Dorton's Fort

Russell County · dedicated 2004 · Rte. 71, just north of intersection with Route 785

William Dorton Sr and his family settled near here by 1773 and built a fort, one of several defensive structures built by settlers of European descent on the Virginia frontier. Dorton's sons William Jr, Moses, and Edward fought in the Revolutionary War. Edward and at least one of the two other brothers served at the Battle of King's Mountain on 7 Oct. 1780. During this period, conflicts occurred between early settlers and Native Americans in this region, resulting in the death of a fourth son, name unknown, in 1777. Capt. William Dorton Jr served in the Washington and Russell County militias and died in 1826. He is buried just southwest of here.

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

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under a mile from where William Gabby lived in the 1760s

what this marker records spans 1777 to 1789, overlapping William Gabby's years here

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Dorton's Fort

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