The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1875-08-26


the adventurers crossed the Beaver river
assisted by the canoes and the services OF
| the Indians residing there, who also gave
them some venison and bears fat-White
eyes, the chief, adding gift of "a few
chickens" -Four days after ON the I'm
of April, they arrived at their destination
after a pilgrimage, of ,thirty-three days
! Thty entered their cabin rshging a
hymn" In his Memoirs Heckewelder
SAYS that "no one lived near onNthe same
side Of the river; but on we other, a mile
| doWnthe stream, resided y trader'hamed
Thomas Calhoon, a moral and religious
man. Further South was situated the
Indian town called TusCarora, consisting
of about forty wigwams. Amile turtler
down tn, stream few families had set
Eted, and eight miles above, there was
anOtherIndiaIls a.2'.r-.,-rslussu,-p
The locality called TuscaroratoYn, was
on the south Tor West, hceording Heck
eweldef) side Of the river Just above
where Fort Laufens was aiterward 'built,
and Immediately contiguoust the press
ent town of Bolfvar, I'M Nscarawas coun-
| ty. In January,-l76l, Maj, Robert Rog-
ers, op,b bis returnlto Fort Pitt from his
expedition from Montreal into the Wes-
tern country, found Tuscarora a populous
Indianltown. In his journal he states
| there were about three thousand acres
of cleared ground around the place, and
| thnt the number Of warriors in town wis
about one hundred and eighty. Tuscafora
WAS at this time the residence of the
leading Delaware chiefs. Here King
Beaver resided, as also did thelgreat war
captain of the Delawares, Shingess, or
King Shingask, who is supposed to have
been the same parsonage as Bockengehe-
las who WIS living in 1904. Three years
later, when Colonel Bouquet led his ex'
expedition from Fort Pitt into the Ohio
wilderness, he found TuscaroratOwn de-
serted. and it il probable that 1t was de-,
serted On account of the approach of his
army. s 5'ItIlJ
1t will be remembered that the desti-
nation of the two adventurous MoraviaI
missionaries, Post and Heckewelder, in
March, l762, was the spot where the for
mer had the preceding year, built house
On the banks of the Tuscarawas, and that
they reached it about the middle of April.
They were thus located at the distance
of about a mile from Tuscaroratown,
which lay on the South side, across the
river. When they commenced clearing
the Indians ordered them to stop and APP
pear the next day before their Council.
Post accordingly put in an appearance at
the appointed time and was charged with
deceit, inasmuch rs he had informed the
Indians that his intentions were to teach
them the word ofGod, and now he took
possession of their lands, etc. Post an-
swered that he wanted no more land
than was sufficient to live from, as he in
tended to be no burden tc them, where |
uuon thew concluded that he should have |
tiitp /, eps in every direction. The ground |
Was, stepped oif by a chief the next day.
Heekeweder further states IN his Nara
tive, that IN consequence OF the Indian
treaty, which was To he heldat Lancaster
Pa, in the latter part of the summer,
Post was required by the Governor of
IBennsylvania to bring some of Western !
'Delawafes to it, which he accordingly
did, leaving Heckewelder alone at the
Station. In October Heckewelder, fear
ing war, etc, returned to Pennsylvania
and the station was permanently aban-
doned. !
In Zeisbergers Memoirs there is no al
fusion to this mission, although he and
Post werefrequent associates at an earlier
date, and in l845 wore ulju tyimprison-
altogether in New York asepies.
With regard to John Heck kewelder,
whose writings furnish such important
facts in relation 20 the first Moravlan
missionaries among the Ohio Indians
and their location in the prlme9Val Wild
erness, it may be stated that ne wasla
faithful missionary among the ONO IN
dams for about fifty years from l762. In
the cause to which he devoted himself,
he experienced much persecution, sick
mess and privation. He died in January
1928, at Bethlehem, on the Lehigh RIVER,
in North Hampton county, Pennsy!Vanla'
A life of this noted Moravian missionary
was written by Edward Roundthaler; A
daughter of his, Miss Mary HeekKtewelder
who was living at Bethlehem, fehhsy-
vania. as late as June, l845, ls generally
said to have been the first white child
born in Ohio, having been born In Salem,
one ofthe towns of the Moravlan Indians
on the Tuscarawas river, in what Is now
Tuscarawas county, April l6, l7ol. With
in day of her birth, however, Charles
F. Senseman, also the child of a Mora
Wan missionary, was born at Gnadenhut-
ten, one of the three missionary stations
in what is now Tuscarawas county. In
June 1845, he was living at Nazareth, Pa
in the same county with Bethlehem,
which is a celebrated settlement OF the
United Brethren or MoraVians, COM
menced in the year l74O. ~. a. /
To the students ofpioneer history, it IS
to know that efforts were made
at such an early date for the civil
lization and christianiZation of the In
dian tribes who roamed the Tuscarawas
valley, and it is especially fattering to
the residents OF Stark county to retil Ct
that fifteen years before the declaration
of American Independence and twenty
seven years bef, re the first permanentset-
Element in the State, missionary efforts
among the Indians we're already made at |
a locality now embraced within the linn