The War in the Northwest 9 



stead. Among them were two or three of the Long 

 Hunters, whose wanderings had done so much to 

 make the country known. Robertson's special part 

 ner was a man named John Donelson. The latter 

 went by water and took a large party of immigrants, 

 including all the women and children, down the 

 Tennessee, and thence up the Ohio and Cumber 

 land to the Bluff or French Lick. 7 Among them 

 were Robertson's entire family, and Donelson's 

 daughter Rachel, the future wife of Andrew Jack 

 son, who missed by so narrow a margin being mis 

 tress of the White House. Robertson, meanwhile, 

 was to lead the rest of the men by land, so that they 

 should get there first and make ready for the com 

 ing of their families. 



Robertson's party started in the fall, being both 

 preceded and followed by other companies of set 

 tlers, some of whom were accompanied by their 

 wives and children. Cold weather of extraordinary 

 severity set in during November; for this was the 

 famous "hard winter" of '79-80, during which the 

 Kentucky settlers suffered so much. They were not 

 molested by Indians, and reached the Bluff about 

 Christmas. The river was frozen solid, and they 

 all crossed the ice in a body; when in mid-stream 

 the ice jarred, and judging from the report the 

 jar or crack must have gone miles up and down 

 the stream; but the ice only settled a little and did 



1 The plan was that Robertson should meet this party at 

 the Muscle Shoals, and that they should go from thence 

 overland; but owing to the severity of the winter, Robert 

 son could not get to the shoals. 



