By Col. John A. Watkins, 1890
Introduction
On August 30, 1813, the Creek Indians, enraged
at
white encroachment, attacked Fort Mimms in southwest Alabama.
News of the attack, and the ensuing massacre of several hundred
white men, women, and children, spread throughout the territory. The
following manuscript describes reactions of settlers in the
Jefferson County area of Southwest Mississippi.
EARLY HISTORY
Those who at the present day dwell in cities,
or in the midst of an old and well established civilization, cannot
appreciate the trials, privations, and dangers incident to a
frontier life seventy-five [now 185 years] ago.
Immediately
after the Spanish cession of the Mississippi Territory to the United
States there was a steady tide of immigration, chiefly from Georgia,
the two Carolinas, and Virginia, which in a brief space of ten years
swelled the population from 10,000 to more than 40,000, exclusive of
Indians.
The lands in Jefferson County, being very fertile, well watered and heavily timbered, were rapidly entered and occupied by a class of men well fitted to pioneer a healthy civilization, and develop the wealth of our newly acquired possessions. Log cabins were speedily erected, cane cut down, trees converted into rails, and these again to fence a few acres of ground, where, following the plow, corn sprang up, as if by enchantment, yielding a rich harvest as the reward of energy and industry.
In a few years, the face of the country was entirely changed, and
if the wilderness did not "blossom as the rose," fields of cotton,
fine horses, cattle and hogs testified that the laborer had been
richly rewarded for his voluntary sacrifice of his "old home," and
the associations of his youth. Jefferson County was nominally
composed of five districts as well defined as its boundaries. The
southwest district was known as the Maryland settlement, of which
Judge WOOD was the representative; to the northwest, Dr. Rush NUTT,
Asa HUBBARD and James MAGILL stood sponsors for the Gulf Hill;
Willis McDONALD, John BOLLS, Asa WATKINS, and Kinsman DIVINE
represented the north central division; Isaac ROSS, Randal GIBSON,
and Nathaniel JEFRIES, the Rid Lick settlement, while in the
southeast the Scotch had formed a colony. The Gaelic language was
spoken by many of them, perhaps at this day they read the Bible in
that language, for my old friend Daniel SINCLAIR, himself a
Highlander, says that Gaelic was the language spoken by Adams in the
Garden of Eden. Here were CAMERONS, McCLUTCHIES, McINTYRES, TORREYS,
and a host of other names, that give unmistakable evidence of their
nationality.
In the process of time, towns and villages
sprang up on the main line of travel, affording such facilities for
trade and commerce as the limited wants and resources of the country
required. Greenville, Union, and Selsertown were located at
convenient distances from each other, on the Old Robinson Road, and
continued to flourish for many years, until, antagonized by the
increased production of cotton and the demands of commerce, they
ceased to be a necessity, and gradually passed away, leaving
scarcely a trace of their former existence.
MILITARY
PREPARATION
In 1813, August 30th, the Creek Indians attacked
Fort Mimms, and as it was negligently protected, nearly all the
inmates, soldiers, women and children, said to number of 550, were
put to death. The news of this massacre spread rapidly in
Mississippi, as nearly all the soldiers who defended the fort were
from that Territory, and I might add that a majority of them were
from Jefferson County. The danger was so threatening that Governor
HOLMES, on his own responsibility, called for volunteers to form a
battalion of mounted men to be composed of one company from each of
the counties of Adams, Wilkinson, Amite, and Jefferson.
The massacre of Fort Mimms occurred on August 30, and the battalion called out by Gov. HOLMES reported for duty on the 23rd of the following month, and at once hurried to the seat of war. This was the famous Jefferson Troop designated at the War Department as dragoon, commanded by Major Thomas HINDS, which subsequently became prominent in the Indian war, and the Battle of New Orleans in 1815.
The heavy drafts made upon the sparsely settled territory left it
in such a defenseless condition, that, had the Creeks followed up
their success at Fort Mimms and formed, as they desired, a juncture
with the Choctaws, they would have swept over the country with the
destruction of a tornado.
THE PANIC
Rumors that an
advance had been made by the Creeks, and that in their progress they
had been joined by the Choctaws, began to be whispered around, at
first so vague that they could be traced to no reliable source, but
in a few days assuming a form to which fear gave an impulse that
resulted in a panic that I can only attempt to describe from the
recollections of more than 75 years ago.
The report of massacres by the Indians, and an advance by them on
the white settlements, came to our neighborhood through James H.
WATSON, who, on the previous day had been to Port Gibson. He gave
immediate notice to the neighborhood, and though many doubted, it
was deemed prudent to adopt the necessary precautions for the
security of the women and children.
Preparations were hastily
made to send them to Washington [Adams County], where a few
companies of volunteers were stationed, ready at a moment's notice
to move wherever their services were required. By the time the
non-combatants were to move, the Indians were said to be at Rocky
Springs [Claiborne County], 18 miles above Port Gibson, and the next
breeze had wafted them to the Grindstone Ford [on Bayou Pierre].
Some farsighted people could even see the smoke of Colonel BURNETT's
house, a distance of seven miles.
How these vague reports originated will never be known. Like the "three black crows," they grew as they proceeded, until the alarm became universal. As nearly all the young men capable of bearing arms had gone to the seat of war, few capable of making a defense were left to protect their homes and families, but they were of a class who, if then did not recklessly seek danger, did not shirk from the conflict where there was occasion to test their courage. As the danger was considered imminent, runners were dispatched in every direction warning the inhabitants and directing them to seek safety in flight. Such as were capable of bearing arms collected in small squads and repaired to a rendezvous which had previously been agreed upon, where they could devise the best means of defense.
I was then a small boy, and remember well the alarm and
consternation that nearly all suffered when it was announced at the
door of the schoolhouse, the "Indians are upon us," and ordering us
all to go home in "double quick", and by the shortest route. Some
were overcome by fear, wept and raved, while others, of whom I was
one, rejoiced at the prospect of a holiday. Be this as it may, we
all hurried home to find out mothers in tears and tribulation.
PREPARING FOR EVACUATION
Such effects as could be removed
had been thrown into the wagon, while articles more cumberous were
removed to a place of comparative safety in the surrounding cane
breaks. Looking back after a lapse of 75 years to that period of
gloom and apprehension, I can barely restrain a smile at the
ludicrousness of the scenes presented on that occasion; and yet it
is the smile of sadness, for of the hundreds who met that day
capable of defending their homes, not one survives to relate the
story of fear and flight; they are all gone, and of the younger
members of the Hegira, two old ladies, now living near where the old
field school house stood, are the sole representatives. These
visions of by-gone years come over the memory like the dim shadow of
some fleeting cloud that, for a moment, intercepts the sun, without
obscuring his light.
The early settlers of Mississippi, like a majority of emigrants
to new countries, were a hardy, industrious and independent class of
men, and though not blessed with a superfluity of golden treasure,
they possessed in abundance the material that constitutes the wealth
of a nation vis: pigs, poultry, and children, sustained by industry,
economy and perservence. It happened in the honored neighborhood of
my birth that the supply was ample, especially of children. This,
however, is a digression, for while I have been moralizing, the oxen
have been yoked and put to the wagon; baggage and children have been
tumbled in promiscuously and without any regard to the comfort of
the latter, horses have received their cargo of livestock, two or
three being mounted on each; and now the cavalcade is underway - if
I may use that term which applied to oxen.
THE EXODUS
Our faces were turned towards Washington, a distant 25 miles, this
being our promised land; but in vain did we look for the cloud that
was to conceal our flight from the enemy. The day was bright and
beautiful; the sun smiles on its course cheerily, and the whole
aspect of nature was so mild and placid that if fear had not
overcome every other emotion, the outpourings of many a heart would
have been offered up in gratitude to the Author who had been so
bountiful in the dispensation of His blessings. At a distance of two
miles from home two roads met at a place then and now known as the
"Raccoon Box."
At the Raccoon Box, our party was joined by 20 or more families, all on their way to headquarters. Carts, wagons, children, horses and dogs were so promiscuously thrown together that the elderly dams found much difficulty in keeping together their numerous offspring. After much confusion and any amount of loud talking, the caravan finally began to move. The road was narrow, scarcely permitting the passage of two wagons abreast, but it frequently happened that the driver in the rear fancied he heard an unusual noise which might not be a savage yell of delight, and would make a bold attempt to pass to the front, but the attempt was rarely successful, as those in the van were not willing to give any advantage to their less fortunate companions who had to close the long lines of this heterogeneous procession.
The scene was ludicrous beyond description. Here three white-haired urchins were pelting an old plow horse into a fast walk; while there a young mother, similarly mounted, was carrying ne child in her lap while two others were holding on desperately to avoid a fearful tumble; while further on a rickety old cart drawn by two stalwart oxen was loaded with beds, boxes and children thrown together by chance - the latter crying lustily to be released from their vile imprisonment while the rod was occasionally applied to keep them quite. Being a good walker then, as in later years, I avoided the ills to which many of my own age fell heir.
When the alarm was first given, many of those who were able to make a defense met by previous agreement at a point known as Clifton, the present residence of Israel COLEMAN, which is on the old Robinson Road leading from Natchez to Nashville.
Here in the forenoon of that eventful day, so long remembered by many as an epoch in their lives, about a doze of the neighboring farmers met for consultation. It was decided that a part of this force should proceed without delay win the direction of Port Gibson, where they had no doubt of meeting with reliable information.
Let me here remark that many of those present on that occasion
did not believe the truth of the report, but acted from providential
motives in sending the women and children to a place of security,
while, if true, they would be in a position to arrest the advance of
the Indians long enough to give the fugitives time enough to reach
their destination.
I do not recollect the names of all who
participated in this movement; but I do know that Daniel FRISBY,
Thompson B. SHAW, Kinsman DIVINE, Asa WATKINS, Robert B. FARLEY, and
Henry LEDBETTER were of the number.
It is not necessary for me
to tell all they saw and heard on the road. A bear leisurely crossed
the road in front of them, and though the temptation was strong to
give him the penalty of bullet, policy protected him.
ARRIVING AT PORT GIBSON
About nine miles from Port Gibson, they
found Robert TRIMBLE and one of his Negro men overhauling the armory
and putting all their available artillery in good fighting trim, the
old gentleman vowing that he would stand a siege, with the chance of
having his house burned, sooner than flee before an imaginary event.
Proceeding on their way, they reach Port Gibson to find it almost
deserted; only a few of the inhabitants were to be seen, of which
number Mr. Ben SMITH was one. He was one of the principal merchants
of the place, and was well known to the fighting party from
Jefferson County. Mr. SMITH did not believe that there was a shadow
of truth in the report, "but gentlemen, if you are of a different
opinion, walk in and supply yourselves with powder and lead; and as
your courage may have sunk a little below fever heat, I have some
good old 'Bourbon,' - walk in and help yourselves - while you are
getting up steam I will play 'leather breeches,' for I know that
some of you will want to dance, as soon as the whiskey has taken
effect." Mr. SMITH was an amateur fiddler. I have often heard him
play and witnessed the dancing of the men of that day in his back
room. Here, in more peaceful times, he and Mrs. BLENNERHASSET, of
Aaron BURR notoriety, were in the habit of exercising their skill on
the violin, and rumor says that he could put as much Bourbon under
her belt as the best drinker in the country.
With this whiskey and ammunition, our party, fully satisfied that
there were no hostile Indians on this side of the Tombigbee River,
took leave of Mr. SMITH, and hurried to overtake their families, and
just at sundown cam up with them near Greenville. Many of those who
had taken flight in the morning, still impelled by fear, did not
pause 'till they reached Washington, while all of those from our
neighborhood turned back; but as it was some distance to their
homes, the women found shelter under the hospitable roof of the
father of the Rev. John C. JONES, whilst the youngster bivouacked
under the broad canopy of heaven, from whence the bright starts
shone down on their quiet slumbers, after the fatigue and excitement
of day, which was long remembered by many who now sleep beneath the
cold earth, their very names, perhaps, forgotten by the present
generation.
OTHER INCIDENTS
As I write of what happened
in my own neighborhood, I shall only go out of the county to relate
two trifling, but well authenticated, incidents. Shdrach FOSTER fled
with his household to a dense cane brake, and could with difficulty
be restrained from killing a child, whose cries, he feared, might
guide the Indians to his place of retreat. He killed his dog and
threatened the life of the first one who spoke above a whisper.
William B. BLANTON, on his way home, overtaken by night and Bourbon,
turned his horse loose, and after groping in the dark for some time
took refuge in a hollow log, where he slept soundly till after
sunrise, when, to his surprise, he discovered that the log was not
ten feet from the road, from which he could have been in full view,
had the Indians or any one else passed that way.
Such are some
of the effects of fear, one of the strongest impulses of our nature,
and the least under the control of reason.
FORTIFICATIONS
Though no immediate danger was apprehended from an invasion of
the Indians, it was deemed prudent to adopt measures for future
security. A meeting was held by the neighboring farmers, at which it
was determined to erect, in some central location, a fortification
sufficient for the protection of the women and children, and for the
common safety of the settlement, generally. In furtherance of this
object, they met and erected four block-houses, which were protected
by strong palisades, much after the style of the present picket
fence, though much higher and of stronger materials. The fort
occupied a gently swelling ridge, but in the hurry it was forgotten
that the spring which furnished the only water supply was about
fifty feet outside of the fortification, and that in the event of a
siege it would be inaccessible. This was an oversight, but it was
cured by time, as the Indians never made their appearance. I was
present when the first tree was cut down, and saw the last picket
planted. This was in the winter of 1813-14.
In 1815. the
Tennessee troops bivouacked one night at Fort Shaw, which made it
holy ground. It was the first and last fortress that ever arose
obedient to fear or patriotism in Jefferson County.
For several
years, on one of the block-houses was used for educational purposes,
and here the young idea was taught to shoot, under the inspiration
of the birch, which at that day was regarded as a necessary promoter
of mental and moral culture. Subsequently the houses were pulled
down and converted to other uses, the land was subjected to the plow
and a this day [1881] few, from their personal recollections, could
point to the spot where, in 1813-14, Fort Shaw proudly waved the
Starts and Stripes. Of those who assisted in its erection, not one
survives. Two old ladies living hear where the fort stood and the
writer and believed to be the last survivors of that eventful
period, in this special neighborhood.
When this article was
published forty years ago [1850] it was approved by two of the best
traditional historians in the country and pronounced true.
John A. WATKINS, Col.
486 St. Charles Ave.
New Orleans, April 10, 1890