Dorchester under the Crescent

Patriot Forces are occupying the fort at Dorchester for the first Dorchester under the Crescent on September 8th-9th. This will be a 2nd South Carolina event with drilling, demonstrating camp life, and other aspects of the Continental Army during the American Revolution. More information to come for the event in the next few weeks. For information about the 2nd SC please visit thier website.

http://www.2ndsc.org/

The 2nd SC have a long history at the fort at Dorchester starting in 1775 when two companies under the command of Francis Marion "The Swamp Fox" were sent there to get the defenses in order against possible Tory attacks. During the time with Marion as commander of the fort  he put the fortifications and military barracks in better order and trained local militia. 

Happy Carolina Day

http://swampfoxbrigade.blogspot.com/2010/05/battle-of-sullivans-island-part-1.html

Carolina Day remembers important Revolutionary battle

• by brian hicks
  bhicks@postandcourier.com
• Posted: Thursday, June 28, 2012 12:10 a.m.

Today marks the 236th anniversary of the Battle of Sullivan’s Island, a conflict that made Moultrie a local household name and set the British back considerably in their quest to tame the colonists.

“This was an early turning point,” said Doug MacIntyre, president of the Fort Sumter-Fort Moultrie Historical Trust. “We can only speculate as to what might have happened if the patriots had not prevailed.”

On June 28, 1776, when the Declaration of Independence was being hashed out in Philadelphia, the British Navy descended on Fort Sullivan at the south end of the island as thousands of ground troops simultaneously tried to cross Breech Inlet to take the island’s north end.

It was part of Britain’s southern strategy to mobilize loyalists in the South Carolina backcountry and control one of the colonies’ most important ports.

Commodore Peter Parker aimed the might of the British Navy at the palmetto-log fort guarding the harbor entrance while Gen. Henry Clinton tried to take the island with 3,000 troops that had landed on Long Island (now Isle of Palms).

The most famous detail of that day remains the spongy palmetto logs of Fort Sullivan repelling British cannon fire — a detail that guaranteed the palmetto its place as a state icon. But Mac-Intyre said the battle at Breech Inlet was perhaps even more impressive.

The inlet in those days was at least a mile wide, a dangerous obstacle course of rushing water, sandbars and oyster beds. And if that weren’t bad enough, Clinton had to face a formidable force assembled by Col. William Thomson.

Thomson and his back-country troops were joined by Indians from the Catawba and other tribes, as well as some slaves.

There were 780 men in all, but once the fight started, Clinton feared that he was facing an army of perhaps 4,000. Mac-Intyre said Clinton never got a foothold in Sullivan’s Island.

Meanwhile, William Moultrie repelled the British Navy so handily that, after the war, Fort Sullivan was renamed in his honor.

MacIntyre, who will speak today at the Carolina Day ceremony in White Point Garden, said new accounts of that day are still coming to light, and they paint a portrait of Charles Town as worried and anxious — just as it would be a few years later when the British had the city under siege again, this time more successfully.

Although the state celebrates Carolina Day every year, much of the rest of the country has forgotten what a pivotal moment it was in the Revolutionary War.

“It was an embarrassment for Peter Parker, a rising officer in the Royal Navy,” said W. Eric Emerson, director of the state Department of Archives and History.

“It’s the most powerful navy in the world, and they are beat by a gang of rebels in a palmetto-log fort. I think it’s pretty significant, and wish more people would recognize it.”

Reach Brian Hicks at 937-5561 or follow him on Twitter at @BriHicks_PandC.

New park could be historic treasure

This is what we have been working on the past year, so we hope to get back to work on the blog now that it has become a reality. 

Author(s):    BY BO PETERSEN
bopete@postandcourier.com Date: June 21, 2012 Section: Metro

SUMMERVILLE - The jungle-like stretch of the Ashley River, where it turns from a blackwater creek to a tidal stream, alone made Dorchester County's newest park property irresistible. The property might well have once held Gen. William Moultrie's "lost fort," among the most significant regional Revolutionary War sites not yet located.

There's one more thing: This park just might make money.

"Canoe and paddleboat rentals, shelter rentals, festivals, weddings, there's so many resources out there. The entire canvas is a blank slate that can actually pay for itself, in my opinion," said Tom O'Rourke, Charleston County Park and Recreation Commission executive director, who was consulted on the purchase.

The 83-acre tract Dorchester County is buying for its latest nature park is a prized piece of open land in the densely packed suburban area outside Summerville.

The county voted Monday to buy the property for $1.35 million. The site, formerly slated for residential development, had been in bank receivership.

It sits north of the river and east of Bacons Bridge Road, diagonally across the bridge from the newly opened woodland trail, Rosebrock Park.

The river tract is the third significant property bought in the past few years in the suburban lower county, where the county previously had no parks. In 2010, voters overwhelmingly passed a $5 million bond for parks and open space.

The other property is the Pine Trace tract off Miles Jamison Road.

The county also purchased 2 acres fronting the river tract along Bacons Bridge Road that it plans to sell for a compatible business to help pay for the park.

County Councilman Jay Byars, whose district includes the river property, said the park could be up and running relatively quickly. Some $3 million worth of infrastructure already is in place from the previous development effort, he said, including sewer lines, a fishing pond with gazebo, a dock on the river and a riverside trail with boardwalks.

With that value already on the ground and the potential for the park to support its own operation, the purchase "was a no-brainer," he said.

"You've got 3,000 feet of frontage on the Ashley River that the public can get out and enjoy. I don't think there was any argument on council. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

Then there's the "lost fort."

If archaeological digs confirm the place as the site of the Moultrie's camp, Byars suggested that the park might well be developed around that history, making it a regional attraction.

"I'm excited about the potential, the preservation of an important site and what it can do for the economy of the county," said Summerville historian Steven Steele.

The historic Bacon's Bridge crossed the river in the vicinity during the Revolutionary War and was a key strategic point, the inland wagon route to the fort and town just downstream at what is today the Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site.

Moultrie's camp would have protected the bridge.

Together, the nearby sites could make up a bigger historical trail attraction that could be traveled by water.

Patrick O'Kelley, who wrote a history of the American Revolution in the Carolinas, has visited the park site.

At one point, more than 1,000 American soldiers, some under "Swamp Fox" Francis Marion, were stationed near the bridge, a massive encampment that likely took up at least some of the park grounds, O'Kelley said.

"It's entirely possible" the park is that site, he said. "It makes sense."

Reach Bo Petersen at 937-5744, @bopete on Twitter or Bo Petersen Reporting on Facebook.

General Moultrie's Lost Fort

Most people know the story of General Moultrie’s fort on Sullivan's Island that was named for him after he lead the forts defense against the British on June 28^th in  1776. This fort becomes the symbol of resistance in Charlestown against the crown after its walls of palmetto logs were able to with stand the bombardment of the British Navy and Col. Thomson at the other end of Sullivan's Island was able to keep the British troops on Long Island (Isle of Palms) from crossing Breech Inlet and attacking the fort by land.

General Moultrie’s forgotten fortification can be found in Dorchester County on the Ashley River. This is the earth redoubt that he built to guard the access to Charlestown near Summerville, SC. This was an important crossroad for the defense of Charlestown 28 miles up the Ashley River. This was the bridge that leads across the Ashley River to White House Meeting House named in the honor of Reverend White, which the British burned under General Provost during his raid against Charlestown in 1778 and to Dorchester Road which was the main road leading directly to Charlestown. This fortification was built between January and February of 1780 to block any British advance coming up from Savannah that were going to link up with the British General Clinton who had landed on Johns Island and was already moving his forces to James Island under the protection of the Royal Navies big guns.  At this fortification he had over 300 hundred horseman that were used as a reconnaissance force and or a rapid response force should the British appear at other crossings to impede their crossings. This cavalry force was composed of the 1st Continental Dragoons under the command of Lt. Col. Anthony White and the 3rd Continental Dragoons under the command of Lt. Col. William Washington, Col. Daniel Horry’s South Carolina Light Dragoons and other mounted troops from the local militia and unattached cavalry. This group of cavalry was put to good use in late March of 1780 by checking a British Calvary force consisting primarily of the British Legion and the 17^th Light horse under the command of Col. Tarlton who had yet to earn his American nickname Bloody Tarleton.  The infantry force was composed of the 2^nd South Carolina with around 250 men who defended the palmetto fort on Sullivan’s under Moultrie’s command in 1776 and whom at this time were under the direct command of his second in command at Fort Moultrie, Francis Marion. Marion’s other role at Bacon's Bridge was to form the local militia from the surrounding parishes and have them ready to defend Charlestown. This was no easy task because the locals were in fear of the British burning their homes while they were away.

Once General Lincoln, who was in total command of the defenses of Charlestown realized the British planned to cross at Stono Ferry he began to pull all his available forces to Charlestown proper  and General Moultrie’s position on the Ashley River was abandoned as his forces reported to Charlestown.  

This did not end the importance of this site since Marion would returned under the command of General Lincoln as a General in the South Carolina Militia and with a well earned nickname “The Swamp Fox”. Marion would come back to the site several times to check possible British advances or passing through to other areas of operations.

Today the spot where the fortification was located has been located and is now in the process of being protected for future generations so they won’t forget Moultrie’s lost fort as previous generations have.

Francis Marion letter to Peter Horry

"Bacon Bridge, SC - 3 May 1782

I am posted here, two miles in front of the Continental army, within three-quarters of a mile of the above bridge. The General, according to custom, keeps me between him and the enemy."

The two mile mark he speaks of is a site near present day Colonial Dorchester State Park, in Dorchester County.

Francis Marion in Dorchester County, South Carolina

Hello again from the Swamp Fox Brigade,

I hope that this post finds you in a forgiving mood. For the past several months I have been working on several different projects related to work and history. As a result my postings have dropped off the face of the planet. This will end now as I now will be able to post weekly again to those who find this humble blog interesting.

So where does that leave us, well I have been asked by several groups in Dorchester County, SC to help research Francis Marion and his movements in Dorchester County. As a result of this, I will be spending time tracing his time line of action in the county. He is in and out of the county from 1775-1782 with the 2nd SC and later in the war his militia brigade.

Thanks,  

Francis Marion's Wreath laying service today

Today at 3PM there will be a wreath laying ceremony at his grave site in his honor.

The fortifications on Sullivan's Island the morning of June 28th, 1776; Part 13 Battle of Sullivan's Island

The fort had 31 cannons mounted on the morning of June 28^th, 1776 ranging from 9 pounders to the large 26 pounders. About half of the fort was completed with the side facing Northeast and northwest till not yet finished. These would be the sides opposite the entrance to Charlestown Harbor. The fort was designed to hold one thousand men, but on the morning of the 28^th the unfinished fort had four hundred and twenty four men of the Second South Carolina, a twenty man detachment of the Forth South Carolina Artillery Regiment, plus the workers who had begun the daily working on the fort under the direction of the Continental Engineers Baron Massenborg and DeBrahm.

Below is a replica of a section of fort's wall at the SC State Museum in Columbia, SC

We find Major Francis Marion of the Second South Carolina in command of half of the cannon inside the fort going about his daily duty of inspecting the men and fort waiting to see when the British would attack.

Over the fort flew an indigo blue flag with a white crest moon in the top left corner. A debate about the rest of makeup of the flag still goes on today. The debate centers on the word “LIBERTY”  and if the word was on the flag or not. If it was on the flag the word “LIBERTY” was on the bottom of the flag or inside the crest moon. Moultrie describes the word “LIBERTY” inside the crescent moon and that’s good enough for us since he would have had to okay the design and making of the flag.      

At the Advance Guard we find Moultrie and Thomson with his Third South Carolina, South Carolina Militia, a detachment of North Carolina Continentals, and the Raccoon Company of Rifle men behind a sound dug in position totaling around seven hundred and seventy men with an eighteen pound cannon and six pound cannon covering Breech Inlet. At 10:30AM this morning, the battle began with a signal cannon fired from the HMS Bristol fired to begin the British assault on Sullivan's Island.  Thus we find Moultrie jumping in the saddle riding hard and fast back the three miles to his command and his destiny on this June day.   

Fort Watson Present Day

Below are some picture of Fort Watson that we hope you enjoy. We will be covering this battle in detail at a later date, but we wanted to share the pictures from our on site research.

Present day photo of the Indian Mound/ Fort Watson

Below is a picture from the base of the mound looking up

A picture from the top of the mound

Fort Watson at the time of the battle

Picture of Maham Tower in use

Francis Marion enters the picture: Part 8 Battle of Sullivan's Island

With this blog being named after Marion’s Brigade you would figure it would be about Marion. Well to be honest it is, but we had to set the tone for Marion to enter the picture and there are lots of interesting stories about the revolution in South Carolina that we want to share also. So we will try to blend the two at times and concentrate on one or the other at other times.

Francis Marion by the fall of 1775 was a respected elected official in South Carolina politics which had voted for independence and was an officer in the 2nd South Carolina. He was also an experienced militia soldier who had served as an enlisted member of South Carolina Provincial Calvary with his brother and as a lieutenant in the infantry fighting the Cherokee in the back country of South Carolina and Eastern Tennessee in two different wars serving with such men as William Moultrie, Andrew Pickens, and Peter Horry. This military experience served him well in the inner circles of planter aristocracy in Charleston where they selected him to become a captain in the 2nd South Carolina, serving under his old commander from fighting the Cherokees, William Moultrie.

He first is to see action when he was chosen along with two other highly recognized militia military leaders who had join the line infantry Captain Charles Cotesworth Pinckney and Captain Barnard Elliot to take Fort Johnson from the British on June 21st, 1775 by the South Carolina Council of Safety. However, Marion and his men did not take part on the assault against Fort Johnson, which was not defended, since Lord Campbell had already left it earlier and spiked the cannons to keep them out of Patriot use. Marion and his men were still off loading at the transport when the others decide to attack because of  fear of alerting the fort to their presence. With Marion being selected for this assignment it shows just how highly he was thought of in early South Carolina military circles.

After the taking of Fort Johnson the Patriots started to build up defenses in the harbor proper to eject Lord Campbell and the two British ships which he maintained in the harbor to try to keep some control of the colony and to rally Loyalist support to the crown which never materialized. As a result a military depot to store powered, munitions, cannons, and important papers was established at the old fort at the town of Dorchester thirty miles up the Ashley River from Charleston. This fortification  was built in 1757 to protect a brick powder magazine and surrounded by a tabby wall for extra protection during the French and Indian War. As the supplies built up the fears of Loyalist coming from the back country of South Carolina to take the material there increased. As a result Moultrie sent Marion on November 19th, 1775 to Dorchester with command of his company and Captain Huger’s to secure the tabby fort there and make it ready for any possible attack. This was accomplished by Marion without incident and he remanded at Dorchester for some months protecting the very valuable material stored at this site.

The order reads as follows

Dated: November 19, 1775

"To Captain Francis Marion

     You are to proceed with all expeditions with yours, and Cap. Huger's companies to Dorchester, to reinforce the troops there, and to take specialcare in guarding and defending the cannon, gunpowder, and public records at that place. you are to take command of the whole of the troops at that place, till further orders. You are to apply to the commottee in Dorchester, for a sufficient number of negroes in the public service, to remove the cannon lying by the water-side to a spot more safe, and convenient, near the fort or bacrraks, etc.

Willaim Moultrie"

In late January or early February Marion and his detachment was ordered to Fort Johnson on James Island and then to Haddrell’s Point where a battery was nearing completion by the Continental forces while Moultrie and most of the 2nd South Carolina was starting in earnest to build the main fortifications on Sullivans Island. While at the fortifications at Haddrell’s Point, Marion was promoted to Major in the 2nd South Carolina and took his place as second in command to Moultrie. Once this occurred he along with his detachment transferred to Sullivans Island to help with the work on the fortifications there.

So in early June 1776, we find Francis Marion, a Major in the 2nd South Carolina and second in command of the major fortification on the South Eastern side of the island ready to meet their fate against the British Empire.

Francis Marion “Character counts when hope is lost”

   After the third attempt of the British to take it, Charleston, South Carolina finally fell to the British. This surrender in Charelston left the colony in a unique situation. With the fall of Charleston there was no government in South Carolina except British. Governor Pickens had already been taken out of Charleston just before the fall to prevent his capture by the British. His escape route leads him to North Carolina where he was given protection. There was no Continental force in South Carolina and all military stores in the state where lost to the British in South Carolina. Under these circumstances who would have even contemplated continuing to fight for liberty? Who would under these circumstances step into this obis of hopelessness? What type of person would do this hopeless job with no military supplies, no money, and no chance of help from the Continental Government or Army to continue the fight for liberty in South Carolina?

   The answer is very simple now; it would be Francis Marion “The Swamp Fox.” In those bleak days after the fall of Charleston this was not the simple answer as it is for school children in South Carolina today. After the fall of Charleston he was a wanted man with a bad ankle injury on the run from the British and their Tory supporters who were trying to find him. Not the sly fox that would torment them for years from the swamps and back country roads of South Carolina.

   He escaped the fall of Charleston because of his ankle injury, a blessing later for causing his departure from Charleston before its fall, but at the time of his hiding a major hindrance. During this time of hiding with his family and friends in the Low Country on plantations and small farms he was safe as if he was with a full regiment. With the British and the Tories in full control of South Carolina he could have been turned over for the reward from the British or to prevent lose of farm, jail time or death for those who hide him. Instead he was protected by the people who knew him and his character and they were prepared to risk it all for their Francis Marion not the myth of the Swamp Fox as later would occur. They would protect him until he was well enough to go to North Carolina to join with General Gates as he rebuilt the Southern Continental Army. Why would these people from Kingstree to Georgetown hide Francis Marion with all they could lose if he was found with them? The answer is that these people knew Francis Marion and what he was made of. They protected him because he was one of their own; he was no stranger who would be viewed with suspension to the clannish people of Scots Irish decent and French Huguenots of which Marion was one. Marion is who they had chosen to represent them in the South Carolina Assembly to vote for independence. He was also the commander of the 2nd South Carolina Continental Regiment of the Line a full Lt. Col. of the National Continental Army who had fought at the Battle of Sullivan’s Island to protect South Carolina and lead part of the attack on Savannah as the Americans tried to retake Savannah and failed. His patriotism was without question as he had shown with his vote in the assembly and his sword. Once he was well enough to travel he started towards North Carolina to join Gates with a small group of around twenty men with just their own clothes, horses, and weapons to rejoin the fight against the most powerful nation in the World.

   As we have talked about in other articles, Marion’s reception was not that of a great warrior who had shown his metal many times and had gone through enemy territory at great risk to himself and his followers to rejoin the fight. Instead he was greeted with ridicule by the new Continentals who were reforming the army under Gates. The lone exception was Count Polanski who had fought with Marion in South Carolina and Georgia and he told Gates and all the others who would listen about the abilities of Marion which fell on deaf ears. Gates and his supporters could not get passed the external of Marion, a small man, up in age, still with a bad ankle, and with civilian clothes except for his leather cap of the 2nd SC. Gates character shown here by judging a man by his outer appearance instead of his deeds and words. Gates sent Marion and his band back into South Carolina to destroy boats to prevent Cornwallis and the British Army in Camden form escaping once he attacked him. As history shows Gates plans didn’t go as planned and a second Continental l Army was destroyed in South Carolina, again without Marion being taken or tarnished by defeat.

   This left Marion and his small band three choices, the first was to give up and take the kings pardon. The second was to go back into hiding in North Carolina and wait to see what happens. The third was the hardest, to stay in the Low Country and to keep the fight going. Marion chose the third option, which was to stay and fight. He did this with no military supplies, no money, and no hope of help from anywhere to continue the fight for liberty. Only a man of true character and dedication to the cause would have chosen this hopeless looking path.

   Once Marion had determined his course to continue the fight, who would fight with him? The answer is the militia of Williamsburg. These people were so loyal to Marion that if Marion was given the slightest rebuke or insult the men of Marion would at once went go after the man with or without Marion’s permission. On the other hand if a man was to let Marion or his brigade down it was a slight one ones character that would not be forgiven in the community for ever. Even after the war stories are told of how the worst thing a man could get was a rebuke from Marion, because all knew it was not given without reason and it followed him and his family to the end of days. These people of Williamsburg gave Marion the trust of their lives and the lives of their families, something that he never abused or forget unlike other leaders in South Carolina. These Scotch Irish fought for honor and not riches, which is something people must remember. The men of Marion were not after land or gold, but freedom. This fight for freedom and family shows how people with character and a righteous cause make much better soldiers and leaders.

     You might ask how many of these men followed Marion with the promise of nothing. A core group of sixty was at all times with Marion, with many more ready to come if they were called. The reason for this is twofold, the first is that Marion could not feed a big standing army and the second was that the smaller the group the less chance for the British to find them. When the call of Marion went out at times upwards of two thousand would come with their home spun clothes and personal weapons to fight with Marion. They came from the farms, plantations, and shops from Kingstree to Georgetown and all places in between. This is when the character of Marion and his men shine for liberty and keep the flame of liberty going in the dark times of occupied South Carolina.

   Character doesn’t show when people are looking and the times are good, character shows when times are bad and nobody is looking. This was that time in South Carolina’s history that tried men souls as Thomas Paine talks about. Out of this time of disappear Francis Marion and his Brigade road out of the swamps to attack the British when no one else would and rode nor only on to victory but also on the pages of history to never be forgotten by a state or a nation.

Francis Marion: A Continental Officer with Character

Today, I stumbled upon an artcile on http://www.revolutionarywararchives.org/marion.html written by William A. Simpson, Virginia Society, Sons of the American Revolution. The article highlights Francis Marion's ingredient for success: character. Marion was without a doubt an officer with character which was exhibited by his ability and willingness to perservere even in the toughest times. Simpson writes about how Marion, at one of the lowest points in the American Revolution, continues to fight even when others are being defeated. Also, Simpson points out that a Tory deserter mentions the enemy location nearby where Marion heads to and is successful in taking weapons and prisoners. I think of the Tory deserter and how that event may have been different if he had not supplied Marion with that information. There is no doubt Marion would have perservered but without him having received this vital information you have to wonder if Marion would have been as well known. After this event Marion was front page news across the country. Does this mean the Tory deserter did not have character as Marion or that he realized he was fighting to keep independence out of America's reach. Perhaps he too was a man of character. To me character is what won the race even when the enemy appeared to be in the lead.

Walt Disney talks about Francis Marion

Francis Marion

Francis Marion was a man who became a hero. He rode from the swamps of South Carolina  with his brigade to fight the British when all others had given up hope for the casue of liberty in South Carolina. Why when all others had gone into hiding or given up did he bring the fight to the British? What factos lead Marion and his brigade to fight in these dark times for liberty. This will be the main topic over the next severeal months. Below are some of the topics that we will be looking into.

When some look at Francis Marion as a soldier, some think of him as a man who learned the trade as he fought the British as a fanatic in the swamps of the Low Country of South Carolina. The reality was he was a highly trained military officer who had fought two wars against the Cherokee in the upper parts of South Carolina in the 1760s where he won accolades as a fearless soldier. He was by the time of his exile into the swamps a commissioned Lieutenant Colonel in the Continental Army by Congress and commandant of the Second South Carolina Line in the Continental Army.

Marion had fought in several major engagements as an officer of the 2nd South Carolina. Marion was at the Battle of Sullivan’s Island, fighting from inside the fort on Sullivan’s Island that defeated the British fleet in Charleston harbor and thus saved it from the first assault on Charleston by the British. He had taken part in the American assault to retake Savannah from the British; he had been given independent command of crack troops to protect key American positions in South Carolina, and was known by all as a highly efficient and fearless officer. So to say he was just a partisan soldier who fight the British with backwoodsman almost paints him as a man who lacked formal military skills to fight the British. That somehow he was a lucky man who hit the British and ran because that’s all he knew.

The truth of the matter was that Marion was the right man, at the right place, at the right time that had the skills and a strong belief in the Patriots cause. This strong belief came from the fact that his family was French Huguenots who had left France because their King had revoked the Treaty of Nance that gave them religious freedom as Protestants in Catholic France. Marion’s grandparents taught their children and grandchildren that to be true to your values for they are worth fighting for. Thus the King of France gave America one of her greatest generals through intolerance of religion.

Over the next few months we will be looking into how these parts came together to form the whole of Francis Marion.

Happy Birthday General Marion

The rise of Marion will be up by Saturday.

It is now time to turn the clock back in time and start to look at the rise of Marion and his Brigade.