Just a personal note to thank you for all your kind emails, prayers and good wishes. If all goes well, my Mom will be released from the hospital next Wed. We're all still pretty tired but going day by day, encouraged at my Mom's progress. Thank you so much! Sandi TIP #555 THE COOK WIVES - WATER, EGGS AND BLOOD I'm returning today back to the difficulties the early settlers faced, particularly with the continuing Indian attacks. Today I'm in Franklin County and referring again to the facts as presented by Collins' History of Kentucky. The date was in April 1792, the year of statehood for the State of Kentucky. Rev. Abraham Cook, an elderly Baptist minister who was also a pioneer, about 80 years old or more in 1847 (date of publication of Collins' works) had as brothers Jesse and Hosea Cook. The latter two had very brave wives. This is the account as told by Rev. Cook: "Some five or six years previous to the occurrence named, a settlement was commenced on South Elkhorn, a short distance above its junction with the North fork, which, though not very strong, was considered a sort of asylum from Indian invasion. About Christmas, in the year 1791, two brothers, Jesse and Hosea Cook and their families, their brothers-in-law, Lewis Mastin and family, and William Dunn and part of his family, with William Bledsoe and family, moved to Main Elkhorn, about three miles from the above named place, and formed a settlement in a bottom there, known as Innis' bottom. A man by the name of Farmer, with his family, shortly after made a settlement a short distance lower down the creek; and an overseer and three Negroes had been placed on an improvement of Colonel Innis' a short distance above. The new settlement was between three and four miles from Frankfort, at that time containing but a few families. It was composed of newly married persons, some with and other without children. They had been exempt from Indian depredations up to the 28th of April, 1792, although a solitary Indian on horseback, had passed it in the night, during the preceding winter. The two Cooks settled in cabins close together; Mastin and Bledsoe occupied double cabins some three hundred yards from the Cooks; the cabin of Dunn was about three hundred yards from those above named, and Farmer's about the same distance below the Cooks; while Innis' overseer and Negroes were located about three-fourths of a mile above. "On the day above mentioned (the 28th of April, 1792), an attack was made on three several points of the settlement, almost simultaneously, by about one hundred Indians. The first onset was made upon the Cooks. The brothers were near their cabins, one engaged in shearing sheep, the other looking on. The sharp crack of rifles was the first intimation of the proximity of the Indians; and that fire was fatal to the brothers - the elder fell dead, and the younger was mortally wounded, but enabled to reach the cabin. The two Mrs. Cooks, with three children, (two whites and one black), were instantly collected in the house, and the door, a very strong one, made secure. The Indians, unable to enter, discharged their rifles at the door, but without injury, as the balls did not penetrate through the thick boards of which it was constructed. They then attempted to cut it down with their tomahawks, but with no better success. While these things occurred without, there was deep sorrow, mingled with fearless determination and high resolve within. The younger Cook mortally wounded, immediately the door was barred, sunk down on the floor, and breathed his last; and the two Mrs. Cooks were left the sole defenders of the cabin, with the three children. There was a rifle in the house, but no balls could be found. In this extremity, one of the women got hold of a musket ball, and placing it between her teeth, actually bit it into two pieces. With one she instantly loaded the rifle. The Indians, failing in their attempts to cut down the door, had retired a few paces in front, doubtless to consult upon their future operations. One seated himself upon a log, apparently apprehending no danger from within. Observing him, Mrs. Cook took aim from a narrow aperture and fired, when the Indian gave a loud yell, bounded high in the air, and fell dead. This infuriated the savages, who threatened (for they could speak English), to burn the house and the inmates. Several speedily climbed to the top of the cabin, and kindled a fire on the boards of the roof. The devouring element began to take effect, and with less determined and resolute courage within, the certain destruction of the cabin and the death of the inmates, must have been the consequences. But the self possession and intrepidity of these Spartan females were equal to the occasion. One of them instantly ascended to the loft, and the other handed her water, with which she extinguished the fire. Again and again the roof was fired, and as often extinguished. The water failing, the undaunted woman call for some eggs, which were broke and the contents thrown upon the fire, for a time holding the flames at bay. Their next resource was the bloody waistcoat of the husband and brother-in-law, who lay dead upon the floor. The blood with which this was profusely saturated, checked the progress of the flames - but, as they appeared speedily to be gathering strength, another, and the last attempt proved successful. The savage foe yielded, and the fruitful expedients of female courage triumphed. One Indian, in bitter disappointment, fired at the unseen enemy through the boards, but did not injure her, when the whole immediately descended from the roof. "About the time the attack commenced, a young man named McAndre, escaped on horseback in view of the Indians, who, it was supposed, would give the alarm to the older neighboring settlement. As soon as they descended from the housetop, a few climbed some contiguous trees, and instituted a sharp look-out. While in the trees, one of them fired a second ball into the loft of the cabin, which cut to pieces a bundle of yard hanging near the head of Mrs. Cook, but without doing further injury. Soon after, they threw the body of the dead Indian into the adjacent creek, and precipitately fled. "A few moments after the Cooks were attacked, Mastin, on conversation with McAndre near his cabin, was fired upon and wounded in the knee; but not so badly as to disable him. He commenced a rapid retreat to his house, but received a second shot, which instantly killed him. McAndre escaped on horseback, and carried with him to the old settlement one of Mastin's small children. Dunn and two of his sons, one aged sixteen and the other nine years, the only members of the family then in the bottom, not having been observed by the Indians when the attack commenced, escaped to the woods and separated. The old man made his way safely to the older settlement, but the boys were afterwards discovered by the Indians, and both murdered. One of the Negroes at Innis's quarter, being sick, was killed, and the two others taken captive, (the overseer being absent). Of the captives, one died among the Indians, and the other returned to his master. The survivors of this infant colony were taken to the older settlement, and found all the kindness and hospitality so characteristic of pioneer life. "The alarm was quickly communicated to the adjacent settlements, and before night-fall, a body of from seventy-five to one hundred men were in hot pursuit of the retreating foe. The main body of the Indians, however, reached the Ohio and crossed it safely, in advance of the Kentuckians. A small party who had lingered behind and stolen some Negroes and horses from another settlement, were overtaken on the succeeding morning, a short distance from the Ohio, by a portion of the pursuing force, among them the venerable William Tureman, of the city of Maysville, then a youth. The whites fired, and the hindmost Indian fell, severely wounded. One of the white imprudently rushed his horse through the tall grass to the spot where the Indian fell, when the latter raised his rifle and shot him through the heart. He then rose to his feet, and attempted to reach the thicket to which his companions had retreated, but was fired up and killed, some fifteen or twenty balls having been lodged in his body." © Copyright 1 Sept 2005, Sandi Gorin. Sandi's Puzzlers: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~gensoup/gorin/puz.html SCKY Links: http://www.public.asu.edu/~moore/Gorin.html GGP: http://ggpublishing.tripod.com/