Review: A History of Jonathan Alder: His Captivity and Life with the Indians

A History of Jonathan Alder: His Captivity and Life with the Indians by Larry Nelson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I can't believe I just got around to reading this book that I've seen sourced in other history books many times. I've read a few other captivity narratives but this one is right up my alley in that it mostly happened in Madison County Ohio near Columbus. In fact, when I was in the middle of reading it, I happened to be off work for Christmas break so I took advantage of that timing and combined my hobby of geocaching and made the 90-minute drive to visit some of the places mentioned, including Alder's 210-year-old cabin and final resting place. It's always great when history becomes a hands-on experience.

Alder's 1806 cabin in Madison County

Since Indians in that period had no written language we have to rely on what was told to Europeans and Americans regarding day to day life. Many times that is filtered through misinterpretation, misunderstandings, or prejudice. Alder was captured by Shawnee in Virginia and adopted by Mingo at eight years of age in 1781. He assimilated and was treated well so I think we get a pretty accurate look at his experiences, good and bad. Nelson's version denotes other versions and additions of the story by others in an italic font to what the author believes is the truest account of Alder's life. The actual story of Alder's story is a bit complicated and the author explains this in the introduction.

Alder voluntarily left his adopted Mingo family in 1805 as white settlers arrived after the Treaty of Greenville. He reunited with his birth family in Virginia and returned to Ohio with them and his new wife 1806. He served as a Captain in the War of 1812. After the war, he became a farmer and befriended the famous pioneer Simon Kenton. Alder lived out his days in Madison County Ohio until his death in 1849.

We learn so much about regular life as an Indian in Ohio in the early 19th century from Alder's excellent narrative. Nelson also provides additional footnotes throughout the story that details further what Alder was referring to at times or what he meant when in the vernacular. Definitely, do not skip out on those notes if you get this version of the book.

Alder's grave in Madison County

All in all, this is a very easy read and should be required reading for any student of the history of the early United States and the old Northwest Territory.

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Take The First Raid By Clark's Will*

the first raid by Clark was right here at the
confluence of the Licking and Ohio Rivers
(Cincinnati in the background)

*My apologies to The Monkees and the writers Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart for shameful use of the lyrics of Last Train To Clarksville in this blog post.

...Oh, no, no, no!...

On this day in Ohio history August 1st 1780, while the Revolutionary War was raging in the East, formidable Indian fighter George Rogers Clark invaded the Indian homelands of Ohio at the confluence of the Licking and Ohio Rivers with his force of Kentucky Long Knives, the feared name given by the Indians to the American Rangers who patrolled the Ohio River Valley during the Revolution.
Clark's force built military blockhouses as an outpost in present-day Cincinnati. This was the first white settlement in the region. ...'Cause I'm leavin' in the morning...This military invasion was revenge for raids on Kentucky settlements by Indian tribes such as the Shawnee, Delaware, and Wyandot who used Kentucky as hunting grounds and took a dim view to permanent white settlement there...I'm feelin' low. Oh, no, no, no! 
Other Indian tribes and septs had signed treaties in previous years, such as the Treaty of Sycamore Shoals which allowed some settlement in KY but some of the settlers set up shop outside of treaty guidelines and was considered squatting even by European-American law....'Cause I made your reservation...The US Government really didn't do much to stop this. Furthermore, many Indians did not recognize these treaties in the first place and led successful raids on settlements, trying to unsettle them by general killing, and taking horses and prisoners...'Til the morning brings the raid...Famed frontiersman Simon Kenton was captured in Ohio by the Shawnee while on his own retaliatory raid on Indians. This revenge warfare situation caused much death, destruction, panic, fear, and chaos which Clark's team was sent to suppress. I'm feelin' low. Oh, no, no, no! 
It also gave the US an excuse to pave the way through Ohio to attack British held Detroit as it was difficult to enlist enough men to make that dangerous journey deep into Indian territory...And I must go, oh, no, no, no!
Clark's continuing raids met some losses but were mostly successful and forced the Shawnee to move their towns further north to present day Chillicothe and Piqua...We'll have time for coffee flavored kisses and a bit of conversation...This type of revenge warfare would continue in the area throughout the rest of the 18th century and into the early 19th century. And I don't know if I'm ever coming home...Take The Last Raid By Clark's Will...Take The Last Raid By Clark's Will

UPDATE:
In researching this event, I learned that an internment camp for Lochry's failed 1781 expedition was in Cleves OH. 64 captured militia were held in a British allied Indian camp. The ones who survived were taken to Canada. South of the junction of East Miami River Road and Jordan Road, Miami Township near Cleves. map 39.178547, -84.746475

Up Caesars Creek with a paddle

I knew that the popular enormous flea market called Caesar's Creek near Wilmington OH derived its name from the nearby Ohio State Park.
What I did not know and never thought about much was where the name came from. Like the name Cincinnati, I assumed it was a nod to the Roman era. The billboards for the flea market seem to emphasize that angle too. It turns out the billboards aren't exactly historically accurate and as usual, there is more to the story.

The name comes from an escaped or possibly captured black slave named Caesar who was adopted by the Shawnee, a fairly common American Indian practice in those days. Sometimes these adoptees escaped but many they stayed with their new Indian families. Caesar stayed, preferring this new life to his old one. I'll bet that wasn't a hard decision for him. He was eventually given his own hunting land by the local Chief.  I wish there was more information on Caesar himself but his significant place in history was recalled by the famed frontiersman Simon Kenton who owed him his life...

marker near Xenia OH has been stolen

In 1778, Kenton was captured by the Shawnee in Ohio and forced to run the gauntlet..nine times. The gauntlet was a form of a furious beating torture used to test the mettle of captives, who were then considered for adoption themselves. Simon, already well known among the Shawnee, was a prized captive and paraded from village to village for all to see. Kenton was then condemned to die near present-day Xenia OH. The Shawnee named him Cuttahotha meaning "condemned to be burned at the stake", something that was attempted three times, yet each time circumstances resulted in his escape. The Shawnee saw this as a sign he was protected by the Great Spirit, Monetoo. They commuted his death sentence and he was adopted into a Shawnee family.

During his captivity, Caesar, now a full member of the Shawnee, took some pity on Simon who was barely clinging to life from his ordeal. Caesar could not offer direct assistance or face punishment himself, but he did give him information on how to escape if given the chance. By following the creek on his hunting land he named for himself...Caesars Creek, to the Little Miami and then to the Ohio River, a trip of at least 60 miles, he could then reach the safety of the settlements in Kentucky.

Simon Kenton never got to use the advice from Caesar but his words gave him hope when all hope seemed lost. He finally did escape in 1779 during a stop at the British Fort Detroit and made it back to American settlements thereby securing his status as a living legend, feared and respected by whites and Indians alike. But this post is really about Caesar. You can look forward to a full Gehio post about Simon Kenton one day!

Simon Kenton (1755 - 1836) in Covington KY

The area around Caesar's Creek fittingly became an important part of the Underground Railroad in the 1850's by the area Quakers who helped slaves escape.
No one knows what happened to Caesar, but without his encouragement, Kenton would surely have perished or been forgotten himself and changed American history.