Chap. 1. 



INDIAN AND COLONIAL WARS. 



HOOSIC FORT TAKEN. 



FORTS BUILT IN VERNON. 



DEFENCE OF CHARLESTOWN. 



and Indians, under M. de Vaudreuil, pro- 

 ceeded from Crown Point in August, 

 1746, and on the 20th of that month ap- 

 peared before the fort. The garrison con- 

 sisted of only 33 persons, including wo- 

 men and children, and was commanded 

 by Col. Hawks, who, after a vigorous 

 defence of 28 hours, and having expended 

 all his ammunition, surrendered to the 

 enemy. Hawks lost but one man, while 

 more than 4U of the assailants were either 

 slain or mortally wounded ; and he sup- 

 posed that, had he been well supplied 

 with ammunition and provisions, he 

 should have been able to have defended 

 the fort against all the assaults of his 

 numerous army. 



The English had, at this time, extend- 

 ed their settlements as far northward 

 along Connecticut river as Number Four, 

 now Charlestown, in New Hampshire, 

 and had erected several small forts on the 

 west side of that river, in the vicinity of 

 fort Dunimer. Among these were Bridge- 

 man's and Startwell's fort in Vernon, 

 Vermont, formerly a part of the township 

 of Hinsdale, New Hampshire. Bridge- 

 man's fort was attacked the 24th of June, 

 1746, by a party of 20 Indians, who killed 

 two of the English, wounded one and 

 took several prisoners, but were finally 

 repulsed. They, however, succeeded the 

 next year, in taking and destroying this 

 fort, in killing several of the inhabitants, 

 and in carrying a number of others into 

 captivity. 



In 1 747, the settlement at Number Four 

 was abandoned by the inhabitants, and 

 the fort at that place was garrisoned by 

 30 men under the command of Capt. 

 Phinehas Stevens. On the 4th of April 

 a party of 400 French and Indians under 

 M. Debeline surrounded tliis fort, and 

 commenced an attack by firing upon it 

 on all sides. This proving ineffectual, 

 the enemy next endeavored to burn the 

 fort by setting fire to the fences and huts 

 around it, and by discharging flaming ar- 

 rows upon it. Not succeeding in this, 

 they next prepared a wheel carriage which 

 they loaded with faggots, and by pushing 

 this before them, they endeavored by it 

 to set fire to the fort while it protected 

 them from the fire of the garrison. 



All these attempts were, however, de- 

 feated by the vigilance and bravery of 

 Stevens and his men, and at length an 

 interview took place between the two 

 commanders. At this interview Debeline 

 boasted of his superior numbers, express- 

 ed his determination to storm the fort, 

 and described in glowing colors the hor- 

 rid massacre which would ensue if the 

 fort was not surrendered without further 



resistance. To all this Stevens coolly 

 replied ; " / can assure you that my vien 

 arc not afraid to die.'' After this inter- 

 view the attack was renewed with much 

 spirit, and after continuing it for three 

 days without success, the French com- 

 mander proposed to Stevens that he would 

 abandon the siege and return to Canada 

 on condition that the garrison would sell 

 them provisions for the journey. This 

 Stevens absolutely refused, but proposed 

 to give them five bushels of corn for eve- 

 ry captive for whom they would leave a 

 hostage, until they could be brought from 

 Canada. The enemy, not relishing these 

 conditions, after firing a few guns, with- 

 drew, leaving Stevens in peaceable pos- 

 session of the fort. 



In this siege Stevens lost not a man, 

 and had but two men wounded. The^loss 

 of the enemy was not ascertained, but 

 must have been very considerable. And 

 so highly was the gallantry of Stevens on 

 this occasion esteemed by Sir Charles 

 Knowles, a British naval officer then at 

 Boston, that he presented him an elegant 

 sword ; and from this circumstance the 

 townqhip, when it was incorporated, re- 

 ceived the name of Charlestown. Dur- 

 ing the remainder of the war, which did 

 not entirely cease till J 749, the New Eng- 

 land frontiers were continually harrassed 

 by small parties of Indians, but no con- 

 siderable expeditions were undertaken, 

 either by the French or English colonies. 



Section V. 



French and English Colonies — -from 1748 

 to 1756. Braddock defeated — the French 

 defeated at fort William Henry. 



By the treaty concluded between Great 

 Britain and France in 1748, at Aix la 

 Chapelle, the controversy respecting 

 claims in America was to be referred to 

 commissioners appointed by the sover- 

 eigns of the two nations. These commis- 

 sioners met at Paris in 1752, and labored 

 for some time to establish the claims of 

 their respective courts ; but they found 

 it impossible to come to an agreement on 

 the subject, and soon after the two coun- 

 tries were again involved in war, in 

 which their colonies, as usual, shortly 

 after participated. 



In ]754, a convention of delegates from 

 the several English provinces convened 

 at Albany for the purpose of devising 

 some general and efficient plan of opera- 

 tions in the struggle which was about to 

 ensue. Here it was resolved to apply to 

 the British Parliament for an act consti- 



