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and not water flowing under a bridge or anything like that I had always commonly believed.

Many historians support this attributing the saying to Benjamin Hawkins who served as General Superintendent for Indian Affairs under George Washington and had responsibility for the Native American tribes south of the Ohio River, and principal agent to the Creek Indians. The story goes that while down south, Hawkins was summoned back to the nation’s capital by Washington with Hawkins writing back that he would return “God willing and the Creek don’t rise.” Meaning if the Creek tribe ‘rose’, Hawkins would have to be present to quell the rebellion and forego his trip to Washington.