USA > Kentucky > Lewis County > History of Lewis County, Kentucky > Part 23
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"About the year 1822 two men came, late in the evening, to the house of Robert Rea, on the East Fork of Cabin Creek, and at the same place where Thos. Rea now resides, and asked permission to stay all night. With the usual generosity of the Kentucky pioneer, Mr. Rea granted their request, and as the weather was warm, and they desired to sleep out on a porch, he also granted that request. In the morning he discovered that his two visitors had a haver- sack full of lead that they did not have the evening before, but they refused to tell him where they got it, though they intimated that they could not have gone far during the night.
Two old gentlemen who lived in that neigh- borhood always claimed that they knew where a lead mine was situated. Their names were
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Wau and Miller, and they indicated that the mine was somewhere between Mr. Rea's and a roundtop, known as "Bald Knob." It is said that Mr. Wau once took a man by the name of Looney, who resided in the neighborhood, to a spot in the woods and showed him a large stone, with the remark that "this rock looks like one where I used to get lead," and pointing to an old handspike, he said, "That looks like the spike I used to lift rock with, and that cut limb on a dogwood looks like the place where I used to hang my powder horn when I came to get lead." Mr. Looney, whom it, seems, was well- named, did not think till he had been led away what the old man was really trying to disclose to him, but afterwards concluded that Wau was showing him the lead mine, and he spent many days vainly searching for the place again, and could not find it; because Wau had taken him such a circuitous route to and from the place that it was lost to him. The old settlers have always claimed that the Indians got lead in this vicinity. Mr. Peter Hoover attempted to locate the mine, but failed. In later years Messrs. Brady and Bassett spent months in excavating shafts and cutting trenches about Bald Knob, but to no purpose, as the mine is still as much a hidden mystery as it was before. But there seems, from the concurrent testimony
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of old citizens, that there is no doubt of a pocket of lead being hidden somewhere in the region of the "Bald Knob."
SILVER MINES ON KINNY .- The following letter is from the Portsmouth Press, the latter part from the author of the Press letter direct to the author:
A SILVER ARTICLE
Recently the Press contained a letter from a gen- tleman who knew the Waites, who used to make silver money in Adams County. That letter stirred up Mr. W. R. Beatty, Sr., of Sciotoville, who kindly contributes the following interesting information relative to the subject :
"EDITOR Press .- Having seen the articles in your columns relative to the discovery of silver in Adams County, O., and the mention of the family of Jonathan Waite and the so-called 'Waite dollar,' I thought the following would be of interest to your readers.
"The log cabin referred to by your former correspond- ent was a veritable mint where thousands of silver dol- lars were coined, which passed as current as the coin of the realm.
"But Waite could not work ore so impure as that found in Adams County. The Waite dollar was made from the ore just as found, without refining, and con- tained more silver than the American dollar.
"Waite procured his ore on Kinniconnick, in Lewis County, Ky. My great uncle, Andrew Beatty, dis- covered the mine in 1812, and it was through the in- timacy of his and my father's family that Waite came to a knowledge of the mine.
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"Andrew Beatty's prospecting extended from the head of main Kinny to within twelve miles of Boone Furnace. Here the ore became impure, and was not traced further. This territory embraces nearly the whole of Lewis and Carter Counties. My uncle, after many failures to open and work the mines, died upon the eve of success, and none of my ancestors ever made any further attempt in that direction.
"Waite was interested in the matter, and one day came to my grandfather's and told him that, as it ap- peared that they would never get to do anything with the mines legally, he intended to make immediate ar- rangements to begin 'free coinage.' My grandfather tried to persuade him not to do so, but when he would not be persuaded, he gave him several hundred weight of the ore, which he then had in his possession, and this ore made the first installment of Waite dollars. Waite took into his confidence a smart Yankee, who assumed an Irish character, and who was supposed to be insane. He was known as Billie Johnson. Billie was not infrequently absent for months. His business was to transport the ore to the Ohio River, at a point now known as the Boone Furnace landing, it being taken across the river in a 'dug-out' and concealed in a place agreed upon. Waite was very ingenious, and divided his time between his mint and a perpetual motion machine. The latter showed more ingenuity than his curious and skillful method of striking coin. His ma- chinery, when once set in motion, would run until worn out, if not stopped. Gravity was the motor, and the power could be increased at pleasure. This machine was never brought to public notice, but it served Waite many a good purpose. Science may declare perpetual motion impossible, but those who saw this curious piece of mechanism will doubt the dictum.
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"Waite's phenomenal success induced parties in Highland County, whose names I do not care to men- tion, to increase their finances by the same method, and thousands of dollars were made there. The quality of this ore may well be guessed, when it is remembered that there was not a mile of wagon-road between High- land County and Kinniconnick, and the only means of transportation was the pack mule.
"A man named Sprinkle, of Kentucky, was the next to enter the ring. (I know that some will dispute this and claim that the scene of Sprinkle's operations was in Virginia.) The principal scene of his operations was on Laurel Fork of Kinny, and they were of no mean proportions, either. Sprinkle often crossed the river at Greenup, and his first stopping place on this side was at a house near what is known as Giant Oak Mills, on Pine Creek. On these occasions he was always loaded, but he much oftener made his way to Vanceburg, and many a goodly structure in that vicinity owes its ex- istence to Sprinkle dollars. (Two Sprinkle dollars are now owned in Vanceburg.) The next to take the cue was Shepherd, of Kentucky fame. The scene of his operations was about fifteen miles from Boone Furnace, Ky.
"Shepherd was a regular 'moonshiner,' and had a smelter of no mean proportions concealed in the moun- tains, which was guarded night and day. He was soon trapped, and was sent to the penitentiary for eight years. The ore worked by him was not very good, and gave him a good deal of trouble to flux it. It is to be found about ten miles beyond Boone Furnace, where my uncle left off prospecting.
"The next to add to the circulating medium was George Wright & Co., of near Haverhill, in this county. Shepherd having served his time in prison, returned to
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his old haunts and questionable ways. Wright and others, all well-to-do farmers in the vicinity of Haver- hill, O., formed an acquaintance with him, and undertook to work the ore on this side the river. Wright was an ingenious mechanic, but the impurities of the ore baffled him. Shepherd came to his relief by smelting the ore in his furnace, and casting it in long strips the exact thickness and width of a half dollar. These bars were taken to a trysting place near Greenup and turned over to Wright. Wright procured a powerful machine from
Cincinnati. This machine was working with a lever, and every stroke made a half dollar. But the old proverb-'The wicked are taken in their own crafti- ness'-was here verified. A slight indiscretion of one of the parties revealed their little scheme. Wright went up for five years, the others for a shorter term.
"Shepherd was indiscreet, and being closely watched, soon found himself the, second time in 'limbo,' and went up for a long term, dying before his time expired.
"I have endeavored to give a brief and connected outline of the principal actors upon this curious drama. Many others of lesser note might have been instanced, but to follow the devious wanderings of all would make this too long a newspaper article.
"The question may well be asked, what became of all this spurious coin? The answer is easy:
"Having once passed into circulation, it could not be distinguished from the genuine, because it was silver. After becoming a very little worn, the slight defect of execution could not be noticed; and if any one should receive a Waite or Sprinkle dollar to-day he would be satisfied to know that it was silver without having it tested for the copper alloy. They are all in circulation, and if you should chance to have two dollars in your
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pocket, one from Waite's and the other from the United States mint, you can not tell 'which is which.'
"This article would seem incomplete without a brief outline of the circumstances that led to the dis- covery of silver by my ancestors in the territory here named. One who has ever visited Kinny will be surprised at the number of weird traditions related to him by the old settlers, and would find it a hard task to trace the traditions back to their origin. In the year 1776 a small party of men were making their way from the East to the new settlements of Kentucky. On the journey they were attacked by Indians, and one of their number, named McCormick, was taken prisoner. He was taken to the head of Kinny, where the main body of Indians were encamped. He was tied to a stake, and they pro- ceeded to roast him after the manner of their instinct. As the Indians were firing the fagots, three white men approached. The three white men proved to be French missionaries, who interfered and saved McCormick's life. On the day following an Indian brought into camp a specimen of pure silver, which excited the curiosity of these Frenchmen. Upon making inquiry they found that it existed in abundance near the camp. After a careful investigation they decided to work the mine, and one of the men-De Burtte by name-and an Indian started to Fort Pitt for men and material. In due time they returned with sixteen other Frenchmen, and proceeded to build a small smelter, to make char- coal, and to open the mine. Twenty of the Indians remained with the French, and they continued their operations for the space of nearly three years. The Revolution was now in full blast, and the Indians went on the war path. Nearly the entire product of this mine, consisting of silver bars, was concealed near the
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scene of operations. The above is a condensed statement of De Burtte's story, given in writing thirty-five years later. Andrew Beatty had discovered the old furnace and the old mine, and had prospected the entire country from the head of main Kinny to near the Spheherd mine, and had found many rich deposits of silver before he ever saw De Burtte's statement. Perhaps the richest of these is on Laurel Fork. My father had what he considered some 'lean samples' of this ore assayed, which yielded seventy per cent of silver.
"But this article has increased in length far beyond my expectations, and I am not through. If it should seem to interest any one, I may have more to say hereafter. W. R. BEATTY, SR."
"If any one is curious to locate the old mine worked by the French and Indians, they will proceed up main Kinny until they come to the property owned, in A. D. 1867, by a man named Coleman. About one mile above the Coleman residence, a long, decp hollow intersects Kinny on the right as you face up stream. At the mouth of this hollow (in the fifties) stood a log cabin owned and occupied by a man known as Billy Burriss. The cabin burned down long since. This cabin stood on nearly the exact spot where McCormick was tied to the stake, and also on the spot occupied by the little smelter which was built by the French, and is truly an historic spot. Standing on this spot, with the face up Kinny, the old mine is on the left, a short distance up the hill, and is an object of much interest. It is easily found, and presents a strange appearance. The furnace, when found by my uncle, was compeltely in ruins. All the mining tools and implements used by them were in the furnace, and a small portion of their last heat was chilled in the crucible.
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"I know that geologists will and do say that the geological conditions of Southern Ohio and Northern Kentucky preclude the possibility of the precious metals, but since the declaration of these geologists silver has been discovered in Adams County, Ohio, and I speak the words of truth when I say that I know there are rich silver mines in Lewis and Carter Counties; and further, some as rich specimens of gold quartz as I ever saw were found on the dividing ridge between main Kinny and Triplet Creek. I have been in many placer gold mines, and I wish to say with emphasis that the locality here named shows every evidence of free gold. Has there ever been a single panful of dirt washed in all this region?
"W. R. BEATTY."
"MR. SPRINKLE'S GOOD DOLLARS
"'I saw by the papers the other day where three of the famous "Sprinkle" dollars had shown up,' said F. L. Strowbridge, of Peoria, Ill., to a Washington Times reporter.
"'Do you know what the "Sprinkle" dollars were? No? Well, Josiah Sprinkle, the man in question, lived in one of the roughest sections of Lewis County, Ky. Washington, the county seat of Mason, was then a thriving town. One day Sprinkle, then an old man, appeared at Washington with a buckskin pouch full of silver dollars of his own make.
"'In every respect they appeared the equal of the national coin. The weight was more than at present, and the quality and the ring were all that could be asked for. He spent them freely and everybody accepted them upon the assurance of Sprinkle that they were all right, except that they were not made by the United States mint. Upon being asked where he got the silver,
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he replied, "Oh, it don't matter! There is plenty of it left." The inscriptions on the coins were rudely out- lined, and in no wise was an attempt made at imitating the national coin. On one side of the coin was an owl, and on the other a six-pointed star. The edges were smooth. The coins were considerably larger and thicker than the United States coin. Whenever Sprinkle came to town he spent the dollars of his own make.
"'At one time he volunteered the information that he had a silver mine in the West, but the old man re- fused to tell any one where it was located. Finally the Government agents heard of the matter and came on to investigate. Sprinkle was arrested and brought into court, but the dollars were proved to be pure silver, without alloy, worth, in fact, a trifle more than one dollar each. After an exciting trial he was acquitted. When the verdict was announced Sprinkle reached down in his pockets and drew out a bag of fifty of the coins and paid his attorney in the presence of the as- tonished officials. Sprinkle was never afterward both- ered, and continued to make the dollars until the time of his death. He died suddenly and carried the secret of his silver mine with him. This was in the carly thirties, and it has been twenty years since a Sprinkle dollar has been found.'"
It was on the trail from Vanceburg to the interior settlements, and near Kirk Springs, that the only recorded fight with Indians in Lewis County occurred. Collins' History gives it as follows, on page 300:
"A party of Indians having stolen horses from some of the upper stations, were pursued by a party of whites, who called at Stockton's Station for reinforce-
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ments. Ben (a colored man belonging to Major George Stockton), with others, gladly volunteered. The Indians were overtaken at Kirk's Springs, in Lewis County. The whites, dismounting, secured their horses and ad- vanced to the attack. Only eight or ten Indians could be seen, and they retreated rapidly over the mountain. The whites followed, but in descending the mountain, discovered, from an attempt to outflank them, that the retreating Indians were but part of the many remaining behind to decoy them into an ambuscade, prepared at the base of the mountain. Various indications plainly showed that the Indians were greatly superior in num- ber, and the whites were ordered to retreat. Ben was told of the order by a man near him, but was so in- tently engaged that he did not hear. The man, in a louder tone, warned him of his danger. Ben turned upon him a reproving look, with indescribable grimaces and ludicrous gesticulations, admonishing silence, and springing forward, set off at a furious rate down the mountain. The man, unwilling to leave him, started after, and reached his side in time to see him level his rifle at a huge Indian down the mountain, tiptoe on a log, peering, with outstretched neck, into the thick woods. Ben's rifle cracked, and the Indian, bounding high in air, fell heavily to the earth. A fierce yell answered this act of daring, 'and the Indians (said Ben) skipped from tree to tree, thick as grasshoppers.' Ben, chuckling with huge self-satisfaction, bawled out, 'Take that to 'member Ben, de black white man,' and set off in earnest after his retreating party."
Isaac Carr used (1836) to run a hotel that was situated on the river bank, at Vanceburg, just in front of where the Bireley flouring mill
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now stands. In one of the carousals at the inn a general fight took place, and Larkin Liles, of Kinny, bit off the lip of Ed. Campbell. He was sentenced by the court to serve one year in the penitentiary for his offense. W. B. Parker, who was sheriff at the time, was to take him to Frankfort. Mr. Liles told him that, as it was now fall, and that his corn needed cutting and his family would need wood for the winter, that he would go home and attend to these matters and then meet him in Vanceburg on a certain day, ready to make the trip to Frank- fort. Strange as it may seem now, the sheriff consented to this arrangement, and on the ap- pointed day, true to his promise, Mr. Liles ap- peared. He then told the sheriff that he would walk through the country to Frankfort, and that he could go round by the stage route and meet him there. This was also agreed to, and Mr. Liles reached the Capital several days in advance of the sheriff. Not being able to find Mr. Parker, Liles reported to the governor, to whom he told the whole story, and also said that he was ready to go to the prison and com- mence serving out his time. The governor in- formed him that he had no right to commit him to prison till the officer should arrive with the necessary papers and identify him as the prisoner. He waited till the sheriff arrived, and
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when he did so and vouched for the correctness of Mr. Liles' story, the governor pardoned him, and he and Mr. Parker came back home together.
Between 1840 and 1845, Brown, Wooster and Company were operating a lot of gang sawmills on Kinny, near the residence of T. B. Harrison, and they built a tram railroad from their mill, up Grassy and over the mountain, and down by Dry Run to Vanceburg. Over this road, with cars drawn by mules, they hauled their lumber to the river. Part of the old timber of the road could still be seen only a few years ago, and perhaps it is still there.
It is said that there was an old trunk in the McKellup family which was one hundred and two years old. It was sent from Wilson's Bot- tom, March 17, 1896, to Elizabeth Woodworth, Russelville, Brown County, O. There is also an old stew pot in Robert McKellup's posses- sion which twice crossed the Atlantic from Eng- land to Virginia, and finally emigrated to Ken- tucky, about 1800. It is supposed to be about four hundred years old.
Robt. Carter at one time thought the salt water at Vanceburg might still be of some value if it had been superseded for salt making, so he built a vat near the present residence of N. B. Webster, filled it with salt water, and
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then planted it with oysters. He intended that Chesapeake Bay should be brought right to the door of Vanceburgians; but alas for human expectations, his oysters failed to thrive, and the enterprise had to be abandoned. But he furnished lots of fun for the gossips, and as he was wealthy he did not mind it much. He was only experimenting, anyway.
Ezekiel Stone tells the following story:
"About the year 1800, when all the 'Kinny' country was a vast wilderness, an old hunter by the name of Barker built his cabin on Laurel Creek, where the bear, deer, and other game was plentiful. One day he found it necessary to go for salt at the furnace near Vanceburg. Al- though it was bitter cold, he fared forth, and nearing his journey's end, he came by a giant poplar tree, on the farm now owned by Jas. Stone, and leaning against the base of the tree was a little white boy, frozen to death. The old hunter thought, of course, the boy belonged to some neighbor. He started out to find his home, and although he looked and inquired among the few settlers, no trace of the boy's home was ever found. The old hunter buried the little fellow at the foot of the great tree, and his origin still remains a mystery."
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