The Patriot John Talley
Patriot Bend: A Timely Proposal
Next July 4th, our nation will celebrate the U.S. semiquincentennial: the 250th Anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. A key part of the celebration will be remembering and honoring the first veterans, the Patriots of the American Revolution, without whom there would be no Independence Day.
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One way to remember and honor them is through a geographic feature on a U.S. Geological Survey topographic map. The U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN) is responsible for standardizing the place names of geographic features within the 50 states and other areas under the sovereignty of the United States.
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​This proposal seeks to honor those 17 veteran-patriots who settled in Perry County, Tennessee in the years after the American Revolutionary War using a bend in the Buffalo River where an early Patriot, John Talley, had his homesite. The arrowhead-shaped feature encloses about 142 acres. See Google Earth photo and USGS map.
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In many ways, his life personifies the lives of those early Patriots. Born in Virginia, he served as a private with the 3rd Continental Light Dragoons during the American Revolution. ​After the war, like many veterans, he migrated westward. In 1820, at 59 years of age, he settled in Perry County where he claimed 44 acres on the western bank of the Buffalo River, within a section identified as District 10, Section 5 on early survey maps.
Between December 1820 and October 1837, 210 settlers filed 286 surveys with the county land office. His survey, number 154, was recorded on 10 October 1824. He received a grant for it on 3 September 1830. He died 28 November 1843 and was buried on his homestead beside his wife, Jane, and two others.
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His grave site was near a bluff overlooking the Buffalo River. For many years, the site was known locally as Graveyard Bluff. Eventually the headstones disappeared, and their graves like those of many early Patriots were forgotten. In 2022, a descendant rediscovered them beside Buffalo River Heights Road (see Perry County Historical Society article).
The proposed name is symbolic. Rather than focus on one person, it encompasses the broader contributions of those early Patriots, the first veterans, who settled in Perry County. Naming the geographic feature Patriot Bend is one way of ensuring they are remembered and honored during the U.S. semiquincentennial, even when they and their final resting sites are forgotten. It also ensures future generations remember them.
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​Historical Significance
In U.S. history, the term Patriot has come to represent the contribution of those first veterans who served during the Revolution and helped create a new nation. After the war, many of them moved westward in search of new homesteads. By 1819, four had settled in Perry County, Tennessee. In 1820, three more joined them. Between 1820 and 1830, their number increased to 17. In the 1840 Federal Census, ten remained. Of those ten, six were of the original 1820 cohort. (See chart)
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​These early veterans are of unique cultural and historical significance to the county. Naming this geographic feature Patriot Bend commemorates the spirit and tenacity of these Revolutionary War patriots who settled along the Buffalo River and its tributaries in Perry County. For many, it was their final homestead. Their names will also be listed on the BGN record with background information.
​​​​​There is no cost in submitting this proposal to the BGN for consideration. It is unique in that there is no similar name either existing or pending in the BGN database.
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Next Step: If you support this proposal as a way to honor those first veterans, you can send a Letter of Support to the proponent who will forward it to the BGN. It then solicits recommendations from other interested parties before scheduling the proposal for a vote. The entire process can take as long as six months or more to complete.
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