One of the largest massacres in Kentucky history, killing 17 settlers and intensifying Patriot militia recruitment during the Revolutionary War.
Key Facts
- Date of attack
- June 27, 1780
- Settlers killed
- 17 people
- Total caravan size
- 41 settlers from 10 families
- Westervelt family deaths
- 10 of 17 killed
- Scalp bounty paid
- £5 per scalp
- Historical marker erected
- September 2019
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Captain Bird's British-led invasion of Kentucky from the north in 1780 prompted Dutch American settlers at Low Dutch Station to flee southward toward the fortified town of Harrodsburg. British-allied Native Americans were already active in the area east of the station, creating dangerous conditions along the settlers' intended route.
On the night of June 26–27, 1780, a caravan of 41 settlers led by Jacobus Westervelt was ambushed by British-allied Native Americans approximately 12 miles from Low Dutch Station, near Floyd's Fork and Broad Run. Seventeen settlers were killed, including men, women, and children, and the victims were scalped, with scalps sold to the British for a bounty of £5 each.
The massacre spread fear throughout frontier Kentucky settlements and prompted many survivors and neighboring settlers to enlist in Patriot militia forces under George Rogers Clark. The event's precise location was debated for years until historians reached consensus in 2019, when a historical marker was placed near Brooks, Bullitt County.