Posted on 03/05/2021 6:28:16 AM PST by Perseverando
The French and Indian War ended in 1763 with the French forced to cede to the British all of Canada and the land from the Appalachian Mountains west to the Mississippi River. Read as PDF ...
The French had cultivated friendly relations with the Indians by giving them gifts, but the new British Commander-in-Chief in North America, Jeffery Amherst, treated the Indians as conquered peoples.
Disgruntled tribes united against the British: Ottawas, Ojibwas, Potawatomis, Hurons, Miamis, Weas, Kickapoos, Mascoutens, Piankashaws, Delawares, Shawnees, Wyandots, Mingos, and some Iroquois.
As the most prominent leader was Ottawa chief Pontiac, it was called Pontiac's War. For three years, from 1763 to 1766, surprise attacks occurred from Virginia and Pennsylvania to Ohio and the Great Lakes.
Indians captured, tortured, scalped, burned at the stake, and even cannibalized some, in ambushes, such as Devil's Hole Massacre, Enoch Brown School Massacre, Fort Sandusky Massacre, Hochstetler Massacre, Fort William Henry Massacre, Clendenin Massacre, Point Pelee, and Battle of Bloody Run.
Indians attacked and laid siege to: Fort Detroit (Detroit, Michigan) Fort Pitt (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) Fort Bedford (Bedford, Pennsylvania) Fort Ligonier (Ligonier, Pennsylvania) Fort Niagara (Youngstown, New York).
Indians completely overran, captured or destroyed 8 British forts: Fort Sandusky (Venice, Ohio) Fort St. Joseph (Niles, Michigan) Fort Miami (Fort Wayne, Indiana) Fort Ouiatenon (Lafayette, Indiana) Fort Michilimackinac (Mackinaw City, Michigan) Fort Venango (Franklin, Pennsylvania) Fort Le Boeuf (Waterford, Pennsylvania) Fort Presque Isle (Erie, Pennsylvania). 2,500 soldiers and colonists were killed or captured, and 4,000 more were forced to flee for their lives.
Tragically, peaceful Christian Indians were caught in the middle. In Western Pennsylvania, near Lancaster, a vigilante group of Paxton Boys indiscriminately retaliated, killing Christian Susquehannock Indians in the
(Excerpt) Read more at americanminute.com ...
I grew up in Western PA, about 30 minutes from Ft. Ligonier. My brother and his family now live about five minutes from it. They used to do some great re-enactments/presentations, at least in a Pre-COVID world. Hopefully, they’ll get back to it soon.
But but I thought the native Americans were peace loving and respected mother nature.
Excellent read!
So the British taxing Americans for their losses elsewhere is reminiscent of the RATS taxing the rest of the country for their failed blue state policies. It all ends in war. God help us all. An appeal to Heaven.
It should be remembered that Pontiac’s rebellion was not to drive out white people but to drive out the English. He wanted the French to return.
When he massacred the people inside the Forts, Frenchmen found there were spared.
The first School house massacre also took place at this time. The Enoch Brown school house massacre in Pennsylvania.
I live minutes from Fort Meigs in Ohio. Quite a place! Visit if you can!
I once had the privilege of browsing through the family bible. The last hundred pages were blank and provided for keeping birth, death and marriage information.
I remember one entry, “John, Sarah and 2 infant children murdered by Chickasaw Indians.” This entry was from the mid-1700s.
Whoa!
“Indians captured, tortured, scalped, burned at the stake, . . .”
A letter from Major James Crawford to Governor Haldimand at Quebec, dated Fiago, January 3, 1782 (intercepted and printed in an American newspaper) :
Pages 140-141 (Hardcover) “From Sea to Shining Sea” :
May it please your excellency: at the request of the Seneca Chiefs, I send herewith to your excellency under the care of James Boyd eight packs of scalps cured, dried, hooped and painted with all the Indian triumphal marks of which the following is an invoice and explanation.
No. 1. Containing 43 scalps of Congress soldiers, killed in different skirmishes; these are stretched on black hoops, 4 inches in diameter; the inside of the skin painted red with a small black spot to denote their being killed with bullets; also 62 farmers killed in their houses, the hoops red, the skin painted brown and marked with a hoe, a black circle all around to denote their being surprised in the night and a black hatchet in the middle to denote their being killed with that weapon.
No. 2. Containing 93 farmers killed in their houses . . . white circles and suns to shew that they were surprised in daytime. Black bullet on some, hatchet on others.
No. 3. 97 farmers, hoops green to shew working in fields.
No. 4. 102 farmers. 18 marked with yellow flame to shew that they were burned alive after being scalped. Most farmers appear by hair to be young or middle aged.
No. 5. 81 women, long hair; those braided to shew they were mothers.
No. 6. 193 boy’s scalps of various ages, white ground on the skin red tear in the middle.
No. 7. 211 girls scalps, big and little, small yellow hoops marked hatchet, club, knife, etc.
No. 8. Mixture 122 with box of birch bark containing 29 infant scalps small white hoops. Only little black knife in middle to shew they were cut out of mothers body.
Attached note of Seneca to Governor Haldemond [sic]
Father: We wish to send these over the water to the great king that he may regard them and see our faithfulness in destroying his enemies, and know that his presents have not been made to an ungrateful people.
Father: The kings enemies were formerly like young panthers, they could neither bite nor scratch; we could play with them safely; we feared nothing that they could do to us. But now their bodies are becoming as the elk and strong as the buffalo; they have also got great and sharp claws. They have driven us out of our country for taking part in your quarrel. We expect the great king to give us another country.
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