Non-Profit Dedicated to Historical Education of the American Revolution and the Colonial Period
The important thing to remember about the Ferguson Rifle is that it was not invented by Patrick Ferguson. The breechloading rifle that historians, novelists, gun enthusiasts, and countless internet articles state was born of the creative mind of Major Patrick Ferguson (1744 – 1780), had been around since the early stages of firearms. Breechloading matchlocks …
I highly recommend Mr. Kidder’s most recent text Defending Fort Stanwix. His research is impeccable; the story vivid and captivating. He delves beyond facts to present a frontier war with terrors beyond modern comprehension. It is Mr. Kidder’s focus on humanity and the sacrifices taken by those thrust into a world spiraling beyond control that …
The Second Battle of Cedar Springs, also known as the Battle of Wofford’s Iron Works, or Battle of Peach Trees, August 8, 1780, [some accounts give the 7th with one stating it occurred a month later] is best described as a draw. The American militia, 600 strong under Colonels Isaac Shelby of North Carolina and …
The Battle of Earle’s Ford and Fort Prince, South Carolina, July 15, 1780, [some sources state the 14th while others list the 17th] were both American victories that involved the same belligerents. At Earle’s Ford on the Pacolet River, just south of the North Carolina border, a British force of Provincial Dragoons and South Carolina …
The Battle of Beattie’s Hill, March 23, 1781, was an American victory. It pitted 180 mounted Georgia and South Carolina patriot militia against reportedly 90 British loyalists that included 75 Partisan Dragoons with a company of mounted light infantry; New Jersey Volunteers – all trained and equipped as British Regulars. So too, among the loyalists …
Long Canes, December 12, 1780, was a major skirmish resulting in a patriot loss. It occurred twenty-eight miles southwest of British held Fort Ninety-Six at Cambridge, South Carolina in the Long Canes Settlement. An after-action raid by British partisan regulars plundered Andrew Pickens home and molested his family. This, plus a month’s confinement at Fort …
Colonel Thomas Brown was a fierce partisan fighter. An able leader, he was always in the thick of battle, deploying his men skillfully and encouraging them to fight on. Passionate to the cause, he would have been at the forefront of America’s Revolutionary heroes, had he been a patriot; but he was not. Brown was …
Colonel Elijah Clarke, b. December 10, 1736 (some give 1733 & 1742) – December 15, 1799, was one of the unsung heroes of the American Revolution. Fierce and determined in battle, the Georgian militia leader was always in the thick of the fight, having received multiple wounds throughout the war; two life threatening. From Florida …
Captain Robert Henry Kirkwood (1756-1791) was one of most competent American field officers of the American Revolution. He fought in almost every major battle including countless skirmishes. Always in the thick of the hardest fighting, like a stone wall, his men often held the line when other regiments folded. Or charged with bayonet at the …
From November 7 – 14, 1780, in the lowlands of South Carolina, along the Santee River, a cat and mouse game played out between two wily and deadly opponents; rebel leader Colonel Francis Marion and British dragoon commander Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton. What occurred over the course of that week could have been drafted by …
The Battle of Blackstocks, November 20, 1780, was one of the more crucial battles of the southern war and important American victory. Yet the battle has been lost to history, overshadowed by the later Battle of Cowpens (January 17, 1781). But upon study, Blackstocks provides an insight, if not a preview, of why British Lt. …
The Battle of Fishdam (also Fish Dam)Ford, November 9, 1780, was a comeback victory for American General Thomas Sumter. His band of South Carolina militiamen withstood an assault by regular British troops while inflicting three times as many casualties and forcing the enemy to withdraw. The British were led by the despised Major James Wemyss …
The Battle of Charlotte (September 26, 1780) deservedly marked its place in the annuals of the American Revolution. A small rebel militia, led by able-bodied commander, Colonel William Richardson Davie, defiantly stood firm and faced British General Lord Charles Cornwallis’ army, sixteen times greater than their number. After fending off three assaults and driving the …
Major James Wemyss, pronounced ‘Weems’ (1748-1833), of the 63rd Regiment of Foot had been labeled the second most hated British officer of the American Revolution, behind Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton; the dragoon commander who waged a brutal war in the south on anyone who would advance his ego and career. But for Wemyss, one who …
The Battle of Hanging Rock, South Carolina, August 6, 1780, was fought in present day Lancaster County south of Heath Springs. It was a patriot victory between rebel militia (North and South Carolina) that included Catawba Native Americans against a British outpost garrisoned by Tory regulars, mounted infantry of Banastre Tarleton’s Legion (Tarleton was not …