Young Tobacco was the English name given to a

Piankeshaw The Piankeshaw, Piankashaw or Pianguichia were members of the Miami tribe who lived apart from the rest of the Miami nation, therefore they were known as Peeyankihšiaki ("splitting off" from the others, Sing.: ''Peeyankihšia'' - "Piankeshaw Per ...

chief who lived near Post Vincennes during the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

. His influence seems to have extended beyond his own village to all those along the

Wabash River The Wabash River (French: Ouabache) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed May 13, 2011 river that drains most of the state of Indiana in the United States. It flows from ...

George Rogers Clark George Rogers Clark (November 19, 1752 – February 13, 1818) was an American Surveying, surveyor, soldier, and militia officer from Virginia who became the highest-ranking American patriot military officer on the northwestern frontier duri ...

, in his memoir, refers to him as "Tobacco's Son", and British Lt-Governor Henry Hamilton's journal often refers to "

Old Tobacco Old Tobacco was the English name given to a Piankeshaw chief who lived near Post Vincennes during the American Revolution. Old Tobacco may have been the father of an influential chief known as Young Tobacco. When Captain Leonard Helm came to ...

and his son." The relationship of the two chiefs, Old Tobacco and Young Tobacco, seems probable but is not certain. It may be that the British and Americans presumed Piankesaw leadership passed from father to son, but this was not common among

Miami tribe The Miami ( Miami-Illinois: ''Myaamiaki'') are a Native American nation originally speaking one of the Algonquian languages. Among the peoples known as the Great Lakes tribes, they occupied territory that is now identified as North-central Indi ...

s. Clark's memoir describes Young Tobacco as being very dedicated towards the American cause, declaring himself to be a "big knife". When Hamilton recaptures Vincennes and occupies

Fort Sackville During the 18th and early 19th centuries, the French, British and U.S. forces built and occupied a number of forts at Vincennes, Indiana. These outposts commanded a strategic position on the Wabash River. The names of the installations were chan ...

with the American prisoner Captain

Leonard Helm Leonard Helm was an American frontiersman and military officer who served during the American Revolutionary War. Born around 1720 probably in Fauquier County, Virginia,English, 1:107 he died in poverty while fighting Native American allies of Brit ...

, Young Tobacco declares openly that Helm is his brother, and voluntarily imprisons himself to stay with Helm. Knowing the influence of Young Tobacco among the area natives, Hamilton offers him several gifts to regain his favor, which Tobacco accepts for himself and his brother (Helm) to use. Hamilton does not describe these events in his journal. As Clark and his army nears Vincennes to recapture it, Young Tobacco musters a large band of native warriors and requests permission to join Clark's army. This offer is declined, but Tobacco continues to favor the Americans during the siege of Fort Sackville. Hamilton's journal offers a contrasting view of Young Tobacco. Rather than being an open supporter of the Americans, Young Tobacco seems to favor whoever is in power at the time. He offers excuses to Hamilton for his lack of loyalty when the residents of Vincennes first mobilized in favor of the Americans. In a war council meeting, Young Tobacco blames this on other chiefs for not coming to his support, and declares that he was too weak to resist the Americans and too young to make such decisions on his own. Hamilton seemed suspicious of Young Tobacco in his journal, but does not describe any open acts in support of the Americans. After the Americans had secured Vincennes, they had trouble with

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent ...

along the White River. Clark ordered a

punitive expedition A punitive expedition is a military journey undertaken to punish a political entity or any group of people outside the borders of the punishing state or union. It is usually undertaken in response to perceived disobedient or morally wrong beh ...

against them, but Young Tobacco brokered a peace deal. He accepted responsibility for future Delaware raids but promised to "chastise them" if they again attacked Americans. Clark says that Young Tobacco died two years after the battle for Fort Sackville, and was carried to

Cahokia The Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site ( 11 MS 2) is the site of a pre-Columbian Native American city (which existed 1050–1350 CE) directly across the Mississippi River from modern St. Louis, Missouri. This historic park lies in south- ...

and buried with military honors.

References

Notes

External links

*Somes, Joseph Henry Vanderburgh. ''Old Vincennes'', 1962. Graphic Books, New York.
Indiana State Library
offers online transcriptions of bot

an

{{DEFAULTSORT:Young Tobacco Indiana in the American Revolution Native American leaders Native Americans in the American Revolution Piankeshaw people