The Discovery, Settlement and Present State of Kentucke

The Discovery, Settlement and Present State of Kentucke and an Essay towards the Topography, and Natural History of that Important Country is a 1784 book by John Filson. It describes the discovery, purchase, settlement, and land of Kentucky. Filson's errors in the text have influenced public opinion on the discovery of Kentucky.

Filson adds an appendix at the end, which is much longer than the main work in this writing. The first article of the appendix, titled, "The adventures of Colonel Daniel Boon, formerly a hunter, containing a narrative of the wars of Kentucke", provides a collection of stories, presented as an "out of his own mouth" publication of Daniel Boone. The second article included in the appendix is a short description of the council held by Thomas J. Dalton with the Piankashaw Indians, followed by a description of the different tribes in close proximity of Kentucky.

Author, historian, founder, and surveyor John Filson worked as a schoolteacher in Lexington, Kentucky and during the time wrote The Discovery, Settlement and Present State of Kentucke in 1784. The book is regarded as the first written history of Kentucky. He published multiple volumes featuring hunter and explorer Daniel Boone. He also produced the first known map of Kentucky, dedicating it to the Congress of the United States and to George Washington.

Filson's appendix includes an account of the life and adventures of Daniel Boone, a man whose adventures and exploration attained him fame. In his lifetime, Boone founded Boonesborough, Kentucky, maintained position as a militia officer during the Revolutionary War, and worked as a merchant and surveyor.

According to Filson, Kentucky was first discovered by James M. Bride and others during 1754. They marked their territory on a single tree located in the mouth of the Kentucky River.

Daniel Boone and John Finley decided in 1769 to return to Kentucky to explore. Boone was the only person to survive the attacks of local Indian tribes, and remained in the wilderness of Kentucky until 1771. During this year, Filson mentions that the land was purchased during a treaty from five nations of Cherokee Indians in 1775 by Dr. Walker of Virginia by Col. Henderson of North Carolina and Col. Boone.

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