My_Persona

"Josiah Parker"
My 18th Century Persona

I came to America from Devon, England, when I was but seven years of age. In October of 1734, my parents, William and Katherine Parker, and I set sail on the ship "Charming Nancy." The ship, which we sailed from Plymouth, England, for Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; had originally come from Rotterdam and held mostly Dutch passengers.

In exchange for our passage, we served a four-year indenture in New Jersey. My parents then decided to homestead an area due south of Fort Duquesne. When I was 14, we were attacked by Shawnee savages. My parents were killed and I was taken prisoner. Having raided another homestead, nearby, I fell in with another captive they'd taken. This was a young boy named Christopher. We were marched hard, west for four and a half days to the Shawnee city of Chalahgawtha (Chillicothe). Having been big for my age, I was made to run the gauntlet. Fear often gives one fleet feet. My speed saved me from more than a few blows and I fared relatively well. The tribe adopted my fellow captive, but my hatred of the Shawnee was too apparent. I soon heard talk of their plans to kill me.

I soon learned my luck had changed for the better. Only days before my arrival, a Cherokee delegation had arrived to parley. No dear friends of the Shawnee, the Cherokee had come to seal an uneasy truce between the two tribes. The Cherokee had been privy to the recent gauntlet spectacle. Upon hearing the Shawnee talk of killing me, one Cherokee dignitary made a passing comment that this was a pity as "I'd made a good showing during my gauntlet run." This seemed to do it; the Shawnee quickly offered me as a slave. The French had asked the Shawnee to woo the Cherokee away from their loose-alliance with the British, so to show their commitment to the truce (and hopefully appease their French masters) they offered the Cherokee a number of gifts. The Cherokee left with several brass kettles, some wool blankets, a few trade knives and ...me!

My new Cherokee masters took me to their village of Kituwah and later to another village in southwest Virginia. During the several weeks of our travels, I remained as obedient and cheerful as possible. My efforts were rewarded when the tribe saw fit to adopt me. Ritually cleansed of my white blood, I was adopted into the Ani'gilohi clan as "Tsosea" (jo-say-ah).

The Cherokee truce with the Shawnee was short-lived, much to my happiness. In 1745, we Cherokee joined with our Chickasaw allies in driving the Shawnee north of the Ohio River. The passing of four years had done little to ease my hatred of the people that had butchered my white family. It was with great pleasure that I bent the willow hoops and stretched the five Shawnee scalps I took in battle.

In 1748, I had the great fortune to meet some members of a group that called themselves "The Ohio Company." One of these was a trader named Hugh Parker. The group had parleyed with the tribe's council and was bound west for Kuskuskies. As a "white savage" I was more than a passing curiosity to these men. At one point, I had a chance to talk with Hugh and I shared with him my tale of how I'd come to be there. It seemed Hugh had relatives who'd suffered a similar fate to that of my family, so along with a common surname, he seemed convinced that we were somehow related. I did nothing to dissuade him in this belief. Although I'd come to love my Cherokee family, I still yearned for adventure and secretly made plans to join Hugh in a fortnight.

I was successful in my "planned absence," and soon caught up with Hugh and his Ohio Company companions. I traveled with them to their trading post. I spent the next several years working for Hugh as a general labourer and hunter.

Word got back to us that the Cherokee had reaffirmed their allegiance to the British. War with France was brooding. Knowing the Shawnee were allied to the French, it didn't take much for me to decide it best to serve King and Country!

At Montreal, I fought on the Plains of Abraham and watched General Wolfe fall.

The year is now 1764; the Indians are upset at the numbers of homesteaders who have defied the proclamation line promised by the Crown. Realizing their value as allies in the war and not wanting to further burden the coffers with more trouble, the Government has sided with the Indians. The drums of war are sounding and folks are afraid.

I'm currently a market hunter, supplying meat to the garrison at Fort Pitt. Due to my knowledge of the Cherokee, I sometimes assist Mr. Croghan and Mr. McKee in their dealings with the Indians. Also, I've developed a friendship with the Swiss Captain Simeon Ecuyer. Not much game around anymore and I find myself having to travel farther and farther to procure meat. The Indians are angry enough that there is a steady stream of frightened homesteaders to the fort. It's now very overcrowded. Many are without shelter, underfed, and the fort now reeks to high heaven. The tales of the great hunting grounds of "Kantu-kee" are beginning to sound mighty attractive.