News Outlook
August 05, 2021 - 7
OPINIONS
The opinion page does not reflect the views of the KyNewsGroup.
Heaven Is
A Lot Like
Kentucky
By Charles Mattox
"Issue the order sir; and will
storm Hel . ”
General, Anthony Wayne, in
response to General George
Washington’s order to take
Stoney Pointe during the Revo
lutionary War.
A note from a reading patron:
Wayne Eberly, of Harrisonburg
Virginia, was received recently
with much enjoyment from
yourstruIY. .
Mr. Eberly told me of his
farm, which had a 225-year-old
stone house on it which was
built by Daniel Boone associate
and cousin, Henry Miller. Henry
Miller and Daniel Boone had
many adventures together in-
cluding ‘long hunts’ and I knew
of a Kentucky group of Millers
that I believe are a direct con-
nection to Henry Miller.
Anyway, Thank You Mr. Eb-
erly, for your thoughtful and en—
couraging note.
This one is for you, sir.
I’m fascinated with what Nich-
COMPLEXITY OF THE DAY? ‘
olas County native, and Confed-
erate Civil War veteran, Lt Lot
Dudley Young, used to call sim-
ply, “the vicissitudes of war.”
Young was considered a wise
man and his vocabulary was ex-
pansive. The word vicissitude
means, ‘a change in circum-
stance, typically for the worse,
and a change which brings
discomfort, heartache and dif-
ficulty.
Young understood how luck
and chance; be it good or bad,
was often the dominant factor in
survival, and how simple blind
good luck often trumped skill,
terrain, weaponry and even ex-
perience. The opposite is con-
versely true in that bad luck can
be deadly and unstoppable in
certain circumstances.
Young was one of the lucky
few surviving Confederate Infan-
try Officers of the Kentucky Or-
phan Brigade, the 1st Kentucky
Infantry Brigade of the Con—
federate States of America, and
was recognized with no small
amount of adulation following
the war, for his storytelling and
oratory skills as well as his philo
sophical and wise counsel to his
neighbors near and far.
If you visit Lt. Young’s grave
in the Carlisle Cemetery, as I
have often done, You’ll find it
near the outside corner of row
H, and you later travel just a
few miles down the road toward
Millersburg, you’ll come upon
Miller’s Station Road. It’s only
a ridge or two over from where
Lt.‘ Young rests eternally. The
road received its name due to its
close proximity to two forts, or
stations, as they were most-apt
to be called, built around 1780 by
two Miller brothers: Major John
Miller, who built a fort one mile
northeast of Millersburg (Mill-
ersburg is named for him), and
his brother William, who built a
fort one mile farther northeast
I believe these two men were
cousins or relations to Henry
Miller, mentioned above.
In 1781 a fort named Well’s
Station, located southwest of
the Miller forts and 30 miles
east of Iouisville, was attacked
with founding militia leader Cap-
tain Wells being killed and his
son William, (a cousin to one
of Simon Kenton’s scouts also
named William Wells), taken
prisoner:
Two young relations of Major
John Miller. Henry Miller and
Christopher Miller, were taken
prisoner from Kentucky at this
same time.
Henry Miller and Christopher
were adopted into the Shawnee
Nation; who were extremely
friendly to the Miami River clans
(Maumee or Miami Tribes).
Following the Blackberry
Campaign of 1791 and General
Arthur St. Claire’s disastrous
defeat a year later, William Wells
and Henry Miller left their adop
five Native American families
and joined the Kentucky forces
that later served in 1793-1795
with General Anthony Wayne.
Christopher Miller, who had
been separated from his older
brother, Henry, several years
before had not been heard of in
years and was presumed dead.
William Wells and Henry
Miller joined Robert McClel-
land as General Wayne’s favorite
spies. 1
Simon Kenton, Michael Cas-
sidy, Colonel William Sudduth
and other. men who lived in
northeastern Kentucky, were
also among Wayne’s taverite
spies and they all worked closely
together to provide accurate in-
formation to General Wayne.
Wells deposed years later
that it was Michael Cassidy who
taught him the art of scalping.
In mid summer of 1794 Gen-
eral Wayne called upon Captain
.z r 5 ,5, '; ffifml'ffl a,
Family Fun Day
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Saturday, August 7, 2021-
Trail Ride10:00 am at Clay Wildlife
Management Area; Carlisle, KY. Site to be
determined. Please follow signs.
Registration begins 8:00 am
$10.00 per rider .
William Wells to take Henry
Miller and Robert McClelland
out into the forest and bring him
a Native American prisoner for
the purpose of interrogation.
Within a week‘s travel, and
.everal miles from the Army
encampment, Wells, Miller and
McClelland, who was the fleet-
est soul in Wayne’s Army, hap-
pened upon a camp occupied by
three Native American warriors.
Captain Wells suggested that he
and Miller shoot two of the war-
riors and McClelland could, ‘run
down” the third.
Two shots fired simultane-
ously and the warrior on the left
crumbled to the ground, as did
the one on the right. The war-
rior in the middle bolted into the
woods so quickly it caught them
all off guard, but soon Robert
McClelland was chasing him
through the woods as Miller
and Wells reloaded and then fol-
lowed.
For over a mile the warrior
ran, with McClelland growing
closer. Abruptly the warrior
came to a steep bluff overlook-
ing the Miami River and he
never broke stride, but jumped
far into the air and down several
dozen feet before landing in a
soft mud bank that ran along the
side of the river. McClelland was
soon jumping down on top of
him and there the two remained
in shoulder deep mud when
Wells and Miller arrived.
With no small effort, Mc-
Clelland and the prisoner were
hauled from the nrire. Captain
Wells thought it prudent to clean
McClelland and the prisoner be-
fore beginning the journey back
to General Wayne’s camp.
After the warrior was cleaned
it came as no small shock to see
he was a white renegade who
spoke almost no English.
In his native tongue, Henry
Miller asked the prisoner if he
knew of the one called ‘The
Wild Carrot” and introduced
Captain Wells. The warrior
nodded his understanding and
speaking with an Algonquian
dialect asked the frontiersmen if
they knew Henry Miller.
“Yes” Henry Miller replied,
somewhat stunned at the ques-
tion.
“We were captured together,”
The warrior explained. “I am his
brother Christopher.”
Henry Miller was shocked
and simply stood there in disbe
lief for several long moments be-
fore he began to recognize facial
features of his long-lost brother.
The trip back to General
Wayne’s camp was a merry one.
The complexity of the Situation
was overwhelming for all of
them. Christopher Miller was a
man in the middle, as to a great
degree was Henry Miller and
William Wells. Wayne greeted
the prisoner cordially and soon
Christopher Miller was one of
Wayne’s. scouts serving on a
special mission.
In early August he was sent
alone to the village of Miami
Sagamore, or Sachem: Chief,
Mih-sih-ldna—ahk—wa, or ‘Chief
Little Turtle’ as the whites called
him, to discuss peace terms be-
tween the northern tribes and
Wayne’s Army.
. little Turtle and Shawnee
War Chief, Wayapiersenwah
or "The Whirlpool," known as
Blue Jacket by Kentucky fron-
tiersmen, had recently
lated US forces under Generals
Josiah Harmer and Arthur St
Clair. The defeat of St. Clair was
the worst lost ever sustained by
US Arnry forces against Native
Americans, with over 600 US sol-
diers killed and several hundred
militia soldiers killed.
Christopher Miller knew
many of the Native Americans
on a very personal leVel. He ex-
plained this and his impending
concerns with Captain William
Wells.
“I know Chief little Turtle,”
he told Wells. “1 have been
treated warmly and graciously
by him on many occasions and
have been a frequent guest in
his lodge. How can I face him?”
he asked.
William Wells exhaled softly,
smiled and hugged Christopher
Miller closely, understanding all
too well his strange predicament
as a man caught between two
distinct, enemy cultures.
“Do you know Chief little
'l‘urtle’s sister?” Wells asked
Miller. “Do you know the one
called The Sweet Breeze?”
“Yes,” Christopher Miller re-
sponded.
“Good,” William Wells said
as he turned and walked away.
‘Tell her that her husband, Wil-
liam Wells, The Wild Carrot,
misses her so very dearly.”
Such was the complexity of
the day between many families
on both sides of theconflict
They hoped peace would be
struck, but it wasn’t, and on Au-
gust 20, 1794, the Battle of the
Fallen Timbers was fought.
Perhaps, dear reader, we
will join the Miller brothers,
the Wild Carrot, also known as
William Wells, his wife-Sweet
Breeze and Chief little Turtle,
in future columns, if the Good
Lord is
Loving and Learning
Owingsvt I
Daycare
le Baptisc Church ~
92 COYIe Street
606-336-4230
INSPECTION PERIOD
FOR THE PROPERTY TAX ASSESSMENT ROLL
The Bath County real property tax roll will be opened for inspection from
August 9, through August 23, 2021. Under the
supervision of the property valuation administrator (PVA) or one of the
deputies, any person may inspect the tax roll.
Bring Lawn Chairs, Lunch 12:00 Noon &
Auction 2:00 pm
ALL DONATIONS ARE ACCEPTED FOR
PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPED CHILDREN
DONATIONS ACCEPTED AT CARING
HEARTS OF NICHOLAS COUNTY, INC
PO BOX 334, CARLISLE, KY 40311
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Mike Berry: 859-473-0161
Gary Sibert: 859-289-2949
Shari Workman: 606-842-0022
RAIN DATE August 14th, 2021
SIGNS WILL BE POSTED
NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ACCIDENTS
This is the January 1, 2021, assessment on which state, county, and school
taxes for 2021 will be due on or about November 1,
202 l .
The tax roll is in the office of the property valuation administrator in
the county courthouso and may be inspected between the
hours of 8:30 and 4:00 Monday thru Friday and 9:00-11:00 on Saturdays.
Hours for Tuesday, August 10 8t 17 will be until 7:00
pm.
Any taxpayer desiring to appeal an assessment on real property made by the
PVA must first request a conference with the PVA
or a designated deputy. The conference may be held prior to or during the
inspection period. Due to the ongoing COVID-19
pandemic state of emergency and the continuing need to maintain social
distancing, taxpayer conferences with the PVA
may be held remotely. Conferences may be held via videoconference, where
available, or by telephone; or you may exchange
correspondence requesting a conference with the PVA via email or fax.
Written documentation supporting your opinion of
value will continue to be required. However, you will be instructed on the
best method to submit your documentation after
contacting our office regarding your request to have a conference.
Instructions regarding how conferences will be held this
year are available online at qpublic.net/KY/Bath and will be posted at the
entrance to the PVA’s office, located at: 17 West Main
Street; Owingsville KY.
Any taxpayer still aggrieved by an assessment on real property, after the
conference with the PVA or designated deputy, may
appeal to the county board of assessment appeals.
The appeal must be filed with the Bath County clerk’s office no later
than August 24, 2021, which is one work day following
the conclusion of the inspection period. Please contact the county
clerk’s office at 606-674-2613 to receive instructions on the
method the office is using to accept appeals this year and to obtain a
form that can be used to file your appeal.
Any taxpayer failing to appeal to the county board of assessment appeals,
or failing to appear before the board, either in per-
son or by designated representative, will not be eligible to appeal
directly to the Kentucky Board of Tax Appeals.
Appeals of personal property assassments (Tangible) shall not be made to
the county board of assessment appeals. Personal
property taxpayers shall be served notice under the provisions of KRS
132.450(4) and shall have the protest and appeal rights
granted under the provisions of KRS 131.110.
The following steps should be taken when a taxpayer does not agree with the
assessed value of personal property (Tangible) as
determined by the property valuation administrator.
(1) He must list under protest (for certification) what he believes to be
the fair cash value of his property.
(2) He must file a written protest directly with the Department of
Revenue, Office of Property Valuation within 30
days from the date of the notice of assessment.
(3) This protest must be in accordance with KRS 131.110.
(4) The final decision of the Department of Revenue may be appealed to the
Kentucky Board of Tax Appeals.
Jacky S. Watson
Bath County Property Valuation Administrator
This advertisement was paid for by the Bath County Property Valuation
Administrator using tax dollars in the amount of
$168.
Published in the Bath County News-Outlook 08.05.21
