| ||||||||||
Dr. Ronald P. Rogers CHIROPRACTOR Support for your body's natural healing capabilities 270-384-5554 Click here for details 
 
Columbia Gas Dept. GAS LEAK or GAS SMELL Contact Numbers 24 hrs/ 365 days 270-384-2006 or 9-1-1 Call before you dig 
Visit ColumbiaMagazine's Directory of Churches Addresses, times, phone numbers and more for churches in Adair County Find Great Stuff in ColumbiaMagazine's Classified Ads Antiques, Help Wanted, Autos, Real Estate, Legal Notices, More... 
|
Jane Montgomery Casey, Part 1 John Stuekerjuergen, a historian originally from West Point, Iowa, shared this series with Columbia Magazine at the suggestion of the late, great Phil Hanna. The recent announcement of the Phil Hanna Cultural Affairs Series at Lindsey Wilson seemed to make it a good week to publish Phil's last recommendation to CM. By John Stuekerjuergen Part 1: Surviving Indian Attacks to Become Mark Twain's Great Grandmother BUT DID THE TWO EVER MEET? Jane Montgomery Casey (1761-1844) has a simple grave in the West Point Cemetery. While she was the maternal great grandmother of Samuel Clemens (later Mark Twain), she died before he became famous, and there is no documentation that they met. However, she led a very full and interesting life in her own right. Daughter of a Pioneer Family Erythusa Jane Montgomery was born in 1761 in the mountainous part of the Colony of Virginia, British North America. Her parents were William Montgomery Sr. (1727-1781) and Jane "Jean" Patterson. Jane Montgomery, our subject, had at least eight siblings. We know very little about Jane's childhood, but assume it was typical for a young girl raised on the frontier. The only specific recollection of those days seems to be that she enjoyed wearing moccasins! A Move to the Kentucky Frontier In fall 1779, the family moved to Kentucky, first living at Logan's Fort. Late in the following year, William Montgomery, along with sons William Jr. and John, and a son-in-law, built a cluster of four log cabins about 12 miles southwest of the fort. The site was near present-day Stanford, Kentucky. In a scramble to complete construction during the winter, the doors and windows were not built very strong. Also, there was no stockade around the cabins. It was thought, at the time, that there was no danger from Indians (a belief that would prove naive). The women and children were brought from Logan's Fort to settle in the new cabins. The first cabin was inhabited by William Montgomery, Sr., his wife, and six children (including Jane). Cabins 2 and 3 were inhabited by William's adult sons, William Jr. and John, as well as their families. The last cabin was inhabited by William's daughter, Molly, her husband, Joseph Russell, and three small children. Indian Attack! Early on February 27, 1781, Indians attacked the cabins. William Montgomery Sr., the father, had stepped outside for firewood and was shot seven times. A male slave living with the family was also shot and fell onto the door sill. Jane Montgomery, our subject, pulled the unfortunate man's body into the cabin and locked the door. Reportedly, there was no rifle, although Jane shouted to the Indians that she had one. She ordered James, the youngest sibling, to take cover. Jane instructed her younger sister, Betsy, to climb up the half-finished chimney and run to Pettit's Station for help. The station was 2.5 miles away. When Betsy jumped to the ground, she was pursued by an Indian, but outran him. The Indians also broke into the cabin of William's son, John, and shot him as he got out of bed. Two or three others living in the small settlement also lost their lives. William's other adult son, William Jr., shot two of the intruders. After the quick skirmish, the Indians gathered up some of the surviving spouses and children, and fled the scene. They covered 15 miles when they were intercepted by a contingent of soldiers alerted by Betsy. Before fleeing into a cane field, the Indians killed young Flora Russell with a hatchet and scalped a young slave girl, who survived. That was the end of hostilities. The Aftermath Jane Montgomery, our subject, married William Casey (later Col. Casey) within a matter of months. The wedding was held in the same clearing where her relatives had lost their lives. There were at least two additional times during her life when Jane was called to the defense of her home against Indians. For years after, Jane suffered from a variety of chronic ailments such as insomnia and digestive issues that she attributed to stress from those incidents. Note: This is Part 1 of a 3 part series:
This story was posted on 2025-11-28 10:57:09
Printable: this page is now automatically formatted for printing.
Have comments or corrections for this story? Use our contact form and let us know.
More articles from topic News:
Letter: Memories from the Past ACSO: Thanksgiving Holiday schedule KSP annual Trooper Teddy Sale supports children in crisis Achilles Award presented to Anne Devore-Birge City of Columbia thanks those who help stock Blessing Boxes OCC 2025: 2nd highest number of boxes ever in Adair Co. B&E Cattle Co. welcomes student visitors from Iowa OCC 2025: Final Day for Operation Christmas Child collections Road construction project set to begin in Metcalfe Co Fog advisory calls for careful driving Monday View even more articles in topic News |
 
115 Jamestown St. Columbia, KY. 270-384-2496 
 
  
 
 Provided by the Adair Co Fiscal Court and the Adair Co. Emergency Mgt. Agency 
|
||||||||
|
| ||||||||||
|
Quick Links to Popular Features
Looking for a story or picture? Try our Photo Archive or our Stories Archive for all the information that's appeared on ColumbiaMagazine.com. | ||||||||||
|
Contact us: Columbia Magazine and columbiamagazine.com are published by Linda Waggener and Pen Waggener, PO Box 906, Columbia, KY 42728. Please use our contact page, or send questions about technical issues with this site to webmaster@columbiamagazine.com. All logos and trademarks used on this site are property of their respective owners. All comments remain the property and responsibility of their posters, all articles and photos remain the property of their creators, and all the rest is copyright 1995-Present by Columbia Magazine. Privacy policy: use of this site requires no sharing of information. Voluntarily shared information may be published and made available to the public on this site and/or stored electronically. Anonymous submissions will be subject to additional verification. Cookies are not required to use our site. However, if you have cookies enabled in your web browser, some of our advertisers may use cookies for interest-based advertising across multiple domains. For more information about third-party advertising, visit the NAI web privacy site.
| ||||||||||
