317. r THE WESTERN JOURNALS of JOHN MAY Edited by DWIGHT L. SMITH L I B R^ARY OF THL U N I VERS ITY or ILLI NOIS 3\7.7 A^43w luimis nisTonuL sonrr ^^ 1^ THE WESTERN JOURNALS of JOHN MAY The Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio was founded in Columbus in 1831, and removed to Cincinnati in 1849, there uniting with the Cincinnati His- torical Society. It is privately sustained and controlled. The Society is devoted to the early history of the Western Waters, the Old Northwest Territory, and the State of Ohio; the comprehensive history, early and recent, of the region lying within a hundred-mile radius of Cincinnati. tr .vjuuMimmiUiviiiaiiim-^^^^^^ . CIoi.oNEi. John May Oil porlrail on canvas. Executed by Chrislian (.'nlla.^ei. 178'J. Coiirlc.'.y. Anwrican Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts. THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Ohio Company Agent and Business Adventurer O^ Edited and with an Introduction by DWIGHT L. SMITH Professor of History Miami University Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio Copyright 1961 by the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio, Cincinnati, Ohio 717.7 TO THE MEMORY OF LEE SHEPARD X ^ C PREFACE John May, a prominent merchant of Boston and a patriot of the American Revolution, became interested in the opening of the Ohio country after the war. A group of like-minded veterans organized the Ohio Company of Associates, purchased a tract of land from Congress, and planted the first official permanent American settle- ment in the Northwest Territory, established by the Ordinance of 1787. To further his own interests as well as those of the company, May made two journeys to the West. He kept detailed day by day journals of both the 1788 and 1789 trips. These valuable pieces of Americana have been published previously; but one is a rare book, and neither is readily accessible. This is not a new edition or a reprint. In both cases the jour- nals published were not the original manuscripts themselves. The 1788 journal as it appeared was a twice-edited version of an edited copy of the original manuscript. Given the editorial whims and standards of former days, the uneven resemblance of the published version to the original journal itself is not surprising. A similar situ- ation prevails in the case of the 1789 journal. The footnotes for the 1788 document, inadequate and too few, were themselves twice- edited versions of the originals that were initially prepared by an- other person. In the publication of the 1789 journal, footnotes of any sort were virtually non-existent. Such circumstances render the printed journals unreliable for serious use as historical documents or for pleasurable reading. His- torical detective work has uncovered evidence and proof of the details of what has happened. It is obligatory to present, adequately explained and edited, either the original texts or as near to the original texts as it is possible to obtain. That is the purpose of this volume. A few years ago the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio at Cincinnati acquired manuscripts represented as the John May journals of 1788 and 1789. Were these the originals or copies? This and other questions were posed by Mr. Lee Shepard and Mr. vii Virginius Hall, the late editor and the late director of the Society, respectively. The memory of their insatiable interest in the project has been a constant source of inspiration. Mrs. Alice Hook, libra- rian, has gone to great pains to make the full research facilities of the Society available for my use, as well as the services of Mrs. Juanita Nelson and Mr. Robert Herron who laboriously transcribed the manuscripts in the initial stage of the project. Research grants from Miami University and from the Ameri- can Philosophical Society have been of very material aid. Through the helpful cooperation of the following staff mem- bers, the research facilities of their institutions, especially access to manuscript sources, were made available for my use: Mr. Clifford Shipton of the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massa- chusetts; Miss Harriet Swift of the Rare Books Department, Boston Public Library; Mrs. Edith S. Reiter of Campus Martins Museum, Marietta, Ohio; Mr. Richard Waddle of Marietta College Library; Mr. Leo Flaherty of the Archives Division, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Boston; Mr. Stephen T. Riley of the Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston; Mrs. Elizabeth R. Martin, Mr. John Weatherford (presently of Miami University), and Mr. Henry Caren of the Ohio Historical Society, Columbus; Mr. Donald H. Kent and Mr. William Hunter of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, Harrisburg; Mr. Clarkson A. Collins, 3rd, of the Rhode Island Historical Society, Providence; the staff of the Archives of the Supreme Judicial Court of Suffolk County, Boston ; and Mrs. Alene Lowe White of the Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio. Staffs of the following libraries offered helpful suggestions and made their general reference facilities available : John Carter Brown Library, Brown University; Columbia University Library; Library of Congress; Miami University Library; New England Genealogi- cal and Historical Library, Boston; New York Public Library; The Ohio State University Library; and the town library of Reading, Massachusetts. Mr. Orton Loring Clark of Amherst, Massachusetts, Mr. Edward L. Edes of North Amherst, Massachusetts, Mrs. Annie E. Gardner of New Harbor, Maine, and Miss Margaret Roys of Woodbury, Connecticut, who are descendents of May or related to vui descendents by marriage, made family papers accessible and offered many suggestions. Miss Gerrie Ann Robinson has painstakingly typed the final draft of my manuscript for publication. My role has been immeas- urably more pleasant because my wife, Jane D. Smith, has shared in the drudgery of the meticulous collating and proofreading neces- sary in dealing with manuscripts of the sort that make up the prin- cipal part of this volume. Oxford, Ohio Dwight L. Smith IX CONTENTS PREFACE Vii INTRODUCTION 1 PART one: The Journal of 1788 I The Journey West, 1788 25 II Marietta Pioneer and Ohio Company Official 48 III Return to the East, 1788 70 PART two: The Journal of 1789 IV The Journey West, 1789 85 V Freight Difficulties and Reconnaissance 101 VI Merchant in the West 131 VII Return to the East, 1789 157 BIBLIOGRAPHY 167 INDEX 171 XI ILLUSTRATIONS Frontis- CoLONEL John May piece Oil portrait on canvas. Executed by Christian Gul- lager, 1789. Courtesy, American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts. "A Map of the Northern and Middle States" 53 Map belonging to John May which he may have car- ried on his journeys. Mounted on canvas in two rows of four sections each. Reproduced here are the two center sections of the bottom row. Courtesy, Rare Book Department, Boston Public Library. Manuscript Journal Entry for May 22, 1789 101 This includes one of several paragraphs that May puts into code. Campus Martius 149 House of John May in extreme left foreground. From Samuel P. Hildreth, Pioneer History (Cincinnati, 1848). Courtesy, Campus Martius Museum, Mari- etta, Ohio. Xll INTRODUCTION During the American Revolution, offering bounties of land for enlistment and service was a rather common practice. This was not strange since money was scarce and unsettled land existed in abund- ance. These bounty lands belonged to some of the colony-states by virtue of their charters from the English government, and generally lay between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River. With some exceptions, the trans- Appalachian country was sur- rendered to the United States when a new government was created during the war under the Articles of Confederation. The area was to be encouraged to grow and develop into new states. Two of the exceptions to the claims that were surrendered have bearing on the subject at hand. Connecticut kept a 120-mile strip between Lake Erie and the forty-first parallel in present northeastern Ohio which came to be known as the Western Reserve. Virginia retained the land title to present south central Ohio between the Scioto and Lit- de Aliami rivers to use in case she did not have enough to satisfy her own bounty-land commitments elsewhere. Therefore, the land west of the mountains and north of the Ohio River most immedi- ately available for distribution lay east of the Scioto River, and south of the Western Reserve. This area was more attractive be- cause the deeper one went into the western wilderness the more pronounced was Indian opposition to white encroachment and the more evident was the English retention of military posts and con- trol of the fur trade. Another complication had to be reckoned with. Even before the Revolution, colonists began to cross the mountains in defiance of the Indians, and to settle along the streams of the upper Ohio Valley. Indeed, in the mid-eighteenth ccntur)-, a Virginia Ohio com- pany had been chartered to foster development of the region at the forks of the Ohio River and below (westward) . Most of the intrepid pioneers, however, were not sponsored by any formal company, but were motivated by their own desires and circumstances. These squatters, as they were sometimes designated, began to move down 2 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY the Ohio River, Their illegal settlements become so numerous and extensive, a situation to be repeated on each successive American frontier, that the government felt impelled to check them with force. There is some evidence that a statehood movement was afoot in 1785. Fort Pitt-based military expeditions only removed some of the squatters temporarily. To stem the tide and better control the situation an army post was placed in the heart of the squatter coun- try. Fort Harmar was erected in 1785 at the mouth of the Mus- kingum River. Squatter settlement made it difficult for systematic development and deprived the government of land sales sorely needed as a source of revenue. It also increased the friction with the Indians who resented encroachment on lands they regarded as in- violably theirs. The squatter situation made it urgent for the gov- ernment to evolve a working arrangement for orderly opening and growth of its new national domain. The patterns for this were established in the Ordinance of 1785 and the Ordinance of 1787. Of considerable consequence to later developments was the so-called Newburgh petition of 1783, signed by nearly three hun- dred army officers, and presented, through George Washington, to the Congress.^ Based on congressional resolutions of 1776 and after to give land bounties for enlistments, it requested Congress to set aside a tract suitable for statehood development, and purchasable by bounty certificate holders. Specifically, it suggested the area of present southeastern Ohio. In a letter of transmittal. Brigadier Gen- eral Rufus Putnam of Massachusetts elaborated on the ideas con- tained in the petition.^ He asked for provision to permit similarly inclined soldiers to band together in groups or associations for the purchase of tracts of land. This is an early expression of an idea later put into tangible form by the Ohio Company of Associates. Putnam continued to act as the chief lobbyist of the Newburgh ^The document is in Archer Butler Hulbert (ed.), The Records of the Origi- nal Proceedings of the Ohio Company (2 vols., Marietta, 1917), I, xxvi-xxviii. Hulbert's introduction to these volumes is the most extensive and satisfactory history of the Ohio Company of Associates. Hereafter cited as Hulbert, Ohio Company. ^Putnam to Washington, June 16, 1783, in Archer Butler Hulbert (ed.), Ohio in the Time of the Confederation (Marietta, 1918), 56-64. This volume also contains many other relevant documents. INTRODUCTION ^ petition before the members of Congress. Meanwhile, when survey in the Ohio countr\' began under the Ordinance of 1785, Putnam, a professional surveyor, was appointed the Massachusetts represen- tative on the survey party. When assigned to another project by his state, he was replaced by a friend and like-minded person. Briga- dier General Benjamin Tupper. Both had the opportunity to make careful estimate of the West as to possibiUties and desirability for settlement.^ In early 1786, Putnam and Tupper compared notes and the Ohio Company idea began to take shape in their minds. A formal announcement appeared in the newspapers of January and Febru- ary.* After a brief favorable comment on the Ohio country it in- vited interested veterans of the Revolution to pool their resources to form an association for the purpose of purchasing land in that region. In consequence of this announcement the now famous March 1, 1786, meeting was held at the Bunch of Grapes Tavern in Boston.^ A formal organization, styled the Ohio Company of Associates, was effected. To better understand John May's role in this venture, it is necessary to explain some of the details of the structure and activi- ties of the company. Its capital was subscribed through the sale of one thousand dollar shares with five shares as the maximum any one person could buy. This was to apply to the purchase of lands in the Ohio country under the general provisions of the Ordinance of 1785 and to promote a settlement there. Subscribers to twenty shares constituted a "grand division" of the company. Each division appointed an agent who was responsible for the transaction of busi- ness for the subscribers in the division. Collectively the agents chose the directors, treasurer, and secretary of the company." Thus the agent was an important functionary. On October 27, 1787, the Ohio Company of Associates re- ceived a formal contract from Congress for several million acres of ^See letter, Putnam to Congress, June 11, 1785. in ibid., 110-111. See also 111- 113, note 64. ^Printed in Hulbcrt, Ohio Company, I, 1-4. ^Proceedings, ibid., I, 4-6. ^Articles of agreement, ibid., I, 6-1 1. 4 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY land along the Ohio River west of the seventh and east of the seventeenth ranges of townships to be surveyed under the Ordi- nance of 1785.^ That winter advance parties left Massachusetts and Connecticut for the West. In western Pennsylvania they joined forces, built boats, and went down the Ohio. At the mouth of the Muskingum, opposite Fort Harmar, the Ohio Company of Asso- ciates established a settlement later known as Marietta. John May was one of the agents of the company. The origi- nal party arrived at its destination in the Ohio country a week be- fore May left Boston, and it was not until May 26 that he reached the place. His name appears in the company records as early as November 21, 1787.^ From this mention as an agent and from other references in later records, it can be assumed that he was one of the movers in the venture from almost the beginning. John May, of English ancestry, was born in Pomfret, Connec- ticut, on November 24, 1748, and died in Boston on July 16, 1812.® According to family tradition he served an apprenticeship with a relative in Boston, and subsequently went into business for himself. He married and lived, except for a few years in Portland, Maine,^° in Boston. Evidence is abundant that May was prominent in civic affairs. He served as a fire warden for Boston, 1785-1805, and as a select- man, 1804-1812. The Boston town records and those of the select- ^Contract, ibid., I, 29-37. ^List of agents, ibid., I, 22, ^For details of the May family history, see Samuel May, John W. May, and John J. May, A Genealogy of the Descendants of John May Who Came from England to Roxbury in America, 1640 (Boston, 1878). See especially pp. 4, 10-11, and 51. A biographical sketch of May is in Bayard Tuckerman, Notes on the Tucker man Family of Massachusetts and Some Allied Families (Boston, 1914) , 56-57. See also Richard S. Edes, "Letters and Journal of Col. John May, of Boston," New England Historical and Genealogical Register and Antiquarian Journal, XXVII (1873), 14-15. Brief obituaries may be found in Columbian Centinel. Massachusetts Federalist (Boston), July 18, 1812; Independent Chronicle (Boston), July 20, 1812; and Boston Gazette, July 20, 1812. ^°For example, evidence given in deed, John May to Joseph May, Portland, May 25, 1792, MS in Winthrop Sargent papers, Massachusetts Historical Society. Portland documents also occur in the John May papers, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland. INTRODUCTION men contain literally scores of references to his many civic and military activities. He was a man of affluence, a merchant and shipper who owned considerable property, including a wharf known as May's Wharf or Union Wharf.^^ There is ample proof of his patriotic activities. Just how early he began to participate in such things is difficult to ascertain; but his name is listed as one of the Sons of Liberty who dined at Liberty Tree in Dorchester on August 14, 1769. He was also in the band of patriots who relegated Boston's consignment of East India Com- pany tea to the depths of Boston harbor the night of December 16, 1773.^' When the hated British redcoats returned to Boston following the clashes with the colonists at Lexington and Concord in mid- April 1775, patriots came from miles around to bottle them up in the city. With the aid of a friendly British naval officer whom he knew, Alay escaped with his family from the besieged city by boat and under cover of darkness. He moved his family back to his native town of Pomfret, Connecticut, where they lived until the "Richard S. Edes (comp.), "Colonel John May: Journal Kept by Him dur- ing a Tour to the Ohio Country in 1788," 9. This unpublished MS is discussed in detail elsewhere. The town records for 1778-1783 were published by the Boston Record Commissioners (Boston, 1895); and for 1784- 1796 and 1796-1813 by the Boston Registry' Department (Boston, 1903 and 1905). The selectmen's minutes for 1776-1786 and 1787-1798 were published by the Boston Record Commission- ers (Boston, 1894 and 1896); and for 1799-1810 and 181 1-1818 by the Boston Registr)' Department (Boston, 1904 and 1908). See passim in each of these seven volumes. Other evidence is found in the legal records in the Court Files, Archives of the Supreme Judicial Court of SufTolk County, Massachusetts; business papers in the Caleb Davis papers, Massachusetts Historical Society; hundreds of business papers in the John May papers, Western Reserve Historical Society. In the latter is the "Inventory and Appraisement" of his estate, August 14, 1812, which contains detailed lists including the contents of his library. ^•ProcecdinQS of the Massachusetts Historical Society, 1st series, XI (1869- 1870), 141"; 1st series, XIII (1873-1875), 185-186; Francis S. Drake, Tea Leaves: Being a Collection of Letters and Documents Relating to the . . . Boston Tea Party (Boston, 1884), cxxviii. The Drake reference contains a version of a family tradition that still has currency. S. A. M. Fdes, "Compiled by S. A. M. Edes for Marv ^Varren Chapter D. [A.] R. Read March 8, 1899," (unpublished MS), 4. Typescript in possession of Marparet Roys, Woodbur)-, Connecticut. Also letters to the editor from members of the family. b THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY redcoats evacuated Boston about a year later.^^ He became active in the military at least as early as March 1777, when his name appears in an army roster. In the autumn of 1778 he was commissioned as adjutant with the rank of captain in a Boston militia regiment. He rose in rank and achieved full colo- nelcy in 1787. Within this time he saw service under the French Comte de Rochambeau in Rhode Island and received special com- mendation in a letter from Massachusetts Governor James Bowdoin to General Washington.^'* After the Revolution, May continued as a prominent business man and civic leader in Boston. When a group of New England veterans promoted the Ohio Company of Associates venture, he ^^Richard S. Edes, Journal and Letters of Col. John May, of Boston, Relative to Two Journeys to the Ohio Country in 1788 and '89 (Cincinnati, 1873), 12. ^^"A Return of Men Inlisted into the Continental Army [1777]," MS in the William Heath papers, Massachusetts Historical Society. The "Colo John Mays Orderly Book," as it is labeled, has many pages missing. (Richard S. Edes noted the missing pages when he was copying items from this book. See Edes, Hh Excerpts. Copybook owned by Edward L. Edes, North Amherst, Massachusetts.) But it still contains two pages of 1776 orders. These shreds of evidence are not sufficient to determine if and what his military position was at the time. This will be referred to hereafter as John May, "Orderly Book." MS in the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio, Cincinnati. One biographical sketch (Appleton's Cyclopaedia of American Biography, IV, 272-273) claims that May "commanded his regiment" during Shays' Rebellion which broke out in 1786. The manuscript records of the Rebellion in the Massachusettes Archives make no mention of May. In Boston Record Commissioners, A Report of the Record Commissioners of the City of Boston, Containing the Selectmen's Minutes from 1787 through 1798 (Boston, 1896), 12, however, it is stated that May requested the selectmen in 1787 to make provisions for "90 Men detailed from the Boston Regiment to join the Forces under the Command of Major General Lincoln." Since May was an officer in the Boston Regiment and Lincoln put down the Rebellion, perhaps May par- ticipated. Letters received from his family while he was in service in Rhode Island as well as miscellaneous military records are in the John May papers, Western Reserve Historical Society. See also Edes, "Letters and Journal of Col. John May, of Boston," 15; May, Genealogy, lOn.; and Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society, 1st series, XIII, 185-186. Other details of his military career are in the Tuckerman papers in possession of Orton Loring Clark, Amherst, Massachusetts; Massachusetts, Secretary of the Common- wealth, Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War (17 vols., Boston, 1896-1908) , X, 378. INTRODUCTION / became actively engaged as a stockholder, agent, and landholder." To further his own as well as the Ohio Company's fortunes, he journeyed west in 1788 and again in 1789. Although he erected the first frame house in Marietta, cultivated a garden there, parti- cipated in the organization of the settlement, and carried on a con- siderable merchandising business, he never settled there. Opposition from his wife and family is given as the principal reason."' It Ls probable, though, after two attempts to establish a successful busi- ness in the West, he concluded that the advantages of the new country for a merchant did not outweigh those of Boston. At any rate, his interest in the Ohio venture continued for several years after this decision and he still owned land there at the time of his death in 1812.^' May kept meticulously detailed journals on both the 1788 and 1789 journeys from Boston to Marietta and return. Although they have appeared before, in neither case was the original manu- script itself the one published. Each journal was successively edited through version after version until the one finally printed was a garbled variation of the original. This was not because of any mali- cious intent of those involved; but it is understandable. Considering the purpose, the circumstances, the canons of nineteenth centur)' editing, and the limitations of the editors themselves, it is not at all surprising that scrutiny and close examination reveal discrepancies. Involved are not only minor changes of capitalization, spelling, and punctuation, but also serious variances such as omission, substitu- tion, and rearrangement of words and phrases and clauses, omis- sion and addition of sentences and even paragraphs, and errors in '^In addition to lots which he held in the immediate Marietta area, May was also the original proprietor of Sections 23 and 30, Township 2, Range 13, and Sections 2 and 3, Township 9, Range 16 in the Ohio Company purchase. Ohio Company Land Plats MS in the Campus Martius Museum, Marietta, Ohio. i«S. A. M. Edes, "Compiled," 9. ^^Manuscripts of one sort or another which pertain to May's continued interest and participation arc found, for example, in the Ohio Company records in the Marietta Cf)llege Manuscripts and in the John May papers in the Western Reserve Historical Society. 8 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY transcription. There is scarcely an entry that is not altered because of some or all of these factors. Perhaps of some merit as an exercise in historical method, it is neither profitable nor expedient nor within the scope of the present volume to trace the evolutionary changes, entry by entry, for these journals and to indicate the literally hundreds of discrepancies. Instead, examples are here cited to illustrate and to establish the evolvement of the successive texts. Other changes of consequence are noted as they occur in the edited journals. The entire journal for 1788 was published in book form in 1873 by the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio, as Rich- ard S. Edes, Journal and Letters of Col. John May, of Boston Rela- tive to Two Journeys to the Ohio Country in 1788 and '89 (here- after designated as "Edes HPSO 1 788" ) .^^ This book cannot be used as source material for modem historical research. A comparison of its text with the one here presented shows that much of the flavor of John May and the story he narrates suffered in conforming to the accepted practices of editing of the period when the book was published. Rev. Richard S. Edes, a grandson of John May, was inter- ested in the western ventures of his ancestor. He gave considerable time and energy publicizing all he could find about the two jour- neys; his account of the 1788 trip became a widely used source for historians and other writers and an oft-quoted mine of information concerning the country through which he traveled. May kept the account of his first journey in a 6" x 7/2'' blank book (hereafter designated as "Debt Book 1788").'' In 1870, Edes ^^To simplify citations to it and to avoid confusion with the several other 1788 texts involved. In his introduction, Edes admits of some of his editorial changes. "Where they appear to have been omitted," he supplied the words or sentences "neces- sary to fill out the sense, in all cases correcting the orthography of common words, wherever he has noticed misspellings." Edes HPSO 1788, 16. ^^This book contains, in addition, various other notations about business trans- actions of both 1788 and 1789. Inside the front cover is the title "DEBT BOOK." INTRODUCTION ^ gained access to this manuscript and transcribed (and edited) it into an 8" x 10" copybook to which he gave the title, "Colonel John May: Journal Kept by Him Durinsj a Tour to the Ohio Country in 1788. Also Extracts from His Letters, during a 2nd Tour in 1789" (hereafter designated as "Edes Marietta 1788").'° That Edes used Debt Book 1788 as the source of his copy is at- tested to by his own signed statement in that document and at least two additional references within the pages of his copybook.'^ In January 1873, in the New England Historical and Genea- logical Register and Antiquarian Journal, Edes published the "Let- ters and Journal of Col. John May, of Boston." This was a running commentary and paraphrasing with extracts of some May letters and of some portions of the journal itself. There is enough direct quotation contained in this article for purposes of textual compari- sons (hereafter designated as "Edes Article 1788") . Sufficient evidence has been discovered to determine that there was still another version of the journal prepared by Edes. From Edes Marietta 1788 he copied (and edited) the journal to submit it to the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio to be used as the basis for its publication. This he accomplished by dividing the journal into probably four sections (hereafter designated as "Edes Proof Sheets 1788").'" This fact is determined by marginalia in Edes Marietta 1788 and textual comparisons although only one of these sections has been found."^ To the Edes Proof Sheets 1788, incorporated into the text by the scissors and paste method or sim- ply added on extra sheets, Edes includes his edited copies of foot- notes to the journal.'* These were originally the work of a William ^°A few years ago this book found its way into the manuscript collections of the Campus Martius Museum, Marietta, Ohio. This also contains various other notations and miscellany. 2iDebt Book 1788; Edes Marietta 1788, 78 and 1 19. ^^Although confusing without sufTicient explanation the "2nd set of proof sheets" might also be used as a designation. A penciled opening bracket with a penciled superior "42" are written at precisely the same place as the opening word on page 42 of Edes HPSO 1788. Edes Proof Sheets 1788, 15. 2-^Edes Marietta 1788, 47, 63, and 77. ^•^Evidence of Edes editing the Darlington notes occurs, for example, in Edes Proof Sheets 1788, notes 30, 33, and 47, where deletions and order changes are made. These correspond to Edes HPSO 1788, notes pp. 46, 47, and 64. 10 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY M. Darlington of Pittsburgh. The Edes Proof Sheets 1788 and the edited Darlington notes were then used as the text for Edes HPSO 1788. Each of the successive versions for which Edes was responsible is further removed from the original itself. To brush aside the Edes texts and return to the original is impossible because Edes himself destroyed the original manuscript which May wrote in Debt Book 1788, He explained the circumstances in a signed statement in Debt Book 1788: "Bolton, Masstts February 9th, 1873— According to my word given to my Aunt Mary D. May, I this af- ternoon, cut out and bum up the MS of her father's Journal kept during his tour to the Ohio Country in 1788. Various matters were mixed in with it which, in her opinion, it would be better not to preserve. An Abstract of aforsaid Journal has been published in N. E. Hist and Gen. Register for Jan. 1873. (Vol. XXVH, No 1). See also my MS copy [Edes Marietta 1788]. Richard S. Edes—"'' May wrote vertically in the Debt Book 1788 as he made his day by day entries. In fulfilling the wishes of his aunt, Edes cut out the pages on which the journal was written. Since he was not con- cerned with the destruction of the book itself and its other con- tents, he did not cut out the pages as close to the binding as he might have. This leaves small bits of a few of the pages remaining with an occasional line of May's original entries. This gives a lim- ited but nevertheless valuable basis to establish that the copy de- ^^Edes refers to this in others of his writings. In addition to the 1788 journal, Edes HPSO 1788 contained a section on the 1789 journey. This was largely composed of letters written by May to his wife. Under similar circumstances Edes obtained the original letters, copied them, and then destroyed them. This is documented in Edes Marietta 1788, 86 and 118. INTRODUCTION 1 1 scribed below, as well as Edes Marietta 1788, was copied from the original itself. Although the original May manuscript no longer exists there is an alternative. Someone else took great pains to make a copy of the journal from the original. This was brought to light in recent years. This copy was made on folded sheets of paper into book form of ly^" X 9". It is a painstakingly neat copy, probably the work of one of his daughters (hereafter designated as "MS 1788")."*^ Just who the copyist was, however, can only be surmised and is imma- terial. More important, however, is that it is a more faithful copy of the original than is Edes Marietta 1788 and certainly Edes HPSO 1788. This is established by comparison with the fragmen- tary textual remains of the original, and the faithful retention of May's known lack of style, his irregular and unpredictable spelling, capitalization, and punctuation, and his common violation of the elementary rules of grammatical construction and composition. To be sure the copyist committed an occasional editorial discretion (or indiscretion) ; but it is of minor detraction. It is the product of a copyist rather than that of an editor. This is an important distinc- tion. The copyist did not complete the task and MS 1788 ends in the middle of the entry for Sunday, August 17, 1788. This is unfor- tunate but not critical. The half month of entries that remain are taken from Edes Marietta 1788, the next best possible source. And since they concern the last days of the trip, the matter is not of vital importance. Unfortunately, because of the fragmentary nature of some of these versions there is only one partial quotation that can be cited that exists in all of them (part of May's entry for Friday, May 9, 1788) ; but it is really not a very good illustration of the editorial discrepancies and changes mentioned above. What happened between the original manuscript (Debt Book 1788) and the printed page (Edes HPSO 1788) can be illustrated even without benefit of the original manuscript itself. In the follow- ing, note the similarity between MS 1788 and Edes Marietta 1788 and then the effect of editing in Edes Proof Sheets 1788 and Edes ^®It is given this designation because it is the basis for the present publication. 12 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY HPSO 1788. This is an excerpt from May's entry for Thursday, May 29, 1788: MS 1788: "This day the axe is laid to the root of the tree and every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire, in order to this my people armd with axe's went forth, to prostrate the ancient inhabitants of the forest." Edes Marietta 1788: "This day the axe is laid to the root of the trees, and every one that does not bear good fruit must be hewn down, and cast into the fire. In order to this my people were armed with the suitable tool, and went forth to prostrate the ancient tenants of the woods." In Edes Proof Sheets 1788, 25, and in Edes HPSO 1788, 60- 61, these changes are perpetuated; but the clause — "and every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire"— of MS 1788, is omitted. As a means of emphasis, when excerpts from the various Edes editions are cited to illustrate discrepancies with MS 1788, any departures from MS 1788 are noted in italics. Where words from MS 1788 are omitted, these are inserted in brackets and italicized. Minor changes in punctuation, rearrangement of words, and spell- ing are not thus indicated. These practices are used throughout this volume for both MS 1788 and MS 1789. Another editorial gimmick occurs at times. May was a devout Christian. Numerous references in his journals attest that he prac- ticed the precepts of his belief even under trying circumstances. But this was not enough for Edes who did not hesitate to change a pas- sage to put his grandfather in the best possible light. The entry for Sunday, May 18, 1788, contains this passage in MS 1788: "we kept Sunday at home — generally some of us reading — " Since May was notorious for his usage (or lack of usage) of punctuation, we can assume that he would not object to a comma placed after the word "generally." This is what happens in Edes Marietta 1788, 32. The editorial aid to May's keeping of Sunday occurs in Edes Proof Sheets 1788, 19: "We, generally, kept Sunday at home, some of us, myself for one, reading." The addition of "myself for one" INTRODUCTION 1 3 erases any doubt that May participated in this practice. Edes HPSO 1788, 51, keeps this interesting editorial addition. Violation of the original version is so considerable at times that the editor, in effect, assumes the role of author. This is seen, for instance, in May's entry for Monday, July 21, 1788. Note the similarity of the first two versions below and their striking contrast with the third. MS 1788: "I found him as wild as ever — a legitimate son of Don Quixote — he does not know what he wou'd be after, therefore he will flutter up and down the river a little while, and return home just as wise as he came — " Edes Marietta 1788, 59: "I found his as wild as ever, a legitimate son of Don Quixote. He does not know what he is after, or would be after. Therefore he will flutter about up and down the river a little while, and then return home — with as much knowledge as he came with." Edes HPSO 1788, 87-88: "As full of wild and romantic notions as ever, — a legitimate scion from the Don Quixote stock. Imagination rules supreme with him, and triumphs over reason. Led away by his hopes and his fancies, I am afraid he will be more apt to burn his fingers than to add to the stock of knowledge he came out with." It is not necessary to point out other instances. Discrepancies of consequence are noted in the complete text of the journal. Before discussing the 1789 journal in a similar fashion, it should be observed that its very existence was doubted. In Edes Article 1788, the first publication about the western ventures of May, it was flatly stated that he "kept no journal." Only "occa- sional memoranda" and "here and there a letter which has been preserved, remain.""' This assertion was repeated when the 1788 journal was published. Under the title of "Second Journey to the Ohio Country, in 1789," Edes says that May did not keep a jour- nal and, except for a "few letters and other papers," "all memory 2^Edes Article 1788, 24-25. 14 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY of it ... is lost."^^ This leads Edes into some erroneous conjectures concerning the 1789 journey."'' Despite the subsequent discovery of the journal and the publicity it was given, another member of the family continued to be unaware of its existence as late as 1899.^° After the publication of the 1788 journal, another May grand- son uncovered the 1789 manuscript journal in his library. Edes reported this discovery in an article in the January 1876, issue of the New England Historical and Genealogical Register and Anti- quarian Journal which he titled "A Few Words Additional Rela- tive to Col. John May, of Boston, and His Journeys to the Ohio Country in 1788 and 1789" (hereafter designated as "Edes Article 1789"). This contained paraphrasing and running commentary of some excerpts of the journal. Edes believed the entire document should be published; but because of other commitments he was giving up the idea.^^ Subsequent to this, however, Edes changed his mind and began to prepare a more extensive article based on the journal which he called "Sojourn of Col. John May, of Boston, in Penn- sylvania, Ohio and Virginia, A.D. 1789." This was not completed but stopped about half way through the entry for June 4, 1789 (hereafter designated as "Edes Transcript 1789").^^ Finally, in 1921, the entire 1789 journal was published as the "Journal of Col. John May, of Boston, Relative to a Journey to the Ohio Country, 1789," in the Pennsylvania Magazine of His- tory and Biography (hereafter designated as "Edes PMHB 1 789" ) .^^ Although no authorship to this publication is indicated, it was again the work of Edes. This fact is not altered by Edes's death more than forty years before the publication. No account of what happened to the Edes manuscript in this interim has been found. In 28EdesHPSO 1788, 117. 29Edes HPSO 1788, 117-119; misdated letter, May to Mrs. May, Baltimore, April 9, 1789 [May 9], in ibid., 119-121. Note also Edes's brackets in this letter. 30S. A. M. Edes, "Compiled," 9. 3iEdes Article 1789,43-44. ^^Edes's death, August 26, 1877, was the probable reason why the article was not completed. Obituary of Richard Sullivan Edes, New England Historical and Genealogical Register and Antiquarian Journal, XXXII (1878), 123-124. 33Volume XLV, pp. 101-179. INTRODUCTION 15 addition to evidence of Edes authorship from textual comparisons with Edes Article 1789, and Edes Transcript 1789, the introduction to Edes PMHB 1789 gives satisfactory proof. This is evident when compared with his introduction to Edes Article 1789. Fortunately Edes was apparently not bound by any commit- ment to destroy the original May manuscript journal for 1789 such as that which brought the destruction of the 1788 manuscript. It remained in the family until a few years ago, and then by a devious path its existence became known (hereafter designated as "MS 1789").^* Colonel May kept the account of his second journey in four small notebooks, each about 4'' x 6|^'' in size. The first is cov- ered with wallpaper and the other three are without covers. They are not signed by May. But, besides comparisons of handwriting, similarity of grammatical usage and spelling, and the absence of changes and polishing of an editor like Edes, there is further evi- dence to establish this as the original 1789 manuscript. The following details are the results of a man keeping an account of his journey through the 1789 western country: 1. "Volam I" of the manuscript is page numbered from 1 to 63; "Vollam 11" from A to Z; "Volum III" from 1 to 39; and "Volam IV" from 1 to 35. 2. The entry for April 28, 1789 (I, 3) mentions a dream. May put a description of it into code. Instead of including it with the entry, he recorded it on II, Y. 3. The entry for July 12, 1789, commenced on I, 62, could not be continued on I, 63, because that page was already in use as a record of his itinerary and mileage. Instead, he completed it on II, Y, beneath the coded passage mentioned above. The next entry is on II, A, and so on through II. 4. The last pages of II become a little confused. On II, Z, May kept miscellaneous memoranda including financial matters. The last line is : "carried to New Journall." Instead of "New Jour- nall" being III, it is II, U, where the top half of the page continues the expense account from II, Z. ^''It is given this designation because it is the basis for the present publication. 16 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY 5. II, X, contains a memorandum of Ohio Company matters. An unnumbered page beyond II, Z, contains other miscellany. 6. Inside the front cover of IV, on what amounts to an un- numbered page before IV, 1, is a reminder to write a letter and recipes to cure the itch and "a mortification." A copyist editor such as Edes would try to avoid such irregu- larities by correcting them. No hint or indication of their presence in MS 1789 is made in Edes PMHB 1789, and a careful check reveals that Edes failed to recognize all of them.^^ That MS 1789 is the manuscript which Edes used as the basis for his publications is established by citations and quotations from it made in a genea- logical manuscript which he prepared.^*' As in the case of the 1788 journal it is instructive and apropos to make textual comparisons with the versions of the 1789 journal. From this, textual evolution and editorial vagaries are noted. Although only four versions were indicated above, it is possible in one instance to compare five. This is because of an unexplained circumstance which occurs in Edes Transcript 1789. There are two pages numbered eighteen. Both record precisely the same amount of the journal. The first, a regular page, is similar to the rest of the manuscript in that it is a running paraphrasing sprinkled with quo- tations; it is not always easy to determine where paraphrasing leaves off and quotation begins. The second is a loose leaf and is an approximate transcription that is devoid of the liberal paraphrasing that characterizes the first one. They are here referred to as "18" and "extra 18", respectively, to distinguish between them. The fol- lowing is an excerpt from the five versions of May's entry for June 4, 1789: MS 1789: "I stood and Look'd then turned and Wept, for I had bin Fatigueing Violently for 43 days and Just at the Last shott out. I went back and informed the Waggonners that it was impossable." ^^Edes is in error, for example, because he failed to recognize vagaries in points 2 and 4. See Edes PMHB 1789, 147, 148. 36Record of May Family, 285. MS owned by Edward L. Edes. This observation is based upon citations and quotations made of entries for December 11 and 14, 1789. INTRODUCTION 17 Edes Article 1789, 48: "He 'stood, looked, then turned,' lifted up his voice and wept, 'O God, how infinite art thou, how frail and weak are we!' 'Forty-three days of wearing anxiety, of almost incessant fatigue, and here at last shut out.' " (This is the extent of the quotation that Edes makes at this place. The double quotation marks include the Edes text. Within this, the single quotation marks supposedly contain May's words. A comparison with the MS 1789 text above, however, shows that this also is editorial paraphrasing. This is a frequent practice of Edes. ) Edes Transcript 1789, 18: "I stood, looked, then turned 'lifted up my voice and wept.' 'O God, how infinite are thou! how frail and weak are we!^'' Forty three days of wearing anxiety, of almost incessant fatigue — and here at last shut out! However, to submit to the inevitable is a good ride of philoso- phy, as well as of religion. I turned immediately back, in- formed the wagoners it was impossible." Edes Transcript 1789, extra 18: "I stood, looked, then turned 'lifted up my voice and wept.' 'O God, how infinite are thou, how frail and weak are we!' Forty-three days of wear- ing anxiety, of almost incessant fatigue, — and here at last shut out! However, to submit to the inevitable is the part of phi- losophy as well as of piety. I turned immediately back, in- formed the wagoners it was impossible." (This is the extent of the transcript on "extra 18.") Edes PMHB 1789, 121: "I stood, looked, then turned, 'lifted up my voice and wept.' 'O God, how infinite art thou, how frail and weak are we!' Forty three days of wearing anxiety, of almost incessant fatigue, — and here at last shut out! However to submit to the inevitable is the part of philoso- phy, as well as of piety. I turned immediately back, informed the wagoners that it was impossible." In addition to changes which Edes made in the original text, the above excerpt from the various texts illustrates changes he in- ^^Edes probably inadvertently omitted closing the quotation at this point. Compare it with the other three Edes texts given here, 18 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY troduced in his own subsequent versions. Even with some missing Unks, the ancestry of Edes PMHB 1789 can be traced from MS 1789. This comparison of the two demonstrates the results of edi- torial evolution in this instance and explains the discrepancies be- tween MS 1789 and Edes PMHB 1789 in other places where inter- vening versions are not always available for textual comparisons. For example, the first Edes Transcript 1789 quotation adds the sen- tence: "However, to submit to the inevitable is a good rule of phi- losophy, as well as of religion." Note the changes this additional sentence goes through in the second Edes Transcript 1789 quota- tion and in Edes PMHB 1789. A good illustration of another practice is furnished by a part of the entry for May 24, 1789: MS 1789: "out houses but the house he Lives in is no better than a hog stye, he may be Call'd a Rich man/" Edes Transcript 1789, 13: "out houses. 'He may be called a rich man. Nevertheless, he treats himself the worst of all, for he lives in a house not much better than a [hog] stye. Question, how much better is a man than a — / don't say a sheep — but than another animal, less savory surely when he is alive?' " The passage in Edes PMHB 1789, 115, is rendered the same as in Edes Transcript 1789. The interesting editorial gimmick here is the introduction of a question into the text. Edes probably put it in his initial transcription of the manuscript journal and forgot that it was his rather than May's. Consequently it was retained in the printed version. One of the pitfalls of an editorial practice of Edes that leads to discrepancy between the original manuscript and the printed page is paraphrasing. Understandably he tried to render passages into clearer English; but he was not always careful to indicate which were his own modifications at the time, and hence they are incorporated into subsequent renderings as May's rather than Edes's. The entry for May 26, 1789, is an example. Note how Edes Transcript 1789 paraphrases the original and how this has been car- ried over into Edes PMHB 1789 as if to unparaphrase it back to INTRODUCTION 19 what he imagined the original form was. MS 1789: "Spent this day at Pittsburge/ found the place Intirely destitute of evernly thing butt pride/ they all alow there is no money in the place and I fully belive it for I never saw people so anxious to gitt a Little, and so Loth to part with it/ they will not pay money for any thing nor sell any thing without money/ in fact I never liked this place but I Like it worse this year than Ever — " Edes Transcript 1789, 14: "Tuesday, the 26th, is spent at Pittsburg, where he finds money affairs at a very low ebb. Everybody unwilling to part with money, but very anxious to get it. Nothitig can be bought without putting money in hand, nor sold to receive the pay back." Edes PMHB 1789, 116: "Spent the day at Pittsburg. Found money affairs here at a low ebb. Everybody unwilling to part with money but very anxious to get it. You cannot buy anything without putting money in hand, nor sell it and re- ceive your pay back." Instances where more than two texts can be compared con- cern only a small fraction of the text; but a textual comparison can be made for the entire journal between MS 1789 and the Edes PMHB 1789 version. Hardly an entry is devoid of discrepancies and changes. To indicate all of the literally hundreds of these is pointless. Instead, in the complete text of the journal only discrep- ancies of consequence and those which demonstrate the unreliabil- ity of the other versions are noted. MS 1788 and MS 1789 are then the bases for this volume. The first is used because, even though the original was destroyed, it is a more accurate copy of the original than any other. The editor is obligated to make as faithful a transcription as possible. MS 1788 and MS 1789 abound in irregularities, incon- sistencies, tricky abbreviations, transpositions of letters, and vagaries of all sorts. If present standards of grammar, spelling, and compo- sition are used, these manuscripts violate about all of them. Further difficulty is added by the not-too-clear characters which often make 20 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY up some of the words. Thus a stroke can be an / or an uncrossed / or even an e or an undotted i. With the raw transcriptions certain devices are employed. In no way do they alter what May said or intended to say. They do no violence to the original manuscripts and are in keeping with present editorial practices. These devices and other editoral apparatus include: 1. The form of the date for each entry is regularized. 2. Monetary abbreviations are standardized to $, ^, f, 5., and d., to avoid confusion. 3. Frequent use of "of" for "off" in the text is corrected with- out notice for the sake of readability. 4. "&" and "&c" are standardized to "and" and "etc." 5. Obvious slips of the pen such as "a white a white man" and "tow" are corrected to "a white man" and "two" without notice. 6. Where several letters in a word are missing, they are in- serted in brackets. If a few are missing and the word is not other- wise clear, they are inserted without notice. 7. Conjecture as to an intended word or of one that is diffi- cult to transcribe is noted, for example, as "[boy?]". 8. If there is a serious omission of words that can be inferred from the context, they are introduced into the text in brackets. 9. In cases where blanks in the manuscript occur and where words or figures were intended, perhaps to be inserted later, they are noted as "[blank]". 10. Even though they are sometimes superfluous or erroneous or misleading, all punctuation marks are retained. To bring clarity and readability in the frequent absence of necessary punctuation between sentences, the virgule or slanting line is introduced. 11 . If places names or other words are misspelled beyond rec- cognition, they are followed by corrections in brackets. Otherwise no note is made of spelling errors. When parentheses appear in the text they belong to May himself. 12. Bracketed state names are introduced to indicate the first mention or stop of May in a new state as signposts of his travels. INTRODUCTION 21 13. Many of the place names, references to persons, descrip- tions of events, and other details referred to by May are not famil- iar to the general reader of today. Some are of no consequence and need no further notice. Wherein possible, as they had bearing on May and his travels as a business man and as an agent of the Ohio Company, they are identified or explained in footnotes in detail necessary only to make the account more valuable and complete to the reader. 14. To avoid the unwieldly and lengthy texts of MS 1788 and MS 1789 and to make them more readable, they are arbitrarily divided into titled chapters. PART ONE THE JOURNAL OF 1788 CHAPTER 1 THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 Monday, April 14, 1788: having arrang'd my matters at home in the best manner I was able; and left them under the im- mediate care of my brother Jos' May.^ at 6 o clock in the morning, I set out from home, in company with Liet. Oliver Rice, and Wal- ter Tufts^ as waiter — ^ on a tour to the Ohio country. — ^ about sun- set arriv'd safe at Providence [Rhode Island] and lodg'd at Daggets tavern. — Tuesday, April 15 : mounted our horses at six in the morning; and by great industry reachd Windham [Connecticut] at eight in the evening, were obliged to cross the Quinnebogue^ in a scow, the bridge having been swept away. — Wednesday, April 16: left Windham at half past 5. and after travelling through a tremendous hilly country; viz. Lebanon, Boul- ton Etc. — at 3 o clock AM arrived at Hartford — found the Con- necticut River very high; which hinder'd us an hour — we dined at Bull's tavern — then went on to Burlin; and slept at Fullers, a very good house — but the landlord had more tongue, than brains, after I got into bed; he stood over me with 3 lighted candles in his right hand near 20 minutes — telling a story of no consequence. ^A brother of May's wife whose maiden name was also May. May, Genealogy, 8-9; S. A. M. Edes, "Compiled," 6n. 'Walter Tufts, Joseph Ransford, and Joseph Williams contracted to work for May in Marietta for six months at $4.00 per month. May was to furnish pro- visions and transportation to Ohio. The contract, Boston, March 28, 1788, in Elbert J. Benton (ed.), "Side Lights on the Ohio Company of Associates from the John May Papers," Western Reserve Historical Society, Tract No. 97 (Cleveland, 1917), 103. Receipts for wages received, Boston, various dates, May papers. Western Reserve Historical Society. 2"as waiter" becomes "who is my orderly" in Edes article 1788, 17, and in Edes HPSO 1788,17. *Mrs. May matter-of-factly wrote: "Monday morning precisely at six o'clock Mr. May set out on his grand tour in tolerable health and spirits. I breakfasted and then went hackling flax." Excerpts from journals of Abigail May kept during the 1788 and 1789 journey of May, copied by and in Richard S. Edes manuscripts. North Amherst, Massachusetts, page 1; Edes, Hh Excerpts, 3; and S. A. M. Edes, "Compiled," 12. 'Quinebaug River, a tributary of the Thames River, in eastern Connecticut. 25 26 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Thursday, April 17 : mounted our horses at 6 and rode 12 miles to breakfast ; through a very pleasant country, after breakfast we met numbers of people going to meeting in their old cloaths; it being fast day. we were acosted by some sort of a Sunday officer; with "what mak's you ride fast day." which I retumd with a look which told him it was none of his business — but kept my horse under way — dined at New Haven, in the afternoon cross'd an arm of the sea on a bridge nearly as long as Charlestown® and within two miles crossd another the same length — we were obliged to ride in the evening, and met with many difficulties from cross roads, and the ignorance of the people — we at last arrived at Fairfield where we spent the night. Friday, April 18: it began to rain about one o clock this morning, and continued to till 9, when it abated, and we set off, but it prov'd a rainy forenoon. I observd my horse went lame a little when I first mounted him which increas'd; and it was with difficulty that I reach' d horse neck — ^ the lameness was evidently in off his hind foot, but what was the occasion none could divine; some said he was hip'd, others spaven'd; but, most agreed he was possitively stifled — Fairfield is a pretty village on the sound ;^ 80 houses, and the meeting House, was burnt by the British but the meeting house, and many of the private houses, are rebuilt in an elegant manner, we slept at Knap's — ® but I had a poor night; partly owing to my drinking tea for supper and partly to the intol- erable noise of the family till 12 o clock — when the noise of the house ceased; and began in the elements, first small flashes of light- ning, but soon became a formidable thunder gust which kept me awake near all night. — ® The "Charles river bridge, connecting Boston with Charlestown .... is 1503 feet long." Mathew Carey, Carey's American Pocket Atlas . . . with a Brief Description of Each State and Territory. (Philadelphia, 1814), 44-45. "A high peninsula on the west side of the harbor at Greenwich was used as a pasture for horses. The early settlement vs'as called Horseneck. Stephen Jenkins, The Old Boston Post Road (New York, 1913), 162-163; John C. Fitzpatrick (ed.). The Diaries of George Washington, 1748-1799 (4 vols., Boston and New York, 1925), IV, 22. ^Long Island Sound. ^At Horseneck. See entry for August 25, 1788, below. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 27 Saturday, April 19: set out from Knaps at 6 o clock; and breakfasted at Mr. Hunts in Rey [Rye, New York] . dined at Kings- bridge — ^° here my horse was so lame I was obliged to take a stage — and Tufts led my horse into the City — where I arriv'd about sunset, took quarters at Captn Hardings, where I was so happy as to find to meet Brother Davenport — ^^ Sunday, April 20: Brother Davenport set sail for Newport at six in the morn, a number of passengers aboard — among others a daughter of Captn Gustavus Fellows, they had an excellent wind down the sound/ no doubt they arrivd at the desir'd haven that night, my business crowded me so hard, that altho it was Sunday, I thought it my duty to write all day, and arrange my papers. I also felt myself necessitated to swap away my lame horse, for one that was sound, however my conscience upbraided me, to appease which I went to church in the evening, at the new Brick Church. I found an amasing concourse of People assembled, and every one Man Woman, and Child, put a copper in the box (according to custom) as reward for the preacher — said, for the Poor — Monday, April 21 : early this morning I waited on Colonl. Richard Piatt — treasurer of the Ohio Company. I found him very agreeable — and attentive — by close application all day compleated my business much to my satisfaction.^^ I have been so rapt up in business since my arrival, that I have made few observations on the city and its inhabitants, except that the men mind their own busi- ness and the boys are excessively noisy — Tuesday, April 22 : this day having a little leisure I took a ramble round the City, went to the congress chamber Etc. the greatest curi- osity I saw was the Pictures of their Majesties the King and Queen ^°Connecting the northern tip of Manhattan Island with the mainland. ^^Probably Isaac Davenport, a Boston merchant who married a sister of Mrs. May. May, Genealogy, 9, 14, and 14n. ^-This business involved over $34,000 which May as agent had deposited with Piatt for shares in the Ohio Company. Receipt, New York, April 21, 1788, MS in Winthrop Sargent papers, Massachusetts Historical Society. Another copy of this receipt is in May papers. Western Reserve Historical Society. General statement of all agencies, undated, in Benton, "Side Lights," 114-115. See also statement of agency payment, April 21, 1788, MS in May papers, Western Reserve Historical Society. 28 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY of France — they are truly elegant and noble, no painting can excel them — and the frames which contain them are magnificant beyond compare — they are about 12 feet high and about 6 wide but the Hall which contains them is not high enough to receive their crown's perhaps a presage of their losing them/ from thence I went to St Pauls Church and viewd the monument erected to the mem- ory of that gallant officer Richard Montgomery/" this is a mas- terly piece of work in red white and black marble in a pyramidical form about 15 feet high, from thence to see a pile of new buildings nearly compleated belonging to Mr McComb/ they are by far the grandest buildings I ever saw and are said to excel any on the con- tinent, in one of the entry's I travelld up 5 flights of stairs the rail of which was entire was top to bottom. I still left one flight unex- plor'd— then visited Miss St John Mr Temple,^* General Knox^^ and home to my quarters Wednesday, April 23 : at nine o clock this mom mounted my horse and set off for Philedelphia. had a rough time in crossing the River at Powels hook^'' [New Jersey]/ we got saftly across, but were obliged to dismount often. I crossed Piscat;^^ and Hackensack river, in travelling about 5 miles, we made a tollerable day's work, nothing extraordinary occur'd; we lodg'd 10 miles from Prince town at a small village — Thursday, April 24: rose early, and rode 15 miles to break- fast at Madenhead.^* this is a small, but pretty village, the land ex- i^An American officer in the Revolution who lost his life at Quebec in 1775. i*See entry for August 24, 1788, below. ^^Henry Knox, American officer in the Revolution, whom May admired so much that one of his sons was named after him. May, Genealogy, 10-11. i^Paulus Hook was an early and important part of what became Jersey City. Francis B. Lee, New Jersey as a Colony and as a State: One of the Original Thirteen (5 vols.. New York, 1902), III, 134; IV, 233-242. i^May probably meant the Passaic River which, with the Hackensack River, empties into the head of Newark Bay. i*In central Mercer County between Princeton and Trenton. Changed to Law- renceville in 1816. Francis B. Lee, Genealogical and Personal Memorial of Mercer County, New Jersey (2 vols.. New York and Chicago, 1907), I, 75; John Adlum and John Wallis, Map Exhibiting a General View of the Roads and Inland Navigation of Pennsylvania, and Part of the Adjacent States (Phil- adelphia, [1792?]). The latter is hereafter referred to as Adlum and Wallis, Map of Pennsylvania. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 29 cellent, the inhabitants industrious, it appear's to be one of the most fertile spots in the Jersy's. we cross' d the Delaware a little above Trenton, dined in Bristol [Pennsylvania], and lodg'd in Phil- edelphia, at the sign of the Connastago Waggon, this city has many new buildings; but the trade is much diminished/ the people are proud, and extravagent, but grumble about the times/ some of the ladies appear sensible; and dress neat, and some appear by their garb to be fools. I have seen a head dress in this city at least 3 feet across. — I staid here only one night Friday, April 25: left Philedelphia at 9 in the morning and arrived at Christina [Delaware] (where we slept) without any mis- fortune but one occasion' d by the extreme politeness of my horse, on entering this place, a little before I came to the tavern, there set a Gentleman and Lady in a stoup. they were as good looking people as any I had seen all day;^^ I began to put myself in a pos- ture to salute them, when my horse took the hint, and began to bow, and stumble, for some rod's, till at length we both came down together by which means I was lamed in my right knee. — Saturday, April 26: I feel the effects of complimenting; shall avoid it in future as much as possible, but after riding a while feel better, rode to Hellersworth,-° at the head of Elk"^ [Maryland], to breakfast, from thence crossd the Susquehannah, and dined at Havre de Grace, just as we got on the west side; the people came on shore with the seine and as many as a 100,000 alewife's. we slept at Bushtown."^ Sunday, April 27 : about the middle of the night it began to rain very hard, we rose at 4 o clock/ the rain continued but we ordered our horses; and at 5 set off for Baltimore, made a stage of 10 miles to where old Chimes used to live; but, he, and his wife, are both gone to rest, at this place we had a good breakfast, mean i^This sentence appears in Edes Marietta 1788, 16, but not in Edes HPSO 1788,22. 20Hollingsworth Tavern. Maryland Writer's Project, Maryland: A Guide to the Old Line State (New York, 1946) , 320. 2iHead of Elk is now Elkton in eastern Cecil County, Maryland. Ibid., 319; Adlum and Wallis, Map of Pennsylvania. 22This probably is the present village of Bush River on Bush River in southern Harford County. 30 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY time the clouds scatterd and the sun shone, but it was of short dura- tion/ it soon thickend and raind again, we however continued our course, and arriv'd at Bahimore about one o clock, put up at Staruks the sign of the Indian Queen. "^ this is a good tavern and most superb house, there are bells of 27 difTerent rooms all of dif- ferent sound hanging in the bar room, this Mr Starucks keeps tav- ern in high stile — Baltimore has become a large, handsome place, and appears to do a great deal of business however the people com- plain of the bad times want of business and scarcity of money/ I am apt to think they live up to their income at least Monday, April 28 : early this morning I was out inquiring for one Ambrose Trott associate to Farrington — "^ on my arrival here yesterday I was inform' d he was here in a Brig, some part of her supposed to be ownd by F-n ; but no doubt he heard of my arrival, and made his escape; for he saild early this morning. I attended to some particular business which I settled to my mind; and went to rest — Tuesday, April 29 : I tarried in town till half past eleven AM, and then stood for the wilderness, in the western world. I was much urg'd to tarry till Thursday to celebrate the adoption of the new Federal Constitution, for the state of Maryland, this was agreed to by the Delegates at Annapolis; on Saturday last. I miss'd my road soon after I left Baltimore, which put me in a frett. however in about 1/2 [hours] I got right again. I lodgd this night 30 miles from Baltimore, the accomidations poor, provisions worse. Wednesday, April 30 : left this Hotel at 5, without regret, and rode ten miles to breakfast, made out pretty well, then 25 miles to dinner, through a beautiful country and well settled, the farms good, and pleasant, the houses chiefly made of log's; now and then interspers'd with a handsome brick house and mills, after dinner we ^^One of Baltimore's fashionable and popular taverns or hotels. J. Thomas Scharf, History of Baltimore City and County, from the Earliest Period to the Present Day (Philadelphia, 1881), 513-514. 2*May shipped his goods from Boston to Baltimore in the "Betsey" owned by Joshua Farrington. Invoice, April 3, 1788, MS in May papers, Western Reserve Historical Society. Some Farrington shipping records are in the Caleb Davis papers, Massachusetts Historical Society. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 31 began to ascend the south; or blue mountain'^ which at a distance has a terrible appearance to strangers tired, and worn down with constant fatigue, but the nearer you approach it the less formid- able it appear's ; instead of climbing this son of Alleghana we imper- ceptibly steal in between two monstrous hills,^^ for a number of miles; but, finally have to climb stoutly as we reach the top — while between those hills; we advance by the side of a swift running rivu- let"^ a considerable way, and cross the same stream twelve times in the distance of two miles, this mountain is 13 miles from one side to the other, but upon the whole is not worse to cross than some in the county of Berkshire Massa. we got over before sunset; and put up at a miserable place.^^ the Landlord wanted money, but had nothing to purchase it with, and did not seem glad to see us; tho we were to see them, bad as they were, we drank some whisky grog; for the first time, eat some egg's and bacon and went to bed in a chamber, which had no light but what came through the roof .^^ Thursday, May 1 : these miserable accomadations did not tempt me long, at half past 3, I rose — and with difficulty found the way down, into the lower region — I had previously calld Tufts ; but where to find Mr Rice, and a Mr Bently (who was going our way; but a stranger) was difficult — I thump'd; and calld, to no purpose, for deep sleep had fallen upon them, at length I rous'd the host: who in a coarse dutch accent, told me they were lock'd 25The South Mountain of Pennsylvania and Maryland is virtually an extension of the Blue Ridge of Virginia with the Potomac River as the approximate divid- ing line between the two names. May equates and uses "South" and "Blue" interchangeably. This should not be confused with the Blue Mountain of Penn- sylvania. 26May traveled through Nichol's Gap in South Mountain a short distance from the Pennsylvania-Maryland boundary along the Franklin-Adams county (Pennsylvania) line and near the town of Blue Ridge Summit in Franklin County. Reading Howell, A Map of the State of Pennsylvania (n. p., 1792). ^■'A branch of Toms Creek, a tributary of the Potomac River system. Ibid. 28In Franklin County, the first stop in Pennsylvania. 29The latter part of this sentence is transcribed almost the same in Edes Mari- etta 1788, 19. It is edited from this in Edes HPSO 1788, 26, to read: "went to bed in a dog-hole in the garret, where the air was insufferable, and that had no light except what came through the cracks in the roof." This is a clear example of the use of liberal editorial license on the part of Edes. 32 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY up in the bar. however I procur'd their release;^" paid the reckon- ing, and we mounted our steeds — at the distance of two miles we met a gentleman who had rode yesterday afternoon in company with us. he brought a case bottle in his hand, fill'd with Holland Gin, of which each of us took a slugg to carry away the fumes of the whiskey, this gave our horses more life,^^ and we rode on mer- rily through a delightful country calld Conegogigg.^^ we break- fasted at Green Castle 12 miles from where we lodg'd. had good entertainment for ourselves and horses — from thence to Mercers- burg, where we oated. this is a clever village at the foot of the North Mountain, the house's made of hewn logg's, filled in with stone, and lime mortar — having taken suitable refreshment, we mounted our horses in order to climb the mountain; when we had ascended about 4 miles the village did not appear at more than a mile's distance — I believe on a strait line it was not more than two. this mountain is 1 miles over, it took us 3 hours and an half to cross it. I can truly say this is the worst mountain to climb I have yet at- tempted, and is one of the four capital ranges of mountains which be- long to the Alleghana family, and strike such a terror on travellers, this with his Father, and Brother, separate ye eastern and western world, the name's of this ancient family are Alleghana, North Mountain, South Mountain, Sideling Ridge, Laurel Mountains, Chesnut Ridge ;^^ besides a number of large hills, which some of them serve for supporters; other's mounted on their backs in a sportive manner, when we were on the blue mountain^* it was delightful ; to see moun- ^°"I procur'd their release" is edited to "I quickly procured a jail delivery for them" in Edes HPSO 1788, 26. 3iln Edes HPSO 1788, 26, the passage starting with "he brought a case bottle" is considerably edited to read: "He brought a case-bottle in his hand filled with Hollands, of which each of us took a sling, to carry away the fumes of the abominable whisky we drank over night. Such is the sympathy between man and beast, this seemed to give our horses more life . . . ." 32Franklin County, Pennsylvania, was originally known as "The Conococheague Settlement" after Conococheague Creek which flows through the area. J. F. Richard, History of Franklin County, Pennsylvania (Chicago, 1887), 145. ^^From east to west the proper sequence of this group is: South Mountain, North Mountain, Sideling Hill, Allegheny Front, Laurel Hill, and Chestnut Ridge. 3*South Mountain. See entry for April 30, 1 788, above. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 33 tain, beyond mountain Hills, riding on Hills, till their tops were lost in the clouds — this day being extremely hot; occasiond multitudes of Cloud's; charg'd with electrical fluid, and rain, to rise as it were spontaneous, and near at hand, but we were fortunate enough to avoid the chief of them; sometimes we got a sprinkling, and thun- der broke all around.^^ in the course of this days travel we crossd many creeks, and rivulets; some of which emty into the Potowmac and others into the Susquehannah. all of them we were obliged to ford; Bridges not being in fashion, after a tedious march from 4 in the morning; to eight in the evening, we arriv'd at the foot of side- ling hilP*^ in the midst of a Thunder gust, having fasted from seven in the morning, till eight at night. — Friday, May 2: our keeping and lodging poor, I rose at 4, had the horses up and mounted a little before 5. pursued our south western course up a disagreeable rocky hill; in the road for a con- siderable distance is a cataract of water, there is no way but to pass but through it. this little rivulet is dry only in wet season's, the sideling Hill is nearly as bad to cross as the blue, or north moun- tain; but not reckon' d in the four range's, after attaining the top of this mountain, we ride in a considerable level country for a num- ber of miles, something rising, and now and then climb a sharp hill; for 30 miles — when we come to the foot of the Father of them all,^'' where we shall rest this night — 3^The heavy editorial influence of Edes is demonstrated in this and the pre- vious sentence. In Edes Marietta 1788, 20, some changes occur; but Edes HPSO 1788, 28, shows the real contrast: "The day being extremely hot, multitudes of clouds gathered, all heavily charged with electric fluid and rain [to rise as it were spontaneous]. The spectacle was a grand one. Being close at hand, we could plainly see the origin of many of them. We were fortunate enough to escape most of the showers. The lightning struck all around us, and the thunder rolled over our heads; and once in awhile we got a little sprinkling— hardly enough to drown a flea, however." ^^May was now traveling on the old military road known as Forbes Road (and soon to be known as the Pennsylvania Road) which went from Carlisle to Pitts- burgh. Howell, Map of Pennsylvania; Adlum and Wallis, Map of Pennsylvania. While no one reference clearly defines this and other early western Penn- sylvania roads, Guidebook to Historic Places in Western Pennsylvania (Pitts- burgh, 1938), and Archer B. Hulbert, The Old Glade (Forbes's) Road (Penn- sylvania State Road) (Cleveland, 1903) are helpful. 2^May left Forbes Road during the day and was now traveling on the Glade Road. This branched off west of Bedford, in central Bedford County, and fol- 34 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Saturday, May 3: we rose early and began to ascened the Allegahana. but we had such an idea from what we had heard; it did not appear as bad as we expected. I am convinced 'tis best to begin a tedious job in the morning, when man, and beast, are fresh, at 10 o clock to day we were on the ridge pole, and could Noah like, view the old world, and the new/ I consider this moun- tain as the back bone of this tremendous range; reaching from Cape Horn, to the North Pole, and is itself fix'd on the top of the everlasting Hills, in rising to this height I cross' d several river's, which I did not put down in order, among which are Antaheta; rising in the Allegahana, and where I crossd it in a ferry boat; not 10 miles from the mountain, it is navigable for sloops, this empties into the Susqueh another calld Juniatta about the same bigness, empties into the Potowmac — ^^ near the top of the Allegahana is a beautiful spring on the east side, and within half a mile on the west side, is another equally good, one the head of Juniatta, the other Yohogany . we slept this night at a farm house ; and had good enter- tainment, rested well — Sunday, May 4: rainy bad weather, and worse road's; it be- ing a day of rest, we were in no hurry, but staid breakfast, as there is no house of worship in this quarter — we thought it best to jog on. both men and horses much worn with constant fatigue, we found the roads extremely bad, occasion' d by the constant rains. I cannot help mentioning I was extremely fortunate in falling in with a Mr Bently — a worthy clever man, and thoroughly acquanted with the roads having travell'd them a number of times, this Gen- tleman lives on the Monongahala, 15 miles from Pittsburg, he was servisable to me in answering my enquiries in the country through which we pass'd; and an agreeable companion, he said he never crossd the mountain's when the roads were so bad. this day we lowed an old military trace west to the Youghiogheny River, a principal trib- utary of the Monongahela. The Marietta pioneers had moved over this same route weeks earlier. Howell, Map of Pennsylvania. ^^May's geography is confused here. He crossed Antietam Creek, a tributary of the Potomac, a couple days before this. The Juniata River empties into the Susquehanna River. What May called Juniata is the Raystown Branch of the Juniata. Ibid. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 35 crossd the Laurel mountain, and chesnut Ridge, and at night fell in with Colol Battelle— '" H.H. Williams,^" and my hir'd men," found them in good health, and spirits, slept in the same house with them but a miserable place it was. Monday, May 5 : I rose early, left the people, and waggon,*^ behind, and push'd on as fast as possible to finish my land tacks. dined at Simmerells on the Yohogany.'*^ slept at Clark's on the Monogahala. while I was at Simeralls, they used every strategem to detain us all night, and perhaps as long as General Putnam,** who tarried at this place two months, they said it was better boating from this river than the Monongahala — but they are Irish Pala- verers, and not true. Clarke keeps a tolerable house, this is calld Elisabeths town — *^ 14 miles from Pittsburg by land; but 22 by water — this town is laid out in house lots, and now selling, he intends to make a City of it, but I think he will have his match — this day was raisd a large shed for building boats, almost all the Kentucky boats**^ from the eastern states, pass by this place/ near two hundred have passed this spring. ^^Ebenezer Battelle was one of the agents of the Ohio Company. He later set- tled in Belpre and Newport, Ohio. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 54 and 54n. ^°Henry Howell Williams. See rosters in Benton, "Side Lights," 104-112; in- voice, Boston, April 3, 1788, MS in May papers, Western Reserve Historical Society. *^See entry for April 14, 1788, above. •^^This is the first mention of freight May has made. He wrote to his wife from Pittsburgh, May 12, 1788, (Edes HPSO 1788, 40), that it weighed 2,500 pounds. An invoice, April 3, 1788, (MS in May papers. Western Reserve His- torical Society), catalogs the items he was taking west, including several chests and trunks— from gunpowder to cloverseed, from glue to hoes, from fishlines to needles, from silverware to a prayer book, from clothes to spices, and from tools to ink. ^^Simmerell's Ferry on the Youghiogheny River (present day West Newton in western Westmoreland County) was the rendezvous of the two parties of the Ohio Company from Massachusetts and Connecticut in early 1788. Here they built boats and embarked for the Ohio country. Howell, Map of Pennsylvania; Rowena Buell (comp. and ed.), The Memoirs of Rufus Putnam and Certain Official Papers and Correspondence (Boston and New York, 1903), 104. **Rufus Putnam was responsible, more than any other single individual, for the Ohio Company venture and its success. Besides holding most of the major offices he was elected superintendent. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 28, et passim; H, passim. •*^On the Monongahela River. Present Elizabeth in southeastern Allegheny County. Howell, Map of Pennsylvania. *®Medium-sized fiatboats, so called from their destination. 36 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Tuesday, May 6 : I am now waiting for the waggon which no doubt will arive to night — went gunning this aft[emoon]/ killd some black and grey squrrils. got my linnen and stockings washd — at 10 o clock this evening the waggon and people came, this river abounds with good fish such as Cat, perch, Pike, Buffalow, Stur- geon, etc. I crossd the Monongahala at 10 o clock to day and went on foot 2^ miles to Kerkindolls; Mills, where I bought 4 barrels of best fine flour at 11^. 8d. pr barrel, and one barrel whisky, 30 gall, at 2s. 6d. pr gall, all to be landed, free of charge, at the river, this evening, the Landlord tried his skill at fishing but caught noth- ing except a terrible fish, if such he may be call'd. this creature they namd alligator; it was about 18 inches long, as large as a mans wriste, a large flat head; something like a bull frogs — four legg's the bigness of a grey sqirrel, and a tail 5 inches long and near 2 inches wide — he was of a sickly ash colour, and as spiteful as the devil. Wednesday, May 7 : this morning I stopd a boat bound to new Orleans, which appear* d to be light, and agreed with the prin- cipal to carry me, my people, and effects, to Pittsburg, for 5 dol- lar's — I agreed to detain him but 3 hours, and every hour after that, to pay him a dollar, the river runs very strong at this place, so that the boat stopd a quarter of a mile below the landing — for which reason I was obliged to put my stores and baggage on board a small ferry boat, in order to get them on board the Kentucky- man, in the course of one hour I had got nearly at [all] my things in the ferry boat, when the people in the Kentucky man grew so uneasy they would not wait, the gentleman appear'd sorry but the men were not under command, and he was obliged to go on board, my thing's left on the ferry boat ; the banks of the river so hight it was morally impossible to relan'd them. I therefore bargain' d with the ferry man to proceed to Pittsburg for which I paid him 5 dol- lars, when all my things were on board and the flour, whisky, and People, there was not more than 2 inches of the scow above water, I felt concernd for them as I travel'd by land. I arriv'd at hulen's opposite Pittsburg this evening and made a supper of fish, waited impatiently for the boat till after ten when they arrivd. the boat THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 37 leak'd so bad we were oblig'd to unload her put our things on the bank and keep sentry all night/ this is an agreeable pleasant situa- tion where I have taken quarters/ I have a room and bed to myself, a large store for my baggage and people to lodge in, and a kitchen to cook in at the very moderate price of I5. 6^. pr day, they find milk and candles/ had I taken lodging at Pittsburg which is within call, it would cost me seven times the money, such is the differ- ence between the counties of Westmoreland and Washington. I am situated on the banks of the Monongahala opposite the garri- son of fort Pitt where this river with the Allagahana, forms the Ohio — in going a few rods from the house I can look down the Ohio 2 miles, up the Allagahana 3 miles, and up the Monongahala 4 miles, within 10 rods of the house, we can catch any quantity of fish we want, and almost any kind — in particular Cat fish, Perch, Buffelow, Pike, Bass of two sorts, sturgeon's of two sorts etc. Joseph"*' is my fisherman, and takes more than we can use — what he caught weigh'd from 2 lb to 12 lb/ there was one catfish 120 lb/ he drownd the man that took him. Pittsburg is in plain sight at half a miles distance, it is an irregular poor built place the number of houses 150, mostly built of logs, the inhabitants are an extravent [extravagant] lazy set of beings, subject to frequent alarms from the savages of the wilderness — however the situation is pleasant, and the soil good, the Gentlemen directors of the Ohio company whom I expected to see here,^* are gone [on] a small tour into the county of Washington — tis necessary I should see them — and this will detain me here a few days — Thursday, May 8: nothing extradinary — my people catching fish and cooking and eating our chief business. I took a ramble this afternoon, up a very high mountain from whence I could look up and down the rivers a long distance, and see every house in ^'Probably Joseph Williams. See entries for April 14, 1788, above, and July 6, 1788, below, and notes. ■*®Arthur St. Clair, Samuel Holden Parsons, James M. Varnum, and Win- throp Sargent. Of these, only Parsons and Varnum were directors. St. Clair was a shareholder and Sargent was an agent and the secretary of the company. Letter, May to Mrs. May, Pittsburgh, May 7, 1788, Edes Marietta 1788, 90-91; Hulbert, Ohio Company, II, 12, 17, 22, and49n. 38 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Pittsburg, distinctly so as to count them/ one Fredrick Bossman unfortunately fell out of a scow in plain sight of my window this afternoon, and was drownd — Friday, May 9 : large numbers of people raking and grappling after Poor Fredrick/ all kinds of supersticious incantations and old traditions are recalld and used to find him — (he being Dutch)/ among others the following was much believed in by the Wag- lopers — they took a shirt which the drownd man last pulld off, put a loaf of good new bread wt 4 lbs into the shirt and tied it up at both ends — then carried it in a boat to near the place where he fell in, and put it afloat on the water — having previously put a line and togle to it — this they said would swim till it came over him and then sink — the bundle swam some time and then disappeard, but unfortunately for the concernd the line was not long enough, and when the loaf had fill'd with water and sunk the togle disappeard — by this means they lost their experiment not having another shirt charg'd with the same extradinary virtues — this day I deliverd our horses to a Mr Kirkendall (a miller near Elizabeths town) to keep, at the rate of 65. pr month, there we left our saddles bridles and molestraps — taking with me only portmants and holsters and pis- tols — we have had fish for dinner every day since our arrival — and tho there are seven stout hearty men of us — we have never been able to eat more than one fish at a meal — there are a number of Indians on the other side of the river — many of them are often over at Pittsburg. I can not say that I am fond of them for, they are frightfully ugly, and a pack of thieves and beggars, one of their chiefs died day before yesterday, these Indians are pretty cross and some almost infernals/ they killed a white man 3 days ago — I can obtain no news of General Putnam — only that he went down the river the 3d of April, and some say he arrivd safe at Muskingum — *® just now I receivd undoubted infor- mation that 3 large Kentucky boats, were capturd by the Indians near the great Miamies about 2th [sic] of March. In one of these was a Mr Pervience of Baltimore, to whom I have letters of rec- ■^^This sentence is the only selection from the 1 788 journal where a comparison can be made with the other five texts; but in this instance the discrepancies are inconsequential. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 39 comendation from Gentlemen in Bal[timor]e. this misfortune makes some of my men put on a serious face, however the first opportunity I mean to embark, and not come so far for nothing. Saturday, May 10: last night and this day very rainy, from the eastward nothing remarkable, only the rivers rising rapidly. Sunday, May 11 : the river continues rising — some of the peo- ple gone crost the river to meeting — 4 Kentucky Boats gone past to day — tis surprizing the number of these boats that have passd this spring/ 200, are taken account of, and many go down in the night. we allow at the least computation 20 souls to a boat — and many bodies without souls — ^^ Monday, May 12: the river still rising/ our men gone after wild turkies — have since retumd without any tho they saw near 20 — Tuesday, May 13 : spent the greater part of the day in seeking for a boat to carry me and my effects down the river Ohio — dined at Captn Oharr'os/^^ had a very eligant dinner, drank tea at Colonel Butlers, and then cross'd the river to my lodgings — some of my peo- ple crossd the Allagahana and brought home a quantity of wild asparagus Wednesday, May 14 : I will here insert the rout, with the dif- ferent stages from Baltimore to Pittsburg, by way of Simmerells ^ from Baltimore to Winchester^^ 30 miles over the blue mountain^^ 44 sideling Ridge — 42 foot of the Allagahana 31 foot of laurel mountain 40 Ellerys— 40 Monongahala 20 247 s°"two boats for Kentucky hauled in at our landing, having on board 29 whites, 24 negroes, 9 dogs, 23 horses, cows, hogs, etc. besides provision and furniture." Letter, May to Mrs. May, Pittsburgh, May 12, 1788, Edcs Marietta 1788, 91. ^^James O'Hara, a veteran of the Revolution and a Pittsburgh businessman. Paul A. W. Wallace (ed.). Thirty Thousand Miles with John Heckewelder (Pittsburgh, 1958), 429. ^-Also known as Westminster Town (present Westminster in central Carroll County). Federal Gazette (probably Federal Gazette and Baltimore Daily 40 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY this day Major Sargeant^* and myself busied ourselves in form- ing a plan for a house to be built on the Muskingum settlement — our plan is 24 feet square Block house fashion — I think will at once answer the purpose of convenience Elegance and defence — Majr Sargeant and a Mr Metcalf/^ dined with me to day on gammon^^ and some fine wild asparagus which we calld excellent — about 4 o clock this afternoon General's Harmar" and Parson's'^^ and many other gentleman crossd the river in the congress barge, row'd by 12 men in white uniform and caps, this barge is 52 feet long. The Genl invited me to take 2i row with him up the Allagahana river which I gladly accepted — this is a rapid but beautiful river, the soil on each side very good, the General has been up to Venango to visit the garrison there under the command of Captn Hart — ^^ this post is one hundred and 60 miles from fort Pitt yet he came from there in fifteen hours, we visited a farm of Col. Butlers on the N West side of the river/ it is a very beautiful spot. We went to see some Indian Graves, at the head and foot of which are poles fixed, daub'd with Advertiser), March 2, 1798, quoted in Maryland Historical Magazine, L (1955), 138n. ^^South Mountain. See entry for April 30, 1788, above, and note. ^^Winthrop Sargent, stockholder, secretary, and agent of the Ohio Company. He was also secretary of the Northwest Territory. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 4n., 12, and 21-22. ^^This may have been Hezekiah Medcalf. See roster, Benton, "Side Lights," 109. ^•'Smoked or dried salted ham or bacon. ^"Josiah Harmar was commander of the army of the United States at the time the Ohio Company established a settlement at Marietta. His principal head- quarters were Fort Harmar which had been built in 1785 on the west bank of the Muskingum River where it empties into the Ohio. May makes frequent references to officers of the fort and activities of the garrison which, of course, were closely related to the success of the Marietta venture. And since many of the Ohio Company participants served in the Rev- olution also, they were to some extent already well acquainted. ^^Samuel Holden Parsons was one of the prime movers of the Ohio Company. He served as a director, agent, and shareholder. He was also one of the three judges of the Northwest Territory. Benton, "Side Lights," 114-115; Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, passim; II, passim. ^^Captain Jonathan Heart constructed Fort Franklin (present Franklin, Penn- sylvania) in 1787 to protect settlers in northwestern Pennsylvania. It replaced former British and French forts. Heart was a stockholder in the Ohio Company. John M. Buckalew, et al., Report of the Commission to Locate the Site of the Frontier Forts of Pennsylvania (2 vols., n.p., 1896), II, 585-608; Hulbert, Ohio Company, II, 5 In. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 41 red/ they are left out of ground the height of the deceased.®" we visited the grave of old Rumtony — this is the name of the Chief who died a few days since. Rumtony in Indian is Warpole in eng- Ksh. he had this name on account of his exploits in war. we then retum'd to my quarters and refres'd ourselves with some good grog, which was the best I had to offer — Thursday, May 15 : Mrs. Hulin has been telling of a sovereign cure for worms in children. Take a half-pint of live angle-worms, put them in a thin linen bag, and sew them up. Then put them, while yet alive, on the child's stomach. There let them remain six hours; then remove them to the navel; there let them remain for the same time; then remove them to the bottom of the belly, for six hours; then take them away, and the child will never be troubled with worms again. To cure the rheumatism, take the bark of up- land or red willow; boil it in a quart of water; bathe the place affected with this decoction an hour, then put the bark, while warm to the place. This applied three times will work a cure that kind of rheumatism which swells.®^ at half past eleven General Harmar and others calld in the barge and invited me to go up the Monongahala river about 12 miles to view Braddocks field the place where that general was de- feated in 1756.®^ This was a terrible engagement for the British, but a glorious one for the French and Indians which last creature com- posed great part of the army — the bone's of the slain are yet plenty on the ground at this day. I pickd up many of them, which were not much decayd altho tis more than 30 years since the battle/ General Braddock gave them plattoon firing sometimes advancing 6oin Edes Proof Sheets 1788, 17, and Edes HPSO 1788, 47, "Among other objects of curiosity" is inserted at the beginning of the sentence. ^^This paragraph does not occur in MS 1788. It is in Edes Marietta 1788, 30, and Edes HPSO 1788, 47-48. It is here reproduced from the former. ^^1755, at present Braddock and North Braddock, eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. For other accounts of this same pilgrimage and names of others in the party, see William W. Backus, A Genealogical Memoir of the Backus Family with the Private Journel of James Backus, Together with His Correspondence Bearing on the First Settlement of Ohio, at Marietta in 1788 (Norwich, Connecticut, 1889), 18; [William H. Denny, ed.]. Military Journal of Major Ebenczer Denny, Vol. VII of Memoirs of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania (Phil- adelphia, 1860), 321-322. 42 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY in solid colums/ the Indians playd quite a diflferent game and tore him all to pieces — the savages were unmercifully crueP^ not sparing Man Woman or Child except one woman — A Man who was with us was in the action/ he says they left 800 dead on the field — we found a delightful spring of water here where we refreshd ourselves with Venison Ham and Crackers and Cool Grog — we went up the river at the rate of 4 Miles an hour, came back 8 — some of my people gone to night to try to get me a wild turkey, hope they wUl speed well — mean time I go to rest — Friday, May 16:1 am still waiting for a conveyance but my patience almost exhausted — Henry^* retumd this morning with a fine turkey which weighd 18^ lb/ Frederick B. just now floated but left the shirt and provision behind him at 2 o clock AM. I crossd the river and dined at General Gibson's^^ in company with many other gentlemen, drank tea at Captn Ervings and retumd home at 8 o dock Saturday, May 17 : this morning went on foot 4/2 rniles into the country to view a grind stone quarry — found them difficult to get out therefore bought one ready made — and retumd home — had fine roast turkey and Asparagus for dinner, several gentleman dined with me — this afternoon I provd my rifle gun — fir'd her 4 times and made excellent shot/ 3 times out of 4 I put the ball within 2 inches of the spot which was the bigness of a dollar — the river has fallen as much as six feet within six days — the Yohogany so low tis difficult coming down — I hope we shall start in a day or two Sunday, May 18: this morning about 8 o clock 2 lads brought to my quarters, a couple of fine perch weighing 40 lb/ there have been some caught here weighing 24 lb/ they are very handsome ^^It is interesting to note the editorial changes the passage commencing with "the Indians playd" goes through in two other versions. Edes Marietta 1788, 31, reads: "the Indians played quite a different game, keeping in ambuscade, and tore him all to pieces. The savages, as usual, were monstrously cruel " Edes Proof Sheets 1788, 18: "the Indians played quite a different game, keeping in ambuscade, shooting from covert, and so, little by little, tore him all to pieces. As usual, after the fight, the savages were monstrously cruel " ^*Probably Henry H. Williams. ^^Probably John Gibson, an early settler at Pittsburgh and one of the command- ers of Fort Pitt during the Revolution. Wallace, Thirty Thousand Miles with Heckewelder, 410. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 '^3 good fish something resembling a hadduck but much better eating/ we kept Sunday at home — generally some of us reading — about 5 in the afternoon the Congress barge came over/ brought Generals Harmar, Parsons, and a Mr White, member of Congress from N Carolina — ^® paid me an agreeable visit of an hour then returnd — Monday, May 19: this day employd in making ax helves, hough handles and sundry other matters in the tool way — pur- chased one bushel of salt at 205-. and 2 bushel potatoes at 2s. P.C.®' the river falling at the rate of 12 inches a day, and our boat not come yet — I must confess I feel very uneasy/ this delay in the midst of sowing time makes me quite unhappy — notwithstanding I strive to act the Philosopher and my people dont know that I am in the least anxious/ I hope by doubling my dilligence to make up for this delay, this day a Mr. Metcalf of Dedham, came here wishing to get a passage down the river, and being destitute of provisions and money I took him into my family. at 6 o clock I accompanied a number of gentleman up the hill opposite Pittsburg, this mountain is 300 feet high and almost per- pendicular and look's directly into fort Pitt — it abounds with good sea coal which they call stone coal — Tuesday, May 20: our boat not arriv'd therefore we employ ourselves as well as we can — I have just taken a receipt to make bread — from Mrs Hulen — she makes ours and it is as good as ever I tasted/ the method she takes is this — the evening before she in- tends baking she takes a peace of leaven about as large as her hand — and if hard pounds it fine and mixes it in about 3 quarts of cold water/ if it is not dry mix it without pounding, when thorougly mixed let it stand and settle till morning/ then turn off the water gently, and use the sediment the same as you would yeast, mix your dough with pretty warm water, and let it stand while your oven heats in which time it will rise sufficiently — then make up your loaves, and put them in baskets made purposely/ let them stand a little while then set them in the oven — and if your heat is good you are sure of good bread — ^^James White was a delegate in Congress, 1786-1788. Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774-1949 (Washington, 1950), 41. ^'Pennsylvania currency. 44 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Wednesday, May 21 ; at 2 o clock PM. our boat hove in sight coming round the point, and in half an hour made fast at Pittsburg — she is 42 feet long and twelve wide with a cover — she will carry a burthen of 45 tons, and draw only 2^2 feet of water/ it has raind steadily and fast for 24 hours which occasions the rivers rising as fast as it has fallen of late — Thursday, May 22: dined to day on turtle, fish of various kinds soup etc. — a boy brought to my quarters this evening a stur- geon that was 4^2 [feet] long/ tis a very handsome and well made fish except the head which resembls a horse — he has no kind of bone in any part of his body — but calld a good eating fish — tho I have no mind to try him Friday, May 23: still continues to rain and the river to rise/ the roads intolerable bad/ almost impossible to move in them — this is most certainly a different climate or different world/ the storms in N. England come from the N. East — these from the S. West, and these last as long as those notwithstanding the rain/ I have put our baggage and stores on board the boat in expectation of going down the river tomorrow — at 5 o clock this afternoon Governer St. Clair arrivd at Pittsburg, he is not going down the river now but returns to his family again — '^^ we shall be under the necessity of paying him a formal visit to-morrow/ all these things seem against me but no doubt are for the best/ I confess 1 am mov'd to this visit by two motives one the respect due to the Governer of the Western territory the other (a little selfish — ) as we wish him to make the Muskingum the sea of Government, and his place of residence/ if proper atten- tion is paid to little matters as well as those of greater magnitude I have no doubt this important object may be obtaind — supd to night on perch that were alive 5 minutes before they were in the pan Saturday, May 24 and Sunday, May 25: the rain increasing the river rising. I am tir'd of this world of clouds/ tis not forty day's since I left Boston and only 8 I call Fair weather — I have had but ^^The Indians were not yet assembled for the forthcoming treaty conference, and St. Clair had some private matters to tend to at home. Letter, Josiah Har- mar to , Fort Harmar, June 15, 1788, in William H. Smith, The Life and Public Services of Arthur St. Clair . . . with His Correspondence and Other Papers (2 vols., Cincimiati, 1882), II, 44n. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 45 little sleep since I have been here chiefly owing to the barking of dogs/ I believe here are two dogs to one man — and at my quarters there are no less than seventeen of these wide throated son's of B — , — Pittsburg dogs begin the yell and our on this side echo with great vehemence/ at 11 o clock PM paid the visit to our Governor wrap'd up in my Khan sloper/ was most graciously receivd/ tarried an hour — then embarkd for Hulens/ staid a quarter of an hour and took leave of this good family — and went down the river one mile in his Yawl our boat having gone that distance some time before to get some boards and make a covering — at half past 12 o clock cast off our fast's and committed ourselves to the current of the Ohio — the scene was delightful— without wind or waves we invariably went more than 5 miles an hour, in 8 hours we arrivd at little Beaver^^ a distance of 42 miles — this is the place that General Parsons mentions in his journal, where he says a Mr — raisd 600 bushels of corn from seven acres of land/ I saw the man who says it is true but that the squirels robd him of near 60 bushels — so that he did not receive but 540 — here we tarried and hour and half for the moon to rise — and set out again — in six hours arrivd at Cox's Fort^° 33. miles/ here we tarried several hours and refreshd our- selves — here I bought 303 lb of beautiful Gammon at 5d. pr lb/ also some red corn and potatoes — our passage thus far down the Ohio is too delightful to be described by me here where I have but just room to swing my pen/ we are pretty close crowded having 27 men on board — '^ 2 cows — 2 Calfs — 7 hogs — and 9 dogs besides 8 tons of baggage, at Cox's fort are a number of settlers on very pretty farms, thou quite new it not having been settled more than 5 years, the soil is excellent the best I have seen, this territory is calld West Liberty — and belongs to Virginia, dollars at 6^. we bought some butter here at 5d. our seed corn at 2^. 6d. pr bushel and barrel ^^Little Beaver Creek enters the Ohio River near the juncture of the boundaries of West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. ~°A small blockhouse erected by early pioneers, the Cox brothers, near the pres- ent town of Wellsburg and above the mouth of Buffalo Creek in Brooke County, West Virginia. West Virginia History, II (1940-1941), 232; XIV (1952-1953), 214-215. ''^For mention of some of the other passengers see Backus, Memoir, 19. 46 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY pickled Perch at 3d. pr pound — took on board a quantity of excel- lent sallad — some plants etc. and embark'd on board our ship again. Cox's fort is 1 11 miles from Muskingum/ we went rapidly down the river and at half past 3, arriv'd at Wheeling a distance of 16 miles, and were kindly receivd by Mrs Zane, — her Husband being gone to convention.'" here we purchased some Cows and Calves and other necessaries, stay'd and drank tea and eat excellent bread but- ter and radish's and about 8 o clock committed ourselves to the waters of this beautiful river — it is true the prospect before us was gloomy, a heavy cloud right ahead from whence darted flashes of lightening and the grumbling of thunder roar'd at a distance/ it was so dark we could but just discern the black mountains on each side of us, except when the flashes came/ then we star'd with all our eyes — it was my turn to stand at helm this hour, and was relievd in time, but the scene was so grand, so many different noises,^^ that I staid up 6 hours and kept the helm chief of the time, with one to look out and four to rowe/ the rest slept sound and we mov'd on still as night — in the thick forests on either hand was the howling of wild beasts — the Owl hoop'd his dismal sound, and the screech Owl scream'd the altus and a burst of thunder, all these things and many more kept my imagination awake — ^* I must confess it was the grandest night I ever beheld — about two o clock the sky was serene and clear, the moon about 2 hours high — I then tumd in and got some sleep — I have blended Satturday Saturday night, Sunday, and Sunday night, all together, as the whole seems but as one long day. however I will adopt the old plan — and make up my days work in future ^^Ebenezer Zane was one of the two delegates from Ohio County to the conven- tion assembled at Richmond in June 1788 to consider ratification by Virginia of the proposed federal Constitution. This and other biographical data on Zane is in John G. Patterson, "Ebenezer Zane, Frontiersman," in West Virginia History, XII ( 1950) , 5-45, passim. ''^"so many different noises" is changed to "and the sounds and echoes to be heard were so various, that I could not go in," in Edes Marietta 1788, 36-37. "*The passage starting with "the Owl hoop'd" is changed in Edes Marietta 1788, 37, to: "the whooping of one kind of owl and the screaming of another, while every now and then, would come a burst of thunder. The novelty of the situation, with all its peculiarities, kept my imagination awake." THE JOURNEY WEST, 1788 47 Monday, May 26: I mean in some future page to give a de- scription of the river Ohio, as I have made several observations which can not conveniently be inserted here — the Sun rose beauti- fully upon us this morning — and the prospect as pleasing as tis pos- sible to conceive, it would require the pen of a Hervy to describe its beauties — every moment the scene changing Landscape rising be- yond landscape constantly attracting the eye. we passing by one beautiful Island after another, floating magestically down at the rate of 4/2 [miles] an hour, thus moving on spying fresh wonders till 3 o clock, when we arrivd saftly on the banks of the delightful Muskingum CHAPTER 2 MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL Tuesday, May 27 : slept on board last night and rose early this morning/ spent the day in viewing and reconnoitering the spot where the City is to be built/^ find it answers the best discription I have ever heard of it. the situation delightfully agreeable, well cal- culated for an elegant City — the old ruins are a masterly piece of work of great extent/ how many ages since inhabited none can tell — the trees appear as ancient as the rest of the wilderness/ I find many traces of art in diflferent places — our surveying buildings etc. in a very backward state/ there appears to have but little done and much time and money spent — there are about 30 Indians now here — who appear very friendly but they are a set of creatures not to be trusted/ General Putnam tells me there have been several parties here since his arrival — for my part I am not fond of them neither do I fear them/ I dined to day with General Harmer, by invitation, had an elegant dinner/ amongst the variety was allamode and boild fish Bear steak roast venison etc. excellent sacketosh sallads and cramberry sauce/ grog, and wine after dinner, viewd Majr Doughtys^ gardens/ found them as well filld with necessaries and curiosities as most of the gardens in Boston — here I saw cotton growing in perfection also a fine nursery of apple and peach trees, purchas'd this eve a quarter of Bear @ l/s^. and one side of venison at Id. a pound Wednesday, May 28: it began to rain this morning at 5 o clock, and continued to without intermission for seven hours, then fine clear weather — the directors and agents present agreed to lease the ministerial lot^ to sundry persons in lots of 10 acres each for a ^Some of the settlers were living in temporary huts until more permanent build- ings could be erected. Denny, Journal, 323. ^John Doughty commanded the troops which constructed Fort Harmar in 1785 and Fort Washington in 1789. He was presently stationed at Fort Harmar. Gayle Thornbrough (ed.), Outpost on the Wabash, 1787-1791 (Indianapolis, 1957), passim; Wallace, Thirty Thousand Miles with Heckewelder, 406. ^The contract of October 27, 1787, between the Ohio Company and Congress stipulated that section twenty-nine of each township was "to be appropriated to the purposes of religion." Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 32-33, and 36. 48 MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL 49 term not less than 1 00 years, at the option of the leasee to be with- out rent the first 1 years then to pay a certain rent for ten years and then a fixd rent for the rest of the term/ this is done to accoma- date a number of proprietors present, whose 80 [8] acre lots were drawn at a distance — * we went this afternoon to survey the 10 acre lots and drew them in the evening — Col. Sprout'^ drew No 9 Vernon^ 10, May 11 Sargeant 12 Parsons 13 etc. Majr Doughty sent me a proper Herring caught in the river which I salted and put in the smoke house/ our hunters brought in some fawns alive/ they are pretty animals and will become tame in half an hour after they are taken. Thursday, May 29 : This day the axe is laid to the root of the tree and every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire, in order to this my people armd with axe's went forth, to prostrate the ancient inhabitants of the forest. Venison plenty at Id. or one copper pr pound. I was engaged this afternoon with they surveyers. find the soil very good, but tormented beyond measure by myriads of gnats/ they not only bite surpriz- ingly, but got down ones throat — this evening arriv'd two long boats from the rapids, with officers and soldiers to the amount of 1 00, on their passage up the river were fir'd on by a strong party of Indians headed by a white Man, they returned the fire, had two men killd and were obliged to drop down the river again and come by them in the night — ^ there are various reports about the hostillities of the savages — but nothing to be depended on — the Indians are fre- quently in here and seem to be on friendly terms. I have shook hands with many of them since my arrival/ my people employd in ^Before coming west, the agents and directors of the Ohio Company drew for eight acre lots. Later, it was discovered that they were located too far from town to be safe. Ibid., I, 37-39, 45, et passim; Backus, Memoir, 22; Buell, Memoirs of Putnam, 105-106. "List of the Names and Numbers of 8 Acre Lots drawTi in Major Sargent's agency," Providence, March 6, 1788, MS in Win- throp Sargent papers, Massachusetts Historical Society. ^Ebenezer Sproat, agent and shareholder in the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 22, 22n.; Benton, "Side Lights," 114-115. ''James M. Varnum, director and agent in the Ohio Company. He was also one of the judges of the Northwest Territory. May consistently refers to him as "Vernon." Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 17, 17n., and 22. "For further comment on this incident, see Denny, Journal, 322-323. 50 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY clearing land. I have been this afternoon sewing some garden/ matters was overtaken by a hard gust and pretty well wet/ this country is warmer in winter and cooler in summer than N England Friday, May 30: The men employd in cutting timber for my house — my time taken up by the surveyers. last night General Harmar arrivd here from Pittsburg/ had in company a Mr White member of Congress from N Carolina Majr Corlis^ and Col Oney — ^ from Providence, these Gentlemen intend staying about 6 weeks — nothing remarkable — rainy part of the day as usual Saturday, May 31 : All hands at work on my 10 acre lot. took hold of it with spirit/ there were six of us in all, and we completely cleard 1 J/q acres by sunset/ the land as good as can be found in the universe — Sunday, June 1 : A day of rest — Monday, June 2: All hands clearing land/ nothing remark- able took place Tuesday, June 3 : Wind at S W, a fine day/ all busy Wednesday, June 4: Still clearing land — too busy to make remarks^" Thursday, June 5: This day General Vernon arrivd with about 40 souls in company/ brought a barrel Mello for me from Baltimore and some letters which were very acceptable — had a severe thunder gust — the river fallen since my arrival at least 12 feet — Friday, June 6: still clearing land/ the soil opens delightfully — dined on roast venison which is quite a common dish/ a thunder gust this aft. the river very low — in the center of Muskingum is a gravel bank which has now only 4 feet water on it — at 9 o clock the waters rising — at 1 2 rose 1 5 inches — and at 8 in the evening 4 feet seven inches — thus rapid is the rise and fall of this river — some Indians came in to day ^William Corliss was an agent and shareholder in the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 21, 21n.; Benton, "Side Lights," 114-115. ^Probably Coggeshall Olney, shareholder in the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, II, 2, 2n. ^°This day's entry appears in Edes Marietta 1788, 40; but it was not included in Edes Proof Sheets 1788, 27, nor does it appear in Edes HPSO 1788, 62. MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL 51 Saturday, June 7 : the river still rising/ it is now 6^^ feet higher than it was 3 days since/ this sudden rising of the waters is occasiond by great rains upon the Allagahana and Monongahala rivers — I have killd 3 lizzards one copper head and one black snake very long and large/ Mr Rice and myself killd a large copper head to day — this fellow was very spiteful/ I made him bite himself several times — I have not yet seen a rattlesnake/ indeed snakes are not very plenty — there are not so many as I expected/ Indians daily coming in to trade — General Vernon and his party are mak- ing difficulty about the 8 acre lots not being drawn contiguous to the City — also with respect to the Scioto purchase these [blank] are not good/ Gomolor Pacmun [General Putnam]" did not strictly adhere to the orders given at Brackets Tavern at Boston, and Rice's tavern Providence.^" I think I forsee difficulties" Sunday, June 8: a beautiful pleasent day/ no preacher estab- lished yet/ I employd myself as rationally as possible in reading and writing from 4 in the morning till 12 at noon when General Harmars barge with 8 oarsmen came to carry a number of us over to dine namely Generis Parsons Putman, Vernon, Colonel Sprout, Battelle, Riggs^* and May, Majr Sargeant and Mr Rice, at 3 o clock dinner was on table and as elegant as any in Boston, amongst the solids were Bacon tongue Venison roast and boild lamb, barbequed and alamode Perch lobsters and oysters etc. vege- tables — green peas Radishes and sallad excellent wines, spirits, and strong beer, spent the aft and drank tea, then cross' d the river, and went to rest. — ^^This is deciphered by using the code which May employed in various passages in MS 1789. i^Brackett's Sign of OHver Cromwell on School Street in Boston and Rice's Tavern in Providence were principal meeting places of the Ohio Company officials. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 6, 23, et passim; William P. Cutler and Julia P. Cutler, Life, Journals, and Correspondence of Rev. Manasseh Cutler, LL. D. (2 vols., Cincinnati, 1888), I, 191, 328. ^•Tor a hint at the meaning of May's remarks see entries for June 9 and 10, 1788, below; Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 54-55, 55n.; Backus, Memoir, 22. This sentence is in Edes Marietta 1788, 42. In Edes Proof Sheets 1788, 27, however, "of a more serious nature" is added. ^^Probably Return Jonathaji Meigs, an agent of the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 26n., 54. 52 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Monday, June 9: I have been clearing land for 8 days, and now begin to feel the effects of Poison from ivy, — met to day to settle some difficulties respecting the 8 acre lots, but did not agree, and adjournd till tomorrow morning 8 o clock, we have a con- stant supply of venison, but it is not fat yet. Colonel Battelle and myself went out this morning and killd a fine Racoon — the settlers are zealously at work, and the land opens fast, and look finely — but we are in great want of team's, the weather has been extreme hot these 3 days/ a little rain every day — Tuesday, June 10: A beautiful morning but I cannot enjoy it/ I am so sadly inflamed with Poison, my people hewing timber for the house which I am in hopes to raise in 8 or 1 days — for I am not very comfortable on board my Kentucky ship — we met this morning according to adjournment, and after many debates, agreed to cut up our common into 3 acre lots, to be drawn for in July.^^ this has appeas'd the minds of the people, we also appointed, officers of Police. Wednesday, June 11 : my Poison bad but not in my face. I took a dose of salts this morning and am applying the leaves of spice wood, and vinegar, which seems to have a good effect, not- withstanding my indisposition I have enlarged my gang to day, which I have divided into 3 squads, four men hewing timber, 2 clearing land, and two digging cellar in the bank near my boat, this conveniency is much wanted to keep the butter Beer etc. we have as yet dug no wells and the river water is too warm to drink Thursday, June 12: the morning extremely hot, about eleven a thunder gust, and continued rainy all day with thunder, the river rising Friday, June 13 : Thunder and lightening all night, little sleep for me, the river rose 6 feet 9 inches yesterday, and still rising, all hands at work clearing land Saturday, June 14: the wind NW. a delightful morning, the river begin's to fall — at 2 o clock compleated my brew house — and two Barrels of Beer and one of vinegar — I am glad to see Saturday night, we shall drink Wive's and sweet heart's speedily — i^See ibid., I, 45-46; Buell, Memoirs of Putnam, 106; and Backus, Memoir, 22. UNIVERSITY OF ILUNOW aa. §°3 f^' -.a; MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL 53 Sunday, June 15: a delightful morning as shone in eden — from some mighty rains at a distance, the rivers are taking a new start/ I am still on board the ship which gives me an oppertunity to observing the rise and fall of the waters — a number of Poor Devels — 5 in all took their departure homeward this morning, they came from home brainless and moneyless, and have return' d the same tho not without my blessing in full, wrote four letters to day to Mrs. May brother Jos Liet Colonel Winslow, and my Brother Ithamar May,^® at Pomfret which Colonel Oney favourd me by carrying, spent this evening with the Don's consulting about a form of Police for our new republic — Monday, June 16: all hands employd in hewing timber, and clearing land, a shower at 1 1 o clock. Mr Gridley Skinner and others arriv'd here at 6 o clock this morning, brought me a very acceptable packet of letters/ I am too busy to make particular remarks — Tuesday, June 17 : all hands employd as usual, great prep- arations are making at the garison for the treaty, two large Keel boats one of which is 85 the other 72 feet long, arrivd here 3 days ago from Pittsburg, laden with merchandize for the treaty — the contractors^^ are on board and 2 days ago the boats went up the Muskingum to the fork about 60 miles, to make preparations, to build a council-house, etc.^^ the Catfish, and Perch, make such a noise under my boat, that they frequently keep me awake half the night, my garden seeds come up finely, but are chiefly destroyd by insects, we have four fawn's amongst us as tame as Cats, tis sur- prizing how easily these animals are tamed, so as to put confidence in man, the most deceitful of all creatures — yesterday one of these ^^Half brother to May. May, Genealogy, 4. ^"A Mr. Duncan was probably one of the contractors, possibly David Duncan of the firm of Duncan and Wilson of Pittsburgh. See entry for July 13, 1788, below; Denny, Journal, 324, 325; Wallace, Thirty Thousand Miles with Hecke- welder, 406. ^®This and other references below concern preliminaries that led to the nego- tiation of the two treaties of Fort Harmar of January 9, 1789. Other scattered references to the course of events referred to by May are found in Smith, St. Clair Papers; Denny, Journal; Benton, "Side Lights"; and John May papers, Western Reserve Historical Society. 54 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY fawns was caught in the wilderness, (its dam being killd). was brought home, and is to day as tame as the rest — will run after me, climb upon me, lick my face — suck my ear etc. this evening Judge Parsons' and General Vernon's commis- sions were read also some regulations to govern the People — (in fact the bye laws were much wanted) officers named to command the millitia — guard to be mounted every evening — all the males more than 15 years old to appear under arms every Sabbath — ^^ Wednesday, June 18: nothing remarkable/ my people em- ployd as yesterday — I am so weary with constant labour, and sleep so sound — the revally has no impression upon me. 'tis three morn- ings since I have heard it Thursday, June 19: all hands employd in planting com and sowing garden seeds/ at 2 o clock this aft — came on a severe Thunder gust, attended with great wind which blew down many trees — several in my lot/ a large tree fell upon one of the companies oxen and killd him/ this is a great loss, as there are but 3 yoke on the settlement — our hunter retumd to day from Hockhocking, having been gone 3 days, he killd seven deer, one bear and 5 wild turkies. he might have killd any quantity but it is the season of the year when they are not fat, therefore he spar'd them — it has been very cold for the season since the shower — Friday, June 20: my men employ'd in planting — the weather warmer, there are the largest shag-barks, here that ever I saw. I have found them as big as an hen's egg. I have not seen any ches- nuts birch or alders, in this part of the settlement, we find great abundance of crawfish — about 6 inches long, exactly the same as our lobsters — these amphibious creatures burrow in the ground, and make httle holes of about an inch diameter/ young Mr Wil- liams^" caught a catfish to day which weighed 59^2 lb also a salmon ^^A temporary government and police (militia) were instituted to remain in effect until the establishment of authority of the United States under the Ordi- nance of 1787. May was appointed "officer of police." Backus, Memoir, 23. Rosters and regulations are printed in Benton, "Side Lights," 104-112. ^''Henry Howell Williams, Jr. See label on invoice, Boston, April 3, 1788, MS in John May papers, Western Reserve Historical Society. MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL 55 wt 1 5 lb — the contractors boat returnd this morning from the forks of Muskingum, at four this afternoon she was loaded again and Mark Hulens boat also and went up the river again loaded with stores, our People espied something coming down the river Ohio of a very remarkable appearance, a number of canoes were im- mediately fitted out and came up with them — it provd to be 5 live hogs, all of whom were caught and brought on shore, this was a wonderful engagement almost equal to the batde of the keg's upon the River Delaware'^ Saturday, June 21 : finishd planting, in all about 6 acres,^^ on the first bottom — and is only 20 days since we began to clear — dined to day on catfish and perch — a son of Colonel Stacy was bit by a copperhead snake which was afterwards killd — the young man was immediately carried over the river to Isaac Williams's"^ who is ^^During the British occupation of Philadelphia in the Revolution, a mock battle was fought against an empty barrel floating down the Delaware River past Philadelphia. The incident has been immortalized in a poem, "Battle of the Kegs," by Francis Hopkinson. Francis H. Williams, "Pennsylvania Poets of the Provincial Period," Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, XVII (1893), 31; Richard M. Gummere, "Apollo on Locust Street," ibid., LVI (1932), 81. A detailed account of the incident is contained in a letter, Samuel Cooper to John Litle, [Philadelphia], January 5, 1778, in "Extracts from the Letters of Samuel Cooper, 1777-78," ibid., X (1886), 36. ^^The repeated references to clearing and planting resulted in a considerable garden. It is described in some detail by a mid-September 1788 visit to Mari- etta by Israel Angell from Rhode Island: "he [Colonel Battelle] with Colo May both from boston Came on here in may last and took up about 10 Acers of land girdeled the timber fenced it in but had no team to plow it. they planted 30 Different Sorts of Seeds which all grew to admiration Except Onions. Corn to appearance would yeald 60 Bushels to the acer/ Beans grew the Rankest I ever Saw/ I Saw a hill of Cucumbers that was planted about 4 or 5 feet from a large tree which had a number of grape Vines run up it. the Cucumbers had followed up the grape Vines one of which we had measured and found to be 16 feet, high and two more but a few inches Short, all this field was planted the Last of June and first of July. Colo Battle who is a man of Varassity assured me that he had peas in this field that was in the blow in 3 weeks after being first planted and geathered them in pleanty full Grown in 30 Days after planting/ he had green Beans the 5th week after planting them. Such amazing Strong Vcgitation will Seem In- creadble in New England, but is certainly true." Israel Angell, "A journal of Israel an[gell] . . .," MS in Rhode Island Historical Society. ^^A pioneer who, following the establishment of Fort Harmar, settled on the Virginia shore of the Ohio River opposite the mouth of the Muskingum. He aided and encouraged the Ohio Company settlers. Samuel P. Hildreth, Bio- 56 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY very skilful in curing the bites of these venomous reptiles, five large Kentucky boats went down to day loaded with famillies etc. — the river has fallen since last Saturday upwards of eleven feet — Sunday, June 22: set to determine the rank of the following officers who are to do milliatary duty at Muskingum viz. Col Crasy — ^* 1st and Commandant — Col May 2d Col Battelle 3d Liet Col. Stacy'^ 4th Liet Col Oliver 5th Majr Phillips"'' 6th Captn Rice 7th/^^ the above gentlemen proceeded to appoint the following as subaltern officers — Viz Dean Tyler 1st Charles Green,^^ Walton Cary,^^ James Becker,^" Isaac Pearce Paul Fearing,^^ Wm Gridley, Daniel Dunham,^- Benjamin Sill,^^ H Williams and Saml. Stebins.^* I had the honor to act as adjutant General, secretary, etc. — was very busy in making and drawing up reports etc. had a fine dinner of Bacon Parsley etc. excellent bread mustard vinegar etc. it has been our luck to have good provisions the best of bread, fine ven- ison, and turkeys when we please — also grey and black sqirrels at any time we want them — as great a variety of fish as can me nam'd in any market, and the gardens of the Garrison much at our service. graphical and Historical Memoirs of the Early Pioneer Settlers of Ohio (Cin- cinnati, 1852), 485-486. ^•* Archibald Crary, agent and shareholder in the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 22, 22n.; Benton, "Side Lights," 105, and 114-115. ^^William Stacy (Stacey), shareholder in the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 117n. ^•^Alexander Oliver and Samuel Phillips. See rosters, in Benton, "Side Lights," 104-112. ^^Three more names, Ebenezer Sproat, Ezekiel Cooper, and Jonathan Devell (Devoll), belong on this list. See ibid., 105-106; and Hulbert, Ohio Company, L24. ^^Dean Tyler was a school teacher and chaplain. Charles Greene was a share- holder in the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 131n.; H, 2, 2n. 29Wanton Casey is the name as listed in May's roster in Benton, "Side Lights," 105. See also ibid., 108. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 66n. apparently is in error when he states that Casey arrived in Marietta in 1789. 2°James Backus. See rosters, Benton, "Side Lights," 104-112. 2^Paul Fearing, a lawyer, was an agent and shareholder in the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, H, In. 32Daniel Dunham was a shareholder in the Ohio Company. Ibid., H, 149. 33Also listed as Stile and Still. See rosters, Benton, "Side Lights," 104-112. s^Three more names, Gray, Cory, and Josiah White, belong on this list. See roster, in ibid., 105-106. The first two are probably William Gray and Ebenezer Cory who were both members of the pioneer party of surveyors and workmen to Marietta. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 24. MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL 57 I have receivd innumerable civilities from the officers of the fort, in short we live pretty well however lying so long on board (which is 4 weeks) I think unwholsome/ some of us begin to complain of aches and pains — I among the rest am full of rumbling pains and my hind quarters draw after me — I am afraid the worst is not come yet — but P^ will bounce into my hammock, and see what that will do. Monday, June 23 : all hands at labour, I tugging about among them; but not able to do much. Ceasar (my dog) waxd fat and kickd; at least he grew saucy and offended some of the young settlers, one of whom shot at him with a ball and cut his fore foot badly — so that I had him killd and buried, I try'd to catch the fellow but he ran too nimble for me. Tuesday, June 24: last night and to day remarkably cold — feels like Septmbr/ I endeavour to keep my men busy altho I am scarcely able to keep about myself/ compleated getting out timber for my house — have made a saw pit for sawing boards etc. I am in hopes to have my house finished in 20 day's, till then I mean to live on board ship which I like better, than the land Cabbins — coverd with walnut tree bark — Majr Solgumc [Sergant]^'' secre- tary — took hold of a piece of timber to help lift it — and caught his hand under it, which took off one of his nails and hurt the rest of his hand very much. Wednesday, June 25: the men employd as usual, the cold weather continues/ wind at NW.^^ Thursday, June 26: some gone to raising, some to drawing timber and some sawing in the pit, myself grunting — but often seize the axe to stimulate others, — I have assisted in cutting two black walnut trees, either of which will make 200 feet of boards — these I shall have saw'd into stuff for furniture for my new house/ 3^At this point in Edes HPSO 1788, 73, editing results in the addition of these words: "don't intend to grumble, or get into the dumps." ^^This is deciphered by using the code which May employed in various passages in MS 1789. This is a reference to Winthrop Sargent. 2 'In Edes Marietta 1788, 48, there appears this additional sentence: "We felled a large tree on one of our dogs, which so disabled him, we were obliged to leave him in the woods." 58 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY the saw has been going all day and works well, din'd on Buffalo fish wt 1434 lb/ we had also a pike at 7^. my men and myself eat the whole/ the Buffalo eats like Salmon and quite as fat. Friday, June 27 : the wind N West/ exceeding cold for the season/ we can sleep with blankets comfortably, a smart rain to day/ our rains generally come from the South and S West, some of our Gentlemen went up the Muskingum 10 miles, and came back much pleas'd — they say the lands are much better there than where we are clearing/ 12 deer and some wild turkie brought in to day/ I bought a fine keg of butter at Id. Pr pound Saturday, June 28: digging cellar and hauling timber for the house/ made a great days work of it/ four of us finish' d the cellar, 21 by 18 feet and 7 feet deep through a [kin'd?] of Marl; of a redish colour, and fine sand. Sunday, June 29: the weather still continues cold, a fire on board would be quite comfortable/ my people actually complain' d of the cold while I was busy writing. At length I found my hand quite numb; I got up, took a bucket, and went forward and threw 200 buckets of water into the boat, which washd her well, then said "now my lads throw all that water out" — there was as much as 2 or 300 buckets in her before — and by the time they had cleand her out they were warm enoug'h. — Monday, June 30: All hands employd about the house. Poor Doctr Minot^^ out of provisions and money. I pitied him and took him into my family altho quite large enough before. I put a pow- der horn, and shott bag, by his side a gun in his hand, and a bottle of grog — and told him to live in my com field and keep off the sqirrels and crows. Tuesday, July 1 : all, employ'd as usual/ the weather much alterd; being very hot and sultry, an hour before sunset had a glori- ous shower, with a little Thunder, it raind prodigiously an hour, then cleard up with a beautiful rainbow, we compleated a grand bridge over the river, 200 rod's from the point, and calld it Corys bridge, in hono'r of the master workman/ there is not anything like 38James Minott. See roster, Benton, "Side Lights," 109; Edes Marietta 1788, 78 and 120. MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL 59 SO good a bridge between here and Baltimore/ we were alarmd to day by a letter from Majr Doughty, at Pittsburge purporting that they had receivd intelligence from detroit that two parties of Indian Warriors (about 40 in each party,) were gone forth to be hostile against our settlement and Kentucky — our people were calld in from labour at 1 1 o clock, and a guard, consisting of a subaltern and 30 men sent out to scower and reconnoiter the wood's/ they took one days provision with them/ young Hulen, who has just re- turnd from the council house, says there will be no treaty, the sav- ages are holding a council at Sandusky and are much divided in themselves, these things are against us.^" Wednesday, July 2: raind hard all night, but a most delight- ful morning. Men employd as yesterday, myself attending a meet- ing of the directors and agents,*" according to order at Providence, 8. of March.*^ chose a committee to make preparation for drawing the City lots.*^ enterd into several debates and at 2 o clock PM. adjournd untill Monday 7 inst at 8. in the morning, for the pur- pose of drawing the City lots and such other business as may be thought necessary for the establishment of our infant settlement — a number of those men who were hir'd by the company to attend the surveyor — and whose time was expir'd went up the river Ohio bound homeward. Thursday, July 3 : a fine pleasant morning/ the birds begin to sing by 3 o clock and make great melody — for a long time after I came here, there were no robins, but for a fortnight past I have seen several, who seem as if they would exhaust themselves in prais- ing the works of Him who sent, and protects us here, there is one in particular who rests directly over my ship, he begins at dawn of day, and continues his song for several hours. — all hands at work on the house. I return'd from labour about sunset and found hang- •''^For additional intelligence about this alarm see letter, Richard Butler to Arthur St. Clair, Pittsburgh, July 1, 1788, in Smith, St. Clair Papers, II, 46-47. ^'^For some notes on this meeting which did not adjourn finally until August 14, see Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 44-54. ^^The minutes of this meeting of March 5-7, 1788, are printed in ibid., I, 37-44. ''^May was appointed chairman of this committee. Committee statement, Ben- ton, "Side Lights," 113, 60 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY ing up in my cellar a pike that weigh'd 21 lbs and Perch 24. in preparation for tomorrow — Mr. Williams, who caught them, took a Pike that weigh'd 29 lb/ this one General Harmar bought, in short the fish are so various, and of such magnitude, it would be difficult for a man to give an account of them Friday, July 4: warm, moist, and brisk, wind, from the S West, at 1 1 . raind hard, the cloud's heavy and shake rain easy — a labour ceases to day, in memory of the declaration of Independ- ance — our long bower'y is built on the east bank of Muskingum, the table laid 60 feet long in plain sight of the Garison at a ^ miles distance/ at one o clock. General Harmar and Lady, Mr and Mrs. Curden — and all the officers not on duty came over — and sev- eral Gentlemen/ also at half past one, an excellent oration was deliverd by Judge Vernon/ the cannon fir'd a salute of 13 guns, at 3 just as dinner was on table came up a heavy shower, and lasted half an hour, however the chief of our provisions were sav'd from the deluge, but injurd materially, when the rain ceasd the table was again covrd, but before we had dined the rain came on again. we had on the whole a handsome dinner, of all kinds of wild meat, turkeys and other wild fowl, variety of fish, gamon, etc. plenty of vegetables — a barrel of punch, grog wine etc. our toasts were as follow's — 1st the United States, 2d Congress, 3d his most Christian Majesty, 4th the United Netherlands, 5th the friendly Powers throughout the world, 6th the new Federal Constitution 7th General Washington and the society of the Cin- cinati, 8 his excellency Governor St Clair and the Western Territory, 9th the memory of Heroes 10th Patriots, 11 th Captn Pipes and a successful treaty, 12th the amiable Partners of our delicate pleasures, 1 3th all mankind — MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL 61 pleasd with our entertainment we did not seperate till 1 2 o clock — Saturday, July 5: a pleasant morning, all my men employ'd upon the house, myself preparing for the draughts of the City lots. — when I rose this morn about 5 — the Muskingum appeard to the greatest advantage, but about 9 o clock she for the first time since I knew her, put on an angry countenance — and swelld as tho' she would burst her sides, and with long and hasty strides mov'd aw- fully toward the congregation of many waters — her dear Brother the Ohio, in his nature irritable to a great degree and often swell- ing with pride (at which times his sister always modestly retires) stood aghast, and even shrunk back to take refuge from her wrath under cover of his southern shores; — what should occasion this sud- den alteration in the Muskingum — I cannot fully determine but for several days there has been a heavy black cloud at the north- ward, with rumbling thunder at a distance/ no doubt it has rain'd there severely and pour'd from the mountains into the rivers which communicate with the Muskingum, which rose six feet in six hours, and continues to rising — about sunset this evening, we espied a fine doe in the river, sent off two canoes and brought her onshore alive — she was soon killd tho' she begd heartily for her life/ I am of opinion Deer are plentier in this country, than horn cattle are in New England — but it can not be of long duration/ whenever a new country is settled, the native inhabitants must flee or die — there has been a herd of elk seen up the river lately and Mr Williams tells me 3 day's ago he saw a large number of Buffaloe. I hope we shall have a slap at some of them, while heading the table yesterday, one of the petty chiefs of the Delaware tribe of Indians came to me — saying "how do you do Brother Yanky." I answered him and placed him on my left, and was much pleasd with the simplicity of this savage/ he eat freely and when we drank the toast would labour hard to speak them, but, he made poor work of it.^^ when they fired the cannon on the toast of Governer St Clair — etc. it ^^The two sentences ending here are subjected to considerable editing, in Edes HPSO 1788, 81: "I answered him politely, and then seated him on my left [and was much pleased with the simplicity of this savage]. He ate with a healthy appetite; but when we began driiiking the toasts, he labored with all his might to speak them, but made rather a ridiculous piece of work of it." 62 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY made him start — the noise of Cannon is disagreeable to an Indians ears — ^* a particuliar description of this memorable day is it not written in the book's of the cronicle's of the sons of Muskingum — Sunday, July 6: This morning rose at 3, and went to writing with six stout fellows snoring round me — ^^ I wrote an hour and a half, then recollecting Joseph and Ransford*'^ have been complain- ing several days, I weighed out 3 oz glauber salts and dissolved them in water, then waked them, and made them share the dose, only I came in for a third. This gave us all a good cleansing, which I suppose we needed/^ we had a fine shower this morning and after it a delightful day.^* I will here make some observations on our passage down the river — from fort Pitt, in eight hours we went to little Beaver, 48 [43] miles, in 6 more, to Coxe's fort, 33 miles and in 3/2 more, we arriv'd at Wheeling, 16 miles, this 92 miles in 17/o hours — we went from Wheeling at 9 in the evening and at 3 o clock Monday AM. landed at Muskingum in good order — 12 miles beyond Wheeling is a place called Grave creek,^^ where is an artificial mount in the form of a sugar loaf, seventy feet high and 300 round at the base, tis a repository of dea'd bodies.^" 6 miles farther down is Boggs Island,^^ we pass'd a number of small Islands, and some pretty large one's/ Zane's of Wheeling, has a fine Island opposite his house ^*This sentence is about the same in Edes Marietta 1788, 54, but in Edes HPSO 1788, 81, it becomes: "The roar of a cannon is as disagreeable to an Indian as a rope is to a thief, or broad daylight to one of your made-up beauties." 45At this point in Edes Marietta 1788, 54, and Edes HPSO 1788, 81, is added: "and making -music to accompany the scratch of the pen." *^Joseph Williams and Joseph Ransford. See footnote for entry for April 14, 1 788, above. *"To this point, except for the first sentence, this entry does not appear in MS 1788. For this portion, Edes Marietta 1788, 54, is used. *^At this point, in Edes Marietta 1788, 54, is added: "/ think I have done more writing today than ever I did in one day in my life." ^^Empties into the Ohio River at Moundsville, West Virginia. ^"Called the Mammoth Mound or the Grave Creek Mound. At present Mounds- ville, West Virginia. Delf Norona, Moundsville' s Mammoth Mound (Mounds- ville, West Virginia, 1954); Wallace, Thirty Thousand Miles with Hecke- welder, 231. ^^Up the Ohio River a short distance from Powhatan Point, Belmont County, Ohio. MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL 63 and finely brought too — ^^ the river Ohio is about 400 yards broad, and very handsome Monday, July 7 : Showers from the westward, it has raind every day since I came here. I am told by some travellers, that the Southern States are deluged with water so as to injure their crops, we have drawn the city lots to day. the men at work on the house Tuesday, July 8 : my men clearing land, nothing worth noting took place Wednesday, July 9 : Dined with General Harmar, and view'd his garden, which I have not seen for a fortnight, the alteration is amazing, the vegetation more rapid than I had any idea of. the garden is quite full notwithstanding the constant use from it. cab- bages allmost large enough for winter, green corn, potatoes etc. — this is the birthday of the western world, at eleven his Excellency Governer St Clair arriv'd at the garrison, his landing was an- nounced by the discharge of 14 Cannon, and all rejoiced at his coming, my hunter kill'd yesterday a fine Buffalo of 600 wt. he also kill'd 5 deer, one wolf and 3 turkeys, this man make 20^. pr per day by hunting, on an averidge — Thursday, July 10: Wind S west, rainy, the streets very muddy, sow'd a number of small seeds to day. find my grape shoots alive — ^^ Friday, July 1 1 : a. delightful day. all hands employ'd on the house, this is an arduous undertaking, and will cost more than I intended — I am building this house from several motives 1st for the benifit of the settlement, 2d from a prospect of gain in the tav- ern, 3d as an asylum for myself, my family, and friends, 4th as a place where I can leave my stores and baggage in safty, and lastly to gratify, my ambition, this house is 36 feet long, 18 wide and 15 high a good cellar and drain, and is the first built at Marietta — ^^ ^^"3 miles long and % wide . . . and has some fine plantations on it." Wallace, Thirty Thousand Miles with Heckewelder, 224. °''This sentence in Edes HPSO 1788, 83, is altered to: "little grape-shoots, set out so?ne time ago, I find alive." ^"•Prima-facie evidence of editing by Edes can also be cited in this day's entry. After he copied it in ink into Edes Marietta 1788, 55-56, almost as it occurs in MS 1788, he penciled in words above some of the entry. Above "prospect" appears "hope"; above "gain" is "hereafter"; over "myself, my family" is 64 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Saturday, July 12: excellent weather, at 12 o clock Major Lunt" and 7 men, arrivd here from N. England, they came down the river in two canoes lash'd together, nothing remarkable this day Sunday, July 13 : I rose as usual at 3 o clock, and after wash- ing etc. took my pen and went to writing which I continued with litde intermission all day. Mr Tufts violent home sick, to prevent the creatures dying, I have consented he shall return home and he sets off tomorrow — at 9 this morning, receivd disagreeable news from Mr Duncan at the Council House up the Muskingum, the messengers came in 24 hours, with letters etc. a party of Tawwaw [Ottawa] Indians had fird upon the men at that place and killd 5.^^ they were fir'd on by the people and lost 3. this was done early Saturday morning, they intended killing all the men and taking possession of the stores etc. but miss'd their aim.^^ on receiving this news our large Boat, and Hulens long boat, were sent immediately up the river, I hope they will go and come safe — Monday, July 14 : all at work on my house, eat green peas for dinner which were planted just five weeks ago. all my vegetables grow amazingly Tuesday, July 15: fine weather, employ'd as usual. At 4 o clock PM. the Governor and Judges came over, when their com- missions were read — etc.^^ Wednesday, July 16: wind S West, all my men at work on the house. I help them all I can but my time is much taken up with public business. I have had a present of Potatoes of this years "should we ever want it"; and over "ambition. The house" is "foolish I sup- pose it is." In Edes HPSO 1788, 83, these changes are incorporated and addi- tional editing is done. ^^Probably Daniel Lunt. See Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 61, 6 In., 65, and 65n. ^^The military escort had consisted of two non-commissioned officers and twenty privates. Letter, Harmar to , Fort Harmar, June 15, 1788, in Smith, St. Clair Papers, II, 45n. ^"For another account of this incident and its implications, see letter, St. Clair to secretary of war. Fort Harmar, July 13, 1788, in ibid., II, 50-51; and letter, St. Clair to Richard Butler, Fort Harmar, July 15, 1788, in ibid., II, 52-53. ^^The ceremonies of this day officially inaugurated civil government in the Northwest Territory under the Ordinance of 1787. Parsons and Varnum were two of the three judges of the Northwest Territory. MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL 65 growth that were large and fine, they had them at the Garrison 8 days ago. Doctr. Downer^^ and his gang arriv'd to day Thursday, July 17 : Wind at West and very hot. my building going on smartly/ I waited on the Governor in company with Colo Sprout and Mr Fearing as committee from the people, with an answer to the Governors address, were receivd most graciously, spent an hour with him and returnd. I spent the afternoon in re- connoitering the country, the 4th time I have been out on this business. Friday, July 18: rose at my usual hour, and saw a delightful morning and went to writing, in about % of an hour I heard a noise like thunder, laid down my pen and went out to gaize — saw a heavy black cloud coming from the west which marchd smart/ it soon raind very hard, accompanied with hard thunder and consid- erable wind, this lasted two hours, but cleard away delightfully pleasant Saturday, July 19 : Wind at S. West, the air clear as aether — this day finishd laying up the house and put on the roof. I hope in a few days I shall be able to remove from my ship Muskingum into the mansion house, the heavy business of raising was accom- plished without any accident, for which I am truly thankful, went on board an hour earlier than usual, having accomplished this business/ drank wives and Sweethearts, and to bed early — Sunday, July 20: Wind N. West pretty cold but clear/ at 3 o clock AM. just as I shook off sleep, I look'd up the river Mus- kingum, and saw the Union, and Contractors Boats returning deeply loaded with stores and men. this was a pleasing sight, these boats were push'd 8 [80] miles up stream, and eighty back in seven days, besides staying one day there, they found our people in great distress, the Indians had returnd again, having sent for their War- riers to come to their assistance and make plunder of the whole, but the boats arriv'd time enough to resque the men and took 6 savages prisoners — which they brought down with them — at 1 1 o clock Mr Daniel Breck — began the sabbath exercLses — by singing ^^Eliphalet Downer, agent and shareholder in the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 23n., 43; Benton, "Side Lights," 114-115. 66 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY praying, and preaching/ the place of worship was our Bowry, on the bank directly over my ship — the people assembled from the garrison from Virginia with our own people to the number of 300 — there were some Women and Children, which seem'd quite strange to us — Mr B. made out pretty well — the singing excellent — Bil- lings®" to perfection. Governor St Clair was much pleasd with the whole of the exercise — Monday, July 21 : when I rose this morning the moon shone as bright as day/ after washing I took a walk among the huts, wait- ing to have it light enough to write — at 3, I waked Downer, and took a walk with him. this is the first time I have had an opportu- nity to talk with him alone — I found him as wild as ever — a legiti- mate son of Don Quixote — he does not know what he wou'd be after, therefore he wall flutter up and down the river a little while, and return home just as wise as he came — there are 5 hands at work on the house two playing whipsaw and the rest choreing in the woods — such as felling trees from 3 to five feet through — I receivd a blow on my head this aft. from the fall of a small block from the top of my house, it nearly stun'd me — but the blood gush'd out freely, which gave me ease, it is a bad cut however, the block fell 25 feet Tuesday, July 22: a meeting of the agents on special busi- ness — not able to attend on account of my head/ tis a fine day — doctr Downer and the Gentlemen with him went up the river Ohio — to reconnoitre the 5th and 6th ranges of townships — *^^ Wednesday, July 23: Young Williams*^" caught a Cat fish, that weigh' d 49 lb/ this is the largest I have seen, every evening there are large squads of fish playing round the boat. I dare say 20 or 30 bbls in a gang — they resemble Herring, and are at least, 1700 miles from salt water — my head troublesome to day — Henry Williams alarm' d us to day when he retumd from Virginia shore. he brought intelligenc that our settlement was to be attackd this ®° William Billings, a contemporary American composer who published several collections of hymn tunes and anthems. Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians (New York, 1940), 107. ^^Surveyed under the provisions of the land Ordinance of 1785. ^^Henry H. Williams, Jr. See note for entry for June 20, 1788, above. MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL 67 night, by 3 strong parties of Chippawaw Indians, said to be com- ing to release our prisoners, we sent this information to the garri- son, but it provd false, at Boston we are alarmd with fires and inundations — here the Indians answer the same purpose — wherever we go we must expect to meet with trouble — Thursday, July 24: fine weather, and work enough, with will- ing hearts to do it. we have now plenty of roots and vegetables — from our o\vn industry. I dare say not a market in the world can produce a greater plenty than we shall have this fall — or variety of vegetables — what makes it more extradinary is that these grow, on land where six weeks ago stood the lofty trees of the forest — Friday, July 25: Yesterday employd in finishing the house, was so well to day I went to see what proficiency they had made in my absence/ upon examination I find but little done — I seperated my men into small parties and appointed each his station, glaz'd my windows for the house — found my glass which I packd at Bos- ton all whole — Venison and Turkeys are now plenty and good, a number of Indians from different nations came in to day — some with messages that they will attend the treaty — Saturday, July 26: oblig'd to attend agents meeting, the weather clear and serene but hot — it has raind for several days yet the river is low. the Ohio moves on sluggishly, the Muskingum trip's on as nimble as sprightly as a Miss in her teens — I have been meditating a return home for several day's — and altho I have improv'd every opportunity all summer in writing yet I have dou- bled my dilligence since I have thought of going home — my house almost done — Sunday, July 27 : rose at the usual hour, and plung'd into the river, it lookd so tempting I could not refrain, and felt myself much refreshd — I saw a flock of yellow birds flying over my head, and call'd them when they light quite near me/ Mr Breck preach'd again. Mr Battelle and H H Williams undertook to bake some beans and burnt them to coals — Monday, July 28: rose at 3, and walkd thro the village — waked some of the inhabitants with whom I did business — at 5 o clock AM. as I was cleaning my rifle in the fore part of my boat 68 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY I heard a confused noise of men and dogs at the garrison and two guns were fire'd/ this drew my attention, and I saw two Indians tumbling over a fence into a field of com — it prov'd to be two of the prisoners who had made their escape/''^ the centinels who had charge of them, was tried by court martial and whipp'd an hun- dred lashes in the evening Tuesday, July 29: rose early and dispach'd my men on vari- ous business — at 7 o clock, in company with general Putnam and Mr Rice, went into the wilderness to reconnoitre, the country, we were well arm'd, in case of attack — and determin'd to defend our- selves/ we went out from the city 7 miles keeping the Muskingum on our left then stood east 2 miles, and then homeward/ we got home about 4 o clock well tir'd. we found the land excellent good in general, in our rout we started 3 deer and two flocks of turkies — Wednesday, July 30: on a reconnoitring party — retumd at 3. I am now on the eve of returning home with anxious desire to see my family Thursday, July 31 : last evening the Governor sent the Police officer to inform us We must keep a good look out, as there were 3 parties of Indian warriors out some intended against our settle- ment/ we doubled our guards and went to rest — Friday, August 1 and Saturday, August 2 : rose at the old hour and walk'd in the bowery alone — we begin now to knock down the boat to make flooring for the house/ while I walk'd in the bow'ry I had leisure to look back on the time I have spent here, and on close examination I am satisfied that I have done my duty — that I have left nothing undone that was within reach of my feeble arm — at 5 I was joind by Judge Parsons, when we talkd till six debating on the publick and companys business — then went to breakfast and sent my men to labour but I must employ the whole day in writing/ went over the river in the evening and visited Mrs Wil- liams — ®* also made a visit also to General Harmar, and was intro- ®^These were two of six Indians captured after their party attacked the council house up the Muskingum River where the treaty council was to have been held. See entry for July 13, 1788, above; and Denny, Journal, 326. ®*Mrs. Isaac Williams. See entry for June 21, 1788, above. MARIETTA PIONEER AND OHIO COMPANY OFFICIAL 69 duced to old Pipes chief of the Delaware tribe and his suite acting like the offspring of Satan — they did not stay long before they went to their camp in the woods — and I crossd the river to my lodging. I got but little rest. The Indians made one of their hellish Pow wows, — which lasted till my hour of rising/ I have no doubt in my mind that Psalmody had its origin in heaven, and my faith is as strong that the music of these savages was first taught in Hell — ^^ I got some sleep about two — when I suppose this music ceased — ^^Edes transcribed this as "in hell," in Edes Marietta 1788, 62-63; but he changed it to "in a place the exact opposite," for publication in Edes Article 1788, 22, and in Edes HPSO 1788, 95. CHAPTER 3 RETURN TO THE EAST, 1788 Sunday, August 3 : rose at 3 o clock — and put myself in order for embarkation, the groupe I am to go up the river with, are all officers, and all men, consequently any little matter propos'd takes an hour to determine, every one must speak upon it. I confess my patience was exhausted before we set out. we did not quit the key of Marietta till half past eight/ our crew consists of Mr Bird, Vose, Carey, Brown, Gridley, Biscow, and myself, in rowing we reliev'd regularly and frequently, and, without anything material arriv'd in a small creek about sun set, where we slept Monday, August 4: As tired of laying on the ground, as I was last night of rowing at 9, call all hand's, and in an hour we again ply'd the oar's constantly till night, except while eating, nothing material happen' d — I could not avoid remarking the beauty of the river, on which we were/ on each side a most delightful prospect of alternate Hills and vallies a prospect calculated to excite wonder and admiration, we halted a little after sunset and made our bed in the wilderness — having come against wind and tide 33. miles — Tuesday, August 5 : waked the men at the usual hour, and in a short time set our wooden sails at work/ the river rose during the night upwards of 3. feet, in 8. hours, this made the currant stronger, and the work harder to row against stream. I came very near being hit by a rattle snake of an enormous seize [sic\. I struck at him with a stick which broke in my hand, leaving about a foot. I recollected myself and sprung off — we arrived at Wheeling about sunset — properly tir'd/ this rowing very wearisome and I am determind to quit it, Wednesday, August 6: having agreed with a Virginian to con- vey me and my baggage to Washington, I settled with Bird and the Boats crew, and at one o clock set out in company with Mr Carey, while travelling in the woods I frequently eat of the May apple — which is very agreeable, the flavour much resembling a Pine apple/ blackberry of an excellent quality are plenty in these woods but the 70 RETURN TO THE EAST, 1788 71 pawpaw, is the most agreeable rich fruit I have found in this coun- try. I pluckd a limb to day which had 5. of them growing/ so handsome, I have attempted to make a draught of them. I dined to day at Zane's and at half past two mounted on a pack horse, in company with friend Carey, on another of equal beauty, and stood head foremost for the wilderness of sin, lying between Wheeling and Washington, 'tis not worth while to attempt a description of our appearance, but Don Quixote did not appear to greater advan- tage, when he undertook the expedition against the windmill, we went on for 6 hours and an half hours without dismounting/ at 6 we arriv'd at a little hovel, where the host and hostess seem'd glad to see us. they flung chairs, swept house, and talkd as fast as pos- sible, nothing could exceed the dexterity of their tongues which ran both together without intermission till bed-time — in the course of this days ride, I saw a Httle box on the road side (but seven miles from any house, I could see) something like a centry box, but standing on four pillars — on inquiry we were told it was a pulput — and that thither the people went to worship the God of Jacob, as all the earth is his temple, 'tis not an improper place of worship — near this place is cut the boundary line running North, between Pensilvania, and Virginia, up to lake Erie, the trees for a space of 40 feet wide all cut away and it is to appearance a most magnifi- cent gang way — Thursday, August 7 : set off from our Hovel, at 4 o clock, and at half past 8— arrivd at Maj'r Cornish's^ in Washington [Penn- sylvania] where we breakfasted, this is an excellent house, and where our New England men, put up — it was with difficulty we procur'd Nags, to carry us to Kirgingdalls, where I left my horse in the spring, at last we had them paraded, and at half past two set out. I felt pretty queer, mounted on my Rosinante, about 1 3 hand's high, his head almost as large as his whole body, his gait was more extraordinary than his looks, for with his fore leggs he trotted well, but at the same time his hind leg's were at a good canter, and when weary, his fore legs would canter and his hind ones trott. we had a dreary time thro' a wilderness, where no inhabitants were hardy ^Perhaps this is McCormick. See Backus, Memoir, 30. 72 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY enough to pitch their cabin's, the road or rather path, was much clutter' d by the fall of trees and we were puzzled by innumerable paths, leading to the right and left as large as the one we were in. I always kept straight forward, and was fortunate in taking the right/ I was often apprehensive of being in a wrong track, but it being a maxim with me, never to go back, I persever'd, and was rewarded, after a multitude of little difficulties we arrived safe at Capt. Heaths where we slept the night — Friday, August 8: rose at 4 and set off directly, breakfasted at Kirkingdall's.^ settled with him, took my own horse and came on to Simmerells ferry ^ where I found myself hard press' d by a cold I caught the night before, in travelling in the bottom of the creek, near Heaths — here I took a sweat, which relievd me very much. Mrs. Simmerill told me a story, which was confirm'd by others, that on the 29th of June, there was a terrible gust which laid waste the forests, and cornfields, the hail stones were as large as ducks eggs; and one piece fell four feet square, and nine inches thick, the hail on a level was several feet deep — this gust came from the N. west and went to the S. east. Saturday, August 9:1 was in a weak and low condition, spent the day at Simmerells. Mr Cutler'* and 9 other Gentlemen arrived here, also Majr Gushing,^ and his family, by them I receivd 3 packets of letters, amounting in all to fifteen, which having perus'd till almost midnight, I made a flaming pyramid of them in honor of the authors. I made use of Brother Gravaths^ letter to kindle the pile, being full of reproach against Marietta and its inhabitants — ^At present Elizabeth. See entry for May 9, 1788, above, and note for May 5, 1 788, entry, above. ^At present West Newton. See entr)' for May 5, 1 788, above. ■*Manasseh Cutler was one of the founders, a director, an agent, and a stock- holder of the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I and II, passim; Cutler, Life of Cutler, I and II, passim; Benton, "Side Lights," 1 14-1 15. Cutler records May's arrival at this place in his journal. Manasseh Cutler, "Journal of Rev. Manassah [sic] Cutler, LL. D., 1788," New England Historical and Genealogical Register, XIV (1860), 234; Cutler, Life of Cutler, I, 406. ^Nathaniel Cushing, shareholder in the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Com- pany, I, 6, 6n. ^Probably Lemuel Cravath, a merchant who married a sister of Mrs. May, hence a brother-in-law. May, Genealogy, 9, 1 1, and 1 In. RETURN TO THE EAST, 1788 73 Sunday, August 10: 'tho late to bed — yet as I had but little comfort there I rose at 4. and set off in an hour, cross' d the [Youghiogheny] river on horse back, being very low, and after travelling 3 miles — heard that Isaac Lucas lived 2 miles off. I went and took breakfast with him. found him in a very agreeable re- treat, gave him some letters, and left him. while I went to see Lucas, my partner went on to have his horse shod, and I did not overtake him for several hour's, this is the first Sabbath I have had leisure to think since I left home. I was insensibly led into a chain of retrospective contemplation/ I look'd back on that fertile terri- tory, where I had pass'd my summer, that delightful country whose swelling soil, will doubly reward the industrious planter, water' d by constant refreshing showers and dews as well as by majestick rivers, what tho "the Heathen rage, the People imagine vain things" and savage nations roar and yell in midnight revels round our Campus Martious — yet feet shall stand, for our bow is bent in strength, and our arm's made strong by the power of the mighty God — thro' his strength we have laid the foundation of a mighty empire, thither shall the people assemble together^ slept to night on the laurel mountain's/^ before I went to bed eat too freely of cucumbers — which hurt me — here I experienced a material alteration in the weather, 'tho a hot day, yet a cold night, and the air so thick, it hurt my breathing "The portion of this paragraph starting with "I look'd back," to this point, is a good illustration of how Edes sometimes got carried away in changing or trying to polish what May wrote. In Edes Marietta 1788, 67, it reads: "In reverie I retraced the way to that masterpiece of Almighty creation where I had spent my Summer, [that de- lightful country] where swelling sails and large returns from the teeming soil will ever doubly reward the industrious planter;— watered as it is by refreshing showers and dews fro7n heaven, as well as by majestic and beautiful rivers. What though the heathen rage, [the People imagine vain things] and savage nations roar and yell in midnight hellish revels [round our Campus Alartious], Our feet still nevertheless stand fast, for our bow is bent in strength, and our arm made strong by the [power of the] Mighty God of Jacob. Through his strength have we laid the foundation of our City, thither shall the people assemble together, thither shall the tribes go up to worship, to worship the mighty God of Israel." ^May was returning on the Glade Road, the one which he had taken westward in the spring. See note for entry for May 2, 1 788, above. 74 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Monday, August 11: get up at 3. without reluctance having rested but little, the morning very cold, considerable frost in the glade's/ travelled all day in these mountains, slept on dry ridge, 36 miles from where we started in the morning — Tuesday, August 12: I slept last night on the floor, my bed not enticing enough, to keep me long. I got up at 3. and made ready as fast as possible, was obliged to move smart to keep from freezing, these mountains are always extreme hot, or cold, which last is most common/ slept at sideling ridge,^ tho' pesterd to find a house to entertain us — Wednesday, August 13 : awak'd about 2 o clock — their is not a window in this house/ I lay and watch'd the under crack of the door till day break — when I arose and calld my friend Carey — and set off directly — breakfasted at fort Lydeton" at Mr Kurd's," in an elegant manner, on fine coffee loaf sugar, venison, and Bacon ham, and smoakd shad, from thence cross' d the North mountain and slept at Captn Rippes — ^^ in stile — after a fine supper of beef steaks, and nick nacks — the state of Pensylvania have been at a great expence to make roads over these terrible mountains/ a Mr. Skinner" has received £700 for making a road over the North mountain, and £750 over sideling ridge — ^^ the last of these moun- tains which we cross'd to day affords the most delightful prospect I ever beheld, the eye was fully satisfied, nothing to interrupt the ^May once again was on the Forbes Road on which he had traveled westward in the spring. He stayed on it this time, however, eastward to CarHsle and beyond. See note for entry for May 1, 1788, above. ^°Fort Littleton is in northern Fulton County. The fort was established in 1756, during the French and Indian War, to protect settlers and to prevent further Indian difficulties. Buckalew, Report of the Commission to Locate the Site of the Frontier Forts of Pennsylvania, I, 555-558. ^^Captain Burd. Wallace, Thirty Thousand Miles with Heckewelder, 400; entry for July 12, 1786, in journal of John Matthews, in Hulbert, Ohio in the Time of the Confederation, 188. ^^At Shippensburg in western Cumberland County. Backus, Memoir, 18; let- ter, May to Mrs. May, Shippensburg, May 15, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 97-98. ^^See entry for May 16, 1789, below. ^''This was probably for the Pennsylvania Road that the state was then build- ing which followed much of Forbes Road. Guidebook to Historic Places in Western Pennsylvania, 161. RETURN TO THE EAST, 1788 75 sight which was bounded only by the horizon, however when we descended into the plain country the fields did not look so promis- ing as I expected, not owing to any deficiency of the soil, but the indolence of the planters — Thursday, August 14: notwithstanding our elegent lodging, we rose at the usual hour, and pursued our journey, rode 14 miles and breakfasted at Samples — (seven miles from Carlisle) were well entertaind. the country thro which we have travell'd since we left the mountains abounds with lime stone and waterd with living springs, we dined at a poor tavern, then rode 16 miles and cross'd the Susquehannah. slept at Harristown [Harrisburg] on the eastern bank, this place has been laid out for a town within these 3 years and has now a number of handsome brick buildings in it, and a good tavern for travellers, it is situated on a very pleasant spot, with two handsome islands in front, the river about one mile wide, there is a good market house built, and the foundation of another laid — I was so unfortunate as to have a bed which disagreed with my lungs/ they have been very irratable these several days past, from the black ropey air on this side the mountains, tis astonishing the difference between the air at Marietta and on this side the Alleghana — I made out to stay in bed till 3 o clock — it rain'd hard, from the N. east — till four, when I calld friend Carey — and set off — but it soon rain'd hard again from the S. east — while we rode to Hobbe town,^^ a distance of 9. miles/ we were well wet, Mr Carey allmost sick and his horse lame/ this is the first time I have seen rain from this quarter since April, and it affected my constitu- tion so, I was tempted to turn back again, but the attraction at Boston prevaild, and I jog'd on to the tune of 3 miles an hour, this is dull musick for a man in a hurry — travell'd all day thro' a fine fruitful country, chiefly inhabited by Dutch, who are excellent farmers, lodg this night at a little village called Wolfendolf — the english name is Middletown^^ "Probably Hummelstown in south central Dauphin County east of Harrisburg. Howell, Map of Pennsylvania; Adlum and Wallis, Map of Pennsylvania. ^^Womelsdorf Town. Adlum and Wallis, Map of Pennsylvania. "Until sixty years ago it [Womelsdorf] was known and designated in the records as Middle- town, probably from its location midway between Reading and Lebanon." 76 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Friday, August 15: Set out early as usual, our horses weary, and weather rainy, we did not travel far. much the same sort of land as yesterday — dutch planters, dutch language, and dutch food — to do them justice I must say, their bread, and butter excells any I ever eat. whoever may chance to read this Journal, will find many errors of spelling inditing [indenting?], and many sentances omitted — to apologise for which I must say, it is written at all times in all places among all sorts of people/ where I am now penning this day's work, there are seven pair of Dutch men and women — in high glee, they all talk and yell together and 'tho when I set down I intended to mind my own business, yet they make such a noise I must e'n [even?] quit — Saturday, August 16: had a good nights rest — calld my part- ner at the usual hour rode 11 miles to Redding, and breakfasted, from thence 15 miles and put up for the night.^^ Sunday, August 17 : rose this morning at 3 o clock, and went 14 miles to Bethlehem to breakfast, we were receivd by some of the brotherhood, in a most hospitable manner, particularly by Mr Hickerwelder,^^ who was for severel years a missionary amongst the moravians Indians — he paid particular attention to us, invited us to go to meeting with him/ I accordingly went, but to give a just description of the beauties of this agreeable day is far beyond my abillity. yet I must say that when I enter' d the Hall where they were worshiping, it struck me with amazement to behold at one view upwards of sixty beautiful little girls, seated in regular order, Morton L. Montgomery, History of Berks County, Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, 1886), 874. Womelsdorf is in west central Berks County. It should not be confused with the present town of Middletown which is a few miles southeast of Harris- burg. "Edes Marietta 1788, 70, and Edes HPSO 1788, 108, both note that several lines are erased at this point. There is no indication of this in MS 1788. ^^John Heckewelder had more than a common interest in the Marietta enter- prise and was undoubtedly anxious to get as good a picture as possible of the progress being made. Congress had granted land to the Moravian Indians and he wanted them surveyed as soon as possible. Less than a month after May's stop in Bethlehem, Heckewelder journeyed to Marietta and vicinity. For his journal on this occasion, see Wallace, Thirty Thousand Miles with Hecke- welder, 219-2^3. RETURN TO THE EAST, 1788 77 all clad in white muslin or cambrick, with pink ribbon in a large bow round their necks, with close cap's — there were as many of an older class, and two classes older still, all in white and all chanting their Makers praise — in concert with an elegant organ, the big tear swelld in my eye — and I was all ear, all attention. I could not avoid comparing it in my own mind to what able divines have described the Kingdom of Heaven to — sometimes^^ they appearing to me like the saints, just disburdened from their clog of earth, and ar- rayed in their white robes praising the Author of Goodness. I went to my lodgings at 12, in raptures. It was not long be- fore we had a formal invitation to attend the love-feast in the after- noon, which was gladly accepted. I was punctual to the time, which was 2 o'clock. The observance of a feast of this sort is a privilege the young misses have every 1 7th of August. It happened this year on Sunday. The little ones were more numerous this afternoon than in the forenoon, and excelled in beauty any thing the most fruitful imagination could suggest. After they had chanted their hymns for about an hour, the great doors were swung open, and three pairs of maiden ladies appeared — each pair bringing between them a basket filled with large cakes, which they handed round to each miss and elderly lady. Soon after came in two of the brothers, and in like manner handed the cakes to the gentlemen. And then withdrawing, in a short time all returned with salvers of excellent coffee, and handed it round. This ceremony over, they sang again, and then there was an anthem which rolled off finely; and the assembly broke up. I was then introduced to the governess, a very polite and agreeable lady, who waited on us to all the different apartments. I was extremely pleased with the order and regularity of the place, and having seen about all that was to be seen, returned to my lodgings. Monday, August 18: A rainy morning, but I got up at my usual hour, and, finding none up, went to bed again. This a prodigi- ous rainy day. There was one intermission which I improved in reconnoitring the place. Found many conveniences and curiosities, but the greatest is their water-works. They have a machine like a ^^This is the end of MS 1788. From this point Edes Marietta 1788 is used. 78 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY mill that goes by water, which is constantly going, and carries three very large pumps, which are so constructed as to throw the water through a leaden pipe up a hill more than 150 ft. in height into a large reservoir, in which a cistern that receives the water, and from thence conveyed all over the town to their kitchens and cellars. It has rained prodigiously all day, so that I have not been able to go out at all. The house filled with officer and soldiers bound for Fort [Hanover?]. "° Went to bed at 1 1 o'clock. Tuesday, August 19: Rained excessively all night. Things so wet outside, and the house so filled inside that the air got used up many times over, without a sufficient supply of fresh. So that when I laid down to sleep I could not use it, and was obliged, to get up, and dress me, then go down into the great entry and sleep on the floor. I made out to get about 3 hours sleep. When the reveille beat, I got up, and walked the entry for two hours. It never rained harder. This properly the August storm. Continued to rain and blow harder and harder till 1 o'clock, P.M., when it cleared up. At 3 we set off for Easttown, where we crossed the Delaware, 1 2 miles from Bethlehem. The river rising amazingly. Went 6 miles this side of the river [into New Jersey], and put up, being somewhat tired, and thoroughly wet by the rear guard of the storm, which we un- fortunately fell in with. Wednesday, August 20: We had poor entertainment, but that suits me best. I slept pretty well, and rose in good season. Set out in high spirits, but was soon brought up. The late storm had raised the rivers, so as to sweep away the bridges and many mills. So that we made out but a poor day's work. In some places we were obliged to swim our horses. At others could touch bottom. The roads so washed that our poor weary horses were obliged to travel on sharp pebbles. We were on our horses 12 hours, and travelled only 36 miles. Thursday, August 21 : Last night I lay in a lower room, with two window sashes and no glass. The landlady had pinned up cloths to prevent the air coming in; but in the night one of them blew down, and I was awaked by a strong wind from the North, -oThis becomes "Harmer" in Edes HPSO 1788, 111. It is Fort Harmar. RETURN TO THE EAST, 1788 79 which blowed right on me, and almost hard enough to take off the bed-clothes. I was nearly stiff when I awoke. I however got up, and secured the windows as well as I could, and thumped round to circulate my blood; but took, nevertheless, a terrible cold, which I expect will last me to New England. Breakfasted at Morristown, Dined at Elizabeth-town point."^ I came this way in order to save our horses, whose feet have become so sore and tender travilling over pebbles that I found they would not stand it to New York. From here we shall go on a ferry boat 15 miles to the city. When the sun was an hour high, set out on our water passage. There are 7 gentlemen, 4 horses, and a dozen hogs on board. The ferryman says he will land us in New York in two hours. Friday, August 22: A tedious night out. Out all night hard down to the Narrows,"" then back again; but at 8 o'clock arrived safe at my old friend Harding's, who was glad to see me. Here I must tarry a few days to rest my horse, clean up, and do a little business."^ However, I mean to make my stay as short as possible. Spent the fore part of the day in writing, and the afternoon with Col Piatt, who attended closely to the business I had with him."^ I found by looking into the treasurer's book that some of the agents have been very deficient in making payment. Col Piatt has received from the several agents only $660,800 23/90 and in bounty rights 38,400 699,200 23/90 So that there is due from the agents 300,799 67/90 $1,000,000 This is a deficiency I have been jealous of from the conduct of ^^A tavern or ferry-house was located at this point. W. Woodford Clayton, History of Union and Middlesex Counties, New Jersey (Philadelphia, 1882), 181; Lee, New Jersey, I, 294. ^-Between Staten Island and Long Island. 23May reported to Putnam that "on my way as well as since my arival here I appliyd myself to the buisness you allotted me." Letter, Boston, September 30, 1788, in Marietta College Manuscripts. ^^Statement of agency payment of about $1,000. See receipt, Piatt to May, August 22, 1788, MS in John May papers, Western Reserve Historical Society. 80 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY some of the agents; and was determined, if possible, to find it out. I shall write to friend Judge Vernon on the subject. Went to bed early, having slept none the night before. Saturday, August 23: Did double duty. Slept hard all night, and did not wake till pretty late. Breakfasted with Col. Piatt, and completed my business with him. In the meantime friend Carey having a good opportunity, went off and left me taking his de- parture in a packet to Rhode Island. I had subsisted Mr C. and Mr. Chever, and a gentleman from Rocky Hill for several days, they having no cash. But before they left New York they honorably left the money for me with friend Harding. The storm on Monday and Tuesday last did a vast deal of damage in this city; among other things ruined the grand Battery. This city is not so large as Boston, but does a great deal more busi- ness. Money plenty, owing in some measure to the residence of Congress, which brings money from all quarters. I was on board the new ship building for the East India Company. She is a fine vessel of 850 tons. Her timber live oak, cedar, and locust. Pierced for 24 guns. Sunday, August 24: Dined today with S. John Temple,"^ and went to church in the afternoon, and visited Henry Bowers"*' in the evening. Went to bed early, and slept sound. Monday, August 25: Rose early, and did some business. At 9 in the morning set off for home. Travelled all alone but industri- ously all day, and arrived at Knapp's at Horse Neck [Connecticut] about sunset, where I slept. The storm has done immense damage, unroofing houses, and blowing some down, destroyed corn fields, and filled the wells brimfull of water, so as to make it difficult to get any fit to drink. Tuesday, August 26: At 12 o'clock at night I was waked by a severe thunder gust, which lasted till morning. I got but little sleep. Had something of the asthma. But set out early. This is the hottest day I have felt this season. My horse and I complain much; but 25Consul General of Great Britain to the United States. Cutler, Life of Cutler, I, 234n. 260ne of the landholders in May's agency. Benton, "Side Lights," 141. RETURN TO THE EAST, 1788 81 must persevere. I find the hurricane has been exceedingly severe all along the Sound," how far back in the countr)' is unknown. Stopt at Clark's, in Milford. Wednesday, August 27 : Rose at 4 o'clock. Found the people dead with sleep. It was with great difficulty I could raise them, and when up were but one remove from death. It took me till 5 o'clock before I got under way. I crowded all the sail I could, it being a fine clear morning. In two hours arrived at New Haven, where I breakfasted. This was going 4/2 knots an hour. From thence to Wallingford, 13 miles, and took an early dinner. Set out again at 125/2 P.M. This is a most dehghtful day, and I intend to improve it. Went from Wallingford to Haddam, where slept.^® Thursday, August 28: Crossed the Connecticut river before sunrise, labored hard all day, and slept 4 miles to Eastward of Windham Court House, after having supped on boiled corn and drank freely of cider. Friday, August 29: Set off at 4 o'clock in the morning. My horse moving slowly. These long journeys abate the ardor of both man and beast. Breakfasted at Griffin's, paid a visit to Doctor Lord in Abington, and at 12 o'clock, arrived at my native place in Pom- fret. This has been an exceedingly hot day. Went to bed early. Saturday, August 30: The last night by far the hottest I have seen yet. Had insect companions to share the bed with me whose company was not agreeable, but about day-break they left me, hav- ing revilled all night. I soon dropt asleep, and had rest for two hours. Went to amuse myself fishing, and came back tired. Sunday, August 31 : Went to bed early. My old visitors came for a second sup, but were not so hungry as the night before. I made out to sleep a little, but got up early. I was too unwell to go to meeting; and calling to mind the commandment which says six days shalt thou labor and rest the seventh, with thy horse, etc. I thought best to obey. Monday, September 1 : Went up in town, and did some busi- ness. Dined at brother Ithamar's, then removed, bag and baggage, 2'^Long Island Sound. ^^Probably at Green's Tavern. Sec entry for April 26, 1789, below. 82 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY to sister Prudy's,^'' from whence it is my design to take a new de- parture for Boston. Had a good night's sleep, and felt refreshed in the morning. Tuesday, September 2 : Staid and amused myself the forenoon. Got dinner, and at 2 o'clock set off in company with a beautiful damsel bound to Bellingham. Stopt for the night at Taft's, in Ux- bridge. I mention this companion because she is the only company I have had since leaving New York. Wednesday, September 3: Rose early, called up my little fel- low traveller, and set off, and rode smartly to Smith's tavern to breakfast, where I left my companion, and stood on alone. Arrived at my own house a little after sunset. Selah. 20See entry for December 14, 1789, below. PART TWO THE JOURNAL OF 1789 CHAPTER 4 THE JOURNEY WEST, 1789 Thursday, April 23, 1789: having aranged and setded my affairs at Boston and ship'd goods for Baltimore in the Schoner Rosanna[,] Joseph Field Commdr^ at half past seven in the morn- ing I left Boston in Co with Mr Wm Breck" on a Tour to Marietta and Kentuckey in the Ohio Countrey.^ and in 2/2 hours arived at Colemain Tavern in Dedham 13 from B. where we Oated our horses and tarried one hour for the arival of Doct Downer. Sett off from this place at 1 1 . oClock — and at 1 2 arived at Clarks — Med- field and dined/ here Downer arived and made our Company compleet/* Sett out from this place at 2 and arived at Taftes in Uxbridge 43 miles from Boston at Sunsett, where we Lodged — Friday, April 24 : Rose at 5 oClock/ it rained very hard from the South East. I accordingly went to bed again and slept an hour and half, then got up for full due [day?] but the rain increasing prevented our travilling till, after noon when it cleared up. we set off and arivd at pomfrett [Connecticut] at 7 oClock, P.M.^ Staid at Sister Sabins,® and slept sound — Saturday, April 25: at six this morning persued our Journey ^"Say Field sails Sunday 19th April and arives at Baltimore— 30th— " is writ- ten on the inside of the back cover of Debt Book 1 788. ^Owned one share in the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, II, IBln. ^Mrs. May's diary entry for this day reads: "At 7 o'clock, Mr. May and Mr. Breck set out on their tour to the Western Territory, in tolerable health and spirits, and left us rather dull." Edes, Hh Excerpts, 9. *That Downer was a member of May's 1 789 party is surprising. May's estimate of Downer recorded in his 1788 journal is not at all flattering. See entries for July 16 and 21, 1788, above. Downer had made himself even more undesirable to the Ohio Company officials by helping to stir up dissatisfaction with the Rhode Island membership. See correspondence and other documents in Benton, "Side Lights," 116-138. ^May estimated this day's travel at twenty-four miles. This and other distances indicated below are from "a List of Stages" which May made on page 63 of the first volume of MS 1789. Since they do not form part of the continuous nar- rative, the contents of this page are used to document other parts of the journal where apropos. ^Probably May's sister Mary who married Jonathan Sabin, a farmer in Pom- fret. May, Genealogy, 4, 52, and 52n. 85 86 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY tho Cold and lowerey. Breckf asted at Doctor Lords/^ Dined at Wind- ham and slept at Colchester — 98 miles from Boston/ it has bin a Verry Blusterin windy Day Sunday, April 26: Rose at 4 oCIock this morning oated our horses and sett out at 5 oClock, and in three hours arived at Moodus Coneticutt River 14 miles, here we breckf asted and ye Wind being extreem high could not Cross the river — therefore staid and kept Sabbath at greens taveron, on the East Side of the River however, at half past Three in the afternoon we cross'd the River without much difficulty/ went thro' Durham woods and at 7 in the Evening put up att Elliotts® and had good Lodgeing — Monday, April 27 : Rose at 4 oClock and persued our Journey/ Brekfasted at Browns in Newhaven/ Stayed and rested Two hours then pushed on for Fairfield where we arived at 5 o'clock in the evenin. put up at Pinfields where we had excellent Entertainment for the night, nothing remarcable has happend, to us since our departure from Boston except that the Stage sett out one hour befor us, and we ar now 23 miles ahead of them, we are now 167 miles from Boston Reconing the road we have travelled. Tuesday, April 28: Rose at the usial hour. I had a poor night. But owing to fatigue, and perhaps Eating too hasty a supper, in the night I had a most distressing dream about my Family but I was a little like Nebucadnezer for I could not remember near all of it, and haveing no south sayers, or a Daniel, I was obliged to persue my Journey with out being informed in this matter I dlonpc chuc I feamd Ns Nuy im bod aaich erd [manuscript illegible] Orishu Bleaam I aaus sclak aaich hellol umd unuzonome tullod [turrod] im San poepro ce so ic fren [flen] this nenomc I aaus im cho glucost [gloucosc] discloss salleaamdod by f uniry Temo- tiums urr im couls chis stoum I sheard Jadgo flen ny forrimgs ruscod caae heals bac I tum turr ce nimd cho hellels chele [cholo] ef.— ^ "Doctor Lord lived in Abington. See entry for August 29, 1788, above. *At Milford. May estimated this day's travel at thirty miles. ^This is the first of several paragraphs that May puts into code. In each case the passage will be deciphered and incorporated into the text in brackets fol- lowing the coded passage. Occasionally May forgets to transcribe a letter or THE JOURNEY WEST, 1789 87 [I drempt that I found Ms May in bed with old (manuscript illegible) Elisha Brown/ I was struk with horrer and amazement/ carred (called) in Sum people to se it/ flom (from) this moment I was in the gratesc (greatest) distress surrownded by family cone- cians all in tears/ this scean I should Judge from my feelings lasted two hours but I can call to mind the horrors thoro (there) of. — ] we arived at Wentworths 13 miles by half past 7 o'clock where we Breckfasted — from thence went to Hunts at Merineck^° and there Lodg'd comfortabley — Wednesday, April 29: Sett out at the usual Hour and rode 14 miles to Kings bridge and there Breckfasted at Wortles/ this is 50 miles from Penfields, in Fairfield, and 15 from New York, at one oClock we arived there in saftey,^^ my old friend Hardy^^ being full we putt at Hackerds — I wrote a few Lines to my second half in grate hast, by post, and being much fatigued went to bed early — Thursday, April 30: 232 miles from Boston/ being in a good harbour I lay and slept til Six oClock then rose and attended to buisness/ fix'd all my papers and went out to execute but the parade of the day beginning I found I could do no buisness there- fore Joined with the rest," and was attentive to this buisness. ^^ at Eleven oClock the different Corps of Troops in the Citty assembled so into code or makes a mistake in his transcription. This is duly noted and corrected in editorial brackets in the coded passage and in editorial paren- theses in the decoded passage. May wrote this particular entry on page "Y" of the second volume of MS 1789 and labeled it "U Dloun-Apr 28th-" (A Dream-Apr 28th-). It is inserted here for the sake of continuity of the journal. The presence of this passage is not noted in Edes Transcript 1789 nor in Edes PMHB 1789. i°In 1788 May stopped at Hunts in Rye. See entry for April 19, 1788, above. Perhaps "Merineck" is a variation of Horseneck. Since the latter was on the west side of the harbor at Greenwich, May perhaps confused Rye and Horse- neck which were at least near enough to confuse a stranger. He estimated this day's travel at thirty-six miles. ^^After a journey of twenty-eight miles. ^^Captain Harding? See entries for April 19, 1788, and August 22, 1788, above, ^^"therefore Joined with the rest" is rendered in Edes PMHB 1789, 105, to: "Therefore 'followed the viultitude' not 'to do evil,' but good." i4"At 9. A.M. the bells of the several churches rang for half an hour, while the congregations assembled for prayers. Meanwhile the several corps of militia were parading; and during this interval I made calls on Gen. Knox, Mr. Gerry, and Mr. Piatt." Letter, May to Mrs. May, New York, May 1, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788,95. 88 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Consisting of one Company of horse one artillery Two Grenadees and one Light Infantrey, and two BattalUon Companies/^ at 12 formed a Line and at one [P.]\L] the procession came on the Corps of Horse in front, the Committee of the day, the High Sheriff and his attendances the President and Vice president, the Senate, house of Representatives Sevr'l citizans, the artillery, Grenaders etc. the president appeard in the Gallery of the portico,^*^ introduced by the Vice president, here he receivd the oath of office/ then the troops marched off and the prosission moved on to St Pauls Church where a sermon was delivd by Bishop provo.^' I at this time retired to Dinner, where I was well entertained. — ^^ the evening was more supurb than the day if possable/ the fire works display' d, at Bowel- ling Green magnificent beyond Discription. the Spanish ambassa- dors house Illuminated in the Newest Stile, the French Do most Elligantly, the Federall Hall in a Masterly manner, and many other buildings, but the discription of the United States excelled the whole, the different fire works ware display' d off to grate advantage and to the satisfaction of an amasing Concourse of People which by the by ware the most Civil and attentive people that I ever [se?] attend on such an occation. I retired to Lodgeings at 10 oClock, and slept but poorely having got too much of the dust of the Day in my Lungs which brought on a touch of the asthmey which was augmented by the air of the Chamber in which I slept, having past thro sevral people before it came to me — ^^ ^^"the whole amounting to not more than 500 men." Ibid. ^•^"This excellent man drew the attention of all, his bearing demanded it, but I think him much altered in countenance since I saw him last." Letter, May to Mrs. May, New York, May 1, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 95. ^"Samuel Provoost, Protestant Episcopal Church. Fitzpatrick, Diaries of Wash- ington, IV, 59n. ^^The line or two commencing with "the prosission moved on to St Pauls Church" becomes, in Edes Transcript 1789, 6: "the procession reformed, and marched off to St. Paul's church, where, with other observances, a sermon was delivered by Bp. Provost. At this time a dish of good provender being more to my taste than one of theology or politics I retired to my own proper dinner, and there was well entertained." ^^The balance of this entry starting with "which brought on a touch of the asthmey" is edited, in Edes PMHB 1789, 106, to: "and brought on an asth- matic attack, which the air of the chamber was by no means fitted to allay, as to all appearance it had been breathed over many times." THE JOURNEY WEST, 1789 89 Friday, May 1 : I was glad to Rise having but little comfort in Bed/ this Day I attended to buisness,^° in N. York, and Com- pleted it by 4 in the afternoon when the Wind prevented our Crossing the ferry or else we should have sett off for Philadelphia/ as it was I stayed and slept at our old Quarters, rose at 5 oClock — Saturday, May 2: paid off our Bills etc. took a Little Breckfast and then set out in a Fery Boat from the Grand Battery for Elisa- beths Town [New Jersey]"^ where we arived after an agreeable saile of one hour and 40 minuts, a distance of fifteen miles, here Doctor D. [Downer] had buisness to attend to which detaind us two hours. Set out from Elisabeths Town and slept, at [New] Brunswick, we had one gill of sperrits with water one Bottle sider, Tea and trimmings for supper, beds to Lodge in hay and oats for our horses and paid lis. 2d. Lawfill money; this is the most Ex- travigant house we have mett with. Sunday, May 3 : Sett off from Brunk [Brunswick] at half past 5 in the morning, and rode 10 miles in one hour and 2/3d when we Breckfasted, and Rested Our horses for one hour. Then procede on Cross the Dellawar at /a past one and arived at Bristor [Bristol, Pennsylvania]^" half past three where we put up for the Night/ had an Excellent Dinour and Good Lodgeings — Monday, May 4: Sett out for Phi-a at half past 5 in the morning and at half past seven stopt at Wastermans and Breck- fasted/ from there went to Philadelphia where we arived, at half past 10 oClock A.M."^ where we stayd and Dined/ took a walk round the Citty which is much altered and grown Larger/ there are many Ellegant buildings made lately, it is Generall training here to day, but so miserable a militia my Eyes never beheld/ sum of the Companies not more than fifteen rank and file and they the refuse of Creation. A grate Contrast between 1775 and this time/ then [it?] was 5 Battallion of Uniform Troops but now only one and that artillery/ at half past. Three this afternoon we took our de- -"See statement of agency payment, May 1, 1789, MS in John May papers, Western Reserve Historical Society. -^Incorporated as Elizabeth in 1855. Clayton, Union County, 184. ^^May estimated this day's travel at thirty-six miles. -■'May estimated this as twenty miles from the stop of the night before. 90 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY parture for Baltimore and travilling three Hours steddily we arived at Chester* wher we slept Tuesday, May 5 : Sett out, ^ after five and gott to Wilming- ton [Delaware] at eight, where we Breakfasted, and at nine OClock sett out again. Dined at Hollinsworths at the head of Elks [Mary- land], and slept at Palmers at Charlstown, at the head Chese- peek Bay. Then we Breakfasted in the State of Pencilvenia. Dined in Dellawar and slept in Mariland. we slept last night as much as 18 miles within the State of Pencilvenia and slept this night 12 miles within Mariland."^ the house we are in is full and Brimming over, how we are to Lodge must be determind by and by — at 10 oClock went to bed, 4-beds in a Chamber and No Ventulator/ I soon found the air was used, twice over. I then got up and opened the only window, 6. Inches then went to bed again but the avenues thro' which My Lungs wer filled had chok'd up and air to ropey so that I was obliged to Decamp and went into the Lower Room where I sett up all night/ slept about, 2 hours but poorley/ at 4 I putt on my Boots and began to prepare for Journeying and by blustering round mad out to gitt away by 5 oClock Wednesday, May 6: Sett out for Susquehannah/ it is a Cold Windey morning/ yesterday Verry warm/ I am apt to think the season are not more forward here than at Boston/ esparagus is but Just come, the grain backward the Trees Just begining to blome the oaks beginning to burst there Buds however the Brooks are not so high as they ware Last year at this time, we Cross' d the Susquehannah at 7 oClock had a Windey time but gott safe over, breakfasted on the West side and Dined at Chimes, and slept, at. Starks in Baltimore"® Thursday, May 7: this morning rose at 6 oClock with a heavey headake. walk'd softley for several Hours, many waggons in town but none going far our way/ I am afraid I shall be obliged to Tarry here several days which will be tedious Labour/ attended ^^Fifteen miles, according to May's estimate. ^^May estimated this day's travel at forty-three miles. The last three sentences are omitted in Edes PMHB 1789, 107. 26May's estimate for this day's travel was forty-four miles. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1789 91 to settling our accoumpts/ Visited Mrs Boyd/" delivered Letters etc. went to Bed at 10. and slept midling well Friday, May 8 : rose at five/ buissily imploy'd in settling with the Naval officer and procureing teams to carry on our effects, but mony being scarce hear the people want the more and will not waggon so cheap, as they did last year.'^ therefor I have not ingaged aney as yett/ think it provable I shall nott til next week — however at Three oClock this afternoon we engaged five Waggons to take our effects to Shippinsburge a Distance of 90 miles at £3 pr Ton/ this occationed grate exertions to load 5 Tons of Small packages is so short a time however we Complected it by sunsett and young Mr Downer"^ went with the Teams — Saturday, May 9 : Spent the fore part of this day settling our accoumpts draughting the articalls of agreement^" and Signing them, the after part of the Day I spent in selling £ s. d. Linn Shoes 128 pr JF.'^ for 3^. pr. pair amounting to 8 Dozen Iron Shovells @ 4J.^^ Sum Cloverseed to amt. 2 Casks Cheese Keggs and Charge. £58 15^. 7d. 2^An acquaintance of Mrs. May. Letter, May to Mrs. May, Baltimore, April 9 [May 9], 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 94. ^^The reason for this situation is explained by May in his entry for September 10, 1789, below. See also entry and note for May 13, 1789, below. 29Joseph Downer, probably the son of Dr. Eliphalet Downer. "Jos. Downer went with them [the wagons], and the Doctor followed to day, at 2 o'clock." Letter, May to Mrs. May, Baltimore, April 9 [May 9], 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788,93. ^"This was made between May, William Breck of Boston, and Eliphalet Downer of Roxbury. May supplied "stores and merchandise" valued at £347 13j. 4c?.; Breck, £265; and Downer, £109 lis. 5d. "the said sum shall be im- proved as an adventure to the Ohio Country on their joint account and risque . . . and at the close of the voyage the profts and loss . . . are to be equally divided in the proportion each one has supplied the stock." Indenture, Balti- more, May 9, 1 789, in Edes Marietta 1 788, 82-83. 2^per "Jona. Freeman" for whom he sold the shoes. Letter, May to Mrs. May, Baltimore, April 9 [May 9], 1 789, in Edes Marietta 1 788, 94. ^^This should be shillings rather than pence. 19 4 19 4 033 7 5 9 12 3 4 18 6 92 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY f S. d. Mr Williams'''* has paid on my accot 41 17 8 So that he owes a ballance of 17 17 10^^ "£58 15l 6d. [£59 15^. &d.] this ballance I directed him to forward to Mrs May by the first Conveyance. Visited Mrs Boyd and Drank Tea with Mrs B. May — wrote one letter to Mrs May and one to Mr Jona Freeman then went to bed — Sunday, May 10: Slept, til half after six in the morning then rose and washed up and after Breckfast wrote a Letter Brother Jos and severall other matters I concieved necessary/ it raining hard did not go to meeting. Dined with Mrs Jos Williams/^® at 4 oClock deliverd my letters to Capt Field for Boston who sett sail imme- diately, drank Tea with Mrs B. May/ Supd at Lodging and went to bed at eleven oClock. slept poorly, the air being Cross branded — ^^A careful comparison of a few lines at this point gives further evidence that Edes used MS 1789. His error in transcription is carried through his subse- quently edited versions into Edes PMHB 1789 and is not explained. Notice how no pence and eight dozen iron are incorrectly transcribed to become "0.8 Ddg. From". Line for line this portion appears in MS 1789, I, 1 1, as: "them, the after part of the Day I spent in pair amounting to 19.... 4.... 0. 8 Dozen Iron Shovells @ 4d./. 19.... 4.... 0" Selling Linn Shoes 1 28 pr JF. for 3/. pr The same portion appears in Edes PMHB 1789, 108, as: "them. The afterpart, spent in selling linn shoes, 128 pair, at LF. for 3/ per pair amounting to 19....4.... 0.8 Ddg. From shovels 19.... 4.... 0" 3*Joseph Williams. Letter, May to Mrs. May, Baltimore, April 9 [May 9], 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 94. This is probably not the same Joseph Williams that May employed as a laborer in 1788. See note for entry for April 14, 1788, above. ^^This amount was to purchase flour to give to Mrs. May to give to Jona. Free- man in payment for the shoes he had sent with May. See above; also, letter, May to Mrs. May, Baltimore, April 9 [May 9], 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 94. ^^Probably the wife of Joseph Williams. See entry for previous day, above. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1789 93 Monday, May 11: Rose at 5/ attended to a Little Buisness and at 8 in the morning, took my departure from Baltimore^' and stood for the Wilderness, travlld 41 miles and slept at Esqr Sher- mans^^ had verry good entertainment. — but slept poorly — Tuesday, May 12 : Sett out at Y^ past five and breckfasted at Hannover, this is a Pritty Village of about one hundred houses. I am now on a New Road to from Baltimor to Shippinsburge and find it a good travelling Road and well settled with Dutch farmers most of whom are walthey/ at the house wher I Lodged last night. Vizt Sherman his large Barnes makes 10 hhd syder yearly 8 hhd syder Royall. he distills Whiskey syder and peach Brandy in grate abundance/ his peach Brandy is as good as any from france/ in fact he is making money many ways and verry fast. Dined to day at Clarks at the foot of the Blew Mountain then Crossd at Black Gap/^'' a viry difficult plauce [sic] but saves 1 1 miles of Road, we arived at Capt. Rippey^° at sunsett where we slept — Wednesday, May 13: yesterday being a fatigueing day and haveing no special Buisness, I lay and slept in a large chamber 40 feet long 20 wide and 1 1 high till half past six/ the air in this Chamber is the Best I found since I left Boston — at eight oClock this morning our goods arived in excellent order/ here we unloaded them and f s. d. paid 14 6 6 to Waggonners at Baltr. paid Capt Field— 4 10 Storegge 12 Besides a duty of 23 Q41 ^^Probably accompanied by Breck. Letter, May to Mrs. May, Baltimore, April 9 [May 9], 1 789, in Edes Marietta 1 788, 93. ^^Near present Bandanna, just over the Pennsylvania line in York County and a few miles southeast of Hanover. Designated as "Shareman's" on Howell, Map of Pennsylvania. See also MS 1 789, 1, 63. ^^Near the northern end of the Franklin-Adams county boundary and through South Mountain. This is about ten miles north of Nichols Gap through which May passed westward in 1788. See entry for April 30, 1788, above; table of distances. Journal of John Matthews, in Hulbert, Ohio in the Time of the Con- federation, 191; Howell, Map of Pennsylvania; Adlum and Wallis, Map of Pennsylvania, 94 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY I am Doubtfull we shall be hindered here sum time for Waggons/ the people are much ingaged in the spring Work. — *" Last Fryday an Express went thro this place from Pittsburge for New York with intelligence that a party of Indians had fallen on sum settlers at grave Creek and Kill'd five/ on there way back kill'd one at Mari- etta, those Devils will never be easy til they are extirpated — we are now 140 miles from Philadelphia and 160 miles from fort Pitt/ went to bed at 10 oClock and slept well til morning/ this was a grate refreshment as I have had but litle for sum time Thursday, May 14: I sett this morning at ten oClock for Chamberstown^^ a distance of ten miles, and as it rained hard all Last night the roads were extreemly heavey. I took this Touer to procure Waggons but failed of Success/ I could not ingage aney at a less price than 28^. pr Load from this to Pittsburge or Simmerils Ferry which I did not chose to give — Chambers Town is a verry pritty County Town containing about 150 houses most of the In- habitants Dutch. Shippinsburge is nearly as Large and so are many other Towns in the Vicinity — this wast of time in waiting for Wag- gons is verry tedious. I am fearfull my patience will not hold out so well as it did last year, the Wind has bin at notheast these three days attenddid with Rains — went to bed at ten. Friday, May 15: Slept sound all Night and rose at Six/ the wind N.E. Dull lowery and disagreeable Weather/ No waggons in- gaged yett and I confess I am at a Loss for buisness or amusement*^ Method of Making Whiskey, take one bushell and half of Corse Ground rey meal/ put in a hhd that will hold 110 gallons/ nearly fill it up with Blood warm water, and in 3 [Quart?] yeast, to ferment it. lett it stand and work 3 days and when it becomes stale, put it in the Distill hold' about 110 galla/ this must have a Cover *°At Shippensburg. See entry for August 13, 1788, above. May estimated this day's travel at forty-two miles. ■*iPerhaps this is a guess. For a more exact figure, see entry for June 4, 1789, below. ■'-Another reason was that "the great demand for flour at Philadelphia and Baltimore has put all the wagons in motion that way." Letter, May to Mrs. May, Shippensburg, May 15, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788,97. ^^Chambersburg. *^"So here goes, to kill time," is added at this point in Edes PMHB 1789, 110. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1789 95 of Wood with hole in the middle of it to putt the paddle in in order to keep it sturrinj^ untill it boyles, then put on the still head and ketch the speritt. if it is done properly you obtain 2/2 galls proof Licquer or, 3 Galla to a bushell, which generaly sells at 2s. 6d. pr Gall, this makes Is. 6d. for a Bush Rey and requires the Labour of one man to Make 9 Gall pr Day. they generally have a small still thro which they run the Whiskey a second time and this they call doubling it. but I should give it the name of rectifying it — To make yeast take /o peck of good Malt/ put it over the fire with 4 or 5 gall water/ let it Boyl a Little time then put in a kegg with one head out/ ad a Little emtins [emptyings?] or yest to sett it fermenting and makes good yeast, and may be used as above — Saturday, May 16: at 10 oClock this morning Mr Breck and myself sett off for Pittsburge''^ a distance of [blank] miles/ we Cross'd the north mountain and Dined at Skinners,^*^ then Cross'd the path Valley^" and the Tusceraso mountain and slept at Birds Fort Littleton — "^^ in my Journal of Last year I gave a more par- ticular discription of this Combination of Mountains and those/ shall only say now that I am tired of them alltho I must travell in them for Two or three days more — ^® Sunday, May 17: mounted our horses at half past 5 — and went to the foot of Sideling hill to Breckfast, where our horses fared better than we did/ our entertainment verry poor. — then cross'd the Sideling ridge and Juneauter and Dined at Martins'^" on veal *^May is again on Forbes Road as he was in 1788. *®In Horse Valley on Conodoguinet Creek (a tributary of the Susquehanna River), a short distance west of present Upper Strasburg in northern Franklin County. Howell, Map of Pennsylvania; Adlum and Wallis, Map of Pennsyl- vania. ^^Formerly called Tuscarora Path because the Tuscarora Indians used it in their flight northward in the eighteenth century. Wallace, Thirty Thousand Miles with Heckewelder, 430; Howell, Map of Pennsylvania. ^^May estimated his travel that day at twenty-five miles. *^From "Mountains and those" the balance of this entry becomes, in Edes Transcript 1789, 9: "mountains [and those]; but in my present state in no mood to describe them again." ^''Known as Juniata Crossing, about two miles west of present Breezewood. Wallace, Thirty Thousand Miles with Heckewelder, 256, 418. See also, entry for July 25, 1786, Journal of John Matthews, in Hulbert, Ohio in the Time of the Confederation, 190; Howell, Map of Pennsylvania. 96 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Cutteletts and Trout, thence to bedford and oated/ here we fell in with a Dutchman who undertook to pilot us over Wills hill/ this rout would save us 3^ miles in the distance of 8 miles and alltho the sun was short of an hour high yett we undertook it/ it seemed necessary to go this way as it sav'd severall Creeks to deep for a horse to pass without swimming. This hill might well be Call'd a mountain as it about Three miles over and at least one mile high/ the most Rockey place my eyes ever beheld, however we began with resolution, and stood with all our might for the Top for full one hour when at lenth tired out we attained it but to lok down, was worse than Comeing up. the sunt [sic] gone and black night approching left no time for parly or poetry^^ there for we Cast our selves off and in about ^ of an houre tumbled to Bottom, then Rode sum times in a Brook and sumtimes by the side of it thick brush for better than half an hour when we reachd McGaggays^^ and being truly weary went to rest. I cannot help observing that wen we ware on the top of Wills hill we actually over Look'd the allagany Mountain on one hand and the North Mountains on the other — Monday, May 18: Sett out this morning at Six oClock. the hill we past over last eving lying in the east prevented the suns mak- ing its appearance til that time, when I mount'd my horse I felt verry Boney and stiff, rode 8 miles to Breckfast and then 14 more where Mr Breck Dined on Milk/ I felt poorly and eat nothing/ the rode we have come to day is in the glades^^ and extreemly bad/ the Horses frequently mired down to there belleys. I obsirved in crossing the allagana mountains that the Trees had not began to Leave out. the wilde plums full in the blow and Just about as forwd as they ware Last year when I passd this place, this was 17 Days sooner/ in fact every thing bespeaks the Seasons to be near three weeks later than they ware last year — ^* ^^"or poetry" is penciled in on MS 1789, probably later. Included in Edes Transcript 1789, 10, and Edes PMHB 1789, 112. ^^May estimated the day's travel at forty-one miles. ^^As on the westward journey of 1788, May left Forbes Road and was now traveling on the Glade Road. ^*His estimated travel for the day was thirty-two miles, and his stopping place for the night was at "Coldpennys in the glades." MS 1789, I, 63. THE JOURNEY WEST, 1789 97 Tuesday, May 19 : rose @ 5 oClock and pressed our journey/ breckfasted at the foot of Laurell Mountain at one shaver a dam'd slutt my appetite not keen enough to eat much — these mountains are verry cold yett. ther was a Considerable Frost last night and I was obliged to ride all the morning in my Knit Slooper, put up at Neils^^ wher we slept tollarabley wher ther was 8 persons in the same Room Wednesday, May 20: Set out from Neils @ 6 oClock/ rode 8. miles and breckfasted at the worst house I have ever bin in yett — Dam the slutts for me, this hogstie, we travelled 5 miles and then arived at Simmeril Ferry/ this is the first navigation on the western Waters, here we Cross'd and put up at Simmerills/ here we must to tarry a coople of days to rest and Clean up. this might be made a pritty place of buisness but the people Do not understand it, in fact the Inhabitants had rather Live like hogs than take a little pains to Live otherwise. Slept pritty Well tonight/ the Room Charming open/ the air clean and pure — Thursday, May 21 : a Rainey momin from the South West and Cold. I lay abed and slept til seven oClock then rose and washd at a Living sprin from the mountain where it comes out as big as ones thigh; then comes out/ eat breckfast of Coffee, Bacon Mackrill Bread and Butter. Buckweat cake etc. etc. etc. Staid here and dined — and at three oClock sett out for Redstone^^ a Distance of 16 miles up the monongahola. this we reachd at sunsett having Rode it at one stage were pritty tired, the Country thro' which we pas'd is call'd the forks of yoh. [Youghiogheny] and is thinley set- tled but the best tract of Land I ever yett beheld/ there is but two falts that is Hill, in grate abundance extreemly rich, and so mon- storiously timbered that it wou'd make ones hart ake to think of Clearing it. we put up at Tannery Hills a Very good taveron/ had ^^May estimated he traveled thirty-one miles this day. ^"Present Brownsville, in northwestern Fayette County, was once known as Redstone Old Fort. It was variously a prehistoric Indian site, and location of forts in the French and Indian War, Dunmore's War, and the American Revo- lution. Buckalew, Report of the Commission to Locate the Site of the Frontier Forts of Pennsylvania, II, 382-388; James Veech, The Monongahela of Old; or Historical Sketches of South-Western Pennsylvania to the Year 1800 (Pitts- burgh, [IS92]) , passim. 98 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY a good Nights, rest and rose early, yesterday the snow was 2 Inches thick on the Laurell Mountain as says Two travellers — and there was Considerable frost this morning at this place. Redstone. Friday, May 22: a. pleasant but Frosty morning — a Mr Niel has just now caught a Sturgeon 5 feet long will weigh about 60 lb/ he is Clumsay ugly Looking fellow, his Skin as ruff as one of our Dogg fish, there are Two sorts of Sturgeon in the waters/ the other kind are a handsom fish but I do not wish to be Eating them. — this place is quite small one. Not more than 50 houses but a prodigious thorofare for Travellors into the Kentuck and Western Countrey/ Not Less than 15 Thousand Soles have taken there de- parture from this [same?] place this season for the Western world. Since I was in this Countrey last year there are two kinds of birds come to inhabit here which ware unknown before, one is a most delightfuU Red bird with black wings and a blew Bill, and Sings agreeabley. the other a kind of Mackrell Gull which keeps on the Waters, has a black body and White Wings sumthing resembling a Church Priest in one of his pontificall babbitts — as to the seasons they are quite altered or I am for I have bin allmost frose this three weeks, in fact Vegetation speaks the same way. I have not so high an oppinion of this Countrey as I had the Last Year, yett that can- not allter its Value it is an extreordinary season and my feehngs are actuated by times and Seasons.^^ Ny fliomd BHtk is u cloaa amuttascannod Moaa omgrumd cluaorrel ho corrs his Muno (ce ovoly emo aaholo ho ceno [tuno] flen aahe his hruciems ure [ulo] & san pulciturul ummotdeto ^^To compare this passage, starting with "I have not so high an oppinion," with two other versions, demonstrates the resuks of editing. Both depart from the original, but the latter returns closer to the original. Edes Transcript 1789, 12: "Some how a change has come over me, and things do not appear so bright and beautiful as they did last year. But one's feelings cannot change the real state of things. This country must be of im- mense value in time." Edes PMHB 1789, 114: "Somehow, a change has come over me, and things do not appear so bright and beautiful as they did last year. But one's feelings cannot change the real state of things. This country must be of im- mense value in time. This season is an extraordinary one, and my feelings are influenced by times and seasons, as much as they by causes I know not of." THE JOURNEY WEST, 1789 99 [umotdeco] ubeac san ef chon. if umy Gomcronum bogims ce spouk sclemg ho wirr uc Cho sumo [sano] cimo [cino] spouk sclemger [sclomgol] Umd Reaadol umd aairr Mecc bo bouc ef bac nuko his gleamd geed by dime ef Meyso — ^^ [My friend Brick is a trew unaccustummed New england travellor/ he tells his Name to every one where he tome (came) from who his rilations alo (are) and sum particalar annecdoce (anecdote) about sum of them, if any Gentleman begins to speak strong he will at The sane (same) tine (time) speak strongol (stronger) and Lowder and will Nott be beat of (off) but make his ground good by dint of Noyse — ] there are three stores in this place that take a Considerable of money a grate qunty [quantity] of produce, which is generally sold for Cash to people from Marietta, and others going to Kentuckey.^^ Saturday, May 23: at nine this morning we left Redstone a beautifull pleasant Day, we lost our Road soon affter we left here and wandered for one hour but came right at last/ at sunsett we arived a Kuykindalls thoroughley tired/ here we slept in an old Log house, three beds on the floaer in which eight people Slept/ I awaked often By various noyses, once by the barking of Doggs and houlling of woolfes — Sunday, May 24 : Rose pritty early/ a pleasant morning/ Veg- etation much forwarder here than it is 40 miles back but I am still of opinion the season is not so forward here as in New England/ the people here ar allmost frighted by this Cold weather/ affter breckfast I took a walk with my Landlord to view his plantation west to field that had 25 acres wheet 18 Ruy excellent good a nother 16 acres oats and 10 of Corn/ this man has a good Stone Mill a Saw mill Whiskey mill, and many out houses but the house he Lives in is no better than a hog stye, he may be Call'd a Rich man/ here we stay and kipt Sunday — ^*This coded paragraph is not included in Edes Transcript 1789, 12, or in Edes PMHB 1789, 114. Instead, the former says: "Here, as in other places, follow in the original several lines written in some sort of cypher, which, after several attempts, the compiler finds himself unable to read." Except for "as in other places" a similar statement is made in the latter. ^^This paragraph is not included in Edes Transcript 1789, 12. 100 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Monday, May 25: night before Last we had a touch of the aurora borialis, which in this countrey is a sure forerunner of Rain and at one oClock this morning it sett in and Continued to Rain without intermition till — 12 at noon, yesterday week the Rivers ware hier than ever known and now they are as Low as they ever gitt to be. Thus rappid is the rise and fall of thes Rivers — we sett off immediately after the rain ceased, and arived Marcius Hulins a Little afore sunsett. putt up at Elliotts a malloncolly place. )4l.^j^i4l Oi "5 CM - H Z CHAPTER 5 FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE Tuesday, May 26: Spent this day at Pittsburge/ found the place Intirely destitute of evernly [sic] thing butt pride/ they all alow there is no money in the place and I fully belive it for I never saw people so anxious to gitt a Little, and so Loth to part with it/ they will not pay money for any thing nor sell any thing without money/ in fact I never liked this place but I Like it worse this year than Ever — Wednesday, May 27 : at nine oClock this morning Mr Brack and my self left Elliotts and cross' d the Monongohola to Pittsburge and from thence sett out Mr Brack for Greensburg a Town about 30 miles on the road from pitt. to Philadelphia^ there to interscet [sic] the Waggons and Turn them to Redstone, while I took a Road to the Left^ in order to meet them at [Cherlsays?] Mills^ and Turn them the same way, we ware led to this movement from the neces- saty of Raising sum money and many, other Motives. — Lodged this night at one Carpenters in a Cabbin. Thundered, Lightened and Rained all night monstoriously, and I never had a more disagreable situation in my Life/ slept but Little, rose early/ the weather clear and my self extreemly tired but yt is no rest for my foot as yett I have gott Climb the Chesnutt ridge again Thursday, May 28: a Clear morning — but Cold cloudy day/ I make sum allowance as I am far advancd in the region of the Clouds/ at Two oClock putt up at george Antfords — * I must say the worst house, yett here they pile in alltogether — it is a hell of a place/ I have bin crasey every since I came heare and I cannot ^Breck followed the Pennsylvania Road which deviated for a few miles from the Forbes Road at times but not significantly. Howell, Map of Pennsylvania; Guidebook to Historic Places in Western Pennsylvania, 161. -May followed Forbes Road. Howell, Map of Pennsylvania. ^This may be the "Chenys Mill" referred to by a 1789 traveler. Samuel P. Cochran (contrib.), "Mrs. Mary Dewees's Journal from Philadelphia to Ken- tucky, 1787-1788," Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, XXVHI (1904), 187. ^On Chestnut Ridge. MS 1789, 1, 63. 101 102 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY keep my post in this place but a Verry Little while. I will up and away for it will not Do to Stay — ^ the Rains Last night have destroyed the Road Raised the Rivers and turned up Jack — and I can hear Nothing from our Waggons/ this Life of Suspence is like death to me. it is true I have not bin totally Idle.® I have Visitted Simmirells Fy, Readston, Elisabeths Town Port pitt and Greens burge, am now at the NW^ foot of Laurill mountain/ wood to God my buisness was Complected and I thus far on my way home — but I May it scarcely begun, the plan of this Voyage was good.^ if all the world had not done the same, I had information when I was at Baltimr and Shippinsburge, that a Number of people had gone out on the same plan. When I came to Readston I found ther had vast many gone and More agoing. So that the trade will be intirely over Done, they all agree that Marietta is a pritty place but that they have no mony nor ^From "the worst house" to this point, the passage is subjected to editorial paraphrasing which is then incorporated as part of the text. This demonstrates exercise of editorial license that makes Edes PMHB 1789 much less reliable. In Edes Transcript 1789, 14, it reads: " 'matters and things are much too promiscuous for his taste,' and the confusion erases him. Such a port is worse than stormy seas." There is little resemblance between this or the following version with MS 1789. In Edes PMHB 1789, 116, this becomes: "matters and things much too promiscuous for my taste. The confusion crazes me. Such a port as this worse than the stormy seas. I must up and away." •'The same thing as cited in the note above occurs again. In Edes Transcript 1789, 14, Edes adds here: "Such a wild goose chase as he has been on!" This is changed in Edes PMHB 1789, 116, and is given, as follows, as May's own words: "Such a wild goose chase as I have been on!" ^This is "N.W." in Edes Transcript 1789, 14, and "S.W." in Edes PMHB 1789, 117. ^The plan of the voyage was probably as follows: "I set out Wednesday, 22d [April]; arrive at New York, Tuesday 28th; stay there two days. 30th set off for Baltimore, arrive there Tuesday, May 5th. Set out from there 11th; arrive at the [western] Waters 18th. The wagons must set off 8th May; allow them twenty days, which makes it 28th May. Set off down the river Monday, 1st June; allow four days to Marietta; stay there six days. Set out 10th, and arrive at Lime Stone [Maysville, Kentucky] 16th June." Edes HPSO 1788, 117-118. Edes does not indicate the source of this quotation except that it comes from "one or two little detached jottings" in the May papers he had access to. This is certainly credible because the portion of the above quotation concern- ing the wagons, for example, was written by May on the inside of the back cover of Debt Book 1788. May repeatedly refers to the failure of his plans for the 1789 journey. See below, passim. FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 103 produce, therefore it will not Do to take our effects there unless we are willing to Trust or Leave them — both a dead loss. If we Carry them to Pittsburge it wors yett for there is no such thing as doing buisness with them, therefor Readstone seems to be the onley al- ternative and that a poor one however I am in hopes that by Industry and frugallity we may save our property, but I confess I se no prospect of Gains — Friday, May 29: Slept middling alltho' in bedlam/ rose at four. cold. Lowrey morning. Still waiting for Waggons and noth- ing to Do. my Harp hung on the Willows surrounded by Devils — I am truely to be pittied — I have eat nothing for 48 hours, there is nothing that will Do. however it is probable my Stomack will Come, or I must go.® the house I am at is at the foot of Laurill/ no house within 5 miles (except one little Cabbin.) fill'd with Dutch, the mistress of the house Dead, one daughter of eighteen two hired women a Little older — three hired men and a number of children, beside a Bear and 5 Doggs and the old man makes up our young Hell — ^° this day pull'd off my underwescoat/ not that I was too warm with it but I had worn it since the 23 of april and I was afraid to ware it longer without washing and I am now thinkg wether I shall not take Could without it/ O that I was wher I wood be then wood I be where I should be — " at Two oClock this day I [fell in with] a gentleman from Chamberstown bound to Pittsburge/ I inquired of him for [Joseph] Downer who informed me that the Wagons set off from Chambers- town Fryday last^^ and had Drove so fast that he Could not over- take them and that they had taken the Old Pencilvania Rhoad/ ^The two preceding sentences are changed, in Edes PMHB 1789, 117, to: "There is not anything that my stornach does not nauseate at. If it does not come to soon I must go home— to the long one whence there is no returning." ^°"our young Hell" is rendered "our bedlam, as aforesaid," in Edes PMHB 1789,117. "In Edes PMHB 1789, 118, at this point, is inserted: "Hope, in the careless ways in which I am obliged to live and exposed to all sorts of company, I have not caught the i-ch. / have been in danger, I suppose, many times." This is a variation of the last sentence of this entry in MS 1789. See below. ^^For an explanation of this delay, see entry for September 10, 1789, below. 104 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY this made it necessary for me to thro myself acrost an uncultivated Countrey 15 North to Greensburge and meet them if possable or at least to se Mr Breck and what was much against me my Linning was in the wash, however I bribed the women to Leave there other imploy and putt it a position for packing which was Done in Two hours and at half past four I left my dismall Hotte and rode with as much speed as my horse woo'd lett me eight miles to Laffingirs where I had good entertainment, here I fell in with a Colo Parey Sherriff of the County of Westmoreland/ his Tongue went inces- santly til bed time, when we slept together, hope I have not caut the Itch yett/ I think I have binn exposed several times — Saturday, May 30 : I rose at 4 oClock and in half an hour sett off and in three hours I arived at greensburg, wher I found friend Breck, who had not heard a word from the Doctor, after breckfast he sett off for Hannahs Town in sarch of the waggons. I have had a drary time out and am trewly sick of the voyage as well as sick and worn out with this Long fatigueing Journey/ I have rode up- ward of 800 miles since I left Boston/ hope my Land tacks are all- most over for the present, and that I shall se the Doctor befor Summer. Slept, this night on oat Chaff, and rested midling well — this Town of Greensburge is a County Town three years old/ has Thirty odd Logg houses in it and am of opinion there is not thirty beds in the place. Mr. Breck not returned — Sunday, May 31 : did not rise til seven being Sunday in New England call'd a day of Rest/ I felt disposed to keep it in that way. at nine Breckfasted with Colo Parrey, on — Veinson stakes Quales Tea etc. etc. — at eleven Mr Breck Returned and brought intelli- gence of the Waggon in good order, nine miles from this place/ hope I shall se them to night — I have Just seen a young woman whose husband is returned from Wheeling and says that the Savages have kill'd 6 people at that place, that the Inhabitants are moveing off from many places and the rest fortifying that ye fear of ye Indians has prevented ther planting Corn, from many Reports I have heard I am of opinion there will be an Indian War. these reports were so Common last year that I have paid but little attintion to them this; hower facts ar suttem things, and I am at Lenth Compell'd FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 105 tho' much against my will to believe these hell hounds are bent on mischief having made there Treaty and gott all they expect that way, are now going to worke at there Trade^^ Monday, June 1 : I rose at 6 with a Violent pain in my right side. I have bin worried severall days with pain there, which I was in hopes wood retire, but it seems to have gott a reinforcement, however I am still in hopes to gitt the better of it without the assist- ance of a Doctor, alltho this is summer, yett a Could frosty morning a fire is Quite comfortable/ my Flanell waistcoat in high repute still. at ten our waggons hove in sight/ I had not seen them 18 Days — at 2. oClock all hands sett from Greensburg aCrost the Countrey for Redstone and at sunsett had gott as far as Perreys Mills" where the Waggoner and Doct and son stayd all Night/ Mr Breck and myself went on 3/2 Miles further to Colo Stocklens wher we slept — Tuesday, June 2 : did not rise verry earley. I am full of pain, yett sett out for Budds ferry^'^ where we arived at nine AM — and breckfasted,^® and waited for the Waggons till sunsett when they arrivd and it took till nine att night To Through them acrost the river/ Rested poorly owing to fatigue of body and mind, and a misrable bed. the Inhabitants of this Countrey do not live so ra- tionally as the brute Creation — ^^ Wednesday, June 3: Started the Waggones at 6. oClock, for Redstone/ having travelled 5 miles Stop'd to feed when we Re- ceived sum Information of a Violent Hurricane neer Redstone Last ^^The last part of this sentence from "and gott all they expect" is subjected to editorial changes. Edes Transcript 1789, 17: "arid obtained all they wanted, they are now going to work at their proper trade, cruelty and bloodshed." ^■*May estimated this as eight miles from Greensburg. ^^A short distance up the Youghiogheny River from West Newton. Howell, Map of Pennsylvania. May estimated it as twelve miles beyond Perreys Mills. ^''In Edes PMHB 1789, 120, there is added: "'mure haste than good speed/ however." ^"This sentence, in Edes PHMB 1789, 120, is changed into a question: "Why cannot the people of this counlry treat themselves at least as well as they do their brutes, and live a little more like rational beings?" 106 'THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Saturday/ we had before heard of that half the Trees on the alla- gahana mountains Were blown Down — however we stood on til night when we came within the Subbarbs of devastation. I was for- ward of the Wagons Two miles, and it being sunsett Left them and my Companions to Sleep in the woods wile I made for a farmers house by the name of Go. here I found Good entertainment and indeed I wanted it. the full prospect of my plans, failing shook my Nerves to pieces/ I went to bed sick — Thursday, June 4: I rose earley/ went forward to reconitoer the seane of destruction and waist/ my old farmer had Cleared out the [way] for Near a Mile along his farm but when I had gone that distance I came to wher once stood a thick lofty Forrest but now about one half of them Thrown down a Thousand ways in a most Confused manner/ I however penetrated into it near a Quar- ter of a mile which brought me within three miles of my destin'd post. Vizt Redstone when I found it impossable for me to go fur- ther much more for Waggons to go through. I stood and Look'd then turned and Wept, for I had bin Fatigueing Violently for 43 days and Just at the Last shott out. I went back and informed the Waggonners that it was impossable^^ for them to go on and halted them on a high hill/ here we Call'd a Councill of War. it was diffi- cult to determine what to do. to go forward was Impossable to go back a distressing thought and to stay where we ware verry disa- greeable and in fact destructive to our Intrest, we spent Three hours reconitering Consulting etc. — when we concluded to turn our wag- gons down a Creek call'd little Redstone/" here we found a dis- arted Cabbin^° into which we putt our effects. I can truely say this is the most maloncally sean I ever had to Do with — here we settled with our waggonery and having duties at Baltimor of £23 odd and bin Journieying 43 Day at Taverrins it has so Reduced our Cash ^^The portion of this entry commencing with "I stood and Look'd," and to this point, is ahered somewhat by omission and addition in the various editions. See PMHB 1789, 120. i^By May's calculations the creek emptied into the Monongahela five miles below Redstone Old Fort. See entry for September 10, 1789, below. 2"May estimated this as thirteen miles beyond Budds Ferry. FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 107 that we ware obliged to give our Joint Note payable on Demand for a considerable amount — the Waggoners bill from Baltimore to Shippinsburge was. and thence to this place at. 25s. pr hundred pencilla currency and one Day d. [no amount indicated] allowd and ferriage freight from Boston to B- Ditto pd Custom officer — Storeage — -r 105 4 23 12 10 2 3 12 [£133 16i. M.f^ Viz our note pd by Jno May. — £ 18 20 18 17 s. 11 3 7 5 d. 9 to J 3 Jno 5 Jno 5 Jno ames Welch Hindman Thompson Herron £74 Is. md. p. Cury [Pennsylvania currency] we ware induced to go to Redston from several Reasons, one because that Kentucky and Muskingum were fill'd with good of all kinds sum Little hassard of Indians, but the absolute necessaty of raising money to pay the Waggoners was the strongest Inducement, but in this we faild/ I suppose it may be for the best, we are how- ever at present in a dolefull situation and Dolefull place/ I pray it may be of short Continuance, all I can have reason to expect from our Voyage will be to save our selves and I. am afraid we shall fall short in that/ Slept this night, on the Gun Chest, where I could se Starrs thr'o the shingles — Friday, June 5 : Rose at half past four, the sun shone Beauti- ^^This sum is exclusive, of course, of the unindicated freight bill from Baltimore to Shippensburg. 108 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY fully on our obscure dwelling, but soon after came on a fogg which lasted till nine in the morning at which time Doctor Downer and myself undertook to walk to Jacksons Mills^^ a Distance of 5/2 miles thro' that part of the Countrey wher the Tornado had raged. we went on tollarebly well for Two miles, when we found the Trees so mangled Brook and Torn down that it was allmost Impossable for us gitt along/ Sum times we ware obliged to go a Quarter of a mile right into the woods in order to fined a passage/ after trav- elling stoutly for upwards of three hours we reach'd our post well tired, to give a discription of the ravages of the Hurricane is far beyond my abilities. I shall therefore only say that I saw a black walnutt Tree upward of three feet Threw and as sound and thrifty as Good be, brook short off 5 feet 3 Inches from the ground/ this Tree measured. 136 feet in Lenth and the force of the fall, so broke the Limbs that the small Limbs were mear Crumbles the Larger ones hardly any more than four feet/ near by was a house unroof d/ all the orchard and other Trees prostrate, the Lenth of the gust is unknown but the breadth generaly 4 miles — at Jacksons we purcured a Boat 36 feet Long and 12 wide for which we paid him in goods £9 19^. She is covered with a good roof 25. in lenth^^ and I hope will make us a good dwelling place/ we gott Back to our cabbin a little afor sunsett well tired. I was taken Violent sick in the Night which lasted till morning. Sprages Divers never made so sick, perhaps it is owing to eating bread made of sick wheet Saturday, June 6: I am in a week and low Condition/ have had a poor day, our people have had plenty of fine fish but I have but little appetite to eat them — we had a heavey gust last night attended with Thunder and heavy hail but did not Last long/ we have bin imployd the day settling our accoumpts and opening Books for Buisness. money terrible scarce yett the people want every thing and cannot pay for them. — Sunday, June 7 : This has bin a maloncolly day to me. I have bin quite indisposed for severall days and when the body is feeble ^^Sam Jackson. See entry for September 10, 1789, below. 2^This was a Kentucky boat. See entry for September 10, 1789, below. FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 109 the minde partakes with it; my situation perhaps to sum people might appear romantik, but to me it is truely solemn. I have up- wards of 5 Tons of goods stowed into a Log Cabbin, 20 by 17. thro' the roof the starrs may be seen in great abundance when the Clouds do not interveen — which is but Seldom, this hutt is in a deep Vally the width not more than 400 Yards, on either side is a Tremendious Mountain at. Least 300 feet high, and the Clouds are Constantly maneovering over them/ it genenerall rains four or five Showers a day. between the Showers are sum fisheramen pass- ing by to the river, a ^ mile off This day I read Mr Appletons sarmon on the Death of Esqr Flint, which I liked Verry well, indeed Funerall Sarmons are about as sprightly subjects as I have met with these several days, slept poorly, and Rose early — Monday, June 8 : Mr Breck and the Doctor gone for the Boat/ I hope to see them by 1 2 oClock. — the Winds are verry shifty, gen- erally goes Round the Compas two or Three times a day. I have received Ten Dollars to day for goods, they did not arive till 7 oClock, in the evening we have showers nearly every day — Tuesday, June 9: at 5 oClock we began to move our effects from the Cabbin to the Boat and by indefatigable Industrey by 12 oClock AM. we completed moveing 5 Tons net upwards of a Quatr of a mile no accident happening except one Cask Nails Roll'd off the Dragg and went in to the River in about 4 feet warter which we afterwards gott up. this afternoon I have bin: indeed we have all bin Verry buisey opening and mes'g [measuring] the goods for sale/ our Boat is Verry Conv[enien]t and I am in hopes we shall pick up sum considerable money/ we have enough to trey our patiences, however — Wednesday, June 10: Rose at half past 4/ went Immediately to buisness and continued with intermittion in that way all day/ we have had sum Buisness/ took upwards of 20 Dollors Cash and are making the Boat Convenient/ Showers every day the Wind variable Thursday, June 11: Rose at 4 and went directly to buisness/ took 20 Dollars before Breckfast and paid for our Boat in goods/ llO *rHE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY this days work in all amount to near £30, what Cash we receive is like working for a Dead horse as it must all go to pay the Wag- goners a sum not lest than £56. I do not know how we are to raise it but we shall use every exertion as we have given our word that we will not go down ye river untill we have paid it — we have sev- eral little reports that our people at Muskingum have had an action with the Savages routed them and killd a number/ sum say a hun- dred, but I believe there is no truth in it — we however Ley in a place wher we have no Communication with the world except a few creturs as Ignorant as the Brute creation — I have slept for these four Nights at a Mr Richards's wher I have a tollarable good bed. I am induced to Do this from Indispo- sition of bodey, and the want of my bed apparatus. Truely I have not had a well day since I left Boston, it is hard work to perform such a Journey and not feel one sprightly day — we are now 50 miles from Pittsburge up the Monongahala River. — Friday, June 12: Rose at four/ walked 1/2 miles from my Lodgeings/ sopt [soaped] and wash'd as usual at a Large and beau- tifull spring halfway — and drank a point [pint?]. I have puke of Tartar methik [emetic] prepared, but I feel disposed to wash away my billions Salts, with water reather than pump them thro' my teeth/"* I have bin prity buisy all day/ took abot 20 Dollars in cash all by small retail, and this at a place wher one would never think of Looking for Inhabitants much more for money, we are Liveing at a Verry Cheap rate, no rent no Taxes or any bills of this kind to pay/ we through out our Lines and ketch fish as we want them. Indeed they are very good and we generally make one meal a day of them — it has bin extremly hott to day the mercury up to 80 and alltho the days are hott the nights and mornings are Could so the Inhabitants make fires constantly, there has not bin a Cloud to be seen this day all over the Horisan/ went to roost at nine oClock — Saturday, June 13: Rose at 4/ took the same walk as yester- day/ wash'd and Drank Coole water/ came to the Boat/ found all 2^In Edes PMHB 1789, 125, this sentence is rendered: "I have a dose of tartar emetic prepared, but if I can save the ship without resorting to the pumps- pumping up through the teeth— shall make the effort at least." FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 111 asleep. I soon routed them and putt the store in order, had butt Little buisness/ took only Three pounds in Cash, and sum provisions for our own use. it has bin a butifull day and makes the third we have had together clear as a bell, which is sumthing new — Sunday, June 14 : Rose at 4 — a delightfull morning/ the Birds of all kinds so noysey they are allmost able to stund one. this is appointd for a day of rest/ hope I shall be able to keep it properly in that way. Wrote a Letter to Collo Battelle informing him of the obscure situation I am in/ we had an exceding hott day the therm up to 85 degrees, a beautiful shower at sunsett and the Clouds by the reflection of the sun Look'd Like burnish'd Gold all over the Horizon/ I never se any thing of the kind half so beautifull before^^ Monday, June 15 : Rose at the usual Hour/ all hands imploy'd in making a Cable — finished at sunsett and had good one/ I have had a number of people here to day but it is Like stripping the Cow after milking/ I have gott all there mony from them and want to be going down the River but the water is to Low/ we might trade to any amount if we would take produce/ Slept on Board Last Night on my straw bed Tuesday, June 16: Rose a little afore four and kill'd a perch that weigh'd 8/2 lb as fine a fatt fellow as ever I say — these fish are not plenty here but by keeping our line allways out we have allways had them when we wanted them — they are as good a fish as Rock and it woo'd puzzle any man to distinguis the odds when properly Boyld — Sun one hour high the Doctor and myself took a Canoe and went Down the River to a Large Ripple in order to sound it and make discovery, we found it extreemly rappid and very shoal/ we Concluded that our Boat could not go Down them, and return'd ^^It is interesting to compare this entry with the edited version in Edes PMHB 1789, 126: "A delightful morning, all nature rejoicing. The notes of the birds of all kinds so many and so incessant, one is almost stunned. By the decrees and usages of our fathers, this day appointed for one of rest. Hope I shall be able to observe it as such. Wrote a letter to Col. Battelle, informing him of where I am, in what hidden work. The day very hot, thermometer at 85°. At sunset a beautiful shower, and the clouds [by the reflection of the sun] all over the hori- zon like burnished gold most glorious. My eyes never rested on a more mag- nificent spectacle." 112 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Pritty tired — Slept sound on my straw Bed — Wednesday, June 17 : Rose at ^2 past Three not satisfied but that our Boat might go Down the river, having picked up all the money in this nabourhood"*' I want to move Down the River 12 miles/ I procured Two experienced mint [men] to surrvey the rappids who return'd at eight oClock and pronounced them impos- sable. So that we are naild here untill the river rises/"' I seem afraid we should be cought in this way but could nott gitt readey to move sooner/ we have Eat no Idelebread since we came here and have taken better than 100 Dls. in Cash all by retail, and paid for our Boat 33 Dollars besides our own stores etc. if I was about 12 or 14 miles further Down I might interrupt my Letters going to Mus- kingum and be in the way to Send sum to my Dear Frind — Thursday, June 18: Rose at 3 oClock and went into my shower bath/ it has Thundered and Lightned all night/ Verry Lit- tle raine/ I am in hopes the river will rise yett afore night as there is bin a heavey Cloud all night towards the heads of this River/ yesterday I pioletted a Kentuck Boat with two families in it, over the Ripples/ I did this in order to see if our Boat might possabley gitt over, this Boat drew only 7 Inches water and went over hand- somly. ours draws 12^2 Inches and cannott go over till the river Rises — which I pray God may be soon — a tollarable shower to night but not more than is wanted on the Land, and will not raise the river/ went to bed early — ^^ Friday, June 19: Rose at three/ a fine morning walk Two miles to our Boat and Call'd up all hands/ went to spinning fish Lines and made grate profisency/ we coo'd make 4 in hour 22 yards Long/ the stuff cost 3d. cash and they sell for 2s. the River seems inclined to rise a Little/ I hope it will continue for I am tired of this place/ will [while] we had any buisness It could be Borne but now we have None it is intollerable/ this is a sore Con- ^^"having picked up all the money in this nabourhood" is omitted in Edes PMHB 1789, 127. 27"until the river rises" is rendered "the Lord knows how long" in Edes PMHB 1789, 127. 28The remainder of this entry starting with "a tollarable shower" is not in EdesPMHB 1789, 127. FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 113 finement.^® yesterday 5 Kentucky Boats pass'd us but none drue more than 8 Inches water, they all went over the Falls but one of them struck Twice and the other once/ it is Likely hurt them sum but there effects are of Little Value — haveing sent ther Horses and Waggons acrost to Wheeling — our river has Rose about 2 Inches this day — Saturday, June 20: Rose at three oClock/ found the River had fallen in the night more than one Inch, notwithstanding which we Cast off our fasts and drop'd down within a few rhods of Ripple/ then I strip' d and waded and examined the channell for half an houer/ found severall Rorcks that had only I2/2 Inches of water on them and Currant prodegious swift, but it was to hazard the Boat over or stay all Summer/ we accordingly push'd hir and we fortunate enough to go over with out touching/ the river so verry Low that we ware all day and verry industrious in gitting down to Casner ferry,^" where we arived an hour after sunsett properly fatigued/ this has bin the hottest day this season, the mercury in phermomiter was up to 89 degrees. Soon after we Landed the came on a Heavey Thunder Gust and Lasted for Two hours with heavy Thunder/ the skiy seem'd all on fire with Lighting but happily did no hurt to us — Sunday, June 21 : I gott up at Three oClock A.M. as tired as I was when I lay Down and two tired to sleep. I like our situation better than I did the former one. hope We shall Do more buisness, than we did there — we had a Violent Thunder gust at eleven oClock AM — heavey Flying Clouds, after towards evening pritty clear all round except at the North West where there lay a Bank which kept a Constant flashing of Lightning, which made me su- spicious ther might be another gust, as this allso has bin ye hottest day yett. the mercury up to 90 — -^The portion of this entry from ''I hope it will continue" to this point is not included in Edes PMHB 1 789, 1 27. 3°Peter Casner operated an inn and a ferry on the Monongahela River, near present Donora at the approximate meeting point of Fayette, Washington, and Allegheny counties. Pittsburgh Gazette, June 7, 1794, cited in Genevieve Mc Swigan, "Early Inns and Taverns in Western Pennsylvania, 1750-1830" (un- published Master's thesis. University of Pittsburgh, 1940), 32; Howell, Map of Pennsylvania. 114 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY went to Rest at nine and at 1 2 I was awaked by Thunder/got up and struck a Light/ by this time it began to rain. Lighten and Thunder prodegiously and kept increasing for half an hour, there seem'd No intermition and verry heavey indeed, one Clap struck with 1/4 mile of us kill'd Three Trees and seven hoggs for Mr Cast- ner. no doubt ther is more Dammage Done — Monday, June 22: Rose Early and took up the floar of our Boat and Clean'd her out. properly Jointed and new Layd the floar/ put up a shed forward in fact made a fine Boat of hir, had severell showers to day all of which has not rose the River one Inch — how long I am to remain a prisoner in the Monongahala River is verry uncertain but I am afraid quite to Long, yett if I was at Liberty, I should be at a loss where to go/ better to stay is misrey to go further looks wors/ I have [talked to] severall Traders returned from Muskingum who have left a large part of there prop- erty unsold at Marietta, a little Cooler this evening mecury at 81 — Tuesday, June 23: Slept well, and got up at 4 oClock, and sett out for SummerilLs Ferry having heard Last evening that gen- erall Putman was there on his Return to New England. I mad hast but he was gone an hour before I gott there/ I expected he would have tarried ther all day as he had to buy a horse, having tired his own, but I was disappointed in this as well as many other things since I came out. I feel allmost disposed to struggle no longer but lett the World go as it Lists for I Labour in vain and spend by [my] strength and abillities for nought — the people where we now are come plentily want to se every thing/ give them the prices they crey out Cheep Verry cheap, but go away without buying, because they have no money/ I went to bed at nin. Verry tired, I find a litle tires me — Wednesday, June 24: rose at Three oClock/ found our Boat had sprung a leak, through the mismanagement of sum of our folks who had alltered hir Loading so as to make hir one sided — whin I gott up she had not Less than 15 hhds water in hir/ I calld all hands and we sett the pump agoing and in about one houer gott all to rights again, wrote Mrs may yesterday and left it at Summerills Ferrey inclosing one of 21st 14th and 7th Instant/ Little or no FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 115 buisness Doing/ the River extreem Low and I fully tired of this Confinement/ much out of health and the grater nay, all my Con- veniencis — at Marietta, from evils of everry kind more especially from this good Lord deliver me — this Josephe^^ and myself went in the woods and Cut and Brought hom trees for a Tender on our Bigg Boat— Thursday, June 25: Joseph and I imploid in makeing the Dora/ had little to call me off and by sunsett had hir compleet all to corking and graveing/ she is a pritty thing 17 feet Long and 2^2 wide in the middle and 18 Inches deep, we have a good many people come to se us and inquire the price of thing/ crey out desprat Cheap but are so misrabley on for mony they are obliged to go away as they came^^ we might trade leargly if we would take there produce, and if money was plenty below it might answer well but from every in- formation thers. none to be had therefore one articall is as good as a nother and none best of all. in Consequence of Information re- ceived a few Days ago the shops that war taking gensang at 2^. 6d. — pr lb fell yesterday at the Little shops to 1^. 6d. I have bin [gelious?] of this sum time from what I saw at New York Philadel- phia and Baltimore and have as yett refused takg any, but if I can push off my goods and take good gensang at \s. 6d. I am not afraid as it may bear keeping one or two years at that price — Friday, June 26: it has bin a Cold night last, but a warm Day. imployd in finishg the Dora, when I was at helm Last Satur- day coming Down the River from Little Redstone I had a good compas and came slow, and Took the mianders of the River, as fol- lows, from Little Redstone N.N.W. 1. mile to Linns Ripple, then the same course ^2 niile to a point on the left hand, then W.N.W. 2 J/2 miles — to Spears Ripple, from there a nother ripple N.N.W. 1^4 miles, thin N. 1 mile and N.E. /2 niile then East I/2 miles to Sweringins Ferry, then N.N. East. 1 mile to Castners Ferry from ^^Probably Joseph Downer. See entry and note for May 8, 1789, above. ^-Despite this and other protests in the journal about poor business he wrote to Mrs. May that "We have opened our goods on board this boat, and I believe do as much business as many stores in Boston." Letter, Devoe's Ferry, June 28, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 100. 1 1 6 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Casners 1 mile north — ^ mile N.E. /s mile N. W by W. 1 ^4 mile W.N.W to McClinnock Ferry at three oClock. PM. Left Castners and at half past five ari'd at this place a Distance of 3 miles and ^2 in 2^/2 hours, this slow but hard work/ we stopd here to receive 40 Galls Whiskey in exchang for a rifle gun, but when the brought it it was full half water and I would not take it — the people misrable poor on excellent land, and Terrible lasey — Saturday, June 27: a Cold night and heavey fogg in the morg/ did not rise til 5 oClock/ the fogg Contind heavey for sev- erall Howrs — which as the River is exceeding Low prevented our moveing til the sun broke out at. 7 oClck wher we play'd our wooden sails again and in two hours went two miles to Devoes Ferry^^ all the way with the Currant/ struck this morning for the first time but did no Dammage/ the cours of the River from [Mc- Clason?] to Devoes is west. 1 ^ miles W by N. /a mile N.N.W. /a mile, here we must stay till the river rises/ I pray it may be soon, this afternoon at 6 oClock a poor unfortunate Lad was decoyed to swim a stallion right opposite our Boat on the other side the river when the came to the Bank could not rise it and turned back/ the frightened raigned to hard and both Drown' d. three men that seduiced in to a canoe and ware afraid to go to him when they might have saved him in one minut yett they delay'd more than 7 minuits and are chargable with the Loss of the Lad — Sunday, June 28 : poorly in health, nothing to Do. a fine Day. all hand gone to burry the Drownd. man. the Bool frogs, Toads, and Turtle Doves make to much noys for me to sleep — Monday, June 29 : beautif ull weather for the farmer and poor for us/^^ the River as Low as ever known within about 3 Inches — nothing to do but cook, eat sleep and hold Colley by the taile/ Journalising is now good for Nothing for all is a sameness/ here we ^•^ James Devoe's (Devore) ferry operated across the Monongahela at present Monongahela City in eastern Washington County. His house was on the east bank where May anchored. Lois Mulkearn and Edwin V. Pugh, A Traveler's Guide to Historic Western Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh, 1953), 329-330. See also entry for June 30, 1 789, below. 3*Edes PMHB 1789, 131, prefaces this entry with: "'An ill wind that blows nobody any good.' " FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 117 Lay wasting our time on these drowsey waters — Tuesday, June 30 : all the same. I walked out to day 5 miles/ found the Lands good but hilley the people poor and Lasey. whin I returned from my walk, I found the River had fallen so much that it was unsafe to stay on the East Side of the river/ we had not more than 3 Inches water to spare, there fore we mus move or ground/ I had yesterday thought we should obliged to move and had pick'd on pigeon Creek^^ nearly oppositt/ there is in a hole at the mouth that has 12 feet waters therefor 4 oClock P.M. we com- mensd and without much Difficuly cross'd the River and now safely mored in pigeon Creek where she must stay till there is more water — Wednesday, July 1 : 69 days have roled away since I left Bos- ton. I will not complain because a liveing man has no right to, yett my feelings are seveerly wounded, to think how hard I have strove and how little done, the raic is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong^^ therfore I am sumtimes led to think that it is as well for one to sitt down and sing O be Easey. I mounted a little dapple gray Horse at nine oClock this morning and went Pigeion creek 4/2 miles in which Distance I pas'd it 17 times/ I went to a Mrs Col- vills and traded with hir for nine Tollarable Cheeses and sum maple sugar. — there is no money here — Thursday, July 2 : here we are in mouth of Pigeon creek Ley- ing in 12 feet of Water, and we can wade ye River any whare/ you may go acrost it. in some places and not find more than 9 Inches water, this wast of time is quite as much I am able to sup- port/ I have bin quite unwell these many Days. I am meditating a Journey by Land to marietta/ if the River does not rise within three or four Days I belive I shall go. then I may able to Judge ^^The site of present Monongahela City. Mulkearn and Pugh, A Traveler's Guide, 329-330; Howell, Map of Pennsylvania. ^^The entry to this point is subjected to considerable alteration in Edes PMHB 1789, 132: "Sixty-nine days [have roled avoay] since we left Boston. / will strive to suppress sighs and lamentations, for what living man has a right to com- plain. Nevertheless, between me and this book, it must be owned, my feelings are tortured, and groans will find their way out, if not through the throat, through the finger tips. How have I striven, how little accomplished! Surely 'the race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong'— that's Scrip- ture, and it's truth too." 1 1 8 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY whether it will be prudent to go Down with our goods/ I have seen severall people from there who seem to agree that there is no money to be had there and there are three stores of goods now opened there — Friday, July 3 : gott up early and have nothing to Do. O that my goods were again in Boston, or any where else but on this Monogahala River/ I Do not complain to any body onboard/ there is enought without it but cannott help recording this seveerest triall of my life Least if should be Ever happy enough to gitt over it I should forgett it. to be Confind here week after week and month after month with nothing to Do no money stirring and no Inclina- tion to Divert myself, is hard word to take produce for our goods will not Do. Gensang worse than nothing. No money to be seen/ if we Cr [credit] them we Loose them, and they are too Valuable to run away from/ then I must stay and wait for better times. Not one single word from Boston since I Left it — Saturday, July 4 : this is the annaversary of Independance but we poor fellows must keep it in a solemn manner. Not with that high glee that I did last year at Marietta — no doubt they will show out this year, tho, they are poor, in fact I belive it is best that every one should injoy all they can in this world of disappontments, our most studied best Laid plans frecquently prove the most unsuccess- ful!/^^ Mr James Leach from Marietta bound to Boston call'd to se me and took lodgeings/ I was glad to sin [see] him/ he brought News from Marietta and I have a fast Conveyance for Letters to Boston — ^^This entry is subjected to considerable editing by the time it appears in Edes PMHB 1789. Especially is this true for the portion which commences with "no doubt" and to this point. Edes PMHB 1789, 133: "Even if there be no money there, they will no doubt celebrate the day this year. And [in fact I belive] it is best they should. In this world of disappointments, let us take what enjoyment we can get. 'Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die.' 'The best laid schemes o' mice an' men Gang aft a-gley, And lea'e us nought but grief and pain, For promis'd joy.' " Robert Burns's poem, "To a Mouse," was written in November 1785. FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 119 Sunday, July 5: Imployd in writeing Letters, one to Mrs May,^^ Joseph May, Jno Freeman, John May Jur Henry K. May, Catharine C. May and Sophia May/^^ had a good Boyld Dish and Roast Chickens for Dinner. Mr. Leach with us — Monday, July 6: the River rose 3 Inches to day/ the water 5 degrees warmer than the air/ putt the phermomiter in the water and mercury goes up to 82/ take it out and it stands at 77. took 20 Dolls Cash by Retaile/ this is better than Nothing but small work for four men. — Tuesday, July 7 : I gott late to bed/ slept but Little and feel verry slim to day — the River done rising. I prepareing to go to Mari- tta by Land, about sun sett Mr Shatton came to se us from Wash- ington [Pennsylvania] brought information that sum person had shott George Washington [Mederys?] an Indian"*" in Consequence of which Three partis of Indians had landed on the east side of the Ohio River in order to retalliate notwithstanding which I sett out for Marietta in Co. with him for Washington. Wednesday, July 8: sett out for Marietta at 5 oClock/ Trav- elled nine mils to Breckfast/ it Came on to raine hard/ held up at ^^In this letter there is an indication of what the original plans were for the 1789 trip: "The season is so far spent and the prospect so bad that I give over the thoughts of going to Kentucky, unless information received changes all my plans. I must do the best I can at Muskingum. Perhaps leave some of our goods in this country, and one of us attend to them. "I have not a doubt but this disappointment about going down the river will prove for the best. Had I come on as rapidly as I did last year I should have been in Kentucky by the 10th June, and probably taken a great deal of ginseng; but our delay has given me opportunity to hear, from Philadelphia and other places, and the accounts are, two vessels are returned from India to England, loaded with ginseng, and that Captain Barry has arrived at Philadelphia, and brought back his ginseng. This news has put a total stop to collecting that article here." Edes Marietta 1788, 102. See also entry for September 10, 1789, below. ^^John May, Jr., eleven years; Henry Knox May, nine years; Catherine Cravath May, six years; and Sophia May, four years, were May's children. May, Gene- alogy, 8-9. ^°"A young Delaware came in with information that George Washington was wounded by some person in ambush, on the Tuscarawas branch of the Mus- kingum. They are willing to lay it to Brant's people, but at the same time think the mischief done by militia from Wheeling." Denny, Journal, 337. George Washington was the name of a friendly Delaware Indian. Letter, Arthur St. Clair to secretary of war, Fort Harmar, July 13, 1788, in Smith, St. Clair Papers, II, 50. 120 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY 1 when I set out againe and at one arived at Washington, wher I Dined and stayd all the afternoon, Striveing for a horse which I could not obtaine — *^ Thursday, July 9 : bargained with a Mr Addams to convey me and my baggage to West Liberty [West Virginia] for which I paid a Dollar. Set out 6 oClock/ the Boy and I took Turns to ride/ it an amasing hott Day, all for part of which a verry heavey Cloud hard on our right with incessiant Thunder, we in a Wilderness, not to- tally free from a surprise from Indians, we poosh'd as fast as we Could but that was slowley. at one oClock we arived at Charles Wells' a fine plantation in [West] Virginia, the house and building 100 Rhods from the pencilvania Line, I was almost [blank] when I gott there/ it is not a Tavern but told the Landlady she must recruit me/ I faired verry well. Soon after I came here yr I [sic] heavey gust came on/ it rained extreem hard with havey Thunder and Lightg and continud one Cloud after another the whole after noon, here I Lodg'd and having changd my rout from West Liberty to Buffalow Creek, discharged my Boy and poney — Friday, July 10: I am waiting here in expectation of seeing Major Tyler who is going down the River tomorrow. I expect to go with him. this Mr Wells has a fine plantation, a family of 23 souls, a park of Dear Large herds of cattle Horses Hoggs, sheep and Poultrey of all kinds carries a considerable Woolen and linning Manufactory — I took a Violent could last evening which has at- tacked me in different ways. Viz. Asthama, perpetuall Neising [sneezing?] and a terrible sore mouth. I am all most Stupid — Saturday, July 11 : had a misrable Night/ slept but little/ after Dinner I sett out on a horse of Mr. Wells for the mouth of Buffa- low^^ where I arr'vd sun 2 hours high, found a house full of People at Absa. Wells, and as much noyse as at Charles [Wells], where I came from, the horse I rode on was call'd famos but I call him a misrable one as I Do all the horses this way. I was as poorly capar- issoned/ one stirrup Leather Broak/ I was obliged to camut [carry?] ^^For a brief description of the town, see the entry for September 10, 1789, below. *2Down the Ohio River, a short distance from present Wellsburg. FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 121 it in my hand, the Girt broak. and I on a snorting horse with a pile of Baggage and Boy behind me/ thus I rode better than 4 miles expecting to fall ever)' minute — however by keeping a good Bal- lance I made out to gitt the destin'd place with misfortune, went to bed early and found my Bed was made of new feathers/ the Ticking poor yett I was so sleepey I thot, I would venture it but my Pipes ware soon all choak'd up/ I stood as Long as I could but was finally obliged, to repair to Window for Breath which I had left wid open/ here I Stayd near an hour, then putt on my Kent slooper/ took my saddle Baggs for a boulster and Wrapt a blankett rond my feet/ lay down on the floor at as grate Distance from the Bed as possable and right under a Window wid open/ in this situation I continued to pull for Life near an hour when I grew a Little better and Dropt to sleep, but a verry restless Night. Sunday, July 12: here I am waiting a passage Down the Ohio to Marietta/ have prospect of going Tuesday Morning with Major Tyler. Took a walk this forenoon sumthing more than mile to the mouth of the creek, here is a little Town began/'*^ there are 8 hutts allreddy built and one Tollorable house, the Countrey back from here is pritty well settld/ if the people were industrious ther might be excellent farms, as it is there sume fine ones/ there are Little shops or store scattered all over this Countrey within 6 or 8 miles of one another, this has bin a tremendious hott Day/ raind hare at one oClock and sum Thunder, but as hott after as before/ ye Thunder does not clear the air here as it does to the northward. I am now in that Countrey where the Copperheads are plenty/ sev- erall Kill'd on this plantation yesterday but I have not seen any this year as yett/ the Ohio extreem low but rising a little. O that I could have Letters from Boston Monday, July 13 :** I felt quite Unesey at staying in this place so long, and alltho it rained pritty hard took my baggage and went down to the mouth of BufTalow. was obliged to Cross the Creek three times befor I reach' d its mouth, at this place is a small Town laid out since last year, there are eight small houses built here on ^^Present Wellsburg in western Brooke County, West Virginia. *^This is the first entry in the second volume of MS 1 789. 122 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY low ground, the people poorer than poverty it self/ I put my saddle bags and Kent sloper into one of them, and then went and sett myself Down on the bank of Ohio, rumanating on my disappoint- ment, I had set there about one hour whin my ears ware agreeably alarm'd by the sound of Drum and fife at a Distance/ I look up the river and saw a large Boat coming down Load'd with a Com- pany of soldiers/*^ when they came on I haild them/ it proved to be Capt McCurdy who Invited me to take a passage with him which I gladly accepted — at 12 oClock at Noon I imbarged and gentley glided down the River, it being low and in many places the soldiers were obliged to jump out and hall the Boat over the Riffles. Tuesday, July 14 : slept but Little Last Night owing to incess- ant Noyse from the soldiers, however we drop'd with the help of oars, forty miles by 6 in the morning halted, and breckfasted, and at nine started again — and arived at sunsett at fort Harmer/ re- quested the officer of police to putt me across the Muskingum and thus I landed at Muskingum, found all friends well and the Devill may take the rest — '^^ the place is materially altered for the Better/ the people proud but totally destitute of Cash, I went to the Coffy house took sum good Coffey and went to bed but the Dogg made such a Barking and Howling that I gott but little sleep, at the same tim attack'd by a host of fleas. I rose early and strol'd about the place — Wednesday, July 15 : little Comfort in Bed/ I gott up at Three and took a morning walk, find our people have as fine gardens as I have ever seen all fill'd with good things — the Improvement are really surprising, the Covered with Corn, wheat flax, etc. the mountains and Hills fiU'd with Herds and game. Dined with Genr Harmer. Thursday, July 16: Breckfasted with Judge parsons and spent *^This consisted of two officers and forty-four recruits en route to Fort Harmar. Letter, May to Mrs. May, Marietta, July 15, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 104; Denny, Journal, 337. *^This sentence is changed in Edes PMHB 1789, 137, to: "Found all my friends well and flourishing— and as to the others, they concern me very little." FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 123 two hours with him on Coy matters,*' then walk'd to Major Sar- gents Gardens where I found growing Luxuriently Millett, Madder Rubarb rice and Cotton, besides a grate variety of Kitchen stuff/ Dine with Major Sargent, at evening taken poorly with a Disentary. I suppose owing to my mode of Living while coming Down the Ohio River Friday, July 17 : had a poer Night out to a fine Dose of my Jaundice elixer/ eat a Little Vegitables and Bacon with Billy Grid- ley/ moped about the Chief of the Day — at 12 oClock died Mr Joshua Cheever, he having three Days agone fell from the Bridge in front street, a Distance of 35 feet which Cracked his scull in fact Jam'd him all into a lump. Saturday, July 18: I am Better thank God. Spent the Day in reconoitering the settlement/ I find about 60 Good Building in the Citty, many of Which are large and handsome/ in all the settle- ments theres at least 400 acres of Corn and as good as ever was seen which will undoubtedly produce 20 thousand bushells of grain/ attended the funerall of Mr Cheever/ he was put into a handsom black walnutt Coffin/ about 16 Freemasons attended him as mourners/ the singers sung two solemn Tune and Mr Storey*^ made a fine prayer — Sunday, July 19 : Attended publick Worship and had a Very good performance by Mr Storey — on the Death of Young Cheever. Monday, July 20: a beautifull day/ Wind S.W. the River ex- treme low. dined on a Buffalow fish, wt 16 lb and fine young Potatoes — Tuesday, July 21 : Clear sereene and midling warm weather. Received a Letter from Breck and Downer, purporting that they had removed Down the Monongehala and should wait my return ^"Besides merchandising, May also had miscellaneous personal and Ohio Com- pany business to attend. See, for example, letter, James and Elizabeth Bowdoin to May, Boston, April 21, 1789, in Benton, "Side Lights," 145; also papers con- cerning the troubled Rhode Island subscribers, in ibid., 116-138. ^^Rev. Daniel Storey (Story) was a stockholder in the Ohio Company. He came to Marietta in March 1789 employed as a minister by the company. Hul- bert, Ohio Company, I, 102n.; Thaddeus M. Harris, The Journal of a Tour into the Territory Northwest of the Alleghany Mountains; Made in the Spring of the Year 1803 . . . (Boston, 1805), 124 . 124 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY to Pittsburge, which I hope will be soon. Dined with Genl Harmer — Wednesday, July 22: never was finer Weather, the air as Clear as Cristial the waters as Low as can be. Spent all the fore part of yesterday settling with Colo Battelle/*^ at /q past one cross'd the river, and Dined with Majr Doughty, Free and Easey. — Thursday, July 23: Three Long and tedious months have roold away since I left my home, not one single word have I heard from Boston since. I have Done buisness to loss all this time, and my prospect is poor, a fire broke out at nine oClock this morning at the house of Genel Tupper^° which had like to have Done much mischief but was haply extinguished — dined with Major Doughty in Company/ Cross'd the river at sunsett, and prepared to go up the River" Friday, July 24 : at 9 oClock this morning I set out in Com- pany with Vanlear, Newport Torrey and 4 others, up the river in two small canoes, we came by Dint of hard labour 27 miles by sunsett, and incamp'd in the open Wilderness/ made my bed of green Leaves and slept, well — Saturday, July 25: at half past 4 oClock we gott under way. *^Battelle acted as May's attorney in his absence from Marietta. Letter, Win- throp Sargent to May, Marietta, December 10, 1788, MS in Winthrop Sargent papers, Ohio Historical Society; Battelle, May agency list, Benton, "Side Lights," 141. Later William Rufus Putnam served in the same capacity. Benton, "Side Lights," passim; scattered papers in Marietta College Manuscripts. ^''Benjamin Tupper was one of the founders, a stockholder, and an agent of the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, I, 1, In., et passim; Benton, "Side Lights," 114-115. ^^"The event of this Summer's business is yet uncertain. If any thing turns up favorable, I shall embrace it. Notwithstanding the certain intelligence that ginseng bears no price in the Old World, I am pretty fully determined to take this opportunity to collect a quantity that is good, as I shall have no body to interrupt me. "I have staid at this place as long as I want to without my property. Shall therefore set out up the river in a few days, when I mean to establish a store, and leave part of the goods, and fetch the remainder to Marietta." Letter, May to Mrs. May, Marietta, July 19, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 105. May dates this letter as "Sunday, 18th" but Sunday was on the 19th. Since he usually wrote to Mrs. May on Sundays, it is probably Sunday the 19th rather than Saturday the 18th. This is part of a larger letter written from several places and dates but for convenience of reference each part is treated as a separate letter. FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 125 at 10 oClock had a hard gust and rain'd prodigiously for 1 Yo hours, then we went on again til one when we wer overtaken by another Thunderstorm which lastd 2 hours, when we stood up the river again and notwithstanding our hinderances we came 37 miles by sunsett and incamped on the wett ground with nothing but my Blankett to cover 4 of us/ towards morning it rained again — Sunday, July 26: the rain nor the wet grownd could not pre- vent my sleeping, extreem hard Labour and hard fare will make me sleep in any situation." I got up at Three oClock. verry tired and sore but was willing to take the setting pole again in order to rid my self of this howling Wilderness, fill'd with wild beasts and wild savages, we had reason to suppose that a party of them had seen us the Last evening and whin I got up could hear Cocks crow in dif- ferent places, this we took to be the Indian watch word. we came on smartly til 9 oClock when it came on to rain which hindered us 3 hours. Not one single Rag of Cloths or paper, but what is wett thro, the Dammage Done by Baggage must be sev- eral pounds, we arived at [Ebenezer] Zanes, at Wheeling sun a half hour high, as tired as witt and mouldy as ever a poor fellow was; here I must tarry a Day or Two, to put my baggage in order — Monday, July 27 : slept sound last night and felt refres'd, it is a beautifull Day and wish to be travelling but stop and indevour to save my baggage, at 5 oClock came on the most Tremendious Gust I have seen yett, it rained for three hours prodegiously, when it cleared up and went to bed. Tuesday, July 28 : rose at six/ Breckfasted at 8 — and at 9 sett off for Washington mounted as magnificiently, as was Don Quix- sott on his Rosanoto but if she was as misarable a Devil as mine I dont wonder he was full of notions." I beat bang'd Jurk'd bridle kick'd heel and swore till five in the afternoon when I found a ''-"will make me sleep in any situation," in Edes PMHB 1789, 140, reads: "and free fresh air make a good soporific, and how much to be preferred to your close rooms and feather beds." ^^The remainder of this sentence starting with "mounted as magnificiently" in Edes PMHB 1789, 140, becomes: "mounted on as sorry a jade as I ever bestrid, ugly, contrary, and heavy as a log." 126 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Whiskey house^* having travelled, 1 8 miles thro a Drary Wilderness most of the way. here I gott Whiskey grogg and pork and Cucum- bers which tasted good being all most famished, by that time I had finish refreshing myself and horse it was 6 oClock/ a black Cloud rising in the West and I thirteen miles from Washington did not think proper to Quitt my Ginn shop and stayd all night/ I cross the Wheeling River 13 times to Day which raised last night 7 feet and fell this morning three feet but was still extreem rappid — I fre- quently had the water over the tops of my Boots and twice was in eminent Danger of being swept away in the Torrent. — Wednesday, July 29: at 4 oClock this morning I remounted by Rosananto and with grate difficulty reach'd Washington at ^ past nine/ from there 7 miles to McConnors Town and din'd thence to Colo Nevils^^ and slept/ was exceedingly kindly enter- tained — Thursday, July 30: it rained hard all night and untill nine this morning when it held up and I set off for Pittsburge — arived there at 1 1 oClock but my Boat was not there/ alltho the River is plenty high my companions Love Ease and Good Living better than fatigue with appearance of Danger, however they will pay for this inexcusable Indolence as they have not Come Down the river/^® I shall sett out at Two Clock in Markus Hulen Boat to find them, the strong currant badly against me but would waft them down 7 miles an hour, we went only 7 miles this evening against Wind and Tide then Clapd down on the Bottom of the Boat and slept sound untill morning — Friday, July 31 : the River Rose 5 feet last night, and the Cur- rent Terrible strong but at 4 we sett off and went to Braddock field to Brekfast from thence to the mouth of yohagana in 4 hours ^^Probably in Pennsylvania. ^^Colonel Presley Neville lived at the site of present Woodville, a Pittsburgh suburb to the southwest. Howell, Map of Pennsylvania; and Guidebook to His- toric Places in Western Pennsylvania, 29. ^^The entry to this point, commencing with "my companions Love Ease and Good Living," is subjected to editorial polishing in Edes PMHB 1789, 141: "My partners are of a heavier and less enterprising disposition than I am, that is certain; or they fear danger juore, or love their ease better. Their neglect to improve the opportunity appears to me inexcusable," FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 127 where I found my Boat, the people Doing nothing only waiting for me. Came to a Conclusion this afternoon to give Doctr Downer, his Dividen of merchandise and let him proceed with them where he pleas'd. in fact it is impossable to know what to Do," but I be- lieve it best to scatter and make the best we Can of it/ I should be happy if had no other incumbrance^^ Saturday, August 1 : all this Day imployd in giving Downer his Dividend and setHng accoumpts. the amount given him in goods at prime Cost is [blank]'"^ he having paid his proportion of freight Duties wagons Boating and Boarding which was [blankY° pr Ct amounting in all. to. [blank]/^'^ this has bin a fatigueing Days work, but hope to Rest tomorrow as well as this night. — Sunday, August 2: the Wind at west/ the River falling as fast as it Rose. I am afraid I shall gitt Cought again, yett as I shall gitt Rid of one Sixth part of the Goods and two unnecessary persons I will risque it, and gitt Down as well as I can/ I have spent sum part of the Day regetsously [religiously?] and sum in airing my Cloths which really wanted it not haveing got over ye Basteing on the Ohio River — I will only say that for seven Days we have not miss'd of hav- ing a hard shower, and I am weary of this waterey World — Monday, August 3 : rose at 4 oClock and Immediately went to puttin up Downers things which I accomplished by nine oClock and at ten they Left us with there effects to go up the River. I am ^■^"My present intention is to establish a store at Wheeling, or this place, sell off my goods as soon as possible, and return home— laden with experience, if not with cash." Letter, May to Mrs. May, Pittsburgh, July 30, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 106. ^^The last three sentences of this entry are rendered in Edes PMHB 1789, 141- 142, as: "Made up my mind that as things are, our plans all disconcerted, money so scarce, and as we feel so differently, it is better to dissolve partnership, make a dividend of the merchandise, and let each one do with his share as he pleases. Laid the matter before the others, and argued the point with them. Dr. Downer agreeing to the dissolution, while Mr. Breck preferred that, so far as we two were concerned, it should continue." 59£76 7^. Qd. Debt Book 1788. 60£22 145. Id. Debt Book 1788. 6i£99 l5.9(f. Debt Book 1788. 1 28 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY really pleased in having gott rid of them."" had our first plan bin put in execution they might have bin serviscible but having nothing to Do for Near Three months they ware Verry Troublesom/ in fact we are a Trouble to ourselves therefore the Less of us together the Better, Spent the remainder of the Day in putting thing to Rights. — Tuesday, August 4: gott up this morning at half past Three and put the Boat in sailing Order, shall wait for a passenger till seven oClock and then shove Down to Pittsburge/ at. 8 we gett underweigh and with grate industery without stopping only once (which was by striking Riffle on the middle of the River) we arived at the famous post of Pittsburge at sunsett, where we staid all night and Rested midling well. Wednesday, August 5: Stayd all day at pitts-burge/ sold to amount of about Ten Dollars cheafly in shoes. Shall tarry til to- morrow when I expect to be escorted by Capt Forgusons Company of Fifty men Down the River, at Least to saile in Company, this Day at 4 oClock, received a cordial from my partner in Boston, this is the first Letter I have Reed from that place since I left there, of it self an invertable Treasur, and Being rap'd in french paper that perhaps formally Inclosed the taile of a Courtizans, or Covered the Nakedness of the Lady of Honour, or was profained by the laydy of pleasures however to me these ware matters of little con- sequence, the feathers of a bird the foul water and pulverised Linning wafted real delight to my Thirsty Soul — Thursday, August 6: it has bin extreemly hott all this week, but this day seem'd allmost to much to sustaine. we have waiting all day for Company/ in fact I cannot go down the River with more help therefore must wait the Motion of Capt Forguson/ a beautifull pleasant evening. I find ye air of this countrey allways cool in the Eveng. I am very much pesterd with a sore mouth/ I am afraid it is the scurvy and must be owing the mode of Living Friday, August 7 : at 4 oClock p.M. we gott under way and arived at 1 2 oClock at night, at Bigg Beaver 30 miles were we slept ^-"He [Downer] left . . . taking the goods to Little Redstone." Letter, May to Mrs. May, Wheeling, August 16, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 107. FREIGHT DIFFICULTIES AND RECONNAISSANCE 129 the remainder of the Night — a party of Dellewar and Senica In- dians incamped within 3 miles of us — Saturday, August 8: at 4 oClock AM. gott underway again and with grate industory arived at one oClock at night at Mingo Bottom®^ 45 miles/ we had a grate-deal of Rain to day sum thun- der and lighg/ I kept the helm 10 hours without intermistion from Pitt to Little Beaver [Creek].— Sunday, August 9 : at 7 oClock AM Left Mingo Bottom, this is a settlement of 5 Logg hutts or Cabbins. there Does Not appear to be more than 50 Acres Land Clear' d for the Whole of them, yett here is a store of goods, a verry good assortment, I suppose as much as a thousand pounds worth, this Day is Rainey and the wind ahead, at eleven oClock arived at the mouth of Buffalow where I must wait one or two Days for Mr Ludlow who has purchased the Boat, at six oClock in the evening Came on a Violent Raine with Wind and Thunder/ it Lasted Near three hours/ I went to bed at eleven oClock having first seen that our arms were in order, as we are now in an Enemies Country and small handed — Monday, August 10: a foggy — but Verry Warm Morning/ it has bin extreem hott this 5 Days, the people come on board by sholes Look at the goods and cry Cheap but go away and buy none/ the middle of the day extreem hott/ sun about our high in the evening I went one mile up a steep hill, to a plantation of Capt McMaons^* to Look at sum furrs/ here I stayd and Drank Tea and was Join'd at Dusk by Mr Ludlow who was aquainted with Rhode thro the Woods and would Pilott me/ we accordingly sett out Just at Dusk I on a little pack horse and he on foot/ we had not gone more than a Quarter of a mile before he got out of the Road. I told him it Lay to the right but he insisted on its being to the Left and stood Right into the thickest part of the Wilderness a long way when we came to a strip in a mountain impassabl for a foot man to Climb much more a horse/ we then stood to the left again still going out of the way dark as pitch on Indian ground amongst ^^Present Mingo Junction in eastern Jefferson County, Ohio, a few miles south of Steubenville. ^^William McMahan. Wallace, Thirty Thousand Miles with Heckewelder, 223, 292. 1 30 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Thorns and Briers hills and holes old Loggs and old Trees which we could not see untill we came onto them/ we fell Down Broat our shin's/ my hors fell three tims/ in fact we wandered more than Two hours/ the sweat pore'd from everry part of the Body/ it is Quit Impossable to give any just Discription of the Horrors of this sean. we however Came to the Boat at elevn oClock, and pulled off my cloths which were all wett thro, my coat as wett as any — Tuesday, August 11 : at J/q past four in the morning we cast off our Boat for Wheeling/ it is extreemly hott. Mr Breck, the Doc- tor Mr Ludlow and myself to navagate our ship of Twenty Tons burden/ we ware constantly imployd for the space of 9 hours when we arived saft at Wheeling but thoroughly beat out. thus after a painfull passage of Three months and 19 Days we have gott to where we mean to Make a stand and whatch everry opportunity to gitt rid of the property without loss.®^ ^^"Mr. B and I came down to this place, which I had pitched as the best I could find for trading purposes. How it will prove I cannot say; but this I can say that it will be folly to spend a whole year transporting and watching a few goods. It is too great a sacrifice of time, and everyway." Letter, May to Mrs. May, Wheeling, August 16, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 107-108. CHAPTER 6 MERCHANT IN THE WEST Wednesday, August 12: imploy'd in moveing the good from the Boat to the store which I have taken on the hill of Esqr Zane at Two Dollars pr month, and Board at 1 /s dollars pr Week, we mett with grate difficulty in gitting the things up this monstrous steep hill however by patience and persaverance we accomplished it in 8 hours, however I am fearfull my patience will be quite worn out before the goods are sold.^ Thursday, August 13 : this day opened store and had a grate many Idle Starers that would Come and stay Two hours and buy nothin/ we made out to take only 10 Dollars. I am at Lenth Con- cluded to take Dear Skins furrs and Gensang. this Last articall will require a grate deal of care and Labour to keep it in Order, it seven Days since I lift Pitt and have not eat 3 oz: meat since I left ther. and but little [else?] Friday, August 14: the weather continues to be intensely hott. I must say I never felt 8 Days of such heat in my life, at 1 oClock this morning Colo Sprout and family stop'd here on there way to Marietta, and at 1 2 arived Mr Bena Zanes from Sanduskey with a considerable quantity of skins, and furrs. I shall use all the art I am master of to purchase them for goods, this Mr. Zane is Brother to the man where I live is now upwards of forty years old was made prisner by the Indians when he was 9 years old and has lived with ever since/ married a Squaw and has 8 Children one of which is with him.^ he still retains the English Language and behaves verry well/ is a man of verry Considerable property — we have had two smart showers of rain with Thunder but it Clears up the Hotter for it — Saturday, August 15: Intensely Close hott weather, the show- ^This sentence is omitted in Edes PMHB 1 789, 145. ^The Bena Zanes that May refers to here is Isaac Zane, an older brother of Ebenezer Zane, his landlord. Wills De Hass, History of the Early Settlement and Indian Wars of West Virginia (Philadelphia, 1851), 337; Samuel Kerche- val, A History of the Valley of Virginia (Woodstock, Virginia, 1850), 75. 131 132 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY ers and heat make Vegetation run on ten thousand Wheels. I am packing a small Quantity of good for Marietta which will be con- sign'd to friend Breck. — I Shurr bo Lojeitod aaham ho is gemo. cho Tloucel ef urr chimgs moaol Nudo u nelo scapid disuglooubro sreaomry bubbeem chom ho if ho Modros [Noddros] aaich umy chimg ho is urmesc sulcuim ce eaolsocc el bluko ic. ho noddros aaich oaoly chim bac deos Mechimg ho is U gloom geeso aaich nirk im his houd imscoud ef bluims, aahom cholo is Umy chimg ef temsoqaomto. ce bo dem ho is salo ce bo troumimg his Sheos el Oucimg — ^ [I shall be Rejoiced whun he is gone, the Creator of all things never Made a more stupid disagreeable slovenly babboon than he/ if he Nedles (Meddles) with any thing he is allmost sartain to over- sett or brake it. he meddles with every thin but does Nothing/ he is A green goose with milk in his head instead of brains, when there is any thing of consequence, to be don he is sure to be cleaning his Shoes or Eating — ] have had a number of People at the store to Day and sold butt Little, the weather a little Cooler/ the River rising a Little. Sunday, August 16: Rose at four oClock, and perused sum old Newspaper from phia and Carlisle sum as late as the 29. July but found nothing of any consequence to me/ have imployd sum part of the Day in Writing to partner and others at Boston and Sum part in writing to Marietta, and sum part as it ought to be — was obliged to sell a few things to a Travellor and took two guineas — wrote eight letters Monday, August 17: Imployd in filling out Gulielmus* for Marietta with 250 Dolls worth goods/ hope he will make out well but Do not put much dependance on it. — the River has rose in two Days ten feet parpendicular Mr B. [Breck] has a delightful time down/ will go it 24 hours. I perrish for lack of Vision or rather for lack of Letters — ^This coded passage is not included in Edcs PMHB 1789, 146. Instead there is a notation: "(Here follows a quite long passage written in cypher.)" ^William Breck. Letter, May to Mrs. May, Wheeling, August 21, 1789. Edes Marietta 1788, 110. MERCHANT IN THE WEST 133 Tuesday, August 18: a fine pleasant Day/ the river Rising/ had but Little buisness/ no Boats pass to day/ went to bed early — Wednesday, August 19: River falling as fast as it Rose, ansert [another] delightfull Day/ a nomber of lasy Idle Rascalls haunt the store all day and buy Nothing/ of all created animalls them are the Worst. Thursday, August 20: the Moom changes to Day/ this opper- ated on the feelings of the women and brought them out by shouls/ I made to between £5 and £6 cash from them and sent them away pleasd/ wish I May have as good a Day tomorrow — Friday, August 21 : the River Continues to fall/ I have every day to attend the Kentuckey Boat morning and evening to go Down and come up a hill as bad as our Beacon hill, this serves to keep my joints limber, not one single customer have I had to day, and I am obliged to muster all my resolution to keep out of a Malloncally, however I have this reflection that I have don every thing in my power and mean to persaveer. but — Fate holds the strings and men like children move But as they'r led; sucksess is from above. ^ Saturday, August 22: delightfull Weather like September but sumthing Warmer/ I have made a good days Work and I find grate Refreshment from it. I have purchased of Sundry persons skins and furrs to amt upwars of £100 and mostly paid them/ this has made me a busey day. a few such Days would sett me at Lib- erty/ Breck away I have to do all with my own hands but am happy to be alone — Sunday, August 23 : a Warm day/ I spent chief e of it in my store where I was quiett and pritty Cool have read more to Day than I have since I left Boston put all together, many little parties of amusement were made up to which I was much Urged but chose to stay in my own Quarters for I am fond of the Saboth if I am not one of its most regirous observers — Monday, August 24: a beautiful day/ I imployd in packing and taking care of my peltory. went to bed tired and slept sound — ^In Edes PMHB 1789, 147, this sentence is changed to: "Dull business today, and whenever that is the case the dumps acquire the ascendency. Strive as we may, there is a Power above us that controls events." 1 34 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Tuesday, August 25 : fine Clear Weather and but little to Do. the River is as low as it was whin I. came here. I have just received accoumt the Indians have fired on a party of soldiers and surveyors® a Little below the grate Kenmaway. River. ^ they surprised in the Gray of the morning and out of nine kill'd seven, Mathers and the Corporil of the Guard only escaped to tell the news — ^ Wednesday, August 26: it began to rain in the Night and has bin a Verry rainy day from the North east, this is the only rainey Day I have seen since I came from home, and alltho a Vast of Water has fallen yett it is by no means such a storm as we fre- quntly have in New England however I expect we shall have a mighty Currant of water in a day or two, as the Ohio is the only grate Vein that Conducts the Waters of a thousand big and Little Rivers to Missippia which receive and conveys it to the Mighty Ocian Thursday, August 27 : it ceas'd to rain sumtime in the night and river has allready begun to rise, buisness pritty Dull but I must be patient and Do my Duty. Friday, August 28 : there are mighty numbers of old and young women men and Boys collected here today brim full of interoga- tions but totally Voyd of Money : they have asked me ten thousand Questions the Latter part of which I answered alltogether by mony- silables. the whole of this day Laborious work brought about Three Dollars and half — the Weather is good and clear, the River at a stand. — Saturday, August 29:^ a cloudy disagreeable Day/ wind at. N.N. East/ had but Little buisness/ Mr Zane went a hunting yes- terday and Returnd with a fine Dear/ this nearly the first fresh meat I have seenn since I came here, and previous to that time I ^The date of this incident was August 14, 1789. See letter, Samuel Holden Par- sons to St. Clair, Marietta, August 23, 1789, in Smith, St. Clair Papers, II, 121-122. "The Kanawha River. May calls it the "grate Kenmaway" to distinguish it from the Little Kanawha which enters the Ohio at Parkersburg. *Note under this date in Debt Book 1788: "engaged my Washing to Sally McHenrey at. 3s. 2d. pr Month. Same day bought a bay Horse of Mr Brockway for £12 and put him to keeping at Esqr Zanes. for 6s. a month." ^This is the first entry in the third volume of MS 1789. MERCHANT IN THE WEST 135 seldom ever saw any, so that I have lived alltogether on salt meat, to this I attribute a Braking out on my body in severall places which Itch intollarably/ I have allso had sumthing of the scurvey twice in the course of the summer/ this allso I consider as the effect of salt meat without. Roots or Vegitables. Mr Zane Raises more than 1000. Bushell com this year besides wheat, Rey, oats Barly, Rice and flax etc. — but his garden is verry poor and affords little or nothing to make Life agreeable/ he has Cutt this year upwards 150 Tons of hay, and makes money Verry fast but lives poor, this plan- tation is as much a fronttear as Marietta indeed much moreso as there is nothing seperates us from Indian World, or howling Wilder- ness 200 miles in Width and the whole lenth of the Contannit, in which dwell nothing but Wild beasts and Divels incarnate — it only 5 years since this place was besieged by more than 500 of them Hell hounds at one time, but ware not permitted to gitt possession of it — I now lay aside my pent [pen] to Drink. Wifes and Sweet- harts — Sunday, August 30: an exceeding Cold morning/ enoug to make one shiver, wind at North a little east with shower/ allmost Could enough to snow/ grew warmer in the afternoon, took my horse and Rode up the River to Mr Chapmans an exceeding muddy and hilley Rhode but in site of the River all ther way gott a few peaches and returnd/ Mr Zanes has near 900 peach Treas on his plantation grate part of Which hang as full as they can hold, but none Quite ripe yett. however, I expect have full swing in day or Two. Mr Brownson a young man from Conagogigg" who keeps a store in one end of the same building wher I am, generally goes with me once a Day to Visitt the orchards and fetch a pitcher of beautifull Water from the spring/ on return we Commonly take Drink of grogg Just before Dinner, this we stand in need of as we Drink nothing but Water with Dinner. I have fully purswaded this young man that Two stores are better than one, but at the same time am fully satisfied that one store is more than half too much, however on this princapall we live together in the grates harmony. ^°See note for entry for May 1, 1788, above. 136 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY he sleeps up stairs and I on the lower flouer on a straw bed with such bed Cloth as my travelling [Meniall?] ofered me — " Monday, August 31: this last day of summer, is allmost as Could as is usually the last day of autumn/ the people have sett over a fire all the afternoon and this evg/ I find it Quite Comfort- able/ the people who live here pretend to say they never saw such weather before but I am of opinion, from the observations I have made this season, that the Weather in generall Ither Winter or summer is not one whit warmer than the County of Suffolk, Mas- sachusetts.^^ it is trew Rice grows here so does Madder and Rhu- barb, but there Water and musmellons are No better than ours — I am Verry much pestered with the Rumatism perhaps owing to the sudden chang of Weather, buisness Verry Dull — Tuesday, September 1 : the Weathur continues to Could/ there is grate probabiUty of Frost this Night. No Boats moveing up or Down the River and no buisness doing at the store, yett I can- not Leave it for fear sum bargain may be miss'd. there fore I am holding Colly by the Tail. — Wednesday, September 2: Still Could with heavey flying Clouds, sum Rain from the southwest, the River got Quite Low again — Thursday, September 3: fine Weather but Uttle to Do/ hve poor and easey if I could only be contented. — ^^ Friday, September 4 : I am allmost amind to stop my Joumall having nothing particular to observe but Just the same round, of rising eating three Time a day and at eight in the eveg retire to my straw bed and sleep till Three in the morning lay awake 1 J/4 hours then gitt up and wash etc. — ^^"In the other end of the building I partly occupy is a young man from Conigo- gigg, who keeps a store, but generally it is mine, and not his own. He watches my every motion, and I cannot get rid of him. If I go out on necessary business, he goes too. If I comb my hair, he combs his. When I shave, he shaves. In fact he makes me a prisoner, but in doing that he makes himself one too. Before I came, they say, he used to take his horse, and be gone all day. But now he is afraid he shall lose sight of something that may be done, so that he has not been from home once since I came here, nor I one step ofT the plantation." Letter, May to Mrs. May, Wheeling, September 13, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 112. ^^May's home county. i^Edes PMHB 1789, 150, omits all of this entry except "fine Weather." MERCHANT IN THE WEST 137 Saturday, September 5: midling warm, severall arivals from Muskingum. I generally gitt sum buisness from them but not grate/ my Landlord has a fine passell peaches. I amuse myself cutting and Drying them, and now makeing a pott of pickles from them that held 5 galls which I shall distribute amongst the Ladies at Fort Harmer and Marietta. Sunday, September 6 : an agreeable Day. fine pleasant Weather/ I have Don a grate deal of Writing to Day and bin over to the Island, fell pritty tired — Monday, September 7 : more arivals from Marietta/" I gott, about, 12 Dollars from them as they go up/ when they come back I intend to make another grab att them — Tuesday, September 8: Nothing to Do and nothing to say — Wednesday, September 9 : A delightfull Day — but no buisness in the tradeing way. I have however Imploy'd my self in over- hawling furres and skinns and picking, Cuttin and Drying peaches, to putt in my N. E. Sperritts to give it a flavor/ to morrow I pro- pose to putt up a pott of this kind of Pickles — for Maddam harmer and Mrs Battelle. there so grate a plenty of peaches that cant bare to se them wasted. — Thursday, September 10: Remarks on my expedition the sea- son of 1789. Sett out from Boston 23rd of April/ had an agreable time to Baltimore where I found the Goods in good order, here an unluckey matter took place. I was obliged to pay better than thirty pounds Dutey on merchandise or leave them behind. ^^ I thought this was hard luck whether it really was so or nott I am not at this time able to determine/ at any rate it deprived me of my travelling money, flour at Baltimore was Quick Market and so high prices the Waggoner Chose to Bring flour to Markett rather than Ingage to go over the Mountains, this made it impossable to procure Wag- gons to answer our purpose. I however engaged them to Carry our goods about 90 miles to Shippensberge where we stored them. Rode severall miles round and finally made a bargain with one Daniel ^*Edes PMHB 1789, 151, omits the remainder of this entry. ^^This is an approximate estimate and probably includes freight and storage costs as well. See entry for June 4, 1 789, above. 138 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Elliott to Carry the good to Fort pitt or Redston but when the time came he Did Not appear but sent word he Could not perform agreeable to his promise. Mr Breck and my self was at that time upwards of one hundred mils ahead and Downer was oblige to Contract anew/ this made a delay of 1 Days but finally the Wag- gons came on and we made out to gitt within 4 miles of Redstone, when a Terrible Tornado had laid prostrate all the forrests round that place as much as four miles Wide, this was an impenetrable Barrier which we could not pass, after reconoitering near a Whole Day we ordered the Waggons to go Down Little redstone, a small Creek that emties into the manongohala 5 Miles below Redston Old fort/ here we put our goods into a Deserted Cabbin, within J4 mile of the River, next Day the Doctor and I went thro' the fields of Devastation, to Sam Jacksons a Distance of 4 miles, here I bough a Kentuc Boat which was brought Down the next Monday and tuesday putt our goods on Board, opend store and did buisness all this while the River was falling amazeingly/ we Dropt out at the mouth of the Creek and the next Day hered [heard] the Downfall of gensang/ this was totall Confusion to my former plans; thought it absolutely necessary to wait for a Confermation of the affair, this I did under pretence that the river was to Low to go Down for I did not want the inhabitants, who are Verry Inquisitive, to know my Drift — however, the river did in fact gitt so Low in a few Days that it was impossable for a boat as bigg as ours to go over the Riffles/ this Continued a long time, and after being confined up- ward of 30 Days on the Manongahola River, and having the dis- agreeable Intelligence about sang Confirm'd I form'd a plan of reconoitering the Countrey that Lay betwixt me and Muskingim — and leaving direction for the Boat to come Down the River should the waters rise in my Absence. On Wedness the 8th July I set out by Land and afoot/ reach'd Washington at 2 oClock. here spent the afternoon and night/ there are a number of stores in this little place/ it is a County Town, and Conterall [central] between a number of Rivers. I crittically obberv'd there manner of Trade here and found it would not answer to Bring our goods to this place, the next morning I stood for the mouth of Buffalow, and reach'd it by MERCHANT IN THE WEST 139 Sunsett. here is a Little Town a building right at the Confluance of this creek with the Ohio — they begun to build only this spring and there is Nine Midling houses erected, and will in a short time be a good place for Trade, here I stayd severall days waiting for a pas- sage Down the River, got acquainted with a Number of stout Wealthey farmer that Live back sum 7 or 8. miles/ these men raise a vast Deal of produce and will be of grate Consequence to the little Town. I had strong thoughts of bringing sum or all of my goods to this place, however at Lenth I got a passage Down to Muskingum, wher I found them poor and proud, they wanted every thing but had nothing to pay with so that I durst not Venture my self with Merchandize to this place, thro fearing that they would prevail on me to lett them have good without pay — Kentuckey, is fill'd with Merchant, that know not what to Do with there goods. there darling Gensang being Done ; I am Tould by them that know, that there is 10 traders gone to that place this summer where ther was one last year, and it is the opinion of People in generall that more than two thirds of them will be ruin'd by this summers buisness my situation was Verry disagreeable/ to stay with my effects in the Mongoho or take a store on Ither of its banks it wood not do/ I could not vend my goods and receive pay, until winter, and then it would be in produce which I could Not dispose of untill spring or summer or perhaps go to New Orliens/ to go to Ken- tuckey was going further from home and no better prospect besides a grate probability of an Indian war^'' to go to Muskingum afraied of being cosin'd out of the whole, therefore I bent my mind seri- ously on Wheeling and haveing settled sum buisness at Marietta, returned up the river and arived @ Zanes, Sunday, 26th July in a deploreable situation, here I stayd two Days to wash and Dry My Cloths and papers, and had grate Reason to expect the Boat Down as the River had Rose finely, however, thro' Love of Ease and fear of Indians, my Companion did not chose to Quitt the waters of Monongohola. I hired a store of Mr Zanes and then set off in quest ^^There was considerable official concern over the unstable peace on the Indian- white frontier. See letter, St. Clair to George Washington, New York, Septem- ber 14, 1789, in Smith, St. Clair Papers, II, 123-124; letter, Washington to St. Clair, New York, October 6, 1789, in ibid., II, 125-126. 140 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY of the Boat. I went by Land to Pittsburg a distance of 60 miles and from there up the Monongohala 2 1 miles against a strong Cur- rant, when I found them in the gratest ease leying in the mouth of the Yohagana I can trewly say it rows' d my old addam when I found how easey they ware and I had bin near a month expos' d to the gratest hardships, such as seveer heat, extreme Thunder storms in the midst of a grate Wilderness, want of Wholsom food and Drink and the ground only to Lay on — while they had every Comfort that was proper. I was vex'd to think how far I had to go up streem to find them when nothing but there indolence and Love of ease prevented there Comeing down, however I kept my sower feeling intirely hid from them, reported the State of the Country I had bin in, and the impossability of our disposing of goods to advantage, at any one place, and proposed a seperation of the partnerships. Downer who is allways hastey, swore he would gladly take his part of the goods to him self. I [settled?] with him immediately, but was not so for- tunate with Mr B — [Breck]/ he did not chose to venture himself alone nor even Do buisness when he Could have me to bang about for him therefore he stuck by the stuff, but I thought it a grate acquisition to gitt rid of Two grate eaters and Drinkers who both together own'd only 1/6 part of the stock consequntly paid only 1/6 part of expence and caus'd more than half. — ^' having given Downer his quota the next day Brick and I drop'd Down the River, stop'd Three Days at Pitt one night at Bigg Beaver and one day and two night at Buffalow and at. 12 oClock at noon of ye 11 th of august arived safely at Wheeling/ the next day unloaded the Bigg Boat and put up the goods in the store. I was induced to take this position from three motivs Vizt it is a pleasant and agreeable situation, a good New Store on a high bank of ye River Ohio, with a beautifull Island in front three Miles in Lenth/ from my store I have a delightfull prospect of this Island ^■'The latter part of this paragraph, commencing with "Downer who is aUways hastey" is considerably abridged and edited in Edes PMHB 1789, 155, to: "Dr. Downer assented, said he would take his quota of the goods, and do the best he could for himself; but Mr. Breck did not care to venture himself alone, but preferred to continue the copartnery." MERCHANT IN THE WEST 141 and Two miles down the river. I am 96 miles from Pitt and 84 from Marietta and 31 from Washington, here all the boats going too or from any of the settlements ither above or below allway stop here/ I am handy to the farmers and can watch the marketts of Marietta and send them suplies of provisions when wanted which is often the case, my friend B. — allways in the way and never wanted. I proposed him a Tower, to Muskingum and take a few things with him for sale, this he fell in with and on Monday 17 August I dispatch'd him with £75 Lawfull, worth of goods/ there I intend to keep him, untill it is time to be going home. I mean to throw him small suppHes as I find he can Vend them, this will answer me a double purpose, it will gitt of sum goods and keep him out of my way/ if he will only exert himself he may be Verry ser- visable thereby Vending goods, and giving me information from time to time — ^^ Friday, September 11 : fine weather/ the River Low and buis- ness Dull — Saturday, September 12 : warm and Lowrey/ I have pickled 5 gallons of the best and largest peaches I yett beheld/ in generall it takes only three to weigh a pound/ I pick'd them all with own hand and took none but what seem'd to be natures master piece, these pickles, I mean to send to Mrs Harmer Mrs Battell and Mrs Zieg- lar.^^ it will be a grate Rearety for them. I have allso Cutt and Drey'd one bushell of ellegant peaches which I putt in to my Rum to give it a flavor, this afternoon I have bin pritty buisy — Sunday, September 13 : a cool and agreeable Day. it begins to look and feell like autum, and I can sencibley feel that I grow old as the Days, months and years roal away. I am indevouring to do my Duty, yett I sumtimes have my Doubts whether I am not rong ^^The latter part of this paragraph, commencing with "my friend B." is con- siderably altered in Edes PMHB 1789, 155, to: "After a while it appeared advisable that friend Break should take a trip to Muskingum, carrying goods with him for sale, such as he might hope to dispose of to advantage. According- ly, on Monday, 17th August, he set off with goods to the amount of £75, lawful currency. Information received from him, from time to time, will be very val- uable. He may stay there, possibly, until we begin to think of going home." ^^Wife of David Zeigler who was a shareholder of the Ohio Company. Hulbert, Ohio Company, II, 69n.; Denny, Journal, 335. 142 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY in leaving my yong family for so long a time, but fate Directs and I am only to obey.~° the want of Intelligence from home make the time seem painfull/ I imploy myself to Day in cleaning up myself makeing repairs on my Wasted Carcase/ I gott lost about a month ago with Mr Ludlow in the Wilderness and was wandering more than three hours in the hottest night I ever knew. I took a surfitt which has bin braking out ever since, and is now become Quite troublesm/ I am taking salts in Order to Cool it off — "^ Ruse mighe I dlompc ef ny Pulcmol fel cho setemd cino simto I rofc hil bech disclossimg & disugiooubro. I dlonpt chuc I aaus uc heno. feamd Ny heaso Retk'd ap, cho Thirdlom scliaoimg ce gicc im. chis aaus ubeac 1 1 . Tretk ny aaifo gemo em um Ussigm uis em mec ce bo heno cirr Oaomimg, chis guao no gluco puim. I rofc cho riccro emos aaicheac spoukimg ce chom [chon] fel I aaus Mec Ubro. I Nepod imce ceaam aaholo I suaa Ubamdumto ef Poepro umd blechol Jo: umomgsc [unemgsc] chom [chon], ho aaus luggod us u boggel. I usk'd hin fel ny Speaso ho Sheek his houd guao no cho koy ef ny heaso, bac aaeard mec corr no aaholo sho aaus chis guao no sath Amosimoss chuc I uaaeko. & aaus Grud ic aaus U Dloun.^^ [Last night I drempt of my Partner for the second time since I left hir/ both distressing and disagreeable. I drempt that I was at ^°This sentence and the balance of the paragraph are abridged and edited in Edes PMHB 1789, 156, to: "A higher power directs in these viatters more than we do. The want of intelligence from home makes the time pass very heavily; and a breaking out all over torments me sadly, and I am dosing to try to be rid of it." ^^May made a progress report to his wife in a letter from Wheeling, dated Sep- tember 13, 1789 (in Edes Marietta 1788, 112-113). "It gives me pleasure to tell you that I have done more business since I came here than I expected." Mr. Breck is "doing a little business" in Marietta. "Our grand plan being broken all to pieces, we shall not make out a great Summer's work; for there are many articles that cannot be sold even at cost, unless credited .... shall feel satisfied if I can save myself, and come home without loss." Of business transacted, "I have taken in the short time I have been here upwards of 500 raccoon skins, some beaver, and 120 deer skins, and all the cash that circulates." Although unfavorable news had been received concerning the market for ginseng, "I shall take in ginseng at my own risque, for I had rather do this than leave the goods unsold; and it may bear a price again some time or other." 22The only notice taken in Edes PMHB 1789, 156, of this is: "(Here quite a long passage in cypher. ) " MERCHANT IN THE WEST 143 home, found My house Lock'd up, the Children striveing to gitt in. this was about 1 1 . Clock/ my wife gone on an assign ais on not to be home till evening, this gave me grate pain. I left the little ones without speaking to then (them) for I was Not able. I Moped into town where I saw Abundante of People and brother Je : anengst (amongst) then (them), he was ragged as a beggor. I ask'd him for my Spouse/ he Shook his head gave me the key of my house, but would not tell me where she was/ this gave me such Unesiness that I awoke, and was Glad it was a Dream.] Monday, September 14 : fine fall weather and butt little to do — Tuesday, September 15: Same as yesterday/ I have a bad brakeing out on my body which began about 8 Days ago, with one Large pimple on my back, the Day, 2, next, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128,^^ and I expect they will ride one another if I don't find sum way to prevent their increas. I have allreddy takin. 2 oz glaubersalts and am now taking Medicamentum. I suppose that this affliction arises from a surfitt I gott about a month ago. — Wednesday, September 16: and fine day and that's all — Thursday, September 17 : excellent weather/ the River verry Low. I did Considerable of Buissness to Day. Cheafly Load Two floats Down the River Viz. Benja Hulin and Jacob Fowler, for the Bigg Kenaway — Friday, September 18: awoke this morning at 3 oClock as Usual/ Just as the day Broke I heard sum talking out Doors/ [manuscript illegible] strangers I thought it might be sum boat come up the River/ I immediately [manuscript illegible] and gott thinking Might gitt a bargain which I accordingly did. I purchased forty Dear skins and had um in my store afore sunrise, this was steeling a March on Brownson and did me a grate Deal of good/^* 2^From this point the balance of the entry is rendered by Edes PMHB 1789, 156, to read: "and so on in geometrical ratio. Ossa will be piled up on Pelion, if I don't find out some way to prevent their increase. Have taken 2 oz. glauber salts, am now taking medicamentum. Exposure, wilderness fare, and the Lord knows what company I have been in. I cannot explain it in any other way." "Medicamentum" is in italics in Edes PMHB 1789. 2*This sentence is expanded and rendered, in Edes PMHB 1789, 157, to: "a transaction which restored me a great deal to a better feeling. This while Br n, who hangs about me like my shadow, was snoring in the other part 144 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Just as I had finish' d this buisness, Mr John White came Down the River with whom I traded to amoun 25 Dollars, and lent friend Wm about £40 worth good to Muskingum — Saturday, September 19 : the heaviest fogg this morning I ever saw. the Clouds came down and rested upon us until 10 oClock when it clear'd up/ a fine Day — Sunday, September 20: this morning as foggey as yesterday. I imploy'd myself as usual by myself in the store, Reading sum and Writeing more. I have never slept one wink by day light since I left Boston, therefore can wast no time in that way, as many Do who feel them selves at Leisure — Monday, September 21 : Foggey Moring but fine clear Day, and the sun intensely hott, in the middle of it. we have had no rain for 14 Days, the Ohio river lower than was ever known/ this mas- terly river can be forded in many places, and gives grate opportu- nity for the savages to cross over and Do, mischief which has bin quite frequent thro : the course of the summer, acording to the best calculation I can make they kill'd in various places about 50 men and Women and Taken a number of Prisnors and many horses — Tuesday, September 22: Still foggey but excellent Clear weather when it is gone, buisness dull, and I much afflicted with a brakeing out on my body — it began about 1 Days ago with a pim- ple or Two in my back that Itch'd to the Verry Bone/ those Two families soon began to emigrate and settle in different parts of Body and send out New Colonies from thence again, till in fact that have taken up all the ground, except sum few necks and penensulays. I am Now prepering to oust them, for which purpose I have col- lected a Quantity of Helium and Squrtum, and essence of Baseum, with which I mean to attack um so close um as to effectually routum. — ^^ Wednesday, September 23: this day five months I Left my home Uttle thinking what a painfull task I had to go thro, happey of the building. I chuckled not a little, picturing to myself his astonishment when he would see the skins." 25Edes PMHB 1789, 158, materially changes this sentence to read: "/ am now recruiting forces to make a combined attack on them, ivith 'horse foot and dragoons.' " MERCHANT IN THE WEST 145 is it for mankind that they are not permitted to Look into futurity, or scan the mighty Maze thro which that have to pass in there course thro' Life, it would be the means of indolence and Idleness/ Reather than attempt grate projicts they would sett down in sloth and supineness. when they are led on and know not the end, untill accomplish' d they Do a grate Deal of good to there generation of obtain knowledge to them selves. Sumtims Riches when they obtain Riches or honour it cannot be attributed to there superior skill but mearly to ther good Fortune and success of which I have had a tollorrable portion but this year it is against me"^ Thursday, September 24 : Not much buisness the Day, but fine Dry Weather, at evening arived Doctr Downer and other on there way to N E. these yankey caused sum Confusion in the family; for however I may think of the kohees" about gawking, this is certain that one yankee will make more noyse in 15 minuts than 10 koheas. Sett up til 1 2 at Night to Right Letters to Muskingum so as to send back the Boat early in the morning — Friday, September 25 : Rose at Day/ had no sleep while abed except a Nap or Two/ the Last one gave a Disuglooubro Dloun. I cheaghc I hud nudo u Luppod nulth ce ny eaam hen aaholo I feamd Ny Speaso im um origumc heaso aaorr falmish'd salleamdod aaich yeamg Guy Cenpumy umd im high groo chey ceek u riccro mecito ef no uc filsc ny aaifo speko tinidry [cinidry] ce no bac 2®This sermonizing entry gives the reverend Mr. Edes a good opportunity to polish and add into a sermonet. The latter half of the entry, starting with "when they are led" undergoes the most change in this respect. Edes PMHB 1789, 158: "When they are led on jrom one thing to another, and know not the end until they come right upon it (and then perhaps in some form wholly unexpected) they are receiving good they did not imagine, and doing good, perhaps, in shapes that did not enter into their plans. Much self- knowledge is gained in the process, that is certain; and much brought about, possibly, that other times and generations will feel the benefit of. Sometimes, when men attain to riches and honor, it cannot be attributed to their superior skill or knowledge; but their success must be set down to what we call, for want of a better name, Good Fortune. I have had a tolerable share of favors from luck, but this year it is against me. But old Job— whose condition by the way was not unlike mine— has put it much better than I have, 'What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil.'?" ^"Cohees were Virginians who lived west of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Willard F. Bliss, "The Tuckahoe in New Virginia," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, LIX ( 195 1 ) , 387-396. 146 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY seem Jeimd cho tenpumy umd I aaus rofc ce aaumdol im noum cino Tunc imce cho hurr erd Dutcm [Detcl] Phirrips & Jme R Riaoscem em baismoss ef Temsoqaomto ef cho aaoscolm aaelrd ahiro [aahiro] I aaus Uccomdimg chom [chon] I tusc ny oyo leamd umd im U troulo pule ef cho leen I suaa ny aaifo Siccimg im U yeamg forreaas Rup aaich hil humd im his bessen umd his im hils I aaus Ruaimg [Luvimg] froaa ce hin cirr I kirr'd hin chom aaomc eac umd aaopc biccolry aahith uaaeko no umd grud aaus I. [Disa- greeable Dream. I thought I had made a rapped march to my own home where I found My Spouse in an eligant house well furnish'd surrounded with young gay Company and in high glee/ they took a little notice of me at first/ my wife spoke cimidly (timidly) to me but soon Joind the company and I was left to wander/ in mean time Came into the hall old Doctn (Doctr) Phillips and Jno L Liveston on buisness of Consequence of the western world/ uhile (while) I was Attending then (them) I cast my eye round and in a cleare part of the room I saw my wife Sitting in a young fellows lap with hir hand in his bossom and his in hirs/ I was Laving (Raving)/ flew to him till I kill'd him then went out and wept bitterly which awoke me and glad was L] I have bin finely for four weeks but my health seemes to Leaving me and Wearisom Nights are apponted unto me. — ^* Saturday, September 26: Rose early and felt poorly but have- ing no assistance am obliged to keep about and Do all the Little buisness I can. wrote several Letters to Muskingum and had a Chance to send them this evening Sunday, September 27 : feel no better/ I am now fully satis- fied that I have gott Larg distinct Cursed scotch-Irish Itch, and where the Divil it Come from I cant tell, unless Pandora hirself throw' d a few seeds at me out of hir generall assortment of Plagues to Torment mankind, how to gitt rid of it must be my care now. this has bin a fine Day sum of it spent in Reading and sum in scratching/ I am appleying the oyl of Baze or as it is Call'd at 28Edes PMHB 1789, 159, entry for this day: "(Written for the most part in cypher, ending with 'wearisome nights are appointed unto me.')" MERCHANT IN THE WEST 147 N. E. Gray ongwintine."^ this they say will sartainly cure me but my faith is small. ^° Monday, September 28: Slept none Last night/ allmost sick to Day but had grate releaf about 12 oClock at noon, by a Letter from my partner" and Brother at Boston/ this did me reall service; the weather good and buisness Dull."" the river lower then ever I se it before, can be foardaid in a thousand places, indeed allmost any where by little Boys, a trew resemblance of the ups, and downs of human Life/ Various have bin the visicitudes of my life, for alltho I have never risen high like sum fallin so Low yitt my pil- grimage is Quite a Checkered one. I can truely say that I have fielt hard pangs of wo. for theese Two years past — but. "By woe, the soul to dareing actions Swells, "By woe, in plaintless. patience it excells; "from patience, prudente clear experience springs, "and traces knowledge, thro' the Course of things! "Thence hope is forme' d, thene fortitude, sucsess, "Renown; what ere men Covett and Caress. Sam. Johnson — these are Lines I remember to have read somewhere and Comeing to my mind now I thought I would write them. Down/ this after- noon sum Rhode Cutters were Drove in by a party of Indians but I know not how many their inroads are freequently made, and are so Common we think but Little of them/ I believe not enough how- ever. I am Generally prepared for them, with Two pistell and Two Guns properly Loaded besids a Tammahauk at the head of my bed. — ^^May noted another remedy on the last page of this third volume of MS 1789: "to Cure the Itch effectually take 2 oz of sulfer and 2 oz nighter/ mix them with hogs lard and a little Soap/ bath well with it and rest 5/2 an hour then wash and be Clean." ^°Instead of the last two sentences, Edes PMHB 1789, 159, says "(Here cy- pher.)" At first glance at them in MS 1789 they appear to be in cypher because of some of the peculiar spelling and careless handwriting, but with careful ex- amination they can be read. 2^May sometimes called his wife "partner." See salutation of letter, May to Mrs. May, Baltimore, April 9 [May 9], 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 93. 32Instead of "the weather good and buisness Dull" Edes PMHB 1789, 159, adds: "and were worth more to me than half a druggists stock in trade. 'As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.' " 148 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Tuesday, September 29: my Nights as Restless as ever, and I dragg on my Days heavily, yett make out to Do sum buisness/ have taken in to Day several little passells of Sang/ bought 32 fox and wild Catt skins/ received a Canoe Load of Flour and whiskey, etc. etc. etc. — and am now going to bed in hopes of rest but am afFraid I shall be disappointed. Wednesday, September 30: Remarcable fine weather, the Bot- tom of the river all was bear. Indians Murdering Killing and Scalping in severall places — Thursday, October 1 : A Cold raw morning and Growing coulder all Day/ severall squlls of snow in the course of the Day/ my. Landlord and severall orthers gone a hunting, the Indians kill eight Men three Days ago but a little Distance from this place, the next Day kill'd and Carried off four Families, as I all ways sleep a Lone in a lone Logg store I have Constantly kept my arms in good order, but this Night shall Load three arms Two with Buck shott and a Ball in the other bisides my pistills which Lay at my head, if the yellow Devils Come I intend to give them a propper Blazing — Friday, October 2: an amasing grate frost. Ice in many places/ it feels as if Winter is Come. No Indians last night — Saturday, October 3: this morning my Landlord came home and brought 7 fine Dear Sum of them as fatt as Mutton/ we shall Live all the time on Venison now instead of Bacon/ a Verry Could raw and Lowrey Day but one of the best Days for buisness I have had yett. I have taken in near 200 lb Gensang Seventy odd Dear skins sum Bear skins and to amt upward of £25 and deliver but they pay in the retail way with out any help/ this Just what I like. — Sunday, October 4 : a could uncomfortable day/ there has bin seveer frosts for three Nights, and could days, a Mr Jones,^^ baptis preacher near Philadelphia came here last night and preach'd to Day. I heard all day this more than midling preacher and a fine Companion/ this is the second time I have heard preachg since I Left Boston, allth'o they have preaching everry Tuesday by sartain ^^For a diflferent contemporary opinion of the preaching of this itinerant mis- sionary, David Jones, see Wallace, Thirty Thousand Miles with Heckewelder, 230. t::^' MERCHANT IN THE WEST 149 Methodis preacher who preach Damnable Doctrin and yell as tho' they wood splitt there throts. I could hear them without Leaving my store, but can truely say I hate the Sight of them and much more the Noise. Monday, October 5: the Weather a little Moderated, the River shrunk allmost to nothing/ buisness Dull. So am I. — Tuesday, October 6: I rose at 5 oClock and took my Muskett/ went over the hills/ just as the Sun rose I spiyd Two fine turkeys at Roost on the highest Trea that ever I saw. I made a fire at them with 13 Buck Shott and kill'd them Both, gott home again Sun an hour high and felt pritty grand. Took in Considerable Sang and thats, all. Wednesday, October 7: a fine pleasant Day. my scratches much abated, have bin hard to work all Day handling Sang, have Strove hard to buy 2000 lb of Sang from Kentuckey of a Dutch- man but had as well try to trade with a hogg. however I shall Leave no Stone on turned, he is an object worth my attention and I am determined to Grabb. him — Never Since my existance have I strain'd every Nerve in buisness as I have these 6 months. I form'd a plan was determined to execute it.^* have bin baffled every way, yitt I will not give out. I had allmost as Lives Die as return Defeated — Thursday, October 8: Rainey morning, but a fine Day the River Riseing slowly. I have bin playing out my best Cards to the Dutch man — have kept his Skin full, and prevented his haveing any Correspondance with the many packers who Came here to Carrey Loads, least he should Send off his sang/ he begins to gitt acquainted and my hope revives/ I think I shall hook him to- morrow — ^^ Friday, October 9 : I have had a good Share of retail Custom ^■'The portion of this entry to this point, commencing with "but had as well try to trade" is modified in Edes PMHB 1789, 161-162, to: "but he was solicita- tion proof; but I am determined to go at him again. Never since / became an inhabitant of this wicked world have I striven harder about business mat- ters than during the last six months. I laid my plans and was determined, if mortal ability would suffice, to execute them." ^^The last two sentences of this entry are not in Edes PMHB 1789, 162. 150 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY to day/ taken in near a hundred wt of sang by Dribletts sum peltry and Butter, my Dutchman still holds out. Last Night had a con- siderable Rain, with Thunder. Saturday, October 10: this Morning I and the Dutchman made the Bargain for. 1700 lb Sang/ I was obliged to use all the art I was master of or I should have lost him. two men were a playing against me all the time, which at linth I found ot, and blow'd them both.^*' Whether this a fortunate or unfortunat pur- chace time will determine, at any rate it will take off sum of my goods which I must otherwise Leave behind or sacrafise — Sunday, October 11: being thoro'ly tired with the last weeks work, I improved this day as I think I ought which is a Day of Rest. Monday, October 12: Rose early and went to buisness. the more fuss and Noyse a man makes in buisness the more he may Do, and I shall probably have full imploy this week.^^ I am fully sen- sible that I do more buisness in Day thin my Nabour Brounson in 3 months — this morning sum passengers Down the River informed that two Lads of 1 and 1 2 years of age by the name of Johnstone were made prisnors by Two Indians in the Christian Dress with Beaver hatts etc. these Indians tarried till almos night Looking for horses but finding none Retired in the wilderness with the Boys about 6 Miles and made a fire lay Down to sleep, each Indian with a Boy on his Arm. the could not Rest Quiett and finding the Indians sound asleep slip'd down towards the fire to warm them, where they conserted the plan of killing the Indians and becomeing free men again/ the oldest was prime Conductor/ he took one of the Indians ^^The entry to this point is considerably altered in Edes PMHB 1789, 162, to: "After some manoeuvring, marching and counter-marching, attacks and feints, the bargain completed, my Dutchman capitulated; and was allowed to march out with all the honors of war. Closed the bargain with him for 1700 lbs. sang. Had to emloy all my tactics, however; for two other men, as I have since found out, were working against me all the time." ■^^Edes got carried away again by completely changing "and I shall probably have full imploy this week" in Edes PMHB 1789, 163, to: "Must keep the drums a-beating and the colors a-flying, whatever I may think of the state of affairs in the camp. If I fail— thank the Lord I can say that— it will not be for want of effort on my part." MERCHANT IN THE WEST 151 Rifles and Levelled it at the Head of one of the Indians thin giving it to his younger Brother telling him to fire when he sa him the Elder strike the Tammahauk into the head of the other/ this was Compleated according to the plan, and the Boys got safe away inform'd the Inhabitants that those Indians told them there was 50 warriers Laying about 25 Miles off. this putt the people in alarm Tuesday, October 13: uncomfortable Day/ a number of the Bravest men gone to hunt Indians. Made a Considerable parade — Wednesday, October 14: those Brave men Returned haveing found one of the Dead and the othur half Dead but he Look'd so they Dare not attack him, and Lett him gitt away — Thursday, October 15 : a Rainey Day and Little Doing — Friday, October 16: Rose early and took my gun/ went out and kill 3 turkeys/ gott home a little after Sunrise, we have had a Lowry spell four Day, butt little rain/ the river so Low that ther is no passing only with Canoes Consequently Virry Little buisness/ the sun scarcly seen for 4 Day/ this is much against sang making Saturday, October 17 : got up at Day Brake/ had bin awake three hours, took my gun and went into the woods/ kept a good look out for Indians, but better for Turkeys/ I kill four stout fel- lows, and wounded a fifth which I Chased til I was beat out then Cussed and Quit him/ took my four and Came home/ found by that time got ther I did not want the fifth for I was well tired carriying the four, tis become and old affair now and I believe I shall not hunt much more/ yett what I have done is out of prin- caple, to circulat my blood Sunday, October 18: Cloudy and raw Cold. I really want to se the Sun, and now willing to se Mr B [Breck]/ I gave him directions to be here the 15th Instant, he wrote me 10 Days ago for 2 Casks Rum which he had sold that would wait for that, but wrote the 6th that it was all sold which he received the sam Day I received his, so that he has no excuse but indolence, which articall he abounds with — Monday, October 19: I rose early and have bin full of buis- ness all day/ in fact for one month back Since I gott the Wheels in Motion and the Cloog gone I rose at Brake at Day and never spent 152 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY more than /o an hour in four and twenty to eat/ all the rest of the time my everry facultey and everry limb have bin imploy'd to prevent a Defeet which now think I shall Accomplish at Least so as to save myself. I have a plan laid which I can accomplish will through me well ahead. I Generally write 1 1 sumtims til 1 2 oClock at night, so that in fact I am in buisness. 18 hours out of 24, Sab- bath days included/ my last buisness is to write in this Journall and Consequently is verry incorrect, but I believe will serve to show that I go to bed sober, tho' I am Never out of good old Jamaica Sperritt and with it frequently recruit my oun, when Drooping — ^^ Tuesday, October 20: a buisey Day I have a sore throte and my middle right hand finger, much gam'd. I can poorly spare any part of that finger and the organ of speech is much wanted, how- ever I will try to gitt rest, received Letters from B. in by Walcutt Wednesday, October 21 : Buisey to Day packing sang and putting casks in order, had a Considerable buisnes allso and a wagon Load of Salt of John McCall at 21i'. pr Bushell, and shall Load him back tomorrow/ this is the third Waggon that has bin here since it was settled, the Indians keep a Lurking round us sum Days 2 and sum three ar seen/ them are no Doubt Spies, watching the Inhabitants etc. as I sleep alone in a Lone building I keep my arms all Loaded and Near at hand — Thursday, October 22: rose Verry early and by 10. oClock fix and [sent] away John MacCall with 7 Large Casks of Ginsang and 10 bundles of Dearskins and furrs. the whole wt 2000 lb for which I am to pay him £16 pena money or 12^. I6d. LM/^° his waggon as full as it can hold — Mr B. — not come yett I suppose he Dont mean to untill all the Work is Done which I hope will not be Long for it. — what Sang I have taken in is Verry Good but the people in these parts were Loth to Digg it at. \s. 6d. and I would not permitt them to ^^From "tho' I am Never out" the balance of this entry is not included in Edes PMHB 1789, 165. 39Although May wrote this as "12/16 LM", 12^. I6d. lawful money, he prob- ably meant £12 I6s. MERCHANT IN THE WEST 153 Do it untill the first of September and in 15 Days from that time ther Came a frost an sum Rain which knock'd it all Down so that the Diggers had only 15 Days to Digg in. sum times it holds up till the Middle of November, if it had this year, it would have made severell thousand wight in my favour, provided it fetch in a good price Friday, October 23:*'^ this is fine pleasant looking day but I belive a weather breeder, for I feel WofuUy. my head, my hart and hands, are all wearey and not being Crouded with buisness I have time to find it out. this takeing in, and properly secureing, packing etc. of Dear skins, furrs. Sang etc. is mighty industris and Laborious buisness for one pare of hands — in the space of one month I have taken in upward 2800 lb Sang (sum of it Quite green, this I have 3 for. 1.) and most of it wants sunning two, three, or four Days, which on acct of Shours sumtims must be taken in three or four times a day. I have allso taken about 1400 lb of Dear skin and furrs/ these allso want airing and all pack'd in the Nise est [nicest] Order — these all paid for in good in the small — verry small way, and an acct kept of every thing that goes out or Comes in — which I have Done in the ittallian form, sumtimes I write 6. 7 or 8 Letters a Day, sildom less than 3/ I have used 2 Complect Boxes wafers since I Came from home, and write in my Joumall every Day ; on the whole I rise at brake of Day and spend no Idle time untill eleven or 12 oClock at night, then sumtimes as I sleep in a Lone house I spend half an hour or so, in Contempla- tion, but I will not Complain for I am born to Labour, whether Can I flee from a hurry of buisness, or whether shall I go from anxiety and Care? if I go to the Western waters behold it is there, if I return to Boston lo it is there, if I take the Wings of a ship and fliy to ye uttermost parts of the sea, there shall I find it in grate Abundance. — so that on the whole it is but to do our Duty and be content with what is allotted us — however it is much easier to pen ones resignation than to practice it.*^ I Confess I am out of *°This is the first entry in the fourth and final volume of MS 1789. ^^Heavy handed editing of several lines up to this point are evident in Edes Article 1789 and in Edes PMHB 1789. It is also interesting to note that the balance of this entry is omitted entirely in Edes PMHB 1789, 166, 154 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY patience with my wooden sided milkey Brained [Breck]/ I have expected him since the 15th Instant, and his Dam'd sluggish- ness will inavoidably keep me in ye Country two weeks longer, which will bring on bad travelling and prevent a bargain that I am anxious to make. — I suppose he is waiting for the Garrison boat to bring his Long Carkus up the River for it is probable a Canoe is not safe enoug, or he may have to Work his passage, — God. I work: I did not come to make a slave of my self — hoh, hoh, hoh, hoh, hoh, — hai, hoh, hoh, hoh, hoh, hoh — hai. — Faith, I did not calculate on any such thing as that, faith, — this I am sure if they was to thro, him over board, he would not sink. Saturday, October 24 : this may be Call'd a rainey Day, and the first I have ever seen since I left Boston/ this ingers the rhodes and helps the river, mightily; the poor travellers at Redston in Number upward of 500 many of which have bin there Two month and more, will have reason to rejoice — it has bin so rainey to Day that I have Done no buisness of consequence except write two Let- ters and kept Books, by Candle Light. Sunday, October 25: Late in the Last evening arived two Boats from Marietta. I saw them two miles off and knew them supposed they might Contain my Clomsey P [partner] but they want good enoug to fetch him. they bring report that he is frollicking about from one place to another but \vill come soon — if my prayers are heard, he is Condemned allreddy, and that means D d /*^ in one these Boats came passenger a Mrs Bilder- back, who was taken at Short Creek 8 miles from here early last July with hir husband, by the Savages, the Day after she was taken she was seperated from hir husband, and Committed to the Care of one Indian who travelled with hir alone 1 5 Days, when the rest Joined them having killd hir husband, brought all his Cloths to hir and shew'd them as a trofey — She was Carried back to many of the Indian Towns and from there to the Miamis where she was relieved. She is young woman of 23 years/ Left two Children one of which suck'd, when she went from this place I gave hir Callico *2From "they bring report" to this point is omitted in Edes PMHB 1789, 167. MERCHANT IN THE WEST 155 enough to make slips for hir Children. — I have bin much plagued with those Kentuck fellows. I went to my store on a little buisness and they Crouded in and I Could not gitt Rid of them for Two hour. I was obliged to Quarril with one of them and push him out Doors — whare is Ben. Ulin with my Mare and [manuscript illegible] Breck Dr to May £3 155. L. Moy*' Monday, October 26: Lowry could weather/ Little buisness/ no Breck come/ I am weary of waiting, for him/ That I never Saw in a hury — Tuesday, October 27 : Tollarable Weather/ the river risein a Little. I went this morning and kill'd two Turkeys, at eveng Mr Breck arived etc. etc. etc. — Wednesday, October 28: have bin busey all Day talkin over matters and thing I am perswadeing Mr B. to buy all the Stock remaining on hand/ I have inventoried the whole and made him an offer of a Bever hatt and Suit of Broad Cloth close if he will Sett a price what he will give or tak. and I offer to Do it for the same, however he moves slow and I shall not know any thing more about it till morning perhaps not then — Thursday, October 29: a rainey Day but after breckfast Mr B. Concluded to take the suit of Clothes and sett the price, this suits me exactly/ he agrees to give £190 for, and I have given him my note for the hatt and Cloths — Friday, October 30 : Imployd in Settling accounpts and arang- ing matters with B. packin sang Dear skins etc. — the river rise 6 feet, a Mrs Woodbridg and young family" from Norwich arived here this evening for Marietta Saturday, October 31: Closed my matters with B. [Breck] and assisted in fitting out Mrs Woodbridge. about sunsett Mr Par- sons*^ arived from fort Pitt and brought a budgett of Letters/ the postage Is. one of them Dated as early as July and sum 4th Oc- tober — ■*31awful money. In MS 1789, "£3 155." is crossed out. ■*'*Probably refers to the family of Dudley Woodbridge. Hulbcrt, Ohio Com- pany, I, 132n. *^Probably Enoch Parsons, son of Samuel H. Parsons. Ibid., II, 1, note 1. 156 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Sunday, November 1 : this Day I feell a Little at Leisure/ put on my Ruffled shirt and Best Cloths which I have not Done before since I Came here/ went up the river 2 miles in a canoe to se a Mr Martin and Lady who Live on the Indian shoar/ here I dined on fine Venison and Com pork plenty of Roots and Vegitabls. this man maried a Daughter of my Landlords went on to this place this Spring and has a fine farm allreddy/ he had built a house raised 10 acres of Corn put in 10 acres of Wheet and gott a Child, if people can plant Corn and build a Logg hutt near sum Good Spring of Water they are Rich enough/ the woods finds thim plenty of superfluities. Turkey are much plentier here then in our Country and but few people to eat them — Monday, November 2 : Spent this bargaining with B[reck] for the homward bound goods and finally closed with him — Tuesday, November 3 : buisey in settling my old acct with my Costomers, allso arranging Matters with B Wednesday, November 4: Rod out 7 miles to se a Mr Hall who is to Carry my things over the Mountains at. 15^. pr Inv [invoice or inventory]/ I sufferd exedingly with Could/ it Snowd pritty hard all the fore part of the Day/ the Snow Lay on the Mountains 4. Inches thick. — Thursday, November 5 : a seveer Could Day but I found buis- ness enough to dispatch my Skins and Sang 14 horse Loads wt about 2900 lb/ this Carried on horses 250 miles — each horse has a bell and one Driver to 5 horses — tomorrow I Look homeward — CHAPTER 7 RETURN TO THE EAST, 1789 Friday, November 6: Spent the foer part of the Day in write- ing Letters to Muskingum packing my cloths etc. Din'd at 2 oClock and at 3 Left Wheeling with my Company to travarse the woods to West Liberty a Distance of 12 Miles/ After Labouring with extreem bad Rhodes and Crossing Creek 17 times I at Lenth Reach'd the place at 6. oClock without any accident except Loos- ing my Spurr/ I Look upon this 12 miles as good as a Days work, haveing gone thro all the cerimonis of Quitting my old habitation and Connections — Saturday, November 7 : rose at day brake and went out Look for a Spurr, which I lost the last eve as I entered this place, but Look'd in Vain/ this is a rainey Day. I am afraid I shall have to wait till tomorrow for the packers, and haveing putt my face homeward feel a little impatient, besides I have a Vissitt or two to make to the mouth of Buffalow and probable go to Fort Pitt before 1 begin in earnest to Clime the mountains. Sunday, November 8: raind all Day yesterday and as black an evening as ever I saw. my packers Not Come there for I spent Sunday at Major Sprigs in West. Liberty, this a good Publick house in a pritty little Village only two years old, is the Seat of Justice for Ohio County, and Contains, upward of thirty dwelling houses Most of which are taverons. the weather clear'd up Last Night at 12 oClock and is today verry pleasant. Monday, November 9: I gott up at 2 oClock Call'd up the host it being fine bright Moon Shiny morning. I assisted for sum time the packmen, then took breckfast and at five oClock sott out for Washington in Company with the packer — vizt 18 horses Loaded and 5 men who took care of them each havin a horse 2 men more besides myself so that there was 26 in Number, a small Troop. I Staid with them only two hours whin I Left them/ they travel' d so slow and made such Confusion that I was Glad to Quitt them and travell the Wilderness Alone thro' most intricate 157 158 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY paths and Mud belly Deep, however I made out to Reach Wash- ington [Pennsylvania] by dint of Industrey in 10 hours a Distance of 21. Miles/ have bin Quite Lost in that time three times. I am fairly tired and so is my Little Brockway^ for it has bin extreem hott/ we have both of us sweat Like Rain. I mean to tarry at this place till the packers Come up. — Tuesday, November 10: in course of 4 days with grate Indus- trey I have made out gitt 31 miles from Wheeling; it is Trew Sat- urday was rainey, and I did ride [sic] but studied which is Quite as hard, at seven oClock Last evening my packers arived, having made a good Days work, of 21 miles — Wednesday, November 11: a bright Night when I went to bed but in the Night Sprung a Violent Storm of wind and Rain and lasted till morning. I rose at the usual hour had my horse fed and brought up and about sunrise Mounted him/ had not rode far before it sot in to rain/ the Rhodes bad enought before but now became worse. I Rode in the rain 1 1 Miles thro a Desert where no houses is/ glad was I when this stage ended/ while I eat my breck- fast the weather Cleard up and was Very warm/ I made out to Cross the monagahala and arrived at Simmeril Ferry on the Yo- hagany at sunsett — find all sick — Thursday, November 12: I feel poorly this morning haven taken Could or reather the distemper which rages every where on this side the Allagana Mountain/ I stayd breckfast hear and at 9 oClock set out on my Loneley Journey/ such travelling I have Never mett with in my life. I however made out 20 miles and put up at Antford's the Dutchman where was not less than 50 Souls amongs which was a Mr Linsey and family Consisting of himself wife and 9 Children bond to Kentucky/ they appear to be a family of Note— Friday, November 13: rose early and persued my Journy with Rhodes worse then yesterday and I sicker — but Cross the Larrell Mountain and arived at Ankelleys" sun ^ hour high when ^See note for entry for August 25, 1789, above. ^Anchony's was located in the vicinity of present Somerset in central Somerset County. Howell, Map of Pennsylvania. RETURN TO THE EAST, 1789 159 I was glad to Rest. I made out come 22 miles/ if my horse was not of the first Qualtely I should not have Come 10 mils — Saturday, November 14: Rose at 5 oClock/ call up a boy who Slept in the same Chamber/ bid him make a fire/ then I got up and Dress'd but was much fitter to keep my bed. I was really sick, yit it is Dredfull for a Traveller at a Little distance from home to give out and liy sick at a tavern much more so at a Distance of 450 miles therefore I call'd up all my Resolution and bug'd round till it was light whin I mounted and by Constant and indefatiguble industrey I rode 36 miles to Todds Tavern haveing Crost the allagany Mountain this day/ when I was on the Top. Noah Like I Vewd the old word and New — Sunday, November 15 : Last night soon after I put up Came on a seveer Thundir Gust/ one Clap struck within 70 Rods of my Quarters as heavy a Clap as ever and as handsom one as ever I heard/ here we had good entertainment but I was so sick that I Could Not injoy it. I Rose at 6 oClock in the Morning/ it had not fulley sieced Raining but alltho I was in good Quarters and sick enough to lay by yett the Idea of approaching Winter, and the Grate distans I am from home urged me to go on and in the Course of the [day] Cross'd ye Sideling Ridge and travell'd 35-miles — Monday, November 16: this day arived at John McCalles fort Lowden^ Verry tired and sick, in Coming over the Last moun- tain I rode thro a tremendious thick Cloud, her I was allmost frose alltho on both sides of the mountain it was hott and smoukey. I could smell sulfor plain while I was in the Cloud, which was more than half an hour, and my Kent slooper was nearly wett thro' alltho it did not rain — . Tuesday, November 17 : but Little rest last Night, and mighty sick to day, yett the thought of approaching Winter, and the Long tower I have still to make keeps me on my leggs/ I have this day agreed with John McCall to carry my skins and furrs to Philadel- phia, and allso agreed, with Jeremiah Hammilton to take To [two] ^A frontier post erected for protection from the Indians in the French and Indian War period, near present Fort Loudon in western Franklin County west of Chambersburg. Buckalew, Report of the Commission to Locate the Site of the Frontier Forts of Pennsylvania, I, 534-542. 160 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY waggon Loads of Sang to Baltimore/ the distance of this place from Philadelphia is 150 miles and from this to Baltimore 98. miles/ I pay £5 pr Ton to B. and £9 to p-a [Philadelphia]/ these Loads are to start on Thurdsday. 19th Instt. at the same time I start for Baltimore, with Intention to Do my Buisness there and meet my Waggon at Philadelphia, this is hard Stent but I must strive to performe it keeping home in my eye but not in my mind, Least I should neglect Buisness. it has bin a Verry warm and as Smoakey a Day as ever I saw. last Saturday Night was a Grate Aurora boriales, or Northlight said to be ye gratest ever known in these parts but I have seen bigger in my Countrey — Wednesday, November 18 : took breckfast at Capt pattens and 10 oClock sett out for Missenburge/* on my way bought 7 barrells flour 3 superfine at 28^. and 4 fine @ 26s. I bought these to make Three Tons/ being oblig'd to pay for Tons I am determin'd they shall carry it. I arived at Mr Erwins at 12. oClock in hopes to find my packers there but they war not come/ it is a Cold but fine clear day Thursday, November 19 : Raw cold/ my packers not Come/ I took my Horse and went back to North mountain/ here I found them at 3. oClock. P.M. I hurri'd them on and arived at my Lodg- ings at sunsett/ my Waggons were here waiting and I had them Loaded by 8 oClock in eveg. and being sick went to bed and slept some — Friday, November 20: Rose as soon as it was light Settled with packers and started the Waggons thin sett out my self for Bal- timore and alltho ye days are meere Nothing I arivd at Tawney Town [Maryland] at Distance of 50 miles/ heir I slept — Saturday, November 21 : rose at Day brake and sett out im- mediately/ had not rode more than 5 miles before it sett in to rain and Continued so to do all Day/ yett I rode 42 miles and put up at Bums at sun sett, within 8 miles of Baltimore Sunday, November 22: up as soon as I could se and pushd for Baltimore wher I arived at 8 oClock in the morning/ I had but ^Probably Mercersburg, a few miles south of Fort Loudon in Franklin County. RETURN TO THE EAST, 1789 161 Just put up at Starks^ whin there Came on a Violent Gust which lasted 15 Minutes with Snow and hail/ I was Glad to be rid of it — Monday, November 23 : I find myself much fatigued and all- most worn out with the Influenza, the feather beads [beds] have allso made a Violent attack on my poor shattered Lungs, however this has bin a fine clear day and hope to feel better tomorrow, when I allso expect my Waggons in. Dined to Day with Mrs Crosbey, on salt fish and rost Chickens — Tuesday, November 24: this is the forytieth annaversory since my Lungs began to blow,® and I can trewly say they are at this time out of repair, feather beds and ropey air is allmost too hard for them, yett I have reason of Thankfullness that I have bin preserved so many years amidst the Various Visicitudes and Changes of this Checkerd life. Spent the evening with my friends at Mrs Crosbeys — Wednesday, November 25: Still quite unwell. Impatience has got strong hold upon me. my waggon did not arive till 12 oClock. grate Simtons of a storm, the skey Looks Wilde and angrey, the tides swell and my every bone, my every feeling, which is still keen announce the approaching Storm/ my Summers work unloaded lays on the Wharf, and Quite uncertain whether I can gitt it on board the only Vessell now in Baltimore bound for Boston. I under the Necessaty of being at Philadelphia in Two Days to Receive my other Waggon, and tomorrow Thanksgiveing Day, thro' out the states, a pritty situation for a man sick enough to be in bed, yett releying on the goodness of him who. never fails the man that strives to Do his Duty I have faith that I shall yett accomplish all these things — Thursday, November 26: the last night exceeding Stormey and I had a Wearisom Night appointed unto me. this morning Verry unfavourable to travellors/ I have a prospect of Comy [com- pany] to Philadelphia if I wait til the storm is overblown and on all accoumpts I believe prudent that I Should, but my disappointment prevents any Injoyment — at twelve the rain abaited and I sot out/ rode 13. miles To Skerretts when it came on to rain/ dinner being ^See entry for April 27, 1788, and note, above. ^This is a miscalculation as May was born in 1 748. 162 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY reddy we Din'd/ still rain'd hard and Gunpowder Falls^ impassable we staid all night — Friday, November 27: rose early and with difficuhy crosd those ugly dangerous fall/ brokefast at Bush Town, thence Rode 1 2 miles To the Susquehannah, and Dind. the Tides which had bin tremindious high yesterday had Run out so Low, and the Wind Verry strong down the River, both boat fast aground, that we Could not Cross till sunsett. we then road 6 miles to Charlstown where we slept, in crossing the Susquehannah my friends horse Jump'd Overboard previous to which I had Lent him my Blankett and sursingle [surcingle] to save his Bottom, which gott Badly Wett Saturday, November 28: rose at. 5 oClock A.M. and in one hour with all the art and Industory I was Master of Gott away ^ after six dark as Night and Lowrey. I rode about Two miles and in the dark, took a Rong Road but found out by the wind that I was Stearing Rong. soon came to a Little hutt where I hail'd ye people in bed who told me I was astray/ I turnd about and with the Loss of 1 /2 miles recovered my old Ground and Stood on for. P a wher I arived at Nine oClock much fattigued having Rode 1 6 /2 Miles in thick f ogg. I had f orgott to mention in it's place that my Companion from Baltimore's Name is Vowell from London, a worthey good man of abot 50 years old. he and I mett with many difficulties by reason of Floods and the allmost totall desertion of the Susquehannah Waters, the poor man was so fatigued with ride- ing 40 miles and so sore that Lent him my blankt and sursingle to ease his bottom but in Crossing the Sq — h ferry his horse Jum'pd over board and wett his baggage and my blankett etc. yesterday early in the morning he mett his wife and family in the stage which was fortunate for him who was going to Philadelphia for them and was nearly beat ought, on parting with me he wept thinking of the Variety of Scans we had gone thro' in so short a time. I persued my Journy with Industry/ rode thro' the State of Dellawar with eating Drink'g or Gating/ Jus as I was out of it, 6 miles beyond Chester a Quarter Mile Distance I observed a grate Concorse of people at the ^Gunpowder Falls is a branch of Gunpowder River which in turn empties into Chesapeake Bay. It is called Gunpowder River on some maps. RETURN TO THE EAST, 1789 163 Other end of the plain and soon was mett by 2 boys and sum men leading Couple of fine lookg horses for a Rase. I expected them soon after me and was under sum apprehensions I might be Run down/ I therefor crowded all the sail I could and Just Join'd the multitude when the Two boys being Mounted began the race and in Less then one Minute one of them had his brains Dash'd out against a tree, thus ended the horse race with the Life of the boy. Good God how frail a thing is man. Sunday, November 29: kept house all day at Nichol's in Mar- kett stret Sign of the Connastova Waggon/ I expected my Waggon would wait for me, but as I allwais Do Am obliged to wait for him/ this is and uncomfortable Day — Monday, November 30 : had good rest last night on a Mattress and rose sumthing brighter this morning/ found my Waggon arived. went to the post office and found Letters from my partner and friend, for which I thank them, have buisey all day in unloading my Waggon settleing with the Waggoner and Looking up Chaps to purchase the Cargo, think I shall find a middling Markett for my skins, allso found two Schooners from for Boston belonging to. E parsons/ in one of them I mean to send sum freight. — Tuesday, December 1 : gott up with a head ake which was so seveer at three oClock I was obligd to Quitt buisness; haveing Sold all my skins and furrs.® and settled with McCall/ paid him £25 0^. 9d. for one Load from Wheeling to. Philadelphia/ I have bought abot. 1000 lb Sang for Dear Skin pound for pound/ I should Nearly compleeted my buisness in this place if my head had not bin to full of Pain. I am Quarter'd in a Noysey house where are 16 Members of Convention^ besides transient customers — Wednesday, December 2: Pleasant Weather, this Day settled all my buisness in Philadelphia ^Deer, bear, and raccoon. Letter, May to Mrs. May, Philadelphia, November 30, 1789, in Edes Marietta 1788, 118. ^Probably members of the convention called to revise the constitution of Penn- sylvania, November 24, 1789-February 26, 1790 and August 9-September 2, 1790, which resulted in a new constitution for the state. Howard M. Jenkins (ed.), Pennsylvania, Colonial and Federal: A History, 1608-1903 (3 vols., Philadelphia, 1903), II, 114-121. 164 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Thursday, December 3 : Rose in the morning undetermined to sett out but at 1 oCIock the sperritt moved and I Bridg'd the Idea of being homeward bound added fresh strength to me and Horse and by half past 5 AM. [sic] I had rode 37 miles and put up at Maidenhed/^° it has bin excessive Windey and Cool all Day/ it was with difficulty I cross'd the Dellawar — Friday, December 4: rose at 5 oClock and by 6. sott out and rode constantly til 5. AM. [sic] except one hour at Breckfast and half an hour to oat at 2 oClock. made out to rid 46 miles and Slept at Elisabeths Town, it has bin a Could Windy Day — Saturday, December 5 : gott up. at 6 oClock and as soon at as the Day broke sott out/ rode to Newark 6 miles when I was so Could that I stop'd and took breckfast and Sott out again on My last Stage To New York, was detaind 1 y^ hours at the three ferreys, and arived in that Citty at twelve, when we was about half way over the North river it came on to Snow, and continued Snowing til eveg, when it rained — Sunday, December 6: a fine Clear Day/ My Briches gott holes in the Knees/ serves as an excuse for Not going to Meeting — but no excuse for my not keeping it as a Day of Rest — I am Lodg'd in a house Resemblg Noah's Ark, fill'd with all kinds of creatures. I shall Quit as soon as possable — Monday, December 7 : this day imployd. in sittlin with Richd platt. calld on Mr Thompson where I had Left Severall Notes to collect, he had entered suit against Stephen Ketchum and will be able to receive the Money in January. I allso revew'd the buisness of N. York/ find it emblamatticall of a hive of Bees when Nature has decorated the earth with all kinds of flours/ the Bees Do not Work without a reward; nither Do these yorkers for they will not do sumthing for Northing, nor, in fact anything without pay, and profitt. all the yankees who resort here and Mind there buisness find there account in it — Tuesday, December 8 ; at 1 oClock Left Newyork and rode 20 mils first Stage then oated and took a Drink of Grogg/ thence to Horse Neck [Connecticut]. I am got into that Countrey where the ^"Lawrenceville, New Jersey. See note for entry for April 24, 1 788, above. RETURN TO THE EAST, 1789 165 farmers make abundance of stonewall and keep Large Droves of fatt Hoggs, where the Women have handsom faces but ware blue Stockens and ride on pillions, this has bin a Windy Day and Could — Wednesday, December 9 : Rose at 6 in the morning and sott off immediately, a Could stinging morning and the roads Nott only extreemly hilly and Stoney but allso Verry Ruff with hubbies/ I mad out to ride 37 miles to Stratford and have taken a bad Could/ am allmost sick — Thursday, December 10: Rose at Day Brake and little afore sunrise started, rode two mils to housatonock river/ call'd up the ferryman and cross' d the river then rode to N. Haven and breck- fasted. at 1 1 oClock. this was a Cold frosty morning and Verry hobbley/ I made out to ride this Day 42 miles and slept at Fullers at Berlin — I have sick all Day/ have had a good deal of fevor, am now all most sick. I believe I may say Quite — Friday, December 11 : rose at the usial Hour/ rode to Wethers- field and breckfasted at H. Mays.^^ then he went with me to Hart- ford to se his Daughtr Sheldon/^" had not bin there more then and hour before it sott in to rain and Continued a heavy rain all Day and Night but Clear'd on in the morning yett exceeding Muddy — Saturday, December 12: Sott out from Hartford at 10 oClk and exceeding could Windey Day yett I made out to rid to Ash- ford/ by then it was Dark — Sunday, December 13: gott up at Dawn of Day/ had but lit- tle sleep, sett off at 7. oClk and a Could Stinging Morning/ the road all hills and holes and those hills cover'd with Ice and Hobbles, it took me 4 hours to go 12 Miles to my brothers" in which time suffered much with Could and slow traveling/ my patience allmost exausted — Monday, December 14: Stayd at Pomfrett. to Day went on ^^May's first cousin, Hezekiah Mays, a farmer in Wethersfield. May, Genealogy, 3,51,84, 85, and 85n. ^^Hezekiah's daughter, Mary, married a man named Selden or Sheldcn. Ibid., 85. ^^Probably half brother, Ithamar, who lived in Pomfret, and with whom he stayed on his return trip the previous year. See entry for September 1, 1778, above. 166 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY foot to Se E. Williams but was gone to Town meeting so I kept on to the Meeting house and did my buisness with him and retumd to Sister Sabins^* at one oClock and Dine'd at Two then paid a Visitt to Sister Silas^^ and Slept there, have bin Quite unwell since Tues- day last, and gott but little sleep. — Tuesday, December 15: breakfasted at. pomfrett and at Ten oClock A. M. sett out on my Last Division for Boston, found the Rhods excessive bad/ I rode till Dark with only one hours Inter- mition, and arived at Ammadowns^® and slept. — Wednesday, December 16: rose pritty early, and by dint of Industrey arived at Boston at 5 oClock. P.M. found the family tol- larable well and I believe Glad to Se me, and I am sure I was to Se them but I should reather seen them alltogether in that Land which so ampley rewards the Industrious planter and Where Trade is Honorable and profittable. i^May's sister, Mary. See entry for April 24, 1 789, above. Improbably May's sister. Prudence, who married Silas Sabin. May, Genealogy, 4,53. This is confusing because both sisters married slightly related men named Sabin. In the 1788 journal May refers to his sister by her first name. See entry for September 1, 1788, above. i^A tavern run by Colonel Amidon in Mendon in southeastern Worcester County, Massachusetts, not far from Uxbridge. It had the distinction of having refused George Washington a night's lodging. George F. Marlowe, Coaching Roads of Old New England: Their Inns and Taverns and Their Stories (New York, 1945), 63; Fitzpatrick, Diaries of Washington, IV, 49. BIBLIOGRAPHY This bibliography consists of the principal sources and aids used in the preparation of the volume. The editor's notes cite many other sources and secondary materials that were also helpful. MANUSCRIPT SOURCES Israel Angell, "A Journal of Israel An[gell] : Travels from Johnston in the State of Rhode Island begun the 4th August 1788." MS in Rhode Island Histor- ical Society, Providence. Manuscript Collection, Campus Martins Museum, Marietta, Ohio. Miscellane- ous records of the Ohio Company. Caleb Davis papers, Massachusetts Historical Society. Extensive papers of a Boston merchant which contain over thirty John May items. Edes, Hh Excerpts. Designation used in text for a copybook of Richard S. Edes, titled "Hh Excerpts," containing copies of miscellaneous documents of John and Mrs. May. Owned by Edward L. Edes, North Amherst, Massa- chusetts. Richard S. Edes manuscripts. Miscellaneous papers owned by Edward L. Edes. Edes Marietta 1788. Designation used in text for a copybook of Richard S. Edes. It is titled: "Colonel John May: Journal Kept by Him During a Tour to the Ohio Country in 1788. Also Extracts from His Letters, during a 2nd Tour in 1789." Campus Martins Museum. Edes Proof Sheets 1788. Designation used in text for a partial copy of the 1788 journal which Richard S. Edes submitted to the publisher. Owned by Edward L. Edes. Richard S. Edes, "Record of May Family." Genealogical notes in manuscript owned by Edward L. Edes. Edes Transcript 1789. Designation used in text for a partial copy of the 1789 journal. It is titled: "Sojourn of Col. John May, of Boston, in Pennsyl- vania, Ohio and Virginia, A.D. 1789." Owned by Edward L. Edes. Marietta College Manuscripts, Marietta, Ohio. Ohio Company records and miscellaneous John May papers. Richard S. Edes, Excerpts from the journals of Abigail May kept during the 1788 and 1789 journeys of her husband. Owned by Edward L. Edes. Debt Book 1788. Designation used in text for a notebook of John May. See text for a more complete description. Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio, Cincinnati. John May, "Orderly Book." A notebook used by May and Mrs. May for mis- cellaneous records. Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio. John May papers, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland. Hundreds of manuscripts, mostly Boston business papers of May and a son, but many relating to the Marietta venture. 167 168 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Winthrop Sargent manuscripts, Ohio Historical Society. Some papers related to May's activities with the Ohio Company. Winthrop Sargent papers, Massachusetts Historical Society. Two May manu- scripts. Court Files, Archives of Supreme Judicial Court of Suffolk County, Massa- chusetts. Legal records of May's activities. Tuckerman papers, owned by Orton Loring Clark, Amherst, Massachusetts. A May descendant who married into the Tuckerman family. PRINTED SOURCES Backus, William W. A Genealogical Memoir of the Backus Family with the Private Journal of fames Backus, Together with His Correspondence Bearing on the First Settlement of Ohio, at Marietta, in 1788. Norwich, Connecticut, 1889. Benton, Elbert J., ed. "Side Lights on the Ohio Company of Associates from the John May Papers," Tract No. 97, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, 1917. Pp. 63-231. Buell, Rowena, comp. and ed. The Memoirs of Rufus Putnam and Certain Official Papers and Correspondence. Boston and New York, 1903. Cutler, Manasseh. "Journal of Rev. Manassah [sic] Cutler, LL. D., 1788," New England Historical and Genealogical Register and Antiquarian Journal, XIV (1860), 104-106,234-236. Cutler, William P., and Julia P. Cutler. Life, Journals, and Correspondence of Rev. Manasseh Cutler, LL.D. 2 vols. Cincinnati, 1888. Edes Article 1789. Designation used in text for Richard S. Edes. "A Few Words Additional Relative to Col. John May, of Boston, and His Journeys to the Ohio Country in 1788 and 1789," New England Historical and Genealogi- cal Register and Antiquarian Journal, XXX (1876), 43-49. Edes HPSO 1788. Designation used in text for Richard S. Edes. Journal and Letters of Col. John May, of Boston, Relative to Two Journeys to the Ohio Country in 1788 and '89. Cincinnati, 1873. Edes PMHB 1789. Designation used in text for [Richard S. Edes, ed.]. "Journal of Col. John May, of Boston, Relative to a Journey to the Ohio Country, 1789," Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, XLV (1921), 101-179. Edes Article 1788. Designation used in text for Richard S. Edes. "Letters and Journal of Col. John May, of Boston," New England Historical and Genealogical Register and Antiquarian Journal, XXVII (1873), 14-24. Edes, S. A. M. "Compiled by S. A. M. Edes for Mary Warren Chapter D. [A.] R. Read March 8, 1899." Typescript. Owned by Miss Margaret Roys, Woodbury, Connecticut. Original manuscript owned by Edward L. Edes. Hildreth, Samuel P. Biographical and Historical Memoirs of the Early Pio- neer Settlers of Ohio. Cincinnati, 1852. BIBLIOGRAPHY 1 69 Hulbert, Archer Butler, ed. Ohio in the Time of the Confederation. Marietta, 1918. The Records of the Original Proceedings of the Ohio Company. 2 vols. Marietta, 1917. ATLASES AND MAPS Maps of the late eighteenth century are, at best, imperfect records of place names and natural features. This is increasingly so as they deal with regions to the west of the settled areas of the country. They are, nevertheless, useful as orientation devices when travel accounts are studied and interpreted. In the present situation no one map or atlas is adequate. Listed below are some that, collectively, are helpful for a study of the journeys of John May. Adlum, John, and John Wallis. Map Exhibiting a General View of the Roads and Inland Navigation of Pennsylvania, and Part of the Adjacent States. Philadelphia, [1792?]. Arrowsmith, Aaron. A Map of the United States of North America. 1796. Arrowsmith, Aaron, and Lewis S. Arrowsmith. A New and Elegant General Atlas. Comprising All the New Discoveries, to the Present Time. Boston, 1812. Bradley, Abraham, Jr. A Map of the United States Exhibiting Post Roads and Distances. 1799. Carey, Mathew. Carey's American Pocket Atlas . . . with a Brief Description of Each State and Territory. Philadelphia, 1814. Gary, J. Gary's New Universal Atlas, Containing Distinct Maps of all the Principal States and Kingdoms throughout the World. London, 1808. Guthrie, William. A New System of Modern Geography. American edition. Philadelphia, [1809?]. Howell, Reading. A Map of the State of Pennsylvan'a. 1792. Hutchins, Thomas. A New Map of the Western Parts of Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland and North Carolina; Comprehending the River Ohio. 1787. Jeflferys, Thomas. The American Atlas: or, A Geographical Description of the Whole Continent of America. London, 1778. INDEX Page citations may refer to matters in the notes as well as in the text. They do not include references to bibliographical information from the notes or the formal bibliography itself. Abington, Conn., 81, 86 Addams, Mr., 120 Allegheny Front, 32, 34, 39, 96, 158^ 159 Allegheny River, 37, 39, 40, 51 American Revolution, 1, 2, 5-6, 55 Amidon's (Ammadown's) tavern, 166 Angell, Israel, 55 Animals and birds, 36, 39, 42, 45, 46, 52. 53-54, 55, 61, 63, 67, 68, 134, 149, 151, 155, 156 Ankelley's (Anchony's) tavern, 158 Annapolis, Md., 30 Antaheta Creek. See Antietam Creek Antford, George, 101, 158 Antietam Creek, 34 Appleton, Mr., 109 Ashford, Conn., 165 Backus, James, 56 Baltimore, 29, 30, 39, 50, 85, 90, 93, 94, 102, 106, 107, 115, 137, 160, 161, 162 Bandanna, Penn., 93 Barry, Captain, 119 Battelle, Ebenezer, 35, 51, 52, 55, 56, 67. Ill, 124 Battelle, Mrs. Ebenezer, 137, 141 Beaver (Big Beaver) River, 128, 140 Bedford, Penn., 33, 96 Beeker, James. See Backus, James Bellingham, Mass., 82 Belpre, Ohio, 35 Bently, Mr., 31, 34 Berlin, Conn., 25, 165 Bethlehem, Penn., 76, 78 Bilderback, Mrs., 154 Bird. Mr., 70 Birds. See Animals and birds Biscow, Mr.. 70 Black Gap, 93 Blue Mountain. See North Mountain Blue Ridge. See South Mountain Blue Ridge Summit, Penn., 31 Boats, 36, 40, 41, 43, 44, 45, 46, 49, 51. 53, 55, 64, 65, 115, 122, 124, 126. 143, 151, 154. See also Ken- tucky boats Bogg's Island, 62 Bolton (Boulton), Conn., 25 Bolton, Mass., 10 Bossman, Frederick, 38, 42 Boston, 4-6, 7, 44, 48, 51, 67, 75, 80, 82, 85, 86, 87, 90, 92, 104, 107, 115, 118. 128, 132, 137, 153, 161, 163, 166 Bowdoin, James and Elizabeth, 123 Bowers, Henry, 80 Boyd, Mrs., 91, 92 Brackett's tavern, 51 Braddock's defeat, 41-42, 126 Bread recipe, 43 Breck, Daniel, 65-66, 67 Brcck (Brack), William, 85, 91, 93, 95, 96, 98-99, 101, 104, 105, 109, 123, 130, 132, 133, 138, 140, 141, 142, 144. 151, 154, 155, 156 Breezewood, Penn., 95 Bristol, Penn., 29, 89 Brockway, Mr., 134 Brown, Mr., 70 Brown, Elisha, 87 Brown's tavern, 86 Brownson, Mr., 135-136, 143, 150 Brownsville. See Redstone, Penn. Budds Ferry, 105, 106 Buffalo Creek, 45, 120, 121, 129, 138- 139, 140, 157 Bull's tavern, 25 Burd, Captain, 74, 95 Burn's tavern, 160 Bush River (Bushtown), Md., 29, 162 Butler, Richard, 39, 40 Campus Martius. See Marietta Carey, Mr., 70, 71, 74, 75, 80 Carlisle, Penn., 33, 75, 132 Carpenter's, 101 Casey, Wanton (Cary, Walton), 56 Casner (Castner), Peter, 113, 116 Casner's ferry, 113, 115, 116 Chambcrsburg ( Chamberstown ) , Penn., 94, 103, 159 Chapman, Mr., 135 Charlestown, Md., 90, 162 Charlestown (Mass.) bridge, 26 Cheever, Joshua, 123 Cherlsay's (Cheny's) Mills, 101 Chesapeake Bay, 90, 162 Chester. Penn., 90, 162 171 172 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Chestnut Ridge, 32, 35, 101 Chever. Mr., 80 Chime's tavern, 29, 90 Christiana, Dela., 29 Clark's tavern (foot of Blue Moun- tain), 93 Clark's tavern (Medfield, Mass.), 85 Clark's tavern (Milford, Conn.), 81 Clark's tavern (on the Monongahela River), 35 Cohees, 145 Colchester, Conn., 86 Colemain tavern, 85 Coldpennv's tavern, 96 Colvill. Mrs., 117 Conegogigg. See Conococheague Set- tlement, Penn. Conestoga Wagon, Sign of. See Nich- ol's tavern Connecticut, 1, 4 Connecticut River, 25, 81, 86 Conococheague Settlement, Penn., 32, 135. 136 Conodoguinet Creek, 95 Cooper, Ezekiel, 56 Corliss, William, 50 Corv, Ebenezer, 56 Cory's bridge, 58 Cox's Fort, 45, 46, 62 Crary (Crasy), Archibald, 56 Cravath, Lemuel, 72 Crosbey, Mrs., 161 Curden, Mr. and Mrs., 60 Cushing, Nathaniel, 72 Cutler, Manasseh, 72 Dagget's tavern, 25 Darlington, William N., 9-10 Davenport, Isaac, 27 Debt Book 1788,8-9, 10, 11 Dedham, Mass., 85 Delaware, 90, 162 Delaware River, 29, 78, 89, 164 Detroit, 59 Devell (Devoll), Jonathan, 56 Devoe (Devore) , James, 116 Devoe's Ferry, 1 16 Donora, Penn., 113 Doughty, John, 48, 49, 59, 1 24 Downer, Eliphalet, 65, 66, 85, 89, 91, 104, 105, 108, 109, 111, 123, 127- 128, 130, 138, 140, 145 Downer, Joseph, 91, 103, 105, 115 Duncan, David, 53, 64 Duncan and Wilson. See Duncan, David Dunham, Daniel, 56 Durham, Conn., 86 Easton, Penn., 78 Edes. Richard S., 8-10, 12-15, 16, 17- 19 Edes Article 1788, 9, 13 Edes Article 1789, 14, 15 EdesHPSO 1788,8, 11-12 Edes Marietta 1788, 8-9, 10, 11 Edes PMHB 1789, 14, 15, 18 Edes Proof Sheets 1788, 9, 10 Edes Transcript 1789, 14, 16 Elizabeth Town, N.J., 79, 89, 164 Elizabethtown (Elizabeth), Penn., 35, 38, 72, 102 Elkton (Head of Elk), Md., 29, 90 Ellery's tavern, 39 EUiott, Daniel, 137-138 Elliott's tavern (Milford, Conn.), 86 Elliott's tavern (Pittsburgh), 100, 101 Erving, Captain, 42 El-win, Mr., 160 Fairfield, Conn., 26, 86 Farrington, Joshua, 30 Fearing, Paul, 56, 65 Fellows, Gustavus, daughter of, 27 Field, Joseph, 85, 92, 93 Fish, 29, 36, 37, 38, 42-43, 44, 46, 49, 51, 53, 54-55, 56, 58, 60, 66, 98, 108, 110, 111, 123 Flint, Mr., 109 Forbes Road, 33-34, 74, 95, 96, 101, 103 Forguson, Captain, 128 Fort Franklin. See Franklin, Penn. Fort Hanover. See Fort Harmar Fort Harmar, 2, 4, 40, 44, 48, 55, 57, 78, 122, 137 Fort Harmar, Treaties of, 53, 55, 59, 60, 64, 65, 67, 68, 104-105 Fort Littleton, Penn., 74, 95 Fort Louden, 159 Fort Pitt. See Pittsburgh Fowler, Jacob, 143 Franklin, Penn., 40 Freeman, Jona. (Jno.), 91, 92, 119 Fuller's tavern, 25, 165 Furs and skins, 129, 131, 133, 137, 142, 143, 148, 150, 152, 153, 155, 156, 159, 163 Gardens and orchards, 48, 50, 54, 55, 56, 63, 64-65, 67, 122, 123, 135, 136, 137, 141 Gerry, Elbridge, 87 Gibson, John, 42 Ginseng, 115, 118, 119, 131, 138, 139, 142, 148, 149, 150, 151, 152-153, 155, 156, 160 INDEX 173 Glade Road, 33-34, 73, 96 Go, Mr., 106 Grave Creek, 62, 94. See Mammoth Mound Gray, William, 56 Great Miami River. See Miami River Greencastle, Perm., 32 Greene (Green), Charles, 56 Green's tavern, 81, 86 Grecnsburg, Penn., 101, 102, 104, 105 Greenwich, Conn., 87 Gridlev, William, 56, 70, 123 Griffin's, 81 Gunpowder Falls, 162 Hackensac River, 28 Hackerd's tavern, 87 Haddam, Conn., 81 Hall, Mr., 156 Hammilton, Jeremiah, 159 Hannastown (Hannahs Town), Penn., 104 Hanover, Penn., 93 Harding's (Hardy's) tavern, 27, 79, 80,87 Harmar, Tosiah, 40, 41, 43, 48, 50, 51, 60, 63, 68, 122, 124 Harmar, Mrs. Josiah, 137, 141 Harrisburg (Harristown), 75 Hartford, 25, 165 Havre de Grace, Md., 29 Head of Elk. See Elkton, Md. Heart, Jonathan, 40 Heath, Captain, 72 Heckewelder, John, 76 Hellersworth tavern. See Hollings- worth tavern Herron, John, 107 Hindman, John, 107 Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio, 8, 9 Hobbetown. See Hummelstown, Penn. Hockhocking River, 54 HoUingsworth tavern, 29, 90 Horse Valley, 95 Horseneck, Conn., 26, 80, 87, 164 Housatonic River, 165 Hulen, Young, 59 Hulen, Benja, 143 Hulen (Hulin), Markus (Mark, Mar- cius), 55, 64, 100, 126 Hulen, Mrs. Markus, 41, 43 Hulen family, 45 Hulen's tavern, 36, 37 Hummelstown, Penn., 75 Hunt's tavern, 27, 87 Hurd, Mr. See Burd, Captain Indian Queen, Sign of. See Stark's tavern Indians, 1, 2, 38, 40-42, 48, 49, 50, 51, 59, 61-62, 64, 67, 68, 69, 76, 94, 104-105, 107, 110, 119, 120, 125, 129, 131, 134, 135, 139, 144, 147, 148, 150-151, 152, 154-155 Inns and taverns. See Taverns and inns Itch remedy, 147 Jackson, Sam, 108, 138 Jackson's Mills. See Jackson, Sam Johnstone lads, 150-151 Jones, David, 148 Juniata River, 34, 95 Kanawha (Kenmaway) River, 134, 143 Kentucky, 85, 98, 99, 107, 119, 139, 149, 158 Kentucky boats, 35, 36, 38, 39, 56, 108, 112, 113, 114, 115, 128, 130, 133, 138, 140. See also boats Kcrkindall, Mr., 38, 71, 72, 99 Kerkindall's Mills, 36 Ketchum, Stephen, 164 Kingsbridge, N.Y., 27, 87 Knapp's tavern, 26, 27, 80 Knox, Henry, 28,87 Kohees. See Cohees Kuykindall. See Kerkindall, Mr. Laflfingir's tavern, 104 Lake Erie, 71 Land bounties, 1, 2 Laurel Hill, 32, 35, 39, 73, 97, 98, 102, 103, 158 Lawrenceville, N.J., 28, 164 Leach, James, 118, 119 Lebanon, Conn., 25 Lebanon, Penn., 75 Limestone. See Maysville, Ky. Linns Ripple, 1 15 Linsey, Mr., 158 Little Beaver Creek, 45, 62, 129 Little Redstone Creek, 106, 115, 128, 138 Liveston, Jno. L., 146 Long Island, 79 Long Island Sound, 26, 81 Lord, Dr., 81,86 Lucas, Isaac, 73 Ludlow, Mr., 129, 130, 142 Lunt. Daniel, 64 McCall, John, 152, 159, 163 McClason, 1 16 McClinnock Ferry, 116 174 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY McGonnors Town, Penn., 126 McCormick, Major, 71 McCornish's tavern. See McCormick, Major McCurdy, Captain, 122 McGaggay's tavern, 96 MacHenrey, Sally, 134 McMaon (McMahan), William, 129 Maidenhead. See Lawrenceville, N. J. Mammoth Mound, 62 Marietta, 4, 7, 40, 44, 48, 51, 56, 60, 63, 70, 72, 73, 75, 76, 85, 94, 99, 102, 107, 110, 114, 118, 119, 123, 131, 132, 135, 137, 139, 141, 142, 144, 154 Martin, Mr. and Mrs., 156 Martin's tavern, 95-96 Maryland, 30, 31, 90 Massachusetts, 35 Mathers, Mr., 134 May, Abigail (Mrs. John May), 91, 92. 119, 142-143, 145-146, 147 May, Mrs. B., 92 May, Catherine Cravath, 119 May, Henry Knox, 119 May, Hezekiah, 165 May, Ithamar, 53,81, 165 Mav, John, 3, 4-7, 8, 10, 12-13, 15, 49, 51, 55, 56,63, 102, 124 May, John Jr., 119 May, Joseph, 25, 53,92, 119 May, Mary D., 10 May, Sophia, 119 Maysville, Ky., 102 Medcalf, Hezekiah, 40, 43 Mederys, George Washington, 119 Medfield, Mass., 85 Meigs, Return Jonathan, 51 Mendon, Mass., 166 Mercersburg, Penn., 32, 160 Merineck. See Horseneck, Conn. Miami River, 38 Middletown. See Womelsdorf, Penn. Milford, Conn., 81, 86 Mingo Bottom (Mingo Junction), 129 Minott, James, 58 Missenburge. See Mercersburg, Penn. Monongahela City, Penn., 116, 117 Monongahela River, 34, 35, 36, 37, 39, 41, 51, 97, 101, 106, 110, 113, 116, 118, 123, 138, 139-140, 158 Moodus, Conn., 86 Moravian church, 76-78 Morristown, N.J., 79 Moundsville, W.Va., 62 MS 1788. 11-12, 19, 21, 23-82 MS 1789, 12, 15-16, 18, 19, 21, 84-166 Muskingum River, 2, 4, 38, 40, 46, 47, 50, 53, 55, 58, 61, 62, 64, 65, 67. 68, 119, 122. See also Marietta Narrows, 79 Neil's tavern, 97 Neville (Nevils), Presley, 126 New Brunswick, N.J., 89 New Haven, Conn., 26, 81, 86, 165 New Jersey, 78 New Orleans, 139 New York City, 27-28, 79, 82, 89, 94, 102, 115, 164 Newark, N.J., 164 Newburgh petition, 2-3 Newport, Ohio, 35 Newport, R. I., 27 Nichols Gap, Penn., 31,93 Nichol's tavern, 29, 163 Niel, Mr., 98 North Mountain, 31, 32, 33, 74, 95, 96, 160 O'Harra, James, 39 Ohio Company of Associates, 2-4, 6-7, 16, 21, 27, 35, 37, 40, 48-49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 59, 65, 66, 67, 72, 79-80, 85, 123, 124. See also Marietta Ohio River, 1-2, 4. 37, 39, 40, 45, 46, 47, 51, 55, 59, 61, 62-63, 66, 67, 70, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 127, 128, 132, 133, 134, 140, 144 Oliver, Alexander, 56 Olney, Coggeshall, 50, 53 Orchards. See Gardens and orchards Ordinance of 1785, 2, 3,4, 66 Ordinance of 1787, 2,64 Palmer's tavern, 90 Parey (Parrey), Colonel, 104 Parkersburg, W.Va., 134 Parsons, Enoch, 155, 163 Parsons, Samuel Holden, 37, 40, 43, 45, 49, 51, 54, 64, 68, 122, 155 Passaic River, 28 Path Valley, 95 Patten, Captain, 160 Paulus Hook, N.J., 28 Pearce, Isaac, 56 Penfield's tavern, 86, 87 Pennsylvania, 71, 74, 90, 120 Pennsylvania Road. See Forbes Road Perrey's Mills, 104. See Parey, Colonel Pervience, Mr., 38 Philadelphia, 28, 29, 89, 94, 101, 115, 119, 132, 148, 159, 160, 161, 162, 163 INDEX 175 Phillips, Dr., 146 Phillips, Samuel, 56 Pinfield's. See Penficld's tavern Pipes, Captain, 60, 69 Piscat River. See Passaic River Pittsburgh, 2, 10, 19, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37-38, 39, 40, 42, 43, 44, 50, 53, 59, 62, 94, 95, 101, 102, 103, 110, 126, 128, 129, 131, 138, 140, 141, 155, 157 Piatt, Richard, 27, 79, 80, 87, 164 Porafret, Conn., 4, 5, 53, 81, 85, 165, 166 Potomac River, 33, 34 Powell's Hook. See Paulus Hook, N.J. Powhatan Point, Ohio, 62 Princeton, N.J., 28 Providence, 25, 50, 51, 59 Provoost (Provo), Samuel, 88 Putnam, Rufus, 2, 3, 35, 38, 48, 51, 68, 79, 114 Putnam, William Rufus, 124 Quinebaug (Quinnebogue) River, 25 Ransford, Joseph, 25, 62 Reading, Penn., 75, 76 Redstone (Redstone Old Fort), Penn., 97, 98, 99, 101, 102, 103, 105, 106, 107, 138, 154 Rhode Island, 6, 80, 85, 123 Rice. Oliver, 25, 31, 51, 56, 68 Rice's tavern, 51 Richard's, Mr., 110 Riggs. See Meigs, Return Jonathan Rippey, Captain, 74, 93 Roads, 33, 34, 44, 72, 93, 94, 129-130, 135, 147, 157, 158, 165, 166. See also under specific names Rocky Hill, Conn., 80 Rosanna, Schooner, 85 Rumtony, 41 Rye.N.Y., 27, 87 Sabin, Mary (Mrs. Jonathan Sabin), 85, 166 Sabin, Prudence (Mrs. Silas Sabin), 82. 166 St. Clair, Arthur, 37, 44-45, 60, 61, 63, 64, 65. 66, 68 Sample's tavern, 75 Sandusky, Ohio, 131 Sang. See Ginseng Sargent, Winthrop, 37, 40, 49, 51, 57, 123 Scioto Company purchase, 51 Shatton, Mr., 119 Sheldon (Scldcn, Shelden), Mary, 165 Sherman's tavern, 93 Shippensburg, Penn., 74, 91, 93, 94, 102, 107, 137 Short Creek, 154 SideUng Hill, 32, 33, 39, 74, 95, 159 Sill (Stile, Still), Benjamin, 56 Simmerell's Ferry, 35, 72, 94, 97, 102, 114, 158 Skerrett's tavern, 161 Skinner, Mr., 74, 95 Skinner, Gridley, 53 Skins and furs. See Furs and skins Smith's tavern, 82 Snakes, 51, 55-56, 70, 121 Somerset, Penn., 158 South Mountain, 31, 32, 40, 93 Spears Ripple, 1 15 Sprig, Major, 157 Sproat (Sprout), Ebenezer, 49, 51, 56, 65. 131 Squatters, 1-2 Stacey (Stacy), William, 56 Stacey, William, son of, 55 Stark's (Staruck's) tavern, 30, 90, 161 Stebins. Samuel, 56 Steubenville, Ohio, 129 Stocklen, Colonel, 105 Storey (Story), Daniel, 123 Stratford. Conn., 165 Susquehanna River, 29, 33, 34, 75, 90, 95, 162 Sweringin's Ferry, 115 Taft's tavern, 82, 85 Taneytown (Tawney Town), Md., 160 Taunery Hill's tavern, 97-98 Taverns and inns, 25, 26, 29, 30, 31- 32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 71, 74, 75, 76, 78-79, 81, 88, 89, 90, 92, 93, 95, 103, 126, 157, 159. See also under specific names Temple, Sir John, 28, 80 Thompson, John, 107, 164 Todd's tavern, 159 Toms Creek, 31 Torrey, Newport, 124 Trenton, N. J., 29 Trott, Ambrose, 30 Tufts, Walter, 25, 27,31, 64 Tupper, Benjamin, 3, 124 Tuscarora (Tusccraso) Mountain, 95 Tuscarora Path. See Path Valley Tyler, Dean, 56, 120, 121 Ulin, Ben, 155 Upper Strasburg, Penn., 95 Uxbridge, Mass., 82, 85, 166 176 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY Vanlear Mr. 1 24 Varnum*, James M., 37, 49, 50, 51, 54, 60, 64, 80 Venango, Penn., 40 Vernon. See Varnum, James M. Virginia, 1, 71 Vose, Mr., 70 Vowell, Mr. and Mrs., 162 Walcutt, Mr., 152 Wallingford, Conn., 81 Washington, George, 2, 6, 60, 87-88 Washington, Penn., 70, 71, 119, 120, 125, 126, 138, 141, 157, 158 Wasterman's tavern, 89 Welch, James, 107 Wells, Absa., 120 Wells, Charles, 120 Wellsburg, W.Va., 45, 120, 121 Wentworth's, 87 West Liberty, W. Va., 45, 120, 157 West Newton, Penn., 35, 72, 105 Westminster (Winchester, Westmin- ster Town), Md., 39 Wethersfield, Conn., 165 Wheeling, W. Va., 46, 62, 70, 71, 104, 113, 119, 125 127, 130, 139, 140, 157, 158, 163 Wheeling River, 126 Whisky recipe, 94-95 White, James, 43, 50 White, John, 144 White, Josiah, 56 Williams, E., 166 Williams, Henry H. Jr. (Young Wil- liams), 54, 66 Williams, Henry Howell, 35, 42, 56, 60,61,66, 67 Williams, Isaac, 55 Williams, Mrs. Isaac, 68 Williams, Joseph, 25, 37, 62, 92 Williams, Mrs. Joseph, 92 Wills Hill, 96 Wilmington, Dela., 90 Winchester, Md. See Westminster, Md. Windham, Conn., 25, 81, 86 Winslow, Colonel, 53 Womelsdorf ( Wolfendolf), Penn., 75, 76 Woodbridge, Mrs. Dudley, 155 Woodville, Penn., 126 Worms, cure for, 41 Wortle's, 87 Youghiogheny River, 34, 35, 42, 73, 97, 105, 126, 140, 158 Zane, Ebenezer and Mrs., 46, 62, 71, 125, 131, 134, 135, 139 Zane, Isaac. See Zanes, Bena Zanes, Bena, 131 Ziegler, Mrs. David, 141 UNIVERSITY OF ILUNOIS-URBANA 917 7IVI45W C001 THE WESTERN JOURNALS OF JOHN MAY, OHIO C