First Person Accounts of
the Battle of King's Mountain;
One Tory, one American

From the diary of Captain Alexander Chesney, Tory Soldier.

Actual diary lodged with the British Museum. Excerpt taken from the original publishing in the TENNESSEE HISTORICAL MAGAZINE, April 1921.

Oct. 4th. Our spies from Holston, as well as some left at the Gap of the mountain brought us word that the rebel force amounted to 3,000 men; on which we retreated along the north side of the Broad river, and sent the wagons along the south side as far as the Cherokee ford, where they joined us. We marched to King's Mountain and there camped with a view of approaching Lord Cornwallis army and receiving support. By Col. Ferguson's orders I sent express to the Militia officers to join us here, but we were attacked [October 7] before any support arrived by 1500 picked men from Gilbert town under command of Cols. Cleveland, Shelby, and Campbell, all of whom were armed with rifles, well mounted, and of course could move with the utmost celerity. So rapid was the attack that I was in the act of dismounting to report that all was quiet and the pickets on the alert when we heard their firing about a half mile off. I immediately paraded the men and posted officers. During this short interval I received a wound which however did not prevent me from doing my duty; and going towards my horse I found he had been killed by the first discharge.

King's Mountain from its height would have enabled us to oppose a superior force with advantage had it not been covered with wood which sheltered the Americans and enabled them to fight in their favorite manner. In fact after driving in our pickets, they were able to advance in three divisions under separate leaders to the crest of the hill in perfect safety until they took post and opened an irregular but destructive fire from behind trees and other cover. Col. Cleveland was first perceived and repulsed by a charge led by Col. Ferguson. Col. Shelby next, and met a similar fate, being driven down the hill, last by Col. Campbell, and by desire of Col. Ferguson. I presented a different front which opposed it with success. By this time the Americans who had been repulsed regained their position, and sheltered by the trees poured in a destructive fire. In this manner the engagement was maintained an hour, the mountaineers flying when in danger from a bayonet charge,and returned as soon as the British faced about to repel another of their party. Col. Ferguson was at last recognized by his gallantry, although wearing a hunting shirt and fell pierced by seven balls, at the moment he had killed the American Col. Williams with his left hand. *

I had just rallied the troops a second time by Ferguson's orders when Captain Depeyster succeeded to command after gave up and sent out a flag of truce, but as the Americans resumed firing, afterwards ours renewed under the supposition that they would not give quarter. And a dreadful havoc took place until the flag was sent out the second time when the work of destruction ceased. The Americans surrounded us with double line, and we grounded arms, with the loss of one third of our numbers. I was wounded in the first fire, but was so much occupied that I scarce noticed until the action was over. We passed the night where we surrendered amidst the dead and the groans of dying, who had not surgical aid or water to quench their thirst. Early next morning we marched at rapid pace towards Gilbert town between double lines of Americans, the officers in the rear and obliged to carry two rifles each, which was my fate although wounded and stripped of my shoes and buckles in an inclement weather without cover or provision until Monday night when each was served with an ear of corn. At Gilbert town a mock tryal was held and 24 sentenced to death, 10 of whom suffered before the approach of Tarleton's force obliged them to move towards the Yadkin, cutting and striking us by the road in a savage manner. Col. Cleveland then [October 11] offered to enlarge me on condition that I would teach his regiment one month the exercise practiced by Col. Ferguson, which I refused, although he swore I would suffer death at the Moravian town. Luckily his threat was not put to the test as I had the good fortune to make my escape one evening when close to that place.

* Accounts differ on the way in which Ferguson met his end. Conflicting accounts have Ferguson dying in battle at different times from different wounds inflicted by various men. I've no idea which version is the accepted one. All accounts I read seem to agree, however, that Lord Ferguson died in battle, and not on the forced March after, or the hangings and trial which followed.

From an account by Benjamin Sharp, American, Virginia Militiaman.

Originally published in the AMERICAN PIONEER, February 1843.

As well as I can remember, some time in August, in the year 1780, Col. McDowell, of North Carolina, with three or four hundred men, fled over the mountains to the settlements of Holston and Watauga, to evade the pursuit of a British officer by the name of Ferguson, who had the command of a large detachment of British and Tories. Our militia speedily embodied, all mounted on horses—the Virginians under command of Col. William Cambell, and the two western counties of North Carolina, now Tennessee, under Cols. Isaac Shelby and John Sevier; and as soon as they joined McDowell, he re-crossed the mountains, and formed a junction with Col. Cleveland, with a fine regiment of North Carolina militia.

We were now fifteen or eighteen hundred strong, and considered ourselves equal in number, or at least a match for the enemy, and eager to bring them to battle; but Colonel McDowell, who had the command, appeared to think otherwise, for although Ferguson had retreated on our crossing of the mountains, he kept us marching and counter-marching, for eight days without advancing a step towards our object. At length a council of the field-officers was convened, and it was said in camp, how true I will not pretend to say, that he refused in council to proceed without a general officer to command the army, and to get rid of him, the council deputed him to General Green, at headquarters, to procure a general. Be this as it may, as soon as the council rose Colonel McDowell left the camp and we saw no more of him during the expedition.

As soon as he was fairly gone, the council re-assembled, and appointed Col. William Campbell our commander, and within one hour after, we were on our horses and in full pursuit of the enemy. The British still continued to retreat, and after hard marching for some time, we found our progress much retarded by our footmen and weak horses that were not able to sustain the duty. It was then resolved to leave the footmen and weak horses under the command of Capt. William Neil, of Virginia, with instructions to follow as fast as his detachment could bear.

Thus disencumbered, we gained fast upon the enemy. I think on the 7^th [6^th] day of October, in the afternoon, we halted at a place called the Cowpens, in South Carolina, fed our horses, and ate a hasty meal of such provisions as we had procured, and, by dark mounted our horses, and after marching all night, crossed Broad river by the dawn of day; and although it rained considerably in the morning, we never halted to refresh ourselves or horses.

About twelve o'clock it cleared off with a fine cool breeze. We were joined that day by Col. Williams, of South Carolina, with several hundred men; and in the afternoon fell in with three men who informed us that they were just from the British camp, that they were posted on the top of King's Mountain, and that there was a picket-guard on the road not far ahead of us. These men were detained lest they should find means to inform the enemy of our approach, and Col. Shelby, with a select party, undertook to surprise and take the picket; this he accomplished without firing a gun or giving the least alarm, and it was hailed by the army as a good omen.

We then moved on, and as we approached the mountain, the roll of the British drum informed us that we had something to do. No doubt the British commander thought his position a strong one; but our plan of attack was such as to make it the worst for him he could have chosen. The end of the mountain to our left descended gradually to a branch; in front of us the ascent was rather abrupt, and to the right was a low gap through which the road passed. The different regiments were directed by guides to the ground they were to occupy, so as to surround the eminence on which the British were encamped; Campbell's on the right, along the road; Shelby's next, to the left of him; Sevier's next, and so on, till last the left of Cleveland's to join the right of Campbell's, on the other side of the mountain, at the road.

Thus the British Major found himself attacked on all sides at once, and so situated as to receive a galling fire from all parts of our lines without doing any injury to ourselves. From this difficulty, he attempted to relieve himself at the point of the bayonet, but failed in three successive charges. Cleveland, who had the farthest to go, being bothered in some swampy ground, did not occupy his position in the line till late in the engagement. A few men drawn from the right of Campbell's regiment, occupied this vacancy; this the British commander discovered, and here he made his last powerful effort to force his way through and make his escape; but at that instant Cleveland's regiment came up in gallant style; the Colonel, himself, coming by the very spot I occupied, at which time his horse had received two wounds, and he was obliged to dismount.

Although fat and unwieldy, he advanced on foot with signal bravery; but was soon re-mounted by one of his officers, who brought him another horse. This threw the British and Tories into complete disorder, and Ferguson seeing that all was lost, determined not to survive the disgrace; he broke his sword, and spurred his horse into the thickest of our ranks, and fell covered with wounds, and shortly after his whole army surrendered with discretion. The action lasted about one hour, and for most of the time was fierce and bloody.

I cannot clearly recollect the statement of our loss, given at the time, but my impression now is that it was two hundred and twenty-five killed, and about as many or a few more wounded; the loss of the enemy must have been much greater. The return of the prisoners taken was eleven hundred and thirty-three, about fifteen hundred stand of arms, several baggage wagons, and all their camp equipage fell into our hands. The battle closed not far from sundown, so that we had to encamp on the ground, with the dead and wounded, and pass the night among groans and lamentations.

The next day, as soon as we could bury our dead, and provide litters to carry our wounded, we marched off to regain the upper country for fear of being intercepted by a detachment from the army of Lord Cornwallis, for we were partly behind his quarters, between him and the British garrison of Ninety Six. A British surgeon, with some assistants, were left to attend their wounded; but the wounded Tories * were unprovided for, and their dead left for their bones to bleach upon the mountain.

That afternoon we met Capt. Neil coming on with his detachment, and encamped for the night on a large deserted Tory plantation, where was a sweet potato patch sufficiently large to supply the whole army. This was most fortunate, for not one in fifty of us had tasted food for the last two days and nights, that is, since we left the Cowpens. Here, the next morning, we buried Col. Williams, who had died of his wounds on the march the day before. We still proceeded towards the mountains as fast as our prisoners could bear.

When we had gained a position, where we thought ourselves secure from a pursuit, the army halted for a day, and a court was detailed to inquire into various complaints against certain Tories for murders, robberies, house-burning, etc. The court found upwards of forty of them guilty of the crimes charged upon them, and sentenced them to hang; and nine of the most atrocious offenders were executed that night by fire-light, the rest were reprieved by the commanding officer.

We set off early next morning, and shortly after the rain began to fall in torrents, and continued the whole day, but, instead of halting, we rather mended our pace in order to cross the Catawba river before it should rise and intercept us; this we effected late in the night, and halted by a large plantation, when Major McDowell—brother of the Colonel, and who commanded his brother's regiment the whole route, and was a brave and efficient officer—rode along the lines, and informed us that the plantation belonged to him, and kindly invited us to take rails from his fences, and make fires to warm and dry us.

I suppose being the last of October, and every one, from the Commander-in-Chief to the meanest private, was as wet as if he had just been dragged through the Catawba river. We rested here one day, and then proceeded, by easy marches, to the heads of the Yadkin river, where we were relieved by the militia of the country, and permitted to return home, which those of us who had not fallen in battle or died of wounds, effected some time in November.

During the whole of this expedition, except a few days at the outset, I neither tasted bread nor salt, and this was the case with nearly every man; when we could get meat, which was but seldom, we had to roast and eat it without either: sometimes we got a few potatoes, but our standing and principal rations were ears of corn, scorched in the fire or eaten raw. Such was the price paid by the men of the Revolution for our Independence.

Here I might conclude, but I cannot forbear offering a small tribute to the memory of our commanding officers. Col. Williams; Cleveland, I have already spoken of; Sevier, I did not see in the battle, but his bravery was well attested; three times my eye fell upon our gallant commander [Campbell], calm and collected, encouraging the men, and assuring them of victory. At the close of the action, when the British were loudly calling for quarters, but uncertain whether they would be granted, I saw the intrepid Shelby rush his horse within fifteen paces of their lines, and commanded them to lay down their arms, and they should have quarters. Some would call this an imprudent act, but it showed the daring bravery of the man. I am led to believe that three braver men, and purer patriots, never trod the soil of freedom, than Campbell, Shelby and Sevier.

* Tories were many times considered traitors by their fellow Americans, and sometimes treated much more harshly in battle than the English with whom they fought. It is not, therefore, surprising the English in this battle were allowed surgeons and burials while the Tories were left to die of their wounds, rot unburied on the field, or later hung as traitors by the mountain militiamen on a forced march deeper into the safety of the mountains. Then again, it was not unheard of for fellow Southern Tory soldiers to be allowed a sly release home with promises to quit the British fight altogether. C'est le vie; c'est le guerre. Still, in this instance, the mountain men tended not to be very forgiving. (Anyone heard of the Hatfield and McCoys?) How much this was exasperated by the fact that some of the Tory soldiers in the Battle of King's Mountain were Yankees and not fellow Southerners, I've no idea. There are, however, some accounts that Southern Tory soldiers were allowed to escape this battle, while still others ran off rather than fight. Who can say what is true? One other thing I should point out, the numbers given for the participants in the battle vary in almost every single account I've read, sometimes drastically. Anyone interested in the actual official numbers, should refer to the Army War College accounting. I have used the most widely accepted numbers in my own recounting of this battle.

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