Pontiac's Rebellion school massacre
Encyclopedia
The Pontiac's Rebellion school massacre was an incident during Pontiac's Rebellion
, in raids and warfare on the frontier following the French and Indian War
. On July 26, 1764, four Delaware (Lenape)
warriors attacked the teacher and students at a schoolhouse in what is now Franklin County
, Pennsylvania
, near present-day Greencastle
. They killed Enoch Brown, the schoolmaster, and ten children. One child who had been scalped survived.
Because of such raids, the Pennsylvania Assembly
had already reintroduced bounties for scalps of American Indians, which they had offered during the French and Indian War. They paid for every American Indian killed above the age of ten, including women. The bounty was approved by Governor John Penn
. The unrestricted bounty resulted in settlers' attacking Indian women and children, and leading to retaliatory raids by the Lenape.
When the warriors returned to their village on the Muskingum River
in the Ohio Country
and showed the scalps, an elder Delaware chief rebuked them as cowards for attacking children.
Settlers buried Brown and the children in a common grave. Years later, the village had lost the historical memory of the location of the grave. In 1843, villagers excavated the area to locate the grave for preservation and protection of remains. In 1885, the city of Greencastle designated the area as the Enoch Brown Park, and erected a memorial to the event. Five thousand people attended the dedication of the memorial and park.
Pontiac's Rebellion
Pontiac's War, Pontiac's Conspiracy, or Pontiac's Rebellion was a war that was launched in 1763 by a loose confederation of elements of Native American tribes primarily from the Great Lakes region, the Illinois Country, and Ohio Country who were dissatisfied with British postwar policies in the...
, in raids and warfare on the frontier following the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
. On July 26, 1764, four Delaware (Lenape)
Lenape
The Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...
warriors attacked the teacher and students at a schoolhouse in what is now Franklin County
Franklin County, Pennsylvania
As of the census of 2000, there were 129,313 people, 50,633 households, and 36,405 families residing in the county. The population density was 168 people per square mile . There were 53,803 housing units at an average density of 70 per square mile...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, near present-day Greencastle
Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Greencastle is a borough in Franklin County in south-central Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,722 at the 2000 census.-History:...
. They killed Enoch Brown, the schoolmaster, and ten children. One child who had been scalped survived.
Because of such raids, the Pennsylvania Assembly
Pennsylvania General Assembly
The Pennsylvania General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. In colonial times , the legislature was known as the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly. Since the Constitution of 1776, written by...
had already reintroduced bounties for scalps of American Indians, which they had offered during the French and Indian War. They paid for every American Indian killed above the age of ten, including women. The bounty was approved by Governor John Penn
John Penn (governor)
John Penn was the last governor of colonial Pennsylvania, serving in that office from 1763 to 1771 and from 1773 to 1776...
. The unrestricted bounty resulted in settlers' attacking Indian women and children, and leading to retaliatory raids by the Lenape.
When the warriors returned to their village on the Muskingum River
Muskingum River
The Muskingum River is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately 111 miles long, in southeastern Ohio in the United States. An important commercial route in the 19th century, it flows generally southward through the eastern hill country of Ohio...
in the Ohio Country
Ohio Country
The Ohio Country was the name used in the 18th century for the regions of North America west of the Appalachian Mountains and in the region of the upper Ohio River south of Lake Erie...
and showed the scalps, an elder Delaware chief rebuked them as cowards for attacking children.
Settlers buried Brown and the children in a common grave. Years later, the village had lost the historical memory of the location of the grave. In 1843, villagers excavated the area to locate the grave for preservation and protection of remains. In 1885, the city of Greencastle designated the area as the Enoch Brown Park, and erected a memorial to the event. Five thousand people attended the dedication of the memorial and park.
External links
- Glen L. Cump, "A DISQUISITION PORTRAYING THE HISTORY RELATIVE TO THE ENOCH BROWN INCIDENT" Allison-Antrim Museum, 1 August 1992
- Enoch Brown park at Find A Grave