Broad Hollow – The first branch of Turkey Fork was named by the hunters, “Broad Hollow,” because its bottom was wide or broad. In this hollow grew a large number of very large beech trees. On two of the trees was engraved the picture of an Indian with a bow and arrow both pointing to a certain point.
An old Indian down south told some men that these Indians were pointing towards a lead mine, in which the Indians procured their lead. The old Indian accurately described the place and country. In this hollow, Col. Miller and Esq. Sprouse, procured lead for bullets when it was not convenient for them to get at the other mines, but they said it was too hard to make good bullets.
Before white men lived on this side of the river, a man, whose name may have been Goss, was captured by the Indians and brought over here, into their territory. There were three Indians who had him in custody. They were on the top of a ridge when two of them left him and went for the lead. They started in a different direction from where the lead was, but Goss did not know this.
After they had gone a deer came by the other Indian and the Indian started in pursuit of it. As soon as he was out of sight, Goss started, in an opposite direction to what the two Indians did, and ran down the hill at full speed; at the foot of the hill, he saw it was steep and gave a leap alighting close to the two Indians who were getting lead.
He saw that there was no chance for his escape, so he told the Indians that the other one had gone and left him, and he was afraid of being lost, so he came to them.
They accepted his story as true and allowed him liberty and soon afterward, having his gun and an opportunity to escape, he did so; took his trail to the lead mine, then down the hollow and crossed the river at the shoals, and thence eastward to the white settlements.
Many years afterward, Mr. Goss stopped at Gen. Fuller’s and told his narrative and said it was the shoal which he crossed and so accurately described the place where the Indians got their lead that Gen. Fuller said it was undoubtedly in Broad Hollow.
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