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 In 1780, Charlotte was a small town of twenty or so houses. After the defeat of Maj. Gen. Horatio Gates at the battle of Camden in South Carolina, Charlotte became the rendezvous point for the survivors and refugees. Officers quickly attempted to mold what was left of the army into units then began a march to Salisbury. The wounded of Camden were transported on wagons, litters, and on horseback. Refugees traveled with the column, mostly made up of women and children. In the rear came the 300 "half-naked" Catawba Indians. The Charlotte militia had stayed behind. Col. William Richardson Davie and Capt. Joseph Graham were considered the two most competent soldiers in the state of North Carolina. Capt. Graham had previously been a quartermaster sergeant under Col. Francois DeMalmedy at Stono Ferry (SC), and had been discharged in August of 1779. He had taken a fever and was exempted from duties for three years. When Virginia Lt. Col. Abraham Buford was massacred at the Waxhaws, the North Carolina militia was called out "en masse," and Joseph Graham became an Adjutant under Col. William R. Davie. Lt. Gen. Charles Cornwallis decided to enter North Carolina because he thought that large numbers of North Carolina Loyalists would join his army. He also wanted to destroy the remaining opposition that had escaped from Camden, South Carolina a month earlier. When he crossed into North Carolina on September 25th, Brig. Gen. William Lee Davidson issued a call for militia volunteers and then ordered Col. Davie to delay Lt. Gen. Cornwallis at Charlotte for as long as possible. On the night of September 25th, Col. Davie's men "hovered around the British army," and captured a number of prisoners. The Patriots moved into an occupied the town of Charlotte, taking key positions. The next morning, Capt. Joseph Graham's pickets discovered the British advance guard moving towards the town. Col. Davie had placed Capt. John Brandon's militia under the court house in the middle of the town. Capt. Graham's militia had protection from a chest-high stone wall also at the courthouse. Maj. Joseph Dickson and his Lincoln County men were posted in front of Capt. Graham and his men, in houses to the left and to the right of the court house. All were hidden from the approaching British army. British Lt. Col. Banastre Tarleton arrived with his Legion, but he quickly turned command over to Maj. Hanger since he himself was sick with Yellow Fever. Capt. Graham's pickets sniped at the British as they deployed into line three hundred yards in front of the court house. The British deployed their cavalry into subdivisions and the infantry into platoons, with one hundred yards between the columns. Maj. Hanger charged in typical Tarleton-like fashion. When the Legion had galloped to within sixty yards of the court house, the Patriots at the wall rose and fired. This volley broke the Legion's charge and they fled. The Light Infantry pressed onwards. As the Light Infantry engaged the flanks, the Legion dragoons reformed and charged the center. After another volley from the fortified Patriots they again withdrew - in confusion. The Legion Infanty and the Light Infantry were able to turn Col. Davie's flank, and he had his companies to withdraw and form a single line at the end of the street, one hundred yards from the court house. The Legion dragoons again attempted to break Col. Davie's line, but after receiving an intense fire from the militia they retired behind the houses. Lt. Gen. Cornwallis had ridden to the front and shouted to Maj. Hanger's men, "Legion, remember you have everything to lose, but nothing to gain." The Legion Infantry pressed the Patriots and Col. Davie gave the order to disperse through the adjacent woods. The men withdrew to the Salisbury Road and out of town. Capt. Graham's men collected at Kennedy Creek and waited for the British to appear. The men waited on horseback until a full platoon of British infanty appeared. They fired on the British then immediately withdrew. The British returned fire, but their shot hit trees, doing little damage. After the war, Maj. George Hanger described this type of fighting. In An Address to the Army, he wrote, "The crackers and militia in those parts of America are all mounted on horseback, which renders it totally impossible to force them to an engagement with infantry only. When they chuse to fight, they dismount and fasten their horses to fences and rails, but if not very confident in the superiority of their numbers, they remain on horseback, give their fire, and retreat, which renders it useless to attack them without cavalry; for though you repulse them and drive them from the field, you can never improve the advantage, or do them material detriment." At Sugar Creek Church, Capt. Joseph Graham and Capt. John Brandon's men held a hill, and began to fire on the Light Infantry that were about 250 yards away. The Light Infantry moved behind trees and fences and fired for nearly half an hour at long distance. Capt. Graham's men returned fire in the same manner, but no damage was done to either side. Maj. Hanger arrived with the Legion Cavalry and charged the Patriots. Capt. Graham was badly wounded, with three bullet wounds in the thigh, a sabre thrust in his side, a gash on the neck, and four cuts to the forehead. He wrote of his head wound that, "some of my brains exuded." Lt. George Locke, the son of Brig. Gen. Matthew Locke, was cut to pieces by the sabres of the Legion. He tried to shield himself with his rifle barrel and it was cut in many places. Capt. Graham's men fled to the woods. When the British withdrew back to Charlotte, they came upon the badly-wounded Capt. Graham. A British soldier pointed his pistol at Graham's head, but Maj. Hanger stopped him, saying, "put up your pistol, save your ammunition, he has had enough." Capt. Graham was left to die, but instead he crawled to a spring near a church. At sunset, Susan Wilson discovered him. She rushed to get her mother and they brought Capt. Graham back to their home. They nursed his wounds and hid him from the British. Five months later, he would be back in the fight, trying to stop Lt. Gen. Cornwallis again at Cowan's Ford. Lt. Gen. Cornwallis remained in Charlotte until October 14th. When it came time to leave, many of his men were unable to march due to a recent breakout of Yellow Fever. Maj. Hanger soon became sick with it and had to leave the Legion, never to return to duty with that regiment. |
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Col. William Richardson Davie - Commanding Officer NC State Cavalry-Western District Regiment led by Col. William
Richardson Davie, Lt. Col. DeBrisbourn, Maj. Joseph Dickson,
Maj. James Rutherford, Maj. Salter, and Maj. James White, with
sixteen (16) known companies, led by: Rowan County Regiment of Militia detachment of two (2) known
companies, led by: Anson County Regiment of Militia detachment led by Maj. George Lee Davidson, with 70 men Granville County Regiment of Militia "Mounted Volunteers"
detachment of one (1) known company, led by: Halifax District Brigade of Militia detachment led by Lt.
Col. William Brickell, with four (4) known companies, led by: |
Lt. Gen. Charles Cornwallis - Commanding Officer 33rd Regiment of Foot, led by Lt. Col. James Webster, with
at least one (1) company of Light Infantry led by: 71st Regiment of Foot (Fraser's Highlanders), 1st Battalion,
Light Infantry company led by: Royal Regiment of Artillery with two 3-pounders and one 6-pounder British Legion, led by Maj. George Hanger, with two (2) known
companies of cavalry (100 men) led by: Two (2) known companies of infantry (60 men), led by: Volunteers of Ireland detachment of one (1) known company,
led by: - - - - - - - - - |
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© 2011 - J.D. Lewis - PO Box 1188 - Little River, SC 29566 - All Rights Reserved