By Jennifer Lassiter

star staff
  jlassiter@starh.com

  The official outdoor drama of Tennessee is an event not to miss. With a little over 135 local performers depicting the 18th century settlement of America's first frontier, "The Wataugans" represents an important part of the past as well as the future.
  The drama was written by Dr. Ronnie Day, chairman of the ETSU history department, to celebrate the bicentennial of the Battle of Kings Mountain Victory in September 1780. Since then John Ruetz has become the director and producer of the yearly drama.

  The History of the Drama

  To commemorate the bicentennial of the Transylvania Land Purchase in 1975, the state sponsored a re-enactment of the purchase of 20 million acres. This remains as the largest private land transaction in American history.
  The following year, to celebrate the bicentennial of the July 1776 Cherokee raid on Fort Watauga, the state sponsored a re-enactment at the newly completed Fort Watauga.
  The state produced "The Wataugans" in 1980 to celebrate the bicentennial of the Battle of Kings Mountain Victory in September 1780. In 1980, Day wrote the script for "The Wataugans."
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  The Watauga Historical Association also plays a key role in promoting interest and preservation of all matters related to the history of the Watauga River Valley and Sycamore Shoals. They serve as a "Friends of the Park" group for Sycamore Shoals State Historic Area.
  The area of Sycamore Shoals played a huge role in the 18th century and the expansion toward the western world. As the first permanent American settlement outside the 13 colonies, the Watauga community established the first system of American democratic government independent of British rule.
  The Transylvania Purchase, the largest private or corporate real estate transaction in United States history, took place March 17, 1775, at Sycamore Shoals. The Transylvania Company, led by Richard Henderson of North Carolina, purchased from the Cherokee Indians over 20 million acres of land -- all the lands of the Cumberland River watershed and extending to the Kentucky River -- for 2,000 pounds sterling and goods worth 8,00 pounds. Twelve hundred Indians reputedly spent weeks in counsel at Sycamore Shoals prior to the signing of the deed.
  Fort Watauga, built near Sycamore Shoals, became a refuge for the settlers in the summer of 1776. A reconstruction of Fort Watauga, based on archeological and historical research, stands near the Sycamore Shoals river crossing. The original location was approximately 1,500 yards to the southeast. A monument marking the fort's original site stands at the corner of Monument Place and West G Street. A scenic trail leads from the fort to the bank of the Watauga River and historic Shoals.
  On Sept. 25, 1780, the Overmountain Men mustered at Sycamore Shoals, 110 strong, and set out the next day on a 12-day journey that would be decisive in the outcome of the Revolutionary War. On Oct. 7, 1780, the Overmountain Men, led by Colonel John Sevier and Isacc Shelby, found Col. Patrick Ferguson's army at King's Mountain, S.C. They fought and defeated his army in a little less than an hour. The victory at Kings Mountain has been described as a crucial link in a chain of events that led to the eventual surrender of the British Forces in the Revolutionary War.