Collins historical sketches of Kentucky. History of Kentucky: Vol. II, Part 107

Author: Collins, Lewis, 1797-1870. cn; Collins, Richard H., 1824-1889. cn
Publication date: 1874
Publisher: Covington, Ky., Collins & Co.
Number of Pages: 1654

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The three men who were sent home with salt, proved quite efficient in other expedions, shortly after. Jesse Coffee, (Rev.) Benjamin Kelly, and Stephen Hancock were among the men surrendered. The Indians acted in good faith with the prisoners and treated them kindly, took them to old Chilli- cothe-the principal Shawnee town, on the Little Miami river, about 3 miles north of the present town of Xenia, in Greene county, Ohio-where they arrived, "after an uncomfortable journey in very severe weather," on Feb. 18th. Thence, on March 10th, 40 Indians took Boone and 10 of his com- panions to Detroit, reaching there March 30th, and receiving marked con- sideration at the hands of the British commander, Gov. Hamilton. He offered the Indians £100 sterling for Boone, intending to send him home on parole; but they refused it. Leaving the other 10 at Detroit, on April 10th they started with Boone to old Chillicothe, reaching there on the 25th, after a long and fatiguing march. The more kindly they treated Boone, the more he won upon their regard-by faithfulness and skill as a hunter, by thoughtful attentions to the chief's, and by sometimes excelling them in shooting at a mark-being careful not to excite their envy by too often beating them. On June 1st, they took him with them to a salt spring, 6 or 8 miles s. E. of where is now Chillicothe, in Ross county, and for ten days kept him at work making salt from a secret spring, cut through a rock, and with a round flat stone fitted in to hide it. A body of 450 Indians having attacked a fort in Green- brier county, Virginia, were defeated. As they returned homeward past this spring, the salt-makers joined them. Boone satisfied that this defeated army intended soon to attack Boonesborough, watched his opportunity; and when near where Washington, Fayette county, now is, escaped before sun- rise, June 16th, and in four days reached Boonesborough, a journey of 160 miles-during which he had but one meal !* The locality of that meal, after traveling on foot 120 miles in three days without eating, should be preserved. It appears from two of his depositions-taken Sept. 28, 1795, and July 3, 1797, on the very spot-that on June 19th, he "roasted some meat and got some drink at the forks of three branches of Flat fork of Johnston's fork of Licking river," in now Robertson or Fleming county ; and afterwards entered the very land as James leeke's pre-emption.

* Boone's Autobiography, by Filson, pp. 347-349; Rev. Thos. S. Hinde's letter in Am. Pioneer, i, 374 ; Depositions of Jesse Coffee, Win. Cradlebaugh, Stephen Hancock, Daniel Boone, and others.

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In the latter part of July, Stephen Hancock made his escape from the Indians, and arrived at Boonesborough safely-with the frightful news that Boone's escape had postponed the expedition for a few weeks, but that it was not abandoned.

Holder's Defeat .- On the 10th of August, 1782, the Indians committed some depredations at Hoy's station, in Madison county, 10 miles s. w. of Boones- borough, and took two boys prisoners. Capt. John Holder, with several men from his own station, on the Kentucky river 2 miles below Boonesborough, started in pursuit-increasing his number of men, as he passed McGee's and Strode's stations, to 17. He came up with the enemy near the Upper Blue Licks, and bravely attacked them. But finding the Indian force greatly superior in numbers, and about to overpower him, quietly gave orders to re- treat-which was effected with the loss of 4 men killed and wounded. The Indian loss was never ascertained.

On the 19th of August, 1782, the fatal battle to which we have previously re- ferred, took place, on the old State road, about half a mile north of the Lower Blue Licks. The Kentuckians who fought this battle left Bryan's station on the afternoon of the 18th, and were composed of one hundred and eighty-two men, according to General G. R. Clark, and of one hundred and sixty-six, ac- cording to Mr Marshall. The subjoined account of the troops, pursuit, and bat- tle, we copy from McClung's Sketches :

"Colonel Daniel Boone, accompanied by his youngest son, headed a strong party from Boonsborough : Trigg brought up the force from the neighborhood of Harrodsburg, John Todd commanded the militia around Lexington. Nearly a third of the whole number assembled was composed of commissioned officers, who hurried from a distance to the scene of hostilities, and for the time took their station in the ranks. Of those under the rank of colonel, the most conspicuous were Majors Harlan, McBride, McGary, and Levi Todd, and Captains Bulger and Gordon. Of the six last named officers, all fell in the subsequent battle, ex- cept Todd and McGary. Todd and Trigg, as senior colonels, took the command, although their authority seems to have been in a great measure nominal. That, however, was of less consequence, as a sense of common danger is often more binding than the strictest discipline.

" A tumultuous consultation, in which every one seems to have had a voice, terminated in an unanimous resolution to pursue the enemy without delay. It was well known that General Logan had collected a strong force in Lincoln, and would join them at farthest in twenty-four hours. It was distinctly understood that the enemy was at least double, and, according to Girty's account, more than treble their own numbers. It was seen that their trail was broad and obvious, and that even some indications of a tardiness and willingness to be pursued, had been observed by their scouts, who had been sent out to reconnoitre, and from which it might reasonably be inferred that they would halt on the way, at least march so leisurely, as to permit them to wait for the aid of Logan! Yet so keen was the ardor of officer and soldier, that all these obvious reasons were over- looked, and in the afternoon of the 18th of August, the line of march was taken up, and the pursuit urged with that precipitate courage which has so often been fatal to Kentuckians. Most of the officers and many of the privates were mounted.

" The Indians had followed the buffalo trace, and as if to render their trail still more evident, they had chopped many of the trees on each side of the road with their hatchets. These strong indications of tardiness, made some impression upon the cool and calculating mind of Boone; but it was too late to advise re- treat. They encamped that night in the woods, and on the following day reached the fatal boundary of their pursuit. At the Lower Bine Licks, for the first time since the pursuit commenced, they came within view of an enemy. As the mis- cellaneous crowd of horse and foot reached the southern bank of Licking, they saw a number of Indians ascending the rocky ridge on the other side.

"They halted upon the appearance of the Kentuckians, gazed at them for a few moments in silence, and then leisurely disappeared over the top of the hill. A halt immediately ensued. A dozen or twenty officers met in front of the ranks,

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and entered into consultation. The wild and lonely aspect of the country around them, their distance from any point of support, with the certainty of their being in the presence of a superior enemy, seems to have inspired a portion of serious- ness, bordering upon awe. All eyes were now turned upon Boone, and Colonel Todd asked his opinion as to what should be done. The veteran woodsman, with his usual unmoved gravity, replied :

"That their situation was critical and delicate; that the force opposed to them was un- doubtedly numerous and ready for battle, as might readily be seen from the leisurely retreat of the few Indians who had appeared upon the crest of the hill; that he was well acquain- ted with the ground in the neighborhood of the Lick, and was apprehensive that an ambus- cade was formed at the distance of a mile in advance, where two ravines, one upon each side of the ridge, ran in such a manner that a concealed enemy might assail them at once both in front and flank, before they were apprised of the danger.

" It would be proper, therefore, to do one of two things. Either to await the arrival of Logan, who was now undoubtedly on his march to join them, or if it was determined to at- tack without delay, that one half of their number should march up the river, which there bends in an elliptical form, cross at the rapids and fall upon the rear of the enemy, while the other division attacked in front. At any rate, he strongly urged the necessity of recon- noitering the ground carefully before the main body crossed the river."

"Such was the counsel of Boone. And although no measure could have been much more disastrous than that which was adopted, yet it may be doubted if any thing short of an immediate retreat upon Logan, could have saved this gallant body of men from the fate which they encountered. If they divided their force, the enemy, as in Estill's case, might have overwhelmed them in detail ; if they remained where they were, without advancing, the enemy would certainly have attacked them, probably in the night, and with a certainty of success. They had committed a great error at first, in not waiting for Logan, and nothing short of a retreat, which would have been considered disgraceful, could now repair it.

" Boone was heard in silence and with deep attention. Some wished to adopt the first plan ; others preferred the second ; and the discussion threatened to be drawn out to some length, when the boiling ardor of McGary, who could never endure the presence of an enemy without instant battle, stimulated him to an act, which had r.early proved destructive to his country. He suddenly interrupted the consultation with a loud whoop, resembling the war-cry of the Indians, spur- red his horse into the stream, waved his hat over his head, and shouted aloud :- "Let all who are not cowards, follow me !" The words and the action together, produced an electrical effect. The mounted men dashed tumultuously into the river, each striving to be foremost. The footmen were mingled with them in one rolling and irregular mass.

" No order was given, and none observed. They struggled through a deep ford as well as they could, McGary still leading the van, closely followed by Majors Harlan and McBride. With the same rapidity they ascended the ridge, which, by the tramping of buffalo foragers, had been stripped bare of all vegetation, with the exception of a few dwarfish cedars, and which was rendered still more desolate in appearance, by the multitude of rocks, blackened by the sun, which were spread over its surface. Upon reaching the top of the ridge, they followed the buffalo trace with the same precipitate ardor ; Todd and frigg in the rear ; McGary, Harlan, McBride, and Boone in front. No scouts were sent in ad- vance ; none explored either flank ; officers and soldiers seemed alike demented by the contagious example of a single man, and all struggled forward, horse and foot, as if to outstrip each other in the advance.

" Suddenly, the van halted. They had reached the spot mentioned by Boone, where the two ravines head, on each side of the ridge. Here a body of Indians presented themselves, and attacked the van. McGary's party instantly returned the fire, but under great disadvantage. They were upon a bare and open ridge ; the Indians in a bushy ravine. The center and rear, ignorant of the ground, hur- ried up to the assistance of the van, but were soon stopped by a terrible fire from the ravine which flanked them. They found themselves enclosed as if in the wings of a net, destitute of proper shelter, while the enemy were in a great mea- sure covered from their fire. Still, however, they maintained their ground. The action became warm and bloody. The parties gradually closed, the Indians emerged from the ravines, and the fire became mutually destructive. The officers

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BATTLE OF THE BLUE LICKS.

suffered dreadfully. Todd and Trigg in the rear; Harlan, McBride, and young Boone, in front, were already killed.

"The Indians gradually extended their line, to turn the right of the Kentucki- ans, and cut off their retreat. This was quickly perceived by the weight of the fire from that quarter, and the rear instantly fell back in disorder, and attempted to rush through their only opening to the river. The motion quickly communi- cated itself to the van, and a hurried retreat became general. The Indians in- stantly sprang forward in pursuit, and falling upon them with their tomahawks, made a cruel slaughter. From the battle ground to the river, the spectacle was terrible. The horsemen generally escaped, but the foot, particularly the van, which had advanced farthest within the wings of the net, were almost totally de- stroyed. Colonel Boone, after witnessing the death of his son and many of his dearest friends, found himself almost entirely surrounded at the very commence- ment of the retreat.

Several hundred Indians were between him and the ford, to which the great mass of the fugitives were bending their flight, and to which the attention of the savages was principally directed. Being intimately acquainted with the ground, he, together with a few friends, dashed into the ravine which the Indians had oc- cupied, but which most of them had now left to join in the pursuit. After sus- taining one or two heavy fires, and baffling one or two small parties, who pursued him for a short distance, he crossed the river below the ford, by swimming, and entering the wood at a point where there was no pursuit, returned by a circuitous route to Bryan's station. In the mean time, the great mass of the victors and vanquished crowded the bank of the ford.

"The slaughter was great in the river. The ford was crowded with horsemen and foot and Indians, all mingled together. Some were compelled to seek a pas- sage above by swimming ; some, who could not swim, were overtaken and killed at the edge of the water. A man by the name of Netherland, who had for- merly heen strongly suspected of cowardice, here displayed a coolness and pres- ence of mind, equally noble and unexpected. Being finely mounted, he had out- stripped the great mass of the fugitives, and crossed the river in safety. A dozen or twenty horsemen accompanied him, and having placed the river between them and the enemy, showed a disposition to continue their flight, without regard to the safety of their friends who were on foot, and still struggling with the current.

" Netherland instantly checked his horse, and in a loud voice, called upon his companions to halt, fire upon the Indians, and save those who were still in the stream. The party instantly obeyed ; and facing about, poured a close and fatal discharge of rifles upon the foremost of the pursuers. The enemy instantly fell back from the opposite bank, and gave time for the harassed and miserable foot-

men to cross in safety. The check, however, was but momentary. Indians were seen crossing in great numbers above and below, and the flight again be- came general. Most of the foot left the great buffalo track, and plunging into the thickets, escaped by a circuitous route to Bryan's station.

" But little loss was sustained after crossing the river, although the pursuit was urged keenly for twenty miles. From the battle ground to the ford, the loss was very heavy."

The foregoing account of the battle of the Blue Licks, we copy from McClung's Sketches, who, we suppose, derived his facts from Marshall. A letter to the au- thor, from a distinguished citizen of Kentucky, far advanced in years, makes the following statement in reference to the battle, which differs, in some important particulars, from Mr. McClung. The writer says :

" Will you include the battle of the Blue Licks in your notes upon Nicholas county ? If so, and you are not in possession of the true account of that battle, I believe I can supply you, and on information derived from Gen. Clark and Si- mon Kenton ; and, also, Capt. Samuel Johnson and Judge Twyman, both of whom were in the battle. It substantially varies from Marshall, &c., who have, most erroneously, blarned the conduct of the officers. Johnson was a captain, and Judge Twymnan a man of high intelligence and perfect veracity. I went over the ground with him, many years since, and was not only shown the spot where the battle began, and where Trigg was killed, but the position of Trigg's, Todd's and Boone's lines. These statements agreed with Kenton's and Gen. Clark's

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the latter receiving his information from his friends in the action: and the Indian chief who fought it. Indeed, Boone's short letter, when correctly understood, corroborates my information, and proves Marshall and others to be in error.

" The whole force assembled in the open Lick ground, and formed three lines -Todd commanding the centre, Trigg the right, and Boone the left lines ; while Capt. Harlan, with twenty-five picked men, formed an advance guard. The whole road from the Lick to the forks was examined by two spies, who reported that they could find no Indians between the two points-the latter, as was soon ascertained, having fallen behind the river hills on either side of the horse-shoe, leaving a few of their number concealed in the grass, in the right hand hollow. As the troops moved on, Trigg's battalion came upon the small number ast mentioned, who fired upon his command, and killed him and two or three of his men. This threw Trigg's line into confusion, and, being attacked by the Indians from the right hill side of the river, before order could be restored, the whole battalion broke. This exposed Todd to a fire in flank, while Harlan and his twenty-five men were at- tacked in front, and the whole, with three exceptions, cut down. Todd's line, in consequence, became exposed to the Indian fire in front as well as on his flank, when a large portion of his men gave ground, leaving the left and front ranks ex- posed to the galling fire of the enemy. A general and tumultuous retreat soon followed, &c.

" Equally untrue is the statement, that Todd hurried the pursuit, without wait- ing the arrival of Logan, for fear of being superseded in the command. The fact is, that Todd was then both a militia colonel and a colonel in the State line, and Logan was but a colonel .* Logan did not reach Bryan's station until the day after the action, so that, if the battle had been delayed, the Indians would have crossed the Ohio before he reached Lexington."

A Third Account of the battle of the Blue Licks-being a semi-official report from Col. Daniel Boone, the third in command, to the governor of Virginia-confirms the latter account in some important particulars, and throws additional light upon the painful subject:

BOONE'S STATION, FAYETTE COUNTY, AUGUST 30, 1782.

Sir :- Present circumstances of affairs cause me to write to your Excellency as follows : On the 16th instant a large number of Indians, with some white men, attacked one of our frontier stations, known by the name of Bryan's station. The siege continued from about sunrise till about ten o'clock the next day, when they marched off.

Notice being given to the neighboring stations, we immediately raised 181 horsemen, commanded by Col. John Todd-including some of the Lincoln county militia, commanded by Col. Trigg; and having pursued about forty miles, on the 19th inst. we discovered the enemy lying in wait for us. On this discovery we formed our columns into one single line, and marched up in their front within about forty yards before there was a gun fired. Col. Trigg commanded on the right, myself on the left, Maj. McGary in the center, and Maj. Harlan the advance party in the front.

From the manner in which we had formed, it fell to my lot to bring on the attack. This was done with a very heavy fire on both sides, and extended back of the line to Col. Trigg ; where the enemy was so strong that they rushed up and broke the right wing at the first fire. Thus the enemy got in our rear; and we were compelled to retreat with the loss of seventy seven of our men and twelve wounded.

Afterwards we were reinforced by Col. Logan, which made our force four hundred and sixty men. We marched again to the battle-ground ; but finding the enemy had gone, we proceeded to bury the dead. We found forty-three on the ground, and many lay about which we could not stay to find, hungry and weary as we were, and somewhat dubious that the enemy might not have gone off quite. By the sign we thought the Indians had exceeded four hun- dred; while the whole of the militia of this county does not amount to more than one hundred and thirty.

From these facts your Excellency may form an idea of our situation. [ know that your own circumstances are critical, but are we to be wholly for-

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gotten ? I hope not. I trust about five hundred men may be sent to our as- sistance immediately. If these shall be stationed as our county lieutenants shall deem necessary, it may be the means of saving our part of the country ; but if they are placed under the direction of Gen. George Rogers Clark, they will be of little or no service to our settlement. The Falls lie one hundred miles west of us, and the Indians northeast; while our men are frequently called to protect them. I have encouraged the people in this county all that I could; but I can no longer justify them or myself to risk our lives here under such extraordinary hazards. The inhabitants of this county are very much alarmed at the thoughts of the Indians bringing another campaign into our country this fall. If this should be the case, it will break up these settle- ments. I hope, therefore, your Excellency will take the matter into your consideration, and send us some relief as quick as possible.

These are my sentiments without consulting any person. Col. Logan will, I expect, immediately send you an express, by whom I humbly request your Excellency's answer. In the meanwhile I remain,

Daniel Boone

As a Fourth Account of this appalling disaster, we extract a portion of the description given by Gov. James T. Morehead, in his celebrated address at Boonesborough, May 25, 1840, in commemoration of the first settlement of Kentucky :

" Before any judgment was pronounced by the council upon the expediency of the two alternative movements urged by Col. Boone, all further proceedings were arrested by the indiscreet zeal of Maj. Hugh McGary, who 'raised the war-whoop,' and spurring his horse into the river, called vehemently upon all who were not cowards to follow him, and he would show them the enemy. Presently the army was in motion. The greater part suffered themselves to be led by McGary-the remainder, perhaps a third of the whole number, lingered awhile with Todd and Boone in council. All at length passed over. At Boone's suggestion, the commanding officer ordered another halt. The pioneer then proposed, a second time, that the army should remain where it was, until an opportunity was afforded to reconnoiter the suspected region. So reasonable a proposal was acceded to; and two bold but experienced men were selected, to proceed from the lick along the buffalo trace to a point half a mile beyond the ravines, where the road branched off in different directions. They were instructed to examine the country with the utmost care on each side of the road, especially the spot where it passed between the ravines, and upon the first appearance of the enemy to repair in haste to the army. The spies discharged the dangerous and responsible task. They crossed over the ridge-proceeded to the place designated beyond it, and returned in safety without having made any discovery. No trace of the enemy was to be seen.

" The little army of one hundred and eighty-two men now marched for- ward-Col. Trigg was in command of the right wing, Boone of the left, Me- Gary in the center, and Major Harlan with the party in front. Such is Boone's account of the positions of the several officers. He does not define Col. Todd's. The historians have assigned him to the right with Col. Trigg. The better opinion seems to be that he commanded the center.

"As they approached the ravines it became apparent that Boone's antici- pations were well founded, and that the vigilance of the spies had been com- pletely eluded. The enemy lay concealed in both ravines in great numbers. The columns marched up within forty yards of the Indian line before a gun was fired. The battle immediately commenced with great fury and most destructive effect on both sides. 'The advantage of position and overwhelin- ing numbers soon determined it in favor of the savages. The fire was pecu-

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liarly severe upon the right. Col. Trigg fell, and with him nearly the whole of the Harrodsburg troops. Boone manfully sustained himself on the left. Major Harlan defended the front until only three of his men remained. He also fell, covered with wounds. The Indians now rushed upon them with their tomahawks, spreading confusion and dismay through their broken and disabled ranks. The whole right, left, and center gave way, and a mingled and precipitate retreat commenced. Some regained their horses- others fled on foot. Col. Todd was shot through the body, and when he was last seen, he was reeling in his saddle, while the blood gushed in profusion from his wound. The Indians were then in close pursuit.

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Collins historical sketches of Kentucky. History of Kentucky: Vol. II, Part 107

Author: Collins, Lewis, 1797-1870. cn; Collins, Richard H., 1824-1889. cn Publication date: 1874 Publisher: Covington, Ky., Collins & Co. Number of Pages: 1654

Author: Collins, Lewis, 1797-1870. cn; Collins, Richard H., 1824-1889. cn
Publication date: 1874
Publisher: Covington, Ky., Collins & Co.
Number of Pages: 1654