George Washington and Colonel William Crawford began their friendship in 1749 while Washington was acting surveyor for Lord Fairfax in the Shenandoah Valley, and it continued until Crawford's death. Crawford served three years under Washington during the French and Indian War and three years during the Revolutionary War. He was with Washington's army when it crossed the Delaware, was at Valley Forge on Christmas Day, and took part in the victory at Trenton the next day and at Princeton on January 3, 1777. On May 18, 1782, Crawford began his campaign against Sandusky, but he was defeated at Battle Island on June 5, 1782, in the last Revolutionary conflict with Indians in the state of Ohio. Crawford was captured, taken back to Upper Sandusky, then taken three miles northwest to Crawford Township on Tymochtee Creek, where he was tortured and burned at the stake on June 11, 1782. He headed the campaign against Sandusky, and this site marked his approach and retreat in the Sandusky Expedition.
