Three Rivers
Hudson~Mohawk~Schoharie
History From America's Most Famous Valleys

History of Montgomery and Fulton Counties, NY
F. W. Beers & Co. 36 Vesey Street, 1878

OUTLINE HISTORY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK

CHAPTER XII

SIR HENRY CLINTON'S HUDSON RIVER CAMPAIGN--FRANCE RECOGNIZES THE UNITED STATES--WARS WITH THE INDIANS.

When Burgoyne first perceived the difficulties gathering around him, he urged Sir Henry Clinton to hasten the expedition up the Hudson to join him, but Clinton was obliged to wait for the arrival of reinforcements, and it was the 4th of October before he was ready to move. The first object to be accomplished was the reduction of Forts Montgomery and Clinton, in the Highlands. These had been constructed to prevent the ships of the tnemy from ascending the river, and each was indefensible in its rear, and feebly garrisoned. Clinton landed first at Verplanck's Point, and under cover of a fog dropped down with a part of his force to Stony Point, where he landed, and marched toward the forts. These were commanded by Gov. George Clinton, and his brother, James. Governor Clinton, on learning that the enemy were moving up the river, sent out a scouting party to watch their movements, and from them he first learned of their having landed at Stony Point. A small force was then sent out by Gov. Clinton, which met the advance guard of the British about three miles out. Shots were exchanged, and the Americans retreated to the forts. Gov. Clinton then sent out a stronger detachment to oppose the enemy's advance, and as this was soon engaged in a sharp conflict, another was sent to its assistance. They were pressed back by a superior force, but not until the enemy had met with considerable loss. Upon nearing the forts the British were divided into two columns, and made a simultaneous assault upon them. After an incessant fire for several hours the British general demanded an instant and unconditional surrender. The proposition was rejected and the conflict continued until evening, when part of the besieged fought their way out. Governor Clinton made his escape, and likewise his brother though wounded. Fort Constitution was abandoned on the approach of the British, which gave them command of the river. A detachment, under Vaughn and Wallace, landed without much opposition, and burned Kingston. On hearing of the disastrous termination of Burgoyne's campaign the expedition returned to New York.

It was obvious that France had no sympathy with Great Britain, but looked upon the revolt of her colonies with secret satisfaction, and earnestly desired their separation from England. By the war which closed in 1763 she had been compelled to relinquish her extensive possessions in North America, and she rejoiced to have an opportunity to assist in the infliction of a like dismemberment of territory upon Great Britain. The commissioners at the Court of Versailles, from the revolted colonies, although not always openly countenanced, were by no means discouraged, and aid was frequently extended to the Americans in a clandestine manner. When intelligence of the capture of Burgoyne reached France, her vacillating policy ended, and, casting off all disguise, she entered into a treaty of alliance with, and on the 6th of February, 1778, acknowledged the independence of the United States. This event made the patriots almost certain of ultimate success.

The Indians and Tories, who had been dispersed at Fort Schuyler, were meditating mischief, and making preparations through the winter of 1877-8 to invade the Mohawk Valley. Brant, the Indian chief who had prepared the ambuscade at Oriskany, was foremost in these threatening movements. Sir John Johnson and Colonel John Butler were also active in enlisting Tory refugees. A council was called by the Revolutionary authorities, to secure, if possible, the neutrality of the Indians. It met at Johnstown in March. None of the Senecas, the most powerful of the Six Nations, were present, and but few of the Mohawks. General La Fayette, who was to command a proposed expedition against Canada, attended the council. His attention was called to the exposed condition of the settlements, and he directed the building and strengthening of fortifications for their protection. The first hostile movement of Brant was the destruction of the small settlement of Springfield, at the head of Otsego Lake. On the 2d of July an engagement occurred on the upper branch of the Cobleskill, between an Indian force of four hundred and fifty, and fifty-two Americans. The latter were overpowered. The Indians burned the dwellings, and slaughtered the cattle and horses they could not take with them. The settlers generally were continually harrassed by marauding parties of Indians during the summer, but on the approach of winter, Brant withdrew with his forces toward Niagara, and hostilities apparently ceased. On his way to Niagara he was met by Walter Butler, a fugitive from justice. He had been arrested as a spy, and condemned to death, but had been reprieved through the intercession of friends, sent to Albany, and confined in prison, from which he made his escape. He joined his father, Col. John Butler, at Niagara, and obtained the command of two hundred Tories, to unite with Brant in an incursion into the Mohawk Valley. Upon meeting Brant he prevailed upon him to return and attack the settlement of Cherry Valley. Colonel Alden, who was in command of the fort at that place, received information of the intended attack, but treated it with unconcern. He refused to permit the settlers to move into the fort, believing it to be a false alarm. He, however, assured them that he would keep scouts on the look-out, to guard against surprise, and he did send them, but they fell into the hands of the savages, who extorted from them all necessary information respecting the situation. On the morning of the nth of November the enemy entered the settlement, under cover of a thick and misty atmosphere, and began an indiscriminate slaughter of men, women, and children. The house of Mr. Wells, of which Colonel Alden was an inmate, was surrounded, and the whole family brutally massacred. The colonel, in attempting to escape, was tomahawked and scalped. Thirty-two of the inhabitants, mostly women and children, and sixteen soldiers of the garrison, were slain in the most horrible manner. The whole settlement was plundered, and every house burned. Nearly forty prisoners were taken, and conducted down the valley to encamp for the night, promiscuously huddled together, some of them half naked, without shelter, and no resting-place but the cold ground. The next day, finding the women and children cumbersome, the captors sent most of them back. The infamous Butler was not only the author of this savage expedition, but he was the director of all the cruelty practiced. With the destruction of this settlement hostilities ceased along the frontier until the following spring.

Through the winter Brant and his colleagues were making preparations for a renewal of their incursions, and necessity seemed to demand the infliction of severe punishment upon the savages who threatened to desolate the border settlements. Accordingly on the 18th of April, 1779, Colonel Van Schaick was sent out with a force, from Fort Schuyler, to make a descent upon the Onondagas. They had approached to within a few miles of their villages and castle before their occupants were aware of the expedition against them. The Indians fled to the woods, leaving everything behind them, even to their arms. Their villages, three in number, consisting of about fifty houses, were burned, and their provisions and cattle destroyed. The council-house, or castle, was spared from the flames, but a swivel found in it was rendered useless. Thirty-three of the Indians were taken prisoners, and twelve killed. The expedition then returned to Fort Schuyler, arriving on the 24th, having accomplished its object in six days, without the loss of a man. While this short campaign was in progress, the lower section of the Mohawk was visited at different points by scalping parties, and the settlements menaced with the fate of Cherry Valley. The Onondagas, fired with indignation at the destruction of their villages, retaliated by a descent upon the settlement at Cobleskill, and more than twenty of the militia were killed in defending it. The settlement at Minisink, being unprotected, Brant resolved to ravage it. On the night of the 19th of July, at the head of a party of Indians and Tories, disguised as savages, he silently approached the town and had set fire to several houses before the inhabitants were aroused to the danger of their situation. All who could sought safety in flight, leaving everything to the invaders, who plundered and destroyed all their property, and retired to Grassy Brook, where Brant had left the main body of his warriors. When intelligence of this outrage reached Goshen, Doctor Tusten, Colonel of the local militia, ordered them to meet him at Minisink, and one hundred and forty-nine responded to the call. A council was held, and it was resolved to pursue the invaders. Colonel Tusten was opposed to such a hazardous undertaking with so small a force, but he was overruled, and the line of march taken up. The next morning the pursuers were joined by Colonel Hathorn, with a small reinforcement. On coming to the place where the Indians had encamped the previous night, it was obvious from the number of camp-fires that the force was much larger than had been expected, and the leading officers advised return rather than pursuit, but their rash associates were determined to proceed. Soon after, Captain Tyier, who was with a scouting party, was shot by a hidden foe, but this circumstance, although it gave the company some alarm, did not check the pursuit. When the party reached the hills overlooking the Delaware, they saw the enemy marching toward the fording place near the mouth of the Lackawaxen. Hathorn determined to intercept them, and arranged his men accordingly. Hills intervened between the opposing forces, and they soon lost sight of each other. Brant was watching the movements of the whites, and anticipating their design turned as soon as they were lost to view, and throwing his whole force in their rear, formed an ambuscade. Not finding the enemy where they expected, Hathorn's men were greatly perplexed, and retracing their steps discovered the Indians in an unexpected quarter and greatly superior in numbers. The latter managed to cut off from the main body of Hathorn's troops about one-third of his entire force in the commencement of the skirmish. From the summit of a hill the militia maintained the unequal conflict until their ammunition was exhausted, and then attempted to retreat, but only thirty succeeded in making their escape from their merciless enemies. When the retreat began, there were seventeen of the wounded behind a ledge of rocks under the care of Doctor Tusten, and in this helpless condition they were ruthlessly murdered, together with the doctor, by the Indians.

But a fearful retribution was at hand, and soon fell on the Indians with destructive force. In the spring it was determined to send a large expedition into the Indian country, and so severely chastise the savages, and Tory allies as to discourage them from renewing their depredations upon the settlements. General Sullivan was placed in the chief command of this expedition, the plan of which was a combined movement in two divisions ; one from Pennsylvania, to ascend the Susquehanna, under Sullivan himself, and the other from the north, under General James Clinton. The two divisions were to unite at Tioga. On the lyth of June, General Clinton commenced the transportation of his boats across the country from Canajoharie to Otsego Lake, and proceeded to its outlet, where he awaited orders from Sullivan. While there he built a dam to confine the water within the lake, hoping by its sudden removal to render the navigation of the river more certain in case of a long drought. This not only facilitated the transportation of his boats upon the river, but it caused an overflow of its banks and destroyed the corn-fields belonging to the Indians, who being ignorant of the cause of their loss were greatly astonished and alarmed. General Clinton formed a junction with Sullivan at Tioga on the 22d of August, and the combined force moved cautiously up the Tioga and Chemung. On the 25th the enemy were discovered occupying an advantageous position near the present city of Elmira. The light infantry in the advance formed for battle, and while waiting for the main body to come up, skirmishing was carried on with small parties of Indians who would sally out from their works, fire, and retreat, and make the woods echo with their hideous war-whoops. The Indians occupied a hill on the right, and Sullivan ordered Poor, with his brigade to advance against them, while the main body of the army attacked them in front. As Poor began to ascend the hill he was fiercely opposed by the savages under Brant, and the Tories under Sir John Johnson. It was some hours before the latter began slowly to give way. Having gained the summit of the hill, Poor moved against the enemy's left flank, which he soon carried, and perceiving that they would be surrounded they abandoned their works and made a precipitate retreat. Sullivan's army encamped upon the battlefield that night, and the next day the wounded were sent back together with the heavy artillery, and the march was resumed toward Catharinestown, where the expedition arrived on the 2d of September ; on the following day the place was destroyed, together with the corn-fields and orchards. The Indians fled before the invaders, who continued their work of destruction, pillaging the villages of their enemies and thus depriving them of all means of subsistence. On the 7th, Sullivan's army reached Kanadaseagea, the capital of the Senecas. This they destroyed, as well as all the smaller villages on their way to the Genesee river, which was reached and crossed on the 14th. The Genesee Castle was doomed to meet the fate of the rest, and the whole surrounding country, including the town which comprised 120 houses, was swept as with the besom of destruction. On the 16th the expedition recrossed the Genesee river, and retracing their steps, arrived at Tioga, the starting point, on the 3d of October. The Indians, although subjected to great suffering, were not wholly crushed by these severe losses. Their numerical force was but slightly reduced, and they retaliated upon the frontier settlements with savage vengeance whenever a favorable opportunity offered.

Copyright © 1998, -- 2003. Berry Enterprises. All rights reserved. All items on the site are copyrighted. While we welcome you to use the information provided on this web site by copying it, or downloading it; this information is copyrighted and not to be reproduced for distribution, sale, or profit.

Contents Introduction Links Home