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Native · 1769

Capt. Will & the hunting ground

Shawnee held the larger northern and central Kentucky hunting grounds; Cherokee worked closer to Cumberland Gap.

AI illustration of Captain Will Emery, Shawnee-aligned leader who met Daniel Boone in 1769
Captain Will Emery AI illustration · Kentucky History Drive; no known likeness exists

When long hunters stacked pelts for eastern markets, Native parties treated them as poachers. Around late 1769 a Shawnee band with Captain Will Emery (Cherokee-tied, often with Shawnee) took Boone and John Stewart's six-month haul and warned them home: stay out, or the wasps and yellowjackets would sting.

Not blank wilderness. A contested commons.

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Published . Last revised .

Chicago

Snowden, Shannon. "Capt. Will & the hunting ground." Kentucky History Drive. Published September 12, 2026. Last revised September 15, 2026. https://kyhistorydrive.com/stories/capt-will-the-hunting-ground/.

MLA

Snowden, Shannon. "Capt. Will & the hunting ground." Kentucky History Drive, published 12 Sept. 2026, last revised 15 Sept. 2026, https://kyhistorydrive.com/stories/capt-will-the-hunting-ground/.

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