their children and their children's children.
At the date of Girty's decease, a considerable part of the
population of Upper Canada consisted of loyalists and their
children. It is true that the Americans, after the Revolution,
returned their dislike with vehemence, and there was but very
little intercourse between them. Itso continued to the year
1812, when events culminating in a war between the two
countries made both sides in the West still more bitter in
their hatred. Girty entertained a deep animosity to the
Americans down to the time when death put an end to his
career, which was shared in by a large portion of the residents
of the county of Essex.
That Girty's general character tended to recklessnessdrunkenness-baseness-there is no question; yet it had
many bright spots upon it; hence, it was singularly contraand the dark and sinister expression of his countenance;-to me seemed the
very picture of a villain." The delineation in the Wyandotte Gazette is by
William Walker, and niay be found also in An Historical Account of the
Expedition against Sandusky, p. 199. For an.incidental tmlention of Girty's
"make-up" on a certain occasion duiring the Revolution, see,MIagazine of
American History, Vol. XV, p. 267: "Nearly six feet tall, straight, strong
and broad-chested, with massive head and big black eyes, deeply bronzed by
exposure, dressed in savage fashion and adorned with paint, feathers, and all
the war-trappings of his tribe, he looked every inch the Indian leader that
circumstances and his peculiar talents had made him."
324
Hisi~tory   of the GiH~ysHistory of the Girtys.
dictory;.and this is the reason why it is so difficult to form a
just estimate of it. That he witnessed, during his captivity
with the Senecas, the torturing of unfortunate white prisoners, and became familiar with the most horrible barbarities,
is evident. Possibly, when these scenes were again enacted
before his eyes upon his taking up his abode with the Mingoes
during the Revolution, they did not impress him with such
detestation as otherwise they would, had he never before witnessed such cruelties; then, their frequency, afterward, made
them less odious, until, finally, from indifference he came to
enjoy them, particularly as they were inflicted on his hated
enem ies.
Girty's delight in witnessing, on at least one occasion (that
of the burning of Colonel Crawford), the torturing of a dying
man-an old acquaintance-who was suffering the most frightful agonies, and his ferociousness while going with small warparties into border settlements, when there was an indiscriminate killing of inoffensive inhabitants, or capturing of borderers
to suffer the most awful cruelties at the stake-in which forays
he generally took a leading part--fix upon him the certainty
of having become a remorseless foe to his countrymen-as
bloodthirsty as he was unpitying. It is certain, also, that he,
at least once, when in command of Indians, did not object to
having (if indeed he did not order) a white prisoner-Abner
Hunt-tortured to death in the most horrid manner. Hence it
is, that, as he was a white man-by no means " an Indian in
all but the color of his skin "-it is not too strong language
to say of him that, in the war for American independence,
after he left Pittsburgh, and in the Indian war which followed
it, he proved himself, at times, more than a savage itl cruelty.
In a general summing up of Girty's character by the author
of " Girty. The White Indian," it is said that no estimate can
be either correct or just which does not take into account the
influence which captivity and savage training had upon it.
This is true; but it is certain, also, that too much stress is
here put on the effect of that influence. "How  powerful
it was," says that writer, " is shown by the significant facts
325History   of t7le Girtys.
not give up, to a great extent, the habits an(d manners which
had been acquired by them    during  their captivity."'  However, they did not forget the wild, free life of the woo(ds, and
they continued their liking for the Indians, enjoying heartily,
whenever occasion offered, visits to their camps, which were
frequently to be seen in the vicinity.
Simon (and, it is probable, his two brothers, also) made
many friends among the -white people of Pittsburgh; nay,
among a certain class, he was a man of influence.   He took
an interest in public affairs, and it is one of the incidents
preserved of his history that he voted at the first election
ever held in Bedford-a county, at that date (1771), made to
include the whole of western Pennsylvania. At this time,
there was a small garrison maintained at Fort Pitt, and Simon
is represented, by one who there made his acquaintance, as
"a man of talents," and that he " had great influence in the
garrison and with the Indians." Though employed during
the year 1772 in the congenial work of interpreting, he found
time to join in frequent disputes concerning the boundary
line, which was not yet run in the west, between Pennsylvania
and Virginia. He sided with the Virginians. But of this
hereafter.
Several traders from Pennsylvania, in 1772, had their headquarters beyond the Ohio, among the Shawanese; and, with
the same nation, at that date, was James Girty, who, it is to
be supposed, passed much of his time in the employment of
these white men, in their traffic with the savages. A traveler,
Rev. David Jones, from Freehold, New Jersey, saw him among
* " It is even said that they [Simon, James, and George Girty] returned
to their tribes [after their being brought in by the Indians and delivered
up], but that the Indians were again compelled to give them up.
Much of their time after their rescue was spent about Fort Pitt; and the
then wild and wooded locality in that. vicinity, which later received the
name of Squirrel Hill, seems to have been one of their favorite haunts."Magazine of American History, Vol. XNV, p. 259. This is all wrongwrong as to their returning to their tribes after being once delivered up;
wrong as to one of their haunts being Squirrel Hill; wrong as to the general idea that they were then so much imbued with the instincts of savage
life as to actually shun civilization-anxious to flee from it.
20History   of the Girtys.
that it not only effaced the natural antipathy for the destroyers
of his parents, but so perverted his normal instinct of race
that he was never again in full sympathy with his own people,
while, as far as known, he was always true to the Indians,
and retained their confidence and friendship to the end of his
days."
" The early settlers," continues the same author, " knowing
that he was a white man by birth, but ignorant of his captivity
and its effects, very naturally hated and despised him as a
renegade. The term, however, does not apply to him in its
infamous sense as it applies to Elliott and McKee, who had
nothing whatever in common with the Indians, while Girty
was one of them in almost every thing but complexion. He
was more of a savage than a renegade; more of a Brandt
than an Elliott; and took part in the forays and outrages
against the whites, not with the cowardice and mean malice of
an outcast, but as a leader of his adopted people, and with
the bravery and open hatred of an Indian. He was substantially an Indian; was neither better nor worse than an Indian,
and should in the main be judged as such." "
It is suggested, in reply, (1) that Girty's bravery and open
hatred were of a kindred nature to that which induced Elliott
to join with the savages in forays and outrages against the
frontier settlements; (2) that he (Girty) was both better and
worse than an Indian; (3) that he should be judged of as being at times, after he became a refugee and while engaged in
war, a very bad white man-excelling the redman in savagery
in this, that his civilized training had been abundantly sufficient to have made it clear to him that he ought to have
been more merciful; while the Indian, from his infancy, is
taught to thirst for the heart's blood of an enemy. (4) It
is safe to say that, wherever Simon Girty was known
upon the border, he was also known as having been once a
prisoner among the savages; and the bordermen despised him
far less for being a renegade than for his (as they believed)
* Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 277.
326History of the Girtys.
heartless cruelty. (5) He was the superior of the savage in
many ways; and it is believed that the previous pages of this
book abundantly prove that he was not substantially an Indian.
(6) He was not always true to the Indians, or they to him, as
has already been stated; and there is nothing on record showing that he had lost his natural sympathy for white people.
(7) The term renegade, in its infamous sense, does not apply
to Girty, as the magazine article rightfully asserts; nor does it
to McKee or Elliott. Neither one was a vagabond.*
It was early published to the world that to James Girty
might " be justly attributed most of the barbarities said to have
been perpetrated by his brother Simon" (post, pp. 336, 337).
And the descendants of the latter have not been slow to declare
that most (if not all) the cruelty charged to Simon rightfully belonged to James.t  This trying to shift the burden of savagery
from the shoulders of one brother to those of another must
wholly fail. That James, during the Revolution, was heartless
and ferocious toward the Americans, there can be no question;
but the savage acts positively known to have been performed
by Simon (and it is upon these alone that a just estimate of
his course is to be formed), who shall say can be turned over
to the account of James?
NOTE I.-"And here [at the battle of the Thames] also, according to the veracious Campbell [John W., author of Biographical Sketches, already cited in this narrative], was ended
the checkered career of the notorious White Indian [Simon
Girty].  Campbell says:'It was the constant wish of Girty
that he might breathe his last in battle. So it happened. He
was at Proctor's defeat on the Thames, and was cut to pieces
* This estimate of Girty is different from that heretofore made by me.
See An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, pp. 199,
200.
t " He [Simon Girty] left descendants below Amherstburg, one of whom
came to see me some twenty-five years ago, to complain that Simon had
been charged with his brother's sins. I was then told my visitor was a man
of good character."-James V. Campbell to the writer, July 14, 1884. Com.
pare, also, Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. VII, p. 126.
327328               History of the Girtys.
by Colonel Johnson's mounted men." [Compare p. 336, post.]
Nearly three-quarters of a century have elapsed since the
battle of the Thames occurred, and though in that long period
books and pamphlets without number on Western history and
the War of 1812 have been published, still, strange to say, in
spite of all this investigation, this statement of Judge Campbell was the nearest approach that writers made to the actual
truth concerning Girty's death, and was, with one very late exception (Mr. Butterfield) received by all as authentic history."-Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 275.
Compare, in this connection, as " to the one very late exception," An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, p. 198. But see, also, a previous publication: Brice's
Fort Wayne, p. 135, note.
NOTE II.-The Magazine of American History, Vol. XV,
p. 276, also says: " He [Simon Girty] declined rapidly [in
his last illness], but showed no concern whatever about his
condition, and bore his sufferings with the proverbial stoicism
and fortitude of his adopted race. During the bitter weather
prevailing but few bothered themselves about the now desolate and sinking recluse. The remnant of his old tribe, however, did not entirely forget him in his extremity, and occasionally a solitary Wyandot, as seamed and scarred and grizzled as himself, would come to his bedside suddenly and unannounced, take the thin hand of his dying brother' Katepacomen,' and with tender grasp, but impassive countenance,
greet him in the familiar tongue of his dusky people."
As to the remnant of Girty's old tribe not forgetting
him in his last illness, and as to a solitary Wyandot now
and then taking him by the hand, we may say, that the
Detroit 5Wyandots never had any particular relations with
him, and the Ohio Wyandots, in 1818, were very careful
to denounce him in unmeasured terms to the whites (see
An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, p. 194, note); and none, surely, would have goneHistory of the Girtys.
all the way to his home to take him by the hand, even had
they known of his illness, which, it is very probable, they
did not. The magazine article seems to have overlooked the
fact that the Ohio Wyandots-those with whom Girty was
wont to associate in previous years-were friendly to the
United States in the War of 1812-15. That Girty " showed
no concern whatever about his condition " when dying, " and
bore his sufferings with the proverbial stoicism and fortitude of
his adopted race fthat is, the red race]," are statements already
answered sufficiently, it is believed (ante,'p. 321, 322). The
phrases, his "adopted race," "his old tribe," "his dying
brother," "his dusky people," are all given, it is evident,
under the mistaken apprehension that he was an adopted Wyandot. That the cold weather prevented some friends from
visiting him during his last illness who otherwise would have
been by his bedside, is not improbable; but there were with him,
besides his wife, his two daughters and their husbands, and
his son Prideaux. There were also a number of near neighbors who frequently called. His funeral was a large one. It
is wildly erroneous to speak of him as being, on his deathbed, "a desolate and sinking recluse."
329History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
During the Indian War in the West which followed the
Revolution, the reliability and patriotism of Thomas Girty
could always be counted on. Having the'name of Girty,
however, was the cause of some trouble to him. A Frenchman, in 1792, was in jail in Pittsburgh, suspected of being a
spy. This was at a time when the whole people of Western
Pennsylvania were greatly excited because of the appearance,
across the Ohio, of hostile savages.  The man acknowledged that he was sent to gain information of the strength of
the town, and that he had his orders from Colonel Butler, of
Niagara. He also stated, but falsely, that two men of Pittsburgh " were concerned with him-one of them a confidential
character in the public service; the other, Tom Girty." But
the fact was Thomas took an active part against the savages
in this war. He went out several times as a scout in the
years 1792, 1793, and 1794, doing valuable service.
Some time previous to 1792, Thomas, with his family,
moved across the Alleghany river, never returning to Pittsburgh to live.*  On the 22d of May of that year, a white
woman was captured by the Indians at Reed's block-house,
twenty-five miles from Pittsburgh. During her captivity,
which was brief (as she soon escaped), she was asked by one
of her savage captors if she knew Thomas Girty; she said
she did. The Indian then said that he (Girty) lived near
Pittsburgh; that he was a good man, but not so good as his
brother (Simon); but that his wife was a bad woman-" she'* It has been published that Thomas resided in Pittsburgh as late as 1793
(see Johnson's statement, as mentioned in Howe's Ohio, pp. 247, 248). He
was, it is true, generally credited with still living there instead of near
there, as he should have been.
330History of the Girtys.
tells lies on the Indians, and is a friend to America." *  It is
thus that the loyalty of the wife of Thomas was made known,
strange to say, by a savage. He had heard the account of
her probably from the lips of Simon; doubtless it was true.
Except the foregoing, nothing has been preserved of Mrs.
Thomas Girty. Her life-career is wholly unknown.
The spot chosen by Thomas for his home was afterward
known as " Girty's Run," so called because of his living there,
and not, as sometimes stated, for the reason that the "Girty
family" had there their residence.t The brothers, Simon,
James, and George, left Pittsburgh before there were any settlements on the north side of the Alleghany. " The neighborhood of Pittsburgh, across the... river," as one
account has it, "was the stamping-ground, as the early settlers called it, of the Girtys, and the scenery of that neighborhood still attests their former residence. Girty's Hill is
some four or five miles north of the city, and Girty's run
flows along its base."  ] But the region thus mentioned was
not the " stamping-ground of the Girtys," but of Thomas and
his family simply; and the scenery of that neighborhood still
attests only their " former residence."
Thomas died on Girty's Run.~   He had raised there and in
Pittsburgh a respectable family. Two children--John and
Nancy-are hereafter incidentally mentioned. The father
breathed his last on the 3d of November, 1820. An obituary,
published in the Pittsburgh Gazette, although containing errors, mentions some facts concerning the deceased that are of
importance, but which have already been given in this narrative.  "Could the incidents of his life," says the Gazette, "be
collected, they would form a valuable work, and would give a
* Loudon's Indian Wars, Vol. I, p. 90.
t This error is made in An Historical Account of the Expedition against
Sandusky (p. 183, note), and in some previous publications.
l Cist's Cincinnati Miscellany, VoL I, p. 126.
# Not at "Squirrel Hill," hereafter described, east of Pittsburgh, as stated
in the Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 274; nor do I find that
he ever lived there as mentioned on p. 269 of the article just referred to.
331History of the Girtys.
proper idea of the intrepidity, enterprise, and heavy suffering
of that'class of early settlers who were formerly called' Indian hunters.' "*  But Thomas was never an "Indian hunter;" the title belongs to such men as Brady and Wetzel, but
not to Girty, or his brothers.
Some strange statements have found their way into print
concerning Thomas. Just how many errors can be compressed
into a short paragraph, will here be seen: "Thomas Girty,
alone, of the four brothers, returned to civilized life. He
was one of Brady's spies in the Indian wars after the Revolution, and died, perhaps, in Butler county, Pa., in 1820!" t
John Turner, half-brother of the Girty boys, survived the
last of them nearly twenty years. His death occurred at
"Squirrel Hill," on the 20th of May, 1840.+   The "Hill"
spoken of is on the east side of the Monongahela, immediately
south of the mouth of Four Mile Run; that is, four miles
from the confluence of the Alleghany and Monongahela.
The river bottom is quite narrow there, and the hill is higher
than others in the vicinity. Earth-works were raised on it in
the summer of 1863, when the Confederates threatened the
city. Turner, it is believed, lived near a spring about half a
mile back from the front.
Turner made a will on the tenth of the month preceding
that in which he died, which was probated and recorded three
days after his death. lie devised his farm where he lived, of
113 acres, to John McCasslin and Priscilla, his wife, during
life, and then in fee to their children. He gave to Prideaux
Girty, son of Simon, $1,000; to his niece, Sarah, sister of
Prideaux, then the wife of Joseph Munger, the same sum; to
John, son of his half-brother Thomas, $500; to Nancy Gibson, sister of John, $100; to Joseph Munger, " for his attention and friendship," $500; and to Catharine Bealer, one dol* Compare Niles's Weekly Register, Vol. XIX, p. 262, already cited in
a previous chapter.
t See Newton's History of the Pan-Handle, West Virginia, p. 150.
t The date of his decease, I have obtained from a record preserved in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania.
332History of the Girtys.
lar.* The fact that the deceased had previously donated a
burying-ground to the citizens of the locality where he lived,
gave him the reputation of being " the benefactor of Squirrel
Hill," jIn the Pittsburgh Daily Gazette, of the date of July, 1858,
is a translation of the record previously referred to in this
narrative, of John Turner's baptism.    "By the way," says
the translator, " does not the name of the baptized child, Jean
or John Turner, remind some of our old citizens of a tall, upright, active man named John Turner, who used often to be
seen walking our streets, and whom, it was always supposed
by us boys, had once been a prisoner with the French or Indians?  Was our'John Turner the baptised child?"         Of
course; the will just mentioned answers that question, beyond
any mistake, in the affirmative, as he was the "John Turner"
of Squirrel Hill..
Catharine Malott Girty, widow of Simon Girty, survived
her husband many years. She died in Colchester South, at
the home of Joseph Munger,~ in January, 1852. Before
1845, she sued William Mickle for dower in what had so long
been the Girty homestead, but was unsuccessful in her suit.ll
The papers in the case are not in existence.~[ Mrs. Girty's
life was, indeed, a most romantic one. It was a consolation
in her old age to know that those of her children who were
dead had lived lives of respectability, and that those who
were yet living had established, each one, an unsullied reputation.
* John, son of Thomas Girty, is mentioned in Cist's Cincinnati Miscellany,
p. 122.
t Magazine of American History, Vol. XV. p. 256. The benefaction
was made by a deed, executed July 31, 1838.: Compare Lambing's Register of Fort Duquesne, p. 96, and his Catholic Historical Researches, Vol. III, pp. 38, 39. For mention of "' Squirrel
Hill," see Calendar of Virginia State Papers, Vol. I, p. 297.
2 William C. Mickle to the writer, January 21, 1887, before cited.
Id.
~ NS. letter of James Bartlet, dated December 28, 1886.
333APPENDIX.
A.
FIRST PUBLISHED ACCOUNT OF THE GIRTYS.
[Ante, pp. 4, 319.]
"That western portion of Pennsylvania and Virginia bordering on the Ohio has been considered by the Indians as a
country highly favored by heaven; covered with every kind
of gamie, it was not to be supposed they would tamely surrender their right to the soil. But when the whites commenced
the settlement of Western Virginia-now Kentucky--the
spirit of the savage warrior assumed an attitude of phrensy
in their attacks which called forth a corresponding spirit to
repel. At this period, the Girtys, with the Shawanese, Delawares, Mingoes, etc., gave a new character to Indian warfare.
"Old Girty was one of those peasants who early emigrated
from Europe to Pennsylvania, in pursuit of liberty and ease;
but like many of his fellows, he was incapable of enjoying it;
for his hours were wasted in idleness and intemperance, and
he was finally knocked on the head by a neighboring boor,
who bore off Mrs. Girty as a trophy of his prowess. He had
four sons: Thomas, Simon, George, and James.
"George, Simon, and James were taken prisoners by the
Shawanese, Delawares, and Senecas, in that war which first
developed the military talents of General Washington., George
(the supposed son of Colonel C.) was adopted amongst the
Delawares, and continued with them until his death. His
manners were perfectly Indian, combining with them the daring intrepidity of a frontier white man. His bravery at the
battles of Kanawha, Blue Licks, and Sandusky are yet spoken
of by his red brethren. In his later days, he resigned himself
to intemperance, and died drunk some time ago, on the
Miami of the Lakes [Maumee].
(3s86)History of the Girtys.
those Indians the next year, and made his acquaintance.
Jones reached Paint creek, a tributary of the Scioto, intending to labor among the Shawanese as a missionary. But his
idea of preaching to the savages was given up, because of
their opposition, and of his failure to secure a good interpreter. One had been recommended, and, on the 25th of January, of the year last mentioned, he instituted inquiry about
him; but "he was hunting beavers and would not be in till
spring."  "This news," he wrote in his diary, " blasted all
my prospects of making an useful visit; and, having no other
remedy, [I] applied to one James Gerty [Girty], who was well
acquainted with their [the Shawanese] language, but a stranger
to religion; neither had he any inclination to engage in such
solemn matters contrary to the tenor of his life, [he] having
little or no fear of God before his eyes; yet he was civil, and,
after much persuasion, engaged to assist me; but [he] dare
not proceed, he said, before some head men came home, who
were out hunting, but expected soon to return. In the meantime, I employed myself in making a vocabulary of the Shawanese language, by his [Girty's] assistance and Mrs. Henry's
[the wife of a white trader, herself a white woman]." * However, the temper of the Indians was such that the good man
did not wait for the return of the "head men," but soon
started on his journey homeward.
From all that is known of Simon Girty during the time that
elapsed after his return from captivity to the end of 1773, it
is evident that his employment was, to a great extent, that of
Indian interpreter, getting, when working for the Crown, a
dollar a day. His brother, James, seems to have had no permanent way of obtaining a livelihood; sometimes he found
work as a common laborer, sometimes as an interpreter for
traders. Their brother, George, however, became (for a portion of the time we have just mentioned) a trader with the
Indians on his own account.t What is known of Thomas
Girty, for the twelve years immediately suceeding his return
* Jones's Journal (Sabine's reprint, New York, 1865), pp. 55, 60, 61.
t See Historical Magazine for 1870, New Series, Vol. VII, pp. 103-107.
21History of the Girtys.
" Simon was adopted by the Senecas, and became as expert
a hunter as any of them. His character, as related in Kentucky and Ohio,' of being a savage, unrelenting monster,' is
much exaggerated. It is true that he joined the Indians in
most of their war-parties, and conformed to their mode of
warfare, but it is well authenticated that he has saved many
prisoners from death. He was considered an honest man,
paying his debts to the last cent; and it is known that
he has sold his onlv horse to discharge a claim against him.
It is true that he was a perfect Indian in his manners; that his
utmost felicity was centered in a keg of rum; that under its
influence he was abusive to all around him, even to his best
friends. Yet we must recollect that his education was barbarous, and that mankind are more apt to sink into barbarism
than they are to acquire the habits of civilized life.
"For the last ten years he had been crippled with rheumatism, yet he rode to his hunting-grounds in pursuit of game,
and would boast that he preserved a warlike spirit in the
midst of bodily pain, and would often exclaim,'May I breathe
my last on a field of battle.' In this wish Simon has been
gratified; for in the battle of the Moravian towns, on the river
Thames, he was cut to pieces by Co. Johnson's mounted men.
[He lived nearly four years after this was written.]
"James Girty was adopted by the Shawanese, and became
an expert hunter, and imbibed as he arrived at manhood the
sanguinary spirit of the most ferocious savage, with the
vicious habits of the white men with whom he associated. It
is said that he joined the Indians in all their attacks on the
first settlers of Kentucky; neither age nor sex were spared at
his hands; and it was his boast, although unable to walk from
rheumatism and other aiseases, that neither women nor children ever escaped the tomahawk, if he got within reach of
them. Traders who are acquainted with him say that he
never turned on his heel to save a wretched prisoner from the
torments of the fire, but would rather instruct the Indians in
new and more refined torture.
" To this ruthless tiger may be justly attributed most of
336Appendix B, C.
the barbarities said to have been perpetrated by his brother
Simon. By Elliott and Proctor, James Girty was caressed,
for congenial souls ever mingle in sentiment."-Missouri
Gazette, May 7, 1814. See pp. 321, 327, ante.
B.
RECORD OF THE BAPTISM OF JOHN TURNER (TRANSLATION).
[Ante, pp). 12-333.]
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six, on
the eighteenth of August, was baptized with the customary
ceremonies by us, Recollet priest, the undersigned chaplain
of the king at Fort Duquesne, under the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin, John, of English parentage, aged
two and a half years, son of John Turner, an Englishman,
and Mary Newton, an Englishwoman, the father and mother
being united in lawful wedlock. The god-father was John
Ilannigan [or Itogan], an Irishman and a Catholic, the godmother Sarah Foissey, an Irishwoman and a Catholic, who declared they could not sign.
In testimony whereof we have here signed:
FR. DENYS BARON, P. R.,
Chaplain.
C.
MENTION OF GEORGE GIRTY AS A TRADER.
[Ante, p. 21.]
"16th [of July, 1773]. Left Bedford; crossed the Alleghany Mountains; came to a place called the Shades of
Death--a damp and lonesome place-and arrived at Stoney
creek, in the evening, where we staid all night.
"17th. We had good roads until we came to Laurel-hill;
22
337passed Ligonier, a small town surrounded by extraordinary
good land, and put up at Larry Irwin's.
"' 18th. We traveled a hilly and swampy road, but the land
very good. We arrived at Pittsburgh before dark, and put
up at Sample's.
" 19th. Concluded to rest ourselves and horses. The people here treated us very kindly. We had a conference with
Captain White Eyes, a Delaware chief, who was on his return
from Philadelphia. He expressed much satisfaction at our
arrival, and said he would go with us, but that he was under
the necessity of waiting for Joseph Simmons, from Lancaster,
who was to bring his goods from there. He informed us that
John Gibson, an Indian trader, had set out that morning for
Newcomer's town, the place we were going to, and advised us
to endeavor to overtake him, as he would be a very suitable
person to accompany us.
"20th. We had made preparations to set out early this
morning in order to overtake the Indian trader [Gibson]; but,
upon inquiry, learned that he had returned and said that John
Logan, a Miingo Indian, was lying in wait to kill him. He
had returned to town among the Indians for protection. He
got Gay-a-shuta, a Mingo chief, and Captain White Eyes to
agree to go and see what was the matter with Logan and endeavor to pacify him. White Eyes said he would attend us
all the way to Newcomer's town; he thought the behavior of
Logan would make us afraid, as he should be were he in our
place.-They set out in a canoe; and we, with a Delaware Indian, by land. We crossed the Alleghany branch [river] in a
canoe, and our horses swam by the side. When we came near
to a place called Logtown, where Logan lay, our guide stopped
and hearkened very attentively, though we could not tell what
he was listening at; but, before we had proceeded much further, we heard a great noise. Our guide, who could not speak
one word of English, made motions to us to stop and retire.
He took us up a hollow to some water, where we staid while
he went to the camp whence the noise proceeded. He, for
our safety, secretly informed George Girty, a trader, where
338
Hi8iritory of the Gi'rtysAppendix D.
we were. I-Ie [Girty] immediately came to us and conducted
us around the camp to the river side. He told us that an Indian had got drunk and fell in the river and was. drowned; and
that Logan suspected Gibson of making him drunk, and killing him. Soon after we came to the river, Captain White
Eyes and our Indian guide came with canoes, and we again
swam our horses by the side [of the canoe] over the [Ohio]
river, to the house of John Gibson."-From the Journal of a
AMission to the Indians in Ohio, by Friends from Pennsylvania,
July-September, 1773, published in the Historical Magazine
for 1870, New Series, Vol. 7, pp. 103-107.
D.
FICTITIOUS ACCOUNT OF SIMON GIRTY JOINING TIIE INDIANS IN
1774.
[Ante, p. 28.]
"The two [Simon Girty and another] were acting as scouts
in an expedition set on foot by Governor Dunmore, of Virginia, in the year 1774, against the Indian towns of the Ohio.
The two divisions of the force raised for this expedition-the
one commanded by Governor Dunmore in person, the other
by General Andrew Lewis--were by the orders of the governor
to form a junction at Point Pleasant, where the Great Kanawha,
empties into the Ohio. At this place, General Lewis arrived
with his command on the eleventh or twelfth of September;
but after remaining here two or three weeks in anxious expectation of the approach of the other division, he received
dispatches from the governor informing him that Dunmore
had changed his plan and determined to march at once against
the villages on the Scioto, and ordering him to cross the Ohio
immediately, and join him as speedily as possible.
" It was during the delay at the Point that the incident occurred which is supposed to have had such a tremendous influence on Girty's after life. He and his associate scout had
339History of the Girtys.
rendered some two or three months' service, for which they
had as yet drawn no part of their pay; and in their present
idleness, they discovered means of enjoyment, of which they
had not money to avail themselves. In this strait, they called
upon General Lewis in person, at his head-quarters, and demanded their pay. For some unknown cause, this was refused, which produced a slight murmuring on the part of the
applicants, when General Lewis cursed them, and struck them
several severe blows over their heads with his cane. Girty's
associate was not much hurt, but he himself was so badly
wounded on the forehead, or temple, that the blood streamed
down his cheek and side to the floor. He quickly turned to
leave the apartment; but on reaching the door, wheeled
around, planted his feet firmly upon the sill, braced an arm
against either side of the frame, fixed his keen eyes unflinchingly upon the general, and uttered the exclamation,' By God,
sir, your quarters shall swim in bloodfor this;' and instantly
disappeared beyond pursuit.
"General Lewis was not very much pleased with the sudden and apparently causeless change which Governor Dunmore had made in the plan of the expedition. Nevertheless,
he immediately prepared to obey the new orders, and had
given directions for the construction of rafts, upon which to
cross the Ohio, when, before daylight on the morning of the
tenth of October, some of the scouts suddenly entered the
encampment with the information that an immense body of
Indians was just at hand, hastening upon the Point. This
was the force of the brave and skillful chief, Cornstalk, whose
genius and valor were so conspicuous on that day, thoughout
the whole of which raged the hardly contested and most.bloody' Battle of the Plains.'
" Girty had fled from General Lewis immediately to the
chief, Cornstalk, foresworn his white nature, and leagued himself with the red man forever; and, with the Indians, he was
now advancing, under the cover of night, to surprise the Virginian camp."
340Appendix E.
E.
OATIIS TAKEN BY SIMON GIRTY WHEN COMMISSIOXED SECOND
LIEUTENANT UNDER MAJOR JOHN CONNOLLY.
[Ante, p. 31.]
"1. I, Simon Girty, do sincerely promise and swear that I
will be faithful, and bear true allegiance to his Majesty King
George the Third. So help me God.
" 2. I, Simon Girty, do swear that I from my heart abhor,
detest, and abjure as impious and heretical, that damnable
doctrine and position, that princes excommunicated and deprived by the pope, or any authority of the see of Rome, may
be deposed or murdered by their subjects, or any other whatsoever. And I do declare, that no foreign prince, person,
prelate, state, or potentate, hath or ought to have any jurisdiction, power, superiority, pre-eminence or authority, ecclesiastical or spiritual, within this realm. So help me God.
" 3. I, Simon Girty, do declare that I do believe there is
not any transubstantiation in the sacrament of the Lord's
supper, or in the elements of bread and wine at or after the
consecration thereof, by any person or persons whatever. So
help me God.
"4. I, Simon Girty, do truly and sincerely acknowledge,
profess, testify, and declare in mv conscience before God and
the world, that our sovereign lord, King George the Third, is
lawful and rightful king of this realm and all other his
Majesty's dominions thereunto belonging.
"And I do solemnly and sincerely declare that I do believe
in my conscience that the person pretended to be Prince of
Wales during the life of the late King James, and since his
decease pretending to be and takes upon himself the style and
title of King of England, by the iame of James the Third, or
of Scotland by the name of James the Eighth, or the style and
title of King of Great Britain, hath not any right or title
whatever to the crown of this realm or any other the domin341Hi.story of the Girtys.
ions thereunto belonging, and I do renounce, refuse, and abjure any allegiance or obedience to him.
"And I do swear that I will bear faithful and true allegiance
to his Majesty King George the Third, and him will defend to
the utmost of my power against all traitorous conspiracies
and attempts whatsoever, whlich shall be made against his person, crown, or dignity, and I will do my utmost endeavors to
disclose and make known to his Majesty and his successors all
treason and traitorous conspiracies which I shall know to be
against him or any of them.
"And I do faithfully promise to the utmost of my power to
support, maintain, and defend the succession of the crown
against him, the said James, and all other persons whatsoever,
which succession (by an act entitled an act for the further
limitation of the crown and better securing the rights and
liberties of the subject) is and stands limited to the Princess
Sophie, late Electress and Duchess Dowager of Hanover, and
the heirs of her body being Protestants-and all these things
I do plainly and sincerely acknowledge and swear, according
to these express words by me spoken and according to the
plain and common sense and understanding of the same words,
without any equivocation, mental evasion, or secret reservation whatsoever, and I do make this recognition, acknowledgment, abjuration, renunciation, and promise heartily, willingly,
and truly upon the true faith of a Christian. So help me
God."
F.
" LETTING LOOSE THE HORRIBLE HELL-HOUNDS OF SAVAGE WAR."'
[Ante, p. 42.]'SIR:--In consideration of the measures proper to be
pursued in the next campaign, the making a diversion on the
frontiers of Virginia and Pennsylvania, by parties of Indians
conducted by proper Leaders as proposed by Lt. Gov. Hamilton has been maturely weighed.
342Appendix F.
" That officer in his Letter to the Earl of Dartmouth dated
at Detroit the 2d of September last, that he had then with him
Deputies from the Ottawas, Chippewas, Wyandots, Shawanese,
Senecas, Delawares, Cherokees, and Pouattouattamies. That
their inclination was for War and that it was with much difficulty he had restrained them from Hostilities, which he thought
it his duty to do, finding by a letter from you dated the 19th
of July, that you had sent back some Ottawas, who had offered
their Services desiring them to hold themselves in rea(diness
next Spring.
" There can be little doubt that the Indians are in the same
disposition and that they will readily and eagerly engage in
any Enterprize in which it may be thought fit to employ them
under the direction of the King's officers, and as it is H1is
Majesty's resolution that the most vigorous Efforts should be
made, and every means employed that Providence has put inlto
His Majesty's Hands, for crushing the Rebellion  restoring
the Constitution it is the King's Command that you should direct Lieut. Governor Hamilton to assemble as many of the Indians of his District as he conveniently can, and placing proper
persons at their Hend, to whom he is to make suitable allowances, to conduct their Parties, and restrain them from com:
mitting violence on the well affected and inoffensive Inhabitants,
employ them in making a Diversion and exciting an alarm
upon the frontiers of Virginia and Pennsylvania.
"And as there is good ground to believe there are considerable numbers of loyal subjects in those Parts who would gladly
embrace an opportunity of delivering themselves from the
Tyranny and oppression of the Rebel Committees; it is His
Majesty's pleasure,that you do authorize and direct Lieut
Govr Hamilton to invite all such loyal subjects to join him 
to assure them of the same pay and allowances as are given to
His Majesty's Corps raised in America and that such of them
as shall continue to serve His Majesty until the Rebellion is suppressed and peace restored shall receive His Majesty's Bounty
of 200 Acres of Land. These offers it is to be hoped will induce many Persons to engage in the King's Service; which
343History of the Girtys.
may enable Lt. Gov. Hamilton to extend his operations, so as
to divide the attention of the Rebels, and oblige them to collect
a considerable Force to oppose him, which can not fail of
weakening their main army  facilitating the operations directed to be carried on against them in other Quarters, and
thus bring the War to a more speedy Issue and restore those
deluded People to their former State of Happiness and prosperity, which are the favorite wishes of the Royal Breast and
the great object of all HIis Majesty's measures.
"A supply of presents for the Indians  other necessaries
will be wanted for this Service, and you will of course send
Lieut. Govr. Hamilton what is proper and sufficient.
"Inclosed is a List of the Names of several Persons residing on the Frontiers of Virginia, recommended by Lord Dunmore for their Loyalty and attachment to Government, and
who His Lordship thinks will be able to give great assistance
to Lieut. Gov. Hamilton through their extensive Influence
among the Inhabitants."-Lord George Germain, from White
Hall, March 26, 1777, to Sir Guy Carleton, and sent to Lieutenant-Governor Hamilton, from Quebec, May 21st, following.
G.
SIMON GIRTY AND THE SIEGE OF FORT HENRY, WHEELING,
IN 1777.
GIRTY INVESTS THE FORT-A- MYTHICAL ACCOUNT.
[Ante, p. 43.]
"In the early part of September [1777], it was ascertained
that an immense Indian army was concentrating on the Sandusky river, under the direction of the notorious white renegade, Simon Girty. This scheming outlaw had almost unbounded command over the Wyandots, and was so far influential with the Mingoes and Shawanese as to secure a large accession to his force from the warlike tribes. The Indian
344Appendix G.
army was well appointed, having received an abundant supply
of arms and ammunition from Governor Hamilton, at DetroitL
Girty himself was armed by this enlightened functionary with
full power to grant protection, if he saw fit, to such of the
settlers as might choose to swear allegiance to the British
crown, and was furnished by the governor with a proclamation, under his own hand, guaranteeing the royal pardon to
every rebel who would accept the boon which Girty was authorized to offer. The savage host, numbering, by various estimates, from three hundred and eighty to five hundred warriors, having completed every preparation for their campaign,.
left thb Sandusky upper village, and took up their line of
march in the direction of Limestone, in Kentucky.
"Ignorant and cowardly, as many represent Girty to have
been on the field of battle, he certainly possessed a degree of'
cunning when not in the immediate presence of danger, which
served to keep him high in the confidence of the Indians
throughout the chief part of his military career. The manner in which he conduted the march of his army evinces the
high order of his sagacity, and the craftiness of his'management; for, although Colonel Shepherd [at Wheeling] kept constantly in service a body of the most trusty and experienced
scouts that ever figured in border warfare, Girty succeeded in
deceiving them as to the point of his destination, and actually
brought his whole force before the walls of Fort Henry before his real design was discovered."-American Pioneer, Vol.
II, p. 305.
II.
SIMNON GIRTY AND THE AT'TACK ON FORT HENRY, 1777.
[From.Magazine of American History, Vol. III, p. 513.]
"J. E. Cook, in his Stories of the Old Dominion, repeats
the old story that Simon Girty led the Indians in their attack
on Fort Henry in September, 1777. Where and when this
story originated I have never been-able to ascertain. Withers, in his Chronicles of Border Warfare, published in 1831,
asserts it, and De Hass, in his History of Indian Wars in Western Virginia, repeats it. McKnight, in Our Western Border,
345.22                 History of the Girt ys.
to the Susquehanna settlements from Kittanning, is only that he
sought a home in the West after Pontiac's war of 1763, but some
time before 1768,* was married, and settled down to a comparatively quiet life at Pittsburgh. At the date last mentioned,
we catch a glimpse of him. During that year, he sold to Richard
Butler and his brother, William, "one hundred pounds of old
iron, sixteen pounds of fall skins, and a bushel of potatoes."
And he purchased from these brothers, during the same year,
three wood screws and a number of articles necessary to the repair of a rifle. Now, this looks like a domestic life for Thomas;
and tradition confirms the appearance, though it is certain he
was at one time engaged in " packing" goods for the traders.
* Calendar of Virginia State Papers, Vol. I, p. 280, where he testifies to
certain facts, fronm which testimony the above statement as to his living in
the West some time before 1768 is to be inferred.History of the Girtys.
contradicts the story, but says:'It must have been George
or James Girty who were living among the savages.' Now
the fact is not one of the Girtys was with the Indians at the
time of their attack on Fort Henry in September, 1777.
There is no historical fact better established than the dates of
the desertion of Simon, James, and George Girty. Thomas
Girty never did desert. Col. George Morgan was Indian
agent for the Middle Department of the United States during
the Revolution, with his headquarters at Fort Pitt, and his
Journal proves that Simon and James Girty were employed
by him as Indian Interpreters; it also shows that on the 28th
of March, 1778, Simon Girty deserted with McKee and Elliott, and that at that time James was on a message to the
Shawanese for Colonel Morgan, and was induced to desert the
cause of his country and attach himself to the interest of his
brother Simon. See Hildreth's Pioneer History, pp. 129-30.
The muster-roll of Capt. James Willing's company of marines, at the time under Gen. George Rodgers Clark, now
in the State Archives at Harrisburg, shows that George Girty
was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in said company on the
6th of February, 1778, and that he deserted May 4, 1779.
See Potter's American Monthly, VII, 388. There is other
evidence, but this is sufficient to prove that none of the
Girtys could have led the attack on Fort Henry in September, 1779.                                 ISAAC CRAIG.
"ALLEGHANY, PA.'
H.
SIMON GIRTY S VISIT TO THE SENECA TOWNS UP THE ALLEGHIANY, IN TIIE FALL OF 1777.
[Ante, p. 45.]
" [Mentions James Kelly and Thomas Nicholson going with
messages to the Delawares.] Simon Girty, another messenger,
who was also sent by you with messages to the Seneca towns
on the head of the Alleghany, returned and informed me that
he went to the towns without meetinig any Indians, though, by
346Appendix H.
the marks of the warriors on the roads, he could discover they
had been at war: that, on his arrival there, he acquainted
them with the success of our army at the northward, and
asked them if they had not heard of it. They replied that
they had not. He then told them that they might depend on
it for truth, and desired them to sit still, as they would hear
it in a few days from their own people. They then told him
they looked upon him as a spy, and that they would take him
to Niagara. They then illformed him that all the Western
Indians had taken up the tomahawk against the Americans,
excepting White Eyes and a few Delawares, and that they
would be ready to strike in the spring.
"He then learned that seven parties were actually out
against our frontiers; that Gu-a-sho-ta had been twice at war
against our settlements; that he killed four people near Ligonier; that the White Mingo had also been at war; that the
Flying Crow brought in a white woman, daughter of Dudley
Daugherty, who was taken near Ligonier whilst he was there,'
and some scalps; that All-Face, the head warrior, was out
with a party of twenty-five men. That the evening before
they were to set off for Niagara, he pretended to hunt his
horse, and after going out he returned in a great hurry, saying he saw a flock of turkeys and snatched up his gun and
came away. That in the night he came to onother town on
the river where he got a canoe and came by water. That near
the Kittanning, early in the morning, an Indian from the
shore, hailed him and asked him who he was; that he told him
his name was a chief's name whom he left in the towns; that
the Indian told him he lied, that he knew him to be Girty and
desired him to come to shore; that on his refusal he fired several shots at him. Girty says he thinks they will wait to hear
from the northward, as they are guided by a chief of the Senecas there; and the surrendering of Burgoyne's army will
have a good effect upon them."-Colonel John Gibson, from
Fort Pitt, to General Hand (absent), December 10, 1777.
347History of the Girtys.
I.
THE REASON WtIY GENERAL HIAND GAVE UP IIIS INTENDED EXPEDITION TO FRENCH CREEK, IN TIIE SPRING OF 1778.
[Ante, p. 51.]
"FORT PITT, M'arch 30, 1878.
"DEAR CRAWFORD:--I received your favor of yesterday
and am sorry for the accident that befell Mr. DeCamp, and
send the doctor to his assistance.
"You will no doubt be surprised to hear that Mr. McKee,
Matthew Elliott, Simon Girty, one Surphilt and Higgins, with
McKee's two negroes, eloped on Saturday night. This will
make it improper to proceed on the intended expedition to
French creek, which I beg you may give the proper notice of
to the gentlemen who are preparing for it; and as your assistance may be necessary towards preventing the evils that
may arise from the information of these runaways, I beg you
may return here as soon as possible.
"I am, dear Crawford, sincerely yours,
"EDW'D I[AND.
"COL. WM. CRAWFORD."
J.
CONCERNING CERTAIN ORDERS SAID TO hIAVE BEEN GIVEN BY
GEN. HALDIMAND TO LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR HENRY HAMILTON WHILE AT DETROIT.
"Hamilton and his subordinates, both red and white, were
engaged [in 1778] in what was essentially an effort to exterminate the borderers. They were not endeavoring merely to
defeat the armed bodies of the enemy. They were explicitly
bidden by those in supreme command to push back the frontier, to expel the settlers from the country. Hamilton hi"mself had been ordered by his immediate official superior to assail the borders of Pennsylvania and Virginia with his sav348Appendix J.
ages, to destroy the crops and buildings of the settlers who
had advanced beyond the mountains, and to give his Indian
allies,-the Hurons, Shawnees, and other tribes,-all the land
of which they thus took possession."--The Winning of the
West, Vol. II, pages 5 and 6. And the author of that work
cites, in support of what he writes, HIaldimand to Hamilton,
August 6, 1778: Haldimand MSS.
I find nothing in the orders given by Haldimand to HIamilton which authorizes the assertion that the latter, and his subordinates, "were explicitly bidden... to push back the frontier, to expel the settlers from the country;" nor do I find
that Hamilton had been ordered " to assail the borders of Pennsylvania and Virginia with his savages, to destroy the crops
and buildings of the settlers who had advanced beyond the
mountains, and to give his Indian allies,-the Hurons, Shawnees, and other tribes,-all the land of which they thus took
possession."  The whole matter was this: On the 25th of
April, 1778, Hamilton wrote Carleton that the Hurons, and
those at Sandusky (meaning the Detroit and Sandusky Wyandots), had lately told him that they expected what lands they
should drive the rebels (Americans) from would be vested in
them by right of conquest. "I told them," says Hamilton,
" that was a point I could not pretend to decide, but that I
should write to your Excellency, and [I would] inform them
what answer I should receive."
In General Haldimand's answer, he says that it would "' be
good policy to give the savages the entire property of all lands
they should conquer from the rebels, provided they make such
conquests without any expense to his Majesty and that it does
not interfere with any rights or claim of the Five Nations or
any other nation of Indians, whom it is our business to keep
united as much as possible, not to lay foundation of division
amongst."  Now, these provisos would certainly have rendered wholly null any offer that Hamilton could have made;
besides, when he received the order, he was too busy in preparing to move against George Rogers Clark in the Illinois, to
give Haldimand's answer to the Wyandots. Any attempt, there349History of the Girtys.
fore, on part of Hamilton, to instigate Indians to do any of
the acts mentioned by Roosevelt in the extract just given,
against "well affected and inoffensive inhabitants" "upon
the frontiers of Pennsylvania and Virginia," would have been
in excess of the orders given him by his superiors.
K.
KENTON AND THE MINGO LOGAN.
[Ante, pp. 79-84.]
In speaking of Kenton and his two companions' movements
after first crossing the Ohio, McDonald says, that they " proceeded cautiously to Chillicothe."  That this was the Chillicothe situated on the Little Miami, in the present county of
Greene, Ohio, is certain from what he afterward says: "From
Chillicothe to Wapatomika they had to pass through two other
Indian towns, to wit: Pickaway [Piqua] and Machecheek
[Mac-a-cheek]." But this would not have been the case, had
he been at the other Chillicothe-Old Town-in what is now
Ross county, Ohio.
McDonald's account of Girty's speech, interceding the second
time for Kenton, is even more absurd than McClung's recital of
his first speech. "He told them that he had lived with them
several years; that he had risked his life in that time more frequently than any of them; that they all knew that he had
never spared the life of any one of the hated Americans;
that they well knew that he had never asked fdr a division of
the spoils; that he fought alone for the destruction of their
enemies."
McDonald declares that Logan sent his young men to Upper Sandusky with a message to Peter Druver; that the latter, a British captain, "connected with the British Indian
agent department," also an interpreter, had great influence
with the Indians; that he concluded to make an effort to save
the prisoner; and finally succeeded by their consenting to
have him taken by the captain to Detroit. to be brought back
350Appendix L.
to Upper Sandusky, after being examined by the commanding
officer at the former place. Now, if this be true, then the
honor of having finally saved Kenton from the stake is due
jointly to Simon Girty, the Mingo Logan, and Peter Druyer--
by no means to Logan alone. Both McDonald and McClung
say that Girty induced the savages to send the prisoner to
Sandusky, and that upon the return of the runners sent by
Logan to that town, he (Logan) gave to Kenton no information as to the result of his effort in his behalf; but McClungsays that " from Logan's manner he [Kenton] supposed that.
his intercession had been unavailing, and that Sandusky was
destined to be the scene of his final suffering. This appears
to have been the truth." The weight of evidence is, therefore, against Logan having succeeded, and in favor of Girty
and Druyer being the only persons who were instrumental in
finally saving the prisoner.
L.
LOCIIRY S DEFEAT.
[Ante, pp. 129, 130.]
I.
ROOSEVYLT'S ACCOUN'T-GEORGE GIRTY IGNORED.
"' One body of Pennsylvanians that did go [to join Clark
down the Ohio] met with an untoward fate. This was a party
of a hundred Westmoreland men under their county lieutenant, Col. Archibald Loughry. They started down the Ohia
in flat-boats, but having landed on a sand-bar to butcher and
cook a buffalo that they had killed, they were surprised
by an equal number of Indians under Joseph Brant, and
being huddled together, were all slain or captured with small
loss to their assailants. Many of the prisoners, including
Loughry himself, were afterward murdered in cold blood by
the Indians."--The Winning of the West, Vol. II, p. 117.
[Roosevelt gives his authorities.] It will be noticed that
George Girty's name is not mentioned. But see the following  
351History of the Girtys.
II.
THE OFFICIAL REPORT OF CAPTAINS MC KEE AND THOMPSON.
[From Vermont Historical Society's Collections, Vol. II, pp. 342, 343.]
"CAMP NEAR THE OHIO, August 29, 1781.
"SIR:--The 26th you had inclosed an account that Captain
Brandt and George Girty, with the Indians, advanced upon the
-Ohio, [and] had taken one of Clark's boats after having passed
down the river in the night. Not thinking themselves in number
sufficient to attack him, and having found by his orders to
Major Craigcroft [Major Charles Cracraft] that more troops
were to follow under the command of a Colonel Lochry, [they]
lay in wait for them, attacked and took the whole, not allowing one to escape. Agreeable to a return, it appears there
have been thirty-seven killed, amongst whom is Lochry, their
commandant, with some officers.
"This stroke, with desertions, will reduce Clark's army
much, and if the Indians had followed advice and been here
in time, it is more than probable he would have been now in
-our possession with his cannon.
" The prisoners seem to be ignorant of what his intentions
are. Perhaps loss may oblige him to change his measures.
However, we shall endeavor to keep the Indians together, and
watch his motions. His first intention was to penetrate to San-,dusky through the Indian country, from whence the troops
from Fort Pitt were to return home and he to Kentucky.
"We are, with great respect, sir, your most obedient and
most humble servants,
"A. THOMPSON,
"ALEX'R MCKEE.
"To MAJOR DEPEYSTER."
[The Vermont Historical Society obtained a copy of the
-original from the Haldimand Papers.]
-352Appendix M.
M.
WIlY THE MORAVIAN MISSIONARY ESTABLISHMENTS ON THE
TUSCARAWAS WERE BROKEN UP.
[Ante, p. 133.]
An expedition against the Virginia border, and especially
Fort Henry at Wheeling, had been determined upon at Sandusky, with the approval of De Peyster, to be carried on under the lead of Captain Elliott, by a considerable war-party of
savages, with whom was to march a small number of English
and French. Heckewelder, in his Narrative, pp. 231, 232,
says the expedition was intended against the Christian (" Moravian ") Indians. (See also Schweinitz' Life and Times of
David Zeisberger, pp. 489, 490.) But nothing could be further from the,truth. On the 18th of August, 1781, Zeisberger
dispatched a messenger to Colonel Brodhead, the commander
at Fort Pitt, with a written message to the effect that a large
number of Indians-about two hundred and fifty in all-was
approaching the settlements with the intention, probably, of
going to Wheeling, but they might attack some of the other
posts. "They will try," said he, "to decoy the garrison out
where they will lie in ambush."  " The party is headed," continued the missionary, " by Matthew Elliott and a few English
and French. The Indians are Wyandots, Delawares, Monseys,
and a small number of Shawanese."  "You will be careful,"
he added, "not to mention that you had this intelligence
from our towns; for it would prove dangerous for us if the Indians should get knowledge of it; which might happen by a
prisoner if they should take one." But this admonition was
unheeded.'
"Last evening I was honored with your obliging letter,"
was the response of Brodhead to the missionary, "for which
be pleased to accept my best thanks.  We shall be upon
our guard and give the wicked a warm reception." The commanding officer at Fort Henry (Wheeling) was soon informed
23
353History   of the Girtys.
by Brodhead of the coming of the enemy. "You will immediately put your garrison in the best posture of defense," he
wrote, " and lay in as great quantity of water as circumstances
will admit, and receive them coolly. They intend to decoy
your garrison, but you are to guard against stratagem, and defend the post to the last extremity." " You must not fail,"
he added, "to give the alarm to the inhabitants within your
reach, and make it as general as possible, in order that every
manl may be prepared at this crisis."  Brodhead also sent letters to the county lieutenants and one to the conimandant of
Fort McIntosh, with information of the threatened attack.
As might be expected, the excitement was intense all along
the border. Fort Henry was immediately placed in a proper
condition for defense. The borderers every-wvhere put themselves in readiness to meet the foe. " The country has taken
the alarm," wrote Brodhead, " and several hundred men are
now in arms upon the frontier." It was not long before the
Indians made their appearance, as was expected, in the vicinity of Wheeling, being but a part, however, of those who
were at the " Moravian" Indian towns. Of three boys outside
of Fort Henry, at the time, one was killed, and one-David
Glenn--was made prisoner.  The other effected his escape
inside the fortification, slightly wounded. In a moment, the
garrison was ready to receive the savages. The latter, seeing
the borderers fully prepared for them, soon disappeared, doing
but little mischief, except killing all the cattle they could
find. Their depredations up Wheeling and Buffalo creeks,
however, were, before they re-crossed the Ohio, much more
serious. They killed and captured several persons.
The intelligence sent by Zeisberger, the Moravian missionary, to Brodhead was not well kept. The captured boy, Glenn,
informed the savages " that the garrison at Wheeling and the
country in general were alarmed and on their guard; that
they had been notified of the intention of the Indians by
letters sent to'Pittsburgh by the Moravian ministers. This
exasperated the warriors so much that they took the missionaries prisoners, tied them, and destroyed every thing they had,
354Appendix N.
and ordered the whole of the Moravian Indians to get up and
move off with their families, or they would cut them all off,
which they were obliged to consent to." The day after the
arrest of the ministers, another party of savages returned
from the border settlements to Gnadenhiitten, bringing with
them as prisoner a white man who had been captured some
distance from Wheeling. He corroborated the story of the
boy-prisoner as to the missionaries having sent word to Fort
Pitt of the intentions of the Indians.
The missionary establishments upon the Tuscarawas were
thus broken up, news of which was brought to Fort Pitt
by a "Moravian" Indian woman who made her escape from
the warriors and came into that place on the 7th of September.  (See Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 58-60,
where the real reason for the breaking up of these missionary
establishments is for the first time published.)
N.
SIMON GIRTY AND COLONEL CRAWFORD ON THE SANDUSKY.
[Ante, pp. 169, 170, 172-175, 179, 180, 183.]
DID GIRTY EXERT HIMSELF TO0 SAVE CRAWFORD?
"Simon Girty, who had been a prominent leader in the
conflict [on the Sandusky Plains], and who witnessed this terrible scene [of torturing Crawford], had known Crawford during the Dunmore war; had often enjoyed his hospitality, and,
tradition says, had even formed a romantic attachment for his
daughter. It is therefore easy to believe that the blackest
thing that has ever been alleged against him is that he not
only did not save the tortured and slowly-dying colonel, but
answered him with a mocking laugh when he begged him to
shoot him and relieve him of his agony. It is said that even
the devil is not as black as he is painted, and it is possible
that the same may be said of Girty. Exactly how far his
355History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER IV.
The year 1774 was prolific of trouble in that part of the
country west of the Alleghany mountains, which includes the
region now constituting South-west Pennsylvania and the
north-west portion of West Virginia. It was a year made
conspicuous because of the intensity of ill-feeling between
those residents who adhered to Pennsylvania in her claim to
considerable territory upon the Ohio river, and those who insisted that Virginia included Pittsburgh, and extended a considerable distance to the eastward of it. The contest for jurisdiction was a bitter one, and came well nigh, on several occasions, reaching a point enkindling actual war.
In 1773, Westmoreland county was formed by Pennsylvania
out of the western portion of Bedford, and its county-seat established at Hannastown, about thirty miles eastward of
Pittsburgh. During the summer, Lord Dunmore, governor of
Virginia, visited the western country, and soon after adopted
measures looking to a contest with Pennsylvania for jurisdiction over it. Meanwhile, Simon Girty was getting demonstrative on the side of Virginia. At the October session of
1773, of the court of Westmoreland county, at Ilannastown,
a true bill for a misdemeanor was found by the grand jury
against himn. Process was issued for his arrest, but he escaped.*
Lord Dunmore's chosen agent in the disputed territory was
Dr. John Connolly, of Pittsburgh, who began, the first of January, 1774, to carry out the instructions of his superior, by
calling on the people to meet on the twenty-fifth of that
month, as militia, when he would "communicate matters for
the promotion of public utility."  "His Excellency, John,
- Crumrine's History of WVashingtont County, Pennsylvania, p. 152.
W'hether he was actually arrested is not known.
23History of the Girtys.
savage and perverted nature carried him on this occasion will
never probably be accurately known, but the commonest principles of justice require that some things that are known
should be stated. It should be remembered right at the beginning that Crawford was a prisoner of the Delawares, and
that they only could therefore decide his fate; and that he was
burnt at a Delaware town and in retaliation for an outrage
upon Delawares, for the Moravians [' Moravian' Indians] were
of that tribe. The statement printed time and again that the
ill-fated colonel was burnt by Girty's tribe, the Wyandots, be-,
trays a gross ignorance, both of the transaction itself, and of
the customs peculiar to the different tribes of that day. The
writer was not surprised therefore that a Canadian descendant
of Wyandot Indians, with whom he corresponded, should energetically protest that his ancestral tribe did not at that time,
if ever, burn prisoners of war. Regarded simply from a
tribal stand-point, Girty had no authority whatever to release
Crawford. As to the influence which he might have exerted
in favor of the condemned man, that is another matter, for he
was certainly a person of no little power and importance
among the Indians at that time. Dr. Knight, who was captured with Crawford and witnessed his tortures, and who has
long been accepted as a most reliable authority on this subject, while he says that Girty refused the prayer of the tortured man to shoot him and,' by all his gestures seemed delighted at the horrid scene,' does not make him in any way
an assistant at it. On the contrary, he even asserts that
Crawford said to him:'Girty has promised to do all in his
power for me, but the Indians are very much inflamed against
us.' An examination of the principal authorities on this subject will convince any unprejudiced person that Girty was
true to his promise to Crawford, but that he was utterly powerless to save him. Heckewelder, who certainly had not one
spark of love for Girty, and whose testimony is unimpeachable, says of Crawford:'It was not in the power of any man,
or even body of men, to save his life.' Wingemund, a Delaware chief, when appealed to by Crawford, replied:'If Will356Appendix N.
iamson had been taken you might have been saved, but, as it
is, no man would dare to interfere in your behalf; the King
of England, if he were to come in person, could not save you;
we have to learn barbarities from you white people.' (See
Howe, 547.) If the statements of the savage but brave and
manly Wyandots are to be believed, Girty did not forget the
sacred obligations of accepted hospitality, but remembered
old ties in Crawford's case as he did in Kenton's. McCutchen,
who claims to have obtained his information from Wyandots,
says, in the American Pioneer, that Girty tried to save Crawford at the only time when it was possible to do it, viz., the
night before his capture. That he went to him in Indian
dress, and, under a flag of truce, warned him that he would be
surrounded that night, and told him how he might escape;
that Crawford tried to act on his advice, but that his men
were too much demoralized to carry out the plan. After saying this, McCutcheon strangely adds that afterward, as a matter of speculation, Girty offered the Delaware war chief, Pipe,
three hundred and fifty dollars for Crawford, but was himself
threatened with the stake for his interference; that he was
afraid after that to show the sympathy he felt for the doomed
man, but sent runners, however, to the Lower Sandusky, to
traders there, to hasten to buy Crawford, but that he was
fatally burned by the time they arrived. The latest contribution to this subject is from the venerable Mrs. McCormick, of
Pelee Island, now in her ninety-sixth year, and it is doubly
interesting from the fact that she was not only personally acquainted with Simon Girty, but received her information directly from her mother-in-law, who was captured by the Ohio
Indians when she was about grown, and was at the Delaware
town when Crawford was burnt. Mrs. McCormick kindly
sent the writer the following statement, often repeated to her by
her mother-in-law, in recounting the incidents of her captivity.
She says:'I have often heard my mother-in-law speak of
Simon Girty. She both saw and heard him interceding with
the Indian chief for the life of Colonel Crawford, and he offered the chief a beautiful horse which he had with him, and
357358                History of the Girtys.
the stock of goods he then had on hand, if he would release
him, but the chief said " No! If you were to stand in his
place it would not save him." She also went to see Colonel
Crawford, and talked with him, and he told her that Girty had
done all he could to save his life.' This was no Kenton case.
Crawford had invaded the Indian country with the declared
intention of granting no quarter, and, what was even worse
in the eyes of the infuriated savages, his intimate associate
and right-hand man was the guilty Williamson. Crawford
was burnt by the Delawares in retaliation for the wanton and
cowardly massacre of their Moravian kindred ['Moravian'
Indians], and there was no hope for him from the moment of
his capture. Authorities differ as to the motives which actuated Girty's conduct toward Crawford, but close inquiry renders positive the declaration that Girty was not only powerless to save him, but that he would have endangered his own
life if he had persisted in an open effort to do so."--Magazine
of American History, Vol. XV, pp. 264-266.
To understand fully the part enacted by Simon Girty in
connection with the captivity and torturing of Colonel Crawford, it is necessary to bear in mind one fact, which no historian can, and which nothing but a fiction has presumed, to
gainsay, and that is, that the two met for the first time on
the Sandusky Plains at the Half King's town duringr the night
of the tenth of June. This Girty never denied; on the contrary, he stated within two or three days thereafter, by inference, that he saw him there. And he also related what the
colonel said to him (ante, p. 183). It must not be forgotten
that this place of meeting was about eight miles to the eastward
of the spot where the next night the torturing of Crawford
took place. Much confusion has arisen from confounding
this first meeting with the second one between them, which
last was in the afternoon of the next day, and near Captain
Pipe's village on the Tymochtee-a difference of nearly one
day in time and of nearly eight miles in distance. As to the
first meeting, the writer of the article just quoted from only
gives what is said above by him--that is, he relates the McAppendix N.
Cutchen tradition simply, which is fiction (ante, p. 170).
Crawford didl not meet Girty until five days after his capture.
We have already given the facts and probabilities concerning what took place. at the Half King's town-what Girty
promised and the reasons for believing that he did not make
good his promise (ante, pp. 173-175). Nevertheless, it is said
in the foregoing extract that "' an examination of the principal
authorities on this subject will convince any unprejudiced person that Girty was true to his promise [to do all he could for
Crawford] but that he was utterly powerless to save him."
Now, the trouble with this is, there are no " principal authorities on this subject," except Girty himself, in what he told
Captain Caldwell, and he is silent about any promise-silent
at a time when, to be so, is equivalent to a confession that he
did not carry out what he promised (ante, p. 183). What is said
in the extract above about Heckewelder gives not the slightest
clue to any supposed effort being made on part of Girty. As
to "W Vingemund's" declaration to Crawford that "no man
would dare to interfere in your [Crawford's] behalf "-that is
Heckewelder speaking and not the Delaware chief (see An
Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, pp.
342, 356-361). But, if "Wingemund " really said so, and it
was true, what becomes of the oft-repeated assertion of Girty
and others, made in after years, that he (Girty) did in fact
do all he could to save Crawford? This much of the first
meetincg. Let us now examine what is said as to the second
one.
"Exactly how far," says tlle foregoing extract, "his
[Girty's] savage and perverted nature carried him on this
occasion [the torturing of Crawford] will never probably be
accurately known."  But it is suggested that Dr. Knight's
relation of what he saw and heard of the renegade upon that
occasion makes it extremely clear just " how far his savage
and perverted nature carried him." As to "' the latest contribution to this subject "from the venerable Mrs. McCormick,"
who got her information from her mother-in-law, it may be
359History of the Girtys.
said that doubtless the aged lady first mentioned, recited what
she remembered, as nearly as she could, of the conversation
of another person who " was at the Delaware town when
Crawford was burnt." This second-handed tradition impeaches
itself, as already shown (ante, p. 175);, besides, is it to be
presumed that she (the mother-in-law) " went to see Colonel
Crawford, and talked with him, and he told her that Girty
had done all he could to save his life "-in view of what is related by Dr. Knight as to Girty's behavior? It could not
have been so. " This," it is said in the extract above " was
no Kenton case. Crawford had invaded the Indian country
with the declared intention of granting no quarter." Surely
nothing can be farther from the fact than this (see An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, p. 158,
note).' "And what was even worse in the eyes of the infuriated
savages," continues the extract, " his [Crawford's] intimate
associate and right hand man was the guilty Williamson."
But it is morally certain that neither Captain Pipe nor Wingenund nor any of the residue of the Delawares knew, at the
time of the torture, either that Williamson led the militia to
Gnadenhiitten or that he was along with Crawford. The extract, it will be seen, also avers that "authorities differ as to
the motives which actuated Girty's conduct toward Crawford
[at the burning]."  This is to be taken with a good deal of allowance. Only one writer (Lyman C. Draper) is reported as
having ascribed any " motives " at all to Girty's conduct, and
he evidently volunteers to give what, in his (Draper's) mind
seems likely, without having any evidence to support it.
II.
SIMON GIRTY TO COLONEL CRAWFORD AT THE STAKE.
[The following, by Frank Cowan (see Southwestern Pennsylvania in Song
and Story, pp. 93-100), is inserted as a curiosity.]
You say I am accursed. I am accursed.
Of all the damned on earth, I am the worst.
And it is well I am, that you receive
Your just deserts which only I can give.
360Appendix N.                           361
Compared with me, the Deleware is tameA suckling wolf-a savagb but in name.
The great is grown alone within the great;
A Girty can alone the White create.
The Delaware had killed you at a blow;
But I despise his mercy-and am slow I
Speed seldom makes a single wise reflection,
Whlile Haste is very careless in selection.
You are within yourself a brother man,
Or good or bad, as but a brother can.
But in this pastime you will play the Good,
And I the Evil, of the White Mlan's blood.
You, naked as at birth, bound with a thong,
Will symbolize the Right enthralled by Wrong.
While I, in savage guise, will play my part,
The unseen Savage of the White Man's heart.
Nay, friend; your role is easy-While I speak,'Tis but to writhe in pain about a stake.
Your face is blacked, with that of others here,
That in your fate your own may now appear.
Behold I the tomahawk sinks in the brain
Of all so marked-The inference is plain.
Nay, shudder not and shriek. All men must die.
You are not an exception-nor am I.
But you, the chieftain of these slaughtered men,
Are blessed above them all-in knowing when.
That in anticipation you may feel,
A thousand times, the keen-edged butchering steel.
What I groan beneath the blows, of feeble squaws
And feebler children, with their scourge of strawst
It is my care and kindness that the small
Be given first that you endure-the all I
Besides, these squaws and children will remind
You of your wife and children left behindTo look for your return-to mope and museAnd mourn your death with every breath of news.History of the Girtys.
Until, perchance, the midnight axe descendOf widow's wail and orphan's woe, an end!
Until, perchance, the Gnadenhiitten Maul
Tires not, till it has crushed the skulls of all.
Nay, shudder not and fall upon your kneesI'll change the subject, since it does not please.
Behold the stake! and this rope round the post,
To keep you in position-while you roast.
And these encireling faggots, as you turn,
To roast you through and through_before you burn.
Yea; Simon Girty has pronounced your doom;
The ashes of this wood shall be your tomb!
WVin-gay-nund? Yea; the chief has eat your bread -
Beg him to save your life?  He shakes his head I
Now, while the squaws and children fire the wood,
Consider what the Pipe speaks to his brood.
And since the Redman's tongue you cannot hear,
And understand, I'll be to you an ear.
" Upon this man, the chieftain of our foes,
Let each and all of us avenge our woes.
"For all the wrongs to us the Whites have done.
Let now their chiefLain in himself atone.
"For he is as an army, though but oneAs to the stars at noonday, is the sun.' All cast in him, by the Great Manito,
That we may kill an army at a blow.
" All cast in him by the Great Spirit of Good,
That we may drink at once an army's blood!
"That each and all of ius may say,' My knife
Has taken a great English army's life I
"' Behold this tunwiped stain upon the bladeThis Colonel Crawford's ebbing life's blood made, Then let an army e'er invade our land,
Alone, each one of us, may make a stand.
362Appendix N.                            363
"For we are each an army in the wood,
When we have each drank of an army's blood.
"Strike, one and all, then, with the knife-blade's tip,
That all alike may in the warm blood dip!
" That all may kill in all-not all in one;
And he an army's death die, though alone.
"That all may kill in all-no,t all for one;
That he atone for all the Whites have done.
" Glut, glut your vengeance, now! Strike, one and all!
Remember Gnadenhiitten's murderous Maul!
i" The White Man's army's in the Redman's gripeObpy the words of the avenging Pipe!"
What! cut and gnashed and slashed from top to toe!
Well, do not moan-I said, it would be so.
Yea; I am sure; for I was filled with fear,
Lest when your ears were off, you might not hear.
And now-Yea, there is nothing half so good
As a live coal for quickly staunching blood.
What, groan again? Why, man, your flesh is hard,
And callous to the brand, it is so charred.
I doubt if you could feel-(Yea, fire!)-the wad
Of any musket here, at half a rod.
(Go on-go on-go on I He'll stand a score
Of pops like those, and still cry out for more! )
WVhat, shoot you through the heart, I?-Simon Girty?
To think that I could do an act so dirty I
O)h, no! Besides, you see, I have no gun;
And could not, if I would, stop this rare fun I!
But since you beg me still to take a part,
With words, not wads, I'll shoot you through the heart!
Nay, sink not to the ground upon your kn;ees,
To raise the ashes but to make you sneeze.
And call not on your God to do what IT'he devil-would not do to make you die!History of the Girtys.
The sky is clear-You need not look for rain:
And for the thunderbolt, you pray in vain I
Nay, courage, friend; this fainting is not death;
The gases of the coals but take your breath.
(Quick! with the scalping-knife, and bare his skull I
Before his chest with the foul gas is full I )
Why, man, You are tIot detld! Stand up! there! ho I
And walk around your stake-there! steady! so  
But how you bleed! (QuickI with a cap of fire,
And.clap it on his head, ere he expire I )
Hurrah! that jump is worth a thousand groans
And that sharp shriek a myriad of moans I
But why-why do you stand and stare at me,
As if you knew me not-in mockery?
I'm sure, I have not changed from worse to worst,
Since we began; for I set out accursed.
But YsO are changed somewhat_your features marredA scorched skull staring on a corpse. half charred I
Still, you are William Crawford, Esquire, Judge,
Or Colonel, as they style you, while you budge.
But sink not to the earth again, my friend,
Lest to this conference, there be an end.
Nay, close your eyes not I See me kneel again,
Before your daughter's feet, and kneel in vain m
Nay, close your ears not! Hear my vow once more,
And her refusal as in days of yore I
Oh, close your eyes not, till you see me spurned,
And from your cabin like a leper turned!
Oh, close your ears not, till you hear again
Your curse that maddened then as now my brain!
I loved your daughter-Mark!--till I w"8 driven
From her---rom earth-and every hope of heaven I
I love your daughter still, though I, accursed,
Am, of the fiends of hell, the first and worst I
I love your daughter, Sarah Crawford, still;
And, at her name, my vengeance can not kill I
364Appendix N.
Speak! speak! Her hand's within your own again,
For Harrison is numbered with the slain.
Speak! speak! Her hand! And you shall live!
Speak! speak l before it is too late to give!
To late to--Hold! Save, Girty, save thy breath;
For Crawford's ears are closed for aye in death!
Great God, I curse thee, and thy love I loath,
For Thou'st denied my prayer and kept my oath I
Thou hast denied my love, and, when too late,
Fulfilled my vow of vengeance antd of hate!
In this black, ugly thing I-'this steaming flesh!This sickening stench!_this smouldering shapeless ash!
This act-to live within the brain of Man,
Till he hath made an end where he began.
III.
CAPTAIN ELLIOTT'S ENDEAVORS TO SAVE THE LIFE OF CRAWFORD.
[Ante, p. 183.]
"DETROIT, July 18, 1782.
"SIR:--I am happy to inform you that the Indians from
this quarter have gained a complete victory over six hundred
of the enemy who had penetrated as far as Sandusky, with a
view of destroying the Wyandots, men, women, and children,
as they had done with ninety-six of the Christian Indians at
Muskingum [Tuscarawas] a few weeks before.
"The affair of Sandusky happened on the 4th of June,
when the enemy left two hundred and fifty in the field; and
it is believed that few of the remainder escaped to Wheeling.
"Their major, [John] McClelland, and most of the officers
were killed in the action.  Colonel Crawford, who commanded,
was taken in the pursuit and put to death by the Delawares,
notwithstanding every means had been tried by an Indian
officer [Captain Matthew Elliott] present, to save his life.
This the Delawares declare they did in retaliation for the affair of Muskingum [the' Gnaddenhiitten affair.'].
"I am sorry that the imprudence of the enemy has been
the means of reviving the old savage custom of putting their
365History of the Girtys.
Earl of Dunmore, Governor-in-Chief and Captain-General of
the Colony and Dominion of Virginia, and Vice-Admiral of
the same," said Connolly, " has been pleased to nominate and
appoint me captain commandant of the militia of Pittsburgh
and its dependencies, with instructions to assure his majesty's
subjects, settled on the western waters, that, having the greatest regard for their prosperity and interest, an(d convinced,
from their repeated memorials, of the grievances of which
they complain, that he proposes moving to the House of Burgesses the necessity of erecting a new county, to include
Pittsburgh, for the redress of your complaint, and to take every
other step that may tend to affor(d you that justice which you
solicit." This was the commencement, in earnest, of the
boundary troubles west of the mountains.
The champion of Pennsylvania in the dispute was Arthur
St. Clair, one of the justices of the peace of Westmoreland
county. He soon caused the arrest of Connolly, and had him
imprisoned at Hannastown. The latter, however, was, not
long after, released upon parole. Disturbances multiplied, especially at Pittsburgh. The Pennsylvania Court at Hannastown was assailed by Connolly with an armed force of " Virginia militia;" and, afterward, three of its justices were sent
to Staunton, Virginia, to jail. Fort Pitt was taken possession of by Connolly, and its name changed to "Fort Dunmore." Pennsylvania justices in Pittsburgh seemed, in an
especial manner, the objects of his wrath. In an assault by a
party of his militia on 2Eneas Maackay, the life of Mrs. Mackay was put in jeopardy. One of the militia officers struck
at her head with the barrel of his gun, with great violence;
but an eye witness declares that Simon Girty, who stood by,
"parried off the stroke with his hand." *  This exhibition of
manliness on the part of Girty, is heightened by the circumstance of his being present at the house of Mackay as a Virginia partisan.
It was not, at this date, the boundary troubles only that
* Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. IV, pp. 565, 506.
24History of the Girtys.
prisoners to death, which, with much pains and expense, we
had weaned the Indians from, in this neighborhood.
"I have the pleasure to inform you that all is well in
Canada and that we are too well fortified here to fear any attempts from the enemy. The Western Indians are most firmly
united in the interest of his Brittannic Majesty against all
his enemies....                   A'T S. DE PEYSTER.
"THOS. BROWN, Sup't Indian Affairs."
"Dr. Knight, a surgeon I sent with Colonel Crawford,"
wrote General Irvine to Washington, from Fort Pitt, on the
11th of July, 1782, "returned the 4th instant to this place.
He brings an account of the melancholy fate of poor Crawford. The day after the main body retreated, the colonel,
doctor, and nine others, were overtaken, about thirty miles
from the field of action, by a body of Indians, to whom they
surrendered. They were taken back to Sandusky, where they
all, except the doctor, were put to death. The unfortunate
colonel, in particular, was burned and tortured in every manner they could invent.
"'The doctor, after being a spectator of this distressing
scene, was sent, under guard of one Indian, to the Shawanese
town, where he was told he would shiare the same fate the
next day; but fortunately found an opportunity of demolishing the fellow, and making his escape. The doctor adds, that
a certain Simon Girty, who was formerly in our service, and
deserted with McKee, and is now said to have a commission
in the British service, was present at torturing Colonel Crawford, and that he, the doctor, was informed by an Indian, that
a British captain commands at Sandusky; that he believes he
was present, also, but is not certain; but says he saw a person there [Captain Elliott] who was dressed and who appeared
like a British officer. He also says the colonel begged of
Girty to shoot him [Crawford], but he paid no regard to the
request... Dr. Knight is a man of undoubted. veracity."-Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 126, 127.
"The character of Dr. Knight is well known to be that of a
366Appendix N.
good man, of strict veracity, and of a'calm and deliberate
mind, and using no exaggeration in his account of any matter."-H. H. Brackenridge, 1782, in the Knight and Slover
Narrative. (See letter of Brackenridge on next page.)
IV.
DR. JOHN KNIGHT'S ACCOUNT OF WHAT HE SAW AND HEARD OF SIMON
GIRTY.
[Ante, pp. 177, 178, 180, 181.]
As Dr. Knight and John Slover were the only ones of all
the captured of Crawford's army who escaped from the savages, and immediately returned to the border, their recital of
what they saw and suffered made at once a deep impression
throughout the Trans-Alleghany settlements. Their Narratives were published together in a pamphlet already cited, entitled, "Narratives of a late Expedition against the Indians;
with an Account of the Barbarous Execution of Col. Crawford; and the Wonderful Escape of Dr. Knight and John
Slover from  Captivity, in 1782. Philadelphia: Printed by
Francis Bailey, in Market street. M,DCC,LXXTTT."  An X,
in the date, is accidentally omitted. Copies of the original
edition of this work are exceedingly rare. Subsequent but
imperfect editions have been published from time to time.
The Narratives have also been printed, with more or less variations from the first one published, in several border histories.
In the original pamphlet is the following address by the
publisher-Francis Bailey, printer of the Freeman's Journal,
in Philadelphia:
"To the Public: The two following Narratives [Knight's
and Slover's] were transmitted for publication, in September
last [1782]; but shortly afterwards the letters from Sir Guy
Carleton, to his Excellency, General Washington,' informing
that the savages had received orders to desist from their incursions, gave reason to hope that there would be an end to
their barbarities. For this reason, it was not thought necessary to hold up to view what they had heretofore done. But
as they still continue their murders on our frontier, these
Narratives may be serviceable to induce our government to
367History of the Girtys.
take some effectual'steps to chastise and suppress them; as
from hence, they will see that the nature of an Indian is fierce
and cruel, and that an extirpation of them would be useful to
the world, and honorable to those who can effect it."
Immediately following the address is this letter:
"MR. BAILEY: Enclosed are two Narratives, one of Dr.
Knight, who acted as Surgeon in the expedition under Col.
Crawford, the other of John Slover. That of Dr. Knight was
written by himself at my request; that of Slover was taken
by myself from his mouth as he related it. This man, from
his childhood, lived amongst the Indians; though perfectly
sensible and intelligent, yet he can not write. The character
of Dr. Knight is well known to be that of a good man, of
strict veracity; of a calm and deliberate mind, and using no
exaggeration in his account of any matter. As a testimony
in favor of the veracity of Slover, I thought proper to procure a certificate from the clergyman to whose church he belongs, and which I give below.
"These Narratives you will please publish in your useful
paper, or in any other way you may judge proper. I conceive the publication of them may answer a good end, in
showing America what have been the sufferings of some of
her citizens by the hands of the Indian allies of Britain. To
these Narratives, I have subjoined some Observations which
you may publish or omit, as it may be convenient.
"I H. [H.] BRACKENRIDGE.
"PITTSBURGH, Aug. 3, 1782."
[Certificate of the Clsrgyman.]
"I do hereby certify that John Slover has been for many
years a regular member of the church under my care, and is
worthy of the highest credit.      WILLIAM RENO."
[An Episcopalian.]
Brackenridge, to whom the world is indebted for the Narratives of Knight and Slover, was an eminent lawyer and author of Pittsburgh, from 1781 until his death in 1816. The
368Appendix N.                     369
last fifteen years of his life, he was one of the judges of the
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. He was noted for his talents,
learning, and eccentricity. He was the author of "Modern
Chivalry," "Incidents of the Whisky Insurrection," and other
works. The " Observations " he speaks of, in his letter to Mr.
Bailey, were printed by the latter, with the Narratives of
Knight and Slover. They are, as the writer quaintly calls
them, "Observations with regard to the animals, vulgarly
styled Indians."  They contain, however, nothing in relation
to the expedition against Sandusky. IIe also wrote "A Short
Memoir of Col. Crawford," which was sent by him at the
same time of the transmission of the Narratives, and printed
along with them. A "Memoir of John Slover," to be found
in some of the subsequent editions of the pamphlet, is not
in the original edition.
The Narrative of Knight, up to the commencement of the
retreat of the army, contains little that is not suppliable from
other sources; after that event, however, his account of what
he saw and suffered, is exceedingly valuable and complete.
He throws no light, of course, upon the retreat of the army;
neither does Slover. Both Narratives, it will be noticed, were
written immediately after the return of these men from captivity. There was no printing done in Pittsburgh until the
establishment and issuing of the Pittsburgh Gazette, in July,
1786; hence, the publication of the pamphlet in Philadelphia.
All the statements have been examined that could be found
made by Knight and Slover after their return not contained
in their printed Narratives. Most of these are either in manuscript or in the Philadelphia newspapers of 1782, furnished
by Western correspondents. From these sources, a few additional items have been obtained, all corroborative, however,
of the painphlet.  Subsequent relations of deserters and
of the savages themselves fully substantiate its authenticity
and correctness. "After a treaty or temporary peace had
taken place, I saw traders who had been with the Indians
24History of the Girtys.
at Sandusky and had the same account from the savages themselves which Knight gave of his escape. The Indians confirmed the relation of Slover in all particulars, save as to the
circumstances of his escape, which they said was with the assistance of the squaws."--I. H. Brackenridge, in Loudon's
Indian Wars, Vol. I, pp. viii, ix.
Many incidents are mentioned in both the American and
British official correspondence concerning Crawford's expedition, identical with those to be found in the Narratives just
mentioned. Besides, there are numerous statements extant
of those who marchbed from the border into the wilderness
upon that campaign, all substantiating, to a greater or less extent, the published relations of these two men. There is not,
therefore, the slightest reason to doubt Dr. Knight's statements concerning the words and actions of Simon Girty at
and before the terrible scene of Colonel Crawford's torture.
The relation of Dr. Knight, so far as Girty is concerned, is,
in the original publication, as follows:
" Monday morning, the 10th of June, we were paraded to
march to Sandusky, about thirty-three miles distant; they had
eleven prisoners of us and four scalps, the Indians being seventeen in number.
"Col. Crawford was very desirous to see a certain Simon
Girty, who lived with the Indians, and was on this account
permitted to go to town the same night, with two warriors to
guard him, having orders at the same time to pass by the
place where the Col. had turned out his horse, that they might
if possible, find him. The rest of us were taken as far as the
old town which was within eight miles of the new.
" Tuesday morning, the eleventh, Col. Crawford was brought
out to us on purpose to be marched in with the other
prisoners. I asked the Col. if he had seen Girty?   He
told me he had, and that Girty had promised to do every
thing in his power for him, but that the Indians were very
much enraged against the prisoners; particularly Captain
Pipe one of the chiefs; he likewise told me that Girty
had informed him that his son-in-law Col. Harrison and his
370Appendix N.
nephew William Crawford, were made prisoners by the Shawanese but had been pardoned.
"We were then conducted along toward the place where
the Col. was afterward executed; when we came within about
half a mile of it, Simon Girty met us, with several Indians on
horseback; he spoke to the Col., but as I was about one
hundred and fifty yards behind could not hear what passed
between them.
"Alrnost every Indian we met struck us either with sticks
or their fists. Girty waited until I was brought up and asked,
was that the Doctor?-I told him yes, and went toward him
reaching out my hand, but he bid me begone and called me a
damned rascal, upon which the fellows who had me in charge
pulled me along. Girty rode up after me and told me I was
to go to the Shawanese towns.
"When we were come to the fire'the Colonel was stripped naked, ordered to sit down by the fire and then they beat
him with sticks and their fists. Presently after I was treated
in the same manner. They then tied a rope to the foot of a
post about fifteen feet high, bound the Colonel's hands behind
his back and fastened the rope to the ligature between his
wrists. The rope was long enough for him to sit down or
walk round the post once or twice and return the same way.
The Colonel then called to Girty and asked if they intended
to burn him?-Girty answered, yes. The Colonel said he
would take it all patiently.
[Then follows the Doctor's account of the Colonel's suffering at the hands of the savages.]
"In the midst of these extreme tortures, he called to Simon Girty and begged of him to shoot him; but Girty making
no answer he called to him again. Girty then, by way of derision, told the Colonel he had no gun, at the same time turning about to an Indian who was behind him, laughed heartily,
and by all his gestures seemed delighted at the horrid scene.
" Girty then came up to me and bade me prepare for death.
lle said, however, I was not to die at that place, but to be
burnt at the Shawanese towns. He swore by G--d I need
371History of the Girtys.
not expect to escape death, but should suffer it in all its extremities.
"He then observed, that some prisoners had given him to
understand, that if our people had him they would not hurt
him; for his part, he said, he did not believe it, but desired to
know my opinion of the matter, but being at that time in
great anguish and distress for the torments the Colonel was
suffering before my eyes, as well as the expectation of undergoing the same fate in two days, I made little or no answer.
He expressed a great deal of ill-will for Col. Gibson, and said
he was one of his greatest enemies, and more to the same
purpose, to all which I paid very little attention."-Knight
and Slover's Narratives (ed. of 1783), pp. 9-12.
0.
A FICTITIOUS ACCOUNT OF SIMON GIRTY ATTITUDINIZING AS AN
ORATOR.
[Ante, pp. 190, 191, where the address mentioned below, said to have been
delivered, is given. See albo pp. 202, 203.)
"Early in August, 1782, large detachments of Indian warriors from the Cherokee, Wyandots, Tawas, and Pottowattomies, as well as from several other tribes bordering on the
lakes, assembled in grand council at Chillicothe, where they
were met by Simon Girty and McKee, two renegade white
men, unprincipled in disposition, and stained with the blood
of innocent women and children-their lives were assimilated
to the customs and habits of the Indians, from which and their
general knowledge of the white people, they had acquired the
confidence of the Indians, were faithful to their interests, and
assisted at, and were conspicuous in their councils.
"Girty, in order to inflame the minds of young warriors.against the Kentuckians, took an elevated stand, when he disengaged his arm from his blanket, assuming the attitude of an
orator, and to the painted savage assembly, equipped in all
372Appendix P.
the habiliments of war, delivered the following address."From Bradford's Notes.
P.
CONCERNING TIlE BLUE LICKS CAMPAIGN.
[Ante, pp. 201, 205-208.]
"In the summer of 1782, the British commandant at Detroit
ordered Major Caldwell to take Simon Girty, a few traders,
a company of provincial militia, together with whatever Indians could be collected at Detroit and by the way, and with
these forces to attack and destroy settlements the rebels were
making south of the Ohio. Caldwell collected his men, was
joined by a party of Indians at Detroit and by other parties
on the Maumee, on the Great Miami, and from other points
along the line of march. WVhen he reached the Ohio, his
forces thus increased amounted to about four hundred men.
It was Caldwell's intention to attack the station at Beargrass
(Louisville) first, but receiving information that Clark was
there, and that the place was supplied with cannon, he changed
his plan, and led his force up the Kentucky river, and thence
to Bryant's station. Before they arrived there, they were
discovered, and the inhabitants were so well fortified that
a siege of two days and a half made no impression upon
them, and gave no hope that they would be compelled to surrender.
"Under these circumstances, Caldwell withdrew his forces
from the station and fell back as far as the Blue Licks, where
game was supposed to be sufficiently abundant to support
them until he could find some other and weaker point of attack. At first the Indians were unwilling to alarm the buffaloes by encamping too near the Licks, but Caldwell, a vigilant
and efficient commander, suspecting the Kentuckians were in
pursuit, overruled their objection and selected a position near
the Licks most favorable for defense. They had not been
twenty-four hours in their new location before the Long Knives
373History   of the Girtys.
came. They were supposed to number about two hundred
men, many of whom fought on horseback, and appeared to
have several commanders. All of them   who were fairly
brought into action fought desperately, but it seemed they
were more blind than brave; for, in a battle of one hour only,
their loss was sixty-five killed, and many wounded. Of these
several were carried off by their companions, and the remainder were massacred by the Indians. Many more of the
Kentuckians must have fallen had the Indians continued to
fight instead of scrambling after the spoils, and even fighting
among themselves for choice rifles, which were found near the
dead and in some instances wounded wen."-Albach's Western Annals (1857), pp. 395, 396.
It is claimed that the foregoing statement was made by an
individual who was under Caldwell at the time. But another
account has been published, which will now be given to be
compared with the one just inserted.
" Mr. [Joel] Collins [whose biography is being given] could
detail all the circumstances connected with the disastrous battle of the Blue Licks. I will mention one singular fact related
by him which I have not seen referred to in history. He said
he learned it from an old man, since he resided in the State of
Ohio. This man was charged by some of his neighbors with
being a tory in the Revolutionary War, and having served the
British with the Indians under the notorious Simon Girty. It
was alleged that he was present at the siege of Bryant's station, and, subsequently, at the battle of the Blue Licks. Mr.
Collins stated that after he had become acquainted with the
old man, and acquired his confidence by several little acts of
kindness and friendship, he felt a strong desire to hear what
the old man would say on the subject. He sought a fitting
opportunity, and asked him if what he had heard was true.
He confessed that it was. They then sat down on a log together (for they were alone in the woods), and the old man
saying he would tell him all about it, made the following statement:
374Appendix P.
"' He resided in the State of New York at the time the
American Revolution commenced; a cousin of his, who had
received a lieutenant's commission in the American army,
made him drunk, and while in that condition induced him to
enlist during the war; when he became sober he repented of
his engagment, but the officer refused to let him off. He deserted and fled to Detroit, then in possession of the English.
Some time after he had been in that country an expedition
was planned against the settlements in Kentucky, to be composed chiefly of Indians and such of the white inhabitants as
could be prevailed on to join them. The expedition was conducted by an officer of the British army, named Caldwell.
The deserter attached himself to this party and marched with
the expedition. After they had failed in their attack on Bryant's station and had retreated as far as Licking river, near the
Blue Licks, Officer Caldwell consulted with the Indians as to
the probability of their being pursued by the white people,
for the position in which they were was a favorable one to
give battle to and repel the whites should they come on. The
Indians assured the Englishman that they had in their company an old man that by prophecy or conjuration could tell
whether they were pursued or not. The old Indian after figuring awhile with his conjuring tools, pointed to an elevation
in the sky above the horizon, which would leave the sun
about three hours high in the afternoon, and said: When the
sun gets there, the Long Knives will be here. The Indians
immediately crossed the river and formed an ambuscade
where the battle was fought. Officer Caldwell, however, not
placing implicit confidence in the conjuration of the old Indian, mounted a couple of his most trusted spies on fleet
horses and sent them back to make discoveries. They had
not proceeded very far when they discovered that the Kentuckians were coming on. The conjuration of the Indian was
strictly true. The result is known.' "-McBride's Pioneer
Biography (1869), Vol. I, pp. 207, 208.
It will be noticed that the " old man" referred to by Mr.
McBride does not say that the "Indians " were " under the
375History of the, Girty.s.
brought distress to the region of the upper Ohio. There was
a portentious war-cloud arising south-west of Pittsburgh.
Virginians on the one side, Shawanese and AMingoes * on the
other-these were the combatants. The general antagonism
of the red an(l white races, now being brought continually
nearer to each other, as the tide of emigration broke through
the Alleghanies, and rolled down in a continuous flow upon the
Ohio valley, was the remote cause of the conflict. The immediate one was acts of aggression on both sides. For ten
years following the so-called " Conspiracy of Pontiac," in
176-3, there was peace upon the border; nevertheless, murders were frequent on both sides-but particularly on that of
the savages. Neither the Indians nor the Virginians were
prepared by a continuous forbearance to avoid a conflict,
which, sooner or later, would surely be brought on between
them. The redmen charged the "Long Knives" with commencing hostilities; the "Long Knives " declared the Shawanese and Mingoes the aggressors. The killing of the relatives of the Mingo chief, Logan, and other Indians, brought,
matters to a crisis, and " Lord Dunmore's War" ensued, the
first movement of importance, on the part of the Virginians,
being that of Maajor Angus McDonald against the Shawanese
towns upon the Muskingum, w-hich was successful.
In this war, Simon Girty was an active participant. Taking sides with Virginia in the boundary troubles, naturally he
would not be backward in aiding her against the savages.
That he was a Pennsylvanian did not deter him.
So, when Dunmore reached Pittsburgh, on his way with the
northern division of a Virginia arlny to attack the Shawanese
and AMingroes if these savages did not comply with his terms,.
Girty enlisted under his banner as scout and interpreter.
"IHe [Dunmore]' says a recent writer, already cited, " had' The Mingocs, west and north-west of the Ohio, at this date and later,.
were mongrel bands, made up principally from the Six Nations (particularly
the Senecas) and Delawares. The la,tter were mostly of the sub-tribe
known as the Monseys (generally written ilMuncey's). Of all their chiefs,
the nmost noted was Logan, a Cayuga, soon to be mentioned.
25History of the Girtys.
notorious Simon Girty." This is by McBride himself or by
Mr. Collins; and is so asserted as one of the facts which
every body understood. But this " old man " was either a,
fraud or he had an exceedingly bad memory. If the former,
he had gleaned enough about the story of the Blue Licks to
assert one thing not generally known at that day-the fact
that Caldwell was the leader of the enemy at the battle of the
Blue Licks; but it is evident that he was in the expedition, and that his recollection on many points was at fault.
A careful examination of his statement and of the one published by Albach discloses the fact that the last was also the
account of the same " old man." It will be remembered that,
in the Albach account, Simon Girty is represented by inference as having no command.
Compare, as to this campaign, "Keith " (Thomas M. Green),
in Cincinnati Commercial Gazette, August 19, 1882; Richard
H. Collins, in Louisville Courier-Journal, August 17 and 19,
same year.
In connection with the supposed Girty-Reynolds episode, a
few authorities as to the point that there was no cessation in
the attack on the station (Bryan's) after it began until its
final ending, is here given:
"The siege continued from about sunrise till about ten
o'clock the next day, then they [the enemy] marched off."Boone to the Governor of Virginia, August 30, 1782, in
Calendar of Virginia State Papers, Vol. III, p. 275. " They
attacked the station closely and defeated (lifferent parties endeavoring to throw in assistance."-Logan to Harrison, Au-i
gust 31, 1782, the same, p. 280. "They... kept up a
smart fire till the morning of the 17th, when they went off."Levi Todd to Harrison and Council, September 11, 1782, id.,
p. 300. " In the meantime, the Indians made a violent attack
upon Bryant's Fort and continued it all day and night, and
a storm was expected. Ilowever they met with some loss,
and on the morning of the 17th went off."-Levi Todd to
Rob't Todd, August 26, 1782, il., p. 333. Not one of these
376Appendix Q.
writers mention any demand having been made for a surrender,.
while Levi Todd, it will be noticed, in his letter of the twentysixth expressly declares the attack " continued" " all day and
night." Surely, so important a matter as a.demand to giveup the station would have been known by these writers had
it been made; and, having been known by them, it is certainly to be presumed they would have mentioned it.
Q.
THE HALDIMAND MANUSCRIPTS,
"After 1831 the accessions [to the manuscript collectionsof the British Museum] have been arranged in one series,
called'Additional Manuscripts,' and including the Sloane Collection, 4,000 vols. This later classification contained, in
1881, 31,380 volumes. Though there are papers of much interest in the King's, Egerton, and the other earlier collections,
it is among these Additional Manuscripts, in the Haldimand
Papers, that we find the richest stores pertaining to the
American Revolution. These Haldimand Papers are embraced in 232 volumes, covering the years 1758-1785, mainly
in Canada, though an interval was passed by Haldimand in
Florida. These papers, catalogued in the printed Index to
MSS. in the British Museum   (London, 1880), p. 679, are
marked as having been acquired between 1854 and 1875,'
and are called Official Correspondence and Papers of Gen.
Frederick  aclldimand during his various Commands, 17581785 (British Museum, Additional Manuscripts, Nos. 21,66121,982). They include letters of Earl Howe to I1aldimand,
1778-1785 (No. 21,709); Sir William  Howe's, 1778-1779,
1781 (Nos. 21,734, 21,807, 21,808); Sir Henry Clinton's,
1777-1783 (Nos. 21,807, 21,808); Burgoyne's, 1779-1782
I They were mainly bequeathed to the Museum by William, nephew (or,
probably, grand-nephew) of General Haldimand. Compare account of
Haldimand by G. D. Scull, in the Pennsylvania Alagazine of History, 1884,
Vol. VIII, p. 300, and BrIymner's accounIt of Haldituanld in his Report for
1887.
3777History of the Girtys.
(Nos. 21,732, 21,733, 21,734), and Washington's, 1780-3 (in
No. 21,835).
"There is a volume of copies of those relating to the
French war among the Pa.rkman Papers in the Massachusetts
Historical Society; but the most extensive transcripts in
America is the series made from them for the Canadian government at Ottawa, which have been described in the Reports
of the Dominion archivist Douglas Brymner.' In his Report
for 1884, he has begun an elaborate calendar of the entire
collection, which it is intended finally to publish separately.
" The Haldimand Papers include a series of correspondence
with the governors of the American colonies, 1765-1774; his
correspondence with Germain and the home government, reporting on affairs in the coionies; and the minutes of the
Council at Quebec, 1778-1784, beside a great variety of other
important papers. It is the fullest repository which we have
of the attempted negotiations for sundering Vermont from the
American cause.2
"Haldimand was a friend of Henry Bouquet (who died
1765), and inherited his papers, so that what are known as
the Bouquet Papers are a component part of the Haldimand
Papers. These are also indexed in the Catalogue of MSS. in
the British Museum.
"I Many papers supplementing the IHaldimand Papers are in
the Quebec series in the Public Record Office, making ten
volumes, and these are noted in Brymner's Report for 1883,
p. 79."-Justin Winsor, in Narrative and Critical History of
America, Vol. VIII, pp. 461, 462.
"The fact as to the originals of the Haldimand Papers
being both in the State Paper Office and ini the British Mu1 Compare his Report (appended to the reports of the Commissioner of
Agriculture) for 1873, 1881, 1882.
2 Compare Haldimand Papers, with Contemporaneous History, 1779-1783,
in Vermont Historical Society Collections, Vol. II, and the statements respecting the importance of these papers in investigating this question, as
detailed in Vol. VI of Winsor's Narrative and Critical History of America.
Haldimand at one time captured B. Arnold's papers.-Pennsylvania Magazine of History, Vol. VIII, p. 309.
378Appendix Q.
seum," writes Douglas Brymner to the author of this narrative,,on the 20th of January, 1890, " is easily explained:
"The uncertainty of transport was so great that triplicate,(sometimes quadruplicate) originals were sent from both sides.
Haldimand kept a complete collection of what was sent him
and copies for his own use of all the letters he sent to the
ministry. Hence the originals in the Museum. The original
letters from Haldimand and copies of all letters sent to him
were kept in the Colonial Office and subsequently transferred
to the Record (State Paper) Office. Hence the possession of
originals there also. But the correspondence in the latter is
very limited as compared with Haldimand's own collection,
only 9 volumes as compared with 232, every sort of subject,coming within range of Haldimand being kept on record.
Besides the 9 volumes thert are others in the Treasury, etc.,
but the whole of those in the government departments can not
make any thing like the number in Haldimand's own collection."
"Among the most valuable of the hitherto untouched manuscripts which I have obtained," says Theodore Roosevelt in
his Preface to The Winning of the West, are the Haldimand
papers, preserved in the Canadian archives at Ottawa." And
that author continues:  "They [the Haldimand Papers]
give, for the first time, the British and Indian side of all the
northwestern fighting; including Clark's campaigns, the
siege of Boonsborough [sic], the Battle of the Blue Licks,
Crawford's defeat, etc."
In the Vermont Historical Society's Collections, Vol. II,
are published many letters and documents from the Haldimand Collection, as before noted. That volume was given to
the public a number of years ago; and, of the particular letters
and documents thus printed, there may be mentioned those relating to Crawford's defeat and notably those concerning
Clark's abortive campaign against Detroit in 1781, being the
official report of Lochry's defeat and a letter from General
Haldimand to Sir Henry Clinton, of September 29, 1781.
But further:  In the IXth volume of the Michigan
379380               History of the Girtys.
Pioneer Collections, published in 1886 (pp. 343-658), is
printed a large number of letters and documents from the
Hlaldimand Papers (and more are promised), copies having
been made for that purpose from the Ottawa transcripts.
Many of these are the same as those used in The Winning of
the West.
So, also, early in 1888, there were printed in the XIth
volume of the Collections of the State Historical Society of
Wisconsin (pp. 97-212), many of the Haldimand Papers, copies
for that purpose having been obtained from the Canada transcripts. These are ably annotated by Reuben G. Thwaites,
Corresponding Secretary of that Society.
Again: In the Washington-Irvine Correspondence (Madison, Wisconsin, David Atwood, 1882), in an historical sketch
of one of Clark's campaigns' (see pp. 55, 56), Haldimand
Papers are cited by the author of this narrative and relied
upon; and in the same volume are published from the same
all of the most important of the letters of that Collection relating to Crawford's defeat (pp. 368-371). And in the Magazine of Western History, Vol. VII, pp. 153-165, 357-368
(June and August, 1888), Haldimand Papers, are relied
upon and frequently cited in a narrative of principal events
occurring in the Ohio valley and in the North-west from the
commencement of 1779 to the end of 1781, referring to much
of, though not to "all the northwestern fighting " during that
period.
In Bancroft's History of the United States, in Farmer's
History of Detroit, and in an able paper entitled The West, by
William Frederick Poole, to be found in the VIth volume of'
Winsor's Narrative and Critical History of America, Haldimand Papers are used. All these publications (and others
might be mentioned) were given to the public before the two
volumes of Roosevelt.
It is proper here to examine the declaration of Roosevelt as
to the Haldimand Papers giving " the British and Indian side
of all the northwestern fighting;" he means " all the northwestern fighting " between the Americans on one side and theAppendix Q.
British and Indians on the other during the Revolution. This
is not strictly correct, although the Papers refer, more or less,
to the principal contests of arms in that region from 1777 to
1783 inclusive-the period covering " the northwestern fighting."  But the mischievousness of the statement lies in the
fact that it conveys the idea that the writer (Roosevelt) is in
possession of all the " papers" of the Haldimand Collection
bearing upon those conflicts, or, at least, of all that are
necessary to a correct understanding of them.
Farther on in his Preface, Roosevelt complicates matters.
"I have been obliged," he says, " to rely mainly on these collections of early documents [the Haldimand Papers and other
manuscripts which he mentions] as my authorities, especially
for that portion of western history prior to 1783."  Confining
ourselves to the Haldimand Papers, the question is pertinent,
how could that writer rely with positive certainty upon them,
in particular cases, when by far the most important-the most
necessary-of them relating to the events he is describ-ing he,
probably, had not seen? He declares in the paragraph, from
which the last quotation is made, that "the mass of original
material, in the shape of official reports and contemporary letters, contained in the Haldimand MSS. [and others mentioned
by him], not only cast a flood of new light upon this early history [that is, the early history of the country west of the
Alleghanies], but necessitates its being ertirely re-written."
And he nerves himself to this task of re-writing a part of
early Western history in one notable instance (and there are
others, in his pages), that of giving an account of Bird's campaign into Kentucky-than which there was none more important in the West during the Revolution-by describing it
without having seen, it is believed, the Official Correspondence
of the British commander concerning the expedition, which is
among the Canadian transcripts of the Haldimand Papers.
(See pp. 120, 182, 198, ante.)
381History of the Girtys.
R.
GEORGE GIRTY TO CAPTAIN ALEXANDER M KEE.
[Ante, p. 293.]
"BUCKUNGEHELAS TOWN, Septemnber 5, 1784.
" Sir:-I have to acquaint you that some of the Cherokees
and Shawanese Indians are gone a horse-hunting again. I
am likewise informed that the Kikapoos and Weas have taken
several prisoners lately from about the Falls and Salt creek,.
which has occasioned an army to march from the Falls against
them. They have been met by Indian spies from Weatenon.
The Indians say they did not mean to kill \Vilson only to
frighten him. His man was killed by Snake's nephew.
"A Shawanese Indian with two white men who came from
the Falls lately, informs me, that four Spaniards who came
from New Orleans to that place made a speech to send among
the Indians, informing them that now the English and Americans were one. The latter were to be supplied with every
thing they wanted by the former which occasioned the Americans to be very saucy.
"I am, sir, your most obedient and humble servant,
"GEORGE GIRTY.
"ALEXANDER MCKEE, EsQ."
S.
EXAMINATION OF JOHN LEITH.
[See p. 224.]
"The deponent saith that he was storekeeper for himself
and company at Tuscarawas, where he had a quantity of goods
and furs; that there was another store at the same place, kept
by James Chambers, for Messieurs Hami;lton and Greenough,
where was also a considerable amount of goods and skins;
382Appendix S.
that the whole property in both stores was about the value of
one thousand pounds.
" That on Tuesday, the 27th of September, seven of the
Wyandot nation came to the store, about nine o'clock in the
morning; the deponent and Chambers were together at his
house, sitting by the fire; the Wyandots told the Delawares,
a party of whom had been trading with him for some days, that
there was war-tlhat the hatchet was taken up; upon which,
one of the Delawares came to'him and bid him rise and go
with him; the deponent went with him, when the Delaware
told him that Chambers would be killed; he soon heard the
stroke made at Chambers by one of the Wyandots; he was
immediately tomahawked and drawn out before the house,
where he was left; the deponent having been a prisoner with
the Delawares for twelve years, and being adopted as a brother
in that nation, was the reason, he supposes, why his life was
spared; the Wyandots took the goods and furs, except the
property of the deponent, and made two parcels of them; they
gave one division to the Delawares, and took the other themselves.
" The deponent was carried to the Delaware towns, to a place
called Coshurking, on the head-waters of the Big Miami; at
the time of his arrival, there was a grand council of the Indians, at which were present the chiefs of the Delawares, Wyandots, Shawanese, Mingoes, Cherokees, Putawatimees, Kickapoos, and the Twigtees, with belts and speeches from the
Ouiatinons, Tawas, Chipeways, and the Fox nations.
"The council was held on the first of October, and lasted
two days and nights; they held it three miles from the town;
he could not learn the object of their meeting.
"The deponent further saith that he met with Captain Pipe
at the council, and, as soon as the council was over, the deponent was released from confinement; Captain Pipe and
George Washington went with him to Pipe's residence, a Delaware town on the Sandusky River; they immediately went to
work to collect the goods that were taken at Tuscarawas, and
had collected a considerable quantity to be redelivered to the
383History   of the Girtys.
-owners; they staid two nights at Pipe's town, when Pipe,
George Washington, and deponent went to the Wyandot towns
where they were collecting the goods also; that the chiefs of
both nations seemed very averse to the outrage committed at
Tuscarawas; the deponent verily believes that a considerable
-quantity of the goods will be returned; the deponent is of the
-opinion, froiom the frequent conversations he has had with the
Indians, before and since the late affair at Tuscarawas, that
the chiefs of the Delaware and Wyandot nations are for peace,
but that the young men and bad characters of both nations can
not be kept at peace; that Simon Girty and Captain Caldwell
-of the British rangers, were lately at the Wyandot towns, and
that he verily believes, from the information given him by a
man well acquainted with these matters, that Girty and Caldwell were using their endeavors to prevent the Delawares and
Wyandots from going to the treaty to be held at the mouth of
the Big Miami.
"The deponent further saith that, from every observation he'could make, and from the general talk of the Indians, he is
led to believe that they are, in general, averse to giving up
their lands; he is certain it will be dangerous for the Continental surveyors to go on with their business, until some further treaty is made with the Shawanese, Mingoes, and Cherokees, who appear to be most averse to this business.
" The deponent further saith that he was at the Lower San~dusky, when the articles of peace between Great Britain and
America were made known to the Indians; that they were
told that the hatchet was only laid down, but not buried; that
the Half King of the Wyandots remarked that, if it was peace,
it should be buried-that there were many of their foolish
young men who would take it up, unless it was covered. And
further saith not.l
"Sworn to before me, at Fort McIntosh, this 17th day of
October, 1785.
" JOHN DOUGHTY,
"lMajor Comm'dt."
[St. Clair Papers, Vol. II, p. 632, 633.]
1MS. Harmar Papers.
384Appendix T.
T.
M'KEE THE PRINCIPAL STIMULATOR OF THE WAR OF 1790-95.
McKee, as British Indian agent, reported, on the 3d of
June, 1794, from the "Miamis Rapids" (Rapids of the Maumee), that a deserter had come in from the American army at
Fort Greenville. In giving information as to the intelligence
brought by him, McKee says: "Wells and May, two spies,
with sixteen others, dress and paint themselves like Indians,
and were out on a scout when he deserted. They are paid
forty dollars for every Indian's scalp, besides a dollar each per
day; and one thousand dollars are offered for the scalp of Simon
Girty." (Consult, for a copy of McKee's Report, transcripts
of the Haldimnand Papers, in Canadian Archives, Ottawa, Series "C," Vol. 247, p. 165.) But neither General Wayne nor
any of his officers offered a bounty for Indian scalps during
this war, nor was any sum offered by them for the scalp of
Simon Girty. They would certainly not have taken such
responsibility without orders: and their official instructions
contain no such authority. The deserter had either been
wrongly informed, or he purposely told what was false. General Wayne looked upon McKee as being " the principal stimulator " of the war then existing; and had he been authorized
to offer one thousand dollars reward for the scalp of any white
man, it would,. doubtless, have been for his. Besides, Wells
and May went out to take prisoners, not scalps.
That, in the opinion of Wayne, MeKee was the chief instigator of the war is proven by the letter of the former to the
secretary of war from head-quarters, Grand Glaize, 28 Aug.,
1794. "....    We remained three days and nights on
the banks of the Miami [Maumee] in front of the field of battle [of August 20th], during which time all the houses and
corn-fields were consumed and destroyed for a considerable
distance, both above and below the fort Miami, as well as
within pistol shot of that garrison, who were compelled to re25
385Preface.
many of those events which Imake the history of our country so full
of interest. Their lives, from boyhood to old age, were indeed
"tragically romantic."
Pennsylvanians by birth, they were prisoners to the Indians in
the old French war. Simon was a noted scout in Lord Dunmore's
war; and he, with his two brothers before named, was actively engaged in the interest of Britain during the last five years of the
Revolution. In the Indian war of 1790-95, Simon and George
aided the savages-the former in a way especially effective. But
what has given the three brothers particular notoriety was their
warring against their countrymen in connection with the Indians,
from 1778 to 1783, inclusive.
An interest in another of the Girty brothers-Thomas--and a
half-brother-John Turner-is awakened because of the bearing
their lives have upon the career of their three more noted relatives.
Therefore it is that they, too, are noticed at some length in the
pages following. Other members of the family are mentionedonly, however, in an incidental manner.
It only remains for me to acknowledge my indebtedness to
Douglas Brymner, Esq., of Ottawa, Canada, for promptly furnishing whatever copies have been called for of the transcripts of the
Haldimand Papers in his charge as Public Archivist. The extent
of the obligation I am under to him for this courtesy can be best
understood by observing the number of citations from these Papers which hereafter occur.
CONSUL WILLSHIRE BUTTERFIELD.
OMAHA, March, 1890.
ivHistory of the Girtys8.
with him as scouts many men famous in frontier story, among
them, George Rogers Clark, Cresap, and Simon Kenton-afterwards the bane of every neighboring Indian tribe, and renowned all along the border for his deeds of desperate prowess, his wonderful adventures, and his hair-breadth escapes.
Another, of a very different stamp, was Simon Girty.
At the moment he was serving Lord Dunmore and the whites;
but he was, by tastes, habits, and education a red man, who
felt ill at ease among those of his own color."  But this is
robbing him of too much-far too much-of his white " tastes,
habits, and education," as will hereafter be fully shown.
With Girty, went his half-brother, John Turner. John was
brought back to civilization at a tender age, as already indicated. He grew to man's estate in the vicinity of Pittsburgh,
and married there; but nothing is known of his wife: children, he had none.
Governor Dunmore, with about twelve hundred men, now
started down the Ohio. It was his intention, originally, to go
as far down that stream as the mouth of the Great Kanawha;
but, before reaching Pittsburgh (and while at Old Town), he
changed his plan, resolving to stop at the mouth of the Little Kanawha.   However, at Pittsburgh, he concluded the
mouth of the HockhockitIg would be the better place to make
his first stand in the enemy's country; so his forces were put
in motion, destined for that point.
The southern division of the army was put under command
of Colonel Andrew Lewis, whose orders were to move down
the Great Kanawha to its mouth, these orders being changed,
however, by Dunmore before leaving Old Town, as just intimated, so that the two divisions were to unite at the mouth of
the Little Kanawha. But this arrangement was made known
-to Lewis at so late a date that he could not change his route,
and he moved on down the river first mentioned.
At the Little Kanawha, Dunmore, in ignorance as to whether
Lewis had reached Point Pleasant (mouth of the Great Kane Roosevelt, in The Wtnning of the West, Vol. I, pp. 219, 220.
26History of the Girtys.
main tacit spectators to this general devastation and conflagration, among which were the houses, stores, and property
of Colonel McKee, the British Indian agent, and principal
stimulator of the war now existing between the United States
and the savages."-American State Papers, Vol. V (Ind.
Aff., Vol. I), p. 491. The following are in corroboration:
Examination of a prisoner, 11 Aug., 1794. "Wlhere are
the Indians at this time? "-"At Colonel McKee's."  "Where
are the British?"-" In a fort about one mile below Colonel
McKee's."
"About seventy of the militia including Capt. CalIdwell's
corps, were in the action. Colonel McKee, Capt. Elliott,
and Simon Girty, were in the field, but at a respectable distance, and near the river. The Indians have wished for peace
some time, but Colonel McKee has always dissuaded them
from it."-From an examination of Antoine Lassell, a native
Canadian, and a volunteer in Capt. Caldwell's company of
refugees, friends and allies of the hostile Indians, captured in
the action of the 20th August, 1794. American State Papers,
Vol. V (Ind. Aff., Vol. I), p. 494.
In addition to the above, is the following firom another prisoner: "The Indians are regularly supplied with provisions
drawn from the British magazine, in the garrison, by Colonel
McKee.   The militia of Detroit and vicinity amounts to
nearly two thousand. Colonel Baubee commands them. McKee is also a Colonel of militia. One company of volunteers
commanded by Capt. Caldwell was in the action [of the' Fallen Timber,' August 20th]."
U.
GOVERNOR SIMCOE, OF CANADA, PREVENTS PEACE IN 1794.
[Ante, p. 287.]
" In the month of October following this defeat [the battle
of the' Fallen Timber,' August 20, 1794] Blue Jacket con_L_
386Append ix V.
curred in the expediency of suing for peace, and at the head
of a deputation of chiefs, was about to bear a flag to General
Wayne, then at Greenville, when the mission was arrested by
foreign influence. Governor Simcoe, Colonel McKee, and the
Mohawk chief, Captain Joseph Brant, having in charge one
hundlred and fifty Mohawks and Messasagoes, arrived at the
rapids of the Maumee, and invited tbe chiefs of the combined
army to meet them at the mouth of the Detroit river, on the
10th of October, To this Blue Jacket assented for the purpose of hearing what the British officers had to propose.
Governor Sirncoe urged the Indians to retain their hostile attitude towards the United States. In referring to the encroachments of the people of this country on the Indian lands,
he said:'Children: I am still of the opinion that the Ohio is
your right and title. I have given orders to the commandant
of Fort Miami [the fort recently erected by the British on the
Maumee] to fire on the Americans whenever they make their
appearance again. I will go down to Quebec and lay your
grievances before the great man. From thence they will be
forwarded to the king your fa.ther. Next spring you will
know the result of every thing you and I will do.' Ile urged
the Indians to obtain a cessation of hostilities until the following spring, when the English would be ready to attack the
Americans and by driving them back across the Ohio, restore
their lands to the Indians. These counsels delayed the conclusion of peace until the following summer."-Drake's Tecumseh. But it is certain peace was not, because of this
counsel of Governor Simcoe, much delayed.
V.
SIMON GIRTY AND THE SCOTCH-IRISH OF WESTERN VIRGINIA.
It is a fact (which is not at all a matter of surprise or wonder) that certain localities in what is now known as the "' PanHandle," in West Virginia, escaped the visitations of the sav387  388                History of the Girtys.
ages during the Revolution and the Indian war which followed; but, that that fact was owing, in any way, to the efforts of Simon Girty, is the height of absurdity. "It is related," says a recent account, "that no murders or depredations were ever committed in a certain neighborhoo(d in the
eastern part of Ohio County [West Virginia] and it is pretty
certain that not many happened on the eastern si(le of
Brooke [county, same state], until we reach the region on the
head-waters of Cross creek and thence northward on Harmon's
and King's creeks. Some attributed this to favoritism. This
region was peopled, says the account, by Presbyterians of the
Scotch-Irish stock, who located there to secure homes for
themselves and their children; and with the hig,h sense of justice, characteristic of them, they refused to aid or countenance any aggressions against the Indians. There were no
scouts or Indian fighters amnong them, and none of the lawless
class. They acted strictly on the defensive. From the light
that has since been thrown upon the character of Simon Girty,
it appears that they were unknowingly indebted to him for
their exemption from Indian trouble; notwithstanding that
they always considered Girtyv to be their worst enemy. Girty,
it is very certain, was well acquainted with the character of
the settlements."--Jacob's Brooke County, West Virginia,
p. 25.
That the Scotch-Irish, of Western Virginia, during the
dark days of the Revolution and the Indian War of 1790-5,
had " no scouts or Indian fighters among them," is a very different story from what authentic history tells us. None
fought the Indians with more zeal and determination; none
were more ready and willing to repel savage aggressions;
none marched into the Indian country with more heroic valor
than they. And, to this rule, there were no exceptions; there
were no localities where they were not ever on the alert to
protect their homes against the visitations of the stealthy foe;
none where the inhabitants were not instant in their responses
to the calls for volunteers to pursue war parties of the murderous enemy. To talk of these people refusing "to aid orAppendix 11'.                    389
countenance any aggressions against the Indians" is nonsense. The "aggressions" were from the other side. And
when Simon Girtv visited the Pan-Handle during these wars,
which he did but once after fleeing his country, it was to kill
and capture, regardless of nationality or creeds.
w.
DEED OF SIMON GIRTY TO HIS SON THOMAS.
[Ante, pp. 307,:308.]
A Memorial to be registered pursuant to an Act of the
Legislature of Upper Canada of an Indenture of bargain and
sale made at Amherstburg on the first day of May, A. D., one
thousand eight hundred aTnd twelve, between Simon Girty of
the one part, yeoman, and Thomas Girty, his son, of the other
part.
Whereby the said Siinon Girty for and in consideration of
-the natural affection, which the said Simon bears to his said
son Thomas and also for and in consideration of the sum of
five Shillings paid by the said Thomas to said Simon the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged.
The said Simon Girty, doth hereby grant, bargain, sell, and
alien, and confirm to the said Thomas Girty, his heirs and assigns forever, all that certain tract or parcel of land and tenement commonly called or known by the name of the north
half of lot number eleven, in the first Concession of the
Township of Malden, in the County of Essex, and Province of
Upper Canada, containing by admeasuremernt eighty two
acres, be the same more or less, butted and bounded as follows: (that is to say) beginning at a post on the bank of the
River Detroit in the limits between limits of lots number
ten and eleven, then east one hundred and thirty one chains,
then south six chainis twenty-six links, then west to the
River Detroit, then northerly along the shore of the river
against the stream to the place of beginning, with the reversion and reversions, rents, issues and profits, with their and allHistory of the Girtys.
their appurtenances to the said tract of land and premises
above described.
To have and to hold to the said Thomas Girty, his heirs and
assigns forever.
Which said Indenture of bargain and sale is witnessed by
A. Masonville, of Amherstburg, merch't, and William Elliott,
advocate, both of Amherstburg, county, district and province
as aforesaid, and is hereby required to be registered by me
the said Simon Girty, the grantor itl the said deed named.
As witness my hand andi seal at Amherstburg aforesaid
this 3d day of July, A. D. 1813.    IuIS
SIMON  - GIRTY. [L. S.]
Signed and sealed in                MARK
presence of
W. ELLIOTT,
Wi. DUFF.
I certify that the foregoing is a true copy of an instrument as entered and registered in the Registry office for the
County of Essex, in Old Book "C." for said County, at 9
O'Clock A. M., on the 9th day of August, A. D., 1813, as No.
176.
Given under my hand and seal of office at Sandwich, in the
County of Essex, this 6th day of September, A. D., 1885.
J. WALLACE ARKIN,
Registrar.
X.
GENERAL HARRISON IN CANADA IN 1813.
[Ante, p. 309.]
Concerning the arrival of General Harrison's men in Canada, immediately after the victory upon Lake Erie, many accounts have been published. A trustworthy one is here inserted:
"The whole army embarked from the Middle Sister [one of
the islands in Lake Erie] for the Canada shore, on the 27th
of September, 1813], and presented in its denouement one of
390Appendix X.                     391
the finest occasions for the pencil of the artist; and the interest of the scene was not a little awakened by the momentary
expectation of the opening of the enemy's fire from the shore.
No opposition, however, was made to the landing of our
troops, and Commodore [who was present] frequently expresse(l his admiration for the promptness and( discipline displayed on the occasion. Just at the moment of debarkation
the General issued along the line of boats the following laconic aIn(l impressive order:
"'IEAI-QUARTERS 0\ BOAIRD THE ARIEL,
September 27, 1813.
"'The General entreats Iiis brave troops to remember that
they are the sons of sires whose fame is immortal; that they
are to fight for the rights of their insulted country, whilst
their opponents combat for the unjust pretensions of a master.
"'I Kentuckians! remember the River Raisin; but remember it only whilst the victory is suspended. The revenge of a
soldier can not be gratified upon a fallen enemy.
"' By command,
"' ROBERT BUTLER, A.-Adjutant-Gcneral.
"In an hour after landing, the troops entered Amherstburg;
and the American flag was hoisted. The following is the General's official letter from that place:
"'HEAD-QUARTERS, AMHERSTBURG, September 27, 1813.
"' SIR:-I have the honor to inform you that I landed the
army under my command about three miles below this place at
3 o'clock this evening, without opposition and took possession
of the town in an hour after. General Proctor has retreated to
Sandwich with his regular troops and Indians, having previously
burned the fort, navy-yard, barracks and public store houses,
-the two latter were very extensive, covering several acres
of ground. I will pursue the enemy to-morrow, although
there is no probability of my overtaking him, as he has upHistory of the Girtys.
wards of one thousand horses, and we have not one in the
army. I shall think myself fortunate to be able to collect a
sufficiency to mount the general officers. It is supposed here
that General Proctor intends to establish himself upon the
River French, forty miles from Malden.
"'I have the honor to be, etc.,
"' WM.. H. IIARRIsON'"
The army under General Harrison left Amherstburg on the
next day (September 28th), and entered Sandwich on the 29th.
General McArthur's brigade immediately crossed over and
took possession of Detroit, which had previously been abandoned and the public buildings and property destroyed. On
the same evening, General Harrison issued his proclamation
for re-establishing the civil government of the Territory; but
the order previously issued by Proctor, declaring martial law
on the Canada side of the river, was continued in force. Colonel Richard M. Johnson arrived with his regiment at Detroit,
on the 30th of September, and joined the main army at Sandwich on the evening of the lst of October. General Harrison
had awaited his coming before commencing his pursuit of
Proctor. This began on the following day, ending gloriously
for the Americans atlthe battle of the Thames.
Y.
LETTERS OF WILLIAM CHARLES MICKLE.
[Ante, pp. 306, 321, 322, 333.]
1.
AM1IEIISTBURG, Jan. 1.st, 1887.
Mr. C. WV. Butterfield.
DEAR SIR:--My two youngest brothers, George L. and
Alexander Mickle, live on the [Simon Girty] farm and own it.
You want to know if it is true Simon Girty's widow
brought suit for dower against me? It is true she brought suit
392Appendix Y.
for dower, but she did not bring it against me; she brought it
against my father; his name was William Mickle. He has been
dead a number of years and there is no one as I know of who
knows any thing about it. There is no one I am acquainted
with who knows Mrs. Girty's age, or when she was married.
But my mother in-law, who is one of the oldest women in the
county being nearly ninety, says she thinks Girty and his
wife were married in Detroit, but she is not sure; as for her
(Mrs. Girty's) age she (mother-in-law) does not know any
thing about it.  She was taken prisoner by the Indians
during the Revolutionary War; she does not know whether
she was a child or a young woman when she was captured.
My mother-in-law thinks it would have been as well if she had
staid among the Indians instead of marrying Girty, for he
used to take his sword and hit her alongside the head just
for fun.
Mrs. Girty's maiden name was C(tharine Malott.
As near as my mother-in-law knows, Girty died some time
either in 1816 or 1817.
Mrs. Girty brought suit for her dower at Sandwich, but I
do not know who her lawyer was.
I do not know whether her (leclaration is on file or not.
I suppose you have heard of Girty's activity. My motherin-law says her father knew Girty and said he (Girty) jumped
over a very high gate add broke his ankle and never was so
active afterwards; but I suppose you have heard all about his
activity.  He (my mother-in-law's father) said Girty could
drink the most whisky of any man he knew of.
Yours Very truly,
WILLIAM CHARLES MICKLE.
11.
AMHERSTBURG, Jan. 21st, 1887.
Mr. C. W. Butterfield.
DEAR SIR:-The house that Simon Girty lived in has disappeared. As near as I can remember it was a log house
393History of the (;irtys.
with two windows and a door in front and one window in the
end up-stairs.
My mother-in-law says that Mrs. Girty had not been living
with Girty for some time; but when he got sick and blind she
went and took care of him at her son Prideaux'. She (my
mother-in-law) says Mrs. Girty died in Colchester South at
Mr. Joseph Munger's, but she does not know in what year.
My mother-in-law's full name is Susan Arner and her
father's was Jacob Iler.
Mrs. Girty did not succeed in her suit against my father
for dower. I do not know whether the records were burned
or not.              Yours Very Truly,
WILLIAM C. MIcKLE.
Z.
PUBLISHED ESTIMATES OF SIMON GIRTY.
[Ante, pp. 325-327.]
A diversity of opinion has heretofore existed as to the acts
of Simon Girty during the Revolution and the Indian war
which followed. Speaking of him, a recent Canadian writer
says: "The life and bloody record of this man are made
famous not only in history, but have been the foundation of
many contributions to our literature; and that'truth is
stranger than fiction' is amply illustrated by his mans daring:adventures, almost superhuman exploits, and miraculous
escapes from death at the hands of the Americans. Yet,
notwithstanding the fiendish barbarity which some historians
attribute to this man, it can not be gainsaid that in many instances he exhibited a degree of generosity and tenderheartedness and gave succor to those in distress under circumstances in which the exercise of these virtues covered a
multitude of sins."
Exceeding any thing that has yet been said in praise of
Girty, is the panegyric of an Ohio poet, who, upon reading
394Appendix Z.
an account of a noble act of his (but which account was, in
fact, fictitious), gives vent to his feelings in these words:
()h, great.souled chief!-so long maligli'd
By bold calumniators;
The world shall not be always blind,
N or all men be tlhy haters.
If ever on the field (of blood,
MIan's valor merits glory,
Then Girty's name and Girty's fame
Shall shiine in song and story.
But, in censure of Girty, far more lhas been written (how
justly or unjustly let the previous pages disclose) than in
praise.  " Girtv  became an Indian by adoption-acquired
their habits-participated   in their deliberations-inflamed
their passions--and goad(ed them on to (leeds of human
atrocity.  I called him   an incen(liary.   He was worsehe was a monster.      No  famished   tiger ever sought the
blood of ft victim   with  more   uinrelenting  rapacity, than
Girty sought the blood of a, white man.   Ice coul(l laugh, in
fiendish mockery, at the agonies of a captive, burning and
writhing at the stake.  He could witness, unmoved, the sacri-fice of unoffending wolnen and cliil(lren.  No scene of torture
or of bloodlshe(l was sufficiently horrible to excite compassion
in his bosom."-James T. Morehead, in "An Add(ress in Coinmemoration of the First Settlement of Kentucky," p. 90.
And a versifier has condemned him in the miost forcible invective, as-'I'The outlawed white man, by Ohio's flood,
Whose vengeance shamed the Indian's thirst for blood;
Whose hellish arts surpassed the redmian's far;
Whose hate enkindled many a 1border war,
Of which each aged grand-dame hath a tale,()f which man's bosom burn)s and childhood's cheek grows pale!
"A wretched miscreant, named Simron Girty, was anothler
agent in these nefarious proceedings [marauds into the border
settlemenits during the Revolutioni]--a na;tive of one of the
British colonies,--who, in consequence of his crimes, or of
some injury which lie supposed himself to lhave received, 1ha(lHistory    of the  Girtys.
awha), sent him a message for information, and containing instructions, also, for that officer to move his force up the Ohio,
to join him  at the Hockhocking.     Girty and at least one
other scout were detailed to carry this message.*  When they
reached the mouth of the Great Kanawha, they found Lewis
had not arrived there; whereupon, they deposited their letters
in a hollow tree, posting a notice in a conspicuous place which
gave directions where the documents could be found.       They
then returned to Dunmore's army.
The governor and his force reached the mouth of the Hiockhocking, early in October, when another express was dispatched to Lewis to move up the Ohio and join him        there,
which, on the 8th of October, found him    at Point Pleasant,
where he had arrived two days previous.t    It was impossible,
however, for him to start at once, on account of the non-arrival of supplies and ammunition, and of a portion of his
troops.  Meanwhile, scouts had been sent to the governor by
him.  These returne(l on the thirteenth, with an order from
his lordship to march directly toward the Shawanese towns, in
what is now Pickaway county, Ohio, and join him at a certain
point on the way.-'
Dunmore now put his division in motion for the same destination.  His march was enlivened by an occasional sight of
an Indian. One was shot by Girty, but whether killed or not
is uncertain.  A skirmish also took place with the savages, on
the march, but to the discomfiture of the Indians.~ It is here
* Hildreth's Pioneer History, p. 88; De Hass's History of the Early Settlement and Indian Wars of Western Virginia, p. 155, note.
t "On the 9th [of October, 1774], Simon Girty arrived in camp, bringing
a message from Lord Dunmore."--loosevelt. "Some accounts say," adds
that author,' that he.Girty] was accompanied by Kenton and McCulloch."
But, as already explained, it was the first message sent by I)unmore (of
which message Roosevelt is ignorant) that was intrusted to Girty.
t This message is by Roosevelt confounded with the one which he says
reached Lewis by the hands of Girty on the 9th of October. The first two
messages ordered Lewis up the Ohio to unite with Dunmore; the last one
directed himi to cross that river at Point Pleasant and meet him on the way
to the Shawanese towns.
i See Dunmore's Official Report, in Magazine of Western History, Vol.
27History of the Girtys.
fled from the abode of civilized men; he became a savage in
manners and in principle, and spent his whole life in the perpetration of a demoniac vengeance against his countrymen.
He planned many expeditions against our [the American]
borders, some of which he led in person; was present at the
conflagration of the settler's cabin, witnessed the expiting
agonies of the mother and the infant, and assisted in the
dreadful solemnities which attend the torturing of a prisoner at the stake. It was in vain that the unhappy victims
appealed to his humanity; a single instance. only is known
[the saving the life of Simon Kenton is here referred to], in
which he suffered the dictates of pity to.actuate his conduct;
with the same cold indifference or hellish malignity, did he
witness the butchery of the infant, the murder of the tender
woman, and the excruciating torture of the gallant soldier."
-The Romance of Western History, p. 288.
"Several persons who had lived among the Indians were... employed by Hamilton to instigate them to hostilities, and among them were the brothers Simon, George,
and James Girty, who were regularly paid as British agents
at Detroit, and who personally took part in raids upon the
settlements.  The monstrous barbarities of some of these
men almost stagger belief, and force upon us the unwelcome
truth that in civilized society, arnd within the sound of Christian bells, there may be bred and reared savages as fiendish
in their cruelty as any the worl(t has ever known. * Hamilton,
in his dispatches to his superiors, gave them to understand
that he should send out parties of In(lians'to fall on the
scattered settlers on the Ohio and its branches,' and he selecte(d to lead( these raids fit instruments who would be
trouble(l by no compunctions and no emotions of pity in
making the work of (lestruction complete."--Cooley's History
of Michigan, pp. 91, 92.
"No other country or age ever produced, perhaps, so
brutal, deprav;ed, an( wicked a wretch as Simon Girty. He
was sagacious aind brave; but his sagacity and bravery only
made him a greater monster of cruelty. All of the vices of
396Appendix AA.
civilization seemed to center in him, and by him were ingrafted upon those of the savage state, without the usual
redeeming qualities of either. He moved about through the
Indian country during the war of the Revolution, and the Indian war which followed, a dark whirlwind of fury, desperation, and barbarity. In the refinements of torture inflicted
on helpless prisoners, as compared with the Indians, he'outheroded Herod.' In treachery he stood unrivaled.
" There ever rankled in his bosom a most deadly hatred of
his country. Ile seemed to revel in the very excess of malignity toward his old associates. So horrid( was his wild ferocity and savageness, that the least relenting seemed to be
acts of positive goodness-luminous sparks in the very blackness of darkness!'I have fully glutted my vengeance,' said
the Mingo Logan, when he had taken a scalp for each of his
relations murdered; but the revenge of Simon Girty was
gorged with numberless victims of all ages and of either sex!
It seemed as insatiable as the grave itself."-An Historical
Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, under Col.
William Crawford, in 1782, pp. 199, 200.
AA.
JAMES G-IRTY S WILL.
[Ante,. 31p. ]
In the name of God, Amen.
I, James Girty, of the Township of Gosfield, in the County
of Essex, in the Western District of Upper Canada, yeoman,
being of.sound mind and memory but considering the uncertainty of human life, do make this my Last Will and in manner
following, to wit:
My desire is to be buried at as little expense as decency
will permit and after the paying of all my just debts and funeral expenses, I make the following disposition. of all my
property real and personal.
To my son James Girty and to my daughter Ann or Nancy
3978istory of the Girtys.
Girtv who are both now living with me, I give and( devise all
my lands and tenements with their appurtenances situate
and being in the said Township of Gosfield and known by
the name and description of lot number eight, in the first
Concession, containing two hundred acres or there abouts, to be
divided between them in the following manner, namely: by a
line run across the centre of the said lot dividing it equally
into two parts, the one half on the north or rear of the said
lot and the other half on the south or front of said lot.
That half in the front which is bounded by the said line on
the north and by Lake Erie on the south I give and devise to
my sai(l son James, and the other half in the rear and on the
north side of the said line, I give and devise to my said
daughter Nancy anad to their respective heirs forever.
I also bequeath to my said son James the following six
negro slaves or such of them as may be living at the time of
my death, viz: Jim or James, Hannah, Joe, Jack, Betsy and
Tom, and also the children which may hereafter be born of the
said Hiannah and Betsy. And to my daughter I bequeath my
negro wench called Sall, and also a negro woman called Nancy
with her five children, which said Nancy was the property of
the mother of my said children and intended by her for my said
daughter and also the children who may hereafter be born
of their bodies or the bodies of their children respectively.
And as to all the remaining part of the personal property
which I may die possessed of, including household furniture,
cattle, horses, swine, poultry, money, grain and all other descriptions of personal property, and also all the cattle and
other stock which was the property of my deceased wife Betsey, an Indian woman and the mother of my said children, and
also the increase thereof, my will is that the same and every
part thereof shall be equally divided between my said son and
daughter share and share alike according to the judgment of
my executors hereinafter named, except the utensils of husbandry, which I give to my said son James for his own proper
use and benefit, and except also my negro slave Paul, whose
398Appendix BB.
freedom I hereby bequeath to him for his long and faithful
services.
And I do hereby nominate and appoint Mr. Leonard Scratch
and Mr. James Stewart, both of the said Township, yeomen,
Executors of this my Last Will and Testament, hereby revoking all former wills by me made.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Girty, to this my
Last will and Testament, have set my hand and seal this
day of     in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and four, and in the forty fourth year of His Majesty's
reign.                             JAMES GIRTY [L. 8.].
Signed, Sealed, Published and Declared by the said James
Girty testator as and for his Last Will and Testament in the
presence of us, who, at his request and in his presence and in
the presence of each other, have hereunto subscribed our
names as witnesses. T. McKee, T. Alex. Clarke, Geo. Ironside.
BB.
JOHN TURNER S WILL.
[Arite, 1. 332.]
In the name of God, Amen.
I, John Turner, of the Township of Peebles, County of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, yeoman, being weak in body
but sound in memory, mind and understanding, blessed be the
Almighty for the same, but considering the uncertainty of this
life and the certainty of death do make and publish this my
last will and testament in manner and form following: First
of all I commend my soul into the hands of my God who gave
it and my body to the earth to be buried in the burying ground
on my own farm in a decent, Christian-like manner at the discretion of my Executors hereafter mentioned.
item first. As to my worldly affairs, it is my will and I do
order that all my just debts and funeral Expences be duly
3994History of the Girtys.
paid and satisfied as soon as it can be conveniently done after
my decease.
2ndly. I give and bequeath the upper part of my tract of
land where I now reside and adjoining the land I sold to John
Patterson containing one hundred and thirteen acres be the
same more or less to the children of John McCaslin and Priscilla his wife, only that they, said John McCaslin and Priscilla
his wife, are to have and to hold the said tract of land with all
the improvements thereon during their natural lives unless that
death should occur to either the said John or Priscilla his wife
and the survivor should marry again, then in such case their
right, title, claim and interest shall expire and the said land
so described become invested and divided equal share and
share to each of said children as aforesaid the same as if both
their parents were dead or deceased. I give unto my nephew
Breden [Prideaux] Girty, son of Simon Girty, one thousand
Dollars, unto my niece Sarah Girty alias Ssrah Munger one
thousand Dollars, unto John Girty five hundred Dollars, being
the son of Thomas Girty deed. I give unto.Nancy Gibson,
sister of John Girty, one hundred dollars, and one dollar to
Catherine Bealer; and for the attendance and friendship I have
received of Joseph Munger, I will and bequeath him five hundred dollars. I do reserve free of all encumbrance the burying
ground for use of the public forever and when all my debts
and funeral expences are paid and all the legatees are settled
with, all of my effects whether personal, mixed, or real estate,
shall be placed in the hands of Arthur F. Gore to be distributed as he shall think proper without any reserve.
Lastly. I nominate, constitute and appoint my'muth esteemed
friends James Sutch and John Patterson to be my Executors of
this my last will and testament hereby revoking all other wills,
legacies and bequeaths by me heretofore made ahd declaring
this my last will and testament.
In witness whereof, I have set my hand and seal the 10th
day of April, 1840.                  JOIIN TURNER [Seal].
Signed, sealed in presence of us,
ABE HOSMER.
THos. B. SUTCH.
400Appendix CC.                     401
CC.
SIMON GIRTY AND BOY PRISONERS.
Much has been written about the kindness of Simon Girty
to boy prisoners. But all these statements are to be taken
with some grains of allowance. We have shown that, in his
first incursion with the savages, he assisted in taking a number of children captives, among which, it is almost certain
there were boys. These were, beyond all question, adopted
into Indian families, and it is quite probable some of them
led, ever after, the lives of savages. There was no kindness
in this. In saving the life of young Baker (ante, p. 127), he
performed a noble act-more so than when he rescued Simon
Kenton from the stake; for there were no inducements except
humanity moving him in the former case; in the latter he was
befriending an old associate. So, for that act, he is entitled
to credit; also for his kind treatment of young Fast (ante,
p. 152). We will now relate an incident which certainly is
not to Girty's discredit.
It may be mentioned that forays of the savages continued into
the border settlements for a considerable time after DePeyster
had let it be known among all the western tribes that hostilities
must cease. "This moment," wrote Lieut.-Col. Stephen Bayard, from Fort Pitt, to Gen. Irvine, then at Carlisle, Pa., on
the 5th of April, 1783, "I was informed by a man from the
widow Myers' [in Westmoreland county, east of Pittsburgh],
that one Thomas Lyon, who lived about four miles from her
house, was yesterday killed and scalped." (Washington-Irvine
Correspondence, p. 409.) Two of the children of the man
killed, Eli and James, were captured and hurried into the
Ohio wilderness. The savages who did this work were Delawares, and they soon reached Wingenund's camp on the Sandusky with their boy prisoners. (For the exact locality of that
Delaware war-chief's camp, see An Historical Account of the
Expedition against Sandusky, p. 168).
26402               History of the Girtys.
The youngest of the boys--James-in a narrative published
by himself many years after, says:
"The first town [Wingenund's] we came to was small; they
[the warriors] had stretched my father's and my sister's scalps
(as we thought one was my sister's and the other my father's,
both had black'hair), on small hoops painted red, and then attached them to long poles, also painted red. The Indians
fired off their guns and raised the war-whoop, and held up the
poles which had the scalps tied to them. A number of the
Indians of the village came out to visit us and escorted us in.
We had not been long in camp until they commenced smoking,
and -amongst those that visited us was a white man. Immediately on his coming into camp, I went up to him and he
took me on his knee. I was glad to see a white man. He
kept me all the time on his knee while he staid, and treated
me kindly. When he got up to go away I wanted to go with
him. He had no other way of getting me pacified but by
promising to come and see me again, but that was the last I
saw of him. My brother told m.e that he was Simon Girty,
that he had seen him frequently at my grandmother Myers'
tavern, where we both often visited."
The two boys were afterward sent in to Fort McIntosh,
reaching that post in the winter of 1784-85, and delivered to
their relatives in Westmoreland county. Their sister was not
killed, as the boys had supposed, but their father was captured,
taken into the woods and tomahawked. (Compare the Olden
Time, Vol. II, pp. 87-92.) This treatment of James was a
pleasant act of the renegade, but it will be noticed it only extended to caressing the boy a short time-he made no attempt
to rescue the two from captivity.
"I knew Simon Girty to purchase, at his own expense,
several boys who were prisoners, take them to the British and
have them educated."-Jonathan Alder, cited in Howe's Hist.
Coll. of Ohio, p. 249. This is a very positive declaration, notwithstanding which, it is, certainly error. Girty, in the Indian country, had no means wherewith to purchase "several
boys who were prisoners," nor had he the money to pay forAppendix DD.
educating them. Besides, there were no schools nearer than
the St. Lawrence for the education of children during that
period.
Faint is the praise due Girty for treating young Burkhart
kindly, while at the same time making a captive of him. And,
so far as he knew, he was conlsigning him to years of savage
life; for he did not believe, it will be remembered (ante, p.
210), that there was peace between the two countries when
the boy was taken. And to young Spencer, he gave no hope
of ever being released from captivity (ante, p. 270).
DD.
" SIMON GIRTY' IN A CYCLOPCEDIA.
Girty, Simon, leader of Indians, b. in Pennsylvania about
1750; d. about 1815.  His father had died and his mother
had married again, when in 1755 the whole family were taken
captive by Indians, and the step-father was burned at the
stake. Simon remained a prisoner till 1758, when he was released. In 1774 he was a soldier and spy under Lord Dunmore at Fort Pitt, and a friend and companion of Simon
Kenton. Being an active loyalist, he left Pennsylvania at the
beginning of the Revolution, became a leader of the savages,
and was concerned in many atrocities.  It is not known
whether he was given a British commission.  He had been
held a prisoner by the Whigs, at Pittsburg, but escaped, collected about 400 Indian warriors, in the summer of 1777, and
in September attacked Fort Henry (now Wheeling, W. Va.),
which was garrisoned by about forty men.  After defeating,
with great slaughter, a reconnoitering party, and reducing the
garrison to twelve men, he made a demand for its surrender,
but was refused. The Indians now laid siege to the fort, but,
as they had no artillery, the garrison held its own until it was
relieved next day by forty mounted men. In 1778, with two
other Tories, Girty went through the Indian country to Detroit, urging the savages to take up arms against the Ameri403History of the Girtys.
cans. He was present at the torture and death of Col. William
Crawford, in 1782, and is charged with showing delight at his
sufferings; but Girty averred that he did what he could to save
Crawford's life. Subsequently, when his old associate, Simon
Kenton, was captured by the Indians, Girty exerted himself
to the utmost to.save him from torture, and succeeded in effecting his release. In August, 1782, Girty invaded Kentucky
and with 600 savages made an attack on Bryant's station, near
Lexington, which was garrisoned by about fifty men.  After
an unsuccessful ambuscade Girty laid siege to the fort till
the approach of re-enforcements under Daniel Boone caused
him to retreat. He was rapidly pursued, and the battle of the
Blue Licks followed, in which many of the Kentucky leaders
lost their lives. This was the last great Indian battle on
Kentucky soil. In the same year Girty was active in the expulsion of the Moravian missionaries who had been laboring
quietly among the Wyandottes.  He lived for some time on
Sandusky river, where he had established a trading-station,
and planned and led many marauding excursions.  He was
present at Gen. Arthur St. Clair's defeat in 1791, and directed
a savage to kill and scalp Gen. Richard Butler, who lay
wounded on the field.'Girty acted as interpreter to the commissioners that were appointed by the U. S. government to
meet the Indians in 1793, and treated them with insolence,
finally securing the failure of the negotiations. He also aided
the British in the war of 1812, and is said by some authorities
to have been killed in the battle of the Thames, in 1813, while
others say he died a natural death two years afterwards.-Appleton's Cyclopaedia of American Biography (1887), Vol.II,
p. 662.
404Appendix EE.
EE.
ILLUSTRATIVE NOTES, ALSO EXTRACTS FROM PRINTED ACCOUNTS,
CONCERNING THE GIRTYS.
I.
IIOW LIEUT.-GOVERNOR HAMILTON RESTRAINED THE INDIANS.
[Ante, pp. 42, 342-344.]
"The opening of the Revolution brought evil times to the
American frontiers. The Indians, supplied with English arms,
and led by men in English pay, carried devastation everywhere. I am aware that bills authorizing the employment of
Indians were repeatedly defeated in Parliament, and that British officers claimed that the natives were driven to war by the
cruel wrongs inflicted on them by Americans; but these were
the orders:' It is the King's command that you should direct
Lieutenant-Governor Hamilton to assemble as many of the
Indians of his district as he conveniently can, and placing a
proper person at their head, to conduct their parties, and restrain them from committing violence on the well-affected, inoffensive inhabitants, exmploy them in making a diversion and
exciting an alarm on the frontiers of Virginia and Pennsylvania' (Lord George Germaine to Sir Guy Carleton, March 26,
1776: Haldimand Coll.).  Such proper persons as Simon
Girty, William Lamothe, Joseph Brant, and others, were employed by Hamilton as leaders of these parties, and,.in order
to restrain them still further, he offered a premium for the
scalps of Americans (Jefferson's Works, Vol. I, p. 456)."Dunn's Indiana, p. 131. [Brant was not employed by Hamilton, and the latter did not offer a premium for scalps, but
he did employ such improper persons as Girty and Lamothe
"to restrain the Indians from committing violence on the
well-affected and inoffensive inhabitants, as Dunn inferentially
declares."]
405Itistory of the Girtys.
worthy of notice, in view of Girty's subsequent career, that
he manifested the strongest desire to kill any savage that
might be found lurking in front of the army; indeed, his antipathy, apparently, to the redskins, was very marked.
On the march to the Indian villages, Lord Dunmore was
overtaken by a courier from    Lewis, acquainting    him  of a
hard fought battle on the 10th of October, at Point Pleasant, where his army had contended all day long with a large
force of Shawanese and other savages, commanded by the
Shawanese chief Cornstalk, only to claim the victory at nightfall, after a severe loss in killed and wounded.
A wholly erroneous, and, withal, most ridiculous story, has
found its way into print, to the effect that Simon Girty was
the leader of the Indians at the battle of Point Pleasant;
that he was not only an express sent by Dunmore to Lewis,
but that he had a wordy encounter with the latter, threatening him, and finally carrying his threat into execution, by
fleeing to the wilderness and marshaling the savages across
the Ohio against him, and leading them    to the conflict just
mentioned.*
On the seventeenth, Lewis crossed the Ohio, and took up
his line of march to the Scioto, to join Dunmore. His lordship was met, before he reached the Indian villages, by a messenger (a white man) from the enemy, anxious for an accommodation; for a peace had already been conquered by the
Virginians, at a sacrifice, as just related, of many valuable
lives, in the battle at Point Pleasant. Dunmore sent back the
messenger with John Gibson and Girty.           The two soon
I, p. 457 (March, 1885). It is a letter from Dunmore to Dartmouth, from
Williamsburgh, dated December 24, 1774.
-* William 1). Gallagher, the poet, first gave to the world this story, which
is by odds the most fictitiously fictitious that has as yet appeared in print
concerning any of the Girtys. However, he is not to be censured for this,
for he was assured of its truth by one who claimed to have been associated
with Girty and knew whereof he spoke I Mr. Gallagher's article is entitled
"Girty, the Renegade," and first appeared in The Hesperian, Vol. I, pp.
349, 423, which will be found republished, substantially, in The Backwoods--
men, pp. 498-525. See also (with some variations'in the tradition," as it.
is styled) The Trans-Alleghany Pioneers, pp. 223-225.
28History of the Girtys.
II.
"GIRTY'S TOWN."
[Ante, pp. 289, 290, 294, 295.]
"St. Mary's was from early times a noted point, being a village of the Shawnees. Gen. Wayne on his campaign camped
here and called the place' Girty's town,' from James Girty, a
brother of Simon, who lived here with the Indians and gave
his name to the place; Harmar was also here prior to Wayne.
In the war of 1812, there was a fort at St. Mary's, which for
a time, was the headquarters of Gen. Harrison.  It was
called Fort Barbee by the regiment of Col. Barbee which built
it.
"There were four Girty brothers, Thomas, George, James
and Simon. James was adopted by the Shawnees, George
by the Delawares, and Simon by the Senecas. James was the
worst renegade of them all and took delight in inflicting the
most fiendish cruelties upon prisoners, sparing neither women
nor children. Simon was the most conspicuous, being a leader
and counsellor among the lndians."--Howe's Ohio (Centennial
Edition), Vol. I, pp. 302, 303. [But " Girty's town " was not
named by Gen. Wayne.]
III.
CLARK'S ATTACK ON THE'SHAWANESE TOWN OF PIQUA.
[Ante, pp: 121, 122.]
"The action was so severe a short time before the close,
that Simon Girty, a white man who had joined the Indians,
and who was made a chief among the Mingoes, drew off three
hundred of his men, declaring to them it was folly in the extreme to continue the action against men who acted so much
like madmen, as Gen. Clark's men, for they rushed in the extreme of danger, with a seeming disregard of the consequences. This opinion of Girty, and the withdrawal of the
three hundred Mingoes, so discouraged the rest that the whole
body soon after dispersed."-Bradford's Notes on Kentucky.
[The only statement in this account of the attack of Clark on
406Appendix BE.                     407
the Indian town of Piqua, that is not erroneous, is the one
made, by inference, that Girty then had his home with the
Mingoes.]
IV.
BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF SIMON GIRTY FROM HIS BIRTH TO THE TORTURING
OF CRAWFORD.
[From VWashington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 127.]
"Simon Girty was born on an island in the Susquehanna
river in the then province of Pennsylvania, and when a boy
was captured by the savages, and adopted by the Seneca tribe
of Indians. He afterward returned to the settlements, locating at Pittsburgh. He fled to the enemy across the Ohio,
along with Alexander McKee and others, in the spring of
1778. Arriving at Detroit, he was engaged in the Indian
department and sent back into the Ohio wilderness with his
headquarters among the Wyandots, upon the Sandusky river.
He immediately entered upon a career of savage ferocity
against the border settlements of Pennsylvania, Virginia and
Kentucky. He was in the battle of the 4th of June, 1782,
between the volunteers under Crawford and the enemy, taking
part with the latter, and was present... at the torturing of the unfortunate colonel. He had no commission in the
British service.  He and Crawford were well acquainted."
The principal errors in this extract are (1), in giving Girty's
birth-place as "on an island in the Susquehanna river," and
(2), in stating by inference, that he went at once to live with
the Wyandots after being "sent back into the Ohio wilderness."
V.
MAJOR WILLIAM CROGlHAN'S RECOLLECTION OF WHAT DR. KNIGHT TOLD
HIM AS TO GIRTY'S COURSE AT T-HE BURNING OF CRAWFORD.
"We had no certainty of this unhappy affair until yesterday, when Doctor Knight, who was taken withi Crawford, came
into the garrison, in the most deplorable condition man could
407
Applendix E7E.408               History of the Girtys.
be in anld be alive. He says that the second day after they
were t:iken, they were carried to an Indian town, stripped and
then blacked, and made to march through the Indians, when
men, (women and children beat them with clubs, sticks, fists,
etc., in the most cruel manner.
"Colonel Crawford and the doctor were confined together
all night. The next day, they were taken out, blacked again,
and their hands tied behind their backs, when Colonel Crawford was led by a long rope to a high stake, to the top of
which the rope about the colonel was tied. All around the
stake a great quantity of red hot coals were laid, on which
the poor colonel was obliged to walk barefoot, and at the same
time the Indians firing squibs of powder at him, while others
poked sticks (on fire) into every part of his body; thus they
continued torturing him for about two hours, when he begged
of Simon Girty, a white renegade, who was standing by, to
shoot him, when the fellow said,'don't you see I have no
gun?' Some little time after this they scalped him, and struck
him on the bare skull several times with sticks, and being
nearly exhausted he lay (lown on the burning embers, when
squaws put shovelsful of coals on his body, which, dying as
he was, made him move and creep a little; the doctor was
obliged to stand by to see this cruelty performed."-Croghan to William Davies, Virginia Secretary at War, July 6,
1782. See American Historical Record, Vol. I, p. 176; also
Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 293, note. Compare
pp. 180-182, ante.
VI.
FiwrST PUBLISHED ACCOUNT OF SIMON GIRTY'S BEHAVIOR AT THE TORTURING OF COLONEL CRAWFORD.
"Dr. Knight, who was taken with Col. Crawford arrived
here after living for 21 days upon herbs in the woods. He
says that five days after they were taken the Delaware Indians burnt the Col. with the most excruciating pain, first tied
him to a long post with room to walk round it, then cut off his
ears, after that blew squibs of powder on different parts ofAppendix EE.
his body; then the squaws procured hickory brands and darted
against such parts as they thought might most affect him;
they then scalped him and slapped the scalp in the Dr.'s face,told him that was his big captain; the Col. was still alive.
This he thinks was an hour after the Col. was tied up, when
he (the Dr.) was taken away. Just as he was leaving him
the Col. leaned upon his knee and elbow for rest, when a
squaw took a shovel of hot embers and threw upon his back
to put him again in motioni. The next day under the guard
of one man the Dr. passed the same place and saw some of
the Col.'s bones in the ashes. The Col., he says, made little
noise; he begged one Simon Girty, whom he formerly knew
at Fort Pitt, to shoot him, but Girty said with a laugh he
had no gun, that examples must take place."-Pennsylvania
Journal and Weekly Advertiser, July 23, 1782. (See Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 376, note).
VII.
INDIANS EMPLOYED BY THE UNITED STATES IN THE REVOLUTION.
[Ante, p. 133.]
"Both sides in the Revolutionary struggle tried to employ
the Ohio Indians. The British were most active and most successful in this enterprise.  A party of Wyandots under Simon
Girty, an ugly-spirited ruffian who had been adopted by the Indians, and was now in British pay, made a memorable attack upon
Fort Henry, on the Ohio near Wheeling, but was cheated of
success and badly disabled after a desperate struggle during
which young Elizabeth Zane performed an act of supreme
heroism in securing a keg of powder from a point outside the
fort."-The Story of Ohio, by Alexander Black, p. 74.
The United States, during the Revolution, employed savages against the British and Indians, it is true (see Washingtotn-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 25, 26), but they were engaged in the regular service; they were never sent on forays
into Canadian settlements, to kill inoffensive white settlers, as
they were employed to do, by the British, on the American
409History of the Girtys.
border.  As to the Elizabeth Zane incident mentioned by
Black, there is a bitter controversy in the Pan-Handle concerning who was the heroine, and relative to the time when the
affair took place. (Consult DeHaas, Hist. Ind. Wars W. Va.;
Newton's Hist. Pan-Handle, W. Va.; and local histories of
that region generally.)
VIII.
UPPER SHTAWANESE TOWNS ON MAD RIVER, IN THE REVOLUTION.
[Ante, pp. 73, 79-84.]
Near a small creek emptying into Mad river, on the east
side, there was a small Shawanese village, called Wapakoneta,
in the present Salem township, Champaign county, Ohio, about
two miles and a half south of the present West Liberty, in
-Logan county. The next town was Mac-a-cheek; then a small
one called Pigeon town, on the west side of the river, three miles
north-west of Mac-a-cheek; then Wapatomica, below what is
now Zanesfield, a short distance; then Blue Jacket's town, on
the site of the present Bellefontaine.  Three miles north of
the latter was a Delaware village-Buckongahelas'. About
nine miles above Blue Jacket's village was Solomon's town.
When it said (see p. 82, ante) that "there was no Wapakoneta
in existence until long after the Revolution," reference is made
to -the present town of that name, the county-seat of Auglaize
county, Ohio, where, after 1780, there was a Shawanese town.
The Wapakoneta first mentioned above was an insignificant
Shawanese village, having no council-house; and, therefore, it
could not have been the town where Simon Girty first met
Kenton in the Ohio wilderness.
Ix.
THOMAS GIRTY DEALS WITH RICHARD AND WILLIAM BUTLER, IN 1768.
[Ante, p. 22.]
ALLEGHANY CITY, PA., June 17th, 1875.
DEAR SIR: In overhauling a box of old papers belonging
to my grandfather, Major Craig, I found a day-book of
Richard and William Butler, kept at Fort Pitt. In it is an
410Appendix EE.
account against Thomas Girty.  Supposing it might interest
you, I enclose you a copy. There is no other date than 1768
to this account. Of course you know that Richard Butler was
Gen. Butler, who fell at St. Clair's defeat, and that William
was the Colonel of the Fourth Pennsylvania regiment, in the
Revolutionary war.            Yours, truly,
ISAAC CRAIG.
To C. W. Butterfield.
THOMAS GERTY
In acct. with RICHARD  WILLIAM BUTLER, Dr.
1768.                                           ~
To a new gun stock 20s., to a lock 15s., to
mounting   s.,..............................  2  10
"a new breech 6s., to a trigger 1s. 6d., to rifling
12s. 6d.1........................................  1
"a trigger plate and pin 2s., to 3 wood screws
at  18d........................................4
"a hind sight 2s., to a silver fore do. 2s. 6d....  4  6
~3   18   6
CONTRA.
By 100 lbs. old iron at 3d. per lb..................  5
"  16 lbs. fall skins at ls. 7d. per b........... 1  5  4
" a bushel of potatoes ( 5s.........................  5
2  15   4
By balance due Richard  William Butler,..... ~ 1  3  2
x.
"GIRTY'S ISLAND "-PUBLISHED ACCOUNTS.
[Ante, pp. 317, 318.]
a.
"Girty's Island is seven miles above Napoleon [0O.], and
comprises, as we are informed, about forty acres. The soil
is remarkably prolific, and an extremely dense growth of veg411History of the Girtys.
etation is the result. [Simon] Girty's cabin was on the left
bank of the river; and it is said that when he was apprehensive of a surprise, he would retire to the island, as the tiger
to the jungle, with a sense of almost absolute security from
his pursuers [a most nonsensical tradition]."
b.
"GIRTY'S ISLAND. Six miles from Napoleon, up the river
[Maumee] is GIRTY'S ISLAND, SO called from the Great Renegade [Simon Girty], who once lived in a cabin on the opposite shore. Between the village and the island is an uninterrupted succession of beautiful farms, in a high state of
cultivation. No where does the Maumee present a more
charming appearance than on the route to the island. The
broad and deep current flows between high banks, which are
crowned with a dense growth of willows, where foliage, at
this season, is of the brightest green.
The island, we are informed, is about forty acres in extent.
A small portion is cultivated, but much the greater part is a
primeval wilderness. Viewed from the shore it would seem
that neither bird nor beast could penetrate the tangled and
interwoven masses of trees, shrubs, and vines which are nurtured by its fertile soil. Aside from its great natural beauty,
that island will be interesting from its association."
XI.
CONCERNING JOHN TURNER.
[Ante, p. 245.]
"There is a curious matter relating to John Turner, alias'Girty.' He died and is buried near here. After his death,
it was in evidence in court, that he was a full brother of
Thomas, Simon, James, and George Girty, and that his name'Turner;' was adopted after Simon and his two brothers
had made'Girty' unpopular.    I have very little doubt
about the evidence being false. The descendants of Thomas
Girty were trying to obtain John Turner's property from his
adopted child, the defendant in the suit."-Isaac Craig to the
author of this narrative, March 30, 1882, from Alleghany, Pa.
412INDEX.
Abbott, Lieut.-Gov. Edward, 63.
Alder,.Jonathan, 402.
All Face, atl Indian chief, 347.
Amherstburg. 215, 216, 219, 309,
310, 322, 327, 391, 392, 393.
Ariome, Baptiste, 234, 236, 237.
Armstrong, Col. John, 8, 9, 12, 13.
Armstrong, Lieut. Edward, 7.
Arner, Susan, 394.
Arundel, a trader, 145, 146, 148,
149, 1.50, 151, 160, 165.
Aston, Capt. Geo., 30, 32.
Baby, Duperron, 63, 103.
Bailey, Francis, 157, 367, 368.
Baker, Henry, 127, 401.
Ball, Henry, 273.
Bane, Capt., 171.
Barbee, Col., 406.
Baron, P. R., Fr. Dennis, 337.
Bartlet, James, 333.
" Battle Island," 167, 170.
Baubee (" Baby "), Col., 386.
Bayard, Lieut.-Col. Stephen, 401.
Bealer, Catharine, 332, 400.
Beaubin, Charles, 63, 108.
Betsey, a Shawanese woman, wife
of Jamles Girty, 289.
"Big Foot," a myth, 134, 135.
Biggs, Capt., 171.
Bird, Capt. Henry, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97,
118, 119, 120, 122, 123, 126.
Blanch, Joseph, 291.
Black Wolf, 233.
Black, Alexander, 409.
Blue Jacket, a Shawanese chief,
261, 268, 290, 296, 387.
Blue Jacket's town (near Mad
river), 410.
Blue Jacket's town, on the Maumee, 268, 273.
Blue Licks, battle of, 198-200, 205,
379, 404.
Blue Licks, campaign of, 193-200,
203-208, 373-377, 404.
Bolton, Mason, 107,
Boone, Daniel, 199, 205, 206, 404.
Bouquet, Colonel Henry, 114.
Bouquet Papers, The, 378.
Boundary troubles between Pa.
and Va., 23, 24, 30, 31, 36.
Bousman, Lieut. Jacob, 32.
Bowman, Col. John, 96, 97.
Brackenrridge, H. H., 157, 367, 368,
369, 370.
Braddock's defeat, 6.
Bradt, Capt. Andrew, 192, 193, 200,
201.
Brady, Samuel, 97, 98, 211, 212.
Brainerd, Rev. David, 2.
Brandon (a soldier), killed, 8.
Brant, Capt. Joseph (Thayendanegea), 129, 130, 131, 135, 228, 238,
241, 269, 287, 296, 314, 351, 3.52,
387, 401, 405.
Brenton, James, 167.
Brickell, John, 293, 294.
Brodhead, Col. Daniel, 87, 95, 100,
101, 104, 115, 124, 125, 126, 127
128, 154, 353, 354.
Brown, T''homas, 366.
Bryan's Station, 123, 195, 198, 205,
206, 374, 376, 404.
Brymner, Douglas, 377, 378, 379.
Buckongahelas, a Delaware chief,
261.
Buckongahelas's town, 382, 410.
Bull, Joseph, 57.
Bunbury, Capt. Joseph, 263, 269.
Burkhart, John, 210, 403.
Butler, Richard, 37, 221, 224, 238,
239, 260, 262, 263, 264, 404, 410,
411.
Butler, Simon (Simon Kenton's assumed name), 78.
Butler, William, 410, 411.
Caldwell, Capt. William, 163, 167,
173, 183, 191, 192, 193, 194, 195,
197, 198, 200, 208, 216, 235, 373,
374, 375, 376, 384, 386.
Caldwell, Francis, 305.
Caldwell, Lieut., 63.
Campbell, John, 32.
Campbell, Judge James V., 327.
Campbell, John W., 4, 314, 321,327.
Campbell, the poet, 314.
(413)Index.
Carleton, Sir Guy, 344, 349, 405.
Carpentelr, John, 155.
Cass, Lewis, 299.
Chambers, James, 382, 383.
Chambers's Mill, 2.
Chapin, Gen., 279.
Chesne, Isidore, 63.
Christian Indians. See "Moravian"
Indians.
Christy, Lieut. William, 32.
Cist, Charles, 1, 257, 258, 331.
(Cincinnati founded, 258.
Clapham, Col. Williani, 8.
Clark, Capt. John, 89.
Clark, George Rogers, 26, 71, 72, 90,
101, 109, 117, 118, 121, 122, 128,
129, 130, 131, 135, 192, 199, 201,
202, 209, 221, 224, 232, 348, 349,
351, 352, 406.
Clark, T. Alex., 316, 399.
Clinch, Lieut., 167.
Clinton, Sir Henry, 379.
Coleman, Mrs., 267.
Coleman, R. F., 78.
Collins, Joel, 374, 376.
Collins, Joshua, 186.
Collins, Richard H., 376.
Connolly, Dr. John, 23, 24, 30, 31,
33, 36.
Connort, Richard, 99, 100.
Cornplanter, a Seneca chief, 256,
274.
Cornstalk, a Shawanese chief, 32.
Cowan, Frank, 189.
Cracraft, Maj. Charles, 352.
Craigcroft, Maj. See Cracraft.
Craig, Isaac, 43, 56, 245, 346, 411,412.
Craig, Ma,j. Isaac, 56.
Crawforld's Campaign against Sanduskv, 160-163, 167-189.
"Crawford's Defeat," extract from
the ballad entitled, 189.
Crawford, Sarah, 364.
(Crawford, Valentine, 33.
Crawford, Major William, 30, 33,
(now Col.) 161, 162, 167, 169, 170,
171, 172, 176, 177, 178, 179, 180,
181. 182. 183, 184, 187, 188, 189,
325, 348, 355, 356, 357, 358, 359,
360, 361, 362, 463, 364, 365, 366,
367, 368, 369, 370, 371, 372, 404,
405, 407, 40S, 409.
Crawford, William (nephew of Col.
Crawford), 172.
Cresap, Col., 30.
Croghan, Ma.jor Wm., 407, 408.
Cunningham, Mrs. Thomas, captured by the In dians, 240; is rescued by Simon Girty, 241.
Davies, William. 40s
De Peyster, A. S., 86, 87, 111, 112,
117, 118, 122, 125, 126, 127, 129,
134, 138, 139, 140, 141, 14:;, 144,
145, 146, 162, 163, 191, 192, 211,
212, 213, 215, 222, 352, 356, 366.
De Villiers, Nevon, 7.
Doughty, Maj. John, 384.
Draper, Lyman C., 122, 187, 204,
205, 360.
Drouillard, Joseph, interpreter, 63.
Druyer, Peter. 350, 351.
Duentate, a Wyandot, 113.
Duff, William, 390.
Dunlap, John, 249.
Dunlap's Station, 249. 2.50; attack
on, 250-255, 257, 258.
Dunlavy, Francis, 16ti8.
Dunr more, Lord, 25, 27, 30, 35, 50,
59, 339, 403.
Duntmore's WVar, 25-30, 50, 114, 310.
Dut,quat(theWyandot Half King),
136, 163.
Edgelton, Thomas, 141, 151.
Edwards (William), 146.
Elliott, Matthew, 50, 51, 56. 57, 58,
60, 65, 66, 108, 132, 133, 167, 16;8,
183, 185, 187, 193, 226, 227, 228,
229, 234,?35, 24., 247, 257, 259,
266,t 273, 274, 276, 277, 285, 286,
291, 299, 3(03, 305, 310, 326, 327,
337, 348, 353, 366.
Elliott, W illiam, 308, (now Captain)
310, 31 1, (now advocate) 390.
England, Col. Richard, 292.
Evans, M1iss Moneka, marries
Thomas Girty, son of Simon,
307.
"Fallen Timber," The, battle of,
285, 286, 287, 386.
"Fallen  limb)er," The, between
Forts St. Clair and Hamilton,
272.
Fast, Christian, 152, 401.' Father Abraham," in a mythical
story, 158, 159.
Fink, John, killed by Indians, 154.
Finney, Capt. Walter, 224.
Fisher, Myndert, 124.
Flying Crow, 347.
Forbes, Gen. John, 16.
Fort Augusta, 9.
Fort Barbee, 295, 406.
414Index.
Fort Defiance. 284.
Fort Deposit, 284.
Fort Dunmore, 24, 31.
Fort Duquesne, 6. 16. 284, 333, 337.
Fort Erie, 275, 278, 279.
Fort Fincastle, 41.
" Frt Finney," 224.
Fort Granville, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12,
13.
Fort Greenville, 284.
1Fort Hlamilton, 262, 265, 272.
Fort 1t armar, 242, 244.
Fort Henry, 40,.53, 132, 133, 201,
2448, 209, 289, 345, 353, 354, 403,
409.
Fort Hunter, 2.
Fort.Jefferson (on the Mississippi),
117, 118, 121.
Fort.lefferson (in the present State
of Ohio), 262, 265, 276.
Fort Laurens, 88, 94). 92, 93, 94, 95,
96, 98, 109, 113, 114.
Fort Lernoult (Detroit), 111, 117,
299, 300.
Fort McIntosh, 87, 89, 92, 141, 146,
224, 402.
Fort Malden, 302, 303, 304, 306,
309.
Fort Miami (on the Ohio), 259.
Fort Miami (on the Maumee), 282,
284, 2S7, 299. 387.
Fort Michilimackinac, 11, 117,
299.
Fort Pitt, 24, 40, 97, 113, 129, 130,
409.
Fort Randolph, 40.
Fort Recovery, 28i, 298.
Fort Recovery, town of, 262.
Fort Shirley, 8.
Fort St. Clair, 26.5, 272, 274.
Fort Stephenson, 309.
Fort St. Joseph, 86.
Fort Washington, 246, 250, 252,
254, 256, 258, 262, 269, 276.
Fort Wayne, 317.
"Four-Mile Run." 332.
Freman, Dr., 281.
Gallagher, W. D., 28.
Gambier, a French trader, 107.
"George Washington," an Indian,
383.
Germain, Lord George, 42, 344.
Gibson, Col. John, 28, 29, 52, 87, 88,
89, 91, 154, 181, 339, 346.
Gibson, Nancy, 332, 400.
Girty, Ann (daughter of Simon),
born, 228; marries Peter Govereau, 307; is seen by Daniel
Woikman, 320; present at the
last illness of her father, 329.
Girty, Ann (daughter of James),
taken from the wilderness, 292;
left property by her father's will,
316, 397, 398.
Girty, Betsey, wife of James, 289,
292, 316, 398.
Girty, Catharine Mackenzie (wife
of Prideaux Girty), 305.
Girty, Catharine Malott (wife of Simon Girty), a meeting by Quakers held at her home, 219; separates firom her husband, 306;
lives with her daughter, Ann,
310; is with her husband during
his last illness, 321, 322; overlooked, probably, her husband's
Indian ways, 324); death of, 333;
had sued William    Mickle for
dower, 333, 393; was unsuccessful, 394.
Girty, George, birth of, 2; captured
at Fort Granville, 8; taken to
Kittanning, 11; is present at the
torturing of his step-father, ib.;
why he was not rescued by Col.
Armstrong, 13; adopted by the
D?,lawares, 15; in 1759, brought
in to Pittsburgh, by the Indians,
16; employed as interpreter, 19;
trades with the Indians, 21; continued to reside at Pittsburgh
durting I,ord Dunmore's War, 47;
enlists in Capt. James Willing's
company, ib.; commissioned a
second lieutenant, ib.; proceeds
with his company down the Ohio
and Mississippi, ib.; deserts his
company, 10)5; his journey to
Detroit, ib.; engaged in the Indian department, 108; sent to
the Shlawanese as interpreter, ib.;
acts as disbuising agent for the
British, ib.; could he relied on as.
faithful to British interests, 111;
goes to Detroit again in 1780, 117;
goes on Bird's expedition intoKentucky, 118; aids Bird materially, 120; figlts bravely at
Piqua, 121; in winter of 1780-1,.
with Shawanese, 122; kills and
captures (with Brant) Col. Lochry's whole company, 129; fame415History of the Girtys.
brought an answer to his lordship from the Shawanese.        Gibson, nearly twenty-six years after, in relating the affair, ignores the presence of Girty entirely.*     Biut his memory was
certainly at fault, for a number of persons present, afterward
declared that he was accompanied by Girty.
While negotiations were going forward, the Mingo chief,
Logan, held himself aloof.    "Two or three days before the
treaty," says an eye witness, "when I was on the out-guard,
Simon Girtv, 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 forhned,
and the treaty begun. I saw John Gibson, on Girty's arrival,
get up and go out of the circle and talk with Girty, 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 handwriting, a speech
for, and in the name of Logan." t This was the famous
"speech,". about which there has been so much controversy.
It is now well established that the version as first printed,
* See Gibson's Statement, in Appendix to the Notes on Virginia [Jefferson's] Relative to the Murder of Logan's Family (Philadelphia, 1801), pp.
13-16.
t From Benjamin Tomlinson's testimony, as given in Jacob's Life of
Cresap, pp. 76, 108, 109. "He [Tomlinson] hints," says Roosevelt (in The
Winning of the West, Vol. I, p. 351), "but does not frankly assert, that
Gibson was not sent after Logan, but that Girty was." It is suggested that
his " hint" is about as plain as any frank assertion could be. In An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, etc., pp. 30, 31, the writer
of this narrative gives credit to Gibson's statement, which says nothing
about the part taken by Girty in connection with Logan's " speech;" but I
am now abundantly satisfied that Tomlinson's testimony in this respect is to
be relied upon. Gibson was not ambitious to have his name connected with
that of Girty, after the latter became odious. " There is some uncertainty,"
says Roosevelt, "as to whether Logan came up to Gibson at the treaty and
drew him aside, or whether the latter went to seek him in his wigwam."
See The Winning of the West, Vol. 1, p. 237, note. But there is no "un-,certainty" about it; they did not meet each other at all.
I" I appeal to any white man," etc.
29Index.
increased, 130; rejoins Capt.'I'hompson, ib.; goes with McKee
and Brant into Ky., 13 1; did not
go to Wheeling in 1781, 132; at
Sandusky awaiting attack of Col.
Crawford, 163; in the battle
against Craw'ord, 167; returns
to the Delawares, 184; lives with
them, ib.; his ill-treatment of
Slover, 186; marchles under Capt.
Caldwell, 193, 194; returns to the
Delawares, 200; did not march
under Bradt against Wheeling,
208; goes against Dunlap's Station, 252, 257, 258; continues
with the Delawares, 292; writes,
in 1784, to McKee, 293; takes
charge of young Brickell, 293,
294; marries among the Delawares, 315; dies on the Maumee,
ib.; his bravery, ib.; first printed
account of, 335; mention of as a
trader, k37; not at Wheeling in
777; his letter to McKee given
in full, 382.
"CGirty's Hi ill," 331.'Girty's Island," 317, 411, 412.
Girty,.lames, birth of, 2; captured
at Fort Granville, 8; taken to
Kittanning, 11; witnesses the
torturing of his step-father by
the savages, ib.; why he was not
rescued at the attack on Kittanning, 13; adopted by the Shawanese, 15; brought in, in 1759, to
Pittsburgh, 16; emtployed as interpreter, 19; goes to the Shawanese in the Ohio wilderness for
traders, 20; is there seen and
described by Rev. David Jones,
21; sometimes worked in Pittsburgh as a common laborer, ib.;
remained in Pittsburgh during
Dunmore's War, 49; sent to the
Shawanese with a message and
presents by American commissioners, ib.; persuaded to desert
his country, 60; inflames the
minds of the Shaawanese against
the Americans, ib.; arrives at
Detroit, 64; sent back as interpreter to the Shawanese, ib.; accompanied to the Ohio wilderness by his brother Simon, ib.;
attainted of high treason by
Pennsylvania, 65, 66; what Hamilton expected of him in the
Ohio wilderness, 73; goes upon
a marauid into Kentucky, 74; rleturns with scalps and prisoners
to Wapatomica, ib.; meets Kenton at Wapatomica, 77; goes to
Detroit, 10)9; sent back to Wapatomica, l 10; faithful to British
interests, 111; early in 1780 goes
to Detroit, 117; thence upon
Bird's expedition intto Ky., 118;
returns to the Shawanelle, 120;
fights bravely at Piqua, 121; in
winter of 1780-1, with Shawanese, 122; did not go to Whlleeling in 1781, 132; arrives at Sandusky to aid the Shawanese
against Crawford, 169; returns
to Wapatomica, 184; inf'oms
against Slover, 185; malrches under Capt. Caldwell, 193; returns
to the Shawanese towns, 194;
matrches under Capt. Bradt
against Fort Henlry, 201, 208,
209; his warning of emigrants
on the Ohio a fiction, 229-232;
locates at St. Mary's as a trader,
231l; not at the attack on Dunlap's Station, 257, 258; marries a
Shawanese woman, Betsey, 289;
his locating at St. Mary's again
mentioned, ib.; ships peltrly to
Detroit, ib.; moves to "'lThe
Glaize," 290; visited by O. M.
Spencer, 291; frightens the boy,
292; removes to Gosfield, Essex
county, Canada, ib.; his savage
disposition, 294; returns to the
lMaumee to trade, 316; granted
lands in Gosfield by the Crown,
ib.; makes his will, ib.; continues to trade on the Maumee,
317; finally gives up the business, ib.; his last trading-post,
location of, ib.; not at the battle
of the Thames, 318; death of, in
Gosfield, Canada, ib.; his personal appearance and character,
318, 319; erroneous accounts as
to the place of his death, 319;
his savagery probably overstated,
ib.; first published account of,
335; not in the attack on Fort
Henry in 1777, 346; his will
given in full, 397-399.
416Index.                           417
Girty, James (son of James, brother
of Simon), 292, 316, 397, 398.
Girty, John (son of Thomas), 332,
333, 400.
Girty, Mrs. Mary Newton, 4, 5,(Mrs.
John Turner) 8, 11, 12, 15, 18.
"Girty's Notch," 203.
" Girty's Notch Hotel," 203.
"Girty's Point" (in the present W.
Va.), 141, 142, 143.
"Girty's Point" (on the Maumee),
317.
Girtv, Prideaux, 304, 305, 329, 332,
394, 400.
"Girty's Run," 331.
Girty, Sarah, born, 255; marries
JosepCh Munger, 307; is given
property by her hialf:uncle, John'lurner, 332; mention ot', in
Turnei's will, 400.
Girty, Siinon, Sr., emigrates to
Amnerica, I; itn the Indian trade
at "Paxtang," ib.; settles on
Sherman's creek, 3; returns to
Ch;lmbers's, 4; death of, 5.
Girtv, Simon, born, I; captured by
the Indians at Fort Granville, 8;
taken to Kittannling, 11; witnesses the torturing of his stepfather, ib.; why he was not rescued by Col. Armstrong, 14;
claimed  by the Senecas, 15;
brouglht by them, in 1759, to
Pittsburgh, 16; employed as interpreter, 19; a Delaware chief
takes his name, ib.; visits Indiaii
camps frequently, 20; makes
friends at Pittsburgh, ib.; takes
part with Va. in boundary controversy, ib.; employed by the
Crown as interpreter, 21; indicted in the boundary troubles
for misdemeanor, 23; protects
Mrs. MacKay, 24; takes part in
Lord Dunmore's War, 25; carries a rmessage to Point Pleasant,
27; shoots an Indian, 28; sent
by Dunmore with John Gibson
to the Shawanese, 29; goes afterward alone to meet,lohn Logan,
the Mingo chief, ib.; translates
Logan's " speech" to Gibson, 30;
gets up an Indian dance with
others, for Dunmore's diversion,
ib.; commissioned second lieutenant, ib.; aids M'ajor Connolly
27
in a jail delivery at Hannastown, 31; takes the prescribed
oaths when commissioned a militia officer, ib.; is said to be " welldisposed" toward the Mother
country, 32; is probably influenced by Connolly, 33; goes as
guide to the Western Indians,.
35; petitions the Virginia Executive Council for extra pay
for the trip, 36; loses his office of second lieutenant, 36;
appointed interpreter by Miorgan at Fort Pitt, for the Six
Nations, 37; his instructions,
38; discharged for ill-behavior,
ib.; sent as express over the
mountains, 39; enlists men at
Pittsburgh fo)r the patriot army,
41; made seco-nd lieutenant, ib.;
soon resigns, ib.; not at the attack, in 1777, on Fort ilenry, 43;
arrested as a conspirator, 45; discharged, ib.; fullv restored to the
confidence of Gen. Hand and
sent with a message to the Senecas, ib.; goes out upon the
"Squaw Campaign," 48; influenced by McKee to flee to the
enemy, 49, 50, 51; why he went
over to the enemy, 51 et seq.; left
no papers behind, 54; his character at the time of his flight,
ib.; owned no lands in Westmoreland county, Pa., 54, 55; a
fictitious tradition as to his living with a woman-his reputed
wife, 55; left Pittsburgh to go to
the British, not to the Indians,
56; was not at heart an Indian,
ib.; did not flee from Fort Pitt,
ib; goes with MlcKee and Elliott to the Delawares, 57; helps
inflame their minds against the
Americans, 58; goes to the Shawanese, 60; a fiction as to his being captured by the Wyandots,
61; reaches Detroit, 62; employed in the British Indian Department as interpreter to the
Six Nations, ib.; is paid two dollaIs a day, ib.; belonged to no
military organization, 64; goes
to the Mingoes as interpreter,
ib.; attainted of high treason by
Pennsylvania, 65, 66; not "a418
Index.
white savage-nothing else," 67;
why he left Pittsburgh to join
the British, 67, 68; what Itamilton expected of him in the Ohio
wilderness, 73; goes upon a foray
into Kentucky, 74; returns with
prisoners and scalps to Wapatomica, ib.; in going over to the
British did not intend to live
with the Indians, 75; meets Kenton at Wapatomica, 77; ill-trleats
him, 77, 78; saves his life, 78;
again intercedes for him, 79; secures his being taken to Upper
Sandusky, 79, 80; was "' good to"
Kenton, 80; said "he was too
hasty" in going over to the
enemy, ib.; not entitled to great
credit for saving Kenton, 80, 81;
erroneous report has been published that he was dispatched to
the "Moravian" Indians, 85; ordered by Hamilton to watch the
enemy near Fort Pitt, 88; goes
with a party of Mingoes to Fort
Laurens, ib.; ambushes Captain
John Clark and a detachment of
troops, ib.; returns to Detroit,
90; his hatred of Col. Gibson,
and the reason, 91; asks C'apt.
Lernoult for aid to go against
Fort Laurens, 92; leads the Miiigoes to Fort Laurens, 94; Delawares try to waylay him, it is
said, to get reward for his scalp,
95; he goes in pursuit of his
would-be slayers, ib.; returns to
the Mingo country, 96; goes with
seven Mingoes after a bundle of
letters, 97; reaches Xcoshocton,
ib.; returns there with a prisoner,
98; his name a terror now on the
border, ib.; that he killed women
and children not positively
proven, ib.; accidentally meets
David   Zeisberger, ib.; takes
the bundle of letters to Detroit, 104; returns to the Ohio
wilderness, 109; could be relied
upon as faithful to. the British,
111; letter of, from Sandusky to
Capt. Lernoult, 113, 114; fought
against Indians,when, 114; early
in 1780, goes to Detroit, 117;
goes upon Bird's expedition into
Ky., 118; returns to the Mingoes, 120; remains, in the wintep
of 1780-1, with tile NMingoes, 122;
goes among the Wyandots to reside, 125; goes on a raid into
Ky., 126; saves the life of voung
Henry Balker, 127; sends Wyandots to Coshocton, 128; writes to
De Peyster concerning Brodhead's expedition to Coshocton,
ib.; says the'hrilistian (' Moravian ") Indiants applied for help to
be removed betore the "' rebels"
reached their town, ib.; goes with
McKee to repel Clark. 130; has
a personal eincounter with Capt.
Brant, ib.; neairly killed, ib; did
not go to Wheeling in 1781, 132;
more and more, in 1782, attached
to Britain, 136; the constant
companion of the HIalf King, ih.;
enters tIeckewelder's cabin, 137;
depicted by that missionary, ib.;
gets a letter from De Peyster as
to the missiotnaries, 138; goes on
a raid eastward across the Ohio,
140; returns to Lower Sandusky,
141; took   delight in  seeing
prisoners tortured, 142; writes
to De Peyster concerning his
raid, ib.; his headquarters at the
Half King's town, 144; gets
drunk at Lower Sandusky and
frightens the Moravian missionaries, 147, 148; goes to Upper
Sandusky, 151; fiction as to
his going in disauise into border
settlements, 158; one, also, as to
selling younrg Isaac Walker, ib.;
writes to De Peyster from Lower
Sandusky, 159, 160; attends to
the " King's business," ib.; sends
alarming intelligence to De Peyster, ib.; awaits the coming of
the expedition under Crawford;
163; letter of, to De Peyster
from Lower Sandusky, 164, 165;
he takes part in the battle on the
Sandusky Plains, 168; interview
with Crawford before the battle
a fiction, 169, 170; sees Crawford,
172; did he endeavor to save
him as he promised? 173-175;
meets him   again near the Tymochtee, 177; at the torturing of
Crawford, 178-182; after Crawford's torture returns to theIndex.
Half King's town, 183; goes
thence to Lower Sandusky, ib.;
reports the burning of Crawford
to Capt. Caldwell, ib.; goes to
Solomon's town, 190; supposed
speecr of, error, 190, 191, 202;
marchles under Capt. Caldwell,
193; reaches Bryan's Station, 194;
fiction of his demanding its surrernder, 195-197; did not have
any command at the battle of
the Blue Licks, 198-200, 205208; returns to the Half King's
town, 200; actively employed between Sandusky and Detroit,
202; h-is ubiquity, 203; did not
march against Wheeling under
Bradt, 208; goes against the Pa.
bordel, 210;  captures young
Burkhart, ib.; recalled from the
Ohio wilderness by De Peyster,
ib.; receives halt:pay or pension, ib.; fictitious account as to
his meeting Brady, 211, 212;
present at a council with the
savages at Detroit as an interpreter, 212;  time  previously
spent with the Indians during
the Revolution, 213; is visited by
his brother Thomas, and halfbrother, John Turner, it.; goes,
in 1783, to an Indiatn council at
Sandusky, 214; marries. ilj 1784,
Catharine Malott, 214. 215; takes
up his abode on the east side of
the Detroit river, 215, 216, 219;
excites the savages against the
United States, 220; is under McKee's direction, 222; is informed
of by C(ol Harmar, 223; goes to
the Wyandots and Shawanese to
prevent them from treating with
the United States, 224; again
visits the Shawanese to stir up
their animosity, 226; goes to
Si;ndusky, thence to Niagara,
227; is p,romised lands for his
services in the Revolution, 228;
has a daughter born, ib.; active,
in 1786, at a council with the Inoians on Detroit river, 228, 229;
was known by Walker, 235; aids
young Moore to release his sister
from captivity, 2:37; labh,rs to
have the savages, in 1787, meet
in council on the Maumee, 23S;
419
his activitv, in 1788, for McKee,
239; is sent to the second Indian
council on the Maumee, 239;
has a son born, ib.; assists in rescuing Mrs. Thomas Cunningham
from captivity, 241; returtls to
Detroit, i6b.; is comparatively inactive in 1789, 244: fiction as to
his raiding into Va. in that year,
ib.; visited again by his halfbrother, John Turner, ib; goes, in
1790, to a council on the Maumee, 248; his advice followed by
the savages, ib.; proposes a campaign against the American
forts, ib.; a fallacy as to his
raiding into Virginia, 249; leads
savages against Dunlap's Station,
251; attacks the stockade, and
is unsuccessful, 251-254; orders,
or approves of, the torturing of
Abner Hunt, 254; returns home,
255; birth of another daughter,
ib.; sent again to the Maumee,
256; threatens any U. S. commissioner sent to make peace, ib.;
employes "Moravian" Indians on
his farm, 259; pays them in rum,
ib.; goes to the Miami villages,
head of Maumee, 260; leads the
Wyvandots at St. (Clair's defeat,
261; tought bravely in the battle, 263; refuses to "end the
misery " of Gen. Butler, ib.; captures a white woman, 264; his
reputation as a brave man greatly increased, ab.; returns to the
Maumee, ib.; saves the life of
William May, 265; commands
at the attack on Fort Jefferson,
ib.; is at " The Glaize' during the
summer of 1792, 266; has areputed son on the Maumee, 267,
268; (Girty described by young
Spencer, 269; is seen at Detroit
by Joseph Van Bebber. 270; denies that he was the instigator
of Colonel Crawford's death, ib.;
part taken by him at St. Clair's
defeat again mentioned, 271; his
presence at the attack on Fort
Jefferson reaffirmed, ib.; goes
against the "' Fallen Timber,"
but is recalled, 272; is at a great
Indian counlcil at "RThe Glaize,"
in October, 1792, 273; at anIndex.
other council with the savages, in 1793, on the Maurnee,
2.76; interprets incorrectly at a
meetinag with U. S. Comnmissioners, 277; his insolence, according
to Heckewelder, 278; Quakers
hold a mneeting,t his home, 279;
in 1794, is very ative, 281; paid
by the day as British interpreter
in addition to his pension, ib.; is
seen by Jacob Lewis, ib.; goes to
the  Maumee, 282;      marches
against Fort Recovery, 282, 283;
fights bravely, ib.; is at the battle
of the "Fallen  Timber," 285,
286; attends an Indian council,
in 1794, near his home, 287;
goes to the mouth of the Maumee to assist McKee, ib.; attempts for the last time to admonish the Indians not to treat
for peace, 288; goes home never
again to appear in the U. S. as a
British emissary, ib.; prevents a
few Indians from going to Greenville to make peace with Wayne,
296; his zeal described by Cass,
299; swims the Detroit river,
300, 301; his bravery, 301; how
treated by the British government, 303;   of his domestic
career, 304; birth of his son Prideaux, 304; granted laiid by ttle
Crown, 305, 306; separates from
his wife, 306; fiction as to his.visiting Pittsburgh, 307; deeds
half his farm to his son Thomas,
307, 308; in Detroit in 1812, ib.;
is nearly blind, 309; prepares to
go among the ]Mohawks, ib.; not
at the massacre of the River
Raisin, 310-312; fictions with regard to him and Kenton, 311313; not killed at the battle of
the Thames, 313; finds refuge
with the Mohawks, 313, 315; fiction as to his once trading on
the Maumee, 317, 318; returns
home from the Mohawk country, 320; is totally blind, ib.; reported as killed, 321; his death,
322; his burial, ib.; an error as
to his death, 323; his personal
appearance, ib.; his house has
disappeared, ib.; his ill-will toward the Americans, 324; his
general character, 324-327; first
published account of, 335; fiction
as to his joining the Indians in
1774, 339; the oaths in full taken
by him when commissioned by
Connolly, 341; concerning the
fiction of his being at Wheeling
as an enemy, in 1777, 344; particulars of his visit to the Seneca
towns in the same vear, 346;
evidence as to his being instrumental in finally saving Kenton
from torture, 351; did Inot exert
himself to save Crawford, 355; a
fiction as to his attitude when
ready to deliver a speech to the
Indians, 372; what John Leith
says of him, 3T4; a fiction concerning his not visiting the
Scotch-Irish of WV. Va., 387; his
deed in lull to his son T''homas,
389, 390; VW. C. lMickle tells how
he broke his ankle, 393; published estimates of, 394-397;
seen by James Lyon, 402; what
Jonathan Alder says of his treatment of boy-prisoners, ib.; not
much to be praised for his treatment of young Burkhart or
young Spencer, 403; an account
of him in a Cycloptedia, 403,
404; not a proper person to restrain the savages, 405; most
conspicuous of the Girtys, 406;
the fiction of his being at Piqua
when that village was attacked
bv Clark, 406; his living with
the Mingoes confirmed, 407; not
born on an island in the Susquehannah, 407; error as to his going at once to live with the Wyandots, 407; his acquaintance with
Crawford reiterated, ib.; present,
as previously stated, at his torture, ib.; what Dr. Knight told
Croghan concerning his actions
at Crawford's death, ib.; first account published of his course at
the torture of Crawford, 408, 409;
another fictitious account of his
being present, in 1777, at the attack on Fort Hlenry, 4()9; a foolish tradition connecting his
name with Girty's Island on the
Maumnee, 412; ftalse evidence as
420Index.                          421
to John Turner being his full
brother, ib.
Girty, Thomas, born, 1; captured
at Fort Granville, 8; taken to
Kittaniiing, 11; present at the
torturinJg of his step-father, ib.;
rescued bv Col. Armistrong, 13;
before 1768, settles in Pittsburgh,
21, 22; gives bond to keep the
peace, 46; is sued by Ignaw
Labat, ib.; gives a depositioni, it.;
residing, in 1781, at Pittsburgh,
124; his name forged by IMyndert Fisher, ib.; petitions Gen.
Irvine, 152, 153; visits his brother
Simon, 213; becomes a loval citizen, 214; goes to the Western
Indians as a messenger, 238; fiction as to his brother Simon
making himn a visit, 307; a
patriot after the Revolution,
330; moves across the Alleghany, ib.; death of, 331; erlrors
concerning,  332;  first  published account of him, 335; deals
with the Butlers, 411; his descendants try to get John Turner s property, 412.
Girty, Mrs.'Thomas, her loyalty,
330, 331.
Girty, Thomas (son of Simon),
born, 239; marries Miss Moneka
Evans, 307; is deeded half his
father's farm, 307, 308; death of,
315.
Gist, Thomas, 33.
Givans, Lieut., 279.
Glenn, David, 354.
Glikkikan, Isaac, 102, 104.
" Gnadenhutten Affair," 154-157.
Gore, Arthur F., 400.
Govereau, Mrs. Ann (nee Girty),
310, 320.
Govereau, Peter, marries Miss Ann
Girty, 307, 320.
Grant, Commodore, 215.
Green, T'homas M., 376.
Gu-a-sho-ta (Guyasutha), 347.
Gunsaulus, John, 167.
Guyasutha, 17, 338, 347.
Hahn, Samuel, 253, 257.
Haldimand, Gen. Frederick, 86,
107, 111, 348. 349.
Haldimand MSS., see Haldimand
Papers.
Haldimand Papers, 182, 186, 192,
352, 377-381, 385.
Haldimand, William, 377.
HIalf King, 125, 133, 136, 137, 138,
139, 140, 143, 144, 149, 150, 154,
162, 244, 384.
Half King's town, 141, 144, 145,
151, 163, 172, 176, 177, 200, 358,
359.
Hamilton, Capt., 279.
Hamilton, Lieut.-Gov. Henry, 36,
37, 39, 40, 41, 42. 44, 514, 58, 59,
60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66. 67, 68,
69, 74, 75. 85, 86, 87, 88, 90, 100,
101, 126, 215, 222, 343, 344, 348,
349, 350, 405.
HEamtramck, iMajor J. F., 246, 247,
248.
Hand, Brig. Gen. Edward, 41, 42,
43, 44. 45, 47, 48, 49, 51, 52, 57,
87, 347, 348.
Harrmar, Col. Josiah, 221, 222, 226,
227 (General), 246, 247, 248, 250,
254, 256, 290, 406.
HEarmari Papers, 384.
Harrison, Gen. William   Henry,
309, 310, 390, 392, 406.
Harrison, Gov. (of Va.), 205, 206.
Ilarrison, William, 33, 172, 365.
Hay,,Jehu, 63, 118, 215, 216.
Hazle, Edward, 58, 60, 61. 66, 235.
Heart, Capt. J.onathan. 256.
Heckewelder,.John. 53, 57, 90, 96,
97, 98, 99. 100, 101, 102, 103, 104,
115, 117, 124, 125, 136, 137, 140,
143, 145, 146, 275, 278, 279, 353,
356.
Helm, Capt. Leonard, 87.
Herbert, Michael, a servant of
Matthew Elliott, 50.
Hiashota (Guyasutha). 17.
Higgins, one, 50, 51, 348.
Hoagland, Capt. Henry, 167.
Hodgdon, Quartermaster-General,
260.
Homan, Bombardier William, 120.
Hosmer, Abe, 400.
Hull, Gen., 311.
Hunt, Abner, 250, 251, 252, 253,
254, 255.
Iler, Jacob, 394.
Illinois, conquest of the, 71, 72.
"Indiana," grant of, 63.
"Indian officers," 63. 126.
Indian villayes in the Ohio country, 61, 73, 74.
I
fTaidimand Papers, 1821, 186, 19.2
352, 377-391, 38-5.
Haldimand, William, 377.
Ilalf Kiiig, 125, 133, E36, 137, 138,
139, 140, 143, 144, 1491 150, 1541
162, 244, 384.
Half King's town, 141, 144, 14.5,
151,163, 172, 1761 177, 200, 358,
359.
Hamiltoii, Capt., 2719.
Hamilton, Lieut.-Grov. HeDry, 36,
37, 39, 40, 41, 42, 44, 54 i,.58, 59,
601 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66. 67, 68,
69, 74, 75, 85, 86, 87, 88, 90, 1 00,
101, 126, 215, 222, 343, 344? 348,
349, 3501 405.
flamtramek, iNlaj'or J. F., 246, 247,
-48.
[land, Brig. Gen. Edward, 41, 42i
43, 44, 45, 471 48, 49, 51, 521 57,
87, 347, 348.
Harniar, Col. Josiah, 221, 222, 226,
2271 (General), 246, 247, 248, 25of
2.54, 256) 290, 406.
Ilarmai- Papers, 384.
Harrison, Gren. William Henry,
309, 310, 390, 392, 406,
Hari-isoti, Gov. (of Va.) 205, 206.
Ilarrison, William, 33, i72, 365.
Hay, Jehu, 63, 118, 215, 216.
ITazle, Edward, 58, 60, 61, 66, 235.
Heart, Capt. Jonathan. 256.
Hockewelder, John, 53,57, 90, 961
97, 98, 99, 100, 1011 102, 103, 1041
115, 117, 124, 12.5, 136, 137, 140,
143, 145, 1461 275, 2781 279, 3531
356.
Helm, Capt. Leonard, 87.'Herbert, Michael, a servane of
Ma-tthew Elliott, 50.
Hiashota (Guyasutha). 17.
Higgins, one, 50, 511 348.
Hoagland, Capt. Henry, 167.
tiodgdoti, Quartermaster-General,
260.
flonian, Bombardier William, 120.
Hosmer, Abe, 400.
Hull, Gen., 311.
Hunt, Abner, 250, 251, 252, 2539
254, 255.
Iler, Jacob, 394.
Illinois, conquest of tbe, 71, 72.
" Indiana, 1) grant of, 63.
" Itidiaii officers," 63, 126.
Indian village-, in the Ohio country, 61, 73, -14.
421
Index.Index.
Ironside, George, 267, 268, 273, 291,
316, 399.
Irvine, Brig.-Gen.William, 130, 153,
154, 161, 164, 166, 184, 189, 401.
Jay, John, 297.
"Jay Treaty," 297, 299.
Jefferson, Thomas, 117.
Johnson, Col. Richard M., 321, 336,
392.
Johnson, Sir John, 214, 227, 228,
229.
Johnson, Sir William, 43.
Johnston, Col. John, 188.
Johnston, Rev. J. B., 45.
Jones, an interpreter, 277.
Katapecomen, 19, 202, 328.
Kayashuta (Guyasutha), 32.
Kenton, Simon, 26, 72. 73, 76, 135,
187, 310, 312, 313, 350, 351, 396,
401, 403, 404, 410.
Kinan, Mrs. Joseph, 281.
Kingsbury, Lieut. Jacob, 250, 251,
254, 255.
Killbuck, Capt. John, 88.
Knight, Dr. John, 161, 167, 177,
178, 180, 181, 188, 189, 366, 367,
368, 369, 370, 407, 408, 409.
"Knight and Slover Narratives,"
157, 179, 181, 186, 367, 368, 369372.
Kuhn, Abraham, a Wyandot war
chief, 140, 141, 149.
Lamothe, William, 405.
Lassell, Antoine, 386.
Lee, Arthur, 221.
Leith,,John, 68, 69, 382-384.
Lernoult, Capt. R. B., 63, 90, 92, 93,
104, 108, 109, 110, 111, 113, 114,
222.
Le Villier, 128, 140, 144, 145, 147,
149, 165.
Lewis, Col. Andrew, 26, 27, 28, (now
Gen.) 33;9, 340.
Lewis, Jacob, 281.
I,ight. Jacob, 267.
Lincoln, Benj., 275. 279.
Liun, C'apt. William, 85.
Little I'urtle, a Miami chief, 261,
273, 274, 282.
Lochry, Col. Archibald, 129, 130,
135.
"Lochrv's Defeat," 129-131, 152,
35 1, 379.
Logan, Col. Benj., 199, 205, 232,
236, 29t0.
Logan, the Mingo chief, 25, 29, 30,
83, 338, 339, 350, 351.
Lolng Knives," india n name for
Virginians, 25.
Long Run, massacre at, by McKee
and Brant, 131.
Lorirner's, 120, 202, 209.
Louisville (Kv.) founded, 85.
Lower Sandusky, Wyandot village
of, its location, 61.
Lyon, Eli (a boy), 401.
Lyon, James (a boy), 402.
Lyon, Thomas, 401.
Mac-a-chack. See Mac-a-cheek.
Mac-a-cheek, 77, 234, 236, 350, 410.
MacLeod, John, 1, 312.
Malden (Amherstburg), 306, 310,
311, 313.
Makott, Catharine, taken prisoner
by the Delawares, 116; marries
Simon Girty. 214, 215;   mentioned by Charles McKnight,
218; also by Mag. Amer. History, 218, 219.
Malott, Peter, 116.
Malott, Sarah, 116.
Marietta founded, 258.
Marshel, Col. James, 155.
Marshall, Thomas, 229, 230, "31,
232.
Martin's Station, 119, 121.
Masonville, A., 308, 390.
May, William, 263, 265, 266, 385.
McArthur, Gen., 392.
McCarty, Nathaniel, 213.
McCasliin, John, 332, 400.
McCaslin, Priscilla, 332, 400.
McClelland, Maj.,fohn, 171, 365.
McClung, John A., 80, 82, 83, 231,
2131, 232
McCormick, Alexander, 101, 102,
103, 137, 138, 357, 359.
McCutchebn, Joseph, 170, 357, 358,
359.
McDonald, Maj. Angus, 25.
McGeary, Ma.jol, 199.
Mcintosh, Brig.-Gen. Lachlan, 87,
88, 89, 95.
McKee, Alexander, 32, 43, 44, 45,
49, 50, 51, 52, 56, 57, 60, 62, 63, 65,
66, 108, lx, 130, 169, 185, 190,
192, 193, 194, 200, 206, 215, 222,
227, 228, 229, 235, 237, 238, 239,
241, 247, 248, 251, 266, 272, 273,
274, 276, 282, 283, 285, 286, 287,
291, 293, 296, 297, 299, 303, 305,
422Index.
326, 327, 348, 352, 372, 382, 385,
386, 387, 407.
McKee, James, 245.
" McKee's lRocks,".51.
McKee, Thomas, 276, 277, 282, 316,
399.
McKenzie, a Scotchman, 273.
McKnight, Charles, 116, 187, 218.
McMahon, Maj. William, 283.
Mercer, Capt. Hugh, 13.
Miami Indian villages, at head of
Maumee, 246.
Mickle,,James, 319, 323.
Mickle, William, 333.
Mickle, William Charles, 323, 333,
393, 394.
"Middle Department" of the U.
S., 36.
Moluntha, Shawanese chief, killed,
236.
Montgomery, John, 39.
AMontour, John, 98.
"Moravian" Indians, 85, 100, 101,
133, 136, 137, 139, 145, 154, 155,
163, 164, 165, 177, 178, 259, 365.
Moravian missionaries in the West,
88, 133, 136, 137, 138, 139, 145,
149, 353, 354, 355, 356, 404.
Moravian missionary stations on
the T'uscarawas, 36.
Moore, Mary, 235, 236, 237.
Moore, young James, 233, 235, 236,
237.
Morgan, George, 37, 57, 346.
Morrison, Alexander, 202.
Munger, Joseph, 307, 332, 394, 400.
Munn, Capt. James, 167.
Murray, Nicholas, 186.
Neville, Capt. John, 36, 41.
Newton, Mary, marries Simon Girty, Sr., 1; maiden name given,
337.
Nicholson, Joseph, 30.
Nicholson, Thomas, 30.
" Ohio Company," The, 258.
Ordinance of 1787, 258.
" Parkman Papers," The, 378.
Parsons. Samuel H., 225.
Paull, James, 184.
Pentecost, Dorsey, 156.
Perry, Commodore O. H., 308, 309,
310.
"Perry's Victory,"- 308.
Pickaway Plains, 81.
Pipe, Capt., a Delaware war chief,
113, 163, 174, 176, 177, 178, 179,
180, 360, 362, 363. 383, 384.
Piqua, Shawanese village, 77, 121,
190, 192, 193, 350, 40t, 407.
Pirault, a Frenchman, 273.
Pluggy's Town, 35, 40.
Poe, Adam, 134.
Poe, Andrew, 133, 134.
" Poe Fight," The, 133, 134, 136.
Point Pleasant, battle of, 28.
Pomoacan, Delaware Indian name
for the Wyandot Half King,
143.
Poole, William Frederick, 380.
Posts (British), Western, not given
up, 220; each, finally, receives
an Amnerican garrison, 299.
Prince, John, 305.
Proctor, Col. Thomas, 256, 257.
Proctor, Gen., 308, 309, 313, 327,
337, 391, 392.
Proctor, John, 53.
Randolph, Beverley, 275.
Rangers (" Butler's"), 129.
Red Jacket, a Seneca chief, 274.
Reed, Gen. Joseph, 161.
Reno, William, 368.
Revnolds, Aaron, 196, 197, 204, 205,
376.
Ithea, Thomas, 256, 257.
Robbins, a trader, 145, 146, 149, 150.
Rogers, David, 110.
Roosevelt, Theodore (in The Winning of the WVest), 5, 11, 26, 27, 29,
40, 64, 69, 70, 74, 75, 81, 83, 97, 112,
118, 120, 121, 122, 126, 129, 133,
161, 163, 164, 171, 193, 198, 200,
901, 204, 208, 321, 351, 379, 380,
381.
Rose, John, 161, 167, 172.
Ross, Alexander, 32.
Ross, Capt. Ezekiel, 167.
Ruddle, Capt. Isaac, 119.
Ruddle's Station, 119, 121, 123.
"Salisbury plain," 10.
Sample, Mrs. Samuel, 46.
Savery, William, 278, 279.
Scotosh, son of the Half King, 133,
140, 141, 149, 151.
Scott, Gen., 259, 260.
Scratch, Leonard, 316, 399.
Scull, G. D., 377.
Selby, I., 245.
Selby, Lieut. Prideaux, 263.
Sharpe, a Detroit merchant, 291.
423424               Index.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Shawanese towns (upper) on or
near Mad river, in the Revolution, 410.
Shelby, Gov., 309, 310.
Sherman's creek, 3, 4.
Sherman's Valley, 5, 6, 7, 10.
Simcoe, Gov., 282, 287, 291, 386,
387.
Sinclair, Lieut.-Gov. Patrick, 117,
118.
Slover, John, 171, 184, 185, 186,
367, 368, 369, 370.
Smith, Philip, 168.
Smith, Thomas, 277.
Smucker, Isaac, 271.
Snake, Capt., a Shawanese chief,
191, 192, 269, 382.
Sllip, a Wyandot war chief, 61.
Solomoii's town, 79, 190, 410.
Spencer, O. M., 131, 253, 267, 268,
269, 270, 290, 291, 292, 323.
Spriggs, Zachariah, 141.
"Squaw Campaign," The, 47, 48,
50, 51, 114.
"Squirrel Hill,'! 20, 331, 332, 333.
St. Clair, Arthur, 24, (now Gov.)
239, 240, 241, 242, 258, 260, 261.
"St. Clair's Defe:lt," 260-264, 270,
271, 283, 307, 404, 411.
St. Mary's, town of, 289, 290, 406,
Stephenson, John, 33.
Stewart, James, 316, 399.
Stockwell, a renegade loyalist, 235,
237.
Surphlit, Robert, 50, 62, 348.
Surveying begins west of the Ohio,
258.
Sutch, Thos. B., 400.
Suttenfield, Mrs., 308, 317.
Symmes, John Cleve, 249, 250, 255,
258.
Tecumseh, a Shawanese chief, 261,
308, 311, 321.
Thames, battle of, 313, 320, 321,
327, 404.
The " Fallen Timber," battle of, on
the Maumee, 285, 286.
The "' Fallen Timber," pack-horses
at, 272; attacked by Little Turtle, 273.
"The Fish,'" an Indian, kills Simon
Girty, Sr., 5.
"The Poe Fight," 133, 134, 135,
137, 150, 151.
Thompson, Capt. Andrew, 129, 131,
352.
Thwaites, Reuben G., 380.'T'omlinson, Benj., 2!9.'I'odd, Col. Johin, 198, 199.
Todd, Levi, 206.'I'odd, John, a surgeon, 311.'I'odd, Robert, 205.'rreaty of Fort Finney, 225, 226, 243;
of Fort Greens ille, 295, 297, 298,
300, 301; of Fort Ha.rmar, 239,
241, 242; of Fort McIntosh, 221,
222, 243; of Fort Stanwix, 242,
243.
Treaties at Pittsburgh, 36, 40.
Trigg, Col., 199.
Tucker, William, interpreter, 63.
Turner, Mrs. John, taken prisoner,
8; witnesses the awful torture of
her husband, 11; at Fort Duquesne, 12; is heard of in the
wilderness, ib.; is brought in to
Pittsburgh, 16; her death unknown, 1x.
Turner, Sr., John, kills'The Fish,"
5; marries Mrs. Simon G(irty,
Sr., ib; son John born, ib.; moves
into Sherman's Valley, 6; a second lieutenant in Fort Granville,
7; surrenders the fort. 8; made
prisoner by the French and Indians, ib.; taken to Kittanning,
11; tortured at the stake, ib.
Turner, John, Jr., birth of. 5;
made a prisoner at Fort Granville, 8; taken to Kittanning by
the Indians, 11; baptized at Fort
Duquesne, 12; carried to the
wilderness, ib.; brought in to
Pittsburg, 16; engaged in Dunmore's War, 26; dances Indian
fashion for Dunmore's diversion,
30; visits Simon Girty, 213; becomes a loyal citizen, 243; makes
a second visit to Simon, 307;
makes his will, 332; death of,
ib.; concerning his baptism, 333;
translation of the record of his
baptism at Fort Duquesne, 337;
his will given in full, 399, 400;
his property, after his death,
sought to be obtained by descendants of his half-brother,
Thomas, 412.
Turney, Lieut. John, 167.
Upper Sandusky, the old location,
61; site changed, 144, 172.
Van Bebber, Capt. John, 270.
424
Index.Index.                         425
Van Bebber, Joseph, 270.
Van Bebber, Rhoda, 270.
Van Meter's fort, 244.
Van Meter, Hannah, killed by Indians, 245.
Van Meter, John, 244.
Walker, William, 235, 264, 324.
Wallace, Mrs. Robert, 154, 157.
Walker, young Isaac, 158, 159.
Walker, Peter, 8, 9.
Ward, John, 74, 77.
Wapakoneta, 82, 410.
Wapatomica, 74, 77, 193, 350.
Ward, Capt. Edward, 7.
Washington, Gen. George, 161, (now
Prest.) 299.
Washnash, a Delaware Indian, captures Catharine Malott, 115.
Wayne, Gen. Anthony, 276, 277,
282, 284, 285, 286, 288, 292, 296,
297, 298, 303, 308, 309, 406.
Wharton, Thomas, 53.
Wheeling, first siege of, 43, 344,
345, 346; second siege of, 201,
208, 209.
White Eyes, a Delaware chief, 32,
60, 62, 338, 347.
White Miingo, 32.
"Widow Myers's," 401, 4(02.
Wilkinson, Col. James, 259, 260.
W\illing, Capt. James, 47, 105, 130,
346.
Williamson, David, 155, 156, 157,
1 63, 166, 171, 356, 357, 358, 360.
"Williamson's Expedition to the
Tuscarawas," 155-157, 163, 164.
"Wingemund " (Wingenund), 356,
359.
Wingenund, a Delaware war chief,
125, 172, 176, 177, 179, 356, 359,
360.
"Wingenund's Camp," 152,401,402.
Winsor, Justin (on "Haldimand
Papers"), 378.
Wiseman, 253, 257.
Wood, James, 35.
Workman, Daniel, 320.
Wyandot towns, location of, on the
Sandusky, 61.
Young (Michael), a Moravian, 146.
Zane, Elizabeth, 409, 410.
Zeisberger, David, 88, 98, 99, 101,
103, 104, 115, 117, 133, 143, 144,
145, 148, 156, 259, 353, 354.
Index.
42530                 HIistory of the Girtys.
was substantially the words of Logan; but it is equally
certain, that he (Logan), in attributing the murder of his
relatives to Colonel Cresap, was mistaken.  Girty, from
recollection, translated the " speech" to Gibson, and the
latter put it into excellent English, as he was abundantly
capable of doing.
1'eace followed with the Shawanese; but the Mingoes, in
attempting to escape without making terms with Dunmore,
were, by AMajor William  Crawford, who led a few brave men
against them, severely punished.
It was while on the march fromn the mouth of the Hockhocking to the Shawanese towlns, that Dunmore, knowing that
Girty and his half-brother, John Turner, as well as the brothers, Joseph and Thomas Nicholson, who were also with the
army as scouts, had lived among the Indians, desired them to
get up, for his diversion, ail Indian dance; which they did,
greatly to the admiration and astonishment of the governor.
They interspersed the performance with Indian songs and
yells that made the welkin ring.
Lord Dunmore's War did not lessen the severity of the
boundary troubles in and around Pittsburgh, and Girty was
rewarded for the part he had performed upon the expedition
against the Shawanese, and for the interest taken by him on
the side of Virginia, concerning the unrun boundary line, with
a commission in the militia at " Fort Dunmore."  The list of
officers stood thus: John Connolly, major; George Aston,
captain; William Christy, first lieutenant; Simon Girty, second lieutenant; Jacob Bousman, ensign.
There is evidence that these officers were not idle. An eye
witness deposed " That, on this instant-24th of December
[1774]-a number of armed men came to the jail of the said
[Westmoreland] county [at Hannastown], and ordered him
[the deponent] to open the prison doors and turn out a certain
William Thomas, then in his custody on sundry executions;
that he believes a certain William Christy and Simon Girty,
who seemed to be officers from their dress, were at the headERRATA.
Page 11. For "applies this method of giving," read "gives, in like
manner," etc.
"   16. Strike out, in foot-note, "also the Missouri Gazette, for
May 7, 1814."
"   19. For "Katapekomen," each time, read "Katapecomen."
"  24. Strike out "that" after "complain."
"  57. For " to the Coshocton," read "to Coshocton."
"   74. For " reaching Wapatomica," read "reached Wapatomica."
"  98. Strike out the rest of the paragraph after the words " positively proven."
" 120. For " without knowledge of Bird's or McKee's Official Report," read "without having seen Bird's or Mc'Kee's
official correspondence."
" 123. For "Official Report," read "Correspondence."
" 130. For "But General Irvine did not," etc., read "General
Irvine did not," etc.
" 156. For "previous aggressions," read "previous aggression."
" 182. For "killed by the Americans," read " killed of the Americans."
" 236. For " Mack-a-cheek," read "Mac-a-cheek."
" 258. For " March 1, 1784," read "April 19, 1785."
273. For "--   Blue Jacket's town; and of the Ilaumee," read
I" and of Blue Jacket's town on the Maumee, and down
that," etc.
" 310. For "after Harrisen," read "after Harrison."
" 328. Strike out one of the quotation points after--Johnson's
mounted men."
" 332. For "'cCassliil, " read "McCaslin."
" 336. For "Co. Johnson's mounted men," read "Col. Johnson's
mounted men."
346. The last' 1779" should be " 1777."
" 350. For "any of the acts," read "most of the acts."' 353. For " from the truth," read " from the fact."
" 354. Strike out-" The intelligence sent by Zeisberger, the Moravian missionary, to Brodhead was not well kept."' 360. Strike out the words-" in the extract above."
(426)History of the Girtys.
of their party; that he, this deponent, refused to deliver his
prisoner or open the door where he was confined; that they
then talked of throwing down the house; when a certain Major Connolly came up,. inquired who resisted the releasement
of the prisoners, [and] threatened to tie and carry him off.
[The said Connolly] then ordered the party to fire their pieces
against the house, and strip off the roof; on which, he (this
deponent), being afraid of ill consequences, both to his person
and property, did open the door to allow the prisoner to speak
to the party; and one of thern rushed in, seized him, and
dragged him out, and also turned out a certain William Dawson, who was likewise in his custody on execution; and that
it was Connolly, himself, who laid hands on Thomas and dragged him out."`
At about the time of this transaction, Virginia courts were
organized in the disputed territory, presided over by justices
of the peace, appointed by Governor Dunmore. The county
court of Augusta county was also adjourned from Staunton to
" Fort Dunmore."  It was one of the orders of this court that
all militia officers shouldt take the oath of allegiance, the oath
of supremacy, the test oath, and the oath of abjuration;
therefore,;on the 22d of February, 1775, came Simon Girty,
in open court, and took and subscribed" all of them:
(Tirty did "sincerely promise and swear " that he would be
"faithful and bear true allegiance to his Majesty King
George the Third," and that from his heart he did " abhor,
detest, and abjure as impious and heretical, that damnable
doctrine and position, that princes excommunicated and deprived by the pope, or any authority of the see of Rome,'"
might be deposed or murdered by their subjects, or any other
persons. He also swore that he believed there was not " any
transubstantiation in the sacrament of the Lord's supper, or
in'the elements of bread and wine at or after the consecration
thereof, by any person or persons whatsoever." Then, after
* Pennsylvania Colonial Records, Vol. X, pp. 227, 228.
31"truly and sincerely " acknowledgin I King George the Third
to be the " lawful and ri,htful king " of the realm, he solemnly declared his belief that the pretender, "iJames the
Third," had no title whatever to the' crown.    He further
swore that he would defend to the utmost of his power his
lawful sovereign "agaitst all traitorous conspiracies and attempts whatsoever," which might be " made against his person, crown, or dignity," promising " to support, maint.in,
and defend the succession of the crown against him, the said
James, and all other persons whatsoever."
So it was, says, the court record, that " Sinmon Girty took
the usual oaths to his majesty's person and government; subscribed the abjuration oath and test; which [fact] is ordered
to be certified on his commission of a lieutenant of the militia
of Pittsburgh and its dependencies."  
There can be no doubt that, at this time, Girty, notwithstanding there was trouble of a serious nature between the
colonies and the mother country, was " well-disposed " toward
the'latter; for Lord Dunmore furnished his government a list
of those who were considered by him as loyal, which included
his name. It waq as follows:
"At Fort Pitt: Alexander NMcKee, deputy agent of Indian
affairs; ---  McKee, brother to Alexander; Alexander Ross,
a Scotchmnan; John Campbell; Captain George Aston; Lieutenant Simon Girty; Lieutenant William    Christy; Lieutenant Jacob Bousman.
" Indians to be heard of at Fort Pitt: White Eyes, chief of
the Delaware Indians'; White Mingo; Cornstalk, chief of the,Shawanese; Kayashuta [usually written Guyasutha], chief of
the Mingoes; John Montour, half white, half Indian; Logan,
a great warrior of the Mingoes.
"At the Alleghany mountains, and to be heard of at Fort
* Compare, in this connection, Creigh's History of Washington County,
Pennsylvania, pp. 13, 14, 23; also, Crumrine's history of the same county,
p. 205. See, in addition, The Centennial Celebration of the Organization of
Washington County, Pennsylvania, by the writer last mentioned, p. 31;.also, Centennial History of Alleghany County, Pennsylvania, p. 98.
-32
H,istor oft the Girt ys.History of the Girtys.                 33
Pitt: Major William Crawford; Valentine Crawford, brother
of William; John Stephenson [half-brother of William and
Valentine]; William  Harrison [son-in-law of William Crawford]; Thomas Gist, and his brother." *
That Simon Girty was labored with by Connolly to remain
"loyal to government," there is little (loubt.'The words of
the Major imply as much. He had prepared a banquet at
"Fort Duninore," and invited to the feast such of his friends
as he thought he could best depend upon. "The gentlemen
present," says Connolly, " were most of them either officers
in the militia, or magistrates of the county, consequently were
those whose influence and wealth could most effectually serve
the cause. A solemn compact was immediately entered into,
stating, that if an accommodation did not take place, and I
could procure the necessary authority to raise men, they would,
at the risk of life and property, most willingly engage to restore the constitutional authority, as far as any co-operative
measure from that county could contribute to so salutary a
design." t  Now, as Girty was not wholly without influence,
though having no wealth, and as he was one of the officers of
Connolly's militia,-that he was present at the Major's entertainment and was one of those who entered into the "solemn
compact," is probable. But he soon changed his mind. Dunmore's "list" was doubtless made by Connolly.
e MS. List of Persons Well-disposed to His Majesty's Government, Living
on the Frontiers of Virginia: Haldimand Papers,
tFrom A Narrative of the Transactions, Imprisonment, and Sufferings
of John Connolly, an American Loyalist and Lieut. Col. in His Majesty's
Service, reprinted in Penn. Mag. of Hist. and Biog., Vol. XII, p. 317.
3History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER V.
The immediate result of the successful termination of Lord
Dunmore's War was, to Virginia, comparative immunity from
savage aggressions upon her western border, causing a renewal of emigration to the " western waters " (which had received a decided check); and, as to Pennsylvania, a quick
resumption of trade with the Indians beyond the Ohio.
Both these, however, were destined soon to be seriously interfered with, for the War of the Revolution was at hand.
After the battle of Lexington, the fires of patriotism west
of the mountains were quickly lighted. The hearts of many
of the backwoodsmen were soon aglow with enthusiasm for
the cause of liberty. On the 16th of May, 1775, conventions
were held at Pittsburgh and Hannastown, for citizens to
give expression to their views and sentiments regarding the
troubles with the mother country. All of those of the whites
on Dunmore's "list," with one or two exceptions (and Simon
Girty was not of the latter), quickly and patriotically rallied
with the Whigs. The people in the Trans-Alleghany country,
however, had little to fear from invading armies of Great
Britain. Their dread was of a more merciless foe.
It had been arranged at " Camp Charlotte," between Lord
Dunmore and the Shawanese, that a supplemental treaty
should be held in the ensuing spring to settle some minute
matters that could not be, as his Lordship averred, well attended to at the first meeting. The whole matter, however,
because the "rebellion" had made it impossible for Lord
Dunmore to keep his promise, was put into the hands of
Connolly, who, although notifying these Indians that he was
ready to treat and deliver up the hostages who had been
turned over to Dunmore at the conclusion of peace, could not
induce them to put in an appearance; but, as the Delawares
34History of the G irtys.
and Mingoes had also been invited, a few of these went to
Pittsburgh and had a " talk" with Connolly.
The Virginia House of Burgesses, distrusting Major Connolly's treaty, just then being held, and hearing of the discontent of the Ohio Indians because the understanding with
Lord Dunmore had not borne fruits, appointed commissioners to meet those savages and ratify the " Camp Charlotte"
agreement.   One of the men appointed-James Wood-notwithstanding the " talk " of Connolly, made an extended trip
into the Ohio wilderness, inviting the various tribes to a general meeting at Pittsburgh.*   With him, as guide and interpreter, went Simon Girty, also under pay of Virginia.
The sympathies of the latter were now fully enlisted on the
side of the colonies against the home government. He was
outspoken in his denunciations of its arbitrary acts.
The two left Pittsburgh in July, and made their way as
far west as the upper Wyandot town, on the Sandusky river,
within the present limits of Wyandot county, Ohio. Girty
had learned, by associating with Wyandots during their frequent visits at Pittsburg,h in the years gone by, to speak
their language quite intelligibly. Ile had also taken several
trips into the Ohio wilderness after his return from captivity
among the Senecas; so that he could readily act as guide as
well as interpreter even so far west, among the Ohio Indians,
as the Sandusky.    On the return of the two, they visited
Pluggy's Town, on the Scioto, at the site of the present town
of Delaware, in Delaware county, Ohio, and the "'Big Salt
Licks," in what is now Franklin county, that state.t Girty,
for his services upon this tour, was paid but five shillings a day,
notwithstanding he underwent, as he afterward declared, " the
greatest fatigues, difficulties, and dangers." He subsequently
* Magazine of Western History, Vol. VIII, pp. 70-72.
t The Journal of Wood is extant. Important parts of it will be found
published in Kercheval's History of the Valley of Virginia, pp. 184, 186;
Force's Anierican Archives, Fourth Series, Vol. III, pp. 76-78; Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 9, note 4; Jacob's Life of Cresap, pp. 70, 85.
Compare, also, Mayer's Logan and Cresap, pp. 134, 135.
35CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.                                                PAGE.
Simon Girty, Sr., emigrates from Ireland to Pennsylvania.....   1
Marries Miss Mary Newton................................................   1
Death  of Girty..................................................................  5
John Turner, Sr., marries Mrs. Girty..................................  5
The I'urner family made prisoners by Indians......................  8
CHAPTER 11.
Turner's awful death by torture.........................................  11
Thomas Girty rescued at Kittanning....................................   13
Simon, James, and George Girty adopted by the savages........ 15
The Girty family, in 1759, brought into Pittsburgh................  16
CHAPrER II I.
Employment in Pittsburgh of Simon,'James, and George
Girty............................................................................  19
Thomas Girty, before 1768, settles at Pittsburgh..............-...... 22
CHAPTER IV.
Boundary troubles between Pennsylvania and Virginia......... 23
Simon Girty sides with Vilrginia..........................................   24
Lord Dunmore's War........................................................ 25
Girty translates Logan's " speech'.'.......................... 29
Boundary troubles renewe(l in the West............................  30
Girty commnlissioned second lieutenant by Virginia................  31
CIhAPTER V.
Backwoodsmen, in 1775, enthusiastic for liberty....................  34
Simon Girty goes as guide for James Wood.......................... 35
John Neville, for Virginia, takes possession of Ft. Pitt............ 36
Girty appointed interpreter for the Six Nations..................... 37
Savages begin hostilities on the Western border....................  40
CHAP'I'ER VI.
Simon Girty made second lieutenant by the patriots.............. 41
Lieut.-Gov. Henry Hamilton, at Detroit, excites the Indians... 41
Brig.-Gen. Edward Hand takes command at Fort Pitt........... 42
Alexander McKee, at Pittsburgh, distrusted by the Wlhigs......  43
Girty arrested as disloyal, but acquitted...............................  45'Thomas Girty's early career at Pittsburgh............................ 46
CHAPTER VII.
George Girty enlists with Capt. James Willing..................... 47
(v)History of the Girtys.
-in May, 1777-petitioned the Virginia Executive Council
for an additional compensation, which was not granted.
By the middle of the year 1775, Connolly, having previously
disbanded and discharged his militia, by which means Girty
lost his office of second lieutenant, left Pittsburgh, much disgusted, to confer with Dunmore. IHe declares "the demagogues of faction were active."
About this time (that is, in July, 1775), Congress created
three Indian departments-the one west of the Alleghanies to be
known as the "Middle Department," three commissioners being appointed to preserve peace and friendship with the savages therein. These commissioners joined their efforts with
those appointed previously by Virginia to bring about a treaty
with the western savages. In October, a large body of Delawares and Munceys, some Shawanese and Mingoes, also a
few Sandusky Wyandots and Ottawas, came to Pittsburgh. A
strict neutrality, as between the mother country and the colonies, was urged upon the Indians, to which they agreed.
But did they keep their promise? We shall soon see.
On the 11th of September, Captain John Neville took possession, under orders of Virginia, of the dilapidated Fort Pitt
(its name being now fully restored), at the head of one hundred of the militia of that commonwealth, not to further its
interest in the boundary dispute with Pennsylvania, but to
cover and protect the border from the savages whose depredations might be counted upon with certainty.
The Indian policy of Neville, upon taking possession of
Fort Pitt, was one of strict neutrality, powerless, however,
to a great extent with the western tribes, except the Delawares, who were located on what are now known as the Tuscarawas and Muskingum rivers, in the State of Ohio. Their
most important.village was at Coshocton, near the site of the
present town of that name, county-seat of Coshocton county.
In the Tuscarawas valley, Moravian missionaries had stations,
where were their Indian converts, brought from Pennsylvania.
In November, Henry Hamilton arrived at Detroit as lieu36History of the Girtys.
tenant-governor -and Indian superintendent,* and was immediately importuned by the Indians in the vicinity for his assent to their making inroads upon the frontiers of Pennsylvania, but not having received positive orders on the subject,
he declined to give it; so the evil day of a general Indian war
was postponed.
In Fincastle county, Virginia-that is, in that part then lying west of the Big Sandy, including the whole of the present
State of Kentucky-during the last half of the year 1775,
settlements increased.  But, from   the first appearance of
spring, in 1776, not only these settlements, but the more numerous ones on the head streams of the Ohio, began to be uneasy as to the savages beyond that river. Before this time,
Richard Butler had been agent of Indian affairs, in the Middle Department; but, on the 10th of April, he was succeeded
by George Morgan. One of the first duties to be performed
by the latter was the appointment of interpreters to assist him
in his labors. Of those employed were William Wilson, Joseph
Nicholson, Simon Girty, and Peter Long.
Girty was appointed on, the first day of May of the year
last named, to interpret for the Six Nations, at Pittsburgh,
which meant, practically, for the Senecas. He was to receive
" at the rate of five-eighths of a dollar per diem during good
behavior, or the pleasure of the Honorable Continental Congress, or their commissioners or agents for the Middle Department."   I-He was, upon all occasions, to use his "utmost endeavors to promote the public tranquillity, and maintain a good
understanding between the United Colonies and the Indians,"
and inform Morgan of all intelligence which might come to
his knowledge. He was to obey all of Morgan's reasonable
* In 1783, Hamilton addressed a memorial to the commissioners of his
majesty's treasury, in which he says that, "in the month of April, 1775, I
was appointed lieutenant-governor and superintendent of the settlement of
Detroit, at a salary of ~200. In the month of September following, Sir
Guy Carleton sent me to" that post with verbal orders, the state of the province [of Quebec] at that time pressing my departure."'Ie did not reach
Detroit, however, until the 9th of November. See Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. IX, p. 490.
37History   of the Girtys.
and lawful orders during the agency of the.latter, and faithfully to keep secret all private councils between the commissioners, agents, Indians, and himself, so far as the public good
should require it. He was also to visit and confer with all
Indians who should reach Fort Pitt, so early after their arrival as possible, to learn their business, and immediately to
acquaint the agent therewith. In the event of any discontent among the Indians, he was, at once, to inform MIorgan of
the fact; and he was to take care that none of them, on any
account, should be insulted or injured by the inhabitants. He
was, likewise, to be equally cautious to prevent any of them
injuring the inhabitants.
Girty was, upon no account, to be concerned in trade, or
assistant therein, unless when called upon to see justice done
between traders and Indians.    For extraordinary services, he
was to be entitled to further reasonable allowance, as the case
might be.
The office was accepted by Girty, who engaged to fulfill and
comply with all the directions imposed by Morgan, to the utmost of his ability.
While thus engaged, he was sent once into the Indian country.* However, he only held the position three months; for,
on the first day of August, it was found necessary to discharge
him " for ill behavior." t
* Compare Journals of the Old Congress, Vol. II, p. 457, and Girty's account, below.
t Historical Register, Vol. II (June, 1884), pp: 155-157. A few days
after his dismissal, Girty rendered the following bill for extra pay:
" PITTSBURGH, August 1] 1, 1776.
"THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
"To SIMON GIRTY, DR.
"To a horse taken by Mr. Geo. Morgan, and given out in the service of the  public.............................................................. 20  0  0
" To cash expended on his journey to the Indian country, [as] per
acct. rendered  [below]......................................................   3   0 0
"CASH EXPENDED.,"To hire of horses......................................... 0 15 0
"To finding a horse when lost...................................... 0 15 0
"To rum to chiefs of the Indians, at their request.............. 0 15 0
38History   of the Girtys.
Girty, it seems, was, sometime after being relieved from his
duties as interpreter, sent as express on public business to
Carlisle, Pennsylvania.  His "ill-behavior," it appears, was
not of such a character as to lessen the confidence of the
Whigs at Pittsburgh and vicinity in him     as a trustworthy
patriot. "It made us very uneasy," wrote a daughter of
John Montgomery from Carlisle, on the 13th of September,
" the reports that we have up here, that there were ten hundred Indians ready to attack Fort Pitt, and [that the attack
is] intended in a very little time. There was one Girty that
came express here and asserted it for truth, and that there
were some hundreds of white people killed up the river. A
great many, including myself, believe it here." *   Doubtless
what Girty did report was considerably exaggerated by the
time it reached the ears of the writer of the letter.
It having been determined in May, 1776, to hold another
treaty with the Indians at Pittsburgh, as there was evidently a
constantly increasing bitterness of feeling on their part against
the  Americans, Morgan, in June, sent two trusty          messengers to the Shawanese, to urgently request them not to
go to Detroit, where a conference was also to be held by
Hamilton with the savages, but to await Morgan's arrival among
them.  The latter, on his reaching the Shawanese, was successful in keeping that tribe awav from Detroit, and in getting a
promise from them to attend the proposed council at Pitts"To horse shoeing................................ 0 3 9
" For meat                                        0  3 9
"For meat................................................................. 03 9
"To an Indian who accompanied me, to buy leggings with.. 0 7 6
~3 0 0
"My constant wages in the service and extra pay when in the Indian
country, Mr. Morgan knows; it is, therefore, not inserted here. Errors excepted.                                            HIS
t SIMON + GIRTY."
MARK
* Magazine of Western History, Vol. IV (September, 1886), art., "An
Antiquarian's Scrap Book." It is believed that the "one Girty " mentioned
by Montgomery's daughter was Simon; as his coming as "express" indicates
that he was on some public business, a duty we do not find his brothers
were called upon, so early in the Revolution, to fulfill.
I
39History   of the Girtys.
burgh. He also sent word to the Wyandots upon the Sandusky, inviting them to be present.
Open acts of hostility were now begun by the savages in
Kentucky; however, when, in October, Morgan had got together Mingoes, Delawares (including Munceys), Mohicans,
and Shawanese, at Pittsburgh, they all gave their solemn assurance to remain neutral.    A  significant circumstance was
that no Ottawas, no Wyandots, Pottawattamies, or Chippewas, came to the council; they had been kept away by the
activity of Hamilton.   His policy was by no means for neutrality, but to engender hostility.*  Before the close of the
year the Mingoes, living at Pluggy's Town, a lawless gang
who had no representatives at the Pittsburgh treaty, committed a number of depredations across the Ohio, between the
mouths of Grave creek and the Great Kanawha, killing and
making prisoners of the borderers without distinction of sex
and regardless of age. And now even the Shawanese began
their work of devastation and death-a party of that tribe
killing three persons in Kentucky.
During the year, the fortification at the mouth of the Great
Kanawha was rebuilt, and named Fort Randolph. Fort Fincastle, " at the mouth of Wheeling," was repaired, and occupied by a small force, its name being changed to Fort Henry.
* The arrival of Hamilton at Detroit was, as before mentioned, November
9, 1775, yet Roosevelt (The Winning of the West, Vol. II, p. 2, note) makes
it a year later: "There were several councils held at Detroit during this
fall [1776], and it is difficult--and not very important-to separate the incidents that occurred at each. Sotne took place before Hamilton arrived,
which, according to his' brief account,' was November 9th [1776]. He asserts that he did not send out war parties until the following June [1777];
but the testimony seems conclusive that he was active in instigating hostility
from the time of his arrival." It is true that, in Hamilton's Journal, as
published in 1886, in the Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. IX., pp. 489516, the year of his arrival at Detroit is not given, but the context shows
clearly that it was in 1775, and there is an abundance of outside evidence
extant (besides Hamilton's own words, already cited) to prove it.
40History   of the Girtys.
CHAPTER VI.
Early in 1777, Neville's force at Fort Pitt was relieved by
Virginia troops raised for that purpose; but, on the first day
of June of that year, Brigadier-General Hand, of the Continental army, assumed chief command of that post.
Not long after Simon Girty's dismissal as interpreter by
Morgan, he exerted himself in and around Pittsburgh in enlisting men for the patriot army, expecting as a reward for
his success and assiduity a captain's commission; in this,
however, he was disappointed; he was made second lieutenant
in Captain John Stephenson's company of one year men.
This company went to Charleston, and was there during the
attack on Sullivan's Island. Girty did not, for some reason,
go south, but. remained in Pittsburgh on detached duty. As
late as July, 1777, he was present at Fort Pitt-still a subaltern. " He seemed wholly taken up in intercourse with the
Indians, a great number of whom were in and around the
fort." *  It is probable that his influence with the Indians
was the cause of his remaining at home; as he could be of
service to the country, notwithstanding he was not regularly
employed as interpreter. HIe resigned his commission as
second lieutenant early in August.
It was, at the beginning of 1777, the first and great object
of Hamilton, at Detroit, to keep the Ohio Indians and those
beyond, firm in the interest of the king, and ready, if need
be, to take up the hatchet against the Americans. The savages were not slow to perceive the general trend of his
thoughts as manifested by his words and actions. Again
Shawanese raided into Kentucky, and the Mingoes of Pluggy's
Town were particularly hostile on the border of what is now
* See Statement of Francis Dunlavy, in An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, under Col. William Crawford, in 1782, p. 264.
41History of the Girtys.
West Virginia, even as far from the Ohio as to strike the settlements in South-western Pennsylvania.
Hamilton had proposed to his superiors "the making a diversion on the frontiers of Virginia and Pennsylvania by
parties of Indians conducted by proper leaders; " and, after
maturely weighing the proposition, Lord George Germain directed him to assemble as many Indians of his district as he
conveniently could; place proper persons at their head (to
whom he was to make suitable allowances) to conduct their
parties and restrain them from committing violence on the
well-affected and inoffensive inhabitants; and then send them
to make a diversion and excite an alarm upon the frontiers of
Virginia and Pennsylvania "*-" to let loose," in the language
of Chatham, "the horrible hell-hounds of savage war " against
the exposed settlements. This order was received by Hamilton in June, and before the end of July, two hundred and
eighty-nine braves, in fifteen several parties, were sent out by
him. He had, by his own suggestions, induced Germain to
adopt this most barbarous policy, which, with a haste and a
zeal bespeaking his delight for it, he was now successfully
carrying out. For the Western Border War, then, with its
innumerable horrors, he must be held accountable.
General Hand, soon after arriving at Fort Pitt, resolved
upon an expedition against the savages, whose depredations
were now alarmingly on the increase. He had a frontier to
protect all the way from Kittanning to the mouth of the
Great Kanawha. Below Fort Pitt were Fort Henry and Fort
Randolph. Rude stockades and block-houses were multiplied
in the most exposed settlements, defended by squads of
militia, generally, on short tours of duty. The general was
particularly desirous of marching against the Wyandots, upon
the Sandusky river, in what is now the northwestern part of
Ohio, and the Pluggy's Town Indians on the Scioto; but, for
a number of reasons, he failed and was compelled to remain
on the defensive only.
* Germain to Carleton, March 26, 1777, in Michigan Pioneer Collections,
Vol. IX, pp. 346, 347.
42History of the Girtys.
The principal aggressive movement of the enemy during
1777, across the border, was an attack on Fort Henry, on
the first day of September, by a force of about two hundred
Indians.   Fifteen of the Americans were killed and five
wounded, when the assailants withdrew across the Ohio, having suffered but a trifling loss.
Although Simon Girty, as may be premised, subsequently
signalized his zeal for the British cause in a manner at times
peculiarly savage, the western settlements had not as yet suffered from his cruelty; notwithstanding this fact, histories of
the West teem with his (supposed) exploits against his countrymen while, yet, he was dwelling at Pittsburgh. It has been
particularly set forth how he concentrated an Indian army on
the Sandusky to move against Wheeling in the attack just
mentioned, and that he commanded the savages in assailing
Fort Henry on that occasion; * but this is all pure fiction.t
General Hand learned, upon taking command at Fort Pitt,
that there was a distrust among the Whigs of Pittsburgh and
vicinity of a number of the inhabitants as to their loyalty.
One, in particular, was looked upon with suspicion. This was
Alexander McKee, who had been deputy Indian agent under
Sir William Johnson from 1772, until the death of the latter in
1774, and had not yet resigned his office-the same person
mentioned in Dunmore's " list."  MicKee was a native of Pennsylvania, of that part of the province lying east of the mountains.  He early became a trader with the Indians, carrying
on the business on a large scale from Pittsburgh, in conjunc- See Americtan Pioneer, Vol. II, p. 305.
t Already have published statements sufficiently exposed this fallacy; see,
especially, the note of Isaac Craig, in th% Maagazine of American History,
Vol. III, p. 513 (August, 1879); still, in Appleton's Cyclopaedia of American Biography, art. Simon Girty, and ill The Story of Ohio, by Alexander Black, p. 74, it is repeated; and in The Winning of the West, it is
declared that " there seems to be a doubt whether [Simon] Girty did or did
not command the Indians" at the first siege of Wheeling (Vol. II, p. 9,
note). But, subsequently, this declaration is modified to some extent by the
author averring that he does not know whether either [" of the two brothers
Girty"] was at the first attack (p. 119, note). He has no knowledge of a
third brother. Neither of them was there.
43History of the Girtys.
tion with Alexander Ross, from 1768 to 1772. He had, in
1771, upon the erection of Bedford county, been appointed,
by the governor of Pennsylvania, one of its justices of the
peace; and, upon the organization of Westmoreland county,
in 1773, his commission was renewed for that county. Upon
the breaking out of the Revolution, he was a citizen of considerable means and influence in Pittsburgh and its vicinity.
As early as the 9th of April, 1776, he had been required by
the committee of West Augusta-the Virginia name of the
district including Pittsburgh-to give his parole not to transact
any business with the Indians on behalf of the crown or ministry, and not to correspond directly or indirectly with any
crown or ministerial officers, nor leave the vicinity of Fort
Pitt, without the consent of that committee.*
About the end of August, 1777, General Hand found it
necessary, both to appease the popular clamor, and for his
own security, to bring McKee from his farm and confine him
to his own house in Pittsburgh. On inquiry, the general discovered he had not violated his parole given the year before.
During the violence of the outcry, he was anxious to move
down the country to Lancaster county, but he soon changed
his mind and desired to remain in Pittsburgh, having a considerable interest in the neighborhood, but the real reason
will soon appear. General Hand did not think it necessary to
refuse him his request, at least, until the sense of Congress
could be learned with regard to the matter. He took up his
old parole and gave a new one, more to the satisfaction of the
committee.t
The reason for the general clamor just at that time against
McKee was, the report that a conspiracy was on foot to murder the Whigs in the West, and to accept terms which had
been offered by Hamilton, the lieutenant-governor of Detroit,
in a proclamation issued by him of June previous," and that
* Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 16; and see the authorities there
cited.
t Id., p. 17.
t This proclamation of Hamilton was issued in obedience to the orders
of Lord George Germain, of March 26, 1777, the object being "to divide
44.History of the Girtys.
McKee was one of the conspirators. Among others suspected
of being in the plot, Simon Girty was one.   He was arrested
and sent " to the common guard-house." He soon made his
escape, just to show, as he affirmed, his ability to break down
the barriers interposed between him and his liberty; however, the next day he returned of his own.accord and was
again locked up. He was afterward examined before a magistrate and acquitted.*
As Girty was now fully restored to the confidence of the
Fort Pitt commander, he was, during the fall, sent with
messages to the Senecas living upon the upper waters of the
Alleghany, who, there were reasons for believing, were now
hostile to the United States. Girty would have been held by
the savages as a spy and taken to Niagara, but he managed
to escape, reaching Pittsburgh in safety and reporting that
many of the Senecas were, in reality, on the war-path. Subsequent developmnents confirmed, in the main, his statements.
It finally came to the ears of General Hand, so well authenticated that he could not wholly ignore it, the report that
McKee was really making prephrations to leave Pittsburgh
and join the enemy.    Thereupon, on the 29th of December,
1777, he requested him to repair to York Town, in Pennsylvania, there to await further orders from     the Continental
Board of War. But the wily Tory made excuses, and he was
allowed to remain at his home.
the attention of the rebels " in the East, " obliging them to collect a considerable force to oppose himr" (Hamilton) in the West. It was, however,
as will hereafter be seen, the hostility of the Indians, not the proclamation,
which brought this about.
* "' The grandfather of Rev. J. B. Johnston, of St. Clairsville, Ohio, who,
during the Revolution, had command of a block-house [probably guardhouse], in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, on one occasion held Simon
Girty as a prisoner, but the date of the event we are unable to obtain. He
effected his release by pretending to be friendly to the Americans."-Newton's History of the Pan-Handle, West Virginia, p. 150. This must have
reference to the imprisonment spoken of above; but the account, it will be
noticed, says he effected "his release by pretending to be friendly to the
Americans." There is no doubt of his genuine friendship for the patriot
cause at that time.
45vi                         Contents.
Gen. Hand goes upon a " Squaw Campaign"......................... 48
McKee secretly prepares to desert to the British................... 49
James Girty goes to the Shawanese for the Americans........... 49
McKee, MIatthew Elliott, Simon Girty, and others, start for
Detroit..........................................................................  50
The reason why Simon Girty deserted his country............... 52
Mistakes and erroneous traditions as to Girty................. 54
He had no landed property in Pennsylvania........................ 55
CHAPTER VIII.
The Delaware Indians excited by the wiles of McKee and
Sim on  Girty..................................................................  58
MIcKee, Elliott, and Girty go to the Shawanese towns............  60
The three, with others, depart for Detroit........................... 61
Received with open arms by Hamilton................................  62
Simon Girty employed as interpreter in the Indian Departm ent...........................................................................  63
James Girty, having deserted his trust, also goes to Detroit..... 64
Hamilton's barbarous policy against the Americans............... 65
McKee, Elliott, Simon and James Girty attainted of high
treason.......................................................................  66
Hamilton vainly endeavors to arm the " Moravian" Indians... 67
Simon Girtv given no military office................................... 68
Hamilton takes delight in the sufferings of American prisoners.                                                    69
CHAPTER IX.
George Rogers Clark sends spies to the Illinois.....................  71
Capture, by Indians, of Daniel Boone and others................... 72
Clark's conquest of the Illinois and Wabash towns............... 72
Simon Girty and his brother James sent to the Ohio wilderness..............................................................................  73
Simon goes among the Mingoes; James, among the Shawanese.. 73
With warriors, they raid into the American settlements......... 74
Hamilton, at Detroit, disregards his orders.......................... 75
Capture of Simon Kenton by the Shawanese........................ 76
His life saved by Girty......................................... 78
CHAPTER X.
Hamilton seeks to recover the Illinois................................. 86
Major A. S. Peyster, at Michilimackinac, aids him................. 86
Brig.-Gen. Lachlan McIntosh takes command at Fort Pitt...... 87
McIntosh builds Forts McIntosh-and Laurens....................... 88
Simon Girty ambuscades a detachment at Fort Laurens.........   89
Hamilton captured by Clark at Vincennes...........................  90
Girty becomes bitterly hostile toward Americans...................  91Hietory of the Girtys.
But little is known of Thomas Girty at this period. At a
term of the West Augusta court held at Pittsburgh on the
16th of January, 1776, he was compelled to enter into bond
to keep the peace, he having been charged with threats
against, and an assault upon, the wife of one Samuel Sample.
And he had other troubles. In the court of Yohogana county,
on the twenty-seventh of August of the next year, a suit was
determined wherein Ignaw Labat was plaintiff and he defendant. But he was a man of his word; a man whose oath had
its weight, as is made certain by the fact that, in 1777, when
a band of traders were seeking to make good their title to a
large part of what is now the western portion of the State of
West Virginia-then called by them "Indiana"--they took
(on the tenth of March) his deposition as to certain matters:
" Thomas Girty deposeth and saith that he was made a prisoner by a party of Indians, most of whom were Delawares;
that he continued at the Kittanning'till it was destroyed by
the English; that the Delawares removed to the other side of
the [Alleghany] river, and never returned after the Kittanning was destroyed to his knowledge; [and] that he does not
know of any settlements being made within the Indian grant
['Indiana'] before the year 1768." *
* Calendar of Virginia State Papers, Vol. I, p. 280.
46History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER VII.
George Girty lived quietly at Pittsburgh during Lord Dunmore's War, and was looked upon as a zealous Whig at the
commencement of the Revolution. There was no reason
known to the patriots for suspecting his loyalty. As a citizen, he was not without some influence in the community.
Like his brother Simon, he would occasionally indulge in a
spree; but he was by no means a sot. Early in the year
1778, Captain James Willing, with a company of United
States marines, reached Pittsburgh, on his way down the
Ohio. Here he recruited his force to more than one hundred
men, George Girty joining his company. On the 6th of
February, the latter was commissioned a second lieutenant,
drawing pay at the rate of thirty-three and one-third dollars
a month.*  Ie proceeded with the captain to the Mississippi,
on a predatory expedition against the British planters down
that river.t
General Hand, in command at Pittsburgh, having previously
received intelligence that a quantity of stores was lodged by
the British at an Indian town on the Cuyahoga river, formed
a project for capturing them. Gathering a party of about
five hundred men at Fort Pitt, mostly from Westmoreland
county, he proceeded, in February, 1778, on the expedition.
It was the first time the Americans marched in force into the
Indian country during the Revolution. Heavy rains falling,
and the snows of winter melting, Hand was obliged to relinquish his design, after having arrived at a point a considerable
distance above the mouth of the Beaver, on the Mahoning
- Potter's American Monthly, Vol. VII (November, 1876), p. 388. See,
as to Willing's company generally, Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series,
Vol. XII, pp. 143, 216; also, some of the current histories of' the West, as
well as histories of the United States.
t Post, Chap. XII.
4748                History of the Girtys.
river. Just at this place, Indian tracks were discovered,
conjectured to be of warriors on a marauding expedition into
the settlements. These were followed to a camp, " supposed
to contain between fifty and sixty Indians," which was immediately attacked; "but, to my great mortification," wrote the
commander, "onlv one-man, with some women and children,
was found."  The Indian and one of the squaws were killed.
"Another woman was taken," adds the chagrined and thoroughly disgusted general, " and with difficulty saved; the remainder escaped." The prisoner reported that ten Muncey
Indians-Delawares--were making salt about ten miles further up the Mahoning. A detachment was sent to secure
them. This enterprise proved even more inglorious than the
first. The enemy " turned out to be four women and a boy,"
wrote Hand, "of whom one woman only was saved."  "In
performing these great exploits," are the felicitous words of
the commander, "I had but one man-a captain-wounded,
and one drowned."  This enterprise into the enemy's country
was long after spoken of in the West as the "Squaw Campaign!"*
The particular incidents of this expedition have thus been
narrated because of the fact that Simon Girty was one of
the five hundred who went out under Hand-the only time he
ever actuallv marched against the foe under the American
flag. He led the detachment against the supposed ten Munceys at the Salt Lick, showing that he was acquainted with
the country, and had been there during his abode with the
Senecas in previous years.
United States commissioners at Pittsburgh, who had been
sent there late in 1777 to inquire into the disaffection of the
frontier people and to provide for carrying the war into' the
enemy's country, recommended to Congress that a treaty be
held in July, 1778, at that place, with the Delawares, Shawanese, and other Indians. The recommendation was approved,
and it was resolved that three persons should be appointed
* Washington-Crawford Letters, p. 66, note; Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 15, 16.History   of the Girtys.
to negotiate with the red men. But the commissioners did
not await the action of Congress before sending messengers
carrying presents into the ITidian country, with speeches and
invitations to the savages to attend the conference. The
messenger sent to the Shawanese was James Girty.*  He had
returned from the Indian country just before the beginning
of Lord Dunmore's War, and had since remained in Pittsburgh,
employing himself, generally, as a common laborer.t  His selection was due to the fact of his supposed loyalty, and of his
ability to speak the Shawanese language with great ease and
accuracy; besides, he was personally known to many of the
tribe. About the 1st of AMarch, 1778, he started on his mission.$
Additional evidence having been laid before General Hand,
during the month of January, to the effect that Alexander
McKee was making preparation to leave the country and join
the British, he wrote him as follows:
" FORT PITT, 7 Feb., 1778.
"SIR:--I am sorry to be under the necessity of repeating
my desire of the 29th Dec. last, viz., that you may immediately repair to Yorktown, in Penn., on your parole, there to
receive the further directions of the Hon. Continental Board
of War.                                    EDWARD HAND.
"ALEXANDER McKEE, ESQ."
As this order was peremptory, it was only by McKee feigning sickness that he was permitted to remain in the West.
Meanwhile, he was secretly preparing to take as much of his
property as was portable with him, and, at the earliest possible
moment, start for the Indian country, on his way to Detroithis ultimate destination. Simon Girty was also, shortly after
* Washington-Irvine Correspondence, pp. 19, 25; Hildreth's Pioneer History, p. 126.
t Pennsylvania Colonial Record, Vol. XI, pp. 5613-618, where he is so
represented at that date.: Hildreth's Pioneer History, p. 130. Compare Magazine of American
History, Vol. XV, p. 261.
4
49History   of the Girtys.
his return from the "Squaw Campaign," approached by him
with specious arguments to induce him to go along. These
wiles were successful; and it required no great effort to induce him to turn against his country. He, therefore, made
preparations to join McKee in the flight of the latter to the
enemy.
On the night of the 28th of March, every thing being
ready, McKee and his cousin, Robert Surphlit,* together
with Matthew Elliott, Simon Girty, a man by the name of
Higgins, and two negroes belonging to McKee-in all, seven
persons-took their departure for the Indian country, on their
way to Detroit.
Matthew Elliott was an Irishman by birth. He had formerly resided in Pennsylvania, east of the Alleghany mountains, and early engaged in the Indian trade-head-quarters
at Fort Pitt. He was thus employed when hostilities began,
in 1774, between the Virginians and the Shawanese and Min-,
goes. He remained in the Indian country until after the battle of Point Pleasant and the marching of Lord Dunmore to
the Scioto river, protected by the savages. He was, in fact,
their messenger sent by the Shawanese asking terms of peace
with the Virginia governor. After the ending of Lord Dunmore's War, he again traded from Pittsburgh with the Indians beyond the Ohio, continuing until October, 1776, when he
was overtaken, near what is now Dresden, Muskingum county,
Ohio, by a party of six Wyandots, and his goods confiscated.
He and Michael Herbert, his servant, afterward made their
way to Detroit, where, in March, 1777, the former was arrested as a spy. Lieutenant-Governor Hamilton sent him
thence to Quebec a prisoner. The next year he was released
on parole. He then returned to Pittsburgh, by way of New
York.t
* See The Olden Time, Vol. II, p. 486, and Taylor's Ohio, p. 460, for mention of this man. His name is printed wrong in Wash.-Irvine Corr., p. 17.
t Hamilton to Carleton, April 23, 1778-MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
This letter corrects all previous published accounts as to the status of Elliott
at the time of his flight with M]cKee. He was not a British spy, nor had he
a commission in his pocket, of any sort, from the British government.
50History of the Girtys.
"Last Saturday night," says a letter written from Pittsburgh, on the 30.th of March, "Mr. McKee, Matt. Elliott, and
Simon Girty, together with one Higgins, ran off. McKee's conduct on this occasion is of so infamous a nature, that it will forever render him odious. The general's [Hand's] behavior to
him, time after time, when lie was ordered4below, and his pitiful excuses, seem to infer that his escape was premeditated.
His intimacy with Elliott has been very great, and it is conjectured that Elliott brought dispatches for McKee from Quebec. As he was reputed to be a gentleman of the strictest
lhonor and probity, no body had the least idea of his being
capable of acting in so base a manner. A man of his capacity, and so well acquainted with the situation of our affairs in
this department, will be no unwelcome guest at Detroit." *
Just at this time, General Hand was contemplating an expedition to French creek; indeed, he had commenced gathering mnen for the enterprise; but he now wrote Colonel William
Crawford, who was to take part in the movement, that it would
be improper to proceed any further with the undertaking, owing to the escape of the renegades to the enemy.
McKee, with his associates, started from his home, at what
is still known as "M IcKee's Rocks," on the Ohio river, below
Pittsburgh. It was reported on Saturday, at Fort Pitt, that
they intended to start the next day for the Indian country;
whereupon, General Hand ordered out a lieutenant, the next
morning, to arrest them, putting under his command a small
force for that purpose; but, before the detachment began to
march, information was received at Pittsburgh of their flight.
There are numerous traditions current, a number of which
have been published, as to the reason or reasons for Simon
Girty going over to the enemy. All these are in ignorance
of the facts concerning his journey in the fall of 1777 to the
Senecas, and his joining, in February, 1778, the expedition
under General Hand-the "Squaw Campaign "-in both of
which he demonstrated his loyalty to the cause of liberty.
They all give some previous (fancied) grievance as the cause
* T. Ewing to Jtsper Yeates, in Historical Register, Vol. II (June, 1884),
p. 157.
51History of the Girtys.
of his defection. Thus: he did not get an additional allowance from Virginia for his trip with Wood to the Wyandots in 1775; he was discharged by Colonel George Morgan
as interpreter in 1776; he did not succeed in getting the
chief command of the military company he had assisted in
raising, the office being given to John Stephenson; * he was
arrested as a conspirator in 1777. Not one of these was
the true reason, for to no one did he let it be known that he
intended to flee his country, except to McKee and those collected at the house of the latter; and, surely, they gave no information. How, then, could any patriot know the cause of
Girty's flight? However, it is evident that the recent persuasions of McKee and Elliott were the inducements for him
to take what he subsequently said was a " too hasty step."
Beyond this it were vain to speculate.t
Great was the consternation all along the border when it
became known that these men had fled their country, as none
could doubt what their influence would be among the hostile
savages, to whom it was generally believed they had fled.
"As we drew nearer to Pittsburgh," says one who reached
there soon after, " the unfavorable account of the elopement of
McKee, Elliott, Girty, and others, from the latter place [Pittsburgh] to the Indian country, for the purpose of instigating
the Indians to murder [caused great excitement].... Indeed, the gloomy countenances of all men, women, and children, that we passed, bespoke fear-nay, some families even
spoke of leaving their farms and moving off.
" Far greater was the consternation of the people at Pittsburgh," continues the writer, " and especially that of the commandant of the place, Colonel [General] Edward Hand, and
Colonel John Gibson, on whom all eyes were fixed with regard
to future safety. Of those men who had eloped but a few days
since, the worst might reasonably be expected; their disaffection to the United States, their disposition to act hostile, the
influence they would have over the minds, at least, of many of
* Compare, for other versions, An Historical Account of the Expedition
against Sandusky, etc., pp. 184, 200.
t That Girty subsequently gave reasons for his defection there is no doubt,
but that he gave different ones is equally true.
52History of the Girtys.
the poor Indians, and the means they would have at command
for the purpose of enforcing their evil designs, might be calculated on with certainty." *
But desertions to the enemy did not stop with the seven persons already named. Others were disaffected, including some of
the garrison at Fort Pitt. Several, on the night of the 20th of
April, stole a boat and fled down the Ohio. Luckily they were
overtaken at the mouth of the Muskingum         by a party sent
after them, and the ringleaders killed or captured. Six of'
the soldiers and two citizens escaped. Two of those taken
were shot, one hanged, and two whipped, receiving one hundred lashes each.t
" I am able to inform you," wrote John Proctor, of Westmoreland county, to Thomas Wharton, president of the Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania, on the 26th of
April, "that Captain Alexander McKee, with seven [six]
other villains, is gone to the Indians; and, since then, there
are a sergeant and twenty odd men gone from Pittsburgh, of
the soldiers. What may be the fate of this country, God only
knows, but at present it wears a most dismal aspect." +
A recent writer says:   " Of the reasons which influenced,
of the hopes and fears which agitated, and of the miseries and
rewards which awaited the loyalists-or, as they were called
in the politics of the time, the' Tories'-of the American Revo-'- John Heckewelder, in his Narrative of the Moravian MIissions, pp. 174,
175. It is surprising, considering the early date (1820) of the publication of
that book, that the year of the flight of these men to the enemy should not
since have been generally noted by writers of Western history; yet, with
a few exceptions, the year has been heretofore inclrrectly given. The statement, virtually, of Heckewelder, that the elopement of 3McKee, Elliott,
Girty, and others, from Pittsburgh to the Indian country, was "for the purpose of instigating the Indians to murder," is erroneous.
t Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 18.
t Pennsylvania Archives, Old Series, Vol. VI, p. 445. It has been published that twelve soldiers escaped with the McKee party (An Hlistorical
Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, etc., p. 184); but this is error. The facts are as disclosed above. In the Magazine of American
History, Vol. XV, p. 261, it is also said that soldiers escaped with McKee.
I had previously corrected the mistake in the Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 17, note 2.
53History of the Girt s.
lution, but little is known."  And he adds:  M' en who, like
the loyalists, separate themselves from  their friends and kindred, who are driven from their homes [or voluntarily leave
them], who surrender the hopes and expectations of life, and
who become outlaws, wanderers, and exiles, such men leave
few memorials behind them." *    In a marked degree, this was
the case with Simon Girty.t   Unlettered (for he could neither
read nor write), he left no papers for the inspection of the
curious.   Had his life then terminated, his name would
quickly have passed from   the memory of men.       A modern
Moravian historian declares that *" Simon Girty, an adopted
Seneca, an inveterate drunkard, a blustering ruffian, seduced
by British gold to forsake the Americans, whose interpreter
he had been, was now espousing the royal cause with all the
baseness of his character." t  But it is error to say that he was,
at this date, an inveterate drunkard, although he occasionally
got intoxicated; nor can it be said with justice that he was a
ruffian; as, when sober, he was not inclined to be quarrelsome.
One fact may be noted-he was, by his friends, very easily
persuaded.   That he was " seduced by British gold to forsake
the Americans," is a groundless charge. He got no gold nor
the promise of any.   As to "the baseness of his character,"
he certainly had not at that date a general reputation for
meanness--vileness--or even worthlessness; but he was now
a renegade--" the base deserter of his native land "--faithless
to the patriots, with whom he had previously been identified,
and to their principles, which he had all along avowed.
It has long been a tradition that Girty owned landed prop* Lorenzo Sabine, in Biographical Sketches of Loyalists of the American
Revolution (preface to Vol. I).
t Sabine (in his Biographical Sketches, just cited) puts Girty down, along
with McKee and Elliott, as a loyalist-that is, a Tory. It will be hereafter
seen that he was also so recognized by the British government. It seems,
however, rather technical to call him such-yesterday a Whig, to-day a
Tory. He may be properly designated a renegade, but not in the sense of
a vagabond. He is spoken of by Canadian and British historians as a
refugee loyalist; and, by some American writers, as simply a refugee.
t The Life and Times of David Zeisberger, by Edmund de Schweinitz,
p. 462, citing Taylor's Ohio, pp. 281, 282.
54History of the Girtys.
erty in Westmoreland county; that, at one time, he possessed
a large tract at or near Hannastown; and that the property
afterward belonged to his half-brother, John Turner, being
conveyed to the latter by the former. But Girty never possessed any real estate in Western Pennsylvania at any time,
as the public records show.
Before following the career of Girty as a renegade, it is to
be noted that there is a tradition, which has been repeated
with many variations, that he was at one time living at Pittsburgh with a woman, who was his reputed wife; that she was
a half-breed, whose fiather, a white man, resided in one of the
settlements not far away; that she was a tall, pretty-l#oking
woman; but that she was frequently treated with cruelty by
Girty. Farther than this, nothing is related with any degree
of particularity. Whether or not she was alive at the time
Girty went over to the enemy with McKee and Elliott, is not
added to the relation. But the whole story, it is evident, is
fictitious.
NOTE I.-"All the Indian in Girty impelled him to side with
the dusky companions of his forest life, and when at this dangerous crisis, he was again approached with specious arguments
and seductive promises by Elliott and McKee, who had been
for months in the secret pay of the British commander at
Detroit, the untaught creature [Simon Girty], with the face
of a white man and the heart of an Indian, and with no feeling of loyalty to any flag, either English or American, threw
in his lot with the savages and their allies."-Magazine of
American History, Vol. XV, p. 261. In this extract are conveyed a number of erroneous impressions: (1) "All the Indian in Girty" had nothing to do with his determination,
finally, to go over to the enemy, along with McKee and Elliott.
The latter had resolved to join their fortunes with the government which was oppressing the colonies, and they induced
Girty to go with them; they sided with the Western Indians
on their journey to induce them to become the firm allies
of Britain. With the Delawares they failed; their success
was better with the Shawanese; they made no attempt to
55Contents.
CHAPTER XI.
Capt. Henry Bird goes with Indians against Fort Laurens...... 93
He besieges the fort...................................................... 94
Failure of Bird to capture the post.......................... 95
Delaware Indians try to take Simon Girty's scalp..................  95
Col. Daniel Brodhead takes command at Fort Pitt................. 95
Col. John Bowman marches from Ky. against Chillicothe......      96
Bird plans another expedition against Fort Laurens..............  96
Its failure.......................................................................  97
Simon Girty goes after a package of loyalists' letters.............. 97
Why his name became a household word of terror on the
border..........................................................................  98
He accidentally meets David Zeisberger, the Moravian mission ary ~~~~~~~~~                 ~~.~~98
The Moravian fiction as to his meeting Zeisberger................. 101
Girty's determined hostility to the borderers....................... 104
CHAPTER XII.
George Girty deserts his company and goes to Detroit............ 105
Engaged by the British commandant as interpreter............... 108
He is paid the same as his brothers Simon and James............ 108
Simon Girty's intention again to go against Fort Laurens
abandoned................................................................... 109
James Girty is to reconnoiter " toward the Weas "................ 109
David Rogers, with supplies for the Americans, attacked........ 110
He and his force defeated by Simon and George Girty and
Elliott........................................................................... 110
Major De Peyster takes command at Detroit......................... 111
Clark's success at the Illinois and on the Wabash causes disaffection among the Indians.......................................... 111
CHAPTER XIII.
Catharine Malott (afterward Simon Girty's wife) captured by
Indians........................................................................ 116
The three Girtys at Detroit in the spring of 1780................... 117
Lieut.-Gov. Patrick Sinclair organizes a raid against St. Louis.. 117
The expedition virtually a failure....................................... 118
De Peyster assembles at Detroit whites and Indians to assail
Kentucky..................................................................... 118
Capt. Bird takes command.....................................118
T'he three Girtys-Simon, James, and George-go on the expedition........................................................................ 118
Capture of Ruddle's and Martin's Stations........................... 119
Clark, in retaliation, marches from    Ky. against Chillicothe
and Piqua................................................................... 121
George and James Girty help defend Piqua.......................... 121
vii
VllHistory of the Girtys.
especially influence the Sandusky Wyandots while on their
way to Detroit; (2) Elliott and McKee were not then in pay of
the British commander at Detroit; (3) Girty was at times, as
hereafter shown, ferociously cruel, and exhibited the utmost
savagery, but he was not at heart an Indian; nor did he leave
Pittsburgh to throw in his lot with " the dusky companions
of his forest life," but with " their allies," the British.
And the same account also says: " Corrupted by Connolly,
disappointed in his military hopes, sore over his discharge, and
too much of an Indian to be moved by the feelings and principles then stirring the patriotic garrison [of Fort Pitt], but little
was needed to induce him to cast his lot with the people of
his adoption and their powerful employers." Why, it is proper
to ask, would Girty be disappointed in his military hopeswhy sore over his discharge if he had no feeling of loyalty to
the American flag? And why had he just marched under
the same flag and with the same garrison upon the " Squaw
Campaign, " if " too much of an Indian to be moved by the
feelings and principles then stirring" the same soldiers?
NOTE II.-" On the night of the 28th of March, 1778, three
or four years later than some writers claim, this now notorious trio [McKee, Elliott, and Simon Girty], together with
seven soldiers, fled from the long familiar walls of Fort Pitt,
and severed their connection with their country forever. The
date of their departure and the attendant circumstances are
established beyond question by the official records of Major
Isaac Craig, now in the hands of his grandson, the accurate
and accomplished Isaac Craig, Esq., of Alleghany, Pennsylvania."--Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 261.
But McKee, Elliott, and Girty fleeing " from the long familiar
walls of Fort Pitt" is not strictly correct; it conveys the
impression that they belonged to the garrison there, which,
of course, they did not, or that that fortification was the point
whence they started for the wilderness. How the " official"
records of Major Craig could show the date of their flight,
is not apparent, as that officer did not reach Pittsburgh for
more than two years after.
56History of the Girtys.                57
CHAPTER VIII.
In all the American settlements west of the Alleghany
mountains (that is, in the country watered by the Ohio river
and its tributaries), there were not to be found previous to their
flight three persons so well fitted collectively to work upon
the minds of the western Indians for evil to the patriot cause
as Simon Girty, Matthew Elliott, and Alexander AMcKee.
General Hand, therefore, believing they had gone to make
their homes with the hostile savages, feared the worst from
the arrival of these three men among them. Especially was
he apprehensive that their wiles would induce the Delawares
to break their neutrality and immediately declare war against
the border.
Not General Hand only, but Colonel Morgan prepared at
once pacific and urgent "speeches" to be sent to the Delawares; so certain were they that these savages would be
visited by the renegades; and, as a matter of fact, they did
go at once to Coshocton, their principal town. But who could
be found willing to take the risk of delivering the messages,
when it was known that there were war-parties of other tribes
hovering about the frontiers? The question was soon settled
by John Heckewelder and Joseph Bull, Moravian missionaries; offering to be "bearers of dispatches" to Coshocton.
These men had arrived at Pittsburgh anxious to obtain information concerning the missionaries of their church which
were located in the Muskingum valley as at present known,
and in the valley of the river now called the Tuscarawas.
This, added to their laudable desire to serve their country,
induced them to brave the dangers of the trip, which, it may
be premised, were thought greater than they really were.
The two Moravians reached the Tuscarawas in safety, and
Heckewelder proceeded at once to the Coshocton, where he
found the Delawares nearly ready to take up arms against theHistory of the Girtys.
Americans. They had been told by the renegades (who, as
we have said, had made their town a visit) that the patriot
armies were all cut to pieces, that General Washington was
killed, that there was no more Congress, that the English had
hung some of the members and had taken the remainder to
England to hang them there, and that the few thousand Americans who had escaped the British soldiers were now embodying themselves west of the mountains for the purpose of killing all the Indians beyond the Ohio-even the women and
children.* But the missionary, by the aid of the friendly
"speeches" brought with him from Pittsburgh, and some
newspapers which confirmed the capture of Burgoyne and his
army, soon convinced the savages that they had been deceived;
and the visitor was welcomed as a brother. The surging passions of the Delawares, which had been so aroused by the misrepresentations of Girty and his companions, soon settled
down to a peaceful calm.iBut where now were the renegades? They had left the
banks of the Muskingum  before the arrival of Heckewelder.
They had done all the mischief in their power while at the
Delaware town.
Besides inflaming the savages against the border, McKee
had written, on the 4th of April, to Lieutenant-Governor
Hamilton, at Detroit, informing him of his flight. He mentioned that no expedition of any consequence could be undertaken from Fort Pitt by the Virginians against Detroit, but
that they meditated some attempt against the Indian villages
upon French creek..  "Edward Hazle," wrote Hamilton to
Sir Guy Carleton, "who had undertaken to carry a letter
from me to the Moravian minister at Coshocton, returned,
having executed his commission. He brought me a letter and
newspapers from Mr. McKee, who was Indian agent for the
crown, and has been a long time in the hands of the rebels at
* Such is the account given many years after by Heckewelder, which is,
doubtless, an exaggeration to some extent..
t Heckewelder's Narrative, pp. 175-181.
t Hamilton to General Carleton, April 23, 1778.-MS. letter, Haldimand
Papers.
58History of the Girtys.
Fort Pitt. At length, he has found means to make his escape,
with three other men, two of the name of Girty (mentioned in
Lord Dunmore's list), interpreters, and Matthew    Elliott, the
young man who last summer was sent down from this place a
prisoner. This last person, I am informed, has been in New
York since he left Quebec; and, probably, finding the change
in affairs unfavorable to the rebels, has slipped away to make
his peace here." *
The " list " of " well-disposed" persons sent by Dunmore
to Lord George Germain was inclosed to Sir Guy Carleton in
Canada in a letter dated at Whitehall on the 26th of March,
1777.   "Inclosed," says Germain, "is a list of names of several persons, residing on the frontiers of Virginia, recommended by Lord Dunmore for their loyalty and attachment to
government, and who his lordship [Dunmore] thinks will be
able to give great assistance to Lieutenant-Governor Hamilton through their extensive influence among t]e inhabitants."
On the 21st of May, after its reception, the "list" was sent
by Carleton to Hamilton.t To those who imagine that Simon
Girty, when he fled from Pittsburgh, was little else than an
Indian, the statement of Lord Dunmore that he was one of
the number whom his lordship thought had " extensive influence among the inhabitants" there, is especially commended.
Dunmore was personally acquainted with Girty, having seen
* MIS. letter, April 20, 1778, H1aldimand Papers. Hazle's name is erroneously given "Hayle " by Roosevelt. For mention of Hazle in a previous
publication, see An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky,
p. 182, note.
t Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. IX, pp. 346-348. It seems that
Hamilton, either from a misconception of 3McKee's letter, or fromn erroneous
information derived from Hazle, got the idea that both Simon and James
Girty-" two of the name of Girty"-were with McKee in his flight from
Pittsburgh. Without any explanation, the account as it stands in The Winning of the West (Vol. II, pp. 4, 5) contradicts itself. Roosevelt first speaks
of McKee, Elliott, and Girty fleeing together from Pittsburgh. "They all
three warred against their countrymen," etc. (The italicizing is mine.) By
"Girty," that author means Simon Girty. A foot-note is then added by
Roosevelt, containing the letter of Hamilton to Carleton, which says, as we
have just seen, that McKee made his escape with three other men, "two of
the name of Girty."
59History of the Girtys.
him at Pittsburgh, and having employed him, as we have
shown, in his division, when marching against the Shawanese
and Mingoes, as one of his trusted scouts and interpreters.
McKee and his party had, as already mentioned, left Coshocton. They moved further into the wilderness, away from
this neutral tribe, to one already in great part in arms against
the border-to the Shawanese, upon the Scioto, to a point
some distance down that river from the site of the present
city of Columbus, Ohio. But a message soon followed them,
sent by the Delaware chief, White Eyes: " Grandchildren, ye
Shawanese! Some days ago, a flock of birds that had come
on from the East lit at Goschochking [Coshocton], imposing a
song of theirs upon us, which song had nigh proved our ruin!
Should these birds, which, on leaving us, took their flight
toward the Scioto, endeavor to impose a song on you likewise,
do not listen to them, for they lie." *  It was in this emphatic
but figurative language the Delaware chief made known his
views to the Shawanese concerning the visit of the three renegades and their followers; but the words of White Eyes did
not avail any thing with the "grandchildren" of his tribe
upon the Scioto.
The stay of the white men at the Scioto towns was somewhat prolonged. They met there, James Girty, who was easily persuaded to desert the cause of his country and remain
with the Shawanese. He at once committed himself to the
British interests, and helped, in no small degree, to turn those
of the tribe who were yet wavering,'from all thoughts of
peace with the United States. He appropriated the presents
that had been intrusted to him for the Indians, and was, thenceforward, a traitor to the cause he had been so recently aiding.t
On the 23d of April, Hamilton, at Detroit, wrote to Carleton, that "Hazle went off again, to conduct them [McKee and
his party] all safe through the [Indian] villages, having a letter and wampum [from the lieutenant-governor] for that purpose."
H Heckewelder Narrative, p. 182.
t Compare Hildreth's Pioneer History, p. 130.
60History of the G irtys.
"Alexander McKee," adds Hamilton, " is a man of good
character, and has great influence with the Shawanese; is
well acquainted with the country, and can probably give some
useful intelligence. I-e will probably reach this place [Detroit] in a few days." *
In May, McKee, Elliott, Simon Girty, and others, departed
from the Shawanese towns for Detroit--the point of destination when they fled from the vicinity of Pittsburgh--but
James Girty was not of the party. They were conducted on
their journey by Hazle. Their route was through the Wyandot villages upon the Sandusky river; they were helped on
particularly by Snip, a Wyandot war chief, from the Scioto.t
One of the Wyandot- towns-Upper Sandusky-was, at that
time, located less than three miles up the stream (but upon
the opposite side) from the present site of the town of the
same name-county seat of Wyandot county, Ohio; the other
-Lower Sanidusky-was situated at or near what is now Fremont-county seat of Sandusky county, that state.
It has been published that Girty was made prisoner by the
Wyandots; but being recognized by some Senecas, the latter
demanded him as their prisoner; stating, at the same time,
the nature of their claim to him; that he had been adopted by
them, and had afterward returned to his countrymen, and
joined them in their war against the tribe who now demanded
him. The Wyandots ignored the claim of the Senecas, so the
story runs. "By your own showing," said they, "he only
returned to his own country and people. After that, he was
not yours. When again captured, he belongs to those who
took him. This was done by our warriors. He is therefore our
prisoner." Then Girty said to his captors in the Seneca tongue
(as if he had not yet learned to speak the Wyandot language
with much fluency), that he had been badly treated at Fort
Pitt by his own people, on account of being true to the king
and his cause, and that he was, therefore, forced to leave the
country, and that he was now on his way to Detroit to take
* MS. letter, Haldimand Papers.
t Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. IX, pp. 450, 461.
6162                 History of the Girtys.
up arms against the Americans. He was thereupon set at liberty. But all this has no foundation in fact.*
Leaving the Sandusky, McKee and his associates had all
reached Detroit before the middle of June,t where they were
received. with open arms by the lieutenant-governor, who immediately engaged Girty as interpreter for the Six Nationshe thus becoming a regular eniploye of the British Indian department, his compensation being fixed at two dollars (sixteen
York shillings) a day. That this was the pay he was to receive is inferable from a list, in existence, of officers, inspectors, smiths, and others in the Indian department at Detroit,
dated the 24th of October, 1779, containing the amount allowed each for his services. Although this list was made out
more than a year after Girty reached Detroit, yet there would
seem to be no good reason why he should have received a less
amount at the time of his first engaging his services to the
British commandant than is therein specified, which is "sixteen shillings, York currency, per day."  
It may now be stated that Girty's life was thenceforth very
largely devoted to the interests of the British government, directly or indirectly.  "We heard," wrote White Eyes, from
Coshocton, to Morgan, on the 19th of July, "that Simon
Girty and Lamothe [a noted French-Canadian], were gone
down the river St. Lawrence, with as many men as they could
spare at Detroit." But Girty was not sent eastward. His
field of operations, as will presently be shown, was to be principally the Ohio wilderness and the western border settlements.
At a council began at Detroit on the 14th of June, 1778,
with the Ottawas, Chippeways, Hurons (Wyandots), Pottawattamies, Delawares, Shawanese, M.iamis, Mingoes, Mohawks,
and others, there were present, besides the Indians, Lieuten* See An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky, under
Col. William Crawford, in 1782, p. 186, for this story, given to the public
by the writer of this narrative, upon the assurance of William Walker as to
its being a reliable tradition; but it is now known to be wholly fictitious.
t Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. IX, p. 442.: Walker's Address before the State Historical Society of Wisconsin
(1871), p. 41.History of the Girtys.                63
ant-Governor Hamilton, superintendent; Lieutenant-Governor
Edward Abbott, late of Vincennes; Jehu Hay, department
agent; "Mr. McKee, late department agent" at Fort Pitt;
several officers of the Indian department; Captain Lernoult
and Lieutenant Caldwell, of the King's regiment; interpreters William Tucker, Joseph Drouillard, Simon Girty (not,
however, recognized as such until the next day), Isidore
Chesne, Duperron Baby, and Charles Beaubin. On the fifteenth, it is recorded that " Simon Girty was then brought
forward and declared an interpreter as having escaped from
the Virginians and put himself under the protection of his
majesty, after giving satisfactory assurances of his fidelity." *
That Hamilton should have favorably looked upon Simon
Girty is not a matter of wonder; he had, as we have seen
previously, heard of him through the "list" of Lord Dunmore as not only " well disposed to his majesty's government,"
but as a lieutenant in the Virginia militia at Pittsburgh. Of
course, also, he was vouched for by McKee.
McKee was, as might be expected, better rewarded than
Elliott or Girty. He was at once made captain and interpreter
in the Indian department;t also subseq"uently appointed Indian
commissary, or deputy Indian agent. As captain, he was
thenceforth known as an "Indian officer," a title bestowed
upon all those who had previously, or who afterward, received
such an official military recognition (or one of less rank) in
the British Indian Department. Elliott had to abide his time;
but Girty was not then, nor was he subsequently, honored
with any position other than that of interpreter, which was
in no sense a military office.
A recent writer declares that Hamilton " organized a troop
of white rangers from among the French, British, and tories
at Detroit. They acted as allies of the Indians, and furnished
leaders to them. Three of these leaders were the tories
* Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. IX, pp. 442, 444.
t Id., p. 470. Hamilton early commenced appointing persons as captains
of Indians.--(p. 433.)64History of the Girtys.
McKee, Elliott, and [Simon] Girty.*       But the lieutenantgovernor did not organize " a troop of white rangers " at that
place, as will hereafter be more fully explained. Nor was
Simon Girty ever a leader in any military organization formed
either by that officer or his successors.  Hamilton organized
the militia there, it is true, but neither McKee, Elliott, or
Girty was enrolled therein.t
James Girty did not reach Detroit until the middle of August.  "A brother of Simon Girty (the interpreter)," wrote
the lieutenant-governor, " who made his escape from Fort Pitt
with Captain McKee, came in a day or two ago. He says the
Delawares still go to Fort Pitt, but it is only until their corn
be ripe enough to allow their moving to the head-waters of the
Scioto, a place pointed out for them by the Six Nations. If
they do remove, the frontiers will repent it severely." +  James
immediately returned and took up his residence among the
Shawanese,'engaged by Hamilton at two dollars a day to go to
war with, or interpret for them, as his services might be most
needed. He spoke the language of those Indians, as before
explained, with fluency. Simon, also, in obedience to instructions, accompanied James to the Ohio wilderness, going at once
to reside among the Mingoes to interpret for them, or to go
with war-parties of those savages against the border, as the
exigencies of the times might demand. Each was allowed one
and one-half rations a day, and presented with a gun, a saddle and bridle, and three horses.
Hamilton found the two Girtys willing and effective agents,
as will be presently shown, in helping to carry out the policy
* Roosevelt's The Winning of the West, Vol. II, p. 4.
t Roosevelt, in five pages farther on than the one last cited, gets better information on the point of Simon Girty's employment. "He seems," that
author now assures his readers, " to have often fought with the Indians as
one of their own number."
l Hamilton to Lieutenant-Governor H. T. Cramahe, August 17, 1778MS. letter, Haldimand Papers. Roosevelt says (in The Winning of the
West, Vol. II, p. 21, note): "August 17, 1778, Girty reports that four hundred Indians have gone to attack' Fort Kentuck."' The inference here is
that it was Simon Girty, and that he had just come (or returned) from the
Ohio wilderness, which, of course, is error.
64History of the Girtys.
of the British government (made more cruel by his own barbarous methods) toward the Americans. The latitude given
him in his instructions was taken advantage of to make more
wanton and bloodthirsty the war then raging along the western borders of Pennsylvania and Virginia, and for which, as
has been shown, he was (lirectly responsible.  Scalps of those
who, to the moment of receiving the fatal bullet or their deathblow by the tomnahawk, were unsuspecting and helpless, and
prisoners of all ages and both sexes who had survived the
perils of the march to Detroit, were received by him from the
savages with delight, which immediately afterward would find
expression in presents bestowed with a liberal hand upon his
barbarous allies. Hamilton attempted to justify himself by
declaring that the American borderers, by " their arrogance,
disloyalty, and impudence, had justly drawp upon them this
deplorable sort of war." But those exercising cruelty are
never in want of excuses for so doing.*
By the middle of June, 1778, the government of Pennsylvania had been sufficiently advised of the defection of the two
Girtys, and of Elliott and   McKee, to proclaim    them  as
aiding and abetting the common enemy. On the fifteenth,
at Lancaster, the Supreme Executive Council of the state ordered that a proclamation under the state seal be issued, declaring  that Alexander McKee, formerly Indian      trader;
Simon Girty, Indian interpreter; James Girty, laborer; and
Matthew Elliott, Indian trader; and one other-all then or
late of the county of Westmoreland (among many more in
different portions of the state)-had severally adhered to and
knowingly and willingly aided and assisted the enemies of the
state and of the United States of America; therefore, "the
4" Roosevelt (Vol. II, p. 87) speaks of Hamilton as one "who merely carried out the orders of his superiors." That this is erroneous there can be no
question. He did more. But that he offered a standing reward for white
scalps, as has been stated by many.writers (and among them the author of
this narrative), is a mistake. However, the course taken by the lieutenantgovernor in amply rewarding the Indians (though in the form of presents)
immediately after the presentation to him of their bloody trophies, was, to
the savage mind, equivalent to such an offer.
5
65Contents.
CHAPTER XIV.
Thomas Girty still resides at Pittsburgh.......................... 24....
Delaware Indians become hostile to the Americans............. 125
Simon Girty brings in prisonelrs from Kentucky..................  126
Col. Brodhead goes on a successful expedition against Coshocton...............................................................1 26....   126.
Simon Girty saves young Henry Baker's life........................ 127
He (Girty) writes De Peyster from Upper Sandusky........ 128
Clark plans an expedition against Detroit......................... 129
Capt. Andrew Thompson marches to interpose a barrier to
his  advance...........................................................  129
Col. Archibald Lochry defeated by Brant and Geo. Girty........ 129
Capt. Brant and Simon Girty have a personal encounter..    130
Brant and McKee at the Long Run massacre.....................  131
Fort Henry (Wheeling) visited by savages............................. 132
Moravian missionary establishments on the Tuscarawas broken
up..............................................................................  133
Andrew  and Adam Poe, and others, attack seven Wyandots
successfully...................................................133
CHAPTER XV.
Simon Girty associates intimately with the Half King...........136
Aids that chief in getting the " Moravians" from the Sandusky. 137
Goes on a raid into the border settlements...........................141
Returns with John Stevenson as prisoner............................. 141
De Peyst6r writes Girty to take the missionaries to Detroit.....143
CHAPTER XVI.
Zeisberger and Heckewelder frightened by Girty..................147
The two missionaries go to Detroit......................................149
Thomas Edgerton condemned to be tortured, but saved.........150
Girty speaks kindly to young Christian Fast........................152
Thomas Girty petitions Brig.-Gen. Irvine...................... 153
CHAPTER    XVII.
Col. David Williamson conducts an expedition to the Tuscarawas...................................................................... 155
Ninety "Moravian" Indians captured and killed.................. 155
Sensational stories of Simon Girty related........................  158
Girty writes De Peyster fromn Upper Sandusky....................159
A volunteer force organized against the Wyandots................161
Command given to Col. William Crawford........................... 161
The Wyandots prepare to defend themselves.................162
Preparations by De Peyster to meet the danger................... 163
CH APTER XVIII.
Crawford attacks the enemy on the Sandusky Plains.............167
V111iiiHistory of the Girtys.
Supreme Executive Council aforesaid, by virtue of certain
powers and authorities to" them "given," did charge and require Alexander McKee, Simon Girty, James Girty, and
MIatthew Elliott, to "render themselves " respectively to some
or one of the justices of the Supreme Court, or of the justices
of the peace of one of the counties within that state, on or
before the third day of August, and abide their legal trial for
adhering to the enemies of the country, on pain, if not so appearing, of standifig and being attainted of high treason.*
The crime of McKee, viewed from the American standpoint, was especially flagrant because of his being in reality a
prisoner to the patriots on parole, and of Simon Girty because
of his having previously accepted a commission in their service
and taken the oath of office. As to Elliott, it was not quite
so bad-it was simply that he was now " aiding and abetting
the common enemy;" so, also, as to James Girty.      As
neither one of the four fugitives made his appearance before
any Pennsylvania tribunal to be absolved from the charge
made against him, all were declared guilty and adjudged
traitors.t
NOTE I.-That a letter was sent by Hamilton, at Detroit, to one of the Moravian missionaries upon the Tuscarawas (in the present state of Ohio), naturally awakens a
curiosity to know its contents. It was dispatched January
11, 1778. The writer of the missive afterward gives the purport of it in a letter to his superior:
",Four days since, a young man [Edward Hazle] set out
from this place [Detroit] to the Delaware towns, where a
Moravian minister resides, with the design of engaging him
to disperse some papers signed by several of the prisoners
taken and brought in by the Indians-the purport of them to
show that persons well affected to government may be assured
* Pennsylvania Colonial Record, Vol.!XI, pp. 513-518.
t This is evident from the petition of James McKee of the 18th of A ugust,
1778, presented to the Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania. See
Pennsylvania Colonial Record, Vol. XII, p. 76.
66History of the Girtys.
of a safe conduct to this place, if they will agree upon a
place of rendezvous, and that an officer (of the Indian Department), with an interpreter, shall be sent to escort them
through the Indian villages."-Hamilton to General Carleton
[January 15, 1778], in Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol.
IX, p. 432. It is certain, however, that it contained, in addition, a request for the missionaries to arm their Indians
and march against the "rebels."  But that he actually wrote
the Moravian teachers to attack them  indiscriminately on
their farms and in their settlements, slaying without mercy,
and to bring their scalps to Detroit, as the exaggeration of
Heckewelder has it, can not be believed. IHamilton would
not have so written, however much the language would have
been in accord with his wishes. Schweinitz, in his Life of
Zeisberger (pp. 460,461), not dreaming that it can be possible
for Ileckewelder to " stretch the truth," is in great doubt as
to the genuineness of Hamilton's letter, notwithstanding it
had "an official seal" affixed.
NOTE II.-" About 1777 [spring,of 1778], both brothers
[Simon and James Girty] had been [were] seduced by the
British emissaries," says an Ohio writer, " and are known to
border tradition as renegades. This is hardly just. They
should not be regarded' otherwise than as Indians of their respective tribes. Such had been their training-their education. They were white savages-nothing else."--Taylor's
Ohio, p. 282, note. Here, however, far too much stress is
put upon the previous Indian training of the two brothers.
They were not then "white savages--nothing else."  They
were not " savages in every respect, except in the color of
their skin"--" white Indians," as they have also been calledwhen they left Pittsburgh; and they did not fly to the wilderness simply because of the cravings of their untamed natures;
for, had their sojourn with the tribes,.which had adopted them
in their young days, caused such longings for the woods, they
would have, years before, escaped from the haunts of white
men. It was, to a great extent; the influence brought to bear
67History of the Girtys.
on them by others who were disaffected (which influence
was exerted because of the war then existing) that induced
them, in 1778, to leave their country to put themselves under
the protection of Hainilton at Detroit.
NOTE III.-It has found its way into print concerning Simon
Girty, that " although he called himself'Captain Girty,' yet
whether he ever received a commission from the British government as did his associate Elliott, is a mooted question."See An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky under Col. William  Crawford in 1782," p. 187.
But there is no longer a doubt on the subject; he was not
commissioned to any military office-simply hired as an interpreter, as previously declared in this chapter. He is always spoken of in the correspondence of the commandants at
Detroit as "interpreter," never as an "Indian officer;" nor
is he ever called " captain" by them, as was McKee and subsequently Elliott.
NOTE IV.--A young man, John Leith, an American by
birth, who had been a number of years among the -Indians,
and who was then at Detroit, reports an interview which took
place between himself and Governor Hamilton: "He [Hamilton] said... if I would join the Indian department
under his command, he would give me two dollars per day,
and one and a half rations, exclusively. I then asked him
what he wanted me to do. He answered he wanted me to interpret for them [the Indians], and sometimes to go to war
with them against their enemies."-A Short Biography of
John Leeth, by Ewel Jeffries, pp. 9, 10. See, also, a reprint
of the pamphlet, by Robert Clarke  Co. (Cincinnati, 1883),
with illustrative notes, pp. 24, 25.
NOTE V.-Hamilton, with the opening of the year 1778, increased his efforts in sending along the frontiers of Pennsylvania and Virginia (in the last named is included Kentucky),
" parties of savages, whose reckless cruelty won his applause."
68History   of the Girtys.
"The parties sent hence," he wrote on the 15th of January,
to Carleton, from Detroit, " have been generally successful,
though the Indians have lost enough to sharpen their resentment." "They have brought in seventy-three prisoners alive,"
he adds, "twenty of which they presented to me, and a hundred and twenty-nine scalps," which bloody trophies, torn
from the heads of men, women, and children, he could have
said with truth, were also given him. On the 17th of September, 1778, he wrote to General Frederick Haldimand, that
since the preceding May, the Indians in his district had taken
thirty-four prisoners, seventeen of which they had delivered
up, and eighty-one scalps. Several prisoners that had been
captured and adopted by the savages were not included in
this number.--Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. IX, pp.
431, 476, 477.
Leith relates that upon one occasion, in Detroit, while upon
the bank of the river, he saw Hamilton and several other
British officers standing and sitting around. "Immediately,
the Indians produced a large quantity of scalps; the
cannon fired; the Indians raised a shout, and the soldiers
waved their hats with huzzas and tremendous shrieks which
lasted some time. This ceremony being ended, the Indians
brought forward a parcel of American prisoners, as a trophy
of their victories, among whom were eighteen women and
children, poor creatures, dreadfully mangled and emaciated,
with their clothes tattered and torn to pieces in such a manner as not to hide their nakedness; their legs bare and streaming with blood, the effects of being torn with thorns, briers,
and brush.... The governor... seemed to take
great delight in the exhibition."-A Short Biography of John
Leeth, before cited, p. 11 (Cincinnati reprint, pp. 29, 30).
Compare Washington-Irvine Correspondence, p. 7.
NOTE VI.-After a general denial as to Hamilton having
paid out monet for scalps, Roosevelt erroneously adds (The
Winning of the West, Vol. II, p. 3): "But scalps were certainly bought and paid for at Detroit," citing, as an authority,
6970                 History of the Girtys.
which is now known to be wholly fictitious, The American
Pioneer, Vol. I, p. 291. Again (on p. 87), Roosevelt declares,
that "undoubtedly the British, at Detroit, followed the [previous] example of the French, in paying money to the Indians
for the scalps of their foes.... Apparently," continues
that writer, " the best officers utterly disapproved of the whole
business of scalp-buying; but it was eagerly followed by many
of the reckless agents and partisan leaders, British, Tories,
and Canadians." He also says (p. 3): "But they [the Detroit commandant and the higher British officers]...
connived at the measures of their subordinates. These were
hardened, embittered, men who paid for the zeal of their Indian allies accordingly as they received tangible proof thereof;
in other words, they hired them to murder non-combatants as
well as soldiers, and paid for each life, of any sort, that was
taken." This last sentence is error beyond all question.History   of the Girtys.
CHAPTER IX.
-Mention has already been made of the migration, immediately after the conclusion of Lord Dunmore's War, to the
Kentucky country, and that the people there were soon attacked by the savages. The year 1777 was one of stirring
incidents for that region. The Indians early began to appear
around the forts which had been erected by the settlers for their
protection.  In March, a large war-party appeared before
Harrodsburg. Boonesborough, in April, was assailed; then
again by a large party of savages, in May, but without capturing the fort. Soon after, a party of forty-five white men
reached the place from North Cariolina. On the thirtieth, Logan's fort was attacked.
In the same month, burgesses were chosen to represent
KIentucky count2y in the Virginia legislature, and in September the first court was held. George Rogers Clark, conceiving the idea of capturing the Illinois country, sent spies
thither, who reported to him the condition of things existing
there. He subsequently went over the mountains. While
there, the Virginia authorities determined to undertake the
conquest of the Illinois, then in possession of the British,
and they put Clark at the head of the expedition. The result will presently be given.
During this year, so severe and disastrous had been the aggressions of the Indians, that many of the settlers became
discouraged-in fact, only three settlements proved permanent:  " Harrodstown," Boonesborough, and Logan's fort.
Simon Kenton, soon to be more particularly mentioned, was
employed mainly as a spy to give the forts timely notice of
the approach of the savages.
In the early part of the year, 1778, Indian marauds were
71History of the Girtys.
more than usually successful. Daniel Boone * and twentyseven others were captured.   Boone, who had been taken
across the Ohio, having knowledge of the assembling of a
large number of warriors with the avowed intention of attacking Boonesborough, made his escape and reached the post
in time to save it and the others from capture.
In January, Clark, now a lieutenant-colonel, arrived from
the Virginia capital, in the settlements upon the Monongahela,
to enlist soldiers for the enterprise against the Illinois.  By
the end of the month, he had all his recruiting parties properly disposed, and, at Redstone-old-fort, he prepared boats,
light artillery, and ammunition. Many of the backwoodsmen
opposed the undertaking; and he only succeeded in collecting,
with some aid east of the mountains, about one hundred and
fifty men, when, on the 12th of May, he "set sail for the
falls "      of the Ohio, "leaving the country," he wrote, "in great
confusion-much    distressed by the Indians."   "General
Hand," he added, "pleased with my intentions, furnished me
with. every necessary I wanted." He was reinforced, on his
way down the river, by a small number of troops at Fort
Randolph. His men were mostly Virginians, and all were in
the Virginia service. The result was the capture of Fort
Gage and the Illinois towns-a conquest, as it proved, of great
importance to the United States, and one reflecting much credit
upon Virginia. An envoy sent by Clark to Vincennes, upon the
Wabash, where there were no British troops stationed, induced
its inhabitants to side with the Americans, and Weatanon,
further up that river, was also captured by a small force; so
that, without the loss of a man, the reduction of the Illinois
and Wabash settlements was complete.
With Clark, in his march to the Illinois country, went Simon
Kenton, who had joined the former on his way down the Ohio.t
X Roosevelt, in The Winning of the West, spells the name of this Kentucky Pioneer without an e. But " Boone" is too firmly established ever to
be changed.
t Many writers, in giving the particulars of Simon Kenton's life, speak of
his playing a prominent part under Clark in the clptulre of the Illinois.
All such traditions which have found their way into print are wholly erro7273
History of the Girtys.
Kenton, before the capture of Vincennes, returned to Kentucky, when, with Boone and nineteen men, he undertook an
expedition in a small way against the Shawanese on the north
side of the Ohio. The party met a number of Indians, and
put them to flight. This was followed by an immediate but
unsuccessful attack, on the part of the Indians, against Boonesborough. Kenton then lay about the last-named fort and
Logan's until inactivity became irksome to him; so, about the
1st of September, 1778, he prepared for another foray across
the Ohio. Alexander Montgomery and George Clark joined
him, and they set off for the Indian country, not so much for
the purpose of killing savages as of obtaining horses from
them.   The result of their expedition will presently be
shown.
It was, as we have already seen, understood by Hamilton,
at Detroit, that Simon Girty and his brother, James, were not
to remain passive with the tribes they were to join in the Ohio
wilderness, but each was to do the best possible service, either
in interpreting or fighting-Simon to go to the Mingoes, and
James to return to the Shawanese. And it has also been explained that they took up their residence with the tribes just
mentioned. The villages of the Mingoes were to be seen as
far down the Scioto as what is now Columbus, the capital of
Ohio, and up that river to its head streams, while some were
located on the upper waters of the Mad river, a tributary of
the Great Miami. There were two principal routes from
Detroit to the Mingo country, one down the Detroit river
and across the head of Lake Erie to the Sandusky bay,
thence up the Sandusky river and across a portage to the
waters of the Scioto; another ran around the west end of
the lake, crossing the Maumee, and leading thence to the
Mingo towns. The Shawanese occupied a more extensive region. Their villages were not only upon the lower Scioto, but
westward upon the two Miami rivers. In the Mad river
country, there were several. The routes to them from Detroit
neous. In the various accounts of that expedition given by Clark himself,
Kenton's name is not once mentioned.History of the Girtys.
were but continuations of those to the homes of the Mingoes,
leading on further southward and south-eastward.*
When the two Girtys had reached the Indian tribes to which
they had been accredited by Hamilton, neither had yet imbued his hands in the blood of his countrymen. Neither one
had marched, as yet, against the border to kill and destroy.
But a war-party was now made up, and the two, with one
John Ward, and a number of Mingoes and Shawanese, started
for a maraud into Kentucky. Of the particulars of this adventure we know nothing further than that it resulted in the
taking of seven scalps and the bringing of a Mrs..Mary
Kennedy and seven children as captives into the wilderness.t
The three white men and the Indians returned to the Shawanese villages, and were received with yells of delight by the
savages.  The two Girtys and Ward, passing onward, finally,
with one Indian, reaching Wapatomica, an Indian town,+ where
a council was being held by the Shawanese over a prisoner,
particulars of whose capture it is now our purpose to relate,
not, however, until the circumstances under which Simon and
James Girty commenced their death-dealing career in the settlements southward across the Ohio are briefly considered.
The language of the British minister, in his instructions to
Hamilton, to place " proper persons " at the head of the savages, "to conduct their parties and restrain them from committing violence on the well-affected and inoffensive inhabit*. Roosevelt, in The Winning of the WVest, Vol. II, p. 143, classes the
Shawanese along with other tribes as " Sandusky Indians." But no Shawanese ever dwelt upon the Sandusky or any of its tributaries.
t Sketches of Western Adventure, by John A. McClung (Philatdelphia,
1832), p. 115. This work is not always to be depended upon. However,
the account very briefly given of the two Girtys' first adventure upon the
war-path seems to be entitled to full credit. One fact stated above is from
another authority.
+ Synonyms: Wappatomica, Waukataumikee, Wagetomica, Wapatomika,
W akatomika, Wachatomakak, Waccotomica, Wakitamiki, Waughcotomoco.
It was sometimes spoken of during the Revolution as "the upper Shawanese village," from its being the uppermost upon any of the tributaries of
the Great Miami. It was, of course, the nearest of any to Detroit. It was
the head-quarters of James Girty.
74History of the Girtys.
ants" was plain enough, but was wholly disregarded by the
lieutenant-governor. By him, many persons of little or no
character, but who had a strong liking for Indians generally
and for their savage ways, were engaged to go to war as leaders of the Indians, when the probabilities all were that, instead
of restraining their dusky associates, they would only strive
to vie with them  in their deeds of cruelty toward the "inoffensive " borderers. Simon and James Girty had long been
intimate with Indians, and it is not surprising that, under the
direction and at the request of Hamilton to go to war when
expedient, they soon took up the hatchet, and along with Mingoes and Shawanese marauded into the exposed settlements
of Kentucky.
That the journey of the two brothers to Detroit when they
first placed themselves under the lieutenant-governor there,
was not made with any intention of going upon the war-path
along with the savage allies of Britain, there is every reason
to believe. If they had had a particular desire at the time
they were in the Ohio wilderness before seeing Hamilton to
tomahawk and scalp their own countrymen, why did they not
at once join the Indians at the Scioto tow-ns for that purpose?
The lieutenant-governor, then, was directly responsible for
encouraging-nay, requiring-the two Girtys (as he had already others), to go with the Indians against the American
settlements. How ferociously they subsequently performed
this duty that had been assigned them, may be imagined by
the success attending their first foray across the Ohio. It
is especially erroneous to suppose that when Simon Girty left
his countrymen for good that he did so for the express purpose of returning to savage life-simply to go back to the
Indians to live with them. This, however, has heretofore
been the prevailing idea.*
* See An Historical Account of the Expedition against Sandusky Under
Col. William Crawford in 1782, pp. 184, 185. Compare "Girty. The White
Indian," in Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, pp. 260, 261.
"He [Girty] soon returned to the Indians [after Lord Dnnmore's War],"
says Roosevelt (The Winning of the West, Vol. I, p. 220), "and dwelt
among them ever afterwards, the most inveterate foe of the whites that was
75Contents.
The Americans retreat from the Sandusky.......................... 169
Another battle  fought.......................................................  171
Crawford and Dr. Knight captured by the Delawares............ 172
The Colonel meets Simon Girty at the Half King's town........ 172
Girty makes no effort to save Crawford from torture.............. 174
CHAP'TER XIX.
Girty again meets Crawford............................................... 177
Tlhe Colonel tied to a stake by the Delawares........................ 178
He is cruelly tortured........................................ 180
Girty delighted at the horrid spectacle................................ 180
Crawford's awful suffering.................................................. 181
Death finally ends his misery..................................................... 182
CHAPTER XX.
Girty informs Capt. Wm. Caldwell of Crawford's deatll.......... 183'
Does not claiin to have interceded for him........................... 183
George Girty now livino with the Delawares.......................... 184
John Slover captured...........?............................ 184
Badly treated at Wapatomica by James Girty....................... 185
Cursed by George Girty.....................................  186
Sentenced to be tortured, but escapes...............................  186
"Dead men tell no tales ".. 187
CHfAPTER XXI.
Great Indian council held( at Wapatomica........................... 190
Capt. Caldwell goes there from Lower Sandusky................... 192
Marches against Fort Henry, but returns before reaching the
fort.............................................................................. 192
Capt. Andrew Bradt sent to reintforce him.......................... 192
Clark supposed to be on the march for the Shlawanese towns.. 193
A large Indian force near Piqua assembles to meet him......... 193
The report of Clark's coming a false one.............................. 194
The Indians disperse..................................... 194
Caldwell, with Rangers and Indians, crosses into Ky............. 194
Bryan's Station attacked................................................... 194
A fiction as to Simon Girty demnanding a surrender............... 196
The enemy fail to reduce the Station (Bryan's)..................... 197
Battle of the Blue Licks.................................................... 198
Girty had no command in the battle................................... 199
The victors return across the Ohio........................................ 200
Capt. Bradt assails Fort Henry............................................ 201
Clark destroys a Shawanese town on the Great Mliami.............. 201
CHAPTER XXII.
News of peace with Great Britain reaches the West............... 210
Capture by Simon Girty of young Burkhart........................  210
ixHistory of the Girtys.
It will be remembered that Kenton, when he left Boone's
Station to cross the Ohio into the Indian country, had for his
companions Alexander Montgomery and George Clark. The
party after crossing the river proceeded cautiously toward the
Shawanese village of Chillicothe, frequently called in early
accounts " Old Chillicothe," located upon the upper waters of
the Little Miami, three miles north of what is now Xenia,
Ohio. It has generally been supposed that the Chillicothe
toward which Kenton and his companions made their way was
the one known as Old Town, in what is now Ross county, on
the site of the present Frankfort; such, however, was not the
fact, as will hereafter be seen.
In the night they fell in with some horses that were feeding
in the rich prairies. The adtventurers were prepared with salt
and halters, still they had much difficulty in catching the animals. Seven were secured, and the whole were started with
all speed for the Ohio, the party reaching the river near the
mouth of Eagle creek, in what is now Brown county, Ohio.
The horses, because of a strong wind blowing at the time,
which raised the waves high, could not be urged to take the
water. Upon the' bank of the stream, therefore, Kenton and
his companions remained until the next day, when their efforts
to cross to the Kentucky side were equally futile. As there
could be no doubt but that they were now pursued by the savages, no time was to be lost; so they undertook to make the
best of their way down the river to the falls, but it was too
late; the Indians were upon them. Kenton was captured,
Montgomery was killed and scalped, but Clark made his escape, reaching Logan's Station in safety.
The savages started the next day for their towns, but not
until Kenton had, been tied Mazeppa-like upon the back of
one of their wildest horses, which was then turned loose for
the amusement of the Indians. The animal, after running,
to be found in all the tribes. He lived to be a very old man, and is said to
have died fighting his ancient foes and kinsmen, the Americans, in our
second war against the British." In this extract there are radical errors,
which are sufficlently corrected in subsequent chapters of this narrative.
76History   of the Girtys.
plunging, rearing, and kicking, finally submitted to its burden,
and quietly followed the others. Just before reaching Chillicothe, the population of the place came out to see the prisoner, and he received a terrible beating at their hands. After
this, he was forced to run the gauntlet, which came near putting an end to his existence. When he had somewhat revived,
he was given something to eat and some water to drink. It
was now determined that he should be tortured to death at
the stake, but not there.
Kenton was then taken first to Piqua (sometimes in early
histories incorrectly spelled Pickaway), which was about
twelve miles in a northerly direction from Chillicothe, and on
the north bank of the Mad river, five miles west of the present site of Springfield, in Clark county, Ohio; thence to Maca-chack (or Mac-a-cheek, as it is now written), near what is
now West Liberty, in the same state. At both these Indian
villages, he was again compelled to run the gauntlet. While
at the one last mentioned, he came very near making his
escape.
His treatment was now more te"rrible than before; still his
life was spared. His tormentors moved with him finally to
Wapatoinica, where he was to be tortured, which was just below
the present Zanesfield, in Logan county, Ohio, not a great distance from Mac-a-cheek. Here, as before, he was compelled
to run the gauntlet, during which he was severely hurt. Immediately after, he was taken to the council house. While sitting upon the floor, silent and dejected, with his face blackened-a sure indication that he was doomed to death--the
door suddenly opened, and in walked Simon Girty, his brother
James, John Ward, and the Indian, with their eight captives
and seven scalps.
Kenton was instantly removed from the council house. The
arrival of the two Girtys and their party changed the deliberations of the assembled warriors from Kenton for the time.
The meeting was, in consequence, protracted until a late hour.
At length, Kenton was brought back. He was greeted, as he
entered the house, with a savage scowl. Simon Girty threw
77History of the Girtys.
a blanket upon the floor, and harshly ordered him to take a
seat upon it. The order was not immediately complied with,
and Girty impatiently seized his arm, jerked him roughly
upon the blanket, and pulled him down upon it. This insolence clearly shows that the renegade had no sympathy for
the helpless prisoner. It proves conclusively that he had not
in any way, in the council, attempted to save his life. He
was only anxious to learn of the unfortunate captive where
he lived, that he might get from him as many facts as possible
to aid Britain and her savage allies in their depredations upon
the border, when he would leave him to his doom.
Of course, Simon Girty did not recognize his old companion-in-arms, blackened as was the visage of the latter; so he
began to question him in a rough and menacing tone, little
dreaming that he was talking to Simon Butler--the name
Kenton was known by upon the border-though the latter at
once knew Girty.*  To the first inquiry as to where he lived,
Kenton replied, "in Kentucky." Then Girty asked him how
many men were there, and other similar questions, Kenton
leading him astray in many ways by his answers. Finally,
the prisoner was asked his name. The answer was " Simnon
Butler! " Girty eyed him a moment, then rushed to him and
embraced him, calling him  his dear and esteemed friend.
"Well, you are condemned to die," said he to Kenton; "but
I will use every means in my power to save your life-!"
Girty immediately made a long speech to the savages to
save the life of their prisoner. As he proceeded, Kenton
could plainly see the grim visages of the Indians relent.
When Girty had concluded his appeal for his old-time
friend, the savages rose with one simultaneous exclamation of
approbation, and Kenton was saved. Girty at once took him
under his care and protection. British traders from Detroit
had an establishment at this time in Wapatomica. Girty took
* "It was indeed the hated traitor,... who never before or afterward was known to spare one of his own race whom fortune placed in his
power."--R. F. Coleman, in Harper's Mlagazine, Vol. XXVIII, p. 298.
The latter part of this statement is most erroneous, and could only have
been made by one wholly ignorant of his previous and subsequent career.
78History of the Girtys.
Kenton with him to the store, and dressed him from head to
foot; he also provided him with a horse and saddle.
Some time after this, a war party of Indians who had been
on an expedition to the neighborhood of Wheeling, returned;
they had been defeated by the borderers-some killed, others
wounded. They were sullen, chagrined, and filled with revenge. They were determined to kill any prisoner they met.
Kenton just then was the only one upon whom they could
pour their vials of wrath. He and his deliverer were then at
Solomon's town, a small distance from Wapatomica. It was
a Mingo village on the way northward to Upper Sandusky,
and was the headquarters of Girty.* A message was immediately sent by the infuriated savages to the latter to return
and bring Kenton with him. The messenger met them on the
way, shook hands with Girty, but refused the hand of Kenton. Girty, after talking aside with the Indian some time,
said to Kenton that they had been sent for to attend a grand
council at Wapatomica. All three hurried to the village, and
when they reached the council-house it was crowded. When
Girty went in, the Indians all rose up ahd shook hands with
him, but the proffered hand of Kenton was refused with a
scowl of contempt that boded evil. After those present were
seated, the war-chief of the defeated party stood up and made
a vehement speech, frequently turning his fiery and revengeful
eyes on Kenton during its deliverance. The purport of the
savage's harangue was that the prisoner should be put to
death. The next speaker was Girty, who again made an earnest appeal for the life of his friend. He was followed by several chiefs, giving their views in the matter. It was finally
decided, by an overwhelming majority, that death at the stake
should be the doom of Kenton.
Girty spoke kindly to the unfortunate man, but frankly declared he could do no more for him. However, at Girty'; request, Kenton was taken by the Indians to Upper Sandusky'* Solomon's town was three miles north of the present Huntsville, or
about nine above what is now Bellefontaine, Ohio. It was subsequently occupied by Wyandots.
79History   of the Girtys.
to suffer torture; once there, and he escaped death through
the intercession of a trader; was sent to Detroit, from which
place he subsequently fled, and arrived in Kentucky in safety.*
In after years, Kenton frequently related to interested
spectators the particulars of his escape from death by the efforts of Girty.  "He was good to me," he would say.
"When he came up to me, after the Indians had painted me
black, I knew him at once. He asked me a good many questions, but I thought it best not to be too forward, and I held
back from telling him my name; but, when I did tell him, oh!
he was mighty glad to see me. He flung his arms around me,
and cried like a child. I never did see one man so glad.to
see another. He made a speech to the Indians-he could
speak the Indian tongue, and knew how to speak-and told
them, if they meant to do him a favor, they must do it now,
and save my life. Girty afterward, when we were together,
cried to me like a child often, and told me he was sorry for
the part he had taken against his countryman; that he was
too hasty. But he was good to me; and it was no wonder.
When we see our fellow-creatures every day, we don't care
for them; but it is different when you meet a man all alone
in the woods-the wild, lonely woods."
Girty "exhibited on this occasion [the saving of Kenton's
life]," says an account already frequently referred to, " at
least, a generosity and nobility of soul which would have done
credit to a more enlightened and more civilized character." t
But, the question is, what would Girty have done for him had
he (Kenton) proved a stranger? We can only judge by what
his actions were toward him before he was recognized. These
clearly indicate that he would have left him to his fate, without any effort in his behalf. The dictates of a broad human* Vompare, as to the captivity of Kenton and the saving of his life by
Girty, McClung's Sketches of Western Adventure, pp. 104-124; John McDonald's Biographical Sketches, pp. 221-240; Harper's Magazine, Vol.
XXVIII, art. "Simon Kenton," where a cut is given (imaginative, of
course) of the interview between Girty and Kenton, at Wapatomica.
t Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 262.
80History of the Girtys..
ity had, therefore, little or nothing to do with his exertions in
Kenton's behalf; it was simply a spasmodic feeling of compassion for an old associate and friend; which, a mere impulse
as it was, is nevertheless to be comlmended.
Girty's remorse for *what lhe had alrea(dy (lone against the
borderers, as might be expected, gradually wore off; and he
soon became, as we shall presently see, very vindictive in his
feelings. Kenton never saw him afterward.
NOTE I.-That it was determined at Chillicothe to torture Kenton to death at the stake, there can be no doubt.
And it was there also settled by the savages that it was to
take place at their principal town--Wapatomica. It seems
equally certain, also, that his face was painted black as soon
as he was sentenced to die. Roosevelt erroneously supposes
that it was the second place the Indians came. to, and that
that place was the Pickaway Plains, where sentence was first
passed upon him by his captors. The next place reached
after leaving Chillicothe (near what is now Xenia, Ohio) Was
the Shawanese village of Piqua. No co'uncil was held there.
It is a fact, therefore, that sentence of death was not passed
upon the captive at the Pickaway Plains, nor was he to be tortured there. The Pickaway Plains are on the east side of the
Scioto, below the present Columbus, Ohio. Kenton was not
there at any time during his captivity.
The Magazine of American History, Vol. XV, p. 262, also
makes a mistake as to the place where Girty rescued Kenton.
"It was while Girty was in the Ohio country, and in the fall
of the same year that he fled from Fort Pitt, that the most
creditable act of his life took place. The Indians, who,were
then constantly on the war-path, brought home many captives,
and among them the redoubtable Simon Kenton, whom they
had taken to Wapakoneta, and had already doomed to. the
stake, when he was recognized by Girty with astonishment
and'delight as his old comrade of the Dunmore expedition.
At once, and at the risk of destroying both his standing and
6
81History of the Girtys.
influence among his inflamed and suspicious people, Girty exerted himself to the utmost to save him, and at length, after
the most earnest and impassioned speeches, the power of
which is attested by the effect it had upon a crowded council
of prejudiced and revengeful savages, he succeeded, and taking the rejoicing Kenton to his own cabin, he fed him, clothed
him and dressed his neglected wounds." But there was no
Wapakoneta in existence until long after the Revolution.
There are other errors to be noticed in this extract. The
Indians, when they captured Kenton, were not on the warpath, as is here inferred. Girty did not " at once " exert himself to save Kenton. The writer also speaks of the Indians
who had captured Kenton as "his [Girty's] inflamed and suspicious people."  Now, these Indians were Shawanese; but
had they been Mingoes, they could not properly be spoken of
as his peo'ple. No tribe was his tribe-no savage nation his
nation.
NOTE II.--Kenton's captivity and the incidents connected
with it are, to a large extent, only known through John A.
McClung's Sketches of Western Adventure. That writer declares that Kenton's adventures (meaning, among others, his
being taken prisoner, when his life was saved by Girty) were
copied by him from a manuscript account dictated to another
by the pioneer himself. It is certain, however, that much of
what is said concerning the action of Girty is purely imaginary,
and could not have been taken from Kenton's lips. Words
are put into the mouths of Indian chiefs which they could not
have spoken. And Girty himself is credited with shying
what, had he so said, would have been known to his hearers
as being absolutely untrue; as, for instance: " He [Girty] entreated them [the chiefs] to have compassion upon his feelings; to spare him the agony of witnessing the torture of an
old friend by the hands of his adopted brothers; and not to
refuse so trifling a favor, as the life of a white man, to the
earnest intercession of one who had proved, by three years'
faithful service, that he was sincerely and zealously devoted
82History of the Girtys.
to the cause of the Indians." (The italicizing is mine.) To
have spoken to Shawanese chiefs, asserting they were " adopted
brothers," would have been absurd; and to have claimed
"three years' faithful service" to the Indians, when he had
been among the Mingoes only a few weeks, would, of course,
have been ridiculous. It is not alone in the speeches said to
have been made, that McClung (or the one he copies from)
draws upon his imagination. He gravely asserts, among
other fallacies, that Kenton was introduced by Girty to his
own family; as if, indeed, the latter had a wife and children
with him!
NOTE III.-After Kenton had a second time been sentenced
to death, an(l had started for Upper Sandusky, where the torturing was to take place, he met Logan, the Mingo chief, who
made an attempt to save him by sending messengers in advance to the place last mentioned to intercede for him; but
they failed. However, Roosevelt declares to the contrary, in
The Winning of the West, Vol. I, p. 241: " He [Logan] saved
Simon Kenton from torture and death, when Girty, moved by
a rare spark of compassion for his former comrade, had already tried to do so and failed." " But each time [after being
twice sentenced to be burned alive], he was saved at the last
moment," that writer also declares, in Vol. II, p. 29: "once
through a sudden spasm of mercy on the part of the renegade
Girty, his old companion in arms at the time of Lord Dunmore's war, and again by the powerful intercession of the
great Mingo chief, Logan."  The truth is, that his second reprieve was brought about by Girty artfully persuading the
chiefs to send him to Upper Sandusky to be tortured, and by
the shrewdness of a white trader after his arrival there.
NOTE IV.-The account of the intercession of Girty in
Kenton's behalf, as given by James Hall (The Romance of
Western History, pp. 303, 304), is particularly erroneous:
"After running the gauntlet in thirteen towns, he [Kenton]
was taken to Lower Sandusky to be burned. Here resided
83History   of the Girtys.
the miscreant [Simon] Girty, who, having just returned from
an unsuccessful expedition against the frontiers of Pennsylvania, was in a particularly ill humor, and hearing that.there
was a white prisoner in town, he rushed upon him, struck him,
beat him to the ground, and was proceeding to further atrocities, when Kenton had the presence of mind to call him by
name and claim his protection. They had known each other
in their youth; Kenton had once saved the life of Girty; and
deaf as the latter was, habitually, to every dictate of benevolence, he admitted the claim of his former acquaintance; and
actuated by one of those unaccountable caprices so common
among savages, interceded for him, rescued him from the
stake, and took him to his house." The same author previously declares that it was " pity," instead of an " unaccountable caprice," that prompted Girty to intercede for the
prisoner. Now, Girty did not reside at Lower Sandusky, nor
did he ever meet Simon Kenton there. As yet, he had not
been on an expedition against the frontiers of Pennsylvania.
Kenton had never saved Girty's life, nor had they known each
other in their youth. Besides, as will hereafter be shown,
Girty was not "deaf," "habitually, to every dictate of benevolence."
84History of the Girtys.
CHAPTER X.
It was in the month of October, 1778, that Simon Girty
parted with Kenton at Wapatomica, when the latter was
started on his way to the Wyandot town of Upper Sandusky,
guarded by five Shawanese-for there is no evidence that he
accompanied his old time companiork thither. That the ensuing months of the year were spent by Girty at the various
Mingo villages in the vicinity is certain.
It has been said (and the report has a number of times been
repeated by Western writers) that Girty was dispatched not
long after his saving Kenton's life, as a British emissary,
along with Elliott and McKee, to the homes of the " Moravian " Indians, to induce them, if possible, to join in the war
against the Americans. No such journey, however, was made
by them.
The fall of this year (1778), in Kentucky, was marked by
some events of importance "beside those already mentioned.
Immediately after Kenton and his companions set off for the
country north of the Ohio upon the expedition which, as previously explained, resulted in his capture, Boonesborough was
besieged by a few white men-Canadians--and a large number of Indians; but the enemy in the end were unsuccessful.
In October, several men joined their labors in making improvements where Louisville now stands, laying the permanent foundation of that city. George Rogers Clark ordered Captain William Linn and the discharged troops from
Kaskaskia to return to the falls of the Ohio. A station, which
had been established on an island in the river, was abandoned,
and a fort on the main shore, in Kentucky, commenced.
The news of the disaster to British interests in the Illinois
and upon the Wabash, aroused Lieutenant-Governor Hamilton, at Detroit, to the most vigorous efforts to retrieve it. It
was obvious that Clark's success had panic-stricken the In85