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Before the white men came to Kentucky, the
territory in the great bend of the Ohio River from the mouth of
Otter Creek to the mouth of Sinking Creek was a veritable hunters'
paradise. Heavily wooded broken ground along the streams, dense
forests on the knobs and thick timber in the groves furnished
shelter for the abundant game. Thousands of acres of land bare of
trees but covered with grasses and native clovers furnished grazing
in summer for large herds of deer, elk and bison. Dense canebrakes
provided abundant forage in winter Elk Grove, Doe Run, Elk Wallow,
Sulphur Lick, Lap Land, Buck Run, Buck Grove, Bear Wallow, Turkey
Heaven, Wolf Creek, Bee Knob, Hogback Grove, Big Clay Lick and Otter
Creek were named by the early hunters. Indian Hill, Jennie's Knob, Bulger's Grove, Indian Grove, Hill Grove, Jackey's Grove and Flippen's' Run bear the names of the early hunters. Well-watered, fertile soil grew food for an unbelievable number of game. Each year the Indians would burn the dry grasses on the barrens. In the groves and oil the knobs bear, wolves and wildcats remained after other big game had disappeared. Pioneers had many thrilling experiences with these wild animals. Often women would keep the wolves away from the sheep by throwing firebrands at them. Occasionally wildcats would come to the cabins at night. On these occasions women would burn handfuls of feathers in the open fireplace to make a thick acrid smoke, which kept the wildcats from coming down the low chimneys. Deer runs and buffalo roads crossed the barrens in every direction. These served the pioneers as roads for many years. From the mouth of Salt River to Wolf Creek during the Indian troubles scouts patrolled the buffalo roads along the river. South of the barrens on the knobs the settlers in Severn's Valley had several outposts for observation and defense. Also the settlers used a road from Hardin's Settlement to Corydon, Indiana Territory, which crossed the river at King's Landing. After the first settlements buffaloes began to disappear. In the 'early years of the last century a band of hunters followed a buffalo that swam the river at Big Bend. It was killed on Mill Creek in Hardin County. In 1847 a tame buffalo cow was found with a drove of cattle in the barrens. Elk and deer remained much longer than the buffalo. Old settlers used to relate stories of great herds of deer, which frequented the thickets of hazelnuts in the swales on the barrens. In an old account book belonging to Hayden and Atwill, October 12, 1821, this item appears: "There are in the hands of Benjamin Doorn several hundred deer skins to tan and sell for us. The one-half of what they amount to is for each of us." General Benjamin Shacklett, an early settler in the Hill Grove, leaves the following account of the great numbers of deer. "As to deer we thought no more of going out to kill one, when wanting one, than we did of going out to wring the neck off a chicken." Hoard Withers was fond of telling about the abundance of
game, especially of deer. He said, "No one planted more than three
acres of ground because we didn't need any more." When the pioneers came, great flocks of large white swans could
be seen every spring and fall. Wild geese and ducks abounded on
every watercourse. Songbirds were without number. Passenger pigeons
came in great flocks. They would bend young timber to the ground
with their great weight. Strong branches of great poplars in the
bottoms would be broken by the passenger pigeons that have long
since vanished from the earth. |
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