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Pioneer Life |
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William Neely was lured westward by James Robertson, one of the founding fathers of Fort Nashborough. They traveled first across the mountains of North Carolina to the Wautauga Settlement, where Robertson had cleared land on an island. Then they migrated further westward until they reached the gently rolling hills along the Cumberland River. |
| The first homes would have been small structures built with William's own hands. All of the pioneers would have pitched in to clear land around the house, chop down the trees and build the structure. The earliest homes might not have had any windows or certainly not glass windows. |
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Everything the family owned would have come across in a covered wagon. William owned about 300 head of cattle as well as horses and other livestock. Because he was "well-heeled" he would have had several covered wagons with their possessions. |
| William's daughter Mary could ride a horse as well as her brothers. She would have been expected to know how to survive in the west, learning to trade with the Indians and even to fight against them when they turned hostile. Mary could handle a weapon, milk a cow and gather eggs, start a fire, sew her own clothes, haul water from the spring, and extract salt from the water at the salt lick, which was an activity she was engaged in at the time of her capture. |
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Many thanks to JoAnn Weakley of
Historic Collinsville |
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