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Chief Tarhe

Chief Tarhe was a chief of the Wyandottes in the Hocking Valley of Ohio back around 1785 - 1810 roughly. He had a village up on the south end of Lancaster, below where the High School stands now (as I understand). I've heard it referred to as Tarhe Town.

The frontier of America at that time had been in turmoil for many years. The European powers of France and Britain had extended their disputes for land, money and power to the primeval forests of the Appalachian Mountains and beyond. The natives, both white and red, were caught in a violent clash of cultures and conflicting political maneuverings.

After the American revolution, our fledging government sent soldiers to occupy forts in the Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana country as the French and British were still deeply entrenched in Canada and along the Mississippi River. The homeland of the Indians was a continuing battleground. After many years of sporadic violence across the region, November of 1791 saw a confederation of more than 3000 Indians unite to do battle with General St. Clair and his conscripted army of frontier settlers. Tarhe was named third in command of the Indian forces under Chief Little Turtle of the Miami and Blue Jacket of the Shawnee.

This Indian army won a complete victory in a battle fought on the headwaters of the Wabash River; just near the current Ohio and Indiana border. Of the 920 Americans who were engaged in the battle, only 24 survived uninjured. 632 Americans were killed, 66 Indians. The Indians appeared to have gained the advantage and violence continued all up and down the frontier as more and more white settlers poured over the mountains looking for free land. By 1795, however, the tide had turned with the victories of General Anthony Wayne. ( Wayne National Forest in Southeast Ohio is named after him .) After years of warfare Wayne badly defeated the Indians who had been weakened by new diseases and lack of adequate food. On August 7, 1995 the Treaty of Greenville was signed in which the tribes relinquished 25,000 acres of land to the United States of America for a one time payment of $1,666 for each of the 12 tribes involved; and an annual payment of $825 to each thereafter. Tarhe was in on the signing of the Greenville Treaty. He signed along with Little Turtle, Blue Jacket and others. Tarhe was known as The Crane. His signature on the Treaty looks something like a crane. Chief Tarhe was given permanent custodianship of the Indian's copy of the document .

Tecumseh didn't sign. In fact, the in years immediately following the treaty, Tecumseh and his brother, Tenskwathawa, known as The Prophet; tried again to form a coalition of tribes to defeat what was now a white invasion and takeover of the entire IndianTerritory. They ranged from the upper Great Lakes into the Tennessee Valley talking to the tribes and convincing them that the only way to stop the invasion was to unite and rise up at the same time to kill all the invaders.

Tarhe was an outspoken opponent to Tecumseh and his brother. Not only did he not want to give up his tribal indentity as a Wyandotte to become an "Indian" his tribe had also had been badly beaten by General Wayne and his people were not anxious to anger the United States government. When Tecumseh pressured Tarhe to move his people to the western part of Ohio and join the coalition, he refused; saying he would "wait a few years" to see what would happen.

In a strange turn of events, by the War of 1812, Tecumseh and the Prophet had made an alliance with the British and were engaged in all-out warfare along the frontier once again against the United States army. Tarhe and a number of other tribes were neutral in this conflict until they were pressured into joining the US or "moving far into the interior". (of the continent.) At this point Tarhe spoke for the neutral tribes and agreed to join the Americans.

Eventually, he and his clan were forced to relocate (probably due to Zane's Trace coming through bringing a bunch of yahoos and the usual economic development.) They relocated to the region around Upper Sandusky. The upper reaches of the Sandusky River in what is now Wyandotte County. The Sandusky River flows northward from the Marion/Kildeer Plains area, past Upper Sandusky, on up toward Fremont and into Lake Erie at Sandusky, Ohio on the Sandusky Bay.

Of course, like any good chief, eventually he died. There is a stone marker along the road above the Sandusky River valley up in that glaciated portion of Ohio. It's a stone marker, surrounded by some fairly mature spreading junipers on the edge of a great agricultural field. Great in that it is large and scenic, but in reality, too large and must occasionally be subjected to severe bouts of wind erosion. Looked awful beautiful when I was looking at it in the late afternoon sun. The monument was states thus:

Tarhe

Distinguished Wyandotte Chief

AND Loyal American

Died 1818 at Cranetown

The monument was set in 1915 by some Tarhe branch of some drinking society or something. Nice that they mention his loyalty. Loyal, of course, because he went along with their proposal, finally.

Experts from the writings and travels of Tom O'Grady with additional historical details by Charlotte

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