3tste -A X str4 and I orthmil 4'tt
HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
NUMBER ONO.
BATTLE AND MASSACRE AT FRENCLRTOWN, MXC1 GHI[XN,
JANUARY, 181:3.
BY REV. THOMAS P. DUDLEY, ONE OF THE SURVIVORS.
The following incidents relating to the
march of a detachment of Kentucky troops
under Colonel Lewis to Frenchtown, on the
River Raisin, Michigan, January, 181E; the
battles of the 18th and 22d; the massacre of
the prisoners, and the march to Fort George,
on the Niagara river, were written by the
Rev. Thomas P. Dudley, of Lexington,
Ky., May 26th, 1870, and indorsed as
follows:
A. T. Goodman, Esq., Secretary Western
Reserve Historical Society:
DEAR SIn: I take pleasure in forwarding
to your society an interesting and reilt e
narrative by the Rev. Thomas P. Dudley, of
this city. Very truly yours,
LESLIE CooMBS.
LEXINGTON, June 1, 1870.
On the 17th day of January, 1813, a de-
tachment of 550 men, under command of
Colonel William Lewis, with Colonel John
Allen, and Majors Ben. Graves and
George Madison, from the left wing of the
Northwest army, was ordered to French-
town, on the river Raisin, where it was un-
derstood a large number of British had col-
lected, and were committing depredations
on the inhabitants of that village. On. the
17th. at night, the detachment encamped at
the mouth of Swan creek, on the Niatmee
of the lake. On the 18th, they took up the
line of marcb, meeting a number of the in-
habitants retreating to the American
camp, opposite to where Fort Mleigs
was subsequently built. Our troops
inquired whether the British had any
artillery, to which the reply was,
"They have two pieces about large
enough to kill a mouse." They reached the
River Raisin about 3 o'clock in the after-
noon, and while crossing the river on the ice
the British began firing their swivels, when
the American troops were ordered to drop
their knapsacks on the ice. Reaching the
opposite shore, they raised a vell, some
crowing like chicken cocks, some barking
like dogs, and others calling, "Fire away
with your mouse cannon again." The
troops were disposed as follows: The right
battalion commanded by Colonel Allen, the
center by Major Madison, the left by Major
Graves. The latter battalion was ordered
to dislodge the enemy from the position
occupied by them, "being the same occu-
pied by the American troons in the battle of
the 22d," during which the right and center
were ordered to remain where they were,
in the open field. until Major Graves' com-
mand should force the enemy to the woods.
While Graves was drivingr the enemy occa-
sional balls from the woods. opnosite Col-
onel Allen's command, wounded some of
his men. Hence Colonel Allen ordered a
partial retreat of forty or fifty yards, so as
to place his men out ot the reach of the In-
dian guns. Just as this order was accom-
plished, we discovered, from the firing, that
Major-Graves ha driven the enemv to the
woods, when he was ordered to advance the
right and center. Up to this time the fight-
ing was done by Major Graves' battalion.
So soon as the right and center reached the
woods the fighting became generai and
most obstinate, tne enemy resisting every
inch of ground as they were compelled
COWARDICE OF COL. WELLS.
to fall back. During three hours the
battle raged, the American detachment lost
eleven killed and fifty-four wounded. About
dusk Major Graves was sent by Colonel
Lewis to strop the pursuit of the enemy, and
direct the officers commanding the right
and center, who had been hotly engaged in
the conflict, and had killed many of the
enemy, to return to Frenchtown, bearing
the killed for interment. and the wounded
for treatment. Nothing of importance oc-
curred until the morning of the 20th, when
General Winchester,'with a command of 200
men, under Colonel Wells, reached French-
town. Wells' command was ordered
to encamp on tne right of tne de-
tachment, who fought the battle
of the 18th, and to fortify. The spies
were out continually, and brought word on
the 21st that the enemy were advancing In
considerable force to make battle. On the
21st morning Wells asked leave to return to
the camrp, which he bad recently left, for
his baggage. General Winchester declined
giving leave, informing Wells that we would
certainly and very soon be attacked. In the
afternoon Wells again applied for leave to
return for his bargage. General Winchester
again replied, "The spies bring intelligenee
that the enemv have reached Stony Ureek,
five miles from here. If you are disposed to
leave your command in the immediate vicin-
itv of the enemy, when a battle is certain,
you can go." Wells left and went back.
OD the 22d, just as the reveille was arous-
iDg the troops, (about daybreak,) the first
gun was fired. Major Graves had been up
some hours, and had gone to the several
companies of his battalion, and roused them.
Upon the firing ot the first gun he imme-
diately left his quarters and ordered his men
to stand to their arms. Very many bombs
were discharged by the enemy, doing, how-
ever, very little execution, most of them
bursting in the air, and the fighting became
general alone the line, the artillery of the
enemv being directed mainly to the right of
our lines, where Wells' command had no
protection but a common rail fence, four or
five rails high. Several of the Americans
on that part of the line were killed, and their
fence knocked down by the cannon balls,
when General Winchester ordered the right
to fall back a few steps, and reform on the
bank of the river, where they would have
been protected from the enemy's guns.
Unfortunately, however, that part of the
line commenced retreatinz, and reaching
Hull's old trace along the lane, on either
side of which the grass was so high as to
conceal the Indians. At this time, Colonels
Lewis and Allen, with a view of rallying the
retreating party, took 100 men from
the stockade and endeavored to arrest their
flight. Very many were killed and wounded,
and others made prisoners, among the former
Colonel Allen, Captains Simson, Price, Ed-
mundison, Mead, Dr. Irwin, Montgomery,
Davis, McLlvain and Patrick, and of the
latter, General Winchester, Colonel Lewis,
Major Overton, etc. The firing was still
kept up by the enemy on those within
the pickets and returned with deadly
effect. The Indians, after the re-
treat of the right wing. got around
in the rear of the picketing, under the bank,
and on the same side of the the river, where
the battle was raging, and killed and
wounded several of our men. It is believed
that the entire number of killed and
wounded within the pickets did not exceed
one dozen, and the writer doubts very much
whether, if the reinforcements had not come,
those who fought the first battle, although
their number had been depleted by sixty
five, would not have held their ground, at
least until reinforcements could have come to
their relief. Indeed, it was very evident the
British very much feared a reinforcement,
from their hurry in removing the prisoners
! they bad taken, from the south to the west
of the battle ground, and in the direction of
Fort Malden, from which they sent a flag,
i accompanied by Dr. Overton, aid to General
Winchester, demanding the surrender of the
detachment, informing they had Generals
Winchester and Lewis, and in the event of
refusal to surrender, would not restrain their
Indians. Major Graves being wounded,
Major Madison was now left in command,
who, when the summons to surrender came,
repaired to the room in which Major Graves
and several other wounded officers were, to
consult with them as to the propriety of sur-
rendering. It is proper here to state that
our ammunition was nearly exhausted. It
was finally determined to surrender, requir-
ing of the enemy a solemn pledge for the
security of the wounded. If this was not
unhesitatingly given, determined to fight
it out, but oh, the scene which now took
place! The mortification at the thought of
surrendering the Spartan band who had
fought like heroes, the tears shed, the
wringing of hands, the swelling of hearts,
indeed, the scene beggars description.
i Life seemed valueless. Our Madison replied
to the summons, in substance. '-We will
not surrender without a guarantee for tne
safetv of the wounded and the return of
side arms to the officers.," (We did not in-
tend to be dishonored.) The British offi-
cer haughtily responded: "Do you, sir,
claim the right to dictate what terms I am
to offer" Major Madison replied: "No,
but I intend to be understood as regards the
i orily terms on which we will agree to sur-
I render." Captain William Elliott, who had
2
BRITISH FAITH.
charge of the Indians, it was agreed would
be left with some men, whom it was said
would afford ample protection until carry-
alls could be brought from Malden to trans-
port the prisoners there, but the sequel
proved they were a faithless, cowardly set.
The British were in quite a hurry, as were
their Indian allies, to leave after the sturren-
der. Pretty soon Captain Elliott came into
the room where Major Graves, Captain
Hickman, Captain Hart, and the writer of
this (all wounded) were quartered. He rec-
ognized Captain Hart, with whom he had
been a room-mate at Hart's father's, in Lex-
ington, Ky. Hart introduced him to the
other officers, and after a short con-
versation, in which be [Elliott]
seemed quite restless and a good deal
agitated [he, I apprehend, could have
readily told why,), as he could not have for-
gotten the humiliation he had contracted in
deceiving Hart's family, pecuniarily. He
proposed borrowing a horse, saddle, and
bridle for the purpose of going immediately
to Malden, and hurrying on sleighs to re-
move the wounded. Thence assuring Cap-
tain Hart especially of the hospitality of his
house, and begging us not to feel uneasy;
that we were in no danger; that he would
leave three interpreters, who would be an
ample protection to us. He obtained Major
Graves's horse, saddle, and bridle, and left,
which was the last we saw of Captain El-
liott. We shall presently see how Elliott's
pledges were fulfilled. On the next morn-
ing, the morning of the massacre, between
davbreak and sunrise, the Indians were seen
approaching the houses sheltering the
wounded. The house in which M ajor
Graves, Capt