The Fourth Treaty of Fort Pitt: A Treaty Bound for Failure

In the heart of the 18th century, amidst the untamed wilderness of Pennsylvania, a pivotal event unfolded that would shape the region’s history. This event was the Fourth Treaty of Fort Pitt, a landmark agreement signed on September 17, 1778, between the newly formed United States and the Lenape Nation (also known as the Delaware Nation to the settlers).

The Need for an Alliance

The Treaty of Fort Pitt was a product of a tumultuous time. The United States was still battling the British, and they planned to face the British troops in Detroit. But to get to Detroit, they would need to travel through Lenape territory. The Americans also required support from new allies. The treaty would allow the United States troops to travel through their territory without issue, even having Lenape guides leading the Continental Army to British locations. The treaty also said that Lenape warriors would come to the aid of the Americans. In return, the Americans promised to trade goods with the Lenape Nation, build a fort in Lenape territory to protect the tribe, and create a sovereign 14th state that the indigenous peoples would govern. This state would have a representative in Congress.

The treaty was negotiated at Fort Pitt over several days between the U.S. delegates — two brothers, Thomas and Andrew Lewis — and three tribal representatives, Koquethagechton, aka White Eyes, Gelemend, aka John Killbuck, Jr., and Konieschquanoheel, aka Hopocan, or Captain Pipe.

An Exchange of Goodwill

As part of the negotiation process, the Americans had $10,000 in goods and gifts, including blankets, clothing, “implements of war,” and utensils to give to the Lenape tribe. The Lenape presented the Americans with a Wampum belt that showed the 13 colonies and the Lenape Nation in alliance. According to the National Museum of American Diplomacy, Wampum belts were a treaty-making tool used by some Native nations to show an alliance.

The Treaty Crumbles

Unfortunately, the treaty did not last and fell apart in a matter of weeks. However, the failure of the treaty didn’t come without the Lenape people trying to salvage the treaty. They sent delegates to speak to the government, but it was bound to fail. The first crack in the edifice appeared when members of the American militia murdered White Eyes. However, Americans tried to blame his death on smallpox. By murdering an ally, the Americans showed the Lenape people how little they valued the relationship. This wouldn’t be the only time that a militia slaughtered an innocent member of the Lenape tribe. In 1782, a militia killed a peaceful community of Lenape people living in Gnadenhutten, OH, further damaging the relationship between the Americans and the Lenape Nation.

A Lack of Understanding

According to the National Museum of American Diplomacy, the Americans lacked a cultural understanding of what it meant to have a treaty with the Lenape people. To the Americans, the signed paper treaty was all that was needed, but the Lenape people viewed the relationship as something that needed to be cultivated and cared for to last.

It wasn’t just the murder of White Eyes or the lack of cultural understanding that caused the treaty to fail; it was also the lack of follow-through and broken promises from the Americans that destroyed the alliance. The government never followed through on creating the 14th state for the Indian Nations, and the Americans did not protect the fort the government built in Lenape territory, but instead was quickly taken over by the British. The lack of protection from the U.S. government also resulted in the Lenape territory being taken over by white settlers. As the treaty fell to pieces, members of the Lenape joined forces with the British. The U.S. government used this action as a scapegoat for the treaty’s failure instead of taking responsibility for the murders and broken promises.

By Bianca Labrador

Citations:

• Ball, Margaret et al, 1778 Treaty of Fort Pitt: U.S. Treaty-Making with the Lenape Nation (National Museum of American Diplomacy, 2022).
• Calloway, Colin G. The American Indian Wars: A Concise History (New York: Oxford University Press, 2006).
• Jennings, Francis. The American Colonies: From Settlement to Independence (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2010).
• Parkman, Francis. The Conspiracy of Pontiac (Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, 1851).