The Lost State of Franklin: America's First Secession
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University of Kentucky UKnowledge United States History History 2009 The Lost State of Franklin: America's First Secession Kevin T. Barksdale Marshall University Click here to let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Thanks to the University of Kentucky Libraries and the University Press of Kentucky, this book is freely available to current faculty, students, and staff at the University of Kentucky. Find other University of Kentucky Books at uknowledge.uky.edu/upk. For more information, please contact UKnowledge at [email protected]. Recommended Citation Barksdale, Kevin T., "The Lost State of Franklin: America's First Secession" (2009). United States History. 30. https://uknowledge.uky.edu/upk_united_states_history/30 Th e Lost State of Fra nk lin NEW DIRECTIONS IN SOUTHERN HISTORY SERIES EDITORS Peter S. Carmichael, West Virginia University Michele Gillespie, Wake Forest University William A. Link, University of Florida Bluecoats and Tar Heels: Soldiers and Civilians in Reconstruction North Carolina Mark L. Bradley Becoming Bourgeois: Merchant Culture in the South, 1820 –1865 Frank J. Byrne Lum and Abner: Rural America and the Golden Age of Radio Randal L. Hall Entangled by White Supremacy: Reform in World War I–era South Carolina Janet G. Hudson Th e View from the Ground: Experiences of Civil War Soldiers edited by Aaron Sheehan-Dean Southern Farmers and Th eir Stories: Memory and Meaning in Oral History Melissa Walker Th e Lost State of Frank lin America’s First Secession Kevin T. Bark sda le The University Press of Kentucky Copyright © 2009 by Th e University Press of Kentucky Paperback edition 2010 Scholarly publisher for the Commonwealth, serving Bellarmine University, Berea College, Centre College of Kentucky, Eastern Kentucky University, Th e Filson Historical Society, Georgetown College, Kentucky Historical Society, Kentucky State University, Morehead State University, Murray State University, Northern Kentucky University, Transylvania University, University of Kentucky, University of Louisville, and Western Kentucky University. All rights reserved. Editorial and Sales Offi ces: Th e University Press of Kentucky 663 South Limestone Street, Lexington, Kentucky 40508-4008 www.kentuckypress.com Th e Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover edition as follows: Barksdale, Kevin T., 1973 – Th e lost state of Franklin : America’s fi rst secession / Kevin T. Barksdale. p. cm. — (New directions in southern history) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-8131-2521-3 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Franklin (State)—History. 2. Tennessee River Valley—History. 3. Social confl ict—Tennessee River Valley—History. 4. Tennessee River Valley—Social conditions. 5. Tennessee River Valley—Politics and government. 6. Secession—Tennessee River Valley—History. 7. Secession—United States—Case studies. I. Title. F436.B268 2008 976.8'03—dc22 2008036154 Paper ISBN 978-0-8131-2987-7 Th is book is printed on acid-free recycled paper meeting the requirements of the American National Standard for Permanence in Paper for Printed Library Materials. Manufactured in the United States of America. Member of the Association of American University Presses For Joseph Th ompson Barksdale Sr. This page intentionally left blank Contents Preface ix Introduction: Footstool of Liberty’s Th rone Hero-Making versus Historiography 3 1. Land of the Franks Th e Backcountry Economy of Upper East Tennessee 18 2. Acts of Designing Men Community, Confl ict, and Control 36 3. Agreeable to a Republican Government Th e Rise of Backcountry Partisanship, 1784 –1785 53 4. Strange Spectacle of Two Empires Statesmanship, Speculation, and the Dimming Fortunes of Separatism 72 5. Where the Fire of Peace Is Always Kept Burning Land, Diplomacy, and the Tragedy of the Tennessee Valley’s Principal People 91 6. Death in All Its Various and Frightful Shapes Th e Last Days of the State of Franklin 118 7. Vassals del Rey de España Th e Franklin-Spanish Conspiracy, 1786–1789 145 8. Rocked to Death in the Cradle of Secession Th e Antebellum Evolution of Franklin, 1783–1861 162 viii Contents Epilogue: Finding Frankland Th e Legacy of Separatism in the Twentieth Century 184 Notes 192 Bibliography 256 Index 273 Preface I first became aware of the state of Franklin nearly a decade ago, while pursuing my master’s degree at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina. Cryptic passing references often appeared in books, arti- cles, and lectures, but the Franklin statehood movement remained obscured by the maddening complexity and confusion surrounding the event. Very few historians actually identified the underlying causes, participants, or results of the separatist movement, and it was nearly impossible to locate even a precise geographical definition of the boundaries of the “lost” state. Perhaps it was this cloud of obscurity that inspired my own fascination with the subject, but I gradually became more and more intrigued by the state of Franklin and the Franklinites. What was this long forgotten statehood movement? Why did it fail? Who were the leaders of the movement? These essential questions continued to spark my historical fascination and ulti- mately propelled this project forward. By the time I arrived at West Virginia University in the fall of 2000 to pursue my doctoral degree, I had committed myself to writing my disserta- tion on the state of Franklin. As I began to study the history of America’s early national period, I became transfixed by the political disquietude and socioeconomic turmoil precipitated by the American Revolution. The Revolutionary War unleashed a wave of bubbling social tensions previously submerged under the weight of British colonial rule and a decade of revolu- tion. As politically marginalized and economically exploited groups of “new Americans” agitated for their share of the fruits of the American Revolu- tion, postbellum America erupted in spasms of violence and political unrest. From Daniel Shay’s rebelling Massachusetts yeoman farmers to trans- Appalachia’s Whiskey Rebels, expressions of fierce backcountry localism and agrarian radicalism threatened to plunge America into its own Revolt of the Vendee. Against this historical backdrop of political chaos and social unrest, the backcountry leaders of the Tennessee Valley initiated their effort to estab- lish America’s fourteenth state. As I gradually sifted through the materials ix x Preface relating to the state of Franklin, written primarily by admirers of both the movement and the state’s only governor, John Sevier, I began to believe that the Tennessee Valley separatist movement emanated from the same ideo- logical strains and reflected admirable goals similar to the other expressions of postrevolutionary frontier radicalism. I embraced the image of the Franklinites as noble adherents to the principles of the American Revolu- tion and their movement as a grassroots expression of backcountry egali- tarianism and passion for self-governance. Pennsylvanians had their Whiskey Rebels. North and South Carolinians had their Regulators. New Englanders had their Shaysites. So it seemed only natural for Tennesseans to have their Franklinites. Of course, the deeper I delved into the primary source materials related to the state of Franklin, the less this romantic (and naïve) image of the movement and its leaders resembled historical reality. Many scholars who have chronicled the statehood movement refer to Franklin as the “lost state,” and in many ways this project represents my effort to rediscover it and the statehood movement’s far-reaching consequences for the new American Republic and Appalachia’s Amerindian and Euroamerican residents. As with many first historical monographs, this project began as my doctoral dissertation and could not have been completed without the sup- port, encouragement, and compassion of a number of individuals, institu- tions, and organizations. My fascination with the Appalachian frontier began at Western Carolina University, where I had the pleasure of studying and working with several wonderful historians. They include Curtis W. Wood, H. Tyler Blethen, George Frizzell, and William L. Anderson. My time in the Cullowhee Valley remains one of the most magical periods of my life. I am also deeply indebted for the tremendous support I received from the faculty and my fellow graduate students at West Virginia Univer- sity. They include Elizabeth A. Fones-Wolf, Mary Lou Lustig, A. Michal McMahon, Steven M. Zdatny, Tim Konhaus, Jennifer Egolf, and Elizabeth Oliver-Lee. In many ways I am the product of these two universities, and this book represents not only my own struggle to become a historian, but also the struggles of the professors who worked so hard and gave so much to allow me the opportunity to participate in life’s amazing historical conversation. I want to express my most heartfelt gratitude to Ronald L. Lewis, Ken Fones-Wolf, and Peter S. Carmichael for their inspiration and guidance on my quest to become a historian, and I am eternally grateful. Preface xi This project would not have been possible without the support of Mar- shall University and my friends and colleagues in the Department of His- tory. I also want to thank East Tennessee State University archivist Ned L. Irwin for his gracious encouragement of this study and for compiling an exhaustive and invaluable bibliography related to the state of Franklin. Ad- ditionally, I want to express my thanks to the universities, organizations, and library/archival staffs