Madison County, Indiana - Chapter 3, 1897

The Delaware Indians, who at one time inhabited Madison county, were orig^inaliy known as the Leni Lenapes. They began to renio\e from the eastern side of the ^Mlegheny mountains to tiie country nortiiwest of the Oiiio river about the middle of the eitihteentli century. Thev wendeil llieir way into the wilderness of what is now the state of Indiana. and for many years were undisturbed in their wild aiul savage natures. In the spring of 1,S()1 a few Christian Indians came from tiie Delaware \ illages on the Muskingum river, in Ohio, to the lodges of the Delawares on White rixer. in Indiana territory. These Christian red men came for the purpose of establishing missions for the enlightenment and instruction of the tribes in this locality. The niissionarv banil was composed of the brethren Xatuge and Luckenbach from Betlilehem. Pennsylvania, and three families of civilized Indians, among whom was one named loshua, a national interpreter. These missionaries accomplished much good among tlie aborigines until about the year 180(5, when the Shawnee prophet Ellskwatawa, made his appearance upon the scene and through his wonderful influence, led the peaceably inclined Indians again astrav. Thus the good work of the mission was destrovetl. The prophet was a brother of Techumseh. the great chief, who with his warriors opposed Gen. William Henrv Harrison and his soldiers at the battle of Tippecanoe. Thev were sons of Pukeesheno, a brave who fell in battle when Ellskwatawa was a child. The Delawares retrograded and again became a war-like nation, although they were never so hostile as their kindred of other tribes and were possessed of many noble traits.

The prophet fought bitterh- the intermarriage of Indian squaws with white men, and the selling of lands by the Indians to the whites. He also made a bitter warfare against the christianized Indians who had settled amonir the tribes.

and accused them of witch-craft. lie caused an old Delaware chief of tile name of Tat-e-ljocli-o-she, tlirout;;!] whose inlluence a treaty witli the United States had been accomplislied in ]y04, to be put to death by being tomahawked, and his body burned, on tiiis cliarge.

The Indian missionary, Josliua," above referred to was also taken at the instigation of the propiief, and brought before a council iield just across the border of Madison countv near where tiie town of Yorktown now stands, anol was tried and convicted of witch-craft, and was burned at the stake as a punish >nc>nt for his crime. The wife of Tat-e-bock-o-she was also convicted and sentenced to death, but was rescued bv an Indian warior, and thus escaped a horrible death. Josiiua was at the time of his terrible torture and death very old and iiitirm.

After a long and serious warfare with the Indians throughout the west, a council was called by General Anthony Wayne, to be held at Greenville, Ohio, for tlie purpose of making peace, and trying to induce tiic Indians to abandon the war-path and to become civili/.id. At this meeting, which took place on the '3rd of August, 1795, tlie difl'erent tribes entered into an agreement with General \\'ayne on Iiehalf of the United States to become citizens of the government and for certain valuable considerations to " cede, sell and convey to the States '" large, -valuable tracts of lands, composing nearl}- all territory northwest of the Ohio. At this council there were present man)' representatives of the VVyandots, the Delawares, the Shawnees, the ^Nliamis, the Otto was, the Chippewas. the Pottawattomies, the Kickapoos, the Eels and the Weas. The consideration given the tribes to be divided among themselves was an amount of goods and merchandise then paid in hand. ifiO.OOO and the sum of !);1,0()() to be paid to each of the tribes signing the treaty " annually forever." These to be by the United States delivered at some convenient place north of the Ohio river, and to be reckoned at first cost. It was also stipulated that in lieu of goods or merchandise any of the tribes might take their portion or any part in domestic aniiiials or implements with which to till the soil.

^iiul warriors. Tlie second name signed was Kik-tlia-we-iiund, or Anderson (his x mark), on behalf of the Delawares. Kiktha-\ve-nund was the old chief after whom the citv of Anderson took its name.

A treaty prior to the one above recited was made at Fort Ilarmar, on the Muskingum river, in Ohio, in which the Delawares took part. This was on the '.lib of ]anuarv, 1789. and was signed by Gen. .\rthur St. Clair, for the governmen', to which was subscribed the name of C'a[it. Pipe (his x mark), on behalf of the Delawares. Capt. Pipe was either afterward a resident of what is now Madison countv. or an immediate descendant of one of the same name who resided here, as the stream. Pipe creek, took its name from a chief of that tribe known as Captain Pipe.

These treaties of peace were afterward broken b\- the Indians, who were, perhaps, not whollv to blame, as manv speculating and unscrupulous whites found their wav into the new country and committed depredations among the red men and trouble ensued. The war-like actions of the Indian- became so alarming that in the month of June. ISIH, a armv consisting of 1(11) mounted men, organized at Vincennes by order of Governor Posey, was sent out under the commanil of Colonel Joseph Bartholomew, to mo\e upon the Indians on the west fork of White river, and to destroy their villages and all their means of sustenance. The troops consisted of parts of three companies of rangers, commanded severallv b\' Captains Williamson Dunn, James Bigger and C. Pevton, and a small detachment of militia under command of Major Depauw. of Harrison county.

The arm}' moved on the 1 lib of June to the U])per villages of the Delawares. which must have been situated in Delaware county near where Vorktown now stands, and then down the White ri\er through the present site of Anderson. The description given bv the colonel in command in a letter to the governor describes the route covering this territory. He savs : " We pursued a cour-,e between north ami northeast about one hundreil mile- to the upper Delaware town on White river, where we arrived on the loth, where we found the principal part of the town had been biuMit three or four weeks previ- Duslv. We found, however, another village that had not l)een burnt, at a distance of twehe miles below the upper town. .Vt this point many horses and a goodly (|iiantity of com were captured and destroyed and the village laid in waste." This is supposed to be at or near where the city of Anderson now stands. Possibly a few miles to the west.

The troops made a tour of the surroundinjj; countiy and became engaged with some straggling Indians in the neighborhood. In attempting to surround them the Indians were fired upon and one was killed. One of Captain Peyton's rangers was thrown from his horse and was shot by an Indian lurking in ambush and was severely wounded. About one thousand bushels of corn was capturetl and destroyed. The army returned to its headquarters on the 2 1st of June, carrying the wounded ranger on a horse litter.

The Delaware Indians were not disposed to go lo war with the whites when not influenced by other tribes and were often censured by their red skinned brothers, and accused of friendliness to pale faces. They often sent messages of peace and words of love and affection to General Harrison, who always gave them a kindly hearing.

^V tradition has been hantled down from the earliest settlement of Madison county that Tecuinseh, the famous Indian warrior, was at one time a resident of the county. This, we think, is clearly a mistake. In Dillon's early historj- of Indiana, we find the following allusion to that illustrious personage : " In the early part of the year 1S()5, the Shawnee warrior and his brother, the prophet, resided at one of the Delaware villages which stood on the borders of the west fork of the White river, within the present boundaries of Delaware county."" This clearly establishes' the fact that Tecumseh at one time resided veiy close to the borders of this county; but there is no record of his ever having been an actual resident iiere.

^Ve wish to state further that there is a difl'erence among the authorities as to the proper name of the Shawnee prophet. Appleton's Encyclopedia of American Biography, gives his name as Ellks-wa-ta-wa, and his birthplace as being near the present city of Chillicothe, Ohio, on the banks of the Scioto river. He was the son of Pu-Ke-She-no, a .Shawnee chief. Dillon gives his naine as Law-le-was-i-kaw, which signifies a loud voice. He also says that the prophet afterward assumed

Teciim.seh was born near Springfield, Ohio, in 17l)I^. It is stated on good authority that lie once visited this locality, and held a council with Kik-tha-we-nuud. or .\nderson. the chief of the Delaware tribe which dwelt on the spot upon which the city of Anderson now stands. His mission being for the purpose of enlisting the Delawares in a combination of ail the difl'erent tribes of the northwest, to take part with Great Britain against the whites in this territory during the struggle of 181:?. but it is said that Anderson refused his overtures, and this ended the negotiations.

Many of the older settlers of iMadison co'mty claimed the distinction of haying been personally acr|uainted with the Delaware Indians in this county, and to haye enjoyed a personal acciuaintance with Chief Anderson. This, the writers haye the best ot reasons to iloubt. Tiiere is, perhaps, but one living white man now in Madison county who ever saw Chief Anderson, and, if so, it must ha\e been when he was but a child. We refer to the venerable James Hollingsworth. at present a resident of Anderson. Mr. Hollingsworth came to this county with his parents from the state of Ohio in 18:20.

According to Dillon's history, on the i51st of October, 1^18, a treaty was concluded at St. Mark's, Ohio, whereby the Delaware Indians ceded to the United States all their claims to lands King within the boundaries of the State of Indiana in which the United States agreed to pay a perpetual annuity of four thousand dollars to the Delawares, and to provide for them a resilience country on the western side of the ^Mississippi river, and guaranteed to them the peaceful possession of the same.

The commissioners who negotiated this treaty on the part of the United States were Jonathan Jennings, Lewis Cass and IJenjamin Parke. The Delawares reserved the right to occupy their lands in Indiana for a period of three years from the date of this treaty, at which time, it is said, they took their departure, and, if Mr. Hollingsworth ever saw them at all. it must have been a very short time prior to their leaving.

John Rogers, who is said to have been the first white inhal)itant of Madison county, and who came here about the year 1818, ami settleil on Fall Creek, may ])ossiblv, and, in all probability did have a personal acc|uaintance witli this tribe.

About the year ls|:-!,a battle was fought between the United States Army, under Gen. Harrison, witli the Miamis ;ind other tribes on the Mississinewa. after which a message was conveyed to the Delaware tribes by Gen. Harrison, through Lieut. -Col. Campbell, requesting them to abandon their towns and to remove to the state of Ohio, and also regretting the unfortunate killing of some of their people in the battle. Soon after these negotiations the main bodvof the Delawares, togeliier with a small number of Miamis mo\ed into the State of Ohio, and placed themselves under the protection of the go\ernment of the Ihiited States. The remaining few Indians in this countv lingered here with Chief Anderson until his departure as above recited.

The Shawnee prophet, and some of the principal chiefs of the Miamis, retired fro n the borders of the Wabash, and mo\ed to Detroit, where thev were received as the friends and allies of Great Britain.

(jen. Harrison, in giving Col. Campbell (irders to proceed to the Mississinewa coimtry to fight the Indians, instructed him to avoid coming in contact with the Delawares on White river, and to pass around their villages in such manner as to in no way disturb them, as they were friendly to the whites. He also instructed him to counsel with William Conner as to his movements, and to court friendly relations with one " (iodfrov." a Canadian living in what is now Grant county, ^vho had for his wife an Indian squaw, and ^vas friendly to the Avhite people, and had great influence with the Miamis and other Indians in the countrv.

Among the first white men to visit the present site of Anderson, if not the first, were the Conner brothers, William and John. The former entered the tract of land upon which the most valuable portion nf the city is situated, antl subse- ([uently (lS2i5) transferred it to Captain John Berry. The Conncrs were taken when quite young by the Shawnee Iiuiians and were reareil among them. William was intimately acquainted with the great Shawnee chief and warrior, Tecumseh, and being familiar with the language of many of tiie tribes, acted as interpreter at several treaties. He was at the battle of the Thames, and was the first man that identified the dead Tecumseh after the engagement.

The following concerning his brother John and iiis visit to " Andersontovvn." is reproduced from O. H. Smith's " Early Indiana Trials, Sketches and Reminiscences :''

" John Conner, the proprietor of Connersville, was one of Nature's strong men. Taken by the Shawnee Indians when a mere youth, he was raised and educated in Indian life, language and manners. When dressed in their costume, and painted, it was difficult to distinguish him from a real savage. On one occasion, as he told me, he came to -Vntiersontown, then the lodge of a large band of Indians under Chief Anderson. He was dressed and painted as a Shawnee, and pretended to be a representative of Tecumseh. As is usual with the Indians, he took his seat on a log barely in sight of the Indian encampment, quietly smoked his pipe, waiting the action of Anderson and his under chiefs. .Vfter an hour he saw approaching the old chief himself, in full dress, smoking his pipe. 1 give his language. ' As the old chief walked up to me I rose from my seat, looked him in the eyes, we exchanged pipes, and walked down to the lodge, smoking without a word. I was pointed to a bear skin - took mv seat with my back to the chiefs. A few minutes after I noticed an Indian by the name of Gillaway, who knew nic well, ej'eing me closely. I tried to evade his glances, wiien he bawled out in the Indian language, at the top of his voice, interpreted, - You great Shawnee Indian, you John Conner." The ne.xt moment the camp was in a perfect roar of laughter. Chief Anderson ran up to me, throwing off his dignitj-. 'You great representative of Tecumseh,' and burst out in a loud laugh.'" The scene of this meeting was probably where the Catholic Church now stands, at the corner of Eleventh and Fletcher streets.

The interesting legend contributed to this work by Mrs. Earle Reeve, iicc Lovett, concerning Kiktha-we-nund, or Chief Anderson, which mav be found elsewhere, is but one of the manv transmitted b}' the e;irly pioneers to their descendants, relaiive to the fate of the noted chief. There are several others, however, that are worth}' of mention. It is said that he came to his death while riding a pony by plunging from the high bluff on White river, JList east of Anderson. It is also said that he died before his people left for their reser\ation beyond the Mississippi, and that he was buried in tiie burial i^i-ouiul of liis tribe. This burial groutul \\as situated where the residences of Major Doxey, T. M. Norton and Martin Gruenewald, in Anderson, are located.

Another tradition is to the effect that he removed to Ohio \\ith a remnant of his people and died there. And still another that he went west with his people, and, being dissatisfied with the country, started to return to his old home, and was poisoned to death while on his way.

It is a matter of regret that nothing definite is known concerning his last days. He was a noble Indian, and always the steadfast friend of the whites.