20 July 2008

Victory in Carolina

Ok, so a small number of miles east of Fort Watson is another important site. This one is Eutaw Springs, the last battle of the Revolution in South Carolina. After the battle of Hobkirk's Hill, General Greene took his army to the last British outpost in South Carolina, Ninety-Six, in the western part of the state. After an unsucesful siege attempt, Greene eventually left, but, like Camden, Ninety-Six was very shortly abandoned, and the British commander, Lord Rawdon, left. Greene, with greater hopes of a victory against the new British commander, Lt Col Stuart. On September 8, 1781, Stuart, despite warnings that the Americans were nearby, sent men forward to gather sweet potatoes. These men were captured, with only a small escort escaping to warn their commander. Stuart, realizing how critical his position was, formed a line with his 1800 men across the road the Americans were travelling on. Along with this, 300 men under Major Marjoribanks were slightly ahead of the right flank, holding the line at the spring itself. His cavalry held the left flank, and three canon were placed in the middle. A nearby plantation home was specified as a last resort defense, should the Americans break through. Greene set up his attacking army of around 2,000 similar to the defense at Cowpens and Guilford Courthouse. his front line consisted of militia from North and South Carolina, the second line was Continentals from Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina, with cavalry under "Light Horse Harry" Lee on the right. The final line was Continentals from Delaware with cavalry under William Washington.

Following an exchange of canon shots, the line of militia came forward, but fell back in the face of the British. The British left rushed forward, but fell apart after a volley and bayonet charge by the regulars of the second American line. Now in disarray, the British line unraveled from left to right in quik retreat. Only Marjoribank's men stood their ground, with standing an attack by Washington's cavalry, as well as infantry on their left flank. The Americans then rushed into the British camp, plundering the tents and stores. Several were killed from the windows of the plantation where some of the British had retreated. Greene ordered his cavalry into the camp in order to attempt to rally his troops, but Stuart, seeing this, ordered his own cavalry to counter the attempt.
Marjoribanks then used the American disorder to his advantage, ordering his troops to capture the American canon, then attack the drunk and unruly Americans themselves. Both armies, now in complete confusion, withdrew from the field, each having lost around 600 men. Stuart and the British withdrew to Charleston, but Marjoribanks dies only a month after the battle that he turned the tide of. The war in South Carolina was over.
The grave of Major Marjoribanks

The only other marked grave on the field, though some sources say there are others. The grave is very worn, but it is the grave of Paul Stroman. Information on the grave can be found here and his family tree can be found here.

Some of the Santee Limestone on the edge of the battlefield and lake Marion.

The nearby town, namesake for the spring.

Taking Back Carolina

Ok, this is the Santee Indian Mound, site of the British Fort Watson. The site is located in the Santee Wildlife refuge, south of Sumter, South Carolina. The Refuge was created in 1941 to create habitat for wildlife disturbed by the creation of the Santee-Cooper Hydroelectric Project (dam). It has four units all along the northern shore of Lake Marion, the westernmost unit being the home of the mound. The mound was built by the Santee Indians, part of the Mississippian culture of the southeastern US. It is the largest ceremonial site on the coastal plain, and at least sixtenn graves have been excavated here. The Santee Indians had around 3,500 members in 1650, but were reduced to around 500 by European diseases. It is believed that the mound had structures on top, made of posts in the ground that had small branches woven between them, then covered in mud or tree bark.

By the time of the Revolution, the site was abandoned by the Santee, but new occupants now came to town. The British built a series of fortifications across South Carolina, including on the mound, taking advantage of the platform's elevation, overlooking the Santee River and the road to Charleston. A stockade was built on the mound under the direction of Col John Watson, as well as a series of ditches and abatis around the mound. On February 28, 1781, General Thomas Sumter, the "Fighting Gamecock", led a group of partisans to take the post by storm. Without artillery and with the British advantage in height, the attack was unsuccesful and costly. A second attempt was not made until April, after the battle of Guilford Courthouse. With Cornwallis no longer a threat in the state, "Light Horse Harry" Lee was assigned to aid the famed partisan Francis Marion, the "Swamp Fox", in ridding the state of the British once and for all. Fort Watson was viewed as the best place to begin the campaign, and the Americans laid siege to it. Once the British dug a protected well for water, it became obvious that the fort could hold out for a while, and a new idea was sought. This new idea came from Major Maham, one of Marion's men. His simple idea was to build a tower high enough to fire into the elevated fort. The tower, made of wood, was built outside rifle range of the fort and then rolled into an attcking position. Lt. McKay, in charge of the British fort, said, "They likewise in the afternoon brought down a wooden machine that they had built, and were busy in raising a scaffold made of rails and mold, nearly level with the top of our works for their marksmen to pick off our sentinels..... We were reduced to the disagreeable necessity of capitulating, by the cowardly and mutinous behavior of a majority of the men. Having grounded their arms and refused to defend the post any longer, not withstanding every exertion made by the officers to encourage and force them to their duty." The Americans could now advance and take the fort under cover from the tower.

In the fort's surrender, regular British troops were allowed to march to Charleston under parole, meaning they could not fight again until exchanged for American prisoners. Partisan loyalists were made prisoners. The fort was then destroyed as the Americans did not want to occupy it, and they did not want the British to retake it. The fort's fall was a significant event as it was the first in a series of attacks that destroyed or captured the British outposts throughout the state, including the battle of Hobkirk's Hill.

The Road Less Travelled

Ok, now I cover a few minor sites I found on my way south from Landsford. Here, at the Battle of Fishing Creek, General Sumter was defeated and lost 150 men very shortly after the defeat at Camden.

A dam on the Catawba River, near Lancaster, SC

Piedmont Paddlers

Ok, this is Landsford Canal State Park, just a short drive south of Charlotte. The canal was operated from 1820 to 1835, to bypass a portion of the Catawba River where it drops 36 feet over about a mile and a half, creating an area of rocky shoals and rapids. The name comes from Land's Ford, where the American and British armies crossed the river during the Revolution. Seen above is the diversion dam, which served two purposes. One was to divert enough water through the canal, and the other was to prevent boats from being swept downriver during floods.

This log cabin, known as the Simpson-Wise house, was built in the 1790's near Chester, SC. The Chester Historical Society donated it to te park and it was reconstructed in 1980.
This was the guard lock. Its purpose was to protect the canal during large flooding. The gates were normally open, except during floods. This is also where boats were hooked up to a horse or mule to pull them through the canal. the canal's waterproof clay lining could be damaged by the long poles used to help move boats down the rest of the river.
A local resident says hello. Certainly wasn't shy, was he?
One of the better preserved culverts along the canal path. The culverts were built over streams that crossed the canal to prevent damage. The stream would flow through the arch under the canal, which ran over the calvert.
Another culvert, this one was used as part of a waste weir. The weir was made as a sort of spillway to help control level in the canal, and the culvert allowed excess water to flow into the river.
Here the canal flowed through an existing mill complex owned by the family of William Richardson Davie. The mill used water power to grind grain and sawed lumber. Above is the view in the mill canal, below is the view from above.

Here is where the canal is most obvious. Also, the way that the land drops away on the opposite side shows how much the river and its bank has already dropped compared to the canal.
This is the upper lifting locks. By this point, the river had already dropped 15 feet, while the elevation of the canal was still the same. This consisted of two locks, where the boat would be enclosed by gates and the water lowered ten feet. On the hill above this lock was the Lockkeeper's House, where he could see a large portion of the canal. Another half mile down the canal is the lower lifting locks, but this is where the trail stops.
This stone arch at the lower end of the locks allowed the local road crossed the canal. This is also the road that led to Lands Ford.

The park has another distinction, having the largest known stand of Rocky Shoal Spider Lillys. These plants, with their large, white blooms, have been lost in many places due to damming and development. they require a clean, free flowing river with a rocky bottom to grow. The photo above shows the main grove of them, in a composite photo. Below is a closer view.

here, along the nature trail, you can see the rocky shoals that boats would have to go through without the canal.

Guilford Legacy

In the grand tradition of Guilford memorials, I found this veterans memorial in the adjacent Greensboro County Park.
Several signs around the memorial are like this one, with quotes from service men in America's wars.
The attractive back of the memorial. the plaque reads: "When you go home, tell them of us and say, for your tommorow, we gave our today. Inscribed on a memorial at an allied cemetery, China-Berma-India theatre."
Inside the main part of the memorial, with maps and descriptions of the conflicts of the twentieth century.

A Land of Patriots

Ok, when the battlefiel at Guilford Courthouse battlefield was set aside for preservation, the men behind it envisioned a park that went beyond the battle itself, but was a memorial to all the North Carolina patriots. As such, several monuments and artifacts have nothing to do with the battle. Those that do were covered in the battle post, the rest are covered here. Above is a powderhorn, carried by a soldier in the New York theatre.
Bayonet and canteen carried by John Ward in the war.
Musketballs from the battle of Camden, canonball from the battle of Charlotte, and two Indian weapons

One of two pistols from General William Lee Davidson, killed at Cowan's Ford.

Monument to David Schenck. When Schenck moved to Greensboro, he was surprised to find few people knew about the battle that had happened in their backyard, and that the battlefield was in a sorry state, with no markers. In October 1886, he purchased thirty acres of the battlefield, the first step towards its preservation. In March of the following year, the Guilford Battleground Company was incorporated, and Schenck became the company's president until his death in 1902.
Monument to Joseph Morehead, who became the second President of the Guilford Battle Ground Company on Schenk's death. He was most noted for the successful effort to create the Nathanael Greene monument.
On June 2, 1791, George Washington, first President of the US visited Guilford Courthouse. He had decided to visit each of the states to get a feel for the national spirit, as well as visit significant battlegrounds he had not commanded at. This was his last major stop before returning home.
Monument Row, part of the initial effort to create a "patriotic park" at Guilford. At the front of the row is the "No North No South" monument. Part of the Civil War rememberance spirit around the turn of the century, it commemorates the unity of the Colonies in the Revolution, shown by a Southern commander, Washington, leading forces in the North, and a Northern commander, Greene, leading forces in the South.

After the victory at Cowpens, Greene retreated his entire army northward, pursued by the British. He detached a group of cavalry under Col Williams to defend the rear of the army during the retreat. On February 13, a local farmer named Isaac Wright informed Williams of the British position nearby. Lighthorse Harry Lee was ordered to take Wright and a few others to scout and see if the report was true, but Wright, whose horse was worn from riding to warn them, traded horses with Lee's bugler, James Gillies. Gillies, however, forgot his pistol in his saddle and when Lee's forces intercepted the British, he became separated and was killed.
Monument to Kerenhappuch Turner who rode from her maryland home to nurse her son who had been wounded at Guilford Courthouse. By 1790 she had moved to North carolina to live with her son, James.
James Morehead came to North Carolina sometime prior to 1779 and received a commision in the Tenth North Carolina Regiment. he did not fight at Guilford, but fought at several other battles in the south.
Grave of John Daves who moved to New Bern, North Carolina in 1770, and in 1776 was appointed quartermaster of the Second North carolina Regiment. He was captured at Charleston, but exchanged and fought in the battle of Eutaw Springs in 1781. Following the war he was the collector of the port of New Bern until his death in 1804.
Jethro Sumner was originally from Virginia, but moved to North Carolina after service in the French and Indian War. He was appointed major of the Halifax Minutemen, until placed in command of a Continental unit, the Third North Carolina. This regiment fought at Brandywine, Germantown, and Monmouth before he was sent south to recruit. He was recruiting when Guilford Courthouse was fought, but rejoined the army to fight at Eutaw Springs.

Nathaniel Macon was elected to the North Carolina Legislature while serving with the local militia. Local tradition has it that Greene had to order Macon to leave the militia and join the Legislature. He later served in the US House of Representatives from 1791-1815, and the US Senate from 1815-1828. He was a staunch defender of State's Rights and rigid political economy. His monument reads:"Nathaniel Macon willed that his memorial consist only of rude stones. Here they are."
The most sought after monument and graves in the park: The signers monument. here are buried two of North Carolina's signers of the Declaration of Independence, William Hooper and John Penn. Hooper was born in Boston, but moved to Wilmington, NC in 1765. He served with governor Tryon's militia who stopped the Regulator movement at Alamance in 1771. From 1774-1777 he was head of North Carolina's delegation to the Continental Congress. Following that he was in the state legislature to the end of the war. Penn moved to NC from Virginia in 1774 and the following year was elected to the Continental Congress. In 1780 he was elected to the North Carolina Board of War and helped supply the state's forces during the war. The third signer from NC was Joseph Hewes, who moved to the state from New Jersey about 1760. He was a member of the NC Committee of Safety, as well as the Continental Congress. In this post, he was responsible for fitting out the first American warships, and as such is considered to be the first civilian head of the US Navy. After his death in 1779, he was buried in Christ Church Cememtery in Philadelphia, but his grave was unmarked, so he was not moved here.