Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1858-03-25
BATTLE OF KINGS MOUNTAIN.

BATTLE OF KINGS MOUNTAIN.
An interesting article in the January No.
of the University Magazine-the materials
for which We suppose were furnished by Gov.
Swain-is devoted to sketch of the life
and character of Col. James Williams, one
of the FIVE commanders at Kings Mountain,
and the only one of them who fell in the
glorious victory. After devoting ten pages
to the subject, the writer closes as follows:
mo man has ever seen-no man will ever
sea- Kings Mountain muster roll. None
ever existed The followers of Fitz James
and Rhoderic Dhu, with few exceptions, can
be individualized by history with as much
certainty as the gallant men who answered
the silver whistle of Ferguson with the death
defying shout Of Williams and the echoing
voice of thousand rifles.
1t perhaps impossible to show with much
certainty, not merely who they were, but
whence they came. Col. Preston, in his
address at the anniversary celebration of
1855, supposes the little army to have been
composed 'of men, nearly in equal numbers
from Virginia, North Carolina and South
Carolina If North Carolina had been as
fully and as ably represented at the Celebra-
tion as in the battle feld-at the feast as in
the fght-we would probably have had a
different estimate.
"Leave slaughter to the Turkish hordes,
And shed the blood Of Solos vein"
1t appears from official acco-nts Of the bat.
tie, recently exbumcd by Mr.. Lossing, from
the papers of Gen. Gates, that on the25th
of September 1880, COL Campbell with 400
Virginians, Col. Isaac Shelby with 24O men
from Washington county, N. c., assembled
at Watauga, where they were joined by Col.
Charles Mcdowell with 16O men from Burke
and Rutherford. They begun the march
across the mountain on the 26th, and the
30th, on the Catawba, their forces were aug
mented by the addition of 25O men from
Wilkes and Sury, under Col. Cleveland.
When they reached the Cowpens on the 9Th
October, they were met by Col. James Will
liams. At the time the junction was form
ed with Williams, the army was composed
of 400 Virginians under Campbell, and 900
North Carolinians under Shelby, Sewer, Nc.
Dowell and Cleveland. From these 1890
men from Virginia and North Carolina, and
from Williams regiment, 900 of the best
horsemen were selected for the attack and
on the following day the victory was won.
The number of men who fought under
Williams, will never be ascertained, and the
proportion from South Carolina, is a matter
perhaps of still greater uncertainty.
The authority to raise a company of mount
ed men in Caswell, indicates one element of
Williams's regiment The father of the
Hon. Anderson Mitchell, of Wilkes, was a
member of the Caswell company.
The second ascertainable element of this
regiment is the sixty men under Hambright
and Chronicle, from then Tyron, now Lincoln
county.
The third (perhaps) about 80 Georgians,
under Major Chandler and Capt. johnson
The fourth South Carolinians, in what pro-
pOrtlon we are unable to state with much
confidence Of accuracy. General Lenoir,
who fought as Captain under Cleveland in
his account Of the battle casually remarks
that,
The advanced party of mountain infantry
being Joined by Col. Williams, with few
South Carolina militia, in the evening arri-
we'd at the place called Cowpens in South
Carolina &c. The South Carolinians un-
der Williams were doubtless the elite of the
State, probably from the Waxhaw in larger
proportion than any other settlement, and
braver men than, these, who with the infant
jackson were nurtured in the military school
of Davie, were nowhere to be found.