A Brief Biography of William Bratton

At the time William Clark chose William Bratton to be one of the party of nine young men from Kentucky at Clarksville, in Indiana Territory on October 20, 1803, he knew he had a frontiersman he could rely upon. Clark considered him to be one whom Lewis described as "good hunters, stout, healthy, unmarried men, accustomed to the woods, and capable of bearing bodily fatigue in a pretty considerable degree."

Although William Bratton was born to the wilderness, he took advantage of educational opportunities available to him and learned to read and write. Clark assigned the rank of private to Bratton, who would later prove himself as a most useful and valuable member of the Corps of Discovery, going the entire distance with the Expedition.

During the winter of 1804, at Fort Mandan, Bratton mended kettles, made axes and did other work, especially for the Indians who wanted metal goods. Bratton's hunting skill was renowned; records show him shooting bighorn sheep, deer, buffalo and other game. On May 11, 1805, he arrived in camp breathless after being chased '/2 mile by an enraged , wounded grizzly bear. He was one of the five men sent to the Pacific shore on December 28, 1805 to boil water down for salt.

From February to June, 1806 Bratton was in desperate plight suffering from severe back pain and often could not walk. Finally, he was restored to health by a process of violent sweats in a sweat lodge followed by submersion in a cold stream. This process was repeated several times, and the next day he walked free of pain.

The expedition returned to St. Louis an September 23, 1806. Bratton received $178.33 and 320 acres of land in Missouri where he lived for a few years. He later sold his land and returned to Kentucky.

During the War of 1812 Bratton served as a private in the First Rifle Regiment, Kentucky Volunteer Militia. He served six months off duty, was released, and then volunteered again in the militia fighting at the Battle of Thames where he was taken prisoner at Frenchtown, Monroe, Michigan. He was released March 5, 1813.

Bratton moved to west central Indiana and operated a general store and a mill in Vigo County. On November 25, 1819, at the age of forty-one, he married Mary H Maxwell; they were the parents often children. After the Federal Land Office opened up New Purchase Land from the 1818 Treaty of St. Mary's, Bratton entered land in Wayne Township, Montgomery County, Indiana. Bratton was ore of the first three settlers near Westley Station, west of Crawfordsville, Indiana.

In June, 1824, Bratton was appointed the first Justice of the Peace, Wayne Township, and on November 6, 1824, he was appointed Superintendent of Schools, Section 16T 20N R6.

William Bratton died on November Ii, 1841 at the age of sixty-three. He was buried at the east edge of Waynetown, Indiana in the Old Pioneer Cemetery at the junction of U.S. 136 and Indiana State Road 25.

By Esther Duncan