Martinsburg gazette and public advertiser. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1826-1833, 1826-11-16
HISTORICAL
NOTES ON NENTucXY-srcnous
From Tie Kentueky Gazette.


The law providing for the appropri.
atipg the vacant lands in the State of
Virginia, passed at the Nay session of
she Legislature OF that State, in the
year 1878. BY this law, no land of
flee treasury warrant Was to be issued
by the Register, until the 18th Of Oct.
l779; and The manner 10 which entries
Were to be made on the warrants when
issued, was provided for az follows:
"If several persons shall apply with
their warrants at the Office of any
surveyor, at the same time, to make
entries, they shall he preferred sccor
ding to the priority of the dates of
their warrants This provisionpromp
ted every person DESTROYS of obtaining
lands, to endeavor 10 procure bis war
rants on the 18th OF October, I779,
(the first day on which the land Office
treasury warrants were permitted to
ISSUE, on account oiihe preference of
entry in favor of the oldest warrant.
No entries on.reasury warrants could
by law he made, until the FIRST day OF
May, 1880: therefore, very great
number of people visited Kentucky
previous TO that day, With the view OF
exploring the country, SO as to enable
them to locate theic warrants to the
greatest advantage
Onthe 1st day Of May, 1880, the
Surveyors Office for the county of
Kentucky, for receiving warrants aud
making entries, was opened, accord
ing to law, at Wilson's Station, on a
branch OF Salt River, and about two
miles from Harrodsburg; but SO M
merous were the applicants on that
day with their warrants, that it took
the Surveyor, with The assistance of
two or three deputies, several days to
receive and receipt Tor The warrants;
after which, he was engaged IS or2O
days more in arranging them, before
any entries were permitted 10 be
made.
The claims adjudged to those whe
had settled in the country, and raised
corn or made improvements, called
Pre.emp,ion, or Settlement and Pre-.
emption Claims, were so numerous,
that all the most noted and valuable
situations were secured by them; SO
4hat strangers had little chance of dis
tiOguishing between the lands claimed
and those unclaimed, and were, there.
fore, unable TO make entries with any
reasonable prospects Of securing the
land; consequently, early in June,
most OF the owners OF warrants conf. |
ded them to the experienced Hunters |
and woodsmen OF Kentucky, to make |
entries on them, and return to their res |
pective bones,
The great influx ofpeople into Ken
lucky, in the latter part of the year
l779, and the early part of 1880, &C.
casioned a scarcity of provisions in the
country, bordering on famine. Ma. |
ny families never tasted bread until
the corn was fit to make meal Of, their
was entirely on the game,
oil which the buffalo was the principal;
but the settlements were so closely
watched by the Indians, and the game
having retired from the neighbourhood
ofthe stations, it was with great la.
bour and hazard that provisions could |
be procured. All the Traces contigu.
Gus to the stations were waylaid by |
the Indians, therefore, thetunters found |
1t necessary to start early enough to !
get out in the woods three or four miles |
before day; and on their return to ira.
vel like distance after night TO their
homes.
In the Spring of 178e, more fami.
lies came to Louisville than to any o.
Their point in the country, by means
of the Ohio River, from whence they
moved out to Bear Grass and Salt
River stations; and as there was a very |
great intercourse between those two
stations and Louisville, and especially
the former, it was almost impossible to
pass without being attacked by Indians. !
The danger became so great at last,
that none attempted to pass in the day
time without party sufficiently large |
to protect themselves against any enc.
my that would likely TO assail them.
AS it was not convenient TO make up
party at all times, strong enough to be
safe, they adopted the practice OF ira
Yelling in the night. No sooner cid
the Indians discover this than they
made choice of suitable ground. where
they tied grape vines across the road