Battle of Devil's Hole

Date	September 14, 1763
Location	present as near Niagara Gorge
Result	Seneca victory

Belligerents

Seneca

Great Britain

Commanders and leaders

Cornplanter
Honayewus

George Campbell †
William Fraser †
John Stedman

Strength

309

134

Casualties and losses

1 wounded

81 soldiers and 21 teamsters and escort killed,
1 teamster and 8 soldiers wounded

The Battle of Devil's Hole, also known as the Devil's Hole Massacre, was fought near Niagara Gorge in present-day New York state on September 14, 1763, between a detachment of the British 80th Regiment of Light Armed Foot and about 300 Seneca warriors during Pontiac's Rebellion (1763–1766). The Seneca warriors killed 81 British soldiers and wounded 8 before the British managed to retreat.

As early as 1757, Seneca in the Niagara Falls area had complained to the French about losing control of the long portage along an area of the Niagara River, which French traders were trying to improve for wagons. They resented the Europeans trying to take over their traditional territory and displace them from their work.

After the Seven Years' War, the British took over this area near the Great Lakes. John Stedman improved the former portage trail so that it could accommodate oxen and wagons, and hired teams and escorts to carry goods through. Formerly up to 300 Seneca men had worked as porters on what they thought of as their portage.

Discontent rose among many Native American tribes in the Great Lakes area, who wanted to get rid of the British colonists before more encroached on their lands. In Pontiac's Rebellion, beginning in 1763, several tribes in the Great Lakes and Northwest area cooperated in rising up against the British. In the New York colony, Sir William Johnson, the Superintendent of Indian Affairs, had long advocated fair treatment of Native Americans but was only partially successful. He wrote, "Our people in general are ill calculated to maintain friendship with the Indians. They despise those in peace whom they fear to meet in war."

On September 14, 1763, a large Seneca band of an estimated 300–500 warriors ambushed a wagon train and its armed escort en route from Fort Schlosser to Fort Niagara as it passed through Devil's Hole, an area known for its difficult terrain. One part of the trail was in a heavily wooded area with a deep ravine on either side; there the Seneca warriors attacked the wagon train. The escort party and teamsters, led by Porter Master John Stedman, were caught completely by surprise; animals broke into a stampede or were driven into the ravine along with their wagons and drivers. The Seneca moved in to fight at close quarters, making musket fire useless, and only three of the party of 24 (including Stedman) managed to escape to Fort Schlosser for help.

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Wikipedia