Facts about My Life

Mary Musgrove was the daughter of the English trader Edward Griffin and a Creek Indian mother. She spent most of her childhood living in both worlds of her Creek village, Coweta, and the colony of South Carolina. During these years, she learned to speak the Creek language of Muskogee as well as English. She learned to be a trader with the English and Native American societies. Despite her mixed heritage, Musgrove was a full member of Creek society and the Wind Clan.

My Life as a Trader

In 1717, she married English trader John Musgrove, and they set up a trading post near the Savannah River. Musgrove helped her husband as an interpreter and probably used her family ties to attract business. John Musgrove became friends with Oglethorpe, and he accompanied James Oglethorpe on a trip to England. Trustees officially granted John Musgrove some land at Yamacraw Bluff on the Savannah River, four miles upriver from Savannah. John Musgrove died in 1735, and Mary Musgrove moved the trading post to Yamacraw Bluff. The post, known as the Cowpens, became a major store.

How I helped Georgia.

Mary Musgrove placed herself in the center of Oglethorpe's dealings with neighboring Creek Indians. As interpreter for Oglethorpe and Yamacraw Indian chief Tomochichi, Mary Musgrove was very important for the founding of Savannah. She served as Oglethorpe's principal interpreter from 1733 until 1743, and she received pay for her services. During this period she used her connections to make peace between the British and the Creeks. Musgrove taught Oglethorpe about the Creek Indians.