Only One Who Fought

He was born in Culpeper County Virginia in 1764 and moved with his family into North Carolina where they settled in what is now Guilford County in about 1770, less than ten years later he turned out as a volunteer in Surry County, NC under Captain A Bostick and was placed in the charge of a Captain Shepherd at the Courthouse there, he remained nearly two weeks before being discharged and allowed to go home before beginning his service in the Revolutionary War.

He was drafted to join Colonel Charles Porterfield’s Light Artillery under the charge of Captain Brashears who was wounded and died at the Rugeley's Mills Battle in Camden South Carolina on August 16 1780, so at the age of 16 he was involved in the Battle known as Gates Defeat and saw his first Captain die. He served a tour of three months out of the State of North Carolina and upon returning home he substituted in the place of another man who was also from Surry County N.C. Under the command of Capt Edwin Hickman he went with General Nathanael Greene to the South where he was wounded and put into the hospital or else he would have been in the Battle at Eutaw Springs SC on Sep 8th 1781 where his General was defeated, this was also the last major engagement of the war in the Carolinas. He remained until the army returned over the Congaree River when he joined them and went Northward to where he was discharged at a place about thirteen miles South of Salisbury NC.

On his return home he was drafted and turned out again as himself for about a month before being sent home only to be called out again this time in the scouting service for another three months, This last mentioned service he performed he found his own horse and was in the service as a Horseman although there is no evidence to prove this fact, other than the testimony of those who served with him according to his pension application dated March 12th 1833 in Pickens District South Carolina where he had moved at the end of the Revolutionary War.

He was sixty nine years old when he applied for this pension for his service to the United States during the Revolutionary war; his pension was approved on May 16th 1833 at the age of 70 his pension of a $20.00 Annual Allowance began and he lived for another ten years before his death in what is now Pickens County, South Carolina.

This is only one of the fine men who fought, suffered and sacrificed to give us the freedom we still fight for and defend today, take a moment to remember what men like this man went through to assure us of the privileges we now enjoy and possibly take for granted. I gathered this information from this mans pension records and what drew me to this particular man is the fact that he is my 4th Great Grandfather who was born with the same name I proudly carry today.