Battle of Flint Creek

Background

Following the Treaty of Sycamore Shoals (1775) and rapid Euro-American settlement in the Overmountain settlements of the Holston, Watauga, and Nolichucky valleys, Cherokee resistance coalesced around leaders who opposed further land cessions. A militant faction known as the Chickamauga formed around Dragging Canoe and allied communities, including Creek warriors and other allies, and conducted raids and campaigns for roughly two decades.

By the late 1780s, frontier conditions were complicated by the short-lived State of Franklin, an extra-legal state led by John Sevier, who organized militia responses to attacks. Cherokee political unity in that period was influenced by killings and retaliations along the frontier, and war leader John Watts was associated with the Chickamauga leadership. Flint Creek served as a winter base for keeping pressure on settlements.

Battle

Sevier reported receiving intelligence that a considerable body of enemy forces was gathering near Flint Creek about 25 miles from his headquarters, and he marched immediately through heavy snow and extreme cold. Sevier ordered a detachment under General McCarter, including Bloody Rangers and Tomahawkmen, to occupy the mountain pass believed to be the enemy's main retreat route, while the rest of the force formed along the camp's front. Sevier brought a small grasshopper cannon, and its discharge signaled the assault. The artillery roused the Indians from their huts, and they attempted to escape but were checked by riflemen.

The enemy briefly rallied and killed the artillery crew. Because militia ammunition had been damaged by snow, Sevier shifted to close-quarters combat, commanding to the sword and tomahawk. Colonel Laird led about 100 horsemen in a sword charge, followed by men with tomahawks, and McCarter's detachment descended from the mountain, making the fighting general. The engagement ended with the militia holding the field and concluded within thirty minutes.

Battlefield site and documentation

The battle site is within Lamar Alexander Rocky Fork State Park in Unicoi County, Tennessee. The Tennessee Division of Archaeology has recorded the battleground as state archaeological site 40UC10. In 2015, a Tennessee Historic Preservation Fund listed a $12,000 grant for remote sensing at the battleground, and in 2016 an additional $9,000 was granted for continued survey work. Tourism publications note that the park received a Federal Recreational Trails grant to develop access and interpretive markers for the site.

Did You Know?

• Sevier reported that his troops suffered most for the want of whiskey after the battle.
• General McCarter was tomahawked while taking a scalp but killed his attacker.
• No Chickamauga account of the battle has survived for comparison.