Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1870-04-08
Written for the Delaware Gazette
PIONEER SKETCHES OF della
WARE COUNTY.
Number Five.
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS..

Nu1aber Five.
I DELAWARE-INDIANs.
.sThen a darker. drearier vision
Passed before me, vague aud ciOud-like,
I heheld our nations scattered,
All forgetful OF my counsels,
Weakened, warning with each ether;
Saw the remnants Of onr people
Sweeping westward. wild and woftlI
Like the cIoud-rack of a tempest,
Like the witnrred leaV-s of autumn
-" Hfllte mans JO0f, HiUsCdtbd.
/ Says one, THE Indians were thick as
blackbirds. The Delawares were prob
ably the most numerous tribe. They
had two villages where the city of Del
aware now stands, one at the east end
of William Street, near where the "Old
Cemetery now stands, and the other
on Delaware Run, at the west end of the
same street. They also had an encamp-
nent at ''Bowtown, on the south Eden
road, east Of Delaware, and a short dis
tance east of the brick-Iiln near the
Collins farm.
A party of Delawares, together with
other tribes, made raid into Pennsyl-
vania, starting from "Beantown." They
committed many depredations, destroy
ing property and taking prisoners. In
their retreat they We're followed by a
company of rescuers. Sometime before
reaching their destination, the Indians
divided into bands, one company taking
a westerly course, and the other return
ing to Beantown. Among the spoils of
the latter squad was young white girl.
| The pursuing party, among whom were
| two brothers Of the girl-prisoner, traced
/ the savages as far Bowtown, which they
found deserted. Proceeding as far as
/ the Delaware villages, they found them
] olcn ftIil-a E,9y,rrrraE E11I
! deserted. ''s
To the northward they discovered the
/ faint glinmer of a FIRE. Proceeding |
/ cautiously in that direction, they found |
the redskins assembled, men, women |
and pappOoses, in a war-dance, on or |
near the spot famiharly denominated |
Fair Holme or Crystal Spring Farm, now |
| the residence ofMessrs. Hills and Jones. |
! The pale-faced captive was apparently |
doomed to burn at the stake, being |
bound near a fire, around which the |
warriors were holding their jubilee
This was early in the evening. Undis- |
covered, the whites planned an instant /
and successful attack They put the |
Indians to confused flight, killing one,
wounding others, and releasing the
trembling girl from her tormentors. Al
though we are unable at present to give !
the precise date of this occurrence, or
the names of the parties connected
Herewith, of its authenticity there is
no doubt.
In the Delaware village, on Delaware
run, the Delawares, saith tradition, were
surprised and after severe battle, de-
feated by the Shawnees. The exact
time of this engagement history does
not state.
This was a spot coveted by the differ
ent tribes, on account of the value of
the hunting grounds, the large numbers
of deer and buffalo resorting annually I
to White Sulphur Spring, and the fertil-
ity of the soil for agricultural purposes.
The Delawares had a corn-6eld Of four
hundred acres on the site of the city and
on Cherry Bottom. Of the details of
the farming operations we are not adj
vised. Whether they were content to
plant by 'injun tuck, and rear their
maize in the forest mazes, and what was
the yield of the staple, depOnent saith
not
THE WYANDOTS,
also, were dwellers on our soil. Although
there IS great difficulty in fixing the dates
of events in the period of the history of
the Indians of which we write, or the
basis of the distinctive claims of the re
y
yet the fact that they were here, either
jointly or separately, anterior to the war
of 1872, is attested by the pioneers still
living. The tribe last mentioned was
one of the confederacy against the United ]
States. Up to the time of their league
against our government, the members
of this tribe were the uncompromising
friends Of the whites. Numerous in
stances of their fidelity might be cited.
Some facts in support of what is here
asserted will be given in a subsequent
part of our narrative "To die for the
interest or honor of his tribe, and to con
slider submission to an enemy as the
lowest degradation, were daily lessons
impressed upon the dawning reason of
the child, and continued through all the
stages of youth. "Other lessons might
be taught, but this being alz0ays present
to the mind Of the-youth, suppressed or
weakened every other passion of the
SOUL and reigned triumphant" This was
particularly true of Tarhe, or The Crane,
the grand sachem of this tribe. The
Wyandots were the chief tribe in the
confederacy against the United States
and that in whose custody the great cal
umet, the symbol Of their union, was en-
trusted. while Gen. Wayne was sta
toned at Greenville, he told Capt. Wells,
who commanded a company of scouts,
that he wished him to go to Sandusky
and take prisoner for the purpose of
obtaining information. Wells answered
he could take prisoner, but not from
Sandusky.' And why not from San
dusky,' said the General. For the best
of reasons, answered the captain =
there are only Wyandots there, and
they will not be taken alive The
members of this tribe seldom, if ever,
returned to this county subsequent. to
the war of 1872 From a large and
powerful tribe they decreased rapidly to
a mere handful, and moved beyond the
Mississippi.
KS. THE sHAwNEES,
as their name signifies, came from the
south. They had encampments here at
various times. Their country lay on the
Scioto, Mad and Miami rivers, Contig-
uous to the Wyandots. The ShaWnees
emigrated to Ohio from Florida, about
the middle of the 18th century. Black
Hoof their most celebrated chief, died
at Wapakonetta, Ohio, in 1920, at the
advanced age of one hundred and five
years. Blue Jacket, Tecumseh, and the
Prophet, were distinguished Shawnees..
| Big Ioe, well known in the early his
tory of Delaware, was probably mem
Der Of this tribe If any of the pioneers
| wished to deter an Indian from mischief, /
it was only necessary to threaten to re-
port him to Big Joe.
Gen. Harrison says there may have
! been some bands of
! SENECAS
in the northern part of this State. They !
are known to have been in Delaware
Stff-Knee,. a celebrated chief of this
tribe, was firm friend and ally of the
whites He joined the army of Gen.
! Wayne, for the purpose of avenging the
death of his friend Gen. Richard Butler.
Being delayed in fulfilling what he re-
garded as a sacred obligation, he proved
his fidelity by Plunging a Poniard in his
own bosom.