The Posterity Project: history

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"History is never true."

   History is never true. At no moment in the course of historical recording are all the facts known. The documents come to light serially, sporadically; all of them are never available at the same time. Centuries may elapse before the story of the World War is adequately told. A century, two centuries may pass before even a single movement or episode in a nation's history is understood.

   Nor is it easy to arrive at the truth, even when all the essential factors in the historical problem or situation are ready to hand. For all history, as the great Italian critic, Benedetto Croce, has brilliantly pointed out, is contemporaneous. The writer, in dealing with times remote, interprets ideas, movements and events in the light of his own personal knowledge, experience and temperament. He cannot step off his own shadow. Even when he is writing of his own age and is strictly contemporaneous, he suffers the handicap of writing with insufficient data. History, written by a contemporary, is likely to be less accurate, less truthful than the history of the past written by someone living in the present.

   If history is always contemporaneous and never true, there would seem to be no reason for its existence. The best excuse for the historical writer is that it is his function to correct the most glaring errors, to fill in the most yawning lacunae, in the writings of his predecessors. In so doing, he is giving a "new slant" to interpretation, or furnishing a new platform from which his successors may enter new fields of research.

-- Remarks by Archibald Henderson, "The Transylvania Company and the Founding of Henderson, K.Y.," delivered at the unveiling of six historical tablets at the Henderson Courthouse, October 11, 1929.

Gordon Belt is an information professional, archives advocate, public historian, and author of The History Press book, John Sevier: Tennessee's First Hero, which examines the life of Tennessee's first governor, John Sevier, through the lens of history and memory. On The Posterity Project, Gordon offers reflections on archives, public history, and memory from his home state of Tennessee.

"See The Harvest" through John Sevier's eyes...

Can you imagine the President of the United States delivering his State of the Union address through a series of four 15-minute videos narrated by an actor portraying George Washington? Likewise, can you imagine a sitting governor delivering his State of the State message through a similar dramatic method? Believe it or not, this actually happened in 1956, as Tennessee Governor Frank G. Clement used "a novel narration technique" to deliver his administration's progress report, conjuring up the ghost of John Sevier in the process to explain his accomplishments.

Allow me to take you back in time to the following press release issued by Gov. Clement's office on December 1, 1956 announcing the premier of a film series entitled, See The Harvest...

   With the release this month of a film series titled See The Harvest, Tennessee embarks on a unique venture in state government, Governor Frank Clement said today.

   See The Harvest is a series of four fifteen minute films which will be shown on television stations across the state during December. The films depict the progress made in the major fields of state government during the past three and a half years.

   "This is what you might call a mid-term report to the people of Tennessee," Governor Clement told newsmen at his news conference today.

   The first of the series will be seen December 2, and shows progress in highway construction and traffic safety. The second film depicts developments in Education and Mental Health; the third, scheduled the third week of December, takes up the departments of Public Health, Public Welfare, Corrections, Agriculture and Conservation. The final film will reveal developments in the Tennessee National Guard, industrial expansion, the Employment Security Department, and state finances.

   Ten of the state's thirteen television stations have agreed to carry the series during December. The films are in color and will be available to schools, PTA groups, civic and luncheon clubs across the state upon request. The Governor said he hopes a showing can be scheduled for the 1957 General Assembly.

In See the Harvest, "Tom Carter," played by Richard Beauchamp, introduces "John Sevier," portrayed by veteran WSM announcer Grant Turner, to the progress made under the administration of Tennessee Gov. Frank G. Clement.
Image credit: Frank Goad Clement Papers, Tennessee State Library and Archives.

   See The Harvest is a Division of Information project written and produced by Howard Anderson, and photographed by three veteran state cameramen, Paul Moore and Wallace Danley of the Conservation Department, and D.S. McCormac of the Agriculture Department.

   The idea of reporting the progress of this administration in such an unusual fashion was first discussed by Governor Clement in September. The series was then produced in a record two months at a cost of only $158 a film minute. Had the state contracted for the entire project with a film company the cost would have run between $500 and $1000 a film minute, Clement said.

   Maytag Productions, Kansas City, edited the series. The Calvin Company, also of Kansas City, did the necessary laboratory work, and Bradley Studios of Nashville contracted to record the narration.

   See The Harvest uses a novel narration technique. The viewer sees the progress the State government has made through the eyes of John Sevier, the first governor of Tennessee, played by Grant Turner, veteran WSM announcer. He is conducted on his movie tour by a typical Tennessee youngster, Tom Carter, who is acted by Richard Beauchamp, a senior at West High School, Nashville.

   Lost to time and distant memory, See the Harvest resides at the Tennessee State Library and Archives in its original 16mm format. Due to its age and somewhat brittle condition, archivists have taken measures to preserve See the Harvest for posterity, carefully storing the original film in a secure, temperature-controlled vault. Archivists have also preserved the documents created by government officials involved in the film's production, giving researchers a glimpse into the inner workings of state government at this important time in Tennessee's history.

   Gov. Clement knew that television could convey his administration's mid-term message to a broad audience far more effectively than any speech he might deliver. As indicated in the governor's press release, nearly every television station within the state of Tennessee aired See the Harvest during the month of December in 1956. In addition, documents within the Frank Goad Clement Papers at TSLA reveal that Gov. Clement's administration issued a memorandum to the heads of all departments and agencies within state government urging all state employees to view See the Harvest at Tennessee's War Memorial Building during a scheduled viewing on December 12, 1956. These aggressive publicity efforts ensured that citizens and state employees alike knew about Gov. Clement's accomplishments.

   Gov. Clement's surrogates throughout each state agency also wrote letters of praise for the film production. In a letter dated December 7, 1956, Commissioner Donald M. McSween of Tennessee's Department of Employment Security wrote, "Having seen all four films in the natural color in which they were photographed, I can attest to their high quality and effectiveness. In fact, it constitutes one of the best jobs of its sort I have ever seen and we understand is without parallel in any of the other states." Other commissioners wrote similar letters expressing pride in the film's production quality achieved at a significant cost savings.

   While See the Harvest received almost universal praise within state government, at least one official expressed concern about a scene in the film depicting a young boy "chained to a tree and scratching the ground" -- a scene meant to dramatically illustrate the state of child welfare in Tennessee and to communicate Gov. Clement's efforts to improve conditions in areas of education and mental health. Tennessee's Commissioner of Mental Health C. J. Ruilmann, M.D., responded to this concern in a December 27, 1956 letter. He stated, "I made some subsequent inquiries and found that the members of the group to whom I talked considered that particular scene to be excellent, hard-hitting photography and that they felt as I do that the scene should be left in. We agree that it is rather forceful but it does tell a story."

   Using this storytelling technique to deliver a "mid-term report" to the citizens of Tennessee and to state employees made perfect sense to government officials at the time, although by today's standards one might view the acting as amateurish and the information delivery method as a bit contrived. Still, See the Harvest spoke to not only how the Clement administration viewed television as a powerful communication medium, but it also spoke to how Tennesseans remembered their first governor. Within the state, many decades after his death, Sevier still captured the imagination of politicians and citizens alike. Bringing Sevier back to life in this creative way gave Tennesseans yet another way to embrace their very own frontier legend, Revolutionary War patriot, and "first hero."

SELECTED SOURCES:

Record Group 137 - Tennessee Department of Conservation, Tennessee State Library and Archives.

Frank Goad Clement Papers, Tennessee State Library and Archives.

"We were waylaid by the Cherokees"

On March 19, 1839, David Haley of Roane County, Tennessee, wrote a letter to his son living in Madisonville, Mississippi, recounting his experiences in the Revolutionary War and in various military expeditions against the Cherokee and Creek Indians. Following his military service, Haley settled in Tennessee. In his unvarnished account, Haley recalled with matter-of-fact candor the brutal nature of warfare on America’s first frontier:

Dear Sir:

It affords me great pleasure to give you a history of the part I took in the Revolution and Indian War.

In the fall of 1776, I went from Virginia to South Carolina where there was volunteers making up to go under Gen’l. Williamson against the Over Hill and Valley Town Cherokee Indians. I volunteered, and I was in front of a battle against 2,000 Indians between the Middle Settlement and Valley Town’s at the head of the Tennessee and Savannah Rivers. There was 2,500 of us. We were waylaid by the Cherokees. We lost about 35 killed and about as many wounded. We drove them from their ambush and kept the field and mountains. We then marched over the Valley Towns and had no more fighting of consequence. Some little scrimmages, burnt several towns, etc. I then returned to Va. And in the Spring of 1777, I volunteered under Genl. Saml. Scott in a Light Horse Company and went against the Creek Indians. In Georgia we held a treaty with them at Golfen’s Cow-Pen on Ogeechee. After the treaty we were stationed on Long Creek in what was called the New Purchase of Georgia on that day. During our stay there the Creek Indians came in one night and stole 7 horses. The next day myself and 21 others went in pursuit of the Indians on foot. 2nd day found the horses, took possession of them and on our way back was waylaid by the Indians about 50 in number. Killed 6 of our men and wounded two badly, but got them back and they lived. In that fight Capt. Thomas Dooley was killed, and had his heel string shot off the first fire and could not run. This was in July 1777.

http://tnsos.org/tsla/imagesearch/citation.php?ImageID=2038

Engraving entitled "Indians attacking a station." The battle depicted is unidentified.
Library Collection, Tennessee State Library and Archives.

I then returned to Virginia and joined the Va. Militia to reinforce Genl. Gates in South Carolina. We met Gen’l Gates at Hillsboro, August 20, 1780, running from Camden where he had been defeated by Cornwallis (the same battle in August 16, 1780 in which DeKalb was killed). In 1781, I joined Genl. Lawson’s Brigade and went against Lord Cornwallis at Little Yorkstown, Va., where we succeeded in capturing Cornwallis.

In the fall of 1782, I came out in the country of French Broad and Holston, Tenn., now exploring the country and located some land and entered it at Hillsboro, N.C. in 1783 in Armstrong’s office. In the same year I married and moved straight to the country and settled 12 miles out of the settlement at the mouth of Richland Creek. In 1785, I moved to Richland Creek where I lived two years. The two years before I lived up the settlement. Pretty soon after I moved to Richland Creek the people began to settle in. In 1786 or 1787 I was elected Captain by the people and was commissioned by the Government of N. Carolina. After I had been there about two and one half years the Cherokee Indians broke out war against us and we had to fort nearly three years until the Territorial Government took place. I petitioned the Government of N. Carolina and got my men all under pay, those that had horses, under horseman’s pay and those that had none under foot pay. About this time Genl. Joseph Martin of Va. Came out and raised a company of 450 horsemen. I went with my company with him and we had a hard fight with the Indians. In the battle, Capt. Ballard and Capt. Hardin were killed. After this myself and 43 men went into nation at Hanging Moss Village and killed 12 fellows one morning before breakfast. I must conclude.

Your father,

David Haley

Written accounts from the opposite side of these battles, from the Native American perspective, are quite rare since the Indians of the American Southeast did not establish a written language until the 1820s. Consequently, most primary sources from this era were written from the perspective of the early white settlers. Still, posterity owes a debt of gratitude to Major David Haley for the foresight he had to pen this letter to his son 175 years ago today. Without this account, we would have never known of Haley's experiences during this important time in Tennessee's history. A few months after sending his letter, David Haley died on September 20, 1839, nearly one month shy of his 79th birthday.

SELECTED SOURCES

Letter by David Haley, Roane Co., Tenn., March 19, 1839. Revolutionary War Collection, Manuscript Section, Tennessee State Library and Archives.

Tennessee Society Sons of the American Revolution Applications, 1899-1980, Tennessee Historical Society Collection, Tennessee State Library and Archives.

"Genuine History"

A brief article republished in the March 2014 issue of The Nashville Retrospect caught my eye late last week. The article, "The History of Tennessee," originally published in the March 1, 1820 edition of the Nashville Whig, perfectly captures the feelings of patriotic duty the early chroniclers of Tennessee history felt towards publishing what remained of the memories of Tennessee's first settlers.

During the nineteenth century, John Haywood, J.G.M. Ramsey, Lyman Draper, and others, saw it as their calling to preserve for posterity the experiences of the earliest frontiersmen. Their romanticized accounts and reminiscences of Tennessee's aging pioneers and soldiers helped to shape public memory of America's first frontier. Through these writers' narratives, life and legend intertwined.

This painting by Peggy Harvill depicts a flatboat voyage of the Donelson party to Nashville, 1780.
Image credit: Tennessee Blue Book.

Ironically, the romanticism of the past is exactly what the editors of the Nashville Whig sought to avoid in this call to preserve the memory of Tennessee's first frontiersmen. Here's an excerpt of the article, featured in this month's edition of The Nashville Retrospect:

THE HISTORY OF TENNESSEE

Nashville Whig, March 1, 1820

     The period must soon be here, when it will be impossible to do justice, to this all important subject, the early history of Tennessee. Those who are intimately acquainted with the interesting events and minute circumstances involved in it, are, one by one, leaving the stage--and, in a few years more, nothing will remain of its details, but mutilated fragments, amounting to little more than traditional romance.

     If the events, attending the infancy of States and Nations, could be seized, before the lapse of time could shed around them the gloom of obscurity--and, if those events could obtain a faithful record, for the contemplation of posterity, poems would not so frequently obtain the character of history, nor would future generations want those lessons of truth, which the genuine history of their predecessors alone can afford. But, it is needless to add anything more, on a subject which must be familiar to every citizen.

     The Editors of this paper have assurances, by a company of gentlemen who are willing to devote some time to it, that if those Elders, who are well acquainted with different parts of this subject, will each transmit his own narrative of the early history of the State of Tennessee to this office, no matter how carelessly written as to penmanship, &c. due attention will be given, to throw them into a historical form, in as short a period as is really required for the performance of such an undertaking.

To honor this early call for "genuine history," in forthcoming blog posts on The Posterity Project I plan to share more excerpts and reminiscences by the pioneers and soldiers of Tennessee as part of a larger research project connected to my book, John Sevier: Tennessee's First Hero. This project will focus on the Indian Wars of the region, and ties in very closely with one of the driving themes of this blog--history and memory in early Tennessee. I hope you'll stay tuned to The Posterity Project for future blog posts on this subject.

In the meantime, I would highly recommend picking up a copy of The Nashville Retrospect. Each month, the newspaper publishes excerpts from stories published long ago along with a mix of original articles and scholarship by local authors and historians. Visit The Nashville Retrospect website for further information.

Newspaper source and credit: Tennessee State Library and Archives. Originally published in the Nashville Whig, March 1, 1820. Republished in The Nashville Retrospect, March 2014 edition.

Fort Defiance and Sevier Station...

Another stop on my tour of Clarksville during STA2013 was the Fort Defiance Civil War Park & Interpretive Center...

Image credit: McKinney Construction Company, Inc.

"Located on a bluff 200 feet above the confluence of the Red and Cumberland Rivers in Clarksville, Tennessee, the Fort Defiance site has been a hub of activity for more than two centuries. Originally inhabited by American Indians, white settlers began arriving in the late 18th Century. The area became a trading center and settlement. During the Civil War, the hilltop was chosen by Confederate troops as a site to construct a fort to defend the river approach to Clarksville. In February 1862, the fort was captured by Union forces, renamed and occupied for the remainder of the war. The site was a magnet for runaway and freed slaves, and many were employed in and around the fort. A visitor today will find Fort Defiance remarkably well preserved; the outer earthworks, powder magazine and gun platforms are still discernible."

Within the walls of the Interpretive Center is a wonderful exhibit telling the story of Fort Defiance from its beginnings as an early settlement to its strategic importance during the Civil War. Although no Civil War battle was ever fought in Clarksville, the Interpretive Center's focus on how the war affected citizens on the home front provides a much-needed historical perspective on one aspect of the Civil War that is often overlooked by many battlefield sites.

Exhibits on display at the Fort Defiance Civil War Park & Interpretive Center.
Author photo.

Also located adjacent to the property is Sevier Station, a settlement that area historians believe was once settled by John Sevier's younger brother, Valentine Sevier.

Sevier Station, currently on the National Register of Historic Places, was the site of a gruesome battle fought on November 11, 1794. Valentine Sevier and his family fought off a party of about 40 Chickamauga and Creek Indians who had come to Sevier Station to loot and pillage the settlement.

Six members of Valentine Sevier's family were killed during the attack on Sevier Station. A seventh member of the family, Sevier's 12-year-old daughter, was scalped during the attack, but survived. The Sevier Station Massacre is viewed by historians as one of the last major episodes of the Chickamauga War.

David Britton recently published a story on his blog, The Old Southwest, detailing Valentine Sevier's harrowing experience at Sevier Station. According to Britton, "In addition to the confusion of the events caused by well-meaning armchair historians over the past two hundred plus years, the actual location of the site has been heavily disputed."

A historic marker erected in 1936 by the D.A.R. serves as a memorial to Valentine Sevier.
Image credit: "Fort Defiance" | And the creek don't rise: Finding my way in the South

During my tour of Fort Defiance and Sevier Station, I had an opportunity to chat briefly with Dr. Richard Gildrie, a retired Austin Peay State University history professor, who is leading the effort to document the history of this settlement. Dr. Gildrie has long suspected that the precise location of Sevier Station remains unknown, calling it a "vexed question." He hopes to raise enough money to conduct an archeological investigation to answer this vexed question once and for all. I, for one, hope that Dr. Gildrie is successful in his efforts.

If you have an opportunity to travel to Clarksville, I would highly recommend a visit to the Fort Defiance Civil War Park & Interpretive Center, and Sevier Station. There are many educational and informative exhibits detailing the history of this area, particularly during the Civil War, making this a must-see destination in the City of Clarksville.

The Austin Peay Mystery...

Last week, I traveled to Clarksville, Tennessee for the Society of Tennessee Archivists annual conference. During the three-day meeting, I had an opportunity to visit the Montgomery County Archives.

Established in 1995, the Montgomery County Archives serves as the official repository for the historic, permanent records of Montgomery County Government and manuscript special collections. The Montgomery County Archives is a marvelous facility with wonderful professionals on staff eager to assist researchers and the public at large. County residents should feel proud of their efforts to preserve their history.

As with most archival facilities, most research queries received by the Montgomery County Archives fall into two broad categories -- requests for government records and family history research. The latter category is perhaps the most frequently researched subject.

Genealogy is wildly popular right now, and a recent flood of television programming has tapped into this trend. The television show Who Do You Think You Are?, for example, has featured stories from my home state of Tennessee, and now PBS has entered the genre with a new program called Genealogy Roadshow, a spinoff of its popular Antiques Roadshow program.

In its premiere episode, the Genealogy Roadshow highlighted a story which led one researcher to the Montgomery County Archives, where a previously uncataloged document played a crucial role in the narrative. The document in question was a letter revealed to be from a member of the family of Albert Roberts, an African-American entrepreneur who had a mysterious connection to Austin Peay, the former Governor of Tennessee.

Austin Peay was the 35th governor
of the State of Tennessee.
Image credit: Library of Congress

Peay, for whom Clarksville's Austin Peay State University was named, earned election as governor of Tennessee in 1922 and served in his third term when he died in office in 1927. Roberts, an African-American business owner, inherited a funeral home business from his grandfather, and also owned a taxi business, nightclub, and cemetery.

As the story unfolded on Genealogy Roadshow, Roberts engaged in a number of illegal activities, including rum-running and prostitution during the Prohibition era. Apparently, Governor Peay enlisted the aid of his protégé and law partner, Collier Goodlett, a well-known white attorney, who defended Roberts in court whenever the enterprising businessman got into legal trouble.

During the segment, professional genealogist and Genealogy Roadshow co-host Joshua Taylor asserted that the reason Austin Peay took such a keen interest in the legal affairs of this African-American businessman was that he was actually Albert Roberts' father. He theorized that as a fourteen-year-old boy, Peay fathered this child with a 28-year-old housekeeper, and in the years that followed, as governor, Peay intervened on Albert's behalf whenever he would run afoul of the law.

It is a serious allegation, but one that Taylor claimed was true because a letter found in the Montgomery County Archives confirmed the story. "This is THE document," Taylor exclaimed. "If I could pick a document to frame on my wall and look at it would be this." The letter read in part:

"I didn’t know until recently that Albert Roberts was former Gov. Austin Peay’s son. It must have been a bombshell when it exploded."

The next day, the Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle ran a story about the episode and revealed that a member of the Roberts' family living in French Lick, Indiana wrote and signed the letter in 1938.

Following the airing of this episode of Genealogy Roadshow, I eagerly anticipated viewing the letter for myself, so my visit to Clarksville and the Montgomery County Archives during STA2013 could not have come at a better time.

Page 2 of the letter in question, digitized and on public display at the Montgomery County Archives in Clarksville.
Author photo.

To her credit, the professional genealogist and researcher who uncovered the letter in an uncataloged box at the archives has stated publicly that "It’s an interesting document. Does it hit the nail on the head? No. As a genealogist, I want to see those official documents, and a handwritten letter is not an official document." I wholeheartedly agree with this assessment. Although this letter represents a key piece of evidence in the genealogical investigation, the document only confirms that the rumor of Governor Peay's relationship with Roberts was circulating at the time the letter was written. It is certainly not "THE" document proving that Austin Peay was Albert Roberts father.

It is my sincere hope that more official documents and information will be revealed to help solve this family mystery with absolute certainty. I also hope that in its second season the Genealogy Roadshow will continue to highlight stories like this which bring much-needed attention to the value and service that county archives provide to the public. In the meantime, I am grateful that that this letter is now properly cataloged and in good hands at the Montgomery County Archives for all the world to see.

An old friend is our new state historian...

In May, I reported the sad news that my home state of Tennessee lost its chief historian. Walter Durham served as Tennessee's State Historian since his appointment in 2002 until his death at the age of 88 on May 24, 2013.

Filling Walter Durham's shoes will be a daunting task, but it is one task that I believe the next State Historian can handle. I am thrilled to share the news that Dr. Carroll Van West was recently appointed to the post of Tennessee State Historian. Here's an excerpt of the press release issued by the Governor's Office:

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today announced the appointment of Dr. Carroll Van West as state historian.

West replaces the late Walter T. Durham, who served 11 years in the honorary position.

"Dr. West's faithful service to his field for many years reflects a commitment to excellence that will serve the citizens of Tennessee very well," Haslam said. "His incredible body of work speaks for itself, and we are fortunate and grateful to have him as our state historian."

West has served as director at the Center for Historic Preservation at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) and the Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area since 2002.

He has taught as a professor in the MTSU history department since 1985. He currently serves as a co-chair of the Tennessee Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission and as a Tennessee representative on the National Board of Advisors of National Trust for Historic Preservation. West also sits on the Executive Board of Lewis and Clark Trust, Inc. and on the Advisory Board of Teaching with Primary Sources, Library of Congress.

On a personal note, Dr. West served as thesis advisor for both me and my wife while we studied Public History at Middle Tennessee State University, and he was very instrumental in guiding Traci's work on Onward Southern Soldiers: Religion and the Army of Tennessee in the Civil War. We have continued to maintain contact with Dr. West since that time. In fact, Traci will have the honor of appearing on a panel discussion at the upcoming Tennessee Civil War Sesquicentennial Signature Event in Chattanooga this October, moderated by Dr. West. Naturally, we are both very excited to learn of his appointment to the post of Tennessee State Historian.

Last year, Traci and I joined Dr. Carroll Van West for a lecture and book signing for Onward Southern Soldiers at the Heritage Center of Murfreesboro and Rutherford County. Author photo.

Beyond my own personal excitement about this nomination, I believe Dr. West's appointment signals that officials in state government are keenly aware of the importance of the office of State Historian and its connections to the civic and economic well-being of Tennessee. The growth of heritage tourism in our state is due in no small measure to Dr. West's efforts, and his experience as an academic historian, instructor of public history, and passionate advocate of state and local history throughout Tennessee makes him an ideal candidate for this position.

I believe that Dr. West will serve the citizens of Tennessee with distinction in this new role, and I can think of no other person more deserving of this honor.

Gordon Belt is the Director of Public Services for the Tennessee State Library & Archives, and past president of the Society of Tennessee Archivists. On The Posterity Project, Gordon blogs about archives, local history, genealogy, and social media advocacy for archives and cultural heritage organizations. His forthcoming book, John Sevier: Tennessee's First Hero, examines the life of Tennessee's first governor, John Sevier, through the lens of history and memory.

"Worshipful Master" - John Sevier and Freemasonry on the Frontier

One of the great things about blogging your book is that you get helpful feedback from readers. I never pass up an opportunity to learn from others who have studied the same subject of interest, and I enjoy the feedback and conversation.

A few weeks ago, I wrote a book review inspired by a comment on The Posterity Project, and today I'm following up with a response to a question I recently received from a descendant of John Sevier:

"I notice that Andrew Jackson is listed on the Grand Lodge of Tennessee's website as a "Famous Freemason", but that Sevier is not. Does that mean Sevier was not ever a Freemason, or does it mean that he was but later somehow fell out of favor with that fraternity?"

In addition to being the first Governor of the State of Tennessee, John Sevier held the title of "Worshipful Master" of Tennessee Lodge No. 2, and was among its first charter members.

To be honest, I had not considered this aspect of John Sevier's life in my research, and immediately thought that the answer to this question would make an interesting essay.

On November 30, 1800, Tennessee Lodge No. 2 (No. 41 of North Carolina) was chartered by Grand Master William Polk. Known also as Polk Lodge, Governor John Sevier was among the first charter officers and named "Worshipful Master" by the Lodge.

In his book, The History of Freemasonry in Tennessee, 1789-1943, Charles Albert Snodgrass writes:

"The city of Knoxville played a prominent part in the development of Masonry in Tennessee. It was the seat of government when Tennessee was merely the 'Territory South of the Ohio.' It was the birth place of the State; the Capitol and the home of John Sevier, the first Governor, for several years. It had the second Masonic Lodge in the State, was the birth place of the Grand Lodge and had the oldest Lodge when the Grand Lodge was organized there in 1813. It has always been a Masonic center though its pioneer Lodges failed to survive... Many members of Tennessee Lodge No. 2 were prominent in the service of the State, the Nation and the Fraternity -- among them Governors John Sevier and Archibald Roane..." [256-257]

Snodgrass includes a brief biography of John Sevier within the pages of his book, noting Sevier's accomplishments as the first and only Governor of the State of Franklin, as the first Governor of Tennessee, and highlights his distinguished military and political career.

In another volume published in 1906 entitled, The Beginnings of Freemasonry in North Carolina and Tennessee, Marshall DeLancey Haywood writes of the migration of Freemasonry in the same reverential tones as seen in many of the hagiographic works written during the turn of the twentieth century. Haywood writes:

"Little knows the average Mason of his Craft's transmission from England to America, of its growth in Colonial days, how great soldiers and statesmen of Revolutionary times united with worthy brethren in humbler spheres of life and 'transmitted unimpaired the most excellent tenets of our institution,' how a sturdy race of pioneers carried the Great Lights of Masonry across mountain ranges into Tennessee and there formed another Grand Lodge which in time was to send its chartered off-shoots throughout newer States where the organization still flourishes, and what were the earlier causes in general of the high esteem in which Masonry has ever been held in all enlightened communities..." [1]

Haywood goes on to say that "there are few accessible sources from which information may be obtained as to our State's earlier Masonic history. The Order has printed little." Thus, it was left to future writers, like Haywood and Snodgrass, to fill the scholarly void.

Unfortunately, little more was written about John Sevier's life as the "Worshipful Master" of Tennessee Lodge No. 2, perhaps because of the lack of documented evidence, and perhaps also because Masons have traditionally held private their customs and rituals.

As a public historian, it is helpful to be reminded from time to time that public history necessarily involves the public. You can learn so much from the material culture of our past, but inquiry, inspiration, and analysis can also come from those who share your interests. Thanks to interested readers of my blog, I've learned another fascinating detail about John Sevier's life and have added another chapter to my ongoing research into "Tennessee's First Hero."

Selected Sources:

Marshall DeLancey Haywood. The Beginnings of Freemasonry in North Carolina and Tennessee. Raleigh, North Carolina: Weaver & Lynch, 1906 (page 25).
Charles Albert Snodgrass. The History of Freemasonry in Tennessee, 1789-1943. Nashville, Tenn.: Ambrose Printing Co., 1944.

Archival records help tell the story of the Cumberland Settlements

Nashville author and historical researcher Paul Clements recently published an important book on the early settlement of Middle Tennessee entitled, Chronicles of the Cumberland Settlements. I was lucky enough to secure a copy of Paul's book during the annual meeting of the Society of Tennessee Archivists last fall in Knoxville. I also had the opportunity to introduce Paul during a recent workshop at the Tennessee State Library and Archives where he talked about his research and the interesting stories found in the letters and diaries of those who lived in the Cumberland Settlements at the very beginning of white settlement in the region.

Enjoying tales of early Tennessee history from Paul Clements' new book, Chronicles of the Cumberland Settlements, during a recent lecture at Tennessee State Library and Archives. Author photo.

Chronicles of the Cumberland Settlements is a massive volume -- 785 pages documenting life on the Tennessee frontier through the original records, and through accounts told by direct descendants and participants in the events of the region. For anyone with an interest in this time period in Tennessee's early history, it's a book that deserves a place in your own library as a valuable reference resource, and a chronicle of the important stories told of this time.

Clements dedicates his book to Lyman Draper, a man who played a significant role in chronicling the story of John Sevier's life -- a subject of deep personal interest here on The Posterity Project. In much the same way that Draper meticulously documented his research, Paul Clements has spent the better part of a decade documenting life on the Cumberland Settlements, and correcting the historical record where he found it in error.

The Nashville City Paper recently published a lengthy article about Paul Clements' work and his book. In the piece, reporter Bill Carey noted that "Clements just moved the understanding of Nashville’s early history forward one very large step. He did this the old-fashioned way — by staring at microfilm for more than a decade in places such as the Metro Nashville Archives and the Tennessee State Library and Archives."

And in a November 2012 article published by The Nashville Retrospect, John Egerton called Chronicles of the Cumberland "a first-person drama, lifted directly from the diaries and letters of people who lived through those perilous times" and "from the writings of second or third parties -- like Lyman Draper -- who went to extraordinary lengths to rescue eyewitness stories from oblivion."

For me, this is the strength of his book. Utilizing the early records contained on microfilm and in the original letters written in the time period, Paul Clements makes the Cumberland Settlements come alive, and shatters several long-held myths along the way. A true friend of the archives, and board member of TSLAFriends, the Friends organization of the Tennessee State Library and Archives, Paul Clements has brought the pages of history to life through this important volume.

For a taste of what you'll find in Paul Clements' book, I would encourage you to read the Nashville City Paper article mentioned in this story. It includes several anecdotes and stories from the book, and describes Paul's work at the Metro Archives and TSLA to uncover this important place in Tennessee history.

A scholar and a gentleman...

On Sunday morning, I awoke to the sad news that Tennessee State Historian Walter Durham had passed away at the age of 88. I only had two brief occasions to meet Mr. Durham, but I've admired his work and professional character for many years. Though I did not know him well, I feel a profound sense of loss for my home state of Tennessee.

Walter Durham was appointed state historian in 2002. He served as president of the Tennessee Historical Society, founding president of the Tennessee Heritage Alliance, later renamed the Tennessee Preservation Trust, and chair of the Tennessee Historical Commission. Mr. Durham was the author of two dozen books spanning a wide range of areas of Tennessee history. He was the recipient of numerous awards for his writing, and was a contributor for the Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture.

During a Memorial Day weekend in which we remembered the fallen heroes of our nation, it is also fitting that we remember that Walter Durham served our country in the United States Air Force during World War II. Upon returning home, he attended Vanderbilt University, where he received his Bachelor's degree in 1948 and his Master's degree in 1955. He was also the only person to serve on the state commission of the 100th and 150th anniversary of the Civil War.

In a beautifully written tribute published in The Tennessean, several of Mr. Durham's close friends and professional colleagues weighed in on his life and work. I was particularly struck by this remembrance by artist and historian, Bill Puryear:

"Walter was always a gentleman, very modest and courteous in his demeanor, religious about getting his facts right on history," Puryear said. "If he wrote it down and testified to it, you could count on it being accurate. He explored aspects of history, both local and Tennessee, in areas where nobody has ever gone before. So his books will stand as reference for hundreds of years."

Walter Durham was truly a scholar and a gentleman, a devoted advocate for history across the state of Tennessee, and he established the standard by which all future works of Tennessee historical scholarship will be measured. May God bless his family during this difficult time.

Another case of "research rapture"

As a researcher of early Tennessee history, I find it hard not to have empathy for Lyman Draper.

Lyman Copeland Draper from a daguerreotype
portrait made about 1855.
Image credit: Wisconsin Historical Society.

Lyman Copeland Draper (1815-1891) was the secretary of the Wisconsin Historical Society, and the man most responsible for preserving the memory of the early settlers of the Trans-Appalachian West.

A librarian and historian, Lyman Draper corresponded with the early settlers of the region and their descendants in an effort to "rescue from oblivion the memory of its early pioneers and to obtain and preserve narratives of their exploits."‎

He spent many long hours writing letters to the aging pioneers seeking their reminiscences and made many research trips to the South to chronicle these stories. Immediately following the Civil War, Draper's proclivity to collect manuscripts and notes saved many of these legendary tales from certain destruction, as Union forces burned courthouses and destroyed documents and artifacts held in southern repositories.

Lyman Draper had high ambitions to become a popular writer and to publish the biographies of these heroes of the Western border lands. Although Lyman Draper published ten volumes of historical notes for the Wisconsin Historical Society as well as a volume about the Battle of King's Mountain, which featured many of the people who were also early settlers, he never finished his biographies. Draper biographer William Hesseltine noted that "All his life Draper was planning to write books, but some psychological quirk made it impossible for him ever to realize his dreams."

What was this "psychological quirk" that prevented Lyman Draper from fulfilling his ambitions? After reading David Ferriero's blog, AOTUS: Collector in Chief, I think I may have stumbled upon a possible reason for Draper's lack of published material. I believe that Lyman Draper suffered from a condition called "research rapture."

In a recent blog post, the National Archives chief shared a link to an op-ed piece by Sean Pidgeon in which he defines "research rapture" as...

"A state of enthusiasm or exaltation arising from the exhaustive study of a topic or period of history; the delightful but dangerous condition of becoming repeatedly sidetracked in following intriguing threads of information, or constantly searching for one more elusive fact."

It can surely be said that Lyman Draper succumbed to "research rapture" many times in his effort to chronicle the lives of the early settlers of the Southwest Territory. This feeling of empathy for Lyman Draper's condition came over me time and again as I studied the Lyman Copeland Draper Papers on microfilm at the Tennessee State Library and Archives. It's easy to see how Lyman Draper could find himself within the throes of "research rapture," captivated by the amazing frontier tales found in this collection.

Anyone who has taken on the task of writing history invariably reaches a point in the search for information when the amount of material is so overwhelming it becomes mesmerizing. In my own research of John Sevier, I have compiled an immense bibliography of primary and secondary sources and have read many accounts of John Sevier's life. I know exactly how Lyman Draper must have felt while corresponding with John Sevier's contemporaries as he was trying to gather every scrap of information that he could in order to preserve the memory of this important time and place in our nation's history.

I know through first-hand experience how easily distracted one can get when you begin researching a subject where one source leads to another, and yet another. Sometimes you can lose sight of the fact that the intended purpose of your research is to ultimately write a work of scholarship. Thankfully, my publishing contract with The History Press puts me on a specific time table for the completion of my book, John Sevier: Tennessee's First Hero, so I don't plan to fully give in to "research rapture" anytime soon. But my empathy for Lyman Draper will remain.

Selected Sources:

William B. Hesseltine. Pioneer's Mission: The Story of Lyman Copeland Draper. Madison: The State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1954.
William B. Hessletine, "Lyman Draper and the South." The Journal of Southern History, Vol. 19, No. 1, Feb. 1953.
Mf. 29 -- Lyman Copeland Draper (Collector) Papers, 1542-1916. Wisconsin Historical Society. 133 reels. 35 mm. Microfilm Collection at the Tennessee State Library and Archives.
Prof. Rasmus B. Anderson. Biographical Sketch of Lyman C. Draper, LL.D. Secretary of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. Cincinnati: Peter G. Thomson, Printer, 1881.
Reuben Gold Thwaites. Lyman Copeland Draper: A Memoir. Madison: Wisconsin Historical Society, 1892.
"Lyman Draper at the Wisconsin Historical Society"

Sarah Hawkins Sevier: Tennessee's "forgotten heroine"

The early chroniclers of Sevier's life wrote of his fondness of the wilderness and of his love for adventure. During his formative years, John Sevier set his sights on building a life on the western edges of civilization. The border country captured Sevier's imagination, but a young lady named Sarah Hawkins captured his heart. Their union helped to establish Sevier as a frontier hero in the pages of history and set him on a path to future greatness.

Born in 1746 in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, Sarah Hawkins was John Sevier's first wife and "the first love of his youth." It has been said of Sarah Hawkins that she had a "great strength of character," and was a "wise, capable, understanding wife and mother who commanded her husband's post in his absences."

She married John Sevier at the age of fifteen, and in 1773 she joined her husband on the arduous journey from the Shenandoah Valley of her birth, to the wilderness of the Southwest Territory, in the region known today as East Tennessee. During John and Sarah's life together, she was the mother of ten children, which in and of itself is a feat of strength, particularly given the challenges of living in the eighteenth century American frontier.

"Daily Life on the Tennessee Frontier." Image credit: Tennessee State Museum.

According to one family biographer, Sarah Hawkins "was for the nineteen creative, formative years of his [John Sevier's] life the greatest single factor in his spectacular early rise to fame and fortune," yet memory of Sarah Hawkins has faded over time. Her lasting imprint on John Sevier's life has been largely overshadowed by the woman who would ultimately become his most famous spouse following Sarah Hawkins' untimely death during an Indian uprising in 1780.*

Sarah Hawkins' grave has never been found**, and over time historians have neglected her presence in John Sevier's life. Perhaps she died too soon for history to record the important contributions that she made to her famous spouse? John Sevier's stature within the region was only beginning to take shape when Sarah Hawkins died in 1780. When he remarried, Catherine "Bonny Kate" Sherrill became John Sevier's "First Lady" in the minds of many. "Bonny Kate" was also present in John Sevier's life at a time when his notoriety was at its peak -- as governor of the State of Franklin and the state of Tennessee. History would eventually record their lives together in vivid detail -- a story that was sometimes embellished around the margins -- yet Sarah Hawkins' story somehow got lost in the narrative of John Sevier's life.

Historians had failed to adequately chronicle Sarah Hawkins' life, so the mission of remembrance fell to her descendants, and most notably to the Daughters of the American Revolution. In a brief biographical sketch entitled, Sarah Hawkins: The Forgotten Heroine, written in June 1934 by Jennie Prather Hyde, Rec. Secty. Old Glory Chapter D.A.R., Franklin, Tennessee, Sarah Hawkins is described as "a tender, delicate young lady, and her delicacy and pure modesty constituted the youth's ideal." Mrs. Hyde added, "Time has wrought many changes as we look at the type of young womanhood of today."

In her biography of Sarah Hawkins, Mrs. Hyde emphasized the hardships of life on the frontier, and Sarah's steadfast loyalty to her husband. She asks:

"It has always been a subject of speculation as to why Sevier removed to these extreme frontier settlements. In all this restlessness of his life are we losing sight of the dangers and sufferings of Sarah and her little family? A heroine indeed was she and we honor and respect her for her courage during those frontier times, for men and women had to have physical courage, facing the many dangers and hardships. Disasters which break down the spirit of a man, seem to call forth all the energies of the softer sex and give to them courage and fortitude; this can be truly said of Sarah Hawkins."

This fascinating account not only details the efforts to memorialize a "forgotten heroine," but it also speaks to how society, and more specifically how the DAR, viewed women's roles during the early to mid-twentieth century. It was during this time that resurrecting Sarah Hawkins from the forgotten realm of history became a civic duty and source of feminist pride to the ladies of the DAR.

In 1945, near the end of World War II, Sarah Hawkins' descendants began an effort to memorialize her as a tribute not only to her, but also by extension to women throughout our nation's history. Another Daughter of the American Revolution, Mary Hoss Headman, led one such effort. On January 1, 1945, Knoxville News-Sentinel reported:

"Mrs. Mary Hoss Headman, great-great-granddaughter of Tennessee's historic John Sevier, came prepared to request the court's permission to erect a new monument on the Court House lawn.

'The monument would be in honor of Sarah Hawkins Sevier,' Mrs. Headman told a reporter. 'She was John Sevier's first wife and mother of his 10 children, three of whom were born in Tennessee.'

'Sarah Hawkins Sevier inspired Sevier, helped him to become great and stood by him against Indian attack in East Tennessee. His first wife, who is not remembered by Tennesseans, is the one whose money, influence and loyalty carried John Sevier to fame.'"

Mrs. Headman saw it as her duty to correct this historical oversight and the perceived slight of her ancestor. She took special note to emphasize that the famous rescue of "Bonny Kate" occurred before Sarah Hawkins died in 1780, and that John Sevier's first wife actually deserved more credit for helping to establish her husband as a pivotal figure in Tennessee history. She further added:

"Sevier married Bonny Kate later, and he already was established in state affairs at that time. Five of Sarah Hawkins Sevier's children by Sevier fought in the Revolution. So I say again it was Sarah Hawkins Sevier who did the most for Tennessee's early history."

Mrs. Headman said she would ask the Knox County Court for permission to erect a monument to Sarah Hawkins Sevier. Such a marker would be on the same grounds as the monuments to Sevier himself and his second wife, Bonny Kate Sevier, on the courthouse lawn in Knoxville, Tennessee.

"We hope to raise the money from the state, but if we don't then the Daughters of the American Revolution will subscribe the amount. Perhaps the county will want to help." Mrs. Headman said, adding, "We will raise the money in 1945 and will dedicate the monument in 1946, the 200th anniversary of Sarah Sevier's birth."

A little more than two weeks later, the Knox County Commission approved Mrs. Headman's plan. According to the January 17, 1945 edition of the Johnson City Chronicle:

"The Knox County Commission today approved erection of a memorial to Sarah Hawkins Sevier, first wife of Tennessee's first governor, John Sevier, on the courthouse lawn here.

Backing the movement has been Mrs. Mary Hoss Headman, great-great-granddaughter of the first Mrs. Sevier.

The East Tennessee Historical Society also has approved the plan, which calls for erection of a monument alongside those now honoring Sevier and his second wife, Catherine Sherrill (Bonny Kate).

Erection ceremonies probably will be sometime next year, sesquicentennial of Tennessee's admission to the Union."

By the summer of that same year, the goal of dedicating a monument to the memory of Sarah Hawkins became a reality. On June 3, 1946, on Tennessee's sesquicentennial anniversary, the city of Knoxville observed "Sarah Hawkins Sevier Memorial Day." Newspaper accounts of the dedication ceremony stated that Mrs. Mary Hoss Headman had the high honor of unveiling the monument in her great-great-grandmother's honor. Other DAR officials were also on hand for the dedication, including the state DAR chaplain, and the national vice-president of the DAR, who had a speaking role at the ceremony. Several other dignitaries were on hand as well, including Tennessee Governor Jim McCord, and State Senator E. E. Patton, who spoke these memorable words on this occasion:

"A philosopher has said that 'back of the success of every man lies the heart of a woman.' It may be a sainted mother; it may have been a sister who sacrificed that she might send her brother to college; it may have been a wife who would brave the dangers of a living in hell in order to contribute to her husband's success and happiness.

Such a woman I regard Sarah Hawkins Sevier to have been, and in order that you may have a full picture and realization of what a companion to Sevier she proved herself to be, I now quote from the inscription on the monument which we have come to unveil and dedicate today:

'The love of his youth, the inspiration of his manhood, a gallant, courageous Colonial and Revolutionary patriot. Her descendants number many notable leaders of men; Tennessee's first five-star mother.'"

A monument dedicated to the memory of Sarah Hawkins, first wife of Gov. John Sevier, located on the lawn of the Knox County Courthouse in Knoxville, Tennessee (Author photo).

For the DAR, Sarah Hawkins' personal story embodied femininity on the frontier -- a strong, courageous woman who was loyal to her husband, and devoted to her family. During World War II, these were qualities to which the ladies of the DAR also aspired. The DAR's influence on creating a lasting memorial and memory of Sarah Hawkins Sevier -- and a vision of womanhood in the mid-twentieth century -- cannot be overstated. They were largely responsible for resurrecting Sarah Hawkins' reputation from the grave of memory, and without the DAR's efforts, John Sevier's first wife may have truly been a "forgotten heroine."

The reverse side of the Sarah Hawkins monument, erected by the Sarah Hawkins Chapter D.A.R., Tennessee Historical Commission, and Sevier Descendants (Author photo).

Selected Sources:

Jennie Prather Hyde. Sarah Hawkins: The Forgotten Heroine. Old Glory Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, Franklin, Tenn. June 1934.

"Sarah Hawkins Sevier Memorial Day," Tennessee Historical Quarterly. Nashville: Tennessee Historical Society, Vol. 5 No. 4 (1946).

Newspaper Sources (Courtesy of the Tennessee State Library and Archives):

Johnson City Chronicle
Kingsport Times
Knoxville News Sentinel

*According to published family history, Sarah Hawkins had just given birth to their tenth child when news of an imminent Indian attack reached Sevier's settlement. Although Sevier ushered his family to the safety of a fort located on the banks of the Nolichucky River, in her weakened state Sarah did not survive the journey. As midnight approached and anticipating an attack at dawn, several men slipped out of the fort into a nearby forest and dug Sarah's grave. "Amid flashes of lightning and claps of thunder," family historians wrote, "John Sevier laid to eternal rest Sarah Hawkins."

**In May 2018, at least one claim surfaced on social media of having located Sarah Hawkins' grave using a technique known as dowsing, sometimes used to locate ground water, buried metals or ores, oil, or lost grave sites. Although this divining technique has its followers who swear by its accuracy, scientists and archaeologists have largely debunked dowsing as pseudoscience no more effective than random chance. And despite these most recent claims of discovery, at this writing it appears that no actual remains have been found.

"Thus ended the war of 1782."

Looking again at how writers have viewed John Sevier through the lens of history and memory, I examine the work of anthropologist E. Raymond Evans who in 1980 wrote a detailed and scholarly account of the historical evidence, or lack thereof, surrounding the so-called "Last Battle of the American Revolution." In his article, first published in the Journal of Cherokee Studies and later reprinted in the Chattanooga Regional History Journal and The Chattanooga Times Free Press, Evans argued that the engagement, fought on September 20, 1782 on the slopes of Lookout Mountain nearly one year after Cornwallis's surrender at Yorktown, was a product of legend. Described by writers and historians of the 19th century as an armed confrontation between Cherokee Indians loyal to the British and John Sevier's "Nolichucky Riflemen," the "Last Battle of the American Revolution" remains shrouded in myth and mystery.

The caption in the lower left corner of this image reads as follows: "The last battle of the American Revolution, an indecisive skirmish on the slopes of Lookout Mountain involving Chickamaugas and frontiersmen, took place in September 1782. Courtesy of the Chattanooga Convention and Visitors Bureau. Illustration by George Little."
Image credit: James W. Livingood, Chattanooga: An Illustrated History (1980).

Evans described the build-up to the alleged confrontation by stating, "on July 23, 1782 North Carolina Governor Alexander Martin ordered Charles McDowell, a North Carolina militia general, to raise five hundred men for a campaign against the Chickamauga Cherokees... Following the mission, McDowell was to act in conjunction with John Sevier, commander of the east Tennessee militia, to arrange a treaty with the Cherokees that would include substantial land cessions."

In his article, Evans presented documented evidence which revealed that John Sevier's 1782 campaign was not a battle, but rather a systematic effort to burn and vandalize homes and crops "belonging to Cherokee refugees who had no connection with the pro-British Chickamauga Cherokees." The actual campaign was an abject failure. According to Evans, letters from key participants in the campaign revealed that John Sevier's guide, a man by the name of John Watts, was loyal to the British cause as early as 1776, and led Sevier's men away from hostility. Even Governor Martin, declared:

"The expedition against the Chickamaugas hath not answered our expectations. The Indians fled on the approach of our Militia and were not to be found. Their huts were destroyed and some trifling plunder taken."

Evans argued that the early Tennessee historians John Haywood and J.G.M. Ramsey, who were among the first to record the "Last Battle of the American Revolution," relied too heavily on stories told to them by elderly veterans of the expedition, and the only contemporary account of the battle, found in the North Carolina State Papers, was largely ignored. A few years later, Evans noted, the writer James Gilmore took the accounts written by Haywood and Ramsey and embellished them further. In his book, The Rear Guard of the Revolution, Gilmore made the bold assertion that Sevier's campaign took place "on the identical spot where, eighty years later, Hooker fought his famous 'battle above the clouds.'" While this claim could never be substantiated by primary sources, the story continued to build to mythic proportions. Evans believed that there was a more sinister motive behind the effort to connect Lookout Mountain with both the Revolutionary War and the Civil War.

In the mid-1880s, Evans argued, Civil War Veterans conventions held significant influence over local economies, and there was keen competition among southern cities to host these veterans reunions. In the "Last Battle of the American Revolution," real estate speculators in Chattanooga saw an opportunity. If it could be documented that Chattanooga was the site of significant battles during both the American Revolution and the Civil War, it would give the city a competitive advantage over other cities in the South desiring to host conventions.

According to Evans, amateur local historians began to embrace this particular narrative, repeating what had been written before. Years later, during America's bicentennial celebration, the myth of Sevier's battle on Lookout Mountain was repeated in an effort to stake a claim to the founding of our nation. In his article, Evans noted:

"Attention was directed to this previously obscure event by the bicentennial celebrations. All during the year of 1975, a local TV station punctuated each station break with the phrase 'patriots fought the last battle of the American Revolution on the slopes of Lookout Mountain.' George Little, a prominent local artist, executed a vivid painting of the battle. The National Park Service erected a suitable marker on the site of the battle. 'Confederama,' a local tourist attraction featuring models of the Civil War battles of Chattanooga and Lookout Mountain, added a small section devoted to the 'last battle of the Revolution.' Another popular tourist spot, Reflection Riding, introduced a dramatic live re-enactment of the battle that has grown to an annual event."

Evans beleived that this "proliferation of dubious historical attractions" threatened to "smother and erase the credibility of legitimate local history." He further stated that efforts to connect the region to a national bicentennial celebration had ultimately obscured what really happened atop Lookout Mountain. Evans wrote:

"The myth of the battle on Lookout Mountain was created by a real estate dealer and a popular writer, enlarged by amateur historians and given general acclaim by a professional historian's concession to local civic groups seeking a focus for the regional bicentennial celebration."

American Revolutionary War Battle Marker atop Lookout Mountain
Image credit: The Historical Marker Database

E. Raymond Evans was not the only writer to question the claim that Lookout Mountain was the site of the "Last Battle of the American Revolution." In his 1889 book, The Winning of the West, Theodore Roosevelt called James Gilmore's account of the battle, "pure invention," yet the legend continued to build. Although well-documented evidence suggests that John Sevier's men were never involved in any real engagement with the Cherokee atop Lookout Mountain, the mere fact that Sevier's 1782 campaign was sanctioned by the Governor of North Carolina gave many steadfast believers in John Sevier's legend cause to embrace the ongoing narrative. As recently as 2007, the John Sevier Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution erected a historical marker which declared:

"On September 20, 1782, after several minor encounters, Sevier and his men engaged the Chickamaugas in a battle high in the palisades at the north end of Lookout Mountain. The Frontiersmen's accurate rifle fire soon overcame their foes. This was an official Revolutionary War engagement and is considered by many to be the LAST 'OVERMOUNTAIN' BATTLE OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION."

In contrast to this description of the battle, the only documented account of the campaign was provided by James Sevier, the son of John Sevier, who served as a militia captain under his father. In a letter dated August 19, 1839 James Sevier recalled:

"We set out for the Indian country in the month of September, 1782. On the Highwassee river and Chiccamauga creek we destroyed all their towns, stock, corn & everything they had to support on. We then crossed a small range of mountains to the Coosa river, where we found and destroyed several towns, with all their stock, corn & provisions of every kind. The Indians eluded our march and kept out of our way in the general, although a few men, women and children were surprised and taken. We left the Coosa river for home about the last of October... Thus ended the war of 1782. We all set out for our homes without the loss of a single man."

Selected Sources:

E. Raymond Evans. "Was the Last Battle of the American Revolution Fought on Lookout Mountain?" Journal of Cherokee Studies. Volume V, Number 1 (Spring 1980), pp. 30-40.
John Haywood. Civil and Political History of Tennessee (1891). pp. 119-120.
James W. Livingood. "Cherokee Warrior Fights Whites to Standstill." The Chattanooga Times, July 4, 1976.
J.G.M. Ramsey. The Annals of Tennessee to the End of the Eighteenth Century (1853). pp. 272-273.

Gordon Belt is the Director of Public Services for the Tennessee State Library & Archives, and past president of the Society of Tennessee Archivists. On The Posterity Project, Gordon blogs about archives, local history, genealogy, and social media advocacy for archives and cultural heritage organizations. His ongoing research project, John Sevier: Tennessee's First Hero, examines the life of Tennessee's first governor, John Sevier, through the lens of history and memory.

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