Consul Willshire Butterfield

The Girty brothers, Simon in particular, were infamous on the frontiers of Pennsylvania and Kentucky during the American Revolution and following years. The brothers were the sons of an Irish immigrant to Pennsylvania, who as boys were taken prisoner by Indians and lived among them for a time before settling in the Pittsburg area. When the Revolution began they were at first on the Patriot side, but then went over to the British. Simon worked for the British commander in Detroit to plan and lead Indian attacks against settlers in western Pennsylvania and Kentucky.

“This work comprises a complete narrative of the Expedition, drawn largely from original manuscripts, describing in detail the causes which led to the organization of the Campaign in Western Pennsylvania; the assembling of the army at the Ohio river, and its march to Sandusky; the marshalling of the savages upon the Sandusky Plains to repel the Americans; the Battles of the Wilderness; the retreat of the army and its return to the border;—followed by an account of the capturing of stragglers by the Indians; the barbarities inflicted on them; the escape of Knight and Slover from captivity; and the terrible death of Crawford, by prolonged and most cruel torture.” Peter G. Thomson, A Bibliography of the State of Ohio (1880)

There is a great deal of uncertainty about Stephen (Etienne) Brule’s explorations and discoveries in the early 1600s because he left no written accounts. Historians have relied on brief mentions in accounts of other explorers, such as Champlain, to trace his movements. Soon after his arrival in New France he was tasked by Champlain with living with the Huron Indians to learn their language and customs. He apparently stayed four years and mastered their ways thoroughly. Throughout most of his career he seems to have been a pathfinder or scout for the better known explorers, probably visiting some areas that they never reached. He is now believed to have been the first European to visit four of the Great Lakes, as well as western New York, western Pennsylvania, and some regions of Canada.