More from the Bicentennial

Anthony Wayne Haunts Area?
by Jack Grazier Times Staff Writer

General "Mad Anthony" Wayne is Erie's most famous hero of the Revolution, and certainly the only one who haunts the area.
Throughout the Revolutionary War Wayne fought in almost every campaign from Canada To Georgia. Perhaps his most famous victory was at the battle of Stony Point, one of the strongest British positions on the Hudson.
General George Washington frequently sent him on dangerous missions because he knew he could count on Wayne's daring and resourcefulness. He also sent Wayne to plead with congress and with the Pennsylvania legislature for pay, clothing, and supplies for the troops. Because of these activities Wayne was called "General Washington's trouble shooter.'
After the war Wayne was called to command the new American army called the Legion of the United States which was to fight the Indians in the Northwest Territory. Wayne's victory over the Indians at Fallen Timbers in 1794 led to final settlement of the Northwest.
Wayne died Dec. 15, 1796, at Fort Presque Isle in Erie, after his successful campaign in the Northwest Territory.
He had been on his way to his home in Radnor by way of Erie, but when he arrived here complications from gout had made him very sick.
Wayne commandeered the Presque Isle blockhouse, set up quarters there, and sent to Pittsburgh for his personal physician, J. C. Wallace.
Wallace failed to arrive in time to help Wayne, and in Franklin learned that Wayne had died.
Wayne had directed that his body be buried at the foot of the flagpole at the blockhouse, near the site of the present Soldiers and Sailors Home.
His body rested there for 13 years.
Then in 1809, Isaac Wayne, the generals son, set out over the almost impassable roads to bring his father's remains home for burial.
But when the grave at Presque Isle was opened, the body was found to be in an almost perfect state of preservation.
This posed a problem to Isaac, since he had come to transport the body with only a small box mounted on a gig, thinking that there would not be much left of his father to move.
Dr. Wallace was called upon to come up with a solution to the problem, which he did. He dismembered the generals body, boiled it in the large iron kettle that had been used by Wayne when he was commander at Presque Isle, and scraped the flesh from the bones with knives and scalpels. The flesh and scalpels were buried in the grave at the blockhouse, and the bones were packed in the box to be taken back to Old St. David Church in Radnor.
But legend has it that not all of the bones were returned safely. The road was rough and many fell out of the box and were lost along the way. Truck drivers will tell you that many times, in the headlights of their trucks, they've seen a man on horseback riding along Rte. 322, between Erie and Radnor.
The ghost of Mad Anthony is said to rise from its grave in Radnor, mount his faithful steed Nancy, and ride to Erie and back, the first of every Jan 1, the day Wayne was born.

History

April 27, 1850- The Anthony Wayne set sail from Toledo, Ohio. While in route to Buffalo, the ship stopped in Sandusky, Ohio to pick up cargo and passengers and from there headed toward Cleveland. The ship sank when two starboard boilers exploded making it one of Lake Erie's oldest shipwrecks. There were approximately 80-100 passengers aboard and the wreck claimed 38. It was found by shipwreck divers from CLUE April of 2007. (Erie Reader page 9 by Julie Hedglin)


May 1 1835- Col. Orpheus S. Woodward was born in Harborcreek. He enlisted in the Civil War effort in April of 1861 and was assigned to the 90-day "Erie Regiment," but it was disbanded. He was then selected as captain of the 83rd Pennsylvania regiment. Capt. Woodward fought in the bloody battle of Gettysburg, after which he was promoted to colonel. His leg was amputated do to injuries he sustained at Wilderness. Before the war, Woodward attended the Waterford Academy and the Northwestern State Normal School. (Erie Reader page 9 by Julie Hedglin)