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James Robertson (early American)
Encyclopedia
James Robertson was an explorer and pioneer active primarily in what is now the State of Tennessee
during the second half of the 18th century. An early companion of explorer Daniel Boone
, Robertson helped establish the Watauga Association
in the early 1770s, and helped defend Fort Watauga
from an attack by the Cherokee
in 1776. In 1779, he cofounded what is now Nashville
, and was instrumental in the settlement of Middle Tennessee
.
, Virginia
, of Scots-Irish and English
descent. Around 1750, his father relocated to Wake County, North Carolina
. He worked on his father's farm and had no formal education.
In 1759, young Robertson accompanied explorer Daniel Boone on his third expedition to lands beyond the Allegheny Mountains
. The party discovered the "Old Fields" (lands previously cultivated by generations of Native Americans
) along the Watauga River
valley at present day Elizabethton, Tennessee
, which Robertson planted with corn
while Boone continued on to Kentucky
.
Robertson returned to North Carolina and married Charlotte Reeves in 1767. He became involved with the Regulator movement. They banded together a group of settlers to return to the Watauga River, which they believed to be in Virginia. In 1772, Robertson and the pioneers who had settled in Northeast Tennessee (along the Watauga River, the Doe River
, the Holston River
and the Nolichucky River
) met at Sycamore Shoals
to establish an independent regional government known as the Watauga Association.
However, in 1772, surveyors placed the land officially within the domain of the Cherokee
tribe, who required negotiation of a lease with the settlers. Tragedy struck as the lease was being celebrated, when a Cherokee warrior was murdered by a white man. Robertson's skillful diplomacy made peace with the irate Native Americans
, who threatened to expel the settlers by force if necessary.
In 1775, a treaty was held between the Cherokee and a delegation of the Transylvania Company
, headed by Richard Henderson
. Under the Treaty of Sycamore Shoals (or the Treaty of Watauga), the Transylvania Company purchased a vast amount of land from the Cherokees, including most of present-day Kentucky and part of Tennessee
. The treaty was technically illegal since the purchase of land from Native Americans was reserved by the government (the British, the governments of Virginia and North Carolina and, later, the United States, all forbade private purchase of land from Indians).
During the treaty, Dragging Canoe
, son of the Cherokee chief Attacullaculla
, made a speech condemning the sale of Cherokee land and broke from the general Cherokee tribal government to form the sub-tribe known as the Chickamauga. After Henderson's Transylvania Company had bought Kentucky (although other tribes claimed it, such as the Shawnee
), Daniel Boone was hired to widen the Indian path over Cumberland Gap
to facilitate migration. This road became known as the Wilderness Road
.
Robertson's group remained at Watauga in peace until July 1776, when Chief Old Abraham of Chilhowee led a Cherokee contingent that attacked Fort Watauga (a log fort built for defense purposes by the Watauga Association). A 40-man contingent commanded by Robertson and fellow Wataugans John Carter and John Sevier
withstood a siege of twenty days. After the Cherokees were subjugated later that year, the governor of North Carolina appointed Robertson to reside at the Cherokee capital to hold them in check and thwart the designs of the British
during the American Revolution
.
founded Fort Nashborough
, later to become Nashville
, then part of North Carolina. He represented Davidson County
(home of Fort Nashborough in present-day Tennessee, not to be confused with the modern Davidson County, North Carolina
), in the North Carolina legislature and had the settlement established as a town, and also established the first school there, Davidson Academy.
Robertson was offered peace and the free navigation of the Mississippi River
by the Spanish
governor, in exchange for his leaving the United States and establishing — along with the Watauga settlement and Kentucky — an independent government. He refused to consider the matter. In 1790, he was appointed brigadier-general of the territorial militia by U.S. President George Washington
, and his military services did not end until 1796. He shared with Sevier the honor and affection of Tennesseans, and he held the post of Indian commissioner until his death in 1814.
Robertson is buried in Nashville City Cemetery
.
In World War II
the United States
liberty ship
SS James Robertson was named in his honor.
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
during the second half of the 18th century. An early companion of explorer Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone was an American pioneer, explorer, and frontiersman whose frontier exploits mad']'e him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. Boone is most famous for his exploration and settlement of what is now the Commonwealth of Kentucky, which was then beyond the western borders of...
, Robertson helped establish the Watauga Association
Watauga Association
The Watauga Association was a semi-autonomous government created in 1772 by frontier settlers living along the Watauga River in what is now present day Elizabethton, Tennessee...
in the early 1770s, and helped defend Fort Watauga
Fort Watauga
Fort Watauga, more properly Fort Caswell, was an American Revolutionary War fort that once stood at the Sycamore Shoals of the Watauga River in what is now Elizabethton, Tennessee...
from an attack by the Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
in 1776. In 1779, he cofounded what is now Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, and was instrumental in the settlement of Middle Tennessee
Middle Tennessee
Middle Tennessee is a distinct portion of the state of Tennessee, delineated according to state law as the 41 counties in the Middle Grand Division of Tennessee....
.
Watauga River valley
Robertson was born in Brunswick CountyBrunswick County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 18,419 people, 6,277 households, and 4,312 families residing in the county. The population density was 32 people per square mile . There were 7,541 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, of Scots-Irish and English
English American
English Americans are citizens or residents of the United States whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in England....
descent. Around 1750, his father relocated to Wake County, North Carolina
Wake County, North Carolina
Wake County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2010 census, the population was 900,993 making it North Carolina's second most populated county...
. He worked on his father's farm and had no formal education.
In 1759, young Robertson accompanied explorer Daniel Boone on his third expedition to lands beyond the Allegheny Mountains
Allegheny Mountains
The Allegheny Mountain Range , also spelled Alleghany, Allegany and, informally, the Alleghenies, is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the eastern United States and Canada...
. The party discovered the "Old Fields" (lands previously cultivated by generations of Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
) along the Watauga River
Watauga River
The Watauga River is a large stream of western North Carolina and East Tennessee. It is 60 miles long with its headwaters on the slopes of Grandfather Mountain and Peak Mountain in Watauga County, North Carolina.-Hydrography:...
valley at present day Elizabethton, Tennessee
Elizabethton, Tennessee
Elizabethton is the county seat of Carter County, Tennessee, United States. Elizabethton is also the historical site both of the first independent American government located west of both the Eastern Continental Divide and the original thirteen British American colonies.Elizabethton is also the...
, which Robertson planted with corn
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
while Boone continued on to Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
.
Robertson returned to North Carolina and married Charlotte Reeves in 1767. He became involved with the Regulator movement. They banded together a group of settlers to return to the Watauga River, which they believed to be in Virginia. In 1772, Robertson and the pioneers who had settled in Northeast Tennessee (along the Watauga River, the Doe River
Doe River
The Doe River is a naturally flowing river in northeast Tennessee that forms in Carter County near the North Carolina line, just south of Roan Mountain State Park.-Hydrography:...
, the Holston River
Holston River
The Holston River is a major river system of southwestern Virginia and east Tennessee. The three major forks of the Holston rise in southwestern Virginia and have their confluence near Kingsport, Tennessee. The North Fork flows southwest from Sharon Springs in Bland County, Virginia...
and the Nolichucky River
Nolichucky River
The Nolichucky River is a major stream draining the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina and east Tennessee. The river is long.-Hydrography:...
) met at Sycamore Shoals
Sycamore Shoals
The Sycamore Shoals of the Watauga River, usually shortened to Sycamore Shoals, is a rocky stretch of river rapids along the Watauga River in Elizabethton, in the U.S. state of Tennessee...
to establish an independent regional government known as the Watauga Association.
However, in 1772, surveyors placed the land officially within the domain of the Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
tribe, who required negotiation of a lease with the settlers. Tragedy struck as the lease was being celebrated, when a Cherokee warrior was murdered by a white man. Robertson's skillful diplomacy made peace with the irate Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
, who threatened to expel the settlers by force if necessary.
In 1775, a treaty was held between the Cherokee and a delegation of the Transylvania Company
Transylvania (colony)
Transylvania, or the Transylvania Colony, was a short-lived, extra-legal colony founded in 1775 by Richard Henderson, who controlled the North Carolina based Transylvania Company, which had reached an agreement to purchase the land from the Cherokee in the "Treaty of Sycamore Shoals"...
, headed by Richard Henderson
Richard Henderson (American pioneer)
Richard Henderson was an American pioneer and merchant who attempted to create a colony called Transylvania just as the American Revolutionary War was starting.-Early life:Henderson was born in Hanover County, Virginia...
. Under the Treaty of Sycamore Shoals (or the Treaty of Watauga), the Transylvania Company purchased a vast amount of land from the Cherokees, including most of present-day Kentucky and part of Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
. The treaty was technically illegal since the purchase of land from Native Americans was reserved by the government (the British, the governments of Virginia and North Carolina and, later, the United States, all forbade private purchase of land from Indians).
During the treaty, Dragging Canoe
Dragging Canoe
Tsiyu Gansini , "He is dragging his canoe", known to whites as Dragging Canoe, was a Cherokee war chief who led a band of Cherokee against colonists and United States settlers...
, son of the Cherokee chief Attacullaculla
Attacullaculla
Attakullakulla or Atagulkalu , adopted as an infant into the Cherokee tribe, became their First Beloved Man, serving from 1761 to around 1775...
, made a speech condemning the sale of Cherokee land and broke from the general Cherokee tribal government to form the sub-tribe known as the Chickamauga. After Henderson's Transylvania Company had bought Kentucky (although other tribes claimed it, such as the Shawnee
Shawnee
The Shawnee, Shaawanwaki, Shaawanooki and Shaawanowi lenaweeki, are an Algonquian-speaking people native to North America. Historically they inhabited the areas of Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Western Maryland, Kentucky, Indiana, and Pennsylvania...
), Daniel Boone was hired to widen the Indian path over Cumberland Gap
Cumberland Gap
Cumberland Gap is a pass through the Cumberland Mountains region of the Appalachian Mountains, also known as the Cumberland Water Gap, at the juncture of the U.S. states of Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia...
to facilitate migration. This road became known as the Wilderness Road
Wilderness Road
The Wilderness Road was the principal route used by settlers for more than fifty years to reach Kentucky from the East. In 1775, Daniel Boone blazed a trail for the Transylvania Company from Fort Chiswell in Virginia through the Cumberland Gap into central Kentucky. It was later lengthened,...
.
Robertson's group remained at Watauga in peace until July 1776, when Chief Old Abraham of Chilhowee led a Cherokee contingent that attacked Fort Watauga (a log fort built for defense purposes by the Watauga Association). A 40-man contingent commanded by Robertson and fellow Wataugans John Carter and John Sevier
John Sevier
John Sevier served four years as the only governor of the State of Franklin and twelve years as Governor of Tennessee. As a U.S. Representative from Tennessee from 1811 until his death...
withstood a siege of twenty days. After the Cherokees were subjugated later that year, the governor of North Carolina appointed Robertson to reside at the Cherokee capital to hold them in check and thwart the designs of the British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
during the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
.
Fort Nashborough
In the spring of 1779, he and John DonelsonJohn Donelson
Col. John Donelson , explorer and adventurer, was, with James Robertson, co-founder of Fort Nashborough in 1780, which would eventually become the city of Nashville, Tennessee. Donelson was the father of Rachel Jackson, the wife of seventh President of the United States, Andrew Jackson. His...
founded Fort Nashborough
Fort Nashborough
Fort Nashborough was the stockade for the settlement that became the city of Nashville, Tennessee, USA. A reconstruction, maintained by Nashville Parks and Recreation today stands on the banks of the Cumberland River near the site of the original fort....
, later to become Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, then part of North Carolina. He represented Davidson County
Davidson County, Tennessee
Davidson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2010, the population was 626,681. Its county seat is Nashville.In 1963, the City of Nashville and the Davidson County government merged, so the county government is now known as the "Metropolitan Government of Nashville and...
(home of Fort Nashborough in present-day Tennessee, not to be confused with the modern Davidson County, North Carolina
Davidson County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2010, there were 149,331 people, 58,156 households, and 42,512 families residing in the county. The population density was 267 people per square mile . There were 62,432 housing units at an average density of 113 per square mile...
), in the North Carolina legislature and had the settlement established as a town, and also established the first school there, Davidson Academy.
Robertson was offered peace and the free navigation of the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
by the Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
governor, in exchange for his leaving the United States and establishing — along with the Watauga settlement and Kentucky — an independent government. He refused to consider the matter. In 1790, he was appointed brigadier-general of the territorial militia by U.S. President George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
, and his military services did not end until 1796. He shared with Sevier the honor and affection of Tennesseans, and he held the post of Indian commissioner until his death in 1814.
Robertson is buried in Nashville City Cemetery
Nashville City Cemetery
Nashville City Cemetery is the oldest public cemetery in Nashville, Tennessee. Many of Nashville's prominent historical figures are buried there....
.
In World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
liberty ship
Liberty ship
Liberty ships were cargo ships built in the United States during World War II. Though British in conception, they were adapted by the U.S. as they were cheap and quick to build, and came to symbolize U.S. wartime industrial output. Based on vessels ordered by Britain to replace ships torpedoed by...
SS James Robertson was named in his honor.
See also
- Overmountain MenOvermountain MenThe Overmountain Men were American frontiersmen from west of the Appalachian Mountains who took part in the American Revolutionary War. While they were present at multiple engagements in the war's southern campaign, they are best known for their role in the American victory at the Battle of Kings...
- Valentine SevierValentine SevierValentine Sevier II was a pioneer settler on the Tennessee frontier and a younger brother of John Sevier, the state's first governor.-Family background:...
- Isaac ShelbyIsaac ShelbyIsaac Shelby was the first and fifth Governor of the U.S. state of Kentucky and served in the state legislatures of Virginia and North Carolina. He was also a soldier in Lord Dunmore's War, the Revolutionary War, and the War of 1812...