Battle of the Thames
After Kentucky became a state in 1792, South was commissioned a captain in the state militia. In this capacity, he participated in several campaigns against the Indians. By the outbreak of the War of 1812, he had risen to colonel of the Kentucky Mounted Volunteers. He participated in both the Battle of the Thames and the Battle of New Orleans. For bravery at the Battle of New Orleans, he received a brevet to the rank of brigadier general. Years after the war, Richard Mentor Johnson called on South to verify his claim that he (Johnson) had killed the Shawnee chief Tecumseh at the Battle of the Thames.