University of Virginia Library

Battle of Point Pleasant

In 1764, a few months after the "Treaty of Paris"
had ended the French and Indian wars, hostilities
on the part of the Indians broke out on the western
frontier of Virginia. Major Lewis was at once made
a Brigadier General, and in September of that year,
with a force of one thousand one hundred brave
colonists, set out for Camp Union (now Lewisburg,
West Virginia), on his march to Point Pleasant, at
the junction of the Ohio and Great Kanawha rivers.
It was planned that he should meet Lord Dunmore,
then Governor of Virginia, who was in command
of a larger force, but the latter failed to appear.
Dunmore was strongly suspected of treachery.

At Point Pleasant the most formidable army of
Indians ever gathered in America had assembled.
This army comprised the flower of the confederated
tribes of the Delawares, Mingoes, Cayugas, Iowas,
Wyandottes, and Shawnees, under the leadership
of the great Shawnee chief, Cornstalk, one of the
most renowned Indian warriors of history.

It was believed to be impossible for General Lewis
with his small force to successfully contend with
this powerful army. Dunmore's failure to keep his
appointment did not, however, deter the brave defenders
of the Virginia frontier in their efforts to
subdue the wily savages from further invasion of
the settlements and the slaughter of the innocents.
The battle commenced at sunrise on October 10th
and continued throughout the day. It was a desperate
conflict and at times it seemed that all was
lost. Unexampled bravery was displayed on both
sides. Cornstalk, with a courage calm and undismayed,
led on his army of savage foes, and at one
time when an Indian warrior showed a want of
courage he slew him with his tomahawk. During
the day and as the battle raged he could be heard
calling and encouraging his warriors, exclaiming in
his native tongue, "Be strong! Be strong!"

At last, after the battle had raged all day, General
Lewis succeeded in turning the tide in favor of the
Virginians. The conflict, while bloody, resulted in
glorious victory, and during the night the Indians
fled across the Ohio River, never again to invade the
soil of Virginia, thus leaving our frontiers free from
any hostile Indian incursion, anything like formidable
in character.

A treaty of peace was soon concluded, the far-reaching
effects of which, coupled with the great
victory achieved by General Lewis, had a most pronounced
effect on the future of America. It was
one of the initiatory steps which led to our national
independence.

Dr. Samuel L. Campbell, of Rockbridge County,
in writing of the battle of Point Pleasant, said: "To
form a just estimate of the importance of this campaign
it would be necessary to consider the character
of the Indians, their propensity for war, the
great combined strength they possessed in 1774, the
indications which they had manifested of hostile
intentions, the efforts made by British traders to
urge them on to war, the defenseless state of the
frontier, the distracted condition of the provinces in
apprehension of war with Great Britain; all these
things being duly considered must unquestionably
lead to the conclusion that the battle of Point Pleasant,
taken in connection with the treaty which immediately
followed, constituted the first act in the
great drama of the Revolution; that it had an important
bearing in all subsequent acts of that tragedy;
that it immediately and materially influenced
the destinies of our country, and more recently the
destinies of many other countries, perhaps of the
whole world."