Shallow Ford

A Humble Crossing

The Shallow Ford, about 15 miles west of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is a shallow part of the Yadkin River that, during colonial times, provided a safe crossing for travelers. The ford is formed by a sand and gravel bar. Upstream, a stretch of hard rock crosses the river, and below this rock, the gradient lessens, which weakens the current and deposits sediment, creating the bar that makes up the crossing. It served as a natural game crossing and fish trap used by the Native Americans. 

By 1748, six families had settled near the ford. Within two years, a ferry and tavern operated there. Soon after, Moravians settled nearby and built the first road to the ford, with several others following over the years, making it a kind of transportation hub. By the time of the American Revolution, the Shallow Ford was an important crossing point for travelers. Although the Yadkin River could be crossed at other fords and ferries, heavier wagons could only cross at two places: the Trading Ford, near Salisbury (Rowan County), and the Shallow Ford (Surry County). Several roads converged on both sides of the river. This modest crossing played a small but significant role in shaping the outcome of the war.

Shallow Ford

A Southern Strategy

Gen Cornwallis

The year 1780 was to be a comeback year for the British in North America with their shift to a "southern strategy." And it initially proved to be a successful and effective plan. By the fall of 1780, the British commander in the south, General Charles Cornwallis, moved north into North Carolina after taking control of most of Georgia and South Carolina. The final phase of the grand strategy was to dominate the entire south before moving north into Virginia. He had established his headquarters in Charlotte, where bands of Loyalists gathered to support the crown.

Loyalist Militia gathered with the arrival of Cornwallis

The absence of local patriot militia groups that had gone to King's Mountain created a vacuum for Loyalists to rise and cause chaos in their counties. In Surry County, local Loyalist brothers Gideon and Hezekiah Wright gathered hundreds of Tories who started taking revenge on the properties of absent patriots and killing those who opposed them. On October 3rd and 8th, they attacked patriots in Richmond, the county seat, where they also killed the county sheriff.

Western NC and Surrey Co in 1780

When news spread of the Loyalist uprising, patriots from nearby areas began to mobilize to stop them. The news of the surprise defeat of the renowned Major Patrick Ferguson at King's Mountain helped energize the patriots, who had been subdued by Cornwallis's maneuver north. Now things were beginning to change. 

Patriot militia General William Lee Davidson now believed that the local Tories intended to join Lord Cornwallis's forces in Charlotte. He sent fifty men from Charlotte, along with two companies of patriot militia from Salisbury. They were joined by 160 men from Montgomery County, Virginia, under Major Joseph Cloyd (who had come to the Carolinas to fight the now-deceased Ferguson). All of the converging patriots came under the leadership of Cloyd.

A Place of Battle

Competing militias would clash in a small but pivotal battle
along the Yadkin River at Shallow Ford

All this activity reached a boiling point on October 14, when a group of 600 Loyalists led by Colonel Gideon Wright crossed the Yadkin River en route to join General Cornwallis in Charlotte. Early Saturday morning, October 14, Cloyd's force of 350 men waited on the west side of a small stream near the Shallow Ford crossing of the Yadkin River. Around 9:30, they spotted the Loyalist force that had terrorized the county for weeks. The Loyalists, numbering between 400 and 900, crossed the Yadkin and headed west along Mulberry Fields Road. A shout of "Tory! Tory!" went up among the patriots. From across the creek, they heard similar cries of "Rebel! Rebel!"

NC patriot militia

The patriots deployed and quickly formed battle lines. Volleys were exchanged. One Captain James Bryan, of the notorious Tory Bryan clan, who led the front of the Loyalist forces, was swiftly killed. Five rifle balls went through him and his horse. The patriots advanced toward the ford as the Loyalists retreated and regrouped. Captain Henry Francis of the Virginia militia was shot through the head and fell dead a few steps from his son, Henry. His other son, John, took careful aim and fired at the Loyalist who had killed his father. 

Despite being outnumbered, the patriots soon gained the advantage, and several more Loyalists fell. After another quick exchange of fire, the Loyalists retreated chaotically across the Yadkin, shouting, "We are whipped, we are whipped." Enraged patriots beat the wounded Loyalists to death after their comrades had fled. A black Loyalist named Ball Turner continued to fire at the patriots. An angry group of patriots found his position and riddled him with musket balls. The Loyalists soon made good their escape. Captain Henry Francis of the Whigs lost his life, and four others were wounded. The Loyalists suffered about fifteen killed. The engagement lasted less than an hour.

Shallow Ford Battle Marker

Aftermath

As the engagement ended, a relief party of three hundred militia under Colonel John Peasley arrived, along with Colonel Joseph Williams of Surrey County. Williams had heard the musket fire from his nearby home. The next day, Major General William Smallwood arrived at Salem with about 150 horsemen, thirty infantry, and three wagons. Smallwood, a Marylander, had been put in charge of all North Carolina militia. 

As a colonel in 1776, Smallwood had commanded the renowned Maryland Line on Long Island and is featured in my novel of that campaign, The Patriot Spy. Smallwood had left Guilford Courthouse the previous day. Seeing that the local force had defeated the Loyalists, he launched his men in pursuit of those who had fled. As a result of Shallow Ford, the Wright brothers' Loyalist forces in Surry County were effectively neutralized for the duration of the war. Hezekiah Wright himself was later shot and wounded in his own home. His brother Gideon fled to the safety of Charlestown, where he died on August 9, 1782.

General William Smallwood

The results of the double defeats at King's Mountain and Shallow Ford dealt a major blow to Cornwallis: patriot morale surged along with their numbers, while demoralized North Carolina Loyalists were never able to rally such a force again. Cornwallis had to retreat into South Carolina for the winter. His grand strategy was delayed by a year, with even more serious implications for any hope of a British victory.

Fittingly, the Shallow Ford played a minor role the following year when, on 7 & 8 February, Cornwallis's army crossed it in the legendary pursuit of General Nathanael Greene during the maneuvers that led to the Battle of Guilford Court House on 15 March 1781.

Blackstock

A Savage War of Posts

Gen Thomas Sumter

The William Blackstock farm became the site of one of those "small" but violent clashes that shaped the complex mosaic of the American Revolution in the South. The farm, which includes several tobacco barns, sits just off the Tyger River on the western edge of Union County, South Carolina. This remote farm provided the setting for one of American General Thomas Sumter's most significant battles. 

In November 1780, Georgia militia under Elijah Clark and John Twiggs reinforced Sumter, whose forces threatened Loyalist outposts north of the famed bastion at Ninety-Six. Sensing that a threat to Ninety-Six could make it impossible to hold, the British commander in the South, Lord Cornwallis, ordered famed cavalry leader Banastre Tarleton to break off contact with Francis (Swamp Fox) Marion's militia along the Pee Dee River. 

Tarleton hurried to his new mission, hoping to trap Sumter's forces between himself and the British at Ninety-Six. Luckily, a British deserter warned Sumter, who quickly retreated to avoid the trap. Not to be outdone, the aggressive Tarleton chased after the rebel force, determined to catch them before they could escape. To do this, he led his cavalry, leaving infantry and artillery to follow behind.

A Defense Well Prepared

Elijah Clarke

Sumter's force reached the Tyger River at dusk on November 20th. The clever Sumter realized he had "good ground" and decided to establish defensive positions to frustrate his pursuers with a strong defense of the farm. The famous "Gamecock" deployed his 1,000 men in defensive positions. 

They didn't have to wait long before Tarleton's Legion—190 dragoons and 80 mounted infantry of the British 63rd Regiment—was spotted moving toward them. Recognizing that the rest of Tarleton's force was far behind, Sumter chose to surprise the leading troops with an attack. He left his center to defend the high ground, taking cover behind five log cabins and a rail fence. 

Elijah Clark was sent with his 80 Georgians around Tarleton's right flank to block the advancing British forces. Meanwhile, Sumter led the main charge with 400 militia against 80 dismounted 63rd Regiment soldiers who had positioned themselves to the right of the British advance.

Sketch of the battlefield

A Back and Forth Struggle

Sumter's plans disintegrated when the British 63rd repelled his militia, who retreated back through the houses anchoring the center. Not to be discouraged, Sumter sent a force of mounted infantry under Colonel Lacey with orders to strike the British dragoons on the left. Lacey's men surprised the dragoons, who were admiring the work of the 63rd. Lacey's first volley caused 20 casualties among the troopers. However, they quickly recovered and drove off Lacey's men. 

Eager to defeat the rebels, the 80 men of the 63rd attacked the center. A bayonet charge led by Major John Money attempted to push back the rebels, but the 63rd advanced too close to the farm buildings and came under fire from Colonel Henry Hampton's men within, who, as usual, aimed "at the epaulets and stripes." Money and two of his lieutenants were killed, and, according to an officer of Fraser's Highlanders, a third of the privates as well. 

Meanwhile, other partisans maneuvered around their right flank to attack Tarleton's dragoons, who were in their saddles but only watching the action. Now that Hampton's South Carolina riflemen and some of the Georgia sharpshooters held the line to check the British, Sumter's men began to rally around them. The British infantry was trapped under the muskets and rifles of an enraged patriot force. 

Banastre Tarleton

Seeing their plight, Tarleton led a desperate charge at the American center. The reckless uphill cavalry charge against riflemen firing from cover was not successful. One report described so many dragoons being knocked from their horses that the road to the ford was blocked by their bodies, fallen chargers, the wounded, still targets, struggling to get back over their stricken comrades and kicking, screaming horses. Despite this chaos, the British forces retreated in good order.

Tarleton's cavalry attack was repulsed by intense American fire

Change of Command

John Twiggs

Not without his own bravado, Sumter rode to the center of his line as the British dragoons were driven back. As they retreated, members of the 63rd fired a volley at him and his officers. Sumter was severely wounded, hit in the arm and the back, and had to give up command to John Twiggs. 

Knowing he wouldn’t have any more success that day, Tarleton pulled back and waited for reinforcements, hoping to launch another attack the next day. Fearing that troops from Ninety-Six might join with Tarleton to overpower them, the Americans retreated. To fool the British scouts, Twiggs left campfires burning and withdrew under cover of night. 

Tarleton claimed victory on the battlefield the next day. But he probably felt the frustration as he had to bury the dead from both sides. The cost was uneven: British casualties included 92 killed and between 75-100 wounded. American casualties were 3 killed, 4 wounded, and 50 captured.

View of American defenses

After the Battle

The engagement at Blackstock Farm is little known and nearly forgotten for many years. Tarleton boasted of his victory and the dispatching of the hated Sumter. Yet his regulars failed to drive the rebel militia from the field and suffered an unacceptable loss ratio. Moreover, Sumter would return to action in a few months. Meanwhile, his wound opened the door for General George Washington to appoint the New England fighting Quaker Nathanael Greene as the overall commander of the Southern Department.

Nathanael Greene

The Battlefield Today

The Blackstock Plantation, formerly a series of tobacco barns, lies in a hilly, wooded area. In the eighteenth century, much of the land of the battlefield was cleared but has since become overgrown with small pines and brush. No above-ground evidence remains of Blackstock’s barn or house, which were located near the area marked by the historical marker designating the battle site. There are also no modern buildings in the battlefield area. The site covers 54 acres and features walking trails just south of the Tyger River.

The Patriot Playwright

An American First

On April 16, 1787, "the first American play" premiered at the John Street Theater in New York City. Titled The Contrast, it was written by 29-year-old Royall Tyler. It is considered the first American play ever performed publicly by a company of professional actors. An American play, in the sense that it was written by an American, with an American theme, for American audiences.

John Street Theater - Birthplace of American Theater would close in 1798

A Playwright Patriot

Royall Tyler was born in Boston on July 18, 1758. He came from a wealthy and prominent Massachusetts family. Tyler went to Latin School in Boston for his early education. He then attended Harvard to study law. During this time, he joined the Continental Army, where he received a commission and eventually became a major. Tyler was admitted to the bar in 1780 and joined John Adams's law firm. Tyler fell in love with the future president's daughter, but the engagement was broken off, reportedly because Adams disapproved of Tyler's "high-spirited temperament." John's attitude probably kept many potential suitors away.

General Benjamin Lincoln

Back to the Bar. Back to the Army and on to the Theater

The end of the war and the birth of the republic in 1783 didn't take long to be followed by America's first crisis. In 1786, Shay's Rebellion erupted in New England. Many veterans rightly felt that the new republic didn't pay enough attention to their economic struggles and that their years of service were largely disregarded. A former Massachusetts soldier and struggling farmer, Daniel Shays, led a group of disgruntled veterans seeking justice for their grievances. 

The response was swift, as a panicked government assembled forces to put down the rebels. In 1787, Tyler once again answered his country's call. He left his law practice to accept an appointment as aide-de-camp to General Benjamin Lincoln, tasked with suppressing Daniel Shays and his rebel soldiers. After Shays left Massachusetts (the heart of the rebellion) for New York, Tyler was sent to New York City to negotiate his capture and return to Massachusetts. And while there, like many others over the years, Tyler did something he had never done before—he went to see a play!

Shays Rebellion would set events leading to
the birth of the American stage

That's Entertainment

The theater was slow to become popular in America as a form of entertainment. There are records of Shakespeare performances in Williamsburg in the early 1700s, and generally, the Southern colonies — which were more receptive to all British customs — were quicker to embrace the theater. In the North, it was considered a sinful form of entertainment. Massachusetts actually passed a law in 1750 that banned theater performances, and by 1760, similar laws were in place in Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire, although performances sometimes slipped through with special permission from authorities.

Reprint with comment by  modern historian Cynthia Kierner
 illustrates the enduring value of The Contrast as a vehicle
for understanding mores of post-Revolutionary America.

A Playwright is Born

In any case, Royall Tyler had never been to the theater before. On March 12, 1787, he attended a performance of Richard Sheridan's School for Scandal (1777). He was so inspired that in just three weeks, he wrote his own play, The Contrast. Barely a month later, The Contrast became the first play by an American writer to be professionally produced. 

The Contrast was a comedy of manners, poking fun at Americans with European pretensions, and the main character, Jonathan, was the first "Yankee" stock character. This backwoodsman spoke in a distinctive American voice and mannerisms. Mixing such a character with sophisticates is a technique writers use to this day—the traditional "fish out of water." 

Tyler did not pioneer this, but he did master it. And the results were compelling to late 18th-century audiences. The Contrast was a success. It was performed four times that month in New York, which was very unusual. Then it moved on to Baltimore and Philadelphia, where George Washington went to see it. The first citizen's approval added to the buzz both for the play and the stage in general.

Man of Letters

Tyler became one of the most accomplished men of letters in early America. While he kept practicing law, he wrote six other plays. Only four of these plays still exist today; three are biblical plays, and the fourth is another social satire, The Island of Barrataria. He also produced several verse and prose works, including a lively adventure novel, The Algerine Captive (1797). 

The story is based on the memoir of a young man who experiences a series of misadventures that ultimately lead to his enslavement by Barbary pirates. Aside from its American themes, the book ends with a serious plea for Americans to unite. It went through more than one printing and is only the second American work to be printed in Britain.

Royall Tyler: jurist and author in late life

Author & Attorney

Tyler's literary works were published anonymously. After all, the arts were still considered beneath the mainstream, and he was a serious jurist with a reputation to uphold. His works generated little income. He clearly created them out of love. Many modern authors, including this one, can relate to that situation! As a member of the legal profession, he aimed to correct the flaws and follies he satirized in his writing. He died in Brattleboro, Vermont.

The Seed of Modern Theater Long Forgotten

The success of The Contrast elevated contemporary drama and theatrical productions, making them highly popular among all classes. In a short time, they shifted from mild disdain to great respect and sometimes intense popularity. In that sense, the "arts" owe him a great deal. Certainly, the modern stage does. Yet I am sure few in the field know of Royall Tyler, the patriot and playwright who gave birth to their art form. I think a new rebellion is needed. A Royall rebellion, in fact. Maybe the "Tony" should be renamed the "Tyler?"

So should Tony become Tyler?

Road to Destruction

A Prequel

This is a rare Yankee Doodle Spies "prequel" post. In many ways, the roots of the American fight for independence were laid with the bloodshed of the French and Indian War. Coincidentally, George Washington's actions on the western frontier (in Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Ohio) contributed to its beginning. 

A young Washington explored the frontier for the then-Governor of Virginia, Robert Dinwiddie. During one mission, an encounter with a group of French and Indians triggered both nations (and much of Europe) into a long, costly war. As one of the few Americans who had traveled through the wilderness, Washington was appointed as a special aide to the commander in chief of British forces in North America, Edward Braddock. However, Washington did not hold a Royal commission and was considered a colonial officer. This was a major factor in Washington's later shift from being English to becoming American.

Washington became a special assistant
due to his experience in the West

The Campaign

Gen Braddock

Because the war began over a dispute about the western boundaries of British North America, Britain's main goal was to secure the French forts near the Ohio River. In summer 1755, General Edward Braddock, the newly appointed commander-in-chief of the British Army in America, decided to personally lead the primary effort against the Ohio Country with about 2,100 men. He had two regular line regiments, the 44th and 48th (around 1,350 men), along with about 500 colonial troops and militiamen.

To seize the forts, he brought some artillery and other support personnel, including engineers and artificers. Braddock, a confident if somewhat arrogant Scotsman, believed he could easily take Fort Duquesne (today's Pittsburgh). He planned to then move north to capture the other French forts, ultimately reaching Fort Niagara. Two additional campaigns were planned to push directly north into French Quebec, but this was to be the main effort.

The Western Theater of Operations

The Road to Victory

There is some controversy about which direction the British should take. There were two main routes to the west: one through Virginia (present-day West Virginia) and another through western Pennsylvania. Washington was connected to the commercial interests supporting the southern route. Both sides believed that British military improvements to the chosen road would make it the main artery for westward expansion.

Sketch of Braddock's Route

In either case, Braddock chose the southern route, which went through tougher and more heavily wooded terrain. The march to Fort Duquesne depended on a road built by Braddock and his men, who used an old Indian trail called Nemacolin’s Path to cross the Allegheny Mountains. Braddock's troops traveled from Alexandria to Winchester to Cumberland (MD), where the wilderness road started. It took just over a month to build this 12-foot-wide, 110-mile-long road. Fifty years later, Congress funded it as the first National Road. However, it never directly led to Fort Duquesne.

The thickly forested Allegheny Mountains would
prove a formidable obstacle for Braddock's column

The Road to Destruction

On July 9, 1755, Braddock's force crossed the Monongahela River west of a place called Turtle Creek. Braddock's advance guard of 300 grenadiers and colonials, along with two cannons under Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Gage (later infamous in Boston), began to move forward. Washington tried to warn him about the flaws in his plan, but Gage ignored him.

Confident that there was no enemy nearby, they advanced in a column along a narrow path under the heavy wooded canopy. Suddenly, Gage's advance guard encountered French and Indian warriors rushing to stop the British at the river. However, because they were behind schedule and too late to set an ambush, they collided directly with Gage's men. The enemy forces were led by French Captain Beaujeu, who was mortally wounded early in the fight.

The first clash between the two forces caught both sides off guard. Yet, the French and Indians quickly regrouped and fired a deadly volley into the British column. After exchanging gunfire, Gage's men fell back. In the narrow road, they ran into Braddock's main force, which had moved quickly after hearing the shots.

Chaos broke out as Canadian militia and Indian fighters surrounded them and continued sniping at the British from the woods along the road. Musket balls zinged through the trees, cracking limbs and rustling leaves. But it was the silent rounds that hit man after man. War cries and death from behind the thick undergrowth also took a toll, as did the heat. Soon, French regulars started advancing along the road and pushed the British back. The British organized defense crumbled.

Indians ambush the British column

Despite deadly bullets coming from seemingly all directions, the British officers tried to rally their men. They also attempted to use some of their cannons, but the narrow confines prevented effective firing once again. The colonial militias and troops rallied and fired at the Indians, but some received "friendly fire" from panicked British regulars who were still trying to maintain their formations. 

The fighting lasted several hours, with Washington moving around trying to take charge wherever he could. He regrouped small units, and when Braddock was shot from his horse, he set up a rearguard to ensure the wounded commander reached safety. Many other officers died trying to rally and lead their men. The Indians did a remarkable job of picking off officers, who suffered a very high casualty rate. Washington himself had two horses shot out from under him, and bullets went through his clothes, yet he emerged unscathed. By sunset, the remaining British and colonial forces were retreating back down the road they had built.

Gen Braddock falls wounded

The Aftermath

The French won this battle, commonly called the Battle of the Monongahela, and suffered 40 casualties, which was less than 10 percent. The British, on the other hand, suffered nearly 900 casualties, making up more than 60 percent of their forces. Braddock himself died from his wounds on July 13.

The next day, Washington buried him under the road near the front of the column. The spot for his burial was chosen to prevent the French and Indians from desecrating his grave. Despite being outnumbered, the French did not pursue the British, while the Indians began looting and scalping.

These two factors helped save the column from further destruction. Hopes for a quick British push toward the Ohio were decisively crushed on this path of destruction. Those hopes would not be revived until three years later, ironically, through the northern route known as Forbes Road.

The Palmetto Fortress

A Tour de Force

In the spring of 1776, the British planners in London aimed to turn their recent stalemate and embarrassing withdrawal from Boston into a strategic victory that would end the rebellion that year. One fleet was ready to strike the crucial port of New York with a direct attack, while another planned a quick left hook at the equally important port of Charleston. The latter strike was to come first, setting the stage for a more decisive blow in the middle Atlantic colonies. Charleston, the major southern city at the time, had vital connections to the key islands in the West Indies, which were always a top priority for British interests. Dominated by a planter class, South Carolina wasn't seen as a heavily rebel area that would fall easily. However, a few brave patriots proved them wrong.

A Last-Minute Plan

Lord Dartmouth

The British strike at the southern colonies actually began earlier in the year when William Legge, Lord Dartmouth, and Secretary of State for the Colonies ordered General Henry Clinton and Commodore Peter Parker to rendezvous with another armada under General Lord Charles Cornwallis off Cape Fear, North Carolina. Misfortune on land and at sea turned the North Carolina plan to mud. But before Clinton could sail north, Parker reported that a reconnoiter of Charleston indicated the defenses were ill-prepared and that a quick strike against Fort Sullivan on Sullivan's Island in the harbor would be successful. After that, the city could be successfully assaulted. Anxious for some "low-hanging fruit" after the Tar Heel frustration, Clinton concurred, and so they made their way south, anchoring off the city on 7 June 1776.

A City Prepares

Charleston's waters were treacherous
as the British would soon discover

But the South Carolinians in Charleston had long anticipated that they would be a target of the British and eagerly built up defenses on Sullivan's Island. This was a three-sided fort with sixteen-foot-high sand walls surrounded by softwood palmetto logs. The spongy palmetto wood absorbed the impact of cannonballs—the main threat to the fort. The fort was armed with twenty-five guns of various sizes and calibers, and housed a garrison of over four hundred men. Most importantly, the commanding officer of Fort Sullivan was militia Colonel William Moultrie, who would soon prove to be one of the most capable fighting generals of the war. The city itself had a garrison of over six thousand troops, including Continental Line infantry. In command was Major General Charles Lee, a former British officer and widely regarded (especially by himself) as the finest officer in the American cause. Lee believed that Fort Sullivan was too exposed to the fire of British warships and ordered it to be abandoned. However, South Carolina Governor John Rutledge overruled Lee, viewing it as a necessary buffer against a naval attack. Geography and hydrography favored the defenders; the narrow harbor channel, with strong currents and shoals, troubled the British as they planned where to land and how to position their ships. It took a month before they were ready to attack the city that was just within their reach.

Colonel William Moultrie's militia
staged a gallant defense

Bombs Bursting in Air... Sand.. and Wood

The South Carolina flag hoisted in battle
boosts morale

On 28 June, a bombardment commenced between Parker's warships aligned off Sullivan Island and Moultrie's raw militia manning the guns protected by sand and palmetto logs. The barrage went on for hours. The British gunners were frustrated that, despite hit after hit, the combination of sand and spongy logs inflicted little damage on the fort. Shot after shot from the warships either bounced off the walls or got absorbed into the soft walls of the palmetto. The Americans fired back. But low on gunpowder, Moultrie insisted that each shot be well-aimed. In the middle of the hours-long engagement, a British shot cut down the South Carolina flag. A brave sergeant named William Jasper, in full view of the British and the Americans, ignored the hail of lead and iron to mount the parapet and restore the flag. The impact on the morale of both sides was telling. As the battle continued, the defenders' deliberate fire took its toll on the British ships, scoring hit after hit. Things took a final turn against the British when Parker sent three frigates around Sullivan Island to take the defenders in the flank. Unaware of the dangerous waters of the channel, all three suddenly grounded in the shallows. After a struggle, the two freed themselves, but the third, HMS  Acteon, remained stuck. The frustrated crew burned it to prevent the rebels from taking it.

The savage naval bombardment was decided
by shoals, sand, and wood

Fight  on till Dark

Commodore Parker

The firing continued on both sides. Commodore Parker's flagship had its anchor cable severed by a shot, causing the ship to turn and present its exposed stern to American fire. The rounds poured in, and one actually passed between Parker's legs as he shouted out commands. The commodore was unhurt but indignant as the shot tore his pants off. When darkness descended on the harbor, Parker signaled the fleet to disengage. Exasperated, the British fleet sailed from the harbor. It would be four long years before they would deign to return to face the Carolinians and their palmettos. The next one would end differently, but in 1776, the failed attack presented the British with a near disaster. The Royal Navy incurred well over two hundred casualties - Moultrie's men less than forty. And what of General Clinton? His men had landed on nearby Long Island to prepare for an assault on the mainland once Fort Sullivan fell. With the warships gone, this would not be. Instead, they remained exposed there for several weeks before the British transports were able to sail in and they could re-embark.

The Result

The British armada returned to New York at the end of July with ships damaged and sailors and soldiers discouraged. However, they soon had a chance for some revenge when the British launched their massive attack on Long Island in late August. Still, the victory at Fort Sullivan kept the South safe for four crucial years. It introduced the world to a brave new leader and boosted morale across the Carolinas and the entire rebellion. And in honor of the palmetto’s role in the victory, the noble tree with soft bark was added to the South Carolina state flag, where it remains today.

South Carolina State Flag

First Fathers

N.B. This is an edited reprise of an earlier post on the subject. With Father's Day tomorrow, I decided to revisit the tragic case of the Lynch father-son team.

Who’s your Daddy?

 There were many father-son pairs during the American War of Independence, especially in the local militia units that fluctuated with the intensity of hostilities. However, some served at the highest levels of the Revolution. The Lynches were one such duo.

Father-Son Signers...

Thomas Lynch Sr. was the son of Jonas Lynch from the Galway branch of the Lynch family, who were expelled from Ireland after their defeat in the Irish wars of William of Orange. Jonas Lynch came to America and became a successful planter. His son Thomas was born in Berkeley County, South Carolina, in 1727. 

Eighteenth-century rice house

By the time his son Thomas Jr. was born in 1747, he owned a large estate called Hopsewee Plantation along the North Santee River and other watercourses. He was also active in politics. As tensions with Britain grew, the elder Lynch became a prominent and often fiery supporter of the revolution. He later served in the Continental Congress from 1774 to 1776. The senior Lynch was set to sign the Declaration of Independence for South Carolina, but he suffered a massive stroke early in 1776.

With the father fallen, the South Carolina Assembly appointed his son, Thomas Lynch Jr., to succeed him. Thomas Jr. was born at Hopeswee and, unlike his father, had the benefit of a top-tier education. He attended prestigious schools in America and then Eton, Cambridge, and finally studied law in London. He returned to America and married well. He then went into planting. As the heir of a passionate revolutionary and influential man in the colony, Lynch Jr. naturally took a keen interest in politics. He enjoyed strong support from voters. During 1774-76, while his father served in the Continental Congress, he worked on the home front, attending the first and second provincial congresses as well as the first State legislature and sitting on the State constitutional committee.

A Military Career Curtailed

In 1775, Lynch took a captaincy in the First South Carolina Regiment of Continentals. This upset his father, who wanted to use his influence to secure a higher rank for his son. Unfortunately, young Lynch caught bilious fever (an intestinal fever) while on recruiting duty in North Carolina. Sick and unable to serve, he had to give up his promising military career.

The Stand-In

But in the spring of 1776, when Thomas Sr.’s condition became critical, South Carolina’s Assembly elected Thomas Jr. to the Continental Congress. Despite facing his own serious health issues, the younger Lynch dutifully traveled to Philadelphia, where he stayed for the entire summer. During that revolutionary season, he was able to vote for and sign the Declaration of Independence at just twenty-seven years old. The Lynches were the only father-son pair to serve simultaneously in the Continental Congress.

Signing the Declaration of Independence

Double Tragedy

Political triumph was met with personal tragedy, and more blows to the patriot family were yet to come. Both Lynchs' health worsened, and by the end of the year, they headed homeward. En route, in Annapolis, MD, a second stroke took the life of the senior Lynch. Thomas Jr. returned home a broken man—physically and emotionally. Late in 1779, he and his wife traveled to France in an attempt to regain his health. They sailed for the Dutch island of St. Eustatius in the West Indies to find a ship to return across the ocean, but a storm struck, and their ship was lost at sea.

Rev War Talk: Veterans & Leaders

Dick Winter's Memorial at Veteran's Plaza in Ephrata. Pennsylvania

The Lecture

As part of their ongoing Veteran's Lecture Series, the Winters Leadership Memorial Committee invited me to speak on the American Revolution, the Yankee Doodle Spies, and related topics. The committee sponsors one such talk each month, typically the last Tuesday. The talk will encompass an overview of the eight-year struggle for independence plus a series of cameos on various aspects of the war such as intelligence, maritime, geography, etc. It will take place in the library at Ephrata, Pennsylvania. The Lecture Series itself began back in 2014 as a way to continue the effort we started with the construction of Ephrata’s Veterans Plaza & installation of the Winters Leadership Memorial. The driving purpose behind building the Veterans Plaza was to honor all veterans from all wars. One of the plaques in the plaza says it best, “They are not dead who live in the hearts they leave behind.”

The Man

The Winters Leadership Memorial is named after Major Dick Winters, legendary WWII commander of Easy Company of the 101st Airborne (Screaming Eagles) commemorated in the book and television mini-series: Band of Brothers. Winters grew up in and around Ephrata, in central Pennsylvania, where he eventually returned.

Winters was immortalized in the book and HBO series, "Band of Brothers"

The Memorials

In June of 2012,  a statue was installed at Utah Beach in Normandy.  It was created in Richard D. Winters' likeness, designed to honor all leaders, especially those of the Junior Officer’s.  Winters felt that the leadership and decision making of these young and inexperienced men was critical to the success of the D-Day invasion and other critical WWII battles. The artist who created the Winters Statue also offered the community of Ephrata the opportunity to erect a reproduction of the Normandy statue.  A committee was formed,  and the group set out to raise the funds required to acquire the statue, build the Veterans’ Plaza it would rest in, and maintain the site. In May 2015  the statue was dedicated at the plaza.

Actor Damian Lewis, who portrayed Dick Winters in the HBO series,
speaks with 101st vet during the commemoration of the Winters Memorial
  in Normandy, France

America's Veterans Issues & the Revolutionary War

So what does all of this have to do with the Rev War? Well, everything as it turns out. Issues regarding veterans commenced even as the American War for Independence was in its waning years. Soldiers released from services often failed to receive compensation promised by the states and Congress, little as that was. There were several "affairs" sometimes even mutinies over lack of compensation, food and clothing.

Newburgh Conspiracy

One of the most famous was the Newburgh Conspiracy, a rebellion of Continental Army officers in March 1783 that was nipped in the bud by George Washington himself. Washington personally confronted the conspirators, who planned to march on Congress and overthrow the fledgling confederation government. In 1780, Congress had passed a resolution providing half-pay for retired soldiers. But as late as  1783 the states (who had the power of the purse) had yet to comply with Congress’s request for money. The British Army was still quite ensconced in North America - the last troops would not leave until very late in the year. So the action of these conspirators could have resulted in stamping out the new nation before it could be established.

Continental Army at New Windsor Cantonment

How did it happen? As the conspirators gathered at an assembly hall/chapel  (the Temple Building) at Newburgh's  New Windsor Cantonment, to the surprise of all, Washington suddenly appeared before the assembly. The group had an inflammatory ultimatum penned by Major Armstrong, a former aide to cashiered General Horatio Gates (no friend of Washington). Washington denounced Armstrong and the ultimatum in very strong (for the 18th Century) terms.

The Temple Building - chapel where the officers gathered and Washington
confronted the conspiracy

The commander in chief remarked of the ultimatum, "...something so shocking in it, that humanity revolts at the idea." Taking the pulse of the audience he went on, "My God! What can this writer have in view, by recommending such measures! Can he be a friend to the army? Can he be a friend to this country? Rather is he not an insidious foe?" He also asked that they, "Give one more distinguished proof of unexampled patriotism and patient virtue." He asked for their, "full confidence in the purity of the intentions of Congress."

Washington's Headquarters at Newburgh

In closing, Washington attempted to read a letter he recently received from Joseph Jones, a Congressman from Virginia. The letter was to assure the commander in chief of (some in) Congress's assurance that the needs of the soldiers would receive a full measure of support. But Washington’s vision had recently begun to fail. He struggled with the opening paragraph. Frustrated Washington retrieved a pair of glasses from his pocket.  Then, the usually formal and stiff Washington made a rare casual remark. "Gentleman, you must pardon me, for I have not only grown gray but almost blind in service to my country."

This spontaneous act of demonstrating his humanity, from a man almost all held as next to God, had the immediate effect of taking the air out of the sails of mutiny and rebellion. Many officers began to weep. Possibly the greatest threat to the American Revolution and the new nation had evaporated due to the heartfelt and humble words of Washington. Sadly, veterans have had to fight for their rights from that day forward. Sometimes things did not end as peacefully and quickly as that March day in the Hudson Valley.

Washington did as much in saving The Cause with
his talk as in all the battles he fought