Revolutionary Reader: Reminiscences and Indian Legends

VIRGINIA REVOLUTIONARY FORTS.

By Mrs. Mary C. Bell Clayton.

In a mental vision of that galaxy of stars which emblazon our national flag, that bright constellation the thirteen original states, we pause to select the one star which shines with purest ray serene, and as we gaze upon the grand pageant from New Hampshire to Georgia and recall the mighty things achieved by the self-sacrificing devotion of their illustrious statesmen and generals with the united efforts of every patriot, it is with admiration for all that we point with reverence to that star which stands for her who cradled the nation, that infant colony at Jamestown in Virginia, who made defense first against the tomahawk of the Indians, growing stronger and stronger with an innate love for truth and justice, 'till we hear the cry "Give me liberty or give me death," which resounded from the White Mountains of New Hampshire to the sunny lands of Georgia, and is echoed there in her legend, "Wisdom, justice and moderation."

You, our sisters, the Daughters of the American Revolution of South Carolina, whose state is strong in state craft and brave as the bravest, and whose star shines as a beacon light in the constellation of states, to those who would infringe on the rights of others, you call to us, in your study of the defences of the revolutionary period, to show our "Landmarks," the signs of our ancestor's devotion to patriotism, that you with us, may reverence their loyalty and with pride cherish every evidence of their struggle for liberty, remembering always that "he who builded the house is greater than the house." We would tell you of facts in the military annals of Virginia, deeds of prowess, more enduring than memorials of stone, which have become the sacred heritage of us all, but to these, at this time, our attention is not to be given. And if we fail to show but a few of her strongholds, you must remember that within the present bounds of Virginia there were few important positions held against assault, and her "Northwestern Territory" was far away from the main contest. Her troops were kept moving from place to place, their defences often were not forts, but earthworks, hastily constructed, often trees, houses, fences, etc. For instance the first revolutionary battle fought on Virginia soil was at Hampton, a little town between the York and James rivers.

"The Virginians sunk obstacles in the water for protection, but during the night the British destroyed them and turned their guns upon the town. In this fight we had no fire-arms but rifles to oppose the cannons of the English, so when the attack began the riflemen had to conceal themselves behind such meagre defences as I have mentioned, houses, fences, trees, etc., opening fire upon the British vessels. The men at the guns were killed and not a sailor touched a sail without being shot. Confusion was upon the British decks, and in dismay they tried to draw off and make escape into the bay, but without success; some of the vessels were captured, many men were taken prisoners, and the whole fleet would have been captured but for the report that a large body of the British were advancing from another direction."

Small was the defense, but great was the result at this first battle of the Revolution on Virginia soil.

The Fort at Great Bridge.

"After the attack on Hampton, Lord Dunmore determined to make an assault on Norfolk. He erected a fort at Great Bridge where it crosses a branch of the Elizabeth river. This bridge was of importance as it commanded the entrance of Norfolk. The Virginians held a small village near by. At these points the armies were encamped for several days ready for the moment to begin the fight. In order to precipitate a contest, the Virginians had recourse to a stratagem. A negro boy belonging to Major Marshall was sent to Lord Dunmore. He represented himself as a deserter and reported that the Virginians had only three hundred 'shirt men,' a term used to distinguish the patriot, whose only uniform was a graceful hunting shirt, which afterwards became so celebrated in the Revolution. Believing the story, Lord Dunmore gave vent to his exultation, as he thought he saw before him the opportunity of wreaking his vengeance upon the Virginians. He mustered his whole force and gave the order for marching out in the night and forcing the breastworks of his hated foe. In order to stimulate his troops to desperate deeds, he told them that the Virginians were no better than savages, and were wanting in courage and determination, that in all probability they would not stand fire at all, but if by any chance they were permitted to triumph, the English need expect no quarter, and they would be scalped according to the rules of savage warfare. Early in the morning of December 9th, 1775, the Virginians beheld the enemy advancing towards their breastworks. They were commanded by Capt. Fordyce, a brave officer. Waving his cap over his head, he led his men in the face of a terrible fire, which ran along the American line, directly up to the breastworks. He received a shot in the knee and fell forward, but jumping up as if he had only stumbled, in a moment he fell again pierced by fourteen bullets. His death threw everything into confusion. The next officer was mortally wounded, other officers were prostrate with wounds, and many privates had fallen. In this desperate situation a retreat towards their fort at Norfolk was the only resource left to the English. They were not allowed to escape without a vigorous pursuit. It was conducted by brave Col. Stevens, who captured many prisoners and ten pieces of cannon. The loss of the British was one hundred and two killed and wounded. The only damage to our men was a wound in the finger of one of them."

The British had built a fort for their defence, the Virginians had breastworks.

Fort Nelson.

"During the Revolution Sovereign Virginia erected Fort Nelson to resist Lord Dunmore, should he ever attempt to return to the harbor of Norfolk and Portsmouth. It was named for the patriot Governor Nelson, who gave his private fortune to aid the credit of Virginia, and risked his life and sacrificed his health on the battlefields of the American Republic. On account of its location it was never the scene of any bloody battle, but like the 'Old Guard,' it was held in reserve for the emergencies of war. On the 9th of May, 1779, a great British fleet, under Admiral Sir George Collier entered Hampton Roads, sailed up Elizabeth river, and landed three thousand royal soldiers under General Matthews in Norfolk County, where Fort Norfolk now stands, to flank this fortification and capture its garrison composed of only 150 soldiers. Maj. Matthews, the American commander, frustrated the designs of the British general by evacuating the fort, and retired to the northward. On the 11th of May, the British took possession of the two towns, and gave free hand to pillage and destruction. Sir George Collier, after satisfying his wrath sailed back to New York. Varying fortunes befell Fort Nelson during the remainder of the war until the evacuation by Benedict Arnold, after which no British grenadier ever paced its ramparts. After the close of the Revolution, it was rebuilt and for many years was garrisoned by regular soldiers of the United States; but since, abandoned as a fortification, it has been a beautiful park and a home for sick officers and sailors of our navy.

"The garrison of Fort Nelson, under the glorious stars and stripes, on the 22nd of June, 1813, stood to their shotted guns, to meet the British invaders, who were defeated at Crany Island, by our Capt. Arthur Emerson and other gallant heroes. Here thousands of soldiers marched in response to the call of Virginia in 1861."

In the naval park at Portsmouth, the site of Fort Nelson, there is a monument whose granite body embraces a real Revolutionary cannon. This gun was selected from a number of guns known to be of the period of the American Revolution. It is believed that one, at least, of these was mounted at Crany Island for the defense of Portsmouth and Norfolk. The honor of erecting this monument is due to the ladies of the Fort Nelson Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and to Admiral P. F. Harrington of the United States Navy, and also Medical Director R. C. Person of the navy. It is said that with proper care this gun will last centuries and "It will carry down to distant generations a memorial of the patriots of the American Revolution, a mark of the formation of a nation and the token of the later patriots, the Daughters of the American Revolution, to whose efforts is due this important national service to which the gun has been dedicated."

After these first assaults, for about three years of the war, there was almost no fighting in Virginia, but during that term she was furnishing her full quota of men, money and inspiration to the cause, with devoted loyalty, assisting in the north and in the south, wherever an attack was made. Directing her attention to the main army she built no defences of any importance on her own territory east of the Alleghanies. "The British success in the north and followed by still more decided victories in the south. Thus later the English began to look forward, with certainty, to the conquest of the entire country, and as Virginia was regarded as the heart of the rebellion, it was decided to carry their victorious arms into the state, as the surest way of bringing the war to a speedy conclusion." We had no time, then, for building forts, and when we recall the traitor Arnold's advance on Richmond, with the two days he spent there destroying public and private property—his taking of Petersburg, burning the tobacco and vessels lying at the wharves, with Col. Tarleton's raids, scouring the country of every thing; in fact all of Cornwallis' reign of terror, which was soon to end in that imposing scene at Yorktown, we realize truly that "the battle is not to the strong, nor the race to the swift," but that a country's bulwark often are not forts and strong towers, but her courageous heart, and her staunch friends, such men as Lafayette, De Rochambeau, De Grasse and Steuben, who with Washington, led the allied Americans and French forces at Yorktown, and besieged the British fortification, the surrender of which virtually closed the Revolutionary War on the 19th of October, 1781. The place is sacred, their devotion reverenced.

Forts of the Northwestern Territory, Kaskaskia, Cahokia and Vincennes.

"While the communities of the sea coast were yet in a fever heat from the uprising against the stamp act, the first explorers were toiling painfully to Kentucky, and the first settlers were building their palisaded hamlets on the banks of the Wautauga. The year that saw the first Continental Congress saw also the short grim tragedy of Lord Dunmore's war. The battles of the Revolution were fought while Boone and his comrades were laying the foundation of their Commonwealth. Hitherto the two chains of events had been only remotely connected, but in 1776, the year of the Declaration of Independence, the struggle between the king and his rebellious subjects shook the whole land and the men of the western border were drawn headlong into the full current of the Revolutionary war. From that moment our politics became national, and the fate of each portion of our country was thenceforth in some sort dependent upon the welfare of every other. Each section had its own work to do; the east won independence while the west began to conquer the continent, yet the deeds of each were of vital consequence to the other. The Continentals gave the west its freedom, and took in return, for themselves and their children, a share of the land that had been conquered and held by the scanty bands of tall backwoodsmen."

Kentucky had been settled chiefly through Daniel Boone's instrumentality in the year that saw the first fighting of the Revolution, and had been added to Virginia by the strenuous endeavors of Major George Rogers Clark of Albermarle, Virginia, whose far seeing and ambitious soul prompted him to use it as a base from which to conquer the vast region northwest of the Ohio. "The country beyond the Ohio was not like Kentucky, a tenantless and debatable hunting ground. It was the seat of powerful and warlike Indian confederacies, and of cluster of ancient French hamlets which had been founded generations before Kentucky pioneers were born. It also contained forts that were garrisoned and held by the soldiers of the British king." It is true that Virginia claimed this territory under the original grant in her charter, but it was almost an unknown and foreign land, and could only be held by force. Clark's scheming brain and bold heart had long been planning its conquest. He looked about to see from whence came the cause of the Indian atrocities on the whole American frontier, and like Washington he saw that those Indian movements were impelled by some outside force. He discovered that the British forts of Detroit, Kaskaskia and St. Vincent were the centers from which the Indians obtained their ammunition and arms to devastate the country. He resolved to take these forts. "He knew that it would be impossible to raise a force to capture these forts from the scanty garrisoned forts and villages of Kentucky, though he knew of a few picked men peculiarly suited to his purpose, but fully realized that he would have to go to Virginia for the body of his forces. Accordingly, he decided to lay the case before Patrick Henry, the governor of Virginia. Henry's ardent soul quickly caught the flame from Clark's fiery enthusiasm, but the peril of sending an expedition to such a wild and distant country was so great, and Virginia's forces so exhausted that he could do little beyond lending Clark the weight of his name and influence. Finally though, Henry authorized him to raise seven companies, each of fifty men, who were to act as militia, and to be paid as such. He also advanced him a sum of twelve hundred pounds and gave him an order on the authorities at Pittsburg for boats, supplies and ammunition; while three of the most prominent gentlemen of Virginia, Thomas Jefferson, George Mason and George Wythe, agreed, in writing, to do their part to induce the legislature to grant to each of the adventurers three hundred acres of the conquered land, if they were successful. Clark was given the commission of colonel with the instruction to raise his men from the frontier counties west of the Blue Ridge, so as not to weaken the sea coast region in their struggle against the British." To this instruction he did not strictly adhere. There was a company of soldiers from Bedford County, Virginia, under his command, a list of whose names are on our county records. Two of these are connections of the mother of Mrs. R. B. Clayton, the regent of the Peaks of Otter Chapter of Virginia Daughters, which facts enhance our pride and interest in the capture of the western forts by Colonel Clark, which perhaps, prevented a vast and beautiful region of our country from being a part of a then foreign and hostile empire.

The Capture of Fort Kaskaskia.

"Fort Kaskaskia, an old French fort of western Illinois, situated on Kaskaskia River, and garrisoned by the British was, at the time of its capture in splendid repair with a well drilled militia and spies constantly on the lookout. Rochenblave, the commandant of the fort, had two or three times as many men as Col. Clark, and would have made a vigorous fight if he had not been taken by surprise. Clark's force after the toil and hardships of much traveling across rivers and tangled pathless forests, was much reduced, and it was only his audacity and the noiseless speed of his movements, that gave him a chance of success with the odds so heavily against him. He ferried his men across the stream under cover of darkness and profound silence. Inside the forts, lights were lit, and through the windows came the sound of violins. The officers of the fort had given a ball, the young men and girls were dancing, revelling within, while the sentinels had left their posts. One of the men whom Clark had captured, on his approach to the fort, showed him a postern gate by the river side, through which he entered the fort, having placed his men about the entrance. Advancing to the great hall, where the revel was held he leaned silently, with folded arms, against the door post, looking at the dancers. An Indian lying on the floor of the entry suddenly sprang to his feet uttering the unearthly war whoop. The dancing ceased, the women screamed, while the men ran towards the door, but Clark standing unmoved and with unchanged face, grimly bade them continue their dancing, but to remember that they now danced under Virginia and not Great Britain. At the same time his men seized the officers, including the commandant, Rochenblave, who was sent a prisoner to Williamsburg, Virginia."

Among his papers falling into the hands of Colonel Clark, were the instructions which he had from time to time received from the British Governor of Quebec and Detroit, urging him to stimulate the Indians to war by the proffer of large bounties for the scalps of the Americans. This shows of what importance the capture of this fort was at that period, a defence against the scalping knife of the Indians as well as the power of the British tyrant.

The Capture of Cohokia and Vincennes.

After the capture of Kaskaskia, without the shedding of a drop of blood, Clark pushed on to the taking of fort Cohokia, where the French, as soon as they were made to know that France had acknowledged the independence of America, shouted for freedom and the Americans. Clark then marched to fort Vincennes which, without the firing of a gun, surrendered, and the garrison took the oath of allegiance to Virginia July 19th, 1778. Very soon after this the British under Governor Hamilton, left Detroit and recaptured Vincennes, only to be forced by Clark to surrender it a second time in February, 1779, and to yield himself a prisoner of war. The taking of this fort the second time was a most remarkable achievement.

"Clark took, without artillery, a heavy stockaded fort, protected by cannon and swivels and garrisoned by trained soldiers. Much credit belongs to Clark's men but most belongs to their leader. The boldness of his plan and the resolute skill with which he followed it out, his perseverance through the intense hardship of the midwinter march of two hundred miles, through swamps and swollen rivers, with lack of force, the address with which he kept the French and Indians neutral, and the masterful way in which he controlled his own men, together with the ability and courage he displayed in the actual attack, combined to make his feat the most memorable of all the deeds done west of the Alleghenies in the Revolutionary war. It was likewise the most important in its results, for had he been defeated in the capture of these forts we would not only have lost Illinois but in all probability Kentucky also."

As it was "he planted the flag of the Old Dominion over the whole of the northwestern territory, and when peace came the British boundary line was forced to the big lakes instead of coming down to the Ohio, and the State of Virginia had a clear title to this vast domain, out of which were carved the states of Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan and a part of Minnesota." Virginia's share in the history of the nation has been gallant and leading, but the Revolutionary war was emphatically fought by Americans for America; no part could have won without the help of the whole, and every victory was thus a victory for all in which all alike can take pride—American Monthly Magazine.

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