In 1689, Martin Chartier, a French fur trader, became one of the first Europeans to enter the Nashville area. While living in the United States he helped build the first French Fort in Illinois. Ironically, Martin led a mutiny against the Fort and burners it to the ground because of concerns over Indian attacks on villages during the French and Iroquois Wars. While Martin had not established a good relationship with Iroquois tribes, he did spend time living amongst the Shawnee Native Americans.
Nashville was named for Francis Nash, a Brigadier General in the American Revolutionary War who was born in Prince Edward County of Virginia. In 1779, the town of Nashville, Tennessee was founded by James Robertson, John Donelson, and a party of Overmountain Men. The town was located near the original Cumberland settlement of Fort Nashborough.
