Timothy’s travels in the 1770s were numerous. Timothy had his trading business back along the Cumberland River by Fall of 1773. He was greatly respected by the local Native Americans as an honest and trustworthy person.
Mrs. Whiteford writes that Timothy did not return to Kaskaskia in the Summer in 1775 but instead rode down the Mississippi River to New Orleans with his fur, hides and tallow for trade, as he usually did in Spring. This was the same year that the start of the American Revolution was declared.
An interesting story is related for the years of 1776 and 1777, straight from the mouth of Timothy, published in the Atlanta Constitution in 1896, and again in 1939 by Mrs. Whiteford.
By Mrs. Whiteford:
“In the spring of 1776, Timothe DeMonbreun makes his regular trip to New Orleans, Louisiana, with his cargo for exchange, but this turns out to be the one he was always to remember. When he arrived at Deacon’s Pond, now near where Palmyre stands, he met six men and a woman. This party had lost one of their men, having been tramped to death by a buffalo. This was the first white man to die in this part of the country, that we have any record of. The next fell a victim to the barbarity of his own companions—a man they called Big John or John Duncan, who was afterwards buried where Captain DeMonbreun first saw the party, had his wife, the woman above noticed along with him. About this time she had become tired of him, took up with James Ferguson, alleging that her husband was a lazy man, and a worthless hunter, that she had to support him, and then had no satisfaction in his company; but Ferguson was an agreeable industrious young man, and the best hunter in the party. She had left (her) husband sick, and induced the party also to leave him. They went down the river.
Duncan died of hunger, it is supposed, as his appearance to Captain Demumburen (so spelled) wrought that impression on his mind (Draper MSS26CC35).
It was on his last trip from New Orleans, Louisiana, in February, 1777, that Timothe DeMonbreun found this man’s body and buried it. This act of unkindness of one man to another made a lasting impression on his mind, for when DeMonbreun was an old man he would tell this story with as much interest as if it had just happened yesterday.”
The article in the Atlanta Constitution (December 13, 1896, page 11) refers to a book titled (ready for this one?) Life as it is, or, Matters and things in general containing, amongst other things, historical sketches of the exploration and first settlement of the state of Tennessee : manners and customs of the inhabitants : their wars with the Indians : battle of King's mountain : history of the Harps (two noted murderers) : a satirical burlesque on the practice of electioneering : legislative, judicial and ecclesiastical incidents : description of natural curiosities : a collection of anecdotes, &c. published in 1842 by John Will M Breazeale. Breazeale writes:
“In the year 1776, Thomas Sharp Spencer (who I wrote about in a previous post), and a number of others, came to the country, and built some cabins on the Cumberland river. The majority of the company, however, soon returned, but Spencer and one Holliday remained in the country till 1779. In the year 1777, Capt. De Mumbrane, a Frenchman, who commenced hunting in the country as early as 1775, met with a company of six men and one woman, at a place called Deacon’s Pond, not far from where Palmyra is now situated. The company informed him, that a man by the name of William Bowen, who had came out with them, had been ran over and trampled down by a gang of buffaloes, and had lain in the woods eight days before he was found, and died in consequence of the wounds he received by the buffaloes running over him, the day after he was found. John Duncan, who the company called Big John, had brought the woman along as his wife, but she had become tired of him, and took up with James Ferguson, another of the company. Duncan was taken sick, and the woman persuaded the company to leave him, and Duncan died. Capt. De Mumbrane saw his corpse.—This was, no doubt, the first white woman that ever visited the country now denominated Middle Tennessee. This company, woman and all, having taken water, sailed on into the Mississippi, halted there for a time, and hunted; but they were finally all killed by the Indians in 1779, except one or two; whether the woman escaped or not is not known, nor is it very material. If she lived it was only to disgrace her sex, and if she died society sustained no loss.”
Well, that wasn’t a very nice thing to write!
The 1896 Atlanta Constitution wrote the entire section I just transcribed, along with a few other stories from the book.
Breazeale goes on with a story that was repeated, though without as much detail, as Edward Albright’s 1908 book (Breazeale’s book might be the first published account of the story I transcribed on the Thomas Sharp Spencer post):
“In the fall of the year 1777, Capt. De Mumbrane went to the Wabush country, leaving a man in the Cumberland country, to keep camp, with directions to join him at the mouth of the Cumberland river the succeeding spring. But the man, not being apprised that Spencer and Holliday were in the country, and seeing Spencer’s huge tracks, (for he was a man of enormous size,) ran off in a day or two, and left the country, supposing he was in the midst of a nation of giants.”
Now, during this time that Timothy was in the French Lick area, he was living out of a cave. Though there are several accounts of Timothy building a sheltering hut to live in, and building cabins to store his furs and tallow, that I imagine were also used as a trading posts, it is well known that he lived in a cave. The cave, located on a bluff of the Cumberland River, provided a great shelter for Timothy from the elements and from wildlife and possible attacks by the natives (though, honestly, I can’t imagine he was worried so much about the latter). The cave can still be seen today. From the opposite side of the river, and even better by boat.
Photo taken by Wayne Hsieh, August 25, 2011, found on Flickr, Some Rights Reserved, (Source)
It’s difficult to see in the photo (if you go to the source of the photo, however, you can see details much better), but there is a gate that was placed over the cave entrance to keep people out. It is often pulled away to gain entrance anyway. My mother tells me that, possibly back in the 1970s sometime, some boys entered the cave and became trapped. This is why a gate is placed over the entrance. Mrs. Whiteford published four photos of the cave in her book, one of which is a photo of the “kitchen” area.
It was in this cave that the first known white settler was born.
The same day (referring to April 1, 1794), a party of Indians, consisting of from 40 to 50, ambuscaded the road near the Crab Orchard, leading from Knoxville to Nashville, and fired upon a company of travellers, consisting of five persons, killed Thomas Sharp Spencer, wounded James Walker, killed two horses and wounded a third – Spencer had with him about one thousand dollars in gold, and many valuable articles which fell into their hands – These travellers left the blockhouse, at South-West Point, in the morning; and the survivors returned there the same night.
