Battle of Mobley ' s Meeting House The Battle of Mobley ' s Meeting House ( also sometimes called Gibson ' s Meeting House ) was an engagement that occurred during the American Revolutionary War in the Mobley Settlement , Fairfield County , South Carolina during the southern campaign of Lord Cornwallis . On 8 June 1780 , a small body of Whig militia led by Colonel William Bratton surprised a gathering point of Tory militia at Mobley ' s Meeting House , about west of present - day Winnsboro . Many of the Tories tried to escape by descending a steep embankment ; this attempt led to more casualties than were caused by the actual firefight . A few Tories holed up in a blockhouse but were flushed out and defeated . The battle was one a string of small victories by Whig militia that raised morale and support for their cause after the Continental Army suffered major defeats at Charleston and Waxhaws in May 1780 , and preceded more organized resistance led by militia leaders like Thomas Sumter and Francis Marion . Background . Throughout 1779 and early 1780 , the British " southern strategy " to regain control of its rebellious provinces in the American Revolutionary War went well , with successful amphibious operations against Savannah , Georgia and Charleston , South Carolina , and a routing of the few remaining Continental Army troops in South Carolina in the May 29 , 1780 Battle of Waxhaws . The British , in complete control of both South Carolina and Georgia , established outposts in the interior of both states to recruit Tories and to suppress Whig dissent . One of these outposts was established at Rocky Mount , near the confluence of Rocky Creek and the Catawba River , south of present - day Great Falls , South Carolina . This outpost was garrisoned by a regiment of New York Volunteers under the command of Lieutenant Colonel George Turnbull . Another outpost was established at Shirer ' s Ferry , near the Dutch Fork area on the east bank of the Broad River , which was used as a rallying point for Tory militia . Prelude . Tories in the area begain raiding and plundering Whig properties , and in early June 1780 established a camp at Mobley ' s Meeting House , about north of Shirer ' s Ferry , located on a high embankment on a branch of the Little River in Fairfield District . They were under the general command of Colonel Robert Coleman of Fairfield District , Colonel Joseph Fleuquinyan and Captain William Nichols . This group had plundered many of the possessions of Whigs in the area , in particular members of the Hampton family , and had sent John and Henry Hampton as prisoners to Lord Cornwallis at Camden . Thus laden down with booty , they awaited British assistance . Richard Winn , a prominent Whig leader in the area , began to rally supporter to his side . By June 7 he had rallied a force of between one and two hundred men in the New Acquisition District ( roughly York County , South Carolina ) . Its principal commanders were Colonel William Bratton , who had been leading Whig militia since the war began in 1775 , as well as Colonels Edward Lacey , John McClure , Samuel Watson , Cooper , and William Hill . This group was composed in large part of the Whig forces that had just the day before routed and scattered a Tory gathering at Beckhamville , South Carolina . Colonel Bratton was elected overall field commander for the engagement , which rode for Mobley ' s that day , arriving in the early morning hours . They found that the camp , although it had a fortified blockhouse and the meetinghouse itself was of sturdy construction , was not particularly alert against possible attack , and planned a surprise attack . Battle . The attack occurred at daybreak with an assault on the church and blockhouse . The Whig forces attacked from three sides , leaving the fourth uncovered as it was thought that its steep embankment was too hazardous to climb for an attack or to descend in a retreat . However , during the confusion and panic , a number of Tories attempted just that and were injured in the process . Few casualties were noted on either side other than those resulting from falls down the embankment . Much of the plunder was recovered and restored to the owners , and a significant number of prisoners were taken and sent to North Carolina . According to Whig reports , they suffered no casualties in the brief battles , while the Tories suffered a few each killed and captured . Aftermath . After the battle , some of the Whigs immediately left for North Carolina while others stayed in South Carolina and returned to their homes . Colonel Turnbull , the British commander at Rocky Mount , sent the New York Volunteers ( the Green Coat Tories ) under Captain Christian Huck in reprisal . Huck ' s force went on a minor rampage , destroying Richard Winn ' s plantation , the home and parsonage of the Reverend John Simpson , and attacking a small company of Whigs that had been left to defend the ironworks of Colonel William Hill . After the destruction of the ironworks , Whigs continued to muster , leading to the rise of Thomas Sumter as a significant militia leader , and took their vengeance on Huck in July . A similar gathering of Tories in nearby North Carolina was scattered in the June 20 Battle of Ramsour ' s Mill . Historical relevance . Although minor in scope , this engagement and others like it represented important symbolic victories for the Whigs . Mobley ' s Meeting House and the Battle of Beckhamville were the first two Whig successes against a string of defeats at Charleston , Monck ' s Corner , Lenud ' s Ferry , and Waxhaws . Other setbacks at Brandon ' s Defeat and Hill ' s ironworks after the Beckhamville and Mobley ' s Meeting House successes continued to press the Whigs , but rallies at Huck ' s Defeat ( Williamson ' s Plantation ) and Ramsour ' s Mill provided strategically small victories that provided the moral and spiritual support to keep the Whigs going through these dark days . British victories were to continue at Camden and Fishing Creek only two months later , on 16 and 18 August 1780 . Only on 7 October 1780 did a decisive Whig victory at Kings Mountain begin to turn the tide . Legacy . The location of the meeting house is about west of present - day Winnsboro on the waters of the Little River . A marker has been placed nearby , on SSR 18 at a point approximately 1 . 5 miles ( 2 km ) west of the site . At one time , there was a road or pathway that went past the meeting house , but it is inaccessible today .