Book Description

From the Foreword. Every great crisis in tribal or national life makes a forceful appeal to the bold and aggressive spirits found in all political bodies and calls forth leaders from among these to meet the new and changing conditions of the hour even at the hazard of life, property and personal comfort. This fact is forcibly illustrated in our own national history by the lives of Washington, Lincoln, Grant and many other heroic characters who established, fostered and conserved our country We are not surprised, therefore, that the rapid expansion of the New England and Coast Colonies and the encroachment of the white man on the virgin domain of the lower lake region and the Ohio valley in the latter part of the eighteenth century and later called forth three great Indian chieftains in three successive generations, viz: Pontiac, the Ottawa, in 1762; Little Turtle, the Miami, in 1790; and Tecumseh, the Shawnee, in 1811. All these were distinguished characters scarcely excelled for bravery, military genius and statecraft by any other American Indian chiefs from the earliest white settlement to the present time. Parkman has given us a vivid description of the life and times of Pontiac; Drake has set forth in elegant language the illustrious career of Tecumseh, but the student who desired a comprehensive and complete account of the life of Little Turtle the great chief of the Miamis, has heretofore been doomed to disappointment. It was this fact that stirred the author of this book to collect, compile and publish in a readable form all of the authentic information about this great chieftain that he could reasonably secure. As a boy, some fifty years ago, the writer lived near the site of Little Turtle's birthplace where he became intimately acquainted with some of the early trappers and hunters who had lived in this vicinity while the Miamis were still there. From these backwoodsmen he learned many interesting tales of the early days which he treasured up in his retentive memory and now utilizes in the preparation of this historical sketch. Thus has been rescued from oblivion many interesting and important facts which are embodied in this work. The cordial reception given to an article entitled "The Birthplace of Little Turtle," prepared by myself for the Ohio Archaeological and Historical Society, and published in Vol. XXIII of the works of that society, and the earnest entreaty of several worthy and influential friends have also been largely responsible for my decision to compile and publish this volume. On account of his previous valuable experience in compiling, editing and publishing various books and sketches of early Ohio valley history I have associated with myself in the editorial work of this book Mr. Frazer E. Wilson, who is largely responsible for the form, style and arrangement of the material collected by myself. It has been his aim to present the historical data in a readable, pleasing and forceful style and the reader may judge to what extent he has succeeded in this matter.... ....In compiling this volume it has been our aim to present to the reader nothing but the most trustworthy information that we have been able to secure from any source and to make this sketch reliable, readable and entertaining. Cicero said: "Not to know what happened before we were born is to remain always a child. For what were the life of man did he not combine present events with the recollection of past ages?" Future generations will hold us responsible if we fail to honestly and faithfully preserve the record of pioneer times. Our children should be taught and inspired with the spirit of genuine patriotism through a correct knowledge of the suffering and hardships of our fathers and mothers in the early settlement of our country....