Eleanor (Esther) Draper

Immigrated from Donegal, Ireland in 1729.

Note from John D. Curtis:

Elenor (Eleanor) was among the five people murdered by the Shawnee Indian warriors who were responsible for the Draper's Meadow Massacre near present-day Blacksburg, Virginia. The date of the massacre is variously reported as July 8th or July 30th.

At least five captives were taken away by the Indians. Some were returned after substantial ransom payments were received by the Indians. Others died in captivity. One of Elenor's daughters, Mary Draper Ingles, was among the captives. However Mary escaped and made it back to Draper's Meadow after a harrowing trip on foot through the wilderness. It was a nearly 1,000 mile trek through thick virgin forests which were nearly impenetrable in some areas, across wild rivers and over the crest of the Appalachian Mountains.

Following the massacre, Draper's Meadow was abandoned. So was much of the frontier -- until after the French & Indian War was over.

The massacre was instigated by the defeat of British troops by the French during the French and Indian War at the Battle of Monongahela. That left settlers living on the frontier unprotected and subject to raids by Indians who were upset over the loss of tribal territories.

Further note from John D. Curtis. The historical novel "Follow the River" was written about the life of Elenor's daughter: Mary Draper Inglis. According to that book, Elenor was not only killed by the Shawnee braves, but was also scalped.