Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1871-09-21

Pioneer Life and History OF
Wyaitd 1T County.
BY A. W. B RINKERuoFF,
CHAPTER Vino. %.

In giving tne us tory OF child it is no
more than right and proper that the
Parents and Grand parents of that child
should be remtM ibered. As Wyandot
County is n leg III mate member of that
great family OF counties of which OHIO
is composed, an d of which she. rs parent,
may well feel proud, Il urief history,
therefore, of WI GiG Ohio is and where
she came from, may not be uninteresting
to the reader, a there may be some who
have yet to lea rn from whence came the
United States tile to the great North
west. In Il VIC 'rk of this kind however.
but little space can be given to that kind
OF history Whic Ia Is more national in
character than appropriate for this work
Briefly, then. we say that the territory
ROW embraced within the limits OF OHIO
was once the pr oIPrty of France. in com.
mon with all til. itfS between the Allie
ghany and Roch Y Mountains, and was
known by the nj gl1c of Louisiana.
In an Early ia the French had erect
ed forts ut Vario Gs points throughout
this vast wildern ess-on the banks of
the Missippi, the Illinois. the maumee.
and on the shores of the Lakes. These
forts were the eatral points of trade
with the great Il 5ses of Indians whose
hunting groun Ss extended over tEiS
vast and then un productive region.
By treaty wit European powers all
this became tie property ofthe United
that living north west of the OHIO River.
and claimed by Virgins was ceded by
that state to tive q eneral Government
with the express III lderstanding that
slavery, nor invo!unt airy servItude' eX-
cept for the punishm mt of crime, never
should exist therein
That, unconsciouSEy and unintention-
| ally Oh the part OF vi rgInia. as State,
was the first pain in the disease, from
which.deaIh toitorred. to American Siay-
| cry. By SUBSEQUENT treaties with the
| several tribes of India ms, the whole eX-
| nanse of territory now embraced in Ohio
! was open tor settleme mt. the last being
! with tin. iNyandots OF our own County
Heretofore history or all written until
a very late date as his sory-has uniform
lv pointed to Narietta as the place of first
White settlement in Ohio; but such
proves not to be the fact. Letters and
documents have recer itly beet produced
from the State Depar tment at Washing
ton which completely upset the claim OF
Marietta. These do cuments are in the
hands or possessio II of the Historical
Society of Northern Ohio. These dis
| closures have nowhere excited more at
tention than at Marie tia, so long regard
ed as the first founded first named, and
first peopled settlement by the English
race in OHIO"
"Duriny the revolutionary war par
l.
Der OF Ca bins at the Sahg Springs in what
is now the township of eathersfield,
Trumbull County. Here they lived in
peace, titled the Eand and made salt
which they sold to the Moravian Indi-
ans"
The exact number settled there is
now not known, bu75 from the reports of
Col. Harmar it is Judged that there were
not less than ten families. These had
been located at the springs by Pennsyl-
vania traders, who claimed the land by
reason of purchas e trCIa the Indians.
Harmar sent Ensign Armstrong i'll May
17S5, and after disposessing the inhabi-
tants, burnt their cabins and destroyed
all improVem about the Springs.
The land was afterwards purchased by
General Samuel FL. Parsons and Jona-
} than Heart Of Con necticuu.
On the 3Otli OF November, 1872, a pre-
J liminary treaty of peace between the
, United States and Great Britain was sigh
ed at Paris. and definitive treaty was
signed ut the same place by America n
and English Commissioners, on the 81
, of September 1888. By that treaty the
United States became IL free and indie
pendent nation. Under its provisions
the English evacuated New York on the
e 25th of November 1888, when the ac-
Il acknowledgements of our sovereignty as a
, nation became IL rea ity, for no foreign
: the territory of the thirteen colonies.
: The government of the United States
, claimed that By the terms of the treaty
i of Paris, all the territory Northwest oi
{: the Ohio to the MisSippi, was surrender
! ed to the United States, but Great Bri-
: tian refused to acknowledge this claim
until 1876, when all their forts with
+ in the tract referred to were delivered tC
. the United States.
q On tie Dist OF January. 1885, q treaty
was concluded at Fort Mcintosh, between
George Rogers Clarke, Richard Butler
u and Arthur Lee as Commissioner fol
: the United States, and the representa-
S tives of the Wyandot, Delaware, Chippe-
WA and Ottawai Nations.
|, .'If any citizen of the United States or
-e other persons. not being an Indian, shall
}: atte mpt 10 settle on any OF the lands al
,t lotted to the WyandOt and Delaware
' nations in this Treaty, excepting the
&c lands reserved to the United States IL
IS the proceeding article, such person;
e shall forfeit the protection of the United
States, and the Indians may punish him
as they please"
The treaty made at Fort Finney, al
the mouth of the Great Miami, January
81, 1856, between George Rogers Clark
u Richard Butler, and Samuel Ii. Plrson
Commissioners on the part of the United
= States. and the chiefs and warriors of the
= Shawanees. provided in article VII:
: If any citizen or citizens of the Uni
l. ted States shall presume to settle upor
the lands allotted to the Snawanees by
; this Treaty. he or they shall be put out
= of the protection of the United States
IL In the execution of the foregoing IA IT,
Gle of the treaty made at Fort Finney
Ensign John Armstrong was soon after
ordered to remove all intruders. Thi:
was more than three years before Mari
eta was thought Of; His instructions
% were as follows;
e, FORT MClNTosh, March 30. 1885.
Of To Ensign Johd Armstrong.
p. RIR:-IIaving received intelligence
J. that several persons in defiance of She
l. orders of Congress. have presumed, tt
= settle on the lands of the United States
on the western side of the Ohio, about
forty or fifty miles from hence, you are
hereby ordered to proceed with yOul
party as far down us opposite Wheeling
and dispossess the said settlers. A
Wheeling you will leave copies of The
"a above Instructions Which l receive,
ii from the honorable, the CommisSiOne
for Indian Affairs, and of these you
orders, in order that all persons may bl
W. fully acquainted Herewith. -
IN / am Sir, your humble servt,
.h Jos. HARMAR.
~ ~ 1t. Col. Comd.
'o Ensign Armstrong left on his mission
on the 3lst of March. His operation
are fully detailed in the following oiiicial
Is reports.
10 FoRr MCINTsH, 18th April. 1871.
SIR:-A greeable to your order, | pro
- ooo,ad with my marty early on rho 2Is