ROBERTSON A BRAVE LEADER
Such was the life of these early woodsmen and their families, and to this
life Robertson and those who went out with him soon became accustomed. On
their arrival at the Watauga River the newcomers mingled readily with the
Virginians already on the ground.
Robertson soon became one of the leading men. His cabin of logs stood on
an island in the river, and is said to have been the largest in the
settlement. It had a log veranda in front, several rooms, a loft, and best
of all, a huge fireplace made of sticks and stones laid in clay, in which
a pile of blazing logs roared on cold days, making it a centre of good
cheer as well as of heat. To us it would have been a most inviting spot
for a summer holiday.
Robertson was very prosperous and successful at Watauga; but in 1799,
after ten years of leadership at this settlement, a restless craving for
change and adventure stole over him, and he went forth once more into the
wilderness to seek a new home still deeper in the forest.
The place he chose was the beautiful country lying along the great bend of
the Cumberland River, where Nashville now stands. Many bold settlers were
ready and even eager to join Robertson in the new venture, for he was a
born leader.
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