[1][3] The long popularity of the novel is evidenced by the fact that Mark Twain referenced the main character of the book in 1883's Life on the Mississippi, presuming the audience would know the reference.

[1][3] The novel is set in Kentucky in the 1780s and revolves around the mysterious figure of "Nick of the Woods", dressed as a monster, who seeks to avenge the death of his family by killing numerous Indians, carving a cross on the body of all he slays.

Bird's brutal depiction of Native Americans (the Shawnee) was very hostile, and in part a reaction to the more positive representation of Indians by James Fenimore Cooper in the Leatherstocking Tales.

"[2] The Columbia Companion to American History on Film, which dubs Nathan Slaughter "a one-man genocide squad", also credits the novel for popularizing the mode of unintelligent Indian speaking ("Me Inju-man!

[7][8] The Medina version debuted at the Bowery Theatre in New York on February 5, 1838, to great success, although a fire burned down the house after two weeks.