author

Henry Timberlake

d. 1765

A colonial officer, cartographer, and memoirist, he is best remembered for his rare firsthand account of the Overhill Cherokee and for the remarkable journey that took Cherokee leaders from the southern Appalachians to London.

1 Audiobook

The Memoirs of Lieut. Henry Timberlake (Who Accompanied the Three Cherokee Indians to England in the Year 1762) Containing Whatever He Observed Remarkable, Or Worthy of Public Notice, During His Travels to and from That Nation; Wherein the Country, Government, Genius, and Customs of the Inhabitants, Are Authentically Described. Also the Principal Occurrences During Their Residence in London. Illustrated With an Accurate Map of Their Over-hill Settlement, and a Curious Secret Journal, Taken by the Indians Out of the Pocket of a Frenchman They Had Killed.

The Memoirs of Lieut. Henry Timberlake (Who Accompanied the Three Cherokee Indians to England in the Year 1762) Containing Whatever He Observed Remarkable, Or Worthy of Public Notice, During His Travels to and from That Nation; Wherein the Country, Government, Genius, and Customs of the Inhabitants, Are Authentically Described. Also the Principal Occurrences During Their Residence in London. Illustrated With an Accurate Map of Their Over-hill Settlement, and a Curious Secret Journal, Taken by the Indians Out of the Pocket of a Frenchman They Had Killed.

by Henry Timberlake

About the author

Born in Virginia in either 1730 or 1735, he served in the French and Indian War before becoming known as an emissary to the Overhill Cherokee in 1761–1762. That mission, often called the Timberlake Expedition, gave him unusual direct experience of Cherokee towns, diplomacy, and daily life at a moment of major change in British North America.

He later traveled to London with Cherokee leaders, helping bring their concerns before imperial authorities. In 1765 he published The Memoirs of Lieut. Henry Timberlake, a work valued for its detailed descriptions, maps, and observations of the Cherokee country.

Timberlake died in England on September 30, 1765. Although his life was short, his memoir remains an important source for readers interested in colonial America, cross-cultural encounters, and the history of the Cherokee.