Guide to the Jesse Griffin Letter MSS.0597
Griffin, Jesse
- Publication:
University Libraries Division of Special Collections, The University of Alabama
Box 870266
2002
Tuscaloosa, Alabama, 35487-0266
205.348.0500
archives@ua.edu
- Creation:
This finding aid was produced using the Archivists' Toolkit 2013-04-24T09:11-0500
- Language Usage:
English
- Description Rules:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Jesse Griffin letter
- Unit ID:
MSS.0597
- Repository:
University Libraries Division of Special Collections, The University of Alabama
- Quantity:
0.05 Linear feet
- Dates:
1813 September 5
- Abstract:
A letter dated 5 September 1813, from St. Stephens, Alabama, to his parents, describing the Creek attack on Fort Mims during the Creek War of 1813-1814.
- creator
Griffin, Jessie
Biographical/Historical note
Jessie Griffin was a settler living near Fort Mims in south Alabama during the Creek War. He fled the area and survived the Creek attack on Fort Mims, which took place on August 30, 1813.
Scope and Contents note
The collection contains a letter dated 5 September 1813, from St. Stephens, Alabama, to his parents in which Griffin states that he has traveled fifty miles in flight from Indians, who killed more than 400 people in five days. On 30 August 1813, Creek Indians under the leadership of William Weatherford, also known as Red Eagle, attacked white settlers at Fort Mims near the convergence of the Alabama and Tombigbee Rivers, killing approximately 500 people. Although Griffin and his family survived, they lost their crops, livestock, and most of their household goods. This attack was part of the Creek Indian War that lasted from 1813-1814 when Creek Indians attacked white settlers who were moving into Creek lands. The Creek War ended on 27 March 1814, when General Andrew Jackson defeated Red Eagle and his warriors at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend in Alabama.
- Processing Information:
Processed by
Donnelly Lancaster, 2002; updated by Martha Bace, 2013
- Acquisition Information:
Provenance
Gift of Sue Spencer
- Preferred Citation:
Preferred Citation note
Jesse Griffin letter, University Libraries Division of Special Collections, The University of Alabama
- Access Restrictions:
Conditions Governing Access note
None
- Usage Restrictions:
Conditions Governing Use note
None
Source(s)
Alabama (localbroad)
Alabama--History--To 1819 (lcsh)
Community and Place (localbroad)
Creek Indian War (localbroad)
Creek War, 1813-1814 (lcsh)
Creek War, 1813-1814--Personal narratives (lcsh)
Daily Life and Family (localbroad)
Farming and Agriculture (localbroad)
Fort Saint Stephens (Ala.) (lcsh)
Letters (correspondence) (aat)
Native Americans (localbroad)
War and Military (localbroad)
Letter Box 1756 http://purl.lib.ua.edu/497
Letter from Jesse Griffin to his parents, September 5, 1813 http://purl.lib.ua.edu/497