William Jasper William Jasper ( c . 1750 – October 9 , 1779 ) was a noted American soldier in the Revolutionary War . He was a sergeant in the 2nd South Carolina Regiment . Jasper distinguished himself in the defense of Fort Moultrie ( then called Fort Sullivan ) on June 28 , 1776 . When a shell from a British warship shot away the flagstaff , he recovered the South Carolina flag in the Battle of Sullivan ' s Island , raised it on a temporary staff , and held it under fire until a new staff was installed . Governor John Rutledge gave his sword to Jasper in recognition of his bravery . In 1779 , Sergeant Jasper participated in the Siege of Savannah , led by General Lincoln , which failed to recapture Savannah , Georgia , from the British . He was mortally wounded during an assault on the British forces there . Sgt . Jasper ' s story is similar to that of Sgt . John Newton . Several states have adjacent counties named Jasper and Newton , as these were remembered as a pair , due to the popularity of Parson Weems ' fictionalizing early American history . Several other states have a Jasper County with a county seat of Newton , or vice versa . Coming to America . William Jasper ( named Johann Wilhelm Gasper at the time ) came to America in 1767 on the ship " Minerva " . He and other immigrants hailed from Germany and landed in Philadelphia . He was sixteen at the time but he had decided that whatever the new land held , that he would accept it with open arms . He arrived in Philadelphia in the fall and was fed some warm soup and then put in a line to take an oath of allegiance and sign his name . When it was his turn though , Jasper didn ' t know how to read or write so he couldn ' t even write his name on the list . He had to just put an X down where he should have put his name and next to it the colonist who had signed him in wrote John William Jasper . He then completed a few years of indentured service and moved South to find some land of his own . Becoming A Soldier . Sergeant Jasper settled down in the South , but he had left a girlfriend in Pennsylvania . In order to pay for her journey to come live with him , he joined the military ; by this time the colonists had already rebelled . Although the pay was not great , he soon became a sergeant , earning enough for Elizabeth to join him in Georgia , where they were soon married . Fort Sullivan . Jasper was soon called to Sullivan ' s Island to help protect Charles Towne Harbor . There he served under Colonel William Moultrie , who was in charge of the defense of Charleston against the British Navy . A few days before the British were due to arrive , Colonel Moultrie decided to build a fort to protect the harbor . His officers were sent local plantation owners , to borrow their slaves to help with the creation of the fort . Soldiers , slaves and volunteers banded together to chop down palmettos and use them in its construction . Initially called Fort Sullivan , some time after the battle the fort was renamed to Fort Moultrie . The British arrived before the fort was finished , its whole back remaining incomplete . The Moultrie flag was raised over the structure , and a ten hour siege began . Low on ammunition , the 2nd South Carolina Regiment only fired when ships closed in on the fort . The flag , designed by Moultrie himself at the behest of the Colonial government , was shot down , and fell to the bottom of the ditch on the outside of the fort . Leaping from an embrasure , Jasper recovered the flag , which he tied to a sponge staff ( see the Cannon instruments section of the Cannon operation article ) and replaced on the parapet , where he supported it until a permanent flag staff had been procured and installed . With this rallying point , the Colonists held out until sunset , at which point the British retreated . They did not succeed in taking Charleston until several years later . Because of Jasper ' s heroism , Governor John Rutledge presented him with his personal sword , and offered him a lieutenant ' s commission . He didn ' t accept the offer to become an officer , saying that he would only be an embarrassment since he couldn ' t read , nor write . He was also presented with two silk flags by Mrs . Susannah Elliott . Roving commission . Colonel Moultrie gave him a roving commission to scour the country with a few men , gather information , and surprise and capture the enemy ' s outposts . This commission was later renewed by Francis Marion and Benjamin Lincoln . Prominent among his achievements was the rescue by himself and a single comrade of some American captives from a party of British soldiers , whom he overpowered and made prisoners . Savannah . At the Siege of Savannah , he received his death wound while fastening to the parapet the standard which had been presented to his regiment . His hold , however , never relaxed , and he bore the colors to a place of safety before he died .