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- Excerpt from J. D. Driesdback, "Addenda to the Paper Furnised by the Writer on June 28th, 1877", Alabama Historical Reporter, Vol. 2, No. 3 (Feb. 1884):
"Among the names of prominent white men who mingled their blood with that of the Red man, is the name of Wm. Moniac (a Hollander) who came with a remnant of Natchez Indians to the Creek nation in 1755. He took a Tuskegee woman, Polly Colbert, for his wife, who was the mother of Sam Moniac, who married Weatherford's sister. He and Sam Moniac were men of fine sense and indomitable courage, strict integrity and enterprise, had considerable influence over the Indians, went with Gen. McGillivray to New York to see Washington, was presented by Washington with a medal which was buried with him at Pass Christian in 1837. He was the father of Maj. David Moniac, who was killed in the Florida war in 1836, and of whom Gen. Jessup said, that he was as brave and gallant a man as ever drew a sword or faced an enemy. He (David Moniac) was a nephew of Weatherford and David Tate, and a graduate of West Point. His descendants are highly respected citizens of Ala. and Miss. His wife was a cousin of Oceola the Florida Chief, who commanded the Florida Indians when Maj. Moniac was killed. Moniac had resigned his commission in the U.S.A. many years before the Florida war of 1830, and entered the army as a private in a company from Claiborne, Ala., but soon rose to the rank of Major by Brevet, and was in command of 600 Creeks and Choctaws when he was killed. His mother was Weatherford's sister, which would lead to the conclusion that Weatherford sprang from heroic stock, and his uncle, Gen. McGillivray was said by Judge John A. Campbell to be a regular descendant of a noble Scotch family of a heroic clan in Scotland.
I have been solicited to give a more extended account of the father of the Creek warrior Weatherford, and the family of the chief, than I did in a paper of June 28th, 1877. I will here attempt to do so. About the year 1750, two Englishmen by the name of Charles and John Weatherford, came to Georgia, from England. Charles, in 1770, or a short time thereafter, came to the Creek nation and cast his lot with the Creek Indians. He married the widow of Col. John Tate. She was the daughter of Laughlin McGillivray, and mother of David Tate. The fruits of this marriage was six children, named as follows : Elizabeth, William, John, Polly, Major and Rosanna. Major and Polly died in early life. John lived and died in Monroe county. He built the first house in the town of Claiborne, and died in 1831, in Monroe Co., Ala. Elizabeth married Samuel Moniac, who was the son of William Moniac, mentioned above. There were three children by this marriage, named as follows: David, Alexander, and Levita. David was the Major Moniac who was killed in the Florida war in 1836. The Grand-mother of Major David Moniac was the daughter of the Creek Chief William Colbert, from whom the Colbert Shoals, on the Tennessee river, took its name. Charles Weatherford was a government contractor in 1799 for the U. S. Government to furnish horses, blankets, etc., for the American Troops then in Geo. and Ala. Territory. I have seen his license for that purpose signed, by President Adams. The warrior William Weatherford's first wife was Polly Moniac, daughter of William Moniac and Polly Colbert; by this marriage Weatherford had three children, named Charles, William, and Polly. After Polly's death he married his wife's cousin, named Sefoth-Kaney, daughter of John Moniac, said to be the most beautiful forest maiden of the tribe, noted for her musical voice, and powers of song ; could charm the stern red warrior, and make him forget for the moment the war-path and the chase, by the cadence of her voice; whilst the wild bird stopped in its flight to drink in the sweet refrain. He had by this marriage but one child, a son, named William, his mother, Sofoth-Kaney, dying a few days after his birth, which event, it is said, cast a dark shadow athwart the path of the chief for all time to come. The boy grew to manhood, and, after the death of his father, departed from the home of his youth, and went beyond the ''Father of Waters," and has never been heard of since. After the death of Sofoth-Kaney, Weatherford married Mary Stiggings, by whom he had five children?Alexander, Washington, Major, John, and Levitia. The eldest son, Alexander, is the only one of the five children by this marriage now living; he is now in Texas, went there since the war. Major was killed; John died in boyhood; Levitia grew to womanhood, and married Dr. Howell, a highly respected citizen of Wilcox county, in this state. The doctor and his wife are both dead, leaving four children, who are in Texas. Weatherford's eldest son by his first wife (Polly Moniac) is still living at his father's former homestead, in Monroe Co., Ala. He is 79 years old and still possesses a great deal of vigor for one of his advanced age. He has ever been respected for his strict integrity, generous nature, and manly character. A worthy son of a noble sire.
From a conversation I had, a few years since, with the late Hon. Dr. Weatherford, of Colbert county, Ala., I was led to the conclusion that, Dr. Weatherford's grand-father was the brother of Charles Weatherford, the father of the warrior. He said his grand-father often spoke of having a brother who left him in Georgia and lived and died among the Creek Indians; and there is a very striking resemblance between Dr. Weatherford and John Weatherford, of Monroe Co., who is a nephew of the chief Weatherford.
In closing the sketch of Weatherford, I will here relate an incident which occurred a short time before his death, which is illustrative of the poetic superstition of the untutored savage: A short time before the death of Weatherford, he was one of a party of hunters who were engaged in a deer and bear hunt on Lovet's Creek, in Monroe county, Ala. Whilst on this hunt a white deer was killed, which seemed to make a marked impression on Weatherford, who withdrew from the hunt and went home, remarking that some one of the party engaged in the hunt would soon be called to the hunting ground of the spirit land; that the white deer was a 'token.' And the next day he was taken suddenly ill. and died three days thereafter, and during his illness imagined that Sofoth-Kaney (his former wife) was standing by his bed waiting for him to go with her to the hunting grounds of the spirit land. If Weatherford had a weakness, or 'squaws heart, in matters of this kind, it should be overlooked, as his civilized and educated pale-faced brother of the present enlightened period, claims that he can with raps, and ,'mighty conjurations,' call up the spirits of the dead at will.
In regard to a portion of the Indians being devided as hostiles and friendly Indians, during the war of 1812, I will remark that Weatherford always charged that the 'Big Warrior' used his influence to get as many Indians as he could to espouse the cause of the British and then deserted them, and became a 'friendly Indian,' through cowardice, and if he ever crossed his path, he would meet a traitor's death. Weatherford and Big Warrior never met after the war. One of the most implacable and bitter haters of white men was Davy Kurnells, who was the father of the great speaker of the Creek nation, Hopothlebolo. He (Kurnells) committed depredations for many years after the war of the Revolution in violation of treaties and promises of peace and friendship, and appeared to be implacable as fate in his hate for the Pale-face, and even one of his own race was not spared when he stood in his way of reeking vengence upon the Americans. But this man of blood met a murderer's fate. During the Agency of Col. Seagrove, Kurnells agreed to be at peace with the white man, and started to Cole Rain to see Seagrove about terms, etc. Seagrove inadvertently mentioned to some of the frontier men about the Agency that Kurnells was on his way to pay him a visit. A man by the name of Harrison, with others who had suffered by Kurnell's treachery, watched by the path, and shot him, bearing a white flag. Kurnells was known by the Indians as the Dog Warrior, or Efaw Tusfanugga. Alex. McGillivray's second wife was sister to Kurnells.
The destruction of the beautiful and picturesque little French village in the fork of the Coosa and Tallapoosa rivers, was caused by McQueen, who was living in the nation during the French or Braddock war. McQueen was the friend of the French and used his influence to get as many Indians as possible to go and aid the French; but after the French broke up the settlement of the Natchez Indians at Natchez, McQueen became their enemy, and caused the destruction of the French settlements on the Alabama river and in the fork of the Coosa and Tallapoosa. And from that period, French domination in Alabama and Mississippi Territories, and the entire South-west, rapidly declined.
I may in some future paper give some account of other prominent actors who filled a large place in the public eye during the Territorial period of Alabama and Mississippi, and throw some light on the true cause of the Indian depredations; or, in other words, how the war commenced, or why it was that some of the Indians were hostiles, whilst others were friendly, etc., and give some account of the death of one man, who in wisdom and the management of Indians, aside from Gen. Alex. McGillivray, was without a peer in the nation. I allude to Billy, or Gen. MacIntosh, who was killed by the order of the celebrated chief Menocaway, who in after years said, that he would be willing to lay down his life if it would bring back to life Billy MacIntosh.
Respectfully,
J. D. Driesback.
Baldwin Co., Ala.
July 9th, 1883.
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