The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1892-11-09
AN INDIAN TRAGEDY.

Story of Weequehelah. the New jersey
Chieftain, and His Fate.
The South River sachem, Weequehelah,
says j. H. West in the Monmouth Demo
crat. was probably the most in1uentia,
chief in New jersey. He was the head OF
the tribe that resided about South River.
where he lived. He was of great note
among the whites as well as among the
Indians, and he lived in a style much
above the common rank of Indians. He
had an extensive farm with cattle, horses
and negro slaves. raised large crops OF
wheat and was so far white in his way oil
living as to have a house well provided
with feather beds, calico curtains, etc, He
frequently dined withGovernors and othei
great men, behaved we'll aud was well
thought of. No doubt the settlers pan.
dered to please him, so as to have nc
trouble with his tribe. although his men
were not very numerous and were con-
stantly dwindling. The last purchase of
lane from the ndians that is entered in
the East Jersey Proprietors' records was
for a tract Of land in Monmouth county,
aud was bought of Weequehelah by John
Willocks in 1903. There were many pur-
chases of lands from the Indians after
that date, but probably only of those who
claimed to own it as individuals, and
not as tribes. Under the Dutch, the whites,
as individuals, purchased land OF Indians,
and under Nichols by license, but after
the grant to Berkeley and Carteret it was
unlawful for any one but the Proprietors
to buy land of the Indians.
In the midst of Weequehelah's prosper
ity he allowed his savage nature to assert
itself. His neighbor, Captain John Leon
ard. wished to purchase a cedar swamp,
This tract was claimed by other Indians,
as we'll as by Weequehelah, and Leonard
purchased of them. declining 10 recog-
nize the claim of the great sachem. Wee
quehelah resented this highly and threat
ned to shoot him, aud watched for a
chance. One day in the spring of1727, as
Captain Leonard was walking in his gar
den, or near his own house, the sachem
shot him dead. He was a~pprehended
soon afterward. and it seems that a spe-
cial session of the court was held to try
him. He was given a legal trial, but
would not confess his guilt. He was con-
victed and hanged at Perth Amboy,on
June 80, 1927.
The Indians must have resented this,
for in August Of the same year it was
feared that a disturbance with them
would take place. Years afterward some
of the Jersey Indians who had gone west
complained of the legal killing of Wee
%quehelah, to one of the messengers from
Pennsylvania. and some of them had
probably piloted other Indians in a raid
on New Jersey during the French and
Iudian war; but their complaint was
probably only a pretence to color their at
tempts with the appearance of justice.
After the hanging of the sachem. some
one sent an account to the NelU England
Weekly Journal, aud the issue of July IL,
1877. had the following notice of the event,
which has been copied into the thirteenth
volume of The Archives:
PERTH AMBoY, July 4, 1871.
On Friday last. Wequalia, an indian King, wa
executed Lere according to sentence passed
against him, for the murder of Captain John
Leonard. And whearas, the said Wequalia has
lived a base. inhumnn life, murdered his own
brother and other Indians formerly, so he died a
hardened and impenitent wretch, not showing
the least remorse for any of the actions OF his
vile life, nor would he own the murder of Cap
tam Leonard, of which he was so VIGOROUSLY
Convicted