14. Both Daniel Boone and his brother Squire Boone faced debtor’s prison in Kentucky
One of the prevailing myths about American frontiersman Daniel Boone is that he constantly moved about because the areas he settled became too crowded for his taste. Daniel settled in developed towns on more than one occasion, including a stint as a tavern keeper and merchant in what is now Maysville, Kentucky. Following the American Revolution, both Daniel and his brother Squire engaged in extensive land speculation in Kentucky. Disputes over land titles and inaccurate surveys led to both falling deeply into debt. Daniel eventually moved to Missouri, then Spanish territory, in order to avoid debtor’s prison. From there he worked for the rest of his life to pay off his debts.
His brother Squire was not so lucky. Squire also left Kentucky for Missouri, though his family remained behind, fed up with his many relocations. In 1804 Squire returned to Louisville, where his debtors imprisoned him. Like Daniel, Squire held many political connections in Kentucky, and his friends used their influence to obtain his release, after which he fled his debtors and moved to the Indiana Territory, establishing a settlement in today’s Harrison County in 1806. Fifteen years later, Kentucky became the first American state to abolish imprisonment for indebtedness, other than for those miscreants who failed to pay their taxes.