A Story of Jenny Wiley
It was a rainy day Oct 1, 1789 in Walker’s Gap Va., John Borders was out hunting for lost sheep, that had gone astray the night before. When he heard hooting in the woods, he thought it strange since owls rarely hoot in the daytime. When he heard the hooting coming from all different directions, he then realized that it was not the hooting of owls but signals, signals from the Shawnee Indians. He must warn the others right away.
The settlement was defenseless, the Harmans, Tice-Daniel-George-Henry Skaggs -James Skaggs and young Henry Skaggs-Sid Damron and Allen Draper were all away on a hunting trip to get meat in preparation of winter.
He must warn his sister-in-law Jenny Wiley first, (John Borders was married to Jenny’s sister Elizabeth) he knew that Jenny’s husband Thomas Wiley had gone to the trading post and she was nearest to him. When he arrived at the Wiley cabin, Jenny was sitting at her loom, weaving linsey-woolsey material to be used to make winter clothing.
John explained to Jenny how he had heard the hooting in the forest and of his fears that there were Indians near by and were planning an attack on the settlement before the break of day. He told Jenny to pack up the children and come to his cabin for safety. Jenny agreed, but said that she had to attend to some things at the cabin first. John Borders, left to warn the others.
Jenny began tending to chores in the cabin as well as her four children, Hezekiah named for his grandfather Hezekiah Sellards, Ruth, Naomi and Tommy age 15 months named for his father Thomas. Jenny was pregnant with a fifth child. She was 29 years old and had been married for 10 years. Batt Sellards Jenny’s fifteen-year-old brother was also staying at the Wiley cabin.
The men who had gone on the hunt were setting up camp which was to last several weeks. Daniel-George-Matthias (Tice) Harman, among some others went out to hunt while others stayed behind to tend to things at the camp. Old Henry Harman was one who stayed behind at the camp. After hearing hooting, a party of Indians came over the hill to attack the camp, Old Henry Harman fired the first shot and killed an Indian. Tice Harman heard the gun shot which was a signal for the hunters to return to camp, he knew it meant one thing, Indians. Upon hearing this he pulled out his hunters horn and blew it to alert the other hunters.
The hunters crept up to the camp and scattered about, they started shooting and killing all the Indians in site, they were out numbered three to one. The Old Cherokee Chief Cap John, saw Henry Harman and recognized him as the father of Tice Harman, he drew back his bow and shot four arrows into Henry’s chest. Chief Cap John’s son saw young Henry Harman and was about to aim an arrow at him when Tice Harman shot and killed him.
Grief stricken, Chief Cap John ordered the party of Indians to stop fighting. As the Indians were about to leave the camp Chief Cap John swore vengeance on the Harman family for killing his son. The Indians gave a war whoop then fled into the hills and out of site.
That evening as Jenny-Batt and children were about to leave the cabin, they heard the whooping and yelling of the Indians. Jenny and Batt tried to barricade the door shut and they piled everything they could find against the door, but soon the Indians pounded the door off it’s hinges and broke the door down. There were two Cherokees one known as Cherokee Chief Cap John, three were Wyandottes and three Shawnees, and their leader was a medicine man known as Black Wolf. Jenny and Batt tried to fight them off, but Batt and three of Jenny’s children were murdered. Jenny was holding the youngest 15-month-old little Tommy in her arms.
The two Chiefs were auguring, and though Jenny didn’t know what they were saying she heard the name Harman, she thought that maybe they would understand English, she yelled, “This is not the home of Tice Harman.” Jenny thought this might save her life, and they would let her go. The Indians stood silent for a few moments, but then the Indians set the cabin on fire and left the cabin, taking Jenny and Tommy captive. The Shawnee Chief claimed Jenny as his captive.
Walking single file, taking short cuts and wading creeks, that were swollen from all the rain. Jenny found it hard to keep up, her long woolsey skirt was heavy and soaked the water up like a sponge, the weight of the baby also slowed her down. Chief Cap John got angry on several occasions and said, “Kill papoose, papoose make White Squaw slow.” Jenny pleaded to Black Wolf to save her baby and promised to keep up. Black Wolf would defend Jenny, and kept Cap John from killing her baby.
They crossed the Great Flat Gap mountain, traveled the ridge between the Guyandot and the Tug River. Several days later little Tommy had become ill with cold and fever. One night while Jenny slept, the Indians killed him.
The journey continued toward West Virginia heading toward Ohio. Each morning two Scouts were sent out to see if they were being followed. This day the scouts reported that they were being followed by men on horseback. The Indians held a council meeting, Chief Cap John said “Kill White Squaw,White Squaw slows down the party!" But Black Wolf said “White Squaw keep up-White Squaw live.”
They traveled on until reaching Tug River below Marrow-Bone Creek, the river was swollen and swift. Jenny was afraid to swim it but the Indians forced her into the river, just as they had reached mid-stream, Tice Harman and a party of men who were tracking them saw them crossing the river. They were afraid to shoot for fear the Indians would drown Jenny. Since it was near dark and thinking the Indian party would stop to rest. Tice Harman and men decided to set up camp and wait til morning to search for them.
But the Indians did not stop, they continued on until they came to a rock house where they rested a short time, then continued on until they reached a place where the Lousia River could be seen. When they reached the Ohio River it was overflowing so they headed along the south banks to the Little Sandy. This too was overflowing so they continued on and crossed the waters of Dry Fork and Cherokee Creek.
Jenny became very ill, the Indians placed her in a small cave where some say Jenny gave birth to yet another child, which the Indians once again killed. Black Wolf ordered the Indians to keep a fire going in the cave, while he used all of his herbal medicines, hunted and fed her Squirrel meat and after several days nursed her back to health.
Several months went by and then the journey continued. They left the mouth of Cherokee Creek about the 1st of April and traveled into the Big Blaine Creek (in what is now Lawrence Co.) followed to the mouth of Hood Creek and Laural Creek then onto Little Mudlick Falls.
It was here that Jenny was forced to go on hunts, skin the animals, cut up the meat and bring it back to camp, cook, sew, gather wood from the forest, keep the fires going and tan hides. Jenny was taught how to do these things by Black Wolf, who never did any of the work, but instead supervised and told her how to do it.
One night Jenny was in a deep sleep when she had a dream of her escape. There was a young man in her dream who showed her the escape route, which crossed some water and on the other side of the water was a fort.
Then one morning while the Indians were out on a hunt, left alone Jenny made her escape. She followed a gorge to Little Mudlick Creek to Big Mudlick Creek, to the junction of Big Paint Creek. The creek was overflowing and swift. Jenny dove in but nearly drown. (This creek is now called “Jenny’s Creek”) She rode a tree top down stream until she could wade the water. She came to it’s forks, she didn’t know which fork to take. She decided to take the left fork, (Licks Fork of Jenny’s Creek) to the Middle fork where she turned left again. She then crossed another stream known as Bear Branch, to Little Paint Creek. She came to a big stream, she decided to wait until morning before trying to cross it.
The next morning it was foggy, Jenny had to wait for the fog to lift before she would cross. When the fog lifted Jenny could see a fort on the other side. It was the fort from her dream, it was Harman’s Station. There were women and children outside the fort. Jenny started calling out to them, but the women got frightened and went inside the fort. Finally an old man came out side. Jenny started calling out to him, “Save Me From The Indians!” The old man was Henry Skaggs, he called out, “Who are you?” Jenny replied “It’s Jenny…..Jenny Wiley!” Henry then recognized her and set about building a raft from a tree he cut down. Henry paddled over to her. Just as they were about to reach the other side the Indians appeared. Black Wolf called out “White Squaw come back.” Henry Skaggs took his rifle and aimed a shot in their direction, then the Indians fled.
A few days later Jenny was reunited with her husband Thomas Wiley. Thomas had rebuilt the cabin that had been burned by the Indians. They lived there in Virginia for a few years. Ten years later Thomas and Jenny Wiley bought land not far from where she had been held captive and spent 30 years there on the Big Sandy River just above the mouth of Tom’s Creek which is now in Johnson Co.
Thomas and Jenny Sellards Wiley had six more children. Jenny died in 1831 at the age of 71. Thomas Wiley died on Wiley Branch in 1810.
Children after Jenny and Thomas were reunited:
Jennie Wiley m. Richard Williamson 10-9-1810
William (Billy) Wiley
Sally Wiley m. 2nd Samuel Murray
Hezekiah Wiley
Adam Vari Wiley- lived on Tom’s Creek
? Wiley m. a Border
This short story is complied from 2 books
Jenny Wiley County by: C. Mitchell Hall
White Squaw by: Arville Wheeler
The Letters Below I have taken from the book
"The Sellards Through Two Centuries"
By
" E. H. Sellards "
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Calendar of Virginia State Papers, volume 5, page 42,
contains a letter dated October 20, 1789, by Walter Crockett,
County Lieutendant of Montgomery County, to Governor
Beverly Randolph. This letter is as follows:
Agreable to your Excellencie instructions to me sometime
last spring, I Ordered Out two spies on the frunteers of
Montgomery County which Continues on duty at this time,
but the frunteers of that County is Seventy or Eighty miles
in length, it was emposseble for two men to make the nes-
serry discoverys and to watch all the inroads that led to the
frunteers of the County. On the first of this instant A party
of Indians took one Willey's family, killed and scalped foure
of his Children and took his wife and her youngest Child
prisoners. About the same time they killed one Whitley,and
masscreed him in Abrbares manner. There went Twelve men
in persute of them Emeadiately, and was gon Twelve days
when I left home and was not returned, therefore I can Give
Know account what success they had. I emeadiately Ordered
a Capt. and Fifty men with proper officers to Rainge on the
frunteers for one month from the time of thire Randezvou-
sing at the place appinted for them to meet. This is a true
account of what happened in the County of Montgomery
by the incursings of the Indians last Summer.
Sir, I am with Regaurd,
Your Excelenecy most Obe't Humble servt.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On page 181 of the same volume is a letter written by J. D. Smith,
County Lieutenant, Russell County, under date of July 4, 1790, to
Governor Randolph. This letter contains the following statements:
Early last month a party of hostile Indians crossed through
this narrow County and fell on the House of a certain Capt.
Newland in Washington county near this County line; plun-
dered his house of all that was valuable that they could
carry away, burnt many of his goods that they could not
carry, and took his wife and three children prisoners; but
being quickly pursued and like to be overtaken, they kill'd
& scalped the women & children in this County & made their
escape.
Last spring John Frazier, Esq., had his son (a little Boy)
taken prisoner, & l am well inform'd that unfortunate man
has since had the rest of his family killed on the Kentucky
Road.
1 doubt not but your Excellency has been informed of
Mrs. Wyley's oath, who was taken prisoner last fall and
runaway from the Indians late in the winter. I am credibly
informed that her deposition was taken in Montgomery
County & reports that the Indians informed her they would
bring four hundred Indians against Clinch River & Blew-
stone this summer. ***I find it exceeding difficult to get
men to range, as the whole of this county from its narrow-
ness is considered as frontier-a man will choose rather to
submit to a fine than have his helpless family exposed to
danger while he performs a tour of duty. ***
Permit me, Sir, to instance one act committed last fall on
the line dividing this County & Montgomery, on the person
of a certain Mr. Whitley, who went a few miles in the woods
hunting his Horses, when the Indians fell on him, killed him,
and cut him into small pieces; ***
I have the Honour to be,
Your Excellencie's obed't H'ble Serv't.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sandy Liddle Meacham
who obtained a copy of the
original hand written letter addressed to
Beverley Randolph Esq. Governor of Virginia
from Col Smith dated July 4, 1790
About the capture and escape of Jenny Wiley
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Summers (1903, p. 426) refers to the oath made by Jennie Wiley. These reports
show clearly that Jennie Wiley was taken captive by the Indians on the first day of October, 1789, and escaped previous to July 4, 1790. The letters show also the extremely serious conditions with respect to Indian depredations that existed in Virginia at that time. That depredations by the Indians did not cease in this part of Virginia with those referred to in the two letters cited is shown by a letter from Colonel Walter Crockett to Governor Randolph, written September 3, 1790 (Cal. Virginia State Papers, vol. 5. p. 205), which contained the following paragraph:
Sir, I, a few days ago rec'd your letter dated in June last, in-
forming me the President of the United States has author-
ized the Executive of this State to afford us some assistance
in case the savages should commit Depredations in our
county. I am induced to believe, if the authority be no fur-
ther extended, that it will be of very little service to us, after
the commission of hostilities on the frontiers of this county,
250 miles from the Executive. Communications would then
be altogether unnecessary, the savages would be out of reach
before orders could be received. A week or two ago, 5 or 6
persons were killed by the Indians on Clinch, in Russell
county, which is very near us; it is uncertain when hostilities
may be committed on the inhabitants of this County, but
I think we are in as emenent danger as any people can pos-
sibly be exposed to.
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