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Over a period of twenty years, Rogan participated in many skirmishes
and most of the expeditions which were mounted against the Native
Americans who controlled what is now Middle Tennessee.
While it may be argued that the enmity between Ireland and England
provided Rogan with circumstances which promoted, even invited
and encouraged armed conflict, it is also apparent that he readily
transferred his bravery, hostility, and considerable aptitude
for nontraditional warfare towards the Indians. While it
is a reality that the native tribes against whom he fought were
defenders-just as he was in Ireland-of their land, livelihood,
and culture from invading forces, it is almost a certainty that
Rogan and other European settlers never viewed the conflict in
this light.
The man from Donegal was generally
admired and respected, even considered a legend by some who knew
him. As an example, in 1787 he was one of several men who
traveled south into Alabama to confront a band of Creek and Cherokee
renegades. After destroying the camp, Rogan was one of several
who were injured during a reprisal by Indians who escaped.
Chronicler, W. W. Clayton, described Rogan as a man of
superlative courage and strength of will who, though shot through
one lung, still marched back to Fort Nashborough carrying his
gun and gear.
Clayton also relates another
tale of Rogan's courage. Indians attacked Bledsoe's Lick
(one of several forts along the Cumberland River) wounding
several men including Colonel Anthony Bledsoe. Bledsoe,
who knew he was dying, asked for a fire to be lit so he could
dictate and sign his will. Otherwise, his daughters could
not inherit his considerable holdings. No live embers,
however, could be found in the stockade. Rogan
was the only one willing to face the night and almost certain
attack. He slipped out to the nearby cabin of a woman who
was superstitiously feared and avoided by the Indians and returned
with coals for a fire. The will was written, signed, and Bledsoe
died a few hours later. Those who witnessed the event never
forgot the courage of Rogan.
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This article
is an abstract of research and information that appears in "Hugh
Rogan of Counties Donegal and Sumner: Irish Acculturation in
Frontier Tennessee," Caneta Skelley Hankins.
Tennessee
History: The Land, the People, the Culture. Carroll Van West, ed. University
of Tennessee Press, 1998. For further information
contact the author at the Center for Historic Preservation,
Middle Tennessee State University, Box 80, Murfreesboro, Tennessee
37132, phone (615) 898-2947; e-mail < chankins@mtsu.edu>. |
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