Document Spotlight-Whose Side Are They Really On?

Recently transcriber Dawoogie brought us a document that highlights international intrigue and trickery. Jos. Harmar, a military officer, writes a letter to General Knox in which he references an intelligence report of some peaceful Indians. Harmar disputes the intelligence report, however, as he argues that the Indians are, in fact, only pretending to be friendly. He includes some reasons why he believes the Indians to be actually allied with troops from a nearby British fort. The document is quite a fascinating introduction to the problem of determining allegiances on the frontier.

In a Humor for Reading

Although the bulk of the War Department correspondence is taken up with matters of business, personal letters sometimes slip in and offer a glimpse of other parts of the lives of clerks and quartermasters.

In February 1799, Samuel Hodgdon sent his colleague and friend Isaac Craig two pieces of reading material: Three volumes of Judith Sargent Murray’s The Gleaner and Matthew Gregory Lewis’ 1796 Gothic novel The Monk. He described Murray’s essays as being “on many pleasing subjects,” while the novel is “deep and dreadful.”

Captain Hendrick Aupaumut

Captain Hendrick Aupaumut  (1757-1830) was a Mahican (also Mohican) sachem, Revolutionary War soldier, and diplomat for the United States’ efforts  to broker peace agreements with the Western Indians of the Ohio country.

The Mahicans were an  Algonquin tribe that settled in the Hudson River Valley.  They later moved to  western Massachusetts in the town of Stockbridge, where many converted to Christianity and became known as the “Stockbridge Indians.”

War Department Accountant requests a Pay Raise

On January 30, 1796, the Accountant of the War Department – William Simmons – wrote a letter to a committee of the House of Representatives advocating for a raise in his salary. Simmons wrote that he did this upon hearing of a “motion lately made in Congress to augment the Salary of the Accountant.”

As Simmons explains in his letter to the committee, the Office of Accountant was established by an act of Congress on May 8, 1792. The original duties of the Accountant was “to settle all accounts relative to the Pay, Forage, and Subsistence of the Army.” For these duties, the Accountant was allowed a salary of $1,200 (just over $15,000 in today’s money, adjusted for inflation).

Document Spotlight-Military Appointment Edition

Transcriber HollyPBrickhouse recently brought us a fascinating document detailing the appointment of General Anthony Wayne to the rank of Major General. The 1792 document advised Wayne that he has been appointed to that rank by the President of the United States, and that the United States Senate has ratified the appointment.

Knox encloses in the letter a schedule of pay for Wayne, and asks that Wayne please accept or decline the appointment with a return letter; curiously, Knox asks that an acceptance of the appointment be accompanied by a written oath of office.

Fumigating Public Stores

In late June 1800, Samuel Hodgdon wrote to Israel Wheelen ordering him to fumigate the public stores in Philadelphia. The objective was not only to kill insects but mainly to prevent contagion; summer was the usual time for outbreaks of yellow fever and fumigation was believed to help stop the spread of disease.

Hodgdon recommended that Wheelen use nitre or brimstone (sulfur) for the fumigation. In 1795 the British had carried out a successful experiment on the hospital ship Union using a combination of concentrated vitriolic acid and nitrate of potash (sulfuric acid and potassium nitrate), conducting twice daily fumigation to prevent the spread of a fever. Brimstone, or sulfur, had been used to clear diseased air from ships since the 1750s, and vinegar was also supposed to help clear the air of infection. The prevailing medical theory of the time held that diseases spread through the air in a cloud, or miasma; therefore clearing or treating the air would reduce the risk of disease transmission.

Who was William Blount?

Blount’s name appears in thousands of  War Department Papers.  Who was he? Blount came from Windsor North Carolina, born into a family of merchants and planters who owned large tracts of property along the Pamlico River. During the American Revolutionary War, he  was a regimental paymaster for the 3rd North Carolina Regiment.  He participated in the regiment’s march north in the late spring of 1777 to join Washington’s army in the defense of Philadelphia. His North Carolina unit later served under Saratoga hero General Horatio Gates, who engaged Cornwallis in a bloody loss at Camden, South Carolina.  Having earned his revolutionary credentials, Blount served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and the Federal Convention of 1787. Later, Blount received an appointment from President Washington as Governor of the Southwest Territory (Tennessee) and Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Southern Department.  He established Knoxville (named after the Secretary of War) as the territorial capital.

The Difficulties of Wagon Transportation

We often take for granted the incredible advances in transportation that have taken place over the course of the last two centuries. In the nineteenth century, the advent of the steamboat and railroad – along with vast improvements in the road system – inaugurated what Daniel Walker Howe has called a “transportation revolution.” Unfortunately for the War Department in the 1790s however, none of these technologies were yet available. Transporting much-needed supplies – such as stationary, muskets, gunpowder, cartridges, knives, clothing, food, and other key military provisions – was a costly and risky endeavor that often frustrated the department. Provisions had to be waggoned over scarcely maintained and often impassable roads and trails, often for incredible lengths through thinly-inhabited areas.

Document Spotlight-Nine Thousand Pounds of Cannonballs

Recently, transcriber Nbollen brought us  a document detailing the kinds of logistical considerations military officers faced daily. While not a matter of life or death, officers had to make sure outposts were adequately supplied; likewise, arms or materials sitting around in unnecessary places made it hard to keep hot spots had what they needed.

In this document, Samuel Hodgedon gave a brief summary of the artillery situation at Fort Ransalaer–there seemed to be eight six-pound cannons and one four-pound cannon that were being underutilized. He asked for those cannons, along with carriages, to be taken to Governor’s Island. In addition, he asked that 1,000 nine-pound cannonballs be taken as well, but only if it could be done easily and cheaply.

Smallpox Inoculation 1792

In July 1792, General Anthony Wayne opened a letter to Secretary of War Henry Knox with concerns about small pox among the troops. The prevalence of small pox in Pittsburgh had led him to inoculate a small group of soldiers, but this was only a temporary fix as new detachments were arriving with the possibility of more soldiers who had neither been inoculated nor had the disease.

Wayne was reluctant to establish a routine of constant inoculation, risking the health of those soldiers affected. Inoculation, after all, involved infecting the person; while most people survived, there was always a risk of serious illness and death. Wayne proposed separating those who were still susceptible to small pox, sending them to the block house at Big Beaver, at least until Knox could offer an opinion on whether to proceed with inoculation.

Who was Andrew Pickens?

Andrew Pickens was born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, on September 19, 1739. His Scots-Irish family Andrew moved south in search of new land, living in Augusta County in the Shenandoah Valley, later in the Waxhaw settlement along the North Carolina-South Carolina border, and eventually in the Long Cane settlement in Abbeville County, South Carolina, bordering Georgia.

At Long Canes, Pickens would marry and start a family. He farmed and became prosperous trading with his Indian neighbors. An ardent patriot as the American Revolution approached, Pickens became a military leader during the war. He led expeditions against the Loyalist-allied Cherokee and in 1779, when Sir Henry Clinton sent British troops into South Carolina to bolster support for the Loyalists, Pickens and his three-hundred man militia defeated a larger British force under Colonel Boyd at Kettle Creek in North Georgia. Pickens was later captured by the British and took an oath to sit out the remainder of the war. But when Tories destroyed much of his property and frightened his family, he gathered his militia and fought with them as a guerilla unit against the British. Under Daniel Morgan, Pickens’ militia played a key role in the defeat of the Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton at the Battle of Cowpens as they feigned retreat and then counterattacked the British Regulars.

Document Spotlight-Good Fences Make Good Neighbors

Recently, transcriber Lamar brought us a fascinating look at Indian-American relations and borders. The letter describes a dispute over the actual boundary between United States territory and Cherokee territory. To support his interpretation of the boundary, James W. Henry encloses the transcripts or notes made during negotiations between the two parties in Philadelphia in 1796. Henry remarks that the enclosed notes are the only copies available of those negotiations, and pleads for their safe return.

Community Transcription-Eleven Months On

It’s been eleven months now since we opened the War Department archives to community transcription. Nearly a year ago, we offered the Scripto transcription tool, and ever since then we have been steadily adding finished documents to our archive. What started with just a dozen or so volunteers has grown into an active, vigorous community of volunteer transcribers.

We offer here yet another snapshot at our transcription activity.

To date, we have 550 users-fully 97 of them have transcribed within the last 90 days-this continues a trend of increased users, but also more active users. Those transcribers have made more than 3,840 saves to War Department documents, which is about 200 more than last month. That translates to more than 790 finished documents, along with another 120 documents begun. Editors have nominated an additional 90 for transcription. Additionally, transcribers have initiated approximately 210 conversations using the “talk” feature. We also know that on average, each document is edited between three and four times before it is finished.

Chocolate for Invalids

In April 1792, Isaac Craig sent Captain Jonathan Cass some supplies for the sick men under his command: five pounds sugar, two pounds of tea, and four pounds of chocolate. These three items also show up in lists of hospital stores throughout the 1790s. Why? Were they being used as medicine?

Not exactly. Medical theory and practice of the time concerned itself not only with the ailment at hand but with the diet of the invalid. Tea was believed to act as a sedative and sugar had been used as a medical additive for centuries. Chocolate was not only used to improve the taste of some medicines, but was a part of the recommended diet for patients suffering from a variety of illnesses.

St. Clair Defeat

Following the disastrous Harmar expedition against the Western Indians  in the fall of 1790, which resulted in the loss of 180 men (including 73 federal troops),  planning began for another expedition in 1791.  Governor Arthur St. Clair was appointed General in Chief, Richard Butler commanded the levies, Samuel Hodgdon became the Quarter Master General and General Charles Scott commanded the Kentucky militia.  The public clamored for a swift and effective response against the Indians of the Ohio wilderness.   This in turn pressured Hodgdon to take up a frantic pace in administering the procurement of supplies.  The problems of supply were many, but the major ones were  related to coordination with contractors, transportation of supplies through the rugged wilderness,  and the generally low quality of the arms and supplies themselves.   Delays throughout the spring and summer of 1791 taxed the patience of St. Clair, who became concerned about the onset of winter and the expiration of six month long militia enlistments.    So in August, he began to move his incomplete force toward Fort Washington (modern day Cincinnati).  Eventually  General Butler and his levies joined up with St. Clair, but movement remained extremely sluggish as the army stopped to build forts and  struggled under the weight of excessive baggage and a seemingly limitless  trail of wives, washerwomen and camp followers.  Morale too suffered because of supply problems.  Desertion was so rampant that St. Clair resorted to public execution of deserters.

Document Spotlight-Another Proclamation

Recently, transcriber HollyPBrickhouse brought us this document detailing a preliminary peace agreement between the United States government and several Indian tribes: Wyandots, Chipawas, Ottawas, Potawatamies, Miamies, Shawanaes and Delawares. The agreement was designed to calm tensions until the groups rolled out a permanent treaty. This proclamation is notable for the restrictions it places on American citizens: they are forbidden to enter Indian territory with hostile intentions, and without prior permission from Indian authorities. It also requires American citizens to surrender any Indian prisoners they might be holding, and gives a deadline for compliance with that order.

The War Department Fire and Compensation

The papers of the War Department – along with the other executive departments – relocated to Washington, D.C. from Philadelphia in the summer of 1800. Five months later on November 8, 1800, flames engulfed the new building. You can read one of the immediate reactions here. The devastation felt by Secretary Samuel Dexter in the wake of the fire shines through in the plainly, solemnly stated first sentence in another letter the same day: “On Saturday evening last my office with all the Records, Papers, &c. was consumed by fire.” The fire was an incalculable disaster for the young federal government, destroying valuable Indian, veterans, and military records that had been collected since the Revolutionary War. Dexter quickly wrote his subordinates in order to obtain much-needed copies of documents that had been lost. More than two centuries later the Papers of the War Departments is nearing completion of a digital reconstruction of that lost archive.

Captain Molly

One of the many tasks of the War Department in the 1780s and 90s was the administration of wounded or invalid veterans of the Revolutionary War. In general, all that had to be done was keeping track of the residence of a veteran and paying pensions. William Price, Deputy Commissary of Military Stores and officer in charge at West Point from 1785 to 1786, had more to deal with when it came to one particular pensioner: Captain Molly.

Community Transcription-Ten Months On

Wow! Overnight we signed up our 500th transcriber. That’s a pretty significant benchmark, and 80 more transcribers than last month.

It’s been ten months now since we opened the War Department archives to community transcription. Way back in March we offered the Scripto transcription tool, and ever since then we have been steadily adding finished documents to our archive. What started with just a dozen or so volunteers has grown into an active, vigorous community of volunteer transcribers.

Document Spotlight-Moravian Indians on the Move

Recently, transcriber Rw1500 brought us a document detailing the movements of a band of Moravian Indians. In what appears to be an intelligence report, the group of approximately 100 men, women, and children had crossed Lake Erie headed for a site they had previously lived on. Too late to settle and raise crops before Winter, the Moravians opted instead to settle temporarily on the Cuyahoga River. The writer, Josiah Harmon, reports that these Indians were known to be friendly to the United States.

Community Transcription-Nine Months On

Another month, another 30 users…

It’s been nine months now since we opened the War Department archives to community transcription. Way back in March we offered the Scripto transcription tool, and ever since then we have been steadily adding finished documents to our archive. What started with just a dozen or so volunteers has grown into an active, vigorous community of volunteer transcribers.

We offer here yet another snapshot at our transcription activity.

Document Spotlight-Jesse Bowles’ Rental

Transcriber Afoxconti recently brought us a document concerning a financial relationship between the government and Jesse Bowles, of Richmond, Virginia. Bowles had essentially rented his home to a Captain Eddins for nearly a year, during which time the home was used as a hospital. For the period beginning November 1798 and ending October, 1799, Bowles was to be paid the sum of $70.
Read the original document here: http://wardepartmentpapers.org/scripto/mediawiki/index.php?title=.NDExNzk.MTcyMzc&rcid=2887.

There are many more documents awaiting transcription. Take a moment to register (http://wardepartmentpapers.org/scripto/register.php) and choose a document to begin your adventure. You will be doing important work by adding to the historical record, and you never know what you will read!

Document Spotlight-West Point Inventory

Recently transcriber Vjorden ran across a document detailing an inventory of public property held at West Point. All these items–which seem to be equestrian in nature–were in the custody of the Quartermaster there. Note the inventory contains not only quantities of the items, but also their disposition. The majority of items are fit for service, but a not insignificant number of them are either needing repair or are unfit for further service.

Two Captured Soldiers Seek “Redemption’

In the Summer of 1784 two American soldiers, William Moore of South Carolina and Thomas Ward of Maryland, describing themselves as “unfortunate subscribers,” submitted their third petition  for their release as “redemptioners” and asked that their pay be applied as their “redemption money.” They wrote their  letter on board the vessel “Favourite,” dated the 11th of August 1784. It was addressed  to the Commissioners of the Board of War, a standing committee created by the Continental Congress to supervise the army. Moore and Ward stated that they had been captured by the British on the 10th day of August 1780, following the “Capitulation of Charles Town,” and held for several months on British “prison ships and gaols [jails]” and then “forcibly compelled into the West Indies Service.”

General Washington’s New Uniform

In late January 1799, George Washington, Commander in Chief of the Armies, wrote to James McHenry, Secretary of War, to discuss an important topic: his new uniform.

New regulations on the Uniform for the Army of the United States had been released earlier that month, approved by McHenry and President Adams. The commander in chief was to wear the following uniform: “a blue coat, with yellow buttons, and gold epaulets, each having three silver stars, with lining, cape and cuffs, of buff…. The coat to be without lappels [sic], and embroidered on the cape and cuffs and pockets.”