Greenbrier County, West Virginia - Newspaper Articles *********************************************************************** USGENWEB NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. *********************************************************************** Greenbrier County, West Virginia - Newspaper Articles KNOW YOUR STATE, Greenbrier Independent, Oct 18, 1962 By Phil Conley, President, Educational Foundation, Inc. CORNSTALK SHAWNEE CHIEF Before the Revoluntionary War, people in what is now West Virginia were harassed by Shawnee chief, Cornstalk. His Indian name was Keiga-tugh-qua which signified a blade or stalk of maize. He was born about 1730 in Ohio, and was killed in November 1777, at Fort Randolph (now Point Pleasant), where he was buried. A monument now stands in the courthouse yard with his name inscribed in large letters. Cornstalk was a brilliant organizer. In 1763 he led a party of sixty braves up the Kanawha Valley and into the settlements of Greenbrier County. Near the present Lewisburg he met some settlers, among whom was Archibald Clendenin, brother of George who founded the city of Charleston. The Indians pretended to be friendly. The settlers prepared a feast for them. At a given signal the Indians killed or captured all but two. Colonel John Stuart reported that more than fifty persons were massacred on that day. The entire settlement was wiped out. Cornstalk commanded the different Indian tribes which took part in the Battle of Point Pleasant on October 10, 1774. During the battle he could be heard calling to about twelve hundred redskins, "Be brave! Be brave!" The winning of this battle by the Virginians under the command of Colonel Andrew Lewis was a very significant victory. This was the largest battle ever fought on the North American continent between the white men and Indians. If the Indians had won that engagement, there probably would have been a great Indian uprising. After this defeat, Conrstalk made peace with the white settlers. He kept the members of his tribe from taking part in the Revolutionary War for two years after in began. In late September 1777, Cornstalk visited Fort Randolph. He came as a mediator, but he was held as hostage for the good conduct of his warriors. Some time later his son, Ellinipsico, came to visit him. It was during this visit that a soldier, Gilmore, was killed and scalped by a lurking Indian. In retaliation for this act, the soldiers in the fort killed Conrstalk. his son Ellinipsico, Chief Red Hawk, and another Indian. The killing of Cornstalk turned the Shawnees from a neutral tribe to enemies. For the next twenty years the settlers were harassed by war parties of this tribe. Some historians have condemned the brutal murder of Cornstalk. They contend it was a crime perpetrated on an Indian leader who was anxious to stay friendly with the whites. The late Andrew Price did not share that opinion. He wrote: "Cornstalk was a shrewd, unscrupulous old warrior one who would visit whites pretending to be on friendly terms and murder them." Colonel John Stuart was at Fort Randolph when Cornstalk was murdered. He reported that two young men, Hamilton and Gilmore, went across the Kanawha one day to hunt deer. On the way back Gilmore was killed by some Indians. He was a member of the company of Captain John Hall of Rockbridge County. He was a relative of Hall's. The records of that county state that Hall was tried in a court for the murder of Cornstalk, his son Ellinipsico, Cheif Red Hawk, and another Indian chief on the 10th day of November, 1777. After two trials, Hall was acquitted. Three other men who were in Hall's company were tried and also acuquitted. (Submitted by Jeanne Webb Gadd, , April 1998.) ************************************************************************* KNOW YOUR STATE, Greenbrier Independent, November 2,1962 By Phil Connelly, President Education Foundation, Incorporated The Grenadier Squaw In the history of the North American Indians, women held a subordinate position. They, together with old men, raised corn ahd other vegetables in the gardens. The young braves spent their time in hunting and warfare. The average Indian was greatly disappointed when his squaw bore him a female child. The organization of Indian government often respected certain families, Cornstalk was a great chief and had many honors to his credit. He had a sister who wielded great influence on her tribe. Because of her great height, the white settlers called her the Grenadier Squaw. Some missionaries among the Indian tribes named her Katherine. She was often called Kate. She had a small tribe of Indians over whom she ruled. Her Town was near the present city of Circleville, Ohio. Cornstalk's Town was about one-half mile north of that place. This courageous Indian woman became acquainted with the early white settlers and developed an admiration for them. Without being a traitor to her own people she frequently gave the whites information that was very beneficial to them. Soon after Cornstalk, her brother, was murdered by infuriated soldiers at Fort Randolph (now Point Pleasant) she abandoned her people and moved to that place where she asked permission to live. She brought nearly fifty head of cattle, some horses, and other property. This gesture indicated her good faith and the Virginians accepted her as one of them. The Grenadier Squaw acted as an interpreter for the white people. In May, 1778, following the cruel murder of Cornstalk, a force of two hundred Indians from west of the Ohio River banded together and came to Fort Randolph. They demanded that Captain William McKee surrender the fort. He asked them to give him until the next morning to consider their demand. All through the night the men were busily employed in bringing water from the river. The next morning Captain McKee sent his answer by the Grenadier Squaw. It was that the fort would not surrender. The Indians immediately attacked the fort and besieged it for one week. Then they rounded up all the cattle and horses they could find and started up the Kanawha Valley. The Grenadier Squaw learned of their purpose to go into the Greebrier settlements, about where Lewisburg now stands. These settlements had been destroyed by Cornstalk and sixty braves in 1763 when they massacred some fifty white people. By this time new settlers had come into that section and established homes. Captain McKee sent two scouts to follow the Indians, but they returned with the intelligence that the redskins had broken up into small groups. He then asked for volunteers "to risk their lives to save the people of Greenbrier." John Pryor and Phillip Hammond stepped forward and offered their services. The Grenadier Squaw dressed them like Indians and painted their faces. By traveling by day and night, these men were able to get to the Greenbrier settlements before the Indians arrived. The people in the settlements hurried to Donnally's Fort, which was located near the present site of Lewisburg. When the Indians arrived, they discovered that the fort was too well defended for them to caputre it. They destroyed much property, and returned to their homes on the west side of the Ohio River. Some time after this attack, the Grenadier Squaw moved to Pennsylvania to a place near what is now Pittsburgh. In 1785, she petitioned the Commissioner of Indian Affairs for a grant of land on the Scioto River, her former home and where her mother was buried. It seems that this petition, which was referred to Congress, was never acted upon. In 1786 Colonel Benjamin Logan led a raid on the Indian villages on Mad River. The Grenadier Squaw was one of the Indians captured at that time. (Submitted by Jeanne Webb Gadd, , April 1998.) *************************************************************************