DAR To Honor Revolutionary War Captain Alexander Kelly

  • Thursday, May 5, 2016

Descendants of one of Marion County’s earliest pioneers and members of the Daughters of the American Revolution from across the state of Tennessee will gather at Pine Grove Cemetery in Jasper on Saturday afternoon, May 21, for a grave marking ceremony to honor Alexander Kelly, a captain in the Virginia Militia during the American Revolution. 

Mr. Kelly, whose family became residents of the Sequatchie Valley in the earliest days of its settlement as part of the state of Tennessee, was one of the commissioners who acquired property from Betsy Pack that became the town of Jasper, and determined that it would be the county seat town of the newly formed Marion County. Prior to his arrival in the newly opened settlement area of present-day Marion County, Mr. Kelly had been an active participant in the establishment of settlements in several areas of east Tennessee. 

Born about 1755 in County Armagh, Ireland, Mr. Kelly was brought to the American colonies as a young child. By the time of the Declaration of Independence, he was living in the Greenbrier area of Virginia, which is now a part of West Virginia, in the Allegheny Mountains, a scenic area of the United States whose natural setting might be called to mind when one views the Sequatchie Valley. Mr. Kelly enlisted in the Revolutionary forces on July 9, 1776, only five days after the Declaration of Independence. 

An article in the University of Tennessee’s UT Alumnus (Winter, 1975), entitled Alexander Kelly: Frontier Lawmaker, Indian Fighter, recounts that Mr. Kelly’s son, John Kelly was born in Greenbrier County, Va. on June 2, 1779, but that some time between 1779 and 1783, Mr. Kelly “took his family southward into Tennessee country. Old records reveal that Mr. Kelly was appointed as assessor in Greene County, N.C. (Tennessee) in April, 1783; and two years later he was named a major of Greene County militia in the short-lived State of Franklin.” 

Mr. Kelly was married to Nancy Robinson, by whom he had at least six children, all of whom became pioneer settlers of the Sequatchie Valley. John Kelly, the eldest son, married Nancy Mayo, and became the first clerk of Marion County when the new county was formed in 1817. He also later owned and operated Kelly’s Ferry on the Tennessee River near the county line between Hamilton and Marion Counties. Captain Kelly’s son, Alexander Kelly, Jr., married Sally Prigmore on Feb. 17, 1817, in Roane County, Tenn., and they were also early Marion County settlers and farmers. William Kelly married Ruth Prigmore (daughter of Joseph and Kizziah Prigmore) in Nov., 1809, in Roane County, Tenn., and they also became early residents of Marion County, with many of their descendants also settling in Bledsoe County and Sequatchie County. Viny Kelly married Adam Lamb in 1815, and they became residents of the part of Bledsoe County which intersects with present-day Sequatchie County. Margaret Kelly, known as Peggy, married Ephraim Prigmore (son of Joseph and Kizziah Moore Prigmore) on Nov. 9, 1809, in Roane County, Tenn., and they became pioneer residents of the part of Marion County near the present-day Prentice Cooper State Forest, where they farmed and began a grist mill operation later owned by their Ketner descendants and still known today as Ketner’s Mill. Annie Kelly married Richard Stone, and they lived in Marion County. 

The following accounts are taken from the article about Alexander Kelly in the UT Alumnus:  “By 1792, Kelly had moved his family to Knox County, where he became a farmer and miller. He was appointed a colonel of Knox County militia, and in 1793, he took part in the expedition against the Indians who had attacked outlying stations and threatened the territorial capitol of Knoxville. 

“Under John Sevier, the military pursued the Indians into Georgia and defeated them at the forks of the Coosa and Hightower Rivers, near the present site of Rome, Georgia.  

“In that battle, Colonel Kelly led a maneuver that settled the issue in the militia’s favor. Finding the river ford obstructed by Indians entrenched on the opposite shore, Sevier sent Kelly’s party downstream to make a crossing. Kelly and some of his men swam the river, thus getting the attention of the Indians who ‘left their entrenchments and ran down the river to oppose their passage.’ The main force of militia quickly forded the river and routed the Indians. 

“When the territorial legislators were elected in 1793, Alexander Kelly was chosen a representative from Knox County.  

“In 1795 Knox County was divided and Blount County was formed. Kelly was one of seven Commissioners named to find a site for the county seat and to erect county buildings. The site of Maryville was chosen, and the town was named in honor of Governor William Blount’s wife, Mary Grainger Blount. 

“Kelly moved his residence to Blount County about that time, settling in the vicinity of present-day Louisville and building a mill on Lackey’s Creek. 

“Appointed commandant of the county militia, Kelly lost no time in fulfilling his responsibility to protect the settlers of Blount County. 

“Early in 1795 Indians came out of their mountain towns and raided isolated homes in the new county. Kelly raised about fifty men and marched across Chilhowee Mountain to Tallassee Old Town. Upon reaching the river and seeing smoke rising from the opposite shore, he sent a detachment across the stream to attack from the rear – a maneuver employed so effectively at Hightower. The surprised Indians were routed from the river bluffs, with eight being killed. Kelly’s company suffered no injuries.  

“The swift action brought peace to the new county.” 

When the first Legislature of Tennessee met on March 28, 1796, 11 counties were represented. Mr. Kelly was the senator from Blount County, serving in that role in the first and second General Assemblies. He was one of the two members appointed to “wait on his Excellency John Sevier” at his inauguration as governor of Tennessee. According to the Congressional ordinance, for the United States South of the Ohio River the Territorial Legislature was to consist of the governor, Legislative Council, and the House of Representatives. 

The General Assembly met at Knoxville Aug. 25, 1794. William Blount was the governor. The Legislative Council was composed of Griffith Rutherford, John Sevier, James Winchester, Stokley Donelson, and Parmenas Taylor. The Honorable Griffith Rutherford was unanimously elected president; George Roulstone, clerk; and Christopher Shoat, doorkeeper. The House of Representatives was composed of David Wilson, James White, James Ford, William Cocke, Joseph Harden, George Doherty, Samuel Wear, John Baird, and Alexander Kelly. 

According to the UT Alumnus article:  “Sometimes a ‘conflict of interest’ arose, and Alexander Kelly had to choose between sitting in the legislative chamber and riding against marauding Indians. In those rare instances, military duty took precedence. 

“For example, while the territorial legislature of which he was a member was meeting at Knoxville on Aug. 28, 1794, ‘on motion of Mr. Kelly, seconded by Mr. Hardin, ordered that Mr. Kelly and Mr. Beard have leave of absence to go on a scout against the Indians.’  

“A threatened incursion of hostile Cherokees made it necessary for the two militia officers to put aside their legislative duties for days of hard riding through the neighboring hills and valleys.
“A week later, ‘Mr. Kelly returned and took his seat’ in the legislative hall – just in time to vote on the resolution to create Blount College.” 

Mr. Kelly was a charter trustee of Blount College, which was the forerunner to the University of Tennessee, thus making Mr. Kelly, in the words of the UT Alumnus article, “a champion of education in the infant State of Tennessee.” 

Mr. Kelly’s experience in the settlement of counties in east Tennessee made him well-suited to assist other pioneer settlers in the establishment of Marion County when it was formed. After his participation in locating and naming Jasper as the county seat town, and determining where the courthouse would be located, he was apparently satisfied to have his son, John Kelly, and other descendants take on the duties of civic office. Others of his children and grandchildren became prominent farmers, mill operators, merchants, landowners, and political figures in the parts of the Sequatchie Valley where they lived. Most of them also became active participants and leaders in their churches, particularly the Cumberland Presbyterian churches in the Sequatchie Valley. Although Mr. Kelly’s descendants have spread throughout the United States and other parts of the world, many of them still live in the Sequatchie Valley. 

Some time after settling in Marion County, Mr. Kelly drowned in the Sequatchie River, and his remains were apparently lost. Although Mr. Kelly's descendants are buried in family burial grounds and other cemeteries throughout the Sequatchie Valley, Mr. Kelly, Revolutionary War captain and leader of early Tennessee, has had no monument to mark his life until the present day.  

Recently, one of Mr. Kelly descendant, Edwin Zachariah Kelly, Jr., a retired attorney and lifelong resident of Jasper, instituted a project for Kelly descendants to place a monument at Pine Grove Cemetery, where many Kelly descendants are buried, to honor the life of Mr. Kelly. The monument will be inscribed with information about Mr. Kelly’s life in the history of Tennessee. The National Society, Daughters of the American Revolution, have authorized the Judge David Campbell Chapter of that organization to place a DAR marker at Pine Grove to honor Mr. Kelly’s service as a captain in America’s Revolutionary War. 

The ceremony to dedicate the markers and to honor the life of Mr. Kelly will take place on Saturday, May 21, at 3 p.m., Central time, at Pine Grove Cemetery in Jasper, at the intersection of Valley View Highway and Mel Dixon Lane. The Sequatchie River, where Mr. Kelly died, runs through Marion County near that place. All interested people are cordially invited to attend.


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