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Back to Old Fairfield's Hutberg Cemetery
Fairfield Begins
With Special Thanks To Darryl Stonefish and the Delaware Nation of Moraviantown
God's Acre IS a MAJOR part of Fairfield. To understand God's Acre (i.e. Hutberg Cemetery), we must understand why Fairfield came to be. And to do that we must understand what happened just before the Moravians came there.
Our story begins when the Christian Moravian Delawares were living in the Pennsylvania (William Penn's Sylvania) and then Ohio areas under the spiritual guidance of a Moravian Missionary named David Zeisberger. The events leading to the roots of Fairfield begin really with the American War of Independence. The Moravian Delawares were caught in the middle in that war, and were receiving a great deal of false information. They continually received stories through the British that the British were winning that war. Even stories that Washington had been killed. Pretty much any pro British information, much of which was not at all true. Misunderstanding the situation due to useless incorrect information put the Moravians into a terrible position. Rumours circulating that no white man would come out alive from their homelands, etc. They were mostly trying to simply stay neutral, and instead this drew them even deeper into the conflict than they might otherwise have been.
From here the story must be related again in much more detail than we can here. It can be summed up somewhat by mentioning that the Moravians were caught between the two sides in the War of US Independence, and had little or no way out. To read of this in more detail I suggest that you visit the Moraviantown Library mid to late afternoons on weekdays. It is located at the old Mission Farm Home next to the Church.
In 1871 many Delaware were taken prisoner by the British and many warriors of other tribes. The Moravian Missionaries were taken to Detroit and charged with treason. Charges that were later dropped. However, later the missionaries were held again. (There is evidence today that there may have been some spying done, forced to be done by them for their own safety by warring parties.) In the mean time many natives were able to return to their homes in Gnadenhatten, Salem, and New Schonbrunn to harvest their crops as winter was coming and otherwise they had little to eat during the long cold season. It seems they were possibly given permission to do this, but if so, word did not come through to the 200 Militia who were near. Did they think that the natives were stealing crops?
On March 8 1782, those from Salem and Gnadenhutten were taken prisoner. What happened was too terrible to describe here, but there were over 90 Christian people who died that day for no reason. They were ruthlessly murdered and scalped that day and they died singing hymns in order to maintain their faith to the end knowing the fate that was coming. Two kids escaped. One with his scalp gone. So that is how we know the story today. We also understand that a very few Militia may have left that day knowing that this was "Just not right". To simply slaughter unarmed peaceful Christian people!
Those who died were...
Isaac Glikkikan, Christian, John Martin, Samuel Moore, and Tobias.
Wives of above were...
Anna Benigna, Amelia, and Augustina.
Adam, Henry, Luke, Phillip, Lewis, Nicholas, Abraham - the Mohican (the first one killed), Israel (Captain Johnny), Joseph Schebosh, Mark, John, Abel, Paul, Henry, John, Michael, Peter, Gottlob, and David
Wives of the above were...
Cornelia, Joanna Salome, Lucia, Lorel, Ruth, and Joanna Sabina
And other women...
Hannah, Catherine, Judith, Christiana, Mary, Rebecca, Rachel, Maria Susanna, Anna, Bathsheba, Julianna, Elizabeth, Martha, Anna Rosina, and Salome
Children...
Christian, Mark, Christian Gottlieb, Anthony, Gottlieb, Joseph, Jonathon, Timothy, Jonah, Benjamin, John Thomas, Christianna, Benigna, Gertrude, Anna Salome, Sarah, Leah, Christina, Anna Christina, Maria Elizabeth, Hannah, Anna Elizabeth.
Besides the above there were 12 babes and five unbaptised adults killed on that terrible day.
The building that contained their bodies was then burned to the ground. However, the remains of those killed remained and were not buried. They were simply left there in absolute and total disrespect.
The few Moravians at this time who were still near knew that they must flee quickly for their own safety. The Missionaries originally had few followers left, about 19 it is said, but gradually more found them and joined them.
The Moravians and Delawares moved a number of times before landing near present day Amherstburg Ont. From there they moved up the Thames River to their new home at Moraviantown. They arrived there in May of 1792 and began to build their little town. Thus the story of Hutberg Cemetery across from Fairfield begins. They stayed until war came to them in 1813. Details here very a great deal. However, we can sum it up as follows. Those at Fairfield knew the end was "Here". The older missionaries fled down stream in the Thames River, and headed back to the US to find safety there. The Dencke's told the Natives to hide in the bush and all did. The Americans at first tried to make out they were friendly and they missionaries should bring the natives back. When they refused the attitudes of the Americans changed and their true motives were shown. They quickly turned even on the Missionaries, and they barely escaped with their lives the next day. They and the natives met again in Ancaster where they lived for a year until the war ended. They returned in the spring of 1815 more than a year later. They planned to temporarily settle at a location across the river but that home became permanent, and a little town once again existed now across the river from the original. It apparently existed until the 1930's when the Delawares began to spread out over a larger area. While their house (the first house) was being built at the new location, Mr and Mrs Dencke stayed with the Shermans at their house on what is now the location of the Sherman Cemetery in Thamesville. In fact, when Mr and Mrs Dencke returned to Fairfield the first place they went was to the Sherman farm. Mr and Mrs Dencke by then seem to be the missionaries in charge.
The original God's Acre was across what is now the main road to the North West of OLD Fairfield. It was laid out at the time the original Old Fairfield Village was first inhabited. Knowing this history you can now return to the last page with a better understanding on what was taking place at both Fairfield and God's Acre during these difficult times.
ADDITIONAL FACTS. The Name Delaware came from "Lord De Lea Warre". The Delaware at first did not like this name but then agreed to let the White Man use it as this Lord that they were to be named after was a very famous Englishman.
In "My People the Delaware Indians", Big White Owl writes that Peter was the First Apiarist in Ontario. In 1793 the Bees swarmed twice.
In "My People the Delaware Indians", Big White Owl writes that the Lenni Lenape are the only native people on the North AMerican Continent who have a recorded history. It is known as "Walam Olum" meaning "Painted Records". Those records contain over on hundred and eighty sets of pictographs and in some instances one set has up to thirty six marks and symbols.