THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY 9733364 W58k ILLINOIS HISTORICAL SDRVW i THE KING'S MOUNTAIN MEN THE STORY OF THE BATTLE, WITH SKETCHES OF THE AMERIGAN SOLDIERS WHO TOOK PART KATHRINE KEOGH WHITE Author of 'ABRAM RYAN. Poet-Priest of the South;'* "THE LAND PIRATES OF THE SOUTH;" "THE GANDER- TOURNAMENT OF THE SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS;" Etc. DAYTON, VIRGINIA JOSEPH K. RUEBUSH COMPANY vm COPYRIGHT BY JOSEPH K. RUEBUSH CO. 1924 DEDICATED TO MY BROTHER, WILLIAM THOMAS WARREN WHITE Student, Educator and Scholar r 54307; i The Edition of this Book Has Been Limited to Five Hundred Copies SECTION ONE Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2012 with funding from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign http://www.archive.org/details/kingsmountainmenOOwhit CONTENTS SECTION ONE PREFACE Page I. The Battle of King's Mountain 3 II. Watauga and Its Records 6 III. General John Sevier 64 IV. Letter by Draper to Martin 68 V. Letters by Christian to Draper 79 VI. Franklin and the Whites 97 VII. Militia Rosters 103 VIII. Incident in the Life of Alexander Moore 105 IX. Greer and McElwee Data 107 X. Diary of Captain Alexander Chesney 108 XI. Sundry Pension Declarations 113 SECTION TWO Personal Sketches of King's Mountain Soldiers APPENDIX Tennessee Revolutionary Pensioners List BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEX PREFACE The list in this book, of the heroes who won the battle of King's Mountain, does not assume to be complete. So far as I am aware, no rosters are in existence. Historians are not agreed as to the number of the Americans who were in the expedition. The general opinion is that it was between one thousand and twelve hundred. I had this number in mind when I began a search for the names of the individual soldiers, and an authentic record in each instance of the soldier's service, in the war of the Revolu- tion. While investigating county records, land grants, pension statements, and other sources of information, I came upon many stories of their lives, especially in the records of Washington county, Tennessee, in 1777-1780. These stories, so full of human interest, often begin before the date of the battle. The narratives introduce us to a life of tragedy as well as romance, on the inland frontier of Virginia and the Carolinas, wild savages and ferocious beasts menacing them at all times. Nowhere else in the American States were the souls of men more nearly strained to the breaking-point. Without official permis- sion and without assurance of reward, these heroes of the frontier came together as brothers and neighbors, and formed a volunteer army to protect their families and their country. In this book I aim to bring out the human interest which is so overlooked in the admirable histories of the American Revolution. Thus I present, without change, the letters written to Lyman Draper by James Sevier, Gil- bert Christian, John Sevier, and William Martin. Not only do these letters afford proof of military service by some of the frontiersmen, but they throw direct light on the expedition itself and on other combats with their enemy. Emphasis is placed on the state of Franklin, or Frankland. The attempt to establish this commonwealth was an outburst of indignation on the part of the volun- teers. Fresh from their victory at King's Mountain, they found themselves without a government and without a country that recognized them. Once more they were forced to band together, this time to make a government for themselves, while defending their loved ones from Indians, tories, and escaped criminals. It is this unflag- " 2 THE KING'S MOUNTAIN MEN ging loyalty which makes these heroes as brave and courageous as the "Immortal six hundred that walked in the valley of death. I am under special obligations to the histories of Southwest Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, and Tennes- see. As these works have been of service to me, so do I hope that the present volume may be helpful to others who engage in research. I also extend my most appre- ciative thanks to Miss Mary Rothrock, librarian of the Lawson McGhee Free Library, Knoxville, Tennessee, for her aid, and particularly for giving me free access to the valuable Calvin McClung Historical Collection of the said library. Katherine Keogh White ' THE BATTLE OF KING'S MOUNTAIN The volunteer army that fought at King's Moun- tain October 7, If %0, puts us in mind of the three hundred Spartans under Leonidas who defended the pass of Ther- mopylae 2261 years earlier, or of the six hundred who rode into "the valley of death" at Balaklava in the Cri- mean war. American history affords no other instance of a thousand frontiersmen coming together of their own free will to make themselves into a volunteer army. The only equipment of the soldier in that expedition was his trusty Dechard rifle with its accessories, his sure-footed mountain horse, and his pocketful of parched corn. These men knew little of professional warfare, but they did know how to keep tories and Indians from their settle- ment. When Patrick Ferguson, England's sharpshooter col- onel, sent them word that unless they came on to join him and the king he would march over the mountains and hang everyone of them, they at once declared that they would have a voice in the matter. They determined to take care of him, and they performed their task effect- ually. Another aspect of this notable expedition is worthy of remark. The returned soldiers had no time to wait for words of praise and promises of reward. They had to hurry back by the nearest path to their wives, children, and the old men and boys who were left to protect the settlements from the Indians. They were just in time to beat off a thousand Indians who were on the march, hav- ing learned that the fighting men had gone to King's Mountain. At King's Mountain these soldiers had trapped and annihilated a British army more numerous than them- selves. Yet they came near being reprimanded by the Continental Congress for taking the warpath without ex- press permission. If they had failed there might have been trouble, but all is well that ends well. So in time the state governments of Virginia and North Carolina and the central government as well gave official recogni- 4 THE KING'S MOUNTAIN MEN tion to the leaders and men who gained one of the most momentous victories of the Revolution. King's Mountain battle took place at a time when the American cause was looking desperate. Failure after failure had come to the American arms in the South. The engagement at Musgrove's Mill, about two months earl- ier, was indeed rather a victory for the whigs, some of the King's Mountain men taking part in it. While trying to harass the British the Americans fell into a trap, yet they fought off their enemy and escaped with all the prisoners they had taken. Ferguson chased them to the Blue Ridge and then sent the insolent letter which caused his ruin. The following is the letter to General Gates, com- mander in the South in the latter half of 1780, and found in the North Carolina Records. It was written by Colo- nels Shelby, Sevier, Cleveland, Campbell, Winston, and Hampton, who asked for a trained officer to lead them. Rutherford county, Camp near Gilbert Town, October 4, 1780 Sir: We have collected at this place about 1500 good men, drawn from Washington, Surry, Wilkes, Burk of North Carolina, and Washington County, Virginia, and expect to be joined in a few days by Colonel Williams of South Carolina with about a thousand more. As we have at this place called out Militia without any order from the executive of our different States, and with the view of expelling out of this part of the country the enemy, we think such a body of men worthy of your attention and would request you to send a General Officer imme- diately to take the command of such troops as may em- body in this quarter. Our troops being Militia, and but little acquainted with discipline, we would wish him to be a gentleman of address, and be able to keep a proper discipline, without disgusting the soldiery. Every assis- tance in our power shall be given the Officer you may think proper to take command of us. It is the wish of such of us as are acquainted with General Davidson, and Colonel Morgan (if in service) that one of these Gentle- men may be appointed to this command. We are in great need of ammunition, and hope you will endeavor to have us properly furnished. Colonel McDowell will wait on you with this, who can inform you of the present situation of the enemy, THE KING'S MOUNTAIN MEN 5 and such other particulars respecting our troops as you may think necessary. Your most obedient and very able servants, Benj. Cleveland Isaac Shelby John Sevier Andw. Hampton Wm. Campbell Jo. Winston At the close of the very day the above letter was written, Campbell was nominated by Shelby as tempo- rary commander, on the ground that he was the only Virginian of regimental rank. During the next two days the leaders picked out the best men with the best horses and rifles, and then took Ferguson's trail 910 strong. The men on foot and those with poor horses were told to follow. In their rapid advance the mountain men could not spare the time to deal with a large body of tories form- ing to join Ferguson.