INDIAN HISTORY Archives - BEAVER COUNTY INDIANS

From Thomas Jefferson to Indian Nations, 10 January 1809 ✍🏻

admin — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 16:02:30 +0000

MORE LIES&PROMISES AND FALSE COMPLIMENTARY CONVIVIALTY

From Thomas Jefferson to Indian Nations, 10 January 1809

Jan. 10. 1809.

“My Children Chiefs of the Wiandots, Ottawas, Chippeways, Poutewatamies & Shawanese.

This is the first time I have had the pleasure of seeing the distinguished men of our neighbors the Wiandots, Ottawas & Chippeways at the Seat of our Government. I welcome you to it as well as the Poutewatamies & Shawanese and thank the great Spirit for having conducted you hither in safety & health. I take you and your people by the hand and salute you as my Children; I consider all my red children as forming one family with the whites, born in the same land with them, and bound to live like brethren, in peace, friendship, & good neighborhood. in former times, my Children, we were not our own Masters but were governed by the English. Then we were often at war with our red neighbors. ill blood was raised, & kept up, between us, and in the war, in which we threw off the English Government, many of the red people, mistaking their brothers & real friends, took side with the English against us: & it was not, till many years after we made peace with the English, that the treaty of Grenville closed our last wars with our Indian Neighbors. from that time, My Children, we have looked on you as a part of ourselves and have cherished your prosperity as our own. We saw that three things were wasting away your numbers to nothing. that the intemperate use of ardent Spirits produced poverty, troubles & murders among you. Your wars with one another were lessening your numbers: & attachment to the hunter life, after game had nearly left you, produced famine sickness & deaths among you in the Scarce Season of every year. It has been our endeavor therefore, like your true fathers and brothers to withhold strong liquors from you, to keep you at peace with one another, & to encourage, & aid you in the culture of the earth, & raising domestic Animals, to take place of the wild ones. this we have done, my Children, because we are your friends, & wish you well. if we feared you, if we were your enemies, we should have furnished you plentifully with whisky, let the men destroy one another in perpetual wars, & the women & children waste away for want of food and remain insensible that they could raise it out of the Earth.

We have been told, my Children, that some of you have been doubting whether we or the English were your truest friends. what do the English do for you? they furnish you with plenty of whiskey, to keep you in idleness, drunkenness, & poverty; and they are now exciting you to join them in war against us, if war should take place between them and us. But we tell you to stay at home in quiet, to take no part in quarrels which do not concern you. the English are now at war with all the world but us, and it is not yet known whether they will not force us also into it. they are Strong on the water, but weak on the land. We live on the land, & we fear them not. we are able to fight our own battles; therefore, we do not ask you to Spill your blood in our quarrels: much less do we wish to be forced to Spill it with our own hands. you have travelled through our Country from the Lakes to the tide waters. You have seen our numbers in that direction: and were you to pass along the Sea Shore, you would find them much greater. you know the English numbers, their Scattered forts and String of people, along the borders of the Lakes & the St. Lawrence how long do you think it will take us to sweep them out of the Country?—&, when they are swept away, what is to become of those who join them in their war against us? My Children, if you love the land in which you were born, if you wish to inhabit the earth which covers the bones of your fathers, take no part in the war between the English & us, if we should have war. never will we do an unjust Act towards you. On the contrary we wish to befriend you in every possible way. but the tribe which shall begin an unprovoked war against us will extirpate from the Earth, or drive to such a distance, as that they shall never again be able to strike us. I tell you these things My Children, not to make you afraid. I know you are brave men & therefore cannot fear. but you are also wise men, & prudent men. I say it therefore, that, in your wisdom & prudence, you may look forward. that you may go to the graves of your fathers and say ‘fathers shall we abandon you?’ that you may look in the faces of your wives & children & ask ‘shall we expose these our own flesh & blood to perish from want in a distant country and have our race & name extinguished from the face of the Earth’?. think of these things my Children, as wise men, & as men loving their fathers, their wives & children & the name & memory of their Nation. I repeat that we will never make an unjust act towards you. On the contrary we wish you to live in peace, to increase in numbers, to learn to labor, as we do, and furnish food for your increasing numbers, when the game shall have left you. we wish to see you possessed property, & protecting it by regular laws. in time you will be as we are; you will become one people with us; your blood will mix with ours; & will spread, with ours, over this great Island. hold fast then, my Children, the Chain of friendship, which binds us together; & join us in keeping it forever bright & unbroken. —

I invited you to come here, my Children, that you might hear, with your own ears, the words of your father; that you might see, with your own eyes, the sincere dispositions of the U.S. towards you. in your journey to this place you have seen great numbers of your white brothers; you have been received by them as brothers, have been treated kindly & hospitably, & you have seen & can tell your people that their hearts are now sincerely with you. This is the first time I have ever addressed your Chiefs, in person, at the Seat of Government. It will also be the last. sensible that I am become too old to watch over the extensive concerns of the Seventeen States & their territories, I requested my fellow Citizens to permit me to retire to live with my family and to choose another President for themselves, and father for you. they have done so; and in a short time, I shall retire & resign into his hands the care of your and our Concerns. be assured, my Children; that he will have the same friendly dispositions towards you which I have had, & that you will find in him a true and affectionate father. Indeed, this is now the disposition of all our people towards you. They look upon you as brethren, born in the same land, & having the same interests. Tell your people therefore, to entertain no uneasiness on account of this change; for there will be no change as to them. deliver to them my Adieux, and my prayers to the Great Spirit for their happiness. tell them that, during my administration, I have held their hand fast in mine; & that I will put it into the hand of their New father, who will hold it as I have done.—”

Th: Jefferson

Black Hoof (1731-1831) the Shawnee chief called Ca-ta-he-cassa, fought for 40 years to hold lands north of the Ohio River. But he reconciled to peaceful association with the Euro-Americans after he signed the Treaty of Greene Ville. Black Hoof, who at the time of his death was rumored to be 100 years old, died near Wapakoneta, Ohio. (Photo is courtesy of touringohio.com)

The post From Thomas Jefferson to Indian Nations, 10 January 1809 ✍🏻 appeared first on BEAVER COUNTY INDIANS.

Letter by George Washington to the Seneca Chiefs, 29 December 1790 🪓🌽

admin — Sat, 15 Nov 2025 14:02:57 +0000

As long as someone else controls your history the truth shall remain just a mystery.

—Ben Harper

A sad and powerful example of how broken promises and dismantled treaties commenced since the founding of our nation predicated to the extinction of another.

To the Seneca Chiefs

[Philadelphia, 29 December 1790]

I, the President of the United States, by my own mouth, and by a written speech signed with my own hand, and sealed with the seal of the United States, speak to the Seneka Nation, and desire their Attention, and that they would keep this speech in remembrance of the friendship of the United States.

I have received your Speech with satisfaction, as a proof of your confidence in the justice of the United States—and I have attentively examined the several objects which you have laid before me, whether delivered by your Chiefs at Tioga point in the last month to Colonel Pickering, or laid before me in the present month by the Cornplanter and the other Seneka Chiefs now in Philadelphia.

In the first place I observe to you, and I request it may sink in your minds, that it is my desire, and the desire of the United States that all the miseries of the late war should be forgotten and buried forever. That in future, the United States and the six nations should be truly brothers, promoting each other’s prosperity by acts of mutual justice & friendship.

I am not uninformed that the six nations have been led into some difficulties with respect to the sale of their lands since the peace. But I must inform you that these arose before the present government of the United States was established, when the separate States, and individuals under their authority, undertook to treat with the Indian tribes respecting the sale of their lands.

But the case is now entirely altered—the general government only has the power to treat with the Indian nations, and any treaty formed and held without its authority will not be binding.

Here then is the security for the remainder of your lands—No state nor person can purchase your lands, unless at some public treaty held under the Authority of the United States. The general Government will never consent to your being defrauded—But it will protect you in all your just rights.

Hear well, and let it be heard by every person in your nation, that the President of the United States declares, that the general government considers itself bound to protect you in all the lands secured to you by the treaty of Fort Stanwix, the 22d of October 1784, excepting such parts as you may since have fairly sold to persons properly authorized to purchase of you.

You complain of John Livingston and Oliver Phelps have obtained your lands, assisted by Mr Street of Niagara, and they have not complied with their agreement.

It appears, upon enquiry of the Governor of New York, that John Livingston was not legally authorized to treat with you, and that every thing he did with you has been declared null and void, so that you may rest easy on that account.

But it does not appear from any proofs yet in the possession of government, that Oliver Phelps has defrauded you.

If, however you should have any just cause of complaint against him, and can make satisfactory proof thereof, the federal Courts will be open to you for redress, as to all other persons.

But your great object seems to be the security of your remaining lands, and I have therefore upon this point, me[a]nt to be sufficiently strong and clear.

That in future you cannot be defrauded of your lands—That you possess the right to sell, and the right of refusing to sell your lands.

That, therefore, the sale of your lands in future, will depend entirely upon yourselves.

But that when you may find it for your interest to sell any parts of your lands, the United States must be present by their Agent, and will by your security that you shall not be defrauded in the Bargain you may make.

It will, however, be important, before you make any further sales of your land, that you should determine among yourselves, who are the persons among you that shall give sure conveyances thereof as shall be binding upon your nation, and forever preclude all disputes relative to the validity of the sale.

That besides the before mentioned security for your land, you will perceive by the law of Congress, for regulating trade and intercourse with the Indian-tribes, the fatherly care the United States intend to take of the Indians. For the particular meaning of this law, I refer you to the explanations given thereof by Colonel Pickering at Tioga, which with the law, are herewith delivered to you.

You have said in your Speech that the game is going away from you, and that you thought it the design of the great spirit, that you should till the ground. But before you speak upon this subject, you want to know whether the United States meant to leave you any land to till?

You know now that all the lands secured to you by the treaty of Fort Stanwix, expecting such parts as you may since have fairly sold are your’s, and that only your own Acts can convey them away—speak therefore your wishes on the subject of tilling the ground. The United States will be happy to afford you every assistance in the only business which will add to your numbers and happiness.

The murders that have been committed upon some of your people, by the bad white men, I sincerely lament and reprobate—and I earnestly hope that the real murderers will be secured and punished as they deserve. This business has been sufficiently explained to you here by the Governor of Pennsylvania, and by Colonel Pickering on behalf of the United States, at Tioga.

The Senekas may be assured, that the rewards offered for apprehending the murderers, will be continued until they are secured for trial, and that when they shall be apprehended, that they will be tried and punished as if they had killed Whitemen.

Having answered the most material parts of your speech, I shall inform you, that some bad Indians, and the outcast of several tribes who reside at the Miamee Village, have long continued their murders and depredations upon the frontiers laying along the Ohio. That they have not only refused to listen to my voice inviting them to peace, but that upon receiving it, they renewed their incursions and murders with greater violence than ever. I have therefore been obliged to strike those bad people, in order to make them sensible of their madness. I sincerely hope they will harken to reason, and not require to be further chastised. The United States desire to be the friends of the Indians, upon terms of justice & humanity—But they will not suffer the depredations of the bad people to go unpunished.

My desire is that you would caution all the Senekas and six nations to prevent their rash young men from joining the Miamee Indians. For the United States cannot distinguish the tribes to which bad Indians belong, and every tribe must take care of their own people.

The merits of the Cornplanter and his friendship for the United States are well known to me, and shall not be forgotten—And as a mark of the esteem of the United States, I have directed the Secretary of War to make him a present of Two hundred and fifty dollars, either in money or goods, as the Cornplanter shall like best—And he may depend upon the future care and kindness of the United States—And I have also directed the Secretary of War to make suitable presents to their other Chiefs present in Philadelphia—and also that some further tokens of friendship to be forwarded to the other Chiefs now in their nation.

Remember my words, Senekas, continue to be strong in your friendship for the United States, as the only rational

ground of your future happiness—and you may rely upon their kindness and protection.

An Agent shall soon be appointed to reside in some place convenient to the Senekas and six nations—He will represent the United States—apply to him on all occasions.

If any man brings you evil reports of the intentions of the United States, mark that man as your enemy, for he will mean to deceive you, and lead you into trouble. The United States will be true & faithful to their engagements. Given under my hand, and the Seal of the United States at the City of Philadelphia, this twenty ninth day of December, in the year of our Lord One thousand seven hundred & ninety one, and in the fifteenth year of the sovereignty & Independence of the United States.

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CHIEF RED JACKET SPEECH 🦃🐢

admin — Sat, 30 Nov 2024 19:01:06 +0000

In closing out Native American Heritage Month, I carefully selected this famous speech by Red Jacket. It is astonishingly accurate even by today’s standards and is one of the most eloquent speeches in all American Literature! While this post does not pertain directly to the Ohio Country, the message of the speech is impressively universal amongst Indigenous Peoples who sacrificed their integrity as well as their lives for their religious beliefs. PLEASE READ CAREFULLY AND LEARN! (Grammar and syntax was not altered by the administrator.)

“[The Senecas, members of the Iroquois Confederacy, fought on the side of the British in the American Revolution. Red Jacket, also known as Sagoyewatha, was a chief and orator born in eastern New York; he derived his English name from his habit of wearing many red coats provided to him by his British allies. After the hostilities, as the British ceded their territories to the Americans, the Senecas and many other Indian peoples faced enormous pressure on their homelands. Red Jacket was a critical mediator in relations between the new U.S. government and the Senecas; he led a delegation that met with George Washington in 1792, when he received a peace medal that appeared in subsequent portraits of the Indian leader. In 1805 a Boston missionary society requested Red Jacket’s permission to proselytize among the Iroquois settlements in northern New York State. Red Jacket’s forceful defense of native religion, below, caused the representative to refuse the Indian’s handshake and announce that no fellowship could exist between the religion of God and the works of the Devil].

THE SPEECH BY THE MISSIONARY:

“In the summer of 1805, a number of the principal chiefs and warriors of the Six Nations of
Indians, principally Senecas, assembled at Buffalo Creek, in the state of New York, at the
particular request of a gentleman missionary from the state of Massachusetts. The missionary,
being furnished with an interpreter and accompanied by the agent of the United States for Indian
affairs, met the Indians in council, when the following talk took place. […].

Missionary:

“My friends— I am thankful for the opportunity afforded us of uniting together at
this time. I had a great desire to see you and inquire into your state and welfare; for this purpose I
have traveled a great distance, being sent by your old friends, the Boston Missionary Society.

You will recollect they formerly sent missionaries among you to instruct you in religion and
labor for your good. Although they have not heard from you for a long time, yet they have not
forgotten their brothers, the Six Nations, and are still anxious to do you good.

“Brothers— I have not come to get your lands or your money, but to enlighten your minds, and
to instruct you how to worship the Great Spirit agreeably to his mind and will, and to preach to
you the gospel of his son Jesus Christ. There is but one religion and but one way to serve God,
and if you do not embrace the right way, you cannot be happy hereafter. You have never
worshipped the Great Spirit in a manner acceptable to him but have, all your lives, been in great
errors and darkness. To endeavor to remove these errors and open your eyes, so that you might
see clearly, is my business with you.

Brothers— I wish to talk with you as one friend talks with another; and if you have any
objections to receive the religion which I preach, I wish you to state them, and I will endeavor to
satisfy your minds and remove the objections.”

CHIEF RED JACKET’S REBUTTLE:

“Friend and brother; it was the will of the Great Spirit that we should meet together this day. He orders all things, and he has given us a fine day for our council. He has taken his garment from before the sun, and caused it to shine with brightness upon us; our eyes are opened, that we see clearly; our ears are unstopped, that we have been able to hear distinctly the words that you have spoken; for all these favors we thank the Great Spirit and him only.

Brother, this council fire was kindled by you; it was at your request that we came together at this time; we have listened with attention to what you have said. You requested us to speak our minds freely; this gives us great joy, for we now consider that we stand upright before you, and can speak what we think; all have heard your voice, and all speak to you as one man; our minds are agreed.

Brother, you say you want an answer to your talk before you leave this place. It is right you should have one, as you are a great distance from home, and we do not wish to detain you; but we will first look back a little, and tell you what our fathers have told us, and what we have heard from the white people.

Brother, listen to what we say. There was a time when our forefathers owned this great island. Their seats extended from the rising to the setting sun. The Great Spirit had made it for the use of Indians. He had created the buffalo, the deer, and other animals for food. He made the bear and the beaver, and their skins served us for clothing. He had scattered them over the country, and taught us how to take them. He had caused the earth to produce corn for bread.

All this he had done for his red children because he loved them. If we had any disputes about hunting grounds, they were generally settled without the shedding of much blood. But an evil day came upon us; your forefathers crossed the great waters, and landed on this island. Their numbers were small; they found friends, and not enemies; they told us they had fled from their own country for fear of wicked men, and come here to enjoy their religion. They asked for a small seat; we took pity on them, granted their request, and they sat down amongst us; we gave them corn and meat; they gave us poison in return. The white people had now found our country; tidings were carried back, and more came amongst us; yet we did not fear them, we took them to be friends; they called us brothers; we believed them, and gave them a larger seat. At length, their numbers had greatly increased; they wanted more land; they wanted our country. Our eyes were opened, and our minds became uneasy. Wars took place; Indians were hired to fight against Indians, and many of our people were destroyed. They also brought strong liquor among us; it was strong and powerful, and has slain thousands.

Brother, our seats were once large, and yours were very small; you have now become a great people, and we have scarcely a place left to spread our blankets; you have got our country, but are not satisfied; you want to force your religion upon us.

Brother, continue to listen. You say you are sent to instruct us how to worship the Great Spirit agreeably to his mind, and if we do not take hold of the religion which you white people teach, we shall be unhappy hereafter. You say that you are right, and we are lost; how do we know this to be true? We understand that your religion is written in a book; if it was intended for us as well as you, why has not the Great Spirit given it to us, and not only to us, but why did he not give to our forefathers the knowledge of that book, with the means of understanding it rightly? We only know what you tell us about it. How shall we know when to believe, being so often deceived by the white people?

Brother, you say there is but one way to worship and serve the Great Spirit; if there is but one religion, why do you white people differ so much about it? Why not all agree, as you can all read the book?

Brother, we do not understand these things. We are told that your religion was given to your forefathers, and has been handed down from father to son. We also have a religion which was given to our forefathers, and has been handed down to us their children. We worship that way. It teaches us us to be thankful for all the favors we receive; to love each other, and to be united. We never quarrel about religion.

Brother, the Great Spirit has made us all; but he has made a great difference between his white and red children; he has given us a different complexion, and different customs; to you he has given the arts; to these he has not opened our eyes; we know these things to be true. Since he has made so great a difference between us in other things, why may we not conclude that he has given us a different religion according to our understanding. The Great Spirit does right; he knows what is best for his children; we are satisfied.

Brother, we do not wish to destroy your religion, or take it from you; we only want to enjoy our own.

Brother, you say you have not come to get our land or our money, but to enlighten our minds. I will now tell you that I have been at your meetings, and saw you collecting money from the meeting. I cannot tell what this money was intended for, but suppose it was for your minister; and if we should conform to your way of thinking, perhaps you may want some from us.

Brother, we are told that you have been preaching to the white people in this place. These people are our neighbors; we are acquainted with them; we will wait a little while, and see what effect your preaching has upon them. If we find it does them good, makes them honest and less disposed to cheat Indians, we will then consider again what you have said.

Brother, you have now heard our answer to your talk, and this is all we have to say at present. As we are going to part, we will come and take you by the hand, and hope the Great Spirit will protect you on your journey, and return you safe to your friends.”

ALL THE MISSIONARIES WALKED OFF INTO THE SILENCE.

Copy of Red jacket speech. Courtesy of https://www.celebrateinquiry.org/red_jacket/

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DANIEL HUGHES: UNSUNG HERO OF THE MOHAWK& AND OHIO COUNTRY&UNDERGROUND RAILROAD 🔗⛓

admin — Sun, 20 Oct 2024 22:48:32 +0000

Daniel Hughes was a man of prominence in Lycoming County during the years of operation of the Underground Railroad; he was half black and half Mohawk, which made him an incredible risk had he been caught in aiding and abetting runaway slaves, which is exactly what he did. Mr. Hughes was a MAJOR operator and conductor in the Underground Railroad ¹activities of Pennsylvania; he owned a barge on the Pennsylvania Canal, which was immensely rare for a person of ‘color’ to be associated with; he was a profitable and quite successful businessman with his trade. He hid slaves deep inside his barge and had them transported to various places all along the Ohio River and into Canada.

As the years continued, Hughe’s home and canals harvested thousands of slaves who found their way to freedom in New York, Pennsylvania, and Canada. However, it is to be remembered that the Fugitive Slave Law Act of 1850 permitted slave hunters to enter any area in the north. Also, racial tensions in Pennsylvania at the time also made the work of the operators of the Underground Railroad dangerous and risky; like others along with him, had Mr. Hughes been caught, he could have been arrested and his business and property seized. Hiding and transporting slaves was a RISKY business but was kept in deep secrecy and financed by MANY organizations of which no monuments or plaques exist for! The work grew so meticulous and clandestine, Hughes and his sons mostly worked on moonless nights to avoid any detection of their activities. They would also stretch horsehair across the trails to have the bounty hunters thrown from their own horses by causing their hoofs to become entangled in the hair. Because of his extensive and well-known operation among his constituents, it is with deep confidence that I would suggest the possibility of Mr. Hughes taking MANY visits to Beaver County (because of his association with The Quakers who were leaders in the operation of the Underground Railroad in beaver County) and transporting slaves to his home and other various locations that are not even known today. The reason is because no person wanted to leave evidence of such an operation; everything conducted was by word-of-mouth only! No records exist of Beaver County’s involvement of the Underground Railroad, except for physical and geographic locations.

When Mr. Hughes passed away, he donated his land to be used as a cemetery. A few black Civil War veterans from our area are buried there; Mr. Hughes, in accordance with his final wish, is buried in an unmarked grave in his own cemetery.

The Freedom Road Cemetery Historical Marker. (Courtesy of Wikipedia.)

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INDIAN LANDS FOR SALE!

admin — Sun, 30 Jun 2024 19:32:09 +0000

Yes, authentic Indian Lands for listed for sale by newspapers across the country, even here in the Ohio Country! As is it was NO BIG DEAL! I clipped this add from the Butler Citizen (Butler, Pennsylvania) dated March 2nd, 1918.

Photo is courtesy of newspapers.com

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