Back in the early 1700s when America was still a group of loosely knit colonies, England, France, and Spain all vied for control over the New World.
In order to claim the virgin territory for their native countries, enterprising men arrived along the eastern seacoast and promptly started negotiating with the native peoples to obtain land.
One such man was James Oglethorpe. His vision, to establish a permanent settlement of English speaking people based upon the principles of freedom to pursue honest work, eventually became the colony of Georgia.
Without Mary Musgrove, he might not have succeeded.
Mary Musgrove’s birth name was Coosaponakeesa, a child born around 1700 to a Creek mother of the Wind Clan, and a white deerskin trader.
Mary’s mother died when Mary was still a child, and by tradition, went to live with her Creek grandmother. By the time Mary was twelve, her father moved her to the colony of South Carolina, near Georgetown.
Having grown up in the interior, Mary must have been fascinated by the coastal low country. Sandpipers would scurry along the shore and seagulls would punctuate the sky. Seafood became a part of her diet, and she attended school.
An adept pupil, Mary learned how to read, write, and speak English. Her ability to converse in both Muskogee (Creek) and English, and her understanding of both cultures, would become the linchpin that launched her future.
In 1717 she married John Musgrove, a trader, and together they set up a trading post, several miles north of modern day Savannah. Because the Creeks are matrilineal, Mary was always considered a full Creek and therefore trusted by the local tribes. Her connections to the Creeks and her command of the English language enabled her to become John Musgrove’s valued business partner.
In 1733 when James Oglethorpe landed at Yamacraw Bluff and met with Chief Tomochichi, Oglethorpe was astute enough to realize he needed Tomochichi as an ally. Mary probably had the same realization and offered her services as an interpreter. She did such a good job that Oglethorpe asked her to be his prime interpreter.
For her part, Mary was most interested in protecting the Creek Indians’ interests, maintaining peace on the frontier, and expanding her position as a trader.
When John Musgrove died in 1735, Mary moved their trading post to the Yamacraw Bluff, above the banks of the Savannah River east of Bay Street, today. That trading post did exceedingly well. Having lived among the whites for many years, she understood the three commodities needed for success: land, supplies, and money.
In 1737 Mary married Jacob Matthews and they established another trading post, this time on the Altamaha River near Mt. Venture, approximately 30 miles southeast of modern day Jessup, Georgia. Unfortunately, Mr. Matthews died in 1742, leaving Mary a widow once more.
Mary had now been Oglethorpe’s main interpreter for over nine years. Because of her help, he had peaceful relations with the Native Americans of the area. Mary realized her own value and decided that Oglethorpe owed her compensation for her work.
He agreed, but told Mary the request would have to go through official channels.
Sometime within the next ten months he left on a trip to England, and never returned to Georgia.
By now, Mary had learned a lot about survival, both economically and socially. She enlisted herself as an interpreter to the Reverend Thomas Bosomworth. They married, and through their connections Mary found herself catapulted into the upper ranks of colonial society. Using her solid business sense, she capitalized on her new position to set up yet one more trading post.
With Oglethorpe back in England, Mary appealed to Chiefs Tomochichi and Malatchi for land and cash that Oglethorpe had agreed she deserved. The chiefs had no money, but granted her a plot of land in Savannah, plus the three sea islands of Ossobaw, Sapelo, and St. Catherine’s.
Still a British colony, the English/Georgia court claimed that land could only be granted from the native peoples to another nation, not to an individual. Mary fought the courts for twenty-three years and was finally awarded the sum of 1200 pounds sterling (approximately $172,000 today) and the entire island of St. Catherine’s.
In her mid-sixties, Mary moved to St. Catherine’s Island and attempted to start a farming enterprise. She died a few years later, owning over 14,500 acres of Georgia real estate.
Today, the once small settlement of the Georgia colony now has 10.43 million residents.
Thanks, in part, to Mary Musgrove.
The idea for this month’s blog came from a colonial interpreter who approached me at Fort Frederica, Georgia, and said, “Hello. My name is Mary Musgrove. Would you like to hear my story?”
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Linda😊