250th Commemoration of Logan’s Lament

Staff Report | November 20, 2024

A man wearing a grey short-sleeve shirt stands in front of a large monument reading from a paper to a group of men, women and children.

This fall marks the 250th anniversary of Chief Logan's famous speech, known in history as "Logan's Lament."

This fall marks the 250th anniversary of Chief Logan’s famous speech delivered under a massive elm tree on the plains of Pickaway County just south of Circleville. The speech is known in history as “Logan’s Lament.” It was admired by a U.S. president and Ohio leaders, who featured Chief Logan prominently in the lobby of the State Departments Building, dedicated in 1933. Today, that tribute to the Mingo tribal leader serves as a backdrop for a history lesson to thousands of students and guests who tour the Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center.

The tragic backstory of Logan’s powerful speech stems from the resentment of Native Americans toward European and American settlers who were moving north and west of the Ohio River into the Ohio country. Ambushes and violent skirmishes were commonplace, even though Chief Logan opposed attacking these settlers.

In April 1774, while Logan and his men were away on a hunting trip, a group of Virginia settlers attacked and murdered 13 members of Logan’s tribe in what today is known as the northern panhandle of West Virginia, along the Ohio River just north of the Steubenville-Weirton metro area.

The horrific attack, which included killing Logan’s mother, sister, and several children, was named the Yellow Creek Massacre. The perpetrators were never brought to justice. The ambush was the single-most factor that led to Lord Dunsmore’s War, which gripped the area during the summer and early fall of 1774. When it came time for peace talks, Chief Logan refused the invitation, opting instead to deliver a 198-word speech under the elm tree, which had sacred significance to the native peoples.

As history tells the story, Logan went on a yearlong “mourning war” to avenge the brutal killing of his family. His speech captured much of his anguish and betrayal, because at his core Logan was a peacemaker.

“I appeal to any white man to say, if ever he entered Logan’s cabin hungry, and he gave him not meat; if ever he came cold and naked, and he clothed him not. During the course of the last long and bloody war, Logan remained idle in his cabin, an advocate for peace. Such was my love for the whites, that my countrymen pointed as they passed, and said, Logan is the friend of the white men. I have even thought to live with you but for the injuries of one man. Col. Cresap, the last spring, in cold blood, and unprovoked, murdered all the relations of Logan, not sparing even my women and children. There runs not a drop of my blood in the veins of any living creature. This has called on me for revenge. I have sought it: I have killed many: I have fully glutted my vengeance. For my country, I rejoice at the beams of peace. But do not harbour a thought that mine is the joy of fear. Logan never felt fear. He will not turn on his heel to save his life. Who is there to mourn for Logan? Not one.”

The 250th commemoration of Logan’s Lament was organized by the Pickaway County Park District staff at the site of where the Logan elm tree once stood, approximately 9 miles south of Circleville. It grew to massive proportions but succumbed to disease and vandalism in 1964.

Tributes were presented at each of the park’s monuments dedicated to Native Americans Nonhelema and Chief Cornstalk, as well as Logan. As the sun set on the Pickaway Plain, a lecture on the Mingo Peace Protocol was delivered by Logan Elm High School history teacher Rod Smith. The Lament capped off the event, as recited by Native American Susan West, whose Comanche name is Tuinahvuni.

The bronze bas-relief portrait of Chief Logan is located in the Native American Lobby of the Moyer Judicial Center and can be viewed during a tour by calling 614.387.9223, or emailing courttours@sc.ohio.gov. Tour groups requesting a guide should be booked in advance, while self-guided tours are available on a walk-in basis.