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James Knox Was There Before Daniel Boone
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The adventures of 8th Virginia Captain James Knox have been unfairly overshadowed by those of Daniel Boone. This may be true generally, but it is definitely—and literally—true at the site of a memorial marker in Greene County, Kentucky.
The 8th Virginia’s recruitment area was vast—covering almost the entire Virginia frontier, which at that time stretched from Pittsburgh to the Cumberland Gap—a distance of 450 miles. Those two places were, at that time, the only practical access points to the “Kentucky Country”—all of which was, at the start of the war, part of Fincastle County, Virginia. To get there, you could float down the Ohio River from Pittsburgh, or you could travel overland through the Cumberland Gap. Few had taken the latter route, however, when James Knox led a hunting party that way in 1770.
Knox was one of the original “Long Hunters,” who entered Kentucky on months-long or even years-long hunting trips, intending to return with large quantities of pelts. Daniel Boone is by far the most famous of the long hunters, but that is partly because there is only room for one of these little-remembered adventurers in public memory.
In 1770, James Knox and his team established a hunting camp and pelt repository (a “skin house”) by the north bank of a creek now known as Skinhouse Branch. Years later, a church was built on the same site. Today, the 187-year old nondenominational church sits at the intersection of Skinhouse Branch and Long Hunters Camp roads—neither of which carries enough traffic to warrant painted markings. It is surrounded by farms growing corn, tobacco, and soybeans. Two stone markers were put there long ago by local citizens to memorialize James Knox and the hunting expedition of 1770. In front of them, and closer to the road, is an official Kentucky state historic marker noting that Daniel Boone was also there—a year later.
Early in 1776, Knox recruited one of the 8th Virginia’s ten companies. His men were decimated by malaria during the South Carolina expedition of that summer and fall. By the spring of 1777, only a handful were left. Knox became a captain in Morgan’s Rifles and commanded a company at the victory at Saratoga. He took a few of his 8th Virginia men with him, and his 8th Virginia Regiment company ceased to exist. He was a prominent citizen of Kentucky in his later years, but has always been overshadowed by Daniel Boone.
Read More: "Searching for Captain Knox" (3/29/18)
The 8th Virginia’s recruitment area was vast—covering almost the entire Virginia frontier, which at that time stretched from Pittsburgh to the Cumberland Gap—a distance of 450 miles. Those two places were, at that time, the only practical access points to the “Kentucky Country”—all of which was, at the start of the war, part of Fincastle County, Virginia. To get there, you could float down the Ohio River from Pittsburgh, or you could travel overland through the Cumberland Gap. Few had taken the latter route, however, when James Knox led a hunting party that way in 1770.
Knox was one of the original “Long Hunters,” who entered Kentucky on months-long or even years-long hunting trips, intending to return with large quantities of pelts. Daniel Boone is by far the most famous of the long hunters, but that is partly because there is only room for one of these little-remembered adventurers in public memory.
In 1770, James Knox and his team established a hunting camp and pelt repository (a “skin house”) by the north bank of a creek now known as Skinhouse Branch. Years later, a church was built on the same site. Today, the 187-year old nondenominational church sits at the intersection of Skinhouse Branch and Long Hunters Camp roads—neither of which carries enough traffic to warrant painted markings. It is surrounded by farms growing corn, tobacco, and soybeans. Two stone markers were put there long ago by local citizens to memorialize James Knox and the hunting expedition of 1770. In front of them, and closer to the road, is an official Kentucky state historic marker noting that Daniel Boone was also there—a year later.
Early in 1776, Knox recruited one of the 8th Virginia’s ten companies. His men were decimated by malaria during the South Carolina expedition of that summer and fall. By the spring of 1777, only a handful were left. Knox became a captain in Morgan’s Rifles and commanded a company at the victory at Saratoga. He took a few of his 8th Virginia men with him, and his 8th Virginia Regiment company ceased to exist. He was a prominent citizen of Kentucky in his later years, but has always been overshadowed by Daniel Boone.
Read More: "Searching for Captain Knox" (3/29/18)
The Knox monument is upstaged by a marker celebrating Daniel Boone's presence at Camp Knox a year later.
Knox's hunting companions are listed under a header that was probably intended to say "The Names of the Long Hunters."
There are only 16 names on the rock mentioning the group the site was a base camp
Others of the group were hunting different areas and not listed on the stone
Of those were the Lisle brothers, who were original long hunters that settled in what today is green county, upon their return to the area
William Lisle became a prosperous land speculator, his brother Daniel was a builder of the green county court house that still stands
There holdings were on greasy greek
The family name has morphed from Lisle, to Lile, and Lyle
2) Daniel Boone's second trip to Kentucky started on May 1, 1769. He entered through the Cumberland Gap route.
3) There were three routes to Kentucky: a) floating down the Ohio River (northern route); b) through the Cumberland Gap (southern route); and c) from Tazewell County, Virginia by the Ohio River Indian trails. (See the 1756 Sandy Creek/River Expedition.)
4) Colonel Knox's first hunt left Reed Creek, Wythe County in June 1769; one month after Boone had started on his long hunt.
5) Conflicting historical accounts abound whether Knox's second hunt was in 1770 or 1771. It was probably in 1771 and not in 1770.
6) Knox left most of the first hunt party in present-day Tennessee and went to Kentucky on his first Kentucky hunt with five other men: Henry and Richard Skaggs; Joseph Drake, Casper Mansco; and their guide: Long Hunter Benjamin Linn (later a Baptist preacher in and around Green County along with James Skaggs, a brother to Henry and Richard. These six-men's names can only be found by searching through different historical sources. Five of these men (sans Lynn) are on the Camp Knox Memorial. These were the six men who in January 1770 had encountered Daniel and Squire Boone; and their companion: Alexander Neely.
7) Casper Mansco and Joseph Drake were constant hunting companions along with Colonel James Anderson Dysart. In June 1770, Casper Mansco was one of the 10-men from Knox's 1769 long hunt recorded as leaving Kentucky by canoe or flatboat to New Orleans. They started to New Orleans in June of 1770. This would have made a time-challenged journey for them to travel to New Orleans; return to the Virginia settlements, and prepare for another 1770 long hunt. This suggests the next planned Knox Long Hunt was in 1771.
8) Casper Mascon and James Drake are noted on the Camp Knox Memorial proving they were on this 1771 hunt. Only 16 (of 22) men with Knox on his second hunt were identified on the Memoria. But COLLINS in his 1874 book identified another man: Captain Edward Worthington. Worthington's sister later married the Long Hunter named James Graham shown on the Memorial. Colonel Dysart's writings indicate he had been with James Drake during this time period. The 1944 book about Mentor Graham suggests Long Hunter William Robinson Graham (Green County) was there at this hunt. He was the brother-in-law of Benjamin Linn who was proven to have been with Knox in 1769-1770. Linn had also probably been with the 22-long hunters in 1771.
9) A man named CHRIS STOPH was named on the Memorial. There is no such man named as CHRIS STOPH. He was almost certainly Chris-Stoph-er Graham; the older brother of the man named James Graham on this Memorial.
10) In the early spring of 1771, 17-of these 22-long hunters had returned to the settlements leaving five behind to tend to camp. One of the five camp tenders became ill and was taken back to the settlements by a companion which left three men behind. These three were shown on the Memorial as: CHRIS STOPH, William Allen, and _____ Russell (sic. "Old Man" Russell. Indians raided the camp. Sight challenged Old Man Russell was found weeks later wandering in the woods.
11) Some accounts indicate Chris Stoph and William Allen were killed by Indians. Others suggest they were later released. The reality is that William Allen and Christopher Graham were friends and neighbors who had lived on Christians Creek in Augusta County. By 1792, Christopher Graham moved to Nelson County near the same general area that many of the other Memorial long hunters had chosen to settle. William Allen had lived in Kentucky, but he also moved to Nelson County after Christopher Graham moved there. They became neighbors in Nelson County also.