Sons of a Trackless Forest: The Cumberland Long Hunters of the Eighteenth Century

xxv, 992 pp. Author trained Daniel Day-Lewis how to use an 18th century rifle on the set of The Last of the Mohicans. Maps, illustrations, and facsimiles of historical documents throughout. "For much of America's history, a certain fascination has existed in American culture with the lifestyle of the woodsman who made the hardwood wilderness his home. over time this fascination has given birth to a collection of romantic traits firmly identified with such a frontiersman. The requirements for survival in a deep wilderness forced the pre-American Revolution era woodsman turned long hunter, to be "Indian," to demonstrate a high level of marksmanship, and ultimately to draw most of his needs from the bounty of the forest. Such requirements tended to promote the popular conceptions surrounding the eastern frontiersman. Looking beyond those legendary traits, though, such a lifestyle was often an uphill path made only steeper by a rather monotonous diet, days spent in endless and mundane labor, and the threat of perpetual warfare born of political forces beyond his control."--Utah State University Libraries. "...a stirring journey into the culture of those nameless hunters of the colonial frontier. ...centers around two key themes. First, the woodsmen of pop culture are traced back to their earliest celebrations, providing a wonderful world of nostalgia and romanticism. These fictional woodsmen are used as a frame to both open and close the second theme--an in-depth investigation into the lives of the common hunters who actually lived along the middle frontier of the eighteenth-century. The exploits, values, morals, challenges and perceptions of the real-life woodsmen are juxtaposed against our understanding of the fictional character. As presented, this exploration fully captures the attention of the trader as the author cleverly uses exerts from diaries, ledgers, letters, newspaper accounts and other primary sources to weave a series of tales that are true, yet as dramatic and captivating as the best of fictional devices. Each chapter opens a compelling path toward a stirring and unexpected conclusion, thus bringing the reader deep into the reality of the Ohio Valley frontier and the complexities of the hunting occupation in the decade before the American Revolution. ...centers around woodsmen who came to the land of the Cumberbland River drainage--the Kentucky and Tennessee regions--to market hunt for living. In the first seven chapters... the experiences of the common hunters are placed alongside well-known woodsmen like Daniel and Squire Boone. The reader will enter the world of the first Kentucky long hunters Elisha Walden and Henry Skaggs, as they work their way through long and varied careers. ...includes the most extensive chronology yet presented which puts the unfamiliar and well-known hunter together within the entangled web of politics, warfare, calamity and intrigue that characterized the colonial era in American history. Following the chronology is an insightful set of ten appendices which introduce the material and social culture of the hunter in an unadulterated and honest fashion. The entire document is complimented with an impressive collection of endnotes and historical commentary. To reflect the colonial era, several period maps are scattered throughout the text.--jacket