The Revolution in the South
After the war in the North came to a stalemate, British commanders decided take the war to the South where there was thought to be an abundance of Loyalist (Americans in favor of British rule) support.
When the British captured Charleston, South Carolina in May 1780, followed by the victory at the battle of Camden, South Carolina in August, British fortunes looked bright.
The Kings Mountain Campaign
In June 1780, the British commander, ordered Major Patrick Ferguson to move north from Ninety Six, South Carolina. Ferguson warned Patriots in the backcountry to proclaim their allegiance to Britain or face destruction "...by fire and sword."
Patriot militia from North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia responded by joining militia from "Over the Mountains" (what is today eastern Tennessee and southwestern Virginia).
After two-week campaign, the had Major Ferguson and his men cornered at Kings Mountain. In one hour, on the afternoon of October 7, 1780 the British commander was killed and his total force was captured, killed, or wounded.
The battle of Kings Mountain and the battle of Cowpens three months later, led to the British abandonment of the South and surrender at Yorktown in October 1781.
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Part
of a larger National Trails System, the Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail stretches approximately 330 miles from Abingdon, Virginia, through East Tennessee, over the high mountains of North Carolina, across the Piedmont of North and South Carolina, to Kings Mountain National Military Park. It is administered by the National Park Service.
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