Footsteps for Freedom

September 27th dawned gray and cool along the Doe River. The Overmountain Men began preparations for what many consider to be the most strenuous part of their journey. On this day, they would get on the famed Yellow Mountain Road and climb the heights of Roan Mountain, crossing the spine of the Appalachians at Yellow Mountain Gap. No other army in the Revolutionary War would pass over an obstacle higher in elevation.

The first day of the march to Kings Mountain was fairly uneventful and surprisingly slow going considering the Overmountain Men only marched a little over three miles after leaving Sycamore Shoals. The group stops, slaughters a few animals for food, and picks up the pace, arriving at the Doe River where they make camp. Meanwhile lots of things are happening in the Piedmont of North Carolina.

Sycamore Shoals, also known as the Watauga Old Fields, had long been considered as a strategic location militarily. The land was relatively flat and cleared of trees and made for a perfect settlement location, plus the shoals made for an easy location to wade across the river. Fort Watauga’s stature as a major military location was established in the Cherokee wars, as it became part of a thriving settlement and a refuge for Patriots seeking safety from the Loyalists. So when the call went out for volunteers to track down and engage Patrick Ferguson’s forces, the Fort was a logical location for the men to gather.

On September 10, 1780, Ferguson issued his fateful challenge to the Patriot forces in the region, calling for them to lay down their arms, or he would march over the mountains, hang their leaders, and “lay waste to their country with fire and sword.” Obviously, his declaration didn’t set well with the Overmountain Men. When word reached them of the challenge, Colonels John Sevier and Isaac Shelby met to decide how to answer Ferguson. The decision was made to raise an army to go after him, and preparations began.

In the Summer of 1780, war raged in the backcountry of South Carolina. It was truly America’s first Civil War, as most men on both sides had never been to Great Britain which meant it was American fighting American, and the style of battle between them was particularly brutal and gruesome, a trait their descendants would emulate some 80 years later. The Battle of Musgroves Mill was a tipping point of sorts, leading Patrick Ferguson to make a declaration that angered the backcountry woodsmen and led them to form up in militia to deal with him.

We begin our look at the Battle of Kings Mountain with a review of several battles and skirmishes that took place in the summer of 1780. This is the first of a two-part episode about these battles. Today we discuss the Battles of Fort Thicketty and Wofford's Ironworks.

Today’s episode is about the one individual who would be considered the villain in our story, but it is more complicated than that. Major Patrick Ferguson was a noted officer in the British army, and even invented a rifle that was named after him, but we’ll get to all that as we tell his story.

Probably more than any other, John Sevier is synonymous with the Battle of Kings Mountain. A flamboyant politician, solider, and statesman, Sevier was a driving force in organizing and leading the charge against Patrick Ferguson and the Tories.

The beauty of the virtually untouched wilderness that the Overmountain Men saw as they marched through the Toe River Valley on their way to King’s Mountain must have been quiet stunning. One of these soldiers, Major Jonathan Tipton, returned to the valley after the war and made it his home for 27 years. The Tipton Hill community of Mitchell County was named for him and thousands of his descendants still live in the valley to this day.

William Campbell and his forces from southwestern Virginia were considered to be tough, rugged mountaineers who were perfect soldiers for a battle like Kings Mountain.