There isn’t much to report on this week. The kids are still counting down the hours until their cousins arrive (we have actually altered the plan a little and will meet them in Nashville to do some fun things there before they get to our house). I have started back to work for the 06-07 school year. And, we got some much needed rain which cooled things down considerably around here.
KILGORE REMEMBRANCE. Every Fourth of July our town has a Kilgore Remembrance ceremony. Thomas Kilgore was the first settler in our area. He was also a Revolutionary War veteran. He is buried in a small cemetery along Highway 25 about a half mile or so west of town. We’ve held this ceremony at the cemetery for the last 20 years and we had an exceptionally good program this year. Our guest speaker, a local historian named Mark Lowe, made all the difference. While he talked some about Kilgore he also told about other early settlers to our area and the hardships they endured. We also had a flag raising ceremony, musket salutes by long hunter re-enactors, and a dramatic reading of the Declaration of Independence. Afterwards people enjoyed cookies and lemonade as they visited.
A BRIEF STORY OF THOMAS KILGORE. While Thomas Kilgore was the first settler in present day Robertson County and Cross Plains and he has hundreds of descendants still living here, it is odd that you won’t find a single Kilgore listed in our phone book. Kilgore was born some time around 1712-1715. His family immigrated here from Scotland.
We pick up on Kilgore’s trail through the tax records for Orange County, North Carolina. His farm fell within the borders of Caswell County when it was formed. Aside from farming, Kilgore was also a long hunter, leaving home over the winter months to harvest pelts for fur trading. Before Tennessee became a state in 1796 this area was part of North Carolina. In the late 1770s, the government was giving 640 acre tracts of land in the western areas away to anyone who could prove they had staked a claim on the land by going there and raising a crop of corn. In 1778 Thomas Kilgore walked here from his home (which is about 800 miles away).
When Kilgore arrived he found some land he liked and planted his corn. He took up residence in a small cave. At that time many Native American Nations used this area for hunting and fishing grounds and they didn’t like it that white men were starting to encroach. Kilgore had many close calls with Indians that summer. On one occasion he discovered he was being tracked by a group of warriors. Taking the river to hide his tracks he rushed to his cave. Inside the cave (which has fallen in today) there was a large room. A smaller chamber existed above this. Kilgore climbed a rope into this small room, pulled the rope up after himself and covered the opening with a large rock. Then he sat still until the party searching for him in the passages below went away.
When the corn ripened he gathered a few ears, packed up and headed for North Carolina to record his land claim. He came back the next year with his wife, his children and a few other families. They settled and built a small stockade, known as Kilgore Station, to protect themselves from Indian attack. Later that year a group of settlers, led by James Robertson, heading for French Lick (known today as Nashville) stopped at Kilgore Station for a short rest before continuing on the last leg of the journey to their new home.
As the settlement that became Cross Plains grew, Kilgore built and operated a grist mill. One day in 1823 he walked to Gallatin to file some court papers and have his gun repaired. (This is a 15 mile trip on Highway 25 today.) He got wet on the way home and stopped at the Villines Inn to warm up where he reportedly danced a jig. On returning to his home he came down with an illness and died most likely of pneumonia. He was around 108-110 years old. It is said that this was the first time he had ever been sick and that he never rode a horse or in a wagon in his life. I hope I’m half that tough when I reach 100.
WE’RE NOT BUYING THAT! Of course, since we painted the bedroom the comforter set on the bed doesn’t match the room. So, Vicki and Jenna went shopping one day last week. At one store Jenna noticed a cubical pillow with the words like “yes,” “no,” and “maybe” printed on the various faces. Thinking of a question she tossed the pillow and then turned to Vicki full of excitement. “Mommy, its true! You’re going to have another baby!” Quickly sizing up the situation Vicki told Jenna to put the pillow back as it was defective.
Joe
