I just finished reading a neat book called ' Chronicles Of Border Warfare' by Alexander S. Withers. It was written in 1831.
It deals mainly with the settlement and indian wars in western and north western Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky areas (most of which in the book happened in present day West Virginia) from the 1740s to 1800 (roughly).
Now in this book it relates to how whites (mostly) were attacked by French, indian, and ,later during the Revolutionary War, British assailants during their attempt to settle west of the Blue Ridge Mountains and east of the Ohio River.
How does this relate to gun rights?
It struck me as to how many folks owned and used guns in the book. Virtually every settler.
It also struck me as to who made up the 'militia' so often called upon to man forts, ride out to relieve and help a fellow besieged station or to raid indian towns in the Ohio Country alongside regular troops.
Fellow settlers with a gun. Most often than not when one settlement, family, farm, station, block house, town, fort, breast works, village or trading outpost was attacked by indians, a person or persons were dispatched to the surrounding areas with the objective of rallying fellow settlers and colonials (and in some cases friendly indians) to come to their defense.
They fully expected their neighbors to be armed and coming to their aid to shoot and fight. Everyone generally expected that of everyone else and would return the same.
So and So's wife was taken prisoner by the indians on a raid of his farm. So he runs and gets his neighbors up the valley. Soon six armed men are tracking out to see if they cannot pursue and catch the party of invaders.
It was quite refreshing to see that folks were expected to have personal arms and were expected to use them either in a personal or militia capacity.
When the Federal or Virginia Govts wanted forts manned with regular troops they did so but they largely expected the locals to rise to their own defense. In some cases they even sent them extra ammunition, powder, and cannons.
It was pretty clear to me the govt allowed and expected the individual to be armed.
It deals mainly with the settlement and indian wars in western and north western Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky areas (most of which in the book happened in present day West Virginia) from the 1740s to 1800 (roughly).
Now in this book it relates to how whites (mostly) were attacked by French, indian, and ,later during the Revolutionary War, British assailants during their attempt to settle west of the Blue Ridge Mountains and east of the Ohio River.
How does this relate to gun rights?
It struck me as to how many folks owned and used guns in the book. Virtually every settler.
It also struck me as to who made up the 'militia' so often called upon to man forts, ride out to relieve and help a fellow besieged station or to raid indian towns in the Ohio Country alongside regular troops.
Fellow settlers with a gun. Most often than not when one settlement, family, farm, station, block house, town, fort, breast works, village or trading outpost was attacked by indians, a person or persons were dispatched to the surrounding areas with the objective of rallying fellow settlers and colonials (and in some cases friendly indians) to come to their defense.
They fully expected their neighbors to be armed and coming to their aid to shoot and fight. Everyone generally expected that of everyone else and would return the same.
So and So's wife was taken prisoner by the indians on a raid of his farm. So he runs and gets his neighbors up the valley. Soon six armed men are tracking out to see if they cannot pursue and catch the party of invaders.
It was quite refreshing to see that folks were expected to have personal arms and were expected to use them either in a personal or militia capacity.
When the Federal or Virginia Govts wanted forts manned with regular troops they did so but they largely expected the locals to rise to their own defense. In some cases they even sent them extra ammunition, powder, and cannons.
It was pretty clear to me the govt allowed and expected the individual to be armed.
