A Guide To Manuscripts Relating To American History In British Depositories

"A guide to manuscripts relating to American history in British depositories reproduced for the Division of manuscripts of the Library of Congress"

...the Library of Congress entered upon a consistent and continuous program of procuring reproductions of manuscripts in European archives which relate to American history.

Vol. 17. Same. 1763-1764. Selections: Six letters of John Stuart, agent for Indian affairs in the southern district, to the Board of Trade. Charles Town. Dec. 1, 1763, Jan. 16, Feb. 23, [ca. Feb. 23], Mar. 9, 1764. Savannah. Mar. 23, 1764. Photostats. 

Vol. 18. Same. 1764-1766. Selections: Four letters of John Stuart, superintendent of Indian affairs in the southern district, to the Board of Trade. Savannah, Mar. 23, 1764. Charles Town, May 5 and 18, 1764. Saint Augustine, July 21, 1764. Photostats. 

Vol. 51. South Carolina. 1787-1788. Selections: Documents presented by Mrs. Sarah Stuart, widow of Colonel John Stuart, superintendent for Indian affairs in the southern district of North America. [1787?]. Photostats. 

Scattered From Natchez

"Somewhere along the way, probably whre the Natchez Trace turned more sharply north, the party (of revolt fugitives) divided. 

Scene In Alabama

One group, of which Colonel Hutchins was a member, went by Alabama and Georgia...finally arrved at Savanah, then in British control, in the later part of October, after traveling 131 days."  The other group...'had the bad luck of falling into the hands of American insurgents'." (Source: THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE The Story of the Natchez Trace...:)

Pike Was Chosen To Trace The Mississippi

The Expeditions of Zebulon Montgomery Pike, Volume 1 (of 3) by Pike

I was chosen to trace the Mississippi to its source, with the objects in view contemplated by my instructions; to which I conceived my duty as a soldier should induce me to add an investigation into the views of the British traders in that quarter as to trade, and an inquiry into the limits of the  territories of the United States and Great Britain.

In the execution of this voyage I had no gentleman to aid me, and I literally performed the duties (as far as my limited abilities permitted) of astronomer, surveyor, commanding officer, clerk, spy, guide, and hunter; frequently preceding the party for miles in order to reconnoiter, and returning in the evening, hungry and fatigued, to sit down in the open air, by firelight, to copy the notes and plot the
courses of the day.

Beyond The Appalachians

Near Cumberland Gap

At the opening of the eighteenth century the image of the West beyond the Appalachian Mountains was very dim in the minds of those subjects of the British crown who inhabited the fringe of colonies along the Atlantic coast.  The unsettled forest no longer seemed, as it had to Michael Wigglesworth in 1662, a 'Devils den,'.....  Yet few English-speaking colonists had reliable knowledge of the interior of the continent.

Source - Routes Of Early French Explorations

In so far as the West had come under European control at all, it was French.  The English colonists had been engaged in war against this enemy as early as the 1690's, but not even the boldest prophet could imagine a day when the English power would extend over the unmeasured expanse of the Mississippi Valley.  The imperial development of Britain was moving in another direction, toward dominion over the seven seas rather than toward the blank and remote hinterland of North America. [Source - VIRGIN LAND] 

To Choté

#1 - Fort Loudoun; #4 - Chota and Tanasi Memorials

The Story of Old Fort Loudon (published 1899):

 For even previous to the present outbreak and despite the stipulations of their treaties with the English, the Cherokees were known to have hesitated long in taking sides in the struggle between France and Great Britain, still in progress now in 1758, for supremacy in this western country, and many were suspected of yet inclining to the French, who had made great efforts to detach them from the British interest.

"Where go?" demanded the chief, suspiciously.

"To Choté, old town," she averred at haphazard, naming the famous "beloved town, city of refuge," of the Cherokee nation.

Strike Kentucky Settlers Hard And Often

Cabin In Kentucky

From The Kentuckians by Janet Holt Giles:

"Davie, I've come by to give you news.  The British have treated with the Six Nations and the Indians are going over to their side in this war.  All the tribes north of the Ohio know of it and will take their part.  They're aiming to strike at the settlers in Kentucky, hard and often, with British guns and powder baking 'em up, and in time even British officers to lead 'em.  Henry Hamilton had put up a bounty for ever' scalp they take.  Who is Henry Hamilton.  He's the British governor at Detroit."

Source

Bartram's Travels

Also see Thomas Brown In The Hornet's Nest.

The Hornet's Nest, A novel of the Revolutionary War by [President] Jimmy Carter, is concerned with the war "as it was fought in Georgia and the Carolinas...".

Two of the characters, husband and wife Kindred and Mavis Morris were associates of Dr. John Bartram of Philadelphia whose son, William, was going to collect flora and fauna, too.

Bartram:  Then the surveyor team is supposed to come here, and I shall join this British and Indian group, who will be establishing the boundary lines of the territory just ceded by the Indians in Augusta.  Then we plan to return to Savannah, continue my examination of the coastal areas of Carolina and Georgia, and later go farther into the interior of northern Florida and southern Georgia.

A Chapter On Craney Island

Battle Of Craney Island Map

The Adventures of Robin Day,  By Robert Montgomery Bird:

The Exasperation Of The French

The Plains of Abraham by Brian Connell:

"To the exasperation of the French, the British were drawing off more and more of the fur trade. Virginia and Pennsylvania traders penetrated almost to the French life-line and set up a post at Pickawillany, now called Piqua, Ohio, on the Miami river.... ."

Near The Miami River In Ohio

"This forced La Jonquiere to show his hand."

"He ordered one of his most trusted French officers with the Indians, Charles Langlade, to bring a force of loyal Ottawas and Chippewas all the way down from Michilimackinac, through Fort Detroit, to attack the defecting Miamis."

Fort Mackinac

"This they triumphantly did, killing their chief, called variously "Old Briton" and La Demoiselle"... That was in June 1752.  Although none of the British traders had been harmed, the incident alarmed [Virginia Governor] Dinwiddie."

A Sword Of The Old Frontier

A Sword Of The Old Frontier (text version)

Excerpt from A Sword Of The Old Frontier:

Montresor Journals

The Montresor Journals, Volume 14:

Thither Fled Tories

Rare, Hand-Drawn Map Found Recently (Detroit Free Press)

From The Shawnee prisoner: a borderer's story, by Clara Florida Guernsey:

The British still retained their garrison at Detroit, and thither fled many of the most brutal class of Tories; among the rest, Simon Girty, who, together with his two brothers, James and George, continued to stir up the Indians to violence and bloodshed.  The headquarters of the British Indian trade was at Detroit, and the traders, looking with jealous eyes upon the advance of the American frontier, encouraged the marauding-parties by every means in their power.

British Colonel McKee

Source (Blog)

Col. Alexander McKee was Indian Agent at [or near] Pittsburg-before the Revolutionary War, after the outbreak-of which he was imprisoned by the revolutionists at Pittsburg. He effected his escape and co-operated with Sir John Johnson among the Indians, becoming Deputy Superintendent-General. In 1778 he traveled through the Indian territory to Detroit, and greatly assisted in maintaining friendly relations between the tribes and the British Crown. He was a Justice of the Court of Common Pleas at Detroit. His services were greatly appreciated by Lord Dorchester, and in his death on the 14th January, 1799, the, service lost an able and devoted officer. [Source]


McKee was listed as a British Officer at Malden.

Prisoner Held In Quebec

For background information, see earlier post.

NARRATIVE

OF

MR. JOHN DODGE

DURING HIS CAPTIVITY

AT DETROIT

 The story of the rescue of a prisoner from the Indians, related in his Narrative, is contained in the report of the Virginia Council of June 16, 1779. Sometimes at liberty, engaged in trading, and sometimes confined in jail as a rebel, he remained in Detroit and Mackinac till May, 1778, when he was sent down to Quebec, at which place he arrived on the first day of June.

In the reports of rebel prisoners at Quebec in June and July, 1778, are three entries referring to Dodge as follows: "John Dodge, 24 years old, from Connecticut, a trader settled at Detroit for seven years, sent down by Lieutenant Governor Hamilton. His commercial effects at Detroit. Taken up on suspicion of having been in arms with the rebels." He remained in Quebec until the ninth day of the following October when he escaped, going first to Boston and subsequently to General Washington. Dodge does not state where or when he met Washington, but as the General was in attendance at Congress from December 21, 1778, until some time in the following January, he probably met him at Philadelphia. Dodge says he visited Congress "having some matters relating to Canada worthy their hearing." This related to the "certain expedition" referred to by Washington in his letter of December 29th, a proposition to invade Canada. Dodge was at Fort Pitt in the early part of January, 1779, and from that port wrote a letter to John Montour. There is no record of Dodge's appearance before Congress, but he wrote a letter on the subject, to Congress... .

John Dodge - Last Name In Excerpt Of List Of POWS

1763's Impact Upon The Revolutionary War

Source

The Hornet's Nest is an historical novel based upon the Revolutionary War by former President Carter.

Pre-war agreements had an impact upon the war, including the 1763 Proclamation which was "advantageous to keep settlers close to coast for dependence upon England...better for the Native Americans, too."

It was also stated that "the 1763 land agreement involved all major tribes and required that British royal governors be parties to any further land treaties."


Excerpts from [7 October] 1763:

The McGregors' And Their Powerful Neighbors

The Dean of Lismore's book: a selection of ancient Gaelic poetry from a manuscript collection made by Sir James M'Gregor, dean of Lismore, in the beginning of the sixteenth century :

Bellestre At Braddock's Defeat

From Historical Collections, Volume 34

It is probable that Belestre [Francois Marie Picote de Bellestre] was in command of a body of Indians in the battle of Braddock's defeat July 9, 1755. In the succeeding year he is mentioned as being at Fort Duquesne (Pittsburgh) with 250 Miamis and Ontaganons, and there were 300 more Indians from Detroit and 700 from Mackinac under Repentigny.

British In The Western Country

From The Kentuckians:

Now, where are the British in the western country?  Well, mostly over in the Illinois country.  They've got that fort at Kaskaskia now, and one or two more.  Exactly.  And Hamilton is at Detroit, in charge of them all.  Dave, if we can strike at the Illinois forts, and then drive on Detroit, we shall win our war in the west!

Struggles Through Life, Per Lieutenant John Harriott

Struggles through life, exemplified in the various travels and adventures in Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, of Lieut. John Harriott ...[author] (1808) was mentioned in the "true crime" story told in "The Maul and The Pear Tree, by P.D. James and T. A. Critchley.

"My father had served in the navy, and afterwards was a  master of a merchant ship; my grandfather was the last of the family that was born at Brigstock, in Northamptonshire, where the family had lived for several centuries; and the end of the town, where they resided as tanners, went by their name. When the estate
was sold to the Duke of M---, part of it being copy-hold, the title-deeds were traced back in the family as far as William Rufus. That is all which I have to boast of concerning ancestry." 

...a passage about a voyage To New York...

I took my first bias for travelling, or going to sea, from reading Robinson Crusoe; and, when I was little more than thirteen, sailed as a midshipman on-board a ship of war, bound with a convoy of merchant-vessels for New York, in company with another frigate, bound to the West Indies, with a similar convoy; having orders to keep together until we arrived at a certain latitude, this was early in 1759.

Rolled It Westward

From The Shawnee prisoner: a borderer's story, by Clara Florida Guernsey:

"The surrender of Cornwallis and the subsequent treaty of peace, so far from dispelling the cloud of war, only rolled it westward."