Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1888-01-11

family clothes, and the father and some
other men were at work on the new house
logs when the attack was made.
In returning from the Fort, John encoun
tered the Indians suddenly, in turn OF the
road. They fired on him and ball passed
through his clothes Just under his arm cut
ting the gusset of his shirt. He wheeled
his horse quickly and fled back to the Fort
to get immediate help to go to the rescue
Of the family, and about twenty returned
with him.
The Indians had passed on to the cabin.
The girls at the river washing saw them
coming and started to run, and at the same
time tried to help their mother away, but
she told them to go and save themselves
and leave her. In passing. an Indian threw
: tomahawk at the old lady and severely
wounded her in the wrist as she threw up
her hand to save her face. The Indians
did not pursue them, but hurried on to the
cabin. They fired at the Irish weaver, but
he escaped with flesh wound in his
shoulder
AS they entered the cabin, one Of the
girls, Barbara, ran out and was knocked
down and her skull probably fractured, but
she was not scalped. The girl remaining
in the cabin, Susan, closed the door, and
when an Indian put his hand in to try to
open it, she mashed and burned his fingers
with hot smoothing iron.
By this time, the father and his men
from the new house foundation came up,
and attacked the Indians with hand spikes
and foot adze; the latter, in the hands of
Mr. Wilson, and drove them off.
When John and his party arrived it was
dark, and they were unable to see what
mischief had been DONE. They ascended
an elevated point near by to see if they
could discover any fire light or other evi
dences of life about the cabin.
Seeing none, they concluded, or feared,
that the family had all been destroyed. In
nearing the cabin other dangers suggested
themselves. The family had several fierce
dogs, which had. been trained to great
watchfulness; some were taught to sleep at
the back door of the cabin and some at
the fronts as to give warning of approaches
from either direction; it also occurred to
them, that if any of the family survived,
they would have sentries stationed out to
watch for possible return Of the Indians
during the night and that these sentries
might fife on them. In the uncertainties,
John Wilson, himself, took the lead, eau
tiously approached the cabin, and succeed
ed in reaching it without accident Or alarm.
Upon entering the cabin he was rejoiced
present and unharmed, but was at the same
time panied to find his sister Barbara badly
wounded, and his mother, two sisters, his
brother, William, and the Irish weaver, all
missing and their fates unknown.
At early dawn next morning, John and
his party started out to search for the miss
ing ones. He tracked his mother by her
blood about mile up the river, to where
she had alternately walked and crawled,
probably not knowing whether she went.
When fonnd she was entirely out of her
mind, and did not recognize her son and
friends, supposing them to be Indians still
pursuing her; she rallied, however, and
lived for many years afterward.
William, Jr., though he usually wore
moccasins, had, on the day before, put on
a pair of shoes. Going toward the mill the
searchers found by his shoe tracks where
he had attempted to run when the Indians
discovered him-where he had slipped and
fallen and been captured by them; where,
further along, they had tied him TO d tree,
and afterwards loosened him again, and
taken him off with tn,n. His father al
ways thought that if he had had on mocca.
sins instead of shoes, he would have escap-
ed ard avoided capture. His pursuels
were confident that he had made his shos
track 'sign" as conspicuous s possible, SO
as to enable them to follow the trail; but
they never overlook him, and he was car
RED off to the Indian towns beyond the
Ohio.
|. A returned prisoner, reported to the
family some time after, that she had seen
him at the Chilicothe towns, but was not
allowed to talk with him. She said he had
been adopted by widow who had lost a
son, and was kindly treated. He never
got home, but died in captivity.
|, What became of this party of Indians
| after the attack on the Wilson home, and
what befell other border settlements in that
J region, the Wilson-Hanna notes do not re-
late; but portion of them are told in the
, border history of the times.
J About 1862, or, perhaps, early in 1853,
, John Wilson, with view to selecting a
, new site for new home and settlement,
came over on to the Greenbrier waters and
made location, cutting his initials plainly
/ oa sugar tree at the head of large
3 spring that empties into large creek. lie
intended soon to open up a farm and settle
) hare, but after the raid ON their Jackson
river home in 1863, his mother prevailed
! upon him to abandon it.
r When this section was settled, years
after, the large spring was found, and 81.
| W." still plainly showing in the bark OF
, the sugar tree.
John Wilson married Sarah Alexander,
daughter of William Alexander, who was
said to have been the first man to teach
Latin in the Valley of Virginia, and proba.
bly the first in America west of the Blue
Ridge. AS books we're very scarce in those
early days, he wrote out, in manuscript,
from memo1y, some schools exercises from
books he knew, for the use of his pupils.
NTo,v prouinant man in Vir-
ginia received their early training from him
in this primitive way.
About this time, John Wilson went into
the army. He became Col. of cavalry, and
commanded regiment during the Revolu-
tioua1y war. He died January Oath, 1921.
He never asked for, but declined to ac-
cept pension for his services. He said he
did not think that any one who was able to
do without it should ever receive pay for
defending his country.
He, (Col. John W1lson,) was for many
years a magistrate in Bath county, under
the old Virginia system.
At one time, on the occasion of an ap.
preaching presidential election, the auditor
of the State sent out to the county mags.
trates, blank paper upon which to write
out election tickets, with proper forms in
which to make them out. There were &c
|
days, and to hire clerical force to write out
all these tickets would have cost money
which the taxpayers could ill afford to pay,
as money in those days was very scarce
: Col Wilson proposed to his associate magis
trates that they would divide out the paper
amongst themselves and each undertake tc
write mp his proportion of the tickets ano
thus save all expense.
Col. Wilson's then 13 years old daugh
ter, Margaret, afterwards Mrs. Hanna,
wrote out for her father, his portion of these
, tickets.
. The election referred to was the one il
which Mr.. Jefferson was elected to his frs
, presidential term.
:, The children of Col. John Wilson anG
: Susan Alexander, were John, William
Sarah Charlotte, Susan-Esther and Mar
garet.
John died in New York, unmarried
William married Sarah McClung, daughte
; of John McClung, Of Bath county. They
lived and died within miles of the old Will
son cabin on Jackson's river.
!. At an early time, the date not now known
three brothers McCung emigrated to Amer
: lea, two of them stopping in Virginia ant
q one going on 10 Tennessee. The John Nc
= Clunu ahova mantioued w aS q son of one n