| Show uuie deerfield massacre in 1704 was most historic event ever to take place on calendar s rare date leap year day bivs ajr v aim jirm by EUTO ELMO SCOTT WATSON released by western newspaper paper union the most historic P PROBABLY event which has over ever taken place on that rare date in our calendar february 29 or leap year day was a famous indian massacre which had many a romantic aftermath the attack on and burning of the town of bf deerfield Deer neld mass I 1 on february 29 1704 at tile the outbreak of queen annes war between england and france in 1702 deerfield deer hold on tile tho connecticut river was the farthest northwest settlement in new england although there were many alarms of impending attacks by the french and indians its inhabitants felt reasonably secure behind tho the log walls of the palisade surrounding the town even t though hough it was badly in need of repair and the governor of massachusetts had disregarded their appeals for money with which to do the necessary work on it regularly at night a sentry was posted on tho the walls to watch for an approaching enemy who never come came until tho the winter of 1704 early E arly in february a force of frenchmen commanded by hertol do de rouville and accompanied by indian allies set out from canada for deerfield tho the weather was bitter cold and snow sn ow covered tile the ground to a depth of several feet by the evening of february 28 do de nouvilles Rou villes force had reached the elevated pine woods now known as pettys plain two miles north of deerfield de r where they hid themselves until midnight finding that the crust on the show was strong enough to bear their weight the invaders laid aside their snowshoes and packs and pushed on crossing the deerfield meadows a little before daylight fearing that their approach would be heard they adopted the stratagem of rushing forward swiftly for a moment then beung then rushing forward again so that the noise they did make would wod sound like the soughing of the wind but there was no necessity for this caution for everyone in deerfield was sound asleep including the sentinel on guard that nighal over the stockade although the main gate of the stockade was securely barred the snow had drifted so deeply at the northwest corner of the palisade that the enemy had no difficulty in swarming over the top of the log walls there they quickly scattered through the town and the people of deerfield were awakened from their slumbers by the sound of the war whoop and the crashing of tomahawks against their doors the most imposing house in deerfield was that of ensign john sheldon afterward famed as the old indian house it was built in 1698 its wooden walls lined with brick the upper story projected over the lower and was pierced with loopholes the door was made of two of planks held together firmly by lines of rivets crossing each other diagonally about three inches apart this powerful door tor for some time resisted the attempts of the savages to batter it down finally they succeeded in cutting a hole through the middle of it large enough to permit them to shove the muzzle of a gun through thus they fired through the door blindly and as rapidly as the weapons could bo be discharged and withdrawn at the first assault mrs shel don who had been sleeping in an adjoining room became terrified and started to seek refuge in another room she crossed the room just as a musket was discharged and the bullet which plowed through her body killing her buried itself deep in the wall beyond if you visit memorial hall in deerfield today you can grifs i I 1 I 1 zo Q A R ef sc Y s 3 french and Ind indians laus led by hertel de rouville en route to the attack on deerfield picture reproduced by courtesy of we the national life insurance company montpelier vt seo see the hatchet hewn door of the old indian house which was waa preserved when the house was torn down in 1848 and the bullet which ended poor mrs sheldons sheldona Shel dons life at the time of ti the attack S sheldon helie was absent but three of his children and a daughter in law besides mrs sheldon were there and were taken prisoners aft afterwards or sheldon though middle aged made three long weary trips to canada by order of governor dudley to redeem ills his children and other captives and it is said that through his c efforts ff orts no less than prisoners fr from om deerfield and other new england towns were released but of all the stories connected with this historic tragedy none is more romantic than that of the settlements pastor the rev john williams born at roxbury mass on december 10 1664 he was one of 13 children born to mr and mrs samuel williamso williams and was baptized by the rev john elliot the famous apostle to the indians after graduating from harvard where he had studied for the ministry in the class of 1683 there were only three members of that class and all wore were from roxbury young williams began to look about for a pulpit since he was only 18 he could not expect to obtain an important parish but young ministers were needed on the frontier and three years later he accepted a call to the settlement of deerfield in what was then the wilderness of western massachusetts en route to his pastorate in the wildai he stopped at the home of rev solomon stoddard at northampton where he met dards stepdaughter eunice mather the following summer they were married and williams took his bride to the hous 40 ft long 20 ft wide with a rp W 3 N S A k C williams house in deerfield erected by we citizens of deerfield for the rev john williams the redeemed captive of the deerfield massacre leanto lean to which his parishioners lind provided for their pastor there their five children were born and there they liv lived d happily until that tragic morning of february 29 1704 when the french and indians attacked the parsons home he sprang from his bed seized a pistol and leveled it at an indian who had dashed into his room he pulled the trigger but it missed fire and he was immediately made prisoner he was compelled to dress with one arm tied to his side as were his wife and children but one of the latter and a negro girl servant were immediately tomahawked toma hawked A bleak journey after killing a total of 49 persons in deerfield the tha french brench and indians set fire to the houses inside the stockade and herded their captives in number to gether for the bleak journey across the snowy landscape toward canada parson williams who spoke several indian languages was able to talk to his captors and persuaded them to allow him to help his wife who had been III and whose strength was gradually failing on the second day of their journey she told him that she could not hold out much longer later in the day she fell exhausted and the story of her fate Is told in the inscription on a tablet affixed to a granite stone which marks the spot where she sank to tile the ground it reads the cruel and bloodthirsty savage who took her slow slew her with his hatchet at one stroke rev john williams of deer field the redeemed captive so wrote of his wife mrs eunice williams who was killed at this place march 1704 other settlers in the connecticut valley following hard upon the retreating invaders found her body and bore it back to the burned and plundered sett settlement leme nt visit the ancient deerfield burial ground today and you will find there a red brown headstone its top weathered and broken from its top a deaths head grins at you and below is engraved these lines here lyeth the body of mrs eunice williams the Vertu vertious ous desirable consort of the mr john williams daughter to ye mr eleazer mrs esther mather ot of northampton she was born aug 2 1664 and fell by the rage of ye barbarous enemy march 1 1703 4 meanwhile parson williams and ills his four surviving children were on their way to canada en during that terrible journey which lie he so graphically describes in the book the redeemed captive returning to zion published sev oral era years later among these four was a little seven year old girl named eunice for her mother who was carried most of the way on the brawny shoulders of an indian warrior the white indian after two years captivity parson williams and his children were ransomed rans omed and returned to deerfield all except eunice the indians had adopted her and despite her fathers utmost efforts he was unable to secure her release she grew up at caughnawaga on the st lawrence river and married a mohawk warrior who had been converted to the catholic fath and by whom she had several children however this white indian did not entirely separate herself from her father but at his earnest request made several visits to ills his home in deerfield with her son and two daughters the entreaties of her relatives to give up her life iffe with the indians and return to the protestant faith were useless for she always went back to her husband at caughnawaga and she died a catholic indian according to tradition during her visits to her fathers home in deerfield she would retire to the guest room at night but morning would always find her crouched before the fireplace in the morning with her blanket wrapped around her in the fashion of indian women one of her daughters sarah married an indian and one of their sons was te ho ro ra awa gwa ne gen or thomas williams a noted warrior who fought on the side of tho the british during the american revolution one of thomas williams numerous progeny was eleazer williams destined for future fame as the man who claimed to be the lost dauphin of france the fate of the lost dauphin la is ono one of the most tantalizing mysteries in history soon after the outbreak of the french revolution the royal family of franco france were imprisoned by tho the paris commune in the temple the pal ace of tho the grand friar of tile the knights Temp lars rs on january 21 1793 the king was be headed later tho the queen also went under the knife leaving only the dauphin louis charles and ills his sister princess marle marie therese Th orese in tho the prison the little prince is supposed to havo have died there on june 8 1705 but in the years that followed ills his death no less than 25 persons who claimed that they were thelast the lost dauphin appeared before the french courts from time to time to press their claims and to disturb the pence peace of mind of the now new republican government of france among them was one in far off america tho the rev elenzer eleazer williams an episcopal missionary among g tile the indians in new york and wisconsin ile he was one of 13 children born to a mohawk indian chief te ho ra awn gwa ne nc gen or thomas williams grandson of eunice williams and mary ann rice williams who was of mingled indian and now new england ancestry being descended from a captive token during an indian foray on Marl marlboro boroo mass early in the eighteenth century elenzer eleazer williams grew up among the mohawks at caughnawaga quebec but was educated in now new england during the war of 1812 he served brilliantly as the head of a corps of scouts and spies for the american army later he became a missionary among his fathers thero fa people the mohawks Mo hawks first as a congregationalist tion alist and later as an episcopalian when they and other iroquois tribesmen were being hard pressed by the advancing tide of white settlement in new york he was instrumental in obtaining lands for them in the frontier country of wisconsin at some time during williams early career lie he heard the story of the lost dauphin and having been told that he resembled the bourbon prince lie he decided to advance his claims to being the lost dauphin due to a scrofulous taint in his family the bruises and injuries which he received while he was IL U v a child engaged in the rough sports of his indian playmates left permanent scars on him and it is claimed in later life he increased the size of these by artificial means williams however asserted that these scars were tile the result of the shackles and chains with which he was burdened when he was the child prisoner in the temple in paris in 1841 the prince de joinville son of king louis philippe then reigning in france followed his fathers thero fa example and paid a visit to america during the trip on the great lakes the prince found awaiting him at mackinac Mackl nac a cler ical looking gentleman who asked permission to accompany the P princes party to green bay wis this cleric was eleazer williams soon after the departure of the prince from green bay williams gave out the astonishing statement that do de joinville had acknowledged that he williams was the lost dauphin and therefore the rightful louis and that the prince had sought him out in the western wilderness to ask him to renounce his claim to the throne of france A few years later williams told his story to rev J H hanson who wrote an article have we a bourbon among Us which appeared in the february 1853 number of ms monthly when a copy of this magazine was received in england where the prince do de joinville was then living as an exile from france he immediately repudiated the alleged interview with williams at green bay and denounced him as 03 in n impostor however a book by hanson the lost prince which gave a detailed account of williams life and which proved to the satisfaction of the tha author at least that the mohawk halt half breed missionary was weed indeed the lost dauphin gained for WU wil llama liams many adherents although eleazer maintained during the rest of his days his right to the throne of france nothing tangible ever came of his pretensions and when he died on august 28 1858 on tho the st regis reservation near Ho Ilo gansburg N Y lie he was burled buried with masonic rites cis as brother eleazer williams |
