Captain Abraham Kuykendall

    Abraham Kuykendall was like Benjamin Martin (Mel Gibson's character in "The Patriot") and a quasi Donald Trump rolled into one, from what I have read. He was a very early settler in Henderson County, North Carolina, having made it his home before 1770.


    He and his Dutch family had emigrated from Ulster County, New York and made the very long journey into the unknown. They had reached the area of Flat Rock and decided to put down roots in the fertile, but rocky ground of Henderson County (in his time, it was known as Tryon County.) Abraham was a very wealthy man, whose wealth went into building a tavern and an inn. He also fed travelers coming to and fro very well. He had lots of help running his tavern, inn and farm from his enormous brood of kids.


    His first wife, Elizabeth Fidler Kuykendall, who was the mother of his first eleven children, died in 1800.


    To protect his and his neighbors' homes from Indian attacks, he joined the North Carolina Militia, whose troops were commanded by Captain Corbin during the Revolutionary War. Kuykendall was eventually made into a captain. He was also a member of the Safety Committee of Tryon County; procured supplies from North Carolina and sent them North to George Washington's troops; was appointed Commissioner of Tryon County, responsible for building a court house, prison, and stocks, and for establishing a boundary line between Tryon and Mecklenburg Counties. He also became Justice of the Peace of Tryon County in December of 1778, and continued in these roles when Rutherford County was formed during or after the Revolutionary War.


    Abraham was a well-respected man and citizen of North Carolina. Because he was a veteran, he was given a land grant of six hundred acres, courtesy of North Carolina. Over time, he had amassed over a thousand acres, which covered most of Flat Creek. On that land is where he built his fortune.


    After Elizabeth's death, Abraham married a much younger woman named Bathsheba Barrett. She loved the fact that her husband was very wealthy and she was able to buy all the pretty things she wanted. She loved bright, flashy dresses, the finest jewelry and everything else money could buy. She knew she was able to buy everything she wanted as long as the money was flowing in.


    Eventually, Abraham caught wind of his wife's doings and wondered if thieves might try and steal his treasure. He stored and buried most of his strong boxes on his property.


    One dark night, Abraham decided to transfer his money from strong boxes to an iron pot, common to colonists since there were no banks at that time. He awoke two of his slaves and blindfolded them so they would not know where it was they buried the treasure. Using torches to guide their way, Abraham told them to dig a hole, and when he was satisfied of how deep it was, he had them to cover up the iron pot. After all this, he warned them to never speak of what they had done, and blindfolded them again, then led them away from the site.


    When old Abe was 104 years old, he went out alone to search for his treasure because he had a deal he was wanting to land. It was dark and he was pretty old. It is speculated that he had fell down and hit his head. Abraham never left Pheasant Branch again a living, breathing man. The slaves told the family where they thought the treasure was, but after frantically digging, no one ever found Abraham's gold and silver.


    It is said that Abraham still guards his treasure. Many people have claimed to hear or see him and are frightened away from digging for treasure. Some people are not scared and try locating it still today.



Abraham Kuykendall History