The Republic of Indian Stream or Indian Stream Republic was an unrecognized

republic A republic () is a " state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and th ...

, along the section of the

border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders ca ...

that divides the current Canadian province of

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirte ...

from the U.S. state of

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. It existed from July 9, 1832, to August 5, 1835. Described as ''"Indian Stream Territory, so-called"'' by the United States census-taker in 1830, the area was named for

Indian Stream Indian Stream is a tributary of the Connecticut River, approximately long, in New Hampshire in the United States. It rises in the mountains of extreme northern New Hampshire, in Coos County near the Canada–United States border, where the East ...

, a small watercourse. It had an organized elected government and constitution and served about three hundred citizens.

History

The area was first settled by Europeans under a

land grant A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...

, from King Philip, an

Abenaki The Abenaki ( Abenaki: ''Wαpánahki'') are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands of Canada and the United States. They are an Algonquian-speaking people and part of the Wabanaki Confederacy. The Eastern Abenaki language was pre ...

man, named after Metacomet, who was also called King Philip. This grant was sold to one land-speculation company, while a second group of Indians from the same tribe made representations to another company of Europeans that their chief had been deposed and that they were empowered to issue a grant to the second company. Following the Revolutionary War, both companies surveyed the territories and issued their own land grants to settlers, which frequently overlapped one another. After the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It be ...

, when both companies were in financial straits, they merged and reconciled all land claims. The establishment of Indian Stream as an independent nation was, essentially, the result of the ambiguous boundary between the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

and British

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec ...

as defined in the 1783 Treaty of Paris. There were three possible interpretations of where "the northwesternmost head of the

Connecticut River The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges at Long Islan ...

" might be. As a result, the area in and around the three tributaries that fed into the head of the Connecticut River was not definitively under the jurisdiction of either the United States or Lower Canada (which was formed in 1791). The relevant text from the treaty reads:Treaty of Paris (1783)
on Wikisource The Republic encompassed the northern reaches of what is now the state of

, including the four Connecticut Lakes. While the British claimed the southeasternmost branch (the chain of Connecticut Lakes), the U.S. claimed the border as it is today (i.e.,

Halls Stream Halls Stream or Rivière Hall is a tributary of the Connecticut River in eastern North America. For most of its length, it forms the Canada–United States border, with the province of Quebec (Canada) to its west and the state of New Hampshire (U ...

to the west, which is, arguably, the "northwesternmost headwater" of the Connecticut). Both sides sent in tax collectors and debt-collecting sheriffs. The double taxation angered the population, and the Republic was formed to put an end to the issue until such time as the United States and Great Britain could reach a settlement on the boundary line. Some of the citizenry considered Indian Stream to be part of the U.S. but not a part of New Hampshire. The Indian Stream assembly declared independence on July 9, 1832, and produced a constitution. One of the drafters of the constitution was Luther Parker, who served as

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or '' puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the s ...

for the Republic from 1832 to 1835. The Constitution of Indian Stream states in "Part Second - Form of Government": New_Hampshire_historical_marker_1_in_Pittsburg

New_Hampshire_historical_marker_1_in_Pittsburg

The independence declaration did not cause the sheriff of Coos County to cease his involvement in affairs, with later events leading to an impending invasion by New Hampshire. On July 30, 1835, this sheriff asked for the

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

. Two companies of infantry from the towns around Colebrook met at Stewartstown, ready to march into the disputed territory. The sheriff preceded them and, on August 4, met with between 30 and 40 members of the assembly, to whom he issued an ultimatum. Threatened with forcible occupation, most of the gathered assembly capitulated and relented to being annexed by New Hampshire. The Republic ceased to operate independently the next day when five leaders of Indian Stream wrote to a British official in

Sherbrooke Sherbrooke ( ; ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional cou ...

, that, with a response to their petition for protection by the British not having occurred in time, Indian Stream had agreed to annexation by New Hampshire. One of the "Streamers", Richard I. Blanchard, agreed to serve as a deputy sheriff of Coos County. The militia stayed in Stewartstown and dispersed to their homes on August 6. The annexation of Indian Stream by New Hampshire did not resolve the land dispute. Local British officials took a dim view of the annexation. An incident soon tested the situation. In October 1835, Blanchard led a small party to arrest John Tyler for an unpaid hardware-store debt. After the arrest, Tyler was freed on the road back to Coos County by a group of his neighbors. In reporting the incident to the British magistrate, Tyler falsely stated under oath that the location of his arrest was Drayton, Lower Canada. The magistrate then issued a warrant for Blanchard's arrest, which was carried out by a deputy and a few members of the British faction of Streamers, who returned with Blanchard toward the magistrate's house in Lower Canada. Along the way, a group of Streamers stopped them in the road, rescued Blanchard and returned with their freed comrade to Indian Stream. The deputy's party continued on to the magistrate's house. Several hours later, there was a commotion in the road nearby from a posse of armed Streamers, emboldened by liquor, bent on making an impression. The invading posse shot the deputy through the thigh and then captured the hobbled magistrate with a blow of a saber to his scalp during a struggle. They returned to

Canaan, Vermont Canaan is a town in Essex County, Vermont, United States. The population was 896 at the 2020 census. Canaan contains the village of Beecher Falls, located at the confluence of the Connecticut River and Halls Stream. It is part of the Berlin ...

, with the bleeding magistrate as prisoner, where local leaders treated his wound and released him immediately. In the aftermath, a detachment of fifty New Hampshire militia, including troops and officers, occupied the territory from mid-November until February 18, 1836. On April 2, 1836, a resolution "that New Hampshire has a right to exercise an unconditional control over the territory of Indian Stream" was approved by the citizens of Indian Stream. This

international incident {{Refimprove, date=December 2011 An international incident (or diplomatic incident) is a seemingly relatively small or limited action, incident or clash that results in a wider dispute between two or more nation-states. International incidents can ...

caused a diplomatic crisis. The British ambassador to the United States protested to President

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

and the Secretary of State. Both governments, appalled at the idea of war over a matter so trivial as a hardware-store debt, determined to take measures so that matters did not escalate, and an uneasy peace endured in the years preceding the conclusion of a treaty settling the border. In July 1837, Lord Palmerston in London dismissed all charges in the British judiciary system arising from the incident and reiterated the British position that the territory was part of British North America. The area was still described as Indian Stream at the time of the U.S. census taken on June 1, 1840, when the local population totalled 315. Upon petition by the residents, the area was incorporated as the town of Pittsburg in 1840. In 1842, the land dispute was definitively resolved by the

Webster–Ashburton Treaty The Webster–Ashburton Treaty, signed August 9, 1842, was a treaty that resolved several border issues between the United States and the British North American colonies (the region that became Canada). Signed under John Tyler's presidency, it r ...

, and the land was assigned to New Hampshire. The 1845 Lewis Robinson "Map of New Hampshire based on the latest authorities" shows the boundary as being north of the town of Clarksville but just south of modern-day Pittsburg.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Indian Stream, Republic of History of New Hampshire Pittsburg, New Hampshire Rebellions in the United States Canada–United States border disputes Former unrecognized countries Former countries in North America Former countries of the United States Former republics Former territorial entities in North America States and territories established in 1832 1830s in New Hampshire 1832 establishments in New Hampshire States and territories disestablished in 1835 Former regions and territories of the United States

History

See also

References

Further reading

External links