Nathaniel Gist

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Nathaniel Gist
Born15 October 1733
Braddock's Expedition (1755)
Forbes Expedition (1758)
Cherokee War (1760)
Battle of Paulus Hook (1779)
Siege of Charleston
(1780)

Nathaniel Gist (15 October 1733 – 1812) was born in Maryland and fought during the

Braddock's Expedition in 1755 and the Forbes Expedition in 1758. The outbreak of the American Revolution
found him on the frontier. At first suspected of sympathizing with the British, he convinced the Americans of his loyalty.

Francis P. Blair. He is variously said to have died in 1796, 1812, or at the end of the War of 1812. He is confused with his uncle Nathaniel Gist (1707–1780). He was a first cousin of Mordecai Gist
.

French and Indian War

Born on 15 October 1733 in

Braddock's Expedition in 1755, serving as a lieutenant in his father's ranger company in Washington's colonial regiment. He continued his military service in 1756, protecting the frontier against raids by pro-French Indians.[3]

In 1757, Gist received promotion to captain and was given responsibility for 200 Cherokees living in Virginia. He was credited with leading these native peoples as an auxiliary force during the successful Forbes Expedition of 1758.[4] In 1760, Gist accompanied Daniel Boone and other hunters on a trek to Abingdon, Virginia, then called Wolf Hill. The two then split up, with Boone going on to Long Island and Gist traveling to Cumberland Gap.[5] He was said to have sired Sequoyah in 1760 or 1761, but this is unlikely because the Anglo-Cherokee War was raging and Gist was serving in Adam Stephen's colonial Virginia regiment against the Cherokees. This unit advanced as far as Long Island before peace was made between the two sides.[6]

American Revolutionary War

Portrait depicts a man smoking a thin pipe and pointing to an alphabet. He wears a red turban and a light blue coat.
Sequoyah was believed to be Nathaniel Gist's son by Wurteh Watts.

Samuel C. Williams believed that Gist fathered Sequoyah around 1775 by his mother Wurteh Watts.[7] Of a prominent clan, she was related to Old Tassel. Williams dismissed the story that Sequoyah's father was an itinerant German peddler by the name of Guess. He noted that Sequoyah went by George Guess, Guest, and Gist, and that he finished the Cherokee alphabet in 1821 when he was about 40. This was much too young for a man born in 1761. Williams noted that a letter showed that in 1828, Sequoyah visited Gist relatives in Kentucky and was acknowledged as a family member.[7]

The year 1775 found Gist living with the Overhill Cherokees. After a trip to

American loyalist settlers from the rebels, so that the Indians could attack the rebels. They apparently hoped to enlist Gist in the effort. Jarret Williams, a settler got back to Virginia with the news that Gist was working with the British. In fact, Gist was in the pay of Cameron at the time. For his part, Gist warned the Cherokees not to start a war, but they began attacking the settlements anyway.[8]

Portrait shows a white-haired man in a dark blue military uniform with buff lapels and gold epaulettes.
In 1779, Gist preferred charges against Harry Lee, shown here.

In 1776, Virginia sent an expedition under

William Christian against the Cherokees. He was enjoined to capture the Stuarts, Cameron, and Gist as enemies. When the column reached the French Broad River, Gist came into the Virginian camp under a flag of truce. On 15 October 1776, Christian reported to Governor Patrick Henry that some of the Virginia troops recalled Gist's exploits on the frontier in a good light, while most of the soldiers wanted to lynch him as a British spy. Christian thought Gist was remorseful for becoming involved with the British agents, but did not entirely trust him. Nevertheless, he kept him from harm and Gist later regained his popularity. Gist maintained that it was impossible for him to escape so he appeared to go along with the enemy purpose, a story that was accepted by Governor Henry and the Virginia council in December.[9]

Washington appointed Gist

Philadelphia Campaign in the summer and fall of 1777 and at the Battle of Monmouth in June 1778.[12]

On 22 April 1779, Gist's Regiment absorbed

Brigadier General George Weedon, who evidently disagreed with the charges, called Gist "the head of the Wrongheads".[10][note 1] On 4 December, the regiment was ordered to march to Charleston, South Carolina.[12] On 6 April 1780, William Woodford's contingent of 750 Virginia Continentals arrived, having marched 500 miles (805 km).[13] Gist and his regiment were captured on 12 May 1780 at the Siege of Charleston. He retired from the army on 1 January 1783.[10]

Gist received 7,000 acres in Kentucky for his services in the war. He moved there in 1793 and built an estate called Canewood. At that time he was described as six feet tall and "stout-framed", with a dark complexion. Williams believed that he died around the end of the War of 1812.[14] Historian Francis B. Heitman asserted that Gist died in 1796.[15]

Family

Nathaniel had two brothers, Richard Gist, who was born on 2 September 1729 and died at the

Eliza Violet, Sarah Howard, Anne Cary, and Maria. Eliza married Francis Preston Blair and was the mother of Montgomery Blair who served in Abraham Lincoln's cabinet and Francis Preston Blair Jr. a Union general and US Senator. Sarah married Jesse Bledsoe who became a US Senator, Anne wed Dr. Joseph Boswell, and Maria married Benjamin Gratz.[16] The noted Maryland officer Mordecai Gist was his first cousin.[10]

Notes

Footnotes

  1. ^ This suggests that Gist's regiment either formed part of the attacking column or part of Lord Stirling's relief force. But this is not stated by Boatner.

Citations

  1. ^ a b c Williams (1937), 3
  2. ^ Williams (1937), 3-5
  3. ^ Williams (1937), 6
  4. ^ Williams (1937), 7
  5. ^ Williams (1937), 8
  6. ^ Williams (1937), 9
  7. ^ a b Williams (1937), 10-11
  8. ^ Williams (1937), 12-14
  9. ^ Williams (1937), 14-15
  10. ^ a b c d Boatner (1994), 436
  11. ^ Wright (1989), 101
  12. ^ a b c Wright (1989), 321
  13. ^ Boatner (1994), 209
  14. ^ Williams (1937), 18-19
  15. ^ a b Heitman (1914), 249
  16. ^ a b Williams, 19

References

  • ISBN 0-8117-0578-1
    .
  • Heitman, Francis Bernard (1914). Historical Register of Officers of the Continental Army during the War of the Revolution. Washington, D.C.: Rare Book Shop Publishing Company.
  • Williams, Samuel C. (1937), Chronicles of Oklahoma, The Father of Sequoyah: Nathaniel Gist, archived from the original on 25 May 2013, retrieved 10 February 2012
  • Wright, Robert K. Jr. (1989). The Continental Army. Washington, D.C.: US Army Center of Military History. CMH Pub 60-4.
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