The Battle of Fallen Timbers: August 20, 1794

Per Scriptum E. Wesley - Mackinac Center Intern

The Northwest frontier was in grievous peril just before "Mad" Anthony Wayne was given command of American forces in 1792. Indian raids had plagued the region, making it an unsafe and primitive place. After the awful defeats of frontier commanders Josiah Harmar and Arthur St. Clair, George Washington ceded the post to Wayne, hoping for better results. Wayne accordingly arrived at Fort Washington (near Cincinnati) in May of 1793 with fresh reinforcements. After spending much time drilling his new men, he moved six miles north of Fort Jefferson in October to construct Fort Greene Ville. Wayne and his men wintered at Fort Greene Ville, while poetically erecting Fort Recovery over the site of St. Clair's defeat. The year of preparation was about to pay off at the Battle of Fallen Timbers.

Tension heightened, and on June 30, 1794, Little Turtle led an alliance of Indian tribes to attack a supply train heading for Fort Greene Ville from Fort Recovery (the alliance included the Shawnee, Miami, Delaware, Ottawa, and Ojibwa). The death and capture of many Americans in this raid was the spark that set off Wayne's short fuse. Wayne in August ordered the construction of Fort Defiance as added protection and a supply depot, and began a series of raids on Indian villages and crops. At this point Little Turtle was all for suing for peace, but command of the Indian alliance was handed over to Blue Jacket of the Shawnee tribe. The Indians planed to stop Wayne's advance toward the Maumee River at a place where a tornado had felled many trees.

Here at Fallen Timbers, the Indians hoped they could use the trees to slow down Wayne's charge. Expecting Wayne to arrive on the 19th, they fasted for spiritual and cultural reasons. Another reason was that stomach wounds were more likely to become infected if the stomach contained food. However, Wayne and his men didn't arrive until the 20th, and by then the Indians were weak from hunger. Wayne easily broke the Indian flank, dissipated their defense, and chased them back to Fort Miamis where the natives hoped the English would give them aid. The English simply refused to help, and Wayne demanded that the English leave the entire Northwest Territory at once. The English refused these terms as well, and Wayne, not wanting to get into a bigger fight than he could handle, withdrew back to Fort Greene Ville. The Indian raids under the old alliance had been curtailed if nothing else.

It is truly lamentable that these controversies included so many non-combatants. Wayne and the Indians alike attacked each others' civilian populations, and the innocent suffered as well as soldiers and warriors. However catastrophic the means, the result was temporary peace for the Territory. The Treaty of Greeneville was signed on August 3, 1795, and representatives from various tribes agreed to move into the northwestern part of Ohio. Some didn't go along with the treaty, an Indian chief by the name of Tecumseh being one of them. Tecumseh was destined to begin the next chapter of history in the Northwest Territory.