Gnadenhutten Historical Park and Museum

Ohio’s Oldest Existing Settlement

History of Settlement

In February 1782, Colonel David Williamson along with about 100 troops set out to eradicate Moravian Indians from the western parts of Pennsylvania and Virginia all the way to Sandusky, Ohio.  Hearing of Williamson’s plot, Colonel Gibson of Fort Pitt sent out messengers.  They arrived too late.

 

The groups confinement was justified by Williamson under the pretext that they had committed several murders of white settlers while traveling from Sandusky back to Gnadenhutten.  In addition, they were accused of stealing the belongings of those they had come in contact with along the way.

 

As a result of these unfounded and inaccurate charges, the Indians of Gnadenhutten were condemned to death.  The night before their death, those carrying out the murder decided to kill each person one by one. 

 

All during the night, the captives prayed and sang.  Then, on the morning of March 8, the captors inquired as to whether or not they were ready to die.  When they answered in the affirmative, they were led two by two into what were designated the “Slaughter Houses.”  The men were led to one house while women and children were led to another each being knocked to the ground and killed.  The two houses were then burned that night. It is said that  two young men escaped their captors.  However, only one you man of 14 or 15 escaped back to Sandusky to recount the events of that day and tell of the injustice that occurred at Gnadenhutten.

 

For more information about the events, an account can be found in the Massacre at Gnadenhutten: Blackest Page in History of Northwest Territory, first published by the Gnadenhutten Historical Society in 1963.

 

Present day Gnadenhutten was founded after The United States government had set aside three, 4,000 acres tracks of land for the Indians. When it was learned that they could not use all the land, the Gnadenhutten Tract was opened for white settlers. Many Moravian families from eastern Pennsylvania came to this area to live.  Consequently, John Heckewelder at the urging of David Zeisberger started a new settlement at Gnadenhutten.  Heckwelder built the first house in the new settlement located  not far outside the Historical Park in 1798.

Mission Church

Continued

Cooper House