The siege of Fort Henry was an attack on American militiamen during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

near the Virginia outpost known as Fort Henry by a mixed band of Indians in September 1777. The fort, named for Virginia Governor

Patrick Henry Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736June 6, 1799) was an American attorney, planter, politician and orator known for declaring to the Second Virginia Convention (1775): " Give me liberty, or give me death!" A Founding Father, he served as the first a ...

, was at first defended by only a small number of militia, as rumors of the Indian attack had moved faster than the Indians, and a number of militia companies had left the fort. The American settlers were successful in repulsing the Indian attack.

Background

In the summer of 1777, rumors began circulating throughout frontier areas of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

and

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

that Indians living in the Ohio Country were planning attacks on frontier settlements on and around the Ohio River. Fort Henry, which had been constructed in 1774 to protect the settlers in the area around what is now

Wheeling, West Virginia Wheeling is a city in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Located almost entirely in Ohio County, of which it is the county seat, it lies along the Ohio River in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and also contains a tiny portion extending ...

, was one of the rumored targets. In early August, General

Edward Hand Edward Hand (31 December 1744 – 3 September 1802) was an Irish soldier, physician, and politician who served in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, rising to the rank of general, and later was a member of several Pennsyl ...

, the commander at nearby Fort Pitt warned Lieutenant David Shepherd and all of the local militia captains of the threat, ordering them to gather at Fort Henry. For a time thereafter, militia companies stayed at Fort Henry, improving its defenses and patrolling for Indians. However, the absence of any obvious threat led many of those companies to leave and return to their homes. By the end of August, only two companies, those of Captains Joseph Ogle and

Samuel Mason Samuel Ross Mason, also spelled Meason (November 8, 1739 – 1803), was a Virginia militia captain, on the American western frontier, during the American Revolutionary War. After the war, he became the leader of the Mason Gang, a criminal gang o ...

, remained.Puryear (2009) p. 232

Prelude

The battle is reported in some sources to have taken place on September 1, and in others on September 21. On the night of the battle, a mixed band of about 200 Indians (predominantly

Wyandot Wyandot may refer to: Native American ethnography * Wyandot people, also known as the Huron * Wyandot language Wyandot (sometimes spelled Wandat) is the Iroquoian language traditionally spoken by the people known variously as Wyandot or Wya ...

and Mingo, although there were also some

Shawnee The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...

and

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

) under the leadership of the Wendat chief Pomoacan, approached the fort in great stealth and secrecy. Local men later joined by recruits from Fort Shepherd (in Elm Grove) and Fort Holliday defended the fort.History of the Pan-Handle, being historical collections of the counties of Ohio, Brooke, Marshall and Hancock, West Virginia. West Virginia, 1879, by J. H. Newton, G. G. Nichols, and A. G. Sprankle. Pages 134-135.

Battle and aftermath

When four men left the fort early that morning, the Indians attacked them, killing one. The other three escaped, including two who returned to the fort to raise the alarm. Anticipating a sortie from the fort, the Indians set up an ambush. The party that Captain Mason led out marched out to search for the Indians, and were very nearly surprised. One of Mason's men, Thomas Glen''(sic)'', spotted an Indian and shot him, prompting the Indians to open fire. Seeing that they were very nearly surrounded, Mason and his men retreated, with Mason suffering severe enough injuries that he was forced to hide by the path rather than go to the fort. When Ogle led some men out to assist, his party was also attacked, and he was forced to take cover. Both he and Mason were eventually able to reenter the fort.Puryear (2009), p. 234 The Native American force subsequently burned the surrounding cabins and destroyed livestock. Major Samuel McColloch led a small force of men from Fort Vanmetre along Short Creek to assist the besieged Fort Henry. McColloch was separated from his men and was chased by attacking Indians. Upon his horse, McColloch charged up Wheeling Hill and made what is known as

McColloch's Leap McColloch's Leap was a feat performed during a September 1777 attack by Native Americans on Fort Henry, site of present-day Wheeling, West Virginia, during the American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – S ...

, down its eastern side to safety. The Indians rushed to the edge, expecting to see the Major lying dead in a crumpled heap at the bottom of the hill. To their great surprise they instead saw McColloch, still mounted on his white horse, galloping away from them. The Indians remained overnight outside the fort, dancing and demonstrating, but never attacked it directly. They left the next morning, having suffered nine wounded and one killed, while the Americans lost fifteen, with five wounded.Puryear (2009), p. 234 Following the Revolutionary War, Captain Samuel Mason would later turn to a life of crime as a

river pirate A river pirate is a pirate who operates along a river. The term has been used to describe many different kinds of pirate groups who carry out riverine attacks in Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, and South America. They are usually prosecuted ...

in 1797 at Cave-In-Rock on the Ohio River and a highwayman on the Natchez Trace.

References

{{reflist Fort Henry 1777 Conflicts in 1777 1777 in the United States Fort Henry 1777 Wheeling, West Virginia Fort Henry (1777) Fort Henry (1777)