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Title: The Battle of Kings Mountain: Then and Now
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Published: Apr 18, 2009
Author: Deasy
Post Date: 2009-04-18 13:40:42 by Deasy
Keywords: 1775, Lexington, Concord, April 19th
Views: 248
Comments: 20
Since April 19th, 1775, Americans have changed year by year until much of our national character has been lost. Two unmistakable traits have receded to the point that people who possess them today are considered odd or even dangerous. The first of these is a powerful independence of spirit. The second characteristic is a fierce drive to defend one's life, liberty, and property. Today's Americans seem content to leave the reigns of power in the hands of an ever-strengthening political oligarchy. This may have been inevitable, as modern comforts replaced the pressures of colonial era living. While this April 19th is a Patriot's day like any other, please take a moment to think back to a little known incident in the Revolutionary War that happened five years after the battle of Lexington and Concord, and many miles away from the coastal areas in the mountains of South Carolina. Instead of suppressing the Appalachian people, defeat was in store for the British at the battle of Kings Mountain on October 7th. About 900 frontier folk of Scots-Irish, British, French, and German descent resolved to decide the issue by force. At least half of them known as the overmountain men, a revolutionary militia formed by people from western Appalachia. They hailed from West Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia. According to one regional genealogy, "They were a mixture of Celts, Britons, Normans, Romans, Anglo-Saxon, and the stone-age tribes of Ireland." They had seen despotism and their answer to it was to avoid it in the mountains, or if still pursued, to meet it with the sword and the rifle. A national parks map outlines their route to Kings Mountain well. From Sycamore Shoals (now Elizabethton, Tennesee) at Watauga River, they came from the northwest. They came southwest from North Carolina. And they came northeast from Cedar Spring near Spartanburg South Carolina. There are good accounts of the battle available, so there is little point in retelling the details here. The previously mentioned genealogy suggests that the British location had been revealed by the young daughter of a neutral local. Casualties on the patriot side were light with only 28 killed and 62 wounded. The Tory side saw 157 were killed and 163 wounded. The rest were either left on the battlefield or marched away. Some nine Tories were hanged as traitors for having switched sides. These wilderness dwellers had decided to fight the British in an organized manner. They joined forces under William Campbell, Frederick Hambright, and John Sevier to march through the Appalachians. The British, with a superior force of 1100 men, expected to defeat the mountain men without much of a fight. Ferguson had said "he was on King's Mountain, that he was King of that mountain and that God Almighty and all the Rebels of Hell could not drive him from it." Yet in little more than 65 minutes, the battle was over, and Ferguson himself was dead with eight rifle rounds in his body. What spurred the Appalachians to this feat, which Thomas Jefferson said was "the turn of the tide of success" in the war? The British, without realizing it, had brought the distant patriot war home to the mountain people. They had made it personal. The Appalachians would not have organized in any similar manner for the eastern generals like George Washington. One can safely say that they would never have served the federal American military or intelligence services of today. They were rugged individualists. They had farms and small businesses to tend. They had big, hungry families. Yet they volunteered for this duty at Kings Mountain with enthusiasm. Their units were small and autonomous. They coordinated willingly. The enemy had threatened their sacred personal property, their lives, and their honor. In those days, a mountain man's land and his cabin were the same as his life. Without these, he and his family could not survive. These were emigrants from calcified European homelands where government, church, and property were dictated and controlled without principles, without representation. For these mountain dwellers, the Reformation and the European Enlightenment had set them free from the chains of monarchy. A joyful self-determination was their way of life. Without the ability to choose their own destiny, they would be dead to the world. They met the British incursion, which they correctly understood as a threat to their way of life, with alpine resolve. They would live free or die, and some of them probably said so. Modern Americans can learn much from the way the Appalachians lived. They were a people who had little access to the the king's currencies. They seldom took out banking loans, instead borrowing from like minded neighbors and family. Far away from the empire's corporate reach, they claimed homestead for their farms, and built their own log cabins, where they raised their own families. And indeed the corporation itself had been created to benefit the British empire. The trading companies dealing in slaves and other commodities of the British empire were far away from their mountain territories. Their overmountain man's interest in the revolution had always been out of resentment toward the Crown for its refusal to secure protection from the Indian threat. In fact, the Crown had made bargains and treaties with Indians, and had restrained the hands of the colonists, even in their own self-defense. While the king was willing to deal with the Indians; the settlers were not. Bacon's rebellion in Virginia more than 100 years before had happened because the British had failed to defend the colonists. The overmountain men had given up hope on the Crown ever protecting them. They did it themselves, often coming under harassing Indian fire while clearing and tilling thier lands. We hear echoes of this today as the federal government refuses to deport illegal aliens and guard our borders, and when volunteers for such duty are treated as common gangsters or worse by government agencies. In the days of the Kings Mountain strife, these inland, wood-dwelling Americans avoided holding slaves, preferring to work on their own. When they banded together, they did so as equals. A man's word was his most valuable asset. Raw metals, weapons, farm implements, foodstuffs, livestock, seeds, and tobacco were as good as any coin of the crown or better. They exchanged items of value and services based on utility and the trader's individual reputation. There was no short-selling or hedge funds. No such thing as credit default swaps or derivatives existed for the typical overmountain man and his family. Their wealth was in their livelihood,and they put stock in their sizable families. Farm land and forests were their bread and butter. Hunting was a required skill, and the British would find that men who could kill a moving animal at a good distance with a long rifle were fierce opponents on Kings Mountain. To protect themselves and their way of life, the overmountain men could kill at a moment's notice, without regret. When Cornwallis gave his edict, the men could have stayed on their farms and been silent. The war was at the edge of their domain. What drew them out, when no immediate danger, if they quiesced, was their quick understanding of the stakes at hand? Ferguson's edict put their independence and personal sovereignty at risk. They had fought for and kept the land they held, and without the Crown's assistance. Now the Crown was beginning to make demands on them they could not countenance. Can the old mountain ways work in our modern world? Today, strip mining and real estate speculation are destroying the habitats that once supported these frontiersmen and their families. Governments without allegiance to the past or the American people, and stateless corporations now own the land. These are controlling entities that would have been unacceptable to these men. The corporation was a financial structure developed by the British empire for the purposes of furthering the empire's interests. People have become dependent on corporate-supplied jobs, goods, and services. Yet small businesses are still a cornerstone of our economy. Americans are still capable of showing the same characteristics of their forebears. The day has come for us to live up to their examples. If change must come, what is in store for us? We can keep our technology. We can keep our religious choices. Intellectual independence was the foundation of the Enlightenment, and was understood as the original inspiration for the American rebels. Change must be positive. We can rebuild a nation where love of life and responsibility to future generations stand as priorities. This must begin by reviving a sense of our own sovereignty, both personal and national.. We need to reestablish a unique American identity. We need demarcation from the rest of world. We need our borders to be sound again, so that our language and culture will be free again to flourish and mature. We need our industries to be local. We need our own, home grown American economy, based on longstanding community values well known to the overmountain men and their families. The artificial moneymaking on the backs of the ordinary people must be ended, by force if necessary. In this past year of government-mandated bailouts for the oligarchy, we need to start making the battle for individual liberty personal, just as the overmountain men did in 1780. The situation with unchecked and unrepresentative governmental and corporate ownership of vast amounts of natural resources must be ended. American families, the real American people, must be given back the stewardship of the land and its resources. Central banking and corporate control over America's economic and political future must be met and crushed, just like Ferguson's troops were, to their surprise, on Kings Mountain. We need to end all foreign wars, bring home all of our troops, and return some of them to our own frontiers. We must end our work on behalf of the old British empire's original objectives. Home is where the hearth is, and our home is North America, within our own borders. Our future generations live here already. This land must be kept for our own children's future, not the entire planet's as the globalist oligarchy repeats over and over. Open immigration must end, and illegal aliens must be returned to their homes of origin. Proponents of these nation-destroying measures need to be discredited and their corporate media and government bully pulpits dismantled. Just as the Appalachians found in 1780, the struggle for freedom has come for us in our generation. It is right here, right now. With the Patriot Acts, the Military Commissions Act, and the remaining Bush security orders, a modern day Cornwallis and Ferguson have made their threats to the American people known. They have burned homes. They have killed children. They have tortured those who would resist them. Nothing sacred is safe from them. The first casualty has been the rule of law, with oligarchs making up rules and regulations as they go along, ignoring the Constitution and even teaching students in public schools of its contemporary inapplicability. From coast to coast, in the cities and in the wildernesses, the fight for American life, liberty, and property is with our own government and multinational corporations that got their starts using American labor and natural resources. The television's daily demands that the American people should pay tribute to global corporations via bailouts, foreign aid, and the constant hue and cry for ensured Mideast military "security" must be ended. These are not our problems, and these monopoly media outlets do not speak for any American's future. The globalist media trusts should be broken apart and dismantled. The new face of the old empire will not give up without a long series of battles only yet to be rejoined. The struggle is already being brought to us. It's time for us to realize that without a fight, we will have already lost our lives and liberty. The die is cast. The gauntlet has been thrown down. The empire's special guard is on Kings Mountain, waiting for us to bring them low.
In the fall of 1780, in response to the occasional attack on British interests on the western frontiers, Appalachian territories would come under the angry eye of the Tory forces operating in the southern regions. Acting on behalf of the famed British general Cornwallis, a major Patrick Ferguson demanded that patriots put down their arms or the Tories would "Lay waste to their country with fire and sword." In September, he was stationed at a base camp in the former Gilbert Town, North Carolina. This is now known as Rutherfordton, and is about 72 miles west of Charlotte. The die was cast. He had thrown down the gauntlet.
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#1. To: christine, Jethro Tull, Refinersfire, lodwick, PSUSA, IndieTX, farmfriend, Itistoolate, Artisan, noone222, HAPPY2BME-4UM, Old Friend, Critter, Rotara, HOUNDDAWG, bluegrass (#0)
Long, but I hope worthwhile reading. I've got April 19th on my mind.
Bookmarked, Deasy. Thanks for the excellent essay!!
Special to the forum.
wonderful writing. thank you for the history of the Overmountain men and the comparison to then and now. their story and your conclusive paragraph is an inspiring exhortation for us modern patriots. pa•tri•ot : one who loves his or her country and supports its authority and interests
The smooth criminal transition from Bush/Cheney to Obama
The U.S. Constitution is no impediment to our form of government.--PJ O'Rourke
BUMP
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition Well done. I just hope we still have men like this. .
Click for Privacy and Preparedness files
Long, and most worthwhile - thank you.
. We do; many animals have to be backed into a corner before flight is out of the question and only fight remains. Bright folks, though, catch on early and can see peaceful solutions; however, bright folks are now being put in jeopardy by dull folks who historically look to government for their happiness....This essay about the Overmountain Men poignantly,sadly, brings 1780 into 2009
"The 'uniter' has brought the entire world together - to despise and deride us." lodwick
Your essay was simple, direct, penetrating and powerful. You touch that animating thing inside that spurs men into motion. Give us more of the same!
Join 2x4 Tuesdays & protect your RKBA. There's still time for you to post more April 19th material before tomorrow comes and goes.
We don’t celebrate the 19th of April anymore. It was never celebrated in a big monumental way, but we once celebrated that day. “Hardly a man is now alive Who remembers that famous day and year.” -so wrote Longfellow in his poem that begins: “Listen my children and you shall hear Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,” Revere and others went forth on the night of April 18, 1775 with the alarm, “The redcoats are coming!” They rode all through the night. “It was one by the village clock, When he galloped into Lexington.” “It was two by the village clock When he came to the bridge in Concord town.” Why was it so immediately important, on the night of April 18, 1775, for all of the people to know that the “redcoats are coming”? It was the practice in our colonial period for each village to have a “common” or “village green” that was used for public gatherings. The most significant use of the “common” was as a mustering point and drill field for the village militia, “every able bodied man between the ages of 16 and 60 years.” The militia was trained (as they termed it, “disciplined” and “well regulated”) in the use of arms, here at the village green. The militia provided protection for individuals and property of the village against all threats. A man would spend some time in the “gaol” if he missed a militia call. The militia, each man, was required to keep and bear his own arms. It was common for the militia to maintain a community armory for the storage of shot, powder, flint, additional small arms and any heavy arms that it might afford. Individuals could draw from these supplies as needed, as well as acquiring their own private supplies. On the night of April 18, 1775, Governor Gage (British Governor of fortress Boston) ordered British “redcoats” to march to the many surrounding villages, to seize and destroy all stores of munitions and to arrest the country leaders, the “arch-conspiritors.” British Major Pitcairn led the march into the countryside. The prime objective was to still the voice of the people, disarm them and make them more servile. Rebellion must stop, they said. So, Revere took to horse to give the alarm: “To arms, to arms, the redcoats are coming!” Early on the morning of the 19th of April, 1775, Major Pitcairn’s “redcoats” arrived at Lexington and met Captain John Parker’s company of colonial militia drawn-up on the meeting house green. “By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled, Hence once the embattled farmers stood And fired the shot heard round the world.” -so wrote Emerson in 1837. Some colonials were wounded and some were killed. Resistance to the larger British force proved futile. Pitcairn’s return march to Boston became a humiliating rout as our colonial militiamen, Minutemen and individual countrymen harassed the British column from behind stone walls, rocks and trees, every step of the way. The shot heard round the world, the first shot in our fight for independence from King George’s slavery, was fired to protect and defend the natural right of men to protect themselves, to keep and bear arms for the purpose of preserving liberty. This right to keep and bear arms was codified on the 15th of December 1791 when it became the Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America. We don’t celebrate the 19th of April anymore. Perhaps we should. “That memory may their deed redeem, When, like our sires, our sons are gone. Spirit, that made those heros dare To die, and leave their children free.” -Emerson, 1837 The redcoats are coming! (By E. James Adkins)
The smooth criminal transition from Bush/Cheney to Obama
I would suggest that the 'redcoats' are already here.
And they have a female general among their ranks--Napatilano, or something like that.
TRAITORS TO AMERICA AND BRAINWASHED IDIOTS SUPPORT AND DEFEND ISRAEL. TO HELL WITH ZIONISTS AND THIER AMERICAN FRONTS: AIPAC/PNAC/ADL/NAACP/CFR/FEDERAL RESERVE/SPLC/JINSA/ACLU/FPI/CHRISTIAN ZIONISTS/AEI/FEDERAL MEDIA/HOLLYWOOD, et. al.
That is a fine piece of writing, sir.
TRAITORS TO AMERICA AND BRAINWASHED IDIOTS SUPPORT AND DEFEND ISRAEL. TO HELL WITH ZIONISTS AND THIER AMERICAN FRONTS: AIPAC/PNAC/ADL/NAACP/CFR/FEDERAL RESERVE/SPLC/JINSA/ACLU/FPI/CHRISTIAN ZIONISTS/AEI/FEDERAL MEDIA/HOLLYWOOD, et. al.
But what was the prospect before them? They were all proscribed men ; the measures of Lord Cormvallis had put them out of the protection of civilized warfare; and the spirit in which his proclamations and instructions were executed by his officers, had put them out of the protection of common humanity. The massacres at Camden had occurred not six weeks before, and those of Browne, at Augusta, scarcely half that time. Could thev look on and. see this system of cruelty prosecuted, and not try the only melancholy measure that could check it? The effect proved that there was as much of reflection as of passion in the act; for the little despots who then held the country, dared prosecute the measure no farther. Another and an incontestible proof that blind revenge did not preside over the counsels that consigned these men to death, is drawn from the deliberation with which they were selected, and the mildness manifested to the residue of the prisoners. It has been before observed, that, in the ranks of Colonel Ferguson, there were many individuals notorious as habitual plunderers and murderers. What was to be done with these? There were no courts of justice to punish their offences ;* and, to detain them as prisoners of war, was to make them objects of exchange. Should such pests to society be again enlarged, and suffered to renew their outrages? Capture in arms does not exempt the deserter from the gallows; why should it the cold-blooded murderer? There was no alternative left; and the officers, with all the attention to form that circumstances would permit, and more—a great deal, it is believed—than either Browne or * Such was the distraction of the times, that South Carolina, during the period of 1780-81, was without a civil government, Governor Rutledge having been compelled to retire from the State, and the Lieutenant Governor and some of the Council were prisoners of war. Nor during a portion of the war did North Carolina fare much better. At one time, one of her high judicial officers, Samuel Spencer, could only execute the laws against Tories with threats and attempted intimidation : the Governor, at one period, was captured and carried away. When Cornwallis invaded the State, the prominent officials fled, carrying the public records to Washington County, Virginia, on the lower frontiers of Holston, as a place of asylum and security, as is shown by a MS. letter of Colonel Arthur Campbell to Hon. David Campbell, September 15, 1810. books.google.com/books?id...DmbzfX0Hc&hl=en#PPA337,M1 Diary of Lieutenant Anthony Allaire, of Ferguson's Corps : memorandum of occurrences during the campaign of 1780... Thanks for the pointer, DeaconBenjamin.
They best be hailing again and soon !
In the early part of the year 1780 Col Shelby was appointed Colonel of Sullivan County in North Carolina with the authority of County Lieutenant Col Sevier held the same command in Washington County North Carolina These Counties are situated west of the Alleghany mountains and now constitute a part of Tennessee Col William Campbell at the same time commanded a regiment in Washington County Virginia but was not the County Lieutenant After the defeat of Gen Gates at Camden on the l6th of August 1780 the patriots were very much dispirited Many who resided in the eastern portions of North and South Carolina sought safety and liberty in the mountains of North Carolina and Virginia amidst the hardy patriotic mountaineers of those districts In September 1780 Maj Ferguson who was one of the best and most enterprising of the British officers in America had succeeded in raising a large body of Tories who with his own corps of regulars constituted an effective force of eleven hundred and twenty five men With a view of cutting off Col Clarke of Georgia who had recently made a demonstration against Augusta which was then in the hands of the British Ferguson had marched near the Blue Ridge and had taken post at Gilbert Town which is situated but a few miles from the mountains Whilst there he discharged a patriot who had been taken prisoner on his parole and directed him to tell Col Shelby who had become obnoxious to the British and Tories from the affair at Musgrove's Mill that if Shelby did not surrender he Ferguson would come over the mountains and put him to death and burn his whole County It required no further taunt to rouse the patriotic indignation of Col Shelby He determined to make an effort to raise a force in connection with other officers which should surprise and defeat Ferguson With this object in view he went to a horse race near where Jonesborough has since been built to see Sevier and others Shelby and Sevier there resolved that if Col Campbell would join them they would raise all the force they could and attack Ferguson and if this was not practicable they would cooperate with any corps of the army of the United States with which they might meet If they failed and the country was over run and subdued by the British they would then take water and go down to the Spaniards in Louisiana Col Campbell was notified of their determination and a place of rendezvous appointed in the mountains east of Jonesborough At the time appointed September 25th Campbell joined them and their united force numbered about one thousand mounted riflemen They crossed the mountains on the 27th in a ravine and fell in accidentally with Col Cleveland of North Carolina who had under his command about four hundred men The force having been raised by officers of equal rank and being without any higher officer entitled to command the whole corps there was a general want of arrangement and organization It was then determined that a board of officers should convene each night and decide on the plan of operations for the next day and further that one of the officers should see those orders executed as officer of the day until they should otherwise conclude Shelby proposed that Col Campbell should act as officer of the day Campbell took him aside and requested Shelby to withdraw his name and consent to serve himself Shelby replied that he was himself the youngest Colonel present from his State that he had served during that year under several of the officers who were present and who might take offence if he commanded that Gen McDowell who was with them was too slow an officer for his views of the enterprise in which they were engaged and added that as he ranked Campbell yet as Campbell was the only officer from Virginia if he Shelby pressed his appointment no one would object Col Campbell felt the force of this reasoning and consented to serve and was appointed to the command as officer of the day The force of the detachment was still considered insufficient to attack Ferguson as his strength was not known It was agreed that an express be sent to invite Gen Morgan or Gen Davidson to take the command Gen McDowell tendered his services for this purpose and started on his mission Before proceeding far he fell in with Col Williams of South Carolina who was at the head of from two to three hundred refugees Gen McDowell advised them where the patriot force was encamped They joined the army and thus made a muster roll of about sixteen hundred men The board of officers determined to march upon Ferguson In the meantime two or three of their men had deserted after their first rendezvous and had gone to Ferguson and advised him of the intended attack The army marched to Gilbert Town and found that Ferguson had left it several days before having taken the route towards Fort Ninety Six Finding that Ferguson was retreating and learning what was his real strength it was determined on Thursday night the 5th of October to make a desperate effort to overtake him before he should reach any British post or receive any further reinforcements Accordingly they selected all who had good horses who numbered about nine hundred and ten and started the next morning in pursuit of Ferguson as soon as they could see Ferguson after marching a short distance towards Ninety Six had filed off to the left towards Lord Cornwallis His pursuers never stopped until late in the afternoon when they reached the Cowpens They there halted shot down some beeves ate their suppers and fed their horses This done the line of march was resumed and continued through the night amidst an excessively hard rain In the morning Shelby that Campbell had taken a wrong road in the night and had from him Men were posted off in all directions and Campbell's corps found and put in the right road They then crossed Broad and continued their pursuit until twelve o clock of the 7th of The rain continued to fall so heavily that Campbell Sevier Cleveland concluded to halt and rode up to Shelby to inform him their determination Shelby replied By I will not stop until if I follow Ferguson into Cornwallis lines Without replying the Colonels turned off to their respective commands and continued march They had proceeded but a mile when they learned that was only seven miles from them at King's Mountain Ferguson finding he could not elude the rapid pursuit of the mounted had marched to King's Mountain which he considered a post and which he had reached the night previous The mountain or ridge was a quarter of a mile long, and so confident was Ferguson in the strength of his position that he declared "the Almighty could not drive him from it." When the patriots came near the mountain they halted tied all their loose baggage to their saddles fastened their horses and left them under charge of a few men and then prepared for an immediate attack About three o clock the patriot force was led to the attack in four columns Col Campbell commanded the right centre column Col Shelby the left centre Col Sevier the right flank column and Col Cleveland the left flank As they came to the foot of the mountain the right centre and right flank columns deployed to the right and the left centre and left flank columns to the left and thus surrounding the mountain they marched up commencing the action on all sides Ferguson did all that an officer could do under the circumstances His men too fought bravely But his position which he thought impregnable against any force the patriots could raise was really a disadvantage to him The summit was bare whilst the sides of the mountain were covered with trees Ferguson's men were drawn up in close column on the summit and thus presented fair marks for the mountaineers who approached them under cover of the trees As either column would approach the summit Ferguson would order a charge with fixed bayonet which was always successful for the riflemen retreated before the charging column slowly still firing as they retired When Ferguson's men returned to regain their position on the mountain the patriots would again rally and pursue them In one of these charges Shelby's column was considerably broken He rode back and rallied his men and when the enemy retired to the summit he pressed on his men and reached the summit whilst Ferguson was directing a charge against Cleveland Col Sevier reached the summit about the same time with Shelby They united and drove back the enemy to one end of the ridge Cleveland's and Campbell's columns were still pressing forward and firing as they came up The slaughter of the enemy was great and it was evident that further resistance would be unavailing still Ferguson's proud heart could not think of surrender He swore he never would yield to such a d--d banditti and rushed out from his men sword in hand and cut away until he broke his sword and was shot down His men seeing their leader fall immediately surrendered The British loss in killed and prisoners was eleven hundred and five Ferguson's morning report showed a force of eleven hundred and twenty five A more total defeat was not practicable Our loss was about forty killed Amongst them we had to mourn the death of Col Williams a most gallant and efficient officer The battle lasted one hour The victors encamped on the mountain that night and the next morning took up their line of march for the mountains under a bright sun the first they had seen for many days They made the prisoners carry their own arms as they could not have carried them in any other way Amongst the prisoners Shelby found some officers who had fought under him a few weeks previously at Musgrove's Mill They said they had been compelled to join Ferguson and when they had been examined and their account found to be correct they were well treated Owing to the number of wounded and the destitution of the army of all conveyances they traveled slowly and in one week had only marched about forty miles When they reached Gilbert Town a week after the battle they were informed by a paroled officer that he had seen eleven patriots hung at Ninety Six a few days before for being Rebels Similar cruel and unjustifiable acts had been committed before In the opinion of the patriots it required retaliatory measures to put a stop to these atrocities A copy of the law of North Carolina was obtained which authorized two magistrates to summon a jury and forthwith to try and if found guilty to execute persons who had violated its precepts Under this law thirty six men were tried and found guilty of breaking open houses killing the men and turning the women and children out of doors and burning the houses The trial was concluded late at night The execution of the law was as summary as the trial Three men were hung at a time until nine were hung Three more were tied ready to be swung off Shelby interfered and proposed to stop it The other officers agreed and the three men who supposed they had seen their last hour were untied One of them said to Shelby You have saved my life and I will tell you a secret Tarleton will be here in the morning A woman has brought the news
The U.S. Constitution is no impediment to our form of government.--PJ O'Rourke
All I can say is wow.. for outside that, words fail me
The smooth criminal transition from Bush/Cheney to Obama
#2. To: Deasy, bump to all (#1)
#3. To: Jethro Tull (#2)
#4. To: Deasy (#1)
#5. To: Deasy (#0)
Kings Mountain and its Heroes
#6. To: Deasy, REDPANTHER (#0)
Since April 19th, 1775, Americans have changed year by year until much of our national character has been lost. Two unmistakable traits have receded to the point that people who possess them today are considered odd or even dangerous. The first of these is a powerful independence of spirit. The second characteristic is a fierce drive to defend one's life, liberty, and property.
#7. To: Deasy (#0)
#8. To: Deasy (#1)
#9. To: PSUSA (#7)
I just hope we still have men like this.
#10. To: Deasy (#0)
www.righttokeepandbeararms.com
#11. To: randge, April 19th, 1775, All (#10)
#12. To: Deasy, CELEBRATE PATRIOTS DAY, APRIL 19th (#11)
#13. To: christine, Patriots here (#12)
#14. To: lodwick (#13)
I would suggest that the 'redcoats' are already here
#15. To: Deasy (#0)
#16. To: DeaconBenjamin (#5)
The calmest and most dispassionate reflection upon their conduct, on this occasion, will lead to the conviction, that if they committed any offence, it was against their own countrv—not against the enemy. That instead of being instigated by a thirst of blood, they acted solely with a view to put an end to its effusion ; and boldly, for this purpose, took upon themselves all the dangers that a system of retaliation could superinduce. The officers of the American army, who, twelve months afterwards, hazarded their lives by calling upon their General to avenge the death of Hayne, justly challenge the gratitude and admiration of their country ; but the men of King's Mountain (for it is avowed as a popular act, and not that of their chief alone), merit the additional reputation of having assumed on themselves the entire responsibility, without wishing to involve the regular army in their dangers. And this was done in the plenitude of British triumph, and when not a man of them could count on safety for an hour, in anything but his own bravery and vigilance.
#17. To: Deasy (#0)
They hailed from West Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia.
"If you love wealth more than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, depart from us in peace. We ask not your counsel nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you. May your chains rest lightly upon you and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen.”—Samuel Adams 
#18. To: Deasy (#16)
KING'S MOUNTAIN BY COL ISAAC SHELBY
#19. To: Deasy (#0)
#20. To: echo5sierra (#0)
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