Who Was Col. Trigg? |

Who Was Col. Trigg?

Stephen Trigg (c. 1744 – August 19, 1782) was an American pioneer and soldier from Virginia. He was killed ten months after the surrender of Cornwalis at Yorktown in one of the last battles of the American Revolution while leading the Lincoln County militia unit at the Battle of Blue Licks in present-day Kentucky.

Born the son of William and Mary (Johns) Trigg, Trigg mainly worked as a public servant and militia officer during the early years of the frontier counties in southwest Virginia and those portions that would later form Kentucky. He was one of the wealthiest men on the frontier at the time. He was a delegate to the first Virginia Revolutionary conventions and was a member of the Fincastle Committee of Safety that drafted the Fincastle Resolutions, a precursor to the Declaration of Independence made by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. He was also elected to the Virginia House of Delegates.

Trigg was appointed to the Virginia Land Court Commission in 1779, charged with settling titles to land on the Kentucky frontier. After completing his duties on the court, he settled in Kentucky and continued his public service. In 1782, Shawnee Indians led by British officers attacked Bryan Station, Kentucky, but were driven off. Kentucky militia companies joined forces to pursue them. Trigg commanded one wing, Daniel Boone the other. Despite Boone’s warnings, the militiamen charged into an ambush at Blue Licks. Trigg and many others, including Boone’s youngest son Israel, were among those killed. Trigg’s body was later found cut into pieces. The Kentucky Militiamen who died in this battle were buried together in a common grave.