Georgia Enters The Revolution

From Our Country, a "Household History for All Readers," Vol. II, by Benson J. Lossing, published 1877:

Georgia, tardy in joining the Continental movement, felt the flame of patriotism warming the hearts and minds of her sons early in 1775. In February, the inhabitants of the parish of St. Johns, in that province, chose Lyman Hall to represent them in the second Congress, and he took his seat as such at the middle of May. In July the Provincial Convention that had been formed adopted the American Association, and chose delegates to represent the whole province in the Congress; and then the bright galaxy of the "Old Thirteen" was perfected. The royal governor, Sir James Wright, had tried in vain to suppress the rising tide of republicanism in Georgia. So early as May, 1775, when it was suspected that he was about to imitate General Gage, by seizing the ammunition of the province, several members of the Council of Safety and others broke open the magazine, sent a greater portion of the powder to Beaufort, South Carolina, and hid the remainder in their own garrets. When the governor and the Tories were preparing to celebrate the king's birthday, on the 4th of June, by firing the cannon on the battery in Savannah, some of the leading Whigs spiked the guns there, and hurled them to the bottom of the bluff. Not long afterward, a letter written by the governor to General Gage, asking him to send troops to Georgia to suppress the rising rebellion there, was intercepted at Charleston. The republicans were greatly exasperated; and a day or two afterward they seized a British ship at the mouth of the Savannah River, with thirteen thousand pounds of gunpowder on board. The spirit of resistance waxed from stronger and stronger, until, in January, 1776, the Whigs resolved to endure the adverse influence of the governor and the Tories no longer. Joseph Habersham, a member of the popular legislature, with some armed volunteers, seized Governor Wright and made him a prisoner on parole at his own house. A sentinel was placed before it, with orders not to allow any intercourse between the governor and the Loyalists. During a stormy night in February, Sir James escaped through a back window of his house, walked five miles down the borders of the river with a friend, and then entering an open boat, fled in the pelting rain, under the cover of darkness, for shelter to the British vessel-of-war Scarborough, lying in Tybee Sound. [John] Stuart, the Indian agent for the Southern Department, had fled for safety to St. Augustine. He had incurred the bitter resentment of the patriots by trying to execute an atrocious order from Gage, as commander-in-chief of the forces, in these words:
"The people of Carolina in turning rebels to their king have lost all faith; improve a correspondence with Indians to the greatest advantage, and even when opportunity offers make them take arms against his majesty's enemies, and distress them all in their power; for no time is now to be kept with them; they have brought down all the savages they could against us here, who, with their riflemen, are continually firing upon our advanced sentries; in short, no time should be lost to distress a set of people so wantonly rebellious; supply the Indians with what they want, be the expense what it will, as every exertion must now be made on the side of government."
Gage had borne the same false testimony concerning the employment of the savages by the Americans, to the British ministry, as an excuse for his barbarous recommendations to make allies of them with the British army. At the same time the British emissaries were among the savage tribes of the north trying to form alliances with them, and to incite them to war against the Patriots. 
So was ended royal rule in Georgia.

The Backcountry & the Scots-Irish

From The 1780 Presbyterian Rebellion and the Battle of Huck's Defeat, by Sam Thomas, Curator of History, Culture & Heritage Commission of York County:

In the Backcountry, due to their isolation from the coast, past resentments could be put aside - at least temporarily. When war arrived after 1776, at first the Scotch-Irish were rather lukewarm toward the idea of independence from Great Britain. Here they were content to remain neutral so long as they were left alone. The conflict as most of the Scotch-Irish saw it was between the British Crown and the Charleston aristocrats, whom they resented as much as the British officials and so it did not involve them. But the problems between the Backcountry and the Crown finally boiled to the surface in 1780 as "The Presbyterian Rebellion." In 1778 an unknown Hessian officer recorded his observations on the war. "Call this war by whatever name you may, only call it not an American Rebellion: it is nothing more or less than a Scotch-Irish Presbyterian Rebellion." George Washington also remarked on the contribution to the war effort with a tribute to the Scotch-Irish from his headquarters at Valley Forge when he declared, "If defeated everywhere else, I will make my last stand for liberty among the Scotch-Irish . . ." It is this Backcountry Rebellion which is so closely identified with the battles of Kings Mountain, Cowpens, Hanging Rock, and Huck's Defeat.

Ramsour's Mill: America's First Civil War

From The History of South Carolina in the Revolution, 1775-1780, by Edward McCrady, published 1901, Macmillan & Co., ltd., South Carolina, pp. 587-588:

That there were great differences of sentiment in regard to the Revolution even among the people of the Low Country of South Carolina has abundantly appeared in the pages of this history. Friends and families were divided in opinion as to its cause, and still more so in regard to the course of events which had followed resulting in the Declaration of Independence. But these differences in the Low Country had caused little bloodshed by native Carolinians at the hands of each other. Few of the Tories in this section took up arms against their fellow-countrymen. In the new field of war [i.e., the back country], alas! as at Ramsour's Mill, the people who had not been interested in the questions which brought on the trouble were to fight every one against his brother, and every one against his neighbor. The most dreadful internecine strife was now to rage throughout the country beyond the falls of the rivers. The Scotchmen in Charlestown—especially the Scotch merchants, had almost unanimously opposed the Revolution; and so had the many Scotch traders in the Piedmont region. The Scotchmen in Charlestown, however, contented themselves with passive resistance to the Revolutionary party until the fall of the town, and then did little more than congratulate Sir Henry Clinton upon his victory over their rebellious fellow-townsmen; but in the Up Country they rose with the advance of the British and with heroism and determination took part in the war. It would be well if the historian was bound to add nothing more in regard to their conduct; but truth requires the statement that the heroism of these people in maintaining their loyalty to their King was tarnished by deeds of cruelty and bloodthirstiness. It will indeed appear, as we follow the fortunes of the war in their section, that South Carolina experienced all the dire effects which from civil discords flow.
Before Tarleton had overtaken Buford the Tories in this section had begun to gather and organize. As early as the 26th of May—that is, three days before the massacre in the Waxhaws, a party of them had collected at Mobley's Meeting-house, about six miles west of Winnsboro in the present county of Fairfield; to meet this Colonel William Bratton of York and Captain John McClure of Chester gathered the Whigs and defeated and dispersed them. A similar uprising at Beckham's Old Field in the vicinity of Fishing Creek, in what is now Chester County, had been put down with equal ease, the Rev. John Simpson, then the Presbyterian minister of the congregation in that neighborhood, being one of the principal movers in the affair. We have no account of the casualties on either side of these affairs.

Col. Davie, re: Hanging Rock, August 1780

From William R. Davie, The Revolutionary War Sketches of William R. Davie, Blackwell P. Robinson, editor (Raleigh, North Carolina Dept. of Cultural Resources, Division of Archives and History. 1976):

Major Davie's detachment consisted of 40 mounted riflemen and about that number of Dragoons, and considering himself obliged to alarm the enemy in their camp at all events the same day, he approached the Hanging Rock about 1 o'clock, and fortunately while he was reconoitering their position to fix upon the point of attack, He received information that three companies of their mounted infantry returning from some excursion, had halted at a farmer's house, situated in full view of the camp. The House was placed in the point of a right angle made by a lane of staked and ridered fence; the one end of which opened to the enemy's encampment, the other terminated in the woods, the Major advanced on that next to the woods, and as the riflemen were not distinguishable from the Loyalists, they were sent round to the other end of the lane with orders on gaining it, to rush forward & fire on the enemy. The dragoons were divided so that one half could occupy the lane while the other half entered the field. This disposition was made with such promptitude that the attention or suspicion of the enemy was never excited, the rifle company under Capt Flenniken passed the camp sentries without being challenged, dismounted in the lane and gave the enemy a well directed fire. The astonished Loyalists fled instantly the other way, and were immediately charged by the dragoons in full gallop and driven back in great confusion; on meeting again the fire of the infantry they all rushed against the angle of the fence where they were surrounded by the dragoons who had entered the field and literally cut to pieces: as this was done under the eye of the whole British camp no prisoners could be safely taken which may apologize for the slaughter that took place on this occasion. They took sixty valuable Horses with their furniture and one hundred muskets and rifles; the whole camp beat to arms but the business was done and the Detachment out of their reach before they recovered from their consternation.

Gen. Greene at Steele's Tavern

From Makers of America: Biographies of Leading Men of Thought and Action, Volume II, by Leonard Wilson, pub. 1916, B.F. Johnson, pp. 256-257:

William Steele was a Commissioner of the Borough of Salisbury [North Carolina]. He died November 1, 1773, thirty-nine years of age, leaving only one son, the John Steele whose record has already been given. John Steele was commonly called "General," because he held the office of General of Militia. Elizabeth Maxwell is the heroine of one of the most interesting of all true stories in American history. The story is given as it is told in reliable and fully authenticated records."On a wild and wintry night, February 1, 1781, a lonely horseman sits his weary steed seven miles below Torrence's Tavern. He waits for news of the day's campaign. It is a crucial hour; only by bringing out the militia can he oppose Cornwallis. The preceding day he had sent Morgan towards the Yadkin. The messenger arrives with news that brings despair; General Davidson had been killed, the militia scattered, Cornwallis had crossed the Catawba, Huger is hotly pressed by the British and Greene begins his weary ride to Salisbury. After Morgan learns of the crossing of Cornwallis at Cowan's Ford, he begins his retreat, February 1, toward the Yadkin along Beattie's Ford, or Sherrill's Ford Road to Salisbury. They marched through the town and encamped about one-half a mile east of the town on the Yadkin road in a grove, where is now located the home of Honorable John Steele Henderson. A surgeon of the army, Dr. Joseph Read, with hospital stores and a number of wounded, reached Salisbury. Dr. Read establishes himself at Steele's Tavern; Greene arrives. Dr. Read said:
"It was impossible not to perceive in the deranged state of his dress and the stiffness of his limbs some symptoms of his late rapid movements and exposure to the weather.
"'How do you find yourself?' asks Dr. Read.
"'Wretched beyond measure, fatigued, hungry, alone, penniless and without a friend' (for one time heroic Greene was discouraged).
"Mrs. Steele heard the general's remark and replied:
"'That I deny. Come in, rest, dry yourself, and in a short time a hot breakfast shall cheer and refresh you.'
"A bountiful repast was soon spread. As he sits by the table with bowed head, she enters. Handing to him two bags of specie,
gold and silver coins, her savings of years, she said:
"'Take them, for you will need them and I can do without them.'
"On the wall of the room hung pictures, colored engravings of King George III and Queen Charlotte, which had been given Mrs. Steele by her brother, Dr. James Maxwell. General Greene took a piece of charcoal and wrote under the picture of the king: 'Oh, George, hide thy face and mourn.'"
This colored lithograph was donated to the State of North Carolina, and is still in a good state of preservation.

Maj. Gen. Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee

Henry Lee III, called "Light Horse Harry", (29 January 1756 – 25 March 1818) was a cavalry officer in the Continental Army during the American Revolution. He was born near Dumfries, Virginia, the son of Maj. Gen. Henry Lee II of "Leesylvania" and Lucy Grymes, the "Lowland Beauty".
Lee and his younger brother Charles entered The College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) in the summer of 1770 when they were fourteen and twelve, after a ten-day journey from Virginia by stage and on horseback, along with their friend James Madison. With a view to a legal career, Lee graduated in 1773, but on the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, he joined the Continental Army. In 1776, Lee became captain of a Virginia Dragoon detachment, attached to the 1st Continental Light Dragoons. In 1778, he was promoted to major and given the command of a small irregular corps, with which he earned great reputation as a leader of light troops.
Lee came into prominence in 1779 when, as a 23-year-old major, he led the capture of the British fort at Paulus Hook, New Jersey. He later became cavalry commander in the Southern campaign under General Nathanael Greene. Lee served notably at Guilford Court House, Camden, and Eutaw Springs. He was present at Cornwallis's surrender at Yorktown, but afterwards left the army owing to ill health.
From 1786 to 1788, Lee was a delegate to the Continental Congress, and in the last-named year in the Virginia convention, he favored the adoption of the U.S. Constitution. From 1789 to 1791, he served in the General Assembly and, from 1791 to 1794, Lee was Governor of Virginia. In 1794, Lee accompanied George Washington to help suppress the "Whiskey Rebellion" in western Pennsylvania.
Henry Lee served as a major-general in the U.S. Army in 1798-1800, and from 1799 to 1801, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives. He is credited with writing the phrase used by Chief Justice John Marshall in his address to Congress on the death of Washington–"first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen."
Lee had been at his best as a dashing cavalry officer in the Revolution– "a Rupert in battle," Woodrow Wilson called him, "a boy in counsel, highstrung, audacious, wilful, lovable, a figure for romance." He was less well fitted for civil and domestic life, and his later years were marred by financial reverses and long periods away from home. He lost heavily in land speculations and spent a year in debtor's prison when Robert E. Lee (his fifth child by his second wife) was only two. While in prison he wrote his memoirs of the Revolution. In 1812, in Baltimore, he was seriously injured while in the company of a group opposed to "Mr. Madison's War," who were under attack by an angry mob. Madison denounced the rioters as barbarians and offered Lee a commission as major-general in the army, but he was too weak to accept. Ill and impoverished, he spent his last years in the West Indies in a vain effort to regain his health.

(Source: Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Lee_III, and A Princeton Companion, by Alexander Leitch, pub. 1978, Princeton University Press)

Lord Rawdon in the Backcountry

Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings, was a British politician and military officer. He was born in County Down, Ireland, the son of John Rawdon, 1st Earl of Moira and Elizabeth Rawdon, 13th Baroness Hastings.
He joined the British Army in 1771 and served in the American Revolutionary War, particularly at the battles of Bunker Hill, Brooklyn, White Plains, Monmouth and Camden, at the attacks on Forts Washington and Clinton, and at the siege of Charleston. Hastings commanded the "Volunteers of Ireland", a Tory regiment raised by General Sir Henry Clinton. In the aftermath of the Battle of Camden, Lord Rawdon wrote to General Cornwallis:

"Soon after your Lordship had first taken possession of Camden, you detached me to Waxhaw with my own regiment, thinking that as it was an Irish corps it would be received with the better temper by the settlers of that district, who were universally Irish and universally disaffected. My conduct towards the inhabitants, and the extraordinary regularity of the troops under my command, I must assert to have been such as ought to have conciliated their firmest attachment; yet I had the fullest proofs that the people who daily visited my camp, not only held constant correspondence with the rebel militia then assembling at Charlotteburg, and with those who were harassing Lieut.-Colonel Turnbull's detachment, but also used every artifice to debauch the minds of my soldiers, and persuade them to desert from their colours. The encouragement which they gave to the men, and the certain means of escape with which they furnished them, succeeded to a very alarming degree, and the rage of desertion was not stopped by our return to Camden. When your Lordship left me to command in the Back Country, you left me in the territory of an enemy, awed solely by apprehension of our force from open opposition. I soon found (as your Lordship's experience since will readily lead you to believe) that I was betrayed on every side by the inhabitants. Several small detachments from me, were attacked by persons who had the hour before been with them as friends in their camp. As the rebels, however, had not strength to assail the body of the army, they endeavoured to weaken it by treachery. I had the clearest conviction that the militia who swarmed daily in our camp, not only held forth every allurement that could entice the soldiers to desert, but actually furnished horses to such as would go off, and forwarded them from house to house till they were beyond the reach of pursuit."

Choosing Sides

From The Road to Guilford Courthouse, by John Buchanan, ©1997, John Wiley & Sons, page 124:

"The origin of the settlers played a key role in choosing sides. Generally, the native born as well as foreign born who had been in America long enough to have migrated down the Great Wagon Road from Pennsylvania became Rebels. Recent arrivals from Ulster and other areas of North Britain tended to become King's Friends. This certainly indicates that the Scotch Irish and their cultural allies who had spent some decades in Back Country America were well along the road to their personal vision of liberty, which did not translate into an orderly imperial society. Independence was their goal, and it was unencumbered by economic motives.
But as in all causes different degrees of fervor could be found. There were, claimed [Revolutionary soldier] James Collins, three kinds of patriots: 'those who were determined to fight it out to the last let the consequences be what it might ... those who would fight a little when the wind was favorable but so soon as it shifted to an unfavorable point would draw back and give up all for lost ... those who were favorable for the cause, provided it prospered and they could enjoy the benefit but would not risk one hair of their heads to attain it.'"

Morgan to Snickers, re: Cowpens

General Daniel Morgan to his friend William Snickers, 26 January 1781:

"When you Left me, you remember I was desirous to have a Stroke at Tarleton–my wishes are Gratified, & [I] have Given him a devil of a whiping, a more compleat victory never was obtained. ...a Great thing indeed"

The Gratitude of Congress, re: Cowpens

March 9, 1781

The United States, in Congress assembled, considering it as a tribute due to distinguished merit to give a public approbation to the conduct of Brigadier General Morgan and of the officers and men under his command on the 17th of January last, when with eighty cavalry and two hundred and thirty-seven infantry of the troops of the United States and five hundred and fifty-three militia from the States of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia he obtained a complete and important victory over a select and well appointed detachment of more than eleven hundred British Troops commanded by Lieut. Col. Tarleton, do therefore resolve,
That the thanks of the United States in Congress assembled be given to Brigadier General Morgan and the men under his command for the fortitude and good conduct displayed in the action at the Cowpens, in the State of South Carolina, on the seventeenth day of January last: That a medal of gold be presented to Brigadier-General Morgan, a medal of silver to Lieutenant-Colonel Washington, of the Cavalry, and one of silver to Lieutenant-Colonel Howard, of the Infantry of the United States, severally, with emblems and mottoes descriptive of the conduct of those officers respectively on that memorable day.
That a sword be presented to Colonel Pickens, of the Militia, in testimony of his spirited conduct in the action before mentioned.
That Major Edward Giles, aid-de-camp to Brigadier-General Morgan, have the brevet commission of a Major; and that Baron de Glabuck. who served with Brigadier-General Morgan as a Volunteer, have the brevet commission of a captain in the Army of the United States in consideration of their merit and services.
Ordered that the commanding officers in the Southern Department communicate these resolutions in general orders.

(Source: Cowpens Papers: Being Correspondence of General Morgan and the Prominent Actors, from the collection of Theodorus Bailey Myers, pp. 37-38)

Morgan to Greene, re: Cowpens (Part 2)

A List of the Commissioned Officers in the Action of 17th January, 1781
Of the Light Infantry.
John E. Howard, Lt.-Col. Commd'g.
Benj. Brooks, Captain and Brig. Major.
Captains Robert Sherwood, Delaware.
Anderson, Maryland.
Dobson, do.
Lieutenants Ewing, do.
Watkins, do.
Hanson, do.
Barnes, do.
Miller, do.
King, do.
Dyer, do.
Smith, do.
Of the Third Battalion of Dragoons.
Lieut.-Col. Washington, Virginia.
Major Richard Call, do.
Captain Berrett, do.
Lieutenant Bell, do.
Cornet Simmons, South Carolina.
Of the Maryland State Battalion.
Edward Giles, Major and Act'g. A. D. C.
Of the Virginia Militia.
Major Triplett, Ensigns Combs,
Captains Backus, McCorkill,
Tate, Wilson.
Gilmore.
The Baron de Glabuck served as volunteer in Gen. [Daniel] Morgan's family, and Mr. Andrews with Col. [William] Washington's battalion. Col. [Andrew] Pickens and all the officers in his corps behaved well; but from their having so lately joined the detachment it has been impossible to collect all their names and rank so that the General does not particularize any lest it should be doing injustice to others.
By order of Brig.-Gen. Morgan.
EDWARD GILES, A. D. C.

(Source: Cowpens Papers: Being Correspondence of General Morgan and the Prominent Actors, from the collection of Theodorus Bailey Myers, pp. 24-28)

Morgan to Greene, re: Cowpens (Part 1)

General Morgan to General Greene–
Report on the Battle of Cowpens
Camp on Cain Creek on Pedee
January 19th, 1781.

Dear Sir–The troops I have the honor to command have gained a complete victory over a detachment from the British Army commanded by Lieut.-Col. Tarleton. It happened on the 17th inst., about sunrise, at a place called the Cowpens, near Pacolet River. On the 14th, having received intelligence that the British Army were in motion, and that their movements clearly indicated the intention of dislodging me, I abandoned my encampment at Glendale Ford, and on the 16th, in the evening, took possession of a post about seven miles from Chroke on Broad River. My former position subjected me at once to the operations of Lord Cornwallis and Colonel Tarleton, and in case of a defeat my retreat might easily have been cut off. My situation at Cowpens enabled me to improve any advantage that I might gain and to provide better for my security should I be unfortunate. These reasons induced me to take this post, notwithstanding it had the appearance of a retreat. On the evening of the 16th, the enemy occupied the ground we had removed from in the morning. One hour before daylight one of my scouts informed me that they had advanced within five miles of our camp. On this information the necessary dispositions were made. From the activity of the troops we were soon prepared to receive them. The light infantry commanded by Lt.-Col. Howard, and the Virginia Militia under Major Triplett, were formed on a rising ground. The Third Regiment of Dragoons, consisting of about 80 men, under command of Lt. Col. Washington, were so posted in the rear as not to be injured by the enemy's fire, and yet to be able to charge them should an occasion offer; the Volunteers from North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia under the command of Col. Pickens were posted to guard the flanks. Major McDowal, of the North Carolina Volunteers, were posted on the right flank in front of the line 150 yards. Major Cunningham, of the Georgia Volunteers, on the left, at the same distance in front, Colonels Brannon and Thomas, of the South Carolina Volunteers, on the right of Major McDowal, and Colonels Hays and McCall of the same corps to the left of Major Cunningham. Capts. Tate and Buchanan, with the Augusta Riflemen, were to support the right of the line. The enemy drew up in one line four hundred yards in front of our advanced corps. The first battalion of the 71st Regiment was opposed to our right, the 7th to our left, the Legion Infantry to our centre, and two companies of the light troops, 100 each, on our flanks. In their front they moved two pieces of artillery, and Lieut.-Col. Tarleton, with 280 cavalry, was posted in the rear of the line. The disposition being thus made, small parties of riflemen were detached to skirmish with the enemy, on which the whole line advanced with the greatest impetuosity, shouting as they advanced. Majors McDowal and Cunningham gave them a heavy and galling fire, and retreated to the regiments intended for their support; the whole of Col. Pickens' command then kept up a fire by regiments, retreating agreeable to orders. When the enemy advanced on our lines they received a well directed and incessant fire, but their numbers being superior to ours they gained our flanks, which obliged us to change our position. We retired, in good order, about fifty paces, formed and advanced on the enemy and gave them a brisk fire, which threw them into disorder. Lieut.-Col. Howard observing this gave orders for the line to charge bayonets, which was done with such address that the enemy fled with the utmost precipitation. Lieut.-Col. Washington discovering that the cavalry were cutting down our riflemen on the left, charged them with such firmness as obliged them to retire in confusion. The enemy were entirely routed, and the pursuit continued upwards of twenty miles. Our loss was inconsiderable, not having more than twelve killed and sixty wounded. The enemy's loss was to commissioned officers and over 100 rank and file killed and 200 wounded, 29 commissioned officers and about 500 privates prisoners which fell into our hands with two pieces of artillery, two standards, 800 muskets, one travelling forge, thirty-five baggage wagons, seventy negroes and upwards of 100 dragoon horses, with all their musick. They destroyed most of the baggage which was immense. Although our success was complete we fought only 800 men and were opposed by upwards of one thousand chosen British Troops. Such was the inferiority of our numbers that our success must be attributed, under God, to the justice of our cause and the bravery of our Troops. My wishes would induce me to mention the name of every private centinel in the Corps. In justice to the brave and good conduct of the officers, I have taken the liberty to enclose you a list of their names from a conviction that you will be pleased to introduce such characters to the world. Major Giles, my aid de camp, and Captain Brooks, acting as Brigade Major, deserves to have my thanks for their assistance and behavior on this occasion. The Baron de Glabuck, who accompanies Major Giles with these despatches, behaved in such manner as to merit your attention.

I am sir, Your obedient servant,

DAN MORGAN

Lord Cornwallis to Banastre Tarleton, Wynnesborough, Jan. 2d, 1781, seven o'clock A.M.

Dear Tarleton,

I sent Haldane to you last night, to desire you would pass the Broad river, with the legion and the first battalion of the 71st, as soon as possible. If Morgan is still at Williams', or anywhere within your reach, I should wish you to push him to the utmost: I have not heard, except from M'Arthur, of his having cannon; nor would I believe it, unless he has it from good authority: It is, however, possible, and Ninety Six is of so much consequence, that no time is to be lost.

Yours sincerely,

Cornwallis

Let me know if you think that the moving the whole, or any part of my (c.) corps, can be of use.

(from: A History of the Campaigns of 1780 and 1781, in the Southern Province of North America, by Lieutenant-Colonel Tarleton, pp 244-245)

Brig. Gen. Andrew Pickens (1739-1817)

Andrew Pickens was born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, on September 19, 1739. Like many early Scots-Irish immigrants, Andrew's family moved south, traveling the Great Wagon Road in search of new land. Records show they lived first in Augusta County in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, later in the Waxhaws along the North Carolina-South Carolina border, and, eventually, in the Long Cane settlement in Abbeville County, South Carolina, bordering Georgia.
In the Long Canes, Pickens married and started a family. He not only farmed and raised cattle, he became acquainted with his Indian neighbors through a prosperous trading business. As the American Revolution approached, Pickens, as many of his Scots-Irish neighbors, became an ardent Patriot.
It was in the Long Canes, too, that he emerged as a military leader, first in expeditions against the Cherokee, who had allied with the Loyalists in hopes of retaining their lands. In 1779, Pickens would distinguish himself in a Revolutionary War battle. That year, British commander Sir Henry Clinton sent British soldiers to South Carolina and North Georgia to encourage Loyalist support. Colonel Pickens and his three-hundred man militia, in efforts to aid the Patriot cause, overtook and defeated a much larger force of 700-800 men under Colonel James Boyd at Kettle Creek in North Georgia just south of the Long Canes.
The victory at Kettle Creek slowed the recruitment of Loyalists, but by 1780, the British dominated as they took Charleston, captured the southern continental army, and swept inland from coastal Carolina. The situation looked so gloomy, that Pickens and other militia leaders surrendered to the British, and, on oath, agreed to sit out the war under British protection.
Pickens’ parole did not last. When Tory raiders destroyed much of his property and terrorized his family, Pickens gathered his militia again and resumed guerrilla activities against the British. He played a key role in defeating British Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton at the Battle of Cowpens, January 17, 1781. The victory came at a crucial time for Patriots in the South who had been repeatedly forced to retreat. Pickens, who with his militia arrived as reinforcements, urged Major General Daniel Morgan to make a stand. According to one source, Pickens offered to stand alone with his militia if necessary. Morgan was convinced to make a stand and relied heavily on Pickens’ militia in the ensuing battle. The militia, in fact, got off two shots before their planned retreat, something not done in previous battles, and re-formed to help envelop the enemy. The bravery of the militia, combined with the well-disciplined Continental troops and Colonel William Washington’s cavalry, won the day in this pivotal battle.
After the Revolution, Pickens acquired land in frontier South Carolina on the banks of the Keowee River, across from the old Cherokee town of Seneca. There, he built a house he called Hopewell and lived the life of the backcountry elite. There, too, he served as a political middleman between the Cherokees and the new American nation. Pickens had borrowed heavily from Cherokee warfare skills, and applied those skills in partisan warfare, including the victory at Cowpens. For his "spirited conduct" at Cowpens, the Continental Congress presented Pickens with a sword, and the State of South Carolina promoted him to Brigadier-General in the state militia.

(Source: "Andrew Pickens," by G. Scott Withrow, http://www.nps.gov/archive/cowp/pickens.htm)

Lt. Col. Thomas Brown & the King's Rangers

From the New Georgia Encyclopedia, "Thomas Brown (1750-1825)", by Edward J. Cashin, Augusta State University:

Commanding a regiment of loyalists known as the King's Rangers, Thomas Brown took part in several important actions in Georgia during the Revolution. ...
Born in 1750 in Whitby on the North Sea coast of England, Brown was the son of a wealthy merchant and alum manufacturer. When he was twenty-four his father outfitted a ship for him and recruited more than seventy indentured servants in Yorkshire and the Orkney Islands for a voyage to Georgia. Young Brown and his servants established Brownsborough in St. Paul Parish, above Augusta, Georgia, in November 1774. Governor James Wright appointed him a magistrate in that region.Brown's arrival coincided with the increase of Revolutionary sentiment in Georgia. He strongly opposed the efforts of the Sons of Liberty to enforce the continental association against trade with Britain. As a result the "Liberty Boys" made an example of him, almost killing him. When he recovered Brown rallied Loyalists in the South Carolina upcountry but was advised by the royal governor, Sir William Campbell, to await the arrival of British troops. Under threat of arrest by the Revolutionary government of South Carolina, Brown fled to British East Florida. He unveiled his plan for the subjugation of Georgia and Carolina to Patrick Tonyn, the governor of Florida, and he volunteered to raise a regiment of rangers who would ride with the Indians against the people on the frontier, in conjunction with the invasion of British troops along the coast. Governor Tonyn became an ardent advocate of the plan, sometimes known as the "southern strategy." Tonyn commissioned Brown as a lieutenant colonel of the Florida Rangers in June 1776.
Brown formed his regiment of rangers, recruited Indian allies, and began a campaign of harassment of the Georgia frontiers. In response Georgia staged three abortive invasions of Florida to secure the borderlands. When General Sir Henry Clinton, the British commander in chief, adopted the southern strategy in 1778, he sent an army under Lieutenant Colonel Archibald Campbell to land on the Georgia coast, march to Augusta, and there meet Indian allies. Brown's rangers joined Campbell's regulars in Savannah and marched to Augusta. On the way they attempted to rescue Loyalists in the Burke County jail; Brown was wounded in the effort.
The Indians were slow to arrive, and a contingent of Loyalists were caught by Georgia and South Carolina militia under Elijah Clarke, John Dooly, and Andrew Pickens and defeated in the Battle of Kettle Creek on February 14, 1779. The British retreated from Augusta, only to turn on the pursuing Americans in the Battle of Briar Creek, March 3, 1779. The British victory there permitted the restoration of royal government in Georgia and the return of Governor James Wright and his council.
During the French and American Siege of Savannah in October 1779 Brown and his rangers helped defend the city. Sir Henry Clinton dispatched more troops to Georgia and South Carolina and laid siege to Charleston. When that important city fell to the British on May 12, 1780, American opposition generally collapsed. Thomas Brown and his rangers, now styled the King's Rangers, garrisoned Augusta. In 1779 Brown became superintendent of the Creek and Cherokee Indians and attempted to employ them against rebel resistance according to his original plan. In September 1780, however, Brown was surprised by a raid of approximately 600 Georgians under Clarke. In the course of a four-day battle Brown was again wounded but was relieved by British reinforcements from Ninety-Six, South Carolina. Either Brown or Lieutenant Colonel John Harris Cruger, who outranked him, ordered thirteen American prisoners hanged in accordance with Lord Cornwallis's standing order regarding those who swore to lay down their arms and took them up again.
For better protection of Augusta, Brown constructed Fort Cornwallis on the grounds of St. Paul's Church, dismantling the church in the process. He withstood a siege by continentals under Lieutenant Colonel Henry "Light-Horse Harry" Lee, Georgians under Lieutenant Colonel Elijah Clarke, and South Carolinians under General Andrew Pickens. After two weeks of fierce fighting, during which Americans dug trenches near the fort and mounted a cannon on an improvised tower, Brown, together with his rangers and their Indian allies, surrendered on June 5, 1781.
Brown was taken under escort to Savannah and paroled. When he was exchanged for an American officer held by the British, he recruited another regiment of rangers and engaged in skirmishes outside Savannah with encircling American troops under General Anthony Wayne. After Savannah surrendered, in July 1782, Brown joined the thousands of refugees who went to British Florida, only to be forced to leave when that province was returned to Spain in the peace treaty of 1783. Some Loyalists migrated to Nova Scotia, but Brown and many of his rangers settled on Abaco Island in the Bahamas. Loyalists regarded Brown as a hero and elected him to the Bahamian legislature.

Archeology at Ninety Six: Williamson's Fort

Williamson's Fort of 1775 (38-GN-2)
The trenches exposed in this area were found to enclose an area 85 by 150 feet. These trenches were found to end at three places with each of these places containing "footing holes" (post holes) for three structures. The south structure had seven footing holes that formed a rectangle 15 by 30 feet, the west structure was represented by six footings forming a square 19 by 21 feet, and the north structure had four footing holes and measured 21 by 32 feet. When matched with a 1821 map that portrayed Williamson's Fort of 1775, these three structures matched those structures identified as John Savage's barns shown on the map. A fourth building was also shown on the map, but South didn't investigate this; he simply extrapolated its location. A bastion was found just west of the south barn location. Most of the fort had been intruded upon by Holmes Fort. Very little excavation was done in the ditches (which were found to be one foot wide and two feet deep). Near the center of the area of Williamson's Fort, a rectangular pit was found measuring 3.8 by 8 feet, and 2 feet deep; thought to be a possible burial, there was no evidence of a body. A few feet to the north of the south barn, a larger shallow feature containing a two by six feet burial pit was found [pictured]. This pit contained human remains, a large pocket knife (at the hip), large brass coat buttons (near the center of the body), pewter buttons (near the rib cage), and brass wire eyes (near the ankles) (South 1972:30). It is possible that these are the remains of James Birmingham of the Long Cane Militia, who was the sole fatality in the brief conflict at the fort between Loyalists and Patriots in 1775.

(info: "A Research Design for Archeological Investigations at Ninety Six National Historic Site," SEAC 1996, by Guy Prentice)

The Siege of Williamson's Fort

From South Carolina Revolutionary Battles: Part I, Institute for Southern Studies, University of South Carolina:

In the final days of October [1775], the Council of Safety had dispatched a wagon load of ammunition as a present for the Cherokees. Patrick Cunningham's band of Tories had intercepted the shipment at Mine Creek, in present Saluda County, and had taken possession of it. If the Patriots were apprehensive that the Indians might side with the King's men in this struggle, the Loyalists were equally suspicious of the Patriots' motives in sending them ammunition. Before long, both factions were again massing troops.
The conflict finally came on November 19-21 at Ninety Six. The Patriot army under Major Andrew Williamson and Major James Mayson hastily erected a stockade fort at Savage's old field, the plantation of John Savage, some distance west of the court house town. They were invested by a Loyalist force three times their number, commanded by Major Joseph Robinson and Captain Patrick Cunningham. Thus commenced the siege of Williamson's Fort not to be confused with William's Fort or Williamson's Plantation, which will be mentioned later. During the course of the fighting, both sides sustained a number of casualties, and James Birmingham became the first South Carolina Patriot to die in the cause of Liberty. The affair ended in a truce on the evening of the 21st.

Gen. Lord Charles Cornwallis (1738-1805)

Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis, is most remembered as one of the primary British generals in the American Revolutionary War. His 1781 defeat by a combined American-French force at the Siege of Yorktown is generally considered the end of the War, as the bulk of British troops had surrendered with Cornwallis, although minor skirmishes continued for another two years.

Cornwallis was educated at Eton College—where he received an injury to his eye by an accidental blow at hockey from Shute Barrington, afterwards Bishop of Durham—and Clare College, Cambridge. He obtained his first commission as Ensign in the 1st Foot Guards on December 8, 1757. His military education then commenced, and after travelling on the continent with a Prussian officer, Captain de Roguin, Lord Brome, as he was then known, studied at the military academy of Turin. He also became a Member of Parliament in January 1760, entering the House of Commons for the village of Wye in Kent. He succeeded his father as 2nd Earl Cornwallis in 1762.

Throughout the Seven Years' War, Lord Cornwallis served four terms in different posts in Germany, interspersed with trips home. In 1758, he served as a staff officer to Lord Granby. A year later, he participated at the Battle of Minden. After the battle, he purchased a captaincy in the 85th Regiment of Foot. In 1761, he served with the 11th Foot and was promoted to Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel. He led his regiment in the Battle of Villinghausen on July 15-July 16, 1761, and was noted for his gallantry. He became colonel of the 33rd Regiment of Foot in 1766.

During the 1760s and early 1770s, Cornwallis regularly spoke out against the repressive tax policies that Britain was imposing on its American colonies. However, his sympathy did not extend to support for independence and he joined British forces in America in August 1776.

Cornwallis saw action in most of the major campaigns of the American Revolutionary War. He served with William Howe on Long Island in the late summer of 1776, then assisted in the pursuit of George Washington across New Jersey. He was present at the American victories at Trenton and Princeton, and, in September 1777, the British triumph at Brandywine. Cornwallis was impatient with Howe’s seeming lack of initiative and was later similarly critical of Sir Henry Clinton. In frustration, Cornwallis resigned his commission, but his resignation was not accepted.

In 1778 Cornwallis was named second in command under Clinton and, in 1780, he assisted in opening a renewed effort in the American South. He won a key victory at Camden over Horatio Gates in June 1780, but was forced to retreat after his army's Pyrrhic victory in the March 1781 Battle of Guilford Court House. They subsequently marched north through North Carolina into Virginia, where the forces of General Washington and the French fleet compelled his surrender at Yorktown in October 1781.

The defeat at Yorktown did not destroy Cornwallis' career. In 1786, he was appointed governor-general of India, where he brought important reforms to the civil service and the judiciary. He also instituted a major land reform and led military campaigns against native uprisings. In 1792, he was made a marquess for his service in India. In 1798, Cornwallis became viceroy and commander-in-chief in Ireland. He won some measure of respect from both Roman Catholics and Protestants for his sincerity and dedication. Other contributions included quelling a rebellion in 1798 and thwarting a French invasion. He supported the Act of Union in 1801, which joined the British and Irish in Parliament, but resigned when the king failed to guarantee political rights for Catholics. Cornwallis served as minister plenipotentiary during the negotiation of the Treaty of Amiens (1802), which brought a cessation in the Napoleonic Wars.

In 1805, Cornwallis returned to India as governor-general, but died shortly after his arrival.

(info: Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornwallis; Charles Cornwallis, http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1304.html)

Cornwallis' "Hunting Leopard"

"We have said that Cornwallis had subordinates who were foot, and hand, and staff, and sword to him. Tarleton was his hunting leopard, glossy, beautifully mottled, but swift and fell––when roused by resistance, ferocious. Even this does not give an adequate idea of the velocity of his movements. He was the falcon, which, when unhooded and cast off, darts with arrowy swiftness on its prey. Few were the commanders opposed to him whom he did not at one time or another surprise––and among them were Colonel Washington, Sumpter, and some others––the very men more accustomed than all others in the American army to study and practise this line of soldiership. Tarleton was a man of imposing, and, when necessary, dignified manners––his conversation that of a soldier and well bred man of the world. There was not an appearance of bloodthirstiness about him, and he knew how to be studiously courteous to a foe. We cannot convince ourselves that he was cruel by nature, or took any pleasure in the atrocities committed by his band. We take him to have been one of those smooth, hard, unfeeling men, often met with, who have no positive cruelty of disposition, no brutalized taste for mere blood or crime, but who are not easily overcome by human distress––who, with the decisive promptitude of their energetic natures, do what they regard as necessary to their end with little ceremony or compunction––who, as principals, would not perhaps commit a gratuitous crime, but who, as subordinates, would unhesitatingly wade through seas of blood to obey the very letter of their orders."

––Henry S. Randall, in The Life of Thomas Jefferson, pub. New York: Derby & Jackson, 1858

Blackstock's, According to Tarleton

From Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton's, A History of the Campaigns of 1780 and 1781, in the Southern Provinces of North America, 1787:

On the evening of the 18th, Tarleton obtained information, that General Sumter, with upwards of one thousand men, was moving towards Williams' house, a post occupied by friendly militia, fifteen miles from Ninety Six.At daybreak next morning the light troops directed their course for Indian Creek, marched all day with great diligence, and encamped at night, with secrecy and precaution, near the Enoree River.
Another day's movement was intended up the banks of that river, which, if completed without discovery, would, perhaps, give an opportunity of destroying General Sumter's corps by surprise; or certainly would prevent his accomplishing a retreat without the risk of an action.
This encouraging hope was frustrated in the evening by the desertion of a soldier of the 63rd, and the American commander at twelve o'clock at night obtained intelligence of his danger.
Tarleton pursued his march at dawn, and before ten o'clock in the morning had information of the retreat of General Sumter:
He continued his route to a ford upon the Enoree, where he expected to gain farther intelligence, or perhaps meet the Americans.
On his arrival near that place, he found that the advanced guard and main body of the enemy had passed the river near two hours, and, that a detachment to cover the rear was waiting the return of a patrole:
The advanced guard of the British dragoons charged this body, and defeated them with considerable slaughter.
From prisoners it was learned, that the sudden movement of the Americans was owing to the treachery of the deserter, by whose information General Sumter had fortunately escaped an unexpected attack, and had now the option to fight or retire.
Though greatly superior in number, he did not wait the approach of the British, but by a rapid march endeavoured to cross the rivers in his rear; beyond which, if pressed to extremity, he could disband his followers in the woods, and without great detriment assemble them again at an appointed quarter to the northward of the Pacolet River.
The march already made by the British infantry, he imagined must soon render them unable to keep up with the cavalry; which circumstance, he flattered himself, would impede the advance of Lieutenant Colonel Tarleton, or, at the worst, produce only a partial engagement.
Influenced by such reflections, he continued an indefatigable march, which was followed without intermission by the British.
Tarleton, unwilling to divide his corps, and risk an action against a great superiority with his dragoons and the 63rd, pressed forward his light and legion infantry, and three pounder, in a compact body, till four o'clock in the afternoon; at which time it became evident, that the enemy would have an opportunity of passing unmolested the Tyger River before dark, if he did not alter his disposition:
He therefore left his legion and light infantry, who had made meritorious exertions during the whole day, to march on at their own pace, whilst he made a rapid pursuit with one hundred and seventy cavalry of the legion, and eighty mounted men of the 63rd.
Before five o'clock the advanced guard charged a detachment of the Americans, who gave ground after some loss, and retreated to the main body.
Sumter now discovered, that he could not with safety immediately attempt to pass the Tyger, and that the ground which he possessed on its banks gave him a favourable opportunity to resist the efforts of the cavalry.
Regular information of his being pressed at this period by the mounted part of Tarleton's corps had been communicated to him; which, without such report, he might have calculated by the distance and duration of the movement:
A woman on horseback had viewed the line of march from a wood, and, by a nearer road, had given intelligence that the British were approaching without infantry or cannon.
Decide by these considerations, the American commander prepared for action, and made a judicious disposition of his force:
He posted the center of his troops in some houses and out-houses, composed of logs, and situated on the middle of an eminence; he extended his right along some rails, which were flanked by an inaccessible mountain; and he distributed his left on a rugged piece of ground that was covered by a bend of the river; a small branch of water ran in front of the whole rising ground, which was called Blackstock's Hill:
The great road to the ford across the river passed through the center of the Americans, and close to the doors of houses where the main body were stationed.
The whole position was visible, owing to the elevation of the ground, and this formidable appearance made Tarleton halt upon the opposite height, where he intended to remain quiet till his infantry and three pounder arrived:
To encourage the enemy to do the same, he dismounted the 63rd to take post, and part of the cavalry to ease their horses.
Sumpter observing this operation, ordered a body of four hundred Americans to advance, and attack the 63rd in front, whilst another party approached the dragoons in flank.
A heavy fire and sharp conflict ensued: The 63d charged with fixed bayonets, and drove the enemy back; and a troop of cavalry, under Lieutenant Skinner, bravely repulsed the detachment which threatened the flank.
The ardour of the 63rd carried them too far, and exposed them to a considerable fire from the buildings and the mountain.
Though the undertaking appeared hazardous, Lieutenant Colonel Tarleton determined to charge the enemy's center with a column of dragoons, in order to cover the 63rd, whose situation was now become dangerous.
The attack was conducted with great celerity, and was attended with immediate success.
The cavalry soon reached the houses, and broke the Americans, who from that instant began to disperse: The 63rd immediately rallied, and darkness put an end to the engagement.
A pursuit across a river, with a few troops of cavalry, and a small body of infantry, was not advisable in the night; a position was therefore taken adjoining to the field of battle, to wait the arrival of the light and legion infantry.
An express was sent to acquaint Earl Cornwallis with the success of his troops, and patroles were dispatched over the river at dawn, to discover if any part of the enemy remained in a body:
Intelligence was soon brought across the Tyger, that the corps was entirely dispersed, except a party of one hundred, who remained in a compact state, in order to escort General Sumpter, who was wounded in the action.
This news, and some rumours of approaching reinforcements, impelled Lieutenant Colonel Tarleton to follow the late advantage, by pursuing the fugitives; which would prevent their rallying to assist their friends, if the report was true concerning their advance.
Accordingly, leaving a guard to protect the wounded, he again commenced his march:
The men who had remained with their general since his misfortune, upon hearing of the approach of the British, placed him in a litter between two horses, and dispersed through the woods.
After a toilsome pursuit of three days, in which a few stragglers were secured, intelligence was obtained that General Sumpter had been conducted across the country by five faithful adherents, till he was removed out of danger.
Three of the enemy's colonels fell in the action, and General Sumter received a severe wound in the shoulder. Upwards of one hundred Americans were killed and wounded, and fifty were made prisoners.
On the side of the British, Lieutenants Gibson and Cope, of the 63rd, were killed; and Lieutenant Money, aide-de-camp to Earl Cornwallis, who had commanded the detachment of mounted infantry, with great gallantry, was mortally wounded:
Another officer of the 63rd, and two subalterns of the British legion, were likewise wounded. The former corps had also thirty, and the latter fifteen, non-commissioned officers and men, with thirty horses, killed and wounded.
General Sumter made proper use of the good fortune which had manifested itself in his favour previous to the action; and if he had waited in his strong position at Blackstock's till dark, without advancing a corps to attack the 63rd, and the cavalry, he might have withdrawn, in all probability, without his adversaries' knowledge.
But, he would have been completely protected in the operation, even if they had notice of his intention; owing to the superiority of his numbers, and the advantages he derived from the situation of the ground, and the river; which could not be approached, after dark, by the British, till the light and legion infantry arrived; previous to which event, the rear guard of the Americans might certainly have passed the Tyger.
The light troops made very great exertions, to bring General Sumter to action, and the hazard incurred by the cavalry, and 63rd, was compensated by the complete dispersion of the enemy.

Plan of the Siege of Charleston

(click image to enlarge)

The Battle of Kettle Creek

Kettle Creek flows into the Little River near the Tyrone community in Wilkes County. It likely takes its name from a local fish trap, called a kittle.

During the American Revolution several incidents occurred along its banks. The South Carolina militia established a station there in 1776; an Indian attack on Robert McNabb's Fort in November 1778 resulted in McNabb's death; and in the last days of the Revolution, the rebel partisan and horse thief Josiah Dunn met his death in a skirmish nearby.

The most important event to occur at Kettle Creek, however, took place on Sunday, February 14, 1779. On that morning 600 American supporters of the British cause, popularly known as Loyalists or Tories, encamped atop a hill in a bend of the creek. They were following an established trail to the nearby Quaker settlement of Wrightsborough en route to Augusta. Aside from the defensive qualities of the position, the hill offered the new arrivals food in the form of cattle penned there.

The leader of this expedition, James Boyd, an Irishman from Raeburn Creek, South Carolina, had traveled to Georgia with a British invasion force from New York. He carried an open commission (as a colonel) to recruit southerners for the British military from settlements behind the rebel lines. Boyd left Savannah sometime after January 20, 1779, and reached Wrightsborough, deep within the Georgia backcountry, by the 24th, looking for guides to the South Carolina frontier. Within a week he established a camp near present-day Spartanburg, South Carolina. With 350 recruits he set out for Augusta on February 5. During their march south along the Indian frontier, Boyd and his followers were joined by 250 North Carolinians under the command of John Moore.

The Loyalists were ineffectively pursued by small groups of rebel militiamen. Boyd's command captured Fort Independence and the outpost at Broad Mouth Creek in South Carolina, but they declined to attack the garrison of McGowan's Blockhouse on the Cherokee Ford of the Savannah River. The Loyalists crossed the river further north at Vann's Creek on February 11. The garrison of Cherokee Ford, with reinforcements, attacked Boyd's men at the crossing but were repulsed. As Boyd and his men camped at Kettle Creek on February 14, he dispatched his prisoners to Augusta. He could not know that the British troops sent there to rendezvous with him had that morning begun a withdrawal toward Savannah.

At the same time 340 South Carolina and Georgia militiamen, under Colonel Andrew Pickens of South Carolina and Colonel John Dooly and Lieutenant Colonel Elijah Clarke of Georgia, were preparing to attack Boyd's camp at Kettle Creek. They had been besieging Loyalist horsemen at Robert Carr's Fort on nearby Beaverdam Creek when they abandoned their prey to intercept Boyd's party. Four days of pursuit brought them almost to where they had started.

Pickens led his 200 men in a direct assault on the rocky hill on Kettle Creek, while Dooly and Clarke attacked the camp across the creek on the left and right respectively. Pickens's advance guard disobeyed orders and fired on the Loyalist sentries, announcing the attack. Boyd led his men in ambushing Pickens's troops while Dooly's and Clarke's men were entangled in the swamp.

Boyd fell mortally wounded, shot by a party of Georgia militiamen who had become lost and found themselves in the Loyalist camp. With their leader down, the Loyalists panicked and were driven across the creek. Boyd and nineteen of his men were killed, and twenty-two others were taken prisoner. Pickens and Dooly lost seven men, and fifteen were wounded. Counting the Loyalists who went home and later surrendered to local authorities, about 150 of Boyd's men were eventually taken prisoner. They were held at Augusta and later at Ninety Six, South Carolina. Five of their number at Ninety Six and two others in North Carolina were eventually hanged.

Two hundred and seventy of Boyd's command escaped the Battle of Kettle Creek and safely reached the British army. They were formed into the North Carolina Royal Volunteers under John Moore and the South Carolina Royal Volunteers (later the second battalion of the South Carolina Royalists Regiment). Both units virtually disappeared by the summer of 1779 because of desertions and transfers.

The Battle of Kettle Creek provided the rebel cause with a victory, however small, in the midst of a string of much larger defeats. The British had expected thousands of loyal southerners to rally to their flag and restore the whole South to the king. However, Boyd proved only able to assemble 600 men, some of whom were criminals in flight. Other men who traveled with him were allegedly coerced into joining under threats to their lives and property.

After Kettle Creek, British leaders should have realized that practical Loyalist military support in the South, if it ever existed, had disappeared.

(from: New Georgia Encyclopedia, "Battle of Kettle Creek", by Robert Scott Davis Jr., Wallace State College, Hanceville, Alabama; http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-1088)

Kettle Creek, 14 February 1779

(click image to enlarge)

(Source: Georgians in the Revolution: At Kettle Creek and Burke County, by R. S. Davis Jr., Easley, S.C.: Southern Historical Press, 1986)

Gen. Sir Henry Clinton & the Southern Theatre

In March 1775, King George III dispatched reinforcements to the American colonies under General Sir Henry Clinton and fellow Major-Generals William Howe and John Burgoyne to strengthen the British position in Boston. On 17 June, with the British army having been besieged in Boston since April, Clinton was one of the British field commanders in the Battle of Bunker Hill. This assault to drive the rebels from the heights north of Boston harbor was successful, but only at the heavy cost of over 1,000 British casualties.
In January 1776, Clinton was sent south with a small fleet and 1,500 men to assess military opportunities in the Carolinas. In June, Clinton led a naval assault on Fort Sullivan at Charleston, South Carolina, successfully defended by Colonel William Moultrie. It was a humiliating failure for Clinton. The British did not attempt to renew the battle to try to take the fort again, and by mid-July the fleet withdrew northward. Clinton and his twenty-five ships rejoined the main fleet to participate in General Howe's August 1776 assault on New York City.
In May of 1778, after the British disaster of the Saratoga Campaign, Clinton replaced Howe as Commander-in-Chief for North America. He assumed command in Philadelphia. France had by this time overtly entered the war on the American side, and because of this Clinton was ordered by his government to send 5,000 of his troops to the Caribbean, which forced him to withdraw from Philadelphia and retreat to New York. Having concentrated his forces, for a time he pursued a policy of making mere forays from there. Before year's end, however, Clinton regained the initiative for the British and sent an expedition south to strike at Georgia. This force took Savannah in December, and by early 1779 it had gained control of the hinterland.
The Georgia campaign presumed Loyalist support would appear as soon as redcoats were present in strength. The notion that the South was more likely to be friendly to British forces had been entertained by George Germain, the American Secretary, for much of the war to date, a notion fed by Loyalist exiles in London. Contrary to expectations, the wave of public support for the arrival of British troops never materialized, leaving Clinton and his subordinates isolated. For much of the remainder of the war in the South, British commanders aimed at mobilizing Loyalist support, but results were never as successful as they had anticipated.
By late 1779 Clinton assembled a force for the next step in his strategy, an invasion of South Carolina. he took personal command of this campaign, and a force with 14,000 men sailed south from New York at the end of the year. By early 1780, Clinton lay siege to Charleston. In May, together with Admiral Mariot Arbuthnot, he forced the surrender of the city, with its garrison of 5,000. It was during the siege and capture of Charleston that Clinton's inability to cooperate with equal ranking officers began to become more evident. Arbuthnot and Clinton did not work well together, and the feud would last until the end of the war with disastrous results for the British high command.
Clinton subsequently returned north, leaving 8,000 British troops in the southern theatre under the command of General Cornwallis, his second-in-command. From New York, he continued to oversee and take an active interest in the Southern campaign, as evidenced in his correspondence with Cornwallis. However, as the campaign progressed, he grew further and further away from his subordinate. As the campaign drew to a close, the correspondence became more and more acrimonious.
In 1782, after being replaced as Commander-in-Chief by Sir Guy Carleton, Sir Henry Clinton returned to England.

(Source: Wikipedia)

Southern Theatre Field of Battle, 1780

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"A New and Accurate Map of North Carolina, and Part of South Carolina, with the Field of Battle between Earl Cornwallis and General Gates." (1780)

The First Declaration of Independence?

THE MECKLENBURG DECLARATION.
20 May 1775

Resolved, 1st. That whosoever directly or indirectly abetted, or in any way, form, or manner, countenanced the unchartered and dangerous invasion of our rights, as claimed by Great Britain, is an enemy to this country, to America, and to the inherent and unalienable rights of man.

Resolved, 2d. That we, the citizens of Mecklenburg county, do hereby dissolve the political bonds which have connected us with the mother country, and hereby absolve ourselves from all allegiance to the British crown, and abjure all political connection, contract, or association with that nation, who have wantonly trampled on our rights and liberties, and inhumanly shed the blood of American Patriots at Lexington.

Resolved, 3d. That we do hereby declare ourselves a free and independent people; are, and of right ought to be, a sovereign and self-governing association, under the control of no power, other than that of our God, and the General Government of the Congress:--to the maintenance of which independence, we solemnly pledge to each other, our mutual co-operation, our lives, our fortunes, and our most sacred honor.

Resolved, 4th. That as we acknowledge the existence and control of no law, nor legal office, civil or military, within this county; we do hereby ordain and adopt, as a rule of life, all, each, and every of our former laws; wherein, nevertheless, the crown of Great Britain never can be considered as holding rights, privileges, immunities, or authority therein.

Resolved, 5th. That it is further decreed, that all, each, and every military officer in this county is hereby retained in his former command and authority, he acting conformably to these regulations. And that every member present of this delegation shall henceforth be a civil officer, viz.: a Justice of the Peace, in the character of a committee man, to issue process, hear and determine all matters of controversy, according to said adopted laws; and to preserve peace, union, and harmony in said county; and to use every exertion to spread the love of country and fire of freedom throughout America, until a general organized government be established in this province.

signers:
Abraham Alexander, Chairman
John McKnitt Alexander, Secretary
Ephraim Brevard, Clerk
Adam Alexander, Charles Alexander, Ezra Alexander, Hezekiah Alexander, Waightstill Avery, Hezekiah J. Balch, Richard Barry, John Davidson, Henry Downs, John Flennekin, John Foard, William Graham, James Harris, Richard Harris, Robert Irwin, William Kennon, Matthew McClure, Neil Morrison, Benjamin Patton, John Phifer, Thomas Polk, John Queary, David Reese, Zaccheus Wilson

Col. Benjamin Cleveland (1738-1806)

Benjamin Cleveland was born 28 May 1738 in Orange County, Virginia, the son of John and Elizabeth Cleveland. He moved to what later became Wilkes County, North Carolina in 1769. He built his estate, called "Roundabout," near what is today Ronda, North Carolina in eastern Wilkes County.
Cleveland was very active in the early history of Wilkes County, North Carolina--at various times, he worked as a hunter, trapper, farmer, carpenter, and surveyor. By the time the American Revolution began in 1775, he was probably the wealthiest and most prominent citizen in Wilkes. A large, bulky man, he earned an early nickname from his size and his estate; he was called "Old Roundabout."
At the beginning of the war he was appointed a Colonel in the North Carolina militia. A fierce believer in the patriot cause, Cleveland became known as the "Terror of the Tories" for his treatment of pro-British colonists. In 1779 two Tories raided and looted the home of George Wilfong, a patriot farmer and friend of Cleveland. The tories used Wilfong's clothesline to chase away his horses. The tories were captured by Cleveland's militia and brought before him for judgement; he had them hanged from an oak tree using the same clothesline they had stolen from Wilfong. Soon a small group of tories led by a captain in the Tory militia tried to kidnap Cleveland, but their attempt was foiled. They were captured by Cleveland, then hanged from the same oak tree. The tree became known as the "Tory Oak" and stood for many years as an historic landmark behind the old Wilkes County courthouse (now the Wilkes Historical Museum).
Benjamin Cleveland played a key role in the Battle of Kings Mountain. According to legend, he had climbed atop Rendezvous Mountain in Wilkes County and blown his powder horn to summon over 200 Wilkes County militiamen to fight in the battle. Cleveland led his men to the battlefield, and was one of the primary American commanders in the battle. During the battle Cleveland's horse was killed, and he subsequently commandeered British Major Patrick Ferguson's horse. Ferguson had been shot off his mount and killed earlier in the fight. After the battle, Cleveland claimed Ferguson's white stallion as a "war prize", and rode it home to Roundabout. Following the war, Cleveland relocated to the South Carolina frontier and became a commissioner in the Pendleton District. He died at his home in Oconee County, South Carolina 15 October 1806.

(from: Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Cleveland)

Sumter Rides (in the Nick of Time)

from The Road to Guilford Courthouse, by John Buchanan, ©1997, John Wiley & Sons, pp. 120-121:

In September 1778, with South Carolina no longer in immediate danger from either the British or the Cherokee, Thomas Sumter resigned his commission and turned to his private affairs. He remained at Great Savannah with his family during the fighting between Benjamin Lincoln and Prevost around Charleston and the surrender of the city to the British. Then Sumter removed with his family to their summer home farther up country in the High Hills of Santee. But the war caught up with him there, too, and along with thousands of other men in the Carolinas he was faced with a critical decision.
On 28 May 1780 his son Tom was out riding when a neighbor galloped up with news that Banastre Tarleton and the British Legion were heading their way. It was Tarleton's famous dash to the Waxhaws in pursuit of Buford. Young Tom Sumter rode home to warn his father. From his immediate reaction, it appears that Thomas Sumter had known for some time precisely what he would do at such a time. While Soldier Tom, his African body servant, saddled their horses, Sumter donned his old regimentals. He kissed his wife and son goodbye, and then he and Soldier Tom rode off to war. He had no rank, no men, no prospects. Thomas Sumter, Jr., wrote to his own son many years later: "He left us on the 28th of May, 1780, only a few hours before Tarleton's legion passed us in pursuit of Buford."
It was well that he left quickly. The British knew of him, and Tarleton sent Captain Charles Campbell to bring him in. Mary Sumter was sitting in a chair inside her home. The dragoons of the Legion picked up the chair and carried her in it outside and set it on the lawn. Then they looted the house and the smokehouse. Then they set the house on fire. Gathered in a small group on the lawn, Mary Sumter, and her son Tom, and the house servants watched the house burn. The story is told that a Legion dragoon with a guilty conscience slipped a smoked ham under her chair.