The Forgotten 40 Miles:
The Midnight Ride of Captain John "Jack" Jouett
By T.M. Jacobs

As children growing up we learn of Paul Revere's famous ride warning the colonists of the advancing British through Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem. But there is another famous midnight ride that took place later during the war and saved the lives of such dignitaries as Governor Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Nelson, Jr., Richard Lee, and Statesman Patrick Henry just to name a few.

Who made this midnight ride, and why was the Virginia General Assembly about to be victims of a surprise attack? As the assemblymen were conducting their sessions at Jefferson's Monticello mansion in early June 1781, British Colonel Banastre Tarleton knew that General George Washington had most all of Virginia's men up north and that General Marquis de LaFayette was too far away to assist the local militia which was not well equipped. Col. Tarleton made the decision of a surprise attack on Monticello to capture Jefferson and the other assemblymen. What Col. Tarleton did not know that was the six foot four inch, 200 pound, 28 year old Virginia Militia Captain John "Jack" Jouett was stationed nearby at Louisa County, Virginia.

Captain Jouett was sitting outside the Cuckoo Tavern in Louisa when he heard the sounds of riding cavalry. He cautiously made his way to the roadside where he spotted Col. Tarleton's 180 Dragoons, known as "White-coats," and 70 Infantrymen heading toward Charlottesville. Once Jouett realized the enemy's motive, he mounted his bay mare named Sallie, and went to warn Jefferson of the British.

The route that Capt. Jouett took was unlike that of Revere's path. While Revere traveled 15 miles by what was considered good roads, Capt. Jouett rode 40 miles through thick brush and dense wooded areas. In the June 1928 issue of Scribner's magazine, Virginius Dabney wrote of Jouett's route: "The unfrequented pathway over which this horseman set out on his all-night journey can only be imagined. His progress was greatly impeded by matted undergrowth, tangled bush, overhanging vines and gullies. . . his face was cruelly lashed by tree limbs as he rode forward and scars said to have remained the rest of his life were the result of lacerations sustained from these lowhanging branches."

Thomas Jefferson, Henry Patrick, Richard Lee, Benjamin Harrison, Thomas Nelson, Jr., and Edmund Randolph were all at Monticello having fled the town of Richmond as General Charles Cornwallis was approaching.

Riding all through the night, Jouett arrived at Monticello by the early morning. He awoke Jefferson and the other assemblymen who were quick to leave. Jouett, although exhausted from the ride then mounted his horse again and rode to the center of Charlottesville to further warn the townspeople that the British were coming.

Just after the warning from Jouett, Jefferson gathered some important papers, but in his haste he dropped his walking sword. Jefferson returned to Monticello to retrieve his sword and there he observed some of the British Dragoons which arrived only two hours after the warning. According to Henry Randall's book, The Life of Thomas Jefferson "Jefferson was on the lawn of Monticello, Captain of Dragoons McLeon was actually in the house."

Jouett next rode to the Swan Tavern, owned by his father. Other legislators were staying there and Jouett warned them of what was happening. He then changed into a clean uniform borrowed from his father and led the British on a chase to allow the other assemblymen to escape.

The Virginia Assembly later acknowledged the heroism of Jack Jouett and presented him with a brace of silver mounted pistols and a jeweled sword. It is unknown today where the pistols and jeweled sword are. In all probability, the family heirlooms have been passed down from generation to generation.

John "Jack" Jouett was born on December 7, 1754, in Albemarle, Virginia, one of ten children born to John and Mourning (Harris) Jouett. Three of his brothers also served in the war, one of which died at the Battle of Brandywine. Three years after his midnight ride Jouett married Sallie Robards, daughter of William and Elizabeth (Lewis) Robards on August 20, 1784. They moved to Harrodsburg, Kentucky and had twelve children: George (1785), Catherine (1787), Matthew (1788), Elizabeth (1790), Polly (1792), Jack (1793), William (1795), Landon (1797), Robert (1799), Thomas Jefferson (1801), Virginia (1803) and Lynch (1805).

Jouett was very active in establishing the statehood which is now Kentucky. He also served four terms in the state legislature and worked as a planter and horse breeder. Jouett became a leader for importing stock from England and helping Kentucky gain fame as a great stock-raising state. On March 1, 1822, Captain Jack Jouett died in Fayette County Kentucky. He is buried at Peeled Oak, Bath County, on his daughter's farm.

Of his 12 children, Matthew went on to become a well-known portrait painter. One of his works includes a full length portrait of Marquis de LaFayette. Matthew's son followed in his grandfathers footsteps. James "Fighting Jim" Jouett became a distinguished naval officer during the Civil War. At the Battle of Mobile Bay, Admiral David Glasgow Farragut gave the famous command "Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!" The actual command given was "Damn the torpedoes! Four bells! Captain Drayton go ahead! Jouett full speed!"

James was also a member of the SAR. Four others have also claimed Captain John "Jack" Jouett as their ancestor to become members of the SAR: Mathew H. Crawford, Edward S. Jouett, Richard H. Menefee and Jouett L. De Graffenried.

Finally in 1909, Jouett was honored with a poem of his own. Appearing in the Charlottesville Daily Progress newspaper on October 26, 1909 was the following poem:

On February 13, 1922, the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution organized the Jack Jouett Chapter in Charlottesville, Virginia. To honor Jack Jouett's bravery and accomplishment, the Chapter placed a brass star on the steps of Monticello and later in 1927 placed a boulder with a mounted bronze tablet from where Jouett began his ride. The Chapter also got a middle school in 1966 to be named the Jack Jouett Middle School.

Today Jouett's 1797 Federal-style brick cottage is a museum dedicated to preserving his heroic ride and contribution to the cause. Please visit www.jackjouetthouse.org for more information.

Sources:

Ancestry.com
The Valley Compatriot. February 1984.
Dabney, Virginius. Jack Jouett's Ride. December 1961.
Familysearch.org
www.jackjouetthouse.org