Contents ▼▲
Front Matter At Boonesborough Beginning of the Story Boone on the Yadkin Boone Moves his Family Ready for the Journey What we Wore Driving Cattle and Sheep Camping at Nightfall The Long Halt Jimmy Boone Goes to Clinch Murder of Jimmy Boone A Time of Mourning The Faint-hearted Return A New Home Making Moccasins Tanning Leather Governor Dunmore Our Home on the Clinch Household Duties Attacked by a Wildcat Fighting the Wildcat Boone and Father Return The Wilderness Road Building the Forts Boonesborough Gathering Salt Boonesborough Precautions Our Home in the Fort Ready for Cooking Furnishing the House The Hominy Block The Supply of Water Sports Inside the Fort Wrestling and Running Religion of the Indians Indian Babies Colonel Callaway Arives News from Eastern Colonies Venturing Outside the Fort Dividing the Land Who Owned Kentucky? Ready to Build a Home Billy's Hard Lot Preparing Flax Spinning and Soap Making Broom Making More Indian Murders Indian "Signs" Woodcraft and Hunting Pelts Used as Money Petition of the Settlers Making Sugar Building Fences Capture of the Girls My Willful Thoughts Finding the Trail The Pursuit The Story Told by Jemima Elizabeth's Heroism Rescuing the Girls Alarm Among the Settlers Indians on the Warpath The First Wedding The Wedding Festivities The Brides Home The Housewarming Attacks by the Indians Besieged by the Savages In the Midst of the Fight The Assault by the Indians Failure of the Assault Watchfulness of the Indians The Sortie My Father Wounded Our Wounded

Hannah of Kentucky - James Otis




Mr. Boone Decides to Move His Family

How strange things are in this world! If Mr. Boone hadn't spent so much time hunting and trapping, or hadn't met Mr. John Finley, who told him about Kentucky, mother and I would probably now be at the old home on the Yadkin, instead of out here beyond the mountains, besieged by Indians.

However, Mr. Boone did hear about Kentucky from Mr. John Finley, and he did travel over the mountains, and the result of it all was that, four years ago, he came home with news of the wonderful land on this side of Cumberland Gap, where he intended to take his family.

[Illustration] from Hannah of Kentucky by James Otis

The stories he told of the new country in the hunting grounds of the Indians stirred all his neighbors so greatly, that by the time he was ready to make a start five other families had agreed to go with him, and one of the five was ours.

Mother said it was a big undertaking to cross the mountains with two small children meaning Billy and me; but father was determined to follow Mr. Boone, and so we went.

Before we started I thought, and so did Billy, that it would be very fine to go with the hunters. Some of the people seemed to think there was reason for regret in leaving behind us the homes in which we had lived so long; but Billy and I looked upon it as a brave deed to follow Mr. Boone, the greatest hunter on the Yadkin.

Jemima said it couldn't be any pleasure to her, because she would be forced to spend every moment looking after the younger children while the rest of us were having a good time; but we found out that it was all work and no play for each of us from the very hour of starting.