The Carbon County news. [volume] (Red Lodge, Mont.) 1924-1931, 1929-08-15
Little Journeys in
! Americana
James Smiths "Black Boys"
By LESTER B. COLBY

James Smiths "Black Boys"
no YOU know where the first re-
- sistance TO British power prelim-
mary to the opening of the Revolu-
tionary war was offered by the colon
lists? Probably you will say it was the
Boston Tea Party held on the night of
December 16, 1773. If you do you will
be wrong
Ever hear of James Smiths "Black
Boys?"
Eighteen of them captured Fort
Bedford, in Bedford county, Pennsyl-
vania, early one morning in 1863. It
was the first British fort to fall to re-
Voting colonists. The story comes out
of an ancient and age-yelowed vol
ume which | found recently in COZ
lection of Americana.
This book, Indian Captivities or
Life in the Wigwam," was compiled
by Samuel G. Drake and published in
1851. Drake includes in his book the
memoirs of James Smith, colonel in
the Revolutionary war. Smith, while
still boy, was captured by the In
dams, adopted by them and lived the
life of an Indian for six years. He
entered captivity in 1865.
He learned the Indian methods of
warfare their customs and their lam
guage. When he finally escaped and
rejoined his people he organized a
company of Indian fighters probably
without equal in the history of the
nation.
Every man among them was skilled
in the Indian method of warfare. The
most of them had been eaptives of
the Indians. They went upon the war
path like Indians, stripped for battle
as the Indians did, painted their
bodies and took scalps. Because they
daubed their bodies with black paint,
they were soon known as the "Black
| Boys"
Late in the 1760s the settlers
sought to place an embargo on the
| sale of gunpowder, bullets, fire arms
and other weapons to the Indians AS
a result of this the Indians were soon
short of gunpowder and other war ma
| terials.
Prices went up and white traders
began to bootleg the goods the red
skins wanted. So James Smith, who
had organized his Black Boys for
warfare against the Indians, turned
to the traders. They went out, paint
ed like Indians on the warpath, and
waylaid the traders.
After ambushing them they would
burn their entire stocks of goods,
threaten them with death if they per-
sisted in their business, and man
handle them in any way that they
thought fitted the case and occasion.
Finally some of the Black Boys were
arrested and placed in irons in the
! Jail at Fort Bedford. 1t was then
that James Smith and the rest of his
Black Boys swung into action. Gath
ering from various points along the
frontier, eighteen of them marched on
the fort.
They made no secret of their plan.
They advanced boldly down the gov
eminent road toward Bedford. When
ever they met anyone on the road
they told them they were going to
take Fort Bedford The military COM
mander heard of the threat and
laughed. Eighteen men take Fort
Bedford BAIL
One night the eighteen Black Boys
camped five miles from the fort. Will
liam Thompson, friend and associate
of Smith, who lived in Bedford, had
been spying out the situation. After
pitching camp that night and appar-
emily going to sleep the Black Boys
! got up and marched.
Shortly before dawn they then stole
up on moccasined feet and concealed
themselves just outside the fort.
Thompson had informed them that
thirty men would be on guard and
that the gates of the fort would be
thrown open at daybreak.
Daybreak came and with a rush
they entered. The soldiers had
stacked their guns and were stand
ing around, little suspecting an at
tack. Thompson led the way to the
guns and the fort was captured in
moment without resistance.
All of the Black Boys in irons were
set free and then the entire party took
to the woods. James Smith, in his
memoirs, written probably $40 years
or more ago, points out that Fort Bed
ford was the first British fort cap
tured by American coionists.