TREATY GROUNDS By Ron Woodward In 1826 a site opposite the mouth of Treaty Creek was picked to hold treaty negotia- tions with the Miami and Potawatomi Indians. This site is commonly called Paradise Spring by the residents of the county. The Treaty was however called the Treaty of the Mississinewa. One local writer has said that after the treaty was signed, the cabins built by the soldiers who accompanied the treaty commissioners were left abandoned, with nothing else having happened there, and that a decade later Wabash rose from the site. This is far from the fact. Treaty Grounds was the first white community in Wabash County, and continued to play an active role in the area becoming the site of many firsts in Wabash County. Two roads had been cut to the treaty site one from Huntington and one from Anderson. The contract to clear the Anderson road had been given in the fall of 1826 to Peter Ogan and Helvie&Rogers. The roads were to be used to transport goods to the treaty negotiations. Later early settlers found their way into Treaty Grounds on these roads. Some whom came were familiar with the area having been present at the treaty negotiations. The cabins were taken over by a variety of squatters to the area. Locally the Treaty Grounds was called the "New Comers Headquarters". Families stayed in the cabins until land was found to their liking. One such squatter was Samuel McClure, the first acknowledged settler of Wabash County. Originally, a trader at the treaty he returned with his wife and ten children on January 15, 1827. The family stayed until June 10th when he built a cabin three miles west of Treaty Grounds where Samuel and son Samuel Jr. began a fur trading post for the Ewing Company. Another son Robert built a log cabin at Lagro on Chief LaGros' property and moved there for a short time before moving on to Grant County. Around the same time Joel and Champion Helvey squatted until spring when they settled at the mouth of the Salamonie River. There they operated a ferry across the Wabash and a public house. In May Benjamin Hurst accomp- anied by Robert Wilson, the first blacksmith in the county, came to just "look around." Wilson shortly found employment as the government blacksmith at the Indian Mills near the Keller's Settlement and brought out his family to settle there. Another early settler who left a commercial impact was Robert Hars (also known as Heares, Harse, Hoise and Horse). He was a "particular friend" of John Tipton's and he was encouraged to open the first public house in Wabash County at Treaty Grounds. He used some of the cabins for his inn. He and his wife Mary ran the public house until bought out by David Burr and then moved to Logansport. Tipton thought so highly of Hars that he recommended him to run a post office at Treaty Grounds he therefore became the first post master of the community and in the county. The post office was established January 9, 1828. Present at the annuity payment made to the Miami at Treaty Grounds was James Foster who mentioned that a "Mr. Hars keeps a public house" and "paid some attention to horticulture", his garden being sufficient to feed 70 people who attended the annuity payment. Mr. Hars evidently was respected by the Miami as they left his garden alone during the payment, even the "melons" he had. One of the most important settlers to Treaty Grounds was David Burr. He took over several of the cabins used by Robert Hars. Burr continued to run the public house and lived in another cabin nearby. Eventually he became post master and ran the post office out of his home. William H. Coombs, the first attorney in Wabash County stayed at Burr's Hotel, which he claimed as one of the best in all of northern Indiana. Besides attracting settlers John Tipton, Indian Agent, realized the importance of the area to deal with the Miami. On June 4th Tipton advertised for 10 wagons to be delivered to the Treaty Grounds "by December 25th or sooner." Peter W. Banta, of Jefferson County, agreed to make the wagons and deliver them to Treaty Grounds. On June 28th the Kintner brothers delivered saddles, bridles and saddlebags for distribution as part of the treaty agreements with the Indians, to the Treaty Grounds, many of which they made at their camp at the mouth Kintner Creek on the Wabash. Afterwards they moved to Logansport. From June 28 to July 5th John Peter Paul, member of a canal surveying party, stayed at Treaty Grounds while surveying up and down the river. He kept a diary of his trip from Fort Wayne to the Tippecanoe. That diary was later printed by R.E. Banta in 1933 entitled "We Run the Canal Line." On June 28 he described having a "cold bath in all its perfection" at the Treaty Grounds. He only had two complaints about the site. First all the rain they had and secondly, "moschetos extremely troublesome." On July 4th they "remained in camp. Mirth and music close the evening of the Fourth." This is the first known 4th of July celebration held in Wabash County. On the 5th they moved on to the Mississinewa River area. During most of the month of July John Tipton was at Treaty Grounds making arrange- ments for an annuity payment. The population of Treaty Grounds swelled to over 70 people. On July 28th payment of goods to Miami Indians arrived at the Treaty Grounds and between August 2nd and the 7th they were distributed to the 24 Miami chiefs present. In all, the annuity payment amounted to $26,259.47 in money and goods, 1,000 pounds of tobacco, 2,000 lbs of Iron, 200 head cattle and 200 head hogs. Tipton also issued orders from Treaty Grounds that a military guard was to be placed at Samuel McClure's house so that he could not sell alcohol to the Indians during the payment. Before he left Treaty Grounds he appointed Hugh Hanna to oversee the building of the Pottawatomi Mills and houses for the chiefs. Hanna was a cabinet maker and carpenter by trade. In the official report Tipton stated that the Treaty Grounds "has become two public a place" and that annuity payments would have to be made elsewhere. In 1828 Treaty Grounds continued to attract those searching for a new start. Two such men were David Patrick and Pleasant Gruble cabinetmakers. Both walked from Fort Wayne to assess the lay of the land and look for a place to set up shop. They found Treaty Grounds but there was no demand for their occupation as most settlers made their own furniture. The preceded on eventually ending up in Logansport where they became the first mechanics in Cass County. December 18, 1828 Cass County was formed and what was to become Wabash County was attached to it. At about the same time David Burr was appointed one of the first canal commissioners and on March 21, 1829 he became postmaster of the fledgling community. On May 1, 1829 Cass County Commissioners formed Wabash township with Treaty Grounds as the township center. The first elections in the area were to be held there and Samuel McClure was appointed election inspector. The commissioners of Cass County also appointed James Oldham Wabash township supervisor, –Helvie and Samuel McClure fence viewers, Jonathan Keller and Robert Wilson overseers of the poor and supervisor of the schools a –Rodgers who was later replaced by Jonathan Keller and then David Burr. That fall a mail route from Logansport to Fort Wayne was established. This was the third road into Wabash. The Cass County commissioners also established rates for taverns and groceries and ferries in the area. The assessed fee for a license for taverns and groceries and ferries was $7.50. Taverns run at Lagro and Treaty Grounds could charge the following rates: Keeping a horse one night 50 cents Hay and grain 50 cents Victualling per meal 25 cents Lodging 12 ½ cents Brandy ½ pint 50 cents Wines ½ pint 50 cents Rum ½ pint 50 cents Holland gin 50 cents Whisky ½ pint 25 cents The only ferry was at the mouth of the Salamonie River and its charges were Each man 6/14 cents Man & horse 25 cents Horse, mule or ass 18 ¾ cents Wagon 50 cents Horned cattle over 4 yrs 6 cents each Swine 3 cents each Yoke of oxen 25 cents Sheep 3 cents each 1830 was a busy year at Treaty Grounds. A mail route from Marion to Treaty Grounds was established and Jonathan Keller was given the contract to carry the weekly mail between the two. Also in 1830 the United States Census was taken with Treaty Grounds included in the Cass County census taken by Logansport citizen N. D. Grover. It is not known how Grover took the census but it is safe to say that he recorded the names of people around Treaty Grounds at the same time. If we look at the entry for David Burr the following heads of families were recorded around him and may have been in Treaty Grounds at the time. They were David Burr, John B. Introis, John Myers, John R, Hinton, Joseph Moreland and Jacob Hoover. Taking the number in each household would tally to 43 inhabitants of Treaty Grounds. After the census was completed on November 27, 1830 it was "open to inspection" at the "two most public places within the county – Logansport and Treaty Grounds as verified by Chauncey Carter at Logansport and David Burr at Treaty Grounds. The small community had its problems. The wilderness surrounding Treaty Grounds was full of wolves that impeded travel and settlement. The relatively new government placed a bounty on wolf scalps of $1.00 in the hopes of ridding themselves of the pest. It would take several more years though. To the north and west of Treaty Grounds on Pony Creek a small gang of outlaws had taken up residence. From there they would steal horses, prey on settlers and pass counterfeit notes. September 6, 1831 Grant County commissioners formed Wabash township with Treaty Grounds as the township seat. In 1833 the writer of the Indiana Gazetteer wrote the following description of Wabash: "WABASH, an interior county, bounded on the north by unorganized territory, on the west by Miami county, on the south by Miami and Grant, and on the east by Huntington. it extends about twenty-four miles from north to south, and sixteen miles from eat to west, containing about 380 square miles, or 143,200 acres. It was organized in 1832, subsequent to the time of taking the enumeration. It is supposed the white population does not at this time exceed five hundred. The county presents a variety of soil and surface. The valleys, along the rivers are from half a mile to three miles in width. In those valleys the forest timber consists chiefly of walnut, sugartree, cherry, popular, ash, beech, elm, and oak, with an undergrowth of spice, plum, and hawthorn. These valleys are bounded by hills and broken lands for a distance of a mile, or a mile and a half. The table lands are either dry and rolling, or flat and wet; the soil rich and loamy, and the valleys particularly are very fertile. The flat table lands abound with willow swamps. Limestone rock is abundant in this part of the state; and it is also well supplied with never-failing springs and rivulets of pure water. The only articles of trade in this county are furs and peltry." The Indiana Gazetteer of 1833 did not include any information on any community in Wabash County. It described Marion as having 1 store and a tavern with 40 inhabitants. Miamisport (Peru) had 1 store, a tavern, several mechanics and 50 inhabitants. Treaty Grounds had a fluctuating population but had a post office, public house with probably just as many people as Marion. On May 4, 1834 contracts for construction of the Wabash and Erie Canal west of Lagro were let at the Treaty Grounds by canal commissioner David Burr. Burr's home also became the site where the state commissioners picked the county seat for Wabash County and the site of the election of justice of the peace for Noble and Lagro townships. His house was also used to transact the first business of the new Wabash County comm.- issioners. With the founding of Wabashtown to the west of Treaty Grounds the site began to loose in importance yet the site continued to attract temporary residents while slowly fading away. Official county records continued to be mailed by the State to Treaty Grounds up to 1839. Early postmasters for Treaty Grounds, Miami Nation was Robert Hars (Horse) from 1- 9-1828 to 3-29-1828. The Treaty Grounds, Wabash, post office was run by David Burr 3-31-1829, James Sweetser 12-2-1835, Abram Kensinger 4-1-1837, William Steele 6-29- 1837 and Hugh Hanna 1-21-1839. The post office was changed to Wabashtown 2-18- 1839. In 1835 David Burr sold his Wabash interests to Hugh Hanna for "ten thousand Dollars for Town property & 400 acres of land." One of the reasons he sold was because there was talk of intersecting the Wabash and Erie Canal with another canal at Wabash and he wished "to escape the odium of being charged with self motives." He moved to Fort Wayne and was removed from his position as Canal Commissioner under the suspicion of using funds inappropriately. After the founding of Wabash town the Treaty Grounds began to lose in importance and slowly passed from the scene. ----