this was posted to an alternate rootsweb forum ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Date: Mon, 13 Jun 2005 22:49:23 -0600 From: Sue Jones <jonessh@swbell.net> Source: HANCOCK-L@rootsweb.com Subject: William Hancock of Campbell Co., TN http://www.tngenweb.org/campbell/hist-bogan/hancock.html FRANK IRWIN, WILLIAM HANCOCK BECAME FIRST SETTLERS OF WALNUT GROVE (TN), BETWEEN RIVERS By Dallas Bogan Reprinted with Permission from Dallas Bogan. This article was published in the LaFollette Press. The settling of Walnut Grove in Campbell County, between the Powell and Clinch rivers, began many years ago. In the 1770's no white man had ever set foot between the rivers or had seen what is now called Walnut Grove unless it was the longhunters from North Carolina. An assumption of the name Walnut Grove possibly came from the many walnut trees surrounding the area. Historians claim that the Indians called the Clinch River "Turkey River" or "Pellissippi." Years before the Revolutionary War, Frank Irwin and a younger brother crossed the mountains of North Carolina, now Tennessee. They both took part in the Battle of Kings Mountain, a very decisive encounter for the Continental Army. It should be noted that Frank could have possibly fired the deadly bullet into the body of General Ferguson, the only Englishman. Frank's brother was possibly killed in this battle. After the Land Grab Act, about 1789, Frank Irwin and WILLIAM HANCOCK ventured west among the Indians and the wild animals. They arrived on the Holston River and then pressed forward to Big Valley where Frank met and married Nellie Lyons. In this area Frank purchased 1,000 acres, possibly from the Indians. While on a hunting venture one day, Frank forded the Clinch River and found the valley between the rivers, Walnut Grove. Frank and William Hancock became the first settlers, each buying 500 acres of land and building shelters or huts about 1 1/2 miles apart. Frank gave a filly and a rifle for his share of the purchase. William built his homestead on Powell River, which later became the home of Henry Irwin. (See website for rest of story -- see new story below) Information from this article was extracted with permission from Dr. Miller McDonald's book Campbell County Tennessee USA: A History of Places, Faces, Happenings, Traditions, and Things, Vol. 1. http://www.tngenweb.org/campbell/history/county.html The first settlers to the Campbell County area were the Cherokee Indians who made their reservations at the present-day sites of Caryville, La Follette, and Well Springs and other small communities. Throughout the 1700s, the white settlers began trickling into the area and establishing their roots. The first major white settlement in the area was established in 1783 when Thomas Henderson procured a tract of 200,000 acres of land from North Carolina (this grant was awarded July 7, 1794 by the state of North Carolina and is recorded as Grant Number 252). This tract of land included a large portion of Campbell County. As more and more white settlers settled into the Indian occupied territory, numerous bloody battles erupted between the two groups of people. The last of the Indians were chased across the Cumberland Mountains, and the chief of the tribe was killed near the Campbell County line in Kentucky. On September 11, 1806, the Tennessee State legislature passed an act allowing the creation of Campbell County from parts of Anderson and Claiborne Counties. Campbell County was created "on account of the large extent of the counties of Anderson and Claiborne rendering it grievous and burdensome to many inhabitants of the Clinch River to attend court, general matters, elections and other public meetings." Campbell County was named for Colonel Arthur Campbell, a soldier of the Revolutionary and Indian Wars. The act to establish Campbell County appointed James Grant, WILLIAM HANCOCK, Jacent Cloud, Robert Glenn, Richard Linville, Sampson David, and John Inglish as commissioners to set up and select the county seat. There were three locations selected as potential spots for the county seat: Grantsboro, Big Creek Gap (later called La Follette), and Walnut Cove (later called Jacksboro). The commissioners favored different localities and could not reach an agreement on which to select. At the convening of the General Assembly in 1807, these commissioners had failed in their task. On November 30, the General Assembly passed an amendment to the original act: "Whereas, the commissioners appointed by the aforesaid act have omitted to perform the duties thereby enjoined on them." It then appointed the following men as new commissioners: Thomas Murray, Robert Glenn, Sampson David, John English, John Yount, James Rice, and John Newman. On January 20, 1808, Colonel Hugh Montgomery deeded 60 acres to the new commissioners for setting up a new town called Jacksborough, named in honor of Andrew Jackson, President of the United States. Jacksborough became the county seat for Campbell County. The first deed recorded in Campbell County was from Thomas Campbell to Henry Carlock for 500 acres, and the first will recorded was for David Haley.