Blue Jacket Born Marmaduke Van Swearingen, Blue jacket was born in 1754 near present-day Richwood, West Virginia. While a youngster he became fascinated with the Indian way of life and hunting. Such emulation and hero worship was not appreciated, nor long tolerated, by his family and neighbors. At age sixteen he ran away and was taken in by the Kispotkotha clan of the Shawnee, who nicknamed him "Blue jacket" for the vest he wore when they first laid eyes on him. Marmaduke proved himself worthy of membership in the tribe and rose in respect and authority, earning the tribal name of Weh yah pih her sehn weh. His bilingual skills, and ability to tolerate alcohol, served well in the many "negotiations" with settlers and US leaders. His background and proven talents also made him a potent leader who early-on recognized the threat US armies and settlers posed to his adopted people. Blue Jacket and Little Turtle of the Miami were all too ready to support Tecumseh, and seek British support, once US intentions became clear west of the Appalachians. Blue Jacket's faith in the British eventually turned to animosity and distrust as the war dragged on and losses mounted. The British failure to intervene, especially at Fallen Timbers, led Blue Jacket to denounce his erstwhile allies, and seek peace at Greenville. He declared, "Because they remained idle spectators, and saw their best and bravest chiefs and warriors slaughtered.... Without attempting to assist them... the British are not only liars, but also cowards." [12] As part of the terms of the Treaty of Greenville, Blue Jacket and the Shawnee received an annual stipend from the US government. Despite Congress decreasing this amount each year, and the gradual erosion of the treaty's provisions, Blue jacket remained loyal to the treaty and promises he made. When war with the British and Indians again approached, Blue Jacket rebuffed Tecumseh's pleas to join his Confederation. Blue Jacket died of cholera on June 26, 1810. (Editor's note: Blue Jacket's origin has never been conclusively proven. Paul's "origin story" is the most widely accepted by non-native historians.) Alexander McKee Alexander was born in 1735 to a family already well established in colonial affairs on behalf of his majesty's government. His father, Thomas, was the frontier Justice of the Peace 'in in three western Pennsylvania counties near Pittsburgh, as well as the Imperial Agent for Indian Affairs. The present-day towns of McKees Port and McKees Rocks are named for this family. During the Revolutionary War the McKee family, with Alexander now as the head following `his father's death in 1769, remained loyal and moved west out of the Pennsylvania colony. Alexander had taken over his father's role as Imperial Agent and established a trading post near British Fort Miami, located near what is now Toledo. Trusted by many of the area's leaders, McKee was referred to as White Elk by many of the Indians. McKee petitioned the Crown repeatedly for increased support of the Native American inhabitants. In September 1783 McKee convened a conference of Native American nations at the Lower Sandusky River (in present day Fremont, Ohio), the largest such gathering of chiefs and warriors held to that point. Among the participants were Little Turtle of the Miami, Black Hoof and Blue Jacket of the Shawnee, Tarhe of the Wyandot, and even Joseph Brant of the Iroquois. McKee forged a confederacy by offering the British promise to "not allow your poor children to be crushed under the weight of their enemies." [13] McKee supervised the provision of large quantities of food, supplies and weapons to the Native Americans during their war. He often took to the field and traveled from one camping ground to another to learn first-hand how the various clans and chiefs felt, and find out how the war was faring before submitting reports back to the Governor of Canada, Lord Dorchester. Despite all of his work, McKee was unsuccessful in securing British intervention. Revolutions and war in Europe proved of much greater concern to those in London than , the growing violence in the Ohio frontier. The battle of Fallen Timbers, fought almost within sight of Fort Miami, shattered the Indian confederacy McKee formed. Already sick with rheumatic fever when the battle was fought, McKee was not able to stem the rout and desertions that followed, and bore the brunt of Little Turtle's and Blue Jacket's scorn before they went to Greenville to arrange peace with the Americans. The exact circumstances of his death on January 10, 1799, are in dispute; he suffered a relapse of the fever two weeks earlier. Little Turtle War Chief of the Miami, Little Turtle (Algonquin name Me she kin no quah) was born in 1752. He is one of the most successful Indian leaders in North American military history. The forces he led in battle against Generals Harmar, St. Clair and Wayne killed or captured nearly as many US. combatants as in all of the other wars against the Plains and Southwest Native Americans over the next 100 years. Like Blue Jacket, Little Turtle found Tecumseh's call to the warpath the only means of keeping possession of their homelands. Little Turtle also believed that British support would be crucial to ultimate success in any war with the United States, and only agreed to peace once he realized that British intervention was not forthcoming. Despite this realization, Little Turtle was among the last to agree to the terms of the Treaty of Greenville, holding out for more concessions despite Wayne's blandishments and intimidation. Following Little Turtle's acquiescence, General Wayne and President Washington bestowed many gifts on the Miami leader, among them a ceremonial dress sword and a pair of pistols once owned by Revolutionary War hero Thaddeus Kosciusko. Despite this grudging admiration from his opponents, and his faithful adherence to the pledge of allegiance he made, Little Turtle had little success on behalf of his people following the war. His only wife died the day after the treaty ceremonies were concluded, and he grew increasingly despondent over the devastating effects alcoholism and disease wrought among the Miami in the years following the war. Suffering from gout and kidney failure, Little Turtle died on July 14, 1812. In 1911 his grave was destroyed and looted when laborers, who were digging a foundation, dug up his remains near Fort Wayne, Indiana. "Mad" Anthony Wayne Born on January 1, 1745, Wayne won attention in high places as a young man when he was hired by Benjamin Franklin to survey Nova Scotia for possible settlement. A member of Pennsylvania's colonial legislature and Committee of Public Safety, he became an officer in that state's militia. He suffered an inauspicious military debut when his regiment participated in the ill-fated 1776 winter invasion of Canada. Despite the hardships, Wayne refused to leave his troops and his personal reputation rose despite the defeat. Wayne led thirteen Pennsylvania regiments under General' Washington during the hard-fought 1777 campaign. Aggressive and ferocious in combat, a style that earned him the nickname "Mad," Wayne espoused the bayonet charge. At Brandywine on September 11`' his men comprised the rearguard during the retreat from Philadephia, enabling the Continental Army to escape the British flanking attack. At Germantown his troops led- a fog-obscured charge into the enemy line, pushing the British back a couple of miles. In 1778 Wayne's attack at Monmouth Court House almost bagged General Henry Clinton's rear guard. General Charles Lee's failure to support Wayne's attack allowed the British to rush back to the battlefield, turning what should have been an American victory into an inconclusive draw. After the war was over Wayne was passed over for command of Pennsylvania's militia, the privilege going to Arthur St. Clair instead. Resigning his commission, Wayne went into business as a Georgia plantation owner, a career he failed at miserably. His 1792 election to Congress from Georgia was contested and eventually overruled by the legislature, one of the first such instances in American political history. Wayne's return to command was indeed fortuitous for him personally. Determined to win vindication, Wayne was a relentless taskmaster who drilled the "Legionnaires" constantly, and permitted no infractions or misconduct. Discipline was severe, but balanced by the realization that a determined and victorious foe, fighting for their homes, was to be faced. Wayne also recognized that the war was oue that would have to be won in the hearts and minds of the inhabitants as well as on the battlefield. Noting that the Indians eyes and ears were heretofore closed to reason, he wrote "the Legion are excellent oculists and aurists, and.... the bayonet is the most proper instrument for removing the film from the eyes and for opening the ears..." [14] Wayne's Ohio campaign was also one that engaged the British in a contest of wills. Recognizing the importance of breaking the hold the British had over the Ohio natives in order to break their will to resist, Wayne deliberately sought battle at Fallen Timbers where the main body of warriors gathered close to Fort Miami. The failure of the British garrison to support their "allies" in the fight, or offer sanctuary to those who survived the American's bayonet charge, signaled the end of British influence in the Ohio territory. Wayne and his officers (one of whom was future President William Henry Harrison) showed their contempt the next day by riding their horses well within site of the British fort's guns, hurling insults at the garrison the entire time. In case anyone didn't get the message, Wayne ordered the Legion to march away from the fort to go into camp at Fort Defiance before then proceeding to' Greenville for peace talks, his opinion of the British threat by that point in the campaign was so small. The level of brinksmanship exhibited between the forces under General "Mad" Anthony Wayne and those of the British during the war fought in Ohio has ,,rarely been matched until the years of the Cold War. Wayne died at Presque Isle on December 15, 1796, at the age of 51. James Wilkinson Born in 1757, Wilkinson was a hero of the Revolutionary War, becoming a Brevet Brigadier General (at the age of 20!) while fighting at the battle of Saratoga. Despite this, he was either forced to resign or quit as Clothier General of the U.S. Army in 1784 due to a series of irregularities in the department's accounts. He moved to Kentucky that same year where he began a successful business, trading with, among others, Spanish therchants downriver in New Orleans. Wilkinson also became a leader of Kentucky's militia, leading raids in 1791 against the Shawnee and later becoming part of St. Clair's forces during that unfortunate campaign. Wilkinson led the small cavalry force under General Wayne during the Fallen Timbers campaign. Wayne complained often about Wilkinson to the Secretary of War, Henry Knox, accusing him of treasonous conduct and cowardice. One of the reasons Wayne was returning to the east when he died was to provide testimony and evidence of Wilkinson's alleged treason. Twice commander of the US Army following the war in Ohio, a post comparable to today's Army Chief of Staff, Wilkinson was the advisor to several presidents. He successfully evaded three separate Courts of Inquiry or Courts Martial, and earned the praise of President Jefferson for his assistance in arranging the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. It would not be until after his death in 1825 (just days before his 69" birthday), nearly 150 years later in some cases, that files and correspondence released from Great Britain and Spain proved Wilkinson's role as a spy for those governments. Using French trappers, Spanish traders, and Tecumseh's network of Indian agents, Wilkinson fed information to these rival powers for decades about United States foreign policy and its military. More than one historian has likened Wilkinson to one of America's most damaging and notorious spies in history, Benedict Arnold included. A Dark and Bloody Ground The Ohio Campaign 1790-1795 Introduction War in Ohio Wayne Takes Command Dramatis Personae US and Indian Forces Map of Battle of Fallen Timbers (very slow: 209K) Back to Table of Contents -- Against the Odds vol. 2 no. 3 Back to Against the Odds List of Issues Back to MagWeb Magazine List © Copyright 2004 by LPS. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com * Buy this back issue or subscribe to Against the Odds direct from LPS.