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Isaac Coates Journal of Journeys to the Indian Country

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a very rough mountain called the Alleghany; some spots tolerable land, but I think four-fifths of it is not worth settling upon. Just before we came to the creek we entered a forest of very tall white pine which stands very close together, insomuch that I con-cluded if it was all cut up in four-foot lengths it could not be corded on the ground. Said Kooken has about fifteen acres of land cleared, which appears to be very fertile, having very luxuriant potatoes and butterweeds, also the appearance of good oats standing in shock and some not cut. Thence to John Norris's mill, on a branch of Pine Creek, thirteen miles. After leaving Larrie's Creek we rode about five miles through very rich land exceeding heavy loaded with timber--mostly white pine with some hemlock, sugar maple, etc., and then entered a valley down which a branch of Pine Creek runs, which we crossed eleven times, and then came upon a larger branch of said water, crossing it several times. Up to the mill pretty good land in a narrow valley between two high mountains; no house nor improvement for ten miles of the last stage. At this place we have got a verypleasant landlady who provided us a good supper. 15th. Rode to Moses Wilson's eleven and one half miles; the most of the way upon a branch of Pine Creek, though very good land heavy loaded with timber, and there appears to be several new settle-ments making which in tim may be very valuable, one of which is Sampson Babs's who is making an improvement on a fertile spot and has got a race al-most finished in order for a sawmill, and perhaps a grist mill. He appeared exceedingly elevated with seeing us and told us when he came there first, being no road, he came by direction of a compass, and resided twelve weeks without see-ing the face of any person. Had only a blanket and piece of hemlock bark for his house and bed-clothing. Moses Wilson and his truly valuable wife appear to be very happy in seeing us. He has made a considerable opening in the heavy timber and has got good corn and other things; but truly those who have not been in the back country can have but a very imperfect idea of the hardship and difficulty those have to endure or encounter who are the first settlers in a new country. Thence to James Mills's at the third fork of Pine Creek, which is a boatable stream about fifty-six miles above where it empties into the west branch of Susquehanna, and ten miles from Moses Wilson's. On our way we came to a camp in the woods, where we foudn Wm. Ellis with a Fisher &; Co.'s land, said Ellis accompanying us six miles to said Mills's in order to spend the evening with us in friendly converse. The land gen-erally good this stage, and some of it excellent withabundance of very large sugar maple. Said Mills is living on said Fisher's land which I think will, in time, be a very valuable estate. He said he had two years ago six hundred dozen of wheat, and the present year has got seventeen acres of corn, which will no doubt yield fifty or sixty bushels to the acre; appears to be a very active, intelligent man; has got twelve children, nine of whom live with him, who are very healthy and hardy. He is perhaps as successful a hunter as there is in this State, and many of the wild beasts of the woods fall a prety to his skill, such as bears, panthers, elk, and deer. It is said and be-lieved he killed eleven elk one morning before break-fast. One of his sons, in the ninth year of his age, killed six elk and five deer; is now in the fourteenth year of his age, has killed several bears this season. Two of his daughters killed three elk in one day; and we have this evening feasted on the product of their skill. Said Mills told me that he and one other man were out about a week and they killed in that time above seventy deer. 16th. Before we left Mills's, breakfasted on coffee, of which we had plenty, wheat bread and butter, venison, both of the elk and common deer, eels, trout, then rode about twenty-five miles up Pine Creek, and crossed it thirty-eight times before we came to the head, which is about eighty miles from where it empties into the West Branch. Almost all the way up it, good land in general, heavy loaded with timber, some of the way very lofty white pine. After we left the head of said creek, rode seven miles through very rich land and timber rather exceeding that on Pine Creek, to a spring, being one of the head-springs of the Alleghany River, where we struck up a fire, pitched a tent, and lodged. 17th. Rode twenty-three miles to a new settlement on Osweo being one of the main branches of the aforesaid river, where there are several neat houses built, which is intended for a town called Cerestown or Francis King's settlement. The most of the said twenty-three miles is excellent land, but so heavy loaded with timber of divers sorts, such as hemlock, white pine, sugar maple, cherry, and some bass or lynn, that it will be very expensive clearing. It is astonishing to see the height of the white pine, and other timber in proportion. Although to such as have never seen such timber it may seem a little romantic, I have seen, (particularly when we came near Francis King's), great numbers of trees which we all believe to be thirteen or fourteen perches high; and John Bell, a Friend of veracity, told us he measured one which was 250 feet long when it fell down, which is fifteen perches and ten feet. Said Bell and his wife are Friends that came from the north of England, and are about settling here; [they have] a good deal of very good corn; they seem to be in good spirits, were truly glad to see us, his wife remarkably so, insomuch that she was ready to weep with joy; is a remarkably cleanly woman and was very happy this afternoon in entertaining us with a good cup of tea sweetened with loaf sugar and good will, that I though the joy and happiness we were instrumental in communicating to this woman was almost worth our journey to these parts. Here we also met with my old friend, Halftown, who is up here in a canoe with three of his children, in order to get some necessary tools, etc.; was just going to set off about fifty miles down the river to his home. He was very much rejoiced to see us and agreed to stay until to-morrow to navigate us down the river to Gene-singuhta. 18th. First of the week. Stayed at Cerestown till after dinner. Francis King is a plain, sober-looking