USA > Tennessee > Bedford County > History of Tennessee, from the earliest time to the present; together with an historical and a biographical sketch of Maury, Williamson, Rutherford, Wilson, Bedford and Marshall counties, besides a valuable fund of notes, reminiscences, observations, etc., etc, Vol.2 > Part 11
USA > Tennessee > Marshall County > History of Tennessee, from the earliest time to the present; together with an historical and a biographical sketch of Maury, Williamson, Rutherford, Wilson, Bedford and Marshall counties, besides a valuable fund of notes, reminiscences, observations, etc., etc, Vol.2 > Part 11
USA > Tennessee > Wilson County > History of Tennessee, from the earliest time to the present; together with an historical and a biographical sketch of Maury, Williamson, Rutherford, Wilson, Bedford and Marshall counties, besides a valuable fund of notes, reminiscences, observations, etc., etc, Vol.2 > Part 11
USA > Tennessee > Maury County > History of Tennessee, from the earliest time to the present; together with an historical and a biographical sketch of Maury, Williamson, Rutherford, Wilson, Bedford and Marshall counties, besides a valuable fund of notes, reminiscences, observations, etc., etc, Vol.2 > Part 11
USA > Tennessee > Williamson County > History of Tennessee, from the earliest time to the present; together with an historical and a biographical sketch of Maury, Williamson, Rutherford, Wilson, Bedford and Marshall counties, besides a valuable fund of notes, reminiscences, observations, etc., etc, Vol.2 > Part 11
USA > Tennessee > Rutherford County > History of Tennessee, from the earliest time to the present; together with an historical and a biographical sketch of Maury, Williamson, Rutherford, Wilson, Bedford and Marshall counties, besides a valuable fund of notes, reminiscences, observations, etc., etc, Vol.2 > Part 11
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and a graduate of the university of that city; also a graduate in philos- ophy and Jewish theology at the Rabbinical College, at Preszburg. He is eminent as a Hebrew scholar, and previous to his coming to Nashville was in charge of a congregation in Cincinnati for twelve years. He suc- ceeded in introducing the American ritual and mode of worship in the place of the old Polish form, in conformity with the free institutions of this country and the progressive spirit of the age. A choir was also or- ganized. It is recognized as one of the best in the city, and renders in an excellent manner the Jewish sacred music.
The adoption of the new ritual was displeasing to a small portion of the congregation, who under the name of K. K. Adath Israel formed a new society by electing I. B. Cohen, president, and L. Rosenheim, vice- president. The organization remains much the same at the present time, and continues to worship according to the orthodox mode. In 1885, at a cost of $12,000, a chapel and vault was erected, which is considered the finest structure of the kind in the United States.
In 1864 a congregation was organized at Knoxville under the name of Beth El, or "House of God." The membership has never been very large, and now embraces about twelve families, with E. Samuel as presi- dent and E. Heart as secretary.
A congregation was organized at Chattanooga in 1867, and now num- bers about twenty-seven familes, under the care of Rabbi Julius Ochs. Dr. M. Bloch is president of the society, and Joseph Simpson, secretary. The church property is valued at $5,000. At Murfreesboro a few years ago a congregation was organized with a membership of sixteen or ser- enteen families, but owing to the removal of a large number from the town, only three or four families remain, and the organization is not maintained. Columbia and several other towns have small organizations, but no rabbis are employed. Almost every town in the State has one or more Jewish families, nearly all of whom upon the most important days especially, New Year's day and the Day of Atonement, attend services in the larger cities, as Memphis, Nashville or Chattanooga.
The Jewish Church throughout the State is in a very prosperous con- dition, and is pervaded with a spirit of liberalty and toleration in keeping with the age. The congregation at Nashville under the care of Rabbi Goldamer, during the past eight years has increased from fifty-four to 135 families. The Sabbath-school children number 108. The annual expenses of the church are about $5,500. Its property is valued at $25,000. The president of the society is L. J. Loewenthal; the secretary, M. Wertham. The congregation at Memphis numbers 110 families under the care of Dr. M. Samfield. Its property is valued at $40,000. Its annual expenses
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are $6,500. The Sabbath-school children number 120. The president of the congregation is E. Lowenstein; the secretary, Samuel Hirsch.
Previous to the civil war there were but few separate or independent colored churches in Tennessee, the institution of slavery being inimical to such separate organizations. But there were many colored members of white churches, especially of the Methodists. Since the war the col- ored people have organized churches of their own all over the State, and at the present time a colored member of a white church, if ever, is a very rare occurrence. Most of the churches of this race belong to the Methodist or Baptist denominations, these denominations being usually more demonstrative and emotional in their devotion than others; still there are Colored Episcopal, Congregational and other churches. It is altogether probable that a larger proportion of the colored race than of the white race belong to their various churches, the intelligence of the former not being as yet sufficiently developed to permit them to rest easy outside the pale of the church.
CHAPTER XIX.
BIOGRAPHY OF EMINENT CITIZENS-A COMPREHENSIVE SKETCH OF THE SOCIAL AND PROFESSIONAL CHARACTER, THE DOMESTIC RELATIONS AND THE PUBLIC SERVICES OF A NUMBER OF DISTINGUISHED TENNESSEEANS.
T HE family of John Sevier was of French origin, the name originally being Xavier. On account of their being Huguenots they were exiled from France and went to England. They arrived in that country about the beginning of the last century. Valentine Sevier, the father of John Sevier, was born in London, and some time previous to 1740, fol- lowing the tide of emigration westward, he crossed the Atlantic and set- tled in the Shenandoah Valley in the colony of Virginia. Here John Sevier was born in the year 1744, and here too his boyhood days were spent. His opportunities for literary attainments were very limited, but what were afforded were well improved.
Under the auspices and patronage of Lord Dunmore, who was then governor of Virginia, young Sevier received a captain's commission in the King's troops. Once driven from home it was difficult for the family to find a new one that gave satisfaction. The glowing pictures of the West, with its beautiful valleys and picturesque scenery, led Valentine Sevier, the father, to again change his home. The Sevier family settled
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on the Holston in what is now Sullivan County, but Valentine above mentioned settled on the Watauga, " the beautiful river." Here Valen- tine Sevier made a permanent settlement between Sycamore Shoals and Elizabethton, and here he lived to a green old age. The early settlers iu this section thought they were settling within the territorial limits of Virginia, but soon found they were under the jurisdiction of North Car- olina. For a number of years these settlers had to contend alone against the Indians and other enemies of the new settlement. Doubtless this independent schooling had something to do in shaping the character of John Sevier. In 1772 the settlers held an election in this new colony and chose thirteen commissioners, whose duty it was to exercise the func- tions of government. Out of the thirteen chosen five were elected a court, " by whom all things were to be settled." The district of this settlement was called the District of Washington. John Sevier was chosen one of the thirteen commissioners and one of the five out of the thirteen for a court. While a member of this court and commissioner Sevier addressed a memorial to North Carolina urging her to extend her government over the Washington District. The appeal was successful, and in 1776 he was chosen a member of the Legislature of that State and assisted in forming the constitution for North Carolina. The terri- torial limits of the States had been better defined and instead of extend- ing to the South Sea the Mississippi River was recognized as the western boundary. In setting forth the boundaries of North Carolina it may be said the `germ from which sprang Tennessee was planted. The lan- guage of the boundary of North Carolina, which says that the "boundary shall not be construed as to prevent the establishment of one or more goverments westward of this State by consent of the Legislature," is the language of Sevier. On the outbreak of the Revolution Sevier threw all of his wonderful influence in favor of the infant Republic. His home was ever the rendezvous of the leading Whigs, and frequently was the place of meeting of the clans preparatory to a descent upon the British and Tories or the Indians. The history of his work in the Revolution- ary and in the Indian wars is given in the military chapter of this work. After the battle of King's Mountain thirty of the Tory prisoners were condemned to death. It was decided to hang only twelve of them. Cols. Sevier and Campbell determined, after eleven had been hanged, to save the twelfth man. The officer in charge of the work was much more zealous in hanging unarmed men than he had been in fighting the armed British, and seemed determined on carrying out sentence on the last. Col. Sevier ordered the work stopped. saying he was sick of it, and said to the officer: "If you had been as industrious in killing soldiers this.
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morning as you are this evening in hanging prisoners. we would not have had so many to hang."
After the close of the Revolutionary war the several States ceded their surplus territory to the General Government. By the cession act of June 1, 1784, North Carolina ceded the whole State of Tennessee, in- cluding four organized counties. These counties were left without any government, in fact, about in the same condition as they were previous to the Revolution. They elected two men from each captain's company to meet in convention at Jonesborough on August 23, 1784. Of this assembly John Sevier was chosen president. The cession act was re- pealed in November, and Col. Sevier was made a brigadier-general for North Carolina. A second convention was called, of which Sevier was again made president. A legislature was elected, and Col. Sevier was chosen governor of the new State called Franklin, a position which he held from 1784 to 1788, when Franklin again became subservient to North Carolina. Gov. Sevier announced the separation and independence of Franklin. Gov. Martin, of North Carolina, declared the mountain- eers rebellious subjects; likewise did Gov. Caswell. Counter proclama- tions were issued by Sevier. Gov. Johnson directed Judge Campbell to issue a bench warrant against Sevier for high treason. The warrant was directed to Col. John Tipton, a North Carolina rival of Sevier, who ar- rested him. To prevent his rescue Sevier was taken across the moun- tains to Morganton, where court convened to try him for high treason. The friends of Sevier also went to Morganton, and entered the court room and attracted the attention of the court while the prisoner made his escape. In 1789, with the indictment still against him, Sevier was sent to the Senate of North Carolina. After he was sworn in a motion
was made to inquire into Sevier's conduct, but was lost by an overwhelm- ing majority. In March, 1790, he was elected to Congress and took his seat in that body in June, being the first representative from the Missis- sippi Valley in that body. North Carolina again ceded her territory west of the mountains to Congress. President Washington appointed William Blount territorial governor, who in turn appointed John Sevier as brigadier-general of the territory. On the removal of the seat of the new territory to Knoxville, Sevier left Nollichucky and settled near Knox- ville, and after a time he moved into the city. He was one of the com- missioners with Blount in a great treaty with the Indians on the Holston River. On August 25, 1794, he was appointed a member of the Legis- lative Council of the territory, and in a few days he was made one of the trustees of Blount College, now East Tennessee University. He re- mained an active member of the trustees till his death. On September
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23, 1794, he introduced a. bill incorporating Knoxville, and in a short time assisted in the establishment of Washington College.
In 1796 the territory southwest of the Ohio became the State of Ten- nessee. Writs of election were directed to the sheriffs, directing them to hold a general election on March 28, 1796, for the election of mem- bers of the General Assembly and governor. The choice for governor fell upon John Sevier. He was re-elected in 1797 and again in 1799. Being ineligible for a fourth term he was out two years, when he was again elected for three terms in succession. This brought him to the year 1811, when he was chosen a member of Congress from the Knox- ville District, and again elected in 1813. This was during the period of war with Great Britain. He rendered efficient service on the committee of military affairs during that period. In 1815 Mr. Monroe appointed him commissioner to run the boundary line of the lands ceded by the Creeks to the United States. He left his home in Knoxville in June, and in September was taken sick of miasmatic fever and died on the 24th of the month at the Indian town Tuckabatchie. He was buried by a detachment of United States soldiers under Capt. Walker, on the east bank of the Tallapoosa, near Fort Decatur, Ala. While he was away on official duty to find his grave, his constituents at home again elected him to a seat in Congress, but it is doubtful if he ever heard of his election. He is described as being five feet ten or eleven inches in height, with a most symmetrical well-knit frame, inclining in late years to fullness; his ordinary weight about 140 or 150 pounds; his complexion ruddy, fair skin; his eyes blue, expressive of vivacity, benignancy and fearlessness ; the nose not aquiline but prominent, with a mouth and chin of chiseled perfection. His form was erect and his walk rapid. He was exceedingly colloquial, urbane, convivial and of most commanding presence. His dress was always neat. He claimed to be the best equestrian in the country, and spent much of his time on horseback. It is said that his individuality was so great that a stranger would never have difficulty in pointing him out in an assembly upon being told that John Sevier was there. He was a military leader for nearly twenty years, and fought thirty-two pitched battles but was never defeated, even in a skirmish. His plan of battle was the impetuous charge, of which he was the leader. He it was that introduced the Indian war-whoop into civilized warfare, and which struck the British with such terror. He was in many des- perate hand-to-hand .encounters, but was never wounded. During all his military service, except the last, he never received a cent. His house was the place of rendezvous for his men, and a general without commis- sion he enforced discipline. Men die without any public service and
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have towering shafts of marble erected to their memory, yet John Sevier, who founded a great State and gave it forty years of public service, died and not only no monument marks his grave, but even his burial place is unknown.
Gen. James Robertson,* "the father of Tennessee," was born in Brunswick County, Va., on the 28th of June, 1742. While he was yet a youth his parents moved to Wake County, N. C., where he grew to manhood and married Miss Charlotte Reeves. When that event oc- curred he had already obtained the rudiments of an education, and as Wake County at that time was the center of the intelligence and culture of the colony, he had laid the foundation of the broad and liberal char- acter for which he was ever distinguished. He had also become imbued with the spirit of liberty which was invading every American colony, and in 1770, to escape the oppression of the tyrant Tryon, he resolved to seek a home beyond the mountains. Accordingly in the spring of that year, with a small party, of whom Daniel Boone is believed to have been. the leader, he visited the few settlers who had already located on the Watauga, and being favorably impressed with the country decided to. make his home among them. He returned to Wake County after having made a crop, and it is thought he participated in the battle of Alamance, May 16, 1771. Soon after that event, with his wife and child, he again set out on a journey over the mountains .to the Watauga, which was reached in safety. Soon after his arrival it was determined to form some sort of government, and he took an active part in securing the adoption of a set of written articles of government, which all agreed to support. In the early part of 1776 he was one of the committee who drew the pe- tition for the annexation of Watauga to North Carolina.
As an Indian diplomatist, Gen. Robertson had no superior and very few equals. In 1772 he was chosen to visit and pacify the Cherokees, who had been aroused by the murder of one of their number by a hunter. This he successfully accomplished, and by his courage, address and friendly manner won the regard of the chiefs, with whom he remained several days. Two years later, in October, he participated in a battle. with the Indians on the banks of the Kanawha, whither a company under Col. Isaac Shelby had gone to aid the settlers in West Virginia, then in danger of destruction by the Shawanees and their allies. In July, 1777, the Cherokees having become troublesome, Gen. Robertson, co-operating with a force from Virginia, invaded their country and compelled them to sue for peace. During the same year he was appointed temporary agent
*So much has been written concerning Gen. Robertson that only a brief outline of his life is here pre- sented.
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of North Carolina, and sent to Chota, "the beloved town" of the Chero- kees, where he resided for some time, and while there rendered himself popular with the chiefs.
In 1779 Robertson determined to remove still further west, and in February, accompanied by a party of eight, he set out to examine and locate land in the Cumberland, and to raise a crop of corn for the sup- port of those who were to come out in the fall. The hardships and pri- vations endured in the founding of the Cumberland settlements have been described in another chapter, and will not be here repeated. Dur- ing all of these troublesome times, and up to his death, Gen. Robertson was looked upon as a counselor and leader by all the colonists. Under the Government of the Notables he was the president of the committee or the judges, and upon the organization of Davidson County was one of the justices appointed to hold the county court. He was also the first representative of the county to the General Assembly of North Carolina, and continued by successive elections until the organization of the Ter- ritorial government. He was then commissioned by. Washington major- general of the Mero District.
As a legislator Gen. Robertson displayed the highest qualities of the statesman, and he could no doubt have attained eminence in a wider field. Although the Assembly of North Carolina had evinced a disposi- tion to ignore the settlements west of the Cumberland Mountains, he succeeded in securing the passage of many acts for the benefit of his county, notably among which was one providing for the establishment of Davidson Academy; another provided for a superior court of law and equity, and a third prohibiting the establishment of distilleries in David- son County. In 1795 he resigned his commission as commander of the Mero District, and the following year was appointed Indian agent. In March, 1805, he was sent on a mission to the Chickasaws and Choctaws, and in July following, in company with the Indian agent, Dinsmore, met the chiefs of the former nation and obtained a total relinquishment of the title to a large tract of their land east of the Mississippi. In No- vember a treaty was concluded with the Choctaws.
During the war of- 1812 Gen. Robertson rendered his last and greatest service to his country. Through his influence with the Indians, the Choctaws, Chickasaws and Cherokees, were induced to aid the United States against the Creeks and the British, and the people of Tennes- see were saved from the horrors of an Indian war. Gen. Robertson had long been subject to neuralgia, and while at the Chickasaw Agency he was seized with an attack of great violence, which ended his life Sep- tember 1, 1814. His remains were interred at the agency, where they
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rested till the year 1825, when they were removed to the cemetery at Nashville. By his side now rest the remains of his wife who survived him until June 11, 1843. They had eleven children, seven sons and four daughters. Two sons were killed by the Indians; one daughter died in infancy. Felix Robertson, one of the sons, was born at the Bluff January 11, 1781, and was the first white child born in the settlement.
The ancestors of Judge John Haywood emigrated from England at an early period and settled in the city of New York, from which place they moved to Norfolk, Va. The destruction of the town with the home of the Haywoods led the grandfather, William Haywood, to seek a home elsewhere. He moved to near the town of Halifax, on the Roanoke, N. C. Egbert Haywood, the father of Judge John Haywood, became a farm- er in the neighborhood. He was a man of ordinary means, and had little desire for books or social culture, caring more for field sports or the chase than literary attainments.
John Haywood, son of the above, was born March 16, 1762, at the family, estate in Halifax County, N. C. The country afforded little opportunity for an education: not only were there few schools, but there were few educated teachers. The father being comparatively poor, he was unable to send his son to a foreign country or even a neighboring province to school, as was the case with those more favored by fortune. The want of public schools was in some instances supplied by private teachers. In his early life he attended a private academy taught by a Rev. Mr. Castle, from whom he obtained a knowledge of the elements of an education. He acquired some knowledge of Latin, Greek, geography and other branches. His knowledge of any one branch of learning at. this time was general rather than special. At an early period in his career he formed a resolution to study law, a profession for which he was well fitted by nature. He was without books, without money, and without an instructor. He began his studies by reading some of Ray- mond's reports, which were couched in the stilted and circumlocutory style of the period, and interspersed with innumerable Latin and French phrases. He soon rose to prominence at the bar. He made his first. argument before the supreme court at the age of twenty-four. He dis- played such ability in this case as to attract marked attention, and he was. no longer without clients. In 1794, as attorney-general, he procured not only the reconsideration but the reversal of judgment by the supreme court of a case decided unconstitutional the year preceding. In 1794 he became one of the judges of the superior court of law and equity, a posi- tion which he held five or six years. While on the bench he collected the decisions of the supreme court of North Carolina from 1789 to 1798.
1
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After leaving the bench he again began the practice, which he fol- lowed in North Carolina till 1807, when he moved to Davidson County, Tenn., and settled about seven miles from Nashville. The reputation Judge Haywood had made both as a lawyer and a judge in North Caro- lina soon brought him into prominence before the Tennessee bar. This. was at a period when many persons were involved in suits over land claims and titles. Judge Guild, who was examined by Judge Haywood in October, 1822, for license to practice law, describes his visit to the judge as being somewhat peculiar. He found the judge lying out in his yard on a bull-hide in the shade. He looked as large as a sleeping bul- lock, as his weight was about 350 pounds. He found him grim, and when he told his business the judge began growling and grumbling, and `said he did not see why he should be disturbed. He called two negro men, and had them take the bull-hide by the tail and drag him farther into the shade. He then began a very long and searching catechism on the law. He grew very communicative, and was well pleased with his work. Then followed a long lecture of advice, covering almost the whole of moral and legal ethics. He is said to have been agreeable in his manner, fond of society, and entertaining to the highest degree in his conversation. He kept his law office and library at his home in the country, and compelled his clients to attend on him there. Aside from his law studies Judge Haywood found time to pursue a wide field of literary pursuits. He published a work called " Natural and Aboriginal History of Tennessee," containing about 400 pages. In this he treats of the In- dians, their usages, etc., earthquakes, dreams, ghosts, goblins, bones of giants, pygmies, mastodons, caves and strange voices in air, portents, signs and wonders, all very curious and interesting. He also published in 1823 his "History of Tennessee," a book of about 500 pages, covering the period of settlement from 1768 to 1795. The "Evidences of Chis- tianity" followed. Many of Judge Haywood's conclusions in his literary works are based on very little evidence. That close reasoning that char- acterizes his legal conclusions is followed in his other works; but is based upon insufficient evidence, and is therefore very often erroneous. Much of his writing is speculative and highly imaginative. One very curious argument Judge Haywood uses to prove that the Hebrews and Indians were the same people is to quote I Samuel, xviii: 27, to prove that the Hebrews scalped their enemies, as well as did the Indians. Many of his other arguments are in a similar vein.
Judge Haywood died at his home near Nashville December 22, 1826, in the sixty-fourth year of his age. He died after a few days' illness, his death being hastened from his great corpulency. Judge Haywood
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