John Hardin John J . Hardin ( 1 Oct 1753 – circa May 1792 ) was a soldier , farmer , rancher , noted marksman and hunter . He was wounded fighting in Lord Dunmore ' s War ; served as a Continental Army officer in the American Revolutionary War and as a Kentucky Co . , Virginia militia commander in the Northwest Indian War . He was a member of the Methodist church and one of the first judges in the original Washington County , Virginia ( later to become Washington County , KY ) . John Hardin was killed in an ambush while acting as a peace emissary ( under the direction of the President , George Washington ) to the Shawnee Indian people . Early life . Born in Prince William County , Virginia ( in an area that is now Fauquier County ) , John Hardin was the first son and fifth child of Martin Hardin ( 1716 – 1778 ) , an owner of an " ordinary " ( or roadhouse / bar ) who was a member of the Virginia militia , and Lydia [ nee Waters ] Hardin ( 1721 – 1800 ) . John Hardin married Jane Daviess , and together they had seven children , with future Kentucky senator , Martin D . Hardin , their youngest . Military life . Lord Dunmore ' s War . Due his reputation as a marksman , Hardin was asked in 1774 to join Capt . Zack Moran ' s company , mustering in as an ensign to fight hostile Indians in Lord Dunmore ' s War . Hardin ' s exploits led to him become known on the frontier as " The Indian Killer " . In a battle with the Indians , Hardin was wounded in the groin by a musket ball . The musket ball remained in him for the rest of his life . Revolutionary War . In the War of Independence , John Hardin was a 2nd Lieutenant in the 8th Pennsylvania Regiment , better known as " The Provisional Rifle Corps " ( or Morgan ' s Rifles ) , and fought at Saratoga , while serving directly under Colonel Morgan . Later life . In 1786 , the Hardin family settled on a large parcel of land in Washington County , Virginia ( now Washington County , Kentucky ) , where they farmed and raised stock . They also joined the Methodist church in that area . Hardin had some success as a rancher , continually adding acreage to his original tract . Later militia service . As a militia captain in 1786 , John Hardin led a successful attack on a Piankeshaw village near present day Vincennes , Indiana which , unfortunately , belonged to a friendly tribe that had been colonial American allies . In August 1789 , he led another militia expedition to the Terre Haute , Indiana area where he attacked a Shawnee village and returned to Kentucky with twelve scalps . Hardin was promoted to colonel and repeatedly engaged Indians during the Northwest Indian War in the Ohio Territory . In 1790 , he led a detachment of the Kentucky County , Virginia militia on the disastrous Battle of Heller ' s Corner ( also known as Hardin ' s Defeat ) . Their rout began a long succession of American losses to Miami chief , Little Turtle . In 1791 , Hardin led a force of 60 Kentucky mounted militia in the destruction of a large Kickapoo village near the mouth of the Big Pine Creek , as part of General Charles Scott ' s campaign to destroy Ouiatenon . Final service . In April 1792 , President George Washington sent word to Hardin asking him to negotiate a peace with the Shawnee . Soon thereafter , in the area that is now Shelby County , Ohio , John Hardin met with a party of the Shawnee , who offered to escort him to their village . Instead , they attacked him and murdered him as he slept . Also killed was a servant of Hardin ' s , identified simply by his last name , Trueman . Another of the party , a guide named John Flinn - who had lived among the Indians after being captured by them as a boy - survived , later settling in Miami County , Ohio .