Historical Timeline
1700-1820
1700-1819
Early pioneer settlers ventured west and after 1783 began to claim land as payment for their service during the American Revolution.
1763
The French and Indian War ended.
Conference between the French and Indian leaders around a ceremonial fire, by Vernier.
1776
Colonel Richard Callaway moved to Kentucky. Calloway County would become his namesake.
April 19, 1780
Virginia Governor Thomas Jefferson sent General George Rogers Clark to construct Fort Jefferson (Ballard County today); Clarks River became his namesake.
Thomas Jefferson (left) by Charles Wilson Peale (1791) and George Rogers Clark, painting by James B. Longacre.
September 3, 1783
Many veterans of the French and Indian War received land grants in the "West."
June 1, 1792
Kentucky entered the federal Union as the 15th state and the first west of the Appalachians.
December 16, 1811 - February 7, 1812
The New Madrid earthquake, the greatest recorded in North America, was centered less than 80 miles away along the New Madrid Fault. The earthquake caused Reelfoot Lake to form when some streams changed courses.
Drawing of New Madrid - Erdbeben
June 12, 1812
The United States declared War on Great Britain.
War of 1812 Reenactment - firing on the Americans.
1812
Returning to Calloway after the War of 1812, Charles and Howard Brandon established a mill on Blood River.
Brandon's Mill in Calloway County (1940) - photo by Adath Canon.
October 19, 1818
More than seven million acres bordering the Tennessee, Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, were sold by the Chickasaw Nation, transferring Kentucky and Tennessee to the U.S. Because the deal was brokered by Andrew Jackson and Isaac Shelby, the land became known as the Jackson Purchase.
1859 Colton's Map of Jackson Purchase & West Tennessee.
1818
David Jones, James Stewart and Banister Wade explored the Purchase area and established the first permanent settlement, Wadesboro, which served as the county seat from 1822 – 1842. They were joined by Samuel Watson who settled on the West Fork of Clarks River south of Backusburg.
1826 Wadesboro shown on historic map. Courtesy KY Historical Society.
1818-1819
The first widespread financial crisis hit the United States and caused locals to use promissory notes, referred to as "shin plasters" in the post-panic season.
