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574
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On July 11th, 1796, Fort Lernoult at Detroit was
Evacuated by the British, the United States
took possession, and the American Flag
was first raised over Detroit,

:

THE
CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION
OF THE **.
** *
EVACUATION OF DETROIT BY THE BRITISH.
JULY 11, 1796---JULY 11, 1896.
REPORT OF THE PROCEEDINGS, with the ADDRESSES OF COL.
g H. M. DUFFIELD, SENATOR J. C. BURRows, AND
PRESIDENT JAS. B. ANGELL.
DETROIT.
PRINTED FOR THE COMMITTEE. . .
1896
Limited Edition of 300 Copies.
John F. EBY & CoMPANY, PRINTERs.
65-67 CONGRESS West,
INTRODUCTORY NOTE,
When the War of Independence began in the east its
effects were almost immediately felt in Detroit, and early
in 1775 the English made this post the chief military depot
in the west, and the fitting-out place for the forays to be
made upon the settlements in Kentucky, Virginia and
Pennsylvania. The evident intent was to keep the colon-
ists in the west so busy defending their homes that they
would be unable to help their brethren in the east.
With this object in view millions of dollars worth of
goods were shipped to Detroit and distributed to the
Indians who were invited here and came by thousands
from the west and south. On their arrival they were
feasted and flattered without stint; clothing, trinkets, fire
arms, and “red-handled scalping knives” were supplied to
them in enormous quantities, and on returning from their
forays they often brought hundreds of scalps and prisoners.
The defeat of the English in the west was largely
decided by the capture of Gov. Henry Hamilton of Detroit,
at Vincennes, by Col. George Rogers Clark, on March 5th,
1779. That victory and American successes in the east,
lorought about the treaties of 1782 and 1783, which provided
for the surrender of the western territory by the English.
The pretext of unsettled claims, and the protests of
Montreal fur traders, who derived immense revenues from
this region, delayed the surrender.
I
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Meanwhile the Indians continued their depredations,
but finally, on August 30th, 1794, they and their British
allies were effectually defeated by Major General Anthony
Wayne, at Fort Miami, and a way was opened for the
conclusion of the war.
The final treaty of peace, known as Jay's treaty, was
made November 19th, 1794; it provided for the evacuation
of Detroit and other western posts on or before June 1st,
1796. Owing, however, to various obstacles the surrender
did not take place until July 11th, 1796. On that day at
12 o'clock noon, the English flag was hauled down from
the flag staff of Fort Lernoult at Detroit, and the same
day the fort was taken possession of by Captain Moses
Porter, with a detachment of sixty-five men from General
Wayne's army, Colonel John F. Hamtramck arriving two
days later.
The surrender of Detroit on July 11th, 1796, clearly
marks the date of the actual ownership by the United
States of a territory larger than the original thirteeen
states, and the final results of such ownership gave us not
only the control of the Great Lakes, but the Mississippi as
well, and, indeed, of all the territory clear to the Pacific
COast,
REV. RUFUS CLARK, D. D.,
Rector of St. Paul's Church, Detroit,

EVENTs WHICH LED Up To THE CELEBRATION OF THE
CENTENNIAL OF EVACUATION DAY,
At the banquet of the Michigan Society of the Sons of
the American Revolution, on February 22d, 1896, Rev.
Rufus W. Clark offered the following resolutions:
“Whereas, the eleventh day of July will mark the
one hundredth anniversary of the evacuation by the
British of our territory and the raising of the Stars and
Stripes over the City of Detroit, this day is deserving of
more than passing mention, none being more important
to us, as Americans and as citizens of this municipality.
This is a day upon which we may well commemorate the
achievements of our fathers, the founders of this republic,
and encourage sentiments of love and devotion to our
country. It is a day that should be seized upon especially
by members of this society, to remind a rising generation
of their priceless heritage in a land no longer dominated
loy a foreign power.
“I. Resolved, That the day shall be observed by the
Michigan Society of the Sons of the American Revolution
as a time for special rejoicing and for convening the
members of this society.
“2. Resolved, As the day belongs not only to us, but
to all patriotic citizens, that a committee of five be
appointed by the chairman of this meeting to consult
with the city officials, the military authorities at Fort
Wayne and patriotic societies of Detroit and arrange, if
possible, upon a plan for the suitable public celebration of
the day, and for such meetings as befit so rare and
important an occasion.”
The resolutions being adopted, Rev. Mr. Clark moved
that Mr. Fred. T. Sibley be made chairman of the commit-
tee on celebration. He thought no one more suitable
than a son of Solomon Sibley, the first mayor of Detroit,
and a man stalwart in all that made for the good of
Detroit, also a chief justice of the supreme bench, could
be found to head the committee. Mr. Thomas Jerome
seconded the nomination in a patriotic speech, and
ex-Senator Palmer supported the nomination.
The chairman, Col. Henry M. Duffield, named the
celebration committee, as follows: Frederick T. Sibley,
Rev. Rufus W. Clark, Thomas Jerome, J. C. Smith, Jr.,
and Oliver H. Phelps.
A conference of the various patriotic societies, pro-
posed by the Society of the Sons of the American Revo-
lution, February 22d, 1896, was held at the parlors of the
Russell House, in Detroit, on May 22d.
The first meeting of the General Committee was held
at the Loyal Legion rooms May 25th, at which Gen. R. A.
Alger presided. There were present: Capt. Cornelius
Gardener, U. S. A., Don M. Dickinson, E. B. Welton, James
Vernor, Rev. Rufus W. Clark, Silas Farmer, Frank J.
Hecker, and Thomas S. Jerome. Mr. Jerome was elected
secretary. Rev. R. W. Clark stated the objects of the
meeting.
It was moved and carried that a celebration be held
on July 11th.
At a subsequent meeting the committee appointed by
the chair to name the various committees, reported as
follows:
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A GROUP OF COMMITTEEMEN.
JAMES T. STERLING. 7. ELLIOTT T. SLOCUM.
FRANK J. HECKER. 8. GEN. A. L. BRESLER.
JOHN N. BAGLEY. 9. SILAS FARMER.
CHARLES B. HULL. 1 O. THOS. S. JEROME.
HARRY F. CHIPMAN. 1 1. DON M. DICKINSON.
REV. RUFUS W. CLARK.









R. A. Alger, General Chairman.
ExECUTIVE Committee.
Henry M. Duffield, Chairman. Thomas S. Jerome, Sec'y.
E. T. Slocum. Frank J. Hecker.
Together with the Chairmen of the various Sub-Committees.
ENTERTAINMENT CoMMITTEE.
W. H. Elliott, Chairman. A. L. Stephens.
Harvey C. Parke. R. Phelps.
M. S. Smith. R. H. Fyfe.
W. C. Maybury. J. B. Moore.
T. D. Buhl. W. A. Butler, Jr.
D. J. Campau. W. V. Moore.
W. J. Chittenden. M. W. O'Brien.
Collins B. Hubbard.
PROGRAMME Committee.
Rufus W. Clark, Chairman. John N. Bagley.
James Vernor. Charles Flowers.
Henry S. Sibley. E. T. Slocum.
TABLET Committee.
Silas Farmer, Chairman. Louis A. Arthur.
A. H. Griffith.
PARADE Committee.
James T. Sterling, Chairman. August Goebel.
Cornelius Gardener, U. S. A. Charles Dupont.
H. B. Lothrop. Charles Reid.
John Atkinson. Gilbert Wilkes.
A. L. Bresler.
PREss CoMMITTEE.
James E. Scripps, Chairman. W. Livingstone. Jr.
A. G. Boynton. P. C. Baker.
J. J. Emery.
5
Music Committee.
John N. Bagley, Chairman. F. W. Eddy.
S. T. Douglas. Ford D. C. Hinchman.
FINANCE Committee.
George H. Russel, Chairman. Marvin Preston.
George N. Brady. Charles Wright.
A. E. F. White. Charles Stinchfield.
James E. Davis. John T. Shaw.
George H. Hopkins. E. B. Welton.
Charles Dean. R. W. Jacklin.
Hamilton Dey.
INVITATION Committee.
Don M. Dickinson, Chairman. Simon Snyder, U. S. A.
Thomas W. Palmer. Allan Sheldon.
William C. McMillan.
CARRIAGE COMMITTEE.
Charles B. Hull, Chairman. S. S. Babcock.
George H. Barbour. F. T. Moran,
Strathearn Hendrie.
BADGE ComMITTEE.
Frank H. Walker, Chairman. H. M. Campbell.
W. G. Thompson. Clarence Carpenter.
Harry B. Joy.
CoMMITTEE IN CHARGE OF BUILDING.
Harry F. Chipman, Chairman. R. G. Butler.
E. W. Cottrell. Peter Diederich.
F. E. Farnsworth. Edwin Henderson.
Arthur L. Holmes.
HON. JOHN T. RICH,
Governor of Michigan.

THE GOVERNOR's PROCLAMATION
To the People of the State of Michigan:
For many years after the cessation of active hostil-
ities between Great Britain and the United States in
the Revolutionary War, the British refused to carry out
the terms of the peace and surrender to the Americans
the territory they had won, and it was not until the
11th of July, 1796, at Detroit, that the British flag finally
ceased to float over any part of the country whose inde-
pendence had been acknowledged thirteen years before.
It is proposed to recognize the centennial of the
evacuation of Detroit by the British, by a celebration
at Detroit on the 11th day of next July. The importance
of this event to the nation, and especially to the great
middle and western states, demands fitting recognition
from the executive of the state, and every citizen who can
do so is earnestly urged to attend the celebration of the
anniversary of this memorable event.
The definite and final yielding up of this western
region gave the Federal government the control not only
of the great lakes, but eventually of the Mississippi as
well, and indeed, in its finality, of all our western territory
clear to the Pacific coast.
On that date the American flag with its fifteen stars
was first raised over our soil, and its raising meant the
speedy founding of the states of Michigan, Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota.
7
With the raising of the flag on July 11, 1796, British
domination over any part of our country ceased, the
“rebels” then living here breathed freely, and the way
was opened for all the blessings we now enjoy as a part of
the United States of America.
In historic interest and importance no other date
in connection with the west is of equal value, for the
surrender of Detroit marked the close of the War of
the Revolution and the final accomplishment of the
results fought for by our fathers during so many years,
and the date of that event should excite patriotic loyalty
in the breast of every member of the commonwealth and
be treasured in the memory of every citizen.
Given under my hand and the great seal of the state,
at the capitol, in Lansing, this 24th day of June, in the
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and ninety-
six, and of the independence of the United States the one
hundred and twentieth. -
JOHN T. RICH.
By the Governor,
WASHINGTON GARDNER,
Secretary of State.
THE CELEBRATION,
Saturday, the 11th of July, 1896, was a bright, clear
and beautiful day, rather warm, but not excessively so.
The patriotism of Detroit was fully aroused, and the city
was gay with flags and streamers of the national colors.
The City Hall had been decorated at a cost of over $500
alone. A great many people had come into the city from
the interior of the State, and the streets were thronged
throughout the day.
Appropriately, the public exercises were held in the
unfinished Federal Building, which occupies the exact site
of Fort Lernoult, surrendered to the United States on
July 11th, 1796. The interior had been fitted up for the
occasion, under the superintendence of Harry F. Chipman,
chairman of the committeee on building. On the north
side a spacious platform had been erected, capable of
accommodating some 7oo persons. In front of the plat-
form, the unfinished brick floor, covered with sawdust, was
seated with about 3,000 chairs. A railed-in passage way
extended from the platform steps to the Fort street
entrance. To the west of this, admission was had by
tickets distributed by the members of the various com-
mittees; to the east, entrance from Shelby street, tickets
were not required. It was estimated that 3,500 persons
were present during the exercises.
The decorations of the building were very effective.
From the open girders overhead depended festoons of red,
9
white and blue bunting, through which the sun's rays pro-
duced a most beautiful effect. Over the speakers' stand
hung the American flag and a large portrait of George
Washington. The rough brick walls were decorated with
the flags and arms of the several states comprised in
the old northwestern territory, possession of which was
secured by the United States by the evacuation of Detroit,
the event celebrated. The iron columns were covered
with colored cloth and gaily decorated. At the left of the
speakers' stand stood a section of the flag staff of the old
fort, recovered some years ago in making an excavation
on the site, and now in possession of the Detroit Museum
of Art.
On the platform were seated the following organiza-
tions:
The Officers of the City Government.
The Sons of the American Revolution.
The Daughters of the American Revolution.
The Daughters of the War of 1812.
The Michigan Society of Colonial Dames of America.
The Loyal Legion.
Fairbanks Post, Grand Army of the Republic.
Detroit Post, Grand Army of the Republic.
John Brown Post, Grand Army of the Republic.
Girls' Auxiliary of Farquhar Post No. 162.
Women's Relief Corps.
U. S. Grant Command, Union Veterans' Union.
Mexican Veterans, including Col. H. S. Dean, Geo. W.
Walters, S. W. Perry and Oliver Geary.
Among other occupants of the platform were: His
Excellency Gov. John T. Rich, accompanied by his staff—
Gen. W. S. Green, Gen. J. H. Kidd, Gen. Joseph Walsh,
Col. W. A. Gavett, Col. Lou Burt, Lieut.-Col. W. W. Cook
IO
and Lieut.-Col. S. H. Avery, all in full uniform; Gen. R.
A. Alger, Col. Henry M. Duffield, Hon. J. C. Burrows,
President James B. Angell of the University of Michigan;
Rt. Rev. G. Mott Williams, D. D., Bishop of Marquette;
Charles Flowers, City Counsellor; Rt. Rev. John S. Foley,
D. D., Roman Catholic Bishop of Detroit; Hon. Henry M.
Swan, U. S. District Judge; Hon. Claudius B. Grant. Hon.
J. B. Moore and Hon. Frank A. Hooker, Justices of the
Supreme Court of Michigan; Judge Wm. L. Carpenter
and Judge George S. Hosmer of the Wayne Circuit Court;
State Treasurer J. M. Wilkinson; Prof. A. C. McLaughlin
of the State University; ex-Congressman Wm. C. Maybury;
Joseph T. Jacobs, of Ann Arbor, member of the U. S.
Indian Commission; Capt. Hinds, of Stanton; J. Q. A.
Sessions, of Ann Arbor; Col. J. S. Farrar, of Mt. Clemens;
George Newell, of Flint; Robert Campbell, of Ann Arbor;
Gen. Luther S. Trowbridge, Maj. James Vincent, Dexter
M. Ferry, Col. Frank J. Hecker, the members of the
executive committee, and W. R. Shelby, of Grand Rapids,
a great-grandson of Gov. Shelby of Kentucky after whom
Fort Shelby was named. Mr. Shelby had with him a spy-
glass captured from one of the British ships at the battle
of Lake Erie by Commodore Perry. -
While waiting for the audience to arrive and become
seated, the Metropolitan Band played a number of
patriotic airs.
II
THE PUBLIC EXERCISES,
At Io:30 o'clock the chairman of the day, Gen. R. A.
Alger, called the great assemblage to order and read the
following opening address:
Aſellow Citizens—We gather upon this historic spot to-day
to commemorate the last act of our heroic forefathers in
the War of the Revolution.
It was upon these grounds, occupied by this stately
louilding, that old Fort Lernoult was situated ; a fort
erected by the British army to resist the assaults of those
patriots who were battling for the liberty they won—the
liberty we enjoy to-day.
It was here, one hundred years ago to-day, that the
flag of the enemy was hauled down, and our own stars and
stripes run to the mast head, then with but fifteen stars in
its azure field—to-day, forty-five; the flag that was never
lowered to any foe, and floats over the richest and best
nation in the world.
In no boastful spirit do we come, nor in vain-glorious
triumph at our victory, but with a just pride in the valor
of our ancestors, and thankfulness to Almighty Providence
that the ground broken by the sword of war has borne to
us the blessed fruits of peace.
The history of the world is marked by epochs of war,
and the chief glory of every nation is the valor of its
defenders. It is well that this is so, for in our peaceful
pursuits, we are too apt to forget the cost of the blessings
we enjoy, and not until the drum sounds the signal to arms,
is it that we stop to consider what it costs to build or
save a nation.
I 2
GEN, RUSSELL A. ALGER,
Ex-Governor of Michigan.

As in the frequent experience of individuals, the bit-
terest enemies, reconciled, form the strongest ties of friend-
ship, so with nations—those which do battle with each
other, when peace is declared, often make the strongest
allies.
As we are at peace with the mother country to-day,
and look upon its people with no envy as they live under
the benign rule of their mother queen, so may we hope
that war shall never again come between us. We are too
great to boast, too strong to fear invasion. We covet the
possessions of no other nation, nor do we fear for the
safety of our own. To us all to-day war is but an echo-
ing memory, and not an expectation.
Among us here to-day are veterans of the Mexican War,
and many of that grand host whose courage crushed the
standards of secession and wove the web of our destiny
into eternal unity.
To them and those of their comrades who returned not
with them, to enjoy the fruits of their sacrifice, I know a
grateful people will ever rise up to give the meed of praise
they so fairly won.
Detroit welcomes here to-day, many distinguished
guests. It presents no battlements or ramparts to the
view, as it needs none for its protection, but in their stead
shows you busy factories, whose belching mouths, night
and day, blacken the sky with the smoke of industry,
These are the truest monuments to the peace whose noble
path was cut by war.
Rt. Rev. G. Mott Williams, D. D., then offered prayer,
as follows:
I3
THE PRAYER.
O God of our fathers, our hope and strength, we bless
thy Holy Name for the faith of those great men who won
our independence and framed the constitutional govern-
ment of these United States. We bless thee for the inher-
itance of civil and religious liberty, and for the many
shining examples of patriotism given us by citizens of this
land in peace and war.
We thank thee that so many of those who have been
welcomed to our shores, while needing an asylum, have
rendered the State so good an account for her charity, and
we pray thee that the first acquisition of those who come
to us may be a love of their fostering mother. - -.
We thank thee for boundaries so vast, so inclusive, so
rich and so commanding, for the great gift of national inde-
pendence, and because thy wise providence in severing
the ties which bound us to the motherland, left us still in
laws, character and customs the best part of the inherit-
ance of the Anglo-Saxon race.
We bless thee that the transfer of government which
we celebrate to-day was made in peace and not in war, a
result of treaties, not of blows, of reason, not of force, and
we especially thank thee that this peaceful transfer of
government between kindred peoples has been followed
lby so many years of honorable peace, but once broken,
and now for four-score years unmarred.
And we beseech thee that the present peace of this
frontier may continue by thy favor, and by the virtue, the
self-control, the wisdom and brotherliness of these peoples,
and that we especially may walk worthy of high calling
among the nations.
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THE TABLET.

We confess, O God, our manifold shortcomings as men,
as citizens and as a nation; forgive us, but forsake us not.
Let there be peace and truth in our days, pure religion
and domestic happiness. Bless the President and every
arm of government; sanctify our lives, our families, our
homes and our schools; make us love our country truly
and honestly; and grant the course of the whole world
may be so peacefully ordered by thy government that thy
church may joyfully serve thee in all godly quietness,
through Jesus Christ, our Lord, according to whose teach-
ing we are bold to say:
Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy
name, etc. Amen
The Boylston Club then led in the singing of the
lıymn, “My Country, 'tis of Thee,” in which the entire
audience heartily joined. -
UNVEILING OF THE MEMORIAL TABLET.
While the band played the “Star Spangled Banner,”
the chairman, together with Mr. Shelby, representing the
Sons of the American Revolution, and Mr. Silas Farmer,
representing the committee, proceeded to the Fort street
entrance, where the tablet has been placed by a special
Act of Congress. The invited guests, and the presidents
and commanders of the patriotic societies were also there
assembled. - - -
In their presence and before the throng outside of the
building, Gen. Alger withdrew the veiling and said: “In
behalf of the heroes who gave us this land of liberty, and
in remembrance of them, I humbly unveil this tablet.”
The flag was then raised upon the Federal Building
and a salute of twenty-one guns was then fired by the
United States Revenue Cutter “Fessenden,” at anchor in
the Detroit River.
I5
When all had returned to the platform the chairman
said that it had been expected that Mayor Hazen S. Pingree
would be present to welcome the distinguished guests, but
in his absence, Hon. Charles Flowers, City Counselor, would
perform that duty.
THE ADDRESS OF WELCOME,
BY HON, CHARLES FLOWERS,
The City of Detroit, upon this centennial day, gives
greeting and welcome to the men and women whose fore-
fathers, by reason of their sublime courage, and their
fidelity to a living and glowing principle, made it neces-
sary for their foes to strike their flag, and bid farewell to
so fair and so vast an empire. -
To the descendants of the brave men who lingered
upon the shores of this majestic river, the City of Detroit
also gives greeting and welcome. With them we have no
quarrel. The hour struck in the fateful history of the
world for those of one language, one religion and one
lolood, to stand upon the broad road of national life, where
the ways parted. The day of separation had come.
It is well for us to remember those days. The patriotic
neart has not grown cold. The genius of greed has not
wholly possessed the land. Amid the sound and fury and
madness of partisan strife, amid the insane thirst and
hunger for power and advantage, the attentive ear can
still catch, as coming from a million breasts, the breathings
of a spirit, responsive to the agony of those who suffered
with Washington at Valley Forge, responsive to the ecstasy
of those who rejoiced with him at Yorktown.
The City of Detroit gives greeting and welcome to
you all. It does not ask your nationality or your faith. It
I6
COL. HENRY M. DUFFIELD.

only asks if you are true to the cause of individual liberty
and equality, the principles represented by the beautiful
banner, which upon this golden day so peacefully and so
solemnly floats above your heads. -
Messrs. Homer Warren and Robert Murray then sang
“The Sword of Bunker Hill.” They alternated in singing
the verses, and both were cheered most heartily, and were
compelled to repeat the last verse.
Gen. Alger said he would introduce a brave soldier
well known throughout the state to make the historical
address, and Col. Duffield was loudly applauded as he
came to the speaking stand. He was listened to with
close and noiseless attention. His address was as follows:
THE HISTORICAL ADDRESS,
by Col HENRY M. DUFFIELD.
The scene of the last act in the great drama of the
Revolutionary War—its final triumph—was laid in Detroit.
One hundred years ago the British troops evacuated this
post and with them departed the last vestige of England's
rule from the northwest.
To understand its full significance a brief outline of
the situation and the events which preceded it is necessary.
Detroit at this period is thus described by McMaster:
“Detroit alone was worthy to be called a town. The
place was founded in 1783, and, except in population, had
never taken one step forward since the first hut was put
up on the straits. The inhabitants were believed to
number three thousand. In language and customs they
were French. In religion they were Roman Catholics.
In knowledge of the affairs of the world they were
extremely ignorant. For a hundred years the farms of
17
precisely the same size had been kept in the same
families, and cultivated with the same kind of implements
in the same way. The house of each farmer was close to
the road, and the road was close to the water's edge.
Near each house was an orchard, and in each orchard the
same kind of fruit trees were to be seen. Year after year
the same crops were raised in the same succession. When
a patch of land became exhausted it was suffered to lie
fallow. Of the value of manure the farmers knew
nothing, and wantonly flung the yield of the barnyard
into the waters of the straits. To go to church regularly,
to perform their religious duties strictly, to fast, to confess,
and to pay their tithes to the priest promptly, was with
them the chief duty of man. The priest was the one
loeing on earth to whom they looked up with mingled
1ove and awe. He was their spiritual and their temporal
guide. He healed all quarrels and adjusted all disputes.
With courts apd judges, lawyers and juries, they would
have nothing to do. Indeed, the first appearance of such
among them was the occasion of an outburst of indigna-
tion which was with difficulty soothed. Many resolved
to dwell no longer in a land where life and property were
at the disposal of godless men, gathered their goods and
went over the border to the Canadian side. The town
proper was made up of the fort, the battery, and a
collection of ugly houses surrounded by a high stockade.
The streets were a rod wide, and the inhabitants chiefly
engaged in the fur trade. A few went out to the trapping
grounds themselves. Others sent out Pawnee Indians
whom they had purchased and made slaves.”
From Griswold to Cass street, and Larned street to
the river was surrounded by a stockade. There were
four gates on each side with block houses over each
18
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on the east, west and north sides. Each block house had
four six-pounders and there were also two batteries of six
guns each facing the river. Back of the stockade was
Fort Lernoult, which had been erected in 1778 by the
orders of Major R. B. Lernoult. It was located between
what are now Griswold and Wayne streets, and extended
from Lafayette street south of Fort street. It was well
designed and thoroughly constructed. Work upon it was
prosecuted from November, 1778, without intermission,
till after the following March. This fort was no part
of the town, but had its entrance toward the town by
a passage way underneath the trees with a drawbridge
over the ditch. The citadel on what is now the corner
of Jefferson avenue and Wayne street, was connected with
the fort by a subterranean passage along the route of
which was the powder magazine. On each side of the
entrance of the fort was an iron twenty-four-pounder,
while each side of the fort was defended by two twenty-
four-pounders and four cannon were placed at each
pastion. The flag staff was in the southwest angle of the
fort in the lot where the Owen residence now stands.
The surrender of Lord Cornwallis to Washington in
1781, followed by the preliminary treaty of peace between
Great Britain and the United States, agreed upon at Paris,
November 3oth, 1782, theoretically determined the bound-
aries of the new republic. The thirteen British colonies
in North America, which had thus become the thirteen
United States of North America, represented clear and
definite ideas, politically and socially, but the boundaries
of the territory were only vaguely determined. The
United States described in the instructions to John Adams
in 1779, was quite a different country geographically from
the same United States whose independence was acknowl-
I9
edged in Paris in 1782. Neither England nor Spain
regarded the treaty of Paris as finally settling the destiny
of the country of the United States west of the mountains.
Although that grand prologue to the constitution and
forerunner of national emancipation, the ordinance of
1787, proclaimed eternal freedom for the northwest
territory, its boundaries were indefinite, and it had not
yet been surrendered by the British. While in the treaty
of Paris in 1782, His Britannic Majesty promised, among
other things, “to withdraw all his armies, garrisons and
fleets from said United States, and from every post, place
and harbor within the same, with all convenient speed,”
there was still left unsettled a question of territory larger
than the one which brought on the French and Indian
war in 1754. In addition to this indefiniteness of
lboundary, the relation between the new government and
the former colonies, now matured into states, was novel
and peculiar, and their respective rights over this territory
not yet determined.
In the beginning the government of the United States
was distinctly federal rather than national, and large
portions of the territory of the northwest were within the
original boundaries of the respective colonies and were
claimed to have passed to them when they were erected
into states. At the same time France was provoked by
the treaties entered into by the United States with
England and Spain, and looked with longing eyes upon
these vast possessions which less than half a century
before had been wrested from her by Great Britain. Most
of the settlers in the territory were English or French.
The posts were the depots or stations of the increasingly
lucrative fur trade, so desirable in the minds of Europeans.
These considerations and the very natural desire of
2O
England to interpose between her possessions in America
and the new United States a territory of neutral ground
fairly in the hands of the savages—constituting a “buffer
state ’’ between the United States and Canada—were the
real reasons for the unjustifiable delay in carrying out the
treaty, and with all convenient speed “withdrawing the
British armies, garrisons and fleets from the United
States and every post, place and harbor within the same.”
While England attempted to justify this delay upon the
ground that the United States had on their part violated
their promises in the treaty, these claims were completely
refuted by Jefferson, then Secretary of State in 1793, in his
correspondence with Mr. Hammond, the envoy extraordi-
nary of Great Britain. Whatever may have been the
true cause of the delay, the result was, that for thirteen
years the northwestern posts “were sharp thorns in the
sides of the United States.” Exhausting as had been the
War of the Revolution to the young nation, it was com-
pelled to continue an harassing Indian war, that only
ceased with the brilliant victory of General Wayne at the
battle of the Fallen Timbers in 1794.
• * In July, 1783, the request of Washington, through
Baron Steuben, for a transfer of possession of Detroit,
Mackinac and Oswego, and the minor posts, was met with
an insolent refusal on the part of General Haldiman, the
British commander in Canada.
In the following year General William Hull was sent,
with the approval of Congress, to induce Haldiman to give
up the post, but he met with a like refusal.
In 1786, President Adams, then minister to England,
informed Congress that he had made a demand for the
Western posts, and had been refused on the stale pretense,
so conclusively answered by Jefferson, that many of the
2 I
states had violated the treaty in regard to payment of
British debts.
Matters were further complicated by the active efforts
of Dr. John Connolly, a Virginian tory, to induce the
Kentucky settlers to take sides with the English, with the
purpose of wresting Louisiana from Spain, and securing
the free navigation of the Mississippi. In 1787 and 1788,
he was in Detroit a considerable portion of the time. The
English settlers urged the retention of Detroit, and in
June, 1787, the garrison was re-enforced by a full regiment
and two companies, making a force of more than two regi-
ments. In pursuance of the plan to hold the post, Lord
Dorchester personally visited Detroit in 1788, and, under
his directions, the town was doubly picketed, and other
defensive works erected. In 1790, John Knox, then United
States Secretary-of-War, wrote to Governor St. Clair, that
it was reported that Benedict Arnold was in Detroit about
the first of June, and that he had reviewed the militia
there. In the same year President Washington, who, with
clear foresight, very soon after the treaty of 1782, had
prophesied “that England would retain the posts as long
as they could be held under any pretense whatever,”
communicated to his cabinet his apprehensions that Lord
Dorchester contemplated sending an expedition from
Detroit against Louisiana. Meantime the Indians had
grown increasingly hostile under the encouragement of
the British.
In 1786 a grand confederate council of the Indians
northwest of the Ohio was held at the mouth of the
Detroit River. It was attended by the Six Nations, the
Hurons, Ottawas, Maumees, Shawnees, Chippewas,
Cherokees, Delawares, Pottawattamies, and the confeder-
ates of the Wabash. The question of difference was one
22
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of boundary. The Indians insisted that the Americans
should not cross the Ohio River, but there was no intima-
tion of war, provided the United States did not encroach
on the Indian land. While there was a treaty between
Great Britain and the United States concerning this terri-
tory, the Indians were not included in it, and the savages
complained that the United States would “kindle the
council fires wherever they thought proper without con-
sulting the Indians.” Closely following this council, the
Hurons of Detroit sent a message, sealed with strings of
wampum, to the Five Nations, complaining of the delay
of the Americans in answering their message, and desiring
the Five Nations “to be strong and punctual of your
promises to be with us early and in time.” As an evidence
of the intimate relations between the British and the
Indians, an account of the proceedings of this council was
forwarded to Lord Dorchester.
In 1791 Canada was divided into an upper and lower
province, the former being placed under the administra-
tion of Col. T. S. Simcoe, who established his headquarters
as governor of the newly organized territory of Niagara.
He, with the British agents, Col. McKee, Capt. Elliott and
the notorious Simon Girty, threw all their influence
against the United States, and it is affirmed that Lord
Dorchester assisted their efforts by a speech to the Seven
Nations of Canada, as well as all the other Indians at the
grand council. Governor Simcoe proceeded to Detroit,
and thence, with a strong detachment, to the foot of the
Miami Rapids, where he erected a fortress. Undoubtedly
his fort was built primarily to defend Detroit. It was, in
fact, the re-occupation of a position held by the British
during the latter part of the Revolution, the evacuation of
which had been bad policy.
23
During the whole period, Detroit was the theatre of
its most interesting councils. It was represented by the
half-breeds of the place to the savages around the post,
and also to remote tribes, that Governor Simcoe was to
march to their aid with fifteen hundred men; that he was
giving clothing and all necessary supplies; that all the
speeches sent to them were red as blood; the wanpum
and the feathers, the war pipes and the hatchets, and even
the tobacco was painted red. At one time Alexander
McKenzie, an agent of the British government, was
employed to paint himself as an Indian, and he convened
a grand council at Detroit, exhibiting himself with pipes
and wanpum as the credentials of his authority.
Elliott and the other British residents addressed the
council, stating that McKenzie was an ambassador who
had returned from the remote tribes of the upper lakes
and that their bands were armed with the tomahawk and
scalping knife and were ready to fall upon the Americans,
and that the savages upon the banks of the Mississippi
were prepared to descend and attack the settlements of
Virginia and Ohio. McKenzie spoke the Indian language
with fluency and preserved his character to the life. He
was aided in his deception by some of the Wyandottes and
Shawnees, who were acquainted with his secret and in the
conspiracy. These means brought into the field against
the United States, the Ottawas, the Miamis, the Pottawat-
tamies, the Delawares, the Shawnees, the Chippewas, and
the Seven Nations of Canada. Many of the French
traders at Detroit and in Michigan, induced by the fear
that if they did not join the Indian cause they would not
be permitted to trade with the Indians in their own
territory, took up arms against the United States. Thus
the United States was met on the one hand with the
24
GEN. ANTHONY WAYNE,
From a Portrait in Possession of Silas Farmer, Esq.


refusal of Great Britain to yield up the posts, and on the
other with the organized and armed opposition of , the
savages to any interferences with the territory which they
claimed as their own. *
Peaceable negotiations with the Indians who had
gradually strengthened into a confederation of tribes
throughout the western forests was attempted but without
success. General Harmar with a force of fourteen
hundred men was then sent to subdue the savages. He
succeeded in destroying and laying waste many of their
villages and fields, but his advance was checked near
Chillicothe, Ohio, where he was defeated in October, 1790,
with great slaughter. After his defeat the Indians daily
paraded the streets of Detroit, exhibiting in triumph the
scalps of American soldiers.
In 1792 Governor St. Clair succeeded in command and
marched into the wilderness with an army of two thousand
men. He was surprised near the Miami villages by the
Indians under the command of Little Turtle, and notwith-
standing his great personal gallantry in his efforts to rally
his retreating forces, he was forced to retreat with very
heavy loss.
These successive repulses aroused Congress to a
vigorous prosecution of the war, and General Anthony
Wayne was put in command of the forces. His fame in
the Revolutionary War had preceded him, and the Indians
feared him. They credited him not only with bravery to
rashness but with much stratagem and cunning, and
named him the Black Snake. He proceeded with charac-
teristic energy. In the latter part of 1793, he erected a
stockade on the site of St. Clair's defeat, which he called
Fort Recovery, and having fully matured his plans, on the
4th of July, 1794 followed the savages into the depths of
25
the wilderness. Cautiously moving down the left bank of
the Maumee, he reached the rapids about the 19th of
August, and erected a small work called Fort Deposit,
about four miles above the British post. He found the
Indians entrenched under the very shadow of the English
fort, which had been fortified not long before by a force
sent from Detroit. General Wayne, therefore, prepared
himself to act defensively against both civilized and
savage foe. His army amounted to about three thousand
men. Opposed to him was the Indian league which
extended throughout the whole northwestern frontier.
On the 3oth August, 1794, he attacked the savages.
His plan of battle was to send forward a battalion
of mounted riflemen with instructions if attacked, to
retreat in apparent confusion in order to entice the
Savages into a less advantageous position, and upon con-
certed signals to turn with his infantry, which included
the renowned Wayne legion, the right flank of the enemy.
But the day was rainy, the signals from the drums could
not be distinctly heard and the plan was not wholly
executed. His victory, however, was complete. After
a stubborn resistance, the savages were defeated and fled
to the very walls of Fort Miami. The battle is known
in history as the battle of the Fallen Timbers. After the
Indians had retreated, General Wayne devastated their
fields and burned their buildings, among them the house
of Col. McKee. While he had defeated the Indians he
did not know how soon he must defend himself against
an attack by the British from the fort, but in the crisis the
doughty warrior never flinched. He proudly paraded his
army in front of the fort and although he saw the British
gunners standing at their guns with lighted matches
in their hands, eagerly awaiting the order to fire, he
26
rode forward with his staff to the very battlements and
reconnoitered the position with the utmost deliberation.
No attack was made upon him and he advanced by easy
marches toward Fort Defiance, destroying the Indian
cornfields on the bottom lands of the Maumee, then
proceeded up the Maumee River and built Fort Wayne.
There is no doubt that in this battle a detachment of
militia from Detroit were associated and fought with
the Indians, General Wayne in his official report describes
the enemy “a combined force of the hostile Indians and a
considerable number of the volunteers and militia of
Detroit.” A Mr. Smith, clerk of the court at Detroit,
was killed in the action at head of a company which
fought against the Americans.
It was estimated that thirteen hundred Indians fled to
Detroit for British protection after the battle. In the
fall of that year Governor Simcoe approved of the pro-
vision of an extra surgeon and another hospital and made
extensive preparations to strengthen the post at Detroit.
Fort Lernoult was newly fortified, a new block house
erected, and six boats ordered to be built at Chatham.
Simcoe still encouraged the Indians. He told them that
Ohio was their right and title and that he had given
orders to the commandant at Fort Miami to fire on
the Americans when they made their appearance again,
but the Indians had been severely punished by General
Wayne and were distrustful of the ability of the English
to protect them. The battle of the Fallen Timbers ended
all the Indian hostilities for the time being and was
followed in the next year by the treaty of Greenville.
Before this, and almost contemporaneous with Wayne's
victory, Jay's admirable diplomacy had accomplished the
27
treaty of 1794 which bears his name, under which
England bound herself to deliver up the northwestern
posts.
The treaty called for the surrender of the post by the
British on June 1st, 1796, but the order to evacuate was not
given until June 2d. It was dated at Quebec and signed
by George Beckwith, adjutant general.
On the 7th day of July, 1796, General Hamtramck sent
on to Detroit two small vessels from Fort Miami with
a detachment of artillery and infantry consisting of sixty-
five men, together with a number of cannon with ammuni-
tion, etc., under the command of Captain Moses Porter.
Upon his arrival on the 11th of July, the British troops,
under the command of Col. Richard England, evacuated
the town. The Union Jack was hauled down, Old Glory
floated on the breeze, and Detroit was free.
Under the benign influence of the constitution and
the incomparable privileges of the ordinance of 1787, the
little post of 3,000 souls has grown in a single century to a
superb and peerless city, and the wilderness of the north-
west is jeweled with the happy homes of millions of
freemen. -
28
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THE ORATION,
BY HON, JULIUS C, BURROWS,
Aellow Citigens—That patriotic impulse which prompts
the people to search out, preserve, dedicate, and fittingly
mark, with tablet or monument, the places of historic
interest along the highway of a nation's course, made
memorable by the happening of some important event in
the history of the country, is a spirit deserving the highest
commendation. It is prompted by and serves a double
purpose. It not only pays a fitting tribute to the memory
of the actors in such events, but it serves, for all times, as
an inspiration to the passing generations. We may read,
unmoved, the story of the Pilgrim Fathers, or the history
of the Declaration of Independence, but we cannot stand
on Plymouth Rock, or within the shadow of Independence .
Hall, without feeling a quicker heart-throb, and being
imbued with something of that spirit of devotion to the
cause of civil and religious liberty, which inspired the men
and women who made these places immortal. I regard,
therefore, every step taken toward the preservation of
these landmarks of history as most auspicious omens.
And here I pause to say that public acknowledgment
ought to be made to those patriotic orders, in the United
States, engaged to-day in the laudable undertaking of res-
cuing from oblivion and preserving from desecration,
places made historic by the events which there transpired.
They are not only writing history, but they are doing that
which will exert a silent, yet potent, influence on all the
generations to come. In this spirit, and with this purpose,
we mark to-day a spot of historic interest, not only to the
state, but to the nation. In recognition of the importance
29
of the event, the Congress of the United States co-oper-
ates in the designating and preserving of the place which
will be forever memorable in the annals of our country.
Here it was, a hundred years ago, that the British flag
gave way to the banner of the republic, and the Stars and
Stripes were unfurled in token of the sovereignty of the
United States. I have neither the time, nor is this the occa-
sion, to rehearse the story of the struggle of the colonies
for national independence. It is sufficient for my purpose
to-day to say that the termination of the War of the Revo-
lution found the British government in possession of the
military posts on the western frontiers, among the most
important of which was that at Detroit, which she had occu-
pied since the French relinquished their claim to the terri-
tory in 1760. The seat of war for national independence
being chiefly confined within the limits of the colonies par-
ticipating in the struggle, England was permitted to hold
these outlying posts practically undisturbed, which she
used as recruiting stations for her Indian allies, whom
she invited into her service, and whom she subsequently
employed to harass the settlers on the frontier, and impede,
if not prevent, the settlement of the northwest territory.
These points were too remote, and the forces holding
them too insignificant to engage the attention of the
Continental army. By the terms of the treaty of peace,
however, between Great Britain and the United States,
concluded in 1783, it was expressly stipulated and agreed
that “His Britannic Majesty shall with all convenient
speed, and without causing any destruction of property, or
carrying away any negroes or other property of the
American inhabitants, withdraw all his armies, garrisons
and fleets from the United States, and from every part,
place and harbor within the same.” -
3o
A strict compliance with the terms of this treaty,
imposed upon Great Britain the obligation to withdraw
her military forces from every portion of the territory of
the United States and abandon all assumption of power
over any part of their domain.
It is a matter of history, however, that the British
government, while conforming to the terms of the treaty
within the limits of the states, persisted for a period of
nearly thirteen years thereafter in retaining possession of
the posts on the frontier, including that of Detroit, and in
exercising authority and asserting dominion over an
extensive territory in the northwest.
After the close of the war, and during the entire
period of the existence of the government of the confed-
eration, and prolonged under the national constitution of
1787, even until near the close of Washington's second
administration as President of the United States, the
British flag continued to float over a British garrison
quartered within the limits of this city. To us of to-day,
removed by more than a century of time from these
startling events, it seems incredible that the British
government should have been permitted to have asserted
and maintained even a show of authority over any portion
of the territory of the United States. Circumstances,
however, contributed to this assumption of power, and
rendered its exercise comparatively safe. The country
had just emerged from a protracted and exhaustive
struggle for independence and found itself with a bank-
rupt treasury and a ruined credit. The government of the
confederation set up in 1781, and continued until 1789, was
too feeble to command confidence at home or respect
abroad, and was powerless to assert itself even within the
limits of the confederated states.
3I
It has been well said, “The Continental Congress,
under the articles of confederation, may make and
conclude treaties, but can only recommend the observance
of them. They may appoint ambassadors, but they can-
not defray even the expenses of their table. They may
borrow money in their own name on the faith of the union,
lout they cannot pay a dollar. They may coin money, but
they cannot import an ounce of bullion. They may make
war and determine the number of troops necessary to
carry it on, but they are powerless to raise a single soldier.
In short, they may declare everything, but they can do
nothing.”
| Such was the character of the government set up
during the struggle for independence, and permitted to
continue until the 4th of March, 1789. It is not surprising,
therefore, that Great Britain, in the continued occupancy
of these western posts, after the treaty of 1783, should be
wholly indifferent to the wishes or existence of a govern-
ment rapidly falling into decay, and should be actuated in
ner course solely by considerations of personal interest.
What these considerations were which prompted the
retention of these posts, history fails fully to disclose; but
that they were inimical to the interests of the United
States does not admit of question. It is not improbable
that considerations of trade, to the promotion of which
Great Britain is always keenly alive, was the mainspring
of her action, and it is barely possible she may have
indulged the hope, if not the expectation, that the experi-
ment of free government in the new world, as exemplified
in the confederation, was doomed to a speedy and
disastrous issue, in which event, by the retention of her
foothold on the western frontier, she would be in a
position to regain her power and reassert her sovereignty.
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Whatever may be the truth of the matter, either
of these considerations would have been sufficient to
influence her judgment and determine her course; but it
is more than probable that the importance of her trade
with the northwest, which in 1785, in furs alone, is said to
have reached the magnitude of one hundred and eighty
thousand pounds annually, coupled with the advantages
of an enlarged market for British goods, to which con-
sideration she is never indifferent, was the primary, if not
the controlling motive for the retention of these frontier
posts. -
The question of promoting British trade and British
interest would seem to have been uppermost in the minds
of the representatives of the English government, when
every application for permission to build or navigate
private vessels on the lakes was refused, and the recom-
mendations made to the home government as late as 1785,
“That a sufficient number of the queen's ships be kept
upon the lakes to do the carrying trade and that all
other crafts whatever be prohibited.”
But whatever the motive, whether trade or territorial
retention or acquisition, the fact remains that when
shortly after the treaty of peace a demand was made for
the surrender of this and other points in the northwest,
the request was flatly refused and the occupancy con-
tinued. This could be done with impunity, for there was
not sufficient vitality remaining in the old government of
the confederation to effectively assert the rights of the
people, or enforce the mandates of the government.
Fortunately for the inhabitants of the United States,
doubly fortunate for the cause of human liberty and free
government, the rotten fabric of confederation speedily
gave way to the substitution and enduring structure of
33
1787, under and by virtue of which a national government
was inaugurated, possessed of ample power, not only to
maintain its own existence, but to enforce obedience to its
rightful demands. Yet even then British occupancy con-
tinued. It seems incredible that for more than seven years
after the establishment of the national government, and
the inauguration of Washington as President of the
United States, the British flag continued to float above
the posts of the western frontier.
When we consider, however, the difficulties attending
the inauguration of a new government, the exhausted
resources of the people just emerging from a protracted
war, perplexed by a burdensome debt, a doubtful credit,
it is not surprising that the authorities were slow to take
any step which might provoke a renewal of hostilities and
involve the new government in the wastes and uncertain-
ties of war. Time and diplomacy might be relied upon to
accomplish the desired end. The continued occupancy,
however, by the British, of these strongholds on the
western frontier, was not only a flagrant usurpation of
authority, but was characterized by a spirit of animosity,
which made their retention peculiarly exasperating and
offensive.
Not content during the War of the Revolution, with
invoking the aid of her savage allies, now, when the war
was concluded and peace declared, Great Britain sought
loy every means at her command to create, foster and
perpetuate a spirit of hostility among the Indians of the
northwest towards the hardy frontiersmen pushing their
settlements across the Ohio. To this end they encour-
aged the Indians to insist upon the Ohio River as the
southern boundary of their possessions, to decline to enter
into any treaty with the United States touching these
34
lands, and were made to believe that the English govern-
ment in retaining the posts, was actuated only by a desire
to protect the Indians in the rightful possession of their
territory. It was an English Indian superintendent,
Johnson, who said to the Indians, “It is for your sakes,
chiefly, if not entirely, that we hold these forts.”
Lord Dorchester, speaking through Capt. Matthews,
whom he sent to command at Detroit in 1786, after express-
ing regret that the Indians had consented to permit the
Americans to construct a road to Niagara, said to them :
“In the future, His Lordship wishes you to act as is best
for your interests. He cannot begin a war with the
Americans because some of their people encroach and
make depredations upon parts of the Indian country; but
they must see it is His Lordship's intention to defend the
posts, and that while they are preserved, the Indians must
feel great security therefrom, and consequently the Amer-
icans greater difficulty in taking possession of their land.
But should they once become masters of the posts, they
will surround the Indians, and accomplish their purpose
with little trouble. You seem apprehensive that the
English are not very anxious about the defense of the
posts. You will soon be satisfied that they have nothing
more at heart, provided that it continues to be the wish
of the Indians, and that they remain firm in doing their
part of the business, by preventing the Americans from
coming into their country, and consequently, from march-
ing to the posts. On the other hand, if the Indians think
it more for their interest that the Americans should have
possession of the posts, and be established in their country,
they ought to declare it, that the English need no longer
be put to the vast and unnecessary expense and incon-
veniences of keeping the posts, the chief object of which
35
is to protect their Indian allies, and the loyalists who have
suffered with them.”
This artful pronunciamento was well calculated, as it
was evidently designed, to encourage the Indians to persist
in their claim of territorial jurisdiction, and incite them to
fresh acts of hostility against the venturesome pioneer.
With such assurances of friendship and support, backed
by the presence of the British garrisons, and the sight of
the British flag, it is not to be wondered at that the Indians
were encouraged to persist in their hostility towards the
United States, and that all efforts to secure possession of
this territory by peaceful instrumentality proved wholly
abortive.
The defeat of the forces of Gen. Harmer, sent against
the Indians in 1790, followed a year later by the defeat of
St. Clair, served to increase their hostility, and demon-
strated how thoroughly British influence aroused and
solidified the Indians in defense of what they had been
taught and encouraged to believe were their inalienable
rights. Brant, the chief of the Six Nations, whose influ-
ence was solicited by President Washington, after the
defeat of Harmer and St. Clair, to bring about a peace
with the western tribe, to which end a commission was
appointed on the part of the United States in 1793, in
explanation of the failure of such commission, did not
besitate to declare it was British influence which prevented
its consummation. “To our surprise,” he said, “when
upon the point of entering upon a treaty, with the com-
missioners, we found it was opposed by those acting under
the British government, and hope of assistance was given
to our western brethren to encourage them to insist upon
the Ohio as the boundary between them and the United
States.”
36
The response of the Indians to the overtures of this
commission disclosed the “power behind the throne,”
when they declared: “We desire you to consider that our
only demand is the peaceable possession of a small part of
our once great country. We shall be persuaded that you
mean to do us justice if you agree that the Ohio River
shall remain the boundary between us.” -
I have said this much in explanation of the motive for
the retention of the posts on the frontier. Thus ended
this renewed effort on the part of the government to con-
ciliate the Indians, and establish, by treaty stipulation, the
peace and security of the border.
The Indians elated with the victories over Harmer
and St. Clair, were emboldened in their manifestations
of hostility, while the governor of Canada proceeded to
erect a new fort on the banks of the Maumee, which was
interpreted by the Indians as a fresh assurance of sym-
pathy and support. This attempt on the part of the
British to entrench themselves more securely on the
border, was declared by Washington to be the most
daring act yet committed by the British agents in America,
though not the most hostile or cruel, for he declared :
“There does not remain a doubt in the mind of any well-
informed person in this country, not shut against con-
viction, that the murders of our helpless women and
innocent children, along our frontiers, result from the
conduct of the agents of Great Britain in this country.”
With increased hostility on the part of the Indians,
and a fresh assumption of power on the part of Great
Britain, it was manifest affairs were rapidly approaching
a crisis, when it would become necessary for the govern-
ment to assert its rightful dominion and admonish the
Indians and their British allies, that the savagery of the
37
one and the domination of the other could not longer
be tolerated. To this end Gen. Wayne, in command of
the United States forces, entered the territory on the 20th
of August, 1794, fought a bloody but decisive battle with
the Indians within hearing of the newly erected British
fort on the Maumee. The officer in command of the fort,
Maj. Campbell, having inquired of Gen. Wayne what
interpretation was to be placed upon the near approach
of his command to the garrison which he had the honor
to command, must have received the impression from the
general's reply that it was none of the major's particular
business, as he said: “The most full and satisfactory
answer was given the day before from the muzzle of
my guns in an action with a horde of savages in the
vicinity of the fort, and which terminated gloriously to
the American arms.” And the general took occasion to
add, for the information of the British commandant,
which must have served as food for reflection, that, “Had
the battle continued until the Indians were driven under
the influence of your fort and guns, they would not much
have impeded the progress of the victorious army under
my command.”
It was the beginning of the end. In spite of the
efforts of British emissaries to induce the Indians to
prolong the conflict, on the 3d of August, 1795, the
Indians responded to the invitation of Gen. Wayne to
meet him in council, at Greenville, where they entered
into and concluded a treaty of peace. By the terms of
this treaty extensive grants of land were ceded to the
United States, among them a strip six miles wide on
the eastern shore of Michigan from the Raisin River to
Lake St. Clair, and all claims to the posts at Detroit and
Mackinac wholly surrendered. In the meantime a treaty
38
had been concluded with Great Britain, by which it
was stipulated among other things, that “on or before the
1st day of June, 1796, the British garrison should be
withdrawn from all posts and places within the limits
of the United States.”
The execution of the terms of this treaty was some-
what delayed, but on the 11th day of July, 1796, a
hundred years ago this very day, the American flag
was for the first time unfurled at Detroit, proclaiming
the departure of an alien power and the ascended sov-
ereignty of the United States. It is most fitting, there-
fore, that the centennial anniversary of that day should be
commemorated on the very spot made memorable by the
nappening of this great event and that it should be
marked with enduring tablet that the memory of it
may be preserved and transmitted to those who are to
come after us.
And let me say in this connection, that what occurred
here a century ago to-day, was fraught with more than
local interest. It meant the enforcement of that great
ordinance of 1787 which, for wise statesmanship and
patriotic purpose, is entitled to hold a place in American
history second only to the Declaration of Independence.
For it was by this ordinance that the territory northwest
of the Ohio, embraced within the present limits of the
states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan,
was set apart and forever dedicated to free government
and enlightened citizenship.
It guaranteed freedom of religious worship, a compre-
hensive bill of rights, encouragement of schools, that the
states to be formed from this territory not less than three
nor more than five should remain permanently in the
confederacy, and finally that there should be neither
i
:
s
39
slavery nor involuntary servitude within the limits of said :
territory, except in the punishment of crime, of which the
party shall have been duly convicted. 3. *
By this ordinance the great northwest was made th
nursery of civil and religious liberty—the cradle of free
states and free men. And what was of incalculable value,
as subsequent events demonstrated, its terms were to
remain forever unalterable, except by common consent.
Every attempt to abrogate or suspend its provisions
proved wholly abortive. This great ordinance, irrevocable
in character, defended by resolute and uncompromising
men, proved to be an insurmountable barrier to the exten-
sion of slavery in the northwest, and a wall of defense to
the champions of free states and free men.
We do well, therefore, to commemorate an event
which is not only of local interest, but which, in its far-
reaching influence, has been felt through the intervening
years, and made its lasting impress on the century. The
flag which a hundred years ago was here unfurled, on the
then borders of civilization, proclaiming the sovereignty of
the nation over the northwest, has been borne across and
subdued a continent, and floats to-day, with augmented
power and glory, over seventy-five millions of people,
possessing a domain imperial in extent, and a government
securely reposing on the public will.
May that banner, symbolizing unity and liberty, float
on forever, commanding the allegiance of the citizen and
the respect of mankind.
Senator Burrows’ oration was enthusiastically ap-
plauded.
4O
JAMES B. ANGELL, LL. D.
President of the University of Michigan.

PRESIDENT ANGELL'S ADDRESS,
Pres. James B. Angell, of the University of Michigan,
was then called upon by the chairman, for a few words.
He was received with hearty cheers, and spoke as follows:
Mr. President, Zadies and Gentlemen—He must be a
bolder or a vainer man than I am, who can willingly rise
to his feet here, to speak at this late hour, and to follow
the two distinguished men, whose instructive and eloquent
addresses we have listened to with such delight. But I
remember that Gen. Alger is in command, and whenever
he has faced a foe, it has proved useless to resist. And,
indeed, it is not easy to keep silent, when one stands in
this inspiring presence, and on this sacred spot, and sur-
rounded by these precious relics of the past.
Rhode Islander as I am by birth, I cannot, unmoved,
take in my hand this telescope, which that brave Rhode
Islander, Oliver Hazard Perry, captured from the ship of
the British commander, in the decisive battle of Lake Erie,
and he must have a colder heart than I, who can lay his
Hand on this old flag staff without feeling something of the
touch of patriotic joy with which those sixty-five brave
American soldiers saw the Stars and Stripes raised to its
peak a hundred years ago this day, in token of the estab-
lishment of our sovereignty over the whole northwest.
It was a happy thought to celebrate this day. I have
often wondered that Detroit has not given more oppor-
tunities to commemorate the great men and the great
events in its remarkable history. Long years ago, the
Sagacious men, who laboriously ascended this stream, saw
that this place was “beautiful for situation, the joy of the
whole earth,” that here was sure to be a city, “the Queen
4 I
of the Straits,” wearing at her girdle the key to the upper
lakes, and to the great northwest. You make pilgrimages
to Bunker Hill, to Valley Forge, and to Yorktown, as to
sacred shrines. But to what spot in all this land are more
romantic and thrilling historic associations attached than
to this, when one recalls the adventures of the old explorers
and missionaries, the gifted men who administered affairs
under the French rule; the shrewd English administrators
and soldiers who succeeded them ; the Indian wars, which
centered here ; the painful events of the Revolutionary
days, and of the War of 1812. Our children and our chil-
dren's children should all be made to feel, by celebrations
like this, and by historic monuments and commemorative
tablets, that here, at their own homes, is a spot as sacred
in their country's history, as any in all our broad domain.
The distinguished speakers who have preceded me
have suggested, and truly, that one of the reasons why
Great Britain retained this and other frontier posts for
thirteen years after the Treaty of Independence, was
their doubt whether we were really going to be able
to retain our independence. Under the weakness of our
old confederation this doubt on the part of the English
was perhaps not unreasonable. But, may I call your
attention to the more surprising fact that long after the
establishment of our stronger government under the con-
stitution, the English seemed to cherish the same doubt.
In 1814, at the opening of the negotiations for the Treaty
of Ghent, the very first proposition made by the British
commissioners to ours, and made as a sine qua non of
the treaty, was that we should set apart for Indians the
vast territory now comprising the states of Michigan,
Wisconsin, Illinois, and a considerable part of the states
of Indiana and Ohio, and that we should never purchase
42
it from them. A sort of Indian sovereignty under British
guaranty was to be established in our domain. Coupled
with this was a demand that we should have no armed
force on the lakes. There were other demands scarcely
less preposterous. Think of making such “cheeky”
demands as these to John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay
and James A. Bayard and Albert Gallatin and Jonathan
Russell. It did not take these spirited men many minutes
to send back answer in effect that until the United States
had lost all sense of independence, they would not even
listen to such propositions. They threatened to go home.
Castlereagh, the Prime Minister, happening to reach
Ghent on his way to Vienna, ordered an abatement of the
British demands, and so an honorable peace was made.
But the same idea of a “buffer state" of Indians under
British influence, to be used in need as a means of regain-
ing power here, was cherished at the outset as was enter-
tained in 1790.
And even if we come down to our Civil War, who has
forgotten how Lord John Russell, in response to our
demands for the suppression of cruisers like the Alabama,
replied that Great Britain had no municipal law which
forbade the construction of such vessels, and refused to
consider our contention that international law called for
the prohibition of them. He did not believe that we were
to survive as a nation long enough or strong enough
to enforce our demands. He afterwards manfully con-
fessed his mistake. But his first answer to us afterwards
cost England fifteen and a half million dollars. And did
not Hon. Mr. Gladstone declare that Mr. Jefferson Davis
had created a nation ? With all our respect for him,
it is hard for us to forget that unhappy remark, which
he had no business to make.
43
But, thank God, when the brave veterans at Appo-
mattox struck the last fatal blow and ended the war
of secession, you also won a victory of which perhaps you
little thought at the time you slew the last lingering doubt
in the English mind of the ability and will of this nation
to maintain its integrity and its independence. From that
day to this no Englishman has raised the question
whether we are to remain a mighty and free nation.
But I say all this without any spark of bitterness
toward England. Thank God, when her troops quitted
our soil they did not take away with them those muniments
of liberty, which we brought from the home of our fathers,
the habeas corpus, the right of trial by jury, the right of
petition, the spirit of obedience to law, the inextinguishable
love of civil and religious liberty. These English-speaking
races, now that England recognizes thoroughly our inde-
pendence and our strength, bound together by the ties of
a common language, common blood, similar laws and
political institutions, fondly hope to settle all their mis-
understandings without war, and by their example of
good government, to commend free institutions to all
nations.
The whole world respects us now. There is no sea so
remote, and no pathway of the traveler so excluded, that
the flag of our Union is not there sufficient protection to
the humblest American citizen. And it is to you, brave
old veterans of the war, that we owe this proud position of
our nation.
When the applause which greeted the speaker had
subsided, a benediction was pronounced by Rt. Rev. John
S. Foley, D. D., Roman Catholic Bishop of Detroit, after
which the great gathering dispersed.
44
THE LUNCH ON THE RIVER,
Immediately after leaving the hall, the speakers and
distinguished visitors were driven to the foot of Wood-
ward avenue, where the steamer Pleasure was awaiting
them. About 300, including the committees of the day
and the members of the Fourth Infantry, M. N. G., who
had acted as ushers at the hall, boarded the vessel and
were carried several miles down the river. An excellent
lunch was served, and Haug's mandolin orchestra enliv-
ened the occasion with music. There was no set pro-
gramme, but conversation and music made the time pass
very pleasantly. The day was fine and nothing could
have been wished to add to the perfect enjoyment of
the occasion.
THE MILITARY PARADE,
Between the hours of four and six in the afternoon
the celebration took the form of a grand military parade.
Major Ford H. Rogers was chief marshal and Gen. Arthur
Bresler chief of staff. The parade formed on Jefferson
avenue at Dequindre street, and the route of march was
down Jefferson to Woodward, up Woodward and Monroe
avenues to Miami avenue, thence up to the Grand Circus
and back by Woodward to Michigan avenue; thence by
Wayne street to Lafayette avenue, to Third street, to Fort
street and by that thoroughfare to the Campus Martius,
where the various companies and organizations participat-
ing were disbanded. Forty-five minutes were consumed
in passing a given point.
45
On the Fort street side of the new Federal Building,
to the east of the main entrance, a reviewing stand had
been erected, where the members of the executive com-
mittee, the invited guests and the members of the city
government occupied seats.
On the entire line of march the sidewalks were
thronged by tens of thousands of spectators. The build-
ings on the route were gaily decorated and every window
was filled with heads. All along the route the enthusi-
asm was as great as the crowds.
The parade was led by a detachment of mounted
police followed by the entire force under the command of
Chief Starkweather. Then in order:
The chief marshal and his aides.
The 19th Infantry U. S. A., with its band, Col. Snyder
leading in person.
Gov. John T. Rich, in citizen's clothes, riding on a
black horse, and attended by his staff, mounted and in
full uniform.
The 4th Infantry Michigan National Guard, with its
band.
A battalion of the Michigan Naval Reserve, in
naval uniform. t
A small detachment of the Detroit Light Guard
Veteran Corps.
The second division, under command of Capt. John
Conline, U. S. A., was made up of
Parke, Davis & Co.'s Band.
Detroit Post No. 384, G. A. R.
Fairbanks Post, No. 17, G. A. R.
Farquahar Post No. 152, G. A. R.
Michigan Post No. 393, G. A. R. e
46
A body of the Union Veterans' Union.
A party of 21 little girls, in patriotic colors, carrying
red, white and blue umbrellas.
Ten colored veterans.
The second division was completed by the “living
flag”—a body of 250 girls and boys dressed in white, blue
or red clothes throughout, and so disposed that when
looked down upon from any height the phalanx presented
an exact representation of the American flag.
The third division, under Assistant Marshal A. P. T.
Beniteau, embraced:
The Detroit Guardmen's Band.
The Maybury Cadets.
The Detroit Catholic Cadets.
The Detroit Catholic Grays.
The St. Elizabeth's Catholic Cadets.
The St. John's Catholic Cadets.
The St. Boniface Cadets.
The Detroit Catholic Rifles.
The St. Paul's Cadets, (St. Casimir's Parish).
The Kosciusko Guards.
St. Michael's Commandery.
St. Ladislaus Commandery.
St. Stanislaus Commandery.
All the cadets were uniformed and armed, and
attracted attention by their excellent drill.
The fourth division, under Col. Fred. E. Farnsworth,
was made up as follows:
The Metropolitan Band.
Knights of St. John and Patriarch's Militant.
The Elks, in white uniforms and white umbrellas.
*
47
The fifth division was marshaled by Ralph Phelps,
assisted by Col. R. G. Butler. It included:
The two Newsboys' Bands.
The Letter Carriers in uniform and admirably drilled.
The Fire and Police Notification Company.
The Newsboys’ Association.
It was six o'clock when the parade terminated and
the exercises of the day were at an end.
LETTERS OF REGRET,
Letters of regret were received from Governors
Busiel, of New Hampshire; Woodbury, of Vermont;
Coffin, of Connecticut; Morton, of New York; Griggs, of
New Jersey; O'Ferrall, of Virginia; Carr, of North Caro-
lina; Atkinson, of Georgia; McCorkle, of West Virginia;
Bradley, of Kentucky; Foster, of Louisiana; Stone, of
Missouri; Altgeld, of Illinois; Matthews, of Indiana;
Bushnell, of Ohio; Cullen, of Texas; Thornton, of New
Mexico; Rickards, of Montana, and Lord, of Oregon.
Also from President Cleveland, Postmaster-General
Wilson, Secretary of State Olney, Secretary of the Navy
Herbert, Attorney-General Harmon, and Justices Brewer,
Peckham and Fuller of the Supreme Court, also the
French and Russian Ambassadors, Senators Sherman,
Vilas, Frye, Allison and McMillan, and Representatives
Reed, Fischer and Henderson, and many others.
LETTER FROM GOVERNOR O'FERRALL,
Governor Charles T. O'Ferrall, of Virginia, who had
expected to attend the festivities, with his entire staff,
48
was unavoidably prevented. The following letter was
received from him: -
COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA,
Governor’s of FICE.
RICHMOND, VA., July 8th, 1896.
My Dear Mr. Dickinson :
I regret exceedingly I cannot attend Detroit's great celebration.
An official engagement over which I have no control will prevent.
Our statute requires the board of public works, of which the gover-
nor is ex-officio president, to assess during the present week the
railroads of the state for purposes of taxation, and the board is now
engaged in the performance of this important duty.
I beg to assure the good people of your historic city I would be
more than happy to be with them, and that I appreciate beyond
measure the high compliment they have paid this old commonwealth
in their cordial invitation to me as her governor, to be present and
address them upon the interesting occasion.
Virginia reciprocates warmly their kind and generous considera-
tion, and her people are more than gratified to find in their hearty
action unmistakable evidence that all feelings of estrangement
resulting from civil strife have been forever buried, and the two
sections stand together in soul and spirit, under one flag and one
constitution. Each section has memories which she will ever cherish
with peculiar tenderness, yet they are in fact common memories, for
they spring from the glories of the American soldier whether he fell
under the stars and stripes or the stars and bars. I speak for the
South when I say she is as loyal to the flag of our reunited country
as she was to the southern cross, and that her sons will be ready
at all times to stand shoulder to shoulder with their northern
brethren in the maintenance of their country's honor and the
defense of their country's rights.
This old dominion State, immortalized in song and story,
crowned with glories and hung with memories, and who gave to the
cause of republican liberty her Henry, Jefferson, Washington and
49
Madison, joins with your great State in commemorating “the
closing act of the war of American independence.”
In conclusion, I beg to again assure you that I regret more than
I can express, my inability to be absent from my post at this time.
I am indeed almost selfish enough to wish that I could change the
date of the evacuation as recorded by the chronicler, and make it a
little later, so that I might participate in celebrating the memorable
event and meeting with your sturdy northwest people.
Yours very sincerely,
CHAS. T. O'FERRALL.
Hon. Don M. Dickinson, Detroit, Mich.
FROM GoverNOR MATTHEWS,
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT.
INDIANAPOLIS, IND.
July 6th, 1896.
Płon. Don M. Dickenson, Chazrman Commzttee on Inzyzłatzons,
Detroit, Michigan :
DEAR SIR:—It is with sincere regret that I cannot accept the
kind invitation of your Committee to join with the people of your
State and city in celebrating the memorable event, which had so
much to do in shaping the destiny of our Western and Northwestern
territory. Indiana will rejoice with her sister Michigan and extends
her hand in cordial greeting.
The eleventh of July 1796, the lowering of the British flag to
that of the young Republic, marked an important event, not alone
in your State history, but in that of all states formed from that
magnificent empire passing into the indisputable control of Amer-
ican freemen. It was indeed a vast empire opened up to a triumph-
ant Christian civilization, and a race of strong, brave and resolute
freemen. Your celebration will strike a responsive chord in every
patriotic heart in Indiana, and we know the day will be fittingly and
splendidly honored by your own brave and enterprising people.
Regretting my inability to be with you on behalf of the State of
Indiana, I am, with high esteem,
Very truly yours,
CLAUDE MATTHEWS.
5o
FROM SENATOR ALLISON,
DUBUQUE, Iowa, July 7th, 1896.
To the Honorable the Committee on Invitation of the One Hun-
dredth Anniversary, Detroit, Mich. :
GENTLEMEN:—I have the honor to acknowledge receipt of your
invitation to be present at the ceremonies commemorative of the
evacuation of Detroit one hundred years ago. With thanks for your
invitation, I regret that my engagements are such that I cannot have
the pleasure to accept.
The event you commemorate, constitutes an epoch in the history
of our country. It was the culminating act in completing our
Independence. Though the Northwest Territory had been organ-
ized for some time, its settlement had been retarded by its con-
tinuous occupation by the British, which appeared to be indefinite
until the Jay treaty fixed a time for the final departure of the British
troops. This treaty, much abused when made, was of incalculable
service not only to this region but to the whole country as well. It
secured the rapid growth of the northwest and the creation of five
populous states northwest of the Ohio and east of the Mississippi,
and made necessary the acquisition of the territory west of that
river, happily achieved through the Lousiana purchase only a few
years later. Those who negotiated that treaty, and the one acquir.
ing Lousiana, did not realize that within a century of time “The
Northwest Territory,” so called, and the contiguous territory lying
west of the Mississippi, would embrace twelve great states, having
an intelligent and cultivated population of twenty-three millions of
people enjoying the blessings of free government, with an accumu-
lated wealth of twenty-five thousand millions of dollars, or more
than one thousand dollars for each inhabitant, and nearly two-fifths
of the population and wealth of the whole country. Yet through the
exertions of those who have come and gone within the century, and
of those who still remain, these are the conditions existing at the
end of the first century of the day you commemorate. May we
venture the hope that those who commemorate the second century
may be as prosperous and contented in the enjoyment of conditions
equally favorable.
Again expressing my regrets, I am
Very truly yours,
W. B. ALLISON.
5 I
FROM SENATOR McMILLAN,
MANCHESTER, MAss., July 5, 1896.
My DEAR SIR:—I regret that absence from the city will prevent
me from joining my fellow citizens in the celebration of the one
hundredth anniversary of the surrender of the post of Detroit to the
United States, on July 11th.
With a foresight amounting almost to inspiration, our treaty
commissioners insisted on drawing the boundary line so as to include
Michigan within the territory of the United States, and when, for
the purpose of retaining control over the fur trade, England refused
to give up the Northwestern posts, the Jay treaty finally gave us
possession of the territory George Rogers Clark had so bravely won
by the sword; and nine years later civil government according to
American ideals was set up within our borders. -
It is fitting that these anniversaries should be observed, in order
that the eventful history of nearly two centuries may teach us to
prize the inheritance perfected for us by three great nations.
I am, Very truly yours,
JAMES McMILLAN.
Aſon. Don M. Deckznson, Chairman Committee on Znzyztations,
Detrozł, Mech.
52
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