Fall Creek Massacre

The Fall Creek Massacre was a slaughter of Seneca Indians in 1824 by white settlers in Madison County, Indiana. Five white men committed the crimes. Four were captured and charged with murder. All four were convicted and sentenced to death by hanging.

It was the first documented case in which white Americans were convicted, sentenced to capital punishment, and executed for the murder of Native Americans under the law in the United States.

The massacre

In February 1824, a small party of Senecas came to the area near Pendleton, Indiana, to hunt and collect maple. [Allison, 267] The townspeople developed a friendly relationship with the band, which was headed by Chief Logan, a "venerable old chief" and "a friend of the white men". [ [http://www.connerprairie.org/historyonline/fallcreek.html The Fall Creek Massacre] ] The party included two other men, Ludlow and M'Doal (or Mingo), two women, two boys and two girls.

Thomas Harper, a frontiersman who lived in the area, disliked Indians. He convinced four other men to help him attack the small Seneca group. Two of the men were his relatives, his brother-in-law John T. Bridge, Sr. and Bridge's 18-year-old son, John Bridge, Jr. [Allison, 270] The other two men were James Hudson and Andrew Sawyer. Another teenage boy, Andrew Jones, accompanied the attackers.

The men approached the Seneca on March 22, 1824 and asked for help in tracking horses who had escaped from Harper's farm. Logan and Ludlow agreed to help, and they walked with them toward a wooded area, joking with the white men as they went. [Allison, 268] In the woods, however, Harper and Hudson fell behind, and shot the two Seneca men in the back. The men returned to the camp, where they killed the women and children. M'Doal was not in camp, but witnessed the killings as he returned, and was wounded in his escape. [ [http://www.connerprairie.org/historyonline/fallcreek.html The Fall Creek Massacre] ] In all, Harper's party killed eight people: two men, two women, and four children. They then stole everything of value from the camp and returned to their homes.

The next day, a local farmer discovered the scene of the murder and reported it. [Allison, 268] News of the crime spread quickly, and local settlers feared retribution from the Native Americans of the local Delaware villages. The perpetrators had bragged of the massacre, however, and within a week they were all in custody, except for Harper, who had taken the stolen goods and fled to Ohio. [Allison, 269]

While the accused men awaited trial, William Conner and John Johnston traveled to the local Indian villages to assure them that the men had been caught and would face justice. As a result, the threat of retaliation subsided.

The trials and executions

The four men who had been arrested were tried in Madison County Court. Governor William Hendricks employed Senator James Noble to serve as prosecutor, and hoping to maintain peaceful relations with the Indians, requested the court show no mercy on the men if found guilty. The cases were tried before a three member circuit court panel consisting of judges William Wick, Samuel Holliday, and Adam Winchell.

James Hudson was tried first. Andrew Jones, the teenager who had accompanied the men, was a key witness in the trial. The case generated nationwide attention, which turned to surprise when Hudson was found guilty. Hudson was sentenced to death by hanging, with an execution date of December 1 1824. It was the first time any white man in the United States had been sentenced to capital punishment for killing a Native American. [Allison, 270] Funk pp. 38–39]

Hudson appealed to the Supreme Court of Indiana, then in session at Corydon, Indiana. The court issued an opinion written by Chief Justice Isaac Blackford that upheld the lower court's decision and rejected all points of his appeal on November 13. [ [http://www.connerprairie.org/historyonline/fallcreek.html The Fall Creek Massacre] ] Two days later, Hudson escaped from jail, and hid beneath the floor of a vacant cabin, where he suffered frostbite and dehydration. He was recaptured ten days later, when he came out of hiding to find water. While he was missing, though, the execution date was rescheduled to the following January. .

On January 12, 1825, a large crowd which included several Seneca Indians gathered to witness the historic execution. The condemned man had to be carried to the gallows due to the frostbite he had suffered while in hiding. [ [http://www.connerprairie.org/historyonline/fallcreek.html The Fall Creek Massacre] ]

The remaining three men were tried on May 9, 1825. All three were also found guilty and sentenced to be hanged. However, while the jury found John T. Bridge, Jr. guilty of 1st degree murder, it recommended that he be pardoned due to the influence of his father and uncle. Additionally, a petition on his behlf to that effect was signed by 94 local men (including many members of the jury, the court clerk, several attorneys and a minister) was submitted to the Governor of Indiana, J. Brown Ray, citing "his youth, ignorance, and the manner which he was led into the transaction." However, by the appointed date of execution, it had not been answered. [Allison, 270]

On June 3, another large crowd which included a large numbers of Indians gathered for the executions, which took place one at a time. Andrew Sawyer was hanged first. John Bridge, Sr. was executed next. His 18-year old son, John Bridge, Jr., witnessed the hangings of his father and uncle before being led to the gallows and fitted with a noose and hood. However, at that point, Governor Ray stepped out from the crowd and stopped the execution. Presenting the pinioned teenage prisoner with a written pardon, the governor announced, "you are pardoned" and the young prisoner was immediately set free. [Allison, 271]

Aftermath

The trial set an important precedent in recognizing the civil rights of Native Americans.

Thomas Harper, the ringleader of the murderers, was never apprehended.

John Bridge, Jr. returned to his home in Ohio, but later relocated to Carroll County, Indiana, where he became a storekeeper. He died in 1876.

Memorials

In Pendleton, a stone marker in a park reads "Three white men were hung here in 1825 for killing Indians." [ http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=225&Result=1 ]

The Indiana Sesquicentennial Commission erected an historic highway marker in 1966 noting to the incident on State Route 38 in Markleville in Madison County. It reads: "In 1824, nine Indians were murdered by white men near this spot. The men were tried, found guilty and hanged. It was the first execution of white men for killing Indians." [ http://www.hmdb.org/Marker.asp?Marker=117 ]

References

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*cite book|author=Funk, Arville|title=A Sketchbook of Indiana History|year=1969, revised 1983|location=Rochester, Indiana|publisher=Christian Book Press

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