Indiana,
Was first explored by French missionaries and traders, and
Vincennes was a missionary station as early as 1700.
Indiana constituted a part of New France, and afterwards of the
Northwest Territory.
In 1702 some
French Canadians discovered the
Wabash, and established several trading-posts on its banks, among others,
Vincennes.
Little is known of the early settlers until the country was ceded to the
English, in 1763.
The treaty of 1783 included
Indiana in the
United States.
A distressing Indian war broke out in 1788, but by victories by
General Wilkinson (1791) and
General Wayne (1794), a dangerous confederacy of the tribes was broken up. Another was afterwards attempted by
Tecumseh, but was defeated by the result of the
battle of Tippecanoe.
In 1800 the “Connecticut Reserve,” in the northwestern portion of
Ohio, having
been sold to a company of speculators, measures were taken to extinguish certain claims on the part of the
United States and the
State of Connecticut.
The speculators found their bargain to be pecuniarily unprofitable, and likely to prove a serious embarrassment.
Fully 1,000 settlers were already on the “Reserve.”
Hitherto a confirmation of the
Connecticut title to these lands by the
United States had been inferentially acknowledged, and
Connecticut had given no quit-claim deeds; therefore, it was to the interest of the speculators to obtain from the
United States a direct confirmation.
On the other hand, it was an object for the
United States to extinguish
Connecticut's claim of jurisdiction.
[
29]
Congress passed an act (April 28, 1800) authorizing the issue of letters-patent conveying the title of these lands to the governor of
Connecticut, for the benefit of those claiming under her, and similar letters-patent were issued by
Connecticut, relinquishing all claim to jurisdiction.
So the “Reserve” was annexed to the
Northwest Territory, which was presently divided, by act of Congress (May 7), into two separate jurisdictions, the western one being called the
Territory of Indiana, after one of the old ante-Revolutionary land companies.
St. Vincent, or
Vincennes, was made the capital, and
William Henry Harrison was appointed governor of the
Territory.
It then included
Michigan and
Illinois.
In 1803 a movement was made in Congress for suspending for a limited term, in the case of
Indiana Territory, the provision of the ordinance of 1787 (q. v.) prohibiting slavery northward of the
Ohio River.
A committee, of which
John Randolph, of
Virginia, was chairman, reported strongly against the proposition, believing that “in the salutary operation of this salutary and sagacious restraint the inhabitants of
Indiana would, at no distant day, find ample remuneration for a temporary privation of labor and immigration.”
At the next session (1804) the subject was brought up and referred to a new committee, of which
Rodney, the new Democratic representative from
Delaware, was chairman.
This committee reported in favor of such suspension, so as to admit, for ten years, the introduction of slaves born within the territory of the
United States, their descendants to be free, masculine at the age of twenty-five years, and feminine at twenty-one years. No action was had, but the subject was afterwards before Congress several times on the urgent application of inhabitants of
Indiana for the privilege of introducing slavery into the
Territory.
When war with
Great Britain broke out, in 1812, a fresh impulse was given to Indian depredations, which had never fairly ceased, but the hostiles were beaten, and were quiet after the close of that contest.
On June 29, 1816, a convention adopted a State constitution for
Indiana, and on Dec. 11 it was admitted into the
Union.
Rapid and continued immigration ensued.
This was greatly increased by the opening of the
Erie Canal.
During the
Civil War Indiana furnished to the
National army 195,147 soldiers.
In 1899 the assessed valuation of taxable property was $1,342,831,161; total tax rate, $2.96 per $1,000; and total debt, $5,004,615. The population in 1890 was 2,192,404; in 1900, 2,516,462.
See
Clark, G. R.;
United States, Indiana, vol.
IX.
Governors of State.
| Jonathan Jennings | assumes office | Nov. 7, 1816 |
| William Hendricks | assumes office | Dec. 4, 1822 |
| James B. Ray | assumes office | Feb. 12, 1825 |
| Noah Noble | assumes office | Dec. 7, 1831 |
| David Wallace | assumes office | Dec. 6, 1837 |
| Samuel Bigger | assumes office | Dec. 9, 1840 |
| James Whitcomb | assumes office | Dec. 6, 1843 |
| Joseph A. Wright | assumes office | Dec. 6, 1849 |
| Ashbel P. Willard | assumes office | Jan. 12, 1857 |
| Abraham A. Hammond | assumes office | Oct. 1860 |
| Henry S. Lane | elected U. S. Senator | Jan. 1861 |
| Oliver P. Morton | assumes office | Jan. 1861 |
| Conrad Baker | assumes office | Jan. 1867 |
| Thomas A. Hendricks | assumes office | Jan. 1873 |
| James D. Williams | assumes office | Jan. 1877 |
| Albert G. Porter | assumes office | Jan. 1881 |
| Isaac P. Gray | assumes office | Jan. 1885 |
| Alvin P. Hovey | (died in office) | Jan. 1889 |
| Ira J. Chase, lieut.-gov. | acting | Nov. 1891 |
| Claude Matthews | assumes office | Jan. 1, 1893 |
| James A. Mount | assumes office | Jan. 1897 |
| Winfield T. Durbin | assumes office | Jan. 1901 |
