Georges Township High School - Georgian Yearbook (Uniontown, PA)

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his gun as he ran. This accomplishment was to save him now. After shooting the foremost -Indian he started again to run through the forest loading his gun as he ran. After it had been charged he slackened his pace until the second Indian was close upon him when he resolved to shoot himg but the Indian was so close that he grasped the gun and now began a struggle for the possession of the weapon. The Indian almost succeeded in wrenching the gun from Lewis's hands but by a desperate effort he jerked the rifle back until the muzzle of the gun rested against the body of the Indian when Lewis pulled the trigger and the Indian fell. Lewis again away with the remaining two Indians in pursuit. When his gun was again loaded he stopped suddenly and sprang behind a tree, anxious to have done with this kind of sport, but the Indian also treed. Lewis sprang away again with the Indian in pursuit. After running a shork distance he suddenly sprang behind a large tree. The Indians also attempted to tree but the foremost Indian was unable to find a tree large enough to shelter his entire body. Wetzel fired at the portion of the body exposed and the third Indian fell. The remaining Indian made an imme- diate retreat, yelling as he went, No catch dat man, him gun all way loaded. This adventure proved Lewis Wetzel to be one of the most resourceful Indian fighters of his day. ' 89

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THE WETZEL FAMILY -l :-0oo- :-1 The Wetzel family was of Dutch origin and the first of the name to be found on the Southwestern border was John Wetzel. This John Wetzel had five sons : Martin, George, John, Jacob and Lewis. The whole of this Wetzel family were hunters and Indian fighters, but the most daring and reckless of all, and the one who has left the great- est name on the Western border, was Lewis Wetzel. We will not have the space to give any details concerning any of the other brothers of the Wetzel family in this story, but Lewis, the youngest of the family. Without Lewis Wetzel the story of Northwestern Virginia and of Southwestern Pennsylvania would be like the plays of Hamlet with Hamlet left out. His presence was a tower of strength to the settlers, and for many years he was esteemed the right arm of their defence. With most of the pioneers of the West, Indian fighting was only an episode-frequent- ly a compulsory one-but with Wetzel it was a life business. Again we do not have the space to give anything much of the life of Lewis Wetzel. We have selected from amongst the many daring fights of this great hunter and Indian fighter, one which we think should 'stamp him as the most remarkable man of his day on the Western border. The following story will illustrate his resources, his cunning and his bravery. s Shortly after Crawfordis defeat, a man named Thomas Mills, in es- caping from that unfortunate expedition, reached the Indian spring about nine miles from the present town of Washington, Pennsylvania, where he was compelled to leave his horse and proceed to Van Metre's Fort. There he met Lewis Wetzel whom he persuaded to go with him to the spring for his horse. Lewis cautioned him against the danger, but Mills was deter- mined, and the two started. As they neared the spring they saw the horse tied to a tree. Lewis was at once on his guard and tried to persuade Mills not to approach the animal, but Mills was determined that he would secure the horse and laughed at the idea of danger. He walked boldly up to his horse and began to untie him when the report from four rifles rang through the forest and Mills fell mortally wounded. Lewis realized at once that his only safety was in flight and he sprang ran until the foremost Indian was within a short distance of him, when he shot the Indian through the body. Lewis had early learned to load through the forest rapidly with the three Indians in close pursuit. He 88

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I COLONEL WILLIAM CRAWFORD -?:-ooo- : In 1782 and '83 the settlers in around Pittsburgh were greatly demor- alized by Indian raids and massacres. Several expeditions had been sent against the Indians but they had met with defeat. The setlters in North- western Virginia and Southwestern Pennsylvania were in despair because the Indian raids had become so frequent that the frontier was almost deserted. . President Washington was anxious to relieve the frontier and in looking around for a capable leader to lead a force against the Indians, he selected his boyhood friend, Colonel William Crawford. Who was Colonel William Crawford ? He was born in the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, and was a boyhood friend of Washington's. In 1767 he moved from Virginia to the Youghiogheny River, located on a place known as Stuart's Crossingg but now known as Connellsville, Pa. After erecting his cabin and clearing the land on his farm he established a trading post and became influential in the affairs of the Colony of Pennsylvania. When the Revolution broke out Colonel Crawford was appointed by Washington to take command o fthe Colonial Troops on the Frontier, where he performed excellent service and was noted as a very able and efficient Indian lighter. After the capture of Cornwallis he thought the war was over and made all preparation for spending the rest of his days with his familyg when suddenly like a clap of thunder from a clear sky the Indians began to devastate the Frontier and massacre the inhabitants. In the midst of these horrors Washington called Crawford to command an expedition against the Indians north of the Ohio river. He accepted the command and started from Fort Pitt on the 20th of May, 1782. The expedition pushed through the forest until it reached the San- dusky near the present town of Crestline. They found the town deserted. They halted here for the .night and the 'next morning pushed on down the Sandusky River. All at once the Indians came running out of the woods toward them, yelling and whooping. Crawford's command was pressed upon the flank and rear and was thus thrown into confusion. The battle raged that whole day until night put an end to the conflict. The next morning the battle was renewed. The second day's battle ended disastrously for Crawford. He deter- mined to retreat and after this order had been received by his troops they began to flee and the retreat became a rout. Crawford attempted to bring order out of chaos but his troops were demoralized and his efforts were in vain. While attempting to rally his men he was caputred by the Indians and carried to their camp near where the town of Upper Sandusky now stands. The Indians were much elated upon the capture of Crawford. They carried him to their Council house where he was tried and condemned to death by torture. On the morning of July 7, 1782, the Indians tied Crawford to the stake and began their torture. There he suffered all the cruelties that those merciless Indians could conceive. He bore his death heroically and died like a brave man and a hero. Fayette County failed to honor Colonel Crawford until very recently. The city of Connellsville has erected a monument to the memory of this Pioneer and Soldier whose efforts were so valuable in developing our West- ern Border. a 90