History of the American Revolution
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 …
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 Hammond’s Store, American victory, December 30, 1780 (some sources give Nov. 29th), was one of the more brutal and savage encounters of the war. Tory loyalists, mainly from Georgia, were raiding patriot settlements in South Carolina when Continental dragoons with mounted militia, under the commanded of Colonel William Washington, pursued and attacked. …
The Battle of Nelson’s Ferry (also called Great Savannah), August 20, 1780, was Colonel Francis Marion’s (1732-1795) first battle as a partisan militia leader. It was also the first of many victories for the former Lt. Colonel of Continental troops. A man of small stature, his cautious nature combined with bold and daring aggressive attacks …
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 …
“…we were a set of men acting entirely on our own footing, without the promise or expectation of pay.” –Militiaman Sixteen-year-old James Potter Collins Back country southern militiamen were cut from a far different mold than their northern counterparts. The war in the north, by design, was one of organized armies that marched, positioned along …
July 30, 1780. British Partisan Victory. A force of approximately 600 militia under Colonel Thomas Sumter attacked a fortified British outpost garrisoned by around 300 partisan regular troops and loyalist militia under Lt. Colonel George Turnbull. This was the first battle under the leadership of celebrated rebel leader Thomas Sumter since the fall of Charleston, …
July 30, 1780: American Victory. One week prior to the main Battle of Hanging Rock, a rebel reconnaissance mission surprised and butchered a loyalist force within view of a large British garrison. In July, 1780, militiamen of North and South Carolina flocked to the patriot banner of rebel leader Colonel Thomas Sumter after the July …