Jacob's Shawnee name was Taumee or Taumee-Elenee. This name was anglized to White Tassel, however the actual meaning is "Corn Man". This name was bestowed, no doubt, because of his light or white silky hair, which reminded the Indians of corn silk. His slender stature also contributed to the reason for the name. He was slender like the corn stalk.

Jacob Castle, for whom Castlewood (Castle’s Woods) is named, is one of the most mysterious and intriguing characters of the early frontier in Russell County. Castle, himself, settled in western Russell county long before the treaty of Lochaber in 1770 which threw the area open for settlement by whites. The first permanent settlers came to Castle’s Woods in 1769, but Castle was familiar with the area twenty years before that.

Historians, as well as court records, indicate that Jacob Castle was a "long hunter" and lived for great periods of time with the Indians in the vicinity of what today is Castlewood in the western part of Russell County, Virginia. Castle dressed in Buckskin moccasins and leggings, a leather hunting shirt and "breeches" and a cap made of beaver or otter skin. He carried a hatchet, knife, shot pouch, powder horn, rifle (or musket) and enough food for at least 2 days.

Castlewood takes it name from "Castle’s Woods", the vast expansion of forest land that Jacob Castle acquired from the Indians. There are many stories regarding Castle’s acquisition of the land. Some historians say that he traded the Indians a butcher knife and a musket for the expanse of woodland that later took his name. Some say that he disposed of it for "a hound dog, a shotgun and a drink of whiskey".

The area known as Castle Run, as legend goes, was so named because Jacob Castle was once chased by an Indian chief for hunting on his land.

In 1749, Adam Harman who was captain of the Fort in his precinct charged Jacob Castle with threatening to aid the French. Since this was before the French and Indian war broke out and French and English relations were bad, the charge was considered to be treason. Harman took a posse to Castle’s Woods to arrest Castle and return him to Montgomery County. Apparently Castle resisted and according to the accepted legend, the Clinch river got its name from a lame man named Clinch who was in the posse.

During the battle, in which the Indians were assisting Castle, Clinch got separated from the posse while it was retreating across the river. He was either shot by an Indian or fell from his horse. An Indian, seeing that he had difficulty moving in the water, rushed forward to scalp him and was himself killed. For his participation in the incident, the others named the river "Clinch" in his honor.

Castle was either arrested or, as some say, turned himself in . At any rate, he was tried and acquitted of the charge.

Daniel Boone lived in the Castlewood area from 1773 to 1775 before moving on to Kentucky. Castle would probably have known him and would have had at least 30 years of woodsman experience on him. It is known that Boone took credit for a lot of the deeds of William Russell and it is probable that he claimed some of Jacob Castle’s as well.

Battle of Kings Mountain, 7 Oct 1780

Patriots from Southwest Virginia, Northwestern North Carolina, and Eastern Tennessee arose in arms and went to meet the British. Jacob Castle was part of the Southwest Virginia force.