In 1695 the Shawnee Indian tribe migrated from their homeland in Virginia to the Ohio River Valley. Martin Chartier, who is acknowledged as the "white leader" of the Shawnee, was with them as they passed through the southern part of present-day Bedford County. The migration route of the Shawnee is believed to have included passage through the Alliquippa’s Gap and over the ridge at the Willows, east of the Narrows.
The German Indian-agent, Conrad Weiser, also traveled through Mother Bedford, passing through present-day Huntingdon and Blair Counties. Weiser was sent by the provincial government of Pennsylvania to treat with the Indians of the Ohio Valley at Logstown in 1748. His journey followed the Kittanning Trail, an established Indian path through central Pennsylvania. Weiser kept a journal of his trip, and from it we find that he visited George Croghan's settlement (near present-day Shirleysburg, Huntingdon County), Black Log (near present-day Orbisonia, Huntingdon County), Standing Stone (present-day Huntingdon Borough) and Franks Town (in present-day Blair County).
