Chapter 16

THE END

1. These biographical details are from Bell,Bench and Bar of New-Hampshire(Boston, 1894), p. 343.

2. This description of the natives is given as they were found in 1805. How far they have since become conformed to civilized life, the author is unable to say.—Buttrick.

3. For a description of Albany written a few years later, see Evans’sTour, post.Buttrick followed the Genesee Road, the well-established route to Lake Erie. In 1794 the legislature had appropriated money for the construction of a road six rods wide from old Fort Schuyler (Utica) to the Genesee River at Canawagus (Avon, twenty-seven miles south of Lake Ontario), passing the outlets of Cayuga, Seneca, and Canandaigua lakes. Being but little better than an Indian path in 1797, lotteries were authorized for its improvement. In 1799 a stage began to run over the road, and the following year it was made into a turnpike. A highway was opened the same year from the Genesee River to Buffalo, thus completing the connection between Albany and Lake Erie.—Ed.

3. For a description of Albany written a few years later, see Evans’sTour, post.

Buttrick followed the Genesee Road, the well-established route to Lake Erie. In 1794 the legislature had appropriated money for the construction of a road six rods wide from old Fort Schuyler (Utica) to the Genesee River at Canawagus (Avon, twenty-seven miles south of Lake Ontario), passing the outlets of Cayuga, Seneca, and Canandaigua lakes. Being but little better than an Indian path in 1797, lotteries were authorized for its improvement. In 1799 a stage began to run over the road, and the following year it was made into a turnpike. A highway was opened the same year from the Genesee River to Buffalo, thus completing the connection between Albany and Lake Erie.—Ed.

4. Old Fort Schuyler was erected upon the present site of Utica during the French and Indian War (1758), for the defense of the frontier, but was not maintained after the Treaty of Paris. The village was first settled in 1787–88, its importance dating from the construction of the Genesee or State Road. It obtained a city charter in 1832.The site of Canandaigua, at the foot of Canandaigua Lake, was selected by Oliver Phelps and Nathaniel Gorham for the principal town of their purchase; they and a company of associates having bought from Massachusetts (1788) her pre-emption rights to land in New-York—namely, to all territory west of a line drawn through Seneca Lake. The village was surveyed and opened for settlement in 1789, and the following year contained eighteen families and a hundred other persons.Bloomfield, the location of an old Seneca village, is nine miles north-west of Canandaigua, and was surveyed and settled at the same time, chiefly by emigrants from Sheffield, Mass.—Ed.

The site of Canandaigua, at the foot of Canandaigua Lake, was selected by Oliver Phelps and Nathaniel Gorham for the principal town of their purchase; they and a company of associates having bought from Massachusetts (1788) her pre-emption rights to land in New-York—namely, to all territory west of a line drawn through Seneca Lake. The village was surveyed and opened for settlement in 1789, and the following year contained eighteen families and a hundred other persons.

Bloomfield, the location of an old Seneca village, is nine miles north-west of Canandaigua, and was surveyed and settled at the same time, chiefly by emigrants from Sheffield, Mass.—Ed.

5. Batavia bore the same relation to the Holland Purchase that Canandaigua bore to that of Phelps and Gorham. These proprietors extinguished the Indian title to their land only as far, approximately, as the Genesee River. Being unable to pay for the remainder, they returned it to Massachusetts (March, 1791), which, two days later, resold it to Robert Morris. He, in turn, sold to a company of associates in Amsterdam (1793), and the tract became known as the Holland Purchase. The Holland Company marked off a village and opened a land office (October, 1800) at Batavia, in an unsettled wilderness fifty miles west of Canandaigua. Two years later they surveyed and placed upon the market a second village, called by them New Amsterdam, and located at the mouth of Buffalo Creek. This stream being well known on the frontier, the name was transferred to the settlement, and “New Amsterdam” never came into general use. Buffalo received a charter in 1813. See Turner,History of the Holland Purchase(Buffalo, 1850).—Ed.

6. Old Fort Erie, at the head of Niagara River, on its western bank, was built by the English in 1764. The location proving unsatisfactory, a new fort farther back from the river was begun in 1805, and completed at the outbreak of the War of 1812–15. This was captured by the Americans, July 3, 1814. Although successfully resisting the siege of the British during August following, the fort was blown up in September and the troops retired to Buffalo. It was never rebuilt.—Ed.

7. General Isaac Brock, born in Guernsey in 1760, entered the English army, and after serving in Jamaica and Barbados, came to Canada in 1802. He was placed in command at Fort Niagara, and in 1811 was appointed lieutenant-governor of Upper Canada. Immediately upon the outbreak of the War of 1812–15, he ordered an attack upon Mackinac, and marched with the main body of his troops to Detroit, receiving Hull’s surrender in August, 1812. Brock planned a most efficient defense of Upper Canada, but was killed in the American attack on Queenstown (October, 1812). Perhaps no English officer has been more beloved by the people of Upper Canada; several towns have been named in his honor, and a monument was erected to him on Queenstown Heights.—Ed.

8. When the English withdrew from Fort Niagara, in accordance with the provisions of Jay’s Treaty, they constructed this fort directly across the river. It was captured by the Americans (May 27, 1813), but abandoned at the end of the year. After the War of 1812–15 it was dismantled and allowed to fall into decay.—Ed.

9. For the early history of Fort Niagara, see Long’sVoyages, volume ii of our series, note 19.—Ed.

10. The Black Rock ferry across the Niagara River was in existence as early as 1796, and was much used for transporting merchandise, especially salt. It owed its name to the low black rock about a hundred feet broad, from which teams entered the ferry. Passing into the control of the state in 1802, the ferry continued to run until 1824, when the harbor was destroyed and the black rock blown up in the construction of the Erie Canal. The village of Black Rock was laid out in 1804, but grew very slowly, and in 1853 was incorporated in the city of Buffalo.—Ed.

11. For notes on the places mentioned in this paragraph, see A. Michaux’sTravels, volume iii of our series: Pittsburg, note 11; Wheeling, note 15; Marietta, note 16; Cuming’sTour, volume iv of our series: Cincinnati, note 166; Croghan’sJournals, volume i of our series: Louisville, note 106; F. A. Michaux’sTravels, volume iii of our series: Frankfort, note 39.—Ed.

12. This village was probably on the Allegheny reservation—one of the ten reservations retained by the Seneca Indians when the Holland Company in 1797 extinguished their title. It lay along the Allegheny River, extending from the Pennsylvania line north-eastward about twenty-five miles.—Ed.

13. The Great Western Turnpike was the second road leading into western New-York. Unlike the Genesee Road, it was built by private companies and in several sections. The First Great Western Turnpike was built from Albany to Cherry Valley in 1802. At the time of Buttrick’s voyage it had been extended by the fourth Great Western Turnpike Company as far as Homer, a hundred and fifty miles from Albany. It was later continued past the head of Cayuga and Seneca lakes, and under the Lake Erie and Oil Spring Turnpike Company was completed to Lake Erie, terminating just north of the Pennsylvania boundary line.—Ed.

14. A small settlement was begun at Olean Point in 1804. For some time its projectors expected it to become an important place on the route of Western immigration; on one occasion two thousand people are said to have collected there, while waiting for navigation to open. But with the construction of the Erie Canal, the Allegheny route to the West was abandoned and Olean lay dormant, until the development of the oil interests in south-western New-York gave it new life.—Ed.

15. The hard times following the War of 1812–15 caused a great increase in immigration from New-England, especially Maine. The “Ohio fever” became a well-known expression for this desire to move West, and in the years 1815–16 it deprived Maine of fifteen thousand of her inhabitants. See Chamberlain,Maine: Her Place in History(Augusta, 1877).—Ed.

16. For the early history of Shippingsport, see Cuming’sTour, volume iv of our series, note 171.—Ed.

17. A brief account of New Madrid may be found in Cuming’sTour, vol. iv of our series, note 185.For a description of an earthquake on the Mississippi River, see Bradbury’sTravels, vol. v of our series, pp. 204–210.—Ed.

17. A brief account of New Madrid may be found in Cuming’sTour, vol. iv of our series, note 185.

For a description of an earthquake on the Mississippi River, see Bradbury’sTravels, vol. v of our series, pp. 204–210.—Ed.

18. For the early history of Natchez, consult F. A. Michaux’sTravels, vol. iii of our series, note 53.—Ed.

19. Lake Pontchartrain was discovered by Iberville on his exploring expedition in 1699, and named in honor of Count Pontchartrain, chancellor of France under Louis XIV.—Ed.

20. For the Choctaw Indians, see Cuming’sTour, volume iv of our series, note 187.—Ed.

21. This road extended from Columbia, Tennessee, forty-five miles south-west of Nashville to Madisonville, Louisiana, two miles north of Lake Pontchartrain. It was begun under the direction of the war department (March, 1816), and was one of three roads constructed about that time by United States troops.—Ed.

22. Beginning with the Mississippi River at 34° 30′, this boundary was an artificial line drawn south-east to Noosacheahn Creek, thence following that creek to the Tombigbee River.—Ed.

23. For further information on the customs of the Chickasaw and Choctaw Indians, consult Adair, American Indians (London, 1775); Pickett,History of Alabama(Charleston, 1851).—Ed.

24. A brief account of Nashville and Lexington may be found in A. Michaux’sTravels, vol. iii of our series, notes 28, 103.—Ed.

25. Madison, on the Ohio River fifty miles above Louisville and the county-seat of Jefferson County, Indiana, was settled in 1808. A description of its appearance in 1816 states that it contained three or four brick houses, twenty frame houses, and about a hundred cabins.—Ed.

26. Lower Sandusky, at the head of navigation of the Sandusky River, was until Wayne’s victory at Fallen Timbers, an important Wyandot village. A fort was built there during the War of 1812–15, for the history of which see Evans’sTour, post, note 52. From the close of the war the growth of settlement was continuous. About 1850 the name of the town was changed to Fremont, in honor of the Rocky Mountain explorer.—Ed.

27. This village was laid out in 1816 at the mouth of Cold Creek, three miles west of Sandusky City. It developed but slowly, owing to the unhealthfulness of the climate; see Flint’sLetters, vol. ix of our series. Flour mills were constructed in 1833, and it became a centre for the industry in Ohio.—Ed.

28. President Monroe made two tours. On the first, lasting from May to the middle of September, 1817, he visited the New-England States, journeyed thence through New-York to Niagara, west to Detroit, and returned to Washington via Zanesville and Pittsburg. On the second, undertaken in 1819, he went as far south as Augusta, Georgia, passed through the Cherokee region to Nashville, and thence to Louisville and Lexington.—Ed.

29. Fort Malden, or Amherstburg, on the Canadian shore sixteen miles south of Detroit, was established by the British in 1798, soon after they had evacuated Detroit in accordance with the terms of Jay’s Treaty. During the War of 1812–15, it was occupied by General Proctor until Perry’s naval victory (September, 1813) compelled him to retreat. Before leaving, he set fire to the fort and it was not rebuilt until 1839.—Ed.

30. For the early history of Detroit, see Croghan’sJournals, vol. i of our series, note 18.—Ed.

31. An account of these battles is given in Evans’sTour, post, note 63.—Ed.

32. Buttrick was now in the Black Swamp; for a description of which, see Evans’sTour, post.—Ed.

33. General Wayne built a fort at Greenville, seventy miles north of Cincinnati, in December, 1793, and marched thence against the Indians. He made it his headquarters after the victory at Fallen Timbers, and there (August, 1795), the treaty of peace was signed. The village was laid out in 1808.—Ed.

34. Portland, falling within the Connecticut “firelands,” was laid out by Zalmon Wildman of Danbury, Connecticut, in 1816, in the centre of his tract. A few years later the plat was enlarged and the name changed to Sandusky City.—Ed.

35. This island, twelve miles north-west of Sandusky City, owed its first name to a French Indian trader called Cunningham, who lived there from 1808 to 1812. It contained few inhabitants—only six acres having been cleared—when in 1833 the greater part of it was purchased by Datus and Irad Kelley. In 1840 the name was by legislative enactment changed to Kelley’s Island.—Ed.

36. It is an inflammation of the conjunctiva, with a purulent discharge.—Ed.

37. Geneva was originally the site of a populous Seneca village. Lying within the Phelps and Gorham Purchase, it was surveyed by them in 1789; settlement began immediately, the village containing fifteen houses in 1791. In 1797 a newspaper,Ontario Gazette and Genesee Advertiser, was established. Geneva was incorporated, June, 1812.—Ed.

38. The Erie Canal was constructed in three sections; the middle section, extending from Seneca River to Utica, being completed by 1820. The history of the construction of this canal is most interesting. As early as 1808 the legislature ordered a survey of a feasible route. Two years later a board of canal commissioners was established. Unsuccessful in appealing to the national government for aid, DeWitt Clinton presented an elaborate memorial to the legislature (1816), signed also by the other commissioners. The bill authorizing its construction was passed in April, 1817, and work was begun at Rome on July 4 following. It was completed in 1825 and opened with much ceremony.—Ed.

39. Here was at one time an important Mohawk village, the capital of the Five Nations. In 1662 Van Curler and certain other Dutchmen in Albany and Renselaerswyck bought the land from the Mohawk and founded the present city of Schenectady. Being a frontier town, it suffered severely in the early Indian wars, and in February, 1690, a general massacre of the inhabitants occurred.—Ed.

40. Amherst, on the Souhegan River, twenty-eight miles south of Concord, is situated on the tract of land granted by the general court of Massachusetts (1733), to the families of soldiers who had served in King Philip’s War (1674–76). It was incorporated in 1760, and named in honor of Lord Jeffrey Amherst, at that time commander general in America.—Ed.

41. Milford is on the Souhegan, five miles south-west of Amherst. It is located partly on the Amherst Grant, partly on the Duxbury School Farm (land granted to Duxbury by the general court of Massachusetts to aid in establishing schools). Settlement was begun about 1750, and the town was incorporated in January, 1794.—Ed.

42. Milton is a misprint for Wilton, a town on the Souhegan, nine miles west of Amherst.Temple is three miles west of Wilton.—Ed.

42. Milton is a misprint for Wilton, a town on the Souhegan, nine miles west of Amherst.

Temple is three miles west of Wilton.—Ed.

43. Keene, fifty-five miles south-west of Concord, has become one of the most important manufacturing cities in New-Hampshire. It was first settled in 1734; but Indian attacks becoming frequent, was abandoned from 1747 to 1753.Marlborough, five miles south-east of Keene, is part of a grant made by Massachusetts (1751), to Timothy Dwight and sixty-one associates.—Ed.

Marlborough, five miles south-east of Keene, is part of a grant made by Massachusetts (1751), to Timothy Dwight and sixty-one associates.—Ed.

44. Fort Dummer was erected on the present site of Brattleborough as early as 1724. The land in that region was granted by George II (1753) to certain men of Massachusetts, among them William Brattle, after whom the town was named.—Ed.

45. From Brattleborough to Albany, Evans followed a much travelled route. As early as 1774, a road had been made from Albany to Bennington, thence directly east for forty miles to Brattleborough. A line of stages was established in 1814, which made the trip between the two places in one day. It was considered the easiest and safest route to Boston.—Ed.

46. A play written by Henry Brooke (1706–83), containing reflections on the Prime Minister (Robert Walpole). It was not allowed to be put on the stage in 1739, but later was printed by the author, the Prince of Wales subscribing for four hundred copies. Dr. Johnson vindicated it and scored the government for attempting its suppression.—Ed.

47. Bennington was the first township granted within the present state of Vermont, being chartered by Benning Wentworth, governor of New-Hampshire, in 1749. Settlement was not begun, however, until the fall of 1761.—Ed.

48. The Great Western Turnpike did not pass through Schenectady, but was the one that led to Cherry Valley, while the Schenectady road connected with the state road, which extended to Buffalo. Strictly speaking, the two roads did not meet but ran nearly parallel to Lake Erie; however, a turnpike leading from Cherry Valley to Saline (Syracuse), intersected the state road at about the distance stated. Evans took this path. For the Great Western and State roads, see Buttrick’sVoyages,ante, notes 2 and 12.—Ed.

49. For a brief account of the Erie Canal, see Buttrick’sVoyages,ante, note 37.—Ed.

50. Wayne’s campaign, 1793–94, terminated in victory at the decisive battle of Fallen Timbers (August 20, 1794), where the confederated Indians under Little Turtle were completely routed.—Ed.

51. Evans was now passing through the settlements of the Schoharie and upper Susquehanna valleys. They had constituted the western frontier of New-York in the period of the Revolutionary War, and in consequence had borne the brunt of the Iroquois and Loyalist attacks under the leadership of Joseph Brant. The Susquehanna Valley was virtually reconverted into a wilderness, the most important single attack being the Cherry Valley massacre, November 11, 1778. The first settlers had been chiefly Palatine Germans and Scotch-Irish; those that repeopled the country after the war were almost entirely from New-England. See Halsey,Old New-York Frontier(New-York, 1901).—Ed.

52. A fortified town on the Dniester in Bessarabia, Russia, where Charles XII took refuge after the battle of Poltowa.—Ed.

53. At Onondaga village was formerly located the council house of the Six Nations. In the treaty of Fort Stanwix (1788) this village was retained as a reservation; but ten years later a large part of it was sold to the state, and the town of Onondaga was incorporated thereon.—Ed.

54. Evans was now in the military district. The legislature (1789) had set aside 1,680,000 acres as bounty land for the soldiers of the Revolutionary War. The tract extended from the eastern border of Onondaga County to Seneca Lake, and was surveyed into twenty-eight townships, upon which the governor bestowed classical names.—Ed.

55. The Housatonic Indians who had formed a mission settlement at Stockbridge, Massachusetts, were granted a township by the Oneida—the present New Stockbridge, Madison County. Thither, immediately after the Revolutionary War, they removed to the number of about four hundred. The Brothertown Indians had preceded them. In 1774 the Oneida had given to the remnant of Narragansetts, Pequots, and other tribes living for the most part at Montville and Farmington, Connecticut, a piece of land fourteen miles south of the present Utica. They emigrated with their pastor and organized a new tribe, the Brothertown Indians. Both tribes later removed to Wisconsin, the Stockbridge Indians settling at South Kaukauna on Fox River (1822–29), and the Brothertown Indians on the east side of Lake Winnebago a few years later. See Davidson,In Unnamed Wisconsin(Milwaukee, 1895).—Ed.

56. At Geneva, Evans left the military district and entered the Phelps and Gorham Purchase. For a brief account of this tract and the towns located upon it, see Buttrick’sVoyages,ante, notes 3 and 36.—Ed.

57. For the Holland Purchase, see Buttrick’sVoyages,ante, note 4.—Ed.

58. The tyrant.—Evans.

59. The modern name is Tonawanda Creek. It rises near the northern boundary of Wyoming County, New-York, and enters Niagara River ten miles north of Buffalo. The Indian village was part of a reservation containing seventy square miles retained by the Seneca, when in 1797 they sold their lands to the Holland Company.—Ed.

60. A brief account of the Tuscarora migration may be found in Long’sVoyages, vol. ii of our series, note 12.—Ed.

61. The first building on the site of Lewiston was constructed by La Salle’s party in December, 1678. In spite of the protests of Governor Burnet of New-York, Joncaire established (1720) a small French trading post at this point, “a kind of cabin of bark, where they displayed the king’s colors.” It was soon replaced by a blockhouse inclosed by palisades; but after Fort Niagara was rebuilt (1726), this post was allowed to fall into decay. Lewiston was surveyed (1798) for a village site by the Holland Company, and in 1800 contained about ten families. It was a port of entry from 1811 to 1863.—Ed.

62. For the early history of Fort Niagara, see Long’sVoyages, vol. ii of our series, note 19.—Ed.

63. Ninian Pinckney, brother of the statesman William Pinckney, was born at Baltimore (1776), and entered the United States army in 1799. Serving as aide to General Wilkinson in 1813, he was promoted the following year to the rank of lieutenant colonel. He also gained some fame as a writer, by publishing (1809)Travels in the South of France, which “set all the idle world to going to France to live on the charming banks of the Loire.” He died at Baltimore in 1825.—Ed.

64. October 13, 1812, the American regular troops, Lieutenant Colonel Christie commanding, crossed the Niagara River, and stormed and captured Queenstown Heights, six miles from its mouth. General Brock, hastening with reinforcements to the aid of the British, was killed and his troops driven back. But the American militia refused to cross the river to support the regulars and the battle being renewed, the latter were finally surrounded and compelled to surrender. For a brief biography of General Brock, see Buttrick’sVoyages,ante, note 6.Colonel John Christie, born in New-York City in 1786, was a graduate of Columbia College, and in 1808 gave up the study of law to enter the army. For the courage and skill displayed in the battle of Queenstown he was advanced to the rank of colonel, March, 1813. He died the following July from the effects of a wound received in the battle.—Ed.

Colonel John Christie, born in New-York City in 1786, was a graduate of Columbia College, and in 1808 gave up the study of law to enter the army. For the courage and skill displayed in the battle of Queenstown he was advanced to the rank of colonel, March, 1813. He died the following July from the effects of a wound received in the battle.—Ed.

65. It is the intention of the writer to attempt, as soon as he can make the necessary arrangements, to penetrate to the North Pole, and to find a North-West passage by land.—Evans.

66. This is an island of Ontario in the channel between Lakes Superior and Huron.—Ed.

67. For an account of Fort George, see Buttrick’sVoyages,ante, note 7.The village of Newark was about a quarter of a mile from this fort. It was settled by Loyalists immediately after the Revolution, and was then called West Niagara. When, in 1792, the province of Upper Canada was created, it was made the capital, and Governor Simcoe took up his residence there, changing the name to Newark. The Americans captured it (May, 1813), and held the place until the following December. Before leaving, Brigadier-general McClure ordered it to be burned, and all the houses, to the number of one hundred and fifty, were laid in ashes. When it was rebuilt after the war, the name Niagara was adopted.—Ed.

67. For an account of Fort George, see Buttrick’sVoyages,ante, note 7.

The village of Newark was about a quarter of a mile from this fort. It was settled by Loyalists immediately after the Revolution, and was then called West Niagara. When, in 1792, the province of Upper Canada was created, it was made the capital, and Governor Simcoe took up his residence there, changing the name to Newark. The Americans captured it (May, 1813), and held the place until the following December. Before leaving, Brigadier-general McClure ordered it to be burned, and all the houses, to the number of one hundred and fifty, were laid in ashes. When it was rebuilt after the war, the name Niagara was adopted.—Ed.

68. Bordering the river, five miles above Fort Niagara, is a flat more than sixty feet lower than the surrounding territory. Here the British landed on the night of December 18, 1813, and the following day surprised and captured Fort Niagara.—Ed.

69. August 17, 1814, a British force under Major-general Ross landed at the mouth of the Potomac and marched leisurely toward Washington. The city was entirely without defense. Two thousand men having been collected from the surrounding country and a thousand regulars assembled, the British were met (August 24) at Bladensburg—five miles north-east of Washington. Resistance was brief, the Maryland militia fled, followed by the remainder of the troops. Ross entered Washington without further opposition, and burned the public buildings.—Ed.

70. This is hardly a fair illustration. The difficulty was, that the Seminole stronghold was on Spanish territory, and it was Jackson’s boldness in invading neutral territory, pursuing the Indians into the swamps, and seizing the Spanish posts, that ended the war. He entered Florida late in March, 1818; after five days’ march, he reached and destroyed the Indian village, Fowltown; took possession of St. Marks, April 6, and then marched one hundred and seven miles across a swampy wilderness to Suwanee—the town of the Seminole chief Bowlegs. The Indians had been warned and had retreated, but he burned the village, and the war was ended as far as the Seminoles were concerned.—Ed.

71. When on the morning of November 7, 1811, the Indians attacked General Harrison’s camp and thus opened the battle of Tippecanoe, the militia were for a time thrown into confusion, while the Fourth United States Infantry under command of George Rogers Clark Floyd, stood their ground. After the campaign was ended the latter more than hinted that had it not been for them the whole force would have been massacred.—Ed.

72. Major-general Brown having crossed Niagara River (July 3, 1814) and captured Fort Erie, General Riall marched to attack him. The two forces met (July 5) on the plains of Chippewa, midway between Forts George and Erie, and after a sharp skirmish the British retreated to Queenstown. The importance of the battle was overshadowed by that of Lundy’s Lane, which occurred the same month.—Ed.

73. It is held that Niagara Falls have receded seven miles from their position when first known, the average yearly recession being from four to six feet.—Ed.

74. Augustus Porter, brother of General Peter Porter, was born at Salisbury, Connecticut, in 1769. When twenty years of age, he left home for western New-York, becoming a surveyor in the Phelps and Gorham Tract, and later in the Holland Purchase. In 1806, he removed with his family to Niagara Falls, where he continued to reside until his death in 1825. In association with three others, he formed the Portage Company, which leased from the state for fifteen years the exclusive privilege of transporting property across the portage between Lewiston and Schlosser. He was the first judge of Niagara County, opening his first term at Buffalo in 1808. The unusual length of his life enabled him to see the country, through which he had travelled for days without meeting a white man, develop into a populous agricultural and commercial region.—Ed.

75. For a brief account of Black Rock and Buffalo, see Buttrick’sVoyages,ante, notes 4 and 9.—Ed.

76. The Oneida alone remained neutral, and in consequence suffered severely at the hands of the Mohawk, who burned their villages and drove them to seek shelter at Schenectady.—Ed.

77. For the early history of Fort Erie, see Buttrick’sVoyages,ante, note 5.Eleazer Derby Wood, born in New-York City (1783), a graduate of West Point (1806), served in the West during the early part of the war, having conducted the defense of Fort Meigs, and commanded the artillery at the battle of the Thames. He was killed in General Brown’s sortie to raise the siege of Fort Erie (September 17, 1814), and a monument to his memory was erected by that general at West Point.James Gibson, who also died from a wound received in this sortie, was a native of Sussex County, Delaware, and a graduate of West Point. He had been in the battle of Queenstown Heights; was made a colonel, and in July, 1813, inspector-general of the army.—Ed.

77. For the early history of Fort Erie, see Buttrick’sVoyages,ante, note 5.

Eleazer Derby Wood, born in New-York City (1783), a graduate of West Point (1806), served in the West during the early part of the war, having conducted the defense of Fort Meigs, and commanded the artillery at the battle of the Thames. He was killed in General Brown’s sortie to raise the siege of Fort Erie (September 17, 1814), and a monument to his memory was erected by that general at West Point.

James Gibson, who also died from a wound received in this sortie, was a native of Sussex County, Delaware, and a graduate of West Point. He had been in the battle of Queenstown Heights; was made a colonel, and in July, 1813, inspector-general of the army.—Ed.

78. In 1750, Joncaire built a stronghold at the upper end of the Niagara portage, which was known as Fort au Portage; but when, eight years later, the English advanced to invest Fort Niagara, he blew it up and retired across the river. At the close of the French and Indian War (1763), the English built a fort at this point, which they named Fort Schlosser, in honor of Captain Joseph Schlosser, its first commander.—Ed.

79. In retaliation for the burning of Newark, General Riall, upon the capture of Fort Niagara (December, 1813) ordered his troops to destroy all American settlements on the Niagara frontier. Buffalo, Black Rock, Lewiston, Schlosser, and the friendly Seneca and Tuscarora villages were accordingly burned, and the people driven to seek shelter at Batavia.—Ed.

80. The Seneca Indians were the most western of the Iroquois, and during the Revolutionary War had their principal villages on the Genesee River, one of them containing one hundred and twenty-eight houses. These were completely destroyed by Sullivan’s expedition (1779); but although the English invited them to cross into Canada with the Mohawk, they refused to go, and a considerable number settled near the mouth of Buffalo and Cattaraugus creeks. When in 1797 the Holland Company purchased the Indian title to their lands, the Seneca retained reservations at these points, also the Allegheny and Tonawanda reservations already mentioned (ante, p. 153), and five smaller ones in the Genesee valley. In 1838 pressure was brought to bear by the Ogden Land Company, and certain chiefs signed a treaty ceding their lands in New-York, Congress at the same time granting them lands in Indian Territory. The body of the people, however, refused to move; the New-York and Pennsylvania Friends interested themselves in their behalf, and they were allowed to remain.—Ed.

81. The history of the tribe known as the Erie or Cat Nation is obscure and involved, and their habitat uncertain. SeeJesuit Relations, viii, p. 305; xxi, pp. 313–315.—Ed.

82. For the early history of Presqu’ Isle, see Croghan’sJournals, volume i of our series, note 62.—Ed.

83. For the Grand, Cuyahoga, and Rocky Rivers, see Croghan’sJournals, volume i of our series, notes 70, 72, and 73.—Ed.

84. This stream drains Medina and Lorain counties, Ohio, entering Lake Erie about thirty miles west of Cleveland.—Ed.

85. For the Vermillion River, see Croghan’sJournals, volume i of our series, note 76.—Ed.

86. The Huron River rises in northern Ohio, and flowing north-westward empties into Lake Erie about nine miles east of Sandusky.—Ed.

87. The Black Swamp, extending from the Sandusky to the Maumee River, and covering an area of over one hundred and twenty miles in length and an average of forty in width, was entirely avoided by early settlers in northern Ohio. By the Indian treaty signed at Brownstown (1808), the United States government acquired a strip of land to make a road through the swamp; but nothing further than the preliminary surveys being accomplished, the land was later transferred to the State, and the first road completed in 1827. It was very little settled before 1830. In accordance with a state law passed in 1859, a system of public ditches was introduced, which rapidly drained the swamp and transformed it into a fertile agricultural region.—Ed.

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