xt7zgm81kp6b https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7zgm81kp6b/data/mets.xml Haney, William Henry, 1882- 1906  books b9291769h192009 English Robert Clarke Co. : Cincinnati, Ohio Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Appalachians (People). Kentucky --Description and travel. Kentucky --Social life and customs. The mountain people of Kentucky. An account of present conditions with the attitude of the people toward improvement. text The mountain people of Kentucky. An account of present conditions with the attitude of the people toward improvement. 1906 2009 true xt7zgm81kp6b section xt7zgm81kp6b 
  
UNIVERSITY O F KENTUCKY

LIBRARY

Presented by Varina D. Hanna
KENTUCKY COLLECTION

  
  
  
  
  
,N ACCOUNT OF PRESENT CONDITIONS WITH THE ATTITUDE OF TKK PEOPLE TOWARD

  
  
T H E MOUNTAIN OF

PEOPLE

KENTUCKY.

AN ACCOUNT OF PRESENT CONDITIONS WITH THE ATTITUDE OF T HE PEOPLE TOWARD IMPROVEMENT.

BY

WM. H. HANEY.

C INCINNATI,

OHIO.

ROESSLER BROS., PRINTERS A ND P UBLISHERS. 19 06.

  
DEDICATED TO T HE PROGRESSIVE SPIRIT OF T HE MOUNTAIN PEOPLE.

  
PREFACE.

I t is the purpose of this b ook to show existing conditions i n the mountains of K e n t u c k y a n d the attitude of the p eople o f this r egion toward the improvement of the conditions a ffecting l ife a nd character. It is also hoped that the chapter on " W h o T h e y A r e " w i l l m odify the views o f the general public in regard to the o rigin o f the M o u n tain P e o p l e and vindicate t heir g ood n ame against the c areless charges so often made. T h e chapter on " L o c a t i o n , " d ealing w ith n atural f eatures and the lack of t ransportation f acilities, a ccounts for the retarded development; t hat o n " F e u d s " discusses the causes and magnitude and the present general tendency in feud districts toward conformity to l a w and order. The r apid p rogress of the M o u n t a i n P e o p l e in spite T h e i r f uture is most hopeful.

o f t heir d isadvantages shows that they are responsive to the s pirit o f the age. I f this b ook is of some i mportance in s timulating its r eaders to a higher plane of l ife, a n d in vindicating the n ame of the M o u n t a i n P e o p l e , the aim of the author w i l l h ave been achieved.
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T h e writer would express his gratitude to D r . G eorge A . H u b b e l l , Vice-President of Berea College, for encouragement i n this work, and a cknowledges h is indebtedness f or suggestions a nd assistance at many points in the p reparation of the manuscript. H e also expresses h is h earty thanks to Messrs. M a y , Seale, Shadoin and a n umber of other friends for e ncouragement a nd information. W. H. H.

in

  
CHAPTERS.
PAGE I. I I. III. IV. V. VI. VII. VIII. IX. X. W h o They A r e L ocation S ocial Conditions F euds Industries E d u c a t i o n     T h e P u b l i c School E ducation (Continued)   Secondary P olitics R eligion O utlook Education. . . 15 37 49 71 85 1 03 119 137 157 179

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ILLUSTRATIONS T he Author 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 1 0. 1 1. 1 2. I 3. 1 4. 1 5. 1 6. Map A Revolutionary Veteran Daughters of the Revolution Family Group Mountain Boys Moonshine S till '

O

pp

. Page

Frontispiece
15

20 25 ^
4 6

5

9

A Revenue Officer Educators Mountain Boys Young Teachers P earre H a l l Prof. W m . H . Cord Young Lawyers Young Politicians Rev. H a r l a n M urphy Mountain Boys and G irls

63 75
8

?

110 1 17 125 139 153 158 1 85

  
TABLE

OF
CHAPTER

CONTENTS.
I.

WHO I ntroduction.    Appalachian o f the author.

THEY

ARE. Kentucky.   

A m e r i c a .     Eastern

Area.   Population.   Standpoint

of previous w r i t e r s .     A i m

F or the Most P a r t of E nglish O r i g i n .     V i r g i n i a s ettlers.   Spotswood's e xpedition.   Explorers reach K e n t u c k y .     D r . T h o m as W a l k e r .     B o o n e ' s trace.   Perils of j o u r n e y .     W h i t l e y .     Campbell.   Other nant. L arge Scotch-Irish Element.   A credible people.   Why they came to A m e r i c a .     S e t t l e d in the A p p a l a c h i a n s .     A u t h o r i ties on the ancestry. H uguenot and German E l e m e n t .     A small per cent. R evolutionary Ancestry.-   Mountain men in the five hundred pensioners.   Names f avorable recognition. Revolution.    B oone's F o r t .     K i n g ' s M o u n t a i n .     C r a b O r c h a r d .     N e a r l y in appendix.   Summary of the classes o f early settlers.   The Mountain P eople g aining early settlers.   English b lood p redomi-

CHAPTER

II.

LOCATION. E ffect on the P e o p l e .     M a n a creature of traits o f the mountain man.   Effect of environment.   Some the nature of the characteristics.   

c ountry on the early settlers.   Mountain
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8

THE

MOUNTAIN

PEOPLE

OF

KENTUCKY

M ountain R o a d s .     T h e i r ment.

c o n d i t i o n .     A hindrance to d evelop-

V alue of Good Roads.   Sentiment for g ood r oads. T he S pirit of the People.   Compared w ith the E u r o p e a n .     P r o s perity of the early settlers in the Ohio V a l l e y .     C o n d i t i o n s due to the character of the country rather than to heredity.

CHAPTER SOCIAL W h y "foreigners"

III. CONDITIONS. of conditions.   Three away.   "The

have a misconception

forms of social l ife. T he D a n c e .     O n l y in certain localities.   Passing s et." T he P a r t y .     " B e a n stringing".   Distinction between the party a nd the dance.   Party the most p opular. The Social.   Heartily approved.   Except to " f l i n c h " . M arriage C u s t o m s .     A quiet a f f a i r .     T h e ment religious. " Moonshine".   Originated from early social life and physical c onditions.   Early social life.   Moonshining in pioneer days. A ttitude of the People toward Moonshine.   Public sentiment.    T he author's experience.   The rapid changes o f conditions.    T he " s t i l l " passing away. G a m b l i n g .     T h e class that gambles.   Pastime s entiment.   Outlook promising. game.   Public shiveree. T he C h u r c h .     T h e extent of social life at c h u r c h .     T h e sentiby some w ho o bject

  
TABLE

OF

CONTENTS

g

CHAPTER

IV.

THE

FEUDS.

F alse ideas of origin of the feuds.   The ideas of some w r i t e r s .     R ecent writers have a different idea.   Kentucky's Motto. C ause of F e u d s .     R e m o t e :     S c o t c h .     R e v o l u t i o n .     C i v i l    Home Guards.   Direct:   Civil War.   Lax War. law.   

T r i v i a l a ffairs.   Avenge private w r o n g s .     F a m i l y t i e s .     F e w engage i n the feuds.   Quantrel's b a n d .     W h y checked. C ivilization, P u b l i c Sentiment and the F e u d s .     F e u d district's r eputation.   Names of the f euds.   Deeds of v i o l e n c e .     A l l E astern K entucky should not be judged by the few who engage i n the f euds.   Those w ho oppose a nd suppress feuds s hould be honored.   Not as bad as has been r epresented.    E x a m p l e .     T h e bright side should be shown w ith the d a r k .     R eligious institutions now in the feud d i s t r i c t s .     H o w the " C i v i l W a r " in B e l l C ounty was q u e l l e d .     L a w and Justice s ay that the Kentucky feud is no more.

C H A P T E R V.

INDUSTRIES. Farming.   Importance.   Early farming.   Products.   A happy

l ife.   Some customs.   Corn p l a n t i n g .     C o r n is " l a i d b y . "     H arvesting.   Peculiar w ay of gathering pumpkins.   Prices o f products.   Distance from market.

  
10

THE

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PEOPLE

OF

KENTUCKY

N atural R esources.   Wealth of the mountains.   Oil Development.   Wayne fourteen County.   Campton.   Standard and c o a l .     M i n i n g country other for foreign companies.   Coal development.   Veins from two to feet.   Underground m any years.   Railroad development.   Timber industry an

i nducement.   Much timber has been w asted.   People have begun to realize the value of their timber.   The need of roads a nd r ailways.   Picture the future w ith p roper development of these resources.   The problem of wise development.   Profiting b y mistakes.   A county now regrets blocking a r ailroad. :    Industrial s chools.   Berea and others.

C H A P T E R VI.

EDUCATION. T HE PUBLIC SCHOOL. T h e O l d L o g Schoolhouse.   Distance to school.   The teacher.    T h e recitation.   Short term. T h e Modern S c h o o l .     F u r n i s h e d .     T h e deficiency.   Comparison w ith the o l d .     T h e recitation.   Literary work.   Decoration o f the schoolroom.   The playground.   The teacher.   The object o f teaching.   Illustration.   A g ood s c h o o l .     A wide a wake teacher.   Interested trustees.   Willing patrons.   Industrious p upils. O utlook of the Public S c h o o l .     T h e influence of higher i nstitutions is raising the standard of the public school.   Creating a sentiment for better schools.   The subscription school.   The

  
TABLE

OF

CONTENTS

11

g raded school.   Extension of the school t e r m .     A d v a n c e d studies in the public school.   The H i g h S chool B i l l .     D i s t r i c t s chool can be made a graded school.   Illustration.   The K ensee S c h o o l .     B r i l l i a n t o utlook for the public school.

CHAPTER

VII.

EDUCATION.   Continued. SECONDARY I nstitutions.   High F ounding o f an academy EDUCATION. schools.   Academies.    circumstances.    under adverse schools.   Normal

G r o w t h .     I n n umber of (The

students.   Departments.   Influence schools.   Aim.   

o n the t o w n .     O n the surrounding c o u n t r y .     T h i s institution H a z e l G reen A c a d e m y ) .     O t h e r A dvantages of early t r a i n i n g .     W h y Massachusetts has been s uccessful.   Mountain P eople interested in these institutions. B erea C ollege.   Stands for the Mountain P e o p l e .     R e l a t i o n to the mountains. A ttitude o f the People toward Education.   Sentiment to place a g ood i nstitution in the reach of all.   Progress of the last dec a d e .     O r i g i n a nd growth of some o f the institutions.   Interest sufficient to insure a continual success.

C H A P T E R VIII. POLITICS. I mportance of political l a w .     W h y politics are often corrupt.    T h e political demagogue.   Opposition to political corruption in E astern K e n t u c k y .     T h e election, 1 9 0 5 .     F o r the m a n .    

  
12

THE

MOUNTAIN

PEOPLE

OF

KENTUCKY

T h e use of money in politics.   Ideas are changing.     T h e custom of electing representatives.   Detrimental to the interest of the mountains.   Story to illustrate.-   Present tendencies t oward political p u r i t y .     T h e value of true patriotism in politics.   Results of election in 1905.   Compared w ith the a wakening in other states.   The battle for honest p olitics is s till o n .     R e w a r d of honest p oliticians.

CHAPTER

IX.

RELIGION. T he M inister a nd the Meeting.   Reflections as he rides to church. H i s r eception.   Some l ocalities.   Wrong to pay the minister. T he minister.   Misrepresented.   The funeral.   Protracted.    Revival.   Camp meeting.   Quarterly.   Association.   

A n n u a l m eeting.   Compensation of the minister. M issionary s chools.   Denominational.   Harmony of the churches.     Contribution towns spring up. T h e Anti-Saloon League.   Influence.   On Congress.   Temperof uice spirit of the mountains.   Temperance c l u b s .     E l e c t i o n .     Prohibition v ictory.   County U n i t B i l l .     T h e d oom w hiskey. T h e Sunday s chool.   The s uperintendent.   Organization. for the minister.   Religious forces i n the for service increases, as villages and m ountains.-   Demands

  
TABLE

OF

CONTENTS

A merican S unday m ountains.   In

s chool u n i o n .     A i m .     W o r k the towns.   And C hristian

in the

moun-

t a i n s .     H o p e f u l .     T h e Y . M . C . A .     I n t r o d u c e d into the i nstitutions.    N eed of permanent organization. T h e County O r g a n i z a t i o n .     T h e hope f or r ural c ommunities.

CHAPTER X.

THE

OUTLOOK.

P redict the future by the past conditions and present tendencies.    E a r l y M ountain People loyal to the flag.   Resolute for victory.   Vincennes.   King's M o u n t a i n .     T h e spirit o f progress stirs in their blood.   Outlook ing r emoved.   Eastern for industries.   Education.

    P o l i t i c s .     R e l i g i o n .     M o s t hopeful.   Hindrances are beKentucky w i l l i n the future contain l arge c i t i e s .     B u i l d e d by these men w ith hearts of oak and h ands of i r o n .     T h e slavery of physical conditions is being r e m o v e d .     W e l ook to the future w ith c herished hopes.

  
  
  
  
CHAPTER

I.

WHO

THEY

ARE.

INTRODUCTION. I n the A p p a l a c h i a n Mountains, adjacent to some o f the oldest and most populous of our states, lies a l ittleknown region, twice as large as N e w E n g l a n d or as large as the whole of the G e r m a n E m p i r e . It is five hundred m iles long, two hundred miles wide, and beginning at the s outhern boundary of Pennsylvania extends in a southwesterly direction through W e s t V i r g i n i a , the mountainous portions of M a r y l a n d , V i r g i n i a , N o r t h and South C a r o l i n a , N orthern G e o r g i a , Northern A l a b a m a , E a s t ern T ennessee a nd Eastern K e n t u c k y . T h i s v ast region, seemingly forgotten u ntil r ecent

y ears, is now recognized as a distinct division of our A m e r ican U n i o n under the name of A p p a l a c h i a n A m e r i c a . T o a certain extent similar conditions exist in a l l parts of this r egion, but this volume w i l l t reat only of Eastern K e n t u c k y , w hich is familiarly known as the " M o u n t a i n s of Kentucky." T h e highest mountains are the P i n e and the
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THE

MOUNTAIN

PEOPLE

OF

KENTUCKY

C umberland i n the southeastern part of the state. a rea o f the thirty-five counties of this region is square miles.

The 12,954

T h e permanent settlement of this territory really dates f rom the year 1800, for at that date the mountain region w as reported under the four names, F l e m i n g , F l o y d , K n o x a nd P u l a s k i , w ith a p opulation of 9 , 7 6 4 ; the population o f the state at that time was 2 2 0 , 9 9 5 . state, 2 ,147,174. I n this vast area, the negroes f orm only a small per cent, of the population, being in the aggregate 12,1 19, or about 2Yi est towns. p er cent, of the whole population. O f this n umber, 7 ,685 l ive in the seven counties having the l argJohnson county has only one negro and E l l i o t t t wo, while nine others have less than 100 each. T h e difficulty of travel and n atural b arriers, from the first, m ade this a region of restricted travel and of great i solation; a nd progress, seemingly unheeded, swept m any years past the doorway for leading to their homes. T h e population o f the mountains in 1900 was 4 7 6 , 0 9 5 ; that of the whole

F rom the first there has been some d evelopment, and for the last d ecade this has been so rapid that this part of the state is attracting considerable attention. Conditions, however, are yet but l ittle k nown, though a few magazine w riters are f airly w e l l acquainted w ith the l a n d and the

  
WHO

THEY

ARE

17

p eople.

Some novelists have based their stories on the

d ialect and customs of the p eople a nd while they have p roduced interesting stories, have made a picture which is o nly partly true. Others, w ith s light knowledge and

s trong imagination, have magnified the stories of " f e u d s " a nd " moonshine" u ntil the statements, taken as a whole, d o not represent the true conditions, though sustained in m any points by i ndividual i nstances. B o r n a nd raised in this region, the writer attempts to g ive conditions as they exist and tries to show the tendency o f the p eople to better their conditions. H e has no pur-

pose i n this b ook b ut to promote the progress of his friends a nd n eighbors in the mountain section, and to offer such i ncentives as w i l l r aise the social, i ndustrial a nd religious s tandards. No q uestion has provoked more discussion than the Some writers claim

a ncestry of the M o u n t a i n People.

that t heir ancestry is reputable; others claim that "they a re the descendants of convicts, who in the early days e scaped from the prisons of other states and fled to the m ountains for refuge." R e a l i z i n g that the question in r egard to the ancestry has not been satisfactorily settled, i t w i l l b e our first task to investigate the origin of the Mountain P eople.

  
THE

MOUNTAIN

PEOPLE

OF

KENTUCKY

FOR T HE MOST PART OF ENGLISH ORIGIN. V i r g i n i a w as s ettled largely b y p eople f rom the r ural d istricts o f E n g l a n d . T h e y were a n a gricultural p eople, T h e first settlement at J amest hrifty a nd i ndustrious.

town i n 1607 p roved successful a n d as a r esult, i mmigrants c ame i n f locks to seek t heir fortunes i n the new w orld. I n the seacoast r egion, there w as s oon a f lourishing E nglish C o l o n y ; b ut the B l u e R i d g e , w i t h a n a l most unbroken chain o f t owering mountains, w as a b arrier to the settlers, a nd for m ore t han a c entury after the first settlement, there remained a s trip o f p rimeval forest, lying between the V i r g i n i a f rontier a nd those b lue peaks visible against the w estern s ky. T h i s b arrier w as t hought to be i mpassable, b ut S potswood, the s talwart governor o f V i r g i n i a , w as not the m an to rest content, n ot to k now what w as b ehind t he r ugged mountains which looked so d efiantly o n the settlers w ho w ere gradually approaching them. In 1716, w ith a p arty o f fifty gentlemen, w i t h black servants, I n dian guides a nd p ack-horses, h e m ade a m emorable e xpedition across the m ountains a nd e ntered the b eautiful v a l ley which he n amed E u p h r a t e s     n o w the S henandoah. A f t e r a n e njoyable time a nd a s uccessful exploration, the p arty r eturned. f orgotten. A l t h o u g h i t was s everal years b efore the m ountains were crossed again, y et the c ountry w as not T h e seeds o f w estern emigration were sown.

  
WHO

THEY

ARE

19

V i l l a g e s g rew into towns along the seacoast a nd s till E astern K e n t u c k y was separated from them by two parallel m ountain ranges and two hundred miles of u n peopled and almost impassable forests. E v e r y new set-

tlement was made by a portion of these brave pioneers v enturing i n advance of the others, but keeping in touch w ith t hem and having their rear covered by the established c olonies. F i n a l l y , s ettlers, in search of permanent homes,

c rossed the B l u e R i d g e , located in the i nviting v alley of the Shenandoah, and pushed their settlements toward the C u m b e r l a n d M ountains. T h e more venturesome spirits made long hunting expeditions. In 1 7 5 0 , D r . T h o m a s W a l k e r , of V i r g i n i a , i n c ommand of a party, crossed the C u m b e r l a n d M o u n tains w h i c h he named, called the great pass, C u m b e r l a n d G a p , a nd explored what is now Eastern K e n t u c k y , reaching the headwaters of the K e n t u c k y R i v e r . t hey h a d been there many years b efore. Signs of p revious hunters were found, a n d some i ndications that T h u s the first v isitors to this region were in search of g ame a nd of a d venture without any purpose of making permanent settlements. B oone, in 1 7 7 5 , carved out a trace, now f amiliarly k nown as " B o o n e ' s t r a i l , " b y w a y of P o w e l l ' s valley,

  
20

THE

MOUNTAIN

PEOPLE

OF

KENTUCKY

t hrough C umberland G a p into K e n t u c k y . c ountry and immigration increased every year.

Favorable In 1 7 7 9 ,

stories were brought back by those who visited the new there were five ferries maintained across N e w R i v e r in S outhwestern V i r g i n i a , a nd the General A s s e m b l y fixed the t oll at four cents for each horse ferried. T h i s was a beneficent enactment b ecause f erriage h a d been very h igh, a nd during the f a l l a nd winter of that year an u n exampled tide of immigrants entered K e n t u c k y . T hese p eople l eft their comfortable h omes a nd their n ative s ociety and b ecame p ilgrims, seeking h omes i n a w ilderness land, which trusty rifles alone could make secure and the severest t oil m ake habitable. T h e y moved
;

a long this "wilderness r o a d , " a lonely and houseless p a t h w as b efore t hem.

often in great p eril, k nowing that a w i l d a nd cheerless l a n d Cast your eyes b ack on that long procession of human beings, horses, cattle and other domestic a nimals, as it passes along a narrow defile, where, at p laces, a l l must hug closely to the overhanging cliff or t umble over the precipice and be dashed against the rocks, h undreds of feet b elow. Imagine men in front and behind, l eading or driving animals, and w ith r eady rifle a cting as guard to w a r d off the hourly-expected attack of the savages. B e h o l d them in the dead of winter, traveling t wo or three miles a day over the icy trace, almost impass-

  
  
G EN. H U G H W HITE, A R evolutionary Veteran.

  
WHO

THEY

ARE

21

a ble, and in great danger of being frozen to death, or k i l l e d b y the f alling o f their horses. See them at night,

g athered around the camp-fire, eating a meal of w i l d m eat a nd p arched corn, and t hinking o f friends left behind. W i t h s uch a picture, one can have some i dea of the hard-, s hips endured and the courage maintained by these early p ioneers. It was by this route and in this manner that

m ost of the early settlers found their new homes. L i t t l e w as known of the great western country and c hance was as g ood as c hoice i n selecting a site, so when K e n t u c k y w as reached, they began to separate and look f or homes, some l ocating in the mountains and others continuing t heir journey to the blue-grass region. T h e r e are t housands of names, besides the historical p roof, a nd many i ncidents w h i c h bear testimony to the g ood b lood of the e arly settlers of K e n t u c k y . I t is related of C o l o n e l W i l l i a m W h i t l e y , that s oon a fter marrying a n d setting up an independent establishment, he told his wife that he h a d heard g ood r eports of K e n t u c k y a nd believed that they could make a better l iving there w ith less h a r d work. " T h e n , B i l l y , i f I were y ou I w o u l d go and see," was her quick reply, and acting o n this advice, they were both s oon s ettled on the frontier. T h e desire for better homes, together w ith the migratory

  
22

THE

MOUNTAIN

PEOPLE

OF

KENTUCKY

i nstinct, i nduced many to turn their f aces t oward the K e n tucky wilderness with l ittle m ore m editation than that of C olonel W h i t l e y . T h i s pioneer was born in V i r g i n i a , enlarge P ossessed o f the spirit of w as unknown to early fame, but g rew to manhood gaged i n t illing his native soil. enterprise and l ove o f i ndependence, he rendered

service to the new state and was one of the m ost d istinguished of those e arly pioneers w hose a dventurous d eeds h ave cast the g low o f r omance o ver the early history of K entucky. W h i t l e y County was named in his honor.

B e l l C ounty also bears t estimony to the g ood b lood o f the K e n t u c k y pioneers. In speaking of the w a r of " C o l o n e l James 1 812, M r . Lewis P . Summers says:

C ampbell died in the service at M o b i l e , A l a b a m a , and C olonel John B . C a m p b e l l fell at the battle of C h i p p e w a w here he c ommanded the right wing of the army under G eneral W i n f i e l d Scott. B o t h w ere sons o f Colonel Colonel A r t h u r C a m p b e l l , 'the father of his country.'

A r t h u r C ampbell himself died at his h ome, o n the present site of Middlesboro, K e n t u c k y , in the year 1811, and his b ody w as buried at that place according to the directions of his w i l l , w hich is on record at the county clerk's office o f this county." Recently the grave of Colonel C ampbell was discovered in an out-of-the-way place w i t h a n i ron slab bearing the inscription:

  
WHO

THEY

ARE

23

" S a c r e d to the memory of C o l o n e l A r t h u r C a m p b e l l , w ho was born in A u g u s t a C o u n t y , V i r g i n i a , N ovember 3 , 1 7 54, o l d style, and after a well-spent l ife, as his last m oments d i d and w e l l could approve, of sixty-seven years, e ight months, and twenty-five days, ere a constitution, preserved by r igid t emperance and otherwise moral and T h e lamp h ealthy, c ould but w ith r eluctance consent.

w as b l o w n out by the devouring effects o f a cancer on the e ighth o f A u g u s t , 1811, leaving a w i d o w , six sons a nd six d aughters to mourn his loss and emulate his virtues. " H e r e l ies, entombed, a Revolutionary s age, A n a rdent patriot of the age, I n e rudition great, and useful knowledge to s c a n     I n p hilanthropy hospitable, the friend of man, A s a s oldier brave, V i r t u e , h is morality. A s a c ommander, prudent, H i s r eligion, charity. H e p racticed temperance T o preserve his health. H e u sed industry to acquire wealth. H e s tudied physic to avoid disease. H e s tudied himself to c omplete h is p l a n , F o r h is greatest study was to study man.

  
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H i s stature t all, H i s person portly, H i s features handsome, H i s m anner courtly. S leep, honored sire, I n the realms of rest, I n d oing justice to thy memory, A son is blest. A son is i nheriting i n f ull t hy name, O ne who aspires to a l l thy fame. COLONEL A RTHUR C AMPBELL." O thers wrought illustrious d eeds, g aining for themselves name and place in the new region in w h i c h they s ettled. C o l . John Fleming, M a j o r George Stockton, C o l . W i l l i a m C asey, Capt. T h o m a s Scott and scores o f others have local reputation and honor. A s has been said, V i r g i n i a w as but a continuation of E n g l a n d     s i m p l y a s ociety of the best p eople o f r ural E n g l a n d o f the Shakespearian age, who left their h omes a nd s ettled in V i r g i n i a to work out the problem of l iving u nder new conditions. A n d K e n t u c k y , the daughter of V i r g i n i a , w as only a continuation of that s t a t e     E n g lishmen once m ore transplanted to take upon themselves the responsibility of subduing the wilds and cultivating the s oil o f a wilderness.

  
  
  
WHO

THEY

ARE

as

T h e settlers of Eastern K e n t u c k y , the descendants of these Englishmen of five and six generations, were amalgamated w ith o ther stock; nevertheless, the E n g l i s h b lood is p redominant in the M o u n t a i n People. Fortunately, the a malgamation w as w ith the Scotch-Irish, a race which i nstilled i nto their veins a stream of blood which gave t hem g reater courage, endurance and sturdiness to battle w ith the difficulties w ith w h i c h the pioneers of any country m ust contend.

T HE LARGE SCOTCH IRISH ELEMENT.

I t is necessary to give here a short history of this S cotch-Irish p eople that it may be distinctly understood w hether they were a desirable contribution to the mountain r egion. G o i n g back to the year 161 1, we find J ames I o f E n g l a n d , s ending people from Northern E n g l a n d a nd S cotland to Ireland for the purpose of planting there a P rotestant settlement strong enough to outnumber the C atholics a n d b ecome the r uling e lement. sort. Those who w ere selected for this purpose were of the most excellent B y the middle of the seventeenth century, three T h e y soon transformed this h undred t housand of them were l iving i n U lster, the most n eglected part of the i sland. w ilderness o f b ogs a nd fens into a beautiful and c ulti-

  
26

THE

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v ated garden, and also established manufactories of w o o l ens and linens which have b ecome f amous throughout the w orld. T h e dawn of the eighteenth century saw one m illion o f them peacefully inhabiting the I rish d omain. s tanding w as superior to any race at that time. O f the A t the of y eoman and artisan classes, their intellectual and social b eginning of the eighteenth century the percentage else i n the world.

i lliteracy i n Ulster was probably smaller than anywhere ' A document signed in 1718 by a m iscellaneous group of 3 1 9 s hows t hat 3 0 6 wrote their names in f ull w hile only 13 were left to make their m a r k . " P rotestants of the Protestants, they detested the very name of Catholics whom their forefathers h a d conquered, a nd r egarded the Episcopalians, by w h o m they themselves had been o ppressed, w ith a n intense hatred. Under such treatment, they naturally b ecame a d etermined p eople, f itted to take upon themselves the responsibilities a nd to undergo the hardships incident to life in a new c ountry. WHY THEY CAME TO AMERICA. T h e flourishing factories which their ingenuity h a d established r ivaled those o f E n g l a n d and excited her j e a l ousy. Consequently she passed a l a w in 1698 w h i c h

  
WHO

THEY

ARE

27

s eriously injured the I rish l inen a nd woolen industries and m any workmen were thrown out of employment. About this t ime, also, E n g l a n d began her violent C h u r c h persecutions caused by the reactions of the Counter R e f o r m a tion. T h i s and the w a r w ith F rance caused intolerance Marriages by their own clergyto b ecome m ore severe.

men were declared v o i d ; they were not permitted to send t heir c hildren to school, and their liberty was restricted by d epriving t hem of the right to h o l d office. w ere restricted in many other ways. w o u l d c ease. D e p r i v e d o f their vocations and liberties, they began to c ome to the N e w W o r l d in large numbers. shores. During one week of the year 1 7 2 7 , six ship-loads landed on our It is estimated that from 1 7 3 0 to 1 7 70, half a In 1773 and 1774, 3 0 , 0 0 0 c ame o ver m illion o f these sturdy Scotch-Irish found h omes i n our f avored l a n d . a nd d uring the Revolution they constituted one-sixth of o ur entire population.* T h e largest numbers C harleston. S outhwest.
*Fiske's "Old

T h e i r rights

T h i s inhuman treat-

ment was endured for many years in the v ain h ope t hat it

landed

at

P h i l a d e l p h i a and

T hose who landed at P h i l a d e l p h i a graduThose who landed at Charleston pushed into
Virginia and Her Neighbors," p. 394.

a l l y m ade their w a y through the A p p a l a c h i a n s to the

  
28

THE

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these mountains from the South.

Others, who landed in

the Carolinas and V i r g i n i a , p ushed past the E n g l i s h settlements and began to colonize at the f oot o f the mountains. T h e y soon d isplayed their love for independence a nd a dventure by pushing westward and organizing strong settlements at E a t o n Station on the W a t a u g a , on W o l f F o r k , a nd on the Cumberland. F r o m these settlements in Among the E astern T ennessee a nd Western N o r t h C a r o l i n a , Eastern K entucky r eceived a number of settlers. r ugged h ills, c overed w ith an unbroken forest and amidst i ron s urroundings, they t ook r oot a nd flourished. They w ere as a barrier, thrust in between the E n g l i s h c olonies on the seaboard and the French on the north and the savages i n the wilderness. "Though mingled with the descendants of other

races, they were nevertheless the predominant stock w h i c h f ormed the kernel of this distinctively A m e r i c a n race who w ere the pioneers of our p eople i n their westward march,     t h e vanguard of the army of fighting settlers who w i t h a x and rifle made their settlements in the mountains."* F iske, i n speaking of the Scotch-Irish, says: " A few

o f them c ame to N e w E n g l a n d where they have left their m ark, b ut the great majority of them c ame to P e n n s y l *Roosevelt's "Winning of the West," Vol. I, p. 106.

  
WHO

THEY

ARE

v ania a nd occupied the mountain country west of the Susquehanna. Thence a steady emigration was kept up southwesterly along the A p p a l a c h i a n axis into the Southern c olonies." Speaking of the U l s t e r stream, he says:

" F r o m the same prolific hive c ame the pioneers of K e n tucky and T ennessee w ith their descendants through the M ississippi a nd b e y o n d . " T h i s l ast statement by