Vernon was on sentry duty when the attack began. "It was near an hour to daybreak when Mr. I. Davis and myself, who were posted on the river before our quarters, were speaking of the possibility of an Indian attack, he was in a very ill humor, and remarked we have marched a hundred miles into the wilderness through snow and sleet, half leg deep in the bleak month of December, with nothing but what we have carried on our backs, and now, what is worse, we shall have to march back without any fight at all. Scarcely had he ended his remarks, when a ball whistled over our heads, and the next instant a yell prevaded the forest as if all the fiends of the lower regions had been loosed upon us. 'There they are now' was his exultant exclamation, and the next moment we were forming in line". Vernon reported that a "...sentinel hearing someone approach... challenged, 'who comes there!', 'Pottawatamie, God damn you', was the reply in good English, with a shot aimed at him".

Large Map 2 (45K)

The redoubt at the northwest corner was attacked first. Defended by a party under Captain Pierce, it was quickly overwhelmed and occupied by the Natives. Pierce was killed and a heavy fire commenced from the redoubt upon the troops of Captains Hopkins and Garrard holding the northwest angle of the camp. Northcutt witnessed this initial attack, "...the Indians had formed their lines and commenced their attack on us with a terrible yell. They took possion of a redoubt at the guard fire, dispersed the guard and killed Pierce the captain of the guard with a war hawk". Shortly after the opening attack the camps southwest corner held by Captain Markle's troop of Dragoons, and Captain Elliott's 19th U.S.Infantry came under fire.

Campbell now chose this moment to issue an odd order. Captain Butler's Pittsburgh Blues and Captain Alexander's Pennsylvania Riflemen were informed they were to advance south to the brink of the river cliff. Such a movement would have opened a gap on the south side of the hollow square, and placed the Infantry in an exposed position. Fortunately Butler and Alexander kept to their original positions and ignored Campbell's order.

The fighting at the northwest corner intensified. Northcutt was in the thick of it,"We were ordered to form in the rear of our fires and put them out which we did and stood one fire from them in this position, when the Officers discovered that they had the advantage of us they being in a thick clump of woods, and we in an open place in the edge of their town with here and there a tree and we were ordered to retreat and form behind our horses which was tied to stakes twenty paces in our rear".

Battle Continues

As the fighting continued, Northcutt recalled, "...the Indians made a charge on us and some of them were killed at our fires that we had left. They fought with desperation yelling all the time like so many fiends. Our watch word was 'Fight On' and we repeated it all the time, when a hoarse voice from their side bawled out,'Fight On and be dam to you'".

Northcutt's 'Bourbon Blues' had, "...to stand the brunt of the fight. We had two killed dead and a great many wounded. My right hand man was shot through the head and fell flat on his back with his gun cocked across his breast, and my left hand man had his right arm broken close to his right shoulder, and I had four mess mates badly wounded and how I escaped is a mystery to me, and always will be for I was right in the thickest of the fight and never got a scratch". As the fight intensified so, mingling with the cries of the wounded, the crash of musketery and the hoarse yelling of orders could be heard the "...continual hollowing and gabbering..." of the native prisoners in the guarded hut.

Hopkins' and Garrard's men were becoming hard pressed. Major Ball in overall charge of them now advised Campbell that they would need assistance. Campbell at first ordered Captain Trotter's troop from the east side of the camp to their support. But Trotter reported seeing Natives approaching his part of the camp and so stayed put. Campbell thus sought help from elsewhere. He ordered the seven guides to the northwest corner followed by Captain Butler's Pittsburgh Blues. Butler promptly carried the order out and the resulting increased firepower brought an immediate relief to the pressure which had been exerted on Hopkins and Garrard.

Vernon in the Pittsburgh Blues took part in this movement, "Capt. Butler...ordered us to right about face and preceded by Major Ball, we marched hastily and took up position on the same ground from which the U.S. Light Dragoons had just been driven. Our Captain, waving his sword, gave a hearty,'Hurrah for the Pittsburgh Blues', which was answered by the company, with a simultaneous and terrible fire upon the enemy. After this the enemy fell back and ensconced behind trees".

However the relief was not undertaken without loss, Vernon watched while, "One of our men named Louson, standing near Butler, was shot in the breast. he pitched forward and fell a few steps in advance of the line. An Indian sprang forward to secure his scalp but was shot instantly by our men, both bodies were found lying together".

Northcutt saw the "Pittsburgh Blues" arrive, "Our ranks got so badly thined that we had to be reinforced by Captain Butlers Company from the centre of the encampment. His was an infantry company and fired by platoons. We opened to the right and left and they formed in our lines, and formed in sexions of sixteen men in a sexion, and from the time that they commenced their fireing, the note of the Indian yell began to change, for in a very short time their fire became very scattering...".

Fighting Shifts

The main fighting now shifted to Captain Markle's company at the southwest corner of the camp. But with dawn beginning to break and the light increasing, the American fire became more effective. The Natives seeing that Campbell's force was too strong for them and probably disheartened by the failure of their initial onslaught, began to disperse.

Campbell upon seeing this immediately ordered Captain Trotter's troop from Simrall's command to go in pursuit, with Captain Johnson's troop to act as support. Simrall had anticipated Campbell's command and had the men already mounted. However the pursuit was not what it could have been according to Vernon,"...the order was given for the cavalry to mount and pursue. I am sorry to say but few obeyed the order. Captain Markell with fifteen of his men, Johnson and Trotter with three or four of theirs, were all that joined in the pursuit. The Indians, with the exception of one poor wounded fellow, killed by Markell, made good their retreat".

Northcutt like Vernon had a good view of the cavalry's progress, "When the sun was about one half hour high we oppened our ranks again and let Trotters troop of horses from Simmerels Regement out to make a charge on them, they haveing begun to retreat"; But a rearguard of Natives, "...fired on his men. They being on their horses and the Indians behind trees they cut his company all to pieces and rendered his charge of no avail". However the dragoons returned to the camp with the report that the Natives had disappeared and that there was no danger for the time being.

The whole action had lasted about an hour. Major Ball's command and the Pittsburgh Blues had borne the blunt of the fighting, with the 19th U.S.Infantry under fire for a time. Throughout the engagement the Dragoons had fought dismounted except for the charge by some of Simeral's command at the fight's end. Campbell's force had lost twelve killed or later died of wounds and sixty-five wounded of whom seventeen were seriously injured. [10]

Post Battle

Over one hundred of the Americans horses were killed, this large number indicating perhaps that they were targeted intentionally, the Natives main purpose being to cripple any further American progress rather than destroy them. More likely, however, the horses just got in the way as the fight surged around their picket lines.

The number of Native Americans involved in the fight is open to conjecture. Campbell thought there were 300 of them, though given the hyperbole prevalent in a few War of 1812 Commamder's reports, this might be an overestimation. Native casualties are also hard to estimate. Northcutt saw that,"...they left forty of their dead behind them but none of their wounded" Vernon heard that, "It was reported the Indians had lost 47 killed with 75 wounded".

Again, these figures appear to be excessive. The Natives were probably led by Francis Godfroy, son of the French Trader, James Godfroy, Joe Richardville son of the Miami Chief, and probably Little Thunder The last was the nephew of Little Turtle, and whose voice William Conner the scout said he recognised in the dark calling for one more attack before they withdrew.

The American retirement to Greenville did not begin until the late afternoon. The departure was delayed until the dead had been buried and transport for the wounded arranged. Northcutt helped with the wounded, "We gathered up the poor wounded boys and took them all to the Doctors quarters and then we gathered up our dead and buried them in one grave. We dug it in the floor of the hut that we had left for the prisoners to stay in. We levelled it off even with the other part of the floor, and set it on fire in order to keep the Indians from finding it or finding out how many of us they had Killed...There was one poor fellow that was shot through the head but could not die and the Doctors had to give him something to finish him so that we could bury him with the rest of the poor fellows".

The return to Fort Greenville was a nightmare. The entry in Northcutt's diary at this moment simply recorded, "We are now on our march back to Greenville, more than half of us afoot and we had a great many sick and frostbitten". Campbell's men were slowed by the loss of horses, the care of the wounded who were transported in litters, by the prisoners, and by hunger and exhaustion in the freezing cold conditions.

As Vernon was to later write, "Our traials had just commenced. Our provisions were nearly expended, our ammunition nearly expended, our ammunition would not serve five rounds to a man, even our thirst had to be quenched by the melting of snow in our mouths as we marched".

The ammunition situation was confirmed by Northcutt," We were prety near out of ammuntion. An accident happened to our ammunition a few days before we arrived at the Indian towns. We had two boxes of catriges on a pack horse, when he took fright and broke away from the man that was leading him, the package turned under his belly and he kicked the boxes to peices, and scattered the catriges for one quarter of a mile in the snow and destroyed them".

Straggled Back

By the morning of the 19th December only three hundred and ten men were fit for duty, the rest were either wounded, sick or frostbitten. To guard against another night or dawn attack, Campbell had his men build defences at the end of each days march. Vernon remembered that,"Half the men on guard every other night, the night not on guard up till near twelve o'clock building a breastwork, the remainder of the night unable to rest from constant alarms".

Northcutt too recollected this weary work, "We had to make Breast work every night until we got to Greenville and stand guard every other night which was enough to try the spunk of the very best of us. There was three days and nights that I did not get one hours sleep during the night...The third night we had to be up all night occasioned by false alarms by the sentenals fireing and running into camp". [11]

The march was hampered by the wounded, who suffered greatly. Vernon recalled that, "On our march we were frequently compelled to halt to adjust the wounded in their imperfect litters. They being merely two poles with blankets stretched across, the ends strapped upon two horses, one before the other, the hinder one unable to see where to step". [12]

Northcutt too observed the woundeds ordeal, "We had about twenty wounded to bring into Dayton in these litters, and in a great many places the little ponds of water was frozen over so that they would make the horses slip and jolt the poor fellows so that they would scream". The men had to take the litters off the horses and carry them over the ice on their shoulders. Not all the wounded made it back. Northcutt wrote in his diary,"Today one of our wounded boys died in his litter, and we buried him in the woods by the side of an old log".

To help speed the march up,"The Commander ordered the Indian ponies that we had caught on the 17th in the lower town be given up for the squaws and papooses to ride, which occasioned some hard swearing amongst the boys that claimed them as captured property" (Northcutt). The frequent halts also bought their own problems, as Vernon remembered, "At every halt the sock would freeze next to the foot, and so remain until the frichon of the foot and the moccasin would thaw it".

Despite being impeded by the captured natives, Campbell had his reasons for keeping them. Vernon later wrote that,"...we were informed by an Indian agent, that 1,000 Indians had been in close pursuit on our trail, and were prevented from making an attack by our breastworks...that the young warriors were eager for an attack, but restrained by the old warriors, who were fearful of our putting our prisoners to death, as had been threatened by our Commander".

After five days march and still two days out from Fort Greenville the food supply became completely exhausted. The situation however was saved when on the next day a reinforcement of 95 men under a Captain Adair met Campbell's force. The six pack horses carrying Adairs supplies provided enough food for Campbell's men to complete the return journey, though the surviving horses could scarely be brought in due to the lack of forage. Northcutt was one of those that lost his horse, "I lost my mare and had to walk into Dayton and pack my gun and sword. I got a soldier that rode a pack horse out to bring in my saddle and Holsters to Dayton for me".

Adair's arrival was timely as Campbell's men were by this time at the limit of their endurance. Vernon recorded that, "The day previous to our reaching Greenville they [the Indians] gave over the pursuit. This was fortunate for us, as that night, after having with much labor and difficulty prepared the logs for the breastwork, we were unable to man men enough to raise it. The men in despair threw down their broken axes, declaring they would fight to the last, but as to completing the breastwork, it was utterly impossible".

Conclusion