St. Clair's Defeat
Anthony Wayne Parkway
When American pioneers attempted to settle the Northwest Territory following the Ordinance of 1787, the Indians, aided by the British fought fiercely for their homes. The first United States army sent to break the Indian resistance was commanded by Gen. Josiah Harmar. It met defeat (1790) at the Miami Indian villages (present Fort Wayne).
Gen. Arthur St. Clair, the territorial Governor, made the second attempt with a badly trained army. He marched north from Fort Washington (Cincinnati) and reached this place on the evening of Nov. 3, 1791. The following morning, the army found itself surrounded by an Indian force commanded by Chief Little Turtle. After a furious battle, St. Clair's troops broke through the enemy encirclement and retreated southward. Here on this field they left approximately 900 dead and wounded, in what is relatively, the most disastrous defeat ever to befall an American Army. Victory was yet to be won.
Marker is at the intersection of Fort Site Street and West Boundary Street, on the left when traveling north on Fort Site Street.
Courtesy hmdb.org
