40 Years Ago
Week of September 19, 1985
History of Ft. Seybert Indian Massacre Updated
By Charles B. Beverage
(Editor’s Note — The following account of the Indian massacre at Fort Seybert in 1758 was prepared by Charles B. Beverage of Richmond, Va., after doing extensive research on the subject. It indicates that ancestors of many lost families were involved.)
Numerous accounts have been written concerning the Indian massacre at Fort Seybert on Friday, the 28th day of April, 1758. Unfortunately, many of the sketches are not completely factual.
Typical examples of misinformation incorporated in many of the accounts are found in statements as to the location of the fort and as to the number of persons killed, taken prisoners, or returned from captivity.
For instance, many writers on the subject give the location of the fort as being west or northwest of the present town of Franklin. Still others incorrectly locate it in the present county of Highland.
As the local people know, Fort Seybert was situated on the South Fork of the South Branch of the Potomac River, about twelve miles northeast of Franklin in Pendleton County, at the time of this savage attack, when the area was a part of Augusta County, Va. It was built on a 210 acre tract of land which Jacob Seybert purchased from Robert Green of Culpeper County, Va., on May 21, 1755. It adjoined the land of Nicholas Hevener, the pioneer family by that name, who was married to Elizabeth Seybert, a sister of Jacob Seybert.
The names of other families who lived in a general vicinity of Fort Seybert at that time included Stephenson, Dyer, Propst, Ruleman, Weese, Reager, Mouse, Patton, Smith, Swadley, Waggoner, Reed, Dunkle, Hoover, Theiss (Tice) (Dice), Evac (Evick), Simon (Simmons), Conrad, and Horse (Hawes).
The Germans spoke broken English and were difficult to understand. As a result, the names were spelled in many ways in the records by the English.
Many writers in their account of this historic event placed the number of people who were in the fort at the time of the raid as being less than thirty. They also wrote that the only prisoner taken and ever returned to captivity was James Dyer. Others have written that only Nicholas Seybert, James Dyer and Hevener girl were captured and later returned.
One of the most valuable documents available today, the Draper Manuscripts, is preserved in the archives of the Wisconsin Historical Society Library. Contained in the manuscripts are the Preston Papers, (articles which were copied from early papers that have since been destroyed except for what Preston extracted from them) a register of the persons of
Augusta County, Va., who were killed, wounded and captured by the Indians from 1754 to May 1758. The Register states that “on April 28, 1758, Captain Seybert and 16 others were killed during the attack on Seybert’s Fort and 24 persons missing.”
The Register also states that on the previous day, the 27th day of April 1758, the Fort at which Captain Dunlap was stationed was attacked—the captain and 22 others killed. (This was Fort Upper Tract).
George Washington, a Lieutenant Colonel in the militia at the time, in one of his letters, placed the number killed and missing at the two massacres as “about 60 persons were killed or missing.”
A few days after the barbarous attack, on May 5, the “Gazette,” published in Williamsburg, wrote “the Indians lately took two forts, where was stationed one of our ranging companies, 40 of whom were killed and scalped and 19 missing.”
Only recently, this writer discovered in the Pennsylvania Archives a narrative written in German by Marie LeRoy and Barbara Leininger in May, 1759. These girls spent three and one-half years as prisoners of the Indians near the Muskingum River in Ohio. They escaped in early 1759 and finally made their way to Philadelphia.
After arriving there, they wrote of their experiences while prisoners and had it printed at the German printing office. In it, they gave a complete accounting of the tomahawking of their parents on Penn’s Creek in Pennsylvania, their being captured, the manner in which they finally escaped, and a list of the other captured persons they saw while they were prisoners.
After spending three and one-half years as prisoners of the Indians, Marie LeRoy and Barbara Leininger stated that “we two girls arrived in Philadelphia on Sunday, the sixth of May, 1759.
“And now we come to the chief reason why we have given the foregoing narrative to the public. It is not done in order to render our own sufferings and humble history famous, but rather in order to serve the inhabitants of this country, by making them acquainted with the names and circumstances of those prisoners whom we met, at the various places where we were, in the course of our captivity. Their parents, brothers, sisters, and other relatives will, no doubt, be glad to hear the nearest kith and kin are still in the land of the living and that they may hence entertain some hope of seeing them again in their own home, if God permit.”
Barbara and Marie then go on to list the names of the other prisoners of the Indians they had seen during their captivity. They also state that “we became acquainted with many other captives, men, women and children, but we do not know or cannot remember their names.” Among those named, they give the following who were taken during the attack on Fort Seybert.
“Henry Seybert, Elizabeth Seybert, George Seybert, Catherine Seybert and Marie Seybert, brothers and sisters, Germans, captured about 13 months ago at South Fork, in Virginia, are now at Kaschkaschung and Moschkino.
These were five of the six children of Captain Jacob and Elizabeth Seybert. Their eldest son, Nicholas, was also captured, sold to the French, taken to Canada when he later escaped and came to the Clear Springs area of Maryland.
It appears that the other five Seybert children were not released until the end of the French-Indian war when they also came to the Clear Springs area.
As to others on the South Branch who were taken prisoner during the raid on Fort Seybert who later returned, the records of Augusta County show that Dorothy, Barbara and John Reager, Jr., were captured and later returned to claim the property of their parents who were killed during the raid. Dorothy later married John Likens and Barbara married John Caplinger.
No doubt there were others who were taken prisoner and later escaped or were released, but this writer has been unable to locate such information.
Under the well-known and ferocious chief Killbuck, numerous raids were made in the frontiers of western Virginia by the Shawnee Indians. This band of Indians performed the most horrid murders and their cruelty was stimulated by the promise of rewards for scalps on the part of the French, as well as the promise of restoring them their land.
As a result of the raids and the need to guard the frontier, Colonel George Washington wrote to Governor Dinwiddie in January, 1756, recommending that a series of forts be constructed along the mountains—two of which were “on places I have pick’d out high up on the South Branch which will be a means of securing near 100 miles of our Frontier.”
On May 8, 1756, Governor Dinwiddie answered Colonel Washington and stated: “A chain of Forts are propos’d and an Association of Gentlemen are determined to be in way to you, these Gentlemen will march from north to south, with your advice, to the propos’d places to erect these Forts.” In June, 1756, Governor Dinwiddie again wrote to Washington and said, “The building of the Forts in proper Places must be left to you, as you know the situation of the Country, to fix them in the places most Necessary and Convenient for our Protection and the Form of the forts must be agreeable to the Situation of the Ground, and the Distance from each must be from Y’r own Judgem’t.”
On the 21st day of July, 1756, George Washington wrote Captain Hog of the Virginia Regiment in August County (in Staunton). “As the Assembly has voted a chain of Forts to be built on the Frontiers, the Governor has ordered out the militia to assist you in erecting them.”
Among the payments were ones to carpenters and others for work on Fort Seybert. In addition, it lists the pay for officers and members of the militia on the western frontier. These payments as well as those for provisions and work, evidently extended over a period of many, many months, since some of those persons named in the Act had been killed by the Indians on the South Branch in May, 1757.
In view of the numerous attacks by the Indians, and to head up the militia on the South Branch, Jacob Seybert was commissioned a Captain by the Augusta County Court on March 15, 1757.
Killbuck, the Shawnee Chief, was acquainted with most of the settlers along the Allegheny frontier. Because of his familiarity with the area, he was able to go from place to place and commit murder after murder.
While a number of different accounts have been written about the fatal day at Seybert’s Fort, the one that appears most likely as to what occurred appears in Wither’s Chronicle of Border Warfare.
Early on Friday morning, the Indians rushed the Fort and commenced a furious attack on it. Captain Seybert held back on firing upon the enemy and endeavored to negotiate with them, hoping to prevent the killing of any of the inhabitants. With this in mind he went out of the Fort and met with Killbuck and succeeded in arranging to buy them off. When he returned to the Fort, the gates were opened and the Indians were admitted.
No sooner had the articles that had been negotiated for were turned over to the Indians, the bloody tragedy began. Arranging the inmates of the Fort in rows, the Indians began scalping with their tomahawks and nearly every grown white person in the Fort was cruelly murdered. The young that were spared were taken into captivity, along with all the articles that could be carried, and the Fort was set afire.
From the Will and Accounts Books in Augusta County, we are unable to determine a number of those who were fatally killed. Among them were Captain Jacob Seybert, and his wife, Elizabeth, Jacob’s mother, Hannah (JoHanna) Lawrence, John Reager and his wife, and Roger Dyer. Other sources state that William Dyer (a son of Roger) and a boy named Wallace were also killed and scalped. These settlers, along with the other victims of this Indian raid, are buried in a common grave near where the Fort stood.
105 Years Ago
Week of September 17, 1920
LIST OF TEACHERS PENDLETON COUNTY INSTITUTE
SEPTEMBER 6, 1920
• Jasper Adamson, Ft. Seybert.
• Joseph W. Biby, Teterton.
• Byron Bodkin, Brandywine.
• Elmer Crummett, Sugar Grove.
• Alfred R. Dahmer, Deer Run.
• John Dahmer, Dahmer.
• Clay Day, Franklin.
• R. Guy Dickenson, Brandywine.
• Isaac H. Dickenson, Franklin.
• Homer R. Dove, Criders, Va.
• J. Luther Dove, Criders, Va.
• Roy O. Dunkle, Deer Run
• Noah W. Eckard, Sugar Grove.
• Jesse H. Eckard, Sugar Grove.
• Arthur Eckard, Sugar Grove.
• Olin C. Eye, Franklin.
• Benj. C. Eye, Dahmer.
• Olin R. Hammer, Franklin.
• E. Ake Hartman, Circleville.
• Sylvenus Harper, Riverton.
• Vernon P. Hedrick, Upper Tract.
• Luther D. Hedrick, Franklin.
• Russell F. Hedrick, Ruddle.
• Stelman W. Judy, Franklin.
• Earlie T. Judy, Circleville.
• Earl E. Kiser, Brandywine.
• George D. Kuykendall, Ft. Seybert.
• J. E. Lambert, Riverton.
• Mason V. Lambert, Riverton
• John Daniel Lough, Kline.
• Homer A. May, Ft. Seybert.
• Claude Mitchell, Mitchell.
• Pierce E. Mitchell, Dahmer.
• J. Fred Moyers, Cave.
• George D. Moyers, Cave.
• Jenifer H. Mullenax, Circleville.
• Martin W. Nelson, Circleville.
• Isaac D. Nesselrodt, Ft. Seybert.
• Elmer C. Nelson, Circleville.
• John A. Nelson, Circleville.
• James L. Pitsenbarger, Brandywine.
• Fletcher L. Pope, Ft. Seybert.
• Whitney A. Propst, Moyers.
• L. Arthur Propst, Brandywine.
• William Lester Puffenbarger, Mitchell.
• John Puffenbarger, Brandywine.
• Reuben Puffenbarger, Ft. Seybert.
• James D. Puffenbarger, Sugar Grove.
• Ira Radlief, Ft. Seybert.
• James T. Rexrode, Sugar Grove.
• Luther W. Rexrode, Ft. Seybert.
• Kennie T. Rexrode, Ft. Seybert.
• Noah M. Rexrode, Ft. Seybert.
• Dick Ruddle, Franklin.
• Buger Shrader, Upper Tract.
• Arlie C. Simmons, Rexrode.
• Luther E. Simmons, Rexrode.
• Fred M. Simmons, Sugar Grove.
• William Berlin Simmons, Bartow.
• Lester B. Sites, Onego.
• Ola M. Sites, Teterton.
• William Roy Smith, Ruddle.
• Harvey B. Smith, Sugar Grove.
• Walter J. Smith, Ruddle.
• Leland B. Teter, Dry Run.
• Albert Thompson, Riverton.
• Forrest G. Warner, Circleville.
• Paschal C. Warner, Dry Run.
• Sewell J. Warner, Franklin.
• Malcom D. Wilfong, Sugar Grove.
• Levi S. Yoder, Sugar Grove.
• Leslie N. Armentrout, Mouth of Seneca.
• Viola J. Bible, Cave.
• Carrie Boggs, Franklin.
• Louie H. Boggs, Franklin.
• Elaine Calhoun, Franklin.
• Evelyn Calhoun, Franklin.
• Hettie B. Cook, Circleville.
• Marguerite Dice, Franklin.
• Mary H. Dunkle, Franklin.
• Susie Daugherty, Franklin.
• Maysell Dove, Riverton.
• Shirley M. Eye, Franklin.
• Bonnie K. Fleisher, Cave.
• Lona Harper, Macksville.
• Lela M. Huffman, Riverton.
• Grace E. Hartman, Franklin.
• Kate Harper, Franklin.
• Rebecca Hedrick, Franklin.
• Audrey G. Kimble, Macksville.
• Grace Lough, Deer Run.
• Radie S. Lambert, Zigler.
• Lelia Myrtle Mauzy, Franklin.
• Leslie Jane May, Riverton.
• Mamie E. Mallow, Simoda.
• Jessie J. Mullenax, Circleville.
• Flora J. Mitchell, Sugar Grove.
• Nannie Mullenax, Cave.
• Mary Ward Meadows, Kline.
• Eva P. Nelson, Macksville.
• Merle Gay Propst, Franklin.
•Blanche Puffenbarger, Brandywine.
• Verdie Phares, Riverton.
• Nola Gay Sites, Mouth of Seneca.
• Ethel B. Simmons, Rexrode.
• Hazel K. Shrader, Upper Tract.
• Berdie E. Thompson, Riverton.
