indianhostagespg
INDIAN ATTACKS
October
15, 1755, a party of Indians fell upon the inhabitants of Mahahany (or
Penn's) Creek, that runs into the river Susquehannah, about five miles
lower that the Great Fork made by the juncture of the two main branches
of the Susquehannah, killed and carried off about twenty-five persons,
and burnt and destroyed their buildings and improvements, and the whole
settlement was deserted." Provincial Records, N.340
"We, the subscribers,
near the mouth of Penn's Creek, on the west side of the Susquehanna, humbly
show, that on or about the 16th inst., (October, 1755) the enemy came down
upon said creek and killed, scalped and carried away all the men, women,
and children, amounting to twenty-five in number, and wounded one man,
who fortunately made his escape, and brought us the news, whereupon the
subscribers went out and buried the dead, whom we found most barbarously
murdered and scalped.
"We found but thirteen,
who were men and elderly women; and children we suppose to be carried away
prisoners. The house where we suppose they finished their murder,
we found burnt up; and the man of it, named Jacob King, a Swisser, lying
just by it. He lay on his back, barbarously burnt, and two tomahawks
sticking in his forehead; one of those marked newly with W. D.-we have
sent them to your honor. The terror of which, has driven away almost
all the back inhabitants, except the subscribers, with a few more who are
willing to stay and endeavor to defend the land; but as we are not all
able of ourselves to defend it for the want of guns and ammunition, and
but few in number, so that without assistance, we must flee and leave the
country to the mercy of the enemy.
We therefore, humbly desire
it, that your honor would take the same into consideration, and order some
speedy relief for the safety of these back settlements, and be pleased
to give us speedy orders what to do.
"George Gliwell, Gates
Auchmundy, John McCahon, Abraham Soverkill, Edmund Matthews, Mark Curry,
William Doran, Dennis Mucklehenny, John Young, John Simmons, George Snabble,
George Aberheart, Daniel Braugh, George Lynn, and Gotfried Fryer." Prov.
records, Np242-3
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Conrad Weiser wrote several
letters to Governor Morris for help to fight the Indians. Two of
his sons, Frederick and Peter, went to Shamokin, to help their cousin with
his family, against the Indians.
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Letter to Gov. Morris, from Conrad Weiser,
Esq. 10/27/1755
May it please your Honor
Since the date of my last
letter, which I sent by express, by Sammy Weiser, dated last Sunday evening,
5 o'clock, and about 11 o'clock, the same night, I sent a letter to Mr.
Read, in this town, who forwarded it to your Honor, by the same opportunity.
The following account
of what has happened since, I thought it was proper to lay before your
Honor, to wit: After I had received the news that Paxton people above
Hunter's Mills, had been murdered, I immediately sent my servants to alarm
the neighborhood. The people came to my house by the break of day.
I informed them of the melancholy news, and how I came by it. They
unanimously agreed to stand by one another and march to meet the enemy,
if I would go with them. I told them that I would not only myself
accompany them, but my sons, and servants should also go-they put themselves
under my direction. I gave them orders to go home and fetch their
arms, whether guns, swords, pitch-forks, axes or whatever might be of use
against the enemy and to bring with them three days provision in their
knapsacks, and to meet at Benjamin Spicker's, at three of the clock that
afternoon, about six miles above my house, in Tulpehocken township, where
I had sent word for Tulpehocken people also to meet.
I immediately mounted
my horse, and went up to Benjamin Spicker's where I found about one hundred
persons who had met before I came there; and after I had informed them
of the intelligence, that I had promised to go with them as a common soldier,
and be commanded by such officers, and leading men, whatever they might
call them, as they should choose. The unanimously agreed to join
the Heidelberg people, and accordingly they went home, to fetch their arms,
and provisions for three days, and again at 3 o'clock. All
this was punctually performed; and about two hundred were at Benjamin Spicker's
by two o'clock.
I made the necessary disposition,
and the people were divided into companies of thirty men in each company,
and they chose their own officers; that is, a captain over each company,
and three inferior officers under each, to take care of ten men, and lead
them on, or fire, as the captain should direct.
I sent privately for Mr.
Kurtz, the Lutheran minister, who lived about one mile off, who came and
gave an exhortation to the men, and made a prayer suitable to the time.
Then we marched towards Susquehannah, having first sent about fifty men
to Tolheo, in order to possess themselves of the gaps or narrows of Swahatawro
(Swatara), where he expected the enemy would come through; with those fifty,
I sent a letter to Mr. Parsons, who happened to be at his plantation.
We marched about ten miles
that evening. My company had now increased to upwards of three hundred
men, mostly well-armed, though about twenty men had nothing but axes, and
pitch-forks-all unanimously agreed to die together and engage the enemy,
whatever they should meet them; never to inquire the number, but fight
them, and so obstruct their way of marching further into the inhabited
parts, till others of our brethren come up and do the same, and so save
the lives of our wives and our children.
The night we made the
first halt, the powder and lead was brought up from Reading, (I had sent
for it early in the morning,) and I ordered it to the care of the officers,
and to divide it among those that wanted it the most.
On the 28th, by daybreak,
we marched; our company increasing all along. We arrived at Adam
Reed's, Esq. in Hanover township, Lancaster (now Lebanon) county, at about
ten o'clock-there we stopped and rested till the rest came up. Mr.
Read had just received intelligence from Susquehannah, by express, which
was as follows, to wit: That Justice Frostier, Capt. McKee, John
Harris, and others to the number of forty-nine, went up to Shamokin to
bury the dead bodies of those that had been killed by the enemy on John
Penn's creek, and coming up to George Gabriel's, about five miles this
side Shamokin, and on the west of Susquehannah, they heard that the dead
bodies had been buried already, and so they went along to Shamokin, where
they arrived last Friday evening, and were seemingly well received, but
found a great number of strange Indians, the Delawares, all painted black,
which gave suspicion; and Thomas McKee told his companions that he did
not like them, and the next morning-that is last Saturday-they got up early,
in order to go back; but they did not see any of the strangers. They
were gone before them. Andrew Montour was there, painted as the rest;
he advised our people not to go the same road they came, but to keep on
this side the Susquehannah, and go the old road; but when they came to
the parting of the roads, a majority was for going the highest, and best
road, as so crossed Susquehannah, contrary to Andrew Montour's counsel,
in order to go down on the west side of the river, as far as to Mahahany;
when they came to John Penn's creek, in going down the bank, they were
fired upon from this side by the Indians that had waylaid them, some dropped
down dead; the rest fled and made towards Susquehannah, and came to this
side, and so home, as well as they could. Twenty-six of them were
missing and not heard of as yet, last Monday.
Upon this we had a consultation,
and we did not come up to serve as guards to the Paxton people, but to
fight the enemy, if they were come so far, as we first heard, we thought
best to return and take care of our own townships.
After I had given the
necessary caution to the people to hold themselves in readiness, as the
enemy was certainly in the country, to keep their arms in good order, and
so on, and then discharged them-and we marched back, with the approbation
of Mr. Reed. By the way, we were alarmed, by a report, that five
hundred Indians had come over the mountain at Tolheo, to this side, and
had already killed a number of people. We stopped and sent a few
men to discover the enemy, but, on their return, proved to be a false alarm,
occasioned by that company that I had sent that way the day before, whose
guns getting wet, they fired them off, which was the cause of alarm-this
not only had alarmed the company, but whole townships through which they
marched. In going back, I met messengers from other townships about
Conestoga, who came for intelligence, and ask me where their assistance
was necessary, promising that they would come to the place where I should
direct.
I met also at Tulpehocken,
above one hundred men will armed, as to fire arms, ready to follow me;
so that they were in the whole, about five hundred men in arms that day,
all marching up towards Susquehannah. I, and Mr. Adam Reed, counted
those that were with me-we found them three hundred and twenty.
I cannot send any further
account, being uncommonly fatigued. I should not forget, however,
to inform your Honor, that Mr. Reed has engaged to keep proper persons
riding between his house and Susquehannah, and if any thing material shall
occur, he will send me tidings to Heidelberg or to Reading, which I shall
take care to dispatch to you. I find that great care has been taken
at Reading, to get the people attending me, were discharged, the people
from the country went off without consulting what should be done for the
future, through the indiscretion of a person who was with them, and wanted
to go home; and near the town they met a large company coming up, and gave
such accounts as occasioned their turning back. I think most of the
inhabitants would do their duty; but without some military regulations,
we shall never be able to defend the province.
I am sure we are in great
danger, and by an enemy that can travel as Indians, we may be surprised
when it would be impossible to collect any number of men together to defend
themselves, and then the country would be laid waste. I am quite
tired, and must say no more that that. I am your Honour's Most obedient
servant, Conrad Weiser (Provincial records, N.p249-251
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From the Following extract,
taken from the Pennsylvania Gazette, of Nov. 13, 1755, the names of the
murdered and missing at Great Cove, may be seen-Elizabeth Gallway, Henry
Gilson, Robert Peer, William Berryhill and David McClelland were murdered.
The missing are John Martin's wife and five children; William Gallway's
wife and two children, and a young woman; Charles Stewart's wife and two
children; David McClelland's wife and two children. William Fleming
and wife were taken prisoners. Fleming's son, and one Hicks, were
killed and scalped.
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October 31, 1755
To the Rev Kurtz and all other Friends:
This morning, very early,
between four and five o'clock, Adam Rees, and inhabitant over the first
mountain, about six miles from Lawrance Hout's, who lives on this side
of the mountain, came to my house, and declared, that yesterday, between
11 and 12 o'clock, he heard three guns fired towards the plantation of
his neighbor, Henry Hartman, which made him suspect that something more
that ordinary had happened there. Whereupon he took his gun and went
over to Hartman's house, being about a quarter of a mile off, and found
him lying dead upon his face; his head was scalped; but saw no body else.
He thereupon made the best of his way through the woods to the inhabitants
on this side of the mountain, to inform them of what had happened.
He further informs me that he had been to Adam Reed's, Esq, and related
the whole of the affair to him and that Reed is raising men to go over
the mountain in quest of the murders. Wm. Parsons
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Two men lying dead, 1 scalped, on the Shamokin
road.
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Reading, November 16, 1755
My Dearest Father:
I'm in so much horror
and confusion, I scarce know what I'm writing. The drum is beating
to arms-bells ringing-and all the people under arms. Within these
two hours, we have had different, though too certain accounts, all corroborating
each other!-and this moment is and express arrived and dispatches news
from Michael Reis's at Tulpehocken, eighteen miles above this town, who
left about thirty of their people engaged, with about an equal number of
Indians, at said Reis's. This night we expect an attack. Truly
alarming is our situation. The people exclaim against the Quakers,
and some are scarce restrained from burning the houses of those few who
are in this town. Oh, my country! my bleeding country!!
I recommend myself wholly
to the divine God of armies. Give my dutiful love to my dearest mother,
and my best love to brother Jemmy. I am, honored sir, Your affectionate
and obedient son, Edward Biddle.
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Tulpehocken, the 16 November, 1755
Yesterday the Indians
attacked the Watch, killed and wounded him, at Derrick Sixth (Dietrich
Six) and in that neighborhood, a great many in that night.
This morning the people
went out to see, and about 10 o'clock came to Thomas Bower's house, finding
a man dead-killed with a gun shot. They soon heard a noise of firing
guns; running to that place, saw four Indians setting on children, scalping
them-three of the children are dad, two are still living, though scalped.
Afterwards our people went to the Watch-house of Derrick Sixth, where the
Indians made the first attack. They found six dead bodies; four of
them scalped; about a mile on this side of the Watch-house, as they came
back, the Indians had set fire to a stable and barn; burnt the corn, cows
and other creatures-here they found five Indians in a house eating their
dinner and drinking rum which had been in the house; two of them were on
the outside the house. They fired upon them, but without doing execution.
The Indians have burnt the improvements on four other plantations.
I have this account from
those above named, and from Peter Anspack, Jacob Caderman, Christopher
Noacre, Leonard Walborn, George Dollinger, and Adam Dieffenbach............Peter
Spycker
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Berks County
As the group of men were
heading towards Dietrich Six's, they found these:
A child about eight years
old, daughter of one Cola, lying dead and scalped.
At Abraham Sneider's place, the wife of Cola
was found dead in the corn field and a child about eight or nine.
Both dead and scalped. In the house they found another child of the
said Cola's, about ten years old, dead and scalped.
At Thomas Bower's home,
was found a dead man scalped, whose name may have been Philip, a shoemaker
by trade.
Casper Spring, dead and
scalped, having buried him, they marched about one hundred rods and found
one, Beslinger, dead and scalped, they buried him.
They found an Indian,
dead and scalped, killed by Frederick Weiser the day before.
A child of Jacob Wolf,
scalped.
John Leinberger and Rudolph
Candel, were found scalped.
Casper Spring's brains
were beat out, had two cuts in his breast; was shot in the back, and otherwise
cruelly used, which regard to decency forbids mentioning; and that Beslinger's
brains were beat out, his mouth much mangled, one of his eyes cut out,
and one of his ears gashed and had two knives lying on his breast.
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November 19, 1755
Philip and Frederick Weiser
gave the following relation, to wit: that on Saturday last, about 4 o'clock
in the afternoon, as some men from Tulpehocken were going to Dietrich Six's
places, at the foot of the hill, on the Shamokin road, to be on the watch
appointed there, they were fired upon by Indians; but none were hurt nor
killed. Our people were but six in number-the rest being behind-upon
which our people rant towards the Watch-house, which was about one half
mile off; the Indians pursued them, killed and scalped several of them.
A bold, stout Indian come up to one Christopher Ury, who turned about and
shot the Indian right through his breast. The Indian dropped down
dead, but was dragged out of the way by his companions-he was fond next
day and scalped by our people.
The Indians divided themselves
into two parties. Some came this way, to meet the rest going to the
Watch, and killed some of them; so that six of our men were killed that
day and a few wounded. The night following, the enemy attacked the
house of Thomas Bower, on Swatara creek. They came, in the dark night
to the house and one of them put his fire are through the window and shot
a shoemaker, who was at work, dead on the spot. (A neighbor heard
shots and came to assist)
By eight of the clock,
parties came up from Tulpehocken and Heidelberg. The first party
saw four Indians running off. They had some prisoners, whom they
scalped immediately. Three children lay scalped, yet alive; one died
since; the other two are likely to do well.
Another party found a
woman just expired, with a male child lying at her side-both killed and
scalped. The woman lay upon her face; my son Frederick turned her
about to see who she might have been-to his surprise, they found a babe
of about fourteen days old, under her, wrapt in a small cushion; his nose
was quite flat, which was set right by Frederick, and life was yet in it,
and recovered again!
Upon the whole there are
about fifteen of our people, including men, women, and children killed;
and the enemy is not beaten. (Conrad Weiser)
Reading, November, 1755
Indian attacks
November 25, 1755, Northampton
Moravian settlement, called
Gnaden-hutten, on the west branch of the river Delaware, killed six of
the inmates, burnt down their dwellings, meeting houses, and all their
out-houses, their grain, hay, horses and upwards of fifty head of cattle
that were under cover. During December, 1755, the Indians killed
all before them in the county of Northampton, and already burnt fifty houses,
murdered above one hundred persons, and are still continuing their ravages,
murders, and devastations, and have actually overrun and laid waste a great
part of that county, even as far as within twenty-five miles of Easton.
And a large body of Indians under the direction of French officers, have
fixed their head quarters within the borders of that county, for the better
security of their prisoners and plunders.
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February 15, 1756
Albany township
The Indians came yesterday
morning, about eight o'clock, to Frederick Reichelderfer's house, as he
was feeding his horses, and two of the Indians ran upon him and followed
him into a field ten or twelve perches off; but he escaped and ran towards
Jacob Gerhart's house, with a design to fetch some arms. When he
came near Gerhart's, he heard a lamentable cry, Lord Jesus!, Lord Jesus!
which made him run back toward his own house; but before he got quite
home, he saw his house and stables in flames; and heard the cattle bellowing,
and thereupon ran away again.
Two of his children were
shot; one of them was found dead in his field, the other was found alive,
and brought to Hakenbrook's house, but died three hours after. All
his grain and cattle are burnt up. At Jacob Gerhart's they have killed
one man, two women, and six children. Two children slipped under
the bed; one of which was burned; the other escaped, and ran a mile to
get to the people. We desire help, or we must leave our homes. Yours,
Valentine Probst
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Mr. Levan immediately
repaired to Albany township, but before he reached the scene of horror,
additional intelligence was received by him of other murders. In
a letter from him to James Read and Jonas Seely, of Reading, he says:
"When I had got ready to go with my neighbors from Maxatany, to see what
damage was done in Albany, three men, that had seen the shocking affair,
came and told me, that eleven were killed, eight of them burnt, and the
other three found dead out of the fire. An old man was scalped, the
two others, little girls, were not scalped.
In March, 1756, the Indians
laid the house and barn of Barnabus Seitle in ashes, and the mill of Peter
Conrad, and killed Mrs. Neytong, the wife of Baltser Neytong, and took
his son, a lad of eight, captive.
On March 24, 1756, the
house of Peter Kluck, about fourteen miles from Reading, was set on fire
by the savages, and the whole family killed. Next the house of one
Linderman, in which there were two men and a woman, all of whom ran up
stairs, where the woman was shot dead through the roof.
March 8, 1756, from Hanover
township, Lancaster county. Andrew Lycan, who lived over the mountain,
was attacked by the Indians. He had with him a son, John Lycan, a
negro man, and a boy and two of his neighbors, John Revolt and Ludwig Shut.
They were wounded by the Indians but lived.
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Herford township, March 28, 1756
John Kraushar, and his
wife, and William Yeth, and his boy, about twelve years old, went to their
places to find their cattle, and on their return, were fired upon by five
Indians, who had his themselves about ten perches from the road, when Yeth
was mortally wounded in the back; Kraushar's wife was found dead and scalped,
and had three cuts in her right arm with a tomahawk. Kraushar made
his escape, and the boy was carried off by the enemy. That on the
24th March, ten wagons went up to Allemaengel to bring down a family with
their effects; and as they were returning, about three miles below George
Zeisloff's were fired upon by a number of Indians from both sides of the
road; upon which the wagoners left their wagons and ran into the woods,
and the horses frightened at the firing and terrible yealling of the Indians,
ran down a hill and broke one of the wagons to pieces. That the enemy
killed George Zeisloff and his wife, a lad of twenty, a boy of twelve,
also a girl of fourteen years old, four of whom they scalped. That
another girl was shot in the neck, and through the mouth, and scalped,
notwithstanding all which she got off, and was alive, when the letter was
written.
At the same time, the
Indians carried off a young lad, named John Schoep, about nine years old,
whom they took by night, seven miles beyond the Blue Mountain; where, according
to the statement of the lad, the Indians kindled a fire, tied him to a
tree, and took of his shoes and put moccasins on his feet-that they prepared
themselves some mush, but gave him none. After supper they marched
on further. The same Indians took him and another lad between them,
and went beyond the second mountain; having gone six times through streams
of water, and always carried him across. The second evening they
again struck up fire; took off his moccasins, and gave him a blanket to
cover himself; but at midnight when all the Indians were fast asleep, he
made his escape, and by daybreak had traveled about six miles. He
passed on that day, sometimes wading streams neck-deep, in the direction
of the Blue Mountain-that night he stayed in the woods. The next
day, exhausted and hungry, he arrived, by noon, at Uly Meyer's plantation,
where Charles Folk's company lay, where they wished him to remain till
he had regained strength.
In June, 1756, the Indians
once more commit deliberate murder, in Bethel township, Lancaster county.
A letter dated Bethel township, June 9, makes mention that yesterday, the
8th inst., in the afternoon, between three and four o'clock, four of five
Indians made an incursion, at a place called "The Hole" where the Great
Swatara creek runs through the Blue Mountain-they crept up unobserved behind
the fence of Felix Wuensch, shot him, as he was ploughing, through the
breast. He cried lamentably, and run, but the Indians soon came up
with him. He defended himself sometime with his whip; they cut his
hand and breast in a cruel manner with their tomahawks, and scalped him.
His wife hearing his cries, and the report of two guns, ran out of the
house, but was soon taken by the enemy, who carried her with one of her
own and two of her sister's children, away with them, after setting the
house on fire. A servant boy who was at some distance, seeing this,
ran to their neighbor, George Mies, and told him what had happened.
Upon which Mies, though he had a bad leg, with his son, ran directly after
the Indians, and raised a great noise, which so frightened the Indians,
that they immediately took to their heels, and in their flight left a tub
of butter and a side of bacon behind them. Mies then went to the
house, which was in flames and threw down the fences, in order to save
the barn. They drank all the brandy in the spring house and took
several gammons, a quantity of meal, some loaves of bread, ad a great many
other things.
Immediately on the above
murder being perpetrated, twenty families went into Smith's Fort, which
was but one mile and a quarter from where Wuensch lived, and that still
more were expected to go into the fort.
From the Gazette, of June
24; We have advice from Fort Henry, in Berks county, (Bethel township),
that two children of Lawrence Dieppel, who lives about two miles from said
fort, are missing, and thought to be carried off by the Indians, as one
of their hats has been found, and several Indian tracks seen. (One
of them found cruelly murdered and scalped, a boy about four years old,
and that the other, also a boy eight years old was still missing)
July 1, 1756 We have advice that on
Saturday last, nine Indians came to "The Hole", in Swatara, and killed
and scalped four persons and shot two horses, and that a party of men went
in pursuit of them.
Last Tuesday, the 12th
inst., ten Indians came on Noah Frederick, while ploughing, killed and
scalped him, and carried away three of his children that were with him-
the eldest but nine years old-and plundered his house and carried away
every thing that suited their purpose.
Bethel township-Frederick
Kenly and Peter Sample, killed.
Adam Reed wrote this account:
seven killed and five children scalped alive, but have not the account
of their names.
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November 19, 1756
Indians made and incursion
in Berks county, killed and scalped two married women, and a lad fourteen
years of age, wounded two children of about four years of age, and carried
off two more, one of the wounded is scalped and is likely to die, and the
other has two cuts on her forehead, given by and Indian, who attempted
to scalp her, but did not succeed. There were eight men, of Fort
Henry, posted in different neighbor's houses, about one mile and a half
off, when they heard the noise of the guns firing, made immediately towards
it, but came too late.
A woman from Heidelberg
township, Berks county,missing for three weeks past, supposed to be carried
off by the enemy.
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From Reading, Berks county,
there is advice that a man was lately killed by the Indians. A letter
from Fort Lebanon, states that sixteen Indians were seen near that place.
In a letter from Hanover,
Lancaster county, dated May 2, 1757, it is said that on the night of the
29th ult, the house of Isaac Snevely was set on fire and entirely consumed
with eighteen horses and cows.
Since our last, we hear
from Lancaster, that on the 17th May, five men, and a woman, enciente,
were killed and scalped by the Indians, about thirty miles from Lancaster,
and that the bodies of the men and the women, had been brought down there
by some in the neighborhood where the murders were committed. We
are likewise informed that an express arrived in Lancaster, on Saturday
last, with an account of seven people being killed in one house, the night
before. And there are letters in town, which advice of more murders
being committed; the number uncertain, but is thought there are above twenty
destroyed, besides what may be carried off; and that the frontier inhabitants
are in great distress, and moving from their plantations as fast as they
can. The number of the Indians that have done, and are doing the
mischief, not known. These late murders have been done in Bethel,
Hanover, and Paxton townships.
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June 25, 1757
Adam Trump, murdered in
Allemaengel, by Indians and that evening and that they had taken Trump's
wife and his son, a lad nineteen years old, prisoners; but the woman escaped,
though upon her flying, she was so closely pursued by one of the Indians,
that he threw his tomahawk at her, and cut her badly in the neck.
This happened during a terrible thunderstorm.
Also during the thunderstorm,
at Fort Henry a party killed and scalped. Northkill, two persons
killed and scalped near the fort, also during the thunderstorm.
July 4, 1754
Tulpehocken-three women and four children
were murdered.
July 9, 1757, Heidelberg
Yesterday, about three
of the clock, in the afternoon, between Valentine Herchelroad's, and Tobias
Bickell's, four Indians killed two children; one about four years, the
other five; they at the same time scalped a young woman of about sixteen;
but with proper care, she is likely to live and do well.
Christian Schrenk's wife,
being among the rest, bravely defended herself and children, for a while;
wrestling the gun out of the Indian's hands, who assaulted her, also his
tomahawk, and threw them away; and afterwards was obliged to save her own
life, two of her children were taken captives in the mean time. In
this house were also twenty women and children, who had fled from their
own habitations, to take shelter; the men belonging to them were about
one half mile off, picking cherries-they came as quick as possible and
went in pursuit of the Indians, but to no purpose. (Pa Gazette, July
1757)
We hear from Linn township,
(now Greenwich), Berks county that as Adam Klaus and his neighbors were
reaping rye, July 9th, they were surprised by a party of Indians; two men,
two women, and a young girl escaped. Martin Yeager, (Hunter) and
his wife were killed and scalped. John Kraushaar's wife and child,
Abraham Seckler's wife and one of Adam Clauss's children were scalped,
and are still living, though badly wounded; one of the women is wounded
in the side and the other in the hip. Two of Kraushaar's children
were killed; one of Seckler's and one of Philip Eschton's but were not
scalped. The alarm being raised, a party went in pursuit of them,
and overtook nine, and fired upon them. But they soon eluded the
pursuit of the whites.
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August 11, 1757 (Hanover, Lancaster county)
Last Thursday, John Andrew's wife, going
to a neighbor's house, was surprised by six Indians, had her horse shot
under her, and she and her child were carried off. On Saturday, in
Bethel township, as John Winkelblech's two sons, and Joseph Fischbach,
a soldier in the pay of the Province, went out about sunrise, to bring
in the cows, they were fired upon by about fifteen Indians; the two lads
were killed; one of them was scalped; the other got into the house before
he died, and the soldier was wounded in the hand.
The same day Leonard Long's
son was ploughing, and was killed and scalped. On the other side
of the fence, Leonard Miller's son was ploughing; he was made a prisoner.
Near Benjamin Clarke's
house, four miles from the mill, two Indians surprised Isaac Williams'
wife, and the widow Williams, alias Smelley, killed and scalped the former,
in sight of the house, she having run a little way, after three balls ad
been shot through her body; the latter they carried away captive.
About the same time, as
George Maurer was cutting oats in George Scheffer's field, he was killed
and scalped, two miles from the hill, so that was not all done by one party.
There was a severe sickness
in these parts-the like has not been known-that many families can neither
fight nor run away which occasions great distress on the frontiers.
August 17, one Beatly
was killed in Paxton, that the next day, James Mackey was murdered in Hanover,
and William and Joseph Barnet wounded. These taken prisoner; a son
of James Mackey, a son of Joseph Barnet, Elizabeth Dickey and her child,
and the wife of Samuel Young and her child. Ninety-four men, women
and children were seen flying from their places, in one body, and a great
many more in smaller parties, so that it was feared the settlements would
be entirely forsaken.
Fort Lebanon; Sunday,
the 21st August, the house and barn of Peter Semelcke were burnt and three
of his children carried off; himself, wife and one child being from home
at the time.
Lebanon township, that
on last Friday, four children were carried off by Indians. From Reading,
Berks county, that on Thursday and Friday last, some people were murdered
in Bern township, and carried off.
October 1, 1757, Hanover
township. Child of Peter Wampler carried off.
More killed in Hanover
township and four persons were killed near Northkill.
On the 25th of November,
Thomas Robinson, and a son of Thomas Bell, were killed and scalped by the
Indians, in Hanover township.
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April 8, 1758, Tulpehocken
I and Mr. Kern have just
arrived at Mr. Jacob Sherman's where we have been informed that a woman
was killed and scalped by the Indians last night, about three miles from
here. We are now ready to pursue them. The persons killed,
besides one taken captive, are two young men at Swatara, brothers, by the
name of Shetterly, one Michael Sauter, and William Hart, and a widow taken
captive.
At Tulpehocken, a man
by the name of Lebenguth and his wife were killed and scalped. At
Northkill, Nicholas Geiger, and wife and two of his children were killed;
and also Michael Ditzelar's wife was killed, these were all scalped.
On Monday, the 22d of
May, 1758, Barnabas Tolon was killed and scalped in Hanover township, Lancaster
county. And we are will informed that one hundred and twenty-three
persons have been murdered or carried off from that county, by the Indians,
since the war commenced; and that three have been scalped and yet alive.
A letter from Fort Henry,
in Berks county, dated June 17, 1758, mentions the wife of John Frantz,
and three children being carried off by the Indians; and that the woman
was murdered a little way from Frantz's house, she being weakly and not
able to travel. Also, that the son of Jacob Snavely, a shoemaker,
was killed and scalped about the same time.
Swatara township, Tuesday,
the 20 inst. A Dutchman was shot and scalped and the next day one
Samuel Robinson was shot.
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Fort Henry, October 4, 1758
The first of October,
the Indians burnt a house on Swatara, killed one man, and three are missing.
Two boys were found tied to a tree and were released.
Reading, Nov. 15, 1758
We learn that on the 13th
inst., Jacob Mossier and Hans Adam Mossier, were killed by the Indians,
in Bethel township.
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In the early part of September,
in the afternoon, eight well-armed Indians came to the house of John Fincher,
a Quaker, residing north of the Blue Mountain, in Berks county, about twenty-four
miles from Reading, and within three-quarters of a mile of a party of six
men of Captain Kern's company of Rangers, commanded by ensign Scheffer.
At the approach of the Indians, John Fincher, his wife, two sons and daughters,
immediately went to the door and asked them to enter in and eat;
expressed their hopes that they came as friends, and entreated them to
spare their lives. The Indians were deaf to the entreaties of Fincher.
Both parents and two sons were deliberately murdered; their bodies were
found on the spot. The daughter was missing after the departure of
the Indians, and it was supposed from the cries, that were heard by the
neighbors, that she also was slain.
A young lad, who lived
with Fincher, made his escape, and notified ensign Scheffer, who instantly
went in pursuit of these heartless, cold-blooked assassins. He pursued
them to the house of one Millar, where he found four children murdered;
the Indians having carried two others with them. Millar and his wife
being at work in the field, saved their lives by flight. Mr. Millar
himself, was pursued near one mile by and Indian, who fired at them twice
while in hot pursuit. Scheffer and his party continued their pursuit
and overtook the savages, firing upon them. The Indians returned
the fire, and a sharp, but short conflict ensued, the enemy fled, leaving
behind them Millar's two children, and part of the plunder they had taken.
These barbarous Indians
had scalped all the persons whom they had murdered, except an infant, about
two weeks old, whose head they had dashed against the wall, where the brains
with clotted blood on the wall was a witness of their cruelty. The
consequence of this massacre was the desertion of all the settlements beyond
the Blue Mountain.
A few days after these
atrocious murders, the house of Frantz Hubler, in Bern township, 18 miles
from Reading, was attacked by surprise, Hubler was wounded; his wife and
three of his children were carried off, and three other of his children
scalped alive; two of these shortly afterwards died.
Murder and cruelty marked
the path of these Indians. From the many acts of savage ferocity
committed in Berks county, may be noticed that on the 10th day of September,
1763, when five of these Indians entered the house of Philip Martloff,
at the base of the Blue mountain, murdered and scalped his wife, two sons
and two daughters, burnt the house and barn, the stacks of hay and grain,
and destroyed everything of any value. Martloff was absent from home,
and one daughter escaped at the time of the murder, by running and secreting
herself in a thicket. The father and daughter were left in abject
misery.
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Lancaster, August,
Friday 13, 1762
James Hamilton, Esq., Lieut.
Governor of Pennsylvania, recovered the following prisoners from the hands
of King Veaver: Names of Prisoners-Thomas Moore, taken from Potomack, Maryland.
Philip Studebecker, taken from Conegocheaque, Md. Ann Dougherty and
Peter Condon, taken in Pennsylvania, Mary Stroudman, taken from Conegocheaque,
Pa., William Jackson taken from Tulpehocken, Pa., Elizabeth Adam, and John
Lloyd, from Little Cove, Pa, Dorathy Shabrin, from Big Cove, Elanor Lancestoctes,
from Pa., Hans Boyer, a boy, not know from whence taken. Richard
Rogers, Esther Rogers, Jacob Rogers, Archibald Holtemon, and Rebecca Walter,
all from Virginia, about the South Branch.
"Thursday, 19 Aug., 1762,
the following were delivered: Elizabeth Williams, a young woman,
delivered by Mussause, a Muncy Indian. Henry Williams, about eighteen
years old, brother to Elizabeth Williams, delivered by Canyhocheratoquin,
a Muncy. Peggy Dougherty, delivered by Eckgohson, a Muncy, Mary Tidd
and her child, taken near Samuel Depuis by Eckgohson. Abigail Evan
and her child, taken at Stony Creek, in Virginia, by Cowachsora, a Seneca.
"A boy by Meightong, a
Muncy. A little girl by Eckgohson, a Muncy. A little boy, Pessewanck,
a Muncy. A boy of about fourteen years, by Eckgohson. A boy
of twelve years, by Cowackslaira, a Seneca. A little boy of seven
years, by Coracksaraa, a Seneca. These children's names unknown,
as they cannot speak English, or give any account from whence they were
taken."
p344
History of Berks and Lebanon Counties
I Daniel Rupp
© Brenda Creasy