2011-2012 State Project

WILDERNESS ROAD BLOCKHOUSE & Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail Association

Brief History of Blockhouse and Wilderness Road:

Captain John Anderson was born May 5, 1750 to William and Susanne Campbell Anderson in Augusta County, Virginia. When John was 19 he joined one of the very earliest explorations of the Holston Valley, before any settlers began to arrive. Eight young men joined him and they ventured into the wilderness south of the New River in 1769. Their excursion was cut short when they met a large body of Indians and decided to return home. Four years later Capt. Anderson purchased 170 acres of land on both sides of the Clinch. This area was Fincastle County since Scott County was not formed until 1815. Dunmore’s war broke out and Anderson was assigned to Capt. David Looney at Blackmore’s Fort. This was an outpost and vulnerable to unexpected attacks by the Shawnee Indians. October 5, 1774 while he was at Fort Blackmore, Daniel Boone was in command. After the battle Capt. Anderson and other militia men returned home. Capt. Anderson married Rebecca Maxwell on January 10, 1775. In early spring 1775 John and Rebecca built the Blockhouse on the Holston River southeast of Gate City. Elijah Gillenwater was the Circuit Court Clerk who signed the deed to John Anderson. This home was built to protect the Anderson’s family and it became the gateway to the American West. It was the gathering place for settlers going west to Kentucky. It was the starting place for the Wilderness Road for a period of 10 to 15 years. Hundreds stopped for some sort of entertainment, to rest, for a meal, for a nights lodging or spend several days awaiting the gathering of a company large enough to travel through the wilderness in safety. If guest could not pay for their stay they furnished John with wild game and most did not have money.

• On March 10, 1775 Daniel Boone and thirty men gathered at the Blockhouse cutting a road through Big Moccasin Gap and into Kentucky. Today the road is in the exact location as Daniel Boone and these men lay out. (Family history indicates State President Josh Wilson’s ancestor David Cocke was with Daniel Boone during this time.)

• On January 4, 1815 Scott County was formed and Anderson was appointed the first Sheriff at the age of 65, he also opened the first Court of Scott County in the name of the Commonwealth of Virginia at Moccasin Gap and it was presided over by the Honorable Judge Peter Johnson, whose wife was a sister of Patrick Henry.

• The Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail Association could not purchase the property of the Original Blockhouse due to the high purchase price, so they obtained an agreement to construct a replica of the Blockhouse that was built by Capt. John Anderson in 1775. Today the Blockhouse located in Duffield, Virginia is furnished with period furniture along with an Interpretative Center that meets Smithsonian Institute standards for museum collections which features Daniel Boone and Revolutionary War era archives pertaining to the region, a library for genealogical research. The association hosts a number of educational events at the Blockhouse which includes the Annual Living History event “1775 Militia” at the Wilderness Trail Blockhouse in May, in conjunction to this event DAR, SAR and CAR sponsor a dedication to Patriots and Pathfinders at the monument located at the Blockhouse. The Blockhouse is opened each weekend May through October with volunteer interpreters telling the story of our ancestors and the great movement west along the Wilderness Trail. Also visits by surrounding schools for educational purposes and in November for Frontier Harvest where you can see candle, soap, salt and bread making while you enjoy period music. In December for a Christmas celebration for a grand illumination with Capt. John & Rebecca Anderson with a bonfire and cider and sweet cakes.

• Today the WILDERNESS ROAD BLOCKHOUSE has around 4,000 visitors per year from all 50 states including Japan, Germany, Australia and other foreign countries.

This year V.S.C.A.R. is raising money to build a replica of a Blacksmith Shop and Shed depictive of the period next to the current Blockhouse.

Why this project is important to State President, Josh Wilson: Josh has two ancestors who played an important role in the Wilderness Trail, one being instrumental in helping to secure the land that the blockhouse was located and the other was with Daniel Boone in cutting the Wilderness Trail.