120 |
then because earlier the Indians had been off on their winter hunt.155
Hamtramck's first messenger was turned back by a personal enemy at the Vermilion River;156 the second messenger, Antoine Gamelin of Vincennes, visited all of the Wabash villages, as well as the Miami village at Kekionga. The only village which whole heartedly accepted St. Clair's message was the Wea town of Kikapouguoi, whose chief was Les Jambes Croaches (Crooked Legs).157 This Wea chief, with about 80 warriors, had come under American protection the previous year, whereupon he and his band had left the Wea village at Ouiatanon and had established a new village on the Wabash, somewhere between Vincennes and the mouth of the Vermilion River.1587
After visiting Crooked Legs' Wea village, Gamelin went up the Wabash to visit the Piankashaw, the Kickapoo and the remainder of the Wea, in turn. The Piankashaw
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were well pleased with the
speeches |
155. Hamtramck to Sargent, February
25, [1790]; Dft. Ex. 75. Indiana Historical Society Publications, vol. 19, pp.
223-224; Dft. Ex. 79.
156. American State Papers, Indian Affairs, vol. 1, pp. 93-94; Dft. Ex. 96.
157. See pp. 101-102, 106, this Report.
158. American State Papers, Indian Affairs, vol. 1, p. 93; Dft. Ex. 96. See also p. 119, this Report.
121 |
The Kickapoos could not give any answer to St. Clair's message demanding peace "without consulting the Ouiatanons [Wea], being the owners of their lands." The Wea, assembled at Quitepiconnae,158a could give no answer until they received advice from the Miamis, "their elder brethren."
All these groups seem to have been playing for time. Crooked Legs, also a Wea chief, had not felt any need to ask consent or permission from any other Indian group, before accepting the message.
When Gamelin arrived at the head of the Maumee he delivered St. Clair's message to the Miami, Shawnee and Delaware who lived in that vicinity. The Miami were favorably impressed, but deferred answering St. Clair's message, stating that
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We cannot give you a
positive answer; |
The "great chief of the Miamies, called Le Gris, "promised answers from all the Indians "in thirty nights."159
As a result of what were, in his estimation, unsatisfactory answers from the various Indian groups, St. Clair resolved to attack them. One force, under Harmar, was to attack the Maumee villages; a smaller force, under Hamtramck, was to raid the Wabash towns.160
158a. See p. 124, this Report, for location of this
town.
159. Ibid., vol. 1, pp. 93-94; Dft. Ex. 96.
160. Idem. Also, Indiana Historical Society Publications, vol. 19, p. 237; Dft. Ex. 79.
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Due to a deficiency of provisions Hamtramck's force did not get above the mouth of the Vermilion. At this point many of the militia deserted, and Hamtramck was compelled to return to Vincennes without meeting any Indians.161 This was probably fortunate, for the Wea alone had as many warriors as there were soldiers and militia combined in Hamtramck's force of ca. 330 men. In 1790 there were about 780 warriors in the four Indian villages between the Vermilion and Eel rivers: 200 Piankashaw warriors on the Vermilion, 330 Wea at Ouiatanon, 100 Kickapoo opposite the Wea, and 150 Eel Rivers.162
One of the results of Hamtramck's abortive "raid" was that none of the Wabash Indians took part in the defeat of Harmar at the Maumee Miami village.163
A month before Hamtramck went on his trek up the Wabash in August, 1790, two Potawatomi from a village "near the Weeya" containing 100 warriors, together with some Wea, had come to Vincennes to make peace. This Hamtramck had refused to do, giving as his reason that they had lost their opportunity by not appearing in the spring of 1790, when St. Clair had asked them to declare their intentions.164
161. Indiana Historical Society Publications, vol. 19, pp.
259-263, Dft. Ex. 79.
Kinnaird, Spain in the Mississippi Valley, pp. 384,
392-393; Dft. Ex. 68.
162. Indiana Historical Society Publications, vol. 19, pp. 246, 259-260; Dft. Ex. 79.
163. Ibid., vol. 19, pp. 260, 262, 264, 266; Dft. Ex. 79.
164. Ibid., vol. 19, p. 247; Dft. Ex. 79.
123 |
On November 1, 1790 two emissaries from Crooked Legs' band of Wea came to Vincennes and asked permission to winter in the vicinity. Since Crooked Legs and his band "had been before under the protection of the United States," this request was allowed.165 In late November Hamtramck learned that Jean Baptiste Constant, who had acted as interpreter at Harmar's meeting with the Wea and Piankashaw in early September, 1787, had been appointed "the great chief of the Weeya" by Alexander McKee, the British Indian agent.166
After the fiasco of the 1790 American campaign against the Wabash and Maumee Indian villages, it was decided to undertake a second campaign, unless the Indians sued for peace prior to May, 1791. However, since Col. Thomas Proctor, the American who was to have gone as an emissary to the Indians, was unable to get beyond the Iroquois villages in western New York, there were no peace discussions.167 The second American campaign was to be against the Maumee villages, with subsidiary raids, up to three if necessary, against the Wabash Valley towns.168
165. Ibid., vol. 19, p. 264;
Dft. Ex.
79.
166. Ibid., vol. 19, p. 267; Dft. Ex. 79. P. 118 this Report.
167. Historical Collections of the Michigan Pioneer and Historical Society, vol. 24, pp. 186-187; Dft. Ex. 82. American State Papers, Indian Affairs, vol. 1, pp. 149 - - 165; Dft. Ex. 96.
168. Historical Collections of the Michigan Pioneer and Historical Society, vol. 24, pp. 186-190; Dft. Ex. 82.
124 |
In late May, 1791, Brig. Gen. Charles Scott led the first expedition against the Wabash Valley towns. On June 1, 1791, Ouiatanon and the Kickapoo town opposite it were destroyed. Two days later "the important town of Kethtipecanunk [Tippecanoe] at the mouth of Eel [Tippecanoe169] River. . . on the west side of the Wabash" was destroyed. After burning the towns and destroying the corn and bean crops at the Ouiatanon villages and at Kethtipecanunk Scott marched his men to "the rapids of Ohio." Thirty-two Indian warriors had been killed and 58 persons, chiefly women and children, had been captured. Of the 58 prisoners, Scott freed one to use as a messenger, delivered 41 at Fort Steuben, and released 16 of "the weakest and most infirm." To the released prisoners he gave a copy of a "talk to the Wabash tribes" in which he exhorted these tribes "to make a lasting peace" with the Americans.170
On July 31, 1791, St. Clair ordered a second expedition against the Wabash towns, to be led by Brig. Gen. James Wilkinson. St. Clair's orders to Wilkinson betray the former's ignorance of the river systems and locations of native villages in northern Indiana.171 In August Wilkinson
169. Scott located Kethtipecanunk as "eighteen miles" from his camp
at Ouiatanon. The mouth of Tippecanoe River is 18 miles upstream from
Ouiatanon; the mouth of Eel River is 45-50 miles upstream from Ouiatanon. See
American State Papers, Indian Affairs, vol. 1, pp. 131-132;
Dft. Ex.
96.
170. Ibid., vol. 1, pp. 131-133; Dft. Ex. 96.
171. Smith, St. Clair Papers, vol. 2, pp. 227-229; Dft. Ex. 95.
125 |
struck at the Eel River town of Kenapacomaqua, which he found was "scattered along Eel river for full three miles." There were but few Indians in the village itself; most of them were either out "digging a root which they substitute in the place of a potato" or watching "the paths leading from the Ohio" against a possible attack, or off buying ammunition. Wilkinson burned the town, cut up the corn crop "scarcely in the milk," and then, with 31 prisoners, went north to make an unsuccessful search for a Kickapoo village "on the prairie." When he finally arrived at Tippecanoe he found that the Indians had returned to this town after the June 3rd attack on it "and cultivated their corn and pulse [beans]" which he "found in high perfection, and in much greater quantity than at l'Anguille [Eel River]." After these crops were destroyed at Tippecanoe Wilkinson next attacked a Kickapoo town three leagues (ca. 7-8 miles) west of Ouiatanon. After burning the 30 houses in this town and cutting down "a considerable quantity of corn in the milk" Wilkinson moved on to Ouiatanon. There he found that the fields which had been destroyed by Scott in June had been replanted, and were "now in high cultivation, several fields being well ploughed." These fields he again destroyed.
Wilkinson estimated he had "cut down at least 430 acres of corn, chiefly in the milk," on this expedition and that therefore
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The Ouiatanons, left
without houses, |
126 |
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their squaws and children
during the |
After this, in early March of 1792, seven Wea chiefs and two Eel River chiefs
appeared at Vincennes and made known to Hamtramck "their intention. . .to
be at peace with the United States." A temporary agreement calling for
peace and friendship was signed by Hamtramck, representing the United States
and Kickapooquaigh, Atchenewaugh, Contomaumgaugh, Awpaighchenecaugh,
Pullaaswaigh, Chacowaatagh and La Poussiere for the Weas, and Peankeunshaw and
Checunememshaw for the Eel Rivers, on March 14, 1792. The Kickapoo whose
village formerly had been at Ouiatanon were then "on the Illinois
River," but both the Weas and Eel Rivers promised that they would force
the Kickapoo, if they returned to the Wabash, to acceed to the agreement or
they would "drive them out of the Country."173
Only two of the Indian signers of the March 14, 1792 agreement with Hamtramck are identifiable. "Kickapooquaigh" is obviously the Wea chief "Quiquaouhqu?, " who for 13 years had vacillated in his allegiance to the United States.174 La Poussouire was probably the father of Young Labossiere, who served as the Wea chief in the 1800's.175
172. American State Papers, Indian Affairs, vol. 1, pp.
133-135; Dft. Ex. 96.
173. Carter, Territorial Papers, vol. 2, pp. 374-375, 380-381; Dft. Ex. 69.
174. See pp. 102-103, 106, 120, this Report.
175. See p. 133, this Report.
127 |
In mid-June, 1792 Hamtramck reported to St. Clair that
a number of the Eel river Indians have arrived [at Vincennes] and says that the remainder part of their [Eel River] Nation are coming down: This wants more confirmation for it is my opinion that few of them are come only in expectation to get their prisoners as they expected to have had a treaty at this place.-
I find also that a great number of the Weya and Pyankeshaws have retired towards the Illionois the reason of it cannot be well ascertained as yet, it must have been occasioned by some sudden fright they have had- however they no doubt can be brought back as it does not appear they are badly disposed and I also think that the Eel river may be persuaded to detach themselves entirely from the Miamies and come under the protection of the United States.176
As we shall see shortly, all three of these Indian groups, Eel Rivers, Weas and Piankashaws did sign the unratified Treaty of September 27, 1792, negotiated at Vincennes.
This Treaty of September 27, 1792 had originally been planned as a treaty with those Indians hostile toward the United States, and was to have been held on the Maumee River. However conditions were such that Rufus Putnam, commissioner for the United States for the projected treaty, suggested that instead of holding a treaty with the Indians from the Maumee River, a formal treaty of peace and friendship should be negotiated with the various Wabash tribes. One of the articles in the agreement Hamtramck had signed in March, 1792, was that "measures" would "be speedily taken to conclude a solid and everlasting treaty of peace between the Wabash Indians and the
176. Hamtramck to St. Clair, June 17,
1792; Dft. Ex. 74.
128 |
United States.''177 Putnam's suggestion was approved by Secretary of War Henry Knox, and Putnam, accompanied by those Indians who had been taken prisoners in Scott's and Wilkinson's raids in 1791, set out for Vincennes.178 There, on September 24, 1792 Putnam opened a treaty council with representatives of nine different Indian groups- viz., Eel Rivers, Wea, Potawatomi, Kickapoo, Piankashaw, Mascouten, Kaskaskia, Peoria, and Ottawa. On September 27, 1792 a treaty of "peace and friendship" between the United States and the "Wabash and Illinois Indian tribes" was signed by Rufus Putnam in behalf of the United States, and 31 Indians in behalf of nine distinct Indian groups. Two of the Treaty signers, "Kekawpoochque, The Kekapoos woman" who signed for the Wea, and "Peankeshaw," who signed for the Eel Rivers, had also signed the unofficial agreement with Hamtramck in March of 1792.
Five of the nine groups signing the September 27, 1792 Treaty at Vincennes were also represented and were signatories to the Treaty of Greenville of August 3, 1795 (7 Stats. 49). Of the five groups which signed both treaties each of two groups had one chief who signed both treaties- Eel River: "Shemahanechseah the Soldier" (1792) and "Sha-me-kun-ne-sa (or Soldier)" (1795); Wea: "Anghknlahtah smoak" (1792) and "A-coo-la-tha (or Little Fox)" (1795). A Potawatomi chief, La Jasse, who signed the 1792 treaty died in Philadelphia in 1793
177. Carter, Territorial Papers, vol. 2, p. 374;
Dft. Ex.
69.
178. Buell, The Memoirs of Rufus Putnam, pp. 119-120, 257-267, 273-278, 280-290, 325; Dft. Ex. 98.
129 |
but his brother, the Sun, signed the Treaty of Greenville. Another Potawatomi who signed the 1792 treaty, "Kumo," was Gomo, the Potawatomi chief whose village in ca. 1810 was located at the upper end of Lake Peoria in Illinois. Gomo did not sign the 1795 Treaty of Greenville.179 The total number of Indians who attended the Treaty of Vincennes in September, 1792 was 686; this included 31 chiefs, 216 other adult males, and 439 women and children.180
It is interesting to note that one of the interpreters employed by Putnam at the 1792 treaty was John (Jean) Baptist Constant, the same man who was used by Harmar in 1787, who acted as a spy for Hamtramck in 1788 and 1789, and who was appointed a medal chief of the Wea by the British in 1790.181 The references to Constant in the literature from 1786 to 1792 document the vacillation displayed by the Wea in their political affiliations during this period.
Soon after the Treaty of September 27, 1792 was signed one Captain Abner Prior set off with approximately ten of the signers who intended to visit President George Washington in Philadelphia. These Indians met Washington in council on
179. Ibid., pp. 335-352; Dft. Ex. 98.
List of
signers of 1792 treaty; Dft. Ex. 76. American State Papers, Indian Affairs,
vol. 1, p. 338;
Dft. Ex.
96. Edwards, History of Illinois, pp.
315-318; Dft. Ex. 101. 7 Stats. 53-54. Pasteur to Wayne, February
15, 1795; Dft. Ex. 74.
180. Buell, The Memoirs of Rufus Putnam, p. 121; Dft. Ex. 98.
181. Ibid., p. 338; Dft. Ex. 98. Indiana Historical Society Publications, vol. 19, pp. 52, 108, 159, 267; Dft. Ex. 79. See also pp. 118, 123, this Report.
182. Buell, The Memoirs of Rufus Putnam, pp. 121, 372; Dft. Ex. 98.
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