I am posting the excerpts from the John Jay Dickey Diary concerning Red Bird. This Diary is considered an historical document. For those of you who are not familiar with the John Jay Dickey Diary, John Jay Dickey traveled Ky and recorded information concerning individuals in different counties in KY. These excerpts from the diary about Red Bird are fascinating and each account different from the next with the exception that Red Bird was Indian. The individuals giving this information are listed under the page number. John Dickey is in Manchester (Clay County, KY) December 21, 1895-July 29, 1899 Page 2074 Capt. Byron The Indian Chief for whom Red Bird Creek in Clay County was named, was (probably) a Cherokee from Tennesee or North Carolina. Like others of his race he was a great hunter and allured by the game in this remote region. He finally took up his residence on the creek that bears his name at the mouth of Jack's creek in this county. He came to his death by the avarice of the "pale face". There lived with him a crippled Indian named Willie. This man dressed the skins which Red Bird brought to their wigwam and looked after the culinary department of the house. Some hunters from North Carolina, greedy and miscrupulous, came to the wigwam and murdered Willie. They then secreted themselves and awaited the return of the brave chief who had long before buried his tomahawk and for many years had been living in peace with the white man and as he approached his crude castle the bullet of an assassin laid him in the dust. They threw his body into a hole of water near by, still called "Willies's Hole" from which John Gilbert and others took him and buried him. One tradition is that he was sitting on the bank of the creek fishing when he was shot and that he fell into the creek. Page 2386 Abijah Gilbert Red Bird was killed by some hunters below the mouth of Big Creek and thrown into a hole of water. I do not know whether my father helped to bury him or not. I have heard my father talk about Red Bird but I do not remember anything definitely now. There was no justification for the murder of Red Bird. The hunters quarreled with him about furs and killed him out of greed. He had an Indian with him called Jack, who escaped. Page 2390 John R. Gilbert I was born in Clay County, KY September 18, 1841. I am a son of Abijah and Martha Gilbert. I knew my grandfather, John Gilbert well. I used to be with him a great deal. When I was 14 years old, he and I were passing the mouth of Hector's Creek. He said here in this bottom just above the mouth of this creek is where Red Bird was killed. Red Bird and his companion, Jack, were asleep. A party of white men came along. A young man in the party had lost his father by the Indians and he had taken a vow that he would kill the first Indian he should meet. This was the first chance. He took the tomahawk of these sleeping Indians and with it killed them and then threw them in the river. He said he came along a short time after the murder was committed and saw their bodies. I think he helped to bury them, thought I do not remember. He told me the name of the young man who killed them. It was a queer name but I do not remember it. He said Red Bird was a peaceable Indian and should not have been killed.