CHAPTER VI. CONTINUATION OF INDIAN DEPREDATIONS-COMMISSIONERS APPOINTED TO TREAT WITH THEM, &c.-CONTINUATION OF HOSTILITIES—THE CHEROKEES MAKE PEACE. The successful issue of the battle of King's Mountain inspired the citizens on Watauga and Holston with additional confidence in their valor and prowess, and made them feel much more secure from danger. The Indians, however, continued their hostile movements upon the settlements; and in January, 1780, a band of Indians, supposed to be of the Delaware tribe, had began to disturb the infant settlements upon the Cumberland. In February, 1781, Lieut. Col. Sevier was appointed Colonel-Commandant of Washington county; and in the same month commissioners were appointed to treat with the Indians, for the purpose of establishing their boundaries, exchanging prisoners, concluding a peace, &c., &c. Notwithstanding these overtures the Indians continued their hostility. And in the spring of the year, Col. Joseph Martin, who resided on the Long Island in Holston, collected three or four hundred men, and made a campaign into the Indian country, burnt and destroyed their corn and other property, and killed some straggling Indians. The Indians finally met and fought him between Little Tennessee and Tellico rivers; but Martin defeated them, taking twenty or thirty prisoners, and then he returned with his troops, by the same route he went.While Col. Martin was performing this campaign, Col. Campbell, from Virginia, arrived at Long Island, and sent out runners to ascertain where Col. Martin and his -- troops were, whom they found returning. Col. Campbell remained at Long Island about three months, for the protection of the inhabitants. In the month of March, of this year, Col. John Sevier made a campaign into the country of the Cherokees, with about one hundred and thirty men, and laid waste the Indian towns in the Middle Settlements, on the head waters of Tennessee river. He marched into the town of Tuckasejah, and killed fifty of the warriors and took fifty women and children prisoners. He also destroyed fifteen or twenty other towns, and burnt all the corn and other property he could find and which his men could not carry off. Col. Sevier lost one man killed, and had one wounded, who afterwards recovered. In the summer of the same year, 1781, Col. Sevier also made an attack on a camp of Indians on a creek called Indian creek, below Big Pigeon, having under his command on this occasion about one hundred men. He surrounded the Indian encampment and killed seventeen; the remainder, supposed to be thirty or forty, made their escape. He then returned with his troops to Washington county. These repeated and successful incursions into the Indian country, and the many severe chastisements they had so recently received, induced them to sue for peace, which was made with them during the summer of the same year. But before the making of this peace the Indians had committed many cruel and bloody depredations on the settlements on the Cumberland, as well during the year 1780, as in 1781; which we must now proceed to relate. In the month of April, 1780, two hunters by the name of Keywood and Millikın, were coming to the fort on the bluff where Nashville now is, and stopping on Rich land creek, five or six miles west of the bluff, the Indians fired upon them, and killed Millikin. Soon afterwards they killed Joseph Hay, and an old man by the name of Bernard, who was making an improvement at a place then called Denton's Lick, and cut off his head and carried it away. They also killed many others.— About the same time they attacked and broke up the settlement of the Renfroes on Red river, and killed Nathan Turpin and another man. These Indians were supposed to be Choctaws and Chickasaws, the Chickasaws, who had always previously, been at peace with the whites having become offended on account of a settlement being made below the mouth of the Ohio, on the east side of the Mississippi, by a man by the name of Clark. The Indians also killed some of the Renfroes and an old man by the name of Jones, and all his family. In the fall of the same year, 1780, Col. John Donaldson, and others, went up the Cumberland to a place since called Clover Bottom, with two boats, for the purpose of bringing down the corn and other products which the inhabitants had raised there; and on their return they were fired upon by the Indians, and nearly all killed. One man, beside Col. Donaldson escaped, and a free negro. One of the boats was discovered the next morning, about the time of cock crowing, by the barking of a little dog, who was still on board; and the boat was landed at the fort, on the bluff where Nashville now is. A negro who had gone up with the party, was found dead in the boat; and the supposition then was that the whole party had either been killed or taken prisoners by the Indians; but Col. Donaldson, one other white man and the free negro had escaped, as before mentioned. In the summer of this year, a man by the name of Robert Gilkey died of sickness. He was the first of the settlers on the Cumberland that died a natural death.— Disasters and dangers thickened around the settlers.They were in continual danger of being scalped by the barbarous savage, and sometimes in imminent peril for the want of provisions; and under these distressing circumstances many of them left, and went to Kentucky and Illinois. In the fall of this year, a party went from the bluff up the Caney fork of the Cumberland, upon a hunting excursion, for the purpose of procuring meat for the inhabitants; and Judge Haywood states that they killed one hundred and five bears, seventy-five buffaloes, and more than eighty deer. In the beginning of the year 1781, an attack was made by the Indians, upon a place called Freeland's Station. They killed Major Lucas and a negro. The battle was fierce and hot for some time, but the whites succeeded in defending the station. But the Indians went through the country burning and destroying the crops, fences and houses of the inhabitants. The alarm became general and all who could get to the bluff or to Eaton's Station done so; but many were killed on their way thither. Most of these depredations were committed by other hostile tribes, and not by the Cherokees; but the Cherokees soon joined in these hostile operations. They aided in the attack on Freeland's Station; and in the spring of 1781, a numerous party of them came to the fort on the bluff, where Nashville now is, and lay in ambush, while three of them came up and fired on the fort. Nineteen horsemen went out in pursuit of them, and were soon fired upon by the Indians, who were lying in ambush.— Several of the horsemen were killed; the remainder alighted from their horses and gave battle; but finally, those who were not killed, were compelled to take refuge in the fort; which, with much difficulty, they succeeded in retreating to, the Indians having formed a line in the direction of the fort, to cut off their retreat; nor would they have been able to have returned to the fort, but the dogs within, having been trained to make war upon the Indians, broke out of the fort, and assailed them most furiously; and so disabled and confused them as to prevent them from doing anything more than barely to defend themselves against the assault of this novel and unexpected reinforcement. The Indians finally fled, leaving one of their warriors dead, and another they buried near the battle ground. Many of them were known to be wounded; and it was believed they carried off several dead, besides the one they buried. They got possession of, and carried off, the nineteen horses, saddles, bridles and blankets; and therefore, could, with convenience carry off their dead and wounded. During the whole of this year, 1781, the Indians continued their hostile movements with so much vigor, and with such relentless cruelty, that the settlers could not cultivate their fields and consequently made no corn; but in the year 1782, they were enabled to cultivate their fields to some small extent, by placing sentinels around them while they labored. In the mean time, the Indians continued their inroads upon the settlements on the Cumberland; coming in in small detachments, and waylaying the paths, and killing and scalping many of the inhabitants. They also renewed their hostilities upon the Watauga and Holston settlements. In the autumn of 1782, in consequence of the renewed attacks of the Indians upon the inhabitants of the Holston and Watauga, Col. Sevier raised an army of volunteers in conjunction with Col. Anderson, rendezvoused at Buckingham's Island, on Frenchbroad, and marched into the Indian country. His force consisted of some four or five hundred, all mounted riflemen except one company of |