From
Buffalo
Trails
To
Highways
With unerring instinct
the vast herds thundered
across The Blue Ridge,
cutting paths still visible
today.
By E.
И.
WADSWORTH
During the American Revolution,
the Chcrokecs. whose lands were
protected by treaties made by the Bri¬
tish Crown, remained hostile to the
Americans. With the Crown's treaties
rendered unenforceable by the strug¬
gle for independence, land sharks and
speculators of every description be¬
came intent upon getting title to Cher¬
okee lands by whatever means possi¬
ble. The coveted forests and plains of
Kentucky became "the dark and
bloody ground" over which white men
fought the Indian for its possession.
Judge Richard Henderson, one of
the most enterprising of the specula¬
tors. engaged Daniel Boone to explore
the country, to assist in negotiating
land purchases from the Cherokees.
and to open up the Wilderness Road
In their seosortol migration* to the eoo*t the bison mode deep cut* olong tome of the high ridges. Their trails
become footpoths for the Indians, to be followed by the "long knives" ond, later, the settler* in their wogons.
The lost herd wot seen in North Corolino toward the end of the Coloniol period.
and to escort settlers to the new colony
of Transylvania.
The Wilderness Road was the old
buffalo trail used by the Indians as a
footpath and trading route into the
Blucgrass Country and on to the Great
Lakes. It later became the primary
route into Western North Carolina
used by settlers from the Yadkin Val¬
ley and from the coastal area. Many
pioneers, including the son of Daniel
Boone who was killed by Indians, sleep
in unmarked graves along the trail.
Herds Crossed Mountains
Although the American buffalo is
more often associated with the plains
of the West, vast herds of bison once
crossed the Blue Ridge Mountains to
winter along the coast, from Maryland
to Virginia and as far south as Georgia,
long before the Atlantic seaboard was
populated by the first colonists. Fol¬
lowing the ridges and high valleys to
avoid the dense growths of laurel, the
thundering herds made deep cuts along
some of the high ridges which are still
visible today.
A source of meat for the redman and
"long knives" alike, the buffalo pos¬
sessed an unerring instinct and sense
of direction. They followed the most
natural routes in their migration to the
Yadkin and on to the coast, and their
trails may be followed today. These
trails became the footpaths used by the
Indians, who in turn were followed by
the "long knives." the hunters who
came from the foothills and lowlands in
search of game. These men, who were
away from their homes for extended
periods of time, were a hardy and
fearless lot. At Meat Camp, in Wa¬
tauga County, they built a depository
for storing their winter furs, dried
venison, and other game. The tra¬
ditional site of the cabin depository is
just a few yards off the buffalo trail
near Meat Camp Creek bridge. Daniel
Boone’s winter cabin in the area stood
on the present campus of Appalachian
State University.
The Settlers
The hunters were soon followed by
others of a more permanent disposi¬
tion. settlers of Irish. Scotch, and
German stock who came to lay claim to
the land and to establish homes. For
these, the footpath became a pack-
horse trail, and eventually a wagon
road.
Among the early families to settle in
Watauga County along the trail were
THE STATE, May 1992
