Contents ▼▲
Front Matter At Boonesborough Beginning of the Story Boone on the Yadkin Boone Moves his Family Ready for the Journey What we Wore Driving Cattle and Sheep Camping at Nightfall The Long Halt Jimmy Boone Goes to Clinch Murder of Jimmy Boone A Time of Mourning The Faint-hearted Return A New Home Making Moccasins Tanning Leather Governor Dunmore Our Home on the Clinch Household Duties Attacked by a Wildcat Fighting the Wildcat Boone and Father Return The Wilderness Road Building the Forts Boonesborough Gathering Salt Boonesborough Precautions Our Home in the Fort Ready for Cooking Furnishing the House The Hominy Block The Supply of Water Sports Inside the Fort Wrestling and Running Religion of the Indians Indian Babies Colonel Callaway Arives News from Eastern Colonies Venturing Outside the Fort Dividing the Land Who Owned Kentucky? Ready to Build a Home Billy's Hard Lot Preparing Flax Spinning and Soap Making Broom Making More Indian Murders Indian "Signs" Woodcraft and Hunting Pelts Used as Money Petition of the Settlers Making Sugar Building Fences Capture of the Girls My Willful Thoughts Finding the Trail The Pursuit The Story Told by Jemima Elizabeth's Heroism Rescuing the Girls Alarm Among the Settlers Indians on the Warpath The First Wedding The Wedding Festivities The Brides Home The Housewarming Attacks by the Indians Besieged by the Savages In the Midst of the Fight The Assault by the Indians Failure of the Assault Watchfulness of the Indians The Sortie My Father Wounded Our Wounded

Hannah of Kentucky - James Otis




The Wilderness Road

So Mr. Boone and father left us alone again.

Not only did Mr. Boone blaze what is called the Wilderness Road, but he, with father and many other men to help him, built a fort on the bank of Otter Creek, in Kentucky, close by the river of the same name, and it was to this place, which was already spoken of as Boonesborough, that we were to go without delay.

It must not be supposed that the making of the Wilderness Road and the building of the fort were done without trouble from the Indians.

When the road makers were within fifteen miles of the place where the fort was afterwards built, and during the night when all were sleeping soundly in the belief that the Indians would hold to certain promises lately made, that they would cease from making attacks on the settlers, the Shawnees surrounded our men.

[Illustration] from Hannah of Kentucky by James Otis

At daybreak the war whoop rang out, mingled with the reports of rifles as the savages fired at the sleeping men. Mr. Boone and his companions sprang to their feet in alarm. But for the fact that these road makers were old hunters who had fought again and again with the Indians, all might have been murdered; but, because of past experience, they were no sooner awake than every man was ready for battle.

It must have been that God prevented the savages from taking good aim, for only one white man was killed and two were wounded, one so badly that he died on the third day after.

When the Indians saw our people take shelter behind the trees and open fire, they beat a quick retreat, for they will not stand up in open fight against white men. Mr. Boone's company remained crouching in hiding ready to open fire on the first red face or tuft of feathers that could be seen, many of them meanwhile urging that all attempts to build a fort be abandoned, and that they return beyond the Cumberland Mountains, for there was good reason to believe that the Indians had taken to the warpath again.