Carroll County, Indiana - Piuxeeh Remixiscences-Contixi-Ed, 1882

Piuxeeh Remixiscences-Contixi-Ed

T N addition to v.'hat has already been given as a part of the -*- experiences of Henry Robinson and his family in establishing the first pei-manent settlement in this county, Mr. Samuel H. Robinson relates the following: " Diu'ing the progress of building the cabin, before the removal of the family to their new home, the party engaged in the building consisting of Henry Robinson and his two sons, Abner and Coleman, with Mr. Starks and his son, cam])ed at night on the gi'oimd, with a great " log-heap " fire in front, and a large log beyond. One night, havi Qg retired to rest after a day of tiresome labor, Mr. Robinson was aroused from his necessai-y sleep by some noise in the immediate vicinity of their camp. Upon looking up, he discovered a lai-ge wolf, with his fore feet standing on the log beyond the tii-e, facing the sleepers, his eyes glaring with the reflected light fi-om the burning " log heajj," and not more than from twelve to twenty feet from where the tired men lay, enjoying the repose of nature's sw-eet restorer, Mr. Stai-ks, who was sleeping soiFudly at no gi-eat distance from Mr. Robinson, and an excellent mai-ksman, was iimnediately summoned, and the situation pointed out to him. Rising up and observing the wolf and his inquiring attitude for a moment, as if in doubt what should be done next, instead of taking up his gun and shooting the animal, as it was anticipated he would do, he gave a fierce yell, which frightened the wolf away, and he retm-ned no more to look upon the faces of this little band, the advance-guard of civilization, thus ruthlessly trespassing upon the domains of his woltship. The wolf, no doubt, like the occupants of the camp, was somewhat demoralized by the occurrence. Order, however, was once more restored, and again the party slept

After the cabin, the floors, in the absence of sawed plank, were laid with puncheons hewed out, sometimes quite unevenly. Such was the ease in this instance; the floor being uneven, there was but one place where the table would stand steadily, To secure this point and save delay was a question of some moment. Finally, it was ascertained that, by placing one leg of the table in a certain prominent knot-hole in one of the puncheons, it would not shake, but remained steady. After that there was no farther trouble, and the knot-hole became a point of interest, remembered for the kindly performance of its patience-saving office in the domestic economy of the establishment. Until the^ cabin was fully completed, however, the family never enjoyed the luxury of eating from a table, the " family chest," or an old box, being used instead.

In this regard, the experience of Mr. Robinson did not greatly vary from that of a large proportion of the pioneer families in Carroll County, and other localities as well. Yet the recital of these facts should be, to the present and succeeding generations, an example of patient perseverance in overcoming the difficulties and embarrassments that obtrude themselves in the life experience of every one.

In the latter part of the winter of 1826-27, Adam Porter, then a resident of Rush County, Ind., but formerly fi-om the State of Virginia, being then about twenty-two years of age, left home to seek his fortune in the far West - in the " New Purchase," as the recently acquired lands on the Upper Wabash were not unfrequently called, by way of distinction from the purchases made of the Indians at earlier dates. On his route, he passed through Indianapolis, at that time an insignificant village, noted only as the "capital city of Indiana,'' having been, less than two years previously, designated as the seat of the State Government, where the State buildings and offices were located, with but a spai-se population, and especially remembered as a flat, muddy, unconsequential court house town. Some of his friejids fi'om Rush and the adjoining counties of Fayette and Wayne having located in the vicinity of that place, he tarried with them a few weeks, in the meantime reconnoitering the suiTOunding country with the view to a location there should he be so fortunate as to suit himself, or find the place that just filled his mind's eye. While there, frequent inducements were oft'ered him to remain, but the " New Purchase " was the place, and there he must go. otherwise he could not feel satisfied.

From Indianapolis he took the route to the Lower 'Wabash country, in the vicinity of La Fayette, then a new place, only aboiat three years old, and farther up the country into what was afterward called Carroll County. Here he taiTied awhile, being better pleased than he had been elsewhere. Before pm'chasing, however, he concluded to go still farther up the river and make further examination, that he might the better satisfy himself. The glowing accounts of this upper country (now Cass Coimty) given by Hugh B. McKeen, Joseph BaiTon (interpreter), George Cicott, Chauncey Carter and others interested in the reservation at the " mouth of the Eel River," on the Wabash, whom he met on his way up, afforded an additional reason for so doing. He says there were some five or six persons in all, who informed him that they had been " down to the city of Washington " to see the President and have an interview with him in B'eteronce to the con-

From the conversation, it appeared that there were some conflicting interests necessaiy to be adjusted before a patent could issue to Mr. Cicott, vesting him with the right, aciiording to the stipulations of the treaty, to sell and convey the lands so reserved to him. One of those stipulations was to the effect that, before any party to whom a grant of land had been made by such treaty could make a conveyance that would transfer his interest to another, such conveyance should be confirmed, and the contract receive the sanction of the President to make it binding. In this instance, it appeared that Cicott, before receiving his patent, had been a party to negotiations with vai'ious persons for the sale to them of his interest and claim in said tract of land, subject to the contingency of its receiving the sanction of the President. Rumor had it that Messrs. McKeen, Carter and Gen. Tipton were cognizant of these transactions, and that, in consequence of the existing condition of things, the President was slow in arriving at a satisfactory conclusion in the premises. There was a possibility, j under the circumstances, that a prolonged delay might prove disastrous to the plans of the foremost in the enterprise ; hence the visit to Washington, dui'ing the session of Congi-ess immediately succeeding the treaty, when the treaty and its several provisions and grants

! would be submitted for confirmation. The treaty having been confirmed on the 2-1-th of January, 1827, a patent was issued, on the strength of which the negotiations spoken of were based. It has been stated, with some show of plausibility, that a bond had

1 been given by Mr. Cicott to Mr. McKeen, conditioned that, upon the proposed conveyance receiving the sanction of the President, a deed would be executed in conformity therewith; -that the purpose of this visit was to seciu'e this confii'mation of the sale to McKeen, who seemed to have been the favored one, and these gentlemen on their return were congratulating Mr. McKeen on his success in secui'ing the coveted prize. To-day, rumor has it that such sanction was actually giv£n to the sale to McKeen, and that evidence of the fact was on tile in the proper department at Washington, not thirty years since; but, from some 'cause not now manifest, Mr. McKeen never came into possession of the legitimate title to the land through that conveyance, though subsequently, by piu-- chase from Mr. Carter - who, on the 17th day of Januai-y, 1829, received a title deed for the same from Cicott, sanctioned by the President - he acquired the title to that part lying north of Eel River, embraced in the original town plat of West Logan. Gen. Tipton also afterwai'd obtained, by pm-chase from Mr. Cai't»r, all that jiartof the reservation lying between Wabash and Eel Rivers, and east of the middle of Fifth street, as defined by the original plat of Logansport.

Having digressed, in part, from the general remarks of Mr. Porter, to state some facts deducible therefrom more fully, his nai-rative of the occui'rences of his journey with McKeen, Cicott and others, fi'om CairoU County, is resumed: " Having met, then, white people in those days were so scarce here tliat,wheuhe fo\md himself in company with such, he naturally sought and acquired an aocjuaintance and ready familiai'ity with them. As a consequence, I was soon on very intimate tenns with these men, who were on their way uj) to the mouth of Eel River. This was some time in the month of March [23], 1827. They stoppi>d for the night with a man of the name of Newman, who lived in a small cabin on the bank of the river, just above the ' Simons ' stone quarry, some three or fom- miles below the mouth of Eel River. In the morning, they all walked u}) to Chamberlain's Tavern, op- posite the ' mouth of Eel River," where the Indians were waiting to rejoice with llr. BaiTon, the interpreter, who had been favored with the opportunity to visit and converse with the ' Great White Father ' at Washington. 1 walked up with them, and observed all the movements, not only of these white men, but the Indians, for I was ciu-ious to study human nature. Chamberlain kept whisky, and the Indians were generally di'unk, and kept up their drunkenness to a condition of beastliness, when they were numerously kicked out by Chamberlain and the others, without ceremony. This excited their fighting proclivities, and they indulged in a promiscuous fight among themselves, which exercise they continued for some time, when the whole thing passed off without unusual results. This was a season of the greatest commotion and turbulence I ever witnessed during my whole pioneer life." While there, McKeen tried to prevail upon him and Moses Aldi-idge, who had accompanied him, to cut the logs for and build a cabin for him on the north side of Eel River, on a part of the ti-act of land about which the conversation was had on their way up from Carroll County, before related. This proposition Mr. Porter declined to accept, and afterward went down the river near to Mr. Newman's and made a raft upon which to float down the river. The variety of tools he had to work with consisted of an ax and an auger only. With the ax he chopped down a hackberry tree, a kind of timber very common in that locality, and, cutting it into proper lengths, split them in two. These being placed side by side to a proper width, they were fastened to a cross-piece as a stay, in the shape of a sapling. The fastening was accomplished by pinning them on with wooden pins, the holes for which were bored with with a " thi-ee-quarter auger," the largest that could be procured in the neighborhood. In putting these pieces together, a tier of the split logs was laid on the fiat sides and fastened to the saplings used for stays ; then smaller cuts fi-om the tree were also split in two, laid on top, flat side up. in such a manner as to break the joints and enable the passengers to keep out of the water during the voyage. Boarding their craft, after it had been launched at the mouth of a creek that entered the river above Mr. Newman's, they poled out a little way into the river, which was "pretty well up;'" they floated down the AVabash, meeting with no obstructions until they reached the " rapids," near Georgetown. Passage over this point was thought to be somewhat hazardous, but each stood firmly upon an opposite end of the raft, armed with paddles for guide-poles; they made the current between the large stones that form the "rapids," and passed the " breakers " in safety. They landed opposite the present site of Delphi, in the mouth of Deer Creek. Leaving their raft for a time, they took a torn' up the creek, prospecting for suitable sites for piu-chase in the region roimd aboiit. Havinomade satisfactory selections, they procured the " numbers " of the land; -'hey returned to their raft, loosened it fi'om its moorings, and again passed out into the stream, with the design of making as much of the trip by water as they could - not being disposed, fi'om too long experience already in that way, to continue the pedestrian exercise along the whole route fi-om Dlephi to La Fayette, en route for the land oflice at Crawfordsville, to complete the purchase of the lands selected on Deer Creek, in the vicinity of Camden. They glided down the stream, still a little swollen, without notable incident until about two miles above La Fayette, as they supposed, when they began to make aiTangements for a suitable landing. To effect this - being in the middle of the stream, caiTied along by the current - required some maneuvering to get outside the force of the main current, having no " pushpoles," nothing but ordinary paddles. The design was to make the shore gradually, and " hug the bank " for a mile or so before landing. They were deceived somewhat in this, however, for, instead of floating down near shore, as they had anticipated, they were gradually drawn in and across a bar, so that, in endeavoring to land their craft, it swung round and round in an eddy, and they were therefore unable to approach near enough the shore to get off. After laboring some time and failing to get as near the shore as desired, in the extremity, they made a long leap and made the shore. Climbing up the bank, a little steep, they struck out through the bushes and briers, hazarding torn clothes and lacerated skin. Toward night they found themselves in fi-ont of the principal and only hotel of the city (then village) of La Fayette. Entering the '- tavern," they put up for the night, and in the morning went on their way, making Crawfordsville in good time. Having made their piu'chases from the tracts selected and noted on their plats, they retm-ued to Delphi on fixit, by a more direct route than that by which they came, guided by Indian trails and a pocket compass, since no roads were then opened thi-ough this wilderness region. Tpon his return, Mr. Porter made a deadening upon the tract pm'chased by him. and then retiu'ned home.

Subsequently, he made another trip to Crawfordsville, and made an additional pui'chase of eighty acres for himself, and one for a female cousin. He returned by nearly the same route as before, thi'ough the woods. Among the incidents of one of these joui'nej's, he relates the following: Passing along on his way without encountering anything worthy of special note, he an-ived at Wild Cat Creek, at that time " pretty well up." Seeing the situation of things, he was doubtful about crossing without some craft. Observing an old mare and some colts near by, seemingly tame, he tried to catch one of them, and, by putting on a " leatherwood bridle," to ride across the stream. He failed in the catching, but finally succeeded in di-iving them across, by which means he ascertained the actual depth of the water. Finding it was only about "mid-sides" to these animals, he stripped off his lower clothes and waded across, though in the middle of March, and the weather, as well as-the water, anything but wai'm. After he had crossed and put on his clothes, he trudged along, stick in hand, warming by exercise and thus di'ying his clothes; he made his point without delay.

The tract upon which he made his deadening was situated on what is now known as Bachelor's Run. The stream was so called by the singular coincidence that Mi'. Porter, John Ballard, Moses Aldridge, Elisha Brown and Jeremiah Ballard, five single men, "old bachelors,'' purchased la]id nearly together, on the same creek; hence the name.

Chaptee Xii

nnHE following narrative presents, in interesting detail, num- erous incidents of pioneer life as they connect themselves with the personal experiences of Mrs. Thomas Stirlen. The review is well worthy of preservation, and is accordingly put upon record in the repository of valuable contribiitions to the history of Carroll County. It was written in 1808 :

"On the 16th of Febritaiy, 1825, I, in company with Mr. Odeirs family, left Wayne County, Ind., to emigrate to the Wabash country. Om- journey lasted fourteen days. We had rain every day except two during our trip. The men would cut down brush on which to lay our beds to sleep. Our clothes would be wet upon our backs in tbe morning, sometimes. The country from AVhite River to the Wabash was an unbroken wilderness, uninhabited, with the exception of a few Indians at Thorntown. We got along tolerably well until we got this side of Thorntown, when our wagon broke down; then I got into John Odell's wagon and rode to Potato Creek. There John Little met us, with a horse and a yoke of oxen. My husband went to the South Fork of Wild Cat Creek, to old Mi-. Odell's, after a wagon. We encamped at Potato Creek that night. The next morning, I started with Little for his home, on Flint Creek, twenty-five miles distant. I got on the horse, with my babe in my lap, with Little on foot, in advance. Sometimes it rained, and then it snowed as fast as it could come down. I was on the horse fi'om sunrise until dark, with a child in my arms, two years old. You may be siu'e I was very much fatigued. The next day, March 2, my husband came with oiu- goods. On the day following, he was taken sick, and kept down about six weeks. We thought he would die. We had no doctor, nor any medicine. John Odell came to see us, and brought a dose of tartar-emetic and some blister flies. These, with some butternut pills, composed our stock of medicine, with a bottle of Bateman's Drops, which we used as an anodyne. He recovered, and we all kept well until August, when he was attacked again with fever and ague, and was very sick for some time. I was confined the 21st of August, and could procure a nm-se but for two days, when I had to get up and perfoiin my work as best I could. A man named Luce took sick and died near lis. As almost everybody was sick, my husband and myself had to see to him. My husband was sick, and my babe was only a week old. We succeeded in getting help to dig his grave, and Mordecai Ellis made his coffin by splitting a basswood tree, dressing the boards with a broad-ax and jack-plane, and painting them black. He made quite a decent-looking coffin. Another family came to the neighborhood, who had settled on Deer Creek, on what is now the ' Milroy farm,' who all got sick, and lost a child, that is buried near the spot we now occupy. Their name was Gilbraith. They wanted me to wash for them, as they had no washing done for six weeks. I told them I would try; and I did try, and performed as large a day's work as ever I did, when my babe was but thi-ee weeks old. The next December, my husband came ujj to Deer Creek and built a cabin. February 15, 1820, we started for our new home. We an-ived here on Deer Creek on the 10th. The weather was very cold, and the snow about a foot deep. We stopped at John Carey's and got some fire - we had no matches those times. We drove up to the cabin; I crawled imder the wall, scraped away the snow and kindled a fire, while the men sawed out a door. The snow was about shoe-top deep in the house. We threw down some clapboards, and on them we placed our beds. We slept inside, and the hogs outside. The next morning, the mud was as deep in our cabin as the snow had been the evening before. The weather was cold. We built a log heap in oui- cabin, but still we almost froze. My husband would hew puncheons all day, and chink our cabin at night We were nearly three miles from our nearest neighbor. We brought corn-meal with us sufficient, as we thought, to last vmtil after planting; but it gave out, and I had to pound corn in an iron pot, with an iron wedge driven into the edge of a handspike, and sift it through a basket lid. We used the finest of the meal for breakfast, and the coarse for dinner and supper. We got om- corn planted about the 1st of June, and then went to mill in a pirogue, down the Wabash, to a little corn-cracker, near where La Fayette now stands. I was taken sick about the 1st of July, and both our childien. I shook forty days with the ague, without cessation. We then got some quinine, which stopped it for ten days. I got able to ride on horseback, and, while going to see John Ballard, who was sick at Mr. Odell's, my horse became frightened and threw me off; and that brought on the ague more severely than evei-, and it held on to me imtil Christmas. I never saw a woman except one (Sarah Odell), for three months. My husband was cook, washerwoman and milkmaid during that time. In .October, my husband had to leave home for three days, and I was left alone with my two children. One night, our dog fought some animal near the door, which had no shutter biit a qxiilt. I was very much frightened, and om- faithful dog was almost killed. He could not walk the next day. John Ballard stayed at oiuhouse after that until my husband returned.

" Forty-two years have passed since those times. I have seen our country rapidly settling and improving. There were but eleven families in Carroll County in 1820. One generation has passed away, another has succeeded. There are but two families left whose united head still live - Abner Kobinson and om-s. A few of the old settlers have emigrated to distant lands, but the greater number have passed to that bourn whence no traveler returns. We who are left expect soon to cross the river and join them in that better land, where sickness and sorrow, pain and death, ai-e feared and felt no more.

In August, 1827, James Blake, subsequently a long resident of Indianapolis, having established a factoi-y for curing and preparing ginseng for mai-ket - then a standard article of commerce - on the farm of Gen. Milroy. He commenced the purchase of that article in large quantities, to be worked up for the ti-ade, which at that time was quite extensive. Mi-. Blake had some time previously located in Putnam County, at a place afterwai-d called Blakesbnrg. At that place he cai-ried on the establishment some fom- or five yeai-s, fi-om the emoluments of which "lie realized a considerable sum of money, as did many others engaged in the collection of it for him.

When ginseng root became scai'ce in the region of country around Blakesbm-g, Mi-. Blake sent out agents to solicit the gathering of it, and to ascertain, also, where it could be prociu-ed in larger quantities. The result established the fact that it could be found in great abundance above Wild Cat Creek, and in the vi oinity of Delphi, and lai-go quantities of it were transported by means of wagons to Blakesburg. Afterward, he made a tour of inspection himself, which gained for him the satisfactory information that the best place to find it was in the Deer Creek country, the abimdant supply inducing him to stai-t a branch in this county. Accordingly, he leased a small tract of land from Gen. Mih-oy, and closed a contract with Joseph McCain for the erection of the necessary buildings. The buildings were completed and ready for occupancy in August following, at which time, as we have seen, he commenced business, which, in the end, was quite lucrative. While he was engaged here, his brother Jesse was superintending operations at Blakesbiu'g. After the digging and curing season was over, he returned to Indianajiolis, but at the commencement of the following season he resumed business at his works in Carroll County. He continued thus to carry on the business here until the close of the year 1830 - a period of foiu' years - when his lease with Gen. Milroy expired. Afterward, he started and operated an establishment in Cass County, near Logansport, diu-ing the succeeding two years. He discontinued the trade, finally, in the year 1835, having, in the meantime, realized a very large siun as net profits of the business.

Dui-ing the time he was located in this county, an incident occm-red which Mr. Blake used to relate with no small amount of jocular enjoyment. One of the men in his employ came in and represented to him one morning that he felt very much out of sorts, and must have some whisky to set him right again. The man was told to mount his horse and go down to Mr. Baiim's and get some, taking a jug along for that purpose. 'WTiile returning from his sanitary mission, a black bear came cantering along pretty close to the horse, fi-ightening him so, that he ran away, endangering the safety of the jug as well as the man. During the time this was going on, the men at the factory looked down the road and saw man and horse coming, Gilpinlike, with rajjid strides, toward them. The amusing featiu-e of the incident was that of witnessing the almost superhuman eflbrts of the rider to save the little jug containing the coveted medicine. He landed safely, however, and the jug, with its contents, became objects of interest to the overjoyed horseman.