Clark County, Indiana - Chapter 3: The Illinois Grant, 1909

Chapter 3: The Illinois Grant

The grant of land by the state of Virginia January 2. 1781, to General George Rogers Clark and his men was a fitting recognition of the value of their sen-ices in the "Conquest of the Northwest." Around this grant and the events leading up to it cluster nearly all the early history of Indiana Territory and the Northwest Territory. The events leading up to this grant of land to Clark and the Illinois regiment date from the instructions he received from Patrick Henry, then governor of Virginia, January 2, 1778. Two sets of instructions were given to Clark, one intended for the public eye, as follows :

"You are to proceed, without loss of time, to enlist seven companies of men, officered in the usual manner, to act as militia, under your orders. They are to proceed to Kentuck3% and there obey such orders and directions as you shall give them, for three months after their arrival at that place: but to receive pa}-, etc., in case they remain on duty a longer time, etc., etc., etc.

"Virginia Set. "In Council Williamsburg, January 2, 1778. "Lieutenant Colonel George Rogers Clark: "You are to proceed with all convenient speed to raise seven companies of soldiers to consist of fifty men each, officered in the usual manner, and armed most properly for the enterprise, and with this force attack the British post at Kaskaskia. It is conjectured that there are many pieces of cannon and militarj^ stores to a considerable amount, at that place, the taking and preservation of which would be a valuable acquisition to the state. If you are so fortunate, therefore, as to succeed in your expedition, you will take every possible measure to secure the artillery and stores, and whatever may advantage the state. For the transportation of the troops, provisions, etc., down the Ohio, you are to apply to the commanding officer at Fort Pitt for boats, and during the whole transaction you are to take especial care to keep the true destination of your force secret ; its success depends upon this. Orders are therefore given to Captain Smith to secure the two men from Kaskaskia.

and Other persons as fall into your hands. If the white inhabitants of that post and neighborhood will give undoubted evidence of their attachment to this state, for it is certain they live within its limits, by taking the test prescribed by law, and by every other way and means in their power, let them be treated as fellow citizens, and their persons and property be duly respected. Assistance and protection against all enemies, whatever shall be afforded them, and the commonwealth of Virginia is pledged to accomplish it. But if these people will not accede to these reasonable demands, they must feel the conse- Cjuences of war, under that direction of humanity that has hitherto distinguished Americans, and which it is expected you will ever consider the rule of your conduct, and from which you are in no instance to depart. The corps you are to command are to receive the pay and allowances of militia and to act under the laws and regulation of this state now in force as to militia. The inhabitants of this post will be informed by you that in case they accede to the offers of becoming citizens of this commonwealth, a proper garrison will be maintained among them, and every attention bestowed to render their commerce beneficial ; the fairest prospects being opened to the dominions of France and Spain. It is in contemplation to establish a post near the mouth of th.e Ohio. Canniin will be wanted to fortify it. Part of those at Kaskaskia will be easily brought thither or othenvise secured as circumstances make necessary. You are to apply to General Hand, at Pittsburg, for powder and lead necessary for this expedition. If he cannot supply it, the person who has that which Captain Sims brought from New Orleans, can. Lead is sent to Hampshire by my orders, and that may be delivered to you. Wishing you success, I am your humble servant, "P. Henry."

It will be seen from the above that the campaign was to be of such a character that the men themselves were not to know more than that the service was to be on the frontier and against the Indians and British, as they well knew the British were secretly in league with the Indians and furnishing them with the munitions of their cruel and treacherous warfare.

Thus was the expedition launched and the organization of his forces begun. The end of May, 1778, found the little army encamped on Com Island, a long narrow strip of land reaching from what is now Fourth street to Fourteenth street, Louisville, Kentucky, and laying very near the south side of the river. On June 24, 1778, they embarked in the boats which had been prepared - shot the falls, and in the sombre shadow of an almost total eclipse of the sun began the first part of their expedition against the British posts at Kaskaskia. Their voyage down the river to the mouth of the Tennessee, and the march of one hundred ad twenty miles through the wilderness, towards Kaskaskia without pack horses, wagons or other means of conveying their munitions of war, baggage or provisions than their own robust selves, was a feat of endurance that tried their hardihood.

Througli forest dark, dense and tangled, across glades of intervening prairie lands which were often covered with reed-like grasses, higher than the head of the tallest among them, over hill and through valley, often withiut water for hours, save only that which each man carried, under the blazing of a Southern Illinois summer sun. without transportation of any kind, no horses, no wagons, no tents, no baggage, no artillery ; this band of heroes led i)y a hero, pressed nn. \\'hen in the confines of what is now Williamson county, Illinois, the guide, Saunders, became confused and lost his bearings and the troops believing he was betraying them, were on the point of wreaking summary punishment on him for his suspicioned treachery, when he recognized a point of timber which he said marked the way to Kaskaskia.

The little band pressed on with clothes ragged and soiled with the wear of the march, and faces scratched and laruised In- liramliles and briars, footsore and weary with the labor of forced marching and want of proper rest, with only the sod for a bed, and the canopv of heaven for a covering when at night they lay down for a few hours' sleep in strict silence, not a shot being- fired for fear its echoes might be heard by some prowler and the news of their apprnach carried to the enemy. Arriving withn a few miles of Kaskaskia on the e\'ening of July 4, 1778. no time was lost in effecting the capture, and when the n-iorning of July 5th broke the town was Virginian and not Britsh. Clark in-imediately hastened to send a detachment of troops to take possession of Cahokia, St. Phillips and Prairie du Rocher. on the Mississippi. The fort and town of Vincennes. ha\-ing Ijeen left by Abbott, the English Governor, virtuallv in the hands of the French inhabitants, was garrisoned, the American flag raised and Capt. Leonanl Helm put in command.

Clark being now in possession of all the military posts, turned his attention at once to making the best terms he could with the numerous Indian tribes. Helm continued in command at Post Vincennes. but his force was small, and Fort Sackville was described as "wretched," "a miserable stockade without a well, barrack, platform for small arms, or even a lock to the gate."

General Hamilton, the commandant at Detroit, headed an expedition against Helm at Vincennes, and on December 17, 1778, Fort Sackville and the ancient town of Vincennes again came into possession of the British. Helm and his twenty-one men demanded and received all the honors of war upon their surrender to an enemy, which numbered between five hundred and six hundred men. In February, 1779, Clark began his memorable march from Kaskaskia against Vincennes. After incredible difficulty and severe exposure, marching and wading through the icy water of swamps and overflowed streams, with an insufficiency of provisions and baggage, the worn and wearied expedition appeared before the town, and Clark, with his usual generalship, compelled Hamilton to surrender, and the final downfall of the British in the Wabash and Illinnis ccmntrv was acconiplished.

Baird S History Of Clark Co., Ixd

When Clark marched his little army from ^Massac to Kaskaskia, across the glades and timberlands of Southern Illinois, it was summer time. Soft winds wafted the perfume of flower-sprinkled prairies, and the fragrance of the woodlands about the marching troops, the water of the streams was comparatively low, and the swamp lands were firmer to the tread of their moccasin-clad feet. The canopy of sky and cloud was covering enough by night, and while the blazing of a June sun was far from soothing to spirts or temper, it was not to be compared to the hardships to which the troops on the march to the capture of Vincennes were to encounter.

At the crossing of the Little Wabash, Clark cheered them on, and called to his aid an Irish drummer, celebrated for his fund of droll and comic songs, the singing of which, at a time when the men were chilled almost to freezing bv the icv waters through which they had been wading, sometimes for an hour, up to their armpits, would put new life in.to the men, and agai'.i they would struggle on. What a picture ! What melody can equal the living picture of this band of heroes or the song of this wild Irishman's singing? The painters of the picture have passed away. The song of the singer is stilled forever, but truly their works live after them.

The party on the i8th heard the morning gun at Fort Sackville, at Vincennes, and when they reached the A\'abash, below the mouth of the Embarass river, they were exhausted, destitute and starving - literally starving, with no means of crossing the ri\-er, which was merflowed and was several miles wide. On the 20th of February a party of French, in a boat, was hailed and came to the little army. From them Clark learned that the French of Vincennes were true to the oath of Vincennes, which they had taken the previous summer, and that the British garrison had no knowledge of the approach of the expedition, indeed, had no knowledge that an expedition had e\'en been planned, much less had they thought it possible that men wcjuld undertake so hazardous an. expedition, and one which, if undertaken must, as they thought, result in the death of every soldier from the hardships of the march. And now, with the facts before us it seems to us they accomplished the impossible. By wading and rafting they managed to cross to the highlands below Vincennes. Clark immediately sent the following notice to citizens of Vincennes': "To the inhabitants of Post Vincennes : Gentlemen : Being now within two miles of your village, with my army, determined to take your fort tonight, and not beingwilling to surprise you, I take this method to request such of you as are tnie citizens, and would enjoy the liberty I bring you, to remain, still, in your houses. Those, if any there be, that are friends to the King, will instantly repair to the fort and join the hair-buyer general, and fight like men. and such as do not go to the fort and shall be discovered afterwards, they may depend on severe punishment. On the contrary, those that are true friends to liberty shall be treated as friends deserve. And once more I request them to keep out

Clark's army, consisting of one company from Cahokia, commanded by Captain McCarty, and one company from Kaskaskia, commanded by Captain Charleville, and were composed of French, and the rest, about seventy men, were Americans of liis old command, in all not over one hundred and seventy men, were made to appear to the villagers' minds as mvtch greater by this peculiar note, and to still further deceive them and to make the garrison believe a large force was about to attack them, Clark marched his men back and forth among some mounds in the prairie, changing the flags, so that the British believed many times the true number of fierce Kentuckians were about to assail them, as the British onl}- knew them as Kentucky bordermen, and had no thought that more than half were Illinois French. At about sunset on February 23d, Lieutenant Bayly was sent with fourteen men to make an attack on the fort. He led his men to about thirty yards of the fort, where they lay concealed behind a bank of earth, protected from the guns of the fort. Every one of the Americans was an expert rifleman, and whenever a porthole was opened a storm of Inillets whistled in. killing or wounding the men at the guns, so that none would work the cannon. At nine in the morning of the 24th, while his men were eating the first breakfast they had had for sex'eral days, Clark sent the following note to the British commandant:

"Sir: In otder to save yourself from the impending storm which now threatens 3'ou, I order you immediately to surrender yourself, with all your garrison, stores, etc. If I am obliged to storm, you may depend upon such treatment alone, as is justly due a murderer. Beware of destroying stores of any kind, or any papers or letters that are in your possession, or hurting one house in town, for, bv heaven, if you do, there shall be no mercv shown you.

This note may seem brutal to modern minds, but when it is remembered that it was addressed to a man who was paying a bounty to the merciless savage as a reward for the murder, not only of the American men, but of helpless women and innocent children, it is not too harsh. Governor Hamilton was deeply impressed by this note, it is certain, by the meek reply returned by him, which" is as follows :

"Governor Hamilton begs leave to acquaint Colonel Clark that lie and his garrison are not to be awed into any action unworthy of British subjects."

About midnight of the 23d Clark had cut a ditch near the fort, and in it, secure from the guns of the fort, the riflemen lay, with watchful eye and unerring aim. They poured in a steady fire, and in fifteen minutes had silenced two pieces of artillery and killed evei")' gunner approaching them or had driven them away from their guns, horror-stricken at the certainty of death or of wounds, if but tlie smallest portion of their person was exposed but for an instant. This terrible fire was kept up for eighteen hours. This incessant fire convinced the garrison that they would be destroyed, and Governor Hamilton sent Clark the following note :

"Governor Hamilton proposes to Colonel Clark a truce of three days, during which time he promises that there shall be no defensive work carried on in the garrison, on condition that Colonel Clark will observe, on his part, a like cessation of offensive works, that is, he wishes to confer with Colonel Clark, as soon as can be, and promises that whatever may pass between them two and another person, mutually agreed on to be present, shall remain secret until matters be finished, as he wishes whatever the result of the conference may be, it may tend to the honor and credit of each party. If Colonel Clark makes a difficulty of coming into the fort. Lieutenant-Governor Hamilton will speak to him by the gate.

"Colonel Clark's comi)liments to Governor Hamilton, and begs to say that he will not agree to any terms other than Mr. Hamilton surrendering himself and garrison at discretion. If ]\Ir. Hamilton wants to talk with Colonel Clark, he will meet him at the church, with Captain Helm."

A conference was held and Clark demanded a surrender, (itherwise he threatened to put the leaders to the sword for the gold paid for American scalps. He was in earnest and the garrison so understood. In an hour Clark dictated the following terms of surrender, which Hamilton accepted :

"Third - The garrison to be delivered up by tomorrow, at ten o'clock. "Four - Three days are allowed the garrison to settle their accounts with the inhabitants and traders.

"Signed at Post Vincennes, this 24th day of February, 1779. "Agreed to for the following reasons : First, remoteness from succor ; second, state and quantity of provisions; third, the unanimity of the officers and men in its expediency ; fourth, the honorable terms allowed, and lastly, the confidence in a generous enemy.

arms and stores were turned over to Clark. Governor Hamilton, Major Hay and some other officers were sent under guard to the capital of Virginia. Seventy-nine prisoners were paroled and sent to Detroit.

An expedition up the \\'abash, under command of Captain Helm, resulted in the capture of seven British boats which were manned by about forty men and loaded with valuable goods and provisions, intended for Fort Sackville, worth at least fifty thousand dollars. Thus was consummated the scheme of conquest which originated in the brilliant mind of the genius, Clark. Dillon says, "With respect to the magnitude of its design, the valor and perseverance with which it was carried on, and the momentous results which were produced by it, this expedition stands without a parallel in the annals of the valley of the Mississippi. English says : "Measured by the standard of great results, the map of the magnificent territory, acquired mainly through his agency, speaks louder in behalf of General Clark and his little army than any words of praise." When compared with other portions of the United States, the five states of Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and part of Minnesota comprise the very heart of the Republic. The resolution of the General Assembly of Virginia, January 2, 1781, provided that a gratuity of land not to exceed one hundred and fifty thousand acres should be given the officers and men of Clark's army. In 1783 another act was passed "for locating and surveying the one hundred and fifty thousand acres of land, as follows :

"Be it enacted by the' General Assembly, That William Flemming, John Edwards, John Campbell, ^^'alker Daniel, gentlemen, and George Rogers Clark, John Montgomei-y, Abraham Chaplin, John Bailey, Robert Todd and William Clark, officers in the Illinois regiment, shall be, and they are hereby constituted a toard of commissioners and that they or the major part of them, shall settle and determine the claims to land under the said resolution. That the respective claimants shall give in their claims to the said commissioners on or before the first day of April, 1784; and, if approved and allowed, shall pay down to the said cijmmissioners one dollar for eveiy one hundred acres of such claim, to enable them to survey and apportion the said lands. The said commissioners shall appoint a principal surveyor, who shall have power to appoint his deputies, to be approved by the said commissioners and to contract with him for his fees. That from and aftei^ the said first day of April, 1784, the said commissioners, or the major part of them, shall proceed with the surveyor to lay ofif the said one hundred and fifty thousand acres of land on the northwest side of the Ohio river, the length of which shall not exceed double the breadth ; and, after laying out one thousand acres at the most convenient place therein for a town, shall proceed to lay out and survey the residue, and divide the same by fair and equal lot among the claimants ; but no lot or sun-ey shall exceed five hundred acres. That the said commissioners, in their apportionments of tlie said land, sliall govern themselves by the allowances made by law to the officers and soldiers in the Continental Army. That the saiid commissioners shall, as soon as may be, after the said one hundred and forty-nine thousand acres shall be surveyed, cause a plat thereof, certified on oath, to be returned to the register's office, and thereupon a patent shall issue to the said commissioners or the survivors of them, who shall hold the same in trust for the respective claimants ; and they, or the major part of them, shall thereafter, upon application, execute good and sufficient deeds for conveying the several portions of land to the said officers and soldiers."

The frontage of the "grant" upon the Ohio river extended from a point about midway between Silver creek and Falling run, up the river to a point opposite the upper end of eighteen Mile Island, and lay almost wholly in Clark county. The divisions of this tract of land are unlike the regxilar United States survey of the public lands, which is based upon lines running at right angles to the cardinal points of the compass. The lines here run northeast and southwest. Why this sui-\-ey was made in this position it is impossible to tell, unless it resulted from trying to make the lines mn perpendicular to the Ohio river when the sui"\-ey commenced.

At the preliminai-y negotiations for peace in Paris in November, 1782, between England and her revolted, successful American colonies, both France and Spain, for similar reasons of discovery and partial occupancy, filed their protests against the claim of either of the lately contending parties to "the Illinois country." It cannot be too often repeated, to the everlasting honor of General Clark, that it was his conquest in 1778 that detemiined the controversy in favor of the infant republic, and carried the lines of the new nation to the Mississippi and the northern lakes. Otherwise the east bank of the Ohio, or possibly even the Alleghanies, would have formed its western boundary in part. The final convention signed at Paris, September 3, 1783, confirmed the claim of the United Colonies as made good by the victories of Clark. On August 3, 1784, the commissioners met in Louisville for the purpose of allotting the land of the grant, and to decide who was entitled and who was not.

The state of Virginia appointed William Clark, a cousin of the general, as sur\'eyor. He selected his assistants as follows : Edmund Rogers, David Steel, Peter Catlett, and Burwell Jackson. This cession or grant was made by Virginia; but she relinquished soon after her right to the United States, on condition that the previous donation would be respected. From this time Virginia has not retained ownership of land north of the Ohio river. William Clark and his party divided themselves into companies. Some of his men were poor engineers, and many mistakes occurred. Peter Catlett was especially notorious for inaccuracies. He surveyed that portion of the county now occupied by Oregon, a row of five-hundred-acre tracts off the west side of

AX'ashington, and the greater part of Owen. From his mistakes resuUed many lawsuits, wlien in later days land became more valuable. Says William Clark: "I discovered several errors by Catlett in going into his district to subdivide some of the five-hundred-acre tracts." They were principally made in laying down watercourses. David Steel surveyed that part of the county now occupied by Charlestown, Utica, and Union townships; and his surveys are almost without errors. Burwell Jackson surveyed the township of Silver Creek, a part of Monroe, and besides assisted in laying off Clarksville. Edmund Rogers and William Clark sun^eyed the remaining part of the count}-.

That a plat of said land (one thousand acres) be returned by the surveyor to the Court of Jefferson which was then in Louisville, to be by the Clerk thereof recorded and thereupon the same shall be and is hereby invested in William Flemming, John Edwards. John Campbell, ^^''alker Daniel, George Rogers Clark. John Montgomery, Abram Chaplin, John Bailey, Robert Todd, and William Clark. The lots are to be laid off into one-half acre each with con- \-enient streets, and the same shall lie and is hereby called Clarksville.

On each lot there was to be built a good dwelling house, at least eighteen feet by twenty feet, with a brick or stone chimney, to be completed three years after the deed with recei\'ed. If these terms were not comi)lieil with the cduimissioners had the right to sell again the lot and use the money in public improvements. After some time, however, it was found necessary to enlarge this provision in order to give the young colony a chance ti) grow, and induce early settlers to make it their residence.

The grant outside of the town of Clarksville was allotted to those entitled, and from this allotment originate all the titles to property in the tract at the present day.

\\'illiam H. English, in his "Conquest of the Northwest," has the only authentic roll of officers and soldiers who "assisted in the reduction of the British forts." and the following is a copy with their allotments Each number represents five hundred acres, unless otherwise indicated. Where a letter precedes a number it indicates that that tract is subdivided and the subdivisions lettereil.

Recapiti'I.Ation

The following taljle will show the number of the tract upon which the various cities, towns and villages were located, and the name of the soldier to whom same was allotted :

The deed for the Illinois grant was not recorded by the commissioners until about 1823. It appears on page 270 of Deed Record No. 30 in the deed records of Clark county. It is a peculiar coincidence that General Clark had a double title to the land which became his in the Illinois grant. After the close of his memorable campaign, where he had fairly earned the title "the Hannibal of the West," he lost no time in pacifying the Indians. The loyal Piankeshaws held a council and insisted on presenting the General with a tract of land two and one-half leagues square, on the west side of the falls of the Ohio, the location of his subsequent grant from Virginia.

General Clark was a citizen of Clarksville for many years and took an active part in elections and public affairs, but being a bachelor, he divided his time between Indiana and Kentucky. As early as 1783 a number of log houses had been built in Clarksville and a town government was organized, pursuant to the charter. In the record book of the Trustees of Clarksville, pages 66 and 67, appears a resolution to confirm the title of the following persons, as they were the original settlers in the town :

This resolution is dated August 7, 1784. The town, however, did not prosper, and in 1797 there were but twenty houses in the place. The Captain Robert George mentioned above had brought a party of settlers out to the "grant" from Pennsylvania, and some of the names in thc' resolution were of his party. Mrs. Nancy Smith's daughter, aged twelve, was shot and scalped by the Indians in 1790. She had gone to the spring about a quarter of a mile from the stockade for water, and after the Indians had scalped her they left her for dead. The men in the fort brought her in and to the surprise of all, she finallv recovered. Tlie hair on her head o-rew in again, but ven' coarse and snow white. She married a man named Pitman, whu, with his family, afterwards emigrated down the river and settled on an island abont twenty miles above Natchez, Mississippi, called Fairchild's Island.

The place selected by General Clark for his residence was at the upper end of the village on a point later on called General's Point. Here he had a full and delightful view of the falls, but he took little pains to improve the site, having raised only a small cabin. His lonely life here was enlivened at one time by a party of jovial hunters, who left him at the end of their visit in the best of spirits. Shortly after their departure he was stricken with paralysis and fell into the fire, burning one of his legs badly. This burn finally made amputation necessary and Dr. Ferguson performed the operation amid surroundings that are probably without a parallel. It was before the day of anaesthetics and a fife and drum corps marched around the cabin playing during the operation, and it is said that the old General kept time to the music with his fingers, and when the music finally stopped asked, "\A'ell. is it off?"

He died at the home of his sister, Mrs. Lucy Croghan, at Locust Grove, Kentucky, February 13. 1818. and is buried in Cave Hill cemetery, Louisville, Kentuckv.