President Washington's Indian War:

The Struggles for the Old Northwest
1790-1795

review by H.J. Lubbers

By Wiley Sword, University of Oklahoma Press: Norman, 1985,400 pages. $24.95.

Ask most Americans to name the Indians' greatest victory over the white man and invariably you will hear about Custer's Last Stand. Not so. In 1794, on the banks of the Wabash, Arthur St. Clair managed to kill about 20 Indians and wound another 40 while losing about 600 dead and 300 wounded himself. This is out of a total (including a large number of non-combatants) of 1400 persons in St. Clair's force.

The story of St. Clair's Massacre and the other fights for control of the Northwest is the subject of Wiley Sword's second book. Many of us have read Sword's first book, Shiloh - Bloody April, to my mind the best work on the subject. In President Washington's Indian War, Mr. Sword has done it again. The author explores an often overlooked war from the political, diplomatic and military viewpoint.

The book should prove especially interesting for wargamers. The war itself has both large and small scale actions. There are ambushes and raids, fights on the Ohio River and a wide variety of troop capabilities all suitable for gaming. Mr. Sword provides a wealth of information on weapons, rates of march, logistics and a whole lot more. A first rate campaign could be set up using Mr. Sword's book.

The author has conducted exhaustive research. His use of primary and secondary sources is exemplary. I grew up and now live between Ft. Washington (Cincinnati) and Ft. Hamilton (Hamilton) and so I was aware of some of the incidents described in the book; but even I learned a great deal about the period (including the fact that an Indian battle took place just four miles from my middle-class subdivision), Mr. Sword takes us into Indian councils as well as Washington's office. We finally get to see the Indian perspective on events from the council fires to the battlefield and this certainly permits a more accurate picture of events than the usual 'white only' narratives.

The book is well written, lively and thought-provoking. I can heartily recommend this book. Now if someone would just make some figures of Wayne's Legion!

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