Early American Wars
I'm sure everyone learned about the Revolutionary War in school. Although we did have many relatives fighting in the Revolution, I don't feel a need to discuss it here. Instead, I would like to discuss a few other earlier wars in which our ancestors were participants.
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
George Santayana
The Pequot War was the result of numerous conflicts between the colonists and the Indians. There were disputes over property, livestock, hunting, the selling of alcohol to Indians, and dishonest traders. On July 20, 1636, Indians killed a dishonest trader named John Oldham. Many settlers demanded that the Pequot's be punished for this. Massachusetts raised a military force of 90 men and landed at an Indian settlement on Block Island. They killed all the males and took the women and children as slaves. They even slaughtered all of the Indian's pet dogs before they burned the village and crops. From there, they sailed to Saybrook, Connecticut and burned another Pequot village. The Pequots now realized that the colonists intended to start a war. They came in force and attacked the fort at Saybrook. In April of 1637, 200 Pequots attacked a village upriver from Saybrook, killing nine villagers. At dawn, on May 26, 1637, a force of colonials, including our ancestor Nicholas Olmstead, and some Indian allies attacked a Pequot village on the Mystic River. They set the village on fire and killed anyone who ran out. The remainder of the villagers were burned in the fire. Nearly 500 Indians were killed in the massacre. The remaining Pequots in the area fled. Their leader, Sassacus, was killed in July. The war officially ended on September 21, 1638, with the signing of the Treaty of Hartford. As a result of the treaty, the remaining Pequots were forced to live with other Indian tribes in the area and their name was to never be used again.
King Philip's War was one of the most disastrous wars in America's history. Massasoit, the Chief of the the Wampanoag and friend of the Pilgrims, died in 1661 and was succeeded by his son Wamsutta. In 1662, the Plymouth Court summoned Wamsutta to Plymouth. Major Josiah Winslow and a small force took Wamsutta at gunpoint. Soon after questioning, Wamsutta sickened and died. His death greatly angered the Wampanoag. They felt he had been poisoned by the colonists. Wamsutta's brother Metacom, called Philip by the colonists, succeeded him. Philip was summoned to Plymouth as well, too often for his liking. Controversies arose between Philip and the colonists regarding his right to sell his land. In 1671, Philip signed a new treaty, promising obedience to Plymouth. Philip became convinced that the colonists were plotting against him.
In January 1675, a man named John Sassamon was found dead in a pond near Plymouth. The coroner ruled that he was a victim of foul play. Three Wampanoags were brought to Plymouth, tried, found guilty, and executed. One of the three claimed Philip had killed Sassamon as part of a plot against the colonists. Philip was brought to Plymouth, but it could not be proved that he had been involved in the death. Nevertheless, Philip was outraged. He felt the colonists intended to destroy him, and he readied his people for war.
As tensions mounted, many colonists left the outlying areas and went to Plymouth. In Swansea, Indians were fired upon by some of the remaining colonists. One Indian was killed. The Indians retaliated, killing eight settlers. The war had officially begun. Among the colonists who fought in the war were our ancestors Thomas Barnes, Matthew Fuller, Nicholas Olmstead,
and Joseph Sill. Throughout the remainder of 1675 and into 1676, the Wampanoag and their Indian allies attacked approximately half of the villages in New England. Many of the villages were completely burned to the ground. Our ancestor Thomas Barnes lost his home and all his goods in a fire set by the Indians. Isaac and Jacob Shepard, brothers-in-law of Judith Sill, were killed by Indians in February 1676. It appeared that the Indians had the advantage. They not only had allies to help them attack the villages, they even had their own blacksmiths and gunsmiths to keep them armed! They had one big problem though. They were running out of food. One of their only remaining storehouses of food was located at a camp on the Connecticut River. Colonial forces were able to sneak into the camp, kill several hundred Indians, and destroy all their food and ammunition. Finally, in August of 1676, King Philip's camp was attacked and he was killed. I have read that he was beheaded and his head was put on display at Plymouth for at least twenty years.
The outcome of the war was devastating. 600 colonists were dead. 1200 houses were burned. 3000 Indians had been killed. The Wampanoags that survived were sold into slavery. It took years for the colonies to recover from the war and many Indian tribes never fully recovered. It has been called one of the bloodiest and most costly wars in the history of America.
The French and Indian Wars were actually four separate wars that were fought in America between 1689 and 1763. The four wars were known as King William's War (1689-1697), Queen Anne's War (1702-1713), King George's War (1744-1748), and The French and Indian War (1754-1763), also known as the Seven Years War. The wars were fought between France and England with the support of their Indian allies. Both countries wanted to be the dominant force in America. They struggled with each other for control of the fur trade and fishing grounds. They fought for the land between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River. There was religious tension as the French were Roman Catholic and the English were Protestants. I have also read that the English did not like the French because they were able to get along better with the Indians. The English certainly did not mind using the Indians as allies, but they never tried to understand the Indian culture and in fact tried to change them by converting them to Christianity. The French, on the other hand, were more at ease with the Indians and tried to make themselves fit in with the Indian way of life. Apparently the English found that to be very irritating. The colonists were loyal to England during this time and fought side by side with British troops. At this time I know of two ancestors who served in these wars. Richard Lord served in Queen Anne's War while Alexander McNitt served in the French and Indian War. I am sure many more of our ancestors and relatives served in these early wars as well, but I have not yet been able to look through many old military records from that time.