You have found an item located in the Kentuckiana Digital Library.
Journal of an exploration in the spring of the year 1750. By Dr. Thomas Walker ... With a preface by William Cabell Rives ... Walker, Thomas 400dpi TIFF G4 page images University of Kentucky, Electronic Information Access & Management Center Lexington, Kentucky 2002 b02-0000000005 These pages may freely searched and displayed. Permission must be received for subsequent distribution in print or electronically. Journal of an exploration in the spring of the year 1750. By Dr. Thomas Walker ... With a preface by William Cabell Rives ... Walker, Thomas Boston, Little, Brown, and company, 1888. New York : 1888. Coleman IMLS This electronic text file was created by Optical Character Recognition (OCR). No corrections have been made to the OCR-ed text and no editing has been done to the content of the original document. Encoding has been done through an automated process using the recommendations for Level 1 of the TEI in Libraries Guidelines. Digital page images are linked to the text file. Noland, Stephen, 1818- JOURNAL OF AN EXPLORATION DR. THOMAS WALKER 1888 Copyrzkht, 1888, BY LITrLE, Bxuwi , AND COMPAN Y. UNIvERsIrY PRESS: JOHN WILSON ND SON, CALMERIGE. I b , This page in the original text is blank. inmgeniun new sine coroe =ercebat; opfineus guisque /care gfuam dicere, sua ab aliis bene fada lau- dan, quam ise aliorum narrare malZtat. S-uausr. L I I C O N T E NTS. PREFACE . NOTE . PAGE aa a . U a a a a . ag a 0 0 0 35 JOURNAL. a a a 0 0 a a a a S a a. 39 .- This page in the original text is blank. I L P R E F A C E. IT has long Cfranc Infav- been known to many in the early history of our country, that a manuscript Journal of Dr. Thomas Walker, of Virginia, is in exist- which gives some account of his plorations in the western part of his ex- own S tate, and in a region which is now within the limits of the States of Tennessee Kentucky. Their natural curiosity as to this journal has been enhanced by a current statement as to the early period at which it was ten, - antedating, as the time does, by near- ly twenty years, the explorations of Daniel Boone and of his contemporary pioneers. per. ence, and writ- I v L L I. ZU LI.'Z I il LC:i C."3 ILCU ,imc+,=A Preface. 8 It is believed that if Dr. 'Walker and his companions were not the first white men who ever visited the region which they ex- plored, they exploration there is any It was were certainly the first of in this then unknown authentit whose wilde mess record. probably during this or the exploration of I748, to which Dr. refers in the Journal name became enduringly Walker now published, that his connected with a stream and a range of mountains in south. western Virginia, and that he gave to the Cumberland Gap and the Cumberland the names which were at suggested to River this time naturally his then loyalist mind by the decisive victory of the Duke of Cumber- land, - won at Culloden on the i6th of April, I 746, over the forces The Journal begins of the Pretender. on the i6th day of March, I 750, and ends on the next succeed- i3th day of July, rn uch-to-be-regretted gap covenng,- with of nine. days, period ,of nearly four months. Meagre .1 such a record, kept under circumstances of earlier ing one a as I . Preface. 9 continuously great exposure and fatigues rnult of necessity be, it nevertheless discloses f_ of much interest to the histonan, the natu- ralist, and the geologist. 0 It establishes the fact that the buffalo, now almost extinct even in the vast country beyond the 'If . sissippi, and the elk, comparatively rare and fast becoming rarer in the same distant gion, were .in i750 very numerous in Vir- ginia and Kentucky. It shows also that Dr. Walker at this early date noticed and recorded the outcropping of coal in sev- eral of the places which he visited in his expedition. It is a curious circumstance that a toma- hawk bearing the initials " T. W.," mentioned in this Journal as swept away by a flood one hundred and thirty-eight years ago) should have been found about a century afterwards, identified by its mark, and should now be treasured as an interesting relic of the past in Louisville, Kentucky. The scrupulous observance of "' the Sab- bath " by rest, repeatedly mentioned in the re- I I I L I... PrPface. Journal, is noteworthy as a manifestation of the spirit of religious reverence which has ever been characteristic of the Anglo-Saxon in every region of-the earth, and which once a token and a source of his robust manhood. In printing the Journal, taken care has been to follow the author's occasionally archaic spelling and.use of capital letters, belonging, as these peculiarities do, to the time when it was written. While the matters commented on terest of themselves to Dr. Walker's Journal, there are some facts concerning the writer himself which largely add to the value.of the record. It is well known that the life of Thomas was one c but its details, as his numerous desc satisfactory. It; family papers in descendants, who )f great and varied activity ; ; yet gathered together by- cendants, are scant and un- is to be hoped that from the possession of these are now to be found not only in Virginia and Kentucky, but in Bos- at is gwe ln- Walker - I IO of Preface. I I ton, New York, f1'hiladelphia, and more Washington, distant parts of the wide can domain, the A meri- scattered materials may be brought together which shall clearly show the place he is entitled to occupy in Colonial History of Virginia and the of the country. As the Romans, in contrast to the Athe- nians, were, according to Sallust, more bent on action than narration, so, in their nng lives, the leading Southern men of the Colonial period were less mindful than the Northern of their rightful place in history, and have consequently been more overlooked by posterity. An attempt will be made, in the conclud- in pages of this Preface, with suc h mentary but authentic materials as it has been possible to collect, to do in a brief and imperfect way for the memory of the journalist something of an Agassiz in analogous restoring to the work an antediluvian Megatherium by a careful examination of its fossil remains. stir- frag. - - I I I., L Preface. Thomas Walker Queen Co was born in King and runty, Virginia, on the I 5 th day of January, I 7 I 5. He was married in I74i, at the twenty-six years, to a young widow, -SIx years younger than himself, Mrs. Nicholas Meriwether, whose maiden name cousin of dred Thornton. George Washington, She was whose elder brother, Samuel, had married one of her near rela- ti ves; and in this way Thomas Walker be- came closely and doubly connected with the Washington family. Through this he came into- possession of fifteen thousand acres of land in a beautiful, well-wooded, and well-watered region of Piedmont Virginia, lying on the eastern slope of a range of mountains, known from their course Southwest Mountains, nearer to the sea by about twenty miles than the Blue Ridge, and rising in their highest elevation to an altitude of a little over eighteen hundred feet above tide. Here, not far from the base of Peter's Mountain, which President I 2 Of age the . marnage as th e Am _ was Mil- Preface. Madison, who lived in full- view of this monarch of the -range, used playfully to call the "; Chimborazo -of our Andes," Thomas Walker, soon after his marriage, established the home which he was to occupy for more I I a' than fifty years. The ownership of these broad' the effect of stimulating instead of ing the varied activities acres rep of his life. had cress- The many wants prompted by an isolated and primitive mode of country life led him into a multiplicity of pursuits,- offering the II I .I / I p I reat- est possible contrast to the subdivision of labor that -marks the consfitfiion of modern society. Like Washington, with whom he owned land in common, he became a surveyqr I I I I I I i I i I I . I i at an early age, and many still existing plats bear witness to his skill in the measurement and computation of large areas. To his occupation as a surveyor planter, he added the business of -chant, and was for -many years larg and , a mer- ; 'ely en- gaged in importing directly from the mother .- . 11r r 1 I - - I I I I I I 1 I 9 am i P63-3 I 1 . I I I I . I I I I I I II I I gi I i i :I i p I i I I i I 9 Preface. 14 coun try the in numerable --. u.-I-- needful, both for himself and others. Li. the cultiva- tion of colonial plantations and the comfort of colonial homes. Strong in body, courageous, enterprising, intelligent, his curiosity and resless energy impelled him, to leave his wife and young children for a season; and, if not to for- them, yet, like the hunter in Horace, to pass his nights under the cold canopy of the skies in the unknown region beyond the mountains. It is uncertain how early these excursions into the wilderness began; but it is positively known, as we have said, that he made of them - and one a distant one - in the year I 748, when he .was thirty-three years of age. The love of exploration and adventure experience and with expanding knowledge and capacity, and, becoming a leader of men into the wilderness, Thomas Walker won the confidence of the adven- turous spirits among whom he lived, and attracted the attention -especially when get grew with - A L .v. Preface. fron tier service involving hardship and dan- .ger was needed --of many of the successive oovernors of colonial Virginia. He continued his work of surveying, plant- importing, exploring, -with some other occupations which will be noticed hereafter, .- until the year I 75 5, when he a long entered on though interrupted and checkered career in the service of his native State. The year I 755 'proved an in his life, and even tful one some scattered notes found among his papers enable us to trace with certainty his occupations and movements that time. In the becrnning and near Winchester, of the year, he in the valley was at of Vir- ginia, lending tions which vigorous aid to the were then making prepara- to break through the line of fortifications which the French were drawing from Canada obliquely across the continent, in order to check the western march of British domination. The notes referred to show that with the rank of -Major he had accepted the appoint- I ' ing, at - 7 L I I L I Preface. ment of commissary to the Virginia. troops which were to accompany General Edward Braddock's expedition to capture Fort Du- quesne, and that he shrank from no fatigue or exposure in the fulfilment of his duties. We find memoranda made in i755 of such experiences on his part as the following: "' Finding ye creek up, and missing my way, was obliged to lie without fire, liquor, or bedding." Sul with occasional the day after ch hardship, however, meets reliefL He sets out very early this unpleasant experience, travels for three hours over a mountain and several bad hills, and follows a new road for ten miles, when he reaches a human habita- tion. Here a widow provides him with much- needed food, and starting at Nicholas Johnson's just Soon again he arrives as it is dark. after, he halts at Colonel Cresap's, and then he gets to the camp, where Sir John H. Clare orders him to make a pre- liminary trip to Pennsylvania. Dung his further 4ourney he falls in with a Jew, who proves to be- no disagreeable companion. a I I . I - - I. I I L I I I I I I I I I II Prqface. Through a violent rainstorm, and almost impassable road, he reaches over an Will's Creek; where he sees one of the wagons upset in the stream and another unable to cross. He pushes on to the appointed place of meeting in Pennsylvania, where he accom- plishes the business for which he had been sent, and dines with his countryman of sub- sequently world-wide fame, whom he men- tions as " the ingenious Doctor Benjamin Franklin- For several months following, a veil is drawn over the details of his movements; but at last it appears that, with Washincrton and the Virginia forces, and with Braddock and his regulars, he has been involved in great disaster which took place on the gth of July, I755. A correspondent of Dr. at Fredericksburg, Walker, living Virginia, in a tattered but still preserved letter, joyfully expresses himself as follows, under date of the 28th of the same month, --a few weeks after the catastrophe : .I7 the is Preface. " Ye melancholy news of ye defeat was received. We .then had but little acquaintance hope that one of was safe. But about we our were advisec others I that yourself, Coi. Washington, had escaped in whole skins, which and many, gave us inexpressible joy. " Can it be supposed, when this story annals is read in of Virginia a century or two hence, that any Englishman or his posterity will believe when it is told that about three hundred French and Indians vanquished twelve or thirteen hundred regular troops, commanded by brave and experienced officers For r thing was inserted in ye best my own part, : Hystory in , if such a ye world, I would burn ye Book. " My dear Friend, we have suffered for your sup- posed loss, and I believe it would be to ye satisfac- tion of every friend you have that you would resign your present employment, and sure I am your ac- quaintance at Castle Hill will rejoice with us." The same kindly and humorous correspond- ent, in a shortly subsequent letter, makes following reference ing her to Mrs. Walker, who, dur- husband's absence, had given birth to one of her many children, and who was - as could hardly be inferred from the language I v ye it, naked the I - I L L i i 8 Preface. used by the writer - but thirty-four at the time of this anxious separation: " Please to tender my complimenrts to old lady, and tell her I am glad she you back again. Well-vouched-for tradition affirms that Dr. Walker escaped from the bloody, rout on a cream-colored stallion which he had seized, and that he powerfully seconded the efforts of Washington in restoring order and in bringing off to a place of safety the shat- tered remnant of the British and Virginia forces. Twenty-one years after the memorable disaster, he revisited the scene where had taken place, and still found there many marks of the deadly blow which had been inflicted on Braddock's ill-fated troops. Human bones, bleached by time and posure, were scattered over the ground, Dr. Walker, moved by the his companions in glowing trasts sight, recalled to words the Con- of the eventful day in which he had been an actor: the glittering muskets, I age '9 years of if your has got it ex- and the I Priaece. bright uniforms, the martial music and array of the regulars as they hd moved onward under their gallant but obstinate and reck- less leader ;,tconfident expectation of the speedy capture of Fort Duquesne,. and the confusion and horror which suddenly them as they were being -hopelessly shot down, with -savage .yells,. by their protected and hidden foe.- It has been doubted whether Dr. Walker was a member of the medical profession, and, in the Index to Prof. N. (A Kentucky," he is referred to Thomas Walker. S. Shaler's as the Reverend It is beyond question that was a physician, and not a clergyman. is probable that he profited by whatever scant facilities were offered in his youth at the old College of William and Mary for the study of medicine, but, however this may be, his memoranda show that he compounded tuanes,"-and what he describes as " a meth- redate -to make a medicine.for mad dogs," ,terms more apt to excite a smile by their 1 See Hazard's " Register of Pennsylvania," vi. 104, 105. he 1I 20 0 . seized lit CC elec- Preface. 2r alliterative quaintness than to -gratify ity cunos- as to the ingredients of the remedy. A more conclusive proof of his being a phy- sician is the fact that in June, July, and Au- gust, 1757, he made often-repeated sional visits profes- to Colonel Peter Jefferson, and stood by his bedside when he died, on the I7th of August of that year. He was, however, in his relations to the Jefferson family, more than the medical ad- viser of Peter Jefferson. He became the administrator of his estate and the g-uardian of his children. Letters from one - and the most distinguished ---of these children, Thomas, expressing "unlimited confidence in his justice," bear witness to the faithful- ness with which Dr. Walker fulfilled the duties of his twofold trust. The author of the Declaration of Independence, and third President of the United S tates, ever grate- fully remembered his early relations with Dr. Walker, and on many occasions warmly pressed the high estimation in which he held his abilities, knowledge, and character. A ex- I I I .0 .... . Prgface. In a letter from Monticello, dated the 25th of September, I 783, Thomas Jefferson applies to his old fHead and guardian for some notes of information in regard to the animals of America, and especially to the Indians, which he wishes to incorporate with answers to questions of Monsieur Barbe' Mar- bois, the learned Secretary of the French Legation, and which Jefferson subsequently expanded into his celebrated " Notes on In making these inquiries Dr. Walker, Jefferson "nobody else who ca says of that he knows n give me equal in- formation on all points. Dr. Walker's early and repeated expedi- tions into the unknown country beyond the mountains, his habits of close observation, his varied skill, and his frequent : in tercourse with the Indians, had caused him to be gradually looked on in Virginia as an exx- pert in all questions of boundary, and in matters affecting the relations of the white inhabitants of the State with- their danger- ous western neighbors. Virginia." L I I I i I 6. 2 2 Preface. 23 On the I7th of June, I768, he was com- missioned by .Jouiu Blair, President of His Majesty's- touncil for Virginia, to attend, with Andrew Lewis as associate, an impor. - tant Congress dians, which with the Six was held at Fort Nations of In- Stanwix, York, from the 24th of October to the 5th of November in the same year, when the treaty was signed.' Dr. Walker discharged the duty to which he 'was appointed, and is mentioned in "'The Virginia Gazette s a as arrivinc with his party in New York on his return from Fort Stanwix. On the ioth of October, I 774, took place at Point Pleasant, in West Virginia, at the junction of the Kanawha with River, the memorable the Ohio battle. between the Indians under their chieftain Cornstalk, and the Virginians under the command of An- drew Lewis. It was strongly suspected at the time that the Indians were secretly urged on by Lord Dunmore, the last of the Royal Governors of Virginia, and that this hard-fought battle,. in which the Indians New . Preface. were finally routed after on both sides, great loss of life was the realbeginning, rather than the skirmishes of Lexington and Con- cord of the following year, of the war for American Independence. After the defeat of the Indians, Thomas Walker and John Harvie were appointed by the House of Burgesses to treat with them. On the outbreak into avowed war, in the following year, of the long brewing dissen- sions between the Colonies and England, a still more important duty- of the same na- ture awaited Dr. Walker. A member of the House of Burgesses of Virginia at the time, he was appointed --next in the order of nomination to George Washington, for whom his country had other work to do- one of the Commissioners for arrano ino" Z ;:, treaty with the Ohio Indians, whose tran- quillity it was of the first importance to in- sure during the pending conflict with the mother country. Dr. Walker was accord- ingly present at Fort Pitt (the modern Pitts- burg) and, as shown by a still existing manu- a - i L I I 24 Prefa=e. 25 script record of the proceedings, signed by himself, Andrew Lewis, James Wood, and Adam Stephens, presided over the confer- ences which were held with the Indians, by both the Virginian and the Continental Com- missioners, the from the I2th of September to 2ISt of October, I775. In addition to this service, for which Dr. Walker was peculiarly well qualified, he was charged with the general duties of a mem- ber of the House with the progress of of . B urgesses, even ts, to which, speedily suc- ceeded those of tionary Convention. a member bf the Revolu- He was also a member of the Committee of Public Safety. of Vir- ginia, an executive responsibility and wiel body incurring great l4 g Iding great power in these troublous times. In I 777 he was a member of the Council of State. which was chosen by the ballot of the two houses constituting the Legisla- ture of Virginia. Of this Council, a learned historian says: " Under the new Constitu- tion, it consisted of eight members, who par--- - Preface. ticipated with the Goveinor in the exercise of all the executive powers of the govern- ment, a; perform of the a nd without no official whose act new government, advice he could OJn the earlier times none but such as were distinguished for patriotism, talents, and influence were chosen -into the Council of S tate."9 While Dr. Walker was strenuously ertrng his own vaned talents in the cause of his country in these official positions, was made happy by learning that his eldest son, Colonel John Walker, had been taken into Washington's military family as an aide-de-camp, and that the leader of the American opinion of the arm ,ies had expressed a high s ', sons abilities, honor, and prudence. Dr. Walker was appointed the Governor of Virginia chief of the Com- missia ners on the part of Virginia to the Commissioners from North Carolina, order to run the boundary line - between two Commonwealths. e . ex- he extra In I 779 by these meet in I r I L 26 Pre(ace. 27 At the age of sixty-four he duty with his associate Commissionr34, Daniel Smith ; fixed the starting-point by astro- nomical observations at the end of Fry and J efferson's previous line, andA marking new line, long known as Walker' ili e, - pushed through the wild and rugged moun- tainous region of southwestern Virginia and western North Carolina,- to the Tennessee River; crossed the Cumberland River twice, descended it by water, and ascertained the fact --not previously known to the geog- raphers of that day - that the parallel of 360 30' would strike the Mississippi, and not the Ohio River. This service September, I 779, was begun on the 6th of and was completed in the spring of the following year, in spite of difficulties and dangers which would have thwarted the efforts of a less resolute spirit. A guard had been voted by the General Assembly, to protect the Commissioners from the Indians; but, in traversing mountainous and barren region, an insuffi- this a the - - - I L I -9 .b. u II Lic- -ar"'.0 I . Preface. cient quantity of cane was found to -sup- port the pack-horses, and when the party in midwinter finally reached the Cumber- land River, and had built their luggage and " were frozen up m river never canoes to carry rest their horses, they lore than forty days in a known to be frozen before." On his return from the successful accom- plishment of this arduous task, Dr. Walker was met with the orders of the Governor for the performance of other duties, and he continued actively engaged in the service of the State during the war, of which, near its close, he was to experience in person one of the excitina tD vicissitudes. On the 4th of .June, I78I, his home seized at daybreak by the bold and vicror- ous Colonel Tarleton, who s a was aiming, by a swift and secret movement, to capture Governor Virgrnia, Jefferson and the Legislature of then assembled at Charlottesville. Lossing and other writers have given-- an account of this daring raid. With the story of the surprise of 28 I .1 was the - - I i L Preface. 29 band of patriots who, unsuspicious of dan- ger, had gathered under Dr. Walker's roof, 0 were intermingled reports of many incidents long the favorite theme of local tradition. But these incidents soon dwindled in im- portance in the public mind amid the eral rejoicing at the great even t which took place in Virginia on the igth of October, I78i, and brought to a final and success- ful issue the long struggle for American Independence. Dr. Walker continued to be a member of the General Assembly of Vircrinia after the close of the war, and is mentioned in the Legislative Records of I782 as member of a " committee to prepare a full and detailed vindication of the claims of Virginia to her western territory. The mother of his children died in I778, and he married, some years afterwards, cousin of his first wife, who was also a near reladve of Washington. To this second wife Washington makes reference in a letter to Dr. Walker, bearing gen- a --f I I i I I I I I i date the ioth of April, 1784, in which says: "I hope it is unnecessary to assurance give you of the pleasure I should feel in seeing you and my cousin here at this re- treat [Mount Vernon] from all my public employments.". --The shades of evening were now draw- ing about the active and well-spent life of the aged surveyor, planter, explorer, physi- cian, legislator, and commissioner. He was cheered in his declining years by the hap. piness and prosperity of his many children, and by seeing two of his sons in distln- guished public positions, - the eldest, who had been Senator, on the sta of Washington, a and the youngest a member of the House of Representatives of the United S tates. At his much-loved home, Castle Hill, Al- bemarle County, Virginia, he had built house in I765, which stands to-day in a ex- cellent preservation. It is one of the few buildings still remaining on the soil of Vir- ginia which are older than the beginning 30 I ale Preface. Preface. of the War of Independence. Its northwest front, looking on the neighbonrng Southwest Mountains, is represented, in the frontispiece to the volume now published, by an engraving due to Mr. Whymper, of London, the intrepid climber of the Alps and of the Andes. This house is yet the home of some of the descendants of its first owner, who do honor to their lineage. For five genera- tions it has been a seat of hospitality and culture, and many time-honored associations now cluster about the house itself and the surrounding grounds. The slow- mrowing box-trees, evergreen with archway cut through their sides, which border the lawn, have climbed to the height of more than thirty feet, and tell the story, to the most casual observer, of the long years of their gradual ascent. The small panes of glass in the venerable-looking windows, and the large brass door-locks of the house, were brought from London, and olden time are suggestive when Virginia of "Sye was a colony, and looked for her supplies to the -I 3I great L I Preface. mother city beyond the sea. In the am- ple square hall, the youthful, music-loving Jefferson has played the violin while the still younger Madison has danced. Here Thomas Walker has gathered around him the Indians who had learned to know and respect him in the fastnesses of the primeval forest, and has given shelter to the Nelsons and other patriots from "'the lower coun- try" in the stormy times of the British in- vasion. Here the doors have opened welcome five men who were either to be, or were actually at the time of their spective Visits, Presidents of -the United S tates, and to many others who have made their mark as statesmen, judges, diploma- tists, and soldiers; and here, with the flight of years, the voices of mirth have been often hushed by the coming of the foot- steps of sorrow. In this home, the birthplace of his twelve children, the old pioneer, near the end of his eightieth year, on the gth of November, I794, closed his eyes on earthly scenes. to re- - - i L L 32 Preface. He lies in the midst of grove a neighboring to which the purple redbud and the white dogwood lend in succession the beau- vernal bloom, and where the secular oak, the tall tulip-tree, and the fra- grant wild grape make a bower for the birds which in spnng and summer time ceaselessly carol his requiem. 33 ty .e. H i oi I I I I I i r Cr Aa 16, Its 0 4 I I I NOTE. T HE course of Dr. WAuxw's EXPLORATION can be traced by means of a thorough knowledge of the topography of the country through which he passed, with much greater exactness than will now be attempted. Many of the names which he assigns in this Journal to the rivers and their branches which he came upon, e. g-, Powell's River, Lawless's River, Hughes River, Naked Creek, Hunting Creek, Milley's River, Frederick's River, Clifty Creek, Louisa River, will be found set down in " A Map of the British and French Dominions in North America, with the Roads, Distances, Limits, and Extent of the Settlements Humbly inscribed to the Right Honour- able the Earl of Halifx, and the other Right Honourable the Lords Com ioners for Trade and Plantations by their Lordships' most obliged very Humble Servant. "JOHN MrrCIFTTL2X The following statement is printed on the map: "This map was Undertaken with the Approbation at the Request of the Lords Commissioners for Trade and Plantations and is Chiefly composed from Draughts, Charts L. 35 I - - - I I I L I I i -q Note. 36 and Actual Surveys of different parts of His Majesties' Col- onies and Plantations in America Great part of which have been lately taken by their Lordships' transmitted to this Office by the Governors of the said Colonies Others. 'LANTATION Oncx, Feb'y 13th, 1755." JOHN POWNALU, Secrdary. The identical copy of this map. which was used in the negotiations for the Treaty of Peace of 1783 is preserved in the collections of the American Geographical Society in the city of New York. On the map - for which Dr. Walker himself probably furnished some of the data -will be found noted a settle-. ment mentioned in the journal. Dr. Walker's name and the date I 750 are assigned to this settlement, and it is put the postio down in the posi tion of about 360 45' lat., and 85 30' long., in the southern part of central Kentucky. The inaccuracies of this ancient but interesting map make it impossible to trace on it Dr. Walker's route with precision. His general course was as follows: After ascending the Staunton River- the northern branch of the English Roanoke -to the settlement of (often spelled Ingles W1rilliam or Inglis), he crossed the New River not far from the present village of Newbern, in Pulaski County, Virginia. erly direction through Virgi Continuing in a southwest- inia, he reached the junction Orders and - - L - - L No- l C. Notd. j - 37 of thd Forks of-the .Holston River in Tennessee. Turning in a direction -somewhat north of west, and crossing the Clinch River, he came to the Cumberland River. Travel- ling along or near the river for me distance, he then moved northward, and, after reaching perhaps even branches of the Green and Salt rivers, turned eastward and crossed the head-waters of the Kentucky River. Thence he passed through the mountainous region of WVest Virginia, from which flow the sources of the Big Sandy, Guyandotte, and other rivers, and finally arrived at the junction of the Greenbrier and New River. The rest of his journey, up the Greenbrier River, Anthony's Creek, by the Hot Springs, Panther's Gap, Augusta Court-House (the modem "Staunton "), and Rock Fish Gap, to his home in Albemarle County, may be easily. traced on the maps of to-day. .l To avoid the confusion apt to result from the use of unscientific terms, it may be said that Dr. Walker means by "g Ivy," the Kalmia Zafifolia; by "Laurel," the Rho- dodcndron maximum, and by "Sycomore," of which he mentions a specimen measuring forty icCet in circumfer- ence, the Platanus ofridentalis. By . Reeds," he means the cane, or Arundinaria macrostrma, which the Western pioneers largely used as food for their horses and cattle. I am greatly indebted to my son, Dr. Rives, for the iformation and suggestions contained in tis note. W. C. R. I, ".I. 10. I i I I This page in the original text is blank. JOURNAL oF DR. THOM A ,S WVA LKER. I 750. - pound; ngisnes.- Branch, and was Staunton He lives not much hurt to William on a small by the Fresh. He has a mill, which is the furthest except one lately built by the People, who call themselves of the Brother- hood bf Euphrates, and are commonly called the Duncards, who are the upper Inhabitants on the New River, which is about 400 yards I Near the present village of Blacksburg, in Montgomery County, Virginia. back i6ch March. Sect of 17th. - I L L I j E kept up the 'C- Ii:,_1 1 Journal of Dr. 40 wide at this Place. They live on the d0 side, and we were obliged to swim our Horses The Duncards are an odd set of peo- pie, who make it a matter of Religion not Shave their Beards, ly on Beds,-r eat Flesh, though at present, in the last, they transgress, being constrained to it, as they say, by th e want of a sufficiency of Grain and Roots, they having not long been seated here. I doubt the plenty and deliciousness of the Turkeys Venison has contributed not a little to this. The unmarried have no private Property, but live on a common Stock. They dont bap- tize either Young or Old, they keep their Sabbath on Saturday, hold that all men shall be happy hereafter, but first must through punishment according to their They are very hospitable. pass Sins. March i8th. 19th. The Sabbath. We could not find our Horses and spent the day in Looking for them. In the even- we found their track. went very early to the track of our Horses after following them six or seven over. west, to ing 20th. We - . - I i Thomas Walker. Journal of Dr. 4I mn iles, we lo... thpm all together. we re- turned to the D ujlcards about I O'Clock, and having purchased half a Busshell of meal and as much small Homony we set off and Lodged an Creek ' and i a small Reedy, Run between Creek. We got to Reedy Creek 2 and Camped near March 2!St. James M ccall's. I went to his house and Lodged and bought what Bacon I wanted. I returned to my People early. we got large Spring about five miles below Davises Bottom on Holstons River Camped. WRe kept down Holston's River about four miles and Camped; and then Mr Powel and I went to look for Samuel S talnaker, who I had been inform'd settle. was just moved out to We found his Camp, and returned to our own in the Evening. went to Stalnakers, helped him to raise his house and Camped abo ut a quarter I Peak Creek enters the New River Newbern, in Pulaski County. near the 2 Probably Reed Creek, in Wythe County. Peak to a ond. and 23rd. We 24th. village of - - - L I f I I Thomas T'alktr. I I .jo2rnal of Dr. a Mile below him. In April I748, I me; the above mentioned Stalnaker between Reedy Creek Settlement, and Holstons River, on his way to the Cherokee Indians, and expected him to pilate me as far as knew but his affairs would not permit him with me. March z5th. The Sabbath. Grass is plenty in the low Grounds. We left the Inhabitans, and kept nich West to a large Spring on a Branch of the North fork of Holston. Thunder, Light- ning, and Rain before Day. It began to Snow in the morning continued till Noon. The Land is very hilly from West to North. Some Snow lies on the tops of the from mountains N. W. us. We travelled to the Giant's Ditch on Reedy lower end of the Creek' Our Dogs Nigh t. - were very uneasle most of this I Enters the South Fork of the Holston River a short distance above its junctioa with the North Fork. of the to go he 26th. Z7th. and 28th. 29th. 11 Thomas Walker. 42 6 JounaZfW We kept down cover'd the tracks Reedy of about Creek, and dis- 20 Indians, that had gone up the Creek between the time we Camped last Night, and set off this morn- ing. restlesc We Suppose they made our Dogs s last Night. We Camped on Ret so edy Creek. We caught two young B uffaloes, one of March 30th which we killed, and having cut and marked the other we turn'd him out We kept down Reedy Creek to Holston where we measured an Elm 25 feet round feet from the Ground. we saw young Sheldrakes, we went down the River to the north Fork and up the north Fork about quarter of a mile to a Ford, and then it. crossed In the Fork between Holstons and the North River, are five Indian Houses built with loggs and covered with Bark, and there were abundance of Bones, some whole Pots and Pans, some broken, and many pieces of mats and Cloth. On the West Side of the North River, is four Indian Houses such before mentioned. 43 30th. 3 3ISt. a as I I I -W I i of D r. Thmas Walker. Journal of Dr. Thomas Walker. we went four miles. Below the North River and Camped on the Bank of Holstons, opposite to a large Indian Fort. April ruItst. The Sabbath. we saw Perch, Mullets, and Carp in plenty, and cau'ht one of the Sort of Cat Fish. I marked my. Name, the day of the month, and date of the on Several Beech Trees. travelled through small Hills till about Noon, when one of our Horses being choaked by eating Reeds we stopped having travelled 7 too gredily, miles. Our horse being recover'd7 we travelled to the Rocky Ridge. I went up to the top, to look for a Pass, but found it so Rocky that I.con. cluded not to Attempt it there. may be known by Sight, at a This Ridge distance. the Eastward are many small Mountains, and a Buffaloe Road between them and the Ridge. The growth is Pine on the top and the Rocks look white at a distance. went Seven miles this day. We kept under the Rocky Ridge cross- several small Branches to the head of 44 I large znd. we left Holston year 3rd. To 4th. in0 we I L I Thomas Creek. we saw maii-y ern"11 Licks and plenty of Deer. we went down Holly Creek. There is April 5th. nnich Holly in the Low Grounds Laurel and Ivy. About 3 in the afternoons the Ridge appeared less stony and .xw- passed it, and camped on a small Branch about a mile from the top. my Riding Horse choaked himself this Evening and I drenched him with water to wash down the Reeds, and it answered the End. It proving wet we did not move. We rode 8 miles over broken Land. snowed most of the day. It In the Evening our dogs caught a large He Bear, which before we could come up to shoot him had wounded a dog of mine, so that he could not Travel, and we carried him on Horseback, till he recovered. The Sabbath. We travelled to Still Snow. a river, which I suppose to be that which the hunters Call Clinches 8th. gth. River from one Clinch a Hunter, who first found it. we marked several Beeches on Holl y 45 some 6th. 7th. .1'Ournal of D r. Walker. journal the East side. we could not find a ford Shallow eneugh to carry our Baggage on our horses. Ambrose Powell Forded over on one horse, and we drove the others after him. We then made a Raft and ned over one Load of Baggage, but when the Raft was that it would brought back, i not carry it was so anything heavy more dry. We waded and carryed the our Baggage on our Shoulders over the River, which is about remainder of at two turns one hundred and thirty yards wide, we went on about miles and Camped on a Small Branch. Roads lead to it. This afternoon Ambrose Powell was bit by a Bear in his Knee. we rode 7 miles this day. We kept down the Creek 2 miles to the River again. It appears not any wider than at the mouth of Clover Creek, but much deeper. I thought -it proper to Cross River and began a bark Conoe. a A gap in the Journal occurs here. ove r car- ADril iOth. large five 20th. here the L i I of.' Dr. Thomas Walker. 46 4 I I Journal 47 We fin-ished the Canoe and tryed her. April Z2xSt About noon it began to thunder, lighten, hail and about rain prodigiously and continued 2 hours. The Sabbath. One of the horses found unable to walk this morning. I then Propos'd that with 2 of the Company would proceed, and the other three Continue here till our return, which should was agreed to, and Lots were drawn to deter- mine who should go, they all being desirous of it Ambrose Powell, and Colby Chew were the fortunate Persons. Having carned our Baggage over in the Bark Conoe, and Swam Crossed the River. Then our horses, Ambrose we all Powell, Colby Chew, and I departed, Leaving the others to provide and salt some Bear, an house, and plant some Peach Stones Corn. encamped We travelled abo ut on Crooked Creek. I2 miles and The moun- are very small hereabouts and a great deal of flat Land. We got through the Coal today. was 22d. 23d. build tains and here is Thomas W-alker. of Dr. Journal Thomas Walker. April 24th. We kept on Westerly i8 miles, got Clear of the mountains and found the Land poor and the woods very Thick beyond them, and Laurel Ivy in and near the Branches. Our Horses suffered food. very much here for wxant of This day we Came on the fresh Track of 7 or 8 Indians, but could not overtake them. We kept on West 5 miles, the Land tinuing much Same, the Laurel rather grow- ing worse, and the-food scarcer. I got up a tree on a Ridge and saw the Growth of the Land much the same as Far as my Sight could reach. I then concluded to return to the rest of my company. I kept on my Track i mile then turn'd Southerly to Cumberland wen t River at the mouth of water Course, that I named Rocky The River is a Creek. 150 yards wide and appears to be navigable from this place almost to the mouth of Clover Creek. within 40 yards of the Rocky Creek runs River Bank then turns off, and runs up the River, Surrounding about 25 Acres of Land before it falls into the River. The Banks of the River and 8 4 25th. con- 26th. of D r. Journal of Dr. Creek are a sufficient Fence almost all the On the Lower side of the mouth of the Creek is an Ash mark'd T W, a Red Oak A P, a white Hiccory C. C. besides sev- eral Trees blazed Several ways with 3 Chops over Each blaze. we went up the North Side of the River 8 miles, and Camped -on Small Branch. A Bear Broke one of my Dogs forelegs. We crossed Indian Creek and Went down April 27th. Meadow Creek to the River. There Comes in another from the Southward as big as this we are on. Below the mouth of this and above the mouth are the remains Creek, of Sev- eral Indian Cabbins and amoncrst them round Hill made by Art about and 6o over the Top. 20 feet high we went up the River, and Camped on the Bank. - We kept up the River to our Company whom was as we found all well, but the lame Horse bad as we left him, and another had been bit in the Nose by a Snake. I rub'd the wounds with Bears oil, and gave -him a drench of the same and another of the de- way. 49 I I a a 28th. I 1. I I J I Thomas Walker. Jounalf coction of Rattle Snake root some time after. The People I left had built an House I2 by 8, clear'd and broke up some ground, planted Corn, and Peach Stones. had killed several Bears and cured They also the meat. This day Colby Chew and his Horse fell April 9gth. down the Bank. Volatile drops, The Sabbath. T mI.I I I he bled and gave soon recovered. The bitten Horse is better. . 3 Quarters of A mile below the House a Pond in the low Ground of the River, is a uarter of a mile in Length and 200 y wide much frequented by Fowl. I Blazed a way from our House to the River. On the other side of the River is Elm cut down and barked about 20 feet and another standino- just by it with the Bark cut around at the root and about I5 feet above. About 200 yards low there is a white Hiccory Barked about I 5 feet The depth of water the lowest that I have seen it, or 8 feet, the Bottom of the ye Banks very high, the here, is about River Current very him Q 30th. a l arge be- when 7 c Sandy, Slow. - I- I i of D r. Tlwinas Walker. 50 Journal of Dr. The bitten Horse being much mended, set off and left the lame one. He branded on the near Buttock with is white, a swivil Stirrup River Iron, and and having is old. Crossed We left the Several Hills and Branches, Camped in from the House. a Valley North Another Hor-se being Oil as before mention'd. bit, I applye We got d Bears to Pow- May the ISt. ell's River' in the afternoon and went down it along an Indian Road, much frequented, to the mouth of a Creek on the West of the River, where we camped. The Indian Road goes up the Creek, that which and I think it is goes through Cave Gap. We kept down the River. At the mouth a Creek that comes in on the East side is . a Lick, and I believe there was a hundred Buffaloes at it. About 2 o'Clock we had Shower of rain. we camped on the River, which is very crooked. 1 This Powell's River and Crooked Creek are in Ken- tucky, and are represented on Pownall's ino what seems to be the Green River. Map as flowing 5I we side of zd. a - - - I Thomas Walker. I I . Jourizal of Dr. Thlmas WalZker. May 3d. We crossed a narrow Neck of Land, on the River again and kept down it to an Indian Camp, that had been built this Spring, and in it we took up our Quarters. It began to rain about Noon and continued till Night 'We crossed a narrow Neck of Land and on the River again, which we kept down till it turn'd to the Westward, then left it, and went up a Creek; which Called Colby's Creek. The River is about 50 yards over where we left it. to Tomlinson's River, which about the my name size of Powell's I on a Beech, that River, : S tan( and I cut ds on the North Side of the River. Here is plenty of Coal in the South Bank opposite to Camp. The Sabbath. I saw -Goslings, which shows th at wild Geese stay here all year. Ambrose Pawell had the misfortune to sprain his well knee. We went down Tomlinson 's River the being very broken and our way em- 52 came 4th. came 5th. we We we got is 6th. our 7th. the Land - - - I .0 I I I i of Dr. Thomas lker. barrassed by trees, that had been blown down about 2 years a Creek on the North Side May 8th. F of the River. We got to Lawlesses like the others. The very Steep and on So Laurel and Ivy. River which is much Mountains here me of them there The tops of the Moun- tains are very Rocky and some part of the Rocks seem to be composed of Shells, Nuts and many other cemented together We left the River S ubstances petrified and with a -kind of and after travelling Flint. some we got among Trees that had been Blown down about to go down 2 years, a Creek -to and were obliged the River again, the Small Branches and Mountains being impassable. We Staid on the River, an d d ressed Elks skin to make Indian ours being Shoes - most quite worn out. We left the River, found the Mountainis very bad, and a Creek got to a Rock by the side of Sufficient to shelter 200 men from We 53 went ag-o. up gth. are is Miles an loth. of rith. - L I i .1ournal a 4 Journal Finding it so convenient. we con- cluded to for shoes stay and put our Elk skin in order and make them. May i2th. Under the Rock is a Soft Kind of Stone almost like Allum a in taste; below it Layer white of. Coal about Clay under that. I 2 Inches thick and I called the Run Allum Creek. I have observed Several mornings past, that the Trees drop just before day continue dripping till almost we had Sun some nse, as if it rain'd slowly. rain this day. The Sabbath. When our Elk's Skin was prepared we had Awl that we brought out, and I one with the Shank of an old Fishing hook, the other People made two of horse Nailes, and with these we made Shoes or Moccosons. wrote several of our Names with Coal undler the Rock, I wrote our names, the time of our comeing and leaving this place on paper and stuck it to the Rock with Morter, and then set off. We Crossed 54 Rain. A begin 13th. to i4th. every lost made Shoe We our of Dr. Thomas Walker. . Journal of Dr. Thomas Walker. H ughes's of it. River and Lay on a large Branch There a shower was no dew this of Rain about 6 morning OClock. River is about 50 yards Laurel and Ivy go up the Branch. encrease About upon us as we noon it began May 15th. to rain we took up Valley between very Steep our Quarters in a Hills. We crossed several Ridges and Branches. About two in the afternoon, I was taken with a Violent Pain in my Hip. Laurel and Ivy are very plenty and the Hills still very steep. The Woods been burnt some years past, and are now thick, the Timber being almost all kill'd. Creek. We Camped on a Branch of Naked The pain in my Hip is something asswaged. went up Naked Creek to the head and had a plain Buffaloe Road most of the From thence we proceeded Wolf Creek and on it we encamped. We kept down ye Creek to Hunting -I 55 but The wide. i6th. very I7th. have We way. i8th. down I9th. - I d.- k. A 56 Jolurntal of Dr. Thomas Walker. Creek,' which ye Crossed and left It rained most of the afternoon. May 20th. 21st. 22d. 23d. The Sabbath. It began to rain about Noon and continued till next day. It left off raining about 8. wI several Ridges and small Branches 4 on a Branch of Hunting Creek. Evening it rained very hard. We Creek e crossed camped in the went down the Branch to Hunting kept it to Milley's We attempted to could Creek but c began 90 0o not. go River. down the We then Crossed and attempted to could not. it bein a Bark Conoe. r i oo yds' wide. River Hun go up the R ig very deep The River I Blazed but iting uver I we is about several Trees Sycom ] argre in the fork and marked T W on a ore Tree 40 feet round. Hole on the N: W: It has side about a 20 feet from the Ground and is divided in to Branches just by the hole, and it I Hunting Creek, Milley's River, and Frederick stands is River are set down on Pownall's Map as branches of the Catawba or Cuttawa, now called the Kentucky River. 3 - - - I Journal of Dr. Thomas Walker. about 8o yards above the mouth of Hunt- ing Creek. We finished the Conoe and crossed the .M.. 24t May 24th River about 30 noon, and I marked feet round and a Sycomore several Beeches on the North side of the River opposite to the mouth of the Creek. Game is very scarce hereabouts. It began to tinued till about noon. rain before day and- Con- We travelled about 4 miles on a Ridge and camped on a small Branch. We kept down the Branch almost to the River, and up a Creek, and then along 'Ridge till our Elk, which Dogs roused a large B uck we followed down to a Creek. H e killed Ambrose Powell's Dog in the Chase, and we named the Run Tumblers Creek, the Dog being of that Name. The Sabbath. Cloudy. We could not get our Horses till almost Night, when Branch. we went down the We lay on to the main Creek, and turn'd up it. 57 25th. 26th. a 27th. 28th. Jou rnzal of Dr. Thomazs W'lker. May 29th. We proceeded up the Creek 7 miles, and then -tock a North Branch went up it 5 miles and then -we encamped it. went to the head of the Branch lay on Iz mili es. A shower of Rain fell this day. The Woods are burnt about here and are the only fresh burnt Woods we have seen these Six Weeks. We crossed 2 M oun tains and camped just by a Wolf's Den. They were very impudent and after they had been twice shot at,. they kept howling about the Camp. It rained till Noon this day. We found the Wolf's Den and caught of the young ones. we went up a Creek It rained this crossed morning. a mountain and went through a Gap, and then, camped on the head of We A Branch. went down the Branch to 70 yards wide, which I called a River Frederick's River. where we we kept up it half crossed a mile to and proceeded a Ford, up on the North Side 3 miles. It rained most of the 8 - 30th. We on we j5t. fresh June 4r ISL zd. . 4V Jour al." Thomas Walker. afternoon. Elks are Very Plenty on this - River. Whit-S unday. It rained most of the day. June 3d. I blazed Several Trees four ways on the outside of the low Grounds by a Buffaloe Road, and marked Beech Trees. my Name Also I marked on Several some by the River side just below a mossing' place with an Island in it. We left the River about I0 o'Clock got to Falling Creek, and went up it till - in the black Cloud Afternoon, appearin g, when a we turn'd o u t very our Horses, got tent Poles up, and were stretching a Tent, when it began and hail, and was succeeded by a violent Wind which Blew down our Tent a many Trees about it, .several within 30y of the Tent. we all left the place in confusion and ran different ways for shelter. After the Storm was over, we met at the Tent, and found all There was a violent Shower of Rain before This morning we went up the Creek 1 Crossing 59 4th. just to rain great large ones day. safe. 5th. of Dr. Journal of Dr. Tizo mas Ilpa ,igr. about 3 miles, and were then obliged to it, the Timber could not Creek, being so a-et through. we kept on blown down that After we we left the a Ridge 4 miles, then turned down to the head of a Branch, and it began to rain and continued raining hard till Night. - June 6th. We went down the Branch till it became a large Creek. It runs very SWift, fallin g of the Branches we have been on of late. I called it Rapid Creek. After we had gone 8 miles we could not ford, and There is we Camped in the low - Ground. great Sign of Indians on this Creek. The Creek being fordable, kept down I2 miles to we a River Crossed about yards over, WVhich We called Louisa River.' The Creek ye is about River breaks into Island on which 30 yards wide, part of ye Creek-making an we Camped. The River is so deep we Cannot ford it and as it is falling we conclude to stay I The West or Louisa Fork of the Big Sandy River. 6o leave very more than any 7th. it IOO 8th. I Tho/ans WFalker. hunt. In the afternoon Mr Powell and my Self was a hunting about a mile a half from the Camnp, and heard a gun just be- low us on the other and as none of our I was in hopes Side of thle People could of geting Rive r, cross, some direc- tion from the Person, but could not find him. We crossed the River went down it to June gth. the mouth of a Creek up the Creek to the head and over a Ridge into a steep and Camped. Trinity Sunday. Being in very bad Ground for our Horses, were very much were blown camped on a we concluded to move. hindered by the down Trees, on Monday last. we that we Small Branch. It rained violently the Latter part of the night till 9 oClock. The Branch is im- passable at present. We lost a Tomoha wk and a Cann. by the Flood. The Water being low we went down the Branch to Many of the a large Creek, Trees up the Creek. in the Branches are I Vall ey ioth. iith. I 2th. - - I I a -7our7zal of Dr. Journalf 62 Wash'd up by the Roots and cth: -. barked by the old trees, that. went dc.. I y: Stream. The Roots Barked by in the Bottom of the Runs the Stones. June i3th. We are much hindered by the Gust shower of Rain about Noon. (Gamev scarce here, and the mountains very bad, the tops of the Ridges being so covered with Ivy and the sides so steep and stony, were obliged to cut our way through with our Tomohawks. The Woods are still bad and Game scarce. It rained today about Noon on the top of A we Camped Ridge. on a large Creek where Turkey are plenty and some Elks. we went a hunt- killed 3 Turkeys. Hunted killed Bears some The Sabbath. Turkeys. We killed Elk. having prepared a good stock of Meat, we left the Creek crossing several Branches and Ridges. the Woods still continu- bad the Weather hot our - Horses are a is very 14th. that we 15th. We got i6th. ing I7th. 3 a I arge Buck ing - of Dr. Thomas Wal..'cer. Thomas I, L- 'ker. so far spent, that walk. we are all obliged We got to Laurel Creek early this mom.- June x9th. and met so impudent a Bull Buffaloe that we were obliged to shoot him, or he would have -been amongst us. we then went up the Creek six miles, thence up a North Branch of it to the head, and at- tempted to Cross a mountain, but it proved so high and difficult, that we were obliged to Camp on the side of it. This Ridge is nigh the eastern edge of the Coal Land. We crot to the top of the Mountain and Could discover a flat to the South South we went down from the Ridge a Branch and down the Branch to Laurel Creek day by not far from where camped. a Snake this my riding s day, and we left it Hors having yester- e was bit no Bear's Oil I rub'd the place with a piece of fat which had the desired effect. -We found the Level Nigh the Creek full of Laurel that we were obliged to go up a Small Branch, and from the head of that 0J3 ing, to East. 2oth. to meat, so 2iSt - - - - - I I I Joumal of Dr. 64 Jouwrna of Dr. Thomas JIr-'/ker. to the C Creek agrain, and found it ellincr a Small distance fronm the Creek. Camped on the Creek.. Deer are very scarce on the Coal Land, I havwIt, the 3oth of April. seen but 4, June 22d. We kept up to the head of the Creek, the Land being Leveller than we h ave lately seen, and here are some large van na's. Many of the Branches are full of Laurel and Ivy. plen ty. Land continues Deer and Bears are level with Laurel and Ivy we got to a large Creek with very high steep Banks full of Rocks, which I Calld Clifty Creek, the Rocks are- ioo feet per- pendicular in some Places. The Sabbath. We Crossed Clifty Creek. little Coal and the Land still flat. We crossed a Creek that we mal Creek, the Banks being the called Dis- worst and the Laurel the thickest I have seen. Land is Mountainous on the East Side of the Dismal Creek, and the Laurels end in good trav- we since Sa- 24th. 25th. 26th. Here is a The i l I L- .64 Jo urnalz D a few miles. We cam ped on a Small Branch. The Land is very high we Crossed jtne 27th. . several Ridges and cam ped on a small Branch. it rained about Noon and con- tinued till the next It continued set off as soon raining as it ceased till Noon, and we and went down the Branch we lay on to the New River, below the mouth of Green Bryer. Powell, Tomlinson and my self striped, and went into the New River to try if we could wade over at any place. time having found a place we re- turn'd to the others and took such things as would 0 take damage by Water on our Shoulders, and Horses. Rocks Strong waded The Bottom over Leading our is very slippery and most of the way. very uneven, the the Current very. The River 0 is 5 00 yards over. We Camped in the Low Ground opposite to the mouth of Green Bryer. We kept up Green Bryer. It being I- day. just 28th. some Af ter nicrh a 29th. of - Dr. Thomas Walker. Jounial of Dr. Thwinas 66 wet day we went only 2 miles, and Camped on the North June 30-b. We went 7 miles u p the River, which crooked. July yC Ist. The Sabbath. Our Salt being almost spent, We travelled Io miles sometimes o n the River, distance and at other from it. We kept up the River the chief part of this day and we travelled about Io miles. we went Up the River io miles to day. We went up the River Io miles through bad Woods. The way growing 9 miles only. We left the River. on it are of very little worse, we travelled The lo w Value, bu grounds it on the Branches are very good, and there great deal of it, and the high land is very good in many places. Creek We called Anthony's got Creek, on a large which af- a great deal of Very good Land, we kept up the it is chiefly bought. 4 miles. and Camped. and creek This Creek took Side. is very 2d. times some 3d. 4th. very ; 5th. 6th. is a fords F - I i .1--.V-Lz Ike r. Journal its Name from an Indian, Anthony, that frequently called hunts John in these Woods. the Branc There are some :hes of Green. inhabitants Bryer, but missed their Plantations. We kept up the Creek, and about Noon July 7th. 5 men overtook us inform'd us we were 8 miles from the inhabitants on a Branch of James River. the River We exchanged meal parted. nigh which Having Shoes called Jackson's Some Tallow for We Camped on a Creek top of the Alleghany we named Shaved, we left Ragged Shifted, our useless Creek. made Raggs Ridre, new at ye Camp Noon.. got to WValker We moved Johnston's about over to Robert strong, s all Niga hospitabl4 support in the Afternc it The Peop e and would Travellers was staid there here are very be better able to 3 it not for the great number of Indian -\ATarriers, - that quently take what they want from them, much to Their prejudice. 67 on we only 8th. Arm- fre- - - - - - L- I I of Dr. Thomas I f ,a 1k. er. I i of Dr. Thomas TVa/ker. 68 Jou 7rzZ July gth. Wve went to the hot Sprtinogs S. and found six .i nval ides there. The Spring Water is very Clear warmer than new Milk, and there is a springof cold do feet of the WVaxn one. Water I left within one of my Company this day. Having a Path We rode 20 miles lodged Panther to at Captain Gap. a Smith to T wo of get Jemyson's below my Company their Horses Shod. Our Way to Augusta . A ndrew mending, We travelled Court House, Johnston, the where first of 30 miles I found my ac- quaintance of March. I had seen, since the 26 day Mr Johnston lent me a fresh Horse sent my Horse was so ki n d About 8 "Clock :s to Mr David as to give theT Stewards who m Pastureacre. I set off leaving all. my Company. Afternoon Lewis's at House. It began to I lodged at )Out 34 rain about 2 Captain miles from Augusta in the David Court I got Home about Noon. ioth. IIth. the went 12th. and I3th. - l - I L .68 Jlournal of Dr. Thoinas Walker. killed in the Journey I 3 Buffaloes, 8 Elks, 5 3 about Bears, 20 150 Turkeys, Deer, 4 Wild besides small Geese, Game. We might have killed three times as much meat, if we had wanted it. We I' . 1i l1; '_ j ; .. .m- 1 a 'V I. , hi2 a.- . 10- Ut. I ..I-- w on -i L - . ': ., ' ._.. i.,U. I . - M, i af 56 ';I I X ' I' 0 a U.' . I I 4. -.. a 'e e ;,'7u A. Ii' 'U' 1 P.3 i I I "C ,t -4 , , O". I .'.I do 0 ir", t. ;F I I:b -14 It.-.7 q . Vt -, .. W. t . 1".:.r ..r f I Al ,1:6.. 1 a - .1", - 't fj, I - - -. -qM.:- 167 .. r .-- -,i 1. .361, -.I- O', .. .491, . , , k 0 1A.V