One of the most important organizations within the British colonial government during the rebellion years was the Indian Department. The ID commonly employed men whose ties with the Natives were particularly strong. Men like Matthew Elliott, Thomas McKee, Robert Dickson, and William Caldwell were all officers of the Department at various times in their lives. While not part of the British Army, its officers were given military rank - the head superintendent was a colonel, and the regional superintendents, like Elliott, were ranked as captains. The officers, like the army, wore red coats on the field. The individual officers would also incorporate items of Native dress and significance into their appearance. The Indian department was created to oversee diplomatic relations with the numerous Indian nations in British North America. The department was divided into Northern and Southern departments, the north supervised by Sir William Johnson. On Johnson's death in 1774, his nephew and departmental secretary Guy Johnson assumed the role. During this time, Guy also supervised the Six Nations department, while his brother in law Daniel Claus watched over the Seven Nations of Canada that comprised the Quebec Department. Alexander McKee was stationed at Pittsburgh to deal with the Great Lakes Indians. Others commanding field and administrative affairs were, Sir John Johnson, Captian Gilbert Tice, Captain Campbell, and Col. John Butler. It must noted that the Indian Department operated throughout the northern, southern and northwestern frontiers. Years of documented operations span the rebellion years of 1774 - 1785. They should not be confused with "Butler's Rangers" which was not raised until 1778. The Indian Dept. Rangers were a loose organization of white officers, militia (messieurs) and soldiers that helped to direct Indian operations in the field, and coordinated operations between British units, Indian war parties and Indian allies. During peacetime the department employed interpreters for diplomatic tasks and blacksmiths for more practical matters. As tensions escalated, Guy Johnson made appointments in the department to prepare for war. John Butler was appointed a deputy agent; Gilbert Tice, Captain; the Johnston brothers, Lieutenants; and between five and ten men as rangers. This initial cadre was soon supplemented by loyalist refugees who fled across New York to Fort Niagara and Detroit, where they found employment as rangers in the Indian Department. The men at Niagara were under John Butler's command, and participated in the Battle of Oriskany with Butler and Johnson's Royal Yorkers. Some rangers chose to transfer to Butler's or Johnson's corps, while others such as Gilbert Tice stayed on serving as liaisons to various Indian war parties. There were officers and rangers who worked with the Seven Nations of Canada, also referred to as the Quebec Department. Guy Carleton, Governor of Canada, assigned this district to Colonel John Campbell, Deputy Superintendent of Canadian Indians. Campbell had no previous experience working with natives, but his father in law was the renowned French partisan leader St. Luc de la Corne. Other leaders of this area associated with Campbell were La Monthe, Boucherville and Monin. The role of the Native American warrior is a complex one during the period 1775-1783. The Natives of the northern Woodland cultures had advanced military and diplomatic structures fully in tune with their cultural needs and their local geography. All contestants for empire during the 18th century looked to them as potential allies and feared them as enemies. To this end, the British establishment lead by Sir William Johnson Superintendent of Indian Affairs (until 1774) set a precedent to live with, understand, and win over Indian tribes to the side of the British Empire. The first Nations were badly split by the conflict of the American Revolution. At the onset of the rebellion most eastern tribes, (Six Nations, Shawnee, Delaware just to name a few), initially tried to remain neutral. In the main, however, as the war progressed, the far sighted and conservative diplomats of the First Nations chose to support the cause of a distant British king over the close and voracious, land grabbing rebellion. The Iroquois Confederacy started the war neutral and ended it driven from their ancestral lands, bitterly attacked by the Continental Congress and splintered by the defeat of the British, yet paradoxically victorious in the field. The former French allies known as the Seven Nations of Canada, the Huron, Ojibwa, and the Abeneki, as well as the Catholic Mohawks of Caughnawaga, were placed in the British camp by geography and tradition. Their enthusiasm waxed and waned depending on events, but they never really attempted to leave the British sphere. The Royal government supported several Indian Departments during the Revolution. Col. John Campbell commanded the Department responsible for the Seven Nations of Canada, some Mohawks, and any western Natives brought East in direct support of military expeditions against the rebellious provinces. The Indian Department he commanded was composed of only sixty or so men, many of whom were store clerks, secretaries or managers who never left their headquarters at Montreal. In the field, however, were almost twenty "Officers". These men seldom served as an organized unit, and were similar to modern special forces detachments trained to support rather than lead indigenous insurgents. The Indian Department provided support services in areas that Native cultures mostly lacked. Example of this include European trade goods, guns, gun smithing, knifes. The ID also gave logistical support and liaison to the British Headquarters. Indian Department officers did not lead Native warriors, as Natives had many highly trained and very capable leaders of their own. They did attempt to target the efforts of their Native allies against targets that London and Quebec, and Montreal found suitable. They also served as translators, guides, gunsmiths, and surveyors or cartographers, as well as couriers and spies. It should be noted that Joseph Brant was both a Native war leader and an Indian Department Officer. Some Indian Department officers led native warriors; some Native war leaders led Loyalist and British troops, like Little David of the Seneca, and some Indian Department members engaged in, led, or caused atrocities that offended not only the code of 18th century conduct but the Native code as well. There are exceptions to every rule. Colonel Campbell's Deputy was Captain Alexander Fraser, who was given the Company of Select Marksmen to provide military support to Native warriors in 1776. Many Indian Department officers accompanied Capt. Fraser in 1776 and 1777, serving as the links between his regular unit and his Native allies. After 1777, Fraser continued to work with the Natives while apparently commanding the 34th Foot's Light Company, largely composed of survivors of his Company of Select Marksmen. Payroll accounts from various sources identify some ID officers and rangers paid as Indian Department men (a much higher rate of pay) and by established companies such as Butlers, KKRY, and others. The Indian Department was present to stop Sullivan's Expedition against the Seneca at present day Groveland NY, Wyoming Valley, Cherry Valley, Burgoyne Campaign, Flockey NY, Schoharie Valley, Beckers House, Hamiltons defense of Clark. These are just a few documented examples. Throughout the War, members of the Indian Department were constantly in the field, scouting, providing courier services, guiding Loyalist refugees to their new homes in Canada, and striking at Rebel logistics throughout the Province of New York, Northwest frontier and Southern Campaign areas. After the War, the Indian Department troops, the bulk of whom were American born, were settled throughout Upper Canada. Our re-created group portrays these Indian Department Rangers and officers who went along on these raids and campaigns through the Mohawk, Hudson, Champlain, Schoharie, and Ohio Valleys. Each season we attend events that start in the spring and go year round. We challenge ourselves and strive to re-create the basic survival and tactical skills of those in the ID during the un-natural rebellion of 1774-1785. (HOME) |
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| "Council Fire at Johnson Hall" |
| His Majesty's Indian Department |