16th—Buried two volunteers, one from Tuscaloosa, the other from Louisiana, and on the following day another from Alabama. We have a great number of sick in the Fort. Among them is one of the men who escaped the massacre of Major Dade’s command. His account of the affair is this:
Major Dade set out from Fort Brooke on the 23d December, 1835, for Camp King, distant one hundred and ten miles, at the head of a party consisting of one hundred and ten non-commissioned officers and privates, and six commissioned officers, besides myself; among them was one medical gentleman. They took with them one waggon, drawn by horses, one six pounder, and an ox team; the latter obliged them to travel slowly. They encamped the first night, on the Little Hillsborough, seven miles from the Fort. Next day they crossed the Big Hillsborough, afterwards the Little, and by Ouithlacouchy rivers, and on the night of the 27th, camped near a pond called the Clayhole. Each night they raised a small breastwork round their little camp. The ill fated party breakfasted on the morning of the 28th before sunrise, and pursued their journey; the road lying along the margin of the pond. They reached the extreme end without any interruption. On one side was a large forest of pine trees, on the other was the pond. Some of the party had passed round its head when they were alarmed by the report of a rifle, and immediately after a musket was discharged by one of the soldiers. The party halted, and Mr. Clarke (my informant) looked earnestly at the Major, expecting some command. A volley was here poured on them by their unseen foe; the Major was in the act of turning when he and his horse fell completely perforated with balls. Captain Frazer, Lieutenant Mudge, and the advanced guard fell at the same time. The soldiers were completely taken by surprise; some were so much flustered that they fired in the air, but after a few shots they became cool enough. The six pounder was now brought up and discharged two or three times, when the army fled in all directions. Several hundreds of them were seen collected on a mound, a mile and a half from the scene of action. This gave the troops some breathing time; they commenced throwing up a breastwork, but were not allowed to complete it. In about three quarters of an hour the Indians moved from the knoll, and collected a half a mile off. They then advanced coolly and deliberately to a second attack. Captain Gardiner took the command within the breastwork; the men lay down to load and kept up a constant fire until three o’clock, P. M.; but their ranks were sadly thinned. Captain Gardiner had fallen covered with wounds; Lieutenant Keys had both arms broken; Lieutenant Henderson had his left arm broken, but loaded and fired forty rounds afterwards, and Lieutenant Bassinger was also severely wounded. Mr. Clarke observed Dr. Gatlin, as the Indians advanced to the second attack, posted behind a log, with two double barrelled guns beside him. He heard the doctor say he had four barrels for them. Mr. C. saw no more of him till he was creeping out at night, when he passed by the corpse of the doctor, stripped quite naked. Towards the close of the fight, Mr. C. received a severe wound in the shoulder; he had been previously shot in the thigh, arm and back, and one buckshot had grazed his temple. The last bullet from a musket entered his shoulder and passed out through his back, rendering him completely hors de combat. The fire soon after ceased; all inside the breastwork were either killed or severely wounded. The Indians broke in, and, strange to say, neither scalped the dead nor abused the wounded. They contented themselves with pillaging all of their arms, ammunition and provisions. When they had quit the field, a body of negroes fifty or sixty in number, came up on horseback, entered the enclosure, and commenced hacking and cutting the wounded, in a most savage manner. They approached Lieutenant Bassinger, he sprang on his feet and begged them to spare his life, but they knew not the voice of mercy; they struck him down with a tomahawk, cut open his breast and tore out his heart and lungs. They proceeded in the same brutal manner with the rest of the wounded, stripping them all of their clothes. At length they approached Mr. C. and stripped off his jacket, in the pocket of which he had one hundred and twenty dollars; they also took off his hat and boots and felt for his watch. One of the ruffians remarked that he was alive and proposed to drive a bayonet through him but was overruled by one of his comrades, who observed that the wound in his head would certainly kill him, and that they should let him suffer as much pain as possible before death. This saved him. The negroes soon departed laden with plunder. The poor fellow lay on his face for some time; at length he felt a hand on his shoulder, and one of his comrades having ascertained that he was still alive, proposed to him to set out immediately; he refused, stating that it was too soon. The other left him and had not crept many yards when an Indian stepped from behind a log and shot him. A dark cloud and a rain storm came on; this was a moment too favorable to be lost. Mr. C. crept cautiously into the wood and met another comrade attempting his escape; they travelled together. Next morning they perceived an Indian in pursuit, gaining very fast on them. They immediately separated, entering the woods, the one on the right, the other on the left hand. The Indian pursued and killed one, and returned in search of the other, who had concealed himself in some thick palmettoes. He approached so near that he made the bushes rustle over his intended victim; but he soon abandoned the search and returned to the Black Swamp, the home of his people. Mr. Clarke travelled slowly to Fort Brooke, which he reached in three days. The distance from the battle field is sixty five miles. He was forced to creep on his hands and knees nearly two thirds of the way. One of his comrades, named Thomas, had arrived the day before, wounded in the thigh. Another named Sprague, came in the day after, wounded in the arm, and these three were the only survivors of one hundred and seventeen men. A small dog of Captain Gardiner’s also arrived wounded in the neck. Black Dirt had predicted the state of the party previous to its march from Fort Brooke, and advised them not to go; but Major Dade treated the matter lightly; he had no apprehensions, and the event unfortunately proved that the prediction of the Indian was but too correct.
21st.—Colonel Lindsay returned with a part of his command to obtain provisions. He had only been twenty-one miles distant from us on the Big Hillsboro’ River, where he had built a Fort, called Fort Alabama, somewhat similar to Fort Brooke. A few days before, he had dispatched a man named Evans, to Fort King, with letters for the main army, and had promised him a handsome reward, if he should succeed in escaping the vigilence of the enemy. Evans was well mounted, he passed by their main body asleep at night, and soon after fell in with a drove of their ponies; his horse neighed, the Indians’ dogs barked, and they themselves were soon on the qui vive—Evans perceived that he was surrounded, and determined to return by the way he came; he accordingly charged back, and was fired on from all sides without injury to himself or horse, though the Indians killed several of their own ponies which were close by.
Colonel Lindsay returned, the day following, to Fort Alabama, whence his intention was to march towards Gen. Gaines’ army.
26th.—A Cutter arrived from St. Marks, with several officers from Gen. Gaines’ army, confirming the accounts we had previously received by the seven days skirmish with the enemy, and the distress of the army for provisions. Gen. Gaines had proceeded to New Orleans.
27th.—Two non-commissioned officers of the Fort, assistant Commissary Sergeants, Turner and Sunderland, with two citizens, Messrs. Simmonds and Stewart rode out, after dinner on horseback. They had been but a short time gone, when we heard the reports of several rifles and two or three distinct yells. In a few minutes after we saw one of them, Mr. Turner, come in at full gallop, and a horse without his rider close behind. Mr. Turner informed he had been fired on by the Indians one mile from the Fort, and that the other three had been killed. He himself had received a bullet through his cap. A party was immediately formed, and marched towards the place of ambuscade; on the road they met Mr. Sunderland with his right arm broken and Mr. Simmonds shot through the back. Both their horses had been shot, but luckily carried their riders two hundred yards or more, Mr. Simmonds’ horse fell on him, but in the death plunge left him at liberty. Mr. Sunderland’s horse had fallen, thrown his rider and made for his stable, but dropped dead before he reached it. Mr. Stewart, the fourth of the party was found dead and scalped; some of his clothes had been stripped off, and his body and face were covered with wounds from bullets and knives. The savages had dragged him fifty yards from the road and left him beside a tree, but a faithful dog had remained close to him, and when the poor creature saw the troops, it ran out and conducted them to its unfortunate master. The body was carried into the Fort, a shocking spectacle. The bullet was extracted from Mr. Simmonds’ shoulder without doing any injury, but Mr. Sunderland lost his right arm. The operation was performed next day, at his own request; he bore it with the resolution of a man and a Soldier. Next day a scouting party marched out and scoured the adjacent hammocks, but we saw nothing except the tracks and fires of the Indians.
April 4th.—Colonel Lindsay and Major Reed, returned with their respective commands, much distressed for want of provisions. On their march from Fort Brooke, they had lost one private of Capt. H. S. Marks’ company, raised partly in New Orleans, partly in Mobile. He was killed and scalped six miles from the Fort. Capt. H. S. Marks who, by the by, has used his company scandalously, had been left to garrison Fort Alabama, and the Colonel proceeded in search of the enemy. At one day’s march from the Fort, he met them and skirmished for three or four days; he also burnt several villages and had a few men killed and wounded; some of his friendly Indians killed and scalped an old Chief named Kifixo:—He had on a coat pierced with fourteen bullet holes and nearly covered with old clotted blood. It was taken from one of Major Dade’s soldiers. The Colonel’s tardy motions by no means suited the bold disposition of Major Reed. The men too, accused the Colonel of avoiding the larger hammocks, where the enemy would naturally conceal themselves; whereas, the Major was for charging through them. Major Reed appears perfectly qualified for this species of warfare. He was constantly at the head of his men; and the first to face any danger. He was present at the battle of Ouithlacouchy, under Gen. Clinch where he was wounded in the hip and had his horse shot under him. Had all the officers been like him, the manes of Major Dades’ murdered Soldiers might have been long since satisfied. The report of Gen Scott’s cannon on the Ouithlacouchy were heard by Colonel Lindsay’s army, and Major Reed advised an immediate advance to his assistance, but the Colonel’s timidity or imbecility would not allow it, in consequence of which the gallant Major declared he would neither camp with him, march with him, nor follow him, and he kept his word.
Fort Alabama had been meanwhile attacked and gallantly defended by Capt. H. S. Marks’ Company. Capt. M. Costa second man here. The Indians kept up a fire with little intermission for more than two hours, some of them climbing the trees and thence pouring in their volleys, one of them in particular had sheltered himself behind a thick bough and was fired at repeatedly, at each unsuccessful shot he shook his leg at the Fort, and was heard to crow like a rooster. He was, however, brought down by a rifle; and fell about thirty feet. Another contrived to conceal himself behind a tree, within one hundred yards of the Fort, and fired a few shots, but he soon attracted the notice of all eyes, and whenever his arm or any part of his clothing appeared, more bullets whistled by him, than would have let out the lives of half his tribe. At length he made a tremendous bound and escaped. It was supposed that he was wounded, as he fell three times, but he appeared like the giant of old, to gain new vigour from each contact with the earth. The tree behind which he stood and the logs of which the fort was built, were completely covered with ball holes; after two hours firing, the Indians retired, carrying with them their dead and wounded.
April 4th.—Colonel Lindsay and Major Reed, returned to Fort Brook and camped, giving each other a wide berth. On the following day Gen. Eustace arrived with a large body of horse from Georgia and South Carolina. Gen. Scott also arrived with the army which had marched out under Gen. Gaines. He encamped on the other side the river, for the sake of water, and our friends soon gratified our curiosity, by giving us an account of their campaign. They had marched on the 13th Feb. from Tampa under command of Gen. Gaines. There were about seven hundred Volunteers from Louisiana, and four hundred Regulars, each man was supplied with ten days provisions; one half was carried in the knapsacks, the other on the pack-horses. There were no field pieces, no baggage waggons, and there were no means provided for carrying the sick or wounded. At some miles distance, they passed by the ruined plantations of Mr. Simmonds and others, who had either been murdered or had barely escaped with their lives to Fort Brooke. They encamped one night near the Alafaiah (yellow fire) river, where they received a boatload of provisions from Fort Brooke, sent back several of the sick. On the 17th, they forded the Hillsboro’ river, the bridge having been burnt down by the enemy, to prevent any communication with Fort King; this was the case with all the other bridges. The greatest credit is due to Colonel Twiggs and Major Montfort, for the very efficient personal assistance they rendered in the passage of the rivers. 18th.—They burned an Indian Village, having first obtained from it a large quantity of Corn, Rice and Cooking Utensils. They crossed the Ouithlacouchy, on the 19th, and spent the night round Major Dade’s last camp; on the morning of the 20th, they marched on, and soon reached the scene of his unfortunate massacre. Here a spectacle never to be forgotten, was presented to their eyes; the bodies of more than one hundred men lay within and around the breastwork, shot, most of them, through the head, many gashed and brutally mangled; they appeared not to have been disturbed since the battle, or rather the massacre; the oxen lay within the breastwork, still yoked together as they had been shot down, one soldier lay dead in the cart, the gun-carriage and horse waggon had been burned, and the piece itself carried off and concealed. The army halted and buried the whole command with the honours of war. On the persons of the dead were found several hundred dollars, which was handed over to the Commanding Officer to be conveyed to their widows and orphan children. The arms and ammunition had been carried off by the enemy. The field piece was afterwards discovered sunk in a pond a few hundred yards distant. It was raised and placed at the head of the Officer’s grave. After this melancholy duty, they crossed the Ouithlacouchy, and on the 23d, reached Camp King, much fatigued and in great want of provisions. Fort King was garrisoned by sixty Regulars, who had only heard of Major Dade’s massacre a few days before. Gen. Gaines encamped on a hill close to the Fort, and on the following morning despatched the pack horses and three companies of Regulars for provisions, to Fort Drane, twenty-four miles distant. They returned with scarce eight days provisions; these were issued, and orders given to prepare for a march.
27th—The army again moved on with one baggage waggon, one six pounder, and two carts. They marched ten miles and halted for the night. Next morning the bugles sounded forward, and at one o’clock, P. M., they again sounded for a halt. The army was now within three miles of the Ouithlacouchy, and close to General Clinch’s battle ground. The previous night had been very wet, and the halt was ordered for an inspection of arms. On their advance they burned a large village called Powelltown, formerly the head quarters of the nation, and a little farther on, halted at Clinch’s battle ground. While burying some of his dead who had been disinterred and abused by the savages, the left wing was attacked, the enemy firing from the other side of the river. Their fire was warmly answered for three quarters of an hour, when the bugles sounded a retreat from the banks of the river. One man was killed on our side and six wounded; the loss of the enemy is not known. A breastwork was thrown up, during the night, round that of General Clinch. Next morning the troops marched down the river, in search of a fording place, in order to cross over and come at close quarters, with the enemy. The advanced guard reached the bank and received an unexpected volley while attempting to sound the stream. Here fell Major Izard, the commander of the advance, an officer universally respected and esteemed; he was on horseback, a fair mark for the Indians, and received a bullet through his head. There was one man besides the Major killed, and there were several wounded; among the latter were Captain Saunders, chief of the friendly Indians, the main guide, and Captain Armstrong, of the United States schooner Motto. As it was impossible to ford the stream in the face of the enemy’s fire, independent of its depth, the General took measures for building a bridge. Some of the men were employed felling pine trees, others hollowing them canoe fashion, while a third party kept the Indians in play. Towards night all hands commenced a breastwork a few yards from the river, and lay, I shall not say, slept within them.