John Filson

Born around 1753 in Chester County, Pennsylvania, John Filson became a schoolteacher, surveyor, land speculator, and writer during the early years of the American frontier. After moving to Kentucky in the early 1780s, he taught in Lexington and traveled through the region gathering stories from settlers and local leaders.

He is best remembered for The Discovery, Settlement and Present State of Kentucke (1784), a work often described as the first history or major early description of Kentucky. The book included an important map of the territory, and its appendix on Daniel Boone helped introduce Boone to a wide audience and build his lasting fame.

Filson's life was short: he disappeared in 1788 while traveling near the Ohio country and is generally believed to have been killed that year. Even so, his writing left a lasting mark on how Kentucky's early history was recorded and remembered.