Isaac Shelby

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Isaac Shelby
1st Governor of Kentucky
In office June 4, 1792 – June 1, 1796
Preceded by	(none)
Succeeded by	James Garrard
5th Governor of Kentucky
In office August 24, 1812 – September 5, 1816
Preceded by	Charles Scott
Succeeded by	George Madison
Born	December 11, 1750 (1750-12-11) Hagerstown, Maryland
Died	July 18, 1826 (aged 75) Lincoln County, Kentucky
Political party	Democratic-Republican
Spouse	Susannah Hart
Profession	Soldier, Farmer
Religion	Presbyterian[1]

Isaac Shelby (December 11, 1750 – July 18, 1826) was an American soldier and the first and fifth Governor of Kentucky, serving from 1792 to 1796 and from 1812 to 1816.

[edit] Biography

Born in Frederick County, Maryland, near Hagerstown, Shelby was the son of Evan Shelby and Letitia (Cox) Shelby. The family moved to western Virginia in 1772 and ran a trading post. He was a lieutenant in Lord Dunmore's War in 1774. The next year he surveyed land in Kentucky and settled there in 1776. During the American Revolutionary War, Patrick Henry, Governor of Virginia, appointed Shelby to secure provisions for the army on the frontier. He was elected to the Virginia legislature in 1780.

Along with James Williams, and Elijah Clarke, Colonel Shelby led a force of Overmountain Men from the Fort Watauga (near present day Elizabethton, Tennessee) to victory at the Battle of Musgrove Mill on August 19, 1780. By securing their defensive patriot position on the banks of the Enoree River, Shelby, Williams, and Clarke were able to defeat a much larger force consisting of two hundred British Loyalists and three hundred British provincial regulars.

On September 26, 1780, a greater number of the "Overmountain Men" again assembled at Fort Watauga and formed a militia under Colonel John Sevier (Sevier was later elected as the first governor of Tennessee) and Colonel Isaac Shelby. These Patriot troops days later crossed the Appalachian Mountains at Roan Mountain (near present day Roan Mountain, Tennessee) and successively engaged the British Army at the Battle of Kings Mountain, a southern battle recognized as one of the turning points of the American Revolution.

Shelby settled in North Carolina and was elected twice to its legislature.

In 1783, Shelby returned to Kentucky where he married Susannah Hart. He was on the first Board of Trustees at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky, and is regarded as the founder of Frankfort, Kentucky.

Governor Shelby is regarded as the first and only sitting Governor to lead his state militia in battle. In memory of this, Kentucky troops from the 38th Infantry Division to name Camp Shelby, Mississippi after him as they trained for deployment for World War I.

Popular legend has it that the two men in the central image on the Kentucky State Flag (one in a frock coat, one in buckskins) are both Isaac Shelby, and that the flag portrays him as a political leader as well as a frontiersman and military leader.

[edit] Political career

When Kentucky was admitted into the United States, Shelby was elected its first governor. One of his chief concerns was securing Federal aid to defend the frontier. He also worked for free navigation on the Mississippi River. At the time, Kentucky's Constitution prevented a governor from serving consecutive terms, and Shelby retired to his farm in Lincoln County, Kentucky at the conclusion of his first term. In 1812, Shelby once more ran for governor and was re-elected.

General William Henry Harrison called upon Kentucky to provide volunteers for his Army of the Northwest during the War of 1812, and personally asked Governor Shelby to lead the Kentucky units. Shelby, known as "Old Kings Mountain" among his troops, led the Kentuckians into action at the Battle of the Thames.

Upon leaving office in 1816, U.S. President James Monroe offered him the post of Secretary of War but he declined.

[edit] Death

Shelby died at his home of Travelor's Rest in Lincoln County. He died with family at his side.

[edit] Places named for Isaac Shelby

[edit] Cities and counties

• Shelby County, Alabama
• Shelby County, Illinois
• Shelby County, Indiana
• Shelby County, Iowa
• Shelby County, Kentucky
• Shelby, Oceana County, Michigan
• Shelby County, Missouri
• Shelby, North Carolina
• Shelby, Ohio
• Shelby County, Ohio
• Shelby County, Tennessee
• Shelby County, Texas
• Shelbyville, Illinois
• Shelbyville, Indiana
• Shelbyville, Kentucky
• Shelbyville, Michigan
• Shelbyville, Missouri
• Shelbyville, Tennessee
• Shelbyville, Texas

[edit] Military installations

• Camp Shelby, Mississippi
• Fort Shelby, Michigan
• Fort Shelby, Wisconsin

[edit] References

• Sylvia Wrobel and George Grider. Isaac Shelby: Kentucky's First Governor and Hero of Three Wars. 1974.

[edit] See also

• History of Kentucky
• Kings Mountain National Military Park
• Kings Mountain, North Carolina
• Elizabethton, Tennessee
• Fort Watauga
• Sycamore Shoals
• Watauga River
• Doe River
• Roan Mountain State Park
• Roan Mountain, Tennessee
• Roan Mountain
• Carter County, Tennessee
• Abingdon, Virginia
• Overmountain Men

[edit] External links

• Detailed Account of Kings Mountain
• Find-A-Grave profile for Isaac Shelby
• Biography from A History of Kentucky and Kentuckians

v • d • e Governors of Kentucky Shelby • Garrard • Greenup • Scott • Shelby • Madison • Slaughter • Adair • Desha • Metcalfe • J. Breathitt • J. Morehead • Clark • Wickliffe • Letcher • Owsley • Crittenden • Helm • Powell • C. Morehead • Magoffin • Robinson • Bramlette • Helm • Stevenson • Leslie • McCreary • Blackburn • Knott • Buckner • Brown • Bradley • Taylor • Goebel • Beckham • Willson • McCreary • Stanley • Black • Morrow • Fields • Sampson • Laffoon • Chandler • Johnson • Willis • Clements • Wetherby • Chandler • Combs • E. Breathitt • Nunn • Ford • Carroll • Brown Jr. • Collins • Wilkinson • Jones • Patton • Fletcher • Beshear Kentucky also had two Confederate Governors: George W. Johnson and Richard Hawes.