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    A short history of our ancestors (Weedon, Wilson, and Riggs) as dictated by my great, great, great grandmother, Nancy Weedon to Harriet Kellar Robison, a descendant of the above named families.
    Mr. and Mrs. Weedon were sent by the colonization company, in the time of James II (about 1680.) to help form one of the colonies of this country.
    They were the grand parents of the narrator. Mrs. Weedon died of ship fever during the voyage; and in a short time her husband married a woman who came over with them.
    The three children of the first wife were born Dublin Ireland and were of Welsh descent. Nancy and our ancesters, James an Amy.
    Mr. Weedon died, and his wife then married a half breed.
    The people of Maine (where they lived near the bleak coast.) had to travel in large companies to protect themselves from the Indians.
    When going to the coast for salt the step parents of the Weedon children deserted them and left them to starve.
     A company of settlers were passing one day on such a trip and one of them Samuel Mason seeing the children crying asked the cause and was answered, "We are starving." He wished to take them home with him, but the youngest Amy was afraid and would not go. James jumped out of the wagon and went back to as she was crying and Nancy was taken home with Mr. Mason. James was never heard of again, and probably perished at the hands of the Indians.
    Amy, eight years old, was adopted by a chief on account of her beauty and when one of the first treaties was made, she was restored to her friends, a woman grown. In her travels with the Indians she had gone as far as Canada. For years after her restoration she would scarcely sleep in a house.
    Samuel Wilson who married Nancy Weedon was born in the old red stone fort Va.
    Samuel Wilson fought all through the Revolutionary War. He fought during the Indian War under Washington, and his captains name was Morgan.
    During the Revolution he was one of the sufferers at Valley Forge, and lost a toe by freezing. He was married to Nancy Weedon in a fort situated in or near Wheeling West Va.
    They lived there eight years, seven in the fort. Five of the children were born in the fort.
    Samuel Wilson named Marietta Ohio in honor of Marietta Maria, daughter of James II. He built the first house and planted an orchard in Marietta. Sarah was the second child, and our ancestor. Her mother with two women when the fort was besieged by Indians calmly went down to the spring for water unmolested. They admired bravery very much and the women were allowed to return to the fort unharmed with the water. The supply inside having been exhausted. Their bullets were all gone too so they then melted their pewter plates, to make bullets of. Just as they reached the gate of the fort the Indians rushed forward to gain entrance but not quick enough.
    Then then shot burning arrows into the fort and the situation was getting desperate when the Regulars arrived, and the savages were dispersed. They had stolen in three hundred strong while the Regulars were out on the frontier and only six or eight men to defend the place.
    Harriet Kellar Robison showed the writer a quilt made by Nancy Weedon Wilson of a blue calico dress worn in the fort made in 1788 and padded and quilted with flax. Sarah Wilson was born Oct. 20, 1785 in fort Weedon, the family moved to Tyler Co. Va. and again lived years in Doolan Fort. They lived in a little cabin and tilled the soil about two miles from the fort. At night or in times of danger they woul reprair to the fort. One day a chief with six Indiana came to the little cabin and upon entering were offered salt to ear. Their custom was to eat salt if friendly. The chief only took a small pinch, which was noticed at once, and he was urged to take more. He declined, and finally said "No eat salt with white man, anymore, go away tonight much Indian come" and went out immediately. This act was done on account of some kindness shown the chief by the Wilson family. On this memorable evening the family started for the fort and fires were seen in several directions. The father was carrying Sarah, and in crossing a branch a frog croaked. The child was so terrified that she cluched her father's shoulder with both hands, and bit his shoulder so hard that he carried the mark to his dying day. He could see between himself and the setting sun, numbers of savages crossing the clearing, counting fourteen in all. Seeing he could not reach the fort, he took his wife and five children into the deep forest and hid them between two old logs. Then commenced the lonely watch amid the darkness and wild beasts and worse that all surrounded by the savages. In the dawning of the morning they gained the fort. Their house was burned to the ground, the flames and Redmen had done their work.
    About this time Doolan was killed.
    The Wilson family moved to Long Reacher in the same county (Tyler). Here Sarah was married in her sixteenth year to John Riggs, Tuesday Aug. 18, 1801. He was born Dec. 3rd 1781 in Penn. His father James Riggs and two brothers were sent out to America to the colonies. James Riggs fought during the Revolution under Washington and was all through the Valley Forge hardships.
    The first three children of Jno and Sarah Riggs were born in Tyler Co. Va. they were Amon, Eliza and Henry. There were four born near Grand View, Ohio and the last one Franklin, in Jennings Co. Ind. whither they emigrated April 1, 1820. While yet in Ohio Jno. Riggs was always placed on the frontier as a spy or scout, but was never in an engagement with the Indians.
    At one time President Jackson sent him to spy at a certain council of the Indians, he having learned the language of Simon Girty the Renegade.
    Incidently will say this Simon Girty was a white man who turned renegade and at one time killed a white man and tanned his skin out of which he made a shot pouch. Jno Riggs disguised as an Indian was sitting behind in a wigwam smoking near enough the circle of Indians holding their powwow to hear their plans. At the conclusion of the council he was walking away unmolested as an Indian when he came across a runner of which there were several around the came. He uttered an exclamation of surprise and immediately recognized as a white man. A warning whoop was given, and the chase for life began, after a while he swung himself across a small creek by a grapevine and his pursuers thereby lost his trail. He hid in a hollow tree for several days, and finally ventured to stick his hat in sight. A bullet was the answer. The Indian who had seen the hat ran round and round the tree trying to dislodge him but was finally shot by the brave spy. He then started to run again and a tomahawk thrown by one of the pursuers, took off part of one ear. Harriet K. Robison one of the descendants has an ear marked in the same way.
    The spy reached Pres. Jackson in safety and the information he was able to give averted much bloodshed and they knew better how to circumvent the savages.
    In 1811 he went to New Orleans and in the following spring footed it all the way home, all through the Indian Nation.
    He was surrounded on all side by the bloody savages but escaped with his life as by a miracel, by strategy and the help of God. He was on the Mississippi Riven at the time of the great eathquake. All seemed chaos and confusion. His father James moved and settled in Ohio from Penn. about the close of the Revolution at Washingtons farewell address he placed his hand on the boy John's head and said "Be a brave soldier like your father has been." He was only eight years old and was so scared that he never forgot it.
    He used to think the words helped him in his campaigns. April 1, 1820 he and his family came to Jennings Co. Ind. there they lived three months in a camp of bark. They endured many hardships still surrounded by ssavages, many wild beasts and all kinds of poisonous reptiles. Here they killed thrity three (33) copperheads and seven (7) rattlesnakes in one day. They settled on a farm about three miles from Brewersville ib Bear creek where the family always resided.
    Jno. Riggs after emugrating to Ind. retuned to Ohio and when he came back brought eight hen eggs. His wife carried them in her blouse until they hatched. This is how the first chickens came to be in Ind. Jno. Riggs died Sep. 15, 1851. Sarah his wife died Sept 1875, Henry Riggs was married to Cynthia Prather in 1828. To them were born four children Lettice Ann, William Prather, Sarah Jame and John Basil.
    The Mother died Feb. 1834.     The father married again July 30, 1835 to Amelia May. To this union were born eight childrn, Catherine Delilah, James Henry, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Ezra F. Peabody, Nancy Jane, Calvin Tobias and Mary. Henry Riggs died Mar. 17, 1851. Amelia his wife Nov. 25, 1861. He always lived on the old homestead of his father.
    Cath. D. was married Nov. 10, 1859 to Guy T. Jackson Died Jan 15, 1893.
    Nancy Jane was married Mar. 31, 1868 to Dr. James P Burroughs - to them were born four children. Ella Theodoria - Sep. 18, 1869. George Clarence - Nov. 22, 1873 died Mar. 8, 1874, Amelia May - Feb. 6, 1875, Susie Grace - Aug. 13, 1889 died July 29, 1890, Ella was married Sep. 4, 1892 to Ira F. Colson.

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