About the Work
Old Times in West Tennessee is a semi-historic reminiscence of pioneer life in the western region of Tennessee, written by a descendant of one of the area’s early settlers. The author explicitly disclaims the title of historian or biographer, describing himself instead as a “semi-historic, irregular writer.” The work was composed under circumstances of physical hardship—the author states he wrote while afflicted with gout and bodily pain, finding pleasure in reviving the memories of his boyhood. He acknowledges that the work was written hurriedly and without sufficient data, and he notes that he appealed to the successors of early settlers for information but received few responses, possibly because they feared entrusting their family heritage to an unknown authorship.
The book is a first-person narrative that blends personal recollection with regional history, covering the settlement of the country north of the Big Hatchie River in West Tennessee. The author draws on his own experiences as a boy of twelve when his family first arrived in the region, as well as on anecdotes and stories passed down through the early settler community. The work spans several decades, from the family’s arrival in early March (less than sixty years before the time of writing) through the author’s youth and young manhood in the 1820s and 1830s. The narrative includes accounts of bear hunts, pioneer craftsmen, early courts, political canvasses, and the establishment of counties and towns, all rendered in an informal, anecdotal style that reflects the author’s stated purpose of preserving the memory of a passing era.
Context
The book is set in West Tennessee during the early nineteenth century, a period of active settlement and frontier expansion. The author’s family migrated from Mississippi, south of latitude 32°, traveling over three hundred miles through wilderness to reach their new home on a creek north of the Big Hatchie River. The journey took them through Choctaw and Chickasaw territories, and the narrative records the friendly relations between the settlers and these Native American nations, as well as the historical battles that had been fought in the region centuries earlier, including the expeditions of Fernando DeSoto and Bienville.
The period covered in the book is one of rapid transformation. The author describes the founding of towns such as Durhamville, Ripley, Brownsville, and Covington; the establishment of the first courts, schools, and churches; and the arrival of the first craftsmen, merchants, and professional men. The region was still heavily forested and inhabited by bears, panthers, and other wildlife, and the settlers’ lives were closely tied to the land and its resources. The narrative also reflects the political life of the time, including the 1829 congressional canvass in which Colonel David Crockett sought re-election, and the broader debates over tariffs, land policy, and the administration of President Andrew Jackson.
The author writes from the perspective of an older man looking back on his youth, and he frequently notes the passage of time—observing, for example, that he was thirteen years old during a particular bear hunt that took place forty-five years before the time of writing. The book is thus both a personal memoir and a record of a specific time and place, preserving details of pioneer life that might otherwise have been lost.
Structure of the Book
The book is organized into chapters that proceed roughly chronologically but are also arranged thematically, with each chapter focusing on a particular subject or set of related anecdotes. The opening chapter describes the author’s family’s migration from Mississippi to West Tennessee, including their journey through Choctaw and Chickasaw territories and the father’s account of the historical battles fought in the region. Subsequent chapters take up different aspects of pioneer life.
The second chapter appears to concern the formation of neighborhoods and the character of early settlers, including the story of Joe Seaborn and his encounter with the law. The third chapter describes the settling of the country in more detail, with accounts of Thomas Durham founding Durhamville, Johnny Bradford settling on Williams’ Creek, and various other families establishing themselves on the creeks and rivers of the region. This chapter also includes the story of ‘Squire Thompson’s court and the first school-house, built in 1827 with Larkin Gaines as the first schoolmaster.
The fourth chapter introduces John C. Barnes, the pioneer blacksmith, and recounts the story of General Tipton’s jack “Moses,” which Barnes lost and then recovered through a clever negotiation with the Chickasaw Indians. The fifth chapter is devoted to a big bear hunt, describing the organization of the hunt, the selection of a camp site, and the killing of several bears and a panther. The sixth chapter appears to concern lawyers riding the circuit, including the story of Joshua Haskell and other early legal figures.
Later chapters take up the history of specific counties. One chapter describes Tipton County, its geography, the first court convened in 1823, and the establishment of Covington as the county seat in 1824-25. Another chapter recounts the history of Haywood County, named for Judge John Haywood, erected in 1821, with Colonel Richard Nixon as the first settler and host of the first court in 1824. The book also includes chapters on Randolph in its best days, the formation of Lauderdale County out of Big Hatchie Territory, and the geographical and topographical features of the region.
The book concludes with a chapter of “Bright and Lasting Memories of Youth,” which includes the story of Victor and the Lake of the Lilies—a tragic romance involving a young hunter, a mysterious young woman, and her father, the old trapper Nichol. The chapter also returns to the history of Haywood County, listing the first officers and jury venire and recording the deaths of Colonel Nixon in 1831 and Squire Nicholas T. Perkins in 1872.
Detailed Section-by-Section Summary
Preface and Author’s Aim
The author opens with a preface clarifying his purpose: he is neither a historian nor a biographer, but a semi-historic, irregular writer. He explains that he wrote out of necessity, while afflicted with gout and physical pain, finding solace in reviving the memories of his boyhood. He apologizes for writing hurriedly and without sufficient data, noting that he appealed to the successors of early settlers for information but received few replies, possibly because they feared entrusting their heritage to an unknown author.
The Family’s Move to the Hatchie
Chapter I begins with the author’s father pitching his tent on a creek north of the Big Hatchie River in early March, less than sixty years prior, when the author was a lad of twelve. The family had moved from Mississippi, south of latitude 32°, traveling over three hundred miles through wilderness. In January, the caravan set out, led by the father on a dapple-gray mare, with a black carryall holding the mother, grandmother, and children. The father had purchased supplies in Mobile, including food, tools, seeds, and twenty milch cows. They passed through Choctaw territory, where the father secured a friendly guide and trade occurred. Entering Chickasaw territory, they rested on a Sabbath, the father being a strict old-side Presbyterian. The chief visited and invited them to his village, where the boys found a corroded leaden ball and white flint arrow-heads. The chief explained that a great battle had been fought there long ago, and the father recounted the history: Fernando DeSoto’s expedition over 280 years prior, and Bienville’s later failed attack on Ackia village, which saw the deaths of officers like De Coutre, De Mortbrum, and De Juzan. The leaden ball was left by D’Artaguettie, who had arrived earlier and been defeated.
The Panther Hunt and the First Ferry
The narrative shifts to the conclusion of a panther hunt. The dogs bay a large “clay-root,” and the father warns the party. Old Jack is attacked by the panther, which is shot by the eldest brother, who had circled around a fallen tree. The panther measures eleven feet two inches, and its cubs are trapped in a hollow tree and left to die by fire. The father then establishes the first ferry on the Hatchie, below McGuire’s, in Haywood, creating a road from Brownsville to Covington. His house becomes a “house of entertainment.” An amusing incident occurs when six gentlemen arrive, including Colonel William Polk of North Carolina, who recognizes the narrator’s mother, Mrs. Patsy Seawell. The party includes young Dickens, son of Colonel Dickens of Madison, who carries a roll of “taxes” in a red morocco belt. Seawell, a teaser, hides the belt as a joke. Dickens panics, accuses the servant Jack, and cries until Seawell shakes the counterpane, revealing the belt.
Settling the Country
Chapter III describes the settling of the country. Thomas Durham founds Durhamville, Johnny Bradford settles on Williams’ creek, and Thomas Thompson and the Russells settle on Fisher’s and Garner’s creeks. David C. Russell builds the first framed house in 1827, which the Gillilands purchase to establish a store. Thompson is the first magistrate, and an anecdote recounts ‘Squire Thompson’s court, where Joe Seaborn, after a fight, climbs a tree and is cut down by an officer with an axe, then confined under a cart body. Captain Stephen Childress settles on Childress creek, and Jacob Niswanger and Joseph Wardlow move in from South Carolina. William Murphey, the hatter, keeps black snakes in his shop; one wraps around his neck and is cut off with knives. Wardlow later builds the first house in Ripley. William Turner and Parson Collins, arriving in 1827, get lost on Cole creek bluff, where Collins fears wild beasts and thirst, and they slide down cane to the creek before returning to their boat and settling near Childress’ landing. Turner later settles on Camp creek, while Parson Collins returns to Kentucky. Arthur Davis, a pioneer preacher, confronts regulators at a school-house near Denmark, offering to fight them one at a time and winning their respect. At a camp-meeting, he captures a desperado with a bowie-knife. The first school-house is built in 1827, with Larkin Gaines as the first schoolmaster.
The Lost Jack and the Chickasaw Settlement
Chapter IV begins with John C. Barnes, the pioneer blacksmith, who obtains General Tipton’s jack “Moses” to breed mules, with handbills written by old man Gaines. Barnes discovers the jack is missing, and tracking shows the animal entered the thick cane of the Hatchie Bottom, where the trail was lost. A search proves futile, and Barnes suspects the animal drowned in an overflow. He reports the loss to the General and promises to pay six hundred dollars. Later, while fishing, Barnes encounters a trading boat, and the Captain shows him a hide purchased at Bolivar from Bills & McNeal. Barnes identifies it as “Moses’s” skin, and the Captain returns it. When the Chickasaws arrive for their fall hunt, Barnes invites them to a shooting-match, offering the jack’s hide as a prize. The Indians win the match, and Barnes reveals the hide. A young Chickasaw admits to killing the animal, believing it wild. Barnes argues that ignorance is no excuse under white law, and the Indians hold council and agree to pay, surrendering thirty-five ponies, appraised at seventeen dollars each, as full satisfaction.
Pitser Miller’s Advice and the Tub-Mill
The passage then praises Pitser Miller, a leading merchant of Bolivar, who advised the narrator’s mother against settling on the fourth Chickasaw bluff, saying her husband would “make coffins to bury your children.” This advice turned the family’s fortune, and they settled north of the Big Hatchie instead. The narrator’s father builds a tub-mill and purchases a gin-stand from Joshua Farrington of Brownsville. He hires a screw-cutter, a bear-hunter named Temple, who brings his wife and twin daughters. The narrator recounts his “first killing”—a bear he shot to save his dog Tasso from a monster bear’s grasp. The chapter ends with preparations for a big bear-hunt, with Temple, an expert hunter, agreeing to join and setting rules for the hunt’s order and conduct.
The Great Bear Hunt
The narrative continues with the bear hunt organized following Temple’s suggestions, with Gary chosen as leader. Captain Albert, Ab, and three negroes go to select a camp site on a branch running into the lagoon, while Gary, Pet, Temple, and the narrator go to hunt a bear seen earlier. Gary and Pet cross the lagoon to drive the bear down, while Temple and the narrator wait on a bluff. Temple predicts the bear’s location, and the dogs, including Caesar and Bess, bay it. A yearling bear is killed by Temple’s dogs, and the big bear is stopped and shot. Gary offers Temple the first shot, but Temple declines, deferring to Pet, who had shot first. The bear is killed by Temple’s shot under the ear. The party camps, and the Captain returns from roosting turkeys, having killed six. The next morning, they hunt the Big Hurricane, a dense thicket described by Gary. They kill a large bear, and then pursue a panther. The panther attacks Temple, but Gary kills it with a shot to the heart. The narrator crawls into the cane to start the “oldest inhabitant” bear, which is killed by five rifle bullets. The narrator notes he was thirteen at the time, forty-five years prior. The passage ends with a story about the narrator’s mother being scared by a bear while chestnut hunting, told by the old negro Jack.
The First Court and Early Settlement of Tipton County
Tipton County, bordered by the Mississippi River to the west and cut through by the Big Hatchie, was a land of rich virgin soil. Its notable landmark, the “Mill Stone Mountain,” was a cone of solid rock that yielded mill-stones rivaling French burr, and nearby stood an ancient fortification of the “Mound Race” containing human bones, pottery, and even a brick fragment bearing a goat’s footprint. The first court convened on December 1, 1823, at Nathan Hartsfield’s house, with Governor Carroll appointing magistrates including Hartsfield, John T. Brown, Jacob Tipton, and Andrew Greer. The first year saw a wedding that gathered every white family in the county, with no more than sixty adult males present. The county seat was established at Covington in 1824, with lots sold the following April, and the county itself was named for Jacob Tipton, who was killed in 1791 leading a charge against Indians; his dying request was that his son be renamed Jacob, a wish that was honored, and this younger Jacob became a prominent settler and Circuit Court Clerk.
Rufus Garland and the Stove-Pipe Verdict
A small, quick man named Rufus Garland stabbed a young man multiple times with a dirk after the man seized his horse’s bridle. Though the victim was pronounced mortally wounded, he recovered, and Garland, jailed without bail, was given the freedom of the jail by a good-natured jailer who made him a tin fiddle to play. The case ultimately ended as ordinary assault and battery. In a separate trial at Covington, the eloquent lawyer Grandville D. Searcy turned a courtroom mishap into a masterful metaphor: when a stove pipe collapsed behind him, filling the room with dust and soot, he likened the fallen pipe to his adversary’s broken argument and the dust to slander dispelled by heaven’s breeze, a performance the jury dubbed their “stove-pipe verdict.”
Colonel Crockett’s 1829 Canvass
Seeking re-election to Congress, Colonel Crockett campaigned on an anti-administration, anti-tariff platform, favoring land at “a bit an acre.” His opponents included Colonel Adam R. Alexander, Captain Joel Estes, and James H. Clarke. At the July Fourth barbecue in Covington, Crockett spoke in shirtsleeves, while Clarke closed his speech by inviting all to his store’s five demijohns. The election results were decisive: Crockett won with 6,786 votes to Alexander’s 4,300, with Estes and Clarke far behind. A correspondent reported Crockett’s stump speech, which began with “A bear to be skinned” and declared “Crockett is a horse,” denying any adultery or gambling.
James Holmes, D.D., and the Mountain Academy
James Holmes, a native of Pennsylvania and graduate of Dickinson College, studied theology at Princeton before serving as a missionary to the Chickasaws from 1824 to 1833. He founded Mountain Academy in Tipton County and organized Mountain Church in 1834 as ruling elder. A half-breed Chickasaw youth, a whisky drinker, twice dashed his bottle against a tree while traveling to Holmes’ school, and after hearing Holmes preach, believed his life story had been told and became a Christian. The narrator also recalled a room-mate, a selfish beneficiary scholar, who lectured him on Sabbath potato-roasting but was caught stealing a hot yam on Sunday, hiding it in his pocket and burning himself during prayers while fervently praying against lusting after forbidden things.
The Lake of the Lilies
Victor, a hunter, discovered a beautiful lake and, while resting on a fallen tree, saw a young woman appear in a canoe among the water-lilies, feeding fish and singing. Startled, she asked who he was and begged him not to return, revealing she had no mother and an old father who exacted a yearly promise that she decline all acquaintance until his death. Victor persuaded her to meet again, and they plighted love at the “Lake of the Lilies.” Her father, the old trapper Nichol, approved their union but required Victor to wait two months and four days before meeting them at Madrid settlement. Victor waited, but they never arrived. At the hut, he found Nichol dead beside a new grave. The manuscript revealed Nichol was born Pierre Saint Martin Nichol in France in 1737, lost his wife and daughter in the Pontiac war, and raised an orphaned girl, Mary, as the “White Lily” after the New Madrid earthquake. She died the morning she was to marry Victor.
Haywood County History
The narrative then turns to Haywood County, named for Judge John Haywood and erected in 1821. Colonel Richard Nixon, the first settler, hosted the first court in 1824, and the county’s first officers and jury venire are recorded. Nixon died in 1831, and Squire Nicholas T. Perkins, who immigrated in 1823, helped name Brownsville and died in 1872.
Main Arguments
The book makes several implicit arguments about the value of preserving the memory of pioneer life. The author states in his preface that he writes not as a historian or biographer but as a “semi-historic, irregular writer,” suggesting that the informal, anecdotal quality of his narrative is itself a deliberate choice. He argues, in effect, that the personal recollections of ordinary settlers are as worthy of preservation as the formal records of historians, and that the texture of daily life—the bear hunts, the practical jokes, the courtroom dramas, the domestic scenes—constitutes a kind of history that would otherwise be lost.
The author also demonstrates, through his own practice, that the history of a region is best understood through the stories of the individuals who settled it. His narrative is populated with specific, named figures: Thomas Durham, Johnny Bradford, David C. Russell, Captain Stephen Childress, Jacob Niswanger, Joseph Wardlow, William Murphey, William Turner, Parson Collins, Arthur Davis, John C. Barnes, Pitser Miller, Temple the bear-hunter, Grandville D. Searcy, James Holmes, Colonel Richard Nixon, and many others. By recording their names, their occupations, and their deeds, the author makes the case that the settlement of West Tennessee was the work of particular people with particular characters, and that their stories deserve to be told.
A further argument concerns the character of the early settlers themselves. The author repeatedly emphasizes the courage, resourcefulness, and moral seriousness of the pioneer generation. The father is described as a “strict old-side Presbyterian” who observed the Sabbath even during the journey through the wilderness. The pioneer preacher Arthur Davis confronts regulators at a school-house and wins their respect by offering to fight them one at a time. The lawyer Grandville D. Searcy is praised for his eloquence and his avoidance of “sharp practice.” The author’s account of the Chickasaw Indians, who honor their agreement to pay for the killing of the jack “Moses” by surrendering thirty-five ponies, suggests a respect for the integrity of Native American culture as well.
Key Concepts
Several specific concepts and motifs recur throughout the book. One is the idea of the “semi-historic” narrative—a mode of writing that combines personal recollection with regional history, neither strictly factual nor purely fictional, but aiming at a kind of truth that is more atmospheric than documentary. The author explicitly positions himself in this tradition, and the book’s blend of anecdote, genealogy, and local legend exemplifies it.
Another key concept is the “house of entertainment,” a term used to describe the author’s father’s home after he established the first ferry on the Hatchie. The house served as a gathering place for travelers and local residents alike, and the book’s account of the incident involving Colonel William Polk and the hidden “taxes” illustrates the social dynamics of this institution. The “house of entertainment” functions as a symbol of the hospitality and sociability that characterized pioneer life.
The book also introduces the concept of the “Mound Race,” an ancient people who left behind fortifications and mounds in the region. The author describes an ancient fortification near the Big Hatchie’s mouth, containing mounds with human bones and pottery, and reports the discovery of a brick fragment with a goat’s footprint. This reference to the “Mound Race” situates the pioneer settlement within a deeper history of human habitation in the region, suggesting that the land had been inhabited long before the arrival of European settlers.
The “Lake of the Lilies” is another key concept, serving as the setting for the tragic romance of Victor and the “White Lily.” The lake, with its water-lilies and its mysterious young woman in a canoe, functions as a kind of enchanted space within the narrative, a place apart from the ordinary concerns of pioneer life. The story of the lake and its tragic conclusion—the death of Mary, the “White Lily,” on the morning she was to marry Victor—gives the book one of its most memorable and haunting passages.
Themes
The book explores several recurring themes that give it depth and resonance beyond its surface-level anecdotes. One of the most prominent is the passage of time and the loss of the past. The author writes from the perspective of an older man looking back on his youth, and he frequently notes how much has changed since the early days of settlement. The first venire of twenty-one names, he observes, are all now deceased. The county seat of Covington, established in 1824-25, has grown from a frontier outpost to a town. The author’s own family, which arrived in the region when he was a boy of twelve, has seen its fortunes rise and fall. The book is suffused with a sense of elegy, a mourning for a world that has passed away.
Another theme is the relationship between civilization and wilderness. The book describes a landscape that is both beautiful and dangerous—a place of dense cane thickets, lagoons, and “hurricanes” (windfalls) where bears and panthers roam. The settlers’ task is to impose order on this wilderness, to clear the land, build houses and roads, establish courts and schools. Yet the book also suggests that the wilderness has its own value, its own beauty and excitement. The bear hunts, which occupy a significant portion of the narrative, are described with evident relish, and the author’s account of his “first killing”—a bear he shot to save his dog Tasso—is a moment of initiation into manhood.
The theme of honor and integrity runs through many of the book’s anecdotes. The Chickasaw Indians, despite their initial mistake in killing the jack “Moses,” honor their agreement to pay for the animal. The lawyer Grandville D. Searcy refuses to engage in “sharp practice” and is rewarded with success before juries. The pioneer preacher Arthur Davis wins the respect of regulators by offering to fight them one at a time. The author’s father, a strict Presbyterian, observes the Sabbath even in the wilderness. These stories collectively suggest that the character of the early settlers—their honesty, their courage, their moral seriousness—was the foundation of the society they built.
The theme of family and domestic life is also central to the book. The author’s account of his family’s migration, his mother’s advice from Pitser Miller (who warned her against settling on the fourth Chickasaw bluff, saying her husband would “make coffins to bury your children”), and the various domestic scenes that punctuate the narrative all emphasize the importance of family bonds in the pioneer experience. The book is dedicated, in effect, to the memory of the author’s parents and the world they helped create.
The Author’s Conclusions
The book concludes with a return to the themes of memory and loss that animate the entire narrative. The final chapter, “Bright and Lasting Memories of Youth,” brings together the tragic story of Victor and the Lake of the Lilies with the more prosaic history of Haywood County, suggesting that both the romantic and the mundane aspects of pioneer life are worthy of remembrance.
The story of Victor and the “White Lily” serves as a kind of parable of the fragility of happiness. Victor, a young hunter, discovers a beautiful lake and encounters a young woman in a canoe among the water-lilies. She reveals that she has no mother, only an old father who exacts a yearly promise that she decline all acquaintance until his death. Victor and the young woman plight their love at the “Lake of the Lilies,” and her father, the old trapper Nichol, approves their union, requiring only that Victor wait two months and four days before meeting them at Madrid settlement. But when Victor arrives, he finds Nichol dead beside a new grave. The manuscript left by Nichol reveals that he was born Pierre Saint Martin Nichol in France in 1737, that his wife and daughter were killed in the Pontiac War, and that he found an orphaned girl, Mary, after the New Madrid earthquake and raised her as the “White Lily.” She died on the morning she was to marry Victor.
This tragic story, placed at the end of a book largely devoted to the practical details of pioneer life, suggests the author’s conclusion that the history of a place is not only a matter of dates and events but also of the hopes, loves, and losses of the people who lived there. The book ends with the history of Haywood County, recording the names of the first officers and the deaths of Colonel Nixon and Squire Perkins, and thus brings the narrative full circle, from the author’s own family’s arrival in the wilderness to the establishment of settled communities with their own histories and their own dead.
The author’s final message is one of preservation and remembrance. He has written his book, he tells us, because he found pleasure in reviving the memories of his boyhood, and because he believed that those memories—and the stories of the people who shared them—deserved to be recorded. The book is his gift to the future, a way of ensuring that the “old times in West Tennessee” will not be entirely forgotten.
Significance
Old Times in West Tennessee is significant as a first-hand account of the settlement of a specific region of the American frontier, written by someone who participated in that settlement and who knew many of the key figures personally. The book preserves details that might otherwise have been lost: the names of early settlers, the locations of their homes and businesses, the stories of their adventures and misadventures, the texture of their daily lives. For historians of the American frontier, the book offers a valuable supplement to more formal records, providing insight into the social and cultural life of the region during its formative years.
The book is also significant for its literary qualities. The author’s narrative voice—informal, anecdotal, occasionally digressive—captures the flavor of pioneer storytelling, and his accounts of the bear hunts, the courtroom scenes, and the tragic romance of the Lake of the Lilies are vivid and memorable. The book stands as an example of the “semi-historic” mode of writing that was common in the nineteenth century, blending personal recollection with regional history in a way that anticipates later works of local color and regional literature.
Finally, the book is significant for what it reveals about the values and attitudes of the pioneer generation. The author’s respect for the courage and integrity of the early settlers, his admiration for figures like Grandville D. Searcy and James Holmes, his appreciation of the Chickasaw Indians’ honor, and his elegiac sense of the passage of time all speak to a particular worldview—one that valued self-reliance, moral seriousness, and the preservation of memory. The book is thus not only a record of a time and place but also a testament to the character of the people who lived there.
