point pleasant history

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Recent Drone Photos Showing the Site of the Battle of Point Pleasant

On the evening of Friday, January 24, 2022, I flew my drone over Point Pleasant, West Virginia. The setting sun appeared to be shining a spotlight on the old battleground from Lord Dunmore’s War in 1774. From this angle you get a great view of the perspective of the battlefield. General Lewis’s army was camped right here at the point. However, the battle itself took place throughout what is modern-day Point Pleasant. There’s a lot of history buried on this little stretch of ground….

Late 18th Century West Virginia: Indian Attacks, Daniel Boone, and the Coal River – or is it Cole?

It’s important for us – especially Kentuckians – to remember that Daniel Boone moved to (what is now) West Virginia in the later part of the 18th century, I believe around 1788, from Kentucky, staying there until around 1797, at which point he reluctantly returned to Kentucky, before remembering why he didn’t like Kentucky anymore. And then he moved to Missouri around 1799. West Virginia gets no credit for its period of Boone residence. In the words of Rodney Dangerfield, “we get no respect – no respect at all.”

Virginia Musket used at the battle of Point Pleasant in 1774

This is likely a frontier-made musket, using a combination of gunsmith made and recycled parts, probably for use in the French and Indian War. It is made with iron mountings and is a hefty .75 caliber. This is the kind of plain, inexpensive, unromantic, and unembellished, work horse of a long gun which was probably the most common on the frontier – where most people were poor, but enterprising.

The Search for James Bryan, French Indian War Ranger, Revolutionary War Veteran, Survivor of Valley Forge, early Point Pleasant settler, and my 5th great grandfather

One of my first attempts at uploading some of the Facebook videos we did this winter, into one larger video for Youtube. This documents our search for the homesite and grave of James Bryan, my 5th great grandfather – the only paternal grandfather who’s grave I haven’t found. At least back to the first of them to come to America.