Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1903-02-05
Written for the Regisser.l
The Battle of Point Pleasant
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS,

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS-,
Washington, D. c., Jan. %, 1908.
DEAR REaIsTEB We read in the
papers that the Legislature of West
Virginia is debating whether to build
a monument to commemorate the bat
tie of Point Pleasant, at the mouth Of
the Kanawha river, between the al
lied Indian tribes under Grand Chief
Cornstalk and the Virginia settlers in
l774, and to the inventor of the hrst
steamboat at Shepherdstown, jams
Rumsey. With the facts of the latter
all our boys and girls in school are IA
miliaI, but are they with the battle
which decided the fate of the red man
in the whole territory Of West Vir-
ginia and Kentucky?
The white man wanted this land
and had war land patents to 1t, and
went in TO parcel it out by surveys,
but the Indians determined to preserve
it as their hunting ground and slot
down surveying parties, tomahswked
the settlers wife in his absence, and
drove off his stock to thsir wigwams
west of the Ohio river.
In l774 Lord Dunmore, Governor
of Virginia, reluctantly agreed to raise
. force of 5000 rifemen who marched
in two armies to meet at the mouth OF
the Kanawha, and expected to cross
the Ohio and destroy the Shawnee
towns whose warriors had troubled
them so much.
The army of LOO men under Col.
Andrew Lewis arrived first, and their
advance guard scouts came running
back to camp bleeding, saying they
had seen four acres Of Indian warriors
whose pickets had fired on them.
Some people become excited when
the moment of danger approaches, but
this was not the case OF Col. Lewis.
H. took his pipe, filled it with tobac-
co and began to smoke. BE then gave
orders to his men. These orders were
that they should form two lines OF bat
tie, the one on the left commanded by
his brother, Col. Charles Lewis, and
the right by Col. VIM. Fleming, while
he commanded the whole. At 400
yards distance they found themselves
face to face with thousand Indians
in full war paint.
The Indians were commanded by
old Cornstalk, king of the Ohio tribes
no to the Great Lakes. The Indians
rushed forward, yelling and firing.
They had excellent muskets given
them by the English and French, and
the Virginians soon saw they knew
how to use them. Col. Charles Lewis
fell dead leading the Virginia rifle
men. Col. Fleming. commanding the
right wing, was wounded and his men
fell back slowly.
Col. Andrew Lewis sent three COM
panies around to flank and fire upon
the rear of the Indians, which threw
them into confusion and began to wa
YER. The Virginians charged in front,
sweeping the field. Old Cornstalk
was heard shouting, "Bs strong
"Hold fast ' and buried his toms-
hawk in the brains Of the first OF bis
men TO retreat, but he could not check
the retreat, for the Virginians were
over the breastworks Of logs aud swept
the fields, and pursued the Indians
three miles.
The Virginians lost IS killed and
l40 wounded, while the indians lost
fully as many. The spirit OF the In
dians was broken and they sued for
peace and gave up all prisoners held
by them, and agreed to yield their
claim to all land east and south Of the
Ohio river, all Kentucky and West
Virginia.
Let our legislators build monuments
to both James Rumsey on the Poto-
mac and to those heroic Virginians on
the Kanawha. Virginia built a bronze
statue Of their gallant commander and
set it up in Capitol Square, Richmond
and now let US put up the others.
JAMES N. EEGLE.