The Patriot Response to the Cherokee Attacks

Gov. Rutledge

Once survivors began to make their way to settlements where they could get protection and spread the alarm the people of the back country began to rally to protect their homes and loved ones. The first major attempt of organizing resistance was with Major Andrew Williams who sent out the word for the word for his Ninety Six Militia Regiment to assemble to repel the Cherokee onslaught. This effort for some days was meet with futility as few people reported to Williams call because of fear of their homes being attacked while they were gone. Also during this time period riders where sent down to Charlestown to inform the government there of what was transpiring on the frontier. At this point the officials in Charlestown, including General Lee and Gov. Rutledge were still watching for a possible second attack from the British forces located in Charlestown Harbor when word reached them of the new enemy attacking along the frontier. After several days of waiting the South Carolina government released the Third South Carolina under Thomson, the Fifth under Huger, and the Sixth South Carolina under Sumter to begin the track up the Cherokee trail to assist the local militias with dealing with the attacks. The first to get up the Cherokee Trail was the Third South Carolina and Fifth South Carolina with the Sixth following behind them collecting supplies for the troops already in the Back Country and for future operations.

As Major Andrew Williams was continuing gathering his forces the first of the other Militia Regiments began to combine with his force. The first to come to his assistance was that of Major Andrew Pickens know as the “Wizard Owl” or the “Fighting Elder” with his Lower District Militia Regiment.  Other Militia Regiments began to form and moved towards Major Williams camp to help push back the Cherokee and to punish them for these attacks. These other militia regiments included the New Acquisition Regiment, Spartan Regiment, Little River Regiment, Camden Regiment, Fairfield Regiment, Upper Craven County Regiment, a Georgia Militia Regiment under the command of Col. Samuel Jack, and a group of Catawba Indians who had been fighting against the Cherokee for many generations and were more than happy to help settle an old debt with an old enemy.  Another group also offered their help against the Cherokee also, this was the Loyalist of the Back Country who had only a few months before been fighting against the Patriots in the Snow Campaign. These Loyalist were lead by Captain Robert Cunningham who offered to raise his Loyalist Regiment to help defeat the Cherokees. When Captain Cunningham offered his sword and that of his men to fight along with the Patriots they were refused. For logical reason we can understand why Williams refused Cunningham whom he had just been fighting some months before, but the question must also be asked why Cunningham and his men fighting alongside the Cherokee as other Loyalist wasn’t were at this time?  Did they not know this was an attack orchestrated by the crown or did they not want to be known among their friends and peers as those whom had assisted in this unleashing of total war?

William Henry Drayton

As this back country army formed they received unofficial orders for their expedition against the Cherokee nation from William Henry Drayton. In his letter Word to the Wise he told the expedition to “cut up every Indian corn field and burn every Indian town.” This letter was not official and surely not needed as a catalyst to let the back country know what they could or could not do against the Cherokee. These were people use to no prisoners taken type of fighting against the Cherokee Nation as they had already fought with the Cherokee numerous times and   understood this was not a war of territory, but that of survival for each. Whoever was left standing after this war would be masters of these lands and both knew the cost would be total war along the frontier. Once the Cherokee Nation started these attacks the gloves were off and nobody from Charlestown need worry what the back country population would do to the Cherokee once they organized and went out for vengeance.

On July 15^th it was found out by the Patriots that the Loyalist were more involved than what they thought in the 

Cherokee attacks. On July 15^th a siege lead by the Cherokee was broken by the Patriots at Fort Lyndley which was the first check against the Cherokee since the attacks began two weeks earlier. After the siege was lifted, Loyalist were captured dressed as Indians who had help in the attack against the Patriot fort. This only hardened the feelings of the Patriots against the Cherokee and the Loyalist in the battles to come.

As Major Williams force grew he began to move closer to the Cherokee lands to set up a base of operation to shield the settlements from further attack and to act as a jump off point to attack the Cherokee towns across the border.

Our next article will be about the Patriot Counter Attack against the Cherokee.

The Cherokee Campaign; Part One

This campaign against the Cherokee was the result of the Cherokee Nation going to war for King George against the Patriots of the South. On July 1^st, 1776 the Cherokee Nation in an attempt to coordinate with the British attack in Charlestown launched a campaign against the settlers along the Cherokee boarder in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. This attempt to coordinate with General Clinton on Long Island was designed to help the British regain control of South for the crown. The main problem with this use of the Cherokee Nation as an instrument of war against the rebels was that they could not or would not, discriminate against whom they attacked, be it Patriot or Loyalist when this Pandora’s Box of war was unleashed on the weakly defended frontier. This unleashing of the Cherokee Nation brought about the typical horrors of war to all those who were touched by it.

Before we go into the events of this campaign, we must first understand the reasons that caused the Cherokee Nation to take up arms for King George. Cherokee warriors fighting against the English settlers was not a new concept, they had fought that at several different times in the history of the British Colony. The most influential fighting happened during the French and Indian War when the Colonist and British troops defeated the Cherokee Nation and forced them to sign a peace treaty in 1761 ending the conflict between the Cherokee and the British while the war continued on in other parts of the World. The treaty of 1761 guaranteed the Cherokee their land boundaries and that they would be treated fairly in commerce. To ensure the Cherokee were treated fairly the British Government appointed Indian Agents to help make sure all of the treaty agreements were up held and so that the Cherokee would have a person they knew to voice concerns and complaints to. As long as these agents did their job fairly, peace would flourish along the frontier.

However ever as the years passed more and more people began to more closer and closer to the Cherokee boarder as the settlements of the Midlands of South Carolina continued to flourish and grow through trade and agriculture. The growth of the Midland was a result of the Rice and Indigo gentry of the Low Country of South Carolina trying to create a buffer zone between the Cherokee Nation and their highly profitable enterprises along the coast. The Royal Government of South Carolina gave land grants and farming tools to those who agreed to develop this wilderness between the coast and the Cherokee. As a result of these land grants, people from Pennsylvania and  Virginia in North American and Ulster, the Principalities of Germany, Sweden, and other Western European countries traveled by foot, wagon, horse, and boat to get to these advertised fertile lands. This land grant program was so successful that communities began to spring up all along the frontier of South Carolina in such areas as Camden, Fairfield, New Acquisition, Williamsburg, Ninety Six, Waxhaws, Spartan, Saxe-Gotha, Orangeburg, and others. As these communities began to grow and as more people continued to come, settlers started to move father and further up the Cherokee trail from Charlestown to the Cherokees land in order to get their share of the land grants. As a result of this movement of settlers towards their lands the Cherokee  began to rely more and more on the King’s Indian Agents to help control the perceived threat that was inching closer and closer to them each day. Thus a true bond was formed between themselves and their protector the King, through the Indian Agent.

Fortunately for the Crown, an Indian Agent for whom the Cherokee had total trust in was a very loyal subject from Scotland, named Captain John Stuart.

As the South Carolinas began to move closer and closer to war with the mother country in 1775 they knew that Captain Stuart was the key to the Cherokee threat on their frontier. His influence within the Cherokee high councils was well know and that he could either help pacify the Cherokee for the Patriots or send them to war against them was on their minds in dealing with Stuart. The Patriots did not want to fight a two front war against Britain and the Cherokee at the same time for obvious reasons. To this end the local radicals began to undoubtedly pressure him to either join their cause or to be dealt with to ensure the Cherokee would not interfere with their plans. With the pressure of these radicals  beginning to weigh on him and with the Royal Government of South Carolina in exile on board a ship in the harbor, he left Charlestown and his family for the safer haven of the British Florida Colonies to continue his work and communications with the Cherokee.   

At the end of the French and Indian War Spain ceded Florida and France ceded Florida and other territories on the Gulf Coast to England. With this being such a large area England decided to divide the colony of Florida into two parts with the addition of the other territories to form two colonies. The colony that comprised much of Florida except for the panhandle was names East Florida with Saint Augustine the old Spanish capital of Florida becoming the English capital of this colony. To the west they name this colony West Florida and it was composed of the panhandle of Florida and other lands along the gulf coast with its capital being located at Pensacola.  These two new colonies were added to the thirteen along the Atlantic Coast and the Canadian colonies under the Crown’s control. While the thirteen colonies were actively gearing for war the Florida colonies were staying very loyal to the crown and thus became a sort of safe haven for Loyalist who were being driven from their homes in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and other places. As these Loyalist began to gather at the capitals of the different colonies of Florida they began to form their own Loyalist Militia groups such as the Royalist Rangers and others and started to plan their return homes to restore the crown to power and to retaliate against those who had forced them from their lands. From this hot bed of Loyalist activity, John Stuart along with his brother Henry Stuart and other such as Alexander Cameron and Moses Kirkland began to plot how to use their Loyalist and Cherokee friends to bring the crown back into power over their former land.

Richard Richardson

After Captain Stuarts escape from Charlestown and its rebel government to Pensacola in West Florida Loyalist bands were already starting to form in the back country of the colony in order to put down the rebellion. As they began to form their Loyalist Militia in the back country they did so as close to the Cherokee Nation as they could for most Patriots were at this time trying to pacify the nation and were giving them a wide berth in coming anywhere near their lands as to not provoke them. However with Stuarts relationship with the Cherokee the Loyalist where not as fear full of the Cherokee and began to form near them. AS their numbers grew the Loyalist began to strike at different points along the back country and even laid siege to the town of Ninety Six which was a Patriot strong hold in the back country. In order to relieve Ninety Six and to restore Patriot control over the back country the Council of Safety in South Carolina ordered Col. Richard Richardson with Thomas Sumter as his second in command to relieve Ninety Six and to crush the loyalist in the back country. With a thirteen hundred man force he marched to Ninety Six in November of 1775 and relieved the Patriots under threat there and then began to march his force towards the Cherokee Nation boundary line to finish off the Loyalist still trying to use the Cherokee lands for a base of operation against the Patriots. This Loyalist force was lead by Col. Thomas Fletchall and others such as Captain Patrick Cunningham. After several weeks of fighting this campaign against what was left of the Loyalist force in the back country ended in December of 1775. This was to become known as the Snow Campaign in South Carolina lore because of the harsh conditions the men fought under and travelled under. At the end of this campaign the Loyalist were smashed as an organized resistance in the back country of South Carolina with its leaders dead, in prison in Charlestown, in hiding, or making their way to one of the Florida Colonies to regroup with other Loyalist there. 

Snow Campaign Route

              

While the events of the Snow Campaign were playing out in South Carolina, John Stuart was devising what would be a very dangerous plan that if it worked would quickly subdue the back country of the Southern Colonies for the crown in British controlled Florida. His plan was to use the Cherokee Nation to open a second front of the war sort to speak that the rebels would have to divide their resources to fight against. If he could convince the Cherokee to go to war on the side of the British they could help Britain end the war quickly with the numbers of warriors the Cherokee could place on the field of battle along the lightly defended frontier. The major danger of this plan was that once the Cherokee Nation was unleashed on the frontier there could be no pulling them back or stopping them until events had ran their course. We must try to understand, this time period was one of no quarter in terms of fighting on the frontier. Most settlers’ biggest fear was an Indian war with all of its barbarities and now Stuart, the commissioner, whose job it was to pacify the great Cherokee Nation was willing to unleash them on friend and foe alike in order to serve his king. Stuart had to of known what he was proposing to unleash and was still willing to risk this upon the frontier.  With this plan in mind he wrote a letter suggestion to General Gage that Stuart could have the Cherokee Nation coordinate with General Clintons planned Southern Expedition to the South and have the Patriots caught between the might of the crown and the might of the Cherokee Nation. This letter he entrusted to another eager Loyalist named Moses Kirkland whom boarded a ship to Boston to take the letter from Stuart. The ship that Kirkland was riding on was captured by Patriot Privateers and Kirkland did not destroy the letter before he was taken prisoner. Thus the letter feel into the hands of the Patriots who were shocked and appalled that the crown would even think of bringing the Cherokee into the war and all of the events that it would lead to all Patriot and Loyalist who lived along the frontier. Copies of this letter were distributed to all of the Southern Delegates in Congress and to the Southern Capitals for them to distribute to the frontier to show what the crown was willing to do. This letter without a doubt cost the crown many of its loyal supporters in the colonies because of the reality of what it meant to them and their families. 

Next up:  The War begins along the frontier

General Clinton on Long Island; Battle of Sullivan's Island Part 10

On June the 9th, 1776 General Clinton and his advance force of between 500-700 men land on Long Island. When they set foot on Long Island they were the first British troops to try to bring the British Southern Strategy to life. As they landed they began to secure the island and to prepare for their assault against Sullivan’s Island across Breach Inlet at low tide as they planed aboard their ships.

As the troops fanned out across the island they found no resistance to their landing and securing the island for the Crown. General Lee of the patriot forces in Charleston upon hearing of the British initial landings late in the day sent orders to General Moultrie on Sullivan’s Island to send over troops to harass the landing. Since General Moultrie did not receive the orders till after 8PM he decided that it would be best to wait until the next morning on the 10th before sending troops over to Long Island. During the night of the ninth the troops of the Fifth South Carolina under Col. Isaac Huger and the Sixth South Carolina under Thomas Sumter rifle regiments left their camps at Haddrell’s point on Mount Pleasant and went over to Sullivan’s Island to prepare to go attack the British on Long Island on the morning of the tenth. However General Lee had a change of heart and cancelled the previous orders to send troops over to Long Island and had them return to Haddrell’s point instead on the tenth.

On the tenth of June the British threat to Charleston had became all too real to the local government and military officials. On this date the South Carolina government ordered buildings destroyed at the port to make way for artillery placements and for other obstructions that could slow the British if they were to reach the city of Charleston. The town was in uproar and all those who could leave and had not done so on this date made their exit. Rutledge and the Council of Safety had declared martial law and it was in effect in full force now in Charleston. Also General Lee was at this point making a mad dash tour of the defenses of Charleston to try to make them as ready as possible for the coming British attack. His biggest concern was still the fort on Sullivan’s Island where he was trying to still convince the locals to abandon at this point. Also riders were sent out to hurry along any other regiments that were on the road to Charleston to make all speed to its defense such as the 8th Virginia under the command of Col. Muhlenberg.

Once the British Army and the British Marines finished securing the island they started to prepare for the rest of the army to land on Long Island. The main force landed between June 16th and 18th riding in long boats through the surf with men, cannon, and other military supplies. This build up was watched very carefully by the Patriots at Breach Inlet at the Advance post under the command of Lt. Col. Thompson. As the British began the buildup of troops and stores they began to send observation parties to different parts of the island to observe Patriot movements and defenses. Once such party was assigned getting intelligence back to General Clinton about the Patriot defenses across the Breach where they reported back that they had two cannon and defensive land works up across Breach Inlet. This Patriot force directly across from the British at Breach Inlet guaranteed it would be no walk in park as the British splashed across the inlet at low tide as planned.

The Royal Artillery had landed its cannon and were no doubt preparing to provide cover fire for the troops as they dashed through the inlet and raced across Sullivan’s Island to take the unfinished fort as the Royal Navy pounds the fort with its big guns.

All  was going according to plan for Clinton and Parker as the troops on Long Island prepared for the assault under Clinton and the Fleet under Parker was making ready for a massive bombardment with some of the Royal Navies biggest cannons. Then the unthinkable happened to the entire operation. While doing the last minute reconnaissance of the inlet and the surrounding area it was found that the key information that the entire planned was based on was entirely and whole heartedly wrong. To Clinton’s disbelieve it was accurately discovered that Breach Inlet was not 18 inches deep at low tide, but instead seven to ten feet in certain points at low tide. If as the British planned to dash across the inlet on foot their men would be swallowed up in their heavy uniforms with their equipment. Also to make matters worse it was also discovered that very fast currents with a terrible undertow were present at the inlet making navigating it in a boat very difficult in good conditions, but under enemy fire even that more difficult.

So now the entire operation was up in the air, as Clinton with his top commanders Lord Cornwallis and General Vaughn began to develop a plan B on how to best take the fort on Sullivan’s Island with Admiral Parker. Also keep in mind that the entire expedition against Charleston is on a time table, because General Howe was expecting Clinton and his forces to return to him soon for Howe’s planned conquest of New York.

At this point the geography of Sullivan’s Island and Long Island that Clinton found so horrifying should be explained in some detail so that it is easier to understand the decisions made by the British in Formulating plan B. Long Island has the Atlantic Ocean on its east shore, Hamlin Creek which was navigable by ships to its west coast, Spence’s Inlet to its north coast which ships could pass though to Hamlin Creek, and Breach Inlet to the South divided it from Sullivan’s Island. Between Sullivan’s Island and Long Island is a small piece of land called Green Island just to the west of Long Island before you reach Breach Inlet. It would also play a role in the upcoming battle as an artillery placement area for the British. Sullivan’s Island has the Atlantic Ocean to its east coast, with Hamlin Creek boarding its west shore, Breach Inlet to the north, and Charleston Harbor proper to its south. Also between the southern part of the island and the main land of Mount Pleasant was a cove that could hold ships of various sizes. The main land of Mount Pleasant was separated from the islands of Long, Green, and Sullivans by Hamlin Creek and a vast area of salt marsh and pluff mud which is a substance that smells awful and has the same consistency as quick sand.

With this new correct intelligence in mind; Clinton and Parker have to come up with a new plan of attack on Sullivan’s Island. While they were formulating a new plan the Patriots in Charleston were using this time to try to hurriedly finish their defenses with every precious moment the British were giving them.

Part 10 will be up next Monday

Thomas Sumter; Part 8 Battle of Sullivan's Island

Thomas Sumter was from the High Hills of the Santee near present day Sumter, South Carolina. He was born in Virginia but immigrated to South Carolina after he made a name for himself fighting in the French and Indian War against the Cherokee as part of the Virginia Militia as a sergeant. He even went to England after the war as an escort for Indian chiefs the British wished to impress. Upon his return he bought land in the High Hills and opened a store, mill, and farm in 1764. As he began to amass wealth over time in the High Hills, he started to resent the taxes he was paying and as a result, he turned to the Patriot cause.

He was elected to the South Carolina Provincial Congress along with a neighbor by the name of Francis Marion in 1774 that first meet on January 11th, 1775. While a member of the Provincial Congress he voted for many acts to distance South Carolina from England, he was considered a radical by many who were at the meetings. Also during this time period Thomas Sumter became a Captain in the local militia of the High Hills area. As a Captain he and his company participated in the Snow Campaign of December 1775 along with others such as Andrew Pickens,  and Lt. Col. William Thomson with the #rd South Crolina Rangers under the command of Col. Richard Richardson with a total force of 4500 men from South and North Carolina which sought out to destroy Tory strong holds and gathering points in the back country of South Carolina. During the Snow Campaign, Sumter was second in command to Col. Richardson and through this opportunity his leadership shown through as the Patriots smashed the Tories in the back country.

As a result of the name he made for himself in the Snow Campaign in February 1776 Thomas Sumter was appointed Lt. Colonel of a new regiment that was being formed in South Carolina. The new regiment would be called the 2nd South Carolina Rifle Regiment and would be made up of recruits from the Northwestern part of the state. They were to be primarily a sharp shooting regiment hence the name rifle regiment; instead of muskets they were issued rifles when possible as their primary weapon. Their name would later be changed to the 6th South Carolina a fact which will help the reader at a later date. They became an active regiment on March 25th, 1776 in Charleston after Sumter began recruiting for the regiment in the back country.

The 2nd South Carolina Rifles at the Battle of Sullivan’s Island under the command of Lt. Col. Sumter was stationed at Haddrell’s Point on Mount Pleasant on June 6th, 1776. They were being used as a ready reserve force with other regiments to meet the British if they should try to land on Mount Pleasant, but could also be ferried over to Sullivan’s Island if needed.

So on June the 6th we Find Thomas Sumter not yet the “Gamecock” he would become, eagerly waiting with his men to see what the British next move was to be.