Source:Fleming-halket/content
THE sad story of Maj. Gen. Edward Braddock carries with it that of Sir Peter Halket, whose name is commemorated in Pittsburgh in the street running from Fifth avenue to Frazier street in Oakland. The latter name in the vicinity is properly given, for John Frazier had a trading post at the mouth of Turtle Creek, and here Washington and Gist stopped on their winter journey through the wilderness on their way to the French forts in 1753.
As Frazier's cabin was close to Braddock's battle ground, so Frazier street is properly near Halket.
Like Braddock, Sir Peter was Scotch, more so perhaps in actions and speech. One may say he was broadly Scotch in all particulars.
Sir Peter hailed from Pitferron, Fifeshire, the county across the Firth of Forth from Edinburgh. He was a baronet of Nova Scotia. His father was Sir Peter Wedderburne, who had assumed his wife's name so that Sir Peter's name was not Halket but Wedderburne.
In 1734 Sir Peter sat in Parliament (the House of Commons) for Dunfermline, noted as the birthplace of John Forbes, who gave Pittsburgh its name, better known as the birthplace of Andrew Carnegie. It may be noted we have Dunfermline street in our city. Dunfermline, the city, is in Fifeshire, and not far from Edinburgh.
At Cope's Defeat.
Sir Peter Halket was lieutenant colonel of the Forty-fourth British Regiment at Sir John Cope's defeat in 1745 at Preston Pans. Released on parole by Charles Edward, he was ordered to rejoin his regiment, but honorably refused.
Charles Edward was the "young pretender" who attempted to wrest the crown from George the Second, "snuffy old drone from a German hive," but a really great general, then fighting on the Continent in the war known in history of [sic] the "War of the Austrian Succession," terminated by the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748, a treaty that had much to do with events in far-off America, and especially the region of the Ohio.
Charles Edward, with Louis XV. of France as his ally, landed in Scotland and raising an army defeated the royalist forces at Preston Pans and Falkirk, but was totally defeated by the Duke of Cumberland in the decisive battle of Culloden in 1746.
This was the last battle fought on the soil of Great Britain, and "it terminated," says the historian lexicographer, Worcester, "the last effort of the Stuart family to reascend the throne, which had been forfeited by the most egregious folly, and the most flagitous [sic] attempts."
Culloden was the last battle fought on British soil, but there have been hopes of another for some months past—we may say also fears—hopes by the Germans, fears by the British.
Historical Chain.
Witness the line of thought and the history evolved—Braddock, Halket, the Young Pretender, George the Second, Preston Pans, Falkirk, Culloden, Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, the defeat of Braddock, the deaths of Braddock and Halket, the French and Indian war, the fall of Fort Duquesne, after the defeat of Grant on Grant's Hill, the birth of Pittsburgh, the fall of Quebec, the passing of French dominion in North America, the possibility of a battle on British soil after 169 years—all called up by the commemorated name of a Braddock victim on the Monongahela, July 9, 1755.
To return to Halket. George the Second approved Halket's course. Halket married Lady Amelia Stewart, second daughter of Francis, eighth Earl of Moray.
Sir Peter was the father of three sons, Sir Pter, his successor in the army; Francis, major in the "Black Watch" (a regiment) and James, who was killed with his father.
When Forbes had come and gone, one of the first duties of Col. Hugh Mercer, left in command at the new fort here, and a perilous post, was to send a detachment to Braddock's battleground and bury the derelict dead, long the prey of the elements and the carnivora of the wilderness—bones only with cleft skulls lying where they fell, victims of the strangest battle in history up to that time—perhaps since—more a massacre than an engagement.
Sir Peter Halket's remains were found and identified under these circumstances:
It was the firm resolve of Gen. Forbes that the relics left on Braddock's field be searched for. As European soldiers were deemed unqualified for this work, Capt. West, the elder brother of the great American painter, Benjamin West, was sent with a company to assist in the execution of this duty.
Search for Dead.
Some Indians who had returned to the British interests and who had been present in the battle, accompanied West. Some English officers also went along, including Maj. Sir Peter Halket, the slain colonel's eldest son.
It was a solemn and affecting duty and it seemed a hopeless task that anyone could discriminate Maj. Halket's loved ones' remains from the common relics of the many. An Indian assured the major that he had seen an officer fall near a tree he had particularly noted, and this warrior's memory was impressed with the fact that he had witnessed a young officer running to the other's assistance who was almost instantly shot dead and fall [sic] across the other's body.
The Indians regarded the expedition as a religious rite and were imbued with the spirit of the occasion. They guided the troops with awe and in profound silence.
It was a serious expedition wandering through the vast forest appalled anon by the discovery of skeletons with cleft skulls lying here and there and some, too, with whole skulls arousing the suspicion that these were those of wounded men who had crawled away and perished of hunger. There was ample evidence, too, of the havoc that the wild beasts had made among the unburied dead.
The warrior's memory was good. He led the detachment near the place. The men halted and rested on their arms.
In a short time a shrill cry was heard from the searching Indians. The troops approached and were pointed to the tree. The men formed a circle while the warriors removed the leaves. Two skeletons were exposed, the one lying across the other.
Maj. Halket said his father had an artificial tooth. The Indian lifted the upper skeleton and brought into clearer view the under one. Maj. Halket looked close and exclaimed:
"It is my father."
His emotions overcame him and he was supported by his companions.
Burial of Halket.
A grave was dug and the bones laid in it together. A Highland plaid was spread over them and the customary honors paid.
These facts Craig finds in Galt's "Life of Benjamin West" and he reproduces them in "The Olden Time."
We may add that we have West street in the "Point district" in honor of this captain.
The marked influence of the Scotch upon the history of Pittsburgh must be noted. Braddock, Halket, Grant, Forbes, Mercer, Stobo, have left names to commemorate all that pertains to human interest.
Well enough for Braddock's battle to figure in romance. Though lacking in historic value, two novels have what our modern "purists in their significant language call "the punch." We cannot admire the metaphor. We will call it therefore the thrill—the heart touch. These novels are "The Wilderness," by Dr. James McHenry, distorting facts greatly, and "Capt. Jack," or "Old Fort Duquesne," by Charles McKnight of Pittsburgh, one-time owner and editor of The Pittsburgh owner and editor of the Pittsburgh [sic] Evening Chronicle, whose work is equally distortive of facts, yet fairly readable, and much read, although it is over 40 years since it appeared.
We can pass over many of the facts of Braddock's expedition and much pertaining to him as a man. We can say a few things about Dumas, the French captain who assumed command when De Beaujeu fell—almost at the first fire—a victim of excessive zeal, one of the few who exposed himself to the fire of his protected foe, and he too in the gorgeous uniform of his rank.
Dumas served at Fort Duquesne, commander in place of Contracoeur until late in 1756 or early in 1757, when he was transferred to Canada.
Accounts of events at the French fort are conflicting. Some say at the time of the battle Contracoeur had departed and De Beaujeu was in command, succeeded by Dumas in line of seniority.
Dumas and His Work.
Dumas served in the operations against Fort William Henry and evoked the commendation of Montcalm, who mentioned him in the official dispatches as "An officer of great distinction." The merits of Dumas were fully recognized by De Vaudreuil, governor of Canada and New France from July 10, 1755, to September 7, 1760, or the end of the French power.
Dumas served during the siege of Quebec and returned to France in 1761 when he was appointed governor of Mauritius and the Isle of Bourbon.
William M. Darlington delved for these facts and found them in a French work, Garneau's "Histoire du Canada." Parkman shows that Contracoeur was in command at the fort, not having been formally relieved.
Whatever blame on account of the horrors after the return of the French and Indians, the torture of the 12 prisoners, is to be placed must, therefore, fall upon Contracoeur. In extenuation the French plead that they could not control their Indian allies, but were compelled to allow them to follow their custom. As the Indians outnumbered them it is evident they did not try to.
What Indians aided the French it may be asked? First and foremost, the Ottawas, led on by that remarkable man and warrior, Pontiac; then the Hurons, of Lorette, under their chief Athanase and all the Indians in alliance with the French, "all as keen as hounds upon the scent of blood." And these had a veritable saturnalia of gore.
James Smith, a youth of 18, captured by the Indians shortly before Braddock's march, was a prisoner at Fort Duquesne at the time of the battle. In later years he became a prominent man in Kentucky. He had a hard time among the Indians.
Story of Smith.
His story in full is given by Craig in his "History of Pittsburgh." Smith related that at sunset on July 9 he heard at a distance the well-known scalp halloo followed by wild, quick, joyful shrieks and long-continued firing. This surely announced the fate of the day.
About dusk the party returned to the fort, driving before them 12 British regulars stripped naked and with their faces painted black, an evidence that the unhappy wretches were devoted to death. Next came the Indians displaying their bloody scalps, of which they had an immense number. The Indians were dressed in the scarlet coats, sashes and military hats of the British officers and soldiers.
Behind them came a train of baggage horses laden with piles of scalps, canteens and soldiers' accoutrements.
The savages were wild with joy. They entered the fort brandishing their red tomahawks and waving the scalps in air, while the great guns of the fort replied to the incessant discharge of rifles without.
Smith in lurid simile declares that "it looked as if hell had given a holiday and turned loose its inhabitants upon the upper world."
Let us draw the veil. A beautiful—rather an admirable civilization was that of the eighteenth century—"almost," says the cynic, "as admirable as that of the twentieth century—in warfare at least."
A few days after the battle the Indians dispersed, returning to their homes as was usual with them after a decisive battle. Then but a small French force remained as a garrison at Fort Duquesne and a third of Braddock's army would have been sufficient to have captured it.
Braddock's Officers.
And herein stands forth the unsoldierly conduct of Dunbar and his men.
Among those who served with Braddock we must mention Gladwin, a subaltern of Dunbar's regiment who attained fame for his heroic defence of Detroit during Pontiac's war eight years later.
We must mention also Daniel Morgan, the hero of Cowpers, who served as a wagoner, and John Neville, a famous name in Pittsburgh history later, who served with the Virginia troops. It is to be noted also that Horatio Gates commanded two independent companies from New York.
There was also a detachment of sailors serving with Braddock under Lieut. Spendelow who was killed. Talbot the midshipman was in this detachment.
After the affair of July 9, 1755, until the taking of the French fort here by Forbes November 25, 1758, we have only occasional and transient glances at the place.
April 1, 1756, one Paris with a scouting party from Fort Cumberland fell in with a small body of Indians commanded by a French officer named Donville. An action took place and Donville was killed.
Donville's Instructions.
The following instructions were found upon him:
FORT DUQUESNE, 23d. March, 1756.
The Sieur Donville, at the head of fifty savages, is ordered to go and observe the motions of the enemy in the neighborhood of Fort Cumberland. He will endeavor to harass their convoys and burn their magazines at Gonococheaque, should this be practicable. He must use every endeavor to take prisoners who may confirm what we already know of the enemy's designs. The Sieur Donville will use all his talents and all his credit to prevent the savages from committing any cruelties upon those who may fall into their hands. Honor and humanity ought in this respect to serve as guides.
DUMAS.
It appears that Contracoeur had gone and Dumas was in command at the fort.
"We may reconcile the humanity evinced in this order with the cruelty manifested on the the [sic] 9th of July, 1755," says Craig, "by supposing that the commanders had changed in the interim."
John McKinney, a prisoner of the Indians comfined [sic] at Fort Duquesne in February, 1756, described the fort and told of the French receiving provisions and 150 men as a reinforcement by river from New Orleans.
In June, 1757, Lieut. Baker with five soldiers and fifteen Cherokees returned to Virginia from an expedition towards Fort Duquesne. They had fallen in with a party of three French officers and seven men on Turtle Creek about twenty miles from the fort. They killed five of the French and took one prisoner. This officer said that De Lignery then commanded at the Fort and that there were six hundred French troops and two hundred Indians there.
"This," says Craig, "is the latest information we have from Duquesne prior to the fall of 1758."
Talbot and Burton.
In Braddock borough the name Burton, once commemorated in the street now called Library, had to go before—we may call it, the force of literature. Anyhow Burton was long dead.
Not so with the fame of Mr. Midshipman Talbot and insignificant enough he was. Sure, we have Talbot avenue yet, and this leld [sic] the Rev. G. E. Hawes of Braddock to write:
down before the march of a building filled with books. Talbot, child of a book, becomes a man whose name is written on lamp-posts and proclaimed from house corners. The fates must have sat down and giggled when they saw Burton unhorsed and Talbot crowned.
A proposal to substitute any name for the borough would meet with the usual and customary "storm of indignant protest."
The name Burton was as ruthlessly torn from its moorings as the commemorated street names in Pittsburgh—St. Clair, Marbury, Hand, Wayne, Morton, Smith, Baldwin and others. What's the use in commemorating history anyhow, and old history at that, when history is being made faster than it can be printed? But the library disposed of Burton as a local name in Braddock beyond a doubt, and Burton, a lieutenant-colonel, was wounded there.
That there were some spoils from Braddock's defeat can be inferred from the list below. The losses of the British were much greater. Dunbar destroyed all his ammunition and most of his stores. The name Braddock is a veritable synonym for calamity.
The following is a copy of a French report:
Return of the artillery, munitions of war and other effects belonging to the English, found on the field of battle after the action which took place on the 9th of July, 1755, within three leagues of Fort Duquesne, on the River Oyo, between a detachment of 250 Canadians and 650 Indians, commanded by Captain de Beaujer [sic] and a body of 2,000 Englishmen under the command of Gen. Braddock, exclusive of the considerable plunder that the Indians took. Four brass pieces with the arms of England, of the calibre of 11 lbs.; 4 ditto of 5½ lbs.; 4 brass mortars or howitzers of 7½ inch diameter; 3 other grenade mortars, of 4¼ inch; 175 balls of 11 lbs.; 57 howitzers of 6¾ inch; 17 barrels of powder, of 100 lbs.; 19,740 musket cartridges; the artifices for the artillery; the other articles necessary for a siege; a great quantity of muskets, fit and unfit for service; a quantity of broken carriages; 4 or 500 horses, some of them killed.
Supplies Captured.
About 100 head of horned cattle; a greater number of barrels of powder and flour, broken. About 600 dead, of whom a great number are officers and wounded in proportion; 20 men or women taken prisoners by the Indians; very considerable booty in furniture, clothing and utensils; a lot of papers which have not been translated for want of time; among others, the plan of Fort Duquesne with its exact proportions.*
*Note.—The Indians have plundered a great deal of gold and silver coin.
The figures of Braddock's forces engaged are not quite right. About 1,400 men were engaged. No other mention of women captives is found. Smith counted the prisoners. There were 12. The asterisk refers to a footnote which states that "Captain Robert Stobo drew this plan while a prisoner or hostage at Fort Duquesne." This in the Pennsylvania Archives, Second Series, Volume VI.
Fort Duquesne, began in the spring of 1754, was not fully completed as it stood later until February, 1755. Vandreuil, who relieved Duquesne as governor, July 10, was troubled. His correspondence in this regard is voluminous and in it all that pertains to our history interesting. It is to be found in the Second Series of the Pennsylvania Archives, Volume VI.
The picture of Braddock's grave represents it as it was repaired by Josiah King of Pittsburgh, one of the editors and proprietors of the Pittsburgh Gazette. Mr. King was wont to spend a few weeks' vacation in the vicinity and noticing the condition of the historic spot had a neat and substantial fence erected around it.
In 1872 Mr. King procured from the Murdochs, nurserymen of Pittsburgh, a willow whose parents' stem had draped over the grave of Napoleon at St. Helena. He planted this over the remains of Braddock; but the tree soon withered and died. He then planted the trees shown in the picture which are pines. This was in 1872.
